Chapter 172: Major of the Imperial Fleet

Chapter 172: Major of the Imperial Fleet

The static continued for several seconds before the sound changed. Noah remained beside the communications station while the officer adjusted the receiver just enough to keep the signal centered on the same frequency.

A burst of interference passed through the speaker, followed by a sequence of tones that made several Khelron officers turn toward one another. Governor Halden immediately stepped closer to the station as the pattern repeated.

"That is an Imperial identification code," he said.

The communications officer began copying the sequence as it came through a second time. Another officer checked it against the military records available to Khelron and confirmed the authentication less than a minute later.

The transmission returned once the verification ended. A man’s voice came through the speaker clearly enough that the remaining static no longer obscured his words.

"Khelron planetary command, this is Major Cassian Rourke of the Imperial Expeditionary Fleet. Confirm receipt."

Halden glanced toward Noah before answering. "Imperial Expeditionary Fleet, Khelron command receiving."

The reply came without delay, and Rourke’s voice remained calm despite the orbital battle surrounding his formation. "We detected a major Vraxith concentration while operating in the surrounding region. Your planetary distress traffic confirmed they were attacking Khelron."

Noah looked toward the orbital display as the Imperial airships continued exchanging fire with the Vraxith. Their formation had pushed farther into the enemy fleet while several damaged vessels remained protected behind the leading escorts.

Halden activated another channel. "We had no notification that Imperial forces were approaching."

"You wouldn’t have received one," Rourke answered. "Khelron was not part of our assigned operation."

Noah moved beside the governor and leaned closer to the communications station. "Major Rourke, this is Noah. I’m commanding the Eldrathi expeditionary force supporting Khelron’s defense."

There was a brief pause before the Major responded. The delay was short enough that Noah assumed Rourke was checking information rather than hesitating.

"I have your mission authorization and the deployment notice issued by the training camp. Your forces were assigned here before our fleet entered the region."

That answer told Noah that Rourke had access to Imperial records far beyond what local officers could see. Noah immediately shifted the conversation toward the battlefield.

"Then you already know why Eldrath is here."

"I know you were assigned to reinforce Khelron against the Vraxith. Tell me what condition the ground defense is in now."

Noah kept the report short and gave only what Rourke needed. "Vraxith forces are established across multiple regions. The defensive line remains intact, though several formations have suffered heavy casualties. Fresh landings slowed after your fleet engaged the carriers."

"How much of Khelron’s important infrastructure is still operating?"

"Major refineries are active. The primary rail routes are damaged in places but still usable. The portal staging area remains secure."

"Keep those routes open. Continue commanding the surface forces while my formation deals with the Vraxith fleet."

Noah looked at Halden, and the governor appeared satisfied with that division of responsibility. Noah had expected an Imperial officer arriving with this kind of firepower to assume control of the entire battle, yet Rourke treated Khelron’s ground defense as an operation already functioning under its own command.

Noah asked the question that had been bothering him since the identification came through. The scale of the fleet still did not fit naturally with the rank he had heard over the radio.

"Major, what formation are you commanding?"

"Third Expeditionary Strike Group."

Halden glanced toward Noah while Noah continued studying the large central airship. Its size alone made the answer feel unusual.

"And you personally command the entire group?"

"Yes. The airships and the attached combat detachments both answer to me."

The answer made the rank feel even stranger. The central airship dwarfed anything Eldrath could construct, and the vessels accompanying it possessed weapons Noah could not identify.

Noah would have expected someone commanding such a formation to hold a far higher military rank. Rourke seemed to recognize where his attention had gone without Noah needing to explain it.

"You’re wondering why a Major commands this many ships."

"Yes."

"The rank makes more sense once you see how this strike group fights."

Someone spoke near Rourke on the other side of the transmission. Noah could not hear the words clearly, though the Major answered the unseen officer before returning his attention to Khelron.

"The Vraxith are moving several carriers around our flanks. I need to deal with that before they complete the maneuver. I’ll contact you again after we break their formation."

The transmission ended, and Noah returned his full attention to the orbital display. The Vraxith were already changing their positions around the Imperial force.

Several carriers that had remained farther from the engagement began closing from opposite directions. Smaller organisms swarmed ahead of them, filling the space between the biological vessels and the Imperial airships.

The Imperial escorts opened fire as the Vraxith approached. Their unfamiliar attacks crossed the darkness in rapid bursts and tore gaps through the advancing organisms.

The Vraxith continued through those losses and released biological projectiles once they entered range. One projectile struck an Imperial escort near the rear and forced the vessel to roll slightly away from the impact before correcting its orientation.

Another ship moved closer to cover the damaged escort’s exposed side. Noah watched the Vraxith formation continue tightening around the Imperial ships while the escorts adjusted without breaking formation.

