Boarding Party - By Gunboat
A horrible cracking noise, accompanied by a mind-blowing shockwave wracked the small ship, the 'Legios Fratus'.
On Deck 12, men were drifting around, frozen, and instantly killed by the sudden depressurization. The breach in the hull
creeked and strained until it could no longer hold the object back. A small pod smashed through the breach, and from out of
it poured the traitorus Chaos Space Marines, of the World Eaters legion. Screams of 'Blood for the blood god!' and
'Blood and skulls for Lord Khorne!' were not heard, and the corpses that the World Eaters hacked as they floated by did
not satisfy them. After all, frozen blood particles were not particularly fun.
"...All units, this is Colonel Haartman. We are being boarded, arm yourselves and prepare for battle!" This message rang
out all over the ship, as the guardsmen of the Mordian 54th Imperial Guard scrambled to Deck 7, to the Armoury. Lasguns,
laspistols, knives and the like were passed out. Commisar Zaku made sure the lines were orderly. This was not difficult,
since the Mordian Iron Guard were of legendary discipline, only surpassed by the Adeptus Astares. Lieutenant Halcyclon
moved forward in the slow line, up to the Commisar, who was giving out the weapons the orderlies were handing him. The
Commisar nodded at him and he moved into the armoury. He looked at the vast array of various weapons. 'What are Guard
for if we can't even use our heavy weapons?' Halcyclon thought sourly as he envisioned how horribly a missed krak missile
would easily blow a hole through the hull. He sighed and wondered if there was all that much he could take without
endangering everyone on the ship without shielding against deep space. He moved over to the armour section and removed
a carapace vest and donned it over his neat Mordian parade-blue uniform. His officer's cape flowed behind him as he
grabbed a refractor field generator and fastened it to his belt. He muttered the Emperor's Litany of Protection as he
pressed the runes on it to activate it. He then walked over to the weaponry section, which comprised most of the armoury.
An orderly rushed passed him, frantically looking for more flak vests. Halcyclon tapped him on the shoulder. The weary-eyed
man spun around. "Calm down son, the flak armour is over there," he pointed towards the armor section.
"Thank you sir," the orderly said, more calmly now. Halcyclon turned back to the section labelled 'OFFICERS ONLY'. He took
a master-crafted bolt pistol, with the unmistakable runes of Mars. He then unhooked a chainsword from a wall rack, and
sheathed it. He was ready.
~
Sargeant Wehrer fired off a burst from his autopistol at the red-armoured Khorne Berzerker, and ducked back behind the
other side of the bulkhead. The bullets bounced harmlessly off the Berzerker's power armour. "BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!" it
raged and rounded the corner. Before Wehrer could even raise his chainsword to parry the mighty blow, the Berzerker brought
down it's chainaxe over Wehrer's head, slicing it in two neat parts, spraying the crimson armour with blood, which
further pleasured the corrupted Space Marine. Several surviving guardsmen fired their lasguns into his back. One managed
to penetrate his armour, and the Berzerker went down. The survivors slowly approached the motionless suit of power armour.
The berzerker roared to life, swiping at one of the guardsmen with his chainaxe, ripping a giant gash in his stomach. The
man screamed and gurgled out his life blood on the floor before he died. The two other surviving guardsmen rushed the
berzerker with combat knives. One of the knives broke as the guardsman slashed it against the armour. The berzerker
seperated the man's head from his body, instantly killing him. The last survivor stabbed his knife into the exposed joint
between the helmet and the chest, in the neck with all his might. Blood sprayed the guardsman, and the Berzerker slumped
over, dead.
~
"Sir!"
The orderly shouted at Colonel Haartman. He glared at the orderly. "I can hear you from here without yelling, Private."
He forgave him, and gave the orderly a chance to speak.
"Sir, we have lost all contact with the three decks above Deck 12, sir." Haartman frowned, and dismissed the orderly. He
turned to his advisor, Commisar Zaku, who had just returned from Deck 7's armoury. "What do you make of the situation,
Zaku?"
