{{Внутреннее тестирование Вики|

{{Внутреннее тестирование Вики|

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|DE=<!--Kapitel VII - Töten und Polieren-->

|DE=<!--Kapitel VII - Töten und Polieren-->

Kneeling in the dust, Pü took a long look at the tear through the sight of his rifle. Near it, Pia, the tribe's best sentry, was half lying on the ground, her ear pressed to the bark. Her heightened senses made her an outstanding tracker, able to spot a herd of mektoubs from several miles away. Suddenly, she raised her hand. A chill spread through the line of warriors, which tightened a little more. Pü felt the muscles of his comrades tense and the supports correct. They were ready, no matter what. And things, indeed, were not going to go as planned.

Kneeling in the dust, Pü took a long look at the tear through the sight of his rifle. Near it, Pia, the tribe's best sentry, was half lying on the ground, her ear pressed to the bark. Her heightened senses made her an outstanding tracker, able to spot a herd of mektoubs from several miles away. Suddenly, she raised her hand. A chill spread through the line of warriors, which tightened a little more. Pü felt the muscles of his comrades tense and the supports correct. They were ready, no matter what. And things, indeed, were not going to go as planned.

Pü swallowed and saw his comrades do the same. So the flying abominations that had wreaked such havoc were not the only monsters haunting the depths? Sang Fu-Tao, the Black Mask, reacted without delay.

Pü swallowed and saw his comrades do the same. So the flying abominations that had wreaked such havoc were not the only monsters haunting the depths? Sang Fu-Tao, the Black Mask, reacted without delay.

:''"We are the Black Warriors of Ma-Duk! We are his armed and purifying arm! We are the guardians of the True Faith! We are the scourge that falls upon the heretics!"'' the warriors chanted in chorus, as Pü murmured it with his lips.

:''"We are the Black Warriors of Ma-Duk! We are his armed and purifying arm! We are the guardians of the True Faith! We are the scourge that falls upon the heretics!"'' the warriors chanted in chorus, as Pü murmured it with his lips.

The force of the shaking intensified and the unhealthy smell reached the limit of what was bearable. But at that moment, nothing could have made the homins and hominas of the tribe give in.

The force of the shaking intensified and the unhealthy smell reached the limit of what was bearable. But at that moment, nothing could have made the homins and hominas of the tribe give in.

Pü barely had time to see the vile shadow crawling out of the tear when shots rang out above him and a shower of grenades fell on the enemy. The shock was terrible. Fueled by the oils, a gigantic spray of flames shot towards the top of the stump, shaking the ground and throwing a cloud of pieces of bark and charred carapaces with it. Protected by his shield and anchored to the walls of soldiers, Pü easily withstood the blow of the blast, of which only a few sparks came to lick his armor. Despite the power of the blast, he was able to make out the horrible, shrill sounds of the creatures caught in the bombardment. Many seconds passed and the cataclysm was unending. Ceremonial Square would be disfigured forever, a small price to pay for their victory. Moments later, as several gunners reloaded their weapons, one of the monsters managed to extract itself from the chaos. At five feet tall, it looked like a monstrous version of a spider. A bronze-colored body, cramped, arched. Chitinous segment, curved, connecting a stinger and a faceless skull, like a curved blade, sharpened, designed to slice flesh. Hanging in its center, not eight legs, but six, articulated, and sharper than swords. On the upper part, a pair of serrated hooks, which probably served as weapons as well as manipulative appendages. This thing was no match for the flying monsters that Pü had confronted shortly before in terms of horror. It was a fantasized predator, carved out of Sap by a maniacal sculptor who would have gone to great lengths to remove any frills. With extreme agility, the creature shot at the line of warriors, snapping its hooks. But the soldiers were prepared, and from their cover, they strafed the hexapod. As expected, only the shots hitting the soft parts had any real effect. Dripping with milky blood, the monster shed pieces as it ran, eventually collapsing in a smoking heap before it had even traveled half the distance to its preys. The event happened several times and Pü was horribly surprised to discover that there were versions of the monster approaching three metres. But strangely enough, at a distance, they posed less of a threat. Their size made them slower and provided a better window of opportunity to shoot at their weak points. On a few occasions, monsters managed to reach the soldiers and were summarily executed. The strategy was always the same: absorb the impact of the attack with the shield wall, follow the creature's movement, use the energy of the rebound to push it back, take advantage of the imbalance created to open a gap and cut it to pieces. The apparent simplicity of this defensive technique was in fact the result of years of intensive training, and showed incredible cooperative work.

Pü barely had time to see the vile shadow crawling out of the tear when shots rang out above him and a shower of grenades fell on the enemy. The shock was terrible. Fueled by the oils, a gigantic spray of flames shot towards the top of the stump, shaking the ground and throwing a cloud of pieces of bark and charred carapaces with it. Protected by his shield and anchored to the walls of soldiers, Pü easily withstood the blow of the blast, of which only a few sparks came to lick his armor. Despite the power of the blast, he was able to make out the horrible, shrill sounds of the creatures caught in the bombardment. Many seconds passed and the cataclysm was unending. Ceremonial Square would be disfigured forever, a small price to pay for their victory. Moments later, as several gunners reloaded their weapons, one of the monsters managed to extract itself from the chaos. At five feet tall, it looked like a monstrous version of a spider. A bronze-colored body, cramped, arched. Chitinous segment, curved, connecting a stinger and a faceless skull, like a curved blade, sharpened, designed to slice flesh. Hanging in its center, not eight legs, but six, articulated, and sharper than swords. On the upper part, a pair of serrated hooks, which probably served as weapons as well as manipulative appendages. This thing was no match for the flying monsters that Pü had confronted shortly before in terms of horror. It was a fantasized predator, carved out of Sap by a maniacal sculptor who would have gone to great lengths to remove any frills. With extreme agility, the creature shot at the line of warriors, snapping its hooks. But the soldiers were prepared, and from their cover, they strafed the hexapod. As expected, only the shots hitting the soft parts had any real effect. Dripping with milky blood, the monster shed pieces as it ran, eventually collapsing in a smoking heap before it had even traveled half the distance to its preys. The event happened several times and Pü was horribly surprised to discover that there were versions of the monster approaching three metres. But strangely enough, at a distance, they posed less of a threat. Their size made them slower and provided a better window of opportunity to shoot at their weak points. On a few occasions, monsters managed to reach the soldiers and were summarily executed. The strategy was always the same: absorb the impact of the attack with the shield wall, follow the creature's movement, use the energy of the rebound to push it back, take advantage of the imbalance created to open a gap and cut it to pieces. The apparent simplicity of this defensive technique was in fact the result of years of intensive training, and showed incredible cooperative work.

