Warhammer: Hail to the Void Lords!.

Chapter 1000, page 08.999: "Drive the enemy out!"

"Why are we falling further and further behind, citizen Poniatovsky!"

On the other side of the airport, in the vast desert, Yadwiga anxiously questioned via communicator.

On the tactical map of her command vehicle, the blue icon representing the Second Battalion was crawling at an unbearable speed between the contour lines representing sand dunes, moving at a rate far slower than expected.

"Our tires are severely hampered on the sand, Ms. Yadviga!" The voice of the Second Half Brigade Commander, Poniatovsky, was filled with helplessness and gasps over the communicator.

He leaned his upper body out of the vehicle's roof hatch, and the cold wind and sand, mixed with the smell of gunpowder from the distant battlefield, rushed towards him, making him squint.

He watched as the vehicle's wide tires struggled to turn on the soft sand dunes, sinking deep into the sand, the dust they kicked up almost swallowing the wheels, and the entire convoy could only move slowly at a speed of 23 kilometers per hour.

"This damn soft sand makes it extremely difficult for our wheeled vehicles to climb the hill."

The remnants of the Severus Guards were fleeing back to their command post, but the Second Battalion convoy, which was supposed to be in pursuit, was in an awkward predicament—wheeled vehicles, these hunters that could speed across paved roads, would slow down severely in the desert and snow as their tires got stuck in the soft ground.

Although by the 41st millennium, advanced tire technology and design would prevent vehicles from getting completely stuck in quicksand like in the Terra 2K era, a reduction in speed is unavoidable unless a hovering design like that of some Space Marine vehicles is adopted.

Now, they can't even outrun the tracked Chimera infantry fighting vehicle.

“Is that so… I understand.” Yadvig’s voice instantly calmed down, and decisive judgment replaced his anxiety. “Your unit will continue to advance and be responsible for supporting my flank. I will personally command the cavalry company of the First Battalion as the vanguard to continue the pursuit.”

"What? A female citizen, you're leading a cavalry charge? No, absolutely not! They have tanks!" The second brigade commander hurriedly tried to dissuade him, his face filled with panic.

"Our chances of winning are slipping away; we must end this battle on the ground!"

Yadvig's voice was resolute: "If we don't hurry now, the commander-in-chief of the Severus rebels will escape! The cavalry will be much faster than you, and they are not expected to pursue you much further. As long as we hold the enemy off, you should be able to reach the battlefield in fifteen minutes, provide us with support, and launch a decisive attack."

“…Alright, you two siblings are truly cut from the same cloth, both brutes.” Poniatovsky sighed, his tone a mixture of worry and admiration. “Good luck, citizen. We’ll be there as soon as possible.”

Yadwiga ended the communication, wasting no more seconds. She took the military flag embroidered with a double-headed eagle from the stand next to the command vehicle, nimbly mounted a strong and powerful warhorse, and then drew her gleaming saber from her waist with a clang.

"Forward! For the Emperor!" She raised her saber high, its blade gleaming deadly in the planet's blazing starlight.

"For the Emperor!" Behind her, hundreds of dragon riders carrying laser rifles drew their sabers in unison, raised their arms and shouted, their voices shaking the heavens.

Warhorses neighed, their hooves flying, raising a cloud of dust that blotted out the sky on the golden sand.

Colonel Yadwiga led the charge, speeding across the desert with this ancient cavalry force.

At this moment, the running speed of four hooves far surpasses that of eight high-tech wheels.

However, they were not light cavalry in the full sense.

At the rear of the column, the fire support platoon, like the former mounted artillerymen, used strong draft horses to pull laser cannons and heavy blasting arrows mounted on wheeled gun carriages. Although they still left two deep ruts in the sand, it was better than those heavier wheeled vehicles.

Horatio's all-terrain cavalry, which he had not abolished, played an irreplaceable role at this moment.

Meanwhile, the cleared airfields have fallen completely under the control of the Imperial Navy's landing forces.

More and more transport planes streaked across the sky, delivering follow-up troops to the airport according to the combat plan.

From the arbitrators of the Ministry of Justice clad in black armor to the silent, gas-masked Krieg Death Legion, the Empire's war machine is operating at full capacity.

Artillery units were also quickly deployed around the airport.

