The Rebel Faction

Near Commenor, eighteen minutes before Hapan Intervention

"All is ready, then?" She asked, her dark eyes fluttering once or twice. The man she faced was new to her, a face she did not recognize.

Of course not! Admiral Bhindi Drayson had been assigned, albiet temporarily, to the command of the Korolev for this mission of vital importance. She did not like it - despite the added firepower the ship offered, she did not know the crew. Could not trust them to understand her orders fully, or fullfill them as she knew her own crew would.

She sighed. There was nothing else to do, save make sure everything was triple checked and make sure the crew here knew what she meant when she gave orders.

The Captain nodded.
"Aye, Ma'am. We're set to repel the Tholatins the moment they enter our space."

She nodded.
"Thank you, Captain. Keep me informed."

Bhindi turned away, her quick strides taking her away from the bridge. The mission was simple enough: deploy a blockade along the Tholatin's avenue of retreat and destroy their forces when they emerged from hyperspace.

It would be a massacre. Naturally.

<hr>

OOC: Fleet Manifest

Eternal Class Star Destroyer Korolev
Aegis Class Star Carrier Xaphania
Aegis Class Star Carrier Archammer
Immobilizer 418 Class Cruiser Starry Ice
Immobilizer 418 Class Cruiser Solar Wind
Terakesh Gunship Shekeshl
Terakesh Gunship Mihthish
Terakesh Gunship Senshar
Terakesh Gunship Vishda
Terakesh Gunship Kashtal
Terakesh Gunship Jeklash
Terakesh Gunship Arhasked
Terakesh Gunship Smishlohek
Terakesh Gunship Iknabrak
Terakesh Gunship Pintokosh

<LI> 26 Sqaudrons TIE Defenders
<LI> 2 Sqaudrons Missile Gunboats*

*MB sqaudrons are 18 ships each

"Admiral, Ma'am. Report from Commenor! The Tholatin warships have exited our space."

She nodded, smiling thinly.

"The gravity wells are online?" The officer nodded.
"As per your orders, Ma'am."
"Excellent. Increase power. I don't want anything to get through."

Silence settled across the bridge of the Star Destroyer as the assemlbed crew waited for the first indication of enemy fleets emerging from hyperspace.

"Admiral! We have sensor contacts directly in front. Two frigates, Nebulon Class."

Bhindi smiled, her eyes snapping open, gleaming.

"Shields up. Fighters mantain defensive positions. All batteries, target and fire. I want those frigates dead. Alert me immediatly if anything else shows up."

There was a series of acknowledgements as the lights dropped to a redish glow and the thump of turbolasers began to vibrate across the vessel.

The smaller Gunships, vessels on loan from the Swarm, darted forward, turbolasers raking across the Tholatin warships. The two enemy craft surely could not compete with the combined fleets of the Empire and the Swarm!

They would die here today...

The two Nebulon B's were pulled out of hyperspace and immediately fired upon. They returned fire immediately and had their shields up within seconds. The Rapyir fighters they were carrying launched as well.

Moment's later, the rest of the TTR fleet was yanked out of hyperspace. They too opened fire and launched their fighters. Their shields were up and they went after the smaller ships that were attacking the Nebulon's. A message was sent to Tholatin.

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On Tholatin, Kamon rreceived the message and ordered the Serene Justice to go assist. He also sent out calls for assistance from his allies. He was also aware of a Fighter entering his system with way to many guns. He'd watch that one.

TTR Fleet
Imperial-class Star Destroyer Serene Justice(en route)
Interdictor Cruiser Cobra
-12 Rapyir-class Starfighters
Interdictor Cruiser Black Ops
-12 Rapyir-class Starfighters

Carrack Cruiser Light
Carrack Cruiser Tehra
Nebulon B Katie's Fire
-5 Rapyir-class Starfighters
Nebulon B Yonex
-4 Rapyir-class Starfighters

(OOC Note: The Allegiance and Pandemonium were sold, so please consider them to be Aegis Star Carriers Xaphania and Archammer.)

The frigates, tiny craft when placed next to the massive dagger of the Korolev, succumbed quickly, their puny weapons offering little damage to the Imperial fleet arrayed against them.

