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The first of the Chaos Marines stepped inside the entrance to the dark chamber, flashing the strobe light fitted above his bolter barrel about the walls of the tomb. The flashing red light revealed patches of cyrptic runes on the lichen covered walls. Taking another step inside the traitor kicked a loose rock into the chamber. The stone tumbled away as a small cloud of dust rose up in its clattering path.

"Move in and secure our position." came the voice of the Chaos leader over the crackling static of the vox. The traitor gripped the lamp on his bolter and twisted the small dial to a lower setting. Slowly the pulsing light grew into a solid beam throwing shadows off the surreal surroundings. The Chaos marine twitched the dial a bit more and the beam of light dispersed into a bright cone.

Sweeping the bolter from side to side the Chaos Marine walked into the chamber. The light shone and reflected as its wide beam swept across giittering bits of broken metal strewed about the dirt floor. More of the traitor Marines stepped inside the opening, tightly gripping their weapons.

"This chamber appears to be empty." spoke the first Marine to enter. Some of the traitors split off from the original group, slowly spreading along the wide curve of the lichen covered walls. Something wet and dark dripped down onto the armoured boot of the first Chaos Marine. Small spats of blood were dripping from the ceiling.

The traitor looked up, shining his lamp on the ceiling above. Huge columns of pale white stalagtittes broke through the roof like sharp teeth of a giant predator. Casting the cone of light about the ceiling revealed the source of the dripping... inverted figures in black and red power armour hung upside down from the roof like great bats, their knees and lower legs tightly wedged into cracks in the rocky ceiling. One of the inverted figures had a bare and bald head, the skin was pallid and twisted into a leering grimace. Drop by drop blood trickled from his pointed fangs. Then his eyes opened, revealing two bright red burning orbs.

Before the traitor could shout a warning the dark figure above him darted down from the celing, wrapping his strong bare hands around the throat of the watching Chaos Marine. Sharp long talons rendered out from its fingertips as the hands tightly gripped the traitor's neck.

There came the sound of a single sharp snap then the bolter fell to to the dirt floor as the lamp went dim then disappeared, leaving only a black void in its sudden wake. Other bolters fired, emitting brief flashes of light, as the other Chaos Marines fired indiscriminately into the surrounding darkness. The sound of hard armoured boots hitting the ground filled the cold damp air amid the loud report of the bolters.

Screams of livid pain and raw terror filled the cavern... then there was silence again.

+++


The Chaos Lord looked up from his makeshift desk and threw aside the video report. "This is the second search party we have lost! What is going on down there?" he growled.

His lieutenant quickly spoke up, sweat breaking out on his bare brow "That is a very good question your lord."

"And a question I expect you to be able to answer if you want to remain at my side." said Lord Voltrius as he stood up. "Choose a squad composed of our best Marines, go down there, and find out for yourself! I want an answer by tomorrow." Voltrius nodded to his right side. "I want you to take our most trusted and venerable scribe with you." A small shape swaddled out from the chamber, wrapped tightly in black robes with dark red trim. "He will record everything for me." The Chaos Lord smiled grimly. "We have been entrusted with this mission from Abbadon himself. I will not except anything less than total success."

"Have faith my lord. I will discover the source of the resistance and push it aside." said the lieutenant. "We will have the dark technology hidden away down below."

+++


The small squad of Chaos Marines slowly moved forward, lead by their Lieutenant. Down by the mouth of the tunnel bright light flared. The leader took a step forward. He delicately pulled loose the top of a small silk pouch tied on his belt and let the contents drop to the floor. Large twisted glow worms unfolded and began to crawl ahead. The worms lit up the tunnel as traces of radioactive gloop trailed from their sectored bellies. Their sickly light glowed from within their long slender tube pods and revealed huge rib like bones that had been fastened into the tunnel walls. The giant bones were scored with many nicks and deep long snaking cracks. An eldritch language had been carved into their pale white surface. Malo, the Lieutenant, held up his hand and silently montioned for his Marines to follow. Behind them the little scribe lifted his big boots over the broken rocks below and scampered along.

