-Hangar Deck 4-Alpha, Daggerfall's Oath
The heavy thunder hawk transporter, Talon-14 shuddered as her engines cycled up to combat power, the glow from her undercarriage thrusters casting stark shadows across the hangar floor.
Inside the reinforced cockpit, Lieutenant Karven Rael, primary void pilot of Talon-14, gripped the control yoke with a steady, gloved hand, the rhythmic pulse of his helmet HUD reflecting against the plasteel canopy.
Beside him, Flight Officer Lira Vos adjusted the auspex array, her gauntleted fingers dancing across the controls. A fresh stream of targeting telemetry poured into the command display — signatures of hundreds of allied landers, interceptors, and assault boats forming up in tight squadrons.
"Talon-14, reactor at nominal. All systems green." The voice of Chief Engineer Hadrex Velk crackled in Rael's earpiece from the engineering alcove behind the cockpit, half-buried in a tangle of conduits and flickering control slates. "But if you burn my reactors too hot on the drop, I'll skin your hide, sir."
Karven cracked a grim smile. "Noted, Chief. Helm control to launch vector alpha."
The launch klaxon screamed, bathing the hangar in crimson light.
[Launch group Fenris-Delta, execute.]
The void barrier shimmered ahead like a rippling mirror as the first wave of assault craft thundered out into space. Karven's stomach tightened — no matter how many sims, the real thing made every organ clench.
"Here we go." Lira whispered, her face pale but composed.
Talon-14's grav locks disengaged with a solid clunk, and the heavy lander surged forward, joining its squadron in perfect formation.
The Daggerfall's Oath's colossal hangar bay receded behind them, and before them the void opened — a vision of organized annihilation.
Hundreds of transportships and fighters in tight combat arrays spread out in their sector alone, formations maintained like clockwork amid the black sea. The view through the canopy was breathtaking — a mobile fleet-army launching in one grand, synchronized ballet of war.
"What a sight…" Lira breathed, catching herself, then muttering a curse. "Sorry sir, focusing on the mission."
Karven just grunted as he glances at the formation It was magnificent.
Comms erupted with orders.
[Fenris-Delta, vector to attack run 071 by 22. Maintain staggered spread. Weapons live.]
[Talon-9, you're veering wide, correct now.]
[Point defences fire inbound, brace!]
The Blackstone Fortress loomed ahead, its bulk blotting out entire sectors of the void. The warp storm and maelstorm itself is stuff of nightmare.
Even shielded by the Gellar fields, the air inside the cockpit felt heavier, the creeping sense of something wrong scratching at the back of their minds.
Karven forced his hands steady on the controls.
Point-defense turrets on the fortress flared to life, heavy macro-bolters, plasma flak arrays, and warp fire cannons lashing out at the oncoming landers.
Auspex alarms howled.
[Incoming hostiles craft! Break formation!]
The squadron scattered in precise, drilled maneuvers, but real combat proved harsher than any simulations.
An explosion lit the darkness.
"Talon-12's gone!" Lira's voice cracked as she tracked the plume of vaporized debris.
Another thunderhawk shuddered as a flak burst shredded its port engine. It cartwheeled into a collision course with a squadron of fighters before detonating.
Karven gritted his teeth. "Maintain formation. Push through. Target gridlocks on primary impact point."
Enemy voidcraft shrieked in from multiple vectors, corrupted Storm Talons, winged daemon engines, traitor interceptors piloted by renegade mortals.
The auspex screamed as contact after contact flooded the screen.
[Fenris flight group receiving densest enemy concentration, brace for contact!] crackled command vox.
Fighter escort from the Fenris-Alpha fighter wings split off, engaging furiously.
Laser tracers and missile contrails crisscrossed the void. Despite superior range and Machinist-guided missiles, the traitor pilots fought with desperate, experience-honed cunning.
Their maneuvers were crude, yes — but unpredictable. Void debris spun through flight paths, and ancient wreckage forced last-second adjustments.
A missile streaked in toward Talon-14 as the cockpit's blare warning.
"Missile lock! Countermeasures away!" Lira shouted.
Chaff and decoy flares burst free, but one missile arced through — slamming into the lander's dorsal shield.
BOOOOOM.
The cockpit lurched violently, alarms shrieking.
"Shields down! Starboard armor breach!" Chief Velk roared over the internal vox. "We've got a plasma containment leak on the reactor. I'm patching it, but she's bleeding bad. One more hit like that and we won't be coming home, sir."
"Noted." Karven's face hardened. "Keep her alive till drop."
Velk snarled. "That's what I'm paid for, Lieutenant."
A squadron leader's voice burst across the comms.
[Multiple warp signatures detected! Fractures opening at 037 by 14!]
"This is getting worse…" Lira whispered.
"Confirm visual," Karven barked.
Lisa looked at the coordinate, the void itself tore open as a ragged portal bled fire into space.
"Confirmed. Enemy reinforcement coming in." Lisa paled as traitor reinforcements burst through — six strike cruisers, swarms of escorts, and daemon vessels.
The Daggerfall's Oath's voice came cold over the fleetwide vox.
[Enemy reinforcements detected. Exiled Steel Cordon First Cohort adjusting engagement priority. Continue boarding operation. Operation critical must succeed.]
"Not our fight, not our call. Focus on the Fortress." Karven gritted his teeth.
Through the storm of fire, through spiraling debris and burning hulls, Talon-14 and the remnants of Fenris-Delta pushed on.
At last, the target zone.
A wide, armored portal along the Blackstone's lower flank.
"All remaining craft — execute boarding strike!" Karven's targeting reticule locked onto their designated entry point. "Fire cutting lance!"
The lander's prow-mounted lascannon discharged a searing emerald beam, carving into the Fortress's surface.
"Hit confirmed — we're going in!" Lira hand push on set of button setting brace icon on.
The lander angled down. The ground rushed up.
Inside the cockpit, every alarm still blared. Shieldless, with plasma leaks and one thruster half-dead, Talon-14 roared through the breach.
The impact was bone-jarring.
They slammed down inside a cavernous Fortress hangar. Sparks, debris, and leaking fuel tanks surrounded them.
"Prepare for Hard landing!" Velk shouted as systems flickered.
"Damage report!"
"We're alive. Engines shot. We're not leaving."
Karven inhaled, cleared his throat. "Good enough."
He keyed the troop bay vox.
"Lieutenant Branek, we're down — but it's a one-way ticket. No lift exfil."
The gruff voice of Platoon leader, Lieutenant Darius Branek crackled back.
[Didn't plan on going anywhere anyway, Talon-14. Get that ramp open.]
Across the comms, the voice of Admiral Voorn echoed fleet-wide.
[Boarding operation success confirmed. 92.4% of assault units have made entry. Fortress takeover now in troopers hands. Victory is our way.]
Karven, Lira, and Velk shared a look.
"Let's finish this."
The ramp hissed open, and war was waiting.