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Iscariat had followed his astartes brothers through the fires and trials of this world. Only to have it all snatched away form him. Moments after entering the city his head was impacted by a massive spike of energy from a lascannon.

Brother Seargeant Iscariat died 40134 at 5 in the evening. To a coward with a lascannon. Avenge him brothers.

Character: Adric
Location: Camp, leonidas's tent
Situation: Asking help from leonidas.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Adric looked at leonidas and said'. ''Well now the task at hand, i was wondering installing black carapace can that increase the performance of a tank controller? And if so i need you to put some in my test subject.''

Character: Leonidus
Location: Camp, my tent
situation: conversation with Adric.


"...Yes, I can do that for you. The Black carapace should aid the subject in interfacing with a vehicle. May I ask brother, what are you planning to do with he subject once he has been implanted, and why choose a lowly rebel to undergo such a complex procedure?"

Leonidus says through his skull helmet's voice grill, pacing slowly.

Character: Adric
Location: Camp, leonidas's tent
Situation: Asking help from leonidas.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

''Well brother i am planning in creating the ultimate vessel i will allow a machine spirit to manifest inside the test subject that will result in 2 things first it means he will develop a sophisticated AI and second his abilities will be greatly increased And a lowly rebel is all i can get my hands on without getting detected by the mechanicum now that i have answered your question what is it that your well how do i call experiment will accomplish'' Adric said while looking at the insides of the tent he saw blood and bodies some where crying some where unconscious.

Character: You guessed it
Location: The very same
Situation: Still in conversation



"Hm. Very well brother, I shall tell you. My overarching goal is to further combine the powers and mind of the human, with the durability and cold precision of the machanical. This is far past simple bionics and even the tech priests with their bodies of steel do not match this. I shall create the perfect hybrid of man and machine, no mere servitor, something much, much more.

And this brother. This is the first step on that road, an imperfect stepping stone on the way to success. As grotesque and bloody as it may be, this prototype will herald the journey to victory.

Now do you see brother, now do you understand?"

Character: Adric
Location: Camp, leonidas's tent
Situation: Still talking xD
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

''Well brother it seems our goals are rather similar i think a trusting cooperation will work between us because if i may be honest on first glance i can already see some of the bionics you installed aren't perfectly tuned''

Character: You guessed it
Location: The very same
Situation: Still in conversation



"Indeed brother, our goals are indeed parallel and a cooperation may indeed be fruitful for both of us."

Says Chief Apothecary Leonidus, holding out a gore stained hand.

Sahaal
Fields
Receiving transponder notification.

A beeping icon came up on the side of Sahaal's HUD, he realized that Lucius was alive, and had activated his transponder.

Sahaal began sprinting through the abandoned fields, jetting over wreckage, until he reached the city wall. He jetted to the top and prepared to move further into the city.

Character: Adric
Location: Camp, leonidas's tent
Situation: Still talking xD
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

''Well i take up that offer.'' Adric said while shaking his hand Adric turned to one of his subjects and said ''Well i guess i will start by fixing up this guy.'' Adric turned towards him and began collaborating his eye bionics making sure they would make a full connection to the nerve system.

Lucius
Being carried to enemy HQ
In suspended animation, dreaming
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The ugly beast reared it's horrific face once more. Lucius backed away, only to find himself cornered. Evil shadows appeared to float around the claustrophobic room. He cowered.

The creature walked up to him, flanked by 4 advisers. One was covered in blood red reptilian skin. It's eyes glowed a strong yellow, almost floating in the darkness. It had a belt of skulls wrapped about it's small waist. It as clad in sinew and muscle. In it's clawed hand was a volcanic blade, stained with blood, that had grisly trophies and icons hanging from the brass hilt.

Another was similar to the creature that had attacked him. It had long sharp fangs. Massive claws protruded from it's arms. It skin was almost lilac. It had a single breast on it's right side, held in place by the arcane armour that it wore.

The third was bloated and diseased, almost like a plagued balloon. It was short and rotund, a single eye staring from his pustule ridden head. Flies soared about the great hemorrhages that crossed his rotten green flesh, which dripped with ooze, organs hung out.

The beast's final adviser was almost bird-like. 2 vulture heads looked down upon him with red eyes. It wore a white tabard over his blue feathered body. It's scaled feet ended with gargantuan talons. A pair of feathered arms hung by his side.

"Chaos." they whispered.

