Warhammer 40: Doom

Chapter 183 There is a Traitor in the Empire

A small fear suddenly welled up in the veteran's mind—a fear of facing Ran Dan.

He immediately realized that the alien entity that pounced on him was possessed by mental corruption.

"Ugh!" A muffled groan rang out, and another legion soldier fell.

Among the Ran Dan, there were also powerful individuals; several sharp blades pierced vital points, taking the life of a Death Angel.

From Ran Dan's round mouthparts protruded a pinkish-white spike, covered in a viscous liquid, just like the one on the bio-armor's head.

The alien was smug, knowing that it could control powerful warriors to fight for it simply by inserting its mouthparts into the warriors' bodies.

However, its golden eyes saw a large armored hand with its five fingers outstretched, reaching out to grab it.

"I am the Emperor's warrior!" the veteran's voice was deep as he grabbed the alien's body and gouged out its eyeball with his thumb.
"Weakness and fear, the faintest instincts, were suppressed to the extreme."

He tightened his fingers, and the Ran Dan tentacles, writhing in pain from the pressure, clung to the cold armor.

*Splat* Ran Dan's alien form exploded from being squeezed by brute force.

"Beware of the aliens' dying counterattack. They want to control my mind. They possess mental pollution abilities and seduce my inner weaknesses and fears."

The veteran, fulfilling his duty, relayed the message again to prevent his comrades from being ambushed.

Having received intelligence, the legion's soldiers launched a fierce attack, killing Ran Dan's elite warriors.

It's not that Ran Dan is weak; if it were an ordinary Space Marine, the battle would definitely be evenly matched.

Facing the veteran soldiers of the First Legion, Ran Dan was overwhelmed by their experience and suffered large-scale casualties.

In the first wave of attacks, the legion lost one hundred legion warriors but killed five hundred elite Randan warriors.

"Ah!!!!" A bloodcurdling scream echoed from the Imperial front.

The mortal auxiliary soldier's eyes widened, he dropped his gun, covered his head, and tore at his hair.

The spiritual pollution emitted by Ran Dan's true form caused the already ravaged spirits of mortals to completely collapse.

One after another, like a chain reaction, large numbers of ordinary people, their faces filled with terror, screamed and fled from the front lines.

The military police's whips cracked loudly, but they couldn't stop the auxiliary troops from collapsing.

With a bang, the Space Marines fired their bombs, killing the devastated mortal.

Some even determined ordinary soldiers turned their laser guns on their crazed comrades, killing them without hesitation.

There is no way to prevent it; any wise and clear-headed person knows how terrible the alien's mental pollution is.

They learned their lesson the hard way.

The best lesson is the frenzied human comrades before us, who fearlessly charged the front line.

In ten seconds, the Empire's lines were re-established, and the destabilizing factor was eliminated.

With the deaths of the elite Randan warriors, the alien war machines immediately retreated, moving away from the human lines.

As for the charging humans, how can some consumables compare to the noble warriors and the exorbitant value of war machines?

The humans in front of the lines were quickly cleared out, and the Imperial forces immediately regrouped to prepare for the next wave of battle.

Inside the command fortress, Urian saw the battle damage at the front and nodded silently.

The casualty ratio between Legion warriors and Randan elite warriors was one to five, which was within an acceptable range.

As the battle progresses, the Space Marines gain a better understanding of the Randan elite warriors, and the casualty gap may widen further.

He looked at the command platform, where messages from the other two lines were also being attacked simultaneously by Ran Dan.

The three defensive bases, with a total of three thousand elite alien warriors deployed, resulted in the First Legion losing more than five hundred men.

As for the mechanical protectors, they suffered relatively few direct losses, while the losses of ordinary people mostly came from mental breakdowns.

"It is strictly forbidden to consume Ran Dan's flesh and blood to obtain intelligence. Their bodily fluids are the source of mind control and will pollute the warriors' minds."

Urian ordered that Legion warriors be strictly forbidden from consuming Randan's brain tissue to avoid being mind-controlled.

With the battlefield situation temporarily resolved, he turned his attention to the observation report on the steel tabletop beside him.

He picked up the intelligence data panel and tossed it onto the command console.

The data was immediately read, and the information within was played out as a holographic image.

The more Urian looked at him, the more somber his resolute face became.

The data panel contains information compiled from multiple sources, including the various units that were attacked.

There were void ships from before the communication was lost, as well as three attacked defensive bases.

Intelligence indicates that the alien warships seem to know a lot about Imperial warships.

Various warship models, specific maneuverability range, accurate firing range, and armament.