The light from the glow worms grew more intense as they crawled and stretched towards the opening at the end of the tunnel. Gently pulling back the rack on his combi-melta, Malo crept forward and pulled a fragmentation grenade from his utility belt. Then the leader slung his combi gun over his shoulder and made another hand signal for his Marines to arm themselves with their frag grenades. Malo deftly stepped over a pile of crushed stones and peered into the opening. He gasped.

Inside the chamber a large fire blazed inside a pit dug into the center. Large stakes had been driven in a ring around the conflagration. The flayed heads of dead Chaos Marines and other body parts had been impaled upon the spiked shafts. Their eyes had been torn out with the eyelids sewn open to reveal the empty bleeding sockets within. Their mouths were split open from ear to ear so that each brutish head leered with a foul grin, their tongues hanging out. Bits and shards of power armour lay scattred about the floor of the chamber.

A sound of sipping came from across the raging fire. A large Marine in black and red power armour held a bone cup cut from the the skull of a dead Traitor and drank. Dark red fluid ran down either side of his mouth as he sipped down the contents of the skull cap. Then he tossed the bone cup into the fire and stepped away, sliding out of sight and back into the dark shadows.

Malo felt his skin crawl on the back of his neck as he took another step into the chamber. He looked up at the empty ceiling above. Unslinging his combi weapon again Malo crouched down and made his way to the fire. The leader of the Chaos Marines put down his frag grenade and motioned for his Marines to join him.

"This is as far as the last two search parties have come. Now we have some idea as to what prevented them from moving further down into the tunnels." Malo looked in the fire and watched the bone cup burn bright red. Its liquid content hissed as the last of it boiled up and spilled away over the sides. "Our enemy are drinkers of blood!"

The other Chaos Marines gathered together around Malo, watching his hard face intently for any sign. The fire crackled from within its pit. The leader held the combi gun in one hand and pulled loose his chainaxe with the other. "When I give the word I want us to give some quick and steady bursts of supressing fire then quickly make our way around this pit." The other Marines nodded their consent.

Malo sprang up firing the bolter barrel of his combi gun across the wide gulf of the flames. His small band of traitor Marines also surged forward firing away in the nothingness of the dark chamber. One of the Chaos Marines loaded a fragmentation grenade into the custom launcher fitted onto his combination bolter and fired. Arcing quickly through the air and over the fire, the grenade bounced off the back wall and exploded into a storm of metal shrapnel. Malo lead his Marines forward as he swung his chainaxe around in a looming figure eight motion. More bolter fire shot out into the darkness beyond the fire.

The leader halted his charge and looked around as his Marines stepped up beside him. Except for Malo's search party the chamber was empty now. Mechanical gyrations filled the silence as the scribe's metal pen scratched across the surface of a rolling sheet of paper. The parchment was loaded on a cylinder that turned in perfect time with the runt's busy writing.

"The blood drinkers have left this room." said Malo. The Lieutenant looked down at a pile of leg bones that had been carefully placed on top of one another. "Spread out and find the exit."

"Over here!" yelled one of the Chaos Marines. Malo walked over and looked down. The Marine was stooped over and looking at hole in the bottom of the wall. "This must have been their point of egress."

"I don't know." said Malo. "It looks quite small for a Marine to fit through."

The traitor Marine held up his bolter. "If you'll take this then I'll see if I can fit through."

"I have a better idea." said Malo. The Lieutenant turned around and motioned to the scribe. "Come over here for a moment."

The little scribe folded away his writing apparatus and waddled over. From deep within his hood Malo could see two beady red eyes looking back at him. "Do me a favour. I want you to climb through this hole then come back and let us all know what is on the other side."

The scribe looked up at the leader then bent over and started to crawl through the opening. All Malo could see was the filthy bottoms of the creature's boots as it pulled itself deeper into the hole. Then with a tiny mechanical grunt the scribe squeezed completely inside.

Malo bent down upon his knees and peered into the dark opening. "Give me your electric torch." the Lieutenant said to the closest Marine beside him. The other Marines from the squad had wandered over, all looking down at the new discovery. The original Chaos Marine handed his torch over to the leader. Malo focused the light eropting from the dusy lenses into the hole and looked into the depths of the opening. Small clouds of dust swirled in the light.

