Please favorite, follow, share, and/or review
Killing a Tyranid Warrior and taking its brood is far easier said than done. Just shooting it outright was out of the question with that massive brood surrounding it. I needed to get it away from its mass of bodyguards if I had a prayer at killing it and yes it was probably going to have to be me. I thought about maybe having those troopers at the temple may be gunning it down for me but synapse creatures don't go stumbling into danger. That's what the lesser Tyranids like the Hormagaunts and Termagants were for. Not to mention if the force I wanted to take over was wiped out then what would be the point?
The force in question was also quite the sizable horde. Like the one that assaulted the Guardsmen at the temple the first time, I was there just a bit more varied. All of them were crushing plant growth under their paws but for the most part, was avoided leaving an obvious trail. It was rather impressive to watch really, moving with care and precision to avoid making it obvious a horde of Tyranids was moving throughout the jungle. I had my doubts that nobody would notice, of course, someone was bound to...
Especially the Raveners slithering along the ground, if that's what they were called. Those frightened me due to their size being on par with the warrior but with more arms and sharp-pointed scythe blades for hands. They also hung extremely close to the warrior, three deadly creatures I didn't know much of anything about.
"Those Raveners are like its honor guard. So getting those three out of the way is going to become my top priory."
Once those three were out of the way I could... do something... yeah this was one of those things that needed serious planning and a copious amount of luck. The Tyranid warrior had a lot of armor and mass for taking damage, which included bolt rounds so body shots were gonna be pointless.
"The only weapons I even have are my Hormagaunt and a lasgun. I'm not exactly packing a lot of heat here, I'd have to shoot the Tyranid warrior point-blank in the eye if I wanted any chance of killing it."
The lasgun I had was the common Triplex variant or at least I think it looked like it from the picture I saw in the codex. It was colored green of course. A quick pull of the trigger while aiming it at the canopy more than confirmed it was charged and dangerous. I knew from the wiki that these guns could or did have power settings to make each shot stronger. So I looked near the trigger and found a latch just above the trigger on the right side. The settings had one long line, a long line that was broken by three consecutive spaces, a long line with an X over it, then something that looks like an asterisk.
It was easy to tell what was semi-automatic as it was the setting the gun was on. The broken line was either burst or fully automatic, not that I was going to waste ammo checking. Then the X one safety maybe and the asterisk...
I stopped letting the brood pass me as I took aim at a tree and fired. The red beam struck and blasted off the bark in a large circle around a black burn. I flipped to the asterisk and aimed a foot below it and the shot tore off an even more bark with a far deeper hole and wider burn mark than before.
"Found it, this should help a bit-" There was a low growl behind me from the Tyranid warrior as its brood fanned out into a defensive formation facing the tree I was shooting at. At first, I thought I had provoked it but a moment later I was able to ascertain it was just confused as to why I was discharging a weapon when there were seemingly no threats around. It scanned the area for a moment then satisfied at the lack of danger resumed the march.
I let out the breath I was holding and allowed myself a moment to relax and take up the rear once more.
If I wanted to take control of a Tyranid brood I was going to need some practice. My Hormagaunt was the only thing around so I started with trying to... well do anything that could garner a reaction. This creature connected to me after all so I wasn't entirely sure how to connect to more but it was worth a shot. I had hopped on its back to focus getting my mind to maybe form some sort of bridge between minds. Get into the thick of what was connecting us.
I felt stupid for trying it, mainly because I didn't understand what the heck I was doing. Or if I was doing anything at all. After a minute I was getting ready to try and give up but then something happened. Whether it was me or the Hormagaunt I felt a sensation than the same pressure from before, a lot less uncomfortable though. My intuition told me that had to be a good sign so I 'pressed on' so to speak and the only way I could describe what happened next was only that my mind expanded.
For a brief moment I wasn't just me, but the Hormagaunt I was riding, the ones ahead of us, and even the Termagants with their spike rifles. I could feel the dirt beneath their paws, the warm moist breeze wafting over their skins, and how their serrated blade scraped on foliage from a few of them. I didn't shape out of it but more pulled out once I felt a more powerful grip grapple on the back of my head. It was an instinct move than anything else, memories of pain came back and I just retreated back into my head alone.
