Kingdom Come: Deliverance, but Warhammer 40k

Chapter 103 The War of the Far Travelers (Part 1)

By the time Henry and Baruch arrived at the outskirts of the settlement, the battle had already broken out.

However, under the impact of the Nurgle creations, the first to bear the brunt were the outermost Anastasius. The battle had not yet spread to the humans. The piercing alarm echoed throughout the deck, and searchlights swept across the darkness, illuminating the writhing flesh in front of them with flickering light and casting twisted and terrifying shadows.

As the first person to know about the Chaos invasion, Cass had already completed the mobilization of personnel and the deployment of defenses.

Lines of defense, made of steel plates, shipping containers, and abandoned armored vehicles, stretched across the middle of the road, dividing the originally wide passage into layers of sandbags, anti-infantry barbed wire, and makeshift welded steel roadblocks, compressing the enemy's possible routes of attack to the minimum.

The core machine gun emplacement was also completed in the shortest possible time.

Soldiers, mercenaries, civilians—everyone who could still pick up a weapon was organized and moved about between the positions.

Some of them may not have received formal military training.

But these days, they have survived the first wave of chaos to get here, and have preserved themselves in battle after battle to defend their settlement.

Cowardly, reckless, and unwise people have long been eliminated.

Having been baptized by blood and dismembered limbs, they had long since learned how to overcome their fear and take turns firing, and how to numbly step over the corpses of their comrades after they were torn apart and fell, continuing to push through the gap.

And at the very front of the defensive line.

The remaining honor guards from the ship's owner, Orion, have all entered the position.

Although there were only a dozen or so people, their tall and robust power armor stood like iron towers in front of the trenches, like an insurmountable steel wall.

The cold red light shining through the helmet visor formed a line in the darkness.

Whenever the refugees and soldiers looked at those figures, the unease they felt due to the approaching chaos was greatly reduced.

Even though everyone knows that this honor guard originally had a full hundred members, this may now be the final chapter of this century-old team.

at the same time.

The changes brought about by long-term consumption of Anastasius's flesh and blood finally became clearly manifested at this moment of life and death.

Although the demon's flesh couldn't strengthen a person's physique like rare and precious treasures, it was still undeniably useful.

The civilians who ate meat were noticeably in better spirits than before, and their willingness to fight was much stronger.

But outside the defensive line.

The real millstone of flesh and blood has begun to turn.

The forest of flesh and blood covering the entire outer area is collapsing little by little.

Large sections of Anastasius's flesh were being frantically torn apart and ripped apart by external forces.

Countless corrupted hounds, corpse demons, and plague-ridden monstrous beasts pounced on the enormous fleshy vines one after another, like a pack of ravenously hungry wild beasts, tearing and devouring them without a care.

Flesh and blood were torn off piece by piece, skin and bone, and then quickly swallowed into that seemingly insatiable belly. Because of the homogeneity of power, Anastasius was able to grow stronger by devouring the creations of Nurgle.

same.

These monsters, whose power originates from the same source as it and are all born of corruption, are perfectly capable of feasting on it as the most sumptuous food.

Their brains, which had long since died, had no concept of "retreat" or "fear".

Even if the monsters in front have already been minced into pieces by the giant tentacles of Anastasius, the monsters behind can still eat the corpses of their own kind and continue to advance.

The flesh-and-blood demon could only watch helplessly as green worms crawled all over its body, but its slow pace meant it could never completely rid itself of these monsters.

Chaos never fears death.

Madness itself is the driving force that propels them to spread and devour everything in this universe.

And right at the forefront.

Orion, clad in magnificent power armor, stood there quietly with his old butler, Aldrick.

The two power armor suits, illuminated by the white light of the searchlights, stood out prominently against the entire defensive line.

Orion gazed at the ever-approaching tide of corruption in the distance and spoke slowly.

"We haven't even launched a counterattack yet, and they're already getting impatient?"

