The Battle Of The Soaring Dragon (4)

"Start moving!!" Swoooshhh! Swoooshhhh! Swoooossshh!...

The Empire warships suddenly turned and faced, more or less, the same direction. The First fleet's Carrier and Battleships were facing the north, while the Second fleet's Carrier and Battleships' bows looked in the opposite direction. The warships in between looked towards either side, but they all stopped moving out of nowhere. The Carriers and Battleships were more or less in the middle, but even then, their 'Border' Wall had extended past the Battleships and covered the fleets as they became 2 lines vertically aiming into the enemy Fleets' heart.

“... What are they doing?” - “What is this?!” - “Get everyone to prepare. They must be planning something…” - “This isn’t good… it never is with these monstrous fuckers!” While the Empire warships’ officials were moving and yelling commands, the enemy warships retreated, and the commanders in them rapidly started taking defensive stances against the strange movement from the Empire’s fleets.

“Watch out!!” Suddenly, an enemy Supreme Battleship commander shouted into their communications channel, and the enemy warships suddenly watched around them as the Empire’s fleets… moving towards them at the same time! Every single warship, each giving them their starboard or port side, faced the enemy warships as they… slid through the water’s surface?!

“What the-” Ta rararararararararararararararararararararararararararararara~!!

The enemy warships weren’t given enough time to respond, and they literally watched as thousands and thousands of different machine guns fired at them while 2 whole Empire fleets moved towards them! The machine guns were too loud and becoming closer and closer, yet they didn’t accidentally shoot into another warship’s shield or structure and landed on the enemy warships with utmost precision!

Before the enemy could start going all-out in response, thinking that the Empire’s Carriers and Battleships were now an easy target, missiles started raining on them, bringing fire and explosions everywhere, with their shields rapidly falling like dominoes, and their structures performed by the heavy firepower raining upon them! The Empire wasn’t making it easy, and this was a direct response to their hidden moves and decisions.

“!” The commanders at the rear of the enemy Fleets looked at this development somewhat exasperated. Their faces stiffened, and some even paled. However, they acted quick, and with a rapid notion, their LBFD started coming out of their warships and aimed at the incoming Empire fleets. However, how could the Empire not have prepared for such development? As soon as the enemy showed their ordinary rocket launchers, the Empire’s Carriers and Battleships fired theirs, forcing the enemy to defend with rockets instead of launching an offensive.

“Dammit! Keep it at bay! I want you firing those rockets faster than them! Faster!!” One of the enemy Carrier commanders shouted at their team of experts, but one of the experts lightly called back in desperation. “Chief, we can’t! We have more rockets for the LBFD, but we barely have a full round for any other, and that’s only our Carriers and Supreme class Battleships! If we use them like that, they’ll gain the advantage over us and time it! We will see all our 4 Fleets’ shields disappear. And then they will be destroyed! We can’t!”

“Then do something! Sink those things to the bottom! They cannot break our Fleets’ mighty formation! Go on!!” The Carrier’s commander shouted again, putting force into his voice before crossing his arms and looking at the rapidly incoming Empire fleets, sliding sideways as if to inflict the most accurate damage and destruction in exchange for their safety. However, the Empire’s warships were also taking an enormous toll on their shields.

SWOOOOOSSSHHH~~ Pum! Pum! Pum! Ta- rararararararararararararararararararararara!

“AAH!” - “Gwaaaaaaah!” - “Help, we need help here!” - “Shit!” - “AAAAAAAAGGGHH!!” - “No! I don’t wanna die here! I’m not even fighting! N-” As the Empire fleets slid through the water, their machine guns were only one of their assets at top work. Their artillery guns aimed at the second-nearest enemy warship to their sudden, bizarre movement as they slid sideways directly into the center of the enemy sea territory.

The enemy warships had no choice but to escape the Empire’s all-out outburst from 2 of their fleets, and their Destroyers, Frigates, and even Cruisers suffered heavy damage before ultimately exploding. The Empire fleets were moving fast, but not that fast. Even then, the enemy warships rapidly pushed in the opposite direction, trying to save themselves from a sure death. No one could face off the heavy firepower of nearly 2 complete fleets, let alone from the Empire!

Some of them managed to escape destruction from the Empire’s heavy, concentrated, smart, and cruel firepower. Most were Cruisers. However, they were rapidly found by the Empire’s artillery guns, whose momentary distraction to shoot at them proved fatal to the enemy warships. And just as they were swimming in the water, flying up, or diving to save themselves from known death as they felt their necks, chests, and heads seemingly targeted by something other than massive weapons, a couple machine guns from the Empire fleets’ rear would aim at them and fire, creating bloody globes that popped in the air or underwater.

