Rise of the Tau

[Razor Devil]

With that he closed his eyes, concentrated, and tore himself from the spot.



The very first thing he noticed was the silence. He had passed beyond a single hatch and yet from in here, he could hear nothing of the exchange beyond.



The chamber illuminated at his arrival, the air simply growing bright around him. He tensed, swiftly exchanging the magazine of his pistol as he searched the wide space around him for any sign of life.



There seemed to no one here, and after a few moments he allowed himself to relax a little.



‘Codian here.’ He said, willing his vox stud into action. ‘Brother Ventris, can you hear me?’



He waited for several moments but there was no answer.



‘Cassius? Tigurius? This is Codian. I have reached our destination. Are you receiving this?’



Again, he was met with no reply save for silence.



He reasoned with himself that there could be any number of explanations why he had lost communication with his Ultramarine brothers, the most obvious being Tau technology. It was perfectly plausible that the Tau had initiated some kind of ship-wide communications suppression net.



Perhaps the others had inadvertently passed beyond the range of his vox, and he had no idea of the properties used in the construction of these vessels. There were many reasons to consider, but he could not help but feel that there was something more to it, something altogether more sinister.



The strange and seemingly random leaps into the nightmare world had done nothing to help centre his mind for the task ahead. Though he knew a little of what lay ahead of him on this distant world, he could not understand why he had returned there more than once. To him, the continuing experience was akin to a warrior seeing the events of his life flash before his eyes upon death. Was he dead, somewhere in the murky mists of the future?



He found he could barely begin to comprehend the workings of space and time, despite his ability to breach those laws. He was a man in possession of an amazing ability and yet of the truth of that ability he knew very little. All he knew was that he had a destiny there on that world, and that the strange, dead world, and that the shadowy Marines waited there for him still.



These thoughts were irrelevant, he reasoned. He still had much to do before he would see the end of this war, and the salvation of his Primarch was paramount now.



He realised with some relief that whatever automated defence systems were in place in this part of the ship had stayed thankfully silent up to now. If what he suspected of Fabius Bile was true, if the insidious traitor had done most of his debased work in secret and away from prying eyes, then it made sense that the Tau would consider the Apothecarion a low-level risk area.



The fact that the Ethereal chambers were so close to this place had worked in their favour, at least as far as he was concerned. The enemy suspected that they had come for the Ethereals, when all along his true goal lay somewhere within these walls.



This part of the ship was unlike anything he had seen since they had boarded her. Though the Tau influence in architecture continued on into these chambers, there was a darker, almost gothic feel to the place.



There were tanks and glass tubes everywhere he looked and in every conceivable size. most of them looked to contain specimens of organs, whilst others held complete specimens. In many cases he found that he could not place the species of the preserved creatures he saw all around him, though he did recognise a number of them.



He passed by a large tube containing a huge, dark-skinned Ork, the creature’s face exuding an air of menace and hate even in death. He turned his gaze away from the alien and continued on, approaching the nearest archway cautiously.



As he had hoped, he could see no signs of life in the chamber beyond. To his dismay, the space was even larger than the previous one, and more cluttered. Rows upon rows of specimen tubes and unidentifiable medical equipment stretched out away from him, as far as the eye could see.



He realised then how monumental the task ahead of him was. Bile would not have kept his greatest secrets out in display for all to see. The truth of Bile’s knowledge of the situation was inconsequential to him now, for the insidious traitor would definitely have kept his most secret work away from the eyes of Guilliman.



He needed help to locate that which he knew he must find.



Call to the shadows.



The dark Astarte had told him this, but only now did he realise the significance of it. Were those dark Marines really a part of his own subconscious mind? Was that distant planet nothing except for a mindscape, a representation of his own unbidden efforts in turning his gaze inward? Were these mysterious interruptions in transition a method devised by his instinctive self to turn his attention to the answers he sought?



Yes or no, the answer was not important, at least not for now. What was important was the goal, and if he was to stand any chance of locating it before the enemy found him, he needed to follow that advice.



He slowed, lowering his weapons as he did so. then, glancing around him, he spoke to the silent gloom.



‘I am Codian, the Prophet, and I need your help.’



His voice echoed away into the distance, the dying reverberations fading into the quiet and ever-present hum of machinery.



‘I…I know that you are here. I know that you are everywhere. I also know that you are aware of me, aware of who and what I am. I seek your aid here. I need to uncover the truth, and I know that you can help me. You know this ship, these chambers, far better than I ever could. You know this ship better even than the Tau. For the good of the continuation of our shared existence, for the good of life, help me.’



For long moments he waited, and listened. He had almost given up when the slightest noise attracted his attention. He glanced to his right in time to see what appeared to be a ventilation grille, not much larger than his helm in diameter, detach itself and then sink away into a pit of utter darkness.



