Admiral Vand had deployed the experimental weapon that the Republic had created to crack Imperial planetary shields. The weapon was a massive device mounted on a specialized capital ship that had a powerful Ion bolt cannon designed to overwhelm planetary shields through sustained electromagnetic pulses.
They had never actually tested it on Imperial shields, so they could only use their simulations and the technology they had to guess what would happen when the weapon was used.
"Charge the Disruptor Array," Admiral Vand commanded. "Target the shield's primary generator signatures. I want maximum power on the first shot."
The weapon required five full minutes to charge, during which the Imperial forces just watched as energy readings spiked across their sensors. Raelos watched the unusual ship and smiled. "Let them test their weapon on our shield. I'm curious to see what they were capable of creating with their weak technology."
The soldiers around him saw his calm demeanor and just returned to their duties without worry. If the Warmaster wasn't worried about the weapon, then they also didn't need to worry about it.
Admiral Vand watched as the minutes passed, one by one. Once the weapon was charged, he gave the order "Fire the Ion Cannon!" the ship fired the weapon towards the planet and all the Republic ships watched as the shots struck the shield.
The shield had flickered for a few seconds and then collapsed. Admiral Vand smiled seeing this, but his smile was short lived as his sensor officer had an urgent report. "Sir, I am picking up another shield and this one is…." he paused as his face was in shock looking at the energy readings.
"Another shield? How strong is this one?" he asked.
"It's about 5x stronger than the first one." he announced.
"WHAAAAT!" he couldn't believe what he was hearing and had rushed over to look at the readings himself. "There's no way."
He looked at the readings and couldn't believe what he was seeing. All the readings were off the charts, more so than the previous shield. This meant that the first shield was just a decoy and the second shield was the actual one.
But even with that analogy he was still wrong. The most important Imperial worlds were equipped with a three-layer shield with each layer being stronger than the previous one.
The first shield that Admiral Vand had destroyed was simply the outermost layer, designed to absorb initial bombardments and give false hope to attackers.
"Recharge the Disruptor Array immediately!" Admiral Vand ordered. "We'll crack this shield the same way."
But Raelos wasn't going to give them that opportunity. "All ground batteries, target that experimental vessel. I want it destroyed before they can fire again."
Every artillery battery on Glee Anselm's surface rotated toward the specialized Republic ship. The targeting computers locked on, calculating trajectories that would pass through the shield's firing ports without compromising the shield's integrity. Raelos gave the command, and dozens of massive energy beams shot upward simultaneously.
The ship's shields held for perhaps three seconds before the concentrated fire overwhelmed them. The hull exploded as the beams punched through to the weapons power core. The Disrupter Array detonated in a flash that consumed the ship and two nearby frigates caught in the blast radius.
"No!" Admiral Vand watched in horror as his experimental weapon was reduced to debris. That vessel had cost the Republic treasury trillions of credits and years of research. Its destruction meant they had no way to breach the remaining shield layers without committing to a prolonged siege.
"All ships, maintain blockade positions," he ordered, trying to salvage something from the situation. "We'll starve them out if necessary."
Admiral Theln's voice came through the comm. "Admiral Vand, with respect, a siege of a core Imperial world could take months or years. Our supply lines are already stretched thin across multiple fronts."
Admiral Vand knew this but didn't know what to do. She was ordered to take this world using whatever means possible and their best way of doing that was just destroyed.
"Do you have a better suggestion?" Vand snapped back.
"We need to attack another planet and draw their forces away." suggested Admiral Theln. Instead of wasting their time here on a planet that they could not crack, they might as well go to a less defended planet and draw the Imperial fleet away.
Admiral Vand thought for a minute before agreeing with his suggestion. "I agree Admiral. But one of us should stay here and keep the enemy occupied."
"Well, since you have the bigger fleet, I think you should stay, and I will go attack another planet." Admiral Theln knew how strong the Imperial fleet was, so having an equal number of ships against them was not a situation he wanted to be in.
The two said their final goodbyes and reported the situation to Republic High Command who were not happy with the result of the battle. They expected to hear about the successful initiation of the ground invasion, not about the failure of their experimental weapon.
So, reluctantly they chose another planet for Admiral Theln to attack and issued new order for Admiral Vand to hold her position.
