Tales of the Amber Vipers Chapter 119

There was a buzzing in his ears, an insistent whine that dragged him out of unconsciousness and forced him to open his eyes. Coluber awoke to flames and smoke, the air was hazy with heat wash and the sooty scent of burning machinery penetrating his helm's respirator to coat the back of his throat in irritating ash. The sound of flames filled his hearing and his autosenses crazed and jumped, icons flickering wildly as his armour's spirit struggled to overcome the damage wrought upon it.

Everywhere burning debris was scattered on the roadside, ceramite and plasteel coated in Promethium fuel and blazing angrily. The overturned bulk of Drakones lay forlornly, the noble vehicle wounded grievously and wailing in mechanical distress. He could not see any of his Brothers, Seyda was lost far behind while Rinda and Hyia were trapped under the bulk of the Landspeeder, dead or injured he could not tell. Even their life sign readings were erratic, giving out false positives and negatives at random.

Coluber cut them off with an angry impulse and examined his own situation. He was laying on his back in the roadside, propped up by the bulk of his backpack generator. His resplendent armour was dented and scraped raw, the proud colours marred by the crash, leaving him battered head to toe. His legs however were the real concern. They were trapped under the bulk of Drakones, the flank of the Land Speeder crushing his thighs into the ground. He tried to pull away but could not move; he was trapped and unable to free himself.

Suddenly his vox crackled and he heard Shrios calling, "Colu… ear me. We s… go down. Are you alive?"

Coluber switched channels and replied, "Coluber here, I'm alive but I need assistance."

Ferrac broke into the channel and cried, "Give… location, we're coming to…"

Coluber was glad to hear it but then he heard a dull thud. He twisted his head about and saw the Necron lord had jumped from his chariot and landed twenty metres from Coluber's position. The leader of the undying gripped a long stave in his hands and strode towards the Chapter Master's position. His intent was obvious; he was coming to end Coluber's life with his own two hands.

Frantically Coluber threw himself against Drakones' bulk, trying to shift the Land Speeder off his legs. The weight was incredible and Coluber's position was poor. He could barely get any leverage and struggled to budge it the slightest degree. He felt the sands of time slipping and knew his chances of survival were vanishing before his eyes. He would die in the next seconds and his Chapter would follow soon after. He couldn't let that happen, it was time for extreme measures.

As he struggled he hissed, "Shrios, blow the reserve charges."

The apothecary protested, "But… save those for our exfiltration."

Coluber snarled, "We're not going to last that long. Detonate them now!"

The stamp of metal feet made him look up and he saw the Phaeron approaching. Arrogance and contempt oozed from his frame as he stalked nearer. In both hands he held his stave, its end crackling with deadly energies and his eyes glowed with lambent ire. Hatred radiated from the Necron, the cold wrath of a being who had seen eternity play out and despised every second of it. Only seconds remained and Coluber could not move at all. He threw his bulk against the Land Speeder and his desperate surge shifted it a centimetre. He gritted his teeth and pushed for all he was worth, then Drakones lifted a degree and he pulled his legs free and threw himself into a roll.

It was barely in time for a crackling stave smote the ground where he had been laying and cleaved through stone like damp parchment. Coluber's eyes widened as he saw the effect of the stave on matter. Stone crumbled like it had aged a billion years, falling apart as entropy ate it away. Coluber had never seen the like and he did not doubt it would have the same effect on flesh; one touch from that distortion field would end his life.

He rolled to his feet and drew Venom, then hastily jumped back to avoid a lateral sweep that would have torn his guts out. He threw himself at the Necron, moving as swiftly as he was able to sweep across the flank. His legs screamed in agony from their rough treatment following the crash but he overrode them, he needed all his speed for the coming engagement. He swept past the Necron and spun about, placing the enemy between him and Drakones' wreckage. He grinned as he saw a vicious gap left in his foes' left side but his joy died as the wound grew smaller, living metal weaving itself back together in moments. Faster and more completely than any Necron he had seen so far.

