Yinchorr.
New Republic
322ABY
June 20th
Col Levin winced as the missile impacted against the side of the Bulldogs hull. A quick glance at the status displays reassured him that the hit hadn’t penetrated, but it would only take one of those pilots to get lucky.
“Delta One to Star One” He commed the commander of the fighter squadron that was supposed to be flying cover for his unit, “Can you please do something about those damn Longbows?”
“Copy, Delta One” The covering squadrons flight leader replied, “Admiral Tol has driven off the Republic capital ships and secured planetary orbit. They’re running out of fighters to throw at us, so this shouldn’t take long”
Switching frequencies, Col sought out the frequency to his unit, “Okay, thirty seconds till we hit the combat zone. Delta and Bravo will engage at range, Sweep will harass their flanks. Battlesuits are to pick targets of opportunity, infantry to secure and provide support. Remember, the enemy are in heavy tanks, but First Battalion will have them occupied”
Col frowned. Sending an assault company of light units against a battalion of heavy tanks was not his idea of a picnic, “The intelligence on this better be right” He thought, “Or this Bulldog will be my coffin”
A moment later, the Bulldog cleared the crest of the hill and he caught his first glimpse of the battlefield, “My god, it’s a hell ground” He thought as he gazed across the frozen, crater blasted desert. Burning vehicles sent great plumes of thick black smoke into he air, marking the funeral pyres of the unlucky.
Across the far side of the valley he could see the tanks and mobile armour of First Battalion arrayed on the opposite hillside in a staggered formation to engage the Republic battalion that sat between First battalion and Delta Company.
Long range laser and missile exchanges had pockmarked the landscape with reminders of poor accuracy, whilst burning vehicles or various sizes and allegiance testified to the deadliness of accurate fire.
Col chewed his lip, “Something is wrong here. Our lines are pushed too far back” He noted Bravo was higher up the hillside, “Bravo, what’s your vantage point?”
Hugh Payen’s voice came back tight, “Not good. I don’t see Second Battalion”
Col swallowed hard, “Neither do I” He studied the tactical display, “First is faster than those Goliaths, but those heavy tanks pack serious range, they’ll pick our comrades apart” He thought, “Where the hell is Second Battalion?”
Alexandria Tarn’s voice cut in, “Sir, My scanners have picked up General Stones beacon, he’s still in the fight. Wait, I have a transmission from him…..”
“Patch it through” Col ordered.
General Stones voice filled the speakers, “Delta, pull out” Static hissed and popped through the transmission, “Second Battalion aborted their landing. Republic air cover was too heavy. Repeat, pull back. Those Goliaths will eat up your recruits..”
“Did you all get that?” Col asked through dry lips.
St Aiger replied strongly, “We got it, I vote we go in”
“This isn’t a democracy James” Col snapped as he studied the tactical displays. Goliaths had a pair of missile s launchers and a single heavy railgun, “After this much fighting, they should be out of missiles, just that railgun to worry about” He thought, “Okay, dammit. Alex, do not acknowledge Stone’s transmission. We never got it. Everyone, full speed and use the wash for cover. Get in as close as you can before firing, those heavy railguns of theirs won’t be worth spit in close” He grinned, “If they want to court martial us for disobeying orders, they’ll have to let us win this battle first”
The Goliath heavy tank looked like someone had stuck a small cruiser on a set of four tank track bogeys. With their twin missile launchers and boxy railgun turret, they were a fearsome war machine capable of taking and handing out a punishment. Their turrets swung back and forth discharging highly accelerated projectiles as the drove the light units of First Battalion before them.
“Only two people believe a tank is invincible” Col thought, “The designer, and the pilot who believes the designer” He watched the range counters tick down, “Okay, Delta, Bravo and Sweep, let them fly”
At his command, the tanks of Delta and Bravo platoons and the light vehicles of Captain Losk’s sweeps let fly with flights of missiles, then followed up with their heavy turbolasers, blasters and railguns.
The rearmost two Golitahs were savaged by the storm of missiles, the turret of the left most one seemed to disintegrate under the assault, then the other weaponry stabbed in, boiling and crushing armour, then both tanks ground to a halt, disabled.
“Demon and Phoenix, engage” He called and a second later, the battlesuits of Gol Sivran’s Demon lance fired their own missiles off and then used their jump packs to get closer to their target,. Meanwhile, Alex Tarn’s Phoenix squad used their own jump packs to leap onto their target, before discharging their railguns and heavy blasters at close range, whilst tearing apart armour with their battlesuits claws.
Within minutes, both tanks shuddered to a smoking halt as crew hatches popped open and the crews signaled their surrender.
“Four down” Col thought, “So far, so good”
For an instant, the smoke seemed to clear and Col caught sight of one particular Goliath, A trio of stars on it’s turret.
“Focus all fire on that Goliath” He ordered, “That’s Colonel Fiona Cochrane!”
Weapons fire from a dozen different angles savaged Cochrane’s Golitah. One of the missile launchers exploded and armour plates spun away under the attack and Col saw a railgun bolt punch through the cockpit and he thought for a moment it might have been a killing shot, but then the Golitaths turret tracked to point towards where Alex’s unit still sat on another disabled Goliath.
“Alex!” Col called, “Scatter your people NOW!”
A half dozen blurs leapt clear of the tank an instant before the Goliath fired and Col fancied that he saw Alex hold off jumping until she saw all her squad was away before jumping herself. The hit from Conchrane’s tank blew the already damaged one apart, but at that point Alex had already landed and was scrambling for cover.
“Fire!” Col elled at his tanks gunner.
As more weapons fire savaged the Goliath, it’s turret tracked to point directly at Col’s tank. Even at his range, he saw the charging coils crackle with energy.
“Oh, hell” He yelled, “Back us up now”
As the Bulldog’s driver threw the tank into reverse, the heavy railgun fired. Col caught a glimpse of Cochrane’s tank finally exploding under the pummeling it was receiving, then something slammed into his tank and his world was suddenly spinning around.
Then it hit and his world went black.
—————————————————
Transport Mckenzie.
Outbound From Kashyyyk
Circinus March.
322ABY.
June 21st.
Patrick Varik-Tarn looked up as his father enter the small cabin, “I thought you were getting some sleep?”
“I was” Morgan sighed, “But I’m still bothered by my conversation with Yorinaga. So, I’ve been listening in on intelligence intercepts”
“It really shook you up, didn’t it” Patrick shook his head, “Face it, the guy can’t let go of a battle that happened six years ago”
“Yorinaga Tortorelli is dangerous” Morgan said coldly as he sat down, “He should be taken seriously”
“Oh, don’t worry, I do” Patrick said solemnly, “Certainly, I’m more concerned about my people than Riesk Fel’lya was about grabbing dishes”
Morgan threw back his head and laughed, “It must have been a full five seconds of utter silence after Harrison made his announcement. Calavina Tororelli looked like he’d been slapped with a wet squid. Helene Marshall looked confused and Grant Tikonov looked like he was trying to work out the profit potential”
Patrick nodded, “I thought Marta Kinsolving was going to have a stroke. She turned red, then purple when she saw her consort staring at Helene Marshall” He laughed, “Though Riesk Fel’lya’s reaction was the best”
Morgan smiled, “When he shot from his seat, I thought he was going to jump all the way to orbit and his personal cruiser. He croaked a couple of times and clutched his bowl to his chest as if it was solid Krayt Pearl. Then he started shouting at his wife and daughters to gather up the plates and dishes because they’re military intelligence. ‘They show the worlds he means to conquer!’ Riesk bellowed. I hope the Republics defenses are better organized than their leader”
“They will be” Patrick frowned, “Did you see Natasha Loran’s reaction? She just stood there, still as a statue, heedless of the chaos around her as nobles and officers gathered up plates as padawans tried to restore calm. Then she raised her glass to the Prince, downed it in one, then smashed it on the floor. Some bad blood there” He frowned, “What is happening out there anyway?”
