Fall of Venezia (1/2)

The Fall of Venezia

Conflict:

The Second Great War

Date:

01/24/2456-02/17/2456

Location:

Venezia

Outcome:

Helghast Victory, Colony destroyed

Belligerents

The Commonwealth

Helghast Empire

Commanders

General Bardry Solomon (CW)

Autarch Salem Stahl(HE)

Fleet iral Ald Kurz (HE)

General Brutus Gracchus (HE)

Strength

Commonwealth Defense Force

•5 Divisions 88,000 Troops Commonwealth Army

6th Division

2nd Battalion Engineers

26th Infantry Battalion

Alpha Company Delta Squad

5th Tank Regiment The Fusiliers of Andius

12th Artillery Battalion

25th Sherrith Calvary Tank Regiment

26th Special Forces Group

4th Division

4th Light Infantry Regiment

9th Division

The Dukes of Tollen Regiment

81st Special Forces Division

1st Pesanga Rifle Division

5th Grenadiers

Commonwealth Marines

26th Marine Division The Onxy Guard

UNSC Maritime Navy

30 Vessels

12 Carriers

Helghast Army

31st Optimum Legion

33rd Confortare Legion

28th Momento Legion

9th Walker Division

1st Red Lions Battalion

2nd Battalion 3rd Company (Helghast)

Imperial Navy

1st Fleet, 325th Task Force

1st Fleet, 12th Task Force

Civilian casualties

8,400,000

The Fall of Venezia was the 17 day invasion and destruction of the Colony world of Venezia. It saw a large scale Helghast Fleet assault the relatively defenseless planet as no orbital assets were in system. The lightly populated world of 10,000,000 located near the edge of the civilized space saw its fleet assets taken away to build up the system fleet to protect other more valuable worlds. The defense and evacuations were set entirely on the Commonwealth Army and Marine ground forces who fought to the very end despite overwhelming odds.

A Planet Unbecoming

Venezia is a colony established early on in humanities expansion into the stars. The Forest world was found to be temperate and ideal for human colonization on its few but massive continents surrounding the two oceans. The large planet with 26 hour days and circled by twin moons quickly grew into a hub of activity. Metropolis' and large manufacturing cities with sparse suburbs and farmland spread all across the continents. While the Earth was the central government there were several independent groups that controlled different parts of the continents. It was not long that succession movements broke out. As the planet became independent, the government focused efforts on improving their trade. Funds were spent to construct grow on the surface. Defense from the stars was never a thought. This way of thinking continued on and off until the arrival of the Helghast in 2456.

When news of increasing tension between the Empire and Commonwealth, the forces of Venezia called for the assistance and training of their military forces in preparation for the coming war. Commonwealth officials informed the world leaders that the Commonwealth Defense Force would be drafting units from the planets mercenaries to bolster garrisoned units. When the communications between the two powers fell, the colonies defenses were bolstered. A naval fleet was positioned in orbit for some time, however as the Covenant fleets advanced further and further into the Inner colonies, this fleet was once more redeployed to bolster a fleet elsewhere. It was only two months later that the Helghast found Venezia.

Landfall Day Zero

On August 29th, the Helghast Fleet entered the high orbit of Venezia. The fleet arrived unopposed and unannounced and wasted no time in prosecuting the destruction of the population on Venezia. Under the command of iral Ald Kurz the Helghast entered the atmosphere and launched numerous simultaneous attacks on the New Tyne and other minor settlements around the continent. The iral informed his sub commanders that the fleet's WarNet detected sightings of key individuals hidden on the planet. The orders for the Helghast were to clear out the human cities, search for the target's, then burn the city to glass when they were finished. Kurz divided his fleet of 160 ships up across the entire planet and began the assault. While scans of the planet came back from the picket ships Kurz picked his targets. The scans indicated numerous areas of potential locations along the southern portion of the main continent. Kurz selected these areas for immediate attack while he personally assaulted New Tyne with a large Commonwealth garrisoned within. As the fleet separated and ships entered orbit over their targets, they launched their first waves. Hundreds of infantry squads deployed via drop pods simultaneously struck several population centers. As the ships moved lower in the atmosphere, they were followed by secondary waves of drop ships and prefab firebase deploying heavy units and armor while aerial attack craft ed in.

