Chapter 5: Artifact

The fight to retake Harvest was finally over.

After five long, miserable, bloody years, the hordes of Slaanesh had finally been driven off the planet, which was now mostly a scorched ruin anyway. But nevertheless it was humanity's once again.

Watching the planet from space, Donald, now a commander of the Gray Knights felt a sense of melancholy and more than that, defeat. Looking out at the mostly blackened husk the once proud farming planet had been reduced to, Donald felt that the armies of the UNIM had failed in their mission. The Covenant had killed Harvest, and Donald wondered for a moment if perhaps the planet was really worth winning at all in its current state. But he quickly dismissed such thoughts. Harvest was worth it. Crops could be regrown, farms repaired. What mattered was that humanity had not lost one of their crown jewels, and that alone was worth every last drop of blood that had been shed in its defense. Or so Donald continued to tell himself.

"You're feeling it too aren't you?" an older but strong voice asked. Donald turned to see the now Colonel Dawson walk up to him, the bold red armor he had worn as a field commander replaced with the more modest gray uniform of a non-combatant officer. Now that he was in his sixties, Dawson's combat days were very much behind him.

Dawson walked next to Donald and stared down at Harvest with him. "Not much to look at anymore is it?" Dawson asked. Donald shook his head. "No, its not. But even if its a mostly scorched rock now, its our scorched rock."

"Indeed. I'm just glad to finally see the Covenant off of it..."

For a moment, the two old soldiers just stared out at Harvest in silence, until the voice of the ship's AI Serina came on: "Colonel Dawson, Commander Donald, your presence is requested on the bridge. You're receiving a message from the Admiralty Board"

"Understood. We'll be there" Dawson then turned to Donald: "Conversation with the big boys? Must be to congratulate us for finally getting the damn Covenant off Harvest"

The Admiralty Board was the name given to the group of twelve immensely powerful beings who were the leaders of twelve of the thirteen elite Space Marine chapters. After a set period of time in service to the UNIM as a basic Space Marine, or after going through special schooling and training, individuals in the UNIM military would choose to become part of one of the twelve specialized Space Marine groups. The thirteenth however, was off-limits to almost everyone, with only a select few individuals chosen by ONI being made members.

The leaders were Azrael of the Dark Angels, Kaldor Draigo of the Gray Knights, Logan Grimnar of the Space Wolves, Marneus Calgar of the Ultramarines, Dante of the Blood Angels, Helbrecht of the Black Templars, Pedro Kantor of the Crimson Fists, Vulkan He'stan of the Salamanders, Gabriel Angelos of the Blood Ravens, Vladamir Pugh of the Imperial Fists, Jubal Khan of the White Scars, and Kayvaan Shrike of the Raven Guard. Every last one of them was a highly decorated war hero and a veteran of a dozen battles. Outfitted with the absolute best armor, weapons, and strength-enhancing cybernetics and implants that could be offered, they were in every way the very best humanity had to offer in terms of warriors, each one capable of wiping out whole Covenant and Daemon squads single-handed without breaking a sweat. They were also more than capable as commanders, and whenever they made a decision, there was not a soul in the UNIM who didn't obey. Thus Colonel Dawson and Commander Donald both knew better than to keep them waiting.

Making their way up to the bridge of The Spirit of Fire, they were just in time to see the image of the twelve imposing armored titans sitting in their chairs around a massive circular table bearing the UNIM's symbol of a two-headed eagle. Each of their chairs was also emblazoned with the logo of their respective chapter.

"Greetings Colonel Dawson, Commander Donald" Marneus Calgar said. "Congratulations on re-taking Harvest"

"Thank you sir" Colonel Dawson replied with a sharp salute before adding: "...but somehow I don't think the purpose of this is a simple congratulation..."

Marneus shook his head. "No, it is not. The Admiralty Board has a mission to give you and The Spirit of Fire's crew."

"What kind of mission Chapter Masters?" Donald asked.

Kaldor Draigo turned to Donald to address him specifically: "Ah, Commander Donald. It is good to know that a decorated Gray Knight will be a part of this..."

"Which is...?" Dawson asked.

