Chapter 4
= place: Arcturus Station, year 2162 =
"This is a disaster." - the president plagued. About 5 hours ago, a convoy of supply ships carrying Ezzo's supply to the shipyard was attacked by pirates. The worst part is that he attacked the system, where there was a colony called Achlys, which had a population of just over 900,000. An escort of 6 Genowa-class ships and a Berlin-class heavy cruiser, along with colonial defense support, fought off the attack, but in the course of the fighting, one of the transports was damaged fell in the colony's capital, killing 5,000 in falls and injuring another 20,000. But the worst thing was the Ezzo. In large amounts, Ezzo is poisonous, and the amount that fell with transport there can easily poison the entire population. The System Alliance has not seen such a big crisis yet.
"We are already moving ships and equipment to get rid of the problem, but it is not enough for the entire population." - said the Minister of Transport.
"Preliminary estimates say we will have time to save, at best, 2/3 of the colonies from poisoning." - said the Minister of Health.
"What's the worst?" - the president asked.
"Only 1/3 would survive." - said the Minister of Health.
"So between 300,000 and 600,000 people will die." - said the president - "Is there any way to improve these chances?"
"We collect medical supplies and equipment from every colony we have nearby and Earth itself, but it will take a long time to transport it, even with the military directing the movement." - Admiral Grissom said. Of the 300 warships currently in service with the System Alliance, more than 200 have been deployed on all routes to Achlys. Additionally, 600 corvettes have been transferred to this task.
"What about Ichlings?" - the president asked.
"Their system is closer than Earth and the Ichlings themselves will be easier to transport than our doctors, which will free up many transport ships, but we have no idea how their medications will help our people." - Grissom said - "Plus, we've known about the possibility of Ezzo poisoning for some 15 years, they've known that for a year. We also do not know how our people will perceive their technology. This is a huge risk."
"What will be the losses if we get their help?" - the president asked.
"Losses range from 100,000 to 700,000." - said the Minister of Health.
The president began to think about it for a moment, then made a decision that would change the image of System Alliance - "Ask them for help. This is a risk, but the chance of saving 200,000 more lives is worth it. If anything goes wrong, I'll take full responsibility for myself. "
Ultimately, these estimates turned out to be incorrect. In the Disaster of Achlys, as it was named, 12,384 people were killed, including those killed by the impact of the ship. The key factor with such small losses was the Force Heal skill which was widely used by Ichling's healers. When estimates of what the losses would be like were released without the help of the Ichlings, it greatly improved the relationship between Humans and Ichlings, which had until now been regarded as a simple trade and defense agreement, and the full integration of the two societies had begun.
= place: Reach, year 2162 =
"Congratulations to Sergeant David Edward Anderson." - said General Williams, who oversaw the joint exercises of the Ichlings and Humans, currently one hundred teams of 4 on both sides have been assembled and sent against each other in various exercises. Each team only had one chance to prove themselves. The results were interesting - "You commanded the only team that managed to win and you were the only human not to be 'killed' during the practice. You saved our honor. I can already see the face of this commander Suzik, if his hunters had won all 100 matches."
"Thank you sir." - Anderson said - "But it was more luck than actual skill. And these new StunShotguns. "
"No Anderson, I knew many wins that were based on luck, and it wasn't one of those." - Commander Suzik, who flew in secretly after them, on one of the new gravity boards, as they were called by most. They used a combination of Human and Ichlings technology and they were beginning to be particularly popular with Ichlings troops, increasing the already huge mobility and the rest of the System Alliance youth. Of course, the military and civilian models differed significantly, and the boards themselves were still expensive, but that was about to change.
"You successfully recognized our tactics and played on our weaknesses and your strengths." - continued Commander Suzik - "And most importantly, you didn't disregard us, as most teams did, instead our people disregarded you. Although I'm curious where did you get this new weapon?"
"Our intelligence cell got her plans not too long ago with Galactic Empire." - Williams said - "Unfortunately, they only succeeded because Empire had raided a Rebel cell on the planet. The information is sparse, but the losses are expected to be at least 50,000. There were only 500 rebels."
"It's good that you found us, not Empire." - Suzik said - "They would simply do an orbital bombardment, and then set up a base, extract our resources as much as there are and as much as there would be from our planet and species. But now to the more important thing. Anderson, what do you know about the N program."
"Just rumors." - Anderson said bluntly - "They say this is some kind of program to create a super-soldier with the help of genetic engineering. Soldiers are trained under fire from real ammunition, and the survival rate is only 20%."
"You can put most of this in-between fairy tales." - Williams said - "While there is some genetic modification, this is only an improvement to the Human, and possibly Ichling's, traits to the max. Without real ammunition, and the survivability is 100%."
