The War of the Veterans
(Tellusian Civil War 2929 - 2935)
(Tellusian Civil War 2929 - 2935)
BACKGROUNDTellus had been at peace for nearly a century, its conflicts of the early 2800s (both internal and external) a thing of the past. Their economy had boomed in the mid-century, bringing with it prosperity and opportunities for upward social movement. Tellusian culture thrived, and there was a general feeling of optimism all across the republic
But as the century waned and the 2900s dawned, the republic entered a period of economic and political stagnation and then decline. Costs continued to rise while wages remained flat, which greatly affected the less populated, more agrarian, outer worlds. The Core, which was also feeling the effects of economic decline, were wealthier and more developed, better able to handle the looming threat of a recession. But to the peoples of the outer worlds it looked more like the core was maintaining their economic might at the expense of everyone else.
The outer worlds had always been a hotbed for radical secessionist movements, which had never amounted to anything but murmurings and impotent threats. The Tellusian Navy, a formidable force, kept any real serious threat of rebellion very low. Military service was rewarded by the government through land grants on the less populated outer worlds, a practice that had been going on since time immemorial. Not only was military service a path to acquiring land, but the military also rewarded meritocracy over social or species status. This kept the numbers of military recruits high and the outer planets populated with loyal citizens.
Yet despite this there seemed to be an ever growing political and cultural divide. The central government in the core worlds believed they had brought stability to the republic, and that despite the economic downturn, their vast social policies would make any grumblings or dissent go away. But the outer worlds saw things differently believing that wealth was not being equally shared, with the core growing wealthier off of exploitation of the resources along the outer planets, which suffered under an ever growing tax burden.
The government, looking to decrease government spending in areas they thought were being over funded, decided that too much of the budget was going towards military expenditure. The military was extremely bloated, especially with the last real war fought being over half a century before. Not only this, but the military they feared was becoming a hotspot of radicalism, which clashed with the politics of the civilian government. Humans and aliens of any social class could achieve high rank and prestige within the military, and the military was often less prejudiced than the rest of Tellusian society. The highest echelons of the military saw themselves as the keepers of the Republic's true values, and they often acted like they were above the rules and laws put down by the senate.
The senate saw all these issues as a potential threat to stability. Hundreds of trained officers on the payroll with no enemy to fight, thousands of servicemen and not enough military deployments to go around. And in such a climate of peace, they decided the need for such a strong military was no longer necessary, and massive downsizing was long overdue. Not only would they trim the budgets fat, but they could also remove the more radical elements and keep those officers and personnel who were the most loyal to the Republic Senate.
So passing a massive spending reduction act in 2919, the congress gutted the military's budget, putting hundreds of thousands of servicemen out of work. They made sure to specifically remove officers they deemed too subversive, especially those in the highest positions in the military, but no level was spared from downsizing. Hundreds of experienced officers were forced into retirement or were outright discharged. Men and women who had served honorably and with distinction, now found themselves cast out of the military they’d dedicated their lives to. But many of them were still owed their land grants for service and as long as the government provided them land they would remain loyal.
In 2922 the republic government ended the land grant policy, deciding instead to sell off the land they’d set aside for military servicemen to be developed by private corporations. The lands, used mainly for homesteading and subsistence farming, were going under utilized. The senate saw another area where they could trim spending and at the same time bring in a new tax revenue. Corporations could better utilize the lands, through mining and resource extraction, and even large scale industrial farming.
There were massive protests across the Republic. Thousands of former servicemen, now out of work with no security for the future, flooded into cities and threatened to overwhelm police forces. Eventually the government was forced to make compromises, the possibility of still granting land, if reduced requirements had been met. As officials began reviewing the records of the discharged, to find those who qualified under the new rules, the riots and protests fizzled out.
But this wasn’t the end of the crisis. Those who had been discharged but still didn’t meet the new requirements, were still very unhappy. Many of them had been discharged on outer planets and instead of finding passage home, they decided to try and find work on the worlds they found themselves on. Vast numbers of people flooded the local job markets, more than could be reasonably employed, and those who couldn’t find a means to support themselves soon turned to theft and crime.
Into this powder keg came the promises of dissident movements. Secessionist and terrorist movements started recruiting from these new disaffected young men, women, and others. A surge in their numbers brought a surge in violence. Anti-government protests would often turn into full blown riots, and the entire republic saw an upsurge in terrorist violence. The last straw for the Tellusian government was a terrorist attack on a hospital on Tellus. When it was discovered that the perpetrators behind the attack were a number of former servicemen they reneged on their land grant promises.
In an instant the republic’s government had created a crisis. What had once been a number of disparate secessionist groups grew into full-on independence movements. Former discharged officers and servicemen flocked to these movements. The largest of these movements on Hannibus, Tegralis, Alepolis, and Regius even won popular support, with pro-secession candidates winning elections as governors and soon many outer worlds had ousted most of the pro-Tellus people from their local governments. Secessionist candidates even won positions as representatives to the Tellusian congress.
The republic’s government tried to combat this growing threat, banning pro-secession representatives from holding office. But all this did was further push the outer worlds away. The four major independence factions, worried that the government would put them down one at a time, met on Hannibus in 2927 in a great conclave, laying out their goals for their own states, independent of Tellus.
