The T6 Twilight Elf-class Heavy Interstellar Battleship[1] · the bridge
The Flame Elf Queen looked at the Owl Dragon Empire's present battlefield holo-table, shared by the Owl Dragon Empire's side, before her.
"Three battlefields. This is a way of invading the Devourer Civilization often uses. It attacks from three directions; so long as one of them can quickly tear open a gap and set up a bridgehead position, it can widen the war against the enemy universe. By building Soul Altars it forges Pitch-Black Legion fleets without end, and uses them to wear down the target universe's military strength. Of the five million warships they're putting into each battlefield now, over half are in truth cannon fodder meant to be sacrificed to the Soul Altars," the adjutant beside her analyzed.
They had never fought a large-scale war with the Devourer Civilization, but over these years they had seen with their own eyes so many universes invaded by the Devourer Civilization and finally destroyed.
On the Flame Elf Queen's orders, they had gathered a great deal of battle intelligence on it,
all for use on just such a day.
They had never fought a great campaign with the Devourer Civilization, but it was already an opponent they knew well.
"Yes. This first round of attack looks strong, but in fact it's attrition, to prepare for the Devourer Civilization's real invasion to follow. But if even this first round can't be withstood, the Devourer Civilization will attack in force at once as well," the Flame Elf Queen said.
Then she looked at the three battlefields and at the time. "Ten hours have passed since the fighting began. Every battlefield is using the tactic of rotating lines, to hold the battlefield in bounds and wear down the enemy's warships at the same time. So far it's gone very smoothly. All three of our fleet group commanders report that the Owl Dragon Empire legion fleet groups working with them have shown very well in this stage of the fighting, and have won their praise. That lot are every one of them usually above looking at anyone; to win their praise in so short a time: it seems these Owl Dragon Empire marshals and commanders aren't famous for nothing."
The adjutant beside her called up several videos. "Several recordings from the battlefields have come back. By what we've seen, the Owl Dragon legion fleet groups, at least in adjusting their dispositions on several battlefields, are very skilled, even outstanding. They're like robots: they already know every step of how to dispose and arrange things, and at last carry out the combat task given by those above. It makes every one of their starship corps fleets carry out its own combat task on the battlefield as competently as a single soldier."
Hearing her adjutant's unstinting praise,
the Flame Elf Queen nodded in satisfaction.
They elves were proud, but under the training of the Flame Elf Queen, one of their leaders, they had formed a habit too:
they would respect the strong from the heart!
"But what kind of showing is this?" The Flame Elf Queen looked at several battlefield records, and frowned.
The adjutant beside her said nothing more now either.
For he knew the Flame Elf Queen was angry now.
In those several battle records were written some substandard showings by the Sacred Elf legion fleet groups.
Among them there was even one case, during the rotation tactic, of two elf warships actually colliding in a crossing lane!
They had moved apart in time, without affecting the battlefield.
But it was beyond doubt a great slap in the face!
"Reprimand these starships within the fleet. And stress once more: if any starship makes such a low-grade mistake again, not only will the starship's captain answer for it, but that fleet's commander and corps commander will answer for it too!" The Flame Elf Queen's voice was very cold as she said it.
From her tone the adjutant could be sure this was certainly no joke.
Anyone who made mistakes from here on would likely pay for it.
"By your order, three of our Sacred Elf legion fleet groups have now all entered the battlefields and joined the operations there. On the Owl Dragon Empire's side, every legion fleet group in their original plan has entered its battle position. The three battlefields each have at least two million of our warships," the adjutant too reported other matters at once, changing the subject.
"And the Devourer Civilization's invading fleets?" the Flame Elf Queen said.
The adjutant said, "In the past ten hours, at least three million of the Devourer Civilization's devourer legion fleets have surged onto every battlefield. An increase averaging about three hundred thousand an hour."
"Then in that time, what's the two sides' loss ratio?" the Flame Elf Queen said.
