High above the orbit of a sandy planet, a single strike cruiser sat in silence. The planet below, Ithanix III, blocked the light of the sun so that the ship remained in darkness. Despite the lack of light, a massive white could be be seen on the prow. Lights blinked in the void, and gun turrets rotated in an endless watch. She was ready for war.
Aboard the Wings of Ultramar, the 5th Company of the Ultramarines readied themselves for the coming battle. Led by Captain Phelian, the hundred Astartes would crush the minor rebellion that had popped up.
Ithanix III wasn't a death world, but the harsh sun and sandy wastes made life difficult for those not inside a Hive City. The planet had three hives, Each situated to one of the few sources of water on the planet. The Hives of Sirrium, Pyras, and Tempus stretched miles into the sky, casting long shadows on the dunes below. The people of Hive Pyras had risen up in rebellion, and had managed to defeat the Planetary Defense Force. While their rebellion was localized to the Hive, the Planetary Governor was worried that the rebellion might spill into Hives Sirrium and Tempus.
The Governor had sent out a astropathic plea for assistance, which the 5th Company had heard. They had received it when they were only three systems over, so Captain Philian decided to assist the Governor in his problem. While there weren't any signs of Chaos corruption, one could never be too careful.
The War Room aboard the Wings of Ultramar was silent as the assembled Astartes waited for their Captain. Lieutenant Remus of the First Demi-Company and Lieutenant Veres of the Second Demi-Company stood by the Holo-Table, looking over various tactical data.
"Lieutenants." Captain Phelian said as he entered the room. While neither of them snapped to attention, they did give him their full attention. Both of them had been with Phelian on Espandor, during the Plague Wars.
"Captain." Remus spoke with a deep voice that seemed to personify the nobility of the Ultramarines. Veres said nothing, but after Espandor he rarely spoke anymore.
"Brothers, I have received word from Ultramar." That seemed to suck the air out of the room. "We are to return to Ultramar, and group up with the Sixth and Eighth Company's."
"Captain, we swore too—" Remus was cut off when Phelion raised an armored fist into the air.
"Lord Gulliman has ordered us to return after we pacify this rebellion." The mention of the Primarch once again silenced the room. "Now, what have you two come with in order to end this uprising?"
Sergeant Volusius raised his bolt rifle and aimed it at the head of one of the rebels. The Third Squad, his squad, mimicked his actions and picked different targets.
They were waiting for the signal to start the attack. The other squads were already in position, and the click Volusius sent through the vox meant his squad was ready as well.
Not a movement was wasted as the Sergeant waited for the signal. Luckily, he didn't have to wait very long for symbols on his visor to flash green. Letting out the breath he had been holding, Sergeant Volusius pulled the trigger.
"The first thing we need to do is take this Hangar," Lieutenant Remus said while pointing at a hologram of Hive Pyras. "The Second and Third Squad will use the railway that connects Hive Pyras and Hive Tempus to sneak into the city. Once they make their way to this room," he pointed at the room above the Hangar, "Third squad will take the command room. Second squad will clear the enemies from the hangar proper."
Captain Phelian nodded which was enough of a signal for the two lieutenants to continue. "First, Fourth, Fifth and Sixth squads will deploy into the hangar." Lieutenant Veres growled. "Seventh, Eight, Ninth, and Tenth squads will stay in reserve." Veres turned to look at Remus who continued with the plan.
"Once the Hangar is secure, the six squads will break up into three battle-groups of 20. First and Fourth Squad will be designated Battle-group Alpha, Second and Fifth will be Bravo, with Third and Sixth being Charlie." He paused to take a breath. "Battle-group Alpha will push directly forward, attracting as much attention as possible once a signal is given. Battle-group Bravo will sneak towards these buildings." Remus pointed at a trio of buildings in the lower hive. "These are the Military Command for the Hive. Bravo's mission is to eliminate enemy leadership." He looked back at Veres, who begrudgingly spoke.
"Battle-group Charlie will head toward this spire. They will determine the loyalty of the nobles here. If they are found to be traitors, then they die." Veres' cold tone broke no argument.
"Captain, you have been given command of Battle-group Alpha, while Veres is taking Charlie. I will be commanding Bravo."
Captain Phelian nodded once more. "Very good. By nightfall this rebellion will be crushed and the planet pacified. Courage and Honor, Brothers." Phelian made the sign of the Aquillia with his hands, which the two lieutenants replicated.
