In the first and second round of fighting, thousands of people had already died!
The pirates suffered the brunt of the casualties. Almost their entire garrisons at the outer vaults had died. The Larkinson infantryn didn't have the ti or leisure to take too many captives.
More pirates died at the main stronghold. Many of the destructive weapon systems that the Dry Snakes brought to bear against the Larkinsons were crewed by specially-trained pirates.
When the weapons they operated got struck by massive overpowering lasers or a tactical nuclear missile, the people around them usually died as well!
Screams echoed throughout several locations on the moon-sized asteroid as they beca awash with destructive heat and energy.
Fortunately for the pirates, they built their critical base areas deeper underground. Most of the superweapons failed to threaten Ulimo Citadel proper.
In the lull that ensued, the Larkinson Clan already moved on to the next step. They spread their chs around. Their ranged chs continued to use the surrounding asteroids as cover as they fired their weapons at the known pirate superweapon positions that survived the previous exchange of fire.
Though their weapons weren't so exaggeratingly powerful, the Larkinson chs slowly whittled away at the remaining intact superweapons.
From the start, the Larkinsons always focused on taking out the most destructive options available to the pirates!
There was no way they could accomplish anything else unless almost every single superweapon was taken off the board!
It took a lot of effort to remove the remainder of the superweapons. Even if the pirates held a couple of Judgent Lasers and Ghostring missile launchers back, the Larkinsons possessed detailed intelligence of the precise locations of every weapon emplacent, exposed or not. Any plot to keep them hidden until the Larkinson chs ca closer were dashed!
Thousands of ranged pirate chs did not remain idle. As soon as the Larkinsons hijacked the vaults, they received orders to fire at any exposed enemy chs.
It was difficult to pick off the Larkinson chs. There was so much distance between the main base and the outlying vaults that roaming asteroids frequently blocked their line of sight.
The sa could not be said for the Larkinson chs. Ulimo presented a wealth of targets.
In contrast, the pirate chs huddling behind their starships, fortifications or asteroids were having a very hard ti hitting anything but empty space or solid cover!
"You blasted scum! Hit sothing already!" A pirate liaison scread in the command channel of the Ulimo Militia.
A squad of Mirror Raider chs huddled behind a fortified trench the pirates had dug into a stationary asteroid.
Dietrich's generic pirate ch attempted to hit the distant chs of the Avatars of Myth.
Even though he and his fellow Mirror Raiders purposefully reduced their accuracy to a level typically expected of pirates, they did not dare to miss too often.
Even so, the few laser beams and projectiles that happened to hit a Larkinson ch effectively achieved no result!
He grinned. He attacked the Bright Warrior and Aurora Titan chs without any guilt. Their defenses were so high that it was extrely unlikely that the Mirror Raiders would be able to kill a single Larkinson!
The Larkinson Clan purposefully exposed their most defensible chs a bit more. The clansn trusted in their defenses, and they served as excellent distractions as the few pirate chs that managed to hit their targets only wasted their energy or ammunition in vain!
Though so of the pirate officers were aware that their ranged chs were not achieving anything significant, doing sothing was better than doing nothing!
Grand Protector Roshaw unflinchingly shot any pirate commander who made any decisions that hinted at weakness.
Blam!
Another high-ranked pirate officer lost his head!
"Conserve resources? NONSENSE!" The pirate lord bood as he brandished his smoking gun at the remaining pirate officers. "We are facing the biggest threat of our lives! Our fellow Nyxian pirates may have scruples, but these outsiders are killers true and true! None of the civilized folk treat us with dignity! The only way to resist their aggression is to show as much fighting spirit as possible! We must demonstrate our conviction to fight to the death!"
"Fight! Fight! Fight!"
Even though the situation looked dire, the pirates weren't willing to give up! Ulimo Citadel was their ho and their stronghold. GIving it up would make everyone holess!
Surrendering was not an option. Running away wasn't an option either, as the Dry Snakes had already turned on any ch or ship that attempted to flee without authorization!
At a distant asteroid close to one of the conquered and bombed-out aults, the Second ch Company periodically poked out their Bright Warriors.
The chs with rifles continued to fire at the targets designated by the command net. Even if they didn't know what they were firing at, the ch pilots pulled the trigger regardless, trusting that the orders and targeting data conveyed by other Larkinsons were sound.
The Bright warriors ard with swords and spears exposed their fras as well. The space knight configuration acted the most conspicuously. Even when the pirates utilized more powerful or unusual weapons such as graser rifles, the thick tower shields resisted most of the damage.
That said, not every pirate ch fired at these conspicuous targets. Occasionally, an unlucky Larkinson ch suffered major damage, which impaired their performance or rendered them battle ineffective right away!
Few Larkinson ch pilots died in this exchange of fire, but losing their chs signified the end of their participation. Task Force Predator possessed too few backup chs to give the surviving pilots another opportunity to reenter the battle.
"The battle has slowed down." Imon Ingvar impatiently remarked. "When are we going in? I haven't stabbed a single pirate ch with my sword!"
Out of the four different Bright Warrior configurations, he fell in love with the swordsman ch loadout. Though it lacked the defenses of the space knight configuration or the imnse impact of the lancer ch configuration, the swordsman ch offered the greatest play to his abilities in combat.
