Narrative Battle Report - The Prize of Cawl

[Wargamer]

Supernovas Strike Force:

Captain Nyel of the 8th - Cataphractii Armour, combi-melta, chainfist.

Librarian Hoxra of the 1st - Terminator Armour, stormbolter, force axe.

Lieutenant Tiber of the 5th - Primaris Lieutenant with bolt rifle.

 

The Dead Company - 5 Cataphractii with Lightning Claws.

The Ironforged - Sternguard Sergeant with bolter and power fist, 2 Sternguard with meltaguns, 2 sternguard with bolters.

The Stalker Kin - Scout sergeant with sniper rifle, scout with heavy bolter, 4 scouts with sniper rifles, 4 scouts with bolters.

 

Squad Cyda - Sergeant with plasma pistol and power sword, 1 Marine with missile launcher, 1 Marine with meltagun, 7 bolter Marines.

Squad Oxor - Sergeant with bolt pistol and lightning claw, 1 Marine with heavy bolter, 1 Marine with flamer, 7 bolter Marines.

Squad Sigir - Sergeant with bolt pistol and power fist, 1 Marine with missile launcher, 1 Marine with plasmagun, 7 bolter Marines.

 

Ancient Komdai - Venerable Dreadnought with heavy plasma cannon, stormbolter, dreadnought combat weapon.

Ancient Lata - Contemptor with assault cannon, combi-bolter, dreadnought combat weapon.

 

Expedition Cawl:

Scribe Note: Approximate forces based on field observations.

Arch Heretic Belisarius Cawl.

2 Heretek Enginseers.

 

2 Dunewalkers with large energy weapons.

2 Kastelan battle robots.

 

3x 10-man squads of Skitarii infantry.

 

Imperial Knight - Paladin Class.

 

11:03 0564017.M3 - the Stormforge:

Captain Nyel cursed the sandstorm that raged around them, scouring at their heraldry and obscuring the way ahead. Somewhere in the sand was a manufactorum, now just a seemingly random collection of half-collapsed towers poking through the dunes at odd angles. The Dreadnoughts led the way, flanked by squads Oxor and Sigir, and Nyel followed as close behind as his bulky armour would allow. Out on the right flank, in a rocky outcrop just south of the old landing platform was squad Cyda, and between them and the main group were the Ironforged, pride of the 8th and siege masters beyond compare.

 

"Stalker one in position," the vox crackled, "We've secured the helipad. There's some kind of storage device here, covered in Mechanicum scrawl."

"Stalker two, we've got the same at Nav Point Alpha."

"Secure them," Nyel replied. "Whatever's inside, Cawl wants it, and if he wants it then so do I."

 

The dust storm began to dissipate as the Supernovas reached the complex. There, at the base of an old tower, stood Belisarius Cawl, the arch heretic.

"CAWL!" Nyel roared, his shout so fierce it seemed even the wind fled in terror from it. "In the name of the Emperor, surrender to me!"

The Astartes' vox crackled and Cawl's voice filled the ears of the strike force, "why would I surrender to you, Astartes?"

"For your heresy! For the blasphemous monsters you spawned with your degenerate experimentation!" Nyel paused and recalled that one such degenerate was stood beside him. "Present company excepted, of course."

"Too kind," Lieutenant Tiber replied, dryly.

 

As the sand storm fled further north more of Cawl's bodyguard appeared in sight, striding forth to defend their master. To Cawl's left were two fighting machines armed with powerful energy weapons; to his right, two Kastellan automata. Flanking this force were two Skitarii squads, with a third appearing within Cawl's tower itself. Shortly after, Stalker One reported the approach of a Knight, but Nyel felt its coming through the quaking ground before their warning reached him.

From the top of the tower a Skitarii's voice rang out. "Astartes! The relics of this place are the prop-"

"What do you suppose he was going to say?" Tiber asked as he ran after his captain and the advancing Dreadnoughts.

"I can't say I really care!" Nyel said, unashamedly blowing smoke from the barrel of his combi-weapon.

 

11:19 0564017.M3 - Contact Made:

Brother Komdai strode forth through the barrage of fire, his plasma cannon raking the Skitarii on the right flank and reducing two of them to nothing but smoking cybernetic legs. Bolt fire poured into them from Squad Oxor as they advanced, killing several more as they ran for the shelter of their precious archeotech. On the left, Lata and Squad Sigir were making equally short work of the other Skitarii, and Komdai took some pleasure in noting how many of these supposedly elite warriors turned and ran rather than risk the fury of the Astartes.

 

Klaxons screamed at him as a cutting beam smashed into his frontal armour, striking him so hard he almost toppled. As he staggered backward, struggling to self-right, he caught a glimpse of the fighting out on the flank. The Ironforged had thrown themselves into a crater just beyond the ruins, chased by fire from the tower and the chattering stubbers of the Knight. Two were wounded, possibly dead, and the survivors could do little but watch as the Knight strode forward and turned its battle cannon upon the Stalkers. Four of the brave snipers were atomised by the blast, the fifth remaining miraculously unscathed.

 

The walkers were charging their guns again, but Komdai had more pressing matters at hand; the pair of Kastellans marching toward him. Fire from the surviving Skitarii on the ground rattled off his armour, but he paid them no heed - seconds later they were blown apart by Squad Oxor, who had secured a higher vantage point from which to control the battle.

