Fiction:Second Great Cyrannus War/Rebellion/Battle of Harborage

The Battle of Harborage was one of the most pivotal engagements of the, representing a turning point in the Rebellion against the.

On the twentieth anniversary of the end of the First Great Cyrannus War and the birth of the Empire, Cyrannus was truly a galaxy without hope. From the Core to the Unknown Regions, the Imperial flag reigned, with any meaningful resistance—excluding that of the equally tyrannical Great Star Dominion—quickly snuffed out and eradicated. Beyond the galactic halo, however, the New Republic Remnant endured, biding their time for their war of liberation. Not even there, however, was safe from Tyrómairon's baleful eye. On 39 Iunius 20 NE, a massive Imperial armada commanded by Grand Admiral Decimius entered the wormhole and besieged Harborage. Acting swiftly, Admiral Roslia attempted to gather his fleet and flee into hyperspace, only to become entrapped by Decimius' interdictors—the  being the only ship to escape.

Changing tactic, Decimius smashed through the planet's automated orbital defences and deployed a mighty host consisting of Imperial wardroids, tanks and fearsome Imperial Super-Heavy Walkers, which marched inexorably toward Apollo's makeshift command center. Expecting not to survive the coming assault, Apollo outfitted himself for battle and made a speech over the HoloDomain which was soon played across the Gigaquadrant, declaring that for as long as the Empire stands, it would never be safe, for no force in the cosmos could extinguish the fires of hope and freedom. As Decimius' bombardment began, the sound of turbolaser fire was suddenly drowned out by an almighty roar. Looking up from their trenches, Republic soldiers watched in awe and disbelief as the mighty appeared, with the Aldárae knights Aoirtae Valaeris and Kara Inviá perched on his back. Diving from the heavens, Du'utahrovin blasted a torrent of starfire at the Imperial army, atomising an entire formation and causing even the plating of the Empire's new walkers to melt away.

Bolstered by the dragon's attack, Republic soldiers began advancing toward the Imperial army, which was quickly thrown into complete disarray by Du'utahrovin's attack. On his back, both Aoirtae and Kara fly Du'utahrovin parallel to the Empire's forward lines, unleashing torrents upon torrents of fire, wiping out an entire battalion. On the lead walker, Decimius's efforts to rally his forces for a counteroffensive were met with confusion and silence, forcing him to take direct command over the walker's cannons, unleashing volley after volley at Du'utahrovin, who directly dived down to face the threat. His eyes fixed on his target, Decimius fired a precision bolt, hitting Du'utahrovin in the wing and sending him plummeting through the skies, almost throwing off the Aldárae knights in the process. However, through the power of the Valin, both Aoirtae and Kara managed to balance themselves and Du'utahrovin long enough for him to regain altitude, hovering and coming to a stop in the face of Decimius' walker. The Grand Admiral, accepting that he had been beaten by a supernatural force he could not have predicted, closed his eyes and accepted his fate as an all-consuming blast of fire engulfed him and his walker.

In space over the planet, however, the Imperial fleet fought on, coming close to invalidating the Republic's victory on the ground through sheer numerical advantage. Against his better judgement and seeing no other alternative, Roslia released the imprisoned Libertan Emperor Aedanius from the brig of the Resolute, in the hope that the ruthless former monarch would be able to see a weakness in the Empire that the Republic could not. Taking temporary command of the Resolute, Aedanius activated its hidden Imperarchate weapon systems, destroying an Imperial battlecruiser and piercing a hole in the Empire's fleet, which, robbed of Decimius' leadership, quickly began to splinter. After almost a day of fighting, the Battle of Harborage was won, and the Empire had been dealt a crushing defeat.

Trivia

 * Prior to 's reduced activity, the Battle of Harborage was to be the centerpiece of the sixth Chronicles story.