Fort Waite is a Tyranid Federation city about fifty miles away from Fortress Howe. There is a highway that has not been maintained for many years that leads directly to the city center that has been razed to the ground.
The armored personnel carrier in the third platoon of Augustus had been driving in the cold darkness of Turasis II for nearly an hour since it set off from Fortress Howe. Since many sections of the road had been blown up, they
The journey was not smooth.
The area where this city is located is close to the frigid zone. At this time in the northern hemisphere, the lowest temperature has dropped to ten degrees below zero. The cold wind blows from the south, which is gradually freezing, the only ocean on Turasis.
, the thick waterproof curtain behind the truck body whirred.
"I want to know why we have to go so far out here at this point to scout for the Kemorians who have never been seen." Harnak complained in the troop carrier assigned to the Augustus squad: "And
There are many transport planes on the apron in the fortress, why should we take a car?"
"Maybe we are afraid that we will be shot down by the locals' small pistols with an effective range of only a few dozen yards?" Renault said: "Vanderspu has always been very considerate. He is a gentleman and a good person."
"I say, it's business to finish work early and go back to sleep." Tychus's power armor is larger than the ordinary model: "How about we go to a local bar to have some fun?"
"Yeah!" Harnack shouted.
"Okay, okay." Augustus glared at Harnak: "Do you know where that place is? And if there are really Camorians, I won't take them to save you when you are drunk.
Several lives.”
The shining eyes of Harnak, Josephine and Tychus immediately dimmed at an alarming speed.
Just as he was talking, the convoy drove onto the bumpy road in Wetburg, which was full of craters, and drove all the way to the city, finally stopping at an intersection with a traffic light.
Augustus closed his helmet visor, was the first to open the curtain of the armored vehicle, and jumped out of the vehicle astride a Gauss rifle with a gray wolf head emblem on the handle. Other marines also jumped out one after another.
The snowflakes fell on Augustus's mask and immediately melted and condensed into ice. He looked towards the few places where there were still lights. What caught his eyes were undulating black shadows, as if they were a dense forest.
Hills together.
But Augustus soon discovered that this was far from the truth. This was actually the ruins of a city. High-rise buildings collapsed, rubble and car wreckage were everywhere. The snow swallowed everything up, making the bright lights and vibrant noise fall silent.
A white wasteland remains.
Wertburg was once a city with a population of 200,000. In the past few years of the union war, it had been lucky enough to avoid being engulfed by the flames of war. But a few months ago, Wertburg encountered a conflict with the Pride of Polk.
With the same fate, Kaimorian's sea dragon army invaded, plundered and destroyed the city.
"So, where are we going to capture little Ebal of the Camorion?" Tychus said angrily, "We don't have a plan, and we have very little information."
"Don't you feel something is wrong? What kind of enemy insists that we come here to investigate at night? The Camorians are not blind. Don't they know how to run when they hear the sound of the car? That lieutenant colonel is really a naive guy. I really
I wonder how he got this seat."
"What Captain Warfield means is that at least we have to come." Augustus said: "After all, there are still thousands of people living in these ruins, and they are all refugees who are unwilling to leave their homes. We should at least
Keep them safe."
"Hoho? This doesn't sound like the style of our Marines." Tychus laughed: "Do you know how the Marines on the Reading III protect their people?"
"Kill them all, and then say it was the Camorians who did it. In this way, the war reporters of the UNN Universe News Network can write an article with pictures and texts criticizing the viciousness of the Camorians, and arouse the residents of the core world to hate
The hatred of the enemy. Then, the federal government can issue public debt in the name of war," he said.
"As for who will pay the public debt in the end, it is of course the defeated Camorians."
"Tychus, I hope you can understand this. Although we are not angels, we should not be demons either." Augustus said and led the class towards the few light sources in Wetterburg.
Reagan, the platoon leader of the third platoon, ordered his squad to investigate one of them.
Augustus followed a path that had obviously been swept and passed a church with only three walls left. The broken stained glass windows reflected colorful light under the light of armored searchlights. A huge cross fell from the top of the church.
It is stuck diagonally in the snow, as if standing on a huge tomb.
According to the orders of the Governor-General Turasis II and the First Main Continental Plate Command in the Northern Hemisphere, all cities and towns in this area should strictly implement light blackouts and curfews, but the residents of Wertburg obviously do not care about this regulation.
Fort Wetter has been reduced to ruins, but most of the residential buildings can still be powered by solar panels. Electricity is actually not the most scarce resource in this era. However, this ruin is actually a chaotic place of death, because it has been
It is an area that neither the Terran Federation nor the Kaimorian Federation wants to govern, so there are all kinds of people hiding here.
