The Old Dreadnought Arrives

The Word Bearers and the other Orks tacitly stayed out of the fight between Wilson and Gul'dan, battling one another around them.

"Xenos! Feel the power of humanity!"

A legionary roared as he tore an Ork's head off.

"Well done, Brother Rork!"

A massive figure appeared on the battlefield. As it advanced, it crushed more than a dozen Orks.

"Chaplain Endo!"

Several legionaries recognized the newcomer. It was Endo, now entombed in a Dreadnought and piloting a Contemptor Dreadnought into battle.

The Contemptor Dreadnought was a type of Space Marine Dreadnought developed before the Horus Heresy.

Larger and more powerful than a standard Dreadnought, the Contemptor used systems similar to those of the Legio Cybernetica's Battle-automata, including the atomantic shielding technology used in Space Marine Terminators' Storm Shields.

The Contemptor carried a Twin-linked heavy bolter, a Dreadnought close combat weapon with a built-in storm bolter, and a Smoke launcher.

It could also mount a Havoc launcher on its back and was protected by atomantic shielding.

The Contemptor could replace its standard armaments with a range of weapons, including a Reaper autocannon, a Multi-melta, a Twin-linked heavy flamer, a Twin-linked autocannon, a Plasma cannon, a Heavy conversion beamer, or a Twin-linked Laser cannon.

The Eradicator could also replace its built-in twin-linked bolter with a heavy flamer.

The Contemptor could be upgraded with additional armor, a missile launcher, and a Searchlight.

"Follow me, Battle-Brothers! For the Emperor! For the Primarch!"

A deep, steady voice sounded over the comms. It was Chaplain Endo.

His massive Contemptor Dreadnought strode past the squad and took the lead.

Each heavy footfall made the metal floor tremble.

"Battle-Brothers," Endo said through his external speakers, his voice threaded with static, "stay close. I'll clear a path."

The enormous machine kept advancing. Straight ahead, an exceptionally large and well-equipped Ork Warboss spotted the conspicuous target.

With an excited roar, it charged straight at him, swinging a huge Power Klaw.

Heavy, crudely forged iron armor covered its green skin, and a cruel grin spread across its face.

"Stinking humie! That iron coffin won't save ya!"

The Ork Warboss leaped, its Power Klaw shrieking through the air toward the Dreadnought's frontal armor.

Chaplain Endo did not dodge. The Contemptor Dreadnought's massive right claw shot out with speed that belied its size.

The huge mechanical claw went straight for the Ork Warboss's head.

In an instant, its five fingers closed.

"I'll smash ya—" The Ork Warboss's roar cut off.

The mechanical claw clamped around its tusked skull.

Its tips dug into thick green skin and hard bone. The Ork Warboss's massive body hung suspended in midair, its Power Klaw mere centimeters from the Dreadnought's hull, unable to move any closer.

Crack.

Bone broke with a sharp, teeth-grating sound.

Crack, crack, crack...

The fractures came faster, like a walnut slowly crushed in a hydraulic press.

The Dreadnought's arm did not tremble as Chaplain Endo controlled it.

The mechanical claw kept tightening with irresistible force. The Ork Warboss's limbs convulsed, and senseless gurgles escaped its throat.

With one final dull crunch, the ugly green head collapsed and shattered inside the claw.

The claw opened, and the headless corpse dropped to the floor like a sack of garbage.

From the first strike to the end, the whole thing took only seconds.

Almost as Endo crushed the Ork Warboss's head, the Twin-linked autocannon mounted on the Contemptor Dreadnought's left side began to roar.

Long tongues of flame burst from its barrels. Heavy explosive Bolts poured into the Orks surging forward like a torrential downpour.

Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom!

The rapid, lethal shots merged into one continuous roar.

The Autocannon fired at tremendous speed and with devastating force. The first few dozen Ork Boyz never knew what hit them before the large-caliber explosive Bolts struck.

Repeated hits blew their bodies apart into clouds of blood and shredded flesh. Green limbs and fragments of broken weapons flew everywhere.

The sudden barrage brought the Ork assault to a halt.

The Contemptor Dreadnought stood in the middle of the passage like a great reef against a green tide, carving out a killing ground ahead with its mechanical claw and Autocannon.

"Advance," Chaplain Endo said over the comms.

The Dreadnought strode over the Ork Warboss's headless corpse, crushed the green flesh strewn across the floor, and pushed deeper into the Star Fortress.

The Word Bearers Warriors behind him followed in silence. Forming an assault formation around the Dreadnought, they efficiently cleared the remaining resistance on either side.

Elsewhere, the fight between Wilson and Gul'dan reached its climax.

Inside the passage, the air seemed to freeze.

The smell of metal fragments and Smoke mingled with a heavy stench of blood that filled every corner.

The standoff between Captain Wilson and Gul'dan had reached the point where one of them would die.

Now Gul'dan could see his opponent clearly.

It was a human face, but it held none of the fear or panic Gul'dan was used to seeing on "humies."

Only cold anger, hard as tempered steel.

A flying Metal Shard had cut Wilson from forehead to brow. The wound was shallow, but blood kept welling out, running over his cheekbone and staining half his face red.

Drops fell onto his gray shoulder plate, leaving dark marks.

His eyes unsettled Gul'dan most of all.

There was no wild fervor in them, only a cold hatred so focused it seemed ready to dissect Gul'dan where he stood.

Wilson stared at Gul'dan. To him, everything else had ceased to exist, even the distant roar of the Autocannon and the crack of Bolt fire.

All he saw was the Xenos he had to destroy.

"Xenos!"

Wilson's voice was hoarse. It was less a battle cry than a blood-soaked sentence forced from deep in his throat.

"Xenos!"

He took another step forward, his Power Sword pointed steadily at Gul'dan's chest. The energy field around the blade gave off a constant, dangerous hum.

"Xenos!"

The third time was no louder, but the resolve in his voice sent an inexplicable chill through Gul'dan's simple battle-hungry mind.

Gul'dan had seen "humies" flee in terror and heard them scream in frenzy. It had never faced killing intent so quiet, yet so relentless.

This ain't right. This ain't right at all.

"Stinking humie!" Gul'dan roared, trying to drown out its unease.

Wilson's earlier storm of blows had reduced its enormous warhammer to a heap of twisted scrap, now discarded nearby.

Worse, Wilson had caught an opening and severed one of its arms at the elbow with his Power Sword.

Thick green blood still poured from the stump, pooling on the floor in a foul-smelling puddle.

Agony and blood loss slowed Gul'dan's movements, but it dared not relax. It called on every cell in its body and watched the Space Marine with total concentration.

It had only one intact arm left to fight with.

As Wilson closed in again, Gul'dan could only take a hurried step back and raise its remaining arm to guard itself. Its single eye burned with rage and a trace of panic.

Wilson did not attack at once. He was looking for a chance to kill with one blow.

He stood still, his gaze passing over Gul'dan's severed arm before returning to its face, twisted with pain and fury.

The blood on Wilson's face had half dried, making him look like one of the Daemons that had crawled out of the depths of hell.

He adjusted his grip on the sword and lowered its tip slightly, taking an opening stance with no gaps in his defense.

"Come on, Xenos!"

As he spoke, they both moved.

"Die, stinking humie!"

"For the Emperor!"

The fight was decided in nanoseconds. A line of blood appeared across Gul'dan's neck.

Gul'dan turned its head in disbelief, then collapsed onto the floor among the Ork corpses.

(Starting tomorrow, updates will be at 6 p.m.)