The Guardians of Light's Story

Before the Throne of the Emperor, aboard the ship the Imperium called its Flagship, a single tear in Space opened. It was radiant and Gold, glorious and beautiful, solemn and somber, benevolent and gentle, and at least a million other things that could be used to describe the harmony of Light. A singular form emerged from the tear, as radiant as the light that surrounded her figure. Her. The figure was female in shape; with a distinct, yet slightly pear-shaped body, the form was entirely Gold, with no other distinct features for a while, before the Tear closed, and the woman known as Light the All-Mother of Dragons was revealed to the Emperor. Four distinct Flashes of Light appeared, forming the corners of a square around her, and four Guardian Honor Guards appeared, standing at rapt attention, their one-handed broad-swords in their sheaths at their hips. Another Flash, and Irral himself appeared before the Emperor, wearing his Battle Armor, and looking his best. He removed the helmet, revealing his soft, yet stern features to the Emperor and his guards, and stepped forward.

"Emperor of Mankind; may I present, Light, the All-Mother of Dragons." Irral said, gesturing to his mother, the most powerful Dragon in existence, and the oldest. "As Agreed many days ago, we are here to discuss the destruction of Draco, his Fortress, and his Shadow Legion.

The Light was quiet, but she was not entirely still. Already she had seen the entirety of the room she was in, the weak points in the armor of not just the guards who would understandably be startled into a ready stance, but of the Emperor himself. A small, almost innocent smile graced her lips, and she blinked. Unlike any other Dragons, she was more human in appearance because of one obvious fact: Her height. Rather than twelve feet or higher like her son, Irral, she was a mere five foot five inches tall; and could blend in almost completely with the general populous of a Human world. Still her silence continued as she looked upon the man calling himself Emperor of Mankind. She could see many flaws within him, but she kept them to herself. His power partially was derived from the idea that he was perfect and untouchable. She would leave it be.

As Irral introduced her, she nodded her head subtly, but her smile did not fade; though her eyes continued to bore into the very core of the man she looked at, and for a while she was quiet. Perhaps it was a simple mind-game she was playing with the Emperor and his Guards, to see who spoke first, to see who may have the upper hand. Or perhaps she simply didn't know what to say yet. After all she had recently given birth to another Light Dragon not two weeks ago, and she was still a bit fatigued. Despite the birth however she bore no signs of mother-hood, except for the wide hips brought on by carrying a child. Her eyes narrowed slightly, and then finally she spoke.

"Good Evening, Emperor. I heard you wanted to Assault Draco's Fortress in the mountains?"

It was their meeting, between the Emperor himself and their alliance with these beings of light. He would be true to his word, it was time to finnaly rid Terra of the Shadow Legion.

”I welcome you both aboard. And yes, we have been planning this operation ever since we made first contact with the Shadow Legion. Normally my men would mount a massive offensive however their fortress in the mountains proves to be our biggest obstacle. However, we already have developed a means to breach those walls. However we only needed time. Time which we had plenty of.” The Emperor started as he rose from the throne he sat on before standing at attention.

”As you already know, we can’t just blow up the planet of Terra. To this extent we copied the pattern known as the Ordinatus Mars. A siege weapon that was used against a fortress similar to the Shadow Legions. This Sonic Disruptor should be able to shake apart the fortress and open up a few routes of attack. With that in mind, our main method of attack to to utilize both orbital bombardment and spearhead an assault using an Emperor Class Titan, Imperitor Class. Alongside our most powerful war machine, we intend to support it with Imperial Guard support and my Space Marines. My Sons may provide support as well, and I myself shall fight in the front lines. Of course, do you have any objections to our plan thus far?” The Emperor spoke. His plan seemed sound, but with only a few years fighting this foe, perhaps their allies could shed some light on any hidden enemy secrets they may not know about.

"A brilliant, well-thought out plan indeed, and of course it would be executed perfectly by your men.... but one word of Caution:" Light spoke, leaning back, a chair appearing beneath her as she crossed her legs at the knees. She leaned back against the backrest and thought for a second. Snapping her fingers, a Light-Projection of the Fortress that was Draco's home appeared between the two of them. "Draco was exceedingly smart in his placement; whether he knew about the Imperium or not, he chose the natural cover of the mountain range to cut off assault from all but one side, and even that side was difficult to reach with any larger than perhaps a cohort of Trolls. The Natural Forest makes moving your vehicles difficult, his Watch-Towers will alert him of the presence of your forces, and the very nature of the ground will begin to sap the life from those of your soldiers who are unprepared in mind, body, and spirit. Even if one of those three bastions are weakened, the Corruption will begin to invade them, tearing them apart from within, turning them against their comrades. The Ruins before the Fortress are a nigh impenetrable maze, many of your troops will be lost, which will only wear down their morale, and then the corruption of the land will do its work.

