+..+
+..+
+CONFIRMING*
+RECOGNITION OF DATA IN COGITATOR HARDWARE+
+LOCATING+
+..+
+DATA ARCHIVED+
+UTILIZATION OF MINOR DATA ALLOWED+
+PURGING+
+SANCTIFYING+
+..+
+CORRUPTED CODES NONEXISTENT+
+..+
+GLORY+
+..+
+[DREADZONE JUVENILE MARKETING QUARTERS]+
+PLAYBACK RECORDED LOG+
Rosmontis is nothing but attentive.
Even though she's busy reading a short novel that some menial DreadZone robot "employees" bought for her the Feline did give a few peeks above the words to see two others around her age playing with some cards. They offered her to join however she politely refused in favor of the book in her hands. The boys didn't complain about it, just wanting to play their cards as soon as possible. Rosmontis simply leaned back on the purple sofa next to the boy sitting there.
Requisitioned by the Vox Industries Media Department she along with the two others were to be in a commercial. They didn't say much on what the gladiatorial advertising is supposed to be only that they were to look "pretty" for the cameras. The boys recoiled against the makeup crew, when they heard the words: pretty, rabidly tried to make the sole girl in this commercial stunning only to be pushed back by a guard of DZ Strikers. Rosmontis was visibly creeped out by their crazed behavior and quickly entered the room. Hopefully they won't enter while the cameras are on.
The room is simple enough. Brown walls with pictures of individuals that the Terran girl has no knowledge of. The floors are a mix of yellow and golden wood strip. A large dark brown cabinet with various bottles and a numerous amount of black video cases on it. And the furniture only consists of the aforementioned purple sofa, two tables, one lower though wider with the other having a square shape on a higher beam. It was cozy to say the least. Enough for her two fellow commercial actors to play.
"I attack you with a Spider Tank: Power Level 5!" The rotund boy, Vernon says as he threw down a card with the Spider Tank on it.
"I defend with Level 6, Lawn Ninjas!" A taller, slimmer boy with glasses, Eugene countered. Outside the game Rosmontis stopped her reading and watched with a curious ear twitch. She was taught not to lie but she quietly in the back of her mind pointed how fun the game looks. Vernon laughed at his opponents vain attempt to outdo him.
"Haha, sucker! You fell right into my trap!" Vernon continued to laugh as Eugene gasped in horror. The larger boy taunted before the wall crumbled. "You're Exterminated!"
"No! Nonono... WAAAAAAIIIIITTT...!" Suddenly Eugene disappeared from existence via bright, green light. Stepping out of the collapsed wall was Reactor, a large robot with a yellow and brown color scheme with a nuclear reactor built into his body when he became a DreadZone contestant, and joined the (in)famous Exterminators later on. Reactor laughed heartily as Vernon climbed on top of the table with a raised hand.
"Yo Reactor! Slap me some skin!" When he said that Reactor slammed his hand to Vernon's body, flinging him across the room after which Rosmontis flinched and made herself smaller as to not get in the Reactor's view while the Exterminator simply laughed even harder. The Vox Industries Media Department began to edit the background in a more space-like atmosphere. It was then that he become more focused on the camera which give the cat girl some measure of safety though if it comes to more violence involving her she'll have no issue throwing the bulky radioactive automaton across the set like he did with Vernon with just a single thought.
"That's right, kids! Exterminator trading cards are here!" Vox spoke through the commercial, listing the card characters on screen for the fans to see. "There's Reactor, Shellshock, the Eviscerator, and your favorite Exterminator: Ace Hardlight! Collect them all and exterminate your friends today!"
Rosmontis, who still hasn't left the couch since Reactor came into scene started to rethink her opinion on the DreadZone trading card game.
+LOG ENDED+
+CORRESPONDING DATA INSIGNIFICANT+
+LOCATION OF ADDITIONAL RECORDS COMMENCED+
+DATA MUST CONFIRM FURTHER DREADZONE INTELLIGENCE+
+SCANNING ARCHIVES+
+SCANNING+
+SCANNING+
+ARCHIVE LOG OBTAINED+
+..+
+XENOS THREAT+
+..+
+QUESTIONABLE+
+..+
+[CATACROM FOUR GRAVEYARD]+
+CURRENTLY+
+IN MOTION+
+..+
+[SARATHOS SWAMPS]+
+..+
+AVAILABLE+
+..+
+..+
+PLAYBACK RECORDED LOG+
With the main DreadZone campaign finished off with a meteoric bang so to speak, the Goffs were subject to additional challenges that the Orks were the only ones ecstatic to hear. The first started off as a racing challenge. This led to Doctor having to ride an Ork Speed Freak favorite, a Warbike. The "Blitzbike" as the Orks rumored is an absolute monster. Although repeatedly stolen by its original owner, patched up, customised and sold, the warbike's core is roughly the same. Its hugely overcharged engines and energy-shooting kustom dakkablastas can render its rider a force of deadly destruction. And to himself on several occasions.
