60Death Korps of Justice: Salvation
Disclaimer: I do not in any way shape or form own the characters here. The character and the idea comes from Lord-of-Change's fanfic Death Korps of Krieg. The character of Krieg belongs to him, and what you see here is most likely not in any way canon to his story. Nor am I associated with Games Workshop in any way. This is a non-profit fanwork written solely for the purpose of entertainment. This is no way canon whether to Warhammer lore of Lord-of-change's work.
Responses to questions and statements:
-NewGuest123: Yeah, that's how I imagined Emps is and how I'm going to portray him here. A regretful man that's still determined to try to make things right and better.
-Yup. Keled's was very close to shooting them, only barely manage to keep himself in check.
-AdmiralDan09: Yup, and now Krieg's living the dream. Every Kriegsman seething in jealousy right now.
-Don't worry, you'll get to see Space Marines give it to the heretics.
-KingDiamond55: Yeah, for once in my life I seem to be doing something right. I mean, I guess even a broken clock's right once a day. Sorry, just kind of a mess in real life so this kind of thought is foreign to me. Have low self-esteem from a lot of failures in life. Sorry, not trying to bore you about my personal life and my issues. But yeah, glad to see that I'm finally doing something right for once in my life.
-Yeah, Krieg's heart is pounding at a thousand times normal. He's just so overwhelmed right now.
-LittleScareCow: Thanks! Glad you like it!
-edboy4926: Thanks, glad you like it. Honestly, I haven't thought that far ahead yet. So far, my plans for the story is just the Imperium kick chaos off Young Justice earth.
-Austin: I don't know if I add a whole Custodes squad, probably just a Custodes named 'Kitten'. Still thinking on it.
-Yeah, Emps needs a doggo companion right now. So does Guilliman, maybe I'll give him a German Shepard or something.
-I'm probably going add some characters as Legion of the Damned daemons like Rylandor or Huron-Fal, don't know about Ferrus Manus though. But still, I like the idea of a headless Primarch leading the Legion. But for sure I'll have Rylandor or Huron-Fal appear as daemons either wiping the floor with a greater daemon or something like the total chads they are. Maybe I'll add daemon Knights or Titans too, can't say for sure as I'm sticking thinking on it.
-Yeah, word gets back to the Imperium that Krieg helped to resurrect the Emperor he'll be the most popular guy around with woman, particularly Sisters of Battle practically fawning all over him.
-187: Thanks, glad you like it as this story was me wishing that Krieg had help in the OG fic. He's alone with no other Imperials and I wanted to give him some familiarity of home and help. Thanks for the idea of Celestine meeting with Wonder Woman, I'll be sure to think more on it.
Chapter 3
(Earth)
(Location: Gotham City)
The Joker loved anarchy.
That was something anyone could tell you. All he desired for in all his years of committing terrorism was sewing chaos in the world. Joker lived for it. He craved for it more than anything.
It was why he had decided to turn on Azkillion and the rest of his posse. They were not true agents of chaos. Sure, they spread deceit and disorder in the world. But they still had plans. They had objectives. They had goals.
To the joker, that wasn't true chaos. No. True chaos is just letting whatever happened and going with the flow. Just letting things be as chaotic and random as they could possibly be.
Which is why what just happened moments ago made him smile. Even though it came at the cost of his followers and were slaughtering them with extreme ease, he couldn't help but laugh at the same.
Giants roughly the size and height of Azkillion and the rest of his cronies had suddenly appeared out of nowhere and were slaughtering chaos followers everywhere, whether they belonged to him or not. With them wearing the same kind of futuristic power armor as Azkillion, albeit more scorched and on fire. With some in power armor different than the others and standing at roughly several foot taller than the rest, packing heavier firepower as they laid waste to all the cultist and daemons that they came across.
A former bladeguard veteran in Mark X Tacticus armor wielding a stormshield and heavy bolt pistol pursued him relentless down the narrow and destroyed streets of Gotham. With the Joker being narrowly missed as he ducked into what remained of an office building that collapsed in the days of prolonged and grueling urban warfare, all the while cackling to himself in joy with the chaos that was ensuing. With the Astartes being too big to follow him. Finally believing he had lost his pursuer, he emerged on the other side of the building before he was hit so hard and fast by something that he didn't even see as he flew into a concrete wall and fell to the ground. Landing on his face as several of his teeth were knocked out and he began violently coughing up blood. He was pretty sure that several of his ribs were broken and several of his organs were ruptured with internal bleeding involved.
