DW: Republic of Arcadia, Part 20: Red Enforcer

Stardate 2127.05.21 With MLM2 falling into XHuman hands, the battle lines have changed.  

With multiple escorts pursuing them, Antlia, Apus, and Hebe concentrate their fire on the closest XHuman vessel.  Iris and Hatsushio maneuver to assist after destroying Decimator IX 002.  If all of the escorts can be destroyed, then the Republic vessels can focus on the Red Enforcer.  

Centurion IX 003 is destroyed.  Soon after, Antlia and Apus destroy Centurion IV 001 as well.  

Antlia is heavily damaged, but the XHuman escorts are being thinned out.  Centurion IX 002 is soon destroyed.  

Centurion VIII 001 returns to the fight, coming out of hyperspace in front of Apus, its shields damaged, but intact.  Apus is damaged, but makes short work of the enemy frigate.  

Antlia explodes, but the frigate Flora arrives at the same time, and targets the XHuman cruiser Tetrarch II.  1st Fleet is approaching from hyperspace.

Iris gets caught in Red Enforcer’s tractor beam and endures extremely heavy fire, but 1st Fleet arrives in system.

Iris is in deep trouble, and quickly explodes.  Soon after Decimator IV 001 is destroyed by torpedo fire from Hebe.

Apus and Hatsushio take heavy fire from Red Enforcer, while 1st Fleet closes in to join the fight.  Hatsushio is the first to explode, followed by Apus.  Admiral San Nesalio, on board Apus, is killed.  Hebe is quickly crippled.  Red Enforcer divides its fire among its many attackers.

Hebe is destroyed next.  The Republic still has one destroyer, Andromeda, three frigates, Ceres, Astraea, and Flora, and six corvettes, Akebono, Sazanami, Oboro, Ikazuchi, Inazuma, and Niji, still in the fight, but Red Enforcer is laying waste to the Republic ships one by one.  

The crippled Decimator VIII 001 finally explodes, while Tetrarch II attempts to flee, freeing Flora to join the attack on Red Enforcer.

Andromeda, Astraea, and Ceres engage in a close firefight with Red Enforcer, and so far hold their own, while the corvettes keep their distance, unleashing volley after volley of concussion missiles.  Red Enforcer’s shield are down to 34%.

Red Enforcer’s shields fail, and she begins to turn ponderously, possibly to flee.  Inazuma takes a pounding from Red Enforcer’s torpedoes.  Decimator III 002 is crippled while keeping Niji out of the fight, but now Niji turns to help the rest of 1st Fleet.  Left alone, Tetrarch II reconsiders its decision to flee and begins to turn back into the fight.  1st Fleet’s fire upon Red Enforcer is relentless.  

Red Enforcer desperately attempts to engage its hyperdrive but it fails!  

It comes out of its failed hyperjump next to Inazuma and Ikazuchi, which both immediately feel its last gasp.  

Ikazuchi is destroyed first, but Niji deals another devastating blow to Decimator III 002 at the same time.

Red Enforcer shudders under the explosions and suffers an engine failure as 1st Fleet moves in for the kill.

Red Enforcer explodes!

The fleet turns and unleashes a massive missile volley at Tetrarch II, vaporizing it.  

Next the fleet turns its attention to Maximus VIII 001, a troop transport, that foolishly hung around.  It is quickly overwhelmed and destroyed.  

As 1st Fleet turns to deal with the second troop transport, Maximus III 001, the Republic’s own troop transport arrives in system bearing troops to retake MLM2.

In the wake of the victory at MLM2, a new President, Gerrin Xanaria is elected.  

And while all this has been going on...

2127.04.29 2nd Fleet arrives at the Sigma Capricorni system.  The system is protected by only one Tetrarch-class cruiser, one Centurion IX-class frigate, and a small space port.  The fleet attacks.

The RN ships maneuver to fight from standoff range.

Pallas and the corvettes pound the XHuman cruiser, Tetrarch IV.

Tetrarch IV is crippled, as are the space port and its defending frigate, Centurion IX 004.

2nd Fleet closes in to finish off the space port.

And just when the RN believed it could pause to catch its breath in the wake of the huge battle...

The Xhuman 3rd Strike Force is detected heading towards MLM2.  2nd Fleet is ordered to move to MLM2 to aid the remnants of 1st and 3rd Fleets.  At first glance, the XHuman 3rd Strike Force does not look large, with only four ships, two destroyers and two frigates, but the RN was deceived last time and will not take chances this time...