AN:Time for the Big Sad. And the very Reason Kay will fight to her last breath.

My Armor is Contempt

Book 1:The Fall

Chapter 5:The Fall

"Joy and jubilation turned to horror. The very sky came crashing down, beasts of Steel and Adamantium hovering over the planet, evil, monstrous, like sea creatures from tales of Yore... Then they wrought down the Fires of Hell... And below them, the world cracked and was torn asunder."

-Imperial Remembrancer, regarding the final moments of the planet Saunders.

Argos

Capital City

Saunders, Navadis System, Sabbat Worlds Eastern Reaches

Kay had taken to exploring the ins and outs of the city's lower suburban area. This was basically the same as any city you'd see in the good old United States, with the main skyscrapers square in the center, the industrial areas somewhere around the midpoint and the suburban and civilian housings, as well as military garrisons, located down in the lower areas of the city.

The girl regarded the tall fortifications and multitude of defense towers scattered throughout the Hab-Block area of the city. Massive laser cannons, twice or thrice the size of those on the Destroyer tank hunters, were angled and aimed at the sky, while specialized Auspex and Augur stations sat beside them, tracking any hostile target within the bounds of the planet's high orbit.

Saunders hadn't been really rediscovered for all that long in the grand scheme of Humanity's existence. Six Millennia ago, the Saint Sabbat had come to save their asses and bring them into the Light of the Emperor. They'd been kept in that light as a Tithe-paying planet for a while, she figured, before the Sabbat Worlds fell to Chaos again and the Imps had to send in the Crusade to help. Some stuff did seem too much like at home, Holo-visions, home computers and stuff notwithstanding. She figured if an Imperium this big and theocratic was around, they wouldn't so easily give folks access to info.

Eh, she could wonder about that all she wanted. Right now, she just needed to find a restaurant. Mom and dad had gone with her sis and bro to get groceries again. Ma was probably gonna swindle some poor sod out of some fresh tomatoes this time around or something. The girl chuckled to herself, stopping only to look at the advancing platoon of women wearing Dress Blues.

Kay remembered that here, the Marines were the big ones. The Emperor's Angels of Death. These must've then been Imperial Navy Voidsmen. Or Voids-women, really. She promptly saluted the passing squad of Dress-Blues and they saluted back, smiling as she hummed to them the Marines' Hymn. Voidsmen's hymn. Eh, whatever, they got what it meant, clearly, as they passed her by with smiles and prideful salutes.

Their officer stopped, turned to Kay, then gave a smirk, hand laying on the basket hilt of her Power Sword. She tipped her cap and winked at Kay, a fine-looking woman with blood-red hair and emerald eyes she was. Then, she stepped off with her Platoon as Kay turned to walk in the opposite direction. Taking a left onto the main boulevard, Kay was shocked to see banners being hanged off the lampposts. Saunders Banners hanged, their stripes pointing low while the Aquila still held in its sharp talons the circlet of stars meaning to symbolize the prefectures of the Planet, as well as the crossed M48 Lasguns to represent the Guard.

One of the banners hanged led from one lamppost to the next and wrote 'Saunders 33rd! The Good Saint's Armored Fist!'

Kay really liked that. She chuckled as she waved at the workers. They saluted Kay, one of them managing to paint her forehead with the glue on the brush she had yet to put down. Kay chuckled while the girl scrambled to get the damn thing off before it stuck, while her friends tried to assist in this little endeavor. Kay had half a mind to stop and help, but the workers' supervisor waved her off and mouthed 'They'll be fine' to her. She gave a thumbs up awkwardly, before stepping off down the main boulevard.

Assorted motor vehicles blitzed up and down the road at a whopping 70 miles per hour, armored fighting transports following, probably carrying the PDF's garrisons to and fro. Arbites transports rolled past, sirens wailing and machines blessed by the Omnissiah laid more decorations down for the Founding of the newest Regiments. Kay stopped only when she saw the main square, her eyes wide. It was a goddamn festival out there.

