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"Despicable humans.
"They're attacking our sailship fleet as though it were an entire planet..."
The Archon's pupils reflected the dazzling clusters of energy unleashed by the bombardment as the thought passed through his mind.
Then his vision fell into complete darkness.
The Drukhari pirate fleet was annihilated beneath the supersaturated barrage. Barely any wreckage remained.
The escort fleet had no intention of plundering the xenos pirates. They had chosen to eradicate them completely.
The concentration of energy was so intense that it even caused minor spatial collapses, a clear indication of just how furious the escort fleet was.
"Under the guidance of our great Savior, we have successfully eliminated the threat and protected the safety of our shipping lanes and merchant vessels."
The escort fleet commander surveyed the encircled region, where not even scraps remained of the xenos pirates, and nodded in satisfaction.
In truth, this was only part of the escort fleet. More task forces were still searching elsewhere.
Given the scale of the search operation, even seizing all the pirates' wealth would mean little.
Their belongings would not even cover the Voss Pan-Industrial Zone Escort Fleet's deployment costs. Besides, the escort fleet had no need for such petty spoils.
What they needed was to send a warning to other potential lawbreakers!
"By the shadows, these human fleets are terrifying..."
Meanwhile, in a secluded corner at the edge of the system, a Drukhari reconnaissance sailship trembled in fear.
As a reconnaissance unit, they had been scouting the nearby region for targets worth plundering. By sheer luck, they had escaped the human encirclement.
They had also witnessed the horrifying power of the human fleet with their own eyes.
The reconnaissance sailship did not dare linger for even a moment. It fled at maximum speed, terrified that the humans might catch up.
This region was simply too dangerous.
They intended to return to their meteor base within an asteroid belt several sectors away. Surely they would be safe there.
However, when the reconnaissance sailship returned to the asteroid belt, its crew found an even more terrifying sight awaiting them.
The scene struck the Drukhari pirates aboard the scout vessel with an overwhelming wave of fear.
Their base was gone.
The asteroid belt that had once stretched across millions of kilometers had vanished with it.
A system-level bombardment of unimaginable intensity had physically erased the unfortunate meteor base and the entire asteroid belt surrounding it.
There was no question that the human fleet was responsible.
"What savagery!"
The Drukhari pirates stared at the empty, pale expanse of space and felt as though they were suffocating.
All they had done was attack a merchant convoy, and they had not even succeeded. Was it really necessary for the humans to pursue them all the way back to their headquarters?
They had wiped out the entire asteroid belt in a single sweep. How much energy and ammunition had that required?!
"Run! We have to escape human territory! Head for the frontier, somewhere without humans!"
The xenos pirates finally realized that humanity had changed.
They were no longer weak lambs waiting to be plundered. They had become ravenous wolves bristling with fangs.
Humanity's response to its enemies was uncompromising, relentless, and utterly unconcerned with the cost.
It was enough to chill the blood.
The pirates had lost even the slightest desire for revenge. All they wanted was to flee and put as much distance as possible between themselves and these savage humans.
According to the intelligence they had gathered, the humans would even harness the power of the Prince of Pleasure to punish Drukhari.
There was nothing in existence they feared more.
These humans were completely insane!
"I hope we never encounter humans again..." an Incubus said.
They still possessed another pirate base on the frontier, along with a considerable number of members. As long as they avoided humanity from now on, they could continue plundering other lifeforms.
Yet the moment their reconnaissance sailship turned around, the Drukhari pirates spotted human warships.
There were a great many of them. They were closing in from every direction and had already disrupted and sealed off the vessel's escape routes.
"By the Savior, I knew some of the xenos pirates had escaped!"
The bearded escort fleet commander spoke excitedly over the public channel.
After destroying the xenos pirate base, his forces had remained nearby for some time to eliminate the threat posed by this detestable band once and for all.
They could not allow any fish to slip through the net.
After all, the escort fleet had promised to exterminate the pirates who threatened their Exemplary Unit evaluation. If they were going to do it, they had to do it thoroughly.
The entire pirate band deserved to be reunited.
"We're screwed!"
"Humans! It's those damned humans!"
"By the shadows, have mercy on us..."
The xenos pirates went completely numb with terror.
They had never imagined that the humans would remain unsatisfied after destroying the asteroid belt and their meteor base. Those treacherous humans had even lain in wait at the scene, refusing to spare so much as a tiny reconnaissance vessel.
Humanity's thirst for vengeance was somehow even more terrifying than that of a Drukhari raiding force.
Why go this far?
Was this really the same weak, long-suffering human empire they remembered?!
No one would ever answer their questions.
After several volleys from the escort fleet, the reconnaissance sailship was reduced to nothing.
The warships fired their weapons as though ammunition cost them nothing.