 

"Your heretical machines will not save you, Cawl!" Komdai roared as he and Lata charged together at the machines.

The lead robot was damaged by Lata's fire already, and the assault cannon had jarred its weaponry at an awkward angle. Komdai burst through the misaimed flamer jet and tore the machine in half with his serrated claws. His blow ruptured the machine's internal systems and it detonated, causing more alarms to flare across his neural interlink. When the smoke cleared one of the Hereteks was dead, impaled by a chunk of his own machine, and Lata was stood victorious over the broken remains of the second.

 

Captain Nyel was behind him, shouting orders to the squads in the buildings, but it was Oxor's voice that cut through the chatter and caught Komdai's attention. The sergeant called out two words that could fill even a Space Marine with dread.

 

"Knight incoming!"

 

12:21 0564017.M3 - The Trap Closes:

From the dead, desert air came the Dead Company, materialising in a sharp flash of light that was over as soon as it had begun.

Librarian Hoxra was with them, issuing warnings of incoming fire before the Dunewalkers had even begun to turn and bring their weapons to bear. Despite the Librarian's premonitions, Brother Calyr was lost, reduced to a blackened husk by the searing beams of the crimson machines. Hoxra took solace in the fact that he was with his lost Brothers again at last.

 

The strike force charged forward through the Mechanicum fire, joined by Lata as he smashed his way through a nearby wall with an Imperial Knight in hot pursuit. Lata's atomantic shielding formed a visible aura in the air around him as Skitarii and Knight attacks slammed into him, but for now it seemed he was impervious to their weapons.

 

"Brother Lata! Target the lead machine!"

"Yes, Librarian," Lata replied and raked the walker mercilessly. He charged with the Dead Company and together they beat upon its shielding, damaging the contraption but unable to destroy it entirely. The machine backed off, and its retaliation was devastating to behold; the two walkers fired everything they had at the Dead Company, and when the smoke cleared only two remained standing.

 

With a blast that shook the battlefield, Brother Lata fell. The fury of Cawl and the Knight combined had finally overwhelmed his defences and he toppled, legs blown clean off by the Knight's shell. Brother Komdai, smoking from a dozen wounds, overcharged his plasma cannon in a desperate effort to drop the Knight once and for all. The white beam smashed into the machine and blew chunks of adamantine from its hide, but still it moved. Komdai did not; his noble form had fallen still.

 

Too many lives had been lost already; Cawl had to be brought to justice!

 

As if answering the Librarian's summons, Cawl hurled himself toward the Dead Company. He struck the first with an arcane energy weapon that smashed the Cataphractii armour apart like it were paper, and before the final Marine could react Cawl severed his head with his glowing axe. Hoxra channelled his will into a mighty blow with his axe, but even his will was not enough to pierce Cawl's shield. Again and again he beat upon the shimmering energy field to no avail, all the while listening to the sounds of battle as the Knight rampaged through his brothers. He head Tiber cry out in pain as he fell, and Captain Nyel's defiant roar as he buried his chainfist into the machine's legs to try and stop its onslaught.

 

Time was of the essence; Cawl had to die!

 

12:45 0564017.M3 - The Coward's Retreat:

 

Belisarius Cawl surveyed the field through the eyes of his servants. The ignorant fools of the Astartes had secured all four of the relics, and despite the war raging around them had, to his eternal disgust, begun to plunder the contents! 

 

He wanted to order the Knight to drive them out of the ruins, but the noble machine was badly damaged and its systems were failing. Weapons fire from all sides was killing it by a thousand cuts, and Marines armed with lascutters were closing in behind to finish the job. His enginseer servants were dead, most of his Skitarii were dead or fleeing, and while he was confident his Dunewalkers could survive now that the inferior walkers of the Astartes were silenced, time was not on his side - they could not hope to reach the archeotech before the Astartes plundered them and fled.

 

He realised, with cold, detached certainty, that he would be forced to abandon his prize.

"Belisarius to the Ark Mechanicum. Initiate emergency translocation protocol".

 

There was a blinding light that filled the entire world, and when it faded there was nothing left of the Skitarii but the dead and destroyed remnants of their expedition. Cawl was gone.

Nyel opened his mouth to vox the fleet, but Hoxra cut him off. "It's no good, Captain. His ship will evade us."

"Throne take him!" Nyel screamed. "May every saint on Terra in his face!"

He turned toward his approaching sergeants. Most of their squads had survived the battle; with the exception of Stalker Squad One, the Dead Company and Dreadnoughts had drawn the worst of the enemy's attention. Even so, they had lost good men. Time would tell whether the loss was permanent.

"Get the Apothecaries and Techmarines down here," he growled, the bitterness at losing Cawl refusing to fade.

He then gave the relics his full attention. They were large, armoured shapes covered in unfamiliar script, but the Stalkers had made some progress in opening them to study the contents.

"I want these brought back to Tasal," he said.

"What if Cawl comes after them?" Cyda asked.

The Captain gave a dry chuckle. "Let him. Nothing would make me happier than to soak our world in Cawl's blood. Take his prize, and let him die trying to take it back."

Edited July 25, 2017 by Wargamer