The Brakian Gambit - Chapter Two
#3 of The Brakian Gambit
Yep, no long delay on this one. This is what happens when I am out of state and without anything really to do. As I said, I am not so good with outright ground combat. And yes, I intended to end this chapter just the way it was. It has a lot more implication to it that may or may not be accurate.
This picks up not too long after the events of the chapter before and focuses primarily on the space side of things. And we see everyone's favorite Representative show up again. Plus it introduces a handful of new characters that will exist through the rest of the story.
Chapter Two
March 11, 2550 CE
Operation Enterprise +0
Orbit of Chara II
ODV Ambassador
Command Deck
As fighting continued on the ground, the small naval garrison in orbit was actively combatting the Brakian Navy. The entirety of the Omniwatch fleet was the ODV Ambassador, a pair of battlecruisers, and a handful of destroyers and frigates. In Omniwatch chain of command, the commander of the largest ship, in the lack of a flag officer, was the acting commander. In this case, that meant that Captain Luca Trovato was the commander of the Omniwatch fleet in the system.
Her frigates and destroyers were on the opposite side of Chara's moon, taking shots at the Brakian fleet before ducking back behind its cover while the battlecruisers and Ambassador fired across the void at the Brakians directly. It was having an effect, but it wasn't perfect. The vast distance at least kept them from closing on their homeworld easily. Omniwatch Station's weapons systems also kept them at bay, the station having better power generators and larger capacitors and thus far more powerful weapons.
Another volley of railgun fire slammed into the Ambassador's armor plating and were mostly absorbed. Despite the gulf between Brakian and Omniwatch naval technology, the Alliance sold them targeting computers for their starships, so even from the 1 Terran AU distance between the Ambassador and the Brakian fleet, the railgun rounds were almost right on target. That was minimal compared to the damage they were dealing to the three ships, which was almost negligible.
From the simulated command deck of the Ambassador, Captain Trovato had an overview of the entire strategic situation around Chara II. Long range sensors were still detecting four Brakian cruiser grade warships and a single battleship grade. She knew they had plenty of local defense frigates elsewhere in the system. If they were intelligent, they'd pull their heavy ships back to auxiliary supply outposts and make repairs while they still could and carry out hit and run strikes. If they were intelligent. Luca had her doubts.
The command deck allowed Luca to "see through" the ship and give her an actual visual display of the ship's exterior. Silently the heavy laser batteries on the top and bottom of the ship fired out across the void toward the estimated position of the Brakian ships. This was the problem of fighting at such distance; she had sixteen minutes delay before she knew whether there was a hit or not. And if they missed that was another adjustment to targeting systems and then another volley that could miss. The only redeeming factor was the energy weapon focus of the Ambassador and its already large power cores could sustain its fire if necessary.
As railgun rounds hit the Ambassador once more, Luca knew they were almost firing blindingly and relying on the targeting computer. The vast size of the Ambassador was working against it though. They couldn't easily maneuver this close to Chara II and thus were an almost static target. The two battlecruisers were moving though about 25,000 miles from the Ambassador, firing on the Brakians with their own array of weapons, but the Brakian focus seemed to be on the dreadnought.
Between the last volley and sensor update, Luca had found the Brakian ships were completely gone. She did give a sigh of relief before switching to fleet communications. "All ships stand down, Brakian vessels are gone. They likely activated sublight and fled. Begin cleanup operations around Chara II. Reducing alert level to Secondary Alert."
Omniwatch implemented a wide system of alert levels for their starships. Green alert was a standard operating level, blue alert was heightened in the event of reasonable threat, yellow alert was potential imminent threat, secondary alert stood for confirmed and non-immediate threat, and red alert was, of course, confirmed and immediate threat. Beyond the code red was also a code black, used in special circumstances such as the current situation at Chara. Given the newfound state of war with the Brakians, code black is the order to begin striking and destroying government outposts across the system with intent to cripple. Omniwatch technically had the firepower to do so without reinforcements.
The frigates and destroyers at Chara's moon did a flight around the moon, scanning its surface for any potential bases and sites before moving to the second moon. The battlecruisers returned to dock with the space station as they were able to get closer than the Ambassador to the planet. And the Ambassador itself began maneuver to take it into a higher orbit where it wouldn't be so prone to attack from an enemy warship.
