Journey to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Prologue

In the many years within the 41st Millennium, the galaxy harbors the greatest war ever to be
fought. The Imperium of Man stands surrounded by traitors, daemons, and alien brigands.
But if they put their faith in the hands of the mighty and immortal Emperor, they may yet
survive…

Our story focuses on a Space Marine Chapter known as the Battle Angels. They are a small
but dauntless group; created by an alliance of troops between the Imperial Fists and a nearly
decimated Dark Angels successor chapter. Though created by unorthodox methods, their
deeds are nothing to laugh at (if anyone was really there to laugh at them). As valorous as
they might be, word of them does not travel far, they number in the few which witholds their
hand from any large conflicts. They do not even have a unified color scheme or insignia.

Unbeknownst to the Marines, a quest lies before them. It can only be followed by their
Chapter and to fulfill such a quest shall let their name echo throughout the galaxy. And
whenever a servant of the Emperor should hear the two special words, all dread and despair
shall flee from their minds like a frightened bird.

Many resolve not to win our fight,

but simply to not go quietly into the night…
And when one man yells two words,
Battle Angels… They Come!
We bring the Dawn to the night.

-I know, not much here that reveals a cross between Star Trek and 40k. Keep reading and you
will see the hints... This story is based on my DIY Space Marine Chapter, some battles
written in this story play out identically to some of my games. Even the non-Trek characters
(includes only the Commanders and the Sergeants) are based on a model in my army. Please
leave comments on this or any chapters afterwards. I am a writer who takes any critique
seriously, and each little comment helps; but the problem is that not many actually leave an
opinion to begin with. On deviantart, I have about thirty page views for any story before a
single comment. Before I start rambling, go read the next chapter please.-

Journey to Glory
A Space Marines Story

Chapter One: Influence

Our story begins on one of four Battle Barges in the small fleet that make up the entire Battle
Angels Chapter. The ship we focus on is the Absolution, which is considered the flagship of
their fleet simply because the Chaplain and Librarian oversaw the fleet from there. The Battle
Angels currently have no Chapter Master; the Librarian was elected to be the field
commander by the crew of all of the ships. But everything changed for the better one day.

Somewhere in the depths of the Absolution is the sacred historical computer core. Of all of
the Imperium, this Chapter was lucky enough to have such a rare item. It contained most
history from far before the Age of Strife and even before the Dark Age of Technology. But
technology of such age required routine maintenance.

“Ok, I’ve repaired the EPS conduit; you should have no trouble with turning the computer
core on now.” Said Marcus, one of the many Imperial Fist marines inducted into the part time
service of caring for the ship. Techmarines or their servants would be a luxury if one was
even present. He wore a wingless version of the Dark Angels Emblem on his left shoulder,
and his armor was completely black except for his chest and shoulders which kept to his
original colors. The man operating the computers was from the Dark Angels, and had a
similar appearance and colors except for his chest and shoulders being dark green.

“Thank you, now I must ret…” Both men were thrown to the floor by a short circuit in the
wall. It was not an explosion, just very loud and startling. It caught the attention of seven
people on the same deck, including the Chief Librarian who went by the name of Kuzon.

He stepped through the thin doorway to view the damage, fanning smoke away with every
step. He stepped over to the panel and found a small fire on the wires. The Librarian clenched
his fist around the fire, putting it out. He looked over to the two marines as they brushed
themselves off. They were intimidated by his stare; they thought they would get a severe
punishment like a whipping or cleaning the armor after a fight with Nurglings. “The next
time you need this conduit repaired, send for an actual Tech Adept, not any of the inducted
repairmen. Is that clear?” He said to mainly to the Dark Angels crewman, but they both
acknowledged his orders.

Epistolary Kuzon didn’t even make it out of the room before the sixteen small monitors went
haywire. The curious marines outside of the room poked their heads in around Kuzon’s
towering figure to view the monitors. After a few seconds, all of the screens went blank
except for the bottom left screen…

‘Hologram Recording Playback in Progress…’ was all it said in big red letters on the
monitor. Then, a machine on the ceiling protruded down from the ceiling; when it activated,
the transparent hologram of a man appeared. He was in his late fifties and wore odd looking
glasses and a lab coat.

“Date Recorded: 3491.M37. If you are watching this, then the Imperium of Man still stands
on the brink of oblivion and still fighting an endless war. I hope by the end of this recording,
my legacy will be continued by your hand. My name is Professor Karlov; I worked at a
research facility on Mars that specialized in early human history. One day, I found this
computer within the remnants of a spacecraft

from what I could tell was the late 24th century. What I found was something I couldn’t
imagine…” The computer screens reactivated, they flashed thousands of images of technical
data, photos, and much more. The man continued his speech, “Not only is this information
from the past, but from an alternate timeline. That timeline showed that humans made first
contact with Xenos in the mid 21st century, and within the next three centuries afterwards,
created a peaceful alliance with over eighty different species. Now I’m not saying we trust
aliens, but I’m asking you to better yourselves with this technology. They had high standing
morals of kindness and equality, but we don’t have a single thing that comes close to that. I
see billions of disfigured cyborgs toiling through Terran streets in a hopeless blight they call
a life, and we call ourselves humans? As I stand here, awaiting soldiers to barge into my lab
and execute me for treason, I ask whoever is on the other end of this message to try and
correct the mistakes we made; not to bend before our enemies, but to better our own hand
with progress and better morals. End transmission.”

Journey to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Chapter Two: Indecision

‘Chief Engineer’s Log (Marcus O’Brien reporting): After about ten days of contemplating
the man’s speech and the information he supplied, the crew of the Absolution were still
hovering over indecision. The Chief Librarian hopefully has come to a conclusion on what to
do.’

Marcus walked into the forward conference room to see the Epistolary gazing out of the
window to his right. He noticed some of the Sergeants to the squads on the vessel were
present as well. He took a seat beside the crewman who operated the computer core. They
turned to face the Librarian when he spoke.

“As you all know, ten days ago the two crewmen on the left side of the table stumbled into
the legacy of a man from three thousand years ago. He claimed to have found a vast historical
database from tens of millennia before his time; it was forged by an alliance between humans
and almost a hundred alien species. But not only is it from before the DAOT (Dark Age of
Technology), it is from something like a parallel universe. The computer core contains
elaborate technological specs on vehicles and weapons, historical files, and how-to logs on
modifying our systems to adapt the technology.” The Librarian sat and sighed. “I have no
idea of what to do with this stuff; and since you qualify as my ‘senior staff’, any suggestions
will do.”

“I say we take any technology developed solely by humans and try to augment our systems,
no trace of Xeno involvement and no Deathwatch holding a knife to our throats.” The
Techmarine suggested, he was clad in bright red armor, but his arms were mostly bare since
he had laid the pair of hulking lightning claws he normally wore on the table prior to the
meeting.

“But we will eventually run out of technology that will keep our hands clean, soon we will
want more and more, soon we will have Tau phase pistols on our belts!” A tactical squad
sergeant replied to the Techmarine’s suggestion.

“Actually, Tau only surfaced two millennia ago. Intelligence, or rather common knowledge,
says they were still in caves in M33.” A man in Terminator armor added to the conversation.

“But that’s not the point! We could still become the enemy if we indulge ourselves in this.”
The sergeant yelled to the Terminator.

“I will not be defied by your senseless pessimism, you perfectionist pig! You Dark Angels
are all the same.” The Terminator spat at the sergeant, causing a brawl between them. But
order returned to the room with but a single word (stop, enough, etc.) bellowed from the
Epistolary’s mouth.
“I agree with the Tech Adept; some of this technology is truly worth looking into. But you
are looking too deep, how about we use this knowledge for more trivial matters, say for
unifying the colors of our armor, ships, insignia, and even rank.” Another sergeant added.

The room fell silent; the soldiers all stared at the sergeant closest to the Librarian. Epistolary
Kuzon rose to speak to the entire room. “For now, we shall put Sgt. Jameson’s idea into
motion. Techmarine Arcaros, search the database for color schemes, ranks, and possible
insignia; bring all information to me when finished. And we will talk of the technology on a
later date. This meeting is adjourned.” Kuzon slammed his fist onto the table like a gavel.

--

And as the weeks past, the order of things within the close-knit chapter began to change. A
fixed rank helped to maintain order among the crews; the ships were carefully cleaned and
repainted to brighten the halls and rooms. Internal bulkheads were put into use on all of the
ships, allowing a more tidy and collected feel to the corridors, something much of the
Imperium lacked. Soon after, the color scheme of the Battle Angels Space Marines unified
and a new Insignia was added to their banners and armor. This brought organization and joy
to the crews, allowing a jump in efficiency on board and on a battleground.

Their armor was painted in a rich ebony color from the feet to the upper arms, including the
face grill, top of the head, and the eyes were the blackest of all. The shoulder trims were as
grey as the moon while the shoulders were a mix of the two colors. The collars and wrists
were painted bright colors to discern departments. Red for Command/Operations, Yellow for
Security/Engineering (Engineers still wore the Adeptus Mechanicus colors too), Green for
Apothecaries, and Blue for the Scientists (whatever other jobs a Space Marine could have).

--

Kuzon sat at his desk in his office reading a book on a handheld computer when his door
beeped twice. The new interior equipment taken from the ancient database seemed to work
out so far. Kuzon tilted his head up to view whoever was at the door. The door slid to the left,
exposing a marine gasping for air as if he sprinted to his office in a panic. The gold and black
parallelogram shaped pips on his collar revealed he was a Lieutenant JG and belonged to the
Command/Operations department from the color of his collar and wrist pieces. “Sir, there is
something down in Main Engineering you should see.”

Kuzon and his herald rushed down to a room that led to Main Engineering. They joined the
small crowd of speechless faces. The consoles that previously littered the room were now
packed against the walls of the circular room. The men were transfixed on the sight in an
awe-inspiring trance.

