EVENT - The Qarith Triumph

[Slips]

Haha I don't need to take part lol I was just offering. They'd just be a token force there anyway.

 

When I hear the word Qarith, I keep thinking of the Cthulu squid guys on Mon Calamari in Star Wars for some reason....

Well thats not too far off the mark LOL

[depthcharge12]

I don't know if it's been discussed before, but are the Quarith an offshoot from the "Old Ones"?

[Slips]

I don't know if it's been discussed before, but are the Quarith an offshoot from the "Old Ones"?

Nay! They are a Degenerate Sub-Species of Human! (if this hasn't been changed...or I'm not mistaken)

 

THEY SHALL BE ERADICATED FROM THE GALAXY WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE!

[Slips]

Double post, but hey, Do we know in which Segmentum this will all take place in? I'd posit the idea that its the Segmentum Obscurus.

[Sigismund229]

I also thought Obscurus

[simison]

I'm fine with that.

[Sigismund229]

Brother Brylon of Clan Briganda of the Crimson Lions fired his bolter at the "wave serpent" pattern Qarith warrior in front of him. The Crimson Lions gad only begun to encounter these warriors recently. Expert at fighting in shallow waters, they had so far reaped a high toll amongst the III legion. Seeing that the wave serpent was still not downed, Brylon fired again, pumping another five mass reactive rounds into it. Finnaly, after he shot it through one of its eyes, the beast went down. All around him, Crimson Lions were doing the same. While Brylon would have been more comfortable fighting in a shield wall, for this landing action, the primarch had dicatated that the III legion would follow a more standard despoiler equipment, reasoning that in the mangrove swamps of Jurakka V shield walls would be of little use. While he disliked not fighting in a shield wall, Brylon was forced to concede that the primarch had been right. Ever since he'd emerged from his drop pod, Brylon had been inundated in Qarith warriors, each of whom was easily his equal in close combat. The trick was not letting them get that close thought Brylon as he brought down another one. He had killed at least ffty since landing and still they came on. They were tough bastards he'd give them that. Ahead of him, he'd could see Morr, one of his squad brothers, who they nicknamed the reaper due to his pinpoint marksmanship, rushing forward, his bolter in one hand, firing off headshots every moment, a grenade in the other. Beside him were Darrus and Wyllock, gunning down any Qarith who tried to charge them. As Morr threw his grenade, Wyllock was brought down by a wave serpents long barbed tail. It's barbs sank deep into Wyllocks throat and when they withdrew, only a thin string of flesh held the head to Wyllocks body. Without Wyllock covering their right, Morr and Darrus were rushed by Qarith warriors who brought them down with their tails or claws. Brylon saw Morr get off two strikes with his power axe, decapitating two warriors before he fell. A worthy end. Darrus wasn't so lucky, for while he met his end with a war cry on his lips, roaring his hatred for the enemy, he didn't even have time to draw his chainblade before the Qarith sliced him into four pieces. Following this, Sergeant Grol roared into the vox "Squad form up! Fom line! We'll slow these bastards if nothing else!". Within moments, Squad Grol had formed a blazing gunline, mowing down dozens of Qarith. However, then Torroks bolter ran dry and he was slightly too slow reloading. It was all the time the Qarith needed. They were all over him in seconds, hacking him apart and splitting the squad in two. Brylon fought back to back with Sergeant Grol, Grol with his power claws, Brylon with his buckler, bolter and chainsword. However, soon sergeant Grol fell, his chest plate punctured by a Qarith warriors claws. Brylon was surrounded. Slashing and firing wildly in every direction he fought with all the savagery the sons of Mycenae were known for. Absent mindedly he noted heavy bolter shots slamming into the Qarith all around him. No doubt his brothers had concluded he was already dead and they might as well make his death mean something. However, death never came.

 

As Brylon was making his last stand, a fresh wave of drop pods and thunderhawks were streaking through the skies. From one drop pod, a god of war came charging out, roaring in anger. Hectarion Mycenor, Lord of the Crimson Lions. He and his Myramodons set about the Qarith, carving them to pieces even as the thunderhawks and stormbirds blew bloody, gaping holes in the ranks of the Qarith. Soon, the Qarith were in full retreat as fresh Crimson Lions, only just disembarked from their drop pods advanced upon them, firing their bolters, slaughtering the Qarith as they retreated. As the aircraft wheeled for another attack run, Brylon could see their colours. Halycon Wardens. The V legion.

 

As the fresh squads secured the landing zones, Brylon looked around. Already, apothacery Prasagas and his bretheren were going through the Crimson Lions bodies that were floating in the black water of this accursed world and saving what gene seed they could. Brylon looked around him. Eight members of his squad remained out of twenty. He removed his helm and spat a gobbet of bloody saliva into the already bloodstained water. This was going to be a long war. And it would be a bloody one too. Many more Lions would die before this was done.