"This hole is another tunnel." said Malo. "It goes on a bit then bends to the right. I can't see past the turn."

The lieutenant stood up and brushed the dirt from his kneepads with his free hand. The entire squad stood around him staring down into the hole. Suddenly a small hooded head popped back out. The scribe crawled back out from the opening and stood up.

"So what did you find?" said the leader.

A shallow squeaky voice broke out from within the hood. "There is a bridge on the other side." wheezed the creature. "It leads down into more darkness."

"Break out a shovel and open up the hole." commanded Malo. "I am not sure how the blood drinkers managed to fit through such a tight crawl space but we know that there is something worth investigating on the other side."

A Chaos Marine pushed the blade of his shovel into the hole and began the work of widening the small shaft. Another Marine came up with another shovel and started to help. The first traitor felt the tip of his shovel strike against a hard surface below the dirt. He bent down and pushed away loose dirt with his gaunlets. An icon of a small skull fashioned from iron appeared as the traitor carefully swept away the dirt with his fingers. "Your dark eminence, I have found something." he said.

Malo stepped over and looked down. "So what do have here?" he asked as he stooped over.

Malo clutched at the dirt, tearing away deep handfuls of red clay. As he dug deeper around the metal skull the excavation revealed it was part of a huge chestplate. Malo spread away the last bits of debris and stared down at the empty chestplate from a rended suit of black terminator armour. Malo pulled the armour loose from the earth and looked upon his empty prize. A small scroll was fastened to the neckplate. The Lieutenant carefully pried the parchment loose and slowly unrolled the scroll.

The scroll read as follows:

I, Inquisitor Lord Harrim Abif of the Ordo Malleus, and my party of Grey Knight terminators lost our way in this deceptive maze of death four weeks weeks ago to the day. The air is thinner each day and the cold, oh so cold that we can feel it like a sharp twisted knife cutting through the admantium core of our tactical dreadnaught armour. I leave this final message in hopes that it reaches the eyes of a good man who will use the knowledge contained herein for the protection of all mankind.

We came to this forgotten planet in search of the so called Cosmic Cube, a device fashioned long ago in the Age of Dark Technology by fell worshippers of the dark and infernal gods. Legend tells that this cube holds immense and unbound power. Brother Captain Jon Jubilee is a strong psyker and could feel the power of the cube calling to him even as our cruiser just entered orbit. Myself and the other members of the Grey Knights also began to hear the alluring siren call of the infernal and wretched device as we slowly made our way down through this twisting labyrinth of rotten tunnels and fallen shafts. We are stong in faith, body, and mind. As such we followed the psychic beacon emanating from deep down below but resisted the mad urges it constantly flayed across our minds.

Just as we found the hidden chamber holding the cube a broad expanse of heavy tunnel collasped, pinning all the Grey Knights beneath the horrid weight of this cursed world. They were lost to me as well as the entrance to the chamber. Now I am caught in this freezing tunnel section with no way out. Constantly the cube calls out promising obscene power and wicked fantasies to no end. Being but only a human I cannot hold out much longer. My mind is slowly unraveling as the sick and twisted calls of the cube whisper over and over in my mind.

If you have come for the cube know that you are closer than you think... and beware! This device is some great deamon soul trapped within the cube just as you are trapped now within this maze. Turn back and blast the tunnel entrances. It is your only hope.

Malo quickly crumpled the scroll into wad and shoved it inside his armour. "So this what our Lord Commander has sent us to find the way!"

"Keep digging!" shouted the Lieutenant.

The two Chaos Marines that had been busy digging stepped away from the hole. Malo bent over and crawled through the opening. Cold wind blew through the small tunnel. Malo stepped up and shone his electric torch back and forth. As the scribe had said there was a bridge just ahead. The Lieutenant was standing on the edge of a small ledge that overlooked a long drop. Skulls were mounted on the top and along either rail of the bridge. Malo took a step onto the bridge, testing his weight. Another Marine came out behind him. "Bolters on auto. Let's move across and see what there is on the other side."

