Chapter 3
Lena turned with furious vigor, firing at the shadow of a figure that swooped into the room. The air screamed from the movements of the blade, her soldiers fired at the ghost of the xeno. She aimed and chose to watch all the way from the back, she watched as the thing killed them off.
A trooper moved from the right and heading for the door in a frantic posture, his weapon dropped. She glanced briefly at him before whispering to herself, it was time.
She got up, amidst the injury and pain. Ignoring it all as they had been taught and charged, within seconds she had the thing in her arms. She had noticed that it always strode next to them when it was about to hit, the blade sound was when he was about to swing.
Although a gamble, it had worked. The xeno stood there, staring at her. It laughed, it laughed at the futility of her actions yet rather than fire at him. The rest of the troopers jumped on him and proceeded to hold him down, they couldn't budge him but it was not the goal.
Just then, the drukhari smiled and laughed like a mad man. As if on queue, an explosion engulfed the whole room. Consuming every person in it, the men of Krieg had trapped the whole room with explosives at Captain Lena's orders. The trooper who ran had made it to the remote detonation and activated it, they had achieved their goal.
But amidst the flames and burning room stood a single man, charred and scarred from the explosion. He smiled gleefully, oh he so wished to look at their faces and have them know it was all for naught. So confident he was that he let himself fall to such an obvious trap, it would cost a lot to heal up but it was all worth it.
" For the Emperor " A scarred broken voice croaked out with extreme difficulty, the effort had probably destroyed what was left of his throat but he had sent the message. The Drukhari stared back at the man, a flayed man barely living.
Around him was a row of grenades slung across his shoulder, in his hand laid one with its pin off. The Drukhari looked at him, he knew this was the end. He wouldn't be able to reach it fast enough but rather than rage or get angry, he smiled. He was so sure now that this was all worth it, it was so much fun.
Such desperation and will, he felt so good. The burns against his body only served to heightened the taste of such emotions, he cackled maniacally as he rushed the trooper. He moved slow enough for the trooper to see him, he lost this match but the game had just begun.
With a deafening sound, a dozen Krak grenades went off and obliterated any living body in its vicinity. It tore through metal and skin, blew past fires and charred corpses. There was no one left alive, only the voice of the dead and the scars of war.
[_[]_]~Changing Tides~[_[]_]
It was interesting, if one could say so at least. Hardly any memories of her life before the revolution, before she had attained freedom. But what few she had, she knew were not worth the effort. She had always been alone, far more luckier than most but still alone.
She had a son or maybe it was a little brother, she couldn't clearly remember any longer. She was happy though, she had come a long way now. First it was from the gutters, used as a stepping stone for other more important individuals.
Next she had been assigned to an honor division tasked with serving the dark gods, oh the frenzy with which she executed that purpose. Maimed and burnt and killed, she had been witness to several bouquets of lust and depravity.
She personally liked to see life seep from someone's eyes, feel the strength of her weapon upon their flesh. The soft mushy feeling she got when she pushed it into their guts, once or twice some wretched souls who were empowered by the sudden freedom and luxuries set before them tried to claim her.
Wanted to start their own warband or something and be surrounded by women, some even bragged with bedding some nobles. She wondered how that would feel, look…perhaps she would try it some time. Though nobles were hard to come by, especially for someone of her standing.
" You! What are you doing! " A voice called out to her, she turned, scared out of her mind from such a question.
Perhaps she had done something wrong unknowingly, or perhaps she was going to be one of those unfortunate souls sacrificed to please the servants of the dark gods chosen on a whim.
"Just thinking, not doing nothing " She answered hurriedly with her head bowed.
"You…where are all those markings you lot usually have? " The voice asked.
" Ah, I cleaned them off, " She replied.
There were no comebacks or demands, just a very uncomfortable silence which caused her to try and take a peek at the face of the person that spoke to her. She was surprised to see him so…dumbfounded, he had a surprised blank look on his face as he stared at hers.
" What division are you ? " He asked, causing her to somewhat straighten her posture before answering him.
" The 6th honor brigade Sir " She replied to him, he turned slightly to eye her missing arm. She looked down and clung it to her side a bit tighter in shame.
