Chapter 18

The initial landings on Kataki were done by General Yan, Chen, and Gyalpo Pehar and his First Prime, Konchok. In the first six hours of the invasion, they had landed around the Cities of Phrulkhor Sacha, Dug Khang, and Mar Khangpa and begun the attack. The numerous workshops in these three cities provided Finished Components, Chemicals, and Agricultural Products to the Capital City of Gser Pho Brang. The entire pattern of settlement had been centrally planned, one of the reasons that Kataki was such a center of production for a Minor Goa'uld, even without the benefits I had introduced in Taiji Province.

Those three cities, as well as a fourth, Mgarpa Sacha, which provided smelted and alloyed metals, were all located equidistantly of Gser Pho Brang at the compass points of the map and had good roads cut into the rugged terrain connecting them to the capital, creating a sort of web of trade where raw resources were shipped in via Tel'tak to the outlying cities, turned into components there, before being shipped via Skiff along the roads to the Capital to be turned into finished goods.

Everything was compartmentalized, with no one city holding a complete picture of the production chain in the classic Goa'uld fashion as used in the Empire. The idea was that if each city only had one part of the supply chain, any revolt that only succeeded in taking one or some of the cities would fail to properly resupply itself, as it would be missing critical components of the supply chain required to produce technologies, allowing any potential revolt to wither on the vine and be more easily crushed by a counterattack. Most independent Goa'uld in the borderlands, however, generally didn't have the means to do this, but Kataki was a rare world that could sustain enough of an urban population for it while still being outside the Empire's Borders.

Accordingly, I was now preparing to lead troops to assail Mgarpa Sacha. One of the few critical flaws in such centralized planning for revolts was that while such plans were great against internal threats, if an outside force that could more easily capture cities than a rebel movement attacked you, you ran the risk of being starved of the critical components needed to resupply your own forces. It was something that the strategy that I had come up with alongside Chen, General Yan, Gyalpo Pehar, and Gyalpo Pehar's First Prime, Konchok, was tailored to exploit.

"My Lord, the troops are in place, and initial bombardment of the city's defenses via Fightercraft and Staff Cannon Artillery has begun." Informed Shun, saluting as he approached. There was a slight hitch in his voice as he reported, however, the sign that something unexpected had come up.

"I sense there is some trepidation in your voice, Shun. What have my Jaffa found that has you so anxious?" I questioned.

"We are receiving reports that the City's Shields are slightly stronger than anticipated, My Lord. It is nothing a sustained bombardment cannot overcome, but. . ." Hesitated Shun.

"But what, Shun? Surely it is nothing we cannot overcome?" I queried.

"It isn't that, My Lord. They have tweaked their shield to harden it completely." Admitted Shun.

"But that's insane! They would swiftly run out of oxygen! Are Shenwrab Miwo's Subjects that suicidal?" I asked, balking.

"It would seem so, My Lord. Or at the very least, the Administrator that Shenwrab Miwo put in charge of Mgarpa Sacha seems to be." Responded Shun.

That was a problem. While Goa'uld Shields were, by and large, not as sturdy as most other shield technology in the known universe, this is largely a function of how they are set up. Normally, Goa'uld shields are set up in a semi-permeable barrier that stops fast moving objects and energy discharge, but is permeable enough to slow moving objects so that air can still pass through. This has led to some notable weaknesses in the technology. Firstly, there was a drop in overall shield strength owing to the semi-permeable nature of the shields, and secondly, there was the potential that a slowly moving strike team could effectively dupe the shields by moving through them at a crawl.

This wasn't generally a problem in space, where there was no oxygen to pass through, and thus the shields could be hardened into a completely impermeable state. It still wouldn't stand up to more than one shot from a Tollan Ion Cannon or a direct hit from an Asgard Beam Weapon, but it would be able to take the shot for the superstructure, even if it popped in doing so. On the ground, however, was another matter. Cities don't have self-contained ventilation systems and, in fact, put out a lot of emissions, especially cities whose sole purpose is to act as a metals foundry.

By hardening Mgarpa Sacha's City Shield to the level of impermeability, the Administrator had effectively put a timer on how long the city could hold out before everyone inside suffocated to death. I could only conclude that he was either mad or ignorant of the facts on the ground. As the City Administrator was likely to be a Minor Goa'uld, the former couldn't be entirely discounted, of course, but I had a feeling it was the latter.

