Gamma had no good solution for these small Tyranid vessels. Although nano-torpedoes were still effective, their cost-effectiveness was too low. Gorgon was hiding behind, spawning like crazy, giving birth to a bunch at a time, and his nano-torpedoes were one less with each one fired.
Fortunately, both humans and Titan Star people had prepared for this; both sides were equipped with a large number of torpedoes, and the types of shells they fired also varied.
Gamma also had his fill. Although the Gear Boy didn't have macro cannons that could fire solid projectiles, it had many torpedo tubes. Furthermore, other Imperial vessels' torpedoes were slow and had limited range.
His torpedoes had a low-profile gravity well acceleration, launching at sub-light speed, hitting quickly and from afar. This made the captains of other Imperial vessels, who had been paying attention to the Gear Boy, incredibly envious. They all decided that when they bought new ships next time, they would definitely go to Thedan to buy them.
Gamma, who didn't know he had just given his hometown a 'GG', felt it was meaningless after firing for a while, so he called his companions and let them have a go.
The Tech-priest Girl, while 'playing' the game of shooting bugs, asked Gamma, "Gamma, why do I feel like the Gorgon's bio-ships haven't decreased at all?"
Gamma shrugged and said, "They have decreased, it's just that there are too many to notice. Also, haven't you noticed that some of the Tyranid vessels that have been sunk are drifting from their original positions? That means Gorgon is recovering biomass from the battlefield."
"Ah! Doesn't that mean we've been fighting for nothing?" the Tech-priest Girl exclaimed.
"You can't say it's for nothing. There's a purpose in letting the Tyranid recover biomass."
"What purpose?"
"The combined fleet wants to use this method to pinpoint the location of the Hive Mothership and the Norn Queen, and then strike directly at the heart. That's the vital point of the Gorgon Hive Fleet. Otherwise, even if we destroy all other Tyranid warships, we won't be able to achieve the goal of annihilating the Gorgon Hive."
Finnie nodded, half-understanding, then refocused on fighting bugs. The little Tech-priest secretly glanced at Magos Lauster nearby, then quickly withdrew their gaze. The grim-faced Magos looked so scary.
The space battle had not yet reached the true bayonet-to-bayonet stage. Let us turn our attention to Kosa's last fortress.
The paralyzed Ventris sat in an enlarged wheelchair, looking out over the fortress walls. Thousands of nearly six-meter-tall castellan robots were lined up, unleashing endless firepower upon the Tyranid swarm. Even if a few stragglers managed to break through the firing line and approach these castellan robots, they would be sent flying or crushed by their hundred-yard metal feet.
Tyranid beast-form ranged attacks either deflected off them or bounced back, hitting the bugs themselves.
Ventris, who had just woken from a coma and was eager to check the situation on the city wall, asked, "Are these castellan robots the support Gamma gave us?"
"Yes, but because there are no Tech-priest accompanying them, these castellan robots can only execute tasks pre-set by Magos Gamma.
Magos Gamma's task for these castellan robots is to kill all biological entities approaching the fortress walls."
After confirming that the fortress's defenses were temporarily out of danger, Ventris asked his second most pressing question:
"What is the situation inside the fortress now?"
The person standing beside him stiffened their expression, and the Inquisitor continued to answer:
"Including the Titan Star people, fewer than 200,000 people are still alive in the fortress. Fewer than 50,000 are still capable of fighting, and the remaining 150,000 are Kosa children and the wounded and disabled."
Hearing the Inquisitor's report, even Ventris, who was mentally prepared, found it hard to breathe. The original combined force of over ten million soldiers from both races was now reduced to this, how could it not weigh heavily on his heart?
"Alas—" The physically disabled Ultramarines sighed heavily.
"Beep, detecting patient depression. Now playing music to alleviate the patient's mood." The white robot pushing Ventris's wheelchair behind him issued a prompt, and then cheerful music inappropriately sounded on the battlefield.
The others standing around Ventris managed to suppress their laughter with peculiar expressions. Ventris wanted to cover his face, but he couldn't move anything below his neck, so he had to say:
"Stop, don't play music!"
"Beep, received. Stopping music. Would Lord Ventris like to hear a joke? This unit has Imperial jokes stored in its memory."
"No need, just be quiet!" Ventris hastily stopped it.
"Received. Tip: A good mood helps with injury recovery."
...
At this moment, someone, he knew not who, burst out laughing, and the others could no longer hold back and roared with laughter. One of the Ultramarines, still laughing, said:
"Company Commander, I think you should listen to the Medical castellan robot's advice. Its medical skills have been approved by both Apothecaries and Medical Sisters."
Immediately after, another person chimed in, "Exactly! If it weren't for the various treatment plans and instruments stored inside it, Company Commander, you'd already be in a Dreadnought now."
"You all shut up!" Ventris shouted.
The Medical castellan robot, a medical-type castellan robot created by Gamma in the image of 'True Hundred', was a semi-artificial intelligence he created by studying Golden Age artificial intelligence technology, a technological creation that treads on the red line. It stores various human body knowledge mastered by Gamma and can provide treatment plans based on the patient's condition. The external explanation is that these plans are pre-designed and stored within the Medical castellan robot.
To make the lie seem more convincing, the Medical castellan robot provides multiple options when offering treatment plans. These plans are arranged from most effective to least effective, providing a reference for Medical Sisters and Apothecaries.
"How are the wounded? Are there enough medicines?"
"Fortunately, while you were unconscious, Magos Gamma sent us Medical castellan robots and biomimetic materials for producing nano-machines. Thanks to the efforts of the Medical Sisters, most of the wounded soldiers are now out of danger, but—"
"But what?"
"The remaining Titan Star forces are requesting that we share some nano-medical instruments with them."
"Does Gamma know about this? What does he think?" Ventris asked again.
The Inquisitor said helplessly, "Gamma agreed. He said that regardless of the past and future, right now we and the Titan Star people are comrades fighting against the Tyranid. We cannot watch the Titan Star people die."
The Ultramarines Gaius nodded after hearing this and said, "That's very much in line with his character. Do as he says, but only lend them to the Titan Star people. The medical instruments must not fall into their hands. Inquisitor, I need you to persuade the Medical Sisters to go and return with the medical instruments."
Finnie's face showed a troubled expression. Persuading Medical Sisters to help treat xenos? The Sisters would surely stab her into a beehive with their scalpels.
Ventris saw the Inquisitor's troubled expression and knew this task was not simple. After pondering for a moment, he said:
"Tell the Medical Sisters that we have not yet achieved victory. Without them, we cannot even fill the fortress's defensive line. Those Titan Star people are the strength we need."
This is just a temporary measure. If we are fortunate enough to survive, I will ask Magos Gamma to gift them the equipment for producing medical nano-machines. From what I know of Gamma, he had this intention when he left the machines."
Finnie thought about it and agreed. The little Tech-priest were always generous, so she nodded and said, "Alright, leave it to me."
"Although it's temporarily safe, we can't let our guard down. Tell me the specific situation, please?" Ventris said to his battle brothers.
The Ultramarines who heard Ventris's question did not answer, but only looked outside the city wall. Ventris also followed their gaze. At first, he didn't see anything, until he noticed that the movement behind the Tyranid swarm was unusual, as if something was rampaging there.
"What is that?"
"Company Commander, you'll understand in a moment."
About half an hour later, a squad of 'Gundams' burst out from behind the swarm. The Tyranid in front of them were either roasted by arc lightning, crushed into meat paste by gravity weapons, or completely melted into dust by high-temperature plasma.
"mecha?" Ventris asked uncertainly.
"Company Commander, look again!"
Ventris, already uncertain, carefully compared the appearance of these mechas with the mecha in his mind. He found that although these mechas were very similar in appearance to the mecha, they were taller, and the weapons they used were completely different from the mecha.
"Gamma's new creation? He's built a Titan!?" Ventris exclaimed. A Technical Sergeant, who appeared from nowhere, answered, "They're taller than Knights, but shorter than Warhound-class Titans. However, I can guarantee that no Warhound is a match for any of them."
"Are you peeking again?"
The Technical Sergeant, while collecting data with the instruments on his power armor, fiercely told the person who accused him of peeking, "I'm here to admire, to learn! You know nothing about technology!"
At this moment, someone explained to a somewhat annoyed Ventris, "These five Titans arrived with the castellan robots. After killing the Hive Tyrant that ambushed you, they charged into the swarm to forcefully eliminate the synaptic creatures."
"With the mass deaths of the synaptic creatures, the Tyranid attack also collapsed. While you were unconscious, the Tyranid launched several attacks, but they were all thwarted by the overwhelming combat power of these Titans."
Although Ventris had no doubt that Gamma could eventually conjure up Titans, he didn't expect it to happen so quickly. If all Tech-priest had this kind of research and development speed, what would be left for Space Marine?
Fortunately, only Gamma is like this, Ventris thought to himself, then he gestured with his chin towards the peeking Technical Sergeant, asking for an explanation of the situation.
"The reason for Lauster's appearance is that these Titans have stayed with the castellan robots from beginning to end, without any communication with us, so he..."
"Alright, I understand." Ventris interrupted the other person. His intuition told him that these Titans had a secret, and he didn't intend to delve into Gamma's little secrets.
