The War of the Worlds

[Louella (OP)]

No one would have believed, in the last years of the 19th Century, that human affairs were being watched from the timeless worlds of space.
No one could have dreamed we were being scrutinised, as a man with a microscope studies the creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water.
Few men even considered the possibility of life on other planets.
And yet, across the gulf of space, minds immeasurably superior to ours, regarded this Earth with envious eyes.
And slowly, and surely, they drew their plans against us.

The year is 1895.  The Martian invasion of Earth has been defeated, thanks to our microscopic bacterial allies.  However, the threat from Mars itself remains.  Study of the Martian artifacts has opened up untold avenues of scientific research, and a great age of Progress awaits.

To the Rt. Hon.  J. A.  Chamberlain, Civil Lord of the Admiralty
Sir.  It gives me great pleasure to inform you that our efforts to reproduce the mechanisms of the Martian Heat Ray have been a success and our Elswick works are now able to produce these weapons in sufficient quantity to outfit the Achilles class aetherships currently under construction, as well as field guns for the Royal Artillery.

The Achilles class frigate is the first aethership to enter service with the Royal Navy, and though of modest performance, is a capable combatant.
Powered by two Mitchell Drive engines, and armed with a reverse-engineered Heat Ray, it will take the fight to the Martians.

The other Great Powers are not standing idle, they too have devised their own aetherships with salvaged Martian technology.

A new Great Game is afoot.

Capt.  Aiden Holt, of 1st Battle Squadron reports the destruction of two Martian vessels, of unknown configuration.  Our sensors are seemingly insufficient to make out details of enemy ships, despite being sufficient to achieve a firing solution.  A number of Martian prisoners were taken, and are being kept in quarantine.

The reports of the destruction of an American squadron seemingly by Martian aether torpedoes are of great concern, as yet there are no countermeasures, though the Ministry of War has set up a number of committees to investigate solutions.  In the meantime, we shall have to devise our own aether torpedoes.

[Garfunkel]

Are the Martians and the other Earth powers NPRs? Or are you controlling all of them?

[Louella (OP)]

Martians are NPRs, yes.  And all the other Earth powers, and there are a lot of those heh.
(Qing Dynasty, India, Imperial Russia, France, Imperial Germany, Austria-Hungary, Dutch Empire, Imperial Japan, Kingdom of Italy, Ottomans, Spain, and Brazil-Portugal)

[Louella (OP)]

Economic Crisis of October 1895

To Treasury Secretary Mr.  Samuel Lee
Sir, I appreciate that the research we are undertaking is expensive, but the success of this war depends on finding a method of outmanoeuvring the Martian fleet, such that we, not they, can dictate the terms of engagement.  Our ships are still too slow to decline action should that be disadvantageous.  Surely you can appreciate this dilemma.

Ruinously expensive research has led to the UK being heavily in debt, even with the efforts of the most skilled economists.

Well, yes, bayonets were not particularly helpful against the Martian Fighting Machines last time around, but who knows what other aliens might be out there ?

Debate about the utility of the new powered infantry combat armour and the future need for bayonet drill, has occupied a great many military minds.

[Louella (OP)]

The Blockade Of Mars

Mars is an impregnable fortress, any ship foolish enough to approach the Red Planet is fired upon by innumerable weapons from orbital forts, and even from the surface. If we are to win this war, a better plan than a direct assault is needed.
Analysis of Martian ship movements shows a number of vessels travelling to and from the asteroid belts and Jupiter. These do not appear to be military vessels, given the shape of their engine plumes.
It is believed that Mars may lack materials for conducting this war, and these vessels may be obtaining them from mines on the asteroids and moons of Jupiter.
If true, this flow of material must be stopped, and Mars cut off.
To this end, a blockade of Mars must be put in place.

Operation Stepping Stone

To Rear Admiral Gilbert, Home Fleet.
Sir, attached is my report of the action of 12th August. In brief, the 2nd Frigate Squadron detected a number of Martian merchantmen, and destroyed them completely. None of the Martian ships were able to escape. We marked the location of the wrecks, for the Salvage Squadron.