His gaze swept over the churning, fighting monsters ahead, and the flesh barrier that was being devoured and rapidly shrinking.

The front lines are advancing in their direction.

"Aldrick—there's no such thing as a coincidence in this world."

The old butler nodded.

"You're right, sir."

"Not all of these crew members will be able to remain loyal to the Emperor and you in dire circumstances."

"Even though they are now well-fed and clothed here and no longer have to face the oppression of the lower classes, there are still some who, in the face of the false blessings and temptations of Chaos, may become the eyes and ears of the Warp."

Orion did not deny it.

This is his ship; everything on it belongs to him, and so does all the responsibility—

The elderly warrior sighed softly through his mask, a hint of regret in his voice.

"What a pity."

"Our last psyker was also crushed to death under those ruins."

"Otherwise, at least we could get early warnings and receive some psionic support when necessary, so we wouldn't be so passive."

Aldrick shook his head.

"Excuse my bluntness, sir."

"I don't think that old man on the verge of collapse can still play any role now."

"For this ship, it's already a stroke of luck that he was killed by the rocks before he was possessed by a warp demon. Besides, he has already served as a warning to us."

During their conversation.

Footsteps suddenly came from behind.

Henry and Baruch quickly made their way through the crowd to the front lines.

Orion turned around and smiled.

"Knight, you're a little late. I hope you weren't distracted by the wine at the banquet."

Henry ignored his teasing and instead shared his observations.

"Just now, I was held up by their commander, who used psionic techniques."

Orion raised an eyebrow slightly.

"A warp demon?"

"no."

Henry shook his head.

"He is a fallen being who has served Nurgle for at least a thousand years, a battle-hardened and extremely powerful plague warrior."

"Moreover—he seems to have successfully pleased Nurgle and has begun to come into contact with Nurgle's evil creatures."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the people around him simultaneously turned serious.

"knight."

"Can you guarantee that he won't ascend to demonhood during this war?"

"We may not have the capacity to kill another real demon."

Henry drew his chainsaw sword, revealing its sharpness.

"To truly obtain the Crown of Corruption and complete the ritual of Nurgle, he must first kill me, his most formidable rival."

o

"But I am not so easy to die."

Even if you die in the material world, you will probably live on in another way.

Henry didn't say what came next.

He wasn't sure what would happen after he died, where his soul would go, or whether he could survive in another form in the warp.

But in any case, the Chaos Astartes' pursuit of the Corrupted Crown was destined to be in vain.

Henry's silence was interpreted by others as the knight's inner tension.

Baru, who was standing next to Henry, patted Henry on the shoulder and laughed.

"Don't be afraid, I'm here to help you."

"As long as the knightly territory you promised me still exists, I will not run away."

The voice just fell.

Suddenly, something heavy flew from the boat owner's hand.

Baru reacted quickly and instinctively reached out to catch it.

I looked down.

It was a brand new molten steel gun, capable of piercing ceramic steel and killing Astartes.

The machine spirit inscription carved in gold paint on the gun body is still clearly visible, indicating that it has been carefully maintained. Even the anti-slip texture on the grip has not been worn.

Orion withdrew his hand and said calmly.

"Take it, brave mercenary."

"This is a reward for your declaration of loyalty just now. Of course, if you fail to achieve results that satisfy me, I will still take this weapon back from you after the war."

Balu stared blankly at the weapon in his hand.

next second.

The smile on his face was like that of a child who had received candy.

"The Emperor is above all—"

"What kind of heat gun is this? It doesn't look like a standard model; is it a unique, handmade piece?"

"And it even has the signature of a master craftsman? It's worth a fortune!"

Before he could even be happy for long...

From the depths of the distant forest of flesh and blood, a deafening explosion suddenly resounded.

boom!!

A dark green fireball shot into the sky, and large pieces of charred, foul-smelling flesh scattered like raindrops.

In the shockwave of the explosion, a huge, round chunk of flesh was blasted high into the air, leaving a pathetic trail in the sky.

