Chapter 327 — The Hidden Blade
Titus, Metaurus, the other Bladeguard Veterans, and the Dreadnought were already prepared.
They remained aboard the assault vessel positioned near the outer edge of the UNSC formation, well behind the main line of human warships. The larger fleet continued engaging the Covenant ahead of them, keeping the enemy occupied while the assault vessel remained concealed among the outermost ships.
Its systems were kept as quiet as possible.
There was no reason to announce their presence before they were ready.
JARVIS continuously monitored the battle, feeding information into the assault vessel while also tracking the movements of both fleets.
Gaius stood before the main tactical display.
Forty-one Covenant vessels filled the projection.
The display showed the entire battlefield in miniature. Covenant cruisers and larger warships remained concentrated around the center of their formation, surrounded by layers of escorts. Smaller vessels moved between them while fighter groups continued to spread throughout the engagement.
Finding the flagship was not as simple as identifying the largest ship.
The Covenant had deliberately placed several of their heavier vessels near the center of the formation. Any one of them could potentially serve as the flagship, and each was protected by multiple layers of escorts.
Gaius studied the formation in silence.
He had spent centuries fighting wars among the stars.
He understood fleet formations.
He understood where commanders positioned themselves. He understood which vessels were likely to remain close to the center of a formation and how escorts would be arranged around a flagship. He also understood that communications traffic could reveal the presence of a flagship even when the exact identity of the vessel remained uncertain.
There were patterns to warfare.
Commanders might change their ships, their weapons, and even their tactics, but certain principles remained.
A commander needed protection.
But a commander also needed to communicate with the fleet.
A flagship hidden too far from the main engagement could become disconnected from the battle. A flagship placed too close to the front could become unnecessarily vulnerable.
Gaius already had an estimate.
Even before JARVIS completed its calculations, he had formed his own conclusion.
He pointed toward the tactical display.
"JARVIS, have you located the Covenant flagship?"
JARVIS responded through the command chamber.
"I have identified a probable flagship, sir. Current confidence is ninety percent."
Gaius narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Ninety?"
"Correct. The intelligence recovered from the Covenant vessel we previously captured provides information regarding their fleet organization. I have combined that data with the current formation, vessel size, communication activity, and movement patterns."
The display shifted.
One vessel near the center of the Covenant formation became highlighted.
Gaius studied it carefully.
"It is where I would place their command ship as well."
Titus, standing nearby, glanced toward him.
"You already reached the same conclusion."
Gaius nodded.
"Their formation is familiar. A commander would want his flagship protected, but not so far behind the main force that it cannot communicate effectively or coordinate the battle."
He pointed toward the highlighted vessel.
"That position gives it enough protection while keeping it close enough to direct the fleet."
Gaius stared at the highlighted ship for another moment.
Ninety percent was enough.
He did not need absolute certainty.
Waiting for complete certainty in the middle of a battle would only waste time.
"Then we use it."
His gaze shifted toward the rest of the fleet.
"JARVIS, prepare the fleet."
"Understood, sir."
"Concentrate fire on the estimated flagship."
The highlighted Covenant vessel remained at the center of the tactical display.
"We need to weaken its shields before we launch."
"Understood," JARVIS replied. "I will coordinate with Cortana and redirect sufficient firepower toward the designated target while maintaining the fleet's defensive formation."
Gaius nodded.
"Do it. And have us get closer."
JARVIS responded immediately.
"Understood."
The assault vessel adjusted its course.
It did not accelerate directly toward the Covenant formation.
Instead, it began moving gradually along the outer edge of the UNSC fleet, using the movements of the surrounding vessels to conceal its approach.
The main battle continued ahead of them.
Human warships exchanged fire with Covenant cruisers.
Plasma crossed the darkness in brilliant streaks.
Missiles and kinetic rounds raced between the two formations.
Energy weapons flashed across the battlefield.
The assault vessel remained beneath the noise of the larger engagement.
Gaius watched the tactical display as the highlighted Covenant vessel began receiving increasingly concentrated fire.
A series of human warships shifted their targeting priorities.
Their weapons turned toward the designated target.
Missiles launched.
Kinetic rounds accelerated through space.
Energy weapons struck the Covenant vessel's shields.
The barrier around the ship flared.
Gaius watched the readings.
"Shield strength?"
JARVIS answered immediately.
"Seventy-two percent."
Gaius waited.
Another coordinated salvo struck the vessel.
Its shields brightened again as several impacts landed almost simultaneously.
"Sixty-four percent."
Titus watched the display.
"They're beginning to notice."
Gaius nodded.
The Covenant would eventually realize that the same ship was receiving disproportionate fire.
That was unavoidable.
The only question was whether the human fleet could weaken the vessel enough before the Covenant reacted.
"Continue."
JARVIS maintained the concentration of fire.
Cortana provided targeting solutions to the surrounding human ships, allowing the barrage to continue without forcing the UNSC formation to break apart.
The Covenant vessel attempted to maneuver.
It began shifting its position within the formation.
Its escorts immediately reacted.
Several Covenant warships changed course and moved closer to the vessel, positioning themselves between it and the incoming fire.
Gaius watched the movement.
"Expected."
Titus glanced toward him.
"They're protecting it."
