The Fall of the Titan Legion

Protected by fully charged Void Shields, the vast majority of high-velocity shells and unstable lightning were blocked. Only the arcing shells mounted on the Gu Juji, with their lower muzzle velocity, passed through the Void Shields and struck the Titan's outer hull.

Warlord Titan

A series of explosions erupted on the other side of the Titan, causing its entire body to tremble slightly. But compared to the damage inflicted by Iron Claw, those arcing shells had merely stripped away some of the Titan's paint.

"Plasma annihilation cannon at one-quarter charge! Target sector 1022231!"

The plasma bolt fired, blazing with dazzling light as it landed amid the battle fortresses. Two heavily armored battle fortresses were vaporized on the spot, while the surrounding ones were scorched by the intense heat of the ion explosion, their armor plates glowing Promethium-red.

Realizing they had been spotted, the battle fortresses swiftly adjusted their positions, moving away from their original flanking route. Instinctively, they split into individual vehicle groups and encircled the Warlord Titan.

"Those beasts are trying to swarm and kill us!"

Having seen through the Orks' plan, the Princeps felt a chill run through him. Titans were undeniably powerful, but their massive size and relatively slow, cumbersome forms required numerous supporting forces for protection. With Skitarii protection, the Titan Legion had been unstoppable. But without the Skitarii, the Titans had become beasts with claws and fangs alone, endlessly bitten by mosquitoes that drank their blood.

The battle fortresses that had evaded the Warlord Titan's frontal fire launched the Iron Claws mounted on their vehicles. Four or five Iron Claws once again deceived the Void Shields and embedded themselves in the armor plating. Explosions he knew all too well came from both sides of the Titan's body, then from behind it. He felt like livestock being slowly skinned and deboned by a butcher.

The damaged Warlord Titan's anguished cries greatly fueled the Orks' excitement. After firing an Iron Claw and reeling it back in, they would immediately change positions. Huge armor plates and burning flames fell from the Warlord Titan's body. Like a grievously wounded man bleeding out, the Warlord Titan could achieve less and less amid its rage and helplessness. What had once been a single plasma blast destroying several battle fortresses had become a shot that could destroy only one.

"Inform the leader of the Machine Legion. The Warlord Titan Steel Valiant will remain loyal to the Omnissiah."

The Princeps' mind was perfectly clear now. He had fully grasped the terror of these battle fortresses equipped with thermal ion breachers. They had effortlessly breached Void Shields that even the Gu Juji's artillery could not penetrate, while they, without Skitarii support, had no means whatsoever to counter them.

The Knight Titans and Warhound Titans had all been destroyed. Loyal pilots had even activated their core reactors' meltdown protocols at the very last moment, sending themselves and the nearby Orks skyward. They went to meet their Gork and Mork, while we would go to meet the sacred Omnissiah.

Feeling the Warlord Titan's wounds, the Princeps silently activated the final protocol and broadcast a notice to all Titan personnel: the core reactor would melt down in ten seconds. After silently waiting ten seconds, the Warlord Titan, battered full of holes by Ork Iron Claws, self-destructed.

First, a visible ring of ionized particles rapidly spread from the Warlord Titan's core. Then several dazzling white lights shone out through cracks and wounds. Finally, an earth-shattering explosion erupted, instantly radiating outward from the Titan and engulfing battle fortresses positioned several kilometers away around it.

The blast wave and shockwave overturned every one of those low-centered, broad-chassis fortresses. The violent roar of the explosion blew apart the heads of Orks who had poked their heads out, while the remaining Orks hiding within the fortresses bled from their mouths and noses under the sonic impact, their brains turned to mush.

The once-mighty Warlord Titan no longer left even a trace of its existence on the battlefield. Only the enormous crater before them, large enough to become a lake, told its story.

"My lord, Steel Valiant activated the final Loyalty protocol. This is the last intelligence they sent us."

Mannheim swiftly reviewed the information transcribed into sacred code and offered a devout prayer for Steel Valiant's Princeps. This battle had no hope of victory. After the complete annihilation of the Skitarii and the "Raven" Knight Order, the situation on the battlefield had rapidly deteriorated. Deprived entirely of their allies' cover, the Titans could not possibly eliminate the greater numbers of tanks and Ork boys armed with rocket launchers. One Warhound Titan after another was swallowed by the Orks, finding Serenity in self-destruction.

One Reaver Titan after another had its Void Shields overloaded by artillery fire and shut down completely in regret. Their severely damaged bodies lost balance and crashed into the ground. Now, even the Warlord Titans that had silently provided fire support behind him had been forced into the desperate end of self-destruction by the Orks' cunning tactics and endless bizarre weapons.

The Imperator Titan—his mount, the core of faith for the entire Iron Skull Legion—had become the last remaining Imperium fighting force on the battlefield. The Gu Juji he had destroyed burned with flames he loathed, yet he had no way to deal with the greater number of Gargants steadily closing in, nor the final two Gu Juji equipped with Waaagh! field shields and Void Shield emitters. He could only pour precious energy and firepower into the Ork battle lines and armored tide, inflicting terrifyingly effective casualties.

After enduring prolonged bombardment, the Imperator Titan's Void Shields were gradually approaching the edge of overload. The plasma annihilation cannon's energy protection valves had also reached their limits. Special operations boys and heavily armored bosses, sent up by the Orks using primitive catapults and extremely unstable teleporters, had infiltrated the higher cathedral fortresses. Explosions and gunfire rang out everywhere. Through his link with the Titan's eyes, Mannheim could even see building wreckage and metal fragments slowly falling past him.

Mannheim knew that the Imperator Titan's destiny was nearly upon it. He, too, would soon return to the Omnissiah's side.

"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey! Heh heh heh! I'z a Big Mek! Loba's still alive!" The Big Mek Loba, who had luckily survived inside the wreckage of a ruined battle fortress, crushed a charred, brittle vehicle door with the power klaw in his hand and crawled out. Before him lay the enormous crater left by the Warlord Titan's self-destruction.

"Lemme see what fancy stuff's left!" After twisting his bionic eye, Loba spotted something that would excite any Ork: the wreckage of the humies' ultra-flashy Blue Death Ray. Rolling and scrambling, he slid down the smooth crater wall and ran toward his prize.

"By Gork! With this thing, I can make something even better, something way more awesome than a Big Grabba!" Looking at the warped plasma cannon before him, now stripped of its power supply and plasma energy limiter, Loba immediately began using his power klaw to dismantle every coil and component he thought useful. The parts were so huge that he first had to wrench them hard with his klaw before kicking them free from the wreckage with his experienced big feet.

"Heh heh heh! I reckon this'll work!"