The Lord lifted its stave vertically and sneered, "Fool, you face the Phaeron of the Hyktot. I am no lowly warrior, my body was forged of the finest technologies ever created. Your pathetic weapon is no match for me!"

Coluber gripped Venom in a low stance as he spat, "I am Coluber, master of the Amber Vipers and I will defeat you."

The Necron replied, "Protocol requires me to tell you I am Mathep… and I am your death."

Coluber wasted no more time on words. He snatched up his volkite pistol and let loose a stream of ravening energy. The purple blaze arced for Mathep's centre mass but the Phaeron waved the stave almost lazily before him and the blast dissipated, reduced to nothing by raw entropy. Then he attacked. Coluber was forced to throw himself back as the stave came for his face. He jerked to the side to avoid a thrust then ducked and weaved to avoid being torn apart. He did not try to parry or deflect, he knew he could not withstand that crackling field of entropy so he dodged and danced, keeping from being touched at all. Mathep pursued him as he fell back, moving faster and more gracefully than any other Necron. No idle boast had it been that he was superior in make, the excellence of his construction was evident in every motion.

Coluber could barely keep up with the Phaeron's movements and Mathep sneered, "I am going to make your death slow and painful. Torments greater than I inflicted on those who came before you." The mention of the original Amber Vipers struck at Coluber's heart, those brave souls who had given their lives for the Imperium. Noble heroes who Coluber could only aspire to be like. Anger surged through him and made him throw caution to the wind. He could not kill this fiend to avenge their deaths, but he could make him suffer.

The stave tore for his waist but Coluber was no longer there. He spun about its length and crashed his bulk into its haft. His mass proved greater than the Necron's and his momentum threw it back a step. Instantly Venom flashed, slicing over Mathep's shoulder to leave a vicious gap. The Phaeron was momentarily off-balance and Coluber seized the moment to press his attack. He threw himself forward, sword shining like a blaze of lightning as he attacked. He gave the Necron no respite, no chance to recover. He attacked and attacked and attacked, with no thought for defence or survival. He struck for the dead Amber Vipers, he struck for his living Brothers who yet fought on and he struck for his Chapter's future, yet to be born.

Unable to withstand the onslaught of blows the Phaeron retreated, scores of wounds appearing over its form. The stave swung and thrust in his hands but the range was too close and he could not bring the entropy field into play. Venom was everywhere, slicing and cutting in a relentless flurry of blows and in moments gaping injuries covered Mathep, making him stagger as his skeletal form was rent head to toe.

For an instant Coluber thought he could win, but then the Necron spun, turning his back on the Space Marine. Coluber was momentarily confused, then the purple cloak of scales slammed into him, its weight shockingly heavy. Coluber was forced to stagger back and Mathep advanced hissing, "Fool, you cannot kill me."

Indeed the wounds over the Phaeron were closing, living metal reforming with terrifying speed. Coluber hearts fell as he saw the Necron's form become perfect once more, then the stave came at him. Coluber threw himself aside, only to crash into Drakones' wreckage. They had moved too near to its bulk and he had left himself no room to manoeuvre. Another stab came at him and he was forced to duck lest his head be torn off. He lashed our reflexively, slicing over a metal knee and scoring the lightest of blows. Abruptly Mathep paused, looking in astonishment at his knee. The living metal wasn't reforming; it stayed broken and rent, unable to rebuild itself. For the first time the Phaeron sounded dismayed as he hissed, "What trickery is this?!"

The Frost-field, Coluber suddenly grasped as he felt coldness creep over him, Drakones' arcane protection was still in effect. It worked by draining molecular energy and somehow that effect was interfering with the Necrons' self-repair ability. Whatever arcane sciences were wrought into living metal could not operate within the energy-draining effect. So long as Mathep stayed near Drakones he was vulnerable and he could die. That was all the chance Coluber needed.

"For Terra!" the Amber Viper cried as he threw himself at Mathep. His sword moved like quicksilver as he sliced across the metal chest and Mathep staggered in bewilderment as Coluber hacked through his shoulder plate, then cut across his groin. The Space Marine fought with desperate fury, his blows driven by the knowledge that two steps back would see the Phaeron clear the Frost-field and become invulnerable once more.

