It was… difficult to say the least be began to formulate a plan that both sides would agree on they would only have at most 15 minutes TST to come up with something decent but Wilk decided to just get it over with their lives and the lives of everyone on Paxit were on their shoulders "eldar" he said it almost unnerved him how fast their head snapped to him from seeming to be talking to each other or just staring into space to almost glaring at him one of the Exarchs then said with venom in its voice "what is it Mon-Keigh?" Wilk knew what that meant and also knew he had misstepped "I do not mean any disrespect I merely wish to begin speaking of a plan we will need one if we wish to live through this" the Phoenix Lord shot his Exarch a look that immediately put said Exarch back into their place and then he spoke "this is understandable form now on if you wish to address us, you will address me and to do so you will call me Phoenix for I am not your lord, now this plan you speak of?" that… went better than Wilk had thought it would have no matter time to get down to business.
Placing a holographic of the 'Khornes skull bringer' in the center of the Thunder Eel between both parties and Wilk would then begin "our plan of attack should be simple as such we will have our one objective, kill Ghosk" Wilk said a line in royal blue showed the route "if Ghosk is truly as honorable or the proper term bloodthirsty as he claims and is thought to be then we should have a straight shot at him he is not patient enough to have us go through other obstacles once we make it to the bridge and kill Ghosk I predict the admirals of the Chaos Fleet will quickly begin fighting with each other allowing for our victory" the Phoenix Lord seemed to contemplate this before speaking.
Kelmun did not like this plan although the human did have a point maybe a simple and direct plan would work but it did not include some things he would have liked, commanding an army or a fleet means you needed symbols of authority, the massive and advanced capital ship of Ghosk would be a good target itself if they wanted to fracture the unity of the Chaos Fleet "while this plan has good merit it is to simple if we wish to fracture the Chaos Fleet we must do more than cutting off the snake's head lest two more rise to take it place" Kelmun said the humans seemed or at least four of them seemed to not take that well and all glared at him his Exarchs obviously took this as threat and before they knew it blades were almost drawn but a withering look from both himself and the human Wilk set them straight with Wilk saying "you fools we did not come here to clash blades with them save your talent for the heretics" the human would then look back to Kelmun to finish his sentence "you were saying Phoenix about the plan?".
Kelmun had also done the same to his Exarchs before he then responded "yes I believe if we destroy that accursed ship we will be able to achieve both our objectives kill Ghosk and fracture the Chaos Fleet" the human certainly looked interested "how would we do this and if I may ask what would you have us do?" Wilk asked it was something that given the reaction from both parties would be like setting off a bomb, Kelmun would have to approach this carefully "me and you" he pointed to wilk "will mae our way to the bridge meanwhile these Galaxia Warriors will make their way to where the Chaos choir is most likely here as it is appears to be one of the more well guarded areas besides the warp drive of course" a purple line would show the route for both Wilk and Kelmun himself while a royal blue would show the route for the Galaxia Warriors and a pink line for the Exarchs "my Exarchs will then make their way to the warpdrive with the High Farseer" he immediately felt worry from Kith bleed over to himself he unfortunately did have time to calm her worries so he continued "the Exarchs and the High Farseer will the overload the warpdrive setting it for destruction and with the Chaos Choir dead their will be no way for Ghosk to know on time but we will once it has been done me and you Warrior will withdraw" it was the best he could come up with he could only hope the humans would agree.
Wilk… did not hate this plan but he felt it was trying to do too much all at once plus what was the point of taking out the Chaos Choir? From what he knew they used Vox's like the rest of Humanity so trying to destroy the Choir would only put his Warriors in unnecessary risk plus dividing their forces while going deep within enemy territory was in his general opinion not smart and he felt… uncomfortable with leaving his Warriors to fend for themselves against a tidal wave of Heretics, he knew his Warriors were some of the best in the galaxy but he also knew their limits and it was his job to set them up for success not give them impossible odds and go 'well i'm sure you'll figure it out I believe in you' and so he would propose a new solution.
"While this plan has benefits it is too complex and I feel dividing our forces would not be wise as such-" "what would you know about wisdom Mon-Keigh?" one of the Exarchs had cut him off both he and the Phoenix Lord knew where this would be going however before Phoenix could shut the Exarch up "he would know more than you Archon" that was the finale straw and blades were immediately pulled from their sheathes and the two sides lunged at each other but they would never clash swords.
The eyes of Wilk Adrigin glowed a brilliant gold and runes carved into his armor by his own hands also radiated and pulsed a golden glow, his hands upon his greatsword 'The Fathers Will" hilt, the blade pointing to the floor, while on the other side Kelmun Yhath had his arms crossed and Kith had a hand on his shoulder, their eyes were also glowing a vibrant pink the ancient runes carved by the Phoenix Lords and High Farseers before them glowing brilliantly, the Exarchs and Warriors would begin to experience a massive headache that rapidly turned into a large migraine this would continue for 10 seconds before the power holding them in place would then fling them back into the walls of the Thunder Eel the Exarchs and Warriors would moan and groan in pain while Wilk and Kelmun would cease their use of the warp before turning to their entourages one last time to put this animosity aside.
