Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 554

Chapter 552, Blood Shark in Space

The flagship of the New World Torch Chapter became disorganized and sluggish in the heat of battle for a reason: they were being boarded.

This sounds a bit strange. A flagship of a fully-fledged Space Marine Chapter being boarded?

Aren’t they usually boarding others?

If the ship being boarded was another Space Marine Chapter, that would seem more acceptable.

Especially since this Chapter was notoriously ferocious.

Bai Qifan, Commander of the Alliance Fleet, couldn’t recognize the gray-painted Chapter, but Wang Mengsong, Chapter Master of the New World Torch, did. It was

the Blood Sharks.

One hundred and thirty years ago, this Chapter was completely unknown throughout the Empire. No one even knew it existed.

However, during the Bauhinia Rebellion a hundred and thirty years earlier, the Blood Sharks made their debut and participated in the “suppression” of the rebellion.

However, at the time, the Blood Sharks sided with the Iron Fury Stone.

When the political situation on Holy Terra shifted, and the three Chapters, the Bauhinia, Starbreakers, and Phoenixes, were found guilty, they initially resisted. While

battling the Iron Rage in the Nepeta Sector, adjacent to the Imperial Sector—the Bauhinia’s former stronghold—the three Chapters simultaneously engaged in a concerted effort to reshape the political landscape on Holy Terra. This

wasn’t without success.

At least, the Phoenix, as one of the founding Chapters, felt a deep sympathy for the plight of its three siblings. While they couldn’t intervene directly, they were prepared for it. They actively campaigned within Holy Terra, exerting their political influence and even securing a seat on the Supreme Council.

At the time, the seats didn’t include Space Marine representatives; the Phoenix Chapter, through widespread cajoling, deposed a High Lord and replaced him with its own.

However, as these political maneuvers progressed rapidly and things began to improve, the battlefield situation within the Arachnid Sector suddenly shifted dramatically. The combined forces of the Bauhinia, Starbreaker, and Phoenix Chapters were crushed on the front lines.

Objectively speaking, this was inevitable. The three Iron Rage Stone Chapters possessed overwhelming military strength over the Bauhinia and its ilk.

But at the time, Iron Armor didn’t dare to overtly display their extraordinary numbers—they certainly didn’t have the numbers they would have a century later.

While they did have a significant advantage in numbers, the Bauhinia Chapters understood this. Hoping to hold out until the political climate shifted, they steadfastly adhered to their strategy and refrained from reckless battles.

Logically, they employed a flexible defense strategy focused on holding out. After all, with three standard Chapters, they wouldn’t collapse too quickly even if they couldn’t win.

This was indeed the case at first,

until the Blood Sharks Chapter appeared.

Emerging from the gloomy darkness, they called themselves the “Blood Sharks.” They claimed to have heard the call from the Imperial Center to quell the rebellion.

Iron Rage Stone initially questioned their identities.

A completely unheard-of Chapter, and more importantly, they were reluctant to interact with the outside world. Meeting them seemed even more austere, with a faint scent of blood permeating the air. It

was suspicious in every way.

However, they did produce a series of documents, documenting their Chapter’s founding, authorization, and mission statement…

These documents were extremely ancient, often considered sacred and historical by each Chapter, and therefore remarkably well-preserved.

The Ironclad’s advisors, after careful study, concluded that they were authentic.

It was simply that the Imperials had lost the relevant records, making them incompatible.

The Ironclad had never encountered such a situation before.

Clearly, the Ironclad were not a rigid and rule-abiding Chapter. What was wrong with having someone come to help in the war? Even if it was a legitimate Chapter of unknown origin, let alone a group of renegade Chapters, the Ironclad would likely accept their assistance.

And soon, the Ironclad were pleasantly surprised by their decision.

The Blood Sharks’ combat prowess and fighting style are so astonishing and efficient that even Ironclad was taken aback.

Their style can be summarized as a rapid strike force. They

rarely engage in prolonged battles of any kind, preferring to rely on extreme speed or stealth to approach their targets, attacking with the utmost surprise.

This applies both in fleet engagements and in Space Marine combat.

