Mercenary's Star (novel)

This article is about the novel. For the mercenary "homeworld", see Mercenary's Star.
Mercenary's Star.jpg
Mercenary's Star
Product information
Type Novel
Author William H. Keith, Jr.
Pages 367 (original)
416 (reprint)
Cover Artwork David R. Deitrick (original)
Boris Vallejo (reprint)
Interior Artwork Jane Aulisio (reprint)
Illustrations Duane Loose
Publication information
Publisher FASA (original)
Roc Books (reprint)
First published June 1987 (original)
November 1992 (reprint)
ISBN-10 0451451945
MSRP $3.95
Content
Era Succession Wars era
Timeline 01 October 3025 - 30 August 3026[1]
Series Saga of the Gray Death Legion
Preceded by Decision at Thunder Rift
Followed by The Price of Glory


Mercenary's Star, by William H. Keith, Jr., is the second book of the Saga of the Gray Death Legion. It narrates the newly minted unit's first mercenary contract, supporting a struggling rebellion on the planet Verthandi.

The novel was made available on BattleCorps on 26 October 2010 as a PDF file (text only, without cover, pictures, or any other interior artwork except for the usual BattleCorps frame graphics). The PDF copy includes a disclaimer stating that it was created from a pre-final edition text that might differ from the printed version and that canon-wise, the print edition trumps the PDF edition.

An unabridged audio book edition narrated by Tren Sparks was released on 12 February 2021 [1].

From the back cover (1992 edition)[edit]

Galatea. The Mercenary's Star. Even the most down on their luck units can find work here. Leading the newly-formed Gray Death Legion is proving to be a hard task for Grayson Death Carlyle, so when a good job comes their way, he is only too happy to take it. The job: train the local resistance on the planet Verthandi to resist their Draconis Combine masters.

But things do not go well almost from the moment the Legion arrives at Verthandi. And Grayson may find that repeating his successes of the past may not be so easy this time.

Summary[edit]

Desperate for virtually any contract, the Gray Death Legion eventually accepts a contract with one Citizen Devic Erudin from Verthandi, the third planet of the Norn system, a former Lyran Commonwealth planet that had to be surrendered to the Draconis Combine around 3015 and is now ruthlessly exploited by House Kurita. A local guerrilla force has been fighting the Kurita forces for the past decade, but the iron grip of the Combine's Governor General Nagumo on Verthandi is tightening. The Gray Death Legion is hired to break through the blockade, smuggle a consignment of arms and equipment to the rebels, and provide cadre duty for at least 900 hours in-system according to the initial contract. Most Gray Death Legion members have misgivings about the contract because if the mission fails they will be stranded on Verthandi as insurgents and at the mercy of the excessively cruel Draconis Combine. However, when given the option to back out, none of the mercenaries do.

The unit sets out on the freighter DropShip Phobos, disguised as a Union-class military DropShip. Brought to Norn by Renfred Tor's JumpShip Invidious, the Phobos assumes a false identity, but a spy on Galatea has already alerted the enemy authorities of their arrival. On 25 October 3025, the Phobos is intercepted by aerospace fighters and DropShips from the base on Verthandi's moon, Verthandi Alpha. The freighter manages to break through, suffering severe damage and the loss of the Legion's two Chippewa fighters in the process. One of the Chippewa pilots, Sue Ellen Klein, survives and is captured by Kurita forces.

