Operation Thor's Hammer - 2655
Operation: Thor's Hammer was a covert operation conducted by the Terran Confederation from 2654 to 2655 against the Empire of Kilrah. It was led by the TCS Tiger's Claw.
Prelude
During the 2650s, the Empire of Kilrah was fighting the Vega Sector Campaign against the Terran Confederation, hoping to eventually gain control of the strategically-vital Vega Sector. Behind the scenes, they were also carrying out their plans for the eventual destruction of Earth and her colonies. Kalralahr Gilkarg nar Kiranka, the heir to the Kilrathi throne, was leading a major weapons program that would enable the Imperial fleet to smash through Terran airspace with relative ease. On the Kilrathi research and development world of Warhammer XII in the distant Warhammer System, Gilkarg was leading the development of the Graviton Gun, a proton accelerator device capable of increasing the gravitational field of any planet 137 times, effectively destroying all structures on the target planet and wiping it clean of life. It was hoped that this superweapon would allow the Empire to easily destroy the Confederation as its fleets plowed through Terran airspace towards Earth itself, eventually securing victory in the war. The weapon was to be fielded by the KIS Sivar, the latest incarnation of the ongoing Sivar-Class line.
The Graviton Gun was completed immediately after the Terrans destroyed the Kilrathi Sector HQ in the Venice System, securing victory in the Vega Sector. With their defensive lines falling, the Kilrathi had no choice but to abandon their colonies in Vega. On Warhammer XII, Gilkarg oversaw the final completions of the Graviton Gun and tested the weapon on Warhammer XII, which was to be abandoned in the wake of the Terran assault. The test annihilated the planet, killing all life on its surface and leaving it in ruins. The Kilrathi then fled the Warhammer System before the Terrans could intercept them. Pleased with the success of his new weapon, Gilkarg assembled a strike force around the KIS Sivar, and launched his assault on the Terran frontier.
The Destruction of Goddard
Shortly after the fall of the Vega Sector, Gilkarg led his strike force to the Epsilon Sector, where he targeted the Terran colony of Goddard, a colony home to 250,000 Terran colonists. Upon arrival, the Terran populace on Goddard sent a distress call to the Confederation Navy, but contact was lost with the planet shortly afterwards. Every Terran warship within Goddard's vicinity jumped into the system, including the TCS Tiger's Claw. However, the Tiger's Claw detoured to destroy a Kilrathi troopship before jumping to Goddard, delaying its arrival. By the time the Terrans reached Goddard, it was too late. The Kilrathi strike force was nowhere to be found, and Goddard was completed destroyed. Despite sending a search and recovery mission to the surface, the Terrans soon found that all 250,000 Terran colonists on the planet were killed in the attack.
Outraged at this attack, the Confederation ordered the Tiger's Claw to lead a covert mission to track down the Kilrathi strike force responsible for Goddard's destruction and to destroy it completely. Such a mission required the Terrans to travel deep within Kilrathi airspace where the strike fleet fled to refuel, a mission only the Tiger's Claw could hope to accomplish. With that, the Claw jumped into Kilrathi airspace, initiating the opening stages of Operation: Thor's Hammer.
Into the Lion's Den
The Tiger's Claw jumped into the Kilrathi-occupied territory of the Epsilon Sector, far from any Terran fleet or outpost. It was to conduct its mission in absolute secrecy, as to avoid alerting the Kilrathi to the Terran presence in their airspace. During the initial assault, the Tiger's Claw received word that the TCS Falstaff, a Drayman-Class Courier Ship stationed at Goddard, was captured during the Kilrathi attack with vital intelligence onboard. Recognizing that this threatened Terran war efforts on the frontier, Confed ordered the Claw to track down and destroy the Falstaff. The Claw tracked down the vessel in the Midgard System and swiftly destroyed it, preventing a major breach in Terran security. However, with the loss of their prize, the Kilrathi went into high alert, sensing the incoming Terran forces.
(To be continued)
