The plains of Kethrin Prime shook with the sound of tank treads, Men's boots and war machines. The Sanguine Dragons had taken a commanding position on a hill overlooking a river and its flood plains once they had caught site of the Tau advance. Shas'O Nen'sho had responded by splitting his force, He kept a few transports and battle suits back, and positioned two gun lines either side of the river with his Broadsides and Skyrays, some Fire warriors were positioned to protect them. He deployed his entire Kroot force in the centre of the valley, his main fire warrior line was with them. He kept the Battle suits fluid in between the two, himself included, ready to reap a heavy toll on anywhere the Marines exposed themselves.

This was a confident move, Nen'sho was daring the marines to attack him. If Collus did nothing he would be blown from the planet by the gun lines, but a charge was risky. He could probably, take the kroot line down with very little trouble, But it would leave him stranded in the cross fire of the Tau heavy support. It was then his Vox crackled to life in his ear.

'My lord, we have contact from the Imperial Guard and General Geart.'

'What do they want?'

'The general has requested a direct channel to yourself.' Collus pondered a moment. He was minutes away from a massive assault, and he had finally got contact with the guard directly. But he didn't need anything unexpected now, he needed to find out what the General was planning.

'Put him through.'

'At once, Sir.' There was a pop and a moments silence. A second pop signalled the new channel had connected. 'Chief Librarian Collus?' came thin voice

'General?' he questioned,

'One moment…' came the voice, Collus heard scuffling and swearing. There was the sound of heavy breathing before a gruff voice blasted into his helmet.

'General Geart here. Is this Librarian Collus?'

'Chief Librarian, yes. Can I assist you General?' Collus was not in any mood for any political interference from the guard.

'Thought I may be able to assist you? I have a few thousand guardsmen with me, and I understand your looking at a nasty Tau gun line from what my scouts have told me.' Geart had a bold edge to his voice, He obviously felt he was the marine's only hope. Collus was forced to concede that he may be right however.

'Well where do you want me? I've got lots of ammunition that has been paid for, it would be a shame to not use it. HA.'

'You have our position, yes?' The battle hardened Marine asked

'Roughly.'

'Aim for the Taus rear line, if they get too much fire on us we may not break them. You may be just the distraction I need.'

'I'll see what I can do, We are about 15 minutes away. Hold out till then.' The generals tone was grating on Collus already. Bravado was not a useful trait, it merely made ones failures all the more apparent. Unfortunately such a failure could cost him and his men their lives.

The Trakarts would provide them little protection from any fall out of the imminent clash. They had barely got 20 miles when the Space marine force passed in the valley beneath them. Grimes had been the one to suggest following them. Alishia had fought him, saying they were to get to the city, but the others had argued that this might be their only chance for vengeance. The Commissar hadn't given into her rage, but she looked at the 3 men before her and realised she could not deny them. They had stayed to the high ground. Catching site of the enemy force as a silhouette on the horizon, they could barely believe it size. It dwarfed the marines they were following.

Bannerman had suggested approaching the marines and joining then, but was quickly rebuked. No one believed they would be accepted. Grant had instead suggested they flank the force and watch what happened. If they saw a chance to help then they would do so, but four of them would make no difference against the enemy here. Alishia had made it clear that they were to not get involved unless they really thought they would help.

The men had taken to basic training exercises, Shuttle runs, bayonet drills and the like. Alishia was sat on her Trakart, she had taken her coat and hat off for the first time in days. She was so tired, laying back on the seat she let the sounds of the distant war machines wash over her. All the things she had seen during the fighting flooded her mind, first reports of Xeno insurgents, watching the light show of the cadets vessel being destroyed. Being assigned to a group of men she didn't know, and being separated from her friends, the siege of Burron Lammer which was her first real combat experience without her senior commissar to guide her. And the long run to Newlaiden.

