The power carved a massive divot in the creature’s torso, creating an enormous cloud of purple blood as the beast suffered a mortal blow. Markus was sent flying from the recoil, but he stayed focused on his ‘dying’ opponent. The Xenos’s Second Wind ability might allow it to recover, but Markus was two steps ahead. His Blizzard still smothered their battlefield, weakening the creature as it struggled to repair the damage it had suffered. The moment Markus’s teleportation came off cooldown, he’d shoot back in and finish the fight.
Unfortunately, other Kharnidd chose this moment to come out from hiding and save their comrade. Several Mentalists bombarded Markus with Annihilation Rays, forcing the Pioneer to teleport out of the way and dodge that lightshow. He tried to circle around to attack the Greater Behemoth again, only to have a Greater Mentalist join in with its lesser contemporaries. It Overclocked its Telekinesis and sent a storm of debris flying at him. At the same time, it targeted the Psionic Blizzard with that same ability. It couldn’t blow away the snow entirely, but it brought the Greater Behemoth some respite, allowing the healing process to begin.
Seeing this, Markus pivoted. He carved through the barrage of debris with his Warp Slashes, then teleported toward the Mentalists. They tried to sweep their Annihilation Rays against him while throwing up their defenses, but it was futile. Markus was a wolf among sheep, his dagger tearing out the throats of a pair of Kharnidd in a flash. The Greater Mentalist reacted, trying to protect its comrades, then Markus pivoted again. He raced toward the Kharnidd commander now, prompting the Beta class to switch gears fearfully in an attempt to defend itself. Markus’s Psionic Blizzard swirled across the entire battlefield now, obscuring his figure before he turned again. The Pioneer dashed at the recovering Behemoth again, eyes glinting with lethal intent.
Suddenly, a message raced across his vision, and he clicked his tongue in irritation. Markus then watched as the Greater Behemoth stood up and threw another Shadow Punch at him. It was far weaker than before, and Markus dodged it easily, the creature clearly on its last legs. Yet he didn’t push his advantage and close the distance. Instead, he turned back to the human lines, his new orders abundantly clear: “Return to the Front and Aid in the Retreat.”
If he pressed the issue, he could likely finish the Greater Behemoth. The fiend’s Enhancement sphere had clearly worn off but killing it under the watchful eyes of the Kharnidd Mentalists would be difficult and time-consuming. If the Imperial troops were retreating, Markus would be left out here all alone, which was not a recipe for success. Not to mention the fact that a lot of soldiers were going to need his support soon.
All these facts meant that Markus couldn’t afford to delay in obeying his new orders. He’d been ordered to take out a Greater Behemoth, and now he was being ordered to abandon the effort. The failure stung, but it couldn’t be helped.
Markus’s final concern was the Greater Mentalist’s next big attack. As Markus turned to retreat, the creature raised a six-fingered hand in the air and brought it down in a chopping motion. A thin vertical blade of Psionic energy shot out, expanding in size and power as it shot toward the running human. Markus whipped around, bringing both of his daggers around in a horizontal strike right on the bleeding edge of the ability.
In a loud BOOM and a flash of light, Markus shot backward like a rocket. His arms trembled, but he was unharmed as he grew further from the enemy and closer to his destination. He was prepared to teleport out of the way of any follow-up attacks, but none were forthcoming. Eventually, Markus’s flight slowed, his boots hitting the ground as he wheeled around and dashed back to his men. Many of the Thralls and Drones had retaken the field, and they struck at the Pioneer as he passed, but he tore through them without even thinking. Before they could try to overwhelm him, he jumped high into the air, passing through the barrier and landing on the same rooftop he’d left behind.
His team spared a few wide-eyed glances of awe for their superior as he returned, but their attentions were soon consumed by other recent events.
The barrier was fading, having finally taken too much damage to maintain. A new shield would spring up further within the city, meaning the battle was far from over, but the outer districts would be lost. Many of the soldiers had already made their fighting retreat, with Markus’s group staying behind to wait for him and cover the others’ retreat. Now, it was time to leave.
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“This way!” Peralta screamed, gesturing to the nearby rooftops, which the Pioneers swiftly jumped to. There was no time to use the stairs, so they hopped from roof to roof before finding a convenient fire escape that they scaled at breakneck pace. Once the soldiers hit the pavement, they took off at top speed as the barrier flickered shakily in the distance. As the defenders abandoned their posts, the pressure on the defenses increased, so it wasn’t long before the shield flickered for the final time and winked out. And all hell broke loose.
