A/N: I realise that Lukas Alexander is armed with power claws and storm bolter in Dawn of War: Dark Crusade, and that they can be upgrade to power fists and plasma pistol. But I believe that the great General Sturnn deserves to be the only one armed with those weapons. I also honestly believe he should have been the Imperial leader in that game instead of Alexander.
Chapter 9 – United Offence
There are only two forces that unite men -- fear and interest.
- Napoleon Bonaparte, French General, First Consul
Meanwhile holding orbit above the planet Titania's atmosphere was the Chaos grand cruiser affectionately known as a Repulsive. It was true to it's name with it's hull twisted with all manner of shapes and differing weapon systems ranging from the Warp-infused lance cannons and torpedo launchers. The main bridge crew, consisting only of Cultists, kept a steady vigil – mainly due to the fact that there was an Aspiring Champion walking up and down the bridge with a blood-covered razored whip in hand.
One unlucky Cultist took his eyes off the monitor for one second, and thus was whipped; adding another scar to his messed-up bleeding back, with his Cultist uniform torn and ripped with the constant lashings. The Aspiring Champion smiled, noticing the Cultist cringe in pain. He stepped up to him and peered down towards him menacingly.
"Answer me this, servant of the Hydra," the Champion asked, "If you can't keep your eyes on a monitor for at least one minute at a time, why in the name of the Gods did you volunteer to be part of the command crew of this ship?"
The Cultist looked over his shoulder fearfully and asked, "Be…bec…because they said it was…the easiest way someone…of my…my…stature could fully serve the…Dark Gods."
The Champion frowned and pulled his sword, slashing the Cultist across the back and adding another cut to his back, causing him to cry out; which surprisingly didn't distract any of the other Cultists, and even the Traitor Marine guards. Each of them did not want to face the unstable Aspiring Champion's wrath with his whip and his blade, knowing that this particular individual had a long, cruel history of torturing his subordinates.
"I know what you're all thinking, scum," the Champion growled, "I see those who are not of the perfect genetic stock who try to follow Chaos as little more than scum. This I tell you know…"
He raised his sword and waved it around, causing the crew of the ship to each sweat with fear, noticing that the Champion also wore a sick grin.
"If we fail in bringing the Cerinian bitch back to the Despoiler," the Champion exclaimed, "I will personally skin and gut each and every one of you, and offer your corpses as sacrifices upon the altars of the Dark Gods. Understand?"
Suddenly alarms went off as all heads immediately turned from him and back to their posts. One Cultist wanted to scream out in absolute fright at seeing what was approaching them on the radar. He looked back up fearfully at the Aspiring Champion.
"I…I…Imperial ships are heading straight for us," he reported shakily, "One of them is a Mars-class cruiser. Their weapons are…"
He didn't have time to finish, as several powerful lance cannons then struck the Repulsive, destroying it's weapon system before blowing chunks of the hull. The force of the lances shattered the bridge windows; the vacuum immediately settled in and begun sucking every bit of matter into the dark void. All hands immediately reached for anything to keep themselves from being drawn into space, but to little avail.
The Cultists all screamed as they were sucked out of the Repulsive, each one dying immediately as the pressure forced the air out of their lungs and crushed them. The Aspiring Champion gripped onto the bridge door handle tightly, cursing out loud and immediately blaming the Cultists crewmember for his imminent death.
'Goddamn those squeaky-voice cult groups,' he thought, 'They jinxed us all.'
He then willingly let go and flew out into space, where he was then struck by a lance blast and painfully vaporised into dust. The Repulsive cruiser was struck again by another wave of lance blasts, followed by a volley of missiles, finally causing it to explode in space, the flames immediately being smothered by the fact there was no oxygen within the void.
This is the captain of the Augustus reporting. Chaos vessel has been eliminated. All ships take position here and prepare for orbital bombardment once the commanders have given the word.
Six Imperial starships were now floating in orbit above Titania, where about a minute ago the space was under the control of a singular Chaos cruiser, now reduced to charred scrap metal. The small fleet consisted of one Mars-class battleship, two smaller Avenger class cruisers and three Firestorm escort ships, which were hardly considered to be the entire Imperial Navy.
And the Imperial Navy wouldn't have noticed those six ships missing from it's massive armada.
----------
Solar had finally removed itself from the skies of Titania, pitching the planet into pitch black darkness, the only lights coming from the abandoned Cornerian military base, now converted into a fully-working Chaos stronghold in short time. Troops armed to the teeth were moving around the base as if preparing for an attack, which they were. Marines mingled with Cultists, machines of war and the mind-warped mutated wildlife as they took positions near the walls. The heaviest concentration of forces were in the centre of the base, in defence regarding the subterranean Cornerian control centre situated within a bunker, now under new management.
The four-man XV15 Tau Stealth Suit team was still browsing over the base from the cliff ridge, zooming on the troops mobilising for the defence. Despite the fact they were getting ready to repel the Tau forces which would approaching soon enough, they were at least glad that O'Shovah and his forces were still alive.
"I count fifty Marines and over a hundred Cultists," one of the XV15's reported, "Plus a considerably large number of armoured units."
"I see them," the Shas'vre team leader acknowledge, him equipped in a heavier XV25 suit, "And we must inform Shas'O Shovah immediately."
"We can't," another XV15 responded, his back turned away from his squadmates as he tried to work his communicator, "Our communications have gone dead. Possibly from all the Warp signatures in the air."
Another XV15 turned to the Shas'vre, "What do we know, Shas'vre?"
The Shas'vre gripped his large fusion gun and responded affirmatively, "We ready ourselves to strike at the enemy, once O'Shovah and his forces have arrived at the scene."
Suddenly the Chaos Sorcerer teleported from behind him, startling the stealth suits. They quickly aimed their fusion guns at Artemis, who drove his staff into the ground and released a powerful energy shockwave. This knocked the guns out of their hands, followed by them off the cliff. They clawed at the air as they hurtled downward screaming.
Only the Shas'vre survived the plunge onto the rocks below, where he laid sprawled within his totalled armour. He moaned as he tried to move his broken body, immediately realising he was now paralysed and his HUD informed him of a total of a hundred broken bones within his body.
'In the name of the Ethereals,' he thought painfully, 'I can not die like this. Not like this.'
Both tragically and ironically a squad of four Chaos Marines immediately attacked him with rusty chainswords. They each painfully hacked him up, the sound of mechanised saws heavy in the air, each one laughing maniacally as they scattered the dead Tau's parts over the rocks. The blood splattered all over the Marines as they satisfied their blood lust for the moment, knowing that in a few minutes they would have to spill even more.
Artemis appeared before them and waved his hand, signalling for them to stop. They did so and stood to attention, their swords dripping with the Shas'vre's blood.
"So they did know we landed on this Death World!" he exclaimed loudly, before he reasoned, "No matter. Though they greatly outnumber us, they will all find their doom approaching."
Suddenly a piece of super hot metal landed behind him, revealed to be a piece of the hull from the Chaos Repulsive which had just been destroyed in orbit courtesy of the Imperial fleet. The realisation that their only way off this world didn't affect his judgement, as he still had that look of confidence on his face.
"Like I said, their doom approaching," he repeated with finality.
----------
Commanders, we have destroyed the Alpha Legion's only ticket off this world and his currently holding position in orbit above the planet. We have locked onto the Chaos base below us and have Lance cannons fully charged and ready to fire on your mark. Request permission to initiate orbital bombardment, full power?
"Negative, Fleet Control" Governor Lord-Militant Alexander responded firmly, "We're going to need to wring some answers out of the Chaos Lord, so we'll have to be a little gentle on the freaks."
"A little gentle?" Falco asked cynically.
Both Jacques and Alexander turned to him, the later glaring at him.
"On second thought," the Lord-Militant sighed, "Charge cannons to full power. We may need em' in case things get out of hand."
Affirmative, Governor, lance cannons are on stand by. Over and out.The communication line was switched off, once again allowing an unsettling silence to settle in amongst the heroes sitting at the table, apart from the sounds of the computer consoles being worked upon by the Imperial technicians.
Jacques broke the silence, "I will assume the renegade Commander Farsight can hear me through your com, Jakob?"