When I was back the Hormagaunts and Termagants briefly returned marching before coming to a stop. Whatever happened it only occurred with them, not the Raveners, nor the Genestealer, and especially not the Tyranid warrior. Who had stopped the brood to turn and looked at me, I felt the same puzzled sensations from before it turned back around and resumed the march. It had made me retreat, while the lesser Tyranids I may be able to seize control over the Warrior and the Raveners probably had to go.
The how part I was still in the process of making.
I tried getting a better read of it and from what little I was able to gather it seemed to be looking for hostile to kill. It was just following along with the last orders it had to assist in taking this region with no overriding will to explain why it should stop. Nor did I think I could become that will after kt had so easily forced my mind out from its brood. At last, a plan began to form within my head. A risky one at that and not just for me but if I was careful about it I would have my own brood and keep them away from settlements. My Hormagaunt moved next to the Tyranid warrior and I hopped off, it was larger and faster so I had to practically jog just to remain next to it.
I had some kind of synaptic connection to the Tyranids, that much had been made clear. It was time to use it to actually speak with one. I tried using whatever telepathy I was given, I could impart my desires onto a Hormagaunt so it stood to reason I could do the same with the Tyranid Warrior. Again somehow, I didn't know exactly how to do this but tried sharing images with the larger creature. It halted in place and turned towards me, its eyes glowing a bright green.
"Yeah that's right I know of a place with some enemies..." I muttered as I laid a hand upon its massive rifle. "A place to claim genes for the brood..."
The Tyranid warrior felt intrigued at the thought of being able to fulfill its final orders and listened intently.
Darkness had blanketed the jungle by the time we sighted the settlement when I saw the Blood Ravens from two days ago. Good thing for the cover of night, I did not want the brood to be spotted and guarantee a battle. The wide-open field separating it from the treeline was the first thing to note and I swear the Tyranid Warrior felt delighted at the prospect of assaulting a target. Not that I had the remotest intention of letting a fight break out. That would probably decimate the brood I wanted to control and get a lot of people killed in the process.
I needed some way to Tyranid warrior separated from its brood and now it was time to put that plan into action. If it failed a quick run would be needed or I'd die... it might be the ladder all things considered. Yet I had enough time on the March here to make up my mind and backing down now would endanger that settlement I placed in the Warrior's crosshairs.
I tried to get yet another mental image to the synapse creature, it wasn't hard now that I had done it. It was like getting your balanced on a bike now and I could only hope it stayed that way. What I was trying to convey was getting it to come with me towards the settlement to get a read on the place and determine an approach. A scouting mission essentially, Tyranids had to do stuff like that right?
It wasn't what someone would call an intricate plan but the Tyranid Warrior seemed to fine with following along with it. I wanted it just to be the Warrior but its Ravener bodyguards hugged just behind it and I silently cursed. I could not connect to those creatures at all. I wasn't sure if it was simply them being better-made Tyranids than the lesser ones in the brood or if it was something else entirely.
They would be the biggest problem here. That I was certain about and needed to hope I could use my synaptic connections to call for help. Or get on my Hormagaunt to run away if that failed.
"Even if this doesn't go as planned at least they will become a bunch of directionless and uncoordinated packs. That will make them easier for the Imperial Guard to deal with." I rationalized mainly trying to psych myself up for the dangerous task. I had a lasguns and found the overcharge setting but if that was even enough for a point-blank shot was still in the air. We were far enough now and my Hormagaunt was ready for a quick exit.
I paused and turned, the Tyranid warrior had gotten lower to the ground to lessen its profile, the darkness probably helped in that regard. Its Raveners remained at a respectable distance behind us. Extremely low to the ground but their snake-like bodies made it easier for them than their leader.
