Star Fox 40,000: Realm of Chaos

by GamerJay

Star Fox x Warhammer 40,000 crossover. The corrupt aspects of humanity has come to drown Lylat in it's own blood. Who can stand against it? Team Star Fox, an heroic yet complicated superhuman and the zealous, gothic Imperium of Man.

19. Chapter 17a: Slaves to Darkness

Disclaimer: See the Prologue

Edits made: Slippy's involvement in the battle.
La'Jakob's salute.

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Chapter 17a - Slaves to Darkness

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With the thrice-damned renegades of lewd Slaanesh, your well-tried techniques of forceful inquisition will serve you ill. These voluptuaries and heretics that debase themselves before their so-called Lord of Dark Delights are not to be unburdened of their lisping truths by subtle pressures or the keen probing of your instruments. Conspiring against all decency even in such matters, these libertines take pleasure from our inquiries, debauching themselves with inhuman dissolution upon the racks and wheels of Verity. For these abominations, other methods are required...
- The Teachings of Inquisitor Magnus, Realm of Chaos: Slaves To Darkness

With many of Lylat's past conflicts on the surface of MacBeth from the Forever Train battle to the Ork WAAAGH!! of Warlord Gorgutz 'ead unter', it was surprising that the planet hadn't been completely reduced to glass, or worse yet it was not completely hollowed out. Following the events of the failed Ork attack, many of the sites the greenskins had fought or inhabited had been subjectively firebombed multiple times in a effort to prevent more Orks from appearing. As it was known that a dead Ork released it's seed which planted into the ground, and in time gave birth to another. And combining the firepower that Star Fox and the Cornerian Army unleashed on the green tide, thousands of Orks had been killed. And were it not for Jacques' advisement towards General Pepper, they would have returned years later as Feral Orks.

Afterwards, things on MacBeth up to now had been quiet. Amidst the abandoned Venomian military bases, train stations, train yards and general outposts, there were no reports of any Ork sightings, so it would seem that they had been in listening to the Ultramarine slash Heavy Weapons guru of Star Fox. All those thoughts and reminiscing ran through the Cornerian mastiff Sergeant Major's head as he hobbled alongside the remainder of his platoon into the remains of a warehouse within the remains of the old Venomian trainyard, with him and his men beside a barely functioning Armored Personnel Carrier. Fragments of a bolter round were lodged painfully in his left leg and a blade slash to his right cheek. A part of his right ear lobe had been flayed and the sounds of war were still behind right behind.

With his machine-gun in his shaky left hand, he spun around to find a pair of half-naked male human Slaanesh cultists wearing only pink-colored armor shards over their chest and extremities hobbling behind the platoon, armed with blasters, short-blades and lust-filled smiles. The Sergeant aimed his machine-gun with one hand and filling them all full of holes. They toppled over onto their backs, killed instantaneously with smiles on their faces.

"Sir!" one of the corporals cried out immediately after hearing gunfire, "Those…those sex-fiends won't let up! Those two were from the same skinny group that ambushed 3rd Platoon!"

"Don't remind me, kid!" the Sergeant Major exclaimed, "Those fucking humans tore the hell out of those poor bastards! Now shut those doors!"

The corporal, a young alsatian, wiped the sweat off his brow as he took cover besides several other Cornerian soldiers. One of the soldiers got to work closing the warehouse door, which consisted of him banging on the controls while the others was blazing away at more cultists approaching the area, laspistols firing away. One soldier was hit in the kneecap and went down cursing in pain. His friends dragged him behind the doors as they closed and backed away.

"Goddamn it!" the downed soldier cursed out loud, "They just keep…ARGH…goddamn!"

The sounds of screaming, yelling, bellowing and fists banging on the door sent shivers through ever Cornerian soldier's frames as they raised and primed their weapons at the doors and front windows. The Sergeant Major opened a panel in the side of the APC and produced a communicator phone.

"This is 5th Platoon to Command!" he shouted, "We can't hold the skinnies and we're held up in a warehouse on the other side of the base. Don't suppose you can't spare an extraction, over?"

Negative 5th Platoon, we're being hit all over the place! Every unit from here to the spaceport are cut off from each other and all ships are grounded!

In anger the Sergeant Major gripped the receiver enough to make it almost shatter. Through clinched teeth, he asked, "Please advise, over."

Wait…YEAH! Hold you position, over.

The other line sounding jovial almost made the Cornerian officer jump, just as the warehouse windows shattered as gunfire poured in and the Cornerians took cover behind the APC or the crates and machinery present, the Sergeant Major cried, "Colonel, sir! Repeat all after 'yeah'!"

Hold your position and wait for relief. Reinforcements are on their way.

"Reinforcements? BACK UP!"

The Cornerian soldiers moved away from the windows and took deeper cover within the warehouse when both human and kemono cultists poured through the shattered windows, guns blazing and blades brandished. Dozens were gunned down as they forced their way into the warehouse, but dozens more were quick to take their place. The banging and hollering on the doors growing more intense as lustful moaning and bellowing could be heard through the door and the windows.

'Sounds like there thousands of em' out there,' the Sergeant officer thought, 'God…why are they coming after us?'

Firing his machine-gun, the Sergeant Major picked his shots carefully. One naked female brown-furred mouse cultist was in proximity of the officer, who silently apologized to God for striking a woman and immediately rifle-butted her across the face and fired down at her. She screamed in pain and loosened her hold on her dagger before dying.

Suddenly everything went quiet as the gunfire, chanting and the mass moaning ended. The Cornerian kept their weapons primed and aimed towards the front, with the majority of the guns aimed at the door.

The Cornerian officer shook his head in disbelief, "There is no way they can knock that door down."

Suddenly a charismatic, authoritative yet slippery-toned voice assaulted the airwaves…

"Children of the Emperor! Death to his foes!"

…. followed by a large ornate sabre penetrating through the warehouse door and slicing it across downwards. The Cornerian gripped their weapons and tightened their trigger fingers with two black metallic gauntlets pried the door open sideways. The Sergeant Major eyes at the sight of the Chaos Champion standing in the doorway, which he had just forced open with the superhuman strength granted by his false good.

To put it at best, he was a real abomination to whatever benevolent gods that existed in this damned universe. His bald, scarred head was bleached and pale and he had rows of sharpened teeth and his long tongue slivered in and out of his mouth in a sick, sensual manner. He was armored with a daemonic whip, which was attached to his right gauntlet and he carried his large power sabre in his left gauntlet. His dark blue power armor twisted and contorted with the pained, wailing faces of ten thousand years worth of people who had gone up against him…and won.

No doubt this was Lucius the Eternal himself, the Champion of Slaanesh and captain of the 13th Company of the Emperor's Children Traitor Legion.

"Sssssssoooooooo….fresh furry meat," Lucius hissed with a smile, "Yet to feel Slaanesh's divine blessings unto themselves."

The Sergeant Major didn't waste time being startled and raised his machine-gun, immediately blazing away at the Slaanesh champion, trying to go for the headshot. But with the pain in his leg and side of the face searing he only managed to strike his chest plating, which barely fazed the exotic-looking champion. Still smirking, he reeled his hand that held the whip back and struck forward with a loud crack.

"ARGHHHH!"

The daemonic whip struck the Sergeant Major's hand and left a massive gash that went all the way to the bone, sending his machine-gun flying. He sunk to his knees cradling his stricken hand and moaning in agony. The soldiers under his command immediately shouted orders to one another and begun firing at Lucius. He was still smiling that sick smile as he stepped aside and suddenly five Chaos Space Marines charged in, boltguns blazing.

They immediately mowed down most of the Cornerian soldiers present, blasting their chests open and tearing them to shreds with their heavy gun firing high-caliber rocket-propelled slugs, those soldiers fingers still on the trigger as they defended themselves in a futile manner. Those Cornerians that survived had only done so by diving onto the ground with their Sergeant Major.

Immediately they felt themselves lifted into the air kicking and yelling and hurled out of the warehouse. The APC was sliced open by a Chaos Marine with a power sword and it's two drivers were pulled out by the neck and hurled onto the ground. Steel boots immediately came down on their heads and crushed them, mercifully sparing them the perverted wrath of the Slaanesh cultists.

Lucius grinned and turned away from the interiors of the warehouse, and towards the massive crowd of lustfully screaming, moaning jeering Slaanesh cultists. His Marines had hurled the Sergeant Major and the surviving six soldiers towards the middle of the crowd, and immediately they hoisted the officer onto his knees and grabbed and twisted his head. It was not to break his neck, but so that he was facing his remaining soldiers as both male and female cultists surrounded them.

A female human cultist licked the dog officer ear lobe and edged towards his men, "Watch closely…be aroused."

The Sergeant Major's eyes widened when the Slaanesh cultists surrounded them begun to draw their blades descended upon the soldiers, who each begun to scream and cry in horror and gradually agony. All before their commanding officer who was forced to watch as the Slaanesh cultists did to them what any right-minded person would decline to describe here.

"NO! GODDAMN YOU!" the Sergeant Major screamed in anger, "YOU FUCKING ANIMALS!"

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"Our Farseer's heart once again shines and her mind is finally clear. For just as she has said, it is Slaanesh himself that can be felt on this world, and amongst the thralls of Chaos."

"If not plunging our once great civilization to ruin through excess was not enough, he seeks to do so here amongst the kemono. And though they are pawns of the mon'keigh, it is our duty to save their souls from the ensnare that is the Great Enenmy."

"Though for now, Shira, we must save one of them."

"We must prepare now, Delanos."

Standing there and hiding atop the roof of an administration building behind their optic camouflage robes, the two Eldar rangers watched the scene from afar through the scopes of their long rifles. Below them on the ground Traitor Marines and cultists were on the march through the tight streets of the abandoned residential district of the base, which would normally have harbored the soldier's during off hours and their families, but has now fallen in disrepair following abandonment by the Venomian Army.

But now the base was the center of the Cornerian retreat as they passed through here with the Emperor's Children in hot pursuit, with troops mixed with Slaanesh tainted ground armor and vehicles. The Eldar watched the fighting closely, as if they were studying them – waiting for the opportune time to strike. And if their Farseer's mind continued to stay clear, then it would come to them very soon.

Shira turned behind her towards a squad of four Warp Spiders and a Exarch, all of them encased in high-tech sealed wraithbone armor, helmets, death-spinners and backpack with warp generators intact, which had the capacity of teleporting them almost instantaneously anywhere within range. And the massacre half-a-mile away was in range.

"Save him," Shira said, almost pleading, "Can he at least bring a message to the kemono?"

The Exarch nodded, and responded in a distorted voice similar to that of a broken vid-disk, "We're on our way!"

And they disappeared in a crystallized flash. Shira turned to Delanos, who was now observing the Chaos troops below them. She appeared discontented as she stepped up to him.

"When will the Farseer allow us to sow death amongst these perverted beings?" Shira implored, squatting beside him, "We can wait for the Archon to arrive any longer?"

"Please, show patience Shira," Delanos turned his head and looked her in the eyes through her hooded helm, "He will come, and will not be alone."

"And those with him we have encountered before," Shira explained, "And whom we betrayed, before they could betray us."

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Now bound by his arms and feet, the distraught Sergeant Major closed his eyes as he felt the blood hit his face when the last of his soldiers received a bolter round to the back of the head. The cultists having believed to have broken their furry toys, as their were practically a hundred in the crowd and all of them had nearly a sadistic piece of the Cornerian soldiers. The officer could close his eyes to stop seeing the sights before him, but he couldn't shut off the sounds.

"Now…what of this tall, firm piece of meat?" a female voice cackled out loudly.

"Seeing his men has made him too tense," a effeminate male voice cried out in gothic, "He can join them!"

