Chapter Six

The moment the humans had entered the hidden room to find the Istvaan Salamander Survivor Jacen knew. The sense of alarm had alerted his highly intuitive senses and he had reached out with his mind to seek information. When he scryed into the thoughts of the humans and saw through there eyes he was stunned with disbelief. But after only a few seconds of witnessing his mind was pierced like a searing hot knife. His vision swam and then nothing, just blackness. And then just one word rang out like a bell across an open plain. WITCH. Jacen returned to conciousness with Azus looking over him, a look of concern and horror on his face.
"Jacen, whats wrong?"
Jacen was as white as a sheet, he trembled as he spoke, knowing the full gravitas of what was about to happen.
"The Inquisition, they have declared me a heretic and are going to hunt me, and all of you down"
Azus was taken aback by the infomation. Why would the imperium that he served so hard want him dead? This must be false!
"And thats not all... There is a Salamander underneith the planets crust.... And he is a survivor from the Heresy"
Azus knew now why his precious Imperium would want him dead, it all made sense. Jacen had seen what he should never have seen, but why was it so bad? It should be a joyous occassion that  a member of there founding chapter be found alive after all this years? But the thoughts were quickly pushed out  of his mind. A war was about to be dropped on there heads, a holy war, and that would mean the Imperium would bring its worst.
"Jacen, when you are better report to me, until then rest, youl need it. Everyone else, report to battle stations, I want my council with me and a message broadcast to any loyalist space marines, tell them what is happening but don't mention the Salamander, we don't want any other innocent chapters to die because of us".

The desert fields were barren, but it served as good as any a place to fight. The forces had been split, Jacen was leading the army to face whatever the Imperium would send to capture him, no doubt an Inquisitor with them, and Azus had gone into the Lorelei crystal fields to help mask there escape off planet to return home and warn them of the innevitable war that would befall them. All they needed was to get in signal range, not let any ships follow them home.
The first sign of anything coming for them was a chill that swept over Jacen. It was nor borne by any wind, but was the sensation any psyker had in the vicinity of an Inquisitor. But it was an unnaturally strong chill. The Imperium hadn't sent just  an inquisition, it had sent a full Inquisition task force. It was then that Jacen realized they were already doomed. But surrender would save nobody, they would fight to the last man. The sound of its heavy footsteps masked by the sand, a Knight Titan loomed into view, they had spared no expense. Without warning, it opened fire.
The marines did not stand a chance, none were prepared for the onslaught the Inquisition brought force. Its most lowly of acolytes carried into battle hotshot lasguns, designed to pierce the heavy armour of the space marines. It was wholesale slaughter. Wherever defense was thickest the titan, which quicky became known by its name Lux Aeterna, crushed it mercelessly. All around him his chapter was dying, and then heading straight for him, loomed an ancient land raider. He braced himself as the chill grew stronger. It stopped a few yards away, and out exited a lithe young woman, a leaf bladed sword in hand crackling with barely controlled energy. Jacen raised his hands and lightning flew from his fingertips, but the inquisitor merely raised her hand and deflected it. Her retalation was to unsheath a bizare firearm and before Jacen knew what it was he was on his knees writhing in pain. The needle pistol had injected him with a host of virulent poisons and toxins that was enough to stop one of his two hearts. He knew he couldnt let her get off another shot, and so he filled himself with psychic power and lunged straight at her, but she was prepared.
She darted to the side and mekely parried his blade as if it were nothing, her retaliation that of a master duellist, speared him through his left arm. Jacen quickly realized she was using her psychic talents to elevate her physical abilities. Every parry was perfect, every lunge a strike. It became raw power agaisnt finese, but the Inquisitor was still human, and despite landing plenty of blows, the space marine was healing at a much faster rate. Every strike on the inquisitor would send her sprawling, ever cut a vicious slash. She was growing weaker, her psychic power draining until soon she was missing her mark. Swords clashed and the two psykers willed themselves on. It was then that the Inquisitor knew she was beat, and resorted to a last strike. She let her guard wide open as she made for a direct lunge on Azus. He took no hesitation in striking her in the moment of opportunity, piercing her heart with his blade, but as he did so hers pierced his, and a smile on her face revealed her plan. With all her strength, the Inquisitor poured everything she had left into her force sword. Azus could feel the power filling the blade and reacted quickly by channeling his own into the wound, trying desperately to stop the inevitable. The buildup of psychic power whipped up a wind around them, a tornado of sand and warp lightning until with a mighty crack, both combatants were sent sprawling away from each other.
