Sorry for the long update on this one, dear readers. I've been writing and re-writing the plot so it doesn't get ridiculous.
Thank you for understanding, please enjoy :)
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Terra.
The Heart of mankind, which beats weakly within an aged corpse of an Imperium. Aboard the Planet Killer,Ygethmor the Deciever, sorcerer lord of the Black Legion, peered through the thin veils of time and space as far as his powerful mind would allow. Secluded in his chambers far from the din of the rabble and the ever-burning gaze of the Warmaster, the servant of Tzeentch found twisted serenity in his visions.
How they scurry and skitter, the little vermin. Ygethmor watched with great disdain for the creatures kowtowing to the flayed and half-dead Emperor sitting upon the Golden Throne.
But…something was wrong.
Whereas in former days, the sorcerer lord was able to see into the gilded chamber with ease, he now found his eyes burning from the intense brilliance that emanated from the slumbed figure upon the glorified chair. No matter how hard he tried, Ygethmor always found himself retreating from the visions with an inexplicable fear gripping his warped heart!
It was then the whispers came. The sorcerer lord listened closely and allowed the Lord of Change to slither his divine finges into his mind, granting him a close connection with his will.
With a mixture of curiosity, alarm and anger at the revelation, Ygethmor watched from across the stars at the revenant born from the pits of Hel'Nkuza. He knew, the moment he laid all four eyes on him, Ygethmor knew it was the Wolf- the true Horus Lupercal! Though the sorcerer knew it was of utmost importance that he informed Lord Abaddon of this portent, mindful of the wrathful reaction he may spout, he remained affixed within the vision- intent on watching Horus' every move to see where it lead.
Meanwhile, within the bowels of the supporting ships encircling the massive constructs floating about in the Immaterium, the flesh-automatons worked tirelessly to bring together the systems of the Will of Eternity Blackstone Fortress in their possession. Although remaining dormant with the lack of the proper influences, the daemonic servants of Chaos still managed to awaken the necessary aspects of the floating superweapon. Barely scratching the surface of its potential, but by no means attaining power of frightening proportions, the Black Legion gains assets for its upcoming campaign every passing day.
With his minions toiling to bring his thirteenth conquest ever closer to reality, the Despoiler awaited patiently for the climax atop his throne, hand grasping the bleached skull of the clone of Horus he had slain a lifetime ago. Some may call him sentimental for keeping the trophy, but Abaddon didn't care, he merely kept the skull to remind himself of his purpose lest his mind wander. As Warmaster, the fury that guided him in former days as today was a flame that must never be quenched. He served Chaos Undivided not for the gifts of the Warp as many of the sycophants coveted around him, but for his twisted dream of reshaping the backward Imperium into the bloodsoaked empire he longed for. There was simplicity in his goal, something that irked the Chaos gods, especially the Lord of Change- who favored convoluted plots- but not enough to to give them cause to withdraw their support for the Warmaster.
Twelve times he had hammered at the gates of the Imperium, and twelve times they shoved him back into the Warp. No more! The thirteenth time, he will be victorious!
There was a faint crunching sound at the palm of his hand, and Abaddon relaxed his grip, realizing he had formed another crack upon the skull's jaw. He set it upon the spire sticking out of his throne and turned his attention to the sorcerer lord as he entered through the open doors, announcing his arrival beforehand. The cthonic accent shows in its harsh, guttural nature upon the Warmaster's voice as he addresses the psyker. "You may speak, Deciever! And for your sake, speak plainly! I am in no mood for riddles!"
Ygethmor was grim in his reply, bracing himself for the eventual wrath of the Warmaster's reaction. "I bear news from Tzeentch himself, my liege. Alas, they are of ill nature."
Drach'nyen, the daemon sword leaning upon his thigh, whispered harshly in the Despoiler's mind, goading him to spill the sorcerer's blood. Abaddon silenced the weapon with a single thought and heard the words of Ygethmor.
The space-hulk makes a smooth glide forward, pulled on by the distant influence of the outlaying planets of the Cadian Gate. Without any proper propulsion systems following the rupture earlier, save for a few impulse drives, the two transhumans aboard the massive construct had no true control over the space-hulk's movements.
Aided by the somewhat faulty nav-computer for identification, Horus observed and wondered how a terrestrial world like Cadia, once a little settlement barely holding a hundred imperial citizens, practically turned into a fortress over the course of a thousand years. Aggregius, however, looked on in concern.
For the Blood Raven, arriving at the bloody sector of the Cadian system was an ill omen. Right on the doorway of Chaos, in the heart of everything. The seepage of evil was so great, the Inquisition had a hundred active cults to subdue every month! The place bred recidivists like a pond breeds scum. Being here was like thrusting them headlong into the eye of the storm. Although for a veteran such as himself, Aggregius was used to similar circumstances. But in this case, they were both ill-prepared for the warzone that was the Cadian Gate. An unwelcome surprise, so to speak.