What do we have here ? What do you make of all these tubes, Chief ? Think this is something the science boys would be interested in ?

An analysis of the Martian devices obtained recently by the Navy reveal that it is a kind of scoop or funnel, the use of which allows a ship to collect elemental Sorium from the outer atmosphere of gaseous planets. A second stage to the device contains a refining catalyst, operating on the same principles as a terrestrial Sorium refinery, allowing the ship to produce fuel directly. By products of the process appear to simply be vented to space. Most of the devices obtained exhibit damage, no doubt due to the manner in which they were obtained, but sufficient components remain intact to assemble a complete apparatus. Engineering drawings to allow production of our own harvesters will be completed shortly.
In addition to the Sorium harvester, the recovered Martian devices include an apparatus that appears intended to allow one ship to refuel another, whilst both are underway, which shall prove most useful in enhancing the endurance of our ships, allowing them to remain on station longer

Profound Social Change

In the wake of the Martian invasion, the women's suffrage movement in the UK had received a great boost, with many of the Kingdom's young ladies enthusiastically studying the sciences, engineering, and even military matters, resulting in profound changes in society.
While there was a degree of hesitancy amongst the more traditionally minded officers, the record of the young ladies in conducting the war against the Martians was exemplary, with the 1st Space Lord mentioning their dedication to Queen Victoria during the Jubilee of 1897.
Queen Victoria was amused.

[Louella (OP)]

Action of August 12 1897, between Mercury and Venus

"One hour to weapons range at this rate, sir. No torpedoes detected."
"Very good. Carry on."
Captain Aaron Duncan stared at the plotting table intently, as the 1st Cruiser Squadron, leading 1st and 2nd Frigate Squadrons, closed the distance to the Martian ships. It would still be some time before the guns of HMS Amphitrite would be able to open fire, and everyone was anxious as they were well within range of Martian torpedoes.
"Sensors. Check the profile again."
"Same as before, Captain. Matches the 30 and 20 kilotonners we have on file. Plus that one unknown 10 kiloton"
"Hmm. Then why haven't they fired ?"
The clock ticked down...
"Coming into range now, sir"
"All right. Open fire as soon as we have a firing solution."
A low humming sound filled the bridge as the capacitors powering the Amphitrite's guns charged.
"Firing solution ready"
"Shoot"
The task force's guns opened fire, laser beams striking the closest Martian ships, and were met with a storm of small projectiles in return, rattling off the hull, and tearing armour plates from their mountings.
"Sensors. Where's that fire coming from ?"
"Coming from... got it... Coming from the 10 kilotonner, sir... wait... It's the only ship firing at us!"
"What ? Fire Control! Target that ship. Comms, send fleet focus fire on our target"
Under the concentrated fire of the task force, the Martian ship began to slow, then a sudden flash from the centre, and the entire ship exploded.
"Hit something vital there, I'd say"
"Martians coming about... they're retreating sir."
"Retreating ? Helm, chase them. Engineering, what's our status ?"
"Lost a good few tons of plating, but everythings in one piece down here."
"Sir... I think we must have caught them with their torpedoes empty."
"What a stroke of luck. Comms. Send fleet. Cruiser squadron, concentrate fire. Frigate squadrons, any Martian that slows or changes course, detach and chase them down. Fire at will."

[Louella (OP)]

The Nuclear Winter of 1898

As Mars reached its closest approach to Earth late in 1898, a flotilla of Martian ships launched from Mars and headed towards Earth, halting well beyond Lunar orbit, and launching missiles directed mostly at the cities of Qing China and the United States of America. Defences were ineffective and a significant amount of missiles struck Earth, releasing a large amount of dust into the atmosphere.

The Royal Meteorological Society reports the effect on climate appears to be very much greater than the 1883 Krakatoa volcanic eruption, and that a bitterly cold winter is to be expected. William Ascroft has again been commissioned by the Royal Academy of Arts to produce colour sketches of the sky at sunset, as he did in the years following the Krakatoa eruption.