While the people on the fortress wall were conversing, Gear Kid had already led his 'sons' through the Tyranid. This time, he didn't find the powerful opponent he had encountered the first time, so he fought with great exhilaration but wasn't fully satisfied.
"Beep beep beep beep beep."
Gear Kid: Little ones, I'm back!
The castellan robots, who received Gear Kid's message, replied one after another in the communication network:
"Dad, mighty! Dad, domineering! Dad, invincible!"
"Dad, when will the Wise One upgrade our bodies too? I want to get bigger!"
"Me too."
"The Wise One is biased. I was manufactured first, why don't I get upgraded first?"
"Yeah, yeah."
"Because the Wise One didn't spill the drink on your core processor," one of the five Titans replied.
If Gamma were here and heard the castellan robot's words, he would definitely curse them for daydreaming. Want to all upgrade? Do materials cost no money? Don't they know that the rare metals in the Wise One's treasury have been emptied?
Gear Kid, revered by his sons, felt a sense of joy rise within his machine spirit. He admired his boss so much for helping him have so many sons who could talk to him.
The current Gear Kid was no longer the old Gear Kid. Under Gamma's urging, he had passively completed his evolution and become smarter. Originally, he only wanted to crush all the annoying scum. Now, he had learned to use tools. He wanted to use the 'Spiral Lance' that his boss helped him build to stab all the annoying scum to death.
The Titan body gave Gear Kid a broader field of vision. Becoming 'smart', he could now recognize people by face. After spotting Ventris on the city wall, Gear Kid remembered that he and Ventris had teamed up to deal with a very formidable opponent. They were acquaintances, so he raised the Spiral Lance in his hand towards the acquaintance.
This was what his boss taught him: greet acquaintances.
When Ventris saw the leading Titan's gesture and then the large drill-like spear in its hand, he felt as if he had seen it before.
Outside a room adorned with mysterious psychic symbols on an Ultramarines battle barge, Chapter Master Calgar waited quietly. He was awaiting news, news that could change the tide of battle and end the Gorgon prophecy.
As time passed, even Calgar grew restless, beginning to pace back and forth.
"It's done."
With a voice so weak it was barely a whisper coming from within the room, Calgar pushed open the sealed door.
"Varo, are you alright?"
The voice of the Ultramarines Chapter Master, who in others' eyes was as steady as a mountain, carried worry and urgency. Seated in the center of the array, the Ultramarines' Chief Librarian, Varo Tigurius, was pale but shook his head with a resolute expression.
Any psychic who understood prophecy, upon seeing the dead Tyranid Hive Brain in the center of the array, would understand why the powerful Chief Librarian was so weak. He had actively connected to the Hive Mind using the Hive Brain as a medium, in order to obtain the information he sought.
For psychics, contact with the Hive Mind meant madness and death. Psychics capable of enduring the Hive Mind's terrifying psychic power existed only in theory, or rather, the Hive Mind itself already completely transcended the range a psychic could withstand.
But nothing is absolute. The Ultramarines' Chief Librarian, Varo Tigurius, had previously established some form of connection with the Hive Mind while fully lucid, allowing him to make astonishing predictions about Tyranid swarm movements.
This might be because he himself possessed prophetic talent beyond that of ordinary psychics, but his high accuracy and frequency regarding the Great Devourer seemed to prove that he was already able to utilize the Hive Mind.
Of course, every active contact with the Hive Mind, even for Varo, was a gamble with his life. Fortunately, this time he had won again.
"I have found the Norn Queen's location. Once I recover, we can go and end her!"
As Varo spoke, Calgar clearly saw his blood-stained teeth. He could imagine how bloody his brother must be beneath his armor.
"Good, the last time you and I fought together was over 60 years ago."
The Ultramarines Chapter Master did not refuse. He understood that this was Varo's will, and to ensure the plan was foolproof, they also needed Varo to guide them.
Varo then asked about other matters; he needed to use this method to shake off and suppress the lingering influence of the Hive Mind in his soul. "How are Kosa and Ventris doing?"
Calgar burst into laughter upon hearing this: "Although he broke his neck, it doesn't affect his continued loyalty to His Majesty. Kosa has Titans and Tech-Guard supported by Gamma, so he's lacking in offense but strong in defense. No need to worry."
"Haha, it seems a lot has happened during the time I was prophesying. But I suggest you wear your helmet this time."
As the two chatted back and forth, the Chief Librarian slowly regained his composure, and the terrifying shadow in his mind gradually faded. Varo's body, which had been numb with fear, finally regained sensation. Even breathing felt difficult and weak, and pain, like countless tiny blades cutting through his body with his blood flow, surged into his brain.
"Hmph!" Varo couldn't help but let out a painful groan.
Calgar looked at Varo with concern. The other merely shook his head weakly. The Ultramarines Chapter Master said nothing, then got up and left. Calgar had seen such scenes before; he understood that his brother had passed the danger period and escaped the psychic influence of the Gorgon Hive Mind. Varo's primaris body would help him recover.
After leaving the secret chamber where Varo performed the psychic ritual, Calgar hurried to find Grand Inquisitor Gayss and inform him of the result. After combining it with the observed routes of Gorgon's biomass recovery, they both believed Varo's prophecy was highly accurate, which greatly boosted their spirits.
"Now the only problem standing before us is how to break through the Tyranid ships guarding the Hive Ship."
"Only if things get chaotic will we have a chance."
Meanwhile, a figure was secretly observing Kosa Fortress. This was a Hive Tyrant. If anyone stood before the Tyrant, they would see that its eyes were filled with hatred.
Destroy! Annoying metal scrap!
It was the Hive Tyrant killed by Little White. As a direct implementer of the Hive Mind, the Tyrant adopted the Norn Queen's mate's thinking, serving as a repository for the collective consciousness of the Hive Fleet, making them both an embodiment of the Hive Mind and not weakening the Hive Mind due to death or other reasons.
Even if killed on the battlefield, the Hive Mind could cultivate a replacement body, copying the knowledge, personality, and experience previously stored in the gestalt, making each Hive Tyrant an almost immortal being. No matter how many times its physical body was killed, it would always return to continue devouring its prey.
The returned Hive Tyrant was granted greater power by the Hive Mind. It was no longer appropriate to call it a 'Tyrant'; it was a monster created by the Gorgon Hive Mind after realizing it could not overwhelm Kosa Fortress by sheer numbers or tactical adjustments. It was a 'Hive Overlord' capable of dealing with this mess, in the eyes of the Hive Mind, with absolute power.
Although it possessed greater power, the cunning nature of this Hive Overlord prevented it from charging in recklessly. It would wait until the enemy was complacent before using its trump card to complete the hunt it failed last time.
Gamma, unaware that the decisive battle was imminent, was currently experimenting with the armor plating collected from a small Tyranid living battleship with the Tech-priest. He had intended to do this after the war, but Gamma underestimated the duration of the naval battle.
His butt was getting hemorrhoids from sitting on the mechanical throne, and the battle situation had not progressed or changed. So far, in terms of damage, the Tyranids were at an absolute disadvantage; the number of Gorgon's destroyed bio-ships was several times that of the allied fleet's lost warships.
However, the Tyranids could drag these dead living warships back for recycling, while the allied fleet's ships were one less with each one destroyed.
Overall, they were still at a disadvantage.
Gamma, as a high-ranking member of the allied forces, knew that the allies never intended to defeat Gorgon by head-on confrontation. Everything done so far was to kill the leader of the Hive Fleet.
So he simply became a hands-off manager, letting the frigates in the Gear Fleet leave the main force to collect experimental samples from destroyed Tyranid bio-ships and send them over, then he plunged into the laboratory.
"Gamma, you see, the Titan Star's ion weapons are completely ineffective."
"I saw it, try the laser weapon again."
Gamma's eyebrows furrowed as he watched the laser weapon also fail to leave any marks on the carapace. Although he had heard of this situation before,
It felt completely different to see it with his own eyes than to merely hear about it.
Seeing Gamma frown, Jacob, who stood beside him, asked, "What's wrong, Gamma?"
"Whew, I'm thinking, although the characteristics of the six known major Tyranid fleets are different, there have indeed been instances of Tyranids devouring each other. Tyranids are engaging in genetic exchange in this way, which means that in the future, Tyranids with multiple characteristics may appear. How difficult will they be to deal with then!"
Jacob nodded upon hearing this and said, "Indeed, as you say, but I don't think you need to worry about it now. No one knows what the future holds. Haven't you noticed that you've been frowning more and more since you joined the allied fleet?"
"Have I?"
"It's just that you haven't noticed it yourself; we've all seen it. I don't know how to persuade you, but do you remember what you once advised me?"
Gamma couldn't immediately recall what he had said to Jacob. Seeing Gamma's expression, Jacob didn't keep him guessing and continued:
"I was in great pain then because the temple also used living people for starch. You advised me then, saying, 'The misfortune of those people was not caused by us, and the good fortune of the people here is the reward of our efforts. So Jacob, you can sympathize with them, but don't keep the pain to yourself.'"
"What I'm telling you now is that you are indeed extraordinarily talented, but don't be overly troubled by things in the distant future. In this way, aren't you just keeping the pain to yourself?"