"This is not even including the Shadow Legion, nor the Shadow Guard, nor Draco's children, his Mate, or himself, either. He is undoubtedly bolstering everything he has in preparation for this. His air-fleet now likely matches my own in strength, and his Drakon-Class flag-ship can level the mountain range around them inside of a day when operating at full power." Light finally stood, gesturing around the map with Irral's Lance, her body floating to highlight each thing she mentioned, showing the Emperor one of the most clear battle maps his enemy had stacked against him. Light smiled then.

"However; my Guardians of Light can negate many of these affects, allowing your men to advance normally, needing only to worry of size constraints, and getting lost within the labyrinth. Be forewarned, that each of my Guardians are either Dragons, Tigris, or Eagle citizens, they are taller, stronger, and more Magically Inclined than many your men have ever encountered. However they are cunning warriors and no better allies."

Irral stepped forwards then, clearing his throat. "I of course will be on the field with you once the actual battle begins, I hope your men will trust me enough to obey if I tell them something that may save their lives." he spoke that last part with a small hint of animosity for the Grey Knights he'd engaged previously. The four Honor Guards of Light stood motionless, still at rapt attention. Their discipline was impeccable, their armor flawless and glittering. One of their chests dropped slightly as they let out a breath; despite their perfect discipline they were still nervous, and even they could not hide it forever.

"I feel.... that a counter-plan must be devised, Emperor of Mankind, if your original plan does not work. Draco and his Fortress are hardy... and may not fall at your initial assault. Have you a back-up plan?"

The Emperor nodded. ”My men are no strangers to siege warfare. Of course backup plans are to be prepared. My men are stalwart of mind, of course I have concerns for the Guardsman. But even so as long as the lower ranked soldiers stay near any veteran officers they will hold until the bitter end. And our many years of fighting the forces of Chaos for millennium have already steeled most if not all my Space Marines. We should be safe in the case our forces are separated. Now as for our backup plan: My main plan involves getting the Ordinatus Mars into position to fire to breach the walls, of course I fully expect the enemy to target our vital equipment. Any other means may be too slow to be effective such as drills or using the Titan. As such, I have three solutions. The first Solution is to deep strike a veteran company once we secure a foothold armed with a Vortex grenade to breach the walls. It’s a dangerious piece of equipment which will be unpredictable when used. The second is to bring my Librarians to do the same, or possibly warp units into the stronghold itself...Of course that is also still a major risk. Finnaly, I can fully breach the walls myself. But of course my strength would be more used to fight the enemy.” The Emperor relayed his backup plans.

Of course there were other plans. ”In the worst case scenario, the Titan we have deployed can unleash a devastating plasma blast from one of its armaments. It’s capable of wiping whole cities with a normal blast, however we need time to fire a maximum blast. It’s risky, it could overload and detonate. There’s also using Vortex warheads. Many other options. However...” The Emperor soon discussed the most important thing.

”Our greatest problem is to ensure my Space Marines can co-operate with your forces. I can only ask that your forces can bear their comments. They are still as xenophobic, however they will quietly work with your forces as long as both sides can tolerate eachother. The Guardsman you should have no problem with.” He concludes.

Light nodded as the Emperor spoke. Solid plans, all of them, all of them equally effective as well as dangerous. Her Golden Eyes were thoughtful, and calm. Nodding again, and smiled. "I will bring something of my own to aide in the Battle, something besides my Son or my Guardians of Light. I cannot disclose it here.... but I will bring it." she smiled and the projection of the Map faded from view, and stood again in the center of her Honor Guard, the chair vanishing. She was readying to leave.

"I have a feeling that your men will come to realize the futility in angering my son.... but do be warned he is not above killing insubordinate men; be sure to warn them." She said as a passing thought, the tear in Space opening behind her, allowing her to simply back into it, vanishing from the ship. Irral himself stayed until after the Honor Guard had left, his eyes leveling to meet the Emperor's. In that gaze was the unspoken truth behind what Light had just said: He had no problem killing any who would be insubordinate towards him in battle - even if that meant eradicating the entire Imperium himself.

