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Emperor Protects
By Travis Hill Aka Dartstriker


Three sharp snaps from a lasgun shattered the dead silent, night. A human form fell limp, perfectly cauterized holes in the figure's chest smoldered. He died next to the entrance of an underhive nightclub called “The Emperors Benediction”, a play on the fact it was once a chapel to the Supreme God-Emperor. A second figure watched in horror, into the death blank eyes of his partner. He reached for the solid ammunition pistol at his side only to receive one perfectly placed las-round through the left ear. The mans hand never reached the holster as he slumped to his knees then fell face first onto the body of his partner. Both men had red, rose tattoos on their arms. These roses symbolized the hive's largest criminal gang, known as the Rose Syndicate or RoSy.

In response to the unknown assailant's four shots, the heavy crack of solid slug shotguns and automatic rifles blasted from each and every gothic window of “The Emperors Benediction”. The street below was racked with fire. Rock-crete was blasted into dust, as holes peppered the streets and darkness below. Thousands of rounds tore into nothing more than the hive's night cycle blackness. In just three minutes the stretch of road and surrounding slums of the bar tasted a brutal all out assault that destroyed everything it touched. The RoSy guards had no basic training other than street life. The only reason they listened to their Rose Syndicate commanders was for protection in the hive's largest gang, and for fear of what would happen if they didn't. The guns fell silent, many of the onsite gang leaders wanted to get a grasp of what had just happened and organize some coherent resistance.

Flood lights had been turned on, emergency generators activated, and the rotting corpses of Arbite Officers hung from banner poles in the bars windows. A crude reminder to last weeks Arbite raid on one of their narcotic plants. The RoSy got their first look at the attacker, a shadow in their lights, faster then they could believe and faster then they could target. The thing vanished into the shadows, not touched by their flood lights. Another las-round blew a light out and an explosion splintered the seal and glass of a third floor window. No one saw the black ghost that went in with the explosion. As ganger eyes turned to look at the orange fire ball above their heads a new threat presented itself.

The sounds of tracked vehicles that sped down rubble strewn roads was unmistakable, the spot lights hit the first black-gray Chimera transport just in time for two RoSy personal to be blasted into gory chunks from multi-lasers and heavy stubber rounds. Two more similar APCs pulled in on the opposite side, adding their firepower to the firsts. Smoke Launchers shot off like fireworks from the Chimera’s hull. The metal canisters produced huge quantizes of a teargas-like substance. Gangers turned from their post and ran in all directions. Some already overwhelmed by the gas began choking their eyes filled with tears. Those who could, tried to shut their windows and retreat deeper inside the bar. Outside it was utter chaos. Amidst random bouts of fire, gangers killed gangers in confusion. Between all the commotion calm, well aimed Hellgun rounds took out unknowing RoSy guards.

One choked up, teary eyed criminal staggered aimlessly into the smoke. Unable to see, he felt with his hands until he put his fingers on someone. He reached out to show he was a friendly. Feeling the heavy segmented plates of carapace he realized too late this wasn't a ganger. The last thing the man ever felt was the painless red beam that punched him down on his rear and shattered his internal organs and spine.
The Stormtrooper was clad in black plates of Carapace armor with gray fatigues underneath. He wore the standard tridome helmet with an air filter. Holler looked with grim satisfaction at the person he had just killed.

“This is Sergeant Holler to all units: in the name of the Emperor, advance!”, the sergeant yelled into his com-bead.

Out of the smoke thirty heavily armored, hellgun-wielding stormtroopers blasted through the remains of the RoSy defense. The gangers died in droves, their weapons having little affect on the military grade shock troops that were assaulting their bar. By the time the stormtroopers made it to the doors of “The Emperors Benediction” the smoke had begun to clear. Gang bodies littered the street drooped from windows, or cut down while trying to escape. Two of the troopers lay in bloody pools, one shot in the armpit, entering his heart and lodging itself in the troopers lung. The second had his face plate blasted in at close range from a gang shotgun. The force of twenty-eight remaining stormtroopers beat down the giant cathedral-style doors to the bar and entered into the gang’s sanctum. They killed all who they saw.

Now the shock troops unpacked their heavy weapons. Grenades began to blast out windows as explosions rocked the urban landscape and blew out craters in the thick rock-crete walls.

“This is Holler, first room secure. Bring the Inquisitor up.”, the sergeant voxed. There came an instant affirmative from his subordinate.

