The Qorabbas Retribution – Part I
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[//Firebreak forces conduct ship-to-ship boarding actions to delay or deny the Flesh Eaters reinforcements.+]
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Upon receiving their higher level licenses and permissions, it is regrettably common for the more... excitable Adepts to stumble upon long-forgotten databanks. Most, even of these, will wisely leave the seal undisturbed.
Those that do not, however, frequently mistake the contents for lost treasure, rather than worthless dross. They confuse novelty with insight; and in digging further, begin to see a lack of evidence as the spoor of conspirators, rather than because the original tracts are lies.
Rest assured that it is the Administratum's will that such foolishness be punished. Corruption, as history teaches us, can take root at any level, and through ignorance as much as malice. It is for this eminently sensible reason that it is the purview of the Holy Ordos alone to investigate and determine; not the likes of my underlings. I have, therefore, consulted with my learned friend in the matter, the Master of Assassins; that such gossip – and the rumourmancers that regrettably continue to spread it – are silenced.
'False Primarchs' indeed.
[//Asinius Cisalpine, High Lord of Terra, M41+]
***
Precis
In a direct mirror of Operation Starfall, Master Gan Ruhl of the Firebreak worked alongside the Riven Lords to set an ambush on Jonai, a world within the Qorabbas system, for the Flesh Eaters. The Firebreak launch their ambush, attempting to cut off Grand Voivode Jan Velghor from the majority of his forces – and slay him.
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| [//Jonai, Qorabbas system+] |
A note on the history
Researchers into the broader history of the Imperium are, even now, frequently hampered when the authors attempt to investigate – or even allude to – events within Segmentum Pacificus during the closing years of M33. This is rarely acknowledged, but the region and period form a lacuna in Imperial history that – like a section cut from a portrait – is visible precisely because of its absence.
Even conducted so spottily, centuries of aborted research into the history has led to the gradual accretion of unanswered scholarly questions that hover uncertainly around the period; like voidvermin about a minor hull-breach.
So far, so humdrum. Imperial history is full of such gaps and holes; for who could produce, let a lone benefit from, a meaningful overview of ten thousand years across a million worlds? The men and women of M41 find little advancement or benefit in curiosity. Better to stick doggedly to one's allotted task.
Pity, then, those whose duties compel them towards the perilous questions That Must Not Be Asked.
***
In those few place that it is acknowledged, The War of the False Primarch is usually rubbished. It has been variously characterised as anything from an elaborate propaganda piece by the rebels of Nova Constantium to provide precedent for their actions in the Nova Terra Interregnum; to an epic work of prose and song that was subsequently misinterpreted as history; to a misunderstanding and elaboration of the Great Heresy itself.
The battle of Qorabbas – sometimes known as the Jonai War – is a salutory lesson in the uncertain history of the War of the False Primarch. On those infrequent occasions in which the greater war is referenced, the battle of Qorabbas is usually cited as evidence that the War itself was entirely fabricated.
Even the date on which the Qorabbas Retribution supposedly occurred is difficult to ascertain. It is unclear whether it was chronologically aligned with the Machinedeath on Null. The nearest clue is the mention of Captain Jakovo of the Riven Lords – whose name bears a startling resemblance to Commander Iakovos, attested from the battle on Null; and who also fought alongside the Firebreak there.
***
Prelude
In the early years of the War, the Qorabbas system had remained neutral as the first rumours of a returned Primarch began to circulate. However, as diplomats and ambassadors of what would become known as the Partisan movement arrived in-system, Tyranis-Anor No Kimi, Governor of the world of Jonai, grew increasingly concerned. The world was not part of the Delphurnean League, and so could count on little protection from the Red Fish, and the system's position on the corewards outskirts of Morqub placed it in the path of danger should a fleet arrive from Heliopolis.House Anor had long benefitted from strong mercantile ties with the broader Imperium, founded principally upon trade between Morqub and Heliopolis. Tyranis' concern about the greater response that would be given once the news of the 'Primarch' had spread left the government unsettled. With her family, House Anor had held the position since the dark days of the Horus Heresy, holding back against the ill-fated traitors and the orks that came with the Beast. After long discussion, the House decided that the status quo was preferable to the uncertain promises of a mysterious being claiming to be a Primarch, however powerful.
