Warhammer 40K in a box

Chapter 712 The Battle of Kamas 9
Leona's assault force became embroiled in an even more brutal tug-of-war in the ruins surrounding the city of Hera.

Despite the valiant efforts of the Blood Angels and the warriors of the Crimson Crescent, who successfully tore a gap in the demonic tide and destroyed several Khorne Blood Crushers and a champion-level Bloodletter leader, their advance was visibly slowing down.

The closer you get to the city, the more severe the pollution becomes.

The ground was no longer simply charred and cracked, but covered with a sticky, pulsating, dark red organic film. Stepping on it produced an unpleasant squelching sound and oozed a blood-like liquid.

The air was thick with the stench of sulfur and blood, almost tangible, forming a pale red mist that not only obstructed vision but also continued to erode the minds of non-Astartes warriors.

The whispered call to kill was pervasive, even beginning to interfere with the power armor helmet's communications and sensor readings.

The demons' resistance also became more organized.

After the initial frenzy was contained, the remaining vampires and fleshhounds no longer charged blindly, but began to put up a step-by-step resistance, relying on the collapsing megastructures, twisted metal frames, and desecrated fortifications.

They used the terrain to ambush, launching surprise attacks from behind broken walls, underground pipes, or even from wreckage suspended in mid-air, forcing Imperial forces to divert their attention to clearing every corner and greatly slowing their advance.

"Clear the ruins of that three-story building on the left. There's at least one squad of Vampires inside, using some kind of psionic flamethrower to block our advance from the advantageous terrain," Company Commander Tycho reported through the communicator. His voice was a mix of the roar of explosive guns and the sound of chainswords tearing through terracotta. "The right flank is making slow progress. The Crimson Crescent's Third Company reports that they've encountered a new type of demon unit, a variant of the Khorne Hound that can briefly roam in the shadows. Several have already been killed or wounded."

Leona stood behind the wreckage of a destroyed chimera troop carrier, rapidly analyzing the constantly updated enemy and friendly situation map on the tactics panel.

The blue arrow representing the friendly forces struggles to extend forward in the red area representing the enemy, but its flanks are constantly under pressure, causing the arrow to become thin and fragile.

"Order the Cyclone missile vehicles to launch three salvos at the coordinate area for a blanket strike. Precision is not the goal; the objective is suppression and disruption," Leona ordered the artillery units behind her. Her voice was calm. "Tycho, have your two combat squads temporarily abandon the clearing operation and move towards the main axis to consolidate the central formation. We cannot afford to have our forces dispersed."

Tell Crimson Crescent to focus on using molten metal weapons and heavy explosive rounds against the stealthy hounds, as they have low resistance to energy attacks.

Her instructions were carried out swiftly.

The distant whistling of missiles piercing the sky was followed by a series of explosions. The ruins on the left were shrouded in fire and smoke, and the enemy's sniping fire was temporarily weakened.

The Blood Angels' formation was able to slightly tighten and become more compact.

However, the enemy's counterattack followed in quick succession.

A deeper, more unsettling roar came from the direction of the city center of Hera.

The crimson vortex in the sky spun even more violently, as if some enormous creature was brewing within it.

"High-intensity subspace energy fluctuations detected! Source... Central Square of Hera City, energy readings are rising sharply!" The Tech Priest's binary warning rang out in Leona's communication channel, with a rare hint of urgency.

Almost simultaneously, scouts on the front lines relayed urgent intelligence: "Mass sacrificial activity detected! Traitors are driving thousands of civilians into the blood pool in the central square! They are accelerating the ritual!"

The footage, transmitted intermittently through the power armor cameras of the scouts, showed densely packed civilians being driven like livestock into boiling pools of blood by Chaos Space Marines, driven by whips and explosives around massive pyramids constructed of bones and twisted metal. With each large-scale "sacrifice," the pools of blood churned more violently, the rifts in the sky widened, and the number and quality of the emerging demons increased significantly.

You can even see some larger Khorne vanguards, equipped with heavy blasphemous weapons, appearing at the forefront of the demon army.

"They... are slaughtering civilians, using their souls and suffering as fuel!" Chapter Commander Cassius's voice was filled with suppressed anger and a sense of powerlessness.

They struggled forward, but seemed forever unable to outpace the enemy's slaughter and summons.

Leona's face was hidden beneath her helmet, so her expression was not visible, but her fingers gripping the sword were slightly white from the force.

The scene before them revealed the most fundamental and brutal tactics of the Thousand-Eyed War Gang.

They don't care about the gain or loss of territory, or even the depletion of their own forces. Their sole purpose is to maintain and expand the warp rift through as much killing and sacrifice as possible, until the entire planet Kamas is completely dragged into the realm of the Eye of Terror.

"We must speed things up!" Tycho roared, cleaving a bloodhound that tried to pounce from the shadows in two with a single stroke of his sword. "Otherwise, killing more demons won't make a difference!"

"What about orbital support? Can Lord Lion King's fleet launch a precision strike and destroy that altar?" a company commander from the Crimson Crescent asked urgently in the communications.

Leona silently retrieved the orbital-level battle briefing. The situation was equally dire.
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On orbit around the planet Kamas, the Lion King Leon's ship, the Unyielding Truth, and its escort fleet are embroiled in a fierce battle.

The fallen angel Serafax's tactics were clear and effective.

Instead of trying to win a direct battle with the powerful Glory Queen-class battleships, he broke up the massive Chaos Fleet into dozens of small assault squadrons, which harassed and raided the Imperial Fleet's flanks and supply lines like a pack of wolves.

These small formations consist of fast raiding ships and light cruisers. They use the asteroid belt and nebula debris as cover, appear suddenly, launch a volley of torpedoes or a barrage at Imperial ships, and then quickly withdraw, never lingering in combat.

When the Indomitable Truth attempts to turn its guns around and concentrate on destroying a certain formation, other formations will launch attacks from different directions, forcing the Imperial Fleet to disperse its firepower for defense.

“They are stalling for time, Father.” Grand Master Belial’s voice rang out on the bridge of the Unyielding Truth, with a calm analysis: “Seraphax knows very well that as long as our main force is tied up in orbit, the subspace rift on the ground can continue to expand until it is irreversible.”

Lion King Leon stood in the center of the bridge, gazing at the tactical star map that kept flashing on the main screen.

The small red dots representing the enemy, like annoying gnats, swarmed around the blue dots of the Imperial fleet, constantly launching probing attacks.

Meanwhile, several large points of light, representing the enemy's main force, including the "Cursed Vision," remained lurking on the edge of the battlefield, watching intently. They would pounce on the Imperial fleet should it show any weakness.

"Try to organize a raid, tear through their harassment network, and target the 'Cursed Vision'," Lion King ordered.

The "Unyielding Truth" led two battlecruisers and charged forward suddenly, its powerful beams of light instantly purifying the two Chaos raiders that couldn't dodge in time.

(End of this chapter)