With a slight bow, Irral turned, and vanished from the ship. Now all that was left, was the Assault itself.

Immediately a squad of Commandos from Draco's Legion leaped from the Towers, a Squad of 10 per tower, diving into the ranks of the Guardsman and assaulting them with .500 Magnum sub-machine guns and Duradaeden Daggers. Their silence matched only by their ferocity in combat. They would notice that their fallen comrade was gone, and that there was only chaos as the twenty Shadow Commandos carved their way through the ranks of Guardsmen like hot blades through butter, systematically avoiding the Space Marines until absolutely needed, and then swarming them, trying to get under their armor plates, shoot at weak points, and bring them down as quickly as possible.



Bright, Golden Slashes filled the air, and the Commandos were cut down, falling to the ground, and vanishing in puffs of smoke, small soul-like orbs rising from their bodies, ascending to the sky to be free, finally. Before the Imperium were four Captains of the Guardians of Light, their tall, heavy bodies thumping against the ground swords and shields drawn. Twenty One more appeared, totaling twenty five Captains of the Guardians of Light. Golden Armor gleaming, and Holy Energy radiating off their bodies. Glorious capes fluttered in the wind, and they raised their head, Shadow Commandos rising to meet each one in combat.



In single Slashes the Commandos were cut down, or with stabs following the bash of a shield. The Captains lifted their swords together in Triumph, and then turned towards the Towers themselves. Splitting into two teams, the Largest, and most Regal Captain staying in the center, alone, the remaining ones charged the Towers, mighty battle cries of Big Cats Roaring, Birds Screeching, and Dragons roaring all in triumph and triumph ringing out as they charged, slamming into the towers, and vanishing into the black stone. After a few seconds, the great Watch-Towers shuddered, and cracked. The grinding of rock and metal groaned over the advance of the Army, and the great towers fell backwards, towards the Woods that were coming into view as the army crested the ridge. The Head Captain raised his Sword, and began to speak, his voice booming over the sound of the advance of the Imperium, his voice was proud and powerful, reminiscent of a Young Emperor of Mankind, perhaps, but the purring R's and soft S's of his speech patterns made him out to be a member of the Tigris Clan; specifically the Clan of Silent Snow - He was a Snow Leopard in Human Form, standing at nine feet tall, and weighing in over half a ton in his armor.

With their ranks dwindling, the Imperiums resolve was only strengthened. They were already used to sending men into battlefields to meet their end. Most soldiers already knew what they signed up for. In the end, only the Strong, the willful and sometimes the lucky survived these ordeals. This was no different. The strong survived and the weak that did left would become the strong.

However with the watchtowers falling down, they knew they can now advance once more into the breech. They were close...They all could feel it. ”Continue forward Guardsman! The Adeptus Astartes remain stalwart in their advance. You are the Imperial Guard! Hammer of the Emperor! Press forward with your hearts, and we will achieve victory. Remember, even though many of you are ready to achieve matyrdom. Remember to preserve your life for the future, to fight more enemies in the future to become a legend!” The voice of Commissar Ciaphas Cain rang through the ears of the remaining Guardsman. The Emperor believed in them, a hero believed in them...The morale continued to bolster.

The Imperium let out a roar as they continued their advance.

"You'll have to excuse my tardiness." The Voice of Light was a playful but lazy snark as she appeared next to the Emperor, floating effortlessly beside him, leaning as if sitting on a leaning chair, her feet up and legs crossed at the knees. "But convincing all of those Captains into one place is harder than you think. Even for the All-Mother." she said, looking at the Twenty Five Captains of Light as they led the Imperium down the hill towards the forest perhaps half a mile off into the distance. "As for the rest of the Guardians, they will appear when I see fit. My Honor Guard will stay with me, but my Court Guards can fight and defend some of your more important pieces of this big game. If you wish." she spoke, gesturing towards the railing of the mighty Siege engine that the Emperor was escorting.



Hooded and secretive, but altogether Holy and adorned with Golden Armor, curved blades secured firmly to their backs as they stood and observed the scenery, keeping a watchful eye for the Shadow Legion or its corruption. As expected, the Court Guards were the elite guards used to protect high-ranking members of the Royal Family members when traveling. Their working record was impeccable, with no Nobles dying under their watchful protection and fierce combative ways. They of course also varied in height, and in species and race. There was plenty of Holy Power gathering in this place, and Light Yawned.

