Here is the chapter, I'm sorry it took so long but since my family member died, I have entered a terrible depression that is having a hard time getting out of and it was one of the issues that has prevented me from publishing the chapter, apart from the fact that it had been very long and I had I have to separate it into two parts. Soon I will upload the other part, which in theory would be chapter 7. Again, sorry for the delay and enjoy it,I also want to apologize again for the translation, translating with chatgpt has become more difficult because the AI delivers it to me in disordered fragments or keeps writing it which makes it difficult to compile everything to publish it
Chapter 6
The alarms began to sound loudly. Huge metal plates surrounded the church in the form of barricades. Light mechs hurried into the church heading towards the shield reactor area, along with extermination droids. Due to their size, only a few could fit in that area, but it was better to send metal than a large biological contingent to defend that zone, while outside they were preparing for what seemed like the final assault.
The war room was more fortified, with Ghan troops present in battle suits and heavy weaponry. Tiamath was in his combat suit, the absorbed version of the Castelan.
"How is the evacuation of the wounded going?" Tiamath asked.
"40% completed, there are many capsules that need to be sent."
"The reactor Tyranids?"
"They're being handled right now. Shields have been raised throughout the church's basement, which will prevent them from re-entering underground, but surface defense remains inefficient," commented an officer present.
"It's better that they come through an area where we can fight, rather than by surprise." Tiamath deployed the map of the area.
What surprised him now was that once recalibrated to avoid the Tyranids' psychic shield, the zones that seemed won were filled with targets. The white points representing organic troops were in small nuclei in different areas, yellow points representing droids and Copper Men were in areas with more Tyranid presence, shown in purple, which covered a huge amount of the screen.
"Have the organic troops retreat and increase orbital bombardments in areas with more Tyranids," ordered the regent upon seeing this.
"The bombardments will start to become ineffective if we keep using them. These things adapt to our strategies."
"Perhaps we can help," a robotic voice said, revealing a group of Leutamanos at the entrance.
"Well, maybe you have an idea for using more powerful weaponry," Tiamath commented.
"Loading missile batteries with us will help decimate these Tyranid clusters significantly, and help us avoid extinction."
"Launching them will simply make you extinct faster," the regent replied.
"That's incorrect. In these attacks, several of us were attacked by Tyranids and consumed. We were able to understand their metabolism and manage to consume them. To put it a certain way, they are an extremely delicious species," commented the Leutamano, looking at the present ones, who stopped what they were doing to look at him.
"You ate the Tyranids?" asked an incredulous officer.
"Yes, their taste is extremely spicy and bursting with millions of flavors, both known and unknown. This has raised our growth rate, which I previously considered unnecessary to increase, but now it's of utmost urgency," commented the Leutamano, to which Tiamath began to think before nodding.
"Well, it could work, so you have my authorization," commented Tiamath as the Leutamano left.
While the regent continued looking at the map, a metallic sound was heard, the classic sound of pipes where someone was passing through. Then the ventilation grille opened, and a Genestealer appeared. Most in the room were surprised, starting to raise their weapons to shoot. The Genestealer, with its speed, jumped back, managing to crush a communications operator with its legs while killing another with its claws. The troops opened fire, but it managed to dodge the shots, and in mid-air, a shot from Tiamath's weapon vaporized it.
"Clean the ventilation as quickly as possible, and store everything. We'll transfer the material to the main area of the church," Tiamath commented while turning off the map. Pressing a button, it shrank to the size of a die, which he put in his pocket.
...
In the area where the cells were, the commissar, still-loyal guardsmen, the Astropath, and the Battle Sister were silent while the Federation guard watched them. The energy wall separating the two groups began to fail and eventually turned off.
"Fantastic," commented the guard as he got up to check from the outside, only to see it was discharged.
"Don't move. I'll be back in a moment," he said as he left, cursing the fact that the makeshift jail had been given discharged generators.
When the guard left, both groups looked at each other without saying much, as they didn't have much to say. Then a noise began to be heard in the ventilation. An Imperial Guard approached the vent, which was shaking.
"What's happening?" The Imperial Guard looked up and saw a Genestealer drop, crushing the Imperial Guard and killing him. The commissar, the sororitas, and the other Imperial Guards tried to stop it. The Genestealer pierced through the other two Imperial Guards, giving the sororitas enough time to kick the Tyranid, knocking it down. When it fell, it landed next to the Astropath, who woke up and saw the Tyranid beside him.
"Ah! Ah! Guard!" The Astropath ran to the energy field entrance, starting to hit it, generating only ripples on the shield.
This made the guard come closer upon hearing the commotion, only to see what was happening in the cells.
"Shit!" shouted the guard as he disabled the shield, trying to enter. But the Astropath stood in the way, preventing the guard from even shooting. When he finally managed to run out, the Tyranid pushed the Battle Sister, running towards the guard. As the guard tried to shoot, the Genestealer pierced his head with its claws, dropping the weapon.
Quickly, the commissar picked it up to shoot the Genestealer in the back. Then, mini screams were heard from the ventilation system, only to see a huge swarm of mini-drones pass by at great speed. In some areas, the color changed from gray to purple, and in one part, a Genestealer's arm fell to the ground.
"By the Emperor," commented the sororitas upon seeing that.
"We must leave now. These barbarians won't take long to notice the commotion," commented the commissar.
"Where will we go? From what some guards have said, the Ultramarines are allied with these guys," commented the Battle Sister.
"Then we'll take one of their ships to leave the planet and inform the Empire. With luck and the Emperor's grace on our side, we'll reach the nearest Imperial planet, give notice, and a fleet will come to destroy these barbarians," commented the commissar as they continued down the church corridors.
Along the way, they noticed more and more Genestealer infestations. Somewhere, they seemed to be getting in, which would play in their favor to keep the Federation soldiers occupied.