The Firebreak had been devastated by the loss of Frith, and although they were tacitly spared the fiercest fights by Partisan High Command, their numbers had continued to dwindle still further. Recruitment was proving difficult; owing less to lack of manpower – the Firebreak had, in a surprising move, volunteered a number of recovering systems within the Delphurnean League as possible new homes – and more to the Sable Judge's exacting and, to outsiders, baffling rituals.
With the rumours spreading of a 'Retributive Pentarchy' being formed, Tyranis would quietly make clear her allegiance to the High Lords. Regiments were formed, supplies were gathered and the system waited with bated breath. Unease spread within the citizenship as more Chapters joined the Quardragenta and declared their allegiance to the 'Returned Primarch'; and only deepened as word filtered through of attacks on the worlds of Frith and Kadath.
When the first invasion of Ishim occurred, and the Pentarchy and Extinction Armada crashed across into Morqub, it seemed Tyranis had made a wise decision. The system served as a staging post and depot for Pentarchy arms and equipment, as well as anchorage for the nearby Extinction Fleets.
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| [//Red Talon and Death Eagle (II) elements formed the Jonai garrison in the early years of the war.+] [//matt_t/@spacedhulk+] |
By the later years of the war, things were very different. The Pentarchy of Blood had been diven back to Heliopolis by the emergence of the Silver Stars and the swelling of the Partisan cause. Qorabbas was spared from the worst depredations of the vengeful Partisans – in this case a Riven Lord and Void Baron combined force – only by the direct intervention of a member of Partisan High Command.
One interpretation suggests it was the Vox Volnoscere who interceded on the system's behalf, reasoning that the world would serve equally well as a staging post for Operation Gauntlet; but this theory rings rather too neatly to be true. A relict folk song now sung on Jonai itself, however, suggests that it was instead the mercy of the Red Fish that prevented disaster – and that tallies with the merciful and balanced reputation the Chapter bore at the time. In this theory, devastating the world in a retributive strike to feed the ailing Delphurnean League would have simply compounded the problem, creating another world reliant on the Partisan advance.
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| [//Qorabbas, in the Oblitus Sub of Sector Morqub, was |
Whatever the case, it seems Qorabbas became occupied by a garrison of Partisans – the Chapter has never been satisfactorily determined – for the mid period of the war. Critically, it was officially designated 'Partisan-occupied territory' rather than forming part of the Partisan cause.
It was this seemingly-minor detail that allowed the Qorabbas Retribution to occur.
***
'Greetings Consul; Techwright,' The silvery voice of Forge-Queen Aranae echoed around the terminal as her visage-projection cast an eerie glow across the bridge. Her form rippled slightly as the projectors hummed actively aboard the Chagrin. An unsettling feeling prickled across those that looked upon her, and Wyn Bald suppressed the urge to check his armour's spiritual seals. Aranae looked closer to human than the other Mechanius figures around here; ghostlike in the penumbra of the projection. Across her scalp, in place of hair, a mixture of wires came down from her hood and ran up to the Logic Throne of which she formed but a part. Wyn Bald tried not to imagine what was hidden by her robes, doubly discomforted by her unfamiliarity.
'What business do we have to discuss?'
Techwright Eg Frid, Wyn Bald was relieved to see, appeared unperturbed. His tenure training upon the Forgeworld Avarice meant he was more than capable of dealing as an envoy from the Firebreak. Force Commander Gan Ruhl was busy preparing for the mission ahead and didn’t have the patience with the Mechanicus that Eg Frid had demonstrated. Dispensing with pleasantries – although Wyn Bald's armour alerted him to underlying noospheric transmissions transmitting back and forth along with the spoken words – the bionic-heavy Firebreak Techmarine spoke.