The Tellusian government condemned this meeting, but with their reduced military there was little they could do. There was no doubt in anyone's mind now that there would be war. The Tellusian government reversed their reduction in spending on the military and started recruiting to rebuild their numbers. But this would take time. Meanwhile the secessionists banded together into an Independence League, and with their pooled resources began purchasing ships and equipment from outside the Republic. Both sides rushed to militarize, but the League had an edge with many Tellusian ships having been mothballed in shipyards in systems located in the outer worlds. The core worlds had the edge in manufacturing capability, but they would be hard-pressed to catch up.
In 2929, the newly formed Independence League voted Danel Arvad as League Executor and sent an ultimatum to Tellus, demanding recognition of their independence. Tellus refused and sent a fleet against one of the rebel’s strongholds at Regius. The Tellusian Civil War had begun.
| Republic Leaders | League Leaders |
| Sophet Dictator Adoniah Vulso Sophet Hamilcar Soranus | Executor Danel Arvad (until 2933) Executor Yakim Ivanovich (2933 to 2935) |
| Harmony Zhao Grald Kyllan Gambino Brymansk Lisia Yementka Yeelitha Brisiat Tycho Dumaul | Gwynn Seregosio Davix Camran Silvus Takkei Tonika Gussman Alexander Geller William Kampfer Saul Dumaul |
| Division of Territories at the Outset of War The Independence League (left) and the Tellus Republic (right) 
|
1st YEARThe early months of the war were characterized by minor skirmishes as both sides weren’t yet ready to commit full forces. The Republic was playing catch-up to the League in mobilizing their forces. They knew at any time the League could launch an assault which would prove devastating. The Republic’s Sophets met at Tellus and Adoniah Vulso was named Dictator for the duration of the war. She would oversee the military operations until the League was crushed, while Hamilcar Soranus would continue to lead the Republic’s government
But despite the League’s superior position their leadership couldn’t decide what the immediate course was. While they debated and argued their naval forces struck at Republic star bases in the outer worlds, taking important fortifications and securing their position. The Tellusian’s were forced to abandon many of their outer positions.
Yet the League leadership still hadn’t decided their course. But they were finally forced to act when the Tellusians struck first. Using what fleet they could muster the republic attempted to strike first while the League was bogged down in political squabbles. In early October the Republic fleet struck at Regius, a stronghold of secessionists. The initial assault overwhelmed the orbital fleets and after a short ship-to-ship fight the Republic began prepping for a ground assault.
Many League officers gathered their forces, not even waiting for orders, and jumped to Regius to join the battle. At first the Republic held their own, but as more and more ships arrived, the battle began to swing wildly into the League’s favor. The battle raged for two days until the Republic forces retreated following heavy losses.
It was quite clear the battle had only been one by the quick actions of the League’s officers. If the League couldn’t get their leadership to work together they’d be finished once the Tellusians had built up their forces. Danel Arvad ingratiated himself among many of the high ranking naval officers, gaining their support. With them backing him he was finally able to make decisions and get the rest of the League to follow his lead.
His first order of business was to go on the offensive. The Republic was still recouping from their battle over Regius, so now was the best time to strike. League forces under the command of Admiral Davix Camran attacked the planet of Cirto on the 30th of November. The Republic’s defense forces were driven off and forces were landed on the planet. Supported by heavy planetary bombardment the defenders of Cirto surrendered after two days.
Meanwhile, another fleet under the command of Admiral Gwynn Seregosio departed Alepolis on the 17th of December and struck at Sardusa. The fighting was intense. The fleet met heavy resistance from the defenders but the league forces had momentum and slowly pushed back the Republic forces. However reinforcements arrived from Nova Rem and the League found themselves on the back foot, fighting to keep from being encircled.
But this was just a diversionary attack. The real prize was Nova Rem, a wealthy heavily industrialized Tellusian world. Over the planet was the Republic’s second largest shipyard, a prime target. As Nova Rem’s defenders left to join the battle over Sardusa, another League fleet under Admiral Silvus Takkei jumped into orbit over the planet and attacked the remaining defenders.
The League’s plan was to break the Republic’s defenses over Nova Rem and lay siege to the planet. If they could gain control of the system the Republic would be unable to reinforce the planet quickly enough. Nova Rem’s industrial capacity, as well as the major shipyards throughout, could then be used by the League to reinforce their own losses, while crippling the Republic's own industrial capacity. The planet could also be a staging point for a direct strike against Tellus itself.
The officer in charge of the defense of Nova Rem was Admiral Harmony Zhao. When she realized what was happening she moved her forces quickly into what defenses she could. She recalled the fleet from Sardusa, leaving the planet to a League siege. She also called for reinforcements from Tellus, knowing it would take a while for them to arrive.
Fighting was fierce, ranging all across the system as the League and Republic fought to break each other's fleets. The League maintained the upper hand for the first few days of the battle, pushing the Republic from the outer planets, squeezing their forces into a perimeter around Nova Rem.
Ships returning from Sardusa hit the League attackers, trying to break through towards the planet, but the League maintained their lines. Finally, seven days into the battle, reinforcements from Tellus began arriving. Only a handful at first but soon the Republic’s reserve fleets poured into the system. As they moved to surround the League ships trying to break through to the planet, Admiral Takkei realized that their position was untenable and ordered a full retreat from the system. The Republic had won their first major victory since the war began.
Over Sardusa, Admiral Seregosio, was beginning initial landings for ground assaults. When she heard that the battle over Nova Rem had been lost, she realized her own position was a dangerous one. She was unlikely to get reinforcements, and the Republic would send forces to relieve the planet. She’d won the battle, but would be unable to hold her position. She recalled her troops and left the system just a few hours before Republic relief forces arrived.
