The following is a continuation of this story s/10699748/1/Shoot-first-Ask-Questions-Never
Author's Note: Just a reminder for those who read my stories, especially with the Warhammer ones, they are all primarily set in the timelines of older, retconed editions where events such as Storm of Chaos for WHFB or the old 13th Black Crusade from the early 2000's are relevant with units and equipment from later editions (up to 8th for Fantasy and 7th for 40k) just being thrown in for the sake of the storyline.
Somewhere in Ultima Segmentum... M42
'WAAAAGGGGHHH' roared Burgrat as he held down the trigger of his shoota and unleashed a storm of lead upon the foe. Standing upon a barren hill alongside the rest of a mob of Shoota Boyz, Burgrat reveled in the ensuing battle as the orks of the Deathskulls clashed with a swarm of beasts bearing hides and shells the colours of blue and red. Today was a good day thought the Shoota Boy as his gun suddenly stopped firing, its roar replaced by clicks which instinctively caused him to reach for his belt and grab another ammo clip while simultaneously ejecting the spent one.
For the entire life of Burgrat and most orks on this barren world of black stone and dust, they had been at war with the gribbly beasts which some of the newer ladz who had come from space had called nids or Tyranids as the humies called them. Although he had never seen a live humie before, he had seen the skulls of the creatures decorating the poles of many a boss and had heard many stories about the great wars waged against them by other Orks. Perhaps in time, the Shoot Boy would have a chance to shoot one of those alien creatures in the face but for now, he was content with facing the bugs.
An explosion of fire and shrapnel suddenly blossomed only a few yards ahead of Burgrat, killing a bunch of the smaller beasts, while others were scythed down by ork gunfire or felled by choppas. Only a few steps down the hill from the Shoota Boy mobs were many Choppa or Burna Boyz who also had one hell of a great time getting stuck into the thickest of the fighting. If he were to die right now then it would be a good death he thought as he reveled in his current state of euphoria, he lived the way all orks should and that was fighting.
When his gun began to click again, he once more reached for his ammo belt but all of a sudden, he felt a strange charge in the air, like when the mekboyz brought out the big zappy guns. Next thing he knew, he felt a sense of weightlessness as his feet lifted off of the ground along with many rocks, spent shell casings and the other orks around him. There were many confused cries from his fellow orks as they tried to get back down and as he looked about he saw that even the Tyranids were floating up as well.
He then noticed something bright in the sky and in one last moment of horrid realization he knew what it was.
'Oh zog' muttered Burgrat as lances of searing energy rained down from orbit and vaporized every ork and tyranid from within six metres of where the Shoota Boy had been standing. Clouds of glassed dust were scattered about along with the ashes of the many combatants, not even metal or chitin survived the blazing ruin brought down upon this barren world.
The sudden bombardment of orbital fire was soon followed up by another barrage, this ones composed of hollow, physical transports containing payloads of flesh and faith, soared down with the heat of atmospheric re-entry. Before the clouds were cleared, several drop-pods crashed into the very ground where hundreds of orks and tyranids once fought and emerging from the entrance were black armored giants wielding massive guns and roaring chain-blades.
'For the Emperor!' roared the leader of these newcomers as battle was joined once more.
Elsewhere, Korprulu Sector.
+Khassar de templari+ mentally whispered Executor Lacea of the Velari Tribe with eyes closed and thoughts directed within.
+From order comes justice+ quietly came another voice and the lids of the Executor's eyes opened to reveal two glowing orbs of bright cyan light and she gazed upon a seemingly endless sea of shimmering blue water with a clear sky above her.
Warm sunlight bathed the pale gray flesh of the Protoss Executor as she sat cross legged upon a stone dais in the middle of a botanical garden while dressed only in loose robes colored with yellow dye. Gleaming pieces of Khaydarin crystals fashioned into jewelry adorned the fingers, neck and brow of the Executor, each one strengthened her psionic abilities, save for a single, bright red gem of an unknown, alien origin. Within this stone was a presence, the powerful will of a sentient mind that had proven to be a useful adviser on the field of battle and one that had been responsible for blocking the malign influence of the Dark One during the opening stages of the End War.
+Peace is such a fleeting thing+ mused the voice within the stone, known to the Executor as Eldrad, whose tone contained hint of resignation and Lacea could not help but agree with the statement.
Although years had passed since the reclamation of Aiur and the death of Amon, a very fragile peace had settled across the worlds of the Korprulu Sector, one that had already begun to crack. Skirmishes had already broken out on worlds such as Gystt, Adena and if certain reports were true, then even the true Tal'darim had engaged in a massive invasion upon worlds belonging to the Terran Dominion. Even here on this distant far-flung planet, peace was a mere illusion for the shadow of war hung heavy upon those who settled here and one would merely have to look up to see why.
For over a year now, the combined tribes of the Daelaam had spread out across this world known as Ulnuran, its five continents divided by oceans were filled with diverse biomes so rich with not only life but other assorted resources that would make it a vital world in providing the raw materials needed to not only rebuild Aiur's cities but also to restore the Golden Armada. The location of this world had only been recently revealed to the Firstborn after a combined expedition to Ulnar led by the former Judicators of the Shelak Tribe and the Nerazim Tribe known as the Alysaar discovered an ancient Xel'naga artifact that contained a trove of not only technical information but also coordinates to special locations previously known only to the Gods themselves.
In the early days of the expedition, they had found numerous ancient Temples likes those on Aiur, which in turn had brought quite a number of Protoss settlers, almost all of whom now resided upon the island city of New Talematros of which had become a mighty fortress while elsewhere across the world were fully automated outposts inhabited primarily by Probes.
What worried the Protoss settlers though was that the moon of Ulnuran, known to the Xel'naga as Un'lazar had recently been heavily infested by the Zerg Swarm. Although also filled with life, various resources and Xel'naga artifacts, the Observers that had been sent to surface Un'lazar had found it absolutely filled with dangerous flora and fauna, the sort of which that would have been extremely hostile to any Protoss as well a Terran or Zerg.