"Sergeant, hold on," said Brother Henlich. He had been tasked with keeping casualty figures. So far he had just given regular updates in numbers, so this must be important.
"What is it Henlich?" Einer asked, facing his squadmate.
"Einer, make haste!" calleed Acharius.
"Oner moment Champion."
Acharius came over, looking puzzled. Henlich spoke,
"Sirs, Sergeant Iscariot has just been killed."
Stunned silence followed.
"How?" asked Einer.
"Shot in the back Sergeant, by a coward with a lascannon."
Acharius shook his head, and walked off. Einer understood his champion's distress. iscariot had been a good man, and one of both his and Acharius' close friends.
Acharius shouted for the squad to hurry. They caught up, jetting up several hundred feet. Not high enough to risk AA fire, but high enough to land on the wall where a hydra emplacement blasted away at the Stormbird furiously trying to escape to orbit, only managing to dodge the shells directed at it. Einer landed first, his trajectory short than the others. he landed feet first, axes out, cleaving a many on each side in two. The others ran screaming, obviously having heard from the group he had beat their comrades to death. They fled northwards along the wall, only to be trampled under Acharius as he landed, spearing a man through the chest who had dodged his foot somehow. The turret fell silent as the bolt shell pierced its coordination system. A green rune flashed from the Stormbird as it sped off into the clouds, which were as pitch black as the eastern night sky. Night was falling. That was a good sign. when night came, so did the Night Lords install sheer terror into their foes.

the Children of the Night Haunter were about to arrive, in their true, horifying image.

ALL PLAYER EVENT
*********************

"And so, I do document the action of the Night Lords on the day of that grave heresy"
-Scribe Servitor 343245 Terminated
-Original scribe: *DATA EXPUNGED*
Document secured by Inquisitorial decree.
Copy 241.
Authorised acess only.
In the Emperors name.

Last acession: Unknown
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The marines stood in their squads, some fighting, some alert. Some talking and experimenting. It didn't help them when the horrors rose. Monsterous tentacled horrors, Beclawed seductresses and horned warriors of death and blood. The monsters of disease and pus would come later after the blood had been spilled in its entirety, though some roamed the world in direct defiance of their masters. These things appeared in the city, out of the city, everywhere. They arrived in small numbers at first, small, deadly numbers.

At the camp a multitude of red, sword weilding monsters advanced under the bolts of the marines there, ready to kill and bask in their blood. The master of the forge and apothacary put the final touches to their creations which would be field tested much sooner than expected. Bolters roared and tanks let loose thunder.

As he walked through the ruins, the captain heard strange noises around him, above him. Small, pink and purple forms flowed between buildings, small eyes watching him and beaks clacking. Fireballs of a multitude of colours rained down about him. Mad cackles sounded through the streets.

Taric and Darius conversed as the stormbirds brought in more and more supplies, watching. Then the lookout screamed and fell, blood pouring from his eyes. Purple beasts that Taric recognised swarmed towards them, but where intercepted by howling horned sword weilidng demons with skin red as blood. The melee began between them.

Kovar awoke to screams. A tall figure stood over him, horns rising far above, worshipers bowed all around. The beast looked down on him with surprisingly green eyes. He would either escape or die...or somthing else could befall him.

Acharius stood with Einar, ready for battle. Ready to stalk the night. Little did they know that they where also being stalked by monsters beyond description and the cultists that had brought them here.

Lucius lay on the hard dissection slab, dreaming. A slight, wide eyes woman wearing a doctors unifrom standing above him, face twitching and eyes scanning the marine before them. She wanted to delve into that body, that anatomy...to learn. She drew a long needle from her pouch first. She would need to revive the subject.

Morias stood, watching Lezevar manipulate the enemy. It was a skillful and effective manouver, the old marine gained some respect from the younger. His advanced sense heard yells outside the room and the roar of gunfire. And somthing else...something evil.

Character: Leonidus
Location: The tent (Camp)
Situation: completing project (incursion begins)



Leonidus had only to add a couple more implants now, the experiment was going well and quicker than expected. To make this thing, this marvel, he had had to commit grevious heresy, this was too far even for a respected marine of his level. To complete it, he had implanted the progenoid gland and other important organs from the deceased astartes, an action which went against his very purpose. But it had to be done. The heavy bolter given by the Forge master Adric had been grafted to it's left arm, replacing the hand and the searchlight had been mounted upon its shulder. The recovered Leman Russ armour had been added to various parts of its titanic form, effectivly shielding it's mechanisms from harm. It emmited a constant buzzing from its multitude of implants, it's deep red optic units flickering and twitching as if it were deeply dreaming. The great thing was still layed down, several tables had been put together to accomidate its size and weight, if stood it would be easily a head taller than an Ogryn. In contrast to its horrific, gore-stained form, the thing's face was deathly still, a ghastly pale mask of pure calm. From its back, half a dozen Mechadendrites, sprouted, each laying swaying on the ground, each tipped with a horrific surgical tool or a Narthecium designed to extract the Gene-seed of fallen brothers.

