In the hazy dusk, the flames on the ground gradually extinguished, the stars in Ayr's sky shone brightly, and clusters of meteor showers surrounded the sky that was rotating overhead.
The wind in Ayr is not as warm and moist as it used to be, like the last breath exhaled by a dying lady.
The sky is unobstructed, and even from the ground you can see traces of the battle above the tracks.
Some battleships fly very low, and their miles-long fusion trails are extremely spectacular, like long broomsticks with ignited tails, while more battleships are still above the ionosphere, just flashing light spots.
.
In the upper space, the human plasma weapons and the protoss beam weapons attacked each other, clenching each other, and the orange and blue beams criss-crossed in an intricate manner. The attacks of the insect swarms were not conspicuous, but most of the exploding warships were
It is their masterpiece.
Every few minutes or more, a star will light up in the sky, and then the battleship torn apart by the gravity field will disintegrate into millions of white-hot fragments, slowly turning red, blue, and falling like
Rain falls.
Along with the loud noise, occasionally some battleship wreckage would fall near the Protoss Temple, some of which had a shiny luster like precious metals, like gems left by the gods among the sandbanks.
Countless humans and protoss warriors died miserably in the high-temperature molten hull. If they were still alive at that time, the torture they endured would be nothing short of the most cruel and inhumane torture in the world.
On the ground, each unit re-entered a new position after a short rest. Although everyone was exhausted at this moment and narrowly escaped death before returning to the assembly point, they were still able to fight.
The new position was built around a protoss temple, and the energy source inside it was large enough to charge the Xel'Naga artifact.
The first line of defense is the Gorgon-class battlecruisers parked in the four directions outside the temple. It combines resistance bunkers, fixed tanks and heavy firepower strongholds to form a circular defense position. There are numerous destruction turrets in between.
, doomsday turret, rail turret, automatic cannon and gas turret.
A dense minefield is laid out on the front of the defense line. There are 6,000 to 10,000 mines of various types deployed on every square mile of land, including old-fashioned equipment such as Spider mines, Widow mines, and Magnet mines, as well as Black Widows, which are extremely destructive.
Next-generation weapons such as man-machine and sonar drone equipped with EMP electromagnetic weapons.
Relying on the ring-shaped ashlar city wall surrounding the temple that has existed for thousands of years, the Imperial Engineering Corps established a second line of defense. They used pure steel plates, new alloys, and recycled nanometals to reinforce the old city wall, and the giant obelisk shone brightly.
Lookout points and gun emplacements were set up, and a spectacular man-made steel plateau was built on top of the temple at an alarming speed.
On the outside of the third line of defense, from the long stone steps to the magnificent curved arches, from the beautiful boulder courtyard to the gorgeous temple with the Xel'Naga artifacts, the Imperial Artillery troops deployed twelve thousand Earth-Shattered Gates.
Cannons and high-energy particle cannons derived from Earth's UED technology.
Weapons against the zerg and protoss have also been deployed on a large scale, including psionic crushers, psionic disruptors, hive mind simulators and EMP scramblers.
The enemy's initial offensive will be very fierce, but their firepower is sufficient, but sooner or later their energy and ammunition reserves will not be able to keep up with consumption.
Once the defense lines are breached one after another, the nuclear bomb generating well outside the temple will launch a large-scale nuclear strike to cleanse the battlefield.
By then, Augustus estimated that the Xel'Naga artifact would have been fully charged.
If it's not enough, you can only delay it as much as possible.
The artificial intelligence in the command center can give quite accurate figures for how long they can hold on. However, the battle situation is changing rapidly, and they have few cards in their hands, and they know nothing about the enemy.
Generally speaking, the attacking side will pay greater losses than the defending side, but if the former suffers far more losses than the latter, and the sacrifice is never taken into account, then it is difficult to say.
This is what the Tyranids have often faced over the years as they battle the zerg.
And when Kara has been corrupted and occupied by Amon, the Golden Fleet can almost be regarded as another form of swarm.
