Warhammer: Striving to Be a Grinding Man

Chapter 124 Divine Strategist Deploys (4)

The Imperial Titan's volcanic cannon turned east. The plasma beam pierced the force field barrier of the last ancient behemoth, melting its armor plates, detonating its internal ammunition, and ripping the turret off its torso. The steel colossus knelt in the ruins, its Gigablade thrown from its shoulder armor, crashing into the rubble and remaining motionless.

The green-skinned infantry surged relentlessly. They circled around the collapsed wreckage from both sides, emerged from every crack in the ruins, and poured out of the underground passages. A single volley from the Vulcan's massive explosive cannons, once fired by the Warhound-class, could only clear a few dozen meters of space before being filled in the next second. Their sheer numbers weren't a tactical issue, but a geological one.

The delivery never stopped. While the tenth wave was still deploying on the scorched earth, the next wave of transport ships had already entered the atmosphere. The hatches of the Fireseed opened and closed at a steady rhythm. Ammunition boxes were stacked into low walls along the edge of the landing zone, and the white tents of the medical station expanded from three rows to five. Stretcher operatives stretched a continuous transport chain between the front and rear. The wounded were carried off, blood bags hung from IV stands, and the breastplates of power armor were ripped open with cutting tools, revealing charred skin and shattered ribs underneath. Dr. Liz's hands never stopped.

Hundreds of thousands of people have already been deployed on the scorched earth. Many more are waiting in the holds of transport ships. The landing zone continues to operate amidst the artillery fire, like a wound that has been repeatedly torn open and stitched up.

The imperial hymn is accelerating in pace.

Cole's command came through the command channel: "Knight mechs, advance at full speed. Mark the node ruins and establish a defensive perimeter."

The Ranger-type vehicles surged out from the flank of the armored forces. Six Ranger-types weaved at high speed through the ruins, passing the remains of the ancient capital and the burning battle fortresses. The thrusters spewed out at full power, and the grip teeth of the bipedal drive wheels carved burn marks into the scorched earth.

Five minutes later, the first Ranger-type arrived at the node ruins. The pilot confirmed this over the comms. The node ruins were a partially collapsed industrial complex. The Void Shield Nexus that Rellano had destroyed was located on the third underground level. The Ranger-type deployed from a high vantage point on the perimeter of the ruins, its explosive turrets pointing deep into the middle layer of the hive.

Under the continuous cover of artillery fire, the armored units accelerated their advance. The Leman Russ Company no longer needed to stop and clear enemy positions; the artillery barrage had torn a path through them. Chimeras sprinted across the debris field, spent shell casings from their vehicle-mounted explosive guns bouncing off the roofs. Infantry followed rapidly behind the tanks, their power armor's terracotta breastplates deflecting stray bullets and shrapnel, while the CMC-100's articulated servo system allowed them to maintain their marching speed across the rugged debris field.

The artillery barrage began to extend. Plasma shells from the petrified lizards soared over the armored forces, exploding into blue-white plasma clouds on the distant orcish lines. Each cloud expanded, swirled, and devoured, vaporizing concrete and sending steel flowing. Orc battle fortresses vanished from the surface, leaving only scorched craters.

The first wave of chimeras charged through the outer defenses of the node ruins. Tracks crushed metal debris, the stern hatch opened as they moved, and power-armored infantry jumped out, scattering among the rubble to clear out any remaining orc firing positions with bomb guns and laser guns. Lemanrus followed closely behind, its turrets rotating as it moved, high-explosive shells exploding among the orc infantry.

Subsequent armored vehicles poured in through the breach. Chimeras deployed into a defensive formation around the ruins, while Lemanrus established firing strongpoints further away. The defensive perimeter of the node ruins expanded from an arc of six Ranger-type vehicles into a ring-shaped position consisting of dozens of armored vehicles and hundreds of infantry.

The Emperor-class Titan advanced, its massive feet treading on the scorched earth surrounding the node ruins. The earth trembled, and shattered rock and concrete rained down from the broken walls. The muzzles of the volcanic cannons were pointed at the upper levels of the hive city—the tallest industrial tower complex on Invernus, where the orcish technocrats' repair workshops and ammunition depots were located.

