My company is finally starting the project that's been on hold for 9 months, so I know what free time I've had at work will diminish.
But this has been pretty fun to work on. I'm glad I mapped most of it out before I started working on it though, that's been a lifesaver.
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New Avalon
May 30th
Despite his best efforts, Thomas Zibler was nervous. He had given briefings before, had taught classes before, had conducted After Action Reviews in some of the most hostile rooms after a weeks worth of battles in Kettering, but this.
Fourteen Field Marshal's and Marshal's sat around the table, against the wall a bevy of Leftenant and Major Generals sat or stood, chatting amongst themselves. Zibler doubted anyone under the rank of Major General was going to get through the doors. Zibler glanced at his watch. Soon now.
The heavy doors opened, and the Princes Champion walked through. Most of those sitting came to their feet, someone in a corner called “Attention!†but Yvonne Davion had waved it away as she sat down.
“Good Morning Ladies and Gentlemen, I trust you all had good trips?†She smiled, checked her notes, then set them down.
“In a few minutes we are going to begin, but first lets get the usual out of this way. Anything said in the room falls under the Official Secrets Act, the penalty for breaking is Treason. Clear?†There were silent nods all around. The Princes Champion motioned him forward to the lectern in the corner.
“Ladies, Gentlemen, some of you know Marshal Zibler by reputation, some of you know him from experience. He is the senior planner for what you are about to see, direct any questions and concerns you have to him. Ready to go Marshal?†The way she asked the question suggested there was only one answer. He nodded.
“Lights!†he said, and the room dimmed. The Holoprojector came on.
“A bit of background first,†he voice was a little shaky, but it grew with confidence as he spoke. “GALAHAD '26, 10 full RCT's moving to the coreward theaters.†Lines snaked out from the realms interior, spreading to the coreward PDZ's. “GALAHAD '27, the equivalent of 30 RCT's.†Again, the lines worked their way across the Federated Suns. “The plans for GALAHAD '28. Not as big as '27, but enough...†More line started to work their way through, then stopped. A few mumbles were heard, several officers thinking maybe the holoprojector had stopped working.
“This is not an error,†said Zibler. “What you are looking at is a chimera. Marshal's, I give you Operation SPIKE.†Zibler typed in a couple of commands, and this time the lines snaked their way into the Capellan Confederation. The mumbling stopped. Liao, Pleione, Poznan, Styk, the Tigress-Tybalt-Ronel thumb, all blossomed as the lines reached them.
“Sirs, the goal of Operation SPIKE is to forcibly separate the Tikonov Commonality from the Capellan Confederation. If you'll look at your briefing papers,†he nodded to the pair of Major Generals who began passing out hard copies to everyone.
“What we are anticipating is a three wave attack. The First wave will hit eight worlds, the second wave will hit three worlds, the Third Wave right now is theoretical, but should we need to we can hit up to four more additional planets.
“You'll notice a couple of things here. One is that in each wave we are not hitting an undefended world. Our goal here is twofold, we want to cut off the Commonality, and we want to destroy what Capellan Combat power we can while doing that. Sending an RCT, or even part of an RCT against a world such as Azha does not get us any closer to achieving that goal. There are at present a total of 20 Regiments and 4 Warrior Houses in the Commonality. Some planets may only have a battalion on them, but it is believed that if we take certain worlds and hit certain units, we can affect not only the morale of the CCAF, but potentially alter the political landscape as well.†He was really starting to get into to it now.
“Question Marshal Zibler,†a voice came from one of the walls.
“Ask Away.â€
“Am I reading this right, all 8 Crucis Lancers Regiments are to hit Tikonov?â€
“Yes. As we all know, Tikonov is one of the most defended planets in the Inner Sphere. It has to be, considering its importance. Latest intel had 6 plus regiments of mechs on planet, supported by 80 conventional regiments. In 3026 Senior Colonel Ridzik assigned sectors of the planet to a mech unit, then assigned conventional units to that mech unit, creating something akin to our Regimental Combat Teams. So we are going to hit them with a hammer.
“Forgive me Marshal Zibler,†another voice interrupted. “Something is not adding up here. You have 12 mech regiments assigned to Wave 1. By my count 7 of them are Mercenary Regiments. What exactly are the other RCT's in the Addicks and Raman March doing while this is going on?â€
Zibler smiled, and typed another set of commands in.
“They will be doing this,†he said, hitting enter.
“Somebody, he couldn't tell who, gasped. The mutterings began almost immediately. Again, several golden tendrils worked their way across the combine worlds in Dieron and Benjamin Districts.
“Marshal's, this is Operation YELLOW BIRD. Many of the same principles I talked about concerning SPIKE are also in play here.â€
“Do we even have the transport capabilities for this?†asked a voice. The Princes Champion spoke before he did.
“We will. At the present time the AFFS is...borrowing...several jumpships and dropships from civilian firms in AFFS space. Also, the standard practice of returning to home territory for repairs and refit after an invasion jump is going to be put on temporary hold. Unless it's an extreme emergency, jumpships will be staying in system and continuing from there.â€
“That's a lot of civilian assets your talking about Ma'am,†a voice said.
