Year 13, Month 08, Day 33

UPMC Forward Operating Base

Bougainville, the Solomons

Captain Robin Martin and his gunner, 2nd Lieutenant Ernest Rivers were pre-flighting their Corsair gunship before they flew their first combat mission of the day. Both of them knew that the fighting for the Solomons was close to ending, but that didn't mean that either of them were going to take it easy. There were still several holdouts on the planet, and US Marines and soldiers from Aurora were taking part in a final sweep in the sectors that had enemy activity.

The battle for the Solomons had been bloody, but Captain Martin knew that this was only the beginning. They still had several other planets to try and take from the Katanian Empire, and he knew that all of them would have to be as bad as this one. He and his gunner were one of the few flight crews to not have been shot down by the Katanians, and while their ship had returned with dozens of holes every time, he knew that he was one of the lucky ones. He had lost one of his closest friends, 1st Lieutenant Jack Hammond, when his craft had been shot down over enemy lines. When he saw his friend's body after it had been recovered, he hated what the Katanians had done to him, and he vowed that he would not let that happen to anyone as long as he flew.

When his pre-flight was finished, the two Marine officers began the start-up sequence. Both hoping that their time in the hell called the Solomons would be over soon.

The Corsair took off into the air and they soon received a message over the radio. "Angel Six, this is Devil Dog Four."

"Go ahead Devil Dog Four," the captain replied. Devil Dog Four was the company commander of 9th Marine Regiment.

"Angel Six, we've got a couple of platoons of pissed off Katanians and are in need of immediate air support."

"Roger, Devil Dog Four. We are inbound. ETA: seven minutes."

Captain Martin increased the throttle and made his way toward Devil Dong Four's location. Once he was overhead, he could see the exchange of shots between the Marines and Katanians. He received the coordinates of the enemy targets and began his attack run. On his first pass, Rivers fired several rockets into the enemy's position. On his second pass, his gunner fired the cannons that were underneath the fuselage, killing anything that moved.

As Martin pulled away to avoid the possibility of an attack, his radio came to life. "Angel Six, the Katanians have stopped firing. We're moving forward. Stay in the area to provide support in case we run into trouble."

"Roger, Devil Dog Four. We are standing-by."

As the Marines moves forward, he made his Corsair circle the area, to keep himself moving in case there were any surprises the Katanians had planned for any of them. When the Marines reached the locations where the enemy had been shooting from, they found over fifty bodies. Most had died from the rockets, but there were a few who were covered in burns from the laser cannons. The location was then marked and reported to command.

...

USS Enterprise

In orbit over Bougainville

The Solomons

The USS Enterprise, carrier for the United Planets Navy and flagship of Admiral William "Bull" Halsey, had been conducting almost nonstop operations for the past several days almost nonstop. The Enterprise's fighters and bombers had been conducting bombing and support operations on the planets that were still experiencing high levels of Katanian activity, however, those planets that were of importance to the American and Auorian military operations were as secure they were going to get until the war was over.

Admiral Halsey read the latest report on the bridge of the carrier while outside, the combat group and escort vessels ensured that the Katanian military didn't have any surprises for them. He knew the fanaticism their military would take in the future, but he was not going to take chances and wanted to ensure that no kamikaze craft even came close to his fleet. He had looked over the casualty reports, and while they were high, it was what he had expected. Most of the moons and planets that were of importance to the campaign were still experiencing Katanian activity, but it was mostly small groups that were scattered. Other bodies that had been bypassed would be left to whither on the vine until resources could be sent against them as time permitted, however, they were still a threat that couldn't be left behind unchallenged. Admiral Nimitz had ordered that a task force be left behind to ensure that the planets under their control not experience any disruptions in operations, while the others were to make sure the Katanian fighters didn't bring any unexpected surprises.

Halsey was looking over what forces he could leave behind, and while he would not want to, Nimitz had ordered him to keep at least one carrier and a couple escort carriers to stay behind with the necessary escorts and Marines needed to keep the system secure and ensure that the Katanians or their Separatist allies didn't disrupt the supply flow. This was a factor that he had not counted on, and that was the threat of possible outside intervention in his area of responsibility.

It's almost overwhelming, he though. Not to mention that the Katanians had begun to change the codes they used. The last war didn't have outside threats, but here he was constantly having to keep forces behind to ensure nothing caught him by surprise. He was going to make sure that he didn't experience any blunders like the one at Leyte.

"Admiral, there is a message for you from General MacArthur," the comm officer reported.

Halsey hid a grimace. Having to work with that arrogant jackass of a general was something he did not enjoy. He had half hoped that this one was from Earth as well, thinking that the General being reborn in a younger body would humble him bit, but he decided that it may be for the best if that MacArthur stay dead and instead deal with this one. "Route it to my quarters. I will speak with him in a few minutes."

