From Titan Corporation to the Empire of Man - Chapter 433

c422 “We can ask for help”

Soon after, in a small conference room in the Government House Building;

“What?!”

Johnson Hallhold’s exclamations echoed through the conference room.

As Campbell’s governor, Johnson’s surprise was palpable, and the surrounding Campbell executives also widened their eyes and whispered in disbelief.

“The expedition fleet was defeated so quickly?!”

“The flagship of the Human Empire is actually ten kilometers away.”

“We can’t even withstand a salvo of artillery fire from the other side, oh my god.”

The reason why senior Campbell officials were so shocked was because they heard from Leon, Maggie and others about what happened to the expedition fleet in New Hope.

The heavy losses in the battle of New Hope obviously exceeded their expectations.

Leon describes the Sojourner-class Dreadnought, the flagship of the Primarch Sanguinius, the Red Tear.

The flagship was a ten-kilometer-long “mobile fortress” with a blade-like appearance. Coupled with the overwhelming firepower of the Human Empire fleet, just a few rounds of bombardment tore the federal front line, defeated the originally neat expedition fleet, and quickly launched a capture Take action without delay.

What is especially unbelievable to Johnson and Campbell’s top brass is that Colonel Honor Thompson’s decision-making almost directly led to the tragedy of the motorized infantry.

Due to several misjudgments by Thompson, 40,000 mobile infantry were suppressed by the clone troops in the early stages of the battle. The company’s lieutenant class also suffered serious losses in the first round of attacks, resulting in chaos in the chain of command and an almost complete collapse of the army.

Facing the enemy’s precise attack, the motorized infantry did not even have the chance to organize an effective counterattack, not to mention the sacrifice of a large number of lieutenants, which reduced the morale of the main force to the extreme.

As the casualties continued to rise, the situation became increasingly desperate.

Realizing that blindly following orders would put more men in dire straits, Leon and Maggie decided to deviate from the command system and lead a combat platoon and colleagues who had the same idea to break out, opening up a way out for the remaining mobile infantry.

Through various decisive actions, they were able to take more than 30,000 motorized infantry out of danger and escape to Campbell.

After listening to the descriptions of Lyon, Maggie and others, and interpreting the gossip obtained by Johnson and Campbell through various channels, they believed that although Lyon and others’ choices were in disobedience to the federal order, they were able to save the remaining troops. The only way.

Moreover, especially after learning that Colonel Honnard’s serious decision-making errors resulted in the unnecessary sacrifice of thousands of motorized infantry, many senior leaders of Johnson and Campbell suddenly became furious and cursed.

In order to maintain a huge fleet and a large number of motorized infantry units that resemble a “sea of ​​worms”, doesn’t the Federation rely on heavy taxes from the solar system and various colonies?

Among them, Campbell’s contribution cannot be underestimated.

However, the top federal officials not only ignored the actual threat to the human empire, but also handed over the important responsibility of ground commander to a mediocre man like Honald Thompson who rose to the position only because of his family background, allowing him to command more than 40,000 mobile infantry. .

In the end, thousands of soldiers died in vain because of his decision.

This decision by the top federal officials was just to allow this “dandy kid” to accumulate merit.

Are all the federal troops leading such idiots? !

The Federation does not care about the survival and safety of the colonies at all!

What makes Johnson even more aggrieved is that the heavy taxes Campbell has paid over the years have been so wasted. If these resources were used to form Campbell’s own regular army, it would be enough to protect itself from the threat of the Zerg, and even calmly deal with external conflicts.

Thinking of this, Johnson and Campbell’s officials became even more angry, and their eyes gradually showed dissatisfaction and resentment.

They began to realize that simply relying on the federation might not be a long-term solution, but building their own military and consolidating their autonomy might be the key to dealing with future turmoil.

As the heated discussion of accusations and dissatisfaction subsided, the atmosphere in the conference room gradually became quiet.

Campbell’s Governor Johnson glanced at the senior officials present, and finally rested his gaze on Lyon opposite the “U”-shaped table. He slowly showed a smile and said:

“Sergeant Kennedy, to be honest, since you ended your warp voyage and arrived within Campbell’s gravitational range, we have been unable to contact Earth Headquarters.

Perhaps a recent stellar storm disrupted communications.

