Warhammer 40k: Melee Warriors

Cough cough cough...

The thing vibrated so violently that even Fetia could hardly control it. She claimed that the machine's soul had a rather terrifying reaction to the scent of the Eldar, and she couldn't find the words to describe it for the time being.

Koji knew the thoughts of this machine spirit, or rather, the dark spirit race within it. Their twisted minds could not bear to see any spirit race escape this hellish fate. Only when they saw their own kind being transformed into similar spirit bird divination instruments would they laugh heartily.

They went to the bridge, shut down the distress signal, and sent another signal to inform the Imperial ships to recover. Then, based on the feedback from the Spirit Oracles, they determined the approximate direction in which the Eldar pirates had fled.

The 9995-2341 asteroid belt was named by officials because it was so insignificant. It is located in a very remote area, with no valuable planets or mining sites within several light-years of it.

At this moment, Koji understood Admiral Luvansberg's pain. Losing these three transport ships was no big deal. There were thousands of transport ships that had overcome various difficulties to reach Auberdine. Such a loss was really not worth the Imperial Navy mobilizing so many troops to come here from the front line of the confrontation to suppress the bandits.

But we can't leave the bandits alone. They're not the kind of people who will stay put for months after a single attack. They'll bite here and there, making you twist and scratch uncomfortably before finally leaving, just like those mosquitoes that don't know what's good for them and keep buzzing around your ears in the middle of the night.

Without pirates, the number of transport ships anchored around Auberdine could reach tens of thousands.

“Kill all these pirates, then load all their loot onto our ships. Although Griffin and I agreed on splitting 5% of the transport ship's supplies as payment, he didn't mention taking a share of the loot from the pirate strongholds.” Komi told them, then looked at Sage Semi, “How's the new army you assembled going? Is it ready for combat?”

“Brother Fetia and I have been working day and night, using all the armed forces at our disposal. The new army you have us assemble now numbers five hundred men, which is enough for a small raid.”

“Very good. I hope these soldiers live up to the investment I’ve made in them.”

......

Just as Komi's anti-piracy fleet was heading towards the 9995-2341 asteroid belt, the Eldar pirates who considered this place their base were celebrating their latest successful raid.

Only two ships are hidden in the asteroid field. One is an Eclipse-class cruiser, a carrier-based aircraft carrier fully loaded with Dark Star fighters and Hawk bombers. Its efficiency in launching aircraft is astonishing. There is no other carrier-based aircraft carrier in the entire Gothic sector that can compare with it.

The other is the Aurora-class light cruiser, which strikes a balance between the speed of an escort ship and the firepower of a cruiser, giving it the ability to independently hunt down Imperial light warships.

"Those monkeys are completely at our mercy! They can't do anything!" Pirate Prince Dorrank said to his Void Raiders. His attire was excessively flamboyant even among the Eldar, featuring more than a dozen different types of beast fur and bone. The colors on his armor were also incredibly intricate, forming a dazzling array of colorful patterns.

Dorrank's celebration lasted only a few seconds, which was his assessment of the attack on the transport ship, not worth his time to savor the experience.

Eldar warships constructed a stable portal deep within their ships and an asteroid, shoving all the looted supplies into it. The ceramic steel and plastic steel that the Imperial army desperately needed were of little use to them.

At this moment, the Eldar pirates, who were more gifted in psychic abilities and were known as Pathfinders, sensed the approach of Komi and his group and warned the pirate prince to prepare.

Dorrank scoffed at the news, saying that the sudden visit of the Imperial Navy had ignited his boredom.

Looking at the two red dots on the Spirit Bird Divination Instrument screen, Gu Jian said with some regret, "Why are there only two ships? Even if we capture them all alive, how many Spirit Bird Divination Instruments can I build? This thing isn't something that can be used by just filling one Elven race member. Samuel, can you leave more survivors with your men? Even complete corpses are fine."

Samuel replied somewhat helplessly, "It depends on the situation... After witnessing the atrocities committed by the aliens on the transport ship, our people will only think about crushing their bodies inch by inch."

"Tsk... Forget it, let's win first." Koji waved his hand, thinking that even if he couldn't capture a live Spirit Race member, collecting some blood and flesh to make some Soul Brew would be fine.

At this moment, Fuda sent another message, which was obviously from the Ark Eldar trying to convey a message. Koji didn't even want to listen to it, and had Fuda deliver the message to them.

“If they want to talk, they should come to see me in person.” Then Koken gave orders on the bridge: “Advance in an offensive posture. I will keep you informed of the enemy ship’s position. Release the fighters and let me see if the Eldar pilots are really as invincible as they say.”

Chapter 450: Fighter Jets vs. Fighter Jets

From the feedback of the Spirit Bird Divination Instrument, Komi could see the movement trajectory of the Eldar pirate warships. They were swimming deep into the asteroid field, trying to use the complex terrain to disperse the Imperial warships, which outnumbered them, just like the tactics Komi had used when commanding the Exterminator against an entire Dark Eldar fleet.

