Space Battleship Yamato: The Universal Struggle

The First Battle of Mars

It has been two years now ever since the Garmillas arrived in the Solar System, there has been no major events except for the Cosmo Navy observing the Empire terra-form Pluto and constructed structures on the dwarf planet. There has been no signs of military conduct however.

After learning that their beam weapons could not pierce the Garmillas ships, high caliber weapons were equipped on respective ships. And rather than using energy weapons, the Cosmo Navy are making use of physical projectiles like missiles and torpedoes.

The defenses on Mars were increased to their maximum capacity, the two years of preparation gave humanity more time and they are also ready to launch their first project. There were debates that such project should be done in 2199 but the war would not wait for such things. Experiments on Tachyon energy gave birth to the Wave Motion Engine and allowed them usage of the energy as both thrust for a ship's propulsion and also as a weapon.

Earth's 2nd Generation Space Battleship was launched in the year 2193 as a defense ship against the Garmillas attacks. That ship was the Yamato. Her task began by protecting Mars from the invaders. The First Battle of Mars commenced after spotting a huge force of enemy vessels heading for the red planet.

With the Yamato as the flagship, and a temporary crew the Cosmo Navy was able to fend off the attack while losing ships of their own. The old battleships and cruisers were destroyed from the Garmillas destroyers' agility and destructive ability. The Yamato returned to Earth for further refit with her success and work began to recruit permanent crews for her, selecting the candidates with exemplary results in the Navy and through the recommendations of commanding officers.

But the battle had not ended there, the Garmillas faked their retreat and attacked Mars again. This time, the Yamato was not there and the bulk of the Cosmo Navy crumbled as their defenses were penetrated and the amount of ships lost were incomparable to the lost back at Pluto. The naval dockyard on Mars suffered critical damage, making it impossible for them to repair ships or even construct them.

The Garmillas had opened the gates to Earth, but they did not advance and instead waited by Mars to hunt down survivors and crush any ships heading for the frontline.

The work of the Air Defense Force and the Destroyer Squadron came next, hundreds of aircraft were launched to cause mass panic and the destroyers were to sneak around the flank, launching torpedoes and high caliber shots to force another tactical retreat.

Cosmo Navy HQ

"They are merely toying with us. Standing by Mars to shoot down our ships.. it needs to stop." an Admiral for the Navy observed the progress for the war so far, the battle for Mars had went down a drain with both sides not yielding to each other.

In fear of losing their only trump card, the Cosmo Navy deactivated the Yamato and placed her in reserve. As a result of this, the war against the Garmillas became in favour of the invaders.

The first battle of Mars ended with a tactical defeat to Earth while the Garmillas withdrew back to Pluto to begin their next phase in the Sacred War. Humanity saw the very first usage of Meteorite Bombs called Planet Bombs by the Garmillas, although much of the devastation were on cities without plasma shields, the change in environment forced the people to retreat underground since the protected cities could not hold every bit of the world's population.

Every means of avoiding the bombs were futile as the numbers increase for each month and the attacks were relentless for weeks. The Garmillas were trying to crush Earth's morale by tainting their planet.

All researches made are given priority and the next ship in the Yamato-class is expected to be completed in 2197 and fully functional in 2199. The Yamato is given extensive refit while her permanent crew are being handpicked and recruitment open until 2199. The Executive Officer for the Yukikaze had been selected as a possible candidate along with one other officer serving in the Cosmo Navy.

The space destroyer had been repaired long after her engagement but she was kept back by the Navy to reserve their ships. Much of the forces were stored underground to avoid the explosions from planet bombs. Japan's Prime Minister resigns after much pressure from the parliament due to the actions done by the Cosmo Navy in waging war against a superior race.

Almost immediately, new officers were brought into the task while the old ones are forced to step down from their position. The young Juzo Okita accepts a new position as the Vice-Admiral due to his contribution in the First Battle of Mars despite the losses. He suggests another confrontation with the Garmillas with their resolve and defenses bolstered. This would have been a mad opinion but many accepted it and drafted for another battle. Ships were sent to Mars excluding those kept in reserve including the Yamato, the permission to bring her is restricted by national law as the battleship had not finished her refit.

The next years would still be filled with advances and humanity's effort to regain back their footing in the Solar System. Earth's largest fleet is on a mission to ensure such vision. The Empire observes from the safety of Pluto, what the humans are plotting on Mars. The fangs of war are sharpened and yet again, the Fox is sent out to kill it's prey.

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A/N: A long delay, I suppose. Sometimes reality just can't let you go and it's up to you on handling it. But hey! It's a new year now. Merry Christmas to the Russians, they celebrate it on January.

I kinda expected this hiatus when I had my schedule checked, I went to Malaysia and Singapore for my vacation. Really tiring. This story might get it's ups and downs just like my first work. Still don't know if I could keep up with the next chapter considering my situation right now.. there hasn't been any ideas coming to my mind lately.

Probably it's the stress. I think that's all I have to note down. Don't worry about giving votes, it's not compulsory. Feel free to leave any comments you want. Check out my other story if you haven't.. I should continue reading the Arpeggio of Blue Steel manga soon. Thanks for making your time to read this short chapter.

Adieu.