[Supplemental Data: Shield Gate Offensive - Location: Scarif]

The aerial battle in space was fierce, as ships of all sizes were firing shots back and forth - TIE fighters, X Wings, U and Y wings, Hammerhead Corvettes, and even the occasional Star Destroyer were all drawn into combat.

Upon hearing about the Rogue One fleet fighting alone, Admiral Raddus had decided to join the mission, dispatching a group out to join Erso's team. 

"This is Admiral Raddus of the Rebel Alliance. All squadron leaders report in."

"Admiral, this is Blue Leader here - standing by."
"This is Gold Leader, standing by."
"This is Red Leader, standing by." 


"All teams attack formations! Blue Squadron, you'll be the main support for the troops on Scarif. Get to the surface before they close that gate!"

"Gold leader, send 4 or 5 of your ships with the blue team. The others will fly above the perimeter of the planet to fight off Imperial enemies. You'll need to cover the blue team at all costs, so that they can support the infantry on Scarif."

"Copy that, Admiral. We'll get started on that right away." 

The ships that belonged under General Merrick's command began their descent towards the opening of the gate. They first curved upwards to gain altitude before sharply diving with an increase in velocity, shooting through the opening with a fierce speed. Flashes of gold and white twirled among blue, as pilots from the gold team accompanied them, green lasers running parallel to their descent. One of the pilots of the blue team had fallen behind due to an unexpected attack from a nearby Imperial plane. As he directed his ship towards the gate, he could see the edges of the glimmering shield forming on the rim. The pilot desperately urged his ship to join the others, goading it forward with the thrusters - But it was too late. The blue wave had emerged faster than he had anticipated, and the ship immediately combusted upon impact. Other ships that had been forewarned by their sight beforehand swerved upwards, the tips of the aircraft barely skimming over the pulsing menace as they returned to a sea of stars and blaster lights. 

Both the red and the remaining gold squadrons were now in charge of destroying the shield gate entirely. X wings were chased by smaller enemy fighters, the hollow sound of Imperial lasers threatening the group as they wound around a Star Destroyer's appendage. One ship exploded while others barely managed to keep the fighters off their tail.

"Red leader, this is Gold leader. Starting our attack run on the shield gate now."

"Keep it tight and watch out for those towers," a voice bounced back.

Red Leader had spotted multiple shots of green sprouting from cube shaped structures that were attached to the surfaces of various battle stations.
The miniature boxes tracked those they assumed were their enemies, targeting the the Y wings of the Gold fleet and the X wings of the red. 

Only moments later, glass doors belonging to the Empire's ship holdings slid open to release what looked like thousands of Twin Ion Engine fighters into the chaotic field. Produced from factories and herded into groups, the TIE fighters with their hexagonal shaped extensions swarmed like bees in an attempt to outnumber the Alliance ships. The clones that piloted these TIE fighters were ruthless and unfeeling as some carefully targeted opponents with precision, while others simply fired in whichever way possible. Lives were sacrificial - Their job embraced the idea of kamikaze, encompassing one objective: To target all Alliance within range and kill them, even if they had to kill themselves in the process. 

As the battle raged on, it was discovered by the red and gold teams in space that merely combining the effects of 20 or so blaster shots on the gate were useless. The strategy would have to change: Instead of directly aiming for the shield, the Rebel planes on Scarif would have to identify the control towers that were keeping the shield intact, and destroy those quickly. 

The Gold fleet were the only ships of the Alliance equipped with small ion blasters. These hadn't been used yet, fully charged with untapped power. If the ion beams were fired at the control towers in succession, the electronic circuits keeping the shield gate intact would fail permanently, and the shield gate would no longer have the ability to reform after broken. Since attacks from the outside had no effect, it was up to the Gold Team's five planes on Scarif to aim for the towers. 
The Rebels would have to know that there were multiple structures hidden carefully and stationed at each of the Imperial landing pads. Thirteen in total, as far as they knew. Intense scrutiny of the beach planet's layout beforehand allowed the Rebel Alliance to come prepared, red markings on all monitors informing the Alliance of the towers' exact locations.