I can, Force Commander Mortensen, O'Shovah's voice transmitted through Jakob's com, causing Jakob to cringe gently at feeling his own commander tap into his communicator.
"Our orbital sensors had detected Chaos forces have occupied an abandoned Cornerian base. Though may have collected dust over the centuries, it is still formidable when it comes to defence," Alexander explained as he sat up from his seat and begun pacing the floor.
All eyes were focussed on him as he explained the battle plan, Falco and Katt with mild amusement, Krystal with her undivided attention and Jacques with his stoic, expressionless face…which could have been seen if not for his helmet. The room darkened as a holographic image of what appeared to be the walled abandoned Cornerian base projected from the centre of the table, which detailed visually what Alexander said.
"We are going to initiate a light bombardment on the fortress walls, destroying their defences and forcing the remainder of their troops out into the open," Alexander explained, "We will send the Guardsmen forwards while Shovah's troops can provide cover from behind, preferably from the ridges."
Whilst we are more suited for close-range combat, Governor, O'Shovah reminded them, We shall deliver death to the fallen humans from afar and cover your advance.
Alexander smiled, "Glad to see your enthusiasm, Commander. Once the main threats have been dispatched we shall move into the base and secure the Chaos Lord, where Jacques with his…"
He glanced over at the Grey Knight.
"…gifts, can persuade the Lord to fork over vital information on the Chaos war effort."
"What do you think we will be up against?" Krystal asked, turning to Jacques.
"I would say fifty Chaos Marines and twice that number of Cult members," Jacques explained, "We counted the fifty Traitors Marines we fought and we must assume that there are the remaining fifty highest servants of Chaos we must deal with. We can not rule out additional vehicular support and…"
He shook his armoured head gently.
"…the mutant creatures the Chaos Sorcerer must have under his control. Do you recall that time when you told me that Slippy crashed on Titania and was taken hostage by that…that…creature?"
Falco nodded, "Vividly."
"Yes, those creatures," Jacques said further, "The same ones we had just blown into oblivion. We must tread with caution, lest we become overrun by possibly their overwhelming numbers."
Why you Cornerians put this planet to the torch eons ago, I will never know, O'Shovah made his sadness known.
Alexander frowned with determination, "Alright, enough talk! Let's get this over with. The next time Solar rises, it will shine down upon the heretics' charred corpses."
Everyone nodded and acknowledged, Jacques stood from his seat where he and Alexander both sounded off alongside the Imperial technicians in the room, who raised their fists into the air with zealotry…
"FOR THE EMPEROR!"
Jakob smiled and stood up as well, beating his chest with pride. He shouted out loud alongside O'Shovah and the other Tau outside…
"FOR THE GREATER GOOD!"
Krystal, Katt and Falco's eye widened at hearing and seeing them demonstrate their religious withholding with much admired and often zealous pride. Krystal couldn't help but smile softly and cross her arms.
'Nothing beats fighting for what you believe in,' Krystal thought, 'The Emperor…he sounds like he really is real and watching over these people. The Greater Good…'
She crossed her eyebrows questioningly.
'…I will have to see what that is about. It sounds like something that is worth dying for.'
----------
A Chaos Champion pushed his way into the control room of the bunker, knocking over a Traitor Marine and rushing up to the Chaos Lord. His back was turned as he silently watched the multiple computer monitors situated on the wall, each one showing CCTV images of his remaining Chaos forces at work.
He thought about how he sent half of his Marines to their deaths, their orders having been to secure the Cerinian and to terminate Star Fox as a threat to the Crusade; only to be dispatched by both the Tau Empire and the Imperial Guard. Not even the mutants that were under their control could match up the Imperial Guard's firepower, them having enlisted the services of the famous Archon of Eden, a being of untold Psyker energy, swordsmanship, and valour to go with it.
"My Lord," the Champion cried, "The Bloodied Fist has just been blown out of orbit!"
Ezekiel bit his lip, as for the first time since the end of the Horus Heresy those thousands of years ago he felt overwhelming fear. But as like any other Space Marine, whether Loyalist or Traitor, he quickly suppressed it and turned to face the Champion angrily. He then gripped his scythe and before the Champion could react or even cry out in surprise his left arm was hacked off, it flying out the still opened door into the control room.
"Ow!" the Champion let out, as if what he just felt was a dull ache, his centuries in service of Chaos having dulled his sense of pain.
He got up and stepped back into the control room, and without another word he grabbed his arm and stepped out of sight, heading towards the Infirmary. He left the Chaos Lord standing in the control room with the knowledge that their cruiser and escape off the planet was gone, leaving them here with the enemy – a combined, unlikely force of Tau and Imperial Guardsman.
'I will not be brought down by that unofficial Heretic,' Ezekiel thought bitterly, 'Especially with the Dark Gods as my witnesses.'
----------
A line of Traitor Marines, Cultists, Defiler war machines and mutated Dreadnought walkers readied themselves against the overwhelming numbers of the Imperials and Tau, which were approaching in the distance in their hundreds, their tanks and other assorted vehicles raising sand into the air. The Sorcerer Artemis was there at the defence of the base, his helmet off to reveal his mohawked head. He gripped his staff in his hands, the Eye within in shimmering violently.
He was smiling rather crudely, which begun to creep out the Cultists present. One of them dared to ask him, "What chance do we have against hundreds of those bastards?"
Artemis turned his head towards the Cultist and replied, albeit disturbingly warmly, "You will see, loyal disciple of the Gods. You will see?"
Meanwhile from the porthole of his Lemus Russ, the Imperial officer peered at the abandoned Cornerian base, which was a hundred yards away, from behind his binoculars, smiling eagerly as he saw the Chaos forces move to the base entrance in preparation for their advance
He had a right to be smiling, seeing the pitiful amount of resistance right before his tank, all the other tanks and Sentinel walkers, and hundred heavily armed Imperial Guardsmen and Tau Fire Warriors right beside and behind him.
'This won't take long,' the officer thought, before speaking into his communicator, "Commanders. We're in position and ready to strike. Chaos forces are ready for us just outside the entrance into the base."
Roger that, lieutenant. Guess we won't be needing that orbital fire after all, Alexander replied, his MCV stationed just behind the troops, We're coming up to the front. O'Shovah, is our cover in position?
Affirmative, gue'la, the Commander Farsight's voice was heard, Fifty Warriors are stationed on the cliff behind us. They will cover our advance from behind the scopes of their rail rifles.
I hear you, Commander, Alexander spoke, All forces, advance. Let's get into it…
The Imperial/Tau war machine moved forward across the sandy plains towards the base, the vehicles up front while the troops moved behind. O'Shovah was up forward with his Enclaves while Alexander, Jacques, Falco, Jakob, Katt and Krystal exited the MCV and made their way forward as well, weapons drawn…except Jakob.
"Hey, why'd you leave your big-ass rifle on the table back there, Jakob?" Falco asked, handling his own pulse carbine.
Jakob looked over at him, "Not the best weapon for the close-combat, Lombardi."
He then smiled and reached for what appeared to be gun holsters situated on his legs. He then pulled out what appeared to be a pair of 'Uzi'-type submachine guns with clips already inserted. He pulled back the hammers, the plasma ammo clicking into place.
"Plasma pistols," Jakob introduced his two-new companions, "Modified for additional clip size and power."
"They appear to of a past, decadent design," Jacques remarked, looking over his shoulder at him, "Shas'la Jakob."
"No need for the history lesson, Space Marine," Jakob retorted softly.
"Please, just call me Jacques," the Grey Knight said, sounding annoyed.
Jakob narrowed his eyes, "I prefer referring to you as what you are, out of respect for what you stand for."
Krystal looked over at Jakob and Jacques sadly, seeing the hostility brewing between them. She thought that they would be getting along famously, the both of them almost a carbon copy of one another. Jakob however must be thinking otherwise, evident by not facing Jacques directly and making sure that everything he said to him was to make sure he would never want to speak to him again.
The calm before the storm was finally shattered when a Defiler's artillery shell landed in the middle of the advancing Tau/Imperial force, sending guardsmen and Fire Warriors flying everywhere. Alexander gripped his chainsword, the blade beginning to motion violently.