Two tubes running from above the ceiling to below the floor rotated slowly within the
spacious center of the room. They both contained a bubble-ridden dark orange fluid in the
middle and a console sat below the ‘floor’ of each tube. But none would approach them
because titanic volts of electricity jumped up and down only centimeters from each tank.
Their trance was soon broken when the hologram of the Professor activated in the absolute
center of the room.
“Date Recorded: 3510.M37. As I perused the database further, I noticed the humans
developed time travel in the alternate timeline by the late 25th century. The possibilities of
such a device moved me to create my own based on their specs. But the device I created
backfired beyond imagining...

The lightning and rotation of the tubes halted completely, giving the signal for the liquid to
drain out through the bottom of each tube by passing through a hole-ridden floor supporting
both men. As the liquid drained, the men could clearly see the faces of both men. Their
clothing had degraded into clumps of mush that stuck to their bodies in random places,
indicating that they were in those tubes for a very long time. When the liquids simultaneously
drained fully, a door shaped piece of the tubes swung open, casting both men face first onto
the ground.

Journey to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Chapter Three: Forefathers

A man awoke under a heavy blanket in the forward infirmary on the Absolution. He soon
realized that the blanket was the only clothes he had on. He noticed an automatic door at the
end of the room open. The Librarian, the Chaplain, and the Chief Apothecary conversed
while they entered. But to the man on the bed, they looked like monstrous giants clad in
formidable and hulking armor.

“Have you found out their identities, Apothecary?” Asked Chaplain Alfred; a youthful man
with bright blue hair and grey eyes.

“He didn’t need to do that.” Kuzon pulled a computer logbook from his belt. It contained an
excerpt from the historical database on both men. He held the hand-held device so at eye
level it looked like it was beside him.

“So he is…?” The Apothecary asked.

“Jonathan Archer, Captain of the Enterprise.” Kuzon stated.

“How do you know my name? And who are you anyway?” Archer was confused and
disoriented, but he could still hear.

“My good man, tell me...” Kuzon walked to Archer’s bed to speak one-on-one with him.
“What is the last thing you remember?” He asked.

‘I remember… We were under attack by a Romulan strike squadron. I was needed down in
engineering to help keep the warp field stable. But there was a breach, seconds away from a
catastrophic explosion. I was told the reactor was… cooling down I think. But I remember
blacking out, and then I was here.’

“Captain, what year is it?” The Apothecary asked from the other end of the med-lab.
“April 22nd, 2153.” Archer paused and closed his eyes, he had figured out the situation.
“How many years in the future am I?” He asked.

“About… 38,000… Give or take a century.” The Apothecary mumbled. The Captain paused
in shock before asking another question.

“Who brought me here?” The Space Marines were interrupted by a man at the door. He was
the size of a normal human, and he was garbed in civilian clothes. He had upturned eyebrows
and pointed ears, Archer could recognize he was Vulcan.

“Sigh… Is this some new Vulcan test or something?” Archer was getting tired of how many
times he had to impress them. But Alfred took him for someone else.

“Why is there a Xeno scumbag on the ship, Epistolary?” He pulled a plasma pistol from a
holster and pointed the barrel to the Vulcan’s face.

“His name is Spock; he was the other man we found in the engine room. For the time being,
I’d hold your fire.” Kuzon stated as he approached his trigger-happy colleague.

“Perhaps I could help clear up this entire situation.” Spock said.

-An hour later-

Spock stood at the center of attention in another room in the Apothecary’s lab. His audience
was Captain Archer and the two commanding officials of the Chapter. Beside him was a
circular console to a screen that stretched the entire back and side walls.

“From what I could tell from the Professor’s logs, he stumbled upon a piece of technology in
our databse that could open gates to other points in space and time; it could then remove any
one person from that point and bring them right to his laboratory. The knowledge in the
database changed him; he wanted to save the Imperium from an eternity of degradation and
xenophobia.” Spock paused to work the console, a hologram appeared above it. “But an
unofficial motto I hear among the crew is 'No time for progress, no respite, no forgiveness,
only war'. He wanted to come to our time to get help, but his device brought us to him. So he
decided to take matters into his own hands.”

“Well that makes sense; we have already improved our power armor and founded a better
rank structure simply from his first communiqué and a glance at the database.” Kuzon stated.

“But you are a… alien, or at least half of one. The crew will not easily follow an example set
by you.” The Chaplain added.

“On that subject, I devised a little experiment, if I’m correct; you are more of an alien than I
am.” Even though Alfred wore a helmet, everybody knew he raised an eyebrow upon hearing
Spock’s answer.

Spock gestured for Archer to stand next to the console, when he complied, Spock pulled out a
bio-scanner. Archer’s DNA sequence appeared on the back wall. “Jonathan Archer, born
2112 AD, species: 100 percent human.” Spock pointed the scanner then to himself, his DNA
sequence appeared on the right wall. “Spock, born 2232 AD, species: 50 percent Vulcan and
50 percent Human.” Spock paused and looked to both Space Marines. “Archer shall serve as
the template for this experiment, since he is the only person in this room that is 100 percent
human.” He pointed the scanner to the Librarian…

“Epistolary Kuzon, you have the combined genes of six species; human, Trill, Antedean,
Cardassian, and two more I cannot identify. And Chaplain Alfred, you are the descendant of
human, Klingon, Tellarite, and Andorian parents. I could even see benign ridges on your
skull in your medical file.”

“Point taken, I won’t point a pistol to your face anymore, but the chance of proving this to a
zealous crewmate or an Inquisitor is nil.”

“But we are still stuck here.” Archer said.

“We will find a way, Captain. Until then, there is a task here for us to complete.” Spock
turned to the two towering marines, he almost smirked.

Journey to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Chapter Four: Initiation

Life as a Scout – Part 1

Without the ability to return home, and a peculiar (yet unquestioned) obligation to complete
their task, the two men decide to do the unfathomable. They become Space Marines, but
proving worthy of such a title would be a grueling ordeal.

Meanwhile…

‘Mission Log: date 497.M41 (Epistolary Kuzon reporting). En route to a forge world to
resupply our vessels, we received a distress call from a man who I have not seen or heard
from for six years.’

“Report, Ensign.” Kuzon ordered the Marine at the far right of the spacious semi-circular
room that was the bridge. He had just walked into the room when he spoke.

“We are three hours from the planet sir. And a transmission came through four minutes ago,
from the same man, sir.” The Ensign at the communications console replied.

“Put it on the forward viewer.” The Epistolary ordered. An image of a man appeared on a
portion of the window that stretched in an arc from wall to wall.

“Kuzon my friend, the battle has not gotten any better. The Tzeentch filth are advancing on
the fortress, and we have lost now 45 of our original company. You are now my only hope of
escape Kuzon, our last Thunderhawk was just shot down. Now get your ass down here so I
you can keep your promise!”
The man was Grand Master Ikuzo of the Grey Knights. He grew up with Kuzon, both
psykers, and both had similar ambitions. They tried their hardest to stay in touch, but Space
Marine lifestyles like to cut into your priorities. Kuzon wasn’t about to abandon his friend,
they swore an oath to defend one another whenever their paths crossed again.

“Sir, are you sure we should be doing this?” A Lieutenant on the left wall asked the
Epistolary.

“Why not, helmsman?” Kuzon asked the Marine in a tone that flaunted his loathing of such a
question.

“There are rumors… When Grey Knights have allies in dealing with Chaos, they kill them
when the battle is over (this is apparently a fact in 40k fluff).”

“I trust this man more than some of my senior staff; he would never do such a thing. And
even if he tried… Well, I was always had the faster draw.” Kuzon chuckled softly as he
walked to a console about a meter away from the Ensign. It was the shipwide comm.
“Attention crew, this is Epistolary Kuzon. We will be aiding a contingent of Grey Knights in
fighting off Tzeentch forces. Planetfall will be in three hours; Kuzon out.” He pulled his
finger off the button and looked to the Ensign, “Relay that to the other vessels.”

--

“I’m surprised you survived the training, Archer.” A space marine looked down at the
Captain and smirked as the stood in one of the many corridors on the Battle Barge. Archer
had completed three months and two weeks of Neophyte training. He was noticeably taller
and more muscular tanks to the eighteen genetic implants he received. Archer expected some
ceremony, but the Marine simply pulled a

folded uniform from a compartment on the left wall and threw it at Archer. “That is your
Scout uniform; you will wear every time you stand on a battlefield. Your chest plate is in
your quarters; now get out of my sight before you do another lap around Deck 14.” The
Marine took off in the opposite direction of Archer, thinking nothing of each other and only
of the next task.

--

Archer stood among some other cadets in the ‘bar’ on the Daedalus (one of the other ships in
the small fleet). All were garbed in the grey slacks and armor under their multi-colored
shoulders and chests for their departments. Spock stood at the door with his same face as
always, but with a glass of water in his hand. Archer rose his glass and spoke to the other new
Scouts in his squad.

“Congratulations men, we are Space Marines!” The others rose their glasses and gave out a
proud and bellowing yell, allowing each to take a swig of their drinks.

Their little celebration was interrupted by the Communications Officer of the Daedalus.
“Don’t take another sip, we are going to make planetfall in two and a half hours against
Chaos forces, suit up and report to the nearest airlock to your barracks by then. May the
Emperor guide you all.” He left the room after his informative yet inspirational speech. The
Scouts placed their glasses on the table for a robotic barkeep to attend to. Spock and Archer
walked out the exit and down the left side of the corridor to an elevator, accompanied by
three other Scouts.

“So... are you in our squad?” Archer asked the three hardened men opposite him and Spock.

“We are indeed, Cadet Archer. I am Brother Tobulo, your commanding officer; and these are
your partners, Brother Axel and Brother Reyes.”

“We got lucky; Spock could be very useful to our team.” Reyes reminisced on a sparring
session with Spock and his ‘Vulcan Nerve Pinch’.

“Enjoy life as a Scout, boys. We rarely get the real dirty work around here.” Axel pulled a
chainsword and a bolter from his belt. He gave them both to Archer, but he handed the
chainsword to Spock since he already had one. “Those will become your best friends, let
them down and you’ll pay the price.”

