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Spartan-666: I did leave that intentionally vague. So that is a good question. Which will win, the Flood or Tyranids? We'll just have to see. Becuse either way the galaxy is in for something truly terrifying.
Guest: The spartans who are alive are: James-005, Jai-006, Li-008, Naomi-010, Leon-011, Daisy-023, Robert-025, Riz-028, Vinh-030, Otto-031, Randall-037, Isaac-039, Will-043, Anton-044, Margaret-053, Kurt-051, Malcolm-059, Grace-093, August-099, Adriana-111, Michael-120, Kai-125, Cal-141, John-117, Kelly-087, Linda-058, Fredric-104, Jorge-052, Joshua-029, Maria-062
I would have posted a link to a google doc with the list but this website HATES links so I can't be bothered to figure out how to post the link. Anyway, any Spartan 2 not on this list is dead.
[556.M40 - 560.M40]
The surviving Spartan 2s were recovered by the Imperium and were split between the Black Templars, Space Wolves, Blood Angels, Raven Guard, Dark Angels, Inquisition, Sisters of Battle and Imperial Guard. Archeotech is recovered from the wreckage of the UNSC Commonwealth and the Spartans are given credit for its "re-discovery". A new well funded special operations unit is made for the female Spartans who joined the Imperial Guard at their request.
The Spartans hold a funeral for their fallen brothers and sisters.
The Spartan 2 augmentations are fully reverse engineered and are capable of being replicated. The recipe for Titanium A is reverse engineered and it proves to be comparable to Ceremite if not slightly stronger, only being less resistant to energy weapons, having a lower melting point, and weighing a bit more. The M6 Laser is fully reverse engineered, is given a stronger power source, and is deployed to the Adeptus Astartes, Adepta Sororitas, and in limited quantities to the Imperial Guard whereupon it gains the nickname "Spartan Lascannon". Work on reverse engineering Slipspace technology starts. Work on reverse engineering the Mjolnir Mk IV power armor and the Covenant technology recovered by John and Kelly during their boarding operations begins.
After passing their trials the male Spartans had the Carbide Ceramic Ossification of their bones removed so they would not die from receiving the Ossmodula of the Astartes. They then underwent the process of receiving the Astartes augmentations. After their rib cages had fully fused due to the Ossmodula the Carbide Ceramic Ossification was reapplied to their bones.
It is discovered that the majority of Spartan 2 augmentations actually synergize with many of the Astartes augmentations. The Ossmodula and the Carbide Ceramic Ossification was discovered to have made their skeletons have durability coming close to that of a Land Raider even without power armor. The Biscopia and Ossmodula combined with their muscular injections resulted in an even further increase of muscle mass and allowed them to be able to lift several hundred tons in full power armor and continue holding that weight for extended periods of time and even throw it a surprising distance. The superconducting fibrification of their neural dendrites and occipital capillary reversal combined with the Astartes enhanced perception and reflexes allowed them to see bolter shells flying through the air and react at speeds that put even a normal astartes to shame. And their catalytic thyroid implant combined with the Ossmodula made them grow to sizes between eight and nine feet tall.
With the male spartans having successfully completed the augmentation process, discussions about including several of the Spartan Augmentations alongside the standard Astartes augmentations began within each individual chapter. The Black Templars debates over the matter continue only for a short while before they ultimately decide against it. The Raven Guard and Dark Angels both decide on a "wait and see" approach to determine if the further augmentations would truly be worth it or not. The Space Wolves and Blood Angels' debates continue on with no real decision being made one way or the other.
[575.M40 - 585M40]
Biofoam is fully reverse engineered and immediately goes into mass production for use in all military organizations within the Imperium. The average Guardsmen's survival rates and life expectancy increase slightly because of this.
Several female spartans from both the Imperial Guard and Sisters of Battle give birth to children despite their reduced sex drives. These children proved genetically compatible with Spartan 2 augmentations and astartes augmentations. Deals between the Imperial Guard, Sisters of Battle, and the chapters who took the male Spartans are made. The female spartans and their descendants would send their male children to them to become astartes while the females would stay and receive the less extensive Spartan 2 augmentations.
Programs are made to search for males that are compatible with Spartan 2 augmentations to have them reproduce with the female Spartan 2s in an attempt to produce more viable candidates for augmentation. For those who do not wish to reproduce naturally artificial insemination is employed.
