Warhammer: Striving to Be a Grinding Man

Chapter 127 Judgment of Ashes (3)

The communications officer reported that the Combined Fleet had completed temporary maintenance and was heading towards the second objective. Von Hoffmann's flagship, scarred and battered, headed towards Haldis. The orbit above Invernus had fallen into the hands of the Greenskins—the near-Earth space was filled with wrecked ships and cruisers pouring out of the warp rifts.

These orc fleets intermittently unleashed air power on Invernus from orbit. Fortunately, the Garros Legion captured the Void Shield node quickly enough, and the shield kept most of the orbital bombardment outside the hive. Currently, the main threats facing the ground forces are only the Pike's aircraft and the occasional special forces orc squads that infiltrate the hive. Besides Hydra tanks, the ground-based anti-aircraft array includes several positions modified by the orcs—the Imperial Army is reinstalling them. The entire industrial infrastructure of Middle-Hive is operational, with workers working day and night, and the Garros Legion's advance is becoming increasingly steady.

With everything proceeding smoothly, the Galos fleet's communications were connected to the command channel.

A holographic image of Vera Nazari appeared before Cohen. Her ponytail was tied tighter than usual, there were unwashed oil stains on the collar of her uniform, and a small piece of duct tape was stuck to her left eyebrow. The background was the bridge of the USS Aletheia; the alarm lights were off, but makeshift cables could still be seen on the control panel.

"Cohen. Fleet maintenance complete. Two destroyers are gone." She tilted her head, her lips twitching slightly as if she were chewing on the number. "The logistics ship salvaged some personnel; the list is here. This is the heaviest casualty haul since the Garros Fleet was formed."

She paused for a moment, her fingers tapping unconsciously twice on the control panel, then looked up at the camera, her tone softening slightly: "After the fleet's rest, it will still be part of the Combined Fleet, under the unified command of von Hoffmann." She raised her hand and waved casually in the direction of the camera, as if dispelling something heavy. "You should also be careful. Contact me if anything happens."

Image cut-off.

Cohen stood before the sand table. The blue markers in the middle layer of Invernus had merged into one. All twelve Void Shield nodes were lit up, and the regional network had been integrated into the massive network of the Imperial hive capital. The upper hive's spires were still a dark red, heavily fortified by orcs on the sensors, and the sparks from the welders of the Techies burned day and night in the shadows of those steel towers. Although these upper hive regions had been subjected to orbital strikes by the Combined Fleet during the Garros Legion's landing, their military strength remained formidable.

The entire nest is pyramidal in shape, with the upper nest being much smaller than the middle nest. The distinction between the upper and middle nests is merely an administrative division; in reality, it consists of far more than two densely interwoven floors, with passageways as intricate as a spider web, crisscrossing pipes, and massive viaducts traversing the suspended gaps. This is precisely why orbital strikes can directly hit the middle nest.

The massive cargo elevators leading to Upper Nest were mostly located in the heart of Middle Nest, and are now all in Imperial hands. The gates to Upper Nest are within easy reach. Grom's command post is located there, along with that foolish and greedy Invernus Nest Governor von Kirska.

In reality, the upper echelon is no longer a threat to the Garros Legion and its affiliated Invernus Allied Forces. The Garros Legion has already established itself in the steel jungle below.

Cole stood opposite the sand table, his finger pressing on a newly marked red arc that stretched out from the wasteland surrounding Invernus, encircling half of the entire hive city.

Reconnaissance data from the Imperial Navy's Armageddon fleet: The sieges of multiple hives are slowing—the orcs around Haldis are beginning to retreat, and the greenskins of Tempestora have ceased their advance. However, pressure is rapidly increasing in the Acheron direction—an orc is launching a frenzied assault on the hive, attempting to open a passage to Infelnus. Orbital reconnaissance indicates this is not a scattered mob, but rather a concentrated force of multiple clans, all converging on the Acheron-Infelnus axis. Grom is trapped in the upper hive of Infelnus, and he is using the WAAAGH! signal to summon orcs from across the war zone for reinforcements. The first wave of reinforcements should arrive within a month at most.

No one spoke in front of the sand table.

Cohen put down the data panel and then said to Cole, "I suggest that the Combined Fleet change its established deployment and send all of its Astral Forces and strategic reserves toward Acheron."

