By the Emperor's Will
*INTERCEPTED BROADCAST FROM MERIDIAN, SUBSECTOR AURELIA*
...
Puppets of the Imperium, hear us. We are the Hounds of Vandis, the rightful heirs to Meridian. Hive Urizen shall stand as an example for all who oppose our rule. Your mewling leaders have failed you, and in time, all shall come to know Chaos's embrace. You may accept our dominance, or be swept away by the tide. We are legion. We are coming.
...
KAR DUNIASH, SEGMENTUM COMMAND [ULTIMA]
"Our Astropaths received the transmission three days ago," said Scribe Lorell. He placed the transcript on Tactician Arnhult Von Geert's desk. "We understand that a local cult uprising has overrun Urizen Hive, the primary settlement on the planet's southern hemisphere."
Von Geert looked over the report while the Lorell stood patiently. The Imperial Guard had marched on the Hive, bolstered by Meridian's significant Planetary Defense Force. Three Vendoland regiments formed the core of the Imperial forces committed to the offensive, all crusade veterans.
Good, Arnhult thought. As the Officio Tactica officer overseeing Imperial Guard deployments within the Korianis Sector, he had heard word of the Vendolander's exploits. The unsung heroes of the Aurelian Crusades, some called them, though he found that notion disingenuous. Efficient fighters, at the least, but Arnhult remained wary of the situation. The Imperial Guard regiments were being committed entirely to the operation, and the casualty estimates were dangerously high. If the assault failed, there would be no way of sending reinforcements in time.
Still, Von Geert knew what had to be done. He motioned to the scribe to begin writing. "Issue a deployment order for Subsector Aurelia. Standard occupation force, with additional reserves as the situation requires." The scribe hastily gathered the necessary paperwork. The officer raised his hand just as the scribe reached the door. "Lorell, what records do we have about these 'Hounds of Vandis'? What sort of cult are we dealing with?"
The scribe shook his head. "I'm afraid I do not know much, my lord. According to records they are the private bodyguard of the previous planetary governor, Gregor Vandis. He was deposed some time ago, but the cult has remained a threat throughout Subsector Aurelia."
Von Geert stroked his chin stubble. "It will be several weeks before the relief forces arrive from the nearest outposts. The Vendoland regiments will be on their own. I hope they are up to the challenge."
"They will need to be," said Lorell plainly. "The alternative is unacceptable."
Chapter 1: Concrete Chaos
A flurry of las shots swished past Sergeant Major Merrick's head, missing by inches. Instinctively, he threw himself to the floor of the shelter. More shots peppered the rockcrete, passing through the wide gaps where cannon fire had blown the room open. Merrick pressed his back against the wall, and shuffled along until he could peer out through the large gap. Cautiously, Merrick chanced a look outside. He didn't like what he saw.
Merrick, along with members of Daredevil squad, the 4th company grenadiers, were holed up in the ruins of a habblock that lay along the edge of the Eyre Canal. Across the waterway, a full company of House Vandis soldiers were advancing towards the bridge crossing Merrick's squad was assigned to defend. He could make out dozens of Hounds offloading their supply trucks, deploying mortars, autocannons, and heavy bolters. It was more than enough ordnance to level the ruins the Vendolanders found themselves trapped in.
The Daredevils were trapped on the top floor of the shelter, reduced to taking potshots at the Hounds. Vandis's traitors were proving to be far more stubborn than Lieutenant Colonel Banastre had anticipated. The whole offensive had been underestimated. If Merrick's team didn't move soon, the dogs would blow the building with them still in it. Catching sight of him, more gunfire lashed through the gap. Merrick shuffled back before they could draw a bead on him.
Squad sergeant Hurst moved to Merrick's side. "How bad?" he asked. Like the others, his face was covered by a filtration mask, giving his voice an electrical tinge.
"Lots of big guns. I'd say this position is officially shot to hell," said Merrick. He tilted his head towards the comm trooper, adjusting the frequency dials on his long range vox pack, "Has Alek picked anything up on the vox?"
Hurst murmured, "Some, none of it good. The dogs broke through the line Habblock Tertius, 5th and 6th took a beating."
"Frak it," Merrick cursed.
