Kill Team: Salvation

Lore bits:

-Bheta-Decima was once named the Emperor's Bounty for its sublime natural beauty. Its small Imperial settler population lived prosperous lives of pious work and reward. The planet's low gravity eased the work and its bright sun and fertile soil yielded bountiful harvests. The bright life on the world, however, was short-lived.

-Before the Imperium could categorize and properly fold the world under its rule, the greedy eyes of the Tech-Priests fell on it and its sizeable mineral wealth and natural resources. Groups of tech-priests from different forgeworlds came to the world bringing with them their armies and workforces. This collective of tech-priests saw the world as a chance for a new start and to make a name for themselves. The vast resources of the world would enable them to establish themselves and pursue their agendas and projects far away from the political struggles and oppressive constraints of their home forgeworlds.

-Through intimidation and bribes, the Tech-Priests subdued the local Imperial authorities and began to shape the world in their image. They reinforced their already considerable servitor workforces with countless lobotomized prisoners from nearby penal worlds. The world's landscape was ripped open as the admech workers and machines bore into the surface of the world and its forests were torn down. Its once pristine blue skies would be obscured by pollution. The Emperor's Bounty was renamed into Bheta-Decima. Eventually, the world was transformed into a forgeworld with its own politics and oppressive rules- a mirror image of everything the tech-priests sought to escape from their own home forge worlds.

-The Raven Guard subject their recruits to the trial of the wraith. The recruits are dropped into the mutant-infested Ologothien Wastes on their homeworld of Kiavahr. The recruits are tasked with traversing one hundred and ninety miles of the wastes in three days with no sustenance and to never be detected by the monstrous creatures that roam it.

-Neophytes are a precious resource to the space marine chapters due to their low numbers. But that does not mean they are shown any leniency. The chapters do not shield their scouts from the horrors and dangers of war. To do so would invite weakness to the very foundations of the chapters. Though not all scouts survive, it ensures the cultivation of a new generation of the Imperium's mightiest warriors.

-Scouts who complete their training are bestowed the Black Carapace the final implant that would allow them to don power armour. They also receive additional honors. For example, in chapters like the Raven Guard, they exchange their childhood names with the battle name of one of the chapter's past heroes and also they are given an honor name.

-Seven years into the Meledos Campaign, the Imperials discovered that the Orks were constructing a colossal traktor cannon on a mountain chain. Imperials believed that the cannon could be potent enough to destroy Imperial ships in orbit with one shot. It had to be destroyed. A frontal assault was out of the question. The terrain up the mountain chain was treacherous and infested from peak to peak with Orks. An airstrike was the only option. But first, the Ork Flakk cannons needed to be taken offline. Scout squad Torvaec took on the mission. They coated themselves with squig excrement to avoid being detected by the Ork sentries' squig hounds and hid the bodies of their Ork kills. Day after day, so many of the Flakk cannon crews were wiped out that rumors were spread among the Ork mobs of creatures they called "da throat slashas". Eventually, Scout squad Torvaec took out dozens of Flakk cannon batteries and their ammo stores opening the way for the Imperial aerial bombardment.

-One of Scout Squad Torvaec's most grueling campaigns was against a Kroot farstalker Kinband. The Xenos were slaughtering Imperial settlers and stealing the Archeotech they used to survive on the forest world of Hemezas. For days, the scouts and Kroots could not find each other. Each side hid their tracks and used camouflage to remain hidden. It was the scouts who first detected their enemies and made the first move. Springing an ambush, the scouts attempted to trap the Xenos and finish them. This failed as the clever Kroot evaded the marines and fought their way out of their ambush. After this, the Kroot and scouts clashed many times. Engaging in sniper duels and raiding and counter-raiding each other across the forest. What made the mission exceptionally grueling was the fact that a single moment of laxity meant sudden death, for the Kroot seemed to be able to strike from anywhere and at any time. Eventually, marine endurance and strength won out. The scouts ground down the Xenos, slaying one Kroot after another. Afterward, Scout Squad Torvaec discovered the Kroot weren't alone. They had human allies. The human pirates were taking the stolen Archeotech somewhere off-world. The scouts let the traitors live long enough to find out where they were taking the stolen tech and then they set off to the source.

