L-XIV-1182 The Tomb of Galahad
Known Allies
L-XX-3187 Alpharius - Alpha Legion - Overall Commander of Task Force
L-XX-9434 Praetor Herfi - Alpha Legion
L-XX-0913 Praetor Alaric Kekrymennos - Alpha Legion
L-XV-5060 Praetor Manetho - Thousand Sons
L-XII-3140 Captain Zuer Deinoch - World Eaters
L-I-1179 Praetor Davien Locke - Dark Angels
L-XXXX-1979 Lord Commander Alban Trun - Blackshields
Prelude
‘I grow tired of waiting for this damned machine to be complete. We are at war and should be destroying the False Emperors Legions!!’ yelled Tyranicus from the command deck of his flagship the Invincible Scythe.
‘It will soon be complete, Praetor.’ Faxus calmly stated over the hologram. It was much easier to remain at ease when not within arm’s reach of the volatile commander but rather from the tech deck of the Anarchy.
‘Tyranicus, you may have your wish.’ interrupted Morvexus from the Anarchy’s own command deck. ‘I’ve just been handed a communication from the Alpha Legion, requesting our assistance.’
‘As if I’d want to assist the Alpha Legion in any of their schemes. I expect the order comes from Alpharius??' retorted Tyranicus
'Apparently.' replied Morvexus, whose tone of voice did little to hide the fact that he very much doubted the truthfulness of the communication.
'I’m surprised you are even considering anything they have to say following what they did to you above Raynes.’
‘Ahh yes, I have not forgotten. But indications are they may have come across something rather rare in the Helix Cluster. An Ark Mechanicus.’
‘Has it been confirmed?’
‘A force of Thousand Sons commanded by Praetor Manetho of the Raptora and the World Eaters commanded by Captain Zuer Deinoch are with the Alpha Legion fleet as well as a high number of encrypted communications that all seem to be converging on the area. Yes, it looks like it could be true.’ replied Morvexus.
‘The World Eaters are a bunch of dogs being led along on a chain by the Alpha Legion, but I’d rather they be fighting on our side when they are unleashed. And if the Thousand Sons are interested, then there has to be some knowledge of worth. Manetho and his witches were at the Centrumah Gate as well. As much as I dislike their kind, they know of the Alpha Legion’s treacheries.’
‘My thoughts exactly.’
‘Well then. Let’s get this fleet moving Mayhem.’
‘We were just awaiting you, Praetor.’
The Tomb of Galahad
Internal details of the Ark had been scarce and thus Alpharius had commanded that each force element breach at separate points on the outer hull. Whilst it would be difficult to support each other, Alpharius wanted access to the Command Centre and tasked each force to find the quickest access to it.
The Sable Night had been the first ship in the flotilla to exit warp space, the Dark Angels vessel much more equipped for speed and stealth than any other. The Angels were not known to support the Warmasters cause but when Morvexus and Tyranicus had met with the other commanders of the task force, Alpharius had told them that Praetor Locke did not hold allegiance with the Emperor and had joined the cause of the Traitor force. The “Silent Night” had remained at distance for all preparations and transit to the Helix Cluster.
The Anarchy and Invincible Scythe were not far behind, exiting the warp to find the Dark Angels had already launched forces to secure the Outer Hull of the Ark. The Death Guard were to assault the area adjacent, and Forgelord Faxus led the initial assault into the inner hull aboard the deadly Anvillus Pattern Dreadclaw Drop Pods. Faxus task was to identify the best possible breach for further forces to be led by Morvexus and Tyranicus. The Dreadclaws slammed into the hull, the closest merely a few hundred meters from the Dark Angels, and Faxus and his men began the systematic search and hold of the inner hull. While Faxus searched for the nearest data point, Sergeant Perapheus Tycos led his breacher squad to secure the left flank.
‘Forgelord, this is Tycos. We have just spotted a number of White Scars in the corridors. They have fallen back from our location after we engaged though look to be manoeuvring towards your location.’ reported Tycos. ‘Acknowledged Sergeant. Continue to push forward and secure the area.’ replied Faxus.