"LIBERATORS! ATTACK!" he cried.
"FARSIGHT ENCLAVES, ADVANCE!"
The Imperial Guard and the Tau Farsight Enclaves charged forward, alongside the Heroes, each one frowning determinedly, their weapons ready. The Hammerhead Hover Tanks and Lemun Russ' begun firing their mighty cannons at the line, their deadly projectiles hurtling over the sands and hitting the base, sending Marines and Cultists flying.
"DAMNATION!" one Marine cried, "WE'RE GOING TO GET TORN APART OUT HERE! THIS IS MADNESS, SORCERER!"
Artemis frowned and raised his staff, before driving it into the sand and releasing a massive shockwave, which spread across the sands and towards the attacking force. One shrill mutated cry later hundreds of mutated animals of various shapes, sizes, and more accurately, species emerged from the sands. They all let out another cry, before turning towards the incoming Imperial/Tau force, which all stopped in their tracks.
The officer from his tank felt his mouth gape as he lowered his binoculars, before gulping gently. The Heroes were all intensely surprised of seeing thousands more of those mutant creatures emerge from underneath the sands. Falco rubbed the back of his head nervously.
The avian chuckled, "Well, we were expecting this. Nothing we can't handle…ah, crap…"
He suddenly turned to Alexander.
"Got that Orbital Strike ready? That would be really helpful right now!"
Without bothering to answer, Alexander raised his sword into the air and let out a battle cry…
"COMPARED TO CHAOS, THESE ABOMINATIONS ARE NOTHING! CHARGE!"
…and the Imperial Guard all responded by opening up with their laser weaponry, pummelling the advancing horde with red-coloured beamed death. The Tau followed suit as they fired their plasma weaponry, forming a line alongside the Guardsmen as they slowly marched forward. The tanks directed their fire towards the approaching mutants, their crews determined to wipe them all out before they could yet at least ten yards before them. The Tau up on the cliffs let off their rail fire, quickly picking their target and dispatching them, rendering them into bloodied pieces and gibs.
Jacques fired off his bolter at the approaching hordes, his rounds sailing towards them and cutting into the nearest one. He frowned about the fact that in about half-a-minute they will be locked into melee combat. The Guardsmen with their bayonets wouldn't stand a chance against this mutated horde with their various claws, stingers and their sharp, ravenous teeth.
"I don't think we're slowing them!" Katt exclaimed, seeing that the horde was now fifteen yards away.
O'Shovah knew this for a fact, where he suddenly engaged his blade, holding it with both his mechanical hands. He turned around to face the Enclaves positioned behind him. Each of them nodded, before drawing their own blades and pushing past the Guardsman up to the front, halting their laser fire.
"FARSIGHT ENCLAVES!" O'Shovah exclaimed, "FOR THE GREATER GOOD!"
The Farsight Enclaves charged forward, with O'Shovah leading the charge as he sped towards the mutants. He then stretched his arms to the side as he bowled dozens through his charge, sending them all flying. Swinging his blade he sliced through a dozen more, before his men caught up and begun hacking away at the mutated horde. One Enclave drove his blade through the abdomen of a lizard-like creature and tore it in half, before he was knocked down by a ant like creature, it in turn was then tackled by another Enclave and had it's head knocked off.
The Imperial Guard all watched, immediately not wanting for the Tau to take all the glory. They charged as well, bayonets drawn. Jacques, Krystal, Alexander and Jakob charged forward, the Gue'vesa Shas'la firing off his submachine guns and filling the nearest mutant with plasma fire. He then jumped and lifted himself up into the air, before bringing both his feet down on the mutant's head and crushing it.
Falco and Katt watched with shock as they saw the others join the battle, along with the Imperial Guardsmen. This left them standing near the tanks at the back of the lines, feeling incredibly awkward.
"Oi!" the tank commander from his Lemus Russ cried out to them from his porthole, "Aren't you gonna join the fray, cowardly furries?"
Falco glared and shouted back, "With what, exactly?"
"The butts of your rifles, that's what?" the officer replied, before drawing a laspistol and aiming at them, "Governor Alexander orders that anyone not performing his duty will be shot on sight!"
Falco and Katt's eye widened as they threw up their arms, "Hey hey hey! Take it easy!"
Suddenly a pterodactyl-esque mutant landed before them and roared at them, rustling their feathers and fur. They both glanced at one another, before they lunged forward with their rifles and clubbed the mutant across the head and downed it. They then beat it to death, yellow blood splattering upwards into the air.
The tank commander smiled and holstered his pistol.
"Now that wasn't so bad no was it?" the commander asked, "Anything can be used to get personal with the enemy."
Falco looked up from the corpse of the mutant and replied sarcastically, "Yeah, thanks for that!"
They then heard a light whistling sound in the air, which grew louder with each passing millisecond…
"OH, FUCK!"
…before explosion Guardsmen and Tau flying everywhere. The tank commander saw that artillery was being fired from behind the walls of the fortress, courtesy of the Defilers. He disappeared back into his tank buttoned down the hatch, just as a shell landed next to his tank and almost sent it rolling over sideways.
Just as Jacques hacked down a mutant, he called out as he dodged a flying Guardsman who landed behind him, "Lord-Militant! They are shelling us from within the fortress!"
Alexander nodded and pulled his chainsword out from the jaw of a large mutant, before yelling into his communicator, "Fleet Fire Control, this is Governor Lukas Alexander. Initiate orbital bombardment of the base immediately!"
Affirmative. Firing lance cannons, full power!
----------
Hideous maniacal laugher echoed all around as six Defilers fired their artillery into the air from behind the main base gates, mentally coordinating their shells to land on the battlefield in order to take out the group Tau/Imperial force. This had been the plane all along when it came to sending the mutants into battle ahead of their weak numbers. Artemis smiled as he saw the Defiler at work, still feeling all the more confidant of their victory.
He then suddenly felt heat come from above himself, prompting him to exhale gently and tap the end of his staff twice on the ground, producing an energy shield around himself. And it was only himself as blasts of powerful energy descended from the sky onto the base, bombarding the walls and the insides of the base.
"DAMNATION!" a Chaos Marine shouted, before he screamed as he was struck from above and incinerated.
The skies fell on the enemy base as the fleet opened up with their lance cannons and beginning bombarding the area from orbit. The Defilers exploded as the orbital blasts hit them, scattering pieces of daemonic metal everywhere. Panic swept in over the hundreds of Cultists as they ran about trying to find cover, while the Traitor Marines calmly dove into the base's structures, as did the remaining ground weapons and vehicles. Artemis kept his shield up as the bombardment continued, where Cultists were blasted all around him.
One lance blasts hit the base gates and blew them wide open. The Forces of Order saw this and immediately rallied themselves. They fought harder against the mutant creatures, tearing through them with lasguns and pulse rifles blazing.
One bald-headed Guardsman sergeant raised his saber into the air with a smile, "THAT'S IT, MEN! TEAR THROUGH THOSE SHAMBLING BASTARDS! FORWARD!"
Jacques swung his sword and hacked through another mutant, before raising his sword into the air, and turning towards O'Shovah, "The path is clear now."
"So I see!" O'Shovah exclaimed, "All forces, advance!"
"ADVANCE!" Alexander relayed to his men, "BRING THESE BASTARDS TO THEIR KNEES!"
The last of the mutants was sent spiralling into oblivion, clearing the path and allowing the Tau/Imperial forces to smash forward through the gates. They mowed down the Cultists who stood in their paths and made short work of the enemy vehicles as they advanced towards them from the empty structures. A Chaos Dreadnought charged forward and knocked several Guardsmen out of the way as it swung it's mutated left arm and knocked the barrel of the nearest Leman Russ. It then felt several Sentinel beam cannons strike it from all directions and bring it down.
"Alright, we're in business!" Alexander cried, before turning to Krystal, "Cerinian? Sense anything?"
Krystal closed his eyes and focused deeply, before opening her eyes and saying, "I sense the Chaos Lord is underground, possibly in a bunker. It's located in the centre of the base."
"That is true!" Jacques exclaimed, "I sense him too!"
