[b][u]Totalist Union. Sector 0021. System 092-B[/u][/b]

Roughly two years before, the first Collective ships had started violating Totalist space. With the fleet and the Party's attention still focused on wiping out the last Albionese and Cymelian holdouts, these intruders were initially ignored. A grave mistake considering the massed assault that soon followed. Ever since then, the Totalist forces in the frontier had been forced to hold off the endless waves of Collectivist troops with only passive support from the Centre. But now, with all other priorities dealt with, the State was finally in position to mount a full blown offensive against the invader.

The fleet warped out at the edges of the system. Suddenly, thousands of ships and a flying fortress appeared into the radars of the Collective fleet. Behind them, an equally large number of transport ships carrying the ground forces assembled to purge the Collective forces from the planet.

Inside the Floating Fortress, Generalissimo Dollabela-Rybalsky watched in satisfaction as his subordinate officers reported a successful jump. Manipulating his command console, the Director of Peace gave the orders for the assault to start. 

The ships moved in groups, spreading out along the edges of the planet so as to make their numerical superiority count. The Floating Fortress remained in the center of the formation, launching swarms of fighters and bombers as the fleet launched its first salvo, long range missiles and railguns, against the Collective fleet besieging the planet.

Meanwhile, the Totalist command on the ground, still recovering from the shock of the fleet's unannounced arrival and struggling to hold the line against the latest Collective attack, received orders to prepare suitable landing grounds for reinforcements and to drawn up new offensive plans. General Granziani, the Totalist commander in JHS-294, encouraged by the apparent change of fortunes, decided to launch what was left of his nuclear arsenal to blunt the Collective offensive.

Elements of the Collective fleet holding the planet's orbit had departed from the main group as the totalist ships made their approach, the first wave of long wave missiles obliterating  the smaller screen ships, in retaliation, swarms of drone fighter craft were launched from the fleet, sent out to harass and weaken the enemy fleet before they arrive. The battle group soon followed behind, the capital ships scattering to all corners of the system as they hunt for any hostile ships.

All the while, on the ground, the Collective had launched another offensive upon Totalist positions as thousands of homunculi and cyborg infantry charged at their trenches, supported by various combat walkers, aircraft and from afar several Colossus Siege Walkers as they unleashed a barrage of missile and mortar fire upon the enemy, its heavy ordnance raining down from the skies. For but a brief moment, victory seemed to be within their grasp, until however, several nuclear missiles were launched deep in the Totalist's fortifications, several mushroom clouds rising up as the blast had wiped all of the shock forces. 

"Admiral Ivanova!" The Generalissimo barked on the comms. "Keep these fuckers off our back. The rest of you focus your fire on that group of temple ships! We take it out and the battle is as good as won. Then we can hunt down the rest of these metal cockroaches."

And so the Totalist fleet obeyed. Fighters and bombers remained close to the of the fleet, acting as a protective screen while the bulk of the larger ships and the Flying Fortress turned their guns and missiles against the command ship and its escorts.

Deep in the Command Ship, in the control center, it shook and shambled as the totalists threw all they had against it, its shields slowly dying out. A duplicate body of Regius watched a holo imaging of battle outside, and despite lacking a face for any facial features and emotions, he clearly was irked, if a bit impressed. "Such tenacity, such bravery and boldness...lets end this."

More fighter drones had emerged from the larger ships, dueling the totalist fighter craft in one large dogfight, supported by point-defense guns on the capital ships. "Temple Ship 100-044" Regius spoke. "Make planetfall."

Upon his command, one of the temple ships had broke off from formation, soon adjusting itself, aiming directly to the planet below, and thrust itself downward and fell.

The ship's speed accelerated as it passed through the atmosphere, the shields set to max, protecting the ship's surface for a brief moment from the intense heat. The entirety of ship was soon engulfed in smoke and flames as it quickly approached the surface. The ship's target was miles away from the totalist trenches, a fair enough distance to witness its final impact, but survive as well, as it made impact, it initiated a massive explosion, a towering mushroom cloud forming and rising up high. Soon a shock wave was followed that went on for miles and miles.

The smoke cleared out as the temple ship was revealed to be relativity intact from the drop, sitting upright in the center of it all, blossoming like a metallic flower. Soon the second wave emerged from the landed ship, thousands more of collective troops, aircraft and armored vehicles charging out.

"The fuck...? They must be throwing everything they have at the planet. Keep firing at these bastards! Bring them down before more can land!" The Generalissimo barked. "Admiral Al-Houri, detach your ships and sail them around, I want the enemy command group flanked."