The Commisar made a sour face. "It can be assumed that all of the men on and above Deck 12 were killed by either
depressurization or the traitor marines."
Haartman had a blank look on his face for a moment. "So we are up against Chaos Space Marines, aren't we?" The commisar
nodded.
"Of the worst variant, too, I'm afraid. These traitor marines are of the World Eaters legion, those who specialize in
close quarters fighting. Standard issue combat knives usually break against power armour. Even lasguns are unlikely to
penetrate the armour."
Colonel Haartman closed his eyes, and thought back to his many briefing on Chaos Space Marines. Pictures depicting the
epic combat of the heresy drifted into his mind. He thought about how to deal with them, how to get the upper-hand. Finally
he spoke. "What about hellguns?"
The Commisar almost laughed, but retained his usual orderly facade. "Hellguns would only be useful against lightly-armoured
targets, such as Orks. Even an autocannon would have trouble penetrating the armour."
The Colonel's mind drifted back to the initial battle where the World Eaters ships first engaged the convoy. All of the
escorts had been destroyed by the superior gun batteries of the traitor marine cruisers. 'They simply slaughter our men
for fun...' he thought. After all, just destroying the Legios Fratus would not quench the unquenchable thirst for blood
that ravaged the Berzerkers. His thoughts were suddenly disrupted by a comm-link operator's voice.
"-repeat, under attack, Deck 11. Red-armoured figures in power armour have broken our defenses! Our weapons are ineffecti-"
The rest of the message had too much static to understand. White noise now filled the room, as the bridge crew starred
in horror at the small speaker that relayed the message. "He said our weapons are ineffective, Colonel," the Commisar
spat. Haartman slammed his fist down on his command chair.
"I know full well what the man said, Commisar Zaku."
"Then what do you plan to do?"
"What can I do?"
"Believe in the Emperor. Faith is your shield."
Colonel Haartman unsheathed his power sword and plasma pistol. The Commisar shook his head, as if he knew what Haartman
was thinking. "Not a good idea. The plasma blast will superheat the air, searing the lungs of everyone around you, excluding
the World Eaters." The Colonel muttered an obscenity and looked around for another pistol. The Commisar offered his bolt
pistol to the Colonel. Haartman looked at him indifferently. "I have my faith as a shield." He spoke quieter now, "Besides,
I still have a power axe," he said as he patted a waist holster containing the weapon.
The Colonel checked the bolt clip and activated his power sword and his refractor field. "Please recite the Emperor's Litany
of Protection."
Zaku unsheathed his power axe, activated it and closed his eyes. He spoke, both slowly and quietly in arcane High Gothic.
It was done. The Colonel turned around to face his command squad. "What about their weapons?" he asked the Commisar about
the two meltaguns and two plasma guns his retinue carried. The Commisar shook his head. "Fight with your combat knives,
your weapons will breach the hull."
A loud barrage of 'Yes sir!' came from the retinue, and they slung their weapons and took out their fighting knives. The
Colonel, in his suit of carapace armour tinted blue by the refractor field, with bolt pistol and power sword in hand,
he uttered, "We go now to seek out and destroy the traitors. May the Emperor guide us!" The six men, Colonel, Commisar and
the four retinue members charged out of the bridge in seek of traitor marines.
~
The screaming started at the back of the armoury line, on Deck 7. Four berzerkers slashed at the crowded guardsmen, ripping
through flak armour and flesh. Some of the chainaxes did not pierce the flak armour, but many did, and blood splattered all
over the walls, floor, ceiling and the combatants. The Mordians were not shaken by this, and to the Berzerker's suprise,
charged them with combat knives. In the swirling melee, the guardsmen's blue flak uniforms were stained by blood and guts.
The first berzerker fell as one of the Mordian's knives pierced a berzerker's eye piece. All the blood spraying around
both pleasured and infuriated the Khorne Berzerker's with equal value. Chainaxes swept down, severing heads and limbs.