But don’t worry, as long as you are willing to assist us, Campbell, in resisting the threat of the Araki Zerg and the possible invasion of the Human Empire, we will provide you with two months of living supplies free of charge, so that the remnants of the expedition can rest assured to repair and restore their condition. ”

After hearing this, Leon’s face naturally showed gratitude, and he responded sincerely:

“Thank you Governor Hallhold for your generous assistance and your trust.”

He was secretly glad in his heart. Although he had already guessed that Campbell’s senior officials were dissatisfied with the Federation, he did not expect that the stationing agreement could be successfully reached with just a brief report.

It seems that there is no need to use force to deter or engage in more games to settle here smoothly.

In fact, Lyon knew very well that this “communication interruption” was just a trick done by the smart AI behind the scenes, cutting off all channels of communication with the earth.

The purpose is to allow the remnants of the expedition fleet to buy time so that Lyon can gain a firm advantage before formal negotiations.

At present, the residency agreement has been successfully implemented, which is exactly the result that Smart AI hopes to achieve.

After reaching an agreement, we will have to face the “violent storm” from the top federal officials.

At this moment, Johnson changed the topic and said with a bit of worry:

“Sergeant Kennedy, you and the non-commissioned officers jointly dismissed Colonel Honald Thompson, and you overstepped your authority and led the remaining troops to be stationed in Campbell. Once these things are known to the federation, they will definitely take the opportunity to launch an attack.

Do you have any countermeasures? ”

“Oh”

Before Leon could speak, Ace chuckled and said with disdain:

“The Federation launches an attack? What qualifications do they have to launch an attack! Besides, with the interstellar marshal’s frequent mistakes, he might not be as good as Honor Thompson!

The current Arachi Zerg is clearly a common threat to both humans and rebels. It stands to reason that the Federation should prioritize dealing with this enemy, rather than sparing no effort to purge dissidents and frame compatriots in order to consolidate power. ”

As soon as Ace finished speaking, Johnny Rego said immediately:

“When the threat of the Araki Zerg begins to invade near-earth colonies, and even threatens the earth itself, the top leaders of the federation will only use this to divert internal conflicts and use the conflict between the two races to point the finger at the outside world to cover up their own dereliction of duty.

By then, not only will the federation be unscathed, but it will also be able to make their rule more stable by shifting the responsibility to political opponents. ”

“Yes, they can even take the opportunity to eradicate all political opponents in the name of endangering all mankind.”

Tiz Flos added at the right time, with a strong sarcasm in his tone.

Listening to these remarks exposing corruption within the federation, official Campbell on the side suddenly couldn’t restrain his anger and immediately slapped the table and said:

“Yes, they didn’t lose much. All the losses were from our distant colonies!

Those at the top of the federal government have repeatedly squandered our tax dollars and manpower, leaving us to fend for ourselves! Our lives are just insignificant numbers in their eyes! ”

The atmosphere in the court was ignited by these passionate words, and Campbell’s senior officials expressed their dissatisfaction with the federation.

Leon observed everyone, and his heart gradually became clear.

The dissatisfaction of the Campbell Colony has intensified, and the federal constraints and oppression have completely chilled the hearts of the senior officials here.

It seems that there is only one “final kick” left to draw Campbell into his own camp.　　　唰——!

Suddenly, the automatic door of the conference room opened.

“Governor!”

And before the door could be fully opened, Johnson’s secretary hurried in.

When Johnson saw this, he understood that his usually steady secretary would be so rude. He immediately realized that the situation was urgent and said in a gentle tone:

“Calm down and speak slowly. What happened? Are you so nervous?”

The secretary adjusted his breathing, but still reported in a slightly hurried manner:

“Governor, we have just restored communications with Earth!

However, the other party forcefully demanded that the remnants of the expedition fleet return to Earth immediately! Not only that, we also discovered during monitoring that a Zerg fleet is advancing in the direction of Campbell and is expected to enter our orbital defense range in six hours! ”

As the secretary spoke, he quickly walked to the end of the “U” shaped table and turned on the screen.

Immediately, the detailed dynamics and trajectory of the Zerg fleet were displayed on the screen, with dense red dots symbolizing the number of Zerg ships.

The eyes of all Campbell executives were focused on the screen, and their expressions suddenly became solemn.

The uneasy atmosphere quickly spread in the conference room, making everyone breathless.

