Woo, first story! This is based off of a Warhammer game I had a while back. The thing at the end actually does happen.
Nixilious V, an indomitable fortress world that is mostly covered in forest. For many years this has been the base of an Inquisitorial fireteam, only known as "The Emperor's Rage". Consisting of members of the Ordo Malleus, the First Vorkushan Half-Breeds, and the Ninth Volcanic Talons, this taskforce is considered above your standard killteam. So naturally when the Tau attack the planet they're sent out to deal with the problem, this battle being the first of their many trials during the War of Nixillion.
Inquisitor Hira Raziel lets out an aggravated sigh as the Land Raider Crusader "Terminaxus" slowly grinds to a stop at the edge of the ever-present forest. "Tech-priest! What is stopping us?" She bellows out, her Aegis pattern Tactical Dreadnought Armor amplifying the shout. A reply grinds from the internal vox systems, uselessly garbled words and binary flowing over the occupants like gravel through a chute. The Inquisitor shakes her head, figuring it's some useless babble about pleasing the Machine-Spirit and how the Omnissiah reigns supreme. As far as she was concerned, all of that was pure unadulterated heresy. A passing look over the hold allowed Hira to take in her chosen team. The two Ministorum priests, "Aniello" and "Octavian" were clutching their weapons - an Eviscerator and an Auteraxi pattern plas-rifle respectively - while muttering prayers to the Emperor, their eyes closed in concentration. In the corner, a silent Angel of Devastation prepares it's own plas-rifle, it's dulled gray armor nearly blending in with the shadows. A Volcanic Talon sitting next to her disassembles and reassembles his Hellgun, his Omnihelm revealing nothing about his emotions. Two twins from the Vorkushan Half-Breeds toy with their own weapons - Meltaguns by their choice - which causes Hira to fidget, the man-portable fusion cannons humming quietly.
Gears grind and metal clanks as the assault ramp on the front of Terminaxus opens, allowing light to pour in from the outside. "Let us move, we have much ground to cover!" Yells out Inquisitor Raziel, her heavy plated boots clanging on the metal surface before she steps into the mud, sinking in a few inches as the weight of her armor displaces the mucky substance. The priests are the first to follow, Aniello turning on the engine to his Eviscerator. The twins follow behind, their excitement unmatched as they chatter to each other in Vorkusian. "De'la ne'tru ta're da? Nix akro teni va ti!" The slightly older brother exclaims, his younger brother nodding enthusiastically. After them comes the silent Talon and then the Angel, both of their guns sweeping left and right for targets before they lower the pieces of equipment.
Boots squelch through the mud as the team enters the forest. Like hounds on the hunt, the Inquisitorial warband stalked through the trees and underbrush. Soon they come to a large split in the terrain, a large hill. "Feraki brothers, you split up. One with me, one with Aniello. Talon, go with Aniello. Angel, Octavian, you're with me," Hira commands as she moves to the right of the hill. Grunts of acknowledgement come from members of the squad as the team moves forward once again, weapons searching for the supposed Tau recon team that was sent.
Movement catches the eye of the Inquisitor and she turns to see what moved, however she frowns as she can't see what moved. Pulse rifle fire suddenly erupts from the treeline, the shots kicking up dirt around the Inquisitor's position.' "Return fire!" She bellows, charging forward and squeezing the trigger on her Storm Bolter. Fire erupts from the twin barrels as explosive ammunition tears it's way from the plasteel piping, clawing through the air towards their target. Miniature explosions detonate in the air around the Tau recon unit, none of the shells hitting their targets as brass casings pour from the casing ejection system. Plasma fire roars through the air from the two plasma guns, the shots vaporizing bits of ground and trees but no shots hit just yet. On the far side of the hill, Hira can hear the Eviscerator roar to life, the teeth screaming in their tracks. The cracks of a Hellgun firing signify that the Tempestus soldier is in range before a humming sound pierces through the air, markerlight drones moving in and firing their lasers. A few of the lasers train upon the Inquisitor, and moments later a volley of fire impacts upon her chestplate, the shots glancing off the heavy plates of ceramite and plasteel. More exchanges of fire ensue before a scream off across the hill sounds through the air. Not just any scream, a human scream. Checking her team's vitals, Hira sees that Aniello flatlined. A moment later the Tempestus soldier also flatlines, his silence in death as solid as in life.
With a roar, Hira charges forwards. "Converge unto me my brothers in steel and blood! It is upon this hammer that I vow to deal the vital blow to the enemy! For the Emperor!" She screams out, her armored legs hammering against the dirt and mud as the Inquisitor slowly closes upon the enemy. More plasma fire rains upon the enemy from her comrades. Within a moment, one of the Feraki brothers gets in range before firing his meltagun, the screaming furious firestorm that billows forth from the barrel burning through bush and melting Tau flesh alike. Screams from the survivors are quickly silenced by Bolter fire or a strike to the head.
