FSRB Chpt 152

==The Federated Suns Reborn - Chapter 152==
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May 3070Operation Achilles IV
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===Achilles Operations - Progress Report===
The battles within the Dieron Military District were not going well for the DCMS and the AFFS continued to press it's advantage as May proceeded. With Dieron itself almost entirely fallen and only Fortress Dieron itself holding out there was little that Warlord Kurita could do to reverse the situation either. While he could still call upon a number of uncommitted forces most of these were tied down garrisoning key worlds and holding the border. Throwing them into a counter attack was a huge risk as if it failed the District would have nothing left to fight with...
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===Dieron Military District Invasion===
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====Dieron====
On Dieron, itself the Davion Assault Guards and their allies continued to pound and reduce the outer works of Fortress Dieron. Taking few chances they hammered the Kurita battle lines with huge quantities of artillery and air strikes, before battle armored troops covered by entire battalion of assault Battlemechs would press forward. Their object, to seize the shattered position, moving the front lines a few hundred yards forward. At which point they would begin the entire process against the next bunker or line of entrenchments. It was a slow and dirty war of artillery and brutal combat but the Assault Guards were in their element. They had secure supply lines, air superiority, numbers and weight of metal on their side. Even better, despite the prodigious rate at which the Guards were expending ammunition their supply depots were actually filling faster than they could empty them due to the huge industrial might of the Federated Suns pouring to support them. Often damaged Battlemechs were simply replaced with new ones while the damaged Battlemech was shipped back to one of the refit center to be almost entirely rebuilt before returned to service. Losses in the conventional forces were made up almost as quickly with a steady supply of new recruits flowing in.
Compared to this the DCMS troops penned in within Fortress Dieron, whom were forced to rely entirely on the stocks of the fortress itself. Which were considerable but finite. As a precaution Warlord had all of the OmniMechs in his forces outfitted purely as laser boats to reduce the expenditure of ammunition. For now he could replace destroyed Battlemechs and repair any damaged Battlemechs that were recovered in the huge workshops of the fortress, but again spare parts and armor were limited to what he had in stock as were replacement Battlemechs. Most of the replacement Battlemechs were older machines placed in storage and it became common to see old Panther 9R's and 10K's in the ranks of the 3rd Dieron Regulars in particular.
Around the rest of the planet conventional AFFS troops began filtering into garrison postings while a civilian government began to be set up - something that Dieron had not experienced in several hundred years as it had always been directly ruled by the DCMS given it's importance and as a Military District capital world. While there was some difficulty in finding suitable candidates, the world itself retained some small local civilian government institutions - often holdovers from the Terran Hegemony.
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====Fomalhaut====
The 47th Dieron Regulars were finally granted orders to withdraw by Dieron on the 4th of May, however it was too late. Admiral Kossack's double strength aerospace wings swept down on the fleeing regiments dropships as they lifted up out of the planet's gravity well and caught them just as they were breaking orbit. The DCMS transport flotilla consisted of 2 Overlords, 4 Unions, 3 Leopard-CVs, 4 Condors and nearly a half dozen assorted civilian dropships mostly Mules. Escorting them are a single Achilles class assault dropship and the 47th's own attached fighter wing which has 29 aerospace fighters within it most of the pilots of which are green - the Achilles and the 3 Leopard-CVs Fighter Carrier Dropships act as escorts with the fighters to the rest. Against this the 2nd Davion Guards RCT throws 110 fighters as well as an A3-Overlord Pocket WarShips, 2 Achilles and no less than 7 Avenger class Assault Dropships. The 4th Davion Guards full fighter regiment and the attached fighter wings of the 2 Fighting Urukhai regiments remain in reserve to protect the AFFS incoming dropships.
As the fleeing Kurita ships break orbit, the Davion attack force strikes. Fully half of the 2nd Davions' fighters break off and attack the escorting fighters and dropships with support from the 2 Davion Achilles and four Avengers. The remaining fighters and attack dropships streak past the firefight and hit the fleeing transports. The A3 pocket warship holds back and begins medium ranged capital missile strikes at the Kurita Overlords and Unions in particular.
The infantry transporting Condors in particular are soon taken out by fighter strikes on their almost unprotected rear engines. At which point the fighters leave the crippled ships and swarm the Unions. In the meantime the A3-Overlord, FSS Franklin's Fist has destroyed by the first of the two Kurita Overlords as it is firing capital missiles at the second. Realizing the situation, the Tai-sa in command of the 47th Dieron, orders his transports to make a break back for the planet. Shortly before his command Union blows up under the concentrated fire of squadron of six Hammerhead fighters and an Avenger class dropship.
Most of the civilian Mules Cargo ships remain undamaged, but surrender or break for the outer system. Only a single Mule will actually make rendezvous with a Kurita JumpShip and leave the system carrying several thousand tons of spare parts and ammunition. The others are all captured. The military Dropships that remain try to escape back to the planet with their escape cut off. A single heavily damaged Union manages to make a semi-controlled landing at the world's capital's spaceport. Which "only" kills or injures half the crew and soldiers it was carrying. The remaining ships are either crippled and boarded or destroyed outright.
With the return of only a single crippled Union most of who's passengers are in no fit state to resist the impending invasion what is left of the planetary government surrenders before the first Davion Battlemech sets foot on the sub-tropical world. The 2nd Davion Guards RCT takes the honour or landing to accept the surrender and return their old garrison posting to the FedSuns while the 4th Davion Guards and both Fighting Urukhai, with little to do are redeployed to hit Lyon and Imbros III respectively.
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====Styx====
The 1st Sheraton Knights and the 33rd Avalon Hussars RCT arrives in system on the 14th and straight away burn for the planet. The large planetary militia mobilize quickly and by the time the first AFFS troops begin to land have deployed into strong defensive positions across the planet. While almost entirely infantry they put up a stiff resistance to the advancing Davion troops helped by the fact that the local storms ground most of the 1st Knights and 33rd Hussars' aerospace assets. Realizing the slog they are facing the CO's of both units dispatch requests for additional infantry and light armored formations to be sent to aid in the conquest. As well as at least one engineering battalion. While they wait they shift over to a mostly defensive war, holding onto roughly a third of the planet. 
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====Asta====
The defending 32nd Galedon Regulars, perhaps with less loyalty to Dieron and knowing their own Military District is hard pressed. They don't bother to await permission to withdraw from Imbros III when the Fighting Urukhai's 8th Striker & Bar Hounds regiments arrived in system on the 28th. They swiftly flee the system on their own dropships and leave the planet in the hands of the puppet Combine governor. Who is deposed by the Lyran Loyalist resistance before the 32nd has even reached orbit. The both Fighting Urukhai burn for the planet in the name of "First Prince Victor Davion, ally and friend of the Lyran Alliance". It is clear from the start the Imbros III will be returned to the Lyran Alliance. 
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====Lyons====
The 13th Sun Zhang Cadre in a display of spirit if not wisdom declare that they will hold the world of Lyon for the Dragon until the last bullet and man when the 4th Davion Guards RCT jumps into the system on the May 28th. The 4th Davion Guards head for the planet knowing that they will have a fight to take the world back for the Lyrans. However, they are also being fed information from the local resistance and know that the Cadre while motivated are struggling to contain resistance movements across the whole planet. Lyon has never settled under the Dragon's banner and many on the planet wish to return to the Lyran Alliance - although more than a few hope for a return of the Federated Commonwealth.
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