Although the SRD defense robots had suffered severe data loss, some of their Data Links were still operational.
That was how Iax had been able to access their current data status.
Dozens of combat signals were exchanging data rapidly deeper within the ruins.
Although Iax could not access the data itself, he could use those signals to determine the positions of the other mechanical guard units.
Massed mechanical forces swiftly advanced deeper into the ruins.
The Dark Angels' scout company warriors cautiously followed amid the vast mechanical army, constantly gathering information from their surroundings.
After following the ever-present heaps of corpses and mangled flesh for over a hundred kilometers, Iax finally came upon some unusual sights.
Several ARD combat Men of Iron, which he had previously seen in the records, stood frozen in bizarre poses, surrounded by astonishing quantities of plasma, melta fire, and all manner of beams and projectiles.
Seconds after Iax's forces arrived, the ammunition and energy beams suspended in space suddenly resumed their motion, striking the mechanical guards in a dense barrage before violent explosions erupted.
Some distance farther ahead.
The vast force that had once comprised hundreds of thousands of Mortal Rebels now numbered fewer than twenty thousand.
The surviving rebels were all aboard vehicles, watching their surroundings in terror.
Most of these were high-speed vehicles such as Land Speeders, jetbikes, and some Bison troop transports. At the very center of the column, a Gorgon armored troop transport sat under heavy protection, surrounded by dozens of distinctively shaped Brimstone Reavers.
The mechanical guards frozen in place earlier had been their handiwork.
These specialized jetbikes were exceptionally mobile and agile, and were equipped with Rapid-Fire Plasma Cannons, “stasis” Grenade Launchers, and other weapons.
The stasis grenades were the key to their narrow survival.
"Stasis" grenades were a