RP The Opportunity (Pre-Final Battle)

[Soban]

Fletcher considered what was being said. While others talked, Fletcher planned. He thought back to the Nepleslia he had known as a much younger man. Before Yamatai had even been a glimmer in the eye of Ketsurui Saito. "'We don't wipe out millions to prove a point.' Yet that is exactly your plan. I have been fortunate to have a long life, one which has seen many changes many of them for the better. I certainly can't say that burning whole planets would be out of line with some of the things we have done before. We choose to 'be the good guys' not because it is easy, but because it is right. The mistakes of the past remind us why they were wrong in the first place. It is now that we do face a choice to repeat the mistakes of the past or to forge a new path."

Fletcher paused to let his words sink in. "Our strategic objective is to cripple the Economy of Kuvexia. While there is a certain ruthless simplicity to blowing away planets, it is also the most likely to harden resolve rather than soften it. We aren't destroying their ability to actually produce and fight. This is not primarily a military or population center. What we want is chaos, not clarity."

He projected the maps of the planets back into the center of the room and highlighted several points on each of them. "These are their planetary shield generators. They are irrelevant in the face of weapons of mass destruction but are critical in conventional warfare. After a brief review of the system's security, I believe we can sneak teams to the surface to deal with them and their backups."

"Once the teams are in place, our ships already behind the Kuvexian border perform faint in force with the goal of pulling off as many defenders as possible. The wormhole opening will be the signal for the shield generators to be destroyed. The first wave will deploy teleport equipped units to all planets. They will have a list of targets according to their strategic value. Surgical attacks on high-value targets and targets of opportunity. The fleet will attempt to give the ground forces as much time as possible to destroy targets of importance and siege the treasury it's self. We will attempt to retrieve as many as possible when the time runs out." Fletcher explained.

"This is a plan that I think will give us a much better chance of achieving our strategic goals." He concluded.

 

[raz]

"I am unsure if you have a firm grasp on the defensive situation in the Glimmergold system, Fletcher," the SAINT director said flatly. It was almost as if, Shida thought, the Seventh Fleet's commander hadn't listened to what Yui told them all minutes before. "If the matter were as simple as sending in a few elite teams then I doubt Star Army Command would consider the Essai's plan at all. I doubt the Essai would have even considered contacting us to protect their weapons."

Shida's tea had stopped steaming by now, having grown cold while the sector's military brain trust bickered about factors beyond any of their control. Still, the old operative took a sip their mug's chilly contents, feeling parched from all the talking — or at least remembering that they would have felt parched by now if not for the Nekovalkyrja body they wore.

"We have sent some of the Star Army's most elite gunships, flotillas, Rikugun legions, and special operations groups to the Kuvexian front," Shida continued, definitely more aware of Yamatai's strategic standing than most. "While our soldiers have performed admirably, the disruption they are able to provide has not ended this war. We have already been surgical and discreet in our fight, and wrought havoc upon the Kuvexian economy with the efforts undertaken by the First Fleet, Third Fleet, Ranger formations, and others. It is simply not enough to make King Kalapom call off his dogs from encroaching into the Kikyo Sector.

"The Essai presented us with an invaluable opportunity to traverse this galaxy in an instant," the spymaster reminded their assembled colleagues. "We could not make an impact in this otherwise untouchably defended Kuvexian star system without them. And based on what Yui-Taisho has told us, they will not dare proceed without us. The intelligence is clear on this matter."

 

[Soban]

Fletcher took a long moment to listen carefully to what the spymaster was saying. "Director Shida, if I were suggesting a mere commando raid, you would be correct. However, what I'm suggesting is the largest single landing of troops on hostile soil we have seen in a long time enabled by the special forces already operating in the area and Essai's ability to open a wormhole across the galaxy."

 

[demibear]

Benji shifted his thinking from the Rikugun and the concern over civilian collateral damage to the Essai. For such an enigmatic people to suddenly want to move against the Kuvexians. It didn't make any sense to him unless they had deeper desires other than "protection".

He mentally links to Pantheon and waits for SAINT to stonewall him for information regarding the Essai. If he was going to potentially challenge Yui to reassess as well as get the others to calm down, he was going to need a damn good reason to mitigate the backlash.

He directed his assistant to formulate a basic strategy for Fletcher's idea.

 

[raz]

Shida stared at Fletcher, locking eyes with the man for a few moments. The SAINT director's attempt to understand what their Seventh Fleet counterpart was thinking was quickly lost, though; Fletcher's suggestion was impossible on its face, regardless of its scope, and would mean Yamataian death on a massive scale. So the old operative just shook his head in negative affirmation, and left any further explanation of the Essai's involvement to Taisho Yui.

