pllAN: It's been a while, and I apologize for that. Real life and all that...At any rate, what did you have to say? 'Captain Titus Invictus,' You'll see. 'frankieu,' Wrong Legion. 'SPARTAN-626,' Dead on for the Legion, as for the rest you'll see. 'sonic3461,' that's a creative decision on my part, otherwise the fights would be even more one sided. Let's dive in, and see if I still can entertain with this.
Speech
Thoughts
Radio/machine speech/scene change
The Wolf HOWLS
Thessian Orbit: Ten Minutes ago
The Ork fleet had complete dominance over the space around the Asari home world, not even a stealth shuttle could leave without the Greenskins allowing it. They used this superiority to bring more and more of their kind down to the surface. As well as remove captives and loot from the world for shipment back to their territory.
They had also contributed firepower to the ground assault, and as such it was blatantly obvious that without the warships the Orks would never have gotten this far. And it was this armada that prevented covert insertion of new armies via webway gates. Sure the Imperium COULD have sent in millions of war droids every second or so, but without orbital supremacy the invaders could just bomb them out of existence.
There had been a few inventive ideas to change this, such as creating a teleportation device to drop in warheads meant to clear the orbit, but any bombs able to do so would damage Thessia so it was out of the question. Another option was to send engineer ships to systems nearby, and assemble multiple fleets of drone ships, but it was decided to keep that ability under wraps instead.
So a more conventional plan was adopted, a full out assault on the Ork positions. Hundreds of thousands of automated ships, carrying trillions of Trooper war droids and Geara Zulu Mk II under AI control. Beyond that organic forces were deployed with them, a full three hundred thousand marines and other branches along with naval personnel aboard partially manned capital ships.
The main strength of the punch though was three full Legions who had been deployed as the tip of the spear, the Dark Angels, Iron Warriors, and Luna Wolves to be exact. Their combined force was expected to shatter the line and allow the follow up forces to overrun the disorganized forces the Legionaries leave in their wake.
The assault had begun five hours ago. With the three Legions punching through the Ork lines and pushing on to system after system, destroying everything in orbit in the system they arrived in, then moving on. On the left flank was the Dark Angels. On the right flank of the thrust were the Iron Warriors. And dead center pushing on Thessia was the Luna Wolves.
And now they had arrived. The Luna Wolf force numbered fifty ships strong, a pathetic number compared to the tens of thousands of Ork ships. But more is not necessarily better. The ships of the Legion were equipped with the best technology the Empire could provide them, shields that shrugged of the combined fire of the Ork ships…Guns that destroyed any Ork vessel with a single shot, no matter how powerful or large the ship targeted was…and fighters and MS that ran circles around the Orkoid craft.
The greenskins didn't have a snowball's chance in hell. Sure they tried, but they couldn't beat this technological gap. Even with reinforcements pouring in to try and halt the Imperial assault, it was just more ships for the Legionaries to destroy. Something they did with GREAT alacrity and enthusiasm. After all, the Luna Wolves of the past, before the Heresy, were known as Ork hunters, there was a bit of a reputation to live up to.
Once orbit was secured, the Legionaries deployed ground side en masse, they had an infestation to purge.
After the Wolves land: Sheppard:
The lieutenant was certainly surprised to see the Legionaries here. He had expected this battle to be his last. The Orks had pushed the Imperial forces to the brink of utter annihilation, as well as their allies. Textbook last stand scenario, variant 2 B if he remembered right. The usual outcome of such was the utter annihilation of all friendly forces.
But now, with the arrival of the Wolves? It was a battle. A winnable battle at that. He looked at the rest of those by him, the rest of the ODST with him were taking a breather, to them the arrival of the Legionaries was welcome, but not surprising…But the reaction of the Asari was comical to him. The few helmetless ones were staring slack jawed as the Terminators cut their way down the stairs from the temple.
He sat down on an Ork corpse and popped his helmet, Ork snipers weren't a concern any more with the demi god like Astartes on the field. "Take five people. We'll see if the Legionaries have need of us after this, though I doubt it."
The Imperial Soldiers sat down or leaned back, setting in for a brief rest. The Asari also did so, but they seemed dazed. Shepard noted Tsoni sat next to him as he pulled out an Ihlo stick, and lit it. She seemed deep in thought: "Throne for your thoughts T'soni?"
"Is this how every engagement for you Imperials are? Desperate holding actions, and then victory as soon as you get reinforced?" The young Asari asked, sounding shaken and drained from the battle.
