Raid over Velch

Segmentum Tempestus 997.M41

System: Harkonnen IV; Planet: Arrakia

Location: Air Camp Velch

The men of the 59^th Estrucian Air Regiment were twenty minutes into their dinner when the sirens loudly sounded. Every pilot bolted out of the mess hall to get across the strip. By the time Tarquin got to his assigned hangar, the rest of his airwing was at their lockers getting into their suits. He ripped off his clothes as he got close.

Hydra flak batteries unleashed their ordnance at the approaching planes. Tarquin only became distracted by the battle when a flaming piece of wreckage smashed into the airstrip outside the hangar doors and slid down the runway. “Air Wing Zeri, mount up! Command decreed we're first in the air. Rookie, zip up; you're with me this fight!” Lt. Commander Scarpia announced before running to the plane.

“Aye Commander,” Tarquin replied. He finished getting in his suit, and dashed to the remaining Lightning. They quickly went through the start-up routine as autocannon fire sounded above their heads. Tarquin closed his canopy and pushed the stick forward. They flared their engines after straightening out on the runway. Hell Blades flew at them with guns blazing. Shots hit Tarquin's plane as it lunged forward.

Fireballs and bursts of autocannon fire lit up the night sky. A nearby flak tank exploded. The race down the runway felt like an eternity to Tarquin. More shells pounded their planes as they lifted off. Scarpia hit the afterburners and let loose with her own autocannon. The rest of Veri Wing followed suit.

Hell Blades flew by so close that Tarquin's cockpit shook in response. “Air Wing Veri, break off and engage at will!” Scarpia ordered. The other six pilots went in different directions, forming their own pairs. Tarquin followed the wing leader into a steep climb. They levelled off seconds later and turned back to the base. Many of the buildings burned brightly, giving the location of any plane flying near it. “I found a nice fat target. Rookie, follow me!” Scarpia proclaimed joyously.

They inverted and dove before flipping the planes back upright. Wind roared past the canopy as they picked up speed. Scarpia levelled out behind a small group of eight. A short burst from the autocannon tore the wing off one of the planes, causing it to fly into another Hell Blade alongside it. The rest scattered while taking additional casualties. Scarpia turned in pursuit of the larger clump. Two of them made a sharp turn right, but the third split left. “Go get him rookie!”

Tarquin made a turning climb left. He got into his opponent's turn radius and fired a volley of autocannon shells. But, the Hell Blade jinked to the right, levelling itself. Tarquin copied the maneuver, but overshot the exit. He flung the plane to the left as the enemy turned to get behind him. They weaved back and forth until the enemy turned wider left than normal. A tight turn brought Tarquin on his tail. Two lascannon bolts struck the engines, and the Hell Blade exploded.

Tarquin consulted his radar to find that Scarpia was being pursued by two enemies while she was chasing three more.

An inverted split-S dive built up speed for him as Tarquin raced to protect his wing leader. He approach them diagonally; but when he fired at the tail group, the lead planes made a climbing right turn into his line of fire. One of them took a few shots before dropping out of the sky. Tarquin unleashed another lascannon volley at the tailing enemies. One turned into a ball of flame, and the other went into a vertical climb.

Tarquin went up in pursuit. The opponent dived before he could take a shot, so Tarquin headed into a rolling dive. They both got uncomfortably close to the ground before zooming back up in a climb. Each cycle grew longer as each climb reached a higher peak. On the seventh pass, the Lightning was nearing its ceiling. The stall warning blared as Tarquin nosed the plane over. In the second before the dive began, he witnessed the Hell Blade fall tail-first. After plummeting a few feet, it entered an uncontrolled spiral. Tarquin stomped the air brakes and aligned himself above the opponent. A hail of autocannon shells tore apart the fuselage and eventually caused the plane to explode.

Tarquin dove back down to his squadmates and levelled off when the vox sounded, “All air wings, break off pursuit. Those interceptors are too fast to catch. Return to base and refuel.”

“Hey rookie, how many did you scratch?”

“Only four, ma'am; only four,” Tarquin responded as he headed back to the base.

Second Battle of Melange

Segmentum Tempestus 997.M41

System: Harkonnen IV; Planet: Arrakia

Situation: Desperate

The sun was about to rise when the land raider Arbiter of Damnation arrived at the outskirts of the town of Melange. A space marine left the nearby fire team as a side hatch popped open. Five more marines disgorged from the land raider. “Battle-Brother Akrios of squad Steel Rain,” he said.

“Sergeant Teller of veteran squad Firestorm. Where is the rest of 3^rd Company?”

