"The Imperium of man has had enough... I... Have had enough!" Barked Theodosius as he blasted his voice over the vox. Listening to him, the ears of thousands of Mordians. Gleaming with pride and eager for battle they all stood in their places and stared at the hell they will soon be charging into.

"I have had enough of the lies, the conspiracies and the dishonour!" Theodosius continued.

He paused as the audible detonation of warheads and rattle of gunfire echoed across what was once a forest. Days of battle and wildfire had reduced both building and tree alike to smouldering rubble and all that remained were the crumbling ramparts of Wyvern's Citadel.

"Too long has my authority been usurped. Too long have these heretics dabbled in ancient powers beyond their petty understanding. Hubris blinds them and ambition bates them. This power has no allegiance. It must be destroyed! In his holy name crush everything into dust!"

As one the horns of the army blew a single blaring tune and both man and tank marched forth as one onto the ashen wastes. Tanks rolled at a uniformed pace, in between infantry lines, keeping up with their marching pace.

The Infantry themselves marched in perfect formations three ranks deep and a hundred men wide. Every formation was part of a larger block three formations deep and two formations wide. They moved with no regard to themselves.

Every step, every movement, every swing of an arm, it was performed perfectly to the ceaseless rhythm of the fife and drums. Every footman, utterly silent as the army marched across the flattened field.

Rosetta, powerless against the ways of the world, watched from her place, far behind the frontline. All the while Mimir stared into the distance at some unknown object of obsession. Now he seemed more akin to a statue than a man.

It was not long before the enemy opened fire. Cultists from on high sprayed lasfire and heavy bolter fire into the massed ranks of the Iron Guard. The Imperium's retaliation, the might of hundreds of tank guns.

In an overwhelming show of force, a tremendous firestorm swept over the land. Scores of shells were lobbed into the enemy entrenchments and bathed the land in the glow of a hundred suns. Yet, like rabid madmen, the enemy doggedly fought back.

They sprayed into the Mordian lines with all manner of weapons. Rockets would fly into tanks and dissipate in great fireballs upon the tough armour. Muskets and cannon would crackle and pop in the distance, leaving behind plumes of smoke.

Cannonballs would plough into the Mordian lines taking limbs and lives as they drove through body after body. Some would ricochet off of the tanks and into the infantry. Heavy bolters and lasguns, stolen from other forces spat fire and scorching light into the Imperial Guard.

Through the bloody mess, the Iron Guard trudged on. Until they were within close range and halted with the silence of their music. Then a new tune was played and they formed into new lines, reserves filling in the gaps left behind by the dead and the front rank knelt as arms were raised at the enemy.

"Front rank! Fire!" Barked an officer.

As one the front rank let fly light and death upon the enemy.

"Second rank! Fire!" The order was barked.

Like the first, the second open fire. Thus began the relentless grind of the Mordian Iron Guard. Blooded and dirtied suits of gold and blue standing tall and triumphant as hell was unleashed from their very guns.

-//-

It was not long before the relentless grind ate its way to Wyvern's Citadel. There they came upon a hail of overlapping arches of precise bolter fire. Out of the forest poured the rear guard of Arcanus' forces.

Silent and determined, they charged into the Mordian gun lines. Too swift for the near-blind crews of the behemoth tanks to track and weathering the storm of lasfire each marine ploughed into the formations.

With all their post-human might, they blasted through the tightly packed ranks of guardsmen in great fountains of blood and gore. With melta and lascannon, they downed one leman russ after another.

The forward line broke down and dissolved like water upon rocks in a bloody mess. Mimir snapped out of his trance and ordered the salamander to advance. The world began to shake as the command tank charged into battle.

Bursting out of the dust the tank slammed into one armoured giant of a traitor and crushed him under its treads. The tank also tipped over its side as the right tread ran over the Astartes' armour and were launched into the air by its slope.

Then it listed back down and onto the ground. On the commander's order, the heavy bolter and autocannon opened fire blasting round after round into a pair of Legionnaires. One was blown away piecemeal while the other was

Meanwhile all around them, Astartes roared and spasmed in agony as Mimir liquified their very flesh. The order was given for a bayonet charge to take the final line before they reached the citadel.

Breaking formation, Mordians committed themselves into a headlong charge into Astartes guns. At the tip of the forming spearhead was Mimir in his tank. He thrust his palm forward and erected another of his barriers that glowed white as it deflected bolts and absorbed energy blasts.

Following his lead, the Imperial Guard broke through traitor lines and charged the citadel. Like a flood of blue and gold, they stormed the fortress with all their might. Drowning their scattered enemies in overwhelming numbers.

It was not long before they came upon the ruined walls and into the hell that festered within. The ground was littered with the bodies of cultists, Astartes and Sororitas alike. Chaotic artillery emplacements were bombarding the collapsing citadel and the siege carried on inside.

Mimir ordered the salamander grind to a halt and disembarked onto blackened earth. He looked down at it and squatted. Scooping up a handful with his long, ancient fingers he inspected it. He flushed his own power into it and it glowed an unnatural shade of pink and purple.

"The touch of the dark prince?... The Goddess' hold on this world is fading... We must hurry! Restore Freya before all is lost again!" Mimir exclaimed. Rosetta finched as there was a clear sign of fear or urgency in him.

