Counterfeit Hero

Chapter 60: Revised: Chapter 20 Burn the Boats

The battle in space first unfolded in the sixth sector of the Newton Star System. The First Mixed Fleet, composed of the Federation’s Fourth, Sixth, and Seventh Space Fleets, encountered a well-prepared enemy fleet, a group formed by four Imperial Space Fleets.

Both sides began to change formations at a distance of thousands of kilometers. This was an unavoidable fierce battle. The space fighters from the aircraft carriers began to launch, like bees swarming out of a disturbed hive, densely pouring out from the carrier’s launch tubes and quickly forming up as they danced through space.

In the vast expanse of stars, it was a magnificent scene. To maintain a safe distance, each battleship in the fleet had to spread out, leaving room for maneuvering and evasion. Hence, the whole Mixed Fleet appeared vast, with the signal lights of the Space Fleet flashing in the black space, resembling a school of sardines moving in perfect synchronization at high speed.

Without a doubt, the first step in space combat is of course electronic warfare. The electronic interference devices of the warships on both sides were pushed to the limit. However, due to the fact that space battleships have enough energy and space to use counter-attack instruments and their thick armor also possesses anti-interference capabilities, electronic warfare in space had devolved into a mere formality to declare battle has begun.

Even this battle declaration was intense. No one could afford to be careless. If the communication and command systems were seized or destroyed by the enemy, the battle would be as good as over.

The distance gradually closed, and the battleships entered firing range. Both sides’ battleships, their main cannons fully charged, fired almost simultaneously. Huge energy light bombs, like dense meteors, flashed with enormous brilliance between the two fleets, crossing paths, each hurtling towards their targets.

The energy shields of ships hit by the energy light bombs continuously flickered, rippling like a pond in the rain.

Some of the front-line battleships disintegrated almost instantaneously, with the explosions of energy, ammunition, and oxygen within scattering them into pieces, vanishing into the vast cosmos.

Both sides’ cruisers had moved to the flanks, beginning knight-like assaults. These are the light, agile warships in the fleet with slightly weaker weaponry, tasked with charging into the enemy formation to engage in close-quarters combat and to provide cover for their fighter groups behind.

The battle was so fierce that the identical tactical moves of both sides led to a series of collisions. The main cannons of the battleships were firing a volley every four minutes. After five minutes of rapid advancement, the cruisers finally collided. Their purpose was not to annihilate each other; both sides left the opposing cruisers to the fighter groups behind them. After two rounds of high-speed exchanges of fire, the cruisers retreated at high speeds, like arrows crossing paths, leaving only wreckages of a few unlucky cruisers.

More agile than the cruisers were the fighter groups. Under the barrage of the main cannons’ light bombs, these fighters, synonymous with agility, were like swarming wasps; even the strongest creature would meet its end under a cloud of deadly wasps.

With their forces at a disadvantage, if the losses continued at a one-to-one ratio, the Federation would find itself in a passive position after losing half its forces. The loss ratio would become two-to-one, then three-to-one, eventually leading to the annihilation of the Federation Fleet by the increasingly numerically and firepower superior Imperial Fleet.

Upon seeing his cruisers and fighter groups, the Supreme Commander of the Leray Federation’s First Mixed Fleet, Vice Admiral Snyder, made a do-or-die decision. He ordered to let the cruisers go and directed the fighter groups to fully assault, assisting their cruisers in breaking through the blockade, aiming to annihilate the enemy fighter groups with localized superior forces.

This order, in future war studies, was known as the command that saved the entire Leray Federation. Thus, Vice Admiral Snyder, Supreme Commander of the First Mixed Fleet, became famous in one battle.

Both fleets maneuvered like opposing schools of fish in the vast expanse of space, evading each other’s fire through anticipatory maneuvers using counter-lock systems. The flanks of the fish schools were entangled, yet the main battleships maintained their distance.

The balance of victory in this war teetered in an instant. Initially, the Federation Fleet made an error. Their cruisers and fighter groups were positioned too closely; this was clearly unsuitable for the fast-paced rhythm of the intense combat. However, under the keen command of the Federation’s commander, this flaw transformed into an advantage!

Unexpectedly, the Federation fighters bypassed their own cruiser formations, leading the Gazalin Empire fighter groups to a catastrophic disaster. As the Federation cruisers suddenly dispersed, they forced the Imperial fighter groups to scatter with concentrated firepower and aggressive penetration. Then, the sudden emergence of the Federation’s fighters from behind the cruisers precisely targeted the now-disordered Imperial fighter groups. They could not fail the trust placed in them by the battleship crews who withstood the enemy fire with their own bodies, seizing this fleeting opportunity!

Indeed, the Federation battleships were using their bodies to withstand the barrage, buying time for the flanking cruisers and fighter groups.

Unobstructed ahead, the aggressive Imperial cruiser groups rushed at the Federation battleship formation. The outnumbered Federation Fleet began changing formations with their lives on the line. The aircraft carriers were tightly protected, and the main cannons of the battleships, ignoring the enemy fire, focused on annihilating the rapidly approaching cruisers.

If, when the Imperial cruisers break through into the Federation battleship formation, the Federation’s cruiser and fighter mixed group cannot deliver a devastating blow to the enemy fighter groups, the balance of victory would swiftly tip towards the Gazalin Empire.

The Federation warriors succeeded. Their mixed fighter groups rapidly destroyed the enemy fighters. The coordination between the cruisers’ main cannons and the fighter groups was impeccable. One cruiser working with one fighter squadron against several disjointed Imperial fighters produced indisputable results.

The Imperial cruisers continuously accelerated, also racing against time. They needed to break into the enemy battleship’s defensive formation before their fighter groups could be overcome. Once the enemy battleships were scattered, their own battleships could unleash greater firepower without facing return fire or delay until their fighters and cruisers returned.

What they didn’t realize was that their fighter groups could no longer assist them. From the moment they dispersed, the fighter groups fell into a forced solo combat trap without coordination, unified command, or focused breakthrough directions. Once targeted by coordinated cruiser-supporting fighter groups, their only outcome was to turn into a ball of flame in the black expanse of space.

The Federation battleships completed their formation change when the enemy cruisers were less than a thousand kilometers away. Two-thirds of the battleships retreated, using their main cannons to re-aim at the enemy battleships, maintaining a standoff. The remaining third of the battleships turned, using their bodies to shield the main fleet, resisting the Imperial cruiser assault with their more numerous side cannons.

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Necessary war descriptions to set the stage for later developments. Friends who do not enjoy it can skip, it’s not dragging the story. Writing these is more troublesome than writing about Fatty.