IA: The Knights Revenant

[Sir Perfluous]

THE WEIGHT OF HONOUR - IA: THE KNIGHTS REVENANT

I shall not strive for personal glory. I shall not falter in the face of my duty. I shall not dishonour the memory of angels. I will armour myself with my faith, and arm myself with honour. I will strive to be a beacon against the darkness without and within. I will act as the sword of His justice, and the hand of His grace. I shall not draw my blade in anger or in fear, though the night be at its darkest This I swear, with angels as my witnesses, until death claims my vow.
-The Oath of Angels

"Our codes are not there to for our protection. We have already been lost. I will not fall because if I do then all those I seek to protect , all those I once called friends and all that which I love could be dragged into the pits of hell behind me. An angel does not fall alone".

The Knights Revenant are the bearers of an ancient relic and an ancient curse. They were founded as sons of Sanguinius, with the Carmine Cardinals as their parent chapter. Soon after their creation, they were drawn into the midst of an ancient quest, the burden of their parent chapter, now their responsibility, along with other brother chapters. They seek an artefact they know as the Grail, a holy relic with the power to keep the tides of Chaos from breaching the warp and ravaging the Imperium. The legends of what exactly the Grail is, of what it means and of its significance, have changed within the chapter over the millennia, but they believe it holds the blood of Sanguinius, taken from his corpse after the battle aboard the Vengeful Spirit. It was in search for this artefact, led by Chapter Master Ausar Camlaan, that the Knights came to the giant, rocky planet of Avalon, and its small, forested and hilly moon, Avalon Beta, about three thousand years ago.
On Avalon Beta, they found the artefact that would later become known as the Font of Blood – a great, stone font containing blood of the deepest red. How the Font came to be there and for how long it had been on that small moon are both unknown, though the Librarians of the chapter have long sought an answer.

THE FONT OF BLOOD

"This blood is our heritage, our curse and our salvation. By it, we are born, and through it shall we all meet our final rest. Bring its light to dark places, but guard against the darkness it holds".

- Lord King Ausar of the Anointed in the Tome Repentant.

Though at first the exact nature of the Font was unclear, it soon became clear that it was an artefact similar to the Blood Angels’ Blood Chalices yet of unsurpassed power. It had the potential to restore lost limbs, heal near fatal wounds and even bring back the recently deceased when the body was placed within it, provided the corpse was whole. It was soon discovered, however, that being bathed in it came at a great price. The first to be subject to the Baptism of Blood was battle-brother Lord Mordred Kas, who fell in combat against a Chaos warband. He was placed within the Font in the hope that the blood might heal him, but when he emerged, he was changed in an unforeseen way, his mind shattered and raging, thirsting for battle. It soon emerged that the Font healed the son of Sanguinius placed within it, but also heightened the strength of the Flaw, shattering his mind utterly. Many marines were placed in the Font after him, in the vain hope that this was an isolated event, yet all likewise succumbed to the Rage.
The source of this heightened rage led the chapter to believe that they might have stumbled across the greatest lead yet as to the location of the Grail. The blood was clearly an incredibly holy relic, though why it was so powerful was unknown. It was, indeed, so powerful that the blood actually healed itself, constantly replenishing within the Font and ensuring an endless supply of divine blood.

------------------------

The moon was considered by the Knights to be holy, the Font a sign that it was destined to belong to them. They built their Fortress-Monastery there, and made the moon their home. At first, there were concerns raised about where the chapter was to recruit from, as Avalon Beta was uninhabited by humans, but it was soon discovered that the planet of Avalon Prime was inhabited. And so it was that the Knights Revenant made their presence known to the people of the planet, and began to recruit from among their numbers. The people of that feudal world were accustomed to battle, so the Knights, under the guidance of Lord Camlann, began to slowly exert an influence on the people, shaping their ideologies into ones closely matching their own to create the ideal troop resource.
This continued for a great time, with the Knights continuing their quests for the Grail elsewhere in the galaxy, bolstered by the power of the Font. It was believed by the Knights that they were unstoppable, that Sangiunius himself had sent them a sign in the form of the Font, seemingly the most potent of all the grails of the Blood Angels, that they were his favoured sons, his chosen warriors. The Font had made them immortal, or so it seemed, and thus they had nothing to fear.
Over the years, this mindset began to corrupt them. They were too absorbed with their pride to notice how fast they were falling, but they began to embrace the darkness of their bloodline. The members of the Death Company were revered as chosen warriors, touched by the spirit of Sangiuinius, and the Knights began to fall deeper and deeper into their rage in an attempt to emulate them. It became a better fate to give in to the rage than to die without experiencing its sacred touch.