Alek spoke up, "4th has pulled back to Arminius Square. They're calling all units to make for the fallback point and hold the Havelock-Davenon intersection."
"Well, we know where to head," said Merrick. "Haven't heard anything from the LT, have you?"
"Not a word," said Hurst, shaking his head. "Hopefully, Hunder got the rest of the platoon out ahead of the dogs."
Merrick clipped his own mask on and primed his hellgun, "Well, then there's no sense in us waiting around." Merrick looked to the three remaining Daredevils, "Everyone, stairwell. Once we hit street level, we start hopping. One person covers the other until we're all across. Understood?"
"Got it, boss" said Private Remer, dark shaggy hair slipping out from under his helmet. "Can I run with Vornas?"
"Any particular reason, Remer?" Hurst said flatly.
Remer shrugged. "Well, bullets don't agree with me, and Vornas is a big guy..." he said before trailing off. Vornas, the large man next to him, growled.
Merrick didn't need to say anything. One glare before snapping his goggles on shut the private up. "Let's move it people!" he barked.
As quickly as they could crawl, the grenadiers made for the stairwell at the back of the room. The floor was covered in chipped rockcrete, spent hotshot power packs and broken glass that crunched underneath as they slithered their way to the exit. Catching their movement, the Hounds pounded the room with fire. Las bolts and autogun rounds ripped through the air above them, and the thundering drone of a heavy autocannon left their ears ringing. Reaching the stairs first, Merrick stood and yanked the next man, Kippler, to safety. Once Hurst hit the stairwell, Merrick trailed the squad down the steps.
More autocannon fire rocked the building. Cracks in the walls began fracturing into a spiderweb of loose pieces. The building began to shudder. Desperate now, the squad kept up their swift pace, moving as fast as they could to reach the ground floor. Merrick followed closely, leaping down whole flights of stairs at a time to keep up with Hurst and the others. As quick as they went, it still felt too slow.
A final thud smacked into the side, and above them, the habblock started to collapse. Merrick looked up in horror, and shouted "Go, go, go! It's coming down! Get out now!"
Dust engulfed the stairwell, blinding the men. Panic mixed with adrenaline as Merrick pushed himself harder, harder, until finally, the guardsmen burst onto the sun bleached promenade. There was not time to rest. Merrick shouted at his troops. "Come on men, keep moving! Across the street, now! Two by two, come on!"The grenadiers dashed across the street, putting distance between them and the the building. The Hab imploded under its weight, disintegrating into rubble.
Vandis soldiers, clad in black and gold armor, were moving in force across the bridge, fanning out along the north side of the Eyre. Some caught sight of the grenadiers as they fled, nipping at their heels with a hail of autogun fire. The Daredevils responded with concentrated Hellgun shots, downing two of the heretics as they emerged from cover. Vornas and Remer hefted their launchers and fired a spread of smoke grenades at the heretics. Using the distraction, the Daredevils slipped into the alleyways, vanishing into the slums of Urizen Hive.
Further into the slums, a handful of Guardsmen from 7th were pinned down behind an overturned truck, trading shots with the Hounds advancing from the end of the t-bone intersection. The cultists were bolstered by a Rhino transport, its Arbites markings torn off and replaced with cult sigils and what looked distressingly like human vehicle's twin-linked pintle bolter slung explosive rounds downrange, mulching the remains of the truck. The 7th company troopers were running out of options.
Sergeant Heris Gren readied and lobbed a krak grenade over the truck. The grenade bounced off the carrier and only managed to punch a hole through the thin walls of a shanty hut. The Vandis troopers were undeterred by the explosion, and continued to lay down fire on the trapped guardsmen as they pushed forward.
"Any ideas?" asked Corporal Kreyn. Gren blind fired around the truck, wracking his brain to find a solution.
The answer came to him in the form of another squad suddenly bursting out of an alley into the middle of the firefight. Grenadiers, by the looks of them, well armed and already engaging the Hounds as they poured into the open.
"That's our key," shouted Gren. He uttered a war cry and rounded the truck carcass. With the Hounds engaged by the grenadiers, Gren's troopers hit them from the side, with knife and bayonet and lasgun. The melee was quick and brutal; by the time it was over seconds later, thirteen cultists and one guardsmen lay dead. Gren sighed and knelt over the soldier's body. Farrow had taken a shot to the throat. He was dead before he'd hit the ground. Quietly, Gren closed his friend's eyes and whispered a prayer for him.