Less then five minutes after his message was relayed, the Inquisitor walked on top of the ornate door that now lay face down. He struggled at first to get a good footing as the door listed under his weight. This Inquisitor was actually an initiate, and adjunct to a full Inquisitor. The man wore a gold-trimmed suit of Carapace armor, his face was lean and young with long brown hair pulled back into a ponytail. Despite his age, his heterochromatic eyes, one a deep blue and the other a dark gray, had a wizened appearance to them.

“Sergeant Holler report.”, the Inquisitor snapped.

“A slaughter Junior Inquisitor Eril, sir. My men are clearing the upper and lower levels now. I think we found what you wanted. Well, the one you sent ahead of us did anyways.”, the sergeant said and motioned down a narrow corridor with three dead bodies and blast marks along the walls.

Eril nodded his head and followed the Stormtrooper. He could still hear the faint sounds of battle as each room was checked. He continued to walk, turning down three more corridors until they came across a reinforced blast door hanging slightly ajar. Black blast marks dented the surface of the metallic door.

Sergeant Holler yelled, “Friendlies” before he pushed past the wrecked door and stepped inside quickly followed by Eril. When the Inquisitor entered the room he could smell a tangy acidic scent, no he could taste it. He wasn't really sure what it was, it wasn't really taste or smell but something different some other sense in him. Eril shook it off and continued in. The room was cramped with the bulk of five other stoormtroopers, a kneeling prisoner, and Helion.

Helion was an Imperial assassin, a sinisterly dark figure who stood seven feet tall. He wore a black body glove with small pockets of tech equipment interfaced with his body. His face was covered by a skull mask, painted white with three red streaks running down the middle. Helion stood silently, bowing ever so slightly when the Inquisitor entered the room. Even though Eril had worked with the artisan of death many times he got chills down his spine that kept him on his toes anytime the black clothed figure was present.

“Is this him?”, Eril asked as he walked over to the bound man on his knees. Holler responded with a nod, and a gesture to his men. The other stormtroopers took a few steps back from their prisoner, giving the Inquisitor some room to work with.

Eril knelt on his haunches to look the man in the face. He could see the scar damage from heavy augmentations that had been removed. This thing use to be a Junior Tech Priest of Mars, before he decided to aid the underhive gang maintain their equipment.

“Tech Priest Junior Grade Lertith Severus, I thought I would never find you.”, Eril mocked, lifting the man’s chin up so he could look him in the eye.

“Inquisitor Eril Severus, I thought the same thing.”, the tech priest said, the weight of battle sat heavily upon his words as he tilted his head back towards the ground.

The two men were brothers in two different roles in the galaxy. One a dauntless protector, the other a ruthless murder.

“Why brother?”, Eril asked simply.

“Why? Why not?”, Lertith retorted harshly and received a fist to his gut.

“Again, Why?”, the Inquisitor said emphasizing “again”.

“Brother you will never understand.”, the tech adept said as similar colored eyes met Erils. “Humility, humility and kindness. I saw a light, a true calling and I answered.”

“You abandoned your oaths to the priesthood of Mars, shamed our family name, and ensured the deaths of countless Arbite officers while you supported the Rose Syndicate. You would destroy the honor our father worked so hard to achieve. You would ruin the trust the hive’s worthies place on us.”, questioned Eril.

“The hive’s worthies? You mean those fat bastards sitting and withering in their own greasy bulk on the top spi...”, before Lertith could finish Eril back handed him with one of the carapace armored gloves. It impacted with enough power to knock the bound man on his back.

“Do not speak that way of the Hive Elites again, Ler.”

Lertith was helped up by two of the stormtroopers. He spat blood from his mouth as the hint of a large purple bruise grew on his left cheek.

“You act as if they are fit to speak of. You say words like honor and service, but what do you really mean? Something like Go and fetch maybe? How about sit or kill? Maybe one day it will be play dead.", Lertith suggested, blood still dripping down his shirt.

“I'm a Junior Inquisitor, a member of the Emperors most holy Order! I answer to no mere man! I receive my orders from the God Emperor, the Supreme ruler of mankind!”

