When the Ecclesiastical Fleet launched its charge, Soshyan had already moved to the bridge of the Eternal Loyalty.
"Chapter Commander, I..."
Bahram stood in front of Soshyan with a solemn expression. His entire face was very dry and gray. You can imagine what kind of pressure he has endured during this time.
"...I did not command well and let everyone down."
Soshyan did not answer the call, but took the data pad from Talos, which contained rows of dazzling damage reports.
So far, the entire fleet has 117 ships sunk or lost combat effectiveness. Among them, the fleet affiliated with the Light Legion (Star Knights White Templar) has lost 49 ships, 5 battleships have sunk, and the Moon-class cruiser Neisen has sunk.
Three battleships, including the heavy cruiser Spinel, were withdrawn from combat due to serious damage and loss of combat effectiveness. It can be said that they suffered heavy losses, and this was just for the ships.
In terms of personnel, the number of casualties in the legion reached 247, some of which were sacrificed in the anti-jump gang operations, and some were sacrificed in ground operations. If the number of sacrifices from other battle groups is added, the number of Astartes killed in the entire Suffering Alliance reached 247.
With a total of 621 men, it can be said that a battle group was wiped out. In fact, the Mantis Warriors suffered the highest battle losses among all battle groups because they were mainly deployed on the ground, and a total of 174 warriors died.
Although no one said anything publicly, for Bahram, silence may be a kind of accusation. During these four days, he wavered again and again, reflected on himself, and blamed himself again and again, watching that
With the increasing casualties and losses, and the seemingly endless tide of insects, he felt like a rat trapped in a bellows. If there was a hole, he would rather get into it, or have a head-on confrontation with the Tyranids, ushering in
A glorious death.
But no, responsibility is something heavier than death, so he can only grit his teeth and persist.
Now that Soshyan is here, he can't let it go because he thinks it's all his own fault.
Putting down the data pad, Soshyan looked at Bahram.
"Did anyone suggest you retreat?"
After hearing Soshyan's question, Bahram was silent for a moment, then a low hissing sound came from his throat that was crawling due to dryness.
"have..."
"Why don't you adopt it?"
"I...I was too conceited...I didn't listen."
"Bahram, I know very well what kind of person you are. I'm not grilling you, nor am I asking you to admit any mistakes. I just want to know your true thoughts."
"I... there are a lot of people here. If we leave... what will they do? I didn't expect Tyranids to be so huge at the time... I thought if I delay, reinforcements will arrive soon, and there is no need to be fearless.
sacrifice..."
Soshyan smiled, walked over, put his hand on Bahram's shoulder, and then turned around.
"I still remember that when I took you to the Thunder Eagle, I remember that you also had such a hesitant expression. And your hesitation at that time was because of Haomo's abandoned companion, right, Bahram, this
This is what I have always admired most about you. No matter what environment you are in or what your identity is, your compassion and kindness have not changed. Some people think that these things should not belong to the Astartes, but countless experiences
And lessons have taught us that ruthless weapons are the easiest to get lost and defaced. If everyone has no idea why they should become Astartes, then I think the Legion is likely to be lost, including myself."
With that said, the two walked to the huge observation window and stared at the void killing field where blood and fire intertwined.
"Bahram, what was your first thought after becoming an Astartes?"
"Yes...I have finally become an angel that protects humans."
"Do you think that everything I have done, whether it is building a legion or building an independent territory, and treating the holy scriptures and imperial laws as nothing, do I look more like a selfish warlord?"
Bahram lowered his head and thought for a moment, then shook his head.
"Chapter Master, tell me, how many people can one Astartes save in his lifetime?"
Soshiyang was stunned for a moment, but he didn't expect the other party to ask him in turn, and then replied:
"The minimum number may be only a few hundred people, and the maximum number may be tens of billions of people."
"But you saved more than hundreds of billions of people in the Maelstrom. There were also tens of billions of people in the Nessian Galaxy and tens of billions of people in the Bracato Galaxy. You gave them a better life and protected them from unwarranted disasters.
Violence, disease, pollution and the poison of foreign enemies. If such behavior can be regarded as selfish, then some governors and Aspens may not have saved a single person throughout their lives, or even massacred billions of people and lived a mediocre life.
Who is Tate? Even the Inquisition always emphasizes that the result is always greater than the process. Failure is as unforgivable as betrayal. In terms of results, Chapter Leader, you have saved many people and protected many people. This is the greatest
Justice cannot only be saved by bullets."
Soshyan looked at him, nodded slightly, turned around and glanced at Talos, who was smiling with his arms folded beside the tactical instrument, and finally said:
"Taros did not choose the wrong person, it was not wrong. The Legion must never forget its responsibilities. No matter what we do, we must remember the meaning of our existence. If our weapons only fire for ourselves, then it will confirm the opinions of many people."
Guess, we have indeed transformed into warlords, so this tough battle must be fought. The legion needs a forge of blood and fire to forge itself. If it were me, I would make the same decision."
Then he patted Bahram on the shoulder.
"Thank you for your hard work. I know that you have no experience in commanding large-scale fleets, which can easily give others reasons to oppose you. But your tactical sense is sensitive, and you can still find partial solutions even in absolutely unfavorable situations.
Plan, the current situation is actually much better than I expected."
At this time, Bahram suddenly said:
"Then Chapter Leader, these Eldar..."
"Let's deal with the Tyranids first and then talk about other things. We currently don't have more power to do additional things."
Seeing that Soshyan was not too concerned about this matter, Bahram stopped insisting and instead said:
"Chapter Commander, I want to lead the company to the ground to help the refugees evacuate."
Soshyan looked at the other party and nodded.
"Okay, you will take the 10th and 11th companies to Westeros No. 5. By the way, you can also bring the knights of the Dupont Lindlin family. It will take some time for the people to evacuate, but the Tyranid data on this planet is already very high.
It’s so huge that it won’t be easy to handle without any knights. I will command the fleet to clean up the enemies in orbit and seize the time to transport people to the transport ships. Fortunately, the National Church has provided enough transport ships this time, otherwise it would be really difficult to handle.”
When Talos brought the 11th company to the front line, he did not bring the knight family with him. Because Soshyan unexpectedly returned to the cardinal world, he specifically needed to talk to the High King of the Dupont Delin family, so the matter was temporarily delayed.
It wasn't until Soshyan led the fleet to set off that the Knight family truly reached the front line against the Tyranids.
"yes!"
Then Soshyan turned and looked at Talos.
"Brother, let Sablin lead the team this time. I still need your help here."