Warhammer: Hail to the Void Lords!.

Chapter 786 08.785: "'Dandy Guards'"

"It's Sintila! Captain." Archie repeatedly confirmed that he was not mistaken.

"What the hell? They are from Sintira? God-Emperor! Even in the Gothic Sector, the Sintira Fusiliers are notorious!"

As soon as these words were spoken, on the cold metal bridge, under the towering Gothic dome, the faint light of the logic engine and the indicator lights of various instruments flickered alternately.

Several officers and soldiers in Imperial Navy uniforms complained in low voices at their respective operating tables. Their comments were particularly harsh amid the low roar of the engine inherent in the bridge, the subtle sound of the servo motors turning, and the occasional communication noise. The words between the lines were filled with deep worry and uneasiness about this sudden news.

Outside the main observation window of the bridge is the cold and boundless universe, with distant stardust scattered in the inky void like broken diamonds.

The moment the news came, Horatio seemed to be caught by an invisible force field. He sat stiffly on the edge of the bed, and the unique mixed smell of metal and ozone in the circulating air inside the ship seemed to become stronger.

His face was pale and his lips trembled slightly, as if all the blood in his body had frozen.

"Are you... okay?" Louise's voice trembled slightly. She gently placed her hand, which was covered with thick calluses from holding the laser gun for a long time, on his shoulder. The rough touch formed a sharp contrast with her concern at the moment.

"I'm fine, Louise, I'm fine." Horatio took a deep breath, the cold air piercing his lungs, he forced himself to calm down, then exhaled slowly.

He stood up from the bed, and there were slight footsteps on the metal floor. He walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling reinforced glass window in the room, and looked out at the boundless dark universe illuminated by countless stars.

The distant nebula rolled like a dying beast, emitting a strange light. This magnificent and cruel scene was just like his mood at the moment.

Louise stared at his tall but somewhat desolate back. She could feel the stiffness in his shoulder muscles.

The atmosphere in the room, from the charming and ambiguous atmosphere not long ago, suddenly became solemn and substantial.

She didn't say anything, but just stood silently a few steps behind him. The only sound in the air was the almost inaudible noise-reducing hum of the cabin's life support system.

She knew that her lover's worries were not groundless.

As a former Cadian White Shield and Kashejin reserve sergeant, Louise was no stranger to the prestigious Astral Legions under the Ministry of Military Affairs, both in good and bad reputations.

Nicknamed the 'Dandy Guards', the Sintira Fusiliers are a combined forces force from Sintira, the capital world of the Caliss Sector.

(A Sintira Flintlock, based on the British stereotype of the French in the Bourbon army before the French Revolution)

The regiment is mainly composed of mechanized infantry regiments and line infantry regiments, supplemented by a small number of armored units and grenadiers.

The men and women in the team are said to be the 'best and brightest' that the Sintira aristocracy can offer.

Well, at least that's what they claim.

But anyone who has a slight understanding of the Imperial military knows that those truly outstanding Sintira heroes either flock to the Imperial Navy's Calixis Fleet or join the fearless Dynasty of Rogue Merchants to venture into the unknown galaxy of rivers and lakes in the crisis-ridden Coronus Expansion.

Only those dandy young men with mediocre qualifications, unable to shoulder important responsibilities, and lacking the right to inherit the family business would choose to join the Star Army in an attempt to gain qualifications and try their luck.

As noble lords who never worry about money, the Sintira Fusiliers can be said to have the most luxurious treatment and armament supplies in the entire Star Army.

General Pylos, the current commander-in-chief of the Astra Militarum Army in the Calixis Sector, rose through the ranks step by step from the Sintira Fusiliers.

This powerful general was appointed by the Governor of Calixis, Marius Hux, to take charge of the military power of the star region.

After that, he was once again given the prestigious title of Chief of Staff of the Rotating Guard Line by the Ministry of Military Affairs. His status in the entire Misty Star Domain could be said to be second only to the Star Domain Commander-in-Chief and the Lord of Cadia.

General Pylos, who commanded a large number of troops, naturally did not forget his former fellow countrymen and comrades in Sintila.

As long as the Sintira Fusiliers had a need, the Military Affairs Department would always open the door to material allocation for them unconditionally, and various advanced equipment and supplies were continuously transported to their base. However, such generous logistical support and resource allocation far exceeding that of other legions did not substantially improve the combat effectiveness of the Sintira Fusiliers.

