19 Storm of Blood and Steel

Part 1

Task Force Hammer, CIS blockade over Ryloth

All Y-Wing bombers dedicated to Operation "Retribution" exited hyperspace at point blank range of the Confederation fleet. Even better, they returned to normal space on vectors not only clear of enemy fighters, but more than far enough from the nearest Vultures, so they could execute their first attack run without opposition.

Each of the still combat worthy Munificents in the main body of the blockading fleet, all twenty two of them, were pounced on by twenty four bombers. Some of the frigates close in weapons opened fire but it was too little, too late. Only six Y-Wings were unlucky enough to be swatted away by the final defensive fire of their prey, before the rest of the bombers were flying over their targets, unleashing every last weapon they carried.

The bombers moved in waves of six, leaving one lucky CIS ship to be hit by only sixteen Republic small craft.

The weapons of the first Y-Wing group would shatter armor and scorch weapon emplacements, leaving easy to exploit gaps in the defenses of their chosen target. The second and third left the frigates as little more than drifting wrecks, which were engulfed in fire. In most cases the firepower of the last six bombers was almost wasted as they delivered coup de grace to the stricken Munificents.

One minute. That is how long it took for the unopposed bombers to turn once proud ships in so much flotsam. So far the total price for that coup were thirty nine Y-Wings and their pilots.

It was about to rise.

=RK=

Republic Cruiser Requiem, Task Force "Retribution"

Commander Pellaeon stared at the distinctive form of a Vulture droid, which was becoming bigger by the moment. Then it hit the starboard command tower. The live feed of the camera cut of, leaving the monitor shaped like a window go black for a second, before it started showing the images caught by another camera.

Which promptly was cut off too as a whole squadron smashed through the other bridge tower of the Requiem. Gilad shook his head. He, and the men working around him should be dead right now. They would be, if it was not for the General's insistence, that they ran the ship from the newly installed CIC, which was deep within the Venator's superstructure.

It took almost a month for the engineers to make what used to be one of the damage control stations and its attached storage rooms in a single, reinforced compartment, not to mention making sure that the cruiser could actually be ran from there.

He took a deep breath. It was worth it. So much for the damn tradition that had directed ship construction for countless millennia!

Pellaeon frowned at the monitors which were showing camera feeds from the outside. He believed that General Veil wanted to make a point when he ordered the engineers to shape said monitors and the walls on which they were placed into an exact replicas of the bridge's windows.

It worked too. Everyone in the CIC was now aware what would have happened if they were up in the standard bridge. Seeing the damn fighters closing in on the windows would leave a lasting impression to every one of them.

The single thing Gilad regretted, was that the Requiem was so far the only warship with such modification. Prior to the Coruscant Attacks, most of the brass had been adamant that there would be no need for such an expensive refit, which left the rest of the fleet vulnerable. Unfortunately after the attacks, there wasn't sufficient personnel to do such modifications in the time required. Trying to do so would take a ship out of commission for a month on average, something they could not afford.

On a brighter note, creating a dedicated CIC from which the Republic ships would be commanded, was something that would be required from all new construction. Such modifications were already being made on ships in dock, which would be there for a month or more.

All that, was a cold comfort for the men and women who were about to die today. As things stood no other Venator or Acclamator could be effectively run from anywhere but the bridge.

That was one tradition that was going to bite the Republic Navy in the ass.

"Target that Munificent!" snapped Pellaeon pointing the closest enemy frigate which was flanking the fleet.

Half of the Requiem's heavy turrets rotated and unleashed hell upon the charging Confed ship.

Few seconds later, he received confirmation that "Hammer" had jumped in. That should pull out the teeth of the enemy capital ships.

There was only one small problem remaining. That kriffing wall of Vultures which were about to hit the tiny in comparison, fighter force under the command of Skywalker.

At least the CSP was moping out what was left (read not already rammed into Republic cruisers) of the Separatists reserve fighter force.

