Index Astartes - Dark Angels: Lords of the Host

The first legion were once the shining examples of what Astartes could be, but they have fallen far from what they once were. Now they head vast hunting packs, of Daemonhosts and Xenos beasts, all chanting the Praise of the Tyrant of Caliban. Deep within the eye, their Primarch makes his lair surrounded by his court where he reigns king among mad men.

Origins:

Upon Shattered Caliban, the tale of Lionel Jonson, lord of the First, begins. Caliban was what would be classified as a death world, long lost to humanity during Old Night. After its shattering much of the information on it was lost, but Loyal inquisitorial savants have pieced together the past.

Caliban was covered in forests, populated by Beasts that would attack the few human settlements out of malice. To combat this an order of warriors was created, the Knights of Caliban. Armed with what technology remained from before the Dark Age, the Knights managed to strike a balance between the Beasts and humanity.

After the Dark Gods stole the Emperor's 20 sons, one hit Caliban. The Lion was found as a teenager, by a Knight known as Luther. His fellow knights told him to kill the boy. No child could have survived by himself in the dark forests of Caliban, so he must have been a beast. But to the detriment of all, Luther with his kind heart took him in and claimed him as his son.

He named him Lionel Jonson, the Son of the Forest after how he survived where even a grown man would have died. Even after he had become a Knight, Lionel had the habit of disappearing into the Forest unarmed. He would come back covered in the blood of Beasts so it was assumed that he was training himself by hunting the monsters of the Forest.

He ran alongside Azariah, as he had named his Pride-Brother. His true name was a complicated roar, that was unpronounceable with a human tongue. They tackled a four legged horned thing and ripped it apart with tooth and claw. As they gorged on its flesh, Azariah growled out something that approximated to, "It is nice to see that living among the pink one's hasn't softened you brother. Your fangs are still sharp and your hide is still tough. How are they treating you?"

Lionel roared back, "Good brother. Their Alpha has taken me in. Their ways are strange but are worth learning,"

They talked back and forth, hunting as they pleased when they hungered. Before leaving for the deeper parts of the Forest while Lionel went back to the Fortress of the knights, Azariah gave a warning.

"While you stay strong now brother, take care not to be weak like the rest. Mother still hasn't forgiven you for your escape, and she vents her fury on the very jungle. It is not long now before she comes for you,"

After delivering the warning, Azariah loped off leaving Lionel alone in the dark of the Forest.

Soon Lion had outgrown his foster father, both physically and mentally. Soon he had become the Grand Master of his Father's order. As his first order as Grandmaster, he declared a crusade to unite the Humans of Caliban. With the aid of Luther, he formed a grand alliance of all the knights.

Azariah came to his brother covered in wounds. "Mother found power in the woods. She has bent most of our brethren to her will. Are you ready brother? I have seen the pack of Humans as you call them. They seem weak and untested."

Jonson murmured in the tongue of lions as he bound his brothers wounds, "It will have to do. We will put her down. I will try to make it quick for the love that she once showed me,"

The beasts of Caliban had been changing ever since Lion had been discovered. They grew mutations and were even more aggressive. These "new" beasts were known as the Corrupted. At the head of the defence against them, were a new order of knights, the Knights of Lupus. Formed by the most radical of Knights, including those who had been expelled from their own orders, they were extremely effective. They bound the very beasts they fought to their will, and called upon power from beyond to smite their foes. While many called for their death, the Primarch himself endorsed them. While he was unable to use the same powers they had, he seemed to have a knack for the breeding and controlling of beasts. On the 10th year of his rule as a Grand-master, a massive wave of mutated beasts attacked the holdings of his alliance. They were unrelenting and Lionel knew who had sent them.

He delegated command of the siege to the head of the Knights of Lupus, and left for the forest with Luther and his core circle of Knights. They headed to the very center of the forest, a place where no man had ever been before. But they had a primarch (not that they knew it), leading them. He held off the Mutated beasts of Caliban, keeping his comrades alive. It took time but eventually they reached the heart of the forest, and the heart of the corruption.

