Chương 263: Chapter Two Hundred and Sixty-Three

There are sixteen Chaos vessels and forty-nine Imperial vessels in the Footfall system. Twenty Imperial vessels are pinned down in Footfall by treachery: seven from Battlefleet Koronus, five from Tithe-Fleet Calixis, five merchants and two pilgrims. One Imperial vessel is subject to boarding assaults 150 million kilometres from Footfall. My combined fleet of twenty-eight Imperial vessels are thirty AU from Footfall.

I split my fleet into three parts, eleven support vessels, fourteen fast vessels, and three capital ships. The fast vessels, three light cruisers and eleven escorts are led by Leith Madara. The capital vessels, two Lunar-Class cruisers and one Exorcist grand cruiser, are commanded by Calligos Winterscale. The eleven support ships are supervised by Alpia.

I am directing the whole fleet, not from the bridge of Torchbearer, but from the Warp Sextant tank; I will be using the Novis Coven link and my soul bond with all the psykers in Stellar Fleet SOL to maintain near instant communications across the system and cast Navigator spells at long range. The fast ships are sent on ahead, accelerating at four gravities.

The light cruisers, Distant Sun, Red Knoll, and Petitor Veritas immediately flare their antimatter boosts, creeping up to five gravities over thirty minutes before slowing down again, and continue to do so every eight hours. During the boost, the escorts, four Adders, two Swords, two Falchions, a Turbulent, Claymore, and a Tempest slowly fall behind, then catch up while the engines of the light cruisers cool down.

Meanwhile, the Emperor's Vow launches 4, 000 of its 5, 000 strike-craft, mostly Fury Interceptors with a few squadrons of Starhawk Bombers. 400 of my own strike-craft guard are the final line of defence. They're escorting a massive fleet of 500 shuttles that are heading for the station at twenty gravities with an arrival time of 3. 5 days. Praise the Machine-God for artificial gravity and inertial dampeners! The Exorcist-Class is the smallest, and slowest, of the grand cruisers.

Calligos has modified his so it's as fast as the Repulsive-Class grand cruiser at 2. 4 gravities. I'm hoping the speed increase will be enough to sell the deception, or at least muddy the waters enough that Karrad Vall doesn't realise we have another 1, 000 strike craft in reserve on Emperor's Vow, let alone the strike-craft hiding on Petitor Veritas or the support ships. I need to make it look like they have a chance to outnumber me.

We also launch 100 Arvus Lighters and other low quality shuttles, pushing them into the interceptor screen led by the Exorcist's strike-craft. The intention is to make our actions appear like a desperate assault and we've pressed every light craft we have into service. This relief force is a mix of Space Marines in their Thunderhawks, and the equivalent of 2. 33 regiment of Heralds, taking a third each from my Void Assault regiment, two Mechanised Infantry regiments, and four light infantry regiments.

I have something else planned for the Battle Automata and Penal regiments. Penitents fill every shuttle not stuffed with Heralds, occupying the shuttles that are normally assigned to my vessels, rather than their own assigned shuttles. The shuttles normally available to the Penitents are too slow to be useful for this assault.

Behind the huge force of shuttles are my stealthy strike craft, the Sagitta, Macross, and Vitrum, their launch and signatures thoughtfully disguised by the huge fleet of shuttles and strike-craft burning with all their power straight for Footfall. They follow behind, cloaked by my spell, A Cloud in the Warp and their Empyrean Mantles. There are 1500 of them and they're guarding another 250 shuttles, who are also hidden.

Reina Benetek and two Ortelius Navigators are on my private shuttle in the centre of the hidden strike group, acting as a focus for the spell and hiding my strike-craft from enemy Navigators and Warp Witches attempting to locate hidden vessels with Void Watcher, a powerful divination spell. With these layered deceptions, I hope to imply that the fast void ships are traveling at maximum speed. Most light cruisers max out at 4 gravities sustained acceleration and escorts at 4. 5 gravities.

To Karrad Vall, it will appear as if he remains where he is, once my shuttles arrive to relieve the Imperial vessels stuck at Footfall, he'll get pinned between my fast vessels, Battlefleet Koronus, and Tithe-Fleet Calixis in less than 7. 8 days. So long as my fast vessels continue to make 'full speed' towards Karrad Vall's fleet, as far as he can tell, he has less than nineteen hours to disengage from the Mass Conveyor Spear of Commerce and flee the system without being caught.