In fact, that was practically true. Most of what they had brought consisted of old munitions that had been sitting in storage for years.
If they did not use it soon, they would have to begin the complicated disposal process, which would be even more troublesome.
Using it to exterminate xenos pirates was far more convenient.
They had merely brought a little more than necessary.
"We've finally completed our extermination mission. It's a shame we didn't get the chance to conduct an interregional enforcement operation..."
The bearded commander sighed regretfully.
Their intelligence indicated that this band of Drukhari pirates possessed another base near the frontier.
Consequently, the Voss Pan-Industrial Zone Escort Fleet had dispatched another elite task force to deal with it.
Naturally, an escort fleet had to report an interregional enforcement operation to its superiors, and other escort fleets would need to cooperate with the mission.
But that was hardly a problem.
The best possible outcome was to send every last one of these xenos pirates straight to hell.
It also aligned perfectly with the prevailing attitude throughout the escort divisions.
After all, the Empire's total war against the Necrons had already begun, and the first armies had assembled.
The escort divisions would also select elite forces to travel to the Pariah Zone and protect the relevant logistics fleets.
Before those personnel could be transferred, however, they needed to thoroughly intimidate every xenos presence within Imperial territory.
Only then could they maintain the safety of the shipping lanes throughout the total war.
The entire operation against the Drukhari pirates would be recorded and distributed so that every pirate knew what happened to those who raided Imperial merchant vessels.
The Empire would not merely tear them out by the roots. It would even shake the yolks inside their unhatched eggs into mush!
"As expected of the admiral. Our Exemplary Unit designation is secure now. We might even receive a larger budget!"
The bearded commander was delighted.
The Royal Court always granted preferential treatment to units that earned official honors.
When faced with an unexpected crisis, the admiral commanding their escort fleet had not merely resolved it with remarkable skill. He had completely reversed the unfavorable situation.
He had transformed the extermination of a band of xenos pirates into a textbook case that could be used to intimidate other unlawful xenos.
It was an exceptionally impressive achievement.
They no longer had to worry about losing their Exemplary Unit honors and seeing all their previous efforts go to waste.
They might even earn additional commendations.
"There's a reason he's the admiral. He truly is the pillar of our fleet," the commander's adjutant said with admiration.
The admiral had joined the Tempest Army Group back when he was still on Urth. Step by step, he had risen to become a fleet commander before eventually being transferred to the escort forces as an admiral.
He possessed an excellent understanding of His Majesty the Savior's great ideals and could lead the fleet in carrying out its duties more effectively.
He was the anchor that kept the entire fleet steady.
"All right, once we've dealt with the remaining xenos wreckage, we're heading back."
The bearded commander sounded impatient.
"We need to apply to the admiral for deployment to the Pariah Zone immediately. We can't let those other bastards steal all the openings."
The Empire was different now.
Not everyone was allowed to enter the battlefield. Opportunities had to be competed for and seized.
That was especially true for unconventional armed forces such as theirs.
Within the escort fleets, only elite personnel were granted the opportunity to fight on the front lines and earn military honors.
Not long afterward, the Voss Pan-Industrial Zone Escort Fleet finished eliminating every last Drukhari pirate and released the relevant pict recordings.
Their purpose was to serve as a deterrent.
The escort fleet also sent a sincere message of concern to the Gantz Industrial Group transport fleet involved in the incident. They informed the other party that the threat had been eliminated and that they could continue their journey without fear.
...
Aboard the Gantz Industrial Group transport fleet's flagship.
The captain sat in his command throne as usual.
Whenever no emergency demanded his attention, he generally had little to do. His main responsibilities consisted of drinking coffee and checking reports concerning the transport fleet.
Afterward, he would browse the corporation's internal documents and news.
The Gantz Industrial Group was developing far too quickly for him to neglect them. Otherwise, how could he possibly keep pace with the corporation?
The same was true of the Empire.
The unstoppable tide of development surged onward. Every day brought new changes, and everything was being transformed.
It was almost impossible to keep up.
After finishing the corporation's documents, the captain took out a small booklet of idioms and began studying intently.
His Majesty the Savior loved using idioms from ancient Terra.
At first, people had found it difficult to grasp their profound meanings, leaving everyone utterly confused.
Fortunately, the Savior's personal scribes had recorded his daily remarks, compiled every idiom he used, and organized them into booklets for others to study.
Nowadays, anyone who did not know how to use idioms was regarded as uncultured and risked becoming the subject of ridicule.
"You're never too old to learn. There's truly no end to knowledge..."
The rough, uneducated captain swayed his head as he sighed in admiration.
He had gone completely legitimate now, so he needed to acquire at least a little culture.
At the very least, he would be able to use a few idioms when submitting work reports.
Ding!
A notification from his data-slate interrupted his studies.
It was a new message bearing the emblem of the escort division, most likely sent by the local escort fleet.
