Abathur's mind was buzzing with fury. He would likely prioritize developing new anti-Tyranid units.
Contrary to popular belief, the Tyranids are not static. They evolve.
During the Shadowbrink campaign, Nurgle's plagues reduced Tyranid spores and organisms to pools of slurry—but later, the Tyranids adapted. They evolved mid-battle.
Of course, Genestealers are somewhat independent of the Hive Mind. Their evolution is slower.
If the Tyranid Hive Fleets are the internet, Genestealers are just a local area network.
†Time's almost up.†
The purge of the cult in the underhive continued. The infected were slow, but numerous enough to level the entire Hive City.
A few uninfected survivors in the Underhive had already relayed reports to the Upper Hive. There, infection rates were low, and quarantine measures were strict. At the first sign of symptoms, the infected were eliminated.
Yes. Eliminated. Exactly how you imagine. Executed, then fed into incinerators. Their belongings burned with them.
The Upper Hive and Spire care nothing for your life. If you pose a risk of infection, you are reduced to ash.
"Overmind. Leviathans are incubated. Our fleet now has two additional Leviathans."
†Three Leviathans in four months. Hmm. Decent. At this rate, in ten thousand years, I might barely match the Imperium's current fleet numbers.†
Just saying it was depressing. But the Zerg Swarm's current strength was truly incomparable to the Imperium's millennia of accumulated might.
The infected had reached the passages between the Underhive and Upper Hive. Every passage was fortified by uninfected Astra Militarum and Planetary Defense Forces. They lacked full protective suits, but they knew the enemy spread infection. Krieger-style gas masks covered their faces.
Heavy autocannons stood ready at the front. Artillery pieces were positioned behind. Armored vehicles and tanks filled the gaps. Anything attempting to cross these passages was annihilated.
The Upper Hive was rich in military assets.
The moment the infected entered range, they were torn apart by heavy autocannons.
With their current strength, breakthrough was impossible.
But that was fine. Their purpose was to die. Meanwhile, swarms of infected had overrun power plants and military factories in the Underhive, systematically dismantling the Hive's infrastructure.
Though the Upper Hive had its own factories, they couldn't sustain the entire Hive.
The countdown to death was accelerating.
"Stop them! Not a single one gets through!"
PDT and Astra Militarum commanders stood at the front lines, directing fusillades of fire.
The few infected that reached the forward positions were turned into living torches by flamers. They collapsed within seconds.
"Those xenos did this to the underhive citizens! By the Emperor, every xenos deserves death!"
"Keep firing! Don't stop!"
Such a fortified line was unbreachable by the infected alone. Even with Zerg Swarm reinforcements, a Nydus Worm would be necessary.
This was where the Leviathans proved their worth.
Three Leviathans warped in beyond the planetary orbital defense grid. Swarms of Mutalisks and Banelings surged forth. Guardians and Devourers orbited the Leviathans. Brood Lords emerged from warp rifts far from the engagement.
The rifts, of course, were opened by the Swarm Overmind's psychic power—a means of short-range transport when Leviathans were unavailable.
In short, a massive Zerg Swarm armada materialized beyond the planet.
But...
The Imperial fleet outnumbered the Zerg!
One Emperor-class battleship. Over ten Lunar-class and other pattern cruisers. Over twenty escorts and frigates of various classes. The Swarm Overmind's carapace crawled just looking at it.
†An Emperor-class battleship I can stomach—after ten thousand years of heresy and chaos, the Imperium's full of surprises. But THAT many conventional warships? Ridiculous.†
It truly was ridiculous. Most planetary governor fleets were half this size. Often a third.
The planetary orbital defense platforms opened fire first. These automated batteries, built into asteroids, packed devastating firepower. Mutalisk swarms scattered, engaging the platforms. Some larger asteroids had been hollowed into fortresses.
†Dismantle the defense platforms.†
Leviathans attacked. Three colossal maws gaped, unleashing immense organic plasma cannons. Streams of corrosive bio-projectiles crossed vast distances, slamming into the asteroid fortresses.