Pain. Thats all he felt. Endless pain. He was dead, he was sure of it. Maybe now he would meet the emperor and ask him why he had forsaken him. Had he not served faithfully all these years? A sensation ripped through him. A chill. Oh no... he was worse than dead, he was drifting in the warp, the gods of chaos were going to make him there play-thing!
He gasped as he sat up, only to be forced back down onto the hot dry sand. A man stood over him with an antique pistol aimed at his head.
"I am Lord Inquisitor Samuel. You have just killed a member of the Inquisition, and are wanted as a branded heretic. You are to be executed"
Azus couldn't move, the light human foot on his chest may as well have been a castle.
"Just end me, send me to my beloved emperor for forgiveness"
The Inquisitor just stood there for what seemed like an eternity, until he finally took his foot off of him. He turned to his retinue had muttered a few words. A grotesque form filled his vision. A daemon! He struggled and tried to fight back but found his limbs no longer obeyed him. It bent down and picked him up and carried him to the waiting land raider. There he was deposited on the floor. Samuel climbed in after him and the door closed. The great machine began to move and soon they were on there way to what Azus was certain was his doom. They had been travelling for what seemed like hours when the entire tank shook violently. Samuel got up in an instant and walked over to the control panel inside the tank. After a few brief words he walked over to an alcove in the wall and got out a strange spider like device. He placed it on Azus and instantly he felt like the world was sat atop his chest. Satisfied the Inquisitor left the land raider and Azus alone with his thoughts.

The Terra Templars came out of the heavens like a thunderbolt. They struck hard and fast and right into the center of the army. In any normal army this would have crushed morale and won the battle then and there, but this was no normal army. This was the private army of Samuel and it knew how to act. Quickly the army regained its posture and without any orders acted out exactly how they should. They formed up into detachments and began creating firing squads to face the oncoming marines. The Terra Templars, however, put up much more of a fight than the Dragon-Kin, for they were far more prepared. A stormraven streaked overhead, stopping only briefly to unload a squad of the elite first company of the chapter. As it began to take off it noticed the folly of flying so low. Its pict-screens were filled by the sight of Lux Aeterna. The machines engines screeched as they attempted to take flight but it was not fast enough. The titan lunged out with its reaper chainsword and sheared off one of the crafts wings. It lurched violently to the side but by the skill and dedication of its crew managed to create stable flight and launched itself vertically into the sky, its use spent for the battle.
The Lux Aeternas shields flashed in violent hues of red and purple as massed fire reigned down upon it. The most recent and most violent caused by an enemy land raider. The tank was no match but stood its ground, firing point blank in desperation as the titan merely walked up and clove it in two. Another flash of fire came from the side, but his pict-feeds registered only one weapon in the squads elite company was a threat, and so walked off, ignoring them. A squad had entrenched itself among a patch of vegetation lead by there captain Nimrod, and was slaughtering the acolytes piecemeal. Soon the acolytes would be spent and this could not be allowed to happen. He charged his great behemoth forwards as another flash lit up his rear shields. Without stopping his thunderous charge, he pivoted his battle cannon behind him and with a quick shot ended the lives of the first company. Back on track the titan hurled itself at the entrenched marines, butchering them to a single warrior to reacted accordingly and formed a tactical retreat into the rocks surrounding him. Brave captain Nimrod had launched himself at the titan but had unfortunately the lunge carried him into the maw of the titans battle cannon. Before he could jump out he heard the unmistakable clank of shells being loaded and prayed to the emperor it would be quick. It was. Dean was pleased that his titan was doing so well today, in top form and only the most minor of damage. A distress call flashed up on his feed. A group of acolytes that had been securing the flank were being butchered by a group of terminators lead by a dreadnought.
