[Seventh Fleet] Gashmere Response

[Soban]

RP Date

YE 44.9.35

RP Location

YSS Densetsu

YSS Densetsu

Fletcher was woken from his sleep by an Alarm, he was out of his bed in an instant. If he hadn’t opened the door, and came through in his pajamas he was pretty sure Subaru would have come in there after him. The Neko had her weapon drawn, unusual onboard the YSS Densetsu. She eyed the door, “A little less on point Subaru. Operations, Report.” He said to the screen which displayed his on duty operations officer. Subaru holstered her weapon but was still clearly on edge.
“There has been a terrorist attack on Gashmere City less than five minutes ago. Initial reports are a gas attack.” His operations officer said as Fletcher pulled up a deployment map. The underground cities of the Kodians would be a nightmare for that sort of attack.

“Set Condition 2-Charlie across the fleet. Get White Hammer moving to Gashmere to render immediate aid.” Fletcher said as Kijima Heiji, the commander of the 4th area army, appeared.

“This doesn’t sound good. My Shoshos are going to be busy coordinating the legions and their areas of responsibilities. Is there a Taisa you think we can put in charge? I’d suggest Lupuitia, but she’s going to have her own issues securing Fort Nozomi.” Heiji asked, making Fletcher aware of his volumetric presence.

“No kidding.” Fletcher’s eyes scanned the map for nearby assets. “I think we want someone who isn’t there permanently to lead the initial part of this. The YSS Resurgence is close, advise Taisa Aoba about the situation, he’s trusted by the Empress and his ship is very symbolic. A reminder that the Empire will be there for the Kodians. He’s got the authority to do what needs to be done. His ship was also with us during the Norian Arrival. More ships will be arriving after they do. Aoba has a good head on his shoulders, so I’m going to give the immediate response authority to him. So he doesn’t get superseded until I get there. It should be a relatively short commitment. Do you concur?”

“I’ve heard good things about him, so I do. He’ll have both of our authorities to do what needs to be done.”

“Cut Irim into the loop, we’re using first responder protocol, so we’re not taking her toys. But I don’t want a Full Metal Admiral any more angry at me than she usually is. Operations, get on it.”

“Messages sent Admiral.” The Operations officer said.

“Excellent, I want a full briefing in ten minutes. Fletcher out.” Fletcher said.

 

[Soban]

YSS Densetsu
War Room

"Fifteen minutes to arrival At Gashmere." The Navigation officer announced.
Fletcher watched the incoming feeds, surrounded by his staff and intelligence and operations officers. Somewhere there was a room full of analysts who were prioritizing the information and passing it up the chain. The Densetsu was a command ship and was built to handle the massive amounts of information a operation like this required. Around him a complex dance was playing out and he was the calm center of the storm. If there was one thing he knew, it was that he couldn't be everywhere at once. So he had endeavored to create officers that he trusted and could make decisions even if he wasn't available. That was hard, most of the military thought in one way, which wasn't bad. They were compliant and good soldiers. However, good soldiers didn't always make good officers. There were never enough good officers to go around.

The practical implications of this were twofold. First, it ensured that there was a continuity of command. If Fletcher was removed from the picture, any one of his Chujo or, if something really terrible happened, Shosho would be able to take his place. If he thought that you couldn't do what needed doing, you didn't make Shosho in his fleet. Second, it meant that he was able to step back and look at the larger picture while others were focused on the details. The downside of this second thing was that in times of crisis, you had to trust your officers to make the right decisions. To show that you trusted their ability to command and to lead and didn't need constant oversight. So he had little to do, but to mentally process the intelligence that they were gathering and wait for a decision that needed him to make.

From the patterns that were already emerging, he knew this wasn't going to be an easy fight. Sure he had not one but two Izanagi, but if his problems were only merely military ones, he was having a good day. The fact was that Gashmere was very close to Yamatai and the Ketsurui Nebula. Close enough that ships from here could slip into the Nebula and get too close to Yamatai for anyone's comfort. Any enemy fleet stationed at Gashmere could be on Yamatai's doorstep within thirty minutes. It was therefore vital it didn't fall into enemy hands.

The Empress had her reasons for pursuing a hands off policy towards Gashmere. While he might question the wisdom of that decision, it was the one he had to back until the direction changed. That meant letting the Kodians have their civil war with as little interference as allowed. Yamatai would provide options to the Kodians, ones that they could accept or reject.

Some Kodians accepted Yamatai, many of them joining the Army and proving to be good loyal soldiers of the Empire. He was proud of the Kodians he had served with. Others rejected Yamatai, and all it meant. Fletcher couldn't help but wonder who was pulling the strings and what their next blow would be. He felt more then saw the small shift in his command staff as the next several events played out. Enemies trying to take the ST center, an orbital strike to their vehicle, the mad dash to defend the ST center, then the entire ST center detonating.