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| [//cameron_m/@dizzyeye.01+] |
“You have heard of the Flesh Eaters and Charnel Guard assault on Feretory, correct?”
“Information is key when it comes to dealing with any war Techwright,” Aranae replied with a wave of her clawed hand, “Yes, we know of their plight. This explains your appeal to Avarice,I believe?” Consul Kaleo, the Firebreak's commander, stepped up at this point.
'The name of Forge World Avarice has become redolent with promises fulfilled and vows honoured towards the Firebreak. Alas, with the Primarch and the bulk of the New Imperial forces abroad in Helipolis, our forces in Morqub are stretched. If our mission is to progress we need the Orthodoxy's attention drawn from Feretory.'
'Have our supplies not been enough of a contribution to the cause?” The Forge-Queen retorted, resting back in her throne, “We have already made fair reparation for the information and supplies.”
'We have another target that Force Commander Gan Ruhl is currently hunting,' Techwright Eg Frid interjected, 'If there is anything you can provide to draw in Velghor?'
'The Chapter Master of the Eaters of Flesh? That is no easy thing…' Aranae replied, resting a hand on her chin.
'If you can help out, then I am sure our Lord Primarch will be more willing to support Forge World Avarice and bring you into his inner circle…' Consul Kaleo went on, keeping a calm posture. It was clear he was chosen for diplomacy.
The moment stretched, with neither Kaleo nor the Forge-Queen breaking their gaze. Wyn Bald prayed that the nature of the techpriests of Avarice matched their world's name, or that the unusual nature of the challenge might appeal to the twisted creatures hovering in the outskirts of the projection.
At length, she spoke. “I may have just the thing to draw the eyes of a chapter master…” Aranae replied, the gears already working in her head. “Head to Jonai. I can... escalate matters there. I will be in touch.” And at that, the pale light dimmed, leaving the three Astartes alone with their own thoughts.
***
Belligerents
Partisan forces: [//Firebreak+] [//Qorabbi Regiments+] subsid. [//Riven Lords+] elements; [//unverif.. Forgeworld Avarice elements+]
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| [//ident{confirmed}: Uron of the Firebreak. Survived Feretory to serve on Coldforge.+] [//matt_t/@spacedhulk+] |
The Firebreak had been devastated by the loss of Frith, and although they were tacitly spared the fiercest fights by Partisan High Command, their numbers had continued to dwindle still further. Recruitment was proving difficult; owing less to lack of manpower – the Firebreak had, in a surprising move, volunteered a number of recovering systems within the Delphurnean League as possible new homes – and more to the Sable Judge's exacting and, to outsiders, baffling rituals.
With their acting Master, Gan Rhul, otherwise occupied, command of the ambush was entrusted to Consul Kaleo. Formerly a Lieutenant of the 7th Enclave, Kaleo had risen rapidly in the Chapter's estimations, and had served as Voted-Commander in more than a dozen battles across the Delphurnean League. Balanced, patient and saturnine, he was a perfect choice to command the one-hundred-and-twenty Firebreak Marines and their numerous human allies, Qorabbi Imperial Guard units known for their devotion to 'The Star of Silver'. Notably, it seems that all were drawn from elsewhere in the system – for unclear reasons, but likely owing to displeasure or distrust at their actions earlier in the War, no native Jonai served alongside the Partisan forces.
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| [//One of the Firebreak's scant few surviving Terminator veterans leads the advance+] [//cameron_m/@dizzyeye.01+] |
With their actions largely confined to naval duties, the numbers of their Riven Lords allies attested in some sources are hard to determine. They may have numbered as few as a dozen, or up to two reinforced Companies.
Pentarchy forces: [//Flesh Eaters+] subsid. [//Red Talons+]
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| [//ident{confirmed}: Akerman of the Flesh Eaters. Pictured under fire during the events of Qorabbas, he appear to be wearing the distinctive Coldforge-pattern Mark VI plate – perhaps suggesting he is one of the new post-Edict intake of Astartes.+] [//chris_b/@chrisbuxey+] |
The Flesh Eaters had been depleted by battles earlier in the war. Although generally better supplied than the Partisans owing to the riches of Heliopolis and the direct sponsorship of the High Lords of Terra, few things could viably accelerate the creation of the Astartes – as the difficulties the Death Eagles faced; and the horrors the Red Talons and Charnel Guard unleashed would later demonstrate.