Food stands lined the square, with games and such interspersed and hundreds of people going about. There was even a bloody Leman Russ there that the kids got to hang around and have pictures taken with. Most of the stands seemed manned by military personnel and some of the guests were even people from her Regiment. She approached, crossed the road and looked around.

Food and drinks were being sold at absurdly cheap. Saunders really didn't lack for anything if the prices were anything to go by. Aptus Nons, except for a major Military tithe was a godsend when it came to allowing the people to sustain themselves via food. One would've once called this planet an Agri-World and the Tithe would've been at least some tier above that of Solutio Primaris. Saunders could've also easily been a mining world, but something kept it from becoming a world stripped of its resources. The Ministorum declared it a War-World, though, a War-World that provided a necessary Armored Core to any Imperial force, especially nowadays, in the Sabbat Worlds.

Kay didn't really know or care about all the intricacies of the Imperium's massive and archaic bureaucracy, though. She was just along for the fun and enjoying the food and drinks. She'd bought something akin to a Hot Dog with a local relish and sauces resembling ketchup and mustard, at least in color and scent. She thanked the man, some of her pocket money spent on the food.

To Kay, the Imperial Thrones, as explained by her sister when mom had handed her 40 of them, were a weird concept. Golden coins bearing an Imperial Skull on one side and the Aquila on the other. Ten of these things could buy one a week's worth of food on Saunders, while on another world she wasn't sure what it would buy. Still, she watched the people going about their lives happily. Men and Women both wore standard attire you'd see in '30s to '40s United States. Bespoke suits, slacks and clean white shirts for the men and boys and warm, colorful summer dresses for the women.

She sat herself down on a bench in the square, munching down on her Totally-Not-Dog with a smile and nursing a soda of some kind. Stuff tasted like locally-made Coke, so she gave it that. It was a nice taste of 'home' in the sense of both Saunders the planet and Saunders the Earth School. She stared up at the sky, the two burning white suns of the Navadis system beating down on her face.

"Kay!" She heard a voice call out.

Looking down, she saw Naomi. The girl wore a summer dress with a floral pattern. Embarrassed as she was, the Sharpshooter approached her smiling friend and superior. Okay, officially, the blonde felt out of place if even Naomi was wearing a dress. She still had her uniform, for the Emperor's sake! She beamed at the short-haired girl, then said "It suits you."

"Thanks, but Alisa kind of insisted on it." Naomi defended herself, sitting down.

Kay chuckled, "Of course."

"You okay?" The shooter asked, leaning forward, "How's the short civvie life stint treating you?"

"About as decent as it can be." Kay shrugged, smiling, "I missed home. Didn't even realize how much."

"Yeah, well... Being so stuck in studying and tank-driving does numb one to the thoughts of home." Nae remarked, then looked to the food in her hand and asked "Hey, where'd you get that?"

Kay bit into the thing again, hearing a faint grumble from her friend's stomach, then smiled, the top of her upper lip smeared with a bit of 'ketchup'. She tilted her head toward the stand, winked at Nae and handed her a couple Thrones for the stuff, before turning back to nursing her drink. Quickly thanking the girl, a healthy blush on her face, the tomboy rushed out with the money to buy herself something to eat. Ah, her friends never changed.

"Aw, shite!"

Kay then turned to see Alisa there, wearing a dress with more of a leafy pattern. The girl crossed her arms to her chest, tapping her foot. Kay shrugged and asked "What?" as she ate on. The redhead shook her head, walked up to and sat beside Kay.

"Didn't Nae's message get to you? We were suppos'ta go out with similar dresses!" The little girl said, pouting.

"... I left my house a while ago. Folks are out buying ingredients for dinner and they figured I could walk about and celebrate while they were out." Kay answered rather dumbfound. She murmured, "I don't think I even have a dress like that that fits..." as she turned away and took a big swig of her soda. Truth be told, she'd seen her wardrobe and even tested a few pieces'a'clothing. No right sizes in there. At least in the chest area.

