Factions 2

[Dante]

OOC: *Is definately not laughing* ;D

Geez, I post a little bit of Ekaterina's woolgathering and what happens? 'OMG teh fremen + mysterious, trusting natives.' Seriously, that's not just Beowulf either.

"You wish to reform my sister?" The Emperor asked curiously, his expression skeptical.

"As I said, my reasons are my own." Relnev repeated. Hundro considered this for a moment, looking past the Chancellor's shoulder.

"It would be a shame to lose such a valuable asset to my house." He mused. "But then, if her thirst for blood could only be kept in check... In answer to your earlier question, Chancellor, I do care for my family. It is my duty to see to the gains and survival of my House." For a moment, a flicker of sorrow slipped across his face. "If those interests are served by the loss of a family member... It seems to me that House Moritani's interests would be best served by having as many capable and sensible members as possible. Very well. Once Ekaterina is removed, you may have her for your experiments." He took a deep gulp of his drink.

"Not experiments, Emperor." The Chancellor corrected, raising a hand. "A stable and effective process."

"Yes, my sources inform me that you've had some personal experience with brainwashing yourself, Chancellor." Hundro smirked. Relnev ignored the jibe, but filed it away for later reference.

"And how do you plan to remove your sister from the planet?" He asked neutrally, moving to the window and looking out.

"I am not permitted to interfere." The Emperor smiled, and nodded in Relnev's direction. "You, however, are. Together we can move Ekaterina into a position where an Ixian ship can collect her. If done correctly, the Trebesians will believe that she escaped on her own, underneath their noses. Once you have finished with her, we will smuggle her to Kaitan and ensure that it is believed that she ran to me for sanctuary. Sanctuary that I am within my rights to grant."

* * *

"Delkma, hmm?" Ekaterina observed the effects, as two sisters attempted to tear each other's throats out with their teeth. To make it interesting, she had removed their arms. "It is certainly proving to be effective. Or seems to be."

"The proposed 'E-Mek,' should be a functional complement to our own I-Meks." Rachael noted, apparantly deaf to the screams of bloodlust and rage. "And may serve as useful cannon fodder against the inevitable Trebeis onslaught."

[Davidu]

OOC: Ekaterina seems to be the mother of all Strogg  ;D

The links that Carth still had with the smuggler community spat some rumors. He felt that the tranquility he felt during the last months on Ratah would soon become history.

As always his contacts were monitoring the traffic in and out Athalon IV so he could look for a breach in the planetary defences. There were none he could take advantage of. His small fleet wouldnd't stand a chance against the space platforms Ekaterina had in orbit.

On the other hand he was certain that he could mount a succesful attack on the capital with his men and the natives.

So Carth decided to purchase weapons and military equipment, as well as uniforms in order to fit his men in the upcoming battle.

[Barbarossa]

"Where do we need the most work, Qapmoq?"

"Well sir, all the branches are in reletively tip-top shape. The only areas that I have any concern for, is the Space Forces and the D-Meks."

Looking down at a Data-pad, covered with military figures, the duke nodded for the Ducial Guardsman to continue"

"I suggest that we begin working on the organisation of the Fleet. Starting the recalling of Commander Ahab De'Garious and his Armada from Ix. They don't need our support any longer. This, should be followed with the immediate promotion of De'Garious from Commander, to Grand Admiral- In charge of all Trebesian Space Forces. I have talked to the man before, he will know best how to handle such a thing. We also need to upgrade the systems on many of the ships. This however, will take almost no time or effort at all, thanks to the design of most of our ships. Which were made to accept easy modification."

"Alright, Qapmoc. Make it so. Now, what of the Meks?"

"Well, the current design and such is fine, however I suggest simply adding more armoring to the weapons. To meet the changing role from anti-infantry, to anti-Mek. We also need to increase our numbers."

"This also sounds acceptable. Start the millitary Production Facilities working on it immediately."

"Excellant. I have one more thing to add. The Bindar Cartel has been using our Nokker Guardsman and Infantry to do a superb job of trining their men, however their pilots are a bit lacking. Perhaps we should send ours, along with some Mark 82 T-1 Fighters- To give them ideas for a Fighter design of their own. Perhaps even send some engineers along to aid them in that capacity."

Standing as he finished some calculations, the Duke once again nodded his agreement.

Ship Modification- 0% @ 50% pp.

Fleet Reorganisation- 0% @ 25% pp.

De-Mek Upgrades- 0% @ 25% pp (-10 for first post)

Arrival of Trebesian aid to Bindar Cartel- 2 turns.

[Dante]

Strogg? You'll have to explain the term.

"I can get Ixian forces into Catrione while Ekaterina's forces engage Duke Atilian's invading army." The Emperor continued. "I can open doors for you, but I won't be able to remove the guards. They'll have to make their way to the Command Centre quickly. Before she has a chance to seal herself in. Capture her alive and preferably whole in whatever way you see fit. By the time the Trebesians force their way down it should be too late."

"And you won't be aiding us in any physical way." Relnev stated, turning from the window and standing next to his chair.

"By the terms of the contract, that is forbidden." Hundro shrugged. "In fact, I shouldn't even be providing you with the schematics of Catrione or detailed blueprints on exactly how the city's defences work and where their weak points can be located."

"Don't strain yourself." Relnev replied dryly, sitting down and picking up his chalice.

"A bit late for that." Hundro replied enigmatically. "You will be accompanying Trebeis to Athalon?"

"I think it best to oversee opperations such as this in person." Relnev nodded.

"Then you had better hurry to get ready. Word is that the Duke is already making his preparations." Hundro placed his empty chalice on a small table between the chairs. Leaning back, he steepled his fingers. "I hope for a more detailed meeting some day, Chancellor, but time is pressing. If there is nothing further related to this issue that we must discuss, then I advise we continue our discussion at another time."