Riding a motorized vehicle is one thing. Riding the Blitzbike is hanging on for dear life while the whole world around him spontaneously combusts.
The second is another vehicle oriented challenge. However he, unfortunately, had to be wired in again to the Mangler, to create a pathway of absolute destruction for the screaming viewers beyond the galaxy. Taking out as many Strikers, Zombies, Swarmers, Dropships, Landstalkers their turret counterparts as DreadZone can deploy. In a span of a minute alongside several spent Deffkannon shells and Rokkit rails the valley between the node area to the abandoned dropsite became a warblasted despot. All from one minor Stompa rampage. Though once the challenge was over, the Doctor convulsed out of the cockpit. Whether it was an improvement or a degrade is beyond him at that point.
Now the final challenge begins before they leave this dead, mossy planet.
"This is a DreadZone favorite! Our contestants will have to destroy three ancient statues all in a matter of minutes. You gotta love it!" The anchorman chortled at the end, clearly excited. What Dallas announced is the local Catacrom Four challenge: Monuments of Death.
'I doubt time would be essential...'
Shaking his head, Gordrakk Ironhide and his Goffs head to the closest monument. Merc eagerly planted the manhole size explosives on its base. When he did the soil split. Metal, dead limbs clawed themselves out with their forms fully exposed to the sun. Shoota rounds pierced their heads and torsos in an excessive amount.
The Tankbusta Bomb planted, the first monument was obliterated. It's debris scattered around hitting some Orks or risen Zombies.
Doctor waved to the other target. Running on open ground as they fired their guns at the still rising Zombies while Tora and his Boyz blasted off. They reached the second monument in breakneck speed, clobbering more of the robotic undead in close melee. The others reached them and began to plant their bombs. Doctor noted that the Zombies are coming up more than they first landed here. Something about destroying these monuments are stirring the deceased beneath...
The Tankbusta Bomb planted, the second monument was obliterated. It tilted back to the abyss behind.
What became one or two of the dead rising now became 5 or 6 at a time. The Commander felt the ground dig through under his metallic heel. A whole head popped in and he stomped it, the neck bent like the angle of a right triangle. He sent a few Bolts through the dirt as the Goffs settled from accurate shots to haphazard volleys. All the valley's remnants had taken to avenge themselves towards the raiders. Storming through the gunfire with devoted abandon to kill.
Gordrakk turned around to see the deep ravine below. The only way to the other side was the tangible light bridge that they used to get to the Mangler. It was then he had a breakthrough plan.
"Boyz! Leg it back to the bridge, sharpish!" He commanded while the Orks followed in quick succession. The Stormboys pushed any Zombies that were close enough to create a path towards the bridge. Doctor was first to reach the other side and he stood there to give his comrades cover. He waited until the Kommandos were over and the Zombies were running after them. Changing the Bolter for the Chainsword, Doctor charged a molten shot at the close group, immolating them in liquid-gaseous plasma fire before ramming the revving teeth on the base of the bridge. Its multi-alloy/sundry of fangs gnashed through the wires as he thrashed it back and forth while more of the undead were reaching over the bridge. Before they can throttle Gordrakk, the bridgelight dissipated sending them deep into Catacrom Four's depths.
Doctor then joined the others who were handling this other side of dead remains. The Orks' massive bulk of ammunition are still in ample supply that wherever they walk, the dark green ground are carpeted in shell casings. Instead of focusing on the risen, the Force Commander shouted to direct the group into the derelict structure where the last Bolt objective originated. Storming into the building one more time, the resistance consists of the Zombies that have already dug themselves out. Regardless, a burst of Shoota fire and a swung from Choppas brought them back down.
The Goffs were in a rush to get to the last monument. They were in close to feel the shrapnel of the bullets hitting rusted metal scrape their skin or armor, some of them even lodged into the flesh. Green held his gun, firing with one hand as he planted the last Tankbusta Bomb into the base of the monument. More Zombies came from the entrance where the Goffs first arrived. Giving his commanding officer the greenlight, Doctor waved to jump off the hangar opening. The horde was closer than he anticipated with each magazine or belt being used for each wave. As Bulrag left before unleashing his rokkit volley, the contestant followed suit. The planted Tankbusta Bomb appeared to be way overclogged with whatever explosive substance that Orks concocted when the monument was destroyed, it's sheer blast radius threw Doctor a good solid quarter kilometer, landing on the incline in front of the hangar and enveloping the structure with oily fire.
"Ahh... Dammit..." Is all he could say while his suit initiated its healing process. But before he could slumber into his long awaited darkness he heard the Orks scramble around him.
