Full name: Antonin Norbert de Lusignan Rank: Bureau Chief Gender: Male Height: 170 cm Weight: 78 kg Hair colour: Black Eye colour: Brown Notable traits: None Born: October 1st, 700 AGS, Planet Metz
Preface
Born on planet Metz in Lorraine to a family of rich merchants with close ties to the Gallic Metal Service. Antonin is the second and the youngest son of the minor noble family de Lusignan. His father Raoul was the owner of Blue Diamonds refinery; his mother, Claudette, from a rich but not noble merchant family. Antonin's elder brother, Quentin, is the owner of the said facility since their father passed away in 742. The family mostly notable for their contribution to developing the local industry of Metz.
Antonin is a well-educated man who, however, lacks interest in politics unlike many nobles. Despite being born to a family of merchants, Lusignan dedicated himself to a military service. Enlisted to the Royal Navy in his 17s' and reached the rank of Amiral at the age 43. Commands a Charlemagne-class battleship, the Renaissance.
His loyalty to the citizens of Gallia is absolute: their protection is always a priority to him. He had served in the Royal Navy, the remains of it called the Enclave and currently at service to the military of the Gallic Union as the Chief of Security Bureau, a side branch to Gallic National Intelligence. Antonin dislikes Liberatians and is only hostile toward the Outcasts, who multiple times were caught carrying human cargo made from the poor citizens of Gallia and other houses.
Early Life (717-725 AGS/801-809 AS)
Antonin enlisted in the Gallic Royal Navy at the age of 17 and underwent training at LaCroix Royal Naval School on planet Metz. Two years later, in 719 AGS, he gained the rank of Aspirant and was assigned to a recently commissioned Obstinate-class cruiser.
RNS La Gloire des Chevaliers under Commandant Ghislaine Lachapelle was a part of the 6th Royal Fleet responsible for providing the system of Burgundy with additional security. By the year 719, the entire Champagne system was under the Council's control and the rebellious forces were preparing for their further advancement to Burgundy through a hidden jump hole within Cote-d'Or field. However, one year later, in 720, the Royal forces made an unpredictable strike from the side of Orleanais. Meanwhile, some part of the Council offensive fleet jumped to Burgundy and the battle not far from the Nevers orbit begun.
In this battle, the cruiser suffered heavy damage: her engine was destroyed, the ship moved to Avallon for repairs. Occupied with repairs, the ship and crew did not participate in further advancement to Champagne. This saved them from capture or even death, unlike many of the Royal militaries who's life ended in Champagne after one of the heaviest defeats suffered by the Royal Navy before minefield in Languedoc was breached.
After repairs finished, the ship remained in Burgundy, providing additional security to Nevers orbit, before being moved to Languedoc.
The Languedoc Campaign (725-729 AGS/809-813 AS)
Before the Bourgon-Halieu tragedy, Capitaine de Lusignan, his cruiser and crew remained part of the 6th Royal Fleet deployed to Languedoc. After the tragedy, remains of the fleet remained to stay and reinforced patrol forces until another attack of the Council. After the rebels attempts to capture the Gap failed, they started performing sporadic raids to distract the authorities from the outer regions of the system that were used to relocate rebel forces within Languedoc.
Shortly before the Council offensive in the attempt to breach the minefield in 729 AGS began, Antonin was promoted to the rank of Capitaine de Corvette replacing retired Commandant Lachapelle on the Captain position.
When the Council formes appeared from the Clelles Nebula, the offensive caught the Royal Navy completely unprepared: a massive armada of hundreds of ships began advancing toward Remoulins, where the Navy tried to establish a defence line. Meanwhile, the station's inhabitants have been evacuated.
In the Battle near Remoulins, Antonin's ship sustained extensive internal damage after the reactor melted down, resulting in the incapacitation of primary engines. Subsequent explosions on several decks set the Gloire up for total disaster, being entirely unable to propel itself, destined to drift in the cold void while engines remained offline.
The meltdown caused the loss of energy across the ship, going dark and trapping those within. This unfortunate development, however, was used to the benefit: command released the hermetic block of the trapped souls within the sections lacking power, setting the poor souls within into open space thus imitating critical hull penetration. With no power supply and crew members iced in open space, the drifting remainder was a sight pitiful enough to convince the attackers it was done for, leading them to concentrate on other ships capable of inflicting damage amidst the chaos of combat.
Meanwhile, the ship's engineers kept doing their best to return at least emergency power, and they reached success. The cruiser drifted for more than an hour before the officers decided to run a scanner for hostile presence. Luckily for them, no Council forces were around; the reactor was re-launched at the minimal output, providing energy only to the few remaining intact systems. Although this drifting manoeuvre allowed the ship to be saved, it was possible at the expense of many lives of crew members who were dropped in space to convince the adversary of its victory.
The Renaissance (729-737 AGS/813-821 AS)
The damage suffered by the Gloire was too serious: repair cost was higher than the cost of a new ship and hence in late 729, La Gloire des Chevaliers was decommissioned. The remains were melted and used for repair materials to other ships of the Navy. After the loss of the ship, further Antonin's service was under question. However, the family ties saved him from decommissioning, but even so, his future remained unclear. The manoeuvres made in the Battle caught the attention of some high-ranked officers, and those decided to appoint him to Angers Naval Academy on New Paris seeing Lusignan as a prospective commander. A year later he was appointed to the battleship Renaissance.
