Chapter 15 - 2405 to 2408: Overlord
In the weeks leading up to the Righteous Rebellion, protests raged across the Federation. With the declared Executive Powers, these protests are crushed in days, and a media blackout is initiated in certain "precarious" planets. Staff changes occur swiftly on a wide scale, and those councilors who seemed most opposed to executive powers disappear from the political arena. In their places are little known councilors, who are strangely without a social life and with little to no emotion present on their faces. In addition to this, and far from the public's eye, new robotic armies are put into production. thousands of killing machines, sentient but obedient, roll off the production lines and form the ranks of the new grand Roboid Army. The first few Roboids begin to leave Earth.
As the war stands, the Righteous Rebellion has three fleets of moderate power, one in each of the three inhabited systems. The Federation's 3rd Fleet is sent to the Beta Caeli to deal with the rebel main fleet, which is currently bombarding the defense platforms in the system. 1st Fleet was in Irass when the conflict began, so it will be several months before it arrives. The Titan Valkyrie is retreating back to the Sol system for repairs and to regroup with 2nd Fleet.
Beta Caeli falls after a short stand against the rebels, but by the end of October, it is occupied. Several more ships join with the rebel fleet before 3rd Fleet arrives under the command of Admiral Tara TBC.
A stupendous space battle breaks out when the two fleets meet, and at first victory seems certain for the Federation.
That is, until a second rebel fleet arrives, and the scales even out. And a third arrives not long after. Things look dark for 3rd Fleet, and they retreat after sustaining huge casualties. The first battle of the rebellion is a defeat, and it shocks the administration, but with media blackout now across over half of the Federation, very little news of the battle reaches the public's ears.
One of the rebels returns to the Norgon system for repairs, while another moves to the Tibbacor system.
2nd Fleet arrives in Beta Caeli to an empty system. The station is occupied in a few days, and the Norgon system is the next target. 2nd Fleet moves on to take down the rebel fleet stationed there.
All alone, the rebel ships are destroyed one after another, until the remnants flee back to Kiram. Now Forsteria is put under siege. Unfortunately for the Federation, and lucky for the rebellion, the main ground forces training centers were on Kiram and Saxon, which are now under rebel control, so the armies of the Federation are lacking significantly.
1st Fleet arrives in Beta Caeli just as the main rebel fleet returns. The enemy fleet has since repaired and gained reinforcements to replace lost ships. Still, the Federation comes out on top, but it is a hard fought victory. A dozen rebel corvettes, several destroyers, a cruiser, and a battleship are destroyed, but at the cost of four Federation ships.
The second rebel fleet arrives too late to save their comrades, and the battered Federation ships engage.
They are crushed as well, losing half of their forces. This time, seven Federation vessels are lost.
A week later, they return. What is left of their crumbling fleet focuses entirely on destroying the Titan Enterprise.
As the enemy fleet jumps into the system, every ship's power core is focused on keeping their shields up for as long as possible. They close in on the Federation fleet, the corvettes in the front taking the brunt force of the missiles, lasers, and kinetic projectiles fired their way. As the distance shortens, nearly half of the corvettes are gone. At long last, Admiral Obr-Lend shouts "Now!"
The dozen or so cruisers, destroyers, and battleships let loose every ounce of firepower they possess toward the Enterprise. The lasers and projectiles blast a hole through the shield long enough for over fifty missiles to collide with the Titan's port side. Explosions rock the frame, and flames and expanding air rush through the corridors. The blast doors are too slow, and the explosions reach the stern, igniting the fuel reserves. The Enterprise collapses in a blindingly bright burst of fire and debris. Ten thousand lives are gone in a matter of seconds.
The last few seconds before destruction
Particles and chunks of spaceship accelerated to tremendous speeds pelt the other Federation ships, destroying several corvettes and destroyers and one battleship. The remainder of the rebel fleet tries to flee, but only a few escape back to Kiram. Admiral Obr-Lend's flagship is among them.
The siege of Forsteria has been going on for over a year, and the destruction is unimaginable. The entire capital city of Agraria is in ruins, and the death toll from that bombardment alone is well into the millions. Across the planet, most of the other major cities have been spared, but every military base has been reduced to ash.
