Following the commissar's pointing finger, Zhang Ge directed his gaze to the corresponding position on the map. That spot was precisely the weak point in the defensive line where they had initially breached.
Amid the jolting of the rapidly moving Chira, the commissar's speech was initially sowhat unclear, but he quickly adapted:
"According to the original plan, the Astra Militarum units intended to support the assault were not to withdraw to their positions but to regroup slightly further back. By now, they should have received reinforcents from the base."
At this point, the commissar raised his right hand and glanced at the ti on his watch.
"We're not behind schedule. Therefore, once we launch another attack on the cultists from the rear, those Astra Militarum units will initiate another assault to support us."
Hearing this, Zhang Ge pondered for a mont and realized that the chances of this plan succeeding were actually quite high.
Even though the cultists had heightened their vigilance after the initial attack, the troops they had redeployed wouldn't return so quickly. Given the cultists' organizational capabilities and equipnt, it would be difficult for them to withstand a coordinated assault from the Astra Militarum and the Chira's rear attack.
For one thing, the Astra Militarum could use their lasguns to pick off cultists from a kiloter away. How could the cultists retaliate with their autoguns? Their heavy stubbers and other heavy weapons, if not used properly, would likely be quickly neutralized.
As his thoughts flowed, the rapidly moving Chira soon returned to the outskirts of the position they had previously ravaged. Surprisingly, the cultists still showed no signs of heightened alertness.
Although they had indeed reinforced so external positions, the main force remained as disorganized as ever, as if the breach they had suffered earlier hadn't happened to them.
The primary reason was their own incompetence, but there was also a slight change in the plan.
Initially, the Chira had outpaced the Astra Militarum units that were supposed to support the assault. Although the Astra Militarum eventually reached their designated positions, according to scout reports, the commander of this unit judged that the Chira had already crossed the position and thus cautiously refrained from launching an attack.
This led the cultists to misjudge the number of Astra Militarum troops deployed here, and they naturally assud that it was just a single transport vehicle that had passed through. Could it possibly dare to charge back?
Moreover, ordering their troops to heighten their alertness over a single transport vehicle was sothing they were unwilling to do. Better to keep the music playing and the dance going!
Then the Chira proved them wrong—it really did dare.
And because the first wave of Astra Militarum hadn't launched their attack, after receiving reinforcents, their numbers were even greater than originally planned. Two fully equipped Astra Militarum infantry companies were ready to strike, and two Sentinel walkers remained unscathed.
Not far away, as the Chira ca to a temporary halt and the commissar exited the vehicle to fire a signal flare, the assault began.
In front of the cultists' position, smoke grenades launched from rapid-fire grenade launchers arced out from their concealed positions and landed on the cultists' lines.
As the smoke grenades burst in the air, releasing thick white clouds, the enemy position was completely enveloped in smoke.
Although the cultists realized they were under attack, the suddenness of the strike and the loss of visibility left them unable to mount an effective counterattack imdiately. They could only blindly spray fire in the direction from which the smoke grenades had co.
Such a counterattack was, of course, aningless. On the Astra Militarum side, the commander had already deployed scouts to mark the coordinates of the enemy's heavy weapons. In this situation, the heavy weapons teams at the platoon and company level didn't need direct line of sight; they could engage based on this information.
Under the crossfire of the deployed heavy weapons, bullets and shells accurately pierced through the smoke, eliminating the cultists' firing positions amidst explosions and flickering flas.
And this was just the prelude to the assault. After completing the initial bombardnt, the Sentinels equipped with multi-rocket launchers moved into position, their chanical legs clanking as they advanced.
As they took their positions, a sharp whistling sound filled the air, and countless rockets spewed from their launchers, hurtling toward the cultists' position.
The airburst cluster munitions rained down like a curtain, scattering countless submunitions across the battlefield. The shrapnel tore through the fragile bodies of the cultists, painting a hellish scene as if death itself had descended.
At this mont, the rapidly moving red Chira appeared at the other end of the cultists' position. To avoid friendly fire, the Astra Militarum ceased their heavy bombardnt, but countless lasgun beams continued to suppress the smoke-covered enemy position.
Caught off guard, the cultists suffered heavy losses, making it extrely difficult for them to maintain their position, let alone intercept the terrifyingly fast Chira—in fact, within the smoke, they couldn't even see their target, only hearing the sound of tracks and engines rushing past, occasionally punctuated by the screams of those being crushed.
With the support of the Astra Militarum, this breakthrough was even easier than the first. The Chira raced through the smoke without needing to maneuver, quickly reaching the other side.
Of course, although the cultists' position seed on the verge of collapse, and one more charge would easily secure it, it was clear that this small force of Astra Militarum couldn't hold off counterattacks from cultists in other directions.
Thus, after completing their assigned covering mission, the Astra Militarum left only a small rearguard and quickly withdrew, showing no intention of lingering.
On their own side of the battlefield.
To ensure the swiftness of the entire operation, there was no handover process between the Chira and the Astra Militarum. The vehicle, now littered with severed limbs, passed through the cleared area on their side, leaving behind two Sentinel pilots who, despite pushing their machines to the limit, were once again left far behind.
Based on the sudden calm after the intense jolting, Zhang Ge roughly judged that the Chira had crossed the enemy's position. He couldn't help but feel disappointed at the cultists' lack of resistance, but he still asked, unwilling to let it go:
"Is it over? After this, do I return to my original unit for defense?"
The commissar turned and stared at Zhang Ge for a mont before replying:
"No, you and Sister Aliar are to head to the convent. Your situation is special and cannot be delayed. I will also contact the Inquisition."
On one hand, this statent referred to the urgency of purging corruption, but it also carried the implication that once he contacted the Inquisition, there wouldn't be much ti before they arrived.
If the call was made too late, the gap between the end of the operation and the call would beco a point of suspicion, which would be detrintal to the subsequent investigation.
Hearing this, Zhang Ge could only turn his gaze to Sister Aliar and ask:
"I've heard that the Sisters of Battle like to burn people. Is that true?"
Reviews
All reviews (0)