Marauder Blackshields Pt I

Honour and pride. Honour and pride had filled Artuas' heart the day he had been selected from the mass of noviates stationed in the training camps on Terra, to be elevated to full Astartes. Honour and pride at being chosen to take part in the Great Crusade to bring all the lost worlds of humanity back under the Emperors fold, whilst wearing the colours of the famed Luna Wolves. And when Artuas thought his hearts could not be any more full of pride, the day came when he, and all his Terran brothers were reunited with their genetic father, the primarch Horus Lupercal. 

Not long after, the legion was renamed The Sons of Horus and an influx of cthonian recruits swelled the legions ranks. Victory upon victory was had by the legion until the greatest victory of them all happened. 

Ullanor was finally secured and by the hand of Lupercal and his legion. Artuas could not be any more honoured by the achievements of his primarch and legion as Horus was named Warmaster and give command of the Emperors armies.

Brother Artuas

It wasn't until many years later that Artuas began to notice a change within his beloved legion. A distinct cultural rift could be felt widening between the cthonian and terran legionnaires, which became more pronounced after an operation in the Davin system. The terran brothers were getting less and less and a sense of exclusion was beginning to feel pronounced. Artuas put aside his concerns as petty though, as the great crusade was at its zenith and overshadowed anything so trivial.

Though trivial matters became more of a concern in later years as Artuas noticed the rise of warrior lodges within the legion. He couldn't quite place his finger on it, but a sense of wrongness seemed to hide just under ordered and calm exterior of the legion. Legion practices and protocols were changing ever so subtlety. discipline and respect seemed to be waning and any mention of such occurrences brought scorn and a swift reprimand.

Brother Abbas

It was many months later, as the legion was moving in system in the Istvaan system that Artuas felt something was truly amiss. He could not say what it was this feeling he had, and it angered him as this feeling flew in the face of all the honour and pride he had felt since his induction into his beloved legion, but it filled him with a sense of foreboding that drove him act.

Feigning homage to warrior lodge and secreting an attendance, Artuas's fears were soon realised. A schism had formed within the legion and a "purge" was soon to occur and purify the Sons of Horus.

Gathering the only two remaining terran brothers Artuas knew, Khol and Abbas, the trio bluffed thier way onto a mechanicum service frieghter to work their way towards the outer vessels of the fleet. Once there a warp capable shuttle was stolen and the trio made a run for it.

Brother Khol

With neither truly comprehending the rashness of their decision, or the reason for acting on it, they spent almost 16 months Terran standard, jumping from system to system to reach terra. It was there as they entered Sol system again for the first time in decades that they were not greeted with the majesty of the Throneworld but by a juggernaut of war and fortification. 

The VIIth legion was making its mark upon Sol and upon announcing thier arrival to the system monitors, Artuas and his brothers were quickly boarded and detained. Marked as traitors and held captive within the bowels of the Phalanx, the three legionaries were subjected to many long months of scrutiny and interrogation. Though confessing to abandoning their legion they never renounced their vows to the Emperor, claiming they only wanted to continue the great crusade for his glory.

But there was also another reason. Revenge. Honour and pride had been all but stolen from him and Artuas wanted revenge for the wound he felt to himself and to the Imperium. After being granted clemency, Artuas and his brothers would soon find the chance for revenge along side the warriors of the VIIth legion.

These guys are simply the first three of my blackshields marauder allies for my fists. A feel good hobby project of mine where i just wanted to paint some of the other legions, quickly turned into a fully blown Blackshields ally force. I wanted to model these guys to look like a small pack of fast moving hunters. each has his own weapon and style but together they form a tight pack of efficient killers.