Warhammer: Striving to Be a Grinding Man

Chapter 165 The Cross-Section of the Spirit Bone (Part 2)

Marcus's fingers danced on the tactical console. Command pulses were pushed to the corresponding frequency band. The crimson markings of the 16th Regiment receded from the entrance of the boarding passage, the blue markings of the Stormtroopers yielded to the forefront, and the gray markings of the Starfortress Marines filled in, unfolding into two horizontal lines at the penultimate intersection.

Three minutes later, the White Scar battle barge arrived at the battlefield.

Its silhouette was longer than the standard Imperial Navy model, and the layout of its propeller nozzles had been significantly modified. The battle barge did not slow down, cutting into the blind spot to the side and rear of the Torture-class cruiser along a near-vertical arc.

The White Scar's passageway entrance was located to the side and forward of the Stormstrike Force's propulsion axis—the two propulsion axes would converge at the intersection, sandwiching the remaining Dark Eldar defenses in the middle. The enemy ship's broadside turrets only began to turn in the final stage of the battle barge's cut-in, but the White Scar's speed was too high, and the turning angle could not keep up with the cut-in curve, leaving the turret rotation speed behind the arc.

When the docking ring struck the Dark Eldar ship's side armor, the shockwave left a brief flash of brightness on the sensor screens. Five seconds passed from contact to lock-on. The signal at the entrance to the White Scar Tunnel lit up in the communication channel.

The teleportation was complete, and the Terminator armored figure landed on the floor of the Dark Eldar ship. The metal sank less than a millimeter beneath the adamantite boots, and the cable supports on the wall emitted a brief tremor.

The foremost Hades-type vessel didn't pause; its lightning claws sprang from standby mode the instant it entered the passage, pointing towards a corner deep within. The grassland crescent insignia gleamed with a dark silver sheen on its shoulder armor, and within the tactical display of its visor, the structural outline of the enemy ship's passage unfolded segment by segment, with ranging data from the Khan's perception field simultaneously covering every corner ahead.

The passageway was only wide enough for two Terminators to stand side by side, and the height of the ceiling forced them to lower their heads slightly, but the range of motion of the Hades-type joints was not restricted, and each step maintained a rhythm of advancement.

Twelve Hades-type Terminator armored vehicles led the charge, their adamantine shells gleaming with a dark silver-gray hue. The assault squad, equipped with Lightning Claws, handled close-quarters breaching; the fire support squad, armed with Reaper automatic cannons, provided suppression and cover from the rear. The assault company followed closely behind, their members wearing modified MKIV power armor, reinforced with lightweight ceramic plates. The ranks were tightly spaced, with no unnecessary gaps.

The first firing positions opened fire the instant the Terminator armor entered firing range. A ghostly blue energy beam shot simultaneously from all three firing ports, exploding on the chest and shoulder armor of the leading Hades-type armor, dark blue arcs of electricity spreading along the adamantine surface towards the armor's seams. The terracotta shell was left with charred burn marks, but the armor did not stop firing.

The assault team's lightning claws cleaved into the edge of the firing port armor plate at a distance of less than five meters. The energy field exploded into a white flash the moment it hit the metal, and the claw blades cut into the armor plate seam, tearing the first layer of the firing port's protective structure off the base.

The barrage of bullets fired from the Reaper autocannons of the rear fire squad, advancing along the inside of the corner, twisting and deforming the exposed structural skeleton under the impact of the explosives, and sending metal fragments flying through the passage.

The second Hades-type assault ship—a member of the fire support team—squeezed sideways through the torn gap in the bulkhead, while the Reaper autocannon fired a follow-up shot from the same spot. Four explosive shells hit the remaining bulkhead in less than a second, shattering and peeling off the armor plates to expose the structural skeleton behind. The third Hades-type assault ship then pierced through an arc-shaped cut in the side wall, its thermoelectric cutter precisely slicing along the path of the armor plate.

As it sidestepped through the slit, the Dark Eldar archers opened fire from the other side of the passage, energy beams exploding at the edge of its shoulder armor, chipping away a small piece of terracotta. The Lightning Claws had already deployed before landing, their blades cutting into the cable channels, clearing the cover around the corner along with the archers behind it from the passage.

