Wrath and Duty 5

<StaffenGM> Time, in its whimsical majesty, heeds your wake, reanimating a world that is still and silent and grey. The light of your presence casts color into the displaced Library's pavestones.
<StaffenGM> Indeed, by the wayside spill the sands of time from the red war-plate of Medjed's brethren.
<StaffenGM> Therein lies a question to be asked -- but now is not the time to seek an answer.
<StaffenGM> The sands -- your duty -- are swiftly draining.
<StaffenGM> Before you stands the final steps to the Grand Dome. Up the way are still many more of the Khrave warriors, frozen in struggle against the last line of the defenders.
* Priad checks over his boltgun and narthecium. His medical equipment is still in working order but he decides to switch his weapons mag, stowing the half-empty in his ammo pouches.
* Invictus readies his sword.
<Priad> "Shall we advance ancient one?"
* Herbert mouths a prayer to the Emperor, looking over his chainsword.
* Draco checks his servo-arm for any damage and gives thanks to the machine spirit.
<StaffenGM> "Indeed, we shall. I must warn you, comrades," says Medjed, turning to the group, "the energies of the anomaly are obscuring the Grand Dome's interior. I know not what awaits us yet, though I recall there were only a handful of intruders when I cast my spell."
<Invictus> "Unless there is a way around them we are going to have to fight our way through them."
<Priad> "And each shall die by our blades and bolts."
<StaffenGM> "There is not," declares Medjed. "This place is as a fortress; the way before us is the only feasible entry."
* Eveline_Ebbeson quietly stares forward, before looking towards the group. Clutching her weapon firmly, she'd only frown before she'd point forward. "We've no choice. We march onwards and give no quarter to these vile beasts. Steel yourselves, Marines!"
<Invictus> "Well said Inquisitor."
<Invictus> "Strange." he feels something that shouldn't even be here in this place. "Medjed, I sense Soulfires moving with a ponderous lack haste, toward the doors of the Grand Dome. Multiple of them to be precise."
<StaffenGM> "What?" Medjed looks from the Librarian to the gates. "But, I do not--"
<StaffenGM> The doors of the Grand Dome burst open. Out flies the screaming form of a mortal man, coruscating arcs of warp-energy jumping from his body to the pillars.
<Herbert> "Something you would be kind to enlighten us about, Brother Medjed?"
<StaffenGM> And behind him follow two Astartes, clad in blue and gold, lavishly decorated in honors and regalia both peculiar and outright blasphemous.
<StaffenGM> Whisps of pale warpfire trail from their eye lenses.
* Axel leaps forward toward the flying enemy, cleaving it's arm from it's body
<StaffenGM> The man screams, his cries as loud as the loudest turbothruster, as his arm is rent from his body. But where blood should spill, flame instead bursts from the stump. In an instant, a fiery facsimile of his arm has materialized in its place, warp-lightning dancing between the new appendage and Axel's wargear.
<StaffenGM> In a blinding flash, he fires a mighty hell-bolt at the Squire.
<StaffenGM> Meanwhile, around you, several of the fighting Khrave and Astartes reanimate...
* Invictus summons up the powers of the immaterium, lightning shots out from his hand toward the enemy, but the damage is minimum and they are able to shake it off.
<StaffenGM> As the smoke clears, leaving the mysterious Astartes unscathed, he steps forward, resolute, and levels his boltgun against Priad.
<StaffenGM> He opens fire, his weapon coughing blue flames from its muzzle brake.
<StaffenGM> The Apothecary narrowly dodges the bolterfire, scrambling clear from bursts of warp-fire.
* Eveline_Ebbeson took to opening fire upon one of the astartes, with her Inferno Pistol.
<StaffenGM> The Inquisitor's melta-fire punches a hole clear through the Marine. But what would be a killing blow for any Astartes merely spills dust and blue flame from the intruder's breastplate.
<StaffenGM> There does not seem to be any man inside the armor.
