Orbit "Maginot Express"
Usage
Location:	In orbit over Thessia / Parnitha / Athena Nebula / Milky Way Galaxy
Commissioned:	13 May 2217 CE
Destroyed:	29 March 2253 CE
Role:	Dock, repair and refit station Headquarters of the Maginot Line
Affiliation:	Galactic Dominion (until 2253 CE) Dominion Dissident Front
Battle(s):	Dominion Civil War Battle of the Maginot Line Battle of the Citadel-Ark
Technical specifications
Length:	4.2km
Diameter:	800m
Population:	67,000
Defenses:	30 heavy plasma turrets Triple layer of energy shielding Orbit task force Fighters, bombers and interceptors from Midway launch station
Type:	Orbit-class refit station
Power:	9 eezo cores.
Shielding:	Energy Shielding
Manufacturer:	Transgalactic Builders Conglomerate

"She's not much to look at, but that's kinda the point. This is the headquarters of the Maginot Line."

— Coalition serviceman introducing a recently transferred recruit to Orbit in 2234 CE.

Orbit, also known by its callsign Maginot Alpha and by its nickname Maginot Express, was an Orbit-class refit station that was used by the Galactic Dominion Navy and located in the Parnitha system of the Athena Nebula, orbiting Thessia, placing it dead center of the Maginot Line. Being one of 20 Orbit-class refit stations that was specifically built for use with the Maginot Line fortifications, Orbit was built at the TBC Shellen construction yard located over Athame and commissioned in 2217 CE, where it was then towed by sixteen heavy tug ships into Thessian orbit, where it was placed in geosynchronous orbit over the ruins of Armali. Whilst its main role officially was that of a naval dock, repair and refit station for the Maginot Armada's ships, possessing dozens of docks and refit hangars for this express purpose, it was unofficially the headquarters of the Maginot Line, where the commanders of the Armada's six elements, including Imperial Admiral Xerxes, could meet to discuss, coordinate and observe the military maneuvers, offensive and defensive operations, and the overall status of the Maginot Armada, the Maginot marines, the Maginot's surface installations, and more: this role was kept secret in order to maintain the illusion Orbit was a mere orbital refit station, thus reducing its strategic significance in the eyes of the Covenant Navy and making an attack on the station less likely.

Orbit was located in the center of the Maginot Line, but also far to its rear, further reducing the likelihood of an attack on the installation, and allowing ships to safely withdraw from an engagement. Orbit's many facilities allowed for both quick and extensive repairs on ships, whether it to be swift battlefield repairs or extensive refitting, upgrading or repairing of vessels, and also boasted substantial defenses, with a triple layer of energy shields and 30 heavy plasma guns for point defense, and although it sported no armor, its triple layer of energy shields generated by its powerful internal shield generator, as well as its permanent defensive screen of three destroyers and sixteen frigates, as well as 140 fighters, bombers and interceptors located at the nearby Midway launch station, more than made up for its lack of armoring. Beginning operation in 2217 CE, Orbit would oversee the majority of Operation Silent Zealot and oversee 840 repairs, 370 refits and 140 battlefield repairs over the course of its service, making it one of the most active refit stations in the Dominion at the time: despite Xerxes occasionally visiting the station to meet with his fleet commanders or for the occasional meeting with Awarnach Stanford, he would largely neglect the station's use as a headquarters, preferring to command operations from the frontlines onboard his Blood Horizon. The station got the nickname "Maginot Express" due to the massive volume of ships and personnel that interacted with or passed through the station on a daily basis.

With the breakout of the Dominion Civil War in late 2252 CE, Orbit saw the last meeting of Maginot Line commanders, with Xerxes meeting with his commanders in person on the station to announce his refusal of Stanford's orders, and to reassert his standing orders to the Line to maintain their positions, something which he also made clear to Orbit's commanding officer, Nergon Khuro. During the Battle of the Maginot Line, Orbit performed no less than 60 battlefield repairs over the course of the battle. After the Dominion loyalists successfully breached the line and Xerxes finally gave orders to the Armada to abandon the Line and declared for the DDF, Xerxes ordered the evacuation of Orbit and the attachment of forty portable thrusters to its hull, rotating it into a horizontal position before towing it between six carriers and his fleet's three superdreadnoughts. He would proceed to tow the station with the rest of his fleet into the Battle of the Citadel-Ark, where Orbit was jury-rigged into a gigantic shield, positioning his fleet to use the station as cover while it absorbed enemy fire. Its triple layer of shields and enormous size made this tactic extremely effective, protecting Xerxes' fleet from damage early in the battle and allowing them to inflict heavy casualties on the Dominion loyalist fleet. Eventually Orbit's shields were overwhelmed and the station disintegrated as plasma and kinetic bombardment from hundreds of ships blew chunks off the station, eventually leading to its complete destruction. The wreckage of the station would later be collected after the battle and scrapped.