Malo slowly lead his squad across the long narrow bridge. The cold breeze that had flowed through the small tunnel leading to the ledge was now a strong gale. Malo stepped into the wind and made his way across. Several of the rungs had fallen out from the bottom of the bridge. The Lieutenant looked down through the gaps and spied hot red magma churning and bubbling below. "We're almost there. Keep your bolters up and ready!"

Malo stepped off from the end of the bridge onto another ledge. He swung his torch around. Only a large granite rock wall was there to greet him. "There must be another opening. Let's take a look around... and be careful."

Malo suddenly noticed the wind was blowing out from the rock wall. The Lieutenant reached out with his hand towards the wall. His gaunlet passed effortlessly through the rock. "This wall is an illusion!" he said.

Suddenly the metallic voice of the little scribe eeked out "Lieutenant Malo, you have completed your mission as ordered by our dear and cherished OverLord. It is time for the search party to turn back and report all our findings."

Malo pulled out his bolter and fired a shot through the head of the scribe. "We're not turning back now. Our dear and most cherished Overlord did order me to pick a squad consisting of my own choice. Did he not?"

The Chaos Marines smiled.

"Now let's find out what's on the other side." said Malo as he stepped through the wall.

Malo stepped through wall followed by his squad of Chaos Marines. Every traitor had his bolter up and switch to auto, gaunlets tightly wrapped around the grips. The Lieutenant held out his power sword dripping with poisonous black venom. They had stepped into a steep chamber with dark red stone walls. In the center of the chamber a small cube rested on a high table carved from twisted ebony wood. Pale light pulsed from deep within the cube. Its surface was polished like steel but translucent and shimmered like a block of ice.

Malo sucked in the cold air and stared at the cube. The Lieutenant and his squad were only a few paces away. The hard faces of his traitor Marines were masked within the folds of dark shadows, their hooded eyes locked on the cube. From the other side of the chamber came a small squeal as a large red door slowly began to open. Malo tore his eyes away from the cube and looked up. Inside the shadows of the doorway stood a large Marine clad in black power armour. The blood drinker's white fangs glistened.

The blood drinker held out his pale open hands. Slowly the cube floated up from the table, spinning above the top. Pulling his fingers in the blood drinker caused the cube to calmly glide through the air and land on his outstretched palms. The blood drinker's hands closed around the cube, hiding it from plain sight. "This is your desire." he said. "Are you prepared to die for it? But then again what good would the cube be to a dead man?" The blood drinker stepped back into the shadows as the door slammed shut in front of him.

Inside the hidden room sat the Sanguinary High Priest while the cube slowly rotated above his bare head. Beside his desk an iron kettle hung above the fire place. Hot blue flames kissed the bright red bottom. The tight throat of the kettle opened up and began to whistle as a whisp of superheated steam shot out, releasing a cluster of tiny bright red clouds. Reaching out with his bare hand the Priest gripped the hot iron handle and lifted pot out from the fire. Then he held the kettle over his clay mug and carefully filled it with the steaming hot crimson liquid. He took a small sip and pursed his lips as the High Priest placed the pot onto a stone place holder.

"Just a tad too sweet." he said as the door began to swing open again. Just outside stood the Lieutenant. The High Priest's dark red eyes narrowed as he rose up.

The blood drinker stood up and brushed the thick sheen of greasy dust off his upper armour plates. He clutched the cube from the air and placed it on the desktop. "So you have decided to ignore my subtle warning." His eyes were like twin pits of fiery fire. His pupils shone like blazing chunks of coal. "I know the long and entire history of the cube. I am a pyschic null and my presence suppresses its fell power. I am a guardian of the cube... along with others." The blood drinker slowly swept out an empty hand to gesture.

Malo broke his eyes from the cube and quickly looked around. Other blood drinkers had silently infiltrated into both the chamber and room. Their faces were drawn and pale. The blood drinkers' armour was dull and cracked in many places with peeling flakes of black and red speckled paint.

