I, Superman, the Supreme Commander

Chapter 177: Greenskins Overwhelm and Reinforcements Descend from the Sky

Greenskins, also known as Orks, are an ancient space alien species. It is said that their existence is older than the history of the Human Empire.

Greenskins often appear in various ancient legends that people have heard.

At first, due to short-sightedness - the galaxy had not encountered an alien invasion for hundreds of years, Lord Ivan ignored the threat of the greenskins. At first, the greenskins only appeared on Planet Nine, Makaria, and were still a group of barbarians fighting with stones and sticks, scattered on the barren and cold planet.

The rulers of Hades, who had never personally experienced the power of the orcs, did not take these primitive aliens seriously and continued to indulge in their power games and pleasure.

It was not until more than ten years later that a large number of meteorites with rocket thrusters installed fell from the sky and hit the third planet, Melinoe. Millions of orcs swarmed out of the "meteorite ships". The green tide accompanied by the earth-shaking [Waaagh!] submerged several hive cities. Only then did the rulers of the Hades galaxy come to their senses and realize that the orcs were a serious threat.

As a result, they found that the orcs, Makaria has become the orcs' lair, and the entire planet is full of greenskins. In just over a decade, the greenskins have entered the interstellar age from the Stone Age, manufactured all kinds of shabby spaceships, and have the ability to attack human-inhabited planets.

Realizing that things were going badly, the human regime of the Hades galaxy hastily mobilized for war and sent a fleet of troops to Melinoe for support.

Although humans have the advantage in weapons and equipment and even numbers, the orcs have the terrifying ability to become stronger and more numerous as they fight. Just after killing one batch, another batch will appear soon, and they can never be killed.

Moreover, as the war continues, the level of orcs' weapons and equipment is improving at a visibly high level.

In the beginning, they only had gunpowder weapons and broken motorcycles, but later on, laser cannons, plasma cannons, large mechas and so on appeared, and there were even spaceships that could fight against humans.

If it were not for Ivan Lermontov's outstanding ability, his emphasis on armaments and his determination to build up military strength, and the frontline soldiers' good command and brave fighting, Melinoe would have fallen in just a few months.

The tug-of-war between humans and orcs on Melinoe has been going on for two years now. The orcs cannot break through the human fortress, and humans cannot eliminate the orcs, and the situation is at a stalemate.

But what worries Ivan is not the occupation of Melinoe, but the orcs' lair on Makaria. According to the reconnaissance team's report, the orcs are gathering troops there, and an army several times larger than the previous one that invaded Melinoe is being quickly formed.

Various signs indicate that the orcs are preparing to organize a new army to attack the main star Persephone directly!

If this is the case, then humans will be in trouble. They may not even be able to organize enough troops to resist, and can only give up Melinoe and withdraw their troops.

But if they did that, the orcs would seize the industrial facilities and resources on Melinoe, and their strength would certainly increase greatly, which in turn would add tremendous pressure to Persephone's defense.

Withdrawing troops is only a temporary solution. If the threat of the orcs' lair cannot be eliminated, humans will lose the war sooner or later.

Ivan also sent out elite fleets to raid and bomb the orcs' nests and settlements, but with little success. Each bombing seemed to kill a lot of orcs, but the number of orcs did not decrease, and the offensive did not weaken.

Later, as the Ork space power grew, he lost some ships, and this tactic could not be used because the Orks were prepared.

The war between the two races in the Hades galaxy has become clear, and humans are at a disadvantage, and their disadvantage is becoming more and more obvious.

If a Space Marine unit called the Ash Claws had not intervened in the war at this time, claiming that they were willing to help Ivan's family overcome the difficulties for a fee, Ivan would probably have already run away with his family and the wealth accumulated over the years.

Although he was outside the rule of the empire and was the king of the mountains, as the ruler of a galaxy, Ivan still knew the situation "outside".

Intelligence is an indispensable part of every ruler's job.

Ivan Lermontov knew that far away from his territory, there existed a powerful human empire, and that the Space Marines were one of the most powerful forces of this empire.

It is said that these huge steel warriors have strength far beyond that of mortals, incredible fighting skills, and are equipped with destructive weapons. Wherever they go, all evil spirits will be ruthlessly destroyed.

Space Marines usually appear on the most intense battlefields of the Human Empire, judging all alien heretics on behalf of the Emperor, so people also call them "Angels of Judgment".

Ivan was skeptical about these legends at first, but when he saw that the Space Marines destroyed an entire Orc fleet with only one starship and the powerful weapons on it, he immediately believed it.

Held a grand welcoming ceremony, warmly welcomed the arrival of the Space Marines, and appeared to be absolutely loyal to the Empire - even though the damn Empire had never contacted the Hades Galaxy in ten thousand years.

The warriors of the Ash Claws stated their intentions. As long as the Lermontov family regularly paid population and resource taxes to the regiment, they could obtain the regiment's protection. The Lermontov family could also enjoy the ruling power of the Hades galaxy forever. As long as they did not rebel and paid taxes on time, the regiment would not interfere.

Of course, Ivan agreed happily. Who would want to run away like a stray dog ​​if they could continue to be a local tyrant and do whatever they want?

He immediately swore to submit to the Ash Claw, and then cooperated and handed over command of the army.

Then, led by the Crimson Claw, an expedition against the Makaria orcs' lair began in full swing.

The Space Marines acted with great efficiency, organizing a mortal force of 2 billion combat troops in just one month, including more than 20,000 ships of different sizes and models - even civilian merchant ships were requisitioned for transportation, with the Flamingo battleship of the Ash Claws Chapter as the flagship.

While the war was still raging on Melinoe, the Ash Claws led their expeditionary force directly to the orcs' lair.

On the Flamingo Moon-class cruiser, the Ember Claws' Second Company Captain Julius, Think Tank Sagan, Staff Officer McCree, Captain Antus and other company commanders were holding the final combat meeting before the attack.

"Julius, isn't it a bit risky for us to rob the greenskins' home with such a small number of people?"

Think tanker Sagan looked worried.

He explained: "It's not that I don't have confidence in my brothers. It's just that our regiment's personnel are precious, and it's best not to make unnecessary sacrifices."

"Brother, don't worry. We have done this kind of operation eight out of ten times against the greenskins. Which time has it been more dangerous than this one?"

Second Captain Julius said confidently: "I have asked the reconnaissance team to confirm that there is at most one orc [warlord] on Makaria. As long as we kill this guy, the remaining orcs will not be a threat."