The Liberation of Damascus VII

[Son of Carnelian]

The Call for Aid

The hive world Damascus VII stands on the far edge of the Eastern Fringe. The Tyranid menace had descended upon the planet and quickly overrun its self-defense forces. The survivors had barricaded themselves inside the great spires that made up most of the planet surface. Although the populace made great efforts at keeping the Tyranids outside of the spires, one by one, buildings began falling to waves of infiltrating Genestealers. With the survivors powerless, alone, and with their numbers ever dwindling, it appeared that Damascus VII would become another casualty in the Tyranids’ conquest of consumption. In a desperate effort, a group of civilians sacrificed themselves in order to re-activate the planet’s communication systems, which had been brought offline in the initial attack by the Tyranids.

 

The message reached the Flesh Tearers and their fleet. Chapter Master Gabriel Seth saw this as a perfect opportunity in his chapter's ongoing quest towards restoring their honor and decreed that the Flesh Tearers would halt the conquest of Damascus VII. Seth saw Damascus VII as ideal, since his Marines could be free to fight on their own terms and not worry about harming allied forces. In preparation, Seth repainted his armor for the first time in years. While the colors of his armor were still muted, he now looked more like the vision of a Space Marine most Imperial citizens had. Following his example, all the Flesh Tearers set to the task of fixing their armor where they could, covering the battle scars of years of undisciplined fighting. If they were going to become liberators, they needed to look the part.

 

The War Begins

 

Silently deploying under the cover of night, the Flesh Tearers entered the largest spire, Omega, from its roof. Reassuring the survivors that all would be well on their way down the spire, the Flesh Tearers finally came upon the entrance that the Tyranids had been attempting to breach for days. With a single stroke of his hand, Seth began the attack. The doors burst open under a salvo of concentrated fire and the Flesh Tearers roared forward, the fire of their bolters drowning out the cries of their prey.

 

The Tyranids tried desperately to consolidate their position, rushing thousands of their forces towards Omega Spire. However, Seth had orchestrated the attack perfectly. The shock troops of the Death Company had been unleashed at the fore of the attack, tearing at the enemy with all of their blood-crazed might. Behind them rested the Terminators of the Flesh Tearers, mowing down all the creatures of the swarm that eluded the Death Company with contempt. Finally, manning the battlements of Omega Spire and the threshold inside were the Tactical Squads, directed by Seth and his guard. For a time, it seemed as if the whole planet of Tyranids could fall before this mighty force of Space Marines.

 

Hell From Below

 

However, the Tyranids had other plans. Secretly drilling underneath Omega Spire, massive Tyranid creatures burst forth from the very ground the Terminators stood upon. Seth’s forces were thrown into complete disarray. The Death Company tore forward, but without the support of the Tactical Squads, they fell to the sheer number of Tyranid creatures. The Terminators scattered in hopes of avoiding another underground assault, but soon became separated from one another. The Tactical Squads could not hold out long against the fury of the Tyranids and even short-range bolter fire could not halt the organisms’ advance. Still, Seth would not allow the Tyranids to wrest victory from him.

 

The Salvation of Damascus

 

Seth signaled the Flesh Tearers’ fleet assets, than began a hopeful prayer. He prayed that the Emperor guided his drop pod reinforcements through the webbing of towers and bridges. Just as Seth finished his prayer and tore his massive chainsword from the maw of another Tyranid, he heard the scream of Drop Pod afterburners kicking in and felt the slam of surface impact. As the dust cleared, one massive figure stood above all the combatants: a mad Dreadnaught, suffering from the Black Rage for over five thousand years. Seth roared out his name in praise: “Johann!”

 

Johann had no response other than tearing apart the nearest two Tyranid monstrosities. Bellowing with rage, Johann showered the field of battle with the ichors of dozens of beasts. Faced with this seemingly unstoppable force, the Tyranids began skittering away from Omega Spire. As the last of the creatures fled, Seth rallied the surviving Flesh Tearers. After subduing Johann and allowing time to calm those among his brothers who still felt the touch of the Red Thirst, Seth informed the survivors of Omega Hive that their attackers had been driven off. Hailed as heroes and showered with adoration, the Flesh Tearers then began a campaign to rid the planet of any remaining hostiles and rescue as many as possible, using Omega Hive as their base of operations.

 

With this decisive victory and subsequent adoration by the people of Damascus, Seth allowed a measure of hope into his heart. Perhaps the Flesh Tearers should not become another name in history. Perhaps they could yet live onward and heal themselves. But those thoughts would have to wait, as no sooner had the last Thunderhawk left Damascus then another distress call came screaming across the Astropath...

[Darkchild130]

Yay more Flesh Tearers! though yours are far more "modern" than mine, questing for honour etc.

 

I like it, it does read very much like a piece of codex fluff and is dry as a result, but I know this is intentional and not necessarily a bad thing.

 

More like this please :mellow:

 

Darkchild

[Son of Carnelian]

I like it, it does read very much like a piece of codex fluff and is dry as a result, but I know this is intentional and not necessarily a bad thing.

 

Thanks so much for the kind words! I know the Codex pieces are dry, but I tried to put in as many active verbs as possible and that one quote to break up the monotony. Thanks again for the feedback and I will post whatever else I write up.