The two sides would spend the last few weeks of the year reinforcing their positions and preparing for their next moves.
2nd YEAR
Adoniah Vulso was under pressure to bring a swift end to the war. The losses that had been suffered were inexcusable to the Republic’s electorate. Though she publicly blamed them for the conflict due to their poor handling of the military reduction act they’d passed. They’d won a major victory at Nova Rem and they were looking to capitalize on that as the new year rolled in.
It was decided to launch a two-pronged attack. One against the planet of Alepolis, the League’s front near Nova Rem, and a second attack would be launched at Cirto, which the League had taken the previous year. But the League had been reinforcing their position at Cirto, so when Republic intel reported how strong their defensive forces were, a new target would need to be picked.
There were three options along the front: Regius, Atlusia, and Isol. Isol was the least defended of the three targets, but was also the least strategically important. Taking it would just spread their own lines out, with only Atlusia in range and a long empty void called the Tunarras Gap between the planet and the outer worlds. Travel time across the gap would be too long to mount any effective attacks, as League sensors would certainly pick up their approach in time to prepare a defense. Isol was quickly discarded as a potential target.
Atlusia was a tempting target. From there the Republic could attack Carvenna, a stepping stone to attack Hannibus, the League’s de facto capital. While it had heavier defenses it would still be an easier target than Regius. But Sophet Vulso knew that the true target should be Regius, a strategically important planet to both sides, rich in natural resources and decent industrialization. She decided to try and take Regius again.
By February, with their plans in place, the order was given and both prongs of the attack were launched. Admiral Zhao was given the task of taking Alepolis following her brilliant defense of Nova Rema. Her fleet jumped into the system and immediately came under fire from League defense.
Admirals Takkei and Seregosia had both suspected a Republic retaliation and had prepared their defense. Spies within the Republic had reported the buildup of ships at Nova Rema. When the Republic finally launched their attack the defenders were ready with mines and heavy battery cannon platforms.
The initial barrage of fire tore through the ill prepared fleet with dozens of ships going up in flames before their shields could even go up. Admiral Harmony Zhao’s ship was hit, weapons fire tearing through the hull, ripping it in half before the forward sections collided with their lead carrier. Both ships were lost with all hands, including the Admiral.
Rear-Admiral Grald Kyllan took command of the fleet, trying to keep it together under such heavy fire. He arranged his ships into a defensive formation, his heavy cruisers and gunboats making a perimeter around the lighter cruisers and carriers. He gathered his surviving ships and was able to extract two thirds of his fleet from the fighting and made a hasty retreat back to Nova Rem. The battle lasted less than thirty minutes.
The second prong of the attack left Gaetullus, feinting towards Atlusia before changing course and striking at Regius. A small part of their fleet continued on to Atlusia, to keep the planet’s defenders there. A strike force was also sent to Cirto to keep the built up forces busy there as well.
The League had expected this attack to come, but they’d guessed that the Republic would strike at Atlusia or Cirto, and not at the formidable defenses at Regius. Once they were aware that the Republic fleet had set out and that they were heading towards Atlusia, they sent the bulk of their forces to meet the enemy there. The Republic’s feint had worked.
Alarms sounded over Regius as the enemy fleets began arriving. The outer defenses were quickly overcome and the republic fleet moved deeper into the system. Admiral Gambino Brymansk, the Republic’s admiral, ordered his attackers to disable but not destroy the inner defenses. He knew that if they were to secure Regius for the Republic, they would need those defenses to fight the inevitable League counter attack.
As such their attack slowed down as they sought non-lethal means of taking out perimeter cannons, and had to launch boarding actions against stations. As their attack slowed to a crawl, the League forces left to defend the planet saw an opportunity and launched a counter offensive.
The Regius defense had been left under the command of Rear-Admiral William Kampfer. He brought his defense forces right along the planet's defenses, using his ships as a defensive barrier to protect the heavy cannons from Republic attack. This worked in slowing the Republic’s attacks even further, so that when the League realized they were fighting a much smaller force at Atlusia, they were able to break away and reinforce Regius’ defenses with the bulk of their fleet.
The Republic was forced to break away and make a retreat or risk losing their forces. They retreated back to safety, both of their offensives beaten. The League however, was not going to let this chance pass. With the Republic still reeling from both of their defeats, the League launched their own counter offensive less than a week after their second victory at Regius.
Their forces left Regius and hit the forces over the planet of Gaetellus. Many of the ships in orbit were undergoing massive repairs after the recent battle, so were slow to be launched. The League forces swept through the system's outer defenses, hitting the larger inner defense ring with a swift and deadly strike before the Republic could even launch the bulk of its fleet.
To avoid complete disaster, the Republic fleet was forced to withdraw with little to no fight, jumping to Captus Saldae. The League also hit other planets along the front. Strike fleets and privateers hit Siccappo, Carthes, and Captus Saldae, confusing the Republic as to where the actual attack was happening. The Republic was afraid that the League was making a play for Carthes, from which they could threaten Tellus so they mistakenly concentrated their forces there. By the time they learned of the true target, the League had already landed ground forces on Gaetellus.
As Gaetellus came under siege, the League prepared themselves for a republic counter offensive. But one never came. Adoniah Vulso decided that throwing their forces against the League was only achieving greater losses than they could replenish. She decided that the Republic would focus on shoring up its defensive frontline and rebuilding its naval power. Meanwhile Sophet Hamilcar Soranus was making his own diplomatic moves. The League was desperately reliant on purchase of ships and equipment from outside the Republic, so Soranus knew if he could slow the sale of war materials to the League, then the Republic could out-manufacture the League.