They reached an intersection where they saw what seemed to be where the wounded were. They didn't enter because it was full not only of medics but also heavily armed troops. Turning down a corridor, they heard screeches, and this time from under the floor, a Genestealer emerged. The commissar raised the weapon he had taken and fired. The shot was so powerful it disintegrated the Tyranid with no recoil. Two more appeared, and he fired again. When no more appeared, both looked at each other in disbelief and amazement.
"This type of weapon makes the Tyranids seem like simple pests, easy to eliminate," commented the Battle Sister, surprised.
"And they're wasted in the hands of these barbarians. We must continue," commented the commissar.
"You're not going anywhere. Drop the weapon and surrender." Hearing the High Gothic made them both look around, but they saw no one. Then the commissar felt the barrel of a weapon on his neck.
"Show yourself if you have any honor," commented the commissar.
"Do you really think there's any honor in these times?" Hazan said as he appeared before them.
"How do you do that?" questioned the sororitas. The sniper said nothing as his rifle transformed into an assault rifle.
"It's simple technology. Now, sir, drop the weapon, and no one will get hurt," Hazan commented, pointing at both of them.
"Yes…I'll drop the weapon…But when I'm dead!" The commissar shot the ground, causing the shot to hit some cables the Federation had placed. The resulting explosion caused several transformers to blow up, cutting off the electricity in the area. Hazan stepped back due to the spark, and the commissar opened fire on him.
"What have you done?!" the sniper shouted as he reactivated his suit, managing to get past the area of broken cables.
Just as he arrived to grab the commissar, a punch from the sororitas made him look at her. Though he said nothing, the Catachan sniper knocked her down with a kick before both fell to the ground. As she tried to follow him, a Genestealer emerged from a hole in the wall to attack her. She began to struggle, looking at the commissar who was catching his breath.
"Shoot it!" shouted the Battle Sister.
The commissar aimed the weapon but, after a few seconds, lowered it and turned away.
"An honorable death in the Emperor's name. Farewell, sister," the commissar said as he went down another corridor.
"Damn traitor!" shouted the sororitas, but a burst of shots killed the Genestealer. She looked at Hazan, who had stood up and had a submachine gun in his hand, which, after shooting, re-fused with his armor.
"Thanks..." she began to say, but a cable attached to her armor and electrocuted her, leaving her unconscious.
"Fugitive 1 captured. Fugitive 3 is heading to the engineering area," Hazan reported as he lifted the unconscious sororitas.
…
The Thunderhawk transporting Lilith's team had arrived at the Mechanicus lab, as the Federation had called it, though they didn't know its real name because the tech-priest seemed dazed by the latest revelation, constantly muttering things in binary.
"No enemies detected outside, there might be an ambush," the pilot's message caught the attention of those present.
"Alright, we'll be careful," Lilith stood up from her seat as the ramp opened. She tossed a small matte black sphere, which, upon hitting the ground, scanned the entire surrounding area.
"What... is that?" Julius asked, puzzled.
"A simple proximity scanner, and from what I can see, there are enemies hiding, seven to be precise," commented the scientist.
"Shall I open fire?" questioned the pilot.
"Do it," Lilith commanded as the Thunderhawk's built-in turrets opened fire on the area where the Tyranids were hiding. The sound of the creatures' shrieks filled the air until a Trygon burst from the ground, attempting to take down the ship, but the pilot managed to evade it.
"This one's big! It'll make a nice trophy for the squad," commented the pilot as he fired again.
"No trophies, this is a new specimen. I need to study it first; you can keep the leftovers," said the Praetorian as the Trygon fell dead to the ground.
"Not to sound offensive, but don't you have other ships besides the Thunderhawk? Maybe a better variant of the Valkyrie?" Julius asked.
"What you're currently seeing, the weapons, vehicles, combat armor, supplies, all come from reserve vaults on different planets. It's a rare mix of armament ranging from the 24th to the 25th millennium," commented a soldier who was looking at Julius.
"Thanks..."
"Call me Captain, for that's what I am to you, soldier. You start at the bottom even when you switch armies, but I'll tell you, the concept of shooting traitors appeals to me. I hope I don't have to practice it on you," said the Captain.
"Could you stop flirting? When we're done, I'll give you permission and a tent for you both," commented Lilith, making them stop talking.
When there were no signs of life in the area, everyone disembarked from the Thunderhawk, which, due to the danger, left the area as soon as possible.
"Pick-up time in 3 hours," commented the pilot as he flew away from the area.
In total, there was a team of 10 soldiers: Lilith, Julius, the tech-priest, and seven other soldiers armed with heavy weapons. The door was tightly sealed.
"You, open it," Lilith commanded the tech-priest, who stood completely still in place.
"I think we need to reboot his operating system," commented a soldier, waving a hand in front of the tech-priest, but he didn't move at all.
"If we kick him, will he snap out of it?" Lilith asked Julius, who shrugged in confusion.
"Impossible!" the tech-priest suddenly shouted, making everyone jump in surprise.
"Is it impossible to open?" the scientist questioned.
"No! It's impossible that you are the Omnissiah! Blasphemous wretch!" the tech-priest yelled, pulling out a plasma pistol and pointing it at Lilith. The other soldiers were about to shoot the tech-priest when the Praetorian, in a swift movement, grabbed the tech-priest by the head, lifting him into the air.
"My discontent with your kind is great due to your immense decay, but to prevent you from doing something foolish, I will show you the truth," Lilith commented as she tightened her grip on the tech-priest with her right hand, her fingers digging in.
"By the Emperor..." Julius muttered at what he was seeing.
Starting from Lilith's feet, a white line began to rise. Everything seemed normal until it reached her arms. Her left arm was normal, but her right was made of a shiny silver with black joints. As it reached her head, her neck was partially metallic, and the right side of her face was robotic, with a bright yellow eye. Her human face was pale with many burns, her left eye barely open but still showing its yellow color.
