Chapter 1 – Green Tide

Eiral gritted his teeth as the drop pod impacted against the planets atmosphere, the small craft buffeting against the friction. He could feel the walls of the drop pod warming slightly to the touch as on the edge of his hearing Chaplain Belial was going through the rites of battle. A smile came to Eiral's face as he closed his eyes and went through the rites ahead of Belial in his head, he knew them off by heart as did the others aboard the drop pod but it helped to hear them coming from Belial.

"ETA 2 minutes and counting," came the mechanical voice of the machine spirit over the vox network, as it was guiding the drop pod to the planets surface. "For the Emperor on Terra and the Primarch!" finished Belial to a roar of approval from the rest of the marines aboard his drop pod. Eiral's twin hearts swelled with pride as he looked about the rest of his squad, his squad assault squad redemption. He placed his raven nosed helmet over his head and took note of the icons that came up on his ocular ports he could see the markers of each member of his squad.

In the pod there where 10 members of his squad of his squad and the Chaplain who had chosen to land and fight with them, he stood central to them all as they sat in the seats about the pod. Eiral looked about at his men each of them armed with chain sword and a bolt pistol or plasma pistol, besides himself who took an ancient power fist into the fray and Belial who of course had his crozius the head of the weapon shaped like a double headed eagle symbol of the emperor of mankind. They where the Black Guard, there gene seed having come from the Raven Guard some centuries ago they specialised in fast assaults behind enemy line.

The drop screamed as the thrusters kicked in to slow the heavy chunk of metals descent so that they would be unharmed when it impacted with the planets surface. Eiral made a last check over his weapons he held his plasma pistol in the hulking gauntlet of his power fist as his smaller hand made sure everything was in working order. With that he made sure the cabling and power lines on his power first where all in working order and gave a small prayer to the Emperor and the machine spirits of his weapons and armour.

With a heavy thunk the drop pod hit into the planets surface and with an explosive blow out the doors fell open, revelling the planet to Eiral's eyes for the first time. All about him he could her cries of war and the sounds of fire all about him, "Every body out!" he commanded as he released himself from the pod the chaplain was already outside of the drop pod his plasma pistol opening fire on the Ork's. The planet had been overrun by the green vermin and the imperial guard could not contain them fast enough, hence why the Emperor's finest had been called in for assistance.

Eiral's boots touched onto the ground as he exited the drop pod the slightly yellow grass crumpled below his feet, even through his breather grill he could taste the smell of sulphur in the air. The planet was a primary source of the stuff it permeated everywhere, but the Ork's had laid waste to much of the planets infrastructure destroying the mines to make their Gargants and other war machines to take part in another wargh as they called it.

Eiral flexed his gauntleted fist as it was surrounded in a was of blue energy the ancient power fist powering up once more. A muscle reflex and the large jump pack on his back also powered up he could feel the pull of the pack wanting to lift him into the skies. Almost two hundred years ago Eiral had been born on a low gravity world he had grown up using less advanced version of the Astarte's jump packs he felt at home in the air, he felt free like a bird…like a raven.

"For the Emperor we shall take the hill so that the Devastators may make use of the high ground, Sergeant Eiral you have command," said Belial to him once more he could feel the pride within him "I shall not fail, moved out!" he ordered through his suits vox network. Around him the hum of jump packs could be heard and he leapt into the skies the thrusters of his pack lifting him high up and towards the currently Ork held hill.

All around them Xeno bullets flew past as the Ork's desperately tried to take his squad down before they impacted with them, Eiral swore as one of his squad markers went red as Deron fell form the skies as big shoota rounds hit into him his jump pack exploding, Eiral knew he was dead nothing could of survived that not even a space marine. He opened fire with his plasma pistol balls of blue/white plasma flying out and causing death down below as the Black guard descended on the hill, as one the Orks looked upon the space marines and shouted various war cries before running to meet them.

With a resounding crack Eiral hit into what he assumed was the leader of the squad his power fist caved into the large Ork, who also carried a power fist be it a crude version of such. The Ork didn't even get chance to scream as it cam nothing more than a pile of red and green at the feet of Eiral. The Orks charged in as the rest of his squad landed their chain swords cutting through the green skins as he also punched out with his power fist caving more green skin head in.

Pain shook through his leg as he turned on the spot to see a large Ork with a circular saw for an arm with drawing from his leg, blood spurted from his leg where the saw had bit through his ceramite armour. The bleeding quickly stopped as his enhanced marine biology released Larraman's to the wound clotting the would instantly. The Ork let out a chuckle at its deed, though the smile was quickly wiped from its face as a plasma shot disintegrated it.

Soon enough the hill had been cleared Eiral counted almost 100 Ork's dead to the loss of three of his squad, he heard Belial say a short prayer for there lives and congratulated Eiral on his exemplary work as the Devastators made their way to the crest of the hill and opened fire on the Ork horde below. Eiral smiled and nodded to the rest of his squad as the jump pack on his back powered up once more "Move out, we still have Xeno to kill!" he shouted leaping back into the air and into the fray once more.