On June 9, 2918, the planet Aegis.

This is a terrestrial planet located on the outside of the coordinates of the galactic system, 135 and the outer side of the Perseus spiral arm. The planet "Aegis" is not as permanent as the planet "Taiji", but as a planet in a binary star system, it is more peculiar than the planet "Iserlon".

A small red dwarf star called Medusa orbits an orange dwarf (also known as a K-type mainsequence star) equivalent to four-fifths of the sun. The orange dwarf star in the main star position is called Amalthaea. The planet Aegis is located exactly at the fourth Lagrangianpoint of this binary star system.

Therefore, with the rotation of "Aegis", the two legendary "suns" can be seen on the planet for a considerable part of the day. However, to the naked eye, one of the two "suns" shines blindly, and the other looks like baked red baked cakes. Their combined light and heat are barely as good as the sun in the solar system, the home of mankind, and the scene is somewhat similar to that on the planet "Iserlon".

When the human expedition ship arrived on the planet Aegis, the remote planet, a third smaller than Earth, was still desolate, and the scene was exactly the same as that of Mars, the solar system before the transformation of the 22nd century. The atmosphere is filled with toxic gases and greenhouse gases emitted by volcanoes.

After nearly two centuries of unremitting efforts, the planet "Aegis" has grown into the most important trading port of the Perseus Interstellar Federation to New Rome, because from the coordinates of the galactic system, the planet "Taiji" is far away from it across the invisible 135 lines. At the same time, the planet "Aegis" is also the largest fleet base of the Perseus Commonwealth on the border, where many military families of the Bundeswehr fleet are housed.

Although it does not have the natural advantage of being at the midpoint of the border line like the planet Iserlon, it is the cornerstone of the march into the deeper extragalactic space of the Immortal Spiral Arm interstellar side. In particular, this time the competition for the interstellar planet "Yi" from the outer side of the spiral arm can give full play to its geographical advantages.

Both the defeated tracking fleet under the command of Commodore Nicholas Wolfensohn and the reinforcement fleet sent to the Yi field are now clustered in the vast space around Aegis.

Robb was dressed in a white military uniform, walking on the tree-lined path of the military apartment complex, looking up at this moonless sky from time to time.

The Milky Way rushes across the sky like a mighty river, and countless dazzling stars fill its body. They are nothing more than boring letters and numbers in the records of the International Astronomical Union, but some of the stars have thunderous common names: the sun, "Zheng He", "Himalayas", "Machu Picchu...... Because they are closely related to countless great people and magnificent historical processes.

Robb is convinced that he will follow a new historical process. Although he may no longer have a significant connection to the star, but is most likely tied to a solitary, non-luminous interstellar planet from deep space outside the galaxy, he is still full of honor and historical responsibility.

Arriving at a house made of natural wood, Robb saw a large "No Visitors" sign in the access control system. But he still pressed the doorbell of the access control system.

"Who?!" The stereoscopic projection video shows the owner's irritated expression. The owner's depressed will and dissatisfied tone are clearly and unmistakably expressed through the hi-fi horn. This person was none other than Lieutenant Colonel Gunther Oswald, the chief of staff of the tracking fleet who had returned from the defeat in the Yi star field.

Robb solemnly gave a military salute and said, "Commander Rob, the captain of the cruiser 'Zhiyuan' of the Thirteenth Fleet, has come to visit. Excuse me, sir. ”

"You're so polite." The other party's politeness made Oswald change his attitude slightly, "Is there something wrong?" ”

"Regarding the 'space storm' mentioned in your report, I would like to know more about it."

"Oh, you were sent by the Department of Defense Investigative Committee?" Oswald asked alarmedly.

"No, it's what I want to ask you for. Can I come in and tell you? Rob made a plea.

Oswald hesitated for a moment and replied, "Okay. Come in. ”

It was a short moment before the door opened.

Robb entered the door only to find that the living room was filled with a strong smell of alcohol, which was still uncomfortable even under the strong cleaning of plasma air conditioning. There were also many empty magnum bottles scattered on the coffee table and floor, as well as women's clothes.

Lieutenant Colonel Oswald was shirtless in front of his couch in the living room, and a girl with a puppy figure was half-covering herself with a blanket, and she was standing up from the sofa lazily but without shyness.

She glanced at Luo Bobo and greeted him in a slightly sleepy and teasing tone: "Hey, Major, I didn't expect you to be quite handsome." ”

The demeanor and content of her speech made Robb immediately understand her true identity. Robb couldn't help but become contemptuous of Oswald in front of him, and instead of saluting as usual when he saw an officer who was higher than himself, he stood still and did not move.

"Alright, baby, let's go to the room first. I have something to talk to the Major. Oswald said like a child to the pretty girl he had paid for, and kissed her affectionately.

