Writer's notes: Updated 26 FEB 07. We now switch to the extablishment of new dynasties. The pithy blurb reflects the acts of the Earl of Warwick, the Kingmaker, in his attempts to manipulate power as Revan does.
We look back into the past to see the Battle of Vortex. I wanted to demonstrate why the Republic was getting creamed so often and I drew ideas from famous military disasters like Fredericksburg and Market Garden. Take note of the Dilbertisms that often really exist.
I also wanted to provide examples of Revan's military prowess by providing realistic scenarios in which she would employ these skills.
Kingmaker – Part I
Peace! Impudent and shameless Warwick, peace;
Proud setter up and puller down of kings.
William Shakespeare – Henry VI
Aboard the Light of Coruscant, the Flagship of the Grand Fleet of the Republic, General Burnslider smiled smugly as he surveyed the holographic depiction of the galaxy. Blue symbols, representing his forces, swarmed around the system that was to be his jump off point for this glorious offensive. "My grand strategy is designed to flank the Mandalorians and divide their forces," he told his senior officers as he stroked his thick sideburns. "Our engineers designed a secret hyperspace corridor around the rear of the enemy and when the Republic Fleet appears, the Mandalorians will be thrown into chaos."
In the highly regimented manner of the Republic military, all approvals had been made for this secret offensive, titled operation PONTOON BOAT, after the specialized hyperspace craft that would bring the fleet to the Mandalorians like a dagger to their throat.
Attired in his finest dress uniform, Burnslider turned to his command staff, all handpicked by him through their political connections; his third cousin twice removed, a relative of the Minister of the Navy, a friend of his aunt's. Their talents ranged from floral decorations to music to bird watching. All were fiercely loyal despite their lack of battle experience. Above all, they had good hair.
"We'll catch Mandalore with his pants down. I'll bag the whole lot…him, Ordo, Kale," declared the general with a clenched fist.
Agreeable murmurs filled the room along with a smattering of applause. There was no room for dissent on this bridge. One senior officer nodded. "Wonderful, General, wonderful. And might I say, General, you look marvelous, today."
Another officer smiled broadly. "General, tell us that story again…the one about how you invented the blaster."
Still another raised his hand in salute. "General, your uniform is magnificent."
"Magnificent, yes, magnificent," voiced the group.
General Burnslider smiled, mentally patting himself on the back for the solidarity that he had created. However, elsewhere in the fleet, cracks were appearing in the Republic's pristine plan for victory –
In one of the weapons bays of the great flagship, technicians gathered around a disassembled turbolaser coil as a man in a pressed gray uniform stood over them, hands on hips.
The lead technician showed some of the parts to his colleagues. "It's important that the coils fit together tightly or there will be an unacceptable power loss in the laser bolt that is fired."
Another technician picked up a number of metal rings and held them out. "Chief, we're short a few rings."
"What? Okay, go get some more."
The man in gray held out the palm of his hand to stop the young technician. "Just hold on there, young fellow. Did you fill out the coil ring requisition form?"
The technician looked confused, his eyes narrowing. "But sir, we just found this out. The coil rings prevent the turbolaser from overheating. We need them to fight."
The officer shook his head. "Fighting is irrelevant. Administrative purity is important."
"For getting you promoted…." retorted the chief.
The officer's face turned beet red and his jaw clenched tight. "Silence, I'll have none of your insubordination," he said and then looked down into a data pad. "I see here that your allotment of coil rings is fulfilled. You can't procure any more or you'll be over budget!"
The chief stood up sharply and faced the officer. "Sir, without the replacement rings, this weapon will have only ten shots at most before overheating."
"That's irrelevant. Staying within the budget is important."
The chief kicked over a tool box. "Who's side are you on? I'll bet there's a shrine for you on Malachor Five!"
The officer sputtered and backed away. "O-o-okay, t-t-that's it! You are relieved! Report to the brig!"
The chief threw up his hands. "We're all going to die anyway. The brig is the safest part of the ship," he said as he stomped off.