To be Continued

ourney to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Chapter 4x: Life as a Scout – Part 2

Battle Overview: Secure and Control Mission – Battle Angels vs. Thousand Sons. Battle
Angels deploy within a fortified row of buildings on the south edge, awaiting the Grey
Knights to fall back to our position. Once inside our perimeter, the Chaos forces will
advance, but we will have time to regroup and break their advance. Our forces must survive
for ten hours until the Battle Barge Daedalus arrives to beam us out. Let the Emperor and
the Lady Primarch guide us all.

‘Incoming bogey, 50 meters and closing; confirmed as Land Raider Crusader.’

‘Scanning Tank Registry… Ordo Malleus: MK3 LRC-1127; confirmed ownership of the
Grey Knights.’

‘Ten lifesigns in Aegis Terminator Armor, all with minor injuries; the tank has no noticeable
damage.’

‘Open the central gates on the north wing, send word to the Epistolary.’

A dark blue Land Raider Crusader drove from the pouring rain down a cement ramp and into
a large concrete hangar. Three marines pushed both of the tritanium gates back into place at
the top of the ramp, allowing the six multi-mechanical locks to move back into place. The
Epistolary stood in front of the front ramp, noticing the bright yellow and red flames covering
much of the front of the tank. He turned his attention to the guests when steam flew out of the
gaps in the jaw-like ramp. It opened up slowly, allowing the Terminators to exit. As medics
cared for the soldiers, the Grand Master stood inches from Kuzon.
Grand Master Ikuzo stood a foot taller than the Librarian in his Terminator Armor, he was in
his mid- thirties, clean shaven, hair dyed silver in support for the Ordo, and a bloody and
worn bandage running diagonally against his left eye. They stood in silence for many minutes
before they spoke.

“It’s been a long while, Kuzon. But I can see you are doing well.” Ikuzo said.

“And so are you, but you ended up higher on the food chain.”

“Oh enough of that Kuzon. Come; tell me the stories of your adventures!” Ikuzo put his arm
around Kuzon’s shoulders; and at that moment, all of their differences and troubles dropped
from their minds. They had become best friends again.

The Thousands Sons contingent had reached the battlefield, fully armed with many tanks and
powerful guns. Their Commander was noted throughout the sector for his efficiency and
stratagem. This would be a long night, the rain didn’t help either.

--

Battle Hour: 00:44

Scout Squad

“There you are, Mr. Spock.” A tactical scout walked up a flight of stairs to a wrecked
parapet; Spock knelt in his damp grey slacks and blue armor under an intact piece of the floor
above to stay clear of the rest of the downpour, missile launcher in hand. “I’m your partner
from now till your promotion, so instead of ‘Brother Axel’ just call me Danny.” Spock
noticed he had a thick British accent, but with a

galaxy of human worlds, where does the accent come from. He took his mind off of stray
thoughts and focused on his weapon.

“Nice to meet your acquaintance, Danny; now do you have a weapon to use or do you need
my bolter?”

“Nah, I got my sniper rifle right here.” He unfolded the long silver gun and pointed it out of a
window beside Spock. He continued messing with the wiring in the targeter, watching the
battle diligently. “What are you doing?”

“Augmenting the targeter; if you combine this model with a simple Boltgun scope, accuracy
can increase up to 35.”

“Do you ever stop thinking?”

“What do you mean? Neither you nor I can ‘stop’ thinking.”

“What I mean is… Hah-hah!” Danny shot a Chaos Marine in the face, and then swore at the
corpse before continuing, “Do you ever take the time to relax?”
“Vulcans heavily suppress their emotions, I do not need psychological rest, but meditation
calms my senses and erases fatigue from my body.”

“So do you, or did you see a lot of action in your days at ‘Starfleet’?”

“Of course, but what do you want to know?”

“What was the most destructive thing you have ever done?” Danny turned his eye from his
scope to look at Spock, who had put the missile launcher back together and was ready to fire.
He aimed for the Demolisher cannon on a Vindicator and fired. It flew from the high post
straight into the barrel, detonating the other shells inside. The tank flipped upward many
times in the explosion, and the burnt husk of the chassis came to rest an advancing squad of
Chaos Marines, killing 75 of the squad.

“To answer the question, that was it.” Danny was awestruck at his partner’s precision and
flawless execution of the task.

“That was bloody fin' brilliant.”

--

Battle Hour 04:45

Librarian/Grey Knights

Ikuzo’s Land Raider Crusader was a like a cumbersome hurricane in the towering city plexus.
The bullets became its rain and the engines its thunder. The weary yet stalwart Grey Knights
stood two by two; only one was in the back and one in the front. The man in the back had
been shot several times in the chest and legs, looking grim yet he would live. They decided a
fitting task for him was to read the prayers before the next charge, but Ikuzo chose for the
prayers to come from the Battle Angel’s archives.

“…As she stood alone on the battlefield, she stared at the Daemon legions surrounding her.
She picked up her artificer blade and smirked. For that smirk was all the Chaos filth ever
saw in this realm. Only moments later, the Emperor appeared and knelt down to her. ‘You
are far beyond any mortal’s capability; true devotion and true lethality are the qualities of
only my most trusted servants. And so such a deed will receive an equal reward…”

-Chapter Founding

“Alright men, we can only die, but never yield. Let’s show these damned fools who they
betrayed!” Ikuzo yelled as the ramp lowered. He heard the pops and bangs from the Frag-
Assault launchers, signaling their queue to attack. He and his men raised their swords and
aimed their guns, and so they charged.

Cleaving a small troop squad into small pieces, the charged forward towards a squad of
Terminators. But their enemies’ combi-bolters slowed down their advance, but not for very
long. Ikuzo raised his head to see eleven dots swoop down at a dangerous speed towards
another squad only yards from him. He immediately knew who it was by seeing the leader of
the squad wore crimson armor. He and his retinue hit the gravel streets with a thump and
many cracks from the breaking rocks, immediately attacking the squad. Though this would be
a tad hard for his guards, the man in red armor had no problem with killing them in seconds.
Ikuzo turned to join the battle when he received a psychic message from the man.

“Ikuzo, have you ever wondered how you can hurt someone with a Crozius Arcanum?”
Kuzon asked in a seemingly distorted echo (as was all psyker-to-psyker messages).

“It is a Chaplain’s weapon, shown as a winged skull. I thought the 8,000 volts of electricity
was enough.”

“As you know, I have one of those on my stave…” The Grand Master was formidable
enough to cut swathes through the masses towards his friend. He kept his eye on the stave for
mere seconds, but that was all that was needed for Kuzon to finish his attack.

The frame around the wings folded upward, creating an odd ‘T’ shape. But the shape
vanished as spikes came from inside the wing frames, extending all around to create a circle
of lethal prongs. Then each of the wings shifted and rotated into an uneven yet volatile ball.
With every swing the Epistolary slew three or four men. Ikuzo was eventually surrounded by
cadavers and not enemies. He grabbed his friend’s shoulder in awe, “I’m scared of you now.”

--

Battle Hour 07:27

Terminator Squad

“Lt. Brody, concentrate your fire to the left squadron! You two with the Assault Cannons,
keep your aim steady!” Lieutenant Commander Simon Briscoe stood beside his soldiers as
they fought off the approaching soldiers. They stood shoulder to shoulder in the alleyway to
protect the Marines behind them from the Inferno Bolts. Bullets flew towards the heretics like
hail. Though the Thousands Sons kept falling, they kept coming.

“Sir, I can see an end to their lines!” Science Officer Brody yelled with joy.

“But the Commander is right behind them!” Yelled one of the Security Officers with an
Assault Cannon. As the last of thirty soldiers fell, the Sorcerer came into view. He looked just
like the Sorcerer’s who led the core squads, but the armor was augmented to look twice as
terrifying and almost ghostly. His worn cape flowed upward slowly in contrast to the
windless air of the city. The Terminators and Marines concentrated their fire on the Sorcerer,
every man in his sight was hell bent on turning him into Swiss cheese. But by either damned
magic or ancient technology, an energy field deflected all bullets fire upon him. He began to
bellow out an insane laugh. The Terminators were being pushed back as their ammunition
was nearing zilch.

“Hey! Chaos Heretic!” A voice came from the buildings above. Some soldiers decided to
look up, and so did the Chaos Sorcerer. “Go back to hell where you belong!” Archer poked
out of a window three stories up and thrust a chainsword down upon the Commander. It was
thrown so fast it was only a blur until it lodged itself halfway through the force shield. The
Chaos Lord cackled loudly until he and the Marines noticed the three active meltabombs tied
to the hilt. The Terminators jumped back to avoid the explosion.
Outcome: Victory, all 21 Grey Knights were retrieved and Chaos forces diminished. Ikuzo
decided to stay as an attached ally to the Battle Angels, since they were all that remained of
their company. Such a deed boosted the Chapter morale; none had a problem with such
mighty heroes as allies.

Journey to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Chapter Five: The Caged Ancient – Part 1

Almost six months have past since the duo’s first battle on the streets of that desolate world.
Their continuous feats and deeds amazed all around them, causing a swift rise in rank. They
had finally completed their physical and moral training. They were given the Black Carapace
(followed by power armor) and proclaimed Space Marines. Archer excelled in command and
stratagem while Spock was an all-rounded man sought after by the other squads.

--

“Good Morning Gentleman.” Kuzon stated to his bridge officers at attention next to their
chairs. The officers gave out a bellowing ‘yes sir’ and returned to duty. The Tactical Officer
on duty remained standing to report a peculiar finding to the Chapter Master.

“Sir, I have something to report.” He stated to the Epistolary.

“Go on, Lt. Bryce.” Kuzon replied.

“At 0834 hours as we past into this system of eleven worlds, the fourth emanated a signal that
was directed not only to us, but the Federation Computer Core.”

“Any details on the signal?”

“It is of Imperial origin, but the signal is heavily degraded, we will be able to understand it
when we are within range and determine the sender.”

“Wait… the fourth planet.” One of the three CONN officers mumbled something to himself.
“Sir, may I add something?” He asked; Kuzon walked over to his console near the front of
the bridge. “Spock told me of this planet called Talos IV, a planet where he and his
Commander parted ways. He said that an anomalous ‘fold’ in space caused a large piece of
the planet’s crust to disappear.”