An orbital officer enlarged one region of the engagement. "More contacts are closing from beneath their formation."

Noah saw dozens of Vraxith organisms moving toward the underside of the Imperial fleet, where fewer escorts were positioned. The large central airship changed course slightly, and several smaller vessels adjusted with it to preserve the formation.

Rourke’s voice returned over the radio before the lower Vraxith group reached the fleet. His message was shorter this time.

"Khelron command."

"Receiving," Halden answered.

"Maintain your surface defense. We’re deploying the boarding force."

The transmission ended immediately afterward, and Halden frowned at the communications station. He looked toward the orbital display as the words registered.

"Boarding force? They are still kilometers away from the nearest carrier."

Noah did not answer because something had already changed on the orbital display. Several distortions appeared near the central airship and began expanding into visible openings.

At first, Noah thought the brightness came from another weapon preparing to fire. One of the distortions then widened into a circular opening suspended in empty space, followed by another several kilometers away.

A third opening formed along the opposite side of the Imperial formation. Noah stepped closer to the display as the officers redirected their observation instruments.

"Magnify those openings."

The orbital officer increased the image, and the shapes became unmistakable. Noah recognized them as portals even though they behaved very differently from the gateway he maintained between Khelron and Eldrath.

His own portal required preparation and a stable connection between two locations. The openings around Rourke’s fleet appeared quickly across different parts of the battlefield and remained suspended without any visible machinery around them.

Another portal formed above the central airship. A fifth appeared farther along the formation’s flank while the earlier openings remained stable.

Halden stared at the display. "He opened all of those?"

"The readings are originating from the Imperial formation," an officer answered.

Noah kept his attention on the portals and immediately ordered the observers to record their behavior. "Track where each one appears and how long it remains open."

Figures began stepping through the opening nearest the command airship. They were individual soldiers rather than personnel enclosed inside spacecraft or pilots controlling small fighters.

Long robes moved around their bodies as they stepped directly into open space. Fitted garments were visible beneath the outer layers, while belts and sashes held weapons at their waists and backs.

One carried a sword while another held a long spear. A third stepped through with empty hands and immediately moved away from the portal.

Noah searched the enlarged image for equipment that might explain how they were surviving outside the atmosphere. He saw no cables connecting them to the airships and no visible propulsion packs attached to their bodies.

None wore enclosed suits resembling anything Eldrath would use for survival in open space. The figures simply remained suspended beyond the portal and began spreading into formation.

More soldiers emerged behind them before the opening closed. Another group appeared from the second portal farther from the fleet while a third detachment entered through the opening above the command vessel.

Within minutes, dozens of robed soldiers were positioned throughout the space surrounding the Imperial airships. Their movements showed that none of them were helplessly drifting.

An orbital officer leaned closer to the magnified image. "There’s no visible propulsion equipment."

Noah watched one of the soldiers turn and accelerate without anything firing from his body. "Keep recording their movement. We can study how they do it after the battle."

The first Vraxith organisms reached the nearest detachment. A group of smaller creatures rushed five robed soldiers positioned ahead of one Imperial escort.

The soldiers spread apart rather than returning toward the airship. One drew his sword and moved forward so quickly that Noah nearly lost track of him on the display.

The distance between the swordsman and the leading Vraxith vanished in moments. He passed across the creature’s front, and a line opened through its armored body before the organism separated into two pieces.

Another creature attacked from the side while the swordsman continued forward. The robed soldier turned in open space and changed direction sharply enough to avoid the charge.

He moved as if there were solid ground beneath him despite floating far above Khelron. Another warrior nearby raised one hand and released an attack toward a different Vraxith organism.

A flash crossed the distance and struck the creature directly. Part of the Vraxith’s front disappeared while the remainder tumbled backward into open space.

Noah did not attempt to name what had produced the attack. He had already seen too many unfamiliar weapons since the Imperial fleet arrived to draw conclusions from appearance alone.

More of the robed soldiers entered combat as the Vraxith continued closing around them. A spear-wielding woman accelerated toward a larger creature and drove her weapon between two armored plates.

She released the shaft, passed alongside the creature, and caught the spear again after it tore through the opposite side. The movement was controlled enough that she immediately turned toward another approaching organism.

Khelron’s officers had stopped speaking while they watched. The fight outside the atmosphere no longer resembled anything the defenders below had experienced.

A new distortion appeared close to one of the Vraxith carriers. Noah focused on it as the portal widened and six robed soldiers emerged before the carrier’s escorts could reposition.

The nearby Vraxith organisms reacted and turned toward them immediately. The soldiers scattered before the creatures could surround the opening.

Two moved straight toward the carrier while the remaining four intercepted its escorts. The portal closed behind them once the entire detachment had entered the battlefield.

