Tertius Perturbance (A Warhammer 40k Warstory)

Act I

"Abbess Sanctorum, the Grand Parlor is now accessible. The Lord Commander of the Imperium summons thee to Council in one half hour."

Morvenn Vahl thanked the messenger and dismissed her from the waiting chamber. She would appreciate the brief traversal through the Imperial Palace. The sacred hymns that echoed through the vaulted marble pathways would steady her, focus her mind. She had a very important petition to make today, and she would need her full mental faculty.
—
As Vahl entered the conference hall, the other present High Lords of Terra stood in reverence of one of their own. There was the Master of the Adeptus Administratum, the Master of the Astronomicon, and the Captain-General of the Adeptus Custodes, Trajann Valoris himself. Lord Commander Roboute Guilliman was at the head of the table, already standing. They waited briefly for Lord Solar Talidus, who was the last to arrive. They sat, their attention turned to Guilliman.

“High Lords, one and all: I have convened this Council of the Senatorum Imperialis today at the behest of Abbess Vahl. Vahl has seemingly uncovered an incursion into Segmentum Solar,” Guilliman announced.

“Let us all hope this sojourn was not a waste of our time,” Talidus muttered. “Some of us have important matters to attend to. Do you think that I, myself, would not have called for Council if such an incursion existed?” he sneered.

“With all due respect, Lord Solar, the signs are atypical because this is an atypical incursion,” Vahl answered.

Vahl briefly relayed her work in the Tertius Sector of Segmentum Solar: the missions on outer colonies, the recruitment of converts, the banishment of heretics. And the strange communication blackout of some of the newly adopted systems.

“These are not mere uprisings; we would’ve gotten word. We have a Sisters exchange, and we are constantly visiting these worlds. Not only are we losing communication with the systems, but with our own Commanderies. There is a Shadow encroaching into Solar, and it is headed for Terra itself.”

The Council considered the gravity of the statement, but it was Talidus who broke the silence: “Are you suggesting Tyranids have infiltrated my very jurisdiction? Preposterous! You would call me incompetent in front of the entire Council? How dare you!”

A murmur slowly rose among the Council, with the following comment from Vahl just being audible: “Lord Solar would risk the soul in his breast before his seat on the Council.”

At which point the Council exploded.

“Order! Order!” Guilliman silenced the Lords. “No one is accusing anyone of anything. Abbess Vahl, you are on this Council at my personal request. Do not make me regret my decision. Surely Lord Talidus is not waning in his duties. Allow me to offer my personal apologies to you, Lord Solar.”

With this, Vahl stood. “I only ask that this matter be investigated seriously. I will assume the duty myself if I have to.”

Guilliman cleared his throat and gave the merest of glances to General Valoris. And just as imperceptibly, Valoris returned a nod.

Guilliman officially assigned the investigation to the Administratum, but it was an empty gesture. He might as well have sent a carrier pigeon for all the good it would do. Talidus relaxed in the knowledge that this was not being taken seriously; that his authority was not being challenged.

Act II

We will put the light out. Our numbers are legion. Our strength is sufficient. We come.
—
“Sister Sabantha, are your forces standing by?”

“Yes, Abbess Morvenn. My Preceptory is at your command. One thousand strong. We’ve deployed all other available Commanderies to the urban zones. To bring them comfort in their… in this dire hour.”

“With these numbers, we will certainly need the might of the Bloody Rose in the coming encounter.” Canoness Sabantha Kiel understood the implication. If it be her duty to lay down her life for the Emperor and Holy Terra, then so be it.

The Adepta Sororitas were no strangers to sacrifice and martyrdom. The Sisters had always given their lives for the Emperor, and they would do so again. It would be a pity that so little would come from this instance though, Vahl thought. Even with their help, this world of Xalur would be little more than a speed bump on the Tyranids' journey to Terra. Vahl could only hope that their sacrifice would be noted in time for the Adeptus Terra to mount a proper response.

Abbess Vahl and Canoness Kiel continued their allocation of reserves, both starcraft and personnel.

