Fame Cimex Chapter 31

Over Angle's Redoubt a terrible battle was joined, vastly outnumbered Imperial vessels blasting away continuously at hordes of Bio-ships which were closing from all sides. Escorts gathered their fire together to obliterate Bio-ship after Bio-ship while Strike Cruisers blasted away at the horde and Capital ships unloaded everything they had. Space was thick with exchanges of fire, shells, las and plasma being traded with shards of chitin, pyro-acid and living ammunition. Hulls were torn and ravaged while alien hides were blown open by the carnage. The devastation on both sides was creating a diffuse cloud of wreckage and dead bodies that drifted freely in the freezing emptiness.

The Bio-ships were spewing endless lines of spores that dove down on the Imperial hulls, each filled with clawed monstrosities just waiting to be unleashed. The flashing darts of fighter rose to meet them, pinwheeling around the Capital ships like swarms of flies as they sought to deny the attackers. For all their valour the fighters could not hold back every spore and many made it through to the embattled ships. They latched on like limpets and began chewing their way inside, punching through thick armour faster than any weapon could hope to emulate. On every ship fanged nightmares were unleashed as the spores vomited out their cargo, waves of chittering monsters racing to and fro as they willed. The Fleet slowed as ships were forced to divert crewmen to repel these boarders and every vessel was consumed by war, inside and without.

Far ahead of the rest of the fleet the Battlebarge Light of Terra was ploughing forward, her guns blazing continuously and her point defence turrets spitting streams of fire from every inch of her hull as Thunderhawks circled her diligently. She was alone and cut off, but if she could reach her target then she might yet turn the tide. On her bridge the tension could have been cut with a knife, the crew tending to their stations with feverish desperation, knowing that their lives hung in the balance. On the command dais Toran was shouting, "Concentrate all starboard batteries on those Vanguard drones off our dorsal flank. Portside batteries are slacking; tell the gun crews that they must improve their rate of fire."

From the gunnery pews Jediah called, "The crews are already working flat out; they request more time to reload."

Next to Toran Chaplain Wrethan stepped up and snarled, "Tell them this and please use these exact words… If they do not put their frakking backs into it I will personally come down there and flay the skin off each and every one of those worthless curs!"

The message was relayed and after a few moments the rate of fire did indeed increase, but there was no time to celebrate for Bylan was calling, "+Sir, forward Void shields are straining to the limit, they cant take much more of this+"

Toran sternly called, "Drain power from the rearward shields and channel it to the prow."

The crew hastened to obey but Apothecary Memnos said, "Risky, we are surrounded on all sides, they could break through the rear shields with ease."

Toran replied, "It is a risk we must take, the Hive ship is before us, we have to break through its escorts at all costs."

The battle raged on and the great ship rang and shook as the impacts came from all directions, the crew bending to their duties with admirable fortitude. The Light of Terra was taking a pounding but it was making progress, the distance to the target shrinking with every minute. The noise on the bridge was a cacophony of shouting and distant roars as the crew fought to keep the violence on the outside the ship. From the Ordnance pulpit Novak called, "Sir, Thunderhawks are reporting they have nearly expended their munitions, they must return to reloaded with utmost alacrity."

Toran replied sternly, "Have them return one squadron at a time, we must keep a CAP around the ship at all times or the boarding spores will break through. Flicker cycle the shields to let them in without exposing us to enemy fire."

The order was obeyed but suddenly Persion called, "Captain, we have a large group of vanguards coming in from above!"

Toran looked at the Hololith display and saw the formation of escorts closing rapidly; he drew in a breath and yelled, "Redeploy Bombardment Canons, give them a volley of Magma Bombs!"

The crew rushed to obey and all the Captain could do was hold on and watch as the great barrels of the canons came about, time stretched out and it seemed to take hours for the weapons to come to bear. Toran stared at the icons in the Hololith and fought the urge to shout at the crew to hurry, he above all had to show discipline under pressure. Finally the Bombardment cannons were raised and the Captain called, "Fire!"

A series of epic bursts of flame rose from the spine of the Battlebarge, flinging city-killing ordnance at the escorts. The shells crashed through their protective spore clouds with ease and detonated in cascading explosions that ripped the leading Bio-ships apart in showers of gore, like a bolter round exploding a man's body. The blasts engulfed the squadron and even those not caught in the explosion were buffeted by debris, forcing them aside and slowing them enough for the Battlebarge to break through. There were no cheers on the bridge for all knew that the battle was far from over and the true test was yet to come. Toran stared into the Hololith, seeing the teeming swarms all around. The Tyranid's numbers seemed endless and he knew it was only a matter of time until they broke through the Light of Terra's defences and ended her valiant charge. Then he spied something that made his hearts race, at last the image of the Hive Ship appeared, dead ahead and closing fast.

It was a titan of the void, miles long and pitted with impact craters and the scars of forgotten wars. It dwarfed any of its compatriots in every way imaginable, eclipsing their size and power with its awesome bulk and its hideous visage. Its flanks were festooned with bio-organic weapons ports and from its prow arose long rending claws, one of which was still shorn off halfway through from the previous battle. Everybody stared aghast and even Chaplain Wrethan was moved to say, "Look at the size of that thing, it's enormous!"