"Observe and understand," Lilith's voice now sounded more robotic.
The tech-priest's body stopped struggling as several cables from Lilith's robotic hand connected to the tech-priest's mechanical parts until she released him. He fell to the ground, murmuring things in binary before looking up at Lilith, then lowering his head.
"Forgive my outburst of anger, Omnissiah. Is there a way this humble servant of the Machine God can atone for such offenses?" asked the tech-priest without lifting his head.
"I'll think of something. Now, let's go," Lilith commented, passing her robotic hand over the door, which opened as if it were nothing.
After everyone had passed except for Lilith and a soldier, the Captain approached the Praetorian.
"Is that why you didn't let him see you without that hologram?" the Captain asked.
"You noticed?" Lilith asked.
"Ma'am, I've been under your command for years. Of course, I'd notice. May I ask how you survived?" the soldier asked.
"Ingwen reconstructed me with what was left of the necrodermis. That bastard wasted it," Lilith commented.
"I wouldn't say that, but he's an Eldar. His common sense is different from a human's," the soldier commented as they both began to enter the Mechanicus base.
"Hey..." Lilith called to the Captain, who turned around.
"What is it, ma'am?" she asked as Lilith handed her some vials with a black liquid.
"What is this?" she asked.
"It's something that allows me to stay out of the hologram longer than necessary. If you see me starting to feel unwell or coughing up blood or anything, inject it into my neck, okay?" The Captain looked a bit confused by this.
"Why me?"
"I don't trust anyone else but you, especially on this mission," Lilith commented as they continued on their way.
…
The area was infested with Tyranids. Kamala, using the protective suit from the black box, made huge jumps to reach the base, which unfortunately was very far away.
"I fell too far from where I should be," she thought, annoyed.
Upon reaching an intermediate zone, she paused for a second as her visor's sensor showed green life signals, indicating civilians.
"Can anyone hear me?" Kamala asked through her communicator.
"This is Goliath 1, over," a voice replied from the other side.
"Goliath 1, this is Thunder 2-1, Medium Mech Division. I've lost my mecha and I'm two kilometers from the base. My ship lost control and I crashed in enemy territory. I need urgent evacuation,"Kamala reported.
"Negative, Thunder 2-1. Evacuation time would be thirty minutes. My position is highly compromised," came the response.
"According to the radar, you're close to my position. Why can't you come?" Kamala insisted.
"Thunder 2-1, I am the only Scorpion V tank in the area. I have orders to reach the factory, city, or whatever that Imperial base is where there are civilians and escort them. Sorry to be frank, but between saving civilians and your life, you're on your own. Sorry," commented the tank driver.
Kamala looked into the distance and indeed, the huge mobile base, almost 4 meters high, was eradicating everything in its path as it advanced toward the location. Kamala sighed in defeat.
"Understood. I'll find a way back to the base," she replied, low on spirit.
"Again, I'm sorry, Thunder 2-1. I'll inform the next ship or armored vehicle I find about your location. Try to stay alive... oh shit!" In the distance, Kamala saw two Hierophants attacking the Scorpion tank, which fired two shots into the air, missing but then bombarding the surrounding area, killing those two giant Tyranids.
"Goliath 1, do you copy?" Kamala asked, somewhat worried about the driver.
"Yes, Thunder 2-1, I copy. God, those things scared the hell out of me. Listen, I can't come to get you, but I'll drop something to help you survive. If I see a nearby ship or another armored vehicle, I'll give them your current location. Try not to stray too far; something is interfering with communications, which is annoying. Over." A cannon aimed in Kamala's direction.
The shot landed near her but didn't raise any dust, revealing a combat suit. Kamala looked at it for a moment before activating it. When she tried to move, the movement was clunky and slow compared to her mecha, but functional.
"Didn't expect to see these suits outside of training. Hope it doesn't let me down," Kamala thought, placing the black box in a compartment of the suit and heading towards the civilian signal.
…
In the church, things went from bad to much worse when the shot from that escaped commissar hit the cable that not only powered all the instruments but also the communication antennas. Now, not only were they outnumbered, but the ability to communicate on the ground had been severely reduced while the cable was being repaired.
In the rest area, most of the pods had already been sent off, with Jenkins' being the last. Her pod had opened, and she emerged completely naked but dazed because she found herself in the city church.
"Am I... alive?" Jenkins thought as she looked down and felt where she was injured.
"You're alive, indeed, but now is not the time to dwell on that. Please, put on some clothes and head to the armory," commented a doctor.
"Of course, sir..." The Imperial Guard didn't finish speaking as she noticed that the doctor treating her was an avian Xenos, resembling a peacock.
"Do I have something funny on my face?" asked the doctor.
"No... but... you're a Xenos," Jenkins pointed out.
"I'll give you a medal for the most obvious statement. Please, do as you're told," said the doctor, while a human nurse handed Jenkins a uniform.
Jenkins observed the uniform: black combat pants, boots of the same color, and a gray shirt with the Federation logo on the back.
"Excuse me, where is the armory?" she asked while adjusting the clothes they had given her.
"Follow this hallway to the exit to the courtyard. Before going out, turn right, and you'll find a heavily guarded door with bars – that's the armory."
"Alright, thanks," Jenkins replied as she left the infirmary to search for the armory.
After leaving the room and walking a bit with the directions, she arrived at a crossroads and now wasn't sure which way to go.
"Left or right? What did that Xenos say?" she thought, trying to remember. Another sound caught her attention from the left hallway, so she went in that direction and pressed herself against the corner to listen to the conversation.
"Are you absolutely sure you heard that?" It was the voice of the commissar.
