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Opening file: BLACK CRUSADE+
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To Whom It May Concern:
Contained within this data capsule are the personal diaries and papers of Councilor Shaka Ralamee of the Fleet of the Burning Sword, commanding the grand Crusade of Divine Fury. If you are receiving this message, then I must sadly report that by the time you are reading this, I have fallen in battle and what remains of the Crusade force is annihilated or under the command of a subordinate. I believe that the data and experiences we have uncovered here are too important to be lost if we are to die. Please consider the information contained within seriously, for it may prove useful in future conflicts.
The First Trial: Repelling the Beast
As you know, this entire Crusade would never have been organized if not for a chance encounter with an insidious alien species identifying themselves as the Yuuzhan Vong. One of our warfleets discovered them quite by mistake during a patrol on the outer fringes of the galaxy.
As is standard procedure, the Fleet Master in charge, Kazzak Sekamee attempted to make contact with the newcomers and successfully convinced them to open communications. Though the original transcripts of the communication were lost due to the later destruction of Sekamee's ship, what was recovered was a report from Sekamee's personal intelligence staff, as shown here:
Through extensive review and examination the alien communications and data that we have been able to retrieve, here are our findings and conclusions:
This alien species identifies itself as the "Yuuzhan Vong".
They believe in and worship false gods, and deny the divinity of our Prophets and the Forerunners.
They view technology as an abomination, and go so far as to reject and denounce the sacred technology that the Forerunner have left us in their divine charity.
All of their equipment and technology is organic in nature, including their ships and weaponry.
They are not native to our galaxy, and were en route to what they believed would be their "promised land."
They are extremely aggressive and warlike in nature, and were very determined in spreading their blasphemous ideas in an attempt to subvert our faith in the Forerunners.
Our conclusion is that the Yuuzhan Vong are not suitable for induction into the Covenant. Their refusal to renounce their false religion and beliefs and their willingness to spread it poses a threat to the underlying ideology of the Covenant. Furthermore, they are arrogant enough to believe that they can best us in an armed conflict. Our recommendation is that we burn these heretics at the stake without mercy or question.
After the communication, we know that relations broke down. We are still unsure who fired first, but it is confirmed that Sekamee engaged the Yuuzhan Vong fleet. The battle resulted in heavy losses on both sides, but Sekamee's sacrifice was not in vain. Battle recorder and ship telemetry data revealed many interesting facts about how the Yuuzhan Vong fight and how their organic technology works. Their primary armament consists mainly of plasma cannons that work similarly to ours, though on a much smaller scale. Instead of the standard energy shielding or ion drives that our ships commonly use, Yuuzhan Vong ships use some sort of gravity manipulating field to perform both duties.
Further review had also revealed many flaws in Yuuzhan Vong technology that was exploited by our forces. First, their gravity fields, though powerful, began to lose effectiveness over time as the battle progressed. It is believed that due to its organic nature, Yuuzhan Vong technology has the capacity to "tire". The obvious strategy was to fire as many volleys as possible at a single capital ship. The gravity fields either could not work fast enough to absorb all of the torpedoes, or quickly tired themselves out allowing more torpedoes to pass. This strategy accounted for eighty percent of enemy casualties.
The Yuuzhan Vong also showed evidence of some sort of low-grade hive mind. It was noticed that when certain capital ships were destroyed, enemy fighter swarms began to lose their cohesiveness and as a result suffered a loss in combat efficiency. It is theorized that some of the Yuuzhan Vong capital ships possess some kind of battle coordination system that directs their fighters, and the destruction of such systems gives our fighters a greater tactical edge.
However, one disturbing element was the fact that the Yuuzhan Vong could use their gravity fields to render our shields useless, quickly destroying our ships' first line of defense. The only counter to this move is to keep distance from the enemy ships while firing all batteries as fast as possible.
The battle ended when what was left of Sekamee's fleet performed a strategic withdrawal. This unfortunately led to the Yuuzhan Vong to gain a foothold on Keyar, one of our frontier worlds. Using it as a base for their operations, they quickly spread to the outlying systems and took those worlds in short order, slaughtering our brave soldiers and desecrating countless artifacts. They even went so far as to pervert the worlds they conquered by polluting the very ground and air with their unholy organic technology.
This marked a turning point in the conflict. We not only had to repel the enemy fleet, but cleanse our very own worlds of the unpure taint these heretics had introduced.