She knew they had to make it back, if just to say it was done. From what she had seen the Tau would take the planet, and she would be killed or captured. The mysterious Jadden's words ate at her now, all his talk of what her job was and why she was here. Did any of that matter if they would die anyway? Grimes, Grant and Bannerman didn't think so.

They were ready to fight and die for this planet? It wasn't their planet, but the Tau had killed their friends, and that was enough. Maybe that should be enough for her too.

She looked up, the Tau were breaking up, spreading over the plains ready to engage the marines. Her guardsmen were still training, quick shuttle runs to fight off the tiredness.

She stood, grabbing her power sword, and marched up to them.

'Alright guys, you win!'

'Ma'am?' Grimes looked puzzled

'We are gonna get us some payback, I'm done with running.'

Cha'riss picked at the selection of fruits on offer. He had grown tired of the selection, it has lost a lot of its charm after being frozen for transit. The earth caste swore it was just a fresh thanks to their graduated freezing technique, but Cha'riss could tell. And he had eaten all the fresh food many weeks ago. Indeed no fresh food had even got to the planet's surface and the experimental void grown produce was all floating around in orbit.

Being an ethereal, he was used to living the easy life. Sure he had to go on campaign, but he rarely had to get involved after giving Nen'sho a push in the right direction. All he had to do was perform a grand entrance once the battle was won, which should be shortly. The slim ethereal spun and rested against the buffet table. His guards were spread about the deck of the gunship he had been using as his chambers during the occupation of Kethrin Prime. They were completely silent, ever vigilant for any threat to his safety, it had become terribly boring. Cha'riss wanted to see some of the action, be a part of the action. Some of the greatest Aun's had been great heroes, winning victories themselves for the Greater Good. But alas he had never had the chance, Nen'sho was a competent commander, but he had been cautious.

Kethrin Prime fit the Tau template for invasion perfectly. Only lightly industrialised by the Gue'la Imperium, arid climate, and open plains. A little more water than the home world, but otherwise it was perfect for colonisation. And it was away from the main Imperial settlements that where known to harbour major forces, Kethrin Prime was perfect in every way as where all the Shas'o's targets, but that was the problem, there was no glory. Cha'riss had agreed when the expansion was planned. Easy glory it seemed, but it had grown stale. And easy victories brought no glory. Nen'sho was an unknown back home, he blamed this on not being from a core world, but it was his lack of ambition.

Cha'riss looked around at the smooth lines of the vessel he was in, he saw how sheltered he was, the fio'tak curved above him in a protective bubble. He was tired of sitting around, he would help his people advance for once, be a part of the Greater Good, not just its guiding light.

'Come, let us join the battle.' He said promptly, his guards turning in surprise.

'Aun'el? I am not sure that would be wise.' Came the reply, the warrior bowing his head in respect.

'Nonsense, I wish to see our victory first hand.'

'At least await the Shas'O to confirm that we…' Cha'riss glared at the warrior, using all his power to silence him.

'We will depart for the battle.'

'We will depart for the battle.' His entire retinue repeated in a flat monotone.

'Prepare for transport,' He continued, the flat echo continuing. 'We will witness our own victory.'

He grabbed a last item from the table, he walked down the access ramp of the Manta, taking a bite of the fruit.

The Fire warriors behind him shaking their heads as the fog from his pheromones cleared. They ran to catch up with him, falling into formation behind him. Two of them broke off to collect them a transport. The procession headed to a small armoured pod mounted on the side of the armoury. The ethereal place his hand on a small roundle on its surface. The pod hissed and slid open. A small recess revealed his honour blade, pulse pistol and ceremonial robe. He stepped into the pod and it close up behind him, the fire warriors span and locked into formation by the pod securing the entrance.

After a few moments a Devilfish pulling a large grav platform arrived with the guards that had departed moments before. The platform held an ornate, oval ring. The pod hissed once more, Aun'el Cha'riss Uanta now resplendent in his ceremonial robes, a large ribbed collar rising behind his head, the white fabric covering his shoulders, revealing his upper arms. Thick crystalline gauntlets covered his forearms, and a belt held his pistol. Cha'riss gazed upon his chariot, he casually tossed the core of fruit over his shoulder and stepped onto the oval platform.