[Sigismund229]

Remembrencer Carla Drosden looked at Myrvallen Tirconus. He was a true son of Mycenae and majestic in a way she couldn't quite describe. Even as he sat there in his arming chamber wearing just a loincloth and maintaining his armour, his bionic eye emmitting a strange whirring noise. He was dark skinned with jet black hair like most legionnaires of the III. His face might once have been handsome but now it looked more like it was a hideous mesh of skin that had been sown together for some genetic experiment. His torso was much the same. Yet still he exuded an aura of controlled energy and somehow...perfection. As though he was both a sublime warrior and a supreme statesman.

 

After shaking her head to clear such thoughts, she cleared her throat and asked "What was it like to be at the Triumph on Qarith Prime?". Looking up from the leg greave he was maintaining, Tirconus' eyes fixed on her, his remainging grey eye and his bionic replacement. Then he went back to the leg greave as he began "I shall remember it to my dying day mistress Drosden. It was the both the proudest day of my life and the saddest. I was proud that I could be part of such a gathering, proud that I could witness it. Ten Primarchs were present. Ten legions in nearly full strength. The Drowned, the Stygian Jackals, the Halycon Wardens, the Lightning Bearers, the Dune Serpents, Grave Stalkers, Ghost Walkers, Eagle Warriors, Scions Hospitalier and Crimson Lions. Rank upon rank of astartes, in numbers never seen before in the history of the Imperium. Then there the Imperial Army regiments. There were nearly five million Imperial Army troopers, standing in ranks behind us, infantry regiments indespersed with tanks, with regimental standards rising above them in forests. Even the titans numbered in the hundreds. Such numbers! The mechanicum had built an entire continent for the event. It was entirely flat with just one road going down it, lined with the heads of defeated Qarith. I can think of nothing to compare it to that would do it justice. And the centre of it all, the primarchs. Icarion, mysterious and unknowable. Sorrosworn Morro, grim and brooding. Alexandros, at the same time both the largest and the smallest of the primarchs, overshadowing everything yet always overshadowed. Alexos, dreamlike and haunted. Azus, blending in with the shadows yet unmistakebly present. Pionius, shining in his opalescent plate, an epitomy of humanitys healing abilities. Hectarion, the barbarian king, towering above his brothers in stature and exuding controlled savagery. Jackel, threatening and predatory. C'ochis, like a thunderstorm that has yet to arrive, barely controlled calm. And at the centre of them, the Emperor. A shining example of what humanity could be. Then came the moment he declared Alexandros the Warmaster. The moment when all smiles died".

[Sigismund229]

Has anyone had any more idea's regarding the Qarith and the campaign against them? This thread has been silent for quite a long time and we should probably do this before things like the Siege of Terra

[MikhalLeNoir]

Let the quarith destroy a sun ;) always a cool sight

 

What World Interest ME more. The drugs the quarith use, Do they increase the Powers of astartes? And what if the dose is to high?

 

I Don't remember how the Threat startet, but it World be cool if we describe a Svene werde the quarith artige on a Planet and how they enslave the population. Written from the perspective of ohne or more citizens. Would be a Change from the Space Marine pov

 

With this wie could flesh the Threat oft. They the First Marines arrive as counterattackforce and were slaughtered. Maybe someone survivors See the astartes, Hope grows but is smashed by the Reality. So we have more Pov and make the Story more gruesome, devastating and in my opinion more interesting.

 

And of course, als my old directing Prof always Said: we Need more sex!!!

[Sigismund229]

The drugs the Qarith use boost performance in all areas for short amounts of time. If the dosage is too high then the astartes body will start burning through muscle and organs to find fuel to keep up these levels of performance, leading to death

[MikhalLeNoir]

Good to know, cause the Bastard Alexos is gonna inject an overdose into Poor gwalchavad an the beginning of the insurrection. And Blasts Off his primary Space ship.... Man Alexos is so nice.

 

Back to topic: I would sah, that the beginning of the quarith threat Must ne fleshed out. But maybe wie have to weit until everybody has written his stuff for the Great Crusade and then we van Jump to the next topic. Actually we habe too Mans battlefields to Fight on. COMbined with reallife, we don't Know where to Fight First.

[Doctor Perils]

Let the quarith destroy a sun always a cool sight

 

What World Interest ME more. The drugs the quarith use, Do they increase the Powers of astartes? And what if the dose is to high?

