History of the Battle Guards pt.1

[Stormchaser]

Battle Brother Caliban sat alongside his fellow Space Marines of the Battle Guard chapter. They were all in a state of meditation as the Rhino APC rumbled across the scorched earth. The engine rumbled beneath his feet and he could faintly make out the sounds of other Rhinos to either side. He looked up at Brother Sergeant Venos, who was stood watching the computer readouts as they neared their destination.
“Brother Sergeant?” Caliban asked. Sergeant Venos looked up.
“Brother Caliban,” he replied, “What is it?”
“How much further until we reach our destination?” Sergeant Venos quickly glanced at the screen
“Another 20 minutes more,” he replied. “We have received communications from the Ultramarines that they are already prepped for battle and are waiting at the rendezvous point.” Caliban nodded. Sergeant Venos turned back to the computer, and Caliban returned to his mediation.

It seemed like only a few minutes had passed, when the Rhino ground to a halt. The side doors were opened and the Space Marines climbed out. They made their way to the front of the Rhino, and lined up in two ranks of four, with Sergeant Venos stood in front of them. Before them, were the Ultramarines, resplendent in their blue power armour and carrying red bolters.

Caliban glanced left and right. Two whole companies of the Battle Guards had joined forces with the five Ultramarine companies. On the furthest flank from where Caliban was, a newly commissioned Land Raider Crusader, decked out gloriously in the green and black of the Battle Guards chapter, and bearing their symbol of the Black Axe, opened its assault ramp. Captain Solomon, of the 4th Company and Captain Damien of the 3rd, walked down the ramp, followed by their command squads and respective chaplains, Chaplain Zane and Chaplain Reyes. The banners of both companies were raised high, and as they passed, the Space Marines of the Battle Guards knelt, while the Ultramarines bowed their heads in respect. Caliban had never seen the banner of his own company before, let alone any other company. He knelt, feeling the honour that was imbued within the banners wash over him, like tide of blessings. He stayed on his knees, his head bent, until he heard Chaplain Zane call out; “For the Emperor we fight!” Both companies got to the feet and raised their fists.
“For the Stormchaser we die!” they cried in unison. Caliban shouted their war-cry so loudly; he felt that it would scare even the hardiest of foes.

It was then, that Marneus Calgar appeared. Every Space Marine present when on their knees before him, save for the four Honour Guard that accompanied him.
“Rise, please,” he said, speaking to the Captains and Chaplains of the Battle Guards. The rose, and bowed their heads to him.
“Our allegiance is yours, Honoured Chapter Master,” Captain Damien said, offering the hilt of his power sword to Calgar. The Chapter Master of the Ultramarines touched one of his massive power fists to the hilt of the sword.
“And gladly, I accept it,” he said grandly. “You know our foe?” He asked the captain.
“We do, my Lord Calgar,” Chaplain Reyes answered for his captain, “We have fought them before.” Calgar nodded.
“They are not an enemy that can be dealt with lightly,” he said.
“Indeed not,” Captain Damien agreed. “But with the Emperor’s blessing, we shall be victorious this day.”
“Praise be to the Emperor,” Calgar said softly
“Praise be to the Emperor of Mankind!” Chaplain Zane shouted.
“The Emperor!” the Space Marines shouted as they stood up. Calgar looked around at the assembled Marine, and smiled to himself. Almost a full chapter had assembled here to answer the threat of the Great Devourer. The Tryanids of Hive Fleet Oblivion would be purged in the Emperor’s flame this day. He punched the air with one of his mighty Power Fists, the Gauntlets of Ultramar, and cried out in a mighty voice to his Battle Brothers. “In the name of the Emperor, to war!” A great cheer went up, bolstered by the sound of more than 70 tanks firing up their engines.

The Space Marine climbed into their transports, and the Assault Marines started their jump packs. The Captains bowed to the Chapter Master, who returned the gesture, then the boarded their Land Raider Crusader, as Calgar stepped aboard his own Land Raider, Maximus. The tanks rumbled into their respective columns and headed west, away from the setting sun.

