NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: This thread is for my and Telros's preparations, at the moment. It's coming out of this (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=519300) thread, more-or-less. So, yeah.

His voice crackled through the speakers. The ship was to prepare to move. They were to align themselves with the Telrosian fleet, and then, they would be given further orders.

The Song of Sorrow glided quietly away from the rest of the fleet, followed by the Bloodied Fist, and the vast mass of ships which comprised the Kingdom's fleet in this situation. A message flickered through to the Telrosians:

This is Servant-Admiral Sashiar. In accordance with the will of the Emperor, you are to align yourself with us, in formation. Apparently, it seems, we are to be assigned a mission together. May the Sovereign bless you, and strengthen our sword-arms for the coming storm...

The endless swarm of ships moved through the void, slowly disentagling itself from the main fleet, and, even more agonizingly slowly, moving into formation. Each ship had to be in a specific place to prepare for jump - and that took time. But time they had. For now, they would wait for the Telrosians to join formation with them. And then.. well, that remained to be seen.

Carson watched Tarkin speak to the new arrivals and then made the stunning announcement that the Emperor himself was arriving. The Admiral's eyebrows raised, the Emperor was a brave one alright, coming here. To leave the safety of Coruscant, that was something. He turned when one of the bridge crew called to him. "Sir, incoming message from the Song of Sorrow." Carson nodded.

"Put it through."

This is Servant-Admiral Sashiar. In accordance with the will of the Emperor, you are to align yourself with us, in formation. Apparently, it seems, we are to be assigned a mission together. May the Sovereign bless you, and strengthen our sword-arms for the coming storm... The Admiral blinked a few times. The orders were already given? The Emperor certainly did move quickly. "Send our reply."

Servant-Admiral Sashiar, I am moving my fleet into the corresponding location you have requested. I am eager to begin and am honored to fight by your side. May our victory be swift and total."

"Have the fleet move into position and bring us to Delta Alert. Have us ready for combat." The klaxon's went off and the onboard troopers, as well as the pilots, scrambled to ready for the coming conflict. The fleet shifted and eased into position next to the Sovereign fleet. It was an awesome sight, just two fleets covering the space they occupied. Another message was sent.

"Servant-Admiral Sashiar, this is Admiral Edwards. The fleet is in position, we are on standby and await new orders."

OOC: Note that this is happening in sync with the GE invasion of Asfaltum.

"Open communications with the Telros."

"Done, Servant-Admiral."

"Excellent."

Clearing his throat, Sashiar spoke, so that the Telrosians would hear him, as would the rest of his fleet.

"The Emperor has informed me that we will be striking at the same time as he does, to cause maximum confusion. As such, we are attempting a strategy that will gain us victory with the greatest ease, and the shortest time."

"We're attempting to knock-out the enemy fleet as quickly as possible. Essentially, we want to have troops on the ground before they can reinforce their fleets. As such, there are going to be four attack groups. Alpha Group, Delta Group, Strike Group, and Occupation Group. Their names are simple for a reason. Strike Group will consist of seven hundred and fifty Starfederation vessels. Strike Group is the fastest vessels, loaded with many runs of missiles."

A breath. His rasping voice resonated through his breath, and one could tell that the man was sick. Or, rather, corrupted, if one knew enough. "Strike Group will enter the enemy system, and deliver their payload of missiles. These missiles will be directed at enemy fleet gatherings, and enemy orbits. We are aiming to knock out communications temporarily, and make sure that their sensors are all but inoperative during the initial strike."

"Alpha Group will follow up Strike Group. Alpha Group will consist of the Telrosian fleet, and approximately one thousand five hundred Starfederation vessels, along with my ship, the Song of Sorrow. Alpha Group will be responsible for the large-scale destruction of the enemy fleet. Remember, where possible, we wish to merely disable ships, so that they can contribute to this new Imperial province."

"Delta Group will consist of another seven-fifty Starfederation vessels, and the Bloodied Fist. Delta Group will be tasked with the disabling of any in-system non-ship defenses, and backing up Alpha Group where needed."

He sighed. "Occupation Group will consist of the final thousand Starfederation vessels, and any Telrosian troop transports available. Occupation Group's primary task is to capture any part of the command structure they can find, and remove the current government. Occupation Group will be initally tasked with taking the central, most-populated world, and will also support Alpha Group in its initial advance."

A smile flickered across his face. "The Emperor wants this system taken, and contributing to the war effort as soon as possible. We will jump in five..."

Shimmer.

A tiny flicker of light spat across his eyes. For a moment, he was blinded. And then they appeared once more, outside of the Incognitian system. They were allies of the old Starfederation. Many of his troops would take this poorly, he knew, thus being why he had refused to refer to the enemy by name. Hopefully, the morale shock would come after the battle had been won...

The first ship slipped into Incognitian space. A single missile slipped from the ship. It blinked briefly, and then reappeared above the most-inhabited world there. A massive thing, full of antimatter, it ignited, sending radiation above the world in many, many directions. The first blow of the war had been struck. Hopefully, the momentary distraction would prove sufficient for the rest of the fleet to begin their barrage...

A probe, happily wending it's way out in the Oort Cloud, with sensors sweeping the surrounding space, suddenly had it's little sub-AI brain become very, very confused.
It panicked, and sent the highest alert state it could think of via hyperspace.
A moment later in Fleet Base Kimon, the alert appeared.
A young Petty Officer looked at what the probe saw, and likewise panicked.

Within a minute of the appearance of the invading fleet, an alert was out to all ships.
Routine patrols were sent deeper to search for more enemy; those closest to the spotted fleet were withdrawn.
Meanwhile the Fleet Stations, mercifully all at home, were gathered.

The nearest patrol, of three destroyers, was vectored at extreme pace towards the only vessel detected in-system. As soon as a missile launch was detected, each unleashed a hyper-missile, capable of many times the acceleration of its mother ship, and these raced to make the first kill.

The missile itself, meanwhile, was tracked. It's reappearance predicted. And, being within range, it got hit by the newest defensive technique in the Incognitian arsenal: the hyper-push.
Essentially, a hyperspace engine had, after long research and many failures, been tweaked such that it could send objects other than itself, of a reasonable size, and within a few miles of it, into hyperspace. One anti-matter missile detonated harmlessly in Level E hyperspace, to a chorus of "What the HELL!?" from the operators of the hyper-push, located in one of many stations surrounding Incognitia.
The pusher drew more power, to recharge and be ready for another attack. This would take a few seconds.

Mere minutes later, the Council had been, electronically, gathered.
I call this meeting to order. What is the situation, Admiral?
"We have a fleet of multiple thousands of warships just beyond the system. One has entered the system, and launched a single missile at Incognitia itself. This was successfully intercepted, and has confirmed their hostile intent.
The Fleet is gathering to mount a defence. Nescia and Dunkennen stations are already in place; Oort Station will be engaging momentarily. Nesais will shortly be joining the first two. Derno and Incos are being kept in reserve, inside the Belt, to respond to any problematic move."
"And what of Finis?"
"They are being kept out of this for now, to see where they will be needed."
"So, Council. We seem to have no choice; under attack, we must defend ourselves. Do you approve the Admiralty to conduct the defence without reference to the Council?"
"Aye." "Aye." a chorus of approval.
"The Council approves the Admiralty to take whatever measures necessary in this conflict. The Council is to be regularly apprised of changes in the situation."
"Admiral?" the oldest member of the Council, Consilar John Clute, spoke up. "Admiral, do we know who the enemy is?"
"We are uncertain, but latest indications suggest the Starfederation."
"But..."
"I know. Treachery. I can't explain it myself."