“I smell Karlov all over this…” He looked up to the ceiling and gave an order to the
computer, “Computer, superimpose a map of the known Alpha Quadrant over a map of the
Imperial spatial charts; show only this system and show results on CONN console 3-21.” A
translucent map of the solar system in the parallel universe appeared over the current image.
Despite decaying orbits and any other differences due to the time difference, the fourth planet
on both images lined up perfectly. “Get him up here, maybe he could provide insight into
this.”

--
“Thank you for the assistance. I’m sure CONN Officer Axel has informed you of the
situation; so could you take a look at the situation?” Kuzon asked the Vulcan. Spock nodded
and walked over to a Tactical console, rapidly tapping the screens and rows of buttons. In a
matter of minutes, he was finished. But the results of his complex scans made his face turn
white.

“The sender of the signal is an Imperial Dreadnought, starting around three millennia ago; it
is indeed the work of Professor Karlov.”

“How can you tell?” asked the Epistolary.

“The signal is transmitting Starfleet’s General Order 7. It prevents anyone from ever making
any form of contact with the planet under penalty of death. It was decreed for this system by
Captain Christopher Pike.”

--

Chaplain Alfred led an away team down to the planet to retrieve the Dreadnought. Spock and
the five-man Tactical Squad he served under came along. Taking a Thunderhawk down as
close as possible to the signal’s origin, they would have to cross the last three miles of
treacherous mountains on foot.

“Strange…” Spock stepped from the ramp of the Thunderhawk onto the planet. “I don’t
remember any snow.” The once rocky brown landscape was now blanketed in ice and snow
as far as the eye could see. Though in an alternate universe, Spock could match the ice
blanketed rock spires with almost identical landmarks from his memory. He pointed up a
small hill, the others followed.

They pressed forward through all manners of crevices and paths, whether they had to tread
sideways through nets of eroded stone walls or tiptoeing on paper-thin mountain precipices.
For two hours the walked, unphased by the snow that blanketed their ebony armor. When
they reached their destination, not a soul could believe their eyes.

A shard of land half a mile in diameter sat below the cliff face the Marines stood upon, some
jolted down to the land to view such a marvel. The entire piece of land was snow and ice free,
looking exactly as it did when Spock came in his universe. The rocks and soil looked decayed
and worn, and the vegetation was an odd shade of blue; all looked just as it was when he
came on that day in 2254.

“Be careful Master Chaplain, this is nothing but an illusion. There could be a bomb or a pit of
swords beneath any bush, the Talosians were and still are the masters of this art.” Spock
warned his commander of the dangers, but a Space Marine ‘true to the times’ would hastily
press forward, but his warning was heeded for once.

They took slow steps while huddled together in a circle into the small garden, hoping to reach
the structure at the center of it. The structure was a demolished mountain, a path led from the
grass up a stone ramp to elevator doors, but the elevator probably doesn’t work since the top
where mechanisms should be is gone along with the walls.

“The damage is probably an illusion now too.” Spock added.

“Am I an illusion?” A woman with a ghostly outline and transparent skin punched Spock in
the face, knocking him back. Spock examined her face as he jumped back up and grabbed his
fallen bolter.

“So we meet at last, Vina. My name is Lieutenant Spock of the Battle Angels Space
Marines.”

“I know who you are; I know all that he does.”

“Chaplain, the empathic waves in this girl have been distorted by the Warp. Such a fate
means ‘corruption beyond redemption’ in your terms. What is our course of action?”

“Stop talking and open fire!!” The Chaplain replied as he swung his Crozius Arcanum at the
ghostly maiden.

To be Continued…

Journey to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Chapter 5x: The Caged Ancient – Part 2

“If the lot of you stop firing your guns and give me Spock, you may leave untouched.” Vina
said in a ghostly echo that carried to every Marine’s ear without much effort. Half of the
Tactical squad positioned themselves behind a rock near the path they entered on. One
marine had a heavy bolter and one marine had a plasma gun. The others dashed back and
forth, firing their bullets at the undead wisp. It was all in vain.

“To you truly want to kill me Vina? For what purpose? Do I get in between you and the
Captain?” Spock drew her attention to himself, causing her to turn around. He stood inches
from the border between the blue grass and ice sheets, looking utterly fake because of the
drastic transition. He had the Chaplain’s plasma pistol aimed at something beneath the snow
about ten feet away from him.

“You brought him here, so this is your doing. You promised him happiness to the end of his
days, so why would you want him back?”

“Because someone else came before me.” Spock pulled the trigger on the pistol, vaporizing
the ice and snow then blowing a hole in a corpse that laid there. Vina screamed and lunged at
Spock, but her form faded into nothing before she was even close to him.

“Is it over?” A Science Officer asked Spock as he approached the newfound frozen cadaver.
It was perfectly preserved; an alien with a human face, garbed in white robes, and had a
spherical oversized cranium.

“The Talosians were the source of her power, even in death their minds can still work. They
probably died keeping her dream alive. An eternity with a man she adored.”

“Wait… How did they die?” The Marine asked.

“Because the Professor came along.” Spock replied. “For some reason, he and a team made
planetfall, exploring and searching for whoever came through. They killed the Talosians and
left Vina a non-corporeal being.”

“How about we stop the chit-chat and go look for your friend.” Chaplain Alfred said as he
approached.

“Vulcans have no need for the comfort of friends.”

“Fine Lieutenant, we will go after this Captain of yours. Call him whatever you want.”

“I call him… my Captain.”

--

The squad ventured into the network of caves that was once the Talosian fortress. Shattered
glass littered the floors, the animals once inside were long dead yet preserved in ice. Spock
remembered Pike’s account of the layout, and led the way to the place where he described
was his ‘cage’.

“Something happened here, look at the bodies scattered on the floor.” The Chaplain turned a
cadaver’s head over with his metal boot.

“Inquisition Troopers; they must have tried to clean up Karlov’s mess.” Alfred stated.

“And the Talosians died keeping them at bay, keeping their word to Pike.” Spock said. He
pulled out an auspex and continued around a corner. He noticed a peculiar object at the next
corner and ran to it, he froze in shock.

A Mark IV Dreadnought was enveloped in ice on the back wall of its cage. The chassis itself
was quite furbished; colored with gold on the arms and torso and black on the bottom, just
like the uniforms of Spock’s time. The Armor was reinforced with tank doors and ramps.
Land Raider doors covered the sarcophagus, and the Lascannon and combat arm were
reversed.

Spock stepped in to examine the robot, a hologram emitter activated as he stepped forward. It
was indeed Christopher Pike; he was garbed in power armor matching his former uniform
colors, the message was most likely pre-recorded for Spock’s arrival.

“Hello Spock, it has been a long time. I thank you for finding me, even after all of this. He
brought me this machine so I may live forever more freely, and as a man looking after you,
not that you need much guidance. Anyway, the Inquisition went after him tearing through the
Talosians, unaware of his work with me. If I am still alive, awaken me and I shall come with
you.”

“Sergeant, where on a Dreadnought is the power indicator accessable for Tech adepts?”
Spock asked his squad commander. He pointed to a tiny screen on the bottom left sensor
below the chestplate. He tapped the icons on it and a power source within the chassis
activated. Spock stepped away, allowing Pike to free himself of the ice.
Journey to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Chapter 6: Hypnotic Mirrors

Absolution Log: August 16th. We have stopped over a forge world called Dezri II to resupply
and aid in protecting the central factories against raids from a divergent Space Marine
chapter. Our friend Captain Pike is eager to battle in his new mechanical body, and I am
outraged at the fact that servants of the Imperium would become such brigands.

A Thunderhawk Gunship touched down on a landing pad amongst the bustling skyscraper
factories. The Epistolary, Grand Master Ikuzo, and two Tactical Squads removed themselves
from the transport to find a welcoming committee.

“Greetings Epistolary Kuzon, I am Tech-Father Valdore of Dezri II, welcome to my home.”

The man garbed in black robes stood at the same height of any Space Marine, but every little
gadget scattered across his armor made its shape unrecognizable. Archer noticed a ‘more
machine than man’ aesthetic everywhere he looked. He was almost sick of it.

“Your quite welcome, Tech-Father; what can me or my men do for you first?” Kuzon asked.

“I suggest you bring in more troops, the raiders could come back at anytime. As for the
soldiers behind you, we could use some help with establishing a perimeter around the area.
Our Titan productions lines can never fall into their hands.” Kuzon nodded and brought all
twenty men to start the task. He gave Ikuzo a handheld computer with a list on it.

“Please give this to the Chaplain and mobilize your men immediately.” Ikuzo retreated to the
gunship and flew off.

--

Archer and another marine named Lt. Keyes lifted a thick metal plate into place on a wall in
front of them. Archer’s colleague was curious of where he came from.

“So, tell me of this ‘Star Fleet’ you worked for.” Keyes asked.

“Well, Starfleet is the mighty arm of the Federation, a group that I apparently would help
form about six years after my disappearance. Everybody is so kind-hearted because greed and
poverty were eliminated, allowing us to bridge the gap between alien races and form vast
alliances.”

“And you said no economy? Come on man, that’s unrealistic.”

“Take into account the xenophobic terrorist groups and hostile conquering races…”

“I see your point, but…” The two marines heard a faint and long swoosh coming from the
sky.
“Speeders!” Three pale yellow Land Speeders descended from the clouds, firing their Assault
Cannons to the Marines below.

“We have to retreat, Keyes!” Archer yelled.

“But the defenses—”

“No, a fortified wall is not worth a life!”

“For once, I say to hell with your Federation principles!”

“Don’t you dare give me that ‘Death or Glory’ bullshit. We go NOW!” The two men sped
backward through the alleyway, shooting at the fast moving Land Speeders. They turned
right so they were obscured from the view of their enemy and threw themselves at the left
wall. Archer activated his communicator and reached his Sergeant.

“Sgt. Braxton, we’ve come under attack. Request backup or orders to retreat, sir.”

“We need you two here; those Speeders are right on top of us.” They hurried back to their
temporary headquarters as fast as they ever could, their Sergeant was right.

