Dom stood upon the railings of the Drill rig. He see a army of soldiers that walked below him. As the convoy travelled to Landown, there were more people that joined the party.
From fifty thousand men that rode out of Jacinto, it ballooned to a Hundred and fifty thousand, and more are joining the ranks.
First time they mingle with the church soldiers, they were friendly. They chatted as they guarded the perimeter of the vehicles.
"Damnit... Where's Maria?" He thought to himself. His eyes flicker with doubts
He was filled with anxiety as he was told that she and the children was taken into space.
He tried to find connection to the people in cog and the stranded to see if they knew her location. And the church stayed silent about it.
But all this years, he struggled to accept that.
Maybe the Cog and the church is lying. To assured the people that is missing was still okay?
But he didn't know.
"Brother... You have a lot of things on your plate, want to talk to me about it?" A voice beside him spoke as a hot cup of Coffee wafted on his side.
Carlos, his brother, standing beside him as he smiled as the soldiers ate their rations.
Dom smiled as he took the warm coffee. It stimulate his nerves as he worried a lot.
"It's just that... I am scared... Brother, I don't know if my wife and my kids is dead or not. And I don't think that I have qualifications to let the church know her existence."
"Don't worry, I thinking there was a guy that might know about your family whereabouts... Major Alexander who's in charge in Landown." Carlos comforted his brother as he patted his back.
Alexander Tyrus is tasked to oversee the operations in Landown and its vicinity. And reports began to flow that that location is heavily contested, as if it was a tug of war with corpses as the ropes. But they heard that he would be joining them if the situation is stable.
Dom pondered about it, seeing the Church's soldiers spoke fondly about Alexander despite being a cog and held a better respect, maybe he could ask after the man if operation ended.
Dizzy stepped out of the vehicle cockpit with a cup of moonshine. His copilot techpriest managed his driving as he chatted with the squad.
"Have faith lad, God works in mysterious ways. The church may be mysterious, but they ain't liars."
"I didn't know that you are a follower of their church?" Carlos inquired.
"No, but a outlier to it, they helped my missus and ma kids a few winters ago. Infact probably most of us driving to Landown in this rig we are standing upon, have their story affiliate with the church." Dizzy sighed as he poured his moonshine into a cup of coffee and drank it.
"So you are saying that you volunteered?"
"Yup, for me, it was the free stuff and the groceries, and something out of gratefulness.. told me if I wanted to before I joined, I could just bail out. But hearing the mission, that I participate this moment, I prolly going to tell my kids that I am a warrior, and they would be happy that I change this moment by bringing you boys to Landown."
As the convoy reached in the halfway point.
As they travelled across the ridge with a massive cliffs by the side.
The Locust Attacked. Several missiles of flesh rammed into the screen of king Ravens as they crashed into the ground. Hitting several rigs in the process.
The Aircraft flew before the convoy to meet the foes, King Ravens serve as Gun platform rained bullets as they attempted to stop the missiles raining upon them as Valkyries flew ahead.
Many of the pilots nerves were on fire as they were in the no man zone between Landown and Jacinto.
A swarm of living rockets flew towards the closest king rarven and it exploded.
Swarms of Reavers now began to cloud the skies.
The Valkyries took the challenge and met them head on.
The skies is contested with the burning wrecks and corpses.
Generous amount of flaks from the Hydras that is accompanied the convoy fired haphazardly into the skies.
If it weren't bad enough, the sounds of mortar fire began to echo in the distance.
It alerted the convoy to take action.
Delta team was no exceptions.
Marcus rushed towards a gun turret and activated it. It was a dual chain linked Stubber, with a more heavier caliber than what they been using.
The turret rotated its barrels, revving it as bullets is being fed into the gun.
He immediately opened fire at the mortar shells that rained down.
The mortars continuously rain down upon the convoy. Craters and fragments gathered all around the rig.
The soldiers in every side of the rig took evasive actions as they sprint to the nearest cover and waited till the mortars came to a end.
The roars of the locust was heard, and the cliffs from above dropped countless drones that was heavily armoured. They wore armored plating, making them more durable.
Many soldiers yelled out in horor. As the locust made a pincer attack on the sides as the soldiers were busy handling the invaders. The locust sent their heaviest arsenal toward them. Brumaks numbered in the tens and it was as if the locust sent almost all they have to this operation.