A quick press of some buttons and a force field flashed violet for a moment around him before fading to invisibility. He gave himself a moment to enjoy this, surveying the warriors before him. All in shining armour, silver details showing their allegiance to him.

'I am ready Shas'vre!' He said proudly

'Of course Aun'El. We shall depart at once.' Came the reply

'How long until we are with the Shas'O?'

'We should be no longer than 20 minutes, Aun'El'

The transport moved away once the team were on board, two warriors took position on the lower edge of the platform. Cha'riss leant back against the chariot, anticipating the glory to come.

Jad had desperately scanned the enemy lines for any sign of the target, determined he would see some give away. The force the Tau had dispatched was massive, he found it hard to believe that the ethereal would not have been with them, but lack of fleet support meant he along with everyone else was blind to anything that wasn't in front of him. If the target had stayed behind now would be the perfect time to take him. Minimal resistance, they drop ship could land nearby, easy infiltration. But if the ethereal was in there somewhere, Jad couldn't risk him being killed in the upcoming assault.

Mal had parked up in the cover of a large boulder, the team where doing final preparations. Varner was taking punches off Josla in a light sparring match, she would never hurt him like that, but she was too fast for him to dodge the attacks. Batty was enjoying another ration bar whilst looking out for scouts from the autocannon. Wyn was doing another weapon service, rubbing oil and humming quietly. Mal was performing a similar routine on Belle, though with considerably more gusto.

Jad remained prone on top of the boulder, surveying the scene. Open warfare was not his favoured way of dealing with enemies. It was too risky, too many variables, you are just as likely to get shot by your own side as the enemy. And making a getaway with an alien dignitary would be all but impossible. The two armies had been stood facing each other for almost two minutes, an eternity when on the brink of total carnage. Wyn had intercepted some Vox chatter between Collus and General Geart. The guard would be here soon, and that was a whole new level of shit Jad could do without.

Just then the Sanguine Dragons unleashed a roar, the entire line snapped forward down the gentle hill straight at the Tau lines. The flanking Ball predators unleashed hell with their assault cannons, armoured figures rose on pillars of fire from jump packs and a formation of Stormravens rose from behind them and sent missiles searing in the to the Tau ranks.

The Tau response was instant, the white light of plasma fire flashed across their lines, the waves of energy breaking upon the marines. Some men fell but the charge stayed true, the big walker at the rear of the xeno formation changed stance and send a spear of Ionised energy crackling through the air, punching a raven from the sky. The force of the impact sent the craft spinning downwards, smashing between the kroot and the Tau battle suits, a moment passed before the vessel exploded taking a small group of fire warriors with it. More marines fell from the Stormravens, Librarian Collus releasing a blast of red energy into the kroot as they jumped at him. The kroot met the marine charge with a ferocious leap, some sinking their blades into marine armour, others shot or clubbed from the air.

Jad took in the scene before him passively. The sound of battle had brought the team up in front of the boulder, the explosions reflected in their wide eyes, the power of both forces imprinted on their memories. Wyn made a calculation of the Tau forces response to the assault, and then waved Jadden down from the rock. Jad nodded and disappear in a flash of electrical energy, he walked out from behind the boulder a moment later. 'What do you think Wyn?'

'I calculate that there is a 2.2% chance the target is with the strike force, a 17.1% chance he is with the fleet, a 55.4% chance he remained in a secure location after landing on the planet, a 22.9% he never came to this systems and 2.4% chance that he is already dead, based on the Tau's current disposition, Sir.'

'None of those are a certainty are they?' Jad replied, sounding slightly frustrated.

