Judging by the fleet's formation, it was obvious that this was a high-speed strike force the Empire had assembled specifically to pursue their fleeing Titan.
The fleet had probably been thrown together from whatever forces were available. If the Empire had been given a little more time, it wouldn't have consisted of battlecruisers alone. The Barbarossa-class dreadnoughts, renowned for their speed and firepower, would certainly have joined the formation. The Dawn Angel-class cruisers, supposedly fast enough to race alongside other cruisers, might even have joined the hunt.
Rozers and Belmont were relieved that they had broken through in time, before the Empire could organize a larger force.
Even so, the Imperial high-speed fleet that had appeared at the edge of the Galactic Core still made their scalps prickle. And the marauders skulking alongside the Imperial fleet were an even more ominous sign.
You warriors of the Galactic Core, free nomads of the universe, wild children of the void—you've actually become lapdogs of the Empire? How is the spirit of Great Khan Tomitaly supposed to rest in peace?
Rozers, Krell, and all the senior officers aboard the Independence agreed: the marauders who'd stayed behind in the Galactic Core instead of joining the expedition really were a sorry lot! They didn't have an ounce of the spirit it took to rampage across the galaxy.
They could curse and complain all they wanted, but life went on, and so did the fighting.
And so, in the barren reaches of the Galactic Core, another duel between capital ships began. To be fair, the last time a fleet battle of this scale had taken place in the Core was during Emperor Ivenya's expedition—five hundred years ago.
As the saying went, in terms of size and combat power alone, even the most advanced battlecruiser was no