Warhammer: Hail to the Void Lords!.

Chapter 1004, 08.1003: 'A Huge Hidden Danger'

Minerva is in near-Earth orbit at coordinates 378.565.

On this boundless canvas, coldly divided by the light of stars and the shadows of planets, the E-99 attack ship, like a fragment of obsidian, floats in the void, with an endless expanse of darkness overhead.

Below, Minerva, like a giant, mottled gem, slowly rotates. Its terminator is an incredibly sharp boundary, clearly separating the continent bathed in blinding white light from the ocean swallowed by night.

On the main tactical terminal of the bridge, a line of green runes flickered with coordinate readings, casting green light onto the silent faces around them.

The energy aftershocks of the orbital lance bombardment, led by the light cruiser "Sword of Akali" not long ago, still linger like ghosts in the ether, a silent echo of the Imperial Navy's fury.

After completing the coordinated strike mission, the other two small warships quickly moved away from the potential ground artillery threat zone and sailed into a dense nebula nearby with the Scimitar-class escort ships for cover. The E-99, which was deep in the area, will stay behind to continue its surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

With a silent command issued from the ship, the shadow field was activated.

The E-99 assault ship transformed from a black, solid entity into a distorted reality. The ship's outline began to tremble slightly, and the solid lines of its armor blurred, as if stretched by an invisible gravitational lens.

E-99 thus became a ghost, a phantom in the void whose faint disturbances could only be detected by the most sophisticated detectors.

Lieutenant Commander Kretschmer, the captain, stood in the center of the bridge, clutching an old-fashioned telescope made of brass and reinforced plastic steel.

His gaze was fixed on the airspace marked in the fleet commander's contingency plan as the area where the traitorous fleet was most likely to appear, and with the patience of a hunter, he fulfilled his heavy duty as the eyes of the fleet.

The wait didn't last long.

As the oracle array on one side of the bridge suddenly emitted a warning sound, a scarlet rune appeared on the tactical holographic projection platform, followed by a second, a third... They kept multiplying, eventually forming a chilling enemy situation sand table.

"Captain!" The operations lieutenant broke the silence on the bridge, reporting, "Enemy fleet detected! Based on energy signals, the capital ships consist of three cruisers and two light cruisers, in addition to an unknown number of small escort warships, which are rapidly advancing into the planet's gravitational pull!"

"Warning... Activation radiation detected from Cyclone torpedoes..." A dry, multi-tonal synthesized electronic voice rang out in the bridge, sounding like a mixture of metallic scraping and static noise.

The technical priest on E-99 didn't look at anyone; the words just now came from the vocal vent in his throat.

“Based on the analysis of the radiation frequency and source, the enemy warship has unlocked the warheads of the Cyclone torpedoes…” Lieutenant Colonel Kretschmer frowned, slowly lowered his binoculars, and asked in a low voice, “Those traitors… after their defeat in the ground battle, they want to blow the entire planet to pieces? Where did they get the authority to activate the Cyclone torpedoes?”

In theory, even if a small principality like Severus possesses the Cyclone Torpedo, it should not possess the key to activate it.

unless……

Unless you have the help of a master.

In the multifaceted optical lens of the Tech Priest, streams of scarlet data rapidly scroll upwards, a color that is unsettling.

"Based on the current tactical situation and the enemy's weapon configuration, the probability of this intention is 94.663%."

He delivered a cold, precise answer to three decimal places using a logic engine devoid of any emotional fluctuation.

Kretzmer turned to the communications officer and gave a brief, quick order: "Communications Department, immediately send an encrypted telegram to the fleet flagship, reporting the current situation and requesting further instructions."

The operations department, in coordination with the scout array, continuously analyzes the enemy fleet's flagship position, ship classifications, and predicts its tactical maneuver trajectories.
-
On the command deck of the flagship "Swift Eagle," Horatio stood before the enormous holographic command console.

Before him, the entire fleet was presented as glowing tactical icons, each dot representing a steel fortress carrying hundreds of thousands of loyal soldiers.

These warships, under his command, had formed a battle formation, awaiting the arrival of the enemy's main fleet. But no one could say for sure how many warships the Severans had.

Based on his understanding of the background, their void strength wasn't particularly strong. They weren't even as powerful as a sub-sector fleet of the Calissis Sector.

However, comparing himself to the sub-sector fleet is meaningless now; he needs to ensure that his own fleet can defeat the attackers. And he lacks intelligence to determine the size of the squadron escorting Severus's largest flagship.

This means that they can only rely on investigation and judgment to make a high-stakes gamble that risks the lives of millions of people.

The pale blue light projected from the command post illuminated his sharply defined face and his crisp lord colonel uniform.

His blue eyes quickly counted the ships, his gaze weighing the advantages and disadvantages of each vessel, as he mentally planned the impending thunderous strike.

This blow will determine the price and the number of lives lost in order to end this battle.

"Give me the order."

His voice echoed in the silent bridge, “Recall Captain Sterling and the Imperial Naval Air Force, who are currently on an intra-atmospheric air support mission.”

Clear and professional commands were sent out through encrypted communication bands, calling to the warplanes soaring in the dense atmosphere of Minerva.

Aerial support for the planet's surface can only go so far.

This is a difficult but necessary choice.

Those Thunder fighters and Predator bombers that could not be returned to orbit for recovery in time could only be placed at temporary ground airfields and guarded by a small number of soldiers from the orbital landing force.

The pilots, guided by ground staff, boarded the transport plane urgently, their faces etched with solemnity.

Because they knew they would have to abandon their beloved vehicles to face a more deadly enemy in the void—boarding warships, piloting void fighters, and engaging in a larger and more intense battle.

The Fortress Sector-Toulon Fleet, under the Calissis Sector Fleet, temporarily reinforced Horatio with two powerful Tyrant-class cruisers—the HMS Hermione and the HMS Tricolor Crown—standing by the Swift Eagle.

Typically, such joint command across fleets is fraught with potential friction.

A proud spirit of freedom prevails within the Imperial Navy. The vast majority of captains have near-absolute sovereignty over their warships, tend to trust their own judgment, and are cautiously skeptical of orders from those not commanded by their own fleet.

However, the weight of Horatio's bloodline, and the almost mythical "filter" the entire Imperial Navy held for the Gothic Fleet, cleared this obstacle for him.

He observed the two captains from the Calissis fleet through the holographic projection on the command console.

Their salutes were impeccable, their eyes filled with fervor and reverence, a stark contrast to the reluctant obedience of the outer fleet officers he had encountered in the past.

Horatio understood that his surname "Spear" was like a key that could unlock the door to loyalty, its power far exceeding the rank itself.

For these two captains, being able to fight alongside the legendary Gothic Fleet and follow in the footsteps of Admiral Speyer was a precious experience in their military careers that they could boast about for a lifetime at a victory celebration.

In the Imperial Navy, everyone knew the formidable reputation of the Gothic Fleet, and even more so, everyone knew the legendary heroes who thwarted the plot of Grand Marshal Abaddon of Chaos in the desperate situation of the Twelfth Black Expedition—von Ravensberg, Spiel, and Abridal.

The fact that the descendants of two of the three heroes are now appearing in the distant Calesis star system is itself an unbelievable fact.

(End of this chapter)