Caliban The world of Caliban was part of a single star system, just at the outer edge of a region of space, which subsequently became the Eye of terror. The planet was the only inhabitable one in their system, which was also known by the same name. It was an extremely beautiful planet with lush green forests leading to moderate sized mountain ranges. Swirling rivers and gushing waterfalls criss-crossed the landscape. The blue oceans provided some mixture of contrast with the green and brown mountainous forests, which covered the majority of the world. Off-worlders marveled at this single planet of beauty in an otherwise barren system. During the Dark Age of Technology, human exploration reached out and discovered Caliban. Many of the explorers had been riveted by its beauty and made it their home. There were few humanoid inhabitants in that planet. Those that were present were in very small numbers and rapidly assimilated or eliminated. The society in Caliban had initially developed along feudal lines, with regional leaders dominating their mainly agricultural and forestry based society. Trade and commerce links were established with nearby systems and earth itself. The fine variety of agri-foods was it's main commercial output. However it was also made famous for the delicate craftsmanship from the forestry where unique trees and elements lent themselves to the creation of highly sought after artifacts. The individual regions generally were at peace with each other and the planet and society of Caliban thrived. Then came the warp storms during the Age of Strife. Off-world communication and trade became more and more dangerous until finally all warp travel and communications became impossible. Cut off from earth and its trade, and having no other hospitable planet in their system, the society of Caliban became isolated. The once self sufficient society of Caliban had grown to be dependent on off-world imports and as such, social order slowly began to degenerate. Regional leaders had to resort to military measures and harsh laws to maintain order. Their society transformed from an agri-industrial-craftman society to one of martial society lead by semi-feudal warlords. Aggression between the warlords resulted in the building of massive citadels built in clearings hacked out of the lush forests. Over the millennia of the age of strife, the society of Caliban finally changed to one of a military society with a strong martial code and sense of honour. Then, as the Eldar race decimated themselves and Slaanesh was born, everything changed. The gargantuan tear in the reality of space that marked the passing of the Eldar race also decimated every world and system in a 10,000 light year radius. At the northern most edge of this massive rend in the fabric of reality lay the system of Caliban. The absence of any psychically attuned human in the planet of Caliban meant that the majority of the populace noticed nothing was amiss. However the rapidly abating warp storms were noticed, although the feudal warlord-led societies had long given up the maintenance or knowledge of space travel. Over the next decades, the population of Caliban saw their once beautiful world slowly transform in to a blighted death world. Deadly warp spawned creatures began to roam the jungles. Trees and vegetation mutated in some areas becoming more deadly than the jungle's predators. Surprisingly the lushness of the forests remained, hiding the gruesome transformation. Human settlements gradually gravitated towards the citadels of their warlords. These citadels were carved in to the bedrock of the planet and maintained within massive clearings of the jungles. The society became more warrior-orientated, with knightly orders forming to become the ruling elite. Many millennia of feudal warfare were replaced by decades of battle for survival against the warped beasts. As a consequence the populace of Caliban had become accustomed to many an unnatural phenomena. So it was that, when a fiery comet streaked through the bright starlit night and crashed in the jungle within earshot of one of the largest citadels of Caliban, no one took notice. The Nobility of Caliban The nobility of Caliban were a pugnacious race. Each group of settlements had a protector or warlord and his retinue of knightly warriors. Each such knightly order was based around a massive citadel as their base, which provided much needed security in the face of evil. Extremely brave and well versed in martial honour, they were raised from childhood to live and die by the sword. They were clad in a form of power armour similar to the early power armour used by the Emperor's retinue on earth. They were armed with the boltpistol and a chainsword as their personal armament. Mounted on huge warhorses called "Destrieres" these noble knights were a fearsome sight and one welcomed by the besieged populace of Caliban. The life of the nobles was a constant struggle as they fought repeatedly to vanquish the multitude of chaotic beasts that appeared in their jungles. Occasionally a particularly terrifying creature may cause prolonged terror and require the declaration of a quest. Noble from many separate feudal societies would then congregate to attempt to kill the creature. To the slayer went great honour and fortune but more often than not only a horrific death awaited them. As the nobles rose in their achievements they were honoured with the title of "Master" and given a retinue of warrior knights to lead. The leader of each order was referred to as the Grandmaster of the Order. One such knightly order was always known simply as "The Order" and the brave warrior knights known as the "Knights of the Order" They were one of the largest such orders in Caliban and had a reputation across all of Caliban for the honesty, nobility and fearless skills of its brother-knights in battle. Unlike other such orders in Caliban, where admission was a birthright, members of The Order were chosen on their military prowess and martial honour. Anyone, from a lowly farmboy to a rich merchant could join the order based entirely on their merit. Contingents of brother-knights would travel across Caliban, giving their aid to whomever required it. Life and times of the young lion The fiery comet streaked through Caliban's blighted atmosphere, completely ignored by the populace in the scattered settlements. By providence, it came to rest within earshot of Caliban's greatest citadel, the fortress monastery of "The Order". The comet, which was in fact the primarch capsule containing the nascent infant primarch, who was the emperor's first born. As to what happened thereafter is lost in the mists of time and mythology. Suffice to say that for then next ten years no one in Caliban paid much attention to the crashing of the comet. However, whispers of old sooth-sayers were heard that there was a change in the jungles surrounding the Fortress of the citadel. Groups of knight warriors of the order began to tell eerie tales of being watched but yet not feeling endangered. The attacks by chaotic beasts around the Order's monastery began to abate. Most attributed these events to the martial prowess of the Order's knights. For ten years, spurred by their apparent success, the knightly order repeatedly and frequently began to foray deeper in to the jungles in search of such horrendous beasts. Hope began to swell, that perhaps finally there might be an end to the depredations of the mystical terror. It is undoubtedly true that the nascent primarch survived the crash of the capsule. The primarch capsule was designed by the emperor himself, in his infinite foresight, to cater for all eventualities. What the infant primarch felt or thought as he lay within the capsule, sustained by its perpetual energy sources and nutri-supplements one would never know. But as the infant grew up rapidly in a matter of weeks within the capsule he would have imbibed the knowledge reposited within the capsules memory banks. Finally leaving the capsule, the child primarch began to wander the forests of Caliban. How he survived or what ordeals he endured remain a mystery to this day. The only person to whom he had spoken of this was his future friend and brother in arms Luthor. Imperial scholars attribute the reduction in chaos predations near the Order's monastery and settlements to the arrival of the child-primarch though this can never be verified in any manner. However surviving in the death-world jungles of Caliban for ten years without any armour or man made weapons does indeed speak volumes as to the capabilities of this god-like superhuman son of the Emperor. It is likely that the battle-honed senses of the warriors of the Order were true and they were perhaps being observed for a considerable time by the primarch. Their sense of the absence of danger was perhaps the primarchs psyche permeating the warriors mind, setting them at ease. |
CHAPTER II THE YOUNG LION Chronicled By ( Shadow Guard ) |
APOCRYPHA CALIBAN |
This entire section is one attempt to describe the long history of the Dark Angels in a linear form. Every known piece of history and event based on GW publications has been written in my own words and linked together in a reasonably plausible manner by additional fiction. This is in no way the official GW version nor is it in anyway an attempt to infringe on their IP. There are many versions of imperial history buried within the sands of time and this is but just one of them. Read on if you dare! |
