Mielipiteitä, kommentteja ja haukkuja saa/pitää laittaa
Ja ennen kuin kerrotte että otsikko on väärin kirjoitettu, lukekaa koko tarina.
Beginning
Little less than two millenia ago, The Cruel Brothers were created. It is told, that their sole purpose was to help in the fight against 10th Black Crusade, but the battles were over before their fighting force was fully operational, so they did not get a change to fight in the hole conflict.
Still, they were born, and their skills were but to use. During the 11th Black Crusade, they got their change to prove theit skills against the hordes of chaos. Chapter triumphed, and tales of their deeds reached far. After the foul crusade was over, Cruel Brothers' fleet sailed around the galaxy, giving their aid where it was needed. Most of their campaings were againgst revolting planets and for this they were known in many systems as Peace Keepers legion. Their fleet was small compared to the other Chapters, but their battle spirit granted them many powerfull allies, like Ultramarines and Imperial Fists.
Even thou 'Brothers had won most their battles, losses were bad. Master Constantin decided that chapter had to replenish it's strenght. Fleet had training facilities for the battle brothers, but Master knew, that holo-enemies and cityfight-scenarios could never compensate forests and other real terrain. They set course to their own planet, beautiful paradise named Edo, which was assigned for their use.
Home
Cruel Brothers had never been to their homeplanet, for most of their iniates were chosen from the hive-cities of planet Trucido (Chapter was actually named after this world). Edo was unpopulated at the time, for it's primary rock was allmost hollowed for the use of storaging old texts and relics. Cruel Brothers took the guarding of the underground vaults as one of their duties.
Decades passed and Chapter was in it's full power again. They remained stationary, never leaving for war in their full numbers. Shortly, Settelers arrived to the planet and started to spread across it's surface. Frustrated, for they could not use the hole planet for their own purpouses anymore, Cruel Brothers claimed much of the lands for themselves. This caused much trouble for the people, but they prospered and fields and villages grew.
Assasination & Civil-war
At the 40th millenia, in year 246.M40 to be exact, a war broke out. The quarrels over the lands and the thites collected by the Cruel Brothers grew into a full-scale civil war, when guerilla group knows as Mountain Cloud Boys, assasinated the Chapter Master Agara.
Master was on a routine inspection of chapters farms, when aproximately fifty warriors, armed with swords, laspistols and a grenadethrower, ambushed his personal carrier. Even thou Master and his retinue fought hard, their only armaments were boltpistols, and only cover they had was unarmoured vehicle. When skimmer unit reached the site, it was already too late. Agara and his bodyguards had fallen, but they took thirtyfour men down with them. Investigations started immediately and soon rest of the terrorists were caught by the scout units. They were instantly executed.
News of the attack spread quickly and it wasn't lond before other traitors revealed themselves. Munition depotes and PDF facilities were raided and some of the officials were lynched by the mobs. Citizens were divided in two factions, loyals and rebels. Rebels had the advantage in numbers, but Loyals fought in the side of Cruel Brothers. War raged for little less than a year, ending to the battle of Xiang-Soul, where compined forces of the marines and PDF clashed with the last remaining organized regiment of the Rebels. Battle itself was a slaughter, no prisoners were taken, thanks to the assault cannons of the Adeptus Astartes.
Hunt & Salvation
Inquisition started look for the remaining heretics. In the confusion of the wars last days, thoulsands of innocents were slain by the Adepta Sororitas and none, loyal or rebel, was safe. Even the slithest connection, was it to live in the same village or to be working in the same field, was reason enought for execution. People were desperade, rumours about total annihilation of the hole population started flow around.
Salvation came from unexpected source. Solus Campeador, new Chapter Master of the Cruel Brothers, decleared that no one, man, woman or child, would be executed under suspicion of heresy anymore. In His opinion, there was as much fault in Cruel Brothers, as were in the people of Edo and that the Chapter and the civilians should find the way of peaceful coexistence. This of course spawned lot of dissatisfaction among the Inquistion, who even threated to order Adeptas Sororitas to arrest Campeador. But the real menace, the one that would change Cruel Brothers forever, came from source much closer. Years pass...
Treachery
Captain Plaisance, who was Campeador's biggest rival upon the election of the new Master, Plaisance's own (3th) and three other (4th, 5th & 6th) companies arranged a assasination attempt against Campeador. Motives of the other three companies were propably jealousy and greed. Campeador would give even more land and rights for the mere civilians, stripping the hole Chapter (not to mention Captains themselves) from it's riches. Plaisance's motive, however, was more of a personal kind. His and Campeadors ideologies couldn't have been more far away from each other. When Campeador insisted that hole planet should work together, Plaisance wanted to separate Astartes from the working class scum, keeping the Chapter as the ruler of Edo. His hatred towards the soft new Master was so great, that he was ready to tear the hole Chapter apart...
Hold of Balance, traditional stronghold of the head quarters, was attacked with the full power of these four companies. Their tactic was to first kill all the guards, get in with full force and then shutting the entrance, for then no reinforcements could get in.
Following is a short reference of the battle.
Hall of Balance is, like most of the Chapters facilities, a underground vault. Build inside rock and walls lined with ten layers of five inch thick adamantium, frontal assault against it would have been suicide. Culprits however, had their own means of getting in...