Helbrecht was the next to speak: "About a week ago, Imperial Fists forces on Acradia under the command of Captain Darnath Lysander discovered some unusual ruins in the frozen northern hemisphere. They're definitely not human, but they can't be Covenant either, so that means they predate both sides and point to a civilization that was here long before ours. We want The Spirit of Fire's crew to secure those ruins while a science team led by Doctor Ellen Anders investigates."

"All due respect Chapter Masters, but that sounds like something the Imperial Fists there can do on their own"

"The Imperial Fists on Arcadia were hit hard recently, and they still haven't fully recovered" Vulkan He'stan said. "Not only that but if the Covenant show up, we want those ruins to be as secure as possible"

"So you're sending us?"

Vulkan He'stan nodded wordlessly as Kaldor Draigo spoke again: "The Spirit Of Fire is one of our biggest and best ships available right now, and we could learn very valuable information from those ruins. So we're not sparing any expenses."

Colonel Dawson and Commander Donald both saluted as the former said: "Understood Chapter Masters. We'll be at Arcadia as soon as possible"

"See to it that you are" Helbrecht said bluntly before adding: "And one more thing: The Eldar are sending some of their forces to the ruins as well, as they're insisting quite passionately that we don't realize what we're dealing with. So expect an Eldar convoy to arrive as well"

"Understood High Marshal Helbrecht" Colonel Dawson replied.

"Then go forth" Marneus Calgar ordered "And the best of fortunes to all of you"

And as Marneus said this, the image of him and the other eleven chapter masters disappeared and Colonel Dawson ordered The Spirit of Fire to set a course for Arcadia.
-X-
"I grow tired of all this waiting" The Arbiter growled as he looked out at the viewport of the Covenant vessel he was currently stuck on. As a devoted follower of the Blood God, Ripa 'Moramee had no patience for the ridiculously convoluted schemes and tip-toeing around direct conflict that the human Chaos Lord he was partnered with so stubbornly insisted on.

"I am in agreement with the Arbiter on this" snarled the Elite Zealot in charge, Bale 'Torvasree. Lord Bale was almost as notorious for being a bloodlusted fiend as Ripa was, and the particularly sharp teeth in his mandibles and the countless burn scars on his head were both testament to the ferocity he had hones into a lethal weapon during his lifetime of service to the Four Powers.

"Patience my friends" Sindri replied in his deceptively soothing and calm voice. Sindri was one of the greatest of the humans who had pledged themselves to the Four Powers, and in Sindri's case the Lord of Change Tzeentch. Physically he differed greatly from most of the other Chaos Space Marines. He wore a steel-blue colored breastplate over dark blue robes, and covered his face with a sinister-looking steel-gray helmet with blood red eyes and adorned with an elaborate headdress. He covered his arms with large blue shoulder pauldrons and past that blue gauntlets worn over black gloves. Finally, his shoulders were adorned with an apparatus designed to resemble two mechanical serpents facing in opposite directions. In his hands he held a staff that more than anything else showed his devotion to Tzeentch, and strapped to his belt was a Bolter Pistol.

But though he carried these weapons, Sindri's greatest strengths were his mind and his magics, neither thing being a weapon the followers of Khorne held in a terribly high regard. That Sindri was a human just made listening to him and being forced to follow his way of doing things all the more infuriating for both the Arbiter and Bale, for though as Arbiter and a Zealot they were meant to be servants of Chaos Undivided, at heart, both were true servants of Khorne.

"You always say "patience" Bale snarled through his mandibles. "Patience is not the way of Chaos!"

"It is for those of us who serve the Lord of Change" Sindri replied in that same deceptively calm and civilized tone, as though he and Bale were two gentlemen talking over tea and crumpets. "And besides my Lord, have I not consistently been shown to know what I'm doing? And have my, I believe to use the Arbiter's words "nonsensical schemes" always led to victory for your glorious fleet?"

