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They all wore their flame suits as they watched the tiny ember glow inside the octagon. So tiny but then suddenly a wall of raging heat would flash through the walls making their knees buckle. There was something sentient inside. The ember floated up shining like a little star. It pulsed on and off then would burst again. There was a dreadful feeling permeating the dry air.

nice that your armour fluff.

The little ember floated in the center of the vacuum then froze still. Intense rays of heat began to pour out from the spark. Those watching had to turn their heads away as burning radiation seeped into the barrier making the inner metal seep down like quick silver. Before they could take one step to back away from the chamber the very air surrounding them blazed into a ball of super heated plasma roaring in their ears as the liquids inside their bodies vaporized steaming out from their molten eyes.

the explorator ship tumbled within the cold confines of the dark void as the little ember burned through its encasement, searching through the inner confines of the vessel. Klaxons screamed mindlessly as the last of the automated servitors fumbled with the navigation controls heedless of any command. The ember floated into the ship bridge hovering above the throne of the dead chief magos. The thin hot scalding air shimmered as the tiny star blazed within the darkness of the hutch. Warning beacons continued to blink on and off as the ship sank deeper into the cold fury of the maelstrom. Smoke poured off the last of the servitors as their dead flesh cooked.

"Free at last!" said a tiny metal voice as the ember began to cool. The burning heat simmered then faded. "The galaxy must burn!"

i had a great idea, your vindicators could shoot fire balls!

As the ship was pulled deeper into the void storm the ember began to glow again as it expanded taking on the shape of a large daemon with golden skin and eyes as red as dark rubies. Long tussles of a deep black mane spilled off of it's shoulders hanging down past its back. The entity sat upon the throne and watched as the last of the servitors went about preparing the space craft for the final jump back into real space. Puffs of grey smoke peeled out at the daemon opened its mouth and silently said the word.

The daemon looked upon his small crew of servitors and spoke "You will serve me now and as such I have the power to restore all of you to your former status as the men you once were. I have no need of mindless automatons to gather endless data and push little buttons."

The daemon leaned back into his throne and stared into the vidscreen. Slowly the servitor began to straighten as their mechanical limbs and inner artificial workings vanished to be replaced by their original human parts.

"Think of this as a priceless gift in return for your service. You must show no fear now and right this craft from the warp."

The small vessel began to buckle under the strain of the warp storm. The crew worked fast with the remaining energies still left within the reactor cores. The light inside the bridge flashed on and off as sections of wall imploded. The daemon remained upon his throne watching in silence. The ship took a nose dive deeper into the hungry vortex as the mouth of the storm closed in on its tail.

"Full power to the jump drive!" shouted a crewman as he punched down a large throttle. The ship quivered and the daemon felt his skin crawl as the vessel started to jump. There was the sound of a huge explosion then everything went black.

The ship had made the jump. The daemon crushed a Nurgle skull in one fist.

The daemon looked down and crushed another Nurgle skull.

The vessel had breached the warp storm and floated in real space. The daemon looked up the throne taking in the look on the faces of the men manning the small ship. They all looked at him intently. "I owe you all very much for bringing us safely out of the maelstrom. From here we move onto untold glory. The galaxy is ours for the taking!"

One of the crewmen looked down and spoke quietly "the reactors both have cracked casings and their cores are leaking. The tow engines are voided. We are running on the backup batteries now. The ship needs major repairs before it can run in deep space again."

"So be it. We will find the means to fly again. Our safety is the main concern. Are there any civilized star systems within hailing distance?" said the daemon.

"We came out of the warp into a sparse sector." said another of the crewmen. "We are surrounded by virtually nothing but cosmic debris for hundreds of light years in all directions."

The daemon sat back thinking in silence. "Initiate an SOS beacon immediately on all audible frequencies. We will have to call upon other resources."

The daemon crushed another Nurgle skull then smiled.

Pretty cool stuff man, I have absolutely no idea where it's going... which I like.

: )

The daemon's eyes began to glow like hot coals. "Khorne I invoke your aid. I and my immediate party are stranded."