Michael sighed, and let out a puff of smoke: "Hell, I've had my share of those last stands…and been on the speartip of crushing offensives…So no, this is hardly standard for our modern military. For what we used to be before unification? When it was the Imperial Guard? Yeah. This would be considered a bad Tuesday for them."
Liara gave him a look of disbelief: "Shepard, we lost billions of our people here. I doubt that would be possible. No battle has ever claimed so many lives."
Shepard didn't blame her for that, the Citadel was still naive about war. Well…Best to learn from the histories: "Look up the Siege of Vraks and the First Battle of Terra in your spare time, I think you'll be surprised…Or look up the Battle of Kursk, that was the largest tank battle in all of history."
The young Asari nodded: "I will. It should be educational if nothing else." And as these two talked, the battle lines advanced further.
Brother Sergeant Rathius: Front Lines
The Legionary stormed down the streets of Thessia's capital, smirking beneath his helmet. Sure these Orks were on average bigger than a regular Ork, but they used the same shit tech and tactics as what he fought when he was a member of the Emperor's Warbringers Chapter. A point punctuated when a burst of 1.50 caliber bolter rounds tore a nob and his squad to pieces.
The fire from the members of the Luna Wolves was pinpoint accurate, scything through vulnerable points in the Orkoid personal armor, such as visors, to allow them to end the battle quickly and brutally. With their overwhelming firepower, the Orks attempted to close the distance, and died in droves. Each pull of the trigger sent Bolt shells, Plasma, Melta, Volkite, or Las rounds into an Ork's head or an instantaneously fatal wound.
But despite the hail of fire cutting down everything, the Orks still were getting closer. Fine by him. "Chainswords Brothers." The Legionary called as he drew his own. The Imperial Chainsword was a new beast, mono-molecular teeth made of adamantium-Gundanium hybrid alloy, power field, and an engine that out performed the older models by a large margin.
Something the Orks found out to their cost when the Legionaries weaved around and cut through them with ease. The veteran Legionary laughed as he bisected an Ork, then spun and cut ten Orks heads off with a single swing. This was easy.
"Onwards Brothers! We will purge the vile greenskin filth from this world!" The Luna Wolves pressed on, a war cry springing from their lips: "Lupercal!"
The roar of that war cry caused the Orks to instinctively flinch back, making them even easier targets. Rathius almost pitied the Orks…Almost. But they were what they were made as, biological weapons to fight the Necrons…They had been successful beyond their makers wildest dreams...But now their age was over.
As he moved forward he saw a nob crawling away, blood oozing from his wounds. He had been lucky…Or unlucky…No matter. He stomped over to the Nob, and without breaking stride double tapped it in the head, exploding it in a bloody mess.
A rumbling of tank tracks was heard. Ten Ork Heavies rolled into view, spewing their dakka. The Legionaries weaved around the fire from the colossal tanks, and returned fire as best they could…Which was a storm of return fire. But even so their infantry grade weapons did little more than annoy the tanks.
Just as Rathius was going to order a withdraw to ambush positions to create heavier weapons, the lead Ork heavy detonated. A single railgun shell gutting it. Causing the ammunition to detonate in a loud explosion. A single Leo I F type rolled around the corner, the tank's barrel smoking.
A short but intense tank duel happened between the nine remaining heavy tanks and the Leo. The Ork weight of fire slowly whittling away at the shields…But every railgun round destroyed a tank. So in nine seconds the street was quiet again…Well, as quiet as could be in a city at war. And thus the Legionaries pushed on.
Citadel: Spectre Agent Saren
Saren was not a happy Turian. He had the unfortunate job of reporting the state of Thessia as of his last observation trip twenty four hours ago. In short, the situation was FUBAR as the Imperials say. The Orks STILL had complete orbital dominance. Had penetrated the walls of the capital, and were involved in close quarters fighting. By now he expected the Planet to be on the brink if not already fallen.
There was a question niggling the back of his mind as he reported in…Why hadn't the Orks simply slagged the planet and moved on? They had proven they didn't mind slagging worlds if it delayed them, the trail of broken worlds leading to Thessia proved that. And yet…they didn't. Thessia still was fighting, for what must have been an intolerable period of time to the Greenskin plans.
As he wrapped up the report, he looked at the faces of the councilors. They were as he expected. Tevos was torn between pride and sorrow, not like her people pulled the bulk of the weight in the battle but at least they fought.