The assault company surged into the passage following the advance route of the Terminator armor, quickly deploying into skirmish lines along the cleared path to fill the flank gaps left by the Terminator armor's advance.

The second layer of firing positions was cleared much faster than the first. The Hades-type Terminators entered the second layer's convergence point simultaneously from three directions, the Reaper autocannons and Lightning Claws creating a crossfire throughout the passage, clearing all three firing positions segment by segment in less than two thousand seconds. Shooters fell from the cable trays, fragments of their armor scattering across the passage floor. A broken energy conduit hung from the ceiling, coolant still seeping from its opening, trickling down the metal floor.

In the brief lull after the two firing positions were cleared, a short, encrypted pulse from White Scar's side came through the communication channel, containing only one identification code. The assault squad's Lightning Claws and the fire support squad's Reaper autocannons formed a balance of speed and firepower, and their current position proved it.

The third firing position differs from the first two. Armor plate fragments are stacked to form cover, cable channels crisscross, and shooters move between adjacent maintenance passages via hidden doors, disappearing from one firing position and reappearing from another. The Dark Eldar have fewer shooters on the third level than on the first two—but they compensate for their numerical disadvantage with high-speed movement between cover using the hidden door system.

As the Terminator armor advanced to the middle section of the third layer intersection, it encountered continuous resistance. A ghostly blue energy beam shot from multiple directions simultaneously, leaving dense scorch marks on the armor's surface, but none penetrated. After the assault company dispersed, a portion advanced along the flank maintenance tunnels, attempting to flank the enemy from behind cover.

While the Terminator armor provided frontal pressure, the Storm Commando advanced from the flank maintenance tunnels. They were no longer the vanguard, but maintained a presence along the advance axis—one explosive rifle blocking the exit gates—gradually compressing the shooters' movement range and pinning down those shadowy figures attempting to disappear from their firing positions with short bursts. Shooters exited one gate and reappeared through another, energy beams firing from new directions, and the Storm Commando's firing arc adjusted accordingly, always keeping the gate system's switching windows blocked.

The White Scar Warrior flew over the firing positions from above. The exhaust plumes of its thrusters left a short white trail on the corridor ceiling, landing precisely in the blind spot where the two firing arcs intersected. The bomb guns fired before landing, hitting the firing windows behind cover in quick succession, taking down the exposed shooters. The Terminator armor advanced from the front, using the gaps in fire created by the White Scar Warrior to penetrate behind the group of bunkers. An hour later, the movement paths of the shooters in the third firing position between the bunkers were completely cut off, and the remaining firing windows fell silent one by one.

The Dark Eldar's cunning did not disappear with the elimination of the firing positions.

A thin, almost invisible layer of liquid seeped from the cracks in the tunnel floor. Seconds after the first Hades-type Terminator stepped over it, the coating began to react—not with an explosion, but with a contact corrosive agent, a chemical agent targeting the seals of armored joints. It formed bubbles at the armor joints and seeped into the edges of the seal.

The airtightness reading at the edge of the sealing layer briefly shifted. Although the armor was not penetrated, the Terminator's sealing system responded half a beat slower than normal during subsequent advances. The Tech Priest flagged the anomaly in the background.

At the same time, the Storm Strike Team's reconnaissance team discovered the anomaly in the coating beneath their feet and informed the technical priests at the rear via the communication link about the composition and characteristics of the corrosive agent. They had more experience advancing through these types of tunnels than White Scar and were faster at identifying ground anomalies.

A Nightmare Warrior's corpse, lying on the edge of the passageway wall, suddenly sprang to life as the Storm Assault Team passed by. The Storm Assault Team's vanguard had already passed the corpse's location, and the rear echelon was following closely behind; the corpse was in the blind spot to the side and front of the rear echelon.

The pale blue arc of the cutter sliced ​​through the seam of a Stormstrike Force member's neck armor at close range—the sound of the blade cutting into the terracotta plate was sharp and piercing, and metal fragments flew from the seam. The member was thrown half a step by the impact, blood seeping from the gap in his neck armor and dripping onto the corridor floor. The Stormstrike Force's flank sentry team had already raised their guns in unison the instant the body moved—

Their experience advancing through narrow passages allowed the flank reconnaissance team to quickly identify the unusual angle of the body, but the body was too close to the rear echelon, and their firing line was blocked by their teammates' bodies for half a second.

