Two Worlds Collide: Prologue

Unknown date, unknown time period…
Planet: Terra……….

         “They’re breaking in!” shouted a voice tinged with fear but full of alertness and anger. The roars of blood-hungry monsters could be heard far ahead, the screams of mortals dying and the defiant cries of warriors joining the horrible dirge.
“Order the second defense line to hold their position!” the strong, baritone voice of a commander sounded. “They cannot breach the Eternity Gate!”
“Understood, lord captain!” the same voice responded, the soldier signaling to his second to relay the command to the line. The lieutenant, in turn, went to a radioman to have him send the order.

        It was pandemonium in the capital world. Somehow, a vast horde of foul daemons, crazed fanatics, pirates, and grim warriors had done the impossible: traverse the entire distance of the northern rim of the galaxy and strike upon the sacred throneworld itself! They had come straight from the Ocularis Terribus, the foul demesne of the damned that held dominance far to the galactic north.

No word of forewarning had been given, no alert sounded out. The birthworld of humanity was taken by complete surprise. It was only thanks to the presence of a mighty battlefleet just a jump away and the ever-watchful eyes of the world’s defenses that the holy capital of the empire had not fallen.

But it wasn’t just the surprise ferocity of the assault that shocked the defenders, nor was it the impossibility of having bypassed so many worlds and defense lines to strike directly at the throneworld that gave the Terran people such astonishment.

The people of Terra had begun to fall into the arrogance of believing that their homeworld was unassailable. They had started to believe once more that they were invincible.
This had proven them sorely wrong.

Once more, the throneworld was suffering an attack by its most ancient and powerful enemy. An enemy that had struck at it before, thousands of years ago………………


“Report from the defense line.” the same voice spoke to the captain, a tall giant clad in massive armor of yellow trimmed in black. The mark of a fist upon a white circle adorned his left shoulder.

“Speak.” he said. The voice that responded belonged to a mortal soldier, a Terran defense trooper. “The line is holding strong. But the sensoriums in orbit report more enemy ships appearing in-system. They are disgorging reinforcements.”

“What of our reinforcements?” asked the captain. “Can we not expect aid from Alpha Centauri?” The mortal nodded no. “No, lord captain. Warp storms have appeared all around the throneworld. We’re completely cut off.”

“Then we continue to hold the enemy and if need be, die to the last man.” said the captain with a grim tone. “We’ll not let the Sanctum Imperialis fall to the hands of Chaos.”
The soldier nodded, no fear in his eyes, as did all who heard the captain’s words. This was the capital of their empire, and this was the palace which the enemy was attacking. Beyond its immense gate lay the inner sanctum where their lord and master lay in ageless sleep, unable to defend himself.
So then would they defend him and give their lives if need be. This was the end……………

“No, captain,” another voice spoke, one laden with ancient knowledge millennia old and heavy with the age-old wisdom of a master. “It is not the end.”
The captain turned and beheld a magnificent sight.

Before him stood another warrior, clad in the same bulky armor as he. It gleamed bright crimson and was detailed with sigils and marks of the esoteric, intricate designs winding their way across his battle-plate. Upon his left shoulder was the mark of a white serpentine star with eight points. A golden eagle decoration lay across his back, wings resplendent and stretched to the heavens. He held a staff in his hands, but the firearm in his other hand told of his status as a warrior first and foremost.
Behind him were other august individuals, great warriors and heroes of this empire who had answered the call for help and come with all swiftness. The captain bowed in respect.

“My Lord Ahriman.” he said with reverence. “What do you command?”
The master spoke calmly with but a tone of command. “Order all forces to retreat.” The captain was incredulous. “What?” he said, aghast at what Lord Ahriman was saying. Abandon the holy throneworld? Was he out of his mind?

“I am not.” Ahriman told the captain, having read his thoughts. “We have lost this battle but not the war. Thus, it is time to put our plan into effect. This way, we’ll have the time needed to regroup……and get the last laugh.”
“What plan, lord?” the Terran soldier spoke, his voice a whisper. Ahriman’s stern gaze found him and he quailed beneath its penetrating power.
“We shall flee Terra, but Chaos will not corrupt it.” said Ahriman, lifting his wrist and speaking into a private vox-cuff. What he said put the captain into shock.

“This is Lord Ahriman. Commence the Ultimus Protocol.”
………………………………………….


For the next eight hours, a secret fleet had entered the Terran system, using technologies long forgotten to breach through the warp storms that covered the entire star system. Chaos was taken by surprise, their ships overwhelmed by the sudden appearance of thousands of warships which their fell captains had been assured would not come!

The reinforcements scattered the enemy fleet, leaving the invaders no hope of escape. Filled with hope, the remaining defenders went back on the offensive, driving the enemy out of the palace and exterminating them with extreme prejudice.
After eight long hours, victory was won, but only just. So many had died defending the throneworld, and Chaos wasn’t done. The warp storms grew in intensity, and more enemy ships appeared to resume the attack.

