Chapter 429: The Emperor's Chosen Knight Servant

Three Slaughter-class conventional cruisers.

Hovering quietly in the void.

This is what Qiao Shida seized from his gang.

Because most of them were redesigned from scratch, Chaos warships and Imperial warships are still very different in shape and style. Both have similar design layouts, including the fins under the hull, the rear bridge, the port and starboard and deck layouts, and the weapon arrays arranged at the bow.

But there are obvious differences. The design style of Chaos warships is relatively simple, unlike the Imperial warships with complicated church elements. Generally speaking, the difference between the two is probably the difference between Gothic style and Baroque style. The hangar is a triangle shape that extends outward. Chaos warships have a sharp and flat bow, but it is not the "Σ" type armored bow of the Imperial warship, so they cannot arbitrarily hit enemy ships.

In addition to these three Slaughter-class cruisers, the Iron Pagoda Chapter once captured the Hades-class heavy cruiser, which is also a Chaos warship. Since these Chaos warships all belong to Chaos Space Marines, they have also been modified accordingly and have the functions required by Space Marines - transmission decks, drop pod launch ports, orbital bombing capabilities, torpedo tubes, or flight decks for launching assault boats and taking off and landing Thunderhawk gunboats.

The total space and energy of a warship is limited, so there are gains and losses. If these functional facilities serving the Space Marines are installed, other weapon arrays will have to be reduced. Generally speaking, a strike cruiser of the size of a conventional cruiser has only the firepower equivalent to a light cruiser, and correspondingly, a strike cruiser of the size of a heavy cruiser has only the firepower equivalent to a conventional cruiser.

However, the armor and speed of strike cruisers are generally not weakened, and may even be enhanced, which is the key to their ability to carry out "strike" missions.

The boarding crew seized the bridges of the three warships and paralyzed their command centers, but there was still a lot of cleanup work to be done in order to completely capture the three warships. Control key parts - such as sublight engines and subspace engines. Find and kill all Chaos Space Marines, identify and eliminate all mortal crew members - see if they are Chaos believers or captured slaves, the latter often have a glimmer of hope, the former will be executed without mercy. The three warships already belong to the Chapter, and the enemy must be prevented from deliberately destroying the key facilities of the warships.

Compared to naval warships, Space Marine warships and Chaos warships usually use a large number of servitors to replace mortal crew members. This is a good thing. The chapter does not have to worry about killing too many crew members and leaving no one to drive the warship.

After the purge, there might be no one to operate the weapon array, but it is still possible to drive them back to the Marcus Wang Star Area. Then they will undergo more in-depth cleaning, transformation, and strengthening at the Phaeton Forging World Airport.

After recovering the "Pojun Golden Armor" and Brother Zong, and leaving behind the slow-moving combat barge, Fu Qinghai personally boarded a strike cruiser, led a company and two imperial transport ships, and went after the escaped transport cruiser.

......

Ni Deline sub-sector.

Jiro Galaxy.

The transport cruiser of the Draconis family had just arrived here and quickly identified the presence of the rebel naval force in the galaxy - another transport cruiser. And they were very familiar with the markings on that warship.

"The Wickerstreet family."

Viscount Sunderland said through gritted teeth.

"Do we know them?"

Zofia asked her adoptive mother quietly.

Madam Janiko explained in a low voice:

"The knights of the Vixtrick family are among the most loyal servants of the rebellious Titan Legion, the Death Skull Legion. They are fanatical believers of the Machine God and are the knight families that followed the expedition fleet to conquer the Iron Ring. They are loyal to the Forge Master, but it is this unquestioning dedication and supreme obedience that ultimately led them to the deepest depravity."

Zofia seemed to understand.

In fact, to put it simply, traitors like the Vixtrick Knight Family and the Kurissatai Titan Legion are all closely related to the Death Skull Legion. The former is a vassal knight family of the Death Skull Legion, and the latter was established with the help of some Titans split from the Death Skull Legion. Are they loyal? They are very loyal, but they are loyal to the wrong person - the Death Skull Legion is a die-hard supporter of the Warmaster Horus and Kelbor Har.

The Draconis family discovered that this transport cruiser of the Vikstrek family was launching an inter-orbital lander towards an industrial world. They didn't know if it was an illusion, but their movements seemed a little panicked. They released the lander in a hurry, and then the battleship immediately left the orbit and sailed outward.