“The insertion force was ambushed by an unexpected necron presence. Most of us were killed in those three days. As we started to withdraw, squad Spawn Slayers came under attack by renegade marines. Their rhino wrecked, the men gunned down shortly afterward; and Brother-Librarian Davos was claimed by the warp. The only survivors were us, a squads of scouts, and Brother Darien. Sergeant Athos is over on the other road with a fire team trying to do some field repairs on him.”

Teller spotted the mighty ironclad over the top of the hill. “Chapter Master Holt came with 4 companies to reinforce this planet after we received the distress call from the Indomitable.”

“What happened to the strike cruiser?” Teller responded, “It was destroyed by the time we arrived.”

He headed back to the land raider when the vox rang, “Incoming Thousand Sons!”

Akrios ran back to his squad while the veterans charged up the hill. Bolter fire lit up the distance, revealing a vindicator and daemon prince. Arbiter of Damnation surged forward and unleashed its lascannons at the enemy vehicle. None of the shots seemed to hit it. Meanwhile, the dreadnought advanced up the road with the fire team that fixed it.

Smoke grenades flew at their position and obscured half the highway. On the other side, the vindicator rolled down the road and fired its front cannon at the veterans. Sergeant Teller and one other were protected from the blast and accompanying bolter fire by the hill. With their vision obstructed, nobody saw the daemon charge from behind vindicator and assault the scouts.

The rising sun revealed the outline of a rhino in the smoke, which was fired upon by almost everyone. A barrage of lascannon shots went through the vindicator as the land raider nearly ran into it. One of the beams sniped the head off the pintle-mounted gunner. After the hatch opened, the command squad charged out to confront the traitorous marines that exited the destroyed rhino.

Dreadnought Darien ripped through another squad until the aspiring champion planted a melta bomb on his leg. The rest of the Thousand Sons gunned down Sergeant Athos' fire team. Another shell from the vindicator hit Chapter Master Holt dead on, killing his entire honor guard. Before the Thousand Sons could turn their guns on the rest of them, a group of terminators into existence behind the main crowd of traitors and proceeded to flatten them all with thunder hammers.

Having finished off the vindicator, the land raider turned its full attention to the daemon prince. A few lascannon bursts convinced the daemon to retreat. The remaining Thousand Sons withdrew after the daemon's departure. Sergeant Teller caught a glimpse of a dark-blue figure disappear into flame on a hill some distance away behind their position.

RMS Titanic, Opening the box

      Today a friend of mine got me a small gift. Revell's 1/400 model titanic. It was a lovely gift and I'm very excited to begin putting it together. I don't think it'll be done within the week because of scale of the project though. If anyone has any tips on how to paint it up with Citadel colours, please let me know. This has to be as nice as I can make it to honour those who have been lost on it. Leave any tips you have for me, and I'll check them out.

Arrakian Accord pt 4.

Segmentum Tempestus 999.M41

Harkonnen IV System; Planet Arrakia
Days on planet: 13

Situation: Critical



From the diary of Major Carpenter: We hit another sandstorm, so I Picked up reading the service record again. At some point after Golgotha, he was an Imperial Guard Commander without an Imperial guard unit. His requests to Cadian Command for a new regiment had all been denied, and he was unable to transfer to another unit. He met up with an Inquisitor from the Ordo Malleus at some point in his medicae treatments. The name of the guy was erased. Typical. Whatever the details of the meeting were, they involved him getting incredibly high quality treatment for his injuries in exchange for disappearing and working for the inquisition. I did some searching, and other than his medicae release forms, there is not a single mention of Captain Peach again until the battle of Tyrok fields! To top things of, when he was finally mentioned again in the after action report of the battle, he had gained an entirely new regiment and carried the title of Field Marshall. Whatever happened to him in those years of inquisitorial service had really paid off. He was entirely different from the man who lost his regiment on Golgotha. Unrelated note. Just heard the Engine cut out, going to talk to the driver.

Aelgafar climbed out of his seat and knocked on the small hatch that separated the passenger compartment and the driver compartment. There was no reply so he tried knocking again. No reply. He eased open the hatch and peered inside the driver's compartment. The Sergeant and his driver were gone. He went inside the compartment and looked around for any sign of where they could be. The front hatch was open and there was the tattered remains of Imperial fatigues strewn about the front of the Chimera. "No. It can't be like this" Carpenter whispered to himself. "It can't be this way." He checked the fuel reading for the vehicle. It read 19%. "Alright, I can work with this." He sat down at the controls for the Chimera and tried to start it back up, but to no success. A light flashed on the console indicating that there was a problem with the electrical box. "It's always some damn thing." He moved over to the electrical box and pried it open with his combat knife.

