Battle of Terra (3134)

Battle of Terra (3134)
Conflict details
Start Date Early April 3134[1] (See notes)
Planet(s) Terra
Location(s) Belgorod, Russia[2]
Result Republic of the Sphere victory[3]
Attacking Forces
Affiliation Steel Wolves
Commanding Officer(s) Anastasia Kerensky[2]
Defending Forces
Affiliation Republic of the Sphere
Commanding Officer(s) Tara Campbell[2]
Command(s) Northwind Highlanders[3]
Tenth Principes Guards[3]
Tenth Hastati Sentinels[4]
Jack Farrell's mercenaries[5]
Other Forces
Affiliation Ezekiel Crow[6]
Command(s) Himself[6]

Overview[edit]

In early April 3134, war came to Terra itself for the first time in decades.[7] Under the command of Anastasia Kerensky, the Steel Wolves struck Terra, claiming it as their right.[2] Tara Campbell's Northwind Highlanders, along with the Republic's Tenth Principes Guards and Tenth Hastati Sentinels, forced the invaders back, driving them off the planet.[3][7][4]

Prelude[edit]

After two battles against the Highlanders on Northwind, the Steel Wolves moved on to their main target: Terra itself. The planet was expected to be weakly defended, at least by its standards: the Republic had sent much of its forces out to other planets to deal with post-Blackout trouble.[8] Kerensky brought her force, a mass of modified IndustrialMechs, vehicles, and infantry backing a handful of BattleMechs.[9] They were stalled for several days by various factors, including a Trial against Kerensky that left her injured.[10]

The Highlanders, in pursuit but undelayed, arrived on Terra first. With Tara Campbell having, due to traitor Ezekiel Crow's claims, arrived under suspicion of betraying the Republic, she and her Highlanders had been forced to land at an out of the way DropPort in Belgorod, Russia, far from any of Terra's military bases.[11] Their few BattleMechs were supplemented with conventional and battle armor infantry, vehicles of many kinds, and modified IndustrialMechs.[12]

It was April,[1] and the fields of Belgorod were thawing.[13]

Battle[edit]

As the Wolves' DropShips closed in on Terra, the Tenth Principes Guards mobilized, preparing for battle.[14] On her approach, Kerensky declared her aim over comms, and Campbell was the first to respond. They made an arrangement: their armies would face each other in the fields near Belgorod, away from major populations and a convenient location for the Highlanders already there.[2][15]

Paladin Ezekiel Crow, Betrayer of Liao, betrayer of Northwind, had been having a bad day. His various crimes had come to light, reached the press, and they were as much a focus of the media as the impending Steel Wolves attack was. He knew Tara Campbell was one of the sources, but only one. He was in hiding, he was frustrated, and when Kerensky announced her challenge, he saw an opportunity to improve his reputation or at least die trying. He stepped in, challenging Kerensky himself – only for Campbell to declare that Crow would have to fight her first. Kerensky decided to put the battle on hold for the duel.[6] Although the battle would extend beyond Belgorod – she sent elements of her forces to pin Terra's regular defenders down in their bases,[15] and the Tenth Hastati fought closer to Paris[4] – the core of Kerensky's force, herself included, landed in Belgorod as agreed.[15]

The clash between Campbell and Crow was quick. Campbell called for missile support: JES II fire all around Crow's Blade to pin him down and stir up the ground underneath. The fields of Belgorod were thawing, and the earth was mud. The unbattered ground was hard to walk through, sucking BattleMechs' feet in and forcing them to build up heat to even walk. The craters the Highlanders' missiles left were worse. Crow was pinned down, and Campbell's Hatchetman jumped in, avoiding the worst of the mud, and shredded his 'Mech one hatchet strike at a time.[16] One Highlander soldier on the field, William Elliot, described it afterwards as chopped to pieces.[17]

As soon as Crow was down, the full lines of Wolves and Highlanders advanced against each other.[18] The mud had already claimed a Highlander scout car before the battle.[2] With two forces now clashing atop it, it wreaked havoc. Tanks lost all traction or sank into the mud, immobilized.[12][19] 'Mechs boiled themselves slowly wading through waist-deep mud.[20] Infantry struggled to walk over ground torn up by vehicle after vehicle. Only hovercraft moved with any ease.[12]

Amidst the slog, BattleMechs clashed. Somewhere along the way, a Steel Wolves Cougar was brought down, claimed as spoils afterwards by Highlander Robert Ballantrae.[21] Meanwhile, leaders fought. Campbell's Hatchetman and her aide-de-camp Tara Bishop's Pack Hunter faced Kerensky's Ryoken II and, eventually, Kriya Wolf's Tundra Wolf. The Highlanders found support from Jacob Bannson-hired mercenaries,[22] led by Jack Farrell and his Jupiter.[23]

The Wolves ran a flanking maneuver, vehicles aimed to bite into the rear lines of the Highlanders - and suddenly, overheating and bleeding from wounds suffered in the Trial en route to Terra, Anastasia Kerensky fell. Her Ryoken II staggered and collapsed. Her bondsman, medic Ian Murchison, pulled her from her cockpit to give emergency medical aid; she cut his cord, welcomed him to the Clan, and fell unconscious. The flankers, meanwhile, had to turn when Farrell's forces reached the Wolves' DropShips.[24][25] The battle was over. The Steel Wolves' morale broke with their leader down. Tara Campbell offered them the chance to leave Terra safely, an offer they accepted.[17]

Aftermath[edit]

Tara Campbell, already a celebrity, found a new level of fame. Republic media hailed her as the Savior of Terra, however loudly she protested that she was only one of many.[26]

Anastasia Kerensky's grasp on command was damaged, but not broken. The disgrace of Terra left her fending off Trials for command nearly weekly for months to come.[25]

The man known as Ezekiel Crow survived, scarred. Crow was already a cover identity, one he shed, faking his death. He took up the name Ritter Michaelson, claiming to have defended Terra as part of the Tenth Hastati.[4]

The Republic was shaken. That this battle happened was an embarrassment. However well the fight had gone, however hopeless an idea invading Terra had been, invaders had managed to land on Terra. With this crisis and the discovery of Paladin Ezekiel Crow's treachery at the same time, public confidence in the government sharply declined.[3][7]

Notes[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Era Digest: Dark Age, p. 10: "Dark Age Timeline"
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Service for the Dead, ch. 30
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Era Digest: Dark Age, p. 9: "Important Military Actions of 3134"
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 By Temptations and By War, ch. 5
  5. ↑ Service for the Dead, ch. 39
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Service for the Dead, ch. 31
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Era Digest: Dark Age, p. 8: "3134: Breaking Point"
  8. ↑ Service for the Dead, ch. 3
  9. ↑ Service for the Dead, ch. 37
  10. ↑ Service for the Dead, chs. 12–13
  11. ↑ Service for the Dead, ch. 21
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Service for the Dead, ch. 36
  13. ↑ Service for the Dead, ch. 20
  14. ↑ By Temptations and By War, ch. 2
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Service for the Dead, ch. 32
  16. ↑ Service for the Dead, chs. 32–35
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Service for the Dead, ch. 45
  18. ↑ Service for the Dead, ch. 35
  19. ↑ Service for the Dead, ch. 42
  20. ↑ Service for the Dead, chs. 36–37
  21. ↑ Flight of the Falcon, ch. 15
  22. ↑ Service for the Dead, ch. 16
  23. ↑ Service for the Dead, chs. 37–41
  24. ↑ Service for the Dead, ch. 43
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 Flight of the Falcon, ch. 18
  26. ↑ Flight of the Falcon, ch. 3

Bibliography[edit]

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