The parabola tumbled and screamed all the way from afar to Henry's feet.

Finally, it stopped with a snap.

Followed by.

The charred flesh slowly split open from the middle.

A familiar big eyeball squeezed out from inside.

A few limp tentacles, still emitting wisps of smoke, managed to extend from around the chunk of flesh, swatting away the flames on its body.

"I really tried my best————"

"But they still couldn't be stopped. Behind Nurgle's creations, the Chaos Astartes emerged—they had even better weapons!"

It had barely finished speaking.

In the distance, in that gap that was blown open.

Dozens of plague hounds, as large as oxen, with highly rotten bodies and bone spurs piercing their skin, surged out like a black tide.

Pus dripped from its fangs, and its scarlet eyes were fixed on the direction of the living.

After them, more and more of the Nurgle creatures began to reveal their true forms.

Orion drew his power sword with a swift motion, and a bright blue disintegration field lit up on the blade.

Pointing straight ahead.

"Honor Guard! Charge!"

"I need you to buy time for the rear!"

More than ten power armor warriors, who had been waiting in ambush, simultaneously activated their propulsion systems, unleashing a torrent of steel that spewed forth from their tails and charged straight at the oncoming corrupted hounds.

Henry, without his power armor, was preparing to catch up with the charging group.

Suddenly he felt someone gently pull his wrist from behind.

He turned around instinctively.

A girl dressed in overalls, with several black and gray marks on her face, stood there quietly, holding a brand new helmet in her arms.

"Don't rush to your death, put this on first."

Theresa handed the helmet to Henry.

The helmet features a full-face design.

Although the design is similar to the visored helmets he remembered from medieval knights, the overall lines have been modified to be more rugged, and some details have been improved, such as the inner padding and the elastic cords for securing it.

And on either side of the faceplate, two bright red ribbons hung down, almost matching the color of his neck guard.

He looked him up and down and couldn't help but smile.

"Is this what you learned from that cyborg priest?"

"It does look quite impressive, not bad."

"But is there really any technical skill involved in this? I think I could make it too—"

The words had barely left his mouth.

Theresa rolled her eyes at him and nudged the steel plate in his chest with her elbow.

"Stop talking nonsense."

"I missed the banquet because of this little gadget, and I modified it bit by bit according to your armor size."

"Even the forging style was modeled after your breastplate."

"Do you want it or not? If not, give it back, or I'll melt it down and make a toilet seat!"

"Yes, why wouldn't I want to?"

Henry immediately put the helmet on his head.

The faceplate closed, and the familiar metallic locking sound rang out.

Although his view was obstructed, it did give Henry a lot of sense of security.

The knight, fully armed and ready to go, waved his hand.

They ran towards the front lines.

"Let's owe it for now, along with Balu's notebook!"

Theresa gazed at the knight who had already galloped far away and couldn't help but sigh softly.

"Really—"

Just then.

A mechanical priest, clad in a dark red robe and with most of his body modified into mechanical structures, glided slowly to her side like a ghost.

"The mechanical priest said."

"He's dangerous, for you—"

"Unless it can be proven that he is a saint truly recognized by the God-Emperor."

"otherwise."

"The fact that a promising apprentice like you continues to maintain such a close and irrational personal relationship with him could seriously affect your future assessment for joining the Great Mechanicus."

"Of course I know."

Theresa shook her head.

"But Henry will definitely become a saint; I was one of the first to believe he was a saint."

Beneath the mechanical priest's skull-like metal mask, the light shifted, and a brief, chilling logical silence descended.

In the end, he simply said...

"You should go back now, apprentice."

"There are several damaged war machines in the rear, awaiting your repair and reassurance."

Theresa turned her head to look at the almost completely mechanical face beside her.

Suddenly, he burst out laughing.

"Father."

"I've always had a question I'd like to ask you."

"Is it true that in this universe, the longer someone lives and the more thoroughly they transform themselves—"

"Will everyone become as long-winded as you?"