"They want to take over that industrial world?"

Many knight pilots gathered on the bridge.

A knight in the family asked.

"I have no idea."

Viscount Sunderland narrowed his eyes and said:

"However, since we have found this shameful and corrupt family, our first battle in the Ni Deline sub-sector will begin with this group of plundering knights."

The patriarch said in a deep voice:

"Assemble and get ready to ride!"

"Yes, sir!"

The family knights responded in unison.

…

Viscount Sunderland came down to the lower cabin.

Find the Nemonix Sage who has been waiting for a long time.

"Respected Sage."

Viscount Sunderland whispered:

"Thank you for your help."

"You're welcome, Viscount."

Sage Nemonix said with a smile:

"We belong to the same world of knights. Assisting knight families in their battles is part of our sect's duty."

Unlike when he always appeared as an electronic ghost in front of the Sage of Domination, Sage Nemonix revealed his true face in front of Viscount Sunderland, and was just an ordinary technical priest, just like all other technical priests.

During the war of the Iron Ring, the "Data Supervision" sect of Sage Nemonix had been keeping to itself and unwilling to contribute. But on the eve of the Draconis family's expedition, they suddenly approached the head of the family, Viscount Sunderland, and expressed their willingness to help.

He also said that this was a requirement for ruling sages.

Viscount Sunderland knew very well that they were trying to please him and wanted to change his mind in this way. However, these small favors could not change his determination at all. The Draconis family would definitely leave the Mechanicus.

"We will descend upon that industrial world, defeat those fallen knights, and reclaim the empire's territory."

Viscount Sunderland spoke.

"I wish you good luck, Viscount."

Sage Nemonix smiled.

Viscount Sunderland nodded and said nothing more.

Lead a group of pilots to ascend the mechanical throne.

…

The consistent idea of ​​Warhammer 40K is.

What the Empire has, the Chaos has as well.

There are already Chaos Marines to correspond to the Space Marines, and naturally there are Chaos Knights to correspond to the Imperial Knights.

There are three types of Imperial Knights: those loyal to the Terran government, those loyal to the Adeptus Mechanicus, and the Freeblades.

There are also three types of Chaos Knights: the Apostate Families loyal to the Chaos Space Marine Legions and the Infernal Families loyal to the Dark Mechanicus. There are also Wandering Knights among the Chaos Knights, similar to the Imperial Freeblade, called the "Terrorblade".

Each Chaos Knight is a twisted reflection of an Imperial Knight. Originally created during the Dark Age of Technology using standard template structures, over the years and centuries, Chaos energies seeped into the War Engines, tormenting their Machine Souls and causing them to undergo profound mutations.

Janiko told Zofia:

Once the Knight and its pilots were a gleaming beacon, now Chaos Knight and its corrupted nobility form a symbiotic beast of rage and hatred. Only the most powerful of the corrupted pilots are able to commune with the Machine Throne without going mad in the process. Those who survive become tormented creatures.

"Thirty-one knights, forming five spear formations."

The chief knight taught his adopted daughter by example:

"When the battle begins, you must follow me closely and cover my left flank. Do you understand?"

"I understand, Your Highness Janiko."

Zofia nodded.

The two of them climbed up and entered the knight mecha.

This time Zofia was not able to pilot the Fire Fury. She was crammed into the cockpit of a Squire-class Knight. The warhorse was an agile mech made of plasteel and adamantium. It was a broadsword squire named Bloodhound, with a chainsword at the end of one arm, a set of thermal spears, a double-barreled melta weapon, and a lumber gun on top. These were all her weapons. Its machine spirit gave a cautious roar, greeting its new master.

There are not as many models of Knight Squires as official Knights. There are only two models in total - Broadsword Squires and Hilt-Ring Squires. The former are equipped with thermal spears and chainswords, and can be regarded as light cavalry specializing in close combat, while the latter are equipped with two Squire automatic cannons, which is equivalent to archer cavalry specializing in long-range output.

Zofia's five senses began to expand with a dizzying impact, and the external viewfinder and auspicious array began to work, and the instruments in the cockpit and the images outside the cockpit gradually overlapped. Her vision was panoramic, with increased width and depth. With just a glance, she could see things around her that mortals needed more effort to see clearly.