"And you tell me this for a reason." - Anderson said.
"That's right." - Suzik said - "Congratulations Anderson, you've just been nominated for the N program. Do you accept the invitation?"
"Yes, sir." - Anderson said.
"Excellent." - Williams said - "You will get the exact details at a later date when we finish completing the first group. Meanwhile, you have free time. You better use it, you won't have much time for later."
-Codex-
Depending on the level of threat, the value of the territory, the operation carried out and the current enemy forces, the fleet command sends specific formations to cope with the task.
Fleet structure:
Frigate Squadron - 4 frigates
Frigate Wing - 3 Frigate Squadrons (12 frigates)
Frigate Division - 3 Frigate Wings (36 frigates)
Destroyer Squadron - 3 destroyers
Destroyer Wing - 2 Destroyer Squadrons (6 destroyers)
Destroyer Division - 4 Destroyer Wings (24 destroyers)
Cruiser Squadron - 5 cruisers
Cruiser Wing - 2 Cruiser Squadrons (10 cruisers)
Cruiser Division - 2 Cruiser Wings (20 cruisers)
Capital Ship Pair - 2 capital ships (2 carriers or 2 dreadnoughts or carrier and dreadnought)
Capital Ship Wing - 2 Capital Ship Pair (2 carriers and 2 dreadnoughts)
Capital Ship Division - 2 Capital Ship Wing (4 carriers and 4 dreadnoughts)
Naval Tasks - A term that clearly defines the role of ships in the fleet:
Support frigate - Frigate the main purpose of which is to support larger ships and protect against pirates. Despite having the main guns and a small number of heavy weapons, its main task is to protect larger ships from attacks by enemy fighters, bombers, and gunships. These frigates are also responsible for most of the anti-piracy actions, should there be a need to send warships to a region with extremely frequent pirate attacks.
Attack frigate - Frigates that are used mainly in battle. They always operate in groups, attacking ships with shields deactivated with various anti-Capital equipment. If there is an opportunity or a gap in the enemy's forces, it is the attack frigates that determine its enlargement, or the use of the support fleet to attack the enemy.
Destroyers - Ships combining the speed of a frigate and the firepower of a cruiser. They fight on the flanks of the main fleet, trying to outflank the enemy fleet or to take advantage of the gaps in its formation. It is the most versatile class of ships in the fleet.
Cruisers - The main ships in the fleet. They are responsible for most of the offensive and defensive weapons of the formation.
Dreadnoughts - The most powerful ships in terms of offensive power. They are most often kept right behind the Cruisers, or in the middle of their formation. They are often used as command ships or for diplomatic purposes due to their greater flexibility than carriers. When a dreadnought is sent it marks an important matter and the ship itself is never without an escort.
Carriers - The ultimate war tool. It doesn't have as good shields or weapons as the dreadnought, despite its similar size, but that's not its purpose. The main task of carriers is to deliver, refill and repair fighters, even in battle. For this reason, these ships are always at the rear of the formation and always have a much larger escort than dreadnoughts.
Basic fleet formations:
Armada (240 ships x number of combined fleets) - Multiple Battle fleets - The largest military formation, gathered only for decisive battles, or for defending particularly important points.
Battle fleet (240 ships) - 4 Frigate Division, 2 Destroyer Division, 2 Cruiser Division, Capital Ship Division– The main military formation used in major battles, attacking and defending important targets.
Sub-fleet (60 ships) - Frigate Division, 2 Destroyer Wings, Cruiser Wing, Capital Ship Pair - Only a quarter of the main fleet, but enough to easily destroy the defenses of most worlds.
Battle-flotilla (36 ships) - 2 Frigate Wings, Destroyer Wing, Cruiser Wing, Single Capital Ship - Almost the smallest fully-fledged battle formation, capable of eliminating most of the threats it encounters. Used to attack many smaller worlds or defend against a small group of warships.
Patrol-Flotilla (16 ships) - Frigate wing, Destroyer Squadron, Cruiser - The smallest battle formation. Alone, it can only attack and take over a smaller world, but it can also be used for high-speed raids and intercepting supply lines. Unlike other battle formations, the command ship is not a Capital Ship, but a Cruiser.
Task Force - This is not a pre-established battle formation, but a quickly assembled group of ships to perform a specific task. Examples are e.g. Task Force to protect Capital Ships which is undergoing trials(Frigate Wing, Single Capital Ship), Task Force to destroy a certain target, for which fast ships with high firepower are needed(Attack Frigate Division), the diplomatic squad(Capital Ship, Cruiser Squadron) and many more. These patterns may change depending on the need.