"Yes, sir" the officer replied, relaying the message and pressing the appropriate keys.

Halsey got up and began his trip to his quarters, taking a little longer than normal and to make that proud general wait. He knew what MacArthur wanted, and making him wait was just a way to enjoy some of the man's discomfort. When he reached his quarters, he could see that the holoprojector was ready for him. Straitening his uniform and taken a deep breath he turned it on.

"Admiral Halsey," MacArthur said, his voice revealing a hint of annoyance. "I'm happy you were able to take time out of your busy schedule to speak with me."

"Apologies, General, but securing the Solomons is a rather difficult task. There are still many holdouts with which we have to deal with," Halsey replied, trying to hide a smile. "This area is along the hyperspace route for your supplies that you have been receiving, and we don't want to lose that lifeline." He wasn't sure but he was certain that he saw MacArthur bristle at that statement.

"Yes, of course, Admiral," MacArthur said, without missing a beat. "What we need to do now is continue our offensive into Katanian territory. That means we need to continue our push in the New Guinea system. From there we can continue through the various systems until we are in range of Katania itself."

"I agree, but New Guinea also houses one of their largest docking yards, and from what intelligence we have received, they are amassing a large force around the planet Rabaul in the system. So far we've been harrying them and preventing their forces from leaving the area surrounding the planet, but we have to deal with them now before they become too desperate."

"I'm glad we agree, Admiral," the General said with a nod. "That's why I want your fleet to provide us with the necessary support for the offensive we are going to launch on Buna in New Guinea. You'll make sure that the Katanian fleet stays at Rabaul."

"Actually, General, I had a different plan in mind." Halsey attached a datacard to the projector. "I'm sending you plans for an invasion that I have been working on. I've had the approval of Admiral Nimitz on this as well." Halsey could see that MacArthur was not happy about this. The glory that he believed should be his was instead going to be with Halsey. "I want to launch invasions of the two moons that orbit Rabaul. They aren't as heavily defended as the planet itself so it should be relatively easy compared to the Solomons. During that time, I will send a large raiding force to Rabaul to attack the shipyards there which should keep the Katanian fleet where they are."

"And what will keep them from trying to retake the moons?"

"I managed to salvage a couple of hypervelocity guns from the Solomons. They should prove adequate in keeping the Katanian fleet where they are, and we should be able to destroy them at our leisure." Halsey could see the look of defeat on the General's face.

"It's a sound plan, but I would still like to have some support for my offensive. The Aurorians are calling for increased orbital and air support and I have to agree with them on this."

"I'll see if I can divert a couple of cruisers to help," Halsey said, trying not to show any emotion, knowing that he had succeeded.

"Thank you, Admiral. I look forward to that support you provide for us. It will help in freeing these lands from the Katanian Empire and bring us one step closer to victory." The hologram was soon turned off as the General disconnected the call.

"Yes, indeed it will," Halsey said to himself. He wondered, though, how the rest of the galaxy will deal with this, and what sort of surprises the Separatist or Republic may have in store for the Sector.

Year 13, Month 09, Day 06

Imperial Katanian Navy HQ

Tokyo, Imperial Katania

Admiral Yamamoto sat at his desk, looking over the reports from the Pacifica Region. He was glad to be here. He wished he was back out in the field, commanding his flagship Musashi, but he was glad it was better than the rumored Yokosuka Naval Base command. That position would be, "a nice safe demotion with a big house and no power at all." Instead, with the help of the influence of the Naval General Staff, he was now behind a desk, but he was far from useless. The comm unit on his desk began to buzz, and reaching over, he answered, "Yamamoto here."

"Yamamoto, this is Nagano," the voice answered. "I need you to meet with the rest of my staff in five minutes."

"Yes, Admiral," Yamamoto replied, surprised that the Head of the Imperial Katanian Navy General Staff would want to speak with him directly. "I will be there in right away." He switched off the comm and grabbed his datapad and a couple of datacards, and began his walk toward the conference room. When he entered, he saw close to a dozen other flag officers, overlooking a map of the Pacifica Region of the Sector.

Yamamoto looked up at the holomap and the situation was not good. "Admiral Yamamoto," Nagano said drawing everyone's attention toward him. "It is good to have you here with us. Since you are the most recent arrival to the General Staff, perhaps you could give us your opinion on what we could do."

Yamamoto cleared his throat. "Admirals, I will admit that my area of responsibility as Commander of the Combined Fleet, I was focused mainly on stopping the actions of Admiral Halsey as his forces moved up the Solomons and stopping our attempts at invading Auroran Space."