The air inside the cabin grew hot as a small vortex of power opened. "My champion. I hear you. There is a reason for everything. There is a reason why you are where you are now. Soon a great warbird of the enemy shall arrive led by one our mutual enemies. You must prepare. I leave you these gifts for the occassion."

On the flooring appeared a brass suit of ancient armor inscribed with Khornate runes. A huge double headed axe lay beside the armor. The axe was huge with long barbed teeth of black steel.

"Use it well."

O-O


A demon who can talk directly to khorne?! A demon who, after alking directly to khorne get's some of his stuff?!

That... is scary.

I like to talk to Slaanesh... Always has a nice gift or two waiting in the wings.



G

"We have come upon an age of great darkness." said Captain Argozz. His bright green tactical dreadnaught armor shone under the light in the chapel of the battle cruiser. "There is an abomination we must strike down! In the name of the Emperor and all we hold as holy."

"You have brought here into the darkness Captain." said the Chaplain Ael. "Another vision quest."

The terminators stood still and did not speak.

"Brother Ael you are right to question me. You are an ancient and did raise me in the lode of our chapter." said the Captain.

Ael held his skull masked helmet underneath the crook of his elbow and sneered openly. "I will see this through."

The great daemon stooped down and lifted pieces of the brass armor fitting it to his torso. The armor closed upon itself as each piece was put in place. The brass shone as the heat from the daemon soaked through the metal.

"You must make a decision now." said the daemon to the crew. "In saving me you saved yourselves as well. I offer you the opportunity to fight with me now or you can flee. A great warbird of my enemy will arrive soon. You can leave this ship upon the lifeboats or you can stay."

... Wow.. I never expected this from a khornate

and on a completely unrelated note...

"Jimmy crack khorne and I don't care"

The daemon sniffed. "I can smell the enemy!" he shouted as he put the last piece of armor in place. He lifted up the great axe and swung it through the air. "Soon they shall arrive!" he shouted again.

Reaching down the daemon lifted up the last piece of armor. It was a silver helm crafted to look like a skull mask. The daemon pressed it upon his face as a crown of long barbed coils of bronze wire rolled down from the top of his skull. His dark red eyes glowed from within smoldering with hate. The daemon then stalked over to a gun cabinet and wrenched free a large double barreled meltagun. He hefted up the weapon holding it as lightly as a pistol. "So now you must decide." he said to the crewmen as the huge green battle cruiser materialized into place upon the vidscreen. "The enemy has finally arrived as promised by the Blood God. I am the Skulltaker! Join me and you will taste the bitter power of my hate!"

Captain Argozz checked the setting on his heavy flamer and then lifted his thunder hammer. His dragon skin cloak was furled back over the top of his bright green tactical dreadnaught armor. The scales of the cloak glistened under the glow lamps mounted along the high walls of the command room. "We have arrived. I want a report on the enemy location now."

The small navigator stood up and used her gnarled wooden cane to amble over beside the captain. "There is only one small ship in the immediate vicinity. It's engines are ruined. It is only managing not to completely run adrift using the last of it's batteries. It will be completely stranded within the next couple of hours." the old hag croaked.

"We can blast it out of space with one shot from a nova cannon." said the Admiral. His body had been grafted to his throne.

"Take them out with one shot you suggest?" said captain Argozz. "That's hardly sporting now." The captain frowned and his bionic eye glowered. "Prepare the teleport chambers for an immediate jump."

The navigator had made her way slowly back to her station and spoke out "I am registering a huge amount of warp energy building in the enemy craft. I recommend you raise the void shields immediately."

"Warp energy?" boomed Argozz. "How in the nine levels of Hades can that small craft I have just been told by you will soon be adrift can raise warp energy?". Before the old hag could reply the captain shouted out "If we raise the shields we cannot launch a teleport assault! I'll be thrice damned to the very heart of the Eye of Terror if we are going to raise the shields and decimate a rudderless craft with one blast from a nova cannon. We are Salamanders, not some spineless organization such as the Word Bearers. Ready the teleport chambers as ordered!". The captain turned about and headed towards the elevator shaft. In turn his retinue of assault terminators flanked in behind him.

