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The sun was well and truly gone. Artificial lighting flooded the area to illuminate the battlefield, I thought of this as a siege but really the Eldar were going to bulldoze over us. This Farseer wanted me dead for reasons he may have divined through the warp. That wasn't important right now, setting up to kill them and survive long enough was the goal here.

Three rings of sandbags and crates both metallic and wooden were piled to secure the area with the materials at hand. The ammo and any explosive charges had been long since removed for our use. Each ring was a tad smaller the closer it got towards the communications center's entrance. The second ring had eight heavy bolters each with a bulge protruding out with some crates plied on either side of them. Crafting what had to be the most makeshift pillbox ever. All seven Chimeras were parked in the third line where their rotating turrets could hover over and maximize the fire poured on the area overall. That and I wanted to see if I could save as many as possible. Transportation would be needed after all this was done.

The rotating turrets especially would cover the area better as everything was compacted in a few rings facing into the rubble that was once a town. It was a sensible plan as any could be, never putting everything onto one defensive line. It's as I did on the Maiden World. Over sixty Guardsmen as the many Hybrids were charging around making whatever precise adjustments they could. While Tyranid Warriors, Lictors, and Genestealer raced about you pluck up sandbags from their previous positions or snatch up crates. Haphazardly piling them near whatever ring needed them.

I stood at the basted entrance of the communications facility. It was like watching an ant hill, everyone knew their roles and did so wordlessly. The same behavior of cells in the body working with little conscious input on my part. A degree of control and coordination I'm sure most generals would kill to have.

This would have been a surreal sight to just about anyone on the planet. Spurred on by two words.

"Reinforce everything."

That was the order I had decreed. It being the only sensible strategy, this place was a defensible location, it was already fortified we just needed to add more to it. Compact everything over a central area we could fall back into because there was no way I was making the mistake of assuming we could hold all this. The elevation of the structure also made it work for the hot shots of the platoon to have a clear view of most of the former town.

"I barely know what we're up against. Sure I knew a lot more about Eldar lore to realize Iyanden was a Craftworld that used a lot of Wraith constructs. But that's about it, the firepower they were packing had to be immense."

This wasn't some matter of holding the line until they took enough losses to escape. Whoever this Farseer guy was the man was determined to kill me, I knew it when he threw warriors in a suicide mission to attack a Bioship. Ambushing then chasing after me through a crash Ork ship I knew better than them and now he was here. While I had some idea that the Eldar might want some revenge or trespassing or to just remove any potential threat I posed knowing where the Maiden world was. The tone of voice the man held said a different story.

It didn't feel personal, but there was a small fire to the way he accepted my challenge and spoke to me. All that told me this Farseer in particular had to go, not out of blind anger or vengeance.

"Oh, that is there alright."

But mostly, I understood that if he was to get away then this might just become a regular thing. Too many were injured or lost to let that happen, he needed to die. They all needed to die here. It wasn't going to be easy, of that I was sure and casualties on my side were expected. It was not a price I was not happy to let the Hybrids pay. But in a practical sense, I needed everyone that could hold and fire a gun to maximize the odds of pulling them this killzone.

"Draw them in and bunch them up and wipe them all out in one big blow." End this before it could become a recurring problem and take more lives away from the safety I wanted to whisk them off to. To the kind world I wanted to give as many of them that would make all this worth the sheer human cost of it seem justified.

"And try not to think of the cost I was gonna have them pay for this to work..."

Merrick was used to battle, faced down Eldar before in the battle of Angel Forge when they blew open the gate. Not even the Orks or the Angels had managed that and he wouldn't make the mistake of underestimating them. His fire team had taken up position in the second line between two of the nests. Behind each nest was one of the twelve won't tall warriors of the brood, held there because no one could make them good cover. They were too large and oriented towards melee, held back for when the time was right. The other five were in between the one next to that, they had plenty of elbow room and space to move. Their newly met kinsmen had taken up what every autogun and hand stubbers they had to plug up any gaps. Even if the heavy weapons were manned by the trained men of the 85th. But their presence still highlights how few in number they were. The Great Carrier had a plan, it was their job to ensure he could see it through.

