I will admit I do not perfectly understand the sciences and physics of Warhammer 40k even after reading various Omnibuses, books from the Horus Heresy series, and articles from the Lexicanum wiki site. I tried writing it as lore abiding as possible in terms of weapon strengths, personalities, behaviors, etc. but if there are any problems regarding that then please point it out in the review section or pm me! Other than that, enjoy the story!

The Story of a Particular Guardsman

A Warhammer 40k Fanfiction Story

By Venatici

Chapter One: Innocence Lost

Righteous are the deeds I commit; malicious are the foes that resist

The atmosphere burned with vehemence and the air reeked of charred flesh. Trees were but black husks and crop fields were ablaze. It was absolute hell, and that was what he saw when he reached his destination; a village on a burning hill. Dropping his basket, he sprinted towards a ruined cottage with warm tears streaking down his cheeks. The ash entered his lungs as he panted causing him to violently cough, but still he kept running until stopping before the entrance of the burning cottage. And what he saw made his head heavy, his heart cringe, and his knees tremble in denial.

"Niles! Niles!" A kind motherly voice called, "lunch is ready!"

Niles Trivian was only ten, with short curly brown hair and brown eyes. He held a wooden sword and wore a paper helmet as he rushed into the kitchen swinging his toy.

"Niles!" His mother admonished, "not during lunch! You might break something!"

Niles paid no heed as he swung his sword about in random arcs making swooshing noises with his mouth. The fantasy he was in came to an abrupt end when his mother grabbed him by the waist and placed him down onto the chair.

"Aw mom," he whined, "I was just getting to the good part!"

"Now dear, your imaginary friends can wait after you finished lunch."

Placing his sword on the wooden table, Niles grabbed a spoon and began to wolf down his lunch. Debris flew in a display of rude table manners. The mother released a desultory sigh as she began washing the dishes with the sound of munching and loud chewing in the background.

The Trivian household wasn't particularly a rich one. It once was, however, when Joseph Mallendux Trivian was still present. He was the husband of the mesmerizing Maria Adavocus whom hailed from a wealthy but now bankrupt merchant family. They were a happy couple; they barely fought, barely argued, and bore a healthy baby months later after their marriage and gave him the birth name "Niles Adavocus Mallendux Trivian" in memory of both families. Years passed, and Niles grew. He was once described by his uncle to be "very energetic," by his niece, "very cute," and by his older cousin, "very annoying." He lived a privileged life, until one day by the age of six his father suddenly disappeared. Gone. His mother begged the local authorities for information on his whereabouts but they apologetically refused. She then attempted to contact the Planetary Defense Force officers who were close his associates, but they responded with ignorance. "But please! You were close drinking partners! Surely you know where he is!" She once implored. "I-I'm sorry Madame but I honestly don't know what happened to him. He's just… gone," was the reply.

And so time passed, and Niles grew. No news of Joseph ever came, and Maria occasionally wept while her son was asleep. But years later on one fateful evening, she received a letter regarding her husband's fate: Captain Joseph Mallendux Trivian of the Imperial Navy has completed his duty to the Emperor and… "No!" She screamed as she read the first line of the letter before tearing it to shreds. Tears fell and her face turned scarlet. Niles, then eight years of age, began to sob in response for no particular reason. "No, it's okay dear, it's okay. Hush, hush, hush…" she soothed him as she held back further tears.

Gradually their income started to decline and ultimately Maria had to sell off their mansion and reside in a small village on a hill. They lived in a small yet cozy cottage; with walls made of gray metal and four rooms containing two bedrooms, a kitchen, and living room. They lived a decent however secluded life; Maria home schooled her son. "But mom, why can't I go to a regular school? I heard it was fun and people get to make friends and play and maybe I can-" "No dear, you'll learn far more this way. Now turn to page fifty two…"

It was like this for Niles and his mother for another eight years. Life was normal. Perhaps that normalness was a gift and blessing for those that lived in a galaxy of only war. But to Niles, normalness was a liability; a hindrance to his adventurous demeanor. And so the eighteen-year-old Niles packed his belongings one night and told his plans to his mother.

