Chapter 6
This time he actively requested to lead troops to command the attack. Cotton was now fully aware of the whole story behind this incident. Based on his prior knowledge of weapons and ship equipment on Leibert, under the overwhelming firepower of the Alliance’s army there was basically no way for resistance. Although Leibert suddenly accelerated speed eight hours ago, which let it temporarily get away, it was clear that after it reached the meteorite group on the edge of the galaxy desperately the speed has slowed down significantly.
In front of them was the meteorite belt famous all over the solar system. Even a highly manoeuvrable light spaceship dared not easily enter this area, let alone such a huge interstellar main ship, no matter how experienced the captain was navigating in this area would inevitably lead to misfortune and lowered mobility.
It was simply a breeze.
Cotton could already imagine that after he took back Leibert triumphantly it would be added to his achievements and everyone would admire the grand scene.
From the side came a report from his subordinates: “Leibert has entered the range of image visibility”
Cotton straightened edges of his uniform and ordered: “Show the image.”
The light screen in the combat room shone out for a while. Blue waves quickly transformed from flat galaxy map into a huge wide-angled screen, which clearly showed all details of the external scene.
Countless large and small meteoroids were floating in the dark space sporadically. The further away the higher became number of the meteoroids, denser their placement and the more complicated their trajectory.
Through the groups of meteoroids floating in the space they could see that Leibert was stationed in between, the outer armour was slightly tilted and the protective shield at the tail of the ship visibly got hit by a meteoroid. Energy detector could detect relatively large amount of power being released there. With such high energy fluctuations the ship was obviously trapped between two larger meteoroids, neither entering nor retreating. It was firmly imprisoned in a labyrinth formed by meteoroids.
Cotton curled up his lips uncontrollably, revealing a smug smile.
It was a pity that the gap between meteoroids was too narrow and it would be difficult for Alliance’s main ship, which was almost the same size as Leibert, to approach unharmed.
Cotton thought for a few seconds and decided to proceed cautiously. He sent fifteen relatively more flexible light warships to try to break Leibert’s light energy shield with firepower. Heavy fire energy bullets collided with the huge shield releasing bright and blazing explosive fireworks, across the glass of the war room it felt like watching a silent and grand performance.
According to the instructions, light warships focused fire on the barrier damaged by the impact from meteoroids on Leibert’s tail.
Soon, light energy shield on Leibert was torn in the weak point by a gap, shield flashed and at last quickly dimmed.
Leibert quickly launched a counterattack, but its heavy artillery was not loaded and low-damage light artillery was unable to manoeuvrer and aim flexibly, because the cockpit was fixed in place and so it only shattered some floating meteoroids. It couldn’t aim a blow at Alliance’s forces.
Good news came soon.
The advanced troops had violently slashed Leibert’s emergency entrance, turning off Leibert’s defenses and now it was safe to board the ship.
The curve of Cotton’s lips lifted up uncontrollably. He straightened his neckline with ambition and commanded vigorously:
”Prepare to board the ship.”
An elite lightship symbolizing Alliance sailed out from the side of the main ship. Carrying Cotton and his close adjutant through the cascading meteoroid formations, it headed towards Leibert, which was already under their control.
Their ship entered the cabin and the Alliance’s army send in advance, piloting light warships, had been waiting for a long time.
Under the leadership of Cotton, Alliance Army quickly arrived outside the captain’s room without encountering the slightest resistance all the way, completely unimpeded. The technician broke the electronic door lock forcibly and the steel door slowly opened.
Cotton’s face changed in an instant.
Dozens of stripped and restrained crew members were strapped to chairs with arms tied behind their backs and a rope around their neck*, barely covered with ragged clothes on their bodies. The people who were tied to the most conspicuous positions had bright red crooked smiling faces painted on their chests. The crew’s struggle seemed to be grinning mockingly at them.
