Colchis.
Thierry Vieira, Chapter Master of the 8th Legion, leaped out of the Drop Pod. The moment his boots touched the scorching sand, they sank until the sand covered his insteps.
He drew his blade and surveyed his surroundings.
Dried gravel and dust drifted on the wind, striking his Terminator armor and bouncing off.
An ocher tiger-like beast the size of a Rhino burst through the sandy veil.
Thierry's intuition suddenly stirred. Rather than following the beast upward, he kept his gaze fixed beneath the sea of sand.
"King Maggot!" he shouted.
An enormous, bloated white body shot skyward, raising a raging storm like an Emperor-class Titan rising to its feet.
Two Siren Assault Claws were flung away, tumbling into the distance.
The top of King Maggot's head split open, revealing thousands of vicious teeth arranged like a blooming flower.
The tiger-like beast shrieked in terror, scrabbling with all four paws in midair before arching its back and springing forward.
Its yellow, slit-pupiled eyes rolled toward the approaching shadow.
The pitch-black shadow swallowed the tiger-like beast. Teeth meshed like gears, spraying blood.
Melta beams rose and struck the pale flesh.
To combat King Maggot, the Saturnine Terminators had specifically adjusted their weapon systems, replacing all their shoulder-mounted weapons with Multi-meltas to damage its enormous fleshy body.
Thierry's gaze sharpened. The Melta beams striking King Maggot's flesh left only a dense scattering of black dots, like insignificant drops of ink splashed across its bloated body.
The enormous white body plunged into the sea of sand, and the ground beneath Thierry and the others shook violently.
King Maggot spread its countless teeth, exposing a deeply furrowed interior as it faced the greatest concentration of Shadows of Order.
Hundreds upon thousands of overlapping mountains of flesh writhed incessantly, drawing air into their currents