Rise of the Remorhaz Society

[sachmo]

Stick and move

2410.1

“Captain Brennan, I understand that the odds of your ships defeating the Rage fleet are not in our favor. Nevertheless, the Norak colonists here on Nova feel very strongly about fighting for their freedom. It was hard enough getting them to agree to evacuate 6 million colonists. They all wanted to stay and fight. As it stands now, you would probably have to force the remaining 1 million into the shuttles at gunpoint. They simply refuse to abandon the planet.” Governor Nina Leeks held up hands and shrugged.
Brennan ran his fingers thru his close-cropped hair. The fact remained that the Rage fleet was within a parsec of Nova. They still had enough time to evacuate all of the colonists from the planet. If Brennan’s fleet remained behind to cover their retreat, Mongoose stood an excellent chance of escaping and making for Providence. However, that would mean that Remorhaz ships would not be able to count on the support of the recently constructed weapons platforms on the surface of Nova. Without those platforms, the Remorhaz ships lost a significant amount of firepower. Still, when weighed against the lives of 1 million Remorhaz citizens, there was no choice.
“Governor, Major General Brooks can make them leave. Please don’t force us into anything” Brennan glanced at Brooks, who nodded imperceptivity.
“If they aren’t smart enough to save their own lives, Governor, then my men will do it for them. Haven’t those Norakians seen enough of this war? If the Rage ships push thru our fleet, the colonists will be sitting ducks. I can’t in good conscience leave this planet without them.”
Governor Leeks stood up.
“Gentlemen, you are both officers in the military. I understand that it is your sworn duty to protect the lives of Remorhaz citizens. However, there is something you are overlooking here. These Norakians have been given a whole new outlook on life in the Remorhaz Society. Never before have they enjoyed the amount of freedom that they have now. It stirs strong feelings in many of them, as you can see. They see this as a chance to pay us back for the gift we have given them. They see this as a chance to keep their families and people free from tyranny and harm. So you would force them to leave, because that is your duty. However, in doing so, you may be denying them their most basic rights. Also, if the Rage defeat you here, what is to stop them from catching Mongoose in space, destroying her and everyone on board? At least this way, they have a fighting chance. Please, let them stay.”
Brennan looked over at Major General Brooks again. Clearly, he was considering the governor’s words.
“Alright Governor, we will discuss this. Of course, we will have to clear any decision to let these people stay with Remorhaz. Neither of us can approve something like this on our own. I hope you understand,” Brennan said.
The Governor nodded. “Of course. Please contact me if I can help in any way. If you will excuse me, I have to help prepare for the defense of our planet.” She headed toward the door.
Brennan watched her leave. Once the door was shut, Major General Brooks let out a long breath.
“Good god, Brennan! If you had told me a year ago that I would be arguing with a Remorhaz citizen to protect Norakians, Norakian citizens of Remorhaz no less, I would have told you to go eat your hat!”
Brennan laughed. “Yes sir. It’s quite a turn of events.” He thought for a moment. “Governor Leeks makes some good points, doesn’t she?”
The general folded his arms across his chest and leaned back in his chair. “She does. You know, situations like this are usually celebrated as heroic acts. Why is it that I am so uneasy about it?”
“Because it’s suicide. Our chances of defeating that Rage fleet are pretty slim. We just don’t have the firepower. If we had another month, I would feel a lot better. As it is, it’s going to be a rough ride. I hope we make it out of this.”

In the end, the Chairman gave the 1 million colonists permission to stay on Nova if they wished. Major General Brooks still was not happy about it, but he remained silent. Mongoose detached herself from the Marine Assault Fleet and headed full speed for the Knoglam system. If the fleet survived, they would return. If not, they would make for Providence along with Comet and Liberation. Of course, that was if the Rage actually attacked. Once could never be sure what they were going to do.

The Research Guild was able to improve on the anti-matter torpedo design and extend both its range and payload. All future Ganymede Light Cruisers would be fitted with this advanced torpedo design. By the beginning of the next month, they planned to have completed research on a second-generation anti-proton beam.

