Seraphs of the Emperor’s Judgment

Chapter 12: Black Pyramid

Along the way, the squad led by Soshyan passed through several dim passages and small-scale mausoleums and halls, but did not encounter any enemies.

Occasionally, they could hear the sounds of gunfire and explosions drifting over from afar, but due to the unusual environment on the World Engine, they were completely unable to determine the direction and source of the sounds. They could only ignore those minute disturbances and continue advancing.

The auspex was as completely unresponsive as always. Axel kept complaining that the thing in his hands couldn't serve its purpose. Soshyan really wanted him to shut up, but if he didn't let him speak, this guy would very likely find the time to crush the auspex with a single stomp.

Therefore, he preferred to endure these complaints.

"Wait!"

After walking for another minute, just when Soshyan began considering whether he had chosen the wrong direction, Axel pressed his hand upon his shoulder.

"This piece of junk is finally showing some movement!"

"Axel, I must remind you, absolutely do not let the Master of the Forge hear that sentence. He would use his axe to properly teach you a lesson."

"I'm serious! Look."

Soshyan took a glance, and it really was true.The flickering blips of light upon the auspex indicated that less than five hundred meters away from them, several battle brothers were present.

But the problem was, at this location, who could it be?

"Come over here!"

Zahnas struggled to traverse the master control chamber. The floor composed of blackstone swayed beneath his feet. A small squad of Xenos had already collapsed beneath his Bolter.

Noise capable of making an ordinary Mortal yield stimulated his eardrums, but the Eighth Company Captain suppressed this discomfort and closed in on the enemy.

He hacked down an advancing Necron, severed its sternum, and then decapitated it with a sweeping backhand.

The roaring sounds of his Bolter firing were filled with a metallic sensation, echoing within his helmet.

These creatures formed into hordes and were everywhere, swiftly surrounding him.

The intermittent flickering of muzzle flashes from his weapon illuminated the terrifying devastation he wrought. The shrill banshee wails emitted by his Chainsword led a high-pitched chorus composed of the cacophony of tearing metal.

He arduously wove through this horde of despicable rabble, closing in toward its source. And coincidentally, it was also closing in on him. He felt the pressure exerted upon his mind increasing.

Consequently, he hurriedly called out to one of his battle brothers.

"Garlin! Do you read?"

Garlin had just shaken off a Xenos hugging his arm, then used his weapon to smash it to pieces. His Power Sword sliced through those fragile metallic bones just like slicing through air.

"I read you! Company Commander!"

As he spoke, he raised his Bolt Pistol, aimed at another one, and pulled the trigger, blasting the creature into a shower composed of metallic fragments and silver fluid.

Immediately following that, the warrior lunged over, crashing into a third.

Its smooth skull smashed against his combat helmet, and its entire face instantly caved in. A few metallic fragments obstructed his line of sight, and Garlin used the back of his armored hand to wipe his helmet clean.

Due to its skull being destroyed, this Xenos construct seemingly lost control over its body and disintegrated, collapsing paralyzed to the ground.

They were simply puddles of metal. Garlin had fought against even more formidable enemies, but such a massive horde was currently draining his energy, to the point that even his genetically augmented muscles were burning in such genuine, physical combat.

For every three the Astartes slaughtered, another six would charge up, just like a swarm of ants pouring out from the ground.

Realizing his own anxiety, Garlin hacked down yet another, but he was gradually being forced back.

Amidst the chaotic melee, he caught a glimpse of Carlo. The Adjutant of this company was similarly being suppressed. The metallic fragments flying from his wantonly dancing Chainsword were currently enveloping him.

He couldn't see the other brothers of the company. Garlin could only assume they had already been devoured by this horde of metallic nightmares.

"Garlin! Converge on my position! Everyone you can see!"

"Yes!"

Just as Garlin was preparing to head over and support Carlo, suddenly, accompanied by a soul-tormenting, heaven-shaking sound of tearing and dislocation, Garlin felt the deck beneath his feet pitch, as if it were contorting its own body.

In the blink of an eye, a massive chunk of ripped-off floor burst apart at once, as if bitten by an unseen pair of jaws, tumbling as the fragments slid into the void.

A towering, black Xenos pyramid appeared just like that, alongside a vehicle resembling a giant scorpion carrying an entire squad of Necrons. They looked far more difficult to handle than these cannon-fodder.

"Garlin!"