Once again, the space-hulk lurches violently, a change in its pace felt all throughout its hollow corridors and in the command center itself. Horus knew the speed was picking up, and it was only a matter of time before the space-hulk finds a spot on the nearest planet and makes its mark. Without stabilizers, this hunk of metal wasn't slowing down.
"What is that?" The Primarch squinted through the cracks that showed the stars outside. Above another terrestrial world, similar to Cadia, a Warp rift had opened. From the tear came pouring eight massive battle-cruisers, all bearing the make of the Imperial fleet. "Odd. Why do they attack their own? Unless…"
"Heretics!" Aggregius snarled, "The sight makes my blood boil! We must join this battle and purge the filth from Imperial space!"
Horus chuckled, "And how do you propose we do that? Look around you, this space-hulk isn't exactly your average vessel. We're headed on a straight line from here, unless you're suggesting we force a change on its trajectory to somehow reach the fleet?"
The stare proved to be response enough.
"Then I'll need your help, brother." Horus said, "Take position and do everything I tell you, right down to the tiniest detail."
The space-hulk moves ever so slowly that it doesn't register immediately on the fleet's long range sensors. The crews operating the traitor vessels had other things on their minds, mainly the focus on destroying the remaining loyalist battleships. Their surprise assault had left the Imperial ships' backs broken, exposed to the wrath they bear upon their powerful lascannons.
At last free from the limitations of the Imperium, the captain unleashed the pent up rage he and his men have been saving up for years with savage thrill, screaming vehement obscenities and praising their new gods of blood and pain.
"Strike them! Strike them down!" Captain O'Knor bellowed, forcing the corrupted machinery to increase its efforts tenfold, his maddened gaze glaring through the bridge's observation deck. Twenty years he spent climbing up the ranks of the Imperial Navy, wasted as an automaton doing the bidding of the officials growing fat on their ivory towers while men considered lesser were sent to face the horrors of space. "No more! I will have last blood!"
The Chaos gods promised him vengeance, a gift that rivals that of the rotted corpse Emperor himself, and O'Knor accepted without any hesitation. At least, in serving the Ruinous Powers, he would be given the scraps of glory, which was more than he could say for the Imperium he gave half his life for.
The Agony of Life grand cruiser blasted its way across the stars, leaving a trail of burning worlds in its wake. Though not the first of its kind to leave the fold of the Imperium, it was still a threat to be taken seriously. However, with the growing storms spawning at the Cadian Gate and the looming threat of an invasion from the Eye of Terror, O'Knor was left to continue his assault on the worlds adjacent to the Segmentum Obscurus.
It was a matter of time before the defense forces converged on his position, but until then, more worlds will burn under his wrath.
In the background, beyond the veil of the material realm, Tzeentch watched the theatre play yet another intriguing plot. With great interest, he witnessed the events unfold. Horus and Aggregius worked hard to bring the space-hulk back to functionality, with the Blood Raven casting aside his fears of angering the machine-spirits to aid his battle-brother for a higher cause- killing traitors.
It all paid off in the end, the space-hulk obliged their efforts and altered its course, heading straight for the gathered fleet orbiting the terrestrial world of Makai. One of the lesser colonies of the sector, the agri-world should have been spared of the attentions of the enemy, but the presence of an Imperial patrol sealed its fate. O'Knor laid waste to the loyalist fleet and everything around it, including Makai.
"Any way to make this rock go faster?" Aggregius inquired. "If they spot us, they'll just move out of the way, and we'll just slam facefirst into the planet below."
"Fret not, sergeant." Horus replied, walking off into the edge of the room where a huge tear was made from the Warp ripping the space-hulk in two. "Gravity will speed us on our way. See how they've recklessly grouped themselves together? They cannot move fast enough to avoid us without ramming themselves on each other. Get ready, for the hour of battle is upon us."
"I admire the ingenuity of your tactics." Aggregius remarked, checking his bolter out of habit. "I stand ready."
Meanwhile, aboard the Agony of Life, the long-range sensors finally picked up the oncoming space-hulk. By the time it blared its warnings through the computers, it was already too late for the fleet to begin evasive manuevers. Horus and Aggregius braced themselves for the powerful impact that follows the headon collision, preparing for another leap that would send them to board the heretic cruiser. Their target was the flagship, O'Knor's vessel, taking it down would send the traitor fleet in disarray, giving the limping loyalist fleet a chance to lick their wounds and return to the fight.
On the derelict loyalist battleship, Captain Maranda had resigned herself to the inevitable defeat at the hands of her former comrade when a crewman notified her of the impeccable timing of the space-hulk's intervention. Confused, the captain lifted her gaze to the cracked observation deck and watched as the massive construct slammed into the Agony of Life, splitting it down the middle and sending debris scattering all over Makai's atmosphere.
Seizing this opportunity, Maranda called for all operational ships at her disposal to begin a counterattack, driving the enemy fleet to withdraw to give them room for repairs. It would take a long time before the Golgo's Respite is brought back from the brink, but at least she and her crew would live to fight future battles, thanks in no small part to the Emperor's grace.
