Emperor's Bane

Chapter 630 War, a long-lost war
"Don't forget the glory of mankind!"

"Don't forget the dream of the Great Crusade!"

"Don't forget the Emperor, don't forget the greatest Master of Mankind, He is watching you, He is watching all of us, He is watching every act of fearless bravery and sacrifice: Come! Warriors of the Emperor, be brave..."

"Snapped!"

"It's really getting worse and worse!"

Old Erwin, who had retired twelve years ago, had to return to his post semi-voluntarily. He was pacing in his new command room, feeling dissatisfied because the dim light on the holographic strategic sand table next to him irritated his eyes.

But what really made him angry was the incessant chatter on the radio. Before the old general could no longer bear it and smashed the sophisticated loudspeaker, he had to endure more than twenty minutes of low-quality radio propaganda: the saliva from the mouth of the obviously rookie announcer caused him more damage than the alien bullets flying outside.

At least that's what he believed, and he cursed it with contempt.

"The degeneration is too obvious: you can see it from the broadcasting machine in front of me."

The veteran pointed at the machine he had smashed.

"During the years I served, no one dared to hand over the propaganda work of a hive city to a newcomer with obvious flaws. Letting such a person be responsible for the propaganda work of the entire hive city would cause a big mess at a critical moment, not to mention that it was propaganda work related to the military."

"No way: not enough staff."

In the small general's office, besides old Elvin, there was only one Dawnbreaker in charge of his security. The two men obviously knew each other, and there was no tension between them like in other legions between mortals and Astartes. In response to the old man's complaints, the son of Morgan, who looked less than a hundred years old, just absent-mindedly defended the rookies downstairs.

"You have to know that we are only on an auxiliary satellite of Avalon, and we are on an agricultural satellite. The entire Avalon galaxy has not experienced any degree of war for a hundred years. This vegetable field did not need any military propaganda in the past. In such an urgent situation, it is good enough to find a military broadcaster."

"Those who are really capable have long been taken to the front lines and several mainstream recruiting worlds. Don't compare your previous experiences in the border areas with the core area of ​​Avalon. It's a peaceful and prosperous place here. No enemy has ever dared to set foot in the capital of the Far Eastern border."

“But now it’s here.”

Old Erwin snorted.

"And very cunningly."

His rude counterattack made Dawnbreaker stand there in embarrassment, and he could only silently look away with shame on his face: after all, no matter how much he explained, the fact that his confidants in the Far East frontier were harassed and attacked by alien troops could not be concealed.

What's more serious is that almost two months have passed since the first attack of these aliens, but they have never been able to completely defeat this stubborn enemy: even if they mobilized a large number of garrison forces, it was of no avail. The situation has developed to the point where even old guys like Old Elvin, who have long retired, have to come out of retirement to stabilize the situation near Avalon.

“It’s really our responsibility.”

Dawnbreaker opened his mouth, but in the end could only utter a word of self-blame.

"No one could have imagined that the Eldar army that came this time would be so difficult to deal with."

"There's no need to blame yourself."

The old general paced to the window, narrowed his gray eyes, and moved the throat lock on his collar uncomfortably. The general's coat, which he had not worn for a long time, made this mortal legend feel his skin a little itchy.

His voice remained firm, and when he looked out the window, the war not far away actually fueled the excitement in his words.

"I have fought against the Eldar before. In my eighty years of military career, I have fought against these flexible and cunning aliens thirteen times. Although I did not win every time, it was me who stood here alive instead of them. It is because of these experiences that I can be sure of the situation in front of me."

"listen to me……"

He took a deep breath.

"I am sure that the guy who calls himself Xi Gaoqi is not a mortal: although the Imperial Truth tells us that there are no so-called gods in the real universe or the warp, I am sure that there must be something mysterious in these clown troupes."

"How can you be sure?"

"I fought the Harlequin."

Erwin chuckled.

"With Captain Bayar, we fought against an orange and black troupe that was linked to some mass disappearances in the Salamas region: I lost the war but made sure to leave a third of the attackers dead, so I know what these so-called buffoons are capable of."

"They were strong, but not as strong as they are now."

"come over."

After saying that, Old Alvin quickly walked to the front of the holographic projector, and then kept pointing and pointing at the projection of Avalon and several surrounding satellites, marking in detail the location and route of each surprise attack launched by the Harlequin Troupe, until a complex network was gradually planned out.

