I was going to stay in my [Enhanced Human] form for the rest of my time here – or, if necessary, switch to my [Astartes] form and nothing else. Never again would I bring shame to humanity by taking on the filthy guise of a filthy xenos creature, the lowest of the low, lower than the dirt upon humanity's heels. God-Emperor forgive me, I do not know what had possessed me that led me to take on such a hideous shape. The human form was the perfect form, the only form that mattered; sure, it had plenty of variants, like [Astartes] and [Enhanced], but that did little to take away the fact that they were all human forms. Perfect in every way.

I shook my head as I stomped down and crushed the decapitated head of an Ork on the ground, sending splinters of bone, flesh, and blood flying in every conceivable direction. I hated them for existing in the same galaxy as humanity, for daring to stand in the way of our ascension, our birthright to rule every single world. But, having said that, I absorbed their flesh anyway, because biomass was biomass and I'd need as much of it as I could gather, mostly because of my new Curse, which wasn't much of a burden as long as I maintained a constant supply of biomass, which wouldn't be particularly difficult in a planet full of edible creatures.

Half the Orc-Pile disappeared as my reserves filled up. I figured there was around three thousand, maybe four thousand, kilograms worth of biomass remaining. And, frankly, I'd never really upgraded my biomass reserves just yet. So, I did just that, draining myself of 5000 kilograms of biomass and upping my maximum reserves, now, to a staggering ten thousand. I then absorbed the remaining biomass from the Orks and regained around 3500 kilograms of biomass, which was less than half, immediately triggering the consequence of my Curse, which doubled the drain every few hours. I suspect that, unless I hate another bunch of Orks within the hour, I'd lose most of my biomass.

I couldn't let that happen. So, I was gonna have to eat as many of the despicable xenos as possible, until my reserves were back to their maximum. I'd also have to do that on my way to the Jamming Device, wherever the Orks might've placed it. I doubt such barbaric and primitive xenos would actually bother with hiding it out of sight; they certainly didn't seem like the type to do so. Recalling my memories and feelings during my time as an Ork, I realized quite well, indeed, Orks preferred not to be crafty or sneaky whenever they could get away with it. So, I figured I'd just keep on moving towards the general location we'd previously figured.

Many miles away from here, because my drop pod was knocked off course – probably hundreds, maybe even thousands, of miles away.

So, with nothing much to do, I began sprinting in a single direction, towards the general location of the Jamming Device. I recall seeing a number of other Ork settlements and camps during my descent; so, I wouldn't have to search for very long. And, more than anything, the Greenskins were so hilariously numerous that I'd expect to run into them eventually as long as I kept moving – or even if I stayed in place, honestly.

The landscape did not change much, I noted. This place was mostly crags and barren rock. So, I honestly had to wonder just what the Orks actually ate to survive in such a place and even establish settlements that could house hundreds of them. The only possible explanation was cannibalism. It was likely that the Orks ate those they killed or defeated, which included each other. Unsurprising, given their general barbarism and the lack of regard for any life – not even their own.

All these conclusions I drew from what little time I spent as an Ork.

About two hours of running later, I came across a party of Orks who – for reasons I didn't know – were wandering around the rocky mountain side. There were hundreds of them, I figured, but, unlike the Orks in that settlement I'd found myself in, these ones wore no armor and carried no ranged weapons, or any sort of technology, actually. In fact, these ones seemed even more primitive, like Greenskin tribesmen – maybe even cavemen; hundreds of them, carrying stone-headed clubs attached to crude metal handles. They charged me the moment they saw me, which – I figured – made it easier for me to kill them all.

I transformed my body into a mass of tendrils, teeth, and mouths, gaining an excess weight of a thousand kilograms, each tendril an ocean of powerful muscles and sinew, which I modeled after the muscles of an Astartes, but further condensed and given a more liquid shape. The Orks faltered, but that only served to hasten their deaths as I drew them in and began devouring each of them. I had over a hundred mouths with this form, each one lined with ceramite-infused teeth, capable of piercing skin, flesh, and bone in a single bite. The primitive Orks stood no chance. They screamed and ranged even as I pulled and tore them apart, and sent each of them into my many mouths, where they were immediately churned into raw biomass. Whatever damage they dealt was superficial as I kept my brain moving around the mass of flesh, keeping it away from harm.

The Orks were ferocious, but, in the end, they didn't have a chance to begin with. I ate them all, each and every one of them, sparing not a single drop of their blood. They screamed and struggled and fought hard, some even resorting to chewing through their own limbs in a bid to escape my tendrils. None of them escaped. Or, at least, none of them got far enough to escape after injuring themselves in their terror. I could extend a single tendril dozens of meters in the blink of an eye, fast enough to create thunderous booms each time they moved. Similarly, I could swipe my tendrils with enough speed to easily slice through their unarmored bodies with absolutely no resistance.

When I was done, only their weapons were left and my biomass reserves were halfway full.

