Warhammer: In the Name of Ashes.

Chapter 621 Determination

Pull back the perspective from the ground battlefield:

After Calvin made a brief stop in Gothic and personally placed the Tindalos Legion in several key positions, he had to stop the internal reorganization of Gothic. Under the strong pressure of the Death Guard, he had to rush to the front battlefield outside the galaxy again.

The good news is that the appearance of the Supreme Commander has brought some peace of mind to the people of Forge World.

The priests, led by the Director of Foundry, assured him that reinforcements to the front line would not stop, and that at least one Titan Legion would be drawn from the Guardian Legion for use on the front battlefield.

The bad news is that the Death Guard's attack on Pesma is paying off:

With the loss of the outer nodes of the planetary defense system, orbital and ground defense positions have begun to come under attack.

According to the latest intelligence assessment from the Inquisition's Operations Staff, it is inevitable that the ground will become a battlefield. It is only a matter of time.

Space-based weapons, planetary protection field generators, urban air defense sky systems, and even rail transit systems built along mineral veins are being armed fortress communities.

The entire interior of Pesma was integrated into long continental plates by the Mechanicum for the convenience of development. Under the threat of war approaching its homeland, it is like an incomparably huge stegosaurus, slowly and unstoppably raising its heavy armor and spikes.

And it is this giant dragon that spans the two levels of the planet, under the control of the old and new Primarchs of the ancient human empire, Galvin and Mortarion, that will become the ultimate battlefield to decide the outcome after two fruitless head-on confrontations!

  boom!

In the dim light, Calvin walked out of the elevator of the starport and raised his head. At the end of his vision, in the rust-colored clouds in the distance, purple thunder flashed fleetingly.

Acidic shower clouds condensed and accumulated in the atmosphere, making the already gloomy earth even more depressing.

Suddenly, billions of dirty raindrops finally took shape, falling from tens of thousands of meters in the sky with silent shouts, and smashed into the basalt ground with unstoppable madness.

  Is this revenge?

Or maybe in their eyes, this is also a kind of redemption?

But no matter what, the fact is that they are leaving scars all over the land that gave birth to them with their destined broken shells and decaying essences.

  boom!

Another thunder roared nearby.

Amid the interweaving of light and darkness from lightning, the end of the square at the foot of the star port was empty and quiet.

The mortals had already received orders to evacuate to underground shelters to avoid the acid rain.

The huge square, like a plain, was extremely quiet. Apart from the sound of heavy rain, there were only two rows of giants in cloaks waiting in line like sculptures.

Calvin looked up and met the leader's eyes.

"Thank you for your hard work," he said habitually, but did not get the expected response.

Only then did he remember that due to the difference in civilization, the other party was destined to find it difficult to understand this euphemistic greeting.

"What a terrible weather!" He adjusted his tone and looked up.

Sure enough, this opening statement was more easily accepted by Talos.

The giant in black armor instantly recovered from his stiffness, took a cloak from the side in silence, then took a step forward and raised his hand.

Little Sir Sutherland, who had returned to Calvin at this moment, walked out of the team behind the Primarch, blocked Talos's hospitality, took the cloak from him, turned around and put it on Calvin's shoulders.

“Uh…” Calvin’s eyes twitched slightly, and then he looked at Talos who was standing empty-handed.

But the latter seemed to have anticipated this, and after a slightly awkward pause, he explained to the Primarch the cause of the bad weather:

"The artificial atmosphere has stopped working, and now all energy hubs are leaning towards a defensive stance. In addition, the mechanical priests suggested that the cloud layer containing composite metal elements has a good isolation effect and can block the prying eyes from the orbit to a certain extent..."

"Got it!" Calvin waited for Talos to finish speaking and nodded slightly to show his approval of his work. But he did not stop walking, passing through the Death Watch who came to greet him and walked towards the Storm Eagle on the tarmac.

"May the Emperor bless you!" The black-armored giants saluted Calvin as he passed by, and the words they shouted made him feel both surprised and somewhat relieved.

He paused slightly and looked at Talos who was walking beside him. From the latter's barely perceptible nod, he got the response he wanted.

  This group of lone wolves have clearly found a sense of belonging again, and their battle cries are a detailed reflection of this transformation.
-

The Storm Eagle roared into the sky and headed for the defense center located in the central mountains. More than a dozen fighter planes emerged from the high-altitude clouds and deployed a protective formation with the Storm Eagle as the center.

Calvin withdrew his gaze from the observation hole: "What a waste."

"No, when it comes to your safety, we can never be too cautious," Talos said.

"They are not a threat here yet. You should give these pilots some time to rest."

Calvin did not blame Taros, and his implication was clear - once the ground battlefield begins, it will be difficult for these pilots to have enough time to rest.

“No, this is also their honor.”

  Talos disagreed with Calvin's idea. Under the gaze of the Grey Knights, he solemnly insisted on his position:

"And you also know who our enemy is. Once the ground battlefield opens, we will be facing a complete Astartes Legion.

You may not have seen how high the casualty rate of air force soldiers is in the early stages of a war on an apocalyptic battlefield. It is also your duty as a commander to let these guys enjoy the glory they deserve before they die in battle."

I have seen it before, but I just can’t explain it to you…

Calvin thought of his memories from the perspective of other "Calvins" and his eyes narrowed slightly, but he remained silent in the end.

Because Taros's point of view was correct. On an apocalyptic-level battlefield, even the Primarchs had to walk between life and death, not to mention mortals who were not even Astartes.

We are all ants, we are all dust.

His gaze was distant, as if he was returning to those cruel and numbing wars through the eyes of the Astartes warriors who died in Istvaan, Moro, and even Terra.

That is the end of burning everything in the world, that is the doomsday of destroying all beautiful things.

The earth was burning, and the towering war machines, like gods, made the distant buildings look like playthings;

The sky was howling, and a large number of space warships were fighting around the planetary world on one side, while on the other side, dense airdrop capsules were raining down on the ground.

It was a tragic battlefield where even the Astartes could only serve as consumables. It was also a terrifying furnace that burned lives into ashes like firewood.

"We can't go on like this!" Calvin interrupted Talos, leaning forward with his tall body and speaking close to Talos.

And after being speechless, the latter saw unprecedented seriousness in the Primarch's silver eyes, which were filled with anger and thunder.

And heard the second half of the words of the Emperor's son:

"No, let them make the same mistake again!"

Update.