"Darn..." Alisa sighed, then smirked, "Well, no matter. I can drag your ass into the nearest store to buy one!"

"Oh, hell nah, sister, I'm not spending half the day in a store trying on dresses..." Kay laughed heartily, "We goin' to some kinda club or what?"

"That was in the plans, yes!" Alisa shook her head, "Not anymore, I guess."

"Hey, c'mon," The blonde chuckled, "Boys'll love a girl in uniform."

Alisa rolled her eyes, "Alright, then... Swear to the Emperor, Kay, if you get a guy..."

They watched Nae approaching, a hotdog and a drink in hand. The three girls now sat together, with only one of them clad in the Regimental uniform because she couldn't find any better clothes to change herself into. Of course, she'd cleaned the uniform back at home and ironed it out for it to look at least halfway presentable as she visited the place. Far in the back, she could see the great twin spires of the Hive City, rising high above and piercing the heavens.

"So..." Alisa started, "Whaddaya girls think?"

"About?" Kay raised a brow.

Alisa shrugged, breathing in, then motioned at Kay's uniform, at the little festival, at the decorations being put up. At all of it. Kay knew what Alisa meant. For a planet of the Imperium, it was clearly a pretty big thing to deploy a Regiment like theirs. Especially one that was meant to be the pride and strength of a War World. The Imperium's finest fortresses were, of course, War Worlds. Even Holy Terra could be considered the strongest Fortress World ever.

Kay hummed, "It's pretty cool... Nice to have celebrations for us." It reminded her of home, honestly. Saunders School was all kinds of hype when the Shermans first rolled in. She was young, really young. Saunders had a program that ran from kindergarten to Uni. Kay was damn close to finishing High. She, Nae and Ali had been friends since their very youth. Even here, it seemed, it was the same.

Familiarity helped ease Kay into the world. Thank the Emperor for it.

Finishing their hotdogs, the girls were urged to their feet by Alisa. The night of the second day of the weekend came slowly as the sun started to set. Lights glowed in the night, light pollution hiding the stars, while the horizon turned a burning orange, before the last line of sunlight fully vanished. The girls had spent the time talking with one-another, exchanging plans, chatting about what they'd do in the fights to come and how they were all gonna come home and, if luck was on their side with the small population of boys, that they'd marry. Or maybe that they'd meet some Guard officer like general Pattern had done.

Kay stopped, hearing a faint whimper to her left. She showed the girls to halt, entering the alleyway. She stepped forth, toward a dumpster sat behind what looked to be a restaurant. She didn't care right now. Something shifted ahead of her and she intended to find out why the little whimper it made seemed so familiar. She pushed a trash bag aside, while her friends sat behind. "Be careful..." Alisa said, "Maybe it's rabid."

Kay's eyes laid on what looked like a pile of rags at first. Dirty, disheveled and emaciated, that pile of rags stood up straight, looking at her with pearly black eyes, wide as saucers. It whimpered, pushing itself back against the brick wall. Kay gasped, covering her mouth as her friends joined her. Alisa immediately squealed with joy at the sight of the wee creature, while Naomi tried and failed to stop her cheeks from reddening.

It was a PUPPY!

It was, clearly, a samoyed puppy, the blonde having seen and wanted one since her childhood. Kay approached it, taking a knee in front of the messy lil' thing, then said "Hey, little buddy... It's alright..." before taking out a piece of bread that'd been left over from Naomi. Girl really didn't like the bread. She was more for the sausage itself. Heh, Kay chuckled at the thought as she extended the bread.

It sniffed at the bread, leaned forward and licked it, before Kay handed it on her open palm. It licked the food off, chewing it, before licking Kay's palm. The girls cooed the little fella as the blonde picked it up. Alisa said, "Wait a minute, Chief, what're you gonna do with this fella?"

