A/N: Thanks to Sgt. Tiger for the review. This is part 2/3.
The bulky metal hull of the Leman Russ moved through the forest effortlessly, pushing aside trees as if they were nothing. The loud rumbling of it's engines were echoing throughout the myriad of trees and vegetation surrounding the tank.
Kursk sat atop a steel crate on the rear of it's hull, his helmet lying loosely at his feet. Vreck also sat atop a similar camouflaged steel crate opposite him. He ran his hands through his sweat-soaked hair as he glanced over the side of the tank into the forest, the trees passed him as a green blur while the tank continued to smash it's way through the woodland. He was very nervous; such a noisy vehicle would present a prime opportunity for an ambush, and he had seen first hand at what the Tau could do if you presented them with a target out in the open. He would rather have walked, the best way to get past the Tau is by being unseen, but the tank was a much faster option and he wanted to get off of this planet as soon as possible.
He reached behind his back and unclipped his water canteen from his belt. Unscrewing the lid, he raised it above his head. The cool water ran over his rugged features, washing the mud and grime away, making him feel relaxed. A few seconds passed before he put the canteen away, cautious not to waste any more.
Vreck looked up at Kursk and opened his mouth to say something when suddenly the top hatch swung open with a creak and the aged face of Yevin peered out. Vreck quickly shut his mouth and glanced up at the Lieutenant in anticipation.
"We've just picked up a transmission, apparently a group of survivors from the 53rd were making their way to the evac. point when they were fired upon by a Tau patrol," Yevin explained as he looked down a them from the hatch. "I want to accumulate as many survivors as possible, so we're willing to go out of our way to help them."
"Any idea on the Tau strength?" Kursk asked with raised eyebrows.
"I'm afraid not, it appears we're going in blind," Yevin said with a sigh. "But don't worry. Ol' Reliable here will see us through with a fighting chance," Yevin said hopefully upon seeing the pessimistic look on Kursk's face.
"Well, you better hope we don't run into an entire Hunter Cadre," Kursk threatened, before he resumed staring at the passing forest.
"Yes, well, I hope we don't either," Yevin said, then without another word he retracted his head back inside the steel beast, closing the hatch behind him.
The Leman Russ took a sudden turn to the left as it headed towards the Guardsmen. Kursk lifted his helmet from the floor and placed it on his head, fastening the chin strap. Vreck stood up and peered over the top of the turret to where the tank was heading. A myriad of bright blue pulse shots and deep red lasshots were being fired off into the sky just over the tree line on the horizon.
"We'll be there in a couple of seconds, get ready," Kursk ordered.
Vreck groaned, "Yes sir."
Kursk ignored Vreck and looked over the turret at the approaching battle. Stray pulse blasts had begun flying through the surrounding vegetation, demolishing any trees that got in their way. A random shot would hit the tank with a dull clank, sending sparks in all directions and chipping the paint. Kursk and Vreck kept their heads lowered behind the turret in an attempt to protect them from the shots being fired by unseen adversaries.
The Leman Russ finally reached it's destination, it's massive form smashing aside more trees and bushes that got in it's way as it made it's way out into a clearing in the forest. The large clearing was devoid of any structures save a small emplacement atop a grassy knoll located in the centre of the glade. Numerous heads could be seen moving around inside the emplacement, bobbing up and down to investigate the sudden appearance of the tank.
There was a flash of yellow at the opposite end of the clearing amid a group of trees. The Tau were rapidly moving over the muddy grass towards them. The Leman Russ' lascannon opened fire with a deafening crack; the shot burst amongst the bushes sending a large tree crashing towards the ground in flames. The tank halted beside the emplacement, it's guns blazing as Kursk clambered over the side of the tracks and into the ditch containing the bewildered Guardsmen.
"I'm Sergeant Kursk, who's in charge here?" he asked quickly to the three Guardsmen gathering around him.
"I am. Sergeant Turstan reporting," said one of the men as he lowered his shotgun and outstretched a hand.
Kursk shook the sergeants hand and continued. "Any idea on how many Tau we're facing?"
"Not really, we've been exchanging fire for the last ten minutes and that's all we know," Turstan replied as he glanced over the lip of the emplacement towards the Tau.
Kursk sighed. "I hope it's only Fire Warriors; the Leman Russ'll scare them off, but if there's any battlesuits in the area we're going to have to watch our heads."
Turstan nodded in agreement. He opened his mouth to continue, but was silenced by the awe striking boom of the battle cannon. A colossal explosion erupted ahead of the Guardsmen. The blast incinerated the vegetation, turning the area into a wasteland of fire and destruction. Kursk flung himself to the ground as pieces of trees and rock chips were thrown forcefully at him.