The League was planning a new strike at the Republic, hoping to break through to Tellus. If the Republic’s capital fell they knew the war would be over. The Republic also knew this so they geared up their fleet production and initiated conscription to fill their manpower shortage. The League recruited and supplied privateers to strike deep behind enemy lines at their supply chains and the Republic was forced to reallocate some of their resources in defending their supply chain and shipping lines, but the League still managed to slow the inflow of materials into Republic space.
The next few months of the conflict following the occupation of Gaetellus were characterized only by small skirmishes between patrols and strike groups testing defenses. One of these small scale battles, fought between only two ships, was famous for both vessels being commanded by brothers. The older brother, Saul Dumaul, had joined the League at the outbreak of war, while the younger brother, Tycho Dumaul, had signed up to join the Republic. Both had become commanders of their own vessel and found themselves patrolling a stretch of nebula's dust when they came across each other. Both ships opened fire, trading heavy blows for over three hours of intense fighting. Eventually the younger brother was forced to withdraw, his ship heavily damaged and under imminent threat of decompression. Upon returning to their respective sides, curious to find out who had commanded the other ship, they both learned that they’d been fighting their brother. This small skirmish has come to be known as the first battle of the Brothers. There would be a second.
As the year grew to close the period of relative peace came to a close. The League launched a new offensive. They knew if they delayed any longer the Republic would have rebuilt their forces to full strength. So after months of meticulous planning and careful maneuvering of forces, a massive League fleet left Cirto and made the short jump to Carthes.
If the League took the Carthes system, they could strike at Tellus, the heart of the Republic. The loss of this battle would be a disaster. Adoniah Vulso’s position as Sophet had become tenuous over the last year of defeats, and Carthes could very well be her last chance as Dictator. If the League took the system and threatened Tellus she would certainly be removed as commander of the Republic’s military, and maybe even as Sophet. She took direct command of the fleet, but gave orders through the official commander, Admiral Lisia Yementka.
The League had learned over the last year that the loss of momentum of their attack was the most likely thing to cost them the battle. Systematically working their way deeper into the system, taking out the outer rings of defenses, was often the surest way to get bogged down fighting, allowing for reinforcements to arrive and swing the battle. So their strategy was to hit hard and break through to the inner system as quickly as they could and break the planet's defense fleet as soon as possible.
Admiral Davix Camran had been given the task of breaking the defense. He hit the planet in three prongs, the first striking through the outer defenses, blitzing towards the planet, the second following up right behind and engaging any defenses that had survived the initial assault and might try to reorganize and strike from behind. The third would work on clearing out the outer defenses and serve as a rearguard for any reinforcements.
The first prong of the attack broke through the lines of defenses and engaged the Republic’s fleet. Intense close combat between warships ensued. The Republic was not willing to let Carthes fall and they would make the League pay dearly for trying.
The second prong followed closely behind but were soon being slowed down by the Republic’s center defenses, as fighter craft ,small corvettes, and cruisers which had escaped the initial blitz, began forming up into makeshift fleets. They struck at the second prong in fierce rapid attacks, and then withdrew, forcing the League to chase them down, their own cohesive breaking down as the fleet split into ever smaller and smaller fractions.
The third prong of the attack had initial success clearing the out defenses, but they were also soon bogged down as small groups of reinforcements started arriving. At first they were able to drive these reinforcements back, but more and more ships were arriving every minute. Soon they found their fleet lines stretched out.
Large and small battles were being fought all across the system. The League threw everything they had at the Republic, trying to break the defenders. But the Republic held firm. Finally it was the League’s first prong that broke. Their command carrier was struck by a lucky shot and disintegrated in a blast of explosive fire., taking all hands with her, including Davrix Camran. The attack began falling apart soon after.
Extracting themselves from the battle was costly for the League. A third of their fleet was destroyed or left behind in the Carthes system. The losses for the Republic had also been high, but the victory was just what they needed to keep most Tellusians in support of the war. For now.
The defeat was a heavy blow for the League, but not yet a crushing one. They still had the forces to keep fighting the Republic. But the cohesion between the different factions of the League would start beginning to crumble. There hadn’t been a lot of popular support behind the aggressive campaigns into the Tellusian core, with many preferring a defensive approach, and this loss would embolden those who preferred this less aggressive approach. While Danal Arvad was still firmly in control as Executor of the League, he could no longer wield absolute authority over the ongoing war strategy.
3rd YEAR
Following their defeat at Carthes, the division among the League leadership grew. Danel Arvad wasn’t yet ready to give up on his plans for striking at Tellus. To him, the capital was the key to victory. He believed that if they could break through the defenses along the front lines, that they could strike at Tellus and force a surrender.
Of course others believed the aggressive strategy was doomed to fail and wanted to pull their forces back into a defensive position and let the Republic exhaust themselves in attacks. Already the League had lost many lives and ships on attacks that had gained them very little. And this faction was growing, calling for a change in strategy from the Executor.
He, of course, ignored the descentors. A new offensive was ordered to strike at the Republic while they were still disorganized from the defense of Carthes. A two pronged attack was launched, with one fleet striking at Siccappo, and another at Captus Saldae.
The Republic rushed to defend both planets. At Siccappo they were able to hold the line, keeping the League on the edge of the system until they retreated. But at Captus Saldae their forces buckled and the League swept away the planet’s defenses, landed an army, and occupied the planet. The way to Tellus was now open.