Kay shrugged, "I think the Regiment needs a little mascot. Don't you, girls?" And she smirked.

The two fervently nodded... Kay had made an executive decision. They'd taken a small detour to drop the puppy off in the house. She hoped mom wasn't gonna be all too pissed about the lil' fella joining. Heck, she hoped mom would clean the poor thing while the girls did their own thing for the evening. Content with how the situation developed, the three started thinking up names as they walked down to the square once more.

They chuckled, entering a local nightclub where the heavy beats of 41st Millennium Synth Music pounded into their chests. Hard and aggressive music, meant for a mix of dancing and alcoholic beverages. Among the party-goers were members of their staff, of the Regimental command, hell, if Kay could see well in the poorly-lit, vibrant darkness of the club, she could swear she saw Major Rosa sat at the bar.

The thumping music brought girls into the dancing crowd immediately, Kay jumping among the crowd made up of 90% females with a smile on her face. The girls had found Penny, Mary and the Infantry commander, Amy, sat in a corner, nursing surprisingly large glasses of Amasec. The girls, also clad in their uniforms, much to Alisa's chagrin, openly welcomed the new trio into the 'Party Corner'.

The girls smiled, chatting each-other up well into the night. Kay had sent a runner from the outside of the Club when she realized she was basically gonna be staying late, to let her parents know. She wasn't up for getting into an argument with her mom about this. Family dinner probably had to wait until she'd get back. Afterward, when coming back in, she saw Alisa had dragged Naomi onto the dance floor, forcing her to move to the beat.

Kay laughed, striding onto the dance floor, shakin' and struttin'. This was a pub almost entirely full of women and with a very awesome atmosphere, even with some of the skulls hanging off the walls. Clearly, a military club. The strum of guitar with the hard percussion of drums followed, a cheerful, upbeat song to which the girls wiggled together. Kay had found herself dragging Penny up to the line for the dance like she was dragging a pleading soldier to a firing line. Or at least Pen made it seem like that. Naomi had also hauled Amy up to the dance floor, the poor girl.

The six-girl squad danced the most non-synchronized and dumb dances they could find to fit with the music. They laughed, the more drunk of the three's faces flushed thanks to the alcohol. Kay had read up a bit on Amasec. Stuff was no joke, it was as if someone made Vodquila with 140 proof alcohol mixed in. Pretty sure her guts would burn if she tried a sip of the damn thing.

Still, that didn't stop Alisa from trying to shove it down her throat. She had managed to get Naomi drunk and unhinged, the Tomboy holding the girl in a headlock and actually smiling the widest Kay had ever seen her smile, pearly white teeth glimmering in the flickering, colored spot-lights and neon around them. The place's music mix was wonderful, really. Helped Kay to get into the mood that she wasn't drunk off her tits.

"Somebody's gotta haul you gals home!" She laughed at the umpteenth time that Alisa had offered her drink. The ginger finally got the idea. And so, the girls danced the night(of up to 23:00) away. Exiting the club, Kay was quite literally hauling Naomi on her shoulders, with Alisa and Penny hauling a drunk Amy by the arms, Mary by the legs. They laughed, bid each-other goodbye and took what amounted to local taxis home. Kay had had to drop both of the girls off at their respective hab-blocks before taking the trip to her own home. The cab driver, an elderly lady, tipped the cap at her upon realizing that, even disheveled and sweaty as she was from the dancing, Kay was of the Thirty-Third, their next regiment.

She'd gotten to eat dinner with her folks, laugh, joke and be told by her mother that she was surprised Kay wasn't coming home half-RKO'd like most girls her age and, also, that the lil' fella was gonna be clean and ready to join the Parade tomorrow. Mom had been onto her. To be fair, she wasn't planning on another Bender after what the last one'd done to her. God-Emperor only knew whatever universe she would wake up in next. It, hopefully, couldn't be any weirder or worse than this one if she ever went back drinking again.

