The phase whale race had begun to move in earnest.
Previously, the phase whales had been content to remain behind the scenes. As the original gods of the Red Ocean, they commanded enough respect and worship from the other races that their absence from the battlefield did not generate any complaints.
It helped that the phase whales of the Red Cabal successfully united the rivaling major races and bound them together in order to accomplish a common cause.
So long as the invading humans remained a serious threat to the natives of the new frontier, the Red Cabal would continue to retain its legitimacy.
This effectively put the phase whales in charge of all of the aliens in the Red Ocean!
Of course, the real situation was probably a lot more nuanced than that. Not every alien race worshiped the phase whales as literal gods, and there were probably a lot of phase lords that secretly desired to tear down the presumptive overlords.
For years, the phase whales kept themselves out of harm's way while using the humongous population of the other races as literal cannon fodder.
The phase whales did not care about the feelings or opinions of these aliens, particularly the lesser ones.
Even if the low-ranking aliens objected to their suicidal missions, there was no need for the mighty phase whales to act in person. There were plenty of enforcers of other races that could easily squash dissent before it could spread.
Thus, the Red War unfolded as the phase whales desired. A lot of human and alien blood got spilled across the frontlines, yet rarely if ever did the blood originate from an actual phase whale.
They could have stuck to this pattern and continue to drive the phase lords of the other races to risk their lives on the battlefield. This was an excellent opportunity to cull the native gods of the other races and prevent them from having any rebellious ideas down the line.
The fact that the phase whales chose to enter the fray in person showed that they had different ideas.
Whether the phase whales were forced to respond to political pressure or whether they moved out because they genuinely sought to maximize their chances of inflicting a fatal blow to red humanity, the phase whales had moved out in great numbers! Not only did they show up in many contested star systems in the Upper Zones, they had also invested at least 6 ancient phase whales to temporarily envelop the Yernstall Central Star Node in a greater spaceti bubble!
The latter was a particularly costly investnt and one that would likely end with all of the powerful phase whales dead at the hand of Yernstall's extrely powerful defenders.
Ancient phase whales may be True God-level existences, but red humanity had its own gods. Nobody was too concerned about Yernstall. Its defenders would be able to free the central star node from its isolation.
Still, the temporary isolation already created a lot of ripple effects. Yernstall was ho to a lot of research institutions and production facilities. It served as the center of trade and beca a nexus of human civilization.
Most crucially, Yernstall was one of the few star systems where Terrans and Rubarthans could tolerate each other's presence. Trade between the Terran Alliance and the Rubarthan Pact proceeded a lot more smoothly even if they had to put up with the pretense of relying on the services of third-party brokers.
Human High Command definitely had a strong presence within Yernstall as well. Even if the military strategists and their enormous staff had made an effort to decentralize their offices, the loss of Yernstall still inflicted a symbolic and operational setback during one of the most critical weeks of the Red War!
It was not an exaggeration to say that the outco of the battles unfolding in the next months would decide the life and death of red humanity!
As the native aliens assigned to take over the Kayana System had begun to advance towards the eighth planet from the star, all of the defending forces stoically prepared to fight for the future of their race and civilization.
The arrival of a greater phase whale threw a huge wrench in the plans of the human defenders.
The fact that the native aliens purposefully deployed one in a star system that hosted a super fortress indicated that the greater phase whale was confident in his ability to deal with the Obsidian Orb!
Nobody knew what the greater phase whale was capable of. The phase whales hadn't exactly fought much in battle, and they had definitely made far better preparations in order to properly fight against their human foes.
The intelligence services worked hard to gather as much data as possible. They were familiar with at least so of the phase lords that accompanied the armada, but half of them were completely new.
As the battle was only a little over an hour away, the intelligence gathered by operatives embedded in nurous alien societies finally managed to transmit enough useful information to hold a small briefing.
Saint Stark studied the intelligence package carefully. She took note of any relevant information about their equipnt and defensive capabilities.
"You can peruse the information on the 16 lesser phase lords at your own leisure." Saint Alo told the guest pilot. "Do not dismiss their threat. Unlike the lesser phase lords that are assigned to attack the Middle Zones, these ones are a caliber above. Their lineages and backing are better. Their phasewater organs are rarer and better developed. Their raints can withstand powerful attacks considerably better and are equipped with other advanced tech. Their biggest shortcoming is their ego. They are more full of themselves and typically have poor teamwork.
"Shouldn't their greater phase lords or the greater phase whale keep them in line, Alo?" Saint Stark asked.
"Not... exactly. Think about it. The phase lords assigned to the Middle and Lower Zones usually have good mortal backgrounds, but are practically the equivalent of grassroots civilians in their societies. The lesser phase lords that we are about to fight against are the most favored scions of older alien dynasties. There are many implications, but the most important one you should keep in mind is that they are a better match against junior ace chs. If you are not careful enough, they can end your life and the life of your ch."