'No, but nothing is. I would point out that the enemy are at least covering their return route, whilst not an unwise precaution to take never the less, it is indicative of there being something worth defending. This is of course based purely on my own observation, and very little additional evidence.' Wyn still had a confident tone despite the calmness of the delivery.

'We wait out here for another 10 minutes, if nothing shows itself as the target, we will make a break for the drop site.' Jad replied, still keeping his eyes fixed on the battle. 'Make sure we are ready to move.'

The team nodded acknowledgement, Mal walked back to their transport disappearing behind the boulder, he suddenly swung back around and pressed himself against it. A plasma bolt flew out after him as he yelled 'Stealth suits!'

The whole team dived for cover, Josla pulled her Auto pistols from the holsters, Varner unsheathed his favourite knife. Batty cursed to himself as he reached for his shotgun and grabbed air, remembering it was still on the truck. Wyn stood, a whir from his ocular implant signalled his switch to an alternate visual spectrum. He swung his head around the boulder

'4 hostiles detected.' He said in a hushed tone 'fanning out towards us, possible that further hostiles are in the area.'

'We need to stop them reporting our presence back to the main force. We don't need any excess attention.' Jad said as he dashed around the far side of the boulder. He leapt into the back of tauros and took cover, the expected burst cannon fire rocking the vehicle. He pulled his sword and bolt pistol from under the bench, checked the action on the gun and took a quick look over the edge of the flat bed. He saw one suit flickering back into stealth mode after its burst of fire. Jad seized the chance, he rocked forward and leapt over the edge of the truck. He pushed warp energy into the blade of the sword, and holding it reverse grip slashed through the last flickers the stealth field, the powerful energy of the warp leaping through the battlesuit as it was cloven in two, he raised his gun as the lightning arced across his tattoos, a visage of hell for the Tau hidden before him. The ripple of light gave away a burst cannons spin, the bolt pistol spat twice sending heavy calibre rounds at the hidden gunman. The first exploded on the surface of the armour, but the second found a weak joint at the shoulder, burrowing deep, ripping the arm from the torso.

The psyker disappeared in a flash, white hot fire burning through where he once stood as the Tau tried to avenge their fallen. A shower of solid slug ammunition showered the area, Josla sprayed the area with fire as she dived from cover, the shots shorting out the stealth fields of the suits, revealing 3 more enemies. Batty mad his run in the crossfire, leaping onto the bonnet of the vehicle and jumping over the cockpit taking position on the Auto cannon. He swung the barrel to face the exposed targets, a cascade of shells flew, tearing into the enemy. One suit fell to its knees in the onslaught, the pilot raise his burst cannon to sweep the area before he died, he took a huge force struck him, the cannon flying in the air wildly, Varner put his knife through cannon to stop the fire as he lifted himself from the suit. He slid the knife under the helmet of the dying xeno to finish the job, when he was suddenly struck from atop the body. The force of the impact winded him, he looked up at the double image of a final stealth suit appearing over him, the burst cannon shone white as it fired into him.

The head of Varners attacker fell to floor, the blade of Jads sword making quick work of the armour. The team rushed to Varner, his body bloodied and broken by the close range fire. Josla grabbed Varner by the head and looked into his eyes for a sign of life, he gave a weak smile.

'Do you think he got me? He laughed

'Varner, stay with us, we will get you fixed up okay. You're gonna be fine!' she said pleading for what she had said to be true.

'I calculate a 2% chance that you will survive your injuries, but I will begin medical procedures.' Wyn stated, but the emotion was still clear in his voice.

'It's o… Okay guys!' lll be fine.' Varner croaked 'Boss… Bo..Jad!'

'I'm here.' Jad knelt beside him 'What is it.'

'I've wanted to say this for 5 years…' Varner said with a grimace of pain.

'Yeah, what it is.'

'Che.. Cheer Up!' Varner let out a hearty laugh, gurgling blood as he did so. He gripped tightly on Josla's hand suddenly as the last of his energy surged and his heart started to spasm as he died.