She went to bed satisfied with this new life that night, even if she felt a pit grow in her stomach...

Things were going too well.

Argos

City Center-Parade Gathering

Planet Saunders, Navadis System, Sabbat Worlds Eastern Reaches

Banners flew with the early morning breeze, young girls waved flags from the crowd and the echoing roar of the marching brass and percussion of the Saunders Choir and Orchestra played 'Over There' over the Loudspeakers of the entire city. All the hundred millions of civilians had gathered to see off the Saunders Thirty-Third on their last hours planetside. Kay watched with anticipation from aboard her Command Leman Russ. It was her girl, which she'd elected to call Saint's Fist. Her standard-issue tanker's helmet sat firmly and warmly on her head. She looked down at her crew, smiling at the burly loader, the hyper gunner, the frighteningly-accurate sponson twins and the shy bespectacled driver, a reassuring, Imperium-blessed, bright, full smile, teeth and all.

Ahead of them, laying neatly in square formations and with banners flailing in the cool breeze, bayonets attached to the rifles sat in present-arm position glistening a bright silver in the sunlight of the planet, their uniforms ironed and pressed to perfection and their rank pins glistening. Amy stood atop the center Chimera of the formation, bearing a large flag of Saunders.

Kay smiled at the woman as she looked to them, getting a smile back and a thumbs up. The blonde then turned herself 180 degrees, toward the central spires. Hanging at over 10 meters tall behind her, a marble statue of the God-Emperor of Mankind, in all his glory and armor, sat, looking down upon them with pride in His chiseled features. His flaming sword lay raised in his right hand, while a parchment with the Imperial Faith's Grand Tenets lay sprawled in his left hand. To the left of the statue lay the Administratum Palace, a tall, cathedral-sized structure where everything from the Ministorum to the Planetary Governor were. In its balconies sat the Governor herself, an ancient woman, with her escort of clerics and munitorum staff.

To the immediate right was the Church of the Emperor. The girls had been in its massive, fresco-covered halls to say their Litany of Service not too long ago. She heard the echo of Rosa's voice from their right. The woman, Emperor-bless her, had been assigned as the Regimental Colonel. She wore her dress uniform and armor with pride, the Power Sword sheathed at her side glimmering with the gold trimmings and details of the Aquila on its blade and her peaked cap's Aquila shined to perfection.

She smiled at Kay as she approached, stopping to the tank's immediate right as her family poured through, the clean, white and fluffy Samoyed Puppy in her younger sister's hands. The Maj-err... Colonel... Looked up at her officer, then said "They asked to come here and deliver him themselves! They'll be taking a Valkyrie to the Muster Fields once the Parade starts proper!"

"I'm happy to see'em! And you as well, ma'am! You look smashin'!"

"Thank you, Major! You look wonderful yourself!" The Colonel saluted proudly, "See you aboard the Transport!"

"You bet, Colonel, ma'am!" She smiled and snapped a salute back. Her sister clambered onto the tank with her mom, setting the puppy aside. The three women of the Family hugged tightly, then kay said "I'll kick some ass for you, sis!"

"You damn well better, y'hear!? I'm coming up there after you when I manage to enroll properly!" Rose smirked, then she turned and pet the Goodboye on the tank. Her mom looked at Kay once more, then the two hugged, tears in their eyes. Then, her younger brother and her father climbed up. She kissed her dad on the cheek, hugged him, then gazed upon her younger brother and ruffled his hair, smiling even as tears ran down her cheeks.

After her family was taken to the transport Valkyrie gunships, Kay straightened her posture. She looked down at the little Samoyed puppy and saw that her mom and sis had made him a Saunders uniform to size. She giggled, petting the little, panting creature as he saw down comfortably atop the tank turret's cool metal. She stared forward, proudly, listening to the PA as a Choral rendition of another American marching anthem played. Then, the Governor cleared her throat. The entire square and the city itself, all went quiet as a tomb.