•New Tyne- The Commonwealth had no warning of the Helghast assault on their planet. The citizens sleeping in the first cities to be invaded were woken up to the impact of Helghast drop pods smashing into the streets, gardens and homes. In the southern city of New Tyne the Helghast invasion landed during the morning commute. The streets were packed with civilians heading to work in the heavy industrial sector of the city while others drove or took public transit ways to offices in the downtown. The usual morning sunrise was accompanied by hundreds of burning meteors. People stood in confusion and shock as the sounds of explosive impacts landed all over the city. The shock turned to horror as pods slammed amidst crowds of people and cars backed up on highways killing hundreds. This was nothing compared to the horror and bloodshed that occurred when the Helghast forces led by their Special Operations units emerged and murdered all in their sights. While pods landed all over the city, General Brutus led a vanguard straight into the Commonwealth military base stationed within New Tyne. The garrisoned troops there had just returned from an overnight training march and were in the middle of stripping down and turning in their weapons when the Helghast landed in their base. Brutus had planned on using the element of surprise to cause the most amount of damage and mayhem possible. It took the military base 15 minutes to begin to establish a coordinated defense and 15% of the bases occupants were already slaughtered. The soldiers stationed there fought for 30 minutes to get access to the primary armory and equip their men, it took another half hour for them to repel the Helghast from within their walls.

Brutus had succeeded in causing city wide panic; and while the city of New Tyne burned beyond the bases walls, the second wave of heavy vehicles and reinforcements were already being deployed. Brutus redirected his efforts from the base to begin the overtaking of the city. While the civilians were already running in mass panic, most tried to flee however no one knew where to run, and the Helghast had already strategically cut off most of the main throughways. Local militia forces did their best to direct and protect the noncombatants running for their lives but they were no match for the armor spearheading the assault. The surviving army units in the base launched a rapid counter attack to try and break through the Helghast positions to allow evacuation. The Commonwealth fought valiantly for 24 hours before the city was completely taken by the Empire and 4,000,000 of its residents were dead.

•Mattino- Like New Tyne, the coastal city of Mattino was attacked by a massed force of Helghast arriving via drop pods. The police and mayor of the city issued an immediate lock in place order while the company of Commonwealth army from the 25th Sherrith Calvary deployed to counter the Helghast attack. Mounted in Mantis battle tanks, Cobras and Humvees, they were able to use the open streets to full effect to fight off the wave of Helghast without the concern of civilians being caught in the crossfire. The tank company made excellent progress against the Invading Helghast, pushing them back wherever they fought, however the Empire's forces were able to flank around the heavy armor units and overwhelm them from all sides until UAS air and armor reinforcements arrived to eliminate the defenders and exterminate any citizens found. The Helghast forces then moved on to regroup with other assault forces leaving the burning city to be annihilated nuclear fire later by their vessel later on in the conflict. Estimated casualties range from 1-3 million civilians.

•Port Ogari- The Coastal port city was a major hub of fuel transportation and oil drilling. a half mile off the coast were dozen of ocean oil rigs. Despite the importance of this trade, the city was lightly defended. Home to a Commonwealth Navy's maritime destroyer and home to 80 marines set to guard the docks and single war vessel. When the Helghast drop pods smashed into the residential sectors outside the docks, the only defenders were the local militia forces. The marine defenders mobilized to help secure evacuation routes, however their main , the Commonwealth destroyer was out at sea patrolling the coast. When reports of the attack reached the destroyer, the vessel turned around and rushed to the port to assist in the defense. The ship was fifteen minutes away from shore when a pair of Bow-class Missile corvettes appeared through the clouds over the ocean coast. A massive lightning storm signaling their arrival. The two imperial space craft opened fire on the destroyer and the oil rig platforms turning the ocean coast into an inferno of burning fuel and bodies. The city and its inhabitants would meet a similar fate soon as no one survived the Helghast assault.