A smaller number of ships, centered around two battleships slowly distanced themselves from the main fleet. Starting to make their way around the edges of the system towards JHS-294 all the while engaging the scattered Collective ships they found on the way.

Meanwhile, on the planet. General Granziani retaliated by launching more missiles, this time equipped with chemical, radiological and biological warheads while his reserves occupied secondary defensive lines in preparation for the expected enemy breakthrough.

The latest barrage from the totalists were effectively devastating for the organic elements of the collective's ground troops, the homunculi dying in droves as the missiles struck, falling dead where they stood. The cyborg troops however were different, the organic portions had quickly died off, but soon the emergency systems took hold of their machine bodies, still marching on as seemingly undead machines. The Armored Drone Vehicles pressed on as well, those left mostly intact from the missile barrage.

On the ground the battle raged on. Two years of had given the Totalists a lot of time to turn the planet into a fortress, and General Granziani was more than willing to make the Collectivists bleed for every inch of ground they took

In space, the battle continued. Al-Houri's ships were still positioning themselves for the flanking attack against the Temple ships and the command ship. While the rest of the ships continued to pound their target with everything they had. Even as the fighters and drones fought in a maddened dogfights in the void between the two fleets.

A hunter group of a hundred ships had discovered the totalists core group, making a mad and futile attempt of a raid upon the fleet, hurling everything they had at their disposal, energy bolts, missiles, strike craft, and boarding craft, quickly followed behind by the collective warships,

The Generalissimo frowned as he watched the incoming suicide rush. 

"Rossiev, Karkassone, redirect your fire and wipe these idiots out of my sight!" He ordered, as several hundred ships redirected their fire to face the newest threat. "Ivanova, why is it taking you so long? I want the enemy strike craft out commission at once! And the rest of you keep targeting the enemy command group!"

The hunter group quickly fell apart as the totalists focused all fire upon them. Back in orbit, the Command Group was continually under fire from the totalist fighters and long range attacks, the drone fighter numbers thinning. "Damn it al!" Regius cried out in frustration. "You want your planet? take it as is! All ships ,make planetfall!" The same pattern before now repeated itself several more times as the other three temple ships dropped towards the planet below. "Your world will be a wasteland in the end..."

"The bastards are making it too easy..." The Generalissimo muttered as he watched the enemy command ship stand alone against the might of the Totalist Fleet. At the same moment, Al-Houri's unit finally got in position, opening a flanking salvo against it and sending its own smaller complement of fighters and bombers to engage the screens.

On the ground, chaos reigned as General Granziani withdrew his forces to another defensive belt.

All around and out their defesive lines, the temple ships made impact, sending shock waves all around, quickly followed by more of the collective's hordes pouring forth, quickly overtaking trenches now abandoned, and advancing further in. "Kill them all!" all the Varusch screamed out. 

The Totalist lines buckled under the sheer numbers of Collectivist infantry. All across the planet Totalist units were being overun or being forced to retreat into other defensive lines. And with most of their reserves already committed and the stock of atomic weaponry depleted, there wasn't much General Granziani could do besides hold the line.

The situation in space was much more pleasant however, the sheer number of strike craft and support fire was finally turning the tide of the dogfight into the Totalist's favor. And with Al-Houri's ships focusing their full attention on the command ship it was only a question of time until it was destroyed, its escort having already been considerably reduced. At the cost of several smaller ships and a damaged battleship, lost to the massive firepower of the Divine-class ship 

The shields finally gave in, the Divine Command Ship now exposed to the the bombardment of the Totalist fleet, its hull now breaking apart as the attacks continued, the crews sucked out to the dark void of space. From within, Regius could see that the space battle was clearly lost, but it didn't matter to him, the war was far from over, his bodies board the ship had slowly shut down, departing back to the surface to take command of the ground campaign, becoming lifeless as it was crushed from wreckage, the ship splitting apart. 

"Phase one complete." The Generalissimo smiled to himself. "Ivanova, Karkassone, Rossiev and Ceacianni. Take your forces around the system and hunt down what's left of the enemy fleet. The rest follow me towards the planet" He ordered. "All transports move closer to the fleet's protection and get the first wave ready."

And so the Totalist fleet finally split. With almost half spreading into four different groups, sailing around the system to destroy the scattered Collectivist ships piecemeal. While the other half, escorting the troop transports, moved closer to JHS-24. Alongside Al-Houri's unit, who was much closer to the planet.

Collective forces on the ground pressed their assault on the totalist positions all across the planet, reinforced by millions upon millions more pouring from their own battlelines, it seemed to be a bleak situation for the defenders. Miles and miles away from the battlefield, in the heart of Collective Territory, Regius sat upon his throne in the Command Center, and watched with glee as his armies laid waste to his enemies, cornering them. "You may have taking the skies..but I have the ground, and soon there will be nothing left to take. Press on the attack! Take no prisoners!"

