"Sir, this is the red pirate signal coming from the edge of the Pavilion Star."
Marco reported that as the technical director, he was also qualified to participate in the combat meeting hosted by Iongra Speer.
Upon hearing the news, the fleet commander of the Black Legion was stunned for a moment, and then said:
"Are they still around? This is interesting. Where is the Empire?"
"Remote surveyors are scanning over 30 ships moored in high orbit over the Pisces, and thermal responses from reactors and sensors indicate a mix of capital ships and heavy transports."
Kranon the Heartless leaned his hands on the shiny metal edge, a faint sneer flashing across his lips.
"Does this still require the use of instruments? You can see it with your eyes."
"The eye can't be that precise."
Hearing these words, the leader of the Brotherhood of Steel, 'Cold Steel' Capac Tari, shook his head.
He was a soldier who served in the late period of the Great Expedition. His eyes were originally silver, but now the smoky gray lenses are deeply embedded in the scarred eye sockets - during the Battle of the Farr Sea, he was struck by a cabin explosion that formed sharp eyes.
The fragments severely injured him, causing severe neurological damage, turning his face into a cold, mysterious mask, but he never cared, only being proud of the scars he had received during his service.
After receiving support, Marco continued his report.
"...We also detected an unusually large reactor signal, consistent with the Dark Angel's monolithic fortress."
Ian Grasper nodded.
"It's a scary thing, but it's past its prime. I just didn't expect the Dark Angels to come out of their lair and lose so miserably."
Then, he looked seriously at the hologram above the table and the real-time updated data.
The Death Star is at the center of the hologram, and small red icons dot the world as a new battle group of the Black Legion approaches, marking the size and location of enemy ships in orbit.
Several of these icons are particularly obvious, primarily the Dark Angels' Stone Fortress, the Astral Knights' Eternal Loyalty, and the White Templars' Heart of Light, while other icons are grouped according to their size and reactor emissions.
Currently, the picture shows no less than 10 cruiser-sized spots parked on the Pisces Star, surrounding another 10 transport ships, with double-digit numbers of small warships cruising and patrolling on the outside.
Heller Renaud stood to the left of Ion Grasper, barely concealing the worry on his face.
There is no doubt that the enemy has twice as many capital ships as they do. Although for now, the Black Legion still enjoys the advantage of surprise, no one can tell how long this situation will last.
Not just him, the entire dark hall was full of tension and uneasiness——
In fact, most of the people in the Black Legion have lost confidence due to previous failures. If reinforcements had not arrived, they would have fled long ago.
Heller Reno then focused on tactics, trying to put aside his sense of foreboding.
"Sir, the enemy outnumbers us."
Eingra Speer glanced at the other party sideways and said sarcastically:
"I can do calculations in my head, man. I think I can count to thirty on my own."
Heller Renault twisted his shoulders uncomfortably.
"Yes, of course, I'm not attacking the obvious, I'm just curious about your strategy-"
"Don't be nervous, brother."
However, Eingra Speer chuckled and patted Heller on the shoulder.
"I got you."
He pointed to the fleet group above the Pai Mao star.
"Our mission is not to defeat them. Even an Ogryn knows that this is impossible. We can't even chew up boulders, let alone other warships."
As he said that, he turned and glanced at Kranon.
"We just need to get reinforcements on the ground."
Kranon snorted softly and said hoarsely:
"The other side isn't an idiot and will let you walk onto the track with such swagger."
"So we have to count on it."
Eingra Speer pointed to an inconspicuous weak signal near the planet.
That's the Red Pirates' fleet.
"I'm curious."
Capak Tali suddenly said:
"How did they manage to be so close without being detected?"
"What's the name of the leader of the Red Pirates this time? I don't remember it, but that guy has two skills in psychic powers, and he also has a group of Thousand Sons wizards under his command."
"wizard."
Kranon spat directly on the ground.
"It's all disgusting stuff."
"Anyway, their methods are very useful to us, that's all."
As he spoke, he clicked on the control panel.
"This is the battle plan. I also sent it to the Red Pirates. If we execute it according to the plan, there is a high probability that we can-"
Just as he was talking, the bridge alarm suddenly sounded.
"Sir! They have discovered us. The patrol fleet has already approached and is preparing to engage. Based on the current course and speed, the contact time will be forty-five minutes."
Marco straightened up and clasped his hands behind his back.
"Sir, what are your orders?"
They have fired their bows and there is no turning back, but now they are still some distance away from the Pavilion Star, and the battle group still has the time and ability to withdraw from the system.
If they choose to move forward, they will be irrevocably plunged into battle.
Ian Graspeer didn't hesitate.
"Execute the attack plan, send the signal, maintain speed, and engage immediately once the patrol enters range. We will launch the first strike, and the Red Pirates will wait for instructions."
Marco bowed to Eingra Speer, turned around, and issued a series of orders to the command staff.
Ionglasper turned his attention back to the hologram. After looking at it for a while, he turned to Kranon and said:
"Brother, you have to be prepared for orbital landing. I predict that we will pass through the low orbit of the planet Expeller in three hours."
"I see."
After Kranon finished speaking, he began to transmit orders through his channel.
At this point, the image above the collector updated again, this time depicting the approximate locations of the three patrol squadrons.
Ahead of them, three squadrons, shown in bright red, slowly formed into a rough crescent-shaped formation, like a pair of embracing arms, toward the oncoming Black Legion fleet.
Numerical data in blue and red colors describe the distance, course and speed of the two armies as they steadily increase in speed.
Eingra Speer studied these glowing data particles carefully, arms crossed, expression distant and deep.
Suddenly, Heller Renault saw a ghostly smile flash across the face of the fleet commander, and felt uneasy.
At that moment, he really wanted to know what the picture was in the other person's mind, because he knew this guy too well. He was good at everything, but sometimes he was easily overconfident!
But now he can't do anything but pray that the dark power can protect them this time.