Warhammer: In the Name of Ashes

Chapter 248 The core battle - Storm's attack and defense

The war of reconquest initiated by Orpheus has been going on for several months.

Against the backdrop of the huge army of tens of millions of people straddling the two major star regions, the death and injury of one million people in the war is just a drop in the bucket, and no waves will be seen.

Today's Priestley Galaxy is like a palace with wide open doors and no defense;

When the peripheral defense system was torn apart, the only thing that could stop the footsteps of the human empire was the mobile fleet force.

After sinking most of the main force of the Orc fleet, they were expelled behind the fortress group in the center of the galaxy.

With the massive influx of imperial troops, both the warring parties, whether the empire or the orcs, had no way to retreat.

The two giant beasts, whose eyes were red with blood, stared at each other, and while breathing hard, they both looked towards the center of the battlefield.

Storm 1, the capital world of the Priestley system, is also the home port planet of the Hassan sector fleet after the empire has carefully built a complete defense system and a star-shaped shipyard here.

The space stations and weapons platforms that were once in orbit are now occupied by orcs;

And those defensive weapons that were dilapidated but still retained most of their functions had now become malicious swords that stood in front of the imperial soldiers.

There is no room for anything else at this point in the battle, and the fierce struggle for these defenses will be the climax of the battle.

The main force of the naval fleet came out to bombard Storm's fortress system with a dazzling laser array on orbit;

They arranged the fleet's sailing sequence tightly, often changing positions before the shields of the inner members were about to be overloaded, and continued to maintain the intensity of the bombing.

A large number of torpedoes were transported from the rear, and on the weapon platform of the small frigate, they were released into orbit in waves like a school of fish.

The Astra Militarum made their first landing attempt after the bombing, but were immediately torn apart by artillery fire hidden on the second line, destroying most of the ships;

Well, the intensity of fire detection is not enough, this is the unified conclusion made by Galvin and others.

More intense fire was directed in Storm's direction, but with little effect;

It was not until the arrival of the Mechanical Ark fleet and the Star Fortress Raptor King from the rear that the battle situation improved significantly.

The former is a battle flagship belonging to the Ryza Forge World, and naturally has large plasma weapons that are stronger than the Empire's conventional battleships;

But because of their special battlefield positioning and functions, no one would be willing to send them to the battlefield unless the war entered a dangerous stage.

The latter is a rare strategic-level unit in the fleet known for its defense and firepower.

The defenses of the King of Raptors' interstellar fortress can naturally withstand the blows of Storm's defensive weapons for a long time;

But without orders from Calvin himself, no other high-ranking general could interfere with the will of these Astartes, let alone attempt to control the Chapter's core asset, the King of Raptors.

Calvin didn't want to do this, because the King of Raptors was still an extremely rare resource even from the overall perspective of the entire empire.

Star fortresses are worthless, at least with the industrial capabilities of the empire, it cannot be said to be the majority of stars, at least tens of thousands.

The fact that they may not be moved becomes the only criterion to distinguish whether their core values ​​are precious or not:

Is there an independent engine that is sufficient for long-distance navigation? Is there a subspace engine and ancillary Geiger stance system that is sufficient to support independent subspace navigation?

Yes, it is the jewel in the imperial industry, even the Astartes Chapter will regard it as a treasure;

If not, it would be just an ordinary Imperial Industrial assembly line product.

This kind of cumbersome fortress can only be deployed passively. Even ordinary passive defensive deployment requires active towing by large ships, let alone active offensive deployment.

The King of Raptors is the former, although it is not as powerful and legendary as Phalanx, Blackstone, and, well, an unknown Caliban.

But as a leader among interstellar fortresses, it not only has outstanding defense among its kind and excellent self-sustainability brought by its huge space.

Under these basic conditions, it also has a complete array of plasma reactor engines and supporting subspace engines.

This kind of strategic fortress that can move independently and can conduct subspace navigation and large-scale dispatch is a treasure-like existence in the eyes of any force.

It can be said that on any battlefield, as long as it exists, even if it is stationary, it will naturally have a deterrent effect like the sea-fixing needle.

This strategic level of resources is almost non-renewable in today's empire.

If there is no need for war and there is no other alternative.

Calvin wouldn't put his mind on it either.

There is no doubt about the loyalty of the Firehawks, and they obey Calvin's orders.

Within ten hours of receiving his order, this huge interstellar fortress turned on its engines at full power and appeared at the location where Calvin ordered it to be deployed - the spearhead of the entire fleet.

The Grand Fleet is now ready to launch a fierce attack on Storm 1 again.

Under the cover of the King of Raptors' huge body, the entire fleet openly faced the frontal firepower of the defense system and approached him!

The Heart of Dawn, a machine belonging to the Reza world, followed closely behind. The four plasma cannons belonging to its core weapon array completed the final charging preparations close to the outside of Storm's defense line.

Following Calvin's order, the Raptor King suddenly stopped pressing forward and began to deflect toward the left wing of the entire defense line;

And just in the path of fire it flashed out, the orcs at the outer space station of Storm 1 were horrified to see the light from the depths of the star shining on the main cannon of the Heart of Dawn!

Buzz!

Huge circuit tremors, with low-frequency metal resonance, resounded throughout the entire Mechanical Ark hull.

From the perspective of a bystander, at that moment in the heart of dawn, there were four huge light pillars extending towards the orbit of the planet!

The frontal defense line consisting of a Ramirez-class star fort, four large space stations and dozens of weapon platforms was instantly penetrated by this bright light!

The shields of the two space stations in the center of the defense line were instantly overloaded, and the erupting building debris was like a large piece of dust. Under the gravitational constraints of the planet, it turned into fragments and fell toward the surface.

The main shield of the Star Fortress was also seriously damaged, and distortions visible to the naked eye appeared on this huge fortress.

Of course, the imperial fleet would not give up this precious opportunity to approach and shoot. The fleets headed by battleships began to shoot one after another. The dazzling light of the bow nova cannons came and went, making the entire galaxy quiet!

"In the name of the Emperor! Attack!"

Admiral Juan roared at the top of his lungs on the bridge of the Grand Fleet.

At the same time, on other battleships, the generals belonging to the Imperial Navy and the Astra Militarum also roared with war!

The Astartes were much calmer. They just lined up silently and entered the cabins of landing torpedoes one by one;

Even the large group of Gray Knights headed by Calvin just stood quietly on the charged teleportation array.

He once again confirmed the specific coordinates of the teleportation array with the direction of the bridge of the Revenant Redeemer, and then said to all the Gray Knights in the psychic link:

"Let's go, it's our turn, remember our mission? In the name of the Emperor!"

All the Gray Knights were uniformly holding their halberds in one hand and kneeling on one knee.

Amidst the friction of power armor parts, these gray Emperor Angels neatly sent out their last prayers before the war to distant Terra:

"I am the hammer that purifies the world!"

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