Remorhaz launched RSS Cerci, an Icelus C Class fleet repair ship. She headed toward Xillantha to join the rest of the fleet. She would join them as soon as possible, but the timetable would not be held up to accommodate her joining before the assault on Fezzran. That assault should begin in the first week of the next month.
In an interesting turn of events, the Rage sent a transmission to Fort Justice. It read:

“Pathetic weaklings, flee from the Xillantha system.”

This presented the Navy with an interesting scenario. If the Rage attacked Xillantha in force, it might be worth it to first try and defeat the enemy fleet before assaulting Fezzran. Hopefully, if the Rage fleet was destroyed, that would mean that ships which were responsible for defending Fezzran would be lost, making the assault much safer. Rear Admiral Sakazawa was made aware of this situation, and he increased the alert status of the fleet. If the Rage came, they would jump them. The fleet in Lundra was also notified, so that they could intercept any reinforcing fleets coming from that direction.

In the Lapzooli system, the planet Harkness was colonized. This colony was to be a research colony.

The Texrak Hegemony proposed a research and trade alliance. Ambassador Mulatti quickly ordered his mission to accept the treaty. The Texrak were quickly becoming the Remorhaz Societies first stalwart allies. Time would tell if they would enter the war on their side or not, but at least they weren’t looking for a fight.

2410.2

The Remorhaz fleet at Nova barely escaped with their lives. The Rage ships moved in and glassed the planet, leaving the fleet to fight for their lives. Not one hit was scored on the Rage fleet as they were able to use their superior maneuverability as an advantage. Once the battle was over, the Remorhaz ships had nothing left to protect, and so immediately fell back toward Providence. Whether the Rage ships would follow or not remained to be seen.

The Research Guild completed work on the second generation of the anti-proton beam. The next project was aimed at discovering the secrets of astrophysics.

Glory launched the first Ganymede class light cruiser, RSS Ganymede. This ship headed for the Xillantha-Lundra wormhole, to join taskforce 9.5.
Correlia complete construction of its shipyard facility, and immediately began construction of two Nemesis class frigates.

2410.3

An Ukra-Tal fleet of 22 assorted ships appeared in the Wanduk system at the beginning of this month, and fell upon the colony at Cherek. Without mercy, the Ukra-Tal scorched the planet from low orbit. No Remorhaz citizen was left alive. The colonists on Ymoria saw that they were next, and a massive panic ensued. The Chairman tried to gain contact with the Ukra-Tal government for a possible discussion of terms of surrender of the planet, but there was no response. No one was in any position to send any aid. The factories on Ymoria began construction of space mines, which they hoped would discourage the Ukra-Tal fleet. It was a thin hope, indeed.

Remorhaz launched the first Ganymede B class light cruiser, the RSS Orion. She and the Midguard moved to take up stations to protect the core systems from an Ukra-Tal attack. There was nothing to stand in their way if the fleet in Wanduk decided to head for Remorhaz. Production was stepped up on minelayers also, to lay a huge defensive barrier of mines to attempt to slow the Ukra-Tal down, at least.

Rear Admiral Sakazawa was surprised when his fleet completed the jump into the Fezzran system. He had expected to surprise a Rage attack fleet gathered in system, but instead he found two unprotected planets.
The first, Fezzran VI, was a domed planet populated by about 6 million Rage. The entire 2nd Space Marine Brigade was dropped, and the planet was captured without much of a fight. The local garrison had been neutralized from space by the rest of the fleet. The planet was named Vengeance, and immediately as request was placed to have a colony ship constructed so that Cirius could be recolonized. The Remorhaz Society was determined to hold Fezzran this time around.