Bale huffed indignantly but nevertheless nodded. "Yes, it is true. Your scheming ways have gotten much blood for the Blood God, and many skulls for the Skull Throne, but still. This hiding in the shadows irritates me. If we demonstrate our superior power, those wretched primitives and disgusting Eldar would both kneel before us in an instant"

Sindri shook his head and chuckled lightly. "Oh don't be silly Lord Bale. You cannot intimidate that which has no fear, and the Eldar do not fear us. Or perhaps I should say they do fear us to a point, but their hatred of us and desire to stop us at any cost far outweighs and overwhelms whatever fear they may feel"

Lord Bale scoffed at this. "Then the Eldar are fools. I will grind their soulstones into powder in my hands."

"I have no doubt Lord Bale" Sindri said. "But nevertheless, fear is not a viable weapon in this battle. Just follow my lead and I assure you that you will have more Soulstones for your collection before all is said and done"

By this point, Ripa tuned out the continued conversation between Sindri and Bale. He agreed with Lord Bale and also despised Sindri, but as the Arbiter he had no place in challenging a high-ranking figure like him, and thus he kept silent. Just thinking about how he had to kowtow to a human, and not only that, but a human who served Tzeentch made him grind the teeth of his mandibles against each other so hard he was surprised they didn't shatter. Any true follower of Khorne knew that Tzeentch and his ilk were cowards not fit to call themselves warrior of Chaos. But again, as the Arbiter he had authority to challenge Sindri unless given the consent of a superior, such as Lord Bale. For a moment Ripa fantasized being given such consent and then tearing Sindri apart with his bare hands, but he returned to reality when he heard the helmsman on the bridge speak up: "Lord Bale, we have arrived at the human planet"

"Excellent" Bale turned to Sindri. "Alright Sindri. We'll do things your way for now. But I want those ruins secured before the day is done!"

Sindri bowed respectfully. "Of course Lord Bale. I do so aim to please"
-X-
When The Spirit of Fire arrived at Arcadia, they found that the Imperial Fists led by Captain Lysander were already outside waiting for them. Colonel Dawson and Commander Donald both went out to meet them.

"Welcome to Arcadia Colonel Dawson." Lysander said as he took Dawson's hand in his own and shook it fiercely. " We've all heard about how you've finally driven those Covenant bastards off of Harvest. You have our utmost respect"

Colonel Dawson nodded silently. Lysander then stepped to the side to show a younger man clad in the same yellow armor of the Imperial Fists. He was bald, and looked to be in his mid-forties or so. Notably, he had an ace playing card attached to one of his shoulder pauldrons. Holstered on his back was a shotgun and on his side the standard magnum.

"This is my second Sergeant John Forge. A good soldier. He's led most of the efforts here on Arcadia."

"Pleasure" Forge said laconically before adding: "So what are you all here for?"

"We've been tasked by the Admiralty Board to make sure those ruins that were found here recently don't get shelled by the Covenant."

"The ruins? I already have a few men stationed there, but definitely less than the scientists would want." Lysander nodded in approval before finishing: "I'll let them know you're coming"

"That would be much appreciated" Colonel Dawson said before adding: "We're expecting some Eldar as well. They're also interested in the ruins apparently."

"We'll keep our eyes peeled" Sergeant Forge assured Dawson and Donald before adding: "I haven't actually seen an Eldar before. Looks like this will be my first time..."
-X-
"Fascinating..." one of the scientists whispered in awe as he continued to examine the inscriptions on the walls he was staring at.

"You've said that at least ten times now" Ellen Anders replied in a deadpan.

"I can't help it Ellen, this is incredible! We've just discovered the remains of an entirely new sentient species! Think of the implications..."

"I am" Anders replied before adding: "I'm just a bit less vocal about it"

"Tease me all you want, I know you're just as into this as I am"

As the two scientists continued their work, a voice called to them from outside the ruins: "Hey guys! We got company! You're gonna want to come out and see this!"

Stopping their work and going outside, Ellen Anders and her colleagues were greeted with the sight of a massive UNIM cruiser hovering over the ruins before landing not far from its location. Out of the ship came several squads of Gray Knights, Salamanders, and basic Space Marines. One of each of the former two walked up to the group of scientists.

