Chapter 82: The Imperial Way of War
Omega looked at the small, blood-stained object in his hand. "Oh, this is interesting."
"Heh heh, Magos Omega, you see?" Orn asked with a fawning tone. As for whether this was damaging to his image, he didn't care at all. All he wanted to hear was Magos Omega say, "this is interesting."
"Hmm, the T'au's spy equipment is very cleverly designed, especially the stealth technology it contains."
"Magos Omega has a sharp eye. We've suffered quite a bit from the T'au's stealth technology."
"This is good, but..."
But what? You little cog-head, your conscience is rotten. You just don't want to give me my power sword! Orn recalled what the Techmarine had said about how treacherous the cog-heads were. They would always try to get a better deal for themselves. He now felt like a Grox waiting to be slaughtered in front of this little cog-head, and he was the one sticking his neck out.
"Magos Omega..." Orn's tone was pleading. He wanted that power sword so badly. The more he looked at it, the more he liked it. The more he understood it, the more he looked down on the one in his Chapter Master's hand. It was simply garbage in comparison.
Omega, being stared at with such a mournful expression by a three-meter-tall giant, felt a chill. He quickly finished his sentence. "But, if you're only exchanging it for one power sword, you're getting a raw deal. Is there anything else you want?"
"It's all up to you, Magos Omega! I'll take whatever you give me!" The Space Marine even performed the Aquila salute. The meaning was clear: Magos Omega, my several hundred pounds are yours to command. Do as you see fit.
Seeing the Space Marine so sincere, Omega didn't refuse. After a moment's thought, he said, "Alright, you come with me."
When Orn returned to the Chapter's encampment, his return caused a commotion among his battle-brothers. The commotion soon attracted the attention of the Chapter Master and the Chief Chaplain. When Chapter Master Douglas and the Chaplain arrived at the source of the commotion—the rookie Orn's quarters—they found him showing off his new power sword, the Iron Halo behind his head, and, of course, his brand-new suit of Mark X Commander-pattern heavy armor.
"Look at this sword! Wireless power supply, awesome, right?" Orn swung the power sword, which was glowing with blue light and crackling. "The Chapter Master's one runs out of power. What if it runs out in the middle of a fight? Isn't that a huge weakness? This one doesn't have that weakness, heh heh."
Douglas (╬皿╬)
"The Iron Halo is a new model too. It's much stronger than the Chapter Master's old one."
Douglas (╬皿╬)=○
"The power armor is also improved. Can you hear how quiet it is? Look how flexible my movements are. This is master-crafted power armor, better than—"
"Better than the Chapter Master's, right?"
"Yeah, you're really... greetings, Chapter Master!" Orn, realizing who was speaking, immediately stood at attention. He felt he had gotten a little carried away.
"Speak. What's going on? Where did you get the armor and weapons?" Douglas asked Orn, his smile not reaching his eyes.
The details of Orn's explanation are not worth repeating. After hearing it, Douglas's face darkened. He gestured for the other Astartes to restrain Orn. He pointed at Orn's nose. "You didn't report such a major matter to me immediately? Don't you know how many brothers in the Chapter are still wearing old-pattern power armor, how many pieces of equipment in the armory need to be replenished? What have we missed because of your actions? How many more brothers will die in vain because they don't have better weapons?!"
"Lock him in the solitary confinement cell to reflect!"
During his time in solitary, Orn was consumed with guilt. He had put his own selfish desires above the interests of the Chapter. He had to atone for his mistake. He wanted to go to the battlefield and kill xenos. He would capture more xenos weapons to exchange for better weapons for his battle-brothers.
But when he was released, he saw that old bastard Douglas wearing his Mark X, holding his power sword, and wearing his Iron Halo, strolling around. When he passed by, he even said, "Young man, the waters of this equipment are too deep for you. You can't handle it. Let your Chapter Master handle it for you."
I will, step by step, step by step, rise to the top. I will become the "Orn-peror"! I will put this old bastard in a Dreadnought! In a Dreadnought! o（▼皿▼メ;）o
"Omega's Arms Supermarket" became famous in the O'nyl war zone. Everyone now knew that the weapons and equipment there were both WAAAGH! and affordable, and that Magos Omega was both talented and generous. Every day, Astra Militarum, Battle Sisters, and Space Marines, coming back from the front lines, would bring the equipment they had stripped from the xenos to Magos Omega's shop to exchange for everything from ammunition to vehicle weapons.
Of course, there were also the accompanying Tech-Priests. These cog-heads, who only looked and never bought, were the apprentices' most hated customers. The moment they were spotted, the apprentices would drive them away.
"If you're not buying, then leave! There are people waiting."
"You little apprentice! I am a priest!"
"So what if you're a priest? Does that mean you can steal technology?"
Hearing this, the Tech-Priest's face flushed, the veins on his forehead throbbing. "Borrowing is not stealing! Borrowing! A Tech-Priest's business, can that be called stealing?"
The apprentice, having heard this line too many times, didn't want to waste his breath on these non-paying scumbags.
The accompanying Tech-Priest, thinking he had intimidated the apprentice, became even more brazen. He had only been looking before; now he started to touch. His mechadendrites extended their fine tentacles and attached them to the machine in front of him. The apprentice just watched silently. The others, not being members of the Adeptus Mechanicus, didn't feel it was their place to interfere.
Just as the people thought they would have to wait for the cog-head to be satisfied before they could look at the weapons they wanted, the bouncer arrived. The apprentice's eyes lit up. The person he had been waiting for had finally appeared. He pointed at the cog-head who was still immersed in the world of knowledge and shouted, "Blue Master, it's him!"
