The Emperor's finest Chapter Fifteen

Sebastopol, M40

It was fitting really, that it would end like this. Or so Jeffrey had thought, for man and greenskin have fought each other for as long as anyone could remember. For countless centuries they have spilled each other's blood across the stars. From the war of the Beast to the war on Armageddon, across countless worlds and systems. The fate of the two species seemed locked in step with the other, both caught in a endless struggle for dominance. There were no true winners, just survivors and the silence of an uncaring cosmos.

Azurk bellowed a mighty warcry, a WAAGH which seemed to shake the ground and echoed with a ferocity and animal savagery that defied all sense and reason. There was no understanding the Orks, no common cause to try and parley with them, violence was their only language. In a way, Jeffrey envied them, for an Ork didn't struggle the same way as man did. The Ork never wondered why he was here, what he was meant to do, he never laboured with questions that far beyond him.

But their greatest strength was also their weakness, for without the struggle they would never know true comradery. They would never the inner strength that came from confronting their inner fears and emerging stronger. Jeffrey silently considered his options and made his decision as he checked the environment around him once more.

They were boxed in due to the wreckage and carnage, they couldn't reverse and they couldn't maneuver around Azurk. So the only option left was to charge directly into the Warboss. That would mean getting into melee distance of the lightning claws, something that no sane man would want to do but they didn't have any other option. Well besides detonating the over heated Cannon, but that would be a last resort. They would run over Azurk as they used the last of the heavy bolter rounds, if he survived the they could keep driving and get some distance. Perhaps they find another operational vehicle and use that if they had to, he was dead set on making sure that Azurk didn't make it out of here alive.

"Full speed ahead! Run that bastard over!" He order on the vox. The crew complied, and the engine roared to life. Jeffrey took a deep sigh of relief, he a good crew, he wasn't sure how many would have followed his orders up to this point. He swore that he wouldn't let their trust down as he felt the engine build up in intensity, almost as if the machine spirit itself worked up. "I won't let you down either" he said softly, as he took one last mental check of all their supplies. All they had left were the heavy bolter, stubber, and their side arms. That and the ceremonial long sword he had been given as an officer. He hadn't considered it throughout the battle, he had rightly assimed that a sword would be kind of useless against Orks because if they were in melee range we basically already dead.

In this situation though, he couldn't afford to not account for any thing and he gripped it tightly in it's sheath before letting it go. Then unleashed a hail of lead with the stubber as the Indomitable surged forward. The heavy stubber did little more than irradiate Azurk, the shots were aimed at Orks helmet and a few stray rounds managed to hit unprotected sections of his neck. Azurk reactively raised his righr arm to deflect some of the bullets, the Warboss's eyes widened as the Indomitable slammed into him.

Azurk was pushed back and grunted as the impact nearly knocked hom over immediately. But much to Jeffrey's horror, Azurk wasn't knocked over. Instead, even while injured the beast's monstrous strength was slowing the indomitable down. Soon the flash of the heavy bolter sparked up as round after round hit Azurk's chest plate. This time Jeffrey's eyes were the ones to widened as Azurk slowly pulled back one arm to stab the Indomitable through the hull. The lightning claws pierced through steel like butter and howls of pain echoed inside the Indomitable.

Fear gripped Jeffrey once more as they ran out of heavy bolter ammo. Swear poured down his face like blood as he contemplated firing the Executioner cannon one last time and taking them all out. Instead he chose a different option, he gripped his longsword and pulled it from his sheath. The sword crackled with electricity as he drew it, he channelled all of his hatred and fear and leapt from the commanders coupla and drove the blade down into Azurk's skull.

Azurk screamed as the electricity from the power field scorched his flesh. Distracted by the sudden stab and the subsequent pain, Azurk lost his footing. With a loud thud, Azurk's skull impacted the hard ground with full force. Azurk was not only stunned by pinned to the ground, a circumstance that Jeffrey was quick to take advantage of. Despite being dazed and trapped, Azurk laughed, a cruel and merciless laugh that triggered something deeply inside of Jeffrey.

In a nearly blind rage he stabbed the Ork over and over in the head. Bitterness and savagery consumed Jeffrey as he stabbed Azurk over and over again. He raged against the imperium for sending him here, he raged against himself for being so selfish and cowardly all his life, he raged against the mindless destruction of the greenskins, for the loss of his crew, and for the terrible and cold nature of the universe itself.

Finally he stopped and turned his gaze to the heavens itself and screamed a primal cry of pain, anger and bitterness. Jeffrey then stumbled, nearly collapsing as he leaned on the front of the indomitable. After catching his breath he checked on his crewed who injured but alive. He then voxed in requesting medical aid. He wanted to pass out due to exhaustion but he remained conscious so that he could console his men. Only once medicae arrived to help them did he finally pass out.