Without time for thought, he grabbed Rosetta by the arm and pulled her along as he ran for the entrance amidst the raging battle.

-//-

Through ruined halls of stone and dust, through darkness and light, they ran. Mimir seemed to know his way as he scanned various portents and markings and made choice decisions along the way.

Through the deafening storm of battle, Mimir did not relent for he sensed that time had run out. Even in these halls, the dreaded black soil seemed to gather at every corner. He no longer needed to drag Rosetta as she figured he'd lead her to the rest of Aura.

Suddenly at the sight of a particular doorway, she stopped. Mimir slowed to a halt and turned about to watch her. He noted the doorway she was looking at.

"We've no time! Ack!" Mimir barked as he staggered and gripped his head.

"The walls of reality are thinning here!" He barked again. He considered using his power but hesitated. With reality's walls so weakened, he feared using them.

Rosetta looked at him.

"Do you not hear them?" She asked.

"Of, course. I'm no full. They scream out in pain."

"No. They scream out in longing. They wish to fight. Release them! Unleash them!"

Mimir froze. In that moment a realisation burst to life within his mind. Rosetta ran through the doorway and down the stairwell on the other side. For once, Mimir found himself following her. Down into the dungeons he went.

Rosetta met the horrors that revealed themselves to her down there with a steeled heart and determination. Battle Sisters, in their dozens, all locked up, stripped bare of even the dignity of their clothing. All baring the robes and hoods of repentia.

Every single one of them broken, tormented and crying into the heavens for salvation. Many have taken to flagellating their own bloodied backs in hopes of securing redemption. In their madness, they all fixated on Rosetta.

Rosetta seemingly instinctively raised her hands, silencing them all.

"You have... All off you have been falsely accused of crimes that never happened. Through a web of heresy lies and deceit, the traitor has imprisoned you!" She barked with all her breath. 

Like animals, they roared and howled into the air with approval. Rosetta felt a hint of gladness that some part of their minds remained intact.

"Shown you hell and cursed you to this darkness for the crime of maintaining true faith in the God-Emperor!"

They howled and wailed ever louder as they started to hammer their fists and hurl themselves at the bars that held them back. Rosetta paused and then began to roar.

"Your only crime is allowing this to ever happen! Now go forth and buy your redemption with the blood of the traitor and the heretic!"

Just as she finished Mimir appeared and dissolved the bars and cages. They became a barbaric mob of lunatics and maniacs. They stormed the armoury and wrestled each other as each woman rushed to take one of the eviscerators for herself.

Then with no thought given they charged out screaming and wailing as they were let loose upon the world. Soon they had all rushed out and Mimir was left all alone with Rosetta as she stepped over the corpse of one repentia who was trampled upon in the frenzy.

Rosetta entered the armoury and took one mighty chainsword for herself. With a single swing and revving of its powerful engine, she signalled her readiness to fight. She felt her old passions be rekindled within her once more.

Now Aura was all that mattered to her. She no longer cared for Theodosius' intentions, Mimir's fears, Mirabel's ambitions or even Arcanus' own passions. Faith in the God-Emperor seemed like a childish dream in these times but in Aura's absence, Rosetta anchored herself in it.

Indeed faith was what had gotten her here in the first place. Indeed, by its own tenants, all that transpired and all that she had endured were ordained by the God-Emperor himself. Why follow such a cruel and unjust god?

However, by the God-Emperor of Mankind Aura was a gift that surpassed any other. Few in her position could argue with that. She was a friend when a friend was needed. She was an enemy when an enemy was needed. Indeed she loved Rosetta when Rosetta needed to be loved.

By the Emperor, she was a gift and few could argue with that. This she thought as she followed Mimir down hallway after hallway.

-//-

Eventually, the two reached the royal courtyard on the other end of the fortress. There they beheld hell itself before their despairing eyes. The soil itself was black, filled with the accursed chaotic black soil.

Here the last of the Order of Divine Light fought on. Defiant to the end, they held back endless tides of daemonettes with bolt and flame. From behind pillars of stone and marble, they fought from the cloisters and surrounded the open field.

Like beacons of white light in an ocean of otherworldly fire. The Sisters, now barely a hundred strong, fought on with dogged zeal. Their twisted faith in Mirabel acting as a barrier and a weapon as organs played holy tunes and hymns of praise and hatred were sung on top of the bark of bolters and squeal of daemons.

Like a vision from hell, the very sky was ablaze with warp energy. Overlapping fields of fire chewed up daemons as they spawned. Bolts glowed a fiery yellow as streams of them crisscrossed each other throughout the battlefield.

Fires of pink and white raged at every quarter. Beams of purple light burst from the ground and into the sky. While gems and diamonds rained from tears in reality. All of it, a glimpse of a Helios without Aura.

At the epicentre of all of this Arcanus and Mirabel faced each other on top of a mountain of corpses. With sword and swiftness matching halberd and might they hammered into each other as the end drew near.

The gates of hell have opened. Now more than ever Helios V stands on the brink of being swallowed whole.

"Emperor... Save us." Rosetta uttered.

-//-