As the chief departed from view, the officer glared down at the men. He was still shaking. "Enough of this maintenance for now. I want to see your quarters spotless in one hour!" he said, sending the men scurrying off, leaving the guts of the turbolaser lying on the floor. Once the men had gone, the officer quickly filled out his report, making sure to claim credit for removing a crewmember.
"Ahhh, one step closer to promotion."
Elsewhere, within the SCIF, the secure facility for the ship's intelligence functions, the Chief Intelligence Officer, a man of great ambition and loyalty, strutted about, reviewing intelligence reports. He was attired in a pressed gray uniform with golden epaulettes and a rack of medals upon his chest. He pointed to two intelligence officers, who were seated at their stations. "I'm assigning you to Protocol Alpha. Begin operations immediately," he declared and then left.
"What's Protocol Alpha, Wes?" asked the ensign, a red-haired woman.
The lieutenant, a square-jawed young man, switched several dials and new displays came up on their screens. "Here you go, Kim. It means that we're monitoring a different frequency band. Which one, they don't tell us."
"Oh, thanks, you're the greatest. You've really helped me out here. I'd be lost without you."
The lieutenant shrugged. "We're all on the same team, fighting the same enemy."
The ensign put on the headset and watched the message traffic scroll downward across her screen. After a minute, her eyes narrowed and she chewed on his lip. She was hearing something that was disconcerting. "Hey, this is strange. This doesn't sound like Mandalorian message traffic at all."
The lieutenant put on his headset and his jaw slowly fell open. "Wait…this is our message traffic. Why are we listening in on our own people? According to our own intelligence, we still have no idea what the Mandalorians are up to."
"Perhaps it's for internal security?"
"But internal security has their own protocols. This doesn't make any sense. Our function is to figure out what the enemy is doing? I don't like this one bit. I think the boss is out of his mind. How will we find the Mandalorian fleet?"
The ensign nodded at her superior's words as she sent a message out.
Taking a deep breath, the lieutenant continued, "This mission has been fraught with absurdity from the outset. I've been thinking about going over Commander Jarbinx' head and discussing this with the Admiralty. I think we're setting ourselves up for disaster again." He hit the console lightly with his fist. "After all, are we trying to win this war or just get a few people promoted?" he said angrily. Then, he looked at Kim and smiled. "I'm only telling you this because I trust you. We've been friends for a year now."
At that, Commander Jarbinx, the Chief of Intell and two armed guards burst into the room. Jarbinx pointed at the lieutenant. "Seize him!" he yelled and the guards pulled Wes from his chair. "Lieutenant, you will be investigated for seditious activities," the chief said as the lieutenant was hauled away. Then, Jarbinx turned and looked upon the ensign with a smile. "Thank you, Ensign. I'll see that you're promoted right away. There is a medal in this for you."
The lieutenant shrieked. "You did this? Why, you rat! We were friends."
The ensign grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I want to be a captain one day."
Jarbinx patted the ensign on the back. "I see a bright future for you in the fleet. You've made your bones by taking out a fellow officer."
As the lieutenant was dragged from the room, he cried, "Maybe the Mandalorians should win! At least they face their victims!"
Kim shied away at Wes' stinging words. She looked up to Commander Jarbinx in his finely pressed uniform. "Sir, we do know where the Mandalorian fleet is, don't we?"
He shook his head. "Oh, that's irrelevant. What's important is that we know where our dissenters are and what they might be saying. To improve morale, we must tighten the screws on everyone and root the dissenters out aggressively."
"I understand, sir," she said with the eyes of a true believer.
"Excellent, I want all intelligence resources devoted to watching the crew. Should anyone have less than glowing statements about the command, I want to be notified immediately. There is to be no disapproval for this operation…do I make myself clear?"
"Crystal clear, sir…and might I say, sir, you look marvelous."
On the Bridge, as General Burnslider initiated a toast to his victory yet to be won, the Logistics Officer reviewed reports of the materiel being forwarded to the Vortex Sector; the fleet had only 20 of the needed hyperspace craft. There was no way the offensive could be launched on schedule.
The Logistics Officer frowned and leaned over to the Operations Officer. "Hey, I got a problem…we don't have enough hyperspace craft. Coruscant is dragging their feet on procurement, saying we haven't submitted the AFX dash Zero-Five-Five dot A Form. I've never even heard of that form."
