nycdaug Chapter 709: Conjecture about Cordela
Chapter 709: Conjecture about Cordela
Chapter 709: Conjecture about Cordela
Caldera Galaxy, Mandeville Point.
"You are not just a chapter master anymore, Qingshan. You are now the commander-in-chief of the empire. You have to consider the overall situation."
Bosimonde said seriously in the projection:
"The Inquisition has only made a guess. What if Vulkan is not in Caldera? Is it worth investing so many resources in a mining world? Since you have already made an expedition plan against Ullanor, should we save our military strength for the final battle against the orcs?"
"Volkan is on Caldera."
Fu Qinghai said firmly:
"I have my sources, so there is no need to discuss this further. Even if there is no Volkan, any battle moon we encounter should be destroyed. We cannot let it wreak havoc within the Empire. The orcs' control of this unpredictable and difficult-to-guard mobile force will not be beneficial to the entire war situation."
Bosimonde made no further comments.
"Every battle moon should be destroyed, but I'm not sure we have enough troops to accomplish this feat right now. I looked up the data, and the permanent population of Caldera is only 30 million. If Vulkan is really here, we might consider taking the Primarch away with an airborne raid. There's no need to waste too much time here."
Quesadra of the Crimson Fist suggested.
"The population of the mining world cannot be compared with that of the hive world, but mineral resources are also a very important strategic resource. They are the ultimate source of tanks, guns and bullets. The war potential that a mining world can provide to the Orks is no less than that of tens of millions of human slaves."
Fu Qinghai shook his head and said:
"Besides, from what I know about the Primarch, we will never be able to take him away unless we destroy the battle moon and rescue the human inhabitants on the surface."
As a military commander who has experienced many battles, Fu Qinghai would not say childish nonsense such as "life is priceless" or "everyone's life is precious". Whether in the Warhammer 40K universe or not, for any war in any universe, human life is a resource that can be measured, calculated and traded off, and there is no essential difference from a bomb or a pack of batteries. In addition, in many cases, this resource is often not as reliable as a bomb or a pack of batteries.
The essence of war can sometimes be seen as a competition for resource consumption and utilization. Human lives in war are a kind of resource. Only philosophers need to think about the trolley problem, which does not exist for a general. The 30 million people of Caldera can certainly be abandoned, but the problem is that the Primarch is a more overwhelming resource, enough to pay a huge price for it. The significance of Volkan's return to Fu Qinghai is not only military, but also political.
Fu Qinghai stood behind the strategic platform on the bridge and looked around at the half-body holographic projections of all the regiment commanders in front of him. No one raised any objections, so he gave the order:
"Although the reason is still unclear, the battle moon is now launching continuous gravity storm attacks on the surface of Cordra. We cannot lose time. We will not wait for the follow-up fleet. Once all the main battleships are assembled, we will launch the attack immediately."
"understand!"
The Chapter Masters answered in unison.
"In addition, I will test a new type of weapon during this battle. Theoretically, this weapon will not cause damage to creatures other than orcs. I will inform you of this in advance, so please don't be overly nervous."
After Fu Qinghai finished speaking, he added a few more words.
In the end, the chapter leaders of the High Wall were somewhat confused.
The White Scars Chapter Masters looked at the pulse bolters and Fat Man launchers in the hands of their Space Marines, thinking to themselves: Qingshan Khan actually has new weapons that he hasn't brought out yet? No, it should be said that Qingshan Khan really has new weapons that he hasn't brought out yet! It seems that this is in line with the Primarch's evaluation of him - the man who forged the divine machine.
……
Battleship HMS Regent, bridge.
After the holographic projections in front of him went out one by one, Fu Qinghai sat back in his large chair. The mortal crew members under the steps were busy shuttling back and forth, implementing the orders he had just issued.
In the pitch-black void, some frigates and destroyers were arriving one after another, but the tail nozzles of all cruisers and battleships were lit up with a blazing white light. They turned around and assembled in formation, gradually accelerating towards the battle moon in the galaxy. The cluster of main battleships was sprinting at full speed.
Fu Qinghai tapped the armrest of the seat with his fingers.
He narrowed his eyes and began to think about some questions.
The reason why Fu Qinghai was so sure that Vokhan would not leave unless the Space Marines destroyed the battle moon and rescued the planet Cordra was because this was the plot that Vera told him.
In the original novel, the High Wall Space Marines suffered heavy losses after destroying the battle moon above Terra. Facing the battle moon above Caldera, they originally planned to launch an airborne raid to take away Vulkan, and as for the other imperial residents on the surface, they had to give up.
But when they found Volkan, they were rejected. The Primarch said that the people of the mining world were as important as the people of the throne world, and he wanted to stay here to help the local people defeat the orcs - although he didn't know how he was going to destroy the battle moon in orbit. So Kurland had no choice but to obey Volkan's request. After paying a heavy price, the human coalition destroyed another battle moon. Of course, he also won Volkan's respect, which laid the groundwork for him to become the commander of the coalition forces later.