"Youz wuld be a proppa Stormboy wiv dat flyin' Dok!" Tora and the other Orks hur-hur'd before turning around to see the building they were once in fully collapse. For Doctor he didn't care.
He needed his sleep.
*The Day After: Sarathos*
With a musical intro consisting of a lengthy complex guitar solo and a hard hitting drum beat, Dallas Wanamaker invited the viewers of DreadZone in his usual sportsman enthusiasms to the next episode of the gladiator network's season.
"Welcome back, DreadZone fans! Have we got a show for you! On today's episode, The Goffs have been dropped onto the hellish alien world of Sarathos! Their ultimate goal: Destroy a monstrous alien creature known as the "King Leviathan" and take it from me people, monstrous is putting it nicely.
Doctor was shaken awake when he felt the Landa tumble into the surface. He looked to see he was inside the shuttle in its cargo area, the cargo referring to the blood up Orks. He appeared to be the only one here as no sight of the aforementioned aliens nor the Battle Bots. He was possibly dragged here by the Orks after losing consciousness and thrown into the ship for the next challenge. His visor listed the planet: Sarathos. When he moved he felt something heavy laying on his lap.
On his person is a cumbersome cannon. It was immense just like the Chainsword, bearing bold images of a green dragon or a fire erupting. There were also white cog/metal hand insignia among some digital linear-diagonal ciphers on a black background. Blessings perhaps? The barrel appears as two compartments conjoined into a larger one with a gun shield, various plates and support arches fastened in with only one trigger mechanism to utilize the armament. There was also some handles on the base to allow its user to wield the weapon however they like.
Doctor felt the Landa shake again. Jumping with his newfound yet weighty weapon to the loose door of the dropship he kicked it out of its hinges. Peering out he found himself in a swamp-covered battleground with a very gaseous atmosphere pouring out of the slime filled craters. The Orks there were in a bind. Giving them a good fight, spawning from the Sarathos wilderness are quadrapedal arachnids with large scorpion like tails which they shoot either a concentrated beam or acidic balls of goo at the Greenskins. Some of them had unfortunately been bisected when some Slugga Boyz tried to independently take the heads of these "Leviathans" for themselves but were sliced in two by the monster's pincer-maw.
It was a shootout and a brawl between two bestial species.
"Kap!" The commander heard Green to his left. He and Merc were with some Tankbustas in a ditch blasting at the Leviathans with more success than the Boyz out in the open. Taking three down to a scorched mess of dissipating viridian mist. Above them on some low-end cliffs were a collection of Trukks and Battlewagons shooting their heavy tank guns at some structure ahead. Inside the vehicles, shooting through the firing ports are an array of various multi-barrel firearms peppering more of the Leviathan swarm coming from the Sarathos swampwastes.
"Doctor come in." Saria contacted.
"Go ahead, Saria."
"There is a combat arena up ahead. It is your first objective."
*BOOM*
*BOOM*
A few Stikkbombs plugged the dens of some Shriekers, the biological counterparts to DreadZone's own Swarmers.
"Be on your guard Doctor, the outside parameters is heavily fortified with the Sarathos fauna."
"Yeah, I saw." More Leviathans have arrived. This became a good opportunity to test out his new weapon. Hefting it onto his shoulders to see through its hi-tech, esoteric scope. Heavy but nothing his Mek made then crammed skeletal bionics couldn't handle. His eyes becoming accustomed to all the targeting integrals and information transfers within it. With a pull of the trigger shot out a fluxing tightly focused yet searing hot irradiated-neutron-electric laser beam. He bore through his Leviathan targets, the intense heat lance three of them in one concentrated shot. Their bodies a white-hot flesh cavern prior to their disintegration.
Gordrakk Ironhide hopped off the crashed Landa to join his comrades currently packing up to continue on the planetary firefight. Hitting the marsh soil with a sounding thud.
"I knew I had a bad feeling about this place..." Merc commented gravely.
"Nuffin' but me rokkits to blast frew dem skuttlas!" The large Ork that stood beside them retorted jovially.
"Considering what I saw Dregtoof." Doctor said as he pushed some of the cleaved Slugga Boyz away, their entrails leaving the upper part of their torsos. "Dealing with these... Leviathans may require bigger firepower than just hitting them with knives and clubs."
"Dem Boyz jus' askin' to be eaten. C'mon!" The Ork Boss rushed forward with his Big Kombi-Rokkit. "Wez da 'xterminators in dis 'ere plannit!" His Tankbustas followed in order as the Doctor nudged his head to the Bots, marching towards the spherical base that several DreadZone Dropships are passing ahead.
