FSRB Chpt 147

==The Federated Suns Reborn - Chapter 147==
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February 3070Operation Ajax III
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===Ajax Progress Report===
With Proserpina on the verge of falling and a number of units within the Benjamin Military District already wiped out on the border morale was beginning to fail within the District after just a few short months of war. However, the DCMS units within the Benjamin Military District received not 1 but 3 shots in the arm with the arrival of Kanrei Hohiro Kurita, the heir to the Dragon, on their capital world along with a major task force of Word of Blake warships and transports that had linked up with him. Benjamin's HPG which had been one of the first to be knocked off line was almost immediately repaired (almost entirely replaced from spare parts) and 2 full regiments worth of battlemech's were used to form the 27th & 28th Benjamin Regulars largely from "graduates" of the Osaka Fields Proving Grounds and various veterans recalled to the colors. Also within the district, when Hohiro stopped over at Arkab. The Arkab Legions had reinforced their 7th Arkab Legion to 80% of it's full strength as well as forming a new 8th Arkab Legion at the same strength level from the regiment of battlemechs that the Kanrei had "gifted" to them. In return for this largess the Arkab Legions had dispatched the 6th Arkab Legion with Hohiro to Benjamin..
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===Benjamin Military District Invasion===
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====Proserpina====
Even as the rest of the district rallied with the arrival of the heir the situation on Proserpina continued to worsen for the defenders. The 6th Robinson Rangers RCT, fresh from it's fighting in the Capellan Conquest and eager to prove it's skills against the traditional enemies of the Rangers threw themselves into the fighting around Conqueror's City with a zeal that the more tempered regiments lacked. Finding themselves against a mixed brigade of militia bolstered by roughly 2 companies of cadets from the Proserpina Academy the 6th used their better equipment and coordination to break the enemy lines on the 5th of April. Only a hurried relief column consisting of the last of Sho-sho Yoshida's reserves stabilized the front facing the 6th Rangers.
His situation continued to deteriorate when the AFFS fighter wings which had now achieved almost total air superiority over the city began dropping pamphlets on the Kurita held areas. These contained transcripts of the AFFS's offer to allow civilians to evacuate the city and the Sho-sho's refusal of said offer. Civil disobedience, mass desertions from the conscript labor battalions and even outright mutinies began to break out throughout the city. While most of these were contained to the labor battalions a number of cadets with family in the city and even one veteran lance of retired Proserpina Hussars who had volunteered to defend the city joined in the mutinies. Putting these rebellions down took time and troops that the Yoshida simply didn't have.
With internal revolts breaking out almost hourly and with no reserves left he therefore could do little when the 1st Davion Guards RCT, Davion Old Guards RCT, 1st Kathil Uhlans, and 41st Avalon Hussars RCT all launched a full scale assault on the 12th of April. His own 1st Sword of Light was the only real reliable force that he had left and he rushed companies or even individual lances of them along the perimeter, trying to hold back the tide. For nearly 8 hours the Sword of Light proved once again that they were amongst the finest troops in existence and held off nearly 4 times their numbers of mechs and many more times that in armor and infantry. However when the so far quite sectors facing the Argyle Lancers and the 1st Revenant Guards RCT suddenly came alight with a short brutal artillery barrage followed by these 2 elite formations joining in the attack any hope that the 1st Sword of Light might pull of a miracle died. The few battlemech's facing the Lancers and the Guards had been stripped to stem the tide in active sectors and the two AFFS formations found themselves facing only demoralized militia and a handful of 10th Proserpina Hussars - most of whom surrendered rather than fight for a leader they had lost faith in.
Roughly a company of the 1st Sword of Light managed to fall back to Sho-sho Yoshida's command post in order to make a last stand. The rest of the regiment had died somewhere within Conqueror's City - in many cases mechwarriors who had managed to punch out finding themselves lynched by the very Combine citizens of the city itself. Only the Sho-sho's own command lance were in anything close to battle worthy condition and the 1st Davion Guard combat command that was the first to reach the command post over ran them within 10 minutes of hard fighting.1
With the death of Shigeru Yoshida and his last warriors, the Sword and Sunburst was ran up the flagpole outside the command post and Proserpina declared secure for the Federated Suns..