Fu Qinghai was puzzled by this:
Because he was a qualified and mature military commander, he was able to weigh the lives of the 30 million people on the planet of Cordra with a relatively rational and cold mindset. Vulcan Vulcan was known for his kindness to mortals, but he was also an outstanding and mature military commander. Didn't he understand the trade-offs that had to be faced in war?
Is there anything special about Cordela?
Fu Qinghai thought about it and opened the star map information.
"The world of Cordela Mining, tax level: Ю level, permanent population: over 33 million, main output..."
Fu Qinghai glanced over the general information.
"Formerly numbered: Savage World No. 14-55."
This was the numbering during the Great Crusade. At that time, there was no time to name each newly conquered planet, so a simple marking pattern of expedition fleet plus discovery order was adopted. This was the 14th planet discovered and conquered by the 55th Expedition Fleet.
"975.M30, ordered to be exterminated..."
Fu Qinghai read out these words softly.
This is a bit strange. Although judging from the restored vegetation on Cordra, the orbital bombing should have been adopted at the beginning, compared with the extreme methods such as virus bombs, bipolar cyclone torpedoes or atmospheric incineration torpedoes, it is not so "eradicating the roots", but what kind of enemies on a wild planet can need to be eliminated by the extermination order?
The information about this part is very vague. It does not explain why the extermination order was executed, nor who came to execute the extermination order. There is only a short sentence: the extermination order was executed during the Great Crusade. The current population on Kodra was migrated after the rebellion ended, and they re-established a colonial base.
"Generally speaking, the extermination order executed during the Great Crusade is carried out by the expedition fleet that first discovered the target. Expedition Fleet No. 14, let me check..."
Fu Qinghai was thinking secretly while swiping through the documents.
"The Eighteenth Legion, Salamanders?"
Fu Qinghai was surprised at the answer he found.
It happened to be the legion led by Vokhan.
"Have salamanders also been ordered to be exterminated?"
This is inconsistent with Fu Qinghai's impression of salamanders.
"Wait a minute, could it be..."
Fu Qinghai suddenly thought of a possibility.
Although Fu Qinghai has not read "Beast Wars", he has read several chapters in "The Biographies of the Primarchs". Vulkan Vulkan and the Salamanders have always been known for their sympathy and protection of mortals, but it is precisely because of their consistent good guy settings that the few times they used thunder methods were particularly eye-catching and special, leaving a deep impression on people after reading them.
During the Great Crusade, Vulcan discovered a strange and wild planet. The primitive tribes of the planet did not welcome the expedition fleet, but instead worshipped a group of wild Eldar as gods. After an in-depth investigation, it was discovered that these humans were actually descendants of humans from Nocturne, Vulcan's home planet.
There used to be many Webway Nodes and Webway Gates on Nocturne, so it was long harassed by the Dark Eldar and became a fixed slave-grabbing ground. The Dark Eldar came here every few years to capture slaves, and the local humans were unable to resist - until the young Primarch arrived here and drove away the Dark Eldar.
One group of humans were fortunately not taken to Comoros after being abducted, but were rescued by a group of Savage Eldar in a Webway node. The Savage Eldar drove away the Dark Eldar and settled these human slaves on their own planet to recuperate. So these human slaves and their descendants worshipped and sacrificed to their saviors as gods.
Vokkan's repeated persuasions were futile, as the local humans still rejected him. Realizing that these humans would only accept guidance from the Savage Eldar rather than the Human Empire, Vokkan finally issued an extermination order, destroying all evidence and traces of humans on the planet accepting alien leadership and living in harmony.
"The planet that was ordered to be exterminated..."
Fu Qinghai fell into deep thought:
"Could it be the current Cordra planet?"
The human empire has more than two million worlds, why did Vulkan choose this planet to live in seclusion? Why did Vulkan have to live and die with the human residents of Cordra? Perhaps it was because he had once issued an extermination order for this planet, even though the humans on the planet were no longer the same as before, he still had some special feelings for this planet...
"It's not impossible."
Fu Qinghai leaned back in his chair, scratched his chin and muttered to himself:
"Regret? Self-blame? Or some other reason?"
The humans on that wild planet were innocent. Strictly speaking, they just chose to accept the leadership of the Eldar rather than the Empire. They had not committed any crime. In terms of quality of life and happiness index, it might be better for them to accept the leadership of the Eldar. Moreover, they were the descendants of the humans on Vorkan's home planet. To execute the extermination order against such a group of innocent people, one can imagine the pain and struggle in Vorkan's heart...
"Khan!"
The aide's voice interrupted his thoughts:
"The fleet has arrived at the designated attack position."