"So this is your mighty Siege engine? Impressive.... we've nothing like it in the Mythic Realm.... but then, After I banished Draco from the Mythic Realm, we haven't had anything this equally impressive to assault. Our Army is still quite strong, I assure you though. And they are as Stalwart as any Space Marine." she smiled.

”Light, well met. There’s always been this Terran saying that better late than never...I belive it is an appropriate sentence for this situation. For now, I shall mobilize the underpowered regiments to regroup on the Ordinatus Mars and to increase defenses. As for your forces let’s remain in close proximity to eachother to provide fire support. Once Draco actually sends his army it’s going to become a mess.” The Emperor replied as his forces began to shift and move about.

As the Guardsman and Space Marines recognized these people as their allies, of course the Space Marines already disliked their late timing. And their natural dislike of anything that is not human in The Imperium did not help their thoughts. Guardsman of course were far more trusting. If they helped save their skins, and if the Emperor trusted them. Then they would be good allies.

Of course, with a moment of peace. Light commented on the Siege Engine, no doubt she referred to the Ordinatus Mars. ”That is the Ordinatus Mars, It is based on a model that my Space Marines used to breach a fortress that was well defended and well armored. Usually, they are made to fit a very specific role. This one is meant purely to breach fortresses of this magnitude, of course it is still lethal to anyone caught in its path...And I have no doubt about your forces strength, you seem to know about Draco...Or at least far longer than our few years of knowledge. However facing beings like Draco are normal for me and my men. Are you familiar with the forces of Chaos?”

Light was silent when the Emperor asked about how long she'd known Draco, and for a moment, she seemed unwilling to answer, but soon enough, she did. "I've watched Draco from the day he first Hatched. He was born to cruel parents, his father abandoning them, his mother putting her hatchlings through demented tests in order to kill off the weakest ones; ensuring only the strong would survive. Draco was always.... head of the curve, when it came to development. He was smarter, and stronger than his siblings... and proved to be the only survivor of his particular nest....

This was normal and I thought nothing of it until the day a Sorceress calling herself the Wolf Queen came... and corrupted him; claiming to turn him into the Dragon of Death itself... using his newfound power, he killed his own mother, exacting his revenge for his siblings. After that, it was a long, arduous path of power gaining, planning, and more slaughter. He found a family in the form of Kethend, and now has five children of his own, only four of whom stayed loyal, the other running a bar somewhere unknown.

Draco was and still is bent on Dominating everything around him... and when he threatened my home, I banished him. I separated his Soul from his Body, and locked his Body under the very mountain he built his Fortress into... his soul is what you likely first encountered.... after he gained his Body he became more powerful. The other nations of the Mythic Realm want nothing to do with him, and so I have been unable to mount a proper assault on his Fortress.... But you and your Imperium... you make excellent Allies.

As for this... Chaos, you speak of, I know of it, but have never directly encountered it." she finally stopped speaking. She was distant in her gaze, staring straight ahead at the ominous mountain Fortress of the Dragon whose Keep they assaulted. "Before we move into the Forest.... tell me about it." she requested softly.

”A dragon born of neglect, then corrupted...I see, well since you told me such a story it is only fair to tell you about our greatest foe...The Legions of Chaos led by the four Gods of Chaos. They are as old as history itself, they seek nothing but to kill or convert all that stand in their way to drown the universe in blood and war. To try and cross into the mortal realm and bring Chaos.

Their followers are many and numerious. People who wish for power, people who are swayed by the voices of the Gods themselves and promises of gifts. Many who join Chaos are at that point lost to reason and those who become servants of Chaos can meet fates worse than death. Many are sacrificed to call upon demons, their souls are usually eternally enslaved in the realm on the Warp. Salvation is but a lost thing for those in the mass of Chaos.

They have no qualms in attacking planets that are defenseless, providing mindless slaughter to sacrifice an entire planets populace to their dark gods...And their power of corruption is strong enough to even warp my own sons who were considered strong enough to run all of humanity in my absence...In our peak before we all turned on eacthother in a massive civil war. Many of my sons died, and I was forced to destroy my son Horus who led the traitor Legions....

That was but one of the things Chaos does to people...So you can see why we are used to fighting such a foe. My people only know War, and Chaos is not our only foe...” The Emperor spoke. Clearly, that history hit close to home. Because as The a Imperium knew, that’s when he was mortally wounded before being placed on the Golden Throne to preserve his life.

