If people like it I'll write more. This is my first attempt. Thank you.
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Prologue
The Guardsman screamed shrilly as he disintegrated in a flash of baleful emerald fire. The men around him jumped back, recoiling in horror as the bursts of frenetic death filled the air like a macabre hail. The first to overcome his initial reaction of falling back, perhaps forever, was Sgt. Koleman. He was lying face up on his back staring at the unnaturally darkened sky which rippled with arcs of thick green lightning. He pushed himself up and retrieved his chainsword and laspistol from the ashen ground. Instinctively checking its power cell on both his weapons he began to shout to his men who were just starting to come to their senses. Seeing the enemy was still advancing exonerably forward he ducked back down, narrowly dodging a lance of energy destined to send him straight the meet the Emperor and greet Corporal Len who has just arrived himself seconds ago.
"Squad! Take cover and lay down suppressive fire!"
He saw his men getting their bearings back together and starting to lay down waves of crimson light which intermittently pushed back the darkness.
Glancing to his right he saw Private Greson and PFC Ellis setting up the heavy bolter and carefully loading the ammo drum. Almost at once the weaponbegan barking out staccato bursts which caused the metallic monsters to stagger and fall over covered in ragged, gaping holes. Koleman felt a surge of adrenaline fueled pride. Perhaps the Emperor would see themthrough this night after all. He observed several of the glinting skeletons on the ground unmoving. Raising his chainsword to declare a charge he stuttered and his arm fell uncontrolled to his side. He could see, even in the strobing light the metal liquefying and restoring itself and the hint of dull light shining from within. Half of the squad rose back up whole and resumed firing as if nothing had happened. The rest of the piles
vanished into the ground like melting snow. He heard a scream and saw another of his number atomized. Now lying in the ash he began to lay down his own pistol?s fire while trying to get a clear signal on his vox-link.
Squeals of static filled the tinny speaker and he immediately turned it off. The interference overhead was palpable and he knew that no signal could penetrate that lightning filled miasma. The ancient constructs continued to advance though one more had vanished thanks to a well placed shot by Specialist Niles with his bulky meltagun which turned the head of one of them into blackened slag. There were still four and they were getting quite close. Their eyes glinted with malevolence as they walked forward. Patiently they fired into the ash around the squad as if the incoming fire meant nothing. They sought no cover and bellowed no war cries. Silently they advanced as timeless as the dunes which surrounded them. For no discernable reason this made Sgt. Koleman nervous. The fluttering in his stomach began making him nauseous. He wasn't sure how long he could keep his unit coherent and fighting.
He began reciting the Litany of Protection loudly and a few of his soldiers joined him. His laspistol stopped abruptly, an angry rune on the side flashing accusingly. Dropping it and cycling up the chainsword while screaming
"Charge! For the Emperor and his 229th!" he vaulted forward.
Leaping out of the sunken ridge he saw his squad do the same around him. Private Delane was struck by the hellfire and his scream faded to nothing but the rest had affixed their bayonets and were running the short distance to the enemy which stared at them silently and without reaction. The Sgt reached them first and swung with his chainsword cutting deep into the shoulder of the nearest one. It whined and smoked as it cut through the solid metal skin. It looked at him, head cocked and regarded him as one would regard a small insect before crushing it underneath one?s palm. He could see its tiny eyes alive like miniature suns gleaming from within
its deeply recessed sockets. It was just becoming easier with the cutting when the arms suddenly pushed forward and the Sgt was knocked backwards by the strength of the blow. It raised its weapon and the Sgt. could see the axe-like bayonet on the underbarrel seemingly placed as an afterthought. It came down with the force of a tree falling and he barely dodged it as it cleft apart the ashen soil. Koleman took advantage of this and swung his chainsword in a high arc slicing into its neck. Oily dark fluid and sparks flung outward by the quickly whirring chain soaked the front of his arms giving him a blood-soaked appearance. The head came off and Koleman booted it away from him as far as he could breaking most of the toes in his left foot in the process. He bit down hard to quench the agony in his already swelling chest and now broken foot. The body toppled in front of him and began its queer melting. He turned and looked around him and nearly dropped to his knees in horror.
His men were on the ground in pieces and he was surrounded by slowly advancing abominations. They moved with fluid grace and near perfect silence except for the sound of their long and thin blade-like fingers scratching against one another. They were the same size as the other monsters except that they were covered in large pieces of skin. In various states of decay and beset in a bewildering set of colors it gave them a sickening appearance and he almost threw up on the sight of them. A cold sweat broke out as he could see a still bleeding piece of <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Niles</st1:place></st1:City> skin dropping from the lead one's skull and sliding sideways down its narrow, metallic face. He was now alone facing the nightmares under a darkened sky which rippled with malice beneath the uncaring eyes of a hateful god.
