Peter VS Uzul

"Colin!!!"

Seeing his brother slain, Freddy let out a roar and gunned the throttle, driving his motorcycle straight into the area before the Bloodfiend.

Freddy swung the tail, spinning the bike 180 degrees. With that drift, the tires carved a deep trench into the ash-covered ground. Now Freddy's Assault Bike faced the Steel Bull rider head-on.

Freddy stomped the throttle again, charging directly at the Bloodfiend riding the Steel Bull. This wasn't recklessness—he knew the simplest way to face a Khorne daemon was a frontal assault. That would force the daemon to attack head-on too; scheming and trickery would only put him at a disadvantage.

As the Assault Bike and Steel Bull rushed toward each other, Freddy pressed the firing button on the handlebar grip, unloading all the rounds from the twin-linked Bolter Gun into the Steel Bull's body. But the bolts clattered against its hide like Autogun rounds against Adamantium, leaving only shallow pits in the creature's brass skin.

Just as they were about to collide, the Steel Bull rammed its horns into the bike. The massive Warp creature hooked upward like a true bull, and the Assault Bike was flung into the air like a stray dog provoking a bull.

The Assault Bike crashed heavily to the ground.

But the bike was empty. In the moment before impact, Freddy had leaped, stepping off the bike's front and lunging upward.

Freddy made another jump, planting his foot on the Steel Bull's neck, then sprang again. His right hand gripped a Chainsword, his left hand held a Combat Knife in reverse, and he was determined to avenge his brother.

The Bloodfiend opposite held its sword in its right hand, so Freddy used the Combat Knife in his left to parry. His right hand swung the Chainsword with force, aiming straight for the Bloodfiend's neck.

Freddy was confident in his tactic—his Combat Knife was about to block the daemon's Hell Sword, and all that remained was a decapitation, avenging his brother with the daemon's blood.

But something blocked Freddy's Chainsword. What? The Bloodfiend's left hand! Though the Chainsword buzzed and its monomolecular blades churned through the daemon's Warp-energized flesh, the Bloodfiend held the Chainsword fast without flinching.

Only then did Freddy feel a chill in his left hand. The Monofilament Combat Knife had been cleaved in two, falling onto the Steel Bull's back along with his own arm.

Freddy didn't hesitate. He released the Chainsword, clenched his fist, and punched the Bloodfiend in the face. But the blow felt like hitting an Adamantium armor plate. The daemon's Warp-energized bones didn't budge; the punch only left a bruise on its face.

The Hell Sword's second thrust pierced straight through Freddy's chest, at a vicious angle, skewering both hearts.

Freddy felt liquid surge in his throat, and blood spat into his helmet. Now he understood—this Bloodfiend killing Brother Colin wasn't luck or chance.

Freddy could only utter a final command to the four Neophyte bikers:

"Stupid whelps, run!"

The four still circling on their bikes heard their captain's last order, turned, and sped off toward their own lines in different directions.

Uzul casually discarded the Chainsword, paying no mind to the wound on his hand that cut to the bone. He used his sharp claws to bang Freddy's helmet off.

Skulltaker Uzul gazed with his deep crimson-black eyes at the warrior who had faced him. The man was still alive, thanks to his superhuman physique.

Uzul grabbed the man's head with his bloodied claws and began reciting verses in his hoarse throat:

"The wind howls, the night unending, Blood rains, war drums never resting. Armor's cold gleam under pale moon, Khorne takes skulls on the battlefield soon.

Amid blades and shadows, life and death, What hero fears the gate of death? Skulls piled high like mountains vast, Undying souls forever last."

After the eight lines, a crimson flame rose from the Power Armour, burning Freddy's flesh to ash. Uzul, satisfied, took the skull and hung it at his waist.

Peter, still advancing on the tank, saw this and his eyes nearly split with rage. He roared:

"Filon, full speed ahead!"

The Land Raider tank accelerated, breaking from the advancing line. The steel beast charged like a runaway horse, bearing down on Skulltaker Uzul. The Twin-linked Lascannons on both sides and the Bolter Gun on the pintle mount never stopped spitting fire.

Standing on the tank, Peter kept firing his Ion Pistol at the Bloodfiend. But the daemon and its Steel Bull seemed to ignore it all. They charged forward, straight at the Land Raider.

Finally, after a brief charge, they met. Boom! A deafening crash. The Steel Bull and the tank collided. Incredibly, Khorne's Dirge, so much smaller than the tank, wrestled with it and held its ground without yielding.

Peter, standing on the tank, tossed aside the Ion Pistol, now on the verge of overheating. He grabbed his "Blood of Crassus" Power Axe and jumped down to the ground.

Peter stared at the Bloodfiend through his helmet. But to his surprise, the Bloodfiend also dismounted the Steel Bull. It fixed its gaze on Peter as if confirming its target, opened its fang-filled mouth, and rasped:

"It's you!"

Peter was baffled. He replied:

"I don't know you, but you must pay the price."

The Bloodfiend named Uzul bared its mouth in a laugh:

"Hahahaha!"

On the other side, Anthony and Filon had climbed out of the tank. Anthony wielded a Chainsword and Bolter Pistol; Filon gripped a Power Hammer with both hands, charging at the Steel Bull named Khorne's Dirge. The tank and the Neophytes inside would assist them.

Peter and Uzul faced each other. One wielded a Power Axe and Boarding Shield; the other held an ever-burning Hell Sword. Their eyes blazed with the fire of battle, ready to seek revenge and please the Blood God in this life-or-death struggle.

Peter, axe in hand, attacked first. Shield raised, he lunged forward, intending to use the Boarding Shield's mass and its force field generator to deliver a heavy blow. Uzul, greatsword in hand, stepped back quickly and blocked the fierce shield bash with the broad blade. The clash of Warp energy and protective force field echoed across the battlefield.

Peter wasn't discouraged. Using the shield for cover, he kept changing angles, seizing an opportunity to swing the axe, wrapped in a Disintegration Field, at Uzul's shoulder.

Uzul caught the axe with the sword's crossguard—a dangerous move. But the Bloodfiend did it with practiced ease, as if countless times before.

Facing this Astartes, the Bloodfiend stuck out its purplish-red tongue again and said:

"This time, I will win."

Peter slammed his shield sideways, separating the two weapons. To the daemon's nonsensical words, he only replied:

"We don't know each other."