November 14, 1640

Hytal Base

GVN First Conquest Fleet

GVS Grade Atlastar

Calm waves splashed softly against the imposing hull of the Grade Atlastar, which was anchored just off the recently-conquered Hytal Base. The sun shone brightly upon them, with not a cloud in sight. Gulls chirped about, singing tunes that soothed Admiral Caesar’s battle-hardened ears.

He enjoyed every moment of this serenity, cherishing what fleeting peace he had. He couldn’t afford to let these little things go, for he knew that every battle carried a risk of death. With the threats present on Elysia, this risk of death had only grown. As if futuristic magic saucers weren’t enough, he now had to face a group of three fantastical dragons that were each similar in size to Hercules-class battleships.

These so-called Plasma Dragons were additionally supported by naval and air assets from the Holy Mirishial Empire. According to their radar systems and scouts, the Mirishials were deploying their prized Zeroth Fleet, hundreds of aircraft from their mainland, and a Pal Chimera. While this force was significantly smaller than the Otaheit Defense Fleet, it packed a far greater punch: the Zeroth Fleet consisted of the Holy Mirishial Empire’s most technologically advanced and experienced warships. Additionally, there was no telling what sort of magic tricks they had hidden up their sleeves; even basic Iceberg Walls were enough to stifle a Gra Valkan alpha strike.

His only saving grace was the assumption that Plasma Dragons attacked like wyverns. After a strategic conference with other commanders in the First Conquest Fleet, they came to a conclusion that the Plasma Dragon must be an offshoot of the wyvern species. Thus, its attack was likely a larger, more powerful version of the fireballs summoned by their smaller cousins. However, there still remained the issue of what tactics to actually use against potential Mirishial-Eimorian formations.

As he continued to admire the sparkling ocean waters and the grand Gra Valkan fleet before him, a communications officer pulled him away. “Sir,” the man said, “Commander Herund has arrived.”

Caesar sighed, taking in one last look before he resumed his work. “Thank you, Lieutenant. I suppose it’s time to finally discuss strategy,” he muttered to himself as he made his way over to the ship’s plotting room.

When Admiral Caesar walked in, he was greeted by the sight of a map sprawled over the table in the middle of the room and his top officers chaotically discussing the upcoming battle. Seeing his men in such disarray, Caesar couldn’t help but feel disappointment. He cleared his throat to get their attention and immediately, the room fell silent.

“Gentlemen,” Caesar began, “I know our foes have powers of untold magnitude, but we must remember who we are. We are the brilliant commanders of the Gra Valkan Navy. We’ve slain dragons. We’ve wrecked a Pal Chimera. The coming battle shall be a greater challenge than those before it, but it is precisely this kind of challenge that tests our mettle as Gra Valkans!”

The men in the room were hooked on Caesar, their spirits lifting at every word he said. Seeing the expectant and enthusiastic looks on his subordinates and fellow sailors, Caesar continued, “It is precisely this kind of challenge that allows for greatness, for there are no legends without hardship! Men, are you ready to go down in history as legends!?”

“Yes, sir!” The men cheered, hearts swelling with pride.

“Good,” Caesar smiled in satisfaction. With morale restored, he dove right into his work. “Now, let’s review the facts. Commander Herund!”

Herund stiffened up, “Sir!”

“Detail the forces on both sides.”

Herund referenced the pieces placed on the tabletop map, “We have the entire First Conquest Fleet under our command, consisting of 8 Pegasus-class fleet carriers, 20 Cygnus-class escort carriers, 23 Hercules-class battleships, 40 Taurus-class heavy cruisers, 77 Aries-class light cruisers, 211 Perseus-class destroyers, and 48 Cetus-class submarines. With the airfields in Hytal Base completed, our forces can field a combined total of over 1000 aircraft. We also have a host of recently-installed anti-aircraft guns around Hytal Base to help defend our airfields.”

Herund then walked over to the other side of the table to describe their opponent’s forces. “We outnumber our adversaries, but they have access to powerful superweapons. The Mirishial naval forces consist of 2 fleet carriers, 10 escort carriers, 3 Orichalcum-class battleships, 10 Mithril-class battleships, 36 cruisers, and 100 destroyers. Their aerial assets consist of over 200 fighters, 200 bombers, a Pal Chimera, and 3 Plasma Dragons. Spies from the GVBI have also reported that the Agartha Kingdom and the Central Kingdom are also contributing to their forces, though they have not sent any ships.”

“Does that mean they’re contributing aircraft or wyverns?” One of the officers asked.

“Unlikely,” Caesar responded, shaking his head. “Mirishial aircraft are certainly in reach of Hytal Base, wyverns would fall short. These two nations are known for spellcasting – individual magic from wizards and magicians. I think they might be distributing mages amongst their fleet to bolster their defensive capabilities, like to summon walls of ice in order to block our projectiles.”

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Captain Luxtal questioned Caesar’s concern, “The natives’ paltry magic couldn’t make much of a difference. After all, we’ve already adopted new measures to deal with their ice shields.”

Caesar crossed his arms and cautioned, “We have, but we must also keep in mind that their ice shields are generated from Mirishial mages and spellcasting. Cultural analysis from Foreign Affairs says that Agarthan and Centrallite mages are far superior to their Mirishial counterparts. It is possible they have access to a wider variety of spells – powerful ones that we may not have even seen before.”

“Still though, sir, there’s only so many ways to generate a shield,” Luxtal countered. “Do we have any idea what they might do?”

