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A Chaplain's Tale - The eyes of a Blood Angel

Submitted By: Date: May 29, 2007, 12:00:00 AM Views: 1661
Summary: I cannot recall when exactly that fateful day occurred…The day I shed my mortal shell, to be like our Emperor. I tell you this tale for it is my purpose, one of the reasons for my incarceration… I remember the campaign, on the salt-wind blasted steppes of Fafnir 3. I had been sent there along with several squads from the 5th company. Our task was to investigate rumours of chaos forces being summoned by local heretics and if it turned out to be true, to cleanse the filth. The initial task of investigation went smoothly, we easily found the lair of the cultists. The task of cleansing was easy early on, the cultists were ill-prepared for the righteous fury of the Emperor. They fell, as easily as the enemies of our Lord Sanguinius did back in the glorious days of old. However, we underestimated the resistance that they would later muster up as we advanced deeper into their territory. We laboured on, until we reached their stronghold. For several days we fought our way through the heretical halls of Khornate traitor marines. Until finally we exited the stronghold, having torn it down. As we began heading for our forward base, more heretics appeared from nearby subterranean caves…


Initially our campaign was successful, however we were too late to stop the summoning of the Demon Lord. The Demon Lord lead the Khornates with ferocious energy, cutting our brothers left and right, the heretics proved a tougher fight than imagined. The battle was bloody and drawn out and at the end of it, only 3 squads and 5 of the death company remained with me. The rest had all received the Emperor’s Peace. All was not lost however, the Demon Lord had but 2 squads left and was on the retreat. Despite the weariness that I felt in that brief pause after the battle, I could not let the sacrifice of our battle-brothers go to waste, this abominable monster must be purged. Before we gave chase, three of our brothers had succumbed to the Rage, and after I had soothed them with the liturgies of our Emperor, were given jump-packs taken from our fallen brothers and incorporated into the remaining Death Company. I gathered the survivors, and we began our pursuit…

The pursuit was long and weary, our jump-packs were low on fuel, and we knew that there was only enough for that 1 burst, the 1 charge into the face of chaos. Across fields and over hills we chased the demon and his followers to a cratered field beneath the shadow of tremendously steep cliff faces. The Demon Lord stopped several meters from the cliff face, it was either we shot them down as they tried fleeing up the cliffs, or they fight. There, they were cornered, forced to face their end, their final meeting with the Emperor’s Wrath, and unknowingly, my final battle using my own limbs…

The Demon turned to face us, his followers had finally resigned themselves to their fate and did likewise. As we stood facing the enemy, the three remaining tactical squads led by their Sergeants got into better positions around the mound that separated us and the demon. The Battlefield was still for a moment, and just as it seemed like the Heretics had lost their nerve to fight, the Demon let loose a thunderous roar. It was as if this demon’s roar had incited in them a bloodfrenzy as they all cried out in response. They began to move towards us…

Feeling the black rage build up in the Death Company, I spoke to them…

“The Path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men…”

The Enemy trudged steadily up the mound, their boots echoing against the cliff walls…

“Blessed is he who in the name of charity and good Will shepards the weak…”

The click of the bolts being chambered reached my ears as the brothers readied their holy bolters…

“...Through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children…”

Stones and rock fell from the top of the mound as the Demon stepped upon the hill…

“And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers…”

I could hear the roars come over the hill as the chaos forces began their downward charge…

“And You will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee!”

I raised my Crozius Arcanum high above my head in the direction of the Demon and shouted to my brothers, now focused...

“FOR THE EMPEROR!!!!”

At that, the Death Company succumbed to the Black rage, We charged first upon our feet beside our brothers as they fired their bolters on the run(only one of the 3 squads stayed behind as I instructed, they carried with them the only Plasma Rifle, with only 1 shot).

We clashed at the foot of the hill, the sound of metal colliding with ceramite crashed out as we rammed the enemy at full speed. The first fool to stand in the way of the death company and I was thrown on his back and savagely disemboweled. I grabbed the plume of the closest heretic and rammed my Crozius through his neck, the energy field around it sparked as it melted armour. Letting the decapitated carcass falling to the floor twitching, I heard a painful scream as one of the brothers not overcome by the black rage ripped his chainsword across the torso of a heretic. I thought to myself, was he overcome? He could not be, I would have sensed it…He would make a fine Captain someday, very much like Captain Tycho.
 

Just then the Demon lord swung his giant blade nearly hitting me, but I had dodged in time. Startled back to attention, I ordered my men to push forward. The Chaos charge had long buckled under the righteous fury of the Blood Angels, and they were retreating up the hill. The demon lord was the first to reach the top, taunting us as we finished off the two squads without casualties. In an instant, the Death Company and I jetted up onto the mound to meet the grinning demon. The battle was joined, the juggernaut of a demon was surrounded by the 8 Death Company troopers. I flew overhead so as to allow the Death Company freedom of movement...

At first the Demon Lord swung playfully at the marines, taunting and teasing them, claiming his own invincibility, and as the Death Company began their assault, the Demon Lord proved to be extremely resilient, his hide a match for their chainswords. The other brothers had made it uphill and were joining the fray. The Two sergeants’ power fists hummed as the energy field that made them so deadly came to life. Finally, from above, I flew straight at the demon, who was too busy looking down and swinging at my brothers to notice me from above, I was going to catch him off-guard.