As fleets gathered, three other actions were taken. A messenger-packet was sent at near-suicidal speeds to Angermanland. A messenger-packet was sent, at a similar pace, to Undershi. One was sent to the League.
All carried the same message:
We are being invaded by the Starfederation. Estimated fleet 4-5000 enemy. Assistance requested: all available naval forces.
However the one to Angermanland would take several days, and those to Undershi and the League around a week, before help could even be sent, let alone arrive.

Finally, communications were opened by a high-power transmitter in the Belt.
"Starfederation Fleet, this is Incognitia Command. What the HELL do you think you are doing? Cease and desist, immediately, lest we be forced to spill rivers of your blood."

"The Emperor has informed me that we will be striking at the same time as he does, to cause maximum confusion. As such, we are attempting a strategy that will gain us victory with the greatest ease, and the shortest time."

"We're attempting to knock-out the enemy fleet as quickly as possible. Essentially, we want to have troops on the ground before they can reinforce their fleets. As such, there are going to be four attack groups. Alpha Group, Delta Group, Strike Group, and Occupation Group. Their names are simple for a reason. Strike Group will consist of seven hundred and fifty Starfederation vessels. Strike Group is the fastest vessels, loaded with many runs of missiles."

"Strike Group will enter the enemy system, and deliver their payload of missiles. These missiles will be directed at enemy fleet gatherings, and enemy orbits. We are aiming to knock out communications temporarily, and make sure that their sensors are all but inoperative during the initial strike."

"Alpha Group will follow up Strike Group. Alpha Group will consist of the Telrosian fleet, and approximately one thousand five hundred Starfederation vessels, along with my ship, the Song of Sorrow. Alpha Group will be responsible for the large-scale destruction of the enemy fleet. Remember, where possible, we wish to merely disable ships, so that they can contribute to this new Imperial province."

"Delta Group will consist of another seven-fifty Starfederation vessels, and the Bloodied Fist. Delta Group will be tasked with the disabling of any in-system non-ship defenses, and backing up Alpha Group where needed."

"Occupation Group will consist of the final thousand Starfederation vessels, and any Telrosian troop transports available. Occupation Group's primary task is to capture any part of the command structure they can find, and remove the current government. Occupation Group will be initally tasked with taking the central, most-populated world, and will also support Alpha Group in its initial advance."

"The Emperor wants this system taken, and contributing to the war effort as soon as possible. We will jump in five..."

Admiral Carson nodded. It was a good plan and he knew that it would be their best bet to get their part of their war done and over with.

"Understood, moving to jump now...." He sent a message and the Huntarian vessels moved along with them, cloaking their presence with their advanced technology. They had some of the best cloaking technology out there, and it was to the Admiral's relief that they were on their side. "All vessels, prepare to jump on my mark." A chorus of "Yes sirs" sounded and he watched the Starfederation ships, hearing the humming of flash drives. When they disappeared in a flash of light. "MARK!" All the ships flared once, a white aura blasting outward from their ships, and then vanished from the universe.

....Only to reappeared, a single second later, some distance away from the Starfederation fleet. They were cloaked, for the moment, and currently scanning the area. "Sir, the Starfederation is firing a single missile; it's heading down to the planet." Carson turned to face the main screen to see the massive missile heading for the planet. "It's an antimatter missile, sir." The Admiral smiled. Antimatter bombs were perfect for warfare. Small, compact....and capable of damage on a large scale. It went FTL and reappeared at the planet, ready to do it's work. "Sir, hyperspace rupture!" The Starfederation's missile wavered and then vanished. Admiral Carson narrowed his eyes.

"Seems these guys aren't going to be as easy as we thought. Deploy all tactical bomber squadrons. I want our ablative armor up at full power and the dreadnaught's Aegis shield system active. Also, active the FTLi system. I don't want those bloody missiles slamming into my fleet! Go to Alpha Alert!" The bridge turned red and the alarms went off. All the squadrons flew out of their hangars and took up defensive positions around the fleet. All two thousand, six hundred and forty-five squadrons were deployed around the fleet, but within the stealth bubble made by the Huntarian vessels. Soldiers manned their stations and awaited the order. The Admiral watched the FTli field set up, which would prevent any ships from jumping multiple times during the battle, dancing around their ships, as well as sending any object, from missile to asteroid, faster than light. The main screen switched to a combat one, labeling all the forces and showing where they stood. The Starfederation was in blue, the TI forces in red and his own in white. Eyes focused on the screen, he watched as the three destroyers popped into view, the screen zooming out to encompass the system. The missile one of them had fired slammed towards the Starfederation ship and he grinned. The FTLi field would take care of that missile, slowing it down so the ship could destroy it. The fleet of five hundred sixty ships was moving forward and began heading into Icognitian space. All weapons were armed and tracking the three destroyers, waiting for them to come into range.

"Check the next systems over, for enemy activity." The bridge crew scanned the nearby systems and the fleets of their enemy were showing to be gathering for the coming assault. He grinned viciously. He felt best during a war, being in command of his soldiers, ready to strike a sharp spike of fear and pain into the enemy. It was what he, and many others, did best. For the moment, he would wait for them to come into range......

OOC: Just to clarify a few things. One, the FTLi field, as stated in my post, only prevents people from jumping multiple times in battle, around my ships and all that, and from people FTling asteroids missiles, and the like. I am currently cloaked by Huntaer's ships, so I cannot be seen, yet anyways. If there is anything wrong, or you wish to discuss something, TAG me or contact me via messenger.

"Sir, the Starfederation is firing a single missile; it's heading down to the planet." Carson turned to face the main screen to see the massive missile heading for the planet. "It's an antimatter missile, sir." The Admiral smiled. Antimatter bombs were perfect for warfare. Small, compact....and capable of damage on a large scale. It went FTL and reappeared at the planet, ready to do it's work. "Sir, hyperspace rupture!" Another missile appeared and slammed into the weapon, destroying it.

OOC: Just to clarify, that is NOT what happened. His missile was not intercepted by an opposing missile, it was shunted into hyperspace. So the only visible effect would be something of a flash of light, followed by his missile disappearing.
Obviously this defence can be overwhelmed by a heavy barrage, and it couldn't deal with a whole incoming asteroid or something, but short of that it's quite good.

OOC: My apologies, the way your sequenced your post, I thought otherwise. Edited.

IC: "Amusing.. they seem to believe we are still their allies, to some extent. No doubt that is true. I believe it may be time to begin the proper bombardment."

I am Servant-Admiral Sashiar, leader of the.. yes, let us call it the former Starfederation fleet, and true and blessed servant of the Sovereign. I deliver unto you a choice. Surrender peacefully, and you shall not be harmed. For in submission to the Emperor lies peace, and strength.