Remus and Veres left the War Room to ready the rest of the company, but Philian lingered for a few more moments. Staring at the still hologram of Hive Pyras, he felt a shiver run down his spine. Something wasn't adding up, but the captain couldn't tell what. Pushing himself from the table, Philian began to head toward the armory and embarkation deck. Yet still, Captain Philian could feel that shiver in spine even as he boarded the Thunderhawk.
Battle-group Bravo marched quickly through the winding tunnels of the hive city, doing their best to avoid large congregations of enemies. Occasionally they had to put down someone who saw them, but the speed and grace of an Astartes meant that no warning could get out.
As they finally got close to the military building, Lieutenant Remus flicked something on his visor. A small rune on the right hand side flashed green—confirmation from Battle-group Alpha. He waited for a few seconds, and saw a flash of green on the left side of his visor.
Not a second later, Remus could hear the distant roar of Bolter fire. It was followed by sounds of shouting and general panic, as the entire hive went on alert. The sudden stampede of boots running to the fight was the first reason they had triggered the alarm. Not only would forces be attracted to the fight and away from the spire and command center, but more importantly, the commanding officer would need to be present in the command center. Now they would all be in one generalized location.
Battle-group Bravo continued their stealthy march, getting closer and closer to their target. It was as they were making their final approach that Remus received a notification on the vox.
"Captain, Remus." Veres spoke quietly, but underneath it was a tone of—it sounded like urgency? "The nobles are dead. They were slaughtered and left to rot in their rooms." Remus felt his blood chill. "There are Chaos marks made out of the noble's blood covering the walls. The archenemy is here."
Remus cursed. Chaos was here, which meant that things just got a lot more complicated. At best, the Inquisition would need to purify this hive. At worst, this could turn into a full scale war. They needed to end this now.
Remus opened a Vox channel to Battle-group Bravo, speaking quickly. "The archenemy is here, brothers. Be on your guard." There were clicks and signals of confirmation, and Remus could see a few of his battle-brothers tighten their grips on their weapons.
Much more carefully now, Remus and the other Astartes snuck their way above the command post. The Command post was positioned deeper in the hive, at the bottom of a large chasm. Fifth squad had positioned themselves on a bridge directly above the command post, which would allow them to rain covering fire down below. Second accompanied Remus onto the chasm floor, so that they may directly assault the fortified structures. Hiding behind debris and storage boxes, they all awaited his signal.
The light flashed green. Bolter fire erupted from up above, scything down some of the sentries that stood upon a low wall. That low wall was the only object in their way, and it was quite ramshackle as well. All it would take would be one strong force, something heavy and moving quite quickly, to break through the wall.
The defenders of the command post had dove for cover when death was unleashed from above, but this exposed them to a different threat. As some of the rebels began to return fire, the wall exploded. A towering figure in blue and gold slammed through the wall, brandishing a roaring chainsword and glowing plasma pistol.
Lieutenant Remus slammed the chainsword into one of the defenders, tearing him apart. With his other hand, he fires the plasma pistol at the sole las-cannon emplacement. Caught by surprise, the rebels crewing the gun died in a blue explosion. Bolter fire erupted from behind as the Second squad joined the fray, sealing the coffin shut for the defenders.
Just as quickly as it began, the battle was over. While the interior of the building still had rebels, the defenses outside had been pacified. Remus sent a quick vox message to the Captain, and received the order to continue.
The three buildings were laid out in a rough U Pattern, so he sent half of the second squad to clear the two small buildings while the Fifth squad regrouped with them. With a few well placed bolts, the buildings were clear. Fifth squad, led by Veteran Sergeant Maximus Rubean, entered the compound through the hole Remus had "created". While the codex didn't specifically say to smash through shoddy made walls, there were quite a few tactics about two pronged assaults in there. Remus had always been one for a little "improvisation", after all. With Himself at the front of the formation, Battle-group Bravo readied themselves for the coming battle in the main command post.
Remus shattered the door with a well placed kick, but was received with silence. The command room was empty, completely still. As he stalked into the room, wary of traps, he found nothing. The rest of the battle-group filed in after him, weapons held at the ready. The twenty space-marines searched the room, and it wasn't until Sergeant Calistus of Second Squad called out to him that they finally found something.
"Lieutenant!" Calistus called out to him, drawing Remus' attention. "This bookcase is very out of place, isn't it?" He was right. Why, in the bottom of a rusty hive, would there be an ornate wooden bookcase. Furthermore, it held no actual books. Remus signaled the sergeant to move the bookcase, revealing a dark staircase. His helmet automatically corrected for the lack of light, but he could still only see a dozen feet or so. Remus looked to his battle-brothers, and signaled for them to follow him.
