Now it was a race against time: would the tentacles break first, or would the infested Imperial ship be destroyed first?
Guardians hatched one after another, floating near the Leviathan as mobile artillery platforms, fitting their name 'Guardian' well.
As the number of Guardians increased, the rate of tentacle snapping finally surpassed the rate of tentacle regeneration. Tentacles snapped under the corrosion of spore acid one after another, eliciting a sharp shriek from the Norn Queen.
The Tyranid Hive Ships intensified their attacks immediately, even at the cost of damaging the bio-ships' organs, to keep the Leviathan there.
The infested Imperial ship finally couldn't hold on any longer, blasted to pieces by several Hive Ships. Even Creep couldn't hold it together.
†Your duty is fulfilled.†
The Swarm Overmind glanced at the shattered Imperial ship.
†Initiate warp jump!!!†
The Leviathan possessed warp capability. Although this warp was limited to sector-scale distances, not crossing star systems in a single jump, it was currently a relatively safe mode of travel in the galaxy.
Warp travel methods in Warhammer 40K generally included Warp jumps, Webway routes, and superluminal flight. Among these, Warp jumps were closest to StarCraft II's warp method. But Warp jumps were extremely risky; daemons and chaotic energies within the Warp could affect ships during transit, potentially trapping them in the Warp or causing them to arrive at wrong destinations.
The Leviathan's warp jump was safe... at least for now. If the Chaos Gods took notice, even a normal warp jump might 'accidentally' plunge into the Warp. That would be due to external forces, unrelated to the warp method itself.
The Leviathan's warp jump began. The behemoth's body started distorting, collapsing towards a point.
The Norn Queen noticed this, but before she could act, the Leviathan's massive form flashed with white light and instantly vanished from her sight.
†...†
The Norn Queen was stunned. That thing could move that fast?
The Tyranids didn't have that ability.
Whatever. In the Tyranids' view, the galaxy wasn't that big. Other sectors had Hive Fleets too. Which tendril ate didn't matter.
The Norn Queen turned her attention to the planet. Many biological units remained on the planet. The Tyranids didn't waste food.
———————————————————
†I am a bird in a cage, a fish in a net. This departure is like a bird soaring to the sky, a fish entering the vast sea, never to be fettered again!†
As for the Swarm Overmind, he was overjoyed.
However, he learned a lesson this time.
†Unless absolutely necessary, better not use psychic power again. The psychic power of a Swarm Overmind is far too conspicuous. If it attracts daemons again, it's a total loss.†
The Overmind would rather fight the Tyranids again than fight daemons.
Fighting Tyranids was just difficult; you couldn't outlast them. But daemons? Daemons had no flesh and blood; fighting them was always a loss.
The warp jump ended quickly.
Another flash of white light, and the Leviathan reappeared.
The Swarm Overmind had now arrived in a new sector. Everything in this sector was unfamiliar. It needed to scout the area.
†Zasz, locate the nearest planet. Send Mutalisks to scout.†
"Yes, Overmind."
Mutalisks began scouting planets within the sector. Don't doubt their flight capability. Although their initial speed wasn't fast, Mutalisks could theoretically achieve sub-light speeds in space.
The Overmind controlled the Leviathan to wait quietly for the Mutalisks to reach those planets.
The first planet the Mutalisks encountered was a lava-covered world. Such a planet was clearly unsuitable for development.
The second planet was a rainforest world. This planet's environment was quite suitable.
The third planet—even from a great distance, the Mutalisks could see the Hive City on it. The massive structures stretched like scars across the planet's surface, occupying vast areas.
The Mutalisks were blasted to pieces by asteroid defense platforms before even entering the planet's atmosphere.
†Humans. Not sure if it's Astra Militarum or Space Marines. Hopefully, it's Astra Militarum.†
It was better the Mutalisks didn't enter the planet. That Hive City's underhive might already have Genestealers.
Genestealers were the Tyranids' vanguard units, often infiltrating a planet's cities centuries in advance. They expanded their cults by assimilating local biological genes, inciting uprisings within the cities.
Ultimately, they attracted Tyranid Hive Fleets to convert the entire planet's biomass.
But the underhives were chaotic enough that Genestealers weren't very noticeable in the early stages. Only when their populations grew large did they become easier to identify.
†Let's develop on that rainforest planet first. Rainforest environments suit the Zerg well... Hmm, hopefully, it's not Catachan. I remember Catachan isn't in the eastern part of the galaxy.†
If it was Catachan, the Overmind worried it might not get out after going in.
That planet's terror was such that even the Tyranids had to bow down and cooperate with Catachan's local ecosystem evolution to survive.
Things like explosive toads, man-eating trees, and Catachan Jungle Fighters who could wrestle with Space Marines.
But fortunately, this planet was just one of many rainforest planets in the galaxy, not Catachan. It didn't even have dangerous local wildlife.
After the Mutalisks scouted the planet, finding a forested area near a lake, the Overmind dropped Larvae, Zerglings, and a few Hydralisks at the location. Drones burrowed into the ground and metamorphosed, beginning construction of the first Hatchery.
More Drones cut down surrounding trees and plants into blocks, transporting them to the Hatchery.
A new base began construction. The Zerg Swarm once again demonstrated their unique ability of 'one spawns ten thousand.' Within less than a day, local Zergling numbers exceeded ten thousand and would increase by several orders of magnitude within the next week.
"Overmind."
Abathur suddenly spoke up.
"Proposal: modify lake, establish evolution pool. Preserve eggs, accumulate strength."
†A good proposal. Go ahead and do it.†
"Yes, Overmind."
Abathur deployed special drop pods into the lake. Soon, the lake water's color began to change. The originally clear water gradually turned into an eerie dark green. Upon closer inspection, spores could be seen in the water.
The lake's native life had vanished. Looking closely, decomposing biological corpses could be seen at the lake bottom.
Drones began transporting excess eggs into these lakes for storage, to be hatched at opportune times, allowing for rapid mass unit production.
†Comfortable. Now we can safely build up forces.†
What the Overmind didn't notice were the ghostly figures within the rainforest.