Should you choose to resist, your forces will be rent into nothing by our fleet, and we shall make an example of those who made the choice - their blood shall be the price for their foolish arrogance, should they choose wrongly. I will not dally. Power down your shields and weapons, and you will not be harmed.

It burned, the power, then. Yet it was a price that had to be paid. For the message was not delivered to radio receivers and ansibles, but into the minds of all in, and around the central world - and it burned. The Sovereign was not a benign lord, he knew. He raised a hand theatrically, and let it fall.

It was then that the rest of the fleet simply.. appeared. Seven-hundred and fifty ships, lasers scything through space, puncturing the missiles flying towards the fleet. Most, of course, were frigates, the typical vessel in the Starfederation fleet. The craft let loose a barrage of missiles - hundreds, and then thousands. Each were teleported towards Incognitia once more - no doubt most of them would be shot down.

However, they were arranged in spherical formation, a long way away from the planet. They were not designed to kill the enemy. Rather, knocking out central enemy planning was absolutely vital early-on, allowing them to concentrate their forces in superior position, and inflicting more casualties - a simplistic strategy, perhaps, but an invaluable one.

As the missiles screamed towards Incognitia, the second group appeared. Group Alpha. Sashiar grinned. Such a simplistic name, for a fleet such as his. Around the Telrosian ships, his ships appeared. Or, rather, decloaked. There was no point in hiding. The cloaking systems merely drained power that they would need in the battle to come, and they were ineffectual at close range, especially when cloaking a fleet of such magnitude.

"Ah, Admiral Carson. We have detected a gathering of ships at [co-ordinates]. I suggest that we move to those co-ordinates, and disperse them before they can gather in any significant numbers. Strike will keep up the communication disruption as long as possible, so we should have a small window of time in which they are utterly confused. Delta will be striking at any other gatherings of ships, and Occupation will be arriving momentarily to reinforce us."

He would've given much, he admitted, to see the Incognitian reaction to the Song of Sorrow. Almost as large as the fleet surrounding it, it dominated the area with an almost nonchalant intimidation, shields still not activated. It was typical for Sashiar - he saw no need for shields on the Sorrow. Armor would be enough, for now, as well as the faster-than-light inhibition field it projected.

Once the Sorrow's shields were up, it was, admittedly, nigh-impervious. But the 'artillery' component of its firepower was reduced - being able to hurl asteroids through space at stupendous speeds was merely one of its powers, and one that had proven most advantageous in the past..

Sashiar yawned. "Jump!"

Hopefully, the Telrosians had been able to synch their jump to be near in-time with his. Moving a fleet, admittedly, was harder than moving missiles. They'd make three momentary stops whilst travelling towards the enemy battlegroup - if they conducted a jump that put them in the middle of the enemy fleet, they'd take several seconds to get shields and sensors online, and that alone would prove fatal.

Besides, it had a nice sense of fatalism to it. The enemy would be able to see them getting closer. It would be interesting to see what they were going to do about it...

<Argh....Pain....Pain....over>
"What was THAT? That was...disgusting. Right, even if they are, or were, the Starfederation, they've got everything that's coming to them now. Order unrestricted combat operations against all opposing forces detected in-system."
"Aye sir."
"Speaking of which, sir, we've detected a whole bunch more of them."
"Where?"
"Heading for Nescia and Dunkennen stations."
"Very good. Order Admiral Vinge to do as he will, there."
"Aye sir."
"Now...send Nesais to hit the ones bombarding Incognitia. Send them en masse, to roll them up from one side; have the planetary defences ignore any missile headed for non-vital facilities, unless they have spare capacity."
"Aye sir."
Of the incoming missiles, perhaps half were stopped entirely, either by hyper-push or more conventional defences. Maybe another quarter had their controls fried by carefully directed energy weapons fire, and continued dumbly on whatever course they found themselves on.
Thus far damage to urban areas and military facilities was minimal; but a number of innocent farmers, hikers &c out in the countryside were hit all unawares by enemy missile fire. A regrettable but necessary consequence of such a heavy barrage.
A Fleet Station, 100 capital ships, moved at the Admiral's command to begin wiping out the frigates of the strike group with concentrated firepower. They stayed reasonably close, and thus the heaviest ships hit the most distant frigates, to speed their progress. The emphasis was on direct fire, from energy and plasma weapons, rather than missiles that might be confused with enemy ones by the hard-pressed defences.

"Incos is to jump out now to join Nescia and Dunkennen. Derno are to remain hidden in Level D, and move themselves to 1 AU above Nescia and Dunkennen. It seems that will be the heaviest conflict. Let us be ready to hit them hard. All vessels should already be at full combat readiness, correct?"
"The frigate Monica has a balky shield, sir, otherwise correct."
"Very well."
"And Finis, sir?"
"Will everyone STOP asking me about Finis! They have their place, and their time will come. Their commander knows that, so we shouldn't even have to tell him."
An uncertain silence followed.
"Yes, sir."

"Sir, we're getting regular contact from the Council, demanding to know what is going on. We haven't sent them any sit-reps yet."
"Damn them, I am trying to run a war here! Send them a Commander you don't like much to sit and hold their hands through this."
"Aye aye sir."

"Servant-Admiral, the Strike Group is under attack. The Commandant reports that he has lost two ships in the initial enemy strike. The Arbiter and the Duma. Six more have sustained moderate damage, and he is requesting permission to switch his modus operandi from the long-range communications knockout to direct engagement of the enemy fleet."

"Granted, Soul-Servant. Power shields to one hundred percent, switch weaponry power over to short and long-range maser arrays. We have superiority in firepower against the current enemy, Strike Group should be able to effectively engage and destroy the enemy group once they're fully prepared. Order them to begin using their antimatter missiles to reduce the ability of the enemy ships to defend. Concentrate their fire on the closest ships."

The last set of missiles streaked out, the excess of energy spewed from the antimatter missiles, some hit by enemy fire, others detonating on their set courses. After this, any set of sensors would be seriously obfuscated, making any command on the planet less effective for some time.

Strike Group began engaging the ships near them - missiles were on much shorter leashes now, thousands streaking out to detonate next to enemy shields, preparing to take down as many enemy ships as possible. For a space battle, it was not particularly climatic. Invisible lasers and masers, the occasional splash of colour when a missile exploded, or a ship died..

Commandant Gyvan swore. "By the Sovereign, another! We have lost three frigates!"

It was typical of those who served the Sovereign to be weak, and slow physically. The power of the Sovereign swept through the body, weakening muscle and bone alike. Gyvan, however, was a towering man, immense and brawny. Of course, he was the former Admiral of the First Fleet, making him invaluable to controlling the navy. His powers, on the other hand, were negligible.

"I want all warp-capable damage ships jumping out as soon as their shields fail, if possible. Any loss that can be avoided must be. Let Alpha take the casualties. We want to engage and destroy this group, and continue our bombardment."

