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"All Group Four Callsigns this is Spectre Major; confirmed presence of Admiral Thuku's flag in your Sector. All your previous orders are hereby countermanded and you are to report immediately to the Merciless' Hanger and await a Golden Company team from the Solvognen who will transport you aboard the ANS Subjugator." Before Control could even finish relaying the first sentence of ALPHA's new order packet Kyli's TEAMCOM light blinked 'acknowledge' bringing one hand up she clasps the Pod's inner handle-bar and pulls the weight of her armour and body up with a single hand before pivoting with the agility of a figure-skater towards her stored weapons and retrieving all of the kit before some of the Navy Crewmen or Mercenaries could understand properly what the Death Trooper is doing. "Liquidate or capture Admiral Thuku and rendezvous with the FIV Imperator where FOSB personnel will take custody of the Prisoner if applicable. Out." Even though the transmissions were being carried over the Merciless' on-board FLEETCOM Kyli could still detect the tell-tale 'hiss' of a jamming attempt within his voice 'there are some seriously powerful transmitters in play' she thought which indicated to the former stormtrooper this was going to end up being a heavyweight engagement. All too familiar was the battle fought over the Hydian Way and the picture of floating debris field and ice-covered corpses are keenly recalled by Kyli's mind along with the brief engagement fought after crash-landing in a TIE fighter aboard the ANS Excubitor beside Pox and earned the young Pilot's hard-won respect after saving his life. Kyli's armoured body contorts and bounces around hallway corners speeding towards a hanger all she knew Twigg and Rexus would be waiting to be joined by their team's designated Sniper, recalling the Hydian Way between her effortless exasperation of lungs she chuckles tensely with teeth grit and mutters to herself. "That pilot and his damn hairgel." Focusing deeper Kyli manages to calm her breathing and finds a fortress of peace liberated from those whispers that occasionally crept into the mind's recesses festering a self-hatred and hopelessness carefully concealed; sliding between the Durasteel doors of a turbolift filled with surprised Stormtroopers Kyli is forced to reflect for twenty-seconds over her life and how within it laid nothing but service to the First Order and the inescapable knowledge that she'd permanently turned into a weapon. The turbolift settles and the young Death Trooper concludes that she and humanity were one genetically engineered monster apart and any dream she may had once slept upon where a normal life was achievable had been rendered forever unobtainable. Kyli would kill Thuku not because she held against the individual any personal malice or ill-will but because she knew nothing else, much like a droid programmed to kill she'd deprived the heart any emotion for good or ill believing firmly with a misguided certainty that anything else would make her a less effective soldier and therefore less valuable and remarkable. Arriving within the large's vessels' Hanger Kyli saunters forth with a confident gait that even a lame eye could discern and passes a file of Banshee Dropships that waited silently to deploy; their Ion Engines not yet powered for lack of fighter superiority she guessed. Kyli continued towards the diamond marker hovering on her helmet-mounted display to find a vacant white rectangle marking a boundary for an aircraft this must be where the Golden Company Transport would arrive, spotting a nearby stack of Durasteel crates cradled and held together by a series of Straps sitting flush against the wall Kyli standing at nearly seven feet tall in her armour mantles the crate easily enough and swings the black G-12A Blaster Rifle over her knees crossing her feet over one-another. Stormtroopers marching in files towards transports spared the occasional glance towards the armoured Titan and Kyli exchanged their glances without shifting her helmet to betray her gaze's landing, Twigg and Rexus were taking their time in addition to the Golden Company transport being conspicously absent no doubt this 'Solvognen' hadn't arrived as of yet else Headquarters would have advised on a TEAMCOM frequency on which to make comm contact though that might be difficult given the amount of interference she notes superimposing over the Merciless' internal channels as displayed against visor.
Enemies: The Galactic Alliance
Unknown: [member="Danger Arceneau"]
Though not Force Sensitive like the Sith Lord before him, Dante could feel the tension so thick you could cut it with a blade. Inexplicable energy filled the bridge, the officers on the deck, the very air felt like it was filled to the very brim. It put the man on edge. Even a seasoned veteran like Dante still had his misgivings about those under the Supreme Leader's employ, most notably the Knights of Ren - but Supreme Commander Graush wasn't on of his knights. No, the Supreme Commander had been a holdover from the early days of the Order, a Sith through and through. Loyal though. He supposed he couldn't fault Sieger for that.
As the ship had arrived in system his calculating eye had fallen on the target of their interest, the shipyards. Dante wasn't a war commander, that much he would acquiesce. In truth, he found the sheer numbers and scope far larger than his skill set would account for. He had faith in the Supreme Commander however, his record of victories grew by the day. A proven soldier, warrior, and strategist - even if not all of the high command fully embraced his cavalier attitude. It didn't matter one way or the other to Minister Calgar, he wasn't here to criticize nor judge - the voice rising above the sudden din reminded him of that gratingly.
"You have purpose here Calgar."
"Deliver me the shipyards."
A chill arced down Dante's spine as the words came from the Supreme Commander. It hadn't been a suggestion, but a command. To fail would mean... well, even Dante - a man of the cloak and dagger - had heard stories of the Supreme Commander. Equal parts fear and respect drove those under him.
[ This is Arceneau Trade Company.Omega Pyre and it's shipyards on Fondor have been recently acquired by the company and turned into a neutral entity.Please be advised, that our merchant fleet is only deployed to protect the trade convoys and Fondor Shipyards.We do not wish to become involved in any conflict.We request that we are allowed to evacuate and redirect our employees without being fired upon. ]
The transmission had come in from the shipyards, broadcast into the open. It was as Dante had expected, a statement of neutrality. No doubt they wanted to avoid as much collateral as possible, a corporation had little to gain in a conflict such as this and so much more to lose. The shipyards hadn't been the Supreme Commander's military target, an acknowledgement of the request would go a long way in securing at very least a face to face. Without waiting for a confirmation or a command Dante stepped to the comm hub.
"Open a channel. Direct tight beam."
A few taps a the console and the officer responded. "You're live sir."
{ Arceneau Trade Company, consider your request granted by all First Order vessels. I can't speak on behalf of our Sith Empire counterparts - I trust you understand. This is Dante Calgar, Minister of Security. If you'd be so inclined, I think a face to face meeting would be more appropriate given the circumstances. Would you agree? }
Even if the voice on the other end was averse to a face to face, it could have value. The Sith Empire was hardly discerning when they got the bloodlust, neutral or no, but with the added security of having a high ranking First Order official on board - it could prove to be useful should the Sith war jockeys get overzealous, increasing the odds that they would hold fire on the shipyard and her fleet.
Allies: The First Order | The Sith Empire | [member="Asharad Graush"] | [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"] | [member="Fiolette Yvarro"] | [member="Zahori Denko"]
Enemies: [member="Ava Cartwright"] (Engaging) | Alliance & Pilots
The blood red stripes painted across the hulls of the Raptors identified them as the 181st - more than just a throwback, the Fighter Group lived on, attempting to build on the legacy left before them. To date, they'd done well - but such things rarely continued for any great measure of time. Plagued by maintenance backups and waiting on orders for parts, they'd been only able to field a single squadron in the scramble. Thankfully there were backups, though these were only interceptors. Formidable in their own right but nowhere near the latent capability maintained by the TIE Raptors. And so it was that Nils found himself in the cockpit of a Raptor, each Squadron Lead and their top two wingmen equally equipped. It made three raptors to every squadron, and one for Nils and his two Wings. Not enough in his opinion but such was the struggle between field personnel and those who drove the fires of industry. Always a battle between logistics and combat need.
That was hardly the thought crossing Nils' mind at the moment however. They'd been deployed minutes ago but in the heat of the rapidly unfolding battle they'd already lost three Interceptors and that he considered a blessing. It was the order from Grand Admiral Rausgeber that put them back on track. They might not be quite a full wing but they would do what they could.
:: Chimera Lead. Command received and understood. Chimera out. ::
Pulling his fighter away and out of the current fray, Nils aimed towards the rapidly multiplying enemy fighter signals on his HUD. They weren't far off. Toggling the comm to his squadron leads, he spoke rapidly and clearly.
:: Chimera, Break Contact and engage targets at bearing zero six zero. Make it snappy. ::
Nils' voice cut out, a singular response from a familiar voice piping in on his private channel.
:: You sound a bit terse there Brenner, loosen up a little bit. ::
The sounds of blaster fire in the mic told him that the voice on the other side wasn't exactly breaking contact, but they had enough time. It was his long time wingmate and now XO. Captain Caphen. The two had worked together for years and knew each other better than anyone. She might be a hair reckless at times but when things really mattered she always pulled through. It took another moment, but quickly the group began to reform to address the new incoming hostiles. There was no time for stand down warnings, no time for useless word jockeying, the Alliance had made their bed, and now they would die in it. Focusing his attention on the task at hand, he keyed up in reply as he set his sights on a speck in the distance.
"We have cleared up enough of the jamming to identify some of the enemy escorts" the sensor technician reported, while [member="Zahori Denko"]'s escorts could finally be identified. "Apparently the enemy Xo'Xaans are able to fire on the aft arc"
"Shield ships. They can only offer a limited coverage of their aft quarters, plus they are facing us forward"
"Load cluster missiles; target the enemy fighters! Cut the interdictor coverage of the Merciless for now"
So that Xo'Xaan subclass is capable of firing on the aft arc. Granted, not all of its guns, but enough to register some hits on their shields. Most of the bombs dropped in the previous volley had yet to make it to their intended targets, but these unguided objects were closing on them, due to their sheer inertia, and threatening to detonate upon contact: [member="Vanessa Vantai"] and also [member="Asharad Graush"] would be in for a most unpleasant surprise and also possibly [member="Flash Australis"] if some of those heavy proton bombs, ordnance individually strong enough to have the firepower of four normal proton bombs, actually didn't hit anything between the three enemy fleets. And yet, none of the enemy capital ships hitherto identified within that line were safe from that hailstorm of bombs. Meanwhile, hundreds of cluster missiles were being prepared so that they could pepper the enemy fighter screens with missile fire, and later allowing bombers to enter a bombing run, either on those Xo'Xaans or on those remaining craft that haven't been fired at just yet. Just that they are not suspecting that every debris will be attracted to their reactor domes. Is Asharad having nightmares of the Metharian Nebula yet? Has his fleet been mobility-killed and/or firepower-killed? she thought, not believing that Asharad could actually turn around and face her on a dime, especially knowing that the First Order also had a problem on the aft arc.
