The guns of the tanks and super-heavy tanks at the rear began to roar. Several rapid volleys of fire produced explosions and clouds of dust that completely swallowed the thing's silhouette.
Apart from the sound of dirt and rubble falling and the sizzle of scorched earth, there was no movement at all in the area covered by the barrage.
No furious roars, no wounded wails, no sound of flesh bursting and blood spraying—nothing. The silence was terrifying.
Vaguely, the soldiers seemed to see that figure approaching them again through the smoke and dust. The armored units unleashed several more volleys, firing every bolter round and shell they carried. Even their battle-worn barrels began to glow faintly red, while the tank machine spirits buzzed with growing impatience.
Had that thing... stopped?
Everyone thought the same thing, and then they saw the result after the armored units had emptied another round of ammunition.
That guy stumbled out of the smoke, batting at the clouds of mist wrapped around his head. He still did not seem badly injured, but instead of slowly approaching as before, he had broken into a jog.
"He's coming! Fix bayonets!"
The soldiers on the position climbed out of their trenches and charged the intruder with rifles fitted with monomolecular bayonets.
Could bayonets stop this thing? They did not know, but they did not care.
The bayonets stabbed in unison into the intruder's abdomen and skull, yet those sharp monomolecular weapons, capable of piercing ceramite armor, failed to show their worth.
They twisted one after another like tree roots, and their sharp blades shattered as easily as glass.
The soldiers' assault failed to halt his advance. They tried to use their bodies to hold back the damned thing before them, exhausting every method and measure in an attempt to