With the battle take care of, for now, Luca shut off the projectors on the command deck and stepped out of the room onto the Combat Information Center of the Ambassador. Things were very calm on the CIC, as they should be. Omniwatch drilled their crews well, and it showed. There was no chaos even in the wake of battle, and everyone was working properly. The handful of Marines that moved onto the CIC during the heightened alert were standing at their posts, unmoving, but protecting nonetheless.
Luca took her seat at the center of the CIC on a raised platform with more vital computer systems. From there she could see the important CIC crew. "Status on the ship?"
Her first officer, Commander Harun, a Tesgnov, was quick to respond. "Shields never dropped below seventy five percent, damage to the armor is minimal. Engineering crew is already getting to work optimizing systems for combat."
"Good." Luca said. She flipped a switch on her seat which played a sound over the intercom. After it ended, she started with her usual post-combat speech, with additional information. "This is your Captain speaking. I am quite proud of you all. Well done. However, if you cannot tell, we are now in a state of war against the Brakians. Extended combat operations will occur following a cleanup and situational analysis. Should the rest of this fight go like this engagement, we'll be at green alert within the week. That is all. Carry on." Luca turned off the ship wide intercom and turned around in her chair to face Commander Harun. With a Tesgnov as her sister and a relatively unaccustomed one as her second in command, Luca often used the native language with him. In what sounded more like cat noises than speech, Luca said, "Commander, I want a system scan relayed to my command deck showing all Brakian assets in the system; outposts, starships, anything."
_ _
Harun perked up a bit with the speech and Luca thought she could see a hint of a smile. "It will be done Captain."
_ _
Before she stood up again, Luca switched to fleet communications. The system AIs recognized her as the ranking officer and she had the additional abilities unlocked to her. "This is Captain Trovato. All captains report to your command decks. We'll be discussing strategy." She flipped communications off again and walked off the CIC back into her command deck.
The _Ambassador's_AI already knew what to do and turned on the hologram projections. Around the table, the ship captains steadily showed up as holograms as their decks activated. Luca turned the table to gradually increasing system scan that the ships were performing. Within a few minutes the captains were all gathered in the command room and were awaiting Luca's briefing. It did amuse her how every captain was a human, and it only showed how Omniwatch still hadn't changed.
With the system map showing the planetary systems of Chara I, II, III, and IV, while the other five planets and the asteroid belt between Chara VI and VII were still unscanned. Yet, it was definitely enough to deal a decisive blow to most of the Brakian mining operations. Especially once they hit Chara IV and its moons. By that point they should have the whole system scanned and there should be reinforcements arriving.
Chara I was a scientific planetary system with some new mining outposts on the surface. Its single, tiny moon had a listening post and a mining base. The hell scape that was its surface had multiple very tiny surface bases and larger underground facilities for mining. An orbital bombardment would be impossible, their AA defenses would take down any aircraft that would be able to survive heat, and the only realistic way to seize the base would be with powered marines moving over the surface.
Chara II was already effectively under Omniwatch control in orbit. The frigates and destroyers were already moving around the planet to attack and destroy the orbital shipyards owned by the government. Chara IIa had medium sized colonies on the surface, but nothing really of note. They didn't have defenses, and thus were a minimal threat. Even marines on the surface would be pointless trying to seize those colonies.
Chara III was actually at the rear edge of the habitable zone of Chara A. Like Mars for the Terrans, it became a major center once terraforming began and space travel was a little less expensive. It had at least thirty million people living on it, extensive mining operations, and auxiliary support for their fleet. Unlike Chara II, it was also a place where they tested surface to orbit weapons. Dangerous, but not impossible to seize control of once reinforcement arrived.
Chara IV was a colder world, and relatively small. It was mostly ignored but there are several space stations orbiting to supply ships that are heading to the gas giants of Chara V and VI and the vast number of installations on their moons. That was going to be the challenging part of the operations. Chara IVs multiple moons boasted mining outposts and military bases as the planet below was useless for anything other than extreme climate training. That was more a strategic target than a tactical one. Taking out Brakian recruits would be invaluable.
All in all, the inner worlds really weren't too big a threat, especially after the reinforcements arrive. Omniwatch could probably move a combat task force into the system comprised of at least a battleship, several escort and picket ships, and, ideally, a marine transport or two to ease ground operations on Chara III and relieve the security forces on Chara II. That was the rough analysis that Luca gathered as she went over what little of the system was scanned and compiled with prior intelligence reports.
The nine captains in the room, not counting herself were more or less looking toward her as she ran over scenarios in her head about the situation in the system. She had a decent military force, though she'd need the simulated night to look over just what she has at her disposal in terms of manpower, not so much the materiel. It was easy to recharge power cells, not so easy to replace marines. It was easy to bring naval firepower to bare, not so easy to replace a starship.