* Priad growls, his helmet emitting a noise that would make lesser beings tremble in fear. The Ithakan levels his own boltgun at the enemy Astartes and squeezes the trigger, but only managing to hit his enemy once.
* Draco fires his bolter at the injured Astartes figure and barely damages his armor.
<StaffenGM> "Invaders!" Medjed hisses, raising his palm and launching a bolt against the same intruder. It has as much effect as Invictus's strike, however.
<StaffenGM> "Fie! I understand not this foe's infernal constitution!"
* Herbert blasts into the air, jump-pack burning hot, charging into the vile witch engaged with his Squire. To delay purging such filth, would be to blaspheme against the Emperor. With a furious cut from his chainsword, the sorcerer's head is ripped from its torso.
<StaffenGM> An aethereal cackle erupts from the beheaded socerer. For a brief moment, the flames which sprout from its neck take on the visage of a skull -- and then the body explodes.
<StaffenGM> The fires that comprised the sorcerer previously spill to the ground, and from the puddle of immaterial flame rises a gibbering, horned mess of limbs and teeth.
<StaffenGM> The other Astartes invader calmly opens fire on Knight-Brother Herbert.
* Herbert growls in anger as the rounds hit his armor.
* Invictus tries to summon up the powers of the immaterium but his target moves out of the way of his attack.
<Priad> The Apothecary curses, this traitor was really starting to get under his armor. He fires at the astartes again and is able to land all three hits, though it is not apparent if it made much difference. "Embrace death, traitor!"
* Draco moves up and shoots at the same target. He cuases some damage.
<StaffenGM> Medjed rushes forward, his focus staff crackling with power. "I shall help you right this malfeasance, comrade!" he cries to Axel, striking the daemon with the figurehead of his staff.
<StaffenGM> The immaterial force of the strike slays the daemon -- but the burning body splits in twain, spawning two new, smaller creatures, just as wretched as the first.
<StaffenGM> "This is typical of this form of manifestation!" Medjed sohouts. "Do not panic!"
<Herbert> Herbert then descends from the sky on the traitor furthest away from the action, grinding his chainsword into its helm.
<StaffenGM> The undaunted renegade Astartes grips the blade of Herbert's chainsword, holding the weapon to its head as it tries to pummel him with its boltgun, but Herbert breaks the grip and avoids the strike.
* Axel shakes off the pain from his wounds long enough to bring his chainsword down on top of one the of he demons, splitting it in twain
<StaffenGM> This time, the creature stays dead, bursting into a puff of smoke.
<StaffenGM> The other creature tries to belch hellfires at Axel in vengeance, but the Squire easily evades the gout of flame.
* Invictus begins to move up reaching out into the immaterium as lightning shoots from his hand to the same target but only causing minimum damage.
<Priad> Priad's next volley of bolter fire is not as effective as the last. "ithaka! Ithaka!" He yells.
* Eveline_Ebbeson of course would not stop firing, taking her shots at every given opportunity.
* Draco screams in binary and charges the mysterious Astartes. He uses his servo-arm to rip it's armor.
<StaffenGM> The legs of the empty armor suit, pocked with abuse from this engagement, stumble forwards and then buckle over. The upper body squirms momentarily, until the dust contained within is fully spilt,
<StaffenGM> At which point the fire in its eyes dies away.
<StaffenGM> Medjed quashes the other daemon under the flat end of his focus staff, banishing it into smoke.
<StaffenGM> And now all that persists is the other renegade armor, locked in combat with Herbert.
<Herbert> The Knight-Brother unleashes a series of attacks with his chainsword, cutting through the traitor's torso, until finally the blasphemer lies fallen.
<StaffenGM> Medjed looks from the slain renegades, and back to his struggling brothers down the steps. "We cannot stop now!" he cries. "As my brothers fall to these aliens, some other force is storming my Library! If we do not persist into the Grand Dome, then my brothers' struggles are for naught!"
<StaffenGM> He hurries up the stairs, urging the Kill-team follow.