 

I Don't remember how the Threat startet, but it World be cool if we describe a Svene werde the quarith artige on a Planet and how they enslave the population. Written from the perspective of ohne or more citizens. Would be a Change from the Space Marine pov

 

With this wie could flesh the Threat oft. They the First Marines arrive as counterattackforce and were slaughtered. Maybe someone survivors See the astartes, Hope grows but is smashed by the Reality. So we have more Pov and make the Story more gruesome, devastating and in my opinion more interesting.

 

And of course, als my old directing Prof always Said: we Need more sex!!!

I think you forgot to put your spell check in english funny to see "ohne", "wie" or "oft" in the text like that...

 

Do we know what other soldiers are at the Qarith triumph other than Space Marines ? Sigismund's Lord Marshal could play an important role probably ? (I always like to see exceptional mortals capable of near-rivaling the Primarchs )

[MikhalLeNoir]

Yeah, my ipad hates me and corrects all my english words to german ones....

 

I like it as well that we lay focus on non-marines and mortals. Gives the whole project more depth

[Slips]

Block of text incoming either tonight or tomorrow ^_^

[Slips]

Y'know that Story?

 

Procrastination hit as well as being Super busy these past few weeks.

 

Edit; Currently sitting at ~1.5k Words and nowhere near done sooooooo yeah.

 

Hopefully it doesnt turn into another 6k word Short Story :P That takes a lot out of me.

[simison]

Ha ha, you're not the only one to struggle with either bug.

[Slips]

So, got an idea for a bit O' Fluff that has been gestating in my brain-box-cage for a while now, here it is:

 

Note: if the writing changes style suddenly, blame it on me reading Dune at some point during the writing process

+++

 

Qarith Prime

22:00 Hours Terran Standard Time

Aboard Phaeton-Pattern Storm Eagle Aviana

500km South of Primary Landmass

 

 

Standing up from his seated position, Antonidas went to the Forward Equipment Compartment of the Aviana and started to equip his Obscura Jump Pack. They were to perform a Rapid Stealth Infiltration amongst the Qarith within proximity to their Primary Hive-Cluster on the main landmass of the planet.

 

"Commence Preparations, Brothers, we have no margin for error in this. Sergeant?" He stated, looking to his second in command for this operation, clasping the final strap for the jump pack on.

 

"Yes, First Captain?" the Astartes Answered

 

"Commence Briefing Recap, everyone else, see to your equipment."

 

"Aye, Captain" replied all the gathered Astartes, including those in the other Phaeton. One after the other, each Astartes in the cabin took turns equipping their Jump Packs, Grabbing their Lancea's and strapping-and-reeling their Hooknets to their Forearms. 

 

All told, they were only Twenty-One Astartes participating in this mission, discounting the Phaeton Crews. Himself and Two Full Phantom Squads, the elite hunters of the Scions Hospitaliers.

 

While all Astartes had eiditic memories, it was still good form to go over mission parameters and briefings prior to final deployment to avoid any miscommunication errors from slipping in and to have every member of the operation on the same team. He ran over the details in his own head, not really listening to the Sergeant even though he should have.

 

Their Target was a particular Qarith Subspecies they have yet to encounter openly on the field of battle. They only discovered this 'Queen' Subtype, as Inna called it, through chance due to the Fleet in Orbit performing a Deep Scan of the enemies Locations under direct orders from Icarion.

 

While any and all information on their quarry was nonexistent beyond the confirmation of its existance, it was deemed a high value target by Strategic High Command and marked for assassination. However, due to the nature of the Qarith and the ongoing conflict on the planet, traditional assassination attempts by the Officio Assassinorum was deemed unfeasible.

 

This is where they came in.

 

They were, under the cover of darkness, to perform a rapid insertion onto the planets South Pole from Orbit, where there was a markedly diminished Qarith presence, fly due north to the southern Peninsula of the Primary Landmass, drop in at supersonic speeds to minimize detection and enemy preparedness, infiltrate the Hive Cluster, take out the target and, if possible, acquire one or more Organ Samples for further study.

 

Simple.

 

As he was mag-clamping clamping grenades to his belt and greaves and went about attaching Hoardfrost, his Paragon Blade to his forearm, he caught the tail end of the Sergeants re-briefing, pulling him out of his reverie and back to full attention. They were now fifteen minutes out from their destination. He could feel the anticipation in the cabin building.

 

"Five Minutes till arrival" Comm'd the Pilot.

 

"Roger That" Antonidas answered "Drop Positions, everyone. Remember, engage thrusters as close to the surface as possible. The less they notice us, the better. We'll have Twenty Minutes to get in, eliminate the target, acquire samples if possible and get out. Conserve as much fuel as possible, at least enough for a single jump; we'll be boarding mid-flight on the way out."

 

"Aye Captain!" Did all the assembled Astartes Answer.