Before I could reach him however, his sword cleaved two of our brothers. I roared as I landed with my crozius pointing downwards on the demon’s head. He wailed and swiped furiously at me as his demonic hide was penetrated by my Holy weapon, at this point, I knew that he was hellbent on bringing me down. The others continued to batter at the demon, but were unable to cause any significant damage. He swung his sword wildly at the Death Company as they continued to rip again and again at the demon lord, he hit Brother Remius and Brother Audrius cutting through their ceramite armour and sending them flying off the hill.

I continued to batter the head of the Demon, until I had hit his left eye, searing it in an instant. He cried out and shook wildly as the pain went through his body, I thought I had the demon down. For awhile, he seemed to falter and was brought to his knees, but in fact, he had just stooped down to throw me off. Ignoring the others, he grabbed me by my right arm and shoulder and flailed me like a rag doll. By the Emperor, I thought this was finally the end of my century long service, but it was not to be, my jump-packs fired throwing my body at weird angles while i was shaken. I was conscious, through his violent flailing. My right arm first dislocated, then both arm and power armour came off with a sickening tear. I do not know how loud I screamed, all I knew then was the pain that surged in my body. I fell from a great height as the monster’s grip on me was lost with my arm. I fell broken on the ground, I could not move as I landed belly-down. My jump-pack exploded from the sheer force of the impact, shaking me and putting me that much closer death.

As I lay there, I saw the terror of the warp. This Demon, had turned his sights on Sergeants Arctirius and Horphrius, he threw my arm at Horphrius with such force that he was knocked back. Arctirius charged forward below the arc of the sword and punched his power fist into the demons’s leg. He grabbed a chunk of flesh and tore it off, the demon stumbled slightly but still seemed to be able to fight on. His left claw came around and seized Arctirius and lifted him. The demon then slammed his fist, with Arctirius in grasp, down upon Horphrius just as he had gotten up to charge once more. Both lay stunned in a crater from the impact. With 1 sweeping swipe of his blade, the demon had cut down the 4 remaining marines of the two tactical squads, in the same movement, he swung his sword up in then plunged it down into the crater in which the Sergeants lay helpless.

He swung again and this time caught 2 Death Company marines. He grabbed another 2 and crushed them in his hand. There stood the last 2 of our Death Company, Brothers Rogrim and Justisifus, they fought valiantly as the black rage swelled to greater heights, evading the swipes and swings of the Demon while striking blow after blow with their chainswords. The Demon had seemed to slow down, and for a moment, I felt hope…I thought to myself… “None escape the Emperor’s wrath” but as the thought occurred in my mind, he caught hold Rogrim and bit his head and shoulders off. He spat the bloodied bits of armour at Justisifus, but they missed. Justisifus used his jump-pack to try and reach for the other eye, but the demon stepped his left leg back and swung his blade in an arc in front of him, the blade caught Justisifus, and sliced him apart.

As I saw the fall of the Death Company, a hot tear of pain and rage rolled down my cheek. Here I lay, immobile, broken and bleeding to death and the one reason that I was here, stood over me. He raised his sword and roared triumphantly.

My vision began to blur
 

The monster suddenly jerked and turned around. He had been hit by bolter fire! It was not enough to penetrate his thick hide, but it did not stop the last squad from firing. Kadrius and his squad were still alive! I must warn them...tell them to retreat and bring reinforcements...I tried to shout, but all that issued from my mouth into the communicator was a croak...

I groaned as movement proved too much for my shattered body. I started to grow cold.

They were, it seems, throwing everything they had at the demon. It did not stop him, nor did it slow him down. He took one giant step, and roared viciously at Kadrius’ squad.

My vision continued to blur and darken. My body felt colder now...i wanted to sleep. But my brothers....

Then he took another two steps through the shower of bullets before I heard the sound of a plasma rifle fire. I saw only the back of the demon, as the bolt of plasma exploded out of it.

It was the brightest light I saw before I would die.

The demon took 1 more pained step in an effort to reach Kadrius and his men, but fell forward dead after that pained attempt.

My vision darkened even more as I inched closer to the Emperor’s peace. All was silent now...until...

I heard the sound of footsteps approach me.

I strained to look up, and saw Kadrius’ stoic face look at me. It softened as my vision blackened, and he said “May your soul find rest among the Emperor’s finest, for truly You Brother, are finest amongst them.” And I closed my eyes...



Epilogue



I awoke in a surreal world, had i died? Confused by what I saw, my mind tried to piece together what happened. It seemed like I had awoke from a dream. I saw standing before me a Techpriest, he was reciting something, but I could hear nothing. I tried to turn my head, but could not…I then heard his final words before he turned to other matters, “…And You were chosen, to return as the Wrath of the Emperor, purging the unclean with your new hands.” I tried then to move my body, but instead, I heard the soft whisper of metal surfaces sliding against each other, and the soft machine hiss…It was then that the machine spirit fused with my mind fully, and I became aware of what I was…What I was made into…it was then that I remembered an age old saying...It was very much a truth now...

Even in Death, We serve the Emperor

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