"By the Emperor.." He gasped. The inside of the box had been shot and fried to the point of uselessness. There was only one weapon that could leave damages like that. An Imperial Laspistol. "Frak!" He punched the wall of the chimera then reeled back in pain holding his hand. "Of course. Frakking metal box of an APC." Aelgafar climbed out of the front hatch of the chimera and into the harsh desert sun.

He took a deep breathe and looked around for any sign of the chimera's crew. There was a single set of footprints leading off to the east. "Frak" he muttered as he returned to the chimera to salvage what he could. Before he left, he sent out a call on the emergency vox caster that was attached to the top of the turret. "This is Major Carpenter of the XII Vatarian Legion. The chimera I had commandeered is inoperable. Separated from any kind of Imperial Forces. Heading due north from my current position. Emperor be with me."

The desert heat scorched Carpenter's lungs with each heaving breathe he took. He had long since abandoned his flak jacket and wore only the fatigues that were underneath. "By the Emperor, who would live in a place like this?" He asked himself as he began to drag his feet. The chimera he abandoned had long since left his view, and was now only a glimmer in the far, far distance. Aelgafar tripped over something cropping up out of the sand. He turned around and dug around it and let out a gasp of surprise. It was the driver of the chimera, there was a hole in the skull from a small weapon. The sergeant was still nowhere to be seen. He kept very attentive as he walked onward.

It felt like an eternity of walking. The sun was now setting and the winds were picking up. There was a sandstorm coming. Carpenter fell to his knees and unbuckled his pistol's holster and sabre's scabbard. They weighed too much for him to carry them any farther. He tried to stand but quickly fell onto his face instead. He could begin to feel the tiny needles of the sandstorm drawing closing. "Emperor" He gasped "Emperor help me! I have served you well, have I not!?" The winds of the sandstorm began to screech as they drew ever closer and swirled around him. "Emperor what must I do to serve you!?" The only reply was the sandstorm encircling him and he could feel the layers of his fatigues begin to rip away, and his skin became bloodied as it was ripped open by the wind. His cries of anguish became hateful. "Damn you Emperor! You sit and watch as I lay and die! How many souls must fade away before you act!?" He began to hate the Emperor. He hated everything about the Emperor, he hated the Inquisition, He hated Terra, He hated the Priests, He hated them all. "You are nothing but a corpse! A corpse! The horror that men commit in your name is a testament of how fallen you truly are! The horrors, of the horrors! You are nothing but a false god! Damn you, and damn your imperium!" He screamed those words into the sandstorm. His voice pulled from him as he was enveloped in the blackness of pain and suffering. Then it all stopped. All the pain, all the suffering, his anguish ceased to exist in one fell being. He felt strength fill his muscles as a light seemed to flicked in front him just out of reach. As he began to crawl after it, it moved away from him.

"C-Come back!" he cried desperatly as it kept moving away from him. He continued to follow it until it vanished. He felt his strength dwindle away again, and felt the familiar pain of the sandstorm. No longer wishing to fight death, he simply gave up. His rescuer was gone, and he was to be lost here in this Arrakian desert. He felt a rumbling through the sand. "It must be a Sand Wrym." He thought. As suddenly as it began, the rumbling stopped. Out of nowhere he heard a familiar voice. "Sir? Major Carpenter, is that you?" He struggled to look up and saw the familiar outline of Sergeant Rielly. He was rescued. "First squad dismount! Get the major inside NOW! Don't worry sir, you'll be alright."

As he felt himself being carried inside the cramped innards of a chimera, he heard something unusual. Something from deep within his own brain. He heard a voice, and it only had one thing to say. "You belong to me Aelgafar. You always have, you simply did not know it. You will always belong to me. Now embrace the cold darkness of sleep. When you awaken, your true purpose will reveal itself."

Update: What a lovely day to fight!

      Such a lovely morning it is today! A slight breeze blowing, a filling breakfast, and my iPod on shuffle. The best part is, A long awaited battle is to take place tonight, fighting off the Thousand Sons in the Arrakian Campaign! For those who haven't been able to keep up, the Imperials are FAR from doing well fighting off the chaos onslaught. That will change tonight, I can feel it.