=RK=

Republic Escort Carrier "Remember Coruscant", CIS blockade over Ryloth

The hull of the former transport ship was stuck by a wave of suicidal droid fighters. They blew up large chunks of the hastily laid armor, which had been placed over her thin skin. That particularly exercise had just finished couple of days ago. It was a testament to the skill of the engineers who made it possible, that the refit was still relatively whole, despite the punishment she was absorbing

"Keep her steady for few more seconds!" shouted Captain Jole Solo.

His first mate, the Wookie Traaw roared affirmative. The large being's dark, almost black fur shook in unison with their ship, as the old girl took hit after hit. Traaw was an old friend of Jole, who had also volunteered when he figured out what Solo was about to do. The Wookie mentioned something about Jole needing an adult supervision...

Captain Solo and the rest of his crew were all volunteers. He had been more than eager to offer his ship, when a week ago the Republic Navy had put out the call for container transports. They even offered to buy her at a price that exceeded the market one but he had declined that extra payment in exchange of being allowed to retain command.

Few hours later he had been contacted by general Veil himself, who was alternatively being declared as the hero of the day or the infamous man who let most of the senate get killed.

Solo wasn't interested in any of that. What did he care about a bunch of corrupt politicians, when he had buried his little sister and two nephews just days earlier?! They were his closest relatives, and were waiting for his arrival at the spaceport near the Senate Building when it was attacked by the kriffing Separatists!

The biggest piece they found of his family members was an arm! Arm! He had to bury them in sealed caskets which were mostly empty.

So he spoke with the General, and they reached an agreement. Solo enlisted in the Republic Navy and waited for a chance to get the vengeance he craved.

Skip forward about a week or so, and here he was, comanding his old girl. She had been refitted as "Escort Carrier" and given teeth. Now he was a part of an all volunteer crew, participating in what for all intents and purposes was a suicide mission.

It was irrelevant. He would take another piece of the Separatists scum, even if it was the last thing he'll ever do!

By all Nine Hells of his beloved Corellia, he had already hurt the bastards more than he had prayed to achieve! The bombers were already jumping in, ready to savage the clankers!

But it was not enough! The fighters his ship had deployed were fighting for their lives and would buy him few more precious moments. Remember Coruscant still had her light torpedoes. She was darting at full speed at the back of an enemy battleship which itself was a converted Luckrehulk freighter. Its heavy guns were already traversing and tracking the much lighter ship. Solo smirked viciously. Only few of them would be able to shoot at his girl before it was too late.

"We are in range!" shouted his weapons officer.

"Fire!" spat Solo.

The converted container ship screamed as heavy turbolasers cut through her lighter shields and impaled her hull. The rear section of the ship was reduced to ruble but it wasn't enough to stop her.

Captain Solo's head met the deck, before everything went black.

The Escort Carrier spat one hundred seventy five torpedoes (one of the box launchers was gone thanks to a Vulture which kamikazed the ship), and continued on her previous trajectory. Remember Coruscant was aimed straight at the main junction between the sphere and the rest of the Luckrehulk battleship.

Light guns started eating through her shields, but only three heavy turbolaser clusters could bear on the ship. However, those were able to shoot only twice before they and most weapon emplacements on the upper half of the heavy capital ship were annihilated by a wave of torpedoes.

=RK=

"What kriffing piece of junk hit me?" moaned Captain Solo.

He felt almost as bad as that time few years ago, when he ended drinking a whole bottle of aged Corellian brandy.

"Rwooarrwt!" someone roared.

"Told me so?! About what?" Solo grumbled.

He opened his eyes, which was even more painful for his abused head and blinked owlishly at Traaw. The Wookie was pointing his huge paw towards the window of the escape pod.

Outside, the shattered remains of Remember Coruscant slammed into the scorched leviathan that had destroyed the Escort Carrier.

