Maelstrom

Screaming lead filled the air as Private Nestus of the Cadian 24th threw himself behind a weapons crate desperately seeking cover. His squad were trapped in the maelstrom and he was unsure if any had made it to cover before they were ripped apart in the vengeful onslaught of debris. He closed his eyes in a futile attempt to rid himself of their last horrific moments that were imprinted on his mind. His hand scrabbled in the debris around him for his rifle but it was nowhere to be seen, most likely part of the fused, warped mess behind him.

He yanked his bolter from its holster at his hip and fired blindly over the top of the crate. The shots went wild, striking patterns of sparks along the walls of the corridor, unbearably bright in the dull corridor. There were shouts of alarms and a shriek of pain but Nestus knew that this was hardly an efficient way of going about it, he was low on ammunition and had no idea how many mutants and chaos spawn lurked just ahead of him. He ran his fingers through his hair as bullets whined through the air next to him. His wildly questing fingers closed around a hard sphere on the floor next to him. A grenade, He grinned maniacally, ripped the pin and hurled it down the corridor. Screams of alarm sounded before being drowned out by the roar of the detonation and the shriek of metal as the corridor warped under the pressure of the blast. The fetid stench of charred flesh filled the air.

He ejected the spent clip from his bolter and slammed a fresh one in. He pushed up from the ground, bringing his bolter to bear and unloading it into the few foes who had survived the onslaught of the grenade, the weapon barking as it spat, rounds ripping through mutated flesh and silencing unearthly howls of anger and pain.

The bolter clicked empty. Nestus ripped his blade from its sheath on his thigh, the dull metal glinting in the half-light highlighting the serrated edge. He vaulted the crate with a snarl and used the momentum of his movement to slash the throat of a dark grey humanoid covered in rags, its life force erupting from its throat in a crimson spray. Even before it had sunk to the ground he span and nailed a beast with horns erupting from its skin to the wall. It wailed and clawed at the knife which he obliged to tear out leaving the beast to fall to the gore strewn floor. He brought the knife up to bear, holding it inverted in front of him, arm bent at the elbow.

An eerie silence pervaded the corridor. His breath came in ragged gasps, adrenaline coursed through his veins, the enemy lay at his feet, their distorted bodies still. He sheathed his knife in a swift movement and reloaded his bolter.

In the distance the thump of the enemy artillery bombarding the ruined city resumed in a desperate attempt to destroy the Guard units that were steadily getting closer to the Chaos stronghold.

Nestus turned and met the gaze of his squad mate Trye who gazed back with eyes like saucers from his refuge behind a pile of metal crates.

'Well?' said Nestus. 'You coming?'

Trye scrambled to his feet and checked his lasrifle, inspired by his friend's calm demeanour. Nestus pulled out his bolter, nodded at Trye who grinned back and together they strode into hell to deliver the Emperors fury on those who dared defile this world.