A Fallen Angel's story : Cypher's Tale, a warhammer fanfic

A Fallen Angel's Story

A tale in the life of Cypher

Written by Spiritblade

Disclaimer: Belongs to Games Workshop, not me. Most of my WH40K fics were written in a time when I was younger and could believe when light could shine in the darkest era. But, they're my works, and I reserve the right to gather them (again! Old PC crashed!) and place them where I please.

How long has it been, I wonder, since the day when my mistakes have cost me everything I have loved and cherished, hath banished me to a millenia times ten to wander the galaxy? I remember the day when the homeworld of my Chapter of the Dark Angels, Caliban, was whole, of when flora and funa grew abundant therein. I remember the day when I fought alongside my brothers to reclaim the galaxy from the forces of Chaos, from alien invaders and to protect the peoples of the Imperium. I remember the day when the armour the Dark Angels wore were black and not a deep green colour of a bottomless ocean. And above all, I remember the one called Luther, the one who had caused us to make the one and only fatal error that would cost us everything. Our homeworld, our honour, the companionship of our brother marines. And would damn us forevermore to become the Fallen until the day we would be forgiven in the eyes of our Emperor. I sometimes cannot help but scream inwardly at the injustice of why our own brothers would condemn us.

But, I am moving a bit too far ahead. Let us go back to Luther. The telling in itself is long, so I will not bore you with trivial details. But I will outline the main reasons on how we became the Fallen. Pride was the cause of our downfall, a sin that can take what you love most away from you. I was once, if my memory serves me aright, a captain amidst the ranks of the Dark Angels, and have served my Chapter for over two hundred years. Even then, I did not forget my family name before I was called Cypher. That name was of Iceblade, and I was the last scion of a noble house before I chose to become a Dark Angel. This was way before the advent of the Horus Heresy, the day that would see to the Imperium being blasted apart, and the noble attributes of Man laid to ruin and his honour disgraced. I met Horus, once, and somehow, I found myself disliking the man. Though a decorated war hero of the Imperium, there was something about his arrogance I found utterly disturbing, as though he himself were superior to our Emperor and his brother Primarchs. When the Horus Heresy began, the entire galaxy was torn into two separate factions - those for and against Horus. Horus's forces were numerous, and many of the First Founding Space Marine Legions' Primarchs had been corrupted by the seductive promises and temptations of Chaos. I remember still the disgust and horror of this betrayal. At first, I could not believe my ears that Horus had turned traitor on his closest friend, our Emperor. But, when I realised that these were not lies, Lion El'Jonson ordered the Dark Angels who have been part of the Great Crusades to return

to the rallying point of the Ganelon system with their rivals, the Space Wolves, to launch their assault upon the Traitors.

But, I do not know if our Primarch made the error of choosing to leave the 5th, 7th, part of the 1st and the 12th Company back on Caliban, along with twenty- odd battalions of Imperial Guards and PDF troops. Lion El'Jonson had neglected to rotate the Space Marine companies of our Chapter, thus making those that remained behind on Caliban feel cheated and extremely jealous that the greater part of the honours went to their brothers who stormed through the galaxy. It was througheavens rained Blood from the skies to punish the infidel...". I could not remember from which religion - mayhaps Christianity or Islam - but the punishment was dealt to those innocent as well as those guilty. I saw a flaming house bury a mother and her infant, and I screamed. I screamed, the sight causing a wound in me that would never heal to this day. We, who defend Humanity, are given the sacred duty of protecting them, and if we consider their lives beneath us, then we are no better than the Traitors whom even we Fallen despise. Oathbreakers, every last cursed one of them, may the Wrath of the Emperor descend upon them. Honourless traitors who slay that which they once fought for and protected.

Mankind had history full of bastards like these. We all form the race of Man. What is race and colour? What is religion? For many, they were just excuses to start wars, and the history of man long before the Great Crusade had been full of religious Wars from the Crusades, to ethnic cleasing and Wars.