In the end, a single solitary Berzerker stood in a mass of corpses. Lieutenant Halcyclon, enraged by the slaughter of his
men, screamed his rage at the dazed berzerker, who was literally wadding through the blood with pure joy. Halcyclon charged
the Berzerker. Before he could strike, the berzerker raised his chainsword and slashed with suprising speed. The Lieutenant
expected this, and dodged it gracefully. He swiped at the Berzerker with his chainsword, and the Berzerker raised his
chainsword to defend himself. Shrill shreaking ripped through both the combatant's ears, as the chainsword's metal teeth
strained against eachother. "By... the... Emperor's... light... I... WILL... VANQUISH... YOU!" Halcyclon yelled as the
traitor marine's chainsword gave out, and was sliced in two by Halcyclon's chainsword.
The Khorne Berzerker starred dumbfounded at his stump-of-a-chainsword. Halcyclon took this oppertunity, and swiped at
his helmet. He failed to penetrate his armour, and by this time, the berzerker recovered and punched at Halcyclon. His
armoured gauntlet punched right through the refractor field, and was only stopped by the carapace vest. Lieutenant
Halcyclon swiped at the Berzerker again, lobbing off the hand that punched at him at the wrist. In the berzerker's insane
rage, he did not even realize that his hand was missing, but was happy that blood was being shed. The former Space Marine
bodyslammed the Lieutenant, toppling over him. The refractor field and vest prevented him from being crushed to death by
the overwhelming weight of the power armour, but the Berzerker flailed wildly, loosing all sense of tactics and strategy,
only seeking to rip Halcyclon in two.
The wild eyes starred into Halcyclon's through the cold green-tinted eye slits. The Berzerker was already recovering from
his previous attack, and brought his remaining fist down into Halcyclon's arm that held the chainsword. Halcyclon screamed
in pain as his right arm was crushed beyond medical attention. The Berzerker enjoyed this, and could hear the Berzerker's
insane laughter through the vox-comm voice unit on the power armour. With the last of his strength, Halcyclon brought his
bolt pistol to bear and levelled it straight at the Berzerker's vox-comm, which was in front of his mouth. "Eat this vile
heretic!" Halcyclon spat as he pulled the trigger. A gaping hole was ripped through the helmet, spraying gore and brains
several feet into the air. The berzerker was motionless.
~
The Colonel slammed into a Berzerker, knocking him into a bulkhead. He swiped at him with his power sword, severing power
cables and disabling the suit. He moved quickly onwards to the next opponent, while the Commisar brought his poweraxe down
on the wounded Berzerker's helmet, bringing his helmet and head off. The Colonel was bleeding from many wounds, but kept
on slashing the minions of Khorne over and over again. Chainaxes and chainswords were destroyed by Berzerker's trying to
parry Haartman's power sword. With his retinue and commisar to assist him, they made short work of the traitor marines
with only the death of one retinue member who was clumsy enough to be hit by a chainaxe. They finally reached Deck 7's
armoury, to find a grisly scene of bloody death, with a barely breathing Lieutenant Halcyclon lying on the floor, right
arm smashed. One of the retinue guardsmen that doubled as a medic rushed over, and tended to Halcyclon.
The Commisar spoke as Haartman watched the medic administer healing foam to stop the Lieutenant's bleeding and soothe his
wounds. "Rough analysis shows that our men are dying at least 20:1, obviously in favour of the Berzerkers." Haartman
was tempted to kick the wall in rage, but doing so would probably make him slip and fall into the blood.
"We must not waiver. The men are of the Mordian Iron Guard, as am I. We will fight until death takes us."
The Commisar smiled grimly, but it was a smile. "Men united in the purpose of the Emperor will be blessed and live forever
in his memory," the Commisar quoted.
Halcyclon groaned. He would need a bionic arm.
