CAAP Joint Strike Force

The Combined Arms of Aquila and Pyxis (CAAP) Joint Strike Force was built with the purpose of bringing the forces of the houses Aquila and Pyxis together, to build relationships, and to brew a camaraderie over their love of the Empire which they serve and protect.

In times of peace the ships of the Joint Strike Force patrol the sector on their own, ready to help in any conflict, mostly for civil defence and disaster control, or in supporting House Crux in any delicate mission, only during war do the ships of the fleet find their way back together to fight as one. But even when the whole fleet has come back together, the CAAP Joint Strike Force is not an imposing threat in terms of numbers, with only about one thousand men and women serving, and most of the time less than twenty mostly light ships.

However the Combined Arms of Aquila and Pyxis should never be underestimated, due to the their training and experience this Joint Strike Force combines the best of both House Aquila and Pyxis - The Legionnaires usually add their superior training in naval warfare and the Rangers their experience in boarding maneuvers of hostile enemy ships and space stations.

## History

The Combined Arms of Aquila and Pyxis Joint Strike Force was concieved by Warden Errant Pyxis Kymay Timucin, representing House Pyxis, and the Convocation of House Aquila on September 17th, 3156.

### War Against the Artificals

#### Operation Fist Bump

The first major consolidation of the CAAP fleet occurred in 3177, after the Legio CXI was attacked on Cabina. House Cygnus and the Synths had betrayed humanity. Luckily all of the CAAP fleet soldiers were human and those synthetics that did attack the CXI were dealt with easily, with the help of the Joint Strike Force.

#### Operation House-Cleaning

The battle of Phymete VIII in March of 3185 was a naval engagement against House Cygnus over one of their planetary bases, where CAAP fought alongside Legio CCXII The battle is a decisive victory for the Empire, where CAAP and CCXII marines stormed the Cygnus base and destroyed all Synth factories on the planet's surface. The world was quarantined after the battle, as it was deemed the technology hidden there was too dangerous to be left for the rest of the sector.

#### Operation Frakenstein

In 3188 a group of Triangulum scientists needed rescuing after being trapped on Yanaratso, the zombie planet, in the search for technology that could potentially win the war against Cygnus faster, at least in the mind of the Triangulum.
Hearing their distress call, CAAP responded to find the stranded scientists with just minutes to spare. However none of the technology the Triangulum thought could win the war was able to be recovered.

#### Operation Dark Phantom

This operation was a four month campaign on Teuthem from late 3190 to early 3191, to destroy all the Synth manufacturing plants on planet. The eternal night of this planet made it difficult for CAAP and the legions of the XXIII and CCXII forces to deal with the Cygnus forces and the Synthetics, but not impossible.

#### Operation Farewell

The funeral of Warden Errant Pyxis Kymay Timucin, the former Legate of Legio LUX, in 3195 was a grand event where the whole CAAP fleet meet on the Lodestone united not as a war-band but to honor the recently passed away military leader of House Pyxis. Ten CAAP members fired a fifty shot salute in Pyxis tradition, before one part of his dog tags was sent off in the Starlight Vigil and the other was brought back to Diomikato on board of the flagship AQN *Storm Falcon* to rest in the Legio Terminus.

### Post War Against the Artificials

#### Operation White Void

The whole CAAP fleet gathered in 3199 in the Home System to celebrate the wedding of Warden Errant Pyxis Damson Rola and Tribune Aquila Scilla Aelia Theresa. Rangers and Legionnaires celebrated this union for seven days on the HPS-430 *Star Chaser*. All 3,000 beds on board of the *Star Chaser* where used during the week of celebration in a time of peace for the first time after the split from House Vela. Most of the guests came from the Aquilan Legions, the Crux House Guard, and the Pyxis Ranger Coalition.

#### The Second Call

The fleet was gathered once again, after the A.C.R.E. attack on Rahe 1 and Diomikato in May 3200. This is the second time the fleet was ever gathered and the first time it was dispersed and gathered by the same commander.