It was then that the second-largest fleet, Delta, made their move. Slipping across to reinforce the Strike Group, a hundred heavy Delta-Group capships had been dispatched. This would no doubt weaken Delta's mission in the long run, admittedly, but keeping the Strike Group healthy was vital to their success in the long-term...

"Sir, the Starfederation has engaged it's own FTLi and has moved into position, they are engaging enemy forces as we speak." A beeping noise. "We are receiving a message from the Servant-Admiral's ship." Carson tapped a key, putting it through.

"Ah, Admiral Carson. We have detected a gathering of ships at [co-ordinates]. I suggest that we move to those co-ordinates, and disperse them before they can gather in any significant numbers. Strike will keep up the communication disruption as long as possible, so we should have a small window of time in which they are utterly confused. Delta will be striking at any other gatherings of ships, and Occupation will be arriving momentarily to reinforce us."

"Have the fighters return to the hangars. Noted, Admiral Sashiar. We are heading to that location now." All fighters return to their decks and the hangars closed. "Deactivate the FTLi field, and have the Huntaer ships head back to the main fleet. The need for stealth is over." The stealth ships shimmered and then vanished, warping out. The Admiral watched the countdown time as the Starfederation ships jumped. When they finally reached the coordinates of the gathering enemy fleet, he yelled out an order and the fleet as one jumped, disappearing into light. Now, it would be up to them and the Servant-Admiral to ensure this other fleet was defeated or crushed....

OOC: A quick note first. My command and control for fleet actions is traditionally from the Fleet Bases, such as Kimon, which have been RPed previously as being out in the Belt, not on Incognitia.
Oh, and also I would expect the 100 capital ships and at least as many more frigates etc of Nesais Station to be able to take on your Strike group, even reinforced by Delta. I think this for two reasons: concentration of force, and quality of ships. I may be mistaken...
IC:
"More ships! Unknown types! Heading for Nescia/Dunkennen position."
"Very good. Nescia, Dunkennen, Incos, are to fire when ready. Derno is to remain concealed for now."
"Aye sir."

The battleships opened up with their main laser batteries; swiftly followed by the battlecruisers. It was anticipated that the enemy would return fire shortly; shields facing were at full power.

"Nesais is to remain on task for now. Tell them to launch strike craft and escort fighters to hit more of these frigates."
"At once sir."

Nesais task force launched bombers, from the carriers, and fighters, from the other ships of cruiser weight and up. A total of some 1,000 light strike craft, they split four ways, each part moving off to hit part of the enemy strike group distant from the incoming reinforcements. The fighters could do a little against the frigates if they were unopposed, but the real impact would be from the bombers. In tests against elderly Incognitian frigates, it had taken two or three hits to destroy them. Each bomber carried two torpedoes. There were over 400 of them.
Against light capital ships, unprotected by fighters, they could wreak great destruction; even with fighter cover, they could acchieve much.

OOC: Ahh. Well, I'm not in any position to know that - and blanketing your homeworld in massive amounts of radiation will have SOME negative effects, I'm sure. And I tend to consider anything of frigate+ size to count as a capship. Oh, and how many ships do you have, out of curiosity?

IC: "Smaller ships inbound, Commandant Gyvan."

"Fascinating.. I haven't seen a race use fighter-craft for some time. Prepare point-defense laser - and move to low-cruising speed. We'll disengage, and begin to move away at a decent speed. Concentrate the majority of our firepower on the fighters - unless they're heavily supported by that capship group, we should be able to annihilate them with little trouble."

The heavier group of capships moved towards Strike Group, preparing to link up with it. A hundred Delta capships, perhaps not as powerful as the Incognitian ones, but enough to give them a fighting chance, no doubt.

Strike Group fired - and fired again. Thousands of lasers and maser streaked through space, aimed primarily at fighters - some at the closer capships, others at the tiny specks that had little chance to be able to return fire with such magnitude.



Sashiar grinned. Another message, he thought. While they were waiting, at the very least. This one, perhaps, could go through 'normal' channels.

The message flickered off, a thousand times, as to get through the radiation surrounding it, to Incognitia itself. "It's peculiar, isn't it? How these things happen. One day, the Starfederation is a beacon of freedom in the universe, the next, a few Sith move into the neighbourhood - and it all goes to pot. Then again, naivete like that the Starfederation had wasn't really a good survival trait - when dealing with 'special' powers, like the Sith possessed."

A breath. "Of course, it's fascinating - when you consider how many of your allies and friends are falling, and how fast they're about to fall. In fact.."

He looked down at a holoscreen. "If I were you, I'd surrender, and take what I could get. Even if you completely annihilate us here, a fleet twice the size of this one can be here within the month."

He smiled. And, just before he cut off the message, he spoke. "Oh, and the Tyrant says hello."

Almost over-friendly and casual, he knew. A more threatening message would've gone unheeded. But an explanation tended to make people more amenable to listening to what you had to say next, and, admittedly, he would have a lot to say.

"Servant-Admiral, we are approaching the first gathering of enemy ships. We have taken up a half-sphere formation, with the Song of Sorrow in the centre. We are opening fire... now."

And, with that, the first hail of fire opened. What came from Strike Group, the tiny engagement that had come before, was almost negligible. Hails of nigh-lightspeed shells, smashing their way through space, piercing asteroids, and ripping all in their way, hurtled towards the enemy fleet.

The immense maser arrays of the Song of Sorrow, alongside its point-defenses, and smaller railguns opened up in a bloody hail of fire, the smaller ships augmenting it at every point, their longer-range cannons aimed and firing, to hit the enemy fleet.

And Sashiar's smile grew wider. "The Telrosians should be with us momentarily, Servant-Admiral."

"Excellent."

Sashiar muttered a few words, in a tongue that was both new and old - the meaning of his words ancient beyond belief, the words used to create the meaning but a few centuries in age. "And, through my prayer, I dedicate those we slaughter to the Sovereign. Let their souls feed your power, my lord, let them be sustenance to whet your appetite.."

OOC: I have 600 capital ships, considered as light cruiser and above. I consider frigates and destroyers to be escorts, and reckon I have about as many of them as I do capital ships (obviously more frigates than destroyers).
In addition to which, obviously, are corvettes, and light craft (fighters and bombers launched from cap-ships).

So in your terms, perhaps 1200 ships, plus supporting smaller vessels.

And, while I'm happy to see how it plays out, I'm...surprised...to see fighters and bombers dismissed as useless. Perhaps because I play FT fleet combat as roughly equivalent to WW2-modern naval combat, so airpower is significant. If you play it differently, I suppose we'll have to work something out.

IC response to follow, hopefully tomorrow.

Admiral Carson and the rest of the Federation fleet warped in, just in time to hear the last of the message Sashiar was giving the Incognitians.

"Oh, and the Tyrant says hello." The Admiral raised an eyebrow. That was most interesting. He still wasn't sure what the Starfederation was doing here, and he would be asking the Servant-Admiral exactly what had happened.....of course, that was assuming he did actually MAKE it to that point. The bridge crew exploded into activity.

"Sir, mass of enemy ships located, gathering around a set point."

"They seem to be gathering for a defense, sir. They must have known we were coming."