Fortunately, the Prophet's response was quick and decisive. I was granted the personal honor of leading the campaign to expunge the Yuuzhan Vong from our territory. With command of over a hundred warships and half a million troops, the war would be quick and brutal. Our first engagements were nothing more than shows of force. After chasing away the enemy fleets from some of the occupied planets, instead of wasting time on a costly ground assault, we cleansed these planets by repeatedly bombarding them with volleys of plasma fire. We quite literally burned the taint from these worlds and showed the Yuuzhan Vong how far we were willing to take this conflict.
But our greatest hour would present itself during the Battle of Keyar. Unlike our previous battles, we had no choice but to carry out a ground assault. Keyar, though on the frontier, was an important shrineworld, and its religious significance could not be disregarded. Our battle strategy was quite ingenious. To ensure that the Yuuzhan Vong would commit the bulk of their forces to the assault, false information was leaked that the Covenant was indeed planning an offensive, but against a star system adjacent to Keyar. The Yuuzhan Vong fell for the ploy, and immediately began massing ships and troops at Keyar.
I would have loved to see the appearance of their surprised faces as our mighty battlefleet jumped right on top of them. Within the first five minutes thirty three percent of the enemy fleet was destroyed. Further assaults forced the enemy fleet to retreat to the far side of the planet, opening a window for ground troops to be landed. A total of two hundred fifty thousand troops landed on various points on the surface in three successive waves.
The first wave was tasked to secure the Guillan Islands and take the valuable resources stored there. Unfortunately, two of the transport wings flew in on the wrong heading and ended up over the ocean and were shot down by enemy anti-aircraft fire. This resulted in the loss of nearly three thousand troops before they had even touched the ground. This also gave the Yuuzhan Vong occupying the islands enough warning to begin burning valuable supplies and resources. The commander in charge of the first wave, Field Master Lezanee, committed suicide in shame for this failure.
The second wave was sent to land in the holy city of Kakrand. The perversion made by the Yuuzhan Vong was apparent when ground forces witnessed horrendous beasts and creatures that defied imaginations. Field reports described multitudes of aggressive insects, ranging from biting ones to insects that exploded on contact. Yuuzhan Vong infantry used living armor and snake-like staffs, and even though this equipment was far inferior to ours, it was very effective nonetheless. The Yuuzhan Vong were fanatic in their resolve, which resulted in over one hundred twenty thousand troops being deadlocked in vicious street fighting for over eighty five hours. Some areas were so chaotic, entire units were wiped out by friendly fire. Survivors of fragmented divisions often found themselves fighting alongside fellow survivors from other ravaged units and formed numerous scratch companies, fighting for their very survival rather than for liberation.
Meanwhile, I personally led the third wave into the Citadel, which acted as both as a holy site and as the administrative center of Kakrand. From the level of corruption around the Citadel, it was obvious that the Yuuzhan Vong had chosen it as their center for operations. In order to ensure that we achieved complete surprise, two entire divisions were dropped directly onto the Citadel and we fought our way in from the roof of the structure. The Yuuzhan Vong forces were deployed expecting a ground assault, making it easy for use to sweep the upper levels with impunity. We also managed to find what appeared to be the supreme commander for the Yuuzhan Vong and ambush him. The battle was vicious, but I managed to personally slay him in battle. He was a worthy opponent, and I granted him the honor a quick death by beheading him with my blade.
After news of their commander being killed, the Yuuzhan Vong quickly lost the will to fight. Many committed suicide by charging our lines or shooting turning their own weapons on themselves. Others merely dug in and fought to the last soldier. Within two days, all resistance was wiped off the planet, and it was only five more days until our fleet overtook and annihilated the remnants of the Yuuzhan Vong on the edge of the universe.
The overall conflict was short but costly. Our losses totaled at an estimated seventy ships lost, four worlds put to the torch, and roughly seven hundred fifty thousand casualties. Estimates on Yuuzhan Vong losses range from two hundred ships destroyed to five hundred, and one million troops killed to three million.
Though the conflict was over, and the Yuuzhan Vong destroyed, the Prophets were still interested with the Yuuzhan Vong's existence. From interrogation and spying, it was theorized that this force was part of a much larger one, seeking out a galaxy they could call a home. Many hypothesized that answers concerning the Great Journey could be found at this destination the Yuuzhan Vong held so dear, as our explorers have not found anything substantial in this galaxy. The possibilities proved too much to resist, and the High Prophets decided to organize an expedition to investigate.
It took nearly three years, but we were able to complete what was possibly the largest battle force ever in the history of the Covenant.
We were given the Unstoppable Force, the Unyielding Hierophant's sister station, over twelve hundred capital ships, and five million assorted troops and settlers.
The Great Crusade had begun. Unfortunately, we embarked without the knowledge that none of use would ever see our homes again.