Until Their Last Breath

[Mr. Bleak]

Hey all, this is a story I originally wrote for a local campaign, where we had to submit some army fluff. This is based off of my Alpha Legionnaires, and as it progresses it will begin to include forces based off of armies of others at the local GW. Enjoy!

 

 

The Alpha Legion 6th Task Group

Date: M31 Y203

Location: Segmentum Pacificus, Real Space

 

In a dim lit room deep in the bowels of the mighty battleship Hydromidus, a row of emaciated astropaths mewled and groaned, some mumbling incoherent strings of Low Gothic to themselves. Suddenly, a wail went out from one of the astropaths. Immediately, all the others picked up the call, screaming as the warp seeped into their minds, intent on delivering its message. Quickly, a silent servitor approached each of the psychically tormented mutants, plugging a heavy tube into sockets on each of their heads. The wailing abruptly stopped, and words began to appear on the pict-slate in front of each astropath.

A large, shrouded figure entered the room, and picked up each slate, reading them carefully. Then, he went over to the vox-horn near the door of the chamber.

“Sergeant Jistof to bridge.” the man said.

“This is Aarken, go ahead sergeant.” came the reply.

“Astropathic message from the Primarch. The Emperor is aware of our treachery. The Space Wolf 8th Grand Company is inbound to our position. They will arrive in approximately two Terran hours.”

Silence prevailed for the next few minutes as Jistof waited for a response. He knew that far above him on the command deck, strategic analyzers poured over documents regarding the numbers, strengths, and known battle strategies of the Space Wolf 8th. Suddenly, the vox horn crackled back into life.

“Acknowledged. Go to the barracks and muster the men. We must prepare for war.”

“Yes my lord.” Jistof said curtly, before heading out the door.

Once in the corridor, the sergeant cast of his cloak, revealing that not he was no man, but one of the Emperor’s Astartes. Clad in a shimmering suit of blue and green power armor, with the symbol of the Alpha Legion emblazoned across his left shoulder pad, Jistof began the long walk from the astropathic choir’s chamber to the barracks.

As soon as he entered the vast room that accommodated over two-hundred Astartes, he called for the men to prepare as Lord Aarken had told him. Once handed a pict-slate by a Legion serf, he told the assembled Legionnaires what they would be facing.

“We face superior numbers,” he told them, and paused before saying, “The Space Wolf 8th is known for its prowess in both ship-to-ship and battle and boarding actions. You can expect fierce assaults as soon as the Sons of Russ are aboard the Hydromidus.”

Suddenly, a few Astartes officers piped up.

“Lord Aarken plans to allow the Wolves onto our venerable vessel?” one shouted above the rest.

“Yes,” began Jistof, “but only the first wave of boarding torpedoes and shuttles. We can expect as many as half our number in Sons of Russ to come aboard in the Wolves’ first attack. Then, the Hydromidus will disengage the enemy fleet and make a jump into the warp. Once we are floating in the empyrean, we can dispatch whatever loyalist Astartes are onboard and travel to assist Horus and his Legion in the Siege of Terra, leaving an entire company of Space Wolves halfway across the galaxy.”

Several Alpha Legionnaires applauded at this brilliant plan. The ovation was cut short though as all the Astartes stopped and began to prepare for the fierce battle that would rage in the next few hours. Servitors helped Legionnaires don suits of Mk4, Mk5, and in some cases the rare, new, Mk6 power armor. Chainswords and bolt pistols were issued in bulk, as the close confines of the battle-ship wouldn’t allow for sustained use of the usual Astartes mainstay, the bolter.

Two hours later, on the bridge of the mighty vessel, Lord Aarken, Brother-Captain of the Alpha Legion 6th Task Group, watched as the Space Wolf 8th’s small fleet came into view on the main screen.

Aarken pressed a button on his command throne. The face of the gunnery officer appeared.

“Prime the lance arrays and load the torpedoes. Do not activate the close-in defense guns.” Aarken ordered.

“Yes sir.” Replied the gunnery officer, who immediately set about ordering around lesser Legion serfs.

Aarken pressed another button. The entire Astartes barracks appeared on screen.

“Marines of the Alpha Legion 6th Task Force, the enemy is closing. Move to your assigned battle-stations.” Aarken said quickly. He was not a commander who made elegant speeches before a battle. They knew their duty- to fight for Alpharius and the Emperor.

Aarken once again pushed the button that would create a link to the gunnery decks.

“Gunnery officer, make firing solutions on the enemy escort ships.”

“Yes sir. We are ready to fire.”

Aarken paused for a moment, before saying, “Open fire.”

Space lit up as the Hydromidus poured fire into the Space Wolf escorts. Several were destroyed outright, their plasma reactors exploding, sending shards of the ship’s thick hull roaring towards other cruisers. Other vessels were crippled; their life supports systems giving out and engines failing. These poor ships simply began to drift through real space as their crew slowly suffocated in the void.

Then the Space Wolf flagship opened fire. Las shots ripped through the void, and boarding torpedoes were steered by their crew towards weak points in the hull.

As the boarding torpedoes hit the decks, Space Wolves ran out and shot wildly in all directions. Some bolts hit Alpha Legionnaires, knocking them off their feet. Some of the Legionnaires got back up quickly- others continued to lie where they were. Then, the Alpha Legion Astartes began to repel the attacks. Jistof and his squad hacked down an entire pack of Space Wolf Blood Claws, before moving to another deck and blowing apart another boarding party, this time made up of Grey Hunters. They moved throughout the sip, giving aid to Alpha Legion brothers, and bringing death to the Space Wolf lapdogs.

On the bridge, Aarken watched as more and more boarding torpedoes rode through the void.

“Navigator, prepare to make the jump into the empyrean.”

“Ready sir. We await your order.” came the reply.

“Make the jump now!” Aarken ordered. Immediately, the ship lurched. The battle throughout the ship stopped for a moment, as the Hydromidus entered the warp.

Back in the dim lit room, the astropaths began wailing once more. In the Navigator’s room, the mutant Navigator writhed on the floor and died.

The Hydromidus was now flying unguided through all of space and time.

 

 

 

 

The Alpha Legion 6th Task Group

Date: M41 Y105

Location: Leaving the warp

 

After what seemed like months of terror (the Hydromidus’ time keepers had all died, so there was no way to be sure), the Hydromidus finally exited the empyrean by the will of the warp. Aarken looked into the view-screen for the first time in what seemed like weeks. He shouted in joy as he saw no longer the swirling eddies of the warp, but he glimmering stars of real-space. After checking sensor readings, he strode off of the slime-splattered bridge, ignoring the bodies of Legion serfs, Space Wolves, and the disgusting essence of destroyed daemons. He jogged down to the barracks, turning a blind eye to the mangled and gore-splattered hallways. Arriving at the Astartes quarters, he spoke to address the 50-odd remaining Marines of the Alpha Legion 6th Task Group.

“Marines,” Aarken began, “we have come back to real-space. Sensors indicate we are in the Hyperios system. Sensor reading also show many enemy vessels, some of which we have fought before, others who we have not even seen. Brothers, we must once again prepare to fight!”