With his eyes still closed he felt him shoved roughly down onto the asphault, and something metallic, possibly a boltpistol, pushed into the back of his head. He heard the clicks of a bolt sliding into place, before the loud BLAM of the gun going off. But somehow, he was still thinking…

"Wha…?"

…and no longer hearing the sounds of war, pain and agony. Slowly, he dared open his eyes to find himself, still bound, on his knees. He was surrounded by five tall black/manilla heavily armored humanoids, with the leader identified by the extra equipment on his back and his uniquely shaped helm standing right behind him with his hand on his shoulder.

"You have saved one of the kemonos, Exarch," the Sergeant-Major heard a soothing, feminine voice, "And he is unspoiled as the day he was born."

"Yes, Exalted Farseer," the 'Exarch' responded, which to the officer sounded distorted, "We did not think it was possible, but he survived the personal warp jump intact and with his sanity."

The Warp Spiders stepped away from the Sergeant Major, who caught a glimpse of his surroundings. They were within the confines of an abandoned air control tower in a small outpost just outside the battlezone. Out the windows he could more Chaos vehicles and troops of various kinds passing by below, unknowing of his presence.

He looked ahead and upwards at the face of a tall, long dark haired female humanoid. Instead of feelings of dread a Cornerian would associate with being in the presence of a human, he felt something else instead. And that was confusion mixed with relief wrapped around awe. He looked around to find the control room full of these tall, strange human-like creatures, where the only differences between them and humans was their shuriken weaponry, their wraithbone armor, their long-ears and overall graceful appearance.

The Farseer Taldeer stepped forward towards him just as the Warp Spider Exarch cut his bounds with his serrated blade. He rubbed his own wrists, still quietly staring up at the Farseer.

Taldeer appeared intrigued, 'The kemono is grateful, yet is silent. Is it fear? Or is it awe? Let us see.'

She looked down at him, the silence in the room somehow not being broken by the sounds of war and Chaos deployment outside. It was that silence that if one was to hear closely, they could listen to the sound of heartbeat.

"I have a message I must give you," Taldeer spoke calmly to the Sergeant-Major, "Would you give it your commanding officer? We will provide you safe passage towards your main base of operations?"

The Sergeant Major nodded, feeling grateful towards these beings who looked to pure to be humans, "Yes…yes…anything! But…"

He eyebrows queered.

"What are you people?"

Taldeer shook her head and responded, "You should ask the people who programmed your simulators."

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En-route to MacBeth at the highest speed possible was a small fleet of Imperial and Cornerian ships, with the Great Fox II at the front. The fleet following close behind consisted of the Emperor-class Pacifier, a Lunar-class Imperial Cruiser, the three Firestorm escort cruisers and one Space Marine Strike Cruiser. The Cornerian starships vastly outnumbered the Imperial ships, and besides the Great Fox Dreadnought there were six Cornerian battlecruisers and four wings of strike fighter escorts. The Pacifier and the Imperial cruiser carried between them twenty-thousand men and attached Armoured Companies while the Space Marine cruiser carried twenty-five Space Marines, including the squad of Scouts.

And the Lord Macragge, his honor guard and the Master of the Sanctity themselves. Those individuals strode through the hallway of the ship towards the drop pod launch pod, expecting the rest of their brothers to be waiting there for them.

"Lord Macragge," Tigerius said, "The Emperor Incarnatus is currently holding position outside the system. Our remaining Brothers are on standby and would only need to hear your voice if they are to deploy to the system."

"Hopefully, we will not have need of them," Calgar responded, then intoned, "Though I had wished we had one of the Reserve Companies on hand."

"With that transmission we sent, we will have additional reinforcements," Cassius pointed out, "For now, we must rely on our Guard and xeno allies. And speaking of the xeno we will be fighting beside this day…"

Cassius looked sullen.

"…our brothers fear breaking the Codex Astartes in fighting beside the denizens of this system, the misguides of the Tau Empire and the alien sympathizer of all traitors."

Calgar frowned, "Jacques is not a traitor. The Astartes have always served the Emperor and has safeguarded mankind for thousands of years. If allying with xeno guarantees our survival, then so be it. I will make sure the rest of our brothers see that."

The Chaplain shook his head, "Some of the First Company have lived and fought for many thousands of years and have always abided by the writings of our Primarch. It will be a struggle to convince them otherwise."

Calgar stopped walking and frowned, "Who is to say that we are going against Guilliman's teachings? The Primarch would want humanity preserved any way possible. And permit me to say this before you, the Master of Sanctity, and to you the Chief Librarian…"

Cassius eyes widened behind his skull helmet and Tigerius already guessed what Calgar was going to say and already went through the ramifications of his new-founded beliefs nearly mirroring that of Jacques of all people.

"…besides all those who stood in the way of the Great Crusade, did the Emperor ever condone hatred towards non-humans? Or to not refuse pact with them if it would mean advancement for our species? We may not ever know, but for now we will stay on the course and will prevent the Ruinous Powers entry into the Imperium…through every means necessary."

As they neared the drop bay passing by servitors and serfs alike, Cassius and Tigerius glanced at each other, appearing both surprised and worried.

'It is official,' Cassius thought bitterly, 'He has spent too much time around Mortensen. It would seem his views, philosophies and charisma are rubbing off the Lord Macragge. Though I believe it is necessary to ally with aliens at this time, this may cause some problems. And if you are reading my mind right now, Chief Librarian, you will agree with me.'

Tigerius grimaced and thought to himself, 'Indeed. I have never questioned the purpose, or even the heritage, of Mortensen…but at one point we must draw the line before Mortensen plunges the Chapter into heresy.'

They stepped into the launch bay, with pods fueled and ready for descent. 25 Marines, divided into 1 Tactical squad, 1 Devastator Squad and a Terminator Squad; supported by an Apothecary and a squad of five Scout Marines, two of which were armed with sniper rifles. They were all already standing to attention, with Calgar's Honour Guard joining them and taking up ceremonial flank before the high-ranking Space Marines.

Calgar smiled, "My brothers, veterans of the First Company and Neophytes. Once again we go to war against the foul Forces of Chaos, and the same traitors whom ten-thousands years ago betrayed our Emperor, and paid the price for the allegiance to the Ruinous Powers with eternal damnation. Most of you have fought as long as I have been Lord Macragge, so I expect nothing less of any of you then to bring swift death upon the enemies of mankind."

"YES MY LORD!" the Marines all sounded off through their vox-vocalisers.

"You are the Emperor's Chosen and the pride of the Chapter, so I will not lie to you, because what you have heard is true," Calgar continued, "We fight beside both xeno and breakaways from the Imperium. Though her alliance with the Lylatian, the Tau and the Kronus/Eden treaty we are a coalition, and therefore will not consider any xeno or traitor that does not fire on us first a threat. Therefore, I expect every one of you to abide by that. Do I, your Lord Macragge, make myself clear?"

"YES MY LORD!"

"And as token of good faith," Calgar continued, smiling slightly, "May I direct your attention towards the other entrance into the bay?"

All Marine turned their heads to where he said and saw several servitors wheeling in ornate power armor…which were the same one that had been lent to Team Star Fox following the invasion of Papetoon. The Ultramarines all appeared intrigued at the sight of their returned armor.

(A/N: Yeah I know…it wasn't possible for them to wear armor in the first place, I know better now. But I thought I might clear this up.)

"I hope this puts many of the fears to rest, brothers," Calgar said, "And this proves that these xeno are willing to die for us. Now…"

He turned to Cassius.

"Master of the Sanctity. If you may dispense with the rites."

Cassius nodded and stepped forward. The Ultramarines all took a knee and bowed their heads in silent prayer. Cassius eyes narrowed behind his skull helmet as he paraded himself down the launch bay, passing by the Marines.

"Into the fires of battle we go," intoned Cassius.

"Unto the anvil of war we strike," replied the Space Marines.

Cassius raised his Crozius Arcanum power mace into the air as the Marine all took a knee and bowed their heads in prayer, "We are the Ultramarines, warriors of the Emperor, and our bravery is beyond question! It is the stuff of the soul-forge, stronger than adamantium and enduring as the Immortal Emperor Himself. The fires of battle are our places of worship, the roar of bolters our prayers, and the slaughter of our foes an offering to the gods of battle!"

"Our bolters are charged with death," the assembled Ultramarines cried as one, their vox-vocalisers sounding off all throughout the chamber, "They are the divine wrath of the Emperor!"

"And so once again, we fight to keep the heretics out of our galaxy, which is the Emperor's realm," Cassius bellowed as he lowered his mace, "And in his name we shall bring death to the enemies of mankind. Those humans and xeno… who serve the Ruinous Powers shall go down with them. And though we fight beside other xeno, for now it shall not be considered heresy….for they unknowingly serve the Emperor by standing beside us."

"Purge the heretics!" the Ultramarines cried.

"And the traitors of Kronus and Eden…they are but victims of circumstance. They too serve the Emperor, and therefore are our allies."

"Only the Emperor is all!"

"And so…once again…TO BATTLE, MY BROTHERS!"

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Admiral Nero had a reason to be angry. The allied Cornerian starships vastly outnumbered his own pitiful 'fleet' of his flagship Pacifier, three Firestorm escorts and the Lunar-class cruiser designated Novelis. Though General Sturnn and Calgar simultaneously assured him the Cornerian and Venomians will not go against the terms of the alliance or Coalition as suggested by the Ethereal, Horatio Dylanis Nero felt like he was going to suffocate. Because in a few minutes they will be locked into combat with the Chaos warfleet and that is when they will be truly outnumbered.

Admiral, General Sturnn said over the vox, All troops and vehicles ready for deployment. What's the status on the Baneblades?

"If you must know, they are ready for deployment," Nero responded, "We will deploy them once 1st and 2nd groups have landed, that is, after the Ultramarines have paved the way for us."

I read you, Admiral, Sturnn said gruffly, And I'll trust the fleet to keep the enemy air away from us.

Nero frowned, "You can count on us, General. May be the Emperor be with you."

Emperor protect you as well, Admiral. The Emperor protects us all.

Nero turned the vox off, the frown still on his face.

'Except for the xeno,' Nero reasoned mentally.

"Lord Admiral!" the captain of the Pacifier exclaimed, "We're approaching the planet, but we've got dozens of Chaos warships approaching at our twelve, sir."

Nero nodded, "All gunnery crews to their stations…and ready the Nova cannon."

He then smiled pleasantly to himself, which distracted some of the command crew nearby.

'And pray at least a few of our 'allies' get caught in the crossfire.'

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Deep within the lower levels of the Pacifier where the Imperial's ground forces would be stowed away for the duration of the voyages through the cosmos, a general assembly was called and every Guardsmen made their way to the chapel area, lasguns and other assorted weaponry in hand. They were organized into their respective platoon with an officer leading them, whom each had their orders to stand before the General, the Regimental Commissar and the Confessor, who would bless them before they would once again go into battle.

The men of Sergeant Armiel's platoon sneered at the thought of being blessed as they marched through the tight corridor towards the chapel area. Private Vincent Shultz felt a fellow Guardsmen nudge him in the shoulder.

"Oi, have ya' heard boy?" the Guardsman hissed, "We're havin' to fight with not only aliens, but with those fuckin' traitors."

"Yeah!" another exclaimed from behind, prompting Vincent to turn his head towards him, "Those self-righteous gray bastards and those damn furballs. Though you gotta admit…"

The Guardsman gave a cruel smile.

"… if you don't mind the faces a few of the alien girl's bods look hell of lot better then the stuff they got back on Cadia."

Armiel smirked when he overhead his men, and couldn't help overhear the conversation, "Don't get any bright ideas."

