Commonscape

By: Griffin

Copyright notice: All characters belong to their respective owners, all original characters and plot elements belong to me.

Note: Most of the Andromeda crew is current as far as about 2 months ago. Farscape crew is quite a bit older.

Author's Note: Yes, I know it's not Sebatian lol I just don't want to find and fix every time I wrote it wrong. I would probably frell up the reloading of the chapters onto the site.

Summary: The Alliance makes a bold assault on the Coalition and one must wonder: does Fortune really favor the bold?...

The Long Hard Road

Fleet Admiral Gregory Reinhart frowned as he watched the holo-grid before him.

Second and Fifth Alliance Fleets had been allotted to the mission that Gregory was in command of.

Captain Hunt had selected him specifically because of his combat experience. Dylan had wanted to lead the operation himself, but Alliance Command had overruled him, stating that the Andromeda was too important as a symbol of fleet strength to use in such an assault.

So Gregory, aboard the Mobian battleship Unity of the Many, was in command of Task Force Two-point-one. Second Fleet, split into four Task Forces, was moving toward the Peacekeeper frontier, where they would strike four systems. The Task Forces would then form a spear and strike toward the heart of the Sebatian lead Coalition.

Fourth Fleet had been divided into three task groups, each on their way to assault one of the Peacekeeper's fellow Coalition members.

Gregory, by far, had the hardest mission. His task force would be attacking the Coalition fleet base at Peryan, where the Second Frontier Fleet was based.

"Sir, we're two hours from our objective," Commander Delia Smith reported from Flag Navigation and Gregory nodded.

* * * * * *

"We have incoming grav-flash!" Lieutenant Fera Demara reported on the Command Deck of the command cruiser Sebatia.

The flagship of Second Fleet went immediately to battle stations as Coalition sensors all over the system registered the arrival of an enormous Alliance fleet.

Initial estimates spotted Luxon, Ilanic and Commonwealth warships, in formation for a least-time assault of the fleet yards.

"Alert all ships and order formation Ango-Two. And as soon as we have hard numbers I want to hear them," High Admiral Sali Torit ordered.

As the Commanding Officer of Second Frontier Fleet, Sali was responsible for the safety of over ninety light-years of space between the Alliance and the Coalition.

Recently that task hadn't been very difficult as the Alliance focused on rebuilding their lost strength. His ships had been harassed here and there by Alliance raiders, but for the most part the front had been quiet.

Sali had gathered his fleet in the Peryan for war games. He felt that they needed to improve their anti-alliance tactics.

That decision, it would seem, was wise.

He had ninety-five percent of his fleet strength at his disposal.

Five command cruisers, six Nebari battleships, six Scorvian dreadnaughts, eight Hynerian battle cruisers and three Hynerian carriers formed the core of his fleet.

Battle cruisers, heavy cruisers, light cruisers and destroyers formed the rest of his fleet. He had a total of eleven battle cruiser squadrons, ten squadrons of heavy cruisers, fourteen light cruiser squadrons and eight destroyer flotillas. A huge number of warships considering the losses the Coalition seemed to be taking all across the board.

Sali hoped that it would be enough as the first hard drive numbers came flowing in.

Seventeen battleships, of either Luxon or Ilanic design; five Independent command cruisers, nine of the Commonwealth's battleships and ten Nietzschean battleships formed the core of the enemy fleet.

Their lighter elements were almost identical to his own forces, with the exception that they seemed to have an extra squadron of light cruisers running cover for their Commonwealth battleships.

"This is Admiral Torit, we are going to kick these Alliance intruders out of our star," he announced on the fleet-wide com. "All units begin formation Ango-Two."

Sali smiled slightly as his entire fleet seemed to move as one fluid entity. The lighter warships took up their positions at the head of the fleet as fighters launched from their bays.

Peacekeeper Prowlers, Nebari Arrows, Scorvian Strikers, Hynerian Dreadhammers and the new Coalition Arrow-Hammers launched from their docking bays.

Sali frowned slightly at the thought of the new fighter class. The ship had been designed with Alliance fighters in mind. It took advantage of the Arrow's mobility while drawing heavy guns and armor from the Dreadhammer. It was an idle fighter-killer, or rather was supposed to be.

This would be the first, full-sized engagement that the class would see. And it would determine if the design would be continued or left for scrap in the Coalition fighter yards.

"Admiral, all ships are moving into position and complying with operational parameters."

* * * * * *

Five command cruisers, six Nebari battleships, six Scorvian dreadnaughts, eight Hynerian battle cruisers and three Hynerian carriers.

Gregory was facing an enormous fleet, by anyone's standards. Fleet command had expected at least a portion of the enemy fleet to be on routine patrols along the ninety or so light years that they were charged with protecting.

