Greater good: By Celtic strike

Shas'el Brightmoore watched readouts flash across her multiple screens. The different colours reflected on her pale blue skin. The room was dark and noisy. Harried Tau ran back and forth behind her, trading and comparing information as quickly and efficiently as possible. The massive screen at the front of the war room displayed an overhead view of the battle below.

From so high above, it all looked serene and organized. Tactical readouts with easy to notice colours and squad markings and a sidebar of all relevant information. She knew better though, she had been in too many conflicts to believe the calming lie the tactical readout begged her to believe.

From up here you couldn't see the slaughter...

The room shook violently, some of the Water and Air caste envoys behind were knocked off their feet. She stood, unmoved. She switched one of her personal displays. It flickered for an instant before showing an up close, over the shoulder view.

The scene showed a small human settlement surrounded by a moderately harvested forest. Their crude, ugly buildings were surrounded by earthen barricades. Around them, off to either side, stood tall mountains crowned by snow and encircled by thin clouds. The sky was unnaturally dark.

Beyond the town and over a shallow hill, the signs of battle raged. Black smoke billowed from beyond the crest. The echo of eruptions followed a few moments later.

An XV-8 squad danced gracefully over the hill, firing burst cannons and rocket pods at an unseen enemy. The smoke left a twisting, white trail. A moment passed and another two squads fluttered along on a hard to follow course. They moved with an ease that defied their sleek bulk.

An announcement came through Brightmoore's private feed. She switched off the display and listened closely. This was it...

“Barracuda squadron five and seven have come under attack but are proceeding on time.” A watch stander reported impassively. “The counter-attack will commence as predicted.”

She silently marched from the control room, through the busy hallways choked with Earth caste, down the stairs and into the launch bay. The hanger was a vast hive of activity. Engineers fitted and fueled vehicles and suits. Fire warriors prepped themselves and checked their weapons while Xv-8's and 9's were brought into position on mag cranes. The rear hatch was open, the darkened, eerie sky billowed just passed the shields.

Brightmoore marched across the deck, nodding to the hasty and distracted salutes her Fire warriors were giving. She marched up to her suit. The dark gray Xv-9 stared lifelessly back at her. Its lines were sleek but much heavier and imposing than the Xv-8's. It was a thing of beauty, the finest technology the Empire had to offer. A device of elegant, abject destruction.

The Earth caste had outdone themselves.

She climbed up the ladder, glancing to the tech fine tuning her machine. She ran her hands along the smooth metal of her personal monster.

“Everything ready?” She asked, looking directly at him.

“Yes Commander,” he replied evenly and respectfully. “I adjusted everything you requested.”

“Thank you,” she nodded with a smile. “You're a credit to your Caste.”

“You too Commander,” he smiled back, pulling free the leads and wires that connected the suit to his diagnostic equipment.

Down the row beside her, Fire warriors were feeding themselves into their machines. They shared excited glances, their eyes a mixture of anticipation and nerves.

Good, she thought, that would keep them on their toes.

She settled herself in, the big machine closing in around her slowly like a monstrous mouth. She adjusted the screens to the proper distance and hit the activation key. The machine groaned momentarily, hydraulic fluids and power coursed through its veins. It started to hum gently.

Across the side of one of the secondary screens the yellow markers that represented the rest of her Xv-9 squadron switched over to green as they came online. This was rapidly followed by activation lights of the two, full Xv-8 squads also under her command.

All the drone markers lit up simultaneously, their networked A.I's linking up instantly.

On her crystal clear screen she saw everything her multiple cameras picked up. Diagnostics and sensors checked green. All systems showed a go. Across the rest of the hanger, others of her caste were loading into their suits and Devilfish.

The Kroot had lured the enemy into the hard to escape valley. The Air Caste had kept the enemy fliers at bay as much was was possible and were engaging the fleet above. The Earth caste had constructed mighty machines and now it was their turn.

The Fire warriors.

The combat strength of the Empire.

The greatest among equals.

Others had started this and it was their job to finish.

“Barracuda squadrons coming into strike range,” the announcement rang in her ears. She glanced at her screens before replying.