"I want our ships orbiting along the polar axis. We'll be able to engage them all at once…
"Have the primary volunteers defending the artillery. New converts and heretics can defend the city walls…
"Send one final telepathic message out. Let it be known what we tried to do here–"

"Our telepath, Abbess… She relays that the psychic resonance is discordant. No further messages can be sent." Kiel dejectedly intoned, "The Shadow in the Warp has arrived."

Vahl stared blankly into space for a moment, then broke into action. She got onto the vox and began issuing the final orders to the Sisters on Xalur. The Tyranids were to make planetfall in 12 Solar hours. "Let our effort be worthy of the Emperor."

“And where would you like us to set up?” a decidedly male voice chirped over the vox speaker.

“Excuse me, who is this? This band is reserved for Sororitas communication only. Identify yourself at once,” Vahl demanded.

“Sorry about that, Abbess Sanctorum. We weren’t supposed to announce ourselves until we arrived. Strictly speaking, we aren’t supposed to be here. This is Shield Captain Dalat of the Adeptus Custodes. We’ve been tasked with eliminating your Tyranid incursion.”

Vahl looked at Canoness Kiel, and realized they must be sharing the exact same look of astonishment.

“You must’ve made an impression on Commander Guilliman. We were organized immediately after your departure. General Valoris regrets he couldn’t make it, and sends his regards.”

“Captain! We must sever the incursion fleet tendril. This is most important! What craft have you?” Vahl spoke in earnest.

“1100 Imperial Navy gunships, seven of our personal warships, and one of the very Moiraides of the Dread Host itself. We’ve already dispatched a major contingent of the fleet to cut off the incursion.”

“How did Lord Solar ever permit you the command of the Navy ships?”

“Permit? We commandeered them, Abbess; we didn’t ask permission,” Dalat responded, trying to not sound curt.

“Understood.”

“The Moiraides will remain in orbit around Xalur to provide support. We’re not going to catch all of their landing vessels before they make planetfall. We’ll have to engage them on the ground. So I put it to you once more: where do you want us?”

Act III

They sever our swarm! Too much! Too much!

We will infest this world and recuperate. All forces, eliminate defenders. All forces: FEED.
—
The Imperium-sanctioned psyker telepath reached out into the warp. There wasn’t much there. Mostly foam, like the brine of ocean waves hitting against the shore. Where was the foam densest though? It seemed to concentrate… in that direction…

"Northern hemisphere, a couple hundred leagues west. That's where the shadow is greatest," the telepath informed Vahl. Vahl, along with the telepath, Canoness Kiel, and Kiel's personal Celestian Sacresant retinue raced through the air in a transport. Following them were several dozen more transports filled with Sisters Militant.

"Then that is where we will find the leader. I bet it's going after the governor's hive city. Smart little bastards, aren't they? Straight for the seat of power,” remarked Vahl. "Sister Sabantha, direct your Preceptory to the following coordinates. We're meeting them head on."

The group of transports adjusted their heading inflight slightly, en route to the northern hemisphere.

As they got closer to the hive city,  the telepath could see dozens of friction trails of Tyranid vessels cutting through the atmosphere. On the land, hundreds of beasts already clamored along the city's cone base, and thousands more must've already been inside. Thankfully the Custodes would be offering aid.

Vahl broke the telepath's reverie: "Telepath, confirm: the leader is here?"

The telepath reached out psychically once more. But this time, there was no warp activity whatsoever. No resonance, no waves upon a shore, no foam. There was nothing. It was more than a shadow, it was–

The telepath came to as the ships circled the zenith of the hive city, the governor's peak-house. Light had shone through the windows, but it abruptly flickered and went out. If anyone had any doubts about the location of the foe, they no longer did.

"The Darkness is here," was all that the telepath could utter.

Act IV

"Moiraides, this is Morvenn Vahl. We've found their synapse leader. You were asking where I wanted you. Here it is," Vahl activated a digital beacon as she spoke over the vox.

She and her contingent of Sisters were already deployed upon the field of battle. It was in the abandoned founders' settlements a couple klicks away from the hive city. The Tyranid beasts that scurried around the city had already taken notice and began moving towards them tentatively. It would not be long before they garnered the full attention of the swarm, and Vahl hoped she had not overestimated the ability of the Custodes' highly praised tech.