Fire! A beam of incandescent plasma slashed upwards through the upper levels of the hive, striking the middle of the tallest industrial tower. Concrete vaporized, steel melted, and the hundreds-of-meters-high tower snapped in half. The upper half slowly tilted, accelerating its descent, crashing into the surrounding buildings and exploding into a massive cloud of smoke and dust.

The Emperor-class volcano cannons began their relentless bombardment. Each shot precisely struck the industrial facilities, ammunition depots, and Technician repair workshops on the upper levels of the hive. Beams ripped across the sky, leaving incandescent white trails in the smoke and dust. The upper buildings of the hive crumbled layer by layer under the barrage, and the orcish strongpoints were erased from the map one by one.

The Marauder-class molten cannons joined the bombardment, targeting the anti-aircraft turrets in the middle layer of the hive. Gatling gun barrages covered the area where the orc infantry were assembled, and spent shell casings clattered onto the scorched earth.

The aerial strangler battle never ceased. Thunder fighter squadrons and Pseudo-Soldier fighters locked in a fierce dogfight over every inch of airspace above the hive capital.

A third of the Thunder's wing was sheared off. The pilot shut down the damaged right engine, allowing the left engine to take over, and the nose locked onto the Orc fighter again. Twin laser cannons pierced the Orc's cockpit. Avenger attack aircraft cut in from the flank, their Gatling guns below the nose unleashing a deluge of ammunition on the Orc positions on the ground. More Orc fighters surged in from the direction of the space wreckage. Ignoring losses, they were driven by the war chief's roars into the airspace that had already been repeatedly cleared by Imperial fighters. Hydra anti-air tanks advancing alongside the armored forces unleashed their full firepower, shooting down Orc fighters every second.

The strangulation continues. The imperial hymns never cease.

The defensive perimeter of the node ruins was fully established. Lemanrus deployed artillery positions on the high ground surrounding the ruins, while the Chimeras positioned firing points at the entrances to the passages between the ruins. Infantry established layered defensive lines within the ruins. Rangers continued to patrol the outermost perimeter, using their speed to fill gaps in the defensive line.

The Garros Legion gained a foothold in the node ruins.

Cohen pressed the communication button: "Command, medical units, move forward. All troops into Void Shield coverage area."

The transport ships behind the landing site began to adjust their course. They stopped dropping supplies towards the landing site and flew directly towards the node ruins.

The stern hatch of the Devourer transport ship opened at the makeshift landing site outside the ruins, and the engineering automaton pushed equipment trailers down the slope.

Cole led his staff out of the command bunker, boarded the armored command vehicle, and drove toward the node ruins. The white tents of the medical station were re-deployed on the leeward side of the ruins, and stretcher-bearers began to move the wounded, who were being carried down from the front lines, to the new medical station.

As the last transport ship landed, the tech-priests unloaded the adamantite confinement chambers and energy conduits from the cargo hold. They pushed carts loaded with components toward the underground entrance deep within the ruins. Cohen followed behind them. The Storm Commando, numbering over a thousand, spread out on both sides, covering every passageway from the temporary landing site to the underground entrance.

Three underground levels. The Void Shield Nexus's access interface is embedded in the wall, leaving a molten gap at the location of the node destroyed by Rellano. The new component's interface matches the original design perfectly. The Tech Priests hoist the adamantite confinement chamber into place, energy conduits are laid along the wall's cable channels, and data cables connect the component to the access interface.

Cohen stood beside the access interface. The field expanded, and consciousness extended. Atomic-level adjustments were made imperceptibly. The oxide layer on the energy conduit connector was peeled off, the sealing interface of the constraint cavity was reshaped, and the contact resistance of the data cable was reduced to its theoretical minimum. One by one, the self-test lights of the tech priests turned green. They considered it a success, a test of excellent components.

The leading technical priest pressed the activation button. The force field of the Void Shield expanded outward from the depths of the ground, the transparent energy membrane sweeping across the ruins, the armored forces, the advancing chimeras, and the leg armor of the Emperor-class Titans.

Cohen turned and walked out of the underground entrance.

The Imperial Hymn ceased abruptly at the same moment. All the Titans' loudspeakers fell silent. The Fireseed's communication array went silent. Every Imperial communication terminal still in operation fell silent. The hymn, which had lasted for hours, vanished completely from the air, leaving only the roar of cannons, the shrieks of engines, and the howls of orcs.

Then, the entire broadcast system exploded. A mechanical voice, dry and cold: "The iron will of Om Messiah will destroy all enemies of humanity."