Under fire from the Leviathan corrosive beams. Dodging while rushing to the structure. The Orks simply shot their quantity of rokkits at the beasts, blasting two more from the wastes. Doctor undercarried his energy cannon to blast his own beam in retaliation. Boring through three in one ray.
"If Gordrakk Ironhide was a tough cookie, what kind of cookie would he be? I'm gonna go with snickerdoodle!"
"What the hell...?" Doctor reacted to Dallas' comment with perplexity. Where in the distant galaxy did that came from?
The Battle Bots and Tankbustas advanced even further going to the cesspools, out of which came the Leviathan tails shooting their acidic contents. Stikkbombs, Tankbusta Bombs or any packages filled with explosives were thrown into these pits. Each erupted in a geyser of sludge and insectoid chunks, showering the Goffs in its rancid gore. The smaller Shriekers were also eliminated piecemeal. Knives, Shoota rounds or a simple stomp given the weight of them and their equipment.
For whatever reason in front of the structure's closed door was a Mek and Painboy combo. The former ripping some spherical objects flanking the entrance and the latter scrapping the more virulent goo from the exploded Leviathan toxin sacs, containing them in a clear jar.
"Krud! Get dat zoggin' door open!" Dregtoof growled, reloading his rokkits. As soon as he said that the doors blasted open somehow and Doctor along with a few other Tankbustas threw their lit Stikkbombs blindly inside the smoke. Plumes of smoke quickly moved out of the building from the shockwave. The leader of the Orks entered, not caring for the Shrieker remains laying across the soil.
"One thing about the Orks: You give them any lip and they'll feed you a lead sandwich! You better believe that Juanita!" The aforementioned Orks chuckled at the truism of that statement. It was reminiscent to how their Boss Ghazghkull would act to any Boy that showed any signs of hesitation during combat. Dallas then continued. "Welp they got the door open and cleared out the squatters inside! Now let's find out what's waiting for them on the other side!"
They reached a circular ground with a metal container in the middle. Suddenly the group heard aerial engines above. A Dropship arrived which was an easy target. Rokkits and a charged laser blast rapidly took the aircraft down. Descending in a burning way to the lower level of the breached empty building.
"Oooooh, goodie! The swamps are up next! Ohoho, l love this part!" Dallas exclaimed in giddiness. Doctor just ignored it and his squad went outside through the second door which was the experimental site of the Painboy's, Gragrok, own weapon modification. Simply wrapping hair Squig twine to a glass jar filled with the disgusting substance of the Leviathan's tail-thorax and flammable Squig oils on a stick, he created a simple grenade that releases a thick, green-black, caustic smoke that dissipates for a short amount of time. It was enough to quickly melt the metal doors into slag allowing the Goffs access to the Swamps of Sarathos, which the anchorman announced from his safety blimp several hundred feet away from the natural wastes.
"Ooooohhh, just look at ha-that putrid, festering slimehole! Oh! Well I can smell it from up here... Peeeee-Yee! Gordrakk Ironhide is not gonna make out of there on foot. He'll have to commandeer the Ork ramshackle Skullhammer tank known as the Black Thunda on the far side of the swamp!"
"Good to know Wanamaker..." The contestant retorted, not heard by his announcer. He swapped the Lascannon for his equally massive Chainsword when a Leviathan crawled down from outside the structure. He hopped on the creature's body, swinging his chopper with two hands to sever its ranged weapon then using the motion of the swing directed the runic blade tip to sink the sword's scythehead deep into the cranium of the Leviathan. It twitched around momentarily as it then turned to its side into dead green mush.
"Wow! That's close quarter brutality for you folks at home! One false move and those alien suckers will be eating your head for lunch!" The Orks pressed forward. Smacking more Shriekers away when they hopped from the slime-rivers below and took cover behind some more containers when a placed Stalker turret soon spotted them. It was in the way between them and a gate with a wall of light.
"Mmmm~ My mother used to serve Lombax brains for breakfast with eggs and salsa. Muy bueno~" Merc threw an EMP grenade at the turret thus giving the Tankbusta a half-tank to bust. Their rokkits went upward screeching in the air and hammering the targeted area like a small artillery strike.
"Yikes! Remind me never to eat at your house..." Several Dropships arrived at the scene. As they did more Leviathans leaped from the rivers, one of them clawing onto the side of the Dropship sending them back to where the creature came from. Doctor wasted no time. Aiming the flamethrower part of his chainsword at the Leviathan. Both charging up a shot but one hit their mark. The commander simply moved his head to the side, narrowly dodging the monster's beam as he released his trigger finger, unleashing an orb of vented plasma gel-fire at the creature which burned away then disintegrated.
"This guy is gonna sell a lot of commercial time Juanita! Let's just pray we don't have anymore wardrobe malfunctions! Hahaha!"