Lionel stared at what remained of his Pride-mother. She had grown much larger than any beast of Caliban ever had. She was covered in the mutations of the Corrupted and was surrounding by mind bent beasts, including Azariah. She roared out like a thunderclap, the meaning only known to Jonson.

"My wayward son comes home. Embrace us,"

He couldn't deny he was tempted but as he took a step forward, the voice of Luther rang out crystal clear.

"What are you doing son? Kill the beast as we are meant to!" he called out, as he fought off a snake necked thing with far too many legs.

Brought back to his senses Lionel charged what remained of his Mother.

As he struck the Matriarch of the Corrupted, her grip on her slaves weakened. Her most recent acquisition, Azariah, managed to shake off his bonds long enough to attack her. While he was almost instantly killed, he bought time for the Lion of Caliban to pierce her hide and rip out her heart.

As she fell, so did every last Corrupted on the planet. Lionel was grievously wounded, so Luther and the Surviving Knights rushed him back through the forest to the sanctuary. He remained in a Coma until a Stranger with a Golden Aura came as a healer. He merely touched Lionel, and he woke up.

Luther embraced his risen son, the knightly facade falling for a second as the sheer emotion of his son returned took over. Then it came back as he realized he was being watched.

Lionel stared at the stranger. He seemed familiar.

"Do..Do i know you friend?"

The Emperor of Mankind cast off his illusion and appeared in all his glory,

"I am the Emperor and i have come to take you home"

The Lion pledged his loyalty to the Emperor, and took over the first legion. Many of his knights were inducted into the first legion and those few who had proven worthy but too old, like Luther were given gene-augs to make them similar to astartes.

The Great Crusade:

"We are the first legion, and will always be first. I look upon you all and i feel pride. For i see myself in every one of you. I see defenders of the Innocent, Men who die so that those we protect do not have to. With Bolter and Blade, we shall retake the Galaxy as i and my knights retook Caliban! Rise my sons, My Dark Angels!

Excerpt from the speech of Lionel Jonson as he took command of the First Legion.

The Dark Angels were already fervent crusaders, but now they doubled their advance. With a Primarch at the head of their forces, they were an unstoppable force, purging hundreds of worlds of Xeno taint while reclaiming the human populations.

On their very first world, Saroshi, they confronted the horrors of the warp. The Knights of Lupus (or the Lion Guard as they were now known) had to use every last drop of their sorceries to merely keep the legion alive. The Saroshis bound warp entities into their warriors, making normal human soldiers able to stand against Astartes.

Upon the world of Dulan, the Space Wolves and the Dark Angels met for the first time, and so did their respective Primarchs. Both of them thought the other as a fool. Eventually this devolved into a brawl between Primarchs as they disagreed on how to attack the capital. For a day and a night they fought, tearing apart the building they were in, until they fell in each others arms laughing at how foolish they both were. The bonds between legions were strengthened, and in the Dark days to come the Lion would become the Wolfs foremost lieutenant.

The Dark Angels had been the most numerous legion but after the Rangdan Xenocides they were severely reduced. Lionel did not take this well and began speeding up Astartes recruitment. The Legion began rebuilding at a rapid rate but the new Dark Angels weren't the honourable knights of Caliban. The sped up gene processing broke many of them mentally.

Anyone who protested was sent to Caliban to guard it. It was a great dishonor, reserved for those who had failed him. Among those sent, was Luther. His foster father was sent there for daring to question the Primarch about the new recruitment methods, and he accepted his punishment while seething inside.

Other than Russ, not many of the other primarchs had a good relationship with Jonson. He was seen as aloof and distant. He earned the respect of most, but friendships were few and far in between. The only other primarch he had a good relationship was Jaghatai Khan. The White Scars, despite their stubborn independent streak, showed the Dark Angels and the Lion the respect they felt they deserved and were treated in kind.

