A beam shot straight into the sky, its tremendous energy punching a huge hole through the smoke-blackened clouds. For that brief instant, the starry sky beyond the clouds was even visible!
Then came a second shot!
A dull explosion rumbled like muffled thunder. Countless burning metal fragments rained down from the clouds, large and small, mixed with mangled human remains!
A massive black shape plummeted from the sky—it was an Acclamator-class assault ship!
Two burning holes had been blasted into the hull of the enormous, costly landing ship. One was at the front, having pierced straight through the vessel; the other was at the rear. Though it had not penetrated the hull, it had struck the ship's engines!
The Acclamator-class assault ship was clearly trying desperately to adjust its descent and stop itself from falling, but it was futile.
As the damaged areas continued to burn and spread, explosions could be seen erupting along the energy transmission lines. The blasts became more frequent and more violent, until the entire warship was engulfed in flames and billowing black smoke!
The Acclamator-class began to break apart amid the explosions. Many crew members could even be seen leaping from the hatches in despair.
In just a few minutes, the Acclamator-class assault ship crashed down in the outer industrial district of Steel City, shattering into pieces. The crash site became a sea of fire nearly two kilometers across!
"W-What is that...?" Staring at the hellish scene, Anakin Skywalker and the others were completely stunned. Rex looked up at the sky and muttered.
"Why do the Separatists have a weapon this powerful?!" Anakin Skywalker roared. "Bastards!! Just how much have they been hiding from us?!"
At that moment, the Galactic Republic's air power launched a fierce bombardment against the location from which that devastating beam