 

As the internal Chrono counted down the 300  seconds till destination, the speed of the craft picked up to supersonic speeds, the outside darkness visible from the viewports betraying the sense of speed due to its unmoving blackness.

 

200 seconds. postures straightened further.

 

100 seconds. Hooknets were looked over one final time.

 

50 seconds. Lancea's were mag-locked to the wielders armor, the brother they stood beside testing the strength of the magnetic grip.

 

20 seconds. Antonidas' squad-monitor showed increased bio-rhythms.

 

10 Seconds. Nervous movement was apparent to all.

 

9...

 

8...

 

7...

 

6...

 

5...

 

4...

 

3...

 

2...

 

1..

 

BANG!

 

The floor hatch beneath them shot open at blinding speed and into the abyss did they fall. They were Three Thousand feet above their target and all the Phantoms had cleared the craft without issue, their Shadow-Colored Plate blending them in with the blackness of the night sky.

 

Ten Seconds before landfall by his estimation. They dropped roughly Three Kilometers away from their actual destination, intending to use the speed gained through their Supersonic Drop to permit them to get past any unaware defenses the Qarith may have set up and to crash through the outer walls of the Hive-Cluster their target resided in.

 

His HUD Displayed them as moving at barely above Three Hundred Meters per Second and the hive wall was closing in fast. They would have to flip over from their current head-forward dive position to present their feet to the outer surface and to, three seconds from impact, activate their Jump Packs at full burn to reduce the brunt of the impact to Astartes-Survivable levels.

 

Easy, the thought, grinning to himself.

 

One after the other, Antonidas being the first, they performed the maneuver and, like massive, One-Ton Bullets, did they crash into and through the hive walls, crushing multiple Qarith of various kind as they blasted through layer upon layer of hallways and walls. As they came to a stop, each member comm'd in confirming safe arrival and reporting on their current location -- they hadn't scattered too far from one another, good.

 

Quickly they went to the bodies of the Qarith they had killed on entry and still had their heads intact, opened their skulls and ate potions of their brains. One by one, the gathered Astartes reported on their new found knowledge of the hive and created a rough map of the area. Their Quarry was further down, near the center of the construct.

 

19:26 read his Chrono.

 

"We have our mission. Make haste brothers, time is not on our side." Antonidas stated, launching into a sprint down the hallway he found himself in, other Phantoms starting to emerge from their landing zones, also sprinting.

 

"Any who try to impede us are to be cut down swiftly, quietly and remorselessly, we can waste no time on them."

 

"Aye!" was the reply he recieved.

 

Thankfully, due to their enhanced physiologies, they were capable of running, at full sprint, at speeds around Thirty Kilometers per hour. This made the vast distances and spaces of the Hive-Cluster disappear beneath their feet and require them only to shoulder charge into any of the smaller Qarith types they encountered to pulp them.

 

So far resistance had been minimal but, as news would travel fast, they were ready for all but the heaviest of resistance given their locale. Still, these Qarith were not one to be underestimated, as they were to find out soon.

 

Breaking out of the hallways of the Hive-Wall sections, they emerged into the center, a great sprawling mass with enough open spaces at points to fly aircraft in and before them was a group of no less than ten Banshee Sub-Types. Without so much as breaking stride, each of the members selected a target and, with preternatural timing, shot into them with their Jump Packs as one, spearing their prey once in the skull each with their Lancea's, felling them instantly and continued on their way.

 

Now in the open, they shifted to using controlled bursts from their Jump Packs to propel them forwards, towards the suspended edifice at the center of the hive, the Queens Location.

 

Resistance was surprisingly light, Antonidas noted, and felt a pang of worry: They could be heading into a trap for all he knew. Still, they were giving a mission and by the Primarch and Emperor, they would complete it or die trying.

 

As they approached, he noted the the structure they were headed towards was supported at the bottom and top by thick, biomechanical structures akin to support rods as well as, along the diameter, multiple smaller rods.

 

"Brothers, see those support rods?" He asked,

 

"Aye Captain."

 

"I've a feeling were in for a trap, resistance has been a bit too light for my tastes." he continued.

 

"I noticed that too, captain, what do you think they could be planning?" Replied Brother Othel, jumping off a Wall and landing on a Worker-Type before continuing on.

 

"I've not any clue, Brother, the minds of these creatures are unfathomable us and rightfully so. As a precaution, I want us to rig those support beams with melta bombs prior to going in there. Alternatively, we could simply blow them from the outside and let the building crash onto the ground below and draw them out that way. Opinions?"

 

"Feth that!" Said one, "Thats a cowardly tactic, Captain! We are Astartes and we should meet them in honorable combat!"

