A slightly smaller Mess

Hakken: "By gum... 't almost brings a tear to me eye."

Hera: *she draws her sword and hefts it skywards* "BY THE EMPEROR LORD INQUISITOR, IT SHALL BE SO!"

Mac: "HUZZAH!"

*Mute yells wordlessly*

Charles grins before turning back towards the hangar entrance. The chaos ships are approaching fast.

Byrne "Fire torpedoes!" *A spread of six torpedoes launches from the emnity's bow. Before byrne hauls her around, flaring the engines before the iron warriors make gunnery range.*

*akira walks over to a locker, and opens it*

the ships simply thunder forth, the torpedoes detonating against the hull of one of the battleships.... it seems that the craftsmanship of the olympian shipyards has not been lost, as at best the outer layers are dented and scorched by the impacts. 

*inside there's the personal effects of one of the soldiers. including a few pictures*

Akira: *She checks the next*

Byrne: +This is the enmnity, we can't scratch them. its on you.+

*same again, just personal stuff. this one belonged to a young woman, pictures seem to indicate she had a thing for the guy who had the locker next to him*

+Roger that Byrne. You'll just get yourself killed if you try to fight them right now. Pull back and harass from a distance+

Akira: "Why would they leave like this?"

*Waitin*

Emma:.... maybe they didn't. Maybe something happened to them?

the moment before the ships enter weapons range, all of them launch fighters. it becomes difficult to see the approaching fleet behind the gigantic swarm of attack craft, from super heavy bombers and gunships, to fighters and daemon engines such as heldrakes, all headed directly for the station

Akira: "Maybe.."

*The station leaps to life. Its previously glossy black surface spewing forth gauss blasts by the hundreds. Every imperfection on the skin of the station turns out to be a defensive emplacement.*

the craft continue to swarm in the thousands, almost becoming a cloud absorbing incoming shots from the station's defences. the capitol ships get closer to the station under the cover of this chaff, as the attack craft begin targeting the defensive emplacements, the capitol ships beginning to form a ring around the station.

Emma: what else could it be?

Akira: "No corpses, no struggle... God only knows."

*A communication is sent to the iron warriors flagship*

Emma: yeah... *is looking through the personal stuff* damn. This one was young.

*they answer*

Max: +So tell me about yourself, Mr Techpriest+

[...WHAT]

*On their screen stands amonet, in all the splendour and regal dignity of the necron nobility.* "Your opportunity for surrender, shall be given only once. Human."

Akira: "Soldiers usually are."

the iron warrior sighs "And your opportunity to learn who you're dealing with will be given once too. You are not the first necrons I have crushed. And will not be the last. Iron warriors do not give up."

Emma: ....huh...

Max: +What's your name?+

[...PARMENEON. MAGOS BIOLOGIS.]

Amonet: *he laughs. A haunting mechanical sound* "Regardless of victory or failure. My secrets will not be yours. Come Iron warriors. Face those who bear your name in earnest. Perhaps i shall take it for my dynasty, once you have been crushed beneath my the feet of my phalanxes."

Akira: "You're a sister right? You're basically soldiers from birth."

Max: +Maximilian Erentilo the Sixteenth...a pleasure+

"You have spirit. I will enjoy breaking it."
*four ships from the fleet approach the hangars. They appear different to the other ships to some degree. Each suddenly appears to fire upon the hangars. Rather than shells, lasers or other projectiles, large metal orbs around the size of a dreadnought crash into the hangars and simply stop, not detonating or causing any additional damage after landing.*

Emma: yeah. I was a frontline sister before I finished puberty.

[THE FEELING IS NOT MUTUAL]

Hera: "HOLD!..." *a ball of roiling flame bursts into life in her left palm*

Akira: "Guard conscription age is 16. on most planets..."

the balls each hiss before bursting open, revealing what they truly were. Sort of drop pods. Containing Dark Mechanicus Battle automata, primarily castellax and domitar patterns, heavily modified, possibly even daemonically posessed. They whirr to life, rising up, weapons coming online, targeters noting priority targets, before they let loose with their heavy weaponry into the defenders' ranks.