As usual, such tactics by Eldar pirates are effective. The Imperial Navy, ordered to suppress the pirates, cannot retreat just because the Eldar pirates have retreated into the asteroid belt. They will continue to advance under the command of their captains until their formation is forced to break apart due to the asteroid belt and the ship's cannons cannot cross the floating asteroids to support their allies. At that point, the Eldar warships will suddenly strike out and defeat them one by one.

However, the navy that Komi painstakingly built was not built on cannons; the key to his conquest of the void lay in a large number of carrier-based aircraft with excellent pilots.

At Komi's command, the Punisher immediately launched ten squadrons of fifteen fighter jets each, which flew rapidly toward the asteroid field.

Jack and his Winged Fighter became the vanguard of this spear that shattered the enemy.

Koken believed that the Xuan-style defensive armor would ensure their fighters survived the Eldar pirates' attacks, while the overactive machine spirits would allow them to launch effective counterattacks against the ghostly Eldar fighters.

Pirate Prince Dorrank also noticed Komi's movements. He sneered and mocked, "Those humans actually sent out fighter jets? Their jets are as outdated as bricks with rockets strapped to them! Their pilots are as unskilled as monkeys that have just touched a stick! Let those humans see what real aerial combat is like!"

The Eclipse-class cruiser unleashed dozens of Nightshade fighters. These elegantly designed aircraft represent the pinnacle of Eldar aviation, equipped with two Radiant Spears and a pulse laser cannon, giving them formidable firepower against any enemy aircraft.

The only thing that can limit these Nightshade fighters is the Eldar's small numbers and their increasingly dilapidated industry. Human technology has been lost forever in this dark universe, while the Eldar have lost ten thousand times more technology than humans.

The only force that has inherited as much of the Eldar Empire’s legacy as possible is the Dark Eldar. In the shadows of the Comoros, the legacies of countless ancient empires lie dormant, sealed away forever because the Dark Eldar fear that using psionic energy would attract the gaze of Slaanesh.

When these ancient weapons are used by the rulers of Comoros, that will be the time of the destruction of the shadowy city of Comoros.

The Night Shadow fighter's outer shell is also covered by a holographic field that conceals its form, making them almost invisible to vision and oracles. Even if they are captured, it is very likely that they are false clones created to distract attention.

The Night Shadow fighter jet performed various maneuvers that were impossible for humans, sometimes increasing engine output to rush forward, and sometimes stabilizing its position and remaining silent.

They are invisible hunters, and the losses of twenty-four transport ships and fifteen warships in the Gothic Sector will be counted against them.

Now, facing the fighters released by the Punisher, the Eldar pilots inside showed only contempt. They yawned lazily, indicating to their comrades that this battle would be over in half an hour.

The positions of these Night Shadow fighters were displayed in the scan of the Spirit Bird Divination Device, but because the fighters themselves were too small, the spots of their soul feedback on the screen were as inconspicuous as grains of sand. It was only thanks to Komi's excellent eyesight that he was able to see these small red dots on the screen.

However, the on-screen depiction is not detailed, and it's as abstract as the radar map that came with the old version of CS. It's okay to roughly see the direction and number, but it takes some effort to accurately tell which planes are hiding behind which planet.

"Attention, the enemy has released fighter jets," Komi warned, his voice echoing through Jack's cockpit.

Jack took a deep breath, his hand reaching for the dense array of buttons and levers in the cockpit. After flipping down a few switches, he asked navigator Harlan, "Have you received any messages from the Punisher?"

"Wait a minute, receiving, 95%... Okay, I'll transfer it to your and Tick's tactical screens now."

As soon as Harlan finished speaking, several tiny red dots appeared on the screen in front of Jack, which prompted the gunner, Tick, to complain, "These are pitifully small. Why can't they be drawn bigger? If I'm drunk, I can't guarantee I can see them clearly."

"Then you should drink less," Jack said, both amused and exasperated.

Tick ​​has undergone extensive mechanical modifications. Both his legs are made of metal, without any bio-engineered skin covering them, and the cables are exposed. His head also has an additional metal plate, and one of his eyes has been replaced with a mechanical eye that flashes red. It can be said that if his frontal lobe is removed, Tick can become a glorious mech servant.

As the fighter jet drew closer to the desolate asteroid field, Jack felt increasingly nervous, a feeling he transmitted to the machine spirit named Wing through the pressure of his fingers.

The screen clicked and tapped out a comforting emoticon with characters, and Jack's chair trembled slightly.

"Thank you, Wing." Jack smiled. If he had accepted Wing's feelings before because of an emergency, his friendship with Wing had now been tempered by battle and life.

Jack truly fell in love with Wing. Although it couldn't be called the sweet affection between lovers, it far surpassed ordinary camaraderie.

"Uh... could you mute your microphone next time you say that?" Dolan's sigh made Jack realize that his murmur had been heard by the other two in the fighter jet. He blushed slightly with embarrassment and shyness, while Wing didn't mind Dolan's little teasing.

Jack and Wing's friendship is not an isolated case among these fighters soaring through the void; they are simply the most prominent and representative example.

In order to better utilize the friendship between the machine spirit and the pilot to improve combat power, Komi even had Fetia actively promote this point.

