Chapter 66: Assaulting the Hive Bottom
The two Word Bearers were thus submerged by thousands upon thousands of Genestealers.
If not for the remaining traces of battle, an unwitting observer would have no idea what had happened here.
This group of Genestealers acted as a single entity; their efficiency was shockingly high, their will to fight absolute.
"What terrifying xenos!"
After confirming no one was around, Norris himself began to return to the uphive.
Lucan, upon receiving the news, hadn't expected that the Word Bearers he failed to eliminate would instead be taken out by those Genestealers.
But thinking about it, a fully established Genestealer Cult could even block or annihilate a sizable Chaos Space Marine assault. It was no great injustice that those two Word Bearers were eliminated.
And as his forces continued to advance, they had yet to find Valentin or the main force of those "dark grease-monkeys" (Dark Mechanicum).
Lucan estimated they were also likely eliminated by the Genestealers, which would explain why the resistance from the remaining heretics was so feeble.
"Rebecca, do you know where the sewage district is?"
"My Lord, I do. The sewage district is near the hive bottom. The domestic sewage and industrial wastewater from the uphive and underhive are discharged through the pipes in the sewage district to the wastelands outside the hive city. This wastewater is even an important source of water for the mutants of the underhive."
"How is the advance of our troops progressing? Have we approached the sewage district yet?"
"The Dynasty has five assault teams advancing in that direction. They are already very close to the sewage district. However, there is still post-battle consolidation work to be done. According to the operational plan, it will take another five to six days to advance to the sewage district."
With the help of the combat suits, Widow Mines, and Siege Tanks, the advance through the underhive was extremely rapid. Almost every day, large areas were returned to the embrace of the Dynasty.
"No rush. Let's advance steadily. Prioritize minimizing casualties. The advantage is mine! Rebecca, one more thing. Did Ludwig ever mention the Death Cult of Agathos to you?"
Lucan asked curiously. The Death Cult had said they were looking for the Rogue Trader, not specifically for him, Lucan.
"I have heard of them. The Death Cult and Lord Ludwig likely had some cooperation. The specific details were known only to Lord Ludwig. But what I do know is that the Death Cult of Agathos doesn't just kill those they deem worthy of death; they also kill some people for Lord Ludwig."
A look of disgust appeared on Rebecca's face as she said this.
Although the Death Cult worshipped the God-Emperor, they did not listen to the commands of the Imperial government or the Dynasty.
As Governor, Rebecca detested this force that was beyond the Dynasty's control, not to mention that they were also extremely dangerous.
She had heard that in the underhive, the Death Cult's reputation made people tremble with fear. Whether it was ordinary workers, gang members, or even underhive guards, if the cult believed their deaths could serve as an offering to the God-Emperor, they would act without hesitation.
And the act of killing Dynasty soldiers was, by any measure, not permissible. Whenever she wanted to have the Planetary Defence Force encircle and destroy this extremist church, she would be forcefully stopped by Ludwig.
And Lucan also disliked the Death Cult. Extreme fanaticism and behavior were often exploited by the Ruinous Powers, leading them to fall into the embrace of Chaos without even knowing it.
Lucan estimated that even the Death Cult itself probably couldn't distinguish between the God-Emperor they worshipped and some other Chaos god at times.
They might even be being used by the Ruinous Powers without their own knowledge.
The existence of the Death Cult was like a hidden bomb. Many people in the Imperium would use them; the Inquisition and the Officio Assassinorum would also have them do their dirty work, but no one ever wanted to bring them into the light.
Lucan even suspected it was questionable whether the Emperor himself approved of the Death Cult's existence.
Although their so-called High Priest wanted to see him, Lucan had no intention of going right now.
In a game, he could load a save and make any attempt he wanted. He could cooperate with the Death Cult without worrying about the consequences, and he could always make a different choice.
But this wasn't a game. With the situation so overwhelmingly in his favor, if he threw it all away by taking a risk, he really wouldn't be able to bear the collapse.
Even the Death Cult had many different branches.
After patiently waiting for another seven days, the reconquest of the underhive was also nearing its end.
Most areas had returned to the hands of the Dynasty. Lucan immediately ordered his troops to begin exploring towards the hive bottom.
The Dynasty's army began to establish fortified positions at all known entrances connecting to the hive bottom. These were the public entrances; some young nobles of the hive would sometimes, in the name of a "Noble's Hunt," venture into the hive bottom to hunt and eliminate some mutants as their own rite of passage into adulthood.
Now, these entrances were sealed off to everyone except the Dynasty's soldiers.
Lucan also arrived at the staging area outside the hive bottom.
The situation in the hive bottom was even more complex than the underhive. Many narrow passages were simply unable to accommodate large vehicles, which rendered Lucan's Banshees and Siege Tanks useless.
Pavian had also arrived at the staging area. The Tech-Priests were currently calibrating a large number of servo-skulls.
These drone-like mechanical constructs, made from the remains of the pure after their death, floated on anti-gravity suspensors above the staging area. Not everyone was worthy of being made into a servo-skull; only the pure and pious among humanity had this chance. Many in the Imperium even considered being made into a servo-skull an honor.
Lucan didn't understand it, but he respected it. At least these servo-skulls could be of use at this moment.
After the Tech-Priests soothed the machine spirits within the servo-skulls, a large number of them flew into the passages leading to the hive bottom, to scout out the situation for Lucan.
The servo-skulls' bionic eyes began to scan the terrain of the hive bottom, transmitting the data back to Pavian's information processing units.
"Lord Lucan! The servo-skulls have been attacked!" Pavian's processor was currently receiving information from the servo-skulls. He didn't even have time to order the servo-skulls to return before he sensed them being destroyed one by one.
Before long, all the servo-skulls had lost contact.
"What happened, Pavian?"
"Life signs! Many life signs! The servo-skulls' augur arrays detected a large number of life signs! They surrounded them from all directions and destroyed the servo-skulls!
My Lord, it's likely we can't complete the reconnaissance mission with mechanical constructs alone. The servo-skulls are too fragile. Ultimately, we may still need your soldiers to do the job."
Hearing Pavian's words, Lucan looked at the pitch-black entrance to the hive bottom before him. He waved his hand.
The soldiers who had been waiting at the side began to move forward.
100 soldiers clad in CMC combat suits would serve as the vanguard, entering the hive bottom.
"For the Dynasty! For the great Rogue Trader! Advance!"
A combat squad would consist of eight Marines, one Firebat, and one Medic. Their mission, like that of the servo-skulls, was to gather as much intelligence as possible from within the hive bottom.
Lucan watched the entering squads, a hint of pity in his heart. He knew it would be difficult for this first wave of soldiers to survive, but some sacrifices had to be made. Without understanding the enemy's combat strength, the danger of sending a large force in blindly was simply too great.
The enemy wasn't some mob, but were individuals who could even take down Astartes.
Charging in recklessly, Lucan even suspected that despite the combat suits, they would be swallowed by the vast ocean of a people's war.
Let alone now, even when Ludwig was the Rogue Trader, no one knew exactly how many people were hiding in the hive bottom.
These conscripted soldiers also knew the danger of this mission, but Lucan had also promised them generous rewards. Their children would receive automatic admission into the future Schola Progenium, and their surviving family members would also receive more free living rations.
(End of Chapter)