"Screw, Partner we are pushing it now!"
"Estimating our chances of survival to our destination... 62%" the techpriest spoke as he fired a laser from his metal tentacles. Killing a locust that attempted to hijack the rig.
"That better than nothing!" Dizzy pressed the pedal to the limits as the rushed past the convoy defenses.
"Alright, fellas get those grubs off mah Betty!" Dizzy yelled as he got a boltok revolver and shot another hijacker from the driver cabin.
Marcus and the rest nodded as they fought the locust that attempted to commandeered the rig.
Carlos and Dom fired their lancers, but sparks sprang around the locust hijacker.
"Shit, need some heavy love over here!"
Marcus turned the turret and opened fire.
Volume of bullets rained upon the hijackers.
Hollow point, AP and explosive shells rain upon them, even if the bullets didn't do much damage, quantity is a quality of its own.
The metal plating gave way and into the metal flesh that lay within.
Carlos rushed forward and stabbed the locust with his lancer chainsaw and tossed the interloper ouf of the rig.
"Fuck!" Dizzy yelled as a burning rig just appeared by the side and ready to rammed into them. Upon the platform on the burning rig, the Locust mercilessly killed the soldiers and tossed the driver below the wheels, turning into bloody paste in the process.
In the rig driver cabin the locust managed to drive the rig and rammed it into Betty several times.
Marcus and Delta team fought back as they fired at the hijacked rig and at the driver seat.
Their success was shown when the burning rig began to veer off into the ravine below .
"Brumaks! And there's two of them! Along with a gosh darn number of grub!"
Before them was a hoard
Before the Betty managed to reached within their weapon range, several missiles swept past them and engulfed the flesh giants in a pile of gunpowder and explosives.
They felt relieved that these two Brumaks and the horde was finished...
A another roar occured.
Another brumak appear and trampled the corpses. The mortar on top of its back fired upon Betty and one of the planes took the hit and exploded midair.
Marcus looked above and saw a badly damaged Valkyrie that is barely hovering in the air, with a pair of rocket left, The locust is beginning to converge to their location.
"My Sacrifice, My duty! For the golden throne!" He heard the pilot comms before he saw the plane rammed into the brumak and exploded into gory fashion.
While it taken out the Brumak, the situation was dire.
"Delta Team, This is Major Alexander with the Church reinforcements! Hold out for a couple of minutes!"
Marcus watched something gigantic in the distance moving. He shook his eyes as if it was the illusion..
Giant Robots?
And seven of them?
Seven Giants lumbered in the distance, each had differing weaponry... Sword, power fist, Battle canons and Gatling guns.
But they have one thing in common.
They kill.
Gigantic tube of metals slowly began to rotate to life as flamethrowers began to scorch the land.
Claws began to crackle in blueish light as they marched towards their target.
Apocalyptic Missile launchers upon their backs howled with rage as their contents left from their sacred containers and rained upon the locust.
Followed behind the giants rushed by hordes of calvary that held melta lances as they swept past the locust, ramming them with the power of physics of flesh meet spear.
And those that hit was exploded into pieces
The locust found out about the titans that came from the direction of Landown. And wondered what the hell happened to the forces being sent there.
"Dayum... This must be them angels of death they are talking about." Dizzy muttered as he passed his moonshine to the techpriest that is seriously contemplating if making a alcohol is better serve with machine oil.
A massive tank rolled up beside them.
Marcus felt intimidated by the amount of barrels they had stuffed into the tank.
Eleven barrels of gleaming metal. Opened fire at once at the fleeing horde.
"Are they really the church?"Marcus inwardly thought to himself.
Upon the cupola of this metal beast was Alexander waving at Delta team.
"So... Welcome to our belated party? I hope you don't mind giant robots to save your day." Alexander smiled as the giant tank below him opened fire at a reaver that closed in for the kill.
" Alright, Jacinto control, we have received the first rig to begin the process, the church will send a expedition force to gathered the remaining rigs at the ambush site, over."
"Alrighty then, making our way to Landown" dizzy laughed as he drove into the town with a escort.
