The final iron door slowly opened, and everyone's Tactical Visor kept adjusting its settings.
At a glance, Evan spotted an enormous, desecrated Statue of the Emperor. The blasphemers had used some strange substance to add two arms to it, making it look grotesque. The space below stood empty, probably where the faithful had once gathered to pray.
Along the sides were damaged portraits of Living Saints, loyal Primarchs, and the Emperor. Even the lavish carved beams and painted pillars had failed to withstand the ravages of time.
Several Shield Infantry advanced at the front. Nothing happened.
Evan was just about to step out when he suddenly asked the Tech-Priest, "Where exactly were the dormant organisms the Auspex picked up earlier?"
"The external Auspex scan wasn't very precise. Roughly a little farther ahead, then above us."
A little farther ahead, then above... By my Emperor's mighty spatula! Open fire! Open fire now!
Realizing they had been exposed, the Genestealers lurking on the bridge's ceiling shrieked, dropped down, and charged the group.
Everyone formed a circular defense around the final doorway, positioned to advance or fall back. The Tech-Priest had learned his lesson, too: two Sicarian Infiltrators prowled behind them in the passage to keep their retreat secure.
Meanwhile, another Adeptus Mechanicus squad had pushed through to the suspected relic repository. Cover filled the area, which appeared heavily guarded and showed no sign of having been breached from the front.
The Adeptus Mechanicus Shield Infantry established inner and outer defensive lines around the site, while the remaining three Sicarian Infiltrators quietly crept inside.
Sicarian Infiltrators were among the Adeptus Mechanicus's elite Skitarii. Creating them was extremely difficult: not only did they require exceptionally dangerous weapons, but the surgical modifications had a low success rate.
As one Sicarian Infiltrator slowly leaned out from cover to peer inside, an enormous psychic bolt hurtled straight at him, destroying both him and the cover concealing him.
An alarm instantly spread through the communications network.
A psychic alarm? They'd found the Broodlord!
The seething mass of creatures before Evan surged like a tidal wave toward the flesh preserved in those metal cans, eager to taste a delicacy they had not enjoyed for thousands of years.
Both sides traded blows, the battle line shifting back and forth. For the moment, neither could overcome the other.
At the height of the fighting, every Genestealer on the bridge suddenly seemed to pause.
The Genestealers fiercely attacking Evan began withdrawing under alternating cover. Their powerful claws let them scale even the towering walls before slipping into openings resembling ventilation ducts and disappearing, leaving a heap of corpses behind.
The images of the Emperor's Icon on the towering walls around them had long since fallen to pieces, and some had even been defaced with indescribable blasphemous patterns. Evan did not care. The Genestealer corpses around him mattered more.
These Genestealers were all purestrains, which meant they truly had not encountered other creatures for a very, very long time.
Judging by their speed, their fighting strength might not even have been half what it once was.
Evan stepped forward and cleaved a Genestealer corpse in two. Very little strangely colored blood flowed out, and its bones and outer carapace were brittle.
In short, they had struck gold. This Genestealer brood was extremely weak.
There was no time to examine the runes engraved on the surrounding walls. Everyone ran toward the location where the Broodlord had been discovered.
The Tech-Priest was frantic. He was still here, while signals from the other Skitarii team kept disappearing. Even the expensive Sicarian Infiltrators were going offline.
Evan led his squad onward at such speed that even the Adeptus Mechanicus personnel could not keep up.
Suddenly, the wall beside them shattered, and two Genestealers emerged. One swipe nearly sheared off William's shoulder guard, while Evan cleaved the closest enemy apart with a single stroke.
Kazhaniv's Bolter rapidly opened fire, blasting the other one apart. He then turned sideways into the duct and kept firing. Another Astartes stayed to support him, while the others continued toward the Broodlord with Evan.
Good. The harder you resist, the more certain I am that I'm going the right way.
Destroyed cover gradually came into view ahead. Very little had been wrecked by Bolter fire or explosives, perhaps because Slaanesh's Noise Marines did not much care for shooting their enemies.