-Operation Greywater was envisioned by the Odos Xenos inquisitor Enyar. It revolved around capturing T'au Water Caste diplomats alive for study. For this operation, he commissioned Scout Squad Gatughan of the White Scars. The Inquisitor contacted the Tau claiming that Imperials desired peace and proposed to have ceasefire talks aboard a T'au vessel. The White Scars squad accompanied the Inquisitor pretending to be his bodyguard and advisors. However, due to agreement with the T'au, the marine scouts were unarmed. The plan depended on timing the attack with an ambush by a hidden Imperial fleet that would attack the Tau ships escorting the diplomatic vessel. If the White Scars attacked too early, then the T'au would swiftly end them. If they attacked too late, then the T'au would expect treachery, and the Imperial fleet attack would lose its element of surprise. The White Scars proved to be as precise as they were swift and struck at the perfect moment. The Scout squad slew the fire warrior bodyguards with their bare hands. They cracked skulls and tore out throats. The Water Caste diplomats could barely escape before they were chased down and dragged away by the White Scars. The White Scars sprinted with their captives toward the hanger bay and strangled and bashed the many fire warriors that attempted to bar their way. The Blood drenched White Scars arrived at the hanger bay where they were aided by Inquisitorial Stormtroopers who secured the bay and covered their escape. The White Scars threw their Xenos captives into the waiting Imperial gunships and took off.

-The communication technology of the aspect warriors does not function the same as other races. They revolved around the Aeldari's extreme psychic sensitivity. And every word and movement was rich in meaning that is inspired by the allegories of Aeldari myth. This meant that should an enemy somehow listen in to their communication it would be a nigh-impossible task to interpret it.

-During the height of their empire, the Aeldari were the greatest power in the galaxy. None could threaten them. The ancient Aeldari, however, felt no purpose. They reckoned that there was nothing more they could achieve. They felt that their glory was eternal so they looked inward.

-Aeldari minds are much quicker than human minds. They processed emotions and possibilities at an astounding rate. Moreover, they felt each emotion deeply. With no external threats and nothing else to prove to the cosmos, the billions of Aeldari decided to explore their race's ability for intense sensation to the fullest extent. This gave way to degeneracy, decadence, and unrepentant hedonism as every whim, urge, and craving no matter how depraved and unwholesome was pursued in gross excess. The Aeldari were unaware that their connection to Warp sent echoes of their ecstasies and agonies into it. The reflections of their horrid deeds and emotional excess coalesced into a nascent god who grew more powerful as the Aeldari continued on their bloody hedonism.

-Not even the greatest of the Asuryani leaders know how many Craftworlds exist in the galaxy.

-The Asuryani have the same urges to experience intense emotions as their ancestors. Thus they shun whimsical behavior and fear indulging in emotions for the sake of emotion. They seek to embrace rigid discipline and control their desires and emotions. To aid them in the mastering their emotions the Asuryani adopted the Ai'elethra also known as the Path system.

-Due to the long life of the Aeldari, Aspect warriors can have decades or even centuries of training and combat experience.

-Aspect Warrior Kill Teams are called the Blades of Khaine. The name was inspired by the myth of the hundred blades. The Smith God Vaul was to create a hundred magnificent blades for Khaine in exchange for freeing his prisoners, Isha and Kurnous. Vaul ran out of time before he could complete the hundredth sword so he threw in a mortal blade with the ninety-nine he had created. Delivering the blades to Khaine, the Vaul spirited away the two prisoners before Khaine realized that he was cheated. When Khaine discovered the treachery he flew into a rage and vowed revenge. Khaine would start the cataclysmic conflict known as the War in Heaven. From this myth, the Aeldari have learned many lessons. One of them is that the smallest detail could lead to a terrible great disaster.

