On Kadaku, deep within a vast, unknown swamp, Titus, Chairon, and Gadriel moved cautiously, their bolters at the ready. Their eyes scanned the quiet surroundings, guarding against any Tyranid creatures that might burst from the tall grass at any moment.
Beside them, Marcus, clad in brand-new carapace armor, strode in the middle of the squad. He gripped a meltagun—a weapon typically meant for mortals—and had a plasma pistol and several alloy bayonets tucked into his waist. He, too, remained highly vigilant. Having successfully joined Titus Squad, Marcus had naturally received the best weaponry and equipment the Astra Militarum could provide, multiplying his combat strength many times over compared to his unequipped state when he was first enhanced.
Through the dense leaves overhead, Marcus gazed at the gigantic, mountain-like Plasma Orbital Cannon in the distance. Though he had seen it countless times in the game, witnessing such a massive orbital weapon in reality for the first time still left him momentarily lost in thought.
Suddenly, Titus, leading the squad, raised a hand, signaling them to stop. Over the comms channel, he immediately reported: "Attention all, the Auspex shows a large number of biological signals approaching! It's those filthy Xenos!"
No sooner had he spoken than rustling sounds emanated from the previously silent, dense grass all around them. Immediately after, a large number of Hormagaunts leaped out, attacking Marcus and his companions. The four quick-thinking individuals instantly raised their bolters and plasma pistols, firing accurately at the rushing Tyranids. Among the horde, several Tyranid Warriors, armed with bone blades, roared as they charged.
The initial enemies weren't enough to warrant using Marcus's meltagun, which had scarce ammunition. So, he drew the plasma pistol from his waist, first accurately striking a Tyranid Warrior that was roaring skyward, summoning more Tyranids. This interrupted its attempt to call for reinforcements. Then, Marcus, wielding an alloy bayonet in each hand, began swinging continuously, cutting down the approaching Hormagaunts. Each swing, under his deliberate control, either sliced open a Hormagaunt's throat or pierced its skull.
The bone splinters and Fleshborer Beetles fired by the Gun Worms were all dodged by Marcus. He relied on the crisis-sensing ability of his "Combat Instinct" combined with his agile movements. As Astartes, Titus and his two companions slaughtered the Xenos even faster than Marcus. In short order, Tyranid creatures like Hormagaunts and Gun Worms were completely annihilated. The Tyranid Warriors armed with bone blades or Venom Cannons also fell under the roaring chainswords or the cold gleam of combat knives.
Marcus watched with a hint of speechlessness as Titus and his squad eliminated the Tyranid creatures like a whirlwind. He had originally intended to pick a Tyranid Warrior as an opponent to test his strength after his second enhancement and try to trigger the effects of the title "Warrior Slayer." But before he could even act, the monsters had already been claimed by Titus and the others.
After thrusting his bayonet into the throat of the last Hormagaunt, dozens of Tyranid corpses had accumulated around Marcus, yet he himself had suffered almost no injuries. This was partly due to the crisis sensing provided by "Combat Instinct," and partly because his body, enhanced by the T-Virus, had already healed any minor wounds.
"It seems we've alerted the Tyranids. We must speed up," Chairon said, looking at the corpses on the ground.
Titus and Gadriel nodded, put away their weapons, and prepared to quicken their pace, beginning a forced march. Since they had already disturbed the Tyranids, there was no need for stealth. The Tyranids would continue to swarm them, and they had to reach the orbital cannon's location before being surrounded.
Just as the group was about to move, Marcus, in the middle of the squad, suddenly felt a strong sense of threat rapidly approaching. The location was—underground! His expression immediately changed, and he shouted: "Venomthrope! Get clear!"
As he spoke, he had already leaped from his spot. Titus and Chairon reacted instantly to Marcus's warning, immediately moving away from their positions. Gadriel, however, was a step slower due to hesitation. The next second, accompanied by a violent tremor of the ground, a Venomthrope, whose body was two sizes larger than a fully armored Astartes, burst out of the earth and coiled around Gadriel's body.
The Venomthrope's thick lower body tightly constricted Gadriel, making him unable to move. It continuously tore at Gadriel with its huge and sharp claws. In his shock and anger, Gadriel used his arm to block the Venomthrope's slashes while desperately trying to break free from the entanglement.
Seeing this, Titus and Chairon immediately raised their bolters and fired at the Venomthrope coiling around Gadriel. However, the creature's massive body could still withstand a large number of Bolter attacks for a short time. If this continued, even if they killed the Venomthrope, Gadriel would likely be seriously injured.
"Get out of the way!" Seeing the desperate situation, Marcus charged towards the struggling Gadriel and the Venomthrope, holding his meltagun.
"Grab its claws!" Marcus shouted to Gadriel, then quickly moved behind the Venomthrope, found a suitable distance, raised his meltagun, and aimed it at the creature's chitin-covered back.
Gadriel instantly understood Marcus's intention. After cursing under his breath, he stopped struggling and immediately, as Marcus had instructed, used both hands to restrain the Venomthrope's two sharp claws. For a moment, Gadriel and the Venomthrope were locked in a stalemate, which made it easier for Marcus to aim and reduced the chance of friendly fire.
As Marcus pulled the trigger of his meltagun, a large mass of superheated plasma energy blasted into the Venomthrope's back. The creature's chitinous carapace offered almost no protection, melting away along with the flesh behind it. With just one Meltagun shot, the Venomthrope, which had been ferociously alive moments ago and nearly inflicted serious injury on an Astartes, was melted into a steaming puddle of flesh.
Because Marcus was wielding a Meltagun used by the Astra Militarum—a weapon meant for mortals—its power was inherently smaller. Furthermore, under Marcus's deliberate control of the distance, this single meltagun shot only killed the Venomthrope that was coiling around Gadriel. It did not cause much substantial damage to Gadriel behind it, though the golden Imperial Aquila emblem on his chest plate showed some signs of melting and distortion.
"Lieutenant, you did well." Titus stepped forward and patted Marcus's shoulder, then, after confirming Gadriel was unharmed, issued the command for a forced march.
Astartes could maintain a speed of nearly 80 kilometers per hour during a forced march, and Marcus, after his second enhancement, could barely keep up. Along the way, Gadriel occasionally looked at Marcus, seemingly wanting to speak but hesitating. On one hand, he was naturally grateful for Marcus's actions that had saved him from injury and potentially affecting the mission. However, his pride as an Astartes made it very difficult for him to express gratitude to someone he considered a mere mortal. Meanwhile, Marcus was completely unaware of Gadriel's complex internal struggle. He was busy checking the notifications that had popped up on his system panel.