Powerful psychic energy flickered in and out of his senses. Even before seeing the enemy, Evan felt his skin crawl.
Just how many Genestealers would it take to nurture a Broodlord with psychic power this strong? Wait, they'd also eaten the flesh of the Emperor's Children.
What a mess. Just how many enemies are there?
When Evan crossed the scattered cover and finally reached the enormous exhibition hall, even he felt pressured by the sight.
Densely packed Genestealers poured from the ventilation ducts above and gaps in the floor below. The enormous Broodlord remained at the very center. Far larger than its ordinary offspring, it stood nearly twelve meters tall, with razor-sharp claws almost as tall as William. Its head was noticeably different from those of the other Genestealers: an enormous swelling bulged from its rounded forehead, glowing with psychic energy.
(It should originally have been the Patriarch of a Genestealer brood, but this one had eaten the flesh of the Emperor's Children Astartes and advanced straight to Broodlord level.)
A bolt of Waaagh! Lightning struck the Skitarii in another direction, instantly reducing three Shield Infantry to ash.
Evan quickly ordered everyone to spread out and find firing positions.
Unlike a Greater Daemon, a Broodlord was an enemy with a physical body. Even ordinary Bolter rounds could hurt it.
Since they had not known what kind of enemy they would face, they had brought a little of every ammunition type. Magazines of Kraken Pattern armor-piercing rounds and Hellfire bolts-rounds specifically designed to kill organisms, containing a small quantity of mutagenic acid-were pulled out. A torrent of Bolter rounds erupted from a fan-shaped firing line, precisely "scattering" across the Broodlord.
Large numbers of Genestealers gathered to shield the Broodlord, while some of the larger specimens charged straight at the Space Marines.
The Astartes kept moving and firing, dodging the Broodlord's psychic attacks while fighting the Genestealers that continually swarmed them.
The Adeptus Mechanicus's Ironwing Dragons also joined the battle. Huge columns of fire swept across the Genestealers, coating the enemies ahead in flames within a breath.
Knowing they were doomed, those enemies surged toward the Adeptus Mechanicus personnel.
The Tech-Priest Mapus now looked like a walking weapons rack. All manner of strange darts shot toward the enemy. Anything struck by one instantly collapsed, then gradually dissolved into a puddle of pus.
He also had a Meltagun. No one knew where the Tech-Priest had hidden it before, but now it had plainly become a death sentence for the enemy.
Several mechanical arms operated a six-barreled, short-barreled Gatling mounted over his left shoulder, assuming that counted as his left shoulder. Its barrels spun and fired without pause, tearing the enemy apart.
These Genestealers owed their disciplined fighting-attacking like fire and withdrawing like a forest-entirely to the enormous Broodlord's psychic mental local-area network. They had to kill it first before they could proceed.
The Auspex aboard the Adeptus Mechanicus survey ship operated at full capacity, scanning the Space Hulk. Rough estimates already put the number of life-forms that had appeared at over a hundred thousand.
"Hahaha, only a hundred thousand! Did these Genestealers eat one another out of hunger until only a hundred thousand remained?"
By a conservative estimate, this vessel had housed two million people. Add the invasion by the Emperor's Children, and after consuming all that flesh, the Genestealers should have numbered at least five hundred thousand. Yet now only a hundred thousand remained.
That meant maintaining psychic attacks at its current strength was extremely taxing for the Broodlord. The number of offspring it had could not support such terrifying psychic expenditure.
Evan kept firing his Ion Pistol at the Broodlord, annihilating the mass of Genestealers shielding it.
The Broodlord gradually realized how serious the situation was. These enemies were extremely powerful fighters, yet offered little biomass to eat. Worse, their reinforcements kept arriving. This was not good news.
The Broodlord prepared to retreat first and wage a guerrilla war against these intruders in the place it had inhabited for thousands of years. Just as it was about to withdraw through the rear, a tremendous explosion erupted behind it. The powerful shock wave even knocked down several Adeptus Mechanicus personnel fighting at the front.