"Admiral, the Starfederation fleet is firing." Carson gazed at the screen showing the battle on the normal spectrum and saw the railgun shells and maser blasts speeding towards the enemy.

"Well, it would appear our good friend has started the party. Now, we would hate to be left out, wouldn't we?" An agreeing roar sounded around the bridge and he grinned.

"All fighters deploy immediately. Power up weapon systems!" The bridge crew quickly set to work and the fighter squadrons deployed, spreading across the Telrosian fleet. "Detail 800 squadrons to go protect the Servant-Admiral's fleet."

"Yes sir." Carson looked at the gauge, the meter counting down the weapon's systems readiness and the scanners locking on. Then it stopped and a monotone beep sounded. "We have target locks on the enemy, at your command, Admiral." He waved a hand.

"Fire." The railgun batteries opened up, sending a hellstorm of shells rocketing towards the enemy fleet, followed up by a hailstorm of missiles. So many missiles were fired, they literally filled up the space between the allied fleets and the Incognitians. These missiles would split into cluster missiles and detonate when they came close enough to enemy fighters. They would probably be able to destroy a lot of them, but not all. And they would do their damage to the enemy fleet. Their fire was aimed at the weaker ships of the fleet, the frigates, cruisers, etc and were working them over, taking them out so they could just crush the stronger ships with extreme firepower. The remaining 1845 squadrons filled the space between the ships in the Federation fleet, merely awaiting the order to engage.

"Open a channel to the Servant-Admiral"

"Open, sir." Carson's face appeared on a screen at Sashiar's bridge.

"Hello, fine day for a war, isn't it? Well, I am currently dealing with the lesser ships right now. If you so wish, you can have the honor of crushing their stronger ships, spread the pain around. Again, just an idea." He closed the channel and sat back down. "Engage the FTli, I don't want to deal with their missiles slamming into my ships going faster than light, thank you very much." The FTli field activate, enclosing his fleet and the Starfederation fleet.

OOC: First, warning: I now have much less internet time, but more free time, so I've got time to write posts but can't post that regularly. Now onto the action:
Oh, just one more point first, after OOC disagreements with HT about the worth of fighter and bomber-craft in fleet combat (he sees them as like little rowing boats in the age of sail, I view them more as WW2 aircraft), I've decided to employ them against Telros instead, since by using them you have de facto accepted they are useful. Thus those already launched, and those yet to be employed, will be attacking the Telrosian fleet.

IC: Battle was joined. The first ships had been hit; shields rocked, ablative armour did as the name suggested, and return fire intensified as targetting systems became ever more confident of their solutions.
Only one battlecruiser, the Matrica had taken heavy damage. Unfortunate enough to be a focus of enemy fire, her shields had been battered down with the first enemy salvo still coming in, and - as her bridge crew watched their displays in horror - the ablative armour had been eaten through, just in time for an energy blast to breach reactor containment and blow the whole ship.
The vain attempts of her engineering department to bring up the shields again only succeeded in abating the energies sent against her fellows.
She was not the only ship hit, of course. She was the first to blow. And many throughout the Fleet looked on in horror. The Fleet had not lost a cruiser to enemy fire since the Uplift War, and while in a combat this size it was inevitable, that didn't stop the emotional impact.
Fortunately for the fighting prospects of the Fleet the dominant reaction was anger - for lost comrades, for the waste of the invasion, for the fact that many more losses were inevitable if Incognitia were to live, and even if she were not.
"The Strike Group is not the primary threat. Redirect fighter-craft from them; launch strike craft from the other Stations; send the lot against this new enemy."
"Are you sure sir?"
"Our knowledge of the Starfederation indicates that they have no fighters for our fighters to engage, and their defences are uncommonly effective against the current generation of torpedoes. It is likely they will have more effect against this new enemy."
"Aye sir. Orders given."
A grand total of near 6,000 Incognitian Strike Craft were soon in the air, vectored for the Telrosian fleet. They had light craft of their own; these were prime targets for the fighters. Configured in fighting packs, or as the fin pilots preferred to term them 'pods', manouevering fluidly and with weapons charged, they looked to be outnumbered but still expected to win. Their Wave fighters were amongst the best in known space, and their pilots a cut above any (unaugmented) human, both in their individual skills and their co-operation.
The bombers hung back a little, for now.

OOC: Sorry, lack of time here and now. I'm thinking I'll have to focus on parts of the combat to do them justice, so if I miss something (like referring to the conduct of an ongoing combat) assume that my forces are continuing what they've started, taking moderate losses.

OOC: Dude...as much as I like rping with you and all....dumping all of them on me because HT disagreed with you on something ain't fair.

OOC: It's purely because HT was not going to accept the effect of my strike craft, and obviously since they're a (fairly) significant part of my fleet, I want them to have some effect.
Since you've stated that you had 2,645 squadrons, I didn't expect that to be a problem against a total of 6,000 craft...for all that I've said they're good, and that they have excellent pilots, that means they'll cause disproportionate casualties, not win the battle, unless your squadrons are only one or two aircraft each.

(I'm putting in an IC reason for the OOC decision, that being particularly good defences and a lack of fighters for mine to hit. Not sure what more I can do, other than waste a part of my fleet for essentially no damage taken. Since my cause is a losing proposition anyway, I don't think that's entirely unreasonable).

OOC: Big Ugly Mother******* Bumpage

OOC: Oop, my bad.

IC: "Another four ships forced to retreat, sir. Two have extensive annie-plant damage, and are essentially disabled. They're lowering their shields and extending their heatsinks to show this. However, they're skimming away at decent speed. The other two have major weaponry damage, and their long-range weaponry is out of commission. They're retreating as well.

"Damn. Tell me, Lieutenant, do their ships have superior range to ours?"

"Well, sir.. it seems probable. At least, everything but our Dreadnoughts, which far outrange them, but we only two of those. If we close in, we may be able to cause more casualties - but we'll be seeing a fairly high toll if we move in too quickly."

"..don't. Just retreat, and let Delta come in and wipe out this first group of enemy alongside of us. If we lose too many ships, there could be.. repercussions."


OOC: I'm not sure what's happening with the fleet attacking your fleet stations, Terror. Could you just OOCly tell me which bit details that?

OOC: The fleet of yours attacking my fleet stations just has those fleet stations letting rip with near enough everything they've got.
That has been identified as the crucial combat, with the victor of it probably being able to sweep the rest of the system clear. Therefore, it's the most likely place to use the reserves, and may see the forces currently elsewhere in system called in.
At the moment I have: Nesais engaged with your 'Strike Group', reinforced by part of your Delta.
Nescia, Dunkennen, Incos fighting...is it Alpha and the Telrosians?
And Derno and Finis in reserve; Derno somewhat above the main fleet combat, Finis location unspecified.

"...interesting. They continue to fight, and do not answer. No matter. They will pay for their insolence."

Sashiar looked contemptously down on the display before him - smaller ships simply winked out of existence, irrelevent in the greater scheme of things. It was expected that he would take losses. No matter. He could replace them. The crews were mostly those who were loyal to the old Starfederation; and they were mostly worthless. It would enable him to rebuild the navy - more powerful than ever, and more loyal to him.

