Chapter 324: In the Void You Can Call Me Runt, I Won't Argue With You...
"Zagara and Abathur have tied down the Tyranids!"
As more and more Tyranids joined the battle for Iphix, the Zerg had successfully engaged nearly half of the entire Tyranid fleet in the Cryptus System. And from the looks of the current battle, the Zerg had not yet reached their limit. In fact, they seemed to be growing stronger the more they fought. Zerg from Char were still continuously entering the field, reinforcing the forces on Iphix.
And now, Asphodel was facing its own battle.
Compared to the Zerg's Nydus-teleportation and Creep-sense, the human defenses on Asphodel could not be as comprehensive. However, with the help of a massive number of SCVs, countless bunkers and missile turrets had been completed. The anti-air capabilities and the fortitude of the defensive positions in the city of Phodia had more than doubled.
Mellen could not believe how absurdly powerful the SCVs were. The safety of his soldiers in their positions would now be greatly enhanced. The Cadian soldiers who had not been assigned powersuits could now pour out their firepower from within the safety of the bunkers.
Fighting the Tyranid Swarm on an open plain was clearly not an option. Therefore, the vast majority of the forces on Asphodel were now gathered in Phodia, the most populous city, while the other wastelands had to be selectively abandoned. Time was too short. Building Phodia into what it was now with the SCVs was already the limit. It was impossible to attend to every piece of land.
A large number of civilians and gang members on Asphodel had also been issued weapons as much as possible and were integrated into the combat units. Their combat effectiveness was better than nothing. It was better to make a contribution than to just wait to be eaten by the bugs. However, neither Lucan nor Mellen expected these civilians to achieve much. Even Cadians felt fear when facing these monsters that knew only slaughter, let alone them.
Lucan walked out of the command center and looked at the distant skyline. In the abandoned zones, Tyranid spore-pods had already begun to deliver troops to the ground. Arriving with them were the spore clouds. These Tyranid microorganisms had begun to terraform the environment and soil of Asphodel, transforming it into a state more suitable for Tyranid survival.
One after another, Capillary Towers, like tentacles of flesh and blood, grew from the ruins and the irradiated earth. And beneath them were giant digestion pools, where all biomass would be broken down and deposited. This biomass would then be delivered directly to the bio-ships through the Capillary Towers. These digestion pools had already begun to use the locally-sourced biomass to create ground troops. Although the biomass in the wastelands was relatively scarce, there were still usable parts to be absorbed from the mutant creatures, and even from the soil, rocks, and rivers.
Soon, much of the land on Asphodel had begun to change. One by one, Tyranid creatures crawled out of the digestion pools, gathering in the wastelands to form a massive army that now advanced toward Phodia.
Around the walls of Phodia, nearly 100 Thors and a large number of Siege Tanks were on standby in key positions. They served as important long-range fire support, deployed in various fortified positions. Lucan had drawn the heavy firepower from his other Raider regiments and brought them all here. They would use their endless firepower to destroy any and all Tyranid bugs that tried to attack.
"Lord Lucan! Please fall back to the command post with me! The Tyranid assault is about to begin," Mellen said, looking nervously at the sky. He knew the bio-ships overhead were not idle; they were waiting for the Tyranid ground forces. The moment the ground troops began their assault on Phodia, the Hive Mind would launch an air-drop strike at the same time.
"Norris, Zeratul, as per the original plan," Lucan commanded. "Take your troops and hunt down the synapse creatures that enter the city. Kill them, and the Tyranid creatures nearby will fall into chaos."
Norris and Zeratul both nodded, then faded into the darkness. Kerrigan, however, remained at Lucan's side. If a giant synapse creature appeared, either on Asphodel or on Iphix, Kerrigan would immediately go there, invade the Hive Mind, and find the location of the Norn-Queen.
Lucan walked back into his fortress.