 

"Ignore that fool, sir." Said another, "He's just been promoted to our ranks, he yet has much to learn of out methods."

 

"Aye sir, might as well have them in place for when we enter the place and things go wrong; can't risk this prey getting out of this alive."

 

One by one did his Brothers voice their opinions: The veteran brothers siding with his Caution, the more recent additions opting for a more heroic and direct method of going about their task.

 

"Good points, all but, the mission comes before personal glory in this matter. Another time against another foe and perhaps we could forgo the necessary subterfuge and fails safes and go for Glory but, our orders come directly from the Primarch and in this we cannot disobey him. Form up into groups of two and head for your designated targets marked....now."

 

"Received. Got It! Acknowledged." Came the affirmations.

 

"We will continue on in formation to within single Kilometer of our destination. At that point, we split up and plant the Bombs. Timer is to be put on a 10 Minute Fuse and Rendez-Vous at the opening we currently have visuals on and proceed inside together."

 

They continued on, Antonidas stabbing with Hoarfrost into those foolish enough to attempt to impede him. He dispatched them with a Single Blow each, the blade easily cutting through Chitin, Bone, Muscle and Sinew, freezing the wound and the immediate area around it instantly, their bodies bifurcated at the points of Contact between them and his blade.

 

Soon they reached the launch points, a trail of Qarith bodies the only evidence of their passage. As they divided into their preassigned teams and leaped into the air, their newfound vantage point gave them all the intel they needed: Their Speed, Violence and Skill were the only reason they yet lived.

 

Far below them now, they saw teeming masses of the Qarith swarming from all possible locations going to previous conflict sites as well as trying to head them off. Clearly they had not expected them to be airborne for there were none of the Types possessed with wings present. Good for us, too bad for them, Antonidas thought to himself, their cries of frustration as the Twenty Astartes quickly sped away from them music to his ears.

 

Himself and Brother Atrion were the first to reach their target, using their melee weapons to hook themselves into the fleshy biomechanical structure, they quickly planted their melta bombs and slaved them to their internal timers which now read 11:13. Not much time but enough to get the job done. That part of the plan done they jumped off their perch and landed at the designated Rendez-Vous point.

 

Surprisingly enough, they were the third pair to arrive. Good, he thought, less waiting around for me. Over the course of the next three minutes the remaining pairs arrived to join their brothers.

 

"This is it. We have one shot. If this goes sour we all bail and hopefully the trap we have laid does its job. No Heroics. The Primarch wants each and everyone of us to return. Again, in this, we shall not fail him."  His speech finished he led the way inside.

 

The interior was illuminated with a bioluminescent yellow-green glow bright enough that they could still see but dark enough that fine details were not immediately apparent and opened into a vast, open area much larger than the exterior would have suggested. Throughout the whole structure, a soft Ba-Thump...Ba-Thump...Ba-Thump could be heard in time with the undulating of the walls.

 

Slowly as they closed in on the center, a mound had started to form. Hundreds of Egg-Like structures in varying shapes but all possessed of a vaguely similar form were starting to emerge from the dim shadows. And slowly, as they climbed the mound, a few hundred meters in diameter at is base, they made out their target.

 

First were the legs. Very much arachnid in appearance but thousands of times larger. Each was as thick as an Astartes and Eighteen Legs were there in total each ending in a fine, chitinous point. Next came the thorax and Abdomen. The Former vaguely female in its humanoid appearance but just as large as a Terminator was tall, the Latter distended and gorged, occasionally spewing out eggs, the transparent flesh visible through the parted armor plating due to how stretched it was.

 

And finally, the head and arms. There were Six arms, different to the legs, each was well over two meters long and ended in three scything talons each, themselves being the length of a Standard Astartes Combat Knife. And the Head. In place of hair was a large, sweeping, crest the shape of a crescent. The immediate likeness was to that of a Crown, albeit one of Flesh, Bone and Cartilage. The face, while vaguely female, was all but alien to the Astartes. Six Eyes of pure black stared out at them, where one would have expected a nose, only flat, smooth skin was found and a cheek-less, double-jawed mouth lined with razor sharp teeth to complete the ensemble.

 

As the gathered Astartes cautiously approached, the being before them made no attempt to strike at them, instead it cautiously looked at them.

 

*Beep* 7:00 read the chronos.

 

When the Astartes made no immediate attempt to strike, the Queen lowered her upper body to match their height and, through a raspy, pained and multi-faceted voice, it spoke to them.

 

"Hhhhhhhaaaaavvvvveeeee....yoooooooooou.....commmmmeeeee.....tooooo.....kiiiiiiiiiiillllll.....meeeeeeee? To.....Ennnndddddd.....thisssss.....tooooooorrrrmmmmeeennnnntttt?!"