"I am Commander Donald Patrokolos of the Gray Knights, this is Sergeant Alexander Klaus of the Salamanders" Donald said. "We've been sent to these ruins by the Admiralty Board to stand guard over them and protect them in the event of a Covenant attack"

"We know" Ellen Anders replied, looking at the small army of armored men in front of her. "We've been getting reports of Covenant activity in the sector, and the Imperial Fists have had to fight them off Arcadia a few times now. If they want the ruins here, then I suspect its because of the relic"

"Relic?"

Ellen Anders nodded. "Follow me inside and I'll explain"

Commander Donald nodded before turning to his men and ordering them to stand watch. Donald and Alexander then followed Ellen Anders and her fellow scientists inside the ruins, where she directed them to a massive chamber that was illuminated with teal-colored lights. In the center was a large pit that also glowed with a teal-colored light, and hanging above it was a massive piece of machinery. In the gap between these two pieces of technology was a three-dimensional display of what Donald and Alexander recognized as stars.

"Amazing isn't it?" Ellen Anders asked. "It's a map of the Milky Way Galaxy, just sitting there waiting to be found and reactivated. Whatever race made this…they must have been incredibly advanced, at least as advanced as the UNIM is…"

"And you think the Covenant will want this?" Donald asked.

"Sure. Its got the location of every one of the inner colonies. Not only that, but there's also this…" Walking up to the starmap, Ellen Anders pointed to the image of a small ring floating in space, and then pointed to six others placed in different parts of the Milky Way.

"Whatever these rings are, they were important to whoever built this place. Whenever we've tried to learn more about them, the starmap shuts us out. It won't let us read about them, says they're "classified". There's also some kind of record attached to this map too. I've been trying to read its contents, but in addition to the security measures its in a language I don't recognize. Decoding it could take years at the shortest"

"Sounds pretty useless to me" Alexander said. "I mean if you can't read a book or a map what good is it?"

"For all we know the Covenant might be better at decrypting stuff like this than we are. They're certainly more technologically advanced then us in terms of weapons and ships…"

"I somehow doubt that those monsters that shout "Blood for the Blood God, Skulls for the Skull Throne" over and over again are going to be translating languages…" Alexander said in a deadpan

"Humans!"

Donald, Alexander, and Ellen Anders all turned around to see that a group of Eldar had entered the room. The one in front had a lithe build and wore light forest green colored robes with a long blood red sash with glowing white characters on it draping down in front of the robes. The sash came down from a red clasp shaped like a downward facing triangle that had a ruby in the center of it. Over the main forest green robes the Eldar wore a white breastplate and covered her arms and hands with white colored armor save for a part of the vambraces that were the same light forest green of her robes. Over her shoulders she wore a pale green cape with a border that was a darker green and decorated with the same glowing white characters as the ones on her sash, and she covered her face completely with a white cone-shaped helmet resembling a frowning old woman and decorated with two glowing red jewels. Finally, in her hands she held a long staff that was topped with three prongs, almost resembling a trident or pitch-fork.

"I am Farseer Macha" the Eldar said in a commanding and no-nonsense tone. "And what you are looking at is a warmap from an age long past. One that we Eldar believe we are directly descended from. So step aside please. Only a Farseer of my caliber can access this relic's contents in full"

"Is that a fact?" Ellen Anders replied. "Alright lady, give it your best shot. Its not like I haven't already spent a good couple hours trying to access it myself"

Farseer Macha strode forward with a grace and authority that spoke both of her incredible power and also her arrogance. Extending a hand, Macha interacted with the starmap with incredible speed, her fingers moving in a lightning fast blur. But the barriers that had prevented Ellen Anders from delving deeper into the relic's contents and secrets were not present for Macha, for the relic bathed her in a neon-green light that seemed to scan her before ceasing and allowing Macha further access. For a few moments she stood there and absorbed the relic's contents. Then, she turned to face Anders, Donald, and Alexander.

"It is as I suspected…this relic…this place…it contains information on the Great War"

"The "Great War?"

"Yes. An apocalyptic turn of events that wiped our ancestors out. The first ever war with the Four Powers, back when there was but three of them, and the Lord of Decay was at his most powerful. My people have always searched for places like these, looking for information The Forerunners left behind, to see if there was anything we could use in our own war with Chaos…"

"Well, that's all very interesting, but we don't know who the Forerunners are."