Light nodded in understanding. She was partially grateful that the Imperium would show no Mercy; Draco was a Dragon that would take advantage of it, nor did he deserve it. Reaching out, Light placed a gentle hand on the Emperor's shoulder pauldron, and nodded solemnly, a small smile stretching across her face. "While I my forces cannot venture beyond this world or the Mythic Realm, we will be vigilant for Chaos, and eradicate it if seen." she made this promise with a serious tone, with an edge that meant even killing Draco herself if need be.

The Captains of the Guardians of Light began to fan out, forming a primary front Line in front of the advancing Imperium Forces, and venturing into The Despairing Woods. Before the Imperial Troops stood a great forest, dense and foreboding. It was dark under the canopy of Leaves and Pine Needles that made up the Forest, and the ground was a mess of gnarled roots, fallen leaves, trees, branches, bushes, and Light knew what else. Even if she didn't want to.

Bones. There were the bones of Lesser Dragons strewn about the ground. Sticking out of trees, out of the ground, or simply laying on the ground to be stepped on. They ranged from as large as trees themselves to as small as those of a child. Draco showed no Mercy in battle, and it seemed that he used the Corpses of those who had fought him and died in combat to fertilize the soil of the Forest.

The next portion of the Battle and March would take place within the Woods.

The Emperor nodded at Light as she agreed to watch for the Forces of Chaos when they decided to appear. Of course, they soon arrived at a wooded area. With such forested areas long range combat would be far more difficult. However he was prepared for this, he knew he would need to have his men go into close combat. The Guardsman would have the most trouble, and vehicles would be hitting trees than smaller targets.

They would have to get through in the end, they were attacking through enemy territory anyways. They no doubt planned for any sort if invasion. For now they had to break through the woods, sending the vehicles first would result in them being attacked by infantry with anti-tank weaponry...Or the closest equivalent that the Shadow Legion had. So in that case, sending the warriors perfectly capable of close quarters combat would be the smartest decision.

The Black Templars Chapter, known Full well as experts in close quarters alongside other chapters. For this reason, he would send them up ahead first to clear out the area while the remaining forces advanced slowly. For this, the Marshal in command of the Black Templars would be leading this assault.

A Space Marine marched ahead cladded in Black power armor. Alongside him were plenty of Assault Space Marines armed with close combat weapons. ”We heed your call mighty Emperor. We the Black Templars Chapter Shall carve the path ahead of us.” The Marshal spoke as he took a hateful glance at Light.

Dragonkin...No Good always came with them. First was Draco, then came some in strange ships while they were engaging with some Xenos forces and opened fire on them...To work alongside them was hateful to say the least. Of course he took his gaze away as he motioned for the Space Marines under his command to follow.

”I had already expected something like this...The Black Templars have come into contact with other species of dragonkin in a less freindly of meetings. I apologize, however I shall move on ahead as well. We have to make sure our forces get through with as few losses from this point as possible. Especially our armored support.” The Emperor spoke as he also advanced. The remaining forces making a mental note to advance after a bit. Or until the order was given.

Teddy's tree would find itself swarmed indeed as the Shadow Legion swarmed his allies beneath as well; the screaming and snarling of each Shadow echoing madly in his ear. Descending from the branches above, Monkey-like beasts of Shadow screamed at him as their long and slender arms snaked around the thick and sturdy branches, slithering across the strong wood as they attempted to swarm and kill him - to tear him limb from limb and devour his body and soul to be taken into the ranks of the Legion itself.

The mountains shook and mighty rocks were felled from the valley walls as the bombardment struck; and the forest went up in flames as the missiles all collided and exploded on target, but alas they hit not the target they were intended for: A Fifth, New Shadowling, cloaked in darkness and secrecy, behind the very lines of the Imperium, right under their noses where it would take them a while to finally figure it out. By the time they did, the Shadow Bomb was complete, and began to fall.