After the woman entered the room, Robb said unceremoniously: "Lieutenant Colonel, you actually brought the young lady to the officer's apartment?!" ”

From the tone and words of the other party, Oswald could hear his anger and disdain. But Oswald remained calm.

"You may be seated, Major Law." After he finished speaking, he walked to the water dispenser and poured Robb a glass of water, but he found the bottle of alcohol that was still in the pile of wine bottles and drank a few sips. Finally, in a cynical tone, he said: "Do you want to see how a Wehrmacht officer a woman on the street?" ”

"Gunther Oswald, I didn't expect a defeat to degenerate you like this." Robb called him by name, shook his head and lamented.

Oswald was once known as the "new generation of talents" of the Wehrmacht fleet, but now he has sunk in wine due to his defeat in the "Yi" star field. Although Robb can understand the feeling of almost being defeated by an absolutely inferior opponent and the resulting shame and censorship pressure, in his eyes, he will not want to anesthetize himself through such a corrupt behavior.

"Hehe, don't say that." Oswald smiled and explained, "I have always believed that women and wine are the best gifts God can give to men. I'm disciplined on the battlefield, but even if I win the battle and get back to the ground, I'll have to find a woman to play with, and of course drink. ”

"I don't want to talk to you about personal style. You and Brigadier General Wolfensohn gave a detailed account of your 'space storm' in your report to the Ministry of Defense. Why did the Ministry of Defense omit this part of the circular issued to various units? ”

"I'll answer your next question first." Oswald quipped, sipping his wine, "The answer is that you ask the conservative generals of the Ministry of Defense." As for the previous question......"

At this point, Oswald's expression became serious, although he was still shirtless, slumped limply on the sofa, and the bottle in his hand was still in his mouth.

His eyes widened and he was silent for a while before he said to Robb: "This fiasco has convinced me that 'Space Storm' will be an effective tactic for fleet operations in the future, and it is a threatening tactic. ”

"I feel the same way. We must not take lightly this new tactic that has just emerged. Robb agrees with emotion.

"It's a pity that the old men of the Ministry of Defense don't have the vision of you, Major." Oswald let out a sigh of regret, and then poured a large sip of wine into his mouth.

Judging from the packaging of the bottle, it is a vodka that is very harmful to health. But from Gunther Oswald's words, it can be heard that he was not drunk.

Oswald continued: "We have not been able to make timely adjustments to the enemy's new tactics, and as a result, our army has been repeatedly defeated by the enemy when it has absolute superiority and initiative in forces, and it is indeed incompetent. However, it seems that the generals did not seriously summarize our defeats. ”

"When your tracking fleet succeeded in forming an encirclement posture against the enemy at the beginning of the campaign, the distance between your ships was indeed very small, and the enemy was given an opportunity to take advantage of it, and the formation was almost completely blown apart. Therefore, in your report, you have analyzed that as long as you keep the ships as loose as possible, you can avoid being blown away by the enemy's 'space storm'. But then, at your suggestion, didn't you put up a loose spherical formation? But it was blown away again. ”

"You're right." Oswald said thoughtfully, "The first 'space storm' launched by the enemy is very different from the second. The first was launched head-on at a distance of more than 200,000 kilometers, and the superluminal 'warp bubbles' emitted by the engines of the enemy ship Akuberi were parallel and intertwined, so a directional 'space storm' was formed from the beginning. The second time was to emit a 'warp bubble' in multiple directions at a greater distance, focusing in our spherical ship formation, and colliding with each other to form a 'space storm'. ”

"But either time, it has succeeded in blowing your ship formations apart, thus turning the tide."

"Yes. The first time not only caused us to mess up, but also led to a serious collision. The second success blew away many of our warships and deprived us of our superiority in forces. ”

"In this way, even closing the distance between large warships is not an effective method."

After listening to Robb's words, Oswald had to nod helplessly and said, "Distance the ships, just try to avoid the collision of the warships on the edge of the warp bubble when the warp bubble affects each other." But we all know that even if the battleship moves at half the speed of light, it will still be forced into space fluctuations equivalent to the speed of light when it encounters warp bubbles from any direction. ”

It's like a ship sailing at high speed on the sea, never able to resist the swaying of the waves. The "warp bubble" is like the waves in the sea, and the "space storm" caused by the dense "warp bubble" is the violent tsunami in the sea, which is enough to encompass everything trapped in it.

Speaking of this, Luo Bo's expression also looked quite grim, saying: "It seems that launching a 'space storm' is a new tactic that is almost invincible. ”

The "space storm" caused by the dense "warp bubble" is advancing faster than all the current means of human observation. The invention of laser and particle weapons has led to the infinite tendency of the early warning space in human warfare to zero, and the emergence of the "space storm" is tantamount to announcing that the early warning space is equal to zero.