Their ships possess a lost and unique technology that allows them to achieve a degree of cloaking, making them difficult to detect.

During attacks, they strive to close in on their enemies quickly, engaging them in hand-to-hand combat or unleashing their firepower at close range. Therefore, in addition to their standard weaponry, they carry a somewhat excessive number of chainsaw axes and power axes, allowing them to rip apart their enemies in close combat.

Their fighting style is both extremely efficient and brutal—their attacks are swift and fierce, aiming to inflict the greatest possible damage in the shortest possible time. If an enemy unit survives, they simply disappear and attack again, continuously destroying the surviving units until they are unable to resist and face destruction. Once the enemy before them had been utterly slaughtered, they would move relentlessly to their next target, repeating the process again and again until nothing remained but the remains of their slaughter.

The Blood Sharks’ Space Marines were generally silent, cautious, and vigilant, but in combat they would undergo a marked shift, unleashing bursts of extreme bloodthirsty v*olence, frantically hacking down or blasting their foes.

Commanders issued orders via encrypted, blocked radio networks, refusing to speak to enemy or allies during battle unless absolutely necessary.

This silence stood in stark contrast to their frenzied, even dismembering, shattering, and blood-spattering style of combat. They did so without even the usual cries of venting, simply the silent chopping of axes.

An eerie silence.

With the help of this elusive Chapter, adept at sudden attacks, the Redbud III Regiment’s initial hold on the battle was shattered.

The sudden attack stunned the three regiments.

They had never seen such a regiment or enemy before, let alone received any intelligence about another regiment. In each of their raids, the Blood Sharks achieved significant results.

And whenever they managed to breach their defenses, the Iron Fury Stone Regiment would surge in with superior force.

After several similar battles, the Bauhinia 3rd Regiment collapsed and inevitably surrendered.

This also made the Phoenix Regiment’s political efforts come to nothing.

The target they were trying to save was no longer saveable.

Overall, the main factor in defeating the Bauhinia 3rd Regiment on the front battlefield was undoubtedly the overwhelming superiority of the Iron Fury Stone 3rd Regiment. Their strength was nearly four times that of the Bauhinia 3rd Regiment. However

, no one can ignore the special role played by the Blood Shark Regiment.

What was particularly impressive was their bloody and brutal fighting style.

Many Chapters showed little regard for the lives of mortals, whether enemies, allies, or civilians. But even among the Space Marines, the Blood Sharks were particularly extreme in this regard. In the pursuit of their military objectives, they repeatedly displayed utter disregard for the casualties of civilians caught in the crossfire. They offered no such careless assistance. Even if a wounded civilian lay on the ground in their path, vulnerable to being stepped on, they would not change their cadence, nor would they care to step on them.

This fact, in turn, drew considerable criticism.

Later, Imperial scholars on Holy Terra, after intensive research into historical documents, uncovered evidence of the Blood Sharks’ existence, drawn from ancient battles, even resembling myths, epics, ancient operas, and fables.

While they were never featured prominently, some background panels mentioned the founding of a Chapter called the “Blood Sharks” over four thousand years ago. Sent into regions of space without astral tunnels and unable to communicate directly via astropathic language, they embarked on endless voyages, slaughtering and ravaging humanity’s enemies. They showed no mercy to traitors, xenos, and turncoats, eradicating them from their own territories.

Of course, reports of them occasionally surfaced from the Imperium’s various frontier sectors, but they were of little importance and were ignored by the masters of Holy Terra.

While the credibility of each of these sources is somewhat questionable, as they are not official historical records, these isolated works, dating from roughly the same period, all refer to the same event and share similarities in imagery and certain details of the Chapter’s actions. For example, they all describe the Blood Sharks as exhibiting a ferocious yet calculated brutality, and the descriptions of their formation and the missions they were sent on are relatively consistent…

All of these elements align with the Blood Sharks’ actions during the Bauhinia Heresy, making the story plausible.

After all, with thousands of years of history, the Imperium has lost a fair amount of historical records.

Thus, the Imperium generally recognized the Blood Sharks Chapter thereafter.