“At a minimum, were looking at temporarily requisitioning upwards of 50% of the civilian fleet to accomplish this.†The room exploded in chatter, which Zibler let continue for a few seconds.
“MARSHAL's!†he didn't exactly yell, but it quieted everybody down. “First off, let me assure you that we took care and consideration in figuring out who to...borrow from. There will be no Jesup's during these Operations. Food and medical have priority, followed by military supplies, including mail. Let me be very clear here, if the Prince finds out some Duke is getting an Avanti aircar shipped to him when that cargo space could be taken up by food, he will not be happy.â€
“Some of those troops movements are audacious to say the least Marshal.†another voice. Zibler recognized this one, Marshal Felsner.
“Yes Field Marshal, they are. And they are not without some risk, but at the same time, McCarron's Raid showed us how a well planned and coordinated deep strike can be effective. They do not have to do any material damage to be effective, if we can affect their political and military thinking, get them react to threats that are not really there, sow enough confusion-â€
“Why do you think that will work Marshal?†asked Field Marshal Lawson. She was sitting at the table, and he could see the look of, well, not exactly disgust on her face.
“Because it worked against us.†he replied. The room got quieter. Everybody remembered the panic McCarron had created in those two years, jumping from planet to planet, raiding, retracing his steps. Hitting Kathil had gotten everybody's attention, and escaping from the First Prince had been a feather in his cap as well. Yes, Archibald McCarron had shown that even the best had their cracks and chinks in the armor.
“Plus, if there's one thing I learned while at Kettering, it was that by giving an opponent to many options to consider, they either froze up trying to cover them all, or chose poorly. And if we can influence our enemies into choosing poorly, then we come out that much further ahead.†He smiled, and there were a few chuckles, including Felsner and Yvonne Davion.
“And if they choose well?†Lawson asked pointedly.
“Then we take it in the teeth. Let's be honest, these plans could fail miserably. YELLOW BIRD in particular has been planned in such a way as to fully exploit the weaknesses in the Combine Command and control. The Capellans could really hurt us on Tikonov and other worlds. At most, we have eighteen months, maybe twenty four tops, to accomplish our goals.â€
“Why the short time frame?†asked someone on the wall.
“Because this war is going to ruin our economy in the short term if we win. And its going to ruin our economy for decades if we lose.†said the Princes Champion. The room sobered up quickly at the Champions words.
“What if Liao counterattacks in the Sirdar PDZ or Alcoyne PDZ?†Lawson's question was pointed. Those were her areas of responsibility.
“We expect Liao counterattacks to come against those worlds we've taken in the Tikonov Commonality.†replied Zibler. Lawson frowned. “If the Capellans do attack in that region, truth of the matter is we lose some worlds, but frankly considering what we gain if they focus their efforts elsewhere, those rewards outweigh the risks.†The look on Lawson's face said she didn't agree.
“What if we have issues with some of the deployments?†she asked.
Zibler paused, looking at her. There was a right way to answer her and a wrong way, and although one option was clearly the more prudent, it also wasn't the most effective.
“Marshal Lawson,†Yvonne Davion's voice had a hint of anger in it. “While these plans are not set in stone, their deployment is. The fact of the matter is orders are going out tomorrow via Pony Express to all commanders. At this point, it is to late to redeploy. Should the strategic or tactical situation demand a change of plans, we will change them, but at this time we are locked into this plan of action. Are we clear?†She looked around the room as she asked the question, the look in her eyes and on her face enough to communicate what she meant.
“Yes, Field Marshal, very clear,†replied Lawson, with a look of her own that said she was not happy.
The briefing continued for another forty five minutes, with a very good question and answer session at the end. When the light came back on Zibler was surprised how calm and collected he had been. Then he looked and realized his pitcher of water was empty. A few people stood around chatting with each other, Zibler was collecting his notes when Field Marshal Felsner came over.
“That was a very good brief, Marshal†he said, sticking his hand out. Zibler shook it, then went back to gathering his papers.
“Thank you sir. It wasn't as combative as I thought it would be.â€
Felsner leaned in closer. “In here it never is. The backstabbing comes later, usually. Although if I were you I'd invest in a stab proof vest myself.â€
“Why is that sir?†Zibler asked with a smile.
“For years we've heard the Sandovals claim we never paid enough attention to the Combine, and the Hasek's say that the Capellans are the true threat. And you have managed to come up with a plan that is not only bold and daring, but has the added effect of making neither the Sandovals or Haseks happy. Michael will scream for the units being sent into Drac space, and Aaron will scream about the units being sent to the sideshow in the Tikonov Commonality. With this plan you've managed to hack off the two most powerful Dukes in the Realm!†Felsner's eyes were laughing as he talked, and Zibler felt his stomach acid start to roil. The Field Marshal obviously saw the look on his face and sobered up.
“I wouldn't worry about it to much Marshal. You've got plenty of cover on this. I'm on your side, Yvonne is on your side, the majority of the High Command is on your side. And most importantly The Prince is. And at the end of the day that's what counts.â€