From the bridge of the flagship, Bhindi watched in satisfaction as the guns continued to pound out their fury against the Tholatin vessels. For each bank - four guns - one was always firing. With those guns split between two ships, the vessel still had an intolerable ammount of firepower, and this quickly overcame the shields of the enemy vessels.

Fire began to blossom where laser impacts shattered against the hull, ripping massive gashes across them and sending debris into space.

Bhindi pointed out one location aboard the first of the Tholatin vessels, and the orders were relayed to the gunnery stations. For a moment, the ship was still as all weapons ceased firing.

Then came a massive crash as each turbolaser drilled fire into one spot, followed by a shattering volley of warheads delivered into the same location.

The vulnerable spar that connected the bridge of the Katie's Fire to her engine housing did not snap, but simply melted away under the intense fire, and the two pieces of the ship began to spin away from each other.

The massive shape of the Korolev was left free to target the remaining frigate. This ship was suffering badly, fires raging unchecked across most of her hull as the repaair crews lie dead, slain by the almost unending wall of energy thrown against that ship.

At the same moment the Fire broke apart, the remainder of the Tholatin fleet arrived, yanked from hyperspace by the gravity wells in their path.

Before shields could so much as be raised, the two Carrack Cruisers were taking fire from the Xaphania and Archammer, and laser cannons were lancing out to destroy starfighters emerging from the bays of the Interdictors.

Fire lit the sky around the fleets as the Black Fleet closed in, their warships tightening the noose around the Tholatins' neck...

Losses Thus Far

TTR:
<LI> Two Nebulon B Frigates (one destroyed, one crippled)
<LI> Shield damage to Carracks and Interdictors
<LI> Four Rapyer Fighters

HDE:
<LI> Minor shield damage to all ships, moderate shield damage to Gunships

Fire blossoming from her devestated superstructure, the tiny mass of the Gunship Jeklash found herself suddenly on a collision course with a Star Destroyer, one yanked from hyperspace by the presence of the Holy Empire's Interdictors.

The ship slammed into the raised shields of the foward bow, impacting and blowing apart as the matrix of energy intercepted her blow. On the bridge of the Korolev, the blip indicated that ship, and another of the small craft, vanished instantly.

The Star Destroyer had begun to pound the smaller Aegis Cruisers, but it had not yet deployed starfighters, and it seemed would not do so in the course of this battle.

The carriers, on the other hand, had already deployed their screens of TIE Defenders, which had already begun to torment the larger warship.

Swarms of TIEs buzzed across the hull, delivering missile salvos into the flanks of the warship, laser cannons blasting away at the seemingly inpenetrable shields.

But while the Star Destroyer was distraced fighting the Aegis Carriers, which had responded for their own self with massive, concentrated volleys of turbolaser fire into the bottom of the enemy ship, the TIEs swooped in, running across the ship's surface in the classic trench run defence used originally against the Imperial Death Star, and popped up long enough to fire their torpedoes into the bridge of the great warship.

Two dozen starfighters had targetted the command structure of the Serene Justice, and that was enough to collapse the shields over the bridge for an instant.

Half a dozen warheads, fired a fraction of a second later, smashed into the tower and exploded, vaporizing that part of the vessel and leaving her reeling as damage control crews struggled to restore command with the Captain and bridge crew dead.

And while the Star Destroyer was distracted with these developments, the Korolev had sent the request back to Commenor for reinforcements, and a another fleet element was incoming as the call went by.

As the flagship came into range and began exchanging blows with the Star Destroyer, the two carriers, both having taken a severe beating at the hands of the enemy guns, retreated under the bulk of the Korolev, daring the Tholatin ship to try and follow.

<hr>
TTR loses
ISD Moderate-severe shield damage, bridge destroyed
Nebulon B Yonex crippled
Nebulon B Katies Fire destroyed
Nine Rapyir's destroyed

LFX loses
Tarakesh Gunship Jeklash Destroyed
Tarakesh Gunship Vishda Destroyed
Aegis Star Carrier Xaphania moderate shield damage
Aegis Star Carrier Archammer moderate shield damage
Eternal Star Destroyer Korolev minor shield damage