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{{InfoBoxFiction | name = The Heart of Dixie | image = | author = [[Blaine Lee Pardoe]] | pub_date = 30 September 2005 | product = | type = Short story | publisher = [[BattleCorps]] | illustrations = [[Brad McDevitt]] | pages = 49 | era = [[Succession Wars era|Late Succession Wars era]] | startdate = 1 May [[3025]] | enddate = 10 July [[3025]] | series = | precededby = | followedby = }} '''''The Heart of Dixie''''' is a short story by [[Blaine Lee Pardoe]] that was published online on [[BattleCorps]] on 30 September 2005. It was one of the stories that could be downloaded for free from the site for promotional purposes, and was included in the free [[BattleCorps Fiction Sampler]]. It was also published in print in the second BattleCorps print anthology, ''[[First Strike (anthology)|First Strike]]'' as "Heart of Dixie". ==Teaser text== {{quote|''From the Author: I’ve always had a soft spot for the [[Third Succession War]]. That was where I (and some of the other writers in the series) cut our teeth. That was the good old days. You could defend a planet with a company of [['Mech]]s and support.''}} ==Plot summary== Treasure hunters Falconi and Fletcher have been collating data in their off-time for years, trying to pinpoint a legendary [[Castle Brian]] on [[Dixie]] in the [[Lyran Commonwealth]]. On 1 May [[3025]] they actually find the abandoned site, only to discover it largely empty and the remaining equipment mostly decayed into worthless rubble. They manage to retrieve some mint condition [[Star League era]] laser pistols though. Randolph Falconi tries to sell the laser pistol to an antique dealer and is duped into revealing the existence of the Castle Brian. Fletcher is shocked to learn of this, and parts ways with Falconi because he senses trouble. News of the Castle Brian find are indeed relayed to [[SAFE]], and by 17 June a battalion from the [[Fourth Fusiliers of Oriente]] is inbound for an objective raid. Fletcher divines the objective of the raid and informs the militia about the situation. Militia colonel Volger decides to take up the fight — he realizes that while the militia may be outnumbered three to one, they do not have to actually win in the field, they just need to stall the attackers until reinforcements arrive. A fake dig site is set up on another continent to tie up the initial assault, buying time for the real Castle Brian to be fortified. The ruse distracts the attackers for some time, until a SAFE operative reports to the Fusiliers' commander, Colonel [[Eve Hansi]], that he had captured one of the treasure hunters and obtained the real site of the Castle Brian before he died during the questioning. Hansi orders her battalion to board the DropShips and leave for the correct location immediately. [[Leutnant]] [[Hollister Raven]], commander of the defender contingent at the decoy site, similarly orders her small remaining force to pack up and leave. Lacking DropShips, the militia has to use ships to reach the other continent and reconnect with their main force, which will take them days. Four days later, on 3 July, Hansi orders a full assault on the Castle Brian from three sides that runs afoul of 'Mech trenches and traps. Volger had a ''[[Blackjack (BattleMech)|Blackjack]]'' modified to resemble a ''[[Black Knight]]'' from afar and used it and the remains of a decayed ''[[Hussar]]'' from the cache to generate the impression that the defenders possessed Star League salvage, which makes the attackers very cautious. When the militia troops from the fake site land at the Blue Port Savannah, Hansi detaches a company of 'Mechs to intercept and destroy them. Volgers orders Raven to flee and lead that company on a merry chase. Ultimately, three [[JumpShip]]s carrying the [[Eighth Lyran Regulars]] appear at [[pirate jump point]] 'Bixby' near Dixie, mere hours away from planetfall. This forces Hansi to retreat and abandon the company she had sent after the militia reinforcements. The company subsequently surrenders to the Lyran defenders, and Colonel Volgers is commended for his defense of Dixie. ==Featured Characters== * [[Angela Dickerson]] * [[Banner Andersen]] * [[Eve Hansi]] * [[Francis Hollander]] * [[Fritz Volger]] * Fletcher * [[Herr Vonderholf]] * [[Hollister Raven]] * [[Marcus Dale]] (mentioned) * [[Randolph Falconi]] * [[Raymond Vargus]] ==Featured BattleTech== ===BattleMechs=== *''[[Atlas (BattleMech)|Atlas]]'' *''[[Archer]]'' *''[[Assassin]]'' *''[[Blackjack (BattleMech)|Blackjack]]'' *''[[Catapult]]'' *''[[Centurion (BattleMech)|Centurion]]'' *''[[Hunchback]]'' *''[[Hussar]]'' *''[[Locust]]'' *''[[Mongoose]]'' *''[[Orion]]'' *''[[Ostsol]]'' *''[[Phoenix Hawk]]'' *''[[Quickdraw]]'' *''[[Stinger]]'' *''[[Vindicator]]'' ===Vehicles=== *[[Galleon]] *[[Mobile Long Tom]] *[[Packrat]] *[[Pegasus (Combat Vehicle - Hovertank)|Pegasus]] *[[Savannah Master]] ===Other=== *unspecified ConstructionMechs *unspecified DropShip ''[[Hawk's Shadow]]'' *unspecified JumpShip ''[[Haberdasher]]'' *Star League Defense Force issue Mark II laser pistol ==Featured Places== * [[Dixie]] [[Category:BattleCorps publications|Heart of Dixie, The]] [[Category:Short Stories|Heart of Dixie, The]] [[Category:Works by Blaine Lee Pardoe|Heart of Dixie, The]]

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