User:Phantomsmedia/Battle of Rougah (Phantomsmedia)

The Battle of Rougah was a deadly battle, the results of horrible commands from the military commander on the ground and the destructive ambush by. The planet was ultimately glassed, with all civilans presumed dead, other than the lucky few gathered up by retreating UNSC Marines. The UNSC later stated that all ships took too long to reach the planet and that the ships already on the planet were there for repairs, or to be built, none were ready for battle. Due to the loss of 50 million civilians, the UNSC was thought to have been negligent in their defense. Only 50000 Civilians were saved by last minute Pelicans and transport vessels.

First Hand Account/Overview
The Battle of Rougah took place on the industrial planet of Rougah. Hans was delivered to the planet in early August, as warnings of incoming Covenant scout ships were delivered to the higher ups in the UNSC. Hans landed in Kyrome, a large industry and military town. Due to the fact that the planet was defended by almost 300,000 Marines, Hans was not thought to be necessary in the defense of the planet. Everyone was wrong, for on August 23rd a Covenant warped out of slip space and proceeded to drop troops in the city of Viranda. Hans and ten companies of Marines were thrown in service and flown to Viranda in Pelicans. Military support vehicles, tanks and warthogs are airlifted to the area near Viranda in readiness for a battle.

When Hans arrived, he already saw devastation. The Battlecruiser was sitting out of atmosphere, dropping Covenant forces into the city in huge masses. The smell of burnt metal and material emanated from the city due to plasma shots. The companies of Marines encircled the city and rushed the city. The cold temperature made all the men more alert and ready. The first contact was near the cities edge, where Hans spotted a Covenant barricade. His company of Marines, all 200 of them, found cover. The Covenant infantry were quickly subdued by several tanks that backed up the ground. The Marines made it into the city by bypassing such barricades with aids of heavy rounds. Once inside the city, the battle turned deadly for the humans. The grunts and jackals acted normally, firing in hoards and pinning Marines down. The elites were different. Hans was moving forward with the remaining 129 men when the buildings and alleyways on all sides erupted with elites. They poured from the very groundworks, uncloaking or just slipping from the shadows. At the extreme close range, not one man stood a chance. Hans was ordered into a full retreat. He raised his M6 pistol, killing an elite that was about to skewer two men. The terrifying close range combat broke most of the Marines' confidence. The commanding officer shouted for order, firing his assault rifle towards several elites, but it was no matter. The Marines stampeded from the city, running in a large, scared crowd. Hans struggled to not be pushed down and fired suppressive shots towards the following elites. From where he was, he could count at least fifty. The troops made it out of the city and the elites backed off, due to the volume of fire coming from the retreating men. Hans caught his breath and counted heads. Only 30 or so of the 200 remained. Dead bodies littered the city. Hans was called aside by the officer in charge and told the situation. All the other nine companies had fallen to the same fate, two had been completely wiped out. Only 235 men remained out of the 2000 they started with. Hans frowned as he heard reinforcements would be on station within the hour, that would still be too late for the city. He glanced towards the sky, the mighty Battlecruiser which cast it's oppressing shadow on the remains of the city. He then knew war wasn't as awesome as he once thought. Hans was handed a plain sniper rifle and told to take up a position on one of the large rolling hills nearby. He setup and proceeded to take out as many Covenant as he could.

Half an hour passed by, the Covenant forces on the ground grew more powerful. Then came the end of the hour. From the west, a billowing cloud of dust and dirt flowed into the air. The remaining Marines, who were holding back elites and grunts from a fortified bunker, yelled in happiness. Due to the destruction of the 2000 men by a pitifully smaller force of Covenant, the UNSC had sent in 50 companies. Reports of Battlecruisers over other cities forced to relocated forces there. Hans shuddered as tank rounds and bullets stitched the city walls, killing numerous Covenant, but also having the chance of killing a stranded civilian. Hans saw something out of the corner of his eye. He glanced upwards, expecting to see a flock of birds, or possibly UNSC air vehicles. What he saw chilled him to the very bone. The sky rippled and rips appeared. From them crawled tens of ships. Hans' heart missed a beat as he identified them. At most, there was one large, seven Battlecruisers and three. They pooled from the warps, flowing into position over the atmosphere. Over his comm, he could hear the officer shouting, "We've got another break on the south and east of the planet! Marines, I think it's time to pull back! The civilians dead, there's nothing we can do!" Hans and the entire force were rushed to waiting Pelicans and transports. Here, over 50000 civilians, lucky enough to be outside the destroyed city were loaded onto the ships and flown from danger. Hans was escorted to a Pelican, told to get inside and that he would be received by a. Hans' Pelican lifted off and hid itself in the dark side of the planet's moon until help arrived. From what little Hans could see from satellites viewing the battle below, it had turned from a conflict, into a massacre. The Covenant ships could be seen glassing the planet, red hot plasma impacting upon the ground. Hans was thankful, as hours later, a Prowler materialized out of nothingness and drew them aboard.