What was going on?
An enormous plasteel beam crashed down from above, completely blocking its retreat. Even with five hundred thousand offspring, the Broodlord might not have been able to lift something that massive with psychic power.
The enormous opening through which the Broodlord could have retreated was sealed. Even ordinary Genestealers had to crouch to squeeze through.
Two Astartes charged out through the gap, their Bolters unleashing terrifying firepower.
Evan desperately wanted to rub his forehead. He should never have let Kazhaniv receive Luna Wolves gene-seed. Now he was coming up with outrageous tactics like this, and the worst part was that he executed them well. But couldn't you tell me before doing it?
Evan and the other two Astartes quickly moved toward Kazhaniv.
This time, the Broodlord was truly caught between attacks from front and rear, with nowhere to retreat.
The Broodlord screeched, and Genestealers hiding throughout the vessel converged on it like creatures possessed.
The Broodlord's massive body could not possibly escape through the ducts, but its offspring could use them to reach it and provide support.
A suicide squad led by an enormous Genestealer broke into the Adeptus Mechanicus support force, cutting off the ammunition delivery troops from the central battlefield.
For a moment, both sides found themselves in trouble.
The Astartes were nearly out of ammunition, while more Genestealers continued arriving in an endless stream.
Evan could not bear to send his own warriors into melee. These enemies had claws sharp enough to tear through Terminator Armour and the metal hulls of Dreadnoughts. Prolonged close combat against them was extremely dangerous.
These few Astartes were the only mobile force in the entire Chapter. If even one died, the Chief Apothecary might chase Evan from bow to stern with a scalpel.
Power Sword in hand, Evan charged swiftly toward the Broodlord. An overcharged Ion Bolt cleared the Genestealers directly ahead, while his teammates' Bolter fire covered him from behind.
"William, hold Kazhaniv down! Don't let him charge!"
"Too late. He's already charging."
Damn it, is he carrying World Eaters seed?
Evan and Kazhaniv attacked the Broodlord from left and right.
This Broodlord was no ordinary Genestealer. Its four arms swung enormous claws, ready to crack open these two suicidal tin cans and devour their contents, just as it had thousands of years ago.
I am Evan, Slayer of Mistanbol, Exiler of Karkarim, purger of the Apostle of Nurgle, and Chapter Master of the Crimson Tide Chapter! You dare look down on me?
Before they made contact, the Broodlord's body had already taken numerous Bolter hits. The Psychic Barrier it unleashed could not fully block those strange, varied rounds. It was too weak. For thousands of years, it had barely survived by eating its own offspring.
Just as the two men approached, the surrounding Genestealers dropped flat in unison. The Broodlord's thick, rigid tail whipped around with incredible speed, knocking both men flying.
The closer its offspring were, the stronger its control over them became.
It was like using your phone beside a signal tower. Of course the reception would be excellent.
The two men quickly got back up and even taunted it.
"What's wrong? All those years without food left you too weak to move, you old hag?" (Morgkin would like to know how the hell you keep getting better at this skill.)
In truth, both had been badly hurt, but a sweeping blow like that tended to cause internal injuries that were difficult to spot from outside.
Various drugs were swiftly injected inside their Power Armour. Four broken ribs were detected.
"Priest, cover us! Blast a path open!"
From somewhere, the Priest produced another pile of explosives. The violent blasts cleared every Genestealer between Evan and the Broodlord, and the two men launched another desperate charge.
Evan slashed his Power Sword into one claw, knocking it aside, then held the blade horizontally to block another. At the same time, the powerful downward force pinned the other claw beneath his sword tip.
Kazhaniv was even more reckless. A full-strength sword strike carved an enormous notch into the claw attacking him, while his other hand punched another claw. Both sides recoiled.
Damn, you're a real brute. Did you break your arm?
Kazhaniv had opened some distance, but Evan had not. He was still locked against two claws when the other two came striking toward him.
"Kazhaniv, kick me!"
A powerful flying kick slammed into Evan's backside.