My breakfast and the view I had it in

I also spoke with Colonel Scipio this morning regarding a small project of mine and got some good advice that will be looked into with optimism.
      The Arrakian Accord pt 4 may take a little more time than I would like, mostly because I've been working on my 2nd Company models and playing Silent Hunter III with some side gaming on World In Conflict and XCOM Enemy unknown. Between the gaming and working on 2nd Coy I did manage to finish a commission for my friend Andrew, which turned out nice and I should have pictures uploaded shortly. It's all coming together though so at least a little bit of work is getting done on my end.
      An update on the Thunder Dragons: I've finished another one of my tactical squads (two more to go!) and have begun to paint up an old metal Dreadnaught. (In hindsight maybe I should take WIP pictures.. it will be done!) After that my goal is to finish up my Assault squad. It was a good idea to alternate between guard and marines. It takes longer, but I find it helps maintain sanity with painting. With guard comes ordered, nice uniforms. With marines comes blood red with white war paint all across the armour. Still working on a good Imperial Vehicle paint schemes though..

Also, before I forget, Soon I won't be the only one posting here. The man who Inspired Field Marshall Peach (AKA the leader of the Omega Legion and those pesky Necrons) will be positng AAR's and pictures here as well. Huzzah for Cooperation!

Arrakian Accord Pt 3.

Segmentum Tempestus 999.M41

Harkonnen IV System; Planet Arrakia
Days on planet: 12

Situation: Critical



They were all gone. The Leman Russ Von Sica and its crew, as well as Major Carpenter, were all alone. At some point in the last few days the chain that held them in place within the convoy had snapped, and they unknowningly strayed far off course. From what they could scrape up navigation wise, they were about a hundred kilometres away from the target village. The tank's commander had long given up trying to raise anyone on the vox. It simply did not have the range to be trying to link back up with any kind of force. "Alright. We have a general Idea of where we're going. Take us out Sergeant." Before he could hear the sergeant's reply, Carpenter got back up into the cupola and surveyed the area with binoculars. Far off in the distance, he saw what looked like a few structures. The directional compass on the binoculars said east. "Sergeant, bearing one-oh-five. We have what looks like Imperial PreFab structures. adjust the course so that we pass by them at a close distance."

As they got closer, Carpenter could see there was much more than just the few structures. It was the ruins of an entire city, and there was still a battle raging from somewhere within the depths of the ruins. "Sergeant Yrmi, take us into the city. Slowly. Sponson gunners on alert here." The Von Sica crept down a ruined street, passing occasionally under the shadow of a ruined high-rise. As the street grew much narrower, buildings began to creep upwards into the sky. The echos of whatever battle was being raged became louder and disorienting. Suddenly, an Astartes with Jet black armour ran into the street in front of them. Before Carpenter could bring the tank's pintle mounted storm bolter to bear, the Space Marine was cut down by an unseen lasgun. Carpenter jumped down off the Von Sica and inspected the marine. Black Legion. "Who goes there?" The voice rang out of an alleyway nearby. He decided it would be wise to respond truthfully. "Major Aelgafar Carpenter. Vatarian XII Legion, Second Company!" There was a brief silence before a man in Dark Green flak and camoflauge fatigues stepped out of the shadows. "Guardsman Henri Chesaney. Arrakian 3rd Calvalry. Follow me, sir. I'll take you to my CO."

One street over, it was a hellscape. Wrecked vehicles were strewn about. Burnt out chimeras, half incinirated chaos predators, husks of leman russ tanks, anything an Imperial commander could bring to bear had it's place among the wreckage somewhere. Carpenter followed the Guardsmen up the street and was suprised to find the area opened up into what he highly suspected to have been a park at some point. Trenches had been dug and what was left of the 3rd was dug in around one central bunker. Being led through the trenches, carpenter truly saw the situation of the third. Men who had bled out while manning their rifle positions, empty ammunition boxes strewn about, shell cases coated the ground next to unexploded munitions. Aelgafar wondered how anyone could hold out in these conditions. Just beyond the trenches was an area filled with the dead of the Black Legion and Guard alike. In some places where the trench had collapesed, bodies were being used to hold up the walls and form a type of cover.