Agraria
As the residents of one intact city looks up at the night sky, they see a monstrously huge spaceship enter orbit. Usually, a rudimentary telescope at least would be needed to spot a spacecraft from the surface, but not this one. A large main structure with a gaping mouth on the front, through which streams a bright and merciless light, is aimed directly at the planet. It has miles long arms extending to either side and a rotating ring connecting the two. It is the Overlord.
The beast does nothing but orbit. Instead, the first of the Roboid Armies of the Federation lands on the now poorly defended planet and wipe out all resistance. They are an unstoppable force, and it takes just days for the planet to fall. It is a good thing, too. Overlord's mouth dims, as Forsteria surrenders.
Meanwhile, 3rd Fleet occupies the Ruthauri system and places New Irass under siege. The bombardment on this planet is much more merciful, targeted entirely at military bases.
The remnants of the rebel fleet jumps into the Avim system, which houses Phoenix, and destroys the small defensive Federation forces.
2nd Fleet with the Valkyrie, arrives in Kiram in late 2407. This time, there is no ultimatum for surrender. Since the start of hostilities, Veritati Star Base has been upgraded and armed to a massive extent. The rebels also left a small fleet to aid in the base's defense.
Five Federation ships are lost, but the enemy fleet is destroyed entirely, killing the famed Admiral Obr-Lend. Veritati Star Base, the birthplace of the Righteous Rebellion, is occupied. Neither Zen nor any other rebel leaders are found, and the rebel survivors discovered in the base are gunned down. 2nd Fleet splits in two, and Saxon and Kiram are placed under siege.
Avim falls before 1st Fleet can arrive to destroy the last of the rebel ships. The rebels leave the system well before Admiral TBC enters, jumping instead to Sirius. It is the beginning of a wild goose chase. At the beginning of the war, President HistoryDude made it an objective to capture Kimberly Zen alive. Now, his military advisers and Defense Secretary tell him they are fairly certain that Zen is on the last remaining rebel fleet.
Above Kiram, the Overlord arrives, its mouth bright.
Saxon and Kiram are messaged to surrender or face certain death, but the rebel leaders left in charge of the planets refuse; they were given strict orders to resist capitulation for as long as possible, and the majority Screk population are almost entirely supportive of that decision. Little do they know that the Overlord is not something that can be resisted.
Commander Orthall of the Overlord receives the message on August 5th of 2408:
Execute Kiram
That is all. By his right hand on the main console is the first button. The other is to his left, where his XO stands. In front of each button is a scanner.
"It's time. XO Clabits, if you would." The Commander places his hand on his scanner, and it turns green. He reaches toward the button, but then he notices the XO not copying his actions. "Clabits. The orders." He presses manipulates his console as though he thinks his second in command does not believe him and a hologram of the message appears.
"Commander," the XO starts, "I think we need to confirm the validity of such a command. Just in case."
Everyone on the bridge is silent, watching the human and the Cirrulan. Orthall says nothing for almost a full minute. Then he sits back on his chair. The XO remains standing, since it is physically impossible for a Cirrulan to sit.
"Alright. I'm responding, asking for confirmation. Request the order on the most secure network," he says to the CommO. "Once we receive confirmation, we will execute the order."
The CommO speaks quietly into her headset after manipulating her console. Then she says, "It will take approximately five minutes to reach Earth, and then another five to receive the response, Capt--- Commander." She was previously assigned to a corvette in 1st Fleet and has yet to get used to her new commanding officer's rank.
It is a tense and quiet ten minutes, and they all watch the feed of the planet, which is no longer under bombardment. Smoke can be seen in the atmosphere above the most recently attacked locations, and the night side of the planet is mostly dark. Finally, the CommO's console beeps, and she transfers the message to the Commander:
Confirmed - Execute Kiram
The Commander nods his head slightly and stands back up. "Confirmed. XO, let's paint 'em." He places his hand once more on the screen, while the XO places one of his front limbs. They each light up green, then, holding each other's gaze, they press their buttons.
The central hull begins to shake as the rings turn, first slowly and then faster and faster.
Clabits sighs, then turns and leaves the bridge. Orthall just sits back down, an unsettling triumphant look on his face. One member of the crew has to stifle his sobs in a fiber cloth, and he quickly stands up and follows the XO out.
The people in the capital city Scarcask are blinded. An all encompassing blue light has engulfed the city, a beam that tears through the atmosphere and can be seen from thousands of miles away.