Meanwhile the Republic had been preparing their own offensives. They’d been able to maintain their defenses at Nova Rema and Sardusa, and were confident in repelling any League attack there. Republic spies had reported that the Aleopolis garrison had sent ships to join in on the attacks along the Tellusian front and likely didn’t have the strength to launch a major offensive from there, but they still had enough forces to hold off a League attack.
So the Republic launched an attack through the empty space of the Terracca Expanse. The long travel time would give plenty of warning to the League of the fleet’s approach, but it was hoped that the losses suffered in the recent battles would mean the League couldn’t mount an adequate response. But just in case the League could, they also launched a second fleet towards Cirto in hopes of retaking it. This fleet would leave Sardusa and cross the narrow gap between the Nova Rem sector and the Tellus sector along a well traveled area called the Beltway.
Once the League’s deep space sensors picked up the approaching fleets they scrambled to launch a defense. They’d stretched out their forces too much, with the bulk of their fleet at Captus Saldae.
Admiral Seregosio led a fleet from Alepolis into the Terracca Expanse. Rear-Admiral Alexander Geller, without orders, led his own forces from Balaerma into the Expanse to meet the coming attack. Geller’s forces met the Republic’s forces first, both fleets dropping back to sublight to engage. The battle turned into a chaotic slugfest. Neither side were able to organize into line as all across the battlefield it was ship against ship. Once Admiral Seregosio’s fleet arrived the battle started to turn in favor of the League as she was able to arrive in a more organized fashion. Her lines broke through the chaos and inflicted heavy losses on the Republic’s fleet.
Meanwhile the forces at Cirto prepared for the incoming attack there, but the Republic fleet had learned about the defeat in the expanse and had dropped to sublight speeds in the void between systems awaiting confirmation to continue or fallback. Eventually they received new orders to divert towards Carthes where the Republic was preparing forces for a renewed assault against the League lines. But as they were reorganizing for a new jump the League fleet under Admiral Seregosio arrived, striking them from behind.
With the enemy to their rear the Republic ships attempted to come about, but many ships were lost in the opening moments of the battle. By time they started coming about to face the enemy the bulk of their forces were already scattered or destroyed. The battle turned into a rout, and ships were fleeing without orders to withdraw.
Admiral Seregosio chased after the fleeing fleet as it fled towards Saldusa, following them so far as the outer edge of Sardusa where she hit the outer defenses. With a quick strike she did as much damage as she could, then retreated from the system before the planet’s defending fleet could reach her. Finally she returned to Alepolis with her fleet.
The anti-war protests started to grow on the Tellusian core worlds as they faced more and more defeats. There were calls for Adoniah Vulso to step down and for Hamilcar Soranus, but the senate was still in support of Vulso’s leadership as she’d managed to rebuild the navy while keeping the League from striking at the heart of the Republic. Despite the recent losses, the successful defense of Carthes had shown her leadership skills to the senate and her position was secure for the time being.
Despite an overextended line the League still proved to be quick and aggressive in their strikes, but the Republic knew their alliance was weak and their leadership deeply divided. So they began proffering overtures of peace, but separately to each of the different factions, hoping to sew further division in their ranks.
Danel Arvad’s leadership was still being questioned, his decisions being second guessed, and many were talking about replacing him with someone else. If he was to win the war for the League he had to end the conflict soon. Tellus was still his target. He began gathering the fleet for his final push. He recalled Admiral Seregosio from Alepolis, putting her in command of the attack due to her successes in the war, and bringing over a third of the Alepolis fleet to Captus Saldae for the assault. Her command at Alepolis was given to Rear-Admiral William Kampfer.
But the Republic soon learned of the reduction in the fleet size and as the League prepared for the assault on Tellus, they launched their own attack on Alepolis. This time the defenders were heavily outnumbered and when they called for help they were informed no help was coming and to defend the planet alone.
The Republic fleet, under command of Admiral Yeelitha Brisiat, overran the outer defenses, drove deep into the system, and broke the defending fleet. What was left of the defense over Alepolis broke and fled, retreating to Olbea. The Republic captured the planet soon after as the garrison had no heart to fight.
4th YEAR
The news of the fall of Alepolis reached League leadership a day after, but there was nothing to be done. The planned attack on Tellus was well into the staging phase and they couldn’t back down now. They were gathering as many ships as they could and there were few to spare. Danel Arvad did dispatch one dreadnought and a half dozen corvettes to help in the defense of Olbea under the command of Rear-Admiral Tonika Gussman who would take charge of the planet’s defenses. Knowing she didn’t have enough forces to hold the planet she sent word to many of the privateers hired to raid Republic shipping to hurry to help defend the planet.
The new year came and went and the Republic launched its assault on Olbea at the end of January. The League forces put up a heroic defense, forcing the Republic to pay for every megameter they pushed the defenders back. At one point a privateer commander stood alone defending a heavy gun platform against the onslaught of six heavy cruisers and their fighter escorts. Skillfully keeping his ship out of range of their heavy cannons he used his faster ship’s speed to hit the cruisers from the sides and rear, destroying one, and damaging two others so they had to withdraw. When the heavy gun platform was destroyed by the remaining cruisers, he made one last strike, disabling the engines of one cruiser and knocking out the heavy guns of a second, before racing away to join the fight elsewhere.
Bit by bit the Republic advanced, and despite their heroic defense, the league was forced back. They held back the attackers as long as they could, allowing as many civilians to flee the system as possible.But at last, the League fleet withdrew from the system, retreating to Balaerma.