"No, it cannot directly destroy the opponent, it can only be a means of dispersing the enemy's forces and giving itself an advantage over the enemy. Blow away your opponent's main forces, then easily break them down one by one. "Oswald made his opinion clear.

Since the beginning of human war, concentrating superior forces to attack the opponent has always been regarded as one of the truths of war. However, since ancient times, there have been only two basic means of concentrating superior forces, one is that under normal conditions, the side that already has an overall advantage mobilizes more troops than the opponent, and the other is that the side that has no obvious superiority in forces or is even at a disadvantage, through a series of actions such as various strategic or tactical movements and containment, disperses the enemy as much as possible, forms a local superiority, and then defeats the opponent individually.

But now, the advent of the "Space Storm" has made it very easy to disperse the enemy's forces. There is no need to rack your brains, weigh the pros and cons, and endure the pain, let alone those conspiracies, any plans such as attacking the west, throwing bricks and attracting jade, closing the door and beating dogs, etc., can be abandoned.

The inferior fleet can face it head-on and blow the superior enemy fleet away as it pleases, almost at the behalf's command.

It can really be described as "talking and laughing between the ashes".

Of course, the reverse is the same for the dominant side. However, there is often no need to disperse the enemy's forces on the side that is superior in strength.

"You reminded me, though." Oswald continued, his tone becoming a little excited. "The creation of a 'space storm' will not only make it quite easy to disperse the opponent's forces, but will undoubtedly prompt the warring sides to greatly distance the fleets in the future!" Speaking of which, Oswald's became quite agitated. "It is very likely that we and the enemy will launch a 'space storm' before the official exchange of fire, and strive to blow the opponent away first."

But Robb didn't immediately understand the distance pointed out by the other side, and he asked, "Greatly widen the distance of the fleet?" However, you said in your report that the enemy was at a distance of more than 200,000 kilometers when he launched the 'space storm', and was still within an effective combat range of one light-second. ”

Oswald replied, "Yes, but that was the distance from which the enemy first launched a 'space storm'. At that time we were surprised and managed to surround them. But you didn't notice, I also mentioned in the report that some warships recorded the second time the enemy launched a 'space storm' from an astronomical unit away. According to the data obtained, the speed of the 'warp bubble' reached 5,000 times the speed at that time. ”

"Akuberi Speed Level 4!" Robb exclaimed.

"Yes." Oswald nodded, and said with trepidation, "By the time we reacted, we were almost ten AU away. ”

Robb couldn't help but look surprised. Lasers and particle weapons make war terrifying, "the moment you are hit when you know the enemy is firing", and "Space Storm" makes war "you have been driven off the battlefield by several astronomical units when you know that the enemy is firing"!

"If the enemy had expanded the size of the warp bubble, we would have been driven farther into space." Oswald continued, "So, firing a faster-than-light 'warp bubble' equivalent to the speed of light has a corresponding distance to trigger a 'space storm.'" For example, if you want to cause a 'space storm' against an enemy at a distance of one astronomical unit, it is obviously not possible to use three levels of Akuberi velocity. It takes at least three speeds or more to achieve the goal of blowing up the enemy's battle formation. ”

If the vehicle that fires the warp bubble does not rush into the warp bubble, it is impossible for there to be new energy to maintain the continuous fluctuation of space. The tachyon-of-light warp bubbles that are fired only last for a second. That's why, on a sustained faster-than-light journey, the Akuberi engine injects positive and negative hydrogen every second to create annihilation. The equivalent velocity of the spatial fluctuation of the third level of the Akuberi velocity is exactly 500 times the speed of light, and the dense warp bubble is emitted from an astronomical unit away, and after a second, the warp bubble disappears just after reaching the target space, and it has no effect.

So, you need to fire a faster warp bubble to drive enemies away from the spot one astronomical unit away. Of course, if the distance is smaller, you can do without a faster warp bubble.

Robb finally understood what he meant, so he said to him: "Indeed, as you said, future wars are likely to evolve into such a scenario, and before the official exchange of fire, it is very likely that the enemy and us will use the 'space storm' to disperse each other at a considerable distance. ”

Although he was shirtless and still holding a wine bottle in one hand, Oswald had already shown a strategic appearance, and said solemnly: "I want to warn you, Major Law. The 'space storm' caused by the dense warp bubbles is still extremely lethal, and the edge of each warp bubble disturbing each other is very terrifying. Battleships caught in the middle of it can easily lead to unbearable collisions. So, I think it's very necessary to keep enough spacing between the battleships. ”

"The most fundamental way is to eliminate the adversary before it triggers a 'space storm'."

Oswald smiled and said, "This sentence is too far in the air, who wouldn't know how to destroy the enemy first, but what do you think you should do?" ”

The other party's sharp question made Robb fall into deep thought.