What no one knew, however, were the presence of thousands of black pylons that were scattered throughout the Terran system.
…………………………………………………


Aboard a crimson-hulled battleship, Lord Ahriman received the final report.
“My lord, it is done.” a naval adjutant told him. He nodded. “All our forces are offworld?”
A nod in reply. “Yes. Only those assigned to its defense are left. We are ready for the final phase.”

“Very well.” said Ahriman, and he ventured to a hidden corner of the bridge where the other commanders awaited his presence. For they too possessed the final keycodes that would activate the last phase of the Ultimus Protocol, a plan that would isolate Terra from the rest of the galaxy.

He looked at all the commanders present.

The Lord Militant of the Imperial Guard.
The Inquisitor Lord of the Ordo Malleus.
Geronitan, Supreme Grand Master of the Grey Knights.
And beside him, the Legion Masters and representatives. His brothers.

A young wolf by the name of Logan Grimnar, newly appointed Master of the Sixth Legion. 
The newly-appointed Master of the First Legion, Azrael.
The ancient Master of the Ninth Legion, Dante.
A new Master of the Thirteenth Legion, who had only ascended to the rank of Legion Master a day before. A young lad by the name of Calgar.
But next to him were his comrades, men who had lived as long as he had through the grace of their emperor.
Tarvitz. Garro. Loken.
He nodded to them all. “Begin.”

All pulled out a bronze key that possessed a cogitative lock. In front of them all was an ancient relic. A master-cogitator system, one designed for the enacting of final solutions, specifically built to accept these keys to activate a network that would soon begin the final plan.

Once the final key was put in, Ahriman spoke an invocation to the cogitator’s machine-spirit. “Blessed be the Emperor’s name. By His holy authority, I beseech you, commence the Ultimus Protocol.”
A scroll of words appeared in hololithic light. It said: COMMAND VERIFIED. EMPEROR BE WITH US ALL. COMMENCING FINAL PROTOCOL.

At that moment, a great flash of light could be seen outside the viewports. Beyond the fleet, the entire Terran system seemed to be impossibly bathed in a great light. Anything warp-touched could not survive and all the hordes of Chaos were utterly eradicated.

But as the great light vanished, everyone present on the bridge gasped in shock.
Before them………lay empty space. The whole system was gone!

The sun. Terra. Mars. Saturn. Luna. All of it….vanished.

“H-how?” the same captain said, the warrior in complete shock at what he had just seen. “Where’s our world? Where’s Terra?”
“It is there,” said Ahriman, emerging from the hidden chamber, “and it is not there.” The captain turned to him, confusion written across his face. “I don’t understand.” he said.

Ahriman turned to him and smiled. “We have the great Malcador to thank for this final plan, Captain Kleitus.” he told the young captain. “Through his hard work he was able to recover ancient technologies which we have just put to use.”
“Like what?” Kleitus asked. Ahriman indulged him. “We had placed thousands of small black pylons all across the solar system, and around the border, we set up countless Macro-Geller field generators. When in communion with those pylons, the generators created a vast bubble of time-space that will shield Terra and our home system from the touch of Chaos. So long as that bubble is maintained, nothing that is tainted by the warp can get in.”

“Incredible.” Kleitus said in complete awe. “But……can we?.......”
“Oh, yes we can.” Ahriman assured him. “We can still enter the bubble and continue to inhabit Terra, but it will remain isolated for the next two thousand years.”
“Why?” Kleitus asked.
“Because that is the purpose of the Ultimus Protocol.” Ahriman told him. “In the event that Terra were ever in danger of being overrun, the High Lords would grant us the authorization to enact this protocol. The plan would be to let Terra remain isolated within the field for 2,000 years."

“However, within the field itself, time would move at a much slower rate. It already is, in fact.”
“Meaning?” Kleitus said, wanting an answer. Ahriman told him. “Meaning, that overtime, Terra will experience a timeline spanning millions of years while in reality only two thousand years will pass in the galaxy. During that time, our homeworld will experience a great change and return to the beautiful blue world it once was.”

“But, its people…….” Kleitus stammered, in shock at what he was hearing. “Their homes will be…….”
“I know, brother.” Ahriman assured him. “But it had to be done, which is why we created safe zones throughout Terra, which will be shielded by psi-dampeners, hololithic illusion projectors, and markers. As the future inhabitants of Terra will begin to repopulate our home, they will not know of the many edifices that lie hidden. Nor will they know of the empire that exists out in the stars.”

“In time, however, the original populace will return. That is why we evacuated Terra, captain. Its descendants shall return to repopulate the world, to breed with its new inhabitants, and our home planet shall become the throneworld once again.”
For a long moment, Ahriman stared at the empty space that was the location of his home. He felt the longing for home, but deep in his heart he knew he’d come back. He just knew it.
“Make no mistake, Captain Kleitus of the Imperial Fists.” he told him.



“One day……..we shall return.”



END