But then, as if in response to her worries, she heard a DOO-WHPT, and a goliath clad in golden armor blinked onto the battlefield. Then several more followed: DOO-WHPT, DOO-WHPT, DOO-WHPT. Two squads of Custodians warped in, accompanied by two Dreadnought warsuits, Shield Captain Dalat and his greatest champion Archimallus. The teleportarium arrays of the Moiraides were indeed impressive.

"Abbess Sanctorum, it is good to finally meet you in person. If only we could have met under different circumstances," Dalat spoke to Vahl while keeping his eyes steady on the ever approaching swarm. She didn't respond, but diverted her eyes towards the earth. Dalat grew quiet as he noticed the solemnity of the Sisters.

"Sisters of the Bloody Rose," Canoness Kiel addressed the Sisters, "we bow our heads in adoration of the God Emperor. He brought the Galaxy hope. He brought Mankind order. He brought the Imperium strength…"

Dalat gave reverence to the prayer and paid it its due respect, but was positive the oncoming horde would have no such compunction. They were getting closer.

"He will bring peace to us all. We are fulfilled in carrying on his mission while he rests. We are stirred to bring his voice to the deaf. We are jubilant in bringing defeat to his enemies…"

Dalat could make out the beasts individually now. It was just about time to take their stances. He motioned his Custodes forward slightly…

"We take these Tears of the Martyrs…"
The Sisters held up vials of water…
"And turn them into tears of joy…"
And dripped the water onto their faces.
"Our elation knows no bounds…"

Explosions rocked the Custodes' Achillus Dreadnought; several sisters dropped from living Xenos missiles; the first wave of hormagaunts were exigent.

"SISTERS!" Dalat screamed in alert. His men were already firing into the scuttling masses.

"FOR THE GOD EMPEROR!" the Sisters cried. The forward-most Battle Sisters deftly drew their bolters and fired upon the gargoyles descending upon them.

However, the projectile beetles of the gargoyles were truer as they could find and bore into the vital organs of the Sisters, regardless of where they struck. Half of the Sisters squad was felled in that volley; the second half by the slashing of the gargoyles themselves. In the very moment after that, the winged terrors were on Vahl herself.

The hormagaunts were already overwhelming the Achillus and Telemon Dreadnoughts, and the Achillus started sputtering to a standstill. The warsuits were ill-suited to fight such scurrying targets, but Blade Champion Archimallus was not. His Hurricanis striking style diced dozens of the little monsters and ended them directly.

A Tyranid Warrior Prime assaulted the Achillus to deliver the coup-de-gras, but a DOO-WHPT interrupted the moment. Dalat himself had warped from across the area and checked the Prime's bone sword in mid-strike.

"You deal with me now, monster," Dalat said as he parried the attack with his Misericordia blade. He countered with razor slices that eviscerated the beast.

In the back line of the Sisters, the ground trembled and a dread arose. A giant serpentine Trygon erupted from the earth, and onto a squad of Sisters. It fiercely cut them down with its giant scythes. But the sparsely armored squad of Sisters Repentia rushed towards the behemoth even in their fear. Outclassed, but not out-armed, the Repentia rent into the monster with their vicious chain belt Eviserators. The creature bled gallons of blood from dozens of wounds as it collapsed, and the Repentia were baptized in it.

Among the creatures despoiling the land, Kiel's sharp eyes noticed an uncanny offset in the landscape. The visual incongruity moved, and then she could make out the form of it. It was a camouflaged creature. She strode over to the thing known as a lictor and drew her blade. It ceased its hiding and moved towards Kiel as well. It jabbed its claw talons at Kiel, but she feinted and sliced off its talons instead. A nearby Repentia finished the job with a chain-rending to the back. The would-be assassin became no assassin at all.

Clearing a back alleyway, Vahl finally had enough space to deal with gargoyles that molested her. Her Paragon warsuit had kept her protected. But it was her weapon that would end the assault. The blade gripped by her suit’s gauntlet began to glow pure white. With a swift and deft swipe, Vahl felled half of the harassing flyers; with a 360 degree pivot into a second, even wider slash, the rest were cut down as well. The Custodes’ support wasn’t the only thing she would have to thank them for this day; the Lance of Illumination had been their gift to her.

