The Third Son

[simison]

As Alexandros quickly unsheathed his sword, Burklak reached him and swung his massive claw with all of its might. The unsubtle blow was easily intercepted, but Alexandros found himself pushed back half a metre by its sheer strength. The other Orks attempted to rush him as they charged into the new opening. Alexandros rewarded the first Ork with disembowelment before shoving the dying Ork into two of its companions to the right as he blocked a couple of blows from his left. 

[simison]

He nearly buckled from the strength of the attacks as jagged saws cut at his shield. The last group of heavy infantry had never touched him, which made this experience all the more unpleasant as each of the Ork weapons increased their strength twofold. Well, almost all of them. 

 

"THIS'LL TEACH YA TO RUN OFF YUR ZOGGIN' MOUTH, 'UMIE!" Burklak roared as he swung, not his powered claw, but a massive axe that was stained with three different colours of blood. Alexandros raised his shield and caught the blow before it could do harm and found that this was the weakest weapon of the bunch aimed at him. Shoving the weapon away from him, Alexandros swung, hoping for a quick decapitation in  the one future out of thirteen he saw. Alas, Burklak had already foreseen the attack and shoved one of his guards in front of him. The Nob's head and body were separated, its eyes looking all around as though it didn't understand what just happened.

[simison]

Before the head had finished its falling arc, four Orks rushed in on both of Alexandros' flanks. Recognizing the growing danger of being overwhelmed, the Primarch called upon his prodigious speed and counter-charged the two foes on his left. Caught off-guard by the blur coming straight at them, the two Orks swung wildly, hoping for a lucky hit. Luck proved to be an unreliable ally as Darshan used his future-sight to know the exact trajectory of the spinning saws. He casually blocked the closer Ork's swings before he reached the second bodyguard. He nimbly slid around the attack, spinning around the greenskin before delivering a back kick into it. 

 

The enhanced strength adding to the Ork's own momentum sent it stumbling forward. Tripping on its own feet, the Nob fell forward into another of its companions who began to wail as both buzz saws eviscerated it. Green blood sprayed out as the saws cut through the beast's innards before erupting on the other side of its body, all the while cutting downward. Burklak released a cry of exasperation and disbelief. "Ya idiots! Kill the 'umie! Not each other!"

[simison]

Alexandros wanted to turn and stab the other Ork in the back, but the future had already warned of another threat racing to his side. The earlier Nob whose arm had been melted off by plasma had managed to collect its wits from the searing agony and was now joining the battle. It hurtled forwards, it's one remaining arm and saw pointed straight forwards, briefly reminding the Primarch of an ancient rider and lance. Shifting to this new opponent, Alexandros batted aside the weapon before slicing off the offending appendage. The armless Ork barely had time to register the pain before the Emperor's son thrusted his sword through the beast's heart. The flying limb which still held the activated 'killsaw' never touched the floor. Darshan reached out and telepathically caught the weapon before 'throwing' it at the warboss about to reach him. Burklak already in a loping run, could only shift a bit before the saw its chest. Although Burklak growled in pain, the attack had missed the monstrous Ork's vitals. 

 

Pulling his sword from the newest corpse, Darshan's vision raced through the numerous futures as Burklak and two of his guards attacked. Only Burklak and three of his Nobs (excluding the blind Ork furiously rubbing its eyes) still lived. Yet, Darshan soon realized that there was no clean escape from this next round of melee. The Primarch managed to block one power claw and deflect another. It was the third claw that Alexandros couldn't stop. The opportunistic xeno dug its weapon into Alexandros' torso, red blood quickly seeping out of the new wound.

[simison]

With a cry of pained rage, the Primarch rewarded the Nob as he sliced through its armour, opening its chest for all to see. Even that retaliatory measure nearly cost Alexandros as the remaining greenskins pressed the attack. He sidestepped one attack by a mere centimeter as he blocked one more blow. Burklak had incorrectly seen an opening and reached out with his claw to snip Alexandros' head off. "YUR MINE, 'UMIE!" 

 

"I disagree," Alexandros replied as he caught the lethal attack with his sword, batting the claw aside. Hitting some of the of mechanism on the side, the power claw swung wide open as the bottom 'jaw' disconnected and hung limply. It was a more symbolic victory that was narrowly overturned when one bodyguard swung at his legs. Alexandros managed to turn his leg enough that the garish weapon bounced off his purple armour, but the sheer force of the blow was enough to throw his leg out from beneath him. Finding himself on one knee, Darshan furiously searched through the futures to find a way out of this predicament. He winced as he realized what was to come next.

