Target Bastion A-21 - Planetary Forces repel Attackers Pt. 2

Part 2 of the story for the first planetstrike game. Didn't read over it yet for errors, my apologies for grammar and spelling errors!

Stanz Frieder ran his hand across the short blonde stubble on his head, smearing dirt and sweat across it. The dawn assault was staggering, he was amazed they even managed to survive. The guardsman situated on the ground beside him was busily trying to raise his men on their squad channels. All of them were scattered in the fighting and most were dead. The young officer hoped at least someone was left.

The chipped handset resting in Frieders left hand was silent. He tried for the last ten minutes to reach higher headquarters to report. There was only static from the vox inside the bastion. Feeling the comm array might be damaged, he and his command team departed the structure to attempt to raise them on the manpad systems.

“Are we being jammed?” he asked to the trooper manning the vox.

“Negative sir, we can still reach platoon level. There is also static on the division channel, just no chatter. They either are unable to respond or the short range signal cannot reach.” The man turned back to his system and called out for squad Alpha again. Stanz looked to his mic and keyed the button to open a channel.

“Orion Prime this is bastion Alpha-2-1, respond.” Freider waited for a response and then tried again with the same message.

“Alpha-2-1, this is Orion actual. Freider, is that you?” The voice that came across the handset was a familiar gruff tone that he knew to be Commander Geitner. It was a welcome sound.

“Orion Actual, this is Officer Freider. We report heavy casualties. Loss of three squads, Leman Russ disabled as well as two Chimeras. Inquisition forces sustained losses but are still present. Enemy forces are routed. Over.”

“You must have fought a light force,” the commander sounded incredulous. “The entire line of bastions around you have fallen to the attacking forces. Reinforcements are mobilizing but will not be reinforcing your position.”

Stanz stared at the communication system. The junior officer did not like fighting so hard for a position only to abandon it. The fact that they would not be sending additional forces struck him inside.

“Freider, you fall under the command chain of the Inquisition now. Maintain contact with the Inquisitorial forces there. “

The man keyed the mic, “Understood command.”

“Freider,” the voice came back. “How did you manage to hold?”

The officer looked to the dust swirling brightening sky and remembered to harrowing hours earlier.

It started in the darkest hours of Orion five. The small bastion sat at the base of a large mountain. The surrounding area was stricken with rocky outcroppings that the Inquisitional forces hoped to use to their advantage. Aegis barriers were erected around the bastion, forming a hasty, yet formidable defense line. A makeshift strongpoint was assembled using a natural rock formation and barriers further from the bastion. Stanz hoped they would provide an obstacle to slow the attackers.

The barriers closest to the bastion were occupied by two of the Sister squads and one of their heavy tanks, an exorcist is what they called it. The relic of a machine looked more like an organ with grand pipes protruding from the rear than a main battle tank. One of the sister superiors assured him that it was a very deadly piece of weaponry.

An inquisitor along with her retinue also took up battle positions. They all appeared to be wielding plasma weaponry. The sister superior assured Stanz they were very effective at destroying power armor and the formidable terminator armor. The officer countered with the unpredictability of the weapons to overheat. The sister just nodded and stated “they should have faith in the Emperor then.”

Two of Freider’s squads were set up at point positions, two chimera’s protected the weaker flanks incase the marines tried to alter their drop zone. Two sisters were set up inside the bastion monitoring the progress of their reinforcements who were flying with all speed towards the would be battlefield. The Palatine of the sisters forces had just radioed in that they would be starting their decent via jump packs in five minutes. That is when the signal turned to static and the dark of night was burned away.

Stanz climbed the ladder and swung open the hatch at the top of the bastion in time to see a huge ball of fire barreling through the night sky towards him. The flaming inferno looked like a small sun descending from the heavens to destroy him. He ducked back into the hatch and the entire bastion shook from the tremendous impact. If the attack from the heavens had hit the bastion itself, Stanz would probably be dead. Scrambling through the hatch he saw smoke coming from the left side and leaned over. The first firestorm from the space marine vessel destroy the quad gun emplacement. Several sisters were lying on the ground and started to get up. The sky began to brighten again.

This blast missed the units on the ground and gouged a huge hole into the base of the mountains behind them. Frieder’s eyes went black again, his night vision having to adjust after each blinding blast. The officer blinked and looked out at the aegis emplacements. His men were huddled down behind the barriers, probably praying to the Emperor that the firestorm would be over soon. Stanz hurried to his feet and ducked back down through the hatch, his men had the right idea, seek cover and stop gaping like an idiot at the fiery death coming from the heavens.