"I see."
It made sense. These lesser phase lords were a cut above the rest of their kind. Assigning them to the Upper Zones was a rational choice as they were much more
capable of withstanding first-class firepower.
"These phase lords also have a habit of hiding behind the bulk of their own warships, especially if they are assigned to the Rubarthan front." Jeri Chevor added. "They respect and fear our firepower, with good reason. Their spatial barriers are ridiculously strong, but mortal firepower can still tear them down as long as it is vast
enough."
"The aliens will seek to close in, then?"
"Yes. You may very well be forced to put your new training to use. The greater phase lords are much more concerning. The Descent of Hushae'Rhua is a familiar sight. among us. He is a nunser greater phase lord that has led the gradual conquest of the previous defensive bands for years in the Monroe Upper Zone. He is familiar with our chs, our tech, our doctrines, our thinking and so on. He will not be fooled by our tricks. What is worse is that he has been awarded with a Saint Piercer, though its size is fairly limited. The greater phase lord will have to maintain a more compact body form in order to wield it as a polearm."
"What they lack in size and reach, they make up for in maneuverability and reaction speed." Stark described. "It is a worthwhile tradeoff even if it makes their bodies more vulnerable to assassinations."
A big body was a pain to fell. There was just too much mass in the way that could block an attack before it reached a vital organ.
When a phase lord reduced the size of his true body, his diminished form did not beco proportionately weaker. The formula was actually a lot more complicated than that, but it was undeniable that most attacks were able to penetrate a bit further into the flesh. There were definite risks to phase lords that tried to shrink to their smallest possible statures.
Saint Stark had encountered plenty of nunser phase lords in the past. They were among the most common races on the battlefield. Nunsers usually lacked imagination, but many of them were often disciplined and diligent. Their martial fighting skills were always solid at minimum, though their enthusiasm for spatial manipulation was not as
high.
Davia Stark had grown familiar enough with their biologies to know where she should target her Instrunt of Vengeance.
"The second greater phase lords co from the jureg race. From what our intelligence agents have gathered, the Divine Supplicant of the Great Ones is new to the frontlines. Unlike the Descent of Hushae'Rhua, this giant crustacean-like alien directly serves in the Red Cabal. Look at how he is constantly shadowing the greater phase whale. Our intelligence against believe that he serves as a direct vassal or retainer. He is clearly here to serve as the greater phase whale's shield. His raint is remarkably modern and high in quality, and he is also carrying a piece of superdinsional equipnt that we have never witnessed in the past."
So far, the native aliens had only unveiled Saint Piercers. These long and relatively thin poles comprised entirely of fairly high-grade superdinsional matter and could pierce through almost everything.
People had long speculated that the native aliens weren't dull enough to stick to spears alone, and what they witnessed today confird that the aliens had bult other stuff with the superdinsional matter that they managed to obtain from unclear
sources!
The Divine Supplicant carried a fairly large and wide physical shield on one of its forelimbs. This shield was at least partially made out of superdinsional matter!
This did not bode well for the human defenders. If everyone's suspicions were correct, this superdinsional shield granted the Divine Supplicant the ability to resist attacks far exceeding what his other defenses could tolerate!
Was it enough to withstand the enormous might of the Obsidian Orb?
Saint Stark feared that the answer to this question might not be what she desired!
"What about the greater phase whale himself?"
"The aliens have information on him. He is known as the Divine Maw, and he serves as
a cadre for the Red Cabal. In combat, this greater phase whale is known to be strong in both martial and spatial manipulation, with a greater preference towards the latter. He is most infamous for being able to open his maw and absorb every attack or craft
that passes through his massive gullet." "What?! Is that even possible?!"
Saint Alo grimaced. "None of this is reliable information, so take it what you will.
Personally, my sister and I think it is credible that the Divine Maw has replaced his
original stomach with a phasewater organ that serves the sa purpose and so much more. It likely works as a dinsional stomach. Anything that the greater phase whale devours will literally end up in a pocket space. That is where he gets his title. Suffice to say, do not get devoured by him. Do not even attempt to fight him at close range. Your plasma bayonet will do nothing against an enemy of this caliber."
"I am not stupid. My resonance strength alone is not even close enough to threaten
the life of a greater phase lord the size of a small moon. That said, will this phase lord maintain his enormous size?"
"We are not certain. If he does, then his defenses will remain at full strength, but he
will also beco incredibly easy to target by all manner of siege weapons. It all hinges on whether the Obsidian Orb can inflict enough damage to force the Divine Maw to shrink his enormous true body and take shelter behind his forces."
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