The Meson Gun Murders

In Cambridge, at the Cavendish Laboratory, police have been investigating after two researchers working on the development of Meson cannon died under suspicious circumstances. Work on the experimental weapon has been halted following the death of Professor Sinclair in October, and Doctor Williams in December. Though foul play has yet to be conclusively established, the importance of the project to national security has led some of the more sensational newspapers to suspect murder.

[nuclearslurpee]

The Nuclear Winter of 1898

William Ascroft has again been commissioned by the Royal Academy of Arts to produce colour sketches of the sky at sunset, as he did in the years following the Krakatoa eruption.

This seems a rather blasé response to nuclear bombardment, but I suppose the British cannot know any better as it is in their national genetics to make light of the misfortune of others.

[Louella (OP)]

The Nuclear Winter of 1898

William Ascroft has again been commissioned by the Royal Academy of Arts to produce colour sketches of the sky at sunset, as he did in the years following the Krakatoa eruption.

This seems a rather blasé response to nuclear bombardment, but I suppose the British cannot know any better as it is in their national genetics to make light of the misfortune of others.

Heh.  Though, I'm not altogether sure on when Madame Curie made her discovery of the biological effects of radioactive substances

And William Ascroft was a real person, which I found out while trying to see how the -3°C effect ingame of the dust related to the effects of Krakatoa. (-0.4° )

[Louella (OP)]

The Ceres Catastrophe

To Rear Admiral Barton
Sir, I regret to inform you that the 4th Frigate squadron, whilst engaging Martian raiders near Ceres, was entirely destroyed, all twelve ships. The survivors we were able to pick up report they were overwhelmed by a multitude of small Martian missiles of a previously unknown type, the speed of which was sufficient to swamp the close-in defences of our ships.
We should be able to recover most of the material from the wrecks in a few months, as the position of Mars at this time makes it too risky for the Salvage Squadron to conduct operations.

This new Martian rocket threatens our strategy. We cannot afford to let up pressure on the Martian economic machine though. Until a more effective solution presents itself, I would have to recommend withdrawing the frigate squadrons from the more dangerous areas of the asteroids, instead relying on our cruisers.

Operation Diamond Rock

We must continue in our efforts at denying the Martians the use of any of the asteroids. To this end, a number of asteroids of strategic significance shall be seized and fortified with orbital guns, to prevent the approach of any Martian mining vessels.

Seizure of JCS Homtet

Royal Marines boarding parties from ships of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron, boarded the "Homtet", a Martian ship of as-yet unknown purpose. This marks the first time since the Invasion of Earth that human forces engaged in face-to-face combat with Martians.
Despite heavy losses, the Marines were able to defeat the crew and seize the ship, which was then taken under tow back to Earth, where it will be studied.
The nature of the technical equipment found intact on the ship is reported to be of "Great and Profound Interest" by the physicists of the Cavendish Laboratory, who are not normally given to being excitable.

[Louella (OP)]

The Aether Torpedo

4 million km from Mars, outside the known reach of Martian orbital defences, the 3rd Cruiser squadron hove to, awaiting the arrival 3rd and 6th Frigate squadrons.
Aboard HMS Archer, Captain Nicholas Storey adjusted the display on the long-range sensor scope, to focus on one of the four large Martian defence stations.
"What do you think, Miss Singh ? This will be the third time we've tried to breach their defences."
Lieutenant Commander Naomi Singh looked up from her screen. "The decoys on this new Kingfisher torpedo should confuse them, sir. If they work."
"If indeed."
"HMS Apollo on the radio, sir", said the communication officer.
"Very good", replied the captain, pressing the switch to activate the radio. "Captain Whitehead, a pleasure as always. Ready to try this ?"
On HMS Apollo of the 6th Frigate Squadron, Captain Madeleine Whitehead grinned as she spoke into the communicator. "Have a little faith, Nicholas. With those decoys, and our little fast missiles, and those of Dylan's squadron, the Martians won't know where to shoot. Trust me !".
Miss Whitehead, debutante and industrial heiress, was one of the bubbliest personalities in the Royal Aether Navy, though her enthusiasm occasionally grated with the more conservative officers, such as Captain Dylan Gibson, the commander of 3rd Frigate Squadron.

