The Necrons may win the underwater battle, but the war in the skies rages on.
A Dakkajet fired its various weapons, chasing a Night Scythe that performed evasive maneuvers. Its pilot simulating billions of strategies in a few seconds to face his pursuer.
Suddenly, the Scythe plunged into an almost ninety-degree angle, its pilot's lack of blood and organs allowing him to perform such a maneuver. The Ork performed a loop and descended after his enemy. However, the aircraft dodged most of the shots, turning on its axis toward the ocean.
He opened the left end of his jet's stick, revealing and pressing a red button with a war cry, launching several rockets after the Necron aircraft. The Scythe accelerated as the projectiles exploded, appearing to be hit close to the water.
The Xeno pulled his plane's stick with all his might, avoiding hitting the rippling ocean as the explosion's smoke cleared. He smiled victoriously, unaware of the dark stain in the water following his jet.
The stain revealed itself with a water burst and the Scythe fired its weapons at the Dakkajet, turning it into a fire and metal ball that collided with an Ork ship's side, sinking it.
The strategy was successful, now the pilot searched for a new enemy to eliminate. Suddenly, a Blitza-Bommer passed beside him in the opposite direction, with another Night Scythe pursuing it.
The Ork aircraft flew toward the tomb, its pilot planning to use his jet's various Boom Bombs to damage the construction as the Night Scythe tried to prevent it. However, the gunner seat's Grot kept the Necron aircraft away with the rear-mounted Big Shoota.
The Scythe fired back while dodging the bullet hail, but couldn't land a clear shot, having its pilot hit in a critical spot, sending the aircraft toward the sea. Nevertheless, it disappeared in a green light, returning to the tomb for repairs.
The Grot laughed with his pursuer's demise but panicked when his plane shook and fell.
The right wing had disappeared due to the green beams passing by as the aircraft descended, belonging to the Sentry Pylon that protected the tomb with its Death Ray.
The Blitza-Bommer fell faster, its pilot pushing the stick forward, performing a suicide attack while pressing a big red button on his plane's panel, launching all its bombs and missiles.
Eventually, the Sentry hit the plane in full, disintegrating it, but not before the explosives hit their target, destroying the Necron turret with a massive blast, however, the tomb's mechanisms collected the Sentry for repairs and closed the opening where it stood previously.
This was only a fraction of the war that occurred in the sky. Skirmishes set the air on fire, beams, lasers, bullets, and missiles cut the horizon, and the ship attempted to fall the Necrons, only to sink under the aircraft onslaught.
-Gol D. Loota's Ship-
Loota watched the battle as his instincts screamed for him to join, but the enemy leader didn't show up.
He wasn't as stupid as his Boyz, an Ork didn't become a Warboss without a modicum of intelligence. He knew that the Tin Men's boss was somewhere inside the big building, and if things continued like that, they would win.
Now, how should he enter the building? The material was tough, their cannons could not pierce it at a distance, and the enemy cannons sank any approaching ship.
The lack of return from the Ork diggers meant they were all dead, the green lights in the water warning the Tin Men's advanced. He would need more Dakka if he wanted to win.
"CRA! Message from Zazzog!" The parrot Squig returned. Loota unrolled the message and read its contents, smiling widely.
"Everyth'n iz ready boss!"
— Zazzog
"KALL BACK OUR BOYZ! WE 'AVE AN' SURPRIZE FOR 'DA TIN MAN!"
The message was passed from Ork to Ork, the aircraft left their skirmishes and returned to the island while the ships turned around. Orks did not retreat without reason, this is a worry for anyone who faces them.
-Following Day, Tomb-
If the Ork's silence before this battle worried me, then what happened now would be a reason for my hair to fall, that is, if I still had hair! I'd bite my nails if I wasn't almost ten feet tall and weighing a ton of undead alien robot skeleton!
I received hundreds of reports consisting of thousands of pages of battle results, tomb damage, unit repairs, underwater Ork extermination status, active units, and more!
"My Lord, something approaches the tomb." Haratek said on a screen.
"Show me!"
All the screens moved away, revealing a larger one showing the tomb's north, the night disappearing, and several dark contours growing and increasing in number in front of the rising sun.