Meanwhile, Al-Houri's ships had approached the planet and started raining down fire upon the Collective ground forces. Lasers, atomic fire, railguns and the kitchen sink were fired at the landed temple ships. 

In the rest of the system, the Totalist hunting groups pursued the scattered Collectivist ships while the Floating Fortress and the rest of the fleet escorted the transport ships towards the orbit of JHS-24.

The tide had quickly turned in the favor of the Totalists as their reinforcements arrived, raining death down upon the collective's armies, millions dead in that instant, causing a mass withdraw for a short while, much to Regius' dismay. The Temple Ships now lay in ruin, blasted out husks, wreaks and corpses now littered the battlefield, many of them collective. 

The destruction of the Temple Ships allowed Al-Houri's ships to redirect their fire towards major concentration of enemy troops. Meanwhile, the Generalissimo's ships had finally reached orbit. Launching the first wave of Totalist vanguard, landing both behind enemy lines and into pre-determined landing areas to reinforce friendly lines.

The Collective, for the first time in a while, were now on the defensive, holding off against the totalsit shock troops landing in their territory. From the Command Center, Regius was becoming more enraged. "Damn you all!" He cried out. "Raise the Base Shields! I want all forces on standby to deploy at once! I want these vermin out of my sight!" 

"All ships in my flotilla. Focus your fire on the enemy main headquarters." The Generalissimo ordered. "Coordinates are being transmitted by ground forces right now. The rest of you keep targeting enemy logistics and providing support for our ground forces."

With half of their ships in the system concentrated around JHS-24. The Totalists were now able to bring an awesome amount of firepower to bear against the Collectivists. Of course, not all of it was being used against the planet. Such overkill was unnecessary. But still, the sheer number of weapons turned against the enemy ground forces ensured that the Black Banner regiments landing en mass all across the occupied territory could consolidate their position with more ease than expected. Allowing further troops and supplies to be brought in, while the troops in the frontline launched improvised offensives with reinforcements from orbit.

The other half of the Totalist naval strength in the system was still busy sweeping the region for scattered Collectivist ships.

The Central base was under continued bombardment from the ships above, all of the occupied lands were lit aflame by the totalists, sweeping through the collectives forces like a blade through flesh. The Collective, or Regius in particular, had underestimated the strength of these particular group of humans, they're firepower something of a great surprise to him, a mistake he, or the Collective as a whole will not make again, the battle may seem a total defeat, but the war, no, the crusade was far from over. The massive structure begun to trembled and shake, Regius rose from his throne, sensing his end was very near, as such he'll make the most of this moment, and take out as much as these humans as possible.

Sometime had passed, the shields nearing depletion, down the very ground level, the wide doors slide open, revealing an army of Regius Duplicate bodies, numbering in the hundreds of thousands, with little hesitation, the Regius Army, supported by the regular forces, charged out into the fray, for one last battle. Despite his Digital form, Regius is far from Collective Space, and is cut off from the vast network, as such, if he were to lose form here, he would "Die" for a lack of a better word, and cease to exist, nonetheless, he would rather die fighting the good fight, for the Queen, for her vision of the galaxy.

The area around the main Collectivist headquarter was the target of not only the floating fortress but also its support ships. Everything from battleships to corvettes had been firing everything they had at the area. Because of this, no troops had landed nearby, the sheer amount of fire would more likely obliterate any landing force. And the Generalissimo had no wish to sacrifice the Black Banner like common conscripts. So, they kept firing, even as sensors picked up something happening down there. Nuclear fire, rail projectiles and lasers tore the earth and inflicted a steep price upon the Collectivist forces. Nevertheless, the sheer number of them was enough to hit the advanced elements of the 2945th Black Banner Division, the Totalist formation closest to the enemy HQ. 

Unfortunately for the Totalists, the local commander had been overconfident, assuming that the sheer volume of orbital fire would eliminate any real threat to him or his troops. And as a result, nearly half of his on-ground forces were caught and outmaneuvered by the Collectivists, suffering a career-ending amount of losses before reinforcements from the landing zone could be brought in to encircle and counter-attack the enemy.

The last of the Collective forces led by Regius had manage to score a small victory, taking out the Totalist elite, this victory was short lived as the reinforcements arrived, his army out in the open were assailed from weapons fire from all around them, the weaker troops cut down, but the Regius duplicates pressed on, charging out like mad beasts, many brought down, but few others rushing forwards, it wouldn't take long for the last one to fall on his knees, the small amount of life flicking out as his last body completely shut down.