¨Back off Marine¨ snarled the rebel trooper, obviously a ganger of some stature, if you could make it out through all the mud and grime. ¨One move and his brains’ll be decorating your face!¨ His hand pushing the greasy auto pistol firmly against the PDF officers head, grazing it slightly.

¨Try it¨ snapped Skold, one hand ready on the bolter by his side. The rebels were slowly moving back towards the bulkhead at the rear end of the room, with more hostages between the brothers and the PDF.

The Brothers had left the supply pod and made their way through the winding debris-filled streets to the Spaceport on Lordsholm’s South East coast, deep in the Portica district and surrounded by warehouses and office blocks. The way had been slow; as wherever they turned shadows seemed to leap out at them and the memories of the Genestealer ambush was still very much in their minds.

It was not difficult to locate the port, as they could hear the sounds of battle from a long way off and hurried in the hopes they would not arrive too late. Luckily there was still a garrison of PDF troopers holding off the assault of rebels and the Battle Brothers were able to surprise and ambush the rebels from the rear, routing them completely. However, a group of them had slipped past at the back of the port and taken the control room where some of the PDF officers were based. The PDF soldiers below were exhausted and desperately needed to repair the barricades and defences before any more rebels arrived to try to take the spaceport. The brothers, being fit for the fight and a small unknown unit, took it upon themselves to fight their way up the tower to liberate the hostages. The rebels were a small force so it was not difficult for the vastly superior equipped brothers to gain access to the tower, but they were then faced with the hostage situation, one that would not necessarily be an easy outcome.

¨Now!¨ shouted Skold, as he brought his Bolter to bear and snapped off a well-aimed shot right between the eyes of the ganger leader and Sepheran let rip with his Heavy Bolter, tearing into the rebels and just barely missing the hostages that were being dropped as the rebels fled. The rebels managed to flee out the rear door and barricade it shut just as Elyas thundered into the bulkhead, hammering it so hard with his fist that he almost broke through immediately. Just at that moment, the lights go dead and a hideous hissing sound alerts the brothers to the presense of yet more Genestealers. As their sensors adjusted to the darkness Octavius just barely manages to weave out of the way of a flurry of razor sharp claws to bring his Bolter full auto on the savage pair. Green blood and Carapace spray the walls as the Emperor’s fury is unleashed from Octavius’s weapon, dropping both of the Xeno’s in one sweep. The PDF officers frantically hack back into the system to bring the lights back on as Elyas manages to break through the door, still hoping to chase down the fleeing rebels. No sooner has Elyas broken through then he is forced to dive out of the way as a hail of Heavy Stubber fire showers the entrance. This moment of glory from the rebel fighter is fleeting as Elyas emerges completely unscathed and full of rage. Firing his jet pack to give him an uncontrolled burst of speed Elyas recklessly charges down the corridor at the stubber, covering the ground faster than a freight train and twice as deadly. There is a sickening crunch as Elyas’s metal powered frame impacts with the barely armoured rebel and the momentum carries them both out through the exit door and Elyas tosses the limp body out onto the roof. The rebel bounces briefly before gravity does its work and pulls ganger and heavy stubber earthwards with a mighty crunch. Looking round quickly Elyas spots the rest of the rebel group escaping down an emergency stairwell on the side of the main terminal building. Firing his jump jets once more he launches into the air, just as Sepheran and the other brothers chase down the corridor, a muffled word of caution from Skold warning Elys to be wary of more Xenos attacks. ¨I’m always ready¨ Elyas thought to himself ¨Just let them come¨ and with that he dropped into the midst of the rebels, blocking their exit and forming a human blockade. ¨Come on!¨ screaming at the rebels and wading in swinging his fist around sending rebels diving for cover or over the edge of the stairwell to their deaths. By the time the rebels had decided to retreat they were simply gunned down where they stood by a waiting Sepheran and the barrel of a smoking Heavy Bolter.