With the Great Crusade, that vanished. Man fought shoulder to shoulder against a common foe. With the end of the Heresy which scarred the soul of Man beyond healing, gone was Man's compassion under the torrent of conflict that it faced. That which was Man's strength was finally destroyed as its gaze turned in hatred towards the nebulae known as the Eye of Terror. Hate may give strength, but it weavens rained Blood from the skies to punish the infidel...". I could not remember from which religion - mayhaps Christianity or Islam - but the punishment was dealt to those innocent as well as those guilty. I saw a flaming house bury a mother and her infant, and I screamed. I screamed, the sight causing a wound in me that would never heal to this day. We, who defend Humanity, are given the sacred duty of protecting them, and if we consider their lives beneath us, then we are no better than the Traitors whom even we Fallen despise. Oathbreakers, every last cursed one of them, may the Wrath of the Emperor descend upon them. Honourless traitors who slay that which they once fought for and protected.

We fled into the safety of our fortress-monasteries, which survived the bombardment due to its powerful void shields, but several had been destroyed by the wrathful bombardment. The planet may break apart, but the fortress monasteries have been designed beforehand to become wandering starships. My brethren and I knew, without doubt, that soon, our brothers who are with the Lion would descend and bring us to justice. And that justice, I knew, would be death. I was afraid. Afraid of what the Chaplains would do to me, of the false justice that would be levelled on my head for following Luther. Deep within, I knew that this would be the price of betraying my brothers. Then, the planet broke apart, and many of the Librarians screamed, their minds tormented with the one billion innocent souls slain. I felt the guilt of their deaths, and the sworn oaths I took as a youthful scout burned to ashes amidst the tears that trail down my cheeks. But I would uphold them long after this, no matter how much it hurt.

Then, hours later, the alarms came. The Lion and those loyal to him had turned their armour to a dark green and wore white robes over their armour, like avenging angels. We, who side with Luther, wore black armour and matching robes. The battle that ensued was a colossal one, and the Lion and Luther fought in the throne room deep in Archionis, the main fortress-monastery. I killed several of my own brothers, and their screams echoed in my ears as I went to Archionis. I had heard rumours that Luther had, in his jealousy, had forged a pact with the vile Gods of Chaos, and I wanted to find out if this were true. And if it were, then we have all fought for a wrong cause.

I clambered up the steps, my armoured hand clutching my wounds. And there, I saw Luther and the Lion fighting. The noble facade of Luther that I had once knew had twisted to one of pure hatred and evil - everything about him had been corrupted. His eyes glowed with the powers of the Warp. I felt a chill reach the core of my soul. So, it had been true after all. Luther had made the pact with the Dark Gods of Chaos, betraying everything he had believed in. And we, who have listened to him, will pay the price long after this internecine conflict was over. My soul had screamed, Why, Luther? Why did you do this? What was it worth, tell me What was it worth?

But I could not raise my hand to stop them. I crashed down, too weak from my injuries, and all I could do was watch helplessly as the Lion smited a man he called had once called friend. I saw the Lion's deep sorrow, I heard Luther's scream of anguish and regret that echoes still in the hallways of my memories, still as bright as though it had happened yesterday. The scream that heralded the failure of the Chaos Gods to destroy the Dark Angels Chapter, thereby, weakening the Imperium further. Luther fell into a comatose from his wounds, and the Lion gazed long at him, knowing that his time, too, was coming. The power of the warp threatened to devour the Fallen. Luther's last sacrifice was to save all of the Fallen, and perhaps, make amends in the future when the re-emerged from the warp storm. The Lion saw me, then, and he had smiled. Despite those terrible wounds I saw on his body that would have slain even a Space Marine Lord, he strode towards me as though those wounds were as nothing. I could not even raise my head in my shame to look at him in his blue eyes. I heard the heavy booted footsteps as he strode towards me, the crimson droplets of blood dripping to the floor.

And he bequeathed me a quest.

"Of all the Fallen, you have seen the truth of Luther, young one. I admit that it was as much my mistake as it was his. I should have rotated the legions, and spared you and everyone else this. Who are you, boy?" he had asked.

Boy? I have fought in the Great Crusades alongside him, and he calls me boy? But there was a fondness in the tone of his voice.

"C-Cypher."