Emma: yeah... not surprised

Max: +That's because you don't like me. So how long have you had this battleship?+

Hera: "FIRE! FIRE TILL THE BARRELS GLOW!"

*The response is staggering. The barrage of fire the automata are met with, las fire uncountable, heavy bolters, One automata is immediately blasted with the searing hot discharge from the devastator captain's multimelta. Bandit, from his secluded position at the back of the hangar, plants careful fire into the weakpoints of the machines, joints, exposed ammunition chains. Jax, need not care about such things, the penetrating power of his rifle cannot cut through their strongest armour, but the more thinly armoured knee joints, and elbows cannot stand against it*

Akira: "Yeah, imperium is run by assholes."

*the return fire too is staggaring. A lone Castellax is armed with two bolters and a Mauler class Bolt cannon, with enough punch and penetration to put down a fully armoured astartes in one shot, with a fire rate to rival a heavy bolter. Others wield flamers and multi meltas. A few even mount a rare and terrifying darkfire cannon, launching screaming beams of pure darkness at the defenders, causing metal and flesh to melt away in equal measure. Were it not for the defence of the psykers and the fact they have become heavily entrenched, the defenders would have been hanging by a thread now*

[A WHILE]

*At this point, contrary to usual practice, even logen is taking cover, not even bothering to fire his bolt pistol, full knowing all the good it would do. Another one falls to the precise application of a multimelta from the salamanders.*

Hera: "FAR LEFT, AVERT YOUR EYES!" *She grits her teeth and points her left arm, from her blazing hand, a beam of blindingly irridecent flame streaks across the hangar, punching through the torso of one of the automata with a darkfire cannon, burning a clean hole through its chassis*

*charles is more focussed on using defensive powers, covering the others, keeping them from getting utterly murdered*

*The barrage keeps up, one of the bolt cannon automata specifically targetting the multimelta salamander. Suddenly, as one, they all begin to advance, still firing*

Max: +How come it's deserted?+

[GO AWAY]

*The devastator sergeant drops to the floor, putting his shoulder to the sandbags*

*hera has no defensive powers to speak of, save for one for herself, so focuses on obliterating as many of their assailants as possible. She brings back her fist, flames engulfing her arm again, before unleashing the power once more, tearing the automata targeting the salamander in half* "BURN IN YOUR FOUL DIMENSION DAEMON!" *The hate and vitriol in her voice is palpable.*

Laurence: +Charles, can you hold the hangar? Do you need us?+

Max: +There aren't genestealers are there?+

[OF COURSE NOT]

Emma: what do you think then boss...any clues?

+We're holding for now but we're being pressed hard.+

Max: +So where is everyone?+

[OH THEY'RE HERE]

Akira: "I aint got shit... But i swear there was something in here."

Laurence: +No contacts in the tunnels yet.+

Hera: "A spiritu dominatus,Domine, libra nos, From the blasphemy of the Fallen, Our Emperor, deliver us." *She begins to channel huge volumes of warp energy, charles can see the immaterium whip around her, like water about a drain, her mind swallowing, and concentrating the power. Around her feet, flames begin to take hold, even on the completely nonflammable necrodermis*

*hera feels something, like a hand on her shoulder, As charles does his best to aid her, preventing any kind of psychic backlash or this going wrong*
+Roger that+

*outside the station, amongst the swarm of attack craft, indistinguishable from the others till its too late, others have been added to the force. Assault rams and assault claws, thundering full speed towards the 'arms' of the station, specifically their flanks*

Emma: I know what you mean...

Max: +Where?+
*While they've been talking he's been tracing the signal and trying to find the Biologus*

Hera: "That thou wouldst bring them only death, That thou shouldst spare none, That thou shouldst pardon none, We beseech thee... destroy them all!" *With that, she releases the pent up energy, focusing it on the centre of the enemy force. At first, there is but a small blossoming flame, but after a few moments, it blooms out, building in size and intensity until it is a roiling storm of flame, within it, the dark outlines of automata crumple and fall, as temperatures rise to the point where the necrodermis floor begins to melt under the inferno.* "DESTROY THEM ALL!"