Wilk would bare the look of disappointment on his face before he would he speak "I am thoroughly disappointed, you are all given the responsibility of protecting the meek the innocent and your comrades human or superhuman as well as to put aside personal feelings in order to fulfill those responsibilities instead you bicker with our as of now allies even after my explanation of who they are, in doing so you put all the lives of Paxit in danger by your childish actions" Wilk paused and looked over his Galaxia Warriors they all held shame on their faces "I implore you to hold yourselves to the standards you always have and to act like the Warriors I know you are is that understood?" Wilk loomed over them and then the Warrior Darail Magrian the one who had first pulled his blade spoke up "y-yes my lord we have failed it will not happen again" Darail and the rest of the Warriors would then stand up sheathing their blades as well, Wilk nodded and once again ceased his use of the warp turning back to the eldar who looked to also be finishing up being talked down by the Phoenix Lord.
Kelmun had just about had enough though given the relatively young age of the Exarchs and their lack of interaction with humans meant that anything the humans did that they did not understand could and would be perceived as an insult he had to make them understand that "you are all acting like fools any action by the humans you perceive as an insult we were both discussing a possible plan and as our as of now allies their input is invaluable" the Exarch named Vale Cyoc the one who had first insulted the humans then spoke up "but they are lowly humans we have thousands of years of experience what can they ever provide?" Kelmun was frustrated they clearly didn't respect his authority "if it is experience we are talking about then why are we any better than the other temples? they have more experience then us then why should our input matter at all in the sanctuary then? we do not provide nearly as much weapons, ships or skilled labor and manpower" the Exarch wanted to protest clearly but Kelmun cut her off "The truth is we are not but it makes us feel better if we think we are doing so makes your arrogance no less than the High Priests, now if you are done complaining your double standards have been duly noted, do not displease me again with another stunt like that, do you understand?" The Exarch looked upset but did not press the issue further only nodding and sheathing her sword the rest followed her example, content with this Kelmun turned around to the human already facing him prepared to finally iron out a plan
Wilk assessed what he had heard from the Phoenix Lord he had called his Exarch out on his double standard and his arrogance perhaps this one was different from the rest of his kind? This was a subject for another time though so he said "if we have finally dealt with our entourage's insubordination I believe we were in the middle of something" the Phoenix Lord then replied with "of course what was your proposal?" Wilk then pointed the holograph of the 'Khornes Skull Bringer' beginning with "as I said before the plan has merit but I feel as though attacking the Chaos Choir is pointless they don't use warp related communicate maybe with their daemon engines they do but other than that they have been confirmed to use the standard Vox so dividing our forces is also pointless and an unnecessary risk" Wilk finished his sentence and the Phoenix Lord considered what Wilk had said before saying "those are good points but what do you propose instead?".
Wilk would then smile before continuing his previous sentence "I propose that we combine the two strike forces for an attack on the warp drive with more troops the mission will have a much greater chance of succeeding I do not doubt the abilities of your Exarchs or my Warriors but i'm sure we both know they have limits" a royal blue and pink then showed the route the strike force would be taking while a purple line showed himself and the Phoenix Lord "after we complete our objectives we regroup at the hanger" pausing to look at his counterpart Wilk would then finish his monolog with "how does this sound to you?" .
Beneath his helmet Kelmun would let out a sigh of relief this plan while not what he had personally wanted did have its upsides and would only risk the human and himself, having the chance to succeed even if they themselves failed "I accept may the gods be with us" the human would then smile and nod before turning back to his Warriors to brief them of the plan Kelmun would do the same.
—-
They were going to touch down in less than a minute he was as prepared as he could be who knows maybe this will finally be the tipping maybe if he survives this he could provide his testimony to the Senate and pierce the corruption plaguing it or to the Master of the Galaxia himself on the Perpetual Council god that would a honor for himself and his mentor but Wilk could not concern himself with potential matters in the future he must focus on the now and that now was rapidly approaching his Galaxia Warriors and himself on one side and the Phoenix Lord with his Exarchs on the other they were prepared "T minus twenty seconds" the automated voice on the intercom spoke the ship shaking from them crossing the ships shields "T minus fifthteen seconds" it said he heard his Warriors praying to the Father and the Son "T minus ten seconds" behind him he could even hear the eldar muttering something and it also appeared as if the High Farseer had removed her hemet to say something no matter "T minus five seconds" this was it he would say a finale prayer before saying "may the Father bless you look out for you Warriors of Galaxia" his men nodded and the finale rumble of the touched down stopped the dooring opening.
The hanger itself was empty however that was expected as they had guessed the Ghosk was not a very patient monster and they all quickly approached the large entrance to the rest of the ship this placing their backs against the wall him and Phoenix peaked around the corner seeing nothing they quickly sprung into action with a finale confirming nod to their entourage they would go their separate ways the two of them going one way and the strike force going the other the two of them rushed through the horrifying halls of the 'Khorne skull bringer' it was a truly disgusting sight man, women and children alike were strewn up haphazardly on the walls and ceiling all with some form of mutilation from their guts being spilled to having their entire bodies looking to be folded in on themselves making their bodies bend and contort at unnatural angles however they all had one thing in common their heads were missing having appeared to have been ripped off with someones bear hands its was disturbing to say the least room after room they encountered no resistance with the amont of carnage quickly piling up so the gore on the ground reached past Wilks ankles and however they also soon came upon a large and long room with a table and large tapestries lining the walls they quickly switched to a stance of precaution this was most likely a trick.