"Okay, I'll send the emergency communication right away." Cole didn't hesitate. The nature of warfare is changing, and adjusting deployments accordingly is the right thing to do.

The middle hive is now completely under control. The bottom hive remains a blind spot—there's no need for Void Shields there; the natural layers of steel and concrete vaults shield the survivors from the shockwaves of orbital bombardment. The clearing of the bottom hive is temporarily on hold—the main force of the Garros Legion must prioritize advancing towards the upper hive and the spires.

The Elevator Hub is the lifeline of Invernus's path to the Upper Nest. Six massive freight elevators are embedded in the dome of the middle level of the hive, each capable of lifting battalions of troops and rows of armored vehicles from the middle level to the uppermost area of ​​the Upper Nest. After the Orks took control, the Tech-Dominators dismantled and modified the control system, welding on crude reinforcements, and deployed a large number of elite guards withdrawn from the front lines around the hub, equipped with heavy bomb guns, power claws, and molten weapons looted from the Imperial armory.

The Stormtroopers assembled in Cathedral Square. Kara's 1,200 Stormtroopers stood in formation, and some of those who had been out on missions had returned.

Kara stood at the front of the line, her helmet tucked under her arm. Cohen walked up to her.

"Storm Assault Team's mission: Upwards to the hub, capture the control room and hold it until the elevator platform is activated. These tech priests will go up with you; they will repair the elevator platform control hub. Once follow-up forces arrive, you must immediately seize the nearest Upper Nest Void Shield node."

Kara glanced at the figures in crimson robes. The accompanying servants carried sealed crates filled with tools and spare parts, and several armed servants and mechs provided protection. The leader met her gaze, expressionless, his left arm a metal prosthetic, the probes at the tips of his fingers emitting a faint blue light in standby mode. It seemed they didn't need protection—they needed time.

Kara put on her helmet. The mask closed. On the HUDs of 1,200 people, navigation lines lit up simultaneously, extending from the maintenance well entrance at the edge of the plaza into the depths of the hive city.

The queue begins to move.

The man leading the way walked at the front. His name was Mick, a retired engineer from the Invernus Steel Corps, in his fifties. Half of his right ear had been blown off, and his left leg had been replaced with a mechanical prosthesis. He had spent decades maintaining the Invernus mid-level utility tunnel system; the route of every pipe, the model of every valve, and the location of every maintenance well were etched into his mind.

The hatch to the maintenance shaft had been pried open. Inside was a vertical passageway with ladders embedded in the walls. Mick went in first, followed by Kara. Three technical priests stood silently in the middle of the group, several nimble servitors with sealed cases strapped to their backs, the metal cases clattering against the walls as they climbed the ladders. On the HUD, the teammates' positions were marked by a chain of light extending upwards in the darkness.

The team climbed upwards. A dense network of intersecting metal walkways connected to this maintenance passage, and occasionally strange noises could be heard—perhaps from survivors, or perhaps from something else entirely.

The industrial district of Invernus receded further and further into the distance. The markings on the passageway walls changed from the Steel Legion's numbers to inscriptions by the city-building engineers of the Great Crusade. The beams of the emergency lights grew thinner, and some sections were completely dark, with only the searchlights of the power armor helmets cutting through several meters of darkness.

Mick stopped at a fork in the road. He shone his flashlight on a row of numbers covered in grease on the wall. His fingers traced one line of inscription, pausing for a moment.

"My grandfather repaired this door," he said. His voice was low, as if he were talking to himself.

Then he continued climbing.

Kara followed silently behind.

"There are more than ten floors above here. The maintenance workshop on the lower level of the elevator hub is up there."

The team continued upwards.

Mick stopped when the walls of the maintenance tunnel began to display city-building inscriptions from the Great Expedition era. He pointed ahead to a half-open terracotta armored door.

"Behind the door is the lower maintenance room of the elevator hub. The control mechanism is on the top floor. There are three routes: the main passage was guarded before the Green Guards arrived, but it should be occupied by them now; the maintenance staircase is blocked; the cargo elevator shaft is still usable—an engineer's secret route leads to the control room on the top floor, with the exit on the side."