## Organization

The whole of the Joint Strike Force has a manpower of about 1,000 Legionnaires and Rangers in total, split in equal numbers. Those whose staff the ships provided by the Legions and the Ranger Coalition for the CAAP fleet share this equal numbers as well, meaning that on a Aquilan corvette there might be fifteen Legionnaires and fifteen Rangers. The commanding officer will always be the one that either is the owner of the ship, or the representative of the faction that owns the ship. The first officer will always be from the other house.

Legionnaires and Rangers serve for up to two years, but can volunteer for three years. During this time soldiers in CAAP are allowed to change ships in between the CAAP fleet, with the consent of the respective commanding officers of both ships and only if they find someone willing to swap from the other ship's crew.

### Command Structure

The Commander of CAAP changes every four years, rotating between a Tribune of the Imperial Legions of House Aquila and a Captain of the Pyxis Ranger Coalition of House Pyxis. The house not in command functions as the second-in-command over the CAAP fleet. Usually the commander and their second do not stay permanently on the same ship.

The current commander of CAAP is, in an unprecedented occurrence, an incumbent: Tribune Pyxis Damson Aelia Theresa was reelected from the Pyxis Ranger Coalition after she married from Aquila into Pyxis, becoming the wife of Warden Errant Damson Rola. This is the first time that one person was in their lifetime twice the commander of CAAP.

Even though Theresa is no Ranger, the Rangers were very satisfied with her performance as previous commander and very happy with her becoming a Pyxis, that they decided to break the rules and made the Aquila born Pyxis Legionnaire their leader again.

### Fleet Structure

The fleet of the CAAP Joint Strike Force is not the biggest, nor most powerful in the Empire but that was never the reason for its creation; still these ships are a force to be reckoned with if they appear as a combined fleet. However, due to the lack of support vessels, the CAAP fleet is also not built for long drawn-out military campaigns; instead CAAP operates in tactical operations fitting to the nature of the Rangers and the Legion’s Umbra Protocol, only in the rarest occasions CAAP will use brute force to achieve their goals.

The current fleet consists of one fleet cruiser, six heavy frigates, and eleven corvettes. A mix of nimble ships, able to flank enemy forces, and larger heavily armed and armored vessels able to take a beating. As well all ships not to large for atmospheric flight are able to land on planets, planting the forces on the ground along with the ability to support them with ship grade weaponry.

## House Benefits

Taking part in the Combined Arms of Aquila and Pyxis Joint Task Force is in part an experience is about tolerance and respecting the other house's culture. Both houses share spaceships and soldiers in small numbers in this joint military unit, in order to work together, share duties, learn from the other, appreciate their skills, and grow closer to one another in solidarity. Only those who are willing to show an interest to take a deeper look in the culture of the other house will be allowed to join. CAAP is has no place for discrimination or for people who want to rise quickly in rank to gain fame for their own purposes.

### Legion Interests

The Imperial Legions were very interesting from the start of the Joint Task Force due to the involvement of the PATHS navigation system, as a possible alternative to LINES. The Convocation saw the value of this different way of navigating space, for while it is much more complicated to handle and setup compared to LINES, it is also much more efficient if handled correctly.

As part of CAAP, Aquilan navigators or others interested in the trade, were trained in the correct ways to handle and install the software of PATHS, for creating routes and for navigating in meta-dimensional space. The classes are, depending on the size of the vessel where the students are stationed on, are rather small being a mix of experienced navigators and beginners. In the past forty years a lot of Aquilan navigators have learned this alternative way of navigation for use in the CAAP fleet and are very likely the most experienced navigators able to handle PATHS outside of House Pyxis.

Since the betrayal of House Vela from the Empire, the vessels of the CAAP Fleet have begun to train more PATHS students. And even though PATHS is still not officially legal in Acheron Rho, the strategic value in a time of crisis could not be overlooked by the Convocation, which has made some navigators of the Navalis use the navigation system.