~
In the bloody mess that was Deck 11, Aspiring Champion Saeron smiled approvingly as his Khorne Berzerkers murdered the
survivors, breaking this limbs and severing them before finally seperating their heads from their necks. The severed heads
were deposited into pouches, later to be skinned for trophy racks and great towers of skulls, which was said to please
Lord Khorne. The Berzerkers themselves were fairly quiet, the only noise was the screaming of the survivors as they were
tortured. The Aspiring Champion set out in search of a challenge. Saeron bounded down the corridors, and took the lift to
Deck 10. All was quiet, except for the sound of escaping vapour from broken pipes, probably breached by gunfire. He moved
on to Deck 9. Much of the same thing. He stepped into the lift to Deck 8.
~
"Deck 7 seems to be clear, other than the horrible mess in the armoury. Let us move onto Deck 8," said the Commisar. The
Colonel nodded, and the two boarded the lift. The remaining three retinue members guarded Lieutenant Halcyclon, as his
wounds were being treated. The lift ride was brief, and the two were silent. The Commisar put his hand up for a moment after
both had walked out of the lift. Colonel Haartman paused. "What is it?"
The Commisar produced a deck of cards. "I must consult the Emperor's Tarot. We know not what dangers lurk ahead, as we
approach closer to the heretics." Haartman sighed. He believed the Tarot to be nonsense.
Zaku drew three cards. One had a depiction of a red eye with a large purple pupil, another had a winged beast and the last
had a lightning bolt. He gasped. "Ahead of you, watch out!"
Haartman barely had time to react as a large power armoured figure swept out of the darkness toward him. A giant axe with
a blood red blade flashed out. It made a fizzling sound as his refractor field barely saved him from death. It swept out
again, and missed him. The figure holding the axe was more visible now, and it struck a third time. The Colonel almost
didn't step out of the way, and the front of his carapace vest was shredded like a hot knife through butter. Commisar Zaku
lept up and grabbed his power axe, and hacked at the figure. It looked like a Berzerker, except it carried a wicked looking
axe. The axe failed to break the armour, which, unlike ordinary Berzerkers, was completely encrusted with chaotic runes
and Khorne iconography. A loud laugh came from the Berzerker. Haartman swiped his power sword at Saeron, severing power
cables. They flared with electricity for a moment, but nothing happened. The Berzerker continued moving. 'Strange,' the
Colonel thought quickly as he fought, 'A normal berzerker's suit would be disabled.' He slashed again at the Berzerker
Champion, and to his horror, the armour that the power sword slashed bled! Saeron screamed in pain.
"Lord Khorne, give me strength!" Saeron roared.
Saeron realized that the Commisar was a political officer, those who ensured loyalty to the Emperor. It disgusted Saeron
to think this, and he swept at the Commisar instead. Both Haartman and the Commisar were so shocked at the sudden change,
neither had time to react as Commisar Zaku was literally slashed in two pieces, from head to crotch, by Saeron's Axe of
Khorne. 'Never really liked him too much,' Colonel Haartman thought as he took advantage of the Champion's position. It
would take him time to bring his axe to bear again. The Colonel took advantage of this, and thrust his power sword into
the Champion's side. He could feel the former Space Marine's fused rib cage breaking, and then saw the contents spill out.
The amount of blood was small, though, since the power sword cauterized most of the wound, but the damage inflicted was
fatal on Saeron. He fell to his knees, and Haartman stood behind him, and thrust his power sword directly downward, into
Saeron's spine. "The Emperor orders you to die!" Haartman screamed as Saeron gave one last scream before his soul was sucked
into the warp.
EPILOGUE:
The surviving Berzerkers fled back to their ship and escaped into the warp. Help arrived from the Ultramarines Chapter, and
all the survivors of the Mordian 54th were treated by the Apothecaries, including Lieutenant Halcyclon, who was given a
bionic arm. The author plays his Mordian Iron Guard army in games of 40k, and now loves charging Berzerkers when he
plays against Chaos, especially when his Lieutenant, Colonel and/or Commisar can get into the assault as well :)
A horrible cracking noise, accompanied by a mind-blowing shockwave wracked the small ship, the 'Legios Fratus'.