"We are finished here." Relnev nodded, placing his own chalice on the table. He stood up. "I will play my part, your majesty. But do not assume that you can take advantage of Ix so easily as you did Corrino."

"Would I ever?" The Emperor smiled innocently. "Goodbye, Chancellor Relnev." The Chancellor bowed, and turned to exit the room. The Emperor stood. "Oh, and Chancellor?" Relnev turned. The darkness obscured the Emperor from this distance, making him appear as a looming shadow near the window.

"Your majesty?" The Chancellor asked.

"Don't whatever you do look under your bed tonight and steal the copy of 'Ekaterina and Athalon IV: a detailed survey and report' that some careless cleaner must have left there." The Emperor's voice floated out of the shadow.

"Of course not, majesty. I wouldn't dream of it." Relnev bowed once more, and closed the double doors behind him.

The library antechamber remained silent for several long minutes, as the Emperor stared out of the circular window at the night sky beyond. He savoured the quiet, listening to himself draw breath in the still air. He liked the smell of books. It was calming. Soothing to his tired mind. He took a step back from the window, and sank back into the chair. He sat bolt upright for a moment, listening hard. Finally, when he was sure that absolutely nobody was watching him through hidden means, he leaned back and slid into a slouch. He knocked the empty chalice from the table with one foot, and folded his legs on top of it.

"That was very boring." A small voice floated down from atop one of the bookshelves.

"But necessary." Hundro sighed. "You can come down now." He watched out of the corner of his eye as Valen's shadow dropped onto the carpet with a muffled thump, followed by a small squeak of pain. Before he could get up to investigate, Valen slithered around the chair that Relnev had occupied and sniffed at the half-full (or was it half empty?) glass that the Chancellor had left. He glanced up at Hundro and, seeing no disapproval, reached for the chalice with both hands and brought it to his mouth. He sniffed again, glanced up once more, and then sipped cautiously.

The bout of coughing and choking that followed was enough for one of the guards outside the library to peer in cautiously, but he closed the door again when the Emperor waved him away. Hundro took the chalice from his servent, before patting him on the back as he coughed. As the fit subsided, he placed it back on the table.

"So," he said, leaning back in his chair while Valen hiccupped, "see anything useful?"

"He's sneaky." Valen replied, rubbing his nose. "Sneaky tricksy Ixian. Was listening for me." He hiccupped again.

"Alright, alright. Later then." Hundro sighed, leaning further back. He stared at the dark ceiling. 'The sooner I do it, the sooner I can end this wretched charade.' He thought. 'But how long? Seventeen years... Eighteen? More? It may be too late by then...'

At the Emperor's feet, Valen recognised the mood. He crawled unsteadily over to Hundro's chair, placing his head on the armrest. The Emperor absently scratched him behind the ears.

* * *

"Death, death, death..." Aleksandr murmured to himself as he balanced the figures for the mek armaments against last month's profit margins. "One thing to be said for Ekaterina's methods, at least they don't involve much paperwork." 'Still doing the same work though.' He added to himself, with unusual cynicism.

"Hopefully she won't have a method soon." Aleron replied from the other side of the office. "Have you looked at these figures? I'm worried that this will be overkill. What will House Trebeis do with such a large military after it has re-taken Athalon IV?"

"That's up to Duke Atilian." Aleksandr shrugged, stamping the figures. "Though from an administrative point of view, he can't hope to keep such a large standing force in reserve while rebuilding the planet. It's going to cost a fortune. A fortune that I'm afraid this House just doesn't have. Yet." He added with a wink. "I think I can put together a plan for the rebuilding of Athalon IV. It'll take years of course, decades maybe. After all, she carpet bombed the equator and did who knows what other damage to the populance. And it will be expensive. But with control of the spice planet and some thift in the coming years, I think we can do it. However, such a large army would be a severe drain on funds." He frowned. "At the moment we're fine, since there's no planet to rebuild, but once it's retaken I'll reccommend that much of it be disbanded. The men can be converted into a workforce for repairing the damage, so they won't lose out, and the equipment can be sold off to fund the repairs. Then there's the meks..."

"They could easily be sold for very high prices." Aleron noted.

"Yes, but I doubt that would be a good idea." Aleksandr sighed. "There are many who seriously frown on that kind of technology. I've already recieved calls for having all De-meks removed from Arrakis for acting against the Orange Catholic Bible. Some are even in favour of declaring House Trebeis renegade again, or heretics. It's dangerous enough having the meks around without showing them off. Besides, Atilian would never allow such a trump card to be dissected and studied by potential enemies. No, the meks will have to be taken apart for their resources, I expect."

"The battle isn't even fought, and already we plan for the aftermath." Aleron smiled.

"Someone has to."

[Davidu]

OOC: Strogg, the enemy in Quake, they use organic technology, harvesting organs from the captured humans. They turn some of the captured soldiers into Robocop-like things by cutting their limbs ad replacing them with mechanical ones.

[Mihail]

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

Since it's too late to modify the post, I'll let the whole assasination attempt on Carth slip by. By the way, fast-forwarding a few months seems...ahh...foolish, but I'll play along with it unless people start objecting to it.So without further ado, here is the post.

