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I´ve got too much time on my hands. I´ve been reading alot, books from Dan Abnett and Sandy Mitchel mostly. Then one day I decided to try and write something too. Imperial Guard is my choice on the table so it was a natural choice to write about. I´ll be uploading more in the future

Please read and comment.




Episode one; Worst of luck



"You have one hell of a job ahead of you." She heard a mumbling noise. She couldn´t focus, it was all still like one big bad joke. In a blink of an eye, she´d lost full three quarters of her company.
And now she was made the leader of the last lucky ones still kicking? Before her hasty promotion, she was but a lowly platoon leader. Colonel Carolinne Ripley, the thought made her smile.
Bad luck was what happened to her proud company, she decided. Lost in memories of her now dead friends, she finally snapped back to reality and remembered where she was. "SORRY SIR, I was just .........thinking."

"Good to have you back Colonel." replied Lord General Mavus with a grin. Ripley ofcourse knew Mavus from the past, or atleast his reputation.
Adamant leader of men, it was rumoured that he himself was present in the frontline when the final push began to liberate planet Sulfus from the Tyranid infestation.
Ripleys unit was leading the charge, reward from earlier succes against the Tyranid. Things went smoothly all the way to the nest itself. And then all hell broke loose.
If the Tyranids knew anything about strategy, it was a well planned ambush. Her platoon was cut to pieces and soon her company was retreating in panic , it was only luck she herself survived.

"What happened to Mesadonian Irregulars was a damn shame. But I am sure under your leadership they will be back on their feet in no time." Ripley simply nodded.
"I will now give you your first assingment as the new company commander of the Mesadonian Irregulars." The Lord General leaned back on his chair and folded his arms
"Gather the remaining troops, make any required changes to the chain of command in the company and have them ready for combat in the next four months of transit."
"Understood Sir." she replied, nodded a salute to the General and was about to rise from the chair she was sitting on.

The General stopped her however "There´s something else Colonel." Colour escaped her face and she sat back down, she didn´t like surprices, not anymore.
"The 151st Catachan took heavy losses during the assault, much like your own company. All of their senior officers were killed in combat." Her mind was racing to understand Lord Generals words.
"Now they are like a snake with its head cut off, trashing and breaking anything in its path. You will assume command of the 151st Catachan company and blend them into a fighting force worthy of the Emperor with the Mesadonians."
She sat blank faced in front of the General, eyes wide open with horror .
"I know, I know. The Catachans can be stubborn as Orks sometimes and they will surely not take orders from an offworlder easily." She felt light-headed. Bad luck was following her, she was sure of it
"I´ve already informed the highest ranking officer of the 151st, a Sergeant called Karmack, that you will be coming to discuss with him about the merge of the two companies this afternoon."

There was a knock on the door and the Generals aide slowly entered the room carrying a steaming pot. "Ah Excellent." nodded the General cheerfully. "Recaf Colonel?" She only heard mumbling noises again.

Outside the Lord Generals office, she took a moment to take a few deep breaths. The air tasted like metal, the same in every transport ship she had been before. The Zealots Fire, like some many other spaceships,
a cargo transporter commandeered for the use of the Imperial Guard. A millenia old mountain of rust, big enough to carry whole regiments into the fray.
Now certain she wouldn´t pass out, she began the long walk towards her own quarters. She could use a drink of amasec right about now.

A few turns before the door to her reserved room, she could hear sounds of yelling and shouting, like a mob of Orks during lunch. She walked on and soon found a group of Mesadonians faced the other way and yelling down the hallway.
Kara, her aide was there too, she called her out. "What´s going on Kara?" The aide, hot headed Mesadonian like the rest of them answered. "The Friggin´Catachan meatheads are here to cause trouble! It looks like they are looking for you. But why would that be Mam?"
"I think I know" Ripley whispered.

She pushed her way in the front row of Mesadonians, accepting salutes on her way from her men and women. Down the hallway, she could see the Catachans in question. A dozen overly musceled men in green.
And in front of the group, there was a figure larger than any other Catachan in the background. The giant spoke first with a booming noise.

"You Ripley?"