Morgan half closed his eyes, “If things are going according to plan. Skye forces have landed -or will be landing on nine different Republic worlds. The initial worlds hit are along the Ilum-Arkania section of the border”
“Aiming for a push at Bilbringi?” Patrick visualized the galactic map of that region.
Morgan nodded, “The Skye Alliance had all it’s troops gathered up for the Galahad exercises, but instead they struck deep into Republic space. They grossly outnumber and outclass the troops they are facing” He shrugged, “Nothing is certain in war, but the Republic troops will have to fight a lot better than they have in the past to stand a chance”
“Won’t the Circinus Federation strike into the Alliance to force Harrison to pull troops back?” Patrick asked.
Morgan shook his head, “Free Worlds League forces struck deep into the Federation, stabbing as deep as Muskree and Quermia. The Federation has been forced to scramble all it’s forces just to hold their worlds”
Patrick considered things for a moment, “What if the Taurian Concordat were to strike into League space?”
“No time” Morgan answered, “The League launched a a large strike into Taurian space that’s wrecked several major shipyards and severely hampered their ability to move troops. At the same time, Corellia-in-Exile forces with Alliance support launched into Corellian space with the aim of retaking those systems for the League” He paused for a moment, “League forces hit Antar en-route and utterly decimated the Republic second fleet which had been shifting some five thousand troops to Corellia to reinforce it”
Sounds like a lot of people were caught with their trousers down” Patrick nodded, “What about the Oberon Confederation and Outer Rim Republic?”
“Settling their own differences for their own part” Morgan shrugged, “Though, apparently Oberon forces have hit Republic space”
“And where do the Genyosha fit into all this?” Patrick asked.
“We wait until Harrison can give us the location of Yorinaga’s base and we go in and end this, once and for all” Morgan said coldly.
———————————————-
Command Center.
Royal Palace.
Skye,
Skye Alliance.
322ABY
August 12th.
The air hung heavy in the reinforced bunker that served as the command center for the Skye Alliance military forces. Acrid with the scent of nervous sweat and laced with tension, it defied the efforts of the air conditioning system to do more than swirl it into a turgid breeze.
Dozens of occupied terminals filled the room, manned by chattering technicians and analysts who sorted the data they received and sent it to one of the massive screens that dominated the walls. Though, the volume seemed to drop as he entered the room, Harrison Tarn was pleased to note that nobody actually stopped what they were doing. Everyone remained focused on their duty, though he did catch a few sideways glances and at least one informal salute.
Making his way to the center of the room, he found Subhash Indrahar and Arden Sortek gathered around the holo table displaying an overhead view of the Skye/Republic border. As he approached, an orderly handed him a headset and mike which he quickly slipped over his head. Immediately, a roar of noise assaulted his ears, but a quick adjustment soon had the tumult of voices dialed to a barely noticeable level.
Arden saw him approaching and looked up with a grin, “Redfield’s Renegades successfully staged a landing on Ansion that put them put them behind the lines set up by the Republican Hussars. Word is the Hussars have pulled off planet”
Harrison nodded, “Excellent. Fel’lya surprised us by having the Hussars on world and we surprised him by having the Renegades pull of a dangerous assault. We’ll have to reward Redfield and his people well for this” He frowned, “Have you discovered how the Hussars came to be on Ansion without our knowledge?”
A sour expression flickered across Indrahar’s face and he irritably tapped the fingers of his good hand on the arm of his wheelchair, “It seems that a clerk in the paymasters office on Selvaris was claiming pay for a half dozen phantom troopers. When the Hussars were transferred to Ansion, he delayed reporting their transfer so he could clean up his records, which is why our agents didn’t spot the move initially” He scowled, “We knew the Hussars were going to end up on Ansion eventually, but without the payroll confirmation, we just didn’t know when”
Harrison chewed his lip, “They got off world?”
Arden nodded, “And took a battalion of the Fourth Republic Sabers, three cruisers, a destroyer, two badly mauled fighter squadrons and a company of the Reserve Cavalry’s First Regiment. That unit is, for all intents and purposes, destroyed. It’s entire officer corps was wiped out”
Harrison touched the map and highlighted Alderbaren, “Any more trouble here?”
Arden shook his head, “No, our fleet group under Admiral San Koss, decimated the battle group protecting the world, allowing our forces to land almost unopposed. The Republic’s Second Armoured got a company and half off world. Since their departure, trouble has dropped to a minimum. The Fifth Deneb Light Cavalry has things in hand and the Second Skye Rangers have regrouped and are ready for the next set of strikes”
Indrahar cut in, “Fel’lya got a battalion of the Tenth Crucis Rangers and a fifty three capital ships out of Arkania and one and a half companies of the New Hessan Regulars off of New Hessan” He gave a grim smile, “Fel’lya’s salvaged two weakened regiments and the best part of one fleet group out of three fleet groups and the garrison forces of nine worlds. We were hurt in a few places, but we’re still strong. In fact, most of the units designated for the next wave are virtually intact and ready to go”
“Good, good” Harrison nodded thoughtfully, “”Now what about what happened on Yinchorr? Has an evaluation been completed on Delta Companies performance yet?”
Arden nodded and punched in several commands and the map was overlaid with data and statistics from the battle. Projected in bold blues and greens, the data represented the tonnage lost and destroyed during the battle. The bar displaying the damage inflicted by Delta Company towered above the bar representing damage received”
“This is better than expected” Harrison smiled.
Indrhar nodded, “While it bears to be aware that the Goliath is poorly suited for close in combat, whereas Delta were configured for close in assaults. I concur” He smiled, “What’s also note worthy, is how well they fought when they believed Col Levin had been killed”
Arden gave a sharp nod of agreement, “The shot that disabled his tank actually hit the ground right in front of the Bulldog. The force was enough to flip the tank on it’s side. Colonel Levin suffered a concussion and took no further part” He pulled up the after battle report, “Your daughter directed the armoured units to direct fire against the remaining Golitaths, then drove both battlesuit squads into their flanks” He smiled, “At the same time, Captains Cha and St Aiger had their infantry units capture two disabled Goliaths and turned their weapons against the Republic forces”
Indrahar grinned, “Also, a Captain Payen commed General Stone and told him that First Battalion could, and I’m quoting now, ‘join in any time they wished’”
Harrison laughed, “Imagine that, a unit built from one of my training battalions inviting an academy unit to join them. Men and women like Captain Payen would have never had the chance if we’d not started that program. Let’s hope that will kill criticism of the program”
“Agreed” Arden said, “In the meantime, Delta have rearmed and Colonel Levin has commandeered a captured Manticore tank to replace his Bulldog”
“Good” Harrison smiled, “How go the preparations for the next wave?”
