Kremnar Eranite narrowed his sharp, green eyes at their soon to be new chapter master as he addressed concern about Roboute Guilliman and his Codex Astartes, as well as his intentions to leave their identity behind as the Iron Warriors. As Dyzek stared at him, he would look up from his digital copy of the Codex Astartes, and the sternguard veteran does not look away from the stare, instead glare back at the bionic eyes or visor of the captain. "You have a strange definition of the word 'loyalty,' brother. I have many words to describe this 'Prodigal Son;' loyal is not one of them." He had already familiarized himself with the Codex, during both his investigation of the rumors of this happening and the thirst for new, advanced tactics that their Ultramar cousins had so boasted about. While he did manage to appreciate the new tactics described within the tome, what Kremnar got faced by, especially when he discussed this with the Sons of Macragge, was a strict set of rules designed to forever destroy what the legions had represented. They had been the great conquerors of mankind, the liberators from the horrors of the xenos and the sword against the dark. Now, Guilliman and this Codex Astartes would relegate them as reserve strike forces, being little more than a thousand astartes strong chapters that would each be so orderly and designated order to fit within the Master of Ultramar's vision for the Imperium. "Who am I to judge a primarch, you ask? Who are any of us to condemn Horus then? Or Fulgrim? Or Perturbo?" Kremnar spat out the name of their Emperor-forsaken gene-father, before literally spitting on the ground to get the taste out of his mouth. "I am an Iron Warrior, a true son of the IV. Those that would remember the pretenders and grant them this title may do so, but if they wish to test my loyalty, to test my iron, they'll find me feeding them their teeth, if not a new hole in their skull and their brain scattered on the ground behind them." He looked around, especially at those that would show shame at their name, the name of the IV. "You all would remember us as the corpse grinder, the legion that bore the mark of the methodical World Eaters." "You would be correct, and yet we did that proudly, and for the Emperor. I have no qualms with adjusting our tactics, to rise above the bitter grind of our slow sieges, to take every inch of land with mountains of bodies that we neither have now nor have the interest of spending. Yet you would so easily forsake our name, the name our father gave us. Not the swine and coward that followed Horus into damnation, but our true father, the Emperor." Kremnar slammed a hand on the table in front of him, the gauntlet from his battle scarred artifacer armor shaking the table. His stare bore into each and every astartes in the room who had turned their back in shame to the IVth's name as he continued. "We cleansed our name the moment we turned our guns on the pretenders over Istvaan with their blood, and we continued to do so as we fought for weeks on Terra. We owe nothing to anyone but the Emperor. If anyone wishes to test us, let them come. We shall use their blood to clean our name as well." Kremnar turned back on Dyzek and responded to his words. "The Iron is not the bitterness. The Iron is not Perturbo. The Iron is the IVth, and I may follow you, Dyzek, but if you wish to take that away from me, you'll have to pry it from my cold, dead hands. That goes for anyone else that does not fancy himself the true master of mankind," the green eyes scanned the room, as though daring anyone to try their owners. Straightening himself and having made his position clear. "Though he spilled no blood, Guilliman is no loyal son, no more than the stubbornness of Dorn would make him a traitor. For the sake of the brotherhood that remains, I shall keep to myself on that subject while I remain unprovoked. However, expect no more respect from me for the 'Avenging Son' as I would have for the Praetorian. You have my opinion as to who should lead us forward. We're done here." The sternguard veteran turned then, and exited the room, leaving those behind to discuss trivial things on their own time. Interestingly enough, Vilhelm would soon get a report from the firing range, requesting more target from the forge. Somehow, it had gone through a month's worth of targets in a single solar day. @BruticusTheGoreHound @Redthirst