"Well, then, young Cypher. I cannot do any more for this galaxy and our people. I ask you to take this," and he pushed the Lion Sword into my weakened grasp, "and when you re-emerge from the warp, you will under-take a task to redeem all of the Fallen and earn the Emperor's Forgiveness. Do not fail, Cypher, for they will depend on you the most. Yours will be a journey of pain and sorrow, with little happiness and joy, but when completed, shall be the greatest honour you can achieve. IT will hurt, Cypher, that much I promise.

"You are brave, to attempt to find the truth," said Lion El'Jonson, "even if you know it would cost you your own life and how much it would have hurt. I bid you good fortune, Cypher. Remember our oath, and remember why this day came to pass. Do not allow anyone to repeat this error, please."

The Lion, pleading? I could not believe what I was hearing. I lowered my head, and tears borne of my sorrow that had rent my soul in twain by its sheer anguish of betrayal splashed upon the Lion Sword's great black blade.

"Good-bye, Cypher. Do not forget what I have asked of you."

And then, the Warp took me.

When I re-emerged, ten thousand years had passed. Ten thousand years since the end of the Horus Heresy. I gathered what information and followers I could and began to wander the stars, eluding capture by the true Dark Angels. We have, what the Lion had said, become the Fallen. Forever alone, forever cast away from the Light. But we know, above all, the temptations of the Dark. Like the Blood Angels, we know how to fight it best.

I fought many, many battles in this time. So many that I could not keep track on whose side I have fought alongside, and whom I have fought against. Always, I have striven to side with those of the Emperor. I remember him as a man, a good, noble man who exemplified everything that was good and noble about Mankind. That is the way I honour and venerate him, not as a God, but as a Man. A man worthy of respect, a man who had earned it by virtue of his sweat and his blood and his love of the galaxy and its people. And when I was tumbling through the warp, I heard his voice, sad and sorrowful, but comforting. He knew of our error, knew and understood that, even though we were marines, we were still human enough to make mistakes. He forgave us for that. Forgave us But those of the true Dark Angels never did. They hunt us relentlessly, believing that they would earn the Emperor's Forgiveness by destroying or capturing every last one of us. They thought they did this to earn the Emperor's Forgiveness, but what do they know of the Emperor's mercy?

There were those who turned to Chaos, and these I have striven to hunt down and destroy. I have fought alongside the Legions of Chaos, from time to time, and I hate it, but the survival of the Imperium is paramount to me, even if it means we must play at odds against it.

I felt little joy in my wanderings. Sorrow and self-loathing flooded my heart, but I had to look ever forward to that day when we of the Fallen would be redeemed and Forgiven. Like the Traitors, we are the oldest warriors in the Imperium, and have seen ten thousand years pass us by, and none of us have aged a day since the warp claimed all of us. Then, she came into my life, the first light of joy that I have never felt since the Fall. In a desperate fray, I had led my Fallen brothers against a massive Chaos incursion in the Malegard system. There, I saw and met the leader of the Adeptus Sororitas, a sister superior by the name of Malaliel. She was so different from her trim and proper battle-sisters. Long golden locks framed a face still defiantly beautiful, like a true angel, and her sword gleamed as her plasma pistol sang a virtuso of death. By the Emperor, she captured my heart like no other. I was bitterly reminded of my quest that had spanned through ten thousand years since the Heresy, and that should I give her my heart, all that would come out of this unholy union is sorrow. And like the Angel she was, she showed no fear in the face of the enemy. Her song was like the song of the Eldar Howling Banshees, screaming a black curse upon all evil. Mine was the song of the Fallen, a song of pain and sorrow. And had she known who I am, my fate would have been that of the Traitors. A summary execution. Our betrayal should have spread far and wide but strangely our brethren, the so-called true Dark Angels, have kept a lid on it. Very few know of the Fallen's existence, and even the Administratum does not know of our existence.

Malaliel was a shining light amidst my darkness, and I became haunted by visions of her in my dreams. I think you know how annoying this is when you have a more important task ahead of you, and the image of the one you love and adore pops suddenly into your mind, causing you to curse rather colourfully. Imagine my chagrin when I made a curse during an important tactical meeting with the Imperial Guard General; he half-believed I was going to shoot him for incompetence. And I had a feeling she knew my feelings for her.