Lord Camlaan could sense that the end was drawing near, and so he led the Knights as beast he could, trying to direct their hubris to positive ends, though he could not wield the power needed to redeem them. And so, in preparation for what he knew was to come, he sat and wrote a great tome, laying out for future Knights the principles of honour that they would need to direct and shield themselves when they were left without his guidance.

THE SIEGE OF AVALON

"They say that in the end all sins are forgiven. But none can ever be forgotten"

Their hubris was to almost be their downfall. Their lesson came in the end, though, in fire and anguish. News reached Avalon from the planet of Golgotha, home of the Grail Wardens. The Knights Resplendent, the sons of the Knights Revenant, had fallen. They had stolen the Grail and unleashed all of hell onto Golgotha, butchering the Carmine Cardinals, their brothers-in-arms to a man. But the Knights did not go to Golgotha's aid. They remained on Avalon and they waited. Eventually, the expected assault came - The Knights Revenant's forces arrived in the skies of Avalon and began raining down fire. The Knights Revenant met them in battle in the skies and on the fields of Avalon Prime, waging a great and bloody war, the Siege of Avalon, fathers against sons. All the time, the whispers spoke to the Knights. How easy it would be to fall now. How simple, how clean. Only join with their sons, cease this fighting, and share in the riches of the Grail. But in the end, they were too fearful, to cowardly to join with their sons.

After a devastating period of fighting, both sides were left decimated, their numbers falling rapidly as they seemed set to drive each other to extinction. The Knights’ last hope lay in the healing power of the Font, but when they went to it, they found it smashed and broken by the hand of Lord Ausar. With nowhere to run, they steeled themselves for a last stand. In a final attempt to save themselves, they destroyed Avalon Prime, shattering the planet completely, destroying the enemy fleets but at the cost of almost all the world’s population. To the Knights, at the time, it seemed a worthy sacrifice. The people would surely have been more than willing to give themselves for their gods.

The events which followed were to define the chapter for the centuries to come. With their fleets destroyed, the forces of Chaos had nothing to lose, and surged forwards, breaching the Knights’ fortress-monastery. The Knights, in the grip of cowardice, fled before them, throwing down their weapons as they went. The only one to stand before the tide and hold back the death of his brothers was Lord Ausar. As his sons ran, he stayed behind, falling before the swords of Chaos that the Knights might live.

The warband was defeated in the end, though at great cost. Barely any Knights remained, the rest had died on the blades of the enemy. The greatest loss of all, though, was Lord Ausar. With his death, the Knights saw what they had become, saw the nobility of their Chapter Master, who had died that his undeserving brothers could live. They recovered the tome he had written and it spoke truly to them. And so they reformed their ways, created the Angelic Creed in their Chapter Master’s name and rebuilt the Font, swearing never to fall to hubris through it again. They could not shake off the darkness within them completely though. The Rage still touched them, more so than other successors of the Blood Angels.



THE FATE OF CAMLAAN AND THE BIRTH OF THE ANNOINTED

Lord Ausar was the first Knight to be lain within the rebuilt Font, in the hope that he might serve his chapter still. But something unusual happened – instead of having his mind shattered, he emerged intact, his wounds healed and his mind whole. He was not quite whole, however - his mind was in stasis, a coma induced by the healing power of the Font. This was hailed as a miracle by the Knights, a sign of the true nobility of their fallen Chapter Master. He was laid to rest beneath the foundations of the fortress-monastery, the first of the Anointed, the Knights Revenant’s First Company. In the years since then, many others have possessed the similar will of iron and noble purpose required to overcome the rage of the Font and control the its true power. These knights lie alongside their king, awaiting the call to rise and fight as the First Company, resplendent in golden armour, near-immortal warriors with an unbreakable faith.

“Good men don’t need rules. Today is not the day to find out why I have so many.”