"These places."

The veteran pointed out several gaps that he had exploited layer by layer.

"I'm not sure what methods these Eldar used to achieve the sudden appearance and disappearance you mentioned. Perhaps it was some special spatial ability. But if the battle is over, you send troops to search the places I marked carefully, and you should be able to get some results."

"grateful."

Dawnbreaker nodded.

"But what we are really concerned about is the combat effectiveness of this clown troupe."

At this point, the Son of Morgan glanced out the window with some uneasiness. His superhuman hearing told him that war was approaching: the sound of light vehicles cutting through the air and the war cries of Avalon soldiers intertwined to form a chilling melody.

“That’s the really weird thing.”

Dawnbreaker lowered his voice.

"You know, these Eldar have not only attacked the Far Eastern Frontier, and have sent more than one troupe to the battlefield. But except for the battlefield in the Avalon galaxy, the aliens in other battlefields have been repelled. Although they have achieved some results in the early stage, when the main military forces of the Far Eastern Frontier reacted, these fragile guys simply could not survive under the siege of the mortal auxiliary army and countless battle brothers."

"Especially the two clown troupes that attacked the fortified storage system. They were completely wiped out by the elites. However, their offensive did allow us to discover some inconspicuous loopholes in these crucial places. The Primarch has already designated the Ministry of Internal Affairs to intervene in this incident."

"We have won all the battles, except for Avalon. We have identified the two clown troupes that attacked Avalon and its satellites. They are called Midnight Sorrow and Tears of Laughter. The guy who calls himself Xi Gaoqi is the leader of these two troupes."

"So far, we have not been able to launch a fatal attack on this enemy force. Even when Captain Marshall is in charge, they always manage to escape the encirclement and mysteriously disappear. They also do not kill any of our personnel. They just attack Avalon's fortress from various angles without getting tired of it. At the same time, they often declare that they want to make peace during the battle..."

"boom!"

Before he could finish his words, the sound of a bullet hitting the brick wall heralded the arrival of war. The General and the Dawnbreaker drew their weapons at the same time and stood guard on either side of the window. The next moment, chaotic fireworks of death filled their vision, followed by the sound of alien vehicles breaking through the air, the sound of soldiers' guns firing, and the horrifying scream of the giant raptor's claws tearing at steel.

Erwin looked up.

There were not many clowns, which matched their terrifying strength and status. Although Old Elvin tried his best to search, with his eyes enhanced by mortal surgery, he could only capture the figures of less than ten alien elites. They danced under the joint attack of thousands of mortal soldiers and dozens of Dawnbreaker warriors, and their unimaginable agility left a storm of blurry shadows on the angry battlefield.

Just like their name, this group of terrifying alien warriors looked like a group of masked performers and comedians wearing colorful costumes, except that instead of pale smiling faces, these guys preferred to wear terrifying skeletons. They used an alien floating vehicle as the core of the team, constantly moving back and forth between the towering water towers and the intricate water supply networks of the agricultural world. Every attack was untraceable, and every retreat was silent, as if they were really just performing a drama, but they were not greeted by applause and cheers, only invisible blood in the air.

But when he looked more closely, he realized that even the blood was fake: the mortal auxiliary soldier whose neck was scratched by the clowns fell down with his head raised, struggled for a few seconds, and then realized belatedly that the originally fatal scratch on his neck was just a faint red mark, which disappeared quickly like a smile, leaving behind the broken defense line and sharp laughter in the air.

Finally, two or three figures squeezed through the gap in the defense line. A sharp explosion sounded behind them, along with the angry roar of a mortal officer: another crucial location had been breached. Their enemies took nothing away, but left the defenders' shattered dignity.

This scene made Erwin frown.

But he soon felt relieved, because not all the defenders were there in vain: those who could be sent to the vicinity of Avalon at this time were all Morgan's most elite mortal warriors. Even the clown troupe that came and went without a trace could not escape unscathed from their guns.

He witnessed a killing.

Erwin saw a warrior who remained calm in the chaos and screams. He looked like he had served for at least forty years, or even longer. He might be a Catachan, or at least had been influenced by Catachan culture: because the red scarf on his head and the Catachan combat knife in his hand were so conspicuous.

