LRAB Chapter 24: Mortarian Never Believed in Miracles
Chapter 24: Mortarian Never Believed in Miracles
Mortarian never believed in miracles.
From Barbaros's unhappy childhood to his equally unpleasant Great Crusade after becoming a member of the Fourteenth Legion, almost all the "miracles" Mortarion witnessed could be linked to psionic powers, sorcery, the warp, and everything else he loathed.
Therefore, when he heard that a Queen Glory-class battleship had been stolen by an unknown soldier, his first reaction was that it must be the work of some guy who abused witchcraft.
Horus also became weak, allowing a wizard who sold his soul to the warp to infiltrate his ranks. It was because he had also come into contact with too much power related to chaos that he suffered such a disgraceful defeat.
But I'm different.
Wearing a hooded cloak, Mortarion emerged from his makeshift underground bunker. After enduring a series of attacks, including viral bombs, firestorms, and the landing impact of the Tyrant, Istvan III had become a dead planet completely unsuitable for human habitation.
The oxygen content in the atmosphere is negligible, and most of the Earth's surface has become vitrified. Amidst the continuous turbulent winds, the crackling sound of the air being ionized can be heard from time to time.
However, this harsh and extreme environment gave Motalian a sense of familiarity, as if he were on home turf.
This is a perfect stage for Deathguard.
"Check the communication environment."
Upon hearing the Death Lord's deep, hoarse voice due to the respirator, the Death Guardian interstellar warriors in the crypt behind him immediately adjusted their equipment and reported back.
"Communication has been restored in the second, fourth, and fifth tandems, but communication in the third, sixth, and seventh tandems, located on the other side of the Great Tyrant, remains disrupted and is expected to be restored within 14 minutes."
Mortarian nodded. Upon learning that the Great Tyrant had entered the atmosphere, he immediately ordered the Legion to abandon its anchor and disperse in an emergency retreat.
If he wasn't mistaken, among the legionary units that landed on Istvan III, the Death Guard should have suffered the least damage.
After all, the World Eaters, led by the brute Anglona, had gone too far and had no chance to retreat; the other two legions, lacking unified command from the Primarch, also made a mess of their retreat in a chaotic manner.
Mortarian revealed a smile beneath the respirator that no one could see.
It's time for the Death Guard to make a name for themselves and for other legions to take notice of the Fourteenth Legion.
"The 'Death Shroud' squad reported back that the attack directly resulted in a 23% casualty rate. The remaining members will now cooperate with Titans as planned to suppress any forces attempting to leave Demon's Lair."
The "Death Shroud" is Mortalian's Primarch Guard, composed of the Legion's most elite Terminator warriors. They were supposed to be always by Mortalian's side, but before the retreat began, Mortalian ordered them to assemble with the Imperial Titan Judgment Day and seize the opportunity to enter Anthem City and occupy key routes.
Although these were all extremely valuable veterans, Mortarian was not heartbroken when he heard about the casualties; instead, he nodded with great satisfaction.
Because he knew that other units, even under the protection of the Judgment Day, would have a hard time surviving, and...
"The survival rate is 77%, which is in line with my predictions."
As long as the numerological calculations remain valid, it means that the battle situation is still completely under Mortarion's control.
No surprises, no miracles.
This is the power of reason and science!
"Wait, wait! Something's happened to the Great Tyrant... The upper deck hatch at the stern has opened, and three Thunderhawks have taken off!"
"What?"
Mortarian's eyes sharpened; the last thing he wanted to hear was the word "accident."
Thanks to the fact that there were almost no obstacles on the surface of Eastvan, Mortalian was able to see three dark figures flying from the Great Tyrant toward the Emperor-class Titans, even though he was hundreds of kilometers away, thanks to his Primarch's superhuman vision.
"Notify the Death Shroud to prepare for engagement and cooperate with the Judgment Day to shoot it down."
"But...after they approached, they slowed down, signaled a ceasefire, and then sent communications footage to our troops!"
"Play".
A few seconds later, a holographic image was projected in front of Mortarian.
This appears to be surveillance footage from inside the Great Tyrant's cabins, showing thousands of mortals chanting "For Horus!" and engaging in fierce battles throughout the cabins against another group of mortals chanting "For the Emperor!"