-Blades of Khaine Kill Teams are drawn from Wailing Banshees, Striking Scorpions, and Dire Avengers. They are either wholly from one of these aspects or are mixed. The two former aspects are possessed of battle lust and speed that make them excel in lightning strikes. Their firey aggression is tempered by the cool nobility and wisdom of the latter aspect. Dire Avengers provided firepower and support for the daring assaults of the Banshees and Scorpions

-By ancient law, other aspects are forbidden from joining the Blades of Khaine. Fire Dragons and Dark Reapers are excluded due to their indiscriminate weapons. Swooping Hawks are also barred, for Blades missions require intense focus rather than a broad bird eyes' view. Warp Spiders are banned because their warp jumps could cause plans to derail if one of them disappeared permanently into the Warp.

-Dire Avengers are the most common type of Aspect warriors. They are regarded as the most tactically flexible of the aspects. They represent Khaine's endless vengeance against a cruel galaxy and his role as a noble warrior.

-The Onyx Claw Shrine is one of the oldest and most renowned Striking Scorpion Aspect Shrines on Biel-Tan

-Maur Saim-Ingrelli began his journey in the Path system as a Teller and Weaver before joining the Path of the Warrior where he would spend the following centuries training himself in the Asuryani's art of War. He walked the Path of a Shadow Spectre and a Fire Dragon. It was his ambition to become an Autarch, one of his race's master strategists. It would not come to pass.

-After Maur Saim-Ingrelli's sister was slain fighting as a Striking Scopion against the daemons of Chaos, in his grief, Maur Saim-Ingrelli came to the Onyx Claw Shrine. Seeking a way to reconnect with his departed sibling, Maur Saim-Ingrelli fully immersed himself in the teachings and training of the shrine. None of his peers embraced the path with such intensity and zeal. Ultimately, this devotion saw him lost to obsession which doomed him to be an Exarch.

-Of all Biel-Tan's Exarchs, Maur Saim-Ingrelli is known to be the strictest and hardest on his students and warriors. His brutal training that pushes his warriors to their limits has seen many of them become Exarchs themselves.

-The Asuryani of Biel-Tan were furious when they learned that the Leagues of Votann were planning to strip mine of the Maiden World of Heresa'lil, a world long foretold would be a sanctuary for no less than three damaged craftworlds in the future. The Asuryani planned to inflict such losses on the first Kin crafts to reach the world that the Leagues would reconsider their greed for the world. The Aeldari launched a campaign of terror and massacre against the kin. They left a single survivor from each Kin force they butchered so that they would tell the rest of the Kin of armor-rendering weapons and shrieking alien killers. The warriors of Biel-Tan ceaselessly launched ambushes in reaction to every single movement by the Kin, making Kin believe that the Aeldari forces were larger than they were. After months of bloody grueling bloodshed, the Leagues withdrew from the world.

The storyline:

General intro:

Following the upheaval caused by the impact of the Arbites prison ship, unknown forces pulled the fragmenting Gallowdark into the Warp. Shortly afterward, the Space Hulk was hurled into the Yolven system, home of the Forgeworld of Bheta-Decima.

Motivated by the greed for the ancient technology and treasures of the Space Hulk, the Tech Priests of Bheta-Decima pulled the Gallowdark toward their world with massive orbital giga-graviton cannons. The same greed blinded them to the danger of the Hulk's structural instability. And so the priests invited disaster and ruin to their home.

The immense gravitational forces applied to the Gallowdark tore it apart, sending hundreds of chunks of Warp-corrupted metal, rock, and flesh raining down the Forgeworld. Pieces of the Space Hulk the size of cities and titans smashed down from the heavens reducing cities to ashes in mere moments. Every region of the Forgeworld was subjected to the barrage of debris, as the world turned on its axis. The first day of this disaster had been apocalyptic. The destruction released toxic chemicals and fumes into the atmosphere and water bodies in great volumes. The oceans of Bheta-Decima boiled with a mixture of toxic chemicals and the Warp corruption emitted from the Gallowdark's chunks. As a result, the oceanic creatures mutated into unrecognizable forms and developed an unquenchable bloodlust and hunger.

