18 Chapter 17 – The Daemon in the Machine

"Speak; I'm waiting for your answer!" Akatosius Uthacello demanded, still holding Palatine Ania in the air.

The young Palatine opened and closed her mouth repeatedly with sweat running down her face as she looked around nervously.

Unfortunately, Ania had little time to respond, as the rest of her sisters came out of the sewers and drew their weapons after seeing the situation she was in. This only increased tension between the two groups.

Ania took a deep breath, muttering an insult and mentally reciting a litany, before putting on a stern face and answering the Space Marine's question.

"I am Palatine Genevine Ania S'narikar, Battle Sister of the Order of the Blood Rose and member of Canoness Karamora's commandery. My sisters and I are on a mission given by Canoness herself. I would like to apologize for my sister's actions, but given the current situation, reacting hastily to any sign of danger is expected."

The Chapter Master fell silent after hearing the Palatine's response, nodding slightly as he processed the information before placing the Battle Sister on the ground.

"I understand, I would like to apologize for my actions as well, but as you can see, my astartes and I are escorting civilians caught in the crossfire of the attack. I figured you were chaos cultists trying to ambush us."

Akatosius Uthacello spoke, stepping aside and pointing with his halberd at the various civilians his chapter protected, forming a shield around the mortals with their armored bodies.

"Oh! I see you are on an important mission too." Palatine Ania replied, smiling as she saw the people protected by the Space Marines.

"What can I say? The Imperium would be nothing without its people, unfortunately, few realize this." Akatosius Uthacello responded kindly.

Palatine Ania was excited to hear this answer, but soon put those thoughts aside and assumed a professional posture.

"I would love to continue our conversation, but my sisters and I must continue our mission." Palatine Ania spoke walking away from the Space Marine.

"Do you have permission to tell me what this mission is about?" Akatosius Uthacello asked curiously.

Palatine Ania stopped in her tracks and turned towards the Space Marine, taking a glance back and hesitantly looking at her sisters.

The group of battle sisters slowly nodded to her superior.

"Not exactly, but since we're both on the same side, I think you should know. As you can see, the City of Tismator is under attack by traitorous heretics, with the communications center being taken over and used to spread heretical propaganda, while the Cathedral of Saint Alexia is under siege by forces that I can only define as the Imperial Guard, although Canoness Karamora and some of our veteran sisters seem to know what this is about."

Akatosius Uthacello fell silent, assuming a thoughtful stance and looking around, specifically towards the civilians and the Sisters of Battle who accompanied Ania.

The chapter master approached the Palatine and crouched down until her helmet was face to face with the Battle Sister's face, giving her a good view of her intimidating green eyes.

"Tell me, did any of your superiors give you the chaos talk?" Akatosius Uthacello whispered to the Battle Sister.

"Ca…" Palatine Ania spoke but was immediately interrupted by the chapter master.

"SSSHHH! Speak low." Akatosius Uthacello hissed with a finger in front of the mouth area of his helmet.

The Palatine nodded, getting the message, and looked around, seeing her sisters waiting for her to finish her conversation.

"What do you mean by chaos? What is that? Does it happen to have something to do with the cultists you mentioned?" Palatine Ania whispered.

"Unfortunately we will not be able to continue this conversation, as it is a sensitive subject and there are many curious eyes and ears around us at the moment. When you complete your mission, the heretics are defeated and the city is saved, look to your Canoness for answers, she knows the true enemy here."

"If Canoness knows who our enemies are, why hasn't she revealed this information?" Palatine Ania asked.

"As I said before, it's a delicate subject, the kind of subject you discuss in a soundproof room with people you trust and you act as if nothing had happened when you're done. You understood?" Akatosius Uthacello replied seriously.

The Battle Sister nodded slowly, processing the information given to her.

"Thank you for the information Chapter Master, I wish you safety in your mission and may the Light of the Emperor illuminate you, but my sisters and I must return to our mission." Palatine Ania responded respectfully, clasping her hands together and muttering a prayer of safety for the Chapter Master.

"I thank you for your concern young Palatine, but I cannot allow you and your sisters to fight alone and I would feel bad not helping. I assume you will attempt to recover the communications center, although I cannot assist you directly, I will send a small detachment of my forces to assist you."

"That… That's not necessary! We cannot drag them towards danger." Palatine Ania responded in surprise.

"Please, I insist, besides, we are Space Marines, we have trained all our lives for this. Brother Haratekius, come!" The Chapter Master shouted, turning to his battle brothers as he raised his halberd.

