Death Follows All: Chapter 1

These are dark times for the Imperium of Man the traitor has shown himself and he has many faces. We must find the resolve within us to keep fighting and to be the bulwark against the tide of corruption. Only with the blood of martyrs will our wills be strengthened. Now go and slay the heretic and the blasphemer. -Call to arms given by Church of the Divine Light High Priest Marthain

Strike Cruiser Dorn’s Sword

“It will only be a standard deployment.” These were the words Veteran Sergeant Agrippa said as he looked over the data readouts and the situation on the planet. “The planet’s surface cannot support life, so all of the hives and thus the fighting are under Narsine’s surface. Meaning that the drop pod assault is not viable, so we will ensure through Thunderhawk.” Narsine is already 65% retaken but uses the Guard alone. “They have done an adequate job thus far, but I am wondering why the Chapter Master called us here to this backwater world. Surely we are more useful with the rest of the Crusade company?” Brother Pontius voiced, gripping the pommel of his power sword. Around him, Agrippa could see the other three members of the squad move in mixed reactions to what Pontius had stated. With the Crimson Fist chapter so weak and only just now getting reinforcements from Guilliman’s crusade, it was important for all first-born warriors to remain on Rynn’s World to ensure that the teachings of the chapter are taught and enforced. Not too long ago, the chapter was dealt a large blow by not only the greenskins but a demon invasion from the warp.

Agrippa removed his red-beaked helmet and mag-locked it to his side. “This is not up for discussion, brothers. We must assist these Cadians to secure the world so they can help the Imperium in the long term. We have a debt we must pay, and this is one way we repay it.” Agrippa's face was a mess of scars and years of war stretched across it. His skin was like sandpaper, and three silver studs dotted above his right eye. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Brother Salvius’ shoulders move up and down. “Yes, brother?” Agrippa pointed to the Deathwatch veteran.

“Well, brother, I think that this is not a fight we should take on. The humans have already gotten the world under the Imperial arm; we cannot afford to spend our resources on a battle that has already been won. I agree with Brother Pontius.”

Agrippa let out a silent breath, keeping his anger in check. “As I said before, brother, this is our task, and we will see it done. Lord Pedro has not sent us out for no reason; we will see his wishes fulfilled, and I will not entertain any further discussions about this.” With this, Agrippa turned and walked out of the chamber, his footsteps echoing around it. The other four warriors stood silently for a moment.

In total, Squad Agrippa contained five warriors of the 3rd battle company of the Crimson Fists. At the head of the squad was Veteran Sergeant Agrippa, a warrior of the chapter for over 400 years. Next was Brother Pontius, Agrippa’s second in command of the squad, an adept warrior of the sword but with the patience of a future leader of the chapter. Then there was Brother Salvius, who was recalled from the Deathwatch after the devastating losses suffered by the chapter. It was deemed necessary to recall most of the forces outside of direct command of the chapter. From his time with the holy Deathwatch, his left pauldron was replaced with the symbol of his time in the Long Vigil. A once level-headed warrior returned to his chapter wrathful for missing out on the troubles his chapter had faced without him. With him was Brother Quintus, the squad’s marksman, a brother filled with contemplation, often only seen when in briefings and on missions, choosing to spend his time in deep meditation. Lastly was Brother Apothecary Valens, the newest member of the squad, with only 50 years of service with the chapter. Brother Valens was mainly there to ensure that gene-seed was properly collected. With the chapter going through tough times, it was deemed that for this mission, an Apothecary had to come with the squad.

When enough time had passed, Brother Valens spoke up, “Brothers, that was not the way we present our arguments to the Veteran Sergeant.”

Salvius huffed again, “You have no understanding of what WE do, brother. You have only just become a brother, and you are here to learn as much as to protect our legacy for the chapter.” With this, Valens strode over to Salvius, heat radiating from his being.

“I will not be talked down to by a fellow brother. We are all here to get a job done and not to squabble. I will remind you, brother, that Captain Ashor Drakken assigned me here because I am able to meet the chapter's needs.”

With a slam of a crimson ceramite fist, Pontius shouted, “ENOUGH! I only spoke out against Agrippa to ensure that he threw all the options before committing our forces. This does not give either of you the right to squabble.”

With that, this gathering is over. One by one, each brother would leave to meditate and convince themselves to steady their resolve.

Sub Level Omega 234-a outskirts of Hive Sheol

Narsine had been a grueling campaign; the 28th Cadian Regiment was given the task of taking this world to ensure that New Cadia’s borders were secure so the world could start focusing on rebuilding what they had lost in the fall of the Cadian Gate. However, with the Great Rift opening, the world’s PDF forces had revolted, and the remaining local guard regiments were quickly overrun. This is where the 28th Cadians had been sent, and luckily for Trooper Fara, this was going to be her first real test as a shock trooper. This meant that the 28th had to dig down and flush the traitors out.

A sharp smack hit Fara’s helmet as she smashed into cover. Blood gushed down her head. “Fekkin' hell, I think they got me!” she yelled to no one in particular. No one could hear her due to the sound of battle all around her. Taking her helmet off, Fara spun it around to see a thumb-sized dent on the right side. Her white stripe was visible where the round tore away the paint. With shaking hands, she placed the helmet back on her head and picked up her lasgun. Checking the power pack, she saw that she only had around 25 shots left. Taking a quick glance at her reserves, she found she only had two more packs remaining. "Fekk," she thought, looking around her general area to see if some unlucky trooper had any packs with a charge.