There was no salvation. Those enemies who managed to escape the destruction of their warship before the Empire’s sudden, strange move was met with a swift, concentrated fire that destroyed and killed them one by one. It was impossible in their heads since the Empire was moving like one warship entering enemy territory. However, they still had time and capability to aim at a few enemy warships before obliterating them. How crazy could that be? Who the hell taught these guys?! And how?!

But the Empire wasn’t giving them time to ponder, nor did the enemy allow themselves to have a break in the middle of an enormous threat. Then, in every enemy warship, as the Empire’s synchronized movement continued and struck fear into the enemy warships’ crew members’ hearts, new orders were shouted at the top of their lungs. “New orders! FIRE everything you have! It’s them or us! We gotta weaken them, destroy as many as you can! FIGHT! Reinforcements will come sooner or later! Our last pieces of land are in danger. We must give it our all! Stop their advances! Crash against them if you can!!”

Ta- rarararararararararararararararararararararararararara… Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum!... Pfiuh pifuh pfiuh pfiuh pfiuh…

The enemy engaged in the battle, no longer trying maneuvers, and simply waited their turn to fire at the Empire fleets as they moved. The Second and Third Admirals saw this but couldn’t do anything other than trusting their people. But as the enemy no longer retreated and faced them instead, the ‘Border’ Walls they held to their starboard and port became riddled with enemy firepower. They went all-out, not even giving the ‘Border’ Walls a breathing moment, cracking and rippling with instantaneous waves as some bullets penetrated and others lost speed but still landed on Frigates or Destroyers.

Boooooom! Bang! Booooooom~! “...!” - “...!” The Second and Third Admiral started hearing their warships exploding one after the other. The enemy’s firepower was intense, and the enemy navy was double its size before the all-out mutual destruction commenced. Now that their Elemental barriers were being broken apart, more and more bullets, shells, and missiles started breaking past the defensive layer. Now. It was only a matter of time before they were completely exposed to the enemy and their wrathful vendetta.

Plaaaaaaasshhhh- crack- shiiiiiliiiiiing~...!! Splash! Splashh! Splashhh! Splashhhh~!

“Rain it down on them,” the Second Admiral said with crossed arms. Immediately after, both Carriers and all 4 Battleships freed their GFDs from the inner structure. The Cruisers did the same but were less than in the Battleships. At their Admirals’ commands, those rocket launchers began firing their ammunition into the air, targeting any farthest enemy that they couldn’t immediately deal damage to. It was an insane revelation to the enemy, and they sweated from even their nails, but this was also the moment both Admirals dreaded and the enemy Carrier commanders longed for.

The ‘Border’ Walls on both sides broke at the same time. They were like shattered glass falling down, still like a window or a glass of wine, onto the ground. Only this was water, and it fell under it everywhere around the Empire fleets. Its sounds were tragic, heart-sobbing, to say the least. It attracted everyone’s attention, even those already bathing in blood inland, fighting for their dear lives and their beloved future, before resuming massacring each other.

“Ma’am, we’re receiving too much enemy firepower!! We calculate 35% of our forces will be destroyed in under half a minute!” - “Sir, we need to do something! All our Destroyers are being targeted! The speed is being lost! Our Frigates are in danger but are doing their best to move around and attract the enemy, but it isn’t working!!” - “Admiral?” - “Admiral?”

“...” - “...” At the end of a flurry of reports and requests for assistance from their team of experts, both Admirals received a questioning call from one expert, at the same time, as if it was a bilateral notion that transcended time and space, causing a strange atmosphere around the Carriers’ commands center.

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The Second Admiral kept her arms crossed while the Third Admiral’s face was composed. She relaxed her arms and blinked, parting her lips to weakly speak while her left index fingertip dropped a globe of her blood essence. “For the Empire.” - “For the Empire.”

The Third Admiral did and said the same, and without any communications channel needed in between, even reaching the enemy’s warships, silence amidst the still ongoing massive weapons from both sides, trying to destroy the other… All Empire soldier units bit a side of their inner cheeks, pried open their left index fingertip, or blinked before crying a blood essence tear. The drop of blood essence dropped onto the floor of their warship, and while the enemy felt a surging aura about to overwhelm their senses, the team of experts in each warship started working with their Souls, extending out with their Spirit Images.