But the fight wasn’t over yet. Olbea’s planetary defense cannons continued to fire at the Republic’s ships from underneath the protection of city shields. The Republic was forced to begin troop landings and to take the planet in an assault. The siege for Olbea had begun.
It was now or never for the League. They rushed their remaining ships into position at Captus Saldae. Admiral Seregosio took command of the fleet and ordered them to set course. One by one the ships jumped out of the system. The assault on Tellus had begun.
The Republic had done what they could to prepare. They had hoped the assault on Olbea would draw away more forces than it did. Despite the Republic’s rapid rearmament and buildup of forces, they still hadn’t reached numerical superiority to the League. So as the battle began the two sides were evenly matched in fleet numbers and ship sizes. The planetary defenses, the networks of gun platforms and fighter hangar stations, would have to be the deciding factor.
The League’s first wave arrived on the edge of the system, led by six heavy dreadnaughts, supported by numerous cruisers and corvettes, and one Heavy Carrier. They smashed through the first line of defense, destroying weapons platforms and pushing the defender’s fleet back further into the system. They pushed ahead, creating a large open area for the second wave to arrive, which moved to support the first wave as its line grew longer as it pushed forward.
The Republic had chosen to hold the bulk of its fleet closer to Tellus and the system core. The League commanders were mostly veterans with years of experience, and much of the Republic’s fleet was untested. In a close fight they knew that the League’s experience would carry the day. Better to hold the line and let the attacking force make all the moves.
The League fleet made short work of the outer defenses and started moving further in-system. They engaged the mid-system defense line which wreaked havoc on their vanguard. Cloaked missiles tore through ships while heavy turrets drained power from their shields. Still they had the momentum and were soon past those defenses, heading straight towards Tellus.
Here they hit the most formidable part of the system’s defenses. Nine massive battle stations in a semicircle between the planet and the outer system. The League engaged the stations , their dreadnaughts in the lead to absorb the brunt of the weapons fire. The cruisers stayed close behind them until the distance was closed, and then moved out from their protection to attack the stations with their heavy plasma turrets.
As the League assaulted the stations the order finally came to the Republic ships: Advance! Battleships, cruisers, carriers, corvettes, and fighters raced from Tellus, closing the distance to the enemy fleet. The League couldn’t bring their force about to meet the incoming ships without exposing their flank to the stations. As the Republic entered firing range they hit the League with everything they had. Ships exploded in a cloud of fire before the vacuum snuffed out the flames.
The League’s reserves were brought forward in an attempt to protect their lines. The two sides closed ranks and ships were firing point blank at each other as fighters swirled around them in chaotic dogfights. The battle stretched over 1000 megameters.
The League destroyed one of the battle stations and pushed through the enemy forces, breaching their lines. Two Dreadnaughts, nine cruisers, and the command carrier carrying Admiral Seregsio broke through and headed towards a now nearly undefended Tellus.
Republic ships broke away from the fighting, rushing after them in an attempt to stop them from reaching the planet. As they did more and more League ships punched through the line. Another battle station was destroyed and a second thrust broke the Republic’s line. As the dreadnaughts reached Tellus they met a wave of fighters and corvettes, the last bit of defense the planet had left. They had been quickly dispatched from the surface to meet the incoming enemy. It was enough to slow the League’s advance as the pursuing Republic ships caught up. People on the surface of Tellus could see the bright flashes as ships burst apart under heavy fire.
The Republic fleet was able to regroup and push back against the League. As the fighting wore on more and more the battle started to turn in favor of the defenders. Admiral Seregosio watched as her fleet was driven apart, surrounded and destroyed bit by bit. She knew their gamble had failed. The battle was lost. Finally she ordered a retreat and what was left of her forces pulled back to the edge of the system and jumped away, back to Captus Saldae.
The Republic had won another major victory, and dealt a crushing blow to the League. The league had lost so many ships that for the first time since the war started the republic forces outnumbered the league. It was time to go on the offensive. Following a few weeks to repair ships and reorganize their fleets, the republic launched two simultaneous attacks against Captus Saldae and Cirto, and after heavy fighting both planets were at last liberated from the League.
League leaders started calling for Danel Arvad to resign, but he refused to listen. He ordered their forces to fall back and create a defensive perimeter around Regius. The Republic would need to take that planet before they could push towards Hannibar and the rest of the League worlds. But already the league was starting to fracture, with factions recalling ships to defend their individual worlds. While Arvad tried to hold them together and explain that they needed to keep together, he had lost much of his credibility after the Tellus assault.
The League pulled their forces from Gaetellus to reinforce Isol and Atlusia. A day later the Republic arrived and retook control of the world. All the League's gains they’d fought for over the last three years had been washed away in just over a month.
5th YEARDespite their recent defeats, Danel Arvad still believed they had a chance to win the war. His aggressive war policy hadn’t won, so now he chose to embrace a policy of attrition like many of the League leaders had wanted him to. But for these leaders they saw it now as too little too late. So in late January of 2933 the League conclave demanded Danel Arvad step down as Executor so a new leader could be chosen. He refused and a number of the League’s leaders threatened to break away and seek terms with Tellus on their own. Knowing that if they fractured now, Arvad agreed to step down pending the choosing of a new Executor.
As the League discussed potential replacements the Republic launched a renewed assault. They struck Regius with their fleet. Commanded by Admiral Grald Kyllan they hit the outer defenses in force, drawing the League fleet out. The two fleets clashed for a few hours and until the Republic withdrew. It was obvious that the Republic was only testing their defenses, not yet ready to assault the planet yet.