Nagano nodded. "Very well, Yamamoto." He turned toward another officer. "Admiral Hideo, could you please explain the current situation in the Region to Yamamoto for us, please?"

Rear Admiral Yano Hideo, the Head of Naval Intelligence, stepped forward and changed the view of the map, shifting it to the Solomons. "Admiral, as I am sure you are aware, the Solomons have essentially been lost to the Americans. We have also received indications that the forces under General MacArthur are planning on renewing their offensive in New Guinea. However, there have also been indications that a fleet is gathering at Hawaii. We don't know when they will attack, but we assess that it will be the force that drives into Central Pacifica in the next few weeks at the earliest."

Hideo moved the map to a different location in the region. "As to the situation with Kunia, they have gradually been increasing their activity, trying to push us out of any areas that we take. The Kunian Communist Party has been very good at attacking our supply lines and causing problems for the Army, and hitting various targets. This has reduced some of the combat capability within that area. They blame our inability to prevent the regular shipments of supplies that are coming from Indou to Kunia as the source for these problems. It is because of this that they were able to gain the support of the droid command ship that arrived when the Confederates entered the sector. While they maintain that its commander will be independent of their command structure, they essentially have de facto control over the Defiler."

Something that Tojo no doubt had a hand in, Yamamoto thought.

Admiral Hideo continued. "Their offensive started off with great success, but the Allies managed to regroup and stop them. The last reports we had were saying that the lines had stabilized and both appeared to be waiting for reinforcements."

The map changed again, this time focusing on the force disposition for the Katanian Navy. "For our forces, since the battle at Midway Outpost, and the defeat in the Solomons, we have remained on the defensive." Yamamoto tried to hide a grimace at the mentioning at his two biggest defeats. "With two American fleets and an Albion fleet that is in Indou, we are limited in our capabilities. However, on a different note, we have managed to rebuild some of our naval forces. The latest group of pilots has finished training and are about to be attached to our light carrier group that was finished earlier this year. However, we will be unable to send them out into action until early next year. Existing formations are spread out trying to protect too much territory. We need to remain on the defensive and allow the Americans to come within our outposts so that we can wear them away until we can engage them in a decisive battle and force them into a peace that is favorable for us."

"I have proposed that we divide the fleet into area commands, to allow for great autonomy for the area commanders, and allow us to rebuild what we can." said Admiral Fukutome Shigeru, head of Naval Operations. "We do still have our Yamato-class battleships and other heavy cruisers to hold in reserve until the proper moment has come."

Yamamoto thought about what he had been told. The situation for Katania was bleak at best. He knew that to divide the Combined Fleet into regional commands would only allow for the Americans to whittle away at them until all that was left was their battleships, and he knew how important carriers were to this kind of warfare. Unfortunately, he was a minority in this idea, and while there were others like him, the battleship commanders held too much influence.

"What of the Confederate ships that arrived within the sector?" Yamamoto asked. "They could prove useful in helping with possible offensive operations. Their droid fighters alone would be more than adequate in replacing our lost fighters until we have sufficient numbers."

Admiral Nagano cleared his throat. "Unfortunately, Admiral Yamamoto, their experiences when they entered the sector has alienated them from us. They do not trust us in the Imperial Navy because they blame us for the destruction of their entire fleet. The fact that we managed to convince the Emperor to intervene on your behalf has soured relations between us and the Confederate captains. Granted, some of them do not hold you responsible for the ambush, and they do have respect for your command abilities, but the capital ship commanders would rather have seen you sent to Count Dooku and executed for incompetence."

"The Imperial Army has used this to their advantage as well," Admiral Shigeru said. "They have been requesting that the Confederate ships take part in operations on planets, and since they contain a least a couple hundred battle droids, many have not objected. The problem, is that Confederates fall outside of our chain-of-command, and we are unable to influence any decisions they may make. That droid control ship alone could hold back an entire task force, but instead, the Army has it. This has me worried."

"Worried that the Imperial Army is gaining too much influence with our allies?" Yamamoto asked.

Shigeru nodded. "I don't mean to be disrespectful, especially for those who serve the Emperor as we do, but their fanaticism and influence on the other Confederate commanders could have repercussions for the Empire.

"Besides the control ship, what else does the Army have de facto control of?" Yamamoto asked.

Admiral Nagado answered before anyone else could. "None so far, but they are pushing for one of the Providence carrier/destroyers and support ships to help in holding the New Guinea system against General MacArthur."

Admiral Yamamoto just takes a deep breath. He knew that the rivalry between the Imperial Navy and Army was tense, but this was beginning to look worse than anything that he could remember from Earth. With the Confederate ships falling under the influence, of the Army, they needed to work fast, and he had a feeling that this was going to be even more dangerous than fighting the Americans.