[simison]

The future arrived as Alexandros parried one eager saw before gutting its owner. Although he scrambled to his feet, he could not stop the next moment. Burklak swung his broken claw down. Alexandros tried to shift right. The xeno's weapon missed his head but carved through his broken right pauldron. Before the warboss could cut off his arm, Alexandros saved the last few centimetres as he brought up his shield to catch the claw. There was a clang as his right arm dropped his sword.

 

Immense pain blazed throughout him, but Darshan quickly cordoned it off from debilitating himself. Then he focused it and released a primal roar amplified by his psychic power. The giant greenskin was hurled back as parts of his armour flew off or crushed into his skin. Yet, in spite of the wave of wounds, Burklak remained standing, alive and grumbling about his bleeding ears. 

 

Cursing that he had misfired his attack, Alexandros took stock of his situation. Only a flap of skin and armour was keeping his arm attached. He had loss control of his limb, hence his weapon laying on the ground. Blood spewed forth from the large injury, but the Emperor's gene-engineering quickly proved its superiority as it went to work. Given his medical lessons from his Father, Alexandros knew the wound wasn't fatal. The nerve damage wasn't permanent, but it would take a month to heal at best. 

 

Which meant he would have to slay the remaining Orks single-handedly. 

Edited April 5, 2017 by simison

[simison]

Correction, almost single-handedly. 

 

With a telekinetic bump, his sword lifted off the ground by a few centimetres. Alexandros kicked the blade up into the air about about waist-level. Calculating the trajectory just right, as Xiphos hovered in the air between rising and falling, Alexandros kicked the pommel. Propelled by enhanced strength, the blade shot forth. It pierced one Nob's neck. The xeno clutched at his throat as it withered to the ground, gasping for air.

 

Alexandros turned toward the only Ork standing between him and the warboss. For all of its fury and aggression, it was no space marine. Darshan spotted the seed of fear that held it back. Laying ahold of it, Darshan amplified it as he exploited the beast's fight-or-flight response. In seconds, the Ork went from uneasily holding its ground to shivering with abject terror. Staring with cold eyes, Alexandros said but a word.

 

"Run."

[simison]

It did. It didn't care what direction it ran. All it knew was that it had to get away. It fled across the platform to the nearest walkway. As its foot stepped through the 'walkway', its terror doubled. Screaming, it fell through the walkway, which vanished as a mirage to reveal the open maw of the void waiting for it. 

 

Darshan ended the illusion, it's purpose served, as he blocked another blow from Burklak. "NO ONE MOCKS ME, 'UMIE! I'LL TEAR YOU APART, LIMB BY LIMB!" The bloodflow had ceased after creating a red trail down Alexandros' side, but his arm still hung uselessly. Burklak allowed his fury to fuel his assault as he struck again and again. With each strike, Alexandros conceded another step as he waited for the right opportunity.

[simison]

With one small detour first. Alexandros allowed himself to be driven back, but curved his retreat back to the center of the platform. There was one last threat besides Burklak that had to be ended before it could do him harm.

 

The last Nob stopped rubbing his eyes. It blinked a couple of times before breaking out into a huge, toothy grin. Throwing its arms in the arm, it shouted, "I CAN SEE AGAIN!"

 

"Spoke too soon," Alexandros warned. Then he slammed the edge of his shield into the Nob's eyes. 

 

The sound of bones cracking hid the squish of eyeballs bursting. The Ork screamed as he cried, "NO! MY EYES! WHY IS IT ALWAYS MY EYES!" It staggered backwards as it cradled its broken face. 

[simison]

Alexandros ignored the screaming as he stepped away, preparing for the next blow. 

 

Burklak didn't disappoint. With a wide swing of his broken claw, the Warboss shouted, "COME 'ERE!" 

 

Throwing his head back, the Primarch winced as the powered metal cut through his helmet, right above his left eye. Alexandros backpedaled toward the edge of the platform, adding some distance between himself and the giant Ork. As he retreated, Darshan quickly undid the latches as blood poured down his covered face. Sensitive technology protested the blood's presence as his left lens fizzled out. In three seconds, the last latch was undone before Darshan popped his helmet off.

 

Burklak, who had been chasing Alexandros, paused as he saw the helmet come off by itself. The surprise gave way to a toothy grin as he pointed a thick finger. "HA! Ain't so pretty now, you weird 'umie!"  

[deathspectersgt7]

Weird ' umie! "  liked that .