Upon Ullanor, Horus was declared Warmaster. Of all the Primarchs, it was whispered that only the Lion could have competed for the position and Horus was only picked because of nepotism. He internally seethed with fury at this perceived slight, but maintained a calm front in front of his brothers. He took his legion on a grand crusade to prove themselves, despite their losses. They ventured far from Imperial Borders, hunting down whatever they found there. They headed toward the Eye of Terror, driven by some unknown instinct that glory awaited there. But all they found was death and Madness.

Lion looked upon his Traitor Sons. They had dared to speak against him and for their crimes were stripped of their armor and chained in the under decks. His librarians had told him of a ritual to increase their might at the cost of their minds, and these filth were already dead to him and his loyal sons. He bade the Librarians at his side to begin the ritual. They chanted in a strange tongue and the Traitor began convulsing. His arms went from astartes to a strange spiked whip thing back to normal again. Energy pulsed under his skin as he twisted and turned before suddenly falling slack. The new Possessed Marine opened his red glowing eyes.

No one knows what happened within the Eye but when the Dark Angels came out, they were almost all Daemon-hosts. Only the Primarch himself and his Librarians remained "pure". When they exited tainted territory they received an emissary from the Space Wolves.

Upon the flagship of the Dark Angels, Leman Russ spoke to his closest brother and convinced him to raise the Banner of rebellion alongside him. Sources from within (although no one can say who) say that it was pitifully easy to bring him over to the traitor side,

The Dark Angels had no need to purge their legion like the other traitor legions had to. Almost every legionnaire had been converted into a Daemonhost. So they had their full force upon Istvaan.

The Heresy:

Upon the fields of Istvaan, the Sorcerers of the First broke the minds of any who dared oppose them. They remade their minds into a perfect habitat for the Daemons around the battlefield, who graciously accepted their new homes. These new daemon-hosts were fearsome but were nothing compared to the Daemon-hosts made of the Dark Angels. They threw themselves at the loyalists with great ferocity, hoping for their own deaths.

Lionel himself managed to avoid direct confrontation with his loyal brothers until their rush to the Ships. He combated the Urizen and gained the upper hand. Lorgar was one of the most pacifistic of the primarchs and a scholar, and the Tyrant of Caliban (as he was starting to be called) was a warrior beyond him. Lorgar gave a good fight but would have died if it wasn't for Fulgrim charging into Jonson to aid his brother. Unlike Lorgar, Fulgrim was a warrior first and foremost. He struck the Lion down but was forced to back off by a swarm of his sons while they recovered his barely living body.

Jonsen was taken to his ship and was attended to by the finest Apothecaries in the Legions. He was put into a medical coma so that his body may heal properly, but while his body rested his mind was under attack. The daemons surrounding the ship attacked his soul, hoping to consume it and take the body. With a Primarchs body there was nothing that was out of the reach of their fell ambition. But the Tyrant held. His will was like iron and instead of being consumed like the Daemons wished, he consumed them. His mindscape took the form of the Jungles of old Caliban, where he alone was predator and the Never-born hunters became the prey.

The Lion ran. He had hunted the hunters for as long as he could, but even one such as he could only fight for so long. He could only hope that he found a way out of his own mind before they devoured him. He stumbled over a root that seemingly appeared from nowhere. His pursuers caught up to him before he could get up, and one raised a blade finger to end him when time itself stopped.

A voice rang out. It was rough and spoke with the roar of a hundred different beasts.

"I am the Dark Knight, Lord of the Hunt. Serve and be Saved, or defy me and be devoured"

Within these words a much stronger telepathetic message was conveyed. This "Dark Knight" did not want an empty shell like most of it's kin wanted. It's power would only be contained by one of equal standing and the Primarch qualified. If his soul was consumed, his shell would be burnt up in naught but days. It seeked a partner, a symbiote. In exchange it offered safety from the Daemons and to return him to his own body. Lionel Jonson accepted this offer, and embraced the Daemon as it entered him.

Back in the real world, Lionel awoke. While months had passed inside his mindscape, it had barely been a week in the real world. The drop site massacre was done with and He was updated onto the death of Mortarion. The Dark Angels had suffered losses but nothing they couldn't recover from. Lionel ordered his legion to go to an unremarkable planet by the name of Radali.