Kara peeked an optical probe out from under the door. The repair shop was empty; there were no orcs, only collapsed shelves and scattered parts.

Kara assigned tasks in the team chat. She led the first team through the cargo elevator shaft, straight to the top-floor control room. The second team stayed to guard the machine room—this was their escape route, and the technical priest also needed to stay here to repair the main control system. The third team spread out to guard the outer passage of the machine room, preventing the orcs from sneaking in from elsewhere.

The technical priests split into two groups. The leader, along with an assistant and Kara, went up to the control room to restore the systems; the remaining one stayed in the repair shop to fix the master thinker.

"Let's move." Kara pushed open the door and walked into the machine repair shop first.

The technician priest below crouched in front of the server rack, his soldering torch glowing as cables were stripped and reconnected. The second team set up a defensive line at the entrance to the repair shop, their guns pointed towards the stairs. Mick crouched behind cover, clutching his laser pistol, his eyes fixed on the stairwell.

The only sounds in the passage were the hissing of welding torches and the occasional footsteps of orc patrols coming from the distant pipe gallery.

"System online." The tech priest's voice came through the communication channel. "Imperial interface restored. Control room will respond."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a roar erupted from above the stairs, indicating that the expert had discovered it. Heavy footsteps descended from the stairs, causing the entire iron staircase to tremble.

"Hold on!" the second team captain roared.

The first orc peeked out from around the corner, only to be hit in the face by three explosive rounds simultaneously. Its corpse tumbled down the stairs, knocking over the second one behind it. The third and fourth, stepping on their companions, charged down the stairs, only to be blocked halfway by crossfire. The bullets from the rapid-fire rifles ricocheted wildly in the darkness, unable to penetrate the Stormtroopers' lines.

Tech-Master appeared in the middle of the group. Its welder's mask reflected the light, and the hydraulic hoses of its power claw hissed. Just as it raised its left arm, the pyrotechnician on its side pulled the trigger. A jet of heat struck Tech-Master's torso, melting its body off at the waist, and its upper half tumbled down the stairs.

The remaining orcs were quickly cleared out. The stairs were piled high with corpses.

"The machine repair shop is safe," the second team leader reported.

The cargo elevator shaft was located at the deepest part of the machine shop, blocked by a row of overturned shelves. Mick turned the lock.

The shaft was narrow, just enough for one person to stand in. The lifting platform was stopped at the bottom, all the lights on the control panel were off, the panel had been roughly disassembled, exposed wires, and solder slag solidified on the joints.

The lead technician, a priest, pushed his way to the front. He reached directly into the thicket of cables, the probe at the tip of his finger beginning to test each wire one by one. His metal fingers moved precisely in the darkness, without any unnecessary movements.

"The main controller isn't broken. TechMaster only changed the peripheral wiring. Forty minutes."

"Begin," Kara said.

She left two people to protect the technical priest, while she led the rest of the first team up the elevator shaft and waited near the exit leading to the control room. The ladders on the shaft walls were rusty, but sturdy enough.

After receiving confirmation that the system was online, Kara kicked open the iron gate at the exit.

The control room was much smaller than the repair shop. The control panel occupied an entire wall, covered by armor plates welded on by the tech expert. Three elite orcs stood guard at the door, while the tech expert crouched behind the control panel, fiddling with the tangled mess of cables.

Kara raised her gun and fired. The first shot hit the orc in the face, followed by the second and third. The three elite orcs fell within the first two seconds, the explosives exploding in their faces, green blood splattering onto the control panel.

Tech-Master leaped from behind the control panel, his power claws slashing towards Kara's chest. She dodged to the side, the claws grazing her shoulder armor—

The adamantine armor blocked it, leaving three shallow scratches. She pressed the explosive gun against Techie's stomach and fired two shots. Techie collapsed to his knees, blood gushing from between the armor plates.

"Control room taken. Technician, come up here."

Two technical priests climbed up the elevator shaft. The one in the lead squatted in front of the control panel, prying open the soldered armor plates to reveal the circuit boards covered in molten slag underneath. The other priest took spare chips and cables from a sealed box. Both men's hands were steady, precise, and without a single wasted effort.

"Main bus — solder joint removal — signal line — matching — brake interface — disconnect."

