Seraphs of the Emperor’s Judgment

Chapter 16: Canoptek Spyder

The Xenos did not let the matter rest.

When Forlo led the team to arrive at the corridor outside the main hall, the ambush grew increasingly intense.

The journey through the corridor turned into an amalgamation of blood and combat frenzy. Mutilated Warriors, Immortals wielding Gauss Rifles, and rigid Lychguard struck out wave after wave, carrying with them an icy dread.

Sharp blades and muzzle flashes flickered amidst the erratic lighting, and the hoarse sounds of sharp instruments cutting through metal were exceptionally ear-piercing.

Forlo's experience avoided many catastrophic situations.

His astuteness guided the team to evade the previous explosive traps twice, and on another occasion, he utilized the opportunity of a collapsing passage to seek out another path at the very last moment, additionally shutting down all equipment aside from the necessary Servo-motors and auto-senses.

During this process, Forlo continuously attempted to impart his understanding to Soshyan, as if this were a lesson in practical combat. This left Soshyan feeling extremely perplexed.

But he wouldn't refuse the Terminator Sergeant's teachings, because he too hoped he would one day become such an experienced warrior—provided he could still leave here alive.

However, the probability of this occurring was perhaps even lower than his being selected as a Space Marine.

When they were still two levels away from their objective, the corridor appeared empty once again. The Necrons seemed to have retreated, even though the Space Marines had already closed in on their central hub.But when they arrived at the cloister outside the doors of the master control hall, the reason for this became clear.

There was only the final dozen or so enemies left between them and the sealed doors of the hall. However, these Necrons were no longer the humanoid figures they had encountered previously, but were rather exactly the same as the slumbering statue Soshyan had encountered before.

This was a large-scale arachnoid machine that stood atop stumpy, thick mechanical legs. Their torsos were enveloped in heavy armor plating reinforced with Adamantium strips. Judging solely by the thickness, they were no inferior to a Land Raider.

At the front of the torso was a head composed of an amalgamation of optical components and searchlights sheltered beneath a protective dome. Two massive hooking claws were mounted on thick, sturdy shoulder bracers, while the ends of the massive pincers on either side of the head were equipped with terrifying drills.

There were a total of four of these giant Canoptek Spyder guards, completely blocking the path to the main doors. Scattered all around them were the wreckage of Necrons and fragments of Space Marine Power Armor. Evidently, a bitter battle had been experienced here prior to this.

But since they were the ones standing guard here, the situation inside must surely be terrible.

Not much time remained for them—this was the judgment Forlo made first.

These spider guards also immediately discovered the squad of Space Marines. They sprang into action at once, maintaining their cautious pace as they advanced toward the squad, just like predators lying in wait for the opportune moment.

Forlo immediately activated his Power Fist. The Chainswords and Power Swords of the other Battle Brothers also responded in succession to its thirsting roar.

This time, the opponents also issued a reply. Heavy drills and brandished hooking claws filled the air with the sounds of metal.

"Prioritize attacking the enemies on the flanks. Soshyan, take a team and attack the one on the right. Leave the ones in the middle to me."

With the command issued, there was no longer any surplus time for words. The Canoptek Spyders stumbled into melee distance.

The next second, the First Squad's bolts harmlessly detonated against their reinforced armor. As if startled, the Canoptek Spyder under attack abruptly accelerated and charged over, simultaneously shooting out beams of thermal-cutting light from its abdomen.

Forlo held his breath and concentrated, beginning to extract streams of energy from the Terminator's core and channel them to his Power Fists.

As he shaped devastation, Lyman's Ear shielded him from the ringing sounds of Chainsword teeth clashing against steel.

In the next second, superhuman muscles stretched taut, driving the Terminator's metallic muscle fibers in tandem. Simultaneously, his sharp senses were once again filled with a viscous, permeating stench, and the throbbing at his temples struck in tandem with the dimming of his vision.

The very moment the giant arachnoid machines closed in, Forlo unleashed devastation.

The massive Tartaros-pattern Terminator lunged forward at a speed inconsistent with its structure. After parrying the opponent's giant pincers with his elbows, he brought his clenched fists together, raised them high, and then brought them violently crashing down—all of this occurred within the span of merely a few short seconds.

Faced with the full-power strike of a Terminator, no matter how thick or heavy the armor, it was of no use whatsoever.

Along with the collapse of the ground, the Canoptek Spyder's head, together with more than half of its torso, was directly smashed into the solid floor. After its several mechanical arms twitched for a bout, it stopped moving completely.