"Aw, c'mon sarge," another Guardsman chimed in, "You have to admit that blue vixen is fit and right fuckable. That is unless that vulpine or that traitor already stuck their guns into her from behind…"

They then heard the angry scowl from their purple-eyed, blond lieutenant, as his left eardrum augmentation overheard every little bit of their conversation, which pointed out explicitly what they thought of the Cerinian and all female anthro's in general.

"Sergeant!" the lieutenant cried, "Control your squad's tongues or I'll have the Confessor cut them out."

Armiel saluted as he nodded, "Yes sir, lieutenant Zakheav!"

He then turned to his squad and whispered…

"Might want to keep it down. Remember the 38th Millennium?"

Private Niel nodded and smirked, "Those poor, horny bastards."

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In his personal armory Sturnn grunted as he fastened on his carapace armor and pauldrons over his uniform, having forgotten what it felt to have bodily protection on. He always had preferred to let people know what his rank he was through the stripes he wore and the decorations he had earned through thirty years of service to the Imperium and the God-Emperor.

He then fastened on his scarlet Cadian battle-raiment, followed by a red/gold outlined sash, which was identical to Governor Alexander's gear. That wasn't surprising, as the Cadian forces that were originally in pursuit of the Farseer Taldeer, and whom they had successfully captured had formed the Kronus 1st when they had landed on the planet. It had been up to Alexander to make up for his monumental failure, which could have cost him his life if it wasn't for the injuries he had sustained following the thermonuclear explosion of the Titan Dominatus hadn't made him eligible for the Crimson Medallion. The award to Guardsmen who suffer horrific injuries yet had not lost their will to fight or their faith in the God-Emperor, and he was deemed worthy to be spared penance.

He looked at his rugged, armored, grim self in the mirror and frowned silently. He always did like ceremony rather then protection.

'So much for grace,' he mentally shrugged, 'At least it will keep the plasma at bay.'

He then equipped his ornately crafted Power Claws with integral Storm Bolter, then his ornate gold-encrusted laspistol in it's holster, which he fastened around his waist and hidden behind his cape (or raiment). He then turned back to face the mirror, looking grimly at his own reflection.

Then with his left hand he reached for his laspistol holstered to his right and aimed it at the mirror, all as quickly as possible and with a smirk. He then twirled his laspistol in his hand and holstered it. He then turned towards the door and it opened automatically. He stepped out of the hallway, receiving salutes from the naval armsmen guarding the armory, and was greeted by Commissar Plymouth.

"Lord Commissar Gebbet."

'Gebbet' frowned, "I prefer 'Plymouth', General Sturnn."

Sturnn examined Plymouth and saw the only change of wardrobe he had bothered to take was that he was wearing a Commissariat-issued carapace armor over his vest. He was wearing his greatcoat instead of using it as a crude-cape and the skull on his peaked officer's cape was shined and reflective. His prized laspistol and saber were holstered and sheathed respectively.

"You dressing to impress, Commissar?" Sturnn inquired.

Plymouth crossed his arms, "You surprise me yourself, General."

"I don't plan on dying today, Commissar," Sturnn interjected as he begun walking down the hall towards the chapel with the Commissar at his right side, "And I do hope you're considering your own chances of mortality."

"Would it be considered bitter if I gloriously fell in battle this day?"

"Then I would have a hard time finding your replacement, Plymouth," Sturnn replied, "I doubt there is any other Commissar anywhere who would want to be assigned to the Cadian 412th."

"I am flattered," Plymouth said, "Now…about the upcoming battle…"

Sturnn grimaced, "There's no intel as of yet what fallen legion we will be fighting first. Though I pray it is one of the Chosen legions first, I just hope it is not the Emperor's Children."

He then snorted in disgust.

"God-Emperor knows what the kemono cults will pick up from those hedonistic bastards."

"If I may point out in a tactical manner General Sturnn, fighting kemono cultists bending over backwards for the God of Decadence will add some variety to this battle," Plymouth pointed out smugly.

"There is no way in hell I can disagree with that, Commissar," Sturnn scoffed, "The worst aspects of these man-animals will hit us hard, and hopefully not in the wrong places. Yiffers, vorers, tinies and who knows what the perverted mind can think up."

They stepped into the chapel area, immediately greeted with the salutes of ten thousand Imperial Guardsmen standing to attention, with the other ten-thousand making up the 2nd Battlegroup onboard the Imperial cruiser nearby within the Coalition fleet. They too would be standing to attention in their chapel with their officers and Commissars present, with the priest and confessor already blessing them on the eve of battle.

"GUARDSMEN, ATTEN-HUT!" Sturnn and Plymouth had heard the officers' command out loud, "SALUTE!"

Sturnn smiled and finished what he had begun to say to Plymouth, "I think we will manage quite well."

----------

Spearheading ahead of the fleet was the Great Fox II, and onboard it's occupants kept vigilant for the first sign of enemy contact as they prepared themselves for war. Not only was Team Star Fox, including it's former Heavy Weapons Specialist, on board but the contingent of Tau that had volunteered to assist the Imperial and Cornerian forces for the attack on MacBeth, or what they called the 'liberation' of MacBeth. A hundred Fire Warriors, Crisis Suit pilots and Earth Caste attendants from both T'au and the Farsight Enclaves mingled beside one another on board the Dreadnought. Most of them however kept to the lower decks and the hangar, where the ten Farsight Crisis Battlesuits besides five T'au Crisis suits, two Hammerhead Gunship and two Broadside Suits they brought along as well as most of their weaponry were stored.

And it was the appearance of these Farsight battlesuits that made Slippy nervous as he was worked on his Arwing, making sure it was in tune just in time for the upcoming battle on MacBeth. Between handling his spanner and taking quick glances of a pict of Amanda, he observed the battlesuits carefully. They were all red-colored and appeared like the normal battlesuits they had encountered during the battle on Titania, but these ones were heavily modified with green-glowing phaser-like cannons and sharpened blades akin to O'Shovah's battlesuit. It would appear they were fitted for both close and long range combat.

Slippy sighed, 'Can't believe I'm sitting this one out. Only four Arwings and Katt being the last minute addition to the team. I could just go out in the Landmaster and give the boys in flak and steel some more amour.'

He then looked at his pict of a smiling Amanda.

'Then again, I've got Amanda to get back to. Couldn't bear to leave her alone if something bad happened to me.'

He glanced at his pict again and looked away from the Arwing, startled when he was approached by a red-suited black-eyed Farsight Suit pilot –a Shas'vre.

"You appear interested in our modified Crisis Suits, Toad," the Shas'vre stated.

Slippy shrugged, "Yeah, well…that's the kind of technology I figured I'd never lay eyes on."

The Shas'vre smirked, "So you should be envious. The technology of T'au makes us strong, and allows us to spread the Greater Good despite those who seek to stand in our way to enlightenment."

The frog looked at him curiously, "This 'Greater Good' really drives you guys on, doesn't it…eh?"

"Shas'vre T'au Law Nem Y'eldi," the pilot identified himself, sounding off like he took pride in his name, "You can call me 'Law', though."

Slippy smiled awkwardly, "Yeah, it'd be easier then saying your whole name out loud."

"And to answer your question…without Tau'va, there is nothing worth fighting for," Vre'Law quickly added, "Through the Greater Good we fight for honor, for our families, for the Highest Ones and for T'au itself."

The frog looked at him curiously, "Really…but err…you don't exactly fly the colors of those other Tau guys…the guys in yellow, I mean."

Law crossed his arms, "Yes, well…we the followers of Commander Farsight serve the Greater Good our own way. Ways which the other septs fear to go by."

Slippy eyes widened, appearing intrigued. He decided to grill the pilot more, "Does that explain why I noticed some of the T'au sept Fire Warriors cast you guys dirty looks?"

Law chuckled, "The Enclaves and the Ethereals have been at odds for a very long time."

"Ideological reasons?"

"That, the way we approach warfare and diplomacy…and our technology."

Vre'Law pointed at the modified battlesuits. Slippy immediately felt chills when he thought the green glowing emitting from the strange weaponry brushed against him and metaphorically speaking his soul. He swallowed nervously.

"I…I shouldn't be surprised," Slippy squeaked, "They give me the creeps. What kind of tech is that anyway? It…it doesn't look like it was made by you guys."

Law frowned, making Slippy all the more anxious, "That is classified…"

The Tau decided to change subjects, knowing he was making the frog nervous, and that definitely wouldn't be good for this fragile, fledging alliance between Tau and the furries of this neighboring galaxy.

He eyed the pict that Slippy had in his left hand, "May I ask who is that?"

"Hm?" Slippy hummed, then exclaimed, "Oh! Oh that's Amanda."

"Is she someone important to you?" Law questioned softly.

Slippy smiled mirthlessly, "Oh yeah…more important then even my own life. And I'm shamed to admit, anyone else's' lives."

"Your wife?"

"My fiancée."

Vre'Law scrunched up his face and reeled away slightly, exhaling almost painfully, "Then I feel sorry for the both of you?"

"Huh?"

"These are strange times to be thinking of marriage, or starting a family for that matter," Law stated, "With war and the threat of death, people would probably be asking you and her why you had not gone through the appropriate rites sooner."

Slippy downcast his eyes, "Then…then we'd probably have gone too quickly."

"How long have you two being as one?"

Slippy blushed hue red, "Did…do you mean…?"

Law chuckled, "I meant how long you have been in each other's company?"

"A year and a half."

Law narrowed his eyes at Slippy, "You should cherish those memories. Every second you spent with her before now, before all of this, was a blessing. You should consider what would happen if the other was to lose their life before their time and what it would mean, and do, to the other."

Slippy started to feel angry, believing that this Tau was prying into his and Amanda's lives together. If he was insinuating that they should have gotten married before this war begun, then how the hell could the both of them know what was going to happen? It also vaguely sounded that he was suggesting that they should separate, or worse, forget about each other.

"Thanks for your concern, Tau," Slippy said, slightly vehement, "But I'm not that clumsy enough to get myself killed and leave Amanda by herself."

The Shas'vre Law smiled and clapped his hand together, as if with delight, "THAT…is what I needed to hear."

Slippy was confused yet again, "What?"

"Strength and determination…defining factors that are part of the Greater Good. You kemono furries encompass our ideology perfectly. O'Shovah was correct in coming here with Aun'shi in tow, and demonstrating that many other forms of life outside our galaxy can put themselves under the guidance and philosophy of the Ethereals…and the Greater Good."

He then reached forward and patted Slippy on the shoulder, almost causing him to jump.

"I will be keeping a close eye on you on the battlefield…Slippy Toad," he was still smiling, albeit now with much friendliness, "Now, we must square away with our duties."

Vre'Law then walked away and headed towards his Crisis Suit, immediately tended to by two Earth Caste engineer, leaving a shell-shocked Slippy sitting there, grasping his pict of Amanda to his chest, and to his rapidly beating heart.

'What….what the heck was that all about?' Slippy stammered mentally, 'These Tau guys are just plain weirdos…and creepy.'

----------

'I agree with you on that, Slippy. Though I must also add 'malevolent' at this point, but hopefully until further notice.'

Jacques feelings towards the modified Farsight Crisis Suits mirrored that of Slippy. He remembered Fox agreeing to allow O'Shovah, his Tau forces and selected warriors of Aun'shi to be transported to MacBeth – as well as many of their vehicles and weaponry; knowing full well that neither the Imperium would spare one of their cruisers to transport xenos. The Cornerians, however, respectfully did not feel comfortable with harboring an unknown race within their own ships, and both Aun'shi and O'Shovah said that was understandable.

'To think I believed that Commander Farsight augmenting his weaponry with Necron technology was just a myth,' Jacques thought angrily, 'Damnation! We should only worry about Chaos, not the damned Necrontyr, even if it's just their technology that onboard this ship.'