Their leader spoke again "We have been here deep down below for aeon upon endless aeon. The fell power of the cube grants life longer than even a Marine from my Chapter might know. As long we have been here no one and no thing has wrested the dark prize from this very chamber. The fight is a challenge worthy of the best champion... but now we have finally tired of the challenge. Everything grows old and stale with time. Finally we yearn for something new." Suddenly the blood drinker turned and flung his mug against a wall. The cup shattered and left a dark red stain oozing into a small puddle on the floor below. "And so we have waited so patiently for such a long long time... and here you are." he smiled at Malo but the Lieutenant involuntarily could only cring in spite of himself.

The blood drinker stood up and brushed the thick sheen of greasy dust off his upper armour plates. He clutched the cube from the air and placed it on the desktop. "So you have decided to ignore my subtle warning." His eyes were like twin pits of fiery fire. His pupils shone like blazing chunks of coal. "I know the long and entire history of the cube. I am a pyschic null and my presence suppresses its fell power. I am a guardian of the cube... along with others." The blood drinker slowly swept out an empty hand to gesture.

Malo broke his eyes from the cube and quickly looked around. Other blood drinkers had silently infiltrated into both the chamber and room. Their faces were drawn and pale. The blood drinkers' armour was dull and cracked in many places with peeling flakes of black and red speckled paint.

Their leader spoke again "We have been here deep down below for aeon upon endless aeon. The fell power of the cube grants life longer than even a Marine from my Chapter might know. As long we have been here no one and no thing has wrested the dark prize from this very chamber. The fight is a challenge worthy of the best champion... but now we have finally tired of the challenge. Everything grows old and stale with time. Finally we yearn for something new." Suddenly the blood drinker turned and flung his mug against a wall. The cup shattered and left a dark red stain oozing into a small puddle on the floor below. "And so we have waited so patiently for such a long long time... and here you are." he smiled at Malo but the Lieutenant involuntarily could only cring in spite of himself.

A rumble sounded out from behind the Chaos Marines. The chamber door spilled open as another large Chaos Marine charged in followed by more of the traitors. The first Chaos Marine towered over the others, his bronze power armour was covered with finely chiseled tiny black gargoyles that breathed out little cloud of steam. In his one hand he held a giant power mace that crackled with a bright green energy field. Bolts of power shot off the mace. In his other hand the huge Chaos Marine held a long coiled power whip. The front of his artificed helmet was thrown back to show off his bone white face. The skin was tight and bolted into his skull. Two short horns bristled out of his forehead. His retinue carried an assortment of old power swords and bolt pistols. "So Malo I see you have found the root of our problem." barked Lord Voltrius.

The leader of the blood drinkers quickly grabbed the cube and dropped it into a tiny hole between his armoured boots. "Kill them all!" he yelled as the blood drinker vaulted over the desk.

The leader of the blood drinkers vaulted over the desk, pulling a long thin monomolecular strip of wire out from a small spool on his belt. The long wire snaked out, twirling about the closest traitor. Bursting into a brilliant blue electric glow the filament cut through the suit of dark power armour as the Chaos Marine cried out in pain. The hot wire cut down to the spine, quickly cutting the enemy into a plie of hot smoking bloody ribbons.

"Digital weaponary." thought Voltrius as he slung his power whip out. The tip of the whip shot out, rapidly uncoiling. Another blood drinker flashed into view, deftly grabbing the the end of the cord before it could find its target. The Flesh Tearer grunted as he closed his grip tightly around the whip and pulled the Chaos Lord from his feet.

Slinging his sharp cord out again the leader of the blood drinkers cut down three more of the Chaos Marines in a blink of the eye. "Too easy." thought the loyalist as he released his grip on the wire and punched his free hand into the faceplate of another traitor. His armoured fist crunched through the armour, breaking skull bone and splattering brain apart with a single blow.

Lord Voltrius snarled as the giant traitor lifted himself from the floor and charged back into the open melee. A pair of blood drinkers shot out from the tangle of Marines and slammed into Voltrius. The Lord was pushed back into the crowd as his boot soles were torn from the floor.

A loud hum suddenly began to cry out from the hole where the cube had been dropped. "Free me!!" it screamed.

