Chapter 19: Darkness Descends
Reviewers:
The Sithspawn: You're probably right. Emily will be in this chapter near the end. Her battle with the Chaos Lord will be next.
Marine Brother Shran: Oh, then let's just say it was a shuttle version and not the standard battle version. Glad you like the story.
m6l99: Thank you. Feel free to send me any ideas you think would benefit the story.
oblivionknight7: Yes they are, but the Dark Eldar have been at it for a lot longer.
angelus288: The Tal'Shiar are the Romulan secret police. You'll see Emily's powers soon.
grayangle: I've never read anything that tells exactly what kind of FTL drive the Dark Eldar use, but I'd think the Eldar would try and keep them out of the Webway. Well if Emily turns out to be a Sensei maybe she can convince at least some of the others to join the Emperor. The Emperor never planned to sacrifice the Sensei, it was an Inquisitor sect. If the Emperor can prove that to them it could at least help reduce their fear and mistrust a bit. The Emperor IS a god, at least in a sense, it's just that he resides in the physical realm instead of the warp. He's at least as powerful as a Chaos god. It was said that the attack he used to obliterate Horus injured all four of the Chaos gods at once, and his power is one of the few things keeping humanity from the full force of Chaos. His mind may be declining but I'm betting there's at least one shard of his true self remaining and that can be brought back.
BGTom: The Imperium ships were outnumbered, in warships at least. If they'd concentrated all their fire on the Desolator that could certainly have destroyed it in a few volleys, but by then the faster Chaos ships would likely have been in their rears. The Imperium ships were concentrating on rolling the Chaos fleet's flank and clustering them together. Then they would have been able to concentrate all their fire in a relatively small area. When you're outnumbered you usually try and take out the smaller ships first. That way when it's only the big ships left you can concentrate on them without risking getting flanked. Also, a warp exit also puts out a huge amount of energy which likely interferes with targeting sensors.
darth: Probably. Still, they'll play along until they get the resources they need.
Lennox RH: The alliance will last at least long enough for the Dark Eldar to get a foothold in the Alpha Quadrant. Probably a combination of both. No way, Chaos is tough! Long Live the Emperor!
While the Naval battle still raged in space, the city of Green Fields on the surface was preparing for its own battle. Since the reports of the Night Lords attack on the bridge, the city's PDF troopers and Arbites had mustered everything they could. Riot tanks and Chimeras patrolled the main streets. Searchlights had been mounted anywhere a generator could be set up. City power was still offline. Most of the troops were patrolling the city's wall, which encircled three quarters of the city, with a sheer mountain as the fourth side. Arbiter Marshal Felkor was coordinating the troop deployments from his command Chimera.
"Move unit three to the east wall. And have those cannons been installed yet?" He asked. After the loss of the bridge garrison, during which the few surviving troops reported seeing black giants in archaic armor, the Marshal had ordered three of the Arbites compound's macro cannons to be taken down and mounted of the walls.
"You know it Marshal," his second, a massive man named Grant replied. He was the kind of man who always said what was on his mind. While he had impressive skills, his problem of not keeping quiet when he should ensured he would never rise above his current rank. For that Marshal Felkor was glad, for it meant he would always have an able second in command. "So, any word from our friends up there?" He asked, pointing at the sky where flashes of light were visible.
"A few units ofarmsmen teleported down about ten minutes ago. Brought some new weapons to. They call them phaser rifles. As soon as they're able to knock out the enemy up there they'll help us out down here," the marshal replied. "I just hope our men are ready for this."
"They will be. After all marshal, I trained 'em" Grant said, smiling.
Far above the city on the cliff, Chaos Champion Streth observed the defense of the city. His squad of Raptors had been tasked with distracting the enemy defenders and causing them to panick. He watched as most of the troops moved to defend the walls.
"Prepare to move," Streth said, his voice thick with anticipation. His unit had been waiting here for hours. They were restless.
"Why do we delay?" Delnor asked.
"Once the Warlord's surprise reached the city the enemy will be filled with fear, and that is when we will move."
A few moments later, Warlord Crallus's surprise arrived. Several of the transports from the bridge were approaching the main gate.
