Fiction:Great Xonexian Schism

"Everywhere I look––in every corner of the Gigaquadrant––I see the same signs: hard times are ahead of us. Alliances are beginning to fracture, old rivalries are beginning to resurface, and the great tectonic plates that make up the political landscape of the universe are shifting."

The Great Xonexian Schism is a term often used to refer to the devastating intergalactic war that occurred in multiple galaxies in the later stages of the Gigaquadrantic Conflicts, pitting a large alliance of nations against the floundering might of the legendary. Like many great wars, the Schism's origins cannot be traced to a single definable cause or event. Instead, it was the result of many factors, including border conflicts, economic disputes, geopolitical tension, and diplomatic incidents that worsened relations between the Delpha Coalition of Planets and numerous other nations in the years leading up to 2800.

Finally, the Halcyon Incident in 2800 turned the political situation in the Xonexian cluster into a powder keg, leading to the rapid deterioration of alliances and organizations which had stood for decades, and to an eventual war between these factions that would shake the international order at its very foundation.

Flashpoints (2797-2802)
War between the Xonexian Allies and the Delpha Coalition of Planets did not happen overnight. A long string of incidents, diplomatic blunders, scandals, and conflicts from 2797 to 2802 slowly chipped away at relations between superpowers and led to the creation of the two rival alliances. 
 * French Quadrantia Trade Route Crisis (, July 18-July 26th, 2799) On July 18th, 2799, reports spread along the French Quadrantia Trade Zone of a lone Blade-class DCP vessel actively violating established policies with the trade route's use. In repsonse to this, a fleet of French vessels under command of marshal were sent ot investigate and peacefully reroute the lone vessel. When he managed to rendezvous with the fleet at the vessel's last-known location however, he was met with the site of an entire armada's worth of wreckage, with only one conclusion to make...
 * Bugs In The Code (, October 5th, 2799) Starting on the Andromedan colony of Neo Komraes, a string of admissions to doctors by users of the Morphis nanotechnology spoke of brief fevers. Further diagnosis revealed that each of these patients' nanite colonies were documenting encounters of "anomalies" in the obscure segments of their DNA. Spearheaded by Salisse'Ensha was a pursuit to understand what these anomalies were, learning quickly however that these were no mere random anomalies in her patients' genetic codes...
 * Halcyon B Incident (, 2800) A conference meant to appease tensions between Great Gigaquadrantic powers turned out to have the opposite effect. Halcyon B––the location of the conference––was sabotaged, leading to the deaths of every diplomat on board. In the frantic aftermath, rage and paranoia were rampant as the powers accused one another of the deed.
 * Signing of the Alcanti Triad Alliance (Andromeda Galaxy, June 29, 2800) Three powers remained silent in the cacophony that followed the Halcyon B explosion. France, the Draconid Imperium, and the Tybusen Intergalactic Allied Federation each strongly suspected that the Delpha Coalition of Planets might be responsible for incident. Fearing that it had nefarious designs on the Gigaquadrant, they met on to finalize a new alliance that would change the course of Gigaquadrantic history.
 * Scramble for Mirus (, May 4-June 19, 2801) Seeking a stronger foothold in Mirus, the Triad launched a massive landgrabbing campaign in early May of 2801. The objective was to acquire as many derelict Dominatus factories abandoned after the Dominatus War as possible. These––the allies hoped––would prove to be decisive in the coming war. However, their move did not go unnoticed, as the DCP launched their own campaign in Mirus.
 * The Road to War (Hegemony Territory, April 2802) In April 2802 the Hegemony signed the Parisian Declaration and joined the Xonexi allies. The Hegemony swiftly geared itself up for war so they would be ready when the first shots were fired. Plans were created, new naval vessels were finished, an all new weapons were rushed into the hands of soldiers. Though these actions would create a recession in the Hegemony's economy, the Hegemony would be prepared for the coming storm.

Orion War (Feb-March 2802)

 * Further reading: Orion War

The event that finally sparked war between the DCP and Xonexi allies was the infamous February Crisis, a political event in Orion's Spur which led to war between the Orion League and the Kindred Coalition, a DCP sympathizer and unofficial ally. The Orion League's failure to defend the Kindred Coalition during the Plazithian Seismomachy had instilled in them a distrust for it. That distrust was leveraged into fear, ushering in numerous nationalist politicians into high government offices. These, unknown to the general public, were puppets of the Delpha Coalition of Planets. They were in the process of signing a secret alliance with them when their plans were found out by the French Secret Service and leaked to the general public.

Urged on by fervent anti-DCP hysteria, the most outspoken leaders in the Orion League immediately denounced the government of the Kindred Coalition, accusing it of betraying its allies and its own people. Led by France, a coalition of nations put forward an ultimatum, giving the Kindred Coalition government two days to step down, threatening military action if they did not comply. In response, the Kindred Coalition ordered the Corsican Defense Force to leave its territory as quickly as circumstances could permit. With both sides unwilling to back down, war was inevitable.

The then-termed "Orion Allies" invaded the Kindred Coalition Orion Territory on February 11 and managed to expel all Kindred forces by the next week after a series of hostly contested battles. The Allies sued for peace, though their terms enraged the Kindred leadership, leading to a month-long political deadlock. Dignitaries from all corners of the met at the Congress of Steanov VI and tried to mediate a solution between the different parties, yet no agreement could be reached. On March 18, the Coalition counterinvaded the occupied Orion Territory and soundly defeated the Allies at the Battle of Calaras, forcing them to retreat all of the way to the local capital of Hat'Mohr.

