Chapter 2 – Flanking maneuvers

A Star Destroyer, the 'Conqueror', floated through the emptiness of space. A dozen pod-like objects descended from the docking bay and blasted off in separate directions. One of the pods found its way to a green planet; a red flame streaked through the sky before the intruder slammed into the planet's surface, coughing up smoke and debris. As the dust cleared, a robot emerged from the crater. The robot was actually a First Order probe droid. It immediately began its search for the Resistance.

It took it only a few hours to find out the existence of a fortified Resistance military base in this jungle world of Anthora, as was the planet's name. The military base was heavily fortified, with a series of trenches surrounding the base and huge laser cannons all over the base, as well as tens of anti-aircraft guns. The combination of trenches and heavy artillery would be enough to halt the advance of most armies. The droid could see thousands of soldiers in the base's perimeter, all equipped with rifles. As it was recording this scene and sending the images to the 'Conqueror', it was suddenly shot down by a Resistance soldier who spotted it.

On the 'Conqueror', Char and Max where waiting for the results of probe droids' search. The communications officer, Michael, announced to Char, "Sir, the probe droid in the jungle world of Anthora has been shot down, but it managed to send us images of a strong fortified position of the Resistance. There seem to be an awful lot soldiers in that base. I am sure that they outnumber us."

"So much for surprise….", Char murmured.

"Shall we bomb it to oblivion?", Max asked.

"No!", Michael intervened. "From the images the probe droid sent, it seems that the base has a quite a lot of anti-aircraft guns. It will be a slaughter if we send Tie Fighters to bomb them."

"Indeed.", Char said. "We will need to launch a ground assault, if we are going to defeat them. We are going to land on some distance from the base and encamp there. I need to know more about the terrain and the location of the enemy base before launching an attack. We should not be hasty, for from the images it seems that we are outnumbered."

"Prepare for landing!", Max shouted and the Star Destroyer entered Anthora's atmosphere. As the jungle was too thick for the ship to land, Max asked Char for further instructions.

"Have the Star Destroyer to fly as low as possible and tell the troops to use parachutes to land onto the jungle.", Char ordered.

Indeed, the Stormtroopers equipped themselves with parachutes and jumped from the Star Destroyer onto the jungle. Boxes containing supplies and weapons were also thrown on the jungle with parachutes.

'I just hope that the enemy will not launch an assault now that our troops are disorganized due to the landing.', Char thought as he was jumping too from the Star Destroyer onto the ground.

Thankfully, for Char, the enemy commander, Nathalian, had no intention to launch an attack on the invading First Order troops. A tall, thin man in his fifties with a brown beard and a stern look, Nathalian was the commander of the Resistance military forces in Anthora. He was now in his office and talking to General Leia Organa through a hologram projector.

"General, the First Order has landed military forces here.", he said.

"And what is your strategy, Nathalian?", Leia asked. "Do they outnumber you? You should try to delay them until reinforcements arrive, but if the odds are against you and the situation is too critical, I give your permission to retreat."

Nathalian laughed. "General, I do not need any reinforcements at all. Not only do I outnumber them by two to one, but my defenses are exceptionally strong. I have dug trenches and the cannons and anti-aircraft guns shall offer protection to our troops. It will be a slaughter for the First Order. No one can take over this base with so few soldiers. I shall avenge our fallen comrades and score a great victory against the First Order."

"I hope you are right. In any case, never underestimate the enemy."

Meanwhile, the Stormtroopers had created a temporary defensive perimeter around the spot where they had landed and placed machine guns all over that perimeter to protect themselves from a possible Resistance attack. Inside the perimeter, the troops had set tents and were storing the boxes containing supplies.

Inside a tent, Char, Max and a few other officers were discussing on what they should do to capture the Resistance base. Char knew that if he could defeat the Resistance on Anthora, he would be promoted and more Star Destroyers and troops would be assigned to him. But his forces were meagre and he had only a few tanks under his command.

"We need to send probe droids to further scan the terrain and report to us the topography of the area.", Char said. "We need to see if there is any weakness which we can exploit, so as to avoid launching a direct assault, which would surely be a disaster."

"I agree with you, sir.", Max said. "Although I have a feeling this is a battle we cannot win."

He then turned to an officer and shouted, "Officer, sent the probe droids to scan the area."

Indeed, tens of probe droids were sent in different directions and were able to scout a huge amount of area. A few hours later, when the sun was setting, Michael reported to Char and Max the results of the scouting.