"Captain, vox-transmission coming from an unknown frequency!" Maranda was notified, "Identity serial code has Blood Raven written all over it! Shall I establish a connection?"
Blood Ravens? The captain thought to herself, The Emperor has blessed us twice today! "By the Golden Throne, put them through!"
The moment the space-hulk shattered the Agony of Life, Horus and Aggregius had made their leap of faith. Compared to their time in the Warp, there was no vortex to aid their descent, only the perilous pull of gravity to bring them down. But Horus was resourceful even in the rush of the act.
With the scattered debris field around them, he made good use of them as stepping stones such as it was with Hel'Nkuza. Aggregius merely followed his example and they soon found themselves aboard the derelict cruiser. Once they were onboard, they were set upon by the response teams, guardsmen twisted by the Ruinous Powers and spearheading the unholy hordes that had spawned within the ship.
Aggregius noticed the vox-transmitter at his inventory pick up an Imperial channel, pausing to begin transmitting so they could establish contact with the Imperium. The voice on the other end came as great comfort to the spacemarine.
"This is Captain Maranda of the Golgo's Respite, Defense Fleet designation Battlegroup Imperatis. Identify yourself."
"I am Sergeant Aggregius of the Blood Ravens 2nd Company. I came aboard the space-hulk with a fellow battle-brother, I trust you've seen our work take place?"
"It is a welcome sight indeed, my lord. Although my ship is non-functional, the remnants of the defense fleet stand eager to retaliate, we are yours to command."
Aggregius glances up at the Nameless astartes laying waste to the heretics rushing down the hall, "To tell the truth, I am not the one in command, captain. But I speak for him nonetheless. We are onboard the traitor flagship, so watch your fire, but you are free to engage as many of the surrounding vessels as you wish. Remain cautious, Aggregius out."
"I hear you, sergeant, Maranda out."
Horus heard the exchange and smiled, twirling his spear swiftly and parrying a lesser daemon's strike before driving it through its carapace armor. The daemon screams as holy light bursts from its chest, setting it ablaze and consigning it to oblivion. The corrupted guardsmen cowered in terror as the resulting blast blinded them.
This was another opportunity for Horus to get used to his new weapon, and he does not waste it. Gifted with creativity, Horus raised the spear and willed it to use, firing a bolt of light that pierced through flesh and armor alike. His eyes widened with wonder, then he repeated the attack, incinerating traitors and daemons wherever they could be found. But the more he used this, as he soon observed, the hotter the spear became in his hands- right up to the point that it began to seep into his gauntleted fingers.
Not wishing to damage the indisposable weapon his father gave him, Horus alternated from the blasts of light to utilizing its heated blade to sear through the guardsmen standing in his path.
As they moved up the corridors, mopping up the traitors with bolt and fire, Aggregius soon found himself devoid of ammunition. Not wishing to pick up any of the weapons discarded on the floor, fearing the taint, the sergeant fished out his sword and joined Nameless right in the face of the enemy.
Abaddon heard the portents of Ygethmor and his frown deepened. The skull of the recently slain clone made a loud snap as the Talon crushed it in its foul grip. The Lord of Change had seen the threads of fate and showed him the path tha must unfold in the near future.
He would wait no longer.
"The hour of conquest is upon us!" The Despoiler roared, standing tall from his throne and raising Drach'nyen. "The Lupercal has returned, yet another slave to the corpse-emperor! Yet this will not hinder the hand of Chaos! Once more, we shall visit my terrible wrath upon the Cadian Gate! The air shall burn and the ground shall melt, the sky-wound shall pour its malice forth. We shall return to finish the Warmonger's red work, to bring an end to Terra and usher in the Red Age!"
"For Chaos!" Abaddon heard the psychic screams of both daemon, traitor marine and cultist respond to his words.
The work upon the Eye was completed, the Blackstone fortress ready for its foul purpose. The Black Fleet of Abaddon moved for the 13th time, heading towards the gaping maw of the Eye of Terror and into realspace. The Gods of Chaos looked on with twisted pride at their pawns, licking their lips at the torrent of souls that would soon pour into the black realms of the Ruinous Powers. United the champions stood, blessed with the malevolent strengths of their patrons, marching as one at the beck and call of the Despoiler.
Psykers from a thousand lightyears could feel the impending doom, heard the thunder of the fleet's engines, and the roar of a billion traitors screaming for blood and fire. Even the Emperor, who sat upon his Golden Throne, feared for all those innocents that would undoubtedly be crushed in the war that will engulf the entire segmentum. It was inevitable, yes, but the pain it brings to his compassionate heart was keenly felt all the same.
The final hope, the fate of the Imperium, now rested upon his son's shoulders.
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4th chapter done, and I'm soooo excited! Please let me know what you think, and get those feedbacks on the way! All ideas are welcome, just PM me!