“All suits in Red wing report ready,” she said, her voice so calm as to be empty. Her internal sensors registered another hard impact against the ship. “All suits launch.”

The cranes above suddenly rotated ninety degrees, cranking silently. She felt herself being pulled backwards as she and her suits the suits rode the lightning out the back of the hanger.

The readouts beeped a warning that she was falling, she silenced it. She never remembered to turn them off before starting a mission. Her screens showed a rapidly changing world. Her squadrons were cutting through the air, their on-board stabilizers leveling them out and pushing them towards their desired drop zones. They kept in perfect formation. Their drones slid around them, their AI keeping them in close proximity.

Above, the massive drop ship was receding into the distance. Getting smaller and smaller against the sky. It was under attack, as it had been for nearly an hour. Fighter craft swept through the sky around it, firing controlled bursts at the enemy to keep them at bay. Its automated defenses lit up the darkness.

The sky was a dark, swirling purple. It was more than a little off putting. Her skin started to crawl. It was just so alien, so hard to understand. She was a veteran of the third sphere expansion. Fought Humans, Orks and the mysterious Eldar alike but this was something she'd never experienced before.

It left her feeling deeply disturbed.

Her suit buffeted violently, spinning on its centre point a few time before she was able to bring it under control. An image of wings shot passed her screen so fast she couldn't get a good look at it.

Her controls beeped a warning. The sidebar display changed, showing one of the Xv-8's in second squad had been destroyed. It flashed red for a moment before going black.

“We suffered a collision,” the Shas'vre reported, sounding disappointed. “Number six is offline.”

“Understood,” she nodded unhappily. To suffer a casualty before they even entered the fight was unlucky to say the least but she wasn't going to let it slow her down. “Follow the beacons to the drop points as per mission parameters.”

The dark blue, uncontrolled wreckage of the Crisis suit six plummeted.

Her screens relayed perfectly accurate, real time satellite feedback. It focused on their beacon. It beeped constantly, a half a click from where the main fight was shaping up. She noted bombing runs and the distinct outlines of missiles as they fired across the overhead map. Pathfinders painted valuable targets for the automated systems to take down. The radio chatter registered successful impacts. Chunks of the enemy disappeared. Squad markings change status. New targets were located. Old targets vanished.

She changed the screen on her right. It switched to a tactical map that showed a massive, alien mass of death hemmed in on three sides by mountains and the symbols of the Fire caste. It was being herded into a narrow valley.

The ground was rapidly approaching.

She checked the readouts one last time. She learned long ago to trust her gut when it came to decisions like these. The automated systems and AI's were invaluable in their fight to bring other worlds into the fold and enlighten them, but their cold logic was sometimes insufficient in combat situations.

“Begin landing sequence.”

At exactly the same instant all the suit's thrusters activated. The roar of jets audible even over the cacophony of battle. The Hazard suits continued on their central approach while the Crisis suits split off to either side.

“Red two link up with the attack force on the right flank and push the enemy down the mountain,” she commanded, altering the attack plan slightly. “Red three land on the left and support the holding action. When I give the order, instigate phase two.”

Both the Shas'vres responded quickly and affirmatively.

“We're going to land in the heart of the attack and disrupt the enemy formation,” their jets continued to roar. “While we're in the middle of the action the second detachment in the village will step up their assault on the front and right flanks. With the left holding firm we should be able to crush the enemy between our pincers, blunt their attack so the Air caste can rip them a new hole.”

The thrusters roared so loudly that her suit groaned in protest.

Then she was there.

The impact shuddered up her spine. The leg supports retracted up inside the machine's thighs to lessen the impact. Her sensors blared warnings as her screen lit up with dozens, hundreds of targets. The enemy presence so overwhelming that the targeting system couldn't keep up. Her two comrades landed next to her with equally impressive impacts. They'd hit so hard and fast that the bulk of their suits had crushed opponents underfoot.

There was a split second of stillness.

She looked up, taking in the sight for the first time on ground level.

She was almost struck blind.