:''"Gunners, we're coming to the end of the last grenades, so get ready to put on your magic amplifiers! I want you to tap into the deepest of your being! This fury that lives in you, it is nothing but pure energy! Visualize it, tame it! Seize it, in the hollow of your hands, and forge it into a weapon! The most deadly weapon there is! The sharpened reflection of the soul of the Black Warriors of Ma-Duk! Show these horrors that even unarmed, we can crush them with our mere will! Tonight we will feast on the ashes of our enemies! So smile, shout your joy! For the Great Genitor is proud! Soldiers, be worthy of the look he has for you! To death!"

:''"Gunners, we're coming to the end of the last grenades, so get ready to put on your magic amplifiers! I want you to tap into the deepest of your being! This fury that lives in you, it is nothing but pure energy! Visualize it, tame it! Seize it, in the hollow of your hands, and forge it into a weapon! The most deadly weapon there is! The sharpened reflection of the soul of the Black Warriors of Ma-Duk! Show these horrors that even unarmed, we can crush them with our mere will! Tonight we will feast on the ashes of our enemies! So smile, shout your joy! For the Great Genitor is proud! Soldiers, be worthy of the look he has for you! To death!"

The bombardment gradually ceased, and soon the creatures flooded the pit. The tidal wave of stings and fangs crashed through the shields with staggering violence. The atmosphere, stained and darkened by the battle, shifted again as the first spells flew over the warriors: jets of flame, shockwaves, beams of electricity, tongues of acid, spurts of poison, and icy breaths. The air became charged with inflows of energy, and compressed behind his shield, muscles sheathed and feet sunken in sawdust, Pü felt the spiritual particles that made up his being resonate with those of his comrades. The sensation was increased tenfold as the line of warriors received healing salvos from the healers. The healing process of the soldiers, accelerated thousands of times, had erased the last traces of fear remaining in them. Every open wound closed immediately, every broken bone was instantly resoldered. As a result, even if every opening in the black wall allowed the monsters to reach the homins in their flesh, they never hesitated to fight back, carried as they were by a feeling of invincibility. Their souls remained out of reach. It took only a few minutes for Ceremonial Square to overflow with insects. Those who did make it to the floor above were instantly wiped out by the war mages. The carcasses gradually accumulated to the point where a mass grave several meters high covered the entire ground. Minutes passed and the monstrous wave seemed to subside. Yes, the creatures were fewer and fewer in number. Yet their behavior did not change. They charged at the homins, inexorably, as if there was still a chance, or as if that was all they knew how to do. Paws torn off, carapaces broken and flesh burned. Nothing could stop their crazy race, except the extinction of their motor functions. It was there, their weak point. As numerous and armed as they were, they were missing something. A spirit, a soul. Pü had observed the subtlety of animal behavior many times. And these monsters were not, they were less than that. They were like tools. Objects without consciousness. Therein lay the cause of their defeat.

The bombardment gradually ceased, and soon the creatures flooded the pit. The tidal wave of stings and fangs crashed through the shields with staggering violence. The atmosphere, stained and darkened by the battle, shifted again as the first spells flew over the warriors: jets of flame, shockwaves, beams of electricity, tongues of acid, spurts of poison, and icy breaths. The air became charged with inflows of energy, and compressed behind his shield, muscles sheathed and feet sunken in sawdust, Pü felt the spiritual particles that made up his being resonate with those of his comrades. The sensation was increased tenfold as the line of warriors received healing salvos from the healers. The healing process of the soldiers, accelerated thousands of times, had erased the last traces of fear remaining in them. Every open wound closed immediately, every broken bone was instantly resoldered. As a result, even if every opening in the black wall allowed the monsters to reach the homins in their flesh, they never hesitated to fight back, carried as they were by a feeling of invincibility. Their souls remained out of reach. It took only a few minutes for Ceremonial Square to overflow with insects. Those who did make it to the floor above were instantly wiped out by the war mages. The carcasses gradually accumulated to the point where a mass grave several meters high covered the entire ground. Minutes passed and the monstrous wave seemed to subside. Yes, the creatures were fewer and fewer in number. Yet their behavior did not change. They charged at the homins, inexorably, as if there was still a chance, or as if that was all they knew how to do. Paws torn off, carapaces broken and flesh burned. Nothing could stop their crazy race, except the extinction of their motor functions. It was there, their weak point. As numerous and armed as they were, they were missing something. A spirit, a soul. Pü had observed the subtlety of animal behavior many times. And these monsters were not, they were less than that. They were like tools. Objects without consciousness. Therein lay the cause of their defeat.

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