The vehicles hovered over the clearing, mowing down soldiers with their powerful cannons.
This sight angered Archer, causing him to jump past his partner and lunge into the fray. He
grabbed a simple metal pole and threw it at the driver of the Speeder closest to him. It
punctured his controls; slightly off target, but from forty feet away that is not so bad. The
vehicle crashed, but was in good shape since it was only ten feet in the air. Jonathan pulled
the pilot from his seat and threw him to the ground; the gunner was shot by another Marine.

“Why are you doing this? You plunder your own kind and murder your own kin! And yet you
still bear the Emperor’s shield on your chest? How about you do me a favor and label
yourself properly by slapping a Chaos star on your forehead!” Archer shot the man in the
head, killing him instantly; Spock and two other men ran to restrain him from further action.

“I take it he isn’t himself.” Danny (now a Marine) asked his partner.

“No he is definitely not.” Spock felt a sharp pain in his head. He looked around the camp
looking for its origin, finding the vehicle to be covered in many mirror-like tiles. “These
mirrors, do you sense anything from them?” He asked.

“I feel… a lot of things. Whenever I feel an emotion, the mirrors echo it back to me.” He
replied.

“Just as I feared, they found Kedomite Glass.”

“In English please, Mr. Spock.”

“When refined, the mirrors have ‘hypnotic’ effects. They have been known to incite strong
outbursts in humans and impair Vulcan concentration and focus.” Spock began to smash the
glass tiles with his elbow and gauntlet, Danny joined him. When finished, Jonathan got to his
feet, holding his head.
“So those mirrors caused my bout of madness?” He asked.

“Indeed, we will need to be careful in the coming battle.”

“What of the other Speeders?” Danny asked as bullets hit the wreckage they stood behind.

“We must warn the others!” Archer yelled.

--

Battle Overview: Annihilation! Mission: Battle Angels vs. Glass Asteroids. As a new enemy
approaches from the mountains above, the Battle Angels must defend their position at the
Titan Factories and kill off/apprehend as many units as possible so a later assault on their
headquarters may be more efficient with smaller casualties. May the Lady Primarch deliver
us guidance.

The Marines set up defensive positions in the alleyways with scrap metal from the building
wrecks and the forges. Marines stood in perfectly aligned squadrons, ready for any man or
tank to come rolling down to be shot. Also, the Marines stood on both sides of a diagonal city
block, keeping the south road from the enemy’s grasp. They stood almost like statues for
many minutes, but the silence gave way to some lowering their guns to clean or check them.
After twenty minutes of waiting for their approach (they were spotted on radar), they could
hear the faint chorus of roaring motors. It was a familiar sound to the soldiers, since the
enemy was one of their own.

“Here come some Bikers!” One Ensign said who was beside Archer. He was right, hulking
metal vehicles on two muddy rubber tires zoomed around each corner; coming in on both
sides. Bullets rained upon the oncoming foes, but surprisingly lowered their weapons when
the bikes rode up to a certain point.

The right wall on Archer’s side flew apart, revealing a Dreadnought. Archer had no idea what
he looked like, only word-of-mouth tales of the Federation Captain recovered from a planet
on a patrol in the Talos system. He watched in awe as Pike threw the bikes two at a time into
the building walls. No amount of grenades or Plasma weapons-fire could even hinder his
onslaught. Pike noticed the battle through a wall of dirty windows on the other side of the
building; he removed himself from the battle to aid the men over there. This left the men
exposed to further advances by enemy troops.

“Kill them all! Leave none in your path!” The Commander led not only a Command Squad,
but a Devastator and Tactical Squad down the alleyway. Their armor was a dirty shade of
yellow, mud and dirt was apparent on many of their suits. Their charge down the short street
was not a pretty sight; twenty-one Space Marines sprinting down a short pathway would
terrify any normal man. The Battle Angels shot as many bullets into the horde as they could;
but if they killed any of them, they couldn’t see any corpses. When they were on top of them,
the Grey Knights came to the rescue.

Jonathan took his bolter with both hands and whacked a Marine across the face, knocking
him over so a squad mate could shoot him dead. But in the corner of his eye, at the north end
of the street, he saw what was identical to a transporter beam. He was overjoyed from the
sight of who came out of the transporter beam that he pointed and yelled, “Grey Knights!
Grey Knights!” Ikuzo and his Terminators teleported in and thrust their cold spotless blades
into the horde of soldiers. The Commander suddenly lunged from the cluster of men and
threw his power fist at Ikuzo. He was beyond the man’s level of speed, especially with a
power fist. The Grand Master cut into the man’s armor with ease. He probably died in midair,
but the power fist was still active, aimed for Ikuzo’s face. He moved his head to the right to
avoid the lethal EM field dancing on each finger joint. But he was still too close…

Ikuzo reeled in pain, giving out the most horrific scream. This can make a normal Space
Marine really afraid because it has to take an awful lot to make a Grey Knight Grand Master
to scream like that. The Marines finished the last of the enemy soldiers only moments before,
leaving all attention on Ikuzo. He stepped back and slumped over onto the wall of the central
building.

“Somebody get the Apothecary!”

“The Grand Master is gonna die!”

“We’re doomed!” The Marines began to panic in ways uncharacteristic of such men. But the
air fell silent when a bullet rang out from Ikuzo’s psycannon.

“The next time I hear “Ikuzo’s gonna die”, I will treat it as a threat and shoot the man who
spoke it. And come on, you are Space Marines. If I die, mourn for me after the battle; keep
your focus on the battle. Which brings me to the question of WHY ARE YOU STILL
HERE?” The Terminators and the Marines rushed through Pike’s “door” in the building wall
to the other end. Archer remained, his ebony armor now stained with blood and mud.

“Why are all people in this time so reckless?” He asked with a very stern face.

“You are Jonathan Archer right?” Ikuzo brought his hand over the entire wound around his
left eye to save it from exposure. “In our times of endless war, a single life for the safety of
humanity is considered one of honor.”

“That’s the definition of imprudent! In my time, a single life is worth the risk of billions.
That’s why we were labeled as ‘the good guys’!”

“Well this is the Imperium of Man, not your Federation! Our way of life will not change until
our absolute victory or our destruction. You have to open your eyes; millions are lost in wars
fought every moment of every day all over the galaxy, 10,000 die every day lighting the
Astronomicon, billions toil in

misery on the streets of Terra, but they spent their whole life just to get there. It’s all in the
name of the Emperor!”

“But you’re not getting the point. I fight this war because I was asked to, but my purpose is to
bring the concepts of kindness, truth, and self-improvement. If we could rid ourselves of
prejudice, greed, and poverty in half a century, you could at least better yourself by throwing
your martyr bullshit out the window!” Ikuzo fell silent as the Apothecary arrived, Spock was
right behind him. This was a clear message the battle was over.
The wound was serious; the area around his eye was seriously burned, and the skin was
vaporized down to his eye, revealing an empty socket. The thing that made it more grotesque
was that most of the eyelid was intact. The Apothecary could do little for him, so he let Spock
take the stage.

“Lt. Spock to Absolution, please respond.”

“Lt. Spock, this is Communications, we read you.”

“Request immediate beam-out to Medlab Alpha for three.” A transporter beam removed them
to the Apothecary’s domain. Spock had a plan on how to heal the Grey Knight…

Battle Outcome: Draw. Amount of squads eliminated were equal.

--

USS Absolution

Medlab Alpha

Spock was working like clockwork; he had two trays beside the bio-bed with Ikuzo’s sedated
body on it. He had PADDs with certain items from the UFP computer on them and medical
tools on the other. He rapidly stared at one screen, grabbed a tool, and put it to work on
Ikuzo’s face. After a long and tiresome hour and a half, he was finished. The Grand Master
had two eyes again.

“So what is it?” The Apothecary asked as he and the Vulcan stood over the unconscious man.

“It is a more subtle bionic eye. Rather than strap a hulking sensor to the area, I used examples
of Borg technology to create a new eye.” Spock held open his eyelid to reveal a perfectly
normal looking eye, except the iris and pupil were replaced with a bright red mechanical lens.
Spock had managed to completely heal his skin, but around his eye was an upside down ‘L’
shaped implant running from his eyebrow to the side of his eye. Spock took his hand away
from Ikuzo as he awoke moments later.

“I can see again…” He got up and walked to a mirror on the opposite wall. He stood there for
several minutes looking at the eye at all angles. “Which of you did this?” Spock raised his
hand, drawing the man’s focus towards him. “You and your friend cease to amaze me, Lt.
Spock. I predict your talents will land you a command in a heartbeat. But take me back to the
fray; they must already be raiding the base.”

Journey to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Chapter Seven: Shattering Trance

Covert Strike Mission: Battle Angels vs. Glass Asteroids. The Battle Angels sends a small
contingent of men to strike the base of their enemy. Three groups of two squads will be
assigned a series of tasks that will leave their flag atop the mountain by night’s end. For the
Emperor!

Squads Alpha and Epsilon

Two Rhino tanks crawled up the wide path to the cave with their lights off. The mountainous
region was pitch-black compared to the sprawling factories surrounding the area, allowing a
perfectly covert advance. A guard saw no vehicles in the night sky, but heard the sound of the
engines clearly. He didn’t even have time to radio for backup or an alarm before a bolter
round came from a tank crewman who peaked from his hatch on top of the tank, then
retracted his head and gun just as quickly. The other Rhino took the lead in the cavern that
would only allow the tanks to traverse in single-file. The first one was covered in the new
Vindicator armor, but the area that once held the Demolisher cannon was replaced with a
plate of glass exactly as thick as a Rhino side door. The colors of the tanks differed from that
of the men. The chassis were drybrushed a shadow-like grey while the doors and hatches
were drybrushed a more normal grey. But on the recessed area of each of the front left of the
tanks was bright red with a silver symbol indicating the squad.

Each vehicle contained 10 fully armored Marines. Their brightly lit grey interior eased any
pre-battle tension they might have. This design was incorporated by the Dark Angels half of
the Chapter at its inception. Luckily, the Rhino kept the exterior dark and unnoticed as they
approached the manmade structures inside the mine.

“Computer, how many human life-signs do you detect with fifteen meters of this tank?”