Something dark and soundless poured itself from the space and slid out into the chamber, landing on the floor with only the softest thud of padded feet. The shape rose into a hunched, humanoid form, and he caught sight of what appeared to be a pair of shining eyes beneath a rotting hood.



The thing hissed at him, a feral and animalistic sound. Codian inclined his head in greeting and then gestured out around him.



‘You know all the secrets of this place. Show them to me.’



+++



‘Tau!’



The voice thundered through the clamour of the battle, singing high above the loudest, most thunderous explosions.



‘Hear me! I, Guilliman, command your attention!’



Roboute Guilliman spread his arms wide as he called out to his legions, his volume of his voice louder and more strident than any mortal could ever hope to manage. That same voice boomed across the communications net, spreading out across the entire Tau army in a matter of seconds.



‘Your god is here amongst us! Aun’Va demands your presence!’



On his knees, his face turned to the floor, Berolinus shuddered beneath his Primarch’s every word. His disbelief at Bile’s sudden demise still burned bright within him. Things were happening so fast now, the situation changing beyond his every expectation.



There was a part of him that railed against all that Aun’Va was, and yet he could not bring himself to cry out against the immortal master of the Tau. Aun’Va had intended Guilliman to become something more than he ever was, something dark and corrupt. It had been Aun’Va’s wish to see Guilliman destroyed, for all intents and purposes, and replaced with some monstrous and alien machine.



It had been the corruption that Fabius had wrought within Guilliman that had prevented this, and he found himself silently thankful for that. In death, it had been revealed that Bile’s loyalties had lain elsewhere, and yet even as he considered this, he found that he could not label the Apothecary a traitor and a heretic.



All along, Bile had been opposed to the rule of Aun’Va, opposed to the crusade of the Tau. He still understood little of what the Apothecary had hoped to achieve, indeed, what he had achieved already. Had he known of the terrible fate that had awaited Guilliman? What had Bile achieved by preventing this? Why had he even sought to prevent it?



All these questions and more coursed through his mind. Each passing moment revealed lies layered upon lies.



And now this.



The strange machine summoned by Aun’Va had simply passed back through the shimmering emerald gate and left, closing the swirling breach behind it. Now Aun’Va sought to gather the Tau to him, even in the midst of the desperate fight against the forces of chaos.



What purpose could this possibly serve? His Primarch seemed unwilling or indeed incapable of denying Aun’Va. Did Guilliman know of the being’s intentions? Again, none of this made sense to him.



The battlefield had taken on a strange quality with the arrival of the Ethereals. Even now they moved to widen the net around his position, around Aun’Va, burning and smashing their way deeper into the chaos forces, towers of murderous strength and power.



He had yet to witness the demise of any one of them, and he had no idea how many of them existed here. Though it may not be immediately obvious to some, he could see that the Ethereals were not just moving to counter the enemy. They were actually driving them back purposely, leaving the area around their commander free of danger and interference.



Aun’Va himself continued to watch the proceedings with an aloof detachment, as if there was not a single individual, force or weapon here capable of harming him. Berolinus looked upon him and believed that such a thing could actually be true.



What is his true desire? He asked himself the question, but really he knew that he needed the answer not from within himself but instead from the dark being residing deep within his soul. He closed his eyes and willed Lucius to answer him. Why would the malevolent spirit not answer?



To feed. Came the reply.



He flinched, quite unprepared to hear the hissing voice in his thoughts despite his plea.



To feed, Berolinus. You had your chance, Ultramarine. You had a chance of true greatness, of survival. Now you are too late. You stupid, pathetic, blind little Astarte. First you pledge yourself to a false Primarch, and then to a false Tau. Still you fail to see the truth behind the fiend before you. The creature you know of as Aun’Va is much more than you could ever imagine. It is a god of this mortal plane, a creature far darker and more ancient than even the most powerful denizens of the warp.



I hope that you enjoy all that you have allowed to happen, Lurom Berolinus, for you will feed that creature. All of you, every last life on this foul world, are fated to become sustenance. A pathetic end for a pathetic warrior. Enjoy your fate.



Berolinus hissed in anger and despair as he felt the spirit of Lucius sink away, abandoning him to this fate.


He vowed then that he would do everything in his power to prevent it.

[Razor Devil]

Quite a few typos again, but HELL that was a good chapter.

[Exitas-Acta-Probat]

i may have missed something here but who/what was the thing in biles rooms? was it hrud or something?

[Razor Devil]

Who knows, but I'm guessing Hrud since they're "shadows" and you know, they work for Qah in a sense, and they're everywhere.

[Exitas-Acta-Probat]

haha, sounds like the inquisition!!

[Bjorn Hellhammer]

Glad this is back. I can live with a few typos if the author is trying his best to catch up after teminal pc probelms. Good to see he has got right back into the flow

[Razor Devil]

Sure has hasn't he? I'm guessing that Lucius is actually lying and has not abandoned Berolinus to his fate.

