Battle of Lichen

Course of the Battle
Though the Pact's foothold in Diab space, which would soon be known across the region as the 'Meat Grinder', would be the site of relentless fighting throughout the war, it was not the only region of Diab space attacked by Pact forces. Once General Gancarda's forces had been relocated to the Diab front, the general probed for vulnerable Diab colonies to invade. During their search, they came across the planet of Lichen, which was rich in crystals the Monarchy had been using in the development of new energy weapons. Spies were sent down to the planet's surface while Gancarda mobilized his forces for an offensive. Once a suitable landing zone had been located, Gancarda's forces made landfall and established an outpost. Soon after, they were engaged by Diab forces stationed in a nearby fort. While Zaretian forces defended the landing zone, a squad of Nightshades went behind Diab lines and disabled the fort's anti-air defenses. Moments later, ships under the command of Lord Atlas swept in and dropped troops into the fortress, overwhelming and driving away the defenders. Gancarda, who was unaware of Atlas' presence, questioned the lord as to why he had come, as it was not his operation. Atlas responded that Gancarda was holding back, and that he, despite being outranked by Gancarda, was taking over the invasion. Gancarda relented, but warned the general to watch his back.

Zaretian forces attacked multiple Diab positions across the planet before converging on the defender's command center, which was located in the Lichen's frozen tundras. A fierce battle broke out across the region, but while Atlas and Gancarda had devoted all of their available troops, Diab reinforcements from the mainland had begun to turn the tide in the Peacekeeper's favor as they gradually attained aerial superiority. The tide shifted back in the Monarchy's favor as troops successfully flanked the defenders and eliminated several of their anti-air cannons, allowing strikecraft and dropships to enter the battlefield. As his troops slowly advanced towards the command center, Atlas deployed a group of Nightshades to infiltrate the fortress through its sewer network to both gather intelligence and to disrupt its defenses. The Diabs had anticipated this maneuver, and captured the Nightshades as they reached the sewers.

Inside the prison, the Nightshades met one of the spies that had been sent to the planet prior to the invasion, who explained that he had been caught shortly after the invasion had started. With the use of reprogrammed spider droids, the Zaretians were able to escape the prison and made their way to the fortress' primary anti-orbital cannon. They disabled its generator, but as they escaped, were intercepted by the command center's commander. Before he could lead the operatives back to the prison, Atlas and Gancarda's forces, with support from their naval warships, successfully breached the fortress, killing the commander and his entourage in the process. Several hours of fighting followed before the Zaretians eliminated the fortress' garrison, prompting Lichen's remaining defenders to evacuate and cede the planet to the Monarchy.