The adjutant said, "For the first ten hours, because every battlefield was set to rotate, with rotations three hours apart, and the Owl Dragon legion fleet groups going first everywhere: by the word we have, if we count our figures and the Owl Dragon legions' combat figures separately, in the first six hours the Owl Dragon Empire's legion fleets destroyed near a hundred thousand warships of the Devourer Civilization's legion fleets in all, while the Owl Dragon Empire's own losses were under ten thousand warships: an astonishing loss ratio of ten to one!"
"Ten to one?" The Flame Elf Queen was greatly astonished. "Is that figure not miscounted? The Owl Dragon Empire's side supplied it?"
The adjutant said, "We have two sets of figures: one the Owl Dragon Empire's side published, and the other gathered by our people on the battlefield. In the main it can be confirmed that the Owl Dragon Empire's loss figures are wholly true. For in our own count, the warships the Owl Dragon Empire lost come to fewer than ten thousand in fact. Because, by what we've observed, in the Owl Dragon Empire's count of its own ship losses, they include some of the Owl Dragon Legion's own warships that were rather badly damaged and need to go back to the docks for repair; the real losses are in fact only sixty or seventy percent of it. For in their count of losses, their standard is: loss of fighting power on the battlefield. That includes warships that withdrew safely but can't recover their fighting ability in a short time."
Hearing this, the Flame Elf Queen was more astonished still.
A loss ratio of ten to one had already astonished her greatly.
And now she was told that in truth this ten-to-one loss ratio had a great deal of 'padding' in it.
"And we ourselves?" the Flame Elf Queen asked.
The adjutant paused, his face somewhat awkward.
"Speak." The Flame Elf Queen had already made herself ready at heart.
At least in her own mind, the Sacred Elf legion fleet groups she led did not have it in them to fight the Devourer Civilization's legion fleets to a ten-to-one loss ratio,
even with the defending side's advantage.
"So far we've held the battlefield for about four hours. In those four hours we've destroyed about eighty thousand warships, and we ourselves have lost… twenty thousand warships."
When the adjutant had told this string of figures, he did not forget to find himself an excuse: "Our Sacred Elf legion fleet groups haven't been through fighting of this grade in a long time, after all; it's normal to be unaccustomed to it on the battlefield."
"Then by what you say: we have more detailed experience of fighting the Devourer Civilization's legion fleets; this is the Owl Dragon legions' first clash with the Devourer Civilization's fleets, and some of the intelligence they knew before came from us. How have they shown? At once they had the battlefield ready, called up their interstellar legion fleets in the shortest time, and made their battle dispositions on the field. And then look at us?" A trace of self-mockery even appeared on the Flame Elf Queen's face.
The adjutant swallowed; he did not know now what words to use to bring it back round either.
It was truly that the other side's showing was too dazzling.
One a loss ratio of ten to one, and one of four to one: it was not simply a difference of twice or so.
"What's the battlefield consumption of each legion fleet?" The Flame Elf Queen did not dig deeper into this question either; it had happened, after all.
Saying more now would be no use.
"On the Owl Dragon legions' side, the warships in the battlefield have used on average about 60% of their starship combat resources. Our warships, because they've fought for less time, are at about 30%," the adjutant answered.
The Flame Elf Queen narrowed her eyes and looked at the interstellar holo-table.
On the battlefield, the fighting ability of the interstellar legion fleets was one great factor, but at the same time logistics and supply would bear on how the battlefield changed too.
"Have the Owl Dragon legions' interstellar missile ships not taken part in the fighting?" the Flame Elf Queen asked particularly.
She knew about interstellar missile ships, knew the terrifying power of these gold-devouring behemoths; they had extremely strong firepower, but at the same time it meant they needed to consume a great deal of logistics and supply.
She did not deny the interstellar missile ship's fire support over a short time, but in her mind she still put on it a label: 'poor value for money.'
By comparison she even liked the interstellar gunships the Owl Dragon Legion fitted out better.
"So far only a small part have taken part in the fighting; they haven't been used on a large scale. Above all, of the corps fleets the Owl Dragon Empire's Hell-Angel ace fleet group sent to the three battlefields, not one has taken part in the fighting," the adjutant said.