@DeranVendar @WanderingJester As Kremnar stepped forth to deliver his words against the spirit Dyzek wished to abandon, he'd find that the man who looked to end The Iron would remain silent in opposition. The Blackshield would listen politely to the contrasting argument and declarations held by one of his brothers. As Kremnar laid out his accusations against comrade, Primarch and more, beneath the stern mask of Dyzek's helm, his charred lips would form a soft smile. Indeed, Kremnar barked up quite a storm with his words, yet, he was a poor replacement for Seth, their lost brother, who's skill at oratory would have no doubt come in use for this case. Thus, Dyzek let his say his piece, to bare his fangs at any who would dishonour his old ties to the Legion and where he stood, for it mattered little to him. He knew his vision would not be one that would come to pass without problems, as always men looking to conserve the past in times when the future needed to be cared for. No, he spoke his words not only to make his intentions known, but in declaring his position, he revealed those who would oppose him and his radiant new dawn. As Kremnar stormed off, no doubt to vent his frustrations at the changing times, Dyzek would only make the note that his wayward brother would need to be dealt with in time. Following this, Dyzek would not respond to any of the points made by their departed comrade. Instead, he'd simply carry on as if nothing had changed, the disregard he held for Kremnar's words akin to that felt towards the rantings of a man stuck in the past. Turning towards Brumdar, he'd gaze up at his colossal frame, before bowing his head, and placing his gauntleted hand across his chest. He wished to tell him how such a choice was not his to make, for it would be made by The Master of Mankind himself on where they would serve. He wished to tell him he would gladly seek all fights in the name of man, glorious and gritty, with equal vigour in his task. Yet, for now, he felt his enthusiasm could wait, deciding instead to savour a smile and speak back with a voice lighted up by it's sense of righteous purpose. "I swear to you, honoured brother, that we shall serve the old causes as swiftly as we shall the new. The Imperium will need us on a myriad of worlds, and no matter the call, so long as it is in the defense of Mankind, I promise to face it."
"....If it helps any," the Contemptor 'muttered' (if such a term could be used for a mighty Dreadnought), "I may suggest we keep some... Artillery, and the old tactics, alive and well; even if we may adopt new strategies, I do at least agree we should keep our culture of siege breaking; merely toning down the... Meatgrinding." "And perhaps see about getting our relations with the Imperial Navy and Guard a bit more pleasant; in this stage, our numbers will make us in sore need of their assistance from time to time."
Dawn Bringer"It seems the matter is settled. Dyzek Petroski will be our Chapter Master going forward. After the meeting is adjourned go and prepare yourself for meeting with Guilliman, fleet maneuvers are scheduled to begin within a days time, so do not tarry long. There will be time for ceremony and theatrics later." Castor speaks oddly enough, perhaps eager to be along and off with this business. "There is still one more pressing matter left requiring our attention, at least one more important than any other." Akar begins, drawing every eye in the room. "Who wants to be First Captain? Herchel? Kremnar left, so it is all yours if you want. I make a fine First Lieutenant I hear." Cue the laugh track. Five Hundred WorldsThe realm of Ultramar welcomed the Forty-Fourth battalion and its rechristened vessel, The Coming Dawn, with open arms. Orbital docks were packed to the gills with other Ultramarine units, those present for re-supply and to finalize their division into proper chapters of the Adeptus Astartes. Latter course of action was the former Iron Warriors' objective. There within the heart of one of Macragge's formidable star forts Vilhelm and his Techmarines delivered a single data chip containing their ration of the XIIIth's formidable armory. Imagine the confusion when Master of the Forge and his subordinates are turned around and sent straight back to the star dock. Imagine their surprise at what exactly awaited them. A fully crewed and stocked strike cruiser; salvaged and refurbished in the wake of Lorgar and Angron's Shadow Crusade. Cargo holds packed wall to wall with munitions, weaponry, and larger containers storing vehicles. Such was the boon of a legion that had escaped the Horus Heresy in arguably better condition than any