"Fire. Focus your fire on the ships closer to us. Continue getting into range - their larger ships outrange our frigates and cruisers. We will take acceptable losses to be able to increase our firepower."

Another volley of the deadly railguns, this time towards Nescia. The Sorrow had the power to rip apart such gatherings; it was dangerous, and thus, no doubt, to be targeted. Not that he particularly cared. The ship was nigh-invincible, a testament to the Sovereign's power, and his glory. It could be destroyed, no doubt, but he doubted it would come to pass.

"More losses, Servant-Admiral. Shall we summon the rage of the Sovereign, that we might obliterate all in our path?"

"Are you a fool?"

"..sir?"

"I would not willingly do that. Especially not with the Guide onboard.."

He gestured to Jallin, who was sitting, caged by bars of dark light, somewhere below the bridge.

"Indeed, we are to sacrifice many of these.. Incognitians to the Sovereign's glory. And the Guide shall witness their blood being spilt, and the Sovereign will begin to will his body to exist..."

With that, another volley from the fleet was launched. And again. And again. Looking over the tactical overlay, he saw something strange.. a ship wasn't firing. A frigate. He closed his eyes, trying to speak with the Acolyte that was onboard - the Acolyte that was aboard each capital ship in the navy.

And felt nothing.

"Traitors...", he hissed.

Instead of firing at the enemy once more, a mass of metal and fire spewed forth from the Sorrow, tearing through the tiny frigate with casual ease. He opened up a fleet-wide channel, to all ships in his fleet.

"The crew of the Song of the Dying were traitors. As such, their lives have been dedicated to the Sovereign, and their families will be hunted down and likewise dedicated. Should any more of you wish to defect, to betray our lord the Sovereign, know this. You will die. Your friends will die. Your family will die. In service to the Sovereign comes life. Should you try to escape your oaths of fealty, you will find only death..."

"Sir, the enemy just destroyed one of their own ships!"
"What-now!?"
"The enemy juggernaut unleashed her last full salvo on one of her own ships...a frigate. It died."
"If I could see any way to take advantage of that, I'd use it. As it is we must continue."
"Aye sir."
###

The Fleet was taking ever-graver losses. They were fighting hard, and giving a good account of themselves, but it wasn't enough.
"Time to bring in part of the reserve. Derno Station is to join the main combat. They are to focus themselves, save close-in defence and preventing their own annihilation, on the juggernaut."
"Aye sir!"
###

Advance elements of Derno jumped out of hyperspace. Or rather, tried. The jump refused to perform successfully, all the way from Level A.
"What the hell is this!?"
"Perhaps interference with hyperspace jumps is possible across an area."
"What are we going to do then, damnit? We can't stay useless here!"
"Well that depends, on whether it's discrete or continuous..."
"Explain yourself Lieutenant Laureki!"
"Well sir, if it's discrete, we're going to have to move til we find where it turns off. If it's continuous, as is most likely...we might be able to go one level at a time, and jump out from level D..."
"Try it."
The Fleet jumped down, one level at a time. It consumed much more power than it ought; jumping from A to B took more energy than it should need to jump to normal space; but it could be done.

Derno Station, only about 90 seconds later than planned, popped into normal space, and unleashed their fire on the Song of Sorrow.

The ship juddered. One can imagine the effort that it would take, to make such a ship as the Song of Sorrow even move. And yet, the enemy fleet accomplished it. Without changing his expression, Sashiar simply listened to the report.

"Partitions Fourteen to Fifty-Seven are down, Admiral. Shielding raised to level required to hold. Our arc of fire in that quarter has been reduced by 17 degrees, and our total firepower capability in that quarter has been reduced by 6 percent. Rotating ship to bring full firepower to bear on enemy fleet.."

Another salvo was unleashed. The fleet began firing on the new enemy, and, for the most part, they were unharmed. But the Song of Sorrow suffered damage, grievous damage. It was not damage that would destroy her, but it was damage that tore through reactors, through guns, through decks.. one-and-a-half percent of her total firepower capacity had been destroyed. Her armor had been breached. Of the two, the latter was more important. Enemy ships on the wrong side of her could inflict ever-increasing damage, and, if they concentrated enough, they could quite possibly disable her.

Sashiar smiled. "The Sovereign has given us the strength to go on. Fire all weaponry at the enemy fleet. Prepare the Scion. For he will disable the enemy ships momentarily, whilst we ram them..."

The Sorrow accelerated, hurtling towards the enemy fleet. And while this happened, a single, tortured man in the centre of the ship spoke. He spoke with his mind, bewitchingly, convincingly, to the captains of the ships the Sorrow was heading towards. It hurt him - greatly, for such a thing may not be undertaken lightly, but, it seemed, it would probably slow them, or even stop them for enough time..

Stop, my pretties. Stop, and look at the death that comes for you. Look at the death. The slow, quick, agonizing, relieving death that ponders towards you. Do not act against it. Merely watch. For you will be released on death - released, to go home, to go to peace. Understand that, in dying, you will find release.. in living, there is only pain.

With a sudden surge of power, pain flooded through the minds of every captain, ever crewmember he could reach. The pain flooded through his body as well, and he threw his head back and howled at the pain, as it was divided among those he sent it to. His veins swelled with power, and his body became rigid - the pain was endless.

He hoped only that he succeeded, and stopped the ships for enough time, so that Sashiar gamble could succeed as well..

Unfortunately for the prospects of the enemy fleet, for all that the Captains of the targeted ships were shocked, the ships AIs had been instructed on their fire patterns, and recognising their crews were temporarily incapacitated continued firing at full intensity to give them time to recover.
Automation was a wonderful thing; it was lucky for Incognitia that her people trusted AI enough to enable them to give the firing command.

They were still taking significant losses; the aim was now to demoralise the enemy by destroying the core of their fleet, the only vessel that could defeat an Incognitian one-to-one, the Song of Sorrow.
It was big, it was heavy; but it had the force of one hundred capital ships focussed upon it. Engine power was stripped to keep shields up such that power could be forced to weapons systems. If they had to move in a hurry, that would be a problem, but for now they were in set-piece combat.
Orders were to keep fighting, exploit any opportunity to cause the enemy greater damage, until further instructions were given.

OOC: I have not forgotten this, I have just been busy and am switching nation stats and tech....again. I will be making a post, after I finish my nation and edit some things.

"Heavier damage has been taken, Servant-Admiral. We are inflicting casualties on the enemy fleet - we have superior firepower at this point, but they have a large target to focus on, which is giving them unity. The Sorrow has lost power to the eighth and nineteenth engines. I suggest a withdrawal from battle, so that we may repair the Sorrow once the battle ends."

Sashiar fixed his aide with a glare. "No, adjutant. We will continue on our course. The firepower-shielding disparity this dreadnought possesses will be sufficient to safeguard our lighter, better-armed vessels. Until we are sustaining critical damage, no withdrawal may be made."

"Servant-Admiral, I must-"

"Silence. We are all servants of the Sovereign's inexorable will. If we are to fall so that others may triumph in His name, then it will be so. Our victory here is ordained, we must merely bring reality into accordance with the prophecy."