The disaster caused by the breaking of the Gallowdark was infinitely worse than any natural or industrial disaster. It could not be recovered from, given enough time and investment. And the worst was yet to come. Out of the wreckage of the Gallowdark emerged warbands of heretics, mutants, and Xenos. And the crash zones became points of spreading Warp corruption.

To add fuel to the fire, heretical and Xenos cultists already present on Forgeworld were stirred into an uprising by the devastation. The Forgeworld's fauna was put into a violent frenzy. Tank-sized arachnid beasts awakened early from their hibernation and began their yearly migration. Swarms of them consumed thousands of unfortunates that were in their way.

The Gallowdark was not destroyed completely. Half of it floated in Bheta-Decima orbit as a fragmenting corpse. Its treasures and secrets are a tempting lure for the most desperate and greedy.

Anarchy, war, and chaos reigned on Bheta-Decima. Instead of presenting a united front against it, the Tech Priests waged open war on each other seeking to punish their brethren who caused this ruin. It was also a chance for the members of the Admech to get rid of their rivals.

A number of the world's spaceports were destroyed putting pressure on the surviving ones. As the defenders held the line against the onrushing hordes, cells of Gene-cults infiltrated into the ports and boarded the evacuating ships.

Tech Priest intro:

Before the disaster, Magos Biologis Bartolomus Virellan had come to Bheta-Decima to evade the prying eyes of his rivals. He brought with him a singularly rare specimen that any Magos Biologis would kill to possess. He chose the most remote region on the world and set up shop on a Seaborne complex called Extraction Temple 8-0. The complex was located in an ocean called the Tumult. It was the most dangerous location on the world. The environmental conditions were incredibly hostile and unpredictable and they were stoked by the Admech mineral extraction operations. Moreover, despite the Admech activities, the ocean remained abundant with life many of which were aggressive predators. the conditions resulted in heavy losses to the servitor workforce maintaining the complex. Few of Virellan's rivals dared to venture into the Tumult and risk its dangers.

After the disaster, the region became more lethal. Alongside dangers caused by the damage inflicted on the complex, the Warp corruption took hold of the complex itself and the surrounding waters. The microscopic creatures whose bioluminescence was green were mutated to emit a crimson light that transfixed Skitarii patrols and drew them into the churning polluted waters. Some of the structures and technology of the complex developed fleshly mutations. Barred tentacles riddled with eyes or snapping maws attacked anyone that got too close, forcing the Skitarii to burn down entire buildings to purge them.

The specimen was a captive Farseer from the Craftworld of Biel-Tan. The Xenos creature was a generous gift from the Machine God. Its dissection would provide Virellan with a potent psychic fuel source for his experiments. Also, he could extract its knowledge for the locations of Xenos relics of incalculable worth. The potential was limitless but he needed to escape with it first. He decided to call upon an old debt.

Virellan pulled a black disc decorated with the image of a White Raven. This device was gifted to him by a long-dead marine in exchange for his aid to the chapter. Virellan activated the disc. Though the device made no sound, the Magos knew that soon the warriors of the Raven Guard chapter would come to his aid. There was no doubt in his mind that they would be his salvation and that of his ambition.

The Asuryani Intro:

Months earlier, Farseer Torc Dystari of Biel-Tan disappeared while leading a diplomatic mission to the Black Suns Corsairs. The Asuryani of Biel-Tan initially blamed the Corsairs suspecting them of foul treachery and murder. Conflict between both factions of Aeldari was averted when the leader of the Black Suns, Lady Hale'drithea, took a blood oath to aid the Craftworlders in searching for their lost Farseer.

The rangers of Biel-Tan and the Corsairs searched the stars for any trace of their missing kin, while the warlocks and farseers peered through the threads of fate. Eventually, the Corsairs discovered the wreckage of Dystari ship and the stripped corpses of its crew floating in the void. The damage and wounds inflicted on the ship and crew spoke of human hands behind this heinous crime. There was no sign of the Farseer which might be a sign that she yet lived.

