A massive battle was raging in this star system, with hundreds of ships exchanging fire. The brilliance of energy weapons and the blasts of explosive weapons filled the battlefield.
Wrecked warships and scattered metal fragments were everywhere, strewn unevenly throughout the system.
Three fleets barely holding together formed a triangular formation, with the surrounding space filled by wreckage and the warships of the Zirick Cooperative.
The Zirick Cooperative's fleet had spread out evenly. Corvettes and Torpedo Ships constantly darted through the omnipresent wreckage, taking potshots at the XT-489 Extermination Unit's triangular formation and nimbly evading incoming fire.
The Determined Exterminators were in no hurry. They maintained their triangular formation with their bows facing outward, protecting the Destroyers within. Those ships used their superior range to pick off the corvettes roaming around the perimeter.
The corvettes on the outside were responsible for driving off approaching Zirick corvettes. Once they forced them toward any of the triangle's three sides, the Destroyers in the center could fire precise shots.
This formation gave them a slight tactical advantage over the Zirick.
The two sides remained locked in a bitter struggle.
The XT-489 Extermination Unit maintained its triangular formation with the express purpose of steadily wearing down the Zirick Cooperative's fighting strength.
On the other side of the star lay their colony, an extremely important smelting planet.
This smelting planet produced over a hundred units of alloys every month. If the XT-489 Extermination Unit took it, the Zirick Cooperative's alloy output would plummet, leaving them unable to sustain the war's alloy consumption.
Wars between nations came down to national strength, and national strength was measured by output.
In the interstellar age, "Planetary specialization" had become a widely accepted principle.
Dedicating an entire Colony World to producing a single resource made management and production easier, giving