Something was wrong, a wrongness in the air, a faint smell and taste in the mouth. Then he saw it, a great flash of red. Stepping outside breifly, he could see a great fiery explosion from past the trench, he thought he could see illuminated figures skulking from it.

Then he heard the weapons fire.

Numerous tanks, marines and artillery were all opening fire on much nearer foes, the explosion must have been a distraction. The creatures were man sized and dark red, the hue of dried blood, and vaguely reptilian, snake-like toungues darting from fanged maws. Each wielded a great blade made of finely crafted bronze, skulls of all shapes and sizes dangling from their waists, held by iron chains.

"Nocturnus Omega." Mutters Leonidus

And the great construct stirs.

Character: Adric
Location: The tent (Camp)
Situation: completing project (incursion begins)

Adric was happy, everything had gone as planned. In his tent now spoiled with blood and machinery the subject lay on a cold slab, everything had been installed. He was planning to begin field testing tomorrow, he was checking the mind lock on the subject code named hells nemesis.
Adric saw everything was in place he would let him rest for now. He walked towards his bed where some personal items lay, he picked up a picture of his family from the old days he saw his mother with her ever caring face and her bloodied body flashed before him. His father who was stern but honest and he saw his organs fly before his eyes. And his brother who used to play seek the dysfunctional cogitator with him and the screams of fear rang through his head. He laid down the picture and took up a combi plasma checking its loadout the bullets where firing ready and he had 6 plasma charges with him. His servo arms had been mounted again his twin plasma guns spinning and its heavy flamer heating up. He stood up when he suddenly heard a explosion he looked around but saw nothing only the serene area of his tent. But that all was disturbed very fast when 2 red creatures dripping with blood rushed through the entrance. They where armed with brass blades the hilt was clad with skulls. They let out a horrifying scream that would scare the feth out of normal humans but it didn't have the slightest affect on him.
Adric raised his combi plasma and shot 2 hot blue explosive plasma shots towards the red bloodied creatures skull. He deflected the first one with some strange energy field but the second one pierced his neck and the heat seperated the head from the body. A hot sizzling sound could be heard from the body it somehow was beginning to disappear and all that was left was a bloody patch of ground. The second daemon opened the attack and slashed at adric one after the other hit was being given. He deflected them with ease he used two of his servo arms to restrain its hands, it tried to bite Adric with a feral growl but it couldn't reach him. The heavy flamer raised behind Adric and with a calm voice he said. ''Back to where you came from, to the depths of hell where you belong.'' And the heavy flamer began incinerating the creature hot seering flames began incinerating every bit of it until only its hands remained whom he crushed with his servo arms.

Adric decided that he would need to begin field testing immediately and picked up the reanimation device. An electric shock rushed through the nemesis. (note i'm just gonna call him the nemesis because otherwise hes just a mouthful.) His eyes opened for the first time since his transformation and Adric could hear him speak. ''Adric i can feel your presence what is this? Where am i? How did you do this?'' Adric looked up to him and said ''Well i have given you the vessel you are supposed to have. Your knowledge will be uncounted. I have even allowed you to have an AI.'' The nemesis could feel a different power flow through him, he wasn't used to having his own thoughts and they surprised him but he could also feel power more power he felt stronger. Adric led him to the land raider and when they arrived he said. ''You will know feel it. The true power. I have prepared a sacrophagus for you so that you can have full control come on now we have a base to save.'' The nemesis jumped into the land raider and saw most of the space taken by a gigantic sacrophagus. He stepped inside and felt it. The hole it was normally filled by the machine spirit but this time he filled it. He was the machine spirit he was one and the same he could feel the power more controlled he began activating all drive functions. Adric climbed on the land raider and they left off they rushed towards the courtyard where the most abominations were.
His heavy twin heavy bolters rapid firing on a mob of 7 daemons. 4 where banished when they counter attacked. They tried to hit his front armor when the frag launchers activated, tons of shrapnel where blasted into the faces of the daemons and 2 of them flew backwards and became squirming bloodied creatures but soon they disappeared. The last one managed to climb on the tank and attack Adric directly. He poured 4 plasma shots into his belly and he was incinerated before he could disappear Adric had only one thing on my mind now and that was to help save leonidas he was one of the few astartes he had ever considered a friend and he would not lose him!

Lucius
Medical Lab
Reviving
+++++++++

Lucius stared at the figures. The beast spoke.