[Exitas-Acta-Probat]

reverse phychology i think its called. by telling him hes doomed when hes not he can save himself....or something.

[Razor Devil]

You mean save himself when he is doomed?

[Exitas-Acta-Probat]

kind of, i meant that by telling him he is doomed he can get out of the stiuation when he would otherwise have not.

[Lorcryst]

Maybe the jabs and taunts of Lucius will spur Berolinus into action ?

Something like "If I'm doomed already, I have nothing more to loose ... yaaaaar !" ?

Really good chapter anyway, but I'm still awaiting what's next with barely-controlled impatience

[Exitas-Acta-Probat]

thanks lorcryst. im not not very good at explaining stuff sometimes. thats exactly it.

[Razor Devil]

Chapter Two Hundred and Seven.



A Bitter Taste.





The dark shapes moved almost soundlessly through the quiet gloom, fluid and cautious despite their gnarled appearance. Codian followed closely behind, his focus centred directly on them.



More of the strange Hrud had joined the first creature moments after their meeting, sliding from dark corners and recesses that could have not housed even a human child. The way they twisted and contorted, it was as if their entire body was somehow multi-jointed.



Each of the Hrud warriors carried what at first had appeared to him to be a staff, fashioned from some dark metallic substance. On closer inspection they were revealed to be actually some form of rifle, lit just above the trigger area with a pulsing green glow.



Within moments of standing in the presence of these rifles he felt his face and body begin to prickle with thick, oily sweat. This was a reaction by his enhanced physiology to whatever matter served as the power source to the strange weapons.



Whatever radiation or toxic substance leaked from the rifles did not seem to affect the Hrud. One by one they rounded the corner and passed into another room. This room was much smaller. Over to the far corner Codian could see a simple cot, the surfaces and shelves about it littered with vials and bottles filled with dark, thick liquids. Over by the opposing corner he could see a heavily stained dissection table. The room was filled with yet more specimen tubes and preserved organs.



One of the Hrud signalled for him to slow. He did so, watching as the creature stole over to the far wall and placed a glowing crystalline object against the wall. The power in the room flickered and died away, the lights and the runes set into the scattered equipment dulling.



The Hrud left the device stuck to the wall and then proceeded to tear a previously hidden panel free of the wall by its side. It reached into the space with long, segmented fingers and tore several conduits free, its actions sending sparks cascading across its mildew-heavy robes.



They knew exactly where to look. Codian guessed that the actions of the alien had disabled whatever hidden security systems were built into this room; systems he suspected were put into place by Bile himself.



The other Hrud moved forward then, converging around a blank section of the wall. One of them produced another of the pulsing crystals from beneath its robes and placed it against the wall.



‘Is this it?’ He asked, feeling his dual pulses quicken. ‘Is this the place?’



The aliens turned to look at him, ever silent, and after a moment’s pause all three shuffled back. Codian watched as a thin light drew itself across the surface of the wall. Starting from a central point, it cut across the smooth surface at head height and then dropped towards the floor, running parallel until it reached the deck. The large oblong shape sank into the wall with a hiss and then slid out of sight, revealing a hidden space beyond.



‘Blessed Emperor…’ Codian whispered.



+++



‘What is happening?’



Calgar cycled his augmetically-enhanced sight back away from the distant battlefield and shifted the bulk of his torso to look upon the dark figure at his side. Qah met his gaze then, wrapping his shadowy arms tighter around himself as if feeling the chill of some imaginary wind.



‘Droch’tyr prepares to feed.’ He whispered in reply.



Calgar’s unalterable visage masked his confusion at the answer.



‘I don’t understand. I refer to the change in the direction of this war, Qah. For all intents and purposes, the Tau look to be in the midst of a full retreat. Only the Ethereals continue to engage the forces of chaos.’



‘Forgive me, Warmaster, your observations are correct, for the most part. The Tau are indeed in the midst of a withdrawal, but this is far from a retreat. The Ethereals have power enough to keep the forces of chaos at bay. They do not intend to overwhelm them. They are merely pushing them back. It is as I said. The Void Dragon prepares to feed, and he will feed upon his own legions in order to gain the strength to dominate this war.’



‘What can we do to prevent that happening?’ Calgar asked, managing to force a hint of anxiousness into his mechanical voice.



‘In truth, we can do little, at least for now. We must continue to bolster the strength of these defences until it is time for the enemy to make their push. The Eldar continue to work behind the scenes, readying themselves for the coming of the true enemy. The chaos legions continue to hold out against the Ethereals for now, but they will falter at the arrival of the other Star Gods.’



Calgar looked out across the immense expanse of the battlefield once again. He had observed the same scene uncounted times, and yet each time he did so, his ancient hearts never once failed to tighten in his chest.