Pshiiift~... Like a whiff of smoke coming off from one’s mind, extending over every Imperial Guard’s ears, the citizens gradually knelt on the ground no matter where they were, dropped their rifles between their legs or below their shins, and slowly prostrated in respect. But then, the whiff of smoke-like noise inside every Empire soldier unit’s mind became… a roaring burst of power… that forced open everyone’s eyes, which shone a pristine, starry azure blue… including the citizens!!!

PSHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIFFFTT~!!!

A sharp, deafening but thin sound spread from the bottom and middle of every Blauw Empire warship! The citizens joined their hands, clasping them, while the warship’s floor, walls, ceiling, and outside structure of their warship started glowing with aquamarine, azure… inscriptions!!

Wooooooooooooooooong~! Wooooooooooooong~! Wooooooooooong~! Wooooooooooooong~!

Splashhh! Splaaaaasshhh~! Roaaaaaaar! Swuuuuuuuuuushhhh~~~~~~!

The Empire fleets, amidst the enemy’s firepower, out in the open, and with their ‘Border’ Walls barely fully sinking into the water they were leaving behind, tracing a contrail at the extremes of their sides… Started being followed by mere energy, azure, and aquamarine in glow and color, replacing the ‘Border’ Walls and following after them up and down, swimming in the water. They weren’t just techniques or an array formation. They… looked like tens of thousands of meters long dragons coming up and down the water’s surface, protecting and enhancing the Blauw Empire’s fleets!!

“What the hell is… that?!” - “Dragons?! Are these actually Dragons?! My gods!” - “They are not! Keep firing, fuck, destroy them all!!” - “What’s that sound?” - “Ahg— dammit! We are so lost…” The enemy warships became befuddled at the Empire fleets suddenly gaining speed, strength so lethal they were literally obliterating their Cruisers and a couple Low class Battleships trying to get in their way, breaking apart those enemy warships like a dragon crazily lashing in the water and sending large chunks, debris, and dead corpses into the far distance against the other enemy warships, damaging them severely.

These ‘dragons’ swimming alongside the Blauw Empire’s fleets were also taking in the enemy machine guns’ bullets and shells that threatened to hit their warships’ hulls or keels. Then, just as the dragons were, for whatever reason, gaining volume, and more appeared as the first ones started hovering above the Empire warships, a strange sound came from the Empire fleets. “Wooooooouaaahh!” Wooooooouuuu!” -” Wuuuuuhaaaaaaoouu!” - “Wauauuuuuuuuuuuuuu~!!”

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!... The Empire’s rocket launchers finally started destroying endless targets, and their enemy Supreme Battleships started getting heavy firepower, their shields flickering and wavering.

“Incoming fire! They are letting us destroy them! But we will be obliterated, too, if we continue! Admiral, any new orders?!” One expert said. Their skin had grown a tad paler but was overall healthy. Then, another expert shouted, “The enemy is moving their Carriers and Battleships! They want to lure our rockets away from their Fleets and divert the collateral damage! Admiral, how should we follow?!”

It was a moment of decision. One that intensely pressured both Admirals who couldn’t stop hearing their team of experts’ despair. Nevertheless, reason and sound returned to the Admirals’ minds as they pushed a button, leaving the Fighters inside their Carriers with the permission to come out. Then, as their Fighters started flying into the sky and were met with heavy enemy firepower from their Cruisers and remaining Destroyers, which the latter ignored the Empire fleets and were destroyed but still continued to target the Empire’s Fighters, both Admirals noticed the sacrificial movements from the enemy Carriers and Supreme Battleships as they departed further from the enemy Fleets’ warships.

“Target the enemy warships. Do not let any more of our people face imminent destruction… Ignore the enemy rockets. We will handle the attack as we are this fleet’s leaders!!” The Second Admiral said, shouting her last sentence with her heart out as she looked at the enemy commanders lure their previous round of rockets away. “Let the Fighters deal with the Cruisers, destroy everything else immediately!”

The Third Admiral shouted after the Second, giving no more words for the other experts, except for one that continued to report the enemy leaders’ situation. “Enemy rockets launched towards us! They will strike in 3 seconds. Admiral, they are getting farther away…”

The expert’s words were already breathy, the feeling of explosions raging just outside their command center module paving at her constitution, making her skin paler than with the drop of blood essence. They were Azure Dragon’s Bloodline, but even the prospect of 100 rocket launchers firing at them terrified them deeply. Yet, the Second Admiral only heard the report and not the apprehension in the expert’s voice.

