Only In Death Does Duty End (A Kriegsman's Story)

Only In Death Does Duty End

ET-092-72-008 aka "Ethan" was born on September 27 in the year 390. M40. on the Hive City of Ferrograd on Krieg located in the Segmentum Tempestus. During his early years, he lived in the lower levels of the Hive City and had a tough life. His parents abandoned him when he was 2 years old and had to survive on his own for a few months. Despite being 2 years old, he was quite smart and crafty. He would be able to make use of the resources that were around him, take advantage of his environment and be sneaky enough to pass by groups of Hive Gang Members. Fortunately he was picked up by a squad of PDF soldiers who decided to take him in. He was trained to fight against criminals and hostile hive gangs at the age of four. After he reached the age of fourteen, he decided to join the Imperial Guardsmen of Krieg. After training, he graduated from the academy and was the top of his class. He was sent to the frontlines shortly after his training ended. During his first deployment, it was discovered that he was an excellent guardsman and strategist and after countless battles against Heretic, Xeno, Tau and Necron forces, he was given the position of being the Commander of the 27th Krieg Guardsman Regiment. After a few deployments as the Commander of the 27th, he became a well known Commander in the Hive World of Krieg.

However, during one deployment his regiment was ambushed, surrounded and isolated from the Imperium of Man. After four months of no-contact with the 27th Krieg Regiment, the Adeptus Minotourum declared them killed in action, however that was changed after a shocking discovery by one of the Krieg Guardsman Regiments under the command of Colonel Jurten. Him and his regiment saw him holding the hill from the Traitorous Heretics. Once Colonel Jurten liberated what seemed to be the 27th, the soldiers began disappearing one by one until Ethan was left. Colonel Jurten already knew what the soldier in front of him possessed and knew what had to be done, however he decided against this idea as he had already proven his loyalty to the Imperium of Man. After this incident Colonel Jurten decided to put him under his command and a part of the 83rd Krieg Regiment. He did report this to the inquisitorial fleet that had arrived at the planet they were currently in. Their response to hearing such a thing was rather obvious. However due to one of the inquisitor's reasoning, they decided to let him live so that he may continue serving the Imperium on the condition that the information would be kept secret and that he was to be executed if any form of heresy was to be seen. He kept a close eye on him before he eventually let him become an independent regiment using his powers or rather "The Blessing of the God Emperor".

After 10 Years (40 Years after his day of birth) of being an independent regiment and fighting for the Imperium of Mankind, the Council of High Autocrats declared the independence of Krieg and nearly destroyed his entire regiment. After this shocking plight, he immediately headed to the Hive City of Ferrograd to regroup with the remaining loyalist forces. After the Purging of Krieg, he fought on the frontlines along with his regiment. During the 500 Year Civil War, he learned how to improve and control his powers even more to the point where he could summon an entire field army. He also became colder, stronger, smarter and a better combatant during the Civil War. He was puzzled about how he managed to live for this long, but it was probably because of the amount of bionics that was attached to his body due to his injuries and his craftiness and resourcefulness with his environment.

After the Civil War, the Planet and its people rejoined the Imperium of Man. He was one of the first 20 Regiments that was ordered by the Departamento Ministorum. His first battle as a Death Korps of Krieg Soldier, was an overwhelming victory against the heretics that had invaded one of many Hive Worlds under the Imperium of Man. After a that initial victory, he took part in a lot of famous campaigns and battles such as The Siege of Vraks, The Spinward Front, Castigation of Farondis, The Dask Campaign, The Loss of Hieronymus Theta, The Orphean War, The Defence of Fecundia, The Taros Campaign, The Third War of Armageddon, Tarsis Ultra, Pandorax Campaign, Fourth Quadrant Rebellion, Baran War, Orphean War, Siege of Derondii, Battle of Hespher II, Cleansing of Radnar, Denkari Prime Campaign, Barbarius Campaign, Charadon Campaign, Chromyd Front and the other various campaigns and battles that he and the 27th Siege Army of the Death Korps of Krieg took part in.

After fighting against Xenos, Heretics, Eldars and Orks for a few millennia, he was assigned to a campaign that would finally let this world heal from its scars. This campaign had one goal and one goal only, to destroy the very source of all heresy and chaos in this grimdark future of Warhammer 40k. A planet in the center of the Eye of Terror which was the place where the chaos gods reside in. After The Siege of Krieg and The Siege of Holy Terra a few years prior, he swore that he would destroy all the heresy in the Galaxy, No. Matter. What. After he received the mission, his Siege Army, a number of other Krieg Siege Armies, Imperial Guardsman Regiments, a number of Chapters of Space Marines including the Gray Knights and Adeptus Sororitas and the Inquisition strike the planet hard knowing that once it was done, the planet would be ordered to be exterminated via Exterminatus to prevent any and all forms of heresy from spawning once more, however the lives who were not apart of the inquisition would not know until it had been done. After 50 Long and Grueling Years of Trench Warfare that spanned across the planet, they had defeated the last pieces of Heresy including the 5th Chaos God. After a few minutes had passed, the planet was exterminated and destroyed and all traces of a planet in the sector were erased.

During his last minutes, all bloody and missing some of his limbs, he took off his mask. After years of fighting, he took off his mask for the first time in a long time and breathed in the fresh air of the planet. He disbanded his army and began to walk along the war-torn city destroyed by the conflict. He sat down on a flat space overlooking the hive city while looking up to the sky that was decorated by the stars and lights of the capital ship that surrounded the planet. After a few moments the bombardment began, as the bombardment began to get closer to his position, he began to remember a certain memory he cherished.

It was during the assessment of the Death Korps of Krieg Regiments, they were marching through a small town towards the battlefield. They were marching with no hesitation and without skipping a beat. They were marching undisturbed until a girl approached them. She was in her twenties, had a tall and slick figure and sleek black hair wearing a white sundress. She approached them with a bouquet of flowers to welcome them to their town. Many people murmured about her, pitying her and calling her stupid as they knew the Guardsman had no intention of stopping or even giving a care about her. However, the entire crowd went quiet at his next move. He stopped, headed to the girl and grabbed the bouquet of flowers, nodded at her as a sign of saying thank you and returned to his regiment and passed out the flowers to his entire regiment. The Men of Krieg were known to value flowers as it was a symbol of life that represented the Imperium of Man. So at that moment, a sense of euphoria washed over him as he saw a flower, a symbol of life after 500 Years, and at that moment, he found the reason for his existence. To fight and protect the creations the God Emperor had built and sworn to protect.

This was what he thought in his remaining moments, his purpose, the reason for his existence and his service to the God Emperor. As the bombardment closed on his position, he just smiled to the sky with eyes filled with tears as he was already accepting his fate. His fate to fight and die for the God Emperor until his last dying breath so that he and his planet may be forgiven and atoned for their sins. Forgiveness and atonement through blood and sacrifice. There is no honor left, the corpses have finally won!