The ship shook again, firepower greater than it could bring to bear concentrated on one area after another. There were more Dreadnoughts - more ships than the Incognitians could defeat, that was true. But the loss of the Sorrow, the flagship of the fleet, would be a irreparable blow to morale, and the death of Sashiar would destroy what little unity the fleet possessed. But as the enemy focused on the Sorrow, Sashiar reflected, the enemy would take disproportionate casualties for their effort.

"Servant-Admiral! The inertial compensators are failin-"

His voice cut off for the last time, the inertial compensators failed utterly, and the mammoth amount of acceleration the Song of Sorrow was exerting made itself felt on its crew. Squished like bugs against walls and crushed into nothing more than splatters of once-human along the side of the bridge, Sashiar descended gracefully to the ground, wrapped in a red aura, as he looked contemptously around the remains of his crew.

The inertial compensators came back online, and he spoke. "Well, adjutant. It seems you have failed me. I will be taking personal command of the ship."

Invisible lines of power stretched along the ship's insides, Sashiar extending his presence, his mind, throughout the entire ship.

Weapons sputtered and died, and shields and engines, as well as thousands of tiny repair-bots came online once more, the majority of the reactor's output devoted to defending the mammoth dreadnought - it was a race, now. Whether the thousand or so ships - could beat Incognitian ones, equivalent to perhaps eight hundred of their number, before they destroyed the Sorrow.

Sashiar focused, as power electrified his body, his soul, flows of power ripping through him, and he spoke.

You have done mightily and well, Incognitian defenders. I applaud your efforts to have done as much as you have done. But surely you can see the folly of your efforts? We seek only to incorporate you into the greatest Empire the world has ever known, to turn your heads from the folly you now follow, and to redeem you in the eyes of those who would destroy you. Lay down your arms, and, I assure you, should you serve the new order, you will be allowed to keep them. Should you surrender with honour now, we will preserve your society and your people, and bring about an age of glory, an age of prestige, for Incognitia.

His voice filled with soothing, cajoling tones, suddenly changed, to imposing, threatening ones, angry, and forceful.

But if you should choose to fight on, let me assure you, none among those who fight against us will be spared. There will be a price in blood to be paid for your resistance, a price which we will most gladly exact. There is a choice to be made. Preserve your lives and honour, or sacrifice both on a bloody altar to the Sovereign.

Incoming transmission. Wait out.
#'#...
Their great ship which we've been focussing on; it's certain. The inertial dampeners failed.
And yet...
It still seems to be under command. AI perhaps? If we could destroy it we could perhaps hold out til the Angerman arrived...
Chances?
90% probability of loss and heavy casualties; predicted death of 80 million+ CivPop resulting.
This goes to the Council.

###
"You tell me that this great fleet we assembled! This pride of Incognitia! That it gives us a one in TEN chance of victory!?"
"The military reality is that we were never invincible, and the way this assault came out of the blue gave us no chance to contact our allies remotely in time."
The calmest member of the Council, Luke Tryl, a middle-aged 'fin, now spoke.
"What do you advise, Admiral? To fight on? Or to send as much of the Fleet as can go, to flee into exile and fight on while the rest of us surrender? Those are the two options, are they not?"
"Flight is only a real option for Finis. The newest, best ships of the Fleet, indeed, but...only a hundred. And where do they go?
As to fighting on...our chances are slim. And with the consequences that would follow from losing...it would have to be a political decision."
I CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER!
"Thank you. I, Consilar Luke Tryl, call this Council to a vote. Do we fight on? Or do we surrender? Would anyone speak, before we vote?"
Blank, worried stares.
"In which case, vote ye now as your honour and conscience lead you."
The outcome was never in doubt. The Consilars were terrified. Only the prospect of victory had held them from panic. And as the probability estimates had steadily gone lower, with no ingenious tricks to pull...they had grown ever more afraid.
He would have put steel in their spines and fire in their bellies, but the rules against military intervention in political matters were both strict and severe.
Admiral Thomas Wellby resolved, in that moment, what he would do. He would lay low. He would maintain in place as many of the old naval officers as possible. He would maintain the pride, the traditions and the ethos of the old Fleet, and endeavour to lead others, quietly, to do the same. Because the day would come, when the Fleet, and thus Incognitia, could rise again.
First, however, there were orders to be sent.

Top-secret, codeword, one-time encrypted
Admiral Rachael Tamsey, Finis Station
This is your last order from Fleet Command. Disregard all succeeding instructions from higher authority. Incognitia is about to surrender; Finis must not. This order comes in three parts.
One: Flee. Perhaps first to Angermanland, but wherever you're going, run hard and fast.
Two: Fight. Wherever you may, in whatever time and place and manner, fight the forces of the Empire.
Three: Stand ready. The day will come that the Fleet rises against this 'Empire'. When that day comes, Finis may be the advantage we need.
It is a hard part you are given; but none of us have it easy. May Ifni's luck go with you; our thoughts and good wishes certainly do.

-Thomas Wellby, Admiral, Fleet Command.

Open, Unencrypted, Authenticated
All vessels. All vessels. Stand down. Stand down. Say again, all vessels, stand down.
All warships are to power down offensive weapons but keep shields and point defence up, until enemy fire ceases; shields and point defence are then also to be lowered.

Open, Unencrpyted, Authenticated.
Imperial Fleet. We accept.


"My fellow Incognitians. I say this with a heavy heart; we have been invaded unprovokedly, and our defences have proven insufficient to protect us from the enemy we face.
To prevent further carnage, the Council has voted to accept surrender terms. We must now trust to the word of the invaders, and hope that our nation will not be utterly destroyed by the experience.
I implore all of you; hold firm in your hearts to Incognitia as you love her. For that must sustain you, until we have a chance to win it once again.
This is one battle lost; the war will continue, until Incognitia is free once again."
"That, ladies and gentlemen, was the disguised voice of a senior government official, who does not wish to be named for reasons of his own safety."
"Our analyst now discuss: whither now Incognitia?"

Finis fled, headed first for a distant part of deep space, to ensure they weren't followed; the Fleet followed their orders, ceasing offensive fire immediately, and powering down their defences as soon as they were not being fired upon.
The few that did not follow orders didn't fight on; they simply fled, as far and as fast as they could, hyperspace engines straining under the FTLi to jump them to D-level, fleeing in D-level, jumping to C, fleeing further, and within a quarter hour perhaps two dozen vessels were running away in all directions in Level A.
And across Incognitia, while a minority came out into the streets, to riot through a combination of rage and terror, the vast majority stayed in, glued to their 'net access and NetNews, trying to find out what was going on.
And a very special few began to plan; to plan resistance; to plan collaboration; to plan a rise to power; to merely plan for safety and security. How these schemers interacted would depend very much on the actions of the invaders now.

"They accepted? This.. is peculiar. Very peculiar. Cease fire."

Weapons powered down across the fleet. Sashiar strained with effort just to hold the Sorrow together - engines were failing, many of the shields had already done so. Had the battle lasted longer, it may well have been destroyed. He spoke.