The best he could do is blow up Spear of Commerce and retreat, abandoning his troops on Footfall. This will make him look weak as that's a failure condition for his raid as blowing up your capture target is, at best, petty denial. However, if he departs immediately and goes for my fast fleet, it will appear to him that he has a chance to not only defeat my fleet in detail, but also near guarantee his escape as my capital ships are about the same speed as his.

Some delaying actions by his escorts would be enough for his own capital ships to pull ahead and escape, leaving his escorts to catch up and my own fast vessels shattered and useless. So long as his casualties remain minimal, he'd also have a chance of capturing my cruisers, before the other Imperial fleets can catch up. Two cruisers and a grand cruiser are a far greater prize than a Mass Conveyor and it would be the perfect way for him to recover his so-called honour.

If his imagination is really wild, he might even dream of turning around with his new prizes and nabbing Battlefleet Koronus and Tithe-Fleet Calixis too. If it does go badly for me, he'd still never get past my Dark Age of Technology security before the other Imperial fleets catch up, but he doesn't know that. He'll assume they're filled with poorly armed voidsmen and menials.

What he doesn't know is that if he decides to flee immediately anyway, not only will I catch him with my stealthy strike craft, but Distant Sun and Red Knoll are both capable of six gravities sustained acceleration and the Adders are even faster at 7. 6 gravities. If he doesn't turn around to defeat my extra fast void ships, his whole fleet will get pummelled by my vessels for at least fourteen and a half hours before they reach the Mandeville Point.

They'd have to contend with teleporting Heralds and Marines everytime their shields slipped too. If he does turn around, they can dash away and keep harassing him until the rest of my fleet catches up. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The only flaw with my plan is that it relies on my enemy being smart enough to seize it. I won't get all his vessels if he flees immediately.

There's no way two light cruisers and four escorts can take down a Hades-Class heavy cruiser, a Carnage-Class cruiser, a Devastation-Class cruiser, a Murder-Class cruiser and their twelve escorts in fourteen and a half hours. I'd likely disable 40-60% of their escorts, and the cruisers would be going fast enough at that point it wouldn't matter if their engines get crippled by strike-craft. They'd still reach the Mandeville point before the rest of my fleet could catch up.

I'd have more confidence in nailing at least one cruiser if Distant Sun and Red Knoll had all their shuttles and could repeatedly board a cruiser, but all their shuttles will be at Footfall at that point, supporting my troops with holds stuffed full of supplies and workshops. I am left with one option: stirring the pot. With a rising sense of embarrassment, I prep some aggressive Machine-Spirits for upload to both Footfall and Karrad Vall's fleet and record a message.

"Attention all Imperial forces. This is Magus Explorator Aldrich Issengrund of Stellar Fleet SOL and its allies: Inquisitors Hamiz and Horthstien; Rogue Trader Calligos Winterscale; Ephrine Stern, Adepta Sorritas, Order of the Valorous Heart; Force Commander Odhran of the Barghest Space Marine Chapter, and Imperial Saint, Alpia Issengrund. Hold fast. Help is coming.

By the Grace of the Emperor of Mankind and the miracles of the Machine-God, the traitor Karrad Vall and his rebel scum are commanded to surrender and die. Ave Imperator!" There, that should sound sufficiently righteous and uncompromising to rile up the cultists. It pairs well with my 'reckless' fleet actions. I command my message to repeat every fifteen minutes on all vox channels at high volume, regardless of if the casters have been muted or turned off.

The intervening time will be filled with battle hymns sung by Alpia. Each fifteen minute interval will be followed by a brief ETA of the relief force. Unless the enemy destroy their vox casters, my message should gum up the communications of the traitors for several hours until they can purge it from their systems. I pray that my super chunni message will bring hope to all Imperial forces too and only permanently commandeer a single channel for the Imperial forces.