"Hmm nope." Light snapped her fingers, and with a flash of Golden, Brilliant, Blinding Light, Irral arrived, slashing through the Shadow Bomb with his Holy Draconian Lance. Staying in the air, the Corrupted Dragon turned, watching the bomb split into two, and then begin to crumble into thousands of tiny, equally powerful chunks. Twirling his Lance proudly, Irral by himself was able to deflect or cut up most of them into harmless sized chunks that merely made small pot-holes in the dirt where they landed, and maybe knocked out a person if it hit them squarely on the head. The ones he missed were intercepted by the Court Guards of Light, leaping from their positions on the Siege Engine, curved blades drawn and ready as they slashed the remnants of the Shadow Bomb, neutralizing the threat before landing perfectly on their posts. A sudden surge of negative emotion was felt as the New Fifth Shadowling emerged from his hiding spot, his featureless body and face proving that he was quite literally new, perhaps made earlier in the week by Draco. Spreading his arms out, another contingent of the Shadow Legion charged forth from the downed Watch Towers of Draco, the towers themselves proving to be the Shadows that they emerged from. Beasts of all shapes and sizes, Tendrils, Bashers, Slashers, Hounds, and even a few fully armored Screaming Minotaur, which if not engaging a Space Marine, would move to try and tear apart the vehicles of the Imperium, and cripple their advance to a crawl.

Within the forest, the chaos only grew in intensity as more of the Shadow Legions forces were simply wiped out by the Emperor himself. The Four Original Shadowlings, their bodies misty and ethereal, any attempt to shoot at them would first be met with the resistance of Shadows launching themselves from the tree tops to take the round for the Shadowling, next by the shadow Legion troops themselves already swarming and keeping the attention low and on the ground. If a round was set loose, it would phase through the Shadowlings, as they were not entirely physically present, using their close proximity to their Master, and their Source of Power, to continue their movements without a care.

"Very well! If the Shadowling cannot do its job, I will do it for them!" a Young, Naive, brash male voice rang out. It was echoed by the annoyed snarl of Draco; who perhaps had been trying to convince the young man to not go out and fight in such proximity to the Emperor himself. "You would just let it approach, Father? I wont! Emperor or not!" The Roar of a Young Dragon echoed out as he appeared on the Valley Wall.



"I see Draco Jr. Lives up to what I've heard. Brash, impatient, and full of pride." Light said, turning her eyes to see the young Dragon spread his wings and began to charge the Siege Engine.

"Shall I dispose of him?" Irral shifted his stance while floating in the air, grip on his lance tightening. Light said nothing, and thus Irral did nothing yet, before nodding and returning to a more relaxed Stance.

"DISOBEDIENT CHILD! DO YOU WISH TO PERISH?!" Draco's voice screamed over the battle, and for a moment, the One-Hundred and Seven Meter Tall Dragon appeared in front of his much smaller son, the thirty meter tall son of Draco freezeing in his tracks as his Father appeared before him, and swatted him from the sky like an annoyance. That same claw then extended and trapped the younger Dragon his back, pressing his weight against him as the older, more experienced, and powerful Dragon roared in his son's face. Well, there were worse ways to discipline a child. "Return to the Palace at once, and don't you dare attempt anything so stupid again while I still live." Saying nothing, Draco Jr. Would wriggle his way from his father's grasp, and with a cascade of Darkness, vanished from sight. Draco himself turned his massive head to look at the Emperor of Mankind, Irral, and Light herself. The Tension in the air was thick, and heavy. It made it hard to move; hard to breathe, and was thick enough to cut with a dull butter-knife.



For Teddy Ursa, who, for whatever reason, did seek one of Draco's scales, he would find that the task would be extremely difficult, with each scale being the size of a house, and likely as heavy as one, too. Slowly the Dragon of Shadows narrowed his massive Coal-Red Eyes, and his maw remained shut, throat visibly rumbling from his gentle, growling breath. Two things could happen: Either all out hell broke loose, or the combatants would continue their little game of chess, and wait until they reached the Fortress of Draco proper. Regardless, Draco's body slowly turned to face his enemies, great wings folded against his body, tail curled in a defensive posture, ready to lash out like a lightning bolt.

For a moment, the entire battle stopped, and all was still.

Main Imperial Force

The Imperial Guard had had their many encounters with the Shadow Legion. Of course from the great Commisar Ciaphas Cain himself, he reccomended the following: ‘The Shadow Legion seems to use numbers to their advantage. Stealing as many civilians and soldiers as possible while sending in hordes of what could be counted as lesser lifeforms in the Shadow Legion hiarchy. As such, we require more anti-personal weaponry which are supported by dedicated anti-armor.’ Was his wise words.