He had tried to pry into O'Shovah's mind, but since the Tau didn't register within the Warp all he could see and hear was grayness. He narrowed his eyes in annoyance, wanting to know what the Farsight Enclaves were really doing this far from Segmentum Ultima in the home galaxy.

'What are you really up to, Shas O'Shovah? I will find out, mark my words.'

In his room onboard the Great Fox II he turned away from the flag of the Ultramarines he had placed there on his wall across from his bed. There, in his former storeroom-turned-bedroom he stood before his clean, dust free desk, and situated on top of it was the silver sword case that the 1st Company Ultramarine had handed to him just before their departure from Venom. Though he knew it was a longsword that was within this case, he was curious as to why it was handed to him in the first place, despite him already armed with a powerful psychic Nemesis Force sword.

Jacques unlatched the golden locks and opened the case.

His eyes widened. He felt his mouth agape in shock. He felt shivers run up and down his spine. Memories began to rise from within his subconscious. After these things passed, he managed to place his hand within the case and grasp the hilt of the blade.

"E…Eden?"

It was the same sword he had pulled from the stone from when he was young and still innocent. Holding the sword with his right hand he looked at it, a look of obscure sadness upon his face. He shook his head slowly as he rubbed the side of his face with his left, slowly starting to become upset as memories of his homeworld assaulted his mind's eyes.

'Seven…Hak'ha…Ares…Pep…Nisan…mother…father…'

He growled out loud and struck himself with a psychic slap across the face, immediately waking him from his state of stress. He almost lost grip of the sword, which he tightened immediately as he composed himself. He held the sword with both hands, still gripping tightly as he stared at his own reflection within the blade.

Jacques soon relaxed and held the sword with his left hand. He then unsheathed his Nemesis Force sword in his right. He then quietly observed both swords in his hands.

Looking at the silver longsword from long ago in his left hand, he spoke quietly, "I christen you Eden, my old friend.'

Then to the sword on his right, which he had held for as long as he could finally remember following the trial on Terra…

"For you, it shall be simple…Nemesis."

With Eden in his left hand and Nemesis in his right, he gripped the hilts of both sword tightly as he kneeled before the flag of the Ultramarines, both swords held before him with points touching the metal ground, his forehead touching the hilts. He closed his eyes as he begun to pray silently…

"Emperor…father and protector of humanity. As you sit on your Golden Throne I pray to you not as how it is done by the misguided of the Ecclesiarchy, but as a disciple of your son Guilliman, who is in turn the father of Ultramar and our chapter. I pray for your strength, guidance and wisdom not only for myself, but also for my Brothers and for the Lord Macragge and those he surrounds himself with. The same must go for our brothers-in-arms within the Cadian 412th, I beg you to not let their superstitions of the Inquisition to impair their ability to fight beside the denizens of Lylat, who fight with enough worthiness to equal your own warriors.

"Though they are not human, nowhere have you said to reject them should they further help lead humanity out of the darkness. And though you yourself have destroyed non-humans, it was only so they would not have threatened humanity – your children.

"As I go into battle, I will show no hatred towards my enemy. I will not hope to destroy them. I will only show compassion and sorrow towards their misguided decision to stand with the Forces of Chaos. I fight not just for humanity, but for those I consider precious to me, felt with feelings that should be unknown to me, but I have grasped hold of following the day I became a warrior of Ultramar.

"Emperor…give me strength."

…and about a minute later he recited a litany that he somehow knew and kept within his mind. He didn't know where it came from, but how it was said reflected his faith perfectly.

"I am the hammer. I am the right hand of my Emperor, the instrument of His will, the gauntlet about His fist, the tip of His spear, the edge of His sword…"

----------

"How long until we reach MacBeth, ROB?"

"Five minutes approximately," ROB responded, "We will be engaged by the Chaos warfleet in less time, however. Caution is advised."

Fox nodded, "And taken. We'll head out now."

O'Shovah looked at him questioningly, "Right now, McCloud?"

"We'll wear down and head off the Chaos warfleet before we even think of landing on the planet," Fox explained, then smiled, "In case you're worried…"

"I know the battle plan, McCloud," O'Shovah stated, "The Cornerian fleet will engage the Chaos warfleet, allowing the Imperial and Tau forces to land."

He then crossed his arms, appearing firm.

"The Enclaves and T'au will clear the way for the good General and his men. The Pathfinders, however, will be the guardian angels for the Angels of Death as they make their advance. Fear not, McCloud…we know the battle plan."

He then smiled, just when Fox dropped his smile.

"I am not worried about you at all."

Fox scratched the back of his head, "Er…alright. Let's do this."

----------

Krystal sighed as she grabbed her staff off her desk and reached for her headset communicator, making sure it was secure on her head. She took one last look at herself in the mirror, and appeared down on herself.

'Not the image of grace,' she thought, 'But this is war, and that makes it acceptable.'

For the first time in a long while she noticed the tattoos imprinted on her arms. She nearly gasped when she thought she almost forgot about them, as well as the mark on right calf, and felt ashamed because of it. She remembered how in her younger years as part of the royal clan of Cerinia how tattoos played a large role in defining Cerinian society. The diamond tattoo she had on her calf signified that she is, or more accurately was, the crown Princess of Cerinia, while the tattoos on her arms meant that she was a Sorcerer, or Psyker. And in being a Sorcerer on Cerinina it meant being qualified with strength of mind and soul to tap into the Void and wield it's power…for only the desire to do good, and to always do good.

She wondered why no one had ever asked her what her tattoos meant. She knew that Jacques probably knew what they meant, stemming from his knowledge during the Ultramarines' times on Cerinia and their taking in of their history and culture. Having refrained from examining their minds telepathically she assumed they never asked her out of respect for her past or prying into her personal life.

The vixen turned and walked towards her closet, throwing it open and reaching inside for a long gun case. Placing it on her bed she pulled out a large Exitus Sniper Rifle, the same one she had used on Papetoon and it still had a magazine and a half of ammunition left. Thinking that someone else can use this Imperial weapon better than she could, she closed the casing and stepped out of her room, deciding to head to observation and check on the Tau Pathfinder team and inquire if they need additional long-range firepower.

----------

"Shas'ui?"

"La'Jakob?"

"Are you sure you would rather have me recalibrate the markerlight drone?"

"I appreciate the offer, but I can handle it. You should finish prepping for the mission. Do you remember the plans?"

"Yes."

"The location?"

"The primary railway complex."

"No need for me to remind you, then."

Jakob nodded in acknowledgement as he got back to prepping himself. As he did so, he caught glimpses of the space beyond the windows of the observation deck and saw MacBeth in the far distances, with large Chaos warships patrolling just outside it's atmosphere. He felt the vibrations through the steel hull of the Great Fox II as Cornerian battlecruisers and fighters passed by overhead, en-route to engage the enemy.

"Jakob," La'Tash approached him.

La'Jakob looked up at the Tau, "Tash."

"What do you think are the Cornerians' odds of survival against possibly the entire mont'au battlefleet?"

La'Jakob shrugged, "Though I know for sure their technology far supersedes the Imperium and is no doubt on our level, I would have to say their survival is moderate to slim.'

He narrowed his eyes.

"We have seen what those Chaos maniacs and cultists are capable when it comes to space warfare," Jakob continued, "And if those ships are thousand of years old as the Imperials claim, then they each must of destroyed hundreds, if not thousands, of target."

La'Tash slumped his shoulders, "So you're saying the kemonos have no chance at all."

"We will just have to wait and see."

The Tau heard the observation deck door open, and turned to see Krystal stepping into room holding the large Exitus Rifle in her small delicate-looking hands. La'Jakob raised his eyebrows when he noticed her standing there looking at him, eyes soft as if she was feeling tense.

He stood up, making his Tau comrades face him, "Krystal?"

"La'Ja…"

As Krystal was about to speak, the Great Fox II's PA system sprung to life, causing her to jerk her head up to listen…

Team Star Fox, Fox blared over the com, Report to the hangar and prep Arwings for immediate departure. Tau personnel, prepare for separate deployment, over.

Jakob could hear her exhale through her nose with exertion, before he looked at her and her eyes again. She suddenly downcast them as she set the rifle on the floor and the wall next to the door. She then looked up at him and smiled.

"Good luck, Tau," she addressed all of them, "You'll need it."

Jakob's eyes widened as she spun around and left the door. He raised a hand and was about to call out to her when he looked at the rifle on the ground. He cautiously got on one knee and grabbed it, holding it with both hands. He immediately begun to study it, it's primitive design differentially from the Tau Rail Rifle he was currently armed with.

He then brainstormed, 'It is hard to trace foot long Shield-breaker rounds, unlike the straight beam from a Rail Rifle.'

"I trust you can find a use for that thing, gue'la?" the Shas'ui queried, crossing his arms.

Jakob nodded and tossed his rail rifle toward La'Tash, who caught in his hands and slung it over his shoulder. He then strapped the rifle over his shoulder and attached the extra magazine to his belt.

He turned to face the Shas'ui and said, "There is only one known use out of weapon such as this."

----------

Fleet Admiral Hancock, a brown-furred black-eyed bear in a blue uniform with hat and decorations, felt the tremors and convulsions spread over his ship as the Chaos lances begun firing on the approaching Cornerian capital ships. Out the corner of his eye he immediately saw a smaller Cornerian frigate get struck by several long-range lance blasts, immediately tearing it to pieces and in turn it was engulfed in a massive explosion.

And officer frantically inquired, "Do we return fire, admiral?"

Hancock gritted his teeth and pressed down on the intercom button, "Now all ships here this: We have engaged the enemy!"

He then looked up and barked out loud…

"CHARGE BATTERIES TO MAXIMUM! INCREASE FRONTAL SHIELDS AND FULL SPEED AHEAD!"

He then turned to another technicians.

"Status?"

"Railway complex and primary command bunker reporting overwhelming cultist activity. Requesting immediately reinforcements."

Hancock growled, "We'll have to leave that to the humans."

----------

Sitting anxiously in the command centre back on Venom, Peppy watched the projection screen showing MacBeth, the Chaos warfleet surrounding the planet and the approaching Coalition fleet. Peppy drummed his fingers on his left arm rest, hand rubbing his chin as he silently counted down the seconds until the lances and plasma cannon opened up.

"General!" a avian peacock officer cried out, "Cornerian fleet Admiral Hancock report incoming fire from long range Chaos weapons. What are you orders?"

Peppy frowned, "All ships forward engage! Batltlecruiser formation V. Fighter Wings Formation Omega. Draw all Chaos combatants away from designated Imperial Landing Zones. Star Fox will lead fighter wings. Over."

"Yes sir!"

The command centre begun blazing crimson as a red alert was issued and every technicians and tactical expert moved to their stations. All the while Peppy sat in his chair calmly and continued formulating battle plans, backup plans and exit strategies.

'God and Emperor help you all,' Peppy thought, 'Because I know you're all going to need your respective deities."

----------

Fox closed eyes tightly as he tried to relax, blocking out images of violence and bloodshed that was Chaos and the Imperium, believing that dwelling on them just before he was about to go into battle would put him off, and that it would then cost him dearly. He attempted to relax by thinking about life before the Imperium was even mentioned around him, which was at age ten before another of those damned Church-funded Anti-Human documentaries played on the television and his mother had stopped him from watching it.

He sighed loudly, forgetting the canopy to his Arwing was still open. He noticed a greenish/yellow blur out the corner of his eye. He turned towards it.

"Slippy?'

The frog crossed his arms, his eyes tracing the ground, "Tell me I'm not useless, Fox."

He sighed even louder, "Slippy…the Bullfrog is still in it's prototype stages. And besides you put it through the ringer the last time you took it for a spin."

Slippy looked comically offended, "It was just a simple maneuvers test."