Farseer Di'sar Caman of Beil-Tan mediated for nineteen hours with no rest. Surrounded by the spirit stones of Dystari's departed family members and the haze of ritual incense, he cast the runes of fate over and over until through bloodied drenched eyes he found her.

Dystari was the captive of a twisted and deranged defiler of flesh on the human world of Bheta-Decima. Dystari lived but she was in terrible pain and was fated to suffer the fiend's cruel experiments unless she was rescued. It was not only Dystari's fate that hung in the balance. Dystari knew the locations of countless Webway Gates that the Aeldari depended on to travel the galaxy. She knew the location of craftworld. She knew the relationship between the Ynnari and her craftworld. She knew of Biel-Tan's strategies in its ongoing wars. This and more she knew. If this information fell into the hands of that human tech-fiend then the consequences would be horrifying for the craftworld and perhaps all Aeldari.

Peering into the threads of fate surrounding Bheta-Decima, Caman saw images of fanged masks, knife-wielding wraiths, the kiss of a bladed tendril, and a raven white as snow. All portents of suffering, terror, and death. But the images that terrified and pained him the most were the visions of what would transpire if they failed to rescue Dystari. He saw the cyborg legions of the mon-kiegh machine cult marching through the corridors and chambers of burning Biel-Tans warships slaughtering their crews or seizing them to suffer a fate worse than death. He saw swathes of the Webway burning and dying as they were flooded with phosphor energies, killing Asuryani and Harlequins in the hundreds. This thread of fate must be severed. And it will be the blades of Khaine who will sever this thread and bring salvation to Aeldari, the Striking Scorpions of the Onyx Shrine

*Note: Knife-wielding wraths are the mandrakes that will come out in the Night Lord vs Mandrake box. The White Raven is duh the Raven Guard. What are the rest supposed to be?

The Striking Scorpions and their leader the Exarch Maur Saim-Ingrelli were briefed by Caman that the human world is on the verge of collapse. The twisted Mon'kiegh fiend is seeking a way off the world with his prize. The most opportune window for rescue is when he leaves his stronghold to effect his escape.

The Corsairs aided the Striking Scorpions by stealthy transporting them to the planet.

Space Marines intro:

The Black Disc Virellan activated was a device of vanishing rarity called Honour's Call. It contained technologies that predated the Imperium and were incorporated into the Raven Guard chapter by their Primarch, Corax. How these devices functioned was beyond the understanding of even the most skilled of the chapter's tech-marines. The chapter bestowed such devices on a select few individuals who earned a promise of the chapter's aid.

Virellan alarm signal reached the chapter's Fortress monastery, Ravenspire. However, neither was the Chapter Master nor the shadow captains present. They were off-world fighting in the Imperium's many wars. The command of Ravenspire fell to venerable Brother Vordyn Kasz, a mighty hero of the chapter who was interred in a dreadnaught a century ago.

An identical disc was handed to Kasz. From it, Kasz knew who had called upon his chapter's aid. Like all who were promised their aid, the Raven Guard had kept taps on Magos Virelian. They held suspicions about his activities on Bheta-Decima but for now, they would rescue the Magos and get him off-world.

There were few Raven Guard marines present in Ravenspire. So when Shadow Sergeant Kyrin Torvaec returned with his scout squad from a mission against the Necrons of the Szarekhan Dynasty it was a welcome development, for they were the perfect warriors for this new mission. Scout Squad Torvaec was renowned among the 10th company for their skill in covert warfare and their laudable mission success record.

Torvaec was briefed on the mission. He was told that Magos Virellan had provided great assistance to the chapter and they were oathbound to aid him. His mission was simply to evacuate him and his work off-world. Torvaec was given no further orders or instructions. This was the way of the Raven Guard. They gave as much autonomy to their low-level commanders as possible. It freed them to pursue the mission in any way they saw fit and to adapt to the changing conditions of war.

Arriving to Bheta-Decima and witnessing the anarchy, Torvaec concluded that the best way forward was to conduct the mission in utmost secrecy and stealth. His squad would neither announce their presence to the Imperials nor Virellan himself. If the Imperial authorities knew of their presence, their meddling and questioning might delay his squad for months.