A truly alien thing. Thick armoured plates, salivating teeth, thick muscles, beady eyes and so - so many blades. The bone swords seemed to glint against the light. Black and purple creatures, some small that scurried – others gargantuan whose very steps seemed to shake the ground, surrounded them. Snapping teeth and monstrosities that didn't look like they could actually exist. This was something that she could truly not understand.

The beast.

The alien.

The Y'he.

The devourer.

The things the humans had dubbed; 'Tyranids.'

She could see why the humans had withdrawn from their space so many years ago to fight this menace. What the Ethereals had seen as a so fortuitous then was clearly something unspeakable. Not even the humans, with their barbarity and callousness deserved this – this unending abomination.

Missiles and fighter craft streaked across the purple sky. Gunfire and explosions rocked around them. The creatures marched ever forward, firing weapons of own into the defenders. Long tendrils reached down from space. The ground itself morphing to the will of the hive mind.

The split second was over. The beasts attacked, pushed on by a will far greater than their own, greater than comprehension. Her suit blared a warning but she had reacted faster. Working the controls with deft skill, she shifted her suit to the left. One of the creatures, nearly equal in size to a Crisis suit, lunged at her. Its four arms and gnashing teeth hungry. Her suit danced away, crushing several smaller creatures as it moved.

Her Ion guns spun quickly. The hyper charged energy spat from the rapidly rotating barrels. She fired them into the heart of the creature. Its black exoskeleton resisted for a moment before shattering as the pulses exploded against its body. The spheres of blue light splattered the creature. Thick, black fluids splashed on the dirt and the swarms of other monstrosities.

She wheeled around, dodging another attack from a smaller creature, this one slithering along on a tentacle instead of legs. Its claws swung for her, she blew its arms off with a quick burst. She darted from side to side, artfully dodging the beastly lunges.

These things were truly indescribable. So vicious, so deadly. They seemed bread only for combat. Only for destruction and death. They were adapted for their singular rolls in a way that was as beautiful as it was disturbing.

To her back, her comrades fired an unending barrage of dual quad-burst cannon fire into the horde that surrounded them. They moved with a skill almost equal to hers, spinning away from attacks and keeping each other covered as they moved as fast as the thrusters could carry them.

She jumped forward, they could cover each other, she needed to cause more chaos in the Tyranid advance. Her two drones spun around her, pulsing death from their mounted weapons. Her suit landed gracefully, crushing the head of a creature half the size of a man. It splattered on the ground.

She swept her weapons in a wide arc. Blue pulses reflected against her armour as she increased the rate of fire. Tiny explosions flared up in the Tyranid mass. Creatures and bits of creatures spiraled away. Bone and gore flicked through the sky. Alien shrieks and snarls echoed in her sensors. There was no end to this.

This wave of horror.

The purple sky seemed to go on forever and nothing could stop it.

She jumped again, barely avoiding a claw. She spun in the air, her thrusters growling in annoyance. She lit up the monster before landing.

Her instrument panel constantly flashed caution and warning lights. Her right screen showed an overhead of the battle. A black tide still rushed headlong into the Fire warriors who were sliding away in a fighting withdrawal.

“Targets have been identified,” a surveillance watch announced.

Information began downloading into her tactical net. Selected creatures from this unstoppable mass were being picked out by sensors and optics thousands of times more accurate than a Tau eye could ever hope to be.

The trap was being closed...

“Begin phase two,” she ordered, still swinging her suit in a beautiful and deadly dance through the assault.

Her sensors registered heavy impacts behind her. She pivoted her suit around, pushing the thrusters to maximum burn. Her drones struggled to keep up. A hard shelled, mammoth monstrosity charged through the spot she had just occupied. Its two, massive legs smashed other creatures and left deep craters.

She exhaled a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. That thing could have destroyed her in a single swipe. Snapped her in half like a twig. She fired on its back, raking a line of detonation across its thick, curved shell.

It didn't seem to help...

She landed hard, her whole suit vibrating as she watched her new enemy.

Her screen flashed the word; 'Carnifex.'