It might even be enough to get the more neutral parties to contribute. No one likes to be seen fighting poorly when the Inquisition and Space Marines are coming right for you. Five hours later, I get confirmation Karrad Vall has ceased his assault on Spear of Commerce. He hasn't given up on sneaking away with his prize though as vast swarms of stolen shuttles are disgorged from Footfall and head to the scarred Mass Conveyor. Just where is he getting all these troops from?

A day later, Karrad Vall empties his Devastation-Class cruiser of its Swiftdeath Fighters and Doomfire Bombers to intercept my shuttles. He also supplements its 3000 strike craft with another 2520 strike-craft from his other vessels, conveniently drawing off what I hope is most of, possibly all, the close support for his fleet.

He outnumbers my visible combined strike craft and shuttles by 1520 units, and only has one carrier so I am confident he has less than a thousand strike-craft guarding his fleet and that's assuming he packs as many into his ships as I like to do. I do not like the implications of his manufacturing capabilities if he has managed to do so. I've committed 1500 of my 1907 strike craft into hiding and, as the enemy creeps towards my own forces, I have a few hours to make my final decision on how to play this.

While they could tip the numbers in the upcoming engagement, that isn't the trap they're there to spring. These hidden strike craft are also guarding another 250 shuttles, who are also discreetly following the main force. With my heart heavy and my head clouded with doubt, I take cold comfort in the numbers of my simulations and the weight of my previous experiences. I'm condemning my own people to death for the chance to save more lives later in the fight.

Reina, detecting my distraction, whispers into my mind through the Novis Coven Link, "Take heart, my Lord. None doubt your guidance."

"Thank you, Reina. I needed to hear that."

"Perhaps you could lead us in prayer? I would be willing to broadcast your words through the Machine-Spirits."

"I rather think my men and women would prefer the natter of their friends than the words of a man far from the action."

"Nay, my Lord. You underestimate their faith. Let them hear your voice in the knowledge that you are witness to their valiant actions."

"Very well, Reina." I record another message, this time for my own people and put all the heart into it I can muster. As I speak, I realise that Reina is right. These people are going to die for me and their homes. Really, a prayer is the least I can do for them. To doubt my plan is to doubt their courage to see it through and I will not insult them with my hesitance.

"My people. You ride into battle upon the grand mechanisms of the Machine-God. It matters not that the traitors fire shall fall like rain for you are armoured in knowledge, assembled by your skilled hands and guided by your steady minds. As the Great Enemy screams its worthless hate into the void, take courage in the might of your true flesh and the aim of the Machine-Spirits.

In this moment of your valiant charge, I pray for you:"We praise you and thank you, O Holy Emperor, the Almighty guardian of mankind, for the love and compassion you have for humanity. We thank you for the gift of salvation you bestow on your fearful children. We beg you, O Emperor, to save those who follow the evil ones and that their hearts will be opened to the truth of their eternal life.

"O, final arbiter of love and peace, I plead with You to offer protection to all Your holy messengers in the void. I pray that they are protected from the hatred of others. I ask that Your Most Holy Word is spread quickly all over the galaxy. Protect your messengers from flame, blades, and lies. Protect their families and cover them with your grace, at all times, so that the hellish rebukes we bring to traitors and xenos are heeded with contrite and humble hearts.

We pray that their tattered souls and tarnished hearts return to you in their last moments, their sins and alien minds cleansed by your grace and the withering flames of our blessed guns. Ave Imperator.

"My people. May your efforts return you home, victorious and whole in heart and body. Issengrund out." Reina messages me, "That was perfect, my Lord. I took much courage from your words and prayers."

"As I did from yours, Reina. How is the strain from the Coven Link? Can you and your allies endure?"

"My faith and body are unshakeable, my Lord. We are used to holding these spells for weeks at a time. Even without a throne to aid us, we shall endure." There is a faint hint of displeasure and exasperation in Reina's mental tone. She knows that I know they're more than capable of completing their assigned task and can even feel their exact physical condition as my own. I was trying to be polite and considerate, only to end up insulting her. Annoyed at my blunder, I lightly pat my masked cheeks and pep myself up.

Get your head in the game, Aldrich. Don't fuck this up like last time! A perfect victory is out there. It's waiting for you to seize it. Trust your plan and fuck those other guys. Those murderous arseholes totally deserve what's coming to them!