When he finally reached the centre bunker he was suprised to see the entrance was not a door, but a hole that had been blown open on one side. "Sir, go inside and down there stairs to operations. Colonel Marlow will want to see you." Having said that, the young trooper took off to return to his original position. Aelgafar reached onto his belt and pulled off a small radio. "Carpenter to Von Sica, Return to base. There is no way you can get through these buildings now that i'm on the other side." There was a slight pause before a reply was heard. "Yes Major. Also, good luck out there." Carpenter put his radio away and headed inside the bunker. He was being entirely ignored by the troopers manning the defences. Dedication, he thought. To what was the question. Survival? The Homeworld? Their Colonel? Who could tell. He took a moment to look over these men and what little peice of land they had paid in blood for. All out beyond the trenches was proof that the third hadn't just been sitting on the sidelines. The dead easily numbered in the thousands, and the occasional cry of pain hinted that there were survivors out in the sea of bodies who didn't have the good fortune to die, nor the luxury of being rescued. The men of the Third were grim. They wore tattered uniforms and battered armour. Their faces bore a stoic expression of men who highly suspected they were to die in that very moment. Then Aelgafar saw something that burned into his mind more than any great daemon of the warp ever could. He saw a soldier take off his helmet and step up out of the trench and was handed a strange case. He took the case and climbed up to a flat spot next to the central bunker. The case opened and the trooper took out a beaten and battered string viola. And then he began to play. Something about the scene burned into Aelgafar's mind. Surrounded by the worst kinds of death, surrounded by pain of unimaginable levels, This man was playing to mourne the dead. Carpenter rushed to get to the lower levels of the bunker, for he simply could not hold the sight in any longer.

"Colonel Marlow of the 3rd Calvalry?" The man who hunched over the operations table stood and turned toward a saluting Major Carpenter. He spoke in a raspy voice. "Yeah, that's me." He saluted back to put Carpenter at ease before continuing. "Who are you and what is your purpose here?" Carpenter adjusted his Beret and spoke. "Major Aelgafar Carpenter of the Vatarian XII Legion, 2nd company. I'm looking for a Field Marshall Peach, sir." Colonel Marlow simply stared at him as a response. He bore the same stoic face and spoke without hope. His uniform resembled that of his men's, and he looked unshaven for at least a week. "Well Major, the man you're looking for isn't here. We've been out of contact since the invasion." Carpenter cleared his throat. "Well sir, my company has been sending out vox signals since we landed to try an-" Marlow cut him short. "Major why do you think we've been out of contact with Peach? Our transmitter got blown to the warp in the first few hours of invasion. We only have short range vox. On top of that, whenever Baelstrom and his lot came through here in the first few days, he ordered all spare equipment to be loaded onto his chimeras and wheeled transports." "Baelstrom sir?" "Yeah. He runs the Capital City's PDF. From what I hear he let the Astartes get blown to hell while he and his men held at his field HQ." He looked back at his maps. "You know you can't stay here. In a couple of hours the Black Legion will attack again. They've managed to push us back to this position by doing that. Street by street, building by building, they pushed us back. We've run out of everything." Aelgafar took a step forward. "Sir, I hate to have to be asking this, but I'll need transport if this position is unable to be held until I can request for one. It is vital I get to the village of MaiLai." Marlow sighed and looked into his datapad. "Do you know why this is a Calvalry Regiment, Major?" Before Carpenter could reply, Marlow continued. "Up until about two thousand years ago, this unit was entirely mounted up on horses. We carried everything we needed for battle. We traded our hunting lances and horses for Chimeras and Multilasers. It may not look it now, but before all this began" he notioned around him at the bunker and trenches. "the entire regiment was able to be transported by our dedicated chimera force." he took a breathe. "We only have one Chimera remaining. Ony one. It can be found on the eastern defensive wall. I'll leave it up to you to decide to take it or not." He set down his datapad and began walking our of the bunker followed closely by Aelgafar. He stopped at the entrance of the bunker and took a long look at his men. "This will all be for nothing if can't stop the Black Legion. Major, I hope you find the Field Marshall, If anyone could stem this heretical tide, it's him. Emperor help us if he can't. You have a Chimera to requisition. I'll leave you to it." Marlow turned and went back into the depths of the bunker, leaving Aelgafar standing there speechless.