"Sir, it seems that the trees near the military base have been mostly cut down by the Resistance soldiers, probably during the construction of the base. So the terrain will not be much of a problem, but the defenses seem to be too strong. There are trenches surrounding the base and too many cannons. There seems to be only one weak spot: on the far right side of the base, there is a marsh. Not many troops are stationed there, but it seems unpassable. Our tanks and vehicles would most likely be stuck on the muddy water."

Char thought for a moment and then finally ordered, "Tomorrow morning, send the majority of the troops in a direct assault on the base. The tanks and the elite troops will follow me through the marsh. We will strike there, where there are few soldiers guarding the place, and outflank the enemy. A combined attack from both sides and the surprise caused by the breaching of their defenses should be enough to cause a collapse of the enemy defense."

"But, sir, it is too risky!", Max protested. "If the tanks do not make it through the marsh and get stuck, our soldiers attacking on the front will be slaughtered. Not to say that according to most textbooks, in order to defeat an entrenched enemy you must have the numerical advantage while we are outnumbered by the enemy."

"Relax. Remember how you thought it was impossible to take over the asteroid base and yet we did it? The same thing will happen here too."

Max reluctantly nodded in agreement and gave the orders to the men. They were to rest for a few hours and then they would launch their attack as soon as the sun appeared on the sky of Anthora. Few were able to sleep. Most of them were too nervous about the upcoming battle. They knew that the odds were against them and that the enemy defenses were too strong, but they had faith that their commander would grant another victory. Char was their only hope. Char was even more nervous. A defeat would most likely put an end to his career.

On the morning of the next day, the troops ate breakfast as fast as they could, equipped themselves with blasters and began marching towards the enemy base. They had minimal artillery and the cannons were reserved for the surprise attack of Char on the western side of the base. Neither did they have aerial support, as Char did not want to waste Tie Fighters on an attack on the base, knowing that the anti-aircraft guns of the Resistance would decimate his air force.

The troops marched forward in perfect order, one line walking after the other, and walking slowly. Soon, they saw before them the trenches of the enemy base and the laser cannons. A "Fire!" shout was heard from the Resistance base and the laser cannons began firing at the Stormtroopers.

"Fall down!", Max, who was leading the attack on the front, ordered. The Stormtroopers fell on the ground, dodging the enemy fire. Still, some of them were killed.

"Stand up and ran!", Max shouted and the soldiers charged forward towards the trenches. The Resistance soldiers in the trenches fired with their rifles and some of them with machine guns, decimating the Stormtroopers. The laser cannons fired again and again at the First Order troops, blowing them by the tens. Bodies were dismembered; soldiers were losing arms, legs. Severed bodies lied all over the place. The shouting and the cries of the injured echoed all over the battlefield.

But some of the Stormtroopers managed to the make it to the trenches. They jumped into them and fired at the Resistance soldiers dug in. They returned the fire and a fierce battle ensued. Both Stormtroopers and Resistance fighters were beginning to use laser knifes, vibroblades and even rocks in their attempt to kill the enemy. Swords were stabbing enemy soldiers, rocks were used to crush the heads of the enemies. Blood flowed in the trenches and dead bodies piled up.

Meanwhile, Char was leading the tanks and elite troops to the marsh on the far right side of the base. 'If this does not work', Char thought, 'I am doomed. Hux will never forgive the loss of so many troops if I do not deliver him a victory. This battle will either mark my rise to power or my fall and complete failure.'

The tanks and troops under Char were moving slowly towards the marsh, not wanting to attract the attention of the enemy. As they were moving forward, Char spoke to Max through his comlink: "Max, do you read me?"

"Yes!", Max replied, although he struggled to hear Char because of all the explosions and battle cries echoing all over the battlefield.

"How are things going?"

"We have taken terrible loses. If the enemy does not soon collapses, we will be forced to retreat. But at least we too have caused them many casualties."

"Good. This will force them to bring more troops in the front and further weaken their defenses on the right side. I will be soon outflanking them."

While Char was leading his men, Nathalian was reporting to Leia.

"General, I am pleased to inform you that the battle has being going to our favor.", Nathalian said, grinning. "The enemy attacks are being repelled and they have taken great casualties. I told you that my defenses would be strong enough for any army."

"I am glad to hear that. Nevertheless, you must remain vigilant. I, somehow, have a bad feeling about this."

"You worry too much General. The enemy army will be totally smashed by the end of the day."

