Fresh-Faced New User
|
“Please!” whined the man in miner’s coveralls, “There must be some mistake.”
Captain Aurel of the Blood Angels looked at the results of the genetic test and at the man’s bulging, yellow-irised eyes. “Somehow, I think not.”
The man’s demeanor changed instantly. His hands curled into claws, his mouth opened to reveal jagged, sharp teeth, and he lunged at Aurel. “Filthy space marine!”
Captain Aurel calmly bopped him on the head with one ceramite-clad fist, knocking him to the floor. The space marine captain sighed heavily. “Getting rid of the cult from this planet is taking longer than I had hoped,” he said to no one in particular.
He gestured to the black-clad Arbiters that were standing at the door of the medical checkpoint. “Take this one out back and…”
“STOP EVERYTHING THIS VERY INSTANT!” came a vox-amplified shout from outside the checkpoint. The canvas curtain that served as the checkpoint’s door was swept aside and a towering space marine in dark green scale-patterned armor stepped into the room.
Captain Aurel frowned at the new arrival, who pulled off his helmet to reveal a bald head with dusky skin and deep red eyes. The newcomer pointed one gauntleted finger at Aurel. “You're committing atrocities!” he bellowed.
“Yes, he’s committing atrocities. Save us please!” moaned the yellow-eyed miner from the floor, earning a kick from Aurel.
The Blood Angel Captain glared at the newcomer. “Captain Tai’Shan of the Salamanders. I would say welcome but you are already being a bad guest, crossing my threshold without an invitation. I was told that your ship had arrived, but not your purpose. What are you doing here?”
The Salamander Captain glared back. “The entire sector knows of your…indiscriminate actions here on this planet. Those genetic tests you’re using are three hundred years past their expiration date! You’re putting countless Imperial lives at risk by relying on them!”
Aurel grabbed the yellow-eyed miner from off of the floor and shook him, making him whine. “Does this look like a mistake to you?! I have a schedule to maintain, and I am not going to waste my battlegroup babysitting this planet while I wait for new testing kits!”
Tai’shan’s red eyes blazed fiercely. “How can you call yourself a defender of the Imperium when you don’t care about its people?!”
Aurel dropped the miner, who collapsed with a cry. The Blood Angel’s lips pulled back, revealing his elongated eye-teeth. “Don’t make me angry,” he warned, “You wouldn’t like me when…”
“SHUT UP!” yelled the Salamander Captain, lunging at Aurel.
Aurel snarled and grappled with Tai’Shan. “Bleeding-hearted simpleton!” he raged.
The Salamander gritted his teeth and struggled with Aurel. “Sadistic vampire!” he shot back.
“We’ll kill you all, in the name of the four-armed emperor,” moaned the miner weakly from the floor.
After a moment, space marines from both chapters piled into the checkpoint and pulled the two combatants apart.
“I’m going to stop you, whatever it takes!” shouted the Salamander.
“Yeah?!” yelled the Blood Angel Captain. “You, and what…” he paused. “Argh! Do whatever you think you need to do! Just get out of my checkpoint!”
The Salamander Captain scoffed and left, deliberately tearing the curtain down on his way out.
Captain Aurel blinked at the sudden sunlight and pressed his fingertips to his temples, feeling his veins throbbing and the Black Rage welling up within him. He counted slowly to X, until he felt the Rage subside. He would need to ready his battleforce for the coming conflict, but first…
He sighed again, and said to no one in particular. “I need a freaking drink.”
The miner on the floor whined in fear when he saw the Blood Angel’s eyes alight on him.
Captain Aurel chuckled. “Not you. I’ve got a good bottle of red left in the Impulsor.”
The miner wheezed in relief.
Aurel stepped towards the now-curtainless entrance. “Oh, before I forget. Arbiters, execute that one immediately.”
***
Lieutenant Petasos of the Planetary Defense Forces looked out over the approaching Salamander battle group with his magnoculars.
“I’m concerned, sire. I see a lot of armored vehicles, including a kind of dreadnought that I’ve never seen before. Are you sure our troops will be able to handle them?
“Of course!” insisted Captain Aurel. He flexed his heavy gravis armor with a whine of servos. “I’m going to take my Aggressors and swing in behind them and then, BAM!” he swung his power fists in demonstration.
Aurel clicked onto the vox in his helmet. “Aggressors, assemble! All other units, report in!”
“Squad Bogdan, ready to defend!” reported the Heavy Intercessors waiting in the copse of trees at the center of the Blood Angels’ battleline.
“Squad Cezar, ready on the left flank!” reported the Intercessors from behind a concrete wall.