"That's right, Commissar. Two engineers were talking about the PCE they have in their possession..507 STC. I even used my Psychic abilities to verify everything, but I had to escape," said the Astropath.
"I see. You did well. Now, let's find a ship to leave the planet," replied the commissar.
"I know where one is. Follow me, commissar," said the Astropath, as their footsteps faded away. Jenkins emerged from her hiding spot, looking in that direction. There was no time to call for reinforcements; she would have to stop them herself.
Following the commissar and the Astropath was a somewhat simple task. Jenkins owed thanks to Sister Georgina, who often brought her to the church to spend time together when they both had free time from their jobs – or at least, that's what Jenkins believed about the hospitable Sister.
"I heard there was an unconscious Sororita. I hope it's Georgina. She was very attached to me... maybe too much," Jenkins thought before shaking her head to clear those thoughts.
"Are you sure it's this way?" asked the commissar, looking around before looking back, causing Jenkins to hide behind a pillar.
"Yes, sir, it's this way. Follow me, and we'll soon reach the area where the Battle Sisters were housed," said the Astropath.
"Why to that place? It's not the time to deviate," replied the commissar.
"The secret door is right in that room. When the Battle Sisters arrived on the planet, the Cardinal was very upset that they chose that area for their quarters, but he couldn't do anything," said the Astropath.
"I don't understand why the Ecclesiarchy supports Primarch Guilliman knowing his thoughts towards the Emperor, the Ecclesiarchy, and the Imperial Cult," replied the commissar.
"Yes, the Ecclesiarchy has been very accommodating to Guilliman's whims since his arrival – something that can't continue like this."
"The arrival of these heretics from the past, I doubt they were in them."
"That was a setback, but they are being annihilated by the Tyranids. When they are defeated, the Hive Fleet will enter the Ultramar sector, and Guilliman will see his forces weakened," said the Astropath as they reached the Battle Sisters' areas.
"You know a lot, especially for an Astropath," commented the commissar, stopping.
"What would you say if I told you that I actually was part of a group seeking to remove Roboute Guilliman from power?" asked the Astropath, turning to see the commissar aiming.
"I'd say... you have my attention," the commissar lowered his weapon as the Astropath chuckled.
"I see that you, too, think about the future of the Empire – something that can't be achieved with Guilliman in power."
"I never liked that Primarch, but I can't rebel, or I'd be killed."
"Don't worry. When we return to the Empire with this information, you'll be seen as a hero, and the few Lords of Terra who haven't completely bowed to Guilliman will hold you in high esteem," said the Astropath as he threw aside a tapestry to reveal the wall. He searched for something until he found a button and pressed it, revealing a hidden door.
When the two went down the stairs through those doors, Jenkins entered the room. Seeing where she was, she began searching through the items on the different beds for a weapon or something she could use. Fortunately, she found it.
"A Cierra sword, perfect," she observed, seeing that the weapon was leaning against the bed in a way that seemed to have been left there in a hurry, to catch up with the Astropath and the commissar.
…
The dark corridors of that Mechanicus installation were silent; the only sound was the footsteps of the vast majority present, who kept their weapons ready, scanning all around.
"Could I know what we're looking for here?" Julius asked, never lowering the laser rifle he held.
"Castelans. When I was here recently, I saw many Castelans that we could use," Lilith commented, her voice now more robotic than a moment ago.
"Three floors down, there are artifacts of archeo-technology that will be useful to the Omnissiah," the Tech-Priest added, bowing slightly to Lilith again.
"A moment ago you were cursing her; what made you so submissive?" Julius questioned, observing the Mechanicus member's strange change in behavior.
"I have seen the truth. Why hide things from the Omnissiah? Blasphemous insolence," the Tech-Priest remarked.
"Stop arguing; unidentified objects are approaching," said the captain accompanying them.
From around the corner, almost like a massive horde of Hormagaunts, they launched themselves towards them. Julius's expression at the sight of so many Tyranids was one of total panic, but the Tech-Priest quickly positioned himself in front of Lilith, as if trying to shield her.
"Stand aside." In an instant, Lilith moved in front of everyone, her palm barely touching a Tyranid on the head.
The Hormagaunt that made contact with her quickly turned a metallic gray before exploding into thousands of metallic spears that impaled the entire horde that had arrived, meeting the same fate.
"In the Emperor's name, what is this?" Julius grabbed a spear, which shook so much that he dropped it in fright.
The spear began moving until it started to separate, revealing small microbots the size of fleas, which appeared and disappeared while interacting with the environment.
"Is that... something from the Praetorians?" Julius asked.
"Part of my abilities. By touching organic matter, I can change its molecules to metal and create microbots from that metal," Lilith explained as the captain injected her with one of those vials.
"Dreadful..." commented the former Imperial as they headed towards an elevator that would take them deeper into the facility.
"You stay here and protect the perimeter. We will go investigate what artifact this is," Lilith instructed her troops, who barricaded the elevator entrance while she and a few others entered.
"What will we find that they are guarding?" the captain asked.
"It's an artifact from the Dark Age recently discovered on the planet. We don't know its function yet, but with the Omnissiah here, we'll find out soon," the Tech-Priest replied.
"Do you have a name?" Lilith asked suddenly.
"I renounced my organic name; now my name is 010010011100," the Tech-Priest replied in binary.
"And in Gothic?" the captain asked, while Julius nodded.
"It doesn't have a concise meaning in Gothic."
"I hate using binary; from now on, I'll call you Nikola," Lilith stated bluntly.
"Oh! What a magnificent name, Omnissiah! It's an even greater honor to carry the name of the glorious Nikola Tesla! What a great honor!" Nikola rejoiced at the name, while Lilith just let out a heavy sigh.
"Did you expect that reaction?" the captain asked Lilith quietly.
"Actually... I didn't think they would even know Nikola Tesla," Lilith replied, sighing at that.
