Segmentum Solar, Elysia.
Commander Nuno Bellardo of the Elysian Defense Fleet sat at his console, swiftly assessing the situation in the void battle.
The fleet under his command had reached their designated positions according to his orders and were now attacking the Aeldar pirates.
Through countless battles against Aeldar pirates, Elysia had developed a moderately effective combat doctrine.
Their ships would split into three formations. The frontal formation consisted of armored-up cruisers deployed in a dispersed line to draw Aeldar fire.
The flanks, centered around frigates, with destroyers making rapid thrusts. Due to differing speeds, this formed a concave frontline that launched dense charges.
Frigates and destroyers were equipped with a large number of torpedo tubes to compensate for their lack of heavy guns.
Unable to reliably pinpoint enemy ship positions, the Elysian fleet opted for torpedo saturation attacks to maximize the chance of hitting the elusive Aeldar vessels.
Bellardo checked the feedback from all ships. Hits had been registered across the board.
A faint smile touched his lips. Their fleet had been tempered into an elite force through the constant fires of harassment from both humans and various xenos.
From officers to deckhands, from torpedo loaders to engineers, even the lowest workers desperate for employment, every one of them served with excellence, no worse than those void-born who lived their entire lives on ships.
Those clans, raised for generations aboard voidcraft, relied on experience and instinctive cooperation to compensate for their slower vessels compared to Aeldar ships.
Despite the entire fleet executing his battle plan flawlessly, not a single ship reported actually hitting an Aeldar vessel.
Bellardo and all other Elysian captains knew their hits were likely striking illusions created by Aeldar holo-fields.
It was only after his aides and ship officers cross-referenced environmental data and compared sensor readings that Bellardo confirmed five Aeldar ships had been destroyed.
He breathed a sigh of relief, thinking: 'The Aeldar pirate fleet numbers around twenty ships.'
'During the months of cat-and-mouse pursuit to herd the enemy ships into the "pocket" to exploit tactical advantages, six Aeldar ships were destroyed.'
'Based on past experience, Aeldar pirate fleets withdraw after losing half their ships.'
Bellardo watched the tactical display. The frigates were in position. At full power, they could launch their charge.
He issued the command through his comm-bead: "Left and right flank strike groups, charge! For Elysia!"
His orders were being relayed to all ships. Bellardo felt no joy. Red casualty reports flashing across his display screen stung his eyes.
'One cruiser, six frigates, thirteen destroyers.'
'Combined with the one cruiser, two frigates, and five destroyers lost during the guerrilla phase, this defensive battle will be a costly victory.'
Bellardo clenched his fist. Hundreds of thousands of Elysian sons and daughters were paying with their lives to repel the cunning Aeldar pirate fleet.
Just then, a grave voice came through his comm-bead.
"Lord Bellardo, the auspex officers report a large fleet has suddenly appeared within the system. Ship count is fifty-four and increasing."
"Marked vessels have been sent to your cogitator display."
Bellardo tensely looked at his display. The Elysian fleet had only eighty-three ships of various classes before the battle.
After the fighting, every ship was damaged and couldn't handle a new threat.
"All scanning systems, maximum power. I need intelligence on them. Now!"
The wait felt suffocating. Sweat beaded on Bellardo's forehead.
Finally, information appeared on the second display screen to the left of his console.
'Length: 25.81 kilometers...'
Bellardo stared, stunned. He had never heard of or imagined a ship of such size.
His flagship, the Shield of Elysia, was only 10.35 kilometers long.
Bellardo tapped the screen, examining the composite image pieced together from multiple scanners.
'A true void leviathan! Its overall style is Gothic. Could it be a human faction?'
As this thought crossed his mind, the Voice-master's voice came through his comm-bead again.
"Lord Bellardo, I have received communication from the fleet."
"One of the languages used is similar to ours."
"They are the 'Shadows of Order'..."
While listening to the briefing, Bellardo kept an eye on the battle within the system. He saw the black ships deploying into a battle line.
"Lord Bellardo, the opposing force intends to launch a fire strike against the Aeldar ships. They request our marked ships withdraw from the combat zone to prevent collateral damage."
Bellardo stared at his display. He saw that twenty-nine of his ships were marked.
He then looked at the newly arrived human fleet, seeing the dense gun battery on those ships.
He first frowned. 'Conventional guns were easily fooled by Aeldar holo-fields.'
Then, Bellardo scanned all the ships, especially the massive cannon arrays on the giant vessel.
'Holo-fields have limits. With enough firepower, you can blanket the entire area and strike the real ship.'
Bellardo noted the newly arrived "Shadows of Order" fleet had grown to one hundred and thirty-eight ships.
'This "Shadows of Order" fleet's firepower seems capable of that.'
"Issue the command to the marked ships: withdraw from the battle zone."
Bellardo watched as the yellow Elysian ships pulled back, and the black ships accelerated towards the battlefield.
A multicolored energy beam shot from a black ship, slamming into an Aeldar vessel.
Bellardo's pupils widened. He watched in astonishment as those beams directly penetrated the holo-fields and inflicted damage on the Aeldar ships.
Following the beam's trajectory, he saw, on the colossal voidship, strange cannons mounted on the lowest part of the ship's flanks, on both sides.
The cannons were overall long and tubular, their total length approaching one-tenth of the ship's length, with over a fifth of it extending beyond the prow.
'Those cannons... they can actually pierce the Aeldar's holo-fields directly.'
A dense rain of energy beams hammered down on the remaining Aeldar ships.
The dozen or so remaining Aeldar vessels were soon reduced to wreckage.
Three hours later, Elysia's ruling class received the battle report, along with a report on the newly emerged human faction, the "Shadows of Order."
Among the details about the "Shadows of Order's" formidable strength and their demands, what shocked them the most was that their fleet possessed cannons capable of piercing holo-fields.
After inquiring with the opposing commander, Howard Fender, Bellardo learned that those cannons were called Ether-cannons.
Howard's Stormbird landed on Elysia amid cheers. After discussion, the Merchant League Council agreed to accept the protection of the "Shadows of Order."
They believed that under the powerful protection of the "Shadows of Order," they would be safe from pirate raids and could reap greater commercial benefits.
.....
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