Gamma looked into Jacob's eyes, his mind swirling. Indeed, as Jacob said, his initial purpose in forming the exploration fleet was to travel around, see creatures he hadn't seen, taste food he hadn't eaten, secretly learn technologies he hadn't learned, and appreciate beautiful scenery he hadn't seen.
He had originally intended to travel happily with a ship full of Tech-priest, but after only a few years out, how did he start to become worried about the nation and its people? Now he was constantly considering galaxy-level matters.
Thinking of this, the little Tech-Priest shivered, then exclaimed, "I need to stay away from the Ultramarines from now on. I've been affected by their workaholic aura! Bah! Bah! Bah!"
Gamma spat and patted his robe, as if to shake off the 'bad luck' that had clung to him. He had already decided: after defeating Gorgon, he would run, run far, far away.
Paul and Edd, holding the test report, came over and saw Gamma like this, feeling completely bewildered. They asked curiously,
"Jacob, what's this?"
"Uh—I don't know either."
Seeing the test report in Edd and their hands, Gamma stopped his actions and asked, "What's the result?"
"As you guessed, the surface of these carapaces has a special substance, and its molecular structure is something we have never seen before," Paul answered truthfully.
"Hmm, good stuff. If we can achieve industrialized mass production and turn this into a coating, we'll be rich! Mars will have to buy from us too," Gamma said, his eyes gleaming.
Jacob smiled. He hadn't seen Gamma like this in a long time. The young scion of the Omnissiah was always troubled by worldly problems; it was truly a great sin.
"What wealth?" Leia, who had run over at some point, asked with a greedy look, clutching a pulse rifle.
The little Tech-Priest glanced at the greedy Tech-priest Girl and said grumpily, "Don't worry, I'll definitely leave you some. But if you want a bigger share in the future, you'll have to put your current research aside."
Then he said to Jacob and the others, "You too. Gather everyone in the fleet who isn't busy. Let's tackle this together. In the future, I will distribute profits according to contribution."
Upon hearing Gamma's words, Jacob and the others immediately smiled with excitement, eager to organize their personnel.
The Gear Fleet's major project, the Grand Paint King Plan, was forced to halt shortly after its launch because the United Fleet had to change tactics for a decisive battle with Gorgon.
Gamma felt a bit helpless after receiving the battle plan from Chapter Master Calgar.
"What does it mean to divide forces and fight independently, disrupting Tyranid deployment to create opportunities for boarding the Hive Ship?"
As the former pirate leader with the highest military literacy in the Gear Fleet, he, despite his gaunt face, explained to the helpless Tech-priest: "The Commander's intention is to scatter the ships of the United Fleet, using guerrilla tactics to harass Gorgon, stirring up the waters, and forcing the Gorgon Hive Fleet to reveal weaknesses through frequent movements."
"But is this method reliable? Without mutual cover from the fleet, isn't the danger very high!"
Gamma's concern was not unfounded; although Tyranid ships have short range, they are by no means slow. Frigates like the Tyranid Siren and the Drone are incredibly fast.
Once they latch on and damage the power system, without friendly forces providing support, being caught by other Tyranid ships means certain death.
With friendly forces present, even without gravity tethers for towing, they can provide cover, buying time for the damaged ship to clear its malfunctions.
"For Gorgon to act, we must give it an opportunity."
"..."
?
It was the most detested part again—sacrifice. Gamma pursed his lips and said nothing. He had come to understand that he lacked the ability to change everything yet.
He would focus on himself before trying to manage others.
"What are your opinions?" Gamma asked the others.
"Chapter Master Calgar's intention is for us to stay as far away from the battlefield as possible. How about we follow his arrangements?"
Gamma immediately rejected this suggestion: "I refuse to be a deserter! Besides, our ships are the fastest. What do we have to fear!"
After a moment of thought, Magos Lauster said, "Then why don't we use our speed advantage to support other warships? If we find any ship damaged, we can initiate rescue operations while ensuring our own safety."
"Captain, what do you think?" Gamma asked.
The human-modified Captain, much smarter than his former self, quickly simulated various possible scenarios in his mind before speaking:
"Magos Lauster's suggestion is entirely feasible, but it requires the two supply ships in the fleet to leave. They will drag down our speed."
"Good! Let's do it!" Gamma decided.
As time passed, prepared ships detached from the fleet one after another. Some large warships left with several smaller frigates, while others departed alone.
After replenishing supplies from the supply ships, the Gear Fleet also left the United Fleet. They headed towards the outer reaches of the star system. Just as they were about to leave the Kosa Star System, the Gear Boy and its escort frigates stopped, while the two supply ships continued deeper into space.
With the augury arrays fully activated and the Veil of the Empyrean also opened, hiding the gear boy and the frigates, Gamma wasn't sure if his Veil of the Empyrean would work against the Tyranids, as no one knew how Tyranid bio-ships detected targets.
As the space battle situation changed, the war on Kosa also shifted.
"Report! Tyranid Bio-Titans detected!"
Hearing the alarm from the frantic communications officer who burst into the command center, everyone's heart tightened. Since engaging Gorgon, this was the first time the Tyranids had deployed Titan units.
Ventris calmly asked, "Quantity? Distance?"
"Currently, six detected, 50 kilometers away."
A general with a missing arm cursed, "What the hell are you doing?! They're right under our noses, and you're just discovering them now!"
"They suddenly emerged from underground, we..."
"Stop—"
"Alright!" Ventris stopped the two. The Titans had appeared; arguing wouldn't solve the problem.
One after another, battle orders were issued, causing Commanders to leave the command center. Severely understaffed, they now had to have high-ranking Commanders personally direct operations, otherwise, they couldn't even establish a command system.
After most people had left, only Ventris and the Ultramarines protecting him remained in the command post. At this point, one of the Astartes said:
'Brother Ventris, I believe there might be more Tyranid Titans.'
"I know. The Tyranids are clearly prepared this time, planning to defeat us in one fell swoop. It seems the Hive Tyrant killed last time has returned; I can feel it."
"What do you think are our chances of holding out this time?"
"I don't know. You should understand that we are not the key in this war." Ventris said, looking towards the outside of the fortress.
The Titans and castellan robots, who had been fighting outside the fortress, detected the presence of the Bio-Titans the moment they appeared, and they made corresponding adjustments.
The powerful enemy ignited the fighting spirit of these rebellious machine spirits, who were averse to learning and only thought of battle. They planned to clear the field and then have a good fight with the Bio-Titans.
Weapons that Gamma had repeatedly forbidden to use unless absolutely necessary were gleefully picked up by the castellan robots. Green clouds of mist expanded exponentially across the battlefield outside the fortress, incinerating everything in their path.
This was phosphor weaponry, a weapon so cruel and destructive that Tech-priest were shocked by it. They would rather be branded as heretics and burned at the stake than destroy the last STC fragment that produced it, to prevent the Imperium from ever using phosphor weapons.
This event occurred at the beginning of M40, causing quite a stir within the Adeptus Mechanicus. Since then, phosphor weapons became a dwindling, discontinued weapon. Many Space Marine Chapters locked them away in their armories, as a last resort.
Green flames, following the rapidly expanding mist, spread across the battlefield. Tyranid beasts were first enveloped by the mist, then became burning torches.
The humans and Titan Star residents stationed on the city walls watched in horror as the "crawling death flames" spread across the ground outside. They noticed these flames were "alive," "chasing" fleeing prey.
"What is this?" a military officer muttered to himself.
A Tech-Priest, equally lost in thought while observing everything, heard the officer's question and replied:
"Living fire, crawling death, ice fire. It can ignite water, burn through hard rock, adamantium, and ceramite. It's attracted to moving objects and has a burning temperature below zero degrees."
(Burning Terminator)
Ventris and the Commanders who had arrived were all too shocked to speak, having never witnessed the large-scale use of phosphor weapons before.
"I once read in the Chapter's library that even during the Great Crusade, this weapon was only deployed in the most extreme circumstances, and only the highest Commander of a Legion had the authority to order its use."
"Such a thing exists? This time has certainly opened my eyes."
"Is there a more extreme situation than what we're in now?"
"Indeed."
Ventris, who had been silent, spoke to everyone: "The flames can only hold back the Tyranids for a while; we cannot relax our vigilance."
"Yes!"
Just as Ventris said, the amount of phosphors carried by the castellan robots was ultimately limited. The "living fire" that had scorched the battlefield white eventually died down.
The Tyranid beasts, which had originally feared the flames and stayed outside the burning range, resumed their attack after the flames disappeared. However, this time, several exceptionally large Tyranid organisms caught everyone's attention.
(Tyranid Bio-Titan - Worm Saint)
As the largest known life forms in the Gorgon Hive Fleet, these Worm Saints stood at the forefront of the attack, advancing with large strides.
The fortress defenders, once the Worm Saints entered the range of the heavy defensive cannons, continuously fired upon them. This action was reasonable, but it played right into the Hive Mind's hands. Their thick carapaces and Tyranid bio-energy shields gave the Worm Saints excellent defense. They were created by the Hive Mind precisely to draw fire away from lower-tier Tyranid organisms.
Under the cover of the Tyranid Bio-Titans, a massive swarm of Tyranid organisms surged towards the Human Titans and castellan robots standing on the fortress grounds.