 

"It speaks? Captain?" Asked one of the squad members.

 

"I heard it, Brother," he said, locking eyes with the Queen to address it "And what if we have? What would you do? We have a mission to accomplish and naught that you can say or do will stop us from accomplishing this task."

 

"Tttthhhhhheeeennnnnnnnn....Dooooooooooooooooo....iiiiiiiiitttttttt....REEEEELLLEEEEASSSSSSEEEEE MEEEEEE!!!" it shrieked.

 

"Before we do, answer me one thing: Why does one such as yourself desire the embrace of death?"

 

*beep* 6:20

 

"Cooooooommmmmmeeeeee.....clooooooooseeeeerrrrrrrrr....weeeeeeeeehaaaaavvvveeee.....nooooo....TIME.....fooooorrrr wooooooorrrrddddsssssss...." He rasped, her features contorting in pain as another egg spewed forth from her abdomen.

 

"No, Captain, we cannot risk it. Put her out of her misery and be done with this!" said another member of the squad, placing a hand on his shoulder.

 

"Would that I could. If she has information about these Qarith that she can share and that we could use to our advantage, we must obtain it, no matter the means."

 

"YOU WOULD SULLY YOURSELF WITH CONTACT WITH THIS XENOS!?!" Exclaimed another.

 

*Beep* 5:40

 

"I....AM....NO...XENOS!" The Queen Roared. "Thhhheeeessseeeee....fffffffoooouuuullllll....thhhhiiinnnngggg...thhhhheeyyy...." She trailed off, beckoning to Antonidas to approach.

 

As he did so and was sufficiently close for it to touch him, she placed a single clawed finger on the forehead area of his helmet. A sudden spike of pain came next followed by a flash of memories that were not his own.

 

*beep* 4:55

 

He fell to his knees grasping at his head and stifling a shout. He used his enhanced body and mind to sort through the memories and to ignore the pain. What he saw were brief flashes of the Now-Queens past life on an Imperial Agriworld, the sudden invasion of the Qarith, the death of her family, subsequent abduction followed by a series of blurry, unfocused memories of being in a gestation pod and feeling her body be molded, shaped and, ultimately, changed into the form she now occupied. This and much more filled his mind.

 

*Beep* 4:00

 

"Hnnngghh....Glad to have...confirmation...that these Queens are Psykers. Would have preferred another method but, times is, indeed, running short."

 

"What did it show you, Captain?"

 

"A lot and Enough." He replied and looked back to the Queen. He walked up to her, standing face to face and, with all the authority he could muster proclaimed. "In the Name of the Emperor of Mankind, My Primarch, his son, our Gene-Father and by my right as First Captain of the Scions Hospitalier of the Legiones Astartes, I grant upon thee, O Imperial Subject and Citizen, the Emperors Peace."

 

"Thhhhhaaaaannnnnkkkkkkkkkk......yyyyooooouuuu......" It Groaned in response. For an instant, Antonidas imagined he saw a tear well up at her insectoid eyes.

 

*Beep* 3:35

 

And, with a single, deft swing, did he decapitate her with Hoarfrost. He knelt down and picked up the head and handed it to a nearby Brother.

 

"We have our Sample. Now, we must hurry out, we have scant the time to stand and gawk." And as one, they sprinted out the way they came.

 

*Beep* 1:15

 

As they exited the chamber, they did not even spare a glance at the teeming masses of assembled Qarith beneath them. Instead, all looked Skyward. At the apex of the Hive-Cluster lay their way out. Igniting their Jump Packs at full burn, they leapt into the air heading towards their destination. As they closed the Distance, those brothers who were carrying extra melta bombs for just this tasked readied them. Planting the bombs into the peak and securing them in place, they distanced themselves from them, using their Lanceas to hook themselves to the ceilings, unable to use the Magplates found in their boots due to the Biological nature of the structure.

 

As the Melta Bombs Detonated and the Fleshy roof collapsed on itself, the gathered marines all quickly disengaged themselves from their perches, leaping out of the Hive-Cluster and into the open atmosphere of Qarith Prime.

 

*Beep-Click* 0:00 

 

Beneath them came a dull, resounding fwoom followed by a dull crushing sound a few seconds later, the result of their trap helping sow chaos and confusion among the Qarith Ranks.

 

Good. Let them know fear that even their Hives aren't safe.

 

And, as if on queue, there came the roar of the Phaeton Engines come to pick them up. Dividing themselves back into their ten-man-plus-one, units they lined up for extraction and, with a final thrust from their Jump Packs, entered their transports through the bottom hatches.

 

Their Mission was complete but the war was far from it. They still had work to do and none of them would rest until the end of this campaign.