When the elevator finished descending, they arrived at a large hallway where as soon as they set foot, a barrage of plasma and laser shots erupted. Everyone in the vicinity expected to be hit without cover, but the shots never made impact, easily blocked by Lilith's microbots.
"Don't shoot!" Nikola shouted, causing those who had fired to emerge from their hiding places.
Out of these emerged about twenty Skitarii, heavily armed. Even with their weapons raised, they continued to watch the newcomers.
"Identify yourselves," ordered one of the Skitarii.
"Where is your marshal? He needs to know this information urgently," Nikola stated seriously.
"What could be so important that you need to speak to the marshal?" the Skitarii questioned.
"Your rank prohibits you from knowing. Now, as a Tech-Priest of higher rank still alive, I order you to call your marshal," Nikola ordered, looking at the Skitarii.
"Your rank isn't high enough to give orders," the Skitarii replied.
While the Skitarii and Nikola argued, both Julius and the team's captain didn't understand what was happening.
"Do you understand what they're talking about?" the captain asked.
"No, do you?" Julius replied, shaking his head.
"Well, while these two finish their argument, maybe we can gear up against these creatures attacking us," the captain said seriously.
"By the way, what's your name?" Julius asked the captain.
"My name is Irina Serget," she replied.
"Don't you think it's a bad time to socialize?" the Pretorian asked, looking at them.
"This discussion will take a long time, trust me, I've seen two Tech-Priests argue," Julius sighed heavily.
"We don't have time," Lilith commented as she passed by the Skitarii and Nikola towards the large door.
"Don't get closer," another Skitarii warned.
In response, Lilith raised her hand, and the Skitarii was absorbed into the wall, grabbing everyone's attention. The other Skitarii aimed their weapons at her, only for them to start trembling and turning into microbots.
"I thought that only happened if you touched them with your hands?" Julius questioned.
"I invite you to look at the walls, ceiling, and floor," Lilith commented as she analyzed the door.
The onlookers observed that indeed, there were many microbots present, making the walls appear like they were covered in cobwebs that moved anomalously and didn't seem to follow any pattern.
"Nikola, open it," Lilith instructed.
"Yes, my Omnissiah," Nikola said, bowing.
"What is this?!" the Skitarii all shouted at once, before starting to speak rapidly in binary.
The Tech-Priest approached the hatch and opened it, and the sound of various plasma weapons could be heard. Inside, there were ten more Skitarii, better armed, along with the Skitarii marshal.
"Why are you opening the hatch?" the Skitarii marshal questioned.
"Let a group die while you hide?" Lilith commented as she approached.
"Who are you?" the Skitarii marshal questioned.
"According to you, I am your messiah," she replied, before her microbots formed a kind of cable that connected to the Skitarii marshal, who began receiving a vast amount of information.
From the outside, it looked as if the marshal's life was being drained away, as he fell to his knees. However, what he was experiencing was millennia of information about Mars—its terraformation and colonization, how it became the pinnacle of human federation technology, the creation of the Omnissiah rank, and how being one of the few to hold the title was almost divine. When the marshal stood up, the Skitarii who had also fallen due to data overload rose in unison and knelt.
"Were there so few?" the marshal asked.
"Yes, each one had to contribute an invention or discovery that benefited humanity to attain this rank. It's a pity how this venerable rank for the human scientific community has been so distorted," Lilith reactivated her hologram after finishing her conversation with the marshal.
"What happened?" Julius asked, puzzled.
"She's using some kind of medical hologram, like life support," Irina whispered to Julius.
"Medical hologram?" Julius looked at her.
"It's a type of hologram used by people who have suffered severe bodily damage. The projected image helps heal the body, even when the person can no longer eat or do anything independently. This hologram helps them do so," Irina explained.
"But why does she look weaker than before?" the former Imperial asked.
"Because using it limits her abilities, as the image covers her entire body. And before you ask, she activated it again because it automatically activates when it detects the body starting to be affected by the environment. It's commonly used for people in palliative care," Irina clarified.
"Have you finished talking about me?" Lilith questioned, looking at the other two who were talking.
"Sorry, ma'am," they both replied.
At that moment, Lilith's communicator received a message from the defense above the elevator.
"What's happening?"
"Ma'am, multiple targets on radar. We need to leave before they catch up," a soldier reported over the communicator.
"Very well, deploy automatic turrets; we're heading up soon."
"Understood."
"It's time to go; we're not going to die for some Castelan."
"Wait, my Omnissiah, we can't leave. We're defending an unknown artifact of archeo-technology," the marshal commented.
"What are you protecting? Show it," Lilith demanded.
"Right away, my Omnissiah," the marshal replied.
As they were about to venture further, they saw all the Skitarii kneeling, emitting a kind of chant in binary without lifting their heads.
"Irina, lead all the soldiers in defense. I'll be back. Marshal, we're going for the artifact. You give the order to these soldiers to follow Irina's commands," Lilith instructed.
"Right away," he bowed before giving the orders. The Skitarii stood up and followed Irina to protect the entrance.
…
The journey through the war zone was quiet, perhaps too quiet. Kamala checked her communicator, which now only emitted static. She sighed heavily as she continued forward until she reached what appeared to be another bunker.
"Another bunker? This planet is filled with them," Kamala thought to herself as she approached. Unlike the others, which were either forcibly opened or appeared to be voluntarily abandoned, this one was sealed shut. Kamala approached what looked like a communicator.
"Hello, can anyone hear me?" she asked through the communicator.
"Who's there? Are you from the Empire?" came a voice, sounding fearful from the other side.
"N-no, I'm a member of the Terran Federation. Are you civilians?" Kamala inquired.
"Yes, we're all civilians, there are 200 of us," the voice replied.