other. When council convenes to look over shipping manifesto and become acquainted with their new crew, several notable additions to their supply hold stick out on the data scrolls. Foremost among them is a Sicarian Omega, a vehicle carrying heavy plasma weaponry that shall most assuredly help bring a new dawn to those worlds beset by the xeno and heretic. Ten suits of Indomitus pattern Tactical Dreadnought armor join the vehicle in putting some real heavy weight into their corner. Off the ground a pair of Fire Raptors will help them rule the skies, sitting pristine in one of the cruiser's hangars and augmenting the massive contribution of the actual void craft itself. Come time to bid farewell to Ultramar, even the staunchest of opposition to everything Guilliman and his Codex stand for are at least quieted by the contribution to their budding chapter. The Crusade for HomeObjective one is near unanimously decided upon within hours of leaving dock: Find the Ionar, their survivors from the Razing, and Guild Master Gingerbraid; there is still an oath to be upheld and more practically there is an entire ship roaming around out there that is most certainly theirs too. It takes several days of concerted effort on the part of their Librarius and Astropaths, but in the end The Coming Dawn and freshly christened Odiaus Pride sail into the Warp. A Squat identifying himself as merely Pappy returned their Psykers' calls, claiming that the Iron Warrior vessel and its mixed crew had taken shelter above a scarcely populated world. In their desperation to escape the miserable confines of a war ship, most of the native Olympian refugees and auxiliary had begun colonizing the planet. Guild Master Gingerbraid had taken a liking to the idea and the Squats soon followed them down in search of riches. Zeussar was the name they had given the place, they being the Olympians, the abhumans could not of cared less what it was called. Zeussar painted a deceptively pleasant picture to the naked eye. Landmass dominated by mountains, sweeping plains populated with hills and rivers that had not known the touch of modern man for many years. Great forests of towering trees formed temperate woodlands at the foot of mountain chains. Said mountains tended not to carry on very far above ground, however they made up for this in their staggering heights and just how many of these snow capped 'islands' were spread across the main continent. A single mass of dense jungle swallowed up large parts of the shoreline, a kidney shaped plot of jade containing most of those few mountains totally devoid of frost. As of yet the overgrown tangles of flora had yet to be explored. More mysterious, at the moment, was a titanic whirlpool that sat dead center of a fragmented set of islands. Broken land mass looked like an incomplete puzzle from above, as if it had once been an entire continent of its own... "So you mean to tell me you blew up an entire continent." "Well...define blow up, an 'entire continent', if ye would." "Those islands do not look natural. I am also unwilling to believe that there is just a whirlpool of such inexplicable size by nature's will." "Ooookay, ye, ye. Let me shed some light on the matter." "You already said you blew it up." "Technically we blew up all sorts O fault lines and shelled unstable parts of it from orbit. Nae just dropped a giant bomb on it, that would be silly." "Explain." "Hold yer oxen tin-lad! I'm gettin' there. Now, we uhhh, 'blew it up' because there was some right miserable things happenin' down there. Dark things, sortsa things that our pict units an security footage from the Chariot could nae quite...eyuuhh...resolute? Resolutionate? Things that did nae wanna be seen clearly an that I dunnae think should even exist. Basically there was a massive cult down there, and instead of shootin' an stabbin' an dyin' against 'em, our engineering corp decided to just up an destroy the entire continent." "....." "We did the right thing, ye need nae say anythin'. Twas our duty." "I shall inform Chapter Master Dy-- Diokletious of your report. Carry on." Brumdar observes the Squat Engineer's delivery of a sloppy salute before hastily cutting their connection. "I hope they do not blow up the entire planet...." "Hope is the first step on the road to disappointment." Akar answers back, staring past Brumdar's back and through the bridge's view port at Zeussar below. "I am going to go and prepare several landing parties, might as well get down there and take a look at things ourselves."