Standing at his post, his only remaining eye was focused on the shadows flying across the battlefield, a hungry hunter waiting for prey to fall into his trap: an actor who looked reckless and green, obviously didn't notice this, he flipped over the warrior's side lightly, the new projector built into the costume left blurry and brilliant spots of light in the air, but the Catachan hunter did not deviate because of this.

The hunter caught his prey, and as the Harlequin reacted, the curved blade pierced the alien's calf, and due to the inertia of the Harlequin's body, a bloody gash was instantly left: although this was not enough to kill the despicable alien, it was enough to make it lose its balance for a moment in mid-air, and the Catachan took advantage of the momentum to pounce forward, using his body as a delaying chip, causing the elusive death god to stagnate for a moment within the firepower range of friendly forces.

This is enough.

The Hunter entrusted his life, death and victory to his comrades behind him, and his fighting brothers did not let him down: Erwin witnessed the swift actions of several warriors, some of whom, although not notified in advance, quickly realized the abnormality here, and at least sixteen guns were aimed at the Harlequin at the same time, and the merciless bullets pierced the alien's brain, chest and neck, but apart from the flying blood, the Catachan who was holding him did not suffer any harm.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Erwin moved his pupils, and the hunter and his prey fell to the ground in unison, rolling in the mud of the agricultural world: The guardian did not wait for his comrades to come forward to help. He clamped the bleeding body under him with his legs, strangled the alien's neck with one hand, and held the Catachan combat knife in his palm with the other hand. A red light flashed, and blood flew everywhere.

The grinning head fell to the ground, rolling helplessly. Its alien companions in the sky scattered and never tried to interfere with this line of defense again. Only when he was sure that the prey was completely dead, the hunter slowly stood up. Old Irwin observed this guy carefully. He was sure that this was not his old subordinate, but on the hunter's chest, two gold and jade medals made of roses and eagle wings were so conspicuous.

"The Queen's Medal? Or two?"

For the first time, the veteran's voice sounded a little surprised.

"What kind of monster is that? Even among the mortal auxiliary forces of Holy Terra, there aren't many who can get two Terra Stars. When His Excellency Morgan established the Queen's Medal, it was designed to compete with the Empire's Terra Star."

"I do not know."

Dawnbreaker shook his head honestly.

"Probably the old NCO who happened to return to Avalon Military Academy for tutoring."

"Maybe……"

Old Erwin narrowed his eyes, but before he could fall into his memories, new gunshots interrupted his thoughts: although the fight between the Queen's Guards and the Harlequins was swift and brutal, it only lasted a short time. This is a satellite of Avalon, and reinforcements will arrive in a blink of an eye.

At least two hundred Dawnbreaker warriors jumped into the battle from the flanks. They were all veterans from Holy Terra. The guns and blades in their hands turned the tide of the battle in an instant. This was also the reason why old Elvin was not in a hurry. He never worried that these Eldar could really become a force to be reckoned with.

Sprinting, leaping, spinning, fighting: the battle between the Astartes warriors and the Harlequins is difficult to capture with the mortal eyes. One can only hear the dying screams twisted in the vortex of guns and cannons, silver-white armor and colorful plaid coats intertwined in the grass, and priceless orchards fell in front of the sharp blades, buried in the increasingly chaotic situation.

Morgan's proud warriors and the splendidly dressed and angry death gods fell one after another, and the number of martyrs of the Dawnbreakers would be higher, but not so high that it was unacceptable: but what was really surprising was that when more reinforcements arrived, they would find that those warriors who were theoretically dead in battle would sit up again in confusion, and those clowns they killed would also disappear on the spot without noticing.

Old Erwin stared at a clown who had been killed and fell to the ground. He swore that he had not lost consciousness for a moment, but before he knew it, the body had disappeared: it was as if someone had deliberately erased his memory. This situation was inevitably disturbing, but when more reinforcements continued to arrive on the battlefield, it was just disturbing.

Dozens of Dawnbreakers and thousands of mortal auxiliary troops, including the most elite boarding teams, took only a few minutes to shoot down the Harlequin Troupe's floating vehicle to the ground: this seemed to sound the clarion call for retreat among the alien harassment troops, and they retreated in a swarm, only to find that their retreat had already been cut off.

The cry of the eagle came from the clouds that overlooked the plains. The huge shadow covered the bodies of the clowns, biting their footsteps with a flexible posture: there were thirty warriors riding giant birds of prey. They were wearing specially made armor, and the giant eagle companions with wings under their crotch were even bigger than an Emperor Blade tank.

