Star Wars: From the Clone Wars to Starfaring Heroes

Chapter 184, Section 186 - Standoff
Twelve galaxy hours later, the Mediator Task Force launched its third strike.

This time, General Rhys Alrix did not employ any formation.

Instead, her fleet dispersed in an almost provocative manner, with two or three warships forming small squadrons, scattered like beans across the empty space outside the Sulurub asteroid belt.

They patrolled ostentatiously, their cannons looming in and out of sight.

Aleks was probing; she was cautiously approaching the warning line of the Rennes fleet, trying to figure out exactly where the limit of their tolerance lay.

The answer came when her advance team ventured to within 500 million kilometers of the asteroid belt's edge.

Brigadier General Hogo Schiff's separatist "Second Assault Division" emerged from the shadows of the rocks with astonishing speed, like an enraged viper.

Dense red turbine laser beams and missiles instantly tore through the vacuum.

A Republic cruiser and two frigates were reduced to floating metal wreckage in a violent explosion before they could even send out a complete distress signal.

Aleks immediately ordered all squads to retreat; she had obtained the information she wanted—

The other side's bottom line is right here, and their counterattack is exceptionally swift.

Three small-scale conflicts occurred in succession, and all three requests for orders to attack were rejected.

Ryan and his officers were extremely anxious.

Intercepted communications reveal that Jedi General Aleks is getting closer to the truth about the true role of the "Sixth Auxiliary Fleet".

She even began sending out distress signals to other troops in the surrounding area who were loyal to the Republic.

The situation is becoming increasingly passive every hour.

The Mediator Task Force not only discovered their weaknesses but also exploited their fatal flaw of being unable to take the initiative, successfully seizing control of the battlefield.

A fleet only a quarter the size of its opponent had gained the upper hand despite similar tonnage and firepower. Rein felt powerless; if it weren't for that damned "standby order" that bound his hands and feet, Aleks' seemingly bold but actually risky tactics would have been completely crushed in the first conflict.

Another 15 galactic hours have passed.

Hogo Schiff's deep voice came through the communication channel, tinged with seriousness: "Major General, Aleks has made another move, this time all of her forces. Her entire fleet is heading straight for our asteroid belt fortress!"

Raine's gaze briefly met the cold sensors of the tactical robot beside him, and he slowly exhaled a suppressed breath: "This time... what trick is she planning to play this time?"

“She has already begun her operation, Major General,” Schiff’s voice carried the calm of an observer, as if describing a peculiar experiment. “Her fleet… is heading directly into the asteroid belt.”

Despite his best efforts to control his emotions, a complex mix of exhaustion and "finally here" still crossed his face: "So, she really did choose to force her way in."

……

Brigadier General Kendall Ozer stared intently at the massive tactical holographic star map before him and the constantly fluctuating shield energy readings.

The Sulurub asteroid belt resembles a giant ring of rubble, orbiting between the planet Salust and its gas giant neighbor, Lunonmo.

The enemy hid their most precious "Sixth Auxiliary Fleet"—five seemingly insignificant transport ships carrying enormous secrets—in the deepest part of this rocky ocean.

Over the past period, under the relentless pressure of the "Mediator Task Force," the separatists, like a giant beast protecting a dragon's egg, have been constantly retreating their entire fleet, along with its auxiliary ships, towards the more central regions of the asteroid belt.

This willingness to retreat at any cost is itself irrefutable proof of the inestimable value of the auxiliary ship.

No army would pay such a high price or take such a huge risk for a few converted merchant ships.

How to steer a fragile transport ship into the perilous asteroid belt?

This is absolutely insane.

They lack military-grade powerful shields, and any unexpected high-speed space rock could easily destroy them.

But the separatists did it anyway, just to cram as much of a buffer zone of deadly rubble as possible between Arlix's fleet and them.

After all, who would want to fight a fleet battle in the asteroid belt?
Kendall Ozer smirked.

they will.

And right now.

All the probing led them to confirm two key pieces of information.

First, the separatists were far more nervous about those auxiliary ships than one might imagine.

Secondly, they seem to be bound by some invisible shackles, completely losing the will and ability to take the initiative to attack.

Having grasped these two points, the "Mediator Task Force" held a huge advantage; they could choose when and where to start the war and proactively set up an encirclement.

"Shield status is stable, sir!"

A technical officer reported loudly, his voice barely audible amidst the roar of the engines.