An untestified and fragmentary report, discovered within the Ordo Pacificus archives, states:
'In one of his increasingly rare lucid moments, Chapter Master Velghor had ordered that no acceleration would be condoned[...]modest increase allowed but a second battalion to be formed; consisting of nearly five hundred Scouts; and a third battalion earmarked[...]. Two-thirds of the veteran Astartes left to pursue the prosecution of [REDACTED] on Corabb [sic.]'
Taking this at face value, at maximum six hundred Flesh Eaters were led back into Morqub, with the remainder presumably overseeing training at their strongholds of Morgant and Croesus, or on other duties. In truth, however, the number was likely considerably lower than this, owing to unreplaced casualties from the earlier conflicts. Assuming a minimum ratio of one Flesh Eater to every ten aspirants, it may have been as few as one hundred Flesh Eaters returned to harry Morqub. The truth likely sits somewhere between these extremes.
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| [//Warriors of the 1st Battalion – these, or their comrades, would go on to oversee the infamous 'Skinwalkers' Company of the 'Cursed Third' Batallion+] [//dave_m@n_vermind+] |
The Flesh Eaters, however, did not stand alone on Qorabbas. That they were accompanied by a detachment of the Charnel Guard is notable – for the Charnel Guard were likely also struggling with recruitment at this stage, and could not happily afford division of their forces. The given explanation, drawn from an unpurged naval record, was that both Chapters were consulting with their overall commander, Master Velghor of the Flesh Eaters. The presence of Stapan Stanizar Gorn, Master of the Charnel Guard, puts the lie to this. It is entirely more likely that Gorn was in de facto command of the expedition, owing to the condition in which Velghor had fallen.
***
Early stages
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| [//Jan Velghor of the Flesh Eaters, overall Commander of the Pentarchy of Blood, pictured during the first invasion of Ishim+] [//paul_h/@the_midnightmare+] |
Prior to the launch of Operation Gauntlet in the middle years of the war, the Pentarchy of Blood were still rebuilding, licking their wounds after their surprising defeat at the hands of a Legion-strength force. While other Chapters of the Pentarchy, like the Red Talons and Death Eagles, were seemingly content to build their strength within their fastnesses, this sat poorly with the Flesh Eaters, who continued to raid and launch attacks on isolated worlds within the Delphurnean League.
Such was the Flesh Eaters' monstrous savagery that their name became increasingly invoked alongside tales of depredations throughout the Dephurnean League worlds – seemingly becoming mixed with local myths and tall tales about a shadowy supernatural figure known as 'The Harvester of Sorrow'.
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| [//The Harvester of Sorrow, pictured alongside strange black-armoured warriors bearing no identifiable Chapter Markings – said by the inhabitants of the Delphurnean League to be delusional blood-drinking horrors.+] [//Death Company by paul_h/@the_midnightmare; Harvester model by @encarmentalincrease, painted by paul_h/@the_midnightmare+.+] |
Prior to Operation Gauntlet, the Pentarchy of blood were at a low ebb. Their forces had been defeated, their opponents had revealed an unknown strength, and the seemingly-unstoppable force of Volnoscere himself was at the forefront, turning allies to enemies and creating recidivism and fifth columnists across Morqub and Heliopolis alike. At this critical time, Jan Velghor, Master of the Flesh Eaters and with whom sat overall command of the Pentarchy of Blood – had become increasingly unreliable and uncommunicative. Master Enoch's furious demands were met either by the impassive and wordless helm of Velghor, or with Gorn of the Charnel Guard speaking on his behalf.
The reasons for this became clearer following the Chapter's clash with the Marines Saturnine on Ushant Polios, where it was revealed that Velghor and the Harvester of Sorrow were one and the same – and it became apparent to the Orthodoxy why Velghor had been unable to command effectively.