"Of course."
Gaius studied the escorts.
Their movements told him more than the ship itself.
The Covenant were revealing the importance of the vessel without realizing it.
Every ship that moved to protect it confirmed his suspicion.
"Their reaction is enough."
Titus looked toward the tactical display.
"Then it is the flagship."
"Almost certainly."
Another barrage struck.
The vessel's shields flared violently.
"Shield strength: fifty-one percent," JARVIS reported.
Gaius remained calm.
"Not yet."
The assault vessel continued its gradual approach.
"We wait until the opening is sufficient."
The Covenant fleet remained heavily engaged with the human formation.
The distance between the two fleets was filled with weapons fire.
The Covenant vessel continued taking concentrated fire while its escorts tried to protect it.
The assault vessel moved closer.
Through the forward viewports, the distant battlefield had become visible.
Ships crossed through the darkness.
Plasma bolts illuminated the space between them.
Missiles streaked toward their targets before disappearing into explosions.
Several vessels erupted into fire and debris.
Others continued fighting despite the damage they had sustained.
Gaius watched the chaos without taking his eyes from the tactical display.
This was exactly why he had chosen to remain outside the main engagement.
He needed clarity.
Inside the center of the battle, the battlefield would have been difficult to read.
Here, he could see the formation.
The movements.
The weaknesses.
The reactions.
Centuries of warfare had taught him that a fleet was not simply a collection of ships.
It was a living structure.
Every movement revealed intent.
Every defensive adjustment revealed priorities.
The Covenant were beginning to expose theirs.
Gaius looked toward JARVIS.
"JARVIS."
"Yes, sir?"
"How close can we get before they identify us?"
JARVIS processed the available sensor information.
"Based on current sensor activity, we can approach another thirty thousand kilometers before the probability of detection increases significantly."
Gaius considered the distance.
Thirty thousand kilometers.
That would be enough.
"Take us there."
The assault vessel accelerated.
Its engines remained restrained, keeping its signature as low as possible while it moved through the outer edge of the human formation.
The surrounding UNSC ships provided cover.
A damaged UNSC cruiser crossed their path.
The assault vessel adjusted slightly to avoid it.
Another human frigate moved ahead of them.
The vessel continued forward.
The Covenant were too occupied to notice.
For now.
Aboard the Covenant flagship alarms were already sounding across the bridge.
The Prophet of Regret remained upon his gravity throne, staring at the tactical display.
The flagship was coming under increasingly concentrated fire.
The flagship remained near the protected center of the formation, surrounded by layers of escorts and additional warships.
Regret already knew the ship was important.
The question was not why the humans were attacking it.
The question was how they had identified it.
"Hierarch," a Sangheili officer said, "the human fleet continues concentrating fire on our command vessel."
Regret's gaze narrowed.
"Why have they singled out that ship?"
The Sangheili officer studied the tactical display.
"We do not know, Holy One."
Another barrage struck.
The flagship's shields flared violently.
"Shield strength falling."
Regret watched the numbers.
The human attack was too concentrated to be random.
Their targeting was deliberate.
"They have identified it as a command vessel."
The officer hesitated.
"That appears to be the case."
Regret's expression hardened.
"But how?"
No one answered immediately.
The flagship had maintained its position.
Its communications remained secured.
Its escorts had continued protecting it as expected.
Yet the humans had somehow selected it from among the other Covenant vessels.
Another salvo struck.
"Shield strength at forty-eight percent."
Regret looked toward the surrounding ships.
Several escorts had already begun moving closer.
They placed themselves between the targeted vessel and the human fleet.
His eyes narrowed.
"They are studying our formation."
He watched the tactical display.
The humans had observed which vessels received the greatest protection.
They had observed how the Covenant fleet responded whenever the flagship came under attack.
And now the Covenant's own response was confirming the human suspicion.
Regret clenched his fist.
"They know."
The Sangheili officer looked toward him.
"What should we do, Holy One?"
Regret did not hesitate.
"Protect the command vessel."
The order was transmitted immediately.
More escorts moved into position.
The formation tightened around the Flagship
Regret continued watching the human fleet.
"They have found what they were looking for."
Another impact shook the flagship.
"Then make certain they do not reach it."
The Covenant formation tightened further.
Somewhere beyond the outer edge of the human fleet, JARVIS observed the change.
Gaius received the latest tactical information.
The Covenant escorts were no longer merely reacting to the bombardment.
They were concentrating around the highlighted vessel.
Their formation was tightening.
Their defensive priorities had become obvious.
Gaius studied the display.
The Covenant had just confirmed his estimate.
The ship was almost certainly the flagship.
He remained silent for several seconds.
Around him, Titus, Metaurus, the other Bladeguard Veterans, and the Dreadnought remained ready for deployment.
None of them needed to be told what came next.
The human fleet had created the opening.
JARVIS and Cortana had begun weakening the flagship's shields.
The Covenant had revealed which vessel mattered most.
And the assault vessel had moved close enough to strike.
Gaius looked toward the tactical display one final time.
The highlighted Covenant flagship remained surrounded by its escorts.
But now he knew exactly where it was.
The hunt was over.
There were still many things that needed to be done back home.
"Let us finish this," Gaius said quietly.
~~~
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