The only chimera avalible to the 3rd Calvalry was currently in use. What Colonel Marlow failed to mention was that it was being used to evacuate the wounded. Aelgafar stood in the hatch of the chimera staring inside at the wounded guardsmen who occupied the vehicle. Carpenter stopped the vehicle's commander as he was passing. "Sergeant, where is this chimera going?"
"Fort dix, sir."
"Where is that in relation to MaiLai?"
 "Opposite end of the region, sir."
 Aelgafar became quiet and the sergeant went back to inspecting the chimera before he was to make one last run to evacuate the wounded. From somewhere in the city, the war drums and war cries of the black Legion could be heard starting up. The Men of the Third began to hastily prepare their positions for the next wave of Traitor Marines that would undoubtly overrun their position. "Sergeant. Unload the wounded." The sergeant looked at him, as did all the wounded in the chimera. "Sir?!" Aelgafar cleared his throat. "You heard me Sergeant. Unload the wounded, and make ready to punch out of here." There was a pause before the sergeant began to help the wounded unload. Each wounded man stared at him with mixtures of hatred and silent pleas for reconsiderment. After they were unloaded and he got into the back of the chimera, he made eye contact with only one of them as the rear hatch was closed. He heard the Sergeant's voice over the intercom. "So, MaiLai then?" Carpenter pushed the talk button to reply. "Yes, MaiLai."
"Rodger that. MaiLai. It'll be about two days."
 "Alright, Sergeant."

From the diary of Major Carpenter: Note to self, Request that Segmentum Command recognize the 3rd Arrakian Calvalry as heroes of the Arrakian War. Emperor protect them all. Their leader, a Colonel Marlow, seemed to think that Field Marshall Peach is the Key to all this. I hope he's right. Not particularly in the mood to do this vox-recording stuff. Not after men who are much better than I gave their life so that I may complete my mission. Major Aelgafar Carpenter, Signing off for now.

The Arrakian Accord. Pt 2.

Segmentum Tempestus 999.M41

Harkonnen IV System; Planet Arrakia
Days on planet: 9

Situation: Nominal



From the diary of Major Carpenter: We set off early this morning, before the sun could even come up. I could swear that half of our expidition was falling asleep while we loaded up the convoy, so I authorised the troops to sleep in the chimeras in shifts. That should at least make sure in the event of attack that we're all well rested. The Inquisitor gave me a complete copy of Peach's Dossier. I breifly looked it over before my duties got the best of me. Field Marshall AlausPeach. Cadian by birth huh, then what's he doing out here? This is hundreds of lightyears away from the Cadian gate. Graduated the Kasr Derth Military Academy top of his class. Made captain only two years later. Damn, it took me four years to get out of the leuitenant ranks. Fought beside Creed at Tyrok Fields, and was a potential candidate for Lord Castellan until he stepped down. Frak, how could he let a small chaos incursion overrun the entire planet's garrison?

Major Carpenter stood upon the high cupola of the Leman Russ Von Sica. Normally Commisar Rio would be in the same place, but he had moved further down the convoy to ensure that no Guardsmen were acting out of line. He could really appreciate the strength of the leman russ. Even now as he was only in the cupola, the roars and vibrations of the mighty engine made him feel unstoppable. "Sir, I just took a look at the nav-data. There might be a problem." Carpenter turned to see that Rielly had ran up to the tank and mounted one of the track guards. "Problem, Sergeant?" Rielly glanced at the datapad he was holding and nodded with a sombre look on his face. "Yes sir. This current direction is both leading us several Kilometres off course, and also in the direction of a pretty fierce sandstorm." Carpenter turned and activated the cupola's vox. "Inquisitor, Are you aware that your acotyles are leading us off course and into a sandstorm?" The reply was almost instantanious. "Yes Major, I do. We are stopping about a Kilometre from here and chaining the vehicles together. Our speed will not exceed 20kph. Do not question my methods, lest you find yourself wanting." The vox cut out and Carpenter swore to himself aloud. "What's the word, Major?" Rielly asked. "Have the vehicle crews get ready to chain us all together. Any troopers that opted to ride atop the tanks or chimeras, have them inside within the next half hour. The good Inquisitor I'm sure will order this shortly, but I want everyone to be ready beforehand. Hop to it." Rielly saluted quickly then dropped off the tread guard and began running down the convoy line relaying orders. He dropped inside the turret of the Russ, and closed the hatch.

Days on planet: 11

Situation: Delayed



From the diary of Major Carpenter: We've been in the storm for about two days now. As of last night, we halted the convoy in order to wait for the storm to pass so we can get our bearings. I can hear the sands whipping against the hull of the tank, sounds like hell out there. The tank crew have donned their earplugs and are all fast asleep, as per my orders. No sense in staying awake for days at a time through this. Accoring to what sattelite reports we managed to recieve before the storm cut us off, this stom is cross-continent. It won't let up for a while. Why would anyone want to live here? Between the storm and the Sand Wyrms that keep pounding against the hull trying to get to the meal inside, this place is a death world! There were reports from our preliminary patrols that there are beasts that dwell under the sand. Some are supposedly as large as a baneblade, and they dig these massive trapdoors that when prey goes over, the spring up and could easily pull something as big as a Leman Russ down to it's death. And Peach had been Assigned here. Someone wanted him gone. I looked into the record more as well. If what I read is correct, he would have to be older than Yarrick! Some time before Tyrok Fields, his Regiment was deployed to Golgotha with Yarrick. He was unable to go due to an injury sustained during warp travel. We all know what happened on that planet. What would that be like, having the whole regiment wiped out except you. It changed him. According to Medicae reports he became more reclusive and yet also more impulsive. No one blamed him for not being with his men, but I'm willing to bet that he considers it the geatest dishonour he has ever done. I'm cutting off the recorder for now. Spending another hour on shift, then waking up the acting sergeant to take over. Major Carpenter signing off.