On Deck 12, men were drifting around, frozen, and instantly killed by the sudden depressurization. The breach in the hull
creeked and strained until it could no longer hold the object back. A small pod smashed through the breach, and from out of
it poured the traitorus Chaos Space Marines, of the World Eaters legion. Screams of 'Blood for the blood god!' and
'Blood and skulls for Lord Khorne!' were not heard, and the corpses that the World Eaters hacked as they floated by did
not satisfy them. After all, frozen blood particles were not particularly fun.
"...All units, this is Colonel Haartman. We are being boarded, arm yourselves and prepare for battle!" This message rang
out all over the ship, as the guardsmen of the Mordian 54th Imperial Guard scrambled to Deck 7, to the Armoury. Lasguns,
laspistols, knives and the like were passed out. Commisar Zaku made sure the lines were orderly. This was not difficult,
since the Mordian Iron Guard were of legendary discipline, only surpassed by the Adeptus Astares. Lieutenant Halcyclon
moved forward in the slow line, up to the Commisar, who was giving out the weapons the orderlies were handing him. The
Commisar nodded at him and he moved into the armoury. He looked at the vast array of various weapons. 'What are Guard
for if we can't even use our heavy weapons?' Halcyclon thought sourly as he envisioned how horribly a missed krak missile
would easily blow a hole through the hull. He sighed and wondered if there was all that much he could take without
endangering everyone on the ship without shielding against deep space. He moved over to the armour section and removed
a carapace vest and donned it over his neat Mordian parade-blue uniform. His officer's cape flowed behind him as he
grabbed a refractor field generator and fastened it to his belt. He muttered the Emperor's Litany of Protection as he
pressed the runes on it to activate it. He then walked over to the weaponry section, which comprised most of the armoury.
An orderly rushed passed him, frantically looking for more flak vests. Halcyclon tapped him on the shoulder. The weary-eyed
man spun around. "Calm down son, the flak armour is over there," he pointed towards the armor section.
"Thank you sir," the orderly said, more calmly now. Halcyclon turned back to the section labelled 'OFFICERS ONLY'. He took
a master-crafted bolt pistol, with the unmistakable runes of Mars. He then unhooked a chainsword from a wall rack, and
sheathed it. He was ready.
~
Sargeant Wehrer fired off a burst from his autopistol at the red-armoured Khorne Berzerker, and ducked back behind the
other side of the bulkhead. The bullets bounced harmlessly off the Berzerker's power armour. "BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!" it
raged and rounded the corner. Before Wehrer could even raise his chainsword to parry the mighty blow, the Berzerker brought
down it's chainaxe over Wehrer's head, slicing it in two neat parts, spraying the crimson armour with blood, which
further pleasured the corrupted Space Marine. Several surviving guardsmen fired their lasguns into his back. One managed
to penetrate his armour, and the Berzerker went down. The survivors slowly approached the motionless suit of power armour.
The berzerker roared to life, swiping at one of the guardsmen with his chainaxe, ripping a giant gash in his stomach. The
man screamed and gurgled out his life blood on the floor before he died. The two other surviving guardsmen rushed the
berzerker with combat knives. One of the knives broke as the guardsman slashed it against the armour. The berzerker
seperated the man's head from his body, instantly killing him. The last survivor stabbed his knife into the exposed joint
between the helmet and the chest, in the neck with all his might. Blood sprayed the guardsman, and the Berzerker slumped
over, dead.
~
"Sir!"
The orderly shouted at Colonel Haartman. He glared at the orderly. "I can hear you from here without yelling, Private."
He forgave him, and gave the orderly a chance to speak.
"Sir, we have lost all contact with the three decks above Deck 12, sir." Haartman frowned, and dismissed the orderly. He
turned to his advisor, Commisar Zaku, who had just returned from Deck 7's armoury. "What do you make of the situation,
Zaku?"