“Really? Did the Emperor send you here! Or was it on a humble request from those you value as worthy. These soldiers you brought, they look expensive. Well maintained, well geared, and well trained. How much pull do these elites have on you? They asked you to come here, do not lie. I was too smart, too smart for them. RoSy was taking back the low habs one level at a time. Sure narcotics and a few deaths emerged, but nothing compared to what those bastards in the main spine do. I'm using the only resource capable of reclaiming the hive. Progress has been slow, until about three weeks ago. We got a brake, in the form of information. Section 1-34-G Middle Spine, a smaller residential area was quarantined for three days. Some infectious material was loose in there. It was a lie, it was for their sick amusement, a sport I'm sure they call it. They fill the sector up with chemicals, turning it's inhabitants to frenzied mobs. Then each lord picks their most veteran warriors and send them in to secure the hab, purge it of all infected before it can be reopened. They bet on how many habbers will be killed, what veterans will survive, and if any of the veterans will be permanently disabled. Sound familiar? Before you shipped out for the Inquisition, your days in the PDF Honor Guard under Lord Catily. Sector 30-68-B, you had been ordered to purge the same kind of infection. This has been going on for thousands of years. Each time the records are buried and witnesses killed. Now we have them, we have the tapes from 265 different surveillance cameras in that area. For the first time in thousands of years they can see the change coming, and this is only the beginning. They abuse this hive like it was their own plaything. They are scared, they want to stop us now while we are still only in the underhive.”, Ler said waiting for the next blow. It never came, “Just look at this. Your Sergeant, the assassin; these are not normal ways of dealing with drug dealers. The Hive Lords said kill and you ran off to do so, bringing all the impressive might and fury you could muster.”

Eril was stunned, his few days as an Inquisitor told him to trust no one, but a life time of brotherhood spent with Lertith told him to trust his brothers words. Deep inside he wanted to, he wanted to take what Ler was saying for truth, but he was unable to admit that those he had followed for so long could commit such atrocities.

“Lertith if this is true why not just ask for help? Go to the Imperial Office, send word to Terra.”, Eril suddenly looked up. He remembered the room was filled with others still. He meet the Sergeant’s gaze and knew what he saw. Holler was shocked that the Inquisitor was showing this kind of mercy. Erils hard edge was gone, and he presented a softer side. A side the Inquisition could not afford to have, “Leave us! All of you!”

Shocked even greater then before, Holler saluted and ordered his men outside. Helion stayed, speaking for the first time since his arrival on the planet. His voice was rasp, it made the sound of nails on a chalk board, a sound that ran up and down the spines of both men still in the room.

“May I remind you Junior Inquisitor Eril, my orders are from Lord Inquisitor Serth. I am to aid and observe you. I am now observing, and will continue to. Please proceed Inquisitor, act as if I'm not even here.”, Helion said and slipped into a shadow cloaked corner of the room. Both brothers had been amazed that the assassin nearly disappeared right before their eyes.

Eril regained his composer. He ran his left hand through the front of his hair pushing back any strands that had fallen into his eyes. He was shocked that he just realized the Assassin was here only to watch him. He silently cursed himself for his foolishness. He took three deep breaths, and stood up walking circles around his brother. He had choices now, each one he played with and tried to see the solutions. It was suddenly all different, now he was being tested. That is, after all, what this was all about, a test. Lord Inquisitor Serth had sent him down here, a lapdog to the hive elites. Maybe he wanted him to do as he was ordered, cure this cancer growing in the underhives. But, what if he was sent to divine truth from this mess. Was it his job to put the hive lords in their place and liberate the city from tyrannical rulers?

While he contemplated the situations Ler spoke up, “I trust no one, not the Arbites, not the PDF, and especially not the Imperial Office.”

Eril looked into the shadowy corner of the room where the lanky assassin waited, then back down to his brother before he spoke, “What do you need to send a message off world?”

A spark ignited in Lertith’s eyes and he could barely form the words out of excitement, “An astropath. The only one capable of that feat is located in the top spine. In the house communication level. The astropath is a worm of a man, who loves life. He is mighty as long as his guards are in place, and will only answer to orders from the house.”

“I will bring you there, I have access to the communication level, but only to a basic level. We will have to fight our way in.”, Eril commented moving to undue the inscribed restraints placed around his brother.

Helion spoke again, “Inquisitor this is a rash action.”

“I'm charged with a duty to humanity. I have the right to take action as I see fit to bring the Emperor’s justice to the wicked.”, the Junior Inquisitor said releasing the last clasp to free his brother.

“Why not just ask to use their communication equipment.” , the assassin said with no emotion.

“I'm not taking chances.” , Eril said and dropped the inscribed clasps to the ground.

His brother rose and stood eye to eye with him. Then he could sense it again, that acidic scent. He had been too preoccupied to notice during his conversation. He tasted it, he smelled it, but it was not taste or smell. It was his under developed Psyker mind picking up some faint traces of a great evil moving through the warp plane. Out of instinct he covered his face with his arms and bent down towards his gut, seconds before his world erupted in flame and anguish. A blast of heat knocked him against the wall and his com-bead fell out of his ear. He never heard the call for leadership from his men outside, as thousands of underhive dwellers emerged in great numbers. They were covered in the marks of chaos and wielding anything the could find as a weapon.