The blue master didn't waste any words. He rubbed his hands together and, with a crackle of electricity, knocked the cog-head to the ground, causing the others to quickly back away, for fear of being caught in the crossfire. "Shameless, are you? I love dealing with you cheapskates!"
In Omega's office on the Cogboy, the high command of the O'nyl expeditionary force was discussing with Omega how to bail out the detained accompanying cog-heads. These accompanying Tech-Priests were the outcasts of the outcasts of the Adeptus Mechanicus. Exiled, they were destined to be cut off from advanced technical knowledge. But they were also an indispensable cog in the Imperial war machine. Without them, the engine would not start.
"Sirs, I am aware of your purpose in coming here. But you should also know that I have already been very restrained!" Omega said to the Astra Militarum general, the Space Marine Chapter Master, the Canoness of the Battle Sisters, and the Imperial Navy Admiral, throwing up his hands in helplessness.
These great figures, who had come to get their men back from Omega, could only smile wryly. They also knew that it wasn't Omega's fault. But without these Tech-Priests, who would repair the damaged vehicles and equipment?
"Magos Omega, the war is urgent. So please, be lenient."
"Don't worry, I will release them. But I also hope you will restrain these accompanying priests. Most of them are repeat offenders. They are starting to affect the other customers' ability to procure equipment."
The high command breathed a sigh of relief. They didn't want to provoke this "provider" right now. Before, killing a xenos was just killing a xenos. Loyalty was the best reward. Now, with Magos Omega, who was willing to subsidize them out of his own pocket, killing a xenos was not just "loyalty," but also the various particularly effective pieces of equipment that Magos Omega had created. Before, the T'au's endless stream of new weapons had given them a headache. Now, they felt that the T'au were not creative enough. If they didn't come up with some new tricks, what would they use to exchange for the good things in Magos Omega's hands? There were not enough to go around, not nearly enough.
"Don't worry, Magos Omega. We have already decided to ban the accompanying priests from the spaceport."
"Err... that's not necessary. There are still some good priests among them. We can't let them be implicated. Don't worry about it. I'll just send more men to the market."
"By the way, how is the anti-stealth equipment I gave you last time?" Omega asked, getting to the matter he was more concerned about.
Chapter Master Douglas, in his master-crafted Mark X armor, answered, "The effect is very good. The front lines have already detected several stealth attacks from the xenos."
"Good. That will reduce the casualties of the soldiers on the front lines. If there are any areas for improvement, just let me know."
"The equipment is already very good. The commanders of the front-line units are about to start fighting over it."
"Alright, I'll expand production as soon as possible. But there's a problem."
General Nicholas, Chapter Master Douglas, and Canoness Celes all looked at Omega. They were all very concerned about the problems of this talented, easy-going, and generous little Magos. If they made him unhappy and he just up and left, where would they find a second one?
"When I set out, it was just to deliver weapons to you. I didn't bring many raw materials with me. After this period of consumption, I'm almost out. I had originally planned to replenish through trade, but..."
The three great figures all looked embarrassed. They were the ones who had been using the "junk" they had picked up on the battlefield to get something for nothing. Omega hadn't said it outright, but they understood his meaning. But they weren't rich either. And among the three of them, only Douglas had any raw materials at his disposal, but they were all consumables for maintaining his ship and equipment. They couldn't be touched, and there wasn't much of it.
The three of them thought simultaneously: It's over! This ancestor is going to run!
Canoness Celes gave Douglas a look: Quick, take out your coffin money and tide him over.
Chapter Master Douglas returned the look: You know it's my coffin money. Can I really use that? Why don't you go and ask the Ecclesiarchy for help?
General Nicholas interjected with a look: What if we just commandeer the supplies from a few merchant ships?
Celes and Douglas: Shut up! Aren't you afraid of scaring all the merchant ships away, and they'll all avoid O'nyl in the future?
Omega, watching the three of them communicate with their eyes, gained a deeper understanding of the Imperial way of war.
Whether in his past life or this one, Omega had often complained about the "World War II-style" warfare of the Warhammer universe. He had never understood why, when they already had space battleships, they still had to dig trenches on the ground and engage in "holy melee combat." The xenos weren't as unreasonable as the daemons, were they?
But after coming to O'nyl and witnessing the war between men and xenos for himself, he realized he had been too arrogant. The Imperial way of war could be said to have fully utilized its absolute advantage, "attacking the enemy's weakness with one's own strength."
Whenever a ground battle occurred, the Imperium would release jammers, putting both themselves and the enemy in a state of "high myopia." This state deprived both sides of the ability to strike from a super-long range. The orbital defense weapons and void shields on the ground also made the space battleships dare not to approach the planet's orbit, let alone conduct an orbital strike.
In a situation where long-range precision-guided weapons could not be used, ground warfare would inevitably devolve into close-quarters combat between soldiers. To turn the war into a "war of attrition" was the Imperium's way of defeating its enemies.
The greatest advantage of the Imperium of Man was not its technological level, but its over a million worlds and its endless population. No xenos could defeat the Imperium in a war of attrition. Any opponent, no matter how powerful, once drawn into the Imperium's rhythm of war, would ultimately be drowned in the Imperium's billion-strong army.
After understanding why the war had developed into a "World War II-style," Omega began to feel that the xenos were just a dish on the table for humanity. The little T'au Empire was nothing. Once the Imperium caught its breath, it could be wiped out with a flip of the hand.
Fortunately, reality soon gave "Uchiha Omega," who at a young age already possessed the mindset of a High Lord, a slap in the face, to wake him up.