The Phobos crash-lands on a shore 200 km from its intended rendezvous with the rebel leadership, but makes contact with rebel forces and fends off a hasty attack by Kurita troops. It is subsequently set afloat on the Azure Sea with a jury-rigged steam propulsion system, headed for what is hopefully a secure port 500 km away under the cover of night and a storm front to prevent its capture by the Kurita forces. Realizing that their only chance to leave the planet again without being killed or captured by the merciless Kurita forces is for the rebellion to succeed the Gray Death Legion begins training the 'Free Verthandi Rangers', a disparate rebel army of BattleMechs, armed IndustrialMechs, infantry and support vehicles. However, the rebel leadership aims for a quick victory. Against Carlyle's advice, their Rangers soon launch an ill-fated attack against the capital city of Regis, hoping to decapitate the occupying forces' government. Although the Gray Death Legion was explicitly not hired to fight, Carlyle moves his 'Mechs to Regis on a hunch and, involving his unit in the fight against orders, manages to save some of the trapped Rangers and lead them back to their secret base on Fox Island. Almost against his will, he becomes their war leader following the death of the rebel general in the attack.

The Kurita forces dupe the captive Sue Ellen Klein into revealing the name of one of the Gray Death Legion's contacts, which in turn allows them to pinpoint their secret base. Nagumo orders a DEST raid against the base which costs the Rangers most of their equipment and support personnel, and most importantly, their support infrastructure. The bulk of the Rangers were away on a mission thus survive the attack. Under Carlyle's skilled leadership they begin a very successful guerrilla campaign against the Kurita occupation, and civil unrest spreads across Verthandi.

Carlyle's troops manage to send a signal to the Invidious when it reappears at the jump point (as had been prearranged at the onset of the mission). Following Carlyle's message Renfred Tor returns to Galatea to organize support for the Free Verthandi Rangers. He contacts Salvor Steiner-Reese, the Lyran ambassador, unaware that the Kurita spy on Galatea was ordered to send assassins after him. Although initially reluctant, Steiner-Reese is convinced by the assassins' attack that Verthandi is obviously important enough for House Kurita to try and prevent Tor from obtaining Steiner-Reese's help.

Meanwhile on Verthandi, the Gray Death Legion moves back into the abandoned Fox Island facility, assuming it to be the last place where House Kurita will look for their base. Governor General Nagumo inadvertently sparks a full rebellion by arresting and executing high-ranking government officials for supporting the rebellion, after having learned their names from a captive. Nagumo's Lord, none other than Duke Hassid Ricol, Carlyle's nemesis, arrives on-planet and is decidedly unhappy about the situation he finds. The cunning Duke divines that Carlyle's rebels would have reacquired the Fox Island base. However, Carlyle expected as much. When the Kurita forces attack, the base is heavily mined and fortified, but in reality just a decoy while the Free Verthandi Rangers use the opportunity to strike at the airfield near the University (and government center) to deny the Kurita troops their aerospace fighter support forthwith. Going against the plan, the Verthandi rebels storm the University tower when they perceive an opening in the enemy defense. The result is a rout for the Free Verthandi Rangers, and a falling-out between Carlyle and Verthandian Colonel Tollen Brasednewic.

Duke Ricol decides to leave Nagumo in charge after the battle (for lack of a better alternative) and leaves the planet. The Kurita control is soon reduced to Regis and the starport area. Nagumo realizes the rebels are still dependent on raiding Kurita supply depots, and prepares one to be a trap. Led by Carlyle, the raiding force narrowly escapes the trap but Lori Kalmar's Locust is destroyed and she is captured. Arguing that his executive officer could be tortured to reveal critical information to the enemy, Carlyle tries to organize an extraction raid against the University Tower (where the Kurita prisoners are held and tortured) but cannot bring Brasednewic to cooperate. Consequently, the Gray Death Legion embarks on the mission without the Verthandi Free Rangers. They sneak their BattleMechs and infantry onto the University perimeter through a secret tunnel and start a mass breakout of prisoners (including Devic Erudin). Sue Ellen Klein confronts and (it is implied) kills Nagumo. Carlyle literally rescues Kalmar from a torture chamber. As the battle in and around the university building degrades into chaos, they commandeer an enemy Marauder from the repair hangar but before long, the Gray Death Legion find themselves and the prisoners cut-off and besieged. They are saved by the arrival of the Free Verthandi Rangers, after Brasednewic had a change of heart. The entire city of Regis joins in the uprising, ejecting the Kurita troops.