Evan toppled backward and slid straight between the enemy's legs.
The Golden Power Sword shone brilliantly, as though its frenzied machine spirit thirsted for the enemy's blood.
The Broodlord was startled. If he slides through, he'll gut me! It immediately leaped with all its strength, dodging Evan's attack. In that same instant, Kazhaniv sprang up with an overhead strike.
The roaring Chainsword successfully severed one of the Broodlord's feet.
Its agonized, piercing scream drove the Genestealer army into an even greater frenzy. They surged toward the two men without regard for anything else.
Evan slid a considerable distance, then rose and killed three Genestealers in front of him with a horizontal slash. Yet even he felt his scalp prickle at the surging tide of enemies.
In this position, only a few survivors from the original second Adeptus Mechanicus force could provide covering fire. There was no way they could clear so many enemies quickly.
Missing a foot, the Broodlord landed unsteadily and fell. It struggled to replace the missing foot with a claw to support its body.
Evan turned and began racing the enemies behind him. These weakened Genestealers were actually moving at roughly his speed. The enormous Broodlord remained where it had been, so Evan charged over and leaped onto its body.
Sensing danger, the Broodlord heaved itself upright, throwing Evan off balance. His Power Sword missed its intended target at the enemy's heart and lodged firmly in its lower back instead.
Grievously wounded, the Broodlord began gathering psychic power in its skull to strike Evan on its body. At the same time, it used powerful telekinesis to try to extract the Power Sword embedded in its flesh.
In an instant, several responses flashed through Evan's mind. The Baina Robe was still hidden in his right shoulder. This wondrous robe could withstand Karkarim's psychic attacks, but whether it could withstand the Broodlord's was unknown. The worst option.
Abandon the Power Sword and simply drop down. A few rolls would bring him back to the Astartes charging toward him. Hmm, embarrassing. The middle option.
Abandon the Power Sword and gamble on loyalty with his Ion Pistol. Fire an Ion Bolt as the enemy released its psychic attack, making them collide at the Broodlord's head. That would surely cause a huge explosion and utterly destroy it. Theoretically, the best option.
Forget it. Evan considered himself absolutely disloyal.
Powerful psychic energy gathered in the Broodlord's skull, but Evan abandoned the Golden Power Sword. Instead, he actually charged along its body toward its head.
The Broodlord inevitably plunged into utter panic. At this range, an explosion of that much psychic energy would certainly blast its own head to ash.
It hesitated for an instant rather than immediately firing the psychic beam. After all, the tin can charging across its body held no weapon in either hand.
That single instant shifted the momentum and reversed offense and defense. On a battlefield, everything could change in a heartbeat.
Evan raised his right hand in a slashing motion, though it held no weapon. He had reached the end of his charge, his foot planted on its shoulder and the enemy's head directly ahead. Yet instead of stepping onto its neck, he stepped into empty air, and his entire body inevitably began to fall.
The Broodlord's eyes followed Evan's movements. When his foot found nothing, even it could not suppress a flicker of pleasure. It had thought its enemy was a madman intent on taking it down with him. Instead, he was a coward dressing up fear and flight as bravery.
It prepared to open its enormous, bloody maw and devour Evan, who had quite literally delivered himself to its mouth.
Yet its psychic precognition warned of extreme danger. Puzzled, the Broodlord used its psychic "local-area network" to look through its offspring's eyes.
A spinning Chainsword hurtled through the air. The buzzing of its teeth truly made the Broodlord feel death approaching.
It saw it. Through its psychic "local-area network," it saw through its offspring's eyes that Kazhaniv, who had hurled his Chainsword with all his strength, had not even finished the follow-through. The spinning Chainsword flew straight toward Evan.
The Broodlord's psychic power was concentrated on the Power Sword embedded in its body. It could not redirect it to the Chainsword in time. No. Too late.
Evan's raised right hand caught the flying Chainsword firmly. Though his body was falling, the Broodlord's neck was right beside him.
What a fine head. Don't mind if I do.
One stroke, a head taken amid an army.
Before you continue