What they were most worried about, the insect fleet, finally appeared on the screen.

According to rumors, wherever this bug fleet goes, it destroys everything and leaves no grass growing. The scale of the bugs in front of them is even larger, completely beyond the defense capacity of Campbell Planet.

“What was supposed to come, has come.” Johnson couldn’t help but sigh, the look on his face became more serious.

The governor understood that Campbell was currently unable to resist such a large-scale Zerg invasion.

But at this moment, the top federation forcefully demanded that the remnants of the expedition fleet return to Earth, which was like pushing the entire colony into a pit of fire.

Evacuation seems to be the only way to survive, but time and conditions are extremely limited.

Even if emergency evacuation procedures were initiated immediately and all Campbell’s civilian and commercial ships were dispatched, at most they could only take away about 200,000 people and colonists, which was far from enough to cover the entire population of the entire colony.

And in this case, the organization’s evacuation is not only a drop in the bucket, but also undoubtedly allows them to watch more people being eaten up by bugs.

The senior executives on both sides of the conference table had tense expressions and kept whispering among themselves to discuss possible countermeasures.

Rui Ge, Ace, Tiz and others were also shocked.

The size of the fleet displayed on the screen was even larger than the insect fleet that originally attacked New Hope.

Not to mention there is no federal dispatch order, even if they are willing to stay here to help Campbell resist the wave of insects, it will be of no avail.

Seeing everyone fall into silence, the secretary shook his head helplessly and continued to call up the video communication from Earth on the screen.

Immediately afterwards, everyone saw a male general in his sixties wearing a gray-green uniform displayed on the screen.

! ! !

In the conference room, the original solemn silence was broken by the figure appearing on the screen.

The moment they saw the opponent appear on the screen, all Campbell officials, including Johnson, were stunned.

Ace, Rui Ge, Tiz and others stood up directly, raised their hands and saluted each other:

“Marshal Dean!”

Leon and Maggie also stood at attention and saluted, with restrained expressions and no words.

As for the old general on the screen, he is the current commander-in-chief of the federal army, Marshal Dean.

“At ease, soldiers.”

Dean nodded slightly, raised his hand gently to signal everyone to take a rest, with a hint of irresistible majesty in his calm tone.

Then, Dean frowned and looked at Lyon, and said in a resounding voice:

“Sergeant Lyon Kennedy, in view of your decision to save the expeditionary fleet from the crisis of total destruction, the Federation hereby grants you the rank of major and allows you to command the remaining troops.

The ranks of other accompanying personnel will also be adjusted accordingly, and the official documents will be sent to you later.”

This sudden rank promotion shocked everyone present.

Perhaps because Dean admired the actions of Lyon and others, he ignored the opposition and the power of the Honard Thompson family and awarded the rank on the spot.

But more likely, Dean made this decision just to appease Lyon and others.

Maybe when Lyon leads the remnants of the expeditionary fleet back to Earth, they will be directly surrounded by the elite agents of the Political Department, and then they will be imprisoned and detained, and then they will completely disappear.

Almost everyone can see the hidden meaning in this, especially the “old-fashioned” Lyon.

What’s more, Campbell is now facing the approach of the Zerg fleet and is at a critical moment of life and death.

As the only regular army on this planet, the remnants of the expeditionary fleet will certainly not add insult to injury at this moment, and fail the supplies prepared by Governor Johnson and his team. Instead, they are determined to assist in defense.

Then, Lyon stood at attention and saluted again, and after putting his hands down, he answered directly:

“Thank you for the Marshal’s approval, but please allow me to refuse this order.

We can’t watch two million human compatriots being slaughtered by the Zerg, so the remaining troops will hold on here until the enemy is completely repelled!”

“That’s right!”

As soon as Lyon’s voice was wrong, the ace mustered up the courage to echo.

Seeing that Lyon refused to execute the order, Dean’s face became more and more ugly, but he still explained with anger:

“The Federation is not abandoning Campbell, but asking you to withdraw and join the 12th Fleet.

The situation after Campbell will be fully taken over by the 12th Fleet, but if you continue to stay here, you will only be isolated and helpless. The 12th Fleet will take at least two Earth days to arrive!”

“It’s not isolated and helpless.” Lyon still chose to refuse, and said:

“We can choose to ask for help from the Human Empire of New Hope.”