"Alright, we're in an interesting situation." Luca said as she scrolled across the system map, zooming it first to Chara I. In this conference, all maps were synchronized so they all saw what she did. "Currently we have two battlecruisers, three destroyers, and five frigates. This is far from optimal, even in the best situations. Effectively immediately we'll be initiating a code black. We'll be moving to seize or destroy all Brakian _government_holdings and military facilities. We'll leave their corporations alone unless they work against us. As always, we're at war with the government, not the people. Minimize civilian casualties."
The Captain of the ODV Pacesetter, one of the two battlecruisers, said, "So what is your plan Captain?"
Luca highlighted the polar outposts at Chara I as well as what intelligence showed were anti-air emplacements. "We'll send in a squad of powered marines dropped in... here." She pointed to a point about 10 miles from the main outpost on the surface. They'd be able to cover the distance fairly quickly and seize the outpost. Prior to landing, we will hit the moon and its listening post with a nuclear warhead then send the marines in. Without its eyes and ears, the planet's outpost will be caught off guard. I think a 10 marine squad can take the outpost. I want a pair of destroyers to take care of that."
The other battlecruiser captain said, "What numbers do we even have of our marines? I know the Ambassador has a full time 500 powered marine garrison."
"I expect a compiled report on that within the hour from all of you. I need a manpower and materiel count so I can adjust our projections around that." Luca said as she started to crunch numbers in her head. "While we hit Chara I, I want a battlecruiser and pair of destroyers to Chara IV with a company of marines. The military facilities on the moons can be destroyed, but the space stations should, ideally, be captured. We can use any supplies on the structures. Report everything that you have and then carry out the orders. Do you all understand?" There were nods around the table. "Good. Let's get this underway and I'll get in contact with Central Command about our reinforcements. Dismissed." Luca hit a button and ended the conference, stepping out onto the deck of the CIC.
Things were quiet still, and that was how she liked it. The false window at the front of the CIC projected the front of the ship and Luca could see space finally. When she took her seat again, she turned the cameras and looked toward the planet. Support requests were still coming up from the planet below, especially around the regional headquarters. The smaller railguns on the _Ambassador_were definitely getting used as the 250mm slugs were fired toward the surface and impacting the ground with the force of several thousand pounds of high explosives, contained in the tungsten slug that was dropped from orbit.
Luca was continuing to run numbers in her head. Once the two destroyers set a course for Chara I, it would be just under an hour before the ships arrived at the quarter light speed sub-light drives that the ships are equipped with. The route from Chara II to Chara IV would take about four hours. That battlecruiser and escorts were already on the way just to make sure they would be there and able to strike as ordered as soon after Chara I is hit as possible.
This whole relied immensely on luck and proper execution, and very... rough military intelligence. Omniwatch never compiled a full report on Brakian naval forces, surface to orbit weaponry, or static defenses in the system. It was never seen necessary, as the Brakians had been highly compliant. And that, as usual, was going to bite them in the ass.
Chara I
Surface
Insertion onto the planet was exactly as rapid and uncomfortable as it would assume. With anti-air defenses, the two squads of marines were inserted via orbital drop. The lack of an atmosphere on the planet made that very easy, they merely had to fire thrusters on the powered armor as they reached the ground, all ten hitting the ground at 15 meters per second, and all taking the blow.
Omniwatch marines were all equipped with a second generation powered exosuit. It was a scaled down version of the mechs that security forces typically deployed. Rather than sitting, the individual had arms and legs where the arms and legs were. The armor was extremely bulky and weighed over a ton, but the mechanical assistance within the suit made it feel like a second skin for the user within. The training required was long and exhaustive, but if any person got in, they'd more than likely kill themselves trying to use it. It required gentle movements, not quick ones. In the right hands, it was the most advanced war machine in human history.
Staff Sergeant Norina Chernikovo was leading Alpha Platoon, two squads of five, from the ODV Pacesetter. First Squad was comprised of her, a Corporal, and then three privates. That was a standard Omniwatch powered assault squad. Second Squad was the same thing, but there was a regular sergeant. Since the powered armors were already essentially a heavy weapon, the Marine units lacked anything beyond a laser rifle for close quarters, a railgun assault rifle for extended range, and a molecular blade for excessively close combat. Some units, when particularly heavy fire power was needed, had shoulder mounted mortars that launched variable yield nuclear warheads. From as small as a few hundred tons worth to as large as 100 kilotons, the nuclear weapons were definitely something for when the situation was entirely out of control, or the marines needed to smash through fortifications.