Zahnas strained to traverse a massive horde of Necrons, advancing toward the entrance of the master control chamber. The surviving members of the company were gathered right there.

His armor had already been scratched and dented by their claws, and his body was trembling from exhaustion. At this moment, a robust physique was no longer able to save them; the only thing remaining was fiercely maintaining the stringent discipline of their minds.

"What happened!"

"Company Commander, a Xenos... black pyramid. It has blocked our path to the energy node."

He spoke calmly through his helmet's vox.

According to the previous plan, the Company Commander would lead a portion of the warriors to attract the Necrons' attention, while Garlin and another Adjutant would lead a combat squad to sabotage the energy node.

Initially, everything had gone very smoothly, but as the number of Necrons increased, they discovered they had miscalculated the opponent's response. The Eighth Company, split into two, fell into a bitter fight. Ultimately, after more than an hour of fierce combat, they had only barely managed to sabotage a few unimportant secondary nodes, while the most critical primary node became an unattainable objective.

At this time, only twenty-one warriors remained in the Eighth Company.

"Figure out a way to resolve it!"

As if in response to this sentence, beams of light began accumulating at the apex of the Xenos pyramid, subsequently firing toward a single point. The entirety of the energy was poured onto the Adjutant of the company.

In an instant, the infused energy seeped out from every single joint and crevice of his Power Armor. That Adjutant didn't even have the chance to issue a cry of agony before he was wiped out just like that, not leaving behind even a single trace.

Fury seized Zahnas, and the only thing he could do was further his slaughter, continuing to throw himself into the battle until he became the next target.

"Squad Five, advance!"

As if divine troops descending from heaven, a squad suddenly came carving their way out from the right side of the pyramid. The leading warrior held a Bolter leveled in one hand and brandished a Chainsword in the other, carving his way toward the Necron vehicle currently unloading soldiers.

Sensing enemies approaching, that hovering vehicle began to turn around, but right at that moment, a Necron was preparing to jump off. Disrupted by the vehicle's sudden swaying, half of its body slid off the side. This caused it, the ground, and the vehicle to form an angle that made this machine sway violently, failing to successfully turn around.

"Throw Grenades!"

The champions of the Emperor's justice naturally wouldn't let such a grand opportunity slip by. Several Grenades arced through the air and landed around the Necron vehicle.

Boom~!

A storm of fire surged straight into the clouds, instantly sweeping clear all the Necrons. Subsequently, Soshyan raised his hand and unleashed another volley of fire toward the apex of the pyramid.

The explosions penetrated the windows at the top of the structure, scattering sparks from the node which then resulted in a disastrous secondary explosion. After the circuits on the front-facing side of the pyramid flickered for a bout, they fell into silence.

But it wasn't dead. Energy was still accumulating.

"Eighth Company! Advance!"

Seeing the opportunity, Zahnas also broke contact with his enemies and led his warriors in launching a sudden assault. They carved their way all the way toward the pyramid, knocking over all the Necrons along the way like stones.

"Take it out!"

Perceiving that the pyramid had already accumulated energy to a dangerous degree, Soshyan signaled the heavy weapons specialist of his squad. The other party immediately hoisted up his Heavy Bolter, aiming it at the target.

Only a burst of roaring was heard. The apex of the pyramid endured a storm-like bombardment. As the circuits on all four sides continuously extinguished, the pyramid finally and thoroughly fell into silence as well.

"Company Commander Zahnas, I am from the Seventh Company—"

"Sergeant Soshyan, I know you."

While the other warriors were still resisting the counterattacks of the mechanical Necrons, Zahnas arrived in front of Soshyan. He still held a Melta Bomb dangling from his hand.

"It is all thanks to you this time."

The Company Commander removed his helmet, squeezing out a sliver of a smile on his face.

"The Chapter Master is in that direction. You can find him if you head over from here. However, I must remind you, that is the core region of the Xenos fortress. Be extremely careful."

"But here..."

Soshyan hesitated for a moment. He saw that the remaining warriors of the Eighth Company were already very few in number. The corpses littered all over the ground here were enough to prove just how fierce the earlier battle had been. So how could he bear to leave?

"This is our mission, soldier. You should fulfill your mission."

Patting Soshyan's shoulder, Zahnas limped toward the flickering energy node.

"Let's go."

Taking one look at the other party's receding back, Soshyan turned around and led his squad members walking in the direction Zahnas had pointed out previously. At this time, he perceived that this so-called World Engine seemed to be trembling...

(End of Chapter)