"The hell is that supposed to mean?" The main gladiator looked at the anchorman blimp above with confusion before shrugging it off as something of an inside joke.
Krud snapped the same two flanking orb pillars from the previous area lodged into the ground near some steps and threw them down the murky waters. That short-circuited the barrier. Disappearing in a short fade, allowing the mob to continue forward. Firing more rokkits at passing Dropships, trampling or cleaving burrowed Shriekers while crossing the narrow pathway. When they reached another gate like platform, Doctor like before charged at another Leviathan that appeared from the dark waters. He had placed himself below the leaping creature with the revving blades of his Chainsword high in the air. When the distance came close, he made a large downward chop. Cleanly bisecting this Leviathan from its jaws to the base of its stingertail. The commander was quickly to move off from the virulent sacs of the creature but he wasn't lucky with having Leviathan fluids painting his armour.
Gragrok was ahead of them and stopped. Giving his blended concoction to the Bots and pointed at a squad of DZ Strikers that disembarked from a fleeing Dropship. Giving each other a nod, they both in their robotic capabilities threw as hard as they can at the Strikers. Twirling in the air prior to hitting the ground and one of their own. Shards of glass scattered all over them then came the mordant ink corroding the hostile robots and dissolving into a blackened plash. When the mist evaporated, the Goffs continued forward until they reached a chasm.
"Youz gits get on ahead!" Dregtoof pushed the Doctor who looked at him, perplexed at his statement. "Ain't nuff go-juice for dem Tinboyz to take us ovuh." Gragrok gave him more of his Leviathan grenades in a black squigsack to use. One of the Tankbustas threw a flare near the mob. "Wez call in da Choppa to pick us lot, youz get to dat dere wagon!" The lone Terran nodded as he allowed both bots to grab him and thrust over the chasm just as before. Coming in closer they saw a Stalker placed on the other side. Its gunner saw the coming trio, turning its guns at them and fired all charged weapon that it had ready. Mortars rain down but didn't manage to hit. Rapid fire lasers grazed or hit the arriving contestant which whirred them side to side until they plummeted. Descending into a crash right near some barricades.
Lucky for them, the three gladiators quickly hid behind their only form of cover, ignoring their own discomfort from the joint-dislocating fall. Green had quickly blind thrown an EMP grenade to give them some reprieve. As he did a multitude volley of Ork rokkits peppered the area of the turret. Doctor saw above him Dregtoof and his Tankbustas on a twin bladed Warkopta. They raised their Rokkit Launchas at them with victorious howls after their destructive strafing run but soon had to pull out when a cluster of giant winged insectoids flew by them, spitting their hazardous liquid-gas from their four-pincer maws at the ramshackle aircraft.
"Space Wasps?! Man they shouldn't be here!" Merc exclaimed when he saw the limbless creatures flying over the Sarathos skies.
"It looks like they aren't attacking us..." Doctor got up from the barricade. He and his bots saw more Ork aircraft and Space Wasps emerge to engage in a planetary wide dogfight, or "squigfight" in the Ork's case. It was every Deffkopta, the smaller single manned helicopter cousin of the Warkopta armed with a missile battery on its cockpit that can fling the chopper just from the sheer volley being shot our of the metal box and Fighta, another attack aircraft that appears more like a winged jalopy with an assortment of twin barrel machine gun bolted on it, for every two or three Space Wasp.
Doctor eventually snapped the two out of their trance and reminded them of the objective ahead. "C'mon, we have a tank to ride!"
Passing ground zero of the turret they reached the blasted remains of a light gate used by DreadZone to block pathways and some DZ Strikers and Swarmers deployed to guard there, all bombed pieces of their former selves in the swampy mud. The trio of Goffs soon reached the Black Thunda, whispered among the Orks as Ghazghkull's personal flagship when it comes to armoured warfare.
"Woah..."
Doctor reclined his head to see the whole Battlefortress in full. To say it's a simple large tank is an understatement. Bristling with armaments and various accessories, the Black Thunda is less of a tank and more of a rolling fortress as said by the Orks calling it a Battlefortress. It is an unmistakable icon of the Goffs many armoured supremacy, a single one of these super-heavy war engines can serve as the mailed fist of an armoured offensive, or as the unassailable lynchpin of even the most desperate of defences. A 10 metre long main cannon with a co-axial machine gun on the top, behind it is a caged supercharged triple-over-pressure turbo engine that takes up a good deal of its hull, but allows it to move at a speed deceptive for a vehicle its size, an obscenely huge array of Rokkit warheads crammed dangerously together like a fireworks display and a system of various multi-barrel anti-aircraft weaponry. On its chassis is a smaller length but larger barrel cannon conjoined with a flamethrower on the frontal glacis and the Ork's own spiked Deffrolla. Its armor sides housing bunkers with twin linked, bolted on Dakkaguns and hardwired Big Zzappas. It had the standard Goffs black and white checkerboard patterns on some dark desert camouflage colors, there's something written on the side of the chassis though it was scratched out:
"Y-RICK IV"
Doctor went up behind the tank to what seems like a familiar door that belongs to a ship. Instead of grabbing the circular handle to open it, he banged on the door several times. The door suddenly opened and he let the bots enter first before him. Inside wasn't as cramped as he thought it would be. Like a metal bunker, it had seats, ammo crates, racks for Shootas and was illuminated by red lights.
