Kherson II, this death world eternally ruled by extreme cold, has now become the most important medical recuperation site for the Rostov Expeditionary Force.
Thick ice covers the entire planetary surface, with temperatures constantly hovering around minus one hundred degrees Celsius, and howling cold winds carrying ice crystals, like invisible blades cutting through everything exposed.
The Dome City is the only human settlement on this planet; a gigantic transparent shield isolates the severe cold, while a massive heating system maintains a suitable temperature inside.
However, Sea Hare was in no mood to appreciate the artificial spring within the dome at this moment.
Ever since the exploration team discovered those eerie green life signs deep within the ice, he felt as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over him, and he was plunged into an unprecedented anxiety.
Those ice-sealed outlines—twisted muscles, ferocious fangs, and characteristic green skin—all pointed to a terrifying truth: Orks were buried on this planet.
"How could this be…" Sea Hare stood before the giant observation window of the central control room in the dome, gazing at the vast white ice plain outside, his fingers unconsciously tapping on the data pad.
His brow was furrowed, and fine beads of sweat seeped from his forehead; despite the comfortable temperature in the control room, he felt a chill.
This planet, as a medical recuperation site, inherently possessed little defensive capability.
The entire dome was only garrisoned by one Rostov Defense Force infantry regiment, and their primary task was to maintain internal order, not to deal with external threats.
The soldiers were equipped with nothing more than standard automatic rifles and a few armored vehicles; they didn't even have a decent heavy cannon.
As for the Astra Militarum casualties who came for recuperation—although their numbers were vast, they were merely scattered individuals, without organization, without a command structure, and not even weapons.
"Sir, the latest scan report." A Tech-Priest handed a data pad to Sea Hare, his mechanical voice uncharacteristically tinged with unease: "The life signals beneath the ice are much more active than we anticipated."
Sea Hare took the data pad, and the scan images on it sent a sharp pang through his stomach.
Those green outlines were not motionless, but slowly… wriggling? As if gradually awakening from slumber.
Even more terrifying, the scans showed that these creatures were distributed over an extremely wide area, almost covering the entire planet's underground ice layer.
"The Emperor above…" Sea Hare murmured, his fingers trembling unconsciously.
He knew the characteristics of Orks too well—as long as there were sufficient numbers and combat stimulation, they could evolve at an astonishing speed.
And now, the entire planet was like a giant time bomb; no one knew when those ice-sealed Orks would break out of the ice.
He quickly walked to the communication console, his fingers rapidly operating the control panel.
"Connect me to Kherson Prime, highest priority encrypted channel." His voice was slightly hoarse from tension: "We need reinforcements, immediately!"
But deep down, Sea Hare knew that distant water could not quench a nearby fire.
Even if Alex immediately dispatched troops, it would take time for the fleet to arrive.
And at present, the entire dome was like an undefended infant, exposed to the potential Ork threat.
"Sir, what should we do?" The adjutant asked nervously, his young face filled with fear.
"First, strengthen the dome's alert, and double the sentries at all entrances and exits. Second, organize all wounded who can carry a gun and form a temporary self-defense force." Sea Hare's gaze swept over every fearful face in the control room: "Remember, panic is more terrifying than the enemy. Before reinforcements arrive, we must hold this place ourselves."
Sea Hare's orders were quickly executed, and a temporary self-defense force was rapidly assembled.
Those Astra Militarum soldiers who had mostly recovered and were just waiting for discharge procedures readily responded to Sea Hare's orders; a group of officers even voluntarily stepped forward to organize the troops, and a seemingly decent force was assembled in a very short time.
But the problem was they didn't have enough weapons.
Although the Astra Militarum soldiers or officers who came for recuperation had some personal weapons, these were not enough to support them in fighting the Orks.
But Sea Hare had no choice; he found the Tech-Priest team responsible for maintaining the dome and requested them to urgently produce a batch of weapons.
Although these Tech-Priest did not refuse his request, they stated that both resources and equipment on this planet were currently limited, and they could only provide simple individual weapons such as automatic rifles and Lasguns, unable to provide any heavy firepower.
Sea Hare, of course, knew this situation, but at the moment, he could only actively prepare for battle while continuously sending communications to Alex requesting reinforcements.
Meanwhile, the Orks beneath the ice became increasingly active, and it was even detected that some Orks had broken through the ice surface.
However, the temperature on Kherson II was simply too low, and these Orks were re-frozen the moment they left the ice layer.
But as more and more Orks awakened, it was only a matter of time before they broke out of the ice and swept across the entire planet.
Fortunately, the reinforcements Sea Hare hoped for soon arrived.
"The Blood Knights Chapter, six hundred Astartes, have arrived to support." Chapter Master Yorl greeted Sea Hare with a booming voice, his expression seemingly filled with dissatisfaction, yet also a sense of relief and fortune.
"Weren't you on the Kharkov front? Why were you transferred here for support?" Sea Hare frowned slightly, but still voiced his confusion.
"Alex seems to have pulled some strings to borrow a Titan Legion; after they entered the battle in Kharkov, the front line was temporarily stabilized." Chapter Master Yorl gave Sea Hare a brief explanation, then asked: "Where are those abominable xenos? I can't wait to drink their blood!"
"Uh, Your Excellency, Astartes, Ork blood cannot be drunk…" Sea Hare quietly reminded Yorl, then explained the current situation to him and requested the Blood Knights to assist in defending the entire dome.
Facing Sea Hare's request, Yorl did not refuse, nor did he put on a disdainful face as if to say, "This old man is in a hurry to die, no time to waste with you." Instead, he cooperated very seriously with Sea Hare in arranging the defense.
Although Astartes have always been marginalized in the high-level political structure of the Imperium, in terms of general combat, Astartes clearly hold a higher status than regular Astra Militarum officers.
But Yorl, this time, was very cooperative and did not show the typical Astartes attitude of looking down on mortals or feeling that he should be superior.
However, Sea Hare still handed over command to Yorl; after all, he was a Chapter Master, who had fought more battles than Sea Hare had performed surgeries, so it was more reliable to entrust the matters of war command to him.
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