Both C-14 Gauss Rifles opened fire.
A dense barrage of 8mm Gauss rounds slammed into the shadow emerging from the relay station, forcing the massive creature to stagger backward.
The Type-II Mutant let out a guttural roar.
Dust cascaded from the ceiling.
Blue plasma arcs danced wildly through the ruined station, illuminating the creature’s thick armored shell.
It was far larger than the Hybrid creatures they had fought earlier.
Its chest was protected by a massive carapace that looked as solid as a steel shield.
The Gauss rounds blasted chunks of green fluid from its armor…
But they couldn’t stop its charge.
All six legs kicked off the ground at once.
Its enormous body lunged straight toward the Marine on the left.
Twin bone scythes sliced through the air…
Aimed directly at the visor.
Leon sidestepped, widening his firing angle.
His eyes weren’t on the scythes.
Years of gaming had taught him one simple rule.
Against creatures with too many legs…
Break the legs first.
“Stop aiming for its chest!” Leon shouted over the comms.
“Focus fire on the leg joints!” Neither Marine hesitated.
Their rifles lowered simultaneously.
Streams of Gauss fire swept toward the creature’s right-side joints.
The armor there was noticeably thinner.
Muscle fibers and skeletal supports were partially exposed.
Crunch!
One of its legs exploded apart.
The monster instantly lost its balance.
Its massive body tilted sideways.
Both bone scythes sliced harmlessly across the Marine’s helmet, tearing a huge strip of rusted metal from a nearby support pillar.
Leon seized the opening.
Gripping the Bolt Pistol with both hands, he rushed behind the creature.
The muzzle pressed firmly against the back of its skull.
He turned his face aside.
Then pulled the trigger.
BOOM!
The recoil slammed through his arms and into his shoulder.
Half his body went numb.
This Imperial-issue Bolt Pistol had one hell of a kick.
The explosive bolt punched through the creature’s skull before detonating.
Green ichor and gray brain matter sprayed across the chamber.
The monster twitched twice.
Its six legs finally collapsed beneath it.
With a heavy crash, it sank into the mud.
Dozens of meters away…
Ironbone remained sprawled on the ground, gasping for air.
The bloodiest gang wars he’d ever witnessed usually involved little more than chainswords hacking each other apart.
Today had completely changed his understanding of combat.
Two rifles.
One commander delivering the finishing blow at point-blank range.
They had dismantled a Type-II Mutant…
Without allowing it a single meaningful chance to fight back.
Ironbone stared at Leon’s back.
Every little scheme still lingering in his mind quietly died.
These blue-armored soldiers…
Were untouchable.
Anyone foolish enough to provoke them probably wouldn’t even leave behind a body.
Leon stepped over the shattered remains, his boots squishing through sticky green blood as he ventured deeper into the relay station.
A massive machine stood among the rubble.
Nearly two stories tall.
Its metal housing was coated in decades of dust.
A weathered Imperial Aquila remained faintly visible across its center.
The machine hadn’t completely shut down.
Blue electrical sparks periodically erupted from within, illuminating the twisted network of cables surrounding it.
Leon measured it with a glance.
Moving it by hand?
Impossible.
He patted Marine One on the shoulder.
“You head back.” “Protect the purifier.” “And watch Helena.” “If anyone gets close to her…” “Open fire.” “Yes, Commander.” Marine One turned and immediately retraced their route.
Leon activated his communications channel.
“Big guy.” “Bring your SCV over.” “We’ve found something worth dismantling.” The bearded operator’s cheerful voice came through the comms.
“Roger that, Commander.” “I always enjoy taking apart the big ones.” Only then did Ironbone and several of his followers cautiously approach.
The flickering plasma light illuminated the faded Imperial Aquila on the generator.
Every Underhive scavenger instinctively stepped backward.
Ironbone’s face turned pale.
“M-My lord…” “That’s Imperial property.” He pointed nervously toward the emblem.
His tongue nearly tied itself into knots.
“If we touch that…” “The Mechanicus will turn every one of us into Servitors.” Leon gave him a sideways glance.
“This place has already become an alien nest.” “If the Mechanicus actually cared…” “They would’ve shown up long ago.” Ironbone opened his mouth.
Then wisely kept silent.
Less than two minutes later…
Heavy treads thundered through the ruins.
The SCV rumbled into the relay station.
The operator sat comfortably inside the cockpit with an unlit cigar between his teeth.
Using the mechanical claw, he knocked against the generator’s housing.
Thunk.
The sound was deep and solid.
“Commander.” “They didn’t cut corners building this thing.” “Take it apart.” “As fast as you can.” Leon never took his eyes off the tactical display.
“Helena doesn’t have much time left.” The SCV raised its left arm.
The plasma cutter erupted with blazing blue fire.
Its heavy industrial saw slammed against the generator’s armored shell.
A deafening screech echoed throughout the station.
Showers of sparks exploded into the air.
The faded Imperial Aquila was quickly carved into several pieces.