She began to accompany me wherever I went, causing my brother Fallen to do the one thing they have not done in ten thousand years - they smile mischieveously, the smirking freaks. The unconquerable Captain of the Dark Angels, Cypher, has finally fallen. Now, if we had been loyalists still, the entirety of Archonis would shake with laughter. But, she was loyal, and I think she knew what I was, but did not care. After the battle, she chose to come with me on my journey. It did not take me long to do what a true Knight of the Emperor was not supposed to do - sire a child. But, stories have reached me ears that some of my brother Fallen have chosen to do the same. She gave herself willingly, and for the first time, I felt true joy and peace in her strong arms, in that beauty that was nearly that of an Eldar woman. By the Emperor, how I long still for that peace and joy.

But, soon, the Dark Angels found out about me and my offspring, and were determined to get me by getting to her and my infant child. And Malaliel would not give up our child without taking a few of the Dark Angels to the Eye with her. I told her to flee; she almost refused, but the second child growing in her womb convinced her otherwise. With aid from the Eldar, Malaliel fled the planet. I took a different path, hoping that they would come for me instead of her. Alas, it did not. Splitting their forces in half, one group went for her; the other went hunting for me. Thank the Emperor that the Eldar managed to evade the true Dark Angels fleet. I never saw Malaliel again, and all I have to remind myself of her was her Adeptus Sororitas locket that laid beneath my armour, pulsing with a quiet warmth and affection. I knew that Malaliel would die of old age, but I doubt neither she nor I ever regretted meeting the other. In fact, I think she was glad to have met me - despite what I am - and I don't know why.

I never knew what happened to my children, until Farseer Karhedran of the Iyanden Craftworld spoke to me, and I felt as though a stone had been forced down my throat into my stomach. He told me that Malaliel had given birth to my second child on the way to the planet of Aiur, in the eastern quadrant of the galaxy. Unfortunately, however, she died doing so, and she was cremated by the Eldar and her ashes scattered to the solar winds of the galaxy. Malaliel...I'm sorry. I could not keep my promise I had made to you. But, he had, smilingly, told me about one of my children that he had met and brought his face up upon a viewscreen. I thought I was looking at myself when his image came forth, so alike he was to me in my younger days. He had been here, Karhedran had told me, and had fought alongside Iyanden's standing army against the Tyranid host that had threatened to destroy the Craftworld. He had arrived on a crippled Imperial battleship, handing dire news to the Eldar who had scrambled to lay their defences. He could have left, but chose not to.

He fought alongside the Eldar, setting its defences, holding out till an allied fleet arrived and destroyed the hive fleet. The casualties had been enormous, but the Craftworld had been saved, thus assuring the Eldar of a future - no matter how dim it was. Karhedran had added some amusing descriptions about him. I chuckle to think about his attraction to Eldar women, and vice-versa. He is annoyed beyond measure and is wondering why this is happening to him. Ahhh, my child I have never seen, you have a warm, pure aura that calls even those from Darkness to try to come and claim your soul. You are a warrior, yet you are not. You are a priest, yet your hands are drenched in blood. You want peace, but are unafraid to wage war. You want to stop the Darkness, but it is part of you. I think you will survive, and perhaps, one day, if I can, I would like to see you again.

My son, Ashram, has given you a fine name, and from his name and his deeds, you have forged a destiny worthy of yourself. We have everything that a nameless God could give us, but all we lack is the purpose. Once that is found, life begins to take shape and have meaning.

My tongue tastes his name. Shateiel Iceblade, captain within the Blood Angels Space Marine Chapter. The first two words of his name simply means 'Messenger'. And during an Hour that grows darker, men like him and those who had followed him will be needed during the galaxy's final Armageddon.

I smile for the one of the rare times in as many years. Malaliel, I think you would be happy. Even without us, our children did not disappoint us. Sleep well, my love. When my journey ends, I would like to see you at the end of the dark tunnel in the sunshine of whatever Heaven awaits me.