"We are the servants of Chaos. Your legion will burn, your friends will turn on you, and you shall fall to us."

The creatures whispered the word "Chaos." again.

Lucius was in denial. Surely this was impossible? He was loyal to the Emperor, and to him alone.

He attempted to speak, but was being pulled away. Slowly, he awoke to see a women looming over him. Lucius' neck was crudely sewn together, the thread was rough and coarse.

"You shall be an intriguing test subject indeed." The doctor smiled with glee, the terror magnified by the cackle that force itself from her throat. She held a rusty needle, which once held the fluid that revived him. Corpses of human and Astartes alike hung like slabs of meat from ancient hooks.


Lucius squirmed, but he was bolted to the iron table. The doctor stared down on the Marine and pulled out a scalpel. She felt pitiful.

"Poor you. You'll never experience the true pleasures of the galaxy."

She cackled. Lucius was gagged. He eyed the bodies frantically, their forms violated with horrific new attachments. The scalpel came down on Lucius' abdomen. Cries of pain echoed through the empty hallway.

Acharias
City with Einer
About to stalk

Now was the time of night, the time Acharias lived for. Only one problem, no rain, which saddened Acharias. But he still had the element of surprise with the night.
" Time to hunt, " said Acharias to Einer and he rocketed away.
Acharias hit the street like a meteor, sending bits of street in every direction. He took off ahead, the men following closly behind him, his shadows. But no matter how hard he looked , he found no rebels. Nothing but darkness, no noise just silence. Then he heard something, Acharias calling for silence. The pitter patter of bare feet on stone. The noise , it was all around them, getting louder, more intense. He turned in a circle, but saw nothing.
He turned to the men, whispering, " We are not alone."
Then it hit, like a freight train. The red beasts desccended from the darkness. Acharias had no idea what they were, red creatures of the night.. He pulled out his sword, the two blades glistening, ready to taste the red flesh of the creatures. None would stand in his path.
Turning to Einer and men, " Let none live."
Einer nodded back, Acharias screamed and rushed into battle.

Leonidus darts foward, his crackling powersword cleaving another devil's head clean off, its disolving body sinking to the floor. Spinning round, he just manages to put two incindiary bolts in another's face before it impacts into his side. Him and the beast down into the trench, the blood of countless rebels till staining it, and they fight. Their weapons had been dropped in the fall, this would not be easy. Lunging toward him, the devil grabs him by his neck, lifting him off the ground. Choaking on his own blood, Leonidus grasps the thing by its scaled face, and squeeses, it's jaw and nose snapping from the pressure but still neither would yield. A swift knee to the gut, and the thing loosens its grip. And thats all he needed. With all his strength, the bloodied Apothecary crushes down on its head, eyes popping and skull cracking. Then it's head implodes. Coughing heavily, Leonidus picks up his powersword, and climbs back up over the trench towards the battle.

Nocturnus Omega had nearly awoken, it was the first time it had been activated and so the systems took a while to fully activate. It was safe through, his entire Nocturnus guard were defending it and they were the elite. Decapitating yet another of the things, he spies something at the other end of the camp, something new. It looked like another of the devils but slightly taller, its bronze armour gleaming and dripping with fresh blood. In one gauntletted claw it holds a great, serrated blade, the hilt forged in the likeness of a screaming skull.

This would be a harder foe to face.

As the sun sank behimd the horizon, Einer transformed. He was better at night, or it seemed like it. He sheathed his axes, unleashing.Nightshredder. Perhaps it was his geneseed that gave a Nocturnal affinity, but whatever it was, at night he was a Daemon in his own right. He lept skyward, jump pack rocketing him into the air. He took aim, a massive brutish Daemon on a metal beast. And stooping like a falcon, he struck, impacting like a comet once again, tearing the creature from its mount, shredding it, and turning to carve through a crab clawed she-devil before it could even notice his presence. He wove a symphony of death through the daemonic ranks, painting a picture as he so loved to do, one in daemonic ichor. And then he was trapped. Against a wall, surrounded by Daemons. His pack was out if fuel. The Daemons charged, and he met them head on.

Taric frowned as his squad and Darius got surrounded by a flood of blood thirsty red xenos. Their blood red swords, their scales as they snarled at glistened, they slowly advanced. Taric looked at them waving at his eyes to see if they were real or not, quickly decided they were real, he drew he blade for combat. He said "We must kill these Xenos, they ally themeselves with the annoying seductive ones." He charged in and started hacking and slashing with his power sword, attacking them as all converaged upon him. The strange red things snarled as they died, the strange weapons seemed to penetrate the armour but through luck he wasn't affected. He heard a cry, he didn't look back, must of been ones of his brothers.