The Knights Revenant have no fear of death and no hesitation in carrying out their duties, no matter how hopeless the fight seems. To those who observe them, they are shining examples of justice, nobility and honour, a beacon of light in a dark, war-torn galaxy. It is to this image that the knights themselves strive, pushing themselves further and further in an attempt to prove their worth. Yet they, like all those of the line of Sanguinius, bear a dark stain, a curse upon their heritage. It is not a curse they asked for, nor is it one that they desire to possess. Many of the Adeptus Astartes embrace the darkness of the galaxy, making it part of them that they might use it to drive back the night, only to make it darker. Not so the Knights Revenant. There is a cruel irony to be found in the fact that the paragons of nobility bear possibly the blackest stain of them all as their heritage.
They are ashamed of what they became in the times before the Siege of Avalon, and of the example that Lord Camlann set when he sacrificed himself for his brothers, even though they had done nothing worthy of such a sacrifice. Their fear of sinking that low again drives them to desperate acts of heroism and honour in the name of Sanguinius and Lord Aturus.
And so, to keep them sane in the face of the darkness of the galaxy and the fact that within them lies only more of it, the Knights shield themselves with their codes, their faith and their honour. They will try to show mercy and honour to all those whom they encounter if it is asked of them, even if those who request it are enemies of the Imperium, even if it would seem to compromise their goals. There exists a tale, for example, of a company which was destroyed because they decided to spare the lives of ork soldiers who surrendered to them, only to attack from within later. Yet the Knights are not naïve, they know full well that not many others share their views of honour and that this path can lead to their death. But to die in such a way is preferable to the Knights than the alternative, to become as black and ruthless as the rest of the galaxy. For down that way, they believe, only madness and damnation lie.
The cornerstone of their beliefs is the Tome Repentant, the work set out by Lord Ausar before his death and joining of the Anointed.
They also seek solace from their curse in other forms – the forging and ornamenting of beautiful pieces of artwork and weaponry, training and learning from the great tomes of the Keep Arcanum.
The Knights revere Sanguinius, whom they call the Angel, even more than others of his descent. He was the exemplar of nobility, and thus all Knights will strive to match him, to keep themselves from falling to darkness. His name is inscribed on their weapons, armour and their equipment as a reminder that he is always watching them and always protecting them. With his name in sight, the Knights find it easier to remind themselves of their purpose, and to keep from falling to rage. Those who do succumb to the Rage, though, are treated solemnly and with respect, as brothers lost. It is odd, however, that those who fall to the Rage within the ranks of the Knights, whether through the Font or through bloodlust, show none of the fury or aggression exhibited by other fallen sons of Sanguinius. Their faces are perfectly serene, bearing a calm, pale and passive expression. Those of psychic ability nearby them, however, say that they can hear their silent, tortured screams, as their broken minds are slowly lost to blackness.

“Look well upon the ruin of Avalon. Once, people prospered there, lived, loved and died. Let it serve as their monument, and as a reminder of how far angels can fall.”
– Lord Aesor Kay, Master of Squires.

The forested and mountainous moon of Avalon orbits the shattered ruin of its once mighty parent planet. It is part of the great array of debris that circles the husk like a cloud of rock in the wake of the war that destroyed Avalon Prime, providing the moon with a shield against attack. As the great husk of the planet drifts through the void below Avalon, it can be observed to glow a bright orange-red, its core still visible and burning after the explosion which destroyed it. It provides a second sun during daytime, and bathes the moon in its glow during the night, meaning that the sky of Avalon always burns a bright golden orange.
Avalon Prime was once a bustling agri-world. It was a huge planet, and because of this was able to provide the Imperium with the greatest volume of crops in all of the sector. The people of Avalon lived a relatively peaceful life – thought they still paid the Tithe, they remained mostly ignored by the major conflicts of the area. This all changed, however, when violent warp-storms cut off the trade routes to the planet. Abandoned by the Imperium, Avalon was entirely forgotten by the rest of the galaxy. The first contact they had with other people was upon the arrival of the Knights Revenant, millennia later.
Avalon is a feudal world, its population consisting mainly of survivors from the Siege. From a young age, these people are immersed in the traditions of honour and nobility which the Knights long ago enforced. This and their acclimatisation to war, which is waged constantly between them, make them ideal recruits for the Knights. On Avalon, under its golden sky, the Knights are revered as champions, as shining examples of how to live a life. The Knights, in turn, though they do not encourage this image, see it as their duty to protect the people of Avalon, as it was the Knights who brought this life of warfare and hardship down upon them. Thus, they will often intervene in the wars that take place between the people, acting as negotiators and ensuring that they don’t cause crippling damage to each other. They don’t try to stop the warring altogether, however, as they believe that it is the breeding ground for the codes and the precepts to which they adhere.

