Chapter 174: Fear and Memories

With the faint trembling of the ground, the overwhelming swarm of ratmen surged forward.

At the forefront were ratmen knights, each standing nearly two meters tall and clad in heavy armor.

Unified in formation, they raised their lances and spurred their grotesque mutant rats into a charge against the Void Angels' ranks.

Under normal circumstances, a ground force without heavy vehicles or weapons would struggle to counter such heavily armored cavalry.

But their adversaries were the Void Angels—each towering at least 2.5 meters tall.

From the outset, Eden had tasked the Master Artificer with designing armor tailored to the genetically enhanced physiques of Duke and the other voidborne warriors.

The Void Angels' power armor was reinforced with additional plating and ceramite layers, making them appear as dark blue, heavily armored giants.

Unyielding as mountains!

Faced with the charging cavalry, the Void Angels did not flinch. Instead, they activated the stabilizing systems in their boots, anchoring themselves to the ground.

Raising their spears, they prepared to meet the charge head-on.

Boom!

The ratman knights collided with the Void Angels.

Most were impaled by the Void Angels' spears, while a few managed to make direct contact, only to find themselves crashing against a wall of living metal.

The immense force of the impact killed many of the mutant rats outright, flinging their riders through the air with shattered bones.

Unmoved by the onslaught, the Void Angels methodically dismembered the ratmen knights and their mounts.

Their spears, tipped with blades shrouded in disintegration fields, cut through the crude armor of the ratmen like butter.

After the cavalry assault faltered, the ratman horde advanced in full force.

In response, the ratmen deployed their catapults, launching black, oil-coated firebombs.

The Void Angels immediately disengaged their stabilizers, swiftly repositioning to evade the incoming bombardment.

Meanwhile, the ratmen unleashed their specialized units.

Squeak, squeak, squeak!

Suicide rats, laden with volatile explosives, charged at the Void Angels, aiming to take them down in kamikaze attacks.

But the suicide rats never made it far.

War Angels, stationed in strategic positions, sniped them with pinpoint accuracy, detonating the explosives prematurely and killing scores of nearby ratmen.

Boom!

A makeshift ratman tank fired a single shell before being obliterated by a rocket-propelled grenade. The resulting shrapnel tore through dozens of nearby ratmen.

From a vantage point several kilometers away, a War Angel reloaded another rocket and took aim, systematically targeting high-value threats.

Moments later, he destroyed a radiation bomb launcher.

With the War Angels providing cover fire, the Void Angels launched a counteroffensive.

Charging into the heart of the ratman horde, they targeted key command nodes.

Amid the filth, pus, and corruption, the Void Angels grew increasingly ferocious. Their strength and speed surged, cutting through the enemy like unstoppable juggernauts.

This was the stark difference in technological and tactical eras.

The ratmen's crude technology and warfare tactics were no match for the Void Angels.

20 Kilometers Away – Ratmen Command Center

Seated on his throne, Bigfoot Rat gnawed on a piece of fresh meat—a tribute from his vanguard forces.

Unpolluted flesh was a rare delicacy, utterly irresistible.

Once the humans were conquered, Bigfoot Rat planned to establish pens to farm humans, ensuring an endless supply of fresh meat.

The very thought filled him with excitement.

Squeak!

A scout rat returned, squealing out its report from the front lines.

Bigfoot Rat listened and remained unshaken.

Spitting out a fragment of bone, he sneered cruelly:

"Send more warriors. Drown those damned humans in a sea of flesh!"

To Bigfoot Rat, these minor losses were insignificant.

The ratmen's reproductive capabilities were unparalleled. Female rats gave birth continuously, and their offspring consumed anything—pollutants, carrion, even radioactive waste—growing rapidly in the vast Underhive.

Over the years, Bigfoot Rat's progeny had multiplied to tens of millions. Even during the ongoing war, their numbers continued to grow.

Even if it meant sacrificing legions in waves, the humans could be overwhelmed.

At his command, more waves of ratmen surged toward the front lines.

Front Lines

Duke and his warriors fought valiantly amidst the endless tide of ratmen.

But the unrelenting onslaught was beginning to wear them down.

The Space Marines knew their role was not to defeat the ratmen entirely but to deplete their forces as much as possible.

As Duke continued his assault, a rallying cry echoed from the flank.

"For the Emperor!"

The blaring of electronic horns and the thick billowing of black smoke heralded the arrival of reinforcements.

Heavy-armored soldiers and mechanized units poured into the battlefield, crushing the ratmen beneath their advance.

Massive heavy infantry, resembling machines of war, waded through the swarm, leaving rivers of blood and gore in their wake.

Behind them, thousands of Sentinel mechs joined the fray, each equipped with flamethrowers. Jets of flame roared across the battlefield, incinerating the ratmen by the hundreds.

The arrival of reinforcements threw the ratman horde into disarray.

Seizing the moment, Duke rallied his warriors for a decisive strike.

Their blocking mission complete, it was time to execute the next phase of the operation.

The Void Angels surged forward like arrows, piercing through the horde toward the enemy's command center.

Simultaneously, the War Angels drew their chainswords and charged from their positions, roaring their battle cries:

"For the Golden Sun and the Savior!"

Like Duke, their objective was clear: eliminate the ratman command center's anti-air defenses.

Disregarding all obstacles, the Void Angels and War Angels sprinted at breakneck speeds, breaching the perimeter before the ratmen could react.

Ratman Command Center

"Stop them!"

Bigfoot Rat bellowed, ordering his elite guards to intercept the intruders.

But it was too late.

The Void Angels and War Angels dismantled the anti-air defenses, destroying radiation cannons and killing the psyker rat commanders.

With the defenses compromised, assault ships descended from the skies, deploying Thunder Guard directly into the command center.

The remaining radiation cannons fired futilely, unable to prevent the ships' retreat.

Inside the command center, the Thunder Guard split into squads, encircling Bigfoot Rat's throne from multiple directions to prevent its escape.

The elite ratman guards posed little challenge, quickly falling to the golden-armored giants.

As the Thunder Guard closed in, Bigfoot Rat felt a gripping fear seize its heart.

Memories flooded back—memories of its time as a laboratory specimen in Yosef's Chaos experiments.

Once a carefree gray rat, it had been forcibly infused with Chaos essence, enduring unbearable pain and grotesque mutations.

Years of torture and abuse left it feeling small and powerless.

Those days were long gone—or so it thought.

Becoming the Rat King, it had risen to power, determined to never be weak again.

Its dream of conquering the human world and becoming invincible now seemed laughably naive.

The sight of the Thunder Guard closing in brought back the same helplessness it felt as a lab rat.

Bigfoot Rat trembled, overwhelmed by the realization that it had vastly underestimated humanity.

Eden's rapid advancements had left no room for the Rat King to succeed. Its failure was inevitable.

Led by Kael, the Thunder Guard stormed the throne room, encircling the trembling Rat King.

(End of Chapter)

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