Lucius,
Medical Facility
Being "examined"
++++++++++++++

The women had sliced into his abdomen. Lucius was thankful he wasn't able to observe the procedure. The doctor began rummaging through his organs, her hand grasping and clenching. She tore out an organ, the Preomnor. Lucius tried to scream, but only muffles came. She placed it carefully into a cryogenic freezer for further examination.

"That will be enough for today, Marine." She taped the gaping hole together, gore still flowing out. She removed the gag from his mouth. Then her obsessions began to take control. She looked upon his naked form, strapped onto the table prone. Lucius was yelling at her, asking for his release.

She ignored him. She began to slip off her lab coat.

Leonidus felt a searing pain as one of the red Devil's blades slammed into his shoulder, sending him falling face first into the dirt. Luckily the weapon had lodged itself into the think pauldron, preventing it from severing his arm. Spinning round, he brings his fist straight into the thing's snarling face, dislodging several fangs and breaking the jaw. Before it can steady itself, he grabs hold of one of its wrists like a vice, and kicks it squarly in the chest. The thing reels backwards, the gaping hole where its arm was a moment ago, spouting dark ichor. It tries desperatly to rise up but is brought right back down again as Leonidus' heavy boot crashes down on it's face. With the Devil felled, he walks calmly back towards his tent, now illuminated with a deep red glow. He could see that one of the five Nocturnus guard had been killed, his body cleaved in half by some Devil's blade. The remaining four were fighting furiously, bolter and blade mercilessly cutting down monster left and right.

Leonidus enters the great tent, the captured rebels either cut down or escaped into the whirling maelstrom of combat. Basked in a red glow, Leonidus sees his great creation, his great victory, get to its feet, numerous bionic implants whiring and clicking as it flexes its trunk-like arms. It turns to face him, its calm, emotionless mask staring as if into his very soul.

"Greetings, Leonidus."

It rasps quietly, its first words, as it rears up to its full hight.

Adric was standing on Hells nemesis the daemons where assaulting the tank from all sides only to be incinerated or shot down. A rebel counter attack force showed up it consisted of a leman russ and 40 guardsman.
Adric ordered the nemesis to move combat speed and flank the leman russ. He moved at full speed to its rear and charged his las cannons to full power. The concentrated shots literally made a straight hole through the tank and 10 seconds later a gigantic explosion erupted from it 10 renegades where consumed by the fire.
He jumped off the tank and while walking towards leonidas he released his control over the tank a bloodthirst took control over it and with a raging strength crushed tons of renegades under its treads one guardsman tried to shoot a melta at him but a feral roar released through the speakers installed on him broke their morale. They began running away as he charged after them crushing the occasional daemon. The pintle mounted heavy flamer incinerated another group of 8 bloodied monsters one of them succeeded in evading the flames and climbed on the tank. He jumped inside and found the nemesis resting inside the sacrophagus, he tried to slash him when the inside defensive systems activated a couple of tendrils they dismembered the daemon and crushed its head.

Adric arrived at the tent of leonidas. He saw his men fighting against the daemons protecting what laid within. Adric walked towards the tent the daemon that attacked him where simply fended of by his tendrils. He arrived inside and said. ''Brother it is good to see you i have arranged some transport to get out of here.'' Meanwhile i took control of the tank again and had it return to this position. ''Well brother what do you want to do?''

The doctor kept the clamps on the marine's limbs. He begged to be let go.

"No."

She turned around wearing only a set of fine lace underwear. She howled and dived in.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Several hours later, the Marine was still wide awake, unnerved. He had been powerless to stop this happening.

The doctor had curled up next to him. She snored.

For the first time in several weeks, Lucius truly slept.

Rorick was barely concious after being beaten sensless for what seemed hours, tortured with crude devices, electricuted and drowned. His overseers had been impatient with his resilient attitude, having to restrain him with impossibly hardened chains after he ended up breaking free twice. He had slaughtered all he could both times before once again a robed priest had put him down. He had never heard of people like this priest, able to manipulate his enviroment with a thought, release flame and lightning from merely pointing. Rorick dispised this man- no not a man- a mutant- a heretic.

He was at the breaking point, the torture being stepped up a notch. His mind was strong but sadly his flesh did not match. Slumped on the floor his body poured blood from many deep cuts, his face swollen and burnt he barely saw another cast of the sorcerer's arm creating a ball of energy then releasing it directly into the sergeant's mind. He collapsed from the effort of keeping the screaming torrent breaking apart his fortitude.

.................