"Synchronise chronometers to minus 5 minutes."
All three fire groups adjusted their ships clocks.
"3rd Cruiser will commence launching at zero minute, 6th Frig at zero plus 3, 3rd Frig at zero plus 4. Six salvoes only.", spoke Captain Storey
"Ready", replied Captain Gibson. "Ready", responded Captain Whitehead.
The clock ticked down...

"Torpedoes away !", announced Lt.Cdr Singh. "Six minutes to target"
The crew of the Archer hustled and bustled, reloading the tubes to fire a new salvo.

"Thee minutes... damnit, Whitehead missed her mark!". Captain Gibson frowned, as 6th Frigate Squadron launched their torpedoes ten seconds late.

The clock ticked down...

Aboard the Archer, Lt.Cdr Singh and Captain Storey watched the sensor screen intently. at 5:45 on the chronometer a number of small flashes showed.
"Enemy beams firing, sir". The flashes grew in frequency and number, until at six minutes on the chronometer, a constant flickering began as the torpedoes reached the target, and the Martian point defences opened up. Some brighter bigger flashes popped up at sporadic intervals.
"They're getting through, Captain. Some of them at least."
"So we can hurt them after all, good."
A bright flash showed on the sensor screen.
"Secondary explosion on the target sir !"
"Did we get them ?"
"Not quite sir. It's still there. Damaged heavily though."
"Ordnance ! What's our status ?"
"Enough for another nine salvoes, Captain."
"Hmm. Six used, nine left... Send fleet. Another three salvoes, same method"

The second wave of missiles crashed through the Martian defences, and with a large explosion, the Martian defence base ceased to exist, raining debris onto the surface.

"Good shooting everyone ! Let's try for another !", said Captain Storey over the radio.

With the Martian fleet having sortied two days earlier to attack the Chinese asteroids, we were able to conduct our shoot undisturbed. The good news is that we were able to destroy two of the Martian defence stations outright, and damage the others before running out of ordnance. The new Kingfisher torpedo functioned better than our previous models, though a significant number were still shot down without exploding. We can now strike back effectively against Mars.

The attack on Mars consumed three months worth of production in less than an hour. We have to expand production much faster than we have done, if we wish to keep the pressure up on the Martians. It will not do for them to be able to repair the damage before we can afford a follow-up bombardment.

[Louella (OP)]

The Battle of Phobos

Objectives: Draw off the Martian fleet, Neutralise remaining defences, Establish anti-ship batteries on Phobos and Deimos.
Plan: 3rd, 4th Cruiser squadrons and their support shall engage the Martian fleet with missiles at long range. 1st, 2nd Cruiser squadrons will approach Deimos, then Phobos, covering the transport fleet.

"Gentlemen, Ladies. We have the upper hand against the Martians now, and it is time to deal them a decisive blow. Intelligence shows that Mars is now protected by just one squadron of cruisers, which our Archer class torpedo cruisers easily outrange. Therefore, our torpedo force shall engage them, and the remaining orbital defences. Meanwhile, our laser cruisers shall provide close escort for the landing ships, then engage the Martian shipyards and ground forces. This should allow us to disarm the Martians, until a ground invasion can be properly prepared, which as you can appreciate, will be no easy task."
Admiral Barton looked up from his notes, at the assembled audience of ship captains and senior officers.
"I have every confidence in your ability to carry out this plan. Commodore Birch will answer any questions you may have. Now if you'll excuse me, I must meet with the Prime Minister"