However, in the later stages of the Purple Flower Heresy, when the war was largely over, a series of clashes broke out between the Blood Sharks and the Ironclad.

The Blood Sharks were brutal, bloodthirsty, and ruthless… but also very poor.

This was understandable. As a “Crusade Chapter,” a fleet-based Chapter, with no recruiting worlds and no regular income, they spent their days on endless expeditions and voyages across the known universe and the dark reaches beyond the Imperial borders. How could they not be poor?

But their poverty was unique.

Basic equipment and even ammunition supplies were scarce. The Chapter’s servitors and mortal auxiliaries were few and far between, yet they possessed a significant amount of cutting-edge equipment. Even their Power Armor models were a diverse mix, some new, but more often old and archaic, with a highly inconsistent style.

The Chapter collected the equipment it needed through the “Grey Tax,” exchanging technological relics found in the Outlands for equipment and ammunition from the Mechanicum and other industrial worlds.

The Chapter relied on a “red tax” to replenish its ranks, mortal auxiliaries, and servants. This meant conscripting men from selected planets. The Chapter had always been relatively poor, and its warriors’ armor was often cobbled together.

After the battles for the Iron Armor Chapter, the Blood Sharks, as expected, demanded a “gray tax” and a “blood tax.”

Initially, Iron Armor offered to pay.

Considering their military exploits, what was wrong with a little money?

However, the Blood Sharks had their own rules. They collected money proportional to the number of worlds conquered.

The amount was excessive, exceeding Iron Armor’s expectations.

Iron Armor attempted to negotiate, but the Blood Sharks had no idea what negotiation meant.

This wasn’t a reward, not a deal; it was a “tax.”

Should I negotiate with you about collecting taxes?

They didn’t need to resort to sham labor; they could just do it themselves.

They would plunder equipment, loot, and men. They would directly conscript large numbers of people from planets Iron Armor valued, conducting recruitment exercises with a high mortality rate.

Iron Armor was enraged, and some conflict broke out between the two sides.

Ultimately, the Blood Sharks retreated, taking with them a tax they were dissatisfied with, and returned to darkness.

…

In the 130 years since the Bauhinia Rebellion, the Blood Sharks seem to have appeared more frequently. Perhaps it’s because their fame has drawn more attention and concern.

They continue to operate independently, operating in the Outlands, occasionally appearing within the Empire, but their whereabouts are uncertain, trading with various Mechanicus and collecting blood taxes from various worlds. Beyond that, they often cause trouble for the Ironclads, who have a grudge against them.

Since the outbreak of the Princess’s Rebellion six years ago, the Ironclads have been wary of whether this vengeful, occasionally disruptive, yet incredibly powerful and brutal chapter might emerge as an enemy.

But for six years, they have remained silent.

Until today.

The unfortunate ones, however, were not the Ironclads, but the New World Torches.

The Torchlight, the chapter’s flagship, was boarded by the Blood Sharks. Aboard the Torchlight, four hundred New World Torches, they were the chapter’s flagship. Through some unstoppable, even unpredictable, psychic teleportation technique, the boarding Blood Sharks swiftly assaulted key areas of the ship.

For a moment, Wang Mengsong couldn’t even fathom how many Blood Sharks had boarded his ship!

Before he could muster his forces to encircle and annihilate the boarders, the ship’s firepower centers, artillery positions, and control nodes were assaulted. These locations were quickly devastated, either lost or destroyed from within.

This was the reason the entire Torchlight was partially crippled shortly after the battle began.

However, the ship wasn’t destroyed, and the main Torch Marines remained.

However, as time passed, the situation eased.

Wang Mengsong urgently deployed his forces, and the ship’s auxiliary troops and Space Marines pursued and intercepted the Blood Sharks, ultimately dividing them into roughly five or six groups.

However, it’s unclear whether the Blood Sharks were forced into these groups or if this was simply their natural organization.

The Blood Shark Squad, who were ‘separated’ near the core engine compartment, were particularly worrying.

If they were carrying any high-energy bombs and detonated them in the core engine compartment, the consequences would be disastrous.

Wang Mengsong personally led his men to encircle and suppress them.

————

4k

still owed 116

(End of this chapter)