Orks continue advance on Hylas

With the lost of much of the west coast of Hylas, general Gault prepared to meet the next assault from the orks. This necessarily meant concentrating his forces, which the imperial commander did in the north to prevent the orks from breaking out towards Sarin or North Eton.

Unfortunately for Gault, the next ork thrust came from the region of Beng, open country where the orks could use their mobility and speed to rapidly cross the Birego plains.

Gault was unwilling and in any case unable to free much in the way of forces to counter this latest thrust, as he was keen to keep the orks as far south as possible, away from the Sump Sea and an assault on Tennyson. In the end the Red Angels decided to take their own initiative against Thrugnik, and sent in infantry forces on 1811.012M42.

Thrugnik's orks, well equipped and highly mobile with overwhelming air support, confidently drove towards the thin red line of astartes, opening fire long before they were in range. The Red Angels, though returning fire with a stubborn determination, were hopelessly outclassed by the green skin horde and almost strafed into annihilation by the ork air forces.

The south of Beng fell in just two days and within a week the orks were making inroads into the eastern districts of Birego. Gault wasn't overly concerned but his superior, Lord General Brooke, began to ask serious questions about the Red Angels. Why were they always so ill equipped and what made them so insistent on taking on impossible tasks? In the meantime Brooke contacted the Salamanders and the Adeptis Mechanicus. He desperately wanted to reinforce Gault on Hylas and break the orks here, before the Waaagh! Descended on a more important world.