The Suspicious Star Map

"Prime Minister"
"Admiral"
"What's this about, anyway ?"
"I'll tell you shortly, How are things at the Admiralty ?"
"Rather good, actually. Just gave the fleet their orders for the Phobos plan"
"Outstanding, aha, here we are, good morning Doctor."
"Prime Minister"
"Doctor Evie Sinclair, meet Admiral Ethan Barton. Admiral, this is Doctor Evie Sinclair, Professor Sinclair's daughter."
"A pleasure."
"Now then", said the Prime Minister. "Now that you're both here, I can tell you what this is about. Admiral, you remember the captured Martian ship, the... Homtet ?"
"Indeed sir. The one with the peculiar devices on board"
"The very one. Now then, Doctor Sinclair's group has been working on it, and has come up with some rather profound findings... Doctor ?"
"Thank you sir. Yes, what we found was that, space, the aether, there are certain points that can, with the right stimulus, act as a sort of door to other star systems. A ship properly equipped can open and close these doors at will, travelling vast distances in an instant. The equipment on the Homtet was designed to open these doors permanently, allowing more conventional ships to travel through them."
"I see... and the Martians know this method as well."
"Not just the Martians. Look at this.", said the Prime Minister, placing a large chart on the desk, "What does it look like to you, Admiral ?"
"It's a star map. A star here, three planets, some asteroids... these points here, what do they mean ?"
"Those are the points in space where doors exist, Admiral", said Dr. Sinclair.
"Hmmm. I see. Wait... where did this map come from ?"
"That is, what you would call, a very good question", replied the Prime Minister. "This map was obtained last week by an intelligence officer, from an official of the Americans. While we have been giving the Martians our full attention, they appear to have somehow determined how to travel between stars."
"Rather devious of them, sir."
"Quite. Now then, in order to catch up and surpass them, I am tripling the resources available to Dr. Sinclair, and I want you two to work together to devise a plan for ships to exploit these doors."
"Of course sir."

[Louella (OP)]

Operation Olympus

With Mars having been blockaded, there is now the possibility of putting an end to the Martian Menace once and for all, with a ground operation, Operation Olympus.
6 divisions shall make up the landing force, totalling 750,000 tons of men and materiel. Three divisions of infantry, two of armoured cars, and one division of heavy armoured vehicles.
It will take at least two years to train and equip this force, during which time the Blockade must be maintained.


Meanwhile, elsewhere

"It just doesn't sound right, Sergeant"
"Well of course lad, we're on Earth. Not Mars."
"How do they know it'll sound right on Mars ?"
"Sergeant McWilliam, Piper McCullough, everything alright with the pipes ?"
"Sir. Yes sir, well, mostly sir. Not sure of the tone of the pipes, difficult to tune them"
"Hmm, of course, they're intended for the thinner atmosphere on Mars. Well, we'll just have to do our best. The Highlanders have always entered battle to the sound of the pipes, Mars will be no different."
"Yes sir."
"Alright, as you were then, men."
"Sir."
"Sir."
"Still feels a bit odd, Sergeant, since the pipes hook into a compressor. More like the Northumbrian pipes than Highland ones"
"I know, lad, I know."

[DrBladeSTEEL]

"That is, what you would call, a very good question", replied the Prime Minister. "This map was obtained last week by an intelligence officer, from an official of the Americans. While we have been giving the Martians our full attention, they appear to have somehow determined how to travel between stars."
"Rather devious of them, sir."

Tear slides down cheek as a bald eagle calls in the background. My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, letting the Britishdothehardworkofnavalsupremecybeforesurpassingthemeconomicallyandtechnologically...

[Gyrfalcon]

"That is, what you would call, a very good question", replied the Prime Minister. "This map was obtained last week by an intelligence officer, from an official of the Americans. While we have been giving the Martians our full attention, they appear to have somehow determined how to travel between stars."
"Rather devious of them, sir."

Tear slides down cheek as a bald eagle calls in the background. My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, letting the Britishdothehardworkofnavalsupremecybeforesurpassingthemeconomicallyandtechnologically...

I wish I had more then one thanks to give for managing to make that rhyme so well.