And within an instant, Hira was upon the Tau like a furious hunting dog comes upon a tired fox. Her Nemesis Daemon hammer jumps alive, electricity crackling about the head as energy stores inside it's impact compensation units. She could see the fear in the Tau's eyes, she could practically smell it. With a mighty swing she impacts her hammer into the chest of one, his clamshell armor smashing to bits and pieces as blood and viscera splatters across the front of her own armor. She removes the hammer from the torso of the dead xenos and spins, lashing out to catch another in the head, the impact like a crack of thunders as the stored power releases. A trail of blood flies through the air as the pulped head of the Fire Warrior bounces along the ground before rolling to a stop.
Small explosions mark the deaths of the Tau's drones, destroyed from deadly melta fire. Another volley of plasma flows through the air, blasting apart Tau and Terrain indiscriminately. With a cursory glance, Hira knows that just a few Fire Warriors are left, their Shas'ui in the back with a Kodachi in his hands. Their eyes meet and an understanding is met. One of them will not leave this battlefield alive. Striding forwards, more pulsefire shots bounce off the Inquisitor's armor before with a sharp puncturing sound one pierces through the ceramite plate on Hira's left shoulder, the round burrowing deep into the flesh. She hisses in pain, now realizing that her Storm Bolter is as she crushes another Fire Warrior under her great hammer.
With a few more steps, she and the Shas'ui are face to face. "Kai La, sio Tau'va?" The Shas'ui asks, his face impassive as he slowly draws his gleaming blade. "I know not your foul words," Replies Hira, her eyes narrowed under her helm. "Why do you fight us? Why do any of us fight? All we want is for all to live under the peace of the Greater Good," Says the Tau Sergeant, his face relaxing into a tired expression. Lifting her hammer, power begins to surge through it again. "All xenos must be killed. It is the Emperor's will," The Inquisitor mutters resolutely. "Kai'xar'vesa ka'mesa," Grumbles the Shas'ui in annoyance before lifting his blade, swinging it towards the inquisitor with surprising agility.
Leaning to the side, the blade swipes by the Inquisitor's chestplate before she returns the swing in kind, the hammer planting firmly into the mud with a splattering of the water-dirt mix as the swift xenos jumps back from the strike.. A mighty heave removes the deadly weapon from the liquid dirt before the two combatants engage once more in swinging weapons of lethal nature at each other. Blows are exchanged, and no foothold is gained by either side. In a risky move the Shas'ui makes a running leap, flying over Hira's Daemonhammer to land latched to the chestplate as he grabs hold of the armored collar. He smashes the hilt of his sword up against the side of Hira's helmet before leaping back in a flip, landing lightly.
Inquisitor Raziel scrabbles to get her helmet off as the eyepieces crack, throwing the useless piece of armor to the ground once she manages to disconnect it. Black hair flows down from where it was contained, pooling over the front of the chestplate in a wave. Heterochromatic gold-green eyes lock onto the Tau as the Inquisitor raises her head, ground down horn stumps revealing her as an abhuman of the Dragonus strain. And agitated noise comes from her mouth as she takes a few steps towards the Tau before breathing in deeply, a rage building in her chest before she blows it out in a gout of flame, torching the poor Shas'ui with bright blue flames.
The smell of burning flesh fills the air, the pungent stench creeping through helm and filter alike. A shriek, neither human or xenos in nature rips through the air as a twisting technicolor rift opens in the fabric of reality. At first nothing happens. Then suddenly a clawed red hand stretches through the rift in the Warp, digging into the ground as the Daemon pulls itself from from the Immaterium. A sharp intake of breath fills Hira's lungs as she sees the being of the immaterium, before many others begin to step through the portal as well. Infernal chants burn the air, searing Hira's mind before the hexagrammatic wards in her armor activate and shield her.
Electricity arcs across the Nemesis hammer as the Inquisitor points with it. "Members of the Inquisition! Attack!" She calls, her mood eerily calm as she strides towards the daemonkin, preparing to assault the vile creatures of the Warp. Raw psychic energy tears at the ground as the foul warp-spawn stalk across the now cracking ground. A thunderclap breaks the air as the Inquisitor assaults the daemons, her hammer leading the way through the daemons. And as suddenly as the combat began, it stopped when an immense roar tore through the air.
That year, Nixilious V became infested with creatures of the warp. Things incomprehensible to the human mind crawled through the gates of the immaterium, their claws and blades tearing at flesh and reality alike. Two years later, and the final battle for Nixilious V began. Massive armies of steel and flesh clashed in battle, and the planet became bathed in blood. But that is a story for another time.
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it. Please review and tell me how I did!