Amidst the screaming rebel deaths, more sounds of battle alert the brothers to a new wave of rebel fighters heading in towards the Spaceport, intent on breaking down the newly reinforced barriers. Running along the roof of the Spaceport the brothers take point to hurl Bolter fire and grenades from above, disrupting the horde’s assault. Elyas once more takes to the skies and drops into the centre of one of the groups, causing a shockwave that sends many of the rebels flying before proceeding to wade further into the throng.

Suddenly an almighty crash is heard to the west of the Spaceport as the brothers look round to see a gigantic Macro Hauler steamroll through a nearby building at top speed, throwing dust and debris everywhere and heading on a collision course for the brother’s location. Their attention diverted to this new threat the brothers let rip into the hauler with everything they can muster. Round after round seems to bounce off the tough hull and fail to penetrate until Skold manages to rip into the cabin killing the driver with a well placed burst. However this is not enough and the vehicle stays its course after only a minor swerve. Saying a silent prayer to the Emperor Octavius steps up, aims, and strikes true! Piercing the hull and triggering a chain reaction that sends the hauler up in a huge explosion. Cheers ring out from the PDF troops below inspiring them to push the rebels back further. Concentrating fire back onto the rebels the brothers finally send one of the groups running and turn to help Elyas who is protesting at not needing any assistance. Time is of the essence however and Elyas’s cries go unheeded as the brothers rip into the final group of rebels, breaking their morale by this show of arms and prowess.

After a moments recovery Skold takes charge of the remaining garrison instructing them to hold this Port until help arrives and the brothers can get supplies to them from the PDF stores. With the help of the troopers the brothers are able to get the mag rail line back online sufficiently to make travel in this district easier. The quality of the lines is unclear, but at least they would be able to cover some ground quicker this way. With slight reservations the marines embark on the rail line, taking it to the PDF stores, hoping to get there in time and relieve the force there before it was too late and the stores would fall into enemy hands.

Speaking with Syndalla over vox once more she informs the brothers that she will be able to supply them with a unit that can help create a diversion for them to screen their entry into the stores. Skold agrees and the brother’s rendezvous with a small force sent from the chapel and formulate a plan to get the brothers in. The PDF run in ahead of the brothers and lay down fire and smoke grenades in order to create enough of a commotion that the rebels would not notice the team of marines heading in through some service ducts that connect to the accommodation/living section of the stores.

The diversion is successful and the smokescreen causes a significant enough distraction that the marines slip by unnoticed and make their way into the building. Heading into the tunnels the marines eventually arrive into the main kitchen/mess hall of the stores, now empty. Suspicious, Skold advises his team to be cautious as they make their way round the mess hall lest they get ambushed by Xenos once more. The mess hall has all the signs of being abandoned recently with half eaten meals and lukewarm drinks. The brothers encounter no resistance however and the mess hall opens into a narrow corridor, where directly opposite them stands a huge bulkhead with the words ‘warehouse’ imprinted upon it. Taking point in the corridor the marines open the bulkhead revealing a huge store room, stacked floor to ceiling in crates of various shapes and sizes. Elsewhere In the room are two Chimera tanks and a crane, still carrying a large crate but powered down. The brothers are not alone however and across the other side of the room the brothers spot a group of heavy weapons armed rebels standing near to the now open main door of the store room, discussing what is going on outside. Noticing the brothers the rebels bark orders at each other whilst diving for cover and opening fire, whilst one of their number dives into the crane cabin, intent on dropping the heavy crate on the head of a marine. The crane fires up to the tune of a grumbling engine, foul black smoke and the smell of old diesel fuel. Rushing forward Elyas rips into the rebel group hoping to catch them before they scatter but only manages to catch a couple in the process. Skold fires off a couple of bursts into the approaching crane enough to disable it but also cause the engine to explode scattering metal shards and glass in the immediate vicinity, narrowly missing Elyas and the rebels in the process.