Valeran, the newest councilor, was scheming it seemed. Or he had eaten something sour. It was hard to tell sometimes. But he was probably scheming, despite being bad at it. At the present the Salarians were basically out of the War despite kicking the Orks out of their territory…well, having the Imperials do it. So there really was nothing that could be done to improve their position by interfering in the battle of Thessia practically.
As for Sparatus…Well…At least his own race's councilor seemed to be working out what to do WHEN Thessia fell inevitably fell. Granted, the Imperials COULD do something, but the Spectre doubted it. They seemed to have been dragging their feet. True, they had the issue of their western border that was apparently under attack, but they could have sent at least a few more ships.
Before the Council could say anything, Udina burst in with a smug grin. When the Councilors rebuked him and demanded why he had entered their private chambers, the human had replied with but a single sentence: "Thessia has been relieved."
Dead silence met that declaration. Silence that the Human Ambassador was more than happy to fill: "Approximately two hours ago, the counter attack on the Asari front began, spearheaded by the Luna Wolves Legion. As of the last half an hour, the Ork forces in orbit have been annihilated, and Legionaries have landed on the planet. Within the hour I expect that the Orks will be gone."
Saren was impressed to put it bluntly. Such overwhelming power…He waited to be dismissed by the council…he had work to do.
Thessia: Warboss Gremaldious da Head Taka
Warboss Gremadious da Head Taka was not a happy Ork. He commanded the largest single force outside of da Generals. This should have been over by now. But it wasn't. The plasma using Gits were back. In force…Using armor that they had never encountered before.
Reports were coming in from all over the front. None of them good, except for the estimates of enemy forces…But even that was infuriating. The new force numbered possibly fifty thousand at most…and they were chewing through the over one hundred BILLION Orks planet side like they were all grots.
As an explosion rocked his command tent, he had had enough of this. He stomped out of his tent, powa armor whirring and groaning as the eight meter tall ork emerged. He surveyed the battlefield from his position, and was even more angry after seeing one of the last Gorkanoughts on the planet get destroyed by one of the plasma gits walkers.
He took a deep breath…then threw his head back...And roared: "WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGH!"
The most important word in the Ork vocabulary. A call to war. A call to stand up and fight. An order to stop being a pansy git and stand your ground. And so much more. The invocation of this, dare one call it such, sacred phrase by their Warboss stiffened the flagging Ork morale.
The Warboss shouted out a speech as he looked for the enemy spearhead: "You pansy gits trying ta run? I've neva been so ashamed ta be yer boss. Gork preserve me, dis koinda grot loike behaviour is unnacepteble. We'ze ORKS! We'ze made fer foighten AND winnin. And even if we doie, we STILL win, cause we had a foight WORTH the dieing. So come on ya gretchin lovin gits, put yer backs inta it, and show dose gits what ORKS are made of!"
As he roared that out, he spotted the enemy spearhead. A full company of Terminators, led by the Legate. A dark grin crossed the Warbosses' face as he boarded his kustom chinork with his bodyguards. The helicopter sped off, the purple paint hiding the transport until they were right over the column, and jumped.
The plasma gits reacted near instantly to the falling Orks…but it was too late. The eight to ten meter tall armored giants dropped on them and caused the ground to shake. The massive bulk of the greenskins allowed them to rip apart the Terminators with their bare hands, spreading Legionary blood and shattered ceremite over the battlefield as they tore into the Terminators.
But Gremaldious didn't care for these 'kannon fodda', even as he ripped a veteran of two centuries apart with a single dismissive toss, he was looking for one target, and one target alone. He grinned with glee as he saw his target kill one of his bodyguards with a single sword swing.
THERE was a fight worthy of him. And so he charged, crushing any who got in his way under his power armored gait. To his joy, the one he charged down was able to halt his charge. The lightning fast warrior hitting him repeatedly with his blade, digging deep into the Powa Armor. If he was a lesser Ork, his armor would have been ruptured by now, but his armor was two meters thick.
As such, he weathered the storm of blows with ease. Allowing him to counter attack multiple times. Each time was a closer call for the white armored figure. As the Ork was able to learn his speed of attack, reaction speed, movements, strength, blind spots, ect…all because of how 'ard he was.
And then the inevitable happened. The Terminator armored figure mistepped, and the massive Ork grabbed him. Granted the Ork was covered in minor wounds…but he had his prize…and slowly he squeezed…crushing armor in his grip, causing cracking and hisses to emerge from the armor…the pain would have been near unbearable.