"So few?" Kamala thought before checking her handheld device, adjusting some settings to display a more detailed map which confirmed the count of 200 survivors.
"Hello? Are you still there?" the voice asked.
"Yes, sorry, I'm still here."
"Alright, hold on while I open the door for you."
"Okay," Kamala replied, trying to switch from long-distance messaging to shorter responses.
When the door opened, Kamala saw a man inside, not very old but somewhat pale, with his head completely covered by a hood.
"Thank the Emperor you found us; we feared no one would," the man said gratefully.
"Why wouldn't they find you? Is something wrong?" Kamala asked.
"The Administratum has marked this bunker and several others as lost. We doubted anyone would find us," the man explained.
Both Kamala and the man went to the lower area where many refugees gathered, not just civilians but also a few in what seemed to be Imperial armor.
"Do you have any wounded or anyone needing medical attention?" Kamala asked, taking out a small box from her armor that expanded into a large medical kit when activated.
"We have a medic," the man said, and the medic approached, similarly hooded.
"Are you thirsty?" the man asked, offering a jug with a strange liquid.
"I'm fine, and I can't drink with my armor on anyway. Do you have a radio?" Kamala inquired.
"We have a radio we use to monitor Imperial transmissions."
"But why? They should be defending you," Kamala remarked.
"In times like these, the Imperial Guard prefers to shoot civilians before enemies can kill them," the man explained.
As they reached the radio area, Kamala inspected it and swiftly tuned it to Federation frequencies. She started broadcasting.
"This is Thunder 2-1, can anyone hear me?" Kamala spoke into the radio.
"Chester 4-1 here, approaching your location, identify yourself," came the response.
"This is Thunder 2-1, I'm in a bunker with live civilians, requesting extraction and sending mid-range signal," Kamala reported.
"You're lucky, we're close by. We'll be there soon, prepare yourselves," the voice replied before the transmission ended.
After that, Kamala addressed the people in the bunker, gaining their attention.
"Attention everyone, an armored vehicle will soon arrive to take you to safety," Kamala announced to the skeptical crowd.
"How do we know they won't just execute us as soon as we step out?" shouted someone in the distance.
"You can trust me! I swear by my honor and by my planet Nocturne that I will keep you safe. Besides, the Federation does not execute civilians like the Empire!" Kamala assured them with a smile.
Many seemed to believe her, calming down and preparing to leave, while Kamala and a few armed individuals guarded the entrance until the armored vehicle arrived.
"...by the four-armed god..." muttered one person upon seeing the armored vehicle.
When the vehicle's large hatch opened, Federation soldiers and several IV units descended.
"Tell everyone to come out, you're safe now," ordered the captain who had disembarked, while soldiers made way for the civilians to exit.
Once everyone was out and inside the vehicle, the hatch closed, drawing fearful attention from the refugees.
"What's happening?" Kamala asked, puzzled.
"Mutant threat detected," the IV units stated, and everyone opened fire on the civilians, shocking Kamala, who didn't understand what was happening.
Her expression turned to horror and confusion as she watched Federation troops shooting down civilians—women, elderly, men, and children fell dead under the gunfire.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Kamala shouted in disbelief.
"Stay calm and watch," the captain advised.
Kamala observed that the IV units were not firing randomly but with precision, targeting specific individuals while others remained paralyzed in fear. When it was over, there were countless bodies scattered on the ground at the feet of the remaining refugees.
"You... you promised they wouldn't be shot," an elderly man said, looking at Kamala.
"And I kept that promise, because what we shot at weren't human," the captain said, approaching a corpse and removing its hood, revealing the telltale signs of Genestealer cults.
"By protocol, we need you to lower your weapons for a scan," the captain instructed, as an IV unit approached Kamala.
The robot scanned her multiple times before confirming her safety.
"She's clean. The suit's Hermetic field protected her; the virus specific to these creatures has been identified for eradication," the AI reported.
"Virus?" Kamala asked.
"The planet's air is contaminated with a virus from these things. The cure has been prepared, but we can't deploy it until we eliminate the threat of these creatures on the ground," the captain explained.
"Sir, we need to move; a large concentration is headed towards the base," a soldier reported urgently.
"Watch out!" a refugee cried out as a Harridan and several Gargoyles appeared in the sky.
The Scorpion V moved its turrets and opened fire, efficiently eliminating the Gargoyles with bursts of shots. It then aimed at the Harridan and fired a single shot, hitting it in the head and bringing it down.
"Everyone, to the vehicle, now!" the captain commanded.
The remaining refugees hurried into the vehicle, and once inside, the hatch closed again as soldiers manned manual turrets around it. Kamala took her place among the refugees, sighing deeply as she reflected on everything that had transpired.
…
Those hallways were strange, and very dark, barely lit by a few torches. Jenkins walked in silence, overhearing the conversation between the Commissar and the Astropath in front of him, mostly about the Primarch Guilliman.
"If it weren't for needing them alive, I'd kill them for blaspheming against the great Lord Guilliman," Jenkins thought.
"Then try it," a voice in his head spoke, causing Jenkins to abruptly stop.
"Approach slowly," the Commissar instructed.
Jenkins moved closer slowly towards them and observed. The Commissar was pointing a weapon at him, while the Astropath held his head in pain.
"Do Tyranids give you headaches?" Jenkins asked mockingly, seeing him in discomfort.
"Such crude words from a traitor," grunted the Astropath as they continued walking with Jenkins in front of them, weaponless as his power sword had been taken by the Astropath.
"If anyone is the traitor here, it's you, with everything you've said about Lord Guilliman."
"Guilliman is an inept who has bled the Imperium dry. His foolish Indomitus Crusade has left many planets unprotected. His blasphemous Primaris marines defile the Emperor's sacred creation. Even if he was his son, he is no better than Horus," the Astropath commented gravely, pushing Jenkins with the power sword.