The Commisar made a sour face. "It can be assumed that all of the men on and above Deck 12 were killed by either
depressurization or the traitor marines."
Haartman had a blank look on his face for a moment. "So we are up against Chaos Space Marines, aren't we?" The commisar
nodded.
"Of the worst variant, too, I'm afraid. These traitor marines are of the World Eaters legion, those who specialize in
close quarters fighting. Standard issue combat knives usually break against power armour. Even lasguns are unlikely to
penetrate the armour."
Colonel Haartman closed his eyes, and thought back to his many briefing on Chaos Space Marines. Pictures depicting the
epic combat of the heresy drifted into his mind. He thought about how to deal with them, how to get the upper-hand. Finally
he spoke. "What about hellguns?"
The Commisar almost laughed, but retained his usual orderly facade. "Hellguns would only be useful against lightly-armoured
targets, such as Orks. Even an autocannon would have trouble penetrating the armour."
The Colonel's mind drifted back to the initial battle where the World Eaters ships first engaged the convoy. All of the
escorts had been destroyed by the superior gun batteries of the traitor marine cruisers. 'They simply slaughter our men
for fun...' he thought. After all, just destroying the Legios Fratus would not quench the unquenchable thirst for blood
that ravaged the Berzerkers. His thoughts were suddenly disrupted by a comm-link operator's voice.
"-repeat, under attack, Deck 11. Red-armoured figures in power armour have broken our defenses! Our weapons are ineffecti-"
The rest of the message had too much static to understand. White noise now filled the room, as the bridge crew starred
in horror at the small speaker that relayed the message. "He said our weapons are ineffective, Colonel," the Commisar
spat. Haartman slammed his fist down on his command chair.
"I know full well what the man said, Commisar Zaku."
"Then what do you plan to do?"
"What can I do?"
"Believe in the Emperor. Faith is your shield."
Colonel Haartman unsheathed his power sword and plasma pistol. The Commisar shook his head, as if he knew what Haartman
was thinking. "Not a good idea. The plasma blast will superheat the air, searing the lungs of everyone around you, excluding
the World Eaters." The Colonel muttered an obscenity and looked around for another pistol. The Commisar offered his bolt
pistol to the Colonel. Haartman looked at him indifferently. "I have my faith as a shield." He spoke quieter now, "Besides,
I still have a power axe," he said as he patted a waist holster containing the weapon.
The Colonel checked the bolt clip and activated his power sword and his refractor field. "Please recite the Emperor's Litany
of Protection."
Zaku unsheathed his power axe, activated it and closed his eyes. He spoke, both slowly and quietly in arcane High Gothic.
It was done. The Colonel turned around to face his command squad. "What about their weapons?" he asked the Commisar about
the two meltaguns and two plasma guns his retinue carried. The Commisar shook his head. "Fight with your combat knives,
your weapons will breach the hull."
A loud barrage of 'Yes sir!' came from the retinue, and they slung their weapons and took out their fighting knives. The
Colonel, in his suit of carapace armour tinted blue by the refractor field, with bolt pistol and power sword in hand,
he uttered, "We go now to seek out and destroy the traitors. May the Emperor guide us!" The six men, Colonel, Commisar and
the four retinue members charged out of the bridge in seek of traitor marines.
~
The screaming started at the back of the armoury line, on Deck 7. Four berzerkers slashed at the crowded guardsmen, ripping
through flak armour and flesh. Some of the chainaxes did not pierce the flak armour, but many did, and blood splattered all
over the walls, floor, ceiling and the combatants. The Mordians were not shaken by this, and to the Berzerker's suprise,
charged them with combat knives. In the swirling melee, the guardsmen's blue flak uniforms were stained by blood and guts.
The first berzerker fell as one of the Mordian's knives pierced a berzerker's eye piece. All the blood spraying around
both pleasured and infuriated the Khorne Berzerker's with equal value. Chainaxes swept down, severing heads and limbs.