Indrahar frowned, “Ahead of schedule, we could go early in some cases?”
“No” Harrison shook his head, “We stick to the schedule. I want Riesk Fel’lya to feel each and every wave like the pounding of death knocking at his door”
Indrahar narrowed his eyes, “And the data going to Miles?”
“Keep feeding him false data” Harrison replied, “Focus the spotlight on our weak spots, but don’t make it too obvious. I don’t want us doing the NRI’s job for them, but we don’t want them to miss our potential weaknesses. Otherwise our plan won’t work”
“It will be done, my Prince” Indrahar nodded.
Removing the headset, Harrison left the two to continue looking over the data and made his way out of the command center. Out in the hallway he gave his eyes a few seconds to adjust to the brighter lights, then made his way to the elevator. Nodding to the two guards at the lift doors, he entered the car, jabbed the ascent button and leaned against the wall of the car as the doors closed and it began to ascend.
The invasion had gone well, very well. In fact, it had exceeded his wildest dreams. His forces had achieved their first round of objectives and had suffered no major losses. Fel’lya on the other hand had salvaged even less in the way of troops, capital ships and material than even he and his advisers had dared estimate.
As the elevator car slowed, Harrison straightened up and tugged at his uniform jacket, grateful that he’d be able to relax for a few hours and trade his uniform for his more comfortable casual shirt and trousers. A moment later, the doors hissed open and he stepped out into the private apartments.
“Jacob, Hanna” Harrison smiled, “How are you?”
“Not bad” Jacob shrugged from where he sat on the rooms large sofa with Hanna, “The inactivity takes some getting used to” He looked at his wife and smiled, “But the company more than makes up for it”
Hanna leong smiled up at him, her long blond hair pulled into a ponytail, and kissed Jacob lightly. She turned to Harrison, “Your nephew brought me some holodisks of The New Adventures of Mace Windu. Those episodes haven’t yet reached the League for broadcast” She indicated a pile of holodisks on the table.
Harrison smiled at the rooms final occupant, “That was considerate of you, Draco”
Draco Fel-Tarn shrugged, sending a ripple through his long red hair, “I need to speak with you, Uncle” He frowned, “I didn’t just come here to bring Hanna those holodisks, and we both know it. I again request permission to rejoin my unit”
Harrison sighed, “We’ve been through this before. Your unit is fighting well, perhaps not as well as they might with you leading them, but they are doing well. I cannot afford to risk you”
“You have no problems with me being in combat before” Draco scowled, “Nor did you have problems with Jacob serving aboard a front line warship. Nor did you, sorry, nor do you have a problem with Alex being out there fighting”
“The situation is different” Harrison shook his head, aware that both Hanna and Jacob were watching him carefully, “We weren’t at war before” He sighed, “And Alex…..with Alex it’s different”
“And I doubt she’d come if you called anyway” Jacob said dryly, still feeling a little hurt over his sister failing to show at the wedding.
“No” Draco snapped, “It wasn’t different. Before, I was a rallying point. My people knew that my serving with them showed confidence in their abilities. That you were always confident that we’d get the job done. They knew that you knew that we’d always win, that they’d never fail and risk death, because you’d never risk me”
“I have Rickard Stiener leading them. Rickard has my utmost confidence”Harrison sighed.
“But that’s not the same” Draco began to pace the room, “Rickard is a good leader, but he has no blood tie to you. As much as I admire him and his abilities, he is just a pawn in this battle” Draco stopped and turned, jabbing his thumb at his own chest, “I’m a prize, Uncle and we both know it. If I were to be captured, Riesk Fel’lya could use me as a bargaining chip to force my father to pull the Republic March out of the war, prevent you from sending ships through those systems and hinder the war effort”
Harrison frowned, “You’ve just given me a perfect reason to keep you away from the front lines”
“No” Draco shook his head, pain evident on his face, “It’s not a good reason. You should have me out there. It will tell everyone that you believe victory is inevitable”
“And what happens if you are killed?” Harrison turned and rested his hands on the counter behind him, his back to Draco, “Your father will accuse me have bungling my plans. Of putting you in unnecessary danger. Instead of fighting Fel’lya, I’ll end up fighting him”
“No” Draco said, “You won’t. If I died, he’d rally to your side. He would give you his every resource to crush Fel’lya” A wry smile crossed his expression, “And you and I both know, as good as the troops you’ve commuted to this war are. We’ll need Republic March troops to go the distance”
Harrison’s voice sank to the level of a graveyard breeze, “If what you say is true, then perhaps I should arrange for a Republic assassin to kill you here on Skye? It would give me the effect I need, but avoid the demoralizing effect your death would have on the Heavy Guards”
Harrison heard a shocked gasp from Hanna and was aware of Jacob rising angrily to his feet, though he refrained from speaking as Draco spoke first.
Draco straightened up to his full height, “All I’ve ever wanted was to serve you, my Prince. If my death will suit your needs, then all I ask is for time to settle my affairs”
“No, dammit” Harrison spun to face him, “I’m not Calavina Tortorelli and you aren’t one of his fanatical Death Commandos. Your death won’t serve me at all. I need you here. Your presence, your insight, your support is what I need and I need it here on Skye” Harrison smiled confidently, “You are also my ace in the hole, a rallying point that I may need if the situation changes. By holding you back, by not committing you early, I tell people that I have confidence in my troops without you, that events have not required you yet” He nodded solemnly, “In this capacity, Draco, you serve me more than you will ever know” He looked to Jacob, “And the same is for you, Jacob”
Draco sighed, but straightened up proudly, “If I cannot be with my unit, then I will serve my duty here, at your side. But when the time comes that you need me, I will not shirk my duty and I will make you proud, Uncle”
——————————————
Observation Gallery Seven.
Repair Dock Alpha-Nine.
Terah Construction Company Yards.
Tatooine Orbit.
322ABY.
August 19th
Galatea Terah slipped into the observation lounge to find it empty bar one occupant. Her father. Baron Logan Cameron Terah III, undisputed head of the Terah Construction Company -proud suppliers of ships and services to the Oberon Confederation for over two hundred years- stood with his back to the doorway and faced the immense transparisteel window that made up the entire wall of the gallery.
His attention was focused on the bay beyond and the ship being worked on there in. One of twelve such docks, RDA-9 was one of the largest in the TEC yards, capable of building some of the largest capital ships in the galaxy.
Measuring just over eight thousand meters in length, the Leviathan class Battlecruiser lacked the soft graceful curves of the Mon Calamari built warships or the distinctive dagger-like profiles of some of the New Republic and Skye Alliances Star Destroyer classes. Instead, the Leviathan comprised a single flattened oval, a blocky engine unit and two bulky, stubby ‘wings’ which ran the length of the vessel and held the massive hanger bays.
Though not an attractive vessel, the design instead followed a philosophy of function over form and the designers had determined this design maximized the firing arcs of weapons and with the hangers having entry points at both ends of the wings, fighter launch and recovery was much faster. Having the hangers in the wings also allowed more internal hull space for the workings of the Magnetic Accelerator Cannon as well as two power generators. A main one that handled all systems and a back up that could be used to reinforce the shields or even ‘quick charge’ the MAC for rapid fire at the cost of increased wear.
