Prologue:

The First Invasion

Darkness. It was only Darkness. My helmet's HUD sparked back on, allowing my vision to swiftly return. The explosion I had suffered from the Ork Wartrukk had almost destroyed my power armor's operating system. I looked around, blinking within my helmet. A rather large trench, which was occupied by a few hundred Imperial Guardsmen, lay roughly over the white desert, which was quickly being converted to red. I turned, cocking my Bolter before bringing the butt of the gun to my right shoulder, firing three shots at a charging Ork. Blood and bits of brain matter flew from the green-skinned head, as the body slumped to the ground. A blood-curdling roar was heard as a large, muscular Ork charged into a large amount of Imperial Guardsmen. The giant beast cut down the small men with its large chain axe with ease, the sickening sound of bones shattering and screams of the dead, filling the battlefield. I fired from my hip, remembering to not panic. One shot. Two shots. Finally, the third shot had made its mark, the Ork's head exploding by the sheer impact of the bullet. I turned sending the butt of my gun into the jaw of another Ork. A loud crack sounded as the head of the brute turned sharply to the side, its neck broken.

Two more Space Marines leapt into the trench, one of them immediately firing towards the large horde of Xenos. The other Marine turned, facing me. His power armor shared the same colors as mine, blue on the left and shining steel on the right. His shoulder pad carried the insignia of the Legion of Eagles, a large eagle clutching a bloody skull, its wings spread out. The Marine let out a muffled chuckle, smacking my shoulder pad in a teasing manner.

"Forgive me of my tardiness, Chapter Master. Davik wouldn't cough up the money he owed me." The Space Marine chuckled, looking towards his companion, who still fired into the oncoming horde.

I glowered at the armored man, snorting rather loudly, "I should have you executed, Saul, I have never heard of a personal guard being late to his master's battle." He sighed rather loudly, "I suppose this is what I deserve for bringing you two under my wing in the first place. As you can see, Brothers, we are in the most precarious position." I eyed the battlefield before me; the large dunes, which seemed to be releasing thousands of Orks at every second, were slowly being blotted with blood and gore. The obstacles, which were meant to stop the Ork's machines, lay destroyed. Small patches of Imperial Guardsmen were pinned down in large craters from the bombardment that had occurred earlier. Large, roughly made scrap metal structures blotted the white desert, machine guns firing from within them. A few large Roks lay among the battlefield, each billowing out smoke.

I turned to my right, the HUD in my helmet flashing bright red, warning me of an approaching Ork. I fired a shot towards the green-skin, almost blowing its left leg off. The monstrosity roared with rage, crawling towards me, his limb connected only by a string of muscle and bone. I brought my fist down on the Ork's head, blood enveloping my armored fist, as the head exploded with a loud crack.

Davik turned towards me, "You seem very irritated, My Lord." He quickly fired off two rounds at an oncoming Xenos.

I growled, once again bringing my fist down upon the Ork's corpse. "They have taken control of Gemma Arenarum before I could launch any defensive actions. Not to mention, the Warboss has yet to show his grotesque face."

Saul shrugged, his armor "clunking" with his movements, "Worry not, My Lord. The Legion is almost ready to drop. Gemma Arenarum will be reclaimed within the hour."

I nodded, looking over at the Guardsmen holding the trench, "Have the Xenos attacked the Wall yet, Saul?"

The Space Marine shook his head, before speaking, realizing his lord was facing the other way, "No, Chapter Master. The Xenos are being massacred on all fronts, excluding this one. This is probably due to the Warboss' presence."

I nodded once more, "Then let us charge and regain ground before my sons arrive with the Legion." I turned, my relic armor shining with blood. I raised my hands, roaring into the wind, "Legionnaires of the Eagle and Hawk! Listen to me, your chapter master! We will no longer be forced to wait as the Orks destroy our lands and kill innocent families. Let us charge into the horde and conquer what we have lost!" I unsheathed my power axe, raising it, "For our rage! For glory and honor! For vengeance! For the Emperor!" Every Imperial Guard roared, charging out of the protective trench, firing their lasguns at the Xenos.

I vaulted over the trench, charging towards the Orks, roaring with my power axe raised. Large amounts of sand began to stain red as the Guardsmen and Orks collided. Screams of anguish sounded over the battle as I cleaved my way through the sea of Xenos. The blade cut through the beasts' hides like butter. Davik swung his pistol hilt at an Ork, breaking the jaw with a loud "crack". The green-skinned body was thrust to the side, the jaw unhinged, and sideways. Saul fired his Bolter, rapidly, into the head of another green-skin at point blank range, blood enveloping his armored body. Saul continued to fire at the Ork's corpse until the gun let out a rapid "clicking" sound, indicating that he was out of ammo. He dropped the gun, pulling his chain sword from the sheath, already cutting through another Ork, roaring in rage.