The warriors of chaos were legion, even now. Tens of thousands of armoured bodies roved the ruined warscape, hunting the retreating Tau. He looked on as a mass of Iron Warriors swept through the ruins of a burned out cathedral, pouring from doorways and windows out into the wide street.



The war machines of the retreating Tau convoy ground to a halt as the chaos Marines attacked. Turrets swiftly cycled around to target the silver bodies, sowing death through the shifting tide. Battlesuits took to the skies, unloading their weapons systems into the surging enemy.



Marines threw themselves upon the armoured skimmers, clambering up onto the smooth hulls. Turret gunners were quickly overwhelmed, shot or simply dragged from their raised positions.



A host of Khornate berserkers joined the Iron Warriors in their attack from the north. The World Eaters used their screaming axes to tear their way into the laden Devilfish carriers. Tau warriors were dragged from the holds of the vehicles and ripped apart, the insane Marines dancing and whooping in delight as they bathed in the blood of their victims.



He shifted his gaze to the right. There he saw a writhing tide of scum. Chaos cultists swarmed around the glowing form of a lone Ethereal, fighting one another in a frenzied desire to hack and slash at the burning figure. They died in droves, immolated by the immortal abomination, and yet they did not seem to care.



He had been an Astarte longer than most other mortal creatures even lived, and he knew what it was to be free of the fear of death. He knew fear, despite the Astarte’s most famous claim. His greatest fear was failure. It was the fear of failure that drove a Marine to preserve himself, for when an Astarte died, he could no longer serve his Emperor in the mortal realm.



What astounded him here most was the total lack of fear. It was an omnipresent thing. The Tau did not seem to fear death, nor did the forces of chaos. Both factions almost seemed to thrive on the abandonment of facing the other in combat, of destroying as many of the enemy as they could before the inevitability of death claimed them.



‘Let them burn themselves out, Warmaster.’ Qah said then, and Calgar knew without a doubt that the ancient alien had ensnared his private thoughts.



‘We both know that the war raging out there is but a precursor, a distraction. The real war will begin at the arrival of the other Star Gods. The C’tan are an arrogant and proud kind. Their fight for dominance over their siblings is one that has been played out since the dawn of creation.’



‘These other C’tan. I have yet to see any sign of them.’ Calgar answered, his tone displaying a clear annoyance at having his thoughts violated so.



‘When will we know that they are here?’



‘The world will quake at their coming.’ Qah answered quietly. ‘We will know, Warmaster. I promise you that.’



+++



Berolinus could feel the ground beneath him quaking softly now as the Tau began to converge in force around him. Everywhere he looked he could see them. Vast swathes of infantry grew ever closer, growing larger by the second beneath the shadow of innumerable war machines.



The combined efforts of both the Ethereals and the strange Tau Titans had all but driven the forces of chaos back out of sight. The battle still raged far beyond the range of the naked eye, but it seemed Aun’Va’s plans to gather the Tau to him had been successful.



He fought to understand the motive behind this. Lucius had warned him that the ageless creature masquerading as Aun’Va intended to feed, and although he found he could understand little of what that meant, he also fought to understand why the creature had chosen Guilliman do aid him in this.



Was it simple, universal arrogance? Was it something more than that? Berolinus ran all the possibilities through his mind. His biggest fear was that, as indeed Aun’va himself had said, this would be his Primarch’s final task. His swansong. The more he considered it, the more he convinced himself that Guilliman, and indeed he himself, would be added to this ‘feast’.



He had watched as the Ethereals had come and carved their way through all resistance. In such a short space of time they had punished all those that opposed them more severely than the Tau legions themselves ever could have.



He saw then the true duplicitous nature of the Tau command. The uncounted line troopers of the Tau were as nothing, disposable and expendable even to those they served. Guilliman too. Of course, if the Primarch himself was truly as worthless to Aun’Va as the current situation suggested, then there was no question that he too was as nothing to this evil and deceitful creature.

[Razor Devil]

The Tau surrounded him now, already so thick in number that he could see nothing of the battlefield beyond. Satisfaction blazed in Aun’Va’s eyes at this, and as Berolinus saw this, he found himself fighting to hate the abomination. His soul roiled with an inner turmoil. He wanted so much to rise and strike at the fiend, to expend his last efforts in defiance of all Aun’Va was, but he could not. His every cell screamed in protest at his seditious thoughts, for his body was a slave to the Tau ideal now, utterly devoted to the Ethereals and their master.



‘You have done well, Kai’gue’la Il’porrui.’ Aun’Va uttered, taking in the endless lines of kneeling Tau around him.



‘You have served me one last time, and for that, you shall receive your reward.’



He turned to look upon the waiting Tau then and raised his shining arms. When he spoke next, his voice became omnipresent, no louder in volume and yet strident enough to encompass the entire battlefield.