The space marines stepped to the sides in perfect synchronization, making way for a space marine in completely green armor with black details, covered in white hieroglyphics, with Mechadendrites on its back.

"You called me my Lor… Chapter Master?" Haratekius asked, bowing in front of his chapter master.

"Yes, and I have a mission for you. You will lead a detachment of our forces and assist Palatine Ania and her sisters in retaking the communications center, use your skills to restore the city's communications." The Chapter Master responded, gesturing for Haratekius to rise.

"I will carry out the mission efficiently, my Chapter Master." Haratekius responded, walking towards the battle sisters with three space marines wearing helmets with completely green visors accompanying him.

"My name is Haratekius, the Techmarine of the Phantom Knights chapter; I hope we can complete our missions uneventfully." Haratekius politely introduced himself in a monotone, almost robotic voice.

"It is an honor to have you fighting alongside us Haratekius," Palatine Ania smiled, offering the Techmarine a handshake.

"Equally." Haratekius responded monotonously, ignoring the handshake and walking past Palatine Ania with the other astartes beside her.

"Did I do something to offend you?" Palatine Ania asked the Chapter Master.

"No, he's just grumpy most of the time, but he's not a bad person, you'll get used to it." The Chapter Master responded with a laugh.

"Okay, I would like to thank Chapter Master Akatosius Uthacello for everything, but we must go, time passes and the enemy continues its attack." Palatine Ania replied.

"I agree, other members of my chapter and I are scouring the city for civilians and taking them to safe locations, when this is finished we will head towards the Cathedral to assist your Canoness."

"Again I thank you." Palatine Ania responded, before running towards her sisters and Haratekius.

Soon the group moved away, heading towards the Communications Center.

"Haratekius!" Akatosius Uthacello shouted, getting his Techmarine's attention.

The Techmarine in question stopped and turned towards his Chapter Master, awaiting a response.

"Fight like an astartes!" Akatosius Uthacello responded, pointing his halberd at the Techmarine.

The Techmarine waved before turning around and returning to his walk.

"And Palatine Ania!" The Chapter Master shouted again, drawing the Battle Sister's attention.

The Palatine acted similarly to Haratekius and waited for a response.

"My chapter is not a descendant of the Salamanders and has never been to Nocturne, but I have something to show you! And before you ask how I know this, your appearance said it all!" Akatosius Uthacello shouted.

The Palatine looked curiously at the chapter master, but soon that curiosity turned into surprise due to the Chapter Master's actions.

"VULKAN LIVES!"

STOMP!

STOMP!

The Chapter Master shouted, stomping the ground.

The Palatine opened and closed her mouth repeatedly, but no words came out, her eyes widened as the red glow intensified. Quickly, the Palatine took a deep breath, trying to calm down, and smiled at the Chapter Master.

"Thank you very much!" Palatine Ania shouted goodbye to the Chapter Master and the Chapter Master said goodbye back.

With their matters resolved, both parties went their separate ways, each with a mission to accomplish.

-XXXXXX-

"So what's it like to be a space marine?" Gena asked one of the space marines accompanying her group.

"GENA!" The other sisters shouted reprimanding her.

"What? I'm curious! I grew up hearing stories about the Emperor's angels and they are on our side, I would like to know what it's like!" Gena replied, pointing at the space marines with her thumb.

"But you don't ask questions about a personal matter so directly!" Palatine Ania exclaimed.

"Seriously? Are you going to tell me that you're not curious to know more about the saviors of humanity?" Gena asked back.

Palatine Ania looked away and remained silent, knowing that Gena was right.

"You realize that the space marines are on our side, don't you?" Victoria asked sarcastically, her knives ready for combat.

All the sisters were silent and their eyes widened, probably because Ania was the only one without a helmet and they looked at the three space marines plus Haratekius.

"I would like to apologize on behalf of my sisters if we offended you in any way!" Olcinia spoke politely to the space marine beside her.

However, the space marine didn't respond and continued marching, completely ignoring the sister's excuses.

"Hey, she's talking to you!" Gena shouted, being the most susceptible to anger.

The other sisters were ready to rebuke her, but Haratekius acted first.

"They cannot answer you; the majority of the chapter has sworn a vow of silence to our Chapter Master, except for a few specific members, like me." Haratekius spoke, without turning to the sisters.

"So how do you communicate on the battlefield or in everyday life in general?" Olcinia asked curiously.

"Sign language, written messages transmitted directly into the visors of our helmets, and simply getting to know your battle-brother to the point of knowing what he wants without the need for words." Haratekius responded without changing his tone.

"Inefficient." Silke spoke briefly and quickly, surprising the sisters, as she had remained silent until now.

