1: SIGNS AND PORTENTS
+++Tac-Logis feed (audio only)+++
LOCATION: SYRIIS VII
DATE: 582.M41
RECOVERED FROM DAMAGED SERVITOR RECORDING MODULE
TRANSCRIBED BY SAVANT EREBUS, DEPARTMENTO MUNITORUM
DATA-LIBRARY RECORD FACULTY, SEGMENTUM OBSCURUS
LOCATION: SYRIIS VII
DATE: 582.M41
RECOVERED FROM DAMAGED SERVITOR RECORDING MODULE
TRANSCRIBED BY SAVANT EREBUS, DEPARTMENTO MUNITORUM
DATA-LIBRARY RECORD FACULTY, SEGMENTUM OBSCURUS
[Heavy weapons fire]
VOICE (i): (incoherent screaming)
[Bolter and heavy weapons fire]
[Vox source (i), positively identified as Lieutenant Sorun Karel]: What the feth?
[Lasgun fire]
[Low-pitched noises, unidentified, possibly localised demolition?]
KAREL: [Not on the floor please]!
[Heavy weapons fire, continuous]
KAREL: Keep firing!
VOICE (ii): Throne, why won’t they die?
KAREL: Keep fething firing!
[Lasgun and heavy weapons fire]
VOICE (iii): They’re right inside the fethin’ bunker!
[Vox source, unidentified, possibly Traitor]: (incoherent roaring)
VOICE (ii): What the feth are these things?
VOICE (iii): I said perimeter brea-(incoherent screaming)
[Lasgun and multiple bolter fire]
[Vox source (ii), tentatively identified as Sergeant Harol Erathen]: I’m out! Someone get me a-
[Sound of close-combat chain-weapons and organic noises]
KAREL: Harol! Motherf-
[Heavy weapons fire]
[Vox source, unidentified, possibly Traitor]: (incoherent hissing and gurgling)
VOICE (iii): Sir, we have to-
[Short burst of bolter fire]
KAREL: Feth! In the name of-
[Sustained lasgun fire]
[Organic noises]
[Vox source, unidentified, possibly Traitor]: (incoherent roaring)
[Vox source, unidentified, Traitor]: (low-pitched blasphemous intonation)
KAREL: (incoherent screaming)
[Organic noises]
+++Tac-Logis feed (audio only) ends+++
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A good day. Many slain for our Father, and those few we lost glorified His name in their passing. The puppets we harvested were weak and irresolute, a sure sign that this world - and possibly the whole Sector - is ripe for the taking. Morsh-Hâl in particular took a glorious toll, his blade and claw liberally covered with the weaklings’ offal by the end of the day’s combat. Quorthon informs me that, with the Lord of Decay’s favour, he managed to transform the commander of the regiment we crushed into one of his Spawn; its play among the bodies of its erstwhile comrades was apparently most amusing. Sadly I missed this, being as I was occupied with the destruction of the communications and medical facilities of the prey; we also managed to appropriate much ammunition from the rearward staging areas of the Imperials’ forces. The few we bothered to take captive will be questioned and then turned or devoured tomorrow.
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TRANSCRIPT OF PICT-RECORDED DOCUMENT
LOCATION: SYRIIS VII
DATE: 582.M41
RECOVERED FROM DAMAGED SERVITOR RECORDING MODULE
TRANSCRIBED BY SAVANT ARAEL, DEPARTMENTO MUNITORUM
DATA-LIBRARY RECORD FACULTY, SEGMENTUM OBSCURUS
LOCATION: SYRIIS VII
DATE: 582.M41
RECOVERED FROM DAMAGED SERVITOR RECORDING MODULE
TRANSCRIBED BY SAVANT ARAEL, DEPARTMENTO MUNITORUM
DATA-LIBRARY RECORD FACULTY, SEGMENTUM OBSCURUS
[Pict-record white noise clears to] Overhead three-quarter perspective view of standard-pattern Munitorum loading bay. Barricades of sandbags and what appear to be overturned workbenches are arranged before the loading bay doors. Frequent irregularly-spaced noises are heard [possibly heavy weapons fire?] and dust can be seen in the air. Multiple human figures assumed to be armed Munitorum staff mingle with Guard [positively identified from uniform and camouflage patterns] troops behind the barricades.
VOICE (i): (unintelligible)
[Vox-source from internal compound command feed, unidentified]: Throne protect us! They’re- [squeal of static]
[Pict-record image dims for 2.4 seconds, accompanied by loud low-pitched noise - possibly demolitions charges? - before clearing] Loading bay becomes visible again, with noticeably more dust in the air.
[Vox-source from internal compound command feed, unidentified]: (unintelligible)
VOICE (ii): Feth!
VOICE (i): Stay at your fething posts!
[Vox-source from internal compound command feed, unidentified]: The fething Medicae’s gone…they’ve killed everyone in there, they’re all dead! Even the wounded and- [squeal of static which ends abruptly]
Three distinct, loud, metallic banging noises. The inner surface of the loading bay doors can be seen to deform slightly, roughly one and a half metres off the ground.
VOICE (iii): Sarge!
VOICE (i), positively identified as Sergeant Boras Castin: Hold your ground!
VOICE (ii): Sarge, they’re right outside th-
CASTIN: Hold your fethin’ ground!
Bright flash. Pict-record image whites out for 3 seconds and pict-source microphones correspondingly overload with distortion for 2.5 seconds. Image clears to show loading bay doors visibly damaged with a gap of approximately half a metre between them. Indistinct shapes moving behind gap in the doors.
VOICE (ii): They’re-
CASTIN: Fire at will! All men, fire at will!