What the Zerg were doing was anyone's guess but to most of the Protoss, including Lacea herself, were certain that the Swarm had also learned something as of value as well from Ulnar, one that was important enough to send millions of warrior beasts to a world that was just as far away from Char as it was from Aiur.
So far the Zerg had remained on Un'lazar and had even delivered a message via an Infested Terran communication system with assurances to the Protoss that the Broodmothers in command wished to maintain Overqueen Zagara's desire for peace, something which Hierarch Artanis had also been trying to preserve and had even given the colonists strict orders to only raise arms in self defense.
Unsurprisingly, the Daelaam forces remained unconvinced and had chosen to to remain alert but all agreed so far to watch, wait and be ready in case the Swarm attempted to initiate hostilities. Since then, both species have remained on guard while expanding and establishing numerous outposts that would gather the necessary materials needed to continue expansion efforts.
Should war happen though, Lacea was at least confident that the arsenal the Protoss currently possessed would be more than adequate for aside from the flesh and blood members of the Firstborn, the mechanical legions of the Purifiers had also taken part in the colonization effort, indeed about half of their forces were made up of robotic warriors.
There were even a number of former Tal'darim who now resided within New Talematros and they had brought with them numerous deadly weapons of war. Should all else fail, New Talematros possessed a Warp Conduit that would be capable of bringing in reinforcements directly from Aiur.
Part of her just wanted to dare the Zerg into attacking first, the part that reveled in the fury of glorious combat yet another side, one that had bitterly seen the cost of war had hoped that this tenuous peace would last as long as possible.
One month, it had been one cursed month of Holy Terra's time since the Crusade Fleet that had originally been destined to join the ongoing conflict within the Jericho Reach had instead been quietly diverted to arrive upon this barren, nameless world at the edge of Ultima Segementum and they were not one step closer in reaching their goal. Peering into the void of space from his personal quarters aboard an Oberon Class Battleship, Lord Inquisitor Valtsten of the Ordo Xenos and the Conclave of Nurena observed the surface of this world and he wondered if perhaps all of this had been a mistake. Decades of long and perilous searching, combing through ancient libraries and the ruins of long dead xenos civilizations had led not only himself but many other Inquisitors of the Conclave of Nurena here, to a world that if their sources were correct, had been an ancient bastion of a race known only in myth and legends as the Old Ones.
Somewhere upon this blighted, xeno-infested world was a weapon, something of terrifyingly great power was hidden, a super weapon of sorts capable of laying waste to entire systems at once, a weapon that could be the Imperium's doom or salvation. The quest to find the super weapon on the planet was hindered by the presence of many Orks and Tyranids that had been waging war across the surface even before the Imperium's arrival, the former of which had already established thousands of ramshackle shanties here and there, each one teeming with tens of thousands of the the belligerent beasts while the latter had also established numerous Hives hidden beneath the surface. To make matters worse, he could see from the view deck aboard the Battleship's Bridge the distant forms of Ork voidships and Tyranid Bio-ships trading blows with one another or with the Imperial Navy, but for the most part, each of the forces kept their distances for the first days of battle in the void had been harsh yet brutal for all sides.
The only thing that helped affirm to the Inquisitor that this indeed was the right course of action was that there were other, older and deadly forces that had arrived upon this world as well. Fleets of the deathless xeno machines known as the Necrons had arrived in great numbers, their potent vessels had reaped a deadly toll before landing numerous forces on this world's surface, their goal was unknown to the Inquisitors of the Conclave of Nurena but it most likely had something to do as well with the Old Ones ruins on this world.
Not long after the Necrons arrived, the sleek and elegant ships of the Eldar had made their appearance, the perfidious aliens had through the use of their holographic technologies been able to slip their own forces onto the surface and had established numerous hidden bases. Curiously, there were even reports of alien forces from the Tau Empire, most likely from the Velk'han Sept of which had already engaged in numerous skirmishes with the Imperial Forces.
Yet of all the forces that had come, the most dreaded of all had also made their appearance known for from the depths of the Warp, the Traitor Legions had arrived. Led by the ancient enemies of the Conclave of Nurena, the Brotherhood of Nine, the dark alliance of the Chaos Lords had united under their banners not only their Chaos Space Marines Legions but also countless other Lost and the Damned warbands, mutants rabbles and other degenerate followers of the Dark Gods. Many blasphemous outposts had already been established down there on the surface where the armies of Chaos used dark portals that connected directly to the Eye of Terror to maintain a constant stream of supplies and reinforcements.
It was going to be a long and bloody campaign thought the Inquisitor Lord who had seen his fair share of war in the past but like many among his ilk, he preferred to operate within the shadows. Using his influence and connections as an Inquisitor Lord, Valtsten along with other members of the Conclave of Nurena had garnered a great deal of support from numerous forces from across the Imperium.
Entire regiments of the Astra Militarum had been among the first Imperial armies to arrive followed by Commanderies of the Adepta Sororitas, Cohorts of the Mechanicus, Knight Houses and even entire Companies of Adeptus Astartes from different Chapters had come with more already on the way. Like their foes, the armies of the Imperium had also established several fortified outposts on the planet where the Imperial Navy could safely land reinforcements and continue the campaign to conquer this world in the Emperor's name.
Reaching out with his psychic senses, the Lord Inquisitor could sense the disturbances in the Warp as the powers of many psykers, both human and xenos were unleashed on numerous battlefields and the Shadow in the Warp generated by Tyranids was somehow weakened by means not known to him, a small blessing this was for it still allowed the Crusade Force to maintain astropathic communications with the greater Imperium.
Through the use of Witch-Sight, the Inquisitor Lord was able to perceive this world with far greater clarity than would be possible through the use of mundane, technological instruments. With this Sight, he witnessed the ebb and flow of battle as the spirits of Humanity's warriors fought against the Emperor's foes such as on one plain, a squadron of Leman Russ tanks traded fire with Ork vehicles in a furious barrage of explosive ordnance while in the canyons of another place a squadron of Astartes Assault Marines and Sororitas Seraphim engaged in an aerial battle against Chaos Raptors and Daemonic Furies.