Several more volleys were directed at the battlefield. Stanz could only brace himself inside the fortified structure and await the last of the orbital attacks. Suddenly the radio came alive, “Adeptas Astartes drop pods incoming! All units prepare to repel the attackers!”

Mechanical servos began whirling as enemy signals were detected by the bastions defenses. Stanz moved to the roof to better observe the battlefield and give direction to his men. Just as he breached the roof hatch he saw a conical shaped pod slam into the ground, spraying dirt and rock everywhere. Several blasts echoed through the night as the pods doors blew off and black armored figures rushed forward roaring their battle cry and spraying bolter fire at the defenses.

The sisters surged forward and his men opened fire. He could not see past the defenses just below him but he could see the heavy lasgun fire of his men’s positions as they targeted units in the blackness.

Suddenly there was an explosion from the sister vehicle just in front of the bastion. Smoke roiled up from the weapons bay and the crew spilled out to get away from the fire. A unit of space marines charged directly forwards, claiming the exorcist with melta bombs as they moved. The second squad of marines charged his mens left position. His men quickly became overwhelmed by the furious assault and fled or were killed.

Frieder felt his gut wrench as they died, but it was quickly by another gut wrenching feeling, the unmistakable force and power of a leman russ volley. The heavy tank aimed its main gun dangerously close to target the marines taking the guard position, it fired! The blast sent the five man marine squad flying from a direct hit. Once the dust settled only a single marine was left after he threw himself to the ground.

Suddenly the leman russ suffered an explosion and smoke began to rise as that same marine squad assaulted and destroyed its systems. Sisters responded with their bolters and melta guns, claiming several of the attacking marines before a unit of jump pack equipped sisters surged from behind with flamers and slew the remaining men.

Shouts and screams came across his personal vox caster, the squad in the strong point was being overrun. To his right his men were cut down by hulking beasts of men shrouded in terminator armor. The sisters tried to target the marines but they teleported too close to his men and the sisters would not risk firing upon the guardsmen.

The lascannon mounted on the roof was busy adjusting its aim and firing, as were the bastions heavy bolters. The machine spirit of the structure was guiding the fire in an effort to suppress the invaders. All around him weapon fire was ringing out in the night air. Ammunition burned through the sky, through armor and flesh.

A unit of marines assaulted from the left flank after disemboweling one of Freiders chimera vehicles. Its guns went silent as it exploded. His stomach sank as the unit that destroyed the vehicle leapt into the air and landed closer to the bastion. It was met with bolter fire and the screams of an Adeptas Sororita squad. The fanatical shouts and calls for absolution of a priests filled the air and accompanied the sisters into combat.

Light was slowly coming to the land and Freider could see the carnage in all its fury. Further off a sisters vehicle armed with flamers was burning, a space marine dreadnought was immobile from losing a leg, while another was battling a two sisters in bronzed armor!

“By the Emperor!” The words slipped from his mouth as the two sisters charged the hulking space marine walker and planted grenades in vulnerable places. One of the sisters was crushed just as the dreadnoughts combat claw blew right off the main body. Dust from a new rhino obscured his view of the melee. It charged directly through two lines of aegis barriers in an effort to bring fresh troops to the fight.

The melee between the sisters squad and space marine jump pack unit ended, the sisters somehow broke from combat and turned their melta weapons against the marines, connecting with one and melting him in half. The second marine was throw back up against the mountain as his pack detonated. Freider assumed the man was lost and turned to the swirling melee in the middle of the field just as the drop pods storm bolter was silenced in a tremendous explosion. The vehicle ignited sending flaming scrap metal across the field of battle.

The explosion covered the space marines locked in combat with jump pack mounted sisters. None of the marines or women flinched, the combat continued. Terminators and tactical marines battled fiercely with the Palatine commander of the sisters and two other women. A slash of a power sword meant to strike the Palatine was intercepted by the sergeant of the seraphim. Unfortunately the woman took the strike in the chest and fell to the ground, but she managed to give her life to save her superior.

The bastion was rocked with several blasts coming from far off past the strong point.

“Heavy weapons squad targeting the bastion. A mechanical voice sounded across the intercom.

“Chimera Bravo, target that squad and suppress that fire!” Freider commanded through his headset.

“Target acquired,” came the reply. The vehicles bolter and laser cannon opened fire at the target in the distance.

“Sir, more units of Inquisition forces approaching, it appears the space marines are falling back.”