"Then let's go grab him!" Alexander cried, "O'Shovah?"
"We will handle things our way, Governor!" O'Shovah exclaimed back, "Take care of your own men."
"Will do!"
They all fired their range weapons as they advanced forwards, taking down more Cultists as they advanced. Jacques, Jakob, Alexander, Falco, Krystal and Katt advanced, confident that they can quickly put an end to this fight, and to destroy anything that dared get in their paths.
----------
The abandoned Cornerian base was now the sight of a massive, desperate battle as the allied Tau/Imperial force struck at the entrenched Alpha Legion forces. The Forces of Order slowly advanced forwards with their troops up front and in sqauds, with their vehicles at the back. This formed an impenetrable line The Traitor Marines all retreated towards the centre as the meat-shield Cultist covered them, each of them systemically cut down through either the sword, lasgun or pulse rifle.
Falco, Katt, Jakob and three accompanying Fire Warriors were nearing the centre of the base. They dove behind the cover of a shelled structure as a barrage of bolter fire flew towards them courtesy of two Heavy Boltgun equipped Marines, clipping the side of a Fire Warrior's helmet. Surrounded by two Lylatians and three Farsight Enclaves, as well as hundreds of blood-thirty Cult groups and a dozen Traitor Marines, Jakob struggled internally to focus his mind. He inhaled and exhaled gently, where as he got his bearing back he grabbed one of his plasma grenades and hurled it towards the pair of Chaos Marines.
The resulting explosion stunned the two Marines, allowing Jakob and his squad to move forward, guns blazing. Falco discharged his carbine at close range into one of the Marine's face and blowing the head apart, just as Jakob pulled out a charger and slapped it on the other Marine's chest. The squad dove out of the way as the photon charge detonated and exploded the Traitor.
Falco frowned just as he felt the blood spray on him from behind, "Nice work, Shas'la."
Jakob shook his head as he picked himself up from the ground and recovered his guns, "Thank me later. Keep going!"
Jakob and Krystal fought side by side against a group of four blade-wielding Marines, one of which was a Chosen Terminator, a tainted heavily armoured warrior that used to be of service to the Imperium of Man nearly ten-thousand years ago, now twisted by the power of Chaos. The Terminator raised his heavy bolter at the pair, causing Krystal to jumped forward and swing her staff, rendering the gun in half.
She growled, "Not today!"
Her staff charged with power as she swung again, striking the Terminator in the side of the head and causing a reaction which shattered the helmet and exposing the grey, worn out face of the Terminator. He cried out in shock as Krystal raised her staff up to his face and fired a bolt of flame, killing him instantly.
Jacques took on the three other Marines at once, parrying and defending against their strikes before initiating his own attack, cutting through the armour, slicing a Traitor across the chest, before firing his bolter at the cracked chest plating and into his body, downing him. He then stretched his palm forward and bombarded the remaining two Marines with psychic energy, sending them flying backwards.
Just like old time, Jacques? Krystal thought gleefully to him, as they went back to back as more Cultists arrived for the attack.
Krystal looked ahead and saw Jakob, Falco and Katt moving forward and towards the centre of the base. She immediately became alarmed…
"Jacques!" she exclaimed, "The others are in trouble!"
"Affirmative," Jacques shouted, "We should cover them!"
----------
"We're near the centre," Jakob cried as he and his team continued running, "We'll be able to finish this once we take out the Chaos Lord?"
Katt's eyes widened as the laser fire flew above their heads, both from behind and from up front, "Just the six of us?"
"We can't afford to let him even try to get away!" Jakob exclaimed, "Now…"
Suddenly one of the Fire Warriors screamed in agony as he felt bolts of Chaos energy strike him and turn him into ash. Katt, Falco and Jakob turned to see Artemis stepping towards them, bedlam staff stretched forward.
"Ah, crap!" Falco groaned, "Here comes trouble!"
Jakob rolled his eyes, "You guys go ahead. I'll take care of him!"
Falco and Katt took one look at the Sorcerer as they turned and ran onwards, accompanied by the two remaining Fire Warriors. Jakob faced the mohawk-haired Sorcerer and tried to stare past the cruel, almost maddening smile he wore on his face. He countered with a determined frowned which still could be seen despite the blood on his face. He gripped his plasma submachine guns firmly in his hands and stepped back some as Artemis moved forward, staff in hand.
"Shas'la Calth Jakob Sho'ka Guela. To think that in all my thousands of years of existence I would never actually see a human licking the boots of the misguided Tau race," Artemis indicated, almost sadly, "You do realise what you have gotten yourself into, boy?"
Jakob smirked, "I owe them for what did for me, and I'm more than happy to repay them by killing those who dare impede the Greater Good."
"Well, let's see how well the 'Greater Good' have taught you to fight!" Artemis roared, "And pray it's better than what the Imperium, or even Chaos, could have taught youuuuu…HAH…"
He raised his palm forward and unleashed a barrage of fireballs, which Jakob was quick to avoid. He opened up with his machine-guns where the Sorcerer then opened up a psychic shield and they dissipated immediately after coming in contact with the shield. Jakob ran forward, jumped and delivered a roundhouse kick, which broke through the Sorcerer's shield and knocked him down. In process Jakob was sent flying some distance away and landed roughly on the ground.
"Ow!" he groaned.
Immediately a Traitor Marine came at him with a boltgun. Jakob hopped back onto his feet and dodged the bolter blasts, before firing his guns at the Marine and filling him with plasma fire, which pierced through his armour and out the other end. As the Marine toppled backwards dying, Jakob ran forward and grabbed his sword.
"I need this more than you," Jakob quickly said as he passed by the Marine and headed back towards the Sorcerer.
As Artemis propped himself back up with his staff he saw Jakob come at him with a rusty sword. He frowned and gripped his staff and used it to block Jakob's melee strike, where they parried. He then countered by swinging his staff against his feet, Jakob jumped to avoid the attack and delivered another kick, this time hitting the mark, which was the Sorcerer's head, and breaking his nose.
Jakob stepped back and to his surprise he saw that the Sorcerer was smiling, blood spurting from his shattered nose.
Artemis chuckled, "I do not suppose the Gue'vesa taught you that?"
"No," Jakob shook his head, "Personally taught that by Shas'O Shovah himself, the Master of Close Combat."
"Well, it's good to see that at least one of those ranged-cowards is willing to die up close in a honourable FASHION…"
Artemis roared and swung his staff, releasing a powerful cutting projectile that hurtled towards Jakob. His eyes widened and he fell backward onto the ground and just missing him, which instead continued on towards….
"KRYSTAL!" Jakob shouted, "LOOK OUT!"
Krystal heard Jakob's warning just as she dispatched another Marine, turning to see that saw-like energy projectile heading towards her. She gasped in shock and raised his staff to project her own shield, causing the projectile to rebound off her and hurtle back towards Jakob, in the process cutting through a Bezerker. Jakob spun around in time to see it as he got back up, causing him to simply sidestep and it returned to the Sorcerer, who stretched his hand forward and caught it, where it hovered inches away from him.
The Sorcerer frowned and drove his staff into the ground, releasing Warp-driven energy, which spawned a group of four Tzeentch Horrors. Each one growled at Jakob and charged him, driving him away from the Sorcerer as he begun to hop away backwards from him, submachine guns blazing away at them. Jacques and Krystal ran towards him, before a Bezerker jumped in front of her and swung his chainaxe.
She shouted as she avoided the attack, "JAKOB!"
Jakob turned towards her, fingers still tightened on the triggers of his submachine guns as he continue to blaze away at the Horrors attacking him. Krystal and Jacques would have continued forward to support Jakob were it not for the Cultists that dove from behind the corner of a control tower and rushed them. Before Jacques and Krystal engaged them, she threw her staff towards Jakob…
"CATCH!"
…which Jakob dropped his machine-guns to catch. Instantly it projected a shield around him that absorbed the fireballs the Horrors hurled at him. Once the shield dropped Jakob struck forward, rushing towards he nearest Horror and driving the staff through it's face and out the other end, immediately killing it and sending it's corpse back to the Warp. With the deadly end of the staff he deflected more fireballs flung at him by another Horror, which was sent back to it, slaying it also.