No fortress could withstand Leviathan main guns. They shattered.
Guardians and Devourers methodically cleared the smaller batteries.
The entire orbital defense network delayed the Zerg Swarm fleet by two Terran hours before being completely annihilated. Zerg losses: some Mutalisks and Banelings.
†Leviathans, maintain formation. My Leviathan takes point. I'll absorb the heavy fire. Secondary Leviathans prioritize destroyers and frigates.†
Too many destroyers and frigates. Even Leviathans would suffer under a torpedo barrage. Those "squishy" ships had to go first.
For an hour, the Imperial fleet had disengaged from its docking bays and formed battle lines, waiting.
"Admiral. Colonel Franken's ship remains docked."
The aging Navy admiral puffed his pipe, calm. "Ignore him. He's in the mess hall—or a cell. Overstepped his authority, petitioned the Governor directly. Led five ships out, came back with two. You think he still commands?"
Franken wasn't here. His failure—three ships lost—had cost him his command. He was imprisoned in the Spire. His ship sat idle.
But the Imperial Navy admiral didn't consider Franken's absence a loss. The enemy had three bioships. He commanded over thirty. Ten-to-one odds. Advantage: Imperial!
If only it were that simple.
Just as the Overmind braced for a fierce engagement, the situation unraveled.
A warp rift tore open beside the Imperial fleet. From it emerged a massive vessel—distorted flesh, rotting fly swarms, but still faintly recognizable as an Imperial warship.
More ships followed.
†SON OF A—How did plague marines get here?!†
Mass clusterfucks were also a cherished Warhammer tradition. A must-taste delicacy.
Within the Hive, a deep, resonant bell tolled. Every living creature heard it—through walls, through sealed ears, through flesh and bone.
The air thickened with ancient whispers.
"Toll the great bell once. Bestow the bounty of sores. Flesh reborn in decay."
The Bottom Hive, already foul, grew filthier still. Fungus, mushrooms, rotting tissue blanketed every surface.
A second peal echoed from the darkness below.
"Toll the great bell twice. Bestow the rain of corruption. New life conceived in filth."
The Underhive's water, once barely potable, now shimmered green. The stench of decay clawed at the senses.
A third peal, rising from the Hive's depths.
"Toll the great bell thrice. Bestow the wisdom of maggots. Truth woven in rot."
Countless corpses—unabsorbed by creep—burst with maggots. Flies swarmed every passage.
A fourth peal, reverberating through silent streets.
"Toll the great bell four times. Bestow the whispers of pestilence. Death carries the Plague Father's blessing in every breath."
Thick, viscous green fog rolled through the Bottom Hive and Underhive. Visibility dropped to zero.
A fifth peal, echoing across the sky.
"Toll the great bell five times. Bestow the joy of despair. Eternal pain, eternal laughter."
Imperial defenders across the planet erupted in uncontrollable, manic laughter. Grinning, weeping, faces twisted in agony.
A sixth peal, drifting softly into every ear.
"Toll the great bell six times. Bestow the eternity of decay. Time loses meaning in ruin."
Some defenders mutated into plague zombies on the spot. The corpses of Imperial citizens—already slain—began to move. Intact bodies rose. Fragments sprouted tiny limbs, squirming.
A seventh peal, shaking the soul.
"Toll the great bell seven times. Bestow the Plague Father's embrace. All things unite in Nurgle's garden."
Nurgle's blessing descended upon the planet. The veil between reality and the warp grew thin. Steel corroded. Flesh proliferated.
Plague zombies shambled from warp rifts, howling like beasts. Chaos Space Marines of the Death Guard warband, in rotting armor, stepped through the rift and surveyed their surroundings.
"Sevenfold blessings. Sevenfold eternity. Praise the Plague! Praise the Plague Father! Hahahahahaha~~~~"
The voice dissolved into a chilling laugh that faded into the depths of the Hive.
No one expected Nurgle's servants to arrive at this moment.
But this is Warhammer 40K.
The classic mass clusterfuck has begun.