As for his sister, Captain Casella Ingvar preferred to pilot a rifleman ch configuration. Getting too close to the battle often caused her to lose sight of the bigger picture.
"The plan isn't to advance."
"Huh?! What are you talking about, sis?!"
"Who knows what traps or other tricks the pirates have in reserve. Look at the base. We may have destroyed all of their superweapons, but the pirates still retain plenty of heavily protected turrets and weapon emplacents."
After removing or circumventing the faulty software that plagued their conventional defensive systems, the pirates slowly brought their fixed defenses to bear against the attackers.
It took way too much ti for the Larkinsons to destroy every single fixed defense system. While none of these weapon emplacents possessed the destructive power of the superweapons that the Larkinsons prioritized right away, their huge volu of fire still deserved a lot of respect!
For this reason, the Larkinsons wanted to entice the pirate chs to advance from their positions and leave the defensive envelope of Ulimo Citadel.
The pirates weren't fools, though. As much as Grand Protector Roshaw wanted to smash his chs against the chs of the Larkinson Clan, he knew that he must resist the temptation and continue to rely on his remaining fixed defenses.
In order to encourage the pirates to abandon their passive posture, the Penitent Sisters finally made a move.
At this point, much of the interference from all of the superweapons had faded. The Larkinson Clan obtained a very detailed understanding of the current positions of enemy chs.
While most of the Larkinson ranged chs still directed their firepower towards the stationary turrets and defenses of Ulimo Citadel, the exiled Hexers quickly began to utilize their superior skills and chs to attack the pirate chs!
Instantly, the pressure on the pirates increased as hundreds of Penitent Sister chs fired their second-class rifles and cannons at the pirate chs regardless of how much cover was in the way!
Whether there were ters of asteroid rock or bulk exotic alloys in the way, the positron beams and gauss rounds made quick work of the obstacles!
Squads of Penitent Sister chs coordinated their firepower in order to quickly strip a pirate ch of all of their protection. The most devious aspect about their firing patterns was that they did not grant any pirate ch the ti to retreat or duck into another cover!
With dozens of high-powered attacks barraging these hapless pirate chs at once, the pirates quickly lost more than a hundred chs in a matter of minutes!
The disparity in firepower was incredibly galling to the pirates. If they only had a few superweapons left intact, they could have put up a good fight!
"Sir, we need to go in!" A pirate advisor urged.
"That's exactly what those blasted Larkinsons want us to do! We can't fall into their trap!"
"Diving into their trap is preferable to suffering a slow death!"
Grand Protector Roshaw grew graver and graver. The projections continued to display the drop in numbers. More and more of his chs were being picked apart by the second-class chs of the enemy.
"Pull our pirate chs back."
"What? Are you sure, my lord?"
Up until now, Roshaw ruthlessly squashed anyone who suggested any of the sort. The headless bodies of several unfortunate pirate officers strewn on the deck served as a reminder to everyone that the Grand Protector did not tolerate any cowardice!
Yet strangely enough, the pirate leader changed his mind. Everyone felt mixed at the sudden change.
"Don't question my orders! Pull back our chs and make sure they are placed behind enough cover to prevent those blasted Hexers chs from picking off our machines."
While Grand Protector Roshaw still decided to keep his last resort in reserve, he possessed several other options that could potentially turn this situation around.
No matter what, the Dry Snakes reigned over one of the more mineral-rich areas of Maynard Fields! Much like any other local overlord in the Nyxian Gap, the Dry Snakes built a lot of defensive asures. Much of it was in the open, but Roshaw made sure that his pirate group invested at least so resources into other solutions.
"Tell as soon as our chs have reached safety. Take this opportunity to replenish their energy and ammunition reserves."
"Yes, my lord!"
The sudden withdrawal of the pirate chs confused the Larkinsons a bit. Most of them thought that the pirates would either break and run or charge forward out of desperations.
"Are they trying to outlast us? It won't work! Our guns are constantly breaking down their defense networks!"
Several asteroids bore the marks of many weapon impacts. Each of them previously boasted a lot of fixed defenses. Now, most of their guns and weapon batteries only consisted of ruined craters and molten slag.
As long as the Larkinson Clan destroyed every turret and weapon emplacent, the defensive advantage of the pirates would no longer play a aningful role!
As long as the Larkinsons reduced this battle to a contest between chs, the pirates would certainly lose!
Back at the Scarlet Rose, Ves began to frown as an unsettling feeling settled over his mind. He beca puzzled at this response as well.
"What are the pirates doing? Have we detected any unusual activity?"
"No sir." A bridge officer replied. "We have detected elevated energy signatures or traces of unstable exotics that are typically added to nuclear warheads."
Before Ves could issue another request, the battlefield centered around Ulimo Citadel suddenly changed.
A huge black sphere spread out from the moon-sized asteroid and expanded across many kiloters! The surrounding asteroids were each engulfed by the wave of blackness until they swept over every Larkinson and Penitent Sister ch!
"WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING?!" Ves stood up from his chair. "REPORT!"
"Sir, according to our sensors, an atypical anomaly has swept over the battlefield! Both the pirates and our combat forces are isolated from our fleet!"
Ves couldn't believe what had happened! This was definitely not a coincidence! The pirates had sohow managed to summon an artificial anomaly!
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