--

(Three weeks later)

With the death of Azurk, the rest of Kheive was quick to fall to imperial forces. All that reminded were patrols in forrests to weed any stranglers out. Jeffrey, his crew and the Indomitable all made it out and patched up. They all recieved honors for their rule in batte, as did the other survivors who scattered across the battlefield. Jeffrey had been promoted to the rank of Captain and would be given charge of the newly mented 122nd armored Aerobolian regiment. It would be some time for this regiment to actually form since the casualties were so devastating. Jeffrey himself didn't know how to feel about it but he ultimately accepted it, because he knew the fighting was from over. He had also garned quite the reputation as a war hero, though he vehemently disagreed with that assertion. In his mind he was damn lucky and that was it.

In fact it was only going to escalate, for the world of Kheive was quickly becoming a new staging ground for an offensive. The people of Kheive who survived began to rebuild and reshape their homeworld to serve this new purpose. Regiments from all over the imperium mustered here, which was quite the sight to behold. He saw the drab, muted kriegsmen marching alongside the colorful Morians. He saw the tough but savage Catachans alongside the disciplined Cadians, and the "chem dogs" mixing it up the Necromudian "spiders. It was inspiring to see such a managerie of colors and banners united as one. Even seeing the famed Orks hunters of the Armageddon steel legion here filled him with pride, despite their crude tokens and markings.

A question did raise in his mind however, why were so many of the best and most famous imperial regiments being sent here of all places. The Aerobolian sector was far from the most important in the imperium. Eventually his question would be answered by a declaration that a crusade was being launched to take back the sector from the greenskins. The sector was therefore redubbed "Warzone Aerobolius". It still didn't tell him what was so important but didn't question it any further, for was fairly certain that he might not like the full answer for he was that the inquisition was getting involved.

Instead he chose to focus his attention on the impressive display in front of him, with so many different regiments and cultures. He saw in so many of their eyes the same look he had seen in Hoel's and his own now. These were men and women who had seen the abyss, who had seen the true face of war and didn't back down. He truly felt like a part of the guard now and that filled him with pride despite his distain for it's waste of life. He felt a kindered spirit with them, for they had all made the same sacrifice.

They were sons and daughters, fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, they all had hopes, dreams, fears, loves, etc. And they all stood against the darkness, they fought and bleed for the survival of the imperium and for that they were alll apart of the the guard.

And the guard were the Emperor's finest.

--

(Elsewhere in the Aerobolian sector)

On board the Iron crusha (an Ork vessal)

The ship echoed with violence, laughter, merriment and general chaos as the Orks celebrated yet another victory. The "Umies" didn't stand a chance as their ships were bashed out of the sky and their cities burned in a brief but glorious war. The Orks had then taken to looting everything they could get their hands on and taking it back to their ships. A vast armda of many thousands of ships had been steamrolling through the sector with only some of the ships breaking off to have their own fun like Azurk did, the rest stayed close to the Iron crusha and the true Warboss Kurg.

The fun and games of fighting each other ans testing out their loot continued into the command bridge where a powerful Ork Warboss sat. Kurg unlike most of his boys wasn't pleased, in fact his was positively irritated. He grabbed the nearest grot that was partying and snapped it's neck annoyance. He had been promised a "proppa fite" ever since coming here on the instructions of

his wierd boyz.

The weird boyz said that something in this sector held the key to making his WAAGH the "biggest and da toughest" WAAGH in the whole galaxy. He had given up a good fight against the "stunties" just to get here and hadn't found anything worthwhile. He had demolished system after system and still nothing. In his heart he yearned to fight a worthy once again, he stomped "beakies", "tin boyz", "spikey gitz" and more before, so why was he wasting time with stupid "umies"?

But the prospect of finding what he was looking for stayed his course for the moment. He was deadset on becoming the strongest Ork of all time and avenging himself against that stupid git "Ghazkull" who had bested him before, the only one ever to do so. The thought of vengeance brought a smile to his lips before anger burned even deeper. His eyes turned to an Ork weird boy would stumbled up to him,

"Da umies' are gathering for a WAAGH of their own! And wez finally found da fing, da godz told us in a vision da it's on the umie world called Aero- Aerobolia" he finally stammered out. Kurg bellowed out a mighty war cry as he ordered his fleet to move out.

"WAAAAAAGGGHHH!"

(A/N: and thus our story ends for now, but fret not for I am not done with this sector yet! I am taking a break but I intend to continue the story with a sequel at a later date. anyways thanks cor reading and any criticism is welcome).