The Emperor’s Angel of Death

"This is truly a great victory, thanks to the sacrifices of the Omnissiah's servants. I imagine it won't be long before we drive these barbaric monsters off this continent, right?"

The voice of the Ruling Sage sounded mechanical and monotonous, but it contained a lot of information. Tyrsak simply grinned.

"Drive them away? No, not now at least. We need to leave some behind."

"What?"

"The focus of the plan has never been here, Sage. We came to save Ryza's valuable industrial assets. I think this sacrifice is worth it."

Tyrsak spoke very bluntly because, after arriving, the three company commanders had discussed and decided to use the remaining Skitarii of the Mechanicus on the planet as bait to draw the main force of the Orks away from the industrial area. Then, they would concentrate their forces to launch a surprise attack on the most important industrial district of Proctys, the Dark Iron Fortress, and retake this important industrial city and its foundries in one fell swoop. Even if they couldn't take it, they would at least have to destroy it.

But it would be best to take it because an industrial district is crucial for the future recapture of the entire star system.

This is also why the Orks suddenly discovered the Mechanicus's most important fortress, because the Space Marines led their scouts there. Of course, the Mechanicus also knew about this plan—but only the first half. They thought the battle plan was to lure the enemy in deep and then use a beautiful encirclement to annihilate them.

So, when Tyrsak said he wanted to let some of the Orks go, the Ruling Sage was surprised.

"Sage, now you should quickly count the remaining Skitarii and combat forces and repair the damaged fortress. It won't be long before more Orks come. They have an instinctive pursuit of battle."

As if to confirm Tyrsak's words, on the distant horizon, a wave of clamorous roars was surging.

"Well, it seems that there are far fewer Ork forces here. They are all rushing to more attractive battlefields further away. That's their characteristic."

Behind a small hill made of slag, Oscar, the 5th Company Captain of the Astral Knights, was using professional observation equipment to view the Dark Iron Fortress in the distance. The howling hot wind here stirred up dust that became his best cover. Even his shining power armor was covered in thick dust, and the luster was gone.

This was a city of steel erected on a barren land, about the size of a small hive city. Behind it were continuous mountains, which were rich in many valuable minerals. Huge automatic excavators chiseled through the mountains, and roaring railcars transported the minerals into the city's huge furnaces.

It was also the capital of this planet, the location of the Forge Sub-Overseer, and housed the factories that could produce most of the Imperium's light weapons, various light vehicles, and basic support artillery. However, most of the time, it mainly produced civilian equipment. After all, the purpose of the Forge World developing here was not to create a competitor, but a development zone that could create economic benefits.

Nearly a billion people used to live here. After the Ork invasion and the influx of refugees from various places, the population soared to 1.5 billion, and the Mechanicus had defended it with a resolute attitude.

From the huge shells and various traces of ablation and impact everywhere on the ground, one could see how fierce the battle around it had been. Moreover, the city itself could be described as scarred. The originally tall and neat protective wall was like an old woman's gums, covered with uneven gaps. Many spires and chimneys were cut off in the middle, standing in the city like charred and dead tree trunks. The Forge Shrine, symbolizing the Omnissiah in the city center, was almost reduced to ruins. Many dirty flags and skeletons could be seen erected in it, defiling this sacred place. The city's originally well-connected roads had also become twisting earthworms broken inch by inch. In the visual distortion formed by the heatwave, it seemed that the remains were still wriggling on the barren land.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, Oscar let out a surprised low cry, but it quickly turned into an angry growl.

"Damn beasts!"

"What's wrong?"

His brother, Company Lieutenant Zod, walked over, and Oscar handed the equipment to him.

"Take a look."

Zod raised it and took a closer look, seeing a group of Grots frolicking on a section of the protective wall. They were holding torches and roasting under an open iron cage, which contained ragged and emaciated humans. As the iron plate under their feet gradually became hot, these humans, who had little strength left, could only try to grab the railings and scream in pain. When someone could no longer bear it, they could only rush out of the cage and fall on the ground dozens of meters away from the cage, turning into a blur of flesh and blood. At this time, more than a dozen fresh corpses had accumulated at the base of the protective wall.

"Fucking beasts! Captain! Let's move!"

Oscar turned around, the slag crunching under his feet, and then he raised the sword in his hand.

Behind the slag hill, 96 Space Marines stood solemnly. During their time supporting Ryza, the 5th Company, which originally had 110 men, had lost 14 battle brothers. This number did not seem large, but it still made every warrior of the 5th Company harbor the most intense hatred for the Orks.

And hovering beside them were Land Speeder Storms, some of which looked brand new and had never been used—for this operation, Ryza had handed over all the Land Speeder Storms they had produced in recent years using STC templates to the Astral Knights.

Therefore, there were as many as 50 Land Speeder Storms here!

"We are about to enter the enemy's nest and save countless enslaved Imperial citizens. Does everyone have confidence?"

"Astral Knights, crush ten thousand armies!"

All the warriors of the 5th Company roared in unison, their voices drowned out by the howling hot wind.

But the sound did not only come from them. As the gale opened part of the sand and dust, it revealed an even larger team gathered behind the Space Marines.

That was tens of thousands of warriors lined up, merging with the dim yellow earth. The color of their armor seemed to be the color of the desert itself. Only the white headscarves that replaced their helmets were slightly conspicuous. They knelt piously on the ground, making a final prayer to the west, represented by the compass. The battle priests in long robes used a long chant as a guide, and beside them were huge steel behemoths.

Of course, this raid would not only be Space Marines. After all, they were so few in number. Decapitation might be competent, but it would be difficult to complete a large-scale occupation task. Oscar asked the Forge Overseer for a regiment of the Astra Militarum that came to support Ryza—the Tallarn 21st, 23rd, and 39th Armored Regiments.

Three regiments, not too many, but Oscar believed that they were sufficient for such a task because Tallarn had the best mobile armored tactics and the most tenacious warriors. Compared to letting them fill the battle line, this task could be more effective.