Two months had passed, and no tidings of the death of Carth had reached the ears of Wensicia or Chalice. That meant that some unfortunate scum smuggler had opened it beforehand to check for letterbombs and gotten infected. Chalice had made no plan of going to Gehay or meeting Carth at all, and now she turned her attention away from him and his fledgling faction. She had bigger fish to fry. During the past two months, they had been discreetly and silently siphoning funds from civilian businesses and conscripting strong,able men into the armed forces. Although Kaitan's civilian population was small, about 50 million people(Not counting the prisoners, but those were under the jurisdiction of the horrible Moritani), they were conditioned and weathered much like the Fremen, hardened to the harsh conditions and not uncommon lack of water. Chalice lounged in the room inside of the plexiglass cupola, listening to relaxing music and looking from exotic plant to exotic plant as mist was slowly let into the room.

I need some relaxation, Chalice thought as she sipped from a glass of the best Caladan wine. Let Rugi and Wensicia take care of things for now, Chalice would have to see if she could trust them with large-scale operations. For now, she would take care of all House Corrino related diplomacy. Sipping from her glass again, Chalice fell into a light daydream, imagining what she would do when she became Empress...

Meanwhile, on the remote mining outpost of Tlirm, Rugi watched as several ornithopters rained napalm down on an army of targets, which was followed by a merciless barrage of arms fire, unctuated several times by the woooosh sound as a rocket was launched, and then followed by a loud boom as it hit-or didn't hit- it's target. Rugi checked her datapad. Combat efficiency - only 78%. They would have to better than that if they wanted to topple the Emperor. They would have to go through the Sardaukar to do that, and to beat down the Emperor's feared shock troops, they needed to be operating as good as possible. Rugi put the datapad down. It would be at least half an hour before they could perform the excersise again - the old dummies had to be taken away, the new ones set up. The ornithopters refitted, and so on. Lying down on a not-too-comfy sofa, Rugi smiled as she remembered her rise to power. At first, Wensicia and Chalice didn't trust her. To them, she was their errand-girl; their messenger. But gradually, as Wensicia was dispatched to establish ties with Minor Houses and Chalice had to devote more time to the taking care of the overall image and leadership of House Corrino, Rugi had found herself drawn more and more into controlling and overseeing the training and growth of the military. Now look at her - she was, essentially, a general. The excersise started up again, and Rugi got up and watched. When the excersise was over, the datapad beeped twice.

Excersise efficiency - 80%, read the readout. Rugi sighed and summoned the man in charge of this battalion of troops, a short and swarthy sailor-type.

"Commander, I am departing now," Rugi warned. "And when I come back, in a week's time, I expect the combat efficiency to be up to at the very least 85 percent," she said, and glared at the man. "Or else I will torture you," Rugi added flatly.

The man bowed."Of course, my lady. I will see to it that they do."

Rugi clapped him on the shoulder, She stood a full heads higher than him.

"Good man. Now, I am leaving. Goodbye, Commander," and with this Rugi strode outside and walked quickly towards a waiting frigate. Her time would come. No, she wasn't dreaming of becoming Empress, but she did dream of owning several planets and having her own House Major.

Chalice sat at her yew desk, composing a letter to the Esteemed Emperor of the Known Universe, Hundro Moritani, in her flowing script.

Most Esteemed Emperor!

I write to you with a request. May we meet some time to discuss matters of what I believe are of great importance and could be a serious thorn in your side? I shall meet anywhere you would like, under one condition: That you will not attempt to kidnap me, harm me, or otherwise prevent me from leading House Corrino. My father has retired, and has passed on the command of the House to me, his eldest daughter. Of course, if you would like to come to Salusa, I would be more than happy to take you in. I bear no ill will against you, my Emperor.

Yours faithfully,

Chalice Corrino

...

[Barbarossa]

OOC: I keep forgetting to ask. To finish my post, I need to know. Where is the majorities of the forces on Athalon currently deployed?

[Davidu]

OOC: I have no idea, but it seems the thread is in near-death experience once again...

[Barbarossa]

OOC: Do not worry. I'm working on one hell of a post. And, because everyone knows what is going to happen, and wants the game to finish- It's going to happen quickly.

"My Duke wishes for you to read this" The Trebesian said simply, handing Carth a bulky Message-Cylinder. Taking the Message, he opened it, and began reading the contents.

My Friend, Carth.

We have reached the maximum level of preparedness. We intend to depart shortly for Athalon. However, we intend to first meet up with your forces. I suggest that you load your men up, and depart immediately for Arrakis. Upon your arrival, I, Aleksander and my Commanders- Along with yourself and yours shall have an intense mission-overview to examine. Once this is completed, we will depart directly for Athalon. Transportation has already been arranged with the guild for your forces to Arrakis, then for the combined Force to Athalon. The Highliner carrying this message will take your men to Arrakis.

Now, the details for the defense of your base are scarce... However, I know that you will need help. Therefore, I have shipped with the Highliner, A Orbital Weapons Platform and 5 Assault Frigates to help.

I hope to see you soon mate.

-A.T.

P.S. Give any orders you may have to the Crews of the Frigates and Platform.

Message to the Ixians.

Relnev.

We intend to move on Athalon shortly. If you intend to participate, I suggest you garner what you need and Depart for Arrakis Immediately. Transportation to Athalon has been arranged, but you will need to get yourself to Arrakis.

-Duke Atillian Trebeis of Athalon and Arrakis.

[Beonid]

The actions of the Trebeis had not gone unoticed. As they moved their troops around, the Richese wondered what was happening. Then their informants in the Guild told them that transport to Athalon IV had been arranged for over one hundred thousand troops. The repercussions on Richese took place soon after.

***

"Deveri, start the recruitment. The situation on Arrakis seems to be heating up. But what is this I hear about the Trebeis moving to Athalon?" said Averion.

"The Trebeis have purchased transport there, sir.", said a minor aide.

Trust these blasted aides to not give enough infomation,Averion thought, as he gritted his teeth

"And is this information reliable?"