The whole base had been transformed in a matter of hours, with all its spread-out defenses compacted. Tents were torn down and draped over the gun nests to add something to stall sniper fire. All of it was his and Sorg's plan, their ledge had seen fit to permit them the disposition of his forces. An honor they took in strides and Merrick silently prayed was to his liking.

They were all crouched behind the sandbags, just waiting for their attackers to hurry along and get here. This was always the worse part about being in the Guard.

The waiting.

The enemy was out there and coming for you, everybody knew it. But no one could give anything exact so Merrick and the rest just had to hold the position. Hold for the first sign of hostiles, whether that was seeing them or a hail of fire scything down a few men. Whatever signaled the waiting to be over and the fighting to start. The illuminators helped push back the darkness to better see but the void beyond that in the canyon mouths left enough room for the Xenos to slip in. Elder could be a quiet lot when they wanted as Marrick had learned from the briefings on the aliens...

There was a buzzing in his mind a few minutes later, a gift bestowed on them all by the Great Carrier. They were here, his warriors hidden in the sand could sense them coming. The message reverberated across all three rings as weapons were primed and aimed into the darkness for anything.

They held, as was his will. Even as large blue and yellow figures slowly materialized, humanoid in shape. Larger towering figures as large as the crouched warriors on either side of his fire team also appeared. Large cannons and blades were the words passing instantaneously from the front to the back.

They held, even as Merricks honed instincts told him they should open up now. Their war machines had the range on them and snipers were no doubt lining up shots. But it was his will and he must obey.

The wind did much to obscure the low hum of sleek grav-vehicles approaching. Although information being passed told him they didn't have the large crystal mounted on their barrels. So they weren't the ones that blew open Angel Gate.

They held for a short while longer whilst their enemies fanned out and took a careful look at our defenses. Searching for openings to exploit first and placing their first shots well. The Eldar were fanned out over a wide area requiring them to divert their fire. Rifles and heavy weapons tracked the quick-footed hostile and their larger walking war machines.

They were to hold until the Great Carrier said otherwise. He had a plan and Merrick stood as a gear in it. So they would hold, even when bright beams flew from their enemies, like blue lasbolts that tore into the gun nests. The darkness made their origins simple to spot as many more flew way overhead. Several gunners fell as well as their marksmen on the roof of their headquarters. Everyone knew where the rangers were though. Their destruction was swiftly ordered and everyone that could focus fire on the points where the shots came. The air ionized as lasguns burst fired and lascannons spewed stronger beams. The turret guns far behind opened up too, and new crews abandoned their lasguns in favor of the far heavier Bolters.

The rapid thunk, thunk, thunk, thunk, of their explosive ordinance exited each barrel and further destroyed the rubble their adversaries were hiding behind. Whether or not they got them was yet to be seen. Fire shifted regardless to try and slay the figures around. Return fire came in the form of the large cannons mounted on their vehicles and carried by their Wraith constructs stepping out and into view. The ladder name became known to Merrick as the order came for the heavy bolter turrets to focus first on those things joints. One went down before a volley flew out, and the tank's beam weaponry tore through several gun nests and ruined their heavy weapons. One near Merrick fell with the Warrior shielded behind it. The next one narrowly avoided the same fate after it reach in to rip the bolter and its gunner out. A surge of inspiration flowed past Merrick as the Warrior raised the weapon, still on its tripod, and began to fire it. Pulling the trigger and stabilizing with its spare pair of arms.

The two-legged construction shot out balls of energy Merrick hadn't seen before. They impacted the front rings and erupted into larger vortexes that sucked in sandbags and men with a shriek that make his skin crawl. It was like Angel Forge except they didn't have a wall to funnel them down, more and more men and women were cut down. While they were barely able to track and hit much of any of the aleins.

Survivors would have stood and kept firing had they not been ordered to fall back to them. However, the distance was just a few yards but even with covering fire, most had their bodies erupting in large spurts of blood. The discs the aliens fired tore through their armor and flesh with ease.

Anger swelled in Merrick's chest. Not just his own but his liege's fury embedded many with a new ferocity itching to be unleashed but not yet. They were to hold, at least for a few moments longer.

