Part V –
New Age
The Blackout caught everyone unprepared, and in its aftermath the
mercenary Market exploded as chaos set in across the Republic of the Sphere.
Like many others, the Irregulars began casting about in the suddenly active
market for work, while also trying to recoup their depleted strength with
whatever assets they could find and procure.
By early 3133, the Irregulars were active in the Republic, working
contracts for whatever faction would hire them. The Swordsworn proved to be an
especially lucrative source of work, the Irregulars serving
as a quick response unit while also raiding across several prefectures. While
the unit scored several successes, it also became clear that Bors was not
the best commander. More and more often he would be delegating command
decisions to his subordinates while spending his time rubbing shoulders with
his employers, and his actual battlefield value proved to be somewhat dubious.
It was in this environment that his only child, Irisz, began to
really shine. A lieutenant in the Irregulars’ hodge-podge BattleMech company,
she had shown considerable skill as both a MechWarrior and a battlefield
commander. Both came to play in late 3133 in a raid against the Steel Wolves
that had gone wrong, with a portion of the Irregulars forces, including Bors
himself, trapped and encircled. Rallying her lance and gathering what assets
she could. Irisz staged a successful breakthrough that helped turn the
situation around, delivering a sound defeat to the Wolves while also rescuing
their personnel.
In the aftermath of the battle, Irisz began to take more and more
responsibility for the unit’s operations, even though she was neither its
commander nor its XO. Bors, however, supported her as she did, clearly grateful
for her rescue while also clearly grooming her to take command of the unit. As
the situation in the Republic continued to escalate throughout 3134 and into
3135, Irisz was spending more and more time in command and taking an
increasingly prominent role in running the unit.
Abruptly, in August 3135 at the peak of operations, Bors announced
that he had to take an extended leave from the unit due to “family matters”,
travelling to Prefecture X in the heart of the Republic. In his absence, Irisz would
be acting commander of the unit and maintain matters until he returned. While
still young, Irisz accepted the responsibility, feeling that it was her duty to
do such.
When the Walls of Fortress Republic went up, Bors had still not
returned to the unit. Reaching the logical conclusion that he was, in effect,
trapped inside, Irisz took command of the unit full time. While there were
angry murmurings at this decision, her statement that she would “review the
situation when (Bors Magyari) returns and do what seems best for the unit at
that point” did serve to quell much of the dissent.
Now firmly in command, Irisz went to work on a harsh restructuring
program, aimed at clearing the deadwood that had accumulated under two decades
of her father’s spotty management. The unit, having grown in the last three
years, was again downsized as she cleared out questionably effective assets or
those that had been acquired for the sake of numbers. Their armoured assets,
themselves a mish-mash of assorted units with dubious coherence, were massively
rolled back. Following them were the infantry, with their conventional forces
effectively disbanded.
In early 3136, the new, leaner and more effective Irregulars
emerged, again ready for business. Irisz deliberately chose low-key contracts
at first, aiming to build experience and coherency of the new unit before
throwing them in at the deep end. However, the rapidly disintegrating situation
in the Republic Territories changed all that, with the Irregulars soon involved
in actions across the former Republic and, as the situation further escalated,
further beyond.
The result was a sharp learning curve, with the new Irregulars being
forced to quickly change and adapt to the rapidly shifting situations. Missions
for planetary powers trying to hold back the tide of the Cappellan and Combine forces
became common, but ultimately became futile as the surge continued. The
Irregulars did see some success at raiding against the Wolf Clan incursion into
Prefecture IX, only to have contracts cancelled when the Wolf forces abruptly
vanished.
Operation HAMMERFALL provided the Irreguars with more work, albeit
not for the Lyran invaders. Rather, the unit saw action working for the Oriente
Protectorate against a wide variety of opponents. Even after the reformation of
the Free Worlds League, the unit remained busy with various operations,
including a campaign against forces loyal to a rebellious senator in the
newly-formed Augustine Alliance.
After spending so long in the Free Worlds Leauge, a contract from
the Lyrans seemed a sudden and strange change of pace. However, work was, as
they say, work, and Irisz was not going to refuse something that would keep her
men fed and equipped. Initially the Irreguars were fending off Pirates and
rooting them out, ensuring that nobody took advantage of the Lyran
preoccupation. However, things quickly changed.
Abruptly, the Irregulars were rotated back into the centre of the
Commonwealth, a new contract offering them generous salvage conditions and
bonuses for fending off the sudden Clan advances. As the situation degenerated
further, the Irregulars were more and more often engaged in counter-raiding or
extraction missions, chiefly against the Wolf Empire, as the Lyrans tried to
stave off the inevitable.
Faulty intelligence on the part of the Lyrans would cost the unit
dearly, however. When faced with an unexpected Falcon attack, the Irreguars
were caught off-guard and forced to fall back. Pushing their advantage, the
Falcon forces surrounded, isolated and then completely annihilated an entire
lance before the Irregulars could respond.
In the aftermath, Irisz chose not to renew her contract with the
LCAF, despite the generous terms being offered. Instead, the Irregulars limped
back to Galatea, intent on rebuilding. New recruits have been added to the
unit’s roster, but their integration is still a long way off.
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