"Cluster missiles ready!" the chief gunnery officer reported.
"Fire cluster missiles!"
"What about the remaining enemies? We still are aft of them"
"The main threat to our allies is that large formation of enemy capital ships: make sure the targeting solutions lie outside of the shield ships' areas of coverage. Make them suffer!"
So there would be thousands of turbolaser shots, HVCs, ion cannons, energy torpedoes, solar ionization cannons of various calibers being fired at the enemy fleets arrayed in front of her position. And also other missile launchers, regardless of whether or not they could fire cluster missiles, fired their ordnance at enemy fighters within standard turbolaser range. But surprisingly, three of the six enemy Sith battlecruisers that were positively identified and two of the shield ships were not fired at, at least not directly. And, after maneuvering the ship so that the Potentate was able to fire at the Galewind while its line of fire would not lead into the 700m square that was the shield ship, it was belching one big proton beam, single-reactor ignition perhaps, but still a spectacle to behold nevertheless, unless one was in the aft portion of the Galewind, at which the proton beam was firing. Now that they were identified, it was open season on enemy destroyers and shield ships, however, and she intended to make the enemy pay for deploying such a loose formation of shield ships in an attempt to protect the rear quarter of ships multiple times their shields' size.
"Let's show those Sith that Therapy Command is the main Alliance carrier unit! Now that the hostile capital ships are positively identified, pick your targets, accelerate to attack speed, drop your bombs some distance away from your target and return to ship to get cluster missiles loaded! Hopefully we may lure in some enemy fighter units; however that is not a given"
Between them, there were 720 heavy proton bombs being dropped in this fashion, with amounts of bombs being directed at specific enemy ships varying from 12 (shield ships) to 48 (battlecruisers) with the number of bombs released through sheer inertia being correlated to the targets' size, while remaining mindful of the time delay. Battle meditation was making the pilots' ability to lead the target much better, both for the purposes of bombing or dogfighting: with the fighters now out of ordnance, they would assuredly return to ship, with cluster missiles being loaded on the fighters this time around. But time was short for those fighters: even with covering fire under the form of cluster missiles, splitting up and tracking enemy fighters after the buses released their respctive submunitions, it was not going to be easy for them to return to hangar and get the fighters rearmed, especially under enemy fire. And yet, with the enemy's fighters being spread out among both directions, who knows what the future held for her, and for the Alliance remnants still fighting here.
Kept battle meditation active
Activated the gravity well generators centered on the Battalion and the Galewind reactor domes
Location:Breakthrough-class BattlecruiserZenith of Liberty, entering the Fondor System Objective: Get in the Fight Allies: [member="Mazik Stazi"] | [member="Dracken Pryce"] | [member="Tylane of Isobe"] Enemies: [member="Darth Saarai"] |[member="Asharad Graush"] |[member="Fiolette Yvarro"] |[member="Vanessa Vantai"] |[member="Zahori Denko"]
Admiral Kre'fey listened to the message from the Sith Empire, his fur rippling with righteous anger. He briefly weighed the ability to say something with the risk of being disciplined for it. Kark it. He flipped a switch on his headset.
"To the commander of the Battalion, I will correct you. The blood will be on your hands, your empire, and your emperor alone. You possess the trigger. Only you can choose to fire weapon, none of us can force you to fire or not to fire. Only you, and you alone can choose to become a war criminal. You will be held responsible for your deeds today, whatever they may be. Zenith of Liberty Out."
He felt his rage subside somewhat, though the arrogance of the Sith Empire infuriated him. He glanced at his console. The Onagers are ready to fire. He typed in a confirmation code, causing almost twenty of the massive plasma railguns to fire. Even as the strange ships crawled on their hulls, massive bolts of vibrant violet plasma surged out into the void, rapidly transversing the void to smash into the Battalion's hull amidst the flurry of weapons fire already unleashed by his fleet. Each bolt alone contained the entire firepower of a large frigate or small cruiser. He turned his attention to more immediately pressing matter of the newly arrived Mandalorian warships. His eyes swept the sensor screen. But to his surprise, no additional signatures had presented themselves. His fur rippled. Is this a ruse? Or something else? He cleared his throat.
"Captain Hrage, verify that no new additional Mandalorian vessels have arrived?"
"Negative sir."
"Well, I'll let Colonel Ramt and his people deal with our new guests. We should return the favor."
His fur rippled as he spied the marauders, noting several designs he had not encountered before. Very well. He began to rapidly dictate orders based on existing Alliance battle drills, causing the mass of other ships around the battlecruisers to shift from implacably held positions to shift around their prey like a school of ravenous piranhas. The Verne-class Armored Cruisers swung around from their positions at the edges of the fleet to each individually target one of the missile cruisers. While not fast, they were already present on the scene and exceptionally maneuverable. The awkward-looking dreadnaught derivatives attempted to latch on their individual target ship with tractor beam projectors, hampering their ability to immediately maneuver, even as the automated cruisers began to unleash more conventional weapons fire against them. His starfighter complement of BB-2 Fighter-bombers fell back to engage in bombing runs on the missile cruisers, even as their host ships, the Trieste-class Escort Frigates spun about on their Y-axis to present their broadsides to the missile cruisers. But rather than fire on the missile cruisers, the frigates began to orient their considerable point defense weapons to batter back future missile attacks. Amidst this flurry of activity, a larger threat to the Mandalorian vessels slowly came into play as the Purity of Thunder slowly swung about and set her sights on the Sabre. Weapons batteries from the assault carrier began to sound off as the warship's proton beam cannons powered up for their first hit of the day. Hrage's somber voice called out.
"They're returning fire."
Of course they are. Who doesn't? I haven't met any pacificst, protesting enemy admirals yet idiot. Despite the obvious meaning of the words, it took the bothan several seconds to realize that the captain was referring to the unknown fleet of wedge-shaped ships. He watched as turbolaser beams for the cruisers seemed to hit the ships, then fly back towards the original senders. His fur rippled. That speaks of some sort of mandalorian retribution shielding technology...but those ships aren't mandalorian. Weapons fire began to stream out back towards his stationary assault cruisers. Amidst that brilliant fire, he noticed that the enemy had dispatched some warheads back to his fleet, though wondered if at that distance if they would be as effective. We have time to counter those attacks at this distance. Doubtlessly his gunners would already be employing the layered active defenses of the fleet to intercept those missile: flak cannons, quad laser cannons, fast-tracking autoblasters, defensive missiles from his Plumbata batteries, and a handful of other esoteric weapons would already be moving to track those targets. But why rely on them when you can add an additional layer? With the flick of the button, a full two wings of Vortex II interceptors darted forward just outside of the fleet's immediate firing range to begin to thin out the incoming ordinance. But he found his concern not only on the incoming ordinance, but on his probing corvettes as well.
His fur rippled as he considered their predicament. While it appeared that the enemy fleet was soon going to be out of his main fleet's firing range soon because of the Victorian Fleet's circular trajectory as they attacked the yards, that would soon put his corvettes out of the immediate support range of his fleet. Already, he could see that the lead corvettes were engaging in long-range as they approached, sending out slow volleys of slugs and random salvos of Tidefall Brilliant Torpedoes at the Bolts. Part of him was curious to test the mettle of his small corvettes against this unknown counterparts, but they were simply outnumbered and without the support of the rest of his fleet. Discretion is the better part of valor.
He punched in a command, recalling the corvettes from their probing attack, which turned into a chaotic Parthian shot: as the corvettes turned tailed and engaged their engines boost function, they continued to fire on their opposite numbers. He noticed one corvette suddenly encounter an unknown weapon before haphazardly losing control. As the diminutive ship corkscrewed around the battlefield, a burst of enemy fire gutted the light corvette, piercing through its shields before turning into an incandescent plume of green light before its charred remains dispersed across the void. Yet the bothan continued to dictate new commands, dispatching two waves of strikecraft to rendezvous with the retreating corvettes: a full two wings of interceptors to help shield the corvettes from enemy fighter and ordinance, and another two wings of D-wing bombers to blunt any immediate attempt by the enemy corvettes to continue their pursuit. He flipped a switch on his headset.
"Master Gunner, reorient all Aura beams onto the escape vectors of our returning corvettes and wait for my command."
But the other man merely grunted before stepping away from their impromptu distillery. Metallic clangs began to reverberate above on the hull plate above them before abruptly stopping. The former One Sith militia soldier glanced at his blaster rifle's power level. He glanced around before fishing in his pocket for an oddly shaped pistol. His partner in crime walked past a few crates of their homemade connoction to grasp one of the squad's heavy repeaters. Only Marl was large enough to wield it by himself, and given that man's tendency to imbibe spice at the worse of times, Vil wondered if that really was a good idea.
"Think it's the feds?" said Marl.
Vil tilted his head downwards, silently informing his partner that he was an idiot. But before a rebuke could come out of his mouth, others of his squad began to filter in, lead by the cleanest of the bunch: Sergeant Bludd. The olive-skinned looked Marl over carefully before turning to Vil.
"Is he sober?"
"Uh, I think so."
"Well, private, it's not the feds. The old man would have told us if it was. No, seems to be some sort of mandalorian raiders."
That brought a chorus of curses from among the men. Bludd waved his hand.
"You're all looking at this wrong. They're not here for the booze. Not if they're smart, anyways...look...how did they get here?"
"A ship?" offered Vil.
"Exactly. And that's a ship that we can take to get out of this mess. Now let's get ourselves a ride out of this life."
