Chapter 62: Orkish WAAAGH! (2)
Rylon Star System, Alaric Star Domain, Ruusor Star Sector, Frontier Star Segment, Chronus Expanse Star Region, North-Western Galactic Quadrant
Arcturus tightened his grip on the railing, his eyes fixed on the chaotic battle unfolding before him. The space outside the command deck of the Obscurus was a maelstrom of energy blasts, explosions, and the wreckage of Starships.
The Imperial Defense Fleet was indeed fighting with everything they got, as their aim was very clear right from the start. Destroy as many of the Orkish vessels as they were exiting the Hyperspace and getting into formation, or if it could even be called that.
The Orkish fleet poured out of Hyperspace in seemingly endless waves, each more haphazardly constructed than the last, yet each a testament to the sheer, brutal will of the Greenskins.
The Greenskins were a species that could survive in almost any place in the known Universe, and their sheer tenacity was praised by many as much as it was hated by even more people.
Even their spaceships were a testament to this because even though many of them were on the verge of utter destruction or explosion, they could still maneuver them into crashing into the Imperial Starships.
Orkish strategy was clear: even if they should die, they will take everyone with them. Either it was common strategy among the Greenksins or it was just the cunning of the Ork Warboss that commanded this WAAAGH!.
<Prism-Ener Cannons are reloading once more. The Prism-Ener Cannons have fired towards the space-curve, impact in T-minus twenty seconds.>
The Red Queen's voice echoed through the command deck of the Obscurus as they noticed that, this time, even the main weapons upon the Starfort Lycurgos were being charged.
Meanwhile, he watched as another barrage of superweapons from the Juggernaut-Class ships streaked through the void, their deadly energy arcing toward the Ork fleet.
"Brace for the Impact! Increase the Void Shield output to the maximum!"
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Arcturus commanded as the Obscurus vibrated under the shockwaves of nearby explosions because the moment the enormous cannon that was installed on the top of the Starfort Lycurgos fired, the power of such an enormous weapon was something to behold.
The main viewscreen displayed a brilliant flash as the Prism-Ener weapons detonated, annihilating hundreds of Ork ships in a cataclysmic explosion. Shards of twisted metal and debris hurtled through space, colliding with other ships and causing secondary explosions.
<Void Shields at maximum capacity. Adjusting the energy output, activating the secondary energy generators and transferring power to the Void Shield Generators.>
This was a far bigger explosion compared to the previous one; even the space itself started getting unstable in several areas around the entrance to the Hyperspace as the Orkish Fleet finished their exit.
Even then, the damage done to the Orkish WAAAGH! was tremendous, and the Imperial Defense Fleet, under the command of Bashar-General Varather Medes, started adjusting its position, creating distance from the areas of space that were growing increasingly unstable due to the explosion from the Prism-Ener superweapon.
"State of the Void Shields?"
<Structural integrity holding, but we are nearing our limit.>
The holographic projection of the Red Queen reported to Arcturus about the state of the Void Shields over their ships. Unfortunately, the Shields that were being employed on the Obscurus were not the top-notch state-of-the-art military-grade technology that was widely implemented on the Imperial Starships.
Arcturus nodded, his mind racing.
Power of their shields was being lowered with each passing moment, which was rather bad, so the only possible solution was to retreat a bit right now.
"Retreat from the current position and head down. We need to avoid the fight between the main forces of the Imperial Defense Fleet and the Orkish WAAAGH!, soon enough there would be time for us to execute our mission. Increase the monitoring on the commanding vessels of the Greenskins."
Arcturus's mission in this entire chaos was rather clear, which was to infiltrate one of the commanding vessels of the Orkish WAAAGH! and assassinate the Nobz on the ship, crippling the chain of command.
Not only him, but there were many others doing the same mission, probably another five to six people were assigned the same mission as Arcturus, because their main aim was to entirely disturb the chain of command of the Orks.