It could sense my hostility but merely stood there feeling perplexed by it, the Tyranid Warrior continued to be confused even as I leveled the gun with its face. It didn't understand what was going on and stared right into my eyes for an answer that would never come as I wouldn't give it. It stared on even as the lasgun was raised and the muzzle covered its left eye. Kept on being confused even as I pulled the trigger. The shot came and went in the blink of an eye and created a glowing hole where its eye used to be. While it didn't blast off its skull it most certainly with it blew its brains out, the creature flopped onto its back never realizing what I had planned or done.
But boy oh boy, did those Raveners grasped what I did without hesitation and all roared in pain from the loss of their leader. A sense of rage took over then and they descended upon me, albeit a bit more sluggish than before. I noticed that immediately and knew that running wasn't liable to work here. All Tyranid creatures were bound to move faster than I could even run. As soon as the Tyranid Warrior thudded to the humble floor I tried repeating the same trick I used to connect with its brood before ordering them to come to my aid. Fear made a good motivator in getting me to repeat the trick from before.
Once again I felt my mind expand not outwards I came to realize but getting larger if that made any sense and made my will known to the brood to our backs. I almost let out a victorious cheer at getting the brood to now follow my desires once their connection to the Warrior was severed. I honestly expected them to just start tearing one another apart or break off and run, they were slow to react though. Reeling a bit at the sudden loss of their synaptic creature.
When I became aware of my surrounding once more I saw one of the Raveners towering over my crouched form. Even if I was atop a laying Tyranid Warrior they were still large. Two of its uppermost blades came down and I thought that was it...
Until my Hormagaunt leaped into the way and shoved me off the dead synapse creature. Both scythe blades sank into the top of its body with ease, even the carapace armor was cracked and broken. The Ravener took no time in throwing it off its blades and into a nearby tree. I had rolled unceremoniously across the ground then scrambled further out of the way, sparing a moment to eye my companion as a horde of Hormagaunts exactly like it tore past the foliage at breakneck speeds to engage the three Raveners. All of them were larger and had better armor and blades, but were outnumbered and immediately surrounded on all sides.
I spared a thought to the Genestealer that had booked it into the foliage the moment the fighting started. It too was surprising but unlike the single-minded nature of other Tyranid creatures like the Raveners, it had the chance to pull back and consider the situation.
Still, many more Hormagaunts were slain, and I didn't even feel a tinge of regret for them. The height and bulk of the Raveners soon became a disadvantage as dozens of spike rounds flew from the rifles of the Termagants. Most had a clear enough line of sight but also the short and naturally prone statue of the Hormagaunts meant almost all of the brood was able to get involved. Around half of the Hormagaunts were slain in the tornado of violence ensuing just a yard away from me just as the serrated blades slice into and through the snake-like body like saws trying to cut through moving lumber. The shots from the Termagants continued to penetrate and fill the beast with biological rounds.
Eventually, all of the Raveners were brought down by the combined fire from the Termagants and slashing claws of the Hormagaunts. They died but I didn't focus on that, the bulk of the brood was still alive and surrounded me creating a barrier with their bodies but I didn't notice. My mind was now sort of linked with these creatures and while I didn't feel the same when I tried focusing back on the walk here I still knew there was a connection. Yet I pushed that thought off to the side as well. All I had eyes for was my Hormagaunt twitching on the ground with two large puncture wounds on its top. Purple ichor was steadily leaking out and onto the foliage beneath it, some of it staining my hands as I laid them on its body.
I had been in the veterinarian when my dog had to be put down but this was vastly different. There was no pained expression or sense of fear from death encroaching. My dog has been hit by a car and was in pain, knew it was dying. My Hormagaunt passed without any real conception that it was. Just a gentle growl that got lower and lower until it felt limb from the severe stab wounds and puncturing its internal organs.
It reminded me that for all the sentience that individual Tyranids could have they were still just organic machines often connected to singular conciseness. Humans of the imperium might gun be down for whatever reason but they weren't tools like the brood I now controlled. A fact I was not going to forget by making some asinine connection to Tyranids...
"There wouldn't be a repeat of those two Guardsmen if I could help it."