•Mercy- Mercy was a small fuel pumping town of 5,000 built into a cliff face. Unlike the other cities, it was one of the first to be attacked directly by forces from Helghast ships ing nearby. Templar and Merlin dropships landed kill teams in the town while AQ-606 began bombing runs. The town, on the very edge of land controlled by any major city and mostly isolated had some bomb shelters built during the early years of development however the only armed presence was local militias numbering 200. The townsfolk had seen the helghast ships approaching and as such had already begun evacuations. While the militia and other volunteers from the town armed themselves, women, children and elderly were herded into the few bomb shelters. As the helghast ships landed the militia fought as best they could to buy time for their families to hide and escape. Despite their weaponry the militia was swiftly overrun by the elite kill teams of Gamma Company. None of the shelters were meant to hold the entire populace. Never the less the townsfolk jammed as many in as they could, sealing some unfortunates outside the reinforced doors. Their screams, pleas and pounding fists echoing through the packed bunkers until they were silenced by the helghast or forced to run and hide. The towns people had hoped that by hiding in the bunkers, the empire would lose interest, if they couldn't be seen, why would the helghast make an effort to search for them in their tiny town. To their horror they were wrong as the reinforced blast doors were ripped from their hinges by large Helghast soldiers or blown open from heavy mortars of deployed mortars teams. The entire population was massacred. With their duty done, the helghast left Mercy nothing more than a ghost town. The evidence of their bloody deeds would be found some time later when stranded survivors reoccupied the town. The bodies of slain families still in the bunkers meant to protect them, now turned into mass graves.

•Nordesca- As the Helghast assault reached into its third day, the Commonwealth was still reeling from the hammer blow attacks. News studios were getting unconfirmed reports from refugees fleeing the burning cities that were their homes. With no footage the reports were limited to radio news only and no one from the Earth or the Commonwealth would speak with the news stations. This lack of knowledge started a mass panic across the planet as cities watched and waited to see if they were next. Many people began to flee the cities. Many of the city's police forces tried to keep the populace calm and in the population centers should they need to evacuate. The city of Nordesca was one such city caught up in the panic of uncertainty just as Helghast dropships flew over the city.

As AQ-606 strafed the streets and Templars deployed ground troops amid the crowded streets, Helghast armor was closing in from the city outskirts. As refugees fled, a ghost hunter squadron patrolled the outskirts gunning any down. The UNSC defenders stationed in the city were already deployed to help control the crowds. While the few forces there rallied around the city center and along the major roadways. While the troopers and police officers fought defiantly till the end, it was ultimately futile and the entire city was left with no survivors.

•Hanover- The Southern city of Hanover was a staple in Venezia culture. It was home to the planet's only Gravball stadium. However on the early morning of the Helghast arrival, the citizens were not gathered around listening to an intense gravball game, but rather to doom filled radio reports of imperial ship sightings, and cities going silent. The earliest reports were on the attack of New Tyne. Soon enough, the air raid sirens they heard over the radio were being issued outside their own homes. Helghast craft had entered orbit high over the city and launched a wave of drop pods. What people did not realize was that the air raid sirens were a full ten minutes too late. The sirens had begun as drop ships, escorted by AQ-606 and F-X15C fighters appeared out of the clouds. As the mass evacuation began, the company of army troops garrisoned in the city along with the police force, had been scrambling tob protect escape routes from the covenant attackers. Meanwhile as people left their homes, many entered their streets only to run into squads of helghast soldiers already pushing through the habitation districts. As the gravity of the situation became more clear to the city officials, they ordered everyone to either flee through the outside of the city borders if able, otherwise make their way to the gravball stadium. The refugees were told drop ships would arrive there and evacuate them to another location. While the company of army troops fought hard and valiantly, even splitting up into four and five man fireteams in order to cover the most ground possible. The arrival of helghast armor and the sheer numbers of the invader were too many for most. Those citizens that made it to the gravball stadium sat in fear as the last forty troops fought a last stand against the Imperial assault. The citizens only realized the evacuation transport would arrive too late, if they were going to arrive ever and the stadium became a mass grave when the helghast forces entered the field. 120mm Delayed High-Explosive mortar fire from armored troop carriers collapsed the armored roof on top of the field killing thousands while ground forces murdered anyone that tried to flee. No survivor of Hanover ever made it to the remaining cities, any that did escape likely became stranded living in the wild.