This Charlemagne-class warship was deployed in Burgundy as part of the fleet protecting the system from local criminals and their allies among the Council rebels. Under the mention of her Captain, Commandant Serge Malenfant, for the following 5 years, Lusignan studied how to use obtained knowledge at practice, while learning new ones from his Captain. In 735 Antonin was promoted to Capitaine de Vaisseau, replacing Malenfant on his post.
Gallic offence on Taus mobilize many resources out of the Kingdom. However, some remained within to keep the realm safe: Renaissance was such. Alongside several outdated police cruisers, dozen of corvettes, and few squadrons of patrol fighters, the ship remained on guard in Dauphine.
Leeds (738 AGS/822 AS)
In the late 738, the Renaissance was directed to reinforce the 12th Royal Fleet in Leeds. Upon arrival, their primary task was appointed by providing security to Stokes and the surrounding field: to seek intruders, smugglers and prevent random wonderers from entering the occupied area. In the following year, the Royal Navy kept pushing Allies out of Leeds, advancing toward Magellan, Newcastle, Dublin. However, the joint operation of Bretonia, Liberty and their minor allies, directed against battleship Oubli, was one of the very few successful strikes against the Gallic military during those years.
Their united fleet appeared from the east smog clouds and commenced an assault on Oubli and her battlegroup. All the Royal forces in the vicinity were called to aid in the battle. The Renaissance acted as an artillery platform and suffered lesser damage than frontline ships. After the battle, the warship was directed to Issoudun for rapid repairs and then returned to Gallia. Commandant de Lusignan, alongside many officers, was medaled for honour and skills they performed over planet Leeds
The Failed Invasion (738-742 AGS/822-826 AS)
The Renaissance returned to Gallia and was put on the refit queue. While waiting, the remains of the 12th Fleet were reinforced with newly upgraded Obstinate-class Battlecruisers and recently developed Triump-class destroyers and deployed to burgundy Burgundy; protecting the system from Council menace. In the meanwhile the war with the Allies did not go well: exhausted, the Gallic industry kept supplying the war effort but not so effectively as at the beginning. The Sirians adapted to Gallic tactics and strategy and even started striking back more and more often.
In the middle of 742, Antonin's father passed away. A few months later, the Kingdom's days have come to its end. After the attack on the transport that was used by His Majesty King Charles XI and his subsequent disappearance, the so-called Interregnum in Gallia has begun.
The Council forces managed to reach borders of Ile-de-France unnoticed: the Royal Fleet mobilized their forces near New Paris, calling reinforcement from the neighbour systems. However, when the Council forces reached the orbit, the Royal Navy under command Rear Admiral Basien Savatier de Fontenoy received the order to cease all fire from the Duke of Burgundy Valentin Trintignant. Lusignan could join the new regime, but he had believed the collaboration with the Council is no the way to achieve stability and prosperity. He supported Admiral Savatier, which in the very time sworn fealty to the junta formed from the remaining royalists. By their command, Antonin commanded the Renaissance to slip away to Senlis cloud.
The Witch Hunt (743 AGS/826 AS)
For a half of a year, the Renaissance was hiding in the Senlis cloud, remaining unnoticed while the provisional government period passed and the Confederacy of Gallia was formed. The Enclave command, preparing their return to Gallia, mobilized several assets across the Gallia and ordered those to either prepare providing support to the Royalist forces or return to the Hebrides and become part of the fleet. The Renaissance was ordered to make her way to the conquested space.
They were not lucky to leave without caught any attention. Soon after the Renaissance left the clouds, the warship was sighted by a patrol of Confederal ships. In no time a squadron of interceptors been sent from the garrison at Compiegne colony. The skirmish between Renaissance's wing and Gendarmerie ships, reinforced by Confederal Defence Forces was brutal but rapid, and most of the defenders were disabled or destroyed. Nevertheless, the Renaissance managed to escape the pursuit and reach the system of Provence.
Provence at that time was the heart of the so-called Minarchy and the capital to the criminal empire built on selling Nox. It met Renaissance with an ambush made by Corse forces. Weakened by casualties it suffered in Ile-de-France, they had no other choice but to send the SOS signal. And the signal was answered. Altogether with the wing provided by battlecruiser Sisteron, the Royalist forces crushed the Corse and Defense Forces which came to catch the Renaissance.
The last push had to happen in Tau-44: using Sumatra clouds as a cover, Lusignan hoped to reach Roussillon unnoticed, but one of the scouts, sent by MNG, managed to find the ship among the dense ice field and dangerous oxygen pockets. MNG, the Colonial Republic and Natio Octavarium in no time allied against the Enclave, hoping to strike the battleship down before she ran again. The third harsh battle has happened. This time Renaissance's wing was destroyed, reinforcement sent by Enclave forces in Roussillon suffered heavy damage. The Royalists had to fall back.