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Chapter 344: The Despairing Zardathusa
🕑 Added 2025-10-06 12:02:22 +0000 UTCChapter 344: The Despairing Zardathusa
In the void, all the Tyranid bio-ships had lost their command. The disappearance of the Norn-Queen had triggered another of their protocols: the absolute preservation of the species. They began to follow their instinct to continue the Tyranid Swarm, and the innumerable bio-ships no longer attacked the Necrons or the humans. Instead, they split into small fleets and fled at full speed in different directions across the galaxy.
Smaller Tyranid bio-ships would even voluntarily fly into the mouths of the larger ones, allowing themselves to be consumed as biomass to grant the larger ships the ability to travel through the void for longer.
The bio-fleet that had just filled the entire Cryptus System had now completely begun to depart from its center.
Dante wanted to order the fleet to pursue, but he was stopped by Lucan. The Tyranids had already broken and were retreating in different directions. The vast Leviathan tendril had completely shattered, and the massive Shadow in the Warp it had formed was dissipating and weakening. There was no longer any need for Lucan to weaken it himself; it was no longer strong enough to restrict the warp travel of Imperial warships.
Guilliman had received this news at the first opportunity. His crusade fleet had already assembled nearby. It was now his duty as the Imperial Regent to deal with this massive, lingering threat to the Imperium.
For Lucan, killing the remaining Tyranid bio-ships had no benefit, other than obtaining some insignificant biomass for the Zerg. And besides, the threat in the Cryptus System had not been completely eliminated. At this moment, the Necron fleet led by Zardathusa was floating quietly in the void. They had not retreated, nor had they advanced. They were in a standoff with the human fleet amidst the routing Tyranid bio-ships.
Zardathusa, sitting on his throne, did not know what to do. One moment he was fighting the Tyranids, and now his opponent had changed to the humans. The battle with the Tyranids had cost him a large number of his troops. Although his warships had their living metal and Canoptek Scarabs for repairs, they had still suffered some damage.
Although the human fleet was nothing compared to the Tyranids in terms of numbers, the Spear of Adun, standing at the forefront of the fleet, exerted a great pressure on him. And the forces he had sent to the Grand Prism to try and reclaim it had been blocked by the Raiders. The Raiders, using the interior of the Grand Prism as their fortress, had forced the Necron warships to be cautious with their fire. They could only continuously send in ground troops, but they could not gain an advantage.
Watching the human fleet pressing in on him, although he was unwilling, he still chose to give the order to retreat. Falling back to his tomb world was his only choice. He believed that with the fortitude of his tomb world, it would be enough for him to hold out for some time. During that time, he could also try to send out a distress signal to the surrounding area. Although he did not know if any other dynasty could receive it, it was better than doing nothing.
Even now, Zardathusa still hadn't figured it out. Why had his own kind, who had appeared earlier, helped those humans? By all rights, shouldn't they have come in response to his own awakening signal? A dynasty that could possess a C'tan shard was definitely not a small one.
Who knows what Zardathusa would have thought if he knew it was Trazyn who had cut off his dynasty's alarm...
But soon, he would realize that he didn't even have the chance to retreat to his tomb world.
At that moment, within the tomb world on Peltar, the one thousand Blood Ravens were watching in shock as the Flesh Tearers, led by Seth, rampaged through the crypts. A large portion of these Blood Ravens were recruits from the Dynasty. They had had little contact with other Chapters before. Seeing the savage fighting style of the Flesh Tearers had left them at a bit of a loss. As Astartes loyal to Lucan from the Mongorte Dynasty, he had always told them that if you can crush the enemy with firepower, you don't need to engage in melee. The Dynasty did not lack for weapons or ammunition; they could just make more.
But the Flesh Tearers were obsessed with tearing their opponents apart in close combat. Even if they could use ranged weapons, they still preferred their power swords and chain-axes.
At this moment, Seth was fanatically charging at all the enemies before him, almost without regard for the cost. All of the Death Company in his Chapter had also been unleashed. The serum created from the Panacea had given the still-sane Flesh Tearers a second chance, but the Death Company could still not be saved. Rather than letting them continue to live in agony, Seth had decided to let them die in this glorious manner. Perhaps, for them, it was the best choice.
The Death Company charged at the strongest enemies. Even as Canoptek Scarabs gnawed at their flesh, they continued to charge. Taking a direct hit from a Gauss weapon, they would still drag one more enemy down with them before being completely disintegrated. One after another, Immortals and massive Canoptek Spyders were reduced to fragments under the suicidal assault of the Death Company.
The Flesh Tearers' losses were great. Seth even stopped the Blood Ravens from using their nano-med guns to try and save the heavily wounded Flesh Tearers who were falling to the Black Rage. Although the Blood Ravens could not understand, they still chose to support them with fire from the rear.
In Seth's eyes, only with the death of these battle-brothers who were completely immersed in the Death Company could the Flesh Tearers truly be reborn.
The tomb world had already had most of its forces taken away. At this moment, its entire defense system was on the verge of collapse.
Zardathusa immediately ordered all his fleets to return to his tomb world. But the Spear of Adun and the Stellar Pioneer warped directly in front of them, blocking their path. All the firepower of the two flagships was unleashed on Zardathusa's command ship. Even a warship as powerful as the Necrons' had its limits.
The rest of his fleet was taken care of by the Blood Angels and their successors. The light of teleportation flashes and a barrage of boarding torpedoes delivered thousands of Astartes directly into their interior. A number of Black Templars and Ghosts also joined in. Even Dante himself had joined the boarding parties, displaying the combat prowess of one of the most powerful living Astartes in the Imperium.
One after another, the Necron warships lost power, crippled by the boarding parties.
Soon, the battle was nearing its end. Zardathusa looked at the scene before him with disbelief. The only warship still fighting was his flagship. His forces had already suffered heavy losses in the battle with the Tyranids; he simply did not have enough troops to counter the boarders.
And most importantly, he could not return to his tomb world... Without the support of his tomb world, he could not possibly maintain his status as an Overlord.
The Maynarkh Dynasty had not been destroyed. The other Overlords within the dynasty would be overjoyed to see Zardathusa fall, or even die. That way, they would have a better chance of becoming the new Phaeron. And if his own kin were like this, what could he expect from other dynasties? No one would take him in. Even if they did, they would only treat him as a vassal and a tool.
Looking at the almost certain defeat before him, Zardathusa ultimately did not choose to flee. The arrogant and conceited Overlord chose to launch a final attack. Even in death, he would maintain the last shred of his dignity.