"It seems they too know very well what it costs to play this trump card of theirs. Not unless there's no other way will they use it," the Flame Elf Queen muttered.
"My lady, we still have two Sacred Elf legion fleet groups; are they to be sent to the battlefields?" the adjutant asked.
"Is there any request from the Owl Dragon Empire's side?" the Flame Elf Queen asked.
"No."
The Flame Elf Queen narrowed her eyes, then said, "One of the areas of fighting is very near the site where the universe star gate linking the two universes is being built. Tell the Owl Dragon Empire's side that we'll send the Sacred Elf Thirtieth Legion Fleet Group to be stationed in Luoyang System 02, to protect the universe star-gate works. As for the remaining Sacred Elf Thirteenth Legion Fleet Group, it's to stand by where it is. If the Owl Dragon Empire's side asks for support, we'll arrange it then."
"Yes," the adjutant answered.
The Flame Elf Queen looked down over the whole interstellar war holo-table; it was not that she was unwilling to send her own legion fleet groups to fight the enemy on the battlefield, nor that she feared sacrificing her own interstellar fleets.
Had it come to fighting the enemy and making sacrifices, she would have no regrets.
But to reach the first goal she had agreed with the Owl Dragon Emperor, she must cut casualties in this stage!
……
Next, in the fifteenth hour of the Owl Dragon Empire's defensive war, the Devourer Civilization's legion fleet warships on each battlefield had piled up to five million warships.
At this moment the fleets that had been passing without end through those 'holes' into the Owl Dragon Empire finally dwindled.
All that was left were the interstellar transport fleets coming and going without pause.
And because the Devourer Civilization's invading fleets in the Owl Dragon Empire grew larger and larger, the original defensive lines on each battlefield had been changed several times too.
And the star systems where the battlefields lay, and every star system around the battlefields, had all begun emergency evacuation of their local residents.
The Millermo System · the ninth planet
Interstellar transport ships shuttled without pause between this planet's surface and outer space, and even no few small and medium shuttles had been requisitioned.
Every city, town and even village on the surface had a transfer point set up.
"Mommy,[2] where are we going?" A little beast-folk girl, clutching a doll, looked at her mother.
"We're going somewhere safe." There was tension in the mother's eyes too, but she tried to speak in as even a tone as she could.
At the same time her eyes kept sweeping over the several children beside her, afraid one of them would get lost.
"Eldest, second, watch your little brothers and sisters. Whatever you do, don't get separated!" the beast-folk mother did not forget to remind them.
The little beast-folk girl, holding her doll, looked at the crowd around her, too timid to speak.
Luckily they very soon boarded a transport ship without trouble.
Announcements sounded without pause inside the transport ship.
"Please move inside, and stand in your assigned place. There are no seats for anyone; please stand in your assigned place and hold on to the handrails. In one minute we take off!"
The little girl looked at this small closed compartment; the hatch behind her had already slowly risen.
She glanced around quietly; it was a compartment only about two and a half meters high, with a square marked where each person stood, and handrails reaching out as well.
All around were plain marks where some equipment had been taken out.
Very soon red light was flashing in the compartment.
"This transport ship is about to take off; please stand steady and hold on."
With a sudden rush of force, the little beast-folk girl hurriedly grabbed a handrail and shut her eyes tight in fear.
Very soon the force passed.
But around them there were still some who had not held on tight, and had fallen and been hurt.
The announcement reminded them too that the injured should see to themselves for now, and that the badly injured could raise a hand.
Luckily most were only scrapes, which could be borne.
After about fifteen minutes,
the little beast-folk girl felt as though they had stopped.
Then the red light in the compartment went out.
"This transport ship has reached its appointed interstellar transport; the hatch is about to open; please line up and leave the ship as instructed. Repeating……"
The little beast-folk girl, holding her mother's hem, followed the crowd out nervously.
Outside was a corridor; on either side of the corridor was transparent glass, through which the space outside could be seen.
The little beast-folk girl could not help looking out.
She saw interstellar transport ships by the thousands drifting everywhere, and in the distance she saw a great stretch of halos blooming without pause, as though some dazzling show were going on there.