Three explosive shells simultaneously pierced the armored torso from different directions, the arc of light from the cutter extinguishing as it fell. The people behind did not slow down, stepping directly over the debris and continuing forward, their boots crushing the still-smoking fragments of armor.

In the brief regrouping of the Storm Assault Team, a hidden door disguised as part of the structural wall silently slid open from the side of the passage, and a five-man Nightmare Warrior squad poured out. A pale blue arc of light from a cutter sliced ​​through the Storm Assault Team's flank at close range, slicing open the shoulder armor of one of the members at the seam. Fragments of dark gold, finely crafted armor flew through the dim light. The impact slammed the member against the passage wall; the servo motor on the left arm of his power armor was damaged in the cut, exposing the shoulder armor seam.

The flank sentry had already aimed the moment the hidden door slid open, but their firing line was blocked for half a second by a teammate's body. Half a second later, the firing line opened, and three explosive rounds simultaneously entered the hidden door exit. Two Nightmare Warriors were torn apart by the barrage at the exit, while the remaining three retreated back to the maintenance corridor. The teammate with damaged shoulder armor was dragged to the rear, where the technical priest was conducting emergency sealing operations.

Minutes later, a short explosion came from deep within the maintenance tunnel. One-Star Fortress soldiers followed up from the flank, using the barrage from the heavy explosive turret to block the hidden exit, blasting open the tunnel wall and revealing the narrow maintenance tunnel behind, cutting off the retreat route.

At the end of the passage, a blue-white energy halo flickered behind a half-open hatch. A portable network generator was activating, and the outline of the energy field's edge was stabilizing. The Dark Eldar were attempting to establish an escape route to Gamor before the defenses collapsed.

The Terminator armor paused briefly at the intersection of the passages, and within ten seconds, the Lightning Claw and the Reaper Auto Cannon simultaneously unleashed their power, the claw blades cutting into the generator base, and the explosive bomb piercing through the core constraint cavity.

The energy halo expanded violently the moment it was hit, and the generator core, out of control, released a short shockwave that pushed and deformed the nearby wall armor plates outward. The frame detached from its base and crashed to the ground, its surface still bearing the residual heat of dissipating energy.

At the junction of the passage where the Stormtroopers and White Scars met, the Dark Eldar's pre-positioned firing point had lost its last marksman. The two axes of advance converged into a straight line at the passage's intersection.

The Storm Commando team completed the flank attack, with three groups of people simultaneously cutting out from three different maintenance passages, and gradually sealing off the remaining secret exits from behind the bunker.

The bridge of the Torture-class cruiser was captured at the seventy-third minute. This was calculated from the moment the Stormtroopers first boarded the ship.

Kara's voice came through the communication channel again: "Bridge captured. Clearance complete."

There was a brief silence on the communication channel, followed by the voice of the Tech Priest: "The core module is being disassembled. The interfaces are incompatible; the Eldar communication protocol is completely different from the Imperial standard. The disassembled module will be taken back to Garros for long-term reverse engineering."

"Shut down the ship itself," another technical priest's voice came in. "The main propulsion system has been cut off. Backup power is offline. Weapon system power supply has been physically isolated. Life support circulation is being cut off. Ventilation system is offline. All airtight doors are locked. The bridge is locked."

Cohen pressed the communication button: "Evacuate everyone."

The White Scar Terminator armored vehicles withdrew first, followed by the twelve Hades-type vehicles in succession through the passageway. The Storm Assault Team followed closely behind, with Starfortress armored vehicles bringing up the rear. The Technical Priest paused briefly before the final airtight door to confirm that all evacuation signals from each passageway were in place, before activating the pre-programmed chemical infusion procedure in the bridge area.

Dark gray mist slowly unfolded in the weightless conditions, spreading along the bridge floor and gradually seeping into the gaps in the ventilation ducts and cable trays. The psionic traces remaining on the control consoles, the incomplete data links, and any traces that could potentially be reverse-analyzed were being covered layer by layer.

The docking ring between the boarding ramp and the Black Pearl disengaged. The propulsion systems ignited, and the remaining section of the ramp was pushed away from the broadside of the Torture-class cruiser. The Black Pearl began to retreat, its hull turning.