"Err..Yes, I think so milord."

"You THINK so? You bungling idiot! Give me a proper answer! And make sure it is, this time, otherwise I will have you tortured!"

"The source is reasonably reliable, my Count."

"Right. Thank you. And as an added bonus, you can try out my new torture devices.", said Averion, as he motioned with his hand to have the aide taken away.

***

"Deveri, pass one of those tools, please." Averion was shouting over the noise of his new torture device.

"Which one, sir?"

"Any one. You choose. Preferably some thing that's serrated and can be used for amputation."

"Here's one, sir."

"Excellent. You try using it."

Deveri quickly lopped off one of the ears. Then he dug out both the eyes. The aide now resembled one of the shapes Feran took to scare away the children.

"Seal up his wounds and release him. But confine him to the command centre. Keep an eye on him." Averion murmered as he walked out.

"Yessir."

"Oh, and Deveri, send one thousand Vulture fighters to Athalon. They may need it. Tell them the fighters are a gift."

"Yessir"

Athalon

Vulture fighters(1000) - 70%, 10% pp

E-Meks - 75% - 5% pp

Cooling systems - complete and installed

Richese

Recruitment(10,000) - 5% @ 10% pp

Lasguns(10,000) - 0% @ 10% pp

Swords(9,000) - 0% @ 10% pp

Vercarias(1000) - 0% @ 10% pp

[Davidu]

Carth read the message and started boarding his men: 10000 troops along with 5 laser tanks and the aerial support donated by the Trebeis.

On the planet a recruitment campain started and over 20000 natives joined Crath's forces. Some of the natives were already trained by Carth's men to weild the laser guns, but most of them used only their long swords.

This meant that almost 35000 troops + equipment boarded the transport for Arrakis.

[Barbarossa]

^Dragoonknight. Cause of death: Warcraft.  :O

I will be posting some biggies very soon. As for now, I'm off to finish a project while listening to the delightful tunes of the Clash.

[Dragoon Knight]

Very much alive, thank you (click for bigger picture).  Just not much to post about.

[Davidu]

If all works well I'll soon be lost in the HUGE world of EVE.

[Barbarossa]

The Huge force had finished settling into position. For some time, no action had occurred. Although De'Garious had given the Orders, he had not set the signal. The Essential plan to breach the Massive Fortresses was simple. The Things were hulking behemoths, Fortuneately- They did have weaknesses. Mainly, They were big- Too big to move. Since no thruster was mounted to them big enough to do anything but maintain position, They were sitting ducks and unlike the Ixian and Ixian/Trebesian Platforms, could not move at all. Second, besides a small number of weapons, they were mostly designed for taking out Capital ships and such. They mainly relied on support ships of their own to fend off enemy Fighters and the like. However, Ekaterina had positioned her small Defense Fleet above her Capital. So all of the Platforms except for the one above Catrione were essentially un-aided. So, the idea was simple. the Trebesian Mark 82 T-1 class would attack at extreame range, swarming the Fortress, While the Assault Frigates, Cruisers and Destroyers would stay at Maximum range. Supporting the Fighters with Missiles, Torpedos and the like. Thus done, The Landings would commence at specific areas while the bulk of the massive fleet would depart to confront Ekaterina's Armada and remaining Fortress above Catrione. The few Remaining Atomic Missiles that had been constructed during the Arrakis Wars and used so brilliantly during the Assault on the Imperial Capital would be present. They however were reserved in case losses started getting heavier.

The defense of Arrakis relied on only a few things, but they were enough. One had a two-fold effect. Atomics.

Atomic weapons were hidden around the planet, in strategic places. Essentially if any hostile force attempted a landing, the planet would be rendered a ball of Ash. This also allowed Atillian to force the Guild's hand a tad. They, in fear of losing the spice would not make any stops to Arrakis, Athalon (Besides the Highliner in use by the Trebesian Invasion) or any system nearby the two planets until the Trebesians were ready to put full defenses back in place. Brilliant indeed.

There is also still a sizable gerrison comperable in size to that of the Harkonnen's And the Platforms- Which were each accompanied by some ships and some Ground-based treasures. (Dante, you may recall of what I speak from Arrakis Factions ;D )

The men- Were ready. This was a motly force if there ever was one, but an effective one. There was the Bindar Cartel with it's highly expierienced former Smugglers-gone-Soldiers, and their Native Gehayian native Warriors. Freman that the Duke had reqruited in his foray into the wilds on Arrakis. Then there was the Trebesians. Resplendant and Terrifying Assault Troops- The Ducial Guard. The Origional 35 thousand or so Grizzled Veteran Troops that had accompanied the House Trebeis to Arrakis and of coarse, Their Eager and loyal Arrakis-native Comrades. The Nokkers and The Others all huddled at the windows of their ships, trying to catch glimpses of their old home. The Arrakis Trebesians too huddled near the windows, along with some Freman. The Arrakis natives "oohing" and "Ahing" at the huge Oceans, Lush Rainforests and Massive Icecaps. However, all went quiet as the true extent of the damage to the Equater became visible. One Trooper said quietly, a tear runnning down his face "My family lived in Trebesia. My Wife, Four kids. My Brothers, Sisters. Mother and Father." before simply turning his back on the Viewport. Others too, were strucken with such emotions. The majority however, gritted their teeth and said nothing. The Blood-lust palpable in their eyes. Their Actions. It was almost visible in the very air, moving from man to man- spreading like a violent, virulant plague. Consuming them all.