There was five squads on duty. Squads II, IV and VII from the first company and squads XI and XII, from the third. After Agara's murder, Chapter Master's personal bodyguard grew from small five men team into a five squads. Using his personal contacts inside head quarters, Plaisance alternated the turns of the guard, letting two squads loyal only to himself, into the vault. Plan was, that these traitors would quickly take over the control room, open the maingate, let the rest of the renegades in and then seal all entrances. If rest of the chapter wanted to help their Lord, there would have been no way. Even long-lasting siege would not have been a proplem to Plaisance, since there was enought supplies and food for the hole chapter to last months inside there, in case of a emergengy. Then Plaisance would had just claimed the title to himself and purged the marines still loyal to Campeador with the help of Inquisition, who also did not approve the soft methods of the Chapter Master.
It was only by the swift action of the squad II's veteran sergeant, Chaplain novice, Clacies Numen, that the traitors could not fully accomplish their mission. In Numen knew, that there was something very disturping in the quick change of the guards assembly. The second he noticed that the teams XI and XII were not on their assigned routes', he an his team stormed the control room, killing all the surprised renegades. But accident had already happened and Plaisance had already invaded the main hall and made his way even deeper to the complex.
Numen triggered the alarm and contacted his Lord through the inter-comm. Campeador did not seem surprised, nor did he hesitate for a moment, when he ordered Numen and his men to blow up all the control rooms machines (shutting few firedoors before that of course) and return to the Office immediatelly. Once Numen reached the Office, defenders had only ten minutes before the attackers would reach them. All depended on how fast the reinforcements would get to the vault...
Even though Plaisance knew that his plans had failed, when the doors did not shut behind him and other renegades, he decided to at least take Campeador with himself to the deeps of hell. Traitors rushed forth with vindictive look in their eyes, firedoors hardly stopping their speed. Few minutes later they reached the Office, where fifty defenders (including servants) waited. When not numerous, Campeador and his men had the advantage of fighting using terminator equipment and narrow corridor, where renegades could not circle them. It was a ferocious attack, but defence lasted long enough for the reinforcements to arrive. Surrounded, finally realising that they had lost, some of the attackers threw their weapons away. Plaisance however charged straight towards his rival.
Plaisance could not make a single swing of his axe hit the Master. Only few seconds and Plaisance was on his knees, Campeador helding a blade on his throat. But the Renegade was not beaten yet, for he raised his hand and called Ruinous Powers to smite his opponent. There was no lighting nor fire, only a loud voice that shouted a single word and explosion that shooked the hole room. Only a crater was left of the Saint and the Heretic himself.
Sons of Campeador
Following minutes were in complete silence. Marines, both loyalist and traitors, were stunned by the sudden conclusion. But when the first shock went by, the first sound was the bloodthirsty cry of the loyal marines. ''Renegades must die!'' shouted Captain Lucius of the 8th company. ''Yes! We shall crucify them first, then we roast 'em alive!''
All of the renegades lowered their head in shame. They had no idea that Plaisance was using dark powers and now they fully understood their own heresy. Whole rebellion would have ended in bloodshed as the one that touched the hole Edo before, if one man had not stood up.
Veteran sergeant Numen of 1st company, Chaplain novice, walked to the Chapter banner. He snapped the flagpole in two and all men went silent in flash. He lifted the banner high with his right hand. He spoke; ''This is what our Brotherhood has become.'' He ripped the Chapter's symbol from the flag, wave of shivering went through the marines. ''We just lost half of our wisdom, strenght and courage.'' Numen walked towards the closest renegade. ''Rise, my Brother.'' Marine raised his head, tears running down his cheecks. ''I don't have the right...'' he whispered. Numen crouched and looked into the marine's eyes. ''Why wouldn't you have the right? You have lost as much as me before you, as has your brother on your side.'' He rose and pulled the battle brother up. ''We all were deceived, some more than the others. Master always said; One has to learn from his mistakes and forgive for the ones others made. I know, it may sound like something out of a textbook, pretty words with no meaning in them. But He knew better! He knew something like this could happen. He Knew, that in hour of dispair the only sure thing we could trust, should be our own brothers. This is the hour! We either fall, kill each others, leaving nothing of left of us or we turn this into a victory. And I know! Trust between us won't return in long time, but we must stick together!'' He raised the purple flag high ''The sorrowing sons of Campeador! Muster under this flag! We shall follow his way and learn!''
Aftermath
Chapter survived. All most all Marines remained on the planet, except Plaisance's own, 3th company. They disappeared from the Hall of Balance right after their Captains death and were never to be seen again. Rumours say, that they hijacked a Civilian gargoship and headed for the Eye of Terror, but who knows...
Inquisition was furious after the incident. If Plasaince would have won, They could have just supported him, saying that he purged the corrupt from the Chapter. But now, when there was no one do the dirty work for them and there was no real evidence of heresy, they could do nothing for the new infrastructure, that gave more power to the farmers and people on the planet, rather than the old feudalist-like system, where the Nobles took most the wealth.
Clacies Numen was chosen as the new Chapter Master. They also changed their name from Cruel Brothers to Cruel Sons, adopting the change from Numen's speech in the Hall. Even though Numen was the Master of the Chapter, he's primary role was to be the spiritual leader for his brothers. He has remained in charge of the Cruel Sons to this day.
Edit: Typo korjattu