"Maintain a 500 foot spread, advance at 50 feet. Watch your movements, it's a small world. Don't need to kick off and find yourself flying far beyond." Norina said as she started her movement. Each step, on the low gravity world and with the powered armor adding to her strength, pushed her several feet into the air, and moved her and the other soldiers quickly along the surface of the planet.
Approximately, according to the intelligence they were given, 7 miles away was the outpost. Their first objective was to destroy the air defense weapons. How they did so was up to Norina. They could go in with the heavy explosives, or take them out one by one by cutting wires. Once the turrets were down, they'd be able to bring additional Marines in if the fighting in the main outpost was too heavy. They didn't know what was underground at this point as scans didn't go that deep.
With the way that the marines were moving, they covered the miles in under an hour, using all the cover they could before moving up. Thermal scans were rendered useless, but enhanced magnification worked well, especially with suit AIs enhancing and sharpening their image. As the marines reached the crater edge of where the outpost was situated, no Brakian soldiers could be seen outside. There were, however, several people wearing environment suits, but none appeared to be armed. The maintenance work they were doing only confirmed what was expected.
Norina looked around the crater and noted thick bundles of wires. She followed them, and then noticed the communications dish that apparently orbital scans did not see. "Corporal Heshel, take Private Simons and take out that dish." Norina said over First Squad communications before changing frequency at the speed of thought. "Sergeant Lemaire, move your squad around the crater rim and disable the air defense. You should have enough explosives or skill to do that. Move quickly and stay low." Another switch and she was on First Squad. "Alright, Privates Farrah and Shripati we're going to move slowly into the crater. We'll be standing out if we move too fast, but we're almost the color of the planet's surface if we stay still."
Corporal Heshel moved over to the communications array with Simons in tow. They worked with Norina enough to know they had to stay low. It made movement slow, but they reached the dish. Unlike the air defense, it'd take explosives to drop the dish. Corporal Heshel had access to platoon communications, as did the Second Squad corporal and sergeant, and he was listening in as he and the private moved up to the dish. About ten minutes after all orders were given, Second Squad had the air defense disabled. Simons was carrying the explosives, and without having to say a word the private set them at the base of the dish. The small nuclear device, only worth 100 tons of explosives, would destroy the communications array and the structure under it. Heshel saw the door to the structure as they approached, though it appeared to be an emergency exit if access to the outpost was severed. Simons gave the clear, and the two gave a strong launch off the array, getting to a safe distance.
"All squads, are we ready?" Norina asked over platoon communications as she settled her railgun on the nearest Brakian. That one appeared to be a lead of sorts, as they seemed to do more talking than working.
"Sergeant Lemaire, here. Squad has set explosives on the defense weapons." Norina heard first.
Before she could respond to that, next came, "Corporal Heshel, array is set to blow, just give the order."
"Alright, on three, blow explosives. Get squads to safe distance and, once they blow, move to the rim and provide supporting fire." Norina said. "One... two... three." There was a split second delay before the first soundless explosion went off. There was a delay between each one as it went around the rim, culminating in the far larger one that destroyed communications. She adjusted her aim on the Brakian that now moved and fired a two round burst. The first one clipped his arm, taking a large chunk out of the suit and causing him to turn, and the second hit just below the helmet, severing the head under the impact. "Move in and be careful."
Around the crater, as the platoon moved up, the small flashes of light could be seen from the railguns. In a silent firefight, all maintenance workers outside were taken down and the squad converged on the surface building at the center of the crater. Sergeant Lemaire and his soldiers were first to the airlock. Norina walked up to it as her squad took cover and hit the button to begin airlock cycling. While the initial surprise was valuable, it wouldn't last, and she knew that.
The airlock, once the outer door opened, had only enough room for about three people in powered armor at a time, four or five if they weren't in the armor. Corporal Heshel and the three privates still squeezed into the airlock and started to cycle it through nonetheless. Norina didn't like having to do that, but it was their only real option right now.
Within the airlock, there was at least some hesitation before the inner airlock opened. All the soldiers switched to their laser rifles as a wrong shot with the railgun at these distances could punch a hole in the base. Orders were to take it intact, if possible, and if it could be helped, that's what they'd do. There didn't seem to be an active alarm in the base, not yet at least, but power was definitely active, as was life support. The Marines that had previously heard nothing but their breathing and voices over the communications now heard rushes of air and their movements.
