After several weeks Commander Fastblade, leader of the Tau expansion into the Vastrid subsector, was able to consolidate his position on Minos when Inquisitor Cicerus and his Guard regiments arrived once again in ths system. The Tau allowed the Inquisitor to land on 1807.008M42, accepting an envoy from his staff who handed an note to the Tau Commander. The note was deeply insulting, simply informing Fastblade that the forces of the emperor would soon be “cleansing” him from the world and that death by his own hand might be a more sensible solution. Unimpressed, Fastblade set about his defences.
The Imperial forces attacked a day later with elements of the Praetorian 24th and 25th Regiment, as well as Cadian 1112th Armoured Regiment Tanks. The latter soon found themselves in real trouble on the desert plains, where Tau Hammerheads used arcane technology to distort their image, making them hard to hit, while the Leman Russ battle tanks stood out clearly on the hot sands. Soon most were burning.
Cicerus ordered his infantry forward, using the dunes and rocky outcrops as cover. Mocing swiftly and by outflanking the Tau positions with Sentinel walkers, the Tau were soon hard pressed and for a time it looked likely that their defences would collapse. However Fastblade had prepared well and the Imperial infantry took terrible casualties as they neared their objective, cut down in swathes by accurate short-ranged fire from Tau sophisticated weaponry. The Hammerhead Railguns’ subminitions also proved lethal.
By the end of 2007.008M42 the latest attempt to retake Minos had failed, and the Tau presence on the planet looked ever more permanent.
No comments:
Post a Comment