Noctem Oritur Chapter 46

Over the Fortress Monastery the Emperor's Storm raged, gale force winds battering the few remaining buildings as thunder and lightning smote down over and over again. The rain was driven horizontally with the power of a pressure hose and loose debris was picked up and scattered to create deadly shrapnel. Everyone, Loyalist and Traitor, was driven underground by the typhoon, fleeing men and mutants running straight into each other and resuming their enmity deep under the earth.

Yet on the Eastern docks a different kind of activity was taking place, the crashing and trashing boats left by the invaders being restocked and loaded by lines of mutants, doubled over in the face of the storm. The boats along the outer perimeter of the harbour were being battered into pieces but those closest to the docks were sheltered from the worst of the storm. The heretics themselves however were battered by the wind or blown off boarding ramps into the thrashing waters, but it was not like they had much choice in the matter.

Standing over them were Astartes in lurid purple armour, festooned with sickeningly lewd images and fresh skins. They stood unmoving in the storm, buffeted but not swayed by its fury. Under the direction of the Traitor Marines the cultists loaded looted supplies and weapons, crates of heavy weapons, rare parts and even whole suits of power armour taken from the Loyalist's armouries. It was not just mundane items either for the cultists were taking aboard works of art, statues, sacred relics, ceremonial wines and basically anything the Traitors thought could provide a moment's amusement.

In one warehouse the Warlord Jubila was impatiently watching the proceedings from a high window. He itched to be off this vile island but with the Emperor's Storm upon them his forces were going nowhere. He had a squad of his Emperor's Children with him, who were whiling away the time by torturing captured mortals but the Warlord had swiftly grown bored of the prisoner's predictable bleating and wails. The sight of the perversions unleashed would have shattered the sanity of most mortals but to Jubila it was dull and routine, he lacked many of his most interesting toys and the basic tools he had to hand were functional and uninspiring. Jubila growled in frustration, drawing a serrated knife down his cheeks to alleviate the boredom but it wasn't working, to a follower of the Prince of Excess such trifles were blasé and unworthy, he craved new and bold experiences.

Jubila had even tried standing in the face of the storm but found it too impersonal and lacking in savour, he could not see what the Loyalists found so interesting in it, unless someone was suffering there was really no point. Jubila he could feel Slaanesh's attention slipping away with every moment and his favour with his patron was waning. He needed to be off this world, he needed to find fresh delights to recapture his God's interest.

Jubila was snapped from his melancholy as the warehouse door slammed open, letting in the thunderous wind and a pair of Astartes, the Sorcerer Beta and his associate Gamma. Instantly his squad abandoned their tortures and surrounded the pair with bolters and sonic weapons raised menacingly but the intruders merely ignored the crude threats and glared at the Warlord himself. Jubila grinned, glad for a diversion at last, he walked down a set of stairs from the high windows and greeted them with arms wide open, "Welcome, welcome I am glad to see you… what fresh delights have you brought to amuse us?"

Gamma snarled in response and spat, "Don't give us that, we are here to get you back into the fight!"

Jubila threw back his head and laughed scornfully, as his Marines laugh sycophantically with him, he said, "Ha! What could possibly stir me to such foolishness?!"

Beta stepped forwards and declared, "Vorshaan is making his final push, we are about to crush the Storm Heralds at last, victory is within our grasp!"

"Really?" said Jubila grinning, "That is not what I have observed, what I have seen is that this whole invasion has been one endless cavalcade of errors. Since the moment we set foot on this Warp-forsaken island we have been bled dry. Vorshaan had every advantage conceivable and he threw it all away with a sloppy strike."

Beta rebuked, "We have made great progress, we knew the lapdogs would fight tenaciously but now they are worn down and they have nothing left that can hurt us."

Jubila sneered, "Really, tell that to Killorn or Yuikia, oh wait you can't… they are dead, killed by these supposedly broken lapdogs. Not even your friend Alpha could break them."

Gamma started in surprise as he said, "How do you know about that?"

Jubila chuckled, "You snakes try to hold the gifts of the Warp at arm's length but when you learn to embrace the Dark Powers then there is much you can learn from the whispers of the Neverborn. I have to admit I was impressed by your deceitfulness, to get us past the defences, but ever since then this war has been one endless disaster."

Beta replied, "Perhaps you haven't heard, Thessus is leading the charge into the heart of the Fortress, he will break the lapdogs."

Jubila snorted in return, "Perhaps you haven't heard but Thessus is dead."

