Morgan Hasek-Davion

Morgan Hasek-Davion
Morgan Hasek-Davion
Personal
Born3005[1]
Died2 January 3060[2]
AffiliationHouse Hasek-Davion
Profile
RankMarshal of the Armies[3]
Title(s)Duke of New Syrtis[3]
Member of the Order of Davion[4]
ProfessionMechWarrior
Family
ParentsMichael Hasek-Davion (father),
Marie Davion-St. Claire (mother)
SpouseKym Sorenson[3]
ChildrenGeorge Hasek II[5]
Angela Hasek[5]
Cyrus Hasek[5]

Morgan Hasek-Davion was an early thirty-first-century House Davion nobleman who later became Duke of New Syrtis and Minister of the Capellan March. He was the son of Michael Hasek-Davion and Marie Davion.[6]

He later was Marshal of the Armies of the Federated Commonwealth as well the commander of the Second Star League's Task Force Serpent.

History

Early life

Morgan attended The Warrior's Hall on New Syrtis, and, after two years there, transferred to New Avalon Military Academy.[7] After graduating, he was assigned to served with the Davion Heavy Guards in 3027.

With his assignment to the Davion Heavy Guards, Hanse Davion used this as a means to keep Morgan's father in line. Morgan as designated Hanse's heir to the throne of the Federated Suns. As time went on, Morgan had grown more estranged from his father and his devotion to House Davion became more important than any loyalty to his father. By coming to New Avalon, he felt he had come home.[8]

He was asked by Hanse to be his best man at his wedding on Terra, which he accepted wholeheartedly. Though he was happy to be Hanse's best man, he felt caught between his uncle and father's secret feud over the throne. He strongly believed his father was wrong to try and usurp the throne. After the public announcement of him becoming Hanse Davion's best man, he took a long walk to consider his situation. After passing the Davion Peace Garden, he found himself coming to rescue of a young woman being mugged. He easily overwhelmed the assailants and rescued the injured woman, Kym Sorenson.[9] The rescue marked the beginning of a relationship between the two of them.

Morgan, when not dating Kym, devoted his studies to military history and improving his command abilities. She became so close to him that he played private holovids from his father while she was with him.[10] Unknown to Morgan, Kym was a MIIO agent who secretly reported to Quintus Allard about these activities. Quintus reported to Hanse Davion that Morgan's abilities were greatly improved and his loyalty remained firmly with the Prince. Quintus also endorsed Morgan's abilities. Morgan's reading of historical and current battle reports led him to apply them to simulations to try out his ideas to leading a battle. Copies of his efforts slipped quietly to Quintus Allard's hands where he had them tested. Test results indicated this was the highest scoring of any individual the minister had ever seen. He reported to his prince that Morgan was reliable and he could take command and destroy any Capellan unit that lay before him.[11][12]

Fourth Succession War

After the outbreak of the new war, Morgan was detached from the Davion Heavy Guards and forced stay on the sidelines. This was to ensure that the heir- apparent was kept alive, but Morgan became restless to prove his worth and wanted to bring glory to House Davion.

Morgan pushed Hanse to release him in the war, citing that he had never been prevented from fighting before when he served with the Davion Heavy Guards.[13] Morgan told Hanse that he understood he needed to be there as the Heir-Designate but he still felt the urge to take to the field. Hanse responded that he was needed on New Avalon, in reserve for when he needs him the most. Morgan grudgingly accepted Hanse's opinion regardless of how restless he felt.

Battle for Kathil

On 6 August, Morgan was rushed from training to Hanse's private office at his palace. His uncle first apologized to him for holding him back for so long and not trusting him fully. He then told Morgan he was sending him on a critical mission to save the JumpShip yards of Kathil from being crippled by an inbound Liao strike force. In addition to this, he had to take whatever troops he had left and conduct an extraction raid on Sian to retrieve the agent who warned them.[14] He was told that he would only have Kathil's green militia, a reinforced company and the survivors of the Fifth Syrtis Fusiliers to fight with. That night he departed for Kathil, to rescue the Federated Suns from what Hanse Davion said would be their destruction.