The men went through their preperations when the call came. Donning battle-Armor, Sheilds and Weapons. Many gripped pictures of their families- Many now dead due to Ekaterina. One Ducial Guardsman in particular raised a few eyebrows. In one hand he held a picture of his Father and Mother, in the other- One of him without his face armor in place, grinning ear to ear as he held his left arm extended with the Emperor's aid, Valen playfully clamped on to his Gauntlet and hanging a foot above the ground. All the men were ready to die. To die for their Allies, For Shai-Halud, Their homes and for Their Duke!

The signal suddenly came. De'Garious and the rest of the Command aboard the Flagship finally gave the order. The ships fell into position, Fighters shot towards the Fortress- Trailed by Torpedos and Missiles. The Explosions started ripping across the massive structure as tracer-fire from the Fighters ripped across it's hull- Targeting Weapon Clusters and Viewports. Trebesian Missiles and Torpedos lanced into the armoured surface of the Platform as well. Then, The Giant, Armored Mammoth began firing back at he ships in range. The Battle had Begun!

Standing tall, in full Nokker Regalia including the Armor and Weapons, along with the Ducial Sword. Atillian stood in the middle of the bridge of the Flagship. "Well father" Atillian began, stroking the urn that contained the Late Duke "We're home... We're home. Soon, you can truely Rest." and turned to face out the Viewport. He wish he had Quapmoc or Wren Flanken with him. The men always soothed him with their cool, Nokker-Trained assessments of things. But they were both with the Troops, ready to land. The Admiral De'Garious was busy directing the Space battle. Chewing on an unlit Cigar laced with Spice, the man looked the role he played. Moving to stand next to Alexandr and Noitpo, the Mentat- He layed a large hand on Alexandr's simularily Armored shoulder and said quietly "Welcome home, Brother."

OOC: Told you guys it would be long.  ;D

I cut some parts out though that I deemed unnecisary and/or could not do due to lack of participation. Also, I skipped some stuff. But hey, as long as it gets us the hell to "Factions Three" I do not think it matters. Factions three, by the way- Which I happen to have a rather good idea for, which I will run by you all when it's complete.

Now, I wait for Dante to post.  :D

[Davidu]

OOC: Dante post! Dante post! Dante post!  ;D

Then it's my turn.

[Dante]

"Finally. I thought he was never going to grow a pair." Ekaterina sighed as she watched the Trebesian fleet deploy. "Hmm. Engaging the fortresses, eh? Well we'll see about that. But first..." She grinned maliciously, the red light of the magma casting eerie shadows on her face.

"Psychological warfare, M'Lady?" Rachael asked calmly.

"Psychological warfare." Ekaterina agreed. "Do we know what frequencies the enemy is using?"

"Yes, they are making no attempt to mask their presence. But we are unable to break their codes, as yet." Rachael checked a parchment datasheet in her hand.

"It doesn't matter. Broadcast over all frequencies." Ekaterina shrugged. "Block their own messages. Jam the signals!" Rachael nodded, and relayed the command outside the Lady's office.

"That's an old Moritani trick." Ekaterina smirked, contemplating the hell that she was about to unleash. "Not used very often, and top secret of course. Every Moritani is taught it, but it's only ever been used twice in our history. We copied it from an ancient Terran noble. He was defending a fortress with a tiny group of men, and simmultaneously guarding over a thousand hostages. A vast army was moving to attack him. He couldn't retreat, this position was vital. He couldn't hope to win. And so he ordered his men to butcher every single hostage in the fortress, and impale them on long wooden spikes all about. When the enemy army arrived soon after, they were so terrified at the sight that they fled back into the wilderness, despite the furious commands of their General." She paused, musing. "I doubt that the Trebesians will flee in fear. After all, they can only get back to the Heighliner before their Duke rallies them around. But fear leads to irrationality and possibly hatred, both of which make a man easier to defeat."

"The I-Meks are on standby, and our ground forces have all been equipped with the appropriate Richesian drugs." Alacia Vorbid reported sharply, interrupting her mistress' monologue. Ekaterina rolled her eyes.

"I know you don't believe in this kind of thing, Alacia." She smiled. "But you just watch..."

Aleksandr paled as the fading signals from Quapmoc's unit were finally replaced by the foreign broadcast from the planet below. A cold, sexless voice had announced that the following statement was from Reona Xevral, who until recently had been living in the city of Trebesia. She had, the voice said, been visiting her sister in the newly-renamed Catrione when her home had been destroyed. The voice then asked if Adrien Xevral, Reona's husband and a man who had escaped to Arrakis, was in the attacking fleet?

What followed was... terrible. The cold, flat voice had been replaced with a softer one, that of a woman crying. And screaming. She was forced to recount, in exact detail, every moment of her torture during the previous hour. She spoke of branding irons, jagged saws, chemicals engineered to do no damage but to cause excrutiating pain. She spoke of how her sister and nephew had been tortured and killed in front of her, and how her captors had cut patterns into her flesh with the splintered remains of her sister's bones.

Her voice broke into sobs, and the cold voice returned to inform the fleet that Reona Xevral was aboard Fortress number 3, positioned above what was formerly Trebesia, along with fifty other hostages. This was followed by a demand that the entire fleet retreat, and that compliance with this demand would lead to release of the hostages. Refusal to meet this demand would result in the hostages being jettisoned into space. And just to show that they weren't kidding...

The sound of rushing air, and a small scream immediately lost.

All around Athalon, the same situation. Individual fighters, large battleships, small shuttles, all picked up the barrage of messages that were being hurled their way. Not always the same message, different people heard different accounts. Men, women and children all screamed and begged for the fleet to leave, anything to make the pain stop.

"This woman is believed to be the sister of pilot 382. Pay attention, 382."

"These are the children of one Umbrel Balina... Balina? Can you hear this?"

"This woman claims to have been the nanny of Atilian Trebeis, Are you listening, Duke?"