They found that the town held severe damages during the occupation. The roofs was blasted out by mortar fire.
Every lane that is not designated by the cog is filled with tanks that is working like a makeshift bunkers.
Medics bringing stretchers to a building that is a makeshift hospital.
Body bags began to pile up in a corner as they prepared for incineration.
Guard towers erected on the corners of the town overseeing every corner.
Marcus watched a man smoking a cigarette, contemplating his life as he faced a pile of locust corpses that is being burnt, until he noticed Marcus gaze. A simple nod as he joined up the rest of the squad.
"Tickers!" A yell was heard as the soldiers became battle ready as they looked at the ground for any vibrations.
Massive holes erupted around the town and flooded the streeta with creatures that is made with imulsion explosives strapped to their back.
Chaos erupted as the guards shot down many and the rest decided to form a fireman team to head to the tunnels to burn out the root cause.
Some gotten through and exploded at the bottom of a leman Russ and exploded, taking the crew with them.
Marcus wanted to help, perhaps due to Alexander interference, his heroism still shines in the gruff skin of the man.
Alexander touched his shoulder.
"Don't, We need you and the rest to take down their home turf, leave the rest to us. I accompany you to the staging ground!" He smiled as he patted Marcus as he join the madness of close quarters with the locust.
After a short while in the stillness of the battlefield. The convoy moved once more.
The rig began to move to a optimal site.
In a few miles outside town, in a graveyard.
Countless cog soldier that died in the pendulum wars was buried here.
Ironic that such a memorial was the safest site to launch their attack to the locust.
"Look at all this graves... The pendulum wars... All for nothing.." Dom spoke out.
"Damm, sure could use those men now." Marcus muttered as he watched the rig set to drill capsules deep.
"Locust!" A soldier yelled as several locust drones rushed into the staging grounds.
And a general locust rushed towards Marcus group with a twin staff chainsaw. The leman Russ noticed the intrusion and began overwatch as it rained stubber fire and gave the soldiers fire support.
The locust general snarled as it jump to the top of the canopy and attempted to chainsaw the leman Russ open cupola, it met the captain that was waiting below for it's arrival with a laspistol and shot it. Forcing it to back off. But it jumped to the rig in a single leap.
"Crap, Nothin' going stop them now!"
Marcus rushed in with the Carlos, Dominic and Tai. And dizzy helped by pissing it off with his lancer.
They were almost belated by the general, until a electric bat crackling in the distance, landed between them, separating the combatants.
"Delta Team, Go and fulfill this mission. I will delay them!" A voice echoed behind them. And they found that Alexander picked up the electric bat and aimed it at the locust general.
"Your foe is with me, abomination" Alexander stared at the foe before him. The locust before him snarled as it leaped forward and clashed with Alexander.
Marcus wanted to help but seeing that the man before him is buying time.
He nodded to the squad his is in and entered the drill capsules.
"Where did you meet that Major?" Tai spoke.
"Why do you asked?"
"I sense some good juju vibes from him."
They felt the capsules is being hoisted and the clashing of the top of the rig.
They felt pressure as the drill capsules began to dig deep into the earth.
Locust for the first time in 14 years of warfare that waged upon the surface of sera, never met a zealot and insane human army till now.
When they first came to the surface it was filled with people with weak will and war fatigue of fighting each other for a long time. And they butchered them plenty. Fourteen years was enough to make the people of sera hardened their hearts, but the foes they face before is not humans at all.
At Landown they confirmed that there is another force standing guard.
The church of the golden emperor...
They don't care about the losses, they are more fanatical that drag them down to hell. Even gravely wounded soldiers held such fanatical zeal that it frightened them.
Some even taking their assailant with armed explosives with them with no hesitation.
For each death they taken, it rouse the madness and hatred to the enemies before them.
Whenever they tried to open their grub holes near the church location to emerge, they were met by numerous guns and flamethrowers that awaited them.
That they forced to collapse their own tunnels because these humans are more insane of jumping into the tunnels themselves than the locust that is bursting out.
These machines of war was not part of their expectations. To them it was made for massacre.
They don't care about collateral damage.
Taking cover doesn't work because it will be blown away by the sheer volume of lasers.
Even the dead is being put to use as flying skulls and servitors.