“There are thirty-seven humans outside of this vehicle within the specified distance. All have
Adeptus Astartes genetic augmentations present in their bodies.” Archer conversed with the
computer that was reconstructed to house an LCARS interface, including the voice pattern.
The radar flashed on to reveal both tanks and the scattered enemies awaiting them at the end
of the cavern. When only moments remained between the Marines inside and outside the
tank, Archer reluctantly joined the others in prayer. This lasted only seconds before he let out
a word to the squad.

3…

“I want you all to come back alive, that’s an order.”

2…

“Yes sir, Lt. Cmdr Archer SIR!”

1… And CONTACT!

The front Rhino accelerated forward from the cramped tunnel into the spacious steel
chamber, first of many in the stronghold. It swerved to avoid the tall, long, and thin metal
pillar directly in front of the rocky cavern. The first tank went to the left and the other went to
the right. Then, seeming almost simultaneously, the side doors and back ramp on both
vehicles flew open. This led to Space Marines flooding out of the tank, shooting as they went.
Archer rolled down the ramp of the right Rhino door and immediately came to his feet to
confront his opponents. He had donned an MK4 helmet to avoid direct contact with the
supernatural mirrors heavily present in the architecture like every man on both squads. He
uncurled his arms to reveal two long and menacing bolters. His shooting with the twin guns
was precise and efficient, awarding kills with only a handful of bullets while his subordinates
simply pointed and clenched the trigger until the ammo in the gun was gone. This was then
followed by a ‘reload and repeat’ process.

When Jonathan expended the ammo in one gun, he threw it to the ground. He then took the
other Bolter with both hands and swung it hard into the nearest guy’s face. The faceplate and
mouth grill shattered upon impact with an odd crackle, the air scrubber motors that were
contained within the mask pipes sparked as they fell apart. Before the man even hit the
ground, Archer twirled the boltgun sideways and shot him multiple times in the face. One of
his Marines had to pull him away to stop the carnage.

“I think you got him, sir.” Archer blinked twice, snapping himself out of the trance. The
helmets weren’t enough protection.

“When there aren’t anymore men to shoot at, shoot the tiles.” He gave an order to his entire
squad as a response. He pointed to the mirror tiles lining the towering walls and columns.
Archer then noticed that the room must have been almost two hundred feet in height. It was a
waste of space, but then something in his mind went off, he knew of the true purpose of such
vast architecture. It showed off how much they mined.

30 Minutes Later

Squads Beta and Gamma

Two More Rhinos rolled into the towering room, awaited by the other team in the now
secured position.

“Gentlemen, welcome to the killzone.” Archer stated as the two commanding officers
emerged first from their vehicles to greet them.

“Archer, you started without us? I’m hurt.” Lieutenant Reyson was well known among the
Junior Officers for his zeal in a gunfight.

“Those were the orders Reyson. But hey, you’re the guys who go on ahead for the important
stuff.” Archer was emphasizing that he would get the larger part of the fighting, easing the
man as close to calm as he could get.

“Very well, sir.” Reyson was still adjusting to calling his former squad mate ‘sir’. “Get
yourselves back in that tank, men! We’re off to hunt the traitor scum!” The leader of Beta
Squadron mimicked the Lieutenant and regrouped in their tank. Each door and hatch shut
tight and drove off into the long, unlit corridor at the opposite end of the room.

--
Just as they left, a Marine gave out a yell to Archer. He was at the bottom left corner of the
vast enclosure, waving an arm for his commander to come over. Jonathan rushed over; he had
a gut feeling that he found something big.

“I was just running my fist along the wall, breaking the mirror tiles (they are surprisingly
fragile) when a piece of the wall just vanished. And here is this weird computer panel; I’ve
never seen anything like it.” The panel was three-dimensional and attached to no console; it
didn’t even wobble around in the recess of the thick steel wall. The calligraphy was mostly
English, but the buttons on the strange circular panel

were labeled with abbreviations, terms that were unfamiliar to the two men. They both stared
at the console for a moment or two before all of the buttons started flashing. The
abbreviations then changed to show the word ‘EMPTY’. A hissing sound of escaping steam
came from the entire length of the floor on the left wall. This drew the attention of every
Space Marine in the room.

Large planks of steel started detaching from the wall. Each was 10’x7’ in size, and spaced
five feet apart along the wall. Eleven total steel planks hit the floor with a harsh clang,
stretching from the corner to the middle of the room. Some Marines walked over with fully
loaded boltguns in hand, and some armed only with curiosity.

They were jail cells, fit with two beds and a ‘toilet’ in each. Some Marines noticed that the
doors were fitted with cameras creating the image of the door being invisible from the inside,
creating a torture device if rescuers ever came by, unable to see or hear through five inches of
steel.

“Looks like only two of them have ever been used.” One Marine said as about seven Marines
inspected the new find; it put most of the men at ease that not many had ever used the cells.

“Lt. Commander, I found something!” A voice bellowed from the fourth cell, drawing
Jonathan toward the scene.

“I found these under the pillow of the lower bed.” The man held a computer chip, a Black
Templar emblem, and an odd badge in his hand. Archer immediately recognized the third
item from studying the historical database.

“It’s Starfleet… 2370’s.” He mumbled.

“Hey, that’s a hologram chip.” One Marine amongst the crowd outside the cell stated. This
put one word in everybody’s mind “Karlov”.

--

Reyson and his squad abandoned their Rhino to finish the fierce assault on foot. They were
pushing themselves up a U-shaped ramp leading to the next floor, this ramp was flooded with
enemy Space Marines, doing nothing but sitting back and pulling the trigger. The Battle
Angels were being pushed back down the ramp and they were losing men, but it’s stupefying
how quickly the tide of battle can turn.
A single transporter beam appeared at the curved junction in the ramp just behind the mass of
enemy Space Marines. Spock emerged from it with a Storm Bolter and a shoulder pad
bearing Terminator Honors, he had been promoted. Before he even lifted the weapon to fire,
more transporter beams materialized. This time, the Grand Master and his heavily armored
retinue emerged, swords high and guns roaring.

In moments, they had put at least 300 bullets into the cluster of men, but Ikuzo and his
Knights charged in after a wasted and pitiful counter attack. Enemies went flying off the
ramp into the black depths below or they were hit so hard they simply became mush upon
contact with the ground. Reyson’s heart skipped a few beats when he saw a Space Marine
actually bounce after getting hit by the fully recovered Grand Master. He returned all of his
focus to shooting the men on the ramp, but when he did the last of them were already on the
ground.

The Marines wasted no time after their small victory and retreated to their vehicles. They
trudged up the ramp, following the Grey Knights to the main chamber. But the one hundred
square foot blast door

would pose a problem to the lightly equipped soldiers, but not for six Grey Knights in
Terminator Armor with Meltabombs.

--

An Ensign in the Science department took the computer chip from Archer and walked it over
to his squad’s Rhino. He inserted it into the terminal on the dividing wall between the cockpit
and the troop carrier sections. With help from the squads’ tank pilots, they configured the
holo-emitters to broadcast the image externally via the headlights. Within moments of the
link, an image slowly materialized into view in front of the tank.

“It’s not Karlov.” As a crowd gathered around the tank, many of the Marines spoke up. It was
not the enigmatic professor, rather something that no man in the room had ever seen. It was
the image of a man; his skin was transparent and colored all shades of red and crimson.
Oddly shaped opaque geometric panels were spread out all over his body. His neck and up
was also opaque; and miniscule lines of code rand vertically upward on his face and the
panels.

“I think it’s an AI” Another Marine conjectured.

“You are correct, Lt. Torbulo.” The hologram opened its eyes and spoke.

“It knows our names! It is a Chaos construct!” Another man yelled.

“No no, I am of Starfleet. And so, I have a link to the computer core on your ship, and thus
your database.” The hologram was calm, even when dealing with claims that could easily
find his chip on the underside of a Space Marine boot in seconds.

“Starfleet?” The chatter among the men was silenced by Archer’s question. “Explain how
Starfleet came up with a fully functional AI?”
“I am the product of their experiments with time travel. Oh, and don’t ask about the details,
it’s a long story that I don’t want to explain.” He moved the discussion to a more important
topic. “My name is Matthew, Starfleet Artificial Intelligence construct, circa 2685. I bring
you a message of great importance; there are more Starfleet Officers in this time period.”

(The Glass Asteroids belong to a friend of mine named Derek, he gave permission for the
name of this Chapter and the battle in this section of the story did not take place on a game
board.)

Journey to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Chapter Eight: His Last Task

Absolution Log: September 1st: With the help of the new AI known as Matthew, we have
tracked down a Black Templars Crusade Fleet under High Marshal Ludoldus. Luckily,
Matthew is a friend of a Marshal in the fleet; this connection could get our hands on the
man.

“We are now in sensor range of the fleet; I am reading one Super Carrier and six light
cruisers. That is definitely Ludoldus.” Matthew stated to the Epistolary and Chaplain from his
elevated pillar-shaped terminal. His image was now as large as any normal human and less
foggy now that a real holo-emitter projected him. “One of the cruisers is hailing us.” He
continued.

“Patch it through to the bridge.” Kuzon ordered. A black panel unfolded on the window and
revealed the caller. It was not the High Marshal, but it was the Marshal of the Cruiser.

“This is Marshal Martin of the Coronatos Crusade. What is your business in this sector?” The
man sat in an ornate chair on a bridge nearly identical to that on the Absolution. His face was
thin and clean, his hair brown and plainly styled. His armor was almost as plain as his face;
he bore no emblem or on his armor, not even an Aquilla. All decorations included a pistol
holster, an Antioch orb, and a Crusader Seal on his right thigh. His shoulders however, were
decorated with silver eagle statues that folded over each of the shoulder pads and extended
down to his elbows.

“Did you pick up anything unusual during a skirmish on Dezri II?” Matthew asked.

“Is that you, Matthew? I thought we lost you during the Conquest of Harvest.”

“Yes, yes, it’s good to see you to. But please answer the question.”

“That depends, define unusual.”

“Found any humans claiming to be from an alternate timeline from thirty-eight thousand
millennia ago?”