 

[Wes]

Yui responded to Violetta. "These are corporate-owned world sized computers. These are absoutely civilian planets. But I remind you that it was precisely these banks that funded the Kuvexian War, who pay out when our soldiers die, who pay mercenaries to attack us, and who bankroll the corrupt Kuvexian government. When the Kuvexians invaded last year, for every Kuvexian Navy ship they sent, three hostile civilian ships invaded too including mercenaries and pirates who store their riches in these banks. If we can collapse the Kuvexian economy this war is over. And if we have to kill a bunch of bank tellers that's the cost of war. If you want we can tell them to evacuate the planets when we get there, but it's either kill these banks and let things fall apart on their own, or spend the next who-knows-how-many-years trying to take their Kingdom apart one system at a time, at an unbearable cost to our people. We don't have time to take these planets over. There's 50,000 ships there that will start whittling us down as soon as we arrive, and if we stay there more reinforcements will come. If we go in big and fast the Kuvexians will not be ready. We don't know much about the Essai, but we know they hate Kuvexians and, for the first time ever, are giving us a chance. This is our moment."

 

[Wes]

"If I may," Taisho Kessaku Irim pointed out, "There's no magical number of ships or defenses that classifies a target as civilian or military. But bearing in mind this star system has 50,000 Navy ships in it it looks pretty militarized to me. Combined with its strategic importance to their war effort, we should all be satisfied that it is, in fact, not only a valid military target but the highest priority target in the war. These banks are more dangerous and important than their shipyards, more dangerous to us than their Navy's headquarters, and we can do more damage by hitting them than any other target. So we should not call it a civilian target. Especially in the media. Instead, focus on the lives ending the war will save. We're sworn to defend the people of our nations, not to protect Kuvexian bankers. If they live, more of us die. My fleet is ready for action and I await our orders. That's all I have to say."

 

[Whisper]

Alice Casdan, Admiral of the New Dusk Conclave's fleets, had been watching the exchange between the sector's superpowers with a calm expression. It was an interesting interplay of interests and emotions - Yamatai, self-sure and wanting to seize the chance that had been provided. Nepleslia, confident in their strength, but uncomfortable with the plan as presented. Even Elysia was willing to contribute, though they seemed less hesitant about the plan than the myriad voices that DIoN brought to the table.

She wondered where she - and the peoples she represented - sat on the spectrum. Could she commit the NDC to an act of destruction on such a wide scale? The Kuvexians had presented themselves as a threat to her people, albeit a minor one, but Yui's point was a salient one. If the Kuvexians were left undeterred, it wouldn't be long before they cast their greedy eyes towards Sanctum and the other systems she was sworn to defend.

Alice sighed inwardly. Mark, the formal head of the Navy, had told her to do what felt right. His noble position gave him the final say on such large-scale operations, but he'd simply left it in her hands. Which meant that, at the end of the day, whatever cost that the NDC paid would be on her - whether it was a cost in lives or in morality.

She took a step forward to signal her interest in speaking.

"Friends and allies of the Kikyo sector," she began, "the ongoing war with Kuvexia is a threat against all of us. Should we fail to take appropriate steps to curb this aggression, Yamatai's enemy will soon be at our own doorsteps. Even were this not the case, Yamatai is our ally and we cannot allow them to stand on their own."

She cast her eyes about, knowing that what she'd said so far was nothing new, but wanting to make sure that she established her reasoning.

"Accordingly, the New Dusk Conclave pledges to support Yamatai in the defense of Essai's worlds - We acknowledge the Star Army's stance that Kuvexia's banks are part of their war machine; that Kuvexia's economic might is their military might. We acknowledge that the bankers and bank staff on these worlds are complicit in the hostility that has been brought upon our friends, allies, and citizens. While it is regrettable, we consider the banking-related civilians to be as responsible for the threat upon us as anyone serving in their actual military.

We do, however, ask that all reasonable steps be taken to ensure that destruction is only brought to those locations that are directly involved in Kuvexia's economic efforts. It would be impossible to guarantee that no civilian lives would be lost in this offensive - we do not expect that. Merely that our targets are chosen wisely and that those who can be spared, are spared.

If any of these worlds are more than just computers and their staff, we ask that they not be destroyed. If it is possible, we would ask that targets on those worlds be chosen strategically. We possess the means for interplanetary bombardment; we could equip our ships for this purpose and use the chaos of the other worlds being attacked to destroy only those facilities that merit it. This should open us to no additional risk and satisfy our war goals.

We are all angry. We are all hurt, some of us more than others. We all wish to see this war brought to an end. Certainly, what the Kuvexians have done so far - and will do, left unrebuked - warrants a response such as this. But we cannot allow ourselves to sacrifice what we stand for when there are still options open to us. This is not about mercy, for surely the Kuvexian leadership deserves none; it is about who we are when this attack is complete.

Taisho Yui, could you share with us more of what the Star Army knows of these worlds? I feel that this would assuage the concerns of those present and allow us to begin planning for the assault."