As the group of marines descended the staircase, Remus quickly noticed an oddity. Originally a rusty metal and grate, the stairs had changed to become made of stone, and the walls of bricks. Remus tried to contact Battle-groups Alpha or Charlie over the vox, but he received no response. Something was definitely jamming their signals. After what felt like hours, but his chronometer only showed a couple of minutes, they arrived at the end of the staircase.
It opened up into a small stone room, with a wooden gate on the other side of the wall. Blue light flickered between the cracks in the wood, which caused a chill to run up his spine. That wasn't what brought a scowl to the normally smiling lieutenant's face, though. No, it was the stone engraving on the floor of the room. The symbol of Tzeentch, Chaos god of lies and trickery, had been engraved into the floor. Surrounding it were runes that caused small bouts of pain behind his eyes when he looked at them. This was bad, but it could be destroyed when the hive was saved.
A loud creak echoed throughout the room. Remus turned his attention, and found that door had opened slightly. It wasn't enough to see through, but it was enough for sound to get through. Chanting. Remus heard chanting, and he felt his face pale. A ritual–these cultists were attempting some sort of ritual.
"Brothers, the archenemy is here. If we are to save these people, we must stop them from completing this ritual. Courage and Honor, brothers. We cannot fail here." Remus's quick speech completed, he prepared himself for what lay beyond the door.
He wasn't ready.
Captain Philian fired his bolt pistol with an accuracy on another Astartes could match. Shot after shot found themselves buried in a rebel's body, but the killing brought him no joy. How could it, when these should have been loyal subjects of the Imperium? Now chaos had wrapped its tendrils around this world, corrupting the people.
He casually parried the knife of a rebel with his power sword, before bringing the sword down, and killing the man instantly. He could do his best to kill them instantly, he supposed. Another shoot, and another slash, another dead. Battle-group Alpha had definitely done their job in attracting much of the hive's attention.
Despite his repeated attempts, Philian couldn't reach anyone in Battle-group Bravo or Charlie. It had started when Lieutenant Veres had alerted them about the presence of chaos, and had only gotten worse. Only local Vox signals could be transferred or received, but Philian didn't think that it was being caused by an ordinary jammer. He suspected that the warp was involved in some way.
The assaults on the twenty space marines stopped abruptly. It almost caught them off guard, with only their meticulous training in the ways of the Codex saving them. A crowd of rebels had formed at the end of the large bridge, which is where Battle-group Alpha had entrenched themselves.
Hundreds of corpses littered the bridge, all belonging to the rebels. Not a single marine had fallen, with the worst damage being some chipped paint. Despite this victory, an uncomfortable weight had settled in Philian's stomach. Something had stopped the Rebels from there suicidal charges.
That something quickly became a someone. The sea of rebels parted to reveal another space marine. Instead of the regal blue armor and gold trim of the Ultramarines, these astartes wore twisted and spike plates. He wore no helmet, and his face was crossed with eldritch symbols. His armor was a crimson red trimmed in silver, and Philian didn't even have to see the symbol on his left pauldron to know which legion this chaos marine belonged to. The Word Bearers were here.
"Cousins!" The Word Bearer said with a joyous smile. Philian knew what hid underneath that false grin. "It's so nice of you to join us for this grand celebration. When we sent out that message, I definitely wasn't expecting the Ultramarines to show up." The excitement in his voice was almost infectious. "I'm getting ahead of myself, aren't I? I should have introduced myself first. I am the Dark Apostle Phur Thoras, and I am indeed responsible for this little rebellion."
"You sent out that astropathic call?" Captain Philian's voice was a mix of surprise and utter hatred. The rivalry between the Ultramarines and the Word Bearers stretched back thousands of years, even before the treachery at Calth.
"Indeed I did. Surprising, isn't it? That your sworn enemy would send for you? Our guests needed a proper welcome, you see." Guests? Captain Philian knew from horrific experience that it meant nothing good.
"And who might these guests be?" He couldn't keep the growl from mixing in at the end.
"I'm afraid I can't answer that yet, but they are very much looking forward to meeting you. I am a bit sad that I can't tell you who, so I will instead give you this little morsel." The grin shifted into a smirk, and it only increased the amount of rage felt by the Captain. "I came to this world alone, and brought it into rebellion alone. I corrupted the nobility, and inspired these people to rebel. The governor and his staff are my sway as well, but the PDF remains pure. Hive Tempus is also firmly in Imperial Hands. That should be a good staging ground for you."