"Is that Shrike Rider?"

Old Irving became interested.

"How interesting! They can finally form an organization and go into battle?"

"You can't do that by putting it into battle."

Dawnbreaker shook his head.

"Giant raptors like these can only serve as live targets on the battlefield. After all, their flesh and blood bodies cannot withstand bullets. However, if they are placed between tall buildings in the rear, they can play a different role: many crowded nests need this kind of air police force that is powerful in deterrence but not too bloated."

"They are faster than mortals and more flexible than Astartes. They can be used as patrol forces and efficient support forces for security. There are already thousands of Shrike Knights like this in several major cities in Avalon. If they work together well, they can block the attacks of Astartes warriors alone."

"I have no doubt about it, except that..."

"Their casualty ratio is going to be ugly."

"That's all."

Dawnbreaker didn't really care: he was more concerned with something else.

"However, since this group of clowns in front of us have already suffered [many casualties]."

The Son of Morgan had a clue, and what he worried about soon came true: at the front of the clown troupe's escape, a blurry halo stood there for no reason. No one knew when she appeared, but a formidable shadow actually blocked the Dawnbreakers' pursuit.

"This guy looks completely different from all those clowns before him."

Old Erwin was a little worried.

"In fact, it reminded me of something I've heard before."

"Can you tell me more about it?"

"It's like this. Most of my knowledge about the Harlequin Troupe actually comes from my good friend Trazyn in the Dawnbreaker Corps. He has done in-depth research on these aliens and has explained to me the division of labor and status of these strange Eldar."

"He also emphasized to me that there is a type of character in the clown troupe. Although they are usually elusive and rarely go to the battlefield, if they show up, they will turn the tide of the entire war. The guy in front of me gave me this feeling."

"I'm afraid you're right."

Dawnbreaker's voice was deep.

"That's [Xi Gaoqi]."

"Their leader."

"Do not."

"It's a... unicorn!"

"One Horn?"

Before the Dawnbreakers could wonder, the Unicorn that came out of the halo started to move: in the blink of an eye, it crossed half of the battlefield and passed through hundreds of Dawnbreakers. There was a flashing white light on its hands, but it was not stained with even a trace of blood. Behind the Unicorn, dozens of Terra veterans who had fought in more than a hundred battles were limp and fell to the ground powerlessly.

There were no groans, no roars, no death struggles, but there was also no silence before death: these elite warriors fell to the ground as if they were asleep, and their shadows jumped like unstable TV symbols.

"That's it again!"

Dawnbreaker gritted his teeth!

"It always uses such humiliating means to end the war between us!"

"And then..."

Before he finished speaking, the unicorn continued to move towards their location like a phantom, as if it already knew that the fortress under Elvin's feet was the only noteworthy strategic target in the entire agricultural world: its figure sometimes appeared and sometimes disappeared, like a ghost, a ghost wandering in the sequence of Avalon's army.

No matter it was the Shrike Knights in the sky or the Queen's Guards on the ground, all of them were roaring at this ghost. No one was intimidated by the fall of the Dawnbreakers. Some were just filled with more anger and courage. However, the raging fire could not burn the unicorn's figure. It kept shuttling and dodging, dancing and jumping. More and more people fell at its feet, but no blood flowed. Only a silence like sleeping lingered beside the shadow.

One breath.

The Shrike Knights fell to the ground.

Take two breaths.

The remaining Dawnbreakers were penetrated.

Three breaths.

Even the most stubborn mortal auxiliary soldiers fell to the ground, symbolizing that the supreme honor of Avalon was stained with mud and ping-pong at the feet of the unicorn. The terrible monster raised its head and looked at old Elvin. Suddenly, the veteran saw a horrified figure behind the monster.

He seemed to see a god, something that should never exist: it had a long, pointed chin and nose, its face was so distorted, and its clothes were so gorgeous, as if it was a three or four meter tall court clown, looking at him with that creepy smile.

Here it comes.

Alvin even forgot to breathe. He didn't know what this thing was. He only knew that the unicorn had slowly walked to the fortress under his feet, easily walked into the blind spot of the defense system, pushed open the secret door that no one should know about, and then calmly took out a marking pen.

then……

【Stop! 】

The sound swept the whole place.

(End of this chapter)