“Try radio command and give them a status report,” shouted Freider over another explosion.

“Negative,” replied the guardsman, “the comms are fried in here, the signal won’t reach!”

“Grab the man portable vox, set the antennae up outside, we need to get through!” Freider grabbed a las pistol and followed his personnel guard through the exit.

Outside the gunfire had diminished, the sky was heavy with black smoke from burning vehicles and equipment. More deep red rhinos were barreling into the area and women in dark red power armor were rushing about the field. There was an urgency in all they did, and they moved with unflinching resolve when commanded by their superiors.

Stanz looked to the middle of the field and saw the Sororita commander speaking with a fallen marine. A rhino rushed to her and a robed women leapt out and quickly scanned the woman. After exchanging words the robed woman tended to the space marine on the ground.

The handset shouted, “Freider, FREIDER!”

Freider pressed the key to speak. “Sir, it was hell.”

Target Bastion A-21 - Planetary Forces repel Attackers Pt. 1

Caterina surveyed the carnage that was laid out before her. The star of this dusty reddish world was starting its trip across the sky, barely rising in time to behold the vicious onslaught that was about to unfold. The battlefield of bastion A-21 was riddled with craters caused by powerful explosions, smoldering hulks of armored vehicles, and pools of the Emperor’s faithful servant’s blood. It was a dismal scene, but the day was won.

Past the array of fortified aegis barriers, the Imperial officer that was sent to aid the Palatine and her forces was working with his vox-man to raise any elements of his men that might be lost on the battlefield. Several squads were committed to the front line defense of the bastion. They braved the night and the fire that scorched the sky and earth around them.

The men of the Planetary Defense Force stood bravely against the planet assault of the Adeptas Astartes. Despite their best efforts, nothing could prepare them for the ferocity of battling the Raven Guard. Some of the scattered men may return, but she knew they would find just as many dead, just as she would find many of her sisters.

The palatine turned her head to a groan that came from the ground, one of the space marines stirred. She was not at all surprised he was still alive; she only severed his hand, arm and destroyed the front of his armor with her blade, devastating his abdomen. He was a space marine after all, most of the wound would heal itself immediately, bleeding would stop, the power armor and gene-seed of the Emperor made these men almost impossible to fell for even several of her sisters. He was too wounded to fight, but with aid would return to the battlefield in a matter of days.

Her head turned to face a large crater full of burning metal, a piece showed the white Raven like emblem of the chapter across it. A well placed melta shot detonated the drop pod as she and her seraphim battled for their lives with space marine terminators and a squad that charged to help. Now along with the burning pieces of the drop pod, bodies of seraphim lay strewn across the ground with large hulking marines in black armor. Her seraphim were sisters with jump packs, they plummeted to the ground in mid battle to give much needed support and surprise the enemy. She was the last of the ten to be standing.

Quickly Caterina jerked her head to the patch of rocks further away. Three large rocks were packed close together, the gaps protected by more Imperial Guard Aegis defense fortifications. She scanned the area for a black figure that appeared earlier on the battlefield. At the pile of bodies she watched the terminator space marine sergeant fell her last seraphim, Caterina watched as he blade deflected pathetically off the personal shield that the special armor gave the marine. He turned to face Caterina for the final show down. Their blue lighting wreathed blades met, but she was forced on the defensive early as her blade deflected once again from the marine’s personal shield. He made no sound as he pressed the attack, Caterina having no such protection was forced to parry blow after blow away or lose her life.

Suddenly a black blur caught her eyesight in a flash, but was gone. She worried it was a fellow marine but it moved too quickly. The sergeant she was battling missed it entirely, and that proved fatal. Standing behind the eight foot tall marine was a woman sheathed in a protective skin tight suit, a shimmering blade held in her left hand. The assassin danced in behind the man and slashed her sword across the power source of his terminator armor severing several leads and the man’s spine. His face turned into a painful grimace and Caterina gaped as the assassin delivered two more blows before the marine hit the ground. The shield never had a chance at stopping that blade, the blade of the C’tan, a definite call-sign of the Callidus temple. Those blades were nothing short of the power of a star-diety melded into the fixings of a sword. It allowed the blade to pass through any armor and shield regardless of thickness or power.

The assassin was present on the battlefield, but as fast as the night began to turn to day, she was gone. The dust storm was quickly approaching and there was no time to waste. Caterina knelt on the ground beside the wounded marine and took his arm.

