Star Wars: From the Clone Wars to Starfaring Heroes

Chapter 240, Section 232 - Openly and brazenly

The Titania Galaxy.

Deep within the Koross Sector, a Republic fleet of over a hundred warships leaped in from outside the blockade.

The size of this fleet clearly shows that the Republic did not have enough time to amass a large military force.

With the high-precision observation equipment he was equipped with, Raine was able to clearly identify the composition of the fleet.

Forty capital ships and sixty frigates.

To be honest, however, Rein wasn't entirely sure about this number, because a new type of warship that had never been recorded had appeared in this Republic fleet.

Although it cannot be confirmed, monitoring equipment can determine that those warships belong to the category of Star Destroyers, as they have the distinctive wedge-shaped engine outline.

However, other aspects of these Star Destroyers are perplexing.

With a hull length of less than 1,000 meters, this is a relatively conservative size for a capital ship.

However, its energy readings were abnormally high.

What kind of light ships need to be equipped with reactors equivalent to those of capital ships?
A total of twelve similar warships were arranged in an assault wedge formation in front of the enemy lines.

Rennes has been able to determine their tactical uses.

In comparison, he directly commanded fewer than fifty ships.

A quarter of his forces, led by Vinok, were engaged in deep-seated skirmishes with the main force of the Republic's army.

The remaining ships are scattered and stationed at the seven crown planet strategic nodes in the Titan system.

As the Republic Fleet sped toward the orbit of the Queen Titan system, seemingly lured by Raine's weak defenses, the various units of the 28th Mobile Combat Fleet were encircling it from multiple directions.

Didier Greshad led fifty warships from the outer planetary region to the northeast.

After completing his attack on the agricultural loop, Hogo Schiff is leading thirty-three warships back to port.

Kretz arrived from the depths of the Northwest Core, bringing with him twenty-nine reinforced ships.

If we exclude the 4th Combat Division and only include the Titan Guard and the Mining Guild Enforcement Fleet, the available force reaches 160 ships.

Although the Republic Fleet consists of heavy ships, they have already penetrated deep into the separatist sphere of influence, and the 28th Mobile Fleet has long been well prepared.

The Republic's fleet is now surrounded.

If we're lucky, this battle could be a repeat of the victory at the Battle of Krant.

At that time, General Severn Tann used himself as bait to lure Jedi General Echo Shenjohn into a trap, and then commanded the Confederate Second Fleet to strike out from the shadows of many orbiting objects in the Krant system, completely crushing the Republic army.

The Chimera issued an order, and the fleet pretended to be making hasty preparations and forming an emergency formation in case of a surprise attack.

This is essentially a tactical demonstration of using the weak to overcome the strong, but Rennes still has a reserve team at this point.

The fact that the Grand Republic Army launched an offensive despite being outnumbered demonstrates that the enemy commander was no nobody.

"Set the acceleration to 500 standard gravity," Raine quickly ordered. "Shorten the distance to the enemy, prepare to turn left, and closely monitor any enemy movements."

They could have held their ground and waited for the enemy to enter the range of the Titania system's defensive firepower.

This is a safer option for any force on the defensive.

However, if the enemy commander is as astute as Raine suspects, he must already be aware of the risks of their current situation.

Once the opposing force realizes that it is not facing the full strength of Rennes, the Republic fleet may turn directly to attack the nearest ambush force.

If that's the case, it wouldn't be a replay of the Battle of Krant, but rather a replica of the Battle of Yagdur.

Therefore, Raine ordered the Chimera to lead the fleet forward to escape the range of systemic fire, so as to provide support to friendly forces at any time.

This operation might expose the ambush intentions, but since the military strength ratio has now reached three to two, the meticulous calculations in the original plan can be relaxed appropriately.

“They’re slowing down,” Taylor suddenly reported. “Does this make sense in their tactical logic?”

"Have they figured out our plan?" The small tower's sensors kept flashing, and the servo joints of its mechanical fingers bent slightly. "We should immediately notify all fleets to execute the battle plan. We must encircle them and completely annihilate them."

Rein frowned. At that moment, the Republic fleet was right in the center of the ambush, seemingly aware of the positions of all the ambushers, yet still lingering in the encirclement with a mocking air.