What they are facing now, is not a disjointed cog that is wading in the dark, but humanity that waged war for almost a millennia.
The scarred souls of a realm that only know war.
And locust received reports that they are being pushed back further and further
As more of these... Fanatics are beginning to replaced the cog as the main force.
But they believed that they can do this.
Their will and madness will envelope the world, the locust was the first to realize this.
The one that held the leash of this monsters in human skin... Is already condemning them to death.
Their fate was sealed when they touched the interest of this unforeseen leader behind them.
Marcus and Delta squad had a rough journey as they landed below the surface and landed safely.
Marcus kicked the escape hatch out and watched many more drills landing in their vicinity.
Ironic that most of Delta team is now rejoined in the underground.
"Sarge, this is Anthony over here, with my brother Ben, we need support! Our squad is pinned down!"
"Brother, I am pinned here!"
Marcus chuckle as he checked his lancer. And he noticed the weaponry that popped out of the drill capsules they were in.
"Alright, let's bail them out." He smiled as he grabbed what he could.
The Carmine brothers is located a bit ahead of them.
As Delta team managed to reached to their location, they met several wounded and Anthony was bandaging the wounded and Benjamin was trigger happy whilst hiding behind cover.
"Sarge, over here!" Anthony spoke as Delta team helped them out.
"Alpha three, this is Delta, we found sigma 4 and they are heavily wounded, pinging up the coordinates, over."
"Wilco, over"
Marcus looked at the two Carmines and he could see the anticipation of them joining in.
"Alright, Anthony and Ben, gear up and follow me."
"Okay, Sarge!"
The Carmine brothers helped them to the weapon cache that was in their drill capsules.
"Brother, Can I have the heavy flamer?"
"No, Ben, you get the Lancer With a flamethrower."
Ben shoulders drooped as he watch the heavy flamer, just laying there.
"Someday... I will use you... Someday."
Delta team just finding a wall, decided to use a drill capsule that still had life in it. Jack managed to activate it and it began drilling, making their presence known in a wide radius. Bringing all the nearby locust charging at them.
This supposed inner hollows is filled with gunpowder and scream of both sides.
Each with hatred and fury.
The cog soldiers were outnumbered in the locust home.
But they were equipped with better weaponry to deal with the improved armored locust.
Rocket launcher, Las weaponry, auto cannons.
If during the emergence day, the death ratio of humans and locust was 56:1 because they were unaware of their tactics and technology.
And the Lightmass offensive the casualty dropped to at least 11:1
But the fact that they had improved armor.
Making it to 48:1
Now, the ratio is now 1:34.
Alexander just gave up the pretenses of keeping it nice as the supposed traitor is leveled the playing field with these upgraded locust, It doesn't hurt if cog have better weaponry to deal with the locust.
Stream of red beams scattered across the inner hollows, perfectly matching the hatred of what humanity can achieve.
Steaming piles of corpse dropped into the imulsion rivers below. As the cog began scouring the premises.
As they delve deeper.
They felt tremors rumbling beneath their feet.
Marcus agreed and they found a massive worm moved in a horrifying fashion....
They found what seemed to be a outpost of the locust...
But as they get closer they found screams echo in the air. They took cover, as to not rouse the patrols.
As they peeked put behind cover, they found floating barges of flesh and people is being transported to somewhere.
"Alpha, we found what seemed to be a.. slave depot, we are rushing in. Send a detachment to get these prisoners free."
"Acknowleged, Happy hunting, Alpha out."
Marcus and Delta team goes gun blazing and set the strange outpost on fire.
As they freed the people, they noticed that many was civilians that was captured during the exodus to Jacinto.
"Thank the Lord that you are here to save us!" A freed man spoke.
"What is going on here?"
"I dunno, they been treating us like cattle..."
As they moved past the outpost, they met the same locust general that Alexander fought above the surface, it was wounded and lost several fingers, but it didn't paid much attention, until it raised it's arms and mumbled some ritual.
A giant worm they saw swept by underneath the city of Llima, causing buildings to collapse in its wake. The locust general smiled as he flew off somewhere.
"Anya, the locust are sinking cities, they are sinking cities with a giant worm!"
________
(A/n): sorry not at my best, brain is undergoing withdrawals. Need time.