Before he had time to respond, through the transparent light screen of the captain’s room, they saw that several light warships had removed their virtual image camouflage and rushed away from behind the huge floating meteoroid.
Cotton looked terrified and he hurriedly turned on his communicator:
”The enemy is trying to board the ship in the alliance uniform! Repeat! The enemy is trying to board the ship in the alliance uniform!”
There was no response in the communicator, only a beeping sound was heard. It seemed that the signal had been blocked.
Cotton’s face was pale and he felt muddled. Time on the battlefield was fleeting. Before he had time to think about it, he hurriedly turned and evacuated from the captain’s room on Leibert, taking his subordinate adjutants and the army on the battleship, flying back towards the main ship at the fastest speed.
There was still a chance now! The main ship would not be opened without the command of the captain. Even people in the uniforms of the Alliance army cannot enter without permission. Moreover, the light energy shield outside the main ship is extremely difficult to break with force and Leibert does not have enough firepower at all-
Cotton detected unusual energy fluctuations in the back.
He turned his head and looked beside him.
The place where Leibert’s tail collided with a meteoroid dissipated like water waves, revealing an intact steel skin – it was actually a virtual projection!!
The outer light energy shield lit up again, wrapping the outside of the ship intact, and then Leibert moved.
The meteoroid fragments shattered by the light artillery just now were pushed further along with the energy fluctuations in the vacuum. This time, Cotton finally saw clearly that the fire launched by the Leibert was actually intended to clear out obstructions on its route!
Leading straight to…
Alliance’s main ship.
Cotton’s eyes were open wide and he finally realized what the other party wanted to do.
The light energy shield outside the main ship was extremely difficult to break and there was no way to harm it without enough firepower.
Unless…
they have the same tough offensive weapons.
In the opponent’s hands, Leibert was not a ship, not a decoy, but a weapon!
This kind of self-destructive fighting style of losing eight hundred soldiers to injure one thousand soldiers has never appeared in Cotton’s combat experience. It was too extreme, heartless, adventurous, and crazy.
…It was a lunatic!
And the damage that appeared on the tail before made them completely blind, they just took it for granted that they had found weak point of the other party and didn’t know that it was all deliberate.
The other party never thought of escape from the beginning.
All the steps of the plan linked to each other, quietly leading them to the intended destruction.
Inside the steel-cast ship, a boy stared at the Alliance main ship approaching quickly, his lips curled up silently and his eyes flashed with astonishing cruelty and madness. He pulled off a bright smiling face that resembled mocking graffiti and made a sound:
”Bang.”
In the next second, Leviathan slammed into the main ship at a speed close to lightning. The light energy shield gathered at the front of the sharp ship flashed cold blue light due to the accumulation of energy, tearing the Alliance’s main ship apart. The protective shield on the side slammed into it violently and even more splendid fireworks exploded in silence not far away.
Cotton’s scalp was numb and he could almost taste blood in his mouth.
But he could nothing, only stare with wide eyes.
The extreme brilliance of scarlet was imprinted on the light screen in front of him, and it was so deeply immersed in Cotton’s iris that he could hardly see any other colors.
——The main ship has been destroyed.
Cotton’s sweaty forehead was already pale.
He forcibly calmed down.
Although they lost the main ship and a small part of the light ships, most of the light warships were still under his hands. The opposing main ship also suffered the same fatal damage this time. Overall, they still occupied an advantageous position.
They can still make a comeback!
Cotton clenched his cold fingers, gritted his teeth and gave orders to put all the ships into combat mode, ready to rush to the death in one fell swoop.
Suddenly, the screen in front of him lit up bright red and a harsh alarm sounded, announcing to him an unknown message:
”Battleship A013 lost contact.”
How could it be?
The opponent should no longer have a back hand! What happened!
”Battleship A015 lost contact.”
The urging warning sounded again and again, lingering like a nightmare: “Battleship A021 lost contact.”
…”Battleship A008 lost contact.”