"Maybe, but that's the culture of our chapter and let's just say the less said about a secret, the less likely it is to be revealed."

"It's fair." Victoria muttered, shrugging.

"This conversation was revealing. I thank you for your time Haratekius, and Gena, be careful what you say. We may be sisters of the same order, but I am your superior, I don't want to have to exercise my authority, but I will do so to prevent your careless words from getting us into trouble. You understood?" Palatine Ania spoke authoritatively, the shine in her eyes intensifying.

"Yes…" Gena replied.

"Yes, what?" Palatine Ania asked again seriously.

"Yes ma'am!" Gena replied, looking away and walking in silence.

"Excellent." Palatine Ania responded, walking alongside Haratekius.

"Ha!" Victoria laughed, mocking Gena.

"Do you want to be next?" Palatine Ania asked without turning around.

"No ma'am!" Victoria replied, remaining silent.

"Putting my sisters' jokes aside, I would like to discuss with you our strategy for how we will take back the communications center." Palatine Ania said to Haratekius.

"And is there anything to discuss? We will advance by efficiently eliminating enemies who dare stand in our way until our objective is completed." Haratekius replied as the group turned the corner into the eerily empty streets.

"I don't think…" Palatine Ania spoke but was interrupted by a distorted electronic voice.

"Nonsense!"

The group of Sisters of Battle and Space Marines looked around in surprise, with weapons drawn, ready for combat.

"In the name of my order, I order you to reveal yourself as a heretic!" Palatine Ania demanded scanning her surroundings with her plasma pistol at the ready.

"Your end approaches!" The distorted voice spoke again.

"In the name of my Chapter Master, appear before us if you possess anything resembling honor!" Haratekius demanded, raising a power maul.

"Guys, I think I know where the voice is coming from!" Gena said disconcertedly, pointing to an appliance store across the street.

The store had a window with several TVs of different sizes being displayed. The TV screens were filled with static, but soon the static disappeared and the TVs changed channels repeatedly with the distorted voice coming out of each program and forming a sentence.

"You will…" A sales clerk in an advertisement spoke.

"…die…" Another advertisement appeared this time from an insurance sales clerk.

"… as I am…" A priest shouted.

"…the storm…" A woman presenting the weather forecast spoke.

"…that runs…" The channel changed again, this time showing an alien horse race.

"…inside the systems." The last channel showed an Arbites giving an interview after a chase.

All the TVs turned off simultaneously with the end of the message, only to turn back on, showing a bright red screen with the eight-pointed star in the center.

As if this sight wasn't disturbing enough, an eye opened in the center of the star, blinking and looking around frantically before focusing on the group watching him from across the street.

Suddenly, multicolored electricity rushed through the appliance store, past shelves, and into the various products on display, turning them on and shaking them violently from side to side before they floated away surrounded by paranormal energy.

Suddenly, a refrigerator flew out of the store like a missile, destroying the TVs and display cases along the way in a hail of glass and metal.

The appliance crossed the street at great speed, aiming at the Palatine who was leading the group of Sisters of Battle intending to smash her against the wall of the building behind her.

Haratekius quickly positioned himself in front of the Palatine before this could happen and sent the refrigerator flying with a powerful swing of his maul, turning the appliance into a ball of crumpled metal that bounced across the street like a stone on the surface of one side.

"Thanks." Palatine Ania spoke, waving at the Techmarine.

"Don't thank me yet, for our enemy is still alive." Haratekius replied, pointing to the appliance store.

Several household appliances flew out of the store as soon as Techmarine finished speaking. The group quickly moved out of the way, allowing the objects to hit the buildings behind with enough force to embed themselves in the walls.

"So, does anyone have any idea what the thing trying to kill us is?!?" Gena asked the group as she started her eviscerator.

"This information is confidential; I have no authority to reveal it." Haratekius responded quickly.

"Seriously?!?" Gena exclaimed in disbelief.

The conversation between the two was interrupted by multicolored electricity returning, this time running through the wires of the poles on both sides of the group. The wires snapped with a series of pops and shook like a bunch of snakes covered in electricity.

Suddenly one of these wires shot towards Olcinia with the stripped end crackling with electricity aiming for the neck joint of the Battle Sister's armor where the protection was inferior.

Fortunately, Gena grabbed the wire with her armored hand, stopping it just inches from her sister. Setting aside her eviscerator, Gena drew her bolter pistol and shot the wire, separating it from the post.

The piece of wire flopped on the floor like a dying animal but soon stopped moving when the electricity stopped flowing.