"Why aren't the castellan robots and Titans attacking!?" someone who noticed the anomaly exclaimed, pointing outside the fortress.
The shouts drew the attention of those captivated by the Worm Saints. Everyone immediately grew tense upon seeing the motionless castellan robots and Titans.
"Are the castellan robots malfunctioning? Or have the Tyranids used some unknown means to interfere with them?"
"Impossible. If they were affected, why wouldn't we notice any abnormalities?"
"There must be a reason why the Titans aren't moving either."
The sudden change threw the Commanders into disarray. Their plans were all based on the premise of assistance from castellan robots and Titans; without them, the defense line wouldn't last even fifteen minutes.
"Calm down! Look closely!" Ventris roared.
Those who heard Ventris's reminder snapped out of their panic. After steadying themselves and carefully observing the situation on the battlefield, they noticed something unusual—why had the Tyranids all become weak-kneed?
The Knife Worms and Gun Worms following the Worm Saints initially looked strong and vigorous, but after only a short distance, they began to shake uncontrollably, as if afflicted with Parkinson's.
After a few more steps, many Tyranids collapsed, clearly on their last legs.
"This?"
Those watching the battle from the city walls looked at each other, hoping someone could explain. But phosphor weapons had been out of production for over two thousand years, and the special phosphors that produced the flames were consumables. Even those who knew about phosphor weapons generally only knew part of the story.
If the effect of phosphor weapons was merely that of an enhanced multi-melta, Gamma would not have placed restrictions on the castellan robots' use, nor would Tech-Priest Yard have rather been executed by fire than destroy it. The true horror of this weapon lies in the fact that the residual pollution from phosphor weapons is more persistent than the radiation from nuclear fallout, rendering any place burned by phosphor weapons uninhabitable.
The collapsed Tyranids were unable to withstand tens of thousands of roentgens of radiation. The castellan robots used phosphor weapons precisely so that the "blessing of the Omnissiah" could help them filter out weaker opponents.
Magos Gamma was still unaware that his "bad boys" had already prepared a venue and intended to spar with the Worm Saint. He was currently dragging a ship while fleeing, and fiercely firing torpedoes at the Tyranid ships that were relentlessly pursuing them.
"Magos Gamma, Captain Soton has sent us his thanks and a request for communication."
"Understood. Connect him."
No sooner had he spoken than a projection of a bearded man in a naval uniform appeared. The moment he saw Magos Gamma, the bearded man bowed deeply to the small Tech-Priest and thanked him: "Thank you, Magos Gamma. If it weren't for your timely appearance, we…
Magos Gamma interrupted him, saying in a flat tone, "Captain Soton, let's not be polite and waste time. What is the current situation with your ship?"
"We are currently troubleshooting the engine."
"Hmm, how is the internal Tyranid boarding party being cleared? Do you need my assistance?"
For the first time in his life, the bearded man encountered such a warm-hearted Tech-Priest as Magos Gamma, and he was so moved that he could barely speak.
"Thank you very much for your concern. We can handle the Tyranid situation ourselves; there's no need to trouble you."
Magos Gamma nodded upon hearing this and continued, "Good. Once we shake off the Tyranid pursuit, I will tow you to a safer area on the outskirts of the Kosa Star System. However, you must quickly regain your mobility. I cannot stay and guard you; there are others who need help."
"Understood. It is already a blessing from the Emperor to have survived; we dare not ask for more."
After the call ended, Magos Gamma ordered the enhanced braking thrusters to be activated. While the multi-maneuver thrusters consumed a lot of energy, their performance was impressive. Even while dragging a completely powerless ship, the Tyranids could only watch as the Gear Boy sped further and further away.
Magos Gamma, having saved another ship full of lives, felt a great sense of accomplishment. His "field medic" career was becoming more and more invigorating.
The entire Kosa Star System could now be described as "Chaos! Utter chaos! The whole of Northwest Jin is a mess." Humans and Titan Star people were in disarray, and the Tyranids were also in disarray. After Calgar's series of "wild punches," even the experienced Tyranid master was struggling to cope.
Large Tyranid warships began to appear again. Magos Gamma, during his rescue efforts, conveniently dispatched several of them. He had hoped that Gorgon would drag back the Tyranid fleet "poisoned" by nanomachines, which would have allowed him to trick Gorgon. Unfortunately, the Hive Mind saw through his scheme and refused to touch any poisoned food, which greatly disappointed Magos Gamma, who cursed Gorgon as being "cunning, cunning indeed."
After towing Soton and his ship to a safe area, Magos Gamma immediately headed towards the nearest distress signal. However, by the time he arrived, the ship sending the distress signal had only its bridge left unbreached.
"Magos Gamma, thank you for coming. It seems today is the day I return to the Throne. I would like to request that after we fall in battle, you destroy this ship along with the Tyranids."
Magos Gamma looked at the calm captain and the crew standing behind him, and silently nodded.
"Thank you very much."
After saying this, Magos Gamma saw the captain turn to the soldiers behind him and say:
"My soldiers, my comrades, the blood of martyrs is the spark of the Empire! Only death ends duty!"
"Tell me, are we dead yet?"
"No!" × N
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"I fear not death, I fear not daemon, for the Emperor comes to claim me."
"I fear not death, I fear not daemon, for the Emperor comes to claim me." × N
The Gear Boy departed, leaving behind only a monument to humanity.
As time passed, the chaotic battle in the Kosa Star System intensified. Even Magos Gamma himself encountered several close calls; if he hadn't been fast, he would have been surrounded by Tyranid bio-ships.
Even with Magos Gamma's full rescue efforts, nearly half of the United Fleet's ships had been lost. Many were lucky to be saved once by Magos Gamma, but it was only once; fate did not favor them a second time.
Gorgon also suffered heavy losses, but in the eyes of the Hive Mind, except for a small number of ships poisoned by Magos Gamma, all were recoverable biomass, and victory would ultimately be its.
Just as Gorgon felt certain of victory, two specially modified spacecraft inserted themselves into the gaps in the Hive Fleet's defenses at extremely high speed, heading straight for the Hive Mind.
Upon discovering the approaching threat, the Hive Mind immediately ordered nearby Tyranid ships to intercept, but it was too late.
Seeing this, Gorgon immediately ordered the Warrior-type drones, which had been guarding the Hive Mind, to meet them. These Warrior drones varied in size and shape, but their sole purpose was to protect the Norn Queen and the Hive Mind.
Facing swarms of Tyranids, the "blades" carrying the hope of victory showed no fear. With a fearless posture, they disregarded the oncoming Tyranids, ignoring their attacks and existence, and plunged themselves into the spore cloud surrounding the Hive Mind.
Although the Tyranid defensive spore cloud could decompose and consume matter and energy, it needed time. This time was very short, but for the Allied Forces, it was enough.
The spacecraft, reinforced in structure and speed, pierced the Hive Mind's body like two daggers. The warriors, who had been waiting for a long time, unfastened their cushioning equipment and rushed to the rendezvous point at the fastest possible speed.
Even if they encountered injured or fallen comrades due to the impact along the way, they did not stop for a single moment. They knew that the Tyranids would not give them much time, and any hesitation now would only lead to greater sacrifices.
The boarding parties, using the ships as their carriers, had no other choice; a full-scale, unreserved assault was the only thing they could do.
"Varo guides our way!" Calgar punched and shattered an oncoming Tyranid beast. Psionic light flickered in the chief strategist's eyes as he manipulated lightning and flames to clear obstacles for his brothers, charging at the very front. This strategist, who was always mysterious in the eyes of others, now shed the "silence" that cloaked him, replaced by the innate vitality of a warrior.
Incredibly, figures in Tau Empire battlesuits were also interspersed among the Astartes. Even the Astartes, who intensely hated xenos, had to admit that without the fire support of these xeno battlesuits, their battle would be much more difficult, but this did not mean they could easily win.
The Hive Mind was incredibly massive. As the core and heart of the Hive Fleet, it not only served as a node for the Hive Mind to command the surrounding Tyranid swarm but also as a gigantic mobile factory.
Tens of thousands of Tyranid constructs or slaves belonging to the Hive Mind filled the flesh corridors, used to maintain the operation of the Hive Mind's huge vital organs. Now, these slaves, under the command of the Norn Queen, charged selflessly towards the "assassins" who dared to attack the Queen!
As the embodiment of the Hive Mind, the Norn Queen was the leader of the Hive Fleet and also a master geneticist. From the smallest microbial spores to the largest Hive Mind ships, all Tyranid life came from the Queen's hand. Without her guidance, the swarms would collapse, wither, and die.
Now that the Queen's safety was threatened, the Tyranids' frenzy was unimaginable. All Tyranid warships in the Kosa Star System simultaneously turned around, abandoning their prey without hesitation, even when it was at their mouths.
Stop them! Block them!
This was the common thought and belief of everyone. The Tyranids returned to defend with all their might, regardless of the cost, and humans and Titan Star people likewise exerted all their effort to prevent the Tyranids from returning, regardless of the cost.
"Fire all weapons! Fire everything!"
Magos Gamma no longer cared if Magos Lauster was nearby. He stood on his mechanical throne, roaring out orders. If one were to zoom out and enlarge the view, they would see the Gear Boy chasing a group of Tyranid bio-ships, firing at their rear.