+++


Memories of Baal Secundus played before the blood red eyes of the Flesh Tearer's leader. The taste of hot scorched desert filled his mouth as he crushed the windpipe of another traitor. "A reckoning!" he thought as he lifted up the dead body and threw the hard slab into a throng of charging Chaos Marines. "Contain!" shouted the lead Flesh Tearer. Leaping over the pile of bodies five more blood drinkers smashed into the line of Chaos Marines, busting apart the counter charge.

The leader of the blood drinkers crushed the helmeted skull of a Chaos Marine with his iron grip and tore the head off. Holding the head above his own he looked into the eyes of Lord Voltrius and stared. "You are nothing." Then he cast the crushed helmet aside and charged back into the melee. A pair of traitor Marines in black power armour counter charged, both wildly swinging ice cold power blades. Icicles broke off the edges of the twin swords, shattering apart into small bits of ice as they hit the stone floor. Leaping over the flashing swords, the leader of the blood drinkers extended his arms and caught both of the Chaos Marines by their necks, snapping them apart like brittle twigs. Quickly he stooped over and picked up the frozen weapons by their steel hilts. Cold pain stabbed into the palms of his hands like hard icy needles. The freezing ice began to swiftly climb up the arms of the blood drinker.

Two members of his Honour Guard noticed their leader had suddenly stopped fighting and immediately fell back to protect him. "Scipio, what is wrong my brother?" asked Calidius.

"These tainted blades are charged with fell power from the Warp!" grunted Scipio. Cold sweat had broken out upon his brow and rolled down the sides of his bare face. "The cube seems to be useless against their dark embrace... I cannot let go."

Suddenly Lord Voltrius charged towards the trio swinging his power mace down in a lightning fast attack. Calidius spun away from the head of the mace and kicked out, catching the towering Chaos Marine in his armour covered adomen. Lord Voltrius cursed the blood drinker then flailed back with the glowing chain of his mace in a quick parry. The head of the mace cracked down upon the stone floor, splintering the rock into a hard pulp. Meridian, the other closeby member of the Honour Guard shot out in a flying leap and landed on top of Lord Voltrius, swinging his bare fists together against the exposed temples of the Chaos Lord's head. Meridian's fists struck like granite against the traitor's skull. Lord Voltrius saw dark spots shot out before his hooded eyes.

Scipio stared at his frozen gaunlets. Sheets of hard ice had encased both his arms and was creeping over his shoulderpads. While Calidius and Meridian continued to hold up the Chaos Lord the leader of the blood drinkers shifted his weight and fell over. A huge shard of ice broke off and shattered against the stone floor. Scipio opened one hand and released his grip on the freezing hilt of the hexed power sword. He quickly made a fist and smashed it into the ice encasing his other arm. The sheath of ice broke apart under his hammering fist and cracked. Flexing his chest the ice broke loose and fell away. Scipio gripped the steel hilt of the remaining power sword as he pulled himself up from the ground.

More Chaos Marines were making their way into the room, unbinding their chainswords and charging into the bloody battle. The blood drinkers quickly darted about striking out with combat knifes and ceramite knuckles. Many a dead traitor lay on the floor with dark stinking blood and guts seeping out from the rents in their power armour and open wounds.

Malo had slowly made his way through the fight to the small opening in the floor where Scipio had stashed the cube. The last survivors from his loyal search party were packed in tightly around him, protecting the Chaos lieutenant from the swirling madness of close combat that surrounded them. Malo listened to the dark whispers in his mind. The cube was calling out to him promising unlimited power and immortality. Malo stooped down upon his knees as he removed the black gauntlet from his left hand. The lieutenant stuck his arm down into the hole and groped around, the tips of his bare fingers brushed against something small and hard. A psychic spark exploded inside his head. "The cube is unbound!" Bright red drops of blood began to trickle from the corners of his mouth. Malo ran his tongue over his sharp pointed teeth as he stuck his arm in deeper.

Suddenly from up above Scipio dropped from the ceiling, again unleashing the spool of sharp thin cord from a fingertip on one hand and simultaneously stabbing the icy blade of the power sword into the head of a Chaos Marine. The tip of the frozen sword easily pierced through the top of the traitor's helmet and ran through his body, finally protruding the seat of his power armour. The Chaos Marine screamed as the blade cut through his insides, splitting him in twain. Striking out like an angry serpent the power cord slipped around another traitor, encircling his body then slicing him into a pile of smouldering flesh. Scipio kicked out and smashed the heel of his boot into the closest traitor. A metal spike lanced out from the back of the boot and impaled the enemy.

