Work Text:
Engine Kill – A very non-canonical Omake
: Words : - Radio/Vox
++ Words or Hex ++ Noosphere or Binaric Cant
Words – Thoughts
Armsmaster:
Armsmaster’s phone rang. Not his personal cell, he almost never got calls on it, not his PRT cell, not even his office VOIP. It was an older model phone, simple, only a standard keypad and blood red body. The phone he hated hearing ring but rang every three months. The Endbringer Alert Telephony System (EATS). Almost dropping the delicate nano-proc he was working on he picked it up with a feeling of dread.
“Armsmaster, Protectorate Command ENE, how may I help you Sir, Ma’am or Sergeant.” A waste of time perhaps but protocol was protocol for a reason.
“Protectorate ENE this is NNC Flash Traffic, Case Lima, I say again Case Lima. Initial reports Codename Lima 45 mikes out, initial track from Northern Watch and SOSUS indicate landfall in your AOR. Tentative target, Boston”
Case Lima, Levithan, coming here, coming to Boston. Dragon and the Navy agree. Armsmaster thought to himself.
At least it is not Case Omaha.
Throughout the PRT and Protectorate, classified safes were opened, checklists were initiated and everyone, hero and villain alike were contacted, deep in Crying Ann Mountain, giant steel doors were closed, and generators began to roar.
As Miss Milita worked to get every parahuman she could muster to the rally point for transfer to Boston. Armsmaster made a call. This call was not on any checklist or procedure.
“Tech-Priest, this is Armsmaster, Levithan is 45 minutes from Boston, will you help?”
The silence of the moment was deafening before a mechanically modified female voice responded.
“The Xenos will be purged. Legio Titanica Brockton will walk” The phone clicked and Armsmaster was left staring at it.
What is Legio Titanica Brockton? Some new weapons project she is working on? And why Walk? I could almost hear the capital letters in her voice. At least she will help.
Armsmaster’s radio squawked.
:Armsmaster, This Console:
:This is Armsmaster, go ahead. Over:
:Armsmaster, pull up RAID camera 5 there is something happening down by the old shipyard, Over.:
:Console, Armsmaster we have Case Lima and you want me to look at ‘something’. Out:
Armsmaster’s frustration leaked even though the radio. With an eyeblink on his HUD be pulled up the camera feed.
Buildings, what PRT S-2 had briefed as warehouses, had begun to split apart and three… things had begun to rise on what must have been hidden elevators. Two were smaller, if small could be applied to a 17m tall walker. They were vaguely bird like with reverse jointed legs and where the wings should be, what were obvious weapons hung. One was painted in Marpat camouflage, the other a motley of colors and shapes that almost hurt the eyes. The third dwarfed them all, 140m tall, even taller than the rig’s 103m from the sea floor. It looked like a hunched over, armored knight with a castle on its back. What must have been secondary or even tertiary armament could be seen in the castle manned by Skittarii looking like tiny red dots behind the gun ports. In place of one arm the walker carried what looked like a giant cannon, larger than Schwerer Gustav. The other was four clawed hand, each claw 15m in length crackling with blue lighting.
The radio crackled again and the voice of Tech-Priest, overlaid with the sound of machinery reported with crisp precision.
++ 50 72 61 69 73 65 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 ++
Tech-Priest:
:Legio Titanica Brockton deployed. Combat Strength, Two Warhound Titans, Volkite Armed. Callsigns Semper Fidelis and Besotten Jenny. One Imperator Psi-Titan, armament classified Black Omega. Call sign Pax Imperialis. Break:
:Time to maximum effective range Boston Harbor 5 mikes. Moving to Rally point Breeds Hill ETA 25 mikes. Will contact PRT TOC upon arrival. Tech-Priest Out:
++ 50 72 61 69 73 65 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 ++
Tech-Priest:
I hate Psi Titans. Tech-Priest thought to herself. The God Machine is supposed to be the glory of the Omnimessiah but the Psi Titan is an abomination. The Sinistramanus Tenebrae had been a work in and of itself. There were no psykers on Earth Bet but there were Parahumans. Experimentation had shown that each Parahuman had an other-dimensional link. It was not to the warp but close enough to power the Sinistramanus Tenebrae. They scream, no matter how much shielding I can hear them scream. Tech-Priest increased her emotional damping implant.
The Mantiple walked with deceptive speed, their sheer size making them look slow. Each footstep crunched into I95 leaving potholes almost as deep as those it naturally carried. As they passed Lynn Woods the VOX on Pax Imperialis crackled and spat the Machine Spirits linking to the lesser spirits used by PRT Boston.