The Inquisitor Lord could also sense the presence of the myriad alien armies but his sight over them was less clear for the minds of the Xenos was far more different than that of Men and for creatures like the Eldar, they possessed the means to avoid being seen by other psykers. Despite all of the background psychic activity, the Inquisitor Lord could also feel the presence of the ancient Old Ones machinery hidden beneath the world, their systems had as of late been reacting to the presence of so many active psykers. Worried at the possibility that someone or something might find the super weapon before the Imperium could, Valtsten decided to keep quiet for now as they still could not pinpoint the exact-
A sudden surge of Warp energy flowed from one of the ruins! It generated a psychic signal of such magnitude and power that if felt as if he were above Holy Terra's Astronomican! Quickly recovering from this sudden surge, the minds of the Oberon's mortal crew became frantic and the Inquisitor Lord turned his attention towards them.
Reading the thoughts of the crewmen, he heard the dozens of reports of seismic activities in numerous regions across the planet. Confusion and panic spread among some of the Imperial forces while others maintained order and simply braced themselves for what came next. It was then that the Warp energy of the Old One machinery began to spread out across the world and Vox reports began coming in of massive super structures rapidly emerging from the ground.
Shortly after their appearance, these machines then began to thrum with Warp energy and from one of these super structures, a massive beam of light lanced up into the sky. Fearing that the Old One super weapon had been fired, the Inquisitor Lord reverted back to his mundane, mortal sight and from the view port he saw the shaft of pure energy reach up into orbit before eventually stopping at a certain point. The pillar of light just remained there, its vast psychic presence began to grow stronger and it reached into the Warp itself.
Holding his breath, the Inquisitor expected something terrible to happen but after several seconds passed he took a deep breath and was somewhat relieved to find that they were all still alive. Turning his thoughts to one of his acolytes of whom had been on the bridge along with the Battleship's Commodore and the Navigator, he overheard a dismayed conversation about how a series of inbound reinforcement ships that had just been about to exit the Warp had suddenly vanished. Looking to the pillar of light the Lord Inquisitor instinctively knew that it was somehow responsible.
+Place the pylons over there and there+ commanded former Judicator and now Praetor Nahomis of the Shelak Tribe towards a pair of probes and the machines dutifully obeyed.
Clad in the dark blue powered armor of a Judicator Zealot, he stood upon an open plaza of cobbled stone and surrounded by ancient pyramids built by the Xel'naga, he patiently watched as the two machines glided towards a series of stone discs embedded into the ground. With a sharp crackle of energy, the constructs simultaneously warped in a pair of Pylons that for now took the form of glowing spheres of energy as the physical forms of the structures were transported directly from Aiur itself. Nodding to the machines, they hovered towards another set of stone discs and began constructing additional pylons while the crew of his landed Arbiter stood alert with eyes watching out for any possible danger.
This was it thought Nahomis, who internally felt a sense of excitement and perhaps a bit of fear for this was was the culmination of years of searching since the End War. According to Hierarch Artanis, the Gods were capable of traveling to other universes and had been responsible for seeding life across these other realities where eventually at some point, two races would merge into one to form a new Xel'naga.
According to information gathered from Ulnar, it seemed that this world, Uldamir, was a place where the Gods could travel to these other universes and during that during their travels, they had encountered beings they considered to be kindred spirits, these they called The Creators.
On this world, he had found murals like those on Ulnar that detailed these encounters between the Xel'naga and the various Creators races that also nurtured life to their own cosmos. One such race were that of planet-sized giants, another depicted a people in perfect balance between light and darkness while another depicted a race of reptilian creatures of which he was unsure were actually Creators themselves or merely a servant race.
Yet he had also found warnings of more malevolent entities within these other universes, beings that thrived on death, destruction and the eradication all lesser beings, one such group were depicted as a writhing mass of tentacles and sharpened maws emerging from a planet while another depicted an enslaving species of brutal alien warriors with cone shaped heads nd their eyes on the sides, these creatures called themselves the "Infernal Ones".
Worried that perhaps his curiosity might end up being the cause of great turmoil for the Daelaam, he had a moment of self doubt which came too late as the first pair of pylons had finished warping in and were followed by a second, then third and finally a fourth pair. Ancient Xel'naga machinery buried beneath their feet then began to thrum with energy as soft beams of light rose up form the stone discs which then began to transfer power from the Khaydarin crystals the made up most of a Pylon's form.
Soon every stone structure around the Shelak expedition began to light up with gleaming emerald glyphs. The air became filled with psionic energy, causing a tingling sensation which all of the within the plaza and the ground then began to rumble as metallic crystal-tipped rods rose up from the top of the pyramids and they unleashed beams of light into the sky.
+Nahomis! What is happening there?+ came the alarmed call of his colleague Prelate Amaka of the Alysaar.
+Our ascension...+ replied Nahomis with awe as he gazed upwards and saw the light travel higher and higher until it reached into the void of space itself.
In high orbit above Ulnuran, a cloaked Observer, one of hundreds of such constructs continued to follow its last orders which was to remain in surveillance mode and monitor for any possible Zerg activity. For many long months, it provided a constant stream of information to the Observatories of New Talematros such as data regarding weather patterns, passing by celestial objects and even the occasional presence of Zerg surveillance organisms which immediately sped away as soon as both units detected one another. When a massive surge of psionic energy emanated from the surface of Ulnuran, it remained in its stationary position until an order came from the colony to investigate this phenomenon.
Folding its fins and diverting power to its gravitic boosters, the Observer silently sped towards what appeared to be a massive pillar of light. Its sensors picked up the signature of many other Observer units and the machines began to network their processors as they all analyzed and collecting data for their Protoss masters when suddenly another energy surge was detected all the way from Un'lazar. Turning around to face the Zerg infested moon, many of the observers saw another pillar of light rising from one point along its equator which was soon followed by energy fluctuations within warp space.