This particular vessel, the Takayoshi Fuchida, was undergoing final checks ahead of the launch next month and would be the first of the class to enter service with the Oberon navy.
Galatea smirked. If her father hand had his way, the launch would have been six months ago, long before the ship had been checked and ready. But she’d persuaded him that with the launch being so important, they needed to do it right and the incidents with the Hunter Patrol ships only added weight to her arguments.
It was rare that she would win a battle like that and she was still a little proud of that fact.
As she stepped up to the window, the Baron glanced over at her, “Ah, Daughter” He nodded, the movement setting his many chins jiggling, “Managed to drag yourself out of the repair bays then” He gazed with displeasure at her oil splattered overalls and face, “I do hope you’ll clean up for the launch and wear something appropriate”
“Maybe” Galatea shrugged as the watched the activity out in the dock, “I’m sure I have a clean jumpsuit somewhere”
Her father grimaced, “I was thinking along the lines of something more feminine?” He said hopefully.
Galatea sighed, “I’ll consider it”
“See that you do” Logan sniffed, “I received word this morning that Chancellor Helene Marshall and the Council of Twelve will be attending the launch”
“Really” Galatea faked her surprise, her sources having already informed her two days ago, the rumour mill moving quicker than official word.
“Yes” He nodded, “This will be a very important event and I don’t want you embarrassing me or TEC”
“I won’t” Galatea nodded, “You can manage that well enough yourself” She muttered to herself.
“What was that?” Logan frowned, “Did you say something?”
“Just that I know how important this is” Galatea lied solemnly.
“Good” Her father nodded again, “I hear you are still investigating that little incident with the Hunters”
Galatea nodded, “There is a definite issue and I’m still looking”
“A waste of time” The Baron shrugged, “Those Hunters should have been with the Oberon Navy by now. Let the Oberon Navy sort out their own problems”
Galatea whirled to face him, “This IS our problem. We built those ships, TEC signed off on them being tested and ready for duty and now people are being killed because we missed something” She said angrily.
“A few men died” Logan sniffed, “Probably caused the explosion themselves”
“Wrong” Galatea snapped, “We replicated the explosion and I was nearly killed remember. And there was another incident. A Hunter from the same batch had the same thing happen. The entire crew died”
“I didn’t hear….” Logan began.
Galatea cut him off, “It’s probably in a report sat on your desk with all the other reports you don’t read”
“I’m sure I’ll come across it” Logan replied, “I suggest you forget about those Hunters and release the rest to the Oberon Navy. There is a war on you know?”With that he turned, surprisingly gracefully considering his bulk and left the gallery.
Galatea sighed and rested her forehead on the transparisteel wall and tried to bring her anger back under control. Not for the first time, she wished her mother was here, but Jasmine Terah hadn’t been a part of her daughters life for the past five years, having finally walked out on her husband after forty years of marriage. Jasmine had returned to her old profession as an archaeologist and the last Galatea had heard, Jasmine was somewhere out in the edges of Free World League space examining some old fortress tied to Xim the Despot.
“I need to send her a message and say hi, at least” Galatea sighed.
Behind her the door opened again and she turned her head enough to see Dan Halcyon slip into the room.
She grimaced, “We’re not going to have an argument, are we?” She asked, “I just avoided one with my dad and I’m not in the mood for another”
Dan shrugged, “Wasn’t my intention” He held out a datapad, “I was just bringing you this”
“What’s this?” She took the datapad, frowning at the display which showed lines of computer code.
“It’s the program used by our saboteur to cause the catastrophic engine imbalances” Dan answered.
Galatea’s surprise was so complete that she almost dropped the datapad, “How? How did you get this?”
Dan shrugged, “Was pretty well buried, but I’m a better slicer than our saboteur is”
“Is there anything you can learn from it” Galatea asked, “Anything you have learnt? Something you can identify them with? A signature?”
“A signature?” Dan frowned.
“Yeah” Galatea nodded, “Like guys who make bombs have some signature”
Dan laughed and shook his head, “You’ve been watching too many holo-movies. Bombers don’t really have signatures. Most of the time they just use whatever is available. Same with Slicers, only the complete amateurs have signatures, they still have that arrogance of invincibility and never believe they’ll be caught, so always end up giving the game away” He smiled, “Professional slicers aren’t that stupid”
“Then how do we find them?” Galatea frowned.
Dan walked to the window and stood watching the activity outside on the Leviathan, “Well, I start looking at how that code got into the systems and work back from there, through each system that was sliced. No slicing job is ever perfect, so they’ll always be something to follow”
“And you’ll be able to follow this trail right to them?”
Dan shrugged, “Or at least to the terminal they used”
“So, they could have just used a public terminal?” Galatea sighed “Great, just great”
“Don’t be so hasty” Dan held a hand up, “Considering the time it can take to slice a single system, they’d have never got away unnoticed standing at a public terminal too long. Chances are. They’ll have more likely used a private terminal”
“Okay” Galatea nodded, feeling only slightly reassured, “Do what you can please, how long do you think it’ll take?”
“Anywhere between a few weeks to a few months” Dan answered, “This isn’t a quick process. Though I am helped by actually having legitimate access to the TEC computer systems”
“That’s something at least” Galatea nodded, then frowned as a thought occurred to her, “We’ve got some very important people visiting next week. Can you keep an eye out for any other slicing efforts that could sabotage things?”
“I’ll do what I can” Dan smiled, “Who’s the VIP?”
“Helene Marshall and the Council of Twelve” Galatea answered, “Coming for the launch of the Takayoshi Fuchida” She indicated the ship in the bay outside the window.
Dan whistled, “Okay, very important then. I’ll keep an eye out, but I might not be able to spot anything until it’s done. There may not be much lead time on anything our saboteur sets in motion and it actually happening”
“Then we’ll have to move fast” Galatea nodded, “And hope”
———————————————————
Vok.
New Republic.
322ABY
September 3rd
Alexandria Tarn felt her stomach lurch as her descent packs rockets fired swinging her upright and slowly shaving speed off her descent. Around her, she knew the other members of her squad and those of Gol Sivran’s squad would be doing likewise.
Not that she could see them, the cloud cover that hung low over Vok’s surface was fairly thick this morning.
“On the plus side” She muttered, “Makes us harder to spot”
Lightly defended by only a handful of militia units along with the full regiment of Freemont’s Freeman on the ground and only a single fleet group in orbit of less than a dozen vessels and squadrons. Vok had been assigned as part of the second wave of assaults in the invasion. Considering the minimal defensive forces, the combined assault force of the Tarn Light Guards, the Seventh Garqi Grenadiers and the Twelfth Skye Rangers along with four fleet groups seemed like overkill, but the planets mountainous terrain made deployment difficult and the defenders would have the advantage.
The first few days had been tough with the Twelfth Skye Rangers taking some serious punishment when they pursued the Freemen into the mountains on the northern continent. The fighting had been brutal and the Rangers had been forced to retreat after an artillery barrage destroyed their command structure and most of their heavy equipment.
The Seventh Garqi had crushed their opposition easily, but had expended obscene amounts of munitions doing so.