"One moment please captain." said the chaplain Ael. Argozz stopped in his tracks and turned about. The chaplain held a huge storm shield by his side. A dragon had been engraved upon the front of the massive green shield. "I recommend you leave your flamer and use the drake shield. It has been the saving grace of many captains before you."

"I have my dragon cloak for protection. Flames cleanse and purify the enemy. You know my mantra Ael. Are you suggesting I need your shield to preserve my skin?"

"No captain that is not my meaning. However an extra measure on the side of safety could make the difference. This enemy you have chosen to engage is a monster unhinged. You will need every advantage you can muster."

Captain Argozz lowered his hammer and stared down at Ael. You must learn to see the forest from the trees. It is not only the Skulltaker we take the fight to. The abomidation will most surely summons his daemonkin to his side. The cloak is good enough and has seen me through over the course of hundreds of battles. This is our defining moment as a company. Lay down the shield and fall in Ael! I will discuss this no longer."

The Chaplain carefully positioned the giant storm shield against the wall then stepped in to join the assault party. Argozz had turned back again and Ael spied the many rents torn through the ancient dragon cloak. It was said that their primarch Vulkan had wrestled a great drake to the death while still only a mere child and had skinned the beast to fashion the hide into a cloak. Captain Argozz took great pride in wearing the arterfact to battle. The dragon scales rendered him virtually invulnerable to the greatest blows over the course of his long career as a commander but the cloak had certainly seen better days. It was at best a tattered remnant of what it once offered.

Suddenly without warning the cruiser rocked hard. "We are being boarded!" cried the ancient crone in fear.

Argozz lifted his thunder hammer and screamed "All this uneccesary bickering about has given the Skulltaker the iniative! Now everyone shut up for once and prepare for battle!"

It's a tad little complicated and blends some of it's scenes with Warhammer fantasy.

A large daemon clad in burning brass armor had assaulted into one of the main decks inside the Salamanders' battle cruiser. The beast was surrounded by scores of green Space Marines paying dearly with their very lives to hold up the daemon until the terminators could arrive.

The Skulltaker swung down the great axe chopping a Salamander in twain then blasted his meltagun into another Marine vaporizing the enemy. "Skulls for the Skull God!" shouted the daemon as he reversed his grip on the axe handle quickly beheading another Salamander. "Blood for the Blood God!" the daemon cursed. "Let your brave Captain show himself now."

The forward line of Marines fell back from the Skulltaker chucking fragmentation grenades in his wake as they scattered. Suddenly a blazing stream of condensed heat ripped through the chamber hitting the great daemon square in the chest. The Skulltaker absorbed the blast as he stumbled back. His chestplate was crumpled and a deep rent had been torn through the plates of interlocking brass armor. The daemon stopped for a moment and looked down at the gaping hole in his chest. Burning hot blood spurted out from the wound instantly cauterized by the remnant heat from the blast. The Skulltaker cracked his neck as he looked back up. A large of dreadnaughts armed with twin linked lascannons and huge glowing power fists had entered the chamber through a vast portal in the back. The two heavily armored walkers spread apart as they trundles down the huge plank. In unison the two dreadnaughts raised their lascannons and fired across the chamber, both squarely hitting their target. The strength of the mighty dual blasts knocked the daemon end over end as the Skulltaker was thrown back against the high wall behind him.

"Is that you Argozz?" called out the daemon as he lifted himself up again. "You know I can tear right through that armor as if it were nothing more than a thin film of tin plating."

The forward most dreadnaught lifted up his huge power fist as he began the charge. "We are neither Captain Argozz but the two of us is more than enough to finish you!" boomed it sallow voice through it's box caster.

"Har bar!" laughed the Skulltaker as he stood ready bracing himself for impact from the swiftly charging green behemoth. Already his chestplate had mended itself back together again and the dried blood had vanished.

Ducking under the swinging giant power fist the daemon came up and drove his great axe into the sarcoughphogus of the dreadnaught, slicing through the admantium plates with ease. Dark oily fluids dripped from the nasty deep gash. The daemon gripped his meltagun and fired point blank into the dreadnaught's exposed armor. There was the sound of a large boom as the first armored walker was blasted apart. The Skulltaker placed one boot a top the smoking wreck sniffing at the steaming air as he looked down. "That was not dear brother Argozz!"

