From the sacred ground that had been their primarch's flagship, the Knights had set out for ten thousand years, on a crusade that battled for the very soul of their legion. Knight Commanders were appointed in rotation from each of the unforgiven chapters in turn. Each commander had etched his name in honour, great deeds and superfluous achievements being written on the walls of the hall. Now, it was Apollyon's time to lead. He too had followed in the hallowed tradition of his fore bearer's, reaching in to the legions past to bring to justice the traitors of eons before. The coming of the depoiler's assault had brought out the fallen like a pack of vultures and the Knights had reaped a bitter harvest. But today was different. The hunted were coming for the hunt. The greatest defence of the keep and the knights was their secrecy. That anonymity had now been compromised and the enemy knew their location. They would come, for the gene seed secreted within the massive vaults, and for the sheer pleasure of revenge. The hunted were coming as the hunters, accompanied by the most vile forces humanity had ever faced. Aplollyon stood up, resplendent in his green and bone coloured armour. The cloak of his knighthood fluttered in the gentle wind blown by the artificial environment. The chanting had ceased. His men stood at the ready. Apollyon looked at them, slowly meeting each knight's gaze in turn, saluting each with his eyes as unspoken words of respect passed between the emperor's warriors. In the periphery of the Caliban system lay many small asteroids and space debris, a testament to the infamy of ten millennia ago. Hidden amongst the debris were minute satellites and remore sensing augers, floating innocuously for eons. One such satellite suddenly sprang to life, its automated sensor array detecting a surge in real space. The minor energy spikes that its probes detected were analyzed rapidly within its computer matrices, its patterns being recognized by the cogitator banks. A single rapid sequence message was discharged from the sensor array in a moment before the array was destroyed as reality turned in to turmoil and the empyreran regurgitated out a massive armada of warships. The signal that had escaped sped across the space of Caliban, and in an instant was received, decoded and analysed by the massive receptor banks in the keep. A final warning was activated by the master of the watch and a single sentence transmitted to Apollyon's receiver. "They are here!" Apollyon smiled. It was the time of reckoning. The time for action was upon them as was the time for proving his capacity to command. His men knew what to do, yet awaited his command, not one man flinching in anticipation of the coming battle. This was not the time for speeches or complex stratagems. Apollyon unsheathed his power sword, activating its power supply. The gesture was not lost upon his men. "To the walls brothers! To the battlements! Today we battle for the soul of our legion and the memory of the Lion!" "For the Lion" An almighty chorus erupted within the great hall as then men dispersed for battle. |
CHAPTER XIV: KNIGHTS OF THE ORDER (Cont) Chronicled By ( Shadow Guard ) |
GATHERING OF ANGELS |
This section provides the narrative history of the events that took place during the Gathering of Angels campaign conducted by the Inner Circle, during Abaddon's Thirteenth Black Crusade. 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! |
