"...Good work." Dooku finally said, blinking in shock at the information.
Just at that moment, Asajj's half of the fleet crashed into the Phindar system from the other side. Without hesitating, her ships found their targets and began opening fire.
...
One of the most basic and obvious strategies in a naval engagement was to concentrate fire on a single ship with just enough of your own to destroy it easily. Typically, fleets would be divided into squadrons to more easily coordinate their fire patterns. In the Outer Rim Alliance's fleet, squadrons consisted of five ships, which conveniently divided between the two Mandalorian fleets and Dooku's own very evenly. The remaining twenty ships were from Raxus, and was broken up into four squads, with overall command falling to Asajj.
Out of all that, the key takeaway was that each ship had a captain and a squadron commander in place to ensure that they were doing the most they could in each moment to eliminate enemy vessels.
In contrast, the enemy pirate ships didn't seem to have ever been organised at a squadron level by whoever was in command. The thirty or so captains of the enemy fleet had no coordinated response to Dooku's attack. The return fire was haphazard, partly because it seemed like not all of the gunnery positions were occupied, but also because the ships weren't overlapping their fire against individual targets. The Black Suns were being taken apart one by one, already four of their ships were crippled and drifting, while the rest were maneuvering in a panic.
Where was Maul? Dooku couldn't help but wonder. Does he not see what's happening?
Or maybe this was really the best a bunch of pirates could do to work together. Bringing thirty ships and crews together couldn't have been easy, let alone trying to force them to train for a major battle. If such large numbers of the enemy crew were on the planet below, carousing and unable to contribute to the battle in orbit, and the enemy fleet couldn't coordinate a response, that meant that discipline was nonexistent in the enemy.
Did Maul just let his pirates run amok?
No, the attacks on Raxus and Serenno were well coordinated. They'd each had individual targets, and attacked with precision and excellent timing.
Something had to have changed for the crews in the intervening month for discipline to break down so completely.
Finally, the space station seemed to come to life. Deep Space Demolitions and Removal's hangar doors opened, and a large swarm of bombers deployed. The same force that had devastated Raxus Prime would have had plenty of firepower for the Outer Rim Alliance's mix of light battle cruisers, if not for the fact they would never reach their targets.
Having been waiting for this exact moment, the New Temple's long range Jedi Fighter Patrol fleet pounced. Having just taken off from the hangar bay the enemy bombers were all but sitting fowls, helpless before the guns of much quicker and more maneuverable foes. Even against a regular force of fighter craft, the bombers would struggle, but against one's piloted by Jedi, they were almost completely helpless. Aided by superhuman reaction speeds, precognition, and inhuman resilience to g-forces, the Jedi fighter fleet danced in, around, and amongst the hapless bomber formation, effortlessly avoiding enemy blasts while pouring fire into them.
It wasn't long at all until the enemy bomber fleet began to break up. They gave up on the battle, and instead of delivering their attack run to the enemy, began trying to make their own escape. Powering up their hyperdrives, many of them were blasted to pieces even as they prepared to escape in a blind panic.
The Phindar sector had just three hyperlanes. Two of them were along the Salin Corridor, heading East and West, and both were occupied by Alliance's fleets. The last was a scarcely traveled route, heading into the Gordion Reach, a wild corner of the Galaxy, that was barely populated or traveled at all. The Reach itself was a confusing maze of hyperlanes, poorly mapped and with no civilisations to stop, repair or refuel. Without careful preparations, it was a perilous route for any ship to take.
Despite that, many of the escaping pirates seemed to prefer taking their chance in such a desolate wilderness, then to remain in the battle or try to run the blockades. Many of the enemy pilots milled about in indecision, before being shot down or broadcasting their surrender.
Of the bombers who had attacked Raxus, at best a dozen escaped, narrowly slipping through Dooku's line, or flying off towards regions unknown. The rest were all captured or destroyed.
Seeing the way the battle was turning, the enemy battle cruisers began to start making the same calculations. A few of them tried to flee towards the Gordion reach, and Dooku would have been happy to let them go, doubting they would ever make it back to civilisation again, but he also didn't want them to simply hide somewhere nearby and try to poke their heads back in when the coast was clear.
Dooku contacted Krutt. "Can you run these fools down? Deny them the chance to regroup."
"I can, but my clan will see its share of the spoils, Dooku."
"Of course. Everything will be divided evenly."
With that promise, Krutt hung up, and began to make the hyperspace calculations.
Seeing that the battle was going well, Dooku briefly closed his eyes and reached out into the Force, trying to find Maul. He either wasn't here, or he was hiding his presence.
"Sir, we're receiving a request to surrender."
"Patch them through to me, I wish to speak with them."
A very stressed, and confused pirate captain suddenly was projected before Dooku. He was a zabrak, with tattooed hands and gold piercings in his nose. "We surrender! Please! We request permission to wait to one side, and will remain at the coordinates of your choosing until you're ready to deal with us."
"Captain, I'm sending a squadron to board you. Agree to disarm and cooperate with their demands, and we will cease firing on you."
"Aye! I agree." The man yelled, just as an alarm went off behind him and a shower of sparks rained down at the end of the vision.
Dooku was about to hang up, but he hesitated. "Tell me, where's your leader?"
The Zabrak blinked at him, confused for a moment. "Shut up in the station. Claimed the old Vigo's chambers for himself, and we haven't heard from him since the attack."
Dooku considered for a moment. "A squad will be boarding your ship shortly. If you make any attempt to resist, we will stop accepting any attempt to surrender."
"Aye." The pirate said, and Dooku hung up on him.
After the first pirate surrendered, there was a steady flow of enemy ships attempting the same. It wasn't long at all until the battle was over. In the end, they were pirates. They weren't loyal to a cause, nor where they willing to throw their lives away for their comrades. A majority of the enemy fleet fled, escaping into the Gordian Reach and hounded by the Mandalorians. Navigating that region was a gamble at the best of times, so as many as a quarter of the pirates outright surrendered. In the end, the pirates had only endured losing eight ships before they broke.
It was a pathetic display. Meanwhile the Alliance had lost just three ships, two from Raxus, and a single Mandalorian vessel. Others had been damaged, full diagnostics had yet to be run and the results fully tallied, but initially the battle seemed to be an overwhelming victory for the Alliance.
Dooku opened up a line to Asajj. "Go to Phindar, and bring the Ruling Council under our protection."
"Yes, Master." She answered, before hesitating. For a second it looked like Asajj was going to ask another question, possibly about what to do if they refused, but then she firmed her resolve and hung up.
Dooku sent more orders to the Jedi Knights in the long range patrol fighters, telling them to board the surrendered enemy ships and ensure a smooth capture. Finally, he sent word to the commander of his own small detachment of Marines.
"Prepare to board the station."
...
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