Noah now understood what Rourke meant by a boarding force. The Major did not need to move soldiers across the entire distance separating his ships from the enemy.

He could place them near their targets through portals. Another opening appeared along the opposite flank of the Imperial fleet and released eight additional martial soldiers into a threatened section.

The Vraxith pressure there changed almost immediately as the new fighters attacked from a direction the organisms had not been facing. Several enemy creatures turned away from the Imperial escorts to deal with the soldiers appearing behind them.

Noah thought about the portal connecting Khelron and Eldrath. He could maintain that gateway because he was physically present on Khelron and remained connected to his own planet.

Holding it open at military width already demanded a significant amount of his available divine power. Rourke was creating separate portals across an active battlefield and closing them once each deployment finished.

Some appeared several kilometers from his command vessel. Others vanished after delivering soldiers and were replaced moments later at entirely different positions.

Noah could not determine how many the Major could maintain or how far he could create them. The difference between Rourke’s control and his own was obvious without knowing those limits.

The Imperial airships continued firing around the martial soldiers while the Vraxith attempted to overwhelm them. Their attacks passed through openings between the smaller engagements with enough precision to avoid the robed fighters.

The soldiers themselves spread farther from the vessels as the battle widened. Some fought in groups while others operated alone against individual Vraxith organisms.

One swordsman moved between two smaller creatures and struck both before either could turn toward him. Another fighter with no visible weapon hit a Vraxith organism at close range and sent it crashing into a second attacker behind it.

Noah opened the communications channel and tried contacting the Major directly. "Major Rourke, Khelron command."

No response came from the airship, and another portal appeared instead. A single figure stepped through and remained suspended beyond the opening.

Noah noticed the insignia on the man’s clothing before anyone identified him. His robes were darker than those worn by many of the other fighters, with restrained Imperial military markings running along the shoulder and waist.

The communications officer checked the identification image transmitted earlier. "That’s Major Rourke."

Noah stared at the figure on the feed as the portal closed behind him. Rourke had left his command airship and entered the battlefield personally.

He floated several kilometers ahead of the vessel without visible support while a group of Vraxith organisms changed direction toward him. Rourke raised one hand as they approached.

Three portals opened around the creatures almost simultaneously. Martial soldiers emerged from each opening and spread outward before the Vraxith could reach the Major.

The new fighters attacked from several directions. Swords crossed through armored bodies while spear-wielding soldiers accelerated between the organisms and forced them apart.

Other robed figures released attacks Noah could only see as brief flashes before Vraxith creatures were thrown away or torn open. Rourke remained at the center of the engagement while the soldiers he had deployed handled the surrounding threats.

Another Vraxith group moved toward the Imperial flank, and the Major turned toward them. A portal appeared ahead of their route and released another detachment directly into the approaching formation.

Noah now understood Rourke’s role within the strike group. The Major was not simply an officer directing airships from a command deck.

His own ability allowed martial soldiers to appear throughout the battlefield without spending time crossing the distance between the Imperial formation and each Vraxith target. That made him part of the strike group’s combat capability rather than only its commander.

A group of enemy organisms attempted to bypass the fighters and reach one of the damaged Imperial escorts. Two portals opened near the threatened vessel before the creatures could close the distance.

A dozen robed soldiers emerged and intercepted the attackers in open space. The engagement spread farther from the command vessel as more Vraxith organisms turned toward the newly deployed fighters.

The darkness around Khelron filled with moving figures. Noah saw swords and spears carried between the stars while robed soldiers accelerated from one engagement to another.

Some fought with weapons while others attacked with empty hands. They changed direction and moved through open space without visible craft supporting them.

The Imperial airships continued firing through the gaps between the engagements. Vraxith carriers answered with biological projectiles while smaller organisms swarmed around the robed fighters.

Halden finally spoke after watching another group emerge from a portal. His attention remained fixed on the figures moving between the two fleets.

"I’ve served under Imperial authority my entire life, and I’ve never seen a unit like this deployed."

Noah glanced toward him before returning his attention to the feed. "Then Khelron normally operates far below the level where forces like these are needed."

Another portal opened near a massive Vraxith organism. Five martial soldiers stepped through and spread around the creature before it could turn toward all of them.

A separate portal appeared several moments later, and Rourke emerged from it. The Major immediately opened additional gateways farther across the battlefield.

More robed soldiers stepped through those openings and moved directly toward the Vraxith. The airships were only one part of the Imperial attack unfolding above Khelron.

Between them, dozens of martial soldiers were now fighting Vraxith organisms directly among the stars. Major Rourke continued opening portals wherever another detachment was needed, forcing the enemy fleet to fight soldiers who could appear beside its formations without crossing the intervening space.