Michal, as a scout marine of the Black Templars, is separated from his squad during a battle with the Dark Eldar. Despite being surrounded and heavily outnumbered he shows no fear, only righteous fury over the cruelty and evil of the Drukhari. Later he is found once again half dead but surrounded by the corpses of a dozen Dark Eldar, many of which appeared to have been killed with a combat knife. After being brought back to the ship and treated by the apothecaries he managed to recover at least partially and insisted on being sent back out to continue fighting for the God Emperor. His request was accepted and he was allowed to return to battle, whereupon he killed many more Drukhari. Robert, Li, and Jai, also being scout marines of the Black Templars, display similar feats.
The Black Templars continue to refuse to make use of Spartan Augmentations but debates over this spark back up once more.
The Mjolnir Mk IV armor is fully reverse engineered. More suits are put into production and parts of the technology are used to enhance pre-existing power armor technology. Specifically the smaller more compact fusion reactor, hydrostatic gel layer, the liquid metal crystal piezoelectric layer, biofoam injectors, and lockdown systems. The Astartes begin making use of the Mk IV Mjolnir power armor in their Scout Companies.
[603.M40 - 700.M40]
Slipspace technology is fully reverse engineered. It is discovered to be about half as fast as Warp travel on average and while superluminal, Slipspace communications have a limited effective range. It is also discovered that attempting to use a Slipspace drive while in the Warp or vice versa will result in destruction about 60% of the time while making travel significantly faster the remaining 40% of the time. They have, however, proved to make it perfectly safe to travel through Warp Storms as average Warp Storms do not extend to Slipspace. However certain classifications of Warp Storms, such as the Eye of Terror, do indeed extend even into slipspace thus it is not a completely infallible means of travel. Thus Slipspace technology is rapidly spread across the Imperium for use when speed is not a concern or if one needs to get to a destination and an unavoidable warpstorm is in the way and for communication between colonies within the same or nearby sectors.
The Fabricator General of Mars issues orders to begin researching ways of improving the speed of Slipspace travel and the speed and distance of Slipspace communications in hopes of breaking the Imperium's reliance upon Warp travel and astropaths.
Slipspace Bombs and Torpedos are developed from Slipspace drives as a variant of Vortex Anti Ship Torpedos. These are used to devastating effect both in space and even on the surface of planets. Slipspace bombs find use as exterminatus weapons when used en masse on a planet.
The Black Templars begin making as heavy use of Slipspace Travel as they reasonably can.
It is proven that Spartan augmentations increase life span as many of the original female Spartans are still alive and are capable of continuing to fight even though many of them had not undergone rejuvenation treatments at that point in time and many lacked cybernetic augmentation.
As a scout marine of the Dark Angels John successfully killed an Ork Warboss single handedly, albeit not without sustaining significant injuries. Some of the Dark Angels chalked his survival up as just being another example of his uncanny luck. Leon, William, and Joshua, who are also scout marines of the Dark Angels, perform equivalent feats.
As a scout marine of the Blood Angels Frederic defeated a powerful Champion of Khorne in a duel. This very nearly results in his death but he survives. Jorge and James, who are also scout marines of the Blood Angels, also manage to kill several fully fledged chaos astartes.
As scout marines of the Space Wolves working together August, Otto, and Randall successfully manage to kill a Daemon Prince of Slaanesh. Wounded from the battle as they were, however, they would have been torn apart by the Daemonettes had they not been rescued by fully fledged battle brothers.
As scout marines of the Raven Guard Isaac, Anton, Kurt, and Malcolm manage to infiltrate a heretic camp and assassinate multiple Word Bearers without any other heretics discovering their presence or triggering any sort of alarms.
The Dark Angels, Blood Angels, Space Wolves, and Raven Guard all decide that if an aspirant proves himself beyond most other aspirants then it would be alright to start employing the use of Spartan Augmentations. This is mainly due to two factors. First, the original Spartans performing feats beyond what typical scout marines on par with fully fledged and experienced astartes in power armor proved to them the value of the Spartan augmentations. Second, none of the augmentations were genetic so they were not technically altering the gene seed in any way shape or form and were thus not interfering with the Emperor's design. It was more viewed along the lines of giving certain aspirants a biological form of power armor or cybernetics. Several of their successor chapters begin making use of these augmentations as well.
