Vex Chronicles 2: Outbreak

Fields of death

Eredius III, farmland, underground maglev 70-6

Hakkar's worries grew as they got closer to station 70-6. There still was only static in their vox. They had passed by another emptied tank storage with only a few rusty remains of tracked vehicles. Hakkar hoped that his fear of finding the forward front line abandoned was just that, a thing born from fear.

But when they marched up the ramp and through the wheat, dread turned into reality. The landing operation had tried to defend the earthen wall at the edge of the farmland. But all that was left of it was death and destruction. Burned out husks of tanks and Hippogryph stood around. A few still smoldered. Soldiers laid where they had fallen. The weapons of the xenos infected Mechanicus had cut through the drop force like a knife through butter...

"Rotten wheat..." Jurg wheezed out and he dropped onto his knees and emptied his stomach.

Gertra pressed her lips into a narrow line. Her eyes wandered over the horizon as if searching for the enemy. But Hakkar imagine that she just searched for something to look at that wasn't shattered hopes...

Trooper Laius cut his thumb and let blood drip into his soil. "Only blood can wash us free...," he mumbled.

Hakkar walked with heavy heart over the freshly harvested field and towards what he had hoped to be their front line. The Hippogryph's had set down a small force of shock troopers and light tanks. But the destruction was total. Not even the Hippogryph had made it back into the air.

Hakkar walked aimless through the destruction. His glance fell at the Chimera chassis variants and his mind dug out knowledge, just to not have to think about what had happened here. Those were the flawed eredian pattern Chimera APC. Produced by an incomplete STC in local war factories. Their armor was sup par due to the incomplete plan. The lighter weight however made them ideal for drop operations. But it also made them more vulnerable to heavy fire. And that the corrupted mechanics had brought in abundance.

The worst case scenario had happened. High command had underestimated the enemy. And the xenos infected filth had punished them for it...

"Search for survivors!," Hakkar ordered. "Laius, you'll be lookout. Alert us if you see any foe."

No one expected to find any survivors. But the search alone gave them something to do that wasn't staring at demise. And when they actually found someone, they was more than delighted. A female trooper stumbled through the destruction. She was confused, clad in mud and grime. Her eredian uniform was in disorder and looked to small for her large figure. And her carapace armor just didn't wanted to fit either. Her skin was only slightly touched by the sun like that of a noble. And she wore her shoulder long black hair open. A sloppy getup for a PDF trooper...

The way she stumbled around made her look like in a daze. But at least she was alive.

"Trooper Dorus?," Hakkar called out her name tag. The woman only looked at him with confused eyes. Hakkar feared that they had picked up another shell shocked trooper. But then she collected herself and answered.

"Trooper Dorus, yes." Dorus patted the name tag on her chest. "That's me..."

"What happened here?" Hakkar looked over the carnage.

"I... I don't know...," Dorus stammered out. "A massacre. So much death... Those xenos beasts. It's all my fault!"

Hakkar shook his head. "No it isn't."

"Yes it is...," Dorus squeezed out through gritted teeth.

"How did you get your gear in such a mess?" Hakkar asked while he redid her uniform and fastened straps and buckles. It gave him something to focus on other than this mess...