The former criminals murmured in relunctant affirmation, aside from Vyn, who howled in excitement. Vil wasn't sure if the lanky man had just taken another hit of spice, or if he had grown more sociopathetic on this their latest romp around the galaxy. As the men filtered out of their borrowed supply closet, they joined an assorted mob of other members of the 31st Infantry Regiment and dozens of Legionairre Battle Droids as they shuffled forward to meet the intruders. Vil hid himself behind one of the behemoth droids as they jogged forward, recalling a demonstration in which one of the droids had picked up a dummy in stormtrooper armor. A few seconds later, the droid had tossed the body back onto the deck, though now there was a fist-sized hole in its torso where the built-in vibrocutters had chewed through the armor. He realized just how small it was compared to it individually, but took some measure in comfort that the Mandalorians would be facing thousands of other soldiers manning the fortified defenses of the warship. With that in mind, he began to think that it would be more and more possible to commandeer one of the Mandalorian ships and slip away from the Alliance's grasp.
Summary of Actions
-Kre'fey berates Battalion's commander
-All 18 Onager Plasma Railguns fire on the Battalion, adding their fire to the rest of the fleet firing on the battlecruiser
-Verne Armored Cruisers swing about to engage missile cruisers one on one - fire on and tractor each missile cruiser
-Trieste Escort Frigates move to intercept subsequent ordinance from Mandalorian missile cruisers
-Assault Carrier Purity of Thunder begins to turn and engage the Sabre as it charges up its proton beams
-8 Squadrons of BB-2 Fighter-bombers begin to make attack runs on Mandalorian Missile Cruisers
-Nonnah Assault Cruisers take light damage to shields from enemy attacks
-6 squadrons of interceptors scrambled to intercept incoming ordinance to main force: defense guns and weapons readied
-Light corvettes take Parthian shots at incoming light corvettes before retreating back towards the main force
-Interceptors and bombers scrambled to link up with light corvettes on their way back to the main force
-Thunder 5 & 23 destroyed by enemy fire from Victoria Prime fleet
-Aura Tractor/Pressor Beam Emplacements readied as described
-Internal defenses(troops, droids, automated lasers, forcefields, etc) on battlecruisers mobilized to fend off intruders
“It’s been some time, Praetor,”the voice began, as soon as the flickering connection stabilized. An image of a woman, cloaked from head to toe in a dark Imperial uniform materialized atop the holoprojector; allowing for her aquiline features to sweep the deck in appraisal. Unlike the others they had spoken with, this woman bore the crimson maw of the Order, which sparked a series of hushed whispers to erupt throughout the deck.“I’m contacting you on behalf of our Supreme Commander, as he is wanting to add your might to ours in the coming battle.”There was a heavy silence that followed her words, as the gathered Officers spoke across private channels with one another - gesturing in Thyrsian battle-cant to ensure their prospective contractor was kept in the dark. What the woman had said was true, the Golden Company had been away from First-Imperial space for some time. Many within the organization believed that the retainer contract they had with the faction was annulled for reasons beyond their comprehension, or that their services were no longer needed. Whatever transpired behind the scenes was of little consequence, as the Sun Guards had moved their operations from one side of the galaxy to the other, and found themselves one step closer to reclaiming their home.
“You could say that Imperial,”the Praetor responded, as he moved forward with a flourish of augmented arms and the satin curtain draped about his neck. It was a flamboyant gesture, one that had reminded Khonsu of a garish peacock, strutting its stuff in an attempt to intimidate any that sought to lay claim to its territory or potential mates. He had to bite the side of his tongue to stop himself from rolling his eyes into the back of his head and allow the gesture to roll through his armoured form.“But this comes to me as quite the surprise, I believed that our retainer contract was dissolved due to extenuating circumstances?”The holographic image shifted almost imperceptibly, so fast that the humans amongst their number didn’t notice anything more than the flickering projection. “We’ve had little need of scum like you until recently, and your return to this quadrant of the Galaxy has proven to be fortuitous.”While the man was uncertain if the gesture was shared amongst his kindred, Khonsu felt his lips peel back into a disapproving sneer as the word scum shot out of her mouth. It took everything he had to keep himself contained within his burnished plates, as the Twisuns Legate desired for nothing more than tearing off his helmet and letting this insolent wretch have a piece of his mind.
“It’s disappointing to hear that’s what the Order thinks of us, however, as you’ve come to us with a contract - we can proceed as if that insult was never spoken.”The Praetor’s features were hard to read behind his armour, but in the way that he stood - the Thyrsian's were able to determine that the man was less than impressed with being labelled as scum.“But, before we begin, there is a debt between us that needs to be settled. Several of my Sun Guard served alongside members of your Security Bureau and the mysterious Knights of Ren and weren’t paid for their services. I will require what is owed, alongside any accrued interest and expenditures that occurred during that operation.”Scant seconds after their commander finished, the Imperial carried on - as if she had been expecting their rebuttal. “You have my word, you will be paid for any services rendered during this operation and any outstanding balances owed upon the completion of this assignment.”That’s a step in the right direction, Khonsu signed; spawning a bout of laughter throughout the gathered Mercenaries. Although the sound was muffled and didn’t transmit, the Imperial watched impassively as the armoured figure silently gestured to his comrades, and that several of them had chuckled - or something similar that caused their shoulders to bounce ever so slightly.“If we have an accord, then I shall transmit the mobilization orders and pertinent information you and your men will require.”
Answering the woman with a silent nod of acknowledgement, the Praetor swept his augmented hand outwards, terminating the transmission in a shower of destabilized photons.
Without allowing for silence to blanket their Golden Conclave, the gathered officers began speaking amongst themselves and making mention of how fortunate they’d become to be hired by several Imperial powers in the span of hours for the same task. It wasn’t often something like that had come along, and much to their credit, they were handling their excitement well. Khonsu expected several of his subordinate commanders to start daydreaming about what they would do with their newfound wealth. Instead, they busied themselves in reviewing and comparing the twinned set of orders, seeing if there was anything they should be aware of before the operation commenced. There wasn’t much, as what had once been considered a proverbial fortress amongst the stars was reduced to a shadow of its former self - at the behest of the new Baron Administrator. That meant a majority of the assets they’d be pitted against were strictly sworn into service under the banner of the Galactic Alliance; which was reportedly assigned to the Fifth Fleet.
There was even mention of a possible redemption in the works, as it was likely that Therapy Command would present themselves on the battlefield. That had drawn the attention of nearly a dozen Sun Guards, including Khonsu, who knew that the commanding officer of that detachment was worth quite the hefty price. He smiled, knowing that if he arrived and the Excubitor was there - Admiral Thuku wouldn’t be far away. He wondered if a woman, known for boasting of being a master of psychological warfare would remember what happened the last time her vessel was boarded, and how many lives were lost when the Golden Company was newly founded? It was unlikely that she would, as there were reports of her head being in the clouds and somehow doing the impossible. Some claimed that this Twi’lek was not only able to inspire the minds of everyone under their command, but to direct the ebbs and flow of battle as well - either by commanding vessels to take their direction, or sapping the wills of those that fought against her soldiers.
He smiled. He hoped those were true, as the man could charge extra for proving that even gods can die.
The Sunrunner // Hyperspace // Shapani Bypass +02:00 Hours After Operation Commencement.
Bathed in the swirling sapphire tides of hyperspace, Khonsu fought the urge building within his breast to lean back into his padded throne and relax. It hadn’t been long since he departed the Solvognen, knowing that the hyperdrive installed about his vessel outclassed the parent craft by several factors. However, in that admittedly short interval, the Twisuns Legate had overseen his Cohort’s preparations and occupied the dwindling remnants of time staring into the spiralled dimension they presently speared through. The pilot droid had tried to warn him of the dangers of prolonged contact with the empyrean, and of the madness that was brought about in one’s mind for glaring into the seething ripples of unreality. The Thyrsian had impassively waved his warnings away and felt himself get carried away - allowing himself to bear witness to kaleidoscope blend of migraine-inducing colours.
After countless moments had passed the seated Mercenary by; there a ship-wide alert had resounded throughout the gunship that drew the man back into reality. Through thousands of successful translations back into realspace, He knew exactly what was about to transpire. Judging by the sounds emanating from the compartments behind the cockpit, it seemed that his Cohort knew as well. That was good, the Thyrsian thought. There were some new faces in his unit, and even though they had undergone as much training as they could to bring them on par with the rest; there was much that was left to be desired. An impurity that would only be purged on the anvil of experience. Only then, when the blade was beaten into shape, would that Greenhorn prove himself a capable soldier and a Sun Guard thereafter. So, in keeping with that line of thought, Khonsu hoped that the youth had followed his comrade's example and readied himself for what was to come.
“Sir, we’re reverting from hyperspace momentarily.”the Droid began, as it’s metallic fingers danced across the terminal affixed before him.“The FIV Merciless reports that it has been engaged by the enemy and that their vanguard contingent of Sun Guards is ready to deploy on the Supreme Commander’s orders. There is also an ancillary request to make a pickup in one of the vessel’s ventral hangars - as they have the materials you’ll need to board and subdue an enemy battlecruiser.”Khonsu chuckled softly, before rising from his padded chair and moving towards the rear of the cavernous chamber.“Make sure that the Vanish is active as soon as we drop out of lightspeed, I don’t want to be caught in the midst of a firefight without it.”Without turning back to see the Droid’s nod of approval, the Twisuns Legate descended deeper into his ship and began blessing his darkened flesh with daubs of potent oil extracts. His armoured finger drew the symbol of Thyrsus’ twinned Suns in the centre of his polished crown, before diving towards the arming rack before him and gently resting on the back-swept wings of his battle helm.
With his burnished talons spreading across the golden surface, Khonsu’s lips began wordlessly repeating a mantra he picked up in his travels - something that was imparted unto him by a wandering Thyrsian elder. As each soundless syllable slipped through his lips, the man felt his mind begin to focus - eschewing the turbulent storms that raged within the hazy bounds of his consciousness before. When the hymn had ended, the Sun Guard crowned himself with his helmet and locked the atmospheric seals into place. Bathed in the false-firelight of his head’s up display, his hooded eyes drifted towards his weapons laid out on the automated racking before him. They were glorious and resplendent. Without a word, the man reclaimed his gear and restored his burnished panoply of war, making himself whole.“Praise the Sun,”he whispered as he slammed home a fresh cartridge of quarrels into his gauss rifle. Racking the slide and hearing the coils within thrum with magnetic energy, the Mercenary moved off towards the rear entry hatch; latching onto the grated decking and securing himself in the event of a violent deceleration.