Faxus located a data terminal and commenced to make connections with the terminals machine spirit. He fed on the information that was being transferred into his consciousness from the machine, whilst continuing to assimilate the codes that would enable him to gain access to the remainder of the facility. He accessed the door systems and commenced to open a doorway at the end of the corridor, to which he was greeted by a number of White Scars breachers and terminators. Excellent, Faxus thought, now would be the time for retribution. ‘Destroy them!!’ Faxus commanded as the heavily clad terminators that had acted as his bodyguard charged towards the foe.
At the Centrumeh Gate, the Death Guard were not as well equipped, but since then, Morvexus had recruited the services of Sergeant Cendus Kyranus and his Grave Warden terminators. The heavily armed and armoured soldiers fired mass toxin fuelled munitions towards the enemy. Even as heavily armoured as they were, with breaching shields and terminator armour of their own, in the close quarters the toxic weapons caused havoc in the lines as shells burst off walls and within their ranks and made short work of the White Scars. What forces left alive, the hulking Grave Warden charged with their massive power fists and crushed them to nothingness.
‘Chaplain, I’ve accessed the Ark’s data terminal.’ Faxus stated into the vox.
‘Excellent. Ensure you place locator beacons on those positions that will allow quickest access to the Command Centre.’ commanded Morvexus.
‘Negative Mayhem. From the information I’ve ascertained, whilst it controls the Ark’s systems, the Command Centre has no data storage banks of note. I’ve completed an analysis of the facility and the Manufactorum is the means by which the Ark is able to remain self-sufficient for centuries at a time.’
‘What are you saying Faxus?’ interrupted Tyranicus.
‘The Manufactorum contains supplies as well as myriad of information on how the Ark is able to remain self-sufficient. Accessing that section of the Ark will be much more valuable to us.’ informed Faxus.
‘Then that shall be our goal. Tyranicus, board your Dreadclaw. Faxus, secure your location and place the location beacons. We will be inbound momentarily.’ commanded Morvexus as he cut the transmission. There was no need to wait for a reply, Mayhem knew the other Death Guard commanders would see to their tasks with speed and skill.
Aboard the Ark, Faxus and the other forces securing the inner hull were interrupted when one of their Dreadclaws was destroyed by the forces outside. Clearly Captain Ezra of the Dark Angels was struggling to make inroads and had decided the easiest method was to simply destroy the Death Guard vehicle in order to breach. The section shook as the destruction of the vehicle caused the inner hull to vent into the deep black outside. The Ark initiated emergency procedures as all doors closed automatically to seal off the area. Faxus was able to override the system in a number of areas his troops were in, reopening doorways and passages, though there remained some sort of force shield that he had not encountered before in its wake.
Tycos halted abruptly at the orange shimmer that now covered one of the doorways. He reached out towards it with his gauntleted fist. ‘Is that wise Sergeant?’ questioned Tolemis. ‘We are the Death Guard! We are capable of withstanding any environment thrown our way.’ Tycos replied as he stepped through the shield. Other than a tingling sensation throughout his frame, there were no other effects. ‘See! Now the lot of you, move!’ Tycos commanded as he turned to continue his assault down the corridor. Ten paces later he realised that all the squad icons in his visor display had turned red. He turned around to find that his squad had disappeared, the only evidence of their existence was a single bolter left by the force shield. ‘Weak!’ Tycos said under his breath as he turned and continued on with his mission alone down the corridor. He’d secure this section from the White Scars on his own.
With the White Scars pushed back and the inner hull section secured, Morvexus and Tyranicus slammed through the designated breach points straight through to the Manufactorum deck. Thunderhawk transporters followed with heavy vehicles and artillery support through the massive space created by the assault and disgorged their cargo.
‘Mayhem, Tyranicus, you have a sizeable force of Iron Hands within the Training Decks below you that are moving to your location to support the Iron Hands force already within the Manufactorum.’ Faxus reported through the vox. ‘I’ll take the Training Decks with our vehicles, they won’t provide much use in this constricted space anyway.’ said Tyranicus as he began mustering his men and moving towards the access lift location.
Morvexus set about coordinating the collection of supplies and data from the Manufactorum floor as his forces engaged with the Iron Hands forces. The Iron Hands force arrayed before them was a mass of Immortals and a Leviathan, led by the Iron Father Rustee Nailz. Morvexus knew well from Istvaan V how tough these warriors were and would be hard to shift. The deck proved tricky to navigate as automated vehicles continued to move around the deck in what seemed like a random pattern, though the Iron Father seemed to have the ability to understand the pattern as the Iron Hands began to outmanoeuvre the slower Death Guard.