The combined streams of artificially intelligent minds collected and shared data among one another along with those within the Observatories and a theory was proposed. Based on what information had been gathered, it seemed that these pillars of light were affecting warp space in a manner similar to the Fleet Beacons but on a significantly larger magnitude. Another surge was then detected, this time in the void of real-space and a massive tear in reality opened.
Focusing their lenses upon this tear, the collection of Observers watched as four, absolutely enormous vessels entered Ulnuran's orbit. Far larger than any known classification of spacecraft known to the Protoss, save for an Arkship such as the Spear of Adun, these monstrous ships bore the distinctly crude and unrefined marks of Terran craftsmanship. Analyzing and studying these vessels, they noted the unusually decorative designs placed on these ships which bristled with multitudes of guns and they picked up signs of energy shielding as well as communications chatter being transmitted between them.
To the unfeeling processors of the Observers, the sight of these ships was merely just another object to collect data from as commanded by their masters. To the living Protoss upon Ulnuran, a great alarm was sounded, one to prepare its warriors for the possibility battle.
'Just where in the Emperor's name are we?' questioned General Korden of the Cadian 999th as he sat upon a plas-steel throne within his personal quarters, a thin mist of tobacco smoke wafted around the man as a burning Lho-stub was gently clenched between the fingers of his gloved right rand while his left hand rested upon the table in front of him which had an active holo-projector that displayed four other screens with faces filling them.
'That's is just it my lords, we have no idea' worriedly responded the gaunt and pale face of a hooded Navigator whose unnaturally long skeletal fingers were clasped together with the index and middle fingers propped by his chin. 'If you just look outside, this world does not match any of the information given about our destination and what is more concerning is that we cannot sense the Astronomican!'
'My own Navigator has told me the same' then came the deep, mechanical voice of Force Commander Cornelius of the Aurora Chapter, his face hidden behind a beaked helmet painted forest green and was adorned with a gilded laurel wreath. 'It is best if we keep quiet about this, for the sake of morale'.
'Agreed' growled the the bearded and scarred face of another Space Marine Force Commander known as Guthrum who belonged to the Executioners Chapter. 'Your Commissars will be busy spilling blood if the lower ranks knew'
'They can try with us' boasted Colonel Thatch of the Catachan XXX who spoke these words as more of a challenge and Van Korden was glad for the moment that no member of Commissariat was part of this conversation.
'So it is all agreed then that for now, we keep this confidential?' then said the Cadian General to which was responded with a series of acknowledgements. 'All right then, I will keep you all updated, until then we should survey these worlds and see if we can find a way re-establish contact with the Imperium, Korden out.'
With that, the screens went black and by accessing a nearby terminal, the General opened a channel to the nearest Mechanicus Shrine. When he was greeted by skeletal face of a Servitor, General Korden maintained his composure and he relayed his orders to the cybernetic thrall that he wanted survey teams to head down to the planets at once before cutting the channel. The general then powered down the projector and he took another deep drag from his Lho-stub to calm his nerves.
Something was clearly wrong here, he could feel it in his bones. The other commanders were right for there was no need to cause an unnecessary panic among the both Navy Personnel or the Imperial Guard forces for the idea of being outside of the Emperor's holy light was troubling to say the least. He knew the stories of the great Solar Lord Macharius and how despite the sainted general's legendary string victories, what in the end broke the Macharian Crusade was the unwillingness of the army to travel outside of the Astronimican's reach.
Through bitter personal experience, General Korden knew just how dangerous warp travel can be or how the vagaries of that other-worldly realm can affect even the seemingly smoothest of journeys. Quietly praying to the Emperor and hoping that they can solve this mystery soon, he turned his attention to the state of his own troops aboard the Universe Class Mass Conveyor, The Chariot of which had been loaned by a Rogue Trader Dynasty (for a very large fee of which there was no doubt) to transport more than a dozen regiments of the Astra Militarum alongside a Cetaceus Class Transport called The Onager, which carried numerous Devourer Dropships as well as Navy Strike Craft as well as numerous assorted fighters and bombers.
With hundreds of thousands of souls aboard the transport, they still maintained a large stockpile of food, medicine, fuel, ammunition and other things necessary to wage a protracted campaign but having taken part in conflicts that had lasted for years, he was deeply aware how a lack of supplies can break any army.
Reaching again for the holo-projector's console, he contacted numerous officers and ordered to be given a status report of every element of their army as well as reports from the Captain of The Chariot. There was much to do he knew but he trusted the competence and skill of those aboard to do their jobs for regardless of where they were, they would conquer this world in the Emperor's name and transform it into a shining bastion of the Imperium's might.
Within the chambers of the New Talematros' Twilight Council, a gathering of the colony's military leaders was held. Each of the five member was seated around a gleaming circular table polished to a mirrors sheen, each one the representative of a different section of their armies.
Executor Lacea who was seated in the northernmost position represented the Templar's Ground forces while to her left was Executor Amatelon of the Auriga and the head of the colony's Templar Fleet. To Lacea's right were the representative of the Nerazim, Prelate Amaka, followed afterwards by the Purifier representative and opposite of her position was the Tal'darim-Daelamm representative.
The council had already been informed by the Nerazim Prelate that one of his colleagues, Praetor Nahomis of the Shelak Tribe had been studying one of the many ancient Xel'naga facilities and as soon as something there was activated, this unknown fleet arrived. While they resolved to question the former Judicator who agreed to be on his way at once, they were more concerned with the massive ships that had suddenly appeared above Ulnuran.
+We should annihilate these trespassers immediately!+ Called Fleet Lady Val'ritha who was dressed in the black and red light armor of an Ascendant, her presence was frightening to many of the Council members who could all sense her psionic strength which manifested in a crimson aura.
+I am in agreement with the Tal'darim+ then said Executor Amatelon who wore the heavy pilot armor normally used by Tempest crew members.