CAERBANNOG

Arcadia, The Angel's Rest, Fortress of the Annointed

The Knights’ Fortress-Monastery is named Caerbannog in the language of Avalon, though it is more properly referred to as Arcadia. It is situated far north of most other human settlements and is split into a number of buildings, named Keeps. These Keeps house the various Companies of the Knights, as well as others for the librarians and priesthood. The Sable Keep, home to the Death Company, is situated to the very north of the moon, at the frozen pole, where the Black Knights can be kept in peace without tainting the minds of other Knights.
Towering above all of them, though, is the Keep Ascendant, the greatest stronghold of the Knights and the meeting place of the Red Council. Beneath the keep, in great caverns, the Anointed, the fallen warriors of the Knights, are kept in stasis.

RECRUITMENT

Every year, a great tournament is held at Caerbannog, to which all aspiring recruits from across Avalon are invited. The tournament consists of a series of tests of skill, perseverance, cunning and strength of purpose. The proceedings are presided over by the Red Council and led by Aesor Kay, the Master of Squires at Caerbannog. Those who triumph in the tournament are taken into the keep and begin their life of service to the chapter as squires. Each squire is allocated a Knight, though not necessarily a Lord, to be their mentor and example. The squires will often fight at the side of their mentor, to learn the skills required to be a Knight first-hand. They also train in units, however, and will often fight as a group. As part of their training, aspiring knights also spend some time in the Keep Arcanum, the stronghold of the librarians, where they learn the histories, battles and rituals of the Knights of by heart.
After proving themselves as squires, the recruits are put forward by their Mentor Knight to become full members of the chapter. This process takes place in a great ritual, in which the squires kneel before the great stone statue of Sanguinius within the Keep Ascendant to take the Oath of Angels. The ceremony culminates with the squire having his throat slit by the presiding chaplain and then placed in the Font of Blood, to lie beside their brothers as they are filled with the essence of Sanguinius and await rebirth.

For the Anointing of a Knight in narrative form, see here.

“I am Pellenor Gwais, Lord Knight of the Azure Keep, veteran of the nineteenth and twentieth crusades, and guardian of Avalon for three hundred years, and you shall have no dominion over me!”
-Lord Pellenor Gwais

The Knights Revenant keep within the commandments of the Codex Astartes, though with a few notable exceptions. Firstly, there are four ranks within the Knights – Squires, Sagitarii, Knights and Lord Knights. The Sagitarii are the ranged support of the Knights Revenant, responsible for holding objectives and supporting their Knight brothers from afar. The Knights are the backbone of the chapter, favouring close combat – they are, in turn led by a Lord Knight, who also holds a seat on the Council. Each of these groups will contain, within their numbers, the standard squad types – the rank is simply an additional title, a label of status. Knights count Assault and Terminators among their ranks, Sagitarii the Tactical and Devastator squads. Lord Knights are their captains and commanders.
Each marine is a member of a Keep, either the Argent Keep, Azure Keep, Sanguine Keep, Purpure Keep, Vert Keep, Ermine Keep, Tenne Keep, Gules Keep or the Keep Esquire, The Death Company inhabits the Sable Keep. The First Keep of the Knights Revenant are the Anointed, the fallen warriors entombed beneath the Keep Ascendant. Each marine bears the colour of his Keep on his right knee, as a mark of identification, and to show their origins during a Crusade.