Looking at each other they understood what to do and when to the opposite sides of the table clearing out the room before they moved on in order not to miss anything for a few tense minutes they both slowly walked up both sides of the room the ornate and decadent looking room felt like it should belong in a castle fit for a king not on the vessel of corruption and slaughter it was then they both reached the end of the room and both turned on their psychic abilities the illusion in the room quickly melted away like water and the clean room quickly became filled with blood up to Wilks ankles with the table becoming a large pile of bones and the tapestries became paintings of gore made up of intestines, hearts, brain matter, bones and even human eyes with a large figure the size of Wilk at the entrance.
"My my, don't we have quite the duo here?" the large figure said mockingly both Wilk and the Phoenix Lord quickly faced their opponent and charged not wasting anytime their psychic powers blazing like a bonfire the figure quickly readied a plasma warhammer and and swung with a force and speed that could send most Galaxia Warriors flying but Wilk with his gene enhancements being even greater than the Galaxia Warriors on account of his position of leadership he would dodge taking a step back the warhammer crushing the floor with a boom before taking on step forward swinging his greatsword with the force to rival a tank going at full speed but the figure would just deflect the blow with the hilt of its warhammer, another boom echoing throughout the room and the greatsword ended up lodging into the ground the figure then punched Wilk in the face however Wilk almost immediately recovered and swung back aiming for the sternum the blow would land a sickening crunch being heard throughout the room before Wilk would then land another punch to the figures face sending the figure staggering back however the figure would pull out a blade of some kind from thin air with his psychic powers 'sorcery' he thought Wilk immediately knew that the blade held a daemon inside manifested from the figures own will and sorcery, the runes of Khorne would glow brightly on the figure before faster than even he could process the figure would lung forward Wilk grabbing the hand the held the blade just in time he knew from what he was tought on titan that the blade would immediately go through his armor like butter if he didnt stop the blade.
They struggled for a second with the blade coming ever so close to Wilks neck before a choking sound would then come from the figure and blood would flow like a fountain from its helmet and the figure would collapse and Wilk would shove the body off of himself in disgust spotting Phoenix leaning against the wall cleaning his sword "took you long enough" Wilk said rubbing his head and picking up his greatsword 'Gods Will' along the way picking up the blade the figure had tried to use to kill him "if you must know I was looking for a weak point I have never faced such a disgusting opponent such as, well, that" Phoenix said and Wilk couldn't help but agree and although he would have liked more help Phoenix had saved his life so he could forgive him this once "I feel as if we should not stay long who knows what other horrors are out there?" Wilk said because on a ship like this he didn't want to stay in one place very long Phoenix would nod and said "if you also must know I would rather face the wrath of one of these monsters then my mothers wrath" they would both have laugh at that however he would then continue "and yes the sooner we kill that monster the sooner my people will be safe" Wilk looked at him and almost rolled his eyes before Phoenix would add on "and yours too I am not forgetting them" they both stared at each other before they decided to just continue on hopefully to where Ghosk was, the bridge.
—-
Ghosk watched as the two left the view of the hidden cameras he had set up sacrificing his admiral had been worth it he had seen a glimpse of how they fight and he could prepare for it the coward that was Wilk Adrigin always fought straight forward and would attempt to overpower his opponent and the Phoenix Lord looked for some weakness to exploit while the enemy was focused on Wilk they made for an unlikely duo and dangerous if not properly dealt with not only that but he also still had things to do in the wider system the Eldar were still a threat as they still had a fleet so he had sent 20 Destroyers, 8 Cruisers and 6 Capital ships in order to wipe them out his own Capital ship included in those numbers and he had also been informed about their little strike force it was no threat to him but he had ordered a little surprise not only that but he had staged the scene fir his battle with those two cowards "is the ritual still in effect?" ghosk asked? The sorcerer looked up at him and replied "yes my lord it has been however we have had to use some material from the engine for this endeavor" Ghosk only smiled to himself and he would let out a laugh this would truly be the start of his accent into greatness.
—-
Quickly moving down the Hallway Kith lead the strike force with speed and efficiency however they had been forced to slow down several times due to the changing layout of the ship with Chaos dominating the clairvoyance everywhere but in the small dome Kith had constantly focused on keeping the space around them from either just killing them outright or keeping themselves from being just snapped out of existence not to mention the two troublemakers the Warriors known as Darail Magrian and the Exarch Vale Cyoc although no altercation had broken out it was painfully obvious they were both glaring at each other and it looked like she would have to talk some more sense into them however they would then come upon a…
Well a massive room with them standing on a large walkway that kept them from falling what looked to be thousands of feet and on either side of the massive room there were large cylinder objects all with dozens of pipes or machinery attached to them and all would be stretching up to the roof and down into the abysse with doors facing the hallway however the most interesting this was the large runes on the cylinders she did not recognize any of them "this looks like the engine room to me" Darail said "and how do you know that human?" Vale said she looked very convinced of herself "simple eldar" he said pointing to a large red sign that said 'Engine Room' the Warriors would have a good laugh at that and the two would continue to bicker.