:: Deactivating HIMS, and Dropping out of Hyperspace. ::
As the words were spoken across the shipboard systems, the action drifted away from the interior of the Sunrunner, and instead play out across the infinite canvas of night that stretched back into being before their very eyes. The burnished vessel soared onto the depthless battlefield; spearing through the heart of the Alliance’s second formation to reach their distant and embattled destination. The starship ducked, rolled, and weaved through the proverbial fireworks - protected by an ethereal screen of contained plasma, and the consistent redirection of active and passive scans. They were, for a lack of a better world, entirely invisible to all but the naked eye. There were vessels that detected and reported their position, as they streaked towards the FIV Merciless, but they were intercepted by friendly forces - or shot down in the furious whirlwind of plasmatic cannonade. It was insanity; one that any human pilot would have easily been subsumed by had they been at the helm. However, with hands of metal instead of hands of flesh, the mechanical Pilot was able to guide the vessel safely through the maelstrom and onto the flight deck of their appointed hangar bay.
Moving forward and bathed in jets of hydraulic steam as the gunship came to rest upon it’s landing struts, Khonsu palmed the access panel; watching in silence as the yawning maw of the cargo hatch descended. When the plating had kissed the polished platform, the Sun Guard stalked forward and spotted the figure he was assigned to meet.
“Get your men aboard,”the Thyrsian barked.“We don’t have much time to waste if we’re to make our window.”
Whilst the Twisuns Legate met with his Imperial counterparts, a single encrypted message was pulsed into the void… beckoning forth the mighty Solvognen.
Seeing T-3 draw his weapon caught both Saffron's and Danger's attention.
"What are you doing?" well, Alric had given it instructions to ensure their safety. Most certainly, it was proactive in the job.
"I doubt there are goin' to be anyone gonna go shootin' off at us this very moment." and if they did, the threat was from one of the ships of the multitude of fleets out there. A high advanced blaster, no matter how powerful, would not serve them any favors if the got blown out of the sky.
Just then, Saffron's attention swung back to the holodisplay. They were receiving confirmed acknowledgements from the Sith Fleet. There was a small collective sigh of relief. When the names of the ships that acknowledged the request came up, Danger recognized Primo Victorian under the name of Victorian 7th Fleet. Thoughts on directly thanking Miz Yvarro came to mind. When Crimson Command followed suit, Danger was unaware that the woman who led it was in fact her husband's formerly deceased wife's daughter. A small galaxy indeed.
"We've made contact. They are requesting we send our IFF signatures to ensure they are marked as friendlies." the blonde would relay to Danger, who replied with a, "Thank goodness we've got rational folk among them." truth be told, confirmation that it was the Sith Empire that responded made Danger feel a little bit better despite the battle. If anything, she had good relations with them. It might seem a bit cold, but in the decades Danger had done meeting after meeting with powerful governments, she was well aware she couldn't save all. What had happened in Corellia had been a delicately handled affair. That she managed to use her sway for the One Sith to allow her to terraform it and leave it untouched by the Yuuzhan Vong had been a miracle at best. The Queen of Trade had a talent at conducting negotiations; but by no means was she infallible.
"Open a tight beam message to both. I want to thank them personally."
Saffron gave a nod. Within moments, the blonde gave the Queen of Trade the go ahead.
[ This is Danger Arceneau of Arceneau Trade Company. I would like to personally thank you for your assistance on this matter. I am transferring the IFF codes of the ships that will be evacuating.]
The transmission ended and the codes were transferred and with that, the first steps on the non essential personnel evacuation was set in place. There were interdiction fields and mines, but they just needed to avoid them. As they did so, they continued to broadcast their intent to simply evacuate the area. The acknowledgement from the Sith Fleet with [member="Vanessa Vantai"] [member="Fiolette Yvarro"] was a step in the direction of evacuation of neutral parties and as many civilian lives as Danger could help. While the redhead was aware that it didn't mean that a stray shot wouldn't strike neutral or civilian ships, it was a start.
"Keep redirecting any traffic coming to Fondor. I want as many warnings out there that they should stay away until further notice." this was not only just for civilians but for any trade convoy ATC and its affiliates had as well as anyone else turned into the emergency broadcast comm frequency. Danger had no clue what the fledging democratic government was doing right now and how the rest of the citizens of Fondor were taking this naval battle in orbit, but no doubt the end result and what repercussions it would have would be heavy on all minds.
"We've an incoming comm message," Saffron cried in alarm, her delicate hand coming up to indicate the flickering incoming missive. It was from the FIV Merciless, a First Order vessel.
"It is from the First Order," at Danger's nod, Saffron accepted it. Within moments the tightbeam message came.
Dante Calgar said:
{ Arceneau Trade Company, consider your request granted by all First Order vessels. I can't speak on behalf of our Sith Empire counterparts - I trust you understand. This is Dante Calgar, Minister of Security. If you'd be so inclined, I think a face to face meeting would be more appropriate given the circumstances. Would you agree? }
That they managed to get a response from a High Level First Order Official ([member="Dante Calgar"]) , the Minister of Security no less, immediately meant that they were on the right path. Inwardly, Danger gave a sigh of relief. A cordial and relieved smile bloomed on her face.
"Minister Calgar, you have my deepest appreciation for your assistance in the matter. Even the assurance that First Order vessels will do their best to avoid striking at neutral civilian and Arceneau affiliated vessels is most heartily welcomed. "
Danger was well aware how delicate these matters worked. She was not going to deny a face to face meeting; in fact it was her preference. The ability to read, see, and hear the individual she would be interacting with assisted in being able to determine just how to approach matters. Danger had always been a hostess when it came to such things; something her mama Collette Arceneau had ensured her daughter could do well. Mind her manners, say her thanks yous, and don't go pissing off a Corellian cat with salt and vinegar. You get more Bantha flies with honey than not.
"It would be my honor to meet you in person to discuss matters." although whether that meant if he would come to the headquarters or if he was requesting that she come to him was up in the air.
"How would you like to proceed? I can clear a path and prepare a hanger for your arrival. " as a neutral entity, Arceneau Trade stations and facilities meant that it was open for all parties regardless of their affiliation. It was the one of the main rulesets that had allowed the company the ability to spread across the galaxy with Southern Systems Business Bazaar. With Danger, one knew they would deal fairly and safely; Danger sought every avenue to ensure that. It was, after all, her reputation on the line -- and that was something Danger took to heart.
With the information sent to Crimson Command and redirected to the Nathema Orbital Platform, the Dark Troopers began to pull out. Defectors joined them as they returned to their transports, leaving the virally corrupted stations behind as they moved to return to the XoXaans.
[member="Tylane of Isobe"]
Ordinarily, the stealthed features of the StealthEs would've protected them from detection. But Vanessa was intelligent - she herself had been responsible for creating stealth ships not using stygium-based technology, whose only means of being seen was through sight. Vanessa had also included in the Maldrood military handbooks, which the various pilots and ship captains in Crimson Command had read, the various types of sensors that should be active at any given point. There were gravimetric sensors, optical sensors, ultrasonic sensors, energy sensors - and magnetic sensors. The StealthE did not possess a magnetic resonator, nor did it have any other sort of degaussing to hide its magnetic signature, and thus the fighters' launch was detected, if faintly.
"They've launched stealth fighters. Unknown class and information. On their way towards the Sun Crusher. Elite Squadron, ready the EMP detonation missiles. They'll be coming in for a pass to try and take the weapon out - we don't want them to get too close." When the ProtonX Torpedoes were launched, Elite Squadron stared into the abyss, waiting as the torpedoes converged - before one of the fighters locked on to the point torpedo in the swarm and fired a missile at it. This missile was an EMP Detonation Missile, and upon contact with the initial ProtonX torpedo, it detonated - blowing said torpedo to pieces. The resulting EMP field, whose diameter of 200 meters was large enough to encapsulate a corvette, disabled the remaining ProtonX torpedoes, which lazily would continue to float through space. Four other fighters would fire their own EMP detonation missiles at the StealthEs, Elite Squadron had been sent with Daalas fitting 2 HL-7 xasers and 2 ion cannons, which they could switch between - all the better to pacify any GA war equipment. Switching to their ion cannons, they would begin to engage the StealthEs, some of the Empire's finest against Jaeger Squadron.
[member="Cathul Thuku"]
The Battalion and her escorting XoXaans fired back. SBeams lanced along with pulse and solar ionization cannon fire. The cluster missiles did not have seeking capabilities, so the fighters avoided most of them - though a couple of Tetricas were caught and were destroyed by the bombardment. The shields of most ships took the bombardment quite well - though with that and the turbolaser fire, most were near the 50% range and still dropping. The diatium capacitance array was doing a good job of absorbing the fire of the solar ionization cannons and using it to empower the shields of the XoXaan IIs. The warhead countermeasures as well helped to mitigate the assault. Most of the fighters made the decision to move back towards their capital ships - those lacking hyperdrives entered their respective ship hangars, as it was soon going to be time to withdraw. They had what they came for, after all - it was going to soon be time to let other naval units take priority.
[member="Bandor Kre'fey"]
"We have iterated quite clearly what will happen if you continue to attack. You, not I, have chosen to press onwards. I'm sorry. May your conscience forgive you." The connection to Bandor's fleet was severed as one was opened up.
"Unit Maw 1. Fire."
With that, the "Sun Crusher" fired its "resonance torpedo" at the Fondor star. The greenish-blue ellipsoid of the disguised proton torpedo had been carefully crafted to, in every sense, from sensor to visual appearance, appear to be the genuine article. Hurriedly it traveled away from the field of combat, towards the system's star. The false superweapon then jumped out of the system, leaving its fighter escorts to continue engaging Jaeger Squadron.
[member="Danger Arceneau"]
The flagship of Crimson Command once more changed who it was talking to. "This is the Battalion. Crimson Command has received your targeting info and will be ignoring all ATC ships within the battlefield. Lady Vantai would also like to invite you to tea after this unfortunate incident." The commander said.
[member="Zahori Denko"]
"To the Galewind - this is Crimson Command. We've got what we came for. Exiting the field of battle to make way for the 5th Composite Battlefleet." With that, the Battalion moved to exit the field of battle alogn with its escorts, fighters returning to their hangars. Soon they would be preparing to jump to Nathema.