Over the next days, Kurita forces from across the planet move to the starport, the only area they still hold, and a standoff ensues. Both the Lyran Commonwealth and Duke Ricol have sent relief fleets which arrive within a few days of each other, keeping each other in check. Ricol has little choice but to accept the peace agreement the ranking Draconis Combine officer had already signed.

Featured Characters[edit]

Featured places[edit]

Featured BattleTech[edit]

BattleMechs[edit]

Aerospace Fighters[edit]

DropShips[edit]

JumpShips[edit]

Other[edit]

Featured units[edit]

Foreign-Language Editions[edit]

Czech[edit]

A Czech edition, translated by Robert Hoffmann, was published by ALTAR Publishing in 1996 as Žoldnéřova hvězda (ISBN 8085979047).[2][3]

German[edit]

A German edition, translated by Reinhold H. Mai, was published by Heyne in 1989 as Der Söldnerstern (ISBN 9783453038905).[4] The book had several printings, including a tenth printing in 1996 under the same ISBN.[5] A reprint by Fantasy Productions was announced for 2006 and an ISBN reserved (ISBN 9783890644660), but such does not appear to have been published.[6][7] This was republished as an EPUB by Ulisses Spiele in 2017 as BattleTech Legenden 02 - Gray Death 2 : Der Söldnerstern (ISBN 9783957526069).[8]

Hungarian[edit]

A Hungarian edition, translated by Novák Gábor, was published by Beholder in 2005 as Zsoldoscsillag.[9]

Japanese[edit]

A Japanese edition was published by 富士見書房 (Fujimi Shobo) in 1992 as two volumes: バトルテック. 3, 傭兵たちの星 (Batorutekku. 3, Yōhei-tachi no hoshi) (ISBN 4829141719)[10] and バトルテック. 4, レジス奪回作戦 (Batorutekku. 4, Rejisu dakkai sakusen) (ISBN 4829141727).[11]

Portuguese[edit]

A Portuguese edition, translated by Alberto de Pais Salvação, was published by Publicações Europa-América in 1993 as two volumes: A Estrela do Mercenário I (ISBN 9721035181) and A Estrela do Mercenário II (ISBN 9721035785).[12]

Russian[edit]

A Russian edition, translated by V. Bykovsky and K. Zverev, was published by Армада (Armada) in 1995 as Звезда наемников (ISBN 5763200829). [13][14] A reprint was published in 2002 (ISBN 5710762970) by Дрофа (Drofa) as part of a different series produced in collaboration with Армада-пресс (Armada-Press). [15][16] An additional edition, this time using a translation by A. Vetrova, was published by Hobby World in 2019 as Звезда наемника (ISBN 9785907170186). [17][18]

Covers[edit]

References[edit]

  1. according to the novel's presentation in BattleTech: 25 Years of Art & Fiction, p. 278; there are no timestamps within the novel itself
  2. WorldCat entry for Žoldnéřova hvězda
  3. National Library of the Czech Republic entry for Žoldnéřova hvězda
  4. Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Catalog entry for first printing of Heyne edition
  5. Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Catalog entry for Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Catalog for tenth printing of Heyne edition
  6. Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Catalog search for announced FanPro reprint
  7. Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Catalog entry for FanPro reprint
  8. Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Catalog entry for Ulisses Spiele edition
  9. Beholder product page for Zsoldoscsillag
  10. WorldCat entry for バトルテック. 3, 傭兵たちの星
  11. WorldCat entry for バトルテック. 4, レジス奪回作戦
  12. Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal Catalog entry for A Estrela do Mercenário
  13. Science Fiction Lab Book description for Звезда наемников
  14. National Library of Russia description for Звезда наемников (1995)
  15. Science Fiction Lab Book description for Звезда наемников
  16. National Library of Russia description for Звезда наемников (2002)
  17. Science Fiction Lab Book description for Звезда наемника
  18. Hobby Games product page for Звезда наемника