After the massive torpedo strike, this was one abuse too many. The huge battleship was torn in two huge pieces, which tumbled through space. The sphere where the reactor was still working, was relatively intact but its few still operational weapons were useless while she was floating aimlessly through the aether.

Far behind it, the main hull of the Luckrehulk, was a flaming wreck, which while still had about a third of its heavy weapons intact, hadn't enough power to use them.

"Look at that kriffing son of a bitch go!" cheered Solo.

He was smiling for the first time since his sister and nephews were murdered.

Traaw answered Jole with a triumphant roar which nearly deafened him.

=RK=

Assault Carrier Victorious, CIS blockade over Ryloth

"All hands, abandon ship!" coughed Klark.

The bridge of the modified Acclamator was turned into pandemonium. Three Vultures had struck the command tower near simultaneously, wrecking most of it. By some miracle, the bridge itself was still airtight but the shock-waves had caused the power system to overload, blowing up relays and couple of consoles which were struck by power-surges. Three of his brothers were dead as a result.

Damn the kriffing lowest bidder! This was the real world and not some stupid holodrama! Such things were not supposed to happen!

"Watch out!" shouted the navigation officer.

Klark turned his head towards the windows behind him. He died with a curse on his lips, when a Droid Fighter smashed through the bridge before exploding. Klark's last thought was to thank the stars that his ship had only skeleton crew.

On the other side of the blockade, the crippled Leveler had done her job and tried to evade the heavy guns of the closest battleship. A relentless barrage wrecked her starboard side, sending the Assault Carrier into uncontrolled spin. She would end her doomed flight in the upper atmosphere of Ryloth where she would be torn asunder during the reentry. Pieces of the Leveler would rain all over the northern hemisphere of the planet.

=RK=

Republic Cruiser Relentless, Task Force "Retribution" Flagship

Admiral Yularen cursed whoever first introduced the exposed bridges used by everyone's warship designers. Two Venators, Conviction and Coruscant's Pride, were drifting out of control. The third cruiser which was similarly stuck – Requiem, continued to fight as if nothing had happened, despite having both its command towers sheered off by repeated Vulture strikes.

When this battle was over he would insist that all ships under his command were outfitted with dedicated CICs. If he lived that long.

The Admiral stared at the plot. Of the enemy's reserve, only one frigate, which was being blasted to pieces remained as well as twenty odd fighters, which were being hunted down by the CSP. However, the price has been heavy. Hundred twenty one Torrents were lost and all cruiser in the fleet were damaged, thankfully most had only few weapon emplacements missing. But if that was the damage dealt by nine hundred odd Vultures, then what horror could be wrought by almost eight times that number?

The wall of Droid Fighters would strike the bulk of Torrents commanded by Skywalker in seconds. The Jedi general wouldn't be able to stop them. They were just too many of those things.

The Vultures were coming in for a suicide run, accelerating all the way. The damage each of them would cause, would make the previous attack pale in comparison.

"I want that frigate silenced, then shut down the heavy weapons and divert the power to shields and anti fighter guns. Then brace for impact." ordered Yularen.

=RK=

General Skywalker's Delta 7 Interceptor

Anakin let the Force flow through him, preparing himself for the coming onslaught. This was going to be ugly. Outnumbered seven to one, Skywalker knew that he wouldn't be able to stop even a third of the coming Vultures. He had only nine hundred and seventeen fighters, with the rest of the Torrents flying as a CSP for the fleet at his back. He prayed that the escorts and Veil's last surprise would be enough, if not all capital ships were going to be shattered.

He took a deep breath.

"Here they come! Open fire!" ordered Skywalker.

He sent two missiles at the swarm of dark metal which seemed to fly straight at him and opened fire with his laser cannons. His fighter force, which was nothing to sneeze at, no matter how outnumbered they were, followed his lead.

"May the Force be with you, Master!" he heard Ahsoka's voice before her squadron entered the fray.

"And with you, Snips. Stay safe." he whispered.

Then there was no time for anything but fighting for his life.