The muddy forest ground sank beneath the weight of the Astartes.
Low-ranking daemons froze for a brief moment at the arrival of this new presence on the tropical battlefield.
Atreus straightened after his landing.
His black eyes, hidden behind his helmet, observed the Warp abominations without the slightest trace of fear, while his grip tightened around his Leviathan axe.
The sound of additional landings soon followed.
Yet the daemons' attention remained fixed on the man at their head.
The creatures of Khorne could be considered foolish by many daemons, but there was one domain in which none could rival them.
War.
The iron-clad beings before them carried a scent similar to their own, a rare essence within the Materium.
This anomaly was especially strong around the man leading them.
The towering armored figure was not a simple prey from which a skull could be casually taken.
The daemons had recognized something more in him.
A great warrior.
A skull worthy of being offered to Khorne.
"Aaaah!"
Eventually, a Bloodletter could no longer suppress its frenzy at the temptation of such a valuable trophy.
It leapt toward Atreus at inhuman speed.
But…
Bam.
"You're too noisy."
With a single bolter shot, the Warp creature was sent back into the Immaterium with almost insulting ease.
"H-how?!" Zack exclaimed, watching the daemon's skull reduced to fragments by the bolter round.
As commander of the auxiliary army, he had seen what the scarlet creature's subordinates were capable of.
Their power, though insignificant compared to their leader, was still inhuman to ordinary soldiers.
The image of his men being slaughtered in close combat was still fresh in his mind.
Even ranged weapons seemed hindered by unknown forces.
Yet Atreus had shattered Zack's common sense in seconds.
There was no choreography, no unnecessary movement in the Iron Lord's actions.
Only efficiency.
[Iron Lord, we are beginning deployment], Anthony announced through the communicator.
Atreus gave a slight nod toward his subordinates, signaling approval.
The two tactical squads would now proceed with their mission.
Atreus would do the same.
With a fluid motion, he raised his Leviathan axe above his head.
At first glance, the gesture might have seemed strange.
Yet to the observers, it evoked the image of ancient heroes walking the battlefields of old.
Some Macedonians recruited into the auxiliary army could not help but overlay the temple frescoes of their homeland onto the image of their savior.
Iskandar.
Also known as Alexander the Great.
The Conquering King.
A mythical figure of Old Terra, worshipped by the Macedonians as the living embodiment of conquest and heroism.
A man who desired to seize all the riches of the world.
Unconsciously, their hearts began to beat faster.
"My name is Atreus, son of Olympia and lord of this world. Oh you, Khorne's bastards, come to me if you dare covet my skull!" he declared, deliberately arrogant.
At the proclamation, the Macedonian recruits understood.
They became convinced that the iron giant was the reincarnation of an ancient hero, come to aid them in this desperate war.
Their morale exploded.
As for Atreus?
He did not notice the chaotic state of the battlefield caused by his declaration.
And in truth, he did not care.
That task belonged to Anthony and Barnaby.
Throughout his speech, his eyes never left the greater daemon near Zack.
The Iron Warrior's intention was clear: he was challenging the Khorne daemon to come and take his head on the battlefield.
However, he was not only provoking a duel.
He was also drawing U'zuhl's attention away from his commander.
After all, forming another officer of comparable quality would be troublesome.
"Grr… arrogant mortal! I will take your skull myself and have my revenge!" roared U'zuhl before charging.
Atreus did not remain idle.
Like the Herald of Khorne, he too launched himself toward the champion of the Blood God.
The ground shook beneath the two colossi.
Finally, the infernal blade and the energy axe collided.
The shockwave made the air tremble around them.
"C-careful!!"
"Damn it, is he still human?!"
"G-god… he is Ares!!"
Panic spread through the ranks after the first clash between the greater daemon and the Astartes, but both warriors ignored everything else.
The Bloodletter's full attention was locked onto the man resisting its blade.
"F-weak… Grr… you are weaker, Iron Lord," the daemon spat before kicking Atreus in the stomach.
The Iron Warrior staggered back a few steps, then quickly regained his stance.
The daemon's words disturbed him, but he pushed all external thoughts aside.
He tried to raise his bolter.
But the Warp entity gave him no breathing room.
It immediately followed with a barrage of strikes from its infernal blade. Atreus parried the first with his bolter's stock, then used the brief opening to reposition and defend with his energy axe.
The air trembled under the relentless assault of the blade infused with Immaterium energy, clashing endlessly with the energy axe.
Atreus remained on the defensive, though not passively so.
Despite the daemon's overwhelming violence, the Astartes used all his duelist experience to land feints and calculated counterattacks.
However, the entity appeared to suffer only minor damage.
Its frenzy only grew stronger, fueled by the thrill of a "worthy duel" before claiming a high-quality skull.
If he wanted to win, Atreus would need to inflict far more than superficial counterstrikes.
However, he could not.
The daemon was far too experienced in the art of slaughter.
The harsh truth could no longer be ignored.
He had to accept that he was inferior in close-quarters combat.
Thus, Atreus changed tactics.
"Grr… haha… fight!! My god demands a bloody battle!!" U'zuhl spat, striking again.
Atreus narrowly dodged.
The attack was both precise and devastating.
It even split one of Zack's tanks in two.
At this rate, he would not last long.
He knew it.
Yet he remained on the defensive.
The Iron Lord preferred to wait for an opening rather than risk a direct duel.
Finally, the opportunity came.
The daemon struck Atreus's guard with overwhelming force.
The Leviathan axe was knocked from his grip.
A calculated move by Atreus—but U'zuhl could not know that.
To him, dropping one's weapon in a death duel was pure insanity.
Thus, victory seemed certain.
But…
Bam.
A bolter shot rang out, smoke still trailing from the barrel.
Atreus had wounded the greater daemon's thigh during its moment of distraction.
Victory turned into poison.
A poison injected by the Space Marine.
"V-vermin…" the entity growled before being interrupted by a punch to the jaw.
The shot had destabilized its movements, the wound already affecting its balance.
Atreus followed with a punch, then a strike from his bolter's stock.
The daemon was sent to the ground.
"Vermin? And yet you lose to that 'vermin'," the Astartes mocked before kicking it in the head like a football.
A sharp observer could see a tooth fly from the creature's mouth.
Such was the force behind the blow.
However, the champion of Khorne had not yet given up.
Indeed, it had been knocked down.
But so what?
It still had one more card to play, and it used it immediately after seeing Atreus recover his energy blade.
"C-come to me, Khul'tyran!!" U'zuhl roared.
Instantly, the ground trembled as the Immaterium around the cave became increasingly unstable.
Then a ferocious roar echoed.
"Aaaah!!!"
It was a colossal Juggernaut.