"You what?!" She blurted, "join the Imperial Guard?!"

"Yes mother. Just like how father was in the Imperial Navy, I want to restore our family's honor!" He candidly replied with a joyous smile.

"No. I will not have it. Do you know what they go through everyday? Do you know what is asked of them? As I speak millions of Guardsmen are killed in the fields of battle. The officers don't care about them! They just throw their lives away! And they will throw your life away as well!"

"But father survived to be an Imperial Navy officer. Why can't I?"

Silence fell as he mentioned his father. That silence would last for a full minute until in a nervous voice she responded: "alright go. However I don't expect you to be a full fledged Guardsman. I'll… I'll expect your return… you'll never pass selection…"

"Don't worry mother! I won't fail you, the Emperor watches over all of us! I'll return soon!"

And with that remark, he left.

"Double time it rookies! Go, go go!" the instructor shouted.

It's been several months since he last spoke with his mother. Yet these several months felt like several years to Niles. It took him nearly a day of walking under the blistering sun to arrive at the nearest Imperial Guard recruitment center. It took another short form and an oath to join them. Training was rigorous; everyday they would wake up five, four, or even three in the morning and run laps until six. Breakfast would always be meager. Then they would run more laps complemented by more shouting, run through various obstacle courses, firearms training, and by the end of the day lectures about the greatest heroes and victories of the Imperium and its vile foes. Niles was fascinated by these lectures; they talk of green hulking beasts, slender and cunning humanoids, voracious and numberless monstrosities. But above all, what really interested him the most were people that have fallen to Chaos. Heretics. The great enemy of the Imperium. He wondered; why do people fall? Can the Emperor not prevent them from falling? And why were they fighting in the first place? He considered asking these questions before deciding not to.

"Niles you're lagging behind! By the throne even my grandmother can run faster than you!" The Lasgun he carried wasn't heavy, but the helmet was a bit too big for him. It would occasionally slip forwards and block his view or back or off completely with only the chinstrap supporting it.

"Come on, pick it up!" It was his friend Trest who responded in a panting whisper.

Niles wasn't friendless or alone after he volunteered himself. They were people like Trest he met on the very first day while they cleaned their barracks. Trest was tall yet skinny. His tanned skin and dusty short hair meant that he was raised in the southern parts of the planet. Then there was Markus, a silent muscular giant whom Niles shared a bunk with. He was reasonable enough to allow him to sleep on the upper bed. There was also Joseph, Nicolas, Regner, among others.

"Pick your targets! The Lasgun you're holding right now is more valuable than you grunts are! So are the ammunition!" Niles pulled the trigger and fired at the concrete target fifty meters away. The Lasgun gave a sizzling whine before a bright crimson beam shot out and pulverized the vertical slab.

"Good shot!" Trest commented, "now it's my turn!"

Trest unknowing had his on full-auto and unleashed a volley of beams throughout the firing range. He wasn't use to the recoil and held onto the weapon tightly as its battery depleted.

"By the Throne! Who is this! Who is this man!" The instructor stomped his way towards Trest before grabbing him by the front collar and glancing at his nametag.

"Trest. TREST! Why did you have your Lasgun on full-automatic!"

"I forgo-"

"FORGOT? Frakking forgetting things like this can get you and your team killed! Fifty laps! NOW!" With that, the instructor unceremoniously threw Trest back at the ground with a loud thud.

"Why was your Lasgun set on full-auto in the first place," Joseph asked while they were in their barracks that night, "we all had ours on single fire."

"Oh I was just testing out and familiarizing with the weapon," Trest answered innocently, "you know flicking switches here, examining components there-"

"And forgetting that you had it on full-auto when you fired?" It was Regner who rudely intervened, "by the Emperor you nearly killed us with all those lasbolts flying!"

Markus gave a silent nod to Regner's remark before resuming his book about a heroic Commissar that's said to be a saint.