 

 

+++End...?+++

 

 

Ugh that ending feels super rushed @_@ I had a whole combat thought out and everything but this one just came a lot more naturally to me. I dunno.

 

Oh well, onto the next piece!

[MikhalLeNoir]

Oh wow.....loooooooooong story

[bluntblade]

Has anything been decided viz Qarith ships and void tactics? Only I had a daydream involving the Dragon of Autumn's Big :cussing Gun, so any info would be welcome.

 

I'm thinking a similar tone to the Luna Wolves' brawl in space from The Wolf of Ash and Fire. Easily my favourite bit of void war. I'll be trying to focus on the mortal crew (actually, one particular mortal).

 

If someone can suggest a suitable planet that'd help.

[Sigismund229]

Thus far we've not touched on the Qariths void capabilities so knock yourself out!

[bluntblade]

Thus far we've not touched on the Qariths void capabilities so knock yourself out!

I'm starting with the idea of the Diasporex ships- ancient human ships, but grotesquely altered- and will run with that. The brawl vibe will come from the Qarith being parked over an Imperial world and harvesting the inhabitants (late in the campaign, as the Imperials know what's going on).

 

Edit: I'm trying to think of a way of doing "grotesquely altered" that doesn't veer too close to Chaos or Dark Eldar.

 

More edits: :cuss: I hadn't checked the "Legions involved" list before making the Dragon of Autumn the focal point. So, would this be an acceptable compromise: a Qarith fleet mounts a shock invasion of Imperial space, some way from the main warzones.

 

And one final thought- can we get a Gorro-ish moment where the Emperor fights alongside his sons for the last time?

[bluntblade]

I changed a few things in my alternative draft, and it just worked a bit better. Even if I've written Sarrin a scene involving no use of the Ursis Claws.

 

The Dragon of Autumn plunged towards the Qarith fleet above Mordian like a raptor, hurling missiles and las-fire. Ahead, Lieutenant Lotara Sarrin could see the pincers of the Imperial fleet, Navy on one side and Crimson Lions on the other, glowing with Warp residue. She glanced at Captain Barryk Carya, bolt upright and teeth slightly bared. His gloved hands danced over the consoles embedded in the arms of the command thrine even as he snapped orders, directing his own crew and the captains ahead and behind.

 

Four battleships peeled off with their escorts, rolling to hammer the Qarith perimeter from above as the Dragon dove beneath, guns tearing upwards. Two frigates raced ahead, compensating for the battleship’s relative lack of conventional forward firepower. Caught between two volleys, the Qarith vessels were obliterated. But that was just the outer layer, and now the Imperials were taking a share of the punishment as the Qarith retaliated, ripping chunks out of their hulls and vaporising fighter craft. They were packed tightly together above the planet's gravity well, presenting a hideously dense mass of firepower. A conventional engagement, with ships kilometres apart, would struggle to make much impact, giving the Qarith timw to harvest the inhabitants of the hives below.

 

The commanders had conceded that it was a brilliant gambit by the enemy, striking far from the worlds where the Astartes were bringing destruction to the Qarith. If it succeeded the Imperium would have to contend with billions of the monsters within its own borders. The Qarith force was anchored by a hideous, gargantuan ship at the centre, and only the Dragon had the means to bring it down quickly enough.

 

If they couldn't crack the blockade, they had their orders from the Emperor Himself. On twenty ships at the rear of the fleet, virus bombs were being prepared for the worst eventuality, ready to give the Emperor's Peace to an entire planet. A step backwards, anathema to everything they stood for.

[bluntblade]

Urgency had driven Carya to propose this strategy; the fleet would come tearing out of the Warp, straight into the enemy fleet and getting right amongst their vessels. Surprise would be their main advantage- other than that, victory would come from inflicting severe damage too quickly for the enemy to counter. If the Qarith monster was brought down it would immolate everything in the vicinity, so every other Imperial vessel was to support the Dragon and its escorts from a safe distance as it clawed a path towards its target. At 24 Terran years of age, Lotara had seen more than her fair share of space combat (and truth be told, perhaps spent too much time in simulated battles) but none of it had prepared her for this. It was the equivalent of a lower-hive street fight; gangers wrestling in the mud, biting and gouging. Fighters, debris missiles and las-beams filled the void. About the only projectiles not being used were boarding torpedoes. There simply wasn't enough time for them to be effective; the mission was to tear through the Qarith and rescue the population below. Every Space Marine was needed on the surface.

 

Carya barked another sequence of orders, and the Dragon unleashed a scything broadside. Lotara watched two separate Qarith ships crumple like tin under a boot, contorting as decompression tore them open.