Rorick felt the cold touch of the floor as his naked form was dragged along the clean white surface, leaving a trail of blood mixed with dirt. He was dropped mercilessly on the floor, smashing his head onto the sharp edge of an operating table. Muscle bound mutants, horribly disfigured underneath a surgeon's knife had carried him through the many tunnels and elevator's which spread underneath the city connecting it to the battlefield at it's gates.

The mutants parted allowing the grinning sorcerer to come to Rorick's side, kneeling so that he may whisper.
"Foolish Imperial dog, why do you resist, why do you not see the where true power and glor-"
Rorick stopped his measly rambling with a quick lunge at his leg, grasping it with all the remains of his strength. With a twist of his hand he heard the leg snap from it's socket, then he pulled with all his might tearing it from it's fleshy connection. Blood spraayed the gleaming white walls. The wailing priest lost his balance, falling hard on the floor while cluctching his bloody stump of a leg. His enraged mutant body guard kicked Rorick in the face with his heavy boot knocking him back down.

Rorick groaned at the pain and once again he was being dragged to another room. He was prompted up against a tiled wall, his arms shackled to the constraints above him. Blood seeped into his eyes and he could barey make out the room around him.

Then he saw Lucius. The young marine was strapped down to a steel bed, a white blood stained blanket barely covering his shame. Next to him lay a woman curled up next to the sleeping marine as if they were embracing. Roricks mouth gaped open, he could not believe an astartes could fall so far. He simply slumped back down relaxing in the chains. He shook his head in disbelief.

Leonidus spins round quickly to face the newcomer, the looming figure of Nocturnus Omega standing directly behind the blood-covered Apothecary.

"Ah, Adric, your timing could not have been better. We are suffering heavy casualties, we have 3 devasators, 5 assault marines and four of my guard remaining. And of cource, Nocturnus Omega."

With that, he steps aside, the hulking cyborg stepping foward, crimson optics glowing as bionics whir and humm. The thing looks down at the astartes carefuly, its expressionless face a pale death mask, and speaks in its dull tone.

"Greetings Forge master Adric. I am Nocturnus Omega. Within my mind lies all knowledge of our forces, Legion and primarch. I know every last detail, of every last marine of our Legion. Cheif apothecary Leonidus made me so. Enough pleasantries, there are hostiles incoming."

And with that, the two astartes and the hulking cyborg exit the tent, heading towards the Land Raider, the four remaining guard falling in beside them. The seven of them tear their way through the Red Devils in their path. Leonidus commands his guard to enter and forge master Adric gets in after them.

"Nocturnus Omega, accompany the Land Raider to it's destination." Shouts Leonidus over the din of battle, climbing inside.

"Affirmative Apothecary Leonidus." The titanic construct replies, heavy bolter obliterating two oncoming beasts instantly, in a shower of black ichor.

An hour or two earlier.

A doctor walked along the plasteel corridor, a clipboard covered in scrawls concerning astartes anatomy. He had heard that they had a new subject. He smiled, Viola was supposedly working on him, that girl loved Astartes...this was her first dissection. He smiled and looked around. The ground shook and somwhere, somone screamed...but that was always happening here. A soldier clad in flak armour ran past "Doctor!" he yelled, coming to a halt "The northe east wing has collapsed, the astarted brought in a bombardment over the ceneral corridor!" He was stunned. The west wing was where they had kept all the still livng astartes. No matter, he had to check on Viola. He opened the door, looking down at his clipboard when he heard grunting. He looked up and saw the girl wriggling on top of the marine. He, let us say, very quickly vacated the room. "So....so small" He said quietly, looking down.

The large astartes dragged in by the red robed cultists saw nothing but a small human girl sleeping beside an unconcious warrior. The red garbed soldiers nudged each other and laughed, stepping out as one stood in front of the marine. He drew a long, slender blade from his belt and knelt beside the marine "You know whats going to happen to you?" He whispered quietly "You know what i'm going to do to you?" He smiled, his teeth a bloody red "Then prepare to scream"

''Well then brother i guess we need to regroup with the majority of our men at the city oh and i forgot to exchange the pleasantries. This is the nemesis and this is chief apothecary leonidas.'' Adric said as he felt the conformation from the nemesis.
''Well brother we will move at a larger speed we don't have the time to slack around.'' He said as the nemesis moved at full speed and rushed towards the city gates. ''Alright now we will move in at full speed we need to meet up with the captain immediately. I will transfer command from the nemesis temporary to you i need to know why i lost contact with lucius i will not let this pass!''

Lucius,
Operation Theater with Doctor,
Dreaming
++++++++++++++++++++++++

Lucius thought back on the events of that night. He could still feel the doctor's embrace.

