Taking a sharp left I was momentarily stunned by the battle ensuing ahead of me, a contingent of Havocors and troopers had set up at the other end behind a mismatch of cover. The corridor ahead of me bore the scars of countless bullets and frag rounds, the metallic walls pockmarked and streaked from weapon discharges. From the floor to the ceiling, pockmarks and dents from shrapnel impacts told the story of what happened there. The overhead emergency lights cause a harsh glow on the carnage below revealing the devastation that had befallen ahead. Other sections of the halfway were shrouded in darkness, intermittently lit up by blasts of weapon fire and return fire. They were engaged in a firefight with some form of misshapen abomination which had taken up position ahead of us.
The acrid smell of ozone and melted flesh hung in the air, mixing with the sharp tang of blood and smoke from the dead and the fire billowing from the open door. A thin layer of smoke wafted from one of the rooms a figure was using as cover, billowing through the open doorway somewhat concealing his position from the other side of the corridor. The smoke created a surreal atmosphere that was utterly mesmerizing.
Within this cacophony of chaos, a ballet of violence was playing itself out. Bullets streaked through the air, the superheated air leaving a streak of light. Each shot was followed by the familiar crack of the rifle discharging. The floor was a mess, covered in bodies and discarded weapons, this was to be an absolute minefield to navigate. Guardsmen in tattered uniforms took up position laying down suppressive fire and allowing their comrades to seek cover. Others hid behind overturned storage trolleys and data carts, more often than those they took shelter behind the sturdy frame of the bulk heads which overhung the corridor
The sounds of battle brought the scene ahead to life, shouted orders from both sides clambering over one another to be heard. The frantic clatter of boots on the metal floor and the screams of the wounded. Amidst the chaos moments of heroism were visible for mere moments, a frantic dash to charge one of the abominations cutting him down in a brutal melee or even dragging a wounded man from the midst of the open corridor. The whole battle was enrapturing.
I moved my head into cover as a bullet struck the wall near my corner. Looking behind me at the troopers I pointed to the left one,
“Cross over there and get into position. Do not fire until I order” A flicker of uncertainty crossed his face as he followed my finger to a position on the other side of the hall.
“Move fast, God be with you”. I added quickly, falling back on the sacred blessing often used in times of dire need. With that the uncertainty faded and a look of resolution settled across his features. He barely looked to be 18, with a faint stubble on his face. A small pang of guilt hit me as I watched him drop low and bolt across the open hallway, a shot striking the floor ahead of behind him as he got to the other side.
The second trooper looked to me for orders. I beckoned him forward, “Set up here and don’t fire until I tell you”. He nodded as I stepped back and dropped to his knee, his rifle leaning against the wall for support. I couldn’t believe I was about to do this. I stepped out of the center of the corridor trying to gauge the most prominent threat. No more than 5 meters away a squat black-robed form was leaning against a doorway firing a few bullets before ducking into cover. I pulled my gun from my side and raised it.
Taking aim at the nearest black-robed heretic, a small squat form that I presumed to be human had a motley collection of boils scattering his face. I inwardly cringed at the sight of him, out of disgust and pity. Without a second thought, I let loose a single shot splitting the air and causing a nasty crater into the back of his head spreading blood and viscera across the floor ahead of him. The shot hit true and he dropped to the ground leaning against the doorframe he’d been hiding in, his rifle dropping to the ground with a barely audible clatter. Tearing my eyes away from the monstrosity I glanced around looking for another target, just as the troopers on either side of me opened up
To his left, a black-robed figure snapped its head around to see what happened. His eyes flickered around the corridor and then he caught sight of me but I was quicker, throwing my arm towards him I sent off 2 shots in quick succession. The first one hit him square in his shoulder sending him twisting to his right, the second was a perfect shot into the centre of his chest. A strong smell of blood and something else assaulted my senses as the firefight continued. To my left and right a steady stream of gunfire ripped into some of the other figures lining the hallway. Another of the figures realized what was happening and spun to face me bringing his rifle up to aim. Luckily this had brought him out of his cover and a shot caught him square in the side of the head. His body went limp as if the lights were turned out and slammed him hard against the metal walls. Slumping against the doorframe I shifted targets, arms limp dropping his weapon to the floor.