And in the fracas, she saw its next target. There in the open stomped an indomitable monstrosity, a beast armored in sharp chitin, a giant sword of ebon ivory, and a wicked grimace. It was a hive tyrant, THE hive tyrant, the Darkness of this world. It was surely the synapse creature leading the rest. Vahl made her way towards it.

Another threat had entered the battlefield in the intervening moments. The Custodes had been flanked by a whole squad of Warrior beasts. Each one was just about an equal match for a Custodian, and there were almost just as many. However, the Custodes were just a bit more wily. Archimallus, badly injured himself, yelled to the men, “Tanglefoot!” and one of the Custodian Guards threw an electronic bob into the Warriors. It seemed to warp the space around the beasts. The Warriors were enveloped by a localized gravity well. They would be able to get out, but not before the Guard Squad and the Telemon shot them to bits. Only one warrior survived the fusillade, and it was quickly struck down in close combat.

Vahl continued her determined advance towards the hive tyrant, and less was standing in her way with each step. The beasts noticed her imminent confrontation with their leader; three serpent raveners closed in on her like the wind. They lunged at her with their full momentum, but she sliced them in half without even losing her stride.

A dozen paces beyond, the hive tyrant screamed as if in pain. Then, over the vox, she got a transmission from Dalat: “Abbess, news from the naval front. The fleet tendril has been severed. We’ll be able to wipe up the rest in the remaining days. Once we terminate the synapse presence here, the incursion will be eliminated.”

“I was just on my way to do that,” Vahl retorted as she charged the tyrant.

The hive tyrant itself was finally forced to pay her heed. She slashed at the tyrant, but she had not expected any sort of combat technique in response. Unlike the rest of the beasts, the tyrant was deliberate in its movement; it parried some of her attacks and dodged others. Still, when her lance found purchase, it sliced through its chitin with little resistance.

She went for a thrust, but she overextended! The tyrant got in close and, using its bone sword as a fulcrum, ripped off one of the arms of the warsuit. Vahl fell to the ground from the momentum, and the tyrant proceeded to chop heavily at her. She intercepted the attacks with her lance, but her suit’s mechanics were failing under the heavy blows. Finally, her lance was knocked away.

With nothing left to impede it, the tyrant stabbed its sword into Vahl. She gasped, this would be her end–

She was baffled. She wasn’t dead. The tyrant had pierced her suit, and in doing so, thought it had pierced her. It thought she was dead, but it missed! By the Emperor, she had been saved!

The tyrant turned its attention back towards the battlefield. Its forces were sustaining too many casualties. It would have to retreat and hide if it were to salvage this invasion…

In its distraction, Vahl had one more chance. If she could grab her lance without the beast noticing, she could…

But the broken suit betrayed her. The grinding of the crumpled metal was too loud to miss. The tyrant turned back, kicked the lance out of her gauntlet, and this time its sword found the flesh it sought. Vahl was dead.

Epilogue

>Segmentum Solar Report 978.M41 BEHCCFD, Sector Tertius
>Hive Fleet tendril eradicated
>Hive Tyrant destroyed on Xalur*
>Tyranid incursion checked
>Tyranid incursion eliminated*
>Abbess Sanctorum Morvenn Vahl killed in line of duty
>Abbess Sanctorum Morvenn Vahl’s body sent to Mars  ***classified***
>Accolades and recognition dispensed: Adeptus Sororitas Bloody Rose, Adeptus Custodes Dread Host
>* report addendum contributed by Lord Solar Talidus_

>Segmentum Solar Report 978.M41 BEHCCGB
>Lord Solar Talidus removed from Senatorum Imperialis per Lord Commander Guilliman
>Lord Solar Talidus dishonorably discharged from Astra Militarum due to dereliction of duty
>Talidus removed from Adeptus Terra due to dereliction of duty
>Talidus sequestered to Ophelia VII for contrition per discretion of the Ecclesiarchy
>Arcadian Leontus recommended for office of Lord Commander of Segmentum Solar
>Lord Solar Leontus promoted_
—
This one will recuperate.

This one will repopulate.