"Phew...! Glad we got a ride sir. I thought I was going to rust up..." Green verbally said in relief. Then they felt the tank shake a bit. Screeching from the Space Wasps can be heard outside their vehicle as they spit some acid at the mobile fortress before returning to the skies.
"We're not out of it yet. Merc man the guns, Green you handle the batteries. I'm driving this thing." The commanding officer ordered, his weapon disappeared as he headed towards the main cabin. Green reached to the Rokkitspitta quarters on the left edge of the Skullhammer tank through a small hallway. It was a seat with targeting computers, a flight stick and several buttons. Merc went right to the Flakka-Dakka guns above where he climbed a ladder to a mount with an advanced camera system. The mount was armoured and Merc laid on the seat while pulling a handle to the anti-aircraft weapon's bolts letting the bullets chamber in from the belts leading to the ammo dump below the armour. Doctor walked in and sat down on the driver seat made with a similar squighide materia. It was like any other car with a steering wheel though it had several triggers on it, brake/gas pedals, a transmission and a parking stick. There's also the tank commander/gunner scope for him to utilize connected to the steering wheel.
Pressing on the pedal the iron beast roared its engines to where the Leviathans roam.
"In order to advance to the Leviathan lair, the Goffs must capture three control nodes while the whole of Sarathos experiences the Space Wasp swarm." Dallas said to the audience over the Holovision.
Two DZ Strikers were stunned to see the Black Thunda leave the swirved pathway. Its treads painted with mushed Shriekers as it readied the Deffrolla. The engines and rolla burned and the Strikers became witness to the scathing, crushing weight of the Deffrolla, turning their bodies to scorched chunks. Doctor drove the Skullhammer to the open Sarathos fields. He aimed the main battle cannon at a sole Leviathan and fired. The creature exploded to a gory mist, making an example with a single shot from the Battlefortress' cannon. Flying overhead where the squigfight lie was an armada of DreadZone's Dropships and its air superiority assualt aircraft, the Hovership. Another factor to halt the Ork's attempt to clear the skies.
"Oi Boss, dem Mekboyz sayz dey kan get da kontrol nodes wiv sum Boyz." Dregtoof radioed in to his helmet. The Doctor can hear the gunfire and extraterrestrial screeching from the Ork's vicinity.
"You sure about that Dregtoof? I know you got your hands full with those fliers?" Doctor questioned as the Black Thunda crushed more Shriekers that burrowed out of the ground.
"Hur hur! Dis squigfight be wun of da best since da Fire Wastes! Just frow sum flares frum da wagon and we'llz send in da Boyz!"
'Of course they'll be ecstatic about it.' He turned the Battlefortress towards an armoured dome to his right. Leaving it on drive, Doctor rose and walked out of the main driver seat to the tank's insides. At the barracks part of the vehicle he searched around, moving crates on top of crates to search for the flare sticks.
"Folks, just a reminder: Tomorrow is Kick Your Best Friend in the Pants Day! Free popcorn for everyone who participates!"
Outside, the tank still on the move inclined at a ramp. Due to its immense size, the Black Thunda crossed over instead of jumping over the ravine. Inside, Doctor tipped over when he felt the Battlefortress tilted upward then down until it was again in flat terrain. Fortunately for Gordrakk he found himself on top of a pile of flares. Scooping an armful he quickly returned to the driver seat where he dropped it off near the chair and went back to commandeer the Skullhammer.
The first node area was contested between the Striker garrison and a herd of Leviathans encroaching upon them. The area was then hammered with an orchestra of rokkits. All the Leviathans were instantly annihilated as the dome protecting the first node had its ceiling open. Heavy debris fell on the Strikers with one of the larger pieces crushing two of DreadZone's armed robots. Doctor popped out of the top hatch to throw one of the flares near the objective. After that he headed back in and drove towards the second node listed on his digital map viewed via his helmet lens. Merc witnessed from his sensors an incoming Chinork coming by. Before it can descend to drop off the Boyz it was harassed by a trio of Space Wasps. They spat their acid at the swaying helicopter but they were soon torn to shreds by the rapid fire lead storm coming from the Battlefortress Flakka-Dakka guns.
