Warhammer 40k: Shattered Steel Soul

Sigismund held the helmet in his left hand, freeing his dark blond hair and sapphire blue eyes from behind the iron helmet, and like the other warriors of the Imperial Fist, welcomed the freshness of the Invite camp that was weakened by heavy wind protection measures. Cold wind.

This camp was not a settlement in vertical pits, nor was it one of the long tunnels carved deep into the ice by generations of Inwit. Just on the surface of the earth, surrounding the fortress of the Gene Father, someone braved the strong winds and blizzards to open up a temporary base large enough for tens of thousands of Astartes at an astonishing speed, as an entire unusual welcome ceremony opening ceremony.

One of the people who built the base was wearing a yellow and black striped ceramite armor, standing in front of Sigismund and several other warriors who were newly named "Imperial Fists".

The facial contour of this man is somewhat similar to the deep faces of southern Europeans in Sigismund's memory. Although the facial lines still have the sharpness of a young newcomer, the details of his expression have the stability of a mature warrior.

He seems to be the perfect combination of attack power and self-control, a sheathed steel sword, or an indestructible stubborn boulder.

Over time, the person in front of him will undoubtedly become a very important commander in this legion, and he will forge his preset battlefield like a blacksmith forging his work - this can be seen from the current experience of this warrior who has been fighting for less than a year. status is foreseen.

"Welcome, warriors of the Imperial Fists, I am Barabas Dantioch, the current captain of the Fourth Squadron of the Fourteenth Battalion."

The warrior spoke calmly, his words were as sharp and powerful as steel hitting armor.

"Today I will lead you to visit the camp where you will live during the upcoming engineering mission. In the future, the repairs of the camp here will be the responsibility of the Imperial Fists, and the Iron Warriors will no longer get involved too much."

"Engineering mission?" Sigismund asked, asking the confusion of several soldiers who were grouped together.

"Didn't your primarch explain it?"

"The first mission is an engineering mission, we know that." Sigismund said. He believed that every 7th Legion soldier who jumped out of the transport plane carrying a buzzing chain sword would receive the first mission. They were all more or less taken aback. "But the specific tasks have not yet been issued."

"Perhaps the original body is assigning tasks." Dantioch said, maybe the corners of his mouth were raised, or maybe it was just part of his habitual expression. "In any case, you are going to participate in a great project. This project will It will undoubtedly add to the great cause of your Primarch and the Lord of Mankind, and become a testament to the honor that cannot be ignored in the entire expedition."

There was a slight ripple among the Imperial Fists warriors. The expressions of the Astartes unknowingly became more solemn, and the beating of their hearts became more powerful due to the new prospects.

This reminded Dantioch of how his fellow warriors, inspired by a battalion commander, enthusiastically devoted themselves to their first engineering project - digging deep into the damp soil of a conquered planet. Tunnel.

Although he still considers their achievements necessary and honorable, his tireless and high-spirited state at that time seems a bit naive in retrospect.

He recalled the battalion commander's preaching process at that time, and walked forward with these soldiers who knew nothing about what they would face.

"In my opinion, construction and battlefield are almost the same thing," Dantioch said. "We move materials to where they should be, and the object of the struggle is the opposition of the laws of physics, layout, implementation, and compliance with the laws of physics. Follow the commander’s orders and do your job.”

"But there is also a difference between a construction site and a battlefield. On the battlefield, we count the fortresses captured and the enemies killed. Our honor comes to us the moment we put down our guns."

"However, the construction site is different. Here, our honor is integrated into every brick and stone, sealed and covered up. It is not until humans enter our building that the honor is gradually revealed from the building. In exchange, this honor For a longer time, as long as there are still people living in it, and even as long as the building still stands on the earth, our glory will not fade. "

Dantioch brought out his excellent battlefield acumen and used it without hesitation to observe the Cousin Legion. He found that when honor was mentioned, even the dark-blond Astartes warriors at the front of the team would look more serious, so he emphasized the glory they would gain, and inspired the Primarchs with an attitude that was close to humor. The drive of these new warriors.

"Here," Dantioch opened a curtain and motioned for the warriors to look inside. "Your place of residence."

The Iron Warriors provided their cousins ​​with everything they needed to live as an Astartes, and more than they expected. The dormitory, which looks ordinary iron gray from the outside, is equipped with simple but complete furniture, including wooden beds, wardrobes, desks and chairs.

The Iron Warriors even laid sewage pipes and hot water supply, ensuring that each camp has its own separate place to clean itself in this ice and snow - even if this is not a direct need for the Astartes.

"The heater will heat up automatically when you return from work, don't touch it. In addition, I will take you to the training room later. The library is temporarily empty and will be filled by Invites and yourselves. The cafeteria is open all day, But don’t go outside of the main meal, otherwise all you’ll get is mediocre milkshakes and cookies, and maybe nuts.”

The Imperial Fists looked at each other, expressing surprise with their eyes. For this legion, which has survived to this day with an attitude that is almost ascetic, and was prepared to endure hardships and stand hard work before coming to the snow-covered Inwit, they can hardly imagine how to live normally in such a good environment.

The eyes of several warriors looking at Dantioch have become eager and tender, but Dantioch has heard that Rogal Dorn bluntly said when he first met the Legion, "Perturabo is a man of extremely noble genes." Primarch", he felt that the emotion of these cousins ​​was related to this matter.

Dantioch lowered the curtain and led the Imperial Fists to continue along the road.

At this time, Rogal Dorn's fortress could already be seen in the distance. After some decorations by Perturabo, a number of exquisite golden eagles and simple and elegant golden patterns appeared on the fortress overnight. There seemed to be something inexplicable at the rear. Against the backdrop of the innocuously bald snowy peaks, only brilliance and perseverance can be described.

"The palace of your Primarch." Dantioch said, pointing to the fortress, "Maybe it is also the goal of your future work. At least our own father allowed us to build some huts for him on various planets. ”

Now the Imperial Fists' collective breathing became heavier. The sense of honor in serving mortals may be more prompted by rational thinking, but serving the Primarch is undoubtedly an honor that can be understood without thinking. The mere thought that one of the bricks the Primarch was about to touch might have been laid by their own hands, made the ascetics want to go to work immediately and be so powerful that even these ascetics could not resist.

Want to get to work. Dantioch read these words on the faces of the Imperial Fists warriors.

"There is always something greater than us," Sigismund said.

Dantioch met his eyes. "Your achievements will go down in history."

"Our achievement," Sigismund said, his tone much calmer than Dantioch expected. "Everything we are involved in, not our name and image. What will be remembered is the change in Inwit, which is part of today's era."

He paused: "But I appreciate what the Iron Warriors have done."

"It is your duty," said Dantioch. "May I ask your name?"

"Sigismund," answered the warrior, "continue to show us the camp, Barabas Dantioch."

"It's not just the camp." Dantioch continued walking. "Later, the Invites will take you to see the residential areas and ice tunnels that will be changed by you, and then distribute engineering equipment. There is no night in this half of Invites. So it’s going to be a long day.”