The pings of autogun bullets and the clattering of debris across the hull was almost familiar now. Like the acclimation of the body to cold water, time aided me in strengthening my resolve, though admittedly when I thought about it later, I very nearly vomited. However, at the time my blood was hot, and I roared as I thumbed the multilaster, cutting through Orks and even frying a few diminutive gretchen, the little miserable creatures having come out to try and assess the damage of a few of the ruined ramshakle vehicles. Even having wound a strip of cloth over my mouth, my lungs felt like they had gravel in them, and I nearly coughed with every exhale. It was by the emperor's mercy that I felt the Chimera turning upwards, and gradually I felt the brightness of the sun again as we began to ascend the slope. Both of the Chimeras with us flanked us, and we lifted out of the crater like a flock of razorwings climbing toward the heavens. 

I squinted, blinking as I tore the cloth from my mouth and hacked again, driving the dust from my body and sucking in the free air. I raised my fist in triumph. Damn, I needed a woman to kiss! There were a few below, but it was not good to fraternize with the women that served under me, I reminded myself. No amasec to drink either, Emperor's Teeth! 

My exhalation was shortlived, however. Just as we reached the last stretch before the cusp of the crater, a gout of flame and a roaring boom erupted from the dust cloud below. Instantly, the Chimera on our right was struck. I had never heard the sound of rending metal so close, sparks and plates of armor flying as the vehicle suddenly stalled. Moments later, out of the dust sped ork speed vehicles called wartrukks, and as the debris dissipated off them, I counted six in all. 

The damaged Chimera began to slowly slide back down the crater, but the porthole opened at its top and both men and women scrambled out, their lasguns strapped to their backs and their faces filled with fear. Five of them managed to leap out of the top, but the sixth man that reached out began to scream as the armored vehicle accelerated down the hill, and from the gaping hole unbalancing the vehicle, it began to roll. I winced, glad it was not me, but mouthing a small prayer to him on earth to see his soul to the after life safely. 

We crested the lip of the crater, and I opened the vox to order Sel to halt. 

"What?" 

"Open the back, we have 5 soldiers that need a lift!" 

Before Sel could reply, whether to argue or order the hatch open, the bay door fell like an anvil. Later I was told that was Morek's doing, but at the time I was simply relieved to see it done. Covered in dirt, and some in smatterings of blood, each trooper climbed the last few meters of the crater and hustled into the Chimera. I went back down, beckoning them to hurry. The last woman on the ground, a pretty black haired farm girl, took my hand just as we could hear the whooping of the Orks. I hauled her in and slammed my fist on the button to close the ramp. 

"Thank you sir," She said. I would later learn her name was Priscilla.

"Gun it!" I ordered Sel, and she did not need to be told twice. I was nearly torn out of the Chimera as it shot forward, but the other troopers kept me from flying out the back as Sel raced to catch up to our remaining comrade. I hastily climbed back to my position on the turret, and let me tell you, I would never forget the next few moments. The sight of ork wartrukks shooting out from the canyon like nightmarish mechanical dolphins while I could hear the telltale whistle of basilisk artillery shells overhead. As the first ork vehicle hit the dirt, the ground detonated in a cacophony of violent explosions, and judging from the debris flying above us out of the canyon, I knew the Ork roks were getting even more attention than our position. The third wartrukk was hit directly, ripping through the shoddy chasis and tearing through the orks unfortunate enough to be at its center. The rest of the ork wartrukks swerved and whizzed around the rain of shells, stubbers rat-tat-tatting at us. One of the wartrukks did not bother evasive maneuvers, believing that Gork and Mork were on their side and speeding up beside us, able to catch up fairly easily as we were still accelerating. I tried to spin the multilaser, but they were too close. 

On the wartrukk, Orks hung like flies on a pile of dung, waving axes and autoguns. The driver, an ork with a mohawk and a steel jaw, swerved the vehicle to slam into our side. Luckily Chimeras were sturdy, but it was not an ideal position to be in. Troopers fired their lasguns from the opening vents, but their shots went wild. One enterprising greenskin leaped from the back of the wartrukk and grabbed ahold of a strip of the Chimera's hull, hauling himself atop it like a gorilla. I yelled in fear and ducked, but as the Ork got closer, Morek popped up top in my place, holding his ripper gun. He gave a cry from a language I did not recognize, and pulled the trigger. The automatic shotgun, if some a beastly weapon could be called that, obliterated the ork's jaw, neck, and chest, blood and flesh flying into the air like grisly fireworks, and the remains of the xenos fell from the top of the Chimera to be crushed underneath another wartrukk. 

Morek turned his ripper gun and unloaded his clip on the wartrukk in close proximity, punching through ork flesh and armor and causing the vehicle to sputter smoke. The driver cried out in dismay as the vehicle began to slow, and Morek spat for good measure, hopping back down inside and patting me on the shoulder. I nodded, and went back up top again, taking the multilaser and sending a barrage of lasbolts at the next wartrukk, tearing through it's front grill and killing two of the green bastards.