But the Warboss had already decided, he would not crush the Legate to death…No, he had a much better idea…He just needed a gap in the armor to form. And when it did, he punched through and grabbed the Legionary's two hearts, and ripped them out.
The Legate lived long enough to stare at his still beating hearts being devoured by the Ork…and then the giant ripped his head off, and stuck the helmet on his boss pole.
A roar exited his lips that demoralized the Legionaries with the death of their Legate: "WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH! DESE GITS ARE NUFFING! IS THERE NO WORTHY CHALLENGA FER ME AMONG YA GITS?"
A Legionary stepped forward to oppose him…Wielding a Power Maul and a Lighting Claw/Power Fist combo. His Terminator armor painted red in smoke and carnage filled atmosphere of the planet. The Warboss was pleased with his mentality, and gestured for him to come.
Unknown Luna Wolves Terminator:
It had all been going so well, he reflected as he strode towards the massive Ork. The First Company had been scything through the Orks with ease, the normal Orkoid weapons were worthless against them after all, and artillery support as well as armored and air meant the Orks were on the verge of shattering.
Then this monster showed up. The Warboss. The biggest Ork on the planet. His orders had rallied the Ork lines, as well as his actions. The radio was full of chatter of units being pushed back by Orks. With Legatus Lancinius death command fell to the senior captain, Captain Germanius, but he was too far away to deal with this Ork.
So now he would have to stop holding back. Stop pretending to be a mere Legionarie as his Father and Mother told him to. And so he raised his power maul, and let out a snarling roar: "TERRA INVICTA!"
And then he brought down the maul. The Warboss contemptuously moved to block…only to have his arm be crushed. Gremaldius didn't have time to react to the destruction of his arm with more than a blink before he had to fend off more blows. The legionary was impossibly fast, and would not let up. Chaining maul strike into fist blow or claw rake to maul to claw, ect.
Of course, the Legionary didn't have it all his own way. The Warboss still managed to rip off his helmet. Revealing his face to the galaxy…And when he did, the Ork froze in instinctual fear. He took a step BACK, then another…
It gulped: "N-no…D-dis is impussible! Da Boss said youz died tousands of years ago! How are you still 'ere?!"
The Terminator chuckled: "I was dead…But I find as long as your filth plagues the universe, I fear I cannot rest easy in my grave. And so I have returned to lay my vengeance upon your kind, scum."
Any who studied Imperial history would know his face and form all too well…He had gone by many names…The Lord of the Sixteenth. The Cthonian. Dreadful Sagitarii. Warmaster. Lupercal. Horus, the Primarch of the XVIth Legion, walked the galaxy again it seemed.
Though there were some differences. His armor was thinner, much more so than the old Cataphractii type he used during the Heresy and Crusade. But because of this he was taller than how he used to be, at least six inches if not a foot taller. Another key difference to a sharp eyed observer would notice was that this one had pointier ears.
The Ork did not notice any of that though. He was petrified by his race's memories. Memories of when the living demi-god before him drove his species to the brink, and broke them upon Ullanor. The Warboss barely shook off this fear in time to deflect the grab for his head, but it was followed by a smash of the maul destroying his other arm.
That extracted a wail of pain from the Ork that was soul chilling. Imagine hearing the biggest, toughest, most dangerous creature on the face of the galaxy…crying out in pain. A being that had never known defeat or major injury. That thrived on the waging of war, and conquest.
It certainly shook his forces. But they were even more shaken when the Talon ripped the Ork's head off, and it was tossed into the center of their formation. Horus stood upon the dead body, and glared at the greenskins.
With a negligent thought, he activated his coms: "Legionaries of the Sixteenth, the Luna Wolves. This is Horus Lupercal the Second. Son of the Immortal God Emperor of Man, and his bride the Eldar Goddess Isha. I do not ask your obedience, for I have yet to earn it. I instead request this of you, rid me of these foul Greenskins."
The thunderous reply of gun fire and combat filled his ears, and he smiled. The war was far from over, but the battle was won.
Overall situation:
With Horus revealing himself, the battle irrevocably turned against the Orks. Their lines buckled and shattered as the reinvigorated Legionaries pushed forward with a ferocity unseen since the days of the Crusade. A ferocity backed by technology that outclassed their forebearers by hundreds of times over.
Block by block, street by street, district by district, city by city, the Orks were pushed back. Decimated. Eradicated. Purged from existence by righteous fury, and Imperial might. The Orks tried time and again to rally around lower nobs and bosses…but it was in vain.