They arrived at the hangar, only to find several corpses not just of Tempestus Scions, but also Sisters of Battle and the planet's Cardinal.
"Who killed them?" Jenkins asked.
"That happens when they discover more than they should. Well, at least with the Tyranids, all this evidence will disappear," the Astropath said seriously.
"Don't you feel degraded taking orders from an Astropath?" Jenkins asked the Commissar, who growled.
"Silence, traitor," the Commissar replied sternly.
"Traitor? Who's conspiring for a coup against a Primarch?" Jenkins questioned seriously.
"That's beside the point. Look at you, wearing Federation attire, sharing confidential information with these heretics who are not in the Emperor's light but follow a sick love for technology, the same evils that caused his downfall," the Commissar commented.
"These humans can still be brought into the Emperor's light! We need their technology and technicians to prevent the Empire's destruction," Jenkins retorted, serious and unwavering.
"We only need their technology, not these humans, their Xenos, or anything else," the Astropath interjected.
"And what after obtaining the technology?" Jenkins asked.
"Then we will use it to assassinate Guilliman and restore glory to the Empire. We don't need Primarchs, especially someone as radical and reformed as Guilliman," the Astropath commented as a hatch opened, revealing a ship Jenkins had never seen before.
"And this ship model?" the puzzled Commissar asked.
"Isn't it lovely? It's a ship from a STC discovered years ago, but the Emperor's true council decided not to unveil it. It can traverse the Warp much better than our best ships. Isn't this Dark Age technology incredible?" the Astropath questioned.
"They didn't present this ship to the Empire?! A ship like this would greatly aid the Empire!" Jenkins exclaimed, annoyed.
"And have Guilliman waste it? Don't be ridiculous. It's in better hands with us," the Astropath remarked.
"Damn traitors!" Jenkins shouted, attempting to approach but a shot from a weapon struck her arm, causing her to stifle a groan.
"You missed," the Astropath commented.
"On the contrary, it was intentional to take the shot in the arm, surprisingly not being disintegrated," the Commissar observed.
"Very well, now kill her," the Astropath urged.
Before that could happen, Jenkins spun around to deliver a sweeping kick to the Commissar, causing him to drop his weapon and staggering back. She then rushed towards the Astropath to seize the power sword. The Astropath attacked with clumsy movements, making it easy for Jenkins to disarm him and attempt to strike him down, but he managed to evade the blow just in time.
"You... insolent brat!" the Astropath yelled in anger.
"Silence, traitor!" Jenkins retorted, ready to attack, but energy weapon shots interrupted the fight.
"How dare you call us traitors?!" the Commissar shouted, struggling to stand and aiming his weapon at Jenkins.
What he didn't expect was for the weapon to stop firing; the trigger was stuck, preventing him from shooting again. He decided to use the weapon as a club, clashing with Jenkins' power sword. Despite its sharpness, it was blocked by the rifle, leaving the Commissar visibly pained due to inadequate medical attention compared to Jenkins.
"Damn you," the Commissar muttered seriously.
Jenkins said nothing and with a kick to the ribs, he made him stagger back, spitting blood. The former Commissar just smiled while there was a movement with the power sword. She was about to attack, but a noise interrupted the fight. The hatch where the ship was supposed to exit opened, but the problem was that the door had been forced open. Jenkins's face turned pale when she saw that it was a Tyranid, not just any Tyranid, but the progenitor, which appeared to have fought before, making it look more intimidating.
"This must be a damn joke," both Jenkins and the Commissar commented.
…
The Tyranids were advancing through the corridors of the Mechanicus base, security was disabled, everything was deactivated for some reason.
"Ma'am, the number of Tyranids above is massive, we won't be able to hold them off," Lilith's communicator could be heard amidst the sounds of gunfire and Tyranid shrieks echoing abundantly.
"Very well, no one expose themselves, leave the turrets active and everyone stay low," ordered Lilith.
When the transmission cut off, she saw Nikola struggling with the controls to activate the defenses unsuccessfully.
"Why is everything deactivated and where are all the other members?" Julius asked, extremely puzzled.
"Dead, many dead not by Genestealers but by servitors, which is incomprehensible how it could happen," commented the Skitarii Marshal.
"And what about you?" Lilith questioned, looking at them defensively.
"We were about to enter this Archaeo-Technology zone when we lost contact with the surface," the Marshal commented.
"And your Tech-Priest?" Nikola asked next.
"He died as soon as we set foot in that zone, his defenses are still active. There were many more of us, but as soon as we stepped in, they were slaughtered. The defenses knew who to target," the Marshal commented.
"Defenses? What kind?" Lilith asked curiously.
"Rotating plasma cannons, we believe," the Marshal commented.
"Hmm..." The scientist pondered on these matters.
"The scientific division is the only one that uses rotating plasma cannons, especially in interior spaces," Irina commented, looking at Lilith as she approached where everyone was.
"Were there casualties?" Lilith asked.
"None thankfully. But we were already surrounded. So these ruins are from a crashed ship?"
"It seems so, but what kind of ship?" Lilith asked.
"Does it make a difference?" Julius asked, perplexed.
"Yes, it could be biological, mechanical, or viral weapons. I won't deny we experimented with viruses," Lilith recalled.
"It could also be a simple repair ship; the scientific division handled those, mainly for repairing Dyzon spheres," Irina commented, to which Lilith looked at her.
"That's a possibility. Repair ships were being progressively phased out, which I found stupid, but the Federation government thought it was a useless expense."
"How in the Emperor's name could that have been an unnecessary expense?" Julius questioned.
"I don't know! I sent more than one complaint on that topic; the fool in charge at the time said it was a useless expense!" Lilith complained, annoyed.
"Ma'am, with all due respect, can we kill these creatures that are coming in and then see what's left of the ship?" Irina asked, aiming her weapon at the entrance.