Realising the volatile nature of their surroundings Sepheran decides to take the combat to the heretics and engage them in close combat. Using the Chainsword retrieved from the drop pod he charges, calling out the name of his primarch Sanguinius and in the name of the Emperor. However unfortunately for him, his luck does not run as hoped and the debris left by the crane conspires to cause him to trip and fall flat onto the floor, vulnerable to the stunned rebels who can’t quite explain what they have just witnessed! Syndalla patches in an urgent vox message to the brothers advising them that the rebels outside have been alerted to possible intruders by the explosion and she recommends locking themselves inside, lest a huge number of rebels persue them and harass them further inside the compound. Elyas jumps to it and with one mighty heave pulls the main bulkhead shut and overrides the control box so that the door seals shut. Surrounded and outgunned the rebels are quickly cut down leaving the marines alone, at least for now.

Making a brief search of the crates and objects in the room the brothers find little of what they hoped, although the food supplies were going to prove invaluable should the planet get cut off. The marines decide to push on, wary of spending too long lest this turn out to be their tomb. Sepheran and Skold return to the corridor to slowly advance whilst Elyas and Octavius remain in the store room to check the other exits. Skold stops in his tracks as he hears quiet voices in the room at the end of the corridor but before he can react he hears the tell tale ‘chinking’ of a grenade rolling down the corridor in front of them. Rather than a frag the grenade creates a smokescreen for the rebels as they fire blindly down the corridor towards Skold and Sepheran. Skold is undeterred and heads through the smoke almost blind but relying on his superior senses to get himself through sending a frag grenade right back on them. Luckily the grenade doesn’t create a fireball that engulfs the two marines and only manages to cause damage to a rebel or two hidden behind the wall. Back in the store room Elyas and Octavius are almost tempted to help Skold and Sepheran out when they hear voices too coming from the doors behind the Chimeras at the back of the room. Octavius climbs one of the tanks and takes cover in the turret whilst Elyas finds a suitable ambush point. The seconds turn to minutes as they wait for something to happen, but finally the doors are blown open in one fell move as the rebels spill out firing at anything and everything. Despite their lack of aim they manage to pin Octavius down in his turret catching him in a couple of places but failing to do any real damage. Octavius and Elyas fight back valiantly pushing the rebels back into the cramped space of the corridor which is much better for Elyas to carve through several heretics at a time and the holy bolter fire of Octavius finding target after target and dropping them dead.

Realising now is their chance Skold and Sepheran charge round the corner to open fire on the rebels, most of whom are in cover or heading towards cover. In the far end of the room is a stairwell heading down and this room much like the last contains more storage and more storage spaces. Hundreds of rebels are fighting and trying to overwhelm the brothers but eventually the strength of the brothers becomes too much for them and they attempt to run, down the stairwell deeper into the bowels of the stores. Elyas jumps down cutting off their escape route once more while Skold and Octavius cut down those that try to remain on the surface or near the top of the stairwell. As the last few rebels try in vain to escape from the stairwell room Sepheran once more calls forth to the glory of Sanguinius and the Emperor to charge into hand to hand once more. This does not end well as Sepheran fails to gauge the distance he can run and does not manage to have enough strength to complete his charge and stops half way, gasping for breath. Saving Sepheran from humiliation the other brothers assist and together the rebel threat is neutralised.

Searching the stores the battle brothers are relieved to find in the lower levels vast quantities of PDF weapons and equipment, enough to ensure that the garrisons so far liberated can be re supplied and maintained for some time. They meet with the PDF unit outside and inform them that the stores are secure, for now, but they must be protected at all costs. Syndalla congratulates the brothers as this surely is a turning point in the battle, but all is far from over. The brothers must still send a message of aid lest all the fighting be for nothing and there is still the ‘small’ matter of the broodlord and his children which still stalk the burning streets of Lordsholm.

High above the brothers in the Magistria district, in a tower of soundless speech, a young girl wakes from a nightmare, her blindness of no consolation to the visions she endures. Dark tentacles spread from the warp, and Avalos is no more…