Cain looked around, finding the room completely different from what he had seen before. There were no humming machines, no dead atmosphere.
Instead, it was bright and airy, with incense burning in braziers on marble pedestals, and a faint scent filling the air. Ancient statues and dusty crates were scattered around, looking like a storage room the Heretics might have once set up but eventually abandoned.
Cain and Amberly crept in like thieves, hiding behind the massive pillars supporting the roof. These pillars were as thick as cathedral buttresses, almost as wide as Cain was tall, giving them ample space to conceal themselves.
Amberly nudged him with her elbow, then pointed into the distance.
"Stairs," she whispered.
Cain followed her gaze and saw wide steps leading to a corridor, at the end of which another flight of stairs seemed to lead to an unseen place in the distance.
"Good," Cain murmured.
But the problem that followed was how to cross this area. He could see figures moving in the distance, many armed, some in civilian clothes, others in Planetary Defence Force uniforms. Cain was already getting used to seeing such Heretics, but this time, he noticed something different.
Several people were dressed in shimmering crimson and gold. He instinctively nudged Amberly with his elbow, pointing at them.
"Governors Mansion servants," she nodded, having clearly noticed them too.
Cain's heart skipped a beat; this seemed completely different from what he had expected. According to intelligence from Command, he had assumed all the Governors Mansion servants had died in the Astra Militarum's purge.
But clearly, these guys were not as incompetent as he had previously thought; instead, they seemed to have some plan driving the escalation of the situation.
They were carrying Astra Militarum standard lasguns, not their usual ancient weapons. These weapons were clearly "borrowed" from the Planetary Defence Force's armory.
"We have to sneak past them," Amberly whispered, and Cain nodded.
Although the prospects weren't good, they had no choice but to try. If they could skillfully use the cover of pillars and rubble, they might succeed in crossing the area, at least getting near the stairs before being discovered.
If they were discovered, they would just have to rush towards the stairs as fast as possible.
As they began to move, Cain looked around, not out of fear, but from an instinctive reaction, trying to memorize the layout of his surroundings.
Losing one's bearings in a firefight was a fatal mistake. Then, he suddenly paused, the sight before him shocking him.
"This is a shrine," Cain whispered, his voice uneasy and apprehensive.
Amberly didn't seem surprised, and Cain realized she might have noticed this earlier. The walls were covered with various tapestries, and now that he looked closely, a sense of dread welled up within him.
The contents depicted on these tapestries were blasphemous and sacrilegious; the Emperor's holy image was maliciously distorted and insulted, portrayed as a hunchbacked purebred Genestealer with six arms, a towering purebred Genestealer monster looking down on its worshipping followers.
Cain felt an unbearable surge of anger, secretly deciding that upon their return, he would have Li Feng dispatch a squad of Soldiers with flamethrowers to deal with these blasphemies. Such things should never exist and must be destroyed.
Of course, what Cain didn't know was that the paintings depicted Old Man Huang, not Sanguinius. Li Feng even took several photos back to show Old Man Huang, which greatly angered Old Man Huang.
Cain felt his heart pounding fiercely, as if he could hear its beat in his ears. "Ready?" Amberly whispered behind his shoulder.
Cain nodded, making an Imperial Aquila Salute gesture to wish her luck. He already had his pistol in hand, as he had said before, and with his other hand, he quietly drew his Chainsword, his thumb on the Chainsword's button, ready to start hacking at any moment.
Amberly also drew her Bolter Pistol, checked the ammunition in the chamber, then nodded grimly.
"Alright, go!"
They quickly ran to the next pillar and stopped, their hearts racing. Cain could feel the blood coursing through his body. He began to focus on his surroundings, listening intently, trying to catch any subtle sounds.
The noisy movements of the Heretics mingled with an unsettling silence, just like in the machine-filled room they had been in earlier.
Fortunately, they hadn't been discovered yet. Cain and Amberly moved stealthily again, using the next pillar as cover, then the next.
A glimmer of hope rose in Cain's heart, imagining that if they could reach the steps smoothly, they might escape their current predicament. However, just then, a Las-fire suddenly struck a stone carving near his head, instantly exposing them.
Cain quickly turned and saw a servant raising a Laser Gun, preparing to fire again. He raised his pistol, but Amberly was faster, firing first with her Bolter Pistol.
The chest of the palace guard exploded, internal organs splattering like rain, his golden uniform torn. Before they could react, the battle had erupted.
Two more armed Gretchin rushed out, attempting to attack them with crossfire.
Cain and Amberly quickly retaliated. Amberly's Bolter hit its target, blowing open the enemy's chest, while Cain delivered a headshot, tearing the enemy's head from behind.
"Show-off again!" Amberly grinned at Cain, but Cain knew that shot was pure luck.
He had aimed for the enemy's chest, but the enemy had coincidentally dodged. More gunshots came from behind other pillars, enemies hiding behind cover just like them, making Cain's counter-attack ineffective. The situation quickly became a stalemate.
"What will they do?" Amberly whispered.
"Assault us," Cain replied tensely, his heart sinking.
Indeed, shortly after, he saw some figures in the darkness beginning to approach, and his heart pounded.
"Damn it! Purebred Gretchin!"
A group of Gretchin, at least a dozen, charged towards them across the stone floor beneath the archways. Several had already been taken down by Bolter and Las-fire, but most continued to advance, rapidly closing in.
Cain gripped his Chainsword, determined to make a desperate stand against this wave of attack, trying to cut a bloody path towards the seemingly distant stairs.
Just then, an explosion suddenly disrupted the enemy's formation, followed by several more explosions, instantly disorienting Cain. Although he knew this was not a miracle of the Emperor's direct intervention, hope and comfort still surged within him.
He looked up and saw Yugen staggering out from one side of the corridor, looking even more dishevelled. He was throwing frag grenades over the railing.
Cain grabbed Amberly's arm and said urgently, "Look!"
Amberly looked up, nodded, as if she had long anticipated this moment. She stood up and said calmly:
"Time to run."
Then, she moved towards the stairs, Cain following closely, while waving to Yugen in confirmation.
Yugen also waved, grinning, then threw another grenade at the Gretchin, like Santa Claus delivering gifts.
Most of the Genestealers had been blown to pieces, foul pus oozing from their bodies, while one of them was still frantically charging at Amberly.
Cain shouted urgently, "Amberly!"
However, as Amberly half-turned, it was too late to prepare her Bolter Pistol. Cain was too far away to provide timely support.
Cain watched as the Genestealer's claw almost tore through Amberly's cloak, ready to drag her into the abyss of death.
Just then, the enemy's head suddenly exploded, disgusting remnants splattering, and the body instantly fell to the ground. Cain paused for a moment, then looked to the other end of the corridor, seeing Sorel aiming his long-barreled Laser Gun at the next target.
"Praise the Emperor!"
Cain let out a long breath. Although still full of doubts, he felt deeply relieved at that moment. Just as he relaxed for a moment, Yugen's shout rang out again.
"Political Commissar! Behind you!"
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