“Squad Dragomir, ready to burn!” reported the Infernus Marines inside their Impulsor.
“Squad Emilian, ready to shoot!” reported the Sternguard Veterans from behind a wall in the center.
Squad Florintin, ready to advance!” reported the Incursors from the center of the battleline.
“Squad Grigore, ready to deploy!” reported the Terminators from orbit.
“Squad Horatiu, ready to fight!” reported the Assault Intercessors on the right flank.
Before Captain Aurel could give any further orders, the Salamanders Impulsor, Invictor and Leviathan Dreadnought all rushed forward with frightening speed, guns blazing.
The Blood Angels captain ducked as the battlefield blossomed with explosions from solid metal slugs and high explosive shells. Reports of casualties immediately started coming in. “Blood of the Angel!” he cursed, “When did they get so fast?! Blood Angels, advance and return fire!”
The Blood Angels moved out of their cover and returned fire with limited effect. The heavy fire from the Salamanders vehicles was keeping them suppressed.
Except for one squad…
Something snapped in Brother-Sergeant Florintin as he saw one of his Incursors gunned down. The dead marine had been his best friend since his induction into the Blood Angels, had saved his life more times than he could have counted, and now he was gone.
The Black Rage welled up in Brother-Sergeant Florintin, and he eagerly gave himself to it.
He sprinted towards the towering Leviathan Dreadnought, holding his primed Haywire mine in one hand. “Horus, damn you! You filthy traitor! No amount of armor is going to save you!”
The Leviathan pivoted on its waist-axis, unconcerned, firing a fusillade of flames and solid slugs at the sprinting Incursors.
“Oh, crap,” swore the Leviathan pilot as the Blood Angels dodged his fire and threw the magnetic Haywire mine.
The mine adhered to the dreadnought’s leg and exploded with a powerful electromagnetic pulse, frying several of its key systems. “Help me brothers!” called the pilot as the Blood Angel Incursors dodged his clumsy swings and tried to stab their combat knives into the joints in his armor.
Three Salamander Aggressors responded, burning the Incursors with their firestorm gauntlets, ending the rampage.
Over on the left flank, the Salamanders Impulsor crashed violently into the Blood Angels Impulsor. Enraged, the Blood Angels Impulsor pilot retaliated by backing up and ramming the Salamanders repulsor in return. The two vehicles ground against each other, vying for supremacy even as the troops inside each were knocked around.
Captain Aurel, in an extremely poorly-thought-out move, emerged from strategic reserves close to the Salamander’s home base, where a unit of Infernus Marines blasted them with fire, causing casualties among the Aggressors.
Several Salamander Eradicators emerged from strategic reserves and began cutting chunks of armor from the Blood Angel’s Impulsor with their melta guns.
“Forward!” shouted Captain Aurel as he led his remaining Aggressors into a charge against the Infernus Marines. After another blast of flames, which killed another Aggressor, the Blood Angels lunged into a melee. Power fists crackled and ceramite broke as the Blood Angels smashed the defending Salamanders completely.
Over on the left flank, the scrum intensified as Blood Angels and Salamanders poured out of their transports to start shooting and fighting each other. Blood Angels Terminators teleported in behind the Eradicators, blasting them with a volley of fire. A Salamanders Librarian blasted marines with psychic powers and swung his sword.
Over on the right flank, the Blood Angels Sternguard Veterans had been rendered combat ineffective by massed shooting, while the Assault Intercessors fought futilely against the mechanized strength of the Invictor.
The Leviathan Dreadnought pivoted again and began to stomp towards Captain Aurel and the last Aggressor. The Leviathan fired his heavy battery of weapons, killing the Aggressor, but leaving Aurel untouched.
“Square up, punk!” voxxed the Levithan pilot as he charged his dreadnought into close combat.
“Gonna pull the plug on you, Grandpa!” shouted Aurel as he swung his power fists at the onrushing machine.
The Blood Angel’s right flank had completely collapsed, while on the left, a massive melee of marines, Impulsors, an Eradicator, a Librarian, some Intercessors, and some Terminators, struggled inconclusively.
The Leviathan swung its heavy gun arms, which Captain Aurel easily dodged. In response, though, Aurel’s power fists sparked against the armor of the Dreadnought while causing no damage.
They fought like that for a while, each unable to damage the other, before Captain Aurel was forced to face the bitter truth. His battle group had taken severe casualties, and had been unable to achieve any of its objectives. There could be no victory, here.
“Blood Angels, fall back!” he ordered, angrily, ending the battle.
|