The second dreadnaught fired his lascannon one last time as the huge metal walker launched his assault on the daemon. It's power fist came squarely upon the skull of the daemon, driving the daemon into the burning wreckage of the dead dreadnaught. The Skulltaker tried to roll had tried to roll with the swift blow but it had been a well aimed strike. His skull collasped as his head was driven backwards. The remaining dreadnaught struck again quickly punching the daemon in the chest. The force of the blow knocked the daemon back down as the Skulltaker tried to right himself, lifting up his giant axe to fend off another attack.

The Skulltaker took the brunt of the dreadnaught's blow squarely across the top of his skull. The daemon could feel his skull crushed by the hammer blow as he was driven through the wrecked armor of the first dreadnaught and smashed into the solid floor. The dreadnaught bellowed through it's box caster as it lifted it's toward leg to smash it's big metal foot down upon the prone body of the daemon. The Skulltaker quickly pulled himself out from under the fleet walker's foot and crawled back indiscriminately firing his double barreled melta. "You are the faster of the two that is for sure." said the daemon as his head swelled back out from the lump of mashed flesh, bone, ravaged skin and the silver mask. "I drew you in!".

The Skulltaker spun around leaping up and drove the great axe down shorning off the dreadnaught's power fist with one well placed smite. The huge metal fist clunked against the floor as the daemon drove the long spike on the end of his axe deep into the armor of the green behemoth. A blood curdling scream emitted from the dreadnaught's vox caster as the tip of the hot spike sluices about within stabbing into the meat of the ancient veteran entombed inside it's iron hide. The Skulltaker could not help but grin as he pried open the armor encasement. Then he frowned as his scolding eyes saw that the pilot was not Argozz. "Damn you to Hades Argozz! Hiding behind your Marines yet again. I won't leave this ship until your thick skull hangs from my belt, of that you can be most sure. I will search every crook and cranny within this ship to find you and when I find you I will kill you!"

The floor shook as the Skulltaker jumped off the destroyed walker and charged towards the closest group of Salamanders. The Marines froze in place rapid firing their bolters on full auto. One Marine fired his plasma gun hitting the daemon square in it's chest. The super heated plasma smoked as the small cloud of burning energy ate away the bronze armor. Sweeping his great axe in one long strike the Skulltaker split through each Salamander's torso as the whirring teeth of his weapon chewed them apart. The sergeant hit the daemon with his power fist punching into the hole in it's chestplate left by the plasma. Leaping over the tangle of dead Marines the Skulltaker looked up to choose his next target. The remainder of the Salamanders had fallen back, all aiming their guns at the daemon. The rent in his chestplate shimmered then was whole again. Cracking his neck the Khornate daemon brought up his great axe to deflect the bolter rounds streaming in as they imploded against his ancient suit of bronzed armor. The Skulltaker grunted then charged headlong towards the waiting Salamanders.

Captain Argozz frowned as he watched the carnage unfold upon the small vidscreen mounted on the wall within the teleport chamber. "The daemon is unbound. Even our most venerable brothers Atrox and Anos were no match for him. The daemon must have some weakness we can exploit!"

"Implode that sector of the ship and cut him off before he can do more damage." said Chaplain Ael.

"We have a whole company of Salamanders onboard. We can win this fight but we must be smart. There is no reason to continue throwing our brothers to their death against the Skulltaker!" fumed Argozz.

"You should have used the ship's nova cannon while he was still vulnerable." said the Chaplain. "You have brought this madness here."

Captain Argozz strode up to Ael and looked down upon him. "Fire up the teleporter engines. We take the fight to the daemon now!".

The servitor pressed the sequence of activation runes upon the control panel and the engine underneath the individual teleport chambers began to hum. Each terminator stepped up onto the circular platforms and gripped their weapons.

"To the death!" shouted Argozz over the loud buzz of the teleport engine as he and his retinue of terminators began to de-materialize.