[ EU ] It 's time for the Russian revolution , complete with light-sabers . This is ... Tsar Wars !

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 Alexander Kerensky... If there was a man who deserved a place in both heaven and hell, it was him. 
 
 Captain Nathaniel Deshler's desk was littered with files and noteputers, the scratched steel surface hidden underneath a layer of classified documents and data-tapes. A half-empty cup of cold coffee sat on the corner next to the reading lamp, its chipped edge stained with dried froth. His gray uniform jacket hung on a hook by the door, his suspenders dangling about his waist. The remains of a working lunch sat on top of a battered comm-unit, a few bits of scrambled eggs and toast along with a faint smear of ketchup. 
 
 Deshler was a man in his mid-thirties, the first few trances of grey creeping into his short sideburns. He was unremarkable in appearance, none of his features memorable or distinct. It was only in his calculating eyes and in his cool bearing that strangers could see the man beneath the benign face. 
 
 A knock on the door tore him from the file he was scanning, and he set it down to answer. 
 
 `` It's open,'' said Deshler. 
 
 Lieutenant Oleg Federov stepped in, the Tikonov-born Capellan sketching a quick salute before doffing his cap. Not for the first time, Deshler thought, that Federov looked more a schoolmaster than MechWarrior, his reedy build and wire frame glasses more suited for a professor of rhetoric than a ECM/ECCM-specialist. 
 
 `` Sorry to bother you, Captain,'' Federov said. Deshler waved it away. 
 
 `` Nah, I'm just about finished with the intelligence reports. What do you have for me?'' 
 
 `` Couple things, sir. First off, the *Koschei* we ordered from Earthwerks Incorporated finally showed up, arrived this morning on the DropShip *Bargain Hunter. *'' 
 
 Deshler smiled at the news. The *Kosch, * as it was affectionately known, was an ancient design, entering service in the year 2504 as the KSC-3I. Fast for its tonnage and armed and armored sufficiently for front line combat, the 3I variant was in continuous production for over two hundred years. Reliable, with a powerful punch and ability to withstand damage that would incapacitate lesser'Mechs, the *Koschei* found ample favor in mercenary units following its resurrection during the World of Blake's Jihad. 
 
 `` That's good news,'' Deshler said. `` Sergeant Perkins will be glad to hear it. And what else, Oleg?'' 
 
 `` This just came in a few hours ago, along with the BattleMech. It's a job offer: apparently O'Neil BattleMechs on Solaris sent out word real quiet like that they wanted out of the game world, apparently Kerensky's Wolves are starting to make noises about absorbing the design team wholesale. They want an extraction mission and are paying top dollar.'' 
 
 `` Solaris VII? That's deep in Wolf Empire territory, it'd be tough to get in, and even more Hell getting out,'' said Deshler. Federov nodded. 
 
 `` O'Neil mentioned as much in their request. To sweeten the deal they're also offering details and physical examples of their *Werewolf's* Null Signature System.'' 
 
 *That* changed things. The Null Signature System was an old design, first used by in the infamous *Exterminator* of the Star League Defense Force. Capable of masking a unit's heat and infrared signature, it allowed a machine more or less complete invisibility from enemy sensors. Lost in the Succession Wars, O'Neil BattleMechs was the first to rediscover its secrets. ComStar, and its splinter-sect the Word of Blake never lost it, and in fact developed it even further. Such technology would be a boon to a unit like Deshler's Light Lancers, their forte in such things as reconnaissance and guerrilla warfare. 
 
 `` Alright, Oleg. Prepare the battalion for transport, tell them we have our next mission. And contact that Jumpship captain which delivered our'Mech, tell him we want to book passage to the Marik system.'' 
 
 `` Yessir,'' Federov replied, saluting and exiting the office in one smooth motion. 
 
 Deshler picked up a file scanning its pages, his eyes hovering over a single name: 
 
 *Star Colonel Anastasia Kerensky. *