"They made it back! Open the gate!" Cried one guard.
"Wait! It might be a trap!" His sergeant replied. Give me some light!" He ordered, and a moment later three searchlights concentrated on the transports. They were filled with men, well, pieces of them. Blood drew a long, thick trail back along their rout. There was silence, broken only by the sounds of men emptying their stomachs. The sergeant drew his magnoculars to get a close up view of the transports. Something didn't feel right. Then he saw it. Dim, barely visible lights blinking in between the bodies and equipment. "They're bombs. Open fire!"
But it was too late. The explosives detonated and thousands of steel bearings and pieces of shrapnel cut into the men on the wall. Dozens fell to the streets, dead. Many others suffered wounds from the flying death cloud.
Sergeant Micoro picked himself up. He had a shrapnel wound in his shoulder but it wasn't too bad. Then he saw the enemy. What looked like thousands of enemy soldiers were appearing out of the fog. They wore deep red uniforms and masks sculpted to resemble daemons and other creatures. At least a dozen tanks were advancing alongside them, Chimeras and a Leman Russ.
The Marshal saw the enemy coming across the field. He had heard of these troops. They were known as the Blood Pact. Made up primarily of traitor Imperial Guard, they were regarded as one of the deadliest forces the enemies of the Imperium possessed. He had seen the bomb detonation. That seemed to have been the signal for the enemy force to attack. He opened a channel to all his troops.
"Men, listen up! The enemy is finally starting his main attack. Don't lose heart. No matter how many of them there are, we will prevail. We are soldiers of the Imperium, and the Imperium will never yield to any enemy! Just remember, keep your cool and you'll keep you're head. Now start firing damn it, and don't miss!"
All along the walls volleys of Lasgun and phaser fire lanced out. Captain Halloway, knowing his security officers wouldn't fare very well in this battle, had instead send down as many weapons as he could spare. Set on full power, enemy troops simply vanished. When the enemy got within range, a few wide beam shots were fired, vaporizing dozens of the enemy. But they simply responded with their own weapons without breaking step. Lasguns, mixed in with a few bolters, filled the air with a curtain of fire and death. Frag grenades landed in clusters of men and sent pieces of them flying.
The heavy weapons squads on the wall hosed the Blood Pact with heavy bolters, multi-lasers and auto cannons. Lascannons concentrated their fire on the enemy's armored support. Three Chimeras were eliminated, and a macro cannon severed the tracks of the Leman Russ, which responded with a shot from its battle cannon that blew apart a five meter section of the wall.
"Artillery, stand by for firing coordinates," Marshal Felkor spoke into his comm. set. The only reply was static. "Artillery, respond damn it!"
"Run. Let's get out of here!" A soldier yelled just before a bolt round detonated his head in an explosion of blood and bone. Black armored warriors were coming from the sky on red flames. There had to be at least twenty of them. They attacked with supernatural speed, swinging buzzing chainswords and blasting away with bolt pistols. They seemed to be nightmares come to life. Another soldier turned to run, but a bolt shell blew apart his knee and severed his leg. He fell to the ground with a cry.
Champion Streth leapt from the cliff with the rest of his Raptors. They fell with great cries of joy and anger. The enemy, a pitiful few dozen tasked with guarding the city's artillery, glanced up just in time to see black armored warriors descending from the sky on wings of fire. When his troops landed, they began bounding around, severing limbs and coating the ground with blood. Streth saw one of the enemy trying to run. He felled him with a pistol shot to the knee. He slowly walked over to him, stamping on the head of another enemy who had been hit in the stomach.
"Ah! Stay away from me!" Trooper Jackson yelled at the black giant coming towards him. He shakingly raised his laspistol and fired a few shots. Most missed, and the ones that hit did nothing. The enemy then seemed to blur and then he was standing over him. He caught the trooper's pistol hand and slowly crushed it, causing the man to give a very satisfying scream of pain. He was about to crush the man's head when he heard a voice coming from the man's vox set.
"Artillery, can you hear me? Respond!" A smile spread across the Aspiring Champion's face. He removed his helmet, inciting a gasp from the man at his feet at the sight of his sickly white skin and needle sharp teeth. He pulled the vox from the man's shaking hands and raised to his dry and cracked lips.