Ambassador Mulatti stared at the com unit in muted shock. He wasn’t quite sure why, but the mood of the Texrak Hegemony had quickly darkened over the Last few months. It was now to the point where the entire Remorhaz diplomatic mission was being expelled from Texrak space.
Once he was finished with the details of the embassy evacuation, he contacted the Chairman. Needless to say, he wasn’t happy.
“Damn it, Sangi! What more can we do? Could one of our enemies be doing this to us?” The Chairman’s face was as read as a dachenberry.
“It’s entirely possible, but without an intelligence network to speak of, we have no way of knowing, sir. I think that we should be ready for anything from the Texrak.”
“You can bet on that, mister. Thanks for calling me so soon, Sangi. I guess when it rains, it pours, huh?”
Sangi relaxed ever so slightly. “Yes sir. Let me know if you need anything from me, sir.”
The Chairman just grimaced and closed the connection. He sat back in his chair and took a stiff pull from his scotch. What more did it take to have normal relations with alien races? I wish I could figure out what is required to keep our neighbors happy, he thought.
Well, I’m glad I kept that task force in Lundra.
He placed a call to Grand Admiral Urian.
The admiral decided that they would redeploy the 1st Space Marine Brigade from Providence and have it join task force 9.5 in the Lundra system. Once they linked up, and when the inevitable war started with the Texrak Hegemony, the Space Marines would be able to sweep into Aldan with the rest of the fleet and hopefully knock them out of the war in one swift, punishing attack. He hoped that things stabilized before that, but past history showed that it probably would not.

2410.4

The Ukra-Tal fleet destroyed Ymoria.

RSS Falcon was lost when she warped into the Yukra system and ran into a minefield just outside of the wormhole.

In the Fezzran system, the Xillantha Defense fleet continued its attack against Rage colonies. This time, the target was Fezzran IV. 4 weapons platforms, and a belt of defense satellites protected the planet. It was also home to 105 million Rage colonists. Rear Admiral Sakazawa ordered the fleet to move into maximum firing range of the planet and destroy all defenses found. Once the defenses were neutralized, the 2nd Space Marine Brigade assaulted the planet. This time there was organized resistance, but it was crushed by the overwhelming might of the Space Marines. Brigadier General Richard McMasters, summed the combat up best in his after action report, “The Space Marines were in among the Rage lines before they knew the bombardment was over. To them it must have seemed as if they were receiving fire from their own rear area. Unfortunately for them, it was our boys.” Fezzran IV was renamed Scorpio.
The Fezzran system was now back in Remorhaz hands. Both newly captured worlds would be used as forward supply and repair bases. The fleet would immediately begin preparations to deny the Rage entry into Fezzran, but they would also attack any targets of opportunity that presented themselves. The offensive was not to stall under any circumstance.

The loss of the Wanduk system was quickly being felt throughout the Society. This month, projections called for a deficit of around 4300 mineral resources from construction. While the society had built up a considerable stock over the past few years, this was not the time to have to curtail production because of supply shortages. If pressure could be sustained, the Rage might be put on the defensive. A lack of supplies at this point in time could be disastrous.

To be continued......

[CNCRaymond]

You should put all of your work together and offer it as a download. I would love to read your story all at once. And leave it laying around the office for others to enjoy. Perhaps get a few people to buy the game.

Very nice work. Very detailed and easy to read. If you do not write for a living, perhaps you should consider doing so. Or at least writing a book as a hobby, kinda like what your doing here.

[sachmo]

Thanks very much, Raymond. No, I don't write for a living...I'm a QA Analysist, actually! If you want to read the story from start to finish without interruption, it's posted at www.spaceempires.org under the fan fiction section. I suppose if someone were interested I could email them the Word document of the story, but it's 95 pages long!

[sachmo]