The last thing the Joker saw as he laid there bleeding, too injured and choking on the blood filling his lungs to even laugh, was an Astartes clad in Indomitus pattern plate glaring at him from behind his helmet, with smoke coming out through the two glowing red slits embedded on his helmet where the eyes were. Lifting his reaper autocannon inches before his face before he fired a single shot. Ending the mad clown.
Azkillion had lived for many years, he had saw many things, witnessing the power of daemons and the miracles of dark gods. At this point he had believed very little surprised him at this point.
He was wrong. As what had just happened had left him wide-eyed and stunned for as long as a transhuman warrior like himself could be.
The former Thousand Son's legionary was about to order the metahuman terra to sink Gotham to both rid his hands of it and to use its inhabitants as a sacrifice to help fuel the creation of a warp portal to allow the denizens of the warp free access to this world and to permit daemons to freely roam about.
He was in the middle of explaining this to her, trying to persuade her she could do the task. Right before she exploded into paste, with there not even being enough left of Terra to fill a can and even what little remained of her was burning to ash. Even the blood that splattered all over the ground was being turned to crisp.
Immediately going into full combat mode as he readied himself for battle, he saw something most unexpected. A burning space marine clad in MK VI Corvus pattern power armor., with bones adorned on its chest armor forming a rib cage on his breast plate Pointing a Mark III Shrike Bolt Sniper rifle right at where Terra was before he switched targets to him and fired, with Azkillion just barely to dodge the flaming round but even then he was ever so slightly slow as the shot grazed his helmet. With the sorcerer firing lighting from his fingers at the marksman, but again he was too slow as the Marine vanished in a flash of fire and light.
"So, the dogs of the carrion Emperor have arrived." Azkillion growled in annoyance, before suddenly feeling he should move courtesy of his gut instinct.
Acting more on instinct, he dove to the ground as a power fist smashed right on the spot of the boulder he was just on. Turning back, he saw another burning legionary of the Damned, only this one was entombed in a contemptor-class dreadnaught with a flaming halo hovering a few feet over his head. He was armed with an assault cannon on his right arm and with a contemptor power fist on the left with a built-in heavy flame thrower. Which was immediately fired at him as the dreadnaught pulled his limb out of the ground and pointed the appendage at him. Firing celestial flames at his being that left his armor scorched as he was just barely able to dodge it.
Azkillion retaliated as he fired off a wave of blue warp flames at the loyalist. Only for it have no effect as the armor on the dreadnaught was more than capable of withstanding the unholy fire. With him raising his assault cannon as he fired off a burst of burning bolter rounds. One striking his armor which caused him to hiss in pain as he took cover behind the rubble of a destroyed office building. The dreadnaught advancing on his position with each step making a thunderous thud each time.
At that point, he understood. He had no chance and there was only one option left for him if he wished to live to see the next day.
Azkillion ran. Summoning his platform while also creating a portal to allow a helbrute to step onto the battlefield with a roar. Firing it's built in plasma cannon with the legionary dodging it as the two ancients battled it out while the former Thousand's son attempted to flee. Summoning a portal back to the watchtower in orbit as he sprinted as fast as he could. Sure, he would have to explain his what happened to Markoth and potentially face death, but he would take his chances with the leader of the warband than with the angry dreadnaught.
But it did not save him from the wrath of the Damned. As the same contemptor-class dreadnaught threw a rock so hard and fast at him he did not have time to react even with his psychic and transhuman abilities. Hitting him in the head so hard that he fell to the ground dazed looking up at the sky that was now blurry and turned upside down. With the dreadnaught finishing off the helbrute as he parried the swipe the helbrute swung at him with its hammer with his power fist. With him shoving his cannon into the cockpit of the machine, the mutated space marine serving as it's pilot relieved of its suffering and pain as it was killed by a burst of fire from the cannon.
The last thing he would ever see was a loyalist Astartes standing over him in MK VIII Errant armor as he stabbed him in the throat via his burning chainsword. Only be able to reach out with his arm futilely as the sword was turned on and his throat was sliced open. His executioner having already moved on as he killed the sorcerer while already scanning the battlefield around him for new targets.
(Location: Star City)
Oliver knelt down as he cradled what remained of Mia Dearden, gently closing her eyelids shut as he placed her on the ground. With Dinah and Roy grabbing a nearby bed sheet and covering her corpse with it. With Oliver greatly appreciating the show of support from the two of them.
It all happened so fast, so minute he was fighting her and begging her to stop. The next second she was already dead, killed by the burning and smoking Astartes in MK II power armor before it turned it's gaze elsewhere. Seemingly ignoring, or just not caring, of the plight of Star City's hero. Dinah and Roy had attempted to confront the burning giant and demand an answer as to who and what he was only to be brushed off. When Dinah had used her sonic scream on it to force it to comply, it simply teleported away in a flash of fire, light and smoke.