“My brother, this field is lost to you today. It would be an affront to the Emperor himself to let anymore of his faithful bleed to death on this rock. Contact your brothers, advise them we will be caring for your wounded and sending a Hospitaller rhino to the drop zone with whatever survivors we can find. On this I swear to the holy Emperor himself.”

The marine laid there a moment, digesting the words the fellow warrior standing over him. “As you wish it…” the marine’s metallic voice echoed deeply from his helmet.

“Palatine Caterina, of the Sisters of the Burning Blade,” she added.

“Palatine.” The marine nodded and began to signal through their internal communications to command.

A deep red rhino barreled quickly up beside Caterina, kicking up more sand and dust everywhere. She shielded her eyes and most of the debris clung to her blood coated armor.

“Mistress!” a younger woman dressed in white and red robes shouted as she leapt wildly from the vehicle before its magnetic brakes finished engaging. “Are you injured!?” The young woman wore a small panel and computer on her wrist that she immediately activated and began waving in front of Caterina. The woman was barely in her twenties, her hair covered by a white head dress and a white shawl hung at the side of her face.

The woman was a Sister Hospitaller; the image of a blade with a single drop of blood shown on her chest piece signified she was part of the order of the Sacred Wound. These sisters we masters of mercy and could keep even the more grievously wounded soldiers alive to fight for the Emperor once more. Likewise their skills of healing are of great value to Inquisitors who need to extract valuable information by way of pain and torture. The sisters Hospitaller despise the heretic and the witch and few are often found alongside an Inquisitor acting as a chirugeon, to aid in extracting information.

“Persephone!” Caterina grasped the younger woman’s arm tightly to cease the arm waving scan. The girl jumped, taken aback by the commanding voice of the Palatine. Even though the tone was stern it was not harsh, she stopped scanning as her fears diminished, seeing no wounds upon her charge.

“I’m sorry my lady, forgive me,” the robed women said as she bowed her head reverently.

“No need,” Caterina took her by the hand again and led her to the fallen space marine. “Aid him and any others in this area with the rest of your order here. I will have the rhino take you to the drop zone where you will leave the Astartes in the best condition you can for retrieval. Understand?”

The woman nodded her head solemnly and knelt down to begin administering to the marine’s wounds. Caterina turned from them and strode to the rhino via the side access hatch. A sister in red power armor was manning a vox and turned to regard the Palatine as she approached.

“Your will, Palatine?”

“Open a channel to our forces. We have little time to prepare.”

Planet Strike - Part 2

The Hive city of Zelris looked like a the blade of black jagged knife jutting from the ground. From several kilometers away it appeared to be wreathed in a permanent blood mist of black. Staining the air where it pierced the depleted soil of Orion 5.

Stanz Freider sprinted across the motorpool as the base sirens blared their angry cry. Troopers of the Orion Planetary Defense Force scrambled to their designated positions. The warning of the sirens signaled an alert. When an alert was issued every trooper was to prepare to repel invaders, which meant vehicles needed to be checks, weapons issued, orders received and support equipment stowed.

Sergeants shouted ordered to manage the chaos and channel the sudden surge of energy created by this hostile sound. Stanz hoped it was a drill, but there was something in his stomach that told him the winds were blowing ill will their way. This was his first assignment after becoming an officer in the Imperial Guard. He was a line trooper that was lifted to momentary greatness when held an outpost against an Eldar assault.

It was a lightning fast attack, break in and capture slaves and escape. Better to die then let them take you alive, he thought to himself. He managed to rally the soldiers after suffering heavy losses and direct fire and disable several craft. The depraved Eldar fled before the guns of the Guard could render all their flyers disabled.

His men fell upon the depraved xenos with all the fury of a Inquisitor would upon a heretic. Without their crafts to maneuver around the defenses the foul beings were at a loss. Stanz ended up capturing an Eldar being that interested certain dark hooded figures of the Inquisition. After the attack he found orders promoting him to junior officer and sending him to his duty station on Orion 5.

The world appeared before him in the form of a thick permacrete wall and a heavy plasteel door that lead to the command center. Behind him in the yard tanks roared to life and a promethium laden truck hastily fueled the remaining vehicles. Stanz entered his passcode into the small consol and laid the palm of his hand against the screen. The door whooshed upward and allowed him into the small foyer only ten by ten.

A storm trooper stepped forward in carapace armor with a hand scanner. Stanz noted the serious look covering the man’s face, some of these glory boys took themselves way too seriously. The man scanned Stanz’s datacard and awaited the appropriate clearence to populate his handheld. The two gun slits flanking the door ahead were empty, but the officer knew there were two troopers behind him ready to fry any intruder attempting to gain access to the command center.