The Sixth Day

As the first battles for Venezia were reaching its sixth day, news reports on the attacks started circling through the Commonwealth news broadcasts plane-side. The reports were almost entirely over the radio as no footage of the helghast attacks were found. With the element of surprise gone, the second phase of attacks on the planet began. Unbeknownst to the citizens of Venezia, the military was starting to be deployed. While Defense Force HighCOM still had no clear plan to counter attack the Helghast, all troops planet side were put on standby order. Soldiers across the planet prepared their kits and to be deployed in a moments notice. The soldiers were told they would not know their mission until they were on the ground. It was during this critical time of panic that things became worse for the Commonwealth. As luck would have it, three cities became under attack by the helghast. Keeping with their mission to search for the now identified Tatiana, the southern islands suddenly became the target of the helghast attention.

Southern Islands Campaign

•Autrin-A small island city located in the southern island rings not far from the populated island of Kaia. The city was attacked as a trio of Helghast ships approached the islands low over the ocean. Citizens watched in horror as a pair of Marley class destroyers escorted a Endeavor-Class Planetary Strike craft. As the ships came in range, swarms of drop ships disgorged from the hangers and made their way across the sea water to the waiting human city. Alarms began to fill the air and the evacuations began. City police set up evac routes to local harbors where ships and ferries would take those who made it off the island. The cities military force, while limited to 96 soldiers deployed to the streets. The orders they received were simple, delay the enemy. With such small numbers against a vastly larger force, the squads split into four man fire teams to cover more ground. The company commander put in a request for reinforcements, warning HighCOM of the attack in the isles. While the captain was informed his request would be ed along, with the planet wide strikes, they could not inform him when help would arrive.

The defenders fought valiantly for over twenty hours, fighting for every inch of ground they were forced to give up. While several fire teams were sent to defend the evacuation docks, others held street corners, intersections and places of refuge. The lines of civilians were harassed the entire way. Coming under direct attack from ing drop ships, AQ-606 attack runs and heavy mortar barrages. Ultimately, while some of the evacuation boats made it to sea, very few made it past the sight of the burning city that was once home before helghast aircraft sank the escape ships.

•Jasper- Another island city in the same cluster of southern islands around Kaia, the small city was spared no less than anywhere else on the planet as a pair of Bow-class corvettes took position over the city. While city evacuations began and like Autrin, the garrison of soldiers took to the streets; helghast drop pods rained down from the bellies of the corvettes as drop ships escorted by AQ-606 filled the air carrying down the helghast heavy armor and infantry. The Helghast leader opened his attack by launching a salvo of heavy ordinance to clear out a portion along the beach front. It was in this scorched wreckage that the landing zone and staging areas was set up. While squads of helghast had deployed in the middle of the city to cause chaos, and ed by other outrider units keeping them connected to the landing zone, the pair of corvettes turned their heavy weaponry on the structures and docks around the city edge and center. Under the protective bombardment of their ships, the helghast forces were able to land unmolested and made quick advancements into the city, clearing out the blasted remains.

Like on Autrin the Commonwealth company commander sent a desperate request for help to HighCOM. HighCOM gave the commander the same answer as they were giving all the requests for help. "We will get you as soon as we are able." Understanding he was on his own, the company commander made a desperate effort to counter assault the helghast landing site, knowing full well while it was the strongest point of resistance he'd have to face on the island. It was also the best bet to buy the time they all desperately needed to get off the island. While a limited selection of squads were set to maintain protection of the evacuees, the rest of the company loaded up with heavy weapons and attempted to launch a counter attack. ed by a handful of light vehicles, the soldiers pushed through the streets, past helghast kill teams and made their way to the helghast controlled beachhead. The Captain made two attempts at breaking the covenant foothold before he suffered 96% casualties of his attack force. The captain and a fireteam of volunteers held the helghast counter attack back as long as they could in order to let the remaining troops escape back into the city and try their best to survive and help with the evac. By the sixteenth hour of the day, Jasper was a burning wasteland filled with the bodies of it's inhabitants and defenders.