Kara returned. A patch of her left shoulder armor's grayish-white coating had corroded away, revealing its cold, grey, metallic base. Her helmet was tucked under her arm, and her face was stained with soot and dried blood—not hers. Behind her followed her squad; a hundred men had gone out, and two were missing upon their return.

While infiltrating the ruins on the east side, they ran into an orc special forces team. These green-skinned individuals, clad in patchwork metal armor, moved silently and faster than ordinary orcs, equipped with heavy bombardment rifles and power claws. Attack Sgug was among them, silently emerging from the cracks in the ruins, spewing corrosive acid. Two of her companions were tackled in the first engagement, the acid seeping into their power armor's neckplate seams. By the time the others had cleared the special forces team out, they were already dead.

Rellano returned as well. His chainsword's serrated edges were stained with green, foul blood and the dark, hardened crust of dried bodily fluids from the attack on Sgugh. His squad had also suffered losses. Sacrifice was the essence of Warhammer.

The two squads reorganized within the defensive perimeter of the node ruins. Munitions moved among the rubble, replenishing magazines and grenades for everyone. No one chatted. A profound silence fell.

Just as the defensive perimeter stabilized, the sentry on the east side shouted into the channel.

Two hundred meters east of the node ruins, the exit of a ventilation shaft was blasted open from the inside. Debris flew everywhere, and smoke billowed. The first to rush out of the exit were seventy-eight orcs who had attacked the Skull. They were larger than military dogs, six-legged, with rough scales covering their backs, and two rows of inward-curving sharp teeth when their jaws opened. They were silent, with only the soft scraping of their claws against the metal pipe walls. Behind them followed an orc special forces team, wearing patchwork metal armor, the muzzles of their heavy explosive rifles flashing in the smoke.

Their routes were not random. The ventilation shaft exit was directly opposite the designated position of the command post. They emerged from the gaps in the ruins, not scattering, but instead following the direction of the passage straight toward the command post.

The Stormtroopers reacted faster than the Orcs. Heavy bombs fired simultaneously from three directions, the first volley tearing the two leading Skulls to shreds. Green fluid splattered onto the metal floor, hissing and emitting white smoke. The main force of the Orc special forces poured out of the ventilation shaft exits, their heavy bomb gun barrage pounding the Stormtroopers' lines.

Rellano sliced ​​his way into the ruins from the side. His chainsword cleaved through the breastplate of an orc special forces soldier from bottom to top, the blade wedged into the bone. He loosened the hilt, drew his explosive pistol from his waist, and fired two shots at another orc's mask. A third attacking swarmed down from above the ruins; he dodged to the side, grabbed its hind leg with his left hand, and slammed it onto a pile of metal shards beside him. The corrosion-resistant coating of its adamantite armor blocked the splashing acid.

Kara blocked their retreat from the other side. A burst of bullets from the bomb gun knocked down an orc special forces soldier who was trying to flank, and a second shot from the plasma pistol charred another soldier who was attacking Sguger's head.

Less than a minute. From the first alarm to the last scream.

Cohen stood still, without moving.

Stormtroopers cleared the battlefield amidst the ruins. Some used bayonets to pry open the skull of the man who attacked Sguger, confirming his death; others crouched beside the still-breathing orc special forces soldier and fired a final shot. The movements were swift and silent.

Rellano emerged from the shadows of the ruins, his chainsaw sword now reattached to his waist. He stopped before Cohen, his gaze sweeping over the orc corpses scattered on the ground.

"Grom's."

Cohen nodded, offering no comment on the assassination attempt. "Rellano, the more than ten thousand men who disembarked from the capital ship are now under your command."

"it is good."

Relano turned to organize and coordinate. With urban warfare imminent in the hive, these men were crucial.

This was no gamble. The ventilation shaft exit faced the command post's designated position, and the attack window was positioned in the gap where the defensive perimeter had just been established and the main force had not yet fully deployed. The orc war chief hadn't fled far from the Imperial Titan's barrage; it was hiding deep within the ruins, organizing a counterattack. It was probing, searching for cracks in the defensive line, waiting for an opportunity to wipe the Imperial commander off the chain of command.

Cohen turned and walked deeper into the ruins. The Storm Commando regrouped behind him, heavy explosive rounds were fitted with new belts, and the plasma pistols' charging packs were replaced. No one looked back at the orc corpses.