Location: Fondor Space | Allies: Alliance | Enemies: Sith Empire, First Order, Mandalorians | Objective: Engage
Because the enemy waited until all torpedoes had launched and gotten closer to their target, the warheads had outpaced the fighters. When the enemy EMP weapon contacted it, the fighters had ample opportunity to employ evasive maneuvers. However, this had already been done when the torpedoes were fired, the fighters scattering across the area to pick new and alternate routes of attack rather than carrying the same course of engagement. Stealth or not, directly following your torpedo was stupid and dangerous. Impact clouds could be lethal to starfighters.
So when the enemy fired other torpedoes at them, their targets were scattered, and those in the vicinity effected evasive maneuvers. The remainder changed target from the fake Sun Crusher to the protecting fighters. While their presence might be known, it was unlikely that the fighters were capable of detecting them personally, which meant trajectory was being relayed from another ship. This in turn meant that they always had a split second advantage over their foe. And the remainder of untargeted vessels began firing their powerful RLC-1's, not directly exposing themselves to being seen. The invisible blasts of powerful laser canon would be nigh impossible to track or anticipate.
Meanwhile, pack on the Reparate Hope, Tylane was keeping tabs on the engagement via long range sensors and cameras. She was delighted to find that she was right to be suspicious.
"Send a tightbeam transmission to all allied forces that the Sun Crusher is a fake," she ordered.
"How do you know?" the captain asked, looking stunned. "We failed to hit it."
"That is how I know. The enemy was clearly aware of the presence of Jaeger Squadron but their first act was to fire a missile at the approaching torpedoes, not the fighters. Earlier the enemy made the claim that the ship was the Sun Crusher and protected by Quantum Crystalline Armor. If that were true, the enemy would not have wasted a shot stopping our torpedo barrage, but would have allowed them to hit while knowing the ship would be fine. Their first shot would have instead been directed to our fighters in an attempt to catch them off guard.
"Because they did not do this, and chose to protect an indestructible ship, we can deduce that it is fake. They fired a weapon, but I'm willing to bet that scanners indicate it's only a normal torpedo or missile vatiant. Effective in its own right as such, but ultimately useless."
"Scanners confirm launch but the weapon speed, size and scans indicate that it is not a resonance torpedo," the scanner officer confirmed.
Regular torpedoes were not designed to fly into stars. They would explode or melt when the heat became great enough, which was liable to happen before reaching the star. She was certain time would confirm her assumption.
"I see," the captain said before turning to comms. "Relay the message."
Tightbeam messages were harder to jam, which is why she'd chosen that. In the meantime, withher suspicions confirmed, it was time to engage the enemy to buy the Alliance time to get people out. This was not a winnable engagement in terms of pushing the Sith and First Order out of the system. That much was plainly evident by the size of the force the two combatants had brought. Not to mention the Mandalorians piling on after the fact. This was a strategic withdrawal situation and she was aware of it.
"Move the Sovv's to firing positions. Target their forward vessels and fire when ready. Deploy the fighters and prepare them for SLAM maneuvers."
"Yes, Admiral."
While the Sovv's moved into position on the flanks of the Yularen's, the fleet launched eight squadrons of A-wing's and thirty-nine squadrons of E-wing's. A grand total of five hundred and sixty four fighters now made the mass of the Republic fleet seem significantly larger. All of the fighters formed up and prepared to engage SLAM maneuvers while waiting for targetting data from the capital craft.
Meanwhile, the nimble Sovv's had enetered position. As soon as they did, they opened fire with their long range megamasers as well as their RLC-100's. The latter were as powerful as the Hoth planetary ion canon, and the reason why the artillery frigates were an exceptional addition to the Republic navy. Even if another enemy vessel got in front of their line of fire on [member="Vanessa Vantai"] and [member="Zahori Denko"]'s ships, they were in for a world of hurt. With so many enemies between them and the Alliance, it was like shooting womp rats in a barrel: even if you missed you were still going to hit one of them.
"Let's make them hurt. Keep the firing line to creste an avenue of escape for Alliance personnel should they choose to take it."
In a momentary flash a wicked gaze crossed her features, her stoic gaze returned as her eyes scanned the sensor logs from her command station. The pace of the battle seemed to slow for her. Kuragin. The ghosts echoed into her mind and as her azure colored eyes swept the readings before her she was only grateful for the sheer amount of shrapnel that her ships had pumped into the space between. Still, two of the torpedoes managed to slip through and in an instant life slipped away new souls to beck at the gates of the Netherworld she was sure.
"We've lost Sonic-3 and Sentinel-4!"
"Droid bombers ready."
Fiolette's jaw clenched head tilted to the sound of the words. "Launch them at Fondor. We will deliver their reckoning and remind them of our might." Words were slow and filled with the vengful malice she had been holding for such a long time. The enemy fleet did not appear to be moving from their stance, and so it would be she would let them stay as they were. "Engage with long range weaponry, keep the field behind us down with mines, and sharpnelincase they wish to waste more ammunition."
Horde droid bombers left the comfort of their hangars, moving to engage the shipyards as a whole.
The Raskova IIIs would now have their chance to wreak havoc, previously known as Fortan IIs. They still carried their baradium payloads, "ready the Raskova's payloads, target the shipyards - put us at a distance." If the Mass Driver Cannon damage had not been enough then she would send six well timedbaradium missiles in as well.
"Ma'am the Mandalorians have arrived, they've begun boarding actions!"
"Excellent." Fiolette acknowledged as her console beeped.
A message from [member="Yasha Mantis"] appeared on her encrypted communications: [ NARIR GAR GANAR LUUBID ]
[ MYKYR CUYIR PARTAYLIR ELEK ] She returned on the same encrypted channel.
Although she would not begrudge the woman if she did send more of her naval forces to wreck through the Alliance fleet, but as it sood. Sullust would pay for the sins of Mykyr, Fondor was the added bonus. And as Fiolette looked at the map she could see that the corvettes that had once engaged them looked to return back to their ports. "Keep us steady in our formation, and once we reach this point we'll look to plot our withdrawal." Fiolette gestured to a fixed point where the fighting had become intense. They had done their jobs, they had started the fight, stolen the plans and have aided in Fondor's destruction. She could push forward beneath the yards and move to swarm the enemy fleet, but these were her personal commanders and her personal flotilla. Yes, they knew the risks but why put them there when the Sith Empire and the First Order were now in full swing.
"Engaging enemy crusiers with long range fire only, orders for the gunners at hand?"
"Focus fire on the shipyards, Fondor burns on this day."
The whole of the Victorian 7th not already engaged in a long range firefight with Alliance forces, turned their guns puncturing death scores into the shipyards themselves. Each shot served as a reminder of what the First Order had loss at the hands of the Galactic Alliance, what Fiolette had lost to them during her time in the war.
Victorian 7th: Action Report
Charger IIs continue to flood space with shrapnels.
Loss Sonic-3 and Sentiel-4 to enemy torpedo fire.
Engage Nonnahs with long range only.
Horde bombers are deployed to destroy Fondor.
Raskova IIIs ready baradium payloads.
Fleet moves to get distance from shipyards while maintaining circular trajectory.
Laren droid interceptors maintain to keep any stray projectiles from hitting fleet.
Retribution feedback shields will gladly return fire.
VSS Inflictor, Inflictor II Escort Cruiser, 976 S / 986 H
VSS Imogen, Inflictor II Escort Cruiser, 966 S / 986 H
VSS Stormcloud, Stormcloud II Assault Cruiser, 810 S / 810 H
VSS Charger, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H
VSS Cordelia, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H
VSS Champion, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H VSS Cambria, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H
VSS Concord, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H
VSS Caradoc, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H
VSS Raskova, Raskova III Heavy Corvette, 200 S / 200 H
VSS Rachkevich, Raskova III Heavy Corvette, 200 S / 200 H
VSS Raspopova, Raskova III Heavy Corvette, 200 S / 200 H
VSS Muhktiar, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Farooq, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS El Nadi Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Al Mansouri, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H VSS Zuckerman, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Noa, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H VSS Sharon, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H VSS Amit, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H VSS Lior, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Maya, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Al Muhairi, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Darwish, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Dagger, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H
VSS Cestus, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H
VSS Katar, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H
VSS Gladius, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H
VSS Morningstar, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H VSS Swordbreaker, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H
Bolt Pack: Sounder Sounder-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sounder-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sounder-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sounder-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Bolt Pack: Sonic Sonic-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sonic-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sonic-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sonic-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Bolt Pack: Swift Swift-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Swift-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Swift-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Swift-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Bolt Pack: Starling Starling-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Starling-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Starling-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Starling-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Bolt Pack: Seawolf Seawolf-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Seawolf-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Seawolf-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Seawolf-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Bolt Pack: Sentinel Sentinel-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sentinel-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sentinel-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sentinel-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Objective: Defend the Shipyards from First Order allied assault Engaging: [member="Robogeber"] Allies: [member="Tylane of Isobe"] [member="Bandor Kre'fey"] [member="Cathul Thuku"] [member="Ava Cartwright"] [member="Mazik Stazi"] [member="Chaff] [member="Cuan Kunn"] [member="Jax Rhane"] [member="Rayf Vigil"] Enemies: [member="Flash Australis"] [member="Zahori Denko"] [member="Vanessa Vantai"] [member="Fiolette Yvarro"]
"Sir, we've lost communication with other Alliance Command vessels and Rogue Squadron! We're only receiving short range communications. Several ships just dropped out of hyperspace...The Mandalorian Empire!" First Order jamming tech. And what were the Mandalorians doing here? This battle was getting better and better. Captain Pryce sucked his teeth. Missiles and torpedoes exploded around the ship as the Sword Frigates and Starchild herself utilized the point defense systems to take out the approaching missiles and deter starfighters.
"Where's that damage report?"
"No damage to the hull, starboard shields at 65%. The hangar that the Y-wing hit is unable to field fighters, but we've already begun to move the remaining fighters to other hangars. No mutinies aboard the Starchild." That battlecruiser sure packed a punch didn't it? The gas' effects still lingered, dispersing some of the First Order's assault, but it seemed like much less turbolaser fire was coming at them than previously. Pryce stood from his chair and walked to the edge of the bridge and peered through the transparisteel into the battle outside.