Unfortunately, this was just a portion of the pole's many wires that came to life, the rest of the wires were still fighting, being controlled by the entity that contacted them previously.

"Silke burn that thing!" Palatine Ania ordered, melting one of the approaching wires with a shot from her plasma pistol.

"Yes ma'am!" Silke responded with determination before running towards the pole in front of the group and releasing a wave of scorching fire from her heavy flamer, engulfing the pole in flames.

"SSSCCCRRREEE!"

A high-pitched screech echoed through the street as the pole's wires swung like whips, striking the floor and walls with enough force to crack them, but soon ceased their movement as the fire became too much and they curled up like a spider's legs.

Victoria used her knives to cut the various wires on the pole behind the group, the Sister of Battle sliced the wires with precise and quick blows, transforming them into black strips on the ground.

The wires retreated as they realized they couldn't get close to Victoria, instead pointing their stripped ends at her and shooting bolts of electricity toward her sister.

Victoria's eyes widened in surprise beneath her helmet, but she didn't let that stop her from moving out of the way. Jumping nimbly back, Victoria dodged the rays that hit the sidewalk, leaving holes after impact.

"Fire!" Haratekius ordered his battle brothers, pointing at the post with his maul.

The space marines did just that, pointing their Tesla carbines at the base of the pole before firing a wave of bright electricity, melting the base of the pole and splitting it in two.

The pole fell like a tree, breaking the rest of the wires and separating them from the city's electrical grid.

For a moment, it all seemed to be over, but the group's relief was short-lived when the distorted electricity returned, running, but not exclusively, through the poles across the street.

The group saw multicolored electricity entering every building on the street, every store, and if the glow coming out of the building's windows were anything to go by, every apartment, office, and more.

Soon that entire section of the city was glowing with multicolored electricity coursing through its grid.

"We are exposed here; we need to get out of the open now!" Palatine Ania ordered, pointing to an alley ahead between two buildings.

With a series of confirmations, the group ran towards the alley. It was a short distance, but that didn't mean the entity would allow it.

The wires on the poles on both sides of the street snapped again, shooting electricity toward the group while the nearest wires tried to electrocute the group with their exposed ends.

"Provide covering fire for the sisters!" Haratekius ordered mid-race.

The space marines did as ordered and fired their weapons in an arc, hitting as many poles as possible on the other side of the street, breaking them in half and breaking the wires, separating them from the network.

Meanwhile, Haratekius ran past the group of sisters and cleaving the forward post in two with a swing of his maul, clearing the way for the rest of the group.

However, the poles were only part of the entity's attack, as several electronic objects rained down from the buildings towards the group, which quickly descended.

Refrigerators, stoves, TVs, printers, cogitators, and much more, various objects fell from the sky with absurd force, opening holes in the ground below and delaying the advance of the group of sisters and space marines.

"Hey, can't these guys go any faster?!?" Gena asked, jumping to the left and avoiding a large printer that was stuck on the sidewalk.

The three space marines opening fire on the posts and objects that were flying towards the group were the reason for Gena's complaints, because while the group ran at full speed to get out of there, the three space marines just walked quickly, almost marching.

"Let's just say speed isn't my chapter's specialty." Haratekius responded with what appeared to be embarrassment.

However, before the sister could respond to Haratekius, a lawnmower flew out of a store, targeting Gena with its blades spinning at a speed beyond what they were built to spin and covered in electricity.

BANG!

However, the cutter was quickly destroyed mid-flight by bolter fire, courtesy of Olcinia. Olcinia and Gena exchanged a wave, before returning to their run and finally entering the alley with the rest of the group.

The sisters were the first to enter the alley, followed by Haratekius and finally the space marines.

In the alley, the group of sisters had time to breathe and think about what they saw.

"What in the emperor's name was that?!?" Gena exclaimed to the group, pointing towards the exit of the alley with her eviscerator.

"Some kind of virus created by heretics that infected the city's power grid?" Olcinia suggested, assuming a thoughtful stance.

"Seriously? And what kind of virus talks to people and threatens to kill them?" Victoria asked sarcastically, leaning against the alley wall with her arms crossed.

"And the abominable intelligence?" Silke suggested, checking Promise's heavy flamer tank.

The group went silent at this possibility. Were they attacked by an abominable intelligence? Did heretics create or put their hands on what contributed to the near extinction of humanity? They dared to violate one of the Emperor's most sacred decrees.

Palatine Ania placed a hand on her chin, thinking about what happened, but soon her attention shifted to Haratekius who was silently observing the conversation.

"Haratekius, you know what that thing was, don't you?" Palatine Ania asked, approaching the space marine.

