The ground began to tremble.
Not with the chaotic pounding of a Tyranid swarm.
Not with the scattered footsteps of charging Aberrants.
This was different.
It was the slow, crushing rhythm of heavy crawler tracks grinding across titanium-steel floor plates.
One thunderous impact after another.
Heavy.
Deliberate.
As though the entire underground hall were being shoved forward by something colossal.
Standing before the Heavy Factory, Leon Drake’s expression darkened the moment he heard it.
The Primus escaping hadn’t been his greatest concern.
Neither had another Tyranid assault.
What he’d truly feared…
Was that this cursed place still had something even heavier.
Now it had arrived.
Through the smoke and dust, the first heavy mining vehicle burst into view.
Its bow resembled the jaws of a giant steel beast.
The enormous plasma cutting wheel at its front spun furiously against the ground.
Blue-white plasma teeth swept across the titanium-steel flooring, slicing through armored plates that curled upward before being crushed into glowing scrap beneath the treads.
A second one emerged.
Then a third.
And more followed.
Twelve mining vehicles rolled out of the darkness, their sizes varying from one machine to the next.
Some were heavy ore-cutting rigs from the Mining Guild.
Others had been converted into industrial laser drilling platforms.
Several carried massive hydraulic demolition hammers mounted where their excavators once stood.
These machines had once chewed through solid bedrock.
Now…
The Primus had driven them onto the battlefield.
It stood atop the largest cutting vehicle in the center of the formation.
Green blood still trickled from the cracked half of its chitinous armor.
All four arms gripped an Imperial heavy mining laser cannon.
The fissure across its skull, left by the Goliath’s missiles, had yet to heal.
But it hadn’t retreated.
It had learned.
Charging with flesh would only be burned alive by the Firebats.
Aberrants would be shredded by the Bunkers.
Psychic attacks were neutralized by Ada.
So it abandoned all of those.
Instead…
It shoved the dirtiest.
Heaviest.
Most primitive industrial equipment the Underhive possessed straight into Leon Drake’s face.
This wasn’t a monster charge anymore.
It was an industrial mining disaster commandeered by the Hive Mind.
Rufus crouched behind a Taurus armored carrier, his face turning pale.
“Throne above…” “If those things reach us…” “There won’t even be bones left to bury.” He wasn’t exaggerating.
Rows of miners had been strapped to both sides of every mining vehicle.
Some were already dead, their corpses nailed to the armor as living shields.
Others were still alive.
Their spines had been fused into bundles of cables.
Iron restraints locked their hands and feet to the control levers.
Blood bubbled from their mouths as they continued operating the machinery against their own will.
Between gaps in the armor, hybrid cultists and Aberrants huddled together behind reinforced mining shields.
Others dragged coolant tanks behind them.
Ready to reconnect damaged laser systems at a moment’s notice.
Helena tightened her grip on her bolt pistol.
She glanced at the enslaved miners.
Then toward the Primus.
Her voice carried the cold finality of an Arbites judgment.
“Forcing the Emperor’s subjects to become components of alien war machines.” “Corrupting flesh.” “Corrupting machinery.” “Corrupting the sanctity of labor.” “Under Imperial Law…” “Every one of those targets has forfeited civilian status.” Leon nodded.
“In plain language?” Helena remained silent for half a second.
“We can burn every last one of them.” “Now that, I understand.” Leon had no illusions about saving them.
There was no rescue.
The miners had been fused directly into the vehicle’s armor, control systems, neural conduits, and Hive Mind nodes.
Trying to separate them would only spread the corruption into his own defenses.
Only one question mattered now.
Just how troublesome were these machines?
“Ada.” “Scan the vehicles.” Scanning complete.
Enemy heavy mining and cutting vehicles: Twelve.
Average mass: 340 to 420 tons.
Armament: Plasma cutting discs, mining laser cannons, hydraulic demolition hammers.
Threat assessment: A frontal collision will compromise the current bunker line within twenty-seven seconds.
Twenty-seven seconds.
Leon instinctively glanced back at the Heavy Factory.
It had only just finished construction.
Its fusion core was still venting heat.
Future Hellions.
Goliaths.
And eventually Siege Tanks.
