Chapter 277: Sandevistan
Valerie deactivated the Sandevistan. A slight wave of neural fatigue, perceptible only to her, washed over her but was quickly smoothed out by the system's regulation.
The surface of the Iron Guard prototype she piloted was still radiating faint heat from the spot hit by the psychic shock.
The unit's data recorder faithfully captured the momentary overload data, the detailed parameters of the armor withstanding the attack, and the precious information regarding the Sandevistan system's application in actual combat.
Jackie let out a long breath as his Iron Guard walked over. "Damn, that scared the hell out of me! What was up with that kid? Just exploded all of a sudden?"
Proctor Atkins, face pale, walked over to the pile of ash, cautiously pushing aside the residue with his tactical boot.
"It was an unguided psyker, awakening out of control under extreme emotion." His voice was low, carrying obvious lingering fear. "The bottom of the Hive is indeed a breeding ground for such dangers.
"Although this was just a low-level psyker who had recently awakened, he was already capable of causing such destruction."
He looked up at the team members, who were still reeling from the shock, and added solemnly, "A truly powerful psyker could reportedly crush your Iron Guard into a metal ball with a single look.
"The one we met today was, at best, an infant just learning to crawl."
Rebecca pouted. "Tch, thought he was hot shit, still went down in one shot."
Despite her words, she had been startled just now and almost aimed her plasma cannon that way; fortunately, Maine reacted faster.
Falco reported, "Scan shows no life signals in the hall. Threats cleared."
Mower's figure slid quietly down from a high pipe, shaking her head silently to indicate no other anomalies were found.
The battle seemed to be truly over.
The team began cleaning up the battlefield, while the Enforcers busied themselves tending to the wounded, waiting for the medical team dispatched from the upper levels.
Proctor Atkins began directing his subordinates to collect evidence of cult activities. Although the altar was destroyed, some scattered items and symbols around it might still have research value.
Maine walked to the side of Valerie's Iron Guard and asked through the external speaker, "Valerie, status of the unit?"
"Armor slightly damaged, systems running normally. Sandevistan system combat data recorded," Valerie reported concisely.
Maine nodded and looked at Jackie. "Jackie, your unit?"
"Everything normal. Just a pity it wasn't my turn to show off just now." Jackie's voice still carried a hint of eagerness.
Maine ignored Jackie's banter. While signaling the team to withdraw from this hall filled with blood and the stench of burning in standard tactical formation, he rapidly summarized the combat data in his mind.
The two Iron Guard prototypes led the way with heavy steps, followed closely by the Enforcers cautiously guarding the wounded on stretchers.
When they stepped back into the rusty giant freight elevator and the heavy gate slowly closed behind them, temporarily isolating the suffocating darkness and filth of the Underhive, Maine finally reported to Joric in Nexum via the encrypted communication link.
The elevator began to ascend, emitting familiar creaks and the screech of metal friction.
Under the dim, swaying lights, Maine spoke calmly. "Lord Sage, mission accomplished. Target cult stronghold cleared. Encountered and neutralized a rogue psyker during the process.
"Live combat test data for the Iron Guard prototypes and our new equipment has been collected.
"No casualties on our side. The coordinating Enforcer squad suffered four casualties, two of them critical."
He didn't describe the battle details too much, believing the accompanying unit logs and battlefield scan data would explain everything.
Soon, Joric's steady synthesized voice rang in the communication channel without any delay, as if he had been waiting on the other end of the line. "Received. Upload data. Bring back all valuable physical samples."
The command was concise and clear, devoid of any emotional fluctuation, focusing only on results and data.
Ending the communication, the elevator fell into a brief silence, with only the noise of mechanical operation filling the space.
Rebecca leaned against the cold wall, patting her cooled Plasma Cannon, a look of satisfaction on her face.
Pilar gestured excitedly, describing the scene of Promethium flames devouring enemies to a lightly injured Enforcer beside him.
Dorio quietly moved her wrists, feeling the power surging through her flesh and blood.
Valerie and Jackie remained inside the cockpits of the Iron Guards. The external speakers were silent, but the internal systems were presumably processing and analyzing the massive amounts of combat data.
Maine's gaze swept over his team members, over the two Iron Guards that appeared majestic even in the limited space, and finally rested on the unconscious Enforcer on the stretcher.
This live combat test was, overall, extremely successful.
The performance of the new equipment was verified near-perfectly: Rebecca's Plasma Cannon demonstrated devastating area-of-effect damage; Pilar's Promethium Flamer efficiently purged clustered soft targets; his own Volkite weapon erased that psychic threat in an eerie and lethal manner.
Dorio's biochemical enhancement combined with the Volkite Knuckles showed overwhelming dominance in close-quarters combat.
The Iron Guard prototypes performed stably in conventional engagement, acting like mobile steel fortresses. And Valerie, in a moment of crisis, combined her own Sandevistan's neural acceleration with the Iron Guard's neural link system, exploding with a reaction speed comparable to an Astartes. This proved the immense tactical value contained in this technological path.
However, problems were also exposed completely.
They lacked effective early warning mechanisms for supernatural threats like psychic energy. Response relied entirely on on-the-spot personal reaction and brute force destruction, without systemic protection or counter-measures.
The casualties of the Enforcer squad served as a painful reminder—when facing completely unknown enemies, any lack of intelligence or momentary negligence could cost lives.
The elevator continued to ascend, the creaking of metal friction echoing in the shaft.
The surrounding environment gradually became brighter, and the ventilation system began to deliver relatively fresh air. The suffocating feeling of the Underhive—a mix of rust, blood, and rot—was fading away.
Maine leaned against the cold wall, his armor making a dull sound against the metal.
This mission made him see many things clearly.
This Hive World was far more complex than he imagined. It wasn't just gangs and mutants, but also existences beyond common sense like that psyker just now.
And this was just the situation in the lower levels of one Hive.
Thinking of the true threats in the galaxy that Joric occasionally mentioned, Maine realized that their previous struggles in that city were simply like children fighting.
Their team was being thoroughly transformed by Mechanicus technology.
From weapons and equipment to body structure, everything was developing in an inhuman direction.
Maine could feel that this change was not just in appearance, but also in mindset.
They were gradually adapting to Joric's logic of efficiency above all and rationality above all.
Future missions would definitely encounter more unexpected situations like today, or even worse.
But Maine did not regret it.
His experience in Night City told him that in this cruel world, you either get stronger or you die.
The elevator suddenly vibrated slightly, and the light above became brighter.
Maine straightened his body and moved his left arm.
Regardless, they had embarked on this path, and they must continue walking it.
Every battle, win or lose, was accumulating experience for the next, tougher battle.
In this dangerous universe, this was the law of survival.
(End of Chapter)