The indicator light on the console switched from red to green. The standard, stable, unwavering green of the Empire.

"Control system is online. Elevator is operational."

Kara sent Cohen a confirmation message. Cohen replied with only two words: "Hold on."

The six elevators began to move. The dull, steady sound of metal gears meshing traveled up through several decks.

Grom knew the elevator hub was lost. He poured all the reserves he had into the tunnel.

The first wave of orcs charged out from around the corner of the passageway outside the control room. Kara pulled the trigger, firing short bursts of her bomb gun, piercing the face of the first one. Behind her, the Stormtroopers' fire line formed a moving wall in the narrow passage. A barrage of heavy bombs tore through the darkness, shredding swathes of greenskin into pieces.

Wave after wave of orcs surged forward. The corpses in front were barely cold before those behind trampled over the remains of their own kind. Some were changing magazines, others were dragging the wounded behind the control panel. The markers on the HUD were layered upon each other; not a single person retreated.

The technical priests didn't leave. They squatted beside the control panel, still clutching cables in their hands, their prosthetic limbs constantly monitoring the status of the elevator control system.

Deep within the tunnel, new footsteps approached. Not a scattered charge, but a coordinated, roaring commotion that shook the entire tunnel. Dust cascaded down from the gaps in the overhead pipes, and the beams of emergency lights flickered and trembled.

Then she heard a sound behind her.

The metal impact of the landing platform. All six platforms arrived simultaneously. The hatches opened.

The first batch of knight mechs emerged from the platform. Ranger-style searchlights sliced ​​through the darkness, and the heat dissipation grilles of the molten cannons glowed a dark red. They bypassed the Stormtrooper defenses at the control room entrance and plunged into the orc horde deep within the tunnel. The molten cannons exploded at close range, their orange beams wiping out swathes of green hide from the tunnel.

Following closely behind was Rellano's battle group. Grayish-white CMC-300 power armors poured out from the elevator platform, spreading out in skirmish lines on either side of the knight mechs. Boltshots precisely picked off any orcs that slipped through the ranks in the corridor.

In the rear of the battle group, several figures in grey and white moved silently—a combat squad of nuns personally led by Sister Valeria. Their helmet visors were closed, and the rose emblem on their breastplates flashed briefly in the searchlight's reflection. No one heard them on the communication channel. They simply walked silently in the shadows of the formation, chainsaws at their waists, explosive pistols in their hands. Valeria's gaze pierced through the smoke, landing on the faint glow of the upper lights at the end of the passage—there lay her true objective.

Rellano was at the front. He didn't look at Kara, or anyone else. His chainsaw sword was already activated, pointing deep into the passage.

"Come on."

The battle group surged past his flanks. The defensive line advanced hundreds of meters in seconds. The pressure at the control room door eased abruptly.

The wounded were hauled onto the elevator platform. The Tech Priest continued to follow as the equipment needed to restore the Upper Nest Void Shield node was being transported into the Upper Nest via the elevator platform.

Kara stood up. She ejected the empty magazine, inserted a new one, and reset the bolt.

"Assault team, all in, follow. Secure the line, expand the controlled area. Take control of the Void Shield node."

Over a thousand people regrouped in the tunnel, advancing in a staggered pattern with the Rellano battle group. Speed ​​and precision were crucial; they needed to strike before the orbital strikes could land.

Six elevators continued to operate. The clanging of metal gears echoed through the steel skeleton of the hive. The first batch of knight mechs had already torn a gap deep in the passage, and Rellano's battle group was widening the gap into a breach, through which the Storm Assault Team poured in.

The Zhongchao Industrial Zone is struggling to recover. Factories are restarting one by one, workers are being brought back from hiding, and while the production of ammunition and spare parts is far from being consumed, at least the supply is not interrupted. Cohen shuttles between the medical station and the warehouse—the seriously wounded are stabilized as he passes by, and high-end supplies are quietly replenished as he inspects the area. The Allied Forces (armed militia and remnants of the Steel Legion) have almost emptied the Zhongchao Armory, but Garros's cargo containers continue to be pulled from the reserves.

Quartermaster Maggie sat atop an ammunition box, numbly signing the receipts. The supplies arriving each day were increasing, but she knew that a significant portion of them didn't originate from the Zhongchao factory.

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