Laurence: +Scratch that.+

Akira: "Everyone out."

*several of the castellax in the room go down, as the others keep attacking and advancing. at that, several more pods are launched into the hangar*

*the pod assaults deploy large forces of iron warriors marines directly into the tunnels, angry and heavily armed, guns blazing*

*The wraiths melt from the very walls, descending upon the intruders. Bolt shells pass through their ethereal bodies as they advance, claws bared. They no blows mar their forms, until their first strikes are laid. Claws puncture power armour, tear off limbs, and destroy internal organs. But once the first blow has been struck, the marauding machines are corporeal, and vulnerable.*

*One particular pod's occupants find themselves face to face with a single man, clad in a black coat that reaches his knees. The front of it hangs open, showing a vest of combat webbing, adorned with all manner of weaponary. Knives, mostly. But a number of pouches, and a few mysterious cylinders are also present. Hanging at his hip is a black sabre scabbard, trimmed with small amounts of silver, and in a pair of shoulder holsters, are two auto pistols. The man stares them down, motionless.*

Hakken: "How many of these things you think they bloody got!?" *He's showing surprising trigger discipline.*

*Chard feels himself being pushed to the side, and before he knows it, mallus is standing in front of him, a smoking pock mark in his chest plate, blazing away with his bolter*

*Bandit has zeroed in on where their optical sensors, and is firing to blind the beasts with impressive accuracy*

*Serah pumps shell after shell from her bolter into the oncoming machines, firing single shot to conserve ammunition. Above the din, of battle, she speaks prayers, in an almost hymn like voice. Quoting the book and verse after each preaching* "By bolter shell, flamer burst and melta blast, the mutant, the heretic and the traitor alike are cleansed of their sin of existence. So has it been for five millennia, so shall it be unto the end of time. Words of Devotion, Verses Four and five, Chapter ten, Volume fifty two!"

Charles: a lot! *the other pods burst open revealing several domitar pattern automata to reinforce the castellax. they charge headlong at the defenders, missile racks blazing*

Chard continues bellowing orders to his men as they fire disciplinned bursts into the automata

*thereare however a lot of iron warriors. very determined. very angry. one by one they dispatch the wraiths, with bolter, with chainblade, with heavy weapon it matters not as they push forward*

Logen: "My time..." *On wings of flame and fury, the salamander sergeant enters the fray, before he even lands, a carefully thrown melta grenade slams into one of the new automata, detonating a split second later to annihilate its midsection. he lands, feet first into one of them, planting his boots on its shoulders, and ramming the whirring blades of his chainsword into its head*

*Laurence seems content to stare down the warriors*

*the other automata continue to charge, with rather devastating impact. it becomes quite clear that now is probably the time to begin falling back*

*they fire on him*

*The moment their fingers tighten around triggers, a few things happen. Firstly, a painful spasm runs up their right arms, freezing their hands in place, and secondly, laurence draws the auto pistols, and runs towards the warriors. He opens fire upon them, shooting the left, then the right, then the left, with unerring accuracy, every bullet finds a weakspot, be it an eyepeice, a neck seal. The rounds pass through, and draw blood. He leaps when he reaches them, somersaulting over them so his guns stay trained, and keep firing. When he lands on the other side... The corpses stay standing for a moment longer, before they collapse in unison, as if their strings were cut.*

*the devastator sergeant lifts his head over the sandbags, and unleashes another blast of superheated gas, incinerating another automata*

Jack: "They're gonna close to melee!" *he uncovers his swords with his foot, dragging back the canvas they were hidden under*

Charles: fall back to secondary positions!

OOC: *Watches*

*logen tears his sword from the automata, flaring his jump pack to escape its retaliation.* "WE WILL COVER YOU INQUISITOR!" *with that, the salamanders begin to issue fearsome fire, two heavy bolters, and staggered fire from the multimelta serves to highlight them to the enemy, drawing fire.*

*Mute hefts his infernus heavy bolter from the sandbags, firing from the hip as he retreats backwards*

*Mac puts one of hera's arms over his shoulder, and half carries her away.*