Alice gave a respectful nod to the other leaders at the table and stepped back to clear the floor for Yui.

 

[SirSkully]

The small Daur had stood silently up until this point, diminutive compared to all others present though standing resolute in their crisp, red and black uniform. They were fairly androgynous for the most-part save for the two small mounds pressing ever slightly through the ageless creature's jacket, anyone in the know would be aware that this orange-brown haired young woman with her lightly freckled features was some relation to the commander in chief of the Kingdom's navy, with this protected representative even bearing the same surname of Cre'baya.

"...while we do not directly have any stakes involved in this conflict our people do see the benefits of standing resolute with allies both close and otherwise," the Daur spoke in near flawless Trade if you could excuse the Tinacen accent that clung to each syllable, her projected figure continuing to stand with both arms locked behind her back as the young woman took a thoughtful sigh before continuing.

"Our intention was to initially bolster the Democratic Imperium's own forces with some reconnaissance class vessels we could spare from our own fifth fleet though the sudden discontent in the room has given reason to potentially review our involvement in the matter," she swallowed thickly, gathering her thoughts before continuing.

"If I may be so bold... the Shukaren people have quite the history of dealing with insurgents and we, the collective of forces assembled within this room, would be wise to not create more from this situation if possible. This is all I have to add for the time being," the small woman spoke, briefly closing her eyes and offering the room a nod before taking a step back from her own projector, causing her image to become a little more transparent.

The Daur was proud of how well she'd spoken this foreign tongue though the way her tail's hairs stood on end spoke of how nervous she'd been to be the one thrust into this situation.

 

[Wes]

"We have proof that each of these banks hired mercenaries and pirates to raid the Kikyo Sector, and financed war manufacturing of ships and munitions used against us. Some even offered cash bounties on our soldiers. To them the Kikyo Sector only represents some investment to be exploited. I guarantee you they don't care about our lives any more than I care about theirs, unless you count them calculating our cash value as slaves." She arranged for selected archives of intelligence gathered by SAINT to be sent that verified her statements. "We can't land troops or do precision targets because the Essai are just going to blow these big world-computers up regardless. You could say we're just the support. But that would be wrong because wrecking 50,000 Kuvexian Navy ships is a wonderful and seperate mission of its own that none of us should take issue with."

"As far as I know, the Essai are unwilling to negotiate this rare offer," Yui added. "We can either accept and clear their path so they can attack these worlds, or they will leave us without this portal and we lose this opportunity. It takes over 3 months to cross the space to the Glimmergold system and they would know we're coming and we cannot leave our systems without most of our ships for six months straight. Furthermore the Kuvexians are preparing another invasion fleet that will mostly likely arrive within the next six months. We need this now and it has to be unexpected. If this seems like a shady deal with the Essai I'm sure it is but it's what we need. Obviously they have some angle, some thing they want out of this. But we should focus on survival and victory here. If you are concerned about killing civilians then simply limit your fire to Kuvexian Navy vessels. That is all we need to do anyway. Is that acceptable?" she asked Alice.

Yui felt like she'd finished, and there was nothing else to explain so she simply waited to see what the other nations would decide.

 

[Soban]

Fletcher felt disquieted about it, he wasn't as certain as Yui about the planets. However, he was a soldier and if there was no other way, then the Seventh fleet would be there and help destroy the planets. It wouldn't be the first time he had helped with something of that nature. It might not be his style or preference, but once a course of action had been decided he would execute to the best of his ability.

Ranga nodded, considering how she was going to sell this to the various unaligned factions. She felt it could be done, and it probably had a better chance of success than Fletcher's bolder plan.

 

[The KrimsonWulf]

GA Barná

As the officers and politicians continued to discuss the plans for Glimmergold, as well as the Essai intent. Irene Sighed quietly, attempting to cool her already flared temper, for the sake of diplomacy." Again I cannot speak for my entire people, though as a Grand Admiral, i cannot ignore the idea of ending this War. Giving meaning to the deaths of our lost kin. A large taskforce can be mustered from the rebuilt 3rd Assault fleet. A combined force of cruisers and stealth corvettes, as well as their fighter contingents. For now i will begrudgingly agree. We need to stop Kuvexian, despite our differences."

 

[Whisper]

It took Alice a few moments to respond as she scanned through the data that Yui had provided. Everything seemed to match what they had been told, though it would have been trivial to doctor it. Which meant that the real factor was how much she - and the NDC - could and should trust Yamatai in this matter. The Star Army certainly had more at stake than the rest of them at the moment. Then again, they would have little need to manipulate a force as small as the Conclave's to their side for the defense if they simply wanted more numbers.

She considered Yui. Alice's own experiences suggested that the other woman was trustworthy, although she might not always agree with her methods. Even here, Yui's suggestion that the NDC's forces simply avoid attacking civilian targets - as if simply being adjacent to the destruction of innocents wasn't enough to color their hands red - was very much a matter-of-fact way of getting to the desired end goal, regardless of the collateral.