Instead, they became the most notorious unit in the Imperial Astra Militarum Legion in the 41st Millennium, accused of "avoiding war, shirking responsibilities, and squandering money".

It is said that even the most common Sintilay Flintlock soldiers had at least one servant to serve them personally in the camp.

Their officers were accompanied by numerous followers, and some even brought their wives and concubines with them to war zone camps.

This resulted in the actual number of personnel in a standard Sintira Fusilier Regiment being bloated compared to the established staff.

A Chimera infantry fighting vehicle that was supposed to carry ten combatants could only carry five soldiers and their five servants in the Sintila Fusiliers Regiment.

In the case of a serious excess of actual personnel, the weapons rations they consumed were eight times that of other star legions.

They are equipped with the most advanced Charlville M41.777 laser gun in the galaxy - this is the latest upgraded version of Carterel's classic model. It not only has the powerful power of the Lucius laser gun, but also has the high firing rate of the Carterel laser gun. It is a relatively versatile weapon on the battlefield and can pose a serious threat to Space Marines under concentrated firepower.

Since this type of laser gun was only put into mass production in the Imperial Standard Calendar M41.777, it has not been in production for long and its production is limited. In the face of the huge demand for armaments of the Astra Militarum, its quantity is still scarce and it is the equipment that many elite troops dream of.

(The prototype is actually the historical French Charleville M1777 flintlock rifle)
But the Sintilay flintlock soldiers were able to own one, and they would also hire highly skilled craftsmen to luxuriously gild, carve intricate patterns on the guns, and even etch and blue them to turn them into flashy works of art.

What's more, they would also equip their own followers and servants with an uncarved Charleville M41.777 - and these weapons should have been distributed first as precious supplies to other Star Legions fighting hard.

In addition, in order to avoid being "loss of status and vulgarity", Sintilah basically only formed infantry and armored forces.

Even if they had eight times the armaments, and even if they could not play eight times the role on the battlefield, as long as they could perform their duties conscientiously and fight bravely, they would not be despised so much.

However, the reason why the Sintira Fusiliers were notorious and spread far and wide across the star regions was that even though they had more than eight times the military supplies and twice the manpower capacity, their battlefield performance was still appallingly poor.

They are almost always deployed on the safest defense line thanks to their relationship with Commander-in-Chief Pylos, and even receive luxurious equipment that would make other legions jealous. They serve as the so-called "supervisory team" on the second line, but in fact they do nothing. After the war, they always take away the credit, commendations and medals.

According to some battlefield reports that spread like wildfire, the rate of friendly casualties they caused in the rear was even higher than the actual casualties caused by the enemy. Anyway, the artillery reserves were so abundant that they could not be used up. When their artillery units were "supporting" the front line, they almost fired indiscriminately with their eyes closed, and they considered their mission accomplished as long as they used up all the ammunition.

However, these despicable acts were not the most desperate things for Horatio.

What made him feel suffocated the most and almost squeezed his nerves was that the phenomenon of ghost soldiers within the Sintila Fusiliers had become so serious that it had reached an appalling level.

The number of people on their rosters is almost always much greater than the number of combatants actually on duty.

When those pampered aristocratic lords did not want to step into the muddy and smelly trenches of the second-line defense zone, but were more eager to enjoy the warm sunshine and comfortable tents behind the front lines, their servants would "consciously" put on standard military uniforms for their masters and "serve" in the trenches on their behalf - after all, on those so-called "safest" lines of defense, there was almost no real danger and very few actual combat missions.

Even if it was accidental injuries caused by random firing, it at least provided some form of "fire support".

But if people are not even on duty, how can we talk about coordinated operations and defending the empire?

Relying on servants who have only received the most basic training, can barely disassemble and assemble energy magazines, randomly pull the trigger in the direction of the enemy, and are more familiar with making tea and ironing clothes than fighting to serve as combat forces?
If this is true, why would the Imperial Navy bother to recruit qualified soldiers from every world? Wouldn't it be easier to just recruit a group of refugees from the bottom of any hive?

Although there are still several Sintira units in the Astra Militarum (Imperial Guard) that are famous for their bravery in combat, the probability of encountering them is equivalent to finding a needle in a haystack.

"The lady said her husband had gone to serve in the army in Sintila."

Louise's voice broke the silence. She suddenly remembered a detail she had heard in the refugee resettlement area before, and tried to comfort Horatio's tense nerves with it. "Maybe... maybe things will turn around!"

(End of this chapter)