"How dare you speak to the Omnisiah like that?!" the Marshal shouted.
"She's your superior, so silence," Lilith commented as the Marshal bowed and fell silent.
"My apologies, my Omnisiah."
"But you're right. Let me deactivate the ship's security to enter calmly." Lilith entered the ship followed by Nikola and Julius.
As she was about to open the door, it wouldn't open because the door lock was sealed. Nikola tried to open it, but it was impossible because only the Tech-Priest in charge of the research could open it.
"I'm sorry, my Omnisiah, but the door is sealed by a higher rank," Nikola bowed apologetically.
Lilith approached the entrance slowly; the hologram deactivated from her arm, and from her hand, Microbots created cables that entered the cracks of the lock. A holographic panel materialized in front of Lilith.
"Nikola, let me ask you something," Lilith commented as she looked at the control panel.
"Ask away, my Omnisiah," Nikola was still bowing.
"How much have the Matrix codes changed since the 25th millennium?"
"Despite modifications made since your time, my Omnisiah, the Matrix code has remained the same," Nikola commented.
"Good, good," Lilith replied.
A holographic keyboard appeared in front of her, and she began typing with her other hand so quickly that it was hard to follow. When she finished, a series of digits began to appear; the number of characters oscillated around 150. After entering the code, the gate opened.
"Welcome back, Omnisiah Lilith," the deep voice from the speakers in the area announced, and the door opened.
The members of the Adeptus Mechanicus in the area bowed to Lilith for that; only Irina seemed hesitant about everything that had happened.
"Was it necessary to use the code?" she asked.
"It was. Not only does it open the lock, but it also activates everything in the lab," Lilith replied, storing the cables and activating the hologram again.
"I mean the security method. By using the code, many will know that I used it, all non-civilian entities that implement the Matrix codes will know that I used it," Irina commented, looking at her.
"It's something for the future; don't worry about it right now," Lilith replied, deploying the screen again.
Indeed, as Irina said, as soon as the code was activated, the message was broadcast throughout the galaxy. Both loyal and traitorous Mechanicus members and servers connected to Imperial signals replicated that announcement on their holo, visors, and screens.
Now the screen looked like a game or something similar, the place where she was located was in the area where the Kastelan Robots were kept. All these were reactivated, but as soon as it began, errors started popping up due to many deficiencies.
"Well, I should have expected that."
"Is something wrong?" Julius asked, not understanding what was happening.
"These Kastelans are practically disarmed, they're missing too many features," Lilith commented.
"What kind of features, my Omnisiah?" Nikola asked.
"Manual controls, everything to be able to use them remotely, is missing," she replied.
"Those components were removed?"
"They can't move?" Irina asked.
"Only if I send my Microbots to fix them, but it's full of Tyranids," Lilith commented.
"We'll stop them! It will be an honor for us to die for the Omnisiah!" the Marshal shouted enthusiastically.
"I appreciate your immense lack of survival instinct, but it won't be necessary," Lilith commented as she deactivated her hologram again.
She took a breath before starting to cough up black blood, alarming everyone.
"A mix of blood and necrotic parts of my body," Lilith commented as she released a swarm of Microbots in front of her.
"Ending this Tyranid invasion, you'll need to go to a medical center soon, my lady, or you'll die," Irina commented seriously.
"I know, I will soon, but we're busy right now," she replied as she gave orders to her Microbots.
"What are you planning to do?" Irina asked, concerned.
"What do you think?" Lilith asked.
At that moment, the Microbots took on a humanoid form; it looked like a soldier with tentacles on its back and various weapons. Despite being a simple amalgamation of Microbots, its mere presence was imposing.
"Who is that?" Julius asked, looking at it, which was silent, waiting for orders.
"...Third-generation Praetorians, Apollo," Irina commented, looking at it.
"In... deed," Lilith seemed to struggle to maintain consciousness.
"Hadn't you reported that you had erased that data?" Irina asked Lilith.
"I lied. I wasn't going to delete all the Praetorian data; I had a feeling we might need them. Despite all the complaints, I lied that I had erased them. Apollo, exterminate all unknown Xenos creatures," Lilith commented.
The Praetorian Apollo nodded as it disintegrated back into millions of Microbots before disappearing. Lilith tried to move but fell before vomiting blood and other fluids, losing consciousness.
"Ma'am!... Lilith!" Irina shouted worriedly.
"Omnisiah!" the others from the Mechanicus exclaimed.
"Julius, call the ship, request evacuation now!" Irina shouted to Julius, who started calling the escort ship.
"We have to go; it'll arrive in three minutes," Julius commented as he loaded his weapon.
Irina tried to lift Lilith, but due to the metal, it was almost impossible as she was too heavy. She looked at the Skitarii.
"We have to get her out of here! Do something!" she shouted.
Several Skitarii approached Lilith and managed to lift her, starting to walk towards the elevator to exit the place. As they ascended, more and more gunfire and Tyranid shrieks could be heard. When the elevator opened, they could see many Tyranids of different types burned to a crisp.
"For the Emperor," Julius commented, seeing that massacre.
"Let's go," Irina said as she walked ahead with her weapons raised.
Behind her, the Skitarii who weren't carrying Lilith covered them in a square formation with their weapons raised, always on guard. Behind the Apollo Praetorian's massacre, when they reached the exit, the Praetorian made of Microbots was standing at the entrance, firing its weapon. The tentacles on its back spewed powerful concentrated flames, carbonizing different types of Tyranids almost instantly. The ship arrived just in time, and inside, three IVs descended to help the survivors enter. The Mechanicus cultists looked at the machines for a few seconds before continuing to ascend; the ship took off, leaving the IVs fighting the Tyranids alongside the Praetorian Apollo, securing the area.