### Ranger Interests

About ninety percent of all Rangers visit the Academia Ardenti Arbitrium for a single year and will never receive a promotion higher than First Ranger or Specialist depending on their training, which disqualifies them from someday becoming Marshal or Captain.

Those Rangers who are up to the task and willing to take more responsibility in wanting to someday command can visit the Triple A officers training provided by House Aquila on each ship of the CAAP fleet. These seminars involve mostly courses on strategy, tactics, and leadership, but also on economics and team management - a useful skill even outside of the military.

## CAAP Uniforms

### Casual Dress

The members of CAAP are rather colorful in appearance; they are allowed to wear their regular uniforms from the Legions or the Rangers Units from the Pyxis Ranger Coalition. They identify themselves individually only as a member of CAAP with the Joint Strike Force Unit Patch, which needs to be always visible and neatly attached to the wearer’s uniform.

### Formal Dress

For special occasions, such a a funeral or for honoring visiting officers, soldiers of the Combined Arms of Aquila and Pyxis have an individually tailored uniform in red and white, tailored by Meret Lyra Gerinado Richter, a famous Lyran designer. While in these uniforms members of CAAP can only distinguished between Aquila or Pyxis by the respective house insignia visible on their upper right arm.

Members of CAAP are allowed to wear this uniform for casual use as well, but in such scenarios the fine dress uniform is usually worn by soldiers who have dedicated a large part of their life to the success to the Joint Strike Force.

### Combat Dress

There are multiple outfits for combat available, but they share all the same colors and patterns, black with white highlights. On the upper right arm, the banner of the soldier's house is visible while on the left the CAAP Patch is sewn; ranks are displayed on the center of the chest, the neck of the soldier, and on both upper arms right below the insignia of the houses and CAAP.

## Honors

From the beginning of CAAP the leadership of the Legions and the Ranger Coalition were united in the thought that every participant who stayed long enough within the Joint Task Force should take something else home than just the memory of their time in the fleet. This is where they came up with CAAP Long Service Medals.

 Silver Service Wings
 Golden Service Wings
 Void Service Wings

## Notable Members

A list of notable members of the Combined Arms of Aquila and Pyxis Joint Task Force.

**Voidtouched Pyxis Ruprecht Shashi**

Famous for using his gift to freeze the surface of a lake on Tiber in 3187, trapping and killing a Cygnus unit while they tried crossing; the surviving Synths were then slow and easy to pick targets after they fought their way out of the freezing water. A potential long fight with the outnumbering enemy forces was done in less than thirty minutes without losing a single of his own men.

**Tribune Aquila Sanga Gabinia**

Noted for her flawless command during the rescue mission on Yanaratso, commanding the rescue squad from the *Storm Falcon*. When forced choose between saving the lives of all her men or the science project that Triangulum thought could destroy the Synthetics, she chose saving lives. She achieved this with an orbital bombardment that gave the CAAP squad and scientists the ability to escape but ultimately destroyed Triangulum research as well.

**Warden Errant Pyxis Damson Rola**

Rola joined CAAP in 3180 as the rank of marshal; back then she was known as Ranger Pyxis Damson Rola and stayed for two years until she was promoted to captain and left CAAP for the first time. During that period she became friends with Centurion Aquila Scilla Aelia Theresa and both ended up in a romantic relationship, which still holds up until today.

One year later in 3183, Rola returned to CAAP with her corvette, the HPS-223 *Midnight Mask* and stayed until 3195, during that time she was, from 3188 to 3192, substitute to Commander Tribune Aquila Sanga Gabinia, second-in-command of the Combined Arms of Aquila and Pyxis Joint Strike Force.

In 3195 Rola was elected to Warden Errant within the Ranger Coalition, due to the tragic death of her successor with help from her reputation and close friendship to the Legions forcing her to leave CAAP a second time. In 3199 she married Tribune Aquila Scilla Aelia Theresa, who has, since 3196, been the Commander of CAAP, the wedding was a grand event within the fleet.

For her long services in CAAP, Rola has been awarded with the ‘The Void Service Wings’.

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