End of Autumn 168

 The initial burst of activity by the Lyrans has ceased, and this is how the situation looks: 

The two halves of the Red Claw fleet have retired to their main Starbase to regroup and repair, while another two fleets have arrived, waiting to join in the next wave of attacks. Here are Meerclaw's comments:

As a combat veteran, and having survived my first mission, I am promoted to Pilot 1st Class. This makes me of equal rank with my old friend Sr'esint from the Academy, but since he was commissioned before me, technically he will be first in line for any further promotions. In wartime, there are two ways this can happen. The first is by becoming part of a cadre of experienced pilots fitting out a new arrival at the front. The other is dead cat's boots.

We all know that this is a temporary lull as the Lyrans ready themselves for a major offensive, and we expect the Klingons to launch an invasion in the early spring just to make matters worse. We do get some shore leave - well, what passes for it at a Battle Station - taking it in turns to relax a little. Sr'esint and I spend some time in the holosuites, but it is difficult to unwind fully given all the preparations that are taking place around us. There is barely enough material at our station to repair the Mystic and effectively rebuild the Pulsar after its run-in with the enemy Battlecruiser; our destroyed fighter craft are also replaced. I find myself intrigued by the logistical bustle and spend quite a lot of time familiarising myself with the behind-the-scenes necessities of warfare, the kinds of activities that make it possible for pilots like us to do our thing.

Word comes through of another success by our people, as the Duke's Fleet sees off the rest of the Red Claw. The Duke's Fleet has taken more damage than we did, and some strategic assets have had to be diverted to their station to help repair their damaged ships.

Both of our fleets are divided in two in order to cover the whole border with the Lyrans as well as Battle Station No.4, which sits on the Klingon side of our Dukedom. I am aware enough of the strategic situation to realise that this story is probably being repeated right across the Klingon Border too as we spread our forces in readiness. The enemy will have superiority of numbers, but we all hope to give a good account of ourselves when we defend our stations and planets.

There has indeed been a great deal of Kzinti activity, as the second photograph demonstrates. They now have eight force groups covering all of their border stations and planets, with the Marquis' Fleet on the Federation border held in readiness to act as a reserve. None of these fleets is big enough to put forward a completely full combat force, apart perhaps from the Marquis, but the combination of carriers and fighters together with the border defences should give the expected attackers a hard time. The Kzinti strategy is to attrit the attacks before falling back on the deeper, more powerful defences behind them (Starbases especially). There will of course be variations on a theme, with some of the forces doing better than others, but overall, this is the best the big cats can do. They have even called up some internal Police vessels to try to bolster the numbers!

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