User:The one092001/Rio Grande (Legend of Galactic Heroes)

The Rio Grande was a vessel in service to the Free Planets Alliance Star Fleet within the fictional Legend of the Galactic Heroes universe. She served as the flagship of Admiral Alexander Bucock throughout the series until her destruction at the Battle of Marr-Adetta.

Overview
The Rio Grande first appeared under the command of Vice Admiral Alexander Bucock as the flagship of the Free Planets Alliance Star Fleet's 5th Fleet. She is named after the real-life Rio Grande river which runs forms part of the boundary between the United States. She was visually distinguished by her large size, especially large midsection, and enormous antennas protruding from her midsection. She (like most other FPA battleships) possessed a spacious multi-level bridge with a large crew complement. As with most Free Planets Alliance starships, she possessed a larger bridge and viewscreen than Imperial flagships, with the possible exception of the Parcivale, Admiral Muller's flagship.

She carried a moderate armament of 40 forward cannons as well as multiple side-mounted cannons. While this was a greater armament than the Hyperion, it was still inferior to the 80 cannons carried by the Triglav and the 108 carried by the Shiva. Despite this, she appears to be one of the larger battleships in the Free Planets Star Fleet, and possessed a large array of transmission antennas to broadcast the orders of the fleet commander.

Season 1
The Rio Grande first appeared during the Alliance invasion of Imperial space. As the flagship of the 5th Fleet under the command of Vice Admiral Bucock, she led the fleet into Imperial territory and eventually settled in the Birlost system. The fleet was then ambushed by an Imperial fleet under the command of Imperial Admiral Oskar von Reuental, but much of the fleet escaped when Admiral Bucock called a full-speed retreat. Regrouping with the other fleets at the Amritsar system, she and the remains of the 5th Fleet escaped to Iserlohn Fortress and eventually returned to Free Planets Alliance territory.

From this point, it is uncertain what became of her, as the 5th Fleet was broken up to reinforce the remaining forces and police garrisons. Her commander, Admrial Bucock, was also appointed to a staff position. It is likely that she was assigned to the 1st Fleet, as she did not participate in the Battle of the Doria Starzone and was not a part of Admiral Yang's 13th Fleet.

Season 2
During the invasion of the Free Planets Alliance by the Galactic Empire, the Rio Grande once again led her fleet into battle against the numerically superior Imperial forces. Admiral Bucock was again assigned as her commander, and she led the remainder of the Free Planets Alliance Star Fleet (with the exception of Admiral Yang's 13th Fleet) against Prince Reinhard von Lohengramm's invasion force. She survived the battle after the 13th Fleet created enough chaos to allow the outgunned 1st Fleet to retire.

After the Alliance fell to the Galactic Empire, the Rio Grande was most likely designated for scrapping, as the Alliance was no longer allowed to possess any battleships or carriers. However, she was most likely a low priority item, as she was not actually scrapped before the return of the Imperial fleet to Alliance space following the assassination of Imperial Consul Lennenkampt.

Season 3
With the Alliance once again threatened by invasion, the Rio Grande and the remaining vessels of the Free Planets Alliance Star Fleet once again engaged an Imperial fleet of overwhelming numbers. The Alliance fleet had entrenched itself within the Marr-Adetta Starzone, an area known for its unpredictable solar flares, which Admiral Bucock used to his advantage during the battle. However, despite the best efforts of the fleet, they were unable to break through and kill Kaiser Reinhard. As the last ship in the fleet, Kaiser Reinhard gave an invitation for surrender to Admiral Bucock, but the Admiral refused. Following his refusal, Kaiser Reinhard regretfully ordered his fleet to destroy the Rio Grande, but ordered that all crews passing through the debris field stand and render honors to the deceased Admiral Bucock.