Plans

Chairman Sachmo raised a hand as he entered the room, beckoning the others to take their seats. He needed to get down to business as soon as possible, and he didn’t have the time to stand on ceremony.
“Thank you all for coming on such short notice. It seems events are moving faster than we anticipated. Let’s get to it, alright?”
He sat down heavily in the chair at the head of the table. Before he could look up, Yarboro had powered up the data terminal and dimmed the lights. Floating in the middle of the large table was a hologram of the Remorhaz Society. Remorhaz military forces showed up in the Regotha system, Lundra, Fezzran, Organtrix, and Iolo, roughly outlining the “front”. Beyond those points lay enemy space.
Sachmo frowned as he studied the image. Wanduk drew his eye first, recently lost to the Ukra-Tal. Lost wasn’t exactly a precise word for what had happened there. The Remorhaz colonists in that system had been butchered. 40 million people burned to cinders by acid projectors and other horrors wielded by the Ukra-Tal. It was as good a place to start the discussion.
“Grand Admiral Urian, is there anything we can do in Wanduk to regain the system from the Ukra-Tal?”
From the darkness, Urian’s voice was grim. “No sir. Wanduk is lost.”
The Chairman took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. “How about Iolo? If the Ukra-Tal come calling, can we stop them at Correlia?”
“No sir. Currently, the Iolo defense fleet consists of two Glory class destroyers and one Nemesis class frigate. The weapons platforms on the surface consist of one Viper 5 and one Defender. At this time, the Correlians are trying to mine the space lanes around the planet, and once that is done they will try to build more weapons platforms. Enroute to Iolo are the light cruiser Orion and the frigate Midguard, however they won’t reach Iolo for about four months. If the Ukra-Tal come knocking before that, it will be a slaughter.”
Some of those gathered for the meeting gasped in utter astonishment. Many knew bits and pieces of what was happening on the Ukra-Tal front, but not many had seen the big picture. Once they did, the direness of the situation was apparent.
The Chairman tapped a button on the data term, highlighting Iolo.
“If Iolo falls, then there is nothing stopping the Ukra-Tal from pushing into the core systems, or even right on to Remorhaz itself? Is that what I’m seeing, Grand Admiral?”
Urian nodded. “Yes, Chairman. If we lose the fleet at Iolo, there is nothing to stop them. We could move one of the fleets from either Fezzran or Lundra, but they might not reach us in time. Also, such a move would present other complications.”
The Chairman stood up.
“Then we can’t lose the fleet. If the Ukra-Tal come into Iolo before we have gathered sufficient strength, we will fall back, system by system, until we have enough firepower to stop them. Then we can take back what is ours. If we lose the core systems, then we lose the war.” The Chairman considered the map for a moment.
“I want a transport moved to Correlia as soon as possible. If the Ukra-Tal come for battle, I want that planet evacuated.”
The Grand Admiral was punching notes into his data term. “Yes, Chairman. Marne is on her way back to Correlia as we speak.”
The Chairman studied the hologram again. Between Remorhaz and Iolo were two barren systems. If the Navy could slow any Ukra-Tal attack down, there just might be time to move one of the fleets back to Remorhaz in case of an emergency. If they didn’t lose many ships, they should be able to take on the Ukra-Tal battle fleet on fairly even terms. Everything hinged on the Rage offensive.
“Grand Admiral, tell us about the Fezzran offensive.”
The admiral’s voice seemed to gain some life. At least he did have some good news to deliver.
“Sir, Fezzran was a much easier target than we expected. We aren’t sure why the Rage left the system practically undefended, but we were able to capture both Rage colonies in two months. We didn’t suffer a single casualty.”
A cheer welled up from the gathered officers. Sachmo smiled.
“Excellent, Grand Admiral. Very well done. Fezzran has some very rich worlds to colonize. We can return to Cirius, too. That will help offset the loss of Wanduk, and will boost the moral of the people.”
“Yes Chairman. We also suspect that the unexplored system west of Fezzran to be a Rage system. I was planning on sending the fleet ahead as soon as possible. It’s very important that we keep the Rage off balance.”
Field Marshal Gulman spoke up.
“I completely agree, Chairman. If we can quickly defeat the Rage, then we can concentrate on the Ukra-Tal.”
The Chairman nodded to him. He then turned to Commandant Hunter of the Space Marine Corps.
“Hunter, how are your Space Marines fairing?”
The Commandant looked up from his data term, where he had been furiously writing notes.
“Chairman, my Space Marines get better by the drop. 2nd Brigade accounted very well for itself in Fezzran, sir. They are ready for anything we throw at them.”
“Good to hear. Very good.”
The meeting continued for hours. The strategy for this pivotal time in Remorhaz history was set. The bulk of the forces were to concentrate on finishing off the Rage, while an intense effort would be made to build up fleet strength in the Iolo sector. Also, the wormholes would be mined from the core systems out, to provide defense belts for the fleets to fall back behind. They hoped that the Ukra-Tal offensive would slow after the quick capture of the Wanduk system, but they planned for the worst case. It was going to be touch and go here for a while.