He lifted his head only to see Turstan's face staring into his.
"I think you better see this," he said in a shaky voice.
Kursk slowly raised himself to his feet and peered over the lip of the emplacement, towards the place of the explosion. He gasped as he saw the sleek hull of a Hammerhead hovering over the scorched earth. It's once tan hull was blackened and smouldering; the right burst cannon was missing, a small coruscating fire in it's place.
It's turret hummed as it swayed towards the Leman Russ. The remaining burst cannon also aimed at the Guardsmen peering over the emplacement. Before the rail gun could lock onto the tank, the burst cannon opened fire, blasting the sandbags surrounding the ditch into millions of pieces as the assault continued to rip up the immediate earth.
Kursk kept his head low in the mud lest it be taken off by the aggressive pulse blasts flying overhead. The knoll on which the emplacement sat had been reduced to a mass pile of mud and dirt before the spinning barrel of the burst cannon silenced. He looked up towards the Leman Russ next to him waiting for it to fire when it was suddenly engulfed in a bright blue and red flame. The rail gun's aim was dead on. It lurched backward on it's tracks before crashing forward into the ground with the sound of twisting metal.
Kursk's jaw dropped as he stared at the flaming, burnt out wreck of the Leman Russ. One of Turstan's men yelped at the site and subsequently picked himself up from the mud and scaled the wall of the emplacement frantically trying to escape the approaching Hammerhead. Turstan yelled a warning before a string of bright flashes cut into the fleeing man from behind, severing him at the waist as he collapsed the ground soaked in his own blood.
Kursk starred in horror at the man's gruesome death, cursing loudly. "We're definitely going to die if we just sit here, the only chance we have is if we storm the tank."
Vreck and Turstan both looked up in shock. "Are you fracking nuts? We'd be cut to shreds in seconds with that damn cannon," Vreck said in defiance.
"Well, we aren't going to take it out by sitting in this Emperor forsaken ditch!" Kursk yelled, his anger rising.
Vreck just sat back and shook his head, Kursk continued on regardless. "I've got a couple of krak grenades here, we could chuck them under the burst cannon and take that out. Then, if we got close enough, the rail gun won't be able to fire. A couple of frag grenades down the top hatch should do it."
Vreck, Turstan and the other Guardsmen all nodded in unison. Kursk momentary looked over the top of the emplacement to see the Hammerhead hovering over destroyed trees and crashing through burning bushes as it came towards them.
He looked back towards the three Guardsmen, looking into their faces and seeing little trace of fear. He starred at them for a second before uttering a single word. "Go!"
At once, all four men charged out of the ditch, their grenades clutched tightly in their hands as they prepared to throw them. The Hammerhead noticed the approaching threat immediately and brought it's burst cannon to bear once again. It opened fire at the Guardsmen before they managed to release their payload of grenades.
Kursk swore loudly as the ground in front of him was annihilated in a hail of pulse shots, a mass of mud and grass was flung onto his face, blurring his vision. He fell to the ground clutching his head in an attempt to protect himself.
The Hammerhead continued to fire until all of the Guardsmen were laying motionlessly on the ground. Slowly, it started to move towards the bodies, surveying the area for more threats.
Kursk opened his eyes slowly and wiped the mud from his face with his sleeve. He was laying immobile in a pile of mud on the ground. he could see the lifeless body of Turstan lying a few feet to the left of him. His legs were sickly twisted and blood was flowing freely from a gaping wound in his chest.
He slowly raised his head and gasped at the Hammerhead in front of him. It's burst cannon swivelled towards him as the barrels started to spin in preparation for firing. Before it managed to fire, Kursk picked up the krak grenade lying in the mud next to him and threw it under the tank. He quickly covered himself up with his arms as the grenade exploded with a deafening crack. The Hammerhead's large frame lit up in a bright blue and orange ball of fire, sending it crashing towards the ground in a blaze of flames. A massive hole and been blasted into the centre of it causing a myriad of flames to escape through it.
He stood up with shaky legs and looked around for anymore Tau, but there was no sign of any. The immediate area was safe. He looked down at the dead Guardsmen; Vreck had taken a pulse round to the chest and was laying motionless in a heap to the right of him. Kursk felt a stab of pity as he looked into the dead corporal's soulless eyes. Just another man to add to the list of dead, he thought bitterly.
After a couple of seconds, he pried the grimy shotgun from Turstan's cold hands and pocketed a handful of shells. Then, all by himself, continued on through the forest towards the supposed evac point.