Author Notes:
Merry Vietnam Reunification Day and Happy International Workers' Day!
Phew~! I sure hope that I depict everything in this mini-arc logically and more importantly, fun to read. This entire endeavor is a such a meaningful and interesting challenge for me to undertake but I don't mind some positive suggestions from you all. I am, after all, a very casual Warhammer enjoyer, I only know that a Heldrake can be Yeetus Maximus into oblivion and that's it. Consctructive criticisms and comments are treated very importantly by me. Even if I can't incorporate them immediately, I may be able to do so in the future, so don't be shy~!
There are advanced chapters on Patreo-n for both of my fics, with a couple of special bonuses if you read the fine print :D
https://www.p-atreon.com/Heartbreak117
https://ko-fi.com/heartbreak117/goal?g=0
Income goal 740/700 USD (Hooray~!!! Many thanks to you all!!!)
For my fics:
https://www.scribblehub.com/series/55793/reich-marshal-of-the-belkan-reich/
https://www.webnovel.com/book/reich-marshal-of-the-belkan-reich_23809095505377305
https://photos.app.goo.gl/waZgkRa3UQhqKQBi9
https://www.scribblehub.com/series/1375924/in-the-grimdark-sector-with-a-system/
--------------------------------------------------------------------
A Salamander Thunderhawk lands in one of the many hangar bays of the Iron Revenant. As its main ramp is lowered, those who disembark are part of the Salamander Chapter's elite First Company. Having just finished up a Chaos extermination mission planetside, the six Astartes still bear the blood of traitorous cultists when they're greeted by their Chapter Master.
"Brother Tu'shan!" The Squad Leader of this group of elite Space Marines greets.
"Brother Tu'rok!" Tu'shan warmly replies as both towering Astartes shake hands before bumping their shoulder pauldron together in a brotherly manner. "Judging from your confident gait, I presume that the mission has been completed successfully."
Sergeant Tu'rok nods jovially. "And without much trouble at all, brother... If you ignore the destruction of a whole building block, that is."
Tu'shan raises an eyebrow before panning his gaze over the six Astartes of the Salamander's 1st Company, draped in its trademark cloaks of salamander hide. His eyes soon rested on a fellow Astartes, one who acts sheepish and looks away.
"Ah, it would seem that brother Veyra has once more caused some property damage." Tu'shan comments, used to this particular battle brother's penchant for overkill.
Tu'rok spares his compatriot a glance before saying. "That is putting it mildly, brother."
The Salamanders laugh warmly when the Astartes in question huffs after being called out for his wanton use of firebombs. Tu'shan allows a brief moment of camaraderie before stating.
"I am glad that you all are still so spirited. I hope that energy of yours is ready to be directed for the spar ahead?"
Tu'rok smacks his breastplate. "But of course, Kharak Squad is ready and raring to meet blades with our Cadian friends!"
The other five members of Tu'rok's Squad also mirror his actions. All of them treat this upcoming spar as seriously as any true combat mission and hope to learn more from it. The down-to-earth and empathetic nature that the Salamanders are best known for is not lost in these elite Space Marines of the Firedrake Company.
"Splendid." Tu'shan nods amicably. "I am glad you all see the Cadians as a fitting challenge to overcome. I can't spoil anything, but even I have been surprised by what I've seen so far since yesterday. As your Chapter Master, I advise you all to always be on the alert. Otherwise, you will be caught lacking in the claws Serrwyrm."
"Duly noted, Chapter Master." Tu'rok and his Astartes seriously reply. "Permission to go and prepare ourselves for the spar, Chapter Master?"
Tu'shan grunts an affirmative.
"Follow our serf, he will bring you to the waiting room. There, you can clean your armor and update your arsenal to use non-lethal weaponry."
"Then we'll go on ahead, brother." Tu'rok nods before leading his Kharak Squad away to follow a waiting Salamander serf.
Tu'shan stands there, gazing at their departing backs among the bustling hangar bay of the Iron Revenant. The Chapter Master's red eyes shine a red glint as he ponders.
'Surprisingly, it's hard for me to figure out who will be the final victor. From what I have seen so far, even the Firedrakes with my warnings may not come out of this spar unscathed. Are all Cadians so resourceful and scheming these days or it's just 3rd Platoon and the 8th Regiment?'