"This information is sigi…" Haratekius spoke but was quickly interrupted by the Palatine.

"Don't give me that talk! My sisters and I were attacked by something unknown, something that spoke to us and took control of all the electronics around us! And you seem to know what it is!" Palatine Ania exclaimed, pointing at Haratekius.

"This information is…" Nevertheless, Haratekius stopped as soon as he saw the furious expression the Palatine was giving him.

Staying silent, Haratekius thought about the current situation and rephrased his answer.

"The reason I don't reveal the information is not because I don't think you should know, but because of the risks it brings."

"Explain!" Palatine Ania demanded, crossing her arms.

Soon all the battle sisters focused on Haratekius after hearing the interesting answer.

"I wasn't lying when I said that the information is confidential, because knowing about the enemy we face today puts your life at risk. My Chapter Master said one word, chaos. Do you have any idea how many people were executed for knowing the true meaning of that word? Imperial Guard regiments have been executed and planets have been destroyed, the reason I do not reveal information is for your good." Haratekius responded, showing a little more emotion in his speech.

"Is that why your Chapter Master told me to look to Canoness Karamora for answers when this is all over?" Palatine Ania asked, looking away.

"Correct, if the information about the enemy we face is revealed to you by your superior willingly, the chance of you suffering the consequences is lower."

"What kind of consequences are we talking about?"

"At best you will be demoted and kept under guard for the rest of your lives, at worst you will be imprisoned and tortured for becoming heretics by acquiring forbidden knowledge or some similar punishment. I believe you know the Penitent Engines, this is a possibility of your destiny."

A tense silence took over the sisters as the reality of the situation set in; they all shared a hesitant look, waiting to see who would break the silence.

"Fack!" Victoria screamed, punching the wall.

"Although I believe the rules must be followed, I prefer to avoid the worst fates mentioned by Brother Haratekius." Olcinia muttered, rummaging through her book bag with no goal in mind.

"I am ready to do whatever is necessary to accomplish the mission and will accept the consequences that come with it." Silke spoke, raising her flamer and preparing for combat.

"So the fewer questions we ask the better?" Gena asked Haratekius.

"Exactly." The Techmarine responded.

Putting on a determined face, Palatine Ania took a deep breath and spoke to her sisters.

"Sisters, I know our situation seems overwhelming, we face an unknown enemy and we risk a cruel fate if we survive our mission, but we cannot give up. The people of Tismator are in danger and our sisters in the cathedral are waiting for reinforcements, Canoness Karamora counts on us and wait for our return, but to do so, we need to keep our faith unshakable. I promised that I would lead you to victory and I plan to do so, but we cannot allow the possibility of risks to make us give up, I have held on and will fight with all my strength and with my faith as a shield, I will purge all heretics in my path and leave May the Emperor to decide what my fate will be. If I have to suffer, so be it, but I will suffer knowing that I did what was right."

The battle sisters fell silent, thinking about their sister's inspiring speech. They knew what they should do, they had already had their fair share of battles, but even so, none of them was battle-hardened veterans like their other sisters, there was still doubt and hesitation.

"I'm ready to serve ma'am!" Silke spoke, saluting the Palatine.

"I never thought about giving up, I would be breaking the code of our order if I did." Olcinia spoke next, cocking her bolter.

"Well, you said it beautifully! Maybe you deserve to be our Palatine, let's see if you fight as well as you talk!" Gena exclaimed, lightly tapping her eviscerator on her shoulder.

"Ha, you are crazy; we are all going to die!" Victoria exclaimed, twirling her knives.

Palatine Ania perked up at her sisters' response and smiled happily at her companions.

"Are you guys finished with your emotional talk? We still have a mission to complete; my Chapter Master awaits my return." Haratekius spoke irritably, interrupting the sisters.

"Wow! You know how to ruin the moment!" Gena exclaimed, throwing her arms up.

"I'd rather not waste time when I could be taking action." Haratekius spoke, passing the sisters and going deeper into the city's alleys.

The battle sisters stared at Haratekius's back and then looked at the Palatine, waiting for an answer.

"Chapter culture, I guess." Palatine Ania shrugged before following the Techmarine with her sisters close behind.

-XXXXXX-

The group walked through the alleys of the city of Tismator with weapons ready and eyes and ears open, whatever was running through the city's systems could attack at any moment.

Ania and Haratekius led the group, with the space marines behind and the sisters in the center, always monitoring their surroundings with slow and careful steps.

The group passed through forks in the alleys, heading deeper into the maze of buildings, eventually, they reached the end of the alley, where Palatine, Ania, and Haratekius poked their heads out from under the roof and surveyed the street.