The Ops Officer looked over the report. "Oh buddy, you're screwed. That's a procurement oversight. It would have to go to a Board of Inquiry. You best forget you ever saw that report. If you submit a DPQ Ten-Twenty Two in triplicate, that will cover you ass."
"Oh, thanks man, you're the best," the Logistics Officer said as he deleted the report that indicated the lack of hyperspace craft. "Those political hacks have built their careers on trashing guys in the trenches, like me."
"Well, that's the saying…it's tough for Command to take down a Mandalorian…we're easy targets."
As evidence of the deficiency vanished, so did the Republic Fleet's element of surprise.
The Republic Fleet
A week later, the projected time for the offensive to begin, the Republic Fleet lay 'at anchor', unable to bring their ships to the Vortex Sector. Admiral Burnslider sat in his ready room, entertaining Twi'lek dancing girls as his staff ran around, unable to make a decision.
Two commodores wailed over a request from Coruscant, asking for hourly updates on the status of the fleet. "It's the same as it was an hour ago. My captains are spending half their time providing these updates….and where are those damn hyperspace craft?" one of them screamed.
At one console, the Logistics Officer began whistling quietly and departed the bridge.
"We're just going to have to make the journey piecemeal," concluded the other commodore.
Bit by bit, the Republic Fleet arrived at the Vortex Sector, weeks behind schedule. Uncoded message traffic from the fleet, providing hourly updates, lit up the Republic force like a beacon on radio frequency bands; a blind Gizka could see them coming.
Upon the arrival of the Light of Coruscant at the outer edge of the solar system, Admiral Burnslider reviewed his grand fleet; dozens of capital ships, hundreds of fighters, and thousands of men. According to the approved battle plan, his ships slowly assumed a close, parade-like formation.
Then, the Sensor Officer turned. "Admiral, I'm receiving numerous sensor spikes along Mandalorian frequencies…. They're all over the system…defensive satellites, turbolaser batteries, and Basilisk Droids."
"What? That's impossible. This is some kind of ruse. Besides, we can't pull back now. Order the attack."
RNS Eagle
Aboard the Eagle, the flagship of the Jedi fleet, Revan and Malak watched the unfolding battle from behind a large moon on the other end of the system. Revan was dressed in her naval uniform, gray with golden epaulettes and a silver star on her collar. Malak stood in his red body armor with a red cape that enveloped his muscular frame.
The blond haired Jedi chuckled to himself. "Revan, I loved how you handled Coruscant and their ridiculous requests."
"Static is a wonderful thing sometimes," she replied and imitated her last transmission to Headquarters. "Coruscant…pssshhhhttttt…request unreadable…psssshhhttttt…too much interference from the Ryloth Sun…psssshhhtttt."
The young Jedi, Bandon Sere laughed. "They still keep calling…every hour, even though we haven't answered them in a week. I expect that is the Minister's attempt at exerting control over us."
Revan grinned and flicked her hand out dismissively. "Don't they understand that the more we communicate, the greater chance the Mandalorians have of intercepting messages and fixing our position? I'll bet his aides are in a tizzy right now, running around like headless Gizka, trying to find us. They'll need to manufacture some fictitious report about this so as not to lose their jobs and still get promoted," she said and then added, "Always remember, operational security."
Bandon's mirth was obvious now and his face beamed with delight. "Revan, your last transmission to Coruscant seems to have had an effect on things. Our SIGINT has determined that the Mandalorians have taken the bait and diverted two divisions to Ryloth." Revan nodded at this and could see that Bandon had filled out and was now a muscular young man, full of fire.
"Turn your weaknesses into strengths," she said wryly. "The Mandalorians are expecting us to initiate useless communications, reports, and memos. Why not give them one that suits our purposes?"
Malak laughed deeply. "And they'll be sitting at Ryloth waiting for a ghost fleet. I love it."
The admiral leaned back and took a sip of her caffa. "Excellent, now let's sit back and enjoy the show."