Hundreds of ships sailed towards the tomb while surrounding a large warship with the Orks pirate flag swaying in the wind. A light followed by a smoke cloud came from the warship's front, nothing happened for a few seconds until…
BOOM!
The tomb quaked, unlike the times when the ceiling shook a little and I barely heard the muffled explosions! They opened a hole in the tomb's armor!
No more being on the defensive! I can't win this war by waiting for the Orks to come! The longer it takes, the stronger they will get! How long can I defend myself before they send something I can't stop?!
"Haratek?!"
"Yes, my lord?"
"I have a special mission for you!"
-Ork Warship, Now Gol D. Loota's New Ship, The Rabidcrumpah-
"'Ere dey kome! Fire all Dakka! Send our flyaz!" Loota ordered.
The Orks scurried around their new ships, firing their new weapons and getting their planes in the air.
The vessels were similar to those of the 21st-century human navy but pirate-themed. Wood and metal statues adorned their fronts, pirate flags stood at their highest points, and Kannons and KillKannons at their broadsides.
Gol D. Loota's ship had a Supa-Kannon, a gigantic weapon mounted on the vessel's bow, the type you would use in an artillery division, a weapon that passed through the tomb's armor.
"Reload 'da supa-kannon!" Loota screamed and his underlings rushed to reload the great weapon. Meanwhile, he watched as hundreds of new aircraft flew toward his fleet.
The fleet fired at the approaching enemies while Dakkajets and Blitza-Bommers took off from the carrier-like ships. Simultaneously, the Necron aircraft executed the meticulous strategy planned by their great Overlord.
Tomb Blades advanced close to the sea along the ship's sides, drawing fire and distracting the enemy while using their Dimensional Repulsor Engines to constantly change vectors and altitude, as gravity and friction had little effect on them.
This allowed the Night Scythes and Doom Scythes to advance, dodging Ork aircraft's fire as they bombarded the vessels, destroying their main weaponry.
With the Kannons destroyed, the slower aircraft approached, the Ghost Arks released their troops and twenty Necron Warriors fell on several ships, each group led by an Immortal.
They fought against the crews, their Gauss Flayers, Gauss Blasters, Shootas, and Big Shootas exchanged fire. Simultaneously, the Phantom Arks supported them with their broadside's Gauss Flayers, reducing the Orks to ashes.
The Ghost Arks collected their troops when most of the crew was eliminated and the Doomsday Arks fired their Doomsday Cannons, reducing the ships to molten goo.
BOOM!
Unfortunately, the Necron units did not advance fast enough to stop the Supa-Kannon from firing again and the giant projectile hit the tomb, opening another hole.
Loota's ship was extremely armored and covered in Dakka, preventing troops from approaching without being shot down.
Suddenly, green energy flowed through all the Necron units, covering them with a green barrier and protecting them against enemy fire. Then, green lightning jumped from troop to troop, making them move faster.
-Tomb-
>Command Protocols
> Protocol of the Eternal Guardian
> Protocol of the Sudden Storm
Start Protocols?
Y/N
>Y
Starting Protocols
98%
99%
100%
Protocols Initiated.
This should accelerate my troops' advance, I need to destroy that cannon at all costs! I hope Haratek succeeds in his mission.
-Outside The Tomb-
Three Ghost Arks came from the tomb's southern area, circling the battlefield, heading north toward the Rugged Isles while carrying sixty Necron Warriors, two Despoteks, and Haratek.
They crossed the ocean, reaching their destination, emerging as they approached the shore. Two of the three Arks released their units, allowing Haratek and his troops to split into two groups.
"You will destroy the shipyards! You will accompany me to the green savage's base!"
With orders given, an Ark carrying a Despotek and Warriors submerged and followed the shore toward the shipyards. The remaining two stood on the beach, waiting for orders.
Then, Haratek, accompanied by a Despotek and forty Warriors walked deeper into the island.
"Do not worry, my Lord, I will complete the mission you entrusted me. Nothing short of success will be tolerated."
Meanwhile, black clouds covered the sky like a dark mass across the entire planet, raindrops fell and rumblings echoed.
The months of the storm had begun.
END OF CHAPTER