"Nova Cannon! Bring out my Nova Cannon! Blast them to death!"
"Uh—Magos Gamma, if we use the Nova Cannon now, we will also be affected!" the Tech-Priest in charge of the Nova Cannon reminded him.
But the excited little Tech-Priest didn't care, blurting out: "Fire! Do you look down on the shields I designed!?"
"...Yes."
The Nova Cannon Tech-Priest glanced at Magos Lauster. Magos Lauster, who had been acting like a wooden dummy, nodded almost imperceptibly. The Nova Cannon Tech-Priest immediately understood and began preparing the Nova Cannon.
Magos Gamma was very excited, and so was Little White, his top subordinate. He was charging forward with his spiral greatgun at the Tyranid Worm Saint, who was a head taller than him, attacking with incredible ferocity.
The Worm Saint's bio-cannon sprayed out a large number of corrosive maggots, but Magos Gamma had already equipped Little White, this "reckless man," with all the various shields he possessed. Trying to injure Little White in this way was simply a pipe dream.
These insects, which would splatter biological acid and toxins upon impact, capable of melting plastisteel, concrete, flesh, and bone into a bubbling slime in a few seconds, made no waves whatsoever, and had no effect on Little White's headlong charge.
The Worm Saint's spiny tendrils on its abdomen still tried to entangle the approaching Little White, but the gun is the king of all weapons, an inch longer is an inch stronger. Before the tendrils could even touch Little White's body, the spiral greatgun's rotating head, flashing with blue and red light, had already plunged into the Worm Saint's brain.
Beep beep beep beep!
Eat my Spiral Force!
After dealing with his opponent, the unsatisfied Little White intended to go help his "sons," but as soon as he tried to move, he was stopped by his sons. This made Little White very unhappy; he felt that having too many sons was not a good thing, and sons who snatched opponents from their father were not good sons.
Ventris and the others, who had witnessed every frame of Little White stabbing the Worm Saint to death, fell into a deathly silence. The Titan Star people also watching from the city wall were the same; both the Fire Caste and Earth Caste were doubting whether their own weapon design philosophy needed to "regress" a bit.
"So strong!" Finally, someone couldn't help but blurt out two words.
While Xiaobai's performance startled the defenders, it also scared the Hive Lord, who was preparing to jump out again to "harvest" fear, back into hiding. It had died by that spear last time and absolutely could not repeat the same mistake.
It still needed to be planned out!
The cunning Hive Lord thought so; the emotion of cowardice could never appear in it—
Compared to the reckless Xiaobai, his four Titan sons fought much more "disciplined." At least they knew to first exchange blows with the Worm Saint, follow the normal procedure of a Titan duel, and then draw their blades to attack.
Relying on flexible movement and exquisite moves, they first cut off the Worm Saint's "thin legs" to make "worms," then chopped off its head with a single sword, and finally, didn't forget to perform a sword flourish to show off, which was much more aesthetically pleasing than their father's fighting style.
The Ultramarines observing the battle felt that the sword moves used by the Titans were very familiar. Wasn't this their Ultramarines' "secret, never-before-seen" Chapter sword technique?! Who sold it to Magos Gamma?
Ventris, under the gaze of his brothers, looked a bit bewildered. It really wasn't him who sold it.
The Ultramarines wouldn't know that the unruly machine spirits, who disliked "cultural studies," would only actively learn how to kill people.
If Gamma didn't teach them, they would self-learn using the video records Ventris left during his work. Gamma often scolded them for being unlearned, but the delinquents' enthusiasm remained high.
As for the remaining one of the six Worm Saints, its encounter was also not very pleasant. Although it had heavy armor and bio-shields, its opponents were thousands of castellan robots armed to the teeth with various relic-grade weapons.
Although it was three times taller than the castellan robots, it couldn't withstand the castellan robots' unscrupulous group assault. These unscrupulous castellan robots took turns using gravity weapons to pin it firmly to the ground, preventing it from moving, and then used various weapons to relentlessly attack it in different ways.
It lived the longest and died the most miserably.
A crisis that could have destroyed the fortress was thus resolved, leaving the defenders, who were prepared to fight the Tyranids to the death, both relieved to have survived and frustrated at having swung a punch into thin air.
In contrast to the situation on Kosa, the attacks of the two boarding parties led by Calgar and Ying Yang were met with obstacles. They had split into two routes, originally intending to make the Norn Queen unable to attend to both, but the number of Tyranid organisms in the Hive Mother Ship far exceeded their expectations. The swarm continuously pouring out of the flesh corridors was less a force sent by the Norn Queen to block them and more like "building materials" used to clog the passages.
Calgar's face was grim as he looked at the passage, largely blocked by Tyranid flesh. He mentally rehearsed various outcomes, and a moment later, made a decision.
"Deploy the mecha! Have them clear a path for us!"
Varo heard Calgar's order and said, "Are we exposing our trump card now? This will give the Noon Queen advance warning!"
"There's no time. As long as our speed is fast enough, it doesn't matter even if she knows."
"Understood."
As Calgar's order was relayed, the armors, which had been waiting at the rear of the formation, quickly rushed to the front, revealing for the first time in actual combat the fangs Gamma had equipped them with.
No longer concealing its strength, the mecha, with just one blow, swept away Tyranids within half a football field, whether dead or alive. All the creatures' bodies turned to dust. Under the continuous assault of heavy rapid-fire cannons, fusion cannons, and cluster pulse cannons, the previously congested passage was cleared.
Witnessing this scene, everyone present, except for a few who knew the inside story, was greatly astonished. They had always heard that the mecha had fierce firepower, but they had not expected it to be so fierce, unreasonably fierce.
The most astonished were the Titan Star people accompanying the humans. They had maintained a high degree of attention on the human "battlesuits" and had made predictions about their performance, but the mecha's mobility and firepower, when fully unleashed, far exceeded their expectations.
Reality did not leave the boarding party time to be surprised; they had to race against time to attack the core of the Hive Mother Ship, where the Noon Queen was located, before she could react.
Everything happening within the Hive Mother Ship naturally could not escape the Norn Queen's eyes. The sudden eruption of the mecha indeed caught her off guard, which forced the Noon Queen to make the still-developing Tyranid Warbeasts prematurely break out of their cocoons to buy her more time.
When the first underdeveloped Brainworm appeared before the boarding party, Calgar knew he had made the right gamble. The Noon Queen's deployment had been disrupted, and the tide of battle was turning in their favor.
The grotesque creature, with a massive head and slender body, floating in mid-air, was met with a saturation strike the moment it appeared. However, the enormous, exaggerated brain inside the Brainworm's huge head was filled with powerful psychic energy bestowed by the Hive Mind. A psychic shield protected it from being instantly killed.
But while the psychic energy protected the Brainworm, it also killed it. The cost of a Brainworm, which was not fully developed, using its psychic power to its fullest was to overload into "roasted brain flower." The high pressure generated by its boiling brain directly burst the Brainworm's skull, killing it instantly, and it was shattered into pieces before it even hit the ground.
(Uh, this appearance)
With the appearance of the Brainworm, the situation became even more complicated, forcing Calgar and his team to slow down their attack to deal with the diverse and complex abilities of the Tyranid Warbeasts.
The Norn Queen keenly observed the boarding party's weakness: they were an isolated force without reinforcements or supplies. Every loss meant a reduction in their strength.
Especially after a group of Von Ryan's Leapers appeared, in order to slaughter these cunning Tyranid organisms that jumped around with extremely long leaps, like Space Marine assault squads equipped with jump packs, Calgar had to reconsider his tactics.
"Varo, the Noon Queen wants to use a bleeding tactic to weaken our strength. I'm worried that if this continues, even if we reach her, we might not have enough strength to kill her."
Upon hearing Calgar's thoughts, the Chief Librarian closed his eyes as if sensing something. After a while, he spoke, "I feel the Noon Queen's position has changed. She is moving towards a narrow section of the passage."
"She wants to use the terrain to restrict the mecha!"
"Exactly. In that case, we must conserve our strength before we see the Noon Queen. The last stretch of the path, we can only rely on ourselves!"
Calgar's eyes flickered for a moment, then he waved to a Titan Star person standing nearby, calling him over.
"Where is Ying Yang's position now?"
Hearing Calgar's question, the Titan Star person did not hesitate, opening a projection and pointing to the red dot on it, saying, "Here, a straight distance of 2 kilometers."
"Brother Varo, I need you to bring the other force over. Now, only by combining our forces can we reduce losses and concentrate our strength."
"Alright."
"I will dispatch two mechas to clear the way for you. Be quick! And pay attention to safety!"
"Understood, I'm leaving now."
After Varo left, Calgar ordered the troops to stop advancing. He knew this would cause the hard-won advantage to disappear, but without doing so, the hope of victory would be even smaller.
Calgar's choice could not be said to be right, nor could it be said to be wrong. He needed to concentrate his forces, and the Noon Queen needed time for her children to fully mature.
The Noon Queen can produce Tyranids through different birthing methods. To ensure maximum reproductive capacity, most Tyranid organisms are born as weak and ugly eggs or larvae, requiring further cultivation before maturity.