Samuel had been watching the battle. It had gone far worse than he had hoped but better than he had feared. The only threat left was a lone squad that was trying to reach him and save the librarian, but the rest of the forces had been destroyed piecemeal, though at great cost this time, and were converging on him. The Lux Aeterna would be here before any other. The moment the dreadnought turned the corner the titan appeared. It didn't stand a chance. Lux Aeterna plunged its great blade through the dreadnought, the great blades clanking and tearing as the armoured warrior simply fell apart. But in his arrogance, Dean had not noticed the terminator squad closing in on him. The first he knew of it was when his titan violently lurched to one side and his screens briefly shut off. The unmistakable effects of a thunder hammer strike. His datastreams showed he was fine but he didn't trust any system under the influence of thunder hammer discharge. He turned his great machine to face his attackers and in a great swipe slew all but one. To his dismay the survivor was the wielder of the thunder hammer and again he charged in, this time with much greater effect. He swung the hammer in a mighty ark which clashed against the knee joint of the giant titan. There was a sound of grinding metal when suddenly the joint sheared and the titan came crashing down onto one knee. Dean struggled to control the descent of the titan and miraculously managed to keep it upright. The datastreams were working again, and the titan was coming back to fully operational. The last strike must have jolted it back into action. The machine spirit roared in bestial fury as its defensive mechanisms came back online. The heavy stubbers spurted hot fury at the lone terminator forcing him back. Behind him, a firing squad of the entire remnants of the Inquisitorial force, and to his side a land raider and Samuel. He knew he had no choice. In a flash of light he was gone, the teleporter matrix on his ship taking him to safety. Dean let out a scream of frustration, amplified by the cry of anguish from the Lux Aeternas machine spirit. Thankfully the damage was easily repairable, but the cry was at the frustration of there quarry escaping. Next time, he would not be so lucky.

Samuel walked back into the Land Raider. Jacen was back to being fully alert, but his limbs still would not obey him and he felt cut off completely from the warp. He was a prisoner. The Inquisitor sat down and soon after the machine began to move again. After a while, Samuel turned to him.
"Her name was Megan. She was my acolyte once, and a good friend. She died doing her job, and you are not responsible for her death, just your own salvation"
Jacen just sat there, words were useless in the eyes of an Inquisitor. He was guilty of something anyway, just being a psyker was enough for these guys.
"The Salamander found in the caverns. He is to be executed"
Jacen stiffened at this, and without warning shouted out loud.
"Why?!"
Samuel turned to look at him, but instead of a smug look on his face as Jacen expected, he saw anguish.
"They say it is too much of a risk to have him around. He could be a traitor and could start another heresy. We can't take chances"
"You sound like your words come from another mouth" replied Jacen, aware that this would in no part be increasing his likelihood of living.
"They are not, they come from a superior".
Jacen was shocked. "An Inquisitor has no superior but the emperor himself!"
Samuel looked visibly distressed. "Or those who have directly communed with him"
The gravitas of those words fell heavily on Jacen. "They are sending someone who has communed with the emperor? Then he has truly forsaken us..."
Samuel turned away from him, and after a long silence finally spoke.
" I do not think we fight for the Imperium we once fought for. I do not know what is going on, but in his infinite wisdom the emperor is most likely right, about the Salamander at least. He did not order your execution, Hector Rex did. He will destroy your chapter, and call exterminatus upon your homeworld. He will show no mercy. Now I know of your escape through the Lorelei fields, but I will not convene that information to Rex. In about three hours we will go through a small Lorelei mine, any communication there is impossible. You can sneak out whilst I communicate with my retinue. It is easy to blame on the bizarre effects of these crystals, far more unusual things have occurred. Machines dont like them either, just like that one on your chest....."
Jacen was shocked at the Inquisitor. Was the imperium fracturing so much that one of its greatest servants could question it... or was he only questioning another Inquisitor. He knew this would be too far to ask, and so merely said "Thank you".
Samuel did not turn to him but merely carried on.
"Return to your chapter. Tell your planet to evacuate. You cant hide it, no matter what happens. You will have around 4 hours before the ships will arrive to destroy your planet. There is nothing I can do to save it. I am sorry but when we next face each other, I will be at the call of Lord Rex, and I will try to kill you. For your sake, I hope we do not face on the fields of battle".
And with that, he walked to the front of the tank and left him in isolation.