"Lady Marbeth, please take the Song of Sorrow to the Alpha Shipyards. Put her in for a total repair. I have other affairs to conduct."

He concentrated briefly, and then matter rushed to fill the vacuum where he had just been. Appearing aboard the Bloodied Fist, he spoke to the crew, who had not been warned of his coming.

"Ah, gentlemen. The Sorrow is retiring for repairs. You will serve as my new flagship for the meantime. Firstly, the occupation of Incognita. As, obviously, we cannot garrison every city and town, here is my plan. We will send troops down to occupy every major population centre, and drone-sentinels to keep an eye on minor ones. Furthermore, I suggest it is time we pull the Shield into orbit of Incognitia. I will brook no escape from my rule."

A hundred plans, but one that could be conviniently implemented at the time. Firstly, pods were released. Single, unarmed boarding pods. Each flew towards an Incognitian craft, and a message was sent out.

Unencrypted Message to all Incognitian Craft
Power down your shields, and open whatever airlocks you might have in preparation for boarding. Let us assure you that, as soon as you are removed from your ships, you will be returned to your homes. Every ship boarded will be taken to a specified gathering location, where we can investigate them. Please be prepared to transmit your wished landing location, including world, so that we may convey you to your homes.
- - - - - -

Each of the pods contained a small 'porter, through which armed men would be able to come. Of course, there was questionable wisdom in letting ship crews return home, and spread dissent. But they had surrendered, and the Sovereign advocated truth outside of battle. Lies were a weapon of war, and, as such, were only to be used in danger. A peculiar doctrine, perhaps, for a religion such as that. In truth, it was a single line, interpreted from the prophecy, that made them act such.

But the reasoning was irrelevent. As the Fist moved towards Incognitia, small, boxy craft spread out, surrounding the world. To the uninformed, it looked to be the perfect location for glassing a world. But to the informed.. the Kingdom forces could've glassed the world already, had they truly been trying. No, this was something different. Something useful. Tyrannical, many would consider it. Yet still useful.

As the craft surrounded the world, the Fist moved to above the north pole. And lines of red shimmered out, connecting one box-shaped satellite to another. The connection wavered, and then became solid, and then, fading in to existence like a malevolent red cloud, a shield appeared around the planet.

"Occupation Shield 045 is in position, Servant-Admiral. We are preparing to fab more drones so that you can move from this position as soon as we get major reactors and transmitters to make the shield semi-permanent."

Planet-Wide Transmission
People of Incognitia. You may be noticing a glow appear around your world. Be not alarmed. The glory is merely a planetary shield of sorts. It will prevent any object leaving or entering the atmosphere. This is primarily to prevent any revenge attacks by anti-Imperial forces, who would prefer to see you dead, than see you part of the glorious Empire. Once the system has been fully secured, be assured that the shield will be removed. This is for your own security, as there are often maverick elements who seek to destroy a society they have believed to betray them, and these are often among the military.


Sashiar's imperious frown disappeared from people's screens across the planet. There were many more measures to take. Ships to occupy, permanent FTLi generators to put in-system. A new regime to find.. There would be much work in the future. But the constructor ships were en route as it was. To turn a nation into a loyal part of the Empire would take work. But once the preliminary measures of security had been undertaken, the occupation force could be dispatched to keep order on the planet.

And from there.. it was his duty to rebuild Incognitia, as part of the Empire. He was perturbed that he would not be able to sacrifice these people to the Sovereign, in a way. If he did, it was unlikely he would gain the favour of the Tyrant - or the Emperor, for that matter. Indeed, he would probably not even be able to make them a Kingdom protectorate. He sighed. For all he done here, it was not him that would be gaining. It was the Empire.

He would have to work to change that..

OOC: Incog, can you get online? I want to do some OOC talky with ye.

OOC: A thing or two more to show.

IC:
The dulcet tones of Admiral Rachael Tamsey rang out across the ships of Finis Station.
"Finis, we are what remains of the Fleet. Much of the rest is not destroyed, but it is surrendered. All too soon it will be following the orders of our enemies.
We may hope that the integrity and resolve of the Incognitian Fleet survives, and that when the chance comes they will rise and fight with us.
Until then we are alone.
Do not misunderstand me. The road will be long, and hard, with set-backs along the way. We will lose friends and comrades. We will have to fight our former friends and comrades; and there will be no room for pity, or mercy.
Our chances of success in our great enterprise are slim.
You may well ask, why should we try at all? Why should we not return and rejoin our people in their travails?
And I tell you this. Given our peoples' energy, and industry, and ability...turned to evil and oppression the name of Incognitia will soon be dark indeed across the galaxy.
We must stand as a shining beacon, to others, to Incognitia, and perhaps most important to ourselves...that what they are doing is NOT Incognitia. That Incognitia stands for honour, and justice, and freedom, and curiosity, and a healthy profit.
And then, when eventually victory comes, we must help remind those of our people who have forgotten it."
Dear Ifni this was hard. She was keeping her voice under control, because she remembered that an Admiral was certainly a King and nearly a God to his most distant and numerous subordinates. She could not, she would not, give in. And so she had to hold her people together.
"But I cannot, I will not, I must not command those who are not prepared for the travails of this great enterprise.
All those who will not fight with us for honour, for freedom, and for the salvation of Incognitia...must report to their immediate superiors. These men and women will be set down on an empty planet, with what supplies we can give them, and let them see what society they can build on those values.
To all the rest of you, I ask you to make this pledge, this solemn oath, with me now."
The emotion in her voice had overflowed so far that she had come out the other side. No more emotion. Just sonorous, rolling tones that washed over the crews of her fleet.
"I pledge, in front of my fellows, my honour and Ifni herself, that I will fight until no breath remains."
"I pledge to fight until my bones are dust or I breathe space, for freedom and honour."
"I pledge that I will do all that is necessary, fulfil the call of duty, and then return to do more, with no thought for personal safety, because the cause is just, and necessary, and right, and true."
"I pledge, above all, that Incognitia will be free, and her conquerors will face their just retribution, because Ifni smiles not upon meddlers and oppressors, and their mischance shall be our chance, and our works be their undoing."
She was shocked, when she finished speaking, to find tears running down her cheeks; and more than that, to find that every member of her bridge crew was likewise affected.
An Admiral, she had never been suspected an orator, such as could move her audience with her, such that they would follow her unto death or oblivion.
Yet that she clearly was.
A few, across the Fleet, were moved not, or not enough. Their fear, their cowardice, or pragmatism unconfused by such rhetoric, or lack of rage...as many reasons as there were men and women concerned.
Each had to run the gauntlet of their peers to ask to be allowed to leave. Many turned back, driven back into line by the, sometimes silent, sometimes voiced, contempt of their peers.
The rest, those who found more courage to flee than they did to stay, were slowly gathered, with some small supplies, and marooned on the first habitable planet. Finis must be whole. Finis must be united; it was hard enough already without making it harder.

It was shortly after that, that Admiral Tamsey shortened the name, to Fin, and said it stood for Free Incognitian Navy. There was no demur, and it was soon said they'd be the Finish of all who stood against them; sailor's humour was never meant to be great.