"These are the grandparents of Lithgy Viir, head radioman aboard the Trebesian flagship..."

"Please Thom, make him stop! Make him turn around! I can't- I just can't take... *choking sobs* He made me eat our son! Our baby! *more sobs* Please, Thom, make him stop, I can't... They still have Gwennie. Don't make her, don't make her..."

"You can't rescue us! They say we'll be in space before you ever land here! Don't worry about me, I'm sure to die! Just go! Leave! Go back to Arrakis where you can be safe! Find a new wife, just... do! Go, go!" *crack*

"*Children's screams*"

And then the pictures started. Where once there had been only sound, now the larger ships had to deal with the gory detail as it was forced onto their frequencies by the many powerful planetary transmitters. It was like Ekaterina's torture chamber, but multiplied hundreds of times. Men vomited, Aleksandr's face became a rictus of fear; while the Duke Atilian clenched his fists as image after image rolled across his viewscreen.

"The transmissions are having a palpable affect, M'Lady." Rachael nodded with respect and slight surprise. "Many ships have become distracted, or even turned around altogether. The vast majority are requesting orders, thus jamming their signals even more. The Fortresses, now that their targets are confused, are inflicting heavy casualties through use of net weapons and shrapnel guns. All are under heavy fire, but their armour is holding. No ships have yet strayed within range of our main fleet, or the minefields."

"Bring Fortress 2 into play." Ekaterina ordered. "When they left it it was damaged beyond repair, they won't expect it to be opperational. Fire on the flagship."

"Yes M'Lady."

"They thought they hated me before, but now look at them, personally confronted with such atrocities." The Lady winced with pleasure. "How do they react when they see their loved ones in pain? They must either leave me alone or know that they are personally responsible for the deaths of hundreds of their fellows."

"The Duke will push them on." Rachael stated blankly.

"Yes, he will." Ekaterina agreed. "But a commander is only as strong as the men under his command. What will the Duke do when his forces refuse to fight while their wifes and parents are held hostage? Will he be able to push his men forward with the screams of their families echoing in their ears? That kind of thing can be very demoralising."

"And even if he does push forward, we are ready for him." Alacia snarled, leaning forward on the war table. "We haven't even shown a modicum of our strength, our ability! The Fortresses will look like skittles compared to my defences."

The dark bulk of Fortress 2, stars visible through supposed gaping holes in its armour, slowly rotated on its axis. With the chaos of the battle, the radios filled, nobody noticed. The Fortresses were more or less symmetrical after all. Surrounded by mines, though easily out of their reach, it aimed its massive cannons carefully. Once lost, the element of surprise would not be regained. Newly fixed by the Richesians, Floating Fortress 2 was not fully functional nor fully armoured, but easily capable of using the same massive shells that its fellows had used to destroy the equator of Athalon IV.

Three of the huge howitzers fired silently, their shells making a direct line for the Trebesian flagship. One warhead explosive, one warhead acidic, and one warhead armed with a selection of lasguns packed inside of it.

"And now a special pre-recorded message for Carth Bindar. Hi Carthy!" Ekaterina waved cheerfully into the transmission. "I don't know if you'll see this the first time it gets out, but I'm just sure that some nice person will tell you all about it!" She grinned happily. "Now, I know I've sent you messages before, and you never replied, you naughty boy." A pout. "And then I realised, my messages are too dull!" Feigned shock. "So, I had to find a new format, didn't I baby diddums?" She made a smooching motion, before walking over to stand between two men, both of whom stood perfectly upright, their expressions blank. One of them was taller than Ekaterina, with similar black hair but dark brown eyes. The other was shorter, the same height as the Lady, and had short brown hair and dark blue eyes. Ekaterina put a hand around each of their necks, hugging them close.

"Now Carthy, I bet you recognise these two lovely boys, don't you? This is Sven and Maverik. You remember them, don't you? Say hello boys!"

"Rot in Hell, Bindar." Sven's voice, almost exactly as it was.

"Carth. We will end you." Maverik.

"They're so eager to have you join us Carthy! Oh you must come down for a visit sometime!" Ekaterina smiled, swinging back and forth on the shoulders of the two men. "Maverik and Sven are very looking forward to having you here. Oh, and in case you suspect tricks, see? No clamps! No wires!" The image slipped down and around the men, revealing them to be completely free of all restraints. "And they aren't face dancers either, nope nope nope! These two are the real healed deal. They want to see you Carth. In person." A grin. Maverik holds up a knife. The transmission ends.

OOC: *Dante does the evil dance.* >:D

[Barbarossa]

Moving to stand next to De'Garious, Atillian inquired "Well Admiral, I hope you can drag the fleet out of this mess." The Admiral nodded quickly, and moving his Cigar to the side of his mouth, said "The Transmissions from the enemy ships and stations have already been blocked. We are now implementing one of the modifications made in our reorganisation. Each ships is assigned to two Sub-Command Ships which take orders from us directly." Pointing out the Viewport "That Destroyer there is in charge of the ships defending this Command Vessel." They both watched silently as the Destroyer continued on it's course. It quickly eclipsed the defunct Fortress. "You see sir, we have relayed orders to each of these ships- and they will in turn maintain order in the Vessels under their Command." The Admiral finished, when suddenly the Destroyer that had been hovering in front of them moments before, suddenly exploded fantasticly. "What the Hell was that?" The Duke screeched, lurching as the Command vessel was thrown away from the explosion. "Ship integrity at 73%! We have lost an engine and four of our weapon clusters!" The Intercom reported as Klaxons begun sounding. Fragments from the destroyed vessel continued smashing into the Flagship, damaging it further. Then, The surviving Las-Shell came into view. Beams of brilliant light came poring from the

weapon at the Belugered vessel. "Integrity at 68%!" The Intercom screeched as explosions blossomed from the ship. Finally, a few defensive Missiles finally found their mark. The entire bridge sighed in relief as the weapon exploded. "If they want to play these games, so be it." the Duke said firmly. Turning to the Admiral, he continued "Order the attack in process to be redoubled. I want that fortress taken OUT!" Studying the second Fortress through the haze of debris from the Destroyer, he continued "That one is to be done away with emmidiately. Arm one of the Atomic Missiles, and take it down."