“Green, sir.” The gruff man stepped away to the corner and waited for the next person to come through. Stanz turned from him and the door opened revealing a room crammed with computer consoles, screens with planetary maps and war tables. The room was crammed with equipment and officers, but all these men were huddled around one single holo-table at the far end of the room. A single vox trooper was issuing orders across the planetary net and another was receiving incoming reports from various outposts.

The junior officer avoided the mass at the tables and walked toward the vox troops.

“What is the report.” He asked to either of them. The trooper sending orders regarded him but finished his transmission before replying.

“Mobilization to repel planetary attack, sir!”

Stanz’s eyes widened but the vox transmissions kept flowing and the trooper barely missed a beat between his reply and returning to his job.

“Stanz, get your no good ass over here before I put the torch to it!” The voice was that of the base commanding officer, Senior Officer Geitner. The rest of the officers turned to offer their stares of dark eyes full of resentment and disapproval. The entirety of these men were born and raised on this planet and came from prominent families. These positions allowed their children a “distinguished” position in their world’s military. Apparently these men believed they were bred for command, and Stanz was bred for slinging chow. Even their neatly trimmed black hair seemed to scorn his lighter off blonde color. Stanz was the outsider in more ways than one.

The blonde haired, blue eyed man approached the table and the uniform sea dark haired officers parted as if to avoid the volley of ordnance Geitner was about to launch at tardy junior officer.

“Well, well,” touted Geitner. “Maybe you can tell us what these are.”

The black glass tabletop showed several red space vessels and their designations as they approached the fifth planet of the Orion system.

“Sir, those are Adeptas Astartes codes.” He resisted the urge to explain any gutter rat worth his salt as an officer would be able to tell that from Imperium Naval vessels. There was a twinge as he felt his brain working to understand but he fought the urge to voice his next thought, How can the Astartes already be responding to the alert?

“Smart off-worlder. They even teach their miscreants the basics.” Muttered Geitner. The older man was thickly built and his dark hair seemed to only turn blacker with age instead of graying like other humans. His uniform was crisply decorated with few Imperium medals and extensively with Orion military decorations. Stanz doubted there was any room for the Emperor on that uniform.

“This is the situation men.” Geitner turned his ire from Stanz and to the situation before them. “This is a planetary invasion alert. Adeptas battle cruisers and frigates entering Orion space are designated at enemy contacts the moment the appeared from warp space. According to our orders these ships will attempt to make planet fall and we are to deny them with every last man, lasgun and Russ.” This information caused a murmur to spread across the officers like wild fire.

“Are these Chaos marines?” asked a broad shouldered man across the table.

“According to our information these Astartes are designated the Ravenguard.” Added Geitner. “This chapter is not designated as traitors.”

“Why are they here, what have we done to them?!” Another officer asked with hysteria in his voice. The man was right to be worried. Fighting aside an Astartes would be an experience one would never forget. Fighting against them would be an experience one might hope to live to forget.

“Their mission is unknown, but they are considered hostile. This information comes from Inquisitor Gastone located at Hive city Zelris. We are to deploy to defend key planetary defense guns and to resist planetfall!”

A questioning glance was exchanged among the officers.

“Regardless of who they are!! They want to come to our planet and bring fire, then they will be met with fire! Now hop-to-it!! Get your orders and deploy your men!” roared Geitner.

The junior officers knew their place in the food chain and scrambled as if the warp incarnate was chasing them. As the last of the lieutenants passed through the door Stanz just shook his head and calmly headed toward the exit. His mind was afire with questions and requirements needed to mobilize to his designated coordinates. Suddenly a gruff voice rumbled from directly behind him causing him to snap out of his haze.

“Not you, Freider!” Commander Gietner was behind him now, glowering menacingly over him.

“Sir, I have to get my men together and depart in less than…”

“Your present orders have been rescinded,” the superior officer cut him off in mid sentence. “This was sent for you.” The older man handed him a folder with a set of papers inside. Stanz took the papers and glanced over them cautiously. The Imperial signet of the Inquisition was stamped directly at the beginning of the page. Stanz wanted to cringe at the symbol but his past experience with the Inquisition gave him the smallest bit of courage. This wasn’t to inform him he would be tried as a witch, they wouldn’t be so formal as to send him notice, the young officer knew that much.

Freiders commanding officer puffed out his chest and appeared to be waiting for the man to finish reading.

