420: Dreadnought Showdown

The bloody war of attrition that lasted for two whole months had turned this Star Domain into a massive interstellar graveyard.

The wreckage of warships was so dense that it formed a debris cloud stretching nearly a million kilometers, and the Ember of energy weapons flickered in the Void Realm like ghost fires.

The massive fleets deployed by both sides were now reduced to almost nothing.

The brutal attrition was not only reflected in the main warships, but more fatally, in the devastating strikes against logistics support vessels.

Especially those crucial "logistics ships," which could deploy temporary repair points to provide emergency battlefield repairs for damaged warships.

As these "mobile repair stations" were prioritized and destroyed one by one by both sides, front-line warships became extremely difficult to repair effectively once damaged.

Combat effectiveness continued to drain, and the battle lines became riddled with holes, making them difficult to maintain.

The Amarr Empire flagship fleet, originally consisting of fifteen majestic "revelation-class" Dreadnoughts, now only had ten left struggling to hold on.

Although their firepower remained fierce, their hulls were covered in scars, and the light of their shields flickered unsteadily.

The situation of the Four-Party Alliance fleet was even worse; the massive fleet was less than one-tenth of its original size, and those twenty-four "Naglfar-class" Dreadnoughts that had been rushed into battle had suffered losses exceeding half, with the remaining few being at the end of their strength.

Both sides had bled dry and reached the brink of collapse. If this meaningless attrition continued, the only result would be mutual destruction.

In the joint command center of the Four-Party Alliance, the atmosphere was oppressive. Finally, an order was issued.

Concentrate all remaining flagships and capital ships capable of short-range maneuvering, and launch a one-way charge against the remaining flagship fleet of the Amarr Empire.

The goal was not victory, but to take out as many "revelation-class" Dreadnoughts of the Amarr Empire as possible, securing a sliver of breathing room and bargaining chips for the Alliance after the war.

When the order reached the ears of the remaining Alliance captains on the front line, after a brief silence, there were roars in various languages.

The harsh roar of engines overloading replaced hesitation, and the broken ships adjusted their headings, pouring their final energy into the shield System.

They were like moths to a flame, or like dying beasts, charging toward the still-orderly battle line of the Amarr Empire with a tragic determination.

"For the Minmatar!"

"For the Federation!"

"Fight them to the end!"

The Emma fleet reacted immediately, and all weapons that could still fire wove a web of death, pouring onto the charging Alliance warships.

Under the dense firepower, the charging fleet blossomed with their final and most magnificent flowers of death, one after another, like paper boats being ignited.

"Undefeated," this Naglfar-class Dreadnought and the fuse of the campaign, was hit simultaneously by the main guns of at least three "revelation-class" ships during the charge.

The massive energy instantly overloaded its already fragile shields and tore through the heavy armor. The hull began to emit teeth-grinding cracking sounds from within, followed by an indescribable incandescent light bursting from the cracks.

Boom!!!

A terrifying explosion comparable to a micro-supernova swept through the surrounding airspace.

The massive hull was completely torn apart, turning into an expanding destructive nebula composed of molten metal and turbulent energy, swallowing up several nearby light vessels that couldn't evade in time.

But this was just the beginning.

A Gallente "dominix-class" battleship, dragging its burning hull, crazily rammed into the side of a "revelation-class" ship.

Just before the impact, the captain gave the final order.

"All reactors, overload and detonate."

A second massive explosion occurred, and the two giant ships entangled together, turning into cosmic dust.

The Amarr Empire's defensive line shook violently and broke under the suicide attacks.

When the light of the final explosion gradually faded and the Void Realm temporarily returned to dead silence, only four scarred giant ships remained of the ten "revelation-class" Dreadnoughts of the Amarr Empire, floating stubbornly among the wreckage like wounded lions.

Six powerful "revelation-class" ships were destroyed in this suicide attack.

The Niman-Bar meat grinder finally stopped its roaring. Both sides had lost the ability to continue the offensive. The campaign came to an end in an extremely tragic manner.

The results of the campaign were transmitted back to all parties, triggering different reactions.

In the Amarr Empire, despite heavy losses, the result of holding off the siege by the Four-Party Alliance and dealing heavy damage to the opponent was publicized as a strategic victory.

A grand awards ceremony was held in the capital.

A Clone Pilot named Michelle Wayne, who had "died" thirty-nine times and destroyed seventy-eight enemy ships during the campaign, was awarded the "Empire Star Medal," symbolizing the highest honor.

Her holographic image appeared in the headlines of major media, receiving cheers from hundreds of millions of citizens. She stood on the podium, expressionless, with only a trace of imperceptible exhaustion flashing deep in her eyes.

The trauma brought by multiple "deaths" was far from something a medal could soothe.

However, this glorious image deeply stimulated countless ordinary young people. In a noisy tavern, people watched the award ceremony on the screen and discussed it animatedly.

"Look at them! Thirty-nine 'deaths'! That's what you call a true hero!"

"If only I could become a Clone Pilot, piloting a Dreadnought, how majestic! You can respawn after death, what's there to fear!"

"Forget it, you? Pass the genetic screening and neural tests first! That's one in ten thousand!"

"I heard that the pilots who survived this time got enough bonus to buy an apartment in the capital district!"

For many young people dissatisfied with an ordinary life and craving wealth, status, and excitement, becoming a Clone Pilot, piloting powerful warships, and making a name for themselves in the sea of stars, even if it required experiencing the pain of "death," became a highly tempting ladder for advancement.

The cruelty of war was diluted by the halo of honor and profit in the rear.

The tragedy and outcome of the Niman-Bar campaign also profoundly changed the power structure of New Eden.

The Human Union, which suffered the heaviest losses, had almost exhausted its accumulation due to its thin foundation and was forced to shift to a comprehensive defensive posture, greatly reducing its voice in future great power games.

In the southeastern Star Domain of the core region of New Eden, a long-term confrontation between the Earth Federation-Minmatar Alliance and the Amarr Empire was established.

Both sides were severely damaged and needed a long time to recuperate, and the border areas entered a tense Cold War confrontation phase.

Although the Amarr Empire had shifted from an offensive to a defensive position and held the geographical advantage, fighting the Four-Party Alliance alone had also come at an unbearable price.

Most of its elite Dreadnought fleet was lost, and the new generation of "eon-class" supercarriers had not yet formed full combat capability.

The Empire's high command keenly realized that the Empire was currently in a relatively weak period, and the "Warp Disruption Technology" it possessed had become a target for everyone.

To avoid becoming a target and triggering another siege, the Empire made a decision that went against its ancestors.

In the name of "promoting the common development of New Eden technology and maintaining regional peace and stability," the Empire publicly announced that it would sell a simplified version of "Warp Disruption Technology" to all friendly forces at a high price.

This move, on one hand, threw away the hot potato and relieved diplomatic pressure; on the other hand, it made a fortune, supplementing funds for the Empire's reconstruction.

This news made the top brass of the Caldari State secretly relieved yet somewhat nervous.