At the Battle of Second Hat'Mohr on March 27, the Allies unleashed the Angelfire, an anti-ship hyperspatial missile which had never been used in combat prior, and utterly devastated the Kindred Coalition navy. With their opponent in shambles, the Allies declared victory once again, but the celebrations were to be short-lived.

DCP Orion Proclamation
"The DCP hereby announces it can no longer stand by and watch humanity fall victim to the shocking imperial ambitions of the Draconid Imperium and her commonwealth, of who's actions recently are also an affront to intergalactic order."

- Orion Proclamation, issued on March 31, 2802

With the Kindred Coalition territory in the hands of the Orion Allies and its authority flaunted, the Delpha Coalition of Planet’s reaction was swift. It issued the infamous Orion Proclamation, unilaterally laying claim to the territories and assets of the Orion Allies in the name of restoring intergalactic order.

In response, the Xonexi Allies, led by the Draconid Imperium, the TIAF, and France, formally met on on April 5, 2802 and unanimously issued the short but strongly-worded Parisian Declaration. Signed by twenty nations, it denounced the DCP's imperialist attitudes and rejected its authority to enforce the international order. Finally, in the closing paragraph of the document, the the allies officially declared war on the DCP, a move which stunned the Gigaquadrant. A cataclysmic conflict which so many had fought to avoid had begun.

Battle for the Milky Way
Immediately upon declaring war, both Allied and DCP forces rushed to the fore. The Allied Plan A, devised two years earlier at the Alcanti Triad conference, called for joint offensives against the DCP in the Orion Arm. The DCP, on the other hand, deployed its troops to the Northern Milky Way, seizing the Draconis Concordat route and the Draconis colonial territory of Tholfame-22.

Despite initial Allied victories at the Battles of Katar and Mana Run, the critical Operation Deviant Rim offensive ended in a catastrophic failure. This was due to severe logistical problems imposed on the Allies by the Maelstrom, a collection of artificial anomalies surrounding DCP territories which made movement nearly impossible within DCP space.

Allied hopes for a miraculous recovery were dashed when DCP forces conquered the Draconis Tholfame-20 territory in Orion’s Spur, placing them within striking distance of many Orion nations, inspiring fear and panic in such nations as Roreinia and France. Emboldened by new developments, a new anti-war movement emerged, seeking to put an end to the conflict before it was too late. In France, a liberal faction of the Parti Socialiste, in league with conservative parties, managed to gain a majority in the French Parliament, leading to crippling political deadlock.

Desperate, the Orion League launched Operation Hera in early June, an attempt to reclaim Tholfame-20. After a lengthy engagement, dubbed the “Battle of the Dying Sun” by some, the Orion League offensive was decisively repelled and the Allied navies in Orion’s Spur shattered.

When a Parliamentary coup in France on June 21 resulted in the accidental death of Laurene Maxime and many of her entourage, the withdrawal of the country from the Xonexi Allies, and the resigning of Jean-Baptiste Teindas as Generalissimo of the Orion League, all hell broke loose. One after another, the Allied nations of Orion’s Spur surrendered, and the Imperial Talon Navy withdrew its forces from the galaxy on June 23. The Battle for the Milky Way had been won by the DCP. 

Allied victory in Mirus
The other theatre of the early war was the Mirus Galaxy, where the Alcanti Triad and the DCP held a significant amount of territory due to the Scramble for Mirus two years earlier. Both sides, spread extremely thinly due to their focus on the Milky Way, were forced to rely on the firepower of their flagships in their bid for victory. The French Lafayette star dreadnought, serving as the Allied command ship, proved its effectiveness at the Second Battle of Demogorgon Prime, singlehandedly turning the lengthy siege of the planet into an overwhelming victory for France. It then went on to challenge and defeat Commander Narrisai’s flagship, the ‘’Emperor’s Will’’, in a hotly contested engagement, though sustained heavy damage in the process.

With the remainder of Commander Narrisai's forces defeated by a combined Franco-TIAF-Hegemony force at the Battle of the Rift, the DCP Mirusian territories were quickly seized by Allied troops. By the end of May, Mirus’ great industrial might was in the hands of the Allies, though a great portion of it was lost when France surrendered in mid-June.

Trivia
Rules
 * Not much has been determined as to how this war is going to play out, which means plenty of opportunities for plot. If you want to join, simply add your fictions to the infobox and find Monet, Angrybirds, or Wormy on IRC to discuss your involvement!
 * Following the format of most Gigaquadrantic Conflict stories, the main page of the Schism will be used to summarize events and provide an overview of the conflict. Most of the action will happen on subpages.
 * To discuss ideas and get a general overview of events, see the Schism's official blog.
 * The Great Xonexian Schism is a conflict primarily between Xonexi powers, though not every power in the Xonexi Cluster has gotten involved. In fact, a good number have chosen to remain neutral through the Mou'Cyran Accords.
 * Communication is the si ne qua non of collaboration. Please communicate with your partners extensively about what your fiction is going to do and how it is going to affect them. If they disagree, work out a compromise.
 * Just because our fictions are at war does not mean we are at war with the users writing for them.
 * This has been stated before, but please avoid belittling. There is a difference between the frank acknowledgement of relative power and having one side be needlessly overpowered.
 * At the same time, please remember that this is a war. Both sides are going to take casualties, lose territory, and make sacrifices. Nobody is going to force anyone to castrate their fiction, but if you accept to lose, you will find that others will be more inclined to lose to you in the future.