Fletcher sat there for several moments in stunned silence. In one moment thousands of Kodians had not merely suffered death, but their backups had been turned to expanding vapor. He pursed his lips, composing himself from the fury he felt. "Advise that ST centers are targets of enemy action. It appears they are willing to attack suicidally to kill civilians." He said calmly.

His officers nodded and the buzz of work resumed.

It wasn't long before there was a second series of detonations that turned the front gate defense towers of Fort Nozomi into rubble. He watched Lupuitia's response, with Aoba in orbit handing the immediate response, she was able to focus directly on the attack on her own base. His ships arrived, the two Izanagi visible to anyone with eyes to see the massive ships. Numerous other smaller dots appeared in orbit around Gashmere, the capital ships and escorts of White Hammer.

"We are picking up a broadcast on the GSB." Issus Elapide, his communications officer announced.

"On screen." Fletcher said, watching the broadcast.
The camera Focused in on a late middle aged Kodian. He was heavily muscled, his black fur covered face and muzzle crisscrossed with scars. He wore a set of heavy Kodian Power armor with no helmet. "Last night, another tragedy befell Gashmere city. While heroic Kodian first responders attempted to save and preserve life, the unwelcome belligerence of the Yamatai Empire reared its tyrannical head by launching an attack on, and ultimately destroying, the Gashmere ST Center. A group of true Kodians rallied and rushed to the site in an attempt to repel the attackers. Colonel Bjorn Thundershield, a tried and true hero of Gashmere led them. En route to the site, treacherous attackers struck at these valiant rescuers from the sewers and set booby traps to delay them.” Footage of Kodians in power armor having limbs blown off from the opening to storm drains and sewers plays. A car explodes near another Kodian, his body vaporizes in an instant. “Here is footage we were able to recover from Colonel Thundershields armor, be warned however, it is graphic in nature."

The camera cuts to the video feed of a one armed Nanook seeking cover, Chiasa firing her weapon, in the direction of the camera. Sanda and Thad arrive, slaughtering more Kodians. The close-in battle with Sanda, the orbital strike hitting the armored car in the ST Center Wall. The explosions of Thads grenades strobed wildly. The camera pans to the ground as it looks at the closed heat port on an Ursus Assault Cannon. Sanda is standing in full view of the camera. Then a bright flash. The screen goes black. The original speaker appears back on screen.

"Colonel Thundershield and his men will forever be remembered as valiant defenders of Gashmere and its people. Despite being outnumbered and outgunned, they marched proudly to defend the already beaten men, women and cubs of Gashmere City. When it became apparent that it would be a losing battle, Colonel Thundershield ordered his remaining soldiers to retreat into the city's tunnels and bade them to Protect Our Cubs. There he stood, defiantly as he gave his very life in our defense against these alien enforcers. Despite being heavily outnumbered and wounded, it was not until naval fire from orbit struck him, that the enemy was able to extinguish his life.

The screen cuts to a hospital scene, a Kodian childrens hospital ward. Kodian cubs of all different sizes and colors are being treated. “These cubs, none of them will see their families again. They lost any chance of that when the Star Army destroyed the ST building. This is the insidious evil that is the Yamatai Empire. Raise up against the occupation. Open your eyes to the truth. Sharpen your claws and hone your teeth. Even now more ships are arriving in Orbit. The Yamatais 7th Fleet, Izanagi Dreadnaughts, battleships, cruisers, escorts. We know why they have come." Live images of White Hammer arriving in orbit played. "They mean to ground us into dust as they have so many others. We must throw these evil creatures from our planet. For our cubs, for our future. Gashmere forever." Tears rolled down the Kodians face as he intoned the last two sentences.

Fletcher's face was already stone, but if possible it became iron. Fletcher considered this, for all of his hatred at the lies, he could appreciate a good piece of propaganda. Yamatai was on the back foot responding rather than acting. There were some things that needed to be done to regain their balance. "Davis, Hatsue, get investigators on this. We need to know what we can about the attack. Find who did this. Hitomo, Kenzan, deploy troops. They are to assist in the recovery and stabilization. Don't fire unless fired upon. We've stepped into a mess, might as well make the most of it. Prioritize deploying Non-nekos to places where people will see them. Use Nekos for the ones eyes won't be on as much. We need the people can see that we're not just a monolithic Neko empire. Ersus, prepare some teams to hit them when we find them. We will want to ensure we take them alive. Issus, work with Ersus, make him the face of our response. They will call him a puppet, but I want to put a Kodian face on this. Make sure people see him making decisions that stick. Put me in touch with the government, let's see what they want. There are some things I can do with or without their approval, but we need to work with them. Also gather up our footage of the attack and prepare it for release. Lies might get halfway to the Galaxy's core while Truth is getting it's boots on, but those boots will stomp lies into the dirt."