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The last heretic, the last vestige of humanity wrought by corruption and exposure to the channel, found himself cornered and alone. His eyes were grotesque, having 3 eyes and a slightly tilted head made me wonder why people worshipped the malevolent ones. I watched him cautiously as he mentally darted around the room looking for an escape. Panic and desperation emanated from him, as did a horrific bouquet of death. 2 troopers left cover and began to approach the corrupted, their intent clear, attempting to capture and interrogate, a third arm emerged from under his greatcoat, a frag grenade clasped in its hand without its safety pin in.
I inhaled rapidly, the realization hitting me like a freighter, “FRAG!! HE’S GOT A FRAG "I bellowed, rupturing the uneasy silence that had descended across the corridor. My warning was echoed at the other side of the corridor a couple of times and the nearest 2 troopers went to turn on their heels and run. The corrupted one was caught off guard as his arm released the grenade, terror filling his face. To my simultaneous relief and abject horror, I could do nothing but watch the grenade fall to the ground, completing its descent with a hollow thud. Time froze for a moment as the device hit the deck and bounced harmlessly up towards his chest, its timer ticking away in the red hue of the corridor.
The sudden look of despair flooded his face, and then he was gone. I threw myself back behind the corner of the corridor as a searing hot flash caught my legs and the high-pitched pinging as the metal from the frag hit the bulkhead. Peppering the area I was just standing in with small lumps of death. From the other end of the corridor, I heard a scream of pain which was quickly silenced. Sounded like at least one of the troopers didn’t make it. After the noise stopped I poked my head around the corner slowly to try and take stock of the situation and get my bearings on what was happening. Where the heretics had set up was nasty black stains along the walls and the floor. Bits of them were spread around in a wide area leaving a horrid and bitter tang of iron and sulfur in the air. The walls were pockmarked with small dents from where the frag grenade had hit it, and somehow a piece of arm had become stuck in one of the fractures in the wall.
The ceiling was a mess, a majority of the grenade must have gone upwards, and the blood stain was spread above the unlucky grenadier and bits of his intestines were hanging from the ceiling like a horrific ode to Christmas. The tight confines of the ship certainly lent themselves to close-quartered combat, I thought to myself grimly as I surveyed the carnage before me. The injured man’s cries at the other end of the corridor caught my attention and I picked my way through the remains to get to them. The two troopers silently followed behind me, for which I would soon be greatly thankful.
This side wasn’t much better than the other, 6 troopers were spread out in a small area tending to the injured and wounded. I threw a glance around looking for the Squad Leader, managing to pick him out as he was trying to organize something on his Vox Link. Checking his uniform I noticed a single Chevron, “Corporal” I said throwing a glance around at the troopers around me
The corporal looked up at me and straightened noticeably, “Commissar, what can I do for you?” A small bead of sweat fell away from his brow, taking a few seconds I tried to think of what would be the best thing to say.
“Very good job back there, gave them a hell of a fight!” I did suppose it was the right thing to say given what was happening. They were certainly holding their own against them, with the obvious exception of the casualties further down the hallway. The Corporal looked mildly surprised for a moment before collecting himself, and giving me a warm smile.
“Thank you, Commissar, thank you for your help there as well, it was most…” he paused for a moment, theatrically looking around trying to think of the word
“Timely?” I ventured, eager to get this going again.”How many casualties and what is going on around here??”
“You haven’t heard, sir?” The corporal looked at me with a puzzled expression, an interesting sight on the face of such a young officer. Somehow he managed to look younger than I was.
I felt a flare of irritation “Heard what?” I said, struggling to keep my frustration in check. Some of this must have come across to the Corporal as he flicked his eyes towards a trooper standing to my left. I hadn’t realized it but a couple of the troopers around us had stopped what they were doing and began paying attention to what was being said.
He cleared his throat before continuing “We’ve just left the Channel and entered real space, as we fell through. Our shields failed for a split second and a few of the uh..a contingent of the crew were corrupted and others boarded us”
He stopped for a second reaching for his ear, something being said, he shared a few terse words with whoever was on the other end and nodded his head. Pointing at the troopers around him he dispatched 2 troopers with one of the wounded to head to the infirmary. The trooper was in bad shape. He was bleeding profusely, I presumed this was the unlucky guy who caught the shrapnel from the frag going off in the hallway.
The corporal looked at me briefly, his face was drawn and his eyebrows furrowed. This didn't look good.