At the same time, a large amount of data was refreshed and scrolled on her retina display, and her sound array communicator was awakened, sending the information in the open communication channel directly to her ears. For those who are not mentally prepared, such intensive sensory input will cause catastrophic psychological trauma or even death. But for Zofia, she had completed a connection with a larger, stronger, more majestic and burly mecha hunter before, and she did not feel any discomfort at all. The additional effect of adrenaline only made her feel excited, making her whole body tremble.

The inter-orbital lander is deployed.

Each spear formation stepped out of the hatch one after another.

Madame Janiko led a column of spears.

Viscount Sunderland led a line of spearmen.

The Draconis family started riding!

This is an industrial world with complex terrain. Under the city, there are wide tunnels and giant mines left over from the mining industry, which are enough to withstand orbital bombardment. In such an environment, the auspicious instrument is not very sensitive. The Imperial Knights dispersed and cautiously expanded the search range.

Glancing around at the ruined and deserted city ruins.

This place has already been looted.

Viscount Sunderland came to the conclusion.

Why did they come here?

Thinking of the transport cruiser that hastily landed the inter-orbital lander and immediately quickly left the planet's orbit - the Viscount has ordered the family warships to give chase.

What is the enemy hiding from?

Viscount Sunderland thought to himself.

"Energy signals detected ahead!"

The voice of the Knight's squire interrupted his thoughts.

A group of Fallen Knights emerged from the tunnel.

"Wilt XI, damned traitor."

The armor was painted half black and gray and half dark green, and the sharp sword pierced the family emblem of a black skull wrapped in white gears from top to bottom. After Viscount Sunderland confirmed the identity of his opponent, he turned on the loudspeaker and coldly said the opponent's name.

"Draconis, why are you here?"

The other party seemed a little surprised, as if they had not expected to encounter another team of imperial knights here.

"Fate has brought us together again. I will purify you of the ugly things that desecrate the spirit of chivalry."

Viscount Sunderland said coldly.

"Yes, destiny..."

The other party sighed and said.

The main force of the two sides in the confrontation, the Draconis family's main force are patrol knights, only the head of the family, Viscount Sunderland, drives a Castle Knight. The main force of the Vickerstrek family's main force are plunder knights, and the head of the family, Wilt XI, drives a Tyrant Knight. They can be said to be evenly matched opponents.

The head of the other knight's mecha was like a slender metal skull, with a drooping jaw and a large mouth with sharp teeth. The Fallen Knight raised his right hand, holding a Space Marine in his lightning glove. The Space Marine was wearing black and gold power armor, without a helmet, and his head was lowered as if he was in a state of suspended animation. Then, the lightning glove squeezed hard, crushing the ceramic steel and plastic steel, and the Space Marine's superhuman flesh and blood spurted out from the gaps in the armor. The Fallen Knight slowly smeared the Space Marine's corpse on his uneven, spiked armor. The pieces of flesh and armor hung between the welded spikes and the gaps between the skull chains, and some of them dripped down.

Viscount Sunderland watched this scene silently.

This is a heinous provocation and blasphemy.

"I thought it would be these guys who came."

The other leader smiled and said:

"I had to prepare a prisoner in advance. I was just flirting with a blind man. What a pity, what a pity..."

Zofia stared at the black and gold power armor.

Why does it feel... familiar?

"Your existence itself is a blasphemy against responsibility and honor! Don't try to anger us with such behavior, Wilt XI, today is the day you die!"

Viscount Sunderland declared loudly, raised his chainsword, switched back to the communication channel, and shouted:

"All knights, follow me... Ugh!"

Something unexpected happened in the communication channel and all the knights heard it. The Viscount's voice suddenly changed and he seemed to be vomiting violently. The sound was extremely tragic, as if he wanted to vomit out all his internal organs, and he was scratching his throat hard.

"I... Ugh, ugh, wow—"

The heart-wrenching, noisy sound of vomiting.

All the imperial knights were stunned.

I was a little overwhelmed for a moment.

In the distance, the fallen knights on the edge of the tunnel were also stunned. The leader, King Wilt XI, tilted his head. The sensors and detectors on the knight's head kept flashing. He found that the castle lord knight opposite suddenly began to tremble all over, and sticky and corrupt pus and mucus seeped out from every gap in the mecha.

