Battle of Deschenes
Battle of Deschenes
| Part of | Andurien – Canopian War | |
| Start Date | 3155 | |
| Planet(s) | Deschenes | |
| Location(s) | Planet wide | |
| Result | Andurien Defense Force absorbs the First Canopian Fusiliers | |
| Affiliation | Magistracy of Canopus |
| Commanding Officer(s) | Colonel Viviana Aranda |
| Command | First Canopian Fusiliers |
| Affiliation | Duchy of Andurien |
| Commanding Officer | Colonel Romona Marsh |
| Command | First Andurien Rangers |
The Battle of Deschenes is the result of the cooperation between Canopus and Andurien falling apart. The First Canopian Fusiliers reinforced the First Andurien Rangers on Deschenes after Operation REBOUND. The two units cooperated in building a local defense headquarters. Tensions between the Duchy and Magistracy exploded due to the death of Ilsa Centrella. Things only got worst after Duke Ari Humphreys denounced the Canopian government. The two groups kept their distance at first. Unfortunately, fighting began soon after.
Putting up battle lines
The Magistracy Armed Forces sent orders to take Deschenes by Lloyd’s of New London dispatch. This marked the start of the Battle of Deschenes, even though combat operations had not started yet. Colonel Viviana Aranda was quite irate at the orders, as she expected to simply leave Duchy space. They began by expulsing all Andurien Defense Force from their shared headquarters. In response, Colonel Romona Marsh from the ADF requested orders from Andurien while the planetary militia reinforced key locations.
It took a week before “actual combat operations” started. Key planetary assets like the spaceport were secured by the ADF, while the MAF had control over the defense headquarters. The massive mining operations on Deschenes kept producing the essential materials which made the world critical. Neither parties wanted to damage this infrastructure, along with the Maersk shipping facilities.
Militia vs MAF
The MAF wanted to secure the planet as quickly as possible. Colonel Aranda deployed two companies of combined arms cavalry to take the planetary government center. The First Rangers were not ready for this as they were planning to reinforce the planetary power grid. The First Fusiliers faced only a basic militia force, generally equipped with standard armor. After two days of fighting, the capital was under MAF control, with minimal losses on their side.
Cutting the power
On their side, the First Rangers had secured the planetary power grid, and cut the power to all Magistracy-controlled locations. Colonel Marsh followed this up by capturing two forts where Fusiliers had stockpiled supplies for future combat operations. Both units specialized in combined arms mobile operation. The majority of the fighting during this was done between city centers and outposts.
Undecisive battles
Even with control of the planetary government, the MAF was unable to have Count Jean-Michel Deschenes surrender the planet. The Count knew that the Fusiliers were far from any reinforcements. Colonel Aranda’s only real hope was for the Canopian government to force the Duchy of Andurien to relent. There were no protests against the Canopian forces or civil unrest. The civilian population preferred to wait and see what was going to happen.
Small scale engagements throughout the planet were commonplace. Neither side wanted to dedicate massive force to a single, decisive battle. The military doctrine of both units present asked for different fighting styles, keeping their opponent on their toes.
Giving up
With limited supplies and no easy access to repair facilities, the First Canopian Fusiliers survived how they could. Opposite this, the First Andurien Rangers and the planetary militia were well equipped, had full access to top-of-the-line equipment. They also received frequent supply drops from offworld. Colonel Aranda began probing her counterpart to see what options she would have to surrender two months after the engagement started.
Colonel Marsh and Aranda met at the planetary capital to discuss the terms of surrender and retreat. Suddenly, a dispatch was received from the Magistracy of Canopus, telling Colonel Aranda to fight to her last breath in the name of the new Magistrix, Isolde Centrella. Viviana Aranda was not sure about what to do about this when a second dispatch came in, this time from Ari Humphreys and the Duchy leadership.
This missive included important information blaming the Magistracy for crimes against humanity, ranging from human trafficking, human experimentation and drug trafficking. Colonel Marsh asked for more details from Viviana Aranda. Not being fully informed on the situation, Colonel Aranda decided that this was enough for her to surrender to the ADF. This officially ended the Battle of Deschenes.
Joining Together
The MAF refused the surrender of their First Canopian Fusiliers, asking for any lower ranking officers to remove their Colonel from her position. In response, the whole unit decided to swear allegiance to House Humphreys. Under the watchful eye of the First Andurien Rangers, the Fusiliers remained on Deschenes as the Colonels met with General Yen Ju Simons.
The unit’s name remained the First Canopian Fusiliers even after having defected to the ADF. General Simons preferred not to assign them to the Canopian front. They were, however, given leeway in their operations in defending Deschenes and nearby worlds. Losses were compensated with new graduates from the Kanata School of Warfare and Humphreys-Hero Training Institute, turning the unit into a more multinational force.