In orbit, the defensive fleet had put up a major fight claiming an even dozen Skye capital ships including the flagship, a Tetra class Destroyer, the Havoc, but in the end had been overwhelmed.
“Our initial battles made us too confident” Alex thought, “We weren’t expecting so tough a fight until Bilbringi or Reecee”
Eventually though, the opposition had crumbled and Freemont’s Freemen had retreated to a mountain fortress from where their commander, a Bothan by the name of Peshk Kre’gha continued to direct the defense.
A fortress Delta Company had been assigned to take. The plan was simple, Colonel Levin led most of his forces up the mountain pass to harass and occupy the defenders, making feints at the fortress itself and simply making it seem as if he were probing the defenses.
Meanwhile, the two battlesuit squads were loaded aboard a a dropship to make a high altitude drop on the fortress, then once inside the defensive perimeter they’d blow the gates from the inside and allow the rest of Delta Company in.
The only problem Alex thought, was anti-air. As small as a battlesuit was in comparison to a starfighter, it would still show up nicely on a sensor board.
Not for the first time, she checked her suits HUD to ensure the jammer attached to her drop pack was still functioning. Even with the jammer, an eagle eyed gunner could still try his luck and take a pot shot or three at her and turn her into so much ash.
“Ash” Alex thought, and the pain in her chest started again, “What would I do if I ran into you down there?”
She still didn’t believe that Ash had sent the hit team on Tanaab, but she couldn’t ignore the fact that Ash had joined the New Republic and had risen in it’s intelligence service. She’d also received a message from her cousin Draco about his conversation with Ash.
“Do you really want to kill me?” Alex said to herself, “Or was it lies, are you still protecting me? Because if it came down to it, I don’t know if I could do anything to you”
She knew realistically, Ash was unlikely to be on a world such as Vok. She’d more likely be on Coruscant, or some high value world like Bilbringi or Borleias or Kuat..
With a suddenness that surprised her, she burst through the clouds into the open air and thoughts of anything but combat were pushed to one side, no matter how much it hurt.
She estimated that she was about a thousand feet above the surface and could clearly see the fortress. Occupying a footprint of several square miles and perched on the mountain below, it’s shape seemed dictated by the flow of the mountain slopes lending it an almost random configuration. The central area was dominated by a number of large buildings including an immense stone keep.
Laser fire and missiles arced from dozens of positions along the walls at the positions occupied by rest of Delta Company. Just as much weapons fire was directed back at the fortress and Alex was pleased to note that the fortress was heavily damaged in a number of places, while only two plumes of black smoke were visible along the road where Delta Company was.
Glancing around, she quickly spotted the rest of her squad and the members of the other squad too, so far, so good.
“Almost too easy” She thought.
As if summoned by her words, anti-air fire began to lance up at them, but passed harmlessly several hundred meters wide.
“Trying to aim without sensors” Alex smiled to herself, “Trying and failing. So far”
An instant later, something, she wasn’t sure what struck her and sent her spinning. She thought she’d blacked out for a moment as the next thing she saw, was the roof of the keep only a hundred feet below her and coming up fast.
“Captain Tarn” Private Caz shouted in her ear, “Do you read?”
“I’m here” Alex answered, “I’m here” She glanced over her HUD, noted the red outline on her drop pack, “Not sure what hit me, but my drop pack is damaged, building up to blow”
“A Missile exploded near you” Gol Sivran cut in, “Saw it from here. You sure you’re okay?”
“I’ll be fine” Alex said, “Mentally working some figures out. Gonna have to try something. If this doesn’t work and I…well……die, take command of my squad and keep them safe”
“What are you talking about?” Sivran asked, “Sithspit!” He shouted a moment later as Alex detached her drop pack.
Ignoring the shouts of her comrades, Alex dropped the last few dozen feet quickly gauging the moment she needed to bring her legs up to soften the impact. She was off by less than a heartbeat, her feet making contact with the flat roof. She briefly heard the servos in her armour whine as they absorbed the impact and prevented the exoskeleton from crumpling and taking her leg bones with it.
Then, an instant later, there was an almighty crash and suddenly she was falling again. Spinning in the air, she hit again this time on her chest. Again there was a brief feeling of resistance, the breath was driven from her body as her armor didn’t quite protect her from all the impact, then another massive crash and falling again.
This happened three more times, each time a different part of her body taking the impact, then on the fourth time, she hit something unyielding and she lay there winded for several moments, staring up through a series of ragged holes all the way up to where she could see a small circle of sky.
Belatedly, she realized what had happened. The simple stone of the keep had been unable to absorb the energy from her impact and she’d gone straight through the roof, then punched through the weaker material in each floor, until she’d hit something more solid.
A quick glance at her HUD told her that while damaged in places, her armor was still solid and none of the battlesuits systems were affected, though the medical system had already identified a number of bruises forming on her body as well as at least one cracked rib.
“Could have been worse I guess” She thought, then hit her comms, “This is Phoenix One, I’m down and okay, any one else down yet”
“This is Two” Robert Craon’s voice answered here, “Good to hear your voice. Where are you?”
She looked around, working out how far she’d dropped through the building with what she knew from the briefing, “On the fourth floor, I think. What’s the situation out there?”
“Rest of the squad is down in the courtyard. Stiff resistance. Demon Squad put down on the other side of the keep, they’re going for the gates” An explosion punctuated his words, “We’re trying to breach the keep now. How close are you to the Command Centre?”
The audio pickups in her suit picked up the sound of troops clattering up the nearby stairs, “Close enough that they’ve responded already. Guess I made a lot of noise. Keep command of the squad Robert, rendezvous at the CC”
Without waiting for a reply, Alex stood and swung her underslung repeater towards the doorway to what she noted was a somewhat sparsely decorated bedroom, the heavy stone fireplace being what had broken her fall. As she swung the repeater in line with the doorway, she felt grateful that the weapon had stayed attached during her antics, the much larger bulkier railgun that she normally used wouldn’t have made it intact.
Alex momentarily heard the high pitched tone of a detonator before the door blew in, spraying massive splinters of wood throughout the room. Ignoring the vicious little missiles bouncing off her armour, she triggered a series of bursts through the smoke that filled the doorway, was rewarded with several screams as the blaster bolts cast red highlights on the smoke.
Several soldiers did make it through the doorway into the room only to stumble to a stop as they realized what they were facing.
Alex smiled to herself. Outside her battlesuit, she barely pushed 5’4, barely over the minimum height limit for battlesuit infantry. The Warg suit added three feet to her overall height and added another 1,000kg to her weight. The sight of any battlesuit was enough to fill any sensible minded lightly armed and armoured infantry man with fear and the Warg was no exception.
However, fear often overrides common sense, a situation perfectly displayed when the soldiers opened fire on her. The lighter weaponry they carried had little chance of penetrating the battlesuits armor, but her HUD still flashed red in some areas indicated that the armor was taking very minor damage.
“A few months and they might wear a way through” She mused, then swung her heavy repeater around and triggered a burst at each man.
Two went down for good, the third dropped beneath the hail of fire and lay screaming in terror. Ignoring him, Alex stalked towards the door. As she approached, two more soldiers came charging through the door. The first slammed into her with all the effect of a fly striking a wall and rebounded off, her limp body that of one blasted into unconsciousness.