Jakob's eyes widened with both shock and surprise when he realised that he had just wielded the staff with masterful precision. Though his Tau peers considered him a master of the Martial Arts, he didn't think he could wield such a weapon with relative. Somehow he could feel that the staff was alive and rather than being used as a weapon by him, it was fighting alongside him. And it had proved this when it had automatically shielded him from the daemons.
He smirked and faced the Sorcerer and the remaining two Horrors. He thought, 'Cerinian craftsmanship at it's finest.'
The two Horrors were joined by a team of four Cultists, which feeling confident the both of them charged forward against the Gue'vesa. The Cultists however had other cowardly ideas and stood their ground. They watched alongside the Sorcerer Artemis as Jakob fought the daemons. A Horror lunged at him, which he swatted away like a fly with the staff, before driving the point through it's chest and banishing it back to the Warp.
He then cried out in pain as he felt a fireball strike him from behind courtesy of the other Horror, who then knocked him down with a headbutt, but failed to knock the staff out of his hands. With a cry of anger as he actually put his fist through the Horror's near-rubbery chest and tearing out what appeared to be it's heart. It bellowed it pain, before Jakob brought the staff to it's head. It automatically let loose it's ice-blaster and quickly froze the daemon, encasing it completely in ice.
Jakob got back up and performed a jump kick, which shattered the iced Horror into millions of tiny fragments. Each one then immediately turned crimson and phased away in a small fire. He turned to face the mad-looking Sorcerer and the terrified Cultists, each one wanting to turn around to run away into the desert.
"Any more tricks, Sorcerer?" Jakob growled.
The Sorcerer suddenly smiled and raised his staff. Jakob gasped as he felt what appeared to be thorns appear out of the ground and envelop his legs, effectively chaining him to the spot. The Cultists immediately felt their cowardice leave them as they drew their blades and with a laugh they surrounded him.
Jacques saw Jakob predicament from the wall as he fought hand-to-hand against a Bezerker. He frowned and simply kicked him off the wall and he landed painfully on the ground below. Jacques then jumped off the wall and landed on top of the Bezerker' chest, effectively crushing him. Unfazed by the jump down Jacques ran towards Jakob just as the Cultists lunged at Jakob. He opened his mouth…
"RAAAAAAAAAARGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!"
…and let out a loud battle-cry which grabbed almost everyone's attention, shocking them all slightly. A downed and wounded Fire Warrior, who had noticed that a Marine had turned away from delivering the final blow with his sword to see Jacques running across the battlefield with his grey armour shining, quickly grabbed his pulse rifle and aimed it at the Marine. He then pulled the trigger and killed the distracted Marine.
The Cultist panicked when they saw the Grey Knight charge them, sword drawn and Psyker energy spewing forth from him. Jakob unwillingly watched as the Cultists forgot about him in order to raise their laspistols at the Knight. Jacques fired his bolter and filled them all with rocket-propelled death, actually and individually blowing their limbs off of them, the blood splattering onto Jakob; some of which landed on his lips.
As Jacques drove his sword into the last-standing Cultist (who had been standing on only one leg), he turned to Jakob and said, "Apologies for this gruesome spectacle, Shas'la."
Jakob smiled painfully, "Accepted."
"Where is Lombardi and Monroe?" Jacques asked, "They were with you!"
"Lombardi and Monroe went on," Jakob replied, then exclaimed, "Now, the Sorcerer!"
Jacques turned to face Artemis, who still had Jakob trapped within the Chains of Torment. He raised his bedlam staff and fired off a large crimson energy shot. Jacques stretched his hand forward and caught the ball within his psychic grip, where he then mentally phased the ball out of existence and .
Artemis smirked at seeing him at his best, "So, you must be the famous Jacques Mortensen, formally of the Ultramarines 2nd Company, the Protector of the Xenos? The only survivor of the Cerinian Conflict."
"You have heard of me, Sorcerer?" Jacques asked menacingly.
"I doubt there is a singular servant of Chaos living within the Immaterium who has not heard of the only Marine to stand before the Despoiler and manage to escape with his soul intact. Though now…"
Jacques saw that the Eye embedded in his staff glowed a sickening green.
"…this may no longer be the case. As I will strike you down right now and offer your skull packed in a gold chest to the Despoiler himself."
"Don't write checks your mouth can't cash, Chaos freak!" Jakob exclaimed, struggling against the bounds attached to his legs, "Because we…don't…ACCEPT THEM HERE!"
Crying out in might Jakob suddenly freed himself from the Warp-driven shackle. He then charged Artemis and struck him with full force against the side of his head, sending him falling to the ground and releasing his bedlam staff. As Jakob struck again where he brought the staff down on the Sorcerer, he fired several fireballs at the Gue'vesa, striking him into the chest and sending him falling back. Jacques then struck and severed Artemis' hand.
The Sorcerer cried out in pain, before feeling the point of the staff get driven into his chest by Jakob, who had appeared to be unfazed by the close-range fireball-attack, and whom looked very disturbed and angry. Jacques immediately guessed that he wanted to be the one to kill the Sorcerer known as Artemis, so he stepped back and allowed Jakob to strike the killing blow.
Jakob smirked over and at him and pulled Krystal's staff out of the Sorcerer's chest. He then brought it down again and forced it deeper into Artemis' chest, the blood erupting from the wound and especially out of his mouth. Both good humans adverted face to avoid the precious red liquid, which the experience was finally starting make Jakob nauseous, where he closed his eyes tightly.
Jacques noticed this and immediately said, "You can open your eyes now, Human Fire Warrior."
He did so, and they looked down at the mohawked Sorcerer to see his twisted face of pain and agony. Blood was still seeping down from his mouth and his eyes were bulged in place as he still struggled to breathe. Sickened by the fact he had lost so much blood yet was still alive, Jacques stepped forward aimed his bolter down at his head and pulled the trigger, blowing his head off. Just to make double sure he raised his sword, charged it with pure psychic power and then struck the corpse, slicing it across the chest and splitting it open. In the process he released a multitude of Chaotic energy, which fazed out when it came into contact with Jacques' pure, righteous power.
Jakob looked curiously over at Jacques and crossed his arms, "I think he's dead now, Jacques."
"You are right," Jacques responded.
He then spun around and fired his bolter at an incoming group of Cultists, mowing them down instantly. Jakob sheathed the staff on his back and rolled forward to retrieve his sub-machineguns. Once accomplished he quickly reloaded and avoided the charge of a Bezerker, who was then run through with Jacques' blade. Jakob impulsively fired his guns at the Grey Knight's direction and hit another Cultist who had been about to strike Jacques from behind.
He immediately realised, to his chagrin, that he had just covered Jacques' back.
"Nice shooting, Shas'la," Jacques cried as they then ran and dove towards cover behind a concrete barrier as a barrage of bolter fire passed by them, "We have to pursue and immobilise the Chaos Lord. I doubt Lombardi and Monroe can stop him by themselves."
Jakob gripped his machine-gun and frowned, "I'll get him, Mortensen. You should stick around topside and mop up the remaining Chaos forces and…"
His frown then faded as he took on a soft, yet serious look.
"…Krystal."
Jacques shook his head gently, "I think that objective is best left to you, Shas'la. Only I can deal the Chaos Lord the killing blow and end this fight."
Jakob's eyes widened, realising that he was forsaking his mission to protect Krystal. Or was he still following through with it by going after the leader and putting an end to his reign of terror here on this planet? So many things were confusing Jakob about Jacques that it was starting to take it's effect on his focus and concentration, where he loosened his hold on his guns.
Jacques realised this, "Focus, Shas'la Jakob. Focus."
The Human Fire Warrior nodded and exhaled, before frowning, "All right then, understood. I'll cover you from here."
Jacques nodded, where without even thinking through of what he was going to do he immediately broke cover and begun running towards the entrance into the underground bunker, which was situated yards away. Immediately bolter and laser fire made their way toward Jacques as he ran and fired his bolter, gripping his sword in his other hand with the full intention of wetting it with more Chaotic blood.