In the end, a single solitary Berzerker stood in a mass of corpses. Lieutenant Halcyclon, enraged by the slaughter of his
men, screamed his rage at the dazed berzerker, who was literally wadding through the blood with pure joy. Halcyclon charged
the Berzerker. Before he could strike, the berzerker raised his chainsword and slashed with suprising speed. The Lieutenant
expected this, and dodged it gracefully. He swiped at the Berzerker with his chainsword, and the Berzerker raised his
chainsword to defend himself. Shrill shreaking ripped through both the combatant's ears, as the chainsword's metal teeth
strained against eachother. "By... the... Emperor's... light... I... WILL... VANQUISH... YOU!" Halcyclon yelled as the
traitor marine's chainsword gave out, and was sliced in two by Halcyclon's chainsword.
The Khorne Berzerker starred dumbfounded at his stump-of-a-chainsword. Halcyclon took this oppertunity, and swiped at
his helmet. He failed to penetrate his armour, and by this time, the berzerker recovered and punched at Halcyclon. His
armoured gauntlet punched right through the refractor field, and was only stopped by the carapace vest. Lieutenant
Halcyclon swiped at the Berzerker again, lobbing off the hand that punched at him at the wrist. In the berzerker's insane
rage, he did not even realize that his hand was missing, but was happy that blood was being shed. The former Space Marine
bodyslammed the Lieutenant, toppling over him. The refractor field and vest prevented him from being crushed to death by
the overwhelming weight of the power armour, but the Berzerker flailed wildly, loosing all sense of tactics and strategy,
only seeking to rip Halcyclon in two.
The wild eyes starred into Halcyclon's through the cold green-tinted eye slits. The Berzerker was already recovering from
his previous attack, and brought his remaining fist down into Halcyclon's arm that held the chainsword. Halcyclon screamed
in pain as his right arm was crushed beyond medical attention. The Berzerker enjoyed this, and could hear the Berzerker's
insane laughter through the vox-comm voice unit on the power armour. With the last of his strength, Halcyclon brought his
bolt pistol to bear and levelled it straight at the Berzerker's vox-comm, which was in front of his mouth. "Eat this vile
heretic!" Halcyclon spat as he pulled the trigger. A gaping hole was ripped through the helmet, spraying gore and brains
several feet into the air. The berzerker was motionless.
~
The Colonel slammed into a Berzerker, knocking him into a bulkhead. He swiped at him with his power sword, severing power
cables and disabling the suit. He moved quickly onwards to the next opponent, while the Commisar brought his poweraxe down
on the wounded Berzerker's helmet, bringing his helmet and head off. The Colonel was bleeding from many wounds, but kept
on slashing the minions of Khorne over and over again. Chainaxes and chainswords were destroyed by Berzerker's trying to
parry Haartman's power sword. With his retinue and commisar to assist him, they made short work of the traitor marines
with only the death of one retinue member who was clumsy enough to be hit by a chainaxe. They finally reached Deck 7's
armoury, to find a grisly scene of bloody death, with a barely breathing Lieutenant Halcyclon lying on the floor, right
arm smashed. One of the retinue guardsmen that doubled as a medic rushed over, and tended to Halcyclon.
The Commisar spoke as Haartman watched the medic administer healing foam to stop the Lieutenant's bleeding and soothe his
wounds. "Rough analysis shows that our men are dying at least 20:1, obviously in favour of the Berzerkers." Haartman
was tempted to kick the wall in rage, but doing so would probably make him slip and fall into the blood.
"We must not waiver. The men are of the Mordian Iron Guard, as am I. We will fight until death takes us."
The Commisar smiled grimly, but it was a smile. "Men united in the purpose of the Emperor will be blessed and live forever
in his memory," the Commisar quoted.
Halcyclon groaned. He would need a bionic arm.