"The Administrator is gambling that his City's Air Supply will hold out in time for a counterattack from the Capital to drive us off. They likely do not understand the situation yet. That Shenwrab Miwo has three other cities he needs to relieve, as well as Mgarpa Sacha likely has been lost in the chaos of these first few hours of invasion. I am sure of it. It is the only logical explanation that does not involve gross incompetence." I frowned.

"I am sure you know best, My Lord." Nodded Shun.

"Who is the Administrator of Mgarpa Sacha?" I questioned.

"Begtse, My Lord." Answered Shun.

I frowned at that as my Genetic Memory filled in the gaps, Begtse was an older Goa'uld from Shenwrab Miwo's father, the Goa'uld Gonpo's generation, who had followed Shenwrab Miwo into exile in the Borderlands after Gonpo had been caught between Cronus and Kali and had his realm partitioned. That had been over one-thousand-three-hundred years ago, which hadn't been that long after Egeria's Revolt, going by Goa'uld Lifespans. If I remembered right, Begtse had held his own against My Uncle for Shenwrab Miwo for around two hundred years before Lord Yu had wound up crushing his force and sent Shenwrab Miwo fleeing deeper into the Borderlands to here on Kataki.

All this was to say that Begtse was old enough and good enough as a general and administrator to not be incompetent, which would first off, make him an excellent trophy for my Uncle if I could capture him, but also meant he was clearly counting on being relieved.

"Scan the city once more. It is possible that our preliminary bombardment knocked out their communications." I ordered.

"It will be done, My Lord. And if we find no signals being sent?" Queried Shun.

"Then it will mean that there is likely no surprise waiting for us, and Begtse has indeed not realized his situation." I reasoned.

"You suspect a trap, My Lord?" Asked Shun.

"Would you not in these circumstances?" I retorted.

"A wise precaution, My Lord." Affirmed Shun.

"I thought so, yes. Notify me the moment that your scans are completed. To formulate strategy, one must have knowledge of the enemy. Know yourself and know your enemy, and you need not fear defeat even in a hundred battles." I quoted.

"Of course, My Lord. It will be as you say." Saluted Shun before heading off to the sensor console to conduct his scans.

I sat on my command throne in the Pel'tac of the Xioatian Quan, pouring over reports from my other commanders. General Yan was making good progress at Dug Khang. Apparently, the Jaffa Commander in charge of the City's defense had been incapacitated early, and they had been left with Yangchenma, a Minor Goa'uld acting as Administrator for the City. Yangchenma was more renowned as a Patroness of the Arts than for any keen sense of strategy and was a more or less indifferent administrator. Accordingly, General Yan estimated he would break the defensive lines around Dug Khang by tonight and take the city by noon tomorrow at the latest.

Chen, meanwhile, was having a rougher go of it, though not by much, as Dzambhala, the Minor Goa'uld Administrator of Phrulkor Sacha, was a Great Administrator but only slightly better at warfare than the average Jaffa Commander. Dzambhala did know logistics, however, and his forces were well entrenched and supplied. Chen estimated he would break the defenses around Phrulkor Sacha between six in the morning and noon tomorrow and would be in control of the city no later than midnight tomorrow night.

No, it was Gyalpo Pehar's contingent that was having the roughest go of things. Apparently, they were embroiled in fighting a counterattack coming from the Capital. Shenwrab Miwo had either decided that securing his food supply was the top priority, or he was just plain incensed at Gyalpo Pehar's defection and had tunnel vision. Either was plausible with the Average Goa'uld, sadly. Fortunately, we had a reserve of Jaffa troops for just this reason. General Tsao might be busy on Laska, but I still had General Kuo in reserve. I sent orders for him to take two brigades of Jaffa from the reserves and reinforce Gyalpo Pehar's flank before Konchok was overrun by Shenwrab Miwo's counterattack, and Gyalpo Pehar was forced back away from Mar Khangpa.

I busied myself with tasks like that, ensuring reinforcements and supplies got to where they were required. Forty-five minutes after sitting down to wait, Shun reported that yes, it seemed as if Begtse's communications were indeed down, and that no, there didn't appear to be any subterfuge going on with his decision to cut off air flow to the City of Mgarpa Sacha with an impermeable shield.

"Are you certain?" I questioned.

"We ran multiple scans, My Lord." Insisted Shun.

"How many?" I queried.

"Three. All of them turning up the same result, that contact between Mgarpa Sacha and the other cities has been cut off since we began the bombardment of the shield." Informed Shun.

"I see. Then perhaps we may be able to strike a blow here that can force the City's capture or surrender sooner than anticipated." I mused.