Each rally just managed to make it so the Orks were destroyed that much sooner. As with more and more greenskins coming together into areas, it merely made them tempting targets for airstrikes, artillery, orbital strikes…Or just Legionaries with power blades.
Even so, the Orks would get one victory from this day…One lasting victory that would haunt the Empire in the near future.
Tek Boy Wazzog: Captured Database system
Wazzog was a specialist in Citadel Tekiology. He had cracked numerous systems before, but the archives here in the capital's primary governmental facility were beyond all the others he had encountered. It had taken hours to get to this part…and now there were reports of a counter invasion pushing back the Boyz.
So Wazzog prioritized. It would have been nice to have the whole archive, but he only needed two data points. The first being what was in the glowey statue da weird boyz had seen in da primary temple…The second being a primary world for these plasma using gits.
The first data point was easy…From what the blueies had discovered; it had some tech that was more advanced than the non-Aquila Industries ones. But there was data hinting at more…Sounded like the Kommandos would have to steal it later.
As for the other one…Well…the only one that fit the bill he could find in a hurry was called 'Armageddon'…For some reason he felt excited when he read that name. It felt like he was reading the name of a place long buried in his memories…A place of happy memories, and large WAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHS.
He sent the data off to the Big Boss…just in time too. A white armored figure walked in, and fired a single high explosive mass reaction round into his head, killing the Ork instantly. The Legionary looked at the data the Ork had been examining…And quickly sent a message off to command…They had to be warned.
Next Time: The Fourth War for Armageddon
Review please and thank you
Codexs:
Codex: Battle of Thessia Casualties
Imperial ODST:
750 KIA
200 Wounded
Legionaries:
100 KIA
100 Wounded
Asari:
10.25 Billion KIA
8 Billion wounded
Orks:
1 trillion dead
Codex: Legionary Armor
The MK XI is the latest armor to be developed for the Legions. Slimmer than the Mk X, it takes advantage of the newest technological innovations to make it all but invulnerable to damage. It's still in the testing phases, as all this extra power puts a huge strain on the Legionary inside. There have been multiple near deaths during testing.
Similarly Warlord class Terminator Armor and Destroyer pattern Dreadnoughts are being tested for similar reasons. Their gigantic increase in power over the older models is obviously a great boon, but until the Legionary inside can survive using them unharmed, they are shelved for further development.
Codex: Ullanor
Armageddon was once known by a different name…Ullanor. The sight of one of the greatest triumphs of the near mythical Great Crusade. Where the combined forces of the Imperial Army, multiple Titan Legions, Imperial Navy, Ultra Marines, White Scars, and Luna Wolves crushed the largest Ork Empire of the time.
It is a point of pride in the Imperium, despite the dark days that followed.
But there is another race that remembers Ullanor. The Greenskins. To them Ullanor is a myth. A legend. Their Valhalla in a way. Where an Ork can experience never ending war…and the site of their greatest defeat…It was believed a myth by the forces of Da Big Boss…Until now.
Now they know where it is…and they will come for it. Yarrick's nightmare will begin again.
Codex: Battle Medals awarded for Thessia
Imperial Awards:
Star of Terra: Thirty, posthumously, and one awarded to Sheppard for his actions over the long battle.
Imperial Medal of Valor: One thousand, total
Corona Civica: Awarded to the planet of Thessia as a whole, and one awarded to Liara T'soni of the Thirtieth Militia Regiment
Citadel Awards:
Galactic Unit Citation: 82nd ODST Regiment and the Garrison of Thessia
Palladum Star: Every combatant in the battle on the citadel side
Codex: Primarchs Gen 2
The natural born sons of the Emperor and Isha. The closest thing to living breathing minor gods of war that the Imperium has ever had. Each of them towered head and shoulders above their older 'brothers' in skill and power.
Magnus the Second in a pure psyker fight could beat his brother for example. Angron could decimate the entirety of the old Twenty One in close Quarters. And Guiliman wrote a better version of the Codex than his brother, the Index was alot more comprehensive and an actual living document, changing with technology.
But that is just the tip of the iceburg. As they were raised in the same household, knowing of each other from the day each sibling was born, there were less animosities and rivalries. This led to not only better relations between the brothers, but it would lead to a near flawless co-operation between the Legios.
The other major change is that the twenty one brothers weren't the end of it. The Emperor and his bride weren't done making children, and who could blame them, their children were perfect leaders. Powerful, wise, and able to learn at the feet of their parents. Also, the act of making children was enjoyable.