Deep within the Hydra landing port, more Alphas launched a fierce assault on the last defenders.
The remaining Imperial Fists and a portion of the Hussar Guards had retreated to the exterior of the reactor chamber. Behind them lay the blazing plasma reactor core of the Hydra orbital fortress.
The Imperial Fists braced themselves against the heavy adamantium doors, locking their storm shields before them to form a shield wall.
Achamos, leader of the Hussar Guards, was breathing heavily. His vision was filled with the corpses of the Hell Riders' mortal auxilia, assassinated by the Alphas amid terror and confusion. Many headless bodies had been claimed by long-range sniper shots.
Amid the mortal corpses, the bright yellow power armor of the Imperial Fists stood out starkly. Those resolute warriors had fallen before the final line of defense, but they had taken even more enemies with them.
Drawing on his understanding of Hydra's structural layout, Achamos positioned his remaining battle-brothers at the most critical points. They used their bolters to slow the enemy's advance.
Only a dozen or so Hussar Guards remained beside Achamos, while the Alphas seemed to spread endlessly from the darkness.
The few dozen surviving Hell Riders soldiers covered the Imperial Fists. Their formation had been completely shattered by the Alphas; starting with the supreme commander, company officers had taken command one after another after their predecessors fell.
Yet each new commander was sniped dead less than five minutes after taking command.
They carried high-energy laser rifles and wore simple force-feedback armor. Under suitable conditions, these exceptional Solar Auxilia troops could even trade favorably against Astartes.
But unfortunately, in such a desperate situation, mortals were simply too powerless against the elusive Alphas.
The Alpha Legion's deadly strike bolter rounds easily blasted two mortal auxilia into scattered chunks of