The Unity's Combat Information Center estimated that they were facing anywhere from ninety to ninety-six percent of the fleet's total strength.

Task Force Two-Point-One had been designed to face a full one hundred percent of fleet strength, but at high costs.

Gregory shook his head as the holo-grid began to haze with the initial jamming and stealth system activation. His own ships had been generating electronic interference the minute they left the slipstream. Gregory didn't want the Coalition getting a good look at the Unity or her sister-ship the Strength In Numbers before they reached combat range.

The modified Mobian battleship designs took advantage of Frag cannon technology, Luxon plasma cannons and defense screens. Not to mention their use of FTL communications technology and Luxon stealth systems.

The Unity and Strength were the first of their class, with many more right behind them. The two ships had been nearly complete when the new designs were drawn up. Another week into their construction and the changes would have been impossible to make and still get the ships out when they did.

And Mobian battleships were the only designs being changed. Almost every design in the Commonwealth, Luxon, Ilanic and Independent lists were being modified to include the new technologies from the new allies.

The changes would help to provide the fleets with a balance once the new classes of ships were deployed.

One such design that was going to increase the Commonwealth's fleet power greatly was the newly christened Restored Heritage XMC class battle cruiser.

The design improved upon the Glorious Heritage class by adding command cruiser sized frag cannons, dreadnaught strength plasma cannons and defense screens to the ship. The result would be an extremely powerful warship capable of leading any task group into battle.

It was rumored among the higher echelons of the Fleet that when the first of the Restored Heritage class ships was christened, she would be named the Andromeda Ascendant and would replace the older ship as the Flagship of the Fleet.

The rumor had been denied on many levels of the Alliance High Command, but its resilience gave it some credit.

Gregory was one of the people that doubted the story. Dylan was very attached to his ship, and only its destruction would lead him to take on a new ship.

Much like the destruction of Gregory's previous command, the Glorious Star of Silen had lead him to take the Unity as his flagship.

Gregory frowned at his memory of the lost ship and then turned back to the task at hand.

"All ships prepare to launch fighters. Sensor drones are picking up incoming fighter craft, be advised we are entering a target rich environment."

* * * * *

"This is Ango-Leader to Ango-Two; expect enemy contact in ninety microts. They seem to have launched their whole compliment," the voice announced over the com and Sub-Officer Grena Sarin frowned.

Her AH-1 class Arrow-Hammer fighter-killer was a hog to handle compared to her agile Prowler. Her only advantage was that she had once piloted a marauder during combat.

Grena's frown deepened as she watched Arrows and Prowlers dart past her into the lead of the fighter formation. High Command didn't want the Arrow- Hammers to lead the assault, lest their designs be flawed and they be destroyed too quickly to effectively test.

When Flight Squad Seventeen, Officer Herit Rikesh and Sub-Officer Grena Sarin commanding, had been assigned to lead the first Arrow-Hammer squadron, Grena had been less than pleased.

They had only been training in the ships for a month. Their tactics were no where near what they would have been if FS-17 were allowed back in their prowlers.

*At least Herit gets his marauder.* Grena thought bitterly as she glared at the holo-graphic image of the marauder near the middle of her formation.

"Red team, taking the lead," an Arrow pilot announced as the enemy fighters became visible to the naked eye. And it was begun.

Arrows dodged incoming fire as they allowed their pulse cannons to get closer to the incoming enemy fighters.

Missiles launched from the enemy fighters, their targeting systems latching onto the nearest fighter.

Formations went to pieces as fighters bobbed and weaved to avoid the missile fire.

Arrows and Prowlers exploded brilliantly as missiles slammed into their hulls. Enemy fire tore apart more as the first Arrows reached what they expected to be ideal range. Pulse cannons opened fire and Grena smiled as the first of the enemy fighters exploded.

Then it was her turn.

"This is Ango-One, engaging enemy fighters," she announced ceremoniously as she became the first person to fire an Arrow-Hammer's main plasma cannon at an enemy fighter.

The plasma rounds and their accompanying pulse rounds pounded their target, a Luxon battle fighter. The ship exploded in a quick flash and Grena turned her attention to another target and to another target after that.

* * * * * *

"Sir, the Arrow-Hammers seem to be doing well against the enemy fighters," Lieutenant Fera Demara reported with an exultant smile, her green eyes twinkling with success. "Our fighters are pounding them heavily."

"Don't get too excited," Sali warned. "The battle has just begun. What is time until light warships enter combat range?"

"Estimates put initial fire exchange at one quarter arn," Fera reported and Sali nodded.

The real test of any fleet was in battle. Sali had drilled his ships for weeks using any number of observed attack patterns the Alliance would employ. He had designed Formation Ango-Two to take full advantage of his Hynerian battle cruisers and their Attika mounts while avoiding the withering fire of Luxon battleships.