@DeranVendar @matt23 Diokletious stands upon the bridge of the newly christened ship, The Coming Dawn, his new ship, he'd recall with a small smile. Beneath his ornately designed plate, the man would exude an almost palpable aura of pride, not quite seen since the dark days before Olympia. Indeed, even as he looked back now, on those times, he'd do so with a notable disconnect. It seemed even only a little short of a decade of time could make one feel the age of past events, or perhaps his spirit simply grew accustomed to the new era he spoke of, ratifying this in his mind and heart. Regardless, as he looked down upon Zeussar, Diokletious felt things such as pride, wonder, and a sense of purpose, as he could only look upon this veritable starting point for his Chapter. "We shall take this world, and make a home of it." He spoke to none in particular, his voice carrying over the noise and discord of the bridge, serfs and staff looking up at the glowing bastion of Imperial might. Turning his mask, and it's azure eyes upon each face, both transhuman and mortal, he'd speak again. "A home, my brothers and sisters, a place to call our own. This world is a gift, and we shall make all use of it. No matter what awaits us, no matter what dwells down there, we shall face it together, and the light of our purpose will shine all the brighter for our unity." He let loose a happy sigh, before noting a small attendant striding forth. Giving a quick nod, he'd will for the man to speak. "Message for you my lord." He replies immediately. "I will take it in my quarters, my thanks good man." As with that, Diokletious would take one last longing look upon Zeussar, in all it's savage beauty, before turning about, and striding off. _____ Once inside, Diokletious would look through the report gained by Brumdar, on the words of the Squats for their surveying of this planet. Curiously enough, he'd go over what was known of these so called broken islands, and it's whirlpool, before a decision would be made. Speaking into the vox, he'd pass the word along swiftly, that no being, battle brother or mortal, would be allowed clearance into this region of the planet, until he'd personally investigated. The thought of the Primordial Powers, having been here, it troubled him, so with set jaw, he'd begin mobilizing his own expedition force. A comm's channel would be opened up towards his own personal honour guard, along with their Chapter Exemplar. "Meet me in the hangars brothers, we are going down to tread upon this new world. Arm yourselves, for I do not know what will await us." With his orders given, Diokletious would notify Brumdar of his activities, and to keep what he'd learned between them for now, before he'd leave his chambers, and begin striding down towards where his drop ship awaited. He had questions, and would seek out his answers, no matter the darkness that dwelt upon those islands.
@BruticusTheGoreHound Sitting within the bowels of the ship, within his own room, Nathiel sat in his bed clothed only in his black robes. Each hand was planted on either side of him as his head hung. He was deep in thought, trying to keep his mind off of battle, however; that had been anything but easy. Each time they would enter the warp to travel, long would it be before he would taste the bitter sweet calls of war. Vengeance and purification had been the only things to quench Nathiel's dry mouth since the death of Seth. Thankfully his mind would be pulled from thought as the vox within his room came to,life with the voice of the name Chapter Master. "Meet me in the hangars brothers, we are going down to tread upon this new world. Arm yourselves, for I do not know what will await us." Nathiel rose to his feet and walked over to the vox, "It shall be done..." And after the cold and almost robotic words left his mouth, Nathiel made his way to the armoury to let the serfs and servitors begin to dawn his heavy armor. However, this time above his armor a standard was hung. Grabbing his Thunder Hammer, Nathiel then made his way to the hanger to prepare for planetfall.