On the tactical display they could see Admiral Burnslider's force breaking upon the entrenched defenses of the Mandalorians. Planetary cannon and turbolasers tore through the tight ranks of the Republic Fleet, ripping gaping holes in their formations. Three waves of attackers crashed upon the Mandalorians, leaving burning Republic ships and shattered fighters. Revan bit her lip as she saw the Republic men die in droves. I feel for those brave men…their families…their friends. However, I must remain detached…aloof. I must harden my heart to their anguished cries. We must defeat the Mandalorians. All other considerations are subordinate to that.
Revan narrowed her eyes with determination and resolved to let her comrades perish for the greater good.
When Burnslider's attack stalled and their demoralized forces fell back in confusion, Mandalore counterattacked, hoping to turn the battle into a rout.
As the enemy left its entrenched position and extended itself, Revan stood sharply. "Now's the time. Signal the attack."
Revan's forces swept down upon the rear of the Mandalorian force, obliterating a quarter of their ships before they could respond. The enemy's heavy artillery tried to ward off the strike, but ended up tearing into their own ships in a crossfire.
Within minutes, the Mandalorian line crumbled and individual units began to flee.
Malak pounded his fist on a console in glee, his boyish face aglow with pride. "They're running…by the Force, they're running!" he called as the backsides of the enemy could be seen before they jumped to hyperspace.
A few stunned Mandalorian ships were unable to flee and the Republic ships quickly captured them. "Secure from General Quarters," Revan announced to the fleet. "Victory is ours."
With the Vortex Sector secured, Revan reviewed the after action reports with a discerning eye. Burnslider's Fleet had taken heavy losses, but the Mandalorian casualties were staggering. The new admiral smiled. "At the height of the battle, Burnslider fled back to Coruscant, no longer caring about the fate of his force," she told Malak with a wry chuckle.
Offhandedly, Revan waved to Bandon and Mai-Lyn. "Oh yes, give Coruscant a status update…tell them we are victorious." The disdain in her voice was obvious.
The general smiled as she sent the message.
Malak then approached and knelt before Revan. "My Admiral…my love, how could I ever have doubted you?" he said, extending his hand to her.
She took his hand firmly and then turned her eyes out to space. "Vrook…Shan…those fools. How shortsighted they were. They will be forgotten by the rivers of history."
Malak nodded his head in agreement. "When the Mandalorians are crushed, they will understand that we were right."
Revan stood and looked out of the viewing port onto the Vortex System, the turning point of the war. "Come Malak…Bandon, Mai-Lyn, let us meet with the commanders of Burnslider's fleet. We need to incorporate them into our force and bring them in line with my vision."
In a magnanimous gesture, Revan went to visit the ships of the shattered fleet. Aboard one of the few intact vessels, Revan met with the commanders of Burnsliders force. She singled out those, who had fought or led well and gave them her praise.
"Captain Sunfire, you held together elements of the fleet after the Mandalorians had shattered the attack. Your quick thinking saved numerous Republic lives. You reflect great credit upon yourself, the Navy, and the Republic. In honor of your deeds, I am granting you Governorship of the Vortex System."
Revan turned and opened the viewing port, revealing the splendor of the system, numerous planets orbiting a bright, yellow sun. The captain bowed low before Revan. "You have my undying loyalty, Admiral. I thank you."
The ebony-haired woman then turned to a starfighter pilot. "No longer will there by leadership by politics. My commanders will advance by merit and in that vein, Commander Saul Karath…front and center," she commanded, using a traditional military phrase; her learning had extended to the military culture and she used it to gain a following.
The sandy-haired pilot's eyes grew large in surprise, but he marched up to the tall woman and saluted. "Commander Karath, reporting as ordered."
Revan pinned a medal on his chest and then placed captain's pips in his hand. "Captain Karath, you are promoted effective immediately with all the benefits and responsibilities therein. Report to the carrier Reprisal as its commanding officer."
Saul's jaw fell open and he bowed in deep respect and gratitude. "Admiral…I don't know what to say."
She put her hand on the older man's shoulder. "Say you'll serve me with valor…. Fight well for me, Saul, and I'll make you a king."