The other tried to stand his ground and brought his blaster rifle up, but Alex brought the claw in her left hand around and clipped his head with it, spinning him off to the side.
Stomping through the mix of door remains and corpses on the floor, Alex made her way out to the stairway. Recalling the briefing, she headed down towards what she was certain was the route to the command center itself.
Halfway down, she encountered another squad this one carrying heavier weaponry and augmented by two troopers in Aerie power armour. Though far lighter and less armoured than her Warg battlesuit, the Aerie mounted a six shot light missile launcher and a flamethrower that could potentially make any battlesuit pilot somewhat deader.
As soon as both sides saw each other, the Republic troops brought their weapons up and the front ranks including one of the Aerie’s fired. Laser fire, missiles and a plume of flame swept past as Alex dodged left, her own repeater tracking back to the right in a single sustained burst.
She saw several of her shots puncture the fuel tank on the lead Aerie’s flamethrower, saw highly flammable fuel spray all over the stairwell and the Republic troops, then her momentum carried her into and then through the wall.
As she tumbled through her self made doorway and into the room below, she realised the mistake she’d made, “Soft stone, it’s soft stone, you idiot”
This time, she didn’t smash through the floor, though she utterly demolished the crates she hit, scattering plasteel debris, pre-packaged meals and tools around the room. An explosion sounded somewhere above her. Turning her head slightly, she looked up from her prone position to see the hole where she’d busted through into the storeroom and noticed what appeared to be fire burning back in the staircase.
Belatedly, she realized what had happened. The spilt fuel from the ruptured tank on the Aeries had ignited in a fireball.
“Probably cooked the lightly armoured troopers in seconds” She winced, “Fire probably flashed back in the fuel tank on the Aeries, that would have been the explosion I heard” She triggered her comms as she climbed gingerly to her feet, “Robert, what’s your sitrep?
Robert Craon’s voice came back strong, “We’ve breached the doors and are making our way up. Persistence is strong, but poorly equipped and deployed. They weren’t expecting a combat drop on top of their position”
“I’m one floor above the CC” Alex replied, a feeling of dread settled over her, “I’ll meet you there”
At almost the same time Alex remembered there had been two troopers in Aerie armour, a group of missiles erupted out of the hole to the stairwell. Acting on instinct, Alex whirled to the side, her battlesuit giving her a speed and agility she could never have possessed without it. Five of the six missiles missed, hammering into the crates around her, scattering debris all over the place, the last one hit her shoulder, spinning her back to the ground.
Even as she scrambled back to her feet, she took notice of the damage report flashing up on her HUD showing that the armour on her shoulder, left arm and that side of her body was all but gone.
“Dammit!” She shouted, “A Bothan could scratch his way through my armour on that side!”
The second Aerie appeared in the hole and sent a tongue of flame licking down at her, dodging left, she twisted to put her damaged armour out of her opponents line of sight and brought her repeater up, firing in a series of long bursts.
She was rewarded with a number of hits, one of which hit the fuel tank on the Aerie’s flamethrower. Suddenly, the trooper she faced became more than aware that the deadly weapon he carried had just become an equally deadly bomb.
Taking advantage of his sudden distraction, Alex sighted in and opened fire again. Her blaster bolts hammered against the Aerie’s torso armour before tracking up and punching up through the faceplate of the helmet.
Like a puppet with its strings cut, the trooper dropped to the floor to lay in the shattered remains of the storerooms contents.
“Captain” Robert Craon’s voice sounded in her ears, “We’ve taken the command center. Where are you?”
“Still here” Alex winced as she felt a rib pop, “I’m on my way down. Be there in two” She switched frequencies, “This is Phoenix. Command center has been taken”
“Roger, Phoenix” Col Levin’s voice answered, “All Republic units have ceased resistance. Good work”
—————————————————–
Jedi Temple.
Ossus,
Free worlds League.
322ABY.
October 8th.
Diana Senn took some satisfaction in the grimace that crossed Julian Tiepolo’s face. With the Council in full session today and few allies, the Grandmaster was no doubt expecting a tough, difficult session.
Diana gave a quick look around the room. As well as herself, Tiepolo, Conrad Skywalker, the Cerean Maj Garda, the Nagai Tai and Kharys the S’kytri Master, also present were the Mon Calamari Rekara, the Chadra-Fan Ched, Griv Lohn the Rodian , the Bith Tegan Deeda, the Ho’Din Spero and finally, Lak Resh, the Shistavanian who also headed The Watch.
Diana mentally calculated. Most of the Council had no liking of Tiepolo, most believing he had held the Grandmaster position far beyond a reasonable length of time, seeing him as a symbol of stagnation within the order akin to that that had led to the demise of the Order during the last days of the Old Republic.
“Well” Tiepolo nodded, “You’ve all heard the motion put forwards by Master Lohn. That we place the Skye Alliance, it’s vassals and it’s agents under complete and total interdiction. That though Visage Enterprises we suspend all holonet capabilities for all Alliance held worlds and systems”
Master Garda shook his domed head, “The Alliance has done nothing to deserve interdiction. They have made no move to threaten us, nor have they threatened Visage Enterprise facilities. They have broken none of the tenets the Order negotiated as part of the Alderaan Convention two centuries ago”
“I agree” Spero spoke up, the quietly spoken Ho’Din’s voice seemed like a whisper compared to some.
Lak Resh growled her own agreement, “I would also point out, that an interdiction would also hinder our abilities to easily listen in on Harrison Tarn’s plans”
“This is ridiculous” Teegan Deeda cut in, the Bith’s desire for peace overriding his natural urge to avoid confrontation, “Harrison Tarn has started a war and you argue that we should not strangle the wolf at our door because we would then not be able to locate him from his howls” At a growl from Resh, the Bith Master flinched slightly, but pressed on, “What good is it to listen to Tarn’s messages piecemeal when his intentions are clear. He means to conquer the galaxy”
Tai shook her head, derision clear on her pale skinned face, “That is utter nonsense. Tarn has neither the resources nor the mandate to carry on a sustained war of that sort”
“You can be sure of that, Master Tai?” Lohn shot to his feet, “How can we be sure of anything? The Watch certainly couldn’t warn us this war was coming?”
Resh let out another growl, “We never saw it happening due to the way Tarn chose to distribute his orders. He did not use the holonet, nor normal lines of communication. It transpires that all orders, beyond typical grouping orders as part of Galahad ’22 were all hand delivered by couriers” The Shistavanen shook her furred head, “Even now very few orders are going out and those that do are done so physically. From the moment it began, the invasion has been self contained”
“It was well planned” Diana cut in, “Tarn must have been planning this for years. His first wave all, but cut Bilbringi from the rest of the Republic. The second wave has only widened that cut. I have no doubts that a third wave will take Bilbringi and it’s shipyards. Meanwhile, forces striking from the Balmorra Finger threaten Kuat. We cannot say where he will stop” She frowned, “I should also point out that an interdiction would also affect the Republic March, cutting off the information flowing to the NRI from Miles Fel-Tarn. That will only hurt the Republic further”
Tiepolo spoke up, “On the other hand, it would also cut off the information flowing out of the NRI via Skye agents”
“True” Diana nodded, “But I still see no reason why we should enforce an interdiction on the Skye Alliance. Despite Tarn’s war, he has done nothing to warrant interdiction”
“Are you all blind or stupid!” Lahn shouted, his emotions getting the better of him.