‘All of you shall serve me now, but one last time. You have conquered the stars for me, my Tau. Now you will kneel, and lift me to ultimate ascension with your lives. You will give me all that you are, and in doing so you shall become one with me, so that your memory will live on into eternity.’



Cries of adulation and rapture rose up from the sea of adoring aliens as uncounted Tau surrendered themselves to their master’s whim. Squad leaders raised their strident voices as they ordered the their teams clear of the waiting Devilfish carriers, physically forcing them to kneel where their feet touched the ground.



Crisis suits descended from the skies to mirror the genuflections of their smaller comrades. Tau continued to die still, blown apart or punctured by random enemy fire, and yet those that died did not even seem to realise that they had done so, for every single Tau on the battlefield was entranced by their god’s command, and by his very presence.



Unseen by Aun’Va, Berolinus managed to force himself to his feet and drag himself over to where Guilliman stood, his Primarch immobile as if cast from iron.



‘This…this is wrong, my lord. We cannot let it end this way.’ He managed to gasp, his own voice fighting to resist him.



Guilliman did not respond. He continued to stare ahead to where Aun’Va bathed in the adoration of his masses, his black eyes burning with unknown emotion.



‘Lord, I beg you, listen to reason.’ He hissed, his body beginning to quake. ‘You are Roboute Guilliman, and you are better than this. You are the father of the Ultramarines…’



‘I am no Ultramarine.’ Guilliman whispered in reply, his face tight with effort and his lips drawn back over his teeth.



‘And I am not your Guilliman. I am better than he ever was. I am supreme amongst the Primarchs and I am a god amongst mortal men. Aun’Va made me this way. You, Berolinus, are pathetic and weak. You shame me. Now kneel.’



The last word left his lips and hit Berolinus with all the force of a thunder hammer. It drove him to his knees, as undeniable as death itself. Berolinus had taken the covenant offered by Bile so as to devote himself further to his father and Primarch, and now that covenant found him rendered useless to resist, even when sense and honour screamed denial at his own actions.



‘Please, my Primarch…’



‘Silence.’



Berolinus felt his throat constrict at Guilliman’s word, his voice refusing to boil from his lips. Now he was unable to even protest, let alone act. Now, at last, he could see his death clearly as if it were approaching from the horizon, a visible and corporeal thing. For the first time in his life, he felt utterly helpless. He was beaten, and no matter how much of his will he poured into defying his Primarch, he knew that he could not win.



‘It is time.’



When the Void Dragon spoke, the earth trembled. His eyes became stars set into his face, shining with a radiance and strength that still only served to hint at the unmatchable powers inside him. He looked out at the legions gathered before him, and then he released but a fragment of that power.



The bow wave of force thundered through the Tau before him, its very touch turning uncounted bodies to dust and energy. Hundreds died in that first second, their bodies disassembled into glittering atoms by the Star God’s murderous gaze. Those atoms swirled and eddied as they gathered, creating a vast spiral of life force, a phenomenon caught in the gravitational pull of the ancient star-eater.



The Void Dragon tilted his silvered head back and opened his embrace to the stolen life force of his murdered legions. Tendrils of twisting energy surged into him, setting his form aglow with its vigour.



Without warning his shining form took on a deep crimson glow and he drew himself in, shaking the energy away from him. No longer caught in his proximity the glowing cloud simply dissipated, fading away to nothing.



‘It is corrupt.’



His voice came as a hiss of burning anger, its sound sending shivers of fear through all those present.



‘The rot of the warp stains them. All of them. They are spoiled. Useless to me.’



He threw his head back and became like a force of nature then, pouring his boundless anger out into the poisoned Tau. Each howl was a force of destruction, shattering scores of bodies with its might. Light danced from his fingertips and scythed through the masses, bursting Tau as if they were ripe fruit.



At his very gaze the machines of the Tau ignited, their systems forced into overload at but a fraction of his will. Reactors reached critical mass, tearing tanks apart. Weapons systems came online to cut down those they had once served. Within seconds, the battlefield became fogged with viscera and blood-mist.



At the centre of it all, the Void Dragon blazed, afire with the flames of his own depthless rage.



‘Ethereals! Lay waste to the enemy!’ He roared. ‘The Tau are lost to us now! They are beneath our attention! We go to tear down the walls of our enemy’s bastion and claim this galaxy as ours!’



With that he looked to Guilliman, dark contempt radiating from his eyes.



‘You. Time and again you fail me, Kai’gue’la Il’porrui. You have failed me one last time. You are beneath my attention. You are nothing to me, Guilliman, and you do not even deserve death at my hand.’



With that he turned his gaze from the Primarch and began to drift away, following the hunting Ethereals. Guilliman watched him go, his features slack with disbelief. He found himself unable to move, to protest his worth.