After Lord Camlann was laid to rest beneath Caerbannog, the Knights were faced with the awkward problem of who was to lead them. Their Chapter Master wasn’t dead per se but was in no state to rule, spending all his time but his battles in a Font-induced stasis. And so the Red Council was formed, to rule in his stead and make decisions in his name. The Council wields all the power of a Chapter Master but is a democracy, comprised of all high-ranking Knights who can attend at any given time.
The Crusades of the Knights Revenant are a great gathering of troops, specifically chosen by the Red Council for the terrain and enemies expected to be encountered. It is a great honour to be chosen as part of a crusade. The intention behind the gathering of these great hosts is to seek the Sanguine Grail, or for other times of great importance. A Crusade is launched every fifty to one hundred years – to date, there have been thirty-six. A crusade can last years – it does not end until its mission has been accomplished or until all its members are dead.

"War must ever be, while we defend our lives against a destroyer who would devour all; but I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness nor the arrow for its swiftness not the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend."

"We do not fight out of hatred or fear, or a blind and unthinking quest for glory, but because there are those in this world who cannot fight for themselves, and others who would have these people die in pain for that foresight".

-Lord Arravar Vael

The Knights Revenant revere close combat, as it encourages the fighter to fully comprehend the actions he is taking. It is believed that to distance oneself from combat physically does so mentally as well, meaning that the knight might not grasp the true meaning of his vows if he confronts a faceless, featureless enemy. All Knights, even the Sagitarii, carry a sword, which they are issued with on the day they take the Oath and which remains with them for the rest of their lives and all participate in close combat whenever possible. They do recognise the use of ranged weapons, and use them fully, but still consider close combat sacred.
Before each and every battle in which they participate, the Knights will spend a night in vigil, repeating the Oath of Angels and offering prayers to Sanguinius to watch over them. These rituals end with a single drop from the Font of Blood being spilled onto their weapons, to give them strength. On long campaigns, the blood is carried by the crusade’s Sanguinary Priest in an ornately decorated vial.
The Knights Revenant have a strict code of conduct, the Creed of Angels, which governs how they must manage themselves in combat. It is a matter of greatest shame for a Knight to break his vows and forsake the Creed, even in the most desperate of times. Indeed, the Knights believe that it is in the most desperate of times that the Creed is most important.

“You carry the spirit of Sanguinius. Your blood is his blood, just as his blood is yours. Let the might of the Angel guide you and may His grace keep you whole”

The Knight Revenant are of the blood and gene-seed of Sanguinius, founded as descendants of the Carmine Cardinals. They bear the same blessings and curses as all others of his blood – the Black Rage and the Red Thirst being chief amongst them.

“I shall not fall today!”

The Knights also recite the Oath of Angels before each and every battle in which they participate, and some will also chant it like a mantra as they fight.

NOTABLE KNIGHTS


Lord Gahaliel

“I have bested the champions of traitors and fought in hells in which demons fear to tread. I walked out of the ash of a fallen world and I have watched as legions screamed and burned. Death himself cannot stay my blade. I don’t favour your chances.”

Lord Knight Gahaliel is a legend among the Knights Revenant, the living embodiment of the Creed and Lord of the Argent Keep. Born almost five hundred years ago, he first made a name for himself as a squire, saving his mentor and his squad from death at the hands of Orks. He rose quickly through the ranks, and as more and more power was entrusted to him, it became more and more clear that he was a born leader - brave, honourable and a master of battle. He became the youngest Knight ever to earn a place on the Council, proving his worth in battle after battle and stratagem after stratagem. It was believed by some that he was Sanguinius reborn, come to aid his Knights in their time of need. He wielded the great two-handed sword Excelsis, gifted to him by the Council as a reward for his service in battle.
As a result of his seeming perfection as a Knight, he was placed in command of the 15th Crusade, which ventured through systems ruled by Chaos. During its course, he finally fell in battle in the canyons of Sarras Prime, guarding a pass alone so that his men could retreat. His body was retrieved and placed in stasis, then taken back to Avalon. There, he was immersed in the Font of Blood, in the hope that he could be laid to rest alongside the Anointed.
Yet something very unusual happened in the case of Gahaliel. He remained in the Font for weeks, a period of time unheard of for those subjected to it, and when he emerged, he was conscious and aware. Fearing the worst, he was examined for any trace of the Rage, but it seemed he was completely sane. No-one before or since had ever emerged from the Font without becoming either Anointed or a Black Knight, not even Lord King Camlann, yet it seemed Gahaliel had done so. This has elevated his status amongst the Knights to previously unheard of heights. Now a Chapter Master in all but name, Gahaliel fights as he had before, and has recently been chosen to lead the 36th Crusade, his fifth time in command of one. The Font has granted him all the healing power of the Anointed, yet borne within a conscious body. His wounds close of their own accord, often before the wounding stroke is done. One story tells of the time that his weapon arm was cut off but regrew, allowing him to beat his opponent to death with his severed limb.
Yet there are whispers that Gahaliel is not the man he once was, that somehow, whatever it was he experienced in the Font had changed him. He often disappears for weeks or months at a time without trace, and remains sullen and silent during Council meetings. Those closest to him sense a darkness in his heart, of what kind they cannot say. He fights in battle with increasing rage, swinging his weapons at foes long after the enemy has fled. His face he now conceals beneath a golden mask, and no emotion can be heard from the man beneath. Whether he has changed for good or ill, though, remains to be seen.