“I can see the readings, Lieutenant! Stop talking nonsense!” Ozer yelled impatiently, his gaze sweeping across the massive observation window on the bridge.

Outside the window, the "Resilient," acting as the vanguard, was leading a squadron of escort ships, bombarding the waterways ahead with dense blue turbine laser beams to clear a path for the following fleet.

"The 'Resilient' squad is clearing obstacles! Our top priority now is to make sure we don't get hit by those rocks before the general gives the order for the general offensive!"

"Yes...yes, sir!" the technical officer replied hastily.

Outside the observation window of the bridge, dazzling blue flashes of light rose and fell.

Each flash signifies that a potential threat has been instantly vaporized by a beam of intense energy, leaving behind a brief cloud of plasma in the void.

The separatists' choice of this abandoned mining site as their base was indeed cunning.

A relatively open space was artificially carved out deep within the asteroid belt, large enough to accommodate their massive fleet.

Two main corridors extend from this airspace, each 200 million kilometers long and approximately 4 kilometers wide.

These two passages are roughly at a 100-degree angle in spatial orientation, with a longitudinal inclination of about 30 degrees.

Inside the passage, there was a chaotic scene of debris typical of the Sulurub asteroid belt.

By occupying this stronghold, the separatists only need to control these two narrow, barely passable chokepoints.

If the Mediator Task Force chooses to storm one of the passages, they can use the other passage to quickly evacuate the valuable auxiliary fleet.

These natural "tunnels" were once the lifeline for Salust miners to reach the old mining area, but now they will become the stage for bloody battles.

Ozer had to admit that, from a defensive standpoint, this place was almost perfect.

Of course, there were always voices of concern within the staff. They repeatedly emphasized that this was likely a trap, and that the separatists had certainly laid a net of traps in the passageway—

This is so obvious!
Ozer scoffed at this.

He cautioned the overthinking advisors not to complicate matters.

The core objective is simple and clear: to completely destroy the enemy before they suddenly "come to their senses" and begin to counterattack, especially those damned auxiliary ships!
As long as they are turned into scrap metal floating in cosmic dust, who cares what their original purpose was?

The staff officers started arguing again: the enemy chose this place; they couldn't possibly trap them!
Indeed, a width of 4 kilometers is not particularly wide for two opposing fleets to deploy their battle lines.

The separatist fleet, which had an overwhelming numerical advantage, seemed to be bound by some invisible command.

If the Mediator Task Force wants to break through one of the passages, it must commit its main force, which would allow the enemy to easily slip away through the other passage.

Ozer stopped paying attention to these arguments.

"Obey the general's orders!" he roared, his finger slamming into the tactical star map. "Full engagement of bow shields! All warships, proceed at full speed according to the pre-arranged plan!"

The Knight-class star destroyer "Majesty," personally commanded by Ozer, took the lead, leading eight other ships of the same class and twelve Hunter-class star destroyers, forming a powerful wedge-shaped assault formation as they entered the designated main attack channel.

Directly ahead of them, the ice-blue ion engines of the "Resilient" shone even brighter, their roar seemingly penetrating the ship's hull and clearing the way for the 24 "Jackey-class" and 20 frigates behind them.

Their starboard side faces the dense main part of the asteroid belt.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the asteroid belt, at the entrance of another passage about 400 million kilometers from the star, the "Politician" was leading the remaining warships of the "Mediator Task Force" in preparation for a simultaneous attack.

The solution is to divide forces into two groups and launch a strong attack from two channels simultaneously, blocking the separatists' retreat!
A thick blue beam of light shot from a group of heavy turrets on the side of the "Majesty" instantly vaporized an asteroid that was trying to bypass the "Endurance" interception network.

Ozer's gaze shifted to the radiation scanner screen, where, against a cold blue and black background, hot red spots of rock fragments heated by artillery fire appeared.

He had hoped to command a more advanced and aggressive vanguard, but General Alrix entrusted him with command of all nine of his precious "Knight-class" capital ships.

Even though he didn't yet fully understand what the general was up to.

But the nine heavily armed warships he commands will be the hammer that shatters the core of the separatist defenses.

He just needed to be patient a little longer and wait for that crucial command...

However, an indescribable sense of unease lingered in his mind.

Is it really as simple as it seems?

For example, why did General Alrix divide the fleet into two parts, or even three parts?

This isn't just about attacking the enemy from two directions, is it?
After all, the enemy's numerical advantage remains overwhelming...

He ground his teeth in frustration.