“Calm, Master Lahn” Tiepolo admonished.
“My apologies” Lahn sighed, “But why can’t you see? Once Harrison Tarn has conquered Bilbringi, Kuat and other major worlds in that region, Tikonov, Gorsh, Hyboria, Solaris and Arkania, his nation will be the most powerful and nigh on unstoppable” The Rodian waved a suckered hand, “The Free Worlds League strikes at Corellia seeking to reclaim both the shipyards and Centrepoint Station and it’s repulsor network and has also hit dozens of other Republic worlds. The League has also struck at the Circinus Federation preventing that little nation from striking the Skye Alliance to relieve pressure on the Republic” The Rodian nodded briskly, “Mark my words. Galactic domination is Harrison Tarn’s goal”
“You are being overly dramatic” Diana shook her head and saw several other Masters nod in agreement, “Harrison cannot sustain such a war. He has expended vast amounts of supplies capturing worlds. Yes, he recovers some supplies, but they are meant to sustain battalions, not entire regiments. Moreover, no Republic March troops under Miles Fel-Tarn’s command have taken part. Without those troops Harrison cannot hope to conquer the Republic”
“Nor” Conrad Skywalker cut in, “Can he risk weakening the Skye Alliance too much as that would invite Miles Fel-Tarn to make an attempt at the Skye throne”
“Then why doesn’t Miles strike now?” Master Ched asked timidly, “It would be the perfect opportunity, would it not? Harrison’s troops are thin in the Alliance core worlds”
Diana turned to the diminutive Chadra-Fan, “Why should he? His two foes are busy weakening themselves. He will wait until one has emerged victorious, but weakened and then strike”
By now Lahn had slumped back into his chair, “I cannot see that happening. Fel’lya will never defeat Harrison and Harrison will have too much popular support among the troops for Miles to overcome. By the time the chance comes for Miles, the Republic will be gone”
“I doubt it” Conrad shook his head, “Right now, Harrison’s supply lines are strong. But another wave and they will be stretched thin. The New Republic will see this and they will mount their own strikes against Tarn’s supply bases. That will be sufficient to arrest the Skye advance and allow the Republic troops to dig in before counter attacking”
Diana looked at Conrad curiously, “A glimmer from the force?”
“A hunch” Conrad shrugged, “There’s also a possibility that General Hud Sinn could rally his forces in the Bilbringi sector and push the Skye forces back, alleviating the pressure on that flank”
“But if that doesn’t happen?” Lohn said, “What then?”
“Fine” Diana nodded, “Let us set a limit, a line that Harrison must cross before we interdict the Skye Alliance”
Tiepolo looked around the chamber, “Do we have any thoughts on when Harrison’s supplies will be expended? When he legitimately can go no further?”
The S’kyti Khary’s pursed her lips thoughtfully, “I anticipate that he will have exhausted his supplies by the end of the new year. By that point he would be hard pressed to push beyond the Reecee-Jagga Two-Lerin Kersil line”
“I agree” Master Garja said, “He will have taken more than enough worlds by then and will call a cessation to hostilities. Any more and the efforts of garrisoning them will be far beyond what he can manage”
“Very well” Tiepolo looked to Lahn, “If Harrison Tarn’s forces take Borleias, then we will endeavor to place a holonet interdiction of the Skye Alliance?”
For a moment, it seemed as if Lahn would push the issue, but then the Rodian’s head dropped, “I accept that. An interdiction when Borleias falls”
————————————————————–
Imperial Palace.
Coruscant.
New Republic.
322ABY.
October 27th..
Natasha Loran massaged her temples with the palms of her hands to try and relieve the fatigue that left her body aching, “I’ve not had much more than a few hours sleep since the invasion began” She thought. Looking up she saw the same exhaustion in Ran’s expression.
Between them was a holographic display of the contested area of space. Red cut deeply into the deep blue that represented Republic space. One wide cut slipped up towards Bilbringi, all but cutting it off from the rest of the Republic. Meanwhile other cuts sliced in at Kuat and Arkania and, green denoting Free Worlds League advances expanded well over the border into the Republic and all but covering the Corellian sector.
All the loyal Republic worlds glowed gold, whilst those taken turned black.
Ran pointed at the display, “Your numbers check out. The Skye Ranger regiments spread out and hit six worlds in the third wave. On Menkar and Mok Shimor they face nothing but militia…..”
“Great” Ash grimaced, “Just great. I guess we can console ourselves that they won’t capture much in the way of supplies”
“True” Ran shrugged, “But face it, they won’t expend much either” He pointed at a world called Tigress, “The Tigress Raiders will do some damage, but that world is lost. Tarn tossed three regiments at it” He pointed to another world, “Bilbringi fell last week. Hud Sinn at least managed to pull the best part of two regiments and the entire Fourth Fleet out, so that’s something”
“Way I see it” Ash nodded, “Even with this third wave, we still have a chance with Supreme Commander Hut’s plan to strike at their supply bases. If we can capture -or destroy- the supplies the Alliance have stockpiled and the bases, it’ll cut off support. We won’t be able to turn around and force them back off our worlds, but it’ll buy us time to dig in and reinforce”
“You said Miles’ latest information confirms our estimates of defences on those worlds?” Ran asked.
Ash nodded, “Yes, but I’m wary of trusting his data. Harrison clearly didn’t trust him with the invasion plans. How much can we trust him?”
Ran frowned, “Well, we’ve had hints that he’s undervaluing the strength of his own deployments, but those fictions are easy enough to correct. I trust him about as far as I can throw a Hutt, but so far he hasn’t attacked us. He’s held up his end of the bargain”
“True enough” Ash snorted, “Okay, the Alliance appears to be maintaining a two month per wave schedule. So the fourth wave will likely launch in December. Which means Tarn’s storehouses will be full by the end of November”
“And they’re well behind his lines” Ran nodded, “Which in his arrogance, he believes are well out of our reach”
Suddenly, the rooms main door slid open and Riesk Fel’lya strode angrily into the room, anger sending a tremble through his body, “Ah, Major Gavin, Major Loran, you’re both here. Good. View this” He thrust a holodisk at them, “That idiot dares to send an ultimatum to me. ‘Do this or else’ How dare he?”
Ash frowned, but accepted the disk and slipped it into the holoplayer. A moment later, the image of General Hud Sinn flickered into focus.
The Twi’lek officer bowed to the camera and his voice came strong and even from the speakers in the player, “Chief-of-State Fel’lya, I beseech you to listen to my plea. Bilbringi has fallen and with it goes the hopes of the sector. My troops have not lost heart and they believe in our ultimate victory” Sinn’s eyes flashed with fire, “The majority of this message is a plan outlining a campaign to retake Bilbringi and secure the sector. I only request your permission to undertake this campaign. My analysis has pinpointed serious weaknesses in the defenses of Bilbringi. Allaince forces have not yet solidified their hold on that world, yet they are already treating the population as ldocile subjects”
The Twi’lek seemed to stand straighter, “I require that my own unit -Stapleton’s Iron Hand, all three regiments- be transferred to within striking range of Bilbiringi. In addition, I will also require the units that retreated from Andre, Anchar, Vortex, Ansion and Woodstock as well as the rest of the Eighth Fleet . With these units I will be able to retake Bilbringi and begin the counter-attack”
“Sir, I am confident that my plan will work, but I cannot do it without those troops. I urge you to accept it and give the order. If not, I do not know how long I can hold the sector. As always, I am at your service”
His head immediately exploded into alpha numeric code, before resolving itself into a map that quickly began to display a visual representation of Sinn’s plan. Both Ran and Ash studied it intently.