+To attack now would be foolish+ spoke the whisper-like voice of Prelate Amaka of the Alysaar who was wore the garb of the new breed of Xel'naga enhanced Nerazim warriors known as the Void Templars +We know nothing of the intentions of these aliens, or what they are capable of, I suggest that we first remain hidden and observe them.+
+The Prelate is on the correct path+ quietly came the voice of Eldrad who for reasons not known to the Executor had only made itself be heard only to her. +Study them, learn their strengths, their weaknesses.+
+I agree as well, we should have our Observers maintain surveillance, for now+ spoke Lacea. +If these beings prove hostile, they will feel the wrath of the Golden Armada, if not then perhaps diplomacy would serve us.+
+Perhaps you can lecture them to death, it will save us the trouble+ mocked the Fleet Lady who always had been the most difficult to work with on the Council. Ignoring the gibe with a roll of her eyes, Lacea then turned her attention to the mechanical form of Purifier Executor Rhenardthos who for now took the form of a Legionnaire.
'I AM IN AGREEMENT WITH THE PRELATE!' vocally boomed the Purifier Executor. 'YET WE MUST ALSO BE WARY OF HOW THE SWARM WILL REACT!'
+Perhaps we will be fortunate+ spoke Amatelon with arms folded. +The zerg might exterminate these intruders or they in turn will be.+
+And if it the latter occurs, we could crush the survivors while they are wounded+ added Val'ritha whose words were while tactically sound, rankled at the honor-bound Templar Executors as well as their Purifier colleague who would have preferred to allow an enemy the chance to fully defend themselves.
+But what if the zerg call upon us for aid?+ questioned Amaka which elicited looks of disdain from all of them.
+Our treaty with Overqueen Zagara is so far only one of peace an non-aggression, not one of military alliances+ reminded Lacea who deep down like many Protoss held nothing but outright hatred for the Zerg that had brought ruin to Aiur and their people. +We are not bound to aid them and we should not expect them to do the same for us.+
+This is something we can all agree on+ then said Amatelon and every Executor gave their assent.
+So it is decided then? three against two that we should assess the situation first?+ asked the Prelate towards the rest of the council and there was a look of dissatisfaction from both the Tal'darim-Daelaam and Auriga representatives who conceded on the matter. No more words were needed as the meeting was adjourned and every member got up from their seats and headed out with the Fleet Lady leaving with the greatest of haste.
+You should be wary of that one+ said Eldrad.
+I always have been+ replied Lacea who had a hunch that the Tal'darim was the most eager for there to be conflict. In the time the Velari Executor had known the Fleet Lady, she was certain that Val'ritha cared nothing for the principles or the ideals of Templar or the Daelaam, to her the Khalai, the Nerazim and the Purifiers were nothing more than allies of convenience.
When the Velari Executor stepped out of the Twilight Council, she saw the shimmering outlines of the great spires that made up New Talematros for numerous jade green pylons of Nerazim artifice had replaced the original ones. Known as Dark Pylons, these structures generated not only the powerfields needed to keep the Protoss structures operational but also generated a stealth field that concealed the buildings as well as the Protoss themselves from prying eyes. To an outsider without the necessary stealth detecting equipment, the city would have appeared as a massive artificial plateau dotted with the floating Dark Pylons.
Nearby, she noticed the towering pillar of a Dark Shrine where gathered at its base were numerous stealthed warriors who were all making their own preparations for combat. Immediately deciding on what she should do next, the Executor headed towards the structure intent on gathering the equipment she would need.
'Touching down, now' voxed the voice of the female pilot of an Arvus Lighter and within the cargo hold of the transport craft, a trio power armored enginseers accompanied by nine Servitors and half a dozen Servo-Skulls prepared to disembark. When the rear hatch opened up and the ramp was lowered, the small party of cybernetically enhanced individuals immediately activated various sensory equipment attached to their mechandrites as light and cool air flooded the compartment.
With heavy steps, the Tech-Priests cautiously moved out of the landing craft while tightly clutching Omnissian Power Axes in case of any danger, waving about their bionic artificial tentacles, each of the Enginseers gathered information about their surroundings of which was immediately shared between the three of them.
'Gravity levels at 1.0G' stated one of the Enginseers.
'Atmosphere is within the 99.9th percentile stage of acceptability for un-enhanced humans' spoke the second.
'Temperature at 82.4F' said the last as more information was being gathered but already they were coming to the same conclusion.
Finding themselves within a clear space of land surrounded by green vegetation, mostly wild grass that grew up to 1.5 meters, the Tech-Priests and their Servitor Thralls continued to survey the area while searching for a suitable landing site. Testing the humidity in the air, they theorized that there had been recent precipitation and began to calculate the probability of finding water which when compared to the preliminary Augurs before landing was becoming positively high.
For several minutes the survey team would study and catalog what different flora and fauna they encountered while still sampling their surroundings and cross-referencing it their own knowledge of other worlds. Eventually, they came to the conclusion that this world was within the acceptable parameters for human habitation and the Enginseers likened the current climate as of being similar to Ancient Terra during the late 2nd millennium at the time when humanity had just begun making its first forays into space. In time, the survey team would find massive light blue crystalline formations along with geysers emitting visibly green vapors.
Taking the time to study these things, one of the Enginseers took a sample of the crystals by using a high powered laser to cut off a chunk roughly 4 inches in length and half of that in width while another deployed a specialized Servo-Skull to test the gases from the geyser. After several minutes of analyzing these things and studying their chemical compositions, they all theorized that the crystals were of some type of mineral not unlike the various ores used in the Imperium's industry while the green gases could be used as a fuel source for vehicles and ships. Relaying such information to their colleagues above, the Enginseers then carried out their primary objective.
One of the Tech-Priests took from his belt a two foot long rod which looked very much like the batons used by the Imperial Navy's hangar crew to guide landing craft. The Enginseer then firmly planted the rod into the ground and it began to generate a signal to the Machine Spirits of their ships. He then took several steps away and after approximately a minute planting it, a massive solid object burning with the heat of entry could be seen above them.
The object landed with a loud thud which caused a mild tremor upon of the ground, it looked as if several metal boxes were welded together and had engines placed along the sides. Intoning the necessary prayers to the Omnissiah, bright yellow metallic arms protruded from the sides of what was a prefabricated structure which contained the partially constructed form an Astra Militarum Field Command.
