[erebus]

Criticism, pointers, suggestions for a title etc...

Imannok , lays wounded, the capitol region of Imotokan ,a planet that had been retaken into the Emperors protection and settled to peace long enough ago that no foreign warrior had set foot upon its soil since the Emperor himself had come searching for his sons, what had once been its centre, a mile long half mile wide garden leading to the main gates of the towering ferocrete walls of the Imperial city is bisected by the gargantuan smouldering hulk of a xenos warship that had brought the grey skinned sandy yellow armoured warriors to low orbit for there smaller craft to deploy.

The massive wreck had been brought down a full two days ago as it deployed its vile invasion force by the guns of the arbites courthouse, its twin volcano cannons at the pinnacle of its structure blasting whatever the ship used in place of void shields at the very edge of there range untill they were finally able to score a hit on the bridge or a reactor, whatever they hit was immaterial as the cannons fired untill the ship had fallen so far the shorter ranged defences were able to fire

Although the planet is rare in the imperium that it knew peace for so long, her citizens know the cost of peace and are well prepared to defend it, the men and women of her regiments fight throughout the eastern fringe worlds so far from home in the hope that they might bring the peace they knew as children, and the emperors loving rule to other human souls.

The Tau invasion was held back long enough and with enough potency by the PDF and the arbites that when an inquisition fleet carrying the space marines of the Deathwatch and storm troopers, many of them sons and daughters of Imotokan themselves arrive, the Tau are actually withdrawing, right into the guns of the emperors ships.

He knows he shouldn’t be here in this part of the city, he also knows the four troopers who came with him should be aiding (aiding him as it happens) with the investigation of the xenos wreck and sweeps to ensure no alien is left alive. However, he’s been given an order - or at least his superiors think they gave him an order- to check this sector due to reports of one or more of the aliens hiding out here And besides, its been almost 20 years since he‘s been here. He recognises the street he’s on, even with the sealed helm of the carapace armour blocking the edges of his sight, he knows that Rydak, one of the four behind him grew up here before joining the regiments at the same time as him. Many of the buildings are damaged, but only from collateral hits, shots from weapons far outside there effective range that missed other things and were so underpowered when they got here they were barely able to break windows, or crack doors.
“I wonder if that Annelise Narl ever married, she had that browney red hair really nice ti...” Rydak stops far a half pace before continuing “I said that out loud didn’t I boss?” he chuckles and carries on without answering his comrade Rydak decides to press the point “so, Cassimir we headed to the pub besides the Major’s shack now or what?” he stops and turns leaning onto the midsection of his las carbine as he does pulling the sling tight and making and arm rest.

“Y’know Gregor I think we might just do that, personally if I were to invade a Tau planet and get left behind the boozer is were I’d …” the blurt of a pulse weapon comes from the direction they had been joking over as they start running towards the pub the hear three louder bass thumps from the same direction in quick succession and two more blurts followed soon by another blurt. He can tell from this close it comes from the house beside the pub, his carapace armour clatters as his left boot takes the door clear of it hinges.

The Tau , unmasked, stares at him open mouthed across its armoured shoulder pad , its weapon pointed into the dwelling , away from him. His first lasbolt blasts the lower jaw of the alien to pieces and severs its spine, the second seers through its skull between the eyes. His squad seem to be in the room before the stocky yellow armoured form hits the floor.

“CLEAR!” Mcyre yells from the far corner Learch and Rydak slice past each other through the door way into the bedroom . He notices now what the alien was shooting as they ran , the dead body of Annelise Narl and a red headed girl sobbing holding onto her, no more than 13 or 14 years old soaked with the blood of her mother and the ichors of the skull of a xenos. He hears Learch calling for Mcyre’s medpack and is vaguely aware of her kicking the pulse rifle from the Fire warrior’s rubber like hands as she runs into the bedroom he hears now a new voice, a boy speaking too fast and holding back tears, pleading with Mcyre to help his father,
“..it jammed and that thing shot Dad… Please miss Inquisitor save my dad he used to be a Major in the Guard, Ma.. Major Drachmus and I ,I was gonna join too next month when I’m 16 and he‘s got an older son that’s a guardsman too … and oh emperor Cassandra ..Cassie!?… Mum!?!… ” the boy starts wailing the same moment Sgt Gregor Rydak comes back into the living area and stares at Cassimir for a second his face ashen with his helmet in his hand , he hears Learch calling into his vox for aid
“Cassimir... I don’t think… I mean he’s hurt bad…but he‘s a hardass and Massimo‘s bringing a vulture in and…” Rydak glances towards the girl beside her mother and notices her staring as Cassimir’s armour
“Your name is Cassimir?” she asks stopping crying “Daddy told me about you, he said you went to war like he did, and you’d come back when there was no more war for you to go to… did the wars end ?”
Interrogator Cassimir Drachmus takes off him helmet and looks through to his father being kept alive by the female trooper, at his Brother knelling beside, and then down. Down at the charred monster who’s kind brought war to maybe the last place in the galaxy to have peace and turns to his sister.
“No. The wars didn’t end. They might never end, But I’m going to fight as long as I can to make sure they don‘t come back here again.”