Sukuna did not bother with pleasantries. He had... well... he nothing to say to Vulkan, really. And, more than anything, he wasn't interested in meeting Vulkan just yet. No words were exchanged. Signals and codes were traded between fleets and bases, but nothing more than that. So, Sukuna had his fleet make a beeline for the nearest Agurasi-occupied world, a desert planet that saw too much sunlight. A huge portion of the xenos fleet was currently engaged in a massive naval battle against Vulkan's fleet; what tactical advantage they fought over, Sukuna did not know or care. But he was grateful, because it meant that his fleet wouldn't have to engage in yet another naval battle against a numerically superior foe, which would – yet again – force him to deploy the Black Wing Squadron. Not that there was anything wrong with doing so, Sukuna simply did not enjoy the idea of the Devourers being pointless in naval battles.
Hmm... he may have to rectify that little error. But, all things came with time. And, as his fleet loomed over an alien world, there were far greater things to worry about for the time being – more fun, too.
Agurasi structures dotted the desert planet, tall, jagged spires made of chitinous substance, whilst biomechanical constructs, titans, lumbered across the landscape. The tiny forms of the Agurasi workers, drones, and builders skittered about as well, accompanied by the larger warrior forms. Their anti-aircraft weapons all turned towards Sukuna's fleet; though, considering the distance, they did not fire a single shot. That would change soon, the King of Curses mused, when the drop pods started raining from the sky. According to Vulkan's reports, the Agurasi primarily made use of plasma weapons, which they manufactured within their own bodies, capable of punching through Power Armor. They weren't terrible shots, either, like the Orks. Already, Vulkan lost quite a few of his 'sons' to the Agurasi aliens. And more and more were dying with each engagement.
The evidence was right there, on the surface of the planet itself, the ruins of Imperial structures and fortifications, abandoned vehicles, crashed aircrafts, and mangled machineries.
This, Sukuna grinned, would be a good test for the Devourers.
"Let us begin."
The command was given, and the Devourers moved with precision. From the command bridge, Sukuna watched as drop pods deployed in perfect synchrony, the dull thud of thousands of launch mechanisms releasing their payloads into the atmosphere, followed by the burning streaks of descent that scarred the planet's sky. Each pod was packed with the finest warriors of his legion, every one of them honed to a razor's edge through brutal training and relentless battle. They descended like hammers, ready to shatter the xenos below.
"Prince Sukuna," Captain Shahid spoke at his side. "All drop pods have been, well, dropped. I'm also reporting multiple bogies heading towards our fleet. Shall I engage?"
Sukuna patted the captain on the shoulder. "Do what you want. I'm giving you full command over the ship, as usual. Use the Black Wing Squadron if things get dicey. Otherwise, I'm going down there for some fun."
"As you command, Prince Sukuna."
Sukuna felt the anticipation in the air, the hunger for battle that thrummed through every Devourer. His legion thrived on the chaos of war, their minds attuned to the rhythm of combat. The desert planet, with its harsh sun and unforgiving landscape, was the perfect stage for their prowess. The Agurasi, with all their coordinated efforts and deadly plasma, would soon learn the true meaning of slaughter. After all, quite a lot of his Legionnaires had since figured out the use and creation of Cursed Tools, with many of them having turned their whole Power Armor into a Cursed Tool – though most settled for simple weapons.
One of the Legionnaires, Charon, actually gifted him with a bracelet, made entirely of adamantium beads – nothing special, but it was imbued with Cursed Energy, making it a Cursed Tool by technicality. Sukuna wore it around his left wrist. Charon had no idea what it actually did, which was rather amusing, considering that same Legionnaire was shaping up to becoming one of the most talented Cursed Tool makers within the Devourers.
As the drop pods neared the surface, the Agurasi defenses finally responded. Beams of plasma shot upwards, piercing the sky with deadly precision, flashing blue and white, like lightning bolts. Each projectile traveled too fast for the drop pods to avoid. A few pods were hit, detonating in mid-air – unfortunate, but their Power Armors should've at least kept their bodies intact, which meant most of those who met fire and plasma still had a something of a chance at coming back to life when they hit the ground - but most continued their descent, their trajectory unwavering. Sukuna watched impassively as the first pods touched down, kicking up clouds of dust and debris. The real battle was about to begin.
The moment the pods hit the ground, they exploded open, releasing the Devourers into the fray. Clad in black and crimson armor, they charged out with a roar, their weapons already blazing. Plasma fire rained down on them, but the Devourers pressed forward, their movements almost fluid despite the weight of their armor. They closed the distance with terrifying speed, engaging the Agurasi in brutal melee combat. Their first target was the largest and most populous Agurasi city, which Sukuna figured must've been where they manufactured new drones and warriors and whatnot. The largest force of Devourers slammed into the city, like a hammer from the heavens.
Other, smaller groups attacked 'control nodes', massive spires that, Vulkan theorized, were used by the Agurasi to communicate with the larger hivemind.
Sukuna's grin widened as he observed the carnage. The Agurasi were formidable, their plasma weapons deadly, but they lacked the ferocity and sheer force of will that defined his legion. The Devourers cut through the xenos ranks like a scythe through wheat, their swords and axes cleaving through chitin and bone with ease. Blood and ichor splattered the sand, the screams of the dying drowned out by the roar of battle. Sukuna himself had not opted for a drop pod when he jumped off his flagship and joined the carnage. A few of his legionnaires, he knew, wished to emulate such a thing, but he was pretty sure none of them were strong enough to survive reentry.