"We have come for you," he whispered, both to the enemy on the other end and to the man beneath his feet. He then crushed the vox and, with a single punch, embedded the remains on the man's chest. "Move out!" Streth called to his Raptors. They had just finished wiring the enemy artillery to explode after firing a single volley into the heart of the city. The Raptors took off in a flash of jets and seconds later the mountain shock to the massive detonation of the city's best defensive weapons.
"Emperor damn it!" Marshall Felkor cried as he watched the detonation of what could only be the artillery he'd been counting on to win this battle. The enemy were clustering around the walls. They were perfect targets. Instead they were using grapples to scale the walls while their comrades continued firing at the wall defenders. Heavy bolters and autocannons were now supporting them, along with another volley from the Leman Russ. "All right, time for plan B," he said. "Have the men fall back into the city. Once the men are clear, blow the Net."
The 'Net' was actually a series of Frag grenades and promethium bombs placed along the top of the walls. Just as the enemy was securing the wall it was transformed into a ring of fire. At the same time the grenades shredded any enemy still standing as well as peppering those climbing up with a volley of shrapnel and falling bodes.
A cheer went up from the Imperial lines, now clustered in streets and within buildings. The enemy, delayed by the PDF trap but not deterred, once again scaled the wall, more careful this time. Snipers traded fire with each other. The Leman Russ fired again, this time with an AT shell that demolished the main gate, allowing Blood Pact soldiers to pour into the city.
"See if you can get me an uplink to one of those Federation ships," Marshal Felkor ordered.
In orbit, the orbital battle was beginning to swing in the Imperium's favor. The enemy's smaller ships had all been destroyed. Now they were free to concentrate their fire on the Eternal Scream and the Eternal Night. But the Imperium vessels had sustained losses as well. The Lord Sekmet was a burning wreck after a sustained combat with the Eternal Scream. The Perfection had lost most of its portside weapons, and its drives were crippled.
On board the Valiant, Captain Halloway was coordinating the Federation fleet. While they could not engage the Chaos ships directly, they had been able to fend off several attacks by Switdeaths and Doomfires. They had also been credited with the destruction of three Chaos vessels due to torpedoes transportedinto their generariums.
"Captain, we are receiving a transmission from the planet's surface, audio only," T'vol reported.
"Put it on," Halloway replied. A voice, heavy with static, came through.
"Repeat, this is Arbiter Marshal Felkor to any Federation vessel. Please respond?"
"This is Captain Halloway of the Valiant, we are receiving you."
"We need help down here. Our artillery has been destroyed and enemy forces have taken the walls. We're holding them here but I don't know for how long. Is there anything you can send us?" Halloway turned to T'vol.
"T'vol, how many shuttles and Runabouts are our ships carrying?"
"Twelve," T'vol replied. "We could also transport torpedoes into the strongest enemy locations to reduce their numbers."
"Excellent. Have all ships launch their shuttles and head for the planet. Lock transporters onto the locations of heaviest enemy activity. Marshal, help is on the way."
On the surface the Blood Pact army was moving to surround the city. The surprise attack on the enemy artillery by the Night Lords had opened the door. Now all that was left was to move into the city and kill any remaining enemies.
General Grell, commander of the Blood Pact army, surveyed the progress of his force from his vantage point on the edge of the engagement zone. His regiment had gone over to the side of true power over five years ago. Their transport ship had become stranded in the warp and had been rescued by the Night Lords. They had at first been pressed into service as cannon fodder, but they had survived battle after battle. Eventually they Night Lords had begun using them to augment their assault forces. They had met a small force of Blood Pact, and had adopted their ways. Now Grell was well on his way to achieving absolute power. Suddenly he spied several bright streaks entering the atmosphere.
"What are those?" He asked.
"They appear to be some type of atmospheric shuttles sir," his second replied. As they got closer Grell was able to see them clearly. Some were squat boxes with stubby fins on either side. How they were able to stay in the air was beyond the General. The others were longer and shiner, with slightly larger wings.