The Eldar advanced with their Wraith things and tanks, the larger targets of course drew more fire from them. Two more dropped one from heavy bolter fire the second from some explosives detonated early. It was further to the left and no one had set it off but the construct had stepped right on it. That, perhaps, had been enough to create the large cloud of sand that engulfed the thing and flowed over that area. The shooting didn't stop anywhere but their enemy's advance had halted. No longer trying to press them into a retreat.

Merrick could sense the Great Carrier curse as the Eldar smelled the trap they had planted and instead took over amongst the rubble. With more white orbs and fire from the tank's various weaponry, men from the 85th and their kinsmen were being cut down. The Warrior with the heavy bolter tried to avoid all the fire but it took was taking small arms damage. That would pile on eventually. Some of the contracts with blades advanced in pairs with the cannon welding ones. Merrick knew the way they kept their distance from one another was done to mitigate the damage the explosives could do.

"We can still take someone them out. Great Carrier they may not be bunched up as you've planned but a few it better than-"

"Fall back to the final line now!" The ground erupted and semi-transparent guardians came out to leap onto the war machines. Or try to charge the Eldar squads and get cut down. It was the diversion they needed to retreat from across the second line to make the final stand, only three of his old squad was left. Something that would've saddened most men hardened the Sargeant to fight on to the last shot, his kinsmen wouldn't die in vain today. As Merrick settled being the sand held together by sowed burlap sags, his rifle raised for when the sand screen settled and kill as much of the Xenos filth as possible.

"They come!" Merrick turned to regard one of the four armed men who stared into the void above. He wondered why until he felt it and turned to face the void. Merrick had seen much in his subsector, more than he had in his whole tour here. He's faced most Xenos known to the Imperium and lost many friends throughout it all. Often in painful or slow ways at that. The galaxy was not a fair place, of that he had learned a long time ago. But as his gift permitted him to sense what his eyes failed to see in orbit. Well, it was enough to ignite his hardened heart with a sense of hope for what lay ahead.

"They come." Merrick said, a sentiment soon echoed across them all.

I wanted to bang my head against the metallic walls of the hallway I sat in, the communication tower was the best place I could be. To survey the battle and not get my head taken off by a ranger. The explosives had been exposed too early so yes, I couldn't get as many as I wanted to be caught in the blast. Still, as the remaining forty Guardsmen and Hybrids fell back from their ruined heavy bolters, except one or course. Someone hit the trigger and the blast sent everyone flying backend blowing apart some wraith guards. The remaining Tyranid warriors surged forwards with pure strain Genestealers following up to exploit the disoriented attackers.

Leading on faces to distract whilst twin blades came down to try and cut out the joints. Large, powered wraith bone swords met them and engaged in melee. A heavy bolter turret was fired at close range and tore the head off one. The sand was still settling and gave a good enough screen so at least that part of the plan was working. Lictors managed to get back up from the debilitating blast. Claws and bladed Hormagaunt-style back arms tore into aspect warriors still reeling but many more got up and fired their shurikens. The bodies of the scout-like creatures managed to tank a few rounds permitting many to keep ripping into their targets. But there were many more and within a few minutes of vicious battle they were cut down.

The Falcon tanks managed to inch forwards and their various armaments began to cut them down through sheer firepower.

"Too cowardly to face me yourself?" I called out as openly as a psychic message could be. "Just keep sending you men and women into the jaws of my brood, they would like something tasty anyway."

"You shield yourself behind mindless minions, and tainted beings and think to challenge my sense of courage?" He sounded annoyed and okay, yeah he did have a point there. I'd need to think of something else to get him closer.

"You claimed that Iyanden strength wasn't sapped but you seem to be having a hard time dealing with my paltry troops."

"I am no fool scion of the Devourer, your trick has faltered and forces driven to the brink. I shall slay you, of that, I have seen so belay my forces all you want. I am not the one fated to die this day."

"What is your problem with me Eldar of Iyanden? Is this revenge for what happened to your Craftworld? I had nothing to do with that nor did I want to hurt any of your Exodite cousins! Is it so much to ask to be left alone here?"