So, then, what was the truth? Her forces would never be able to gather intel on the Glimmergold system in time to confirm what had been shared with her. It was likely that they'd never truly understand the cost in lives, even after the attack had concluded. The forces they could provide were hardly a match for even a fleet's strength in the Star Army, let alone their broader force.

And yet, Yamatai had asked everyone here. Alice cast her eyes around the table, seeing players large and small. Some thing clicked for her, some element of the broader game at play. It wasn't truth, exactly, but it was what she'd been seeking - even if she hadn't known it at the time.

With resolve, she nodded once. "Our pledge has already been given, but this information is enough to prove that the value of this attack far outweighs the cost. It will be useful when explaining our course to the Lords and their Council. Thank you."

 

[Nashoba]

Defender of the Clan Legos Miaurm, to the Yamatai Star Empire and other factions on this frequency.

The Hidden Sun Clan is preparing to stand with our allies. Earlier this year we stepped up our ship production, and pledged our support to the Empress, our Clan Leader has committed our resources to help our Allies.

At this moment I am overseeing the construction of our newest fighting vessels. Our forces will consist of our current fighting ships, and the new ones that are in trial.

Our ships are preparing to rendezvous with the Yamatai forces.

 

[Ametheliana]

Violetta had been addressed but had stayed her tongue. The concessions were not Yamatai's to give in this situation, they were the Essai's to give; a species as mysterious as they were powerful. Forcing the cat nation to work alone with a powerful ally now was a diplomatic blunder. Violetta had been raised to pursue good diplomacy but had rebelled to pursue thrashing an enemy within Nepleslian military. Backing out now would avoid both.

Raising a light blue gloved hand, she signaled her crewmen to silence her broadcast.

"Bring up Valke. He's on patrol on the NSS Undertaker," she said quietly, then spoke to the Grand Admiral himself.

When there was a quiet moment, she signaled her crewmen once more. As her broadcast came back online to those of many great nations, she swiveled to face them and set one gloved hand atop the other in her lap. After a brief greeting to the newly arrived, she spoke to the most opportunistic there.

"Taisho Ketsurui, you once spoke of your empire and our nation looking out for one another in this great universe. Forgetting the sibling pact you made with Sky Marshal Sanders is not something I will be doing on the eve of ending a war. I don't for a moment doubt the infallible memory of the Nekovalkyrja would allow you to to do anything but protect Nepleslians."

Violetta's purple eyes had pierced through her glasses and volumetrics alike to bore into the heart of the matter.

"We will have your back, as you put it, on the battlefield. The combined efforts of a task force from the first of Specter stealth carriers, my own recovering Second Fleet, and the other Grand Admiral's pledge of the third fleet will be assisting your efforts in the Kuvexian's banking system." Ending her words with a smile, she added, "Then perhaps in the next war we will have this partnership business streamlined a bit better and you won't even need to ask."

 

[Wes]

Yui nodded. "Thank you all. There are a couple of things I want to clarify as we embark on this bold plan to end the war. First, I am acting commander for the combined force. We will need to act as a unit and move in a highly coordinate manner as timing is essential to maintaining the initiative. Second, nothing in this meeting can leave this meeting. Let them believe something entirely different is happening...which is why I am giving you all two packets of orders. One is real and one is fake. Until the time of the operation is called, we will follow the fake one, which is a plan to re-take the Ketsurui Military Sector. The staging point for all our ships will be just outside the Scrapyard System. We want everyone to think we're about to invade the KMS, which will explain all the large movements of ships and personnel. I want the Kuvexians on captured Hanako's World and Himiko to shit their pants and panic when they see our combined fleet forming on their border. We may even attack Scrapyard to make it seem real. But then, we'll move to the Essai Portal and commence the real operation. Go ahead and start rallying your ships and get whatever resources you can spare. We will attack after the new year comes. In the meantime finish those last under-construction ships and throw your soldiers the biggest Year-End party you can."

OOC:

https://wiki.stararmy.com/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=audio:music:attack_on_glimmergold_intro_by_wes.mp3

 

[SirSkully]

The representative of the Neshaten Kingdom's Navy offered a small nod and a sigh before her head nodded, causing the large, proud ears atop the Daur's head to bob and bounce even so slightly.

"Well it seems like everyone has made their intentions clear except for us, well then," she spoke, the young Daur quickly gathering her thoughs by swallowing thickly and straightening her posture before continuing.

"As originally intended we will send some vessels from our fifth fleet to reinforce Nepleslia's own forces, they can keep you up to date on the specifics as they see fit... best of luck to you all," the short being finished before their projection faded to become mostly transparent, seen turning to cover their mouth and silently converse with someone just out of frame.