"Frakface here doesn't know how to flick a switch apparently," he concluded before going to bed.

"Ah don't listen to them Trest," Niles silently whispered while they were asleep. Trest was his best friend; the first friend he ever made. Of course, he never told his family past to them.

"I know, I know," he gave a sigh, "man can't believe I screwed up like that."

"Frakface doesn't know how to flick a switch?" Niles jokingly teased.

With a smile and a slight snigger, "maybe not."

The atmosphere burned with vehemence and the air reeked of charred flesh. Trees were but black husks and crop fields were ablaze. He found himself standing upon a bloodstained ground; it felt viscous. It was then that he realized he was barefooted with tattered clothes. Everything was burning. He heard screams of agony and remorse. He didn't understand, and so he ran in desperation before stumbling upon a burning cottage. He staggered towards the breached door and saw a feminine figure with a kind face and alluring eyes smiling back at him. The figure called out to him. Its voice sounded like tranquility. Like a siren. But the call grew fainter and fainter before her figure too was engulfed in flames.

"Niles! Niles! Wake up!" Someone was shaking him as he roused, "You alright?"

Trest.

"What… what is it?" He responded in confusion.

"Are you all right?"

His head was throbbing and his eyes felt heavy. Was it only midnight? "Why did you wake me?"

"Well for starters," he whispered, "you were moving in your sleep."

He gave Trest a glare.

"Okay and there was also something I wanted to show you!"

"What?"

"Just follow me!"

Before he could ask, Trest was already climbing down the ladder.

"This better be worth it," he hissed while following him, "we'll get in trouble if anyone finds out we're breaking curfew!"

"Hush! Just follow."

The barracks housed a sizable number of men; though it wasn't large it was certainly bigger than the residence Niles once lived in. He crept with Trest as the only sources of light were small walkway illuminators that gave off a white fluorescent guide. Other than that, it was eerily dark.

"How much further?"

"Almost."

They exited the barracks and into the dark hallways. Niles became increasingly concerned about the consequences of being caught; he didn't want to return home like this.

"Damn it Trest! What is it you want to show me!" he demanded.

"You'll see."

As paranoia started taking over, Niles fidgeted with his sleeves before Trest stopped by a steel door.

"We're here," he pushed the door in and beckoned Niles to follow.

"Wait what," Niles remarked, "the bathroom?"

"Yes, come in."

With a questionable face, Niles entered the bathroom. Other than being incredibly sanitary, it had enough sinks for about fifteen or so men. A single mirror aligned itself to the wall above the sinks while to the opposite were bathroom stalls and urinals.

"Trest, why did you bring me here," Niles inquired. The bathroom was also quite dark; someone turned off the light switches beforehand.

"Trest?"

No answer.

"…Trest?"

"Calm down I'm right here!"

Trest was standing close to a wall on the opposite side of him while holding something Niles couldn't identify.

Cautiously, he walked forward to obtain a better view.

"Sheesh Trest, seriously what is it you want to show me?"

As he caught a glimpse of Trest under the dim light, his heart skipped a beat.

"Trest. Why… how… where did you get that?"

He was holding a Lasgun.

"Oh I stole it from the armory," the response was disturbingly frank, "but check this out! Look!"

He pointed at the wall. It had a strange symbol painted on it. A very strange symbol that Niles swore he saw before in one of those lectures.

"What's that?"

"Oh I'm glad you asked!" he smiled before continuing, "see a lot of people treated me badly. Even my parents when I was younger. I was really, really, really sad."

As he talked, Niles noticed his voice had a tint of insanity.

"And because I was really, really sad a kind person came up to me and promised me that I can have friends. Friends! Like the two of us! But he promised more friends! More people that can respect me! Get it?"

"Trest… are you feeling alright?"

"I feel perfectly fine! Perfectly fine! In fact because I feel really good drew this symbol!"

Niles glanced at the large symbol again. It was hastily painted but it had a discernable eight-pointed star shape. What concerned him however was what Trest used to create such a symbol in the first place.