The vulpine smiled and crossed his arms across the side of the cockpit, "Should I add that you have someone special waiting for you?"

Slippy blushed, then glared at him, "Don't you?"

Krystal's ears perked at that. Fox rolled his eyes and thought, 'Don't remind me.'

Slippy nodded, eyes narrowed and still looking at the floor, "I get it Fox. There's no room for me on this mission and it would break Amanda's heart if something was to happen to me."

Falco snorted slightly, 'Did he grow another length of spine while cooped up with his old man?'

"I'm glad we understand each other," Fox said, feeling the need to end this conversation, "If there's anything you can do during this op I'll get on the com immediately."

Slippy smiled softly, "I'll hold it to you."

The frog then stepped away from the Arwings and backwards towards the Tau staging area in the hangar. Fox watched him go, sensing more than enough eyes on him, and especially from a certain someone close, who looked at him with cautious, concerned blue eyes.

"Fox?"

The vulpine turned his head to the left to face the vixen, smiling slightly.

"Krys."

"Are you alright?"

Fox narrowed his eyes slightly and leaned back into his seat, "We're about to go into battle against evil incarnate, you can imagine how I feel."

Krystal nodded as she leaned into her seat, "I can imagine how you and everyone else may feel."

"Hey," Falco cried out, "Don't sweat it, you guys. We've been in hell of a lot worse. Compare this to flying over Solar or breaching Sector 6. This'll be a piece of cake."

"Right until we take a chainsword to the gut on the ground, mind you," Katt added roughly, "They'll be aiming their guns up at us once we hovering above the ground, don't forget."

"Heh…I was hoping the myth that Space Marines can't look up was true."

Fox exhaled sharply, "Alright, you guys…I know where this is going. I think Falco is right, this will just be another mission. Now, strap yourselves in…!"

Team Star Fox did so as their Arwing canopies closed. Fox exhaled painfully and shrugged his shoulders, trying to get comfortable, Katt blew a kiss towards Falco, which he grudgingly accepted and Krystal closed her eyes and bowed her head as if in a short prayer. Fox shuffled about in his seat as he tried to calm his erratic heartbeat and his nerves.

"ROB, open the hangar doors."

The Pathfinder team accompanied by O'Shovah stepped into the hangar as the door opened, them and the Tau present protected from the vacuum of space by the force field present. La'Jakob stared at hem determinedly, before raising his left hand to his heart in his own personal salute as a mark of respect towards them.

'Your gods give you speed, Star Fox,' he thought.

"LAUNCH ALL SHIPS! HERE WE GO, YOU GUYS!"

The Arwings were slingshoted out of the hangar of the Great Fox II into the blackness. With G-Diffusers at full power they accelerated towards the planet, immediately seeing the Chaos warfleet bearing down on themselves and the Coalition fleet. They were immediately joined by nearly a hundred other Cornerian fighters. The dozen Cornerian battlecruisers following close behind, picking up speed with each passing second.

Fox felt the beads of sweat emerge from his pore before they were gradually soaked by his fur. He then swallowed softly and opened his com…

"Alright guys, this is it," Fox said, "You've heard this before, but keep your wits above you…"

And stay alive, Falco interrupted him, then casually remarked, Sorry, Fox…just thought I'd be rude one last time before I die.

Fox frowned, "No one's going to die, Falco. You won't let that happen, would you Katt?"

Let birdy fry his tail feathers? If he's dumb enough to get himself that deep, guess I would have too.

Cheers, Katt.

Fox smiled, "And you've got someone to go back to, right Slippy?"

Damn straight.

"Krystal?"

He could sense Krystal's smile, You know the answer to that, Fox.

Fox's smile then faded, where he thought, 'Not really. Who to? Me or Jacques?'

Fox looked out the side of the canopy to see the hundred fighers forming up on Star Fox's wing.

McCloud, Admiral Hancock said over the com, Every small fighter we've got is on your tail. Don't disappoint us.

Fox appeared stern, "Roger that, Admiral. All ships…"

He gripped his controls as he suddenly gunned his Arwing forward.

"PREPARE TO BREAK AND REFORM ON MY MARK! GO!"

In a massive blaze of glory the fighters led by Team Star Fox and the Cornerian fleet accelerated forward. The Chaos warfleet moved forward towards them as well, their lance cannons still firing at the larger Cornerian starships. When each ship's captains and champions realized the fighters approaching them they all simultaneously fired their smaller lascannons, gun batteries and missile launchers.

Fox's eyes widened and he gritted his teeth, "MARK! BREAK…BREEAAAKKKK!"

The fighters all broke rank and scattered, their pilots concentrating on avoiding the volleys of incoming fire until they got in range. Guarding the Northern Hemisphere of the planet were about ten Chaos starships, all varying in size, structure and weaponry. A squadron of smaller Iconoclast-class Destroyers accelerated forward, lascannons and missiles blazing. Four Cornerian fighters were hit and exploded in space and Falco scored a hit on his left wing.

Falco frowned and steered his Arwing towards the Destroyers, immediately with Katt and ten other fighters on his six. They gunned towards the nearest Destroyer, lasers charged…

Fox saw this and cried out, "Falco…MARK!"

Falco smiled as Katt and the Cornerian fighters grouped into a crude X formation, lasers charged as they gunned towards the Iconoclast, dodging more gun battery and lascannon fire, and the occasional missile. When they were in range, Falco gritted his teeth…

"LET EM' HAVE IT!"

…and he, Katt and their allied Cornerian fighters released their charged homing shots which rocketed straight towards the leading Iconoclast-class Destroyer. Despite it's speed the first five blasts vaporized it's frontal shields, and the five remaining shots struck both the bow and portside of the Iconoclast, breaching the hull and allowing flames to shoot out from it, but not destroying it…but rather disabling it.

The remaining Destroyers continued to fire and another of the Cornerian fighters was destroyed. Falco, Katt and the remaining fighters broke formation and withdrew, before performing separate turns to get back into the fight as the hundred fighters swarmed all around the Chaos warfleet, pummeling each one with laser, plasma, bombs and torpedoes.

The Cornerian battlecruisers opened up with their heavy laser batteries once they were in range, and immediately they were set upon by hundreds of Chaos Claw fighters. Their defensive guns immediately sprung to life, their gunners tried to stay as calm and collected as possible as they tried to keep the Chaos strike fighters in their crosshairs.

The Chaos warfleet plowed forward to meet the Cornerian fleet, lance and laser fire exchanging between the capital ships. Fox saw this…

"Damn it!" he exclaimed, "Guys, we're meant to be drawing them away long enough for the Ultramarines to…hey…where the hell are they?"

Keep your fur tucked under your flight suit, McCloud, came Calgar's miffed response, We are on the way.

And now, plans have changed, Admiral Hancock declared, All ships, concentrate on the nearest Chaos starship. We're wiping them off the starmap completely.

No sooner had the last word left his mouth all Cornerian starships in range of the nearest Chaos warship – A Murder-class battleship – and all cannons fired upon it, easily bypassing it's shields and rendering it in half. Hancock smiled from the bridge of his ship, having not expected things to be this easy.

Fox smiled sharply as well…

"Team, report in!"

This is Falco…kicking ass.

Katt here…chalking up another kill.

Krystal here…I'm alright…oh God…

Fox's eyes widened…

They're a whole wing of Claws heading straight for each of us. I think they know we're hurting them.

Fox sighed and wrinkled his nose, adjusting himself in his seat, "Then we'll have to outright murder them, then. Team Star Fox, to me…"

----------

The Ultramarines Strike Cruiser accelerated as fast as it's propulsions systems could manage. Within the launch pod bay the Marines were now within their pods, weapons locked, loaded and primed. Only Calgar, Cassius and Tigerius stood on the deck, looking upwards towards a servo-skull as it projected an image of the space battle above MacBeth. Cornerian fighters and Chaos Claws were dog-fighting intensely, practically running rings around the Chaos and Cornerian starships. Much to their distaste, the Imperial ships present stayed back, electing only to shoot down any Claw that attempts to flee the battle past them.

He then tapped his earpiece vox-communicator.

"Accelerate further, bridge. We must join the battle immediately."

Tigerius smiled, "I do not think they require our assistance for this one, Lord Macragge."

Calgar shook his head, while Cassius chimed in, "Still…we must demonstrate the power of the Chosen Fleet of Ultramar…"

----------

The Ultramarines Strike Cruiser paced towards the heart of the battle, immediately gunning towards another smaller Iconoclast. Before it's crew knew what hit them, the Cruiser plowed into it and sheared it in half, both sides immediately exploding as their engines and weapon-decks gave into the pressure of the vacuum of space. The Strike Cruiser itself appeared unaffected, it's shield still holding.

It was apparent that the battle was a wrap for the Coalition, with Star Fox and the Cornerian flyboys mopping up every Chaos Claw that flew into their crosshairs and the advanced weaponry of the Cornerian starships outmatching the Chaos starships outdated, Horus Heresy-era weaponry. And it was eerily obvious that Chaos had underestimated the Cornerian counterattack capabilities.

Fox knew that for sure as he gunned towards the Retaliator-class cruiser and armed his last remaining smart bomb. Locking onto the command bridge section of the ship he barrel-rolled as he avoided incoming fire, before pushing down hard on the trigger and launching the bomb straight at the bridge. It shattered through the windows and detonated, immediately blowing it to shreds.

The Retaliator was soon adrift, allowing the Ultramarine Strike Cruiser to move forward and lock it's weapons onto the Chaos cruiser and open up with everything they had – gun batteries, missiles and lascannons. These tore through the failing shields of the Retaliator and striking the aft section where the engines were located. A minute later the entire ship exploded, scattering pieces of debris through space.

Confident that the northern hemisphere of the planet was secured for the moment as all Chaos starships were either disabled or space junk, Fox took action…

"Alright!" he exclaimed into the com, the decided to keep it simple over the com, "Calgar! You, Marines, drop, now!"

That is affirmative. We will secure the main Cornerian bunker and proceed from there.

Fox heard Krystal over the com, Good luck, Lord Macragge.

We will need it.

The Ultramarine Strike Cruiser amidst Cornerian fighter escort accelerated towards the planet and slowed down just before it would touch the atmosphere. It turned itself so that it's side was facing the planet.

TO BATTLE, MY BROTHERS! FOR THE EMPEROR!

The Strike Cruiser begun to fire drop pods down through the planet's atmosphere and towards the surface, their litanies to the Emperors being heard though every com and vox receiver. This did wonders for the morale and spirit of the Imperial Guardsmen and the Holy Fleet, but immediately begun to grind the gears of the Cornerians and Tau….but especially Falco.

Jeez, do they have to play their pipes every time they start to kill something?

I'ts called 'ceremony' Falco, Krystal stated, It's part of what they are.

Hmpth…well some of us don't feel like listening to it.

Fox rubbed his cranium in frustration, hearing Krystal's voice and feeling it tug at his heartstrings. He stated, "Falco, Krystal, Katt…proceed to the planet's surface and cover the Marines. I'll be right behind you."

What are you going to do till then? Falco asked.

Fox grimaced, before adjusting the communicator so that the feed would reach the Great Fox, "ROB, prep the Landmaster for drop. Slippy, suit up and prepare to take my Arwing. I'm joining Jacques, Calgar and Farsight on the ground."

Huh? Slippy was alarmed, Y…you want me down there?

You're going down there by yourself? Krystal was worried.

Playing hero again, are we? Falco was cynical.

And right in front of the Imperials lasguns and bolters as well, Katt decided to add, You're gonna get yourself killed a lot faster, you know.

Fox frowned, "I'm giving orders, team. Slippy, weren't you complaining about being useless. And Krystal, I won't be alone…Jacques, the Tau and a fraction of humanity will be there."