Sister Valeria stood on the second floor of a partially collapsed industrial building. Eleven battle nuns scattered among the ruins behind her. Her gaze fell upon the greyish-white figures. The Storm Assault Team deployed its defensive line at the edge of the Emperor-class shadow, using bomb guns and plasma pistols to wipe out the Orc anti-armor squads. Every firing window, every infiltration route, every shift of fire was precise and ruthless.

A young battle nun peeked out from under the windowsill and followed Valeria's gaze.

"Sister, those soldiers in greyish-white power armor—their firepower, their tactical coordination, their speed of infiltration through the ruins—are they Astartes?"

Valeria did not answer immediately.

“No.” Her voice was steady. “The Astartes are taller and wider than them. Their power armor is a variant of the Mark series, and their gait has been genetically modified to be faster and more violent. These are different. This is technology.”

Cohen Severo armed mortals to the teeth.

The young nun's gaze lingered on the greyish-white figures for a long time. "Their fighting prowess—it's not like that of ordinary people."

""

Valeria turned around, her deep blue eyes looking at the young nun. The old scars on her face stood out starkly in the dust, and a calm that had settled from two centuries of warfare overwhelmed all other emotions.

"The Emperor's mortal warriors, when necessary, can be sharper than angels. Remember what you see today. Because on future battlefields, you may fight alongside these greyish-white power armors."

The young nun did not ask any further questions.

On the tracks, the bridge of the Hammer of the Divine Craftsmen.

Von Hoffmann stood before the holographic projection platform. Tactical data showed that the Combined Fleet was maneuvering from near-Earth orbit into deep space, its hulls bearing bullet holes and molten armor scars, the thrusters burning steadily in the exhaust.

A holographic image of Admiral Parol appeared in the communications window.

"The Garros Legion has exceeded my expectations. Infonus's Void Shield is back online, and they established a foothold less than a day after landing, continuously pressuring the upper echelons of the hive under the firepower of the Imperial Titans. This is the first front to make progress in the Amegiddon theater in weeks." He paused, then continued, "This was originally an extremely dangerous landing operation; the window of opportunity was too small. If the fleet couldn't hold out, they would be exposed to the Orcish orbital attacks, and then it would all be over."

Von Hoffmann's gaze fell on the slowly moving blue arrows. The Garros Legion's advance line drew a clear dividing line through the ruins of Invernus's middle layer. To the left lay the scorched earth controlled by the Empire, and to the right, the industrial zone inhabited by orcs. That line was visibly shifting to the right.

"Cohen Severus has armed mortals to the teeth. His soldiers in grey-white power armor are as capable and disciplined as any elite Astragalus force. Titan Legion, armored units, air force—all are well-equipped. I don't know where he got all this stuff, but I do know one thing: Invernus is now in the hands of the Imperium."

In Parol's holographic image, the corner of his mouth twitched.

"The Empire has never known how much the Lucis Forged World has hidden. But that's not my concern. The Combined Fleet needs time to repair itself. My ships have held out for three months; if we continue fighting, they'll fall apart."

Von Hoffmann pressed the communication button. "First Task Force, maneuver towards the San Joaquin Shipyard wreck. Prioritize resupply for damaged ships. Standby ships maintain alert. Garros Fleet withdraws from orbit and refits in sync with the Combined Fleet. The Fireseed was a great help."

Parol nodded. The "Will of Victory" will withdraw with the Combined Fleet. The Armageddon Fleet thanks you for your support. Tell Sage Cohen Severus that he needs to stabilize the situation quickly and then organize the defenses; orc reinforcements will arrive soon. He must be faster than the orcs; he cannot stop.

Holographic image cut off.

Von Hoffmann turned to look at the grayish-yellow planet outside the porthole. The beams of the Imperial Titan's volcanic cannons were still flashing.

The Legion of Garros—the border force he had escorted from Lucis all the way to Amegiddon, commanded by a fifth-order sage—had gained a foothold on the scorched earth of Invernus.

The scorched earth of Invernus trembled beneath the Emperor's massive foot. The Garros Legion solidified its lines under the cover of the Void Shield. The combined fleet withdrew from orbit, maneuvering into deep space to prepare for a second objective. Their hulls bore bullet holes and molten armor scars, but their exhaust still burned in the darkness.

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