Suddenly, she snapped back to reality again as she noticed a large man with a guard-issued power fist screaming at her.

“YOU STAND THE FEKK UP RIGHT NOW OR I SWEAR TO THE GOLDEN THRONE YOU WILL BE WISHING THAT ROUND HIT YOU SQUARE ON!” Sergeant Giffor then grabbed the back of Fara’s webbing and shoved her forward. Mud, blood, and other grime covered both of them as they moved forward. When they stopped, Giffor took out a lho-stick and shoved it in his mouth, lighting it in the same motion. Figures slowly started to become visible through the dim light and the explosions casting light on them. It was her squad, part of Company G. They looked like they had just been shot out of the Warp, but if she was looking at herself, she would probably look the same.

“Alright men, this is what we have to do,” Giffor said, pointing his lho-stick at a bunker. The bunker was covered in heretical runes, all hurting the eye if one looked for too long. A mean-looking snub-nose heavy bolter spat high-explosive 75-caliber shells into the oncoming Cadians. Those who did not find cover disappeared.

“We are going to take that bunker out to allow our men to get a foothold and move in. I want all of you to stack up 4 on each side of this cover. When I say go, move to the closest side of the bunker.” With that, Giffor stomped out his stick as if to punctuate the moment, leaving no room for questions.

With a sudden sense of urgency, Fara and her squadmates stacked up on either side of the rock. The gun and las fire seemed to be hitting a crescendo when all of a sudden there was a pause. With a shot that would crack the sky open, Giffor stood, power fist in the air, “MOVE!” And with that, all that Fara could see was a rush of colors and darkness, with the side of the bunker being the only thing in focus. All she could hear was her breathing, and then a crack of red light struck one of her squadmates. With the sound of sizzling skin, the trooper fell to the ground, not moving. Their form disappeared under the mud and rock.

Keep moving, Fara thought as she moved closer and closer to the bunker. Its heavy bolter was now roaring, cutting down more troopers. Each thap-bang marked another Cadian dead. I will not die here, Fara thought as she slammed her back to the bunker wall. After her, only 4 of the 12-man squad were alongside her.

“Frekkin' hell,” Giffor said as he loaded another power pack into his laspistol. “Fere, I want you to check out the bunker before we move in. Do not be seen.” With that, Fere inched up the hill where the bunker was set into. As she climbed up the hill, a strange heat was coming from the bunker to her right, almost as if it were a living creature defending its territory. Halfway up, the bunker had a firing slit. When she was there, she looked into the bunker. What she saw terrified her.

Inside the bunker were three men who had once been human: one firing the gun, one loading it with new boxes of ammo, and the last guarding the back door of the bunker in case of intruders. All three had their heads covered with white cloths marked with chaos runes. Where their eyes were, blood covered the mask, with blood dripping from the masks. A black ooze dripped from their mouths, covering their old PDF uniforms in the stuff. They spoke in low grunts, and Fere, from this distance, could not make out what they were saying. The flayed skin of a PDF commissar covered the wall facing Fere, the skin branded with the symbol of the heretical forces. She looked up and saw that the bunker had a rusted hatch. Fekkin' alright, she thought, sliding down the hill.

When at the bottom of the hill, Fere reported what she saw to Giffor. He turned to his remaining force, signaling one to throw a flash grenade in the firing slit and for the rest to use the hatch to get into the bunker. Once on top of the bunker, Giffor gave the signal to the trooper to begin the attack. Standing on top of the bunker, Fere could see that the battle around them was in a massive cave once used to extract mass mineral resources from the surrounding rock. The fires of burning troop carriers and las-fire lit up the cave all around her, with the spotlights of the traitors allowing them to see the Cadians as they advanced to gain an entrance to the hive.

“Fere, are you with me?” Giffor said, hunched over the bunker hatch. “Yeah, Sarge,” Fere said, loading in a new power pack and taking a deep breath. “Alright then, fix bayonets and get ready; this is going to get messy.” With a sign to the trooper manning the firing hole, the flash grenade was thrown. With a bang, Giffor used his power fist to smash the hatch. At once, Fere and her fellow troopers jumped down. Fere could not see anything through the smoke caused by the low-yield charge. With a scream, she turned to see one of the troopers get speared through the neck with a jagged knife from one of the masked men. With a yell of anger, Fere opened up on the thing as the trooper fell away, knife firmly planted. The masked traitor collapsed to the ground, two holes punched squarely in the chest.

Looking around, Fere could only see that Giffor was left standing. Looking around, it was a scene of carnage. Blood and burn holes were everywhere. All three masked men were on the floor, crumpled up, oozing that black fluid.

Giffor strode over, giving Fere a pat on the back, looking out from where the heavy bolter was shooting from. After looking out for a moment, he turned to face Fere.

“It’s time to link up with the rest of the company before we—” Suddenly, there was the sound of footsteps coming from behind the bunker door. Then, with a smash, the door opened up, and a masked man was standing there. The man was wearing a bomb vest, and he was holding a detonator in his right hand. This man was unique because you could see his mouth. There were stim injectors all over him, presumably to keep the thing alive before exploding. With crazed eyes, he locked onto the two Cadians in the room. Smiling, he pressed the detonator.

All Fere could see was white, and then, just as fast, it turned black.