I'm coming with you Fox, Krystal said, with Fox seeing her pull a u-turn with her Arwing and flying towards him.

"Krystal!" Fox sounded impatient, "I want you covering me from above!"

He then thought, 'So you don't get hurt.'

The next time Krystal spoke, she sounded heated and she startled Fox, I know what you're thinking, Fox. I can take care of myself on the ground and in front of the enemy! Jacques even said so…

"Krystal."

I'm not letting you face this by yourself.

"Krystal!"

We can face this evil together. We can end this battle a lot sooner.

"KRYSTAL!" he shouted, nearly deafening everyone hooked up to their com line, "Stop arguing with me and do what I say!"

Krystal herself was startled by this outburst, never before hearing him direct his frustrations towards her. Before she was feeling frustrated with being treated as a fragile porcelain doll, not so much at Jacques with him being her guardian and bother, but not she begun to feel sad. Not because she was being yelled at by her vulpine love, but that he felt that way towards her and that was clouding his judgement.

Not wanting to make things harder on the both of them, she sighed in defeat and said, "Alright, Fox. Air support it is."

She heard him exhaled loudly, "Th…thank you, Krystal."

As she piloted her Arwing back towards the others, she saw Fox heading back towards the Great Fox, with sadness and hurt dancing in her eyes. Fox was immediately cursing himself mentally…

'You stupid retarded vulpine! Had to raise your voice, didn't you?'

----------

"The mongrels have been whipped!" a half-naked pink dyed male cultist screamed joyfully, "PRAISE SLAANESH, PRINCE OF EXCESS!"

He was swatted out of the way by a blonde-haired robed Slaanesh Aspiring champion, whose chainsword dripped with the blood of the Cornerian. Those few Cornerian still in this part of the base fled towards the bunker situated outside the railyard base, and those soldiers in the trenches outside the bunker fired away at him, his fellow Slaanesh Marines and the charging meat shield that were cultists, both human and kemono.

The aspiring champion turned towards his fellow Marines, and especially four of them who were equipped in more ornate pink/black power armor and carrying weapons resembling bolters but with intricate designs. He smiled, knowing that these chosen Noise Marines were armed with the much-revered sonic blasters. The Noise Marines turned to him and saw him nudge towards the trenches. They nodded and charged ahead of the regular Marine and aimed at the Cornerians in the trenches. The Cornerians troopers saw their approach and redirected their blaster and rocket fire at them, each one feeling panicked at the mere sight of Space Marines charging them, not so much as the kemono/human cultists that had hit them everywhere during their retreat.

The Noise Marines lived up to their names as they pulled the triggers of their sound blasters and fired waves of piercing sound and vibrations into the trenches, immediately blasting them upwards and out of the cover, blood pouring from their eyes, noses and ears. One Cornerian soldiers from the trench closest to the bunker gritted his teeth…

"This isn't fair!" he exclaimed, "We don't stand a chance against these freaks."

"Hey…! GET BACK HERE!"

Bombarded by the curses and threats from his fellow soldiers as he got out of the trench and attempted to retreat into the bunker. A Noise Marine through his superior hearing of his rapidly panicking heart caught wind of him and the Cornerian felt his life ended abruptly and instantly when a sound blast swept over him and tore his uniform and armor off him like paper and fleecing the skin off his bones.

The aspiring champion grinned as he and his Marine moved forward, bolters firing and cackling evilly along the way. He cried out loud, "For CHAOS! FOR SLAANESH!"

The cultist charged ahead of them, laspistols and short blades drawn. The cultists looked up to see drop pods falling from the sky and down towards them. This momentary distraction on their part allowed the remaining Cornerian troops to seek deeper cover, and before the cultists to move an inch worth of muscle the pods landed and sent those that weren't crushed flying. The Slaanesh Marines that stayed back watched with wide, angry eyes at the arrival of the Ultramarines.

The champion leading them sneered, "So…the Imperium wants to feel the pleasure-maker's wrath. So bet it!"

He raised his Slaaneshi power sword into the air and screamed. The Chaos Marines all let out their own individual war cries and charged.

As for the attacking Ultramarines…

"COURAGE AND HONOUR!"

…the sides of their drop pods burst open as they landed on the earth. The 25 Space Marines charged forward with weapons blazing, their individual squad hails of bolter, plasma and rocket fire immediately tearing apart every unarmored cultist squad their targeters picked up and locked onto to. Every Cornerian soldier was wise enough to take cover as 1st Company Marine went on the attack, taking cover in their crudely-dug trenches or within the building remains that had served as their headquarters.

Calgar and his Honour Guard took the lead in the attack, his Gauntlets immediately swatting a pair of cultists and sending them flying some distance away from the battlefield. Another cultist fired a boltpistol at him, which struck him twice in the chest, but he shrugged it off brought both his fists down on the canine cultist, pummeling him to death and sending blood and viscera up into his face.

"RAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The Ultramarines attention turned to the approaching Slaanesh Marines who charged across the no-man land, bolters and sound weapons blazing, as well as letting loose shrill screams of war from their modified vox-casters which let out piercing blasts of sound out of their mouths. The Cornerian soldiers all covered their ears and gritted their teeth from the sound, while the Ultramarines winced at their enemy's advance.

"NOISE MARINES!" Tigerius cried, then gripped his force staff, "THEY DARE SHOW THEIR HERETICAL FACES HERE?"

Immediately a Noise Marine fired his sound blaster at Tigerius, the Chief Librarian stopping the force of the weapon with his psychic shield, but the sound still assaulted his ear drums and immediately struck the gene-seed implant eardrum, causing him to feel slightly dizzy despite his cochlea implant. He sucked it up and balled his right hand into a fist, before thrusting his palm towards the Noise Marine and let loose a powerful psychic blast which was strong enough to tear some parts off the Marine's armor and cause one of his arms to fly off. The Marine staggered forward one step and attempted to pick up his sound blaster.

"I will not let you pick that up," Tigerius growled and charged forward, swinging his force staff.

The staff connected with the Noise Marine's head, the psychic feedback immediately shattering his ornate helm and flaying the flesh underneath it, where a few seconds later the skull exploded and his body toppled over backwards. Satisfied with his grisly kill, the Chief Librarian charged forward.

Calgar grounded a cultist into the ground with his fists, before he turned on the Slaasnesh aspiring champion, who had his Slaaneshi power sword drawn. The champion laughed, feeling pleasure from the wounds he had already sustained, and charged the massive Chapter Master. He swung his sword, Calgar blocked with his right hand, then clinched his left fist and swung at the champion, punching him across the face and knocking him down, but still clutching his power sword. As Calgar advanced on him, the Slaanesh champion swung his sword and skimmed Calgar's chest plating, causing him to wince as the energy from the blade affected the pain reducers in his body. But this didn't stop him bringing his fists down on the champions head and splattering skull matter all over the ground.

The Assault squad was in the air. And with chainswords whirring they descended down on the nearest Chaos Marine squad who stood their ground and fired away at the invading Ultamarines. The Assault Marine sergeant drove his Marine into the chest of the Noise Mairne sergeant and shredded both his hearts and his lungs. He then pulled out his blade and charged at another one, all the while the rest of his brethren were in melee with the other Noise Marines and a few cultists that had foolishly decided to attack them. Those human and kemono cultist soon found themselves picking up pieces of themselves as the Assault Marines turned their attentions to them.

The Terminator Squad plowed forward beside Calgar and his Honour Guard, their stormbolters and flamers filling holes in the cultists and Chaos Marines, the latter realizing too late they were fighting one quarter of the 1st Company. Calgar roared and charged ahead once again ahead of his guard, storm bolters blazing and caught up with a 'tactically-retreating' Noise Marine. The Slaanesh Chaos Marine spun around and cried…

"FOR THE EMPEROR! DEATH TO HIS FOES!"

…releasing a mini-shockwave against the Lord Macragge, whose zeal was that great he didn't even wince at the attack, but instead swung a left hook at the Marine as he drew his blade. The Marine was swatted to the right and fell into the mud. Calgar brought his foot up and down onto the Chaos Marine's back, crushing it and severing his spine. He fired both his storm bolters down at him to finish him off. He then grimaced when he heard a massive ringing in his ears.

Cassius alongside the Devastator and the Tactical squads kept back near the Cornerian HQ, with the Chalpain yelling out litanies and war cries as the two squads with him fired away at the Chaos Marines and cultists, which they can see slowly beginning to fall back.

Cassius turned to the Tactical squad, "Pursue them, brothers."

"Yes, Brother Chaplain!" the Sergeant exclaimed, "TO ME, MY BROTHERS! PURGE THE HERETICS!"

The Tactical squad charged forward, prompting Cassius to turn to the Devastator squad next.

"Continue your fire, brothers!"

"Yes, brother!"

The Marines with the heavy bolters picked up more fleeing cultists with their targets and fired at them, ripping them to shreds. They were momentary distracted when the heavy laser cannon pointing out from the HQ building begun firing away. The Cornerians inside had finally recovered and were rearming themselves.

In one of the furthest trenches one cultist was about to leap over and continue fleeing, when suddenly a Cornerian soldiers reached up and grabbed the cultist and shoved a standard-issue combat knife into his gut. The cultist squealed in agony as the soldier moved the blade across his stomach and disemboweled him, his guts spilling all over the Cornerian.

He immediately took cover when bolter round hit the dirt near the edge of the trench. The offending Chaos Space Marine blazed away with his boltgun, and only stopped firing when the Great Fox II descended from the claws and blotted the sun, casting a massive shadow over the battlefield. That Chaos Marine then spun around to face a Cornerian armed with a minigun and firing away at his chest, causing him to stumbled backwards and fall on his back into a trench, immobilizing him.

Immediately the Cornerian soldier with the knife jumped out of his trench and with two other soldiers they rush towards the Chaos Marine and jumped into the trench. They got to work unscrewing his helmet from his head, revealing his snarling hate-filled face. The soldier gripped his knife and slit the Marine's throat, before proceeding to use it in a saw motion in an attempt to cut the struggling, gasping Marine's throat.

A Space Marine saw this as he stood outside the trench, with great disgust he aimed his boltgun at his Chaotic brother's chest and fired, putting a large smoking hole in his chest.

The Cornerian soldiers grabbed their gun and looked over the field from their trench…

"LOOK!" one of them exclaimed happily, "THEY'RE RETREATING! THEY'RE ACTUALLY GIVING US A BREAK!"

The Space Marine cocked his boltgun and responded, his vox cutting through the Cornerians souls, "They will return, and in greater numbers. And they will definitely bring their daemonic servants with them. The servants…"

He then growled, causing the soldiers to shatter."

"…the servants of Slaanesh, no doubt."

----------

The Great Fox II hovered above the battlefield, with ROB64 at the controls. It was soon flanked by a Thunderhawk vehicle transport carrying two Predator Annihilator pattern tanks, their crews strapped and locked down, ready to deploy once it touch ground. The Thunderhawk landed away from the HQ and disengaged the Predators, where they immediately drove off to join the battle in routing the fleeing Slaanesh Marines. They were attempting to head back into the massive network of several abandoned train yards surrounding a large Venomian base, knowing the reinforcement were arriving form the south.

The Chaos forces are feeling the Space Marine Landing Zone, ROB announced over the com, which reached Slippy, Falco, Katt and Krystal's Arwings as they descended from the atmosphere, and to Fox who was strapped in the Landmaster tank, We will beginning deploying the Tau battleforce momentarily.

Fox flipped a few switches and grabbed hold of the Landmaster's steering control, "Roger that, ROB. Set me down here. Slippy?"

The Arwing next to him roared to life, the amphibian behind the controls kissing the pict of Amanda and tucking into his flight suit. He looked over at the tank and gave a faint smile, "I'm heading out now, Fox. See you out there."