Radali was a planet devoted to the Cults of the Dark Knight, one of hundreds of chaos planets left in the wake of the Rebellion. Upon Radali, The Tyrant discovered the true nature of the slumbering daemon bound to him. Aarkali or as he was more commonly known The Huntlord, was the warp reflection of every atrocity committed in the name of Honor. The Cults offered what they had been developing in secret for years waiting for one such as him as he to come. Hunting beasts raised from sentient xenos species that were thought to have long gone extinct and daemon-engines forged in the shape of Steeds. The finest of all these was given to the Primarch himself. A pack of raptor-esque xenos to drive the prey, A dragon shaped engine bound with a greater daemon of each god to catch it, and a spear bound with part of Aarkali's own essence to kill it. Decked in a suit of armor also provided by the cultists and with the gifts in tow, The Tyrant entered the centermost synagogue of the Cults. Upon the altar, there was a part of Aarkali's true form. As he touched it, the part of the Daemon that had bonded itself with him awoke. It synced with the rest of its body and there was a blinding flash of warp-light.

The Primarch had properly awoken the Daemon and it had bound itself to him, his weapons and his armor. It had reshaped his armor to resemble that of the Fallen Knights of Medieval times and bonded it to his skin. His very body was charged with warp energies, turning it a pale white under the armor, laced with black veins. It increased his strength and speed tenfold. While this wasn't Apotheosis, it was close.

After receiving the Blessings of Radali the primarch ordered the planet mass shattered. None dared ask why. Once all of Radali was dust he ordered his ships to head toward Caliban. The troops stationed upon it would come in use during the siege. But the Dark Angels stationed upon Caliban did not respond to their hails. Once they came closer to the planet itself, the planet's orbital defences opened fire upon them.

Astropathic Reports had came to Luther from the Loyalists about the Treachery of the Lion. He and his garrisoned swore an oath to stay loyal despite their gene-father's actions. Luther used every contact he had to fortify Caliban for he knew that Lionel was going to come back to his homeworld for the troops stationed there. But they would be denied.

Angered at the treachery of his sons, Lionel descended onto Caliban. With his dragon mount he bypassed most of the loyalist defences and landed upon the highest Tower of Caliban, the new residency of Luther. He bellowed out for his father to face him.

Luther stood against the Monstrosity that was his son. He had made bargains with fell powers, Xenos and everything in between leading up to this moment. Little of him remained that wasn't augmented or covered with sorcerous symbols. He knew that given time he would be damned if he wasn't already but Luther knew that he would die here. All that remained was to make his bastard pay for his treachery. In his right hand was a Lion Sword like that his son once used. He had augmented it with technology he had bought from a Rogue Trader, so that it repelled the warp. In his left hand. raw sorcerous energies crackled like lightning.

"How dare you Father? How dare you betray me like the rest of my sons?" The Lion bellowed out, his rage clear.

"Betray you? All i did was refuse to become a honourless dog like you are now," Luther said quietly, but not without venom. "I kept my pride and my dignity rather than enslaving myself to some warp entity and betraying my species. I should have put you down when I found you in the forest. I shall right that mistake now!"

Luther charged his once-son who struck him aside. But rather than dying like was expected, green energies knitted his skin back together. He attacked again and again. Luther was the best swordsman on Caliban but there was not much he could do against a primarch. It was as if the Tyrant had a second pair of eyes watching for his blows. He risked it all on a final blow. He dropped his guard and charged at the Lion for the last time, getting impaled but managing to land a blow with his Sword. The Xenos tech immediately began drinking up the Warp Energies that coursed through Jonson's body. Lionel threw him off his spear and ripped out the blade. With all the Adrenaline, Luther summoned enough strength to stand once more, to stand and face his death. Lionel threw the spear at him, impaling him to the ground. The Grandmaster of Caliban fell with a smile on his face, knowing that his objective had been met.

Deep within the underbowels of the Fortress, Zaharial and the rest of the Loyalist Librarians finished their ritual. The loyalist dark angels began disappearing from the battlefield, cast across time and space. Before he disappeared as well, he activated the final failsafe.