It screamed a scream that made the blood chill in her veins. Her on board systems tried to understand the call but failed, falling back on random noises and static. It was six metres tall and hundreds of kilos, possessed the bulk of a building and seemed to be made up of nothing but armoured, bone plates, muscles, crushing claws and fangs. Her heartbeat spiked, the AI demanded retreat, her screen flashing a dark, foreboding red.

'Threat level: High.'

The creature slashed its tail. A massive hammer shaped creation with curved spikes on either end. It skimmed just above the ground, splintering rocks as it came for her like a smart missile. She jerked the controls, her eyes narrowing as her screen showed the mallet coming for her.

She jumped to the left, trying to cut outside of the attack. She was too slow. The tail crashed into her suit with the force of a railgun. She grunted, her body being racked with the wave of pain. She spiraled away, crashing to the deck.

Here screens flashed to static.

Blue blood trickled from her clenched teeth. The power went out. Her life fluid started flowing down her right leg. She glanced down, the hammer had punctured her machine, the bone stabbed straight into her right side. She grunted angrily, jamming her controls with her right hand. The screens flickered back on line. Emergency power kicking in violently. Every system barked a warning.

Suddenly the carnifex filled every screen.

It's teeth were wider than her suit's torso.

It had tasted blood and it wanted more...

She slid the controls, trying to get clear before she was smashed into a stain. Her thrusters misfired. The multiple impacts jarring the mechanism.

She wasn't going to make it...

Her drones came screaming in. Their weapon's blazed with an automated fury. Several shots struck home. The tear dropped plasma bolts smashed into its alien face. Its teeth cracked, one of its jaw bones splintering wide.

It shrieked in pain; Its primitive brain not able to comprehend rage or surprise. The cry was so loud it almost overloaded her suit's receivers. The creature's incredible bulk shifted to the left, pushed aside by the sudden attack and away from Brightmoore.

It swiped one of its crushing claws, catching a drone with a glancing blow. It spun away, beeping loudly before exploding in the middle of a brood of lesser monsters.

Her suits thrusters misfired again.

She punched her controls, grunting.

A swarm of creatures lunched at her downed machine as the carnifex stumbled away. Despite its pylon sized legs it still had trouble steadying itself. It was top heavy, not meant for nimble action. Her suit's counter measures fired automatically, spitting shards of shrapnel in every direction. Innards washed her suit in black gore.

The thrusters sparked again but failed to ignite.

The carnifex came for her. Recovering faster than she would have liked. Its footfalls shaking her through the confines of her suit. Both her weapons spun for an instant before erupting a hell storm of supercharged energy.

The mini novas splashed against its thick, armoured chest but it kept coming. In a moment it was above her, blocking out what little sunlight their was. One of its claws slammed down. She twitched the controls, the suit barely reacting fast enough to avoid the world ending strike. It hit with a force so hard it shattered the ground like glass.

She fired again, aiming for its underside. One of its leg joints buckled. Its guts dumped onto the ground as its belly was ripped open. The Carnifex brought up its other claw, shrieking and determined even as it died.

Her last drone came spinning in, jamming itself into its fractured, torn mouth. The drone, showing a selfless concern for her life that would make any Tau proud, self destructed. The blast tore through what was left of the things head, splintering its skull in a single, brilliant eruption.

The, newly decapitated, thing lurched back before collapsing upon her.

She shouted, punching her controls for the last time.

Her thrusters sparked to life, firing on maximum burn.

She rocketed across the ground, sliding out from underneath the crumpling corpse before it hit. Brightmoore cut through the thick dirt like it was an ocean wave. She spun around, whipping herself up and free of a few lesser enemies. Her damaged vehicle spun three times before landing, somewhat delicately, on a rocky outcropping.

'Target one: Eliminated.'

She fired her weapons akimbo into the ever advancing mass around her. She scanned her screens. The second Xv-8 team, the one that had lost a companion during landing, had both remaining suits functioning. They were in worrying shape though. Both flickered yellow on her readouts, damaged across several parts of their frames.

Their mission status flickered; 'Complete.'