"I could have done something to stop this happening."

He felt himself hold the doctor.

"Why didn't I try to though?"

The doctor kissed his cheek.

"Why did I not do anything?"

His fists began to clench. He broke away from the doctor, awaking once more. She still lay at his side.

Character: Morias Kalvae
Location: Rebel C&C base
Situation: Securing the facility
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Several of them turned and glanced at the entry hall, weapons raised. The battle shouts of uncounted soldiers was enough to send a chill down the spines lesser men, but the warriors of the Adeptus Astartes were not phased by it. They swiftly formed a well-practised firing line, with the assault marines ready to charge in should the enemy break through their killing zone. Not a single word was spoken amongst their ranks as they waited with anticipation for their enemies to become visible. The shouts of the approaching rebels grew to a deafening crescendo as the enemies drew ever closer, ill-placed las bolts whipping through the air towards the marines. The inaccuracy of their shots meant none of the Night Lords were hit as their enemies came into view; bottled into the great entry hall shoulder-to-shoulder.
"Open fire!" Lazerus boomed over the war shouts. Before he had even finished giving the order, seven bolters barked in unison, mowing down dozens and dozens of the first wave. Their valiant war-cries turned to screams of agony in their death-throes as the hall was drowned in blood and the number of dead bodies was so great you could walk over them without ever touching the floor. They brought low two further waves, if you could call them that - they were so close together it may as well have been a single mass assault - before sheer weight of numbers reached them. Lazevar's plasma pistol flashed, vaporizing a traitor where he stood as Navren and the other assault marines rushed forwards; chainswords scything apart men in twos and threes with each subsequent strike, for their enemy's ranks were packed so close they could not help but hit so many with each swing. It was a slaughter - the complex was turned into a Charnel house. Not a single marine's armour was left uncoated in the hot, sticky life-blood of their foolishly brave assailants.

As the assault marines cut a gory path through their foes, a chorus of inhuman screeches and wails pierced the methodical whirring of chainswords and screams of the dying that they were all so accustomed to. As Navren's squad thinned out the remaining attackers, a dozen humanoids with off-coloured skin came into view. Though they could perhaps be mistaken for human at a distance, up close there was no doubting that these things were far from it. They were clad in revealing armour, some with single breasts that were uncovered, others with six and even some with none. They appeared feminine in stature but it was plain these were not women. Wicked dagger-like teeth filled their maws and they stood on stunted, goat-like legs. Their hands, or at least where they should have been were nought more than despicable crab-like claws or three foot long chitinous blade-like extremities. They moved faster than anything the assembled astartes had ever witnessed before - far faster than even their own heightened reactions would allow. Their elegant, speedy but ultimately deadly movements resembled at closest that of their primarch - the swiftest of them all. The rabble of shrieking creatures deftly leapt into combat, their limbs dishing out a flurry of blows with speed that the marines could not match. Three assault marines were brought down under the unmatchable barrage of attacks almost instantly. Navren lost an arm but powered onwards heedlessly, cutting down a duo of the terrible creatures, which horrifyingly vanished into thin air with a final scream each. Another approached, with a wicked blade-like arm that pierced through his abdomen and a swing of its other claw neatly decapitating the marine. The sole survivor of squad Turellius roared defiantly as he fired his pistol wildly and swung out with his chainsword, killing another three of the foul things before two set upon him and sliced him apart.

It all happened in no more than ten seconds, half as many skilled and battle-hardened Angels of Death falling in that time. Such a sudden loss of Astartes life in mêlée - an area of combat they excelled in more than most - was unprecedented. True, fighting the savage Orks often resulted in the loss of Space Marines in close combat, but never so quick, so effectively. The remaining tactical marines bellowed in rage together, their combined bolter fire slamming into the creatures before they could get any closer. To their surprise, their deadly ammunition often simply passed through them without leaving a single wound. Tyceus aimed his meltagun and pulled the trigger, the super-heated air that could reduce the mightiest battle tanks to sludge in seconds failing to even leave a mark on his scantily-clad target.
"By the Primarch, what manner of trickery is this?!" He exclaimed. But soon each of the creatures disappeared under the torrent of shots. This earned them little pause from combat however, as no sooner had they vanquished these new foes a beast more terrible than even them thundered down the corridor with an incomprehensible screech. It stood on quadruple legs, each ending in a red hoof. Its skin was an unnatural blue; rippling and morphing - it defied belief. It had two arms, both ending in razor-sharp claws the size of a man's body. From it's back a lengthy tail with a scorpion-like tip was poised to strike. Worst of all was its head, comparable in overall shape to those of the old-earth steeds used by some mounted units in the Imperial Army but at the same time utterly different. It had two blank white orbs for eyes on each side of its head which ended in a despicable snout full of sharp, outward-pointed teeth surrounding a long, flailing snake-like tongue.