Standing up, the sergeant viewed his rescuers, noting their company markings. The six grenadiers were familiar to Gren. "We meet again, 4th. The name's Gren, we fought together at Spire Legis. Didn't think you'd be coming to our rescue again, but I'll take it all the same."
"I remember," said Hurst, looking. "Where's the rest of your company, sergeant? 7th is second battalion. Your squad is a whole grid off."
Gren shrugged. "I don't know. I was hoping you could tell us. We heard the retreat order on the vox. The whole battalion is scattered across the slums. These streets are a bloody maze."
"Stick with us then," said Merrick. "We're heading for the rally point at Arminius Square. We'll get you sorted out there."
"Aye, sergeant major," agreed Gren. "There's no sense in us waiting around. Flinn, Mory, you're on point."
The two squads joined forces and continued to move north. One of the grenadiers wandered up to the troopers on point. "So, Flinn, was it? Name's Remer. That was some nice work back there. Have you bagged many culties yet?"
"Can't say I have, sorry," said the boy. He was clearly tense as he swept the streets ahead for hostile contacts. "What about you?"
"Oh, you know, it's hard to keep count with a grenade launcher," Remer said, looking at his weapon fondly. He tapped the small flamer on his side, "I keep this one for when they get close. Must have gotten, I dunno, eight, ten, maybe? Not that dogs are worth much."
Vornas sighed. "Oh for Emperor's sake, leave the kid alone, idiot. Nobody cares how many dogs you've killed, so quit running your mouth."
Remer looked hurt, "What's wrong with keeping count? If I had to put a notch on this thing for every bug, dog, or greenskin I've bagged, all I'd have left is a metal toothpick. I'd say that means something."
"Don't let him rattle you, son," said Gren reassuringly, "Just keep your eyes forward and ignore him."
Hurst had had enough. "Remer, if you're going to mess around up at the front, you can be on point. Get back in line, now."
"Yes, sarge," grumbled Remer. Before dropping back he quietly added to Flinn, "Might be a good idea to take up counting, though. Everyone needs a hobby."
Flinn didn't look back, "Is yours annoying people?"
"I thought I said shut it!" barked Hurst.
"Sorry, sir."
Hive Urizen had descended into madness. As the Hounds' broadcast had spread across the Subsector, the Vendoland regiments stationed in Angel Hive had mobilized to attack their southern neighbor. General Castille, the commanding officer for the Vendoland Imperial Guard regiments, intended to repeat the success the 85th Vendoland had achieved during the struggle for Spire Legis. But what had started as a mobile sweep through the outlying hab spires had quickly dissolved into costly attacks against heavily entrenched positions. Previously abandoned sections of the city suddenly filled with heretic masses, cutting off entire companies and throwing the regiments into disarray.
The sheer numbers that the cultists had brought were overrunning checkpoints. The Daredevils were harassed the entire way back to the rendezvous point. The Hounds would resort to human wave tactics while the trained soldiers behind them continued to advance and fortify their positions. All Merrick's squad could do was fall in the face of overwhelming odds. Navigating the narrow streets of the slums, the men finally broke through onto the Havelock boulevard, running east to west along the breadth of the entire hive.
The Havelock boulevard eventually opened up into Arminius Square where the Davenon road crossed it. Guardsmen from the 4th company were dug in behind a line of sandbags and the low stone walls surrounding the central monument, an effigy carved in the likeness of a mighty Astartes warrior. The statue had been scarred and blasted in several spots, defiling the once noble image. The whole area was under fire from enemy troops moving up Davenon road. Merrick vaulted over the low wall, followed closely by the rest of his men.
Elle Connor, the company's commissar, was a hard sight to miss. While troopers were taking cover, she was standing tall, shouting encouragement and fearlessly firing her bolt pistol at the heretics, heedless of return fire. "To me, Vendolanders! Your lives are the Emperor's currency, make sure they are not spent in vain! If we are to die here, we do so standing!"