Captain Jager looked at her orders with carefully concealed relief. Nemesis and Triumph had been ordered to proceed at best speed to Deniper in the Yullado system, where they were to await further orders. She wasn’t exactly sure what they were going to be doing, but being that much closer to Remorhaz was a step in the right direction. She had been away from home for almost ten years now with barely a month spent back home. A few weeks with her family would be paradise, but she didn’t want to get her, or her crews, hopes up. She knew everyone missed their loved ones terribly .At least at Yullado they would be off of the line for a few days. She hoped that they would be able to get in a little r&r.

2410.5

The scientists at Our Blessed Mother University on Remorhaz, with the help of millions of credits in aid from the Remorhaz Research Guild, made a breakthrough in the area of Astrophysics. By studying the interstellar phenomenon that Captain Jager and others like her had discovered in the early days of the Remorhaz exploration of space, they were able to unlock the keys to allow them to manipulate the energies of the very stars. This was only the tip of the iceberg with regards to the practical applications, but with a bit of work they believed that they could construct a repulsor beam for the Navy, discover how to manipulate spatial bodies, and also how to gather the energy of the stars and use it to supplement the power cores on ships. This research would begin, as all research had a habit of doing, when the funding came thru.

At Glory, the first Remorhaz minelayer was launched, the RSS Eos. She would immediately travel to Black Hills and Salvation to gather the mines that had already been constructed there, and begin mining the wormholes of the core systems. The first ring of defense was going up.

On Vengeance, one of the recently captured Rage worlds in the Fezzran system, an urban pacification center was created. They hoped that this one would be as successful as the one on Nova had been, but just in case, a battalion of Space Marines remained on planet.

Rear Admiral scanned the faces of his officers. Lord, did they look tired. Many of them had been fighting for almost nine years. They wanted to go home, and spend some real time with their loved ones. They knew that the way back was much further than the road ahead, and so were quite happy for a chance to finish off the Rage. It was time to press on.
“We don’t know what’s in the next system, folks, but intel believes that it should be crawling with Rage. Our orders are clear. We are to find, and destroy, the Rage homeworld. Remorhaz needs us to put an end to this war, and quickly. Any colony we can’t take with the Space Marines is to be destroyed,” a hand shot up from amongst his officers, “yes, that is a departure from SOP, but apparently when the Ukra-Tal glassed Cherek and Ymoria the Chairman had a change of heart.”
The hand was quickly lowered.
“If we can find the Rage homeworld and destroy the primary sequencer, we can finish this. We don’t really know what we will find, but I know we are ready for it. The Rage knocked us for a loop in Lezzari, and now we get to return the favor. Fezzran is our, and we won’t stop until every Rage planet is either under our control, or left behind as space debris. Questions?”
No one raised a hand. They were determined, and ready to get this bloody work done.
Sakazawa nodded. “Excellent. Get back to your ships, and good luck to us all. Dismissed.”
Xillantha Fleet sped thru space silently, powered by vengeance and deadly intent.

To be continued...

[Atrocities]

Very nice read. I wanted to know, so I checked.

Close Estimate:

Words = 48353
Characters = 228211
Sentances = 3724

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level = 6.9
Flesch Reading Ease = 68.4

Font 10
Times New Roman = 64 pages.

I would say that you are off and running on that book.

[dumbluck]

Originally posted by Atrocities:

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level = 6.9
Flesch Reading Ease = 68.4

huh?

[sachmo]

Originally posted by Atrocities:
Very nice read. I wanted to know, so I checked.

Close Estimate:

Words = 48353
Characters = 228211
Sentances = 3724

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level = 6.9
Flesch Reading Ease = 68.4

Font 10
Times New Roman = 64 pages.

I would say that you are off and running on that book.

Thanks?

[sparhawk]

And a Wow for sachmo .
Moderators: can we make a sticky of this tread.
Because this will give everyone a lesson in how to roleplay in SEIV

Thanks sachmo

Sparhawk

[Story Junkie]

http://www.geocities.com/hohoho611ca/storylinks.html

You should post a link to this thread in the "Classic Threads" thread.

[ManOfWar]

Although I enjoy this story, I feel that you should take some time and proof read your work.