The men baulked at the orders, there were innocents aboard the enemy Vessels! But they knew their duty. And that if they did not succead, the end to these actions would be never-ending. They complied, throwing their vessels against the Fortress. As a true testemont to their design, the beast would not flinch. It was a moment later however, that the Atomic weapon slowl dropped from the Bay of the damaged Flagship, and seemed to crawl foreward on limited boosters. Everyone watch in wonder as the main engine came on-line, and it suddenly lanced toward it's target....

"Many of the men are beyond themselves" Qapmocsaid to Wren Flanken, nodding at the masses of men aboard their craft. "Aye, but they are also now, even more prepared to gain revenge. They will be ready." Flanken Replied, testing the edge of his Ducial No'kar'ee Sword. They were ready.

The bridge of the ship seemed to shrink as eveyone drew a deep breath, watching the weapon make it's way towards the Fortress. Finally, the Platform noticed the danger it was in, and started firing it's weapons into the path of the missile, but they were too late. The main engine came on line, and the weapon quickly reached it's target. The Weapon slammed into the Fortress, and it was quickly enveloped in a giant flash. Several ships that strayed too close were also quickly destroyed. The Admiral winced as a Destroyer and two Assault Frigates were consumed as well. Turning their attention to the battle-torn second Station, the Admiral and Duke nodded to eachother- and the order was given. The fleet in it's entirety lurched foreward, bringing the massive weapons aboard the Ships to bear apon the Platform. The Fighters quickly turned toward the fleet, getting out of the way just as a wall of Steel, Las-beams, Torpedos and Missiles lanced into the breach. Consuming the station. It was a simple method that had been used by the Imperials, but it was effective. The smaller craft, having weakened the target enough, were drawn out of the way. The larger ships then came into range, and simply unloaded everything into the station. No amount of armoring could save it from this, and it would quickly go down. Indeed, the Fortress was shuddering under the onslaught. Explosions came from various places on the platform, and it seemed to be losing integrity quickly. However, the crew of the Fortress finally started gaining openings, and began firing their Titanic weapons at the Trebesian Fleet. Ships struck were instantly vaporised or disabled.

"Sirs, losses gaining. We have already Twenty ships. And gaining" A man said to the Admiral and Duke as another ship disapeared from their view. The attack was continued, and the man return a moment later with another report. "Sirs, Station integrety down to approximately 20%."

"Excellant, redeploy the ships so they are a more appropriate distance from eachother, filling in the gaps with Fighters, and continue the attack!" The Admiral ordered. The Entire fleet executed the move, and redoubled their attack. "Enemy integrety down to 18%!"

[Dante]

"Self destruct Fortress 2." Ekaterina ordered, picking at something under her nails. "Broadcast the identites of the hostages on board. Have Fortresses 3, 4 and 1 turn all fire on the fleet around Fortress 2. Keep the remainder in preparation, and Fortress 6 on standby. It was almost as badly damaged as Fortress 2 last time, we might be able to use the same trick again."

"Retreat." Aleksandr whispered, almost to himself. Then louder, "Atilian, we have to retreat."

"Retreat? We've crippled the Fortress!" Atilian snapped back. One of the men glared in Aleksandr's direction.

"Atilian, I know Ekaterina's tactics. She can't keep Fortress 2, and it would be better served by-" Aleks stopped, as a line of white light slashed across the body of Fortress 2. "Oh snap."

A second line tore across the central decks, destroying everything in its path, followed by another that smashed a path from the top of the craft to the bottom. Visible cracks could be seen in the armour of the ship, lined in white light. The inside of the craft was already a raging inferno. And then, deceptively silently, the entire thing exploded.

Flames were abruptly extinguished, as the force of the blast sent vast chunks of shrapnel and a wave of hot air into the surrounding minefield. Those mines that did not detonate at once were immediately hurled into the nearby fleet, causing chaos as they impacted with ships near and far.

Even as the fleet began to pull back from the legacy of Fortress 2, they were beset on all sides by the rapid fire from Fortresses 1, 3 and 4.

(For those who may be interested, I think there were originally ten Fortresses, three of which were destroyed by the Sardaukar, while two of the remaining seven were damaged so badly as to be unusuable. This left five opperational when the old Duke left, Fortresses 1, 3, 4, 5, and 7. Fortresses 2 and 6 were the damaged ones, while Fortresses 8-10 are no more)

[Davidu]

Carth's fleet consisted only in fighters, bombers, frigates and one larges vessel used as a command ship, along woth several transport ships for the infantry.

- I think this is the moment we come into action.

- Orders sir?

- Fortress 3 is the nearest, right?

- Yes, sir.

- Order all ships to engage it. Our ships are small and swift and will escape their bigger guns. I'm worried about the AA guns they have. Nevertheless attack it.

The Cartel's ships came within range of Fortress 3 and began the attack.

- Order them to tagert the big guns. Render the platform useless.

The ships started to pick the big guns one by one, but they were being shot down by the AA guns, and soon the loss rate would render the Cartel's fleet to space dust.

