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The '''Battle of Biko''' was a short engagement between the [[United Nations Space Command]] and the [[Covenant]] [[Fleet of Inexorable Obedience]] in [[2526]] during the [[Human-Covenant War]] at the [[human]] [[Outer Colony]] of [[Biko]]. It occurred concurrently with [[Operation: SILENT STORM]]. | The '''Battle of Biko''' was a short engagement between the [[United Nations Space Command]] and the [[Covenant]] [[Fleet of Inexorable Obedience]] in [[2526]] during the [[Human-Covenant War]] at the [[human]] [[Outer Colony]] of [[Biko]]. It occurred concurrently with [[Operation: SILENT STORM]]. | ||
== | ==Background== | ||
As their human colonies fell, the [[UNSC]] decided to launch [[Operation: SILENT STORM]] to counterattack the Covenant and buy humanity some time to develop countermeasures against Covenant technology. At the same time, [[Insurrectionist]]s desired to forge an alliance with the Covenant and to protect Biko. To this end, they plotted to overthrow [[Biko]]'s government while making a deal with the Covenant for the Covenant to help them take control of the planet. Their planned meeting on [[Seoba]] happened to take place at the same time as [[Task Force Yama]] was performing training exercises, leading to [[Operation: ICE DANCE]] which ended the Insurrectionist plot on Seoba, though the Insurrectionists managed to escape with the help of [[Lieutenant Commander]] [[Hector Nyeto]] during the [[Battle of Seoba]]. As part of his original message to the Covenant, General [[Harper Garvin]] warned that the Spartans were responsible for the destruction of the ''[[Unrelenting]]'' and the ''[[Radiant Arrow]]'', causing the Covenant to realize that the most likely explanation was a boarding action and with Garvin's warning that the Spartans planned to do the same to the [[Fleet of Inexorable Obedience]], plan to prevent against such a thing happening again.<ref name="Silent Storm">'''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]'''</ref> | |||
==Battle== | |||
On March 26, [[2526]], the [[Fleet of Inexorable Obedience]] arrived at [[Biko]].<ref name="Silent Storm" /> Directly before their assault on Biko, the Covenant transmitted a message to the human colonists on its surface that stated "Your world will burn until its surface is but glass".<ref name="pad">'''[[Halo: Reach]]''', ''[[Data pads|Data pad #10]]''</ref> | |||
Taking heed of the warning given by General [[Harper Garvin]], the Covenant fleet kept their fighter screen in close to prevent the Spartans from boarding their ships and destroying them from the inside. Biko's small space navy, mostly about fifty patrol frigates designed to disable smuggling ships, gathered on the dark side of the planet and attacked the Covenant force. Watching the battle from the {{Class|Point Blank|stealth cruiser}} {{UNSCShip|Vanishing Point}}, [[Fred-104]], [[Kelly-087]], [[Linda-058]] and [[John-117]] were confused by the choice in tactics as the Covenant fleet accelerated towards the human fleet rather than trying to send their fighters to break up the human formation before it could swarm the capital ships. The Covenant fighters kept a tight but brittle defensive shell around the capital ships that even a couple of frigates could break. While the move could blow through the human defense, they would lose more than a few ships doing it despite mainly having [[Covenant cruiser]]s and {{Class|CAS|assault carrier}}s that could take a half-dozen salvos without their shields even flickering. | |||
As the Spartans realized that the Covenant likely knew about the planned boarding action and were protecting against it, the two sides began exchanging fire with the capital ships continuing to cocoon themselves in a screen of their fighters. As the two fleets tore into each other, evacuation ships began to launch from Biko and the Covenant fleet made no move to intercept, possibly because they could only evacuate a small percentage of Biko's population. Even as the two fleets engaged in close combat, the Covenant struggled to keep their fighter screen in place, continuing to worry about potential boarders.<ref>'''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]''', ''chapter 17''</ref> | |||
As the battle continued to rage, [[First Blade]] [[Tel 'Szatulai]] met with the [[Insurrectionist]]s on the {{Class|Banta|transport}} ''[[Emmeline]]'' where Commandant [[Erland Booth]] attempted to threaten him into calling off the attack with a [[HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon]]. 'Szatulai killed Booth instead and the Insurrectionists attempted to negotiate with him for the Covenant's help in taking Biko, offering the HAVOK and the plans to the [[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark IV|Spartans' armor]]. 'Szatulai decided to pretend to agree, in reality using the rebels to gain more intelligence upon the Spartans in order to be able to destroy them.<ref>'''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]''', ''chapter 18''</ref> | |||
After five days of battle, the Fleet of Inexorable Obedience defeated Biko's defenders, but lost five cruisers in the process. In addition, Biko's defenders destroyed the planet's orbital shipbuilding stations that [[Fleetmaster]] [[Nizat 'Kvarosee]] had hoped to take control of for his own fleet's usage. With Biko's defenses gone, the Covenant turned to [[glassing]] the planet.<ref>'''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]''', ''chapter 21''</ref> | |||
==Aftermath== | ==Aftermath== |
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