Malo felt the cube inside the tight grasp of his fist. His skin felt like it was boiling away, pieces of roasted skin flayed from his fingers. "I must have the cube!" the Chaos lieutenant cried out.

Malo held up his fist in triumph. Those closest looked and gasped at the horrid sight. Malo's fist was all bone, the skin, muscle, and ligaments had burned off. The skeletal fingers clutched tight around the cube. An eerie green light poured out from between the bony digits. "Kill their leader and we shall rule this galaxy!" yelled the Chaos lieutenant.

Scipio ran the fell power sword through the gut of another traitor then lashed his power cord out again. The spindly thread snaked out, quickly wrapping around the arm of Malo that supported the cube. Scipio yanked on the cord and watched as the blinding twine bit through the armour. The lieutenant screamed as the searing edge of the monomolecular string cut off his arm. The cube tumbled to the floor and bounced away. Snatching at the grip of a small knife tucked inside his armour Scipio flung the blade in a blinding flash. The tip struck Malo between the eyes and sunk in deep, splitting his his forehead and stabbing deep into his brain.

Malo reached up and grabbed the hilt of the embedded dagger with the remains of his mangled hand. Bits of bone, brain, and dark blood oozed out seeping through the deep rent in his forehead. The Chaos Lieutenant stumbled and fell to his knees. His lower jaw dropped and his long black tongue shot out, swollen and stiff. Malo tried to speak but only a shallow grunt came out. Lord Voltrius suddenly loomed up behind his minion and lopped off his head with one fell chop. The Chaos Lord looked out into the mad fight searching for the leader of the blood drinkers. He caught a glimpse of the Sanguinary High Priest as the black and red power armour receded back into the fray. "Come out!" cursed Voltrius as the Chaos Lord threw aside of the cleaved head of Malo. "You say you want a challenge then come out and stop hiding behind your bodyguard!"

Scipio suddenly bounded out from the vast melee, landing in front of Lord Voltrius. In one hand he still held the freezing power sword and in the other was the cube. The long thin lash of the digital weapon housed inside one of his bionic fingers had been neatly retracted.

Scipio held out the cube. Everything seemed to come to a complete stop as the Chaos Lord looked down at the small object. The cube slowly pulsed as ghostly light from its polished surfaces broke out between Scipio's gaunlet fingers. Then the High Priest turned his hand so that the cube floated just above his outstretched palm.

"This is what have been searching for fallen one." calmly said Scipio.

A small whisper spoke to Lord Voltrius "Free me from the vampyre's clutch and you will have infinite power!".

"I can see from the look on your face that the cube beckons to you as it has so many others. Their wasted bodies litter these caverns just as now does your Lieutenant." Scipio smiled revealing his long sharp fangs. "You and what is left of your men will soon join him too... but first you will learn the secret of the cube."

The room grew dark until only the cube shone out like a beacon. Soft blue light spilled out filling the darkness. Lord Voltrius could hear a sudden cold wind beginning to build. The air grew chill and bit at his face. The light from the cube became infused with a bright red spectrum which pulsated out and back in washing away the blue. The Chaos Lord could hear a sound synchronized with the pulsing red. It sounded like a giant's heart beating from within. Voltrius could no longer feel the floor beneath his feet. Slowly at first everything began to spin, rotating out from the focal point of the cube. The spinning sensation grew faster and faster as the sound of the booming heartbeat now pounded like a drum.

"What is this madness?" thought the Chaos Lord as fear began to creep inside him. Then the spinning stopped as the light from the cube dimmed. Voltrius blinked his eyes rapidly in the darkness. The traitor Marine was no longer in the chamber. Voltrius looked up to a small hill before him and saw the cube resting on a small table. "Come to me..." it whispered.