The Chimera further increased its engine power, accelerating from 500 bars to twice its original speed, and adjusted its course so that its path cut through the hypotenuse of the invisible triangle formed by itself, the Fortress, and the enemy ship.

Unexpectedly, the Republic Fleet suddenly turned right, negating the advantage brought by the Chimera's maneuver and moving away from the relatively weak 5th Division.

At that moment, Raine realized that the enemy commander was not only trying to figure out his thoughts, but also controlling the pace of the battlefield, which put him on the defensive.

"Turn right, full speed ahead!" Little Tower was already issuing the command. "Order the 'Crown Prince' to move closer to me and intercept!"

Ryan suddenly stood up. "Can we get here in time?"

“The calculations show it’s feasible,” the tactical robot replied. “We are trying to identify the enemy commander. There are very few commanders with this level of skill in the core area, except for the admiral in the home fleet.”

They had originally predicted that the Republic Fleet would attack the "Fortress" first, luring it to turn left, thereby creating an opening in the direction of the 3rd Combat Division.

Fortunately, it was discovered in time; otherwise, this gap would have been enough for the Republic Fleet to break through the encirclement and leave the entire 28th Mobile Combat Fleet behind.

At the critical moment, the Crown Prince's emergency maneuver averted the crisis and regained the initiative on the battlefield.

Faced with the threat of being attacked from both sides, the Republic commander turned again, leading the twelve new Star Destroyers to rush to starboard, heading straight for the Chimera's formation.

This was an extremely audacious move, attempting to hinder a fleet far larger than itself with only ships of the equivalent of heavy cruisers.

At this moment, Renn even wished that his confidence in his own fleet was as strong as the enemy's confidence in their warships.

However, immediately afterwards, the sides of those Star Destroyers suddenly opened, revealing huge launch structures, no less large than the hangar doors of the "Jeffer-class Star Destroyers".

In the dark launch bay, Renn saw equipment he never expected to appear on a Republic ship: missile launchers.

Clearly, the Republic's Navy has studied the separatists' naval tactics and developed new warships specifically designed to counter them.

"Prepare for evasive maneuvers," Ryan commanded in a low voice. "On my instruction, feign a left turn, prepare our launchers, first wave of anti-missile missiles, second wave of propellant warheads. They're making mistakes, so let them keep making mistakes."

The Crown Prince, as the pride of the Tyne Fleet, has repeatedly proven to be the fastest command ship in the 28th Fleet.

The 3rd Combat Division has always been responsible for rapid response missions.

While rehearsing subsequent tactics, Ryan waited for the optimal firing range.

He tensed up, digging his nails deep into his palms, silently comparing the technological gap between separatist and republican missiles.

In order to sustain the war, the Confederacy has done everything in its power to produce even the most basic model of warships.

Apart from the Technological Alliance, most planets in the Outer Ring are forced to engage in low-cost equipment manufacturing.

The core world, on the other hand, possesses all the resources and traditions necessary for continuous technological improvement.

Analysis using observation equipment alone reveals that the diameter of the Republic's missile launch tubes is significantly larger than that of their torpedo launch tubes.

This could mean a longer range and a more powerful warhead.

Raine had never seen such ships during the Battle of Yagdul, but if they appeared on the front lines…

"Major General," Taylor's voice interrupted his thoughts, "received enemy flagship communication, should we answer?"

“…They seem quite confident,” Renn clenched his fist. “Little Tower, have you reached a conclusion?”

“Our initial assessment is that the enemy commander is a Jedi General,” Little Tower replied briefly. “So far, while his tactics are sophisticated, they are fundamentally primitive, relying mainly on inducing the enemy to make mistakes. This requires patience and sufficient confidence to dare to place oneself in an ambush and wait for the enemy to make a mistake. Most officers in the Republic Army are too cautious, while the Jedi General possesses this confidence… or rather, this composure of inaction.”

“…Connection established,” Raine finally said.

“Hello, Major General Bontri,” a familiar voice came through the communicator, “I am Jedi General Prokone Kong, and I bring you a proposal for peace talks to continue our dialogue that was interrupted a year ago.”

Raine stared at the twelve unsettling Star Destroyers, their cold light gleaming in the same sea of ​​stars.

Prokhor.

His blood almost froze.

This time, he no longer had a single unfinished warship to throw at the Jedi general.

(End of this chapter)