“!” The Second Admiral’s face looked at the fleeing enemy leaders. Her expression became more stern as she tightly knit her eyebrows. But then, she looked at the direction the enemy Carriers and Supreme Battleships were heading, and her face relaxed. However, by the time she did the latter, her Carrier’s shield had already been broken apart, and the remaining enemy rockets poured their all to explode at the side of the hull she was looking from. When her face was covered in the insanely mighty flames of the explosions’ shockwaves, she barely caught a glimpse of a rising, massive bow from underwater in the far, far distance.

“!!...” CRSSSHHHHHH- BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG… BOOM BOOM BOOM!...

Plop, plop, plop, plop, plop, plop, plop, plop…

“... Huh? Leader, there is something comi- FUCK! Another Fleet?! LEADER!! They’re right ahead of us! Fore! Enemy at fore! PREPARE!!—” Far away from one of the enemy Carriers, the team of experts suddenly caught a glimpse of what happened 10 km before their Carriers and Supreme Battleships with their eyes as the scanners and radars detected nothing. They immediately became alarmed, but it was for a good reason. They were just watching one of the Empire’s nearly-legendary Carriers about to be destroyed, and their LBFDs were just preparing to send another round when another Empire fleet appeared in front of them?!

The enemy, however, and this time, had no time to respond. As soon as the Empire’s Third fleet’s Carrier’s bow appeared above the water’s surface, dozens of warships appeared everywhere, with the Battleships emerging right behind it. Then, as every warship was in position, and the enemy was barely responding, the Fourth Admiral deadly-seriously looked at the incoming enemy Carriers and Supreme Battleships for half a second before coldly barking out an order. The order.

“Fire, to the bottom.” He was the only Azure Dragon’s Bloodline Admiral at the moment, and not only was his Third fleet new, but they were also accompanied by the energy dragons while his left index fingertip was barely starting to close its skin. Meanwhile, directly below the enemy’s commanders, azure, aquamarine energy dragons glowed from underwater before thrusting from below, launching the enemy Carriers and Supreme Battleships into the air with their keel facing the Third fleet’s machine guns, artillery guns, and missiles. What’s more, the Carrier’s LBFDs were all out and active.

And thus, the Third fleet’s warships opened fire, and the Carrier exploded with immense might as each of its toys and LBFDs went all-out.

SPLUUUUUUUUUSHHHH- rooooooooaaaaaaaarrrr~!! SPLASH! SPLASHH! SPLASSSHHH!! Ta-... rararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararararara… Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum! Pum!... BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BOOOOOOM~~...!!

“... This is bad! The leader’s Carrier is gone!” - “Boss, the commander’s beacon disappeared!” - “No! We’ve lost them! No… we’ve lost!” - “Fuck… no… this cannot… be hap-... happening!!” - “How did it come… to this? No…” - “We are doomed…”

The enemy warships slowly realized what happened. The feeling of surrender, desolation, and/or death overwhelmed them, and their machine guns eventually ceased firing, let alone the artillery guns or launching missiles. The enemy started giving up on the fight… however, the Empire did not. The enemy Carriers had let go of their Fighters before going suicidal. They weren’t that stupid after all, and it was still a threat.

Thus, besides killing off every enemy warship in the Blauw Empire’s new sea territory, the Empire fleets were still endangered against those enemy Fighters, but they were hella ready!!

“Second, how are you?” - “... I’m fine, how are you?” The Third Admiral suddenly spoke through the comms as their Carriers were becoming visible to the naked eye again. The Second Admiral took some time to respond, to which the Third said after pausing a moment. “Half my piloting team is dead… but the fight isn’t over.”

“... Mn, I’m sorry…” Second Admiral’s voice turned softer as she looked at her breathing team of experts. Some were injured, but there was nothing much. They looked back at her, and she and them could see the mourning in the other’s eyes. They had worked together for several months and survived catastrophic battle twists, one after another. Now, their comrades had suffered, some even dying… They could only think of destroying the enemy before letting their bodies feel weak. They could only continue.

“... Here, ground forces, the Generals will speak to you shortly after me, but I wanted to ask. Do I have permission to join the fight? I see many birds flocking around our babies. I want to go there!” Suddenly, their alert communications channel for alerts was breached by a young girl’s voice shouting: the royal princess! However! Before the Admirals could either deny or accede to her request…

…