There was a long pause between us where only the sound of lasgun and ballistic weaponry filled my ears. I could sense something akin to concern from my correspondent. What I said seemed to put into some deep consideration or deep thought.

"The ability to hold a dialogue with me or anyone else means little. Your attempts are meaningless to me, I shall not be persuaded or tricked to stay my hand as my cousins were. Your threat to the galaxy will end on my blade."

"If anything, I'll be the one running my claws through your neck."

He might have responded further had the drop pods not landed, throwing up more hands and reverberating their kinetic energy across the ground. The fleet had gotten into orbit and unleashed their payloads. One pod was easily torn open and spilled its fluid, a massive and bulging bioform stepped out. It was the size of a Space Marine dreadnought wielding a Heavy venom cannon in its lower hands and two massive scythe-like blades in its upper ones. Designed to cut tank armor into ribbons the first Carnifex turned and bathed a dozen Eldar in supersonic crystals shredding them in an instant.

My mind linked with it as dozens of drop pods landed in front of and behind the Eldar. Pouring out Gaunts, Gargoyles, and other bios forms I was familiar with. Especially more Carnifex, the one I had disembarked lept onto a tank, the gravity-defying engines not being stone enough to support the sudden weight. The front half was buried in the sand and rock. Then twin blades were driven into the covering for the gunner. The sheer force it could bring to bear easily smashed through and sliced the unfortunate pilot in half. The driver was soon to follow.

The Eldar were surrounded by ravenous beasts now and would be overrun in a matter of seconds if they didn't run. Unfortunately for me, their Farseer had the intelligence to realize that.

"I see, so this was your plan." A sense of resignation was present and maybe a bit of frustration. "It appears we are fated to finish this at a later date."The linked Carnifex lept over the tank and peered around trying to catch sight of the Farseer. There was nothing but Eldar hastily boarding their transport tanks. Which used its anti-gravity engines to soar into the air and away from as many Tyranids as it could manage and flee. Biological projectiles bounced off their underbellies with no effect. I decided to focus on the ones less fortunate and see if I could capture at least one.

Their leader and his cohort might have fled, even if it takes longer I am not going to let this fail next time. That was a promise to every Hybrid that gave their lives today and a defiant call to lady luck that sought to screw me over yet again.

Cleaning up the Eldar left took a few munites and I gathered what wits I had to expand my mind and see how the invasion was going. I didn't feel much remorse or concern about the hail of drop pods continuing to rain over the region, I had hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of Tyranids. They were expendable, I would have more in a few weeks the thousands landing over the area would be a good enough diversion against the Blood Ravens. Who were already thinned out from the constant fighting in the sub-sector and spread thin keeping the myriad of other threats at bay. This Feudal world barely had any orbital defenses to speak of, I knew this because all of the pods were landing without issue. Outposts of the Imperial Guard forming the perimeter around the city were overrun in an instant. Too few Guardsmen and not enough hardened defenses.

"Kyras's attempt to weaken its recruiting world's defense will work to my advantage here."

Plus nobody was expecting a Tyranid invasion, especially not right on top of them.

Which isn't to say there wasn't any resistance. In orbit, imperial warships were trying to taking long ranged plot shots at the smaller frigate-style bioship. They were fast enough to evade their munitions, for now. The fleet wouldn't move in until they accumulated enough ships from around Caldaris. The Tyranid vessels I owned constituted a small splinter fleet and they'd just faced the Tyranids and knew they'd need as many ships as they could muster or just get swarmed on.

A similar situation would occur for any Imperial Guard troops within the city. All their commanders were likely scrambling to deploy what little forces they still had after all their outposts were overrun

Gaunts flooded out and took the bulk of the casualties, which wasn't as much as I thought. The element of surprise was one hell of a thing and losses didn't even reach the triple digits. Larger 'nids like Raveners, Centaurs, Lictors, and Gargoyles took to the air and assembled into murders. All soaring towards to city to wreak havoc against any aircraft. Tyranid Warriors, Alpha variants, and Sargeants all took command to have everyone either lock down their newly acquired outposts to block any ground-based counterattack. Zoanthropes, I'm sure that's what the psychic gifted creatures the Eldar DNA made were called, were here as well. They were far fewer in numbers than anything else I had deployed because they weren't here for combat. Their enhanced psychic prowess made knowing where all these forces were and coordinating them over such a vast distance a simple manner.

