[Suicide Junkie]

2408:
Our long and difficult struggle has brought us to 2408. 24 Billion people live in freedom across 153 planets in 43 systems.
We are in excellent shape economically, and although our reserves were greatly depleted in the last few years, we are slowly rebuilding them once again.
Our military forces have faced great challenges recently, and many good crews were lost in battle. Our three greatest fleets are limping home, great victories achieved at great cost in the southeastern star cluster. Even greater challenges await them this year, as major invasion fleets lay siege to Othello in the north and Tudran in the south.

2408.1:
The survivors of Alpha fleet have reached the repair facilities in Fizbon, where they are being sorted out. The heavily damaged but mobile ships are being sent out to any idle yard available while the planet tends to the wounded.

In the south, Gamma fleet was decimated while attempting to defend the Quikil warppoint; 33 ships have been lost, and the survivors have gathered on the few remaining ships. They will be attempting to escape to Jorun, but twenty carriers and as many warships stand in their way. Only five enemy cruisers suffered light damage, and an unknown number of fighters were destroyed.

On the other southern front, two colonies were attacked in Tudran. 45 enemy ships assaulted Tudran VII, wiping out 140 defense fighters before proceeding to deliver a heavy surface bombardment. Four enemy ships were destroyed, and 10 more suffered moderate to heavy damage.
Tudran III was also sieged by 25 warships, but had no significant fighter force with which to resist. Bombardment of surface targets has begun, but most of the heavy ships are busy at VII.
Both planets are building bombers with which to harass and wear down the enemy while we gather an organized response, but if the bombardment keeps up, we will need to bolster our ground defenses.

In the north, skirmishes continue between ground forces and the swarms of AI fighters orbiting Othello III and VIII. Although their numbers are overwhelming, their ammo is low and our bombers are dealing a lot of damage before being shot back down. With almost 200 enemy fighters in orbit, it will take quite a while to clear the blockade and then begin rebuilding the planetary defenses.

2408.2:
Heavy bombardment of our colony on Tudran VII continued all month, destroying 20% of our ground defenses. Thick point defense neutralized all of our missiles, so the guerrilla bomber project has been canceled. All production is now devoted to buying more time with ground defenses.

The blockade of Tudran III has been abandoned, but only because the ships have attacked Tudran V. The military stronghold in the system, our colony there sported 200 fighters and 1600 troops. Unfortunately it was nowhere near enough. Our pilots exacted a heavy price for their removal; three of the eight enemy carriers have been destroyed, along with a few of the warships.

The north has been relatively quiet; a few skirmishes with scouts at the warppoints, but nothing major. The 30 ship fleet gathered at the Core world is somewhat worrying, but with 5000 of our troops in Dussullet waiting for an opportunity to strike, it is surely a defensive measure.

Trouble continues to brew in the southeast. Although the invasion of Fwandrei V has been stalled by our strong defenses, the the fighting is a heavy drain on our resources in the area. We cannot even afford the queue time to build a wing of bombers for removing the solo cruiser that remains to blockade the colony.
Fwandrei IV and its satellite network are currently facing down the main enemy fleet in the area. Unless the battle for V depleted their reserves significantly, there is little hope that the AI warships will be stopped by the local defenses.

On the plus side, cleanup work from the large fleet battles earlier is progressing well; only five immobile wrecks are left for the recovery teams. Actually getting ships back into serviceable condition is proving the greater challenge. All shipyards in the region are completely overwhelmed, and ships are piling up. Dedicated repair facilities will be a priority construction item for the next few years.

As far as our operational forces go, things will be a bit thin until we graduate a few more classes. We have 30 fresh recruits heading to Fizbon, and 40 on their way to Zuria, although the Zurian relief will not arrive until the end of the year. In the mean time, 20 combat worthy survivors of Beta fleet are moving to intercept a small group of 7 incoming warships. Without carrier support, they should be easy prey.

It has been decided to redeploy Alpha fleet's experienced command staff to the south, where they will be given command of all of this year's pending graduates and the task of removing the AI fleets from Quikil then Tudran. We must put a stop to the rampage.


2408.3:
The southern AI fleet has completely leveled Quikil I. Local fighters were quickly overwhelmed by the fourteen heavy carriers, and despite their best efforts the ground units were hopelessly outmatched by almost as many bombardment cruisers. There is no sign of any survivors.
All of the colonies in Quikil are building defenses, but against such firepower things look grim.
Tudran has been spared further damage for this month, as the damaged enemy fleet abandoned their attack on Tudran V. 47 enemy ships remain from the initial invasion force, and most seem to be heading north to the system of Ulce.

In the southeast, there were a few minor skirmishes in which we shot down solo scouts. Of note is a 20 ship fleet in Zuria which appears to be heading for Fizbon. We expect to have a force of 36 ships gathered by next month, which should be sufficient.
Even further out is a fleet of 55, but they are traveling east and are not considered a threat at this time.

There appears to be a resurgence of activity in the north as well; fleets of 20 ships each are putting the systems of Othello and Dussulet on alert. Although we have a severe lack of mobile forces in the north, the systems are heavily fortified due to years of being on the front line, and should weather the storm.

2408.4:
Our outposts in the far northeast have reported a group of 43 heading south. If they continue straight, they should arrive in our southeastern system of Fwandrei before the end of the year.

The fleet of 20 entering Fizbon has not moved towards the colonies or the core warppoints. Instead, they seem to be heading back east. The plan is to intercept these ships anyways, in order to prevent them from joining a larger fleet and as practice for bigger engagements later. Having gathered all of the new and undamaged ships in Tudran, Rho fleet now consists of 34 warships and 6 carriers; more than a match for the local enemy force.