While Nathalian was speaking, in the marsh the tanks attempted to cross the muddy water and drive into the enemy base, but some of them got stuck. Meanwhile, mosquitos, snakes and the lush vegetation slowed the progress of the ground troops.

"Dammit!", Char shouted. "Just what I needed… Troops push the tanks! Use all your strength!"

The troops began pushing the tanks and were trying to unstuck them. They were sweating and exhausted. The fact that they were wearing helmet and heavy uniform in the hot tropical terrain of Anthora certainly did not help. They were being pushed to the limit of their physical abilities and were on the verge of collapse. But they knew that if they failed, they would all be killed. So they put all their strength in the work at hand and managed to unstuck the tanks from the mud.

"Good!", Char commented. "Now, launch the attack!"

The few Resistance soldiers near the marsh were terrified to see tanks and elite Stormtroopers charging at them. Their faces turned pale white and they ran away in fear. The strike force continued its march, soon reaching the first real defensive line of the enemy. Although there were trenches dug in the ground, they were undermanned as the majority of men had been sent to reinforce the frontal defenses, and the few laser cannons were no much for the heavy First Order tanks. A squad of elite Stormtroopers cleansed the trenches from enemies by using grenades and flamethrowers, incinerating tens of enemy soldiers.

Char could not help but smile at the sight of the enemy running away. "My plan is a success!" he shouted and began laughing. The whole western front collapsed and the tanks and Stormtroopers were able to outflank the enemy units defending the front of the base and attack them with fury. Their wish to avenge their fallen comrades empowered the fighting abilities of the First Order troops while the Resistance soldiers were surprised and terrified by the sudden appearance of this new enemy force behind their backs, when they had already taken so many casualties and were on the verge of collapse, and they soon retreated. The retreat was disorganized and turned into a full scale rout. Every man was for himself and the entire defense collapsed.

Nathalian was in his office, attempting to report the new situation to Leia, when Stormtroopers broke into the base itself. They fired with their blasters at anything moving and their grenades caused huge explosions which shook the base. Fire engulfed everything and burned enemy officers and troops. A group of Stormtroopers headed straight to Nathalian's office. They barged in, blowing up the door, and shot the commander upon sight. Char walked into the office, accompanied by a few guards, and saw the hologram of a terrified Leia.

"Madam, I am glad to meet you.", he said, smiling. "I am Char Bright, Admiral of the 'Conqueror'. I am pleased to inform you that commander Nathalian has been killed and now this base is under the control of the First Order. Next time, do not place your troops under the command of such an arrogant and incompetent officer."

He then turned off the hologram projector and ordered an officer, "Order the elite troops to hunt down and kill as many of the retreating enemies. The more enemies they kill, the better."

At that moment, an excited Max rushed into the room. "You've made it!", Max shouted. "That was awesome. We actually managed to defeat a far larger force entrenched in a strongly fortified position."

"See, we can achieve anything with the right tactics."

Char remained silent for a moment and then continued, "Max, go inform General Hux of the victory here. Make sure to tell him about how strong the enemy defenses were and how we were outnumbered."

"I will go right away, sir!"

With this victory, he would surely be further promoted. 'If I can achieve such victories with only so few men', Char thought, 'who knows what I can do with an entire fleet under my command? This battle may only be the beginning of my career. I am sure that I shall rise even higher and no one will be able to stop me from climbing to the top of the ranks. I will show them the difference that a genius can make on the battlefield.'

When he was a young boy in Jakku, no one could have predicted that he would become a victorious military commander. Although he was not poor, he wasn't rich either. He was excellent in mathematics when he was young, but no one could predict such a meteoric rise. When he left as a young man Jakku for the Officers Academy of the First Order, no one believed he would be admitted. But he proved them all wrong. And now he once again proved wrong those fellow officers who thought that Char was going to remain Admiral of a minor force.

Max reported to Hux the military victory and he requested Char to communicate with him. Char went to the communications room of the 'Conqueror' and the hologram of Hux appeared before him. Hux, smiling, said, "Your military victory in Anthora is quite impressive. You managed to cleanse the area from the Resistance, despite having inferior forces and having to face an entrenched enemy force. That was an impressive military feat. You actually managed to pull off a daring military maneuver and showed that you have both innovative military thought and that you are ready to take risks in order to bring down the enemy. I will assign you two more Star Destroyers, the 'Warrior' and the 'Prince'. Also, I shall give you more funds and increase the wages of the troops under your command. Your next mission will be to launch an offensive on the Hoth system, where there is large military presence of the New Republic."