Jakob stuck his torso above cover and begun blazing away at the Marines pursuing Jacques, the armour-piercing plasma managing to do them major damage as he drew their attention away from him and they instead begun gunning for Jakob, allowing Jacques to disappear down the pathway towards the bunker. He dove behind cover, when suddenly he felt something strike the ground before his cover.
"FOR THE GREATER GOOD, SHAS'LA JAKOB!"
Jakob smiled and dove from cover, to find O'Shovah standing before the concrete barrier, his plasma cannon fully charged and ready to fire. The incoming Marines opened, only to each be vaporised by O'Shovah's cannon and sent flying backwards with their chest cracked wide open by his blade. One Cultist avoided O'Shovah blade and dove for Jakob, his own bloodied sword glistening in the moonlight.
Jakob glared and kicked the Cultist upside the head and downed him, before aiming his guns down at him and firing, filling him full of holes. O'Shovah then charged forward towards an incoming Predator, and put his blade right through the hull, and using all his strength to lift the tank of the ground and toss it towards a squad of Traitor Marines. One explosion later they were all reduced to burning wreckage, power armour and tank hull alike.
Alexander watched that little spectacle from around the corner, as he and his squad had finally made it into the centre of the base. He smiled, seeing that they now controlled the surface area, leaving only the underground command bunker and the hangar to go. Somehow he knew that Jacques would be able to take down the Chaos Lord single-handedly, but only after Ezekiel had killed Falco and Katt first, them being the first to pursue him.
"Governor," a Kasrkin got his attention, "What do we do now, sir?"
Alexander ordered, "Take the centre and eliminate any Chaos bastard that ever thought the Emperor is just a stuffed corpse on a throne!"
"Yes sir!"
----------
Even though their Tau weaponry was much more advanced than what they were armed with just before, Falco and Katt found themselves pinned down just outside the entryway into the bunker by several determined Traitor Marines, one Chosen Terminator armed with a powerful Melta Gun and several crazed Cultists. The two Fire Warriors that had accompanied them now laid dead near them, their bodies twisted and peppered with bolter slugs. Falco groaned in annoyance as he and Katt took cover behind a metallic support pillar, bolter and laser round flying past them.
"Now do you think we rushed ahead?" Katt cried.
Falco nodded quickly as a bolt chipped the corner near his ear, "We sure did! Goddamn!"
A Marine drew his sword…
"FOR THE DARK GODS!"
…and charged from the entrance. Falco and Katt heard him coming and contemplated stepping out of cover to engage him and instantly be filled with enough unholy ammunition to literally shatter their souls into fragments apart from their bodies, or be hacked down without them even lifting a finger to defend themselves.
The Chaos Marine smiled as be prepared to strike at that who cowered behind the pillar, only to be ran through with a Nemesis Force blade courtesy of a 'furiously charged' Grey Knight. With all his strength Jacques hurled the body towards the other Chaos followers which shattered in half as it struck the Terminator, who were all immediately startled at seeing one Grey Knight manage to get the drop on them. The Terminator roared and fired his Melta Gun; which Jacques swerved his head to avoid the energy blast, before he stretched his hand forward and performed a claw-like motion, releasing psychic energies and squeezing the Terminator's head into a compact shape. This effectively crushed the Terminator's head and left his armoured body standing there with his fellow Marines and Cultists.
Falco and Katt then broke cover and begun blazing away at the enemy, taking cover behind Jacques and his psychic shield, which caused the Chaos Marines and Cultists to fly into a frustrated fury, causing them to elect drawing their blades and engaging the Daemonhunter hand-to-hand. This was immediately proven fatal as Jacques gripped his power-brimming sword and hacked them all down with one slash each, as usual spilling hot blood all over.
One Cultist survived the slashing, only to feel Jacques' strike again and explode his chest outwards with more of his psychic power. This promptly sickened both Falco and Katt, which was evident on their faces, as they appeared flabbergasted as they forced themselves to look over the corpses of the Chaos followers.
"That was pretty pathetic," Falco observed, "They can take on a dozen Cornerians each, but against a singular Imperial Marine…well…you get the picture."
"I do," Jacques responded, rather impatiently, "Why you thought you can confront the Chaos Lord only armed with pulse rifles and mentally unprepared for the horrors he may throw at you and hope to win is beyond me. But now that I am here…"
"You want us to get topside and stay out of your way?" Katt queried, annoyingly.
Jacques shook his head, letting his objections go through movement of his head rather than facial expressions, as he still wore his helmet. He finished, "You can support me if you wish."
Falco's smiled, "Count on it, buddy."
The trio ran through the entrance-way and into the bunker, which the large doors closed shut behind them and the found themselves in a moderately large lobby-like room with electric lights and long gas pipelines situated on the ceiling. The walls were lined with doors and immediately played on Jacques, Katt and Falco's suspicions.
"You can turn back if you want," Jacques reminded them, "I can suffice by myself in this situation."
Falco and Katt shot each other a glance, before Falco replying, "Like I said, buddy."
Jacques smiled behind his helmet and reloaded his bolter. They proceeded to tread softly across the room; the lights flickering above them and the only sounds heard were the fighting topside, their individual hastened heartbeats, breathing and the gas moving through the pipes above them. Suddenly the doors were smashed wide opened and mutants strewn into the room in their dozens
Falco rolled his eyes as the mutants all screamed out with their animalistic instinct and rushed them. He then muttered…
"Typical."
…and proceeded to shove his rifle into the mouth of a charging mutant and blow his head apart at the seam. Katt followed suit as she quickly swerved to avoid a mutated slash and then drive her feet through the mutant's mushy skull through a kick and splatter it all over the floor, and on Jacques' feet. The Grey Knight expressed his annoyance by throwing himself at a large, burlier toad-like mutant and driving both his sword and his free fist into his torso and ripping it's ripcage open. It's screams of agony were silenced as Jacques then delivered the killing blow by rendering it's head in half.
He then stepped back towards Falco and Katt. With their backs together they fired away with their ranged weapons at the mutants which came at them from all sides from the many rooms in the bunker. All the while they thought of how someone in their right mind, or more accurately their sanity, could have stuffed all these shamblings into the command bunker.
'Last defence,' the three of them reasoned mentally as one.
Knowing that this was all too way a last ditch delaying technique for the Chaos Lord, Jacques let out mighty howl and launched a powerful shockwaves, shattering every shambling in the room into little bits whilst preserving Falco and Katt. The end result was a red/yellow-bloodied room strewn with mutant insectoid gibs. Jacques inhaled harshly, where he desperately wanted to rest his almost strained mind…but he sensed that Lord Ezekiel was nearby.
Falco let out a phew and wiped his forehead, "Well, that was a fucked up battle all right…."
"And only I can finish it," Jacques added with divination evident in his voice, "I will go it alone from here."
Falco and Katt looked at him with bewilderment. Katt cried, "You can't be serious. But you said…"
They heard Jacques sigh out loud, "I am sorry I lured you here. But this is no place for you."
Falco quickly nodded, "I hear you. C'mon Katt…"
He grabbed her hand and frowned over at Jacques with slight vehemence, making sure he could both see his face and sense his feelings of inadequacy and irritancy.
"Let the heroic Space Marine bring down the bad-guy single-handedly."
Jacques felt those familiar feelings of annoyance emerge within him, but he suppressed them and proceeded to move through one of the door leading deeper into the bunker, leaving Katt and Falco alone in the room. They then ran towards the main entrance, hopeful that the surface area would be secured.
"Well, there goes playing hero," Katt murmured softly.
"Hero? Ha!" Falco exclaimed in his usual arrogant tone as they ran, "I was thinking more along the lines of finishing this fight and moving on with what could be seen as our lives."
Katt smiled in spite of herself, "I hear that, Beakman."
----------
The last Chaos Space Marine felt several bursts of laser tear through his armour and out of his back courtesy of the Fire Warriors. He fell to his knees and used the remainder of his strengths to try and stand back up, but then felt a Kasrkin's Hell-gun bring him back down, blasting the boltgun out of his hands. He cursed out loud as he kept himself up using his hands.