" I…lost it in the previous assault " She said, answering the questioning look on his face.
" Shouldn't you be pleased that you gave it up for the dark gods? Maybe they took that to save your life as not many made it back from there " He said to her.
It caused her to think, consider it for the briefest moments. But doubt had seeded, she looked around and saw them. The rubble of men and women all sworn to the service of the dark gods, she looked at them not as comrades but with apathy and utter contempt.
Whispers echoed in her ear, vague shouts of what she could only assume were calls. Calls to do the bidding of higher beings, she had received a cloud of purpose which for now was but a fog that laid within her mind. When she looked up to answer back, she was left with the absence of him.
Akriel was furious, that much could be said. The screams of men and women occasionally filled his personal room before the charred remains were escorted out and more took their place. Most did not have a choice in the matter, then again….who does?
The loss of soldiers was not something he was particularly bothered about, he wouldn't care less if he had to sacrifice a thousand mortals for his gain. What angered him was that he imagined their deaths to also mean the deaths of the forces of the imperium.
Yet all he received was the stream of souls of his own men, barely any had the semblance of the soul of the imperium. As much as he wanted to wait and show them his glory, he had places to be. Cities to conquer, if he wanted to have access to more power then he needed quick results.
It doesn't help that the blasted gods forsaken commander of his had informed him that failure to take this place quickly would mean that he - Akriel the great would be punished. When all he had done was serve the gods with utmost faithfulness, he refused to be placed back to the insulting position he was in before.
They weren't ready but they would have to do for now, if he could perform the spell properly then he would have an army of empowered Psykers blessed by the dark gods and loyal to him. With them, no one would question his usefulness, his importance. With them, he would rise and take his rightful place commanding the total forces of this planet.
The book hanging from his waist whispered the dark forbidden words of the warp, it told him of his success, of the glory that awaited him. But it demanded souls, it demanded sacrifice in exchange for the power that it would grant him.
He traced his hands over the book, shivering in glaring delight at his voice. He could feel its presence, its power. He searched his head, thinking of a way to deliver the souls needed for his rise. Then it suddenly came, he had more than a 1000 souls waiting to be given and with the ones he collected before - he'd surely have enough. It was time to prepare.
[_[]_]~Changing Tides~[_[]_]
A skeletal appearance, that was the current state of the krieg defence line. They had put in everything they had to hold that first assault and it had almost failed. They couldn't fight in the traditional krieg way due to the horrid condition of their forces. Sure they had found a few more men in the inner parts of the ship, singles or a broken few.
Some not even of krieg making but survivors of part of the Kellnarian platoon assigned to them, most of whom had died in the lower deck hanger of the ship. Some barely alive crew men with them too, half dead from hunger, half alive from the tortures of the ship.
They prioritised the survival of bodies and expenditure of material on the reasoning that they would rather spend it all eliminating the enemies of the emperor than risk it falling into enemy hands.They knew that they would not survive the 2nd wave as the enemy would come at even harder than before especially now that they knew their first probing assault managed to reach their lines already.
They chose to create quick makeshift kill boxes or traps to lure in enemies and wipe them out in a coordinated fire, they created decoy positions as best as they could and filled it with explosives. For the next few days, they work to their utmost best to make sure that their deaths would be felt by the enemy.
All while they prepared a unit which would be tasked to return to command and report on their situation here, hopefully they would be able to use any information provided by them in the effort to retake the position they would eventually lose.
53897-7119-01 sat still within the confines of his trench position, mud and dirt coloured his once clean uniform. The dried stains of blood dyed it in new colours, it felt sticky and wet. He had been working non- stop for the past three days before he was given this break, mostly because an attack was expected.
He hadn't cleaned out his weapon in a while so got to that first while he rested his body, it was slow and methodical. Aimed at maximizing his focus but also to ease the stress upon his body, once he cleaned those off, he chose to endorse himself in a meal.
He'd barely had the time to eat anything, so this was well awaited. His rations were low and he chose to eat more than usually specified in regulation. He didn't expect to make it past this attack, there would be no one to use the food once he's dead so it was best to eat it all. He left a day or two of food before succumbing to a silent sleep.
