Rise of the Remorhaz Society

[sachmo]

An important victory

In every compartment throughout every ship in Providence Fleet, com units chirped to life.
“Now hear this. Now hear this. Stand by for a message from Commodore Brennan.”
There was a momentary pause, and the crew waited for the news.
“Good evening, everyone. I have the latest news from Zekrat VIII. Admiral Sakazawa’s fleet has crushed all resistance by the Rage. Their homeworld has fallen.”
Commodore Brennan smiled as cheers echoed thru the ship. The crew had been on the razor’s edge for over a year now, and was finally watching this phase of the war come to a close. Hopefully, they would all be able to go home soon.
He continued.
“We also have a personal note here from Grand Admiral Urian. It reads; to the men and women of Providence Fleet…by now you have heard of our great victory at Zekrat VIII and the crushing of the Rage stronghold there. While this is indeed a great step forward in the war, it should by no means diminish the feats that you brave soldiers and sailors have accomplished. The capture of Lezzari and your unprecedented advances in Jethanis are just as important to ending this war as is the capture of the Rage homeworld. Without your victories, it is quite possible that the Rage would even now still be resisting our advances into their territory. We are all so very proud of you, and all throughout the Remorhaz Society feel safe knowing that you are fighting for our very existence. We thank you for your excellent work, and take pride in your accomplishments. Stay safe and hurry home to us. Signed, Grand Admiral Marcus Urian.”
Another cheer rolled thru the ship.
“Folks, I cannot tell you how proud of you I am. In one month, we have captured three Rage colonies with a minimal loss of life. In another month, we will have kicked the Rage out of the Jethanis system. If we continue at this pace, the Rage will be finished in a year.”
Thunderous applause and shouts.
“All crewmembers of Providence fleet have been granted forty-eight hours of planet side leave, effective 0600 tomorrow morning. There will be a victory celebration tomorrow evening at 1700 in Peonei City. Once again, thank you everyone for your hard work and dedication. Enjoy your leave. You’ve earned it.”
Brennan switched off the com unit, but could still hear the shouts and laughter of the crew. He only hoped that he would be able to make it planet side tomorrow for the victory party. There were still two Rage worlds to take, and Brennan wanted to get it over and done with. Then he might be able to relax.

2411.4

The strategic display was choked with Ukra-Tal ships. The enemy fleet deployed in a wall formation, twenty-two ships strong. The depleted minefield had taken out one more enemy ship, but it hadn’t done much to slow this vast armada down.
Commodore Hitcher had sent a warning message to Governor Ervay on the surface of Correlia, but Hitcher was sure that his own ground-based radar could see the Ukra-Tal fleet without his help. He watched as the Last of the civilian and commercial flights that were in the area made full speed for the Ultrinox wormhole. Those few that remained or were too slow to escape would surely perish in the battle to come, and so were safer hunkered in a bunker on the surface.
He keyed up the com link to the fleet captains and discussed the battle plan. Protect Correlia at all costs. They all knew the odds were against them, but as long as they drew breath, they would defend the planet. On the surface of Correlia were thirty million Remorhaz colonists, and since the Ukra-Tal brought no transports with them, Hitcher had to assume that they wanted nothing less than the complete extermination of all life in this system. He knew he and his people would do their best to stop them.
Correlia also had an impressive array of weaponry on the surface, also. Three missile complexes, three anti-missile complexes, and three heavy cannon bases would make life difficult for any Ukra-Tal ship that closed range. Meanwhile, Hitcher would use his fleet to press the attack whenever possible and try to destroy any Ukra-Tal ships that he could. He was hoping that the massed firepower of his fleet and the weapons platforms on the surface would allow them to withstand the superior numbers of the enemy fleet, but it would be a close thing. As he watched data roll across the screen with enemy weapons information, his face grew long. The Ukra-Tal brought some nasty toys to the fight. Acid launchers and seeker projectiles were the stuff of nightmares. He had seen their capabilities at Yukra, and was not looking forward to facing them.

The Ukra-Tal fleet was closing at maximum velocity. As they closed range, the sensors gathered more information on the enemy ships. It appeared that the minefield had done more damage to the Ukra-Tal than originally estimated. Several ships were heavily damaged, and some had no weapons at all. The odds slimmed down a bit more in favor of the Remorhaz fleet. His staff continued to send out information to the rest of the fleet, trying to ensure his captains had every piece of info that they could get their hands on. Missing even one piece could turn a battle like this from a rout into a slaughter.

Still the Ukra-Tal came on. At maximum range, they unleashed their seeker parasites. These hell-missiles locked onto their targets and streaked unerringly thru space, determined to rend metal and flesh. Before they could do any damage, the anti-missile defenses of Correlia knocked them out of the sky. RSS Skydancer moved to clear Correlia’s first moon, but was set upon by the Ukra-Tal frigates with acid launchers. The majority missed their mark or struck the shields, but eventually the attacks burned thru her defenses. The acid tore into her hull, destroying both of her DUCs and one of her missile launchers. RSS Narvik closed range and damaged one Ukra-Tal destroyer with DUC fire. They then resorted to evasive maneuvers, trying to escape the guns of the Ukra-Tal ships. The guns on the surface of Correlia opened up on the Ukra-Tal fleet, knocking a destroyer from the sky. Skydancer endured more punishment from the enemy ships, as acid globules slammed into her hull, melting it into a twisted wreck. Her bridge knocked out and all of her weapons gone, she attempted to limp from the fight. Orion pumped a full salvo of heavy depleted uranium shells into an Ukra-Tal destroyer, destroying one of its acid launchers. RSS Milton also took heavy damage, but was able to fire another missile salvo back at the pursuing enemy fleet.

Hitcher moved his ships into range of an enemy light cruiser that had moved into range of the planetary defense cannon and taken a severe pounding from them. Orion and Shining Victory opened fire and damaged the light cruiser badly.
Eventually, Milton was destroyed by overwhelming acid damage. She exploded when the acid penetrated her power core, causing a chain reaction that obliterated the ship. The Ukra-Tal also broke thru the defenses of Orion, pummeling her with acid fire. For what seemed an eternity, Hitcher was directing both the battle and the helm, as the bridge and most of her crew had been killed when an acid globule burned thru the hull and exposed the bridge to the vacuum of space. The ship was a wreck, and what was left of the crew transferred to Shining Victory. Commodore Hitcher and his staff were the Last off of the ship, having ensured that everyone who could escape had.
The ground cannon acquitted well for themselves, destroying three more Ukra-Tal ships in quick order.
The battle raged, and the ground cannon of Correlia smashed ship after ship. The Remrohaz fleet served as tempting bait for the Ukra-Tal, as they concentrated their fire on the ships while the bases on the surface of Correlia kept up a high volume of fire, exacting a horrendous toll from the enemy ships. Narvik was pounded by the Ukra-Tal fleet, and she tried to limp off the battlefield. The Ukra-Tal ships moved into range of Correlia itself, finally realizing the threat the planet itself posed to them. They destroyed a few of the anti-missile bases with acid fire, and killed a few thousand colonists at the same time.
The ground cannon proved to be the difference. Twenty of the twenty-two ships that attacked Correlia were destroyed, with the final two being so badly damaged as to not be a factor. The Remorhaz Society had lost one frigate, three thousand colonists, and close to five hundred sailors. Hopefully, this defeat would put a major crimp in the offensive plans of the Ukra-Tal, but who knew what resources they had? On the planet Shadow, the first Remorhaz agents had been trained to gather just that sort of information.