Memnos swallowed audibly and muttered, "You wouldn't happen to have any more tricks up your sleeve would you Captain? I think having another planet to blow up in their faces would be somewhat useful right now. "

Toran gritted his teeth and said, "Unfortunately not… but what I do have are Torpedoes. Novak, let us greet them with a volley."

The Ordnance crew hastened to obey and a minute later the ship rang with the vibrations of torpedoes launching. Everybody stared at the Hololith for long seconds, hoping against hope to inflict a punishing blow at the outset. Their hopes were cruelly dashed as a Razorfiend moved into the path of the volley, sacrificed by the Hive Mind to spare the critical Hive Ship.

The torpedoes were guided by simple logic engines and merely sought the first target they found, homing in on the Razorfiend and locking on. They plunged down upon it and detonated in massive flares of plasma, killing the Bio-ship instantly but leaving the Hive Ship untouched.

The groan of disappointment was audible and Memnos spat, "Accursed bugs, we almost had it."

Toran shook his head and said, "This was never going to be settled at long range, we shall have to get in close and show them what an Astartes warship can do in brawl. Furion take us across their port bow, I want us to cross their prow at point blank range. Jediah prepare a broadside, we are only going to get one shot that this, give me everything you've got!"

The Battlebarge swung about even as the swarms of escorts nipped at its heels, the Tyranids were relentless in their attacks but the Light of Terra had endured millennia of war and would not be stopped. Inexorably the distance closed until the Hive Ship loomed over the Astartes vessel, its alien appearance filling every surveyor screen, each one a picture of mutating genetic horror. Toran held on with baited breath waiting for the angles to be just right and then he cried, "Fire!"

With a cascade of lightning the weapons spoke, unleashing a storm of thunder into the silence of space. Torrents of destruction leapt from the Light of Terra, traversing the distance in heartbeats. Over and over the guns fired, the crews working frantically to reload even as their guns glowed red with heat and capacitors sparked and hissed all around them. The onslaught caught the Hive Ship dead on, blasting through its spore clouds to impact upon its hide. Massive craters were torn into its skin as the torrent came on and on, tearing, gouging and stabbing into its craggy hide and blowing chunks of flesh free. Great craters were chiselled into the Hive Ship, terrible scars that left it bleeding vile fluids and spilling ichor into the void. Yet all this was as nothing to the great bulk of the Tyranid creature and despite the damage it had taken it sailed on, contemptuous of the worst humanity could throw at it.

On the bridge men stood aghast at the sight of their weapons failing to hurt the beast and Memnos said, "What does it take to kill that thing?"

Wrethan growled, "Tyranids just don't know how to die."

Toran however was staring at the Hololith, perplexed by what he saw. The Hive Ship was before them, surrounded by its escorts, yet they weren't swarming forward to engage. Toran frowned in confusion, by any logical doctrine the Tyranids should be pouring on fire, but they were just hanging back.

Then Persion called, "Captain, the Hive Ship is picking up speed." Toran's organic eye widened as he realised the Tyranid's intent, seeing the mighty beast coming straight at them with its rending claws extended out towards the Battlebarge. It was like being caught in the path of a charging bull grox, only far, far more deadly.

Toran yelled in horror, "All power to the engines, turn us hard-a-starboard. They're going to ram!"

But Furion shouted from the helm, "It's too late!"

With dread inevitably the Hive Ship bore down upon the helpless Battlebarge, surging forwards with its claws outstretched in eagerness to latch on to its prey. The Light of Terra fired its engines desperately as it tried to get away, but it was futile and like two passenger trains colliding the massive ships smashed together in a heap of metal and flesh. As they impacted the rending claws stabbed down, breaking apart thick armour and reinforced internal braces to plunge deeply within the Astartes vessel. The claws drove into the Battlebarge's guts, fusing the two ships into one tangled mass of wreckage. On the bridge men were thrown from their stations by the force of the collision, rolling helplessly as their world tilted madly and the floor became a wall. Toran was clinging onto the rail and shouted, "Damage report!"

Bylan answered, "+Massive damage to the superstructure, we have breaches in decks five, fourteen, twenty-seven, forty-nine and seventy-six!+"

Toran grimaced and shouted, "We can't take much more of this, have to break free!"

Furion replied from the helm where he was hanging on, "Power is disrupted across the whole ship; we can't even manoeuvre, let alone break free from this death grip."

Before the Captain could speak again Bylan cried, "+Sir, I have reports of boarders in the breached compartments, the Tyranids are pouring from the claws, they are acting like boarding tubes!+"

Toran looked at the bridge crew and knew that they did not have enough time to find a solution to this crisis. The Tyranids would overrun the ship swiftly unless he did something to stop them. Toran forced himself up and drew his sword as he declared, "All Battle-Brothers come with me, we must stem the tide long enough for the crew to restore power and break us free. Send a message to Third Company to move out and commence counter boarding actions, we will meet them en-route. And somebody signal Venerable Ajax, tell him that his skills are required."