Vect keenly perceived the human army's strategy of retreating under alternating covering fire.
Although it looked as though the valiant Drukhari had repelled the pincer attack head-on, the humans' casualties were not "heavy." This army was nowhere near a collapse in morale. If they wished, they could certainly keep attacking.
It seems the lingering might of the Ancient Eldar frightened them.
That was what Vect thought.
The humans feared another strike from that weapon.
Asdrubael Vect did not consider this the best time to retreat. He wanted to break the enemy's morale.
A decapitation strike was out of the question. That enormous enemy warship had resisted every assault. Unless their commander came out, there was no chance of success.
His only option was to inflict massive casualties again.
Vect's personal Haemonculus had been cursing over the communications channel for quite some time. Every weapon of mass destruction used since the battle began consumed vast resources, some of which could not be obtained by raiding realspace.
The psychic vortex above the Webway realm had one final attack left. When all its psyker power gathered together and finally became a black hole, the instant it turned into an opening into the Warp would unleash a tremendous burst of soul radiation.
Vect had to think of a way to make the humans willingly charge into an area that looked so obviously dangerous.
"Where are those prisoners I told you to hang up?"
"I..." Only then did the Haemonculus remember that those prisoners had not died when the tower disappeared. "I hung them from the prow of the Black Heart."
The Kabal of the Black Heart possessed countless warships. The Black Heart was not the strongest, but it was exceptionally ancient and held great commemorative significance.
"You. I grant you command of the Black