[simison]

[Well, if an Ork psyker is a weird boy...]

 

Already, the superficial wound had closed. "Said the xeno with tusks."

 

Burklak bristled. "Oi! My tusks are proof of my superity, my supperioria...my super-ness!" 

 

"Vocabulary could use a bit of work. Regardless," Alexandros continues as he looked around the platform. "You're alone, and I intend to collect your head as promised."

 

"BWA HA HA HA HA! Yur barely 'live, weird 'umie and wit no sword. How's ya gonna pull off me 'ead?"

 

Alexandros glanced at his nearly-detached right arm. "You relied on your guards to deal this wound to me." He turned back to the warboss and grinned. "Fair's fair that I return in kind. Jorg, three degrees right, four degrees down." He finished as his voice reached out through the material and immaterial. 

 

"Oi! Who's Jo-AHHHH!" 

 

The detonation of a mass-reactor bolt destroyed Burklak's right kneecap. The giant Ork fell to his knees as he screamed, "MY KNEE! I'LL KILL YA!" As Burklak looked up from the ruined limb, he saw Alexandros charging straight at him, shield held forward. 

Edited April 13, 2017 by simison

[simison]

A cacophony of metal exploded as one giant crashed into another. Burklak was thrown onto his back. Before he could react, a boot slammed against his forehead, forcing him to expose his entire neck. He saw Alexandros standing above him with the edge of his shield pointing straight at him. In the blink of an eye, Alexandros slammed the shield into Burklak's neck. A crushed windpipe, a broken spine, and a damaged nervous system barely registered to the Ork's mind as Alexandros continued to hammer the shield down, each force growing in strength and speed. Blood splattered as skin gave way beneath the savage barrage. Until finally the beast gave one last shudder as Burklak's head rolled off of it. 

 

For a moment, silence reigned. 

[simison]

It was promptly broken by the last, blind Ork left on the platform. "Boss? Whaz goin' on? I don't hear no fightin'."

 

Alexandros spared a glance at the Nob before he turned to Jorg and the assault marines marching onto the platform. Nodding to the greenskin, Alexandros commanded, "Put it out of its misery." 

 

With a trigger, a thunderous explosion echoed over the place before dying away. As he approached, Jorg looked over his Primarch with a stern expression. "My lord, how badly injured are you? We can have an apothecary here in four minutes."

 

Wiping away some of the dried blood on his left eye, Alexandros replied, "On a scale of 1 to 6, one being on Death's door and six being full health, I'm a solid four." 

[simison]

Jorg pressed. "And your arm?"

 

"Will heal in due time. For now, we have other matters. Jorg, grab my sword. Gunter, my shield. Sergeant Volk, status of my strike force," Alexandros ordered as he swept his vision across the massive cave. 

 

The space marines snapped to as the sergeant began his report, gesturing to fleeing greenskins at the other side of the cave. "My lord, as you can see, with the Ork warlord dead, Ork resistance here is crumbling. Our forces are advancing swiftly with few casualties. Additionally, brief skirmishes among the xenos as leadership conflicts occur between the larger Orks for control. These are spreading and will probably reach the rest of the horde on this space hulk within the hour."

 

"Indeed," Darshan affirmed as he cast his gaze toward the future. "It won't lead to a total collapse, but this battle will not last much longer. In one hour and seventeen minutes, we'll begin the final phase as we shift to search-and-destroy protocols."

[simison]

Alexandros turned away from the fight as he handed his shield to Gunter. The Storm Rider had to holster his pistol and mag-lock his chainsword to hold onto the shield which was as large as he was. Jorg waited next to him, holding the Primarch's blade.

 

With his good arm freed, Alexandros reached down and grasped Burklak's severed head before lifting it as high as he could hold it. "As you heard before, ring the bell of death, my sons." 

 

Jorg took care to hold the sword horizontal to the shield before he striked. Again, a piercing tone cut through the dimming orchestra of war. 

 

"My sons!" Alexandros declared as he amplified his own voice. "Rejoice! For I have claimed the head of their warboss! With it, I declare victory is ours! No longer will this be a battle, but a slaughter. Hunt the greenskin down. Leave none alive. For the Emperor wills it!"

 

The Legion answered, "FOR THE EMPEROR!" 

[deathspectersgt7]

 

[simison]

Chapter 6: A Different Kind of War

 

"Gunner," Alexandros called out. "Add six degrees to the left." An affirmative returned the Primarch as he dispassionately watched the battle before him. Once the command was completed, Alexandros ordered, "Fire."