VOICE (iii): (incoherent screaming)
Mass lasgun fire begins, directed at the gap in the doors. Image flickers as pict-recorder attempts to balance light levels between weapons fire and ambient room light levels. Activity behind doors ceases. Most lasgun fire ceases after 9 seconds. Image stabilises.
CASTIN: Cease fire!
Sporadic lasgun fire.
CASTIN: I said cease fething firing!
Lasgun fire ceases. Silence lasting 5.6 seconds, during which the smoke from weapons fire clears.
VOICE (ii): What are they-
CASTIN: Report!
VOICE (iii): Can’t see a thing, Sarge, we-
Loud metallic crashing as the right loading bay door is smashed off its hinges by something on the other side of the door.
VOICE (iii): Feth!
CASTIN: Fire! Fethin’ FIRE!
A heavy stubber, out of pict-source capture, is heard firing, immediately accompanied by massed lasgun fire. Large power-armoured figures emerge through the gap, accompanied by bulkier figures positively identified as wearing Tactical Dreadnought armour and at least two wearing bulky power armour of unidentified pattern. One of the figures in unidentified armour pauses long enough to tear the left loading-bay door from its mountings; height of figure estimated as being at least three metres, by comparison to standard-pattern loading bay door dimensions.
VOICE (ii): Holy fething Throne!
CASTIN: Keep firing!
VOICE (iii): Who the feth are they?
VOICE (iv), unidentified, possibly Traitor: (incoherent roaring)
The foremost of the advancing figures gestures in what appears to an encouraging wave to those behind him. Lasgun and stubber fire is continuous but appears to be ineffectual. Armoured figures positively identified as Traitor by blasphemous iconography. The leading Traitors reach the barricade closest to the door. Point-blank weapons fire is visible, and bolter fire is audible along with the sound of close-combat chain-weapons.
VOICE (iii): (incoherent screaming)
VOICE (ii): (incoherent screaming)
CASTIN: For the Emperor!
The huge Traitor that had torn off the loading bay door charges the nearest barricade, picks up an unidentified Guardsman by the neck with what appears to be a claw and eviscerates him with a vertical slice of its right hand, which is holding some sort of close-combat weapon. The claw then contracts to sever the head, leaving the head and both halves of the torso to fall to the floor separately.
CASTIN: Doran! God-Emperor, no!
To either side, slightly smaller armoured figures butcher the other Guardsmen huddled behind that barricade in a similarly emphatic and grisly manner. The leading Traitor reaches the barricade behind this and impales two Guardsmen simultaneously, with what appears to be a pair of lightning claws of unidentified pattern. The Traitors in Tactical Dreadnought armour, meanwhile, advance upon the other three barricades and slaughter all those behind them with a combination of bolter fire and close-combat chain-weapons; as this happens the lasgun fire diminishes and then halts. Heavy stubber fire continues for another 3.2 seconds while another of the Traitors in power armour of unidentified pattern charges out of pict-source capture, followed by organic noises which coincide with the cessation of all weapons fire.
VOICE (iv), unidentified, Traitor: For the Father!
The leading Traitor is now clearly visible, standing roughly six metres from the pict-source; height is estimated at 2.8 metres. One human, assumed to be Castin, slowly walks forward to the leading Traitor from just out of pict-source capture. No other Guardsmen or Munitorum staff are visibly left alive at this point. Castin raises his laspistol and aims it at the figure in front of him, firing the weapon 7 times until its charge is exhausted; the pistol fire has no visible effect on the Traitor. Castin then lowers his weapon and drops it to the floor, holding his gaze on the Traitor who steps up to Castin and swings its left claw upwards, with the point impaling Castin’s head through the base of the jaw. Castin, held aloft by the Traitor, jerks spasmodically for 4 seconds before falling still; the Traitor discards his body and advances forwards out of pict-source capture. One of the Traitors in Tactical Dreadnought armour pauses almost directly underneath the pict-source, glances upwards and raises its bolter. A brief flare of muzzle-flash and [Image goes black. Recording ends.]
END OF TRANSCRIPT
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We have done what we can for the moment. It remains to be seen whether what we have wrought here will have sufficiently interested the Traveller to bring him here; certainly we will need the resources that only he can bring to bear, in order for our greater plans to be realised.
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BY ORDER OF HIS MOST HOLY MAJESTY
THE GOD-EMPEROR OF TERRA
AUTHORISED PERSONS ONLY
***NOTIFICATION OF INQUISITORIAL ALERT***
CASE FILE 988.1V34D
Author: Lord Inquisitor Silas Mourne
THE GOD-EMPEROR OF TERRA
AUTHORISED PERSONS ONLY
***NOTIFICATION OF INQUISITORIAL ALERT***
CASE FILE 988.1V34D
Author: Lord Inquisitor Silas Mourne
It is with a heavy heart that I must confirm Traitoris Extremis activity in the vicinity of the Syriis sub-sector; the Traitors have been positively identified by visible blasphemous iconography on their corrupted armour in what fragmented records I have been able to sequester from contact sites. Iconography suggests the foul Plague Marines; I have already notified the Ordo Sepulturum with all haste. There is a distinct possibility of involvement with the wretched post-Black Crusade epidemics in this and other sub-sectors (q.v. Agripinaa, Amistel Majoris); also I suspect the recently reported sightings of the accursed Terminus Est in the outer fringes of this sub-sector may not be entirely unrelated. May the Emperor have mercy on us if the Death Guard have now turned their attentions to this area of the Imperium!
Hallowed be the Throne!
MESSAGE ENDS
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