When Augustus was thinking this, he was walking down a long staircase from the front hall of the temple to the courtyard. This staircase was still too wide and too long for humans. It was probably prepared for the gods of the stars.
of.
Everywhere in the temple exuded an amazing warm heat. Whether this heat came from the residual heat of the sun or from the crystals embedded in the walls, Augustus couldn't figure out.
At this moment, the heart-stoppingly beautiful temple is standing behind Augustus. As long as you take a closer look, even those who lack the ability to appreciate art can be impressed by the intricate carvings on the escalators, columns, and lintels.
Impressed by the endless details.
But Augustus was not even in the mood to take a second look. These things could not kill even one enemy.
"Someone told me that the precious inheritance of the protoss has been played with Al. Unexpectedly, there is a protoss temple right under Eamon's nose, which is as new as if it was just dug up." Tychus and Ao
Gusdu was coming out of the temple, preparing to inspect the frontline positions.
After confirming that the Xel'Naga artifact in the temple was operating normally, Augustus handed over full command to the two generals, Wachowski and Ulysses, and ordered them to take full control and conduct command and dispatch.
Even during the war, Augustus may not be able to fight on the front line in person. He believed that even if he personally commanded, he would not be able to do better than the generals in the headquarters. Compared with them, the soldiers on the front line were more capable.
An imperial emperor is needed.
"This temple is like a villain suddenly breaking into your home and smashing all your collections. When you desperately think that there is nothing in the pile of rubble, you find that your most valuable one is still intact.
No damage.”
Augustus used an analogy to describe the temple, concluding: "But tonight it too must come to an end."
Since the fall of Aiur, the protoss have discovered that they have lost too many things: technology, culture, and art. The protoss usually do not record their history in writing, and the answers to everything can be found in Kara.
Perhaps no protoss ever thought that one day Kara would turn her back on them.
"If I were me, I would first find out which of your things is the most valuable." Tychus consciously put himself into the perspective of the villain, without feeling anything wrong at all.
Tychus took out a cigarette by himself, borrowed a fire from the Umoyan officer who was heading to the temple, and began to think about which artwork in the Augustgrad Palace was the most valuable. Then he went out to enjoy himself.
Happy, wait until the incident comes to light and then pretend to be dead.
Unfortunately, Queen Sarah Kerrigan knows everything in the palace.
Tychus wanted to go in and get something, but he couldn't say he was sure of winning, or it might be impossible.
"Haha, you villain." Augustus finally smiled and was amused by him.
"Thankfully the first person Jimmy met was me and not you."
In recent years, wars have been frequent. The average lifespan of the Empire's soldiers and marines, especially those deployed in orbital airborne operations, has dropped again and again during their service. There is a general feeling among these people that they should take advantage of the opportunity while they are still alive.
The point of view of enjoying yourself in time.
Tychus is different, he has always been like this.
"Who knows, but unlike me, Jimmy is going to get back on track sooner or later."
"And I, I can never do a noble thing in my life." Tychus exhaled a puff of smoke and sighed:
"People like him are different from me."
"You are getting old too, Tychus," said Augustus.
"I don't have to worry about so many things. I will definitely live longer than you." Tychus said very bachelorly.
The Imperial High Command is set up inside the temple. Even in such a place, the war is still not far away. The anti-aircraft missile tower keeps rotating, locking, and shooting, and the membrane wings and limb fragments of the fallen alien dragons are densely packed.
rain.
There are not only human armies here, but also some protoss commanders wearing armor.
In the previous battles, the losses of the human and protoss coalition forces were not small. But when it comes to whether his people can escape from the corrupted Kara, it is impossible for Dallam not to try his best.
They should have been responsible for guarding the Xel'Naga artifact, but Augustus hoped that they could put more effort into fleet battles to withstand the offensive of the insect swarm and the golden fleet.
Even if they only free up the Pride of Altaris, the Fallen Ark, they can send this temple to the sky together with the Xel'Naga artifact in it.
Another difference from the original timeline is that Artanis failed to integrate the Purifiers and Tal'darim before this decisive battle. These two protoss factions did not recognize his leadership authority.