A few weeks later the siege of Olbea came to an end as Republic forces finally broke through the planet’s defenders and forced a surrender. With the planet finally secured, the Republic launched an attack on Balaerma under command of Admiral Yementka.
Balaerma was a strategically important planet. If the League lost it the Republic would be in a position to strike at the least defended planets of the outer worlds. Despite this the League hadn’t sent reinforcements to bolster the planet's defenses. Their bickering and infighting over their next leader had distracted them from what needed to be done. So the Republic’s forces washed through the system, driving out or destroying what remained of the defenders. Balaerma fell to the Republic on March 23rd.
The fighting over League Leadership came to an end when they decided on Yakim Ivanovich, one of the most powerful men in the Hannibus faction. Danel Arvad kept his word and stepped down, passing leadership to Ivanovich.
Ivanovich though was a politician and had no substantial previous military service. He’d served as a line officer in the navy for two years, never seeing action. Yet he was now responsible for turning the war around. His first order of business was in halting the Republic’s advance along the Therron border. To this task he appointed Admiral William Kampfer and Rear Admiral Saul Dumaul to the defense of Sagnatum.
Kampfer had already proven himself to be an effective leader when it came to defense. He’d lead the defense at the Second Battle of Regius. And despite the loss of the planet, he had also handled himself well by making the Republic’s capture of the planet costly.
Saul Dumaul had recently been promoted to Rear Admiral and was eager to command. He’d already been noticed for his valor in a number of battles and was a proven asset to the League, despite his brother being on the Republic's side.
Saul’s brother, Tycho, had also been promoted to Rear Admiral and was assigned to an assault wing in the very fleet that was bearing down on Sagnatum. Tonika Gussman, now promoted to full admiral, commanded the entirety of the fleet and was looking to settle the score with Admiral Kampfer.
The battle of Sagnatum was a brutal one. Despite the Republic’s initial assault breaking through the first defense line in under fifteen minutes, Kampfer’s forces hit back hard and brought their advance to a dead stop. Again and again Gussman ordered her ships forward, striking hard against the defenders, but Kampfer repelled each assault.
Kampfer then ordered Saul Dumaul to feint a retreat, swing around a nearby moon and come in behind and flank the opposing force. The feint worked. Gussman thought that the flank had really broken and moved in for the kill. When Saul’s fleet came around from behind the moon the enemy was exposed to his weapons.
Caught off guard, Gussman ordered a retreat. Tycho Dumaul was ordered to form a rearguard and hold off the league until the fleet could pull back. Kampfer and Saul pushed forward and slowly encircled Tycho’s rearguard. As they closed around them Kampfer demanded the surrender of the remaining Republic fleet, but Tycho sent back a response, refusing. He then threw his forces against the League’s lines and broke out of the encirclement, jumping back into deep space.
Saul had heard the response and realizing that he was facing his brother, he disobeyed Kampfer’s orders to stay put and followed his brother into deep space. The two brothers met up three lightyears from Sagnatum. They dropped back to sunlight and their ships began fighting. Neither would surrender, and neither would give quarter. Around and around their ships fought, but it was Tycho who made the fatal blow. He drove his ship in close to his brother’s, firing rapidly at point-blank range. His brother’s ship exploded into a fireball that swiftly dissipated in the vacuum.
He then moved to finish off the rest of his brother’s strike fleet, but Kampfer arrived with reinforcements. Tycho ordered his shops to retreat, but they were too closely engaged with the enemy to make a break for it. Kampfer’s forces decimated Tycho’s. Tycho’s ship vaporized under heavy fire from Kampfer’s command ship and a few minutes later the rest of his remaining fleet surrendered. The second Battle of the Brothers had ended tragically.
Despite losing in their assault against Sagnatum, the Republic hadn’t lost the initiative. The ships sent to reinforce the planet had been drawn from Regius. The defenses were still very strong but Dictator Vulso had come up with a new plan to draw away even further defenses. She launched a full scale assault on Atlusia.
Atlusia’s defenses proved no match to the Republic’s assault and fell back quickly. Ivanovich ordered reinforcements from Regius to defend Atlusia. They arrived in the system and struck at the Republic’s exposed rear. Now the Republic sprung its trap. A second fleet which had been held in reserve arrived in the system and caught the League’s fleet between their two forces. It was an effective strategy and they destroyed or captured the entirety of the enemy fleet and then moved on to secure the planet.
Regius’ defenses were now depleted and it was time to press the attack. After a short rest to reinforce their fleet, the Republic launched its final assault on Regius. A massive fleet arrived in the system but despite being outnumbered the League forces fought valiantly. The Republic drove straight towards the Regius shipyards and the League countered, trying to defend the vital infrastructure. But it was to no avail. The Republic pushed them back and destroyed hundreds of League ships which were sitting awaiting repairs.
It was a blow to the League’s ability to stay in the fight. As the last shipyard was destroyed, the remaining League ships fled the system, and jumped into deep space, heading towards Hannibus. If their capital fell, the League would shatter and the Republic would roll over what was left of them.
Even as the League reeled from such major defeat, the Republic continued to press the attack. A renewed assault on Sagnatum was launched. Kampfer once again led the defense, but this time his bold strategies failed him. The Republic’s forces smashed through his fleet and assaulted the planet. Kampfer died in a last ditch effort to break through the Republic’s assault. His command cruiser smashed head on into a Republic carrier, both ships disappearing in a massive fireball.