Embryos hang like fruit on massive umbilical cords, with biomass stored within the Hive Mother Ship pumped into them by worm-like umbilical cords. The Norn Queen can control whether Tyranid Warbeasts hibernate or accelerate their growth by regulating the amount of biomass fed.
The brief calm was a signal for the decisive battle. If they couldn't kill the Norn Queen before the Tyranid fleet returned to reinforce, the fate awaiting everyone in the boarding party would be to be swallowed by an endless swarm. Killing her and destroying the apex of the Hive Mind's pyramidal consciousness would allow them to exploit the confusion of the Hive Fleet to completely end Gorgon.
Every minute and second of waiting felt exceptionally long, even for Calgar, who had experienced countless life-and-death situations, could not help but feel tormented.
As one of the Imperium of Man's most powerful psykers, Varo's power, combined with the assistance of the mecha, meant that the scattered Tyranid organisms posed no obstacle to them.
But finding a suitable path through the twisted and winding corridors of the Hive Mother Ship was no easy feat!
Fortunately, the Chief Librarian's powerful precognitive abilities played a decisive role at this moment. The two boarding parties successfully rendezvoused, and Ying Yang, clad in his XV46 "Vanguard" battlesuit, immediately exchanged information about their respective situations with Calgar.
(XV46 "Vanguard" battlesuit)
Upon understanding the situation they were about to face, Ying Yang did not hesitate, decisively relinquishing command. There cannot be two voices in an army fighting with their backs to the wall.
Calgar felt a sense of admiration for Ying Yang's decisiveness. He admitted he couldn't have done the same.
The Ultramarines Chapter Master, now in command, quickly adjusted personnel assignments. The lines between humans and Titan Star people blurred, and no one objected to this. They had all understood from previous battles that only by combining the close-combat prowess of the Space Marine with the powerful firepower of the Titan Star people could their strength be maximized.
Once everything was ready, the countdown to destiny began!
This time, what stood before them were no longer underdeveloped Tyranid Warbeasts and slave drones, but fully mature Tyranid organisms, forced to ripen by the Norn Queen at any cost.
Swarms of Brainworms wantonly wielded their psychic powers, while Zoanthropes helped the Brainworms draw off uncontrolled psychic energy beside them,
Preventing psychic overload from cooking their brains, the surging psychic energy surged towards the combined forces like a raging tide.
Hive Guard, covered in anti-artillery carapaces and resembling centaurs clad in heavy armor, used large impaler cannons attached to their forelimbs to continuously fire bone spines capable of easily piercing main battle tanks.
Tyrant Guard, with their eyes covered by sealed carapaces and lacking vision, stood like a wall of chitinous armor,
Blocking incoming attacks for the swarm behind them. They stood motionless, ignoring the hail of bullets bouncing off their bodies.
(Hive Guard)
(Tyrant Guard)
The bronze wall set up by the Norn Queen, if any Astartes Chapter were to attack, would be impossible to breach without heavy casualties, but this time she miscalculated.
The mecha used its equipped void shields to block the bone spines fired by the Hive Guard for the combined forces. Varo and the other Librarians jointly blocked the Brainworms' psychic attacks for the combined forces.
The Tyrant Guard were pierced by metal projectiles fired from electromagnetic pulse cannons, and the Hive Guard were shattered by the mecha's cluster pulse cannons. Even though these ranged attacks were not very effective against the psychic shields released by the Brainworms, the Space Marine, with their all-power weapons, taught the Brainworms a universal truth: melee is sacred!
The combined forces of humans and Titan Star people broke through one barrier after another set by the Norn Queen with overwhelming force.
Just when everyone thought they would continue to slaughter their way to the Hive Queen and kill her, an unexpected event occurred: a massive Mawloc, so large that even the mecha seemed small in comparison, burrowed through the Hive Mother Ship's flesh corridor and burst out from beneath the combined forces' feet.
The combined forces' formation was disrupted, and even more critically, Tyranid Warbeasts continuously poured out of the tunnel left by the Mawloc.
The moment Calgar saw the Mawloc, he understood: this was the Noon Queen's true killer. Offense was the best defense; what came before was merely a disguise to lull them into a false sense of security.
The unexpected ambush, the chaotic battlefield, did not affect the Ultramarines Chapter Master's judgment. He had experienced too many assaults in his life; to defeat him like this was simply a pipe dream.
"Xingtian Squad, block the tunnel!"
Hearing Calgar's command over the comms, the veteran piloting the mecha immediately activated the jump drive on the armor's back, leaping from the front line to directly above the tunnel, unleashing all weapon restrictions, intending to seal the entrance.
But how could the Norn Queen, knowing of the armor's existence, be unprepared? Before the Xingtian could act, it was tackled by a figure bursting from the tunnel. Simultaneously, the other armors were also tackled by Tyranid behemoths that suddenly appeared beside them.
The Lictor, also known as the Noon Herald, is one of the ultimate biological weapons of the swarm. It possesses not only incredible brute strength and psychic power but also the intelligence and knowledge required to carry out decapitation strikes. They use psychic camouflage or pass through solid obstacles to approach their targets almost silently, then launch a sudden attack when the opponent lets down their guard.
If the pilots hadn't possessed centuries of combat experience and combat intuition, avoiding vital points or enacting defenses at the moment of assassination, the battle would have ended at the very beginning.
Even so, the attacked armors all sustained varying degrees of damage, some even losing an arm entirely.
The Noon Herald, having failed its first strike, launched a second one in quick succession. The rapid-fire auto-defense cannons on the armor's back reacted first under the machine spirit's operation, firing specialized ammunition precisely at the Noon Herald's eyes, forcing it to dodge to avoid vision impairment.
This gave the mecha a chance to counterattack. Punches, shoulder charges, headbutts—the pilots instinctively countered, aiming to disrupt the Noon Herald's attack rhythm.
The veterans' counterattacks worked, and the disrupted Noon Herald gave them an opportunity to create distance.
Assassination, counterattack, separation—all of this happened within a mere few seconds.
"Calgar, we're being held back! We must break free from the Norn Queen's calculations, or failure is only a matter of time!"
Ying Yang, having found Calgar, immediately pointed out the crisis facing the coalition forces. Calgar replied, "I understand."
"What's your plan?"
"We have indeed fallen into the Noon Queen's trap, but if her power was enough to overwhelm us, she wouldn't need to use schemes, or resort to such a sudden attack, even at the cost of severe damage to the Hive Mind mothership. This precisely exposes her inherent weakness!"
"You want to divide the forces again?"
Calgar nodded and said, "Leave some people to cover our retreat, and the rest continue the attack!"
"But…"
"Everyone who came here is prepared to die!"
Ying Yang couldn't voice his objections, and Calgar's order was quickly carried out. A heavy price was paid to create an opportunity for the mecha to break free from the Noon Herald's entanglement.
Among the armored squad that disengaged from combat, several individuals with the most severely damaged mechs voluntarily stayed behind, forming a defensive line with some other personnel. With this line as the boundary, the coalition forces, who had been embroiled in a chaotic battle, regrouped behind it and once again launched an offensive towards the Norn Queen.
Upon discovering the coalition forces' intentions, the attacking Tyranids became even more furious, but the "thin" defensive line stubbornly held back the Tyranid assault. Humans and Titan Star people forgot their respective identities; Space Marine would be severely wounded by Tyranids to save an alien, and Titan Star people would directly pilot their battlesuits to launch suicidal attacks on Tyranid beasts to cover humans.
Noon Heralds are indeed powerful and dangerous, but exposed assassins facing warriors who disregard life and death, even with an advantage in numbers and condition, will not gain any advantage. Drivers in damaged mechs ignored the machine spirit's piercing alarms, overloading their reactors, just to squeeze out more energy, allowing their weapons to unleash more firepower, solely to suppress the Noon Heralds and prevent them from getting close.
Those who remained understood that this defensive line could be breached at any moment, but they were willing to extend its existence by even a single second with their lives!
It wasn't just the Tyranids that were going mad; the attacking coalition forces were equally frenzied. Calgar, who had previously calculated casualties and tried to minimize losses, no longer considered such things.
Attack! Keep attacking! Attack at all costs!
The Noon Queen's weakness had been exposed! The coalition forces only needed to win the race against time to secure victory!
When Tyranids reappeared from behind, another group chose to stay and cover the retreat, again and again!
Until the fleshy corridor ahead narrowed, making it impossible for the tall mechs to pass, Calgar knew they were not far from the Noon Queen.
To reach this point, they had lost two-thirds of their personnel, and only one mecha remained.
"I'll leave this to you."
"It is my honor."
"Any words you want me to relay to the other brothers?"
"Hahaha, no. To return to the throne piloting a Knight's Soul is far better than a Dreadnought."
The last Knight guarded the passage behind him alone. He stood there quietly, like a statue.
Looking at the last two heavily wounded Noon Heralds rushing through the swarm, the Ultramarines quipped:
"Well done, I almost fell asleep waiting."
With that, the Knight drew his sword.
The Norn Queen had relocated herself here, using the terrain to limit the coalition forces and gain an advantage. In a narrow passage, only a small number of Tyranid beasts would be enough to create a 'one man holds the pass against ten thousand' effect.