When Augustus walked towards the stone steps, he saw a group of Durham stalkers walking past in a column, their armors emitting a silvery light in the light of the lighting crystal.
Every few minutes, you can see rows of zealots with golden light and white armor marching towards the outer defense line with neat military appearance. High-ranking templars wearing blue sacrificial robes are moving forward in the raging psychic storm. There is no one.
The protoss warriors are left behind.
Artanis dispatched a large-scale apostolic army. Their light armor adopted a more elegant modern design, and their rustling battle robes highlighted their slender figures. Even from a long distance, Augustus could feel it.
Get the powerful power behind these psychic warriors.
Behind the Immortals equipped with heavy armor and resolute shields is the Disruptor, a war machine semi-suspended in the air that looks like a disintegrating sphere that has been aggregated.
Although this is not the first time it has appeared, humans still know very little about this terrible weapon of war. It is currently known to be a machine with high artificial intelligence and large-scale destruction capabilities. These empires have already seen it on the battlefield.
.
The Disruptor is derived from the Purifier Protoss. Due to its amazing power, other protoss factions quickly copied it. The redesigned Dallam Disruptor can even destroy enemies within a two-mile radius.
Heavy machinery with powerful firepower will be the key to their ability to withstand the vast sea of insects. To this end, Augustus asked Dalam, Purifiers and Tal'darin Protoss to deploy all their immortals and colossi in the temple area.
Therefore, towering giant statues can be seen everywhere in the temple at this moment, like towers on the move.
The Purifiers did not send many troops, but that was precisely because they were facing the furious swarm and the other half of the golden fleet. If not for them, this war would have ended within a few hours after the Overlord Swarm arrived.
.
The word arrogance is often used to describe the protoss, but another word that is often ignored is bellicosity.
Before the emergence of Dawu's teachings, the El Protoss was also in a state of foreign war for a long time. Protoss, this race has never been afraid of war.
On the way to inspect, almost all the protoss recognized Augustus and paid tribute to him and the imperial soldiers around him.
Augustus's personal prestige among the protoss is already very high, and it is estimated that it can reach "reverence". This is not important. What is important is that the alliance between the Tyranids and Durham has become more and more stable, and humans and protoss have finally abandoned it.
Due to past estrangement, you think that the other person is your friend rather than your enemy.
He only hopes that the relationship between humans and protoss can continue in the future, at least there will be no more wars.
But can this state really last long?
The covenant cannot bind anyone at all. Protoss can live for a long time and will definitely keep their promises. But humans are short-lived and forgetful. After a few generations, they will forget everything that happened in Aiur today.
But speaking of it, threats that can disrupt and destroy humanity often come from internal rather than external enemies.
The first thing Augustus and Tychus arrived at was an earth-shattering cannon position. Hundreds or thousands of giant cannons were firing at the same time. The shells were flying overhead, and the artillery fire was like a weave.
The wind direction seemed to have suddenly changed at this time.
The earth gasped and trembled under the roaring gunfire, and the small puddles on the ground that had accumulated some rainwater were constantly making waves, as if many giants were walking by.
The huge shell casing fell at Augustus' feet, and he couldn't help but imagine the scene of such a shell falling between the enemies.
A huge Amon army has completed its assembly twenty miles south of the Imperial Army's position, and is currently receiving heavy attention from Imperial artillery fire.
"The enemy has begun to attack?" Tychus asked.
"Our artillery fire will destroy most of the enemy's combat power before they actually reach the defense line." Augustus said.
As they said this, they rode an armored personnel carrier to the second line of defense. The road was full of people and vehicles, and they even saw a few Umoyan Eradicator robots, and protoss warriors were also very common.
In order to show respect for the imperial army, Artanis directly handed over the command of the ground forces to Augustus' generals.
This is unheard of for the proud Star Spirits.
But this thing makes sense. Human beings have gathered the power of the entire sector to come here. In the final analysis, it is because your Kara has a big problem.
Humanity has made such a huge sacrifice, not only for themselves, but also for you protoss.