Working together as a group, the Tech-Priests and their Servitor thralls would quickly establish a bunker-like structure built from rockrete and ceramite that would serve as the primary Headquarters for the combined Imperial Guard forces.
Soon more prefabricated structures would be dropped in from orbit, structures as the Infantry Command Bunkers, Tactica Controls and automated defense turrets were deployed. Within half an hour, the team of Tech-Priests and Servitors had already established a fully operational Astra Militarum base and from above, they saw numerous Devourer Dropships heading towards the cleared landing zones. Aside from these Imperial Navy landing craft, they also saw one forest green colored Thunderhawk carrying the folded form of an Adeptus Astartes Stronghold.
With a small measure of pride, the Enginseers were glad to do their part in bringing a piece of Imperial civilization to this unknown world. Yet unnoticed by the Enginseers was a machine hidden via cloaking field and floating above them. It watched with great interest as hundreds of human soldiers made landfall.
Upon a lone mesa surrounded by steep cliffs and verdant green grasslands was a lone Daelaam outpost where a Nexus stood close to a field of mineral crystals and vespene geysers with Assimilators placed upon them, dozens of robotic Probes diligently continued their work of mining and harvesting all were unconcerned of recent the developments for such was not in their programming.
Around the Nexus structure were Pylons which provided power to a series of Photon Cannons and Shield Batteries that formed a defensive ring surrounding the command structure. It was then that flashes of light suddenly appeared near one of the Pylons which in a matter of seconds took the forms of six protoss warriors who successfully warped in to the outpost.
Having donned the armor an Avenger, Executor Lacea looked very much like a Nerazim Warrior of the Zer'atai tribe save of course for the many gilded plates that appealed to the aesthetic senses of the Templar, the bright cyan power stones and of course a yellow cloak to represent her heritage to the Velari.
Instead of using the Psionic Scythes commonly wielded by the Templar's own stealth warriors, she had opted instead to use a single powered gauntlet that could emit a Psionic Blade, much like that wielded by the Nerazim tribe known as the Lenassa. Accompanying Lacea were three Avengers wearing the standard equipment of their order and as soon as they all materialized, they focused their psionic abilities upon themselves and in an instant they were all invisible to the naked eye.
Setting off at once, the party of four Protoss warriors headed towards a natural path that would safely lead them to the grasslands where according to the reports from the Observatories of New Talematros, the unknown army of whom had clearly been made up of Terrans had made landfall not far away. Of all the places where these strangers could land, they just happened to arrive on the one continent of Ulnuran where the presence of the Daelaam was at its lightest. By the time the four Templar started making their descent, they were joined by an Observer, one of many such machines that also patrolled the skies and it would serve them by keeping watch for any hidden threats.
Maintaining a steady pace, the Avengers strode across the grassy plains, their silent steps barely left any footprints upon the ground as they traveled towards the position of another Observer unit that had spotted a group of these unknown humans. They maintained communications with New Talematros which reported that so far it seemed these strangers were unaware of their presence on the planet, of the Zerg though on Un'lazar, there were sightings of increased activity as the more conspicuous Overseers were immediately pulling back to the moon's atmosphere as human landing craft had also been deployed there. No communications had been made yet by the Swarm but Lacea wondered if they would attempt some form of contact first and if it did happen, she was somewhat concerned about there own.
After some time, the Velari Executor was given a report that one of the Observers in the region had spotted a scouting device floating about, one that took the shape of human skull outfitted with mechanical components. Curious thought the Executor who had sometimes seen the Terrans use the bones of their own dead as ornamentation but never had they used such in the creation of some form of machinery. She was then informed that the Observer recognized that the skull-machine had some form of surveillance equipment as well as stealth-like capabilities.
So much for remaining undetected thought the Executor who then began to feel a familiar psychic presence.
+Executor+ called the voice of Eldrad. +There is something you must know of these... humans.+
Aboard the Bridge of the Battle Barge Vosotho, Captain Palleon Cornelius of the Aurora Chapter's 4th Company and assigned Force Commander watched the holo-screen as it showed him the pict-capture of one of their Skull Probes. In the air above it was a floating machine that had previously been hidden away in a manner that reminded him of the Stealth Suits used by the Tau, its mechanical eye was fixated upon the Skull-Probe which likewise studied the thing. Judging by its sleek elegant design which possessed an inhuman elegance to it, the Force Commander was certain that it was xenos in design which was troubling for it did not resemble anything from any species he knew of.
Throughout the history of the Imperium, there had been many, many wars against all manner of alien races. Some proved pathetically easy to crush while others like the Eldar, Orks or Hrud had remained a constant thorn on humanity's side but there were also those far more deadly waiting in the darkness. He knew that species like the Necrons slumbered within ancient tombs, a number of which had been unknowingly inhabited by while others like the Tyranids, the Slaugth and the Lacrymole were capable of infiltrating the teeming masses of Man, their threats not known until it was too late and the corruption ran deep.
He had fought many wars against the aliens, some in defense of the Emperor's domains while others for righteous extermination but always there was a great threat to be had when facing the unknown. Operating a terminal close to him, the Force Commander switched the image to another Skull-Probe which was studying a large pyramid like structure with a glowing crystal floating above it.
The sight of this brought forth unpleasant memories of a previous campaign where he had led an armored assault on a Necron Tomb Complex where the deathless machines had activated several of their deadly Monoliths which wreaked great havoc among the Aurora Chapter's Predators.
Resolving to be cautious for when he would encounter this thing, he then relayed this information to General Korden who was still aboard The Chariot as well as to his fellow Force Commander among the Executioners. Curious of how progress was commencing on the moon of the unknown world, he then opened a Vox-link to the Bastion of Dorn, another Battle Barge which like the Vosotho had a long and storied history dating back to their respective founding Chapters. The Force Commander was then greeted by the pale face of a bald headed Chapter Serf who dutifully remained respectful towards him.
'Hail to you lord Cornelius, of the Sons of Guilliman, how may I aid you?' asked the Serf in a dutiful manner.