Homeless locals, wanted outlaws, interstellar pirates and mercenaries who repair here and trade with locals to obtain supplies and fuel. Furthermore, in the middle of winter, local hungry beasts will also come here.
Night attacks humans, and you must beware of wild beasts or even your neighbors climbing up your wall for a little food.
Only a few buildings have their lights turned on all night, and they are usually the lairs of the largest local gangs or bars open to interstellar pirates and mercenaries.
Augustus's destination was a small bar that was not too big. There were several sentries outside the bar, but no one dared to shoot at the federal marines in power armor, not even a decent drink.
.To the hard-suffering locals, there is no difference between the Federation and the Kaimorian armies.
After observing for a while, Augustus led a few soldiers into the bar, leaving the others to set up sentries.
The bar is surprisingly clean and tidy. The smell of incense mixes with the dry and cold air outside the door. The ground is a repaired wooden floor. There are more than a dozen tables and matching chairs. There are only four or five people sitting inside. I want to come.
The others had already run away when they heard that the Federal Marines were coming.
Augustus walked straight to the bartender behind the counter, his power boots making the wooden boards creak.
"I want to buy a piece of information about the Camorians." Augustus threw a thick stack of banknotes on the counter.
"Is your squad leader so rich?" Tychus asked in surprise on the communication channel. At the same time, he accurately estimated the amount of money based on the thickness of the banknote.
"Of course." Renault said proudly: "Augustus may be the richest man on the planet."
"It's none of your business, why are you so embarrassed?" Tychus said, but what he was thinking about was to find out the details of Augustus. If Augustus is really a big shot, then Tychus
Si doesn't mind trying to flatter him.
"Ah! Sir, I don't know anything!" The bar owner was a middle-aged man with one hand missing. He was indeed frightened by the thickness of the stack of banknotes at first, but after thinking about it, he realized that it was still his own.
Life is more important.
"Are you afraid of revenge?" Augustus asked.
"Come on, come on, this guy definitely doesn't know as much as I do." At this time, a man in strange attire approached Augustus, leaned on the table, took out all the banknotes on it, and then excitedly
He and a companion next to him were counting the banknotes.
Augustus turned to look at him. This man was dressed like the locals, wearing a thick woolen military coat, dark brown thick velvet military boots, and a fluffy three-ear ear protection hat. The hem of this dark brown coat
It's very long, extending to just above the ankle.
If all this is normal, it would be strange for him to be wearing sunglasses in the middle of the night. Judging from this man's face and his youthful voice, he should be in his twenties.
"Seeing you really made me burst into tears. You may not know that Remy and I are starting a business." After counting, the man looked at Augustus, regardless of the height difference between him and the Marine, and said enthusiastically
Shake hands with him: "Oh, my name is Graven Hill. I am from Umoyan and I am a mercenary. This is my business card with my email address on it."
"That's right, then why do you think your information is worth this price?" Augustus took the business card and put it away. Behind the mask that Hill couldn't see, he smiled.
Graven Hill is the mercenary leader on the Hyperion in the game, the guy who sells mercenary contracts to Renault.
What a coincidence.
"It's definitely worth the price, sir. There is a Kaimorian Hygoron assault force preparing to raid Howe Fortress tonight," Hill said.
"How did you know this?" Augustus's face changed.
"I am a mercenary. In the past, I mainly took jobs from the Camorian people. There are also some mercenaries who did dirty work for the Camorian under my hands and are still among them. There is no shortage of information.
"Hill said: "Of course, I have signed mercenary contracts between the Federation and Kemorian, and there are quite a few."
"The Camorians are under a lot of military pressure right now. Alas...it's actually very difficult for us to deal with. Demand exceeds supply. Commissions will definitely increase, but they can't afford it and they all owe it." Maybe.
Because of his youth, Hill was much more talkative at this time: "Mercenaries also need to eat. They have parents and children to support. There are many families who can't open the pot."
"So, you really can't blame me. I didn't really want to betray them."
"Jim, hurry up, let's go find Reagan. He is the only one who has the equipment to contact Warfield directly." Augustus turned and left.
"Well, you just believe me that much?" Hill was also stunned.
"No matter what, we have to confirm." Augustus left a few words and walked out of the bar with Renault and others who were confused: "We will contact you later. If this news is true, the money just left
I'll pay you twice as much."
"I will contact you."
"This is a rich potential customer." Hill's companion Remy said: "We should keep in touch with him."