The first team had lost two suits, only its Shas'vre remained active and relatively undamaged. Her scanners showed it was engaged with the second of its two primary objectives.

She jumped again, spinning away from a monster's furious lunge. She landed roughly atop the corpse of the fallen colossus. Her damaged thrusters had trouble keeping up with her frantic moves.

Her suit was leaking fluid and the self-repair system couldn't keep up. Neither could she, she was feeling faint and in intense pain. She'd lost far too much blood. She kept up her barrage, working another control with her left hand.

A seat mounted injector jabbed itself sharply into the base of her spine. She grunted as the chemical hit her system. All feeling and sensation drained from her body. The pain, the worry, the fear, melted away. Yet her mind remained focused.

She inhaled sharply, letting the numbness overwhelm her. She glanced at her team's feed. One of her companions was in trouble. Overtaken by sheer number. He'd been dragged down.

The front panels had been torn asunder, the metal peeled back like a leaf, a leg ripped off, crippling the machine. The Fire warrior inside still struggled to work the controls despite one of his arms being sliced clean off. The pilot's compartment filled with gore. His courage would not be enough. Xv-9s were reinforced with thicker armour and crew insulation but its true powers came from its agility. With that gone, there was nothing to be done.

Her other subordinate came crashing in. Quad-burst cannons blazing. It shredded the Tyranids and wounded Tau pilot alike.

She checked her screen, their primary target was close. Too close. Close enough that she should be able to see it. It wasn't there. Only the endless wave of Tyranids and the purple sky that came to consume her world.

“Where is it commander?” Her comrade asked blankly.

“Close,” was her reply as she landed behind him. They fought back to back, spinning and laying a shield of death around them. They danced in concert, landing lightly before flipping into the air. They continued their metal and ion storm as Tyranid creatures continued their brutal, animalistic assault.

She scanned the tactical display, searching for her target.

Then, suddenly, without warning or alarm. Without war howl or screech or earthquake of impact. Without any sense of honour or pride or discipline, it was there with an impact so crushing it could have imploded a star.

A creature out of her nightmares. A creature whose power and strength were as undeniable as they were inescapable. A creature from beyond the darkness of the universe.

A Hive Tyrant.

The commander of the Tyranid swarm. A monstrous embodiment of the Hive mind. Its physical presence was imposing but it actually forced its will on those around. A cold shiver ran down her numb spine. Her mind seemed to go dark. She could feel it in her head. It's massive eyes stared right at her through her suits optical pick ups.

It opened its massive mouth, uttering an other worldly sound. Its bone armour reflected the dull star above. Its powerful body heaving with muscle. Its twin swords dripped with blood and mech fluid. Its gun, as biological as itself, was massive and ready to kill.

'Primary target acquired.'

'Threat level: Extreme.'

She felt her own will failing her. The creature's piercing gaze burning away her resolve. It was like her spirit was melting. Dissolving away under its all powerful, baleful eyes.

Her comrade lunged forward. He spat his weapons at the beast, sliding wide. The rounds bounced off, flaring against the thick armour plates on the creature's chest.

'S'Kel!” She shouted, trying to warn him away. Jolted out of her fear Brightmoore skidded left, trying to encircle the thing with her partner. It spun with shocking speed. Its tail just missed her companion.

It continued its spin, slashing with all the power of world behind it. She jumped left, trying to put some space between them. Her weapons cracked uselessly off the creature's thick plates. Her companion continued his, equally ineffective, circle strafing.

The Hive Tyrant slashed with one of its swords. It caught the other suit in the arm, cutting one of the weapons in half. The suit lost stability for a moment before landing on one leg. It pushed to jump again but the Tyrant was faster than its internal electronics.

Its weapon spat to life, disgorging ammunition faster than a burst cannon. The multiple impacts splattered against the suit's hull. The rounds, living creatures themselves, began to bore their way into the suit. Tunneling through the armour as if it were dirt for a worm. The suit collapsed.

Brightmoore disengaged the limiter on her weapons. Now was not the time for caution. The generators kicked into high and she sent an unending, unbroken stream of ionized energy into the Tyrant's back. Her suit blared overload warnings. She kept on the triggers.