He watched his tactical grid as fighters slipped through the enemy jamming shell and transmitted clear drive signatures and numbers.

Sali frowned as two of the red triangles alternated between red and orange, indicating an unknown design.

"Get me a close scan of those two," Sali ordered, highlighting the two ships.

A trio of Arrow-class fighters diverted from the dogfight and slipped between enemy destroyers.

A hail of pulse and plasma fire chased the three ships as they ran deeper into the enemy formation.

One of the fighters exploded as a volley of frag cannons caught her pilot from all directions.

A second fighter lost drive power as a pulse cannon from a nearby light cruiser grazed her drive. The pilot ejected from the craft only moments before the ship exploded.

The third fighter knifed deeper and deeper, where the larger ships forced more room between their drive fields. Point-defense fire rained down around the pilot, but whoever it was dodged and jumped to avoid becoming space dust.

The jamming field around the pair of battleships was heavier than anywhere else, but the Arrow pilot was able to make penetration. A signal radar map was all that the pilot could manage before a full broadside of pulse cannons, from a heavy cruiser's main guns no less, tore the vessel apart.

But that hull map was enough for Sali to frown.

They were hybridizing their ships.

* * * * * *

"They know," Commander Frank Listern reported from Flag Tactical. "That fighter got just inside our jamming field and hit us with pulse radar.

"Acknowledged," Gregory said with a nod. "What is the time to first contact between the destroyers and the enemy line?"

"Three minutes," Commander Listern reported.

Gregory frowned as he watched the two formations closing. If the Coalition ships survived this battle, they would take news of the design hybridization back to their High Command and perhaps give the Coalition ideas on how to merge their various designs.

Not to mention the fact that they would begin designing their formations to hit ships with as much of a variety as possible to overwhelm the various advantages.

Gregory watched the holo-grid as the red circles and green squares swirled around each other in the dogfight. The enemy fighters were holding their own, taking out as many Alliance fighters as they lost.

It didn't help that the Coalition seemed to have produced a new fighter class built specifically to attack the Garudas and Shrikes of his fleet.

"Sir," Frank interrupted. "Forward destroyers have the range and are commencing firing activities."

* * * * * *

Across the vast distances of space, pulse and plasma fire was invisible. There was no atmosphere or ions for the energy to vaporize. And the energy traveled at near light speed. There was nothing to intercept that fire with.

The only thing visible was the effect that same energy had on a target's hull or defense screen.

In the case of the latter, the screens crackled and lightning shot out from the point of impact. In the case of the former, explosions marked hits on armor and enemy gun turrets.

Frag shells and missiles, despite all of their speed, were visible in space. Counter-missiles could see the drive signatures of the missiles and could track the trajectory of the frag shells.

Any number of frag rounds and missiles were intercepted by tiny counter missiles. Missiles were diverted by decoys and jammers; frag rounds could be avoided if one was skilled enough.

But it was nearly impossible to stop every single frag round and missile. Some made it to attack range. Defense screens helped once more, detonating ordinance far clear of its effective attack range.

For the ships that did not have defense screens, the result was much different. The missiles could find the weakest attack point as they charged inward. Many missiles were targeted at gun turrets or at the command decks of their targets.

Destroyers and light cruisers shook as missiles slammed into their frag turrets or plasma emplacements. Some were thrown into chaos as their command decks and communications arrays were destroyed by ruthless armor- penetrating missiles.

Frag rounds, quite opposite of missiles, could not be specifically targeted past the ability to estimate where a particular shell might land by the time it reached its target.

The result was heavy damage to areas that weren't quite as vital to the ship's function. But some of the small rounds a destroyer or light cruiser could fire managed to dig themselves into Coalition turrets or command decks.

One such lucky round actually managed to bury itself in a full plasma magazine and tear off nearly an eighth of the ship's hull.

But the battle was not one sided.

Coalition plasma rounds tore in to Alliance hulls just as easily as Alliance rounds had torn in Coalition ships. And the majority of fire coming from the Coalition was either plasma or long-range pulse fire from Scorvian, Nebari or Hynerian warships.

Peacekeeper frag shells made far less penetration than their Alliance counter-parts had managed. Nearly half of the Alliance, after all, came from an environment that was missile rich and thus mounted impressive anti- missile defenses.

Not a single ship took any major damage from a Peacekeeper frag round.

The plasma and pulse fire, on the other hand, decapitated several light cruisers as their command decks were vaporized. Other warships were crippled as drive generators exploded beneath them.

Another volley, and another after that and another after that lashed out from both sides. Ships began to fall out of formation as their drives failed. Other ships exploded as a well placed attack lanced through one of their power plants.