"Oh they didn't have paint. But that's okay! Master didn't like regular paint anyway!"

"Master…? What mas-"

"He wanted blood! And what better blood to use than that really mean instructor guy!" He kicked open one of the stall doors before a headless corpse of the instructor fell out with blood oozing from the decapitation.

"WHAT THE FR-"

In a blur, Trest emerged in front of Niles while tightly cupping his mouth.

"Shhhhhhhh you don't want to wake the others do you?"

He lowered his hand while walking towards the wall, Lasgun still on hand.

"An eight pointed star was what Master wanted, and an eight pointed star was what Trest drew! Master promised more friends! MORE FRIENDS! HOW HAPPY TREST WILL BE!"

Niles slowly backed away as he soon realized what became of his former friend. He knew the results of staying wouldn't end well; but he'd probably get shot if he attempted to flee.

"Trest will no longer be lonely! No more abuses! No more hate! Just happiness! HAPPINESS!"

He could also rush him and wrestle the Lasgun out of his grip; Trest wasn't a robust person after all.

"And master also promised even more friends if more people were sacrificed! He said sacrifice your best friend to get even more friends! Sacrifice Niles! Sacrifice Niles! NILES!"

From his waist, Trest pulled out a ritual knife and pointed his Lasgun at him.

"You're frakking insane Trest!"

"Insane?! INSANE?! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

With that he lunged at Niles with the knife directed at his exposed chest. He held up his arms in reflex while the momentum of the lunge forced him down. With a downward thrust, Trest attempted to hammer the knife down into the pinned Niles but the blade stopped short from his skin as he desperately held Trest's wrist with both hands.

"Niles was Trest's best friend! Niles was Trest's FIRST BEST FRIEND!"

Throughout the ordeal his voice has changed to that of a daemonic dialect; no longer was it the voice of the Trest he once knew.

"You bastard!" he spat while holding the knife back, "what did you do to Trest!"

"Trest succumbed. SUCCUMBED. TREST WAS WEAK. TREST WAS PREY."

Blood began to ooze from his eyes as his teeth modeled into sharp fangs. His arms slowly turned into armored scales while his tongue flicked out like a snake's.

"NOW YOU DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE! DI-"

In a confetti of flesh and blood, Trest's torso exploded in a bright luminous flash. His body stumbled backwards while his arms flailed about.

"Room cleared!" he heard a low commanding voice, "one survivor found!"

"Well get him out of there!"

The man pulled Niles onto his feet while thrusting the Lasgun Trest held into him.

"Name?"

"N…N…Niles."

"You're coming with us now."

The man was a sergeant and wore full Imperial Guardsman armor that bore various dents and cracks.

"Do you know what's happening right now?"

"No… sir."

"Chaos incursion. We're heading to the armory with the other survivors. Now move!"

Before following the sergeant to leave, Niles glanced at the corpse of Trest. His torso had a gigantic hole yet his face was still intact.

"Niles… Niles…" its mouth managed to move, "we're… still… friends… right? I was… just… playing around. I was… I was…"

Niles Adavocus Mallendux Trivian leveled the Lasgun and pointed at the thing's head and assured: "Yes Trest, we're still friends."

He gave a weak smile before pulling the trigger.

"Mother! Father!" the boy called. Flames licked his skin as he desperately searched for his parents beneath the burning ruins of the cottage. "Mother! Are you there! Mother!" He heard a faint cry for his name. "Father! Is that you?"

"Leave us!" his father cried, "you have to save yourself!"

"No! FATHER! FATHER!" the child hysterically cried. He ran towards the source of the noise before hearing the screams of his parents being consumed by the raging fire.

"MOTHER! FATHER!" he cried once more. More tears streamed from his eyes as he wept in anguish.

A figure in a black cloak made its way towards the crying child before putting his hand on his shoulder. "There, there child, the Gods will take your parents in. You will not be alone."

The child glanced at the figure with his face hidden underneath a hood.

"What is your name, child?" the figure asked in a whispering voice.

"My name… my name is Trest."