Chapter 6
We have arrived
The ground erupted next to him spraying Cameron in a fine layer of dust. Al around him was a smoky mist making it impossible to see anything.he was crouching with his back up to the rock, behind him was a building full of enemy that he had to clear. Another hail of gun fire rained down on him spattering the ground and rock causing more dust to mix with the smoke. he breathed in and lunged.
Away from the rock and rll straight up into a run, a red streak lanced out at him barley missing, he dived ducked and started running again as more lasers peppered the ground where he used to be. Now he saw the building a black scar on the grayish smoke. He ran with renewed vigor at the door and leaped through the air feet first solidly dropkicking the door off its hinges and sending himself and the door flying into the building. As he landed on the ground he drew out his 2 bolt pistols and aimed, there in the main room with him he could see 3 murky silhouettes, he placed a bolt round through each of their heads. The gun shots sounded like the roar of a thunder hawk in his unprotected ears and the blow back from the pistols was almost more than he could handle.
As soon as the bodies dropped he was under more fire from a nearby stair well, he rolled onto his back and fired a burst of highly explosive shells into another bodie toppling it from the stairs. Cameron jumped to his feet and ran to the stairs and threw 2 high explosive grenades up on short time fuses.
The explosive concussions made the roof sag and bits of it fall through, but Cameron did not notice this he was already pumping up the stairs and now running down the second floor hallway. He ran at full pelt down the hallway running around holes in the floor and jumping over a barricade.
He saw the door at the end, that was his mission. Before he could get any closer though the door opened and something stepped out with what looked like a very large weapon. Before his assailant could fire Cameron launched himself to the left planting his foot on the wall and pushing off sending him into the air. Then the hall way exploded.
As he flew through the air the enemy opened up with his weapon, a heavy stubbier usually reserved for the tops of tanks and war machines, a meter long tongue of flame licked menacingly at the air as hundreds of rounds tore down the hall way and impacted on the floor and end of the hallway ay and where Cameron used to be, before Cameron could land he placed 2 magazines of bolt pistol ammo into the gunner.
He landed in front of the dead body dropping both his spent pistols. But he did not slow, he took 3 running lunges at the door un slinging a bolt gun from across his back. When he got to the remains of the body he dived feet first and skided into the room blasting 4 more standing forms, when he ended in the middle of the room he unstrapped something from his leg and placed it on the floor then made sure all the siluetss were dead.
He reached down to his neck vox and called in.
"building clear justicar." As he spoke the smoke lifted and all the training servitors got up and resumed their places at windows and hall ways, except for the gunner servitor it remained motionless on the floor. The justicar wouldn't like this he liked to not have to replace his servitors.
Cameron slowly walked back out of the building now is stamina rush gone he could feel the weight of the bulky armor the grand master had given to him. It had now been a week since they had entered the warp on their trip into necrons space. The day after meeting the inquisitor Cameron had said he was ready for action. While his body still ached and his wounds hadn't completely closed he wanted to be fighting to be able to forget where he was going and how likely it was he was going to die.
After he had been given this armor Cameron had bee lead to the armory and given his choice of weapons. There had been so many heavy weapons poison weapons grenade launchers rocket launchers and almost everything he had wanted to use on the firing ranges. But instead he chose 2 bolt pistols and 1 bolt gun with a bandolier of ammo for each type. He also always carried a melta bomb, just out of superstition.
At first the bolt gun and pistols had been to much for him to handle, but he learned how to use them developing a firing system that would never put to much strain on one hand. Now he was a crack shot with both the weapons, not as good as any of the silent grey nights but good enough.
As he left the building Cameron was greeted by a justicar, he lost memory of their names. It was better just to call the justicar or justicar or whatever their title was.
"two minutes and fifty eight seconds. Take a minute fifty eight off of that and you'll be close to beating my time" said the justicar. The justicar wore no armor only a grey robe with his rank on them. But the justicar was till 2 feet taller than Cameron.
"has the inquisitor decided he will tell me where we are going yet? And has he explained why he wants me out there with you and your brethren?" said Cameron looking up into the great scarred face of the man. How old was he? Thought Cameron. He heard space marines could be hundreds of years old before even looking old.
"the inquisitor has his ways and if he decides to do something then he has good reasons" said the justicar looking about the giant training area. This area had almost been Cameron's home for 5 days. He had been training ruthlessly and he could already feel muscles building that had not been there before.
The justicar walked along next to Cameron crossing other training grounds where grey nights battled in different training areas some like jungles others like cities. Some practiced sparing with power glaives and their nemesis weapons.
After leaving the training area they re entered the long cold hallways Cameron had first walked. Now that he was more familiar with them they did not seem so omnipresent and daunting. When they finally reached Cameron's separate barracks, really a storage room that they had placed a rather uncomfortable cot, the justicar turned to him.
