Rebirth of a Dynasty

Chapter 19 - Advancement of Plans

I watched as my Honor Guard ran towards the enemies in our path.

The Traitor Guard and cultists joined forces to stop my advance and take the city more easily, although they only delayed me, but I cannot say the same for the rest of the defenders.

I watched the streets of Tismator through the eyes of my Wraiths and saw how the combined enemy force slowly overwhelmed the Arbites and PDF.

It was not that the defenders were incompetent, but it was a matter of numbers and offensive capability, the upraising caught unprepared. I ordered some of my "Marines" to spread throughout the city, assisting the defenders until reinforcements arrived.

I would like to speed up my advance towards the cathedral, but the civilians under my protection slowed me down.

Looking back, I saw the many men, women, and children protected by my Marines, who used their armored bodies as large shields against enemy fire.

Hm... I need to leave them somewhere and move on, but where? I controlled my Wraiths and searched the city for a safe location. A few minutes passed until I found what I wanted.

A large building surrounded by car barricades and with Arbites protecting civilians as they entered. I made the Wraith go in and out of reality, passing through the wall and looking inside the building.

I saw hundreds of people taking refuge inside, cowering in fear, praying, hugging their families, arguing with others, or wanting to leave the refuge to help.

However, the Hospitaller Sisters who cared for the wounded on makeshift stretchers stopped them, not wanting to increase the number of wounded. The Bolters and sharp surgical equipment the Sisters carried made people leave their stupid ideas behind.

Speaking of the Hospitaller Sisters, I am glad to see that they survived the attack, they did their best to help with the medical equipment they had.

I ordered the Wraith to patrol the shelter's surroundings and notify me in case of an emergency. Therefore, I opened a map of the city in my systems and marked the location of the shelter, receiving the quickest route to the location.

BOOM!

An explosion caught my attention. Shifting my focus, I saw how the Terminators ignored the Lasfire and bullets of the Cultists and Guards and advanced at blinding speed toward the enemy fire lines.

The Leman Russ Tank firing was likely the source of the explosion. One of the Terminators swung his shield, hitting the incoming shell and reflecting it at the tank.

The tank crew tried to jump out of the vehicle, but they were not fast enough. The projectile hit the tank's main gun, piercing the armor and soon detonating in a ball of fire and shrapnel.

The flaming shrapnel pierced those who were close enough, killing or mortally wounding the Guards and Cultists.

This allowed the Terminators to close the distance seamlessly and massacre their enemies in a bloodbath, painting their blades red.

Looking back, I saw civilians looking away or watching the display in disgust, but there were those smiling at the deaths of those who had harmed them.

Maybe I should review how I deal with adversaries when there are people around; I want my "chapter" to be viewed positively by the public and the wider Imperium.

Leaving that aside, we passed the flaming and bloody remains in our path and advanced towards shelter. Nothing noteworthy occurred during the walk, the ruined streets were quiet, with explosions and gunfire echoing in the distance.