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====Lapida====
The Blue Star Irregulars mercenary command officially requests to stand down in April, informing the High Command that they intend to bring up two companies from their reforming Avatar's of Painful Death regiment to replace losses in their 2 active commands. This request is quickly granted by the High Command at the First Prince's own order. The Irregulars are switched from offensive actions to defensive garrison commands until they can integrate their replacement personnel. They are requested (and agree) to continue hunting the 15th Ghost alongside the conventional brigades which have joined them on Lapida. With barely 2 companies of the 15th Ghost in hiding (barely 1 by the end of April after more of the traitors are betrayed themselves by the population of the planet) and with 2 elite mercenary formations holding the planet Lapida is declared secure. The 3rd Crucis Lancers RCT lifts off for their next target on the 20th.
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====Tannail====
The almost intact (80%) 3rd Crucis Lancers RCT having conquered 2 worlds already for House Davion jumps into the Tannil system on the 27th April and begins a controlled burn towards the planet. The local militia already on alert stand too and prepare to sell their live as dearly as possible for the Dragon... 
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====Donenac====
The defending 9th Benjamin Regulars was one of the few veteran units remaining on the front line within the Benjamin Military District and knew that the AFFS would be coming for them. They weren't to be disappointed. Leading the way came the 42nd Avalon Hussars RCT along with their 1st & 5th sister RCTs. While the 1st & 5th Avalon Hussars RCTs were hovering at around 60% of their listed strength they were still reinforced regiments and as such added almost 8 battlemech companies each to the 42nd's veteran and stronger force. Which didn't take into account their fighter wings, armored and infantry brigades. Between the three RCTs they were able to muster around two and a half times the 9th's battlemech forces. 
The 9th Benjamin Regulars fall back on their skills at urban warfare and disperse into Donenac's cities in an attempt to thin the Davion attackers lines and leave them open to counter attacks. However with the sheer weight of numbers available to him Marshal Edwin May deploys the 1st & 5th Avalon Hussars as blocking formations and encircles the various garrisons of the minor cities while concentrating his own more experienced and heavier 42nd on a single city and proceeds to crush the garrison. He then moves on to the next. While this relentless use of his superior firepower and numbers will take time to reduce the DCMS garrisons it has the advantage of keeping his casualties down. By the end of April nearly a third of the Regulars have been destroyed and the remaining garrisons have had to listen to the panicked calls from aid from 3 cities who's garrisons have been systematically reduced. Marshal May's tactics wont be fast or flashy... But they are effective. 
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====Reisling's Planet====
Even as the 1st, 5th, & 42nd Avalon Hussars are burning for Donenac, the 14th & 20th Avalon Hussars RCTs are heading for Reisling's Planet. The green 23rd Benjamin Regulars have none of the 9th's skills or confidence and the newly formed unit's CO decides that discretion is the better part of valor and flees Reisling's Planet along with key government officials and as many of the planet's militia as he can cram into his dropships as he jumps to Iruzun. While this does allow him to add a regiment of armor and nearly three regiments of infantry to his formation it does gut the remaining militia on Reisling's Planet which promptly surrender as soon as the AFFS troops begin landing.
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====Ludwig====
The 24th Benjamin Regulars on Ludwig unlike their sister regiment the 23rd, decide to make a stand on Ludwig and hope for reinforcements. However, when they see that no less than 3 full RCTs are barrelling down on them their Commanding Officer makes a swift change of mind and instead of attempting a conventional defense orders his unit to scatter into the wilds and conduct a guerrilla campaign until the Dragon can send reinforcements.
When the 2nd Dragonlords, 4th Crucis Lancers and 12th FedSuns Dragoons RCTs all land on the planet they manage to snap up 2 companies of the 24th Regulars who had not managed to break into the wilderness quickly enough, but are then faced with a full blown insurrection with Battlemech forces across most of the planet. The 2nd Dragonlord's battle armor forces teamed up with the 12th Dragoon's infantry formations secure the various cities while the armor and Battlemechs of all 3 forces begin the hunt to run down the 24th Benjamin Regulars.
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====Matar====
With intelligence that the garrisoning 25th Benjamin Regulars has attacked New Mendham (and is unlikely to return) the AFFS High Command dispatches the 10th Deneb Light Cavalry RCT to Matar to secure this planet for the Federated Suns. With it's double strength aerospace forces sweeping the skies clean of the handful of defending DCMS aerospace fighters the Cavalry lands and within a week has secured the key locations of the planet, rounding up many of the dependents and support troops of the 25th Benjamin in the meantime.
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