Some of its armour plates cracked and shattered. It screamed in what seemed like frustration. It snapped to the side, taking a swipe at her as it shifted massive bulk. It's twin blades came for her like a mass driver.

She kicked the controls, jumping backwards at maximum burn. She was a split second too slow. The twin bone swords slashed effortlessly through her suits plating. Her view screens and sensor readouts were ripped from their mountings. The entire front smashed away in a roar of destruction. The tip of the blade skimmed passed her eyes so closely that she could feel the air they displaced.

She saw her own death.

Her suit was flung to the right, her neck nearly snapped off. It spiraled to the ground, almost pulling its arms from their mountings. She worked the remaining controls quickly, firing the jets as she tumbled. Somehow she managed to get the suit to land on its back.

Despite her quick work the impact was still incredibly intense.

She saw stars and willed herself conscious.

The creature stomped above her, bringing its swords high. She kicked her machine into gear and fired. One of the monster's arms shattered at its joint. The severed limb flipped into the sky. The bone sword landed point down next to her.

She forced the suit onto its feet and jumped to the left, the side of the monster with less arms. She dodged a second, wilder attack. Brightmoore landed badly, many of the suit's finer controls were disabled. The front suit was gone, the metal twisted and snapped apart. She was exposed to the world from the waist up. The frail, delicate tau at the centre of the war beast. Communications, mapping and sensors were gone but seat mounted controls still functioned, that still gave her weapons and maneuvering.

That would be all she needed...

The raw smell of these creatures washed over her. The ooze and gore that covered her suit caused her to tear up. She willed her way through.

The hive Tyrant fired, somehow sensing her soft flesh would be no match for its ranged weapons. She snapped to the side, placing the bulk of her machine between them. The ammo cracked and splattered against the metal. Some of the living ammunition latched onto her suit and attempted to burrow its way through the armour. None made it.

This creature was more cunning than Intel had given it credit for.

This wasn't a mindless beast. It was a warrior.

She jerked the controls. Her weapons whirred to life, spitting charged death across the field of battle. The concentrated fire splattered violently into the monster's face. One of its eyes shattered like gel, half its skull got ripped to shreds.

It howled so loud it punctured one of her eardrums. She winced, turning aside in pain. Blood trickled down her right cheek. Its monstrous wings snapped to full size, its massive width awe inspiring.

The ground cracked, all the creature's muscles sparked into action. It lunged at her, snapping its wings back, accelerating to near escape velocity.

Her eyes went wide. She jumped back, the jets of her suit firing with barely an instant to spare. Her damaged machine leaped away.

The Hive Tyrant landed heavily then set off after her.

It swung again and again she managed to dodge. She fired on it, frantically working the dual triggers. Without computer aided targeting her shots were having difficultly landing home. Those that did splashed harmlessly off the monsters reinforced armour. The weapons were overheating, losing strength.

She landed and jumped again, trying to put more distance between them. She had no battlefield awareness or the ability to request reinforcements. For all intents and purposes, she was alone against the very will of the Hive mind...

Small creatures were crushed beneath her suit's feet and burned by its jets. She continued her jumps, firing and retreating from her unkillable opponent. She fell back towards the town.

She slammed her jets to maximum burn, urging her machine airborne. She sailed through the air, barely out pacing the beast. She fired on the thing, one of its plates splintered. Purple blood flowed from the wound.

It kept coming...

Brightmoore landed on a clear patch of road, just beyond a huge, purple mound of dead Tyranids. Shells snapped around her. More creatures exploded as they advanced. The hive tyrant landed behind the pile of its dead kin, crushing corpses. Metal slugs, primitive black powder weapons, clanged ineffectively off its thick hide.

The town was behind her. The humans had made it the linchpin in their defense against the devourer. Even now they fought. Valiant but foolish, using their old weapons and static tactics. She didn't fully understand their methods but the ever growing pile of creatures attested to its effectiveness.

