The Hobby Hobbit

Chapter 5: It’s A Trap!

The thunderhawk landed cautiously on a wide open square in the ruined city. As the landing platform lowered, Marshal Baldwin and his knights stepped out onto the barren ground, followed by their neophyte squires. Their hands eagerly rested on their chainswords as they scanned the square for signs of the enemy. The engines powered down and they were engulfed by an ominous silence.

Once the dust had settled, a colossal statue was revealed. Despite centuries of weathering, the proud face of an angel watched over the square. Her delicate hand held a sword up to her armoured chest, with the blade shattered at the hilt. Her leftwing had been severed by some unknown tool and now lay broken at her feet. In its place, a crude metal spike had been impaled, topped with an eight pointed star. Baldwin sensed that humans had not been the only inhabitants here.

The knights spread out through the square with their weapons drawn and ready, advancing in an arrow formation with the squires at the rear. It was clear that the city had been uninhabited for some time. There were no signs of any life, neither human remains nor the typical vermin that inhabit such places.

The Marshal stopped to scan his surroundings. Despite his genetically enhanced vision, the cloud of dust that circled them hid the derelict streets in a sandy veil. He signalled to the knight on his left to scan ahead with a kinetic sensor. There was no noise, except for the creaking of old, rusted metal, from the ruined buildings that had not yet succumbed to the planet’s acid rain. Yet, there was a strange taste in the air. The familiar, metallic taste that often ushers in a rainstorm.

Following the Marshal, the knights made their way slowly but deliberately into an alley at the top of the square. Even by human stature, the path was narrow and its rusty walls loomed over them as they crept through, bolters raised for the slightest hint of movement. It was unnaturally quiet, not even the wind whistled to greet them. The only sound was their slow breathing and the rustling of heavy, plated boots on sand.

Baldwin looked to the knight at his shoulder. Still no readings on the kinetic sensor. Without warning, there was a clap like thunder in the distance. It couldn’t have been far, surely within the ruins of the city. Storms were common in this region, and the acid rain would sting even an astartes’ skin. Oddly, he heard no pattering of rain, and the wind was still dormant.

As they stepped through to a wide opening, Baldwin noticed that the sandy veil around them had grown thicker, and not by accident. Larger stones and shrapnel were now rising off the ground and a hidden force held them fixed in the air. He sensed some evil malice at work here, biding its time like a stalking predator. A faint hum surged around them, tremors travelled up their armour from the barren ground and vibrated down their weapons. This was undoubtedly a trap. He signalled to advance. It was time to spring the trap.

Another clap of thunder, deafening this time. Those without helms clasped their ears as the world went dark around them. Regaining their senses, they saw swirling flames of purple, blue and green that danced through the air before disappearing back into nothingness.

In the wide street ahead, the flames twisted and contorted around an oval wall of pitch black. Without speaking a word, they moved to surround the unnatural tear in space, that seemed to separate the material world from the immaterial. Baldwin allowed himself a moment of pride, as his knights all aimed their weapons at the shape in unison. No trick of the enemy would distract a Templar from his duty.

A ripple ran through the shape, like a wave gliding through water. The ground trembled again, sending vibrations up their armour. Chainswords began to whirr in anticipation. Another ripple, bolder this time, followed by tremors. Something was stirring behind the veil.

An enormous foot emerged from the veil, sending ripples as the material world groaned in protest. A hideous limb of scales, claws and slimy skin followed. Flames erupted and swirled around the black void as a wide body and powerful shoulders emerged. The warriors could only watch in anticipation as the monstrosity pulled it’s huge bulk out of the tear in space, and towered over them. The behemoth lifted its huge head, a mass of eyes, fur and scales. It let out a thunderous roar, stretching tentacles from its foul mouth.

As soon as it’s giant hind legs touched the ground it darted forward, it’s grotesque head lowered directly towards the Marshal. It was unnaturally agile for a creature of its size, and Baldwin could not avoid the charge. With a booming thud he was shot against a ruined wall, which exploded on impact.

The monster roared, forcing the nearby brothers to brace against psychic waves that crashed against them. It paused, looked back furiously as the Marshal emerged from a pile of rubble. He stood, cackling. Raising his axe, he called to his knights, “send that unclean beast back to the abyss!”

The squad opened fire. Bolter rounds bounced off it’s thick hide, but a scorching column of flame from a pyreblaster forced the beast to recoil onto its hind legs. As one, the knights stepped in, chainswords in hand, tactfully dodging flailing claws and whipping tentacles.

Hacking and slashing, they circled the wretched creature. It roared again, but with desperation this time. It had misjudged them, but a beast forced into a corner is a dangerous animal.

Using it’s enormous bulk, it charged through the circle of warriors, sending knights flying into the ruined walls surrounding them. With one swing of its giant paw, it tore through the corner of a building, narrowly missing the head of a knight who dived behind a pillar. Reaching tentacles wrapped around a neophyte, lifting his flailing body into the air. Before the beast could pull him into its snapping maws, a power axe sliced clean through the tentacle, and both squire and tentacle fell to the ground in a wriggling heap. The beast howled with rage.

The Marshal landed on his feet, his armoured boots stepping nimbly to avoid reaching claws. His power axe hummed joyously in his hand, now dripping with black daemon blood. He turned his stance to face his foe, which reared it’s giant head in answer. Countless pitch black eyes examined the proud figure, all of them brimming with malice. He raised his axe in defiance and shouted, as tentacles and claws slashed at the surrounding knights and their biting chainswords.

“Crawl back to your pit, abomination! Tell your wicked masters that mankind will not suffer you here!”

“Imperator Deus! Imperator Deus!” His knights called around him.

With a desperate leap, the monster hurled itself recklessly into Baldwin, and wrapped together they crashed through a wall, tumbling into darkness. The knights approached the new hole cautiously, wondering who would emerge.

A crash made the knights pause. Flashes of blue lightening lit up the darkness, and another crash followed. They heard a roar, closer this time. The knights backed up as the ruined building echoed with clashes of axe and claw. After one great roar, a thudding impact spat out a cloud of dust towards the confused warriors.

With a deep growl, a hideous limb emerged and thudded down into the street. The beast dragged its hulking body forward slowly. One slow step, then another. With a miserable wail, the beast collapsed onto its side. Lodged in its great chest, a power axe was glowing blue, and dripping with black blood down to its handle.

As the knights eyes followed the black trail down the beast’s flank, along the sand to the dark hole where it had emerged moments ago, they looked up to see Marshal Baldwin leaning against the wall. Panting, he adjusted his brow guard and stumbled towards the giant carcass. Placing an armoured boot on it’s belly, he yanked the axe until it gave way, staggering backwards. Without a word, he slowly turned and walked back towards the square. One by one, the knights peeled themselves away from the events that had just unfolded, and followed.