- GOD DAMN! Retreat... New orders, engage the projeciles aimed at the Trebesian fleet.

At that moment a message came from one wing leader:

- Sir, I can take the Fortress out! I've seens their armour... it can be penetrated! and once inside... KABOOM!

- Do it! NOW! after that Carth turned to one of his aides: How the hell is he gonna do that? Actually what is he gonna do?

The whole bridge whatched as the entire wing enetered collision course with the Fortress 3. Soon the monitors showed that the pilots all armed their weapons, armed the warheads of their missles, overheated the engines and initiated the self-destruct sequence.

One by one they pierced the Fortress' armour with their ships, each of the ships being detonated  inside. 20 ships impregnated the Fortress with death and soon the construction started to burst flames and started to fall from orbit.

- Oh, my God! QUICK, MESSAGE TO EKATERINA:

Maybe your cruelty may have scared the Trebeis, but you see what effect it had over my men. Maybe it was a good thing you broadcasted those images. I heard that my infantry is enraged, and are eager to KILL. As for you... I have a plan for you... You will not die, you will not be harmed... but I am sure you will see what I have in store for you as a torture beyond your darkest nightmares. As for Sven and Maverik. If they wish to fight me, I shall respond. After all they have that right.

[Barbarossa]

Err, Dante. No offense mate, but the Fortresses would be a tad more spaced out. I don't belive they'd all be within range of the fleet. Anyway, no matter which way you could cut it, the Planet itself would get in the way eventually. And they are essentially immobile as well.

[Dante]

I would like to reply to this point in two ways, if I may. First in my normal text accompanied by a HANDY DANDY DIAGRAM, and then in a sort of silly, high-pitched whine.

Now, if one examines the diagram that I have attached, one will see the planet Athalon IV (the big blob) and the surrounding Fortresses (smaller, colour-coded blobs), not to scale. The diagram's perspective is looking down on the planet, thus positioning Fortress 3 directly above the North Pole. Also shown are the positions of the hulks of wreckage that were once Fortresses 8 and 9, 10 being at the South pole and therefore not visible. As you can see, the Trebesian fleet is currently surrounding Fortress 2, and sploding nicely. Also demonstrated are the clear lines of attack belonging to Fortresses 1, 4, and 3. Fortresses 5, 6, and 7 have no such line of attack, and thus remain, as Ekaterina ordered, in preparation or standby. This concludes part one of the answer.

Geeeeeem, an, nicket, spleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Eeeeeeeee-bam sprocket, eki ekiiiiiiiiiii schoom, WAZ WAZ pleeeeeeeee bo schnackity wharrabung-gat! Nill boday! Speem speem speem! Worrrrrrrm. Schlacket! Tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimor gleeeeeeeeaaaaams. Spa-wreckit spra-boom beem! Theeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees meeel dooooo? SPLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Kracken racken toooooOOOOOoooooOOOOoooOOOOoooo Oo oo oo oo oo oo oo eeeeeeeeeeeeePING!

This concludes the answer to the above post.

[attachment deleted by Gobalopper]

[Barbarossa]

I find myself wondering why I have never inquired as to whether or not Dante is a Drinker. :D

[Davidu]

Dante, it's your move. Post something. Coherent  ;D

[Mihail]

Protected by a cone of silence and the palace guard, the meeting between the sisters Corrino began. Seated around a oval fogwood table, Wensicia and Chalice, along with the Ketar* of the army, Rihael, they discussed.

"The battle has begun, Mi'Ladies," Rihael said to the sisters.

"Our watchers report that the battle is leaning in Ekaterina Moritanis' favor. The Fortresses the Trebesians had built over Athalon Four are being used by Ekaterina, and so far only one has been destroyed, or so our agents report."

Chalice looked contemplatingly at Rihael, then turned to Wensicia.

"Sister, what do you think of this mess? Who should we support, if we do support anyone?"

Wensicia picked some dirt out from under her fingernail, took a deep breath, and said, "Well, let us look at it this way, Chalice. If we help Ekaterina and destroy the Trebesians and Carth, we remove a powerful ally of Hundro's, as well as his brother. Although, even if we destroy the Trebesians, Carth, and finally that swine Hundro and get back our rightful claim to the throne, Ekaterina could prove a dangerous distraction in the future. However, if we support the Trebesians, and destroy Ekaterin, we would be getting no closer to our initial goal, just removing a potential future distraction. I think we should wait and see what happens, and then, when the battle is over and the victors thinking that all of their problems are over, we will strike."

"We shall be presented with a fierce battle if Ekaterina is the victor and any good number of her Fortresses are still operational," Chalice noted.

"True," Wensicia replied nonchalanly,"But our fresh, battle-ready force would run over them.

Besides, Chalice, you are forgetting our good sisters' Josifa's and Rugi's contributions to the war effort. I frankly, am amazed how they could've gotten so much blackmail, on so many Houses, in such a short span of time. Either way, the Houses we are blackmailing will contribute their forces to ours, or some veeeery sensitive information would leak into the Landsraad," here Wensicia grinned. "I've looked over some of it myself, and I dare to say that nothing short of complete disbandment and scattering of the aforementioned Houses would satisfy the Landsraad. And even if we don't -" she shrugged, continued on." - I have planned for all eventualities."

Chalice rose.

"Good, then. It is decided. Wensicia, I trust you have this planned out well, and if you don't..." she trailed off, not a threat, just a warning of what the consequences could be if the plan fell apart. Chalice turned to Rihael. "Order the men to prepare for battle. get them to sharpen their swords, clean their weapons. Staple some armor to the ships, do anything. Every small contribution will help, in the end. The meeting is dismissed."

*Ketar is just a word I made up. The equivalent of Burseg or General.