It was quiet, very quiet, at no point did they encounter the heretics attacking the city, they probably entrenched themselves in strategic points like the communications center.

Speaking of the communications center, the battle sister and the Techmarine spotted a large building in the distance with several antennas on top. This was the communications center.

"Our objective is close." Haratekius commented.

"Yes, but we will have to return to the open where we will be exposed." Palatine Ania replied.

"I agree, alternatively we can approach from inside the buildings." Haratekius suggested.

"Or we can return to the sewers." Palatine Ania replied, pointing to a manhole in the middle of the street.

"Hm… In one of the options we take the faster route, but we run greater risks, in the other two we take the longer route and we run fewer risks, but we will have less space to fight."

"I believe we should go through the sewers, less chance of finding electronics trying to kill us."

"That would be the most desirable outcome, we will continue with your plan."

Palatine, Ania, and Haratekius exchanged a wave before signaling their respective groups to move forward, exiting the alley one at a time.

The group approached the manhole, but before they could remove the cover, the multicolored electricity returned, this time rushing from the poles toward the cars parked on the street.

The various vehicles were covered in intense electricity, singeing the metal with loud cracks and causing the cars to shake intensely.

VVVRRROOOMMM!

Suddenly the noise of dozens of engines echoed through the street, and the group realized what their enemy was planning.

"It's time…" A voice came from every car's radio simultaneously.

"…for an execution!"

Immediately a car on the left of the group came to life, its rear tires spinning at an absurd speed, burning the asphalt and sending up smoke.

The car made a sharp turn, leaving marks on the asphalt, and shot at full speed towards the group in the middle of the street.

The group quickly jumped out of the way, causing the car to pass straight past them and crash into a store window, breaking the glass and spilling the products on display onto the car's hood.

Nevertheless, as quickly as he had advanced, the car backed up, shifting into reverse and trying to hit the group again.

Haratekius was the first to act, striking the back of the car with his maul and sending it flying, where it collided with a post, knocking it over.

That wasn't the end of the attack, as more cars started up and sped toward the group, their engines roaring and tires screeching and painting the asphalt.

The group did their best to destroy the approaching cars, Haratekius violently hitting the vehicles, turning them into balls of crushed metal that flew away with each hit.

Palatine Ania fired her plasma pistol, melting the cars' engines and causing the entity possessing them to abandon the vehicles when they lost their usefulness.

Meanwhile, the rest of the sisters and space marines fired their weapons to keep the vehicles away, or in Silke's case, their flamer, although the weapon only served to turn the cars into flaming battering rams.

"We are in an unfavorable position, we need to move immediately." Haratekius spoke, throwing a car away with a swing of his maul.

"Into the buildings, then!" Palatine Ania responded, melting a car's tires with one shot from her pistol.

"My space marines and I will create an opening." Haratekius responded and commanded his space marines.

Haratekius had to act hastily as a motorcade of vehicles turned the corner and approached the group similar to a tsunami going at full speed while honking their horns.

As the thunderous cacophony of engines approached, Haratekius ordered his battle brothers to fire their Tesla carbines in tandem at each of the cars surrounding them.

The cars were covered in intense white lightning, melting the metal and tires into a bright orange and black goo, smoke poured from the now-melting engine and eventually, the car exploded as the fuel tank was hit.

The process was repeated with the other vehicles and a passage was quickly opened towards one of the buildings. The group of sisters advanced while the space marines followed close behind.

The group entered the building just in time to escape the wave of metal that rushed down the street, looking like a distorted train covered in electricity.

Looking around, the group of sisters and space marines realized they were in a restaurant. However, the group had to move again, as the last cars that came at the end of the motorcade made another sharp turn and invaded the restaurant, destroying the facade of the building.

The group entered the restaurant's kitchen via a pair of metal double doors.

"Does anyone else smell gas?" Olcinia asked.

Scanning their surroundings, the group noticed that all the burners on all the stoves in the kitchen were completely open, filling the space with gas to the point that the distortion in the air was visible.

"To the back, now!" Palatine Ania ordered, pointing to a door on the other side of the kitchen.

The group crossed the kitchen without wasting time, meanwhile, the noise of the stove flames trying to be lit was heard by everyone, making the group move faster, except for the space marines who followed Haratekius.

"These guys can't go any faster to save their lives?!?" Victoria exclaimed.

"Such inaction would result in execution on my home planet." Silke commented without much emotion.

"Brother Haratekius, I'm sorry for my words, but I find your chapter's combat doctrine questionable!" Olcinia spoke in the middle of her run.

