Chapter 12 Part 1

Chapter 12: Battlefield Kronus

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Part 1

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It would take time for the Imperium at large to take notice of the momentous events that unfolded on Kronus. The First confirmed reports of the planet's new status as a Shrine World would come from Astropaths part of Task Force Nemesis, dispatched to answer a request for aid by General Lucas Alexander.

To this day, those pious and sensitive enough could feel the God-Emperor's touch upon Kronus. To those blessed enough to witness the events firsthand, it was, and I quote: "This is His Divinity made manifest! A veil of light is shielding the whole world!"

The Emperor's direct intervention was more than enough to bless Kronus to the end of time. The events unfolding on the surface and which might have warranted the attention of Him on Holly Terra were no less memorable than His intervention.

An Inquisitional Task Force, Imperial Guard Elements under the overall command of General Lucas Alexander, and members of the Blood Ravens Adeptus Astartes faced a terrible Traitor Incursion and slew the Heretic Champion Skulltaker, reaver of Armageddon and slayer of Astartes…

A pilgrim's guide to Shrine World Kronus,

3rd Edition, Victory Bay Publishing House​

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Deimos Peninsula

Kronus​

Lieutenant Martin Vough was in his element – he was operating on a poor bastard, trying to stitch his guts back inside where they belonged, when a commotion rang alarm bells in his head. The last time, Tau war-beasts tried to eat him and his patients. What was this time? Demons?

"LT, a bunch of Astartes just arrived with high priority casualties. Your expertise is needed right now."

"I'm busy!" Martin snapped.

"The Inquisitor requires your attention, Medicae." An impossibly deep voice rumbled just outside the operation theater.

"What did he do to himself this time?!" The surgeon exclaimed. "I was barely able to put him back together the last time!"

"We had a close encounter with a powerful Daemon." The Astartes, because who else would have such a voice, blithely explained.

"Did you at least banish the fucker, so he won't come here to eat my patients?"

"I'll be taking over, LT, go see the Inquisitor." The Captain in charge of the field hospital announced. "I'll be there in a moment. I can't do anything more for this poor bastard."

Martin glanced to the left and winced. The Captain has been working in the open head of a guards-woman, who might have been kind of pretty before something smashed through her face.

"She's brain-dead. May the Emperor have mercy on you, child." The old Medicae made the sign of the Aquila over his patient and went to clean himself up.

"Give me the Inquisitor's status. I'll be there shortly."

"Right arm, lost at the shoulder, second and third-degree burns in the area, however, the wound wasn't cauterized. Severe blood-loss, a Medicae is providing transfusion as we speak. The wound was delivered by a Daemonic Hellblade."

"What about taint?" Martin grimaced.

"We have counter-measures. We'll need to see if they're effective."

The Captain sent Martin away, and he hurried up to see the Inquisitor. The man waited on a stretcher outside, under heavy guard. Several worse to wear Blood Ravens and Guardsmen stood around the Inquisitor, ready to tear the head of anyone who looked at him the wrong way.

Veil looked like the death warmed over. He was deadly pale, courtesy of a crude tourniquet and bandage on his right shoulder. His neck was exposed, and a Medicae had stuck an IV there attached to a blood bank.

Right, the damn fool already got his other arm mangled and replaced with bionics.

Martin got himself clean gloves and carefully removed the crude bandage to look at the wound, and grimaced.

"Prepare him for operation. I'll need to cut off some flesh around the wound at a minimum, then stitch him up until its clear there's no taint."

"Selene comes with him. Prepare her to enter." A large Astartes ordered. His right arm was gone as well.

Martin was sure he didn't want to know what they faced,

"Do you want me to keep him alive or not?!" He snapped when he saw an unnerving small armored figure hiding behind the Blood Raven.

"She's the counter-measure against taint. She'll be present alongside guards. You'll deal with it, Medicae." The Astartes growled dangerously and Vough rapidly nodded.

That crazy Inquisitor was going to be the death of him.

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Eliphas' armored units had to quickly pull back behind the now dubious protection of the arcane defenses. His plan had been sound, he was sure of it. It came close to working too, only for those soulless machines to ruin it in the last possible moment. If it wasn't for their anti-Warp tech, he might have pressed the counter-attack anyway.

However, taking out a number of those damnable Pylons, not to mention summoning that many Daemons, took a toll upon his available Sorcerers. They were running painfully low on sacrifices too.

That was bad enough.

The Skulltaker taking the field had been unnerving. His appearance implied Eliphas' Patrons were less than happy with the current turn of events. U'zhul failing his mission was unheard of.

The Corpse Worshipers somehow managed to murder the favored Herald of Khorne himself, and several Lesser Daemons for good measure too, that rattled Eliphas. Now, despite what most people believed, Daemons weren't immortal, not really. A number of artifacts could kill them. They often died in the Warp, usually when defeated and consumed by something stronger.

It was the way, the Corpse Worshipers and the machines did it that would prove problematic. This wasn't some one-off event, the deed of a very powerful and rare artifact, not to mention purchased at a great price.

What they did was something that could be replicated with relative ease, and that was going to be problematic. This disaster changed Eliphas' calculations. He could no longer rely on a sufficient number of reinforcements. Any Daemons he threw at the enemy might be lost for good, which wasn't necessarily a problem as far as the endless hordes of Lesser Daemons were concerned. There would always be more from where those spawned.

The loss of the Skulltaker was going to sting. He could feel Khorne's fury. The potential loss of the Greater Daemon imprisoned on Kronus would be another great blow. One Eliphas couldn't allow.

"Gather all my Sorcerers and remaining sacrifices. Make sure that those allotted for the special ritual remain untouched!" Eliphas snarled at his minions.

The Dark Apostle looked at the tactical map and glowered. The Necrons were busy gathering in ever-increasing numbers, and it wouldn't be long before they attempted to neutralize the Arcane Defenses. With those breached, the Corpse Worshipers would be free to attack as well. Then there were the Eldar.

Their small but potent force was largely intact, and Slaneesh didn't get to enjoy a single soul from their numbers. The two Guard Regiments in the region fared worse, predictably, however, there would be more where those came from. It wasn't like the Imperium would run out of cannon fodder!

Eliphas left the command center. It was time to get his primary objective done and depart while he still could. Turning Kronus into a Daemon World would have to wait.