Franklin Hallis

Franklin Hallis
Personal
Born	27??
Died	2824
Affiliation	Clan Wolverine
Profile
Profession	saKhan of Clan Wolverine
Family
Parents	Frederick Hallis (father)

Franklin Hallis (born 27??- died 2824) was the second saKhan and last Khan of Clan Wolverine. He was killed in action during the Trial of Annihilation that supposedly destroyed his Clan.

History

Early life

Franklin Hallis was a direct descendant of SLDF Lieutenant General Frederick Hallis, a much-beloved Commanding Officer of the 331st Royal BattleMech Division. Franklin was a MechWarrior officer who held much sway within the 331st due to his own outstanding reputation and that of General Hallis. He was a close friend and confidant of his superior, Sarah McEvedy, who was the daughter of Lieutenant General James McEvedy, the last Commander of the 331st. Like Sarah McEvedy, Hallis was also a strong believer in the morals and principles of the Star League and was a loyal follower of SLDF Commanding General Aleksandr Kerensky.

On November 5, 2784, Hallis, the McEvedys and the rest of the 331st departed with Kerensky in his Exodus.

Little else is known about Franklin Hallis, as his Clan record and that of all other members of Clan Wolverine were destroyed during the Trial of Annihilation.

Clan Wolverine

When the Exodus Fleet reached the Pentagon Worlds in 2786, Hallis and the 331st colonized Circe.

In 2801, the Exodus Civil War broke out. Nicholas Kerensky, son of Aleksandr, called for a Second Exodus in order to carry on the values of the Star League elsewhere. Moved by Kerensky's words, Hallis joined Nicholas to fulfill his father's dream.

In 2807, Nicholas announced the formation of the Clans, a combination of Star League values and socialism, whereupon his followers would be assigned among twenty Clans that were divided into five Castes (Warrior, Scientist, Merchant, Technician and Laborer), each led by a Warrior Caste of 40 warriors per Clan, and each Clan would elect a Khan, who would lead the Clan as a whole, and a saKhan who would act as the Clan's second-in-command and lead that Clan's military, or Touman. For the Clan that included the 331st, Kerensky chose to name it Clan Wolverine, after a predatory animal native to Terra that would not back down from any challenge, no matter what its size or strength. The newly-named Clan Wolverine elected Sarah McEvedy as Khan; Hallis later became McEvedy's saKhan after the first Wolverine saKhan was killed in action. Kerensky named himself ilKhan, leader of all the Clans and the Grand Council, which consisted of all Khans and bloodnamed warriors.

Kerensky eventually decided that the accursed Civil War raging on the Pentagon Worlds had to end, not only to stop the wanton destruction of lives and property, but to provide resources and manpower for his Clans to grow and flourish. In 2821, Kerensky masterminded Operation Klondike, in which the Clans would conquer the Pentagon Worlds. Clan Wolverine formed part of the task force that retook Circe; the Wolverines then founded a large Brian Cache on Circe to store their excess military hardware, much of which came from the now-defunct 331st.

ilKhan Kerensky learned of the existence of the Brian Cache and in accordance with the socialist principles of the Clans, ordered that the contents of the cache be shared with Clan Snow Raven, who had taken heavy equipment losses during Operation Klondike. The Wolverines did not take this news lightly, as they considered the Snow Ravens to be one of their chief rivals. This rivalry was inflamed by the fact that Wolverine saKhan Hallis was strongly attracted to Raven saKhan Joyce Merrell, who rebuffed Hallis' advances. It was small wonder when Khan McEvedy protested against what she perceived as the illegal order of a oppressive dictator, that Hallis would be right by her side to also protest freely giving away treasured goods in return for nothing to an enemy.

McEvedy's and Hallis' protests before the Grand Council were ignored. A disgusted Hallis then excused himself from the Council meeting and returned to the Wolverine enclave on Circe. On September 30, 2823, the Council held a vote to finally resolve the fate of the Wolverine Brian Cache; Hallis cast his vote via HPG, but in the final tally, the outcome was in favor of sharing the cache. Tiring of the political infighting amongst the Clans and the injustices shown by the ilKhan, a furious McEvedy confronted the Council on October 8 and directly insulted Kerensky, who immediately demanded a Trial of Grievance against McEvedy, who then declared Clan Wolverine was seceding from the rest of the Clans. When Kerensky ordered McEvedy's arrest, she forced the Council to back off with the threat of violence, then stormed out of the Hall of Khans.

While all of this was taking place on Strana Mechty, Hallis was preparing his Clan for a return to the Inner Sphere, gathering as many personnel and supplies as he could for a hasty retreat. On October 11, Hallis received word that the Grand Council had declared a Trial of Annihilation against Clan Wolverine, to which Hallis responded by placing the entire Wolverine Touman on full alert. When McEvedy arrived on Circe on October 13, she took over the evacuation, while Hallis would hold off the attackers from Clan Wolf, personally led by the ilKhan himself.

Death and Afterward

As McEvedy led the Wolverine survivors towards the Inner Sphere, Hallis and his front-line troops on Circe held off the merciless warriors of Clan Wolf. ilKhan Kerensky confronted Hallis, and in a grueling three hour duel, Hallis' 'Mech fell to the ground as a smoldering ruin. Kerensky then finished off Hallis by crushing his 'Mech's cockpit.

Kerensky buried Hallis himself, and marked the grave with "Khan Franklin Hallis", thus acknowledging him as the final Khan of Clan Wolverine.

On January 22, 2824, the Loremaster of Clan Wolf presented his report on the Trial of Annihilation before the Grand Council. It was noted that Franklin Hallis and most of the Wolverine front-line troops were dead, but most of Clan Wolverine, including Khan Sarah McEvedy, had mysteriously disappeared.

Notes

• In the latter days of his career and up until his death, Hallis piloted a Pulverizer 'Mech.
• Dwight Robertson was the first saKhan of Clan Wolverine, killed during a Trial of Refusal over a Brian Cache.

Bibliography

• Betrayal of Ideals, BattleCorps Story
• Foundations of Fate, BattleCorps Story
• Historical: Operation Klondike
• Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents