38. When fate changes (Part 3)
"We need to leave and blow this planet to dust" Thal argued, "We have no proof he's alive and in all likelihood he's already dead"
"You are in no position to say who can or cannot leave the planet" Ovis glared down at the 1st captain, "we're not leaving"
The news of Sotris being taken by the enemy caused most in the 2nd legion to declare him lost and demand they retreat from the planet but Ovis still believed his son lived and wished to mount a rescue. The 2nd legion no longer had a fleet capable of extracting them so they would have to depend on the 11th if they wanted to leave.
Aeoran sat in contemplation as his captains argued with his brother and his captains, he knew he could never convince Ovis to leave the planet so instead of arguing he was trying to think of a way to rescue the captured prince.
"My lord!" Thal turned to Aeoran, "You are the only one able to talk sense in to your brother, we don't have the forces to push to the tower, the 2nd has been decimated and the 11th doesn't have the numbers to make up for our losses"
Aeoran exhaled, "We won't be leaving, the injured will be taken to orbit but any man that can fight will stay planetside and aid the 11th in rescuing Sotris"
"My lord!" Thal and his captains vocalised their surprise and disagreement, "All this for one man, this planet is cursed and we should not stay here any longer"
"He's not just one man" Aeoran focused his aura on his captains, "He may have come for another legion but Sotris is as much your battle brother as Erstwal or any other in the 2nd, he has fought beside us and even led us to victory more than once and we cannot repay that by abandoning him"
"Then how do you suggest we even get to him, there is no way we will be getting through that horde and there is nowhere on the tower to insert forces by air" Erstwal was the first of his captains to step forward in support
Aeoran gave his son a knowing smile, "We won't go through the enemy but under them"
"What are you planning?" Ovis asked
"There are tunnels just under the surface, they seem to have housed the army before it came to the surface and I believe they could lead to the tower"
"Won't those tunnels be filled with Rangdan slaves?" Atris asked
"Not if we draw them to the surface with an offensive"
"We still don't know the tunnels will be clear and we aren't sure they connect to the tower" Thal also voiced concerns, "And if there is a true Rangdan in there then it could wipe out any squad we send, they have gone toe to toe with primarchs"
"I will lead the rescue, if we come in to contact with the true Rangdan then I will face it" Aeoran was resolute on this course of action
"I can't let you go alone" Ovis spoke up before any of Aeoran's captains, "If true Rangdan are as powerful as suggested then you'll need all the primarchs you can get"
Alsa was next to speak up, "That seems like the best course of action but I'm sure the enemy would notice that the two commanders are missing from the battle and might figure out what we're doing"
"You think those mindless things have the intelligence to figure that out?" Thal scoffed
"They were smart enough to trap the 2nd on the planet and know that Sotris was different from the other astartes and they should capture him"
Atris chuckled, "That's easily fixed sister" the 1st son took up his helmet and threw it to his father, "There is more than one dashing primarch of the 11th"
"How the hell do you move in this" Ovis complained as he moved through the deserted tunnels under the surface Korselos
The 11th primarch was wearing power armour for the first time, he had given his coat and power arm to Atris so his son could impersonate him on the battlefield and stop the disappearance of their commanders from being suspicious to the enemy while he took his son's armour. They had made quite the show of evacuating many of the 2nd legion so the enemy would believe that Aeoran and his legion had returned to orbit.
"Stop being a baby" Aeoran chuckled as he walked beside his brother
About 30 marines from the 2nd and 11th legions accompanied the two as well as the primarch's equerries as they moved through the maze of tunnels, they were currently deserted and they could hear the fighting going on above their heads. The tunnels were complex and constantly twisting and splitting off but for one of the sons of the Emperor it was easy to keep their bearings and keep themselves heading in the right direction.
The sound of fighting soon subsided as they moved away from the landing site and they could only hear the sea of enemies standing above them. The sounds eventually started coming from within the tunnels, the sound of scuttling and claws on stone started echoing over the infiltration squad, all the astartes had their weapons ready as they eyed up every side passage.
The first attack was simply one slave soldier jumping out of a side passage, teeth bared and ready to clamp down on a marine's neck, Aeoran reacted faster than any of his sons and brought his axe down on the monster. As soon as the thing was dead the sound of more coming down the tunnels could be heard, thousands and likely more heading right for them, marines quickly placed charges and collapsed the tunnel before the group moved on but more could be heard coming down other tunnels.
They were in a full sprint as the sounds of an army of the abominations could be heard behind them, the marines bringing up the rear kept looking over their shoulders as they threw mines behind them. The sounds of monsters soon started to come from in front of them as well, an ambush clearly coming.
"This was a terrible idea" Thal commented as the group ducked in to a side tunnel and collapsed it behind them, "We're all going to die for one person"
"No one asked any of you to be here, turn back and I'll go ahead myself" Ovis gave Thal a sideways glance, clearly ready to silence the 1st captain violently
Thal hadn't been a big fan of Sotris from the beginning and after the prince had destroyed half his face he liked him less, he had been vocal in his opposition to the rescue but his loyalty would not allow him to leave his priamrch's side.
They moved through the tunnels, taking detours to avoid large groups of slave soldiers and killing lone ones or isolated groups, time was difficult to measure underground but their chronometers said it took them hours to finally reach the tower.
It was a massive thing made out of flesh and there didn't seem to be any openings on the surface but there was one underground. They knew they were approaching it when they saw the rust red dirt start to be marbled with pink veins of flesh, the entrance itself looked like a ring of muscle that led in to the tower's fleshy interior.
There were several salve soldiers guarding the entrance, hunched over things with spikes coming out of them in every direction, their arms ended in spiked clubs. 5 of them shambled in front of the entrance, mindlessly standing at their station. The marines attacked swiftly, charging out in to the open and opening fire to quickly shred the guards to viscera, the muscles around the entrance tightened and sealed it shut but Aeoran's axe made quick work of it and they were in.
The marines split off in to smaller squads, they were to cause havoc and try to bring the tower down while the primarchs went to find Sotris and possibly the true Rangdan. The primarchs and their equerries ran through the tower's disturbing halls.
It was like being inside a body, the walls were made from flesh and the doors all seemed to be sphincters that relaxed and tightened to open and close, monsters seemed to be able to burst out of these sphincters and other orifices at will with the group being attacked at random from every angle.
They were deep in the tower when they finally managed to get a signal from Sotris' armour, heading straight for it through any obstacle including the walls. As they were getting close to the signal Thal stopped.
"Fix it all" he heard the voice
"What are you doing Thal, come on" his primarch called out to him and he focused again, moving to catch up to them
"Not that way" he stopped as he heard it again, he looked to his right and saw another passage that was wide open, "He won't take it, he won't listen, so you should and make him listen, make him see"
"Thal! Snap out of it"
"This is not the time to play around" Ovis walked towards Thal, the primarch had had enough of his attitude this entire mission
"Don't let him take you"
Without thinking Thal's arm moved, it raised his bolter and shot the muscle ridge around the hallway they were in, it reacted instantly and the sphincter slammed shut. Thal didn't spend any time questioning why he did what he did, he turned and ran down the other passage, knocking the ring of muscles and shutting it as he passed through.
On the other side of the sphincter Aeoran, Ovis and Asla stood in surprise, "Why the bloody hell did he do that?" Asla asked
"I don't know" Aeoran had his suspicions but he would have to confront his son after they had escaped the tower, "I doesn't matter we need to get moving"
They quickly decided to leave Thal behind and continue up the tower, heading straight for Sotris' signal.
Sotris had been captured days ago, he had spent weeks fighting the hordes that tried to invade the bridge of the ruined Eternal mist, his blade had been a blur as he slaughtered every one of those monsters that stepped foot on the bridge but more just kept coming and eventually the tide had dragged him out of the bridge, literally a tide of bodies had pushed him out as he slashed at them. He had fought the entire time with the Rangdan calling in larger slave soldiers to try and deal with him.
He had been taken in to the tower and hauled up to the top where he was chained to a wall with shackles made of bone that was stronger than he could break. He didn't have to wait long to meet his captor as a giant entered the room. The Rangdan mutated and changed other species according to their own will but they also changed and mutated their own bodies, taking the best parts of other species to become even greater, this practise made pretty much every true Rangdan look unique although they were still compatible with each other.
The Master of Korselos was at least 5 times the size of a primarch, a monstrous thing that shrouded its form with a cloak that could have been the skin of its enemies or its own skin, spikes came out of its back and around the crown of what should be its head.
It paced in front of Sotris, placing one of its clawed fingers on his heart, it didn't run him through simply placing its finger there. The alien said something in its strange tongue, sounding like rolling thunder and the shaking of a rattle, most people wouldn't have recognised it as speech but Sotris did.
The Rangdan moved to one of the fleshy walls and opened it up to reveal what Sotris assumed was some type of cogitator although this was made out of flesh much like everything in the tower and only had minimal cybernetics in it. Needles made of bone came from above and started drawing blood from Sotris as the Rangdan analysed it, obviously wanting to unravel the secrets of his genetics.
"Can you speak monster?" Sotris asked but it just ignored him, "You want information why don't you just ask me?"
The Rangdan turn its head and Sotris could tell it was looking at him from under the flesh hood, it made more rattle like sounds before turning back to its work.
"Can you even talk or are you just as mindless as your soldiers?" Sotris taunted the thing, not knowing if it even understood him but he just wanted to annoy it, "I wonder how ugly you need to be that those soldiers aren't covering up but you are"
The thing didn't seem to respond as Sotris shouted insults at it, it looked at the screen and from what Sotris could see it was definitely analysing his genetic make up. A new needle came down but this one wasn't to draw anything out of him. It was filled with a green liquid that Sotris couldn't identify but he knew it wasn't good, the needle stabbed in to his right arm and emptied the liquid in to his blood stream.
Sotris wasted no time, willing his body to close off all the membranes in his body and stopping his blood from circulating for a second, he isolated the substance in his blood and directed it around his body and in to his stomach. The green liquid came spewing out of his mouth as he threw it up on to the floor, it took a lot out of him but it saved him from whatever effect it would have.
The Rangdan turned to look at Sotris, he couldn't see its expression but he'd like to imagine it was surprised. The Rangdan quickly turned back to its work. This would be the routine for days, Sotris would mock and taunt his captor while it tried to study his DNA and concoct new serums that he would just spit up and he would mock it more.
"Oh that one almost got me, I almost felt it working" Sotris laughed but it was getting harder to purge his system of whatever was being injected in to him, even he had limits
"WHY!" the Rangdan screamed in gothic, surprising Sotris, "Why won't you change? All things must change for us"
"You can talk?"
"I learned your lesser tongue from your constant chattering" the Rangdan spoke with a deep and slimy voice, "Why will you not change, you have no soul to shape and your body refuses to cooperate, do you not wish to be free?"
"Free? By becoming your slave" Sotris felt insulted that the Rangdan would even suggest something so antithetical to him, "I am Sotris the son of Ovis, I am the scourge of xenos like you, the day I become a slave is the day this universe ends"
"You will be free from the uncertainty and chaos caused by the one who changes all, he almost destroyed my people but we took control of the change, we grew to understand him and severed all connection to him and his siblings and now we must change all others to stop them"
"What the fuck are you talking about?" Sotris had quickly figured out it was talking about the dark gods but needed to keep him talking
"The lesser species don't understand them like we do, our great tomes tell all of their strengths and weaknesses, they are all there is to know about them made from the shaped flesh of their servants, servants turned from their masters and to our cause" The Rangdan rambled as it got to grips with gothic, "But you lessers could not comprehend the knowledge and it just drives you closer to them, we have no choice but to change you so you can't be driven to the great enemy"
"I have no idea who this great enemy is or why you fight but capturing me was the worst thing you could do, my father will come and he will eat your soul"
"I do not care who comes, I will change them and I will find a way to change you" the Rangdan turned away from Sotris, "You cannot resist forever, your body has to yield eventually"
Sotris knew it was right but as they had been talking his nose had picked up on something. A familiar fragrance that he had grown up smelling, the smell of his father. He was far away but Sotris knew he would be climbing the tower as quickly as he could. All Sotris needed to do was keep the xenos talking.
"Does this place have alarms or any kind of security?" he asked
"Why would I tell you that, it is not something you need to know, now or after I change you"
"I'm curious, you change others because you see yourself as the highest form of life so I was wondering how far that arrogance went"
"It is not arrogance, mine is the only species that can comprehend and resist the great powers of this universe, it is our right to change the lesser species as we see fit to keep them from the sway of the enemy"
"You claim dominion over everything because you understand some nonsense that you made up and refuse to explain" Sotris snorted, "That is laughable"
"And what backs your species' claim to the galaxy?"
"Might, humanity will rule not because it is divined by fate or some higher power, we'll rule because we crushed all others including you"
"Your kind can not stand against a species that can defy the so-called gods, you do not have that kind of power"
Sotris smirked, "Well let's see why don't we"
A fist bust through the floor, throwing flesh and viscera in all directions, the hole made by the fist was torn wider and an armoured figure pulled themselves up in to the room followed by a second person.
Ovis looked around the room at the top of the tower, seeing his son chained to the wall with needles and tubes sticking out of him and a giant cloaked figure in another corner analysing some results. Ovis looked his son over and could tell he hadn't really been harmed.
"Are you ok?" he asked
"I'm fine, just kill that thing so I can get out of these"
Ovis and Aeoran both turned to the xenos figure that towered over both of them, Aeoran hefted his axe and Ovis drew a power blade before charging the true Rangdan without a single word exchanged.
The flesh under the Rangdan's hood bubbled before exploding out in the form of bone spikes, spearing towards the primarchs, both rolled out of the way and charged the xenos. The Rangdan sprouted a dozen pink tentacles ending with spiked masses of bone, it flailed them in all directions to dissuade any advance. Aeoran blocked and dodged the organic flails with machine like precision while Ovis deftly dodged them as they came down, grabbing any that got close enough and cutting them off.
The xenos pointed its clawed hand at Ovis and shot off a torrent of lightning that completely evaporated the fleshy floor as it approached the primarch but quickly fizzled out as it came in to contact with him. Aeoran took the Rangdan's moment of surprise to close the gap and charged with his axe raised. The xenos switch his attention to Aeoran and now Ovis charged, the two primarchs approaching from two directions.
The Rangdan acted quickly, throwing all its flails at Ovis as it unleashed lightning at Aeoran. Ovis tried to dodge them all but one caught him in the chest, crushing his armour and throwing him across the room. Aeoran was stopped dead by the storm of lightning that the alien had unleashed, the motors and electronics in his armour overloading and blowing out as the lighting contracted his muscles and burnt his skin.
"You fools can't see the truth, if showed to you you'd only run back to ignorance" The Rangdan approached Aeoran as it continued to electrocute him, "You're a weak species who'd seek salvation from alien things, we are the only ones who can give salvation, so before those "gods" condemn you we'll save you"
The Rangdan grabbed Aeoran's head, it's clawed hands engulfing the priamrch's head. The 2nd could feel the psychic tendrils that were attempting to invade his mind and soul, attempting to overtake in and reshape it to the alien's own specification. He tried to fight back but the Rangdan had great psychic power and quickly pushed passed all barriers the primarch put up.
He felt the cold alien hand grip his soul and begin to try and reshape it but the moment it touched his soul a third made itself known to the xenos.
"No" a simple command came from within the warp as the Rangdan felt itself come under the gaze of something incomprehensible and powerful
The Rangdan froze as the full gaze of the warp entity was focused on it, it had studied the tome that detailed the entity it was facing in terrifying detail but now it was face to face with the enemy of its people and it could not comprehend what it was experiencing, it was so much more powerful and complex than its people had documented. The entity touched the Rangdan's soul and imparted a small sliver of its knowledge, it gave the Rangdan its plans for its species and the Rangdan lost hope as it saw how all its species plans had been foiled by the entity long before they had even began.
Aeoran felt the Rangdan's psychic grip weaken he didn't know why but he took the opportunity, breaking free and grabbing his axe. The Rangdan didn't even notice as the primarch embedded his axe in its midsection, it finally snapped back to reality as it stumbled back, black blood pouring from its wound.
"The one who changes all protects you, it has chosen you" its tone was alien but Aeoran could tell it sounded both surprised and defeated, "It has chosen your species, my own kind have been the game pieces the entire time not the player and you're all game pieces like us as well"
Aeoran lowered his axe slightly, the xenos reminded him of that traitorous king of Aeoror, their ramblings were the same. Aeoran refused to listen back them but for a moment he wished for the xenos to explain further. Ovis would have none of that.
The 11th primarch appeared behind the Rangdan and, without a second of hesitation or even time for Aeoran to attempt to stop him, he cut the xenos' head clean off, the power blade cutting clean through the flesh and leaving a cauterised wound that didn't even bleed. The Rangdan fell over dead and Aeoran could feel its psychic influence disappear.
The tower slowly started to melt as the unnatural flesh it was made from rapidly decomposed and broke down. Outside the army of slave soldiers lost the connection to the master, their minds were returned to them for a moment before their mutated bodies destroyed themselves, unable to exist without the Rangdan and they died in droves.
Ovis freed his son and they met back up with his daughter, the four of them made it out of the tower as it was collapsing. Most of the astartes that went in with them made it out, very few of them being killed in combat. The only astartes missing was Thal, who hadn't been seen since he had abandoned his primarch.
Scans were taken of the planet and it was confirmed that all the slave soldiers had died, the world was dead so it couldn't be colonised but they had managed to kill a true Rangdan which was an achievement.
The 2nd legions fleet had been completely destroyed to a ship, the 11th had recovered a few from orbit and the surface that could be repaired, including Aeoran's flagship, but it would take years for them all to be repaired. The 2nd legion was taken aboard 11th legion ships to be taken back to Imperial space.
The two primarch's were in Ovis' private quarters, celebrating the hard-won victory, with Aeoran telling him of the weeks they had spent in constant battle and Sotris telling his father about how he fought the hordes trying to invade the Eternal mist.
"My legion is without a fleet, this is an embarrassment I will not live down" Aeoran downed the drink he had been served, a handmaid refiling his goblet as soon as it was empty
"I will have my shipyards working around the clock on your ships" Ovis assured him
"I still need a fleet, I suppose I'll just commandeer the nearest expedition fleet"
"I can get you a fleet" Sotris spoke up
Ovis raised an eyebrow and gave his son a strange look, "Unless that xenos gave you some ships as an apology then I don't know where you're getting a fleet from"
"My fleet should still be on patrol near Krake" Sotris pointed out, "I can call on them, its been far too long, I don't want them to forget me"
"Those are my ships, I just let you use them but your fleet has proven itself time and again, that is probably the 2nd's best option"
Aeoran sighed, "I can't ask any more of you brother, you risked your own legion to save mine even though it was my own hubris that put all my sons in danger in the first place"
Aeoran thought about everything he had lost in such a short amount of time; his fleet, his flagship, all his legions equipment, thousands of legionaries and, most concerning of all, his 1st captain. Thal had not been found, his armour wasn't transmitting a signal and his body hadn't been found.
"It's fine, you'll just be renting the fleet until a suitable one is assembled for you, I'll even give you a discount since you helped save my son"
Aeoran smiled, "I want to thank you again for saving me, I would be dead without you, I have lear…."
Aeoran was interrupted by his armour's vox going off, "This is Aeoran" he answered it
"My lord" the voice of Erstwal came through, "A beacon is transmitting from the planet"
"All hostiles are dead and everyone has been evacuated, have you established communications?"
"We have, it's Casis Thal, it seems he's alive my lord"
Next time: 20 sons