The Battle for Halvo Bay

Since before the war began on Sera, Halvo Bay was known as the wealthiest section on the entire planet. Home to the elite of the world the city had its roots based on the military. The coastal city, while home to rich architectural structures, grand markets and grandiose shops and parkways, was a military base at heart. Dominating much of the city coastline was Endeavor Port, a civilian waterway for seafaring ships as well as a Navy Maritime Ship base. Home to three of the Commonwealth aircraft carriers and protected by the 26th Marine division the Onyx Guard. The city was also home to the off shore science and military missile launch facility of Onyx Point. Within the heart of the city, and the city's source of pride, was the esteemed military officer and Army Commando training center simple known as The Academy. It was here that rising officers and those prestigious individuals went to the ranks of High Command, or the special Army Commando Division.

When the military forces at Halvo Bay went on full alert around the third hour of the invasion, the Navy and Marines were already deploying. Detachments and companies of the Onyx Guard were sent to major government locations to protect its servants as well as boarded the Navy's vessels and carriers. While normally only two platoons would be stationed on a carrier, due to the invasion protocol this number was raised to a full company. This allowed rapid deployment via drop ships to almost anywhere on the planet within hours. These units were fully ed by light vehicles and main battle tanks to compliment the elite riflemen of the Commonwealth marines. It was because of the battle readiness of the military at Halvo Bay, that turned what the Helghast had thought to be another massacre, into the first large-scale battle of the invasion.

The Helghast commander General Brutus had known from the orbital recon that there was a strong military presence at Halvo Bay. The ship's Synthetic-aperture radar had also shown rare artifacts being held within the city. Most were isolated in the military museum. With such a great prize waiting to be claimed, Brutus, already known as a brutal commander struck the city with the full might of the Empire. Commanding the entire southern theatre of battle from his personal assault carrier, Brutus ordered the first wave of ships against the city.

As the Commonwealth Navy maritime fleet was leaving the bay to go and New Tyne with reinforcement, the fleet were the first to encounter the Helghast ships emerging from the thick Cumulonimbus clouds that formed a wall of white just beyond the bay. The seamen watched in surprise as a massive Andraste-class cruiser escorted by a pair of Hexeil corvettes and Marley class destroyer appeared and immediately fired on the fleet. The fleet command was stunned to silence as multiple vessels blew apart as cruise missile and lasers slammed into their hulls. Twenty five percent of the fleet was sunk or out of commission when the general alarms klaxons rang across the seas and anti air guns and heavy cannons began firing up at the helghast ships hovering five hundred meters above the sea. Missile launches were locked onto targets while helghast unmanned attack craft, fighters and gunships filled the sky diving down on the ships. The carrier vessel scrambled to deploy RT-56 Fighter drones while sending a warning to Halvo Bay of the helghast's attack. The citizens of Halvo bay were able to look out across the beaches and watch the battle unfold. The Yellow tracers and black cloud bursts of AA fire mixed with white missile contrails against the red and orange bursts of laser fire streaming back and forth from ocean to sky. Those watching it said it looked like they were fighting against storm of the sky themselves. The air was filled with the distant thundercracks before the evacuation sirens filled the streets of Halvo Bay.

The Naval base and Marine base went to full battle readiness and the marines ground troops took to the streets to secure evac routes while AA defense guns and missiles were loaded and trained on the sky. The two sea carriers began to leave port with their escorts and prepared their flights of fighters while the naval airbase readied wyvern fighters. Despite the warning the fleet sent back to command, the Helghast fleet was only delayed fifteen minutes before the last hour ship was sunk. Leaving the sea filled with burning wrecks of ships and swaths of lifeboats stuck out at sea. With the first defenses broken, the ships moved on the city.

The fleet moved into attack position over Endeavor Port, the Navy base and began bombarding it and the city indiscriminately from the Kinect batteries on the ships. Commonwealth point defenses returned fire filling the air with AA fire, and rockets as helghast fighters and dropships swarmed over the edges of the city and landed ground troops in the midst of combat. As the first wave of dropships fought their way through the AA fire and landed amongst the defenders, the artillery fire shifted from the Commonwealth base structures and began targeting the maritime naval vessels still in port. While F-X15C fighters, AQ-606 attack craft and Flacon gunboats filled the air, Commonwealth Razorbacks were launched from the nearby airport as civilians were brought in for evacuation. Even the Navy aircraft carrier in port was able to launch a couple of waves of A-20 fighters before one of the Andraste-class strike cruisers split the deck of the ship in two with its kinetic strike.