Of course, he couldn't let Fita say to the pilots, "Take good care of your fighter jets, and it would be best if she gave birth to a baby fighter jet for you."

Komi's propaganda is still based on a popular belief in the Mechanicus: if soldiers cherish their weapons, the weapons will repay them with protection in the most dangerous times.

The fighter squadron entered the asteroid field, and each pilot was alert to the approaching red dot on the tactical screen; battle was imminent.

"According to the screen, the enemy is right in front of me, but I still can't see them. Wing, can you do it?"

Jack's gaze swept across the area, and then he saw a flash of light burst forth from the dark side of the asteroid. Jack was momentarily mesmerized by the dazzling brilliance of the flash.

But this light brought not warmth, but pure death.

One of the Fury-class fighters under Jack's command was hit by the flash. Almost all of the Xuan-style defensive armor on the fighter's outer shell melted, and the orange-red molten metal spread across the fighter's body, making it look as ugly as if it had developed scars.

Chapter 451: The Revenge of the Machine Soul

"Enemy at 13 o'clock! Send these damned aliens to hell!"

Jack roared and launched the first attack. His laser cannon fired a scorching red beam that illuminated the darkness of the asteroid and carved a shallow crater several meters deep into the cold, irregular sphere.

The enemy isn't there!?

Jack realized something was wrong; a sense of crisis was driving him to pull the control stick and make the flying wing perform an evasive maneuver.

Trusting his instincts had saved Jack from many dangers, but this time he couldn't dodge the enemy's attack.

The reason for this is that Eldar pilots are more thoroughly integrated with their fighters.

The Empire's fighter jets are inhabited by machine spirits; whether they're intelligent or not is debatable. Chaotic fighter jets, where the pilot and the aircraft are intertwined, sometimes become possessed by demons when they're in a hurry.

Eldar fighter jets contain the souls of themselves or even previous pilots, allowing Eldar pilots to control the jets as flexibly as if they were controlling their own bodies. They can also amplify their psionic abilities through the jets, creating a super-powerful perception similar to prophecy.

"Damn it... Wing, can you pinpoint the enemy's exact location?" Jack cursed through gritted teeth. He glanced around and saw that the Xuan-style defensive armor was 67% damaged in the previous attack. Another hit would really leave the fighter jet with serious damage.

Are there many enemies? It doesn't seem so. Harlan kept refreshing the red dot on the tactical screen. Their fifteen fighter jets were being toyed with by a single enemy aircraft.

They were anxious, and even the Eldar pilots who were launching a swift and fierce attack on them were filled with unease.

These monkey-themed fighter jets are ugly, but surprisingly durable. A single strike of the Radiant Spear wasn't enough to destroy them? It merely melted their outer armor, making them even uglier; their mobility and firepower remained unaffected...

Is this even possible? Even if the space necromancers created their warplanes from living metal, they couldn't possibly withstand the attack of the Radiant Spear so easily.

Because of their emperor's protection?

The Eldar pilot found it impossible; to him, humanity's faith was nothing more than a benevolent lie. Even the most devout and loyal warriors would not necessarily have their souls submitted to the Golden Throne; more likely, they would be sent to the Warp to suffer the torment of demons.

This is an era in which righteous gods perish and evil gods run rampant; any act of placing hope in something is undoubtedly proof of weakness.

The Eldar pilot's reflections quickly subsided, as the Radiant Spear on his fighter jet had been fully charged. In order to ensure the stable operation of the fighter jet's holographic field and its lightning-fast speed, the fighter jet had also made some sacrifices in terms of weapon power supply.

The Eldar pilot looked at the two fighters he had already attacked and decided to launch another rapid strike to test the resilience of these human fighters.

The Living Spirit pilot, who pulls the trigger with his finger, doesn't need to do anything; he only needs to think, and the fighter jet will respond immediately.

A flash of light came from behind Jack, whom he hadn't anticipated. He didn't even have a chance to warn the pilot in the fighter jet, and could only watch helplessly as the destructive light swept across the Fury-class interceptor once again.

Now, the remaining Xuan-style defensive armor of the fighter jet is insufficient to protect the personnel inside; it can only ensure that the fighter jet itself does not disintegrate to the point of being unrecoverable.

Beep beep beep beep...

A piercing, rapid alarm sounded in the cockpit, a manifestation of the fighter jet's spirit's concern for the pilot's life.

No one could respond to her, even though the screen was overflowing with characters and emojis.

All that remained on the driver's seat was a charred lump of coal, emitting a pungent smell of smoke, yet no coughing could be heard.

Hey... wake up!

The machine spirit called out, but the sound could only be transmitted through the vibrations of the machine's fuselage.

Her somewhat naive and stubborn mind was greatly disturbed by the driver's death.

Do I like this driver?

No... I don't like him at all!

He's so clumsy! He even spills holy oil on his own trousers while applying it to my gears!

He was also sullen, unable to say anything useful when I asked him questions, and could only touch his face and chuckle foolishly.

He's no good! Yeah, he's no good!

The fighter jet's spirit told itself this, but then it kept extracting every little detail of its interactions with the pilot from the database.