#kriegsmen

I just think they're neat. (Ocs based on my husband and I. Imma keep saying this because people don't read.)

Reid Caldwell

6' 6"

83rd

31 y/o

Lyra Vanheart

5' 8"

Sister of Battle

Author's note: This is strictly for fun. I have my Warhammer-loving partner proofread and edit my chapters. If he says it is good, then it's good by the only person's standards I wish to meet. Lyra and Reid are our own characters based on us.

Chapter 1: Survivors

Roars and harsh scraping of metal erupted through the blood-red, dusty sky as a large number of grotesque soldiers clad in light armor, welding guns, and blades rushed the wide-open field littered with corpses and debris from an excruciatingly long battle. Blood pumped adrenaline into the opposing Adeptas Sororitas donned in power armor as she stared the enemy in the face, pulling the trigger on her bolt pistol and taking out what man she could. If she was going down, she was taking as many as she could with her. It was not until a split second later that she noticed movement several feet away on her side of the battlefield. Cutting her eyes, she saw it was an Imperial Guardsman, but she could not tell what condition he was in. All she could see from where she stood was a soldier whose olive-green trench coat was caked in blood whether it was his own or the enemy. Regardless, if he was still moving, he could still fight.

In a quick dash, she moved to her allies’ side giving him enough cover fire to get on his feet. It was as if he was bestowed a blessing he did not deserve as he stared up at her for a brief moment through his gas mask. It was clear what had happened now as he looked around at the massacre. Their entire squad was obliterated and they were the last two survivors. The Kriegsman jumped to his feet, snatched his lasrifle from the ground, and took aim. One, two, five, several men shot and downed but it still was not enough for them to back off. The woman noticed one of the opposing Ogryns ready his grenade launcher and the only thing she could think of was to grab ahold of the Kriegsman next to her and yank him out of the way behind some rubble. It gave them a moment to reload and reassess their options.

“Glad to see at least I am not alone in this,” she spoke boldly. “I know your reputation, Kriegsman, but do try to stay alive.”

The man looked at her and took a deep breath reloading his gun. “As you command, sister,” he responded almost regrettably with a curt nod. “I will fight with you ‘til my last breath.”

Once the break in the enemy’s fire had come, the Kriegsman and Sister rushed from behind the rubble and unloaded upon them once more. They could not make any advances and they could not really retreat. An attempt was made to contact the ship or anyone for that matter, but there was never a response. It was an assumption that the coms ceased to work or there was too much interference.

The Kriegsman noticed a body with grenades still present just a few feet away and decided to make a break for it. The sister covered him as he did but ducked covering her head from another explosion. Managing to grab them, he rushed forward pulling the pins and tossing the whole belt as hard as he could. They flew through the air until they landed at the feet of the army exploding on impact and taking a massive chunk out of their line. Then it made its presence known. The huge suit of unholy power armor covered in blood moved through the army, a giant chainaxe in one hand, heretical combi-bolter in the other. For two people, it seemed a bit excessive for a Chaos Lord to present himself, but it was just their luck it seemed. They could not defeat that. There was no way to defeat that. Their fate might as well have been sealed but that did not mean they would stop trying. Cowardice did not know a place within the imperium of man. If it did, it was killed swiftly.

“KRIEGSMAN! GET BACK HERE NOW!”

There was no response, only a frozen man unable to move. At first, she thought he might have been frozen with fear and truthfully, she did not blame him. It was a logical and human response. Though Kriegsmen were known to be fearless, maybe this was a moment of truth to see just how fearless they really were when no one else was around.

The giant took many large steps toward the pair, closing the gap rather quickly until he was within arm's reach. He raised his blade ready to slice the man who swore to fight with her but then, nothing. The Kriegsman raised his fist and extended his fingers as if flicking water off his glove. A hole had blown straight through the Chaos Lord's armor and body so effortlessly that gore was strewn about the battlefield in an instant. The moment this gargantuan being fell over, the rest of the army turned tail and ran as fast as they could in utter fear as their champion fell. The Chaos Lord’s body exploded with empyrical energy, the explosion blowing the Kriegsman several feet away and into some metal rubble. The sister had no idea just what she had witnessed but it was certainly the work of the divine and maybe her prayers had been answered. He had fought until his last breath just as he had said and she was the last one standing, or so she thought. Out of reflex, she ran to him sliding across the mud and muck as he lay limp against the metal supporting him. His leg had been blown clean off at his knee, his mask had taken extreme damage resulting in the left side of his face terribly injured, and he was lucky he had a chest plate to protect his most vital organs. Those were the only obvious and noticeable injuries.

Leaning in, she felt for his pulse and was surprised he still had one after all that but his breathing was very shallow. The sister grabbed him, pulling him up into her arms to carry him to a much safer location to treat him. She could have left him to die, but if he was meant to die he would have been killed outright by that monster. Something was special about him and she was not going to let that be snuffed out so hastily.

After getting him to safety, she leaned him against the shelter’s wall and checked his pulse and breathing once more. He was still hanging on. She looked him over before taking some of the cloth from her garb to wrap tightly around his bleeding leg to slow the flow of blood.

“S- I- Lyr-” static came over her coms. “Sist– Come i-”

The sister opened her coms and began talking, whether they could hear her or not. “I’m here. This is Sister Lyra.”

There was still static but obviously, someone was trying to come through until the signal cleared. “Sister Lyra, this is Moz do you read?”

“Yes, Moz! Thank the emperor. I’m here. A guardsman and I are in dire need of your retrieval.”

“Understood. Send me your coordinates so that I may find you.”

Lyra leaned back for a moment and sent a signal to the pilot, Moz. “I sent them. Please, be quick about it. I need medical, immediately.”

She turned her attention back to the man in front of her and he was still unmoving. His chest rose and fell ever so slightly. Maybe if she just removed the mask, she could monitor him better. Lyra reached over and went to tug on his gas mask only for her wrist to be snatched in a panic. A single eye stared at her before realizing who she was and hesitantly let go of her wrist. Lyra pulled his mask off, tossing it aside for the moment. His face was nearly non-existent on the left as blood poured all over him as it was the only thing keeping his face intact. Taking yet another piece of cloth, she wrapped his head to stop the bleeding and keep what flesh on the left side together as she could. He hissed in discomfort but stayed still as she tended to him. He looked down at his leg noticing that it had been removed then felt the autogun wounds and bruises on his arms when he tried to move. He looked up at her curiously and she knew what he wanted to ask.

“How-” he started. “Sister, just leave me. I can be of no use to you. I'm sure I'll be disposed of once we're back on the ship…I didn't serve my purpose.”

“Pilot Moz is coming, you’ll be taken care of, and you’re going to live whether you like it or not. Do you understand?” she replied curtly.

Looking slightly taken aback by her tone, he agreed with a grumble. “Yes, ma’am.”

“You served your purpose. I don’t know what happened, exactly, but one second you were frozen solid and the next the beast was dead. I believe you were touched. That means you still have a fight left in you, and you're meant to live. So throw a fit, kick, and scream, whatever you like, you’re alive until further notice. What’s your number? Or.. name if you have one. Do Kriegsmen have names in the 83rd regiment?”

The man shifted and sighed. It certainly was not exactly what he wanted to hear but at least he did her a great service by keeping her safe with whatever he did. He could not remember.

“Reid Caldwell…Might I know yours, Sister?”

“Lyra Mickeal.”