Royal Naval Battlecruiser Angoulême, Roussillon System
21. août, 742 AGS
Sender:Lucie LeBlanc Recipient:Legacy GRN| Transponder Codes, Gallic Royal Navy Topic:Recent Events
Mes camarades,
Not since the days before Grand Maréchal Xavier has the Royal Navy been caught in such dire straits. This time, however, it is far worse than anything the old guard could have wrought.
Our fleets hang tattered and decimated about our Bretonian holdings, and even now they tear themselves apart over the bombardment of Leeds. Every hour that goes by sees another ship break formation and head for the system's outer reaches -- or worse, to turn themselves over to the Allies directly. The irony, of course, is that they have some justification for doing so. The bombardment itself is a senseless gesture -- a terrifyingly mistimed manoeuvre that will only inflame the coalition against our House. While I am sure it brings many of you as much joy as it does me to watch Leeds itself scoured clean by plasma fire, there is precious little point in doing so now, particularly when it will draw condemnation from every angle of the Sector. If there was ever any hope for clemency on their part, there is no longer -- the deaths of millions or even billions will see to that. Even the Council, with their three battlegroups already closing in on New Paris, may not be able to stay the vengeful Sirian hand.
Some of you have served since Operation Assurance -- the first time our grip on Agincourt was ever tested. Then, we faced no less than five combined fleets brought to bear by Liberty and her allies, and stood firm. Arrayed against them we deployed all three of our Bretonian squadrons -- the Escadre d'Agincourt, Escadre de Londres, et Escadre d'Édimbourg -- as well as the Garde Royale itself. Even then, that was barely enough, and we paid the price with the Oubli's demise in low planetary orbit.
Now, even more than those five fleets are coming, and we have precious little to face them with. The Grenoble, the Villefranche, the Vauquelin and the Saint-Nazaire -- all of those and more have long since fallen silent, reduced to scrap either by Allied guns or our own recycling initiatives, melting down long outdated warships to provide simple materiel for the logistics that power the rest.
The King may have sequestered himself from New Paris in this hour of greatest peril, but with the La Fierte joined by her sisters in orbit of the capital itself it is little wonder such drastic action has been necessary. Our loyalty has always been to the Crown itself -- the Kingdom exists only as an extension of its will. Gallia itself may soon be lost to us, but the eight-centuries-long lineage of the DeFrance dynasty can still be protected. Make no mistake -- there will be no place for us in the new Gallic order, and at this point, with New London still standing, there is no longer any hope of victory.
It falls to us who remain to champion the Crown's cause in the coming days, weeks, and months. Others will fall in line with the Council, citing loyalty to Gallia itself over loyalty to the Crown we have faithfully served. Whatever the position of our brothers and sisters-in-arms, remember that the Garde Royale owes fealty to only one aspect of our heritage, the heart and soul of our very Kingdom itself.
Make for Toulouse as soon as possible. I am sure you have all heard the news by now.
Your notice is a welcome surprise amongst the embers.
After Assurance, I took my own time in the back lines of the front, away from the valeur et honneur, so to speak, and what I saw was little more than the chaos we see today. Of course, it was in small things, at first - a missing part there, a delayed work order on the Champs-Élysées there - but it didn't take long for those infections to grow. The senseless gesture you and I witnessed in Agincourt is simply the apex of a curve toward the same mediocrity and lack of forward-thinking we've seen from the Sirians. There is something corrupting about this sector, I think, for all those that lay their feet in it. It seems only the truest of hearts manage to keep themselves above water; hearts that are becoming ever rarer in our Marine Royale.
As the Garde fell from favor, I found myself assigned as the Officer Commanding of the Constant. After the tragedy at Betheny, just one of many, we have been stationed behind enemy lines in concordance with Operation Talleyrand. She has been modified somewhat to carry a pair of Lynx fighter-craft and Cougar fighter-bombers each, in service of commerce raiding and the general unsavory, cloak and dagger warfare tactics that I have been forced to become accustomed to. I believe that, in the days to come, that experience and this ship will become all too necessary.
The Constant will make best speed for Toulouse. There, the crew can decide whether they wish to continue fighting, or reveal their true sympathies. If it comes to it, I will operate the ship myself.
Honneur et Patrie. Valeur et Discipline.
Jean-Paul Bourdeau
Enseigne de Vaisseau
C/O RNS Constant
Hub de communication opérationnelle "Tau".
25. août, 742 AGS
Sender:Capitaine Minori Shikizumi, Gallic Royal Navy. Recipient:Lucie LeBlanc. Topic:Recent Events.
Grand Maréchal Leblanc,
I had to maintain radio silence, as my wing was raiding enemy rear. Or at least what is believed to be an enemy rear, it's really hard to tell those days. Your communique will for sure inspire many and make them remember what the honor is. Sadly, there's a massive demoralization within Légion étrangère ranks. To our shame some prefer to desert, defect or surrender. But I believe that old school officers are resilient and situation will eventually stabilize.
Grand Maréchal, my wing will fight until the last man and bullet. But as it's problematic to transfer traitors to royal naval tribunal for justice, I request the special permission to execute them on the spot. It's a crucial measure to keep discipline in legion at such dire conditions.
We are short on supplies, but will try to make it to Toulouse as soon as possible.