But the Noon Queen miscalculated again. Even without the mecha, the XV46 "Vanguard" battlesuit, designed specifically by the Tau Empire for boarding actions, was equipped with flamethrowers for attacking close-range clustered infantry, burst cannons providing continuous and powerful firepower, and a fusion torch for cutting through any obstacles. All these weapon systems on the battlesuit had high-capacity accumulators and ammunition boxes to support prolonged combat.
The output of airburst fragmentation projectors in narrow spaces like ship corridors could only be described as horrific.
Over-focusing on the large beasts and neglecting the venomous small snakes caused the Norn Queen to make a fatal mistake.
Smashing the head of the last obstructing Tyranid beast, Calgar stepped out of the narrow corridor. What appeared before him was a hall filled with umbilical cords, eggs, hideous larvae, and biomass pools. The Norn Queen was in the center of the hall.
"Finally, we meet!"
Calgar's gaze was on the Noon Queen, but his attention was not on her, but on the two giant beasts standing beside her: one Noon Herald, and another similar to the Noon Herald but with clear differences, lacking a massive brain and having a more robust physique.
If the Noon Herald gave Calgar the impression of a psychic assassin, the newly appeared Tyranid giant beast gave him the impression of a berserker warrior.
The truth was as Calgar had thought: the Hive Mind was never troubled by emotions, but they were conscious entities with thoughts. Although they rarely viewed the stubborn resistance of prey as an isolated incident, they would select the most critical prey targets in a war and determine that "they must be destroyed." For this, the Hive Mind created towering, colossal biological forms—the Noon Herald and the Noon Assimilator.
(Left: Noon Herald, Right: Noon Assimilator)
Their sole purpose was to turn the target chosen by the Hive Mind into a pile of mangled flesh.
The Noon Herald combined physical strength with terrifying psychic abilities, gaining impenetrable defenses and elusive stealth capabilities.
If the Noon Herald was the Norn Queen's personal assassin, then the Noon Assimilator was the Norn Queen's personal bulldozer, born only to flatten everything. It exchanged psychic power for raw, primal strength.
Nearly endless stamina, a pair of toxic barbed talons, and a harpoon cannon in its chest could bind prey in place to prevent escape. Additionally, it had six thick, long, retractable fleshy hooks and four scythe-like claws that could easily tear open armored vehicles, as if those two oversized toxic claws weren't enough.
Two Tyranid bio-knights, a pile of twisted, malformed, undeveloped Tyranid beasts, were the last obstacle. The battle had already begun upon their meeting.
Varo, enveloped in psychic lightning, met the roaring Noon Herald, while Ying Yang and elite battlesuit pilots activated their Vanguard battlesuit jetpacks, flying towards the charging Noon Assimilator.
Calgar led the Space Marine charging into the swarming Tyranids, with the rest of the Titan Star people following closely behind, running and unleashing the powerful firepower from their battlesuits onto the swarm. Their target was the Norn Queen.
The Ultramarines' Chief Librarian chose to face the Tyranid psychic knight alone, not because he was confident he could defeat the monster before him, but because Varo, as a psyker, knew how dangerous psychic power truly was. If he didn't stop it, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Lightning bolts struck the giant beast, but as a psychic shield rose around the Noon Herald, Varo's first strike had no effect.
Before he could make his next move, the Noon Herald rushed towards him with an abnormal and unnatural speed. Its huge scythe-like claw sliced through Varo's body with a whooshing sound, splitting him in two.
The Ultramarines who witnessed this scene were enraged, their eyes wide with disbelief. They couldn't believe that their taciturn Chief Librarian had fallen under the Tyranid's claw just like that.
But the next scene left them even more mistaken: as one Varo fell, ten Varos rose.
Psychic "muggle" would not know that a psyker who cannot create illusions is not a qualified psyker, and for a psychic master like Varo, it was a piece of cake. If it weren't for the oppressive shadow of the Hive Mind, he could fill the hall with illusions with a wave of his hand.
The Chief Librarian naturally wouldn't let go of the opening the Noon Herald revealed. Varo suddenly swung his staff at the opponent. It was an air strike, and the size difference was so immense, yet the Noon Herald reacted as if struck in the head by a heavy hammer, stumbling and almost falling to its knees.
The Staff of Tigurius, a powerful force field artifact. Varo could use it to blast an enemy's soul from their body. If the opponent weren't the Noon Herald, if it weren't a soulless Tyranid beast, the battle would have already ended.
The Chief Librarian had not expected to kill the Noon Herald with a single blow. His goal was to delay the opponent, buying time for Calgar to kill the Noon Queen. Although the purpose was delay, Varo's movements showed no slack. Psychic lightning struck the Noon Herald again.
The Noon Herald let out a painful shriek, and at the same time, a strange mist appeared around it, quickly enveloping it. When the mist dispersed, the Noon Herald's figure mysteriously disappeared.
Varo, hidden within the illusion, closed his eyes. He knew the Noon Herald had used psychic power to conceal itself. If he couldn't find its true form before the Tyranid found him, the Noon Herald's next strike would truly take his life!
On the other side, the scene of Ying Yang leading the elite Fire Warrior squad against the Noon Assimilator was equally heart-stopping. The battle between the "tiny" battlesuits and the colossal monster could only be described as fraught with peril; a slight misstep would result in complete annihilation.
They could only act like birds chasing away a snake invading their nest, using themselves as bait to attract the Noon Assimilator's attention, hoping to buy time for Calgar in this way.
But with the Noon Queen threatened, how could the Noon Assimilator stand by idly? Out of necessity, Ying Yang and his team had to disregard their own safety, using the battlesuits' excellent maneuverability to actively jump into the Assimilator's attack range, even directly leaping onto its body for close-range attacks, because only the fusion torch, which could cut through anything, could make the Assimilator feel threatened.
Feeling its dorsal carapace being cut open, the Noon Assimilator had no choice but to stop. Continuing to allow the "toxic" little bugs would cause it severe damage and incapacitate it.
Its thick tail whipped through the air, striking at the threat behind it. Its venomous hooked claws swung at the stumbling blocks beneath its feet. The harpoon cannon in its chest launched several sharp bone spikes at the annoying pests in the distance, who were constantly attacking its eyes and attempting to disrupt its vision.
Ying Yang issued a dodge command as soon as the Noon Assimilator's running motion changed, but the speed of the Assimilator, which had sacrificed psychic power for physical functions, still exceeded Ying Yang's expectations. Even the Tau Empire's battlesuits, smaller than the Noon Assimilator, were far from this swift.
The Fire Warrior on the monster's back was instantly flung away as soon as he moved. The battlesuit attempting to cut the Noon Assimilator's Achilles tendon beneath its feet didn't even have time to activate its intelligent ejection system or launch its escape pod before it turned into a blaze. Only the personnel responsible for distracting it managed to evade the incoming harpoons by deflecting them with the battlesuits' gravity generators.
"Use photon grenades!"
Hearing Ying Yang's command, the rigorously trained elite Fire Warriors did not panic due to their comrades' sacrifices or the power disparity. They calmly used their launchers to fire photon grenades at the Noon Assimilator at intervals, with each photon grenade's explosion timed to occur just after the previous one's interference effect dissipated.
At the same time, Ying Yang personally piloted her battlesuit, taking advantage of the Noon Assimilator's obstructed vision to precisely land at the gap where its dorsal carapace had been cut open. She dropped a melta bomb and disengaged from the creature before its tail could strike her.
As the melta bomb's countdown ended, invisible microwaves emanated from it, agitating the subatomic particles within the Noon Assimilator's carapace and flesh in the affected area, generating a large amount of heat. The Tyranid giant beast, ignited internally by the melta bomb, let out an ear-splitting shriek.
With the help of Varo and Ying Yang, the swarms of Tyranids blocking Calgar and his forces posed no threat or trouble to them. The premature Tyranids were crushed into meat paste under the Space Marine' steel boots and turned to ash under the Titan Star's artillery fire.
Watching the approaching Calgar, the Noon Queen twisted her body uneasily, her will screaming in the Hive Mind network.
All Tyranid organisms within the entire Gorgon Hive Fleet were frantically rushing towards her location, both within the Hive Mother Ship and in space, and even the Tyranid swarms on Kosa were doing the same.
The threat of death caused even the emotionless Noon Queen to lose her composure.
"Calgar, watch out!"
The Ultramarines Chapter Master's hairs stood on end, and he lunged to the side. A huge scythe claw slashed through where he had just been, leaving a deep gash on Calgar's power armor.
Psionic flames struck the Noon Herald who had ambushed Calgar. The Honor Guard, who had been by Calgar's side protecting him, charged towards the Tyranid behemoth the moment their Chapter Master was in danger.
Though Calgar's appearance was somewhat disheveled after narrowly escaping death by rolling on the ground and getting his face smeared with Tyranid blood, there was no trace of cowardice in his eyes. He stood up and immediately raised the Fist of Ultramar, striking the Noon Herald who was only a foot away.
Power fists are cumbersome and difficult to wield, with very few Astartes choosing to use this weapon, but their power is undeniably immense. The scythe claw struck by Calgar snapped, and the bio-field surrounding the scythe claw had no effect against this weapon, which Primarch Guilliman had taken from a Chaos Champion.