Everything depended on this factory.
If it was destroyed…
Every life he’d risked…
Every resource he’d gathered…
Every scrap of metal he’d scavenged…
Would have been wasted.
Leon clenched the cigar between his teeth.
“I finish building a house…” “And someone immediately shows up with demolition equipment.” “This planet really knows how to work efficiently.” Ada calmly corrected him.
Correction.
Enemy equipment exceeds the operational capability of standard demolition vehicles.
Their efficiency more closely resembles an illegal industrial demolition crew.
“You’re surprisingly thorough.” Merely stating objective facts.
The lead mining vehicle continued advancing.
Its cutting wheel generated waves of heat that turned the filthy water before the Heavy Factory into clouds of steam.
The Marines had already raised their rifles.
“Commander.” “Request permission to fire.” Leon didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he stared at the structural analysis projected by Ada.
The frontal armor glowed bright red.
Thick.
Dense.
Simple.
The Goliath could punch straight through it.
But that would be wasteful.
More importantly…
Several vehicles carried promethium coolant tanks and aging reactor cores beneath their hulls.
One careless explosion might destroy the Heavy Factory’s outer walls as well.
“We’re not attacking the front.” His voice became calm.
“The armor isn’t valuable.” “The equipment inside is.” Helena didn’t understand.
Rufus understood enough for his eyelid to twitch.
“My lord…” “You don’t mean…” “You want to capture these vehicles?” “Capture?” Leon slowly looked across the approaching convoy.
His expression changed.
Moments ago…
He’d seen a threat.
Now…
He saw resources.
Twelve heavy mining vehicles.
Titanium-steel armor.
Drive shafts.
Coolant systems.
Laser cannon mounts.
Reactor coils.
Yes.
They could smash straight through his defenses.
But once dismantled…
They would become crystal minerals.
Vespene gas.
Future armored vehicles.
These weren’t siege weapons.
The Primus had personally delivered an entire mining operation straight to Leon Drake’s doorstep.
A smile slowly appeared on his face.
“Rufus.” The Enforcer stiffened instantly.
“Yes, my lord!” “When people rob someone in the Underhive…” “Do they usually bother being polite?” Rufus blinked.
Then answered honestly.
“Depends on how big the other guy’s gun is.” “Then today…” “We’ll be polite.” Leon raised one hand.
“Wait until they fire first.” Rufus nearly collapsed again.
“…What?” Even Helena turned toward Leon.
Twelve mining laser cannons were slowly elevating.
Blue-white light gathered inside each barrel.
Those weren’t ordinary weapons.
The Mining Guild used them to carve through mountains.
Blast open armored vaults.
Slice apart derelict starship hulls.
If all twelve fired together…
The bunkers…
The armored transports…
Everything would melt into glowing slag.
Leon understood the danger perfectly.
But firing now would only scatter the formation.
What he wanted…
Were their weak points.
To fire in synchronized volleys…
Each cannon had to elevate.
Doing so exposed the coolant lines…
The rotating turret assemblies…
And the vulnerable drivetrain behind them.
The Tyranids had learned to crush enemies with industrial machinery.
But they still hadn’t learned how to protect the machinery’s vital systems.
“Ada.” “Mark every high-value component.” Targets designated.
Turret pivots.
Cooling vents.
Coolant pipelines.
Drive shafts.
Reactor coils.
Recommendation: Avoid frontal detonations.
Prioritize mobility kills.
“Got it.” Leon bit down on his cigar.
“Destroying the front end is a financial loss.” “Dismantling the parts…” “That’s profit.” The overweight SCV pilot chuckled over the comms.
“Now that’s what I like to hear, Commander.” “Nothing beats tearing apart heavy equipment.” “Save your excitement.” Leon switched to the tactical channel.
“SCV.” “Fall back to the Heavy Factory’s right-side maintenance position.” “Protect the structure.” “Don’t play hero out front.” “Roger.” “Goliath.” “Hold your missiles.” “No unnecessary firing.” “Wait for my signal.” “Target the cannon mounts and cooling systems.” “Marines.” “Eliminate the escorts.” “Don’t let anyone repair those vehicles.” “Firebats.” “Guard both flanks.” “If anything crawls out from between those machines…” “Burn it.” One command followed another.