In the early stages of the Void Wars, alien ships even disguised themselves as Imperial ships, deceiving the Imperial fleet and causing heavy losses.

Fortunately, the Void Legion reacted quickly, changing the identification signal and preventing further losses. In the ground battle, the elite warriors of Randan primarily targeted the Space Marines' vital points.

Coupled with the ambush in the Morse system, a terrible fact has come to light—the Empire's intelligence has been leaked!

Ran Dan's premeditated show of weakness and the panicked appearance during their first encounter were all illusions designed to lull the empire into a false sense of security.

Once the Imperial army fell into the trap, the aliens revealed their fangs and launched a fierce attack.

His two hearts pounded, and he was never afraid in the face of aliens and terrifying enemies.

But now, the Grand Master of the First Legion felt the darkness enveloping him.

Enemies within the Empire, colluding with the higher-ups of the aliens.

If the matter is not investigated and clarified as soon as possible, the damage to humanity will be incalculable.

Urian warned everyone in the command center: "This matter cannot be revealed in the slightest; it involves far too many things."

There was no response from the command center. The mortals nodded and chose to remain silent, while the Space Marines stood as silent as statues.

Urian put away the data tablet; he had to keep it safe and hand it over to someone who could handle it.

This level of intelligence leak must have originated from the Empire's high command.

The only people capable of handling this matter are the Primarch, Chancellor Macado, and the Lord of Mankind.

"Dip~dip~"

A red alarm appeared again on the command platform. Ran Dan's spaceship dropped eggs again, launching another attack.

Grand Master Urian observed coldly that the aliens had increased their forces tenfold, with ten thousand elite warriors attacking.

Elite soldiers also descended from high orbit from the other two defense bases to launch simultaneous attacks.

He remained silent, began to nervously plan the work, and prayed inwardly.

The only one who can save the Imperial army now is the Primarch; hopefully, he will arrive soon.

The First Legion will fight to the death to hold back the enemy's advance and protect the intelligence on the data tablets.

We must tell the Empire the truth!
The intelligence must be delivered to the Primarch so that the Empire can be on guard against colluding with the Xenomorphs to betray humanity's internal enemies.

After a moment's thought, Urian made further arrangements: "Do not launch attacks recklessly; the army must be protected by the Void Shield."

"Mechanical instructors monitor the Void Shield at all times to ensure its proper functioning."

He had to ensure that the Imperial Legion was protected and kept away from orbital attacks.

The warships and continental-class void shields combine to form a multi-layered void shield to prevent alien orbital strikes.

Urian thanks humanity in the Dark Ages for the greatest invention of the Void Shield, for the defenders.

The First Legion's Void Shield, derived from ancient technology, possesses power far exceeding that of ordinary weapons.

It protects the legion from orbital strikes and prevents long-range fire coverage, forcing the attacking side to engage in close-quarters combat to achieve victory.

In addition, the alien leader, "Lolos," wanted to besiege the First Legion and attack the fleet that came to its aid.

It will not destroy the world of Morse; it needs leverage to attract other legions of the Empire.

For all these reasons combined, the First Legion will surely be able to hold out until the Primarch arrives.

Urian's current concern is not the First Legion, but rather the commander of the Twenty-first Legion who has come to provide support.

Three combat moons and hundreds of alien capital ships constitute a very powerful military force.

"Hopefully, the Primarch will take the Void Legion's message seriously."

He sighed and turned his attention back to the command post; Ran Dan's attack had already begun.

Realizing that Morse was part of an alien trap and that interstellar communications were blocked, the Grand Master ordered several ships to leave and head to a human-controlled area where communications were available, sending a signal to the Primarch.

The First Fleet was traveling rapidly through subspace, and Doom naturally received the warning.

The ships that left Morse sent out a dense barrage of interstellar messages, which were received by most of the imperial forces in the Eastern End Starfield.

The fact that the First Legion was besieged shocked the other legions.

"How much longer? How long until we reach the Morse system?" Doom sat on the edge of the training field, tapping his fingers on the steps.

Although his tone was very calm, his anxiety was never hidden.

With fewer and fewer messages coming back from the front, he had little clear idea of ​​the current situation of the First Legion.

Doom knew that the First Legion would not be destroyed; they were the aliens' "bait."

The tactic of besieging a point to attack reinforcements is old-fashioned, but it is very effective.

"Sir, our warp engine is faster; we'll reach our destination in sixty days."

Franshka's gentle voice rang out, and the navigator, after calculation, arrived at the precise time.

(End of this chapter)