'Whatever the result will be, it does promise a majestic spectacle, to be sure.'
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The spar officially starts unceremoniously after a concise system announcement. Kharak Squad of the Salamander's 1st Company then appears in the middle of the abandoned streets of the simulated city. Behind them, a doorway fades into the simulated background as the Astartes scan the battlezone warily.
"It's quiet." Veyra, the Salamander with a penchant for blowing stuff up whispers succinctly.
"You don't say, brother." Sergeant Tu'rok comments. "Veyra, Valmar, you two cover our flanks. Tal'ar, you take point. We'll venture deeper into the city and see if we can find traces of the Cadians. Expect an ambush in the shadow, Salamanders."
Nodding silently, Kharak Squad forms a triangular formation as they move from the city's outskirt, which is also the arena's border, and into the city proper. Along the way, Tu'rok warns.
"Be careful of that tower and stay out of its sight. If the Cadians are smart, they will post snipers up there. Best we assume that we had been spotted the moment we arrived."
Veyra, the Squad's demolition expert, adds. "We haven't had the honor of teaming up with this 3rd Platoon before, but I heard from our brothers in the 2nd Company that they are quite masterful at their jobs. One of them is famed for her long-range accuracy as well as the entire Platoon being unflinching in the face of danger."
Tu'rok hums.
"I gathered much of the same about them. Since we only have standard bolt rifles and bolt pistols, we must force them in a close-quarter fight and nullify their range accuracy."
Another Salamander asks. "Given their strength, the Cadians are probably set up in or around that tower as well. They may seek to pin us down at the perimeter so that their snipers may pick us off, brother."
"A fair assumption, Valmar." Tu'rok replies. "The Cadians will no doubt have heavy weapons. A frontal assault may be costly, even for us. To this, we shall have four of us attracting our opponent's attention, while the remaining two take the flank and blitz their position when contact is made."
"Simple, but effective." Veyra comments before shrugging. "Unfortunately, we don't have any grenades available. It kills all the fun."
"Even if we have access to non-lethal throwable, I will not send you as part of the flanking force, Veyra." Tu'rok looks at the happy-go-lucky Astartes chidingly. "I am rightfully worried that you will somehow collapse the buildings on top of the Cadians' heads. Safety net or not, I fear that some can still perish because of you."
Veyra only offers an infuriating smirk in return. However, their banter is cut short when their point man, Tal'ar raises a fist in warning. "Stop."
All at once, the entire units take cover with their bolters pointing around in a complete circle. What's ahead of Kharak Squad is a bustling intersection, now littered with vehicle wrecks and trash. Tu'rok says with a level tone. "Tal'ar, reports."
The point man, tucking his body behind an alleyway, answers. "Suspicious object near the middle of the road, Sergeant. Although it's covered up by debris, I know a melta charge when I see one."
"A mine?" Veyra asks the question that's prevalent on everyone's minds. "Or is it a remotely detonated explosive?"
"I see no tripwire whether it's laser or physical." Tal'ar reports.
Veyra comments. "So it's either proximity trigger, pressure-plate trigger, or there's an observer hiding somewhere. Our best bet is to still step back and blow it up with a bolt round."
Tu'rok adds. "Get back twenty steps, Salamanders. We're currently out of view of that tower, so if there's an enemy observer, they must be close. Keep an eye out on your Auspex."
As the Salamanders warily retreat backward, it's Veyra who detects an anomaly before taking cover by an alleyway. "Sergeant, I think I got something."
"Report." Tu'rok demands while tucking his body behind a destroyed truck of sorts.
"From my location, bearing 47, there's a three-storied building. It overlooks most of the intersections and my Auspex detects an anomalous signature on the third floor. It could be our hostile observer. However, I have lost line of sight with them."
"And we didn't detect it earlier, Tal'ar?" Tu'rok questions the point man.
"My apology, Sergeant."
"It's very hard to see, brother, as they could have been hiding. They probably poke out to check whether or not we are near their trap. Should we pick a different route?"
Making a split-second decision, Tu'rok commands. "The other routes leading to the tower could be mined as well. Against us, mines are one of the few ways the Cadians can engage us without putting themselves in the crossfire. Veyra, you know where the anomaly is, take Valmar with you to clear out the building. We will blow up the melta charge over here to distract them for you."