"Do we still have eyes? I want to see everything..."
"Right away sir."
Holographic displays began emitting video feeds from several angles on the ship. He was right, the First Order had pulled their assault off the Starchild, but only to engage another Alliance Battlegroup. Their commanding officer was confident, taking on two battle groups, even if the Starchilds' was limping along. Regardless of how bold a move it was, their commander was smart. The Alliance was outgunned by a long shot. He knew they were fighting a losing battle, but at the same time...
He turned and looked at his crew, determined and ready to see this through to the end as they plowed away at their work. His eyes narrowed.
"Change course, move formation towards their flagship and as soon as the Starchild is clear of that gas we open fire on their destroyers. Keep those Providence-class firing, hit their missile cruisers."
Battle Group Starchild ANS Starchild ~ Colony-class Battlecruiser: Moving to engage [member="Robogeber"]'s Destroyer-class vessels ANS Mara's Gaze ~ Providence-Class Light Destoyer: Firing all Javelin Hypervelocity Cannons on FIV Predetor ANS Vigil ~ Providence-Class Light Destroyer: Firing all Javelin Hypervelocity Cannons on FIV Conquest ANS Wings of Mercy ~ Providence-Class Light Destroyer: Firing all Javelin Hypervelocity Cannons on FIV Predetor ANS Suarbi ~ Providence-Class Light Destroyer: Firing All Javelin Hypercelocity Cannons on FIV Lanius Sword 1 ~ Myrmidon-Class Frigate: Firing Heavy Ion Cannons on FIV Predetor Sword 2 ~ Myrmidon-Class Frigate: Firing Heavy Ion Cannons on FIV Wardog Sword 3 ~ Myrmidon-Class Frigate: Providing anti-starfighter and anti-missile support Sword 4 ~ Myrmidon-Class Frigate: Providing anti-starfighter and anti-missile support
Fighter Squadrons:
Rogues: PC, have orders: Dedstroy/disable turbolasers on FIV Imperator/doing their thing Needler S1: Fighter Screen Needler S3: Fighter Screen Needler S2: Standby ~ Half destroyed in initial surprise attack (14/28) Needler S4: Standby Needler S5: Standby
"Rausgeber has entered the battle, my Lord. He is advancing on the Alliance right now."
Graush didn't look to see who said it, but instead his hateful gaze rose and fell onto the holographic display of the battlefield infront of him.
All around him orders and status updates were being thrown about to all elements of his armada. Escorts, cruisers, it didn't matter. Many served him he knew, but to him, they were cowards. Smart cowards. But cowards all the same. From behind his helmet, he wet his lips as his arms came from a crossed position over his chest to clasp at the small of his back. Somewhere nearby, [member="Dante Calgar"] had sent that message to ATC on the Fondorian Shipyards. The man would make to leave soon.
"Advance to the shipyards. Maintain defensive maneuvers."
Graush wasn't the sort of commander to employ large quantities of Destroyers. Their firepower was impressive, especially those manufactured by the Order, but the power of the First Order laid within its smaller, cruiser and frigate sized vessels capital ships. And as such, the largest vessel in the Armada was the Merciless, surrounding it was the Order's support vessels, prioritizing protection of the command vessel, and in defensive positions surrounding his the priority ships were the larger, more destructive ships. Cruisers, Destroyers, the lot seemed unimportant, lingering just within range of any protective abilities the support vessels protecting the Merciless had at their disposal.
"Calgar," Graush said as the man was preparing to leave. The Dark Side of the Force coalesced around the Sith Lord constantly, not on purpose, but present all the same. It brought a chill the members of the Bridge Crew were accustomed to due to constant exposure. To some, it may have calmed them, reassured that they were protected by the Supreme Commander, for the Sith Lord had gone to lengths in past battles to protect those that served in his direct proximity in multiple battles. To Calgar, however, he imagined it would've felt daunting, cold, unknown, probably what those without the Force thought was death. "ATC and their Protectorate ties claim to be a neutral entity here. Impress upon them that any Alliance personnel in their facilities in space, or on the planet below must be arrested and detained." Behind the helmet, Graush's lips twisted into a malicious grin, but his cold, monotone voice caused by the helmet's vocabulator.
"If not... They will die like the Alliance." And at the end of his words, four of the totally black garbed soldiers that stood closeby approached. Imprinted on their pauldrons was the crimson circle of the First Order, and embedded within that was the hydra that embodied Graush's sigil. "These are your guards." Partially turning, he looked over his shoulder back to the Security Minister. He was going to say more, but he imagined the Minister had an idea they were more than just his 'guards.' They were a reminder that failure wasn't an option.
"My Lord, vessels opening fire on the Shipyards!"
"It was the ones that transferred the location of mines and traps in the system."
"Bring them onscreen."
For a moment there was a lull in the talking on the battlefield. The Supreme Commander's want for the shipyards was known throughout the bridge, painfully so. But when the very familiar vessels appeared there was the cold, dark laughter from the Sith Lord. It didn't take a genius to recognize the ships, for Graush's own vessels had spawned from the same minds. Cybernetic hand tapping on his armoured thigh, as his vessels maneuvered into position, he finally said, "Open a channel. Tightbeam, route it through my helmet's comm." For he had done his part in tarnishing the name of Yvarro, for it was necessary in maintaining order and to reinforce the chain of command. Hard feelings? Graush didn't care. People did as they thought they had to, just like he knew [member="Fiolette Yvarro"] felt like she needed to destroy the shipyards. Her reasons? He didn't care to know them.
Muting the vocabulator and the systems outward features, Graush's figure became immediately still as he spoke.
"Fiolette Yvarro," his cold, slow drawl spoke. She'd recognize the voice, at least, his ego suggested she would. "Hold off on firing on the shipyards... For now." She had gone from Admiral to businesswoman. Before he had joined the Order, he had taken his father's company and all his holdings from his dying hands. He could appeal to her. He knew the guilt she felt for Kuragin and Anoat. "You are at the head of a growing company, and Fondor's shipyards are vast. Once the Order retains control of the shipyards, we can come to an accord." Through his helmet, he watched the display, pacing himself as he chose his words. Once, he had reigned in the Security Minister for pinning Anoat onto Yvarro. The separation of the different branches in the Order kept prying eyes away from the military's inner workings, which was a necessity for Graush's sanctioned experiments and projects."Short lived revenge on cowards that would rather preserve their own lives than face death head on does not outweigh the promise of long term profit."
There was a pause in Graush's words, he could go on to appeal to her, but he wasn't the sort to beg.
"Graush out."
And once again, the suit of armour that protected the Sith Lord came to life.
The last enemy Y-Wing in Rayf's immediate area exploded in a shower of flaming debris, and even though the Corellian had personally witnessed his victim engage in wanton friendly fire, he could not help but feel a pang of guilt at being forced to shoot down a fellow Alliance pilot. There was little time to process the shock and horror that threatened to consume him, for as soon as his Rogues had carved out their small perimeter, advance First Order elements were already practically on top of them.
"Alright, new orders straight from Starchild Actual," Commander Vigil keyed on his comm unit even as he scanned the intel that had been relayed to his flight computer, "Pryce's Needlers are on cleanup duty here, we are to advance in force to the closest, biggest First Order ship and, well feth it up, tactically speaking. We're going tower hunting boys and girls."
[member="Dracken Pryce"] had ordered them to engage the FIV Imperator and start whittling down its firepower, but even as he relayed the battlecruiser's specific coordinates to the rest of his squadron, Rayf knew that would be easier said than done. Although it looked small from this extreme perspective, he knew from his sensors that it was anything but, and a ship that size was bound to be covered with point defense countermeasures. That was assuming they even made it across a rapidly evaporating no man's land between the two assaulting fleets.
"Nothing for it but a turn and burn," for all their fancy flying, it seems they had finally run out of tricks. The last thing Rayf wanted to do was lead his pilots in a desperate charge, but they had been backed into a corner, "A squadron of Y-Wings from the 5th will be rendezvousing with us in 30, escort formation."
"You can say that again, R9," his astromech unit had transmitted a worried message, and the commander couldn't help but share the droid's bad feeling.
"Rogue Leader, you seein' this?"
"I see them," he acknowledged, straining for a better view outside his cockpit in hopes of establishing visual contact, "We've got multiple eyeballs CBDR, looks like a squadron maybe two."
Sunlight from Fondor's star reflected off a solar array. Raptors.
"All Rogues, defensive screen. Protect the bombers! Stay with your wing-"
He was forced to break his line of thought when both sides entered extreme weapons range, and the exchange of conventional laser fire and solar ionized beams began.
Fondor Orbit - The furball from hell Allies: GA and friends [member="Bandor Kre'fey"] [member="Mazik Stazi"] [member="Cuan Kunn"] [member="Tylane of Isobe"] [member="Dracken Pryce"] [member="Cathul Thuku"] Rogue Squadron [member="Rayf Vigil"] (1) [member="Jax Rhane"] (6) [member="Chaff"] (12) Dagger/NPC wingman (7) Enemies: SE and FO plus their minions [member="Darth Saarai"] [member="Asharad Graush"] [member="Vanessa Vantai"] [member="Zahori Denko"] [member="Robogeber"] [member="Dante Calgar"] [member="Yukimo Imagawa"] [member="Nils Brenner"] (soon bby, very soon) [member="Danger Arceneau"] [member="Fiolette Yvarro"] [member="T-3"] [member="Flash Australis"] [member="Khonsu Amon"] ___
[ Copy, Rogue Leader. ] Ava keyed back to the Old Man over the comms, then prepared her TR-20, which was presently in superiority configuration, to give one hell of a greeting to the quickly closing First Order starfighters - a combination of eyeballs, squints and... their newer TIE Raptors.
"Fun not fun, frak!" Goldie grumbled under her breath in the private confines of her cozy X-wing cockpit. Squeak tootled in complete agreement. He was really looking forward to that oil bath his pilot promised for helping fix her snubfighter.
Those bird of prey eggs were, well tough to crack, and flown by their best pilots. The TIE was extremely maneuverable to begin with, but this particular one with four, forward-curved solar array wings packed wicked solar ionization cannons that up close could melt right through weakened shields. The key was to keep one's distance if being targeted using speed, and go after their fragile solar panels hard as they were a true weakness of the TIE series.