By the end of the month, Morgan arrived on Kathil. He met with his old classmate and friend Captain Andrew Redburn, now a veteran commander of a reinforced company for the Davion Light Guards. On 29 August, Morgan took Andrew and the rest of his officers on a tour of the Kearny-Fuchida Yare Industries's Microwave Broadcasting Station. The tour was led by the Broadcasting Station's Fredek Vebber.[15] After a brief tour showing how the station used microwave bursts to power its orbital factories, Morgan asked if it was possible to use the tower to hit an incoming hostile DropShip. Vebber refused to even consider it and refused to take orders from someone he viewed as an upstart noble. Morgan then asked a tech if he was able to do what he asked and the tech agreed that he could easily. Morgan pulled out his pistol, pointed it at Vebber and informed him that he was not needed.[16] He then gathered the men and women of the Kathil Capellan March Militia's Third Battalion, Davion Light Guards's Delta Reinforced Company, and Fifth Syrtis Fusiliers's Omega Company together at Kathil's reserve base. He announced directly to the Kathil CMM Third Battalion that they were to be the core of a new military command. He said they had been gathered together to fight what could be the Suns' most desperate fight of the war. House Liao planned to strike at the venerable shipyards, and their newly-formed unit would fight them and stop them. He named them the First Kathil Uhlans.[17]

On 7 September, the Liao invaders arrived. At Morgan's command, Yare's broadcast dish used a powerful microbeam burst to destroy one of the Death Commandos' Union-class DropShips. He took command of the First Kathil forces defending the Median Power Company's geopower plants against the Fourth Tau Ceti Rangers and, after flanking them, pushed them into a hidden minefield. After his forces managed to defeat the Rangers, he moved to assist Andrew Redburn's battle against the Death Commandos. Morgan was able to stop an enemy Cataphract closing in on the Yare broadcasting complex.[18]

After the battle, he received a debriefing from his men regarding the status of their regiment. Morgan announced that he brokered a deal with the Fourth Tau Ceti Rangers' DropShip crews: they would be repatriated to Tikonov if they did a job for him.[19] He told them they had orders to conduct an extraction raid, posing as the Fourth Tau Ceti Rangers. In disbelief, Redburn told him they would be blown away for failing their mission to hit Kathil. Morgan's response was that the "Rangers" would not be shot down; they would have a valuable prize for the Chancellor.[20]

On 22 October, Morgan's ships arrived in orbit around Sian. Prior to their landing, Morgan talked to his friend Andrew Redburn. Andrew seemed to be bothered. Andrew told Morgan that he was conflicted by having to kill his old friend, Justin Xiang. Morgan told him that he knew how he felt, that he did not want to kill him for the sake of the lost friendship they developed on Kittery. Morgan explained to Redburn that his relationship with his father had gone the same way.[21] Morgan told him that he needed to let go of Justin, the way he did with his father since they were now changed people.

As their DropShips descended to the DropPort, Morgan ordered the DropShips to fire the LRM launchers with special chemical rounds. The thick gases created by the LRM rounds caused the newly-enhanced myomer of the Liao 'Mechs to burn once their armor was breached.[22] He led his forces to maul Warrior House Imarra. After the last of the Liao defenders were defeated, he guarded the Overlord-class DropShip as Davion agent Justin Allard boarded the ship with Duchess Candace Liao[23]

On 16 November 3029, Morgan and the other key people from his operation, including Justin Allard, attended an official gathering at Avalon City's Notre Dame Cathedral. His uncle, Hanse Davion, honored him by telling the people of the event of his accomplishments and frustration at being held back in the war. For saving Kathil and rescuing Davion agents on Sian, Hanse inducted him into the Order of Davion. Also, despite Morgan refusing any reward, he gave him a letter. An overjoyed Morgan read the letter and explained that Hanse's wife Melissa Steiner was pregnant, which finally relieved him of the burden of being Hanse's heir.[24]

3029 - 3030

Morgan married his beloved Kym Sorenson.[3] He also was given the title Marshal of the Armies for the newly-formed Armed Forces of the Federated Commonwealth.[3] Named Champion of the AFFC, he commanded armies under the command of First Prince Hanse Davion.

Task Force Serpent

Marshal Hasek-Davion was selected to lead Task Force Serpent, a multinational strike force intended to invade the Clan Smoke Jaguar homeworld, Huntress.