Fired by desperation Coluber's sword swept and sliced, it was everywhere, cutting and cleaving with every motion. He pushed his aching body to the limit, forcing his tired limbs to their utmost as he sought a way to end his foe once and for all. His vision narrowed and his lungs burned as he exerted his body to its fullest, drawing upon all of his zeal and ardour for that infinitesimal edge of speed and strength. Never had he fought harder, never had he been so deadly and he drove himself to the heights of lethality and he screamed, "Die damn you, die!"

Mathep retreated before the onslaught. One step, two, three, then suddenly he was clear of the Frost-field. Instantly his regenerative powers returned, sealing his countless wounds closed and undoing all Coluber's damage. Coluber's hearts sank as he realised he had failed to end the Necron, now the tables would turn. The Phaeron swelled with newfound power and his mechanical voice cried, "Enough!"

The Stave thrust low as Mathep struck. Coluber threw himself aside but too slowly and the entropy field grazed his thigh. Instantly searing agony filled him, Ceramite growing brittle as the flesh and bone beneath withered, ageing centuries in a few seconds. A cry of anguish escaped his lips as Coluber fell to the ground, his leg giving out beneath him. Weakness like he had never known gnawed at his bones, entropy tearing at his muscles and sinews. Never had he felt an injury such as this and nothing his genhanced body could do would repair this weakness. His leg could no longer support his weight and his armour could not process the difference in ages between the varied parts of itself. He tried to stand but could not rise, he could only sprawl on the ground and clutch at the limb in torment.

The sound of metal feet heralded Mathep closing, stave crackling with deadly energy as he came to finish this fight. Silently the last of his wounds sealed shut, the living metal reforming to leave him pristine. Coluber had thrown everything he had into the fight, he had fought to the utmost degree of his skill but it had been to no avail. The Necron had bested him and now came to claim the kill. Mathep loomed over his fallen form and crowed, "Unimpressive, your forbearer fought far better than you and he did so with no weapons."

Coluber felt death's grip coming for him and knew the end had come. He stared upwards, determined to look his killer in the eye, he would not surrender to fear, even if it was the last thing he did. Yet as the Phaeron lifted his stave to end everything Coluber felt a vibration running through the ground, a faint quiver that made his hearts leap into his mouth and the air rang with a distant thunder that heralded his last, desperate plan had gone into effect.

Coluber seized this opportunity and spoke aloud, "I have something to say to you: one word."

Mathep sneered, "Protocol does not permit any last words."

But Coluber uttered, "One word, a word that will change everything."

Mathep hissed in scorn and lifted his Chronostave, ready to plunge it into Coluber's hearts but as he did so a far away explosion rang forth. Mathep paused in confusion and turned his head to look. Far away from the fighting in the city, beyond the advancing lines of Necrons another explosion rang out and another, followed by the hissing of many Gauss weapons firing and the sound of living metal shattering. Louder and louder it rang, the noise of a battle being waged among the endless columns of Necrons marching towards the city and it grew more terrible by the second. The conclusion was inescapable, the Necrons were beset from an unexpected flank, surprised by an assault they had not foreseen.

Mathep's eyes flashed with alarm and he spat, "What have you done?!"

Coluber's voice filled with mockery as he snarled, "I told you I had one word for you… Waaagh."

Across the plain outside the city gaping tunnels filled with feral flesh and savage fury. From the depths of the stasis-vaults came a horde of brute muscle and clanking war machines. Beady eyes filled with hatred and meaty paws gripped brutal weapons as a river of primitive barbarians raced into the light and fell upon the first enemy they saw. They came in iron-shod boots, clinging to the sides of smoking vehicles and hanging from the backs of lurching walkers. From the depths they rose, freed from confinement by preplaced charges and led to the surface by routes the Amber Vipers marked out for them. Orks, an entire army of them, captured in stasis and held prisoner for aeons, only to be let free to seek vengeance on their tormentors. In a tide of fury half a million enraged Greenskins flung themselves into the exposed flank of the Necron army and every voice let slip the cry, "Waaagh!"