Before they could begin to pursue it, they noticed the plight of Oliver and what he was going through, feeling immense guilt for what happened to Mia and intense gried over her death. They decided to stay and comfort him however he could. An act he he was immensely grateful for.
While he did come to terms with the fact that she was already too far gone and that there was no other option, it didn't make it any less painful to him.
"Oliver," Roy said. " They're doing something." His former apprentice informed him.
Dinah seemed to agree as she placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Oliver, come on. We have to move."
After apologizing to Mia one last tie, he got up with Black Canary and Red Arrow to see what the new arrivals were doing. Stepping over the charred remains of many dead cultists who were foolish enough to engage the giants and mutants who were torn apart limb from limb. Eventually, they caught up with the legionaries as they formed a shield wall with a single Astartes clad in Indomitus termiantor power armor standing in the middle with his storm bolter and power fist. Right between the formations without his own storm shield without a single care. Nearly a hundred meters opposite of them stood the remains of the chaos forces in the city, having been pushed back from their barricades and fornications thanks to the firepower of the legionaries.
Both sides stare down each other in silence. Though, on the Astartes side it was unreadable given their nature as Imperial daemons and their helmets obscuring their faces. While on the chaos cultist side the fear and terror they were feeling was palpable, as looks of hesitation and unease were on their faces with sweat dripping down their face and backs.
The unbearable silence was broken by the sound of a cultist firing off his FN FAL, which didn't even make so much as a dent in the shield that it impacted. As soon as the heretic fired, he was blown to pieces by a retaliatory bolter shot.
And with that, all hell broke loose as the Legion of the Damned open fired in full.
(Imagine the scene from the Iron Within animation as the Iron Warriors engaged the Dark Eldar. With them being replaced with legionaries of the damned here)
The breacher squad raised their shields as they slowly and methodically advanced forward. Their flaming shields tanking any and all rounds reading their way. With each step the Space Marines took, they fired off a bolter round each taking out a cultist. Moving in and even turning in perfect sync and coordination as they pushed back against the chaos worshippers.
The space marines moved like a fined tuned and well oiled machine, as they moved forward in unison with the utmost efficiency. Soaking up all the incoming fire with no casualties of their own as they pushed forward one step and bolter round at a time, killing cultists by the dozens.
As the shield bearing Astartes moved forward, the traitors to Mankind at first made a somewhat admirable attempt to put up a defense, it proved it be worthless and for naught in the wake of the superhuman's weapons and superior armor. By the end of the first minute of the fight, a very stretch definition of the word as it was more like a one-sided slaughter, the cultists ranks broke as they turned tail and ran. With many of them even literally throwing their weapons away as they began running for the hills.
Pushing forward, finishing off the few cultists that still remained alive with an armored boot to the face, the armored formation continued pursing the Astartes as many more began appearing and unloading their weapons at the fleeing horde in cold and methodical shots. Some of the flaming angels even possessing close melee weapons like chain swords, chain axes, power swords, and the like.
None were spared as the Astartes hounded them at every corner, a relentless wall of death purging the city of the taint of chaos with Black Canary and Red and Green Arrow following them, with them trailing behind one on the rear lines wielding a smoking power maul in his right hand and a bolter in his left. A mutant berserker attempt to jump him on his right, with the angel moving with such grace and finesse that he dodged it with ease and kicked it into the remains of a U-Haul truck before taking his head off with the melee weapon.
Continuing forward, it raised it's armored foot and smashed a cultist that made a single twitch before marching forward. Eventually, stumbling on a traitor whose lower half was blown on as she desperately tried to crawl her way to safety, tears pouring down her face in fear and pain as the blood and guts were pouring out of her. Staring at the burning juggernaut as it stared at her coldly.
"No! No! Please! Have mercy!" She almost pathetically pleaded. Raising her arms in a futile attempt to block the finishing blow as the Astartes raised the maul and prepared to bring it down. However, before he could do so, he was stopped by Oliver stepping in front of him with Dinah and Roy.
"Stop!" Oliver shouted, uncaring he was getting in the way of a warrior with over ten-thousand years of non-stop combat experience. He didn't want any more blood to be shed unless it was absolutely necessary. And the kid it was about to the afterlife reminded her a lot of Mia in appearance. The fact that she didn't look to be older than seventeen didn't help.
Tension filled the as the legionary stared them down from behind his visor as he kept his maul raised, with the three heroes not backing down as they stared at him. Only broken by the sound of a bolter firing from behind the trio, causing them to instantly snap to the source. Which was an astartes in MK III armor already moving down to join the colunm as it finished off the cultist with the power maul wielding angel following behind him. Not caring of the glares shot at their backs from the local heroes'.
