"Battle alert! Battle alert! All personnel to battle stations! All personnel to battle stations!" Red alert lights flashed in every compartment, and voice broadcasts from the command bridge echoed through the narrow corridors.
The young drummer beat his snare drum. The tradition of 'drumming for battle' had been preserved from humanity's ancient times into the 41st millennium.
"Armed readiness! Armed readiness!" Armed Officers shouted at the top of their lungs, and the dense sound of running troops was incessant amidst the urgent and tense drumbeats.
Compartment doors leading to the medical bay were opened wide; the kitchen ceased fire to prevent accidental fires during engagement; anti-fragmentation nets descended via pulleys to 5 meters above head height, protecting personnel below from falling debris as much as possible.
Macro cannon shells and propellants were transported from the ammunition depot by giant cranes to the ready fireproof compartment, and massive Laser energy units were replaced.
The crew collectively cleared the deck, making space for combat. For anti-boarding considerations, the Imperial Navy's combat manual required crew members to only leave sufficient cover for their own side, moving anything that could be used as cover by the enemy.
1000 trained Voidsmen-at-Arms were not many for a ship 1 kilometer long, 200 meters wide, and 460 meters high, so meticulously planning how to deploy personnel of different skill levels to the most needed areas was crucial.
Louise's fingers constantly tapped on the display console, sweat dripping down her cheeks onto the circular screen.
The most critical areas each received at least one platoon, including one senior Voidsmen-at-Arms Officer, 15 Hellspawns, and 300 Voidsmen-at-Arms, who would be used to protect the bridge—this was the core hub, and once the enemy breached it, all would be lost.
All of this was so much like a tower defense game, but one that had to be played with blood and lives.
The Armed Officer opened the door to the armory with a key, while Sailors stood guard with their guns, the gleaming bayonets on their muzzles silently spreading order as they waited for the Sailors to line up to receive their weapons.
Not everyone had a gun; those who did not receive a Laser Gun were responsible for carrying power packs and picking up a well-maintained scimitar, which was still a formidable weapon in boarding combat.
Sailors were responsible for guarding their working compartments and ensuring the continuous operation of the warship; when necessary, they served as cannon fodder to delay boarders.
Horatio sat on the command throne, appearing calmer than before.
He closely monitored all conditions of the ship, filtering out the most critical data from the dense reports of the cadets, and then making corresponding command decisions.
Archie was responsible for implementing the details, Fidio focused on striking the opponent, Lydos put on his carapace armor and began arranging the damage control teams, and Lieutenant Stirling and four Captains circulated among the various battle stations, checking the cadets' operations.
Unlike the green cadets, these professional commissioned officers were extremely efficient executors, calmly and composedly fulfilling their duties.
Under Horatio's command, the Q-ship rapidly maneuvered, utilizing the Imperial Navy's artillery advantage to maintain as much distance as possible from the opponent, engaging in mid-range exchanges of fire.
Bang! Bang!
The Macro cannon spewed flames at the approaching fast ship. Its bow was sharp and long, presenting a small target area, and only one of two shells hit.
But it was quickly torn apart by the Laser and close-in defenses on one side.
However, this was just the beginning. These fast ships were covering the approach of the assault ship, which also had a Void Shield. To get close to the Imperial Navy's Q-ship and release its foul flies, it ruthlessly sacrificed a ship's crew for cover.
"Enemy vessel detected releasing aircraft!"
"Torpedos! They released torpedos simultaneously! A total of six, covering an area of 8000 meters!"
"Emergency evasive braking, activate emergency thrust!"
"One torpedo is still on our path! God Emperor, we're about to be hit!"
"All close-in weapon systems fire at that torpedo!" Horatio ordered urgently.
The massive rotary Laser Gun aimed at the rapidly approaching corroded torpedo. It was fast, flying straight towards the Q-ship's midship.
Even if poorly maintained, as long as it could explode, it was still a dangerous weapon capable of destroying an entire warship.
Four rotary Laser Guns fired blinding lasers in ultra-dense, rapid bursts at the torpedo. Just before it was about to hit the ship, under concentrated fire, the torpedo exploded in mid-air. Horatio could hear the grating scrape of its fragments hitting the hull.
"Aircraft approaching!"
The opponent's tactic was to choose between taking torpedoes or aerial bombs.
"Maneuver to evade! Dodge their bombing runs."
As soon as the words fell, the ship's hull trembled.
"Enemy's first wave of aircraft dropped bombs, one hit midship, minor hull structure damage, no major impact, casualties still being tallied... God Emperor, only dozens injured, but the second and third waves are here."
"Accelerate to disengage, shake off these flies! Laser Cannon fire at the ship, Macro cannon load time-fused airburst shells, blast them apart."
The Q-ship activated emergency acceleration, instantly moving a significant distance forward, and the Macro cannon muzzles turned backward.
"Time-fused airburst shells loaded!"
"Fire!"
Bang! Bang!
The Macro cannon fired a volley, and massive shells flew backward.
Horatio saw two blazing fireballs in mid-air, and many burning silver fragments scattering.
"Aircraft signal... gone!"