To the right, after entering, there was a tunnel angling down into the base proper. It was fairly large, enough to fit everyone down, but it was also a long tunnel with no guarantee that they would not get cornered and unable to escape. Most Brakian small arms wouldn't affect the powered armor, but if they hit on a joint it'd likely get through the armor. A 20mm round would damage the armor, but only had a chance of getting through the plates. 25mm and larger was guaranteed penetration. Brakian autocannons used 30mm rounds. Armor piercing rounds 7.76 mm and larger would break through the armor in some places, 12.7mm in others would be necessary to do it. Laser weapons were largely ineffective as the armor could withstand focused heat.
Corporal Heshel led the way down the tunnel, moving quickly, but watching everything in front of them. It was not an elevator shaft, he could tell that much. It was unlikely it was even used often, based on how it wasn't really maintained and how he could see a small layer of dust over the floor. It made sense at least, since surface operations were highly unlikely when they were doing mostly mining. At the bottom of the tunnel was a security checkpoint - empty, but active. As good a place as any to wait, the squad used the walls for cover and kneeled down.
The remains of the platoon worked their way into the upper room, waiting at the top to keep themselves grouped. Once Norina passed through last, with the Second Squad sergeant, the soldiers proceeded down the ramp into the outpost, meeting up with First Squad shortly after. Beyond the checkpoint was a fair sized lobby area with all the seats empty, as expected. Unlike the hall from the surface, this lobby was well taken care of. The surface showed no signs of landing pads, though that's at least somewhat likely given the still high heat this close to the star, even at the poles.
As she looked at the two large airlocks going deeper into the facility, Norina knew she'd need some guidance from orbit. "Alpha to Pacesetter. Can we get a deeper scan of the planet? We don't need to be moving blind down here."
It was only a moment before the battlecruiser responded. "Pacesetter. We're going to see what we can do, wait a moment and we'll start." It was a few minutes as the scan focused on the small area of the base and, slowly, mapped out what appeared to be the facility. "How is it looking Alpha?"
"We got some degree of scans now. Thank you Pacesetter. Continuing operations." Norina said as she cut communications.
The scan revealed that the airlocks went to two different areas. One led into a wide, large hallway that went deeper into the facility, and the other appeared to lead into a habitation area of the base if the multitude of small rooms was anything to go by. Clearing the outpost room by room would take a while, but it had to be done. Braka time it was only about midday, and all outposts ran on that time. At best, they might find the security forces and a few civilians to deal with. Then they'd have to go into the mines.
"Second Squad, clear the residential wing." Norina said. "First Squad will hold the lobby area. Make this quick."
Sergeant Lemaire simply nodded toward Norina and gathered his squad. Just to experiment, he approached the large airlock toward the habitation area. Expecting to have to use breaching charges, he was surprised to see it open for him and the squad. Not about to complain the squad entered and when it closed, took up positions against both sides of the walls, moving quickly, but carefully, toward the habitats. Being inside and in a well cooled environment, thermal imaging and x-ray visors were fully functional. The latter would work for moving room to room, the former if they decided to cut the power. Brakian heat signatures stood out from human or powered unit signatures.
Conveniently, and obviously for new arrivals rather than the regular residents of the mining outpost, there was a map. Lemaire stopped and looked over it, of course. There were five floors - easily labeled 'Blue', 'Green', 'Yellow', 'Orange', and 'Red'. The neural implants that all Omniwatch marines got were automatically translating the Brakian written language. Each level had about 50 living units, and the Blue Level were the larger ones. As he looked deeper, each floor had residences with varying sizes, likely for accommodating different size families.
Brakians were known for large families, and the larger residences were likely made for six to eight people. Usually those were two first generation adults, possibly two second generation adults, and two to four second generation children below Brakian age of maturity. Needless to say, it was certainly interesting for humans, who, on Earth, were restricted to one child and any more than that resulted in imprisonment or execution. The smaller rooms were, at least, single person or possibly a couple.
"Clear the floors, heading down." Lemaire said. "No civilian casualties, just sweep and clear."
The entrance to the Blue Level was next to the map, and the doors, again, opened for the squad without requiring any special access. While the hall was empty, Lemaire could hear the sound of several Brakian families. Inter-clan relations were generally encouraged, which explained at least part of why several of the doors were open. The only Brakians in the hall had their backs to the marines, which at least kept some of the surprise for now.