:All stations this net, All stations this net this is PRT Boston, Code Name Lima approaching Boston Light house:
++ 50 72 61 69 73 65 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 ++
Inside Pax Imperialis:
++ Moderati ++ Tech-Priest sent over the Noosphere
++ Are we within Deathstrike Range?++
++ Affirmative, Princeps ++
++ Prepare Deathstrike for ripple launch ++
In the violent and powerful Machine Spirit of Pax Imperialis, Tech-Priest could feel the blood lust.
++ 44 65 61 74 68 20 74 6F 20 74 68 65 20 65 6E 65 6D 69 65 73 20 6F 66 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 ++
++ Semper Fidelus, Jenny, On order sound the war horns. ++
With a thought, Tech-Priest took over both Vox and Noosphere from PRT Boston. Some of the ICE put in by Dragon fought back for milliseconds but Pax Imperialis had old e-war systems. The Black ICE and daemons that had forced greater and more cunning AIs behind the blackwall and held them there during the dark age of technology. It was a fight that was decided even before it started.
:All Stations, All Stations Heavy Metal Inbound, Missile Strike 5 seconds on the Lima. Danger close 1km. ATOMIC ATOMIC ATOMIC:
: Pax Imperialis, this is PRT Boston what…:
Tech-Priest muted the meatbag’s ramblings.
:ATOMIC ATOMIC ATOMIC:
Technically, the Deathstrike was not atomic but those not blessed by the Omni Messiah would not know the difference.
The Deathstrike launchers lifted from the shoulders of Pax Imperialis. Looking like four M270 MLRS loaded with ATACMS. Their deadly nature evident even to the dimmest meatbag.
++ Sound the War Horns and Launch the Deathstrikes ++
The mind shattering hunting howl of three titans shook greater Boston. The three nearest Dunks (they were all in the same intersection) were ground to dust by the sheer sound. Anyone not inside a bunker began to bleed from their nose and ears.
Missile engines screamed with hate as the Deathstrikes launched one after another, The Cognators calculated each trajectory so they would initiate one after another never getting into the one before blast wave.
++ 50 72 61 69 73 65 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 ++
PRT Boston:
Director Armstrong, a tall man, straw haired but balding, rippling with muscle from generations of weightlifting and training, stared in almost religious awe at the scene played out on the RAID cameras. Leviathan was not dead or even very wounded, but the strike had melted its outer layers leaving Leviathan looking like so much melted wax over its normal shape.
The two Warhounds rushed ahead like wolves sensing injured prey. Meanwhile, the parahumans already in Boston, like homicidal hummingbirds unleashed a multicolored hell of lasers, masers and more exotic forms of energy on Leviathan. Semper Fidelis and Besotten Jenny soon added the power of their archeotech Volkites. The Volkites did not damage Leviathan in the least but the heat of the Volkites vaporized the water Leviathan was using for his shadow and waves leaving the Parahumans time and space to attack the beast.
:All Stations this is PRT Boston, Lima is making a shortest time path toward the CSH, we cannot evacuate casualties at this time.:
++ 50 72 61 69 73 65 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 ++
The Sergeant Major, Princeps of the Semper Fidelus quickly sorted through his options.
Pax Imperialis will not be in main gun range for another 2 minutes. Volkite are useless to stop this thing. The parahumans can’t stop it with the Triumvirate still inbound. I am not going to let Lima fuck with Doc.
The Moderati broke into his thoughts.
++ Reactor at 90% ++
The reactor, Anti-Matter powered, low chance of fallout. It is my only fucking option.
++ Moderati, Prepare Reactor for overload on my signal ++
The Sergeant Major activated a control. Two red banners unfurled from the Warhound. One, the flag of the budding Mechanicus. The other, the Eagle, Globe and Anchor of the USMC.
An old song began to play over the external speakers… From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli…
:Anti-Matter Anti-Matter Anti Matter:
:Anti-Matter Anti-Matter Anti Matter:
The Warhound waded in to the harbor. Void shields flaring and Volkite spewing fire as it rushed toward Leviathan. At the last moment the Semper Fidelus ducked down fully under the dirty water of the bay as its reactor went critical.
The superheated steam of the bay water flash heated and expanding near Levithans feet launched the Xenos far back to the mouth of the bay. Removing the threat to the CSH at least for the moment.
As his very atoms were ripped apart The Sergeant Major had a last thought.
Once a Marine, Always a Marine.