Rogue Five swallowed hard to keep her nervous stomach in place, then took a deep breath to calm and focus herself. Panic got pilot's killed. The key was to keep the adrenaline balanced to peak one's performance behind the stick.
Rogue Squadron's task now was to plow a path through the enemy fighter screen so the GA bombers behind them could get through to send their very best to the FO's star destroyer ahead - the Imperator. It wouldn't be easy by no means with their limited numbers, but doable if the Force, gods, and mother luck would just be on the Alliance's side for once this gorram day.
[ Seven and Twelve, stay on me... Here we go. ] Goldie called to her two wing mates in their trio as the two opposing sides merged with an impressive display of red and green lasers lighting up the crowded space.
Orders were coming down the chain and Tiburon Squadron was dispatched to assist the Rogues. That was a good sign. Tiburon Squadron didn’t have the history that the Rogues did, but Cuan liked to think his own squadron of ‘whoever Coren Starchaser could be outmaneuvered by.’ They were a good group, having worked so many odd tasks together that if anyone in their group flipped, it would have been devastating to the whole team. But luckily, 12 Alliance X-Wings were still ready to go.
Not as advanced as the Rogue fighters, but still ready to do their job. “Alright gang, Spear is giving us the weapons free. Working to assist Rogues with their tasks. Bomber protection and striking. Rogue Leader, Tiburon One, assistance incoming, we’ll be coming up on the Y-Wings 45 seconds after they arrive at you.”
The Tiburons were a strike fighter squadron, so they knew this task better than most. If the Y-Wings couldn’t get their payloads out, every other X-Wing in the Tiburons, a hold over from their more ‘ugly’ formation, was set up with heavier payloads than the rest. And Cuan was the one who had the lighter fighter. His task was to dive in and take the TIEs head on, something he relished. Looking ahead, he saw the TIEs that the Rogues were seeing.
“Evens, break now on those TIEs, reinforce the Rogues. Odds. We’re keeping forward on the Y-Wings, drop the payloads and we need to get it so the Rogues can do what they do best.” A few flights of friendly fighters was always the most devastating fleet an Alliance team could put up.
“Coming in on your six to reinforce you, Rogues.” Cuan announced out to the team.
Rexus Wenck and his associate, confidante and squadmate Dergan Twigg waited patiently in the hangar, watching as the mercenaries of the Sun Guards approached. The two stood sternly, and silently in the centre of the hangar bay, watching as pilots dispatched themselves, and returned, TIE's battered and scarred for refuelling. Rexus, from his peripheral vision, glared at Twigg, as the man kept cursing out the mercenaries arriving. "Stupid mercs, should let us up and at 'im." Twigg growled, he pounded rhythmically on the chestplate of his powered armour. The armour physically and spiritually lifted the man. Taking Twigg from the already impressive, seven foot, five inch unit he usually was, to the somehow more gargantuan, 7'9. Most personnel scurried at the sight of the man. "We could take 'im, out, all easy like, and use 'at leeku as like, a scarf or somefink."
"Her Twigg," Wenck drily replied, "The target is a woman." He continued. Thuku. A name which ran through the First Order, as a joke. Nothing more. Nothing less. Wenck knew the woman's reputation, who didn't in this day and age. Cathul Thuku, the headtailed twerp who'd managed to single handedly lose the Ison Corridor. The loon who had somehow managed to retain the position of senior ranking officer. Not that it particularly mattered to Wenck. Names? Faces? Ranks? Didn't matter, so long as they were dead and the mission finished. Instead of detail, he focused on the matter at hand, and if these mercenaries, soldiers of fortune, could find the Death Trooper aboard to his prey. As the vessel entered the hangar, Rexus approached, followed closely by Twigg. He was cut off by Kyli, who managed to appear out of nowhere. Something Rexus didn't mind at all. Who was meant to expect a sniper? Let alone special forces. Attired in his tight fitting armour, Wenck, hauled his arse to the docking ramp. He heard the Sun Guards call, and lazily saluted at them. Twigg was less than tactful, "Tell me what I'm meant to do again, and I'll knock your arse out lad." The Death Trooper sneered.
Kyli watches unimpressed as the Golden Company transport arrives within the hanger and lowers down onto the Durasteel floor neatly within the boundaries of the landing area indicated by the white stripes against dull surface beneath Kyli who yet sits perched atop the collection of crates tied together and secured. Studying it carefully the Death Trooper commits its' design to memory, there was something distinctly alien about the entire thing. A tall soldier wearing what to Kyli was unmistakable a type of power armour sauntered down the boarding ramp; this had to be their contact that control mentioned. Sliding down from her perch ALPHA's Sniper slinks towards who unknown to her was Khonsu Amon, catching the distinct sound of Twigg's footsteps with her ears Kyli smirks somewhat and turns her helmeted over left-shoulder and finds the giant man swinging his trunk-like limbs absolutely clad head-to-toe in heavy weapons with not one but two bandoliers filled with greandes with that distinct organge strip around them; 'VX-Gas Grenades' Kyli paused in thought 'I guess there isn't high chance for non-combatant casualties anyway'. Stopping at the edge of boarding ramp in front of Khonsu Kyli pivots to face her Brothers and makes a closed-fist silently with left and slams it against her breastplate twice as a greeting before ascending up towards the Thyrsian Sunguard and spares him a casual albeit solid nod of acknowledgement as if to say 'well met' Twigg and Rexus both of whom should have been familiar with Kyli's body language could easily interpret a certain gleeful happiness in the woman's step, relieved they were finally being unleashed in Close-Quarters fighting to fulfill the design of their creation in dominating and mercilessly eviscerating their enemies. Kyli elects not to take a seat and instead with a thought magnetically seals her boots to the floor and wraps her fingers tightly around a safety handle facing the exit waiting for the others to pass her body, waiting for Rexus and Twigg to being their ascent into the Sunrunner's belly.
"No half measures!" Kyli nods her head emphatically to the statement, breaking her usual solemn silence that preceeded a deployment to recite their team's notorious motto; that distinct eagle surrounded by its' triumphant wreath displayed proudly against left-arm's pauldron. The sound of her voice would identify the near seven foot tall power armoured warrior as a woman to the Patriarchal Thyrsians who Kyli suspected were in for a hell of a surprise when they examined the lethality of her work. Kyli struggles to stifle a chuckle as Twigg boards the Sunrunner his helmeted head near smashing against the fuselage, if he weren't on her side Kyli would certainly fear being so close to this man whom she suspected was so physically powerful he might tear a man in two with his bare hands and that was without wearing their new Power Armour. Kyli slides her G-12A rifle over shoulder onto its' magnetic clamp and presents palm in front of her face for a 'high-five' from Twigg and Rexus. "Andy got drafted by the FOSB, it's just us." Kyli makes the comment with annunciator distorter yet disabled, they weren't in combat yet and thus it wasn't necessarily to conceal their inter-team communications, the thought just occurred to her that they'd need access keys to the Sun Guard's channel. Waiting for the man who she was unaware is Khonsu Amon to approach Kyli leans towards him and questions. "Centurion, provide us with access keys to your TEAMCOM channel?" Knowing a little bit about Thyrsian and Echani culture she uses an erroneous title for the man knowing he was an Officer but uncertain of the exact title though it was an earnest attempt born of more respect for the Mercenary's culture than perhaps Twigg or Rexus would provide, indeed she'd joked in the past that the only culture Rexus cared about was the type he could eat with the same being said for Twigg.
Using her index finger Kyli intrudes prodding at one of Twigg's pouches with a VX Grenade occupying the space and makes a demand. "Got a spare nerve dosage? I'm going to need one if we're using these bad boys, don't want to die aboard a Galactic Alliance warship from a suit breach that's just insulting." The Death Troopers are a Gregarious sort, Kyli would never speak or behave in such a manner towards any other personnel the level of trust Kyli placed in Twigg and Rexus regularly was immense, in a way she loved the both of them though it wasn't of a Romantic nature but they'd been the closest thing Kyli possessed to a family since losing near her whole company on Kaeshana. Making a sharp hand gesture towards Rexus her helmet facing him rises and lowers; assessing his armour she releases a sigh of disappointment. "Damn it Rex, where in the Outer Rim is your Darksaber Armour? Don't tell me those paper-shuffling dune sailors are shortchanging us on supplies again." Kyli's spheres roll around in their almond-shaped sockets with a firm shake of her head rattling the brain contained within, licking her lips drying under the air-conditioning's cool touch she awaits his answer and explanation as to why he wasn't wearing the superior and more protective Darksaber Power Armour. It wouldn't surprise Kyli if they simply hadn't received the expected shipment the suits were worth several million credits and highly sensitive, she suspected more than likely they wouldn't be taking custody of the other suits until returning to Special Forces headquarters on Dosuun.
The bothan watched warships spun and darted among the black void amidst explosions and vibrant weapons fire. A pair of explosions rippled across the stern of his last retreating corvette. Atmosphere and flame mingled out of the doomed craft as a quartet of escape pods jetted out of the wrecked craft. The bothan's fur rippled as he considered the increasing distance between the unknown (Victorian) fleet and his forces. They're attacking the shipyards, and the forces there are fighting back...but can they hold out against that firepower? The bothan felt torn about whether to pursue the enemy fleet or not. On one hand, it seemed that he should try to protect Galactic Alliance property. But on the other hand, it seemed almost certain that the yards were already doomed. Their enemies had a headstart on that objectives, and evacuations were already occurring. He assumed that the yards were lost, but that didn't mean that he couldn't exact revenge on the doombringers.
He noted that the Battalion appeared to be engaged in fighting the Republic Remnant forces present. He hoped that his fleet's contribution to battering the enemy battlecruiser had some effect, but it appeared that elements of the Remnant forces were getting close enough to the sith battlecruiser that he would have to worry about fractricide. He gave the order to cease fire on the Sith warships. Perhaps more interestingly, the alleged Sun Crusher had fired its weapon at the sun, yet the other Sith Empire ships present or their allies hadn't attempted to retreat. The bothan wondered if the Empire was really ruthless enough to destroy their own men and ships, or if a bluff had been met or called. We'll know in a few minutes I guess, once the warhead makes contact with the system's sun. As a precaution, he ordered emergency jump coordinates plotted.