Modred Kas, the Chained Lord

“Burn.”

Mordred Kas is the Lord of the Sable Keep and was the first Knight Revenant to be lain to rest in the Font, over one thousand years ago. His incredible longevity is due to the healing power of the Font – though his mind is broken, his body is virtually indestructible.
He rarely speaks, and has never been seen out of his armour, leading to great speculation as to what the man within has become. He towers over other men, even the Marines, and his black armour is wrapped in chains from head to toe in an attempt, some say, to keep the demon within him from breaking free and slaughtering everything before him. Instead of a helm, he wears a great black skull which the whispers say was taken from the body of a daemon or traitor Marine he killed. The eye sockets burn with fire, lending further credence to the idea that his true nature might be daemonic.
Between battles, he rests in the depths of the Sable Keep in the frozen north of Avalon, or in a specially prepared chamber whilst on campaign, suspended in the air by chains from the walls and ceilings, arms outstretched, contemplating atrocities no man can fathom. The other Knights will refuse to meet him alone, and he is kept under armed guard at all times. It is said that Lord Camlaan is the only man from whom he will truly take a command. The Council will only set him loose on a battlefield if there is no other option, fearing the effect he will have on the will of other Knights.
Kas is a monster in battle. He wields as a weapon a flail made of blackened chains, topped by a great skull taken from the body of a Chaos champion he bested in a battle aeons before. Before a battle he sets the skull ablaze, so that fire pours from the eyes and mouth to burn and immolate his enemies. His chains act as living extensions of his will, snaking out and enveloping foes, choking the life from them and ripping them limb from limb. Often at the end of a battle he will walk out of the carnage with corpses and limbs dragging through the dirt behind him in the chains' grasp.

COLOUR SCHEMES:


TACTICAL



Tactical Marine Brother Arthal Domaer of the Vert Keep (indicated by the green kneepad)


SERGEANT



Sir Lathaniel Annwn, Sergeant of the Argent Keep 1st Squad


TERMINATOR



Lord Caradog Vaes of the Annointed

[Sir Perfluous]

Hello! Thought I'd start a new thread for this (the WIP version is here if you haven't been following it already). I've never written an IA before, so absolutely any and all C&C is welcome. I'm sorry if it's a bit long, but I couldn't figure out a way to condense it properly no matter how I tried. So sorry again for making you read a lot. This is still sort of a first draft - I know it's almost certainly not perfect - so it'll probably be updated a lot. 

[Sir Perfluous]

EDIT: Colour scheme and chapter badge added. Your feedback is welcome, the Liber Challenge ends soon!

[That Guy Matt]

Very good job. I liked your history, it was dark and gothic with a very 40k feel. There's a good balance of elements too. If you had a similar style and belief system with say an Ultramarine successor it would be very lose to being 'Mary-Sue'ish'. But with a Blood Angel successor, particularly one who have been through so much, it works.

 

Oh and your Death Company are haunting.

[Sir Perfluous]

Thanks! I'll admit I was a bit concerned as I was devising the themes and backstory that they were going to be a bit mary-sueish. "Look! My genetically engineered kill-machines are nice-ish! And tragic! And they might not kill you if you ask them nicely!" :)

 

I tried to counterbalance that by making the Death Company even more insane than usual, to show how far they can fall, and to demonstrate why they hold so strongly to the beliefs they have. I'm glad you think it works!