Sukuna landed in the thick of it – enemies on all sides. He'd made sure, of course, that he was as far away from his legionnaires as possible, just to save them from the collateral damage. The location he'd picked was the most heavily-defended control node, flooded with turrets and traps, and legions upon legions of drone soldiers, each one ready to die for the Hivemind. Around the control node itself was a settlement of sorts that extended for miles and miles, even underground. Sukuna grinned and brought his hands together, his fingers forming a hand seal. His Cursed Energies flared to life around him. "Domain Expansion: Malevolent Shrine."
Full Manifestation was still beyond him, unfortunately, but he'd very recently succeeded in taking the next step forward from an Open Domain towards Full Manifestation. Sukuna wasn't entirely certain if this stage was deserving of its own name, but it was a big step away from a simple Open Domain. So, perhaps, it did deserve its own title: Manifested Domain.
The shrine of bones and skulls appeared behind him, the center of Malevolent Shrine. But the environment no longer changed. The backdrop of darkness and shadows that normally appeared with his Domain Expansion was gone – unneeded. The sunlight revealed the splendor of Malevolent Shrine as hundreds of thousands, maybe even millions, of Agurasi were immediately cut down, their bodies torn apart for miles and miles and miles. The control node itself did not stand long as its crystalline structure was cut apart into little more than ribbons. None of the alien creatures even got close to him. An Agurasi titan arose from the ground, roaring, but its bulk hardly offered it protection and it too was cut down just as easily as everything else.
And then, he stopped. Around him, dust and blood and bits of flesh and bone lay scattered about. And Sukuna was reasonably certain that just about every Agurasi within range was dead, save for a few survivors who were lucky enough to have been standing beyond the reach of his domain. Their city lay flattened to rubble, their structures gone and ruined.
Sukuna grinned as he felt a gargantuan spike of Cursed Energies from two distinct points on the planet, followed by a roar of fire and a flash of lightning. To the east was a vast gathering of storm clouds; to the west, a great flood of flame. Captain Shor, the Storm Caller, and Yamamoto Genryusai, the Flame of Ending, had unleashed their Cursed Techniques, both of which had the potential to ruin the surfaces of entire planets. Good. Those two were shaping up to be the strongest of the Devourers.
Sukuna leapt out of the rubble and landed on the ruined body of an Agurasi titan, its chitinous bulk covered in deep cuts and cracks. Sukuna dusted himself and breathed in. And then, he opened Vulkan's transmission, one he'd ignored for the last hour or so. Vulkan was still waiting on the other side of the channel. Persistent. Shrugging, Sukuna activated the communications device, raising a brow as a small video live feed of Vulkan's jet black face appeared on the lower right of his peripheral vision. Tsk, he still wasn't entirely used to these neural interfaces. But he saw the necessity. "What?"
"Brother, it is I, Vulkan; may I ask why you're doing what you're doing?"
Sukuna shrugged. "You asked for support, didn't you? I don't like being told how I'm supposed to do things. So, just let me and the Devourers rampage and you guys get to sit there and be pretty – or you can join us in the slaughter and have fun. Your choice."
"I see!" Vulkan laughed heartily. "Very well, brother mine; you and your legion shall rampage as much as you wish, while my legion shall strike at their weak points. After that, we shall invade their homeworld and crush it together."
Sukuna grinned. "Cool."
Sunlight disappeared as Captain Shor's storm clouds blanketed the sky, overhead. Sukuna breathed in, catching the scent of all the excess Cursed Energy in the air. There was so much death and war and carnage across the whole planet that he would not at all be surprised if Skarbrand suddenly showed up or if a Disaster Curse was borne out of all this. Eh, whatever. His legionnaires were more than capable of dealing with Cursed Spirits. By his estimation, it'd take maybe a whole day for the Devourers to cleanse this whole planet and most of that time would likely be spent clearing out all the underground tunnels of the aliens. That said, the Agurasi fought with all they had, their coordination allowing them to launch surprise attacks on the Devourers who'd gotten a little too confident. Sukuna was connected to each of them and, by his count, fifteen were already too injured to continue fighting and twenty were dead- oh, no, twenty two.
Hmmm, twenty two deaths already. That was... interesting. The Agurasi weren't that strong, but then, Sukuna figured, death was a natural occurrence in any battlefield; one could only escape it for so long, before it caught up. That the Agurasi exclusively made use of plasma weapons did little to hinder the looming specter of death; actually, Sukuna himself would readily admit that plasma weapons were actually quite terrifying. The Imperium's variant contained enough power to vaporize the torsos of Space Marines; the Agurasi made use of even stronger variants. The deaths of a few Devourers was tragic, given their low numbers. But there were plenty of candidates back on Shibuya and, perhaps, it was time to take a little detour and visit his world again. He needed new recruits. Hopefully, this time, many would be strong enough to be inducted into the Devourers.
Vulkan stared at the reports and sighed and shook his head. Well, Horus did warn him that Sukuna was unpredictable and erratic. He just wasn't expecting his brother to try and take a whole planet, using only his legion, the Devourers, without any form of support from the Imperial Army. But, all things considered, Ryomen Sukuna was winning. And what sort of brother would he be if he did not engage in a little friendly competition? Sukuna's sudden arrival had drastically tipped the scales. Good. He was looking to avenge the deaths of his sons.
AN: Chapter 34 is out on (Pat)reon!