Scout squad Torvaec landed beyond the range of Extraction-Temple 8-0's anti-air weapons and proceeded on foot. Torvaec and his men witnessed the atrocities and bloodshed inflicted on the Imperials by the heretics and Xenos. Though it pained them not to exact vengeance on the enemies of mankind, they kept their focus on their mission. They only killed when they had no other option and they did so with deadly stealth. After days of walking in shadows, they snuck aboard a supply barge headed to Extraction Temple 8-0.

The Story:

Marine Pov:

The Scout Squad witnessed Drukhari raiders menacing genestealer cultists from a nearby mining colony. The gene-cultists cried out uselessly to their star gods and screamed in agony as the Drukhari butchered them. The squad was tempted to annihilate them while they were distracted but decided against it. In time, the Raven Guard chapter will learn of events on the Forgeworld and come in force to purge the world. But for now, the squad must focus on the mission.

Other temptations presented themselves to the Raven Guard. Orks smashed their way into an Admech fortress, their booming laughter and warcries hid the movements of the squad. They witnessed Imperial defenders being overwhelmed and devoured alive by a horde of mutants. This and more atrocities they witnessed. It stoked the fires of their vengeance but they suppressed it for the mission. Only one encounter nearly broke their resolve. It was when they saw Skitarri fire into crowds of Imperial refugees begging for food and water.

When the squad was forced to fight, they unleashed all that bent-up rage on any unfortunate enemy that stood in their way.

Arriving close to the Extraction Temple, the squad evaded detection by the Admech, by taking an indirect path. The Tech-priests paranoia and tiresome protocols could not be allowed to slow them down. They entered the service tunnels and risked the dangers inside. After an encounter with a mutated sea beast. Torvaec glimpsed the movement of Aeldari warriors. It was an ambush!

Asuryani Pov:

The Striking Scorpions were stealthy moving in the ceiling of the service tunnels. Their form-fitting bodysuits and Aeldari physiology allowed them to leap across the gantries and contort their bodies in ways no human could achieve to squeeze and pass through bars and other obstacles. Until now they rarely killed and never used their weapons in order to avoid detection. They kicked and flung patroling servitors into the churning waters. This way their masters would assume that they were destroyed by the dangers of the tunnels.

They encountered a group of servitors and Skitarii who were blocking the planned extraction route. They needed to be eliminated before the prophesied White Raven enemies appeared. One Striking scorpion wrapped her ankles around a hanging cable and held the ankles of her partner. She lowered him near the waters. They were baiting the sea monsters into the area with their movement. They would serve to get rid of the Mon-Keighs' bodies. The bait worked and the creatures were drawn. However, one of the beasts emerged from the waters.

Its bioluminescence switched from a horrible red to a mesmerizing purple rapidly. The Striking Scorpion nearer to the water was transfixed by its light. His partner screamed out that the creature was damned, tainted by the Warp. She tried to pull him but he struggled, wanting to keep his gaze on the creature.

The power of the Warp is strong and it ever sought to gain the attention of the Aeldari but it can be resisted. Through their shared empathic bond, she poured her resolve into her partner willing him to resist the creature's warp-tainted light. Her partner snapped out of it and allowed himself to be pulled away from the water. When they were safe he communicated to his scorpion-sister his shame and apology.

The striking Scorpions slaughtered the Skitarii and servitors and sent their bodies tumbling down into the waters to be devoured. They finished up just in time to get into new vantage points and witness the arrival of the Ravens, the true enemy.

The battle:

*Note: the battle story isn't told in a continuous way. It's just a collection of scenes, a kill montage if you will.