What was left of the Alepolis faction of the League surrendered unconditionally a month later, just before the New Year.
6th YEAR
As the League’s defensive lines collapsed, so too did their political cohesion. The Tigralis faction withdrew from the conclave and fled to Tigralis, gathering any forces they could to defend their own worlds.
What was left of the Regius faction had already fled to Carvena and Hannibus, but many were now cut off on the planet of Isol. There were already talks of surrender, but Executor Ivanovich wasn’t ready to concede yet.
He still hoped to hold the Republic at Carvenna. If the Republic could be beaten back, then they could push back at Sagnatum and reestablish their defensive lines and draw the war into a stalemate.
His strategy, however, was quickly dashed when the Republic defeated and captured Baecculiopoli. The war would never end in a stalemate. But he wasn’t ready to concede and so he gathered what forces were left to defend Hannibus.
Meanwhile the Republic launched an attack against Isol, not wanting to leave an enemy position to their rear before they drove on to Hannibus. But Isol had been the place where many of the League’s privateers had fled to. And with death sentences on their head should they fall into Republic hands they weren’t willing to surrender. A bitter struggle ensued with heavy casualties on both sides. The Isol defenders fought viciously, inflicting heavy damage on the attackers. Not wanting to lose any more ships that they would need for the Hannibus assault, they withdrew from the system.
The defenders prepared for a second assault but instead were offered terms. The Republic would not grant amnesty to the privateers. Any privateer that surrendered or was captured was to face a trial, and would likely be executed. But should the planet surrender all civilians on the planet would be spared, including the families of the privateers. If they refused, the Republic would bomb the planet into dust. It was the best deal they could get. So after a few days of thinking it over, the defenders at Isol surrendered, and any privateer ship that didn’t flee the system was destroyed when the Republic fleet returned.
The Republic gathered their forces over Regius and once they were ready they launched their assault against Carvenna. The League held out against the assault as long as they could, but once it became clear they couldn’t hold the system they fell back to Hannibus. This was where they’d make their last stand.
The Republic secured Carvenna and readied themselves for the final push and demanded the unconditional surrender of the League. Ivanovich rejected them outright.
So in July of 2935 the Battle of Hannibus began. The fighting would last for two days as both sides gained and lost ground. But every loss for the League bled their strength. Every ship destroyed was a ship that couldn’t be replaced. As the Republic pushed in towards Hannibus, slowly surrounding the remaining defenders, they sent a new offer of surrender. Amnesty for all except the League’s leaders and the admirals. They would have to face trial back on Tellus but everyone else would be free to return to their homes.
Ivanovich was given an hour to decide, but he responded twenty minutes later. Under the offered terms he accepted surrender. The League fleet stood down and the Republic took control of the system.
But the Tigralis faction hadn’t yet surrendered. Despite the same terms being offered to them. They moved what was left of their fleets to defend their remaining worlds. But after the Republic fleet swept through the Gallipa system with ease, it was apparent the war was over. The remainder of the Independence League surrendered on August 7, 2935.
AFTERMATH
Following the general amnesty granted by the Republic many soldiers returned to their homes. Homes that, in many cases, were now bombed or destroyed. The war had left the central worlds between Regius and Carthes in ruin. It would take decades of rebuilding to return to how it was before the war.
In the meantime the Republic was also faced with an ongoing rebellion in their distant Hanno colonies. They sent ships to put down this other rebellion, but the distance and depletion of their forces proved to be a hard challenge to overcome. Continued anti-war sentiment and a general war exhaustion among the people, led the senate to agree to independence terms. Better to lose a distant colony, then the whole of the outer worlds.
In the meantime the League leadership, political and military, were brought to Tellus to stand trial. A handful had fled instead of accepting the terms of surrender. Most prominent was Gwynn Seregosio who refused to surrender her ship and jumped out of the Hannibus sector just ahead of pursuing Republic vessels. Where she went, nobody knows. There were others, but in the grand scheme of things, it was only a handful.
The trials were generally very quick. And for the most part, the Republic chose to be lenient. The civilian leaders were often sentenced to work service, with only the highest ranks being sentenced to prison time. And most of those got sentences ranging from three to five years, after which they’d be placed under house arrest, but able to return home.
The military leaders faced harsher sentences. They were stripped of all rank and honors, and sentenced between five and ten years, if they’d been promoted to admiral after the outbreak of war. But those who had left their naval commissions and joined the League prior to the war were charged with treason. Most though we’re given twenty year sentences, or less, and even those would be commuted over the following years.
Danel Arvad and Yakim Ivanovich were given the heaviest sentences. Both were condemned to death for treason, but that was reduced to life imprisonment. The following year the Sophets intervened and reduced their sentences to ten years. It was an obvious statement: the Republic was forgiving and wanted to put the conflict behind them.
The rebellious worlds were placed under military directors responsible for keeping the peace and overseeing reconstruction. These directorates would remain in place over the following decade until the first local elections for governors were allowed. Slowly the Tellusian government has been working to reintegrate the former League worlds and to rebuild their trust in the Republic.
The scars of the civil war are still visible twenty years on, and the Republic has not yet fully recovered. When the Leviathan threat emerged the Republic had to stay out of the conflict as they hadn’t rebuilt their military forces up enough to send ships to assist. While there are still grumblings from the outer worlds about independence, no major secessionist movements have formed, as many still remember the war and don’t want to fight another one.