Fifteen minutes should be enough Gideon thought to himself. I just need to take care of the sentries on the roof now. He braced himself as the ground shook. The building cried out in agony as pieces of ceiling fell. Darkness consumed the basement as the power died. This is great Gideon thought to himself. Jogging to the lift, he could already see the control panel sparking. Emergency power came online as light amplifiers in Gideon's helmet activated. Quickly glancing around the room, he spotted a spiraling staircase. What the hell he thought, and charged his jump pack. Putting his right hand on the railing, and his feet against the outer wall, Gideon gunned his pack. Malachai, you're a genius he thought to himself.  The techmarine's secondary capacitor boosted the power rating to one hundred and twenty-five percent. Stairs became a mixed blur. The stone wall now appeared smooth. Sparks flowed freely from his plasteel boots. An unfortunate guardsman was running down the stairs. Gideon felt the hit, could see the red dripping off his chest plate. Cutting the engines and squeezing the wooden handrail was not enough to stop him. Splinters of wood flew from the pole, chunks broke off and fell to the floor. With a loud snap, the railing came loose in his hand. Gideon was launched out of the stairwell and into a hall. Sparks flew from his armor as he slid across the marble floor on his back.           A figure in black armor stood, staring at Gideon. Cruel black eyes concealed a mind of hate, and anger. Drawing his power sword, the chaos marine leaped into the air, the blade turned down as it cut through the air. Gideon pulled his plasma pistol and fired. It bucked in his hand, and the grotesque figure exploded into molten armor and burning flesh. Rolling over, The sword cuts through Gideon's shoulder pad and whines as it sparks into the marble floor. Screaming in pain, he grabbed his shoulder and pulled himself back against the wall. The pain. It ate at him like a small scavenger picking at a dying man. Stars floating around in his vision. Cruel laughter filled his mind. "What are you doing? Move!"  An invisible force pushed Gideon to his knees. The pain seemed to be subsiding, no longer drilling into his mind. "I will take care of that, you get out of here."  Gideon slowly dragged himself to a standing position. Still dizzy, he kicked down a door next to him. A closet he thought. Stumbling to the door parallel the closet, he used his chainsword to cut the lock. Stairs he thought. Still wobbling, he forced himself up, taking one step at a time. Every second gave him more strength. Breathing hard, he rammed the last door with his shoulder. It burst open with a shower of splinters. Ignoring the beams cutting deep scars into his armor, he fired plasma bolts into the roof turrets. Ammo boxes exploded, shaking the building. Pieces of the roof caved in, rock fell from the masonry.  Focusing on running, Gideon was able to leap clear of the building. As he ignited his jump pack, Gideon could see a swarm of guardsmen. They were attacking a lone tactical marine. His squad lay dead around him. Deep pits and scars were traced in his armor from lasgun fire. Gideon held out his arm. As the marine raised his hand, Gideon grabbed him by the wrist. Still firing his bolter, the marine was lifted off the ground. In the distance, the Dark Angels could be seen pulling out. Rebel guardsmen were cheering at the marines, raising their rifles in triumph.  One by one, the members of Gideon's squad emerged from the windows, taking flight. Gideon had to push his jump pack to its full capacity, plus the extra capacitor to compensate for the extra weight. A red fireball engulfed the building, then quickly moved out across the jungle landscape. Flesh was incinerated from bone as the blast wave moved outward. Trees flew like toothpicks, flipping end over end. The twin cylinders on Gideon's jump pack were glowing red. Small explosions erupted from tanks below them as heat ignited their ammunition.  The squad dived towards the ground. Running against the blast to the extraction zone. Thunderhawk gunships landing in the distance. Gideon swooped low and dropped the marine on the ground. Flipping around, he reversed the direction of his jump pack. Slamming into a large tree, the release button snapped. Flying free from his pack, Gideon tumbled through the jungle. Landing on his back, He finally scraped to a stop. The power display in his helmet was flashing. Emergency power kicked in, enough to keep oxygen cycling through his armor.  Finding that he was lacking sufficient power for his radio, he tried external speaker. Turning the amperage up, he yelled at the top of his lungs. "Marine down. I have no power, repeat, I am a lame duck." Another voice came from next to him. "I found him sir. He's over here." "Holy crap, Gideon, I was beginning to think you didn't make it." Asmond yelled. "Good work Terphyli. Grab his legs." Gideon was just glad to be on the Thunderhawk. Asmond was inspecting his shoulder wound, while Michael inspected the shoulder pad.  "Boy, you better thank the emperor extra long when you get back." Asmond said after some time. "Why is that sir?" "Because you were wounded by a plague sword." "As long as they can stitch me up, I don't care what it was." Gideon stared at the ceiling listening to the hum of the engines, as the gunship headed towards the rock.

CHRONICLES OF AN ANGEL VOLUME I - STARFIRE By Brother Gideon

TOMES OF VALOUR

This story has been reproduced with permission from the author. Many terms used in this story (such as Space Marine, Eldar, and others) are Trademarks of Games Workshop, Inc. Their use here is not intended as a challenge to said trademarks.

CONTINUED IN VOLUME II BLOODRAIN

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