Of course since he knew since he would need to fight the Shadow Legion alongside the front lines, he would need plenty of research on their enemy. So with enough battles with them, it was easy how he and quite frankly many other members of the Imperium thought the same way.

As such, many of the tanks were the anti-infantry variants of Lemen Russ battle tanks. Lemen Russ Exterminators, armed with twin linked autocannons, a rapid fire and self loading ballistic weaponry. Although the knowledge to manufacture the old Autocannon shells being a bit larger than the 1.0 caliber rounds that the Astartes Bolt weaponry used, with the revival of the Emperor he was able to teach all long lost technology to the brilliant minds on mars and other such worlds.

As such many Exterminators began to tear through both the lightly armored and armored targets, however they were not the only variant, Lemen Russ Eradicator armed with the Eradicator Nova Cannon was well known in its service in the Imperium to be very efficient in cities, forests and dense terrain. It’s main weapon capable of turning whole structures and the infantry hiding inside it to little more than slag. And with a high caliber main gun and sub atomic charge for its ammunition. These tanks began to make quick work of groups of the Shadow Legion.

And finnaly, The Lemen Russ Punisher. Armed with the Punisher Gatling Cannon, the fasted slug throwing weapon currently produced by Imperium hands. These tanks roared with thousands of shells shredding apart the Shadow Legion creatures that stormed their positions. The Imperial Guard were known for being walls of iron that held their position, or a wave of bodies and steel when storming an enemy. The enemy would feel the full brunt of a almost literal wall of bullets coming at them.

Along with the Support of thousands of infantry and the support of a Titan, even if the enemy could cripple their vehicles, they would ensure they would not severely hamper the armored fist that would ensure full scale heavy fire support.

Of course, thanks to the aid of light...Their main siege weapon the Ordinatus Mars was safe or at the very least not about to be highly damaged or at worst have it’s main weapon disabled.

The Forest

Inside the forest, the story was the same. Guardsman being slaughtered by the dozen while also taking out a few of the Shadow Legion horrors with them. Minor explosives went off as well, likely from Guardsman full of zeal turning themselves into bombs by pulling pins on grenades as they were swarmed. Space Marines continued their relentless slaughter of anything that did not even remesble a human, some would be overwealmed by sheer mass and number that not even they could withstand. But many continued the fight ramming chainsword into Shadowlings tearing them into pieces or even simply using their armored fist to bash whatever came close.

Of course the Space Marine Marshal noticed what appeared to be a Guardsman stuck in a tree and surrounded by creatures of the Shadow Legion. Renalanus, if he could even laugh at simple things anymore given his nature as a cold, merciless warrior. The sight of a Pathetic Guardsman upholding onto a tree which was saving his life was almost an insult to the Imperium itself. However noting that he came from a penal battalion that just reinforced their position, he would take it that criminals like him deserved such a fate.

He decided to ignore the man, even if he was a fellow ally he had little respect for Guardsman in general. Few only held his respect, but a penal Legionare? They could die for all he cared. However by fate, or perhaps divine intervention, a few las bolts rang out as another fellow Guardsman bent a knee and opened fire against the creatures swarming the tree with impressive accuracy likely that of a veteran Guardsman. Teddy could see a familiar face, or rather the tattoos of Religious scriptures on his face. The man that he had met before was trying to save a fellow soldiers life. He seems to be muttering something under his breath but from the amount of fire and explosives going off everywhere, and how far away he was...Chances are there was no way to hear what he was saying in a million years.

But the icing of this war cake was complete with the arrival of Draco himself in his dragon form. He had personally come fourth to stop his son from committing what could have been an equivalent of committing suicide by trying to face the Emperor in battle. Of course the Emperor looked up, even with his rather massive height which towered over a Space Marine, the dragon was gargantuan sized. However he held no fear in his eyes, only a fire and determination to bring down this beast to rid Terra and her citizens of a threat once and for all. To show the people that the Imperium cared for humanities protection, and the protection of the innocent.

”Draco! Your time has finnaly arrived! No longer shall you continue to taint this word with your presence! Today we the Imperium! And I, The Emperor Of Mankind! Have declared our crusade against you! I will not leave no trace of your existence dragon! I shall destroy your mind, body and your very soul to ensure there will truly be nothing of you!”

