The Martial Unity

“We… we believe that to be a nuclear fusion generator, sir,” the analyst gulped nervously. “It means that they can generate virtually infinite energy as long as they have hydrogen, which the Strehegeld Star System has plenty of. Meaning…”

She turned towards him with a grim expression.

“We cannot hope to bleed the energy shields of the ship with a mass onslaught of attacks. We will run out of energy long before they do.”

The pirate fleet operated with a margin of energy that allowed them to make a two-way trip to and from distant star systems outside of human control, and also enough to fight a single short, quick battle as long as they performed an ambush and got a major advantage from the very get-go. However, if their enemies had a nuclear-powered fleet carrier then…

“Then they can last as long as they need to…” The commander’s eyes widened with horror. “They tricked us.”

He realized it with deep regret. “The Blood Cult tricked us this time!”

He gritted his teeth as his expression grew severe. It wasn’t as though this was completely unfathomable to him. he had considered the possibility before. However, the reality was that the Blood Cult was ahead of him. They understood how to manipulate low-information pirate fleets that were, by nature, distrustful.

The key was to establish a long-term rapport of credibility. This was not the first time that the Blood Cult had partnered with the Scallywag Scoundrel. However, in the past, they had been sure to offer extremely factually accurate intelligence reports when it came to the commissions that they sought. Pirates were innately distrustful by nature, but once a pattern had been established, they would desperately cling to it like it was the only thing that they had. And indeed, it was. Even though the sheer vastness of the cosmos was favorable to interstellar piracy, there were still many constraints. They, too, needed to interact with the human establishment at some point. Ships didn’t build themselves, and most of them did not refuel themselves either, nor maintain themselves. There were countless other logistical necessities that required them to have some allies in the human nation.

And pariah states like the Blood Cult were more than happy to offer a seemingly helpful hand to try and get there on-board. Only to betray them at the right moment when a moment presented itself to acquire results that were worth more than the pirates themselves.

The commander of the Scallywag Scoundrels realized this too late.

“Abort the operation!” He immediately bellowed. “Abort and get the hell out of here! We can’t beat them if they’re not short on energy!”

“Aborting offensive operation.”

“Maneuvering to the nearest Lagrange point.”

“Activating warp drive.”

“Hurry!” The man urged his crew. “Hurry before—”

He froze as he spotted the turrets of the Blood Arc turning towards the heavy cruisers and the battleship they were on. Chills crossed his skin as he saw the light of destruction emerging from them, unleashing laser beams far greater than anything his fleet was capable of.

The laser beams crossed the space between the ships at speeds that exceeded even light. The ships were equipped with offensive warp field generators that essentially generated an Alcubierre driving effect, accelerating light much faster through space than it would otherwise be able to go.

In the blink of an eye, they struck the heavy cruisers, shattering their energy shields and inflicting grave damage to the hulls of the ships.

BOOOOOOOOOOM BOOOOOOOOOOM BOOOOOOOOOOM BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!

The sheer force with which the blasts struck the hulls of the ship vastly exceeded the defensive measures that the ships had been equipped with. The Blood Arc was a rare nuclear-powered fleet carrier, which meant that, with its size and power, it could generate truly devastating impacts on its opponents. Each attack that the ship unleashed was so powerful that it could shatter tectonic plates and scar the surface of planets. Among the more powerful vessels that human civilization had produced, the ship was nearly unmatched in its offensive power among normal ships and the kinds that could be achieved through regular means.

The pirate commander simply closed his eyes as a massive beam of light was aimed towards the battleship leading the pirate fleet.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

The attack managed to pierce the hull, rapidly destroying the rest of the ship through and through, causing a tremendous explosion to erupt in the vacuum of space as the antimatter fuel cells were destroyed, causing them to explode.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!! BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!! BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!! BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

The Blood Arc swiftly dispatched the enemy pirate ships effortlessly once it commenced its offensive onslaught. Far away, a small frigate, among the many other human ships that revolved around the suspected infected world, staying away from the other conflicts, simply recorded the battle from afar. Within them, a red-haired, red-eyed individual simply sharpened his eyes, speaking into a microphone. “Yes, sir, the Scallywag Scoundrel was destroyed quickly, but they weren’t even able to force a frigate, mech, or pathwalker to give us an idea of which forces the Society mobilized. Unfortunately, they have proven to be of no use.”

A moment of silence passed before the hemosapien heard a response.

“It was folly to think that pirate scum could ever truly be useful.”

The chilling derision in Lord Sarlon’s heavy voice was palpable. He disdained pirates; that was much was very clear. This was a man who sneered upon even the best of human civilization, let alone the worst and most degenerate section of humanity. When the Blood Cult eventually took over human civilization, there was no doubt that it would wipe out the disgusting insects that were the pirates. All they did was leech from the more productive and admirable sections of human civilization.

“We will have to rely on our own intelligence to gauge their power to ultimately destroy the Blood Arc and kidnap the Blood Empress,” he spoke with a fierce tone of voice. “For now, keep an eye on the Blood Arc while pretending to be an independent surveillance frigate for an explorer team.”

They needed to ensure that they had a completely accurate understanding of exactly what forces the Society had brought along with them this time. If they were even slightly off, then their operation would fail completely. “Understood, Your Excellency. All hail the Supremacy of Blood.”