Haratekius just grumbled in anger and frustration at the comments thrown at his space marines.

Luckily, the group got out of the restaurant in time, ripping the back door off its hinges, but they didn't make it far before…

BOOM!

The restaurant exploded in a ball of fire, wood, stone, and metal, filling the alley where the group was running with flames and causing the shock wave to bounce off the walls, knocking some of the sisters to the ground in the middle of their run.

Silke muttered an insult as he fell to the ground, but before he got up, the sound of a horn echoed through the alley.

A truck approached from the other side of the alley, crossing the flames that came from the restaurant while dragging its sides along the walls of the buildings, throwing sparks everywhere.

"Scheiße!" Silke exclaimed as she saw the truck approaching.

Quickly, Haratekius picked up the fallen battle sister and held her under his left arm as he returned to his run.

HONK!

HONK!

HONK!

The truck honked its horn as it chased the group, running over everything in its path and throwing trashcans away.

Still being held by Haratekius, Silke took a grenade from her belt and removed the pin, letting the grenade roll down the alley and stop near the left wheel of the truck.

BOOM!

The grenade exploded, destroying the left front region of the truck and causing it to bounce slightly. The truck skidded violently with one of its wheels destroyed and lost its acceleration, colliding repeatedly against the walls of buildings.

This allowed the group to exit the alley and jump to the sides, causing the runaway truck to skid down the street, where it finally lost its balance and overturned, sliding across the asphalt before colliding with a building, destroying much of its facade and lifting a cloud of dust.

"He finished?" Victoria asked, looking for more killer vehicles.

As if Destiny had heard the battle sister's words, the truck's engine exploded, covering the frontal region with flames, and now that the truck was not trying to run them over, the group saw what load the vehicle was carrying.

A large silver cylindrical tank was now ruptured and spilling its contents onto the ground.

There was no need to say what was going to happen for everyone to get out of there immediately, the sisters and the space marines ran as fast as they could before a huge explosion shook the block.

The structure of the buildings was shaken, the building where the truck was collapsed, glass rained from hundreds of destroyed windows, fuel and flaming metal fell like rain and a huge cloud of smoke covered the street, enveloping the fleeing group.

"Cough, cough! Everyone is fine?!?" Palatine Ania shouted, standing up and shaking her hand to disperse the smoke.

"I'm still alive!" Gena exclaimed, using her eviscerator as a cane to stand up.

"My bones are all in place, I think." Victoria muttered lying on the ground as she held her sore side.

"I will take notes on combat so this doesn't happen again if we encounter a similar situation." Olcinia spoke to herself, gripping the sides of her helmet as the world spun around her.

"I'm glad you're safe, but where are Silke and Haratekius?" Palatine Ania asked, looking around.

"I'm here ma'am!" Silke exclaimed, waving at Ania.

When the smoke cleared, Ania saw Silke waving, still being held under Haratekius's arm.

"Can you put me down now?" Silke asked Haratekius.

Haratekius's response was to open his arm and let Silke fall flat on her face, but fortunately, her helmet cushioned the impact.

"Ouch! Thanks." Silke muttered.

While Palatine Ania checked on her sisters, Haratekius went towards his space marines and analyzed their armor, noticing that small, shiny cracks had formed in the metal.

Quickly looking back, Haratekius saw that the sisters were not paying attention to him, so Haratekius extended his hand towards the space marines, where a light came out of the Techmarine's palm and repaired the cracks in the armor, soon after Haratekius did the same. I really can.

"Haratekius, is everything okay with your marines and you?" Palatine Ania asked worriedly, approaching the space marines.

"Yes, everything running at one hundred percent efficiency." Haratekius responded nodding at her.

Palatine Ania waved back and both groups returned to their advance, realizing that the communications center was close to the point that as they turned a corner, they saw the building at the end of the street.

It was also possible to see signs of the fighting that took place there, the buildings and streets were covered in bullet marks, destroyed vehicles were abandoned on the asphalt and the bodies of fighters from both sides were left to rot.

As if that wasn't enough, the heretics fortified the site, barricading doors and windows, leaving just enough space to see the enemy and fire, and modified vehicles were parked next to the building in a defensive formation, serving as shields and barricades.

Meanwhile, masked heretics wearing improvised combat gear, autoguns, and homemade weapons patrolled the area, taking up guard positions while small patrols checked that everything was in order.

"Palatine Ania, I believe this is where our paths split." Haratekius spoke as the group retreated, taking cover on the side of a building.

"What do you mean by that?" Palatine Ania asked, raising an eyebrow.