Nodding, Veyra says. "Understood. Valmar, with me."
As both Astartes dashes into the crisscrossing alleyways, Tu'rok takes aim at the hidden melta charge far ahead of them. "Tell me when you're ready, Veyra."
"Give me five seconds, brother."
Humming to himself, Tu'rok counts from five to zero before pulling the trigger. Right afterward, a bolt round is spat out of his bolter with a resounding bang. It flies and impacts the melta charge beneath its camouflage cover. Near immediately, a bright explosion appears in the middle of the deserted streets. Simulated as it may be, the explosion is still attention-grabbing and does cause some environmental damage, thus creating a suitable cover for Veyra and Valmar to storm into the suspicious building.
"They're on the third floor. Let's go!" Veyra barks as he and Valmar dash up the stairs that can barely hold their weights.
As they race up the stairs, the pair of Astartes can hear the thumping heartbeats and footsteps of the unknown Cadian. Knowing that their opponent is just one floor above them, Veyra is spurned to crash charge up through the doorway separating him from his target. The charge causes wood splinters to fly everywhere as Veyra steps onto the top floor, his bolter raised in the direction of the heartbeats that he and Valmar have been hearing. That unknown Cadian, however, is seen moments away from ziplining down to the ground. Veyra could have taken a clean shot at him if not for his armored boot tripping over a very thin wire while also stepping over a loose piece of tile. The last thing Veyra can register before two explosions are set off is the Cadian's infuriating smirk. Afterward, two explosively formed projectiles attack Veyra's right foot, one coming directly beneath his armored boot while another coming from a wired trap hidden behind the doorway. Veyra grunts as the projectiles impact his leg with enough force to cause him to stumble over. Annoyingly, the damage he takes from the two pieces of metal is enough for the simulated arena to denote that his right leg is now effectively too impaired to use. If this was a real battle, the EFP coming from below him would have taken out half of his foot altogether.
Most frustrating, however, is that both he and Valmar miss the opportunity to take out the Cadian. The brave guardsman has successfully stared down two Astartes before ziplining down and away from their building. Before Valmar can even think of pursuing or helping Veyra up from his inelegant crouch, however, the demolition expert Astartes notice scary details.
First, is that the third floor that they're on has a direct line of sight with the tower. Second, there's a backpack resting against the wall to Valmar's and Veyra's left, the part where the Cadian earlier used to spy on the intersection. Third, that very backpack is large enough to hold a melta charge and is in the line of fire from any sniper stationed on the tower. At this point, Veyra can't help but curse his own carelessness.
"VALMAR!"
Jumping with his left foot, Veyra pushes Valmar out of the window on the opposite side of the backpack. As Veyra falls to the floor due bad his bad posture and Valmar is flung off the building in puzzlement, a non-visible beam of laser hits the unassuming backpack. Just as Veyra fears, the backpack does contain a melta charge that goes off nearly instantly and bathes Veyra's whole armored form in its cleansing light. While it does not harm him really, it still locks Veyra's power armor up and drops him straight down to the ground floor with a big thump. For a split moment, Veyra's faceplate kisses the ruble, leaving behind a Space Marine hole in the dusty concrete.
"Bloody grox's turd! Couldn't these Tech-priests not lock my armor!" Veyra curses, wanting to bang his head against a wall for being taken out in his own area of expertise.
To Veyra, it's like someone gives him a middle finger and he has to accept it with a sulk. That said, the Astartes must admit.
"Well played, Cadian. Well played..."
--------------------------------------------------------------------
"First Blood! Veyra of the Salamander, eliminated!"
Relocating away from where I just took a shot that clinched us the first kill, I breathe out. "Well, that's one hurdle dealt with. Onto the next..."
Weiss, trailing right behind me, comments. "From the start, you were aiming for the flankers, haven't you?"
"That's right." I reply with a smile. "In this particular circumstance, dividing their force means easy picking for us. We were fortunate that they still underestimated us earlier. The next kill may be harder to come by though."
"I guess we will cross that bridge when we get there then." Weiss replies, impressed that we got a score so early on.
I chuckle, anticipating the upcoming mess the remaining Astartes will walk into, now that they know better than to split up.