Warhammer 40,000: Truth
Chapter 4: The Confrontation
With the Inquisition making an attack on Lyonus and his men, it was clear they were deemed heretics by the administration of the Imperium. Dante and his guards stood fast against the Inquisition whilst awaiting reinforcements from the 'Sanguine'.
It was the beginning of a long campaign of blood… But yet, it seemed all too familiar.
The Inquisition had only sent a small percentage of their forces in the area, but it was clear to anybody involved they meant business and even if Lyonus and his men won the battle the Inquisition would retaliate by sending a larger force. The situation seemed desperate and Lyonus couldn't help but feel out of his depth by the turn of events, only now were the ramifications of his actions beginning to reveal themselves to him.
Nuas and Lyonus stood back issuing the commands to their men, to beat back the waves of men the Inquisition were sending at them. For every one Marine Lyonus commanded… The Inquisition could afford one hundred Imperial Guard. But the Marines held their ground, annihilating anybody who tried to enter the Chapel Barracks, delivering upon the enemy death dealing aggression.
"Sir, drop ships are incoming, sir…" Could be heard over the radio, it would appear the Sanguine had fought off the raid of the Inquisition's barge long enough to launch reinforcements for Dante and his Blood Angels.
"At last! First Company veterans will be joining us men, stand your ground!" Dante exclaimed, thrusting his power-axe into the air as a signal for his men. The Marines around him cheered, knowing their victory was so close, all they had to do was fight off the Imperial Guard who had the audacity to believe they could match the Blood Angels.
"Nuas… do you see that?" Lyonus pointed towards the distance, where the Inquisition's drop ships were located. It appeared that figures of grey were coming out of the Thunderhawks, with shimmering blue weapons.
"Lyonus, we're outmatched – we can't beat them and you know it! You've doomed us all, you fool!" Nuas shouted, knowing that the Ordo Malleus' military were being shifted into the fight, ready to unleash their own form of onslaught.
"Dante..? Dante? Do you read? Nuas and I have just noticed the …." Lyonus tapped his headgear, there seemed to be an issue with his communications. "Damn it, Nuas we're going down there… he needs to know what's going on."
"Fine, fine, let's get moving… Guards, let's move!" Nuas said, his voice not the most awe-inspiring, it was obvious the chain of events was beginning to affect him. Moving together, Lyonus and Nuas ran towards the skirmish at the entrance of the barracks. Raising high their weapons, they joined the battle with Dante and his Angels.
"Grey Knights!" Dante exclaimed, "Ah, a challenge! Thus far, this has been too easy!"
Lyonus stood back and witnessed Dante throw himself into the middle of the battle, with his entourage not far behind, he gave hope to Lyonus' cause. The Grey Knights of the Ordo Malleus with the Nemesis Force weaponry and the Blood Angels stood against each other, engaging each other in close-quarters combat. Something they both excelled at.
"What the …" Lyonus looked around and noticed a few Blood Angels beginning to collapse to the ground, the colour in their faces disappearing, their teeth…changing.
"Brother Nuas, prepare yourself… I think we're about to experience a change of fortune." Lyonus pointed towards the Angels, notifying Nuas of the change in their circumstance.
"Commander Dante, this is the battle barge Telesto, assisted by battle barge Unersa. We're here to lend support…"
"Ha! It would appear we could win this after all…" Lyonus smugly said, welcoming the news of two new ships in the area. Nuas placed his hand on Lyonus' shoulder, twisting his body into the direction of the Marines who collapsed on the ground, themselves beginning to find their feet again.
"Brother, I think we're witnessing the Black Rage…"
"Dante… Your troops, they're changing..!" Lyonus reported to Dante, hoping he had a plan to deal with the blood raged Angels.
"Leave them be, friend, they cannot be controlled … just…. Give them a push in the direction of the battle and let them do what they're good at."
"Sir, the Inquisition's barge is retreating from the sector… It would appear they're none too bothered about retrieving their forces." Reported the Sergeant, aboard the Sanguine. Dante greeted the news with a warm smile, it seemed the first skirmish of the rebellion was to be won, but the Grey Knights were ever present, slaughtering the Honour Guard of Dante, it would appear something more was required to combat them.
"We are here…" The communications crackled, but a deep voice was heard. Lyonus chuckled, knowing an epic confrontation was about to take place in front of his eyes. Dante looked up to the skies to see drop pods falling from the clouds, knowing his reinforcements had arrived he began to take a back seat on the affairs of the battle, letting his guards do the work of holding back the Grey Knights until the veterans of First Company were able to gather themselves and fight off the Knights unwavering aggression.
The skies cracked as red ships fell, crashing into the ground launching anybody in the nearby vicinity of the drop ship into the air, throwing them off balance, leaving them an easy target for the fresh forces.
"Terminators, reporting." The drop ship doors opened, and out poured squadrons of Tactical Dreadnaught Marines, each of them holding the most advanced weaponry available to their chapter. The Grey Knights detached themselves from the battle with the Honour Guard, a good portion of them left, knowing their new primary target was to engage the Terminators.
"Engage and destroy the Grey Knights, brothers." Issued the Terminator captain, his force weapon in one hand, his shield in another. He began to walk towards the oncoming forces of the Ordo Malleus, ready to betray the Imperium for his Commander. Scores of Terminators began to pour out of the drop pods, each of them readying themselves in an instant and throwing themselves into the skirmish between the veterans and the Grey Knights.
The Grey Knights would not falter, they would not retreat. They fought to the last man with steel courage, their weapons penetrating the armour of the Terminators. But the veterans were too much, their sheer courage pushing them to win. Nemesis weapons clashing with force weapons. Blood Angel Terminators engaging against the Grey Knights of the Ordo Malleus, it was a sight to behold. In this moment, Dante deciding it was time to re-engage the enemy; ordered his Honour Guard and the remaining troops of Lyonus' barracks to attack the Grey Knights. Engaging his jet pack he flew into the lines of Terminators, leading his troops from the front line.
It took no longer than a few minutes for the Terminators to work through the men of the Ordo Malleus, their broken bodies lying on the floor. Dante, throwing his power axe to the floor, looked over the destruction of the battle, looking at his defeated brothers. A sense of guilt suddenly hit him, as he realised there was no turning back from this… He would be branded an enemy of the Imperium and his Blood Angels would be outcast from the Space Marine legions, and chapters.
"Dante… we cannot weep for these men, they were indoctrinated to be the most brutal military of the False Emperor. We must gather our strength and gather more people to our cause, before confronting the Imperium's corruption on Holy Terra…" Lyonus stopped as he realised he'd heard this all before, the nature of the revelation causing him to lose his balance as he flopped to the ground in a fit of nerves.
"Lyonus…what's wrong?" Nuas asked, rushing over to his friend to help him to his feet.
"He's just realised, Nuas… His actions parallel that of another person." Dante pointed out, but he didn't seem surprised. It was as if he'd already drawn this conclusion himself, but it didn't deter him from the task at hand.
"Sergeant, send down a Chaplain and Apothecaries, we must care for our wounded…" ordered Dante, down his headgear. He proceeded to scour around the bodies to see if there was anybody who required help.
"Yes sir, already dispatched…"
"Nuas, friend… I must rest. I cannot continue on today… Help me, if you can, to reach my quarters…" Lyonus insisted, his feet dragging along the ground. The doubts in Lyonus' mind about his campaign to liberate the Imperium from itself had been sealed, Dante's revelation that his actions were alike to the actions Horus himself took shook him to his core.