Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 695

Chapter 693: Hive Overlord, Battle of Rheaduches (VIII)

Leroy’s target was a Hive Tyrant.

This was a true high-level unit of the Zerg. Generally speaking, a Chapter Champion was required to slay a Hive Tyrant,

and even that wasn’t always guaranteed.

Records of Chapter Champions and Hive Tyrants revealed a roughly 70/30 split—excluding the glorification of the Terran Empire in battle reports, it was probably around 50/50.

Besides their individual strength, a Hive Tyrant’s most notable characteristic was that they were often the supreme commanders of a Zerg army on the front lines.

In ordinary battles, even crucial ones that could decide the fate of a planet, victory was often declared as long as a single hero could slay a Hive Tyrant.

Of course, in the case of Rhaeadouce, Leroy wasn’t so optimistic.

On this planet, the Queen is the supreme leader, far inferior to the Hive Tyrant.

Leroy even suspected that even the current battle wouldn’t be ended by simply killing the Hive Tyrant. At best, it would only cause some of the Zerg forces to lose control. Within that vast army, comprised of Bio-Titans and various advanced Zerg units, there was at least one Hive Tyrant.

Furthermore, those Zerg Saint Titans themselves might be node creatures on par with, or even superior to, the Hive Tyrant.

This represented a decisive investment for the Queen, and she would certainly not hesitate to deploy additional node creatures.

Regardless, destroying a Hive Tyrant in battle would still inflict a significant blow to the Zerg. Its demise would instantly disable a significant number of Zerg creatures.

Of course, with the presence of numerous other node creatures of the same rank, these disabled Zerg would quickly be taken over, allowing them to regain their combat effectiveness. However, this would take time. Even if it only lasts a few hours, or even a few dozen minutes, in this intense battle, the disabled Zerg units will inevitably suffer heavy losses and be decimated.

At the same time, the Zerg’s positions will be severely impacted, giving the humans a prime opportunity to expand their gains.

Furthermore, the Hive Tyrant, whose location has been confirmed, is likely the leader of the large hive they are targeting.

Killing it will give them ample time to plant a bomb inside the hive and destroy it.

The original mission of this operation will be accomplished.

At that point, there will be more options on the front lines.

If the battle is going well, the troops have spare capacity, and the loss of the Hive Tyrant will significantly damage the Zerg army. Then, they can attempt a single attack to annihilate this elite force, a force that even the Queen would need a long time to gather.

If the battle is not going well, then withdrawing and returning to base is also a good option. At least the results of this mission will have been achieved.

If the Zerg horde dared to pursue, then returning to their base, protected by artillery positions, and engaging in a decisive battle would still give them the upper hand.

With this in mind, Leroy, his most elite Guards, two Space Marine companies, and thousands of elite mortals plucked from various army units, equipped with reactive power armor or at least exoskeleton armor, stormed the hive’s interior.

Enemies were easily dispatched along the way.

This was how battle should have been—if not for the sudden and unexpected appearance of a Zerg horde.

However, a second surprise occurred.

When they reached the Hive Tyrant’s location deep within the lair, Leroy discovered it hadn’t fled.

He should have been delighted. With Leroy’s own strength and the forces around him, slaying the Hive Tyrant would have been a piece of cake.

But this… was it the Hive Tyrant?

Its body, which is several times larger than that of an ordinary Hive Tyrant, and its red and black chitinous exoskeleton, as well as the four wide-bladed serrated psychic knives, all demonstrate the special nature of its identity.

This isn’t a Hive Tyrant, of course, but a Hive Overlord.

Overlord and Tyrant seem similar terms, and it’s hard to say which is superior. When applied to the Zerg, it’s merely a designation.

Two different, somewhat similar, monsters, each designated by a different name, are in reality vastly different.

A Hive Overlord is the pinnacle of the hive, second only to the Queen. Sometimes, the Queen and the Hive Overlord are even on equal footing—if the Hive Overlord isn’t the Queen’s offspring.

Beyond its immense size, a Hive Overlord wields four massive, psionic-enhanced bone swords capable of slicing through anything, even force fields. Whenever the Tyranids can’t overwhelm their opponents through sheer numbers or strategic adjustments, a Swarm Overlord emerges from their ranks to clean up the mess, far more powerful and intelligent than a typical Hive Tyrant.

A Hive Tyrant is already a peer of Chapter Champions, so what about the Hive Overlord, the Tyrants’ granddaddy?

Leroy didn’t know, but he soon learned.

The Hive Lord, accompanied by his Overlord Guard—also elite units of the Zerg Swarm—and a large number of Warriors, had actually charged the Space Marines first.

A barrage of bullets raged between the two sides.

Both the Warriors and Overlord Guards wielded Symbiote weapons, even Symbiote Cannons.

Their power rivaled the Space Marines’ bolter bombs and individual missiles.

The two sides were close together, with little cover, obstacles, or shelter. Neither the Power Armor nor the chitinous armor of the Zerg elite could withstand such a powerful exchange of fire.

The ground was littered with dead.

However, this brutal exchange posed little threat to the true elite warriors or Zerg creatures.

The individual missiles bombarding the Hive Lord were like smoke bombs, unable to even halt its advance.

It charged into the crowd fiercely, brandishing its four broad-bladed serrated swords with great skill.

Those who tried to stand in front of it and hurt it with chainswords or power swords were eventually cut in half.

Its movements were too fast, and often even blocking was impossible;

even if they did, they would often be destroyed along with the swords.

Whether it was a special warfare elite wearing feedback power armor or a space marine in standard power armor, they were no match for it.

Only a captain of the Black Crusaders stood up for a while longer when he stood in front of it.

But it was only a short while.

The Hive Overlord used three swords and took fifteen seconds to kill him.

The remaining sword even killed two company shield guard veterans during this time.

The terror of the Hive Overlord was fully displayed at this moment.

————

I still owe 96k

some sleep!

(End of this chapter)