Slippy was slingshoted out of the hangar towards the base, immediately pulling up into the atmosphere towards safety and not plummeting into the ground below. Fox shook his head, regretting putting his childhood friend into danger and possibly arousing the resentment or even hatred of his future wife Amanda.

"Pathfinder team?"

We read you, McCloud, came the Pathrinder Shas'ui's voice.

"We'll drop you nearby, and you'll cover Calgar's advance…just as we planned."

Affirmative.

"Calgar, the Scout Team?"

They are already in pursuit of the retreating Chaos force from this zone. They will keep us informed on their activities and will whittle them down through the scopes of their rifles until we engage them again. Do not fear, we will do our part.

Fox smiled, "So far so good. O'Shovah?"

Half-a-click west we will carve out a landing zone for the Sturnn and the 1st Battalion. 2nd Battalion…

Will land a mile southwest from here, Sturnn interrupted, believing he should speak for himself and his army, We will rout the approaching Chaos reinforcements.

Oi! Falco cried over com, If those perverts are packing daemons, they'll tear you apart.

He is right, General, Krystal's melodic voice soothed Fox's senses and nerves as she displayed her admirable concern for the humans, Think hard about this.

I already have, Sturnn responded gleefully, I think a Baneblade supported by a couple of armored companies and thousands of Guardsmen can hold their hold their own against those daemons. Just concentrate on covering me and 1st Battalion and we'll move on from there. All right…everyone knows their place?

"Yep," Fox cracked his fingers, "Let's do this."

FOR THE EMPEROR!

FOR THE GREATER GOOD!

Er…for Lylat? Falco chimed in awkwardly as he tried to add to the mood, Feh…let's just kill these bastards!

Fox heard something jump on top of the Landmaster as the bay door opened and they were just above ground. He heard two loud thumps above his head…

Time for descent, Fox, Jacques told him over the com, Into the firestorm of battle we go!

Fox's smile widened as he drove the Landmaster forward and out of the Great Fox, with Jacques sitting on top with his arm wrapped around the turret. As they descended Fox made sure his boosters were activated so that they hovered slowly and gently towards the ground. Once the tank touched the ground Jacques leapt off, both Eden and Nemesis drawn.

Immediately he spun around to face and incoming Chaos Raptors, who descended down upon him with their jump packs. Fox attempted to spin the Landmaster around to get a shot, but watched as Jacques quickly and gleefully cut the Raptor down with both his swords, with Nemesis piercing through his chest, then spinning around with Eden in hand and slicing his throat apart. Jacques pulled Nemesis out of the Raptor's chest as he fell over backwards dead.

Cassius ran up towards him, intent on being the first to greet him, and looked almost in awe at the former Ultramarine now Grey Knight. He had once again tapped into the Warp, his psychic presence causing his armor to shine brightly. Energy brimmed around his head like that of a halo. Cassius shook his head in disbelief at Jacques, questions running through his head.

'How could they have transformed him from a Battle-Brother of the Ultramarines to a Battle-Brother of Order 666?' he scrunched his face in thought, 'The process of implanting the anti-daemonic wards under his skin and black carapace at his age would have rendered his whole body inoperable. And why did they remove his Betcher's Gland?'

He then gripped his power mace tightly as he slowly approached him.

'His psychic power must have come from his biological father,' he then sniggered slightly, 'And if only the Grey Knights had known what they had inducted into their ranks, they would not have produced the first xeno-sympathetic Grey Knight to leave the chapter.'

----------

Pathfinder Team, prepare for deployment.

Standing at the end of the hanger where the doors were still open and the wind from outside brushed past their minimally armored bodies and causing La'Jakob's trenchcoat to flap about, the Pathfinders prepared themselves for duty. La'Tash looked at his human friend with a intricate glee on his face as he held his pulse carbine, with Jakob's rail rifle strapped to his back.

"Think you can bear using that thing?" he asked, and clearly were indicating the Exitus rifle that Jakob wielded.

On one knee, Jakob observed the intricate design of the large rifle, looking out through the scope over the battlefield below, and shrugged; "So long as I do not find out this rifle killed any of my friends throughout it's history it feels right in my hands."

The Shas'ui looked over his shoulder at the pair of Pathfinders as he finished programming the markerlight drone, which beeped and begun hovering above the team. He then tapped his ear piece communicator and said, "Drop us off, preferably where there is some elevation."

Affirmative, ROB responded, There is a collection of buildings overlooking the Space Marine drop zone that goes all the way to the center of the base.

"Agreed," the Shas'ui nodded, then gripped his carbine, "Prepare for our leap of faith, bond brothers."

The Pathfinders gripped the handlebars near the hangar bay door as the Great Fox II descended over the roof of an office building overlooking the Marine landing zone. The Shas'ui was the first to leap off the ledge of the hangar and land on the roof, following by Tash then by the rest of the team. The Shas'ui gripped his carbine as he scanned over the rooftop.

"We have landed," the Shas'ui announced into his com, "McCloud."

Roger, Fox responded back, ROB, get clear and go into standby.

The Great Fox then elevated and disappeared back into the skies. With the large rifle in his hands, Jakob looked over Space Marines below getting into formation and readying to go after the Slaanesh loyalists still within the city-like rail base. He eyed the Landmaster below as Fox leapt out of it and joined Jacques and Cassius.

The Arwing then flew overhead and begun circling the site, just as La'Jakob begun to feel uneasy, as if something unseen was radiating down upon him. He hoped that it wasn't just him.

"Shas'ui," he called out, gripping his rifle, "Do you feel that?"

"Feel what, Gue'vesa'shas'la?"

Whether La'Jakob felt like something was amiss, the Pathfinders were wise to grip their weapons a little tighter and keep their fingers itching for the trigger. They suddenly heard faint moaning and groaning from underneath their feet, which raised in tempo as the seconds passed. They then turned their attentions towards the door leading to the stairway into the building, where the screams of passion got louder and…

"Urgh…" one Pathfinder bellowed in disgust, "By T'au…that smell. It's like…"

Suddenly the door smashed open, revealing a completely nude heavily muscled black lupine with a spike collar around his neck, devilish pink eyes, foam seething from the mouth and the mark of Slaanesh on his forehead. La'Jakob could smell the cultist from the back of the team, and was immediately repulsed as he felt his nose and senses get assaulted.

'That mont'au smells like sex!' he thought, disturbed, as he dropped his Exitus rifle and went for his SMGs, 'The perversion of Chaos is upon us.'

Before the Tau Pathfinders could let off a shot, the collared lupine cultist charged forward the team, brandishing a sharp-looking object. He lunged at the Shas'ui and he managed to fire a pulse blast into his left leg just as the lupine struck the Shas'ui in the heart with the object. The Shas'ui staggered back and looked in horror as the weapon that was sunk into his chest and piercing his heart was a paintbrush with it's handle sharpened to the point.

Jakob panicked, "SHAS'UI!"

La'Tash was enraged, "KILL THAT BEAST!"

The lupine took several more blasts to the chest, which did nothing to slow him down as the mark on his forehead glowed and he ran towards them, blood in his pinkish eyes and bloodied fists cracking from being clinched tightly. La'Jakob saw that Tash was his next target and so shoved him out of the way and struck the lupine, flat-palmed, in the heart region.

Jakob eyes widened that too didn't faze the cultist and received a straight punch to the jaw, sending him flat on his back and dangerously close to the edge of the roof. The lupine chortled, then groaned as the continued pulse carbine fire begun to wear him down. Jakob leapt up back on his feet and extended his blades, making sure he to painfully reset his jaw with his left hand, the cracking sound of bone drawing the lupine's attention once again.

The human spat blood, appearing enraged with blood in his eyes. He then ran forward, with the lupine's arms stretched apart as if to take him in a crushing bear hug. Instead Jakob took a step to the right as he ran, and with his left hand forward he grabbed the cultist by the shoulder and propelled himself upwards, before bringing the blade under his right wrist into his neck. The cultist begun choking on his own blood, but the gue'la wasn't finished. Still holding onto the lupine's shoulder, he launched his feet into the air and gripped hold of the lupine's neck in a vice grip with his legs.

He then twisted his legs, another sickening snap was heard, and the collared lupine fell down dead with his head twisted at an odd angle. Jakob landed on the ground and tried to calm his regulate his heartbeat, yet keep the adrenaline pumping. He turned to his fellow Pathfinders and saw them crowding around the fallen form of the Shas'ui, where a Pathfinder had removed the frontal part of his helm and checked his pulse.

"Dead before his back touched the ground," the Pathfinder grimly noted, "The mission must proceed, though."

He then proceeded to pull the paintbrush from the Shas'ui's chest and toss it over to La'Jakob, who got his team leader's blood all over his hand. He was horrified when he discovered that a mere paintbrush had killed the Shas'ui, and immediately it got him thinking.

'Art.'

He then turned to the lupine, noticing his large, muscled, well endowed and somewhat romantic hero-like appearance.

'In it's most corrupted form.'

Tash wiped his forehead, "What do we do now? Jakob?"

Jakob felt all Tau visors and eyes on him, which caused him to feel awkward.

"Me, you say?" Jakob asked, "Well…like what La'Anuk just stated, we proceed with the mission. Now, these buildings are all connected by several walkways, right?"

The Pathfinders looked past the door leading into the building they were standing on top of and saw walkways that connected from this building to the next one, which in turn connected to the next building and so on, all the way towards near the center of the base.

"We will provide cover fire for our allies as they advance to meet the enemy," La'Jakob stated, "Now, shall we proceed?"

The Pathfinders nodded and got up, leaving the body of the Shas'ui on the ground. Jakob believed they should return to recover the body after the mission was complete. As they turned back to the doorway they find a sharp-looking, shapely figure standing in the doorway leaning against the frame, her pinkish slits for eyes glowing brightly. The smell of intimacy and daemon radiated from her and immediately turned Jakob sick once again.

"What the…?"

The creature stepped into the light, causing all guns to aim at her right away. She was a seductive looking humanoid with pinkish/purple bodies and, despite wearing corsets, her breasts were clearly exposed. Writhing tentacle-like hair, white pupil less eyes, elven-like ears and bird-like legs ending in talons. Her hands were replaced with talons as well, and she looked straight at La'Jakob, appearing utterly pissed.

"You killed my lover, human!" she exclaimed angrily, and was clearly indicating the corpse of the collared lupine.

La'Jakob's eye widened, then narrowed as he aimed his SMGs at her, daring her to take a step forward.

"Do not a take single step forward, daemon," La'Jakob hissed at her, "I will not hesitate to send you back where you came from."

The daemonette smiled, and Jakob saw that she appeared turned on by his actions, which disgusted him even more.

"No matter," she sighed, sounding relaxed, "You will do nicely as his replacement."

She then licked her lips and charged forward, talons extended. She knocked every Pathfinder painfully out the way and went for Jakob. He cried out and tried to fight her off as she wrapped her arms around his torso in a crushing hug and driving her knee into his gut, knocking the wind out of him. Before he had the chance to recover his breath she spun around and grabbed him by the back of his neck, thrusting her left talon under his neck and holding it there.

The Pathfinders recovered, and were alarmed to find the daemonette taking Jakob hostage. They aimed their carbines at the both of them, trying to aim primarily at the daemonette, but with her using him as a shield a clear shot wasn't possible.

"Do not move a inch, human," she hissed loudly in his eyes, causing him to cringe, "And keep your hands to your sides and to yourself."

She then added, or rather, purred seductively.

"You can use them on me later if you behave."

La'Jakob tried not to feel any sort of arousal upon hearing that, but did as he was told.

"Mont'au!" a Pathfinder exclaimed, "Let our gue'la comrade go! He is worth nothing to you or to your maniacal human masters."

