Several hours later, Marcus finally arrived at the dome where the Department of Internal Affairs Building was located. Marcus spent half of those few hours traveling.
Only when he occasionally encountered Imperial Guard units unable to withstand the Tyranid assault would Marcus pause briefly, then release lictor to hunt and help relieve the besieged guards. Along the way, Marcus also saw many Tyranid warbeasts that were not present in the original game.
To break through the Empire's defenses, the Hive Mind had deployed a large number of powerful and varied Tyranid units to the Central Hive. These included Gargantuan Brood Nests, with dozens of Gun Worms incubating within their hulking bodies; Brutal Tyrants, several times larger than an Exocrine, wielding gigantic living symbiotic cannons; and Plasma Beasts, with massive plasma cannons on their backs, capable of destroying sturdy defensive fortifications and armored units with a single shot. These powerful Tyranid units were at least Special or even BOSS-level entities. Even melta bombs couldn't guarantee killing these behemoths, so Marcus didn't waste time and energy on these Tyranid units.
However, Marcus wasn't without gains on this journey. Two new entries had been added to the codex section of his system panel: the Grenade Bug, which could fire chitin shells, essentially a living mortar, and the Neurothrope, a cannon fodder unit one level below Hormagaunt and Gun Worm, capable of enhancing the connection between Tyranid units. Although one was an elite unit and the other a cannon fodder unit, neither offered a significant power boost to Marcus's current strength. But even a mosquito, no matter how small, is still meat, and it did supplement the number of Tyranid warbeasts in Marcus's possession.
Upon entering the dome, even Marcus, who had already witnessed mega-structures like the giant plasma orbital cannon, couldn't help but be astonished by the grandeur of the Department of Internal Affairs Building. A massive dome, composed of tens of thousands of tons of steel and concrete, enveloped the entire surrounding area. And the administrative and religious centers of the entire Hive City were all located beneath this dome.
The Department of Internal Affairs Building was one of the tallest structures beneath the entire dome. Its scale even surpassed the Adeptus Mechanicus facility Marcus had seen in another Hive City previously. Normally, hundreds of thousands of staff would be present here, responsible for calculating various data for the entire Hive City, and even the entire planet. However, due to the fierce Tyranid assault, the entire dome area had been evacuated, leaving behind only debris and garbage fragments.
After recalling his venomthrope, lictor, and neurothropes, Marcus approached a stone gate, gathered his strength, and slowly pushed open the heavy door.
"Creak…"
As the door opened, a chilling aura from inside the building immediately rushed out towards Marcus through the gap. In this cold wind, Marcus could sense a hint of evil power. It was very similar to the malicious gazes lurking in the darkness during his dream on the Severian previously. Knowing the plot, Marcus naturally understood that a group of renegades who had pledged allegiance to Chaos were garrisoned inside.
Just as Marcus was about to enter, behind him, a powerful engine sound approached from a distance. Looking back, a blue Repulsor hover tank was rapidly approaching. After arriving by the gate, four Ultramarines jumped out of the vehicle. It was Titus, Chairon, Gadriel, and another Sergeant, Valerius.
Upon seeing Marcus in front of the door, the group immediately walked up to him.
"Marcus, you're still alive?" Chairon walked up to Marcus with an excited expression, reaching out to pat his shoulder.
Gadriel, standing by, also said, "We thought you were dead."
"The Emperor protects, I survived." Marcus grinned.
Even Titus was surprised that Marcus could cross the long war zone alone on foot to reach this place. The three of them had already prepared for Marcus's demise. After all, even for an Astartes, surviving in such a dangerous war zone was not easy. Yet, Marcus not only survived a fall from ten thousand meters but also arrived at the target location before them.
Sergeant Valerius, standing by, also cast a curious gaze at Marcus. Most of the Ultramarines Second Company members on the Severian had heard that Sergeant Titus had brought someone from Kadaku, who was suspected of being blessed by the Emperor, onto the ship. And he had also passed the Battle Group Chaplain's Chaos detection and the Adeptus Mechanicus's genetic screening. Valerius hadn't expected to see him here. However, since he wasn't very familiar with Marcus, Valerius didn't interject.
Next, Titus and the others, as per custom, asked Marcus how he survived the crash. Marcus brought out his pre-prepared explanation and temporarily bluffed his way through. Anyway, Titus and the others weren't Librarians, so they couldn't verify if what he said was true.
"This must be the Emperor's blessing." At the end of his explanation, Marcus added this sentence.
Titus and the others didn't press for details and largely believed Marcus's account. After multiple battles, they no longer treated Marcus as an outsider as they did initially. Titus, Chairon, and Gadriel were not like Leandros, the Chaplain, who would spend all day suspecting this and that for no reason.
"The target location is not far ahead. Prepare for battle." After the conversation, Titus said to everyone present. Immediately, led by Titus and Valerius, they entered the Department of Internal Affairs Building.
After entering the building and proceeding a certain distance, the group arrived in a spacious hall. Dozens of soldiers in carapace armor were scattered throughout the hall, seemingly performing defensive duties.
"The Ultramarines are here!" The leading Sergeant immediately shouted.
Instantly, all the soldiers in the hall turned their gaze towards the group. These gazes did not hold the reverence or admiration that ordinary soldiers usually showed when seeing an Astartes. Instead, they carried a hint of disgust, and... Fear…
Valerius stepped forward and spoke in a deep voice, "Soldier, report. Have the enemies infiltrated the dome?"
"No, sir." The leading Sergeant's eyes darted around, not daring to look directly at Valerius in front of him.
"What about Thassean Temple then?" Titus pressed on at this point.
"The entire dome was evacuated a few days ago, sir."
"So, you're guarding a dome that has no enemy infiltration?" Valerius's tone was displeased. He now suspected that these soldiers in front of him were shameful deserters.
"Sir, we received orders from Captain Fairbairn to hold this position and await further instructions." The Sergeant lowered his head, responding in a low voice.
"They are deserters." Gadriel, standing by, did not hide his true thoughts and said it directly.
"No, no, no! Sir, we indeed received orders from the Captain!" The Sergeant frantically waved his hands and retreated.
"Contact your Captain. If you are deserters, I will personally execute you." Valerius's massive body continued forward, casting the Sergeant entirely into shadow. The latter tremblingly picked up his communicator and began to call the Captain.
Behind Valerius, Marcus connected to the communication channel. "These people are not right. They are very likely renegades." Marcus whispered in the communication channel.
Upon hearing Marcus's words, everyone, including Valerius, was startled at first and wanted to ask for more details.
"Sergeant Valerius, please step back to our side. Watch out for ambushes." Marcus continued to speak.
Valerius glanced at Titus, and seeing the latter nod slightly, he didn't stubbornly remain in place but slowly retreated.
It was at this moment that Chairon, who was very familiar with various Chaos symbols, also clearly saw the blasphemous tattoo on the Sergeant's arm.