Warhammer: Hail to the Void Lords!.

Chapter 831, 08.830: "Killing the Chicken to Warn the Monkey"

Whoosh!Whoosh!
Eight Helios-type torpedoes were fired at different angles at the fleeing enemy.

These Dark Eldar raiding ships attempted to evade the relatively slow-moving torpedoes by drawing elegant yet deadly arcs through the void, relying on their superior maneuverability compared to Imperial creations, just as they had toyed with the foolish "monkey" navy in countless past raids.

But this time, they are not facing passive prey, but a more cunning hunter.

On the bridge of the attack ship E-99, Lieutenant Commander Kretschmer, the ship's captain, slowly raised his weathered, enhanced binoculars, his cold gaze fixed on the green dot representing a torpedo on the tactical projection and the fleeting energy trail left by the fleeing enemy ship.

"Detonate the torpedo's guidance system." A slight smile played on his lips.

Four torpedoes launched by E-99 received detonation orders from the mothership at the same time.

Inside the cold metal guidance head of each torpedo, there is a redemption servant, only half a torso remaining, bound to the cold metal by countless cables and nutrient fluid pipes. On its exposed skull, covered with data interfaces, is a radio sensor helmet specially made by the technical priest Latti.

As an encrypted radio signal traveled thousands of kilometers through the void, the sensor helmet instantly unleashed a devastating high-voltage electric shock.

"Aaaaaah! Gaaah!!"

A brief, piercing scream, inaudible to anyone, echoed through the servant's throat, which had long since been stripped of its vocal cords, via neural feedback.

A burnt smell, from proteins denatured by high temperatures, filled the sealed guide head.

The high-voltage current completely destroyed the servant's remaining brain function in a very short time. On the miniature display screen of its life support device, the green curve representing the heartbeat twitched violently, then turned into a cold horizontal line representing the end of life.

drop--

As the vital signs detector emitted a monotonous echo announcing the end, a final electrical signal was transmitted to the torpedo's plasma warhead detonator.

boom! boom!
The Helios torpedo exploded in mid-air at the preset coordinates, creating a ball of light resembling a small sun.

The ball of light expanded at an astonishing speed, merging with the ball of light produced by several other torpedoes to form a swirling, scorching energy storm that could not be seen with the naked eye.

This is the Lati version of the remote-controlled fuse design. It can be detonated via command from the launching ship, or switched to a proximity fuse, with the built-in Thinker automatically determining the appropriate time to detonate. Cruel yet practical, it perfectly matches the dark predicament and dark humor of the current human empire.

"The monkey's torpedoes exploded in the void! The thermal shockwave is coming towards us!" On the bridge of one of the Dark Eldar raiders, the observer pointed to the rapidly spreading, blinding beam of light representing destruction on the tactical screen and let out a sharp roar.

In the plane below the fleet, the proximity fuses of eight Helios torpedoes were activated simultaneously, and they detonated in the air at the preset coordinates, instantly connecting to form a blazing sea of ​​fire.

Its energy radiation and millions of high-speed metal fragments transformed the void where several Dark Eldar raid ships were located into a deadly inferno.

The dazzling light emitted by the simultaneous detonation of eight torpedoes surpassed even the intensity of the stellar flare from before. All Imperial soldiers exposed to the light were forced to immediately shield their eyes.

The armored glass observation windows on the bridge instantly activated to their maximum light-filtering mode, but even so, the intense light still pierced through the gaps in their palms and eyelids, causing a stinging pain in everyone's pupils and tears to stream uncontrollably down their faces. When their vision gradually returned after a few seconds, Lieutenant Colonel Kretschmer, looking through his binoculars, saw a hellish scene.

Several of the slowest Dark Eldar raiding ships were torn into burning fragments by the shockwave and high-speed debris from the explosion. Their once elegant hulls tumbled and melted in the sea of ​​fire, eventually turning into cosmic dust.

Those ships that managed to escape the direct blast radius were forced back into a death trap by the shockwaves from the subsequent torpedo explosions that blocked their escape routes, their engines temporarily disabled and unable to move.

In the distance, on the bridge of the Imperial Navy detachment flagship, the Swift Skyhawk, which was feigning pursuit, Captain Horatio Cochrane saw a series of silent flashes of fire erupting in the airspace at the rear of the convoy through the main tactical holographic projection.

The flashing red runes representing the enemy ships went out one by one in the halo of the explosion.

He knew that the battle had begun.

"Pursuit squadron," his voice crackled through the encrypted fleet communications channel, calm and decisive, "follow my ship, turn around. With my ship as the core, execute the 'Anvil' tactical maneuver. 'Starfire,' activate wide-area dimensional scan and drag out those rats hiding in the shadows."

"As you wish, Commander." The female lieutenant colonel's calm voice came through the channel.

Beep! —

Drop drop!
As the precious probe from the lost technological era aboard the Starfire was activated, an invisible energy pulse swept across the airspace with a radius of two thousand kilometers around the fleet.

In an instant, the remaining Dark Eldar raiding ships, which were trying to use sensor blind spots and wreckage as cover, were exposed on the flagship's combat radar like fireflies in the night.

"This is the flagship 'Swift Skyhawk'," Horatio's voice echoed throughout the fleet. "The enemy has entered our ambush zone."

All escort ships immediately tightened their perimeter.

The 'Starfire' joined the alert squadron, and attack ships E-99 and E-101 immediately deployed on the flanks to maintain vigilance. Enemy ships within the encirclement were to be handled by the 'Swift Skyhawk'. Repeat…

Horatio was certain that the cunning creatures of the Dark Eldar would not be foolish enough to put all their eggs in one basket.

Therefore, the force that infiltrated the fleet at this moment to launch the attack must have been a detachment used to probe the enemy's strength.

The real main force may be lurking in the darkness further away, eyeing the fleet with predatory intent.

But it doesn't matter.

What he needs to do now is to teach these attackers lurking in the shadows a lesson!
Let them see that the Imperial Navy is not helpless against their proud stealth and maneuverability, and can even take the initiative to attack and make these arrogant aliens pay the price!
A public, bloody execution would not only buy precious time for the escort fleet, but also serve as a direct deterrent to other eager attackers: "Before you pounce on us, think twice about whether you have the ability and the appetite to devour this thorny piece of meat!"

(End of this chapter)