Then came the squirming white maggots and the buzzing black mosquitoes and flies. The maggots kept falling, and the mosquitoes and flies rose up and formed a cloud of flies. Then, the steel began to become diseased, and the surface of the armor was bulging with spots and boils. The knight of the castle trembled, and the pus flowing on his body began to bubble. The exhaust port behind him was spewing a steady stream of green and foul-smelling miasma.

"This is... Nurgle?"

The well-informed Wilt XI muttered to himself.

"Buzz——"

A piercing scream accompanied by intense pain swept through the communication channels of all the Imperial Knights. Zofia felt the blood roaring in her temples. The iron ring on her forehead suddenly became extremely heavy, making it difficult for her to breathe.

"It's chaos crap!"

Janiko screamed:

"Zofia, disconnect the communication link!"

Due to the long-term continuous training, Zofia did not think much, and almost subconsciously disconnected the communication link manually. With a "click", the sound in her ears disappeared. The pink-haired girl looked around and was shocked to find that many other knight mechas also showed the same symptoms as the castle lord knight.

"boom--"

The Castle Lord Knight suddenly raised his right arm and aimed the City Breaker Cannon at a still-normal Patrol Knight and fired. The Patrol Knight's ion shield was facing the Chaos Knight in front of him, and he had not expected the attack from the side. Caught off guard, a ball of sparks suddenly burst out of the cabin, and he staggered and fell.

Before the two sides engaged in battle.

The Imperial Knights have begun to kill each other.

"Swish, swish, swish! Boom, boom, boom!"

The Lord Knight's body began to radiate rusty patina, and the shieldbreaker missile launcher on his back randomly fired missiles at the surroundings. Several knight mechas that had also undergone mutations turned their chain saws and surrounded "Fire Fury". The Chief Knight was instantly besieged by three knight mechas!

"Zi Buzz—clang!"

"Fire's Fury" cuts the serrated blade with one sword.

A loud roar came from the loudspeaker:

"Run, Zofia, run!"

Helplessness and fear filled her heart. Zofia stared blankly at Madam Janiko being surrounded. The huge castle knight had turned around and raised his weapon. In the distance, a group of Chaos Knights were running towards this side...

The Chief Knight, relying on his superb fighting skills, controlled the "Fury of Fire" and pierced through the mutant knight with one sword.

"Run, Zofia!"

......

"Tick, tick, tick…"

Raindrops falling in the dark night sky.

It dripped into the puddles among the ruins, creating ripples.

A broadsword servant was walking alone on the side of the road.

Zofia had a dull look on her face and walked in a daze.

She almost forgot how she finally escaped from that cruel and chaotic battlefield. Those Imperial Knights who suffered from some kind of "infection and mutation" completely forgot the fighting skills they had mastered, and fought completely on animal instincts, swinging their weapons without any rules. At the last moment when she escaped from the battlefield, "Bloodhound" looked back and saw "Fire Fury" being overwhelmed by many mutant knights... Then he raised his left arm and shot through the leg joint of a mutant knight mecha that was trying to catch up with him, causing it to fall to the ground.

"Your Highness Janiko, Madam Janiko..."

Zofia muttered quietly.

Suddenly, she closed her eyes.

"Mom, Mom..."

Even though her senses were still in sync with the Broadsword Sergeant, and even though her body and vision still existed as a knight mecha, the moment she closed her eyes, she could still clearly feel two lines of heat sliding down her cheeks.

The nights in the industrial world are even quieter.

The tiny flame that occasionally lit up in the distance was like a cluster of will-o'-the-wisp in the darkness, flickering and then going out.

Zofia drove the Knight Squire and walked another seven or eight kilometers, along an old main road. Abandoned freight trucks were scattered everywhere, rusted from long exposure. The factory she had seen in the distance was now closer, only about a kilometer away. There was no command, no goal, no direction to go... She didn't know if there were any survivors in the Knight family, not to mention a spear formation, even just one Knight Squire would be fine.

She just walked aimlessly.

This factory-like building is so large that the Knights' squires can even walk through it. No one knows what it once built. Considering the size of the factory, it may even have produced Titan components or battleship shells. However, it is only marked on the map as "Abandoned D-26".