"Don't mind me! Keep attacking!" Calgar dodged the Tyranid's tail whip and roared at those who wanted to support him.
The Chief Librarian, who had perceived through his prophetic abilities that the Noon Herald's target was Calgar and not himself, took his place and led the others to continue the attack. This time, it was Calgar and the Honor Guard's turn to buy Varo time.
"Come on! Monster! Face me!"
The provocation had no effect on the Noon Herald, who was intent on rescuing the Noon Queen. The knowledge and wisdom instilled in it by the Hive Mind made the Noon Herald understand how to stop the allied forces.
It ignored the provoking and attacking Ultramarines, taking a large leap into the air, intending to jump to the rear of the formation and slaughter the Titan Star phalanx that was continuously pouring out firepower.
But how could the Honor Guard, who served as the Chapter Master's bodyguards and think tank, not understand the importance of the rear firepower group? While the Noon Herald was still charging, two Astartes who had predicted its intentions from its movements activated their jump packs. When the Noon Herald leaped into mid-air, it was met with two heavy overhead strikes.
Although the two Astartes were sent flying and severely wounded by the huge size difference, their attacks accurately landed on the Tyranid behemoth's eyes.
"Roar! Roar!" The Tyranid behemoth, whose vision was taken, roared. After landing, it began to attack everything indiscriminately around it.
The berserk Noon Herald made it difficult for Calgar and his pursuers to approach. The Ultramarines, who had already exhausted their ammunition in previous battles, had no means of attacking the opponent at this time. Just as Calgar was considering whether to take the risk, the roar of another Tyranid behemoth came from behind them.
Calgar looked back and saw that Ying Yang's elite squad had been almost completely wiped out, with only she remaining to hold on. The previous roar was caused by Ying Yang's last team member sacrificing his life to create an opportunity for her to severely wound the Tyranid.
Seeing this, Calgar did not hesitate and immediately ordered the Honor Guard to provide support, stating that they must hold back the Noon Assimilator, while he remained alone to find a weakness in the berserk Herald.
Ying Yang's situation was dire, but the Noon Assimilator's situation was equally so. A hole had been blasted open in its dorsal carapace by the boiling flesh within, and poisonous blood and organ fragments continuously flowed from the rupture. One leg was connected to its foot by only a small amount of flesh and skin, both arms had been severed at the root, and one eye was completely hollow, with its shattered eyeball hanging from its face.
"Why aren't you dead yet?!"
Ying Yang gritted her teeth and stared hatefully at the monster before her. The heat generated by four melta bombs was enough to completely boil the Noon Assimilator's organs, yet despite this, the opponent still refused to die.
At this point, all her team members had sacrificed themselves, and Ying Yang's combat suit had also been damaged in the previous attack. She no longer had any way to stop this monster.
"Although I hate that guy Calgar, what he said is right: everyone who comes here has the determination to die!"
Ying Yang wanted to take one last look at the progress of the battle; dying with victory felt completely different from dying without knowing the outcome. But before she could look, the figures of the Ultramarines had already passed her, rushing like lightning towards the Noon Assimilator.
"We won!? The Noon Queen has been killed?" Ying Yang recognized them as Calgar's guard. She hurriedly looked towards the Noon Queen's direction. Although they hadn't won yet, they were only one step away from the Noon Queen. Then she looked towards the direction from which the Ultramarines had come.
Calgar was dodging while trying to approach the Noon Herald.
Ying Yang, whose attention had previously been on the Noon Assimilator, didn't know what had happened to cause the main attack to change hands, but with victory so close, strength surged through her already exhausted body and mind again. She raised her weapon and fired shells to provide fire support for the Ultramarines who were supporting her.
As a self-aware Tyranid organism, the fear of death enveloped the Noon Queen. Her end should not be like this, her mission should not conclude here, she had not produced more adaptable species to meet the needs of the swarm.
No!!!
The Noon Queen's shriek, carrying terrifying psychic power, surged towards the allied forces approaching her. Varo, who bore the brunt of it, knelt on the ground, bleeding from all seven orifices. The terrifying shadow of the Hive Mind caused his soul to dim even in the Warp, as if it could extinguish at any moment.
The others fared even worse; some directly lost consciousness, curling up on the ground, trembling and twitching, while others, driven mad by fear, wildly swung their weapons. Even the Titan Stars, facing the Noon Queen's psychic power, fearfully dropped their weapons and screamed as they fled.
"I was but a man; all men are cowards. Now, I am a guardian; only death is weakness. Bearing the weight of my mission, I shall crush the cowardice of mortals."
Varo propped himself up with both hands, refusing to completely collapse, and a low prayer emanated from his mouth.
"With all my strength, with all my will, with all my soul, with all the piety of my spirit, I pledge to the Emperor, to protect all peoples."
Varo trembled, transitioning from kneeling on both knees to kneeling on one knee.
"Fear is as nothing, for my faith is boundless."
Varo's cramping muscles tore with a mournful cry, and a knife-like pain tormented his body and soul, but these could not stop the Arch-Lord of the Ultramarines from standing up.
"Its uncleanness is the mark of the xeno. Its impurity is the mark of the xeno. To invite hatred is the mark of the xeno. To invite scorn is the mark of the xeno. To be hunted is the fate of the xeno. To be banished is the fate of the xeno. To be purified is the fate of the xeno."
'No! Get away!'
The Noon Queen's will directly took over the bodies of all Tyranids in the hall, whether the distant Noon Behemoths or the nearby Tyranid larvae. All Tyranids abandoned everything and pounced on Varo, who was still a few steps away from the Noon Queen.
At this moment, Varo could no longer see; blood had blurred his eyes, and he no longer had the strength to raise his arm to wipe it away. But it didn't matter, Varo knew the Noon Queen's position. So close, even a new recruit among the Ultramarines could hit it by feel alone.
Squeezing out his last ounce of strength, Varo fumbled for the pistol at his waist. Centuries of training had made him instinctively fire a shot with a bang.
Announcing the death of the swarm, and also announcing the death of the Noon Queen.
Victory! At the cost of hundreds of billions of lives, Gorgon was destroyed!
Gamma carried a high-quality imitation Ancient Terra fruit basket to visit the wounded: the paralyzed Ventris, the severely wounded Calgar, and the Ultramarines Chief Librarian whom he hadn't spoken to before.
Although there were three wounded, the stingy Tech-priest only brought one fruit basket. He couldn't carry more, and not carrying it himself would seem insincere. He was casual and saved where he could; he was very poor now.
"Knock knock."
"Come in." Ventris's voice came from inside.
Upon entering the medical room, Gamma saw two people lying in beds and one person in a wheelchair—his targets for this visit.
Of the three, two looked at the Tech-priest with unnatural expressions, while the remaining one was simply curious.
"Calgar, I heard you were injured, so I specifically came to see you. Look, these are Ancient Terra fruits, they're so sweet!"
Calgar gave an awkward smile and said, "Uh, good, thank you."
Gamma seemed not to notice the Ultramarines Chapter Master's discomfort, and plopped down on the edge of Calgar's hospital bed, beginning to ask about his well-being.
"You, tell me, you're the Chapter Master of the Ultramarines, why did you use a suicidal attack? Couldn't you have just shot the Noon Herald and gotten it over with? Ying Yang is perfectly fine, but look at you."
"Uh—I couldn't help it. Before the virus was confirmed to be injected into the Noon Queen, I didn't dare use it easily, just in case."
"Oh, I see. This is my fault—"
"No, no, it's not your fault. Time was too short, and we only captured one Binder Worm. There wasn't enough raw material to produce three virus bullets. You are already the greatest contributor!"
Gamma proudly puffed out his chest and humbly said, "It was all Ventris's idea. If he hadn't used this method to defeat the Tyranids and the Noon Queen before, I wouldn't have known."
The paralyzed Gaius wanted to wave his hand but couldn't, so he spoke, "If I'm taking credit, it was Inquisitor Kryptman who discovered that to better devour planets, the Noon Queen would produce alpha bio-forms, and he also discovered that alpha Tyranids possess genetic material specific to the Hive Fleet's Noon Queen."
"Hahaha, how long has it been since we last met? Why are you being so polite?"
The Chief Librarian, whose face was disfigured by Tyranid larvae with only his eyes unwrapped, curiously surveyed the long-renowned Tech-priest, then looked at the guilt-ridden Calgar and Ventris, finding it amusing.
After the two big and one small, three people with their own thoughts, continued to feign politeness for a while, Gamma felt that all the necessary courtesies had been exchanged.
He had given them face; if the Ultramarines were shameless, then he couldn't be blamed.
"Ahem! Besides visiting you all this time, I also have something else I want to say!"
Saying this, Gamma pulled out a thick stack of bills and IOUs from his Pregnant, slapped them in his hand, and continued:
"The war's over, shouldn't the bills be settled now?!"
Calgar closed his eyes and looked very peaceful. Ventris, seeing that the Chapter Master had feigned unconsciousness as planned, immediately got into character and shouted:
"Chapter Master! My Chapter Master! What's wrong with you?! Apothecary! Apothecary!"
The debt-collecting Tech-priest threw the bills directly onto Calgar's face and said, "Feigning unconsciousness won't work. I've seen this trick three times today, old man! Get up, or I'll take out your organs to pay the debt!"