————
On the Imperial controlled world of Teth, Princess Luna and Princess Vaelora had just arrived within the system in response to the Republic invasion of the planet. The Republic had landed forces on Teth two days ago, believing the jungle world would be lightly defended compared to the more strategic industrial centers. However, they were wrong.
Luna stood on the bridge of her flagship, the Liberator, watching as Imperial forces battled Republic forces on the surface of the planet. The Republic had committed approximately 50,000 ships to the assault on Teth, likely expecting minimal resistance.
But what they found instead was a fully mobilized defense force of 80,000 Imperial ships supported by orbital platforms and ground-to-space batteries that had been installed over the past month.
"Sister, the Republic forces have established landing zones all over the planet," Vaelora reported from her tactical station. "Their dropships are being harassed by our fighters, but they're getting through."
Luna looked at the holographic display showing troop movements across Teth's surface. The Republic was deploying standard invasion tactics: establish secure landing zones, bring down heavy equipment, then push outward to capture strategic locations. It was textbook military doctrine, which made it predictable.
"Have our ground forces fall back to the prepared defensive positions," Luna ordered. "Let them think they're making progress. Once they're committed to their advance, we'll cut off their supply lines and trap them in the jungle."
The tactical officer nodded, relaying the orders to ground commanders. Luna had learned much from observing Daimon's strategies over the centuries. Sometimes the best way to win was to let your enemy believe they were winning until the moment you crushed them.
"Republic reinforcements are entering the system," another officer announced. "Additional fleet strength: 30,000 ships."
"That brings their total numbers to 80,000 ships, equal to our own forces." said Vaelora.
"It's time to go in then." Luna gave the command the Imperial fleet activated their systems and charged forward. They were hiding within the darkness of space activating their stealth systems which basically limited the amount of power the fleet emitted, hiding them from any sensors.
"All ships, focus fire on their carrier groups," Luna transmitted across the fleet channels. "Vaelora, send a strike group and hit their left flank. Let's disrupt their formation before the two fleets can properly organize."
"Understood, sister," Vaelora replied, transmitting orders for a battlegroup to split off from the main formation and execute the flanking maneuver.
A few minutes later, the two fleets collided in the space above Teth, turbolaser fire creating bright flashes in the space above the planet.
Republic ships attempted to maintain their formation, but Luna's tactics were working. She was using everything she learned from Daimon to win this battle and defeat the Republic fleet.
"Target acquired," her weapons officer announced. "Republic command carrier, bearing two-seven-zero."
"Fire all forward batteries," Luna ordered.
The Liberator's main guns unleashed a devastating salvo that punched through the carrier's shields and tore into its hull. Secondary explosions traveled across the ship as its fighter bays ignited, consuming the ship from the inside.
Meanwhile, on the surface, the Republic ground forces were advancing through Teth's dense jungles, believing they were pushing back Imperial defenders. What they didn't realize was that every step took them deeper into a killing zone.
Commander Thex led the Republic's Third Infantry Division through the undergrowth, his troops sweating in their armor as Teth's humidity was not something they prepared for. The jungle was thick enough that their sensors were almost useless, forcing them to rely on visual confirmation for enemy positions.
"Sir, we've secured the eastern ridge," his lieutenant reported. "Imperial forces retreated before we could engage properly. It's like they're not even trying to hold ground."
Commander Thex started to become suspicious. Something about this felt wrong. He'd studied Imperial battles for a few years, and they never gave up territory this easily. "Maintain formation and advance cautiously. I want scouts ahead of the main column at all times."
But as they kept moving forward, his instincts were telling him that something was wrong. "All forces stop." he ordered into the comm.
Hidden beneath the jungle canopy, Imperial soldiers had been waiting for hours. They'd studied every path the Republic forces might take and every clearing that could serve as a staging area. When Commander Thex's division reached the predetermined kill zone, the trap was sprung.
Explosives buried along the trail detonated simultaneously, throwing Republic soldiers into chaos. Imperial forces opened fire from elevated positions, their shots precise and coordinated with their fellow soldiers around them. The jungle had seemed so empty moments before, but now it was alive and filled with Imperial soldiers.
"Ambush! Fall back to…." Commander Thex's order was cut short as a sniper's bolt took his off. His lieutenant tried to rally the troops, but Imperial forces had already cut off their retreat.
Within about an hour, the Republic's Third Infantry Division ceased to exist as an effective fighting force. The few who survived were rounded up and taken as prisoners of war until they were given orders to otherwise dispose of them.