He had fought his way through the stars to reach this world. He had conquered untold billions and destroyed twice as many again in his quest to bring the Unity to ultimate dominance. He had brought a stability to the galaxy that had not existed in either memory or even history, and he had done all of this with the unwavering belief that he would stand astride the ruins of the Imperial Palace victorious.



He had come this far, and he had failed. He had failed his lord and master at the very zenith of the crusade. He had allowed the Tau to become weak, to fall to the corruptive legacy of his wicked brother Mortarion.



‘I have failed you.’ He whispered, turning his gaze to the distant Palace. ‘My father, I have failed us all.’



Berolinus lifted his head as he heard his Primarch whisper, and he saw then the single tear glistening upon his cheek.



‘Lord Guilliman…’



His Primarch looked to him then, and Berolinus watched as the grief and despair in Guilliman’s face faded away. Every last trace of emotion drained from his features, replaced instead by a visage devoid of expression.



‘We are done.’ He uttered, his voice almost autonomous.



Berolinus shook his head.



‘No, my lord. Do you not see the truth? We did not fail. We have been betrayed.’



Every word that left his lips was an effort of supreme will. Fire coursed through his veins at the very act of his seditious speech.



‘Yes, betrayed by our own weakness.’ Guilliman answered. ‘We were weak and we were foolish, and those flaws allowed the enemy to undo all that we have worked to achieve. Aun’Va speaks the truth, Berolinus. We have damned ourselves in his eyes and for that, we deserve only oblivion. We must undo the wrongs we have committed against him. We must wipe the slate clean.’



Berolinus felt a fresh surge of despair course through him at hearing his Primarch’s words. Even now, in the face of it all, Guilliman remained spellbound by the false idol commanding the Unity.



Only then did the Ultramarine realise the full extent of his own blind foolishness. The discovery that his Primarch still lived and breathed had rendered him spellbound, insensible to the wider situation. Now it was clear that, like the Tau themselves, Guilliman was nothing but a pawn, the irremovable yoke of slavery set forever round his neck.



The worst part of it all, Berolinus realised, was that his Primarch was incapable of escaping that slavery. Whether or not he was even capable of changing his mind or his allegiance mattered little. His body would simply not allow him to do so.



He began to understand a little more of the events that had led to his Primarch’s downfall. Bile had literally infused Tau DNA into Guilliman, and it was that genetic material that had cemented his slavery. Guilliman was unable to raise arms against his Ethereal masters because of this, no matter his most secret personal desires.



He too had received Bile’s foul genetic legacy, and he too was now totally unable to fight the will of Aun’Va. So it was that his faith in Guilliman had brought him here to this low point. That same faith had seen him betray his brothers and strike out alone, determined to fight by his Primarch’s side, no matter the cost.



In doing this, in seeking out Guilliman, he had turned his back on everything he had been created to fight for. He had betrayed his oaths as an Ultramarine and he had done so thinking that his way was just, when all along it was Codian and the others who had taken the true path.



Just like the ancient traitor Marines of old, he had chosen his Primarch over the one true path, over his Emperor, and only now did he see the truth of his foolish actions.



He had to atone, somehow. He had to end this madness anyway he could.



‘My lord, enough. We are both held under the sway of xenos influence. Look where that has brought us, my Primarch. Look what we have done to our Imperium. We have to end this.’



‘We will.’ Guilliman replied, his expression ever blank. With that he blinked and then looked out upon the gathered Tau, still legion in number about him. When he spoke, his armour’s vox carried his voice across the entire Unity force.



‘Tau, we have disgraced ourselves in the eyes of Aun’Va. There can be no greater failure. Just as you have failed him in allowing your bodies to become corrupted by the filth of the enemy, so too have I failed you, for I have allowed this to transpire.



‘We can do no more now, for we have been cast aside by the greater powers of this Unity. Our lives can no longer be justified, so there can be no other option left to us than that of death. So it is that I will do you all one last service. Throw down your weapons, all of you. For the Greater Good, it is time to meet your end.’



Berolinus looked on in stark disbelief as his Primarch brought his mighty blade to bear and stepped amongst the nearest Tau. With one vast swing he cut a score of bodies apart. There was no resistance. All about him, Tau fell to their knees, their heads hung in shamed acquiescence.



‘My lord Guilliman, no…’



Guilliman turned his dark eyes to Berolinus then, a snarl playing at the very edges of his lips.



‘Take up your hammer and join me, Berolinus. This will be our last act.’



Berolinus shook his head.



‘This is madness, Primarch. Even now the Ethereals advance upon the Palace. There is still time to change all this…’



‘Silence.’



The single spoken word caused his throat to constrict, dousing his voice.



‘I order you to assist me.’ Guilliman said, and even as the words left his lips Berolinus found himself rising, his hammer igniting in his grasp.