“This says I am to take three squads with heavy weapons teams, two chimeras and a Russ and depart for these coordinates to support the Sisters of the Burning Blade in their defense of Bastion A-21.” Stanz looked up at his superior and could only imagine the infuriation he must feel at the sudden acquisition of men and equipment under his command by an outside force. Geitner stepped over to a terminal and began punching several keys.

“I’ve sent word to the motor pool. Take the vehicles, but man them with your own men. Take your own squads and get there without hesitation. I’d much sooner fire a plasma rifle on full auto for three minutes straight than face an unpleased Inquisitor.” Geitner turned and shouted at the stunned Freider, “Get out of here! Before you get us both kill for keeping the Emperors people waiting!”

Freider was out the door, all questions and queries leaving his mind. He was already behind schedule.

-battle results to follow with pictures-

Planet Strike

I am doing a small amount of writing to go along with a planet strike campaign I am playing with my friend Rysm. Here is the first part. I will post a battle report and hopefully a story to go along with it after the game. (I apologize for being unable to indent paragraphs, blogger is frustrating me)



The Search Delayed



Inside the confines of the command Rhino, sister Diodona stared in unflinching silence at the picto-screen before her. A box of lightweight metallic material was fused to her back and connected to the circuits in her head and arms by various wires penetrating skin and vanishing behind greasy unkempt brown hair. Her eyes were covered by goggles that allowed extremely quick browsing of encrypted data displays, while her ears were augmented to understand thousands of different languages cataloged in the vast libraries of the Imperium.

Flashes of strange lettering skittering across the vacant screen came at such quick intervals a regular person might mistake them for mere flashes of light emitted from a faulty monitor, but Diodona was intently digesting the message appearing before her. As her mind deciphered the message an aged box whizzed and shuddered from her pack. A bit of parchment was slowly pouring forth, the words of the message appearing on it.
The woman reached back with her lanky arm and snatched the sheet free of the print mechanism. With her other pale hand she reached toward a small green button on the console and pressed it with an incredibly thin finger. A short scratch of static pierced the silence and opened a channel to the drivers chamber at the front of the vehicle.
“Sister Clement, please and by whatever means necessary, make it possible for Palatine Caterina to return here immediately. There is an urgent communiqué from the Canoness commander.”
“Acknowledged.” Came the curt reply from the speaker. Sister Diodona pressed another button to close the channel and leaned back over the screens before her. As a sister of the Sacred Word she was built for communication operations and knew the exact frequency and rate of sync with which to reach the Palatine directly. This course of action would be the most direct but oddly enough not the preferred method. The sisters of the Burning Blade were a military Ordo of the Ecclesiarchy and adhered strictly to the chain of command. To contact the Palatine directly would not be prudent and circumvent the sisters operating procedure. She stared at the screen and turned a dial several spins clockwise, increasing the bandwidth she screened and listened intently for some trace of a signal.

Several valleys away from the command Rhino the wind was thrashing dust against the dark red ceramite plating of Palatine Caterina’s power armor. The gale winds ripped and tugged at the lone figure perched atop a rocky slope. The woman glanced up at a rocky ledge and knelt. With a thought engines blazed to life and she propelled herself upwards, leaping from jagged rock and smooth rock face until she landed dexterously at her destination. The winds were harsh for maneuvering jump packs, years of combat missions and lightning fast reflexes allowed Caterina to avoid danger.
The sound of a channel opening in her helmet registered above the heavy groans the billowing winds created through this desolate place.
“Palatine Caterina, this is Tamara” It was the sister superior of the seraphim jump squad checking for caves and openings at lower altitudes of the mountains.
“Go ahead, sister.” Replied the Palatine.
“Diodona says she decoded a priority communiqué from the Canoness commander .” The message ended and the woman paused to think. They were under a comms blackout while searching this area to restrict knowledge of their presence. Many of the sisters knew the Inquisitions hand played a part in their travel to this world. Another hunt to root out witchcraft and heresy. Unlike those sisters, Caterina knew more of the story, though she knew it was far from the complete version. They were here searching for secrets hidden from the Imperium by a specific Adeptas Astartes chapter. It was not her place to question orders, even the most revered battle brothers have had comrades turn to the taint of chaos. If the taint was here it will be purged, regardless of who or what gets in the way.
“Tamara, recall all of our units to field command. Once all units return I will advise based on the new orders.”
“As you command Palatine. Emperor protect.” The net went silent, leaving Caterina listening to the planetary winds howl and moan through the gorge. After a moment she thrust herself into the air and the fire of the jump pack was lost in the dust.


....more to follow