The Emperor roared with such vigor, even the Space Marines had to stop to hear his holy edict. ”As your kind spared no survivors! Me and my men shall spare none as well! We shall storm your fortress which you have declared invincible to your own kind. We shall walk through your own halls, and I will finish you myself! This I shall see to personally, the lives you have claimed are far too many! The People Of Terra abandoned by their so called ‘protectors’ and left to rot in your presence! Today! The Imperium shall win victory! Steel yourself dragon! Your end is near, so if you want even the smallest chance to live face me with everything and know the true power of humanity!” The Emperor aimed his sword at Draco. Not to attack...But to indicate he had no trouble at all challaging Draco directly. A human, the leader of a whole nation itself with the power to fight being far beyond human understanding.

This, was the beginning of the end. The war between the Shadow Legion and the Imperium would be decided on this day, on this battlefield. The Emperors armored shinned a brilliant glow as he made his proclamation.

Teddy would have counted himself lucky if he could comprehend the fate he had just avoided when he had jumped out of that tree. He clung onto and fought with his grip while on the back of this monster, but when the silence came, when everything would suddenly stop to take in the magnificent event happening now, so did the large Hound. This completely took him by surprise, so Teddy, with the knife deftly pulled out during this, was thrown off absolutely by the monster he had clambered onto. He landed onto the ground on his back, then rolled onto his stomach.

As he began to work himself back into a stand, there it was, the Draco of Shadows. It was just there, with it and the Emperor declaring and posturing at each other. From here, Teddy could see the scales on that great beast he beheld.

He hoped they were just the size of dinner plates, but no, he got a whole house instead. How did Mizer expect him to bring one of those things to him!?

Teddy just looked, slowly shaking his head back and forth, he was in over his head. He was very, very much in over his head. For that one instance, everything was lost, he was dead, Ebba was dead, and Mizer seemingly won in his quest to have him destroyed so nothing could stand in his way. He knew then that he shouldn't have taken the task at face value, at Prometheus's false confidence in him for this impossible task.

The only solution he could now absolutely see was to wait out this war. He'd only be able to get one of the Shadow Dragon's scales if it was extracted from his corpse...

Golden, unyielding Light, against the cold, bitter darkness. The Challenge was issued, and the Dragon's eyes slowly blinked, his massive body suddenly crumbling in upon itself like sludge, reforming to its Human form. Ten feet tall, clad in Draconian Black Duradaeden, with twin blades gripped tightly in his hands. A Helmet of the same material formed around his head, the visage of his Dragon form displayed in the helmet. Irral descended to the earth, his feet touching the ground with a light rumble of the world from his weight. Light raised her hand, however, stopping her First Born Son from engaging. This was the Emperor's fight.

"I am Draco, Son of Tethir, Lord of Shadows, and Dragon of Death. It is you, Emperor, who will fall today. I will destroy your mind, corrupt your body, and assimilate your spirit into the Legion. You have the gall to attack my Fortress. My HOME, and bring such a meager force. Even with the Guardians of Light with you, you are doomed to fail." Draco raised the sword in his right hand in acceptance of the Emperor's Challenge, and extending his own. But in another instant he was gone, carving through the Imperium Forces, buzzing inches away from Teddy, moving to his Fortress, where the armies would continue their battle. As he passed by, all Shadow Legion Forces vanished, and pulled back, into The Ruinous Labyrinth, where the Imperium of Mankind would be hard-pressed to find their way through the endless maze with only one entrance, and only one exit.

"With all things, O' Emperor, I will make you work for it. If you want me, come and find me. I lie in wait within the Ruinous Labyrinth at the exit. Good Luck."

Jay Null opens his comms, reaching out to the vessel he notices off his bow.

Is everything okay out there? Do you need a terrestrial assist?

he asked inquisitively.

Outside of orbit around the planet Terra.

A medium-sized ship, shaped like a triangle with a blunted end, moves slowly towards Terra and the space station above it. The shape and size of this ship may have been seen before, but this one in particular has never been witnessed by any Terran, or as a matter of fact, any species or beings besides the ones who had made it. If they were able to trace it's origins, then it would point to an unexplored area known generally as RA-619, and even more specifically the Glendathu system. The doesn't seem to be armed, and a scan for life would only turn up three humanoid beings.

The ship made no advances of any sort towards the planet or the station, and seemed to just be there. Watching. Peaceful, it seemed, and the crew had no intentions of attacking. But they were truly awestruck. In front of them was a culture, a sophisticated one, unseen to any of their people, and they didn't know how to feel about it. They were just awaiting orders at this point.