Wolves of Flesh and SpiritA Thunderhawk was chosen to carry the Chapter Master and his entourage down to the planet. Joining them, by nature of having been waiting inside the hangar already, is the Chief Librarian. Whole ride down Alexander consumes himself in stretching his senses out to both explore and tether whatever he senses below. Their pilot meanwhile focuses on finding them anything of specific note in an already interesting landscape. First pass brings them within spitting distance of the massive whirlpool. Up close it seems so large as if trying to yawn wider and consume the world. "Charybdis. It reminds me of Charybdis." Alexander speaks after returning to the hold, having been leaning out one of the Thunderhawk's side doors to get a more direct look at things. "All consuming, mystical, and terrifying; until you know the truth of things that is. Our Squat friends must of caused this maelstrom splitting the lands, so many currents and pressures meeting up in the wake of such a catastrophic event would of caused this, easily even." Librarian hums to himself before looking to Exemplar and Chapter Master. "Charybdis is not the monster we are here for though, let us go and take a closer look at these islands. There are fiends here, I hear their howls like wolves in the distance. None of them particularly strong, at least nothing like those we faced on Terra, but they are here Diokletious." On the Chapter Master formerly known as Dyzek's command their craft jets off over tumultuous seas and towards land; land and life. "There, among those structures. A fiend lays below." Alexander points beyond the cockpit and down into the smear of ashen gray that was once a vibrant city. Witch focuses intently upon a single building, using subtle nudges of his powers to make sure everyone is looking in the right spot. All eyes save their pilot's come to focus upon three stacked floors of rockrete slabs. Third floor windows are all busted out, and have been stuffed shut with debris and old curtains that bulge out over the road. "Where shall we land Chapter Master?" @matt23 @BruticusTheGoreHound
@DeranVendar @matt23 Within the rumbling frame of their thunderhawk gunship, Diokletious stands with stilled heart, and open mind, despite the dread he feels gnawing at him within. The arrival of Alexander to their party was a welcome surprise, yet the Chapter Master could only take it as a grim omen, if one so in touch with the Immaterium already sensed a chance to explore below. To take his mind off the matters, he looks over his cohort once more, checking over the armour of his newly chosen Honour Guard, looking over weaponry, and such. It helped to ease himself if he went over the small details in his control, such as armament ammunition, potential tactics to be employed, and of all, the faith he'd assembled here. Save perhaps the Chief Librarian, of which Diokletious could not gather his humors on the matter, his Honour Guard was formed of those souls he'd reforged into the Light of The Emperor, their beings beacons of divine force made manifest. Such a thing helped to assure the man that if the taint of The Great Enemy was down below, they would be more then enough to overcome it. It would be the words of Alexander to take him out of his thoughts, the rush and crash of the seas below heralding his meaning. Diokletious had worked hard to research the beliefs and culture of old Olympia, even the more mythological aspects it held, and thus, he couldn't help but nod his head as the declaration of his companion. "Indeed, this Maw of Charybdis is but a symptom, not the root cause of what we seek. Let us see what awaits on it's shattered fangs instead." As they approached what remained of a city, the Dawnbringer would narrow his gaze upon it's sight. Listening to the words of his crew, Diokletious would make a decision, his gaze never leaving the rockrete structure. "We shall not, take us in for a pass, open the cargo hold, and we shall deploy. Once we have departed, make a perimeter check of the surrounding area, see if you can spot any more areas of habitation among these ruins." A combat drop, from this height, would kill a mortal man, without a proper grav chute. However, they were the Space Marines, and even if gravity had them in their clutches, they could handle a small drop such as this. It was time for them to set foot on Zeussar.
Into the FangsHeavy feet thudded down upon a rooftop neighboring their site of interest. Alexander lands first, followed by Diokletious, the Knights of Dawn, and finally Nathiel arriving in a flash of light as he opts to use teleporter rather than risk crashing through a possibly unstable section of the roof. "It heard us. Whatever we face already moves..." Librarian stared through their current landing and into building below, head tracking something through solid materials as if watching an ant maneuver about his boots. "Possible contacts approaching Chapter Master. Picking up distorted audio North-West of our position, no line of sight on anything yet though, buildings are too dense to get much of a visual. Immediate area is clear, nothing on the streets or visible in nearby structures."
@DeranVendar @matt23 "Proceed with caution, designated area is now considered hostile, weapons up, and eyes open." Chapter master speaks softly through the vox, knowing even now his honour guard will be readying their gear, bolters being checked, and blades being drawn. His own claws will hum into life, as he looks towards their passage below. Thinking to the Exemplar below, he quickly speaks through their comm channel. "Ensure the ground around the building is secure brother, let nothing pass by you while we perform our sweep downwards." With this handled, he'd give a nod to the head of his Knights. It was time to move, let them begin their descent into the darkness.
