Rewind to half an hour ago.
When Emrys arrived at the front line and saw that almost all of his 'comrades' were under twenty years old, his heart sank.
Their tender faces were filled with fear of war, and even the hands holding their guns trembled uncontrollably amidst the thunderous artillery fire.
This won't do... Emrys knew very well that if this low morale wasn't corrected in time, they would completely collapse before the cultists even attacked.
The comissar sent by the Adeptus Arbites was clearly not responsible for boosting morale; that was the commissar's job, not his.
His duty was only one.
That was to ensure that not a single person retreated half a step before everyone on the position had died.
The completely inactive comissar made Emrys realize that he had to do this himself, but the problem was... he had no idea how to boost morale!
Looking at the young boys, who were cowering like quails and trembling amidst the interwoven sounds of artillery, gunfire, and battle cries, Emrys stepped forward, his voice involuntarily growing louder as he shouted, "I know you're afraid to die, but it's okay, I'm also afraid to die, but being afraid... will those damned heretics spare us then?!"
They were a bit stunned by the sudden shout.
But thanks to that shout, the trembling boys finally stopped being stunned and all looked up at Emrys.
People are like that.
The more chaotic the situation, as long as one person steps forward to lead, the chaotic crowd will quickly regain order. What psychological effect is this called again?
Emrys didn't care about that. Under the gaze of the boys, he said in a deep voice, "No, those damned heretics will never spare us. They will chop off our heads and pile them into a mountain!"
The already frightened boys, as if the terrifying scene had already been painted in their minds, immediately felt their inner fear intensify.
But that was exactly the result Emrys wanted.
When people face a desperate situation, they must be given time to think and realize that there is no retreat before their last bit of courage can be ignited!
This move... is called 'Backs to the Wall'!
Looking at the morale that had completely hit rock bottom, Emrys took a deep breath and roared, "Cowards, lift your heads and look at what's behind you?"
"It's... it's the hive city..."
"No, it's... the officers!"
"Sobsob... I'm doomed, I'm doomed, Dad, Mom... I miss you!"
For a moment, the boys who looked back at the hive city and the defensive lines of the PDF thought of different outcomes, and sorrow welled up, followed by a chorus of weeping.
"No! Those are our families!"
Emrys roared, his voice like thunder: "Open your eyes and look! That is our home! That is our hive city! Our loved ones are there!"
It turned out that although the PDF had conscripted a large number of civilians, they had still arranged some elderly, women, and children on the rearmost defensive lines.
The reason for doing so was not out of any 'humanitarianism', but simply because... they were not as capable as the able-bodied youth in terms of combat effectiveness!
"Do you want to stand by and watch those damned heretics slaughter our families?!"
Looking at the stunned boys, Emrys' veins popped out on his forehead as he yelled at the top of his lungs: "Answer me! Do you want to see your loved ones' heads cut off by heretics and piled up like garbage?!"
"No... we don't..."
"Your voices are too low, I can't hear you!"
"No!!!"
The roar was thunderous, and no longer was there fear on anyone's face, but instead... anger!
"Then for the God-Emperor, for our families, for our... hive city behind us, kill those heretics!"
Emrys drew his gun, his momentum like a towering mountain erupting, and he passionately shouted, "Behind us is home, we have no retreat! Since death awaits us all, why not fight with all our might?!"
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
"For the God-Emperor! For our home!"
At this moment, the hymn of courage, unique to humanity, which had been suppressed deep within their hearts... was sung!
The commisar in the rear immediately cast a surprised look.
After seeing the low morale of these people, he had been ready to shoot a few of them at any moment, but he didn't expect that this person would actually boost their morale with just a few words!
"Very good! Very spirited!"
Looking at the finally boosted morale, Emrys breathed a slight sigh of relief; otherwise, with the previously low morale, a single charge from the cult fanatics would have been enough to completely crush them!
"But courage alone isn't enough; this is war!"
Emrys' stern gaze swept over everyone's faces one by one, and he said in a low voice, "You need to listen to orders, obey my commands!"
Youth always has a surge of courage.
After being motivated, they all looked at the 'backbone' of the team at this moment: "We are willing to follow your command!"
Clearly, Emrys' words had planted a seed in the hearts of the boys!
"I cannot guarantee... that you will survive."
Emrys, entrusted with their trust, felt a ripple in his heart. He gritted his teeth, looking at the boys who cast eager, hopeful gazes, and said in a deep voice, "But I can promise you... everything we do today is valuable. No one will sacrifice in vain. We will, for the God-Emperor, for our home, for our loved ones, drive out the heretics, and the final victory... will surely be ours!"
Soon, under Emrys' command.
The ten-person squad was divided into three teams, each with about three people, concealed in the ruins of the surrounding civilian houses, forming a crossfire cover.
The third team served as a reserve, ready to provide immediate support if any position encountered trouble.
"I hope it works..."
Emrys rubbed his throbbing temples, looking worriedly at the increasing number of heretic fanatics surging forward, and gritted his teeth: "In my previous life, I only played strategy games a few times at most, but this is my first time in actual combat!"
The only thing worth celebrating was that the cult fanatics did not have heavy destructive weapons; most of them had an old lumbering gun or a laser gun with a nearly worn-out rifling.
But more fanatics used weapons like axes.
At least, from this point of view, they had a firepower advantage and had every hope of suppressing the cult.
Of course, all of this was predicated on the cult not planning a larger conspiracy!
Emrys always felt a bit uneasy; others might not know, but he knew perfectly well!
The cult had a Daemon Engine, a Hellflayer!
If the Hellflayer were brought out, breaking through the hive city's defenses would be effortless; there would be no need to drag it out this long, let alone suffer heavy casualties.
Could it be... they were going to summon a Khorne Daemon Army?