~
In the bloody mess that was Deck 11, Aspiring Champion Saeron smiled approvingly as his Khorne Berzerkers murdered the
survivors, breaking this limbs and severing them before finally seperating their heads from their necks. The severed heads
were deposited into pouches, later to be skinned for trophy racks and great towers of skulls, which was said to please
Lord Khorne. The Berzerkers themselves were fairly quiet, the only noise was the screaming of the survivors as they were
tortured. The Aspiring Champion set out in search of a challenge. Saeron bounded down the corridors, and took the lift to
Deck 10. All was quiet, except for the sound of escaping vapour from broken pipes, probably breached by gunfire. He moved
on to Deck 9. Much of the same thing. He stepped into the lift to Deck 8.
~
"Deck 7 seems to be clear, other than the horrible mess in the armoury. Let us move onto Deck 8," said the Commisar. The
Colonel nodded, and the two boarded the lift. The remaining three retinue members guarded Lieutenant Halcyclon, as his
wounds were being treated. The lift ride was brief, and the two were silent. The Commisar put his hand up for a moment after
both had walked out of the lift. Colonel Haartman paused. "What is it?"
The Commisar produced a deck of cards. "I must consult the Emperor's Tarot. We know not what dangers lurk ahead, as we
approach closer to the heretics." Haartman sighed. He believed the Tarot to be nonsense.
Zaku drew three cards. One had a depiction of a red eye with a large purple pupil, another had a winged beast and the last
had a lightning bolt. He gasped. "Ahead of you, watch out!"
Haartman barely had time to react as a large power armoured figure swept out of the darkness toward him. A giant axe with
a blood red blade flashed out. It made a fizzling sound as his refractor field barely saved him from death. It swept out
again, and missed him. The figure holding the axe was more visible now, and it struck a third time. The Colonel almost
didn't step out of the way, and the front of his carapace vest was shredded like a hot knife through butter. Commisar Zaku
lept up and grabbed his power axe, and hacked at the figure. It looked like a Berzerker, except it carried a wicked looking
axe. The axe failed to break the armour, which, unlike ordinary Berzerkers, was completely encrusted with chaotic runes
and Khorne iconography. A loud laugh came from the Berzerker. Haartman swiped his power sword at Saeron, severing power
cables. They flared with electricity for a moment, but nothing happened. The Berzerker continued moving. 'Strange,' the
Colonel thought quickly as he fought, 'A normal berzerker's suit would be disabled.' He slashed again at the Berzerker
Champion, and to his horror, the armour that the power sword slashed bled! Saeron screamed in pain.
"Lord Khorne, give me strength!" Saeron roared.
Saeron realized that the Commisar was a political officer, those who ensured loyalty to the Emperor. It disgusted Saeron
to think this, and he swept at the Commisar instead. Both Haartman and the Commisar were so shocked at the sudden change,
neither had time to react as Commisar Zaku was literally slashed in two pieces, from head to crotch, by Saeron's Axe of
Khorne. 'Never really liked him too much,' Colonel Haartman thought as he took advantage of the Champion's position. It
would take him time to bring his axe to bear again. The Colonel took advantage of this, and thrust his power sword into
the Champion's side. He could feel the former Space Marine's fused rib cage breaking, and then saw the contents spill out.
The amount of blood was small, though, since the power sword cauterized most of the wound, but the damage inflicted was
fatal on Saeron. He fell to his knees, and Haartman stood behind him, and thrust his power sword directly downward, into
Saeron's spine. "The Emperor orders you to die!" Haartman screamed as Saeron gave one last scream before his soul was sucked
into the warp.
EPILOGUE:
The surviving Berzerkers fled back to their ship and escaped into the warp. Help arrived from the Ultramarines Chapter, and
all the survivors of the Mordian 54th were treated by the Apothecaries, including Lieutenant Halcyclon, who was given a
bionic arm. The author plays his Mordian Iron Guard army in games of 40k, and now loves charging Berzerkers when he
plays against Chaos, especially when his Lieutenant, Colonel and/or Commisar can get into the assault as well :)