Beside Forlo, the Battle Brothers similarly hadn't moved a step.

Faced with the advancing Canoptek Spyders, Chainswords were powerless against the thick, heavy plate armor. Even though they continuously scraped and gnawed at it, they were utterly unable to penetrate.

Meanwhile, the opponent's gargantuan bodies, although lumbering, were robust and powerful.

A Canoptek Spyder grabbed onto one of a certain Space Marine's arms with its claws, and then swung its hooking claws down. The venomous blades sliced through Ceramite and Plasteel amidst a shower of flying sparks, cutting deeply into flesh and blood.

Even as his arm was being disassembled, that Space Marine still didn't utter a single word, instead brandishing his own Chainsword and chopping off the machine's bloodstained appendage.

Fresh blood and liquid metal splattered together, while that warrior still engaged in bitter combat on his own.

However, his sacrifice also traded for a fleeting instant where the Canoptek Spyder exposed its weak point. This instant was captured by an old veteran wielding a Power Sword. His sword thrust straight toward the junction between the spider's head and torso.

The Canoptek Spyder's entire body was enveloped in thick, sturdy armor, but this one spot alone lacked any protection whatsoever. Subsequently, the Power Sword pierced into it as if it were empty air.

As the veteran extracted his blade, the massive Canoptek Spyder crashed to the ground, and its green optical components returned to silence.

Subsequently, another Canoptek Spyder crossed over the rubble, brandishing its giant pincers and charging straight at Forlo.

Under the cover of a Melta Bomb, the Terminator unleashed his formless fury. His fists first viciously struck the enemy's torso, then forcefully ripped off two mechanical legs, and followed up with a punch right at the enemy's head.

The front face of the Canoptek Spyder's head immediately caved in. Its offensive also abruptly ceased, paralyzing onto the ground.

Meanwhile, on the right flank, Occam silently collapsed. A cutting beam had carved deeply into his leg armor, almost completely severing his right calf.

Forlo subsequently intended to head over and support Soshyan, but a sudden mutation occurred.

"Look out!"

Inexplicably, the very first Canoptek Spyder knocked down by Forlo had actually gotten back up at some unknown time. Amidst the sounds of hard Plasteel snapping, it crashed into him, using its overwhelming mass to suppress him to the ground.

Before Forlo could even get up, the Canoptek Spyder stepped a bifurcated mechanical leg onto his chestplate, pinning him in place.

The auto-senses of his Terminator Armor blared warnings, indicating that such pressure would crush his internal organs and shatter the genetically enhanced ribs of a Space Marine.

It wasn't just this one either; the other two that had been knocked down also got up. Numerous wandering mechanical beetles also appeared upon their bodies, continuously repairing the destroyed mainframes. These Canoptek Scarabs were all crawling out from the spyders' abdomens.

The situation of the battle immediately took a sharp turn for the worse, and the squad began to experience continuous casualties.

Soshyan, who had been constantly entangled by a Canoptek Spyder, felt fury well up from his heart once again at this moment.

After forcefully parrying the thrust of the opponent's hooking claws with his elbow, ignoring the sound of drills gnawing at Plasteel, wielding the roar of a primal behemoth, he full-force swung his Chainsword toward the Canoptek Spyder's head, just like an iron hammer smashing upon an anvil.

Before his left arm could be severed, he successfully shattered the opponent's head.

However, even though the opponent had collapsed paralyzed, Soshyan still did not abandon his attack. His Chainsword continuously gnawed away, driven by the dual impetus of his terrifyingly augmented physical prowess and his own reciprocating power unit.

Along with the gnawing of those venomous jagged teeth, the armor plating on the front half of the Canoptek Spyder was completely ripped open, spewing forth countless razor-sharp, minuscule fragments in all directions until the jagged teeth locked in place, unmoving.

When the energy of the strike was finally expended, Soshyan tore the weapon out, immediately followed by swinging the next strike.

This strike thoroughly shattered the Canoptek Spyder's control hub. Those Canoptek Scarabs that had drilled out from its abdomen to attack Soshyan also immediately lost their target and began wandering blindly.

Ultimately, beneath Soshyan's repeated heavy blows, the Canoptek Spyder broke apart into four pieces and cracked into five, liquid metal surging out from its mutilated body.

Subsequently, Soshyan's voice, like an ear-piercing grinding sound, transmitted across the comms channel, speaking only a single word.

"Kill!"

(End of Chapter)