"This is what they mean by gratuitous violence Juanita!" Dallas huffed at the gory details of the shot Wasps. "I'm a call my kids to stop watching! Just as soon I have kids..."
"Good luck with diaper changing Wanamaker..." Doctor said, knowing full well about the struggles of fatherhood.
In the meantime the veteran bot kept shooting at any Dropship, Hovership and Space Wasp littering the drab colored skies. As he did his more greenhorn companion targeted the roaming Leviathans near and afar with each volley rokkit launch. The tank went over another ramp, it was there that they can see more of the Sarathos plains and coast.
"My short time in the corps, seen some ugly places sir... This one takes the cake!" Green spoke out to the scenery before his visuals in the same radio frequency that Dregtoof uses.
"Boss, I've seen alien monkey shit prettier than this place." Merc murmured when he felt Wasp thorax guts hit his cabin.
"All the more reason to get this done ASAP boys..." Arriving to the second dome, a squad of Strikers were outside securing the area. They didn't notice the tank of all things but it was too little too late. The automated systems from the sponson weapons picked up their targets, unleashing its Big Shoota-Zzappa combo alongside the main cannon at the group. The Strikers, surprised and suppressed were on open grounds to a massacre. Metal bodies filled with bullet holes or electrical scorch blasts. Getting in close, Doctor popped out of the top hatch to throw one of the flares near the objective.
"Only one node remains between Gordrakk Ironhide and his date with the King Leviathan!"
When he had thrown the marker, Dropships filled with reinforcements nosedived towards it before the Warkopta but the Thunda's Flakkguns rotated towards them. In a holy testament to Dakka, one fell with a peppered cockpit, the second erupted in a fireball from the shot engines and diving to the ground then the third ship fell, shot in half with both pieces crashing on opposite ends of the dome.
"Will the person driving a mint green Manray 5 please report to security, you're parked in my space!"
The Black Thunda continued forward with more of the Sarathos wildlife popping out of the ground or swamp holes. Doctor pulled a lever as the tank's engines ignited and its Deffrolla lowered while turning. As soon as the creatures crawled in close, he pressed down hard on the pedal, bolting forward with the spiked steamroller completely crushing anyone and anything that stands in its way. Reaching a pair of dark green mountain the tank fired more cannon shots, missile volleys and machine gun-laser fire across the ravine at more Leviathans that spotted the roving citadel, spurting their acidic balls or caustic beams. Painting the steel in verdant gunk or dissolving the paint off. Circumventing around the mountains they found the last dome to capture defended by a Landstalker on top of the node and its foot soldier outside for support.
Ironhide came to notice a button flashing beneath the visors. It was huge for any thumb to press onto and had a 5-line crosshair with skulls around the empty spaces. He aimed his reticule toward the Landstalker while pressing hard on the button. It didn't work. He pressed even harder. That didn't work either. Annoyed the Doctor slammed his whole fist on the button. The Black Thunda's secondary cannon was soon loaded with a titanic solid shell marked by written Ork glyphs translated as: DEM GITZ BE ZOGGIN DED!
*BOOM!*
As loud as the bang that fired the shell, the enormous tankshot hit its directed target. First crushing the Landstalker pilot with its metal-crushing heft then exploding in a mushroom cloud. The seismic blast sent the Strikers flying as shrapnel sliced them to bits while in the air. Getting in close, Doctor popped out of the top hatch to throw one of the flares near the objective though he could see the structure crumbling until it fell apart, pelting debris dust against him and his tank. It wouldn't take long before a Warkopta appeared to drop some Orks off. A squad of Shoota Boyz were first to disembark, securing the area prior to a Mekboy hopping down and running towards the node. Standing over the ruins he pulled out his Power Wrench and simply thwacked the node twice until it was bent like a U-turn. Doctor then saw the stadium behind the smoke which was constructed on a slope of a hill and raised its armoured door to the outside world.
"He's completed the third stage! Tell him what he's won, Juanita!"
Juanita started, just as jubilant in tone as her fellow announcer: "He's won an all-expense paid trip to the King Leviathan's lair! Where he will enjoy golf, tennis, fine dining, and an agonizing death as he is slowly dissolved by stomach acids in the King Leviathan's colon!"
"Fuck both of you to hell..." Doctor said in his seat as he went back inside to drive towards the entrance. Parking the tank near the stadium. "We're here guys, let's go!" He let both Merc and Green know through the communication line as he climbed out of the hatch and outside once again to the Sarathos swampwastes followed by his Combat Bot companions. Materializing his Bolter, Gordrakk walked up the slope then crossing over a bridge which led to the inner sanctum of the lair. As they cautiously went to the center of the arena, the bridge folded and the only door to outside suddenly closed behind them.