"Thank you, sir! I shall not disappoint you!"

"I hope so. The Republic forces are more numerous and far better equipped than their Resistance counterparts and have better weapons and artillery. You will need all your military skill to defeat them. It will not be an easy campaign to win."

Char got what he wanted: more troops, further recognition and glory. If he continued scoring victories for the First Order, he would soon become famous all over the galaxy. The thought of him becoming as well known as Kylo Ren and General Hux instantly brought a smile to his face.


On Yavin IV, inside an ancient pyramid made of stone, Leia Organa was directing the forces of the Resistance. Although the New Republic was now openly at war with the First Order, the Resistance remained a separate force, even if it cooperated closely with Republic forces. Leia thought that it was fitting that the new headquarters of the Resistance were on the same place where the headquarters of the Rebel Alliance once were. Tens of officers were sitting on desks and typing on their computers, communicating with military forces across the galaxy and searching for information asked by Leia.

"General, we have the info you asked for.", one of the officers said.

"Which one?", Leia nonchalantly asked. She had been directing so many forces and asking for so much info that even she herself did not remember all of her orders. Being General of the Resistance was a tedious job that demanded all of her attention.

"On that First Order Admiral named Char Bright. The one who conquered Anthora."

"Tell me what you found out about him."

"It seems that he comes from Jakku. He enrolled to the Officers Academy of the First Order and was the best student in his class. He was appointed as 'Supplies Officer' for the Star Destroyer 'Conqueror' before becoming its Admiral. He has defeated twice our forces, despite having inferior to us forces."

"Jakku?", Leia repeated. "That's where Rey comes from… Is it possible that she knows this man?"

But she quickly dismissed the idea. Just because they came from the same planet, it does not mean that they would know each other. But the officer found Leia's suggestion to be a good idea.

"Why don't you ask her when she returns from her training with Luke? She might know something."

"I do not see a point in this, but I will do. There is no harm in asking about this, I suppose."

"Should we place a bounty on Char's head, General?"

Leia smiled. "No. He seems to be an able officer, but I think we are overestimating him. He commands only a minor force and has defeated only a few local garrisons. He has not proved himself in a large scale military campaign yet."


Char was in his room, lying on his bed after another tiring day, and thinking about his next military campaign. He was excited about it, and so were his troops. Although the casualties were great in the battle of Anthora, the fact that they had won against superior enemy forces and the increase in their wages made the men adore Char and unable to wait for their next victory.

'Who would have thought back in Jakku that I would be so successful?', he thought. This reminded him of his home planet; his parents and his friends. Among his childhood friends, the one with whom he spent most of the time was a young girl called Rey. She was three years younger than him and the way they met was completely accidental.

She was cleaning items brought by the scavengers to Unkar Plutt for a living at that time, as she was not old enough to scavenge by herself. Char had decided for once to accompany his parents to the market. They wanted to buy items from there, as doing so was cheaper than buying new ones. Rey was running, wanting to bring some more items she had cleaned to Unkar Plutt, while Char was looking around, trying to find if there was anything cool among the items on sale. As neither of them was particularly careful at that moment, they collided. Char quickly apologized to Rey and helped her got up. No one had been polite and kind to her before while Char was bored and wanted a friend to talk to, as he still did not have many friends due to his shy character. So the two young children soon became friends.

They played together all the time and Char was even helping Rey in her work. The two of them especially liked going to the sand dunes, lying on the sand and watching the night sky with the thousands of bright stars gleaming and the space ships taking off from the spaceport. Rey was telling Char the stories she had heard from pilots coming to the spaceport and both dreamed of leaving this planet and exploring the vast galaxy, of which they had heard so much.

However, Char had not seen for years Rey. When he became eighteen years old, he left Jakku for the Officers Academy of the First Order. Before leaving Jakku, Rey had given to him a talisman to symbolize their friendship. This talisman was actually one of the few items left to Rey from her parents. So close was their friendship. Char had kept it all those years, to remind himself of Rey and their friendship.

But Char quickly brushed aside those thoughts and began thinking of the glory he would gain if he defeated the Republican forces in Hoth. He had been told by Max that another First Order fleet had attempted to take over Hoth five month ago, but it failed miserably despite being numerically superior to the Republican forces. So, if he could achieve victory in Hoth, it would surely enhance his prestige. No fortress was going to stop his rise to power.