Standard Terran Calendar, 41
Planet Armageddon, low Earth orbit
The flagship of the Blood Angels Chapter, the Battle Barge Vengeful Sword, is both a tool of war and a beautiful creation.
The surface of her 10-kilometer-long structure is decorated with classic Baal idioms, which come from the vast rust-colored desert. Many wars have half-buried the ancient and complex civilization heritage. Some people say it is the combination of the great destruction and the heritage passed down through the ages. , gave Blood Angels its strong aesthetic - a kind of awe for the past, combined with a bitter understanding of the cold history.
They forged monuments to death, imbuing them with strength and grace as a cry of defiance against the uncertainty of the world that threatened to destroy them.
Today, a massive fleet appears in orbit around the planet Armageddon.
Watching Armageddon turning under his feet, Dante, the Chapter Master of the Blood Angels Chapter and the longest-serving Space Marine in the Empire, slowly placed his hands on the carefully carved brass armrests.
He was so close that his breath caused a small fog to form on the outer glass.
He wanted to commemorate this moment in some important way, so that this moment could stay in his mind, because he had lived too long, and 1100 years was so long for a Space Marine that he My memory is no longer what it used to be.
Dante was born in the 40s on Baal, a moon of the Blood Angels homeworld of Baal. Malnutrition and radiation took their toll on his physical growth, and when he attended his tribe's sentencing in the Challenge Lands, he showed no signs of it. There was a special sign of being able to survive, but he still survived.
Later, he entered the Blood Angels Chapter as a recruit candidate. He first attracted the attention of the Chapter personnel when he drank a blood meal containing Sanguinius's gene-seed and fell into a year-long trance. in a comatose state, constantly shouting the names of the fallen Primarch, the Dark Gods and the banished Daemon Primarch.
After the successful transformation surgery, Dante was trained as a battle brother, then a sergeant, and was promoted to lieutenant in 40. In m40, he participated in the Battle of Karius. In that battle, except Dante, other Blood Angels The Captain was all killed by the enemy, and later the Chapter Chaplains and Holy Blood Priests gathered together to elect him as the new Chapter Master.
After becoming Chapter Master, Dante led the Blood Angels to a series of great victories, from the bloody Battle of Ultimatum to the liberation of Kanor and the cleavage of Skarbrand the Bloodthirsty in two at the Gate of Turmoil, At the same time, the orcs were driven out of the twelve worlds of Black Fang.
During his long service, Dante became a legend not only among the Adeptus Astartes, but also among ordinary citizens of the Imperium. Many believed that Dante was the savior of the Imperium. The man in golden armor A hero who will come to save them in their darkest hour.
"Armageddon is finally here."
The battle group's scribe attendant squeezed his way through the numerous pillars and flags to arrive at Dante's side. This stooped old man was responsible for recording the battle leader's speech, trying to write down every word for the battle group. The future recruits of the regiment pay their respects.
Dante turned around, and the battle group had gathered on the deck.
He cleared his throat and began his speech in a rich baritone.
"Armageddon is under threat from aliens, and the situation is very serious. I hope everyone can be determined to sacrifice everything to protect this critical world for the emperor and the empire!"
In fact, there was more that could be said, and his speech could have been better, but Dante just ended his speech with the simplest narrative.
"Live up to the blood of Sanguinius!"
While he spoke, the scribes completed their work, leaving neat records as their pens scratched across the parchment.
This is, Dante noticed that Callistarius seemed to be absent-minded in the think tank queue, so he asked.
"What do you think? Brother Callistarius."
This came suddenly, Callistarius stammered in reply.
"To me, it... it looks peaceful enough."
An understanding smile appeared on Dante's wrinkled face.
"Armageddon made a request, and we answered it, and perhaps for you think tanks, you see something deeper than our mortal eyes."
This made Callistarius a little embarrassed, because he was not using his spiritual energy to sense the planet or do anything else, he was simply in a daze...
"How long until we land?"
Dante then turned around and asked a tall, thin officer with white hair and a pale face next to him.
The officer immediately stood up and replied:
"The Chapter Commander Randall Blanchard of the White Templars has arrived in a shuttle. The orbital station is preparing for loading while we are talking. We will notify you immediately after the preparations are completed. Everything will be done in a few hours. It can be done within.”
After learning that two battle groups had arrived at Armageddon first, Dante was not surprised at first. After all, this is the Sun Star Territory and there are many battle groups active, no matter which one is much closer than them. .
But after further learning that it was the White Templar and the Astral Knights, Dante was really surprised.
The former is mainly because it is not very famous. The White Templar has very few activity records, so Dante felt strange when he heard about it. You must know that he has already memorized all the battle groups in his mind.
As for the Astral Knights, his surprise came from the Chapter itself. He had heard about the Battle of the World Engine and the subsequent Battle of New Badab. For this Chapter reborn from the ashes, he included more information. curious.
He has always wanted to meet Soshyan Alexey, the chapter leader of the Astral Knights.
"very good."
Dante nodded.
"Thank you all for your hard work. I spent two months running around in the subspace."
Although the subspace voyage was smooth during this period, everyone was in a state of mental stress, especially the mortal crew and officers.
Therefore, after arriving at Armageddon, although he was concerned about the war on the ground, he still chose to let the fleet dock at the orbital station first so that everyone could rest for even a day.
"Okay, everyone should return to their posts and prepare. Brother Callistarius, you stay."
The group left the observation deck. Except for Callistarius, Dante was still there, looking down at Armageddon.
Callistarius didn't know if what greeted him was a reprimand. He could only lower his head and keep watching Dante with his peripheral vision.
About five minutes later, Dante sighed and turned to look at him.
"Brother Callistarius, you are a little uneasy."
"Chapter Commander, I...but the meditation time was too long, I'm sorry."
"No, it's definitely not what you said. You are worried."
Dante walked down the observation deck, came to Callistarius, put his hand on Callistarius's shoulder, and said seriously:
"Do you remember that story?"
7017k