Yet, as if out of nowhere, the Iron Father withdrew with a full squad of Immortals. It seemed in only the moment just prior that the Iron Father realised the futility of his cause as he saw the elite Deathshroud and Grave Warden of Morvexus’ force. The Iron Hands would never stand to the Death Guard elite and those that he left were blasted with chem-munitions and cut down to a man, the Leviathan falling in a hail of shatter shells before it even reached combat. The Death Guard were left to collect the available supplies and search through data as they needed.
Below on the Training Deck, Tyranicus ordered his heavy weapons squads into the ruins of the area. But before they could even fire, the Iron Hands unloaded their own ordnance on them. The mighty Typhon siege tank of Tyranicus returned fire and unloaded on the Iron Hands, immobilising many of their vehicles. It caught the attention though of an Iron Hands Leviathan, consumed within the blast but weathering it with only minor wounds. The Leviathan charging out of the destruction, headed directly for the super heavy vehicle. The two forces exchanged mass firepower but the Iron Hands were tough, and out of the ruins they continued to advance. The Death Guard gun line continued to unleash as the Iron Hands shrugged off wound after wound, the Leviathan’s reinforced atomantic shielding protecting it from all manner of weaponry fired upon it.
Realising his force didn’t have the firepower remaining to deal with the Iron Hands advance, Tyranicus ordered his remaining troops up the access lift just before the Leviathan reached the Typhon and tore into its hull. Tyranicus thought to himself as he withdrew, he would not be outgunned so badly again, a Siege Breaker is what he needed to ensure his soldiers were better trained to identify the enemy’s weak spots.
‘Mayhem, another large Iron Hands force has regrouped and is advancing towards your location.’ reported Faxus. The Death Guard were well dug in and would be difficult to dislodge. Iron Father Nailz advanced with a larger force towards the Death Guard but they were much more prepared to face their lethal weaponry. And this time they brought the well-known Leviathan Tim Cann who had made a name for himself at Istvaan V when he slayed a swathe of Emperors Children and Death Guard and saved the lives of many loyalists in the process of withdrawing from the planet to awaiting drop ships. The Death Guard fired all manner of frag and chemcial shells. And once the toxic fog had cleared, the Iron Hands continued to advance, with minimal warriors having fallen. Realising the Iron Hands were much better prepared for their second assault, and having gathered a number of supplies, Morvexus ordered the destruction of all further resources and the withdrawal of the Death Guard back to the Anarchy and Invincible Scythe. The searching of data files had proved to be a more difficult task then Morvexus had initially thought, the encryption difficult to decipher, and the Death Guard had only managed to gain access to minimal plans. What they had gathered was valuable none the less and Morvexus would do his best to destroy what remained to prevent anything falling into the Loyalist hands.
Morvexus led his forces to the outer hull in order to secure the egress point and was confronted by Alpha Legion troops. Since communications between the two legions had not occurred since the initial assault, he knew he would be questioned regarding his activities. Alpharius would want to know why he did not assault the Command Deck and would deduce that Morvexus had his own plans. ‘Destroy them all. Leave none alive to tell of what we have done.’ Said Morvexus as his force began the annihilation of the Alpha Legion. Morvexus would come up with a plausible explanation for his movements without disclosing what he had found but for now he could leave none to contradict such a story. In the low gravity, the Death Guard were not inhibited by the normal slow movement they were known for and they quickly destoryed the Alpha Legion forces. The Alpha Legion died under a mass of blast weaponry consisting of the Death Guards lethal toxins.
‘Mayhem, we are clear.’ said Tyranicus through vox.
‘As are we.’ said Faxus.
Morvexus ordered the remainder of his troops to remove their auto grav ability and launched towards the awaiting shuttle in low orbit over the Ark. They were greeted by the rear ramp as they reengaged their grav boots and boarded the vehicle. When all were secure, including the last of the supplies and data they had procured, the shuttle moved with all speed back to the Anarchy.
A successful mission, thought Morvexus. Now to see how best to put these treasures to good use.