Zaharial detonated a bomb that drew upon the warp. It shattered Caliban and devoured the warp around it to incinerate it. A split second before it blew up The Hunt Lord took full control of the Primarchs body, and used its psychic abilities to evacuate as many dark angels as it would and the Primarch onto the ships.

The Siege:

After this slap in the face, the Dark Angels headed back to join the main body of the Revolt which had reached the outer reaches of Sol. While The Primarch wanted to hunt down his wayward sons, He knew that he would have all the time in the world for that after he helped Russ kill the Emperor. They broke through the Defences and rushed to Terra where they deployed in full force.

Daemonhosts ran across the battlefield, commanded by their Sorcerer Kin. Ferocious huntbeasts accompanied them, killing all in their way. They stuck to the center of the traitor advance, not used to heading the charge or the type of siege warfare needed to break through the palace.

The Lion himself rarely took to the battlefield, and only when Russ did. This was entirely unlike him and many among his allies wondered if the Tyrant of Caliban's resolve had broken.

Deep within the Invincible Reason, the Lion stirred on his throne. His blood pounded and he wished to assuage it in the flames of battle, but the daemon within told him to resist the urge. Lorgar's Bastards hunted him, and had prepared countermeasures that would hurt both him and the daemon within. The risk was too great. Despite these great reasons, he still felt like he was hiding.

When Russ Assaulted the Palace, the Lion fought alongside him, but rather than entering the maze, he backed out and retreated to his Ship where he would remain for the rest of the heresy. When the news came that Russ had been obliterated by the Emperor, the Dark Angels were the second to run, right behind the Space Wolves that had decided to not embrace oblivion.

Post-Heresy:

Caliban had been shattered and the Dark Angels had no other major fortresses, so rather than trying to fortify another planet, Lionel ordered his legion to retreat to the Eye. There, they took over a planet not dissimilar from Caliban. It too was covered in monsters and a forest, and the humans fought them off. But unlike Caliban, there were no heroes in shining armor to save the humans. There were only those Monsters that took Human form. These lords of Corruption impressed the Tyrant who recruited those young enough into the Dark Angels.

He ordered a vast palace be erected for himself. And so it was done. The Fortress of the First as it came to be known, was built in 1 year and was worthy of the likes of the Fists or the Iron Warriors. Indeed, the help of traitors from both those legions was taken.

The Ascension of the Lion:

It is unknown when Lionel went from being a Primarch with a Daemon Bonded to him, to being a full fledged daemon primarch. The few inquisitors that research such topics believe that he ascended through the slow draining of warp energy from Aarkali, creating the perfect eternal host.

With massive sorcerous power, the Tyrant of Caliban sent earthquakes all around half of the planet, destroying the forests but upheaving massive amounts of minerals. He declared that upon this half of his planet, He would be built the ultimate steed. Upon the Other half he would have the strongest hunting pack bred for him. All in preparation for the moment his wound finally healed and he could harness the Full powers of the Dark Knight.

Of his traitorous sons, Lionel declared a bounty upon each of their heads. Bringing back the head of an original traitor brought great glory to those involved, for they were given the position of Anointed.

The Anointed:

If the Lion is a king, his Anointed are his knights. The greatest of them are his own advisors but even the least commands armies a normal Dark Angel would kill for. When they are granted their position, Jonson transforms them with the smallest part of his own essence and the soul of their quarry. The Daemon Within and the Dark Angel are almost completely stripped of their individuality, merging the two into one. This grants them great power and more importantly control. When a Sorcerer ascends to this rank, their transformation is quite different. They are given a large portion of his essence (Although still miniscule) and their own daemon is raised from the depths of the warp, their personal warp reflection. It is then stripped of its mind and bound to its creator, granting him immense power and knowledge. Because Sorcerers of such infamy are rare, Anointed Mages (As they are then called) are extremely valuable.

The Tyrant of Caliban hasn't been seen in Imperial Territory since the end of the Heresy. Captive Dark Angels (before execution) say he plays king within the chosen of his sons being his court, going hunting when he wished for he had no more interest in the Imperium.