Ash nodded intently as she watched the plan unfold, “It could work” She thought, “Risky though. It strips troops from the rest of the sector. It’s a dangerous gamble, but as they say in Dejarik, it takes a strong move to counter a strong player”
Fel’lya looked at the display and snorted with disgust, “This plan of his, it is flawed, isn’t it?”
“Ran shook his head, “Actually, it could work, but it’s based on some dangerous assumptions”
“Explain” Fel’lya ordered.
Ash smiled, “Sinn cites his own intelligence sources that the Thirteenth Telosian Lancers and a few capital ships from the Skye Fourth Fleet are the only units garrisoning Bilbringi” Ash paused for a moment and ran a hand through her blond hair, “The information from Duke Miles differs from that. It’s true that the Lancers are the only complete force in the system. But Duke Miles points out that the other two Lancer regiments left behind substantial amounts of troops, battlesuits and light vehicles on the Asteroid and shipyard facilities. In addition, the Fourth fleet left behind seven full wings of starfighters and bombers.to help hold the system”
Ran nodded and typed something into his datapad, “The General also wants his personal regiments shifted up to help in the assault. Not only are Stapleton’s Iron Hand poorly equipped for the sort of fighting involved -they are suited for planetary combat, not fighting on shipyards and asteroids, but the logistical nightmare of moving the three regiments is prohibitive. We just don’t have the available ships to transport that much in the way of troops and material. Almost everything we have is tied up in fighting or is deployed too far away to be of use”
Fel’lya crossed his arms and nodded thoughtfully, “I sense Hud Sinn’s personal lust for power as the driving force behind this plan” The Bothan’s expression darkened as he stared at the holo-projector display.
Ran glanced at Ash, “Sir, the information from Duke Miles does pinpoint a weakness we can exploit”
Fel’lya looked at him interested, “Explain”
“Do you remember Supreme Commander Hut’s plan to strike at the Skye Alliance supply lines and storehouses?” Ran asked.
Fel’lya frowned for a moment, “Yes. At the time it was unlikely to succeed. Tarn had fortified his storehouses to much”
“That’s changed, in light of new information from Duke Miles, Supreme Commander Hut has proposed a new plan. We were just looking over the figures” Ran punched up the commands to change the display. A new image showed, displaying troop figures for several worlds, “Tarn’s storehouses are poorly defended as he pulls troops to continue his advance. We can go in strike hard and capture his stores. We’ll give our forces the supplies we need to push the Skye forces back and deny those same supplies to Tarn”
Ash joined in, “New Halloran, Tirahan, Myrkr, Yinchorr, Bogdan and Telasea are the worlds Skye is using for their storehouses” She smiled, “Because the Alliance has to solidify it’s grip on the worlds taken in this wave, their will be no new strikes before December. This means that those storehouses will be full come mid-November and Tarn’s supply lines will be stretched to the limit. Based on Mile’s information, we can use the remnants of the forces that retreated under the second wave”
Ran nodded, “Tirahan gets only the single remaining company of the Second Combined Arms, but the data we have shows almost nothing in the way of a garrison force. Bogdan gets the equivalent of four battalions. Myrkr gets a regiment built from what’s left of the Twentieth armoured and the First Republic Hussars. New Halloran will be hit with two full regiments including your own Kothlis Grenadiers” As he spoke data scrolled up the display, “Because most of Tarn’s fleets are protecting the worlds he’s recently taken, a single fleet group will be more than sufficient to achieve orbital superiority during the raids”
“An interesting plan” Fel’lya nodded, “Hut has done well, do you both concur with the Supreme Commander’s plan?”
Ash gave a sharp nod, “Yes”
Ran hesitated, “The Supreme Commander has planned it meticulously, it’s just that….”
“What is it, Major?” Fel’lya frowned.
Ran punched up a new image, “Axton. Five years ago Mcarron’s Armoured Cavalry hit that world when -at your direction- that mercenary unit was raiding throughout the Republic March. Tarn had the mines rebuilt, but the cost of doing so is well out of line of what we projected the rebuilding should have cost”
Fel’lya’s head came up, “Implication?”
Ash grinned, “It’s Ran’s big project. He’d heard rumours of a secret facility developing a new generation of weaponry”
Ran nodded, “I’ve eliminated four of the six suspects. Only Axton and Ylix remain. I need a force to raid the world and hit the facility and potentially claim the weapons for our use and turn Harrison’s own technical efforts against him”
Ash brought up new data, “The Third Tau Ceti Rangers retreated to the Carida system, from there they can hit Axton and either find the facility or find information leading to where it really is”
Fel’lya nodded, “The plan is ambitious, but based on firmer foundations and planning than those proposed by General Sinn” The Bothan gave a feral smile, “Very well, we will proceed with Surpreme Commander Hut’s plan and this raid of yours”
“Wait” Ash held up a hand, “There is one more thing to consider. Though the Circinus Federation is beset by Free Worlds League forces, the Circinus forces on the Skye border have not yet engaged. If Calavina Tortorelli could be convinced to send strikes at Telos, Ruuria, Elom and Ord Radama. It would force Tarn to shift forces towards that region and reduce the reinforcements he has to oppose the raids”
“It will be done” Fel’lya gave a sharp nod, then stiffened, “I see it” He muttered, “I see exactly what Sinn is planning. He means to retake Bilbringi and then the rest of that sector before declaring the whole sector an independent nation state. That’s why he wants his own troops”
“Sir?” Ash frowned and shot a look at Ran who shrugged in equal confusion.
“Inform the Supreme Commander that we will go ahead with his plans, call it Operation Riposte and include your strike on Axton. We will strangle Harrison Tarn with his own supplies and research” The Bothan laughed, “Lastly, we shall eliminate a dangerous enemy to the New Republic” He looked at Ash, “Write this down for posterity, ‘On this day, I, Riesk Fel’lya, Cheif-of-State of the New Republic, order the death of Hud Sinn for the treason he plans to commit’”
Chuckling to himself, he turned and walked briskly from the room, the door sliding shut cut off his laughter.
“Either he’s a genius” Ash said, “Or he’s completely mad”
Ran shrugged, “Your guess is as good as mine. Fifty-Fifty says he’s right about Sinn. We already know he’s been selling equipment on the black market. Who’s to say he doesn’t want a bigger slice of the pie?”
Ash sighed, “Well, we’re going to be busy typing these orders up. Do you want my notes?”
Ran tapped his head, “Got it all up here. Thanks anyway. The Axton strike my plan anyway, so I’ll do the work and present it to the Supreme Commander. He”ll be happy at least, he’s been itching to launch it”
Fractured Galaxy 