Whether touched by madness or broken in spirit, Velghor is slipping in and out of lucidity. He is unfit for command – and the blasted Charnel Guard have, for inscrutable reasons, been assisting in the deceit! How am I to be expected to prosecute this war and end this threat when I am handed shattered blades and broken spears?
[//Master Enoch+]
This information was jealously guarded and highly classified – reports of division or weakness in the already poor morale of the Orthodox forces were judged likely to prove disastrous, and the High Lords of Terra, sanctioned the deployment of three Ordo Assassinorum clades to assist the Orthodox Inquisitors and Vigilants in supressing the news spreading.
***
Eager ears
Unfortunately for the Pentarchy of Blood, the nearby Forgeworld of Avarice – nominally neutral, but providing substantial succour to the Firebreak, Riven Lords, Red Fish and Void Barons amongst others – had a long-established and highly effective network of informants and spies. It was they who intercepted the information, drew the Flesh Eaters to the Port City of Breakpoint, where the Firebreak had laid their ambush.
Breakpoint was a dense and partially subterranean warren of a city, heavily fortified by the Orthodoxy prior to their retreat, and well-mapped by the Flesh Eaters. It was perhaps this – coupled with the undoubted skill and power of the Chapter – that later allowed the Flesh Eaters to make a successful retreat, and prevent a defeat becoming a massacre.
While the Charnel Guard remained with a skeleton staff on the Flesh Eaters' voidcraft, the bulk of the Flesh Eaters were deployed to the surface. Met by a deputation of House Anor – though Tyranis-Anor No Kimi was notable for her absence – they were informed that the planet remained loyal to the Throne and the High Lords; but rebellious elements had risen up and occupied a substantial portion of the Qanah Quarter; a run-down and distant part of the proto-hive.
Suspecting little, Velghor was able to politely decline the barracks the Flesh Eaters had been assigned, instead preparing for an immediate deployment. This shows that even at this late stage, the Grand Voivode was able to project discipline and poise.
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| [//Sanguinary Guard of the Grand Voivode+] [//paul_h/@the_midnightmare+] |
“They came from Olde Karpathia, golden heroes of the Imperium, clad in ancient armour from the dark days of Heresy. The light shines from their halos and their weapons thirst for Traitor Blood; behold they bring the vengeful fury of the Great Angel.”
[//Eghor Drohl, high chapter serf and personal familiar to Commander Velghor+]
***
The Ambush
Qanah had been carefully selected by Consul Kaleo of the Firebreak. Isolated and accessible only by ancient transport tubes, it would deprive the Flesh Eaters of any of their armoured might. Depending on the precise date, of course, this might have been a moot point – if the Qorabbas Retribution followed the events on Null, then both sides were heavily denuded of armour in any case.
As well as being geographically distant, which would isolate the Flesh Eaters and hamper extraction, the tubes operated on a maglev system, which interfered with vox and made even inter-squad communications difficult. Displaying their customary composure and forward planning, the Firebreak had created a terrible trap.
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| [//Firebreak forces deploy while the Flesh Eaters chew through the Partisan Imperial Guard+] [//cameron_m/@dizzyeye.01+] |
Further, they demonstrated a hitherto-unsuspected ruthlessness in their actions. Kaleo had entrenched the Qorabban Imperial Guard units – more than 4,000 men – in the deepest reaches of warrens of Qanah; and had supplied them all with powerful pain-suppressing combat drugs supplied by the forces of Avarice. The Skitarii of that Forgeworld were also seeded amongst the wild-eyed Guardsmen; with the understanding that the Firebreak would allow the Flesh Eaters to engage, then spring their trap and catch the Flesh Eaters in an pincer movement. In fact, as events unfolded, they would pursue a quite different strategy...
***
[//SPOOLINLOAD INTERRUPT+]
[//SUBSEQ: Inload pending+]
[//pending+]
Author's note: This report will be continued in a future article.