Legacy of the Void Fleet

“Everyone, pay attention! The Red Bull Gang is a known group of pirates equipped with high-level equipment. They’re also known for their cunning tactics and ruthless style of combat. Keep your scanners active and try to stay away from those larger meteorites. If your scanners detect anything suspicious, don’t hesitate to fire and blow that asteroid apart!” Captain Shiba’s voice came through the communicator loud and clear.

No one in the Osprey Squad was a novice. Every member was an elite in their own right. Even if Captain Shiba hadn’t said anything, they would have known what to do in a situation like this.

Of course, Shiba knew that as well, but he had issued the warning out of caution. After all, they didn’t have a large fleet or a mothership following them. If anything went wrong, they could genuinely find themselves stranded without any backup or safeguards.

“Second Lieutenants Chase, Anu, and Daku, your corvettes will remain in the center and rear of the formation. Provide support and protect our rear whenever necessary.”

“Lieutenants Patrick and Baku, you’ll follow behind me. Keep a close eye on your surroundings and watch out for anything suspicious.”

“Yes, sir!” they all replied before quickly moving into their assigned positions and continuing their advance.

“Captain, report! We’ve detected wreckage near the asteroid ahead!” Lieutenant Patrick’s voice suddenly came through the communicator.

Everyone frowned and immediately sharpened their focus, their attention snapping toward the indicated direction. Sure enough, just as Lieutenant Patrick had reported, their own detection equipment confirmed the same thing. Fragments of wreckage could even be seen floating around the asteroid.

“This should be the site where the Red Bull Gang attacked and successfully looted several merchant fleets. The debris here is most likely from the starships they destroyed during the process,” Lieutenant Patrick reported.

Captain Shiba studied the scene before responding. “From the looks of it, we can confirm that the intel was correct. And according to the information provided by High Command, the Red Bull Gang didn’t flee after the attack. Instead, they chose to hide here…”

“Second Lieutenant Anu added, listening to this, ‘Ohh, so that’s how it is. They’re hiding right under our noses without being discovered, huh?’”

Captain Shiba nodded. “Everyone, be careful. Those rats should be somewhere around here.”

“Okay! Got it, Captain!”

“Understood!”

Together, they soon began sweeping the star system in formation. Although the search operation was inefficient, everyone in the Osprey Squad knew they had no choice but to proceed this way. They couldn’t take unnecessary risks just to get quicker results, especially when there was no need to do so.

And so, the search continued. Before they knew it, two days had passed. The Osprey Squad had nearly scoured the entire surrounding area, yet they hadn’t found a single trace of the Red Bull Gang. It was as if the pirates had never existed there in the first place. Or perhaps they had already slipped away in secret.

Still, no one had lost hope yet. They were accustomed to search operations that lasted even a week or longer, so two days were nothing to them. The starry sea was vast, a three-dimensional expanse where their targets could be hiding anywhere. Combined with the enormous size of the star system and its asteroid-filled environment, failing to find anything wasn’t an impossible outcome. In fact, it was a fairly common occurrence.

And just like that, another two days passed.

In total, four days had gone by. Just as the Osprey Squad was about to give up in frustration and return empty-handed, Captain Shiba’s detection equipment suddenly beeped, blaring a massive warning. The alert was quickly forwarded to the other four ships.

Immediately, the star maps aboard all five vessels displayed information about approximately twelve starships located directly ahead, near a massive, densely packed asteroid belt.

They had been hiding among the asteroids all along.

Captain Shiba narrowed his eyes and ordered, “Everyone, be careful. We’ve found our targets. There are twelve of them, more than the eight I initially anticipated, hiding within that asteroid belt right ahead.”

Lieutenant Patrick suddenly spoke up. “Captain, we should seize this opportunity and launch an attack immediately. From the looks of it, they still don’t know we’re here. Or perhaps they know we’re in the area but haven’t realized we’ve detected them yet. Regardless, this is our chance to thin out their numbers before they can react.”

“Yes, Captain!” the others immediately agreed.

Captain Shiba nodded. “That’s exactly what I’m thinking. Everyone, lock your weapon systems onto the asteroids ahead and blast them apart! Prepare the missile pods as well. Be ready to fire at any moment!”

In a brief moment, all the weapon batteries aboard the Osprey Squad’s ships focused on the enormous asteroid ahead.

On Captain Shiba’s order, he roared, “FIRE!!”

BOOM! BOOM! BOOOOOM!

The main weapon systems of the two 203-class Pulverizers, along with the fourteen dual plasma cannons aboard the three frigates, unleashed a devastating barrage. At the same time, the three corvettes fired their caliber canister cannons and six pulse weapon systems, sending all their firepower toward the same target.

The combined attacks tore through space and struck the gigantic asteroid.

BOOOOOOM!

A massive explosion erupted, engulfing the asteroid in a brilliant flash of light and scattering debris in every direction.

Meanwhile, on the star maps, four enemy signatures immediately disappeared following the explosion. The meaning was clear. With their surprise attack, the Osprey Squad had successfully eliminated four of the enemy ships before they even had a chance to react.

However, before anyone could celebrate their initial success, Lieutenant Baku’s furious roar suddenly echoed through the cockpits of all five ships.

“ENEMY ATTACK!!”

Everyone hurriedly raised their heads and looked toward the direction of the initial attack.

What they saw made their expressions change instantly.

Dozens of missiles and shells were already hurtling straight toward them at terrifying speed!

There was no time to evade. The enemy’s attack had been timed perfectly. Fortunately, the Osprey Squad was prepared for such a situation.

“Everyone, launch your missiles and intercept those incoming attacks! Prepare for the counterattack!” Captain Shiba roared.