Interstellar Age

Chapter 413 Leading the Charge

?From the moment Erich's pod landed on the planet below, he found himself surrounded by his own soldiers. They had set up a base camp within an area of the world that they had effectively conquered. At least on the surface.

There were issues beneath the surface of bugs congregating and popping up causing mayhem in the past, but these had been largely resolved by various strike teams which cleared out the tunnels beneath the encampment. As it stood, this was effectively the safe zone established on the world.

Upon seeing their emperor emerge from a pod, the entirety of the armed forces within the immediate vicinity saluted him, while an officer stepped forward to coordinate with the man he presumed would be taking charge of the war effort.

"Emperor! We were not expecting your presence. Are you sure you should be here right now? The fighting is thick just outside the barrier which protects this outpost!"

Erich scoffed when he heard this before lecturing the man on his anxiety.

"Do you not remember what my occupation was prior to becoming a general? I was a certified W-7 and have been deployed to more war zones than anyone in your unit. I know damn well the risks involved, but I refuse to sit by and watch you men fight while I sit back on Earth.

Now, where the hell is your commanding officer? I want to speak with him immediately!"

The officer had, of course, in the heat of the moment forgotten Erich's service record and felt a bit silly after reminding the emperor about the risks of battle. Just outside the force field which acted as a protective barrier of the base, humanoid bugs were flying towards the outpost, where they were fired upon by the defenses which were automated. Shooting them out of the sky like ducks in hunting season.

Erich simply ignored this as he stepped into the largest tower that was built in the outpost, where he saw a colonel overgoing data on a holographic map regarding their efforts within the sector to clear out the bugs native to the world.

"Damn bugs, I've lost three platoons already due to their constant ambushes! Where the hell are our reinforcements?"

Erich stepped forward, his golden armor symbolizing his status as humanity's most supreme authority, and his shoulder marked with a black 7 symbol showing off his status as one of humanity's most elite warriors.

When he did so, half of the soldiers jumped up into a salute, while the other half fell to one knee and bowed their heads. Erich simply dismissed these actions with a simple command, before addressing the Colonel of the local unit.

"At ease gentlemen, Colonel, what's the current status of your brigade? Why have you not moved out to secure the objective and are instead holed up here within the safety of your force field?"

The question was a direct attack on the colonel's capabilities as a commanding officer. Realistically his soldiers should be charging into the fray and attacking the bugs at their nearest hive which was the source of their rapid reinforcements, but instead they were holed up in a bubble, relying on automated turrets to defend them while they licked their wounds like a group of beaten hounds.

As a result, he was not in the best mood when he responded to Erich's words with a hint of hostility in his tone.

"With all due respect Emperor, you are just now getting into the field, so you are not aware of the situation, until now it has just been us Airborne who have managed to make it to the planet's surface, we have yet to receive any armor, or god forbid heavy artillery. At most we have a few man portable mortars to get the job done.

We were expecting armored assistance by now. The fact they we have even carved out this sector for ourselves despite not having reinforcements or support of any kind in the field is a testament to my soldiers' glory!"

Erich more or less understood the problem. The bugs were innumerous, and unlike the Naraku, most of them could fly. They had created a thick screen of flying insects capable of harassing any transport that tried to land. Making it so only something that dropped at high velocity from orbit could land on the planet's surface.

Knowing this, Erich gave the men the dreaded news, before assuming command over the Brigade of Airborne Infantry in an attempt to lead the charge against the local insectoid race, and more specifically, the nesting grounds which spawned their winged soldiers.

"Yeah, about that, it doesn't look like they're coming anytime soon. At the moment, only airborne infantry like yourself are making it through the atmosphere which is littered with those bugs. As of this moment, I am in command. Gather your soldiers and rally them on me. We're taking that damn nest and setting it ablaze, even if it means the death of us!"

The colonel was surprised that the Emperor himself was willing to lead the charge but was quick to salute the man and respond in the affirmative before proceeding to follow his orders.

"Yes, Sir!"

---

While Erich gathered the Brigade worth of Airborne Infantry who were stuck on the world's surface. Another Emperor had been watching the man's speech, and his actions. He was sitting on the throne of the Heavenly Domain with a hideous expression on his face.

Unlike in the previous timeline, the Heavenly Domain had not emerged from the shadows to establish ties between the Germanic Star-Empire, as well as the Confederation of Human Worlds. Instead, they continued to isolate themselves.

That is, however, until this moment. Erich had made a bold claim in his speech prior to dropping to the world's surface from orbit. He had said that he was the Supreme Authority of Mankind. Which was a spit in the face of the Heavenly Emperor who also ruled over a faction of humanity.

With this in mind, he spoke to his younger sister, the one that watched the broadcast alongside her royal brother.

"Jia-Li, I believe it's about time we show everyone that the Germans are not the only humans left in the galaxy…"

The young princess of the heavenly domain looked at the images of battle that flashed on the holographic projection and felt a deep sense of fear. Humanity was now left with two distinct races. The Asiatic people of the Heavenly Domain, and the pan-Germanic peoples of the Germanic Star-Empire.

But judging by the scenes displayed before her, there was a vast disparity in power between their two factions, making her hesitant to accept her brother's desire to reveal themselves. Which she was quick to voice.

"Dearest brother, for five hundred years our people have enjoyed peace and prosperity alone in our sector of the galaxy, do you really believe it is wise to reveal ourselves now, when the Germans have annihilated the other major faction of humans, and have become a major power in the Milky Way?"

The Emperor of the Heavenly Domain, however, was not deterred. Instead, he gazed upon the scenes of the wars which humanity was waging, and wanted to prove that Erich's claims were false, that were was another human emperor out there. And thus he dismissed his sister's worries with a statement of certainty.

"Relax, I have no intentions of going to war with the barbarians. Even then, I can't let his comments slide. We are still here! And we will always be here!"

Jia-Li simply sighed and shook her head. She knew her brother well enough that once he set his mind to something, there was no convincing him otherwise. Thus she simply returned her vision to the sight of Erich leading his soldiers in a strike beneath the surface of the world they were invading, in an attempt to eliminate the local nest, and hopefully clear enough space for reinforcements to land.

Similar battles were taking place all across the world's surface, and the surface of many more worlds like it. Humanity's crusade to cleanse the Galaxy of insectoid life had only truly just begun.

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