The Arrakian Accord. Pt 1.

Segmentum Tempestus 999.M41

Harkonnen IV System; Planet Arrakia
Days on planet: 7

Situation: Stable



　

　

It was another humid morning on the planet of Arrakia. Early morning drills had just finished and 2nd Company was going about it's daily routine at a hastily constructed field headquarters. They had made planetfall a week ago and had been setting up defensive positions ever since. Major Carpenter stepped out of his tent and was almost immediatly greeted by his adjutent and long time friend, First Sergeant Rielly. "Good morning sir." Carpenter yawned back his reply. "Good morning Rielly. Agenda for today?" Rielly handed him a datapad with only a handful of words. Same orders as before, Hold fast and Dig in. "Same game as before. Sit tight and hole up." He paused for a moment before stepping off in the direction of the mess tent. "I'm getting breakfast. You're more than welcome to join me."
"Thank you sir."

After breakfast the officers of 2nd Company got together into the Chapel, which doubled as the operations room. The officers were chatting amongst themselves unter a clear, commanding voice called the room to attention. Major carpenter moved quickly to stand in front of the room and cleared his throat. "Alright Gentlemen. Unfortunatly the orders of the day are the same as the others. However a situation may or may not be developing. As you all know the Commander of this planet's garrisons is a man called Field Marshall Peach. He was last heard from two days ago when his mobile field HQ came under fire from chaos cultists in a village area that was thought to be secure. All attempts to contact him, or anyone under his command for that matter, have been met with silence. This can mean one of three things. One, His position is overrun and we can no longer count on the support of planetary PDF. Two, his transmitter was taken out and it is simply a mechanical problem. Or three, He has fallen to the temptations of Chaos. The third one is highly unlikely though." He motioned for the windows to be covered. As they were, a holomap of the area appeared with two blips over a wide area. He pointed to one blip. "This is our position. The other blip, approximatly three days from here, is the village that Peach was last reported in. If we are unable to ma-" The door to the chapel slammed open and as large as an Astartes entered with haste, followed by various individuals. All bore the seal of the Inquisition. The lead man stopped in front of Major carpenter and held up his inquisitorial seal. "Major, by order of the Ordo Malleus, I am taking command here."

The room was silent. Major Carpenter looked furious. "You've got to be frakking me! There is no Heresy amongst my company!" The Inquisitor was unmoved. "Calm yourself major. I do not seek Heresy amongst your or your men. I merely require additional forces for my mission." Carpenter thought for a moment before he replied. "What mission do you have, Inquisitor?" "I am to find the Field Marshall for the planetary garrison here. It has been decided by the Inquisition that his survival is of utmost importance if we are to secure this planet from the Arch-traitor Abbadon." Carpenter looked the man over, then to his platoon commanders. "Inquisitor, will two platoons plus chimeras and a single Leman Russ tank be enough of a contribution? We aren't exactly a regiment out here." The Inquisitor thought this over for a moment. "Very well. My collegues and I leave the day after tomorrow. Have your men ready to depart by then." He promptly turned and left, all the while being followed by his Acotyles. "Alright." Carpenter sighed openly. "Captain Uylesses, take out second and third platoons. I know it'll be a bit of a strain on the chain of command, but that's why i've decided to go with you." Before any objections could be raised, he held up a hand. "Zip it. All of you. This won't be the first time you operate without me, and it won't be the last. While I'm gone just follow SOP's." Dismissed, all of you.

2nd Company (No pictures yet, save 1)

      Before I get started, the picture is from a recent game I had with a few mates of mine. It was supposed to be part of the Arrakian Campaign, but this is the only picture I got from it all. Technical difficulties are a beech. I'll probably end up either repeating the battle, or reenacting what happened with my own forces. Moving on.

