Above Planet Kelly, the Tyranid Hive Ships began releasing billions of spores. They were beginning to terraform the planet's ecology, staining the sky a bruised, toxic red.
Countless Mycetic Spores hurtled toward the surface from orbit. The moment they breached the cloud layer, Imperial anti-air fire began pouring into the descending tide. However, the sheer number of spores was overwhelming—they were numerous enough to blot out the sun.
Accompanying the spores were swarms of Tyranid aerial units. Gargoyles darkened the sky as they dove toward ground-based AA batteries. But they quickly realized they were not the sole masters of the air. Massive swarms of Mutalisks intercepted them, weaving through the clouds. Glave-wurms and bio-plasma crossed in the air as countless carcasses rained down onto the earth below.
As the first Mycetic Spore slammed into the Creep on the barren plains, Termagants crawled out. The war between Kelly and the Tyranids had officially begun.
Hordes of Hormagaunts and Termagants formed the first probing wave of the Tyranid swarm, and they were met by an equally vast tide of Zerg.
From a bird's-eye view, two tsunamis of bio-matter crashed into each other on the purple Creep. In an instant, flesh and ichor sprayed everywhere. This was a duel between ultimate biological weapons. Zerglings charged Hormagaunts; even when bitten in half, the Zerglings would snap the enemy's spine before dying.
Hydralisk spines pierced chitinous shells only for the Hydralisks to have their heads blown apart by bio-plasma a second later. Moments later, those Tyranids would be dissolved by acid from burrowing Roaches, only for a Tyranid Warrior to crush the Roach's carapace shortly after.
Massive spines erupted from the earth, shredding Tyranids by the dozen. Infestors sprayed microbial mists that eroded nervous systems, and their parasitic neural parasites forced high-level synapse creatures to turn against their own kind.
Death and destruction saturated the battlefield. Neither side possessed the concept of morale. Every death simply converted one into biomass to be recycled and reborn into a new swarm.
The Tyranid Hive Mind encountered a peer-level rival for the first time, realizing that these enemies were actively fighting them for food! They watched as Zerglings devoured corpses on the ground; even if the Zerg were killed, the biomass they had already digested had already been converted into numerical values on Alexei's system panel.
Alexei, standing on the Spire's palace square, felt as if he could hear the enemy's territorial roar. In response, the number of spore pods in the sky doubled, seemingly packing every inch of the atmosphere.
The Great Devourer's will shifted these aliens from "prey" to "competitors." This time, more elite units crawled out: Tyranid Warriors, Carnifexes, Biovores, Tyrants...
These elite units began to compress the Zerg lines. At this stage, the Zerg were not yet a match for the specialized Tyranid combat forms. Under Zagara's command, the Zerg began a tactical retreat.
As the Tyranid swarm entered the engagement range of the human fortresses, C-14 Gauss rifles and quad-linked K12 grenades opened fire. They formed lines of death that supported the Zerg in stalling the Tyranid advance.
Meanwhile, a seemingly endless carpet of Rippers surged toward the fortresses, consuming everything in their path. At that moment, the alloy gates of the fortresses opened, and Firebats in CMC-660 power armor marched out.
They knew they were going to die, but their deaths would bring ruin to the enemy. Raising their arm-mounted "Perdition" flamethrowers, they unleashed roaring flames that incinerated the Rippers instantly.
Covered by human and Zerg fire, the Firebats pushed forward. The erupting flames, like the Emperor's fury, burned everything until the Firebats were finally torn apart by long-range Tyranid fire. Even in their final moments, they self-detonated, clearing everything around them in massive fireballs. As one wave of Firebats fell, another group stepped out from the gates to vent their fury.
With human support, the Tyranid advance was stalled once again. In the air, Mutalisks and Gargoyles continued their mutual slaughter.
The Hive Mind immediately committed even more elite aerial units: Hive Crones and Harpies joined the fray. Against these specialized Tyranid flyers, Mutalisks began to fall in great numbers. Harpies acted as terrifying biological bombers, dealing precision strikes to ground targets.
Alexei immediately deployed Goliath robots. Transported by air units, they arrived at the front lines. PDF soldiers watched as these bipedal walkers slammed onto the ground. Guided by their Ares-class targeting systems, Hellfire missiles spiraled into the sky, downing Tyranids in bursts of flame.
The Goliaths restored balance to the aerial theater, but it was clear this equilibrium would not last long. Every corner of Kelly was now engulfed in war.
"Marshal! The first line of fortresses in the Northern Plains is in critical danger!"
"Sir, the AA batteries in all Hives are severely damaged! Requesting more SCVs for repairs!"
"The 1st Armored Company was ambushed; we've lost contact!"
Colton stood in the central command post, looking at the map. Reports indicated their defenses were nearing collapse. The Tyranids were battering their lines with staggering numbers. Even with the aid of the Master's "messengers," casualties were mounting.
Colton frowned, diverting every unit he could to plug the gaps. But he knew that if this continued, the fortress lines would fall, leaving the Hives exposed. They were critically short of heavy firepower.
He contacted Alexei to explain the situation. Alexei told him to hold a little longer—reinforcements were coming.