The men remained determined, inspired by her words and valour. Captain Lars Uther was at her side, shouting furiously into a vox pack. "Attention all 4th Company members, pull back to Arminius Square! We're enacting a full retreat, I repeat, full retreat!" Uther looked up to see Merrick. "I'm glad you made it out sergeant major. Command has ordered the regiment to fall back to Angel Hive. The PDF are in shambles, and our own regiments can't take on an entire hive by themselves. Urizen is a lost cause."
Merrick nodded. "Understood, sir. I'll get the men moving, any orders?"
"The 4th Company is to cover the 1st battalion's retreat. Banastre has already pulled the second and third battalions back, along with Command. Once everyone is out, we bring up the rear."
"What about the PDF troopers? Are we just going to leave them?" asked Merrick.
"They are dead, Sergeant Major," said Connor bluntly, not taking her eyes off of the cultist horde bearing down on them. "We lost contact with their commander hours ago."
Merrick turned to look at the sight of the incoming Hounds. "I think we were the last ones back sir, we didn't see anyone but dogs behind us."
Uther nodded slowly. "Then we leave. Commissar, order the men to retreat. Sergeant Major, start loading the Chimeras for transport."
"Understood sir." Merrick stood up, waving the surviving guardsmen to Chimeras, idling on the main road out of the square. "Men, pack your gear and fall back! I repeat, we are falling back! Basic kit only, leave anything you can't carry by yourself."
The 4th Company swiftly embarked, leaving the square to be overrun by the traitorous Hounds. Countless heretics poured into the clearing, chasing after the Imperials. The small convoy swiftly pulled back under heavy fire. Again, Merrick and the Daredevils were the last to board, firing on the ordnance left behind to deny it to the heretics. The Vandis soldiers heavy autocannons ripped up the streets in their wake, just as the munitions dump went up in flames from a few well placed grenades from Remer and Vornas.
The Hounds pursued them a while down the winding streets to the outer Habs, before finally giving up the chase. Merrick dropped into his seat, exhausted. Around him, men were all in various states of shock. Some were silently staring at the deck. Others began to break down, crying into the arms of their friends and squad members.
Merrick remained solid for the sake of the men. Seeing the company Sergeant Major collapse now would be disastrous for morale. So he put on a brave face, even as he shook on the inside. The Imperial Guard had been picked apart effortlessly, playing right into the hands of the cultists. He patted a shaking guardsmen reassuringly, as much for the man as for himself. Staring out through the gun port, Merrick watched the vast hive dissolve into the abandoned industrial wasteland of the dead zone, dreading what might come next.
Two days later
Is this really everyone, thought Merrick. They had arrived on the borders of Angel Hive, near the edge of Golgotha Spire, it's southernmost district, where they were met by a number of civilian cargo haulers sent at the behest of Governor Derosa to ferry them home. It was the first time since the retreat that they had stopped, finally giving the exhausted guardsmen time to rest. By the time they had arrived at the rendezvous point, fewer than a third of their number that had escaped Urizen were able to make muster. The rest were missing, or dead.
That number included most of their command staff. General Castille's transport was nowhere to be found, and neither was the entourage of priests, adjutants and scribes that regularly followed a regiment's headquarters. 36th Recon and 46th Armoured were thoroughly savaged, while the 85th Infantry had taken heavy losses. Of the command staff, only Lieutenant Colonel Banastre and a handful of captains remained. Banastre was already talking about organizing a new chain of command, with himself at the head. The 'Lucky Bastard' had somehow managed to cheat death once again.
Waste of flesh, that man, thought Merrick, as he and the grenadiers piled ammunition crates and fuel into the back of a cargo truck. The Chimera that had safely ferried them here had finally run dry, and it's instruments were completely shot from wear and tear. They scuttled what they could before a plow crew shoved the wreck off the road to let the rest of the survivors pass.
While they worked, the remaining officers of the 85th Vendoland regiment were convening with their contemporaries among both the 46th Vendoland Armoured and the 34th Vendoland Recon regiments. With General Castille presumed dead, it was up to them now to decide what course of action the Vendolanders would take to protect Meridian. Merrick was overseeing the company with Lieutenant Hunder until Captain Uther returned.
"What I don't get, is why they didn't just finish us off on the highway," said Remer, leaning against an ammunition crate. "You'd think that'd be obvious for them."