The woman's voice was harsh, sharp and rough like sandpaper. She spoke as softly, but as clearly as she could into the Vox-Microphone, "Dear sons and daughters of Saunders... My beloved people for over two centuries... We have rallied today, under the watchful gaze of the God-Emperor of Mankind and Saint Sabbat, hallowed be their names..." and the entire city, the Regiment included, chorused. Happily, with a smile, the woman continued, "To officiate the birth of the newest Regiment. Our proud tradition, that of raising soldier women for the Emperor's grand armies, has been one that has stood the test of time throughout even our darkest hours."

A solemn silence grew over the city as they listened. Kay herself felt it weigh upon her, as did the realization. This was it, their Life's goal from the Schola to here. To deploy and go fight the enemies of Man... The Governor spoke, her voice welling with pride, "Even today, Regiments of the Saunders Schola and of our Homeworld fight proudly in the name of the Emperor. Even today, the Arch-Enemy feels the might of our guns and the Iron Will of our soldiers! The Imperial Guard, our siblings in this Great War, this Great Endeavor to rid mankind of Xenos and Heretics alike, has allowed us to show our might!"

"Hoorah!" Chorused the Guard Regiment and all civilians present. A choir of hundreds of millions.

"It has allowed us to grow! To fight!"

"Hoorah!"

"To prove ourselves to the God-Emperor!"

"HOORAH!"

"And, most importantly!" She gritted her teeth, then cried out, "TO AVENGE OURSELVES!"

"HOORAH!"

"The Vile Arch-Enemy cursed our planet with a plague! He hoped to make us kneel, to turn us into his playthings, yet we resisted! We are the descendants of those who would not give up! Of those who would not falter under the oppressive strength of the enemy! Of those that raised high the Black Banners of vengeance and, under Saint Sabbath Beati herself, BROUGHT THE ENEMY TO THEIR KNEES AND THE SABBAT WORLDS INTO THE LIGHT OF HIM ON TERRA!"

"HOORAH!" Kay roared with her soldiers, a primal, vengeful roar. Even the pup barked proudly, his chest puffed out.

"You, young women! You are the descendants of the great Lady General Pattern! The woman that bore the Sword of Governor Harklan into the battles of the Sabbat Worlds! You are the warriors that will carve a path into the heart of the enemy-controlled worlds and scour the enemy from them! You, children of Saunders, be proud, for you walk on the shoulders of Giants!" The Governor bellowed, "And you shall be Giants in your own right! As the Emperor has blessed you, Saunders Thirty-Third, and by the power vested in me by His Holy Ecclessiarchy and the Adeptus Ministorum Saunders, I declare you FOUNDED!"

A Raucous battle cry thundered, reverberating across the planet's atmosphere like a summon to war. The Governor's augmetic index hit a button and red-white-blue confetti fell from the heavens like a wall. The Colonel called over Vox as the trumpet played Reveille and Assembly, "REGIMENT! FORWARD! MARCH!" her voice proud. Thirty-thousand Boots thundered. Kay gave one hand signal, looking to her other fellow commanders, including Alisa and Naomi as their engines powered, the turbines roaring to life. The tanks lurched forth, as did their Chimeras.

The Regiment began their march. They first passed through the massive city center, where much of the city's higher-tier citizenry waved and saluted them, prideful smiles on their faces as they watched what one would assume to be an investment to them rolling forward. Children were the ones closest to the main boulevard leading out of the city. After the central spires and skyscrapers came the hab-blocks and the industrial areas.

Kay waved proudly at civvie and veteran alike as they passed by, smiling to her comrades whenever she and they met each-other's gazes. The column of soldiers rolled forward, thirty-thousand strong with many a thousand vehicles, including support and artillery. Kay had just now seen the Artillery Company's massive guns pointing upward behind them. The gunnery crew commanders were saluting as they passed by the Civvies and their blocks, binoculars in leather containers on their chests and hanging off by straps wrapped 'round their necks.