On the star chart there suddenly showed up different but larger energy fluctuations. Cotton seemed to feel something. Through the porthole, looking towards the star field far away from the meteorite area, he saw slight ripples spreading in the dark star field.
A huge battleship slowly revealed its figure.
Its body was pitch black and the metal exterior reflected cold light, like a beast occupying an overwhelming power, brazenly revealing terrible and sharp fangs, approaching in a petrifying way. The absolute oppression made him feel physiological fear, which almost made Cotton breathless.
His face turned gray, his pupils tightened in horror and his voice was sharp and distorted:
”Retreat! Full retreat! No time to lose! Quickly evacuate!!!”
Actually… it was actually the blood and fire demon born in the interstellar war for expansion. It was the terrifying devil who made the enemy frightened, the former first marshal of the alliance, the legendary glorious god of war.
Lulai Sivir.
He rebelled against the Alliance three years ago and disappeared without a trace with the fleet under his command. His whereabouts were unpredictable, his strength was terrifying and he had the potential to suppress the Alliance.
Cotton was so frightened that he couldn’t wait to move back to the central galaxy protected by the Alliance in an instant, so that he could escape as far away as possible from this enemy whom he only had heard of and never seen before.
Now, besides retreating, he had no other thoughts in his mind.
———
Ge Xiu leaped lightly through the crack in the starship’s steel walls.
His face still had a lazy and relaxed look, as if nothing could catch his eye and it was completely unlike a captain who just fought back from a desperate situation and succeeded.
The main ship in front of him was a mess. Huge sirens caused by external invasions echoed in the huge metal space. Xiao Yi and the remaining crew members have begun to disperse from the main ship at the fastest speed to search for resources and equipment inside, and then transport them back to their ship.
Ge Xiu looked at their ant-like busy figures and nodded in satisfaction.
Well, now he finally looks like an interstellar pirate.
He kicked away the metal fragments on the ground somewhat childishly, reached and took out candy from the pocket of the Alliance uniform he was wearing, peeled it and put it in his mouth.
The inferior industrial sweetness instantly permeated the mouth.
Ge Xiu didn’t dislike it and licked the hard and sweet candy between his teeth with tip of his tongue and narrowed his eyes slightly.
In fact, he had to say… the level of the people who built this world was indeed superb. They put him in a harsh environment of the garbage star, seemingly using a starship to transport him out of the sea of suffering, but in fact they pushed him deeper and deeper into the abyss of desperation.
Even if Ge Xiu was lucky enough to escape in the process, the alliance was still about to go on a war and in the war, no one could survive on their own, those who were caught in this situation would think they had a choice, but in fact they were stuck, like a mosquito in the spider’s web. They could only struggle in vain but couldn’t escape.
Ge Xiu admired their idea very much.
It’s a pity that it was misused on my own body, he thought casually.
…So, what should he do next?
Ge Xiu paced leisurely to the huge porthole and looked up at the pitch-black warship floating in the distance, with a slight smile on his lips.
He looked like a child that has found a new favourite toy.
”Dididi—-“
The screen on the Cotton ship flashed and lit up.
It was a picture from the main ship.
The thin boy who had appeared on the screen of the Alliance Command appeared before his eyes.
The teenager’s smile looked harmless and innocent, but behind him, Cotton could see the cold and broken metal burning quietly, making it impossible to underestimate the tenderness of his face.
He sighed exaggeratedly and shook his head regretfully:
”I said, that when we meet next time, please bring enough stars, why is the starship still so shabby?”
The boy raised his index finger as his rugged knuckles pressed against his pale lower lip and frowned in distress:
”So, who will pay for my ship?”
This time, Cotton finally saw the true expression hidden under his smile.
The dark pupils flashed with excitement, the extreme evil nature burned fiercely like fires of hell, like a poisoned blade, with the childlike innocence and excitement:
”Well, I can always use it to get what I want, is that right?”
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today I’m saying nothing