This wasn´t going to be easy, she thought, maybe the Catachans were even more stubborn than General Mavus had led her to believe.
"I am Colonel Ripley of the Mesadonian Irregulars, I take it you are Sergeant Karmack" She struck back with a stern voice.
"So you´re Ripley huh? Boys hear this, I heard something stupid earlier today!" He turned his head as to speak to the men behind him.
"You know what I heard? I heard something like that the great 151st Catachans, the one and friggin´ only The Unseen Serpents is to be commadeered by an offworlder from arse-out of nowhere and to top that, the arse wipe is no less than a woman!"
The mob behind him laughed mockinly. Ripley could hear her Mesadonians tense, she had to stop this before things got out of hand. The Catachan sergeant had other plans.

"Listen missy, leave the commanding bits to me. gak, I even let your precious mob to join us. That way we can all live like one big happy family and I wont have to beat your pretty face in."
Karmack continued. So that was it then, there would be no peacefull ending to this.
"You speak out of turn Sergeant! Any more from you and I will have to beat YOUR ugly face in for insubordination!" Mesadonians cheered and grunted their approval.
He spread his arms to his sides "HAH! You beat me? You and what army? I could beat all of you single handedly! You and you sorry weak littl........"

Karmack didn´t have time to finish the sentence. Ripley closed the distance between them in a blink of an eye and drove her right fist in his midriff, the hit made the Catachan Sergeant loose his breath and take a step back.
"What.....the....hell!" he gasped between breaths. How could she throw such a punch? Karmack wondered.
Ripley removed her right hand glove. "Augmentics, Sergeant." she said with a smile showing her metal forearm for him to see. "How did it feel?"

"I´ll break you, you bitch" roared Karmack in rage, earlier hit just a memory now.He lunged at her with all the speed he could muster and threw a powerfull left hand straight, but she was faster.
Ripley sidestepped his rush on his right side away from the punch and stopped his rampage with a kick behind his right knee. He came painfully down on his knee with a surpriced look on his face.
He didn´t have time to react to the scything kick she sent. The kick hit him squarly in the nose and flew him on his back towards the Catachan mob. Mesadonians roared in triumph, but it was too soon. Karmack rose to his feet spitting blood.

"I wont lose to the likes of you." She could see he had changed his tactic, like a boxer, his arms were now shielding his upper body and his head. He closed the distance with speed but didn´t attack outright like before.
Instead Ripley and Karmack started to circle each other. Both sides behind them now cheered for their leaders. Karmack attacked first with a left jab which she deflected with her augmented arm.
She knew her right arm could do real damage even to a monster like Karmack, but she had to place her hits, he was fighting seriously now.

She performed a quick punch-kick combo with her left arm and a low right foot kick towards his injured right knee. Karmacks meaty arms took the punch and he evaded the kick by switching his weight to his left leg. Now Karmack had the upper hand.
The missed kick swung her and exposed her right flank. This will end now Karmack thought. But her momentum didn´t stop there, instead she let it swing her full 180 degrees and hit him in his left cheeck with her elbow before his next hit could connect.

Again Karmack staggered back but this time Ripley gave him no time to recover. She leaped in front of him and hit him in the jaw with a bone shattering palm strike from her left hand. Colours swam in Karmacks eyes and he let his arms fall for a second and that was all Ripley needed. She finished him with a punch from her augmented fist and sent him flying back towards the Catachans.

The cheering stopped.
Mesadonians knew Ripley could shatter a grox`s skull and very likely kill a man with a clean hit. Maybe she went too far? The Catachans didn´t move nor did they show any emotion.
It was silent for a few heartbeats....until Karmack coughed and rose his head. "You.....held back." Ripley had pulled her last punch on purpose.

"Yes I did" she answered simply. "I wouldn´t want to kill my new second in command on his first day now would I, Major?" The Mesadonians and the Catachan alike cheered. She shut them up short by raising her right hand for silence.
"Major Karmack, have those wounds checked by the medicae and meet me in my office oh six hundred tomorrow morning"
"Yes....Mam" He replied with some effort. "And the rest of you. I suggest you get some sleep, we all have a challenging day tomorrow"
She continued.

Finally in her own quarters. She closed the door behind her. She smiled. Maybe her luck was about to change.


First ep comes to conclusion. Tell me what you think about it.