Of the Owl Dragon Legion interstellar warships opening the attack, some were driving their attack home into the very teeth of their own side's gunfire!
Interstellar missiles fired by their own interstellar missile ships were bursting, some of them, at a very short distance from Owl Dragon Legion interstellar warships, and the star shields felt the wash of it.
This was a thing that had very seldom happened in the Owl Dragon Legion's combat style before.
Generally the interstellar missile ships would finish a round of covering fire, and only then would the interstellar warships behind them open the attack.
But at this hour the two steps were going forward very nearly at once.
Foremost in the charge was an assault array made up of the T4 Blue-Eyes White Dragon-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Battleship, the T4 Tyrant-class Heavy Interstellar Missile-Battlecruiser, the T4 Vermilion Bird-class Medium Interstellar Cruiser, and out of the T3 series the T3 Imperial-class Heavy Interstellar Battleship, the T3 Blizzard-class Light Interstellar Battlecruiser, and the T3 Wind-Eagle-class Medium Interstellar Cruiser.
And beneath the interstellar-missile bombardment of the 60 T3 Judicator-class Heavy Interstellar Missile Ships the two Owl Dragon legions had gathered together, they opened their charge!
Like so many war-wolves, they drove into the smoke of the bursting shells!
The Owl Dragon Second Legion's commander Chitong watched the interstellar table before her, following the attack closely.
Her reason for ordering the fleet to open its attack in the teeth of its own gunfire was to make the effect of the attack the greatest possible, and to win time at the same time!
Though there was a risk of being struck by their own fire in it, upon a field of battle risk and gain go together.
The greater the risk, the greater the gain.
And she trusted the professional discipline of those ship's captains under her, and of the interstellar missile-ship captains behind.
And the fact bore this out.
Every interstellar missile ship's bombardment target was exceedingly precise.
And these positions were all clearly marked out in red circles upon their attacking fleet's star chart.
So long as they kept clear of these attack ranges along the course of their attack, they could lessen their own risk.
Which meant that upon the Owl Dragon Legion's side, with the firepower of the interstellar missile ships to help, in the opening phase of the fighting the attack went forward with great success.
They tore the enemy camp's forward position open very nearly with ease.
But thereafter, every step of the Owl Dragon Legion's attack forward grew greatly harder.
For the enemy too began to concentrate their force, and to intercept this Owl Dragon Legion fleet that came on like a fierce tiger down from the mountain.
And among them a great number of Demon Race T4 interstellar warships rose up besides, and even gathered themselves together.
These T4 demon-line interstellar warships gathered in a body amounted, for the Owl Dragon Legion in its attack, to so many great boulders blocking the road.
They could not be gone round; they could only be destroyed!
"Order a part of the T4 Gorgon-class Heavy Interstellar Heavy-Artillery Ships to conduct precision bombardment!" Chitong handed down the order.
The two Owl Dragon legions were joined into one at this time, and the two legions' 10 T4 Gorgon-class Heavy Interstellar Heavy-Artillery Ships together answered wholly to Commander Chitong's command.
Very soon, every heavy gun aboard one T4 Gorgon-class Heavy Interstellar Heavy-Artillery Ship was laid upon the "stone in the road" ahead.
And with the captain's order.
The heavy guns opened fire!
Through all of it, the charging fleet's speed did not slacken in the least.
Which meant that if the T4 Gorgon-class Heavy Interstellar Heavy-Artillery Ships could not destroy these T4 demon-line interstellar warships in good time, the force of the Owl Dragon Legion's charge would be checked on the instant.
Which for the Owl Dragon Legion was beyond question a great danger.
Like cavalry at the charge, when the horsemen in front pull up short — the consequence of it does not bear thinking of!
But in this moment these Owl Dragon-line interstellar warships did not hesitate at all; they trusted their own commander, and trusted their comrades besides.
Here, if one T4 Gorgon would not serve, then two! If two would not serve, then three!
At last, beneath this class of interstellar gunship's terrible output of fire.
Those near 100 T4 demon-line interstellar warships gathered in a body were destroyed to the last.
And the charging Owl Dragon Legion fleet crossed over these wrecks of demon interstellar warships, still burning and bursting from time to time, and charged on without halting at all.
For them there was but one order, and it was death to disobey!
Within four hours, this lane must be opened through!
In the space of this bare half hour, a quarter of the whole Demon Race bridgehead position had been penetrated.
And the other commander.
The Owl Dragon Fourth Legion's Commander Su Lan, was not idle either, for what came next fell to her.
She stood upon the command platform at the middle of the bridge, holographic projections of the interstellar field all about her, and her two hands, for all the world as though at a piano, were playing out the melody of this war.
"Interstellar destroyers and interstellar escorts, make ready to consolidate the lane! Carrier starships into their several battle positions; begin releasing the interstellar fighter swarms and interstellar drone swarms!" Commander Su Lan handed down the order.
At the middle of the Owl Dragon Legion's charging formation, interstellar destroyer after interstellar destroyer and escort after escort scattered outward like flowers flung by a heavenly maiden, and did not press the attack further.
But rather, about the route the charging fleet had torn open, formed battle positions one after another.
Positions made up of the T4 Skeleton-King-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Destroyer, the T3 Wolverine-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Destroyer, the T4 Paladin-class Heavy Interstellar Missile-Escort, and the T3 Triceratops-class Interstellar Heavy Assault Escort stood guard over this lane.
And at the same time, at intervals along the lane.
Carrier starships halted and held station.
The instant the T3 Phoenix-class carrier starships and the T4 Fallen-Angel-class Super-Heavy Carrier Starships came to rest, they opened their bay doors.
First to appear were the interstellar drone swarms, flung out like so many sugar pellets; and once cast into space, they unfolded into their full form in a very short time, and by their instructions sped away toward their several battle positions.
Then came the interstellar fighters, stronger in combat power, racing out from the runway after runway opened along the hulls; and having formed into battle flights, they too sped away to the field.
The task of these interstellar drone swarms and interstellar fighters was to help those interstellar escorts and interstellar destroyers make sure this lane stood clear and unblocked through the several hours to come!
"What in the world are these fellows trying to do?" The three demon commanders could make neither head nor tail of this war come so suddenly upon them.
"Why does it feel as though all they want is to tear a lane open within our position? It does not look as though they mean to annihilate us?" one of the demon commanders muttered.
And just at this time, another piece of important news furnished a thread to their bewilderment.
"Report — we have detected, at a distance, eight enemy legion fleets holding station: near 25,000 interstellar warships all told!"
Hearing their subordinate's report, all three demon commanders felt a chill run up their backs.
One of them asked hurriedly, "Have they made any move?"
"None. These eight Owl Dragon legion fleets have held station all along and have not opened any attack — it seems… as though they were waiting for something!"
"Waiting?"
One demon commander's heart gave a lurch, and at this moment every thread joined together!