Transport captains like him regularly dealt with the escort divisions so that they could remain informed about conditions along their shipping routes.
"That was fast."
After reading the message, the captain unconsciously drained the bitter black coffee from his cup.
He was genuinely impressed.
He had not even left the sector after reporting the attempted raid, yet the xenos pirates had already been torn out by the roots.
Their territory had been blasted into a barren wasteland. Even the mineral deposits beneath their former base had been excavated and hauled away.
The matter had been resolved with impressive thoroughness.
The message contained several pict recordings of the escort fleet exterminating the xenos pirates.
An endless storm of fire engulfed every Drukhari pirate and all of their territory. Their faint screams could still be heard beneath the bombardment.
It was horrifying.
Of course, it was horrifying for the pirates.
As a lawful Imperial citizen and a captain in the corporation's transport fleet, he found it deeply reassuring.
If anything, he wished the escort fleet's firepower had been even more intense.
"Praise the Savior!"
The captain could not help voicing his admiration.
He no longer had to worry about possible Drukhari retaliation.
As the development of the Empire's shipping lanes continued to improve, perhaps they would never have to fear being raided again.
A notice arrived from the voidport.
The captain looked up and saw one space fortress after another.
Points of light flickered across their surfaces against the blackness of space.
This was a temporary shipping-lane port district.
Its primary purpose was to protect and maintain the local Webway entrances while providing passing fleets with opportunities to rest, resupply, and undergo maintenance.
Although relatively few fleets traveled through this region, merchants from several civilized worlds had still come here to conduct business and sell local specialties.
Several chain stores owned by civilian commerce groups had also established branches here.
The stores, hotels, clubs, and other businesses formed a service district where crewmen and voidsmen could relax during their tedious voyages.
Their spending also helped stimulate consumption throughout the Empire.
Under normal circumstances, the captain would have ordered the fleet to dock for rest and maintenance. Then everyone would have gone ashore to relax and sample the local specialties.
Whether those specialties consisted of food, souvenirs, or workers employed in the local service industry made little difference.
Every sector had its own unique attractions, after all.
"To hell with that! Maintain full speed!" the captain barked across the fleet channel. "We'll talk about having fun after we deliver the cargo. The corporation's bonus will give you bastards more than enough money to enjoy yourselves!"
The delay caused by the xenos pirates had made their schedule even tighter. They could breach their contract at any moment.
That meant that once they passed through this section of the Webway, they would have to continue along lesser routes and accept greater navigational risks to shorten their journey.
Even so, their current situation was already remarkably fortunate.
Two hundred years ago, they could have spent several years or even longer trying to cross an entire Segmentum and still failed to deliver their cargo.
The voyage itself would also have involved unimaginable expenses and risks. Their vessels might have been attacked at any moment or become permanently lost in the Warp.
Incidents of ships becoming lost in the Warp were rare now. Even if a vessel did disappear, specialized search forces would be dispatched to fish it back out.
Travelers enjoyed not only the protection of the Sun of Hope, but even escorts provided by worshippers of the King of Hell.
In short, humanity finally had powerful patrons in the Warp.
In time, the Empire would even construct outposts, ports, and other facilities within the Immaterium.
Over the next dozen days, the Gantz Industrial Group transport fleet's voyage proceeded with extraordinary smoothness.
No unexpected incidents occurred.
According to the ship's enginseers, even the vessels' machine spirits remained exceptionally calm.
"May the Sun of Hope protect us!"
The moment the captain received confirmation that the transport fleet had reached the Voss Shipbuilding Forge World, he released a deep breath and smiled.
Their safe arrival was unquestionably the result of favor and divine protection.
After delivering the cargo, he intended to visit the local grand cathedral and offer his respects.
"By the Savior..."
Beneath the bridge's vaulted dome, the captain and first officer were struck speechless before they had even entered the main port.
A vast torrent of transport ships stretched across the void before them.
They could scarcely imagine how many transports were gathered here, how much cargo these ports could process, or how many resources were converging upon this single world.
In reality, this was merely one of the Voss Shipbuilding Forge World's eight primary ports.
The local forge divisions had transformed the entire star system into an enormous shipbuilding complex, and it continued to expand.
The inhabitants of neighboring systems dreamed of the day when the Voss Shipbuilding Forge World would finally expand into their territory.
Then they could receive relocation compensation.
Furthermore, the Voss Shipbuilding Forge World had taken the lead in implementing a big-data supply-chain system, drawing upon the productive capacity of numerous other Imperial regions.
As a result, its warship construction speed had reached astonishing heights.
After several hours of waiting, the Gantz Industrial Group transport fleet finally received clearance.
Only after passing through the main port's entrance barrier did they see the true appearance of this shipbuilding forge world...
(End of Chapter)
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