Lemaire knew he had a prime opportunity now. Making use of the vocal amplifiers built into the helmet and run through automatic translator, he said, "Attention: This outpost is now under the control of the Omniwatch Corporation Naval Defense Force. As per capturing protocol, we will be conducting a search of all residences. Failure to comply will result in arrest. Resistance will result in termination. Surrender of outpost security or weaponry will ease our actions and ease the burden on your families."
That got the attention he both did and didn't want. In the time that he was speaking, a Brakian security officer had taken up a position and started firing his assault rifle down the hall, the bullets clinking off the armor, but otherwise doing nothing. One of Lemaire's privates had already taken aim with the laser rifle and the moment the guard showed himself again, a pinpoint shot with the laser gun melted his face away, sending him to the ground in pain, but not quite dead yet.
"Staff Sergeant here," Norina said over the radio as Lemaire had his soldiers spread through the housing area, checking every residence in teams of two. "We're going to be advancing into the rest of the facility. Clear out the residential area and fall back to us when you're able to. Support forces will be down to secure the outpost properly."
"Understood. Continuing our sweep." Lemaire said.
It took a little over an hour before Lemaire's squad cleared out the Blue Level, leaving dozens of fairly angry Brakians on the level. None of them resisted. They knew better than to go up against the marines like that. The guard that was left in a critical condition was executed as soon as the marines got to them. That prevented any chance of them standing against the marines. Then again, a single marine could take on the unarmed civilians within the residential area of the outpost.
As Lemaire continued through the residential area, Norina led First Squad through the mining part of the outpost. In the hour that Lemaire had been clearing, Norina cleared the upper level of the mines without delving into the tunnels themselves. Security forces surrendered as they approached, knowing full well that it would be an unwinnable fight. About 20 security officers were detained at the outpost command center, as well as the outpost commander.
Within three hours, the entire outpost was secured with the assistance of regular support soldiers, the security forces moved from the outpost to the Pacesetter, and the marines called back to the ship. With the prisoner load on the Pacesetter, it set a course for Chara II to turn over the officers to the better containment facilities on the Ambassador.
Chara IV
Orbit
As the Omniwatch naval force slowed its approach to Chara IV, the laser batteries on the Brakian space stations opened fire. Specifically, the guns of the primary military one. The laser battery struck one of the two destroyers in the formation, dealing a fair blow to the ship's armor and leaving it scarred. It was already quite clear that the space station could not be captured, despite Captain Trovato wanting them under Omniwatch control.
The Mercury, the battlecruiser of the three ship formation, turned its missile launchers on the space station. Using a railgun launcher, a five megaton nuclear missile was loaded and launched at a tenth the speed of light. Soon after launch the missile's rocket fired, propelling it faster, if only slightly. It only served to get it in range faster rather than making the impact more powerful.
Several more lasers were fired out, destroying one of the two Omniwatch destroyers and damaging the Mercury. A flash of light over Chara IV confirmed the impact and detonation of the nuclear device, and the destruction of most, if not all, of the space station. It was a minor victory at least. On Captain Trovato's order, the battlecruiser jumped around to each moon, dropping nuclear munitions on the military bases on the worlds. Most were recruit depots, at least a second stage recruit depot, and thus were free to destroy. While the battlecruiser did that, the destroyer ran rescue operations for the lost destroyer.
Within the hour, the space station was eliminated, recruit depots destroyed, one destroyer lost but 40 percent of its crew recovered. Operation Enterprise was only a partial success because the loss of the destroyer killed most of the marines that would have been deployed, thus the civil space stations around Chara IV could not be taken with ease, not with their size. That much was reported back to Captain Trovato and it was deemed acceptable under the circumstances.
Chara II
Surface
Omniwatch Regional Headquarters
The last explosion went off as the last Brakian main battle tank started to burn. Even as smoke filled the air and the smell of burning oil, bodies, and various other materials from the extended fight on the ground. Once the front of the headquarters had been a garden, well decorated, and lavish. A place meant as much for relaxation of the employees as those that passed by on the streets. Now it was a trenched, burned, and destroyed battlefield with various barricades that were erected.
Klara poked her head up from behind the heavy marble table that the soldiers had flipped and pushed against the glass front of the headquarters. Bullets were done flying, and that was why she even dared the look. She saw nothing but a destroyed landscape, but nothing was moving out there now.
"First Foreign Division has been largely wiped out, remains are in retreat." Lieutenant Halstein said through Klara's headset. "Special Protection has taken 80 percent losses. I don't think we'll be able to continue operations."