Another invasion attempt is reported from the far southeast planet of Fwandrei V.
600 troops have landed, but the defense forces are confident they will prevail as in the previous invasion.

In the south, there have been no new attacks, but all 85 ships are heading for Bintrox. They are not likely interested in our tiny observation post at Bintrox IX A, and we must assume that they are going to pass through the system to strike at our training center of Jorun. So far, we have only 37 ships ready, and the next batch of recruits is not due for another two months. Odds are good that we will have to throw untrained crews into the fight and yet still be outgunned.

Some positive news in the north; Othello VIII has nearly destroyed all of the blockading fighters; only 13 remain, and production will soon go towards rebuilding defenses.
While the northern AI is focusing on the west, we have started gathering our forces for a counter attack from the east. With 9000 troops and hundreds of tanks available, we only need to gather enough warships to clear the way.


2408.5:
Three carriers attacked the system of Xuberra, but were repulsed at the warppoint with minimal casualties. A repair ship has been put on order, since the defense ships are showing some wear and tear.

The other northern forces have turned around and are heading back east in response to our mobilization. Many of them will be too late to intercept, but there are already 24 ships protecting their core in Torren. We will know more when we are in position.

In the south, our first wave of survivors from Gamma fleet are entering Jorun, but there are no combat worthy ships among them. Two undamaged carriers are present, but without fighters to load them with, they will be useless in the coming fight.

The enemy fleet has made a detour in Bintrox; they appear to be gathering into a single vast armada, and worsening our situation.

In the east, Fwandrei IV has been blockaded by a growing fleet of 40. The orbital defenses have been obliterated, but as of yet the enemy has not landed troops or begun a bombardment.

2408.6:
Rho fleet demolished ten enemy warships and two carriers in Fizbon this month; only nine remain. Although six of our forty are unable to continue, three of them should be back in service within a year and two highly experienced ships from the previous battle have been repaired.

Elsewhere in the southeast, Fwandrei V was shocked to find that the invading force had tripled in size with most of them behind our defensive lines. Most of the planet has fallen to the AI forces already, and our troops are in disarray. Our surviving forces are few, but attempting to regroup and gather militia support. Even if the capital does not fall by the end of the month, any additional troop drops would surely wipe out our last stronghold.
64 enemy ships are in orbit to ensure there is no rescue attempt, and an additional 41 orbit the Fwandrei IV, where the next invasion will surely come.

In the south, the gathering of ships we were expecting did not materialize. Instead, the two fleets passed each other at full speed, essentially trading locations. Strategists have refused to predict the meaning of this action.

The northern situation is unchanged, but the official gathering date has been set as 2408.9, with the main strike on the first of 2409.

2408.7:
Rho fleet has chased down and destroyed the last enemy ships in their area. Although they had to chase them through the southern warppoint to the system of Dertran and two ships were disabled in the battle, all nine enemy ships have been destroyed. The fleet will be staying in Dertran for the next few months in order to make use of the local repair facilities instead of waiting for the overloaded Fizbon yards.

In Fwandrei, the last of our tanks were wiped out in heavy combat. AI troops are patrolling in the capital, with only irregular forces still opposing them. Our offensive capability on the planet is essentially zero, and it is only a question of delaying their complete victory now.

The south system of Quikil, it looks like part of the AI fleet is moving to strike Quikil V. Our damaged ships are being diverted away from the site for safety.

Reinforcements have arrived recently on almost every front, and with the enemy forces arrayed against us backing off, things look good for our military. That illusion is sure to be shattered soon.

2408.8:
Reports indicate that 95% of newly recruited resistance fighters do not survive their first month on Fwandrei V. The machines are everywhere, and what little damage is done to them is quickly repaired. The citizens are few, but defiant, and the planet's industry continues to be unusable.

In the north, we now have 65 ships almost in position. 4500 troops will be participating in the first wave, with more to come next year.
One of the AI attack fleets has broken off its pursuit of our fleet and is headed to the east. On the far side of that warppoint lies 42 recently arrived ships; the 2407.6 graduates from the eastern training center of Centrolius. There will be no invasions as occurred in Othello, and soon we will make Othello one of the safest systems in the galaxy for free sentients.

In the south, AI activity continues to be chaotic and mysterious. With the latest recruits from Jorun, the restored Alpha fleet will abandon their defensive position and begin a counterattack.

In the east, Rho fleet continues its shore leave while the ships undergo more repairs. They should get at least one more month before returning to combat operations. There are currently two small enemy fleets which are potential targets heading for Dertran or Fizbon

2408.9:
Alpha fleet is making its move south this month with just over a hundred ships. Their first target is a subfleet of 35 in Quikil. The destruction of this fleet will allow damaged survivors to escape to Jorun and relief ships to enter with supplies and troops.

Rho fleet is ending their shore leave in Detran to intercept a small fleet attacking from Millennia in the southeast. It should be a turkey shoot, with 35 ships against only 10.

Also in the east, the planet of Fwandrei V continues to resist the occupation, and have destroyed one of the light troops in an ambush. Only 2151 left to destroy.
An armada of 70 ships is reported in the system heading north towards Zuria where Beta fleet is regrouping. Beta fleet is currently only 50 ships strong, but the Cephedri graduates of 2408.0 are due to arrive first and even up the fight.

The far north has a lot of activity as well, with the assault on the Core World in Torren and a counterattacking fleet of 23 attempting to push into the normally quiet system of Arklite where, our recruits have just arrived after a year long trip.

Unfortunately, all of this activity will unfold in the next year, and there is nothing to do but wait.