"Who knows why they did what they did," said Kippler, shouldering Remer off the crate as he lifted it onto the flatbed. "Point is that they didn't follow us, and we're still alive."
"But doesn't that seem strange?" continued Remer. "They had us pinned right in the middle of the Hive, picking us off one by one, and then boom, they just let us ride off without a worry. That doesn't make you wonder?"
"You haven't noticed that half the regiment is dead?" remarked Vornas sarcastically. "Or that the PDF is basically frakked?"
"Look, all I'm saying is, we shouldn't be here right now. They let us go, and I don't like it."
Merrick added his voice to the debate, "I don't like it either, Remer. I'd love to think they just got bored, but this damned planet has taught me better. They're always toying with us."
"That's another thing that's been bothering me," said Remer.
"Oh, something else?" said Vornas, "Please, do tell."
"Well, we've been here, what? Six years? First, it was those Coalition rebels, right, back when the 203rd Regiment was still kicking around. That's where you and Alek were from, right boss?"
"Yep, stationed out of Typhon Primaris for about two years there," said Merrick. He pulled a cigar from his waist pouch and flicked his lighter, "Your point, if there is one?"
"Well, after that, it was the bugs, those damned Tyranids," continued Remer. "And then the Chaos nutters showed up last year. And now we're fighting their dogs."
"Is there a point to all this?" asked Kippler. Out of all of them, he seemed to be the only one actually working.
Remer stood, looking right in Merrick's face. "My point is, we've been here for six years and nothing has changed. It's just one mess after another."
"Enough with the preamble, say what you want to say, private," said Merrick. His patience was running thin.
"When are we going home?"
The question hung in the air. Remer wasn't his normal joking self, he looked dead serious as he continued. "If this is all we have to look forward to, getting our shit kicked in every year, why don't they just send us home?"
"Guardsmen don't go home, private," Merrick said, "Look it up, it's in the field manual, right next to the list of questions deemed offensive by the Commissariat."
The rest of the company was silent. Merrick knew they were all thinking the same thing. It had been years. More than he'd like to admit, he longed to return to Vendoland as well, and get out of this hellhole subsector. But every year made that goal seem that much further away.
"With all respect, sir, that is bullshit," Remer countered, "This place is a lost cause, and I don't see why our men, Vendoland men, have to bleed for a place that gives us nothing back. What would you do, if you were in charge, and not Lucky Bastard Banastre? You'd leave, wouldn't you, if you had the chance?"
"I haven't got an answer for that, Remer," he said. There was nothing he could say without lying to himself.
"I didn't think so." Remer's face was strained. Without saying another word, he walked off on his own. Merrick sighed, and went back to loading the trucks.
Captain Uther returned an hour later. He drew his officers and NCOs to him for a short briefing. "What's left of Command has come to a decision. Captain Lester and Captain Crassus will act as Battalion Majors. Colonel Banastre is acting as supreme commander for all remaining regiments. I know, it's not what you want to hear, but right now, he's the highest ranking officer we have left. We're being dispersed across Angel Hive to hold strategic locations. Sergeant Major."
Merrick stepped up. "Yes sir?"
"I'm giving you command of half the company. I need someone experienced and you're my top man. Lieutenants, you're good men, but young. Listen to Merrick and follow his example. You are to hold the Administratum Complex in Capital Spire until further notice. The 85th is being spread out across the Spire to keep supply lines open. 36th Recon will be stationed in Angel Forge, and the 46th Armoured is covering the approach to Spire Legis.
We're in for a rough ride, gentlemen. I hope every one of you is ready for this. Keep your heads down, and keep your men alive, is that understood?" The officers nodded and muttered in agreement. "Very well then, as you were. Good luck men, Emperor watch over you."
Author's Note: Hey everyone. If you haven't noticed, or if you are a new reader, this is an updated version of my first Merrick Story. I decided that it would be better to keep all of the short stories collected under one heading to make it easier for people to find the latest stories. I plan to move all my Merrick stories to this section in time.
If you do not know, these shorts are related to Dark Eldar's Legacy of the Blood Ravens fanfic, which I definitely recommend to get a better bearing on the context of these stories. His fanfic can be found here.
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