For glory

The Astartes of the Black Templars rushed out of their compartments, wielding Power Swords in one hand and Bolt Pistols in the other. The squads in two different areas did almost exactly the same thing at almost exactly the same time.

The Orks immediately spotted the running Astartes. Neither the Red Mist Clan nor the Blood Axes were seeing Astartes for the first time.

Their previous enemies, however, had been a Chaos Warband in the Warp that worshipped the Chaos God Khorne.

That encounter had left a deep impression on both Ork clans.

Those bodies, unremarkable in size, held terrifying strength, and the weapons in their hands were almost impossible to withstand.

But there had been too few of them in that encounter, only a handful. Though the Orks' weapons and equipment were primitive, they had eventually worn them down through sheer numbers and a heap of assorted weaponry.

That battle had left a deep impression on the two Ork Warbosses.

It had taken hundreds of Ork Boyz to hack those few enemies to death.

The only thing that remained of them was the modified Power Axe now held by the Warboss of the Blood Axes.

The enemies before them now bore some resemblance to the Khorne warband they had encountered in the Warp. Though their colours were different, their overall appearance was somewhat similar.

As the strongest members of their clans, Ork Warbosses were always the most treacherous, cunning, and powerful.

Neither Warboss intended to act immediately in response to the attack. Instead, they signalled for their Shoota Boyz and Nobz to engage the enemy directly.

The Black Templars swiftly dodged the gunfire, occasionally firing back with their Bolt Pistols and blasting their enemies into heaps of shredded flesh.

The Orks' shooting was inaccurate, but their firepower was overwhelming. Amid the chaos, some lucky shots inevitably struck the Astartes. Yet their thick ceramite Power Armour protected them, and these weapons, the best of which were Lasguns and Choppa Guns taken from dead Astra Militarum soldiers, inflicted no meaningful damage.

This was also because the Orks' surprise attack had caught those fallen soldiers unprepared, before they could unpack and assemble their heavy weapons.

As for hitting fast-moving Astartes with slow-flying rockets, judging how far to lead a target was a problem for the none-too-bright Ork Boyz.

The only real threat at present came from the Big Shoota Boyz with their larger-calibre weapons.

Realising that things