When it came to the commanding structure of the Greenskins, they were rather peculiar because if, if the Nobz and Bosses were alive, then not even a single Ork wouldn't dare to step out of the line.
However, once this structure was disturbed, the entire chain of command would crumble like a house of cards. This was one of the most common strategies employed in dealing with the Greenskins: destroy or at least disrupt their chain of command and then sweep them through.
The rest was rather easy, because the moment when the chain of command was disrupted or destroyed, the average Boyz would often turn on each other, or just pure unbridled chaos would erupt.
<Comamnd accepted, initiating the maneuvering protocols. Initiating the attacking protocols, targeting the smaller Orkish Vessel blocking the way.>
The Obscurus's smaller, yet still formidable, weapon systems opened fire, sending precise bursts of energy toward the smaller Orkish starships that found their way here and were blocking its escape path.
While he was retreating, the Imperial Defense Fleet and the Orkish WAAAGH! Fleet members finally comforted each other, and the entire Rylon Star System erupted into enormous fireworks and a series of explosions when two Fleets engaged in combat.
Arcturus watched as several of the ramshackle vessels erupted in flames, their improvised hulls no match for the concentrated firepower of the Imperial Starships. Just from the brief exchange, it was clear that the Imperial Defense Fleet had the upper hand.
Despite the mounting casualties, the Orkish WAAAGH! Fleet pressed on, undeterred by their losses even a bit as they continued to push forward more and more.
The sheer volume of their numbers began to overwhelm the Imperial defenses. Arcturus felt a knot of tension form in his chest, because this was the first time he was participating in the callibre battle and it was a rather stressful situation.
The enemy was relentless, and even the might of the Imperial Fleet seemed insufficient to stem the tide for the time being. The Orks were pressing harder and harder, not caring about their own losses and so on; the only thing that the Orks cared about was the victory in this WAAAGH!.
"Redirect power to the forward shields and activate the repulsors; we need to approach one of those big battleships."
Arcturus ordered, they needed to approach one of the battleships of the Greenskins, so Arcturus could board the battleship and execute his mission.
"We need to create a breach in their lines."
After they would be a bit closer, he also ordered Alice to activate the Stealth Systems of the Obscurus and try to approach as close as possible before using the Beam Transportation to transport himself to the targetted battleship.
<Power redirected.>
The Obscurus's forward batteries unleashed a torrent of firepower, carving a path through the Ork ships. For a moment, it seemed like they might be able to turn the tide.
"It seems that the Imperial Fleet needs a new strategy in dealing with them, though it appears that the losses of the Imperial Fleet are low. What's the current status? Can we activate the Stealth Systems?"
Arcturus muttered, more to himself than to anyone else.
<Not yet; we need to be closer; if we are not close enough, we won't have enough energy to support the Stealth Systems for a prolonged amount of time with the current energy consumption.>
Right now, the Obscurus was consuming a tremendous amount of energy; most of it was going to the weapons and shields; they were going on overdrive, mostly due to the Prism-Ener residues that were corroding everything around them.
"Alice, analyze the enemy formation. Is there a weak point we can exploit?"
The Red Queen's holographic form flickered as she processed the data.
<Analyzing... there is a potential weak point near the rear of their formation. Several of their larger ships appear to be coordinating the Fleet's movements. If the Imperials can take a few of them out, then we can slip by and approach the Space Hulk, which seems to be one of the commanding vessels in the quadrant of the battlefield.>
Arcturus's eyes lit up with determination because this was the most feasible plan for them right now.
"Prepare for a flanking maneuver. Signal the other ships to follow our lead. We're going to hit them where it hurts."
The Obscurus veered off from the main Imperial formation, its engines flaring as it accelerated towards the designated weak point in the Orkish WAAAGH! Fleet. Almost immediately, he got a response from Vice Admiral Pyriel Cades that he accepted the plan and ordered his Fleet to carry it out.
From the distance, one could see several tens of Imperial Spaceships following the suit and targeting the place where the Red Queen has determined to be the weakest spot.
<Enemy fire incoming.>