"Ding ding ding!"

The sound of the augury instrument sounded harshly.

The threat alarm made her panic.

"What is that?"

The Bloodhound turned carefully, and the girl's heart immediately sank. A twisted humanoid machine stood in the distance, just at the edge of her auspex detection range. It was almost twice her size, about the same size as the lord knight driven by the viscount. However, this was not the noble battle armor of the Draconis family. It was painted in bright green and black, with a black skull relief pierced by a black sword and located in a white gear. Bloody chains wrapped around its head. The chainsaw weapon on the arm was still dripping with blood, thread by thread.

That was the plundering knight of House Vickerstrek.

Zofia's eyes suddenly widened.

The Fallen Knight began to walk towards her, approaching slowly and easily, moving his legs leisurely, as if a carnivore was not interested in its prey.

"A lone beagle. Are you afraid of death, dog? Just escaped from your master?"

Every time the huge war machine moved a step toward her, Bloodhound couldn't help but take a step back.

"I am only concerned about not doing my duty. Cowardice is the root of the downfall of heretics like you."

She tried her best to keep her voice fierce, but the situation was not ideal. At this moment, she longed for her fellow Broadsword Squire, or "Fury of Fire". Although Zofia was gifted and trained hard, the enemy in front of her was not an opponent of the same level at all. The huge size difference between the Plunder Knight and the Broadsword Squire could eliminate all differences in the quality of the pilots, and the other party could not be a rookie.

Thermal Spears can damage it.

Zofia thought to herself:

But the range of the melta weapon is too short. If I control the Broadsword Sergeant to come within the optimal range, I will face the danger of the enemy closing the distance at an explosive speed.

"Hahahahahaha…"

The fallen knight burst into cruel laughter:

"You are such a coward!"

"Well, well, it's always a pleasure to crush a cowardly scrap dealer like you."

He knocked on his shell with his gloves:

"I am the 'Faithbreaker', and I swear by the name of the Wickerstreek family." There was a carefully designed mocking etiquette in his words. "So you can know who your god of death is, right, little dog?"

"I am the Broadsword Squire of House Draconis, a twisted monster who sold his own soul, bah!"

Zofia spat.

At the same time, we are thinking quickly about countermeasures.

"The Draconis family?"

The Fallen Knight laughed:

"You are likely to be the last of your family to fall. A loser, a true loner."

"Shut up you idiot."

The pink-haired girl thought of her adoptive mother.

He snapped angrily,

"You are nothing but a bunch of rotten maggots."

"You can curse as much as you want, you don't know how to respect the gods. You don't need to miss them too much. I will end your suffering as soon as possible and give you a decent death."

Without further warning, the Plunder Knight launched himself into the attack, charging down the road toward her, its huge mechanical feet easily crushing the freight truck.

Bloodhound turned and sprinted down the road, her desire for revenge begging her to silence the traitor with her weapon, but there was no point dying here, and the Knight's Squire in the Broads had no chance of winning. So, she desperately tried to find a way to escape from the plundering knight. She thought the only possibility was to return to the factory quickly and hide somewhere in the factory area.

The good news was that the knight's squire was slightly faster. As she ran, she could hear the sound of the traitor's heavy lumberjacks, and the bullets sparked large pieces of sparks on her armor. She felt the dull pain of raindrops hitting her back. Zofia, who always respected science, couldn't help but pray to the God of All Things, praying that the bullets would not get into any gaps or cracks.

Behind her, a series of small car wrecks and the sound of transport vehicles crashing indicated that Chaos Knight's impatient desire for destruction was about to be released. The Plunder Knight grabbed a small car and threw it in her direction. Fortunately, the car did not hit her, but rolled and slid on the road, creating a lot of sparks. She was small in size and kept jumping around to avoid obstacles around her to avoid being tripped and caught up.

The gate leading to the factory was in sight, closed from top to bottom. Due to the huge size of the building, it could accommodate a broadsword squire. Bloodhound leaned through the gap and entered the dark factory. Her sensor suite and auspicious data immediately supplemented her vision. The shadows of huge machines were everywhere, and she couldn't understand their purpose. Some machines were as huge as hills, and the gaps between streets and alleys were filled with dust.