The Orks began scattering away from me, some tripping and stumbling over the fallen bloody corpses of which were once their comrades. I eyed them before looking towards the sky, a sly smirk forming on my face. Drop pods began sailing from the cloudless sky and into the horde of Xenos. The Legion of Eagles had arrived. I slowly looked back towards the battlefield, my smirk dissipating. The Ork Warboss, eyes filled with extreme rage, roared at me. His armor was spiked, and was connected to two rather large mechanical arms. His right arm had a bloody war axe and his left arm carried a Heavy-Bolter. He grinned, the metal jaw moving with his mouth, before charging me.

I spun to my right as the Warboss passed by me. He turned swiftly, firing at me with the large caliber bullets. Bullets ricocheted off of my shoulder pads and into the unlucky bystanders, screams of pain and suffering sounding over the battle. I fired my Bolt-Pistol at the Ork Warboss' mechanical arm, hoping that it would short it out in some way, watching sparks fly from the plated armor. The Warboss roared, quickly closing the distance between the two of us, sending a bone-shattering punch to my chest plate. I flew backwards twenty feet before landing on my back in the bloodstained sand. I sat up, firing my pistol at the hulking beast before rolling to the side, barely dodging the large war axe that pierced the white sand. I quickly jumped to my feet, blocking another swing from his axe with my power axe; static crackling as both blades collided. We pushed each other away, standing for mere moments, staring at each other.

The Ork Warboss was the first to speak. His voice rough and deep, "Well, Space Marine. I though' I would see a lil' mo' figh' from you!" He chuckled, before roaring, "Puny human! Did you really think you could beat me Orks? We want our loot, an' you are in da way!" He struck his chest plate with his war axe, sparks flying from the contact,"Bu' no' fer long, Space Marine."

I growled, looking up at him, "I am Chapter Master Praelia of the Legion of Eagles. This is my world, and you are a pestilence that must be exterminated."

The large Ork roared, charging towards me once more, with increased rage. I quickly dodged the attack, swinging my axe at his right arm, cutting through the scrap metal with ease. Blood shot from the stump of what was once the Ork's arm. He roared in pain and in anger, swinging his axe towards me. I parried the clumsy swing, punching the Warboss in the chest, creating room between the two of us. I smirked as the Warboss stumbled around before ultimately falling over and onto his back.

"Oi! I'll ge' you, Space Marine! Ge' ova' 'ere!" He flailed, roaring with a mixture of frustration and fear.

I walked onto his chest, smiling. "Get off my world, Ork." I brought the blade of my axe down upon the Ork's green face, blood flying from what was once his head. Brain matter slowly flowed down the Ork's skull, a small groan sounding before silence.

I raised my fist, yelling out "Victory" as loudly as I could. The majority of the Xenos scattered in all directions, others fighting each other for control. Marines and Guardsmen cheered before exterminating the small patches of fleeing Orks.

Davik took his place by my side, "An excellent kill, My Lord. Shall I convert the body into a trophy?"

I shook my head, chuckling to myself, "Nay, I don't want a headless body in my citadel. Take it away and let the citizens do what they want to it." Davik nodded, gesturing for Saul to help him carry the massive body.

Drop pods continued falling from the sky, and the sounds of shots cracked into the air periodically. The bloody sands slowly began to turn white as the wind picked up, attacking the dunes with vigor. The sun began to set, the large orange star disappearing into the horizon. I looked up, my hands balling into fists, the darkness quickly overwhelming the light.

"Probus."

Chapter Master "Perditrix" Probus awoke, screaming. Sweat beaded down his bearded face as the man looked around, eyeing the large, darkened room.

Davik and Saul entered the room in a rush, their Bolters raised, "My Lord! Are you well?" The lights flickered on as they lowered their weapons, revealing a rather royally decorated room.

Probus looked around the room, reassuring himself that he was not in danger, "I had that nightmare again. The one about my Father." The two guards nodded, their eyes tired and hair grey. They stared at Probus for a moment before exiting the large room. Probus wiped his face with a white cloth before sighing loudly. 'Why do you haunt me father? What is it that you want?"

Probus sighed once more, taking a sip of water from his flask before laying back in his bed, and turning the light out.

Darkness.