'My Skull-Probes have detected a xenos presence on the planet below us' replied the Aurora Chapter Force Commander. 'What news from the reconnaissance forces sent to it's moon?'
'One moment my lord' then said the Serf who was most likely adjusting something from a terminal aboard the Bastion of Dorn's bridge and data immediately began flowing into the Vosotho.
The holo-screen in front of the Force Commander then switched to the view of an Executioner Skull-Probe which had a time-stamp on the upper right of the screen marking this recording as of only being made less than a minute ago. Moving in the company of a squad of Scouts armed with Boltguns, they traversed through dense jungle terrain while staying alert for any possible hostile contact.
Vox-reports had filtered in through the Skull-Probe that Mechanicus survey teams had established a base of operations for the Imperial Guard's Catachan Jungle Fighters as well as another base for the Executioners. One of the Scouts then began shouting something in some debased Feral World tongue and the Skull-Probe looked up to see a hideous flying beast that somewhat resembled a spider with leathery flesh connecting between its legs trailing after them.
'Shoot it down!' ordered the Scout Sergeant and as one the squad opened fire with their Boltguns. Dak-dak-dak came the staccato of bolter fire as the rounds flew and exploded on the chitinous flesh and membranous wings of their stalker and rather surprisingly still managed to stay afloat just for a moment before it expanded what seemed to be its wings. Something was then spat out of the creature which quickly turned around and flew away with great speed and suddenly there was a loud blood-curdling cry from one of the Scouts.
The Skull-Probe turned towards a Scout Marine whose chest exploded in a shower of ceramite, bone and gore as two winged creatures just leaped out at once with one latching on to the face of another nearby scout, clawed appendages being raised while the other was lost from view.
Frantic fire then broke out as whatever it was quickly moved about and the Scout who face was covered cast aside his gun and used both hands to forcefully remove the thing and when he did, the Force Commander saw the bloody ruin of the young marine's face before he hurled it down and stomped on it with all of his might. After a seemingly long period which in actuality was just six seconds, silence descended upon the squad of Scouts as one of the others managed to shoot whatever had burst out of the chest of their unfortunate brother.
A rustling among the brush was heard and the Skull-Probe immediately deployed its sensors where it picked up several dozens of bio-signatures. A grim look then came upon the face of Force Commander Cornelius as he watched dozens of small winged creatures roughly the size of Tyranid Gaunts leap out from the foliage in a tide of chitin, claws and teeth. Bestial screeches filled the recording's audio as the Astartes leader heard the muffled sound of pained screams of limbs being severed and flesh torn to ruins as the swarm of the things ripped the Scouts apart.
The Skull-Probe was then attacked as the screen suddenly went black before returning to the stunned face of the Chapter Serf from earlier whose visage had grown paler with an expression of muted horror. As the Force Commander was about to inquire something, a quick warning klaxon aboard the bridge was heard as one of the Aurora Chapter's own Serfs began calling to Cornelius' attention.
'My lord, we have an incoming transmission' said an old man dressed in forest green robes and sitting by a nearby Vox terminal.
'Patch it through' replied the Force Commander and the holo-screen became grainy for a moment before finally revealing an incredibly alien and inhuman face of an insect-like creatue with bright green glowing eyes, chitinous armor platings and two tusk like appendages growing out from where a man's chin would be.
'This is Broodmother Araz'Kesh and we demand that you Terrans identify yourselves!' came a horridly scratchy and raspy voice from the creature on the screen which somehow communicated in a manner that was somehow understood by the Imperials.
'This is Warlord Thorgar Guthrum of the Executioners' then came the enraged voice of the other Force Commander whose face appeared on a separate screen with a look of barely controlled for he too had just witnessed what had happened. 'What manner of foul xenos are you supposed to be?'
'We are the Zerg, we are the Swarm!' replied the insectoid creature which did not seem to possess a mouth, thus raising the possibility of psychic communication or some other stranger means, he was also concerned by the fact that it had earlier used the word "Terran" which suggested that it knew what humans were, if so then there was very much the possibility of a lost colony somewhere. 'Your presence here violates our treaty with Emperor Valerian Mengsk!' it then added in an accusing manner.
'Emperor Mengsk?' incredulously questioned Warlord Guthrum which then confirmed Cornelius suspicions but was now concerned by the mention of a treaty for how could other humans possibly make peace with such vile xenos? 'We are warriors of the God Emperor of Mankind!' declared the other Force Commander 'We answer only to the authority of Him on Earth!'
'Earth?' then spoke the creature in a way that suggested that it too knew of humanity's cradle. 'Are you Terrans of the United Earth Directorate then?'
'I know nothing of this Directorate, but we are of the Imperium of Man and you have spilled human blood!' hotly responded the Warlord. 'Prepare for extermination xenos filth!'
With that, communications were cut and the Aurora Chapter Force Commander let out a sigh through grimaced teeth as this meant that they had just now been dragged into a war with an unknown xenos race. If things were completely up to him, he would have at least tried to learn more about these aliens before starting a war for the grave was filled with fools who rushed headlong into danger. Shaking his head in disapproval he then opened communications with The Chariot and was greeted by the face of General Korden.
'I know as well what happened' said the General who was surrounded by a thin mist of grey smoke, his expression darkened by the news as well. 'I am already receiving reports of hostile contact with these, Zerg, Colonel Thatch and the Catachan XXX are currently down there on the moon and are spearheading all Imperial Guard operations.'
'We should be wary of the other xenos' said the Force Commander who really wished to investigate the possibility of other humans in this unknown part of the galaxy but for now had to deal with more pressing concerns. 'It would be ill-advised to start another war against an enemy we know nothing about.'
'Agreed' nodded the General. 'I have already relayed orders to all of my forces to return to base and fortify our foothold.'
'Emperor be with you' then said the Force Commander who then ended the communications link and began relaying orders to his own forces on the main planet.
'We have orders to return to base!' bellowed Commissar Geron Arnaud towards the squad of Rough Riders he had been assigned to of which in total numbered six members, including himself. Word had come in that the Catachan XXX as well as the Executioners Chapter had made contact with an unknown but hostile xenos species while the Aurora Chapter had detected the presence of another and altogether different alien presence on this world.