First blood went to the Aeldari. A scout was caught off-guard by a leaping Xenos and was cut down by its chainsword. The ambush had scattered the Scout squad, starting a deadly cat-and-mouse game between the Xenos and Scouts. Torvaec knew that the rescue of the Magos was impossible as long the Aeldari stood in the way. They have to be slain first. However, the Aeldari warriors would be a deadly challenge even for his experienced neophytes. Due to his experience and the scars from a previous encounter with the Aeldari in the past, Torvaec knew that the Aeldari would restlessly hunt his squad and pick them off one by one. For him and his squad, against this foe, there could only be victory or death.

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Maur Saim-Ingrelli watched a lone scout sneak his way through a walkway. He noted that the human was skilled in a primitive sort of way. Though no human could hope to match the Aeldari art of the Shadowstalk or the Gloomhunt. Using thousands of barbed micro-fibers on the fingertips and boots of his armor, Maur Saim-Ingrelli leaped from one side of an industrial tank to another before running on an exhaust stack. His speed and the protection of his armor protected him from the flesh-melting heat. In mere minutes, he was above the scout. Leaping through a steam cloud, Maur Saim-Ingrelli grabbed the scout's head with his claw and crashed it.

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Torvaec knew that the weakness of the Aeldari was their arrogance. They fully believed in their superiority. So he didn't need to seek them out. They would certainly come to him. At the same time, he knew that the Aeldari warrior skills were extraordinary. To underestimate them and the depths of their trickery was to welcome death.

Torvaec snuck around the industrial zone and waited for the inevitable Aeldari attack. He acted normally knowing that if he exposed him too much and made himself look too vulnerable the Aeldari wouldn't fooled. As he expected, one of the Aeldari took the bait. Torvaec glimpsed a movement at the extreme edge of his vision and reacted just in time to parry the chainsword swing of a Striking Scorpion with his own chainsword, sending sparks blazing in every direction as the teeth of both weapons ground into each other.

Using his superior strength, Torvaec pushed back the Xenos and struck out with his chainsword. The Aeldari dodged only to come face to face with Torvaec's bolter who had predicted its movement. Torvaec pulled the trigger and ended the Xenos' life.

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A scout sniper was trailing the movement of a Xenos. He could not see his target but only signs of it. This was enough thanks for the training of his chapter. The scout fired, sending the round ahead of the sign of movement. The shot hit true and he saw a splash of blood and cessation of movement. He got the Xenos.

The scout sniper was utterly unaware that directly above him was a lurking Striking Scorpion. Their sword was drawn and ready to plunge into his exposed back.

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Two scouts armed with a heavy bolter and shotgun hunted down a Striking Scorpion. The Aeldari giggled spitefully as she dodged their fire and dashed into a network of pipes. With invertebrate-like agility, she folded herself through pipes and danced between them. Eventually, the scouts lost her. As hid she beneath a pipe she gleefully watched the scouts walk into the trap. Her scorpion sister emerged behind them and buried her chainsword into the back of the scout carrying the heavy bolter. Before his battle brother could blast her with his shotgun, she kicked the dead scout with enough force to send her sliding away behind a large industrial fan.

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A scout decided to use a grapnel launcher to climb above the industrial zone and escape its maze-like confines where every corner was a possible ambush spot to reach a better vantage point. As he was being pulled up, he was unaware that a Striking Scorpion was waiting for him. The Xenos leaped at him and delivered a hard kick that sent him hurtling to the ground. The impact broke some of his bones and took the breath from his body. The scout looked up and saw the Xenos fall toward him with elegant grace its weapons ready to end his life. Before that could happen, Xenos was tackled by another Scout who appeared out of nowhere to rescue his wounded battle brother. The newly arrived scout used his strength to pin the Xenos down and stab it through the throat with his combat knife killing it.

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Torvaec found a scout from his scattered squad. The two concocted a plan to destroy their Aeldari pursuers. The plan was to lure the Xenos into a trap rather than fight them directly.

They fixed grenades to a power relay that vented its excess heat every twelve cycles. Torvaec planned to combine the energy overflow with the grenade explosion to wipe out the Aeldari. Ten cycles remained until the next heat venting. More than enough time for the Aeldari to find them.

The Xenos had slain a number of his scouts. Painting the walls of the industrial zone with their blood would be his revenge....