A few days later, Caliban was roused from his state of semi-consciousness, by the smell of incense and holy oils. He sat up, and saw the chaplains and tech marines blessing the slumbering vehicles. Caliban got to his feet and stood to attention, his bolter gripped firmly in his hands. Chaplain Zane turned to face him, and Caliban went on his knees. The chaplain walked over to him, and placed a hand on his helmeted head.
“Oh mighty Emperor,” he intoned, “May you bless this humble servant of your will this day.” Caliban felt himself fill with a purity he had never felt before. The chaplain removed his hand, and turned away.
“Brother Chaplain,” Caliban said, getting to his feet. “Are we to fight this day?” Chaplain Zane turned and nodded his skull-like helm.
“Just beyond the horizon is the Tryanid hive. We are to destroy it and all the foul xenos within. Do not fear, Brother Caliban. Trust in the Emperor, and he will see that every bolt fired from your holy weapon kills a foe.”
“I will do His work,” Caliban replied, then looked up as he spotted a pillar of dust coming from the north. He cocked his bolter, and Chaplain Zane turned in the direction he was looking.
“Tech Brother Darius,” Zane said quickly. “Can you see what makes that dust cloud?” The tech marine stared northwards for a few minutes.
“It’s a vehicle of some kind,” he said. “But I can’t tell if it’s ours or not. It doesn’t look like a Codex issue.”
“Squads two and three!” Zane shouted. “To arms! Form on me!” Within a few minutes, two squads had lined up behind Chaplain Zane, their Bolters ready, and their sergeants activating their power weapons. Tech Marine Darius was still staring towards the unknown vehicle. It was only when it was one kilometre away that Darius gave the all clear, and the Space Marines could stand down. The vehicle was a Rhino from the Battle Guard’s veteran company, the White Lions.

The Rhino, was heavily scared, covered with blast marks and deep heavy scratches. The discerning feature of the Rhino was a large scratch across the front panels and through the left window. When the driver emerged from the top hatch, his helmet was scared in almost the same way, slicing across his left eye.
“Greetings, my Lord Chaplain,” he said. “And Tech Brother Darius of the Schools of Mars.” Chaplain Zane bowed his head to the driver, but Tech Brother Darius, who was a student of the teachings of the Machine God, and could feel the Machine spirit in each and every vehicle, was appalled at the sight of a war machine of the Adeptus Astartes being kept so poorly. He went up to the great machine and laid a tender hand on it, as if he were treating a wounded beast.
“Tech Brother Darius?” Zane asked him. “Is something wrong?” There was a brief pause before the tech marine spoke.
“The Machine Spirit is…content,” he said, some what surprised. “Happy, even.” He backed away from the Rhino, looking at each of its scars. He notched that the armour plate doors had been removed, to be replaced by curtains of green silk. From behind the green silk, nine of the White Lions emerged. They all bore swords and combat shields. Their flesh and power armour were heavily scared by the weapons of every kind of Xenos, mutant filth and Heretical scum. They wore those scars with pride, and they seemed a mark of invincibility, for it was rare for a mighty White Lion to die. And when one did die, the Battle Guards took to 100 days of mourning.

The sergeant of this White Lions squad, the Silver Wings, wore a strange helm. It an ancient mk. II helm with a golden dragon as a crest. He wore a single shoulder tabard made of adimantium chain mail, and he carried an ornately carved power sword in a shield at his side. His combat shield bore a winged white lion bearing the Black Axe. The other Battle Guards bowed their head in respect to him, for he was Isaac Sturmer, beloved of the Emperor. He and the Chapter Master of the Battle Guard, Lucan Fireshade, had stepped upon the soil of Holy Terra. They were changed men because of it.

“Chaplain Zane,” he said with an unmistakeable tone of authority. “The Ultramarines are moving, I suggest we do the same.”




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