He then moved them to tear his helmet off, spitting blood as he dropped it on the floor. He noticed he was now surrounded by the entire Tau/Imperial attack force, and that Lord-Militant Alexander and O'Shovah were stepping towards them. His eyes narrowed in anger as he looked upwards at the leader, preparing to face their gloating.
Alexander crossed his arms, "You could have surrendered in one piece, Marine."
"Who said I was surrendering?" the Marine responded bitterly, "Never to the lapdogs of the False Emperor…"
He then looked over at O'Shovah.
"…or to the godless, faithless blueskins."
O'Shovah zoomed in closer on him and saw the crimson fire brewing in his eyes, and the blood puddle spreading from him. He engaged his wet blade and brought it to the Marine's throat.
"Do you still wish to surrender and be granted mercy?" O'Shovah asked.
"You can shove your leniency up your metal backside, Farsight," the Marine said, revealing a toothless grin, "You Ork fucking, C'tan worshipping…."
Unamused, O'Shovah thrust his blade backwards before bringing it forwards towards the Marine and severing his head in half from the top of his neck. The head hit the ground and rolled towards the feet of a Guardsman, immediately startling him as he stood from attention and kicked the head away from in a panic.
As the body fell forward, Alexander turned to O'Shovah and remarked amusingly, "Those were harsh words, Commander."
O'Shovah retracted his blade and explained, "It is not wise to remind me of my exploits against the Green Horde, or my experience with the malevolent Star Gods, Lord-Militant. It gets on my 'worse' side."
"Ha! I see that!"
Krystal was horrified at what she had just seen. Sure, she had seen death before and had caused it on many occasions, including now, but seeing that the subject was amusing to the two military leaders was anything but amusing. She shook her head sadly and looked down at her feet, before remembering that she had seen Jacques disappear by himself into the bunker, in pursuit of Falco and Katt.
By chance they saw the two of them emerge up from the ramp leading underground, both battle-weary and worn. Krystal was the first person on the surface to greet them.
"Falco, Katt," she cried exasperated, "You're alive!"
"Really? I hardly noticed," Falco responded.
She crossed her eyebrows when she noticed the Grey Knight wasn't present, "Where's Jacques?"
"He went on after the Chaos Lord," Katt responded, "He insisted that he'd take him on single-handedly, like some typical knight in shining armour."
Krystal frowned when Katt sounded slightly hostile and cynical, nearly matching Falco's own tongue. If this was the time she would have openly supported Jacques' decision to face the Chaos Lord alone, but since they were in a hostile area and that more traces of Chaos or mutant could appear at any moment, she had to keep prepared.
"LOOK! HIGH ABOVE…THE INFINITY!"
If Krystal had her staff and not her empty boltpistol she would have been be battle ready. She looked up into the sky and was startled to see the Tau Explorer-class starship 'Infinity' hovering above the base; it's multiple cannons scanning the scorched battlefield, finding something that resembled a large human clad in a power armour or a hideous creature from hell to vaporise on the spot. Krystal sighed, relieved to see another friendly sight.
"Krystal!"
She turned to see Jakob running towards her, staff in hand. He stopped before her, catching his breath hoarsely, before looking up at her and her questioned face. He extended his hand holding the staff towards her, and she smiled.
"Your staff," Jakob pointed out.
Krystal smiled appreciatively and accepted it, where it retracted in her hands, "Thank you, Jakob."
The human Fire Warrior smiled at her gratitude and immediately felt the breath return to his lungs. He beat his chest in a salute and responded, "My pleasure, Krystal."
He then looked up to see the Infinity high above, his smile still plastered on his face. He then chuckled slightly and rubbed his chin, looking away towards her.
"What's so funny?" Krystal asked.
"That Aun'shi chooses the right time to dig up the ship and join the battle," Jakob explained, "By the Greater Good that is so…so…"
"Cliched?" O'Shovah answered, stepping to them.
He turned to face him, standing to attention, "Yes, O'Shovah. That's the word, though I actually wasn't thinking that'd be it."
"Mortensen?" O'Shovah said, turning to Falco and Katt, "Has he reported back?"
Falco shook his head, "No, he hasn't. He's gone after the Chaos Lord."
"Single-handedly?" Alexander cried, running up to him with his squad in tow. He then laughed out loud, "Ha! Just like Jacques, always does the dirtiest work for all of us."
Krystal turned towards the ramp leading down into the bunker with much concern, where she clasped her hands together in nervous anticipation, fearing for the life of her guardian, brother and best friend in the entire universe.
"Jacques," she whispered softly, yet sadly, "Please, come back."
----------
Fox found himself to be awake once again, the ship's ascent from beneath the sands having disturbed his pained slumber, the real-life pain once again settling in his chest. He still could not believe that this was happening, that his friends had gone off to battle without him and he was stuck here, useless as the day he was born.
The glimmer of hope which rose up when Jacques contacted him was all but faded. This left him lying there on his infirmary bed completely miserable, with possibly a hole in his chest courtesy of the Great Fox's stellar landing. With them having escaped Corneria with literally their tails between their legs, and leaving the planet to fall to the Ruinous Powers, for them to twist in their own sick image.
He closed his eyes tightly and moaned out loud, as he tried to rise up from his bed once again, and expecting to fall back down with pain. But this time, he concentrated and gritted his teeth, baring his vulpine pearly whites as sweat ran down the sides of his head.
'Please,' he thought to himself, which was more like begging, 'Don't leave me like this. Give me strength, let me heal…just get me out of this goddamned bed and back into the fight!'
He suddenly gasped out loud as the pain struck him in the heart. He fell back down and begun sucking back air, desperately not wanting to die just by trying to get up. He suddenly became alarmed when he felt that the pain was starting to fade away and his breathing was beginning to normalise. His eyes opened fully, not twitching or fatigued with pain, rather they were now alert and ready for action.
Fox steadied his breathed as he looked up at the ceiling and the flickering light above him. He moved his left hand towards his bandaged chest and dared to feel it, expecting to feel the pain again, but felt nothing instead.
"What the…?"
He felt like his strength was returning to him tenfold, where he attempted to get up once again. He moved his hand towards the sides of his bed and lifted himself up, he then felt the impulse to leap out of his bed and place both his feet on the infirmary floor, which he did and almost gasped at his sudden energetic movement.
Fox then slipped on the floor…
"Ah!"
…and fell flat on his back, triggering some kind of alarm. He groaned as he stood back up and dusted himself off. He then moved his hand towards his chest and slowly begun to remove the fabric, and almost fainting in surprise when he found that his area was all but healed. The gaping wound where the refrigerator handle had poked through had closed up entirely, leaving only a scar.
"How…?"
His head jerked up towards the door to see the Tau doctor stepping into the room, almost yelling out in shock in finding the previously incapacitated vulpine was standing in the centre of the room, looking like he was in perfect health. His mouth was agape as he tried to make his tongue work. Failing that, he simply crossed his arms.
"What do you think you are doing out of bed?" the doctor asked sternly, narrowing his eyes.
Fox smiled, wrapped his chest back up and responded whilst rubbing the back of his head, "Heh, guess I'm a quick healer."
His smiled faded, as he suddenly became serious again.
"At least, I think so."
----------
Without encountering any sort of resistance Jacques stepped through the corridors of the bunker, mentally tracing the path back to the entrance as he believed to be now in some kind of labyrinth, which was typical of Chaos to try and deceive those who stand against it. He found his surrounding were starting to become less welcoming as the walls were beginning to twist and contort as a daemonic-sort of fungi was growing on the wall, blood leaking down from it and onto the ground.
Jacques was unfazed by this shock imagery, continuing to proceed forward through the bunker; his sword brimming with power and his bolter loaded with high-calibre death. He came across a door, which had the worse of the daemonic influence upon it. It looked more like flesh and bone rather than steel, and the Grey Knight trusted his hunch that the Chaos Lord was close.
He drove his sword through the sword, blood spurting forth onto his armour. He then pulled back and with a cry of might he rammed against the door and with the sharp cracking of bone it came apart, the pieces splattering onto the floor.
Jacques saw what appeared to be the control room, with several computer monitor screens set up all over the walls and even the gas pipe covered ceiling. He saw Lord Ezekiel with his back turned, watching the large screen, which like all the others were showing footage of the battle that had just occurred on the surface. Ezekiel had a sullen look of sadness upon his face as he watched his own troops die, even the expendable Cultists. His apparent pity eroded and was replaced with a frown as he turned around to face the Grey Knight.