While some secured their landing zones many more moved towards the sandstone walls of the Capital City. I had plenty of heavier units aboard the large unit carriers but decided to keep them in reserve for the right situation.

Most of my forces were moving on foot instead of impacting the city because I couldn't send pods all over the place. The civilians wouldn't be hiding in shelters or just their homes. Because if they couldn't be bothered to reinforce the walls with a material actually worth a damn, then I doubt they'd have a large enough place for the locals to hold up. They needed time to hide or otherwise get out of my way before the main assault could begin in earnest. The only exception to this was a large open space in the city's south that I assumed was their ground-based airfield. Confirmed when Gaunts and Gargoyles flooded the area and secured their landing zones for heavier units.

That being taken care of, I needed to gather the Hybrids and ensure they were safe for transport to the city. The Eldar had long been driven back and I had Gargoyles and Lictors chasing after them to keep it that way. But sneaking around wasn't going to work... As if it ever was, my luck being as terrible as it was the plan was probably screwed anyway.

The second I had time to consider I was in the 40K universe I knew this was coming. There was no avoiding this choice, no matter how much I wanted to put it off. Attempt to throw up whatever shaky justification to stave off the inevitable necessity of what I'd have to do. I was implanted by Genestealer with something that allow me control of Tyranids, whether I liked it or not I belonged to their faction now.

At least that's how everybody on the face of this galaxy would see it.

Tyranids don't do diplomacy, they infiltrate and subvert to make their end goal of turning the Miky Way into a buffet easier. My fleet and army needed a constant stream of biomass to sustain themselves so colonizing a world really wasn't an option. The fleet would need to constantly feed and no one would accept that. No one was going to give me the time of day to say what I wanna say and convince them I'm not their enemy. This is 40K where being a paranoid or ruthless nutcase is how most people survive in this setting.

"What happened with Elor required a specific set of circumstances, once gone I was an enemy once more. It was assuming that I could speak reasonably with people that got Absalom killed..."

This Farseer was just an example of the kind of person I would encounter if I tried diplomacy. Someone who'd only see the monster because that's just what Tyranids are and there's no reason to assume I wasn't just an odd continuation of their tactics. I want to protect the Hybrids, give them a home, and maybe even have normal lives in some sense. All because they're the only people I can possibly relate to and talk with. They were grabbed and implanted into the Tyranids, and so was I. They were thrusted into a world of danger and forced to commit violence just to survive. The major difference is that luck granted me the self-awareness to know just how messed up all this was. They would be breeding like crazy and subverting a world's society in preparation for a fleet of monsters. All believing they were being saved as they marched into digestive pools... like I made implanted Gretchen and squigs do.

I wasn't concerned with the fact that I was about to kill my way off this world. Cause to be honest with myself? I was already doing that, their hearts just didn't stop beating. If I truly wanted to help these people, bring them somewhere to live out their lives in relative peace. It was going to need some deaths to pave that path. These Guardsmen would gun me down in a heartbeat and it made sense as to why, my skin, the armor, the claws. I am a xenos to them. Even if I didn't have any of those things the Tyranid guards would damn me in their eyes anyway!

"I'm getting off this world, getting rid of these Iyandan pursers, and finding some deep part of space to call home."

It was going to cost lives, but only so many as I needed to accomplish this goal. Hell people within the Imperium, Eldar Craftworlds, and Tau Empire would do the same. That's just the setting I'm in and... Yeah I'm not going to be any different...

It's all going to be justified, it's not from malice like when I broke those Spirit Stones... It will be worth it when I get it done, this galaxy is never going to play fair with me. It's not as if this sub-sector wasn't going to hell within the year... How badly could I expedite that with what I'm about to do here? How ruthless could I be before I was like them? This wasn't some slippery slope...

"It's not, it's a necessary action to protect these people..."

Maybe if I kept saying that the little voice would shut up and go away.

Maybe it would be long enough for me to finally implant those Eldar I captured to finally see the face of this Farseer...