The rumbling in the air was not alone. The clatter of Astartes Power Armour striking together rose and fell across the spacious stands.
The Salamanders' Techmarine even led the applause. Cawl had created a remarkable invention.
A closer look at the bottom of the Arena revealed that the particles fired by the Grav-gun had not warped the metal floor, but acted directly on their targets. Belisarius Cawl had solved the common problem of Grav-guns having an excessively large area of effect. This was a historic breakthrough!
A mass of metal plates floating three inches above the ground crashed down. Metals of various colors mingled together, spreading into an irregular painting of the Omnissiah. Cawl switched off the Grav-gun; two small cylinders on it had yet to light up.
"Everyone, this is my latest creation, a Grav-gun. Some of you may be warriors from ancient Chapters who know this weapon. Unfortunately, this one is rather different from what you remember. For technical reasons, it is larger and heavier, though there are some improvements, such as these." Cawl pointed at the small cylinders atop the enormous gun.
"You may think of these as its ammunition capacity. Each small cylinder represents one shot. When the light on a cylinder goes out, it means charging is complete."
"The weapon's gravity-control range falls short of the oldest relics, but its accuracy has improved."
Only then did the damaged Boarding Shield topple to the floor with a clang. Its miniature force field had failed, and a wisp of black smoke rose from the crushed fissures in its metal.
Cawl's voice coincided perfectly with the shield hitting the floor. "My creation has the advantage of greater power than conventional Grav-guns. Not only can it bypass an enemy's defenses to strike their body directly, it can also damage