"Why, in all that is sacred in this damned Galaxy, are you telling me this?" Philian wasn't able to keep the shock out of his voice. The Word Bearer's smirk fell, replaced by a pained expression.
"Unlike many of my brothers, I don't truly hate you. You have been tricked by a false god, and used as his puppets. Don't you worry, cousins. I am certain that our guests should be able to enlighten you."
Lieutenant Veres carefully stepped around the corpse of a noble woman. Her throat had been slit so to form an eight-pointed star, her blood coating the once fine carpet. The entire hall was full of such bodies, nobles and servants alike. The stench of blood even managed to slip through the filters in his helmet, but he didn't let it affect him.
In a curt motion, he signaled the Third squad to follow him. Sixth Squad had already split off into groups of two marines, searching for anything useful. A sudden ping on his vox dragged his attention to one of the side rooms off the main hall. It appeared that something had been found.
As Veres entered the room, he simply scanned the room up and down. There were a few corpses in the room, but that was to be expected. It was the symbol engraved into the far wall that was problematic. A golden , speckled in blood sat on the wall. Eight sharp points emerged out of it, and upon each one there was a human skull. They had been impaled by the jaws, so it looked like they were permanently screaming. If Veres didn't know any better, he would have to say that it looked like someone had made a corrupted version of the Ultramarines symbol.
Another ping on the vox, but this time it brought up an image. It was the symbol of Tzeentch with a sword impaled through the circle. There were more images, each one seeming to be some variant of the old Loyalist legions symbols. Veres saw a black fist clutching the symbol of Khorne, and he saw an Iron Hand with three rusted holes in its center. Another image showed the purple symbol of Slaanesh holding a bloody tear, with two white wings stretching wide. There was a jagged red lighting bolt surrounded by six red spikes; and another showed the symbol of a wolf's head with an eight pointed star inlaid in it. A dark looking dragon head was shown in another, but it was the last one that brought an odd shiver to Veres' spine. It was the symbol of the Ravenguard, but with a small eight pointed star in the place of the raven's eye.
Veres had always tried to be cold and calculating, especially after Espandor. He hated thinking about those cursed months, as they tried desperately to hold back the tide of chaos. Astartes were made to be the spearhead, to strike at the important locations while the Guard slammed into the enemy proper. But despite it, he couldn't get rid of the feeling that something was terribly wrong.
It was in the back of his head, whispering to him. Veres wasn't a fool, and immediately raised his mental walls. With the amount of warp energy in this place, he'd be an idiot to not be carefull of corruption.
Veres…Veres Tibean…Lieutenant…Ultramarine.
Veres quickly instructed the two sergeants to command on their own, while he discreetly tried to deal with whatever afflicted him. He silenced the starts of protests with a glare, and the two went off to continue the search. A memory had bubbled to the surface of his mind, one he had tried so very hard to repress.
Veres stood alone, surrounded by the corpses of his battle brothers. Each of them had slain many enemies in turn, but they had all been brought down in the end. Except for him. Veres stood alone, holding a shattered knife in one hand. It had served him well. It would not be enough to stop what stood in front of him.
An enormous marine, bloated and rotting, stood chuckling at him. Its scythe was wet with the blood of Ultramarines, but the only thing he could see was the horned helmet the monster wore. In one last desperate bid, Veres rushed the plague marine with a broken knife as his sole weapon. The marine burst out laughing, but it stopped laughing as Veres drove his knife through its visor. He channeled all his anger, all his rage at the deaths that had befallen his brothers. He channeled his disgust at seeing the marine, at how its scythe used a spine as the pole. The knife struck true, and with a great clap of power, exploded. The plague marine was incarcerated in an explosion of warp-fire, fueled by the burning emotions of a lone ultramarine.
Veres hadn't ever told anyone about that day, merely that he had managed to fight off the hordes of Nurgle demons and death guard. He had been the lone survivor of his squad, which wasn't entirely uncommon during the plague wars. He certainly hadn't ever told anyone of the fact that he was definitely a psyker. It was why he tried to approach everything with cold, hard, logic.
Veres…They are coming. You Must stop them.
Stop who? Veres called out to the voice.
Those who should have been loyal. Those I failed.
Remus stood with his weapons lowered, but still ready to engage at any instance. Battle-Group Bravo fanned out behind him, forming a loose U around the walls of the chamber. Each one of them had their weapons in a similar position to him, but he could feel their nerves. This place, big enough to fit a small titan, was horrifically wrong.