The group had exited the city by hour one of the march. By hour two, they'd passed through two smaller farming towns before finally arriving near their intended destination. The Mustering Fields were a massive area, a few hundred square kilometers in size with no forestry or vegetation, made of hard rockrete platforms, where the Munitorum's military transport ships usually landed. Ahead of them, there they were. Large, skyscraper-sized transports in and of themselves, with a myriad ramps and access points at the bottom, these ships would be their homes for the next months of travel to the warzones.

Around them, the landed Valkyrie Gunships belonging to the minor Imperial Navy presence in the area seemed particularly microscopic. As they approached the loading area and the troops began to be filed in, the sun had started to set again. This time, she could see the stars above. Guided by Navy loaders and heavy signs, the Troops loaded within the hour with the tanks and vics following suit.

The massive hold held all armored, transport and support vehicles of the Regiment and then some, with the added hundreds of tonnes of equipment, food supplies and ammunition the troops and vics would need. Kay knew she'd be assigned to an officer's quarters or something. Right now, with her puppy in her arms, all she cared about was finding her folks so she could say a final goodbye.

Her mom ran up the ramp to meet her, wrapping her arms around the girl and the puppy. Kay leaned her forehead against her mom's and said "I'll be okay..."

"I know..." Her mom sobbed, "I'll miss you, dear..."

"We all will..." Her sister said, tears welling in her eyes too as she wrapped her arms around her sis. Another family group hug and all members wept openly as more officers and soldiers came to meet their families. Kay loved them dearly. All of them. She'd be back. Even if it killed her, so she swore on her very heart. She'd be back home, here and back on Earth... Her and all her friends.

As the crowds started to dissipate and the Navy crew called out to Kay's parents to leave for the loading to complete, Kay stopped. A sharp pain struck her, her head pulsating as voices began to whisper in her mind, vile, dark secrets. Fire. So much fire... So much bloody FIRE! "NOOOOO!" She roared, falling to her knees and clasping her ears as she saw it.

Above the skyline of the distant city, space rippled and distorted. A hole tore into time and space and from it, a scarlet ship, bearing markings and scars of millennia of awful combat, emerged. Like a cathedral, but corrupted and with markings of blood sacrifices, it hovered over the city. Cries of fear echoed around the girl as she felt something reach out to her. More ships emerged above the city, thousands of them!

Kay's mom shook her, trying to rouse her. She hoped it was just a nightmare. All that blood... That fire...

All the voices solidifed into one... It was a woman's voice... Harsh, awful, terrifying. And it spoke to her, "... Who Are You?" as if it tried to peer into her mind.

A roar rippled through the atmosphere.

The flash of a muzzle came from beneath the large ship. The first to come.

The city burst and flashed. Ferrocrete boiled, glass shattered, Steel and Adamantium and Gold buckled and detonated. White light enveloped all structures.

Argos was no more. A smouldering crater left in its wake.

Kay trembled at the sight. Such disgusting firepower. So many dead. The gust of the explosion washed over them, even at this distance. Kay roused, awoke properly from her trance, to hear the screams of the thousands around her. She felt her hand almost pulled out of its socket. An Imperial Navy woman, the Commander of that platoon, yelled at her, "MAJOR! WE NEED TO MOVE! THAT'S A CHAOS FLEET!"

"KAY! KAY!" The girl heard her mother call to her. She looked to see them, her mother and her father, carrying Lasguns. She freed herself of the Commander's grip and ran down to them, her puppy running close behind. Her mother stopped her, then said "Look at me, Kay! PROMISE ME! Promise me you'll take care! Do you hear me, my good girl!? You're my eldest! You leave and you take care!"