Death

He was poisoned in his cabin on 2 January 3060, just before the Task Force was due to jump into Clan space, leaving command of Task Force Serpent to General Ariana Winston of the Eridani Light Horse.[2]

A funeral service for him was held by D. C. Stockdale, Chaplain of the Eridani Light Horse.[25]

The tech Lucas Penrose was later discovered to be the assassin. He was killed by Morgan's second in command, Ariana Winston. Morgan's body was frozen, returned to New Syrtis, and buried there in a monumental tomb surrounded by unique ice statues. The completed edifice was known as Morgan Hasek-Davion Memorial Park.[26] Unfortunately, during the battle of New Syrtis in the FedCom Civil War, the Loyalist unit Ridgebrook CMM made a fighting retreat through it, destroying most of the statues. The destruction of the beloved Duke's monument galvanized the world's defenders against the Loyalists, showing them no mercy from that point.[27]

Legacy

Morgan's death was a heavy blow to the Task Force leaders. He was succeeded by Ariana Winston as overall commander of the expedition, and the command of the Uhlans fell to his best friend, Andrew Redburn. The assassin, Lucas Penrose, was identified and killed soon after the crime without ever confessing why he did it. Morgan was succeeded as Duke of the Capellan March by his elder son, George Hasek, who was not so loyal a follower of Victor Davion as his father. This had long-term consequences during the FedCom Civil War.[28]

Morgan remained a popular figure in both sides of the former Federated Commonwealth long after his death. He was particularly well-regarded by Lyrans living on the border of the Jade Falcon Occupation Zone, in recognition of his efforts to fight the Clans. One of Defiance Industries' project managers idolized the late Marshal of the Armies and named the DI Morgan tank in his honor.[29]

BattleMechs

Early in his career, Morgan had been a noted Atlas pilot, using the 'Mech during the Fourth Succession War, and beyond. He was later given a Clan Daishi OmniMech which he would have used for Task Force Serpent if he were not murdered on the way to Huntress. His Omni was used by his friend Andrew Redburn.

Quotations

“ Communication is inarguably the lifeblood of the army. ”
  — General Morgan Hasek-Davion

Portrait Gallery

  • Morgan Hasek-Davion

  • At age 45

  • At age 45

Notes

  • Morgan Hasek-Davion's murder remains an unresolved mystery. Notes published by author Blaine Lee Pardoe from the time when the "Twilight of the Clans" novel series was initially planned and the storylines laid out back in the 1990s actually name another prominent character, Anastasius Focht, as the commander of Task Force Serpent who would be assassinated on the way. While the document notes that the assassin would turn out to have been a nondescript no-name crew member, the motive or background of the murder is not elaborated upon in the planning document either. This, combined with the fact that the character in question was then exchanged for Morgan Hasek-Davion as the novels progressed and the storyline unfolded, seems to suggest that the murder is one of the plot hooks that FASA liked to work into novels and sourcebooks for possible later use, without a predetermined meaning or context at the time.
  • Despite there being no proof about it, Victor Steiner-Davion guessed that the only possible organization capable of infiltrating ComStar and willing to murder Morgan in order to cause the failure of the Serpent Expedition was the Word of Blake. This was ironic considering the deep hate the Blakists felt toward the Clans.[30]

References

  1. ↑ Era Report: 3052, p. 66: "Morgan Hasek-Davion Profile"
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Hunters, ch. 30
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 20 Year Update, p. 88: "Morgan Hasek-Davion profile"
  4. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, ch. 53
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Handbook: House Davion, p. 112
  6. ↑ Warrior: Riposte, p. 164
  7. ↑ Warrior: Riposte, p. 124
  8. ↑ Warrior: Riposte, p. 56
  9. ↑ Warrior: Riposte, pp. 56–59
  10. ↑ Warrior: Riposte, p. 121
  11. ↑ Warrior: Riposte, pp. 121–122
  12. ↑ Handbook: House Davion, p. 5: "Animals"
  13. ↑ Warrior: Riposte, p. 255
  14. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, p. 208
  15. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, pp. 226–227
  16. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, pp. 229–230
  17. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, pp. 231–233
  18. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, p. 246
  19. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, p. 249
  20. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, p. 250
  21. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, pp. 285–286
  22. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, p. 300
  23. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, pp. 312–313
  24. ↑ Warrior: Coupé, p. 322
  25. ↑ Sword and Fire, ch. 4
  26. ↑ Imminent Crisis, p. 75
  27. ↑ FedCom Civil War, p. 156
  28. ↑ Imminent Crisis, p. 270
  29. ↑ Technical Readout: 3075, p. 60
  30. ↑ Prince of Havoc, pp. 176–177

Bibliography

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