The origins of the second incarnation of Fletcher's
underground BattleMech dueling circuit are far less clear then the first, even
though its lifespan was far longer. What is known is that the first battles
were occurring by the late 3080s, sometime after the signing of the Treaty of
Tikonov. At this point, the circuit was not well organised and rather small,
with relatively few participants. Many of them were fugitives already,
including survivors of Mercenary units that had worked for the Word of Blake
during the Jihad and been declared outlawed.
In its earliest days, the biggest boost to the reborn circut
was actually a side effect of the fledgling Republic government and one of its
key programs. Despite the successes of the Military Resources Redemption
Program (MRRP), a not inconsiderable amount of BattleMechs and other equipment
managed to slip through the cracks in a number of ways. In some cases, 'Mechs
that were officialy destroyed were actually salvaged, while others saw numerous
destroyed 'Mechs cobbled together to make functional wholes. In some cases,
MechWarriors who refused to give up their machines either passed them on to
criminal groups, or simply deserted rather than hand them over.
Similarly, the winnowing of the Mercenary trade in the late
31st and early 32nd century created a number of opportunities for such criminal
activities. As many mercenary units either reduced their strengths or collapsed
due to a lack of income, a number of warriors looked for other opportunities.
This lead to a small and not inconsiderable trickle of men and machines towards
the unregulated arenas on Fletcher, further enhancing the league. While
BattleMech smuggling had always been an issue within the Republic, the Yakuza
in Prefecture II, chafing under what they saw as unreasonable restrictions on
their activities, served as a conduit for traffickers.
By the early 32nd century these factors had allowed the league
to grow considerably and become a lot more organized. A regular series of
venues were set up, many of them based in the numerous ruins scattered across
the world from centuries of warfare. Fort both security and safety reasons,
live audiences were rare, with the matches being instead recorded for distribution.
Soon recordings were being sent out across the Republic and even further,
bringing income into the league. All of this remained firmly in the control of
Fletcher's criminal groups, who ran betting rings and 'managed' the warriors in
the competition.
Republic authorities were far from blind to the league’s existence,
and tried numerous times to shut it down. Undercover operations and raids did
serve to disrupt its activities and several times did threaten its operations.
One sting operation netted the Republic a number of high-profile competitors,
including Gonzalo Sanchez, a warrior who had become notorious - and popular -
for his habit of crushing the cockpits of his opponents. In each case, the
league would roll back its activities and "play dead" for a while
until the watchful eyes of the law focused elsewhere, and then begin to ramp up
its activities again.
Unfortunately, elements within the Republic also aided the
group in a number of ways. As a result of the Republic's resettlement programs,
Fletcher became home to a major Wolf Clan enclave as well as a militia cluster.
At some point, the Wolves became aware of the underground dueling circuit, but
rather then choosing to do anything about it, they instead covertly embraced
it. Wolf warriors would discretely enter the competition as a way of seeking
the honour and glory that many felt was being denied to them by the Republic,
while their leaders would quietly turn a blind eye to what was going on. By the
3120s, Wolf warriors were a regular fixture on the circuit, but thanks to the efforts
of their commanders, none were ever caught up in any attempts to shut it down.
The HPG blackout and subsequent chaos proved to be both a
blessing and a setback to the competition. With the Republic distracted, its
operators were free to step up activity and become more aggressive in their
expansion. Likewise, the swelling of the Steel Wolves with abthaka adoptees created many more willing warriors eager to try
out their mettle. On the other hand, the collapse of the HPG network severely
hampered distribution, and thus began to strangle the flow of income into the
group.
As the conflict within the Republic grew, the organization
began to find itself challenged in other ways. Various groups began looking to
the circuit as a source of recruitment, with Jacob Bannson being particularly
active in using it to fuel his growing private army. (EDITOR'S NOTE: Known Band
of Five Member Milo "Crusher" Jabrowsky was a member of the circuit before
his recruitment. His current status is unknown, being apparently caught behind
the walls of Fortress Republic when they went up). Likewise, as the Steel
Wolves left Fletcher to engage in their foolhardy conquest of Terra they took
with them most of their warriors, further draining the competition.
Despite this, the competition managed to survive and
continue to operate, albeit on a reduced scale to its pre-Blackout heights. It
survived the annexation of Fletcher by the Federated Suns after the formation
of Fortress Republic, and given the Federated Suns' state of affairs, is likely
to do such for the foreseeable future. As long as there is a steady supply of
renegade, criminal or even just desperate MechWarriors to fuel it, the organization
will always have new recruits. Likewise, as long as there is a regular audience
for unrestrained, unrestricted violence and bloodshed, they will have buyers
eager to snap up their product.
(EDITOR'S NOTE: In January 3145, Fletcher was captured by
the Capellan Confederation. What effect this has had on the league, if any, is unknown
at the time of publication)
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