The Cadian-attached aviation regiments had all taken off. One after another, Valkyries ascended, protecting the anti-air batteries, while the Raiders' Viking squadrons also took off to protect the Siege Tank and Thor positions. The artillery positions were simply too large a target; they would definitely be the focus of the Tyranid assault. Although the Viking was useless as a chicken on the ground, in the sky, the missiles they fired were enough to tear apart the Gargoyles. The Siege Tank and Thor positions were also surrounded by a large number of missile turrets and protected by a large number of Raiders.
As the Tyranid army on the outskirts drew closer, the Thors and Siege Tanks opened fire simultaneously. Countless Tyranid creatures were blown to bits. The already barren land looked as if it had been struck by a cataclysm.
This opening volley of fire completely stunned the Hive Mind.
What is going on? I suffered heavy losses on Iphix, and now Asphodel is this tough to crack? Is my Shadow in the Warp not working? How did they get all this materiel here?
But faced with the current casualties, the Hive Mind still ordered its troops to advance. These smaller units were, in the end, consumables. Forcing the humans to expend their ammunition was also a way to serve their purpose.
And just as the Hive Mind was about to have its creatures recover the biomass of the dead to be remade into new Tyranids, a wave of incendiary shells began to cover the battlefield. The Cadian artillery regiments had switched their Earthshaker cannons to incendiary rounds.
As a massive amount of biomass was turned to charcoal, the Hive Mind roared in fury. They were messing with its food!
And just as Lucan had predicted, after the failure of the outer assault, countless spore-pods began to rain down on all parts of Phodia. Coming with them were innumerable Gargoyles, gathering into a cloud that blotted out the sun. Among them were even several winged Hive Tyrants.
Even with the Hydra flak cannons and missile turrets firing at full capacity, they could not clear such a massive number. The Gargoyles used their own bodies to weather the storm of fire and destroyed a portion of the gun batteries. Their main targets were the Thor and Siege Tank positions.
The Raider and Cadian soldiers looked at the cloud of the Swarm and couldn't help but swallow, but not a single one of them retreated. Even if they died, they had to hold their positions. The Raiders Lucan had brought with him had already been reborn after the war for Cadia.
But just as these soldiers were preparing to fight to the death, two Gorgon transports suddenly executed a tactical jump into the low orbit of Asphodel. Then, their engines screamed as they entered the planet's atmosphere and charged directly at the densest concentration of Tyranid flyers.
The Tyranid bio-ships still in orbit had no idea what was happening. Even the Hive Mind could not react in an instant.
"Huh? Did something just... whoosh... past?"
By the time the bio-ships tried to grab the Gorgons with their tendrils, it was too late. Seeing the Gorgons charging toward them, the Raiders let out a cheer. The Cadians' jaws dropped. They could not understand how these warships had entered the atmosphere, or how they had bypassed the dense swarm of Tyranid bio-ships.
The number of flying Tyranids was vast, but in the end, they were just individual creatures of flesh and blood.
The Gorgon's message was clear: In the void you can call me runt, I won't argue with you. But in the atmosphere, I'm your daddy!
To avoid the Gorgons' own weapons fire from hitting the city below, they simply rammed into the flying Tyranids. The Hive Tyrants were strong and fast, but that was all.
The two Gorgons plowed directly into the swarm. Just a glancing blow was enough to cause a chain reaction of explosions. When the Gorgons emerged from the cloud of Tyranids, their entire hulls were covered in gore.
The surviving flying Tyranids tried to tear through the Gorgons' weaker armor sections with their claws and symbiotic weapons to get inside. But after forcibly persuading their machine-spirits and a quick repair by an SCV, the Gorgons once again executed a tactical jump. Being latched onto a Gorgon when it's jumping is not a good idea. The Gargoyles that were still clinging to the armor were instantly vaporized into a bloody mist as the Gorgons vanished.
"Emperor above... Bro... what just happened? What was that?" a Cadian soldier asked, his mouth agape, as he slapped the Raider next to him on the shoulder.
"That," the Raider said proudly, "was a miracle brought to us by Lord Lucan. Stick with us, brother of Cadia. A victory is guaranteed!"
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