The battle barge "Chagatai's Pride" had already detached. All twelve Hades-type Terminator armored vehicles had been recovered, and the assault company was lined up in the hangar. Two White Scar frigates maintained a watchful formation in the distance. Tugboats were approaching the wreckage of the Torture-class cruiser, their tractor beams locking onto the wreckage in the darkness.

As Cohen walked through the hangar, wounded Stormtroopers were being transported to the medical bay, with stretcher-bearers passing by the side of the passageway.

Garros now has a complete set of rescue measures and a large stockpile of mechanized modification parts. As long as the biological components retain electronic information, they can survive. Under normal circumstances, the military units to which Garros belongs will increasingly lean towards full mechanization.

The workshop's airtight door slid shut behind him. The lighting panels spread out a dark red light in night mode.

In the higher dimensions, the secondary gate blueprint and authentication mark still lie quietly under the category entries in the information repository. Three sets of data are fully archived—the atomic arrangement of the spirit bones, the authentication protocol of the ancient saints, and the psionic waveform captured when the gate opened.

The priority for the Network Path mission has been corrected to: Enter the Network Path, view the distribution map of nodes (main gates) within the Network Path, the corresponding galactic coordinate network, and obtain navigation information. A note has been added next to it: "This is the memory and legacy of the Eldar over countless millennia; obtaining information from the Eldar is extremely difficult."

I reviewed the secondary gate blueprint and confirmed the data was complete. I added a note again: "Network decomposition, network nodes (main gate)."

Decomposition, to be tested, uncertain.

What did White Scar see? An exit from a net tunnel, the emergence of the Dark Eldar fleet from it, and its closure. They didn't know how the door closed. The Storm Prophet could sense the opening and closing of the net tunnels, but not the structure of the door. The Dark Eldar closing the passage when they retreated was the assumed, known answer. Therefore, the secret could be kept; this wasn't distrust, but a necessary rule for survival.

Cohen spent some time in the private workshop, organizing various blueprints and even performing a consciousness switch; Garros was perfectly fine. He then left the workshop and returned to the bridge.

When the communication panel lights up, a holographic image of Kublai Khan appears in the center of the screen.

"Director of Foundry"

Cohen said, "The three Eldar ships were towed to Whitescar Shipyard. The Black Pearl's technical priests were there dismantling the armor and hull, extracting valuable modules, and Garros would later send transport ships to bring the core components back."

The Khan did not respond immediately.

"The outer dock is usually used for maintaining combat barges and is currently available for use."

"The spoils will be disposed of by Garros, and White Scar has no objection."

"Gallos thanks White Scar for the intelligence and support," Cohen said. "Gallos still has a batch of Hades-type Terminators in its inventory, and we will transfer an additional fifty to White Scar. The strength of our allies is what Gallos has been hoping for."

The Khan's eyebrows twitched: "Payment?"

"Of course, White Scar deserves it. Garros's transport ship will arrive in Chogris in two months, and the Terminator will be delivered along with it."

"Gallos has repeatedly proven his technical and combat capabilities." Khan paused for a moment. "White Scar is willing to fight alongside us without any worries."

"White Scar's combat prowess is undeniable. With this group of Terminators assigned to White Scar, the expedition ten years from now will be even more confident," Cohen said.

The Khan did not object: "I will notify the tugboats. Once these Dark Eldar wrecks are towed to the dock, they will be yours."

0

Communication was cut off.

From outside the bridge, the Torture-class cruiser appears largely intact, while two damaged frigate wrecks float in the distance.

They will be towed to the White Scar docks on the outer edge of the galaxy. Chogris's journey is now in its final countdown.

A week later, the assessment team entered the Torture-class cruiser. The wreckage of three Dark Eldar ships had already been towed to berths in the outer dock of Whitescar. Detection drones advanced along the main passage, transmitting multi-band scan data back—there were no active life signals on the entire ship.

Inside the bridge, the previously injected chemicals had dried, leaving a dark gray residue on the control consoles and walls, covering most of the psionic traces and sensitive data interfaces. At the bottom of the evaluation team's terminal screen, a note marked "Priority Evaluation" was highlighted in gray, searching for navigation logs that might contain network paths.

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