The cadets let out a cheer.
"Quiet!" Lieutenant Stirling promptly admonished them, lest they disturb the Captain's thoughts.
The two sides engaged in a back-and-forth exchange of fire, and all three fast ships were shattered, turning into dust in the void.
"Calm down, everything has just begun. Prepare for close-quarters combat!" Horatio said to the cadets on the bridge.
The Q-ship's engines had overloaded during the previous air raid evasion, and now it could not accelerate for a short period, otherwise the plasma engines exploding would kill everyone on board.
The assault ship had taken two shell hits, but it still clung on, accelerating to close the distance while the Q-ship's engines cooled, forming a pincer attack with the slaver ship.
A majestic whistle sounded, louder than any other, and Horatio knew what it meant.
"Our Void Shield needs to release overload energy."
"Louise." Horatio called out, and the moment their eyes met, Louise understood Horatio's meaning.
She nodded slightly and gave orders to the armed forces: "All personnel, armed summons!"
Dozens of boarding craft rushed towards the Q-ship, and the close-in weapon systems desperately intercepted the boarding speedboats. The Macro cannon and Laser Cannon crews seized the opportunity to fire at the enemy ships, simultaneously disabling the Void Shields of two ships and beginning to unleash their fury upon the hulls.
Sparks constantly exploded in the void, like New Year's fireworks.
Thanks to the excellent Thinker Array processor, many speedboats were shattered by the curtain of fire, leaving not even a trace of their occupants.
The Void Slave Masters' boarding craft could only breach the shallow outer hull, unable to penetrate deeper.
Louise knew this, and for this, she had already set up a 'Naval Grand Reception' at various critical choke points, waiting for them.
The pirates, wearing old void suits, surged out like a wild tide, shouting filthy and blasphemous curses.
The armed forces were already ready behind steel breastworks with wheels below, a row of gun barrels extending from above, aimed at the distant pirates.
"Ready!" The Armed Officer raised his pistol.
As the pirates got closer, these individuals, armed with various crude weapons, were fierce and savage.
"Fire!"
Intense gunfire brought down the charging pirates and slavers. The Voidsmen-at-Arms were rigorously trained; when the first row's Laser energy ran out, the second row would quickly take their positions, unleashing a rain of Laser fire upon the invaders.
The breastworks protected them well; bullets could not penetrate these mobile breastworks, and the Voidsmen-at-Arms armor, supervised by the Navy, had a defensive level exceeding bulletproof armor.
Soon, the pirates realized that by dividing their forces in this way, they could not break through the Imperial Navy's tightly defended compartment nodes. After leaving a field of corpses, they called for reinforcements and launched a combined assault on the bridge.
"Engines can be overloaded again! Void Shield restored!"
"Accelerate immediately! Shake off their boarding craft! Hard to port!"
The Q-ship once again unleashed surging power, using its agile turning radius and sudden turns to break free from the pincer attack of the two ships, and caused the assault ship to accidentally fire upon the slaver ship.
Most boarding craft were either destroyed in mid-air by close-in weapon systems or were unable to keep up, returning dejectedly. Only a few landed near the bridge, but including the previous remnants, there were still several thousand people.
"They're here." Louise looked at Horatio, awaiting his command.
"Leave blocking forces in other compartments, other mobile armed forces to converge on the bridge."
The pirates charged towards the bridge, bursting into compartments along the way. The Sailors there resisted, but were outnumbered, and the pirates mercilessly killed them.
The sound of gunfire grew closer; it was very difficult for a few hundred people to hold back over a thousand.
The Hellspawns entered the battle, sweeping the attackers with their Hellguns.
The pirates broke through the line with suicidal charges, and the slave masters, shielding themselves with boarding shields, climbed over the breastworks. The wide Gate 3 fell into bloody close-quarters combat. Voidsmen-at-Arms wielded bayonet short swords, fighting the charging pirates, and the battle became primitive and savage.
The senior Voidsmen-at-Arms Officer guarding the bridge fell, and the pirates' dirty, bloody boots trampled over his corpse, rushing towards the lower command bridge.
"Imperial Navy warriors, hold them back!"
Horatio committed the reserve forces guarding the Captain's deck to the battle. Louise put on her helmet and picked up her gun, and the other cadets also took up weapons, preparing to engage the enemy.
Lieutenant Stirling glanced at Horatio, signaling him to focus on commanding the warship, then he and the other Captains drew the military-style power swords from their waists.
Not only inside the bridge, but the battle in the void continued. The cadets, enduring the noise and gunfire, held their positions.
The Macro cannon and Laser Cannon still roared, shells slamming into the Ravager-class merchant assault ship, blowing up its gun turrets and destroying a third of its bridge.
Its compartments burned with raging fires, and countless slavers and pirates were charred by the flames, not even given time to close the fire doors.
Bang! A violent explosion ripped through the assault ship's port side.
It dragged its broken body, turned its bow, intending to disengage from the battlefield.
"We've received a signal from reinforcements!"
"Who is it?"
"I... I can't understand its signal."
Horatio frowned: "What do you mean?"
"It looks like binary language!"