"Eighty percent?" Klara said as she stood up and walked around the table, stepping out of the building and onto the glass outside, her modified boots protecting.
"We're the last two, essentially." Halstein confirmed with little emotion in his voice. "Such is the life of this unit I suppose. We hadn't anticipated such a rapid, large scale attack here. Otherwise, we're getting reports from across the planet that we have secured at least a handful of bases. Brakian government has called for a ceasefire for the remainder of the day and into the morning. Chief Representative Dumisani has accepted the offer."
Alliance Embassy
Chief Representative Dumisani was relatively well protected still. Being a diplomatic officer, he was fully in control of the situation. His place on the grounds of the Alliance embassy was protected, even as the planet descended into a degree of chaos. It was essentially what he signed on for, but situation deteriorated as the time went on. Reports coming in from Regional as well as other sources were confirming that the corporation was dealing with almost a stalemate on all fronts.
The Brakian President offered a ceasefire nonetheless. It'd have to do. The corporation was exhausted and they'd at least need a night in order to reorganize and be ready for another attack the following day. In space, the small naval force could use the relief to take inventory of what remains. He was fully aware of Captain Trovato's actions and passed that along to Central Command, recommending her for further promotion.
More importantly, his bar remained fully stocked, much to the frustration of the Alliance diplomatic staff and, better yet, that of Ambassador Munroe. Seeing her get frustrated was always worth the money it took to bring his favorite drinks to Chara. Especially the wine. Especially the wine from Earth, which was no longer being produced as the planet died. That was worth something. And of course he knew how to bill the Alliance for it as "Miscellaneous Personal Expenses".
Also filed under that was his weekly shipment of Cuban - now an American Alliance state - cigars. Some time ago he got a shipment of crystal glasses sent in for his wine. The cigars cost the Alliance a few thousand dollars every week. The glasses were a good forty thousand. All of it was worth it, because nothing came out of pocket. When Ambassador Munroe was assigned to Chara, he made sure to up his expenses. On top of the alcohol and cigars he also had various services brought in, new pieces of very high quality furniture costing thousands each - after all, wood furniture was rare and on the decline - and anything that drew his attention. Especially pens made of precious metals and gemstones. Like his personal gold and platinum pen with multiple rubies set into it.
Almost as though she knew what he was doing as Dumisani did a quick spin in his chair after sipping on the wine in hand, Ambassador Munroe burst into his office. The wooden door with a composite metal core to reinforce against explosions slammed into the wood paneling, leaving a dent in it. Before she could even speak in the obvious anger that was on her face, Dumisani motioned toward the new dent in the paneling. "Don't break the things you buy Ambassador."
"Fuck you." Munroe said as she stormed at his desk.
Maintaining his calm and amused demeanor, Dumisani said, "Now Ambassador? Angry sex can't be good for relations. Otherwise, that's just rude. You could enlighten me as to what I d-" Munroe took the thick folder of paper and smacked Dumisani across the face with it, snapping his head to the side as he was taking a sip, causing the glass of wine to fall to his floor and shatter. "Now that was really rude. Care to actually enlighten me?"
Munroe glared as he spun in his chair to the small bar behind him, poured another glass of wine, and turned back around with it in hand, sipping at it, and with the grin that she came to despise. "Do I actually have to? Look at this god damn planet. It's a mess thanks to you people. What did you even sign off on to do this shit?"
The grin only widened as the question was asked. "Classified." He took a sip of the wine, and Munroe looked momentarily hopeful as he started to speak, only to have that hope dashed. "One moment." He said as he removed a cigar from the desk and lit it with a platinum lighter emblazoned with the Omniwatch logo. With cigar in one hand and a wine glass in the other, he motioned to a stupefied Ambassador Munroe to continue.
Once she stared at him for a moment, and then remembered where she was even going to go with her thoughts, she demanded from him, with a slam of the fist into his desk, "Bullshit. Declassify it or I knock this other glass out of your hand."
Quick to make a remark, Dumisani laughed a bit. "Why? So you can buy me _two_new crystal glasses? I don't even think these kinds are made anymore." He pushed back a bit to completely relax as it continued to annoy the Ambassador. He put his legs up on the desk, making sure to show off the Italian shoes from Earth, which were already a rarity, moreso when it was authentic leather rather than the fake leather that was almost universal in human space. "So, you're not getting my documents. Anything else Ambassador?"
"I..." Munroe said as she stared at him. "So you're completely denying what is going on outside this embassy?"