The room was circular in nature, with a dome that mimicked the night sky as the ceiling. White and gray marble covered the floors, with an almost mirror-like shine. Pillars circled around the room, a silver brazier with blue fire in front of each one. Glowing blue runes floating in the air, each one causing a stab of pain in Remus' mind. The center of the room had the largest brazier, with a massive pillar of blue and pink flames stretching to the ceiling. Nine figures floating around the flames, a couple dressed in the outfits of tzeentch cultists, while others wore the military uniforms of rebel officers. Each one of them chanted robotically, like their mouths were being moved for them.
In front of the central brazier, facing them, was a solitary Space marine. His armor was a dark green, with a silver trim. The trim twisted in places, growing spikes or–somehow inverting itself. It made no sense, but that was the nature of chaos. The chaos marine wore a white cloth over most of his armor, but Remus could see the glowing blue runes under the robes. There was a sword, and he could have sworn he heard whispering when he looked at it, sheathed to the traitor's hip. The marine also had a long staff in his left hand, with the horrible symbol of Tzeentch topping it. The symbol of the Warp God of lies and trickery could also be seen in various places on his armor, including his right pauldron. It was that mark on his left pauldron that worried Remus the most. Shrouded with warp magic, he could make out the symbol of the Dark Angels.
"Who are you?" Remus asked the Dark Angel, his voice riddled with shock. There was something very, very wrong about this. When the marine spoke, it was deep and noble–not anything like the corrupted growls he had been expecting.
"I am Captain Sabriel Balthasail, servant of my Lord Lion." Sabriel's voice echoed off the walls, creating a horrific effect that shouldn't have been possible. He reached up with his right hand, and pulled off his helmet. Remus heard the sharp draw of breaths amongst his squads, and he would be lying if he didn't feel the same. The Tzeentchian was oddly uncorrupted, his face displaying the noble features of his geneseed–save for his eyes. The pupils had become sharp slits, with his iris glowing in a kaleidoscope of colors. Remus recalled an old saying he heard once. The eyes are the gateways to the soul. This marine's soul must have glowed with the corruption of Tzeentch.
Remus shook his head, sending out a vox signal to his squad. Fire. Yet nothing happened, and a turn of his head revealed why. Each of the ultramarines was frozen, fingers moving slower than molasse.
"Come now, Remus Aethon, son of Talas and Raycheal Aethon, Lieutenant of the Ultramarines Fifth Company. Show me that Ultramarine Courage." Sabriel was goading him, but Remus was left with no other choice. The Sorcerer needed to be stopped.
Remus opened fire with his plasma pistol, but Sabriel simply countered it with a wave of his hand. The plasma ball simply hung in the air, unable to even detonate. Remus tried to close the distance, but when he swung his chainsword he hit empty air. The bastard had teleported. His laugh echoed around the room, and Remus felt the staff slam into his back. He stumbled forwards, energy crackling around the area of impact. He could feel it burn him through his armor.
Remus spun, managing to catch the staff with chainsword. He yanked with all his might, ripping it out of Saberiel's hands. He flung it across the room, but the Dark Angel Captain simply let out that horrid laugh. He raised his hand, and through psychic power, the staff came flying back to him.
What Saberiel wasn't expecting was for Remus to fire his plasma pistol at point blank. The ball of plasma plunged into the chaos marine's stomach, resulting in a massive explosion. Remus was thrown backwards, but he rolled and managed to surge back to his feet. Saberiel, on other hand, had not done so well.
Melted armor fused with the traitor's bones, and to his disgust, he could flesh twist and writhe as if it had a mind of its own. Saberiel didn't move. Remus let out the breath he had been holding, and looked towards the rest of Battle-group Alpha. Now free of the spell, they could move normally. Sergeant Callistus approached him, even with his helmet on Remus could feel his worry.
"Lieutenant, what was that?"
"I…don't know." Remus was honestly baffled. Not only was this a traitorish Dark Angel, but the fact that he had beaten Saberiel so easily didn't sit easy. He looked back to the dead chaos marine, and felt his heart stop. The body was gone.
"Y-ou fools…" Saberiels voice echoed with a laugh, despite the injuries he had taken. The voice drew Remus' attention to the central brazier. There lay Saberiel, his eyes alight with blue fire.
"No…" Remus heard Callistus murmur.
