Jason Hyde, Imperial guardsman, Elysian drop trooper, 42nd millennium, Orbit over New Valence: MARS- pattern heavy cruiser "The Retribution".

Jason has had his fair share of combat, but this is his first deployment against traitors to the Emperor's light… and he was understandably nervous.

Jason was newly recruited from the planet's PDF, fighting against the pirates that normally inhabit the planet's orbit. While he was never overly religious, he believed in the Emperor and his vision for mankind, as all good Imperial citizens should. The heretics and traitors of New Valence, however, have turned their backs on humanity and their destiny amongst the stars. This, of all these wrongs in the galaxy, is something he simply can never forgive… he would burn this world alone if they refused to bow a knee to the glory of the Imperium of Man, and the lessons of the God Emperor of Mankind.

"Now hear this, now hear this!" the intercom sounded an alert, "All guardsman participating in the battle below please report to the hanger immediately". You could hear a sense of contempt in the captain's voice, the old Navy and Guard rivalry taking fruit…. However, before Jason could dwell on this matter anymore, his best friends Artyom and Marcus came up to him.

"Jason!" Marcus shouted. "How is my favorite sniper doing?!" Artyom, as almost always, stayed silent throughout the ordeal. In the squad, Artyom was the heavy bolter gunner, while Marcus was armed with his precious flamer. Jason, was the squad's designated marksman. Artyom was the son of two Nobles from a feudal world, that came to Esysium in order to live better lives… and they succeeded in droves. However, Artyom never acted pretentious.

His slick, jet black hair and green eyes, combined with his Slavic features made him VERY popular in their Schola, especially with the girls. However, he almost always turned them down, as he wanted someone who liked him for his personality, and not just his looks or wealth.

Marcus was well toned, and always had a bright, youthful smile on his face. He had unruly blond hair and green eyes, filled with curiosity and courage in the face of the unknown. He was always somewhat jealous of Artyom for his noble status, but that didn't affect their friendship. And then there was Jason.

While he was nothing special in terms of looks, he was FAR from ugly. The problem was… his eyes. They were a bright crimson, glowing with a fire of wrath. Having been born with a mutation (Granting him something akin to thermal vision) that turned his eyes and hair crimson and blood red, respectively, people tended to avoid him… that is until he found Artyom and Marcus, who became his two best friends. Artyom's family even took him in after his family abandoned him, and he honestly owed them his life. So when Artyom joined the Guard to preserve his family's honor, it was only natural that Jason joined up too, followed by Marcus soon after.

"I'm good! How's my favorite blond bastard doing?!" Jason called back. "Awww, you know you love me man!" He grinned happily at Jason, his amusement evident in his voice. "We were essentially raised together! We're brothers, right Artyom?" Artyom, for his part, simply stayed silent. After a delay, he finally spoke in his calm, almost whisper of a voice. "We should get to the hanger. The platoon will be waiting for our arrival." "That's right! To the hanger!" Marcus spoke jovially.

After a delay and short run, the group arrived in the hanger, where the rest of the platoon was waiting on them. "Come on boys and gals, we don't have all day!" The squad Sargent shouted over the loud noise of a deploying Guard regiment. "We'll be landing behind enemy lines, so get ready for a hot drop!" Before long, the Valkyire was loaded, the group sped towards their drop point. However, not one of them could imagine what fate had in store for them.