+++


he Chaos Lord slowly made his way up the hill. Long huge metal cables stretched out beneath his boots. A slow hum rose up from the cables singing like a giant bell. Lord Voltrius felt raw sparkling power dancing through his skin. The energy burned deep into the traitor filling the deamon prince with renewed vigour and faith in the unholy. It felt like time has drastically slowed down. Every step seemed to take forever to finish. Lord Voltrious took off his iron helmet and looked up towards the cube. The electric energy was pouring out from all sides and sinking into the giant nest of cable. Large metal pipes broke through some of the cable spouting off superheated steam, whistling as the air burned above their openings.

Finally the deamon prince stood at the front of the table holding the cube. Lord Voltrius looked down and felt the very heart of the vast energy pouring directly into him. "I am one with the cube now!" he thought.

Then suddenly a dark shadow fell across the cube and releasing a chill of icy wind. The traitor looked up again and saw Scipio standing on the other side. "We are in the other dimensions where the true cube originates. The cube cast many duplicates across all dimensions, harvesting information and growing stronger with every moment. To those dimensions that open their doors willingly the cube absorbs total matter completely withering those places to utter oblivion."

Scipio continued "The cube constantly is searching for guardians to watch at all gateways between his universe and others. That is why you are here now. The cube also constantly challenges all existing guardians with new recruits to look for the most powerful. Because I am a psychic blank I am able to turn back the cube in our time and place... it seeks one that will lead the way for its advance." Scipio stared into the eyes of the deamon prince in defiance. "I have been here since before the heresy. As such my geneseed is not marked by the racial memories of our most reverend Primarch's death."

Lord Voltrius snarled.

Scipio reached out and placed one hand on top of the cube. "Fallen brother it is your right to challenge me for this right."

Lord Voltrius reached out and grabbed Scipio by the wrist holding the cube. "Release the cube and walk away."

"There is no walking away Lunar Wolf." said Scipio. "Take the challenge or face eternal oblivion."

The deamon prince grabbed at the hilt of his power whip. His other hand felt a sudden hard tug as the blood drinker broke away from his grip. Lord Voltrius unslung the whip and spun around searching for the High Priest. A flurry of blows landed against the deamon prince's armour, each punch hitting hard. Voltrius felt each blow explode upon his atrificed ceramite armour stinging deep into his very core. The traitor shook his head to ward off the numbing pain. Suddenly the freezing point of the fell power sword thrust out from the darkness and speared the deamon prince through his abdomen. Voltrius grabbed a hold of the cold blade and snapped it at the hilt. Icy needles sank inside his guts freezing his entrails. The traitor pulled out the frozen blade and dropped it. Voltrius looked down at the rent in his armour where the fell weapon had penetrated him. His dark blood ran from the wound and coagulated into long black shards of icicles.

Voltrius blocked out the stabbing pain and swung his power whip around in a mad frenzy. From the corner of an eye the blood drinker suddenly loomed. Scipio moved gracefully with blinding speed. The High Priest reached out and caught the power whip wrapping the sharp biting edge around his arm. The deamon prince jerked hard on the hilt trying to break free from the High Priest's iron grip. Scipio pulled back as the blood drinker's arm grew rigid. The whip shattered.

"I will kill you with my bare hands!" cursed Voltrius.

Scipio lunged forward, grabbing Voltrius around the deamon prince's torso. The traitor could feel the High Priest's arms bulge as they slowly began to crush through his armour. The blood drinker twisted around so that Scipio stood behind the deamon prince. Lifting the traitor up Scipio held Voltrius tight then smashed his enemy's back down upon his knee. The deamon prince felt his spine snap as jagged bone broke loose and pierced through his pale skin. Scipio threw aside the deamon prince and spat upon his face. "You are the last of Horus' retinue to come here... following the sick and twisted siren call forever emitted by the foul cube!"

Lord Voltrius looked up. Scipio's face was hooded in deep dark shadows.

"Yes, you are the last of the traitorous warmaster's Chosen to die. Sanguinus is finally avenged!" shouted the High Priest as he as unwound the monomolecular twine from its tiny spool and then shorn off the traitor's head. The head rolled down the hill and came to a rest surrounded by several large skulls.