"You thou-ght that you w-on?" Saberiel barked a harsh laugh, one that quickly turned into a fit of coughing. Remus felt his legs begin to move, but he was running in slow motion. "Th-is was all par-t of the plan…" As Saberiel died, Remus felt something shift. The body of the Dark Angel seemed to dissolve into blue fire, which swirled in the air.
The nine floating bodies, which hadn't stopped chanting, suddenly exploded with volume. The chanting got louder and louder, crescendoing in a horrible symphony. One by one, each of them burst into blue and pink flames, swirling around the pillar. Deep in his gut, Remus could feel the horrific buildup of warp energy.
Captain Philian could feel the tremors race through the hive, and he instinctively knew that something was wrong. Rubble and the occasional person fell from above, as bridges shook and walls crumbled. Even worse, Philian swore he could see blue runes in the corners of his vision, but they disappeared if he focused on it.
Phur Thoras was howling with laughter, despite the carnage surrounding him. He noticed Philian approaching him, and spoke with pure joy. "There's nothing you can do, Cousin! The ritual is completed–they'll be here soon!" Philian scowled, and raised his power sword.
"I can still kill you." Captain Philian growled, lunging at the dark acolyte. Phur barely blocked it with his accursed Crozius, but he managed to escape the strike unharmed. Again, and again, their weapons clashed. Again and again, Phur laughed and Philian swore oaths.
As the air became more saturated with the warp, ideals began to manifest. For in the sea of souls, all thoughts and ideas became reality. The dark acolyte surged with fell power, the very idea of corruption wrapping itself around him.
The warp wrapped itself around Philian as well, but unlike Phur, the energy had a faint golden light attached to it. The Emperor's Angels had come to this world, to save it from its descent into hell. Now these ideas became reality, and a pair of golden wings emerged from Philian's back.
In the collapsing hive, the angel dove towards the monster.
Veres could feel it. It was in the back of his head, a mind-splitting headache the likes he had never felt before. He could see blue and pink runes float in the air, each one only adding to his pain. He could feel the floor shake, and the symbols on the walls started to pulse with energy. To his mounting horror, Veres could see the Chaotic Omega shine with a horrible inverted energy.
Veres–you cannot let them take this world! The others, those you will hate, they will assist you. You need to put aside your hatreds, and stop the enemy. The Unholy Union mustn't gain a foothold here–at any cost!
Veres felt power crackle alongside his arm, collecting in his palm. Unlike the blue and pink runes, or the fell light of the altars, this light glowed a soft gold. He felt power, beyond his mind and unlike anything he had ever felt before, flooded into reality. Far away, past the walls of the hive and the empty abyss of space, Veres could see a light pulse with holy light. It was reaching out to him, lending him its strength.
"Emperor, protect us." Veres whispered, and he felt a distant light acknowledge him. The light was so far away, yet despite the barriers of realities the light shined regardless. He raised his hand, and with a final prayer, let the energy out.
High in orbit, Veteran Sergeant Diamius looked out the viewing port with mounting horror. It is said that Space marines can't feel fear, but the growing pillar of light emerging from Hive Pyras had him worried. It seemed to mess with their screens, forcing the bridge crew to look at windows in order to see the destruction.
Diamius could see the hive crumble, piece by piece. Spires tumbled and crashed, and chasms seemed to form in the ground. They had already sent an astropathic message out, calling for aid, but it would be too late. One the bridge crew cried out, and Daimius managed to turn in time to see the entire hive explode. It erupted with warp energy, creating a vortex of power unlike anything he had ever seen. Blue and pink energy surged around the wound in reality, but the show wasn't over yet.
It was heralded by a small flash of light, and then everything was gone. For a split second, Diamius seemed to be in a space in-between spaces, and then with a wave of golden light he was back aboard the Wings of Ultramar.
"Status report, now!" He shouted, instilling a little order back into the distraught crew. He turned to look at the hive, and saw something he hadn't been expecting at all. Hive Pyras had returned, but even from orbit he could see the marks of war upon it.
"My lord, all systems are operational!" That was good. If the ship had been damaged–well, it would have been very bad.
"My Lord…all lifesigns of 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th squads are tracking to be aboard this ship." What? "Lord, the Upper Port Bay is reporting that six squads of space marines have appeared there, and are all unconscious."
"Lord, we are picking up the signals of multiple other ships, including some identifying as astartes strike cruisers."
"My Lord, we are being hailed by both Hive Tempus and the Strike Cruiser…The Warmaster's Wrath?"
Diamius rubbed the bridge of his nose, and groaned internally. It was a shame Astartes couldn't get drunk.