That's it again.

That Jedi can always see things that he can't see.

……

"Report! The enemy has begun their attack!" General Kretz's calm voice rang out in the command channel, stating the cold reality: "About two-thirds of our main force, led by the 'Resilient,' is advancing toward our starboard passage, while the remaining third, led by the 'Statesman,' is approaching from the port passage."

“She divided the troops like this…” Hogo Schiff narrowed his eyes, his tone tinged with a mixture of confusion and wariness. “Didn’t Alrikes realize that the ‘Statesman’ detachment could be crushed in an instant if we concentrated our forces?”

“We are deploying as planned,” Rein gave orders to all officers. “Diedrich, Hogo, your units are responsible for the starboard passage, blocking the ‘Resilient’ and that main assault team. Your mission is to hold them off step by step, delay them, and wear them down.”

"Venok, Ventress, you and I will cover the port passage and engage the 'Politician' squadron. Take the Divine Will-class dreadnoughts with you and concentrate our forces to first crush the Republic's weaker stellar-oriented squadron. Then, quickly maneuver to the outer edge of the asteroid belt and block Alrix's retreat!"

Didier Grieshad and Ergo Schiff were the most experienced commanders in the fleet, and their "Second Division" and "Third Division" were powerful, with a total of 115 warships, twice the number of the Republic's port-side attack force.

Although the total tonnage of the warships is not exactly twice that of each other, the difference in the instantaneous firepower that both sides can actually deploy is partially offset by the environment due to the constraints of narrow passages.

Of course, facing the powerful frontal firepower of the "Knights", the initial defensive pressure will be enormous.

However, they also have a geographical advantage based on the terrain.

On the other side, Vinok, Ventress, and Raine will lead 130 warships, including some that have been repaired by technical experts.

This force is three times the size of the Republic's forces attacking the port side passage.

General Kretz maintained approximately 120 warships as an important strategic reserve.

“I will remain in the center as the reserve commander,” Kretz confirmed. “I will closely monitor the overall battlefield situation and be on guard against any unexpected tactical maneuvers by the enemy. But at this stage, all units must maintain the highest level of alert and operate according to plan.”

Kretz was the most skilled defensive strategist among them, stationed atop the fortified floating fortress, the "Fortress".

About 60 hours earlier, he was one of the first to realize Aleks's probing intentions.

Kretz successfully held off two Jedi generals for three months during the Siege of Ringo Vinda, thanks to his excellent defensive skills.

Regardless of his racial background, his intellect and experience in the art of defensive warfare far surpassed that of most in the fleet.

"Gentlemen, do not be misled by Aleksandr's seemingly chaotic actions at the beginning," Kretz warned again, his voice carrying a calm understanding of the essence. "Like all Jedi, the core logic behind her tactics is often extremely simple and direct. Our biggest mistake is over-interpreting it. Think about her choice to fight us in the asteroid belt. It seems crazy, but it has a significant advantage for her."

The officers nodded in agreement, their eyes scanning the shared tactical hologram; the situation was immediately clear.

In this narrow, obstacle-filled space, Aleix clearly intended to drag the fight into a chaotic close-quarters brawl.

In this chaotic battle, the design concept of the Republic's warships will demonstrate greater tactical effectiveness.

The ship designs of the Republic and the Separatist Alliance have long since taken completely different paths.

Relying on a highly industrialized core world, the Republic has easy access to refined, high-quality energy gases, as evidenced by the widespread deployment of their signature blue ionized turbo laser beams.

The separatist alliance, constrained by resources, relies more on relatively cheap, under-purified gases, as evidenced by the red beams emitted by its weapons.

Since turbo laser cannons are typical close-range, highly efficient weapons, the Republic's designers naturally tend to create close-combat capital ships with heavy hulls and exceptionally fierce bow firepower, such as massive interstellar destroyers.

In response to this threat of heavy armor and artillery, the separatist alliance took a different approach, investing heavily in self-propelled missile/torpedo weapon systems.

The "Divine Will" class interstellar destroyer/carrier is a product of this idea.

Although it is also equipped with a large number of turbo-laser turrets, its real trump card lies in its astonishing number of torpedo tubes.

The basic model has as many as 102 launch ports and can launch 306 torpedoes, while the dreadnought variant has double the firepower.

It was designed as a weapon specifically to counter the Republic's Star Destroyers, aiming to severely damage or even destroy them with a barrage of missiles before they could get into lethal range.

(End of this chapter)