“Hmm… no, but I may have something similar. I will allow five men from your ship aboard;
I may have what you seek.”
-One Hour Later-

When the cone shaped shuttle pod docked into the Marshal’s cruiser, the Epistolary and his
chosen four were greeted by the Marshal and someone they didn’t expect. High Marshal
Ludoldus stood beside him in a knightly pose. For being four thousand years old, he didn’t
look it. He had a bald head and bore a bushy moustache and beard that projected authority
and intimidation into his soldiers. Yet behind his face was a gentle and understanding soul,
such a combination made him a symbol of victory to the men under his command. He also
had the voice of a very punctual English gentleman. Kuzon deducted that Martin had relayed
the huge amount of information that has been crowned ‘The Hand of Karlov” to him, causing
him to be present at the docking out of sheer curiosity. Surprisingly, Ludoldus and Martin
were quite tolerant of allowing a Xeno to fight alongside the soldiers.

“Greetings, Chapter Master Kuzon. I believe you’ve met my First Marshal, he has told me a
great deal from the information sent by Matthew. I find it very interesting, and I have so
many questions. But back to the reason you are here.” He turned his back to escort the men
down the long hallways to the correct Cargo Bay containing their item. He elaborated on the
events leading up to their find. “Five months ago, we chased a contingent of Black Legion
soldiers from their encampment on Harvest colony to Dezri II;

they found a mine in the mountains to the north of the Titan factories, but they didn’t last
long. Apparently when they (somehow) stole Matthew, one of them kept the microchip with
an icon from a dead Initiate’s armor as a trophy.”

“How does this lead to a man from Starfleet?” A man in the back of the group asked.

“I’m sorry, didn’t catch your name.” Ludoldus stated.

“Captain Christopher Pike, sir.” Pike used a mobile emitter to move freely about his ship
freely instead of bearing the loneliness inside his metal tomb until a battle. He chose to
appear in power armor with the Chapter’s color scheme.

“We found a cryopod with a single man inside; he looked like a Space Marine, but we
couldn’t open it.”

“We believe that this may be a man of interest to us, that’s all you need to know.” Kuzon
stated as they reached the correct door, which was about a five minute walk away from the
docking area. The High Marshal opened the blast door and left Kuzon and his men to their
own matters; both Templars walked away.

--

There was a set of two cryotubes attached to one another in the far left corner of the perfectly
square room. Grand Master Ikuzo walked over to the tube closer to the opposite wall and
wiped the frost from the glass with his hand.

“Do any of the three of you know who this is?” Ikuzo asked. Within the tube was a black man
with a shaved head, his uniform was what the color scheme of the Chapter had been based
upon. He bore the rank of Captain on his collar.
“He’s from our future, that’s for sure.” Pike said. “But before we wake him, let’s see what is
behind door number two.” He walked over and brushed away the frost from the other tube.

“It’s a suit of Terminator Armor.” Archer stated.

“It looks like somebody took their time to enhance it. Some of the technology on there is
beyond me.” Spock was as close to baffled as a Vulcan could get upon inspection. “But it’s
unpainted.”

“Maybe our friend has some answers to our mounting questions.” Kuzon added. “Wake him,
now.”

Spock nodded and tapped a lot of buttons on the small console sandwiched between the tubes
and the wall. In a matter of moments, the right tube hissed and opened. A secondary energy
shield covered in condensation slowly thawed him, easing the transition to the outside world.
The five minutes of thawing felt like an eternity, the suspense was too much. But after that
eternity, the man opened his eyes.

“I must be dreaming…” The man stretched his each of his legs and stepped out of the tilted
cryotube. He saw three men who were once pictures in a history textbook, but here they
stood, two feet taller than him.

“I wish it was a dream, but we are in the same crap as you are.” Archer stated.

“I remember you, you were on the Enterprise while we investigated Deep Space Station K-7.
Lieutenant Sisko if I remember correctly.” Spock pulled shards of memory that held images
of this same man in his mind.

“Damn, so much for off the hook!” He stomped his foot and raised his voice, but it was not
on his mind for very long. “So I guess I’m not dreaming.” He turned and stared at the
contents of the other tube, then again noticed every man in the room was eight feet tall and
covered in titanic suits of armor. “You have some explaining to do, all of you.” But just as he
said this, a loud bang rang out from inside the room.

The glass on the second tube shattered. If Sisko were not a Starfleet Officer he would have
screamed, the Marines were unphased, they simply turned to face the commotion. An arrow
appeared seemingly out of thin air shot through the tube. Sisko squelched his panic and
walked over to the arrow, he noticed it punctured an envelope when it hit the bed padding. He
pulled the arrow out and opened the envelope. He read it without a word. Spock’s keen eyes
noticed the ink letters on the page glowed red every 4 seconds for 1.2 seconds. If Vulcan’s
had ‘gut feelings’, Spock just got one; he felt that Sisko had some supernatural ties to his
being here. Before long, Sisko tore up the parchment and dropped the pieces all over. “Would
someone care to help me take this armor with me? Apparently, it’s mine.”

Journey to Glory

A Space Marine Story

Chapter Nine: Wish of the Prophets

“…And that is the story of Deep Space Nine.” Sisko sat at the table that took up most of the
briefing room, surrounded by the other Starfleet Officers, Kuzon, Ikuzo, and the Chaplain.
Each man was rendered speechless after hearing the complicated and harrowing tale of the
simple Space Station. “On the topic of how I came to be here will be much easier to explain
now…” He sighed, “The letter was from the Prophets, proclaiming my next duty as Emissary
is to fight by your side until this ‘goal’ of yours is obtained. The terminator armor that was
recovered by the Black Templars was meant to serve as a combat uniform without the need of
genetic augmentation, so if I am needed to fight, the armor is there. Speaking of combat,
mentally, I have received more training than you, Grand Master, as far as Space Marine
experience.”

“I am hesitant to trust that these wormhole aliens can not only be omnipresent in time, but
quantify the experience of a Space Marine and feed it into your consciousness.” Chaplain
Alfred stated, “Captain, I propose a challenge.” The room fell silent, eager to hear what he
had to say. “Best me in a round of hand-to-hand, and I will appoint you as Sergeant to the
Terminator Marines. That armor of yours will be needed after all.”

Sisko jumped up and slammed his palm onto the table with his signature sly grin. “I accept
your challenge!”

--

USS Enterprise (third ship of the fleet)

Deck 14/Primary Armory

Sisko lugged the floating gurney containing the unpainted suit into the spacious room. It was
cluttered with racks of guns and swords, Artificer Armor floated on anti-grav displays, and
servitors marched back and forth between stations scattered amongst the clutter, repairing the
power armor damaged from battles past. Sisko turned away from one servitor who was
scrubbing away dry blood from a broken helmet. He pulled the gurney to the opposite side of
the armory, where a boy sat at a table, painting.

“The Techmarine told me to find the ‘Forger’. You wouldn’t happen to know where he is,
would you?” Sisko asked the boy. He put what looked like a helmet down and tossed the
smock that covered his torso and both arms onto the chair and walked over to shake Sisko’s
hand. He was no older than sixteen, he had dark brown hair and red eyes (self-augmented
Marine implants). He then noticed his right hand was a cold metal prosthetic, all the way up
to his shoulder blade.

“Welcome to the Painting Room. My name is Will, the ‘Forger’ as people call me.” The boy
stated.

“I expected you to be-”

“A Space Marine.” Will finished Sisko’s statement. “Apparently, I was the only guy within
ten parsecs of Terra that could build and paint Power Armor without the need of training
from Mars.”
“Interesting indeed Mr. Will, but let’s get down to business. I have two days before we reach
our next mission, and I don’t want to keep the Chaplain waiting.”

“Alright then!” Will pressed a button on a remote attached to his robotic wrist; a table
emerged from the floor panels about a foot into the air. The gurney then moved to beside the
table and slowly tipped the armor onto its new home. Will pressed another button to make the
gurney fly away into the work

areas of servitors, they could use it however they pleased. Even though the armor was so low
to the ground, it was so large the top was eye level with the Starfleet Captain.

--

Sisko sat back and watched the boy work. All he did was choose the color scheme (all CO’s
except the Chaplain get to choose their own armor colors), which resembled his uniform back
when he first stepped onto DS9, and let Will do what he did best.

The pale silver color gave way to black as paint blanketed the suit. Then, servitors carried
containers filled with ornaments over to the man, he pulled on or two out of each, welded
them onto the still black armor, and painted them in silver and gold. Sisko sat in awe for
nearly an hour before Will raised his welder’s mask and airbrush.

“Well, the painting is done, but this isn’t your normal suit of Terminator Armor. I could tell
that it was conformed to a normal human, but I think you have the knowledge on how to
operate it.” Will stated. Sisko rose from his seat and approached the armor. As he studied it,
his head began to throb.

Images flashed through his mind. He saw a button in the crease between both halves of the
torso, as it was pushed, the torso halves separated, revealing the human-shaped interior
surrounded by the many inner mechanics. The pain stopped, and he pushed the button right
where it was in his vision.

--

Deck 5/Cargo Bay 3

“You wanted a fight Father, then you’ve got one.” Sisko emerged from the hallway to see the
Chaplain and a small crowd of twelve marines against the walls.

“What do you mean, Father?”

“Oh, my bad.” Sisko walked into the light of the cargo bay, his armor gave him a very
intimidating look. “In my time, Chaplains and the like ‘Father’. It was merely out of respect.”

“Enough talk, down to business.” Alfred hid his spunky blue hair with his skull helmet which
gave off a hiss when it attached. Sisko was amazed that a suit three times his size in height
and mass could mimic his exact moves even if his hands were reaching just above the elbow
joint.
His head throbbed again, but this vision showed so much more. Information was literally
being shoved into his brain, allowing him to see how the Prophets fulfilled their promise. He
could see the world through the eyes of a million people, all of them undergoing Space
Marine initiation training. He was unable to close his mind from the gruesome mental tutorial
on how to fight, live, and breathe like one of them. And by the time he focused back on
reality, only half a second had passed. He shook off the trauma with surprising speed, and
threw himself at Alfred.