'Permission to speak sir?' saluted one of the Guardsmen, a Cadian Corporal who probably would have been shot on the spot by another Commissar but Arnaud had always favored the Cain Doctrine taught by certain circles within the Schola Progenium which emphasized the importance of building trust and camaraderie among the common Guardsmen.
'The horses are tired sir, we should give them more time to rest' said the Corporal and just by looking at the beasts, the Commissar could see why. Gathering around a shallow pond with water that had been considered safe enough for human consumption (after of course proper purification), the rather shaggy steeds which had been given as a gift to the 999th from the grateful populace of a frozen world were more used to the climate of tundras over the temperate weather which while pleasant to the Cadians, was downright sweltering for them as their fur was soaked in sweat.
'We'll give them five more minutes' nodded the Commissar for the Cadian 999th currently only had about three dozens horses left after their last campaign which had pitted them against Feral Orks on another frigid world. So far, they only had enough of the beasts to field about three full strength squads, seven at the most if they divide them into the smallest possible units of five members each.
While waiting for their mounts to recuperate, the squad of Rough Riders formed a perimeter with each man keeping keeping an eye out for any possible dangers, hands gripped on the handles of their laspistols. The Commissar was perhaps a little nervous because had heard the Vox report of unknown xenos drones like those of the Tau and were even equipped with stealth technology.
Aware that the Tau deployed floating machines which were also armed with their equivalent of sniper rifles, he kept quiet about this bit of information because the last thing he needed was the men jumping at every shadow.
One of the horses then whinnied and began stomping on the grassy ground and immediately the others became agitated as well. Noticing the discomfort of the beasts which possessed keener senses of hearing and smell than Men, his palms began to itch and the Commissar quickly considered the idea of mounting up and ordering them to fall back at once. The hairs on the back of his neck stood as his skin broke into goose-flesh for there was a sudden unnatural change in the air, like when a psyker used their powers.
+Peace Terrans, I mean you all no harm+ came a feminine voice within their minds and suddenly appearing before the squad of Rough Riders was a slender grey skinned creature that practically towered over them all.
'Oh frak, xenos!' cried one of the Rough Riders who drew his laspistol towards it with an agility that would have made a gun-slinging desperado proud.
+I come in peace+ repeated the alien who lifted up a pair of hands with each extremity possessing four digits adorned with gilded jewelry that ended in claw-like nails. Dressed only in loose bright yellow robes with blue glowing eyes, he noticed that the alien had no mouth and he realized that it was communicating with them through telepathy.
'Witch...' whispered the Corporal in a horrified tone who came to the same conclusion as the Commissar quickly attempted to salvage the situation.
'Who or what are you?' questioned the Commissar who did his best to hide his revulsion towards the alien. There was something about this creature's mannerism and appearance which uncomfortably reminded him of the effete Eldar.
+I am Lacea+ gently answered the alien who continued to speak into their minds and he began to feel a strange calming effect on his nerves which part of him realized was some form of psyker witchcraft.
'Get out of my head!' frantically demanded the first guardsman who spoke earlier and he fired a lasbolt from his pistol that would have struck the alien in the throat but instead had dissipated in a flash of blue light which the Commissar recognized as of being some form of defensive shield.
+How disappointing+ then said the alien who suddenly leapt towards the Commissar who already had his plasma pistol and power sword drawn. As the alien's clawed fingers were about to grasp for his throat he instinctively slashed at it and the xenos exploded in a puff of blue smoke and leaving no trace as of ever being there in the first place.
'We need to leave, now!' ordered the Commissar and one of the Rough Riders suddenly collapsed to his knees as his head fell to the ground and blood sprayed out like a geyser from the stump of his neck. Another Rough Rider was suddenly lifted up to the air, a bloody wound had instantly appeared in the center of his chest while a third man was split in half from the waist with entrails spilling out.
'Feth!' hissed the Commissar who immediately sprinted towards the horses that were now wildly braying while lifting their hooves, he then heard a cry anguish as another Rough Rider fell with blood bursting from his back. The Corporal then tripped and landed hard upon the grassy ground, the Commissar looked back to see the man and without thinking it he rushed forward to help him.
As he was about to reach the NCO, the man suddenly jerked as blood burst from his mouth and something hard smashed into his face. Stars exploded in the vision of the Commissar as consciousness threatened to leave him and he instantly felt another impact as something struck his chest as if an ork had just punched him. Collapsing to his knees and left winded, the Commissar dropped his weapons as he gasped and tried to get air back into his lungs and he heard a loud thud as something heavy stepped onto the grass in front of him.
Looking up, he saw four tall, mouthless grey skinned aliens with blue glowing eyes, golden armor adorned with bones and gleaming energy weapons that formed into blades. He immediately recognized that the smallest of them was the creature, Lacea whose eyes had narrowed into an almost glaring-like expression with right arm raised and clawed hand clenched tightly into a fist. Commissar Arnaud barely felt it when the punch landed and he was soon consumed by darkness.
+The Terran officer is still alive Executor+ stated one of the Avengers as the small party had now allowed themselves to become visible for there were no immediate threats nor were there any other pieces of sensory equipment which their Observer could detect.
+We will take this one prisoner+ commanded Lacea who firmly grabbed the unconscious human by the collar of his garments which somewhat resembled those used by the Terran Dominion's own military leaders.
The Velari Executor then sent her thoughts to the cloaked Observer that accompanied them and it instantly delivered a message back to New Talematros that requested for a Nexis to make a Strategic Recall on their position. A sphere of cyan light instantly then engulfed the assembled Avengers and after another second they all vanished along with their unconscious prisoner.
The wind blew upon the empty plain for all that had been left of the Cadian Rough Riders were corpses and their horses of which had remained unharmed. After about an hour, a floating Skull-Probe would discover the bodies of the missing squad and report back to the main Imperial base. But by then, the conflict had already escalated into full scale war.