I began a project of mine as my numbers are filling out a little more. Second Company. Identifiable only by a red stripe on the armour.
After thinking about it for a while, the red stripe idea just didn't seem like it was enough. I began to go through my bitz box and my "Throwaway models bin" (Models that are broken an unsalvageable on their own) and scrapped up two platoons of Catachans. After some tinkering and kitbashing, I'd made a squad of troopers that looked especially rough. I liked the look, truth be told. Added personality. A type of Veteran-like look that made these guys look like they've seen it all. Armour that is beaten and battered, cyber enhancements, non-regulation looking uniforms. The works. These guys just look like they've seen it all, and don't care. I've determined that will be the look I go for with this company. Hardened Front-Line fighters. I will be able to post pictures as soon as the command squad is finished, so hopefully soon. I'm very very excited about how they've all turned out!

Short Story, 2nd Company Deployment

(The following takes place between the first and second battle of Arrakia)
Segmentum Tempestus 997.M41

Fetian System, Planet Maracha




　

It was another quiet morning at the Vatarian XII's Field Command headquarters in the southern hemisphere of Maracha. Lord-General Von Sica sat in his command tent patiently awaiting the arrival of the Legion's six company commanders. He heard footsteps outside his tent as Knight Commander Zaros entered swiftly and snapped to attention. "Sir, Reporting as ordered." Von Sica motioned him to sit in a chair next to him. "Come now Zaros, no need for the formalities of rank today." The knight commander hesitated for a moment then sat down. "The other company commanders should be along shortly." Zaros took a breath before he spoke. "Sir, the other commanders are unavailable. As you only made planetfall yesterday, it seemed fitting to fill you in today after a night's rest." The General seemed to go still for a moment before uttering a simple "Continue." "Well sir, My own first Company is tied up retaking the Pass to the north. companies four, five, and six are in the hive of Del-Onigrav trying to secure a space port to bring down heavier firepower. Company three is trying to clear an Oasis due west of here from an ork Infestation. Early reports are saying it's like a miniature death world there." "What about second Company?" Zaros showed a small hint of uneasiness across his face. "Well sir, They are here but they just came off the line a few days ago. They were the spearhead for the invasion. Pretty badly beaten up and quite.. Irregular." "Irregular, Zaros?" He nodded. "Yes sir. Since making planetfall they have made alterations to their uniform, Began to carry non-issue equipment, Have become less engaged in the formalities of rank, an-" The general raised a hand to cut him off. "They have adapted to the war that is being fought here, Zaros. You may not understand having come from an Academy, But when a unit fights a war as vicious as the one here it begins to adapt in order to survive. Think Zaros. Between the unholy heat, the ork raids at day, chaos incursions at night, and daily shellings, They must do what they deem necessary to survive. Give me the company records." "Yes sir." Zaros handed him a datapad with the Legion Information on it.
Vatarian Armed Forces, 8th Battlegroup

XII Legion, 2nd Company 'Backbreakers'

Current Deployment: Marachan Crusade

Previous Actions: Damocles Gulf Crusade, Kieldar Rebellion, Daratar Offensive, Siege of Grotzka

Decorations: Honour Company (x8), Occupation Medallion (x2), Assault Commendation (x8), Multiple Unit Citations

Commanding Officer: Major Aelgafar Carpenter
"Zaros, what do you know about Major Carpenter." Zaros scratched his chin. "Only what I know sir. Former Royal Marine. Taught at the Airborne Academy after that. Over three dozen decorations, No record of ever having lost a position, No record of ever having a man being declared MIA either. Met him once. He's a bit.. off." The general nodded. "To be expected. I believe i've made my choice." "Choice, sir?" "As of 0047 this morning, the planet of Arrakia has come under major threat from the Forces of Chaos. The capital has been overrun, and the PDF, along with Astartes and Localized Regiments are fighting a guerilla war in the countryside. They have called for any and all available reinforcements. I intend to Oblige them." Zaros looked shocked. "Sir!? We are barely holding the line here, and you intend to send a company, An entire company off planet?! The VII Legion is already being beaten back by the heretics on this planet and you intend to weaken our forces even more?" General Von Sica stood and spoke loudly. "Do not think because I do away with formalities that you may disrespect me so! If Arrakia falls, as does our supply line! And if that falls there is no point in continuing this lovely little war of ours! If we can assist in defending Arrakia, they will be more than obliged to send us reinforcements and the aid we so desperately need." Zaros began to speak but the General cut him off. "I do not need to hear any more of your comments. Inform Carpenter he is to pull his men back to the Naval Lifters at once. They are off planet by sunset. Dismissed."