Scavenged Restoration 101 (Patreon)

A/N: one more chapter before PB and SR meet.

Scavenged Restoration

Chapter 101

-VB-

‘Battleship battleship battleship~!’ 

Anastasia and her Phoenix Brigade sat less than four jumps away from their destination where they would meet the naval touman of Clan Snow Raven and see who truly ruled the voids of the Inner Sphere and the Periphery.

Personally? 

She was very interested to see how her father’s latest battleship would do against the Snow Ravens. 

Just thinking about the battleship - and how awesome it was going to be - made her giddy. 

She couldn’t help it! 

When she first learned about it, she had been awestruck by Father’s ingenuity. Or rather, confused as to why she and others involved in the jumpship industry had not thought about it before. It didn’t take her long to realize why, however, so she wasn’t too upset that she never thought about it. 

But that was not what she should be thinking about right now. 

“You are certain of this?” she frowned. 

“Yes, admiral,” the commander in charge of the new 6th squad of the Phoenix Brigade, Syoho Nan, stated as he stood firm. He was also, as best as she could put it, the “spymaster” of her Phoenix Squad. “Maskirovka has detected movement within the Federated Suns. Their homeguard fleet, the New Avalon Defense Fleet, has left its cove and are heading directly to Frankson.”

Frankson.

Her eyes narrowed. 

It was the star where the Snow Ravens wanted to meet her fleet for their batchall. If the Federated Suns got involved, then it would become messy at the very least. 

Would the FedSuns dare to side with the Clanners to try to take her and her fleet down? 

It was a possibility. Frankson was not a system with an HPG; it was an abandoned system. Whatever happened there would remain unknown if none of the enemies escaped. 

She drummed her fingers. 

“Tell me about the New Avalon Defense Fleet.”

“Of course,” he said as he gestured to her private office’s computer. 

He fiddled around a bit before he turned the screen on, and produced a line-up of ships. Underneath the entire screen was the title “New Avalon Defense Fleet.” At a glance, the image told her that the New Avalon Defense Fleet was far heavier than their currently active fleets fighting against the Clans. 

New Avalon Defense Fleet

1st Squad

-FSN Richardson, Lionheart-class Heavy Cruiser

-FSN Admiral Tamborine Davion, Aegis-class Cruiser

-FSN Bryceland, Fox-class Corvette

-FSN Kentares, Fox-class Corvette

--10 Pocket Warships

2nd Squad

-FSN Golden Lion, Lionheart-class Heavy Cruiser

-FSN Pleides, New Syrtis-class Carrier Cruiser

--20 Pocket Warships

3rd Squad

-FSN Victoria, Aegis-class Cruiser

-FSN Chirikof 2, Essex II-class Destroyer

-FSN Islamabad, Essex II-class Destroyer

-FSN Davion Kit, Fox-class Corvette

-FSN Montcoal Peak, Fox-class Corvette

--7 Pocket Warships

4th Squad

-FSN Leipsic, Aegis-class Cruiser

-FSN Red Basenji, Fox-class Corvette

-FSN Corgi, Fox-class Corvette

-FSN Yellow Beagle, Fox-class Corvette

-FSN Red Beagle, Fox-class Corvette

-FSN Green Beagle, Fox-class Corvette

--5 Pocket Warships

Total:

2 Lionhearts, 3 Aegis’s, 1 New Syrtis, 2 Essex II’s, 9 Foxes, 42 Pocket Warships

“... Seventeen warships and 42 pocket warships,” she noted. 

“Yes, admiral. It has three more warships and twelve more pocket warships than the Phoenix Brigade… before the Chancellor granted you the new additions to the fleet.”

She nodded. It almost looked like the Federated Suns wanted to challenge her, but she’d learned enough about Hanse Davion and Melissa Steiner to know that this wasn’t what they were aiming for, probably. 

“What is the Lionheart-class heavy cruiser? This is the first time that I have heard about it.”

“It is their new flag warship, ma’am,” Commander Nan replied with a smile. “It is … I suppose it is superior to Shenmazu.”

Anastasia frowned. 

“Do you have a comparison?”

“I do. Please note that negative is in Shenmazu’s favor and positive is in Lionheart’s favor.”

The chart changed to a spec comparison.

Shenmazu vs. Lionheart

Cost: +5,000,000,000 C-Bills

Mass: -10,000 tons

Safe Thrust: -0.25 G

Top Thrust: -0.5 G

Naval Lasers: -20

Naval Missiles: +2

Naval Autocannons: +30

Missiles: +5

Lasers: -12

Autocannons: +35

Spinal Cannon: -1

Armor: +300 tons

Heat Sinks: -75 double

Dropship Capacity: +2

Escape Pod/Life Boats: +5/+5

Grave Deck: -1

Crews: -250

She drummed her fingers. 

From a cursory view, what bothered her the most was the cost. 

Having spent the last year doing assessment, calculations, and reforms, she knew what each C-Bill or Yuan meant not just for the state but the people. If she was reading that correctly, then the Lionheart cost 5 billion C-Bills cheaper. 

That was not trivial.

5 billion was the difference between having ten Invader-class Jumpships and not having them. 5 billion was enough to make 5 Pocket warships that could each take on a corvette by themselves. 

‘How did they make a heavy cruiser so cheaply…?’ 

And then she realized something. 

-250.

250 crew members in favor of the Shenmazu.

How did a warship need that many crew? Shenmazus already had close to 300 crew aboard them. What were the FedSuns doing with close to 500 crew aboard each Lionheart…?

‘They can’t be … switching out the complicated machinery for raw manpower, could they?’

An automated reloader for a naval autocannon would be expensive. If they had 30 Naval Autocannons’ more mechanical reloaders replaced with muscle power, then that might explain some of the cost reduction but not all. 

‘The thrust,’ she realized. ‘The FedSuns are using smaller thrusters.’

It made them an easier target to hit. It made them harder to move around tactically and strategically. It made them great for static and slow defense… which was exactly what the FedSuns have been using them for until now. 

It explained why the Maskirovka hadn’t spotted any along the Lyran fronts; the Lyrans not only had their own warship designs, the Lionheart, despite its name, was not meant for long range power projection. 

“How would it do against the Shenmazu?” she asked with a frown. 

“It has a different role compared to the Shenmazu,” he replied evenly. “The Shenmazu is, forgive me for my terms, similar to a cavalry mech. It is meant to break the enemy. It is not meant to loiter in space and exchange fire with the enemy warship. The Lionheart is the opposite. It is not meant for long range combat but rather close quarter combat. Comparing the two is not fair to either.”

She hummed. 

“And they will have all of the time they need to approach us while we and the Ravens are fighting.”

“Perhaps. I doubt, however, that they are trying to come after you or the Brigade, princess. It may simply be a show of force or an attempt to dissuade an outbreak of another theater.”

“Maybe.” She paused. “But they’re in for a rude time if they think they can ambush us.”

Nan chuckled. “Indeed. Your new flagship alone will ensure that.”