Vulkan listened to the Image of his brother in front of him. Lionel had changed much from what he once was. After dispensing with the Pleasantries, Jonson got down to asking what he always did. Routes through the Cages of Iron and Stone that surrounded the Imperium, and his alliance in bringing it down. The Exact opposite (and same in some ways) of what Magnus asked of him. And his answer stayed the same as always. Vulkan said calmly "Your question is old and my reply has not changed. The Scions of Nocturne are free, free from your infernal masters and free from the Imperium. In other words do your own dirty work" before dismissing the image with a wave of his hand.

Deep within the First Fortress, The Tyrant smiled. Beneath his helmet none could see, but the air around him seemed to drop a few degrees. He sent his mind through the warp, seeking the Broken mind of the Night Haunter.

Recruitment:

The 1st takes in any of the children of nobility from the planets under their rule that they feel can handle the implantationa and be trained well. Because they recruit from their own planets, they can train their recruits longer. New recruits are often trained to war for the primarch from the age of 5. Once they finish their implantation, the sacred ritual of daemon binding is done to the nonpsychically gifted of the new aspirants. The new space marines are trained by the same Human Monsters who had ruled this world before the Tyrant of Caliban took it, and as such gain parts of their own corrupted creed.

A daemon is chosen from the vast ledgers of the Dark Angels or the Aspirant searches for it himself in the Warp. While the vast majority are forced into submission, a rare few daemons actually search this out, for despite their power (or lack thereof) in the warp bonding with an Aspirant grants power to the weaker daemons and a chance to increase their legend (and so power). Once the ritual is done, the new Dark Angel is thrown into the fray, adopted into one of many Knight Brothehoods where he is armed in their fashion.

Organization:

The Dark Angels are divided into many Knight Brotherhoods, each of which is commanded by A Knight-Master. Almost all normal Dark Angels belong to one of these, although exceptions do exist. Directly below the Knight-Master is his Magus.

The Circle of Magi:

The Circle of Magi are the Knight Brotherhoods except populated solely by Dark Angel Sorcerers. Each trains its members in their specific discipline, using the accumulated knowledge of all its past members. The head of each Circle is known as the Magus Supreme. Membership is rather fluid, with members coming and going through each Circle when they wish to learn their specific magic. There are six main circles, for the five great disciplines of Warpcraft; Pyromancy, Telekinesis, Telepathy, Biomancy and Divination, along with Daemonology.

Any member of the Brotherhood can challenge another for their position, and the victor of such a duel gains power over the offender and their life. Politicking within the Brotherhood is frowned upon by the Primarch himself.

Homeworld:

Caliban is long dead by its hero's hand and all that remains is a massive null warp zone where it once was. The new home planet of the Dark Angels goes unnamed, but is sometimes erroneously called the First Fortress. Its a land split in two. Half of it is lush greenery, filled with daemon-creatures and worse. Xenos and Humans alike struggle to survive here, with the absolute best surviving long enough to become a pet. The other half is where the worlds forges are. Armor is created and broken down, along with weapons. Their entire goal is to create the finest tools for the Primarch and his circle for when he leaves his throne room.

Beliefs:

The Dark Angels believe in a twisted form of honour, that both embraces brutality and endorses it. The Lion had the rules of honour written up, and if any of them are broken, a death duel can Accompany. Worship of the Chaos gods is limited in the legion, for to acknowledge them as superior to the Tyrant of Caliban is a death sentence.

Geneseed:

Pre-heresy the Dark Angels were renowned for their purity and the ease the gene-seed took to the Aspirant, indeed they were the largest legion for a time because of this. However post heresy, their exposure to the Eye lost them their purity. Indeed, their geneseed seems to have adapted to their heretical procedures, the second progenoid being ready to take out with the first before the warp taints it when they are bound to a daemon.

Warcry:

When facing most enemies, Dark Angels call out their own name so all may know who killed them or that of the Lion. However when facing Fallen they bellow out "No Forgiveness for the traitors," in a twist of cruel Irony