(Location: Holy Terra)
(42nd Millennium)
Passing through the portal was quite the experience, if Keled was being honest. It was much like how it was when he had killed the heretic forge and passed through the warp before ending up on the Earth stuck in the 3rd millennium. Only less intense on his body and feeling more...focused. For lack of a better word.
Krieg felt like his knees were about to give out the moment he stepped through the portal that Saint Celestine had came through. With his heart beating faster than it has ever had before and he began feeling as if he was about to pass out at any moment.
For he was on Holy Terra.
Not Earth, where the ones who called themselves heroes resided in the early third millennium.
No.
He was on the Holy Terra he was raised being taught about. The very cradle of Mankind the heart of His Majesty's most glorious Imperium of Man.
But it that wasn't enough, he was in the Imperial Palace itself. With a Custodes standing right in front of him, his gaze on him the moment he stepped through the portal. The mystical beings that Krieg had never, not even in a million years, believed he would ever get the privilege to meet in person, caused Keled's heart to stop beating for several seconds. A red cape adjourned his armor with more red clothing attached to his pauldrons, making him look even more majestic, as well as giving the transhuman a sort of regal and royal look that was impossible to emulate.
"Follow me." The towering man in golden armor ordered. His voice radiating authority and power as he turned down the nearby corridor that was painted in the color gold as well.
He did not turn back to Keled, who had to stain his legs to keep up with the giants long strides. Still, Keled took a few moments to marvel at the Master of Mankind's residence. How beautiful it all was and feeling so blessed that he, a normal human being and most likely the first ever member of the Death Korps of Krieg, to ever be allowed to step inside the Emperor's domain.
Not to mention that he was about to have an audience with the Emperor himself. If the words of Saint Celestine was to be believed.
During the walk, he got distracted by the walls of the palace lined with art he recognized having originated from the twenty-first century such as the Mona Lisa and David and Goliath statue. But what really got his attention was the architecture of the palace, just how pristine and beautiful it all was. And how he didn't feel a sinner like him deserve to be in its presence. He slowed down as he became lost in thought, wondering what the Emperor would want to discuss with him and how he felt he didn't deserve to enter his most sacred and inner sanctum.
Noticing his mistake and the 10-foot tall demigod staring at him from behind his helmet. Krieg acted more on instinct as he got on his knees and bowed deeply, his gasmask pressed against the gold floor.
"L-Lord, I-I," before Keled could start begging for forgiveness, the giant towering over him let out a small laugh, as if he was amused.
"It's quite all right." The Captain-General of the Emperor's bodyguards chuckled. "But you don't need to be formal with me, Keled. Feel free to call me by my name: Valoris."
It didn't help Keled's anxiety and nervousness that a Custodes, not just any Custodes but the Captain-General of the order, was asking him to be less formal. Which Krieg felt he didn't deserve. Which caused his heart to start beating twice as fast as it already was, which was already rapidly beating due to the stress and worry he felt.
"Now come on," the chief Custodian said. "His Majesty had waited long enough."
With that, Keled shot back up to his feet at a speed that really shouldn't be possible for a normal human and followed the armored being as they traversed the massive halls of the Imperial Palace.
Finally, after several minutes of walking. They came across a set of massive doors guarded by a dozen or more Custodes. None of whom moved at all or even reacted to his presence in any way.
Yet somehow, Krieg had a feeling that they were watching him all the same. And were prepared at a moment's notice to strike him down if need be.
The custodian that had escorted him stepped off to the side once they reached the doors. Giving Krieg an expectant look which was quite a contrast to the one Krieg had under his gasmask. Before the Kriegsman had the chance to ask anything, the gate ahead of him opened. Which lead down another corridor that was empty.
"His Majesty is through there." The custodes said as Krieg remained too awestruck to formulate a reply. "He has commanded us to stand outside. For his words are for you alone."
A wave of fear and anxiety flowed through Krieg as the Emperor's bodyguard finished as he continued staring at the passage.
Author's note: That's it for now. Hope you al enjoyed this update. Thanks again to all of you for taking the time to read and check out my story. Finally managed to finish this despite being busy recently. Finished this right off after an eight hour shift.
*Edit: So, I noticed that quite a few of you guys didn't like the Captain-General being named Kitten. Sorry about that, just wanted to make a reference to text-to-speech device. So, I decided to change it to the name of the current chief Custodian, which is Trajann Valoris.
Take care, gents, and always remember... stay frosty, gents.