"My brothers and I will create a distraction so that you can enter the communications center uneventfully."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes, the sooner communications return to normal, the better. Your sisters need reinforcements, don't they? We will ensure you complete your objective."

Palatine Ania was silent, considering Haratekius' proposal. She didn't like the idea of leaving the space marines behind, but she knew the mission was more important than her feelings on the matter.

"Then so be it, Haratekius. I wish you safety and may the Emperor guide you." Palatine Ania responded, making the imperial keel symbol and praying for the safety of the space marines.

"I wish the same for you." Haratekius responded before marching towards the communications center with his space marines following him.

"Hey, try not to die, okay?" Gena smiled saying goodbye to the space marine.

"Please don't be careless on the battlefield, and try to move faster." Olcinia commented, saying goodbye.

"Don't forget to leave some of the heretics for me." Victoria muttered moving away from Haratekius.

"I hope we meet on the battlefield again." Silke spoke quickly as the space marine walked away.

Haratekius waved goodbye to the sisters and advanced towards the communications center, while the battle sisters went around the building, approaching from one side.

There was no glorious speech or threats to the heretics, Haratekius just trucked towards the communications center with his brothers close behind, giving himself time to be noticed by the heretics.

With surprised shouts, maniacal laughter, and profane insults, the heretics prepared their weapons.

"Open fire; eliminate all organics in the name of our Lord." Haratekius ordered, before assuming a running position, to fire toward a patrol of cultists who had taken cover behind an abandoned car.

Haratekius was on top of them before any shots were fired, and swung his maul at blinding speed, turning the group of cultists into a red mist faster than they could register.

As if a button had been pressed, the cultists realized the threat their enemies posed and immediately opened fire, sending a hail of bullets toward the space marines.

Unfortunately, for the cultists, the bullets did nothing to stop the Astartes' advance, as the projectiles ricocheted off the space marines' armor in a series of metallic cracks.

Simultaneously, the space marines returned fire with shots from their Tesla carbines, boiling the air with bright white electricity that quickly closed the distance towards the cultists.

Those who were not immediately hit and turned into a charred corpse on the ground were electrocuted to death by being in contact with some metallic object, usually the vehicles they used as cover.

In a slow, robotic, and synchronous march, the space marines advanced, leaving a trail of destruction in their path.

Haratekius swung his maul again, turning another group of cultists into a red paste on the ground, or the cultist opened against Haratekius' back.

This only served to attract the attention of the Techmarine who raised his maul and smashed the cultist against the ground, leaving a crushed body in a crater in the asphalt.

Haratekius was ready to continue the fight, but the multicolored electricity returned, covering the buildings around him, again the various household appliances flew out of the buildings.

Instead of trying to hit Haratekius and his marines, the various objects gathered in the center of the street, a few meters away from Haratekius.

The metal distorted, contorted, and crackled as electricity flowed through the objects, changing their shape brutally, eventually the mass of metal took on a humanoid shape.

First, there were circular feet with three metal spikes extending forward like fingers, then a mass of cables and wires serving as legs with metal in place of knees and hips.

The various objects formed an irregular twist, made up of several appliances combined roughly and messily, with spikes and slivers of metal extending in different directions, similar to a pincushion.

Eventually, the arms appeared. Also composed of wires wrapped in metal, they were as thick as tree trunks, with metal plates protecting the joints.

The thing's hands were distinct; its left hand was made up of three fingers with claws at the tip and held a mass of stripped pole wires taking the shape of a whip covered in electricity.

His right hand looked like a morning star covered in metallic spikes.

Finally, the creature's head formed, revealing a large screen made up of TV screens of different sizes held together by wires and metal supports.

The screen was covered in static before a familiar symbol appeared on it; an eight-pointed star with an eye in the center, the eye opened and looked around, before focusing on Haratekius.

After seeing its enemy, the creature rose to its full height, revealing it three meters tall in total, and a more extremely disproportionate and irregular humanoid body, painted with the colors of the various objects that made up its body.

"You finally decided to show up." Haratekius spoke, approaching the creature.

"I…" The image on the creature's screens changed, showing an episode from a series.

"…challenge you!" The channel changed again, showing a scene from an action movie.

"And I accept your challenge. I am Haratekius, Techmarine of the Phantom Knights Chapter. Can I know what my opponent's name is?" Haratekius asked.

"I…"

"…am…"

"Kil…"

"volt…"

"…and I…"

"…will be you…"

"… end!"

The creature spoke, quickly changing channels to form a sentence before cracking its whip and running towards Haratekius with its mace hand raised.

END OF CHAPTER