"You are cornered, Lord Ezekiel of the Alpha Legion!" Jacques shouted out loud with finality, before he announced, "But I wish not to fight you."
"Why is that, young Mortensen?" Ezekiel responded, "The Archon of Eden?"
"Because I have questions that need be answered, and you are the obvious one to ask here," Jacques explained.
Ezekiel smiled dryly, "Heh! And if I refuse?"
Jacques narrowed his eyes, "Then you will taste my blade, heretic."
Hearing the word traitor made him laugh out loud, making him hold his hips and not swallow his tongue with hilarity, "Heretic? You should really speak for yourself."
Ezekiel then shot an evil glance at the Grey Knight, whose eyes widened slightly with confusion, and he lowered his blade slightly upon hearing him out. The Chaos Lord continued to smile as he stepped forward, prompting Jacques to take one step backwards, then raise his sword again.
"Tell me this, Grey Knight," Ezekiel asked, "What makes you resent your own Imperium so much?"
"The Imperium threatens all I have come to treasure, tainted one," Jacques responded, "They do not understand what is at stake here. As long they have their pride, they can never understand."
"What about your Emperor?" Ezekiel queried, "The False Emperor if I may add."
Jacques glared, "You may not! He guided me from the fires of my doomed home. He gave me a purpose to continue to live in this forsaken universe, and be drenched in the blood so many members of life spill…over hate, greed, bigotry and ignorance."
"What is that reason?"
"To remind the universe that, even though the Imperium he had gave his life for to forge has spiralled into madness, we of the human race are still humane. That we fight to cleanse this universe of all the things that drives us to imperfection."
Ezekiel looked at him closely for a minute, studying his word carefully and surprisingly giving them some thought. He shook his head in pity, "Oh, you misguided soul. Strong words for someone who can not accept that the universe does not revolve around his quest for moral redemption."
"This is not about me, Chaos Lord!" Jacques exclaimed, "It is about stopping you and the Forces of Chaos from destroying the stars, in the name of your manipulative Dark Gods. The time for talk is over…"
He gripped his sword.
"…either you will explain what the Despoiler seeks in this system other than a back way into the Imperium, or will you face my wrath here and now."
Ezekiel frowned, "Face your wrath? Like all the other honoured servants of the Dark Gods you slew? From each of the monitors in this room and I have seen only you deliver each and every one of them a humiliating death by your exiled hands. They deserved a better way to check out."
"I am sure at one time, before they turned against the Emperor, they were honourable and could have sought a lighter way to perish," Jacques explained, growing impatient, "Now…"
Ezekiel gripped his reaper scythe and his plasma pistols in his hands, "Why don't your look into my mind and find out for yourself?"
"Allow me to."
"Never."
"Than you must fall."
"I don't think so…"
He raised his plasma pistol up at the pipes sprawled all over the ceiling.
"…at least not by your hands anyway, Mortensen. Fare thee well."
Jacques eyes grew large with shock as Ezekiel grin widened. He pulled the trigger and the blast hit the pipe, igniting the gas in the room causing a massive explosion, which blew Jacques back through the door and out into the hallway. The flames consumed the Chaos Lord Ezekiel, before the ceiling and tons of asphalt and rock from above buried the room.
The Grey Knight groaned in pain, having experienced the fact that Ezekiel didn't want to die by his hands, seeing how he could not face someone of his…stature. He got up slowly, hands up on the walls to support himself. Knowing that the bunker was about to go up in smoke he sheathed his sword and begun running back towards the entrance, the fire beginning to lick at him from behind as the gas and heating lines running through the bunker begun to become exposed.
'This is no way to start a war,' he thought, 'Through a suicide.'
----------
An explosion tore up from beneath the ground and reached the surface, startling the Tau and Imperial Guard forces present near the bunker. Krystal, Jakob, Falco, Katt, O'Shovah and Alexander turned their heads towards the bunker, the Tau Commander immediately detecting that it was about to go up in smoke.
"I am detecting heat anomalies from within the bunker," O'Shovah announced, "It is going to explode."
"Say WHAT?" Falco cried.
Alexander frowned, "That tears it. ATTENTION ALL FORCES…"
He exclaimed into his communicator.
"Clear the centre of the base!" he begun, before continuing with cynicism, "We're gonna have an unscheduled demolition courtesy of Mortensen in approximately twenty seconds! MOVE!"
All forces begun to retreat from base centre, where Jakob noticed that Krystal was still standing there before the entrance ramp into the bunker, with a look of panic on her face. She tried making her legs move, but knowing that he was still down there made things a whole lot more complicated. She closed her eyes and focused.
'Jacques?' she thought, 'Jacques! Where are you?'
"KRYSTAL!"
She was startled when Jakob grabbed her by her arms; panic evident on his face as he didn't want to end his young life caught within an explosion.
"Let's go!" he exclaimed.
"No!" Krystal cried back, "He's still down there!"
"We don't have time!"
An explosion erupted from the bunker entrance and up the ramp, causing the both of them to turn and dive for cover, Jakob still holding her. They expected the flames to incinerate them as they fell on the ground but instead…
"Oh my God," Krystal said softly, "Jakob?"
Jakob opened his eyes and looked behind himself, letting go of Krystal. His eyes widened, seeing that flames emitting from the explosion had just stopped before them, as if time had been stopped in it's tracks. Instead the explosion had simply being halted from spreading, though they had now erupted from within the bunker and up onto the surface.
"What is this?" Jakob demanded, "How is this possible?"
Do I once again sense doubt, Shas'la?
Jakob rubbed his eyes as he saw a figure emerge from the flames. He and Krystal stepped back and allowed it to emerge unscathed from the flames, his grey armour shining brightly and almost heavenly. It was none other than Jacques Mortensen stepping out of the frozen fire and before Jakob and Krystal with his left hand raised, it releasing immense psychic power. Enough power to actually halt an explosion in it's tracks.
Krystal stared at him in disbelief, "Jacques?"
"Krystal," Jacques responded, "Jakob?"
Jakob shook his head slowly, trying to comprehend what he was saying, "It…this…I've never…."
"Clear this area, please," Jacques pleaded gently, "I can not hold this much longer."
They then ran away from the bunker, the power Jacques was wielding beginning to strain Jacques' mind. He held the flames back long enough for him, Jakob and Krystal to rejoin the forces just outside the boundaries of the base centre, who were all amazed as one Psyker managed to hold back the flames of a subterranean explosion.
Alexander turned to him and said, "You can let it go now, Mortensen."
Jacques nodded and lowered his hand, allowing the explosion to resume it's destructive course. It lit up the night as the bunker was destroyed, watched quietly by the Tau and Imperial Guard, as if holding a vigil. Once the explosion cleared, it left a large crater in the centre of the base, surrounded by the corpses of the entire remaining Chaos Space Marine, Cultist and their mutant wildlife servants.
Loud cheering broke out among the Tau and Guardsmen as they quickly celebrated their victory, knowing it was their united efforts that had destroyed the Alpha Legion's forces, and both factions were content with that. Falco looked over at Jacques, whom he heard panting heavily, "Nice work, Mortensen. What a way to start the war."
The Grey Knight caught his breath and looked over at him, where he replied, "That was not me, Falco. That was an act of cowardice."
Katt smirked and slung her rifle over his shoulder, "No surprise."
Silence overtook the masses as they quietly watched the remaining flames die out, each individual knowing that his was only the beginning of a possibly brutal conflict. Krystal, however, was shaken by what she had just seen. Surely Jacques could not wield such immense power, even for a Psyker-cross-Space Marine with a heart as pure as gold.
She couldn't help but think if he was really Jacques Mortensen, if he had changed since the time they were apart, if he was a different person altogether. The Grey Knight noticed her sullen look, and knew what she had to be thinking, even without having to look into her mind. Behind his helmet sadness crossed his face.
'I am him, Krystal,' he thought, but only to himself, 'And I will prove it to you. But only if you will ask me to.'