[center][h2][b]Ilshar Ard’sabekh[/b][/h2][/center]

Almost as suddenly as that, the forest around Ilshar turned into an inferno. What little vengeful fire from the surviving - momentarily - ZRF troops had been directed his way, or at least against those Envenomed other than Echo, went well wide, but the barrage that heralded the arrival of the League walker was another matter entirely. He halted in his tracks as the mechanical giant neatly cut off the squad’s retreat path, crouching low to the ground as thumping autocannon fire shook the earth uncomfortably close by. Extraction seemed out of the question right now, since even without the jamming playing hell with their comms boarding a dropship with this thing loose would have been suicidal, so the walker getting in their way was not so much of a problem. More urgent was finding any way to evade something that clearly and badly outmassed and outgunned them.

Blazing heat washed over him, cannonfire shredding patches of woodland into ashen waste a mere breath away. The Nexus’ spore-breath must have veiled the walker’s lifeless eyes, or else Ilshar’s spirit would already have been on its way to Its many-toothed maw. A miracle was all it could be; few times had he avoided sudden death so narrowly; but miracles would only come to those who fended for themselves. He would not survive if that gun kept on for much longer, Ilshar thought as he tried to steady his aim through the quivering brush, despite the alarming sensations slithering through his inner augmentic web as his battered body fought to dissipate the thermal shock, and the lesser but more concrete annoyance of charred debris pelting over him. That cannon could easily pulp him through a tree trunk, and it was only a matter of fire saturation before a shell caught him. Both exposing himself by trying to rush for better cover and staying put and praying would lead to the same grim end.

Fortunately, the rest of the squad still on their feet were mostly doing better than him.

[b][i]“Ready to move, if it goes that well. Careful, this thing must have more than just optical.”[/i][/b] The Chasm only knew where Rasch was from, but Ilshar couldn’t help but feel a little grateful for the voidhanger’s being able to keep a steady head. [b][i]“Echo’s right, we can’t hope for better than crippling it. We should make a break for it soon as we can knock out its sensors.”[/i][/b]

And that might be too late if he didn’t do his part. A simple look, as far as he dared peek from behind the tree he had taken as cover, confirmed his thoughts. The walker’s only cameras might have been on its shoulder pod, but what passed for the vehicle’s head must have served some purpose, and he was certain enough he had seen at least one antenna protruding from it. The tarrhaidim leaned out a second time, now further and bolder, and fired a burst at the walker’s head before hurriedly stepping backward from the tree. He could not hope to hit an antenna at this range, but if it was part of the ‘mech’s audio-sensor suite or something similar, distracting it with the feedback from some close shots was the best he could currently do while the rest of the Envenomed struck at its vulnerable points.