"Of course you don't. No one but the Eldar do. Us and their killers the Four Powers…"

The conversation was interrupted by the sound of a deafening boom that echoed throughout the ruins before being followed by another loud boom. The room shook violently, and outside rubble from the upper levels of the ruins began to fall down upon the scientists occupying the lower levels.

"What the hell was that?"

"It's the Force of Chaos" Macha said gravely. "They're here"

"Then it's a good thing we came" Donald observed before turning to Ellen Anders: "Stay behind us and the Eldar ma'am."

Macha turned to her accompanying farseers. "Stay close to me by brothers and sisters. The Forces of Chaos are here for the artifact. Defend it with your lives!"

Within the other parts of the ruins, Elites and Grunts alike disengaged their active camouflage and wasted little time cutting down the hapless scientists to be found within the ruins hallways before making their way to the room the relic was stored in. They were greeted with a several torrents of electricity from the fingertips of the Eldar Farseers that fried their energy shields, scorched their armor, and melted their flesh. Not to be deterred so easily, the remaining Elites and Grunts swarmed in, causing the room to erupt in a cacophony of gunshots, screams, explosions, and the crackling electricity of the Eldar Farseers.

As the battle began, Donald radioed The Spirit of Fire: "Attention UNIM cruiser Spirit of Fire, we are in the ruins and are under attack. We are pinned down and need assistance now!"

Colonel Dawson's voice responded: "Commander, the Imperial Fists won't be able to respond in time, and the garrison outside has come under heavy attack from Hunters and those "Pink Horrors". Fortunately we've got Grizzlies inbound from Spirit of Fire, so if you can hold on down there for just a little while, they'll be able to bail you out"

"Let's hope so Colonel, we're kind of in an awkward spot here…"

-X-

On board The Spirit of Fire, Colonel Dawson gave the order for the Grizzlies to depart and make their way to the ruins as fast as they could. Watching the events unfold on Arcadia's surface, Serina quipped: "Ah, the Grizzly Tanks. Something of a pet project of Sergeant Forge I believe. Fitting they're being used here then no?"

"I suppose" Colonel Dawson replied simply before adding: "Let's just hope they get to Commander Donald and Doctor Anders in time"

-X-

On board Lord Bale's cruiser, Sindri showed him the progress reports of the battle that had just erupted on Arcadia's surface. "My Stealth Elites and Grunts have already infiltrated the ruins and engaged the Eldar and Space Marines there. It is only a matter of time before they're overwhelmed and the relic is seized"

Bale snarled in response to this. "The Arbiter tells me that the humans are sending reinforcements to the ruins. Your meager force won't be able to keep them back!"

"True, but they will take time to arrive. My Hunters and the minions of Lord Tzeentch will keep them occupied long enough for the Elites and Grunts in the ruins to finish the Eldar and Marines inside. Then they can secure the starmap and we may go. All will progress as it should"

"And what if your plan fails?" The Arbiter demanded. "What if the humans break past your defenses and rescue their allies inside the ruins? Or what if your forces in the ruins fail to overwhelm them? What then?"

Sindri waved the Arbiter's accusations off. "Oh, do not worry. Should my plan fail I have several contingencies in place. No matter the outcome of this little story, the Eldar and their allies, will lose. Especially since I happen to have something of an ally on the inside…"

Author's Note: Gasp! A spy? Who could it be?

I've noticed I've been getting a few negative reviews lately, so I think I'm going to be going back to my older chapters and making some changes. For one thing as shown here, the UNSC is now the UNIM (United Nations Imperium of Man). This makes using the term "Space Marines" not seem redundant. I may also add some little "codex entries" so to speak for the different races and factions and such. Build up this fused together world a little better.

Finally, I have a request to make of my readers: for those of you who frequent TV Tropes, if any of you might make a tropes page for my crossover here, it would be much appreciated. I would do it myself, but I'd rather the trope page be written from the POV of a reader rather than the author. So if anyone could do that it would be greatly appreciated.