‘You will not protest this again. This is our duty, and we will see it done.’


With despair and horror in his heart, Berolinus strode forth amongst the waiting Tau, and began to kill.

[Exitas-Acta-Probat]

whoa, nice chapter.

[Lambda]

Do any of you remember what happened to that Tau ork from earlier in the story?

[Exitas-Acta-Probat]

o`magdrok? umm.....i think he was left fighting somewhere with the "real" orks and thraka. i dont think hes dead.

[Lambda]

Thanks for the info

[Razor Devil]

Yeah, we probably just all forgot about him.

[Razor Devil]

Chapter Two Hundred and Eight.



Discovery.





In all his long life, Daelo Codian had never known a feeling such as that which coursed through his soul now. Ever since he had first learned that his Primarch had risen from his eternal slumber, animated and restored once more, an indescribable spark of hope had blazed within his heart. Even though he knew that Guilliman fought not for the Imperium but instead championed the forces of the enemy, he had always held out the hope that he could be saved.



Here now, lying uncovered before him in the most secret recesses of Bile’s chambers, he had at last uncovered that hope. He knew now that Guilliman’s salvation was not only possible, but was in fact a promising reality.



The Hrud shifted in silence behind him, attentive and ever watchful for the presence of the enemy. Although they had known of the existence of this secret place, he doubted if even they had the slightest idea of what lay here. Perhaps they would have destroyed it if they had, but then again, of all the ally races, they were the greatest enigma, the legions of Qah himself.



‘Do you understand? Do you know what this means?’ He asked, turning to look upon the dark figures. The Hrud did not respond, yet Codian had no doubt that they could understand him. After a few moments hesitation, one of the aliens shuffled forth and raised a hand. Its long fingers unfurled out to point at the softly glowing weapon in his possession.



‘Slaath doss chi’ak. Doss che Anaris.’



‘Anaris. Yes.’ Codian answered, turning back towards the glowing field beyond the wall.



Anaris. The key had always been Anaris. His suspicions of the Hrud had been correct. Just as Qah had hinted, they much of the secret ways of the galaxy, at least as much as the Eldar.



He knew what to do now. He lowered the Dawnblade towards the shield and watched as it began to shift, to change before his very eyes. In moments the glow emanating from it became blinding as he felt the power of the warp flow through it, altering, cleansing.



‘We will have to move fast.’ He said. ‘I have companions on board this vessel and I will not leave them behind. I need your help.’



‘Hrud chriass mon’droch. Humanss hrach sa’ghreth.’ One of the creatures replied. Codian shook his head.



‘I do not understand your language.’



The Hrud glanced at one another briefly. One of them placed a hand upon its chest.



‘Humanss. Hrach enemy. Enemy. Yaam-khoh.’



It tapped its chest again and then pointed out beyond the chamber.



‘Noss humanss, prohfett. Yaam-khoh. Enemy. Insshide.’



They were trying to tell him something, to warn him. A part of Codian felt frustration at being unable to interpret the alien language, for he had become so used to understanding that which most others of his kind did not that when he too failed to understand, he felt inadequate.



In his hand, the Dawnblade grew suddenly cold, its glow fading away to nothing, its power spent. The deed had been done, but at a cost to the sentient weapon.



‘We must move, return our prize to the surface. I need your help, Hrud. I need you to aid my companions, to help keep them alive until I return. Will you help me?’



‘Humanss hrach sa’ghreth, prohfett. Hrud help. Beeware Yaam-khoh.’



+++



Qah started, his dark form hazing as a shiver ran through him. Calgar noticed this and took a step forward.



‘You sense something?’



Qah’s gaze returned to the skies once again, his unblinking eyes poring over the untold distances beyond him.



‘Codian has found what we need…’



‘Praise the Emperor.’ Calgar uttered, his mechanical voice heavy with elation.



‘…but he must be wary. There are enemies that work to undo all he has done even now.’



‘Then we must help him, Qah.’



‘We cannot. The Star Gods converge beyond these walls as we speak and if we even attempt to break past them, we will fall. There are many of us whose powers are great, Warmaster, but we are tied into the defence of this bastion. It is a delicate balance and if we upset it, we may very well lose this war.’



Calgar understood what the ancient being meant by that, at least in part. There were indeed many strange and powerful creatures here, and though he knew that they even now worked in tandem to keep the enemy at bay, he had little idea of what they were actually working to achieve.



The psychic resonance that saturated this arena of war was impossible to overlook. It permeated everything. It sent sparks through the soul and fire through the blood. Calgar had spent many years interred within the cold armoured shell of his Dreadnought sarcophagus, years detached from the many of the sensations of the mortal form.



In the last day or so he had felt more alive than he had done in an age, as if the combined efforts of the mysterious psykers were somehow working to push his senses out beyond his tomb and set them free once more.



