The steady ringing of his steps echoed through the corridor. The metal grating under his boots seemed to shudder and bounce with each stride. He leveled his plasma pistol, it shook for a split second before a blinding burst of energy spat from the muzzle. With a near deafening pop the plasma bolt impacted the nearest Ork in the face, alien gore spattered him, steaming drops landing on his own face. There was another xenos right behind the slain one and it lunged for him. The brute seized the arm which held his pistol. The creature's grip tightened and it brought its choppa to bear, with great force it cleaved into his flesh, the bones of his arm shattering with the impact. He howled in pain and brought his power sword round, the tip sliding between the Ork's armor plates and finding purchase in the creature's vitals. The xeno dropped its weapons and grabbed him by the collar of his storm coat. It shook him... it called to him... its voice a distant echo despite how close it was... "Captain..." He could smell its alien stink, could feel the searing pain in his butchered arm... "CAPTAIN!"
His eye shot open, he was looking into the face of his adjutant. "Throne bless Captain, I thought we'd lost ya sah!" The pain in his arm was gone, he looked down at the gleaming metal of his bionic replacement. "Ya took a round in the eye, we thought ya been killed. Him on Earth, you're a tough bastard sah." He coughed hard and clutched at his adjutant, "Help me up..." leaning hard on the Fusilier he stood to his full height. Around him his men had arranged themselves into a perfect defense of an intersection just outside of the town they were pushing into... what was it... his head swam. "Easy sah. Doc dosed yah good. A lesser man would still be out." His grip tightened on the hilt of his sword, when had he drawn it? "Come on sah, let's get ya to a better piece of cova." He flexed the hand of his bionic limb, "No, over there. Get me to that hab unit."
The pair moved as quickly as they could to a half caved in hab, the door frame still intact despite the fallen roof. He leaned hard against the outer wall as his adjutant moved to sweep the room with his laspistol. "Emil, be careful..." the young Fusilier smiled, "Aye sah." A tense few moments passed after the Fusilier crossed the building's threshold, "All clear!" He staggered into the ruined hab, he located his adjutant in the gloom. "Saltzkhost..." the young Fusilier looked at the officer, "Aye sah. This is the outskirts of the place at least. We were rollin in good, then the lead Taurox took a hit. Guess that not all the Orks took the bait of the uvva attack." He clipped his sword back to his belt and felt inside his coat for the tactica map, his adjutant stepped over with a pen-lamp. "Here, we made it to the first rally point jus past this junction." It wasn't far. "Where's the armor Emil?" His adjutant drew a circle on the map with his finger. "The Lieutenant said he'd 'av betta vantage from that low rise till we secured the road in. Think he's nervous about getting his girl banged up." Despite his injury he laughed, it was well known that the Lieutenant thought of his tank as equal parts weapon, shrine, and mistress. "I trust his judgement on the matter. We need to get reorganized. What do we have going in?" His adjutant pulled a dataslate from a waist pouch, "The pioneer squad is fine, but twas their Taurox that got hit, it's still runnin least. Our squad is good to go, Doc, Krabich and Fozaker are held up on the other side of the road with our Taurox. We were waiting to hear from Tactica Command, or for ya to come to. So... what's the plan sah?"
He pulled his sleeve up to look at his wrist chronometer. "Too long... we're already behind schedule. We need to push on to the next rally point." The details of the operation jumbled in his head, something was missing. "Valrak! Where's Sargent Valrak with that damn Sentinel?!" His adjutant looked down and hesitated before he answered, "He uh... he's chasin the greens sah. Spotted something on the way in, don't ya remember? That's how ya got hit sah, stood up in the turret to try an spot what Valrak 'ad seen. Then the Orks opened up on us, hit the lead Taurox with a missile an ya got a stubber round in ya bionic eye." Another fusilier ducked into the caved in hab with the pair, he had a portable vox unit slung around his shoulder. "Sah! Lieutenant Drabzch boosted 'is vox, 'es got Valrak on the line." He smiled as he stretched his hand out for the vox handset, then brought it to his ear, the line fizzled with static before a garbled voice pierced the distortion. "BLASTED GREENIES!" It was Sargent Valrak, "Repeat Sargent." there was another tense moment of silence before the Sentinel pilot replied. "Aye sah... got a bit of a situation 'ere... damned lurking xenos popped a rokkit on me. I'm stuck 'ard in plaza or sumfink. I was givin chase when the bastards sprang a trap... I need 'elp..."
The Captain stood and returned the vox handset to the Fusilier, "We have to move now, secure that plaza before the Orks can knock out Valrak. Emil, rally the men and get them loaded up, we may have to force through another ambush before we reach that plaza. We may have to move ahead of our armor support. The first rally point will act as our fallback point if this whole thing goes tits up." The two Fusiliers saluted before trotting off to complete their orders, Captain Zitzkazan reached up and felt at his bionic eye for the first time since he was hit, he felt a well scored cut in the metal of his eye's outer casing. He closed his remaining natural eye and gave silent thanks to the Emperor.
Epic !
ReplyDeleteThanks!
Delete