The Hive Tyrant lunged at her again. She turned and leaped into town, barely clearing the hastily constructed earthen barricades. The creature sailed over, taking fire from the entrenched humans. She continued to fall back, luring the monster further from its host.

She jumped from rooftop to rooftop, putting distance between her and the creature. It clipped a building, shattering concrete, and stumbled before crashing into the alley between to structures.

She landed on concrete, her machine slid on the hard surface, cracking it. She stood in the town square, a large, stone monument to the Emperor of mankind stood behind her. It was old but still stood proudly, still well maintained despite its age.

She didn't believe but she could use all the help she could get...

This was it, this was where she would make her stand. She hadn't known if the thing could feel anger, feel rage but she'd gambled and won. This would be good information if she survived. It had been so obsessed with catching her that it had left its hive, its support.

She closed her eyes, trying to calm herself before the coming storm. She would be no good with her heart beating this fast. She rubbed her forehead, a thick trickle of her own blood met her fingers. No matter, no time to bleed now.

Focus, remain focused.

The squeal of monsters, the snap of gunfire, the eruptions of energy were dulled by the circular town. The fowl wind washed over her. The battle was all around her and yet she was alone.

The monster roared, it echoed around the square. It smashed through the building across from her. The concrete smashing under its feet. It breathed heavily, saliva dripped from its mouth. One of its wings was broken and bloodied. Huge parts of its chest and back plating was shattered, exposing the soft innards, its gun blown apart, its whole body slick from its wounds but still it was there.

Still, it was the beast.

The devourer.

It looked at her with its good eye, grunting a monstrous grunt. It clutched a struggling human between its massive claws.

The purple sky encompassed them.

She breathed deeply.

It howled, crushing the human into a red mush.

The Tyrant flicked the remains aside.

She snapped her controls. Her machine whined into motion. The creature moved a split second later. They charged each other. Her twin weapons flashing death. It shrugged off the few hits, jaws snapping for her.

Brightmoore spun left, whipping around the creatures weak side. Its blade went wide. She landed, firing on its back. Its remaining wings splattered into nothingness.

She tried to jump away but the thing was faster. Its large, barbed tail crashed into her machine's legs, whipping her off balance. Servos and joints shattered. Her damaged machine couldn't correct. She crashed to the ground.

The Hive tyrant spun faster than she could've imagined. Its sword came for her. The suit's metal arm met hard bone and failed. It was sliced through, sparking as the electronics flared in protest. Still, the impact deflected the blade's trajectory. It sliced through Brightmoore's nasal ridge, biting into the bone.

Her head was snapped left from the force that was barely a hundredth of the creatures true strength. Her blood flecked inside what was left of her cockpit. Its sword bit into the concrete, becoming lodged in the artificial stone. She rolled her machine onto its back and fired.

The Hive Tyrant's sword arm exploded at the shoulder. It stomped on her, shattering her machine's left leg. She tried to fire up her jets but it pinned her to the ground, forcing all its weight on the metal. The vehicle's torso started to buckle and bend, caving in like melting rubber. It press against her real legs as her warmachine started to give way.

She fired again but it stomped on her remaining arm, crushing and destroying the weapons. All the lights around her went dead, the remaining readouts going blank. She felt its blood and saliva splash onto her. She smashed her remaining controls, trying to get any sort of response.

Nothing.

No, she wasn't going to die like this.

She had a mission to complete.

Brightmoore was laying on her back, the beast just above her. She drew her pulse pistol; clicked off the safety; closed her bloodied eye and fired. The teardrop shaped pulses ignited off its jaw. It stepped back, not from injury but from surprise. She kept the trigger squeezed, shouting as it came back for her. The bolts washed over its carapace. She felt its massive hand wrap around her torso, she screamed – feeling some of her ribs crack.

She was ripped from her machine, sliding into the acrid air. She continued to fire. Her weapon beeped empty. The things terrible breath howled over her face. It squeezed tighter. She coughed on her own blood.

She threw her pistol. It clanged off his good eye. She kicked it in the chin but that didn't have any positive results. It looked at her. She stared back, grunting through clenched teeth.

“I hope you choke on me...”