"Control Tower on your right, Gold 1." 

"I'm aiming for it now." 

A blue beam of electricity emerged from the ship's blaster, pulsing with power as it struck, flames sprouting along the edges of the gray structure, crackling with the blast. Another ship dove down, soaring past - more blue beams scattered, aimed with precision as two more towers were disabled.

10 more were left, and time was not on their side. 

"Gold 4 and 5, pinpoint the location of the next few. We're flying over to help." One other plane flying over the battlefield arrived, dodging incoming attacks from TIE fighters. 

"Gold 5, the next one's right near that Imperial outpost. Security's tight here. Be careful." The pilot of the ship, eagle eyed, scanned the area, spotting the gray tower ahead. But with a vast distance between, Gold 5's thrusters weren't aimed appropriately. The pilot would have to get closer. As his aircraft approached, the pilot handled the scope, locking in on target. But suddenly, a nearby blast sent a tree erupting in a cloud of flame and smoke. The pilot glanced up to see gray through the side window, and realized a looming AT-ACT was positioning itself to fire at him, while also blocking the tower, a whirlwind of sight and sound working against him. Gold 5 propelled the plane around searching for an opening while calling through the radio. "I can't reach the tower here. An AT-ACT's got me tied up. Aim for it, and I can get a clearer shot. Its weakness is in the legs!"

He didn't know whether the others had heard. But the pilot saw two blue U wings headed for the AT-ACT, swerving around and firing. A rusty groan overhead informed him the Imperial Walker was going to collapse, cables snapping, parts flying as a metal limb succumbed to the pressure, gravity pulling the remainder of the Imperial beast down with it. With a daring dive, the pilot guided his ship through the legs of the falling Walker and sparks flew from control tower 9, just as shards of sheet metal rained down behind him, pieces bouncing off the Y wing's surface with a clang. 
"Got it!" Gold 5's pilot yelled in triumph. "How many more left?"

"Just incoming. The other 2 have managed to knock out four. Five left! Press the attack, we can't falter now!" 

One shot after after the next, blue bolt after blue bolt, four, three, two, all signal towers whirred and stopped functioning with the damaging charge. And only one remained, standing in the way between defeat and success. Tower 13, marked clearly on the map but hard to find out in the field of combat. A needle in a haystack.
___________________

Nestled between an Imperial base and a watch tower, the last control beam was going to be tough to disable. Three of their team mates had fallen, the remains of ships sizzling on sand. The last two Y wings decided to work together to ensure the beam didn't miss its mark, sending twice the number of ion torpedoes towards the outpost. The ships spiraling together seared the beam, the electricity winding its way on an invisible path and reaching the reactor unit. Upon reaction, the last control tower ceased to work, its defeat rendering the shield incapable of re-emerging. Rebels in their ships cheered with relief and elation. 

Above, Admiral Raddus surveyed the planet that looked serene on the outside but was menacing within. Looking carefully through the window, Raddus saw the shield flickering. Was it weakened? Had his fighters succeeded? Though he had told his lieutenant to check the radio frequency, static indicated he wouldn't be able to contact the rest of the rebel ships. The transmission still couldn't get through, but it appeared that the blue shield was wavering, an unstoppable barrier now possible to defeat. 

"The shield's weakened! I can see it!" 

Raddus's eyes found Scarif's archive data vault, the Citadel spire reaching up for him with its sharp edges. He thought about his commanding officers, those that would soon be lost to dust and battle while he was waiting with patience and concentrating for any sign of a lead. He focused on the last hope that could finally bring this struggle to an end. Now that the shield was crippled, incapacitated, he only needed to hear word of the Death Star Plans. 

The Mon Calamari spoke with solemn conviction as he stared down unblinkingly at the sea of green and blue. "Rogue One, the fate of our galaxies rests on you."



Exposition - [Explanation for the escape of the Rogue One Team]