One the marines opened fire, but it did little good - many rounds simply passing through its inhuman form and those few rounds that struck it seemed to do little more than enrage it further. Within seconds it was amongst them. Its screech was high-pitched enough to break through their helmet's advanced auto-filter senses. The beast scooped up a marine by the leg and its other claw latched onto his opposite arm. The marine screamed as both limbs were wrenched from his body and a split second after his body hit the floor a heavy hoof slammed down on his head; crushing his skull and the brain within to paste. It made short work of another astartes, eviscerating him with a flurry of blows before he could even raise his combat blade. Two more of Lazevar's men approached it only to be knocked sprawling as it reared up and kicked out with its legs, cracking their chest-plates with the powerful blows. As they slowly began to pick themselves up, sergeant Lazevar himself moved in. His pistol shone as it released a retina-scarring bolt of plasma into the cursed beast, leaving a bright scorch mark in the middle of its unnatural body. Morias slashed his chainsword across its back but its tail whipped out and sent him flying into a wall. Lazevar followed up by forcing his dazzling power sword through its chest where he had shot it, making it squeal in pain. It gripped his arms in its massive crab-like pincers and pulled them from their sockets in a spray of blood, leaving his sword still embedded within it. The sergeant stumbled back, gazing into its blank, lifeless eyes and gave an angry snarl even as he knew this was where he would die. Its tail whipped out; the arm-length spike bursting through his mouth and into his skull. Lazevar spasmed for a second before the tail twisted upwards and the top part of his head was torn free. It landed in a bloody clump next to Morias with a squelch, his eyes rolled back and left as no more than white orbs as lifeless as those of the beast that killed him.

Tyceus and Kurnar charged together, their fingers curled tightly around the triggers of their meltagun and flamethrower respectively, scorching the beast and charring its hide black. Its front legs dissolved from underneath it and it slumped down with a howl. Much to their surprise, it used its back legs to leap up into the two marines, knocking them down. Its claws clamped around their bodies, pinning them down. They spat a chain of profanities at it, though this bothered it none whatsoever as its tail arced down, Kurnar barely dodging it as it hit the metal floor where it left a gaping hole. It came down again, this time landing a hit on him and slicing through the side of his head. Kurnar was alive but bloodied; he'd lost an eye and ear along with a chunk of his face to it. Before the tail could come down again, Morias was there, his chainsword revving as he brought it round in a heavy two-handed swing, messily tearing through its thick tail which hit the floor and twitched for a moment before disappearing in a flash of unholy light. The beast writhed and managed to spin on the spot; the stumps where its legs had been dripping a foul-smelling ichor. It took a hold of his chainsword and snapped it into three pieces like a twig, leaving him holding only the hilt. With a feral headbutt it knocked him over and began clawing at him. Its foul mouth came down and bit a chunk out of his helmet. He could feel a trickle of blood on his forehead as he grappled with it, struggling to push its arms off him. But it was too strong and he gave up trying to overpower it as it ripped a chunk out of his right pauldron. Seeing the hilt of Lazevar's sword still embedded in its chest, he yanked it free and stabbed it upwards through the beast's snout. Morias was vaguely aware of the remaining marines gathering around and stabbing, pummelling and otherwise attacking it behind. Pulling the sword clear he fumbled for his bolt pistol, ripping it out of its holster and forcing it into the creature's mouth. It gave out a muffled cry, trying to wrestle the weapon clear and severely damaging it in the process. But he pulled the trigger back one, two, three times and the back of its head exploded messily.

Hauling himself from underneath it, Morias emptied the rest of his clip into its already dead body as the rest of his brothers cut it apart with their blades.

Lucius
Operation Theatre
Escaping
++++++++++++++

The doctor woke up.

"Good morning, Lucius." The doctor chirped gleefully.

Lucius remained silent, deep in thought.

"Hello?"

He stayed still.

"My name's Viola."

She got up and shrieked. Rorick lay down on the floor, his face ruined by his captors.

Lucius could barely see his lightning streaked armour.

"Identify yourself."

Rorick heaved his body up.

"Rorick? Is that you?"

He looked upon the neophyte in disgust, slumping back to the floor.

Viola hurried out of the room, grabbing her clothes. She returned in combat uniform with a Laspistol holstered around her hip. Lucius was unchained.

A moment after returning to the room, Viola found herself pinned to the filth-ridden wall by the scruff of her neck.

"What did you do?!"