Ironbone covered his ears.
His eyelids twitched uncontrollably.
Every Underhive resident knew Imperial machines required incense…
Sacred prayers…
And Tech-Priests chanting for hours before anyone dared touch them.
This yellow machine…
Didn’t bother with any of that.
It simply attacked the generator with a saw.
As casually as dismantling an old cooking pot.
Ada’s voice echoed inside Leon’s mind.
[High-purity titanium-vanadium alloy detected.] [Material conversion initiated.] [Minerals +30.] [Minerals +45.] [Minerals +45.] The resource counter climbed rapidly.
It stopped at 135 Minerals.
With one final metallic scream…
The SCV’s mechanical claw ripped away the generator’s outer shell.
Inside…
A glowing green cylindrical reactor core pulsed with power.
Without the slightest hesitation…
The operator drove the mechanical claw into the reactor housing.
Heavy transfer conduits extended automatically…
Connecting directly to the SCV’s internal conversion chamber.
[High-energy plasma reactor core detected.] [Beginning unstable biomass refinement.] [Vespene purification protocol activated.] Brilliant green plasma flowed into the SCV.
[Vespene Gas +150.] [Current Resources:] [Minerals: 135] [Vespene Gas: 150] Leon slowly let out a long breath.
They were back in business.
At last…
He understood the second path to survival in this world.
Alien corpses could indeed be converted into Vespene.
But only if he possessed a stable energy source powerful enough to refine their contaminated biomass.
Abandoned Imperial military equipment…
Could also be harvested for resources.
This planet was nothing more than a colossal junkyard.
For everyone else.
For Leon…
It was a limitless mine.
As long as resources continued flowing…
His base would continue growing.
And once the base grew strong enough…
He wouldn’t have to gamble his life every single day.
Just then…
A red communication icon flashed.
“Commander.” “This is Marine One.” The transmission came from Gear Street.
“Report.” “The Imperial Arbites officer’s vital signs are rapidly deteriorating.” “The outer abdominal tissue has ruptured.” “The organism is breaking through the final muscle layer.” “Estimated survival time…” “…less than one minute.” The relief immediately vanished from Leon’s face.
Helena couldn’t die.
She was an Arbites officer.
The only person currently alive who understood this planet’s military structure, government, and local conditions.
Without her…
Leon would be completely blind.
Capture another guide?
The next one might just as easily be another monster wearing human skin.
Better to keep the one he already had alive.
Leon opened the production interface.
His gaze settled upon the familiar red cross icon.
StarCraft Medic Cost: 50 Minerals 50 Vespene Gas He finally had enough.
“Ada.” “Spend it.” “Call in the doctor.” [Confirmed.] [Command Center Logistics Module online.] [Colonial Battlefield Medical Support Protocol activated.] [Resources deducted:] [Minerals -50] [Vespene Gas -50] [Remaining Resources:] [Minerals: 85] [Vespene Gas: 100] Watching the numbers fall made Leon’s heart ache a little.
[Additional notice.] [You have once again chosen to maintain a map unit while risking bankruptcy.] “Save the commentary.” [Log recorded.] Leon ignored her.
[Locking onto Commander’s tactical warp beacon.] [Detected approximately sixty meters of debris above target area.] [Switching to Quantum Warp Protocol.] [Deployment initiated.] Gear Street Settlement.
Several of Ironbone’s men stood roughly ten paces away, staring at Helena’s body lying atop the steel plate.
Blood bubbled from her lips.
A sharp protrusion bulged beneath her abdomen.
Dark red blood flowed steadily across the metal surface.
The creature was about to emerge.
Several scavengers tightened their grip on rusted iron bars.
Their expressions hardened.
The moment the monster broke through…
They intended to smash both it…
And Helena…
Into pulp together.
Marine One stood unmoving.
His C-14 Gauss Rifle completely sealed off the five-meter perimeter around her.
The rifle’s targeting laser slowly swept across each scavenger’s chest.
No one dared cross the invisible line.
Suddenly…
The yellow-brown poisonous haze above Gear Street was forced aside by an invisible pressure.
A pale blue beam descended from the sky.
It pierced through dozens of meters of piled scrap before landing precisely beside Helena.
The brilliant light forced everyone to shield their eyes.
As the radiance faded…
A slender figure stepped gracefully from the dissolving particles.
A pristine white CMC-405 Light Combat Suit hugged the contours of her body.
Unlike the Marines’ bulky armor…
This suit was agile and streamlined.
Soft blue energy lines flowed along her spine and arms.
A compact medical module rested across her back.
A small alloy shield was mounted on her left forearm.
Instead of a heavy rifle…
Only a medical satchel, injection kits, and a compact defensive pistol hung from her waist.
Behind the transparent visor…
A cheerful young woman’s voice filled the communications channel.
“The doctor has arrived.” “Commander.” “Medic reporting for duty.” Her eyes immediately settled on Helena’s dying body.
“Severely infected casualty detected.” “Requesting immediate medical intervention.”