However Kith would then notice something another sign that said 'Sacrifice initiation' above a counsel attached to a large platform that held a crystal like object approaching it she would then speak "all of you open the doors on the cylinders one person to a door" they all immediately ceased talking and preformed their duty opening the doors a cacophony of wails and screams could be heard all of the Warriors and Exarchs looking down from them she felt their horror and disgust Darail would speak up first "their all people screaming and wailing hundreds of them" Darail said before backing up everyone else would do the same "this is an ship run on the blood of the sacrificed" Kith would state her disgust leaking through her carefully crafted facade of calm she was in reality almost shaking with rage "place the bombs we will leave this place immediately" she said they all got to work and were done within ten minutes all of them would then stand in a circle waiting on her orders as Kith placed the last explosive on the counsel she was then about to speak but she… sensed something it felt big but not like a large object but like a large amount of objects it was then that it hit her.
"AMBUSH" she cried out as a few dozen Chaos Warriors appeared at both ends of the walkway their only way out blocked and a storm of cold metal and bullets would rain down as the sought cover with only one Exarch dying a stray bullet smashing their helmet and killing them forever these however were due to their much greater speed and their intense connection to the warp allowed them some forewarning and also luck but the Warriors suffered greater losses two would be killed immediately their heads exploding in a shower of gore and their bodies filled with lead in the end the only cover they had was the machinery and the dozens of pipes that lined and came out of the cylinders Kith a Warrior and two Exarchs on one side and she could not see them due to the platform in the way but she knew due to the process of elimination, Darail and Vale were on the other side, sighing as she prayed to Morai-Heg that their fates were not one of endless bickering.
—-
Both Kelmun and the human had been running down this hallway for what felt like forever an endless amount of rooms and hallways was almost maddening and with the both of them not speaking a word to each other they were both well aware of the fact the Chaos dominated the clairvoyance and if they did not keep their wills strong through their psychic abilities they would mostly likely be killed these were the thoughts running through his head as they ran however then they had come across a pitch dark hallway the entire hallway looked to absorb any light from the pervious room they both stopped where they were neither of them wanted to go in their but checking the holomap this is where their route said to go and it was only a few rooms from Ghosk so they pressed on.
The hallway immediately filled with disembodied voices they actually seemed familiar almost like he had known them personally then a voice called out from the darkness "please son come closer'' wait was that "we miss you so much you father and I will always forgive you" it was his parents taking a few steps forward into the darkness he then shook himself and spoke sense to himself, 'no you fool' they weren't his parents they were just concepts plucked from his head and twisted for whatever hellish spell they had cast on this hallway but they sounded so close "why did you leave me" his fathers voice echoed not wanting to deal with this he turned to what was supposed to be the exit but when he turned not only was the door gone but the human had vanished as well 'gods dammit' Kelmun thought he needed to find a way out quickly however then he felt something touch his leg "you can't escape us" a dark voice said "your conscience will not allow it" something then touched his arm he swung his sword but it hit nothing "look upon your actions" the dark voice said as Kelmun found that the ground had vanished and he fell no for long though as a rainy rocky landscape quickly approached doing a falling roll he landed looking around he saw nothing but a nearly flat rocky landscape he also recongnised this place it was one of his first deploytments as an Exarch.
Watching this unfold the Warrior did not like what he saw he understood what he was seeing the memories of Phoenix not because it was so disturbing but because it his very close to home.
Having nothing to do and standing around was not going to do him any favors he walked for what felt hours he walked it was then however he came upon a crashed Aeldari transport it was badly damaged pieces strewn about haphazardly and exactly how he remembered with this confirmation he knew what lay ahead of him in a small ditch only twenty feet away laid the corpse of an Aeldari the visor smashed and its body covered in blood and contorted in multiple ways however despite this damage the body would still rise planting its two mangled feet in the dirt and rock it then looked at Kelmun with piercing purple eyes so dark they were almost black and it said "you left me here" the hate spilling from its voice was almost tangible "you will die one day alone, afraid and forgotten just like me" it said.
Smiling with a mouth full of crooked and broken teeth blood running like a river from its mouth as it spoke the being would then lung at him however the scene in front of Kelmun would then vanish and warp replaced with a bright room with in that cursed ship the human was standing in the dark hallway which was now just dark instead of being pitchblack "well it worked" Wilk said Kelmun held his head in his hand and walked over to the wall to lean against it before sitting down "what did?" he asked and Wilk would point to the runes he had inscribed on the walls "you had been trapped in a pocket dimension we had been traveling through a tear between ours and the pocket reality and you fell in" Wilk walked out of the hallway "in fact right now I think we are still in a pocket dimension in the warp it explains why we haven't come across any crew" Wilk then went to the other door that lead out of the room they were in and leaned against it beneath Wilks helmet his eyes were glowing with his psychic power and he sensed the whirlwind of emotions Phoenix was going through.
Kelmun did not raise his head as he was plagued with thoughts that he rather not have memories that he had long buried dragged up by a damned spell he could not afford to go into a life or death confrontation so conflicted "are you alright" Wilk asked standing on the other side of the room Kelmun was not alright but should he tell that to the human? after thinking about it he decided on "no I'm not but I must ask why do you care Warrior?" as a child Kelmun had always been taught that bottling up emotions never ended well but why did the human care? Wilk then responded "as a child I was never the strongest or the fastest I could make friends and manipulate others but that was about it however at home it was worse my parents spent almost all their time working for an organization that I later learned was working to overthrow the government and establish Paxit as an independent nation and they would spout this anti Freehold stances around me whenever they got the chance it only made me go against them in rebellion by joining the military, it was when I was fifthteen that the people rebelled with my parents as major figures in this rebellion and the Inquisition dispatched a newly formed Ordo to deal with it during this war I fought for the loyalists and would end up killing my own parents in a black ops mission and I met my mentor Dox Decane and he would take me as his student after finding me standing over my parents dead bodies".