‘They are coming.’



Qah’s words jolted him from his thoughts and brought his attention back to the events at hand. He looked out beyond the rolling masses of the defenders to where the Ethereals and Titans continued to push their way ever closer to the Palace walls.



‘When the Void Dragon begins his assault on the Palace, the darkest, most secret truths of this war will finally be revealed.’ Qah continued.



‘Only then will the true war begin. Are you ready, Warmaster?’



‘Always. They will not win here, Qah, not while I continue to exist. I will fight on until the last lingering spark of life leaves my ravaged body.’



‘As will we all, Calgar.’ Qah replied.



+++



A snarl left his bloodied lips at the sight of them. Despite the hatred in his heart, he fought back the urge to charge headlong into the enemy and held his position.



‘The Orks betray us.’



Shas’O Vior’la Kir’la Mont’re Kayon threw out a hand and snatched at the Shas Kayon’s forearm, pulling the warrior closer.



‘Yes, and we will have our revenge. Until it is time to strike, you must have patience. If we are discovered now then we are undone.’



He let go then and limped over to the hole in the wall. The space beyond the breach was filled with Orks as far as the eye could see. To his disgust he noticed that their grey skins were now an even deeper shade of green. It was as if their colour continued to change almost constantly.



There was no mistaking it. The enemy had found some way of dispelling the Tau DNA from the Ork legions and even now that change continued. The fighting between the two Ork forces continued to become more sparse and sporadic.



O’Kir’la looked beyond the roving masses and he could still see the Warboss, the huge Ork marked out by the power crackling and cascading about him. He hissed his hatred out at the beast and turned back to face his warriors.



Here in the ruined cellar, his own forces numbered perhaps a hundred or so. Most were injured to some extent and many were missing limbs. As far as he knew, these were the only survivors left alive of his Shas Kayon.



The journey between the Gates had been a hard-fought one. The enemy had come and they had been legion. They had forced the Unity back there, and only through O’Kir’la’s guidance had seen any of them survive.



He and his few remaining warriors were exhausted and bloodied. Their bodies ached for the gene-seed of the Astartes, for it had been long since any of them had encountered the opportunity to imbibe the sustenance that drove and empowered them.



Despair had almost overwhelmed him when he had reached the Ultimate Gate, only to find that O’Mogdrak had suffered a similar defeat, this time at the hands of the green-skinned Orks. This defeat, however, was far worse in that it was an incidence of betrayal that had brought the Unity so low here. The Ork against Ork massacre had lasted only so long. Each ear-splitting warcry issued by the green-skinned beasts had seemed to both grow in volume and release ever more greyskins each time.



‘We will not escape this place with our lives.’ One of the Shas Kayon uttered behind him. O’Kir’la spun on his heel and thrust his pulse staff out at the warrior in accusation.



‘Then so be it! We will die for Aun’Va and the Unity, if that is to be our fate! We will not die in vain!’



The anger coursing through him now served as the catalyst that drove him from his cover and out to meet the foe. He issued his own warcry as he threw himself forth, his warriors rising behind him to follow their commander into the fray.



‘We take the Warboss! If we are able to bring him down then we might yet see a victory here!’ O’Kir’la cried, leaping over the broken wall and into the enemy.



‘Forward, in the name of the Tau’va! Forward into glorious battle!’



He landed and swept his staff before him, the burning head cleaving Orks in two without hesitation. Those that lay beyond the reach of his staff threw themselves around to face the surprise attack, glee igniting in their eyes.



‘Greyz!’ One of the Ork warriors bellowed, spittle spraying from its oversized maw. ‘We got greyz…’



O’Kir’la spun into his field of vision and unleashed a burning flare of pulse energy, taking the Ork’s head off his shoulders. He danced around the flashing axes and blades that came his way and swept low, bowling another Ork off its feet. He rammed his staff into its chest and then stepped back, allowing his warriors to surge past him.



‘Take the Warboss down! Take hi…’



It happened in the blink of an eye, almost too fast to even follow. O’Kir’la could just see the towering Ork from here, his glowing form almost lost beyond the sea of Shas Kayon hurtling towards him. He swung left and then right, reaping the surrounding Orks from his path before setting off in a sprint towards his intended target.



The Warboss bellowed something thunderous and incomprehensible and then swept a hand out towards the advancing Tau warriors. O’Kir’la felt a surge of warm electricity course through him, a sudden and unsettling feeling, and then the first line of Shas Kayon simply disappeared.



The air before him popped and sparked as it warped, thickening, becoming almost solid. The first wave of Shas Kayon simply sank away from sight amid a cloud of blood, their bodies compressed instantly into the hard ground.



That same ground rumbled and shook beneath the power of the blow, for that was exactly what it was. A blow dealt by the hand of the gods themselves flattened Tau bodies into the rubble.