Battle of Kaseibeiut

The Battle of Kaseibeiut was one of the most pivotal battles of the Long War. It marked the destruction of two great armies, the end of an era, and the death of the arguably most powerful man in the universe.

The Conflict

Prelude

Achronis has discovered a small Streamway that cut into the main branch to Laran's then capital, Otanli. They has amassed teir fleet, confident that their superior technology would see them through any conflict. Laran was slow to respond, as most of their navy was on the other side of their territory with the general Mul-Zamain, responding to a large attacking force. Once they would later learn was a distraction. Once Zamain received word he left with half his fleet to counter the Achroni attack. They had by then squeezed their force through the small streamways and were advancing on the capital. Mul-Zamain however had some secret streamways of his own which he sent his fleet through, separating them so they would be able to meet up and advance as one force, rather than wait for the ships to fit through the tight Tzaran Stream Passages.
Zamain and his forces managed to get ahead of the Achroni fleet, setting up a blockade at the last intersection of major branches before Otanli, bolstered by the planet's fleet garrison.

Deployment

Mul-Zamain made sure to deploy the main portion of his fleet ina screening pattern to block and movement through the narrowest part of the major branch. The rest of his fleet was deployed in waves so that once the Achroni arrived, they could retreat if necessary, to warn the rest of the fleet. Another large portion was deployed into the three main connecting systems in realspace, to ambush any ships which decided to make the months-long journey through realspace, rather than the days-long trip through stream-space. The last portion was deployed through the smaller side streams to move ahead and act as guerrilla fighters, harrying the Achroni in the Streams until they arrived.

The Achroni had brought nearly their entire fleet, deployed in a tank formation. Fast corvettes and patrol craft were deployed on the outside, shielded by a screening wall of frigates, to act as a deterrent to attacking the capital ships, troop transports, dreadnoughts, and dedicated carriers. Small groups of corvettes were sent through the smaller streams to hunt down possible ambushers, and one large group with a capital ship at the head was sent through realspace from the first of the cluster of three systems to the one which was closest to Otanli.

Battlefield

The Battlefield was in two parts, both connected by three wormholes position unevenly across the controlled territory. Three solar systems, none of which contained any habitable planets or shipyards, were relatively close to one another on the star map, close enough that a month or two of realspace travel could "safely" transport a fleet from one to the nearest. On the next layer of reality was the Tzaran Stream and its many offshoots & tributaries. This was where most of the fighting took place. The wormhole entrances for the three systems were different, however, as the two systems nearest to Otanli had their streamspace entrances at the intersection dominated by Mul-Zamain, and the third was very far up the streams, securely controlled by Achronis.

Conditions

The win conditions were very simple, though slanted in favor of the defending Larani. They had to destroy or route, preferably the former, the Achroni fleet. The Achroni had to do the same to the Larani fleet, but maintain enough of their own to lay orbital siege to the most fortified planet in Laran. In reality the odds were much more even, as Achronis was working with superior numbers and technology.

Neither of the participants can retreat either. Should Laran retreat, their capital planet and most holy world would be ravaged and ruined by their most hated enemy. ShouldAchronis retreat, they would likely lose a great deal of their fleet to attrition, allowing Mul-Zamain to sweep in and pull off what they had just attempted.

The Engagement

The engagement began with the advance forces coming into contact and skirmishing, heavy casualties in both camps. Later in the months, the main force would finally arrive at the intersection. A fleet battle would ensue for a full year, lasting that long due to the sheer size of the fleets involved. After losing about 20% of their force, and Laran losing 12%, the Achroni retreated and spent the next three years engaged in skirmishing, trying to get Mul-Zamain to break his blockade and chase after the distraction force. Throughout this phase, most of the remaining Larani fleet arrived to support Mul-Zamain 

In the last year, the fighting would transition to real space, as the Tzaran Streams became so clogged with wreckages. Meeting in the middle system, the main fleets continued fighting as fighters and corvettes ducked in and out of the wormholes. During the fighting, Zamain had his Lati ritualists begin the process of moving the sun to block the wormhole. It took months, but as the enemy fleet had no Inkallu of that power, they could do nothing to stop it.

The last day of the battle seemed like any other of the last five years. The sun was halfway inside the wormhole and incrementally moving to fill the rest. Mul-Zamain was gathering himself to destroy one of the smaller frigates, but a strafing attack by a pack of fighters rocked his attention to the sun just as the Lati was casting his spell. The sun went supernova, incinerating everything in the three nearby systems, and literally destroying the streamspace, ripping the wormholes and tunnels apart, causing it to completely dissipate in a flash of fire.

Outcome

Both Laran and Achronis's fleets were near completely destroyed, leaving them without a military. While Laran had succeeded in defending their capital, they also broke reality and lost their best general, Mul-Zamain.

Aftermath

This near completely cut off Otanli from the rest of the Rift, only reachable through a six month journey through sunlight space. It caused Laran to move their capital from their desert homeworld to Nafok Aguot, a much more strategic position.

Historical Significance

This battle is well remembered, and entire schools of study based on this battle have come into being. It is a black mark in everyone;s history book, but one that can't be erased, no matter how hard Larani censors try.

Legacy

This battle is remembered fondly by no one. The Achroni view it as their greatest failure, almost wiping out the most hated enemy. The Larane view it as both a tragedy and a warning. They lost the best Lati to have ever lived, and showed the destruction that a Lati could cause.

In Literature

This battle inspired many mythologized tellings of the life of Mul-Zamain in Laran, and many enduring "War is Hell" pieces in Achronis.

Included under Conflict

Long War

Conflict Type

Battle

Battlefield Type

Extraplanar

Start Date

1518 TBP. 3. 1.

Ending Date

1523 TBP. 7. 21.

Conflict Result

Technical Larani Victory

Location

Kaseibeiut

Belligerents

Laran

• Laran

Led by

• Mul-Zamain

Achronis

• Achronis

Strength

Rift Superpower

Rift Superpower

Casualties

Nearly Their Entire Fleet

Nearly Their Entire Fleet

Objectives

Defend Their Capital.

Destroy the Enemy Capital

Maps

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  Kaseibeiut

  A visual depiction of what the Star Cluster known as Kaseibeiut would have looked like before the Battle of Kaseibeiut.