The Covenant technology recovered by John and Kelly is fully reverse engineered. Much safer and cheaper, albeit significantly weaker, plasma weapons are developed from the Covenant weapons. Energy shields that are significantly cheaper and easier to produce with a slightly faster recharge time but are also weaker then typical conversion fields, are developed from the arm mounted energy shields John and Kelly retrieved. These energy shields are distributed to the Adeptus Astartes, Adepta Sororitas, and the Spartan forces of the Imperial Guard, and several other elite Imperial Guard units to be implemented on or alongside their standard armor.
Fabius Bile finally learns of the existence of the Spartans within the ranks of the Astartes, Sisters of Battle, and Imperial Guard. After trying and failing to capture or kill a Spartan from the scout companies of the Adeptus Astartes for study on multiple occasions he settles for capturing Spartans from the Sisters of Battle and Imperial Guard.
[710.M40]
The first male Spartans graduate from their chapters' scout companies to become fully fledged battle brothers.
The first Chaos Spartan Marines are produced and begin training inside the Warp.
[814.M40 - 970.M40]
The Chaos Astartes with Spartan augmentations prove to be a nightmare on the battlefield, even for the Grey Knights
The Grey Knights begin making use of Spartan augmentations in hopes of countering the Spartan Astartes in service to Chaos. Other chapters also begin employing the use of Spartan augmentations for similar reasons.
The first recorded cases of Chaos Spartan Marines becoming Daemon Princes occur.
[010.M41]
The first instance of a Custodes battling a Chaos Spartan Marine occurs. Neither the Custodes nor the Chaos Spartan Marine survive the encounter.
[147.M41 - 259.M41]
The first instance of a loyalist Spartan Marine falling to Chaos occurs as Joshua-029 is subverted by one of the Fallen.
John takes it upon himself to personally hunt down and capture Joshua. The hunt lasts a little over a century before John finally corners him. John then beats Joshua within an inch of his life and drags him back to the Rock in chains.
[272.M41 - 407.M41]
Inquisitor Adriana-111 discovers a plot by the Craftworld Eldar to weaken the Imperium by sabotaging several crucial Forgeworlds. A major war breaks out between the Imperium and the Craftworld Ulthwé as a result of this. Ulthwé ends up requesting assistance from Craftworld Biel-Tan.
This war lasts a full century and Ulthwé is nearly destroyed in the process but just barely manages to escape complete annihilation.
The Adeptus Mechanicus makes a breakthrough with Slipspace travel making it approximately 35% faster than it was originally. It's speed remains outclassed by Warp travel, however.
The Adeptus Mechanicus makes a major breakthrough with Slipspace communication resulting in a 500% increase in both speed and range. While still not viable for cross galactic communication it still proves to be quite useful in that it is safer and more reliable than astropathic messaging.
All Spartan Marines within the Lamenters chapter die protecting civilians from the Ruinous Powers, leaving only the standard Astartes.
[476.M41]
Abbadon the Despoiler is challenged to a duel by a Spartan Marine Daemon Prince for the title of War Master. Abbadon defeats the daemon prince though the battle is much closer than he would have liked.
[645.M41]
An Imperial Navy fleet carrying a regiment of Imperial Guardsmen attempts to make a warp jump and ends up in the completely wrong system above a planet that appears to be made entirely out of metal. However, the Dark Mechanicus is already present in the system and immediately opens fire upon the fleet.
The fleet calls for reinforcements. Being the only Imperial forces close enough to respond in a timely manner the Dark Angels respond to the call.
End Notes: I have one more question before we get to the main story. With John being a member of the Dark Angels, what should his rank be? I'm personally debating between an Interrogator-Chaplain, a Company Master, or a Deathwing Knight. What do you guys think?
And I'm sorry for the large time skip but for a lot of these things detailed in this chapter I could probably write entire novels just on individual things. So there was always going to be a time skip to get to the main story. The main antagonist is supposed to be the flood. It wasn't really ever meant to be about the Spartans' time as scouts.
That being said, if any of the feats listed in this chapter seem too ridiculous even for someone with both sets of augmentations please let me know and I will go back and correct it. I do listen to my readers and I do try to correct my mistakes.
I love reading comments so any thoughts or suggestions you may have would be very much appreciated! I don't mind criticism either since I can only improve if I know what I'm doing wrong. So don't be afraid to leave a review!