"They must belong to the enemy. Have the Hydras lock on and destroy them," Grell ordered, and immediately the regiment's four Hydra flak tanks rotated their cannons and fired streams of glowing cannon shells. The enemy aircraft dodged as best they could. They were far less maneuverable than the Imperial craft he was used to facing, but his fire rebounded off some type of energy shield. "Well, that's a new trick," he said. "Continue firing. Their shields can't last forever."
"Shields at 95," Ensign Pardis reported. Captain Halloway had ordered all shuttlecraft and Runabouts to make attack runs on the enemy forces assaulting the city. "They're using some kind of low yield explosive shells."
"Lock torpedoes on their tanks and fire," Ensign Trent replied. He was one of the small but growing number of crew members who agreed with Halloway that the Imperium deserved all the help the Federation could give it. Many of the officers still believed that they should maintain their standards of promoting peace and not interfering with thewars of other races. Trent had seen the horrors of this galaxy and knew that, despite the outward appearance of the Imperium, it was the best hope this galaxy had for peace. The other alien races seemed mostly occupied with either calcualted murderor simply annialating everything. Ensign Trent would not let that happen. "And lock phasers on the largest troop formations. Fire."
General Grell watched as glowing spheres were launched from the enemy aircraft and struck his Hydra tanks. One hit and they exploded. Shrapnel cut across thirty meters, cutting down dozens of men. One fragment struck the General in the hip, drawing a gasp of pain from him. He then saw the fighters fire long streams of energy that vaporized hundreds of his men.
"All guns, concentrate your fire on those enemy fighters!" He ordered. He watched as every weapon that had a chance of hitting the enemy aircraft open fire. Heavy weapons, the guns mounted of the Chimeras and the one surviving Hydra. The enemies shields flared bright, and eventually one flickered. Hydra round stitched a line across the ship's belly and the light in its engines faded for a moment.
"Shields are down, and we've lost phasers," Ensign Pardis reported.
"Reroute power from auxiliary systems and fire torpedoes." Three photons targeted and destroyed the remaining Hydra tank and blew apart anti-tank squads. Over half the enemy army was gone by this point. The rest were inside the city, too close to friendly troops to risk using torpedoes. There were also the traitor marines to contend with, who, according to reports, were advancing through the city, slaughtering anyone they found.
In orbit Emily has holding her head. She could feel the deaths of those down on the planet, especially the innocents. The crystal glowed brighter.
"I have to go down there," she said.
"What are you talking about Emily?' Halloway asked. "That city is a total war zone, no place for someone like you."
"I have to!" Emily replied. "People are dying down there. I now I can do something to help. I have my crystal! I know that with it I can make a difference," she said. Her face was an expression of confidence and courage. Halloway knew he couldn't talk her out of it.
"I am going as well," Amberley said. "As soon as that fleet arrived I recognized the flagship. Fifty years ago I was nearly killed when I was eradicating a Chaos cult on Grenstil five. It turned out the Night Lords had been waiting for us. I lost my entire retinue. When I finally made it back to my ship the Night Lords were striking the cities. Before Navy vessels arrived the Eternal Night arrived and left with the Night Lords. I can still feel the injuries I received from their leader," she said, indicating a long but faint scar running down her arm. "I know he's here, and I owe him a lot of pain."
Halloway knew when he was outnumbered, not to mention outranked. He also knew that Emily had been getting stronger lately. He'd reviewed the training she had been doing on the holodeck.
"All right, but I'm coming with you. I can't very well let my daughter rome around a battlefield without someone to watch her back. T'vol, you have the bridge."
Before going to the surface the three stopped at the ship's armory. Halloway picked up a phaser rifle and slipped a hand phaser into a holster. Amberley already had her bolt pistol and picked out a rifle as well. Emily grabbed a hand phaser but knew she'd be relying on her crystal to do most of her fighting. A minute later they entered the transporter room.
"Set to bring us down next to the command center," Halloway told the Transporter chief. The three dissolved into a mist of blue light and then they were gone.
How was that? Sorry I didn't get to Emily's battle, I promise that'll happen next time. Anyway, in the next chapter, the Romulans will begin working with the Dark Eldar,and the first strike will be made. Who will it be? Keep reading and find out. Well, see ya in the next chapter, and don't forget to review!
ENTILZA