 

The Elpis' nova cannon answered its master's will and released a powerful shot that shook the ship. Mere seconds later, a small star appeared in the midst of the enemy warships. The detonation outright destroyed one white capital ship while four more were crippled. With that last attack, the last organized resistance was no more. From this point on, the enemy fleet was reduced to a scramble for survival as the 35^th Expeditionary Fleet pressed the offense against the survivors, specifically targeting the nacelle-engines. After all, it was Alexandros' explicit wish to spare as many of the human crew members as he could. 

[deathspectersgt7]

Void War !!!!

[simison]

His orders given, Alexandros turned and began his trek to his ship's strategium. Placing the bridge of a warship on the outer edge of the hull to allow one to physically see the void and beyond was an implied dare to its enemies. A sign of confidence that no matter what the enemy may do, the bridge would be protected by the full strength of the warship. It was fairly standard across the Imperial Navy. Although he had indulged it, Alexandros refused to allow his strategium to be as exposed. Instead, the strateigum was located closer to the center of the warship, protected deep within the hull. 

 

As he walked, Alexandros rubbed his throbbing shoulder. The pain of his nerves reconnecting the damaged tissue could be quite excruciating if he moved his arm too much. That was the purpose the sling now served after his body had successfully reconnected the exterior flesh. He estimated that his wound would have fully healed after another week. Until then, his right arm was kept close to his body. 

[simison]

Almost equal in size to the bridge, the strategium was equipped with similar stations for ship controls, allowing it to function as an emergency command deck if the bridge was ever breached. But like most strategiums, it's primary purpose manifested in the form of the giant, circular holographic table in the room's center. Hologram technology had been a new and rudimentary field on Delos, which made the Imperium's technology all the more impressive. In fact, Alexandros had received word that the new technology had not only improved communications across the system, but led a revolution in recreational and gaming fields. At the moment, the most popular game was a simulacra of the Great Crusade, where players assumed the roles of either Imperial forces or xenos and did battle with one another.  Alexandros idly wondered how popular the game would be once the Great Crusade completed its task to secure the galaxy. 

[Welcheren]

Recreation in 30K?

 

Who'd have thought.

[simison]

Moving to be in front of his seat, Alexandros enjoyed the temporary solitude as he activated the table, keying the in-built cogitator to compile information about Balov Prime. It was more traditional for everyone to stand while in the strategium, but Alexandros thought that unfair to the mortals who did not benefit from transhuman endurance or mechanical implants. So, he had installed a number of collapsible chairs that could be summoned from the floor. As an additional benefit, the chairs could be resized to fit a human, a Space Marine, or a Primarch as necessary. The only permanent chair was Alexandros' own throne, though he had taken care that it was clean of ornamentation and was no larger than any of the Primarch seats. 

 

The cogitator whirred as it completed its task. Soon, the table came to life as information filtered in, bathing the room in a green glow. All that was left to do was to wait. 

[simison]

It was to little surprise that the first officer to appear was Commander Ludendof, Chief of the Legion Support Corps. Although the Emperor had created the Astartes with inhuman levels of endurance, the ancient adage still held true that 'an army marches on its stomach'. More importantly, the Legion Support Corps was in charge of munitions, ensuring that no unit went to war without weapons ready for war from bolts to promethium. Unfortunately, as necessary as the Legion Support Corps was to the Legion's operation, there was little chance for the Storm Riders here to earn personal glory. 

 

Ludendof's armour may have been meticulously well-kept, but it was plainly obvious how bare it was compared to other similarly ranked officers. No earned honours adorned the Commander's plate. The only distinguishing mark he possessed was on his right pauldron. There a sword and key crossed, wrapped in a laurel to designate the Space Marine's specialty and his rank. Alexandros did not require his telepathy to see that Ludendof carried an edge of frustration with him. The Commander snapped to attention and saluted perfectly. "My lord! I have come as summoned."

[simison]

The item in question was one of the artifacts recovered during the last campaign against the Ork space hulk. It was a treatise on equipment storage, inventory, and deployment from the Dark Age of technology. Unfortunately, portions of the treatise had suffered data degradation over the millennia. Including the schematics for the kibotos itself. From the quick glance that the Storm Riders techmarines had taken, it seemed to be a potential ammunition auto-loader for several kinds of heavy weapons. Unfortuantely, due to the Treaty of Mars, the schematics was immediately claimed by the Mechanicum. Although Alexandros had possessed the authority to deny their claim or delay it, he had no desire to antagonize one of the pillars of the Imperium for so small of gain.