++ 50 72 61 69 73 65 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 ++
Besotten Jenny:
Besotten Jenny and her Princeps, Engineseer, Let out a deep roar of grief and fury. Princeps and Machine Spirit fused as one.
To be Hunted
That is the Mark of the Xenos
To be Purged
That is the Fate of the Xenos
To be Cleansed
For that is the Fate of All Xenos
Besotten Jenny and Engineseer fired their Volkite, striding forward toward Levithan. Warning sirens blared in the cockpit. Weapons glowed red hot in rage and loss, the water of the bay burned and smoked like an Eldar baby after a visit from the Salamanders. Just as they were close to the end of their death ride, their auspex showed the arrival of Pax Imperialis.
++ 50 72 61 69 73 65 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 ++
Leviathan looked northwest to Breeds Hill. Freezing for a moment like a hyena in the presence of a hunting lion. Then it MOVED. Faster than ever recorded, heading inland, trying desperately to close to melee range of the Pax Imperialis.
The targeting cognators of Pax Imperialis had already calculated a center of mass shot for the Sinistramanus Tenebrae. Leviathan’s burst of speed threw the calculations off by the smallest portion of a minute of angle. The cannon blast, an unholy green light, showed faces of screaming humans, slammed into the left side of Levithan’s torso ripping a hole clean through it.
Levithan closed the distance whipping out with its water shadow. The first void shield flared and fell like a popped soap bubble. It clawed at the second void shield draining it with whipping attacks from its tail and clawing at the shield.
++Moderati: Time to main gun recharge? ++
++30 seconds Princeps. ++
++All guns, Final Defensive Fires, Target Lima++
Pax Imperialis looked like it had exploded for a moment as every weapon discharged simultaneously at a cyclic rate of fire. The slow thump, thump of mortars mixing with the dakka, dakka of twin-linked heavy bolters and the zip of lascannons.
30 seconds, I have to hold this filthy xenos off for 30 seconds though Tech-Priest to herself.
Pax Imperialis’ Power Claw dug deep gouges into Levithan’s flesh. A holding action only.
20 seconds
The final void shield broke under the xenos assault. A shield that could withstand any orbital bombardment short of a planet killer failed to the small xenos. The next attack carved into the front carapace of Pax Imperialis. Feedback from the slash ripped into Tech-Priest leaving bloody cuts across her chest.
With a last heave, Pax Imperialis threw Levithan back and the Sinistramanus Tenebrae fired again like a 12ga against a pigeon. At this short range it could not miss. The multi-dimensional blast ripped into Levithan, vaporizing layer after layer of the xenos until there was nothing left.
++ 50 72 61 69 73 65 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 ++
Tech-Priest:
From the weakness of the mind, Omnissiah save us
From the lies of the Antipath, circuit preserve us
From the rage of the Beast, iron protect us
From the temptations of the Flesh, silica cleanse us
From the ravages of the Destroyer, anima shield us
From this rotting cage of biomatter, Machine God set us free.
Tech-Priest floated in her tank of amniotic fluid, bleeding from every pore of flesh left in her body. Leviathan was down for good, the Sinistramanus Tenebrae having done its job. She made a single transmission on Vox, speaker and noosphere before slipping into blessed unconsciousness.
:Engine Kill:
Engine Kill
++ 45 6E 67 69 6E 65 20 4B 69 6C 6C ++
AN:
Besotten Jenny – See battle for Castle Itter from IRL history.
Did you miss spell Cheyenne Mountain? No, IYKYK
Why don’t I show more of the Parahumans? This is an Engine battle. Unless the Triumvirate are around, the only Parahumans that matter are Flechette and Panacea.
Why not do the casualty calls like a regular Endbringer battle? They annoy the hell out of me, and IMHO are overused.
Loadouts are not Codex Compliant: Meh, that is why it is an omake.
Were you ever/are a Marine? No, I was in another branch but respect the hell out of the USMC.
Why Hex instead of Binary? Hex does not take up as much document space.
Isn’t Code Vermillion the right code in 40K for the weapon? Yes. I just wanted to make a reference to best Psy-Cop from B5.
Hex cant translations:
50 72 61 69 73 65 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 – Praise the Omnimessiah
44 65 61 74 68 20 74 6F 20 74 68 65 20 65 6E 65 6D 69 65 73 20 6F 66 20 74 68 65 20 4F 6D 6E 69 6D 65 73 73 69 61 68 - Death to the enemies of the Omnimessiah
45 6E 67 69 6E 65 20 4B 69 6C 6C – Engine Kill