[_[]_]~Changing Tides~[_[]_]
The brigades assigned to Akriel were a force numbering between 200 - 300 soldiers, 6 of them were assigned to him along with a trained company of guardsmen belonging to commander Tuna. One of said brigades were wiped out in a failed assault leaving him with just 5 more but 5 were more than enough to defeat the battered and cut off remains of a Krieg company.
The captain of the Kellnerian fifth company had requested that his force be used to lead the assault upon the Imperium forces. He argued that their training would allow for them to pave a path with much reasonable losses and allow the unruly brigades to use it and overwhelm the enemy.
Arkriel saw this as an insult and a way for the men of Commander Tuna to claim credit for his victory to come, rather he assigned them to guard him while he performed the spell and protect him while he moved into the killing field to complete it.
His men would be the ones to attack and crack open the forces of the imperium. His soldiers would be the ones to win the glory meant for them and they should and will stay in place. Helpless to watch his rise in power.
It began with the roaring sounds of artillery tearing through the silent sky, breaking apart the ground and earth. It followed with the chaos of explosions and the destruction of land. Next was the screaming of fanatics sent to die in the death trap that awaited them, return artillery devastated their lines but there were hundreds.
They fell prey to traps and kill boxes, they walked over the bodies of the previous failed assault. Sure that they would be the ones to make it, it went as much as one would expect. But this time, they had numbers and they used them. Within the hour, they reached the sight of the first line of the defenders.
A flurry of fire wiped out scores of them in seconds, then they began returning fire. Many still ran head first into their line of fire, it was sort of ironic. The death korps of krieg honed the skill of throwing bodies at their enemies yet here they were, being on the receiving end of one and unable to counter attack.
Minutes passed and the first line was overwhelmed, the battle moved quickly and the price was high. Krieg guardsmen fell back, leading the pursuing enemies into various prepared positions. Some into trapped enclosures that wiped out dozens, others into sections of the trench lines that had Krieg men waiting with their weapons in hand.
Some thought to go over the trenches but were gunned down by snipers or riflemen placed to specifically target them, all around the field was a grave of the dead and the dying. Defense fortifications dug and prepared over the past few days were overrun within minutes at best, artillery were now firing into their own lines in a vain attempt to curb the onslaught.
53897-7119-01 fired his weapon, piercing the skull of a screaming traitor. He lined his next shot and released it, scoring another kill. Turn, aim and shoot. Turn, aim and shoot. That is how he had been moving for a while now, they just kept coming and dying.
He had fallen back from his previous line, leading about a dozen of them into a kill box with awaiting guardsmen who wiped them out. But even that lasted only a little while before they overwhelmed their position and forced them back even further.
One by one, their traps were used up and soon they found themselves backed into a corner. He ducked just at the nick of time, a rain of bullets sprayed over the line he held. A guardsman fell, body broken and riddled with bullets.
He stretched his hand and took the dead man's weapon, removed the magazine and stored it for himself. A single soldier wielding a plasma weapon glanced at him from the cover he laid in, they both nodded in understanding. This was their end.
With a deep breath, he got up and began firing wildly. He climbed over his line and charged the enemies of mankind, behind him another fired his plasma weaponry evaporating bodies in seconds.
A raging man charged him with a grenade and it went off, killing them both. 53897-7119-01 moved on and charging to his death, he fired and shot. A scream alarmed him to someone on his left, he turned but turned too late.
The blade of the heretic pierced into his skin and meat, embedding itself deep into his shoulder. He staggered before regaining his balance and thrusting his bayonet into the heretic's stomach, he repeated multiple times until he fell dead.
He turned, aiming to walk but suddenly found himself impeded, he looked down to see a gaping wound within his thighs. He looked up just to see a new line of charging soldiers, ready to die like the previous waves of soldiers just like them. It was pure luck that they had lasted this long, if the enemy had more guns then it was a surety that it would have ended long ago.
Just then, there was a rage within the ground. He looked back and saw the command location in flames, there was a slight smile on his face at this sight. He'd survived for so long in that death hole but his first official deployment would be his last, sort of hoped he'd live a little longer. Maybe see some Angels while he's at it though he probably - definitely won't survive that encounter.