"Mom! We're staying! WE'RE HELPING!" The girl shot back. She felt two bodies pinned against hers and looked down. Rose and Cal. She looked up, confused "Mom?"

"We'll hold these Chaos FUCKERS off! Kay... Please, my good Kay, my Firstborn! Promise me you'll take care of your sister and brother!" The woman begged, tears in her eyes. Kay scrambled for words, but found none, her heart racing. Her mother shook her to consciousness, then yelled again, that damnable request that would haunt Kay, "PROMISE ME!"

"I... Promise..." She nodded, her mouth dry. Her mother beamed, smiled for the last time, a sad, tear-laden smile. She then pushed the girl and her siblings into the hands of the Navy officer. They descended, joining a Militia unit as Chaos Gunships and Flyers, spiked nightmares painted a deep, burning scarlet with markings of some Emperor-forsaken cult. Her sister tugged at her arm, to be let go. Kay held onto her more out of instinct than anything, dragged along by the Navy officer. The massive ramp closed behind the thirty-thousand Guardsmen, their parents and families vanishing behind them as the predatory birds of Chaos dived...

... Kay felt her heart stop.

Jet-wash from engines powered to maximum cracked the ferrocrete landing pads below. The massive transport ship lifted off under cover of Imperial Navy Flyers. Thunderbolts and Lightnings struck through, gutting the many a dozen Chaos machines while losing many of their own. As the transport ship Black Tulip broke atmosphere, she joined the battlegroup of around five ships belonging to Battlefleet Pacificus. Frigates, destroyers and one Cruiser. Not enough to fight the Chaos Armada that now appeared over the planet and cracked it, split its continents in twain and boiled its oceans away...

Saunders was no more...

++MINISTORUM REPORT++

++PLANET:SAUNDERS++

++SYSTEM:NAVADIS++

++SECTOR:SABBAT WORLDS++

++SEGMENTUM:PACIFICUS++

++STATUS:ANNIHILATED BY ORBITAL BOMBARDMENT++

++PLANET RECATEGORIZED BY INQUISITORUM ORDER 395-PRIMUS++

++PLANET SAUNDERS:DEAD WORLD++

++NOTES OF INQUISITOR [REDACTED]++

++Hostile Warship that assaulted the planet is believed to be of an ancient design, going by its markings... Perhaps even the famed [RESTRICTED]++

=][=FILE RESTRICTED BY ORDER OF THE ORDO HERETICUS=][=

=][=ACCESS CODES REQUIRED:VERMILLION LEVEL=][=

=][=PIETY IS STRENGTH=][=

"And the Regiment?" asked a diminutive man as he stared out at the miasma of the Warp from his personal observation deck, his Warship travelling forth through it to their meeting point with the Battlegroup coming from Saunders. He sighed as he tossed the dataslate aside. His credentials, despite his recent promotion to Warmaster of this entire damnable Crusade, were nowhere near enough to get him the information he required.

"Warmaster Macaroth. The Thirty-Third Saunders Regiment was raised and managed to get off planet with all assets, as per Colonel Rosa's report. It was a surprising turn of events." Replied an Astropath's aide.

At least there was a save in this entire grox-shit storm, "Very good... Prepare them for deployment, effective immediate."

Warmaster Slaydo had died on Balhaut, winning them that battle and reprieve for the time being. He intended to exploit Chaos's crushing defeat at Balhaut and pursue the enemy with all available assets. Even those Tanith breed and the Saunders women. The Guard needed fresh blood to throw into battle. 30,000 soldiers in an armored regiment and some five to six thousand stealthers...

May the Emperor have mercy upon his foes, for they would not.

Ending AN:Alright, I gotta edit this in to assuage your crazy fears, folks.

The pup is alive! He was brought aboard the ship with Kay and her siblings before the as-of-yet-unnamed Chaos warship tore the planet asunder. Ain't no cutesy, ragged lil' fella left behind.