Wilk finished his monolog and Kelmun understood the human had seen his own memories and their pasts were not so different after all "even if we have similar histories that does not mean I have to tell you what transpired" Kelmun said and Wilk walked over to him offering a hand "thats fine if you're not willing to share don't it is none of my business" and with that Kelmun took a deep breath and grabbed his hand pulling himself up and Wilk would say "lets go kill that monster" Kelmun would nod he may not be able to deal with it now but perhaps a trip to the dome of dreamers would help him finally face what had been plaguing him but first to kill Ghosk and with that they left the room and the cursed hallway behind.
—-
Both Darail and vale had been stuck hugging the engine for the past ten minutes TST occasionally firing back to keep the Chaos Warriors and militia back as not even they were stupid enough to walk single file along a small walkway into the concentrated fire of Orca rifles and Shuriken pistols and using their comms they could communicate with the others on the other side of the room and they had come up with a plan first they would use the Warriors smokes to keep the Chao forces off their backs then they would enter the chambers that contained of the soon to be sacrificed and seal the door inside there was a ladder built into the wall made for mechanics could it hold the weight of a Warriors and an Exarch? Well they would have to take that chance and once they reached the top there was a door that lead to the rafters from there they would find a way to escape preparing and making finale checks to their weapons Vale would then turn and click the big red button next to the door 'very ambiguous' Vale thought the wails and screams filling her ears she quickly muted the out noises leaving her comms on to communicate with that dreadful human known as Darail.
Such a dumb name no elegance no history just Darail the fact was there was no reason she should even grant this being the reward of talking to her in fact she should disconnect these comms now- "could you hurry up if not what are you waiting for the third coming of christ? Or shall I turn around and fight" Darail said annoyed and Vale rolled her eyes in response but she started climbing the rusted ladder as slick with blood 'most likely from a recent ritual' she concluded although her grav boots and gloves could easily keep her from falling "Exarch Vale come in over" that was the High Farseers voice! She then responded "this is vale over" and a second later the farseer responded "good us four have begun our climb you should reach the top before us so make sure the top is structurally sound over" the order was clear "yes over" but that was not enough "that is an order Exarch do you understand? Over" she then sighed before saying "yes High Farseer over" and the comm link cut.
"So" the human cut in "why the attitude with your boss?" Darail said and she could not help but be annoyed again, who was this human to question her? "If you must know she is not my boss as an Exarch the Phoenix Lord is and it is not like a commoner like her should be in her position maybe a warlock but no a Farseer" Vale said that might get through to the human make him understand" but the human didn't "hah sounds like you resent her quite a bit but why shouldn't you and your backwards logic look up to her for her skill?" Darail asked why this little- "I was born as the daughter of a lord and would have inherited his titles if not for the damned Drukari so I worked to regain a position of power and that lowborn commoner decided to usurp what should have been mine!" Vale was now angry just remembering her being passed over for both Phoenix Lord and High Farseer was driving her mad so mad she did not see one of the screws for coming loose and the bar she had been holding onto came out of its socket she fell quickly but just as quick Darail would react and catch her by the arm Vale quickly got over the shock "do not touch me" she said and Darail just nodded saying "you will owe me" Vale grimaced but just nodded and they continued to climb with Darail ahead and vale behind.
Getting to the door they would open it to the rafters and it was not pretty like below there were walkways that connected each cylinder and there were numerous pipes and cables that connected to whatever moving forward slowly testing the integrity of this place as it was clear it had not seen maintenance for a long time.
Looking down both the left and right of the walkway Darail would spot exactly what they were looking for a grate at the end of the room that lead to a large vent from there they could make it to anywhere on the ship with that figured out there was nothing more to do he began to think first about the current situation down below the Chaos forces were hopefully still stalled by the smoke and the rest of their group were hopefully almost here they could not tell due to the mysterious lack of communication but with the exit found they could hopefully leave this place while blowing up the engine with that out of the way he thought about his… acquaintance she was obviously a epitome of what he had imagined an Eldar to be arrogant, unreasonable, and just an all around bitch but the boss had told him to at least deal with it and so he would but still he had some questions yes these would goad the Eldar in attacking.
"Eldar" ge said to get her attention it worked as her head snapped to where he was standing "are you always willing to talk badly about your leader to the enemy" Darail said "are you saying i'm dishonorable?" the Eldar questioned back "I could be saying that it depends on how you interpret it" he replied back in an instant the Eldar was upon him with its blade drawn and at his neck like it could cut through his power armor hah "you attack an ally that is dishonorable of you" he said the Eldar merely brought the blade closer "I could make this act truly dishonorable in killing an ally" the Eldar said readying for a confrontation Darail drew his sword and just as they were going to swing the doors to a cylinder opened and out stepped the High Farseer and the rest of the strike force seeing what they were doing she glared and they both put down their weapons with the High Farseer then speaking "Vale move to open the grate you two help her" the farseer said pointing to the other two surviving Exarchs and also approaching Darail himself before speaking "don't think I didn't hear what happened its not coincidence that I interrupted you two" with that she turned and started walking to the grate the other surviving Warrior in tow before turning around and saying "you know if you truly wish to keep your head dont poke the bear she has quiet sharp claws" Darail knew what she was talking about and did not care he would get his fight his moment of glory.
