Trial by Fireby Sherman BishopPrologueCommunication with the region of Gallius on Pallis-2 went dead after a garbled message announcing a revolt by the PDF. The battle barge "Hammer of Vulkan" carries the 3rd cohort of the Draco Legion to the isolated planet. Sporadic reports from other regions indicate a marine presence on the planet. Lord Drake Sarr issued stern orders, scorched earth was in affect. These marines could be traitors, if this was the case their death was the only option. "Engage" bellowed Sarr before plunging headlong into the maw of the enemy guns. Snapping off quick shots with their bolt pistols the marines of the Draco Legion closed steadily upon the enemy. Intractably the marines moved towards the hulking abhumans, several ogryn toppled due to grievous wounds yet still they fought on. The battle was over in moments, even the hulking brutes of the rebels were no match for the sheer ferocity of the Wyverns as they dropped in from above. Sarr shook the clinging viscera and blood from his Talons*, and surveyed the carnage. Ten ogryn sprawled in various scenes of death met his gaze with lifeless eyes. One marine was incapacitated, but his wounds were not fatal. One of the other troopers retrieved the fallen marines melta-gun, and set the homer beacon for pickup. Catching sight of distant enemy movement on their flank, Sarr raised a gory claw pointing the way. Like birds of prey the marines dropped into the midst of the guard platoon, shrieks of pain and dying gasps filled the air. Muffled explosions as the bolter shells detonate spraying the combatants with blood. As the Colonel was torn asunder by Sarrs talons the rebels lost their nerve and attempted to flee. The pursuit was short and brutal in the extreme, within seconds the squad of over thirty men were all dead. Sarrs Wyverns were exacting a terrifying toll on the enemy forces. A strong point in the enemy lines stalled the advance of armor, Sarr received the call to deal with the situation. As they approached the position a deep crimson beam tears through one of the marines, another las-cannon shot missed. Sarr quickly looked to the source, just in time to see a plasma cannon vomit forth a incandescent ball of death. The impact was tremendous, Sarr just barely managed to get his arms up before the blast. The ground seethed and boiled around Sarr as the gore upon his armor baked into a thick crust. As the slow wind moved the smoke away the true horror of the blast could be seen. The blacked and crusted armor of Sarr had held for the most part. The blast had torn his helmet off, his lower mandible was split and twisted. His entire face was blistered and blacked to the bone in places. The troopers looked in shock as he rose from his knee and howled with rage at the traitor legion marines. As always Sarr uttered few words, but this time they were guttural and rasping. His ruined throat would allow little more. "Engage", he spat motioning with the crackling talons which flashed green energy, "Cleanse them…" While the traitors faired better than the imperial rebels, the outcome was the same. Sarr tore through them, his remaining men adding to his fury as they swung the grinding Fangs*. Suddenly nightmarish creatures appeared, and the marines were slightly taken aback by the unnatural event. Looking upon the horrific denizens of the warp Sarr uttered "By the Hydra …." The creatures descended with fiendish relish. Standing their ground the marines fought with renewed vigor. Sarr ripped through the creatures with precision and purpose. Several marines were torn limb from limb, but the rest persevered. As the last of the bodies dissolved before the stunned eyes of the marines Sarr rasped out another muffled prayer. Only five of his wyverns remained, and they still had work to do. After gathering weapons and calling for retrieval of the wounded the unit stoically moved onward without further mention of the abominable occurrence. And so it went, the rebellious imperial forces fell before the relentless onslaught under the leadership of Sarr. Scores of men, sent to their funeral pyres by the fell hands of the Wyverns. Soon the very sight of these terrible foes, splattered and dripping with gore, like maniacs from an abattoir, caused the rebels to flee. But mercy is not a word oft used to describe the Draco Legion, and certainly never in reference to Sarrs deeds this day. The pyres were piled high with bodies, burning for long hours as the victorious marines razed the city. Sarrs forces took on another aspect during those dark days. Dragon squads and Wyverns searched the ruins relentlessly hunting down every single man, women and child. Vindicators ceaselessly bombarded any standing structures. Those which surrendered were killed quickly, those who resisted were burned or bombed out. Such treatment had never before been ordered upon civilians but Sarr was resolute. "Cleanse them all…." He croaked with his ruined voice. Silently below his breath, he added "may they pass from our memory forever." ___________________________________________________________________________________ EpilogueIn these grim days Sarr took on the duties of the fallen Dragon Priest Falkt, as was custom. His ruined voice rang out adding an even more fuel to the fires of marines fury. Painfully he intoned the Litanies of Vulkan upon the pyre of the honored dead. Their ashes ceremoniously interred within urns to be returned to the Hall of Flames within the Wyrms Citadel on Kalleet. Their names inscribed onto the registry for memory. Upon return to Kalleet and debriefing with Great Wyrm Tarkus, Sarr was reassigned to the dreaded 4th cohort as their dragonpriest. Epistolary Drukha received the warrior knowing the wounds within his mind would take time to heal. Encounters with "daemons" could break even the psycho-conditioning of a space marine. Sarrs fierce nature and resolute faith would serve him well in the Long War.
Appendix.Dragons are Landspeeders armed with heavy flamers and
multi-meltas Based on a chaplain in v2 which survived an unsaved plasmacannon hit I intend to convert the Sarr fig on my site to carry twin lighting claws in v3
The
Wyrms Lair
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