The Dominatrix was clearly not so easily slain. Its twin bio-cannons roared at point-blank range, blasting the Ultralisk Hierophant backward.
Other Ultralisks immediately surged forward to take its place, but the size disparity between them and the Dominatrix was significant. The Dominatrix reared up its razor-sharp forelimbs and drove them straight down, skewering an Ultralisk through its back.
However, Ultralisks are notorious for their sheer ruthlessness. Even with its body impaled, the beast swung its Emperor Blades with everything it had, severing the Dominatrix's forelimb in return.
This style of combat was so savage that even the Norn Queen found it problematic. Biological organisms weren't supposed to act this way; at the very least, they should feel pain. Yet the Ultralisks were entities completely devoid of pain receptors; even in death, their only directive was to inflict maximum damage on the enemy.
Under the combined assault of two Zerg Hierophants and over a dozen Ultralisks, the two Dominatrices were eventually cornered against the hull of a bio-ship.
But the Dominatrices wouldn't go down easily—they possessed potent psionic power. They unhinged their maws, and a brilliant, swirling light reminiscent of the Warp ignited within their throats.
†Holy crap? Atomic Breath?!†
†Why don't you just give me a Radioactive Heat Ray while you're at it!†
That dazzling Warp energy was the Dominatrix's alternative attack. A psychic shockwave erupted, blasting the Zerg Hierophants that were pinning them down several meters back. Simultaneously, their bio-cannons resumed firing in a rapid, ferocious barrage. In just over ten seconds, they unleashed over a dozen consecutive rounds.
Against such overwhelming firepower, even the Zerg Hierophants—the ultimate reinforced versions of the Ultralisk—could not hold on and collapsed with a thunderous crash.
"Are they all monsters?!"
Autarch Elyssa was stunned by the performance of these bio-titans. Even for an Autarch who had witnessed countless wars, the scale of this biological carnage was beyond imagination.
Yet, what was this really? During the 30K era, before the birth of Slaanesh, both the Imperium and the Aeldari could field armies dozens or hundreds of times larger than this. And in even more ancient times—the Golden Age of Technology—a mere "logging machine" from the Imperium might have been able to cut through an Ultralisk or a Hierophant with ease.
Despite the Dominatrices' frantic resistance, there were simply too many Ultralisks. One by one, the Dominatrices' four legs were hacked away. Their massive bodies were sliced open and stomped into paste by the herd in a scene of extreme gore.
The other Dominatrix was likely not long for this world either. After all, it was surrounded by over fifty Ultralisks.
†Hoho, it seems my numbers have won the day after all.†
When the quality gap isn't insurmountable, a numerical advantage of several times—or even dozens of times—makes even the Tyranid Titans look powerless before the Zerg Ultralisk herd. The physical structure of a Hierophant simply wasn't designed for "one-versus-many" slaughter; they were destined to be support Titans.
Watching the Tyranid forces collapse, the Overmind felt quite at ease.
†So, Norn Queen? Are you going to keep betting? Or are you ready to switch your hidden cards?†
The Overmind knew that the Tyranids were efficient and conservative with biomass. Unlike him, who would burn every resource available, the Tyranids had to consider future resource planning to prevent the Hive Fleet from starving.
But in the current situation, the Norn Queen shouldn't be thinking about saving biomass.
†Bring out all your trump cards! Let's have a real fight. I don't care which branch of which splinter fleet you are; right now, all I want is biomass!†
The Norn Queen certainly knew it was no time to be stingy, but she realized she could no longer meet the Zerg Swarm in a head-on clash of brute force. Against a herd of Ultralisks, frontal confrontation was futile unless she could produce an equal number of Hierophants.
The problem was, she had no idea how many more Ultralisks the enemy had in reserve!
Actually, not that many. The Overmind had about eight or nine hundred Ultralisks left—his "collection" from recent times. Maintaining this number was the limit for his current occupied planets; after all, he couldn't spend all his resources on just one unit type. Still, this many Ultralisks were enough to crush the Titan legions of most galactic powers.
†Still not coming out?†
The Overmind waited for the Tyranids' next move, hoping for something specifically designed to counter him. Furthermore, the quest wasn't finished yet. Killing a few ships' worth of Tyranids might seem like a lot, but it only totaled two or three million—hardly a dent in the hundred-million goal.
Sure enough, the Norn Queen quickly formulated a new strategy. She noticed the Zerg Swarm had yet to deploy aerial units or units that utilized psionics for offense. Thus, Zoanthropes were the optimal choice. Their psychic shields allowed them to negate most ground-based ranged fire while they bombarded the Zerg from the safety of the air.
However, ordinary Zoanthropes wouldn't be enough to dominate the battlefield. And so...
Neurothropes and Neurotyrants began to hatch, transported to the dome sector by a bio-frigate.
"Here they come!"
The Overmind knew the Norn Queen was making her move the moment he saw that frigate. True to form, shortly after the vessel reached the dome, a terrifying psychic explosion erupted within the Zerg ranks. The resulting psionic storm easily ground countless Zerglings and Hydralisks into mincemeat, splattering them across the deck. Even the Roaches were tossed around, dazed and disoriented.
A Neurotyrant—several times larger than a standard Zoanthrope and nearly half the size of an Ultralisk—descended upon the battlefield. It radiated a psionic wave so potent it made even the Aeldari defenders tremble with fear.
"Asuryan preserve us... what is that?"
Loken, the Warp Spider Exarch, observed from the rooftops. He was speechless, shocked by the power displayed by the Neurotyrant. "Why do I feel as if my very soul is being drained?!"
Indeed, the Neurotyrant's psychic presence alone was enough to wither nearby life forms. The Aeldari, being a highly psychic race, were targeted most severely. Even Melina, the High Farseer of Yela'nk, could feel that powerful, sickening psychic energy.
However, this was exactly what the Overmind had been waiting for.
†Abathur's experimental materials have arrived. Hehehe.†
While the Zerg Swarm couldn't fully utilize Tyranid DNA due to its inherent genetic locks, if Abathur could decipher how the Tyranids generated such psionics, they could theoretically replicate the organs to give Zerg units psionic attack capabilities.
In short: [Plagiarism].
†I can't copy your original function, but I can certainly copy your style.†
†If only I had Primal Zerg. Their ability to break genetic locks is much more efficient. Perhaps Amon didn't want the Zerg to evolve too quickly and escape his control, so he intentionally made the Swarm stable and efficient rather than focused on pure evolution.†
Stable production was better; Primal Zerg evolution was too unpredictable and difficult to mass-produce. They were "Evolvers," not a "Swarm."
†But this Neurotyrant is indeed a bit of a nuisance. It needs to be handled.†
The Neurotyrant was not only a massive psychic threat but also significantly boosted the performance of the Tyranid combat units around it, acting as a powerful synaptic amplifier for the Hive Net.
†Very well, my daughter. This one is yours.†