Closer to home, the Mandalorian warships present appeared to press their attack unfazed by the superior numbers of the Galactic Alliance warships. The Trieste Escort Frigates found themselves each at the rear of a battlecruiser, using their large numbers of point defense weapons to swat away the ordinance launched by the missile cruisers. Combined with the interceptors, the battlecruiser's own point defenses, and the accompanying strikecraft, they were whittling away at the munitions flying out of the mandalorian warships. Brilliant flashes of light from exploding warheads illuminated the space between the missile cruisers and the battlecruiser's stern. Even then, small numbers of explosions rippled against the battlecruiser's stern. Without enemies to its front, the battlecruiser's captains had been able to reallocated shield energy and projectors to bolster their rear defenses to better withstand that enemy attack. But such a thing was not one-sided. Brilliant weapons fire from his vessels danced among the missile cruisers' hulls, only interrupted by the interlude of starfighter attack runs on their hull. All of this was briefly drowned out to mere background noise as twin beams of brilliant cyan light sprang out of the Purity of Thunder and into the Sabre. Kre'fey's fur rippled as the proton beams drove into the ship's hull. They didn't even try to move and dodge it. Why? He shook the thoughts from his head as he flipped a switch on his headset.
“Purity of Thunder, you're authorized to board the Sabre. If it moves, take the one that doesn't. We'll bring these raiders back to justice.”
“Yes sir.”
The assault carrier plowed forward to latch on the missile cruiser. Once docked, the dozens of boarding tubes would slam into the cruiser before scorching bright plasma would eat through the plating, allowing the thousands of troops and battle droids onboard the cruiser to attempt to take the mandalorian warship. The bothan turned his attention to a boarding action closer to home. Lifeform readings indicated that the squid-like ships had a sizeable number of lifeforms onboard, but they paled in comparison to each battlecruiser's garrison of nearly 16,000 troops and battle droids, not even including the battlecruiser's crew. This was compounded by the internal fortified nature of the ship itself. The enemy might be attacking the ship, but the ship would be fighting back itself with countless automated laser turrets, man-traps, and force field projectors.
***
Zenith of Liberty
The initial assault into the battlecruiser's hull was largely successful. The engine crews and L1 Marinus Battle Droids that worked those sections were not prepared for the surprise attack. The initial mandalorian onslaught was fierce and overwhelming to these crewmembers. But resistance quickly stiffened as the vessel's automated defenses came online. Sections were sealed off by blast doors further protected by force field projectors and warily watched over by automated lasers. The large, hulking humanoids of the 11th Division might be physically strong, but few beings were strong enough to simply thrust their hands through a force-field without getting fried and then manually open hydraulically sealed blast doors. One set of the 11th division advanced up a corridor and found itself suddenly pinned on the ground by man trap with a setting strong enough to hold down a wookiee. Another found themselves suddenly in corridor with a wet floor, as if someone had been in the middle of mopping the room. Yet it smelt strongly of unrefined whiskey. A clang reverberated throughout the corridor as a member of the 31st bounced a Nacht-5 Smoke grenade around a corner into the same hall. A violent cloud of red smoke started to flood the hall, which obscured the initial sparks from the fuse that set the same alcohol a fire. Flames rapidly consumed the ground, rushing down to engulf the invaders. Around the corner, a squad of the 31st manned a pair of HOB Heavy Blasters from behind an impromptu barricade of duraplast crates further augmented by a Rampart II shield generator. The 31st never fought fair, only dirty. If the mandalorians wanted to run through the hellfire into a protected machine gun nest, they'd let them. Otherwise, the troopers expected that the mandalorians would at least temporarily retreat to avoid being burned, if nothing else. But in war, anything was possible and so they waited. Throughout the rest of the admiral's flagship, the mandalorians would find themselve encountering an unusual breed of close-quarters fighters bred by the One Sith in the slums of Coruscant, and intertwined with the Alliance's destiny.
***
Thunderstruck
The initial assault was successful, sweeping aside the many engine crewmembers and droids in a hail of vicious fire. As in the Zenith of Liberty, what the crew lacked to initially halt the invaders was met by the warship's internal automated defenses backed by other elements of the 31st Infantry and the ship's battle droids. Blast doors protected by Force-field projectors stymied many of the intruders' advances, though notably the automated lasers were less effective against the heavily armored infantry of the 1st Division than the raiders of the 11th. Quickly realizing that they lacked the heavy weapons needed to effectively fight the heavy infantry, the 31st sealed off areas only to allow groups of Legionairre Battle Droids to pass before quickly resealing the blast doors. The droid's armor was larglely equivalent to that of the 1st Divisions, but their weapons would make them an even greater threat. The assault cannons not only fired high-powered plasma shots, but also small missiles, which the droids had little computation about sparingly using in close quarters combat with no friendly organics nearby: few heavy armors could withstand a direct missile hit at point-blank range. Though there were clear instances in which they did not want to damage areas of the vessel, causing the droids to rely on grabbing their opponents with their right hand before letting the embedded vibro-cutters eat away at the armor. Doubtlessly their would be casualties among the droids fighting in these methods, but the battlecruisers did have the manpower advantage to use to do just this.
***
The Freedom Cannon
Here the mandalorian assault was the most immediately effective. The stern of the vessel held many of the ship's engines, and the group was practically inside their target area from the get-go. Force-fields and blast doors could hold off many invaders from passing through deeper into the ship, but they couldn't withstand the concentrated firepower of the explosives. Explosions rippled across the ship's stern as the bombs detonated, causing the ship's bridge officers to cut fuel and power supply to the engines to further ensure that they weren't feeding the fire any further. Atmospheric decompression and vaccuum flooded many of the areas hit by the crew, casting out men or asphyxiating them. Adrift with only 20% of sublight power remaining after the suicide bombers expired, the Freedom Cannon was crippled. Phalanxes of Legionairre Battle Droids and Marinus Droids began to march through the decompressed areas to reclaim charred sections of corridors and engine blocks to ensure that the invaders were now truly gone.
"Send it to my personal station," Fiolette ordered and headed for the Inflictor's command center once more. Almost immediately the Galidraani wanted to scoff, if the First Order had been so desparate for the yards they could have turned over to demand Fondor as an accord for peace long before the restart of the war. No, the First Order did not know diplomacy as it knew war. Growing company? Yes, but Fondor meant nothing to her business or to its growth. Knowing that the shipyards meant something to her former nation sent a gleam in her eye. "Bring us about." She ordered, "prepare the baradium missiles, all six and plan trajectory to here, here and here."
"Will you have a response for the Supreme Commander?"
"No." Fiolette replied. She was no longer obligated to obey him or even heed his words. The Galidraani would however humor him, for now at the very least, "status on the fleet at Skor?"
"Skor is being reduced to rubble as we speak, I believe the Squib King has been evacuated, others of his kind have been captured and will be sent to her ladyship at once."
"Excellent, I'm sure she'll appreciate the gesture." Fiolette remarked with a grin.
At her command station the retired grand admiral watched with an amused look as the Mandalorians had by this point fully boarded Alliance ships. Her lips pursed together as the Inflictor lead the 7th Fleet around Fondor. In their wake, mines and flak filled the depths of the starfield. The near ten thousand meter fleet continued its slow path around the shipyards watching as the damage dealt previously continue to burn. The groans of the Inflictor's weight as it yearned to draw her guns against the Alliance fleet that sat happily nestled on its own, seemingly content to watch Fondor burn. "Ready guns on long range, once we come about fire on the Nonnahs." It was a slow and painful sniper match for sure, but one that Fiolette enjoyed for the moment.
Victorian 7th: Action Report
Mines and flak/shrapnel are continued to be filled at the rear of the fleet.
VSS Inflictor, Inflictor II Escort Cruiser, 976 S / 986 H
VSS Imogen, Inflictor II Escort Cruiser, 966 S / 986 H
VSS Stormcloud, Stormcloud II Assault Cruiser, 810 S / 810 H
VSS Charger, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H
VSS Cordelia, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H
VSS Champion, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H VSS Cambria, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H
VSS Concord, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H
VSS Caradoc, Charger II Escort Corvette, 182 S / 182 H
VSS Raskova, Raskova III Heavy Corvette, 200 S / 200 H
VSS Rachkevich, Raskova III Heavy Corvette, 200 S / 200 H
VSS Raspopova, Raskova III Heavy Corvette, 200 S / 200 H
VSS Muhktiar, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Farooq, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS El Nadi Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Al Mansouri, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H VSS Zuckerman, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Noa, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H VSS Sharon, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H VSS Amit, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H VSS Lior, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Maya, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Al Muhairi, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Darwish, Muhktiar II Anti-Starfighter Corvette, 178 S / 178 H
VSS Dagger, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H
VSS Cestus, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H
VSS Katar, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H
VSS Gladius, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H
VSS Morningstar, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H VSS Swordbreaker, Dagger III Destroyer Escort, 246 S / 246 H
Bolt Pack: Sounder Sounder-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sounder-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sounder-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sounder-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Bolt Pack: Sonic Sonic-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sonic-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sonic-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sonic-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Bolt Pack: Swift Swift-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Swift-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Swift-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Swift-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Bolt Pack: Starling Starling-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Starling-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Starling-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Starling-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Bolt Pack: Seawolf Seawolf-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Seawolf-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Seawolf-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Seawolf-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
Bolt Pack: Sentinel Sentinel-1, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sentinel-2, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sentinel-3, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H Sentinel-4, Picket Corvette, 58 S / 58 H
The transports loaded themselves back onto the XoXaan IIs as Crimson Command began to move out. The 5th Composite Fleet had already been notified of its forthcoming transit into the battlefield. Once the fleet was situated, its fighters having been recovered and its ships primed to exit the fray, the fleet soon jumped to lightspeed, on a course to the Nathema Orbital Platform. More Imperial ships would enter the field of battle, but for Vanessa's units, their objectives were complete, the only sign of their presence being the numerous viruses 'possessing' the weapons of the shipyards, turning them against their Alliance masters.