"I wouldn't do that." Dumisani said as he took a sip of his wine. "I just cannot deny nor confirm that I signed the order to carry it out."
Munroe finally just sighed and took her folder with her as she left. Once the door closed behind her, Dumisani finally laughed a bit as he pulled out his own folder and ran through all the reports once again.
March 12
Operation Enterprise +1
Orbit of Chara II
ODV Ambassador
Command Deck
Luca locked herself into the command deck, only able to be unlocked by her first officer if her presence was required. The various movements of ships gave her full view of the Chara System. Her techies had gotten limited access to Brakian sensor arrays, which gave her a sketchy view of the system. Aside from operations on Chara I, nothing was quite going right. She had no space stations around Chara IV, even if the depots were destroyed, and she was far less combat effective now with the loss of her destroyer from the military station. Between initial intelligence reports and the contact, the space station's reported weapon complement changed significantly.
Then again, she did get a word of praise from the Chief Representative. That was good enough. And she got word from the ground that Klara was alive. Things were mostly in place, and, while they definitely could be a lot worse, things were mostly under control. Once Omniwatch reinforcements arrived, the system could be relieved and the Brakian government could get its hand forced fully.
Operation Enterprise was mostly complete, but Luca was expanding the objectives. Chara I and IV were taken care of. Chara III, V, and VI were primary targets. Beyond Chara VI there was little of note. Until all planets were pacified, Enterprise was still underway, and Luca would make sure it was fully carried out. Especially once reinforcements came in, but there'd be a flag officer among those at least and they'd be in command. Whether they carried out Enterprise was up for debate at that point.
The doors into the command deck slid open as Commander Harun stepped in. He was in his black service uniform with the gold commander bars visible on the shoulder boards. Luca looked up at him and she thought for a moment he almost smiled when she did so. The look from Luca was mostly that of fatigue anyway. She was tired and her mind were all kinds of places right now.
"Good morning Commander." Luca said to Harun, beckoning him over to the table. "Is something on your mind?"
_ _
"This one wishes to speak with you privately, Captain." Harun said, only to give Luca a stern look after she laughed a bit at the Tesgnov terms used. "The crew appear to be growing restless. Perhaps this fight is not worth it?"
"We fight because we're ordered to, Harun."_Luca said without looking back up from her map. _"Here, look. We're actually making relatively fine gains in space currently. Ground situation could be better, but that's why I am toying with the idea of deploying the marines to back them up."
_ _
Harun took the moment that Luca called him to her side of the table to get fairly close to her, his arm brushing against hers. She didn't say a word, knowing it was, in part, his way of getting her perspective, but she knew there was more to it. "Is there no way to destroy surface defenses on Chara III?"
_ _
"I've been looking at that." Luca said as she pressed back into him a bit. "My primary fear is that the Ambassador_will suffer too much damage. I don't want to risk the ship, of course. Technically we could take out any defenses at a distance, but it's almost like taking on Earth and Mars with only a frigate. Chara III is their most well defended world oddly."_
_ _
Luca kept looking over the map and thinking. Periods of calm were good for that, if nothing else. _"If it's any consolation Captain, Harun believes you are doing an excellent job given what you had to work with."_On top of the words, Luca felt his hand on her lower back. It was rare Tesgnov made physical contact, but she accepted it. Harun was generally friendlier, and he had a respect for Luca.
"Thank you Harun." Luca said before her mind went back to what he said initially. "What did you want to speak about privately though? I have a feeling the crew thing was just to divert a subject."
_ _
A nervous laugh passed from Harun's mouth. "Well, he was wondering if... perhaps the Captain would be interested in-"
_ _
A loud klaxon interrupted his speech. It was an alert one, only heard on the Command Deck. The AI could be heard over the intercom, again, only in the Command Deck. "Captain, unknown warships have been detected entering the system from Tau Ceti. I'll be running scans to determine origin."
"It's the Omniwatch reinforcements." Luca said almost dismissively.
"Then we can finish this yes?" Harun asked.
"Definitely. The quicker we achieve victory here, the sooner we go back to peacetime mobilization." Luca couldn't help but smile. She wanted - needed - these soldiers, and now that they were here, she was already starting to expand her strategic options. She'd need a final count on the assets given, but she was sure they'd be substantial.
"Analysis of warships completed." The AI said after a few happy minutes, for Luca at least, passed.
"Omniwatch, correct?" Luca said, cutting the AI off before it could continue.
"Alliance."