 

"Strange, isn’t it, to think that once those ships were once a part of our inheritance?” Daer’dd’s voice, normally loud enough to drown out everything else, was simply another noise amidst the near-constant impacts against the ship's shields. “Had things gone differently, we would prize these among the greatest treasures recovered by the Crusade.”

 

“The Qarith have disfigured them just as they have done themselves,” she replied. The vessels must have once been elegant in a way that few Imperial vessels could match, their hulls recalling the sail ships of ancient Terra. Now some were contorted into insectile shapes, with a foul iridescent sheen to their hulls. Others had components which resembled the most disgusting specimens of aquatic life, grafted onto the vessels and bulging with bizarre weaponry.

 

"And as they will do to our people unless we purge them.” Daer'dd’s hands bunched into fists. He caught her glance, and nodded ruefully, eyes on the command throne. “Aye, I struggle with times like this. I never mastered voidwar, and I must simply put my faith in those who have.” It truly was a strange sight; a demigod, silhouetted against the carnage he was powerless to influence, and the mortal in the throne, orchestrating the strike with the ship he had designed.

 

“Svarrensson, wake the dragon,” Carya shouted as the ship clawed its way toward the heart of the Qarith fleet. “We've got one shot at this. Quintus, Randell, ready the forward Nova cannons! Clawhammer, Kulmahammas, get clear!” Then the Qarith flagship came into view, or rather, enough enemy ships were destroyed for them to get a proper look. “Throne…” Lotara breathed.

 

Perhaps it had been an orbital once. Perhaps it had been the pride of Mars’ shipyards. Now, it resembled nothing so much as a thornbush rendered in adamantium, bristling with weaponry and swarming with fighters. Even as the Dragon and its escorts ripped past the last enemy line, light flared across the spines and something glowed within the huge maw of the ship.

[bluntblade]

"Oh, pask-” Svarrensson rasped before the behemoth hurled a vast gout of radioactive slag at the attackers. Kulmahammas soared clear, but the horrific mass engulfed Clawhammer, hurling it back at the Dragon. The whole thing struck the battleship's shields with hideous force. Lotara would have been a bloody smear on the wall had Daer'dd not seized her, bracing himself against the fury of the Qarith attack. Svarrensson and Randell were less lucky. The old Fenrisian’s neck snapped as he struck a pillar, while Randell was thrown into Grimm's shoulder guard with a nasty crack, flopping to the ground unconscious. And the captain… Carya had been hurled from the command throne to land in a heap of broken limbs, blood pooling around his head. Without his commands, the Dragon lurched, unable to bring its full power to bear on the enemy ship.

 

Lotara reeled, gasping, until she became aware of a new warning siren. Wheeling around, she spotted a swarm of Qarith bombers gathering for take advantage of the shock. “Lord, join Quintus on the novae!” Daer'dd raced over to the console, where Quintus was already passing the commands to fire. The cannons shredded the oncoming craft, but they could see the monstrous construct's weapon powering up for a second blow- one that even the Dragon wouldn't survive. And now she was unpiloted...

 

Lotara half ran, half staggered to the command throne, stumbling over Svarrensson’s sprawled form and nearly slipping in Carya’s blood. Fortunately, there was no mistaking the trigger she wanted. An bronze talon, and for the button, the eye of Terra picked out in ruby and onyx. She forced the ship into a shallow dive, at the same time plotting a rapid rise. “Victory or death!” She yanked the trigger back, her thumb stabbing down on the button, and the Dragon roared.

 

A jet of coruscating light engulfed the Qarith behemoth. Its shields withstood the impact, but the sheer heat reached inside and whatever engines powered the construct overloaded. Lotara set the engines to full burn and the Dragon shot upwards as the massive structure burst open, shattering most of the Qarith fleet. The bridge resounded to the triumphant roars and whoops of the surviving crew and Astartes as the rest of the fleet fell upon the remaining Qarith. Troop transports moved out to take up position above the hives.

 

Lotara slumped back in the throne, gasping. Finally the enormity of what she'd done sank in, and she started to laugh.

 

She didn’t know how long she laughed, but when Daer'dd cleared his throat, she was jolted back, and her eyes followed his steps to the lifeless Carya. The Primarch knelt and closed the captain's eyes. “The Emperor knows your name, friend.” Then he rose and faced Lotara. “The task is only half-done. I want the ship in position by the time I reach my pod.” Then his tone softened slightly. “I reckon you can manage such a task after that display, right?”

 

Lotara forced herself to nod, forcing down the mix of shock and elation. “It will be done, lord."

 

The Primarch turned at the door, looking back at her. “The ship is yours, Captain Sarrin.”

 

“Captain…” she murmured, before raising her eyes to his and flashing a fierce grin before he followed his guards to the hangars. “Aye! Good hunting, my lord."