Powerful
On Andrews Prime, in Hive City Thirteen, thousands of civilians huddled trembling inside an underground shelter in the upper hive.
Ever since The Emperor's radiance had been brought to Andrews with the arrival of the Expeditionary Fleet, the world had served as a major transit hub for the Imperium and had never once come under attack.
"There's nothing to be afraid of. The security forces must have put down the rebellion already." A man who served the Water Guild as the overseer of a purification reservoir stood on a stack of crates, craning his neck to peer outside through the shelter's only small window above ground level.
A thick layer of dust covered the window. The overseer covered his mouth and nose with his left hand, pinched the sleeve of his right arm tight, and wiped at the glass.
Cough, cough...
He narrowed his eyes and looked out through the drifting dust.
On the ground, mothers holding children and white-haired elders all looked up at him, hoping to hear good news.
The overseer's pupils abruptly widened. He saw security personnel with The Emperor's double-headed eagle insignia on their shoulders, holding Lasguns.
Bzzzt...
The blurred sound of beams ionizing the air rang out. Following the turbulence the beam left in the air, the overseer saw it strike a rebel covered head to toe in fluff with precision.
A blinding flash blew a large hole through the rebel's chest.
"Good shot!" He swung his arm hard.
The overseer's excited cheer made the others in the shelter relax, and smiles appeared on their faces too.
Suddenly, the overseer's waving arm froze, and he staggered and fell down.
A white-haired retiree from the Power Guild helped him up. "What happened?"
"Monster..." The overseer was dazed, still not recovered from the horrific thing he