"WAAAAAGH!" I raised a single brow as I reformed myself and, once more, took on the shape of an [Enhanced Human]. I'd somehow left one of them alive – not sure how I'd forgotten to kill this one, but I did. It was smaller than the other Orks. Short and stout and thin. It was probably the outcast of its tribe, I figured, the runt of the group. Still, it was taller than most humans and likely stronger, too. The little Ork charged me reckless abandon, wielding two stone-clubs, a maddened look over its face. It then leapt up and brought both of its weapons down at me. Clumsy. Untrained. Undisciplined. I easily batted away its weapons with [Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist], before poking out its eyes and extending my fingers into its skull and turning its brain into mulch, before I then ripped my hand away and tearing apart its head into bloody splinters and ribbons. The rest of its body continued moving, kicking and clawing at me, until I sliced off its limbs with a ceramite-infused blade of bone, which I grew out of my hand.

It wasn't a very good weapon, I found, but it was definitely sharp enough to easily slice through anything that wasn't covered in hard armor. Otherwise, I'd just use the [Lightsaber] for dealing with everything else. Although, perhaps it was possible to create a weapon that could pierce through armor. I'd attempted something like that... some time ago, when Athulhum was still an enemy of sorts. It shattered against him, of course, but the idea remained. Perhaps, if I had enough knowledge and the right materials, I could forge a truly worthy weapon. For now, however, I was stuck with the bone blade and the [Lightsaber], which wasn't to say that they were unworthy weapons, not at all, but I'd prefer to build one that'll last through the ages, whispered about in legends and stories. A weapon that crystallized the very idea of human supremacy, our dominion across the stars.

So, ironically, it would have to be weapon that showcased, at the very least, a single body part from every xenos that called itself an enemy of humanity, like an Ork. I had plenty of genetic material from Orks and the most useful thing about them, I figured, were their tusks, which I could lace with ceramite and sharpen to a single molecule. Maybe, I could even create a big hammer of some sort, made of alien bone and enhanced with a power field?

Well, that was just something to consider for the future, I suppose.

And then, like I'd done with every other Ork, I absorbed the thin one and churned its broken body into pure biomass. From where I stood, I could almost make out the shapes of distant settlements, my enhanced senses catching the smell of alien blood and the sounds of war and battle. It seemed that, everywhere they gathered in large enough numbers, the Orks spent their time killing and battling each other. At this point, I had to wonder if a direct attack by the inhabitants of Remus and Romulus were the most efficient solutions or if it was simply better to wait until the Orks drove themselves to extinction.

Actually, on that note, how were the Greenskins still considered a viable threat if they spent most of their time killing each other? Clearly, I was missing something. Was it their means of reproduction, perhaps? Did the Greenskins reproduce so quickly and so efficiently that their constant internal strife no longer mattered? I don't recall seeing any female Orks. Was there sexual dimorphism at all? Did every single Ork happen to look alike, male and female? Or did they reproduce asexually?

My allies and superiors never broached this topic during the meeting; partly, I figured, because I didn't need to know it.

[Dementation] Level up!
[Dementation] is now level 2
New Skill Unlocked!
[Curse of Delirium] - Any hostile force, within a range of 100 meters from the caster, is afflicted with delirium for ten seconds, during which they are unable to focus or make quick decisions.

Interesting, did it level up because I absorbed the Orks or had I done something else to trigger the skill advancement?

Shrugging, I decided to continue on my way. A lot of the distant settlements weren't anywhere near the path to the Signal Jammer and I couldn't afford to waste any time on slaughtering them. That would come later. For now, I had to focus on-

My ears perked up. The ground shook slightly, pebbles and grains of sand dancing momentarily. That was explosion, but it sounded... different from the average Ork bomb. I knew, because I remembered what their bombs sounded like when they went off and what I heard just now wasn't anywhere close. No, it was something else. Familiar. And then, my eyes widened as I realized just what it was. "An Earthshaker..."

Were there Imperial Forces still holding out or did the Orks make use of Imperial Guard equipment. I bristled at the second possibility. The mere thought of humanity's glorious armaments at the hands of filthy xenos was enough to make my blood boil. That said, if there were surviving Imperial Forces, then it was my duty to rescue them and, perhaps, enlist them in my mission to destroy the Signal Jammer and establish the beachhead for the invasion force. So, I had investigate the explosion. There was no choice in the matter – not really.

Not a single human life was going to waste away – not on my watch. And not a single human weapon could be allowed to fall to the hands of xenos. Either way, I had to get there.

Ten clicks east of here. I estimated the general direction. Deeper into the mountain range, near the caves and the cliffs. It's a perilous place. Easily defended. If I was leading a group of survivors, then that's where I'd hide.

Hopeful, I set out to the source of the sound. I prayed to the God-Emperor that there were survivors here and I prayed that I would be able to help them regain their lost world, their honor. I prayed that I'd help them find glory and faith. If not, then I could only hope that the last of my brothers and sisters on this planet, at the very least, found a measure of peace in death and that, in destroying what was left of their sacred arsenal, I'd restore some of their lost glory and, in doing so, guide them closer to the God-Emperor's divine embrace.

More explosions of a similar sound followed.

And, around five hours later, and to my immense joy, I found them – survivors, desperately clinging onto to life. They needed my help.

AN: Chapter 49 is up on (Pat)reon!