Fu Qinghai raised his head and looked at the screen in front of him.
Just as they had done before, the two legion fleets were divided into several groups and deployed along the edge of the range of the battle moon's gravity weapons, like two open hands slowly grabbing the sphere in front of them.
After the first time, they are familiar with it. After the moon landing over Terra, the High Wall is now able to fight the Orcs on the moon with some proficiency. The fleets of the two different legions have even begun to have some tacit cooperation.
Fu Qinghai squinted and looked at the screen.
According to the images sent back by the sensors and auspicious instruments of the Supremacy, the Battle Moon has stopped using gravity storm weapons to continuously "whip" the surface of Cordra. However, a large amount of crustal fragments and rocky soil layers are still being peeled off the surface and flying into the sky under the influence of some powerful gravity. They are sucked towards the Battle Moon, and even a tornado tail composed of giant rocks visible to the naked eye is formed on the surface of the planet.
The earth shattered and flew into the sky.
This stunning sight can be seen from space.
One can imagine how terrifying the surface is at this time.
Most of the surface of the planet Cordra has been lost, forming a large pit visible to the naked eye. The entire planet is like an orange with a small piece of skin peeled off. These crustal fragments were bombarded and peeled off by the gravity storm and floated around the battle moon, forming a ring of irregularly shaped and unevenly dense rocks. This rock ring also blocked the space warriors from attacking the battle moon to a certain extent, but Fu Qinghai did not think that this was its main purpose. The main purpose was to peel off the planet's crust.
"It's creating a...new battle moon?"
Fu Qinghai had some vague guesses in his mind.
Regardless, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
The Battle Moon's gravity weapon was not pointed at itself.
"The weapons array's firing range is blocked, Qingshan."
A holographic projection of Bosimonde flickered into view.
"Should we destroy these rocks that are blocking us?"
A holographic projection of Mandulatu also emerged.
"Go through these pieces of crust."
Fu Qinghai said quickly and excitedly:
"Then just start the gang-up!"
The chapter leaders were stunned for a second when they heard this.
They have destroyed two battle moons. According to the normal process in the past, they should use light spear macro cannons and torpedoes to carry out one or even several rounds of fire coverage on the surface of the battle moon, destroy the surface defense weapon array, temporarily paralyze the gravity storm weapon, and then launch a boarding mission to the battle moon.
But now, these fragments of the stripped crust of the Cordela star floated around the battle moon, blocking both the combined fleet from attacking the battle moon and the battle moon from attacking the combined fleet. Faced with this special situation, a bold plan instantly emerged in Fu Qinghai's mind:
All the warships dispersed through the crustal debris in space, and launched boarding directly after entering the boarding distance!
This is a dangerous action with both advantages and disadvantages.
These crustal fragments are large and small, with the large ones being hundreds of kilometers in size and the small ones being one or two kilometers in size. They are moving and colliding slowly and irregularly, and the space available for warships to pass through is also large and small and is changing all the time - this places extremely high demands on the warship's steering level, and it must be flexible enough to pass through.
Because of the slow relative speed, the void shield is useless against these crustal fragments. Even if the relative speed is increased, the shield will be instantly overloaded and fail. Once it hits these crustal fragments, the small fragments can be knocked away by the solid hull or shattered by the weapon array. The huge crustal fragments hundreds of kilometers wide cannot be handled by the battleship Suzheng.
"This is dangerous and crazy, Aoyama."
Kurland frowned and spoke.
As an Imperial Fist, Kurland was more inclined to use a more feasible and prudent tactical plan that had been proven in practice, rather than a radical and adventurous plan that came up on a whim on the battlefield. However, Fu Qinghai was the highest commander of the coalition forces, and he could only make suggestions.
"Either face the impact of crustal debris, or face the weapon array of the battle moon. It's your choice."
Fu Qinghai looked at the regiment commanders and said.
"I agree with Qingshan's tactical plan."
Mandulatu Khan spoke first.
"I agree."
Targujin Khan turned his head with a wicked smile:
"Does the son of Dorne no longer have confidence in his ship-handling skills?"
"Provocation will not work with us, Targukin."
Quesadella shook his head and said:
"The Crimson Fists chose to bypass this ring of crustal debris."
"can."
Fu Qinghai nodded and said.
He delegated the choice to the various Chapter Masters.
The Seventh Legion had fought a great battle like the Battle of Farr a thousand years ago, where the few defeated the many and the weak defeated the strong, so the Dornishmen's boat driving skills must be no problem. The choice to bypass this circle of crustal debris instead of passing through it may be more based on personality or habit. With the advantage in military strength, Fu Qinghai doesn't mind having a few more tactical options, which may also bring some amazing results.
White Scar is a wild horse on the loose.
The Imperial Fists are solid rock.
"Now, launch the attack."
Fu Qinghai stood up from his seat.
…………