Although the footage only lasted a dozen seconds, Mortarian was still able to discern some of the background areas and the battle situation.
The engine room and the external fire control room have been temporarily occupied by the Horus faction, but the armory and bridge are still under fierce fighting.
"They claim to be Astartes on the Great Tyrant, still loyal to Warmaster Horus. They were originally imprisoned in different areas of the ship by having their hatches remotely locked, and only managed to escape during the system malfunction caused by the Great Tyrant's landing and the riot instigated by the Horusian mortals... But the Imperial resistance is extremely fierce, and the Imperial Astartes haven't even begun to suppress it. They hope we can take advantage of the chaos on the Great Tyrant to board the ship as soon as possible and reclaim this Glory Queen-class battleship for the Warmaster!"
Mortarian's pupils contracted slightly as his Primarch's superbrain began to rapidly analyze the situation.
First of all, these images don't look fake.
In those dozen or so frames, he had already observed everyone's expressions. It was impossible for thousands of people to put on a show and fool the Primarch.
Secondly, the profits from boarding and seizing the ship now are very tempting.
In his previous calculations, attempting to break through the Great Tyrant's defensive firepower would have resulted in massive casualties, and there was even a risk that the enemy would detonate the reactor in a desperate attempt to destroy everything.
Third, Mortarion does indeed have the potential for a quick attack.
If the Death Shroud Squad uses these Thunderhawk gunships, they can reach the Great Tyrant in minutes and then take control of the situation with their powerful Terminator power armor.
"Inform them to slow down during landing and disarm all weapons."
Following Mortarian's command, he could see the three Thunderhawks slowly descending their altitude.
It seemed as if Lady Luck was finally on his side, and Mortarion would soon reap a miraculous victory—
But Mortarian never believed in miracles.
"Have the Judgment Day of the Dead Skull Titans open fire and shoot them down."
As soon as Mortarian finished speaking, the divine machine, which was over a hundred meters tall, turned around at an astonishing speed that was disproportionate to its enormous size.
The Hellstorm Cannon mounted on its right arm unleashed a torrential barrage of explosive shells in the next second, sweeping towards the unsuspecting Thunderhawk gunboats.
The Death Lord coldly watched the fireball caused by the Thunderhawk's explosion. In fact, he found no evidence that it was a trap; everything seemed so logical.
But this shortcut approach, aiming for victory with minimal sacrifice, is not Mortarion's style.
If Mortarian had truly realized it was a trap, he might have been interested in confronting it head-on.
He decided to proceed according to his original plan, steadily advancing after communications were restored, and then achieving victory through a brutal encirclement and annihilation campaign.
Even if it causes greater casualties, or even destroys the Great Tyrant, we are willing to do so.
"Everyone, continue with the previous mission instructions, don't get distracted... Huh?!"
Mortarian noticed the anomaly without waiting for the death shroud's communication report.
Two Thunderhawk gunboats emerged from the smoke of the explosion—clearly, they had taken precautions and thus escaped unscathed.
"Hmph, so there was something fishy about their surrender just now? Shoot them down, but don't pursue them too far... What's going on?"
One of the Thunderhawks chose to turn around and fly back to the Great Tyrant, which Mortalian could understand.
After the attack, even the Horus faction knew that Mortarion would not let them go either.
However, the other Thunderhawk gunboat acted strangely. Using the smoke from its comrade's explosion as cover, it chose a different flight path...
above.
The Thunderhawk showed no intention of returning; instead, it continued to climb to an altitude of several thousand meters.
"Report! According to the Death Shroud Squad's visual observation, that Thunderhawk gunboat has launched attacks on the Judgment Day—how could this be?!"
Motalian's heart sank, but he convinced himself not to worry unnecessarily.
No matter what kind of secret weapon it is, the Void Shield of an Emperor-class Titan can withstand bombardment of orbital attack level.
However, we still cannot let our guard down.
"Intercept it immediately, to prevent it from being a virus bomb or something..."
"That's a person!"
But what he heard next made Mortarian wonder if there was something wrong with his ears.
"An Astartes is hurtling towards Judgment Day at freefall speed!"