In good fashion the stormtroopers cut them down wave after wave. Men, women, children, elderly; all of them crazed and mad. The bodies piled up five or six deep around the entrance to “The Emperors Benediction”. By sheer weight of numbers the 28 warriors became overrun and hand to hand combat ensued. Holler fired point blank range screaming at the top of his lungs, a bestial roar. He cut down twenty people in just seconds before his power pack was reading empty. He tossed his hellgun to the ground and drew his combat knife. He hacked and slashed at anyone one around him, his men were all in the same predicament. As ammo ran low, they used the butts of their weapons, knives, sidearms, and their own bodies as weapons. Kicking, punching, bashing, slashing, the frenzied melee was intense and each man fought hard. Two stormtroopers back to back wielding their hellguns like clubs smashed at any who attacked them, Holler watched as the mob redoubled their efforts around the two and engulfed them like a small boat caught in a tidal wave.

The three Chimeras fired and blasted at the crowed, but in seconds each one was swarmed by the insane ocean of people. A gunner was pulled from the top hatch of the lead Chimera and screamed as he torn apart by the crowd. As soon as he was free more underhivers dove into the open hatch. They killed anyone inside. Their dirty hands grabbed the driver around his neck, he felt the life slipping from his body. With his last effort the driver thumbed the stud on his laspistol and set it to overload. The blast took out everyone inside the armored transport. Ammunition and grenades ignighted, sending secondary internal explosions ripping through the chassis. The vehicle buckled and blew into fragments killing hundreds of the swarming cultist. The second chimera was all but out of ammunition, the battery for the multilaser ran dry. The driver began running into the crowd using the vehicle as a weapon, killing any the armor transport ran over. If he could break out of the crowd onto the road they could make it clear of the battle in seconds. The third Chimera followed suit.

Holler saw with pride the men he had trained and forged in battle instantly take the chance and form into perfectly trained groups moving in the wake of the APCs. As they neared the machines the troopers jumped on top and fought the people off who tried to climb after them. A tactic that wouldn't have worked without a little luck and the gaze of the Emperor watching them. The two Chimera’s tracks remained clear despite the gore that encrusted the rest of their hulls.

“This is Holler to anyone left alive, get in the wake of the APCs! We’re getting the hell out of here!”, he knew it was retreating but this was a waste of lives. The Imperium needed all the well trained soldiers it could get. Plus, someone would have to tell command the mission went awry.

The Sergeant could count at least twelve of his men riding on top of the vehicles. Himself and three other troopers still battled the people, but would soon falter. Holler watched as each man fell and was hammered under the flood of underhivers. His turn came soon after that as he was pulled down into the writhing mass of cultists. Biting teeth ripped his clothes and flesh and one brute of a man with a large club hammered at his face plate. When it finally gave way Holler made his peace with the Emperor and closed his eyes. The swing after that crushed his skull and killed him instantly.

Eril shook his head and cleared the haze from his eyes. In the corner of the room a pile of skin that was once his brothers lay wet and slick with blood. As his eyes focused he made out the form of the Assassin as he sprang towards him. Helion had a cut across his chest, his body glove outfit was torn in many places and his left hand was gone.

“Inquisitor! Your brother! He..”, before Helion could finish his words a serpent like tail speared him through the chest, a spray of blood washed over Eril’s face as the mans thin frame was lifted off the ground and tossed into the wall.

“Ugly, annoying, creeper! He almost killed me while you slept brother.”, Lertith said, but it wasn't his brother’s voice. It was deep, cavernous, and the shrill of a demonic choir seemed to echo his words seconds after he spoke them.

What Eril saw then was not his brother at all, but a warp creature. It had two powerful looking hind legs shaped much like a dogs. It's chest was tall and robust with powerful shoulders and long muscular arms. Its tail was large and nearly twice as long as the daemon creature it was attached to. Between the bulky shoulders a head shaped like a serpent fused with a man snarled, revealing long pointed black teeth. The thing’s skin was deep red, almost like exposed muscle tissue.

“Well Eril? What do you think, like it?” , the Ler-thing said sticking it's pitchfork like tongue out.

“What have you done brother?!”, Eril whined as he found himself short of breath.