With the single, overwhelming screech, a dark tide of Xenos tore through Anakara’s outer limits. The rumble of collapsing buildings, the cry of twisting metal, and the screams of human and Kharnidd alike dominated the world as the enemy set upon the Empire’s capital with terrifying ferocity. The turrets and automated defenses did their best to hold the Xones back, only to be quickly overwhelmed. The human defenders shot backward as they retreated, even as each of them realized it was hopeless. The enemy bore down on the retreating soldiers with terrifying speed, the Zeta class and unenhanced defenders helpless in the face of the Thrall vanguard. Many Thralls and Drones were even hurled through the air by their Psyker compatriots, the living projectiles screeching hatefully as they shot toward their horrified human targets.
Jordan watched as a pocket of weaker defenders came under attack nearby, and he heard new orders from his father, “RELIEVE THOSE MEN!”
For his part, Markus teleported away to help other soldiers who’d lagged in their retreat. Pursuant to those orders, Jordan and the others let out battle cries as they dashed to the rescue. Peralta’s flying swords made mincemeat of several Xenos before they even got there, so the Pioneers quickly subdued the remaining enemies. However, they didn’t have time to rest, as numerous other Thralls were already rushing up from behind them. Jordan spun around, daggers flashing as he deflected a flurry of incoming claw strikes. He knew about the poison those Empowered Claws carried, so he was extra careful to avoid even the tiniest scratches. His Hypersight allowed him to keep track of the attacks and avoid any injury, but his hands couldn’t keep this pace up forever.
He wasn’t fast enough to block the creature’s 11th attack, and Jordan’s eyes narrowed as he watched the violet tips of the creature’s claws close in on his face. He was just fast enough to teleport behind the Xenos before its natural weapons opened up his face, letting out a quick exhale of relief as he reappeared. Rather than attempting to stab the Thrall in the back, the Pioneer simply ducked. He was right on time, as the Kharnidd whirled around with preternatural speed, striking out with another horizontal swipe. Jordan slipped under the attack and kept moving, stepping into the Thrall’s guard and raking his dagger across its belly. Its other claw struck down at him as he did, he brought up his other dagger to meet it, and they clashed in a flare of Psionc sparks.
Jordan grit his teeth as he barely pushed the attack aside, jumping out of the beast’s attack range as he tried to get his bearings. The wound in its stomach was leaking purple, but the creature didn’t look to be dying any time soon as it snarled at him, prepared to charge again. That was until it got hit by a few blaster bolts to the side, causing it to stagger in pain and giving Jordan the opening he needed. He dashed within the creature’s guard again, daggers knocking aside its claws and opening its throat in a fountain of blood.
Around Jordan, other Pioneers saw similar success as they managed to bring down this fresh wave of enemies. Peralta was doing the lion’s share of the work as the group’s only Delta class, yet all the Pioneers were comporting themselves well. Gon had sunk his claws into one of the Thrall’s chests, while O’Riley and Macneil had successfully teamed up to torch one of the enemies into oblivion. They had lost some of the weaker humans, but none of the Pioneers had gone down. Some sported superficial wounds, so those men would have to worry about poison, but they’d cross that bridge when they got to it.
For now, they continued their retreat, the Pioneers holding down the rear as they ushered the others to safety. The humans endured an hour of hectic fighting, blasters flaring all the while, before they finally reached the safety of the newly constructed dome. Ammo was a concern, so the soldiers took some time to visit one of the supply depots nearby and catch their breath. On top of that, the Pioneers were concerned about their Mental energy expenditure. The higher their Psyche, the better their recovery, so several of the stronger Pioneers had regained a decent amount from the limited rest they’d found, but it wasn’t enough. If the fighting continued like this, they’d run out of gas sooner or later.
Fortunately, other fighters had been brought out of the woodwork while the first responders had been holding the line. These fresh troops were manning the new line of defense and covering the retreating soldiers. But who knew how long they could hold the line before they needed to be relieved in turn, or when they could expect new reinforcements?
As they sat there, they received formal orders to stand by and recover as much as possible. However, as they sat there, Jordan’s phone began to ring. He’d noticed it ringing several times beforehand as they’d been evacuating, but he obviously hadn’t had the time to answer it. Curious, Jordan pulled it out and answered it. Lucy’s voice came out, garbled by all the noise in the background, “Jordan? Are you there?”
The young man straightened at the worry in her voice, responding immediately, “I’m here, what’s wrong?”
“We didn’t get out. Jordan, we’re trapped.”