The battle was getting ugly, and fast.

* * * * * *

"Sir, thirty seconds until we have a firing solution!" Lieutenant Commander Tara Illion reported on the Command Deck of the Unity of the Many. The Flag Captain nodded as a holo-timer ran down to zero.

A beep sounded throughout the command deck as that timer hit zero and Captain Tilton turned to his tactical officer.

"Commander, you are cleared to fire at will."

"Aye, sir, firing at will, sir." Commander Imota reported as she depressed a large crimson key. The Unity bucked as the fifty millimeter plasma guns and the two meter frag cannons belched fire.

Cruisers and destroyers on both sides of the conflict were being torn apart as the range between them closed. Almost every defense screen on the lighter warships had failed and the heavy cruisers were starting to develop holes in their protective shields.

The capitol ships of TF-4.1 were untouched, until now.

The beams of plasma from the Unity's trio of quad-barreled plasma turrets lanced out at one of the Hynerian battle cruisers. Those had been designated as the first targets of the Fleet. The extremely detailed hull maps being transmitted from the fighters allowed the tactical computers aboard the Alliance warships to precisely target the single Attika mount cannon each of those eight ships carried.

Twelve plasma bursts caught one of the battle cruisers square on the Attika mount. The resulting explosion cracked the battle cruiser in half. Two other joined her in destruction as the Unity wasn't the only ship whose attacks struck home.

Three of the battle cruisers were destroyed by the first attack and four more had their Attika mounts disabled. The lone survivor turned the deadly cannon in the direction of the Strength In Numbers and the weapon pulled every ounce of reserve power and slammed it through the barrel of the weapon.

The once proud Mobian battleship bucked as the beam of solid energy sliced through her defense screen and tore the ship apart. The ship literally fell apart, the chunks drifting with momentum as other ships dodged the debris.

"The Strength has been killed!" A voice announced and Captain Tilton nodded as another burst of plasma fire spit from the underside of his ship.

For her troubles, the ship that had destroyed the Strength found herself the target of the Unity and seven of the Luxon battleships.

The battle cruiser exploded in a brilliantly expanding ball of gas.

The focus on the Hynerians, however, had left the other Coalition capitol ships completely untouched in the opening volleys. The Peacekeeper command cruisers, Nebari battleships and Scorvian dreadnaughts unleashed a withering fire on their counterparts.

Battle cruisers exploded under the brutal rain of fire. The battle was getting hotter and hotter.

* * * * * *

Dylan frowned as the last of the Couriers arrived from Operation Sharpened Dagger and transmitted the reports it held to the Andromeda.

The three couriers from fifth fleet, in the case of Task Force Five-point- Three the remainder of the fleet, had arrived the previous day.

The attack on the Nebari had yielded an initial victory, the commanding officer reporting that his nearly unharmed fleet was proceeding to other systems. The attack on the Scorvians had resulted in the capture of three of their star systems, one of them with an intact shipyard, and the near destruction of two of the Scorvian's leading defense fleets.

The attack on the Hynerians was a disaster. Task Force Five-point-Three had been decimated in the Terala system, the defense fleet fielding a full twelve battle cruisers and their crushing Attika mounts. Vice Admiral Na'Tareen had been killed aboard his flagship the Ar'Talan when the battleship made a last ditch effort to destroy the enemy flagship.

Task forces Two-point-Two, Two-point-Three and Two-point-Four had all returned couriers reporting their success and their subsequent capture of nearby stars. All told twelve Peacekeeper stars had fallen to the Alliance.

The incoming courier was obviously from Task Force Two-point-One, the attack force that had been targeted at Peryan.

The fact that there were no other ships with the courier gave Dylan hope that perhaps the attack had succeeded. That hope was shattered as he reviewed the battle reports.

Although Admiral Baines had managed to destroy ninety-two percent of the enemy fleet, his task force had been almost completely decimated, including the two refitted Mobian battleships. The courier was literally the only ship to survive the massacre.

The report indicated that every single Coalition capitol ship had been destroyed, including their flagship.

Admiral Baines, his heavily damaged flagship taking on scores of boarders, had rammed his battleship into the command cruiser's side and detonated all four of the ship's power plants. The two ships had been vaporized and took a hail of Coalition shuttles and at least six destroyers with them.

Dylan closed the report and frowned as he paced the deck of the Andromeda.

The Alliance had expended much of its fleet in the opening stages of the war. The various member nations of the Commonwealth and the Alliance were working overtime on their shipyards to get the Fleet built back up to a level that would allow offensive activities. But without decisive victories, the Alliance could not risk further offensives. Not yet.

And so the Alliance started on the long hard road to reconstructing their fleet and the offensive options that fleet would give them.