Journey to Glory

A Space Marine Story

Chapter Ten: Assault on Kyber Pass (Part 1) - Mobilize

Fire flew over the small square windows of the Drop pod as it descended on the icy planet.
The ebony armor of the Space Marines glowed with a dim orange as if they sat over a
campfire. Archer could see five other pods, a Land Speeder squadron, thirty Marines with
Jump Packs, and two Thunderhawk Gunships with Tanks in tow. He stared at the icy planet
for a long while before Matthew came on the Comm.

“We are descending on Iridus Prime, the galaxy’s biggest ice cube. The Imperium put huge
mining facilities in the thickest concentrations of mountains all over the northern hemisphere.
Some have been destroyed or become useless with age, but only six of fifteen remain. There
are valuable deposits of minerals and metals vital to the most basic of equipment. Losing any
of them would cripple the sector.”

“So what’s up with the mines?” A Tactical Squad Sergeant asked the AI from another pod.

“The heretical Black Legion has taken the facility mining Titanium-A.” Matthew replied.
“Geographical scans of the area that this mining station is in the center of an open field
almost a mile in diameter, but surrounded by impassable mountains in all but one area: Kyber
Pass.”

“Kyber Pass is a treacherous road that curves and drops, not to mention unaccessable by air.
But it ends really close to the station.” Epistolary Kuzon added.

“I am ordering we break into three teams, surround the station and the camps from all fronts.
Two attack the neighboring encampments and a strike force infiltrates the station and
eliminates the threat that remains. Unless we have to destroy it, I want that station to stay in
one piece.”

“Yes sir, Company Master Archer.” Kuzon replied.

As the detail of the icy field and the station came into view, Archer noticed the clutter of
Chaos camps around the station. The pod then jerked and the station fell out of view. “Sorry
sir, we gotta land out of sight so we can coordinate an effective attack.” The pilot of one of
the Thunderhawks stated as he touched down smoothly, unlike the thud that followed the
touchdown of Archer’s Drop Pod.

--
Archer walked into the Thunderhawk Gunship to find a confined and cluttered makeshift
base. He was greeted by three Marines, a hologram of the newly appointed Captain Sisko, a
Sergeant he didn’t recognize, and a Frisbee sized robot displayed Matthew at the height of a
Marine. They stood around a small table that showed a detailed overview of the battlefield.

“Captain Sisko, Matthew, and…” Archer gestured for the man’s name.

“Sergeant Major Rob Benson, Company Master.” Rob was almost the definition of a Drill
Sergeant. He was a dark skinned man who wore a khaki colored cap and chewed on a
diminished cigar with his front teeth. Archer almost forgot that smoking can’t harm a man
with three lungs.

“Welcome to Daedalus Company, Sergeant Major.” Archer replied, then immediately turned
to the crimson skinned AI. “How do we plan to do this?

Matthew zoomed in on the battlefield and began the briefing. “Epistolary Kuzon will start the
assault by bringing in the Assault Marines and about twenty snipers to support him. Once
caught off guard, Archer and Captain Pike will bring in support on the attack, surrounding the
enemy on two sides. Hopefully, Sisko can traverse Kyber Pass by the time Archer enters the
fray.”

“Don’t worry Matt, I have two Land Raiders and two Thunderhawk Gunships with a haul of
four Rhinos. A little snow and a few hills will never stop a tank! We will get to the objective
in time.”

Archer gave out a sigh, “You have forty minutes to prepare your men Sergeant before Kuzon
attacks. Be ready with ground reinforcements and fire support. I will take my Honor Guard
and the Sternguard in a Thunderhawk and deploy when your men attack. I’m sure you’re
smart enough to comprehend that, so you understand?”

“Sir, yes sir!”

--

“Sergeant Major, do you have a moment?” A Scout walked up to the Sergeant as he sat
beside his bike and tinkered with a handheld computer. The Scout had the posture and tone of
a new recruit.

“Not till you tell me your name, Cadet.” Benson stared at his handheld terminal and spoke in
a calm, yet intimidating voice.

“I am Cadet Lucius Coppola, Weapons Officer attached to Scout Squad Beta.” Benson put
his computer into a compartment in an ammo pack on his steel belt.

“What do you want, Mr. Coppola?”

“I have only been in the field for six weeks, but I still do not understand the organization of
the Chapter. Why are there only three companies? Why is there no Chapter Master and three
Company Masters? How is an Epistolary--” Lucius was silenced by the Sergeant.
“Go to the Thunderhawk Gunship and talk to Captain Archer. He is a kinder man then I, so
have no fear when asking these questions.” A voice came over the comm., halting their
conversation.

“Attention all squads, mount up and be ready to assault. The Epistolary has engaged the
enemy. Burn every heretic in sight and reclaim this mine in the name of the glorious
Emperor!”

“If you truly want answers, more than I can ever tell you, then go with Archer into battle. I
will tell your squad if you choose to go, but survival is not guaranteed. Are you really that
interested in answers?” Lucius took off in a run without a word, the image of the
Thunderhawk became distorted by the heat waves flowing from the charging engines. The
cadet’s figure shrunk into the distance and vanished.

“All ground squads, this is Sergeant Benson!” Rob yelled on the comm. to the squads that
were going to charge head on into the fray. He leaped onto his unique bike and revved its
engine. It was no ordinary bike, it was a heavily armored four wheeled machine. It was like
comparing a Jeep (with tank plating) to a motorcycle. The revving of its engine was followed
by the sixteen Marines and Scouts to line their bikes up in a row. The two Rhino tanks took a
wide path through the ring of mountains to the snow covered field. When the call was given,
the Bikes would follow. Archer’s ship rose high above the clouds and vanished. And so the
campaign began, little did the soldiers know that it would start their march to honor and
glory…

Journey to Glory

A Space Marines Story

Chapter Ten: Assault on Kyber Pass (Part 2) - Charge

Cadet Coppola jumped onto the Thunderhawk just as the ramp was raised. He kneeled for a
moment to catch his breath, but when he stood up, he was staring down the barrel of a
Boltgun.

“What purpose does a Cadet have to be aboard a transport carrying the finest of Captain
Archer’s men?” The man holding the Bolter was one of the Captain’s Honor Guard. Each of
the six in the small ship were wearing armor that was once used by Marneus Calgar’s men,
but due to an unmentioned debt, Calgar gave the Battle Angels a few of the suits. They were
now repainted and decorated with separate heraldry, but still very similar. The helmets had
the wings of an eagle spread upon the mouthpiece, the mighty axes glowed blue with lethal
amounts of electricity, and behind each mask was a venerable killing machine.

“Sergeant Benson said Captain Archer could help me, I was never properly assigned to a
squad, and I am not familiar with this Chapter’s doctrine.” Lucius walked around the Honor
Guard and looked around for the Captain. He found six Honor Guard and five Sternguard, but
no Captain.

“The Captain is in the cockpit, coordinating the assault. But we may be able to help you.” A
Sternguard with a ‘Beaky’ helmet stood up and walked over to him. The Marine was almost a
foot taller than the Scout. “We have about fifteen minutes before we touch down. We could
do this in about that much time.

“Why? Why would you care?” Lucius was puzzled by the demeanor of everybody he seemed
to ask, Sergeant Benson, and now the Captain’s retinue.

“When Archer and his friend became the same rank as Epistolary Kuzon, the Chapter was
reformatted, it was all for the better, but it was also against the Codex Astartes.

--

2 Months Earlier

Sisko entered a small, barely lit room (except for the red glow of Matt’s image) and locked
the door behind him. He looked around to see if everyone was there; Pike, Spock, Matthew,
and Archer, he was relieved.

“I now call the 21st monthly meeting to order.” Spock stated in a soft tone, taking care to not
speak to loudly.

“I recently got word that they are setting plans for your promotion ceremony tomorrow.”
Matthew displayed images of calenders and authorization files. “Congratulations, you’re a
Captain again Archer.”

“I have gone to Kuzon about the disarray of our ranks.” Spock added. “He is also in
agreement that we cannot continue as we are. The men are barely getting by, and the ships
are in bad shape.”

“Are you any closer to creating that time device?” Pike asked Spock.

“Unfortunately, no. But I can now tell you for sure that Karlov removed the data on it.”

“He must have not wanted us leaving too early.” Sisko said. “Since Karlov is most likely
dead, all we have to do is find his lab.”

“We can take care of that once we find a decent spaceport.” Archer fell silent as the group
heard footsteps coming down the corridor. Matthew turned on the lights and returned to the
bridge via the new terminal network created by Commander Spock. Sisko unlocked the door
as it flew open, and the guest was none other than the Epistolary.

“Hurry or you’ll be late for your promotion, Archer.” Matthew had forgotten to mention the
ceremony was today.

Later that day

“So what did you have in mind?” Kuzon asked his pointed eared comrade.

“I say we put one company on each Battle Barge, each led by one or two officers. We travel
in a group between battles, but when we reach a contested system, one or more of the ships
will go to each planet, and regroup when the fighting ends.”
“That goes against quite a few teachings in the Codex Astartes, Spock.” Chaplain Alfred
added, “It is a sound doctrine, but stray too far from the Gulliman’s teachings and we could
be branded as Heretics.”

“But if it improves our efficiency, wouldn’t that be welcomed by the Imperium?”

“If it risks us being shunned by those we swore to protect, such a decision is obvious! But
you peace loving Starfleet would never understand! In these dark times, there is only WAR!”

“I have experienced a fair share of this universe, seeing how it has been my home for the past
two years.” Spock kept his placid face as the Chaplain was screaming as loud as he could.

“How about a compromise?” Archer stepped in and quieted both men.

--

“Archer kept Spock’s original idea, but had the recruits learn the organization of our Chapter
in a more confusing manner, to keep the Inquisition’s prying eyes out.”

“Thanks for that, but now what do I do? I’m stuck on this ship.” Lucius asked the group of
veterans.

“You a decent pilot?” Archer opened the door and looked down at the Cadet.

“Sure, I guess… I mean, sir yes sir!”

“Good, because it seems the auto-pilot has broken down…” The ramp opened as the ship
touched down in the middle of a snow covered plain. “Could you take her back to the
Daedalus please?” Lucius nodded as the squads of Space Marines charged down the ramp.