"you have come far in your training Cameron soon you will be ready for the drop into the necrons horrid death riddled universe." The grey night seemed to shiver.
"you are a good man Cameron so I will tell you this in strict confidentiality, do not trust the inquisitor he works for the emperor but in ways that are not always." The justicar looked up trying to think of the right word. "not always what a man with a sould would choose" Cameron was stunned. Before the justicar could turn away Cameron grabbed his arm
"do you know why he wants me to be dropping in with you? Why he wants me to go out and face all these perils?" the justicar looked defensive, he placed his large hand on Cameron's and lifted it off with ease.
"just do not think because he is an inquisitor that he is full of the holy light." The justicar started to walk down the hall way to some destination that Cameron had probably not been to before. The justicar threw one last comment over his shoulder before he rounded a corner.
"we all have dark corners, some are just better hidden than others." Cameron shuddered. He was worried if an inquisitor, the lantern of the emperor in the darkness of the universe, would fall from grace then any one could.
Before he could dwell on this any farther the whole hall way was suddenly bathed in pulsing red light. A crackling voiced over the vox and the inquisitor came across his voice loud clear and demanding.
"to all battle personal get to your stations prepare for immediate drop on surface. We are 20 minutes from the necrons space. Cameron report to the bridge" Cameron was shocked now was the moment of truth. Before he ran to the bridge he went back to the armory and loaded up his pistols and bolt gun with as much ammo as his belts would carry. He also remembered to hook a melta charge to his armor just for luck.
Now he pounded back down the hallways turning one way than another. To a boarding part this place would be a maze with cross corridors and dead ends that would drive a man insane but Cameron had memorized how to get about. When he got to the large gold door of the bridge of the ship he realized the 2 guards were gone. Must be part of the landing group he thought.
The metal squealed up and he walked in. the inquisitor was standing at the front with his hand clasped behind his back. Until now Cameron had realized how small a man he was. He was short and rather skinny but with a fearsome almost lethal aurora about him.
The inquisitor spun and faced Cameron with a feral grin on his face.
"we go to battle my friend" he said with an upsweep of his hands. He walked over to Cameron and put his arm around his shoulders.
"you will be on a landing pod with me and my personally entourage of grey knights. We will take the surface of this planet by storm and destroy the fowl necrons stc systems." The inquisitor seemed happy with this idea as he stared off into an unspecified place on the bulk head.
"sir if you don't mind me asking what planet?"
"ah yes" said the inquisitor "we will be taking a planet ruled by the necrons ever since the age of strife. But lately my spies have shown me something very disturbing, the planet has been infested by chaos. It seems there is a chaos sorcerer down there causing the necrons to build alters the horrid likes of that nature. He is also sending necrons out to new planets, the emperors planets and they are massacring people." The inquisitor snapped his gave from the sot and focused back on Cameron.
"you me and the grey knights with us are going to kill this sorcerer and then we will bomb the surface leaving this a glassed over tomb. Huh ironic, its probably what the necrons would want." With this the inquisitor grunted and let go of Cameron. he walked over to a podium with a large dark box on top and started to remove his weapons of office, and put on what looked like ceremonial armor.
"but sir why me im not nearly as good as a grey knight in a fight, im just a corporal in the imperial guard." The inquisitor looked back in mid buckle of a chest piece.
"ah yes well your not a corporal any more you are now part of the ordeo malleus, I don't know how to give you a true rank but it is above corporal believe you me" the inquisitor said smiling again to himself. Cameron did not know how to take this.
"oh and you wont be wearing that flimsy training gear out in the field, if yuou follow one of the servitors it will take you to the armory to get new armor." Cameron stared blankly at the back of the inquisitor until a servitor on rollers pulled up along side him and lead him back off to the armory.
The armor Cameron saw before him was mat black and smooth. It looked like a space marines armor without the huge shoulder pads and sized down to fit a normal man. When he touched the surface the armor seemed to be warm as if it wanted to be worn and wanted to enter battle. On the chest piece instead of the traditional eagle there was the inquisitors I and skull. Before Cameron knew it we was wearing the armor with bolt pistols in holsters on his legs and the bolt gun attached firmly to his belt. He had 2 crossing metla studded belts with ammo over his large chest piece, and tucked away on a back pouch of his belt was 1 melta bomb, just in case. When he took his first step in the armor he enarly fell in love with it. It magnified his natural muscles and made him feel so alive. He could feel slight pricks in his skin where needles in the armor fed him bits of stamina and vitamins. He was ready to take on these necrons he thought as he put on the mat black helmet, shaped so that the eyes glowed red and on the sides of the helmet were to wings that stretched straight up over the head.
He was ready for anything.