—-
Kelmun and Wilk both approached a large entrance in the form of an archway that led into a large room, this room in particular had many windows that provided an amazing birds eye view of the Eldar Fleet being overwhelmed by Chaos however that was not what drew their attention.
In the center of the room was a large chair with a figure in sitting in said chair or more appropriately a throne both Kelmun and Wilk drew their weapons Wilk with his greatsword took the right while Kelmun took the left both would advance slowly up the the hall being cautious as possible it was then the figure then spoke "magnificent isn't it?" Ghosk said and Kelmun would look at the Eldar fleet before refocusing on Ghosk "such a grand slaughter my lord will be most certainly pleased" Ghosk said gleefully while his throne turned him around in all his monstrous nine foot tall glory, his power armor had long turned a mix crimson and bronze from the countless oceans of blood he had drenched himself in, the eye sockets of his helmet were pitch black with small but bright red dots not to mention the all to life like horns on his head that poked out of his helmet as they formed a crown based on how they sat on Ghosks head in his hands were two giant plasma axes a staple in the leadership of the followers of Khorne to tie the twisted form of Ghosk together were the hundreds of runes and symbols adorned on his breastplate, arms and legs with a massive rune on his forehead.
"This is where you die do not let your ego say otherwise" Wilk said and Kelmun had to agree but finished their diolong with "may Khaine forever torment you for all eternity for the pain you have caused" and with that Ghosk stood up and bull rushed for Kelmun however Kelmun quickly jumped out of the way landing on the wall in a crouch but Wilk still moved to intercept with Ghosk then bringing his two axes down attempting to catch Kelmun but instead caught Wilks greatsword the two would then struggle for a second in a contest of strength before Kelmun would intervene coming at Ghosk from the side but Ghosk would see this coming from a mile away and bring his leg up kicking Wilk off before bringing his ax down on Kelmun forcing him to back off before then rushing Kelmun again forcing him to back up but he did not have much room to maneuver finding himself against the wall and Ghosk would swing on him but Kelmun had dodged faster strikes before easily avoiding it Ghosks right ax becoming stuck in the wall but he still had his left which he used to swing on Kelmun but Kelmun would aslo dodge this ducking under it before slashing once, Twice, trice and four times across the knee caps, elbow and at the neck, his blade become a blur only superhuman minds could precivie.
However the runes upon Ghosks armor would glow and shine minimizing the damage but the blows would still cut deep enough to draw a little bit of blood before his superhuman biology healed him almost instantly "I'd pray for you to do better but I would need to kill you first defeating the point" Ghosk said as he quickly pulled his ax out of the wall and crossed his two axes blocking the downward strike from Wilks greatsword but that would be a mistake tying himself down and Kelmun would take advantage going for the back of the knees and the elbows once again the pain would ripple through Ghosk forcing him to one knee and Wilk would bring up his foot and kick Ghosks face sending him sprawling and forcing him back against his own throne not wasting a second Wilk and Kelmun would rush to finish off the downed Khornite but as they closed in Ghosk would roar and let out a strong pulse of psychic power "sorcery dammit" Ghosk said he looked worried now for some reason "what is the matter scared of your own power?" Kelmun said confidently it was still confusing as to why Ghosk seemed worried "no" Ghosk replied he would then grip his head and his neck as a large presence filled the room so large it was suffocating to Wilk and Kelmun "no no no no please give me another chance" Ghosk seemed to be begging "no no more sorcery I promise I will SLAUGHTER this pathetic fools" whatever was choking Ghosk and seemingly killing him stopped and Ghosk rose from his knees.
"Sorcery is frowned upon by Khorne and I disobeyed his grace however he has given me another chance, I shall spend it well" and with that he charged but this time at Wilk he would bring up his greatsword to counter and blocked the first swing keeping space between them but the limited room he had to work with resulted in Ghosk closing the distance but before he could land a decisive blow Kelmun would look to interfere and would quickly approach but that was what Ghosk was waiting for he would immediately disengage with Wilk bashing his head into Wilks head stunning him and would spin around swinging his ax wildly toward Kelmun forcing him to dodge and land on the wall before Ghosk in a burst of speed his runes glowing his tremendous power would grab Kelmun and bash him into the ground before throwing him into the wall across the room Kelmuns head snapping back hitting the wall "NO" Wilk shouted rushing forward with his greatsword.
The tremendous clash between two titans would shake the floor and walls sending a shutter throughout the entire ship both locked in a struggle for dominance but Ghosk would quickly change that still using one of his axes to hold back Wilks greatsword he brought the other one down and swung underhanded to deliver a crushing up slash but Wilk saw this not being able to back up because his greatsword was looped around the head of his opponents axe he used his hand to grab Ghosks wrist before it made contact but that was a deadly mistake using his superior strength given the god Ghosk worshiped Ghosk would jam the spiked tip of his ax into Wilks stomach his power armor blocked most of it but blood would still be drawn the cursed nature of the axe of the wound made it impossible for Wilks own biology and powers to close it while locked in combat and making Wilk wince in pain using this Ghosk would yank on his own axe intending to take Wilks own greatsword from him but Wilk did not let go for this blade was forged by himself and his mentor he would not let an enemy lay their hands on it.