Oswald continued:

"The emergence of the 'space storm' will multiply the scope of the battlefield in the future, and both sides must devote more energy to reconnaissance and calculation. Major Luo, General Su Yu and Marshal Du Yimin of New Rome were considered unprecedented, leading the fleet to almost the entire human world of the Immortal Spiral Arm Stars, but the distance of each battle between them would not exceed 300,000 kilometers. But in the future, we, as commanders, must quickly develop the ability to decisively order fire when an unmanned reconnaissance ship reports that the enemy fleet is out of several, if not hundreds, of astronomical units. ”

From the other party's words, Robb got a revelation. He couldn't help but raise his head and stare at Oswald with wide eyes.

Theoretically, as the speed level of Akuberi rises, the spatial limits of interstellar warfare have become smaller and smaller. When the faster-than-light warp bubble fired by the Akberi engine tends to be infinite in terms of equivalent velocity, the distance to launch a "space storm" against the enemy tends to be infinite.

Just as the seemingly arrogant but plausible quote from the era of Akuberi interstellar physics - give me an Akuberi engine of enough power that I can span the entire universe in an instant - the future war may be between the ends of the universe.

"Major Luo, it has been more than 400 years since the Akuberi engine was put into use. However, it was not until more than a month ago that someone took advantage of the faster-than-light fluctuations it triggered to fight directly, which would inevitably lead to a revolutionary change in warfare. ”

"That person is Jiang Ziyue?" Robb asked.

"I think so. It is hard to imagine that an ordinary commander would accept such a whimsical new tactic proposed by his subordinates without any precedent. Even if it is proposed by subordinates, the process of its application requires the coordination and control of the commander. The fact that we were tragically blown away by the 'space storm' twice is enough to show that even if this new tactic was proposed by his subordinates, Jiang Ziyue is also a creative commander. ”

"Lieutenant Colonel, although we have not been able to discuss a set of specific measures against the 'space storm', I still feel very honored to be able to witness the advent of a revolutionary era with you."

"Major Luo, don't rejoice too early." Oswald, who did not show sustained agitation at his great discovery of future war trends, calmly warned Robb.

"At present, including Jiang Ziyue, the enemy officer who created this tactic, the victims who value and study this new tactic, me, and you, who are bystanders, are just middle- and low-level officers. The generals, commanders, ministers, and even presidents who dominate our military do not pay attention to this new, powerful and revolutionary tactic. Even my commander, Brigadier General Nicholas Wolfensohn, who suffered greatly, only thought that the 'Space Storm' was nothing more than a trick. I don't think many people will notice Jiang Ziyue's new tactics, even within the empire. Therefore, it is very likely that the next large-scale battles will just be a continuation of tradition. ”

"It's up to man." Robb is still quite confident. Compared to Lieutenant Colonel Gunther Oswald, who returned from a fiasco and was under investigation, he did not have much psychological burden. Although he bears a great deal of responsibility for the failure of the "Void Zen Temple Hijacking" incident on the planet "Taiji", his rich family background has dissolved the shadow of failure into invisibility, but has further strengthened his self-confidence.

"The power of the new weapon is real, so it's easy for people to accept. This is not the case with the new tactics, which often require a tortuous process before they are widely understood. Oswald concluded with emotion, "I'm glad that someone was able to notice the far-reaching significance of the 'space storm' and come to my door to discuss it. ”

"As a member of the reinforcement 'Yi' star field, I have an obligation to know our enemy."

"It's a pity that I'm still under investigation, and I can't fight side by side with you against that hateful but genius Jiang Ziyue until the Investigation Committee of the Ministry of Defense deals with me." Oswald said regretfully.

"I have also been defeated at his hands, and I must defeat him and avenge myself, for you, and for the Bundeswehr." Robb swears.

"Very well, Major." Oswald said happily.

"Then I won't bother you. Leave. After Robb finished speaking, he stood up, shook hands with the other party, and saluted.

"I wish you success." Oswald, who was shirtless, actually raised his hand in a comical salute after shaking hands with the other party.

When Robb walked to the door, Oswald suddenly stopped him and asked, "Major, if you are not a member of the investigative committee, how do you see the original text of my report to the Ministry of Defense?" ”

Robb replied with a smug and mysterious smile on his face, "Lieutenant Colonel, I'm my own way." ”

The other party didn't know that Luo Bo's biological father was Su Yu, the military god that everyone admired, and he didn't know his relationship with the military leadership.

When Robb walked out of Oswald's apartment, the stars in the night sky of the planet "Aegis" appeared even more magnificent. Robb looked up at the stars again, and he was convinced that in the near future, there would be a dazzling star that would appear in the vast Milky Way and be closely associated with his name.