As the defenses of the Commonwealth fleet began to fail as more and more ships were sunk or set afire, such as the second carrier still docked in port. It's deck was set ablaze from stem to stern as the fueling depot that was refilling the ship set fire from HE cruise missiles and spread to the ship. As the helghast attack continued and the second wave of transports and drop pods landed all over the naval base, the port and entire bay was filled with thick black smoke from the burning buildings, the smoldering wreckages of ships and the raging infernos of ignited oil spills.

Within the base, the marines of the Onyx Guard deployed squad by squad and fought their best to fight off the Empire as they disembarked from their drop ships. But the Helghast remained too unpredictable and landed almost randomly around the base. Making matters worse, many of the phantoms carried heavy armor with the first wave of infantry. ICRV, Light Artillery vehicles and Apex heavy tanks were deployed all across the base. Confident the defenders were sufficiently disorientated, the attack sub commander signaled to General Brutus that the first line of defenses were broken. With this signal the general began the second phase of the attack. Brutus himself left his Assault Carrier sitting safely several kilometers away from the battle at the head of forty four drop ships escorted by a flight or F-X15C fighters leading over a thousand of his most elite fighters. The dropships carrying armored as well skimmed low above the ocean in a massive wave and ed in on the third wave of attack from the cruisers already engaged over the city.

At the order of General Brutus, the two Bow-class Corvettes broke off and began attacking the small island research base of Onyx Point just two kilometers away from the naval base. As the Corvettes bombarded the bases of outer defenses, the ground troops landed in the courtyards and beaches all around the base bying many of the bunkers and shore guns set up along the beaches of the base. Confident the naval bombardment would keep the defenders stuck in their buildings the helghast landed mostly unharmed. The marines defending the base were a special company numbering only around 117. Going through special security clearance this elite company had the call sign Grid Iron, the company's sole mission is the protection of Onyx Point. They had trained and practiced over and over for just such an event. It's a testament to these marines that when an actual attack came. The discipline and cohesion of the unit was on par with that of any of the countless drills they performed. Despite this, they were outnumbered three to one and were unprepared for the heavy siege units the helghast deployed. Helghast and Drinol shock troopers stormed through the barricades and overwhelmed the thought out fields of fire. While the bulk of the marine forces were concentrated on defending preplanned defensive lines trying hold bulkheads and accessways. A covert team of special Operations managed to deploy near the back of Onyx Point and broke through behind the defenders. The scientists and soldiers were completely taken unaware as they were slaughtered by high- blades, submachine guns and battle rifles from behind. In just over an hour the base had fallen to the Empire, its halls a charnel house of human remains and debris of the short but fierce fight.

With the third attack wave landing along the seaport, bringing fresh reinforcements to the fierce battle. Brutus led his elite troops and the fourth wave past the port into the city proper. As his personal unit deployed in the old town to attack the museum while the fourth wave deployed in the hills to the north of the museum to assault from all sides. These massed forces landed amid the established evacuation routes, and while they met Marine defenders, the numbers of the Commonwealth troops were there for crowd control, not to repel a full battalion sized force of aggressors. These small pockets of resistance were quickly quelled and thousands of civilians were caught in the path of the advancing force who spared no one in their path leaving a trail of slain in their wake.

First Month

Initial losses were heavy as the Helghast had no orders to hold or capture the planet. As such mere engagements between Commonwealth forces and the Empire occurred sporadically across the land scape. Commonwealth GROUNDCOM forces had mobilized immediately and set up civilian evacuation routes as soon as they could get their transports through the blockade. Inn addition to pre-planning defensive lines and points of counter attacks.

In an effort to take some of the pressure off the blockade, The Commonwealth sent Spacial operations Group Z to the planet of Verbena. A lost human colony that the covenant were now using as a resource center for their navy.