Sons of the Lion
Chapter I
The quad ion engines rumbled throatily through space, shaking the buttresses of the battle barge Sword of the Emperor. At two and a half miles in length, the ship was massive. Built in the Golden Age of the Imperium, the Dark Angels' flagship was a work of art in its own right.
The bridge itself was a testament to Mankind's intelligence. It spanned the width of the vessel and was seated at a third of the ships length, directly fore of the engines. The screens and cogitators were housed in ornately carved, solid blocks of marble, and were finished in an electrum leafing. All this beauty was lost however by the data slates and scrolls drowning the elegance of the bridge. A klaxon blared somewhere as another torpedo salvo hit the already weakened void shields on the ancient battle barge, threatening to shut them down completely.
"Bring us to port, power to prow shields! And will someone fire that damn cannon?!" The head crew of Space Marines relayed the desperate orders to their sub-ordinates Kalen was Grand Master of the Third Company and as such was acting captain of the Sword of the Emperor and member of the extremely secretive inner circle. Another klaxon reverberated thirstily and Kalen shifted his gaze to the port view screen to see the Death Hammers final death throes before its plasma drive overloaded. A massive disc of light spread horizontally away from the Death Hammer, and chunks the size of BaneBlade super heavy tank were hurled at the Sword of the Emperor. The explosion rocked the battle barge and glow globes flickered temporarily as the EMP wave hit the ancient ship. The bridge shuddered again as the Barrage Cannon fired, tearing one of the Tau escorts in half. Screens across the bridge for a few beats as a flaming Tau bomber struck the main comm station above the bridge. After a few seconds the secondary station came on line. Kalen turned towards the central screen, which was 50 feet in length and 20 high. The screen was centered the planet below. Crosarion was a mysterious planet was mere a mere fifteen light years from the Eye of Terror. Very few knew what the asteroid sized planet looked like due to the constant cloud cover roiling in the atmosphere, not to mention the pic-servitors were lost in the clouds.
"It's a damn backwater place isn't it?" Kalen looked at the screen while he talked to his executive officer, Veteran Sergeant Matheus, thick robes flowing on the metal floor and his master-crafted bolt pistol in a holster strapped to his thigh. Brother Dryfort, the head weapons engineer, addressed the Officers.
"Brother Captain? The barrage cannon has been recharged.
"Then bring the Emperors light to the darkness and blast these heathens into the cold void." Kalen spoke with conviction and hatred.
"Aye sir", Dryfort said as he pressed the rune that could destroy a planet. The effect was devastating. The beam five yards wide sliced through the Tau capital ship's engine reactors. The cruiser veered sharply towards the planet as hundreds of escape pods shot from the belly of the doomed behemoth. Kalen had no idea why the Tau wanted to capture, or destroy, the planet below. Or why they committed an entire fleet, but they were sure as Hell going to find out.
"Cardon," Kalen said at length, "assemble the company in Hangar B."
Kalen approached the lectern and looked at the Dark Angels, armor gleaming in the dull candle light. Every helmeted face was staring directly at him eye and he met their imposing gaze. Every Space Marine in the Company, including the venerable Brother Dreadnought Satheus, was gathered in the hangar.
"Brothers, a vile foe has trespassed and spread his blasphemy. You have learned about them and their crusades in your schooling in the Tower of Angels, and you have learned to despise their foolish purposes. However, the Tau follow this purpose with a driven zeal, unwilling to relent. They speak of uniting under one flag, bringing all within their deceptive empire. They seek to bring about the end to the Imperium, and to destroy all that stands in their way. The Tau have attacked the Crosarion system in an attempt to capture the world below us, a world so close to the Great Eye itself. We know not what the planet below holds, yet if the enemy seeks it then it must be a scourge of the galaxy. The enemy is attempting to locate whatever they came for, but we shall not let that happen! For we are His most elite soldiers of the Imperium! We are the Space Marines and they will fall under our mighty hand and we shall shed no mercy! The Dark Angels are the Emperors first, we are His sword. We shall vanquish His foes and claim there souls so that He may judge them and punish them as He sees fit for such alien filth. We must strike now!" Kalen accented the last word with urgency. Almost one hundred of the Imperium's finest warriors stood motionless.
"This is an intelligent foe few of us have faced before. Assemble at your Thunderhawk and see your Sergeant for further launch and deployment details. Battle plans will be relayed via company frequency by Brother Chaplain Drake and me.
Kalen began again, "Praise the Lion."
"The Emperor protects," the Marines responded, finishing the prayer.
"Dismissed," Grand Master Kalen saluted. With the loud clank of one hundred gauntleted salutes, the Space Marines turned on their heels and strode towards the awaiting Thunderhawks. The Dark Angels, first legion, Sword of the Emperor, were ready to spread his vengeance.
End of Chapter