But doing so had consequences, Wilk was thrown off his feet and to the floor rolling and landing at the foot of the throne the daemon blade falling out of its holster but Ghosk paid it no mind "isn't this poetic?" Ghosk said mockingly quickly approaching Wilk before he could get up grabbing Wilks head Ghosk would slam him into his knee a crack being heard throughout the bridge and Ghosk would then kick away Wilks greatsword standing over Wilk, Ghosk would bring his ax in his left hand down upon Wilks side aiming for the liver the plasma blade starting to cut through Wilks tough but not invincible power armor and wilk would attempt to stop this punching Ghosk across the face but Ghosk would be unfazed only bringing his other ax in his right down upon Wilks neck but Wilk would catch this holding Ghosks right wrist and grabbing Ghosks left arm to try to remove the ax from his side but it seemed futile this was a strength contest that Wilk given several disadvantages would slowly but surely lose.
However Wilk would smile he had seen something Ghosk did not and he just had to hold out but he could not for much longer as the ax in his side dug even deeper and deeper into his flesh destroying his left ribs and liver while Ghosk would stomp on Wilks side causing him even more pain and causing the ax aimed for his neck to connect seering his shoulder armor off and digging into his neck cutting his Jugular vein for sure "your weak this why you could never beat me alone" Ghosk said his voice full of convict he had won right? "Thats the thing" Wilk choked out "Im not alone" Kelmun appearing behind Ghosk wielding the Daemon blade and his own sword jamming the blade into Ghosks exposed armpit and ripping it upwards the blade was not enough to reach one of Ghosks three hearts but the action nearly sliced off Ghosks arm going though his armor and flesh like butter.
Ghosk would stumble the two plasma axes powering off allowing Wilk to shove Ghosk off him Ghosk falling to the ground and blood leaking from himself would cover the ground beneath them as Wilk stood up with help from Kelmun despite a broken leg and shattered ribs as well as a most likely fractured skull helped him up fighting through the pain.
"It seems we have the upper hand" Wilk weezed the pain leaving him almost out of breathe despite it he stood tall "it seems we do" Kelmun said continuing with "lets kill this fucker" if Wilk could laugh he would but that would probably hurt more than Ghosks ax given his lungs were filling with blood Ghosk tried to stand up but was kicked down by Wilk, then using his great sword to stab Ghosk and Kelmun would follow up also stabbing Ghosk their blades now piercing straight through and pinning him to the ground now that Ghosk with all his injuries could not power his runes with that done Kelmun and Wilk would go to town.
A punch here a kick there it did not matter as they beat the ever loving shit out of Ghosk for who knows how long before Kelmun would decide to finish it tearing his sword out of Ghosk he would go to stab it through his head but would stop instead giving it Wilk who would immediately be confused "you challenged Ghosk it is only right you finish him" knowing he was too weak to properly handle his greatsword Wilk would nod and take the smaller sword looking down upon Ghosk he would say "your reign of terror is at an end tell your god that we have two words for him no skulls for the skull throne or blood for the blood god just two words… Fuck You" and with that he cut Ghosks head off.
Both of them would let out sighs of relief it was not over they still had to escape but as the life drained from Ghosk the pocket reality in the warp was coming undone now they were in a smaller room than before and they realized it was the real bridge but it was not empty there were over two dozen emaciated humans with a few Chaos Warriors and a few beings in red cloaks they were all panicking and red flashed across the many consoles, Wilk did not immediately recognize but in a second he knew what they were 'the followers of omnissiah' the Chaos corrupted elements of the Martian Citadel.
Acting quickly Kelmun would grab his sword and take out his shuriken pistol quickly gunning down any who were in his path his Wilk quickly pulling out his Orca Rifle and gunning down several Chaos Warriors before they could react although it was hard for him to be perfectly accurate allowing several shots to go off towards them landing in Wilks body and a few wheezing by and hitting the window of the bridge cracks appearing and spreading rapidly alarms rapidly blaring by that time Kelmun would asist having easily cut down the rest of the Chaos crew.
"We must leave NOW!" Kelmun said trying to limp to the exit "there is no time" Wilk said holding his chest as his suit had been breached he knew what would happen if that window gave way "So what, we should just die here?!" Kelmun said slightly panicked he had come to the same conclusion as Wilk and didn't want Wilk to die "no I'll die you will live your armor is not breached mine is" Wilk said somberly he was just coming to terms with that fact he was going to die after all this he died to the vacuum of space "surly there is something we can do?!" Kelmun said looking around but nothing was available all options were already exhausted or were just not practical "its fine as a kinslayer this was the only fate for me" Wilk said before pointing to his sword "please take my sword bury it with me or at least give it to the Ordo" Wilk said handing Kelmun his greatsword and Kelmun reluctantly took it "I guess this is it Phoenix" Wilk said taking off his helmet the ship was shaking now it was coming apart with the destruction of the engine.
"Yes I guess it is" Kelmun said the cracks on the window of the bridge grow even larger "I just want to say goodbye Phoenix" Wilk said offering a handshake Kelmun took it "it was a good fight one of the best" with Kelmun then replying "yes it was" letting the handshake drop the window then gave way the change in pressure yanking Wilk out along with the many bodies of the dead Chaos crew, Kelmun would attempt to keep himself in the bridge using his grav boots and with his sword sheathed he held onto Wilks greatsword for dear life before an explosion forced him forward and a piece of debris knocked him out cold.