To his front, thunder and storms raged in the sky. There was a fundamental wrongness in it, like a wound in your very soul. It nagged his mind, his bones chittered and screamed in the uncomfortableness that suddenly enveloped him. He had long since learned to ignore those things.
He raised his rifle and went to his knees, he would die doing his duty. If there was something he truly grew to believe in his stay here, it was that one shall never suffer the xeno, traitor and heretic to live. The warp shall claim him and he shall claim them all.
It had always been so, yet it never was. The spell was a spell of power for the Psyker, but it was a power that wasn't necessarily his nor was it one that he could control. He had been given power of untold scale yet he remained just as powerless as he first began. The souls of the damned were ripped from their very bodies, allowing for the arrival of things not meant to be.
Reality twisted and turned, the past became the future and the present was neither. Time stopped and fell, it had always been so. Arkriel was a man blessed by the grandfather, the one who always conspires did not answer his call. The Schemer had left him in silence and the plague father had answered in his stead, it was time to spread the grandfather's blessing.
It had always been true that the imperium was fighting against a well organized rebellion of a planet, it had always been true that the Krieg regiments sent to assist it were integrated into an assault force meant to break through their lines.
It had always been so that a shaky alliance and an exemption from the xeno hatred was made, it had always been so that 53897-7119-01 had landed with the 2nd company of the 269th Krieg Regiment and had been a part of the assault force.
It had always been so that he fought with the 6th company in their last stand and bore witness to their annihilation - that is a lie.
[_[]_]~Changing Tides~[_[]_]
The lords of this planet were very reluctant to relieve a large part of their force to the command of the Astartes, they did not like their plan of using a large breakthrough force to cut apart the main force behind the traitors.
The arrival of Imperial reinforcements relieved tensions between them and more than half of the arriving forces were thrust into the ranks of those set to push through the enemy's forces. A mercenary force of Aeldari was given to also help with the push, in the end was a 50,000+ force ready to execute the will of the imperium.
The initial thrust was successful, tanks and organized troop deployment wrecked the lines of the enemy. Led by the emperor's angels of death, they broke apart any defense that dared stand in their way. But then came the problems of supplies, it was a finite force with a finite amount of resources.
It was impossible to solidify the path they took from the enemy and so they became cut off, the lords of the planet saw it unfit to waste the lives of soldiers that could protect them on the plan of idiocracy.
They did not support the assault once it was ways away and rather chose to refortify their forces onto key places to defend them. From the view of a commander, the assault was a massive waste of resources.
This war was a war for the planet, millions of individuals were involved and some person even if they were the chosen of the emperor thinks that a concentrated assault onto a single position would cripply the enemy planetwide?
That was impossible for they would simply rally their forces and use the now scarcely defended positions of theirs to vent their rage, it would lose them the war far quicker than one could finish disassembling his lasgun. But this assault was sure to create a distraction big enough to allow them to do actual strategically better moves and move them closer to victory.
[_[]_]~Changing Tides~[_[]_]
The Scouring Hatred Chapter was an imperial fist successor chapter dating back to the reasonably early years after the great betrayal; they have long devoted themselves entirely to the defense and protection of the imperium.
Choosing to deploy in reasonably larger numbers than normal and choosing particularly long and large battles to partake in. They have made a name for themselves in these battles, wrecking utter havoc and chaos within the enemies.
But they have a great enemy, one they shall do anything to annihilate from the face of the galaxy. The dastardly Iron warriors, anywhere they go, will always have a dedicated force from the Scouring Hatred pursuing with fierce determination.
So it is that once word reached that those vermin had found themselves within the grounds of the Imperial world of Kellner, a force quickly gathered were sent to uproot and kill them all. The warriors of the Scouring Hatred will restore the honor of their chapter by executing their long most hated enemy with extreme prejudice.
They would be met with the surprise of a whole planetary force at their beck and call, making it a suicide mission with little chances of success for them, so they changed their plans. They would use the forces of the imperium to thrust into their lines and wipe them out, a total of 40 battle brothers were assigned to this task.
A total force of 2 predator tanks, 2 land speeders, 4 assault bikes, a 3 man devastator squad and 25 tactical marines were invested into it. It was a considerable investment which just shows just how much they sought to eradicate them.