Crates of heavy artillery shells were transported to the positions by truck, and the Krieg artillerymen constructed firing positions with an almost emotionless precision. In their hands, the longest-range 128mm medium-sized long-barreled ground-shaking guns could support the Sintira military reform battlefield on the other side via rocket-assisted projectiles—these projectiles were similar to arrowheads, igniting their engines at the apex of their flight trajectory after firing, continuing to propel the projectile forward.

Although this sacrificed the amount of explosive charge in the warhead and reduced the power of shells of the same caliber, it increased the range from the original 30 kilometers to a terrifying 55 kilometers—which perfectly covered the battlefields where the military reformers fought bloody battles.

Under the indifferent hand gestures of a Krieg artillery officer, the muzzles of dozens of cannons slowly rose, pointing towards the sky.

"Fire!" Bang! Bang! Bang!
The first round of test firings produced a deafening roar that lasted for hours.

The barrage of shells whistled as they flew into the distance. As they reached high altitudes, the boosters at the tail of the shells ignited one by one, and the sky lit up with a fleeting burst of stars, like a group of shooting stars rushing towards hell.

As Jadwiga galloped on his warhorse, he instinctively turned around and saw this spectacular scene.

She gazed at the distant battlefield where the military reform factions were fighting, where the sky seemed to churn with thunder in the clouds, flashing with the light of explosions. This made her worry about her brother's safety.

On the battlefield, the cold wind carrying the scent of blood blew against the face of the grenadier guard with his long beard.

A Leman Rustank, like a steel behemoth, led the way, its tracks relentlessly turning over and crushing the blood-soaked sand.

It crushed the corpses left behind by charging soldiers along the way, turning them, friend or foe, into a pool of blurred flesh and blood beneath the tracks.

Under the cover of its thick armor, the grenadier guards are advancing slowly with steady and firm steps.

Whoosh! Bang! Whoosh! Bang!

Rana's artillery was following orders to suppress enemy positions from the rear, preventing their reinforcements from advancing.

Meanwhile, even more intense artillery fire was coming from the distant flanks, smashing the enemy's artillery positions to pieces.

From the traitor Severus's position, live ammunition and laser beams were constantly being fired at the ranks.

The tank withstood most of the fire, and the laser beams left harmless red dots on its frontal armor.

The remaining stray bullets were blocked by the grenadier guards' sturdy armor, making a "clinking" sound.

Occasionally, someone would be hit in the unprotected leg by shrapnel or lasers, fall down with a muffled groan, but the army as a whole continued to advance unstoppably, like a blue blizzard.

“Brigadier General, please come behind us. The enemy has opened fire!” A white-bearded grenadier veteran pleaded with Brigadier General Rana, who was striding forward in front of him. His voice was muffled by the sound of gunfire.

The young brigadier general shook his head without turning around.

His eyes were fixed on the approaching enemy positions and the rebel flags fluttering there.

He raised his humming power sword high and shouted to those behind him: "Citizens! The moment to prove our courage has arrived! Those nobles always swore to monopolize the battle as their glory, but today!"
We must use our actions and victories to show everyone! To tell the great human lord on the Golden Throne that mortals and commoners alike possess unparalleled courage!

炯！
A focused laser beam struck a soldier behind Brigadier General Rana, piercing his breastplate. He only had time to let out a short scream before collapsing backward.

The veteran next to him glanced at it casually, then immediately gathered the ranks together, and the people behind him automatically filled the empty spaces.

"Shoulder your light guns, citizens! The time has come to defend our homeland!" Rana's voice grew louder and louder, drowning out the clamor of the battlefield.

"The God-Emperor is watching you! For the future and prosperity of humanity, He has endured millennia of suffering on His throne! Today, we will defend His vast universe, not losing an inch of it! We will fight for Him! We will fight for the Empire! Let these traitors pay the price for their rebellion!"

As he uttered his last words, the column arrived at the designated position to launch the attack.

150 meters from the enemy position is a distance that allows infantry to maximize their charging momentum.

The brigadier general bit the brass whistle hanging in front of the officer's neck guard with his teeth, puffed out his cheeks, and blew it with all his might.

A sharp, high-pitched whistle pierced the battlefield's clamor.

"Forward!! Charge!!!!!" He pointed his sword forward sharply, and the disintegration field on the blade emitted a humming sound that craved blood.

"Forward!!! Charge!!!!" Behind him, an even more magnificent shout rang out.

The grenadier guard, thousands of battle-hardened veterans, followed the tanks, bayonets at the ready, and surged toward the traitor's position like a burst dam.

(End of this chapter)