—-
Kith and the strike force ran for dear life having escaped the ambush they had to reach the Thunder Eel before the bombs went off and that ment they didn't have long at max they had less than two minutes but strangely the path had changed but they were almost there they had to just keep running "there it is!" Kith shouted "go go move it" she said the doors opened as the pilot looked around "wheres the boss?" the pilot said and he was right neither the Warrior or Kel was back yet even though he should be as it was an objectively shorter trip to the bridge than the engine room "we must take off" one of the surviving Warriors said 'WHAT' Kith thought he must be mad or just plain crazy.
"We will not take off just yet I will go look for our Phoenix Lord" she said as well as looking at the timer thirty seconds she could work with that "as much a it pains me the Mon-keigh it right" one of the Exarchs said and Kith immediately knew who both of them were she had lost track in the scramble to return to the Thunder Eel and she would not let this slide glaring at Vale she then crossed the distance between them and punched Vale in the face or the helmet Vale would fall to the ground "I will deal with you properly when we get back to the craftworld but for now SHUT UP!" kith shouted before turning to leave to find Kel but just then the timer for the bombs would go off an alarm sound ringing throughout the Thunder Eel.
Kiths eye twitched and she just breathed long and hard before sitting down and telling the pilot to go "w-what" the pilot said "just go" and with that they took off as the ship around them started to break apart around them for the next few minutes Kith was silent and no one approached her all didn't want to possibly to do something they would regret however one of the Warriors would then speak and she knew it was not Darail for he did not have a hole in his leg from a bullet "if it is any consultation we have also lost a good friend and leader today Wilk was a one of the best and for him to be willing to show the amount of respect he did meant the Phoenix Lord was truly an amazing combatant" the Warrior finished.
"I do not want your pity" Kith spat back as she did not want this human thinking it had any idea of what she was going through "I am not offering it while I can not grasp exactly what you are going through we have also lost a lot to our brothers today" that was true and the thought just occurred to her what about the Exarch that had died she had been able to maintain her will in the clairvoyance enough so you they would not be instantly killed but without the craftworld nearby that Exarch was permanently dead gone forever Gods how was she going to explain this to the family of the Exarch? However something else drew her attention.
"You would be wise to keep your mouth shut Darail" the Warrior who had been speaking to her said and Darail replied "if i'm not mistaken your the one talking so take your own advice" "you are a disgrace to every Warrior in the galaxy" the Warrior replied and it seemed Darail did not care "watch your words Sirus" Darail said the Warrior now she knew as Sirus looked at Darail with disdain just what had they said to start this? However before the conflict could progress the Pilot spoke on the intercom "us miss? High Farseer? We were traveling through the ship's debris and well just look for yourself" the pilot said standing up she looked at the two Warriors and they looked just as interested but still hated each other, sighing as she went to the cockpit.
Approaching the windshield she looked out at the void past the smoking debris of the Chaos fleet that fell apart from a lack of central communication instead she looked at the ruins of the Capital ship the 'Khornes Skull Bringer' "what is this" she said and the pilot who already looked nervous acquired a few extra sweat droplets and pointed to an object floating off to the far right looking at it she strained to see but… IT WAS HIM HE WAS ALIVE "move" she said "what" the pilot replied dumbfounded "I SAID MOVE THE DAMNED SHIP PICK HIM UP!" she screamed the pilot fumbled for a second before grasping the controls and finally moving soon the doors opened and the shields glowed with a teal color, using her psychic powers she would grab him while the greatsword next to him floated in to the ship and into the arms of Sirus who glared at Darail but that didnt matter as she hugged the still breathing body of Kel.
—-
Deep within the warp even deeper than the Damned primarch had been before he set sail for Molech a figure of immense power sat upon his throne of skulls grinding the massive skull of a minor god of the humans that he and his aspect of war had destroyed in the fires of a religious conflict hah religion made it so easy for him to stoke the flames of war and with the division of the big five of humanity and the fall of the Old Gods of the Aeldari, partly due to them underestimating him and his brothers, he had managed to expand his power far beyond what it should have had any right to, but war and violence were unstoppable there were reasons he could be beat but never stay down.
Looking up at his countless rivers of blood he was pleased for hundreds of thousands of years his rivers of blood had always been overflowing and his skull throne ever growing however he had a special place for the skull he had just received slowly standing up his titanic form and presence displacing warp energies for thousands of lightyears and creating massive warp storms that were perfect feeding grounds for his followers meaning ever more blood and skulls for himself.
It only took a few moments to reach his Museum of the Fallen as he called it stepping through the massive archway he was greeted with thousands of his daemons minor warp beings meant to do his bidding and protect this place should it ever come under attack but not anything else and so he sent them away but those to slow he just absorbed back into himself he could always create more walking past the numerous skulls of gods he had collected mostly from minor human gods oh how he wished to one day add the skulls of the big five and the old gods to his collection maybe even his beloved Morai-Heg could be apart of his collect she was the perfect specimen after all.
Shaking his monstrous head he reached a door opening it the door lead to a massive pit of fire down below were the skulls of all his champions, the pit itself was tens of thousands of miles long and it was even deeper, before throwing it down to the pit he looked at Ghosks skull with disgust 'Sorcerer' he thought be for throwing the skull down into the pit, although Ghosk had committed a grave sin of using sorcery in a battle of honor he had still fought and died for blood and skulls and had even killed a possible champion of the father so he served his purpose, he could not do nothing else with his life of course.