The Ler-creature laughed and took three steps towards the Junior Inquisitor, “Brother it is not what I have done. It is what they have done. Khorne, Khorne, Khorne! He gave me the power! I just had to do what I was told. Khorne, what a strange name. Why would a god name itself after a vegetable, or is it the other way around.? Corn? Khorne?”, Ler shrugged his shoulders inquisitively.

Eril watched his former brother and waited, as his breath returned to him he rose. Slowly struggling at first to stand straight. He looked at the data slate attached to his right arm and tapped a few buttons. He scrolled through the list of stormtroopers, he saw the KIA and he played a few garbled messages to get an idea of what happened. The daemon stalked around him in a circle, it was nearly twice as tall as Eril.

“You caused this, you turned the underhivers mad?”, Eril said and spat blood from his mouth.

“Toys, but effective.”, Ler said and stuck out his sickly tongue again, “I'm afraid my time with you is at an end brother. You can join me, or I can kill you. Make your choice.”

“I will never join you! I will never bow to the will of chaos!”, Eril shouted and stood fully upright, he drew a holstered laspistol.

“Let’s see your Emperor protect you from this.”, the daemon’s eyes flared red with anger. He lifted his massive hands toward the ceiling and fire began to burn in his palms.

Eril fired his laspistol, but the red lasers had no effect as they struck Lertith. The warp creature continued to gather the fell energies in its palms. The Inquisitor could feel the heat now, he could smell brimstone, and could taste his own death. His brother held a ball of flames high above his head and with an earth shattering force tossed the ball of fire at Eril. In the seconds before it impacted Eril whispered to himself, “The Emperor protects.” The heat grew, it seemed like the ball was moving in slow motion, and just as it was mere feet from him, from the corner of the room, a bolt of black slammed him to the ground.

It was Helion, he had pushed Eril out of the way and took the full effect of the chaos fire. The force of the explosion blew the assassin into small flaming embers and scattered the charred bits around the room. The daemon began to laugh, amused by the wasted sacrifice, and turned his attention back to Eril.

“Fool”, was all he said before he charged another fireball in his hands. This time it was half the size of the first. He tossed it with just enough force to kill Eril.

Before it hit, again Eril said, “The Emperor Protects”

The Chaos fire impacted on the Inquisitor’s carapaced chest and engulfed him fully in orange and red flames, yes he did not fall. He stood amidst the hell fire. Beams of light began to crack and pierce the flames. The fires went out and all that remained was a figure of pure light. The daemon covered his eyes as his flesh began to sizzle and smoke in the light. The light-figure sprouted angelic wings and began to grow in size. Soon features could be seen on its face. It wore a white robe tied at the waste by a sash of gold. The thing’s face was stern and human, looking aged but well built. It began to talk.

“I am his will reborn. I am Commander Atunigh of the Seraphs Mortis Space Marines. Felled in battle by the works of chaos nearly four thousand years ago amongst piles of my slain foes. As I made my way to be seated with the Emperor he told me he had a task for me. To be a watcher, a vigilant guardian of his loyal subjects. To protect his children when they cry out for help, to shield the faithful from those that would harm them. But, to those who would turn against him I am truly an angel of death, a grim reaper of his enemies. I have come to take your eternal soul and send it back to the abyss from which it spawned daemon. You have betrayed your loyalties to the master of mankind and his wrath now falls upon you! Behold his power, for this is the judgment of the righteous!”

In a flash the angelic figured clothed in white robes gathered energies of pure light within his hands. The daemon creature could not bare to look at it without ruining his eyesight.

“In the Emperors name, I banish you to the depths for one hundred years.”

The daemon squealed as forces beyond the control of mortal men ripped the room apart. It knocked out walls and tossed rubble and debris in the air. The Ler-thing was destroyed as the light from the ball consumed it. Outside the rabble of mindless underhivers went mad and turned on each other. Killing or running into the depths of the hive.

Finally all was calm again. The saintly figured looked around at what he had done and was pleased. He turned his head as if talking to an unseen entity.

“Father, I pray you are pleased with my work.”, Atunigh said and knelt on the ground.

No answer, no answer that any mortal could ever have heard. After several minutes the Space Marine figure disappeared. Several days later Eril was found at the door steps of an Imperial Church he was clothed only in a robe of brilliant unstained white. The priests called for help and Eril was saved.

He had no remembrance of anything after he was almost killed by the second fireball. The only thing he could recall was a face, a giant but gentle face looking at him and it nodded in approval of his service. Eril remembered the face saying, “Eril a dauntless protector, Lertith a ruthless murder.” before it disappeared and was replaced by the faces of priests and chapel workers.