"What?!" barked Beta.

Jubila rocked back and forth on his heels, relishing the sensation of knowing more than the Sorcerer as he said, "Oh yes the Butcher God's pet has fallen and I have no intention of joining him. These Storm Heralds are proving far too tenacious for my liking. As soon as the storm front clears we are blasting a route out of here and taking our spoils back to the stars."

Gamma barked angrily, "You flee the fight; you abandon Vorshaan at the moment of victory!"

"Don't pretend you care anything for that inept fool, he has let his obsessions overcome him," Jubila replied scornfully, "Don't get me wrong, I enjoy obsession, but he has overextended and will only get himself killed."

Beta replied slyly, "Then there is opportunity for you, a chance to claim victory for your patron alone, you could draw much favour from the Prince of Excess."

That statement drew a bubbling laugh from all Jubila's men and as the pair of Alpha Legionnaires looked on bewildered the Warlord shook with mirth saying, "You actually think Slaanesh cares for mundane matters of victory and defeat?"

He wiped a tear from his eye as he declared, "No, no... such tawdry baubles are beneath our Lord. All that matters to Slaanesh is that the parade of sensations never ends, that the dance of pleasure and pain continues eternally. I intend to experience every last morsel of it, from here to eternity."

Gamma snarled angrily, "I will kill you if you try to leave!"

Jubila's amusement was radiating off him as he said, "I'd like to see you try whelp, don't think you can take me in a fight. I am leaving and nothing you can say or do will stop me. However I will gift you with one last piece of advice before I go: get off this island, depart while you still can and leave Vorshaan to the mess he has made, before he drags you down too."

With that Jubila turned on his heel and swept out of the warehouse. His squad followed with weapons raised as they marched into the storm, already looking for some new amusements to distract them. The pair were left behind with only the mewling prisoners for company but they ignored the noise as they watched the Warlord depart.

Gamma made to follow them but was brought up short by Beta who held him back with one palm raised. Gamma snorted, "You cannot mean to let him live!"

Beta said thoughtfully, "It's hard to argue with him when he is right."

Gamma's jaw dropped under his helm and he said, "You agree with him?!"

Beta mused, "He is right about one thing, Vorshaan has made a complete mess of this invasion. We practically handed him victory and he utterly wasted it."

Gamma protested, "But the lapdogs are vulnerable, we could crush them with one last effort."

Beta shook his head, "Destroying the Storm Heralds was only ever a secondary objective to the Alpha Legion, they have already served their purpose by drawing Vorshaan out. He won't abandon this island without the loyalist's gene-seed reserve… leaving him overextended and exposed."

Beta made his decision and said firmly, "That's it then, I am moving up the timetable, how many of the squads are sworn to us?"

Gamma replied sullenly, "The cur was always too generous with the lives of his men and too miserly with the spoils of war. Half of the Night Lord's Claws are eagerly awaiting our word to abandon him."

"Only half?" asked Beta, "Do the rest really believe in the Dusk Prince?"

"Warp no," Gamma stated, "It is more that they would refuse to believe us if we told them that space is cold and stars are hot."

Beta sighed, "Well they can die with Vorshaan when the lapdogs find him. What of the Raptor cult?"

Gamma spat, "They despise Vorshaan to a man, they are all with us."

"Excellent," declared Beta, "Send the word to pull out and fall back to our position, the loyalists will finish off anyone left behind. Meanwhile I will go arrange transport, if needs be we can take the boats by force but I suspect Jubila can be persuaded to share them for the right price."

Unfortunately Gamma wasn't yet willing to give up the war and said, "But I haven't killed that runt with the shiny sword!"

Beta shook his head and said, "Don't be childish, you can kill him another day."

"At least let me order the rest of the cultists to attack, they still have the numbers to ensure heavy casualties before they die."

"If you must," sighed Beta, "Don't be long though, I intend to be off this island the second the storm moves on."

Gamma finally relented and declared, "Well at least we will at last be rid of Vorshaan, I don't think I could have stomached him much longer before I cut off his head."

Beta paused at that and mused slowly, "It would be better not to leave such matters to chance, the Dusk prince has a knack of avoiding the loyalist's attempts to kill him and we need to be certain he does not interfere with the next stage of the plan. Contact the other operatives and tell them the Alpha Legion no longer requires Vorshaan's services… or his head."

Now Gamma finally sounded pleased and saluted with a fist over his heart saying, "Hydra Dominatus."