Marshal Gabriel Popov was a busy man. As Joint Headquarters Chief, he was the number one man in uniform. He had to ensure the well-being of the entire military. He had to stymie the brewing conflict between the warhawk Supreme Commander of the Armada, Admiral Cadorna, and the Republic's best fighting commander, Admiral Tang. He had to rebuild the lost fleets, and ensure the safety of the frontier.

When a letter came to him telling him about a routine military exercise in Lephelia, the Capital, he didn't pay it too much mind.

14 January 2603.

When armed soldiers barged in to his office and shot his guards, he was beyond surprised. At this point rebels had taken over all of Lephelia's strategic infrastructure. Admirals Agnarsson and Black had positioned their fleets on Lephelia's orbit. In the confusion Starfort A fell to their hands. The only remaining Loyalist force was Battlefleet Aegis, but with their commander gone, most of their ships and crew ended up confiscated and taken prisoner.

"Admiral Cadorna. What is this?"

"Old times are over, Marshal," Admiral Cadorna said. "Aten Eternal will rise up from the ashes of the crumbling republic. This bloated mobocracy’s purpose is no more.”

“Fools ….”

Admiral Cadorna’s eyes sharpened. “We will destroy the Empire, as we are always meant to be. We will accomplish things your dear republic cannot, Marshal.”

The two men gazed at one another intently. One was the stubborn guardian of democratic republicanism. The other bore the marks of military authoritarianism.

Until at last, Marshal Popov slumped his wide shoulders. "So be it. I am beaten," he says. "But there are those who will defeat you. The frontier fleets."

"We will take them down too."

"No. You will try, and fail."

"... Take him away."

Thus Lephelia fell under the control of Aten, a new military dictatorship. In a few short days, using the coreworld fleets that it had attracted, Aten had subjugated large swathes of former Republican territory. The military enacted a ban on free press, suppressing dissent. Although so, through illegal radio frequencies a line was repeated again and again:

"All hope is not yet lost. The frontier fleets are coming."

It was Vice Admiral Yue Fangling who had the idea of operating this illegal radio frequency. Hope, she said, was a powerful force; far more powerful than rational calculations.

Newly promoted Rear Admiral Henry Applewood was enacting his usual, supply-related duties when the 'Lephelia Uprising' began. He immediately declared allegiance to Aten, escaping imprisonment.

On the fifteenth of January, Henry managed to slip into the prison where Marshal Popov was held. With a taser in his hand, he stunned the lone guard, who went down. He covered the guard's mouth so as to muffle his scream. "Marshal," he whispered.

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The sleeping imprisoned marshal stirred from his sleep. "Is that ... Rear Admiral Applewood?"

"It's me, Sir," Henry replied, taking the key from the guard. "I'll bring you out."

"No. They check on me once every hour. You'll only jeopardize yourself. Can you escape from here?"

"I can. I've come to contact with Battlefleet Aegis—or what’s left of it."

"Give me a pen and paper."

Marshal Popov scribbled a long letter, and gave it to Henry. "Bring this to Admiral Tang Jinhua of Battlefleet Chiyou. You must go."

"Marshal ...."

"Go!"

Henry Applewood rallied the few remaining vessels and personnel of Battlefleet Aegis; a scant five thousand warships, all of them understaffed, with very few battleships. They managed to slip through Admiral Black's watch, and began the long march to the frontier.

In the frontier, Admiral Tang's call to arms didn't go unheeded. Battlefleet Agni and Battlefleet Sakura were marching to her base, and so was many smaller units. In a mere fortnight, though the battlefleets were yet to arrive, ten thousand vessels had reinforced her. The task to command and reorganize these forces fell to Abbas.

"I didn't think this day would come," Lieutenant Commander Black muttered as she helped Abbas organize his new warships.

"You should rest," Abbas says. Here his voice dithered. "After all, your father too ...."

"Don't worry about me," his aide replied, heaps of bitterness in her tone. "Though I wonder. Is this conflict so necessary after all?"

"What do you mean?"

"For long, there is conflict between the coreworlds and the frontier worlds. Now most of the coreworlds have effectively seceded. Could we not live side by side?"

"Unfortunately, that's not for us to decide," Abbas sighed. "And I personally can't accept the existence of a military dictatorship birthed of a bloated democracy. Also, from a geopolitical view, we're squashed between the Empire on one side and Aten on another."

A fortnight of preparation later, Henry Applewood's party arrived in the frontier. They immediately rendezvoused with the frontier fleets, and were granted audience with Admiral Tang, accompanied by Yue and Abbas.

"So Popov was captured," Admiral Tang rued. "What about the others?"

"Most high officials, both civilian and military, have either turned, or been imprisoned. Thankfully, there has been no executions."

"And the fleets?"

"Only Battlefleet Aegis remains loyal, and they have been neutralized," Henry said gravely. "The rest has either joined Aten or remained neutral."

"Hmm. And how’s the general mood?"

“It’s been ambivalent so far. Nobody’s too enthusiastic about the uprising, but nobody’s too enthusiastic to support the government either. If Aten’s officials can prove themselves able, I can see the populace supporting them.”

“Of course they do. The government was a bunch of spineless incompetents.”

Admiral Tang opened the letter slowly. Abbas could see the contents from the corner of his eye.

"In an event of emergency, specifically uprising of rebellious elements within the military, I, Marshal Gabriel Popov, Joint Headquarters Chief, hereby:

1. Invoke article 19 of the Charter;

2. Promote Admiral Tang Jinhua to the rank of marshal, and appoint the person to the office of acting Joint Headquarters Chief and acting Supreme Commander of the Armada;

3. Bid for the Armada to defeat the rebellious forces."

Article 19 is a highly controversial article in the Charter, essentially declaring a major emergency and giving power to the military to resolve it without civilian intervention. Enclosed within the letter is an insignia, bearing three golden stars, with a violet line across it. The insignia of a marshal. Marshal Tang took it, and, carefully removing her previous insignia, wore it on her uniform. “So we now have legal grounds to attack Aten,” Marshal Tang said. “Very well then. Let’s fight.”

Abbas suddenly found himself at the command of a temporary fleet; he named it Battlefleet Tristan, with Quetzalcoatl as his flagship. It comprised of small, unaffiliated groups of warships unattached to the large fleets, and augmented by the remnants of Battlefleet Aegis. Its strength was 15,000 warships, but it severely lacked battleships and carriers, and there was an issue of under-staffing. Henry was attached to Abbas’ fleet as chief logistician.

The frontier fleets are coming.