The daemonette grinned, "Actually, blueskins…his having a soul means much to the Prince of Excess and to my sisters. Should he cooperate, he will find every one of his most sensual dreams come true."

La'Jakob snorted in disgust, "You may as well scratch that. I will not bow to a false god…OW!"

He felt her hand tighten on the back of his neck, causing him to wince more. Then she did something that almost blew his mind, she pressed her naked self up against his back, feeling her warmth radiating all over him, her breath tingling the back of his neck. She then let go of his neck and reached for his left hand, her right hand/talon still trained on her neck. He then moved his hand downward towards her calf, daring him to feel her there.

She grinned even wider, enjoying making him squirm, "Do not be so sure, human."

'By Tau'va,' Jakob thought distressfully, 'She's…she's teasing me…tempting me…'

He then gritted his teeth…

'I must focus….and resist such unclean vices…damn it…'

Jakob tensed when he felt her tongue caress his left earlobe sensually, causing him to shake slightly with fear. La'Tash gritted his teeth, seeing what the daemonette was doing to his friend, and would pull the trigger the moment he got clear. The daemonette grinned, enjoying making this human squirm under her hold, pressing her talon a bit harder on his neck but not enough to draw blood.

She whispered into his ear, "Just for references sake, human…"

She snaked her right 'hand' down between his legs, causing him to wince when she felt her brush against his most intimate area. He gasped when she heard him continue whispering into his ear…

"…you will call me 'mistress' from now on."

La'Jakob's mind snapped as he clenched and unclenched his hands. That was the last straw.

He screamed with red-hot anger, "LET GO OF ME, DAEMON!"

La'Jakob slammed the back of his head against her face, stunning her and allowing him to grab her left arm and twist it behind her back, putting her in a arm-lock. Feeling pleasure from the discomfort he was inflicting upon her she moaned gently; then peered over her shoulder and smiled at him.

"So strong, so capable," she smiled evilly at him, "When I return from the Warp, remember my name…Gal'Kera."

La'Jakob growled and tightened her hold on the daemon, wondering how he can get a grip on the daemon and not somehow feel corrupted by her previous sexual attentions on him. He then placed his foot on the small of her back…

'Ethereals and nature in general forgive me,' he though, feeling ashamed, 'For striking something that resembles a woman, yet is not of nature and must be vanquished.'

He kicked her hard in the back and sent her falling towards the edge, where suddenly a powerful psychic wave struck her and sent her screaming back into the Warp in a blaze of crimson energy.

La'Jakob exhaled painfully in a sigh. His mind clicked when his realized what just happened.

'Mortensen. He just…saved the team and me from that misbegotten corrupter.'

He sighed again and shook his head.

'I suppose he is not all that's cracked up to be after all…even if he is an Imperial.'

----------

Looking upwards towards the roof of the building, Jacques had his left hand pressed against the side of his head, having unleashed that psychic blast and purged the daemon from the material realm back to whence it come from. Fox cringed, having seen his ornate rune-covered armor shine a little brighter because of it, which could have made him go arc eye if he had being focusing any closer.

"A lesser daemon of Slaanesh," Cassius commented, "I should have expected as much."

Hey, what the heck was that on roof? Katt said over the com, I hope it didn't just try to come onto Jakob.

Jacques looked grim faced, "It did. It failed. I sent it back where it came from."

Hell?

"Why not."

Fox, Cassius and Jacques turned to survey the battlefield, with cultist, Slaanesh Marine and Cornerian lying strewn about in and near the trenches. Luckily, and somewhat expected, the Ultramarines didn't suffer one casualty, which wasn't a surprise as these Marines were First Company and older than the railyard base itself.

Fox was then approached by Calgar, who stepped over the body of a Traitor Mairne as he said, "McCloud? You have decided to join us on the ground?"

"Last minute change of plans," Fox explained, "I think our chances will increase by a small percent if there was some more armor on the ground."

Calgar looked over at the Landmaster and grimaced slightly, "If you say so."

The sounds of the heavy bunker door opening drew the attention of the Chapter-Master and Fox, seeing darkness behind the doorway. Immediately a blaster shot rang out from the doorway courtesy of a Cornerian soldier and struck Calgar in the chest, but he merely shrugged it off.

"MORE HUMANS!" the soldier screamed, "IT'S US OR THEM!"

A Space Marine stepped forward, boltgun raised and aimed at the soldier, but was immediately waved down by Cassius. The soldier was suddenly tackled from behind by another Cornerian…

"YOU FUCKING PISS-DRINKER!" the other soldier yelled in his face, "YOU TRYING TO GET US ALL KILLED?"

"Privates stand down…"

Another Cornerian, an alsatian officer, revealed himself now.

"…I recognize one of the Marines."

Jacques smiled as he too recognized the alsatian officer…Commander O'Reilly.

"O'Reilly," Jacques waved at him as he stepped forward to greet him.

Cautiously making sure his blaster was at his side, O'Reilly stepped out of the doorway, "So you decided to come back after all…"

He then glanced over at Calgar.

"…and you brought some friends with you."

Calgar frowned, "I am the Chapter-Master of the Ultramarines, the Lord Macragge. Once again Chaos has drawn us here to this system, and to this world."

"Since you boltheads spent hundreds of years fighting one battle at a time with these devil-worshippers, I guess we should be thankful," O'Reilly stated, hoping they could spot the sarcasm in his voice.

Tigerius wrinkled his nose as he too frowned, 'They speak sarcasm before the Lord Macragge, not concerning of the consequences of insulting the Emperor's Chosen. They show no fear before us.'

He then smiled lightly, which O'Reilly noticed as the Chief Librarian stood behind Calgar.

'I guess the furs are more resilient than the Ordo Xenos dare let on.'

Calgar crossed his large mechanical arms and bellowed, "You should be thankful, as well as grateful. For once again the warriors of Ultramar have descended from the sky to save you from the Ruinous Powers. Now…"

He noticed Fox stepping up towards him.

"…what is the strength of our opposition?"

O'Reilly shrugged, "Oh hell…before we lost contact with every platoon in this network of rails and boxcars they described a whole legion of Chaos Space Marine flanked by hundreds of cultists – human and Lylatians, and traitor Cornerian Defence Forces."

"Damnation!" Cassius cursed outwardly, "We had hoped that those Cornerian minds would have stood up to the lecherous whispers of the false Gods."

The Chaplain gripped his Crozius Arcanum.

"Lord Macragge, we must purge these heretics immediately lest they taint the Cadian 412th and the surviving Lylatians here."

Fox turned to Calgar as well, "As long as we don't blow the planet up you got my vote."

Calgar nodded, "Let us go to war."

As they turned away from the bunker and begun to venture into the unknown, both Calgar and Fox wondered about the newfound respect both Chapter-Master and vulpine had for one another. Thought not on the same level as Fox and Jacques, they are prone to agreeing with each other on matters on warfare and fighting Chaos, and that definitely laid out how willing a small miniscule percentage of humanity was willing to side with Lylat in fighting Chaos.

"Oi, McCloud, Space Marines!" O'Reilly exclaimed, "We're tagging along with you!"

Fox turned to him, eyebrows raised and appearing coy, "Sure that's a good idea, Colonel? You did get hit pretty hard!"

O'Reilly glared and walked straight up to Fox, looking him threateningly in the eye; prompting an alarmed Jacques to step forward, but was held back by Tigerius. O'Reilly had noticed that and snorted slightly.

"You want to know what those heathen bastards did to nearly every man and woman here on this base?" O'Reilly asked, "Things that make even the toughest of us struggle to keep the bile down."

He then nudged towards the gathered Ultrmarines.

"And I will not let the Imperium bail Lylat out again every time those Satanists come to take over," O'Reilly continued, his voice raising in pitch, "Falconia, Evergreen and Papetoon. They're not going to blow up another planet just to keep them in Hell and prove they are superior to everything else in the universe."

"Superior, Cornerian dog?" Calgar questioned.

O'Reilly turned to him, still sour, "Don't be coy, Marine…it insults me. The 25 of you will probably end up taking this planet back from the perverts …but this time…

He pointed down at the ground.

"We're going to be there right beside you, bolters and blasters firing. This is our home system and we are supposed to protect it. You hear me, Marine?"

Calgar looked at him, practically seeing the determination ooze right out of him. He had to smile…

'If these kemonos want to die, or experience something worse than death, then who I am to deny them the right to martyrdom?' he ruminated mentally, 'Even in service to their 'God'?'

Fox nearly jumped when his communicator beeped after this short period of silence. He answered it…

"Krystal?"

Something's very wrong, Fox, Jacques, Lord Macragge, Krystal answered, sounding distressed, I'm sensing massive taint approaching your position.

Fox and O'Reilly swore they heard the Space Marine around them elicit silent throaty growls as they gripped, and somewhat petted, their weapons. Jacques reached for the sword sheath to his side and drew Eden, then drew Nemesis from his back, both swords glowing brightly as his psychic power fed power to them.

Calgar looked over at the base at the end of the no man's land grimly, before turning back to O'Reilly and stating, "You have five minutes to rally what is left of your troops."

O'Reilly smirked, "More than enough time."

----------

Krystal felt ill, feeling something close to a hundred migraines assaulting her head at once, almost causing her to let go of control stick. She cursed herself for tapping into the Warp at this time, being able to hear and feel Slaanesh's cruel, lewd designs for this planet and the people still on it. There was a massive daemonic presence building up in the center of the base, and just sensing it made her hair stick on end…as if she was aroused.

She berated herself mentally, and tried to think of something else.

'Fox,' she thought, 'Why were you so insistent on keeping me in the air? You need me to keep the taint off you. Do you really think you can take Chaos head with only a tank?'

That was when she closed her eyes silently prayed.

"Jacques…brother, please protect him," Krystal implored quietly, "And yourself. Mother, father…"

She sighed.

"…I'll make you proud, I will avenge you and Cerinia. Through me, our people will once again rid Lylat of Chaos."

----------

"Alright, let's pack it up," O'Reilly ordered, blaster at his side as he stepped back into the bunker, "I never thought I'd ever say this, but we're tagging along with the Marines, and blowing away anything that doesn't have the Cornerian logo or the Double Eagle on it."

"Yes sir!" officers and soldiers alike exclaimed as they all armed themselves and prepared to accompany the colonel.

Just then another soldier ran up to him and saluted, "Colonel, sir. 5th Platoon has just arrived."

"5th Platoon?" the alsatian colonel sounded surprised.

"What's left of them actually, sir."

The soldier stood aside to allow O'Reilly two see to more Cornerian troopers to practically drag the mastiff Sergeant-Major of 5th Platoon into the command room. O'Reilly was disturbed to see him covered in blood, which dripped all over the floor, and that thousand yard stare of his looked as if he had seen something more evil than war itself.

O'Reilly shrugged off the soldiers helping him and stepped before the Colonel, "Colonel O'Reilly, reporting in, sir."

Colonel O'Reilly returned the salute, "Sergeant-Major, you look like seen Hell…"

The mastiff nodded, and turned his face to the side to spit blood, "The…their all dead, sir. My entire platoon's being wiped out…before they were…they were…"

He couldn't control his emotions or his wracked body as he fell to his knees and begun weeping, much to the dismay of O'Reilly and the other Cornerian officers. The memories of what the loyalists of Slaanesh inflicted upon the men under his command were completely burned into his mind. After about a minute he composed himself and wiped the tears from his eyes as he looked up to face his superior officer.

Still on his knees, he said, "I…I bring a message…sir."

O'Reilly queered his eyebrows, "From whom…or what?"

The Sergeant Major cleared his throat and stood up, before he relayed what the Farseer had told him…

"Your secrets and desires will be turned against you. So long as you remain loyal to yourselves and your home system, you will find no enjoyment, but absolution."