Gordrakk Ironhide and his Bots are trapped.
"We are now in the final moments before the epic showdown with the King Leviathan! The Goffs must hack all the orbs to wake up that big fella! Happy hunting!" They saw the orbs Dallas was talking about. There were seven in total placed around the arena. Sure enough when Doctor saw the circle of orbs around them...
"Hacking was my specialty at the academy sir!" Green was already hacking one of the orbs near them. And by hacking his backpack opened to reveal the same forcefield generator that the Bots had used previously in DreadZone's Battledome. However, instead of projecting a protective shield around his commanding officer, the electric arcs went to the orbs, twirling them in rapid speed before Merc proceeded to the second. Doctor saw the various uses that the Combat Bot packs have courtesy of several Mekboyz as he swung his bayonet Bolter at a leaping Shrieker coming for his neck, slicing the diminutive creature in half.
He joined the Bot's firefight, blasting more Shriekers with ease until a Leviathan emerged from the center mirepool joined the Shriekers fight.
"Mmm! I am breathless with anticipation!" Juanita exclaimed in... anticipation. Doctor went side to side to avoid a Leviathan's beam until he was up close in the monster's face to fire a ray of death in point blank range.
"Sure you're not just breathless because you get to sit up here next to me?" Dallas retorted in hopes of swaying his female counterpart despite her caustic attitude that rivals the Leviathan's own acid shots, which more appeared to shoot their aforementioned gunk at the fighting contestants.
"No, but that does explain why I'm feeling nauseous..." The anchorwoman responded, clearly disgusted and it's not from a Leviathan's body being ripped open, chunks of flesh and organs flying out from the Bolter and Shoota rounds.
"Guess that didn't work..." Doctor dodged a leaping Shrieker as he made a snarky comment under his breath. Though he felt another Shrieker chomp on his plated leg which he viciously stomped with his other foot. He moved away from the caved in creature, both Green and Merc were halfway done with hacking the orbs as two more Leviathans crawled out of the pool near them. Gordrakk fired at both monsters to keep their attention off the busy Bots. Taking the bait they turned towards the gladiator to fire their tails at him until they felt glass shattering against their backs and warm gunk flowing down their natural weapon. Thrown by the Bots were the same Stikkbombs filled with the corrosive container created by Gragrok. Soon they felt themselves dissolve, the ink grenades melting away each cell in the creature's bodies til they turned into a green mist of death.
With the final orb hacked and several Sarathos wildlife exterminated within the confines of the arena did came the arrival of the King Leviathan. In the form of a larger tail, it unleashed a bright potent beam at the Goffs who then scattered to avoid being hit. Unfortunately for one Bot, the dominant beast was quick to maneuver its beam and torrefy Green's chestplate causing him to collapse.
"Ahh! Man down!" He exclaimed, the virulent beam leaving a black mark across his steel which he covered with his hand. A familiar cross popped up in Doctor's visor and his eyes immediately went towards it to revive his comrade. Merc ran to drag his buddy away shooting at a nest of burrowing Shriekers that surrounded them. The King Leviathan tried to scorch them with another beam until a disintegration blast severed the appendage with the rest of its body. Doctor's Bolter attachment was still burning as he saw the incinerated blaster descended and leaping forth is the main beast itself.
Unlike its smaller Leviathan brethren this one was twice their size and had DreadZone pattern armoured plates braced on its limbs and carapace. The commander had to dodge a coming leg that almost pierced him. It continued to go after Doctor with pincers and impaling legs. Running half the circular arena as the chased eventually developed a plan. Turning his heel 180 degrees he lunged at the King Leviathan, his Bolter blade aimed at its head. He rammed the bayonet with both hands, it thrums with barely contained power capable of near-prescient prediction leading the blade to its intended or better direction whilst it burns with a bitterly cold and dark energy that dug deep pass the metal and carapace. Doctor thrashed the weapon just as he did with the Chainsword back at the Catacrom Four light bridge. Sawing the uniquely engraved Bolter before pulling the trigger to send its last Bolt from the magazine out of the chamber.
In a grotesque fashion of bestial alien gore the King Leviathan's head exploded out of its body. Flipping in the air as the rest quickly withered away prior to plopping in the arena grounds in front of its slayer. Doctor seized the opportunity to grab the severed armoured head and showed it to the multitude of camera drones pointing their lenses at him and the countless viewers from across the galaxy roared in excitement. There he showed them all:
He's wrought with a purpose to make bloody examples of those who dare to set themselves against him and his belligerent army.
Just as before.
"I'm a fucking neurologist dammit..." Doctor cursed as he threw the dissolving head back to the Sarathos primordial ooze where it spawned from.
From beyond the planet, an intergalactic scream was heard in the gestalt collective consciousness of a parasitic species.