The entire formation moved instantly.
The Marines fired first.
Gauss rounds ripped into the escorting cultists beside the mining vehicles.
Several hybrids raised reinforced mining shields.
The next instant…
Shield and bearer alike were punched clean through.
A three-armed Aberrant carrying a coolant tank climbed onto the rear of one vehicle.
Three precise gauss shots shattered its spine.
Its body tumbled beneath the crawler tracks and disappeared into a smear of mangled flesh.
The Primus growled.
More cultists poured out from behind the convoy.
They threw themselves across exposed cooling vents.
Others held scrap metal plates over vulnerable coolant lines with their own bodies.
Leon watched quietly.
His gaze grew colder.
“It knows we’re targeting the weak spots.” The enemy command node possesses battlefield learning capability.
However, it remains unable to analyze our genetic structure.
Current adaptive strategy: Compensate through mass and expendable personnel.
“Inefficient or not…” Leon stared at the steadily advancing convoy.
“If those things actually reach us…” “We’re going to have a very bad day.” Sixty meters.
The lead mining vehicle’s cutting wheel was already throwing glowing fragments against the bunker walls.
Fifty meters.
All twelve mining laser cannons completed their elevation.
Their barrels resembled twelve blazing white eyes fixed upon the Heavy Factory.
Forty meters.
The air itself shimmered from the unbearable heat.
Behind the armored carrier, Rufus lay flat on the ground, muttering desperately.
“Protect us, Emperor…” “Please don’t let the Commander overplay his hand…” Helena shot him an icy glance.
Rufus immediately corrected himself.
“I mean…” “The Emperor obviously knows the Commander has everything under control.” Helena ignored him.
She simply watched Leon.
He hadn’t stepped back.
He hadn’t delivered an inspiring speech.
He merely stared at the holographic display…
Waiting for the countdown to reach zero.
That was somehow more unsettling than charging toward certain death.
And much more like an Inquisitor.
A true Inquisitor never explained the plan.
They simply waited for the enemy to walk into it.
Ada’s voice echoed calmly.
Enemy mining lasers entering synchronized firing sequence.
Estimated time to discharge: Five seconds.
Leon opened the Heavy Factory production interface.
“Prepare the next production queue.” Please designate unit type.
“Not yet.” “Wait until they fire.” Helena could no longer remain silent.
“My lord…” “They really will cut straight through our defenses.” “Which is exactly why…” Leon slowly lifted his eyes.
“They’re not going to hit our defenses.” Ahead…
The Primus slammed all four hands onto the firing controls.
The twelve mining lasers blazed with blinding blue-white brilliance.
Three.
Two.
One.
The entire underground hall became white.
Twelve mining lasers fired simultaneously.
At that exact same moment…
Leon’s command rang out.
“Hellions.” “Scatter.” Both Hellions roared to life.
Instead of retreating…
They burst away in opposite directions, racing along either side of the Heavy Factory’s defensive line.
The next instant…
All twelve laser beams slammed into the positions they had occupied only a heartbeat earlier.
Titanium-steel flooring vaporized.
The ground melted away.
A scorching wave swept across the battlefield.
Behind an armored carrier, Rufus felt half his eyebrows curl from the heat.
But the Hellions were already gone.
They raced along the shattered side walls of the chamber at breakneck speed.
Blue exhaust flames streamed behind them.
Helena’s pupils contracted.
She had believed Leon was waiting for death.
Instead…
He had been waiting for the enemy to expose their guns.
After firing in perfect synchronization…
Every mining laser turret overheated.
Coolant lines became fully exposed.
Cooling vents opened wide like fresh wounds.
Ada’s crimson targeting markers flooded Leon’s vision.
Enemy weak points exposed.
Mobile combat phase may now begin.
Leon smiled.
Not with relief.
But with the smile of a businessman who had just spotted a fortune waiting to be claimed.
“Stop thinking of them as enemies.” “Think of them as mining trucks…” “That drove themselves to our front door.” He raised his hand toward the flanks.
“Hellions.” “Take those walking scrap heaps for a ride.” “Goliath.” “Next volley.” “Strip them apart.”