The place was littered with corpses, who had fallen long ago, leaving only a pile of bones and metal frames. The robes and flesh they wore had long since rotted away. Some of the production machinery had been destroyed, and the walls and pillars had been destroyed. Even the huge skull and gear symbol of the Mechanicus had not escaped the destruction. This place had been fought over, not just abandoned.

There was a loud noise behind me.

The plundering knights also came in.

This traitor couldn't squeeze in like the Bloodhound, so he could only smash his way forward, and the rotten metal cracked and collapsed under the attack. A moment later, the huge body of the plundering knight appeared from the flying debris, but suddenly realized that he had lost the trace of the broadsword squire.

It was quiet inside the factory.

The auspex readings showed nothing unusual.

"Haha, you're playing this kind of trick on me?"

The Fallen Knight smiled and began to look around.

"Come out, come out, little hound." The Fallen Knight coaxed, the twisted and inhuman voice sounded particularly harsh in the silence. "I will let you die more quickly."

The inside of the factory is still quiet.

"What are you still hiding from?"

The Fallen Knight yelled.

"Become the last link in a chain of failures? You can't save the world! But I am surprised that the Iron Ring can hold up for so long with such mediocre guards. Look at you, running and hiding, and in the end you can't even save yourself."

"You are just a knight's squire. Without your knight-in-training, you don't even know what to do, right? You are just a toy that can only obey orders. What are you? A pathetic and pathetic distant replacement? A specially bred genetic hound? A self-righteous dirty mud-legged bastard?"

The Fallen Knight continued to attack her psychological defenses.

"You're a peasant, I can tell from your rude low Gothic accent. If you have the courage to face me, the puppy will die along with its master. You think you have a great destiny, that you're destined for more? Ridiculous. You're nothing but a crippled slave, you begged for scraps from your masters. Now they're dead, you're nothing."

The Fallen Knight continued.

He thought Zofia was an ordinary squire and wanted to humiliate her and anger her in this way. However, he had no idea that the relationship between Zofia and Janiko completely surpassed the special relationship between an ordinary knight and a squire.

The plundering knight strolled across a covered bridge.

Suddenly, a loud shout rang out above his head:

"Your death has come, traitor!"

The Broadsword Squire dropped from the sky.

Molten flames gushed out.

The Chaos Plunderer Knight, who was mentally prepared, moved the ion shield to the top of his head and raised his lightning gloves to swing upwards. However, he did not expect that the muzzle of the melta cannon was not aimed at him, but at a pile of giant water tanks with the promethium logo printed on them.

"boom--"

The water tank exploded, blowing off the structure that fixed the corridor bridge. The huge impact blew the two knight mechas to the side. The giant steel corridor bridge above their heads collapsed and smashed heavily on the backs of the two knights. However, the Broadsword Squire was petite, and the corridor bridge first hit the back of the Plunder Knight, breaking into two parts to form a triangular arch bridge support structure. The "Bloodhound" just happened to be lying in this not-too-small gap.

This series of events was beyond Zofia's expectations. She had not planned so many steps.

But she reacted quickly. While the Plunder Knight was still lying on the ground, she immediately kicked out of the corridor bridge with her legs, stood up with one hand, and swung the rotating chainsaw sword straight into the gap between the Plunder Knight's back armor and head.

"Sizzle, sizzle, crackle, crackle…"

Pull it out, pull it out...

Zofia roared:

"Ahhhhh, die!"

Until blood mixed with motor oil gushed out.

The blood flowed slowly, covering the entire ground.

Zofia finally stopped panting.

"Ha ha..."

The plundering knight made no move.

I killed a plunder knight.

These words echoed in Zofia's mind.

I fucking...actually...

Killed a plundering knight?

Although there was an element of luck, no, it was almost entirely luck, but... if the family was still there, if her mother was still there, with this military achievement, she could be directly promoted to a formal knight, and becoming the chief knight is also just around the corner.

After taking a long breath, Bloodhound stood up, turned around and walked out of the factory gate.

The knight's squire had just emerged from the breach in the wall.

I was suddenly shocked.

Outside the factory, six plundering knights of the Vickerstrek family stood in a semi-enclosed circle, quietly waiting for her.

She didn't know that long before the plundering knight entered the factory, the other plundering knights had already been notified to surround it.

Finished.

This was the only thought in Zofia's mind.

......

(End of this chapter)