"How so, My Lord?" Asked Shun.

"By chaining Strategems, of course. Begtse still thinks relief is coming because his lines of communication are disrupted. We need him more confused if we are to force him to make a poor decision. Have the Tiānlóng enter low orbit and add its firepower to the attempts to drop the Shields around the city. That should cause more panic when the shields drop. I want our siege force to leave a weak point deliberately in the siege lines. Not along the road to the capital, that would be too obvious. Somewhere off to the side of the road. Reinforce our forces on the other side of the city from the weak point with three other battalions of Jaffa, and make sure they can attack with overwhelming numbers and firepower." I ordered.

"The enemy will escape through the weak point, My Lord. With a Long-class Cruiser and an overwhelming assault on the other side of the City, it would be the correct move to make. You must have a second part to this plan that makes it a genius maneuver." Frowned Shun.

"You assume correctly. Tell me, Shun. Can you operate a Tel'tak?" I questioned.

"Of course, My Lord." Affirmed Shun.

"And tell me, who amongst your command is best at Naval Gunnery?" I queried.

"That would be Zhu, My Lord. Why do you ask?" Asked Shun.

"Because, Shun. I have recently received word from Pu-Phi-Si. One of the Tel'taks in attack configuration required remarkably few repairs for a craft that had been sitting in a Hangar that had been partially flooded. They simply do not build them like they used to, apparently. It only took half a day to refurbish and should arrive here in the next two hours. Most importantly for our purposes, it has a cloaking device that can be operated to hide your approach. It also mounts four staff cannons and two plasma warhead launchers." I grinned.

"I see. You mean to have me use this Tel'tak to turn Begtse's retreat into a rout." Nodded Shun.

"Precisely. And once an enemy is routed, destroying him becomes all the easier for it." I confirmed.

"Why me, My Lord? Why not save the honor for yourself?" Questioned Shun.

"I must be with the reinforced Battalions attacking the city on the other side of the battlefield. It will sell the illusion we are attempting to present to Begtse. Chen and my Generals are elsewhere. You are the only one left I can trust with this task." I answered.

"You honor me, My Lord." Bowed Shun.

"Simply tell me that you are up to the challenge. You are, are you not?" I queried.

"I am, My Lord. When will we put your plan into motion?" Asked Shun.

"One hour from when the Tel'tak arrives. I doubt we can afford to delay much longer than that, or the people of Mgarpa Sacha will run out of oxygen." I intoned.

"Very well, My Lord. I will make the preparations." Saluted Shun before heading out to do just that.

He had to relay my orders to the Tiānlóng and track down Zhu, the Gunnery Jaffa. In the meantime, I went back to my reports, keeping the flow of troops and supplies moving. Over the course of the next two hours, that was what happened. At the end of the two-hour period, the Attack Tel'tak arrived, recently renamed the Fenghuang since its prior name, the Caladrius, no longer fit, given it was no longer in Egeria's Service. Forty-five minutes after that, I received a report that General Kuo's reinforcements had stabilized Gyalpo Pehar's flank and that Konchok was no longer in danger of being overrun. Fifteen minutes after that, I was on my way down to the surface of Kataki via ring transport to rendezvous with my siege forces around Mgarpa Sacha.

It was showtime once again, and I intended to come out on top, just like I had the last time. . .

XXXX

AN: All right, so here's the next chapter. We get a bit of planning and a bit of a look at how the invasion is progressing via reports that Erlang Shen has been getting. Unfortunately, I decided to split this chapter up between the preparatory phase and the actual battle since it's already getting kind of long. If I added the actual battle parts, we'd be well over four thousand words, and I don't like to do giant chapters like that unless I have to. Don't worry, you'll get the action soon, I have no intention of leaving you guys hanging for long.

You'll note that Erlang Shen is quoting Sun Tzu's Art of War here. That's appropriate, given that Sun Tzu was Lord Yu's Original First Prime, and all of the First Primes he's had since have been clones of Sun Tzu. What's less appropriate is quoting the Thirty-Six Strategems, a work dating to the Sixth Century AD, well after the Goa'uld had been kicked off Earth. Granted, some of that was oral history, given that it references events during the life of Sun Bin, roughly one-hundred-fifty years after Sun Tzu's death, but it still seems to some like Erlang Shen has a more coherent military philosophy that he came up with himself. It's an unfortunate byproduct of his circumstances.

At any rate, the next chapter will involve the actual fighting bits, and we'll get into the action of the battle for Mgarpa Sacha.

Stay tuned. . .