Caesar fell into deep thought. He rubbed his chin as he considered potential spells based on his readings of Elysian magic and his own experience with magic from Yggdran literature. He had seen reports of space-time magic being used by the natives, but these were mostly conducted as a form of preservation or stasis. Thankfully, the magic of this world was not overwhelmingly strong to the point where their mages could use space-time magic to cripple his fleets.

Long-range offensive magic was also out of the question, based on the casting ranges of mages from the Mu continent. The most likely prediction was that the EDI mages would use magic to support their fleet, like creating a storm to interfere with Gra Valkan systems. This could be overcome through slight effort using clutter suppression techniques, but the effectiveness of their radar and targeting systems would still be diminished. With no way to overcome the disadvantages to his surface fleet, Caesar turned to his submarine forces.

Considering the enemy’s probable tactics, Caesar planned to stay at least a step ahead. He began, “I believe that the enemy will use magic to hinder our surface fleet. They will probably use magic to create storms that disrupt our radar systems. This will prove to be a problem for us once surface combat begins, but our submarines can avoid this issue. If current intelligence is accurate, the enemy should have little defense against our submarines, and so we can deploy them to harass the enemy before they are able to engage in battle with our fleet.”

“Hmm, yes,” Herund agreed. “We can target their capital ships and hopefully eliminate at least one Orichalcum-class before they can fire their missiles, but this doesn’t address the biggest concern…” he trailed off.

Everyone knew what he was talking about: the Plasma Dragons and the Pal Chimera. The Gra Valkan Navy had gotten lucky with the Battle of Otaheit, thanks to hubris and miscalculation on the part of the enemy commanders. The Mirishials wouldn’t make the same mistake twice and would likely keep their Pal Chimera unit at the back lines to provide artillery support. Although this meant that it could output less firepower, it also meant that it would be harder to destroy. Given the sheer power of the vessel’s long-range lances, taking the Pal Chimera out of the battle would be absolutely necessary.

“Fighting the Plasma Dragons and the Pal Chimera will be difficult,” Caesar admitted, “But the recently arrived Nebel and the escort carriers under her command carry the Antares Kaiser and stores of magically enhanced rockets. These supplies have already been distributed to our other carriers, and will allow us to strike at the Plasma Dragons and Pal Chimera. As long as our fighters destroy their aerial assets or force a retreat, we can easily rout the enemy’s naval forces.”

Captain Luxtal and the other big-gun proponents in the room could only marvel with understanding as they realized how important aircraft were in naval combat. They were grateful that Gra Valkan air superiority was a priority; if they had more battleships instead, they wouldn’t have been able to lay a finger on the flying superweapons or on the missile-carrying Orichalcum-class battleships possessed by the EDI. Their hopes rested entirely on the performance of their carrier wings.

“As such,” Caesar continued, “I have considered deploying our aircraft alongside our submarines in a massive first strike in order to avoid magical interference from their mages. Our aircraft will be split into three groups: one to engage enemy aircraft, one to conduct bombing runs over the enemy’s capital ships, and one to engage their flying superweapons. The first group will be tasked with clearing a path for the other two and ensuring that they can carry out their missions as best they can. Meanwhile, our dive bombers and submarines will target Mirishial carriers and Orichalcum-class battleships,” Caesar explained. He then stressed the next part, emphasizing the importance of targeting the enemy’s missile capabilities, “It is imperative that these battleships are sunk before they get within range of Hytal Base, lest we be targeted by their missiles.”

“What’s our plan if our aircraft are unable to sink their battleships and dragons before they get within range?” one of the other officers asked.

“We must fight,” Caesar said without hesitation. “Our strategy of containing the Mirishials to the Mirishient continent is vital if we are to succeed in taking Mu. We must do all that we can to prevent EDI reinforcements from delaying Mu’s demise.”

The men in the room shifted nervously at this response. If their carrier wings and submarines failed to eliminate the Mirishial battleships, it would mean guaranteed death for a significant fraction of their own capital ships. While they had developed tactics to defend against Mirishial anti-ship missiles, they were by no means enough to completely defend against them. At best, they could shoot down a third of their missiles.

These dismal statistics weren’t even the worst of their issues. There was no way to avoid the Pal Chimera’s lances, and no way of telling how much destruction a Plasma Dragon attack could unleash. Realizing that Caesar’s plan was the best course of action, everyone agreed with the famously brilliant tactician.

“Additionally,” Caesar said, offering a spark of hope for the bleak situation, “We have reinforcements arriving from the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Battlegroups from the Fifth Conquest Fleet. They’ll be cutting it close, but hopefully they can arrive in time for the coming battle.” As he finished his sentence, his voice trailed off slightly, revealing an uncertainty that even he couldn’t shake.

He quickly recovered, correcting his wavering appearance to give his subordinates a set of orders. “Bearing the enemy’s capabilities in mind, we will continue live exercises until the moment they deploy. I will distribute plans for each fighter group by evening. As for our surface fleet, everyone must ensure that their crews are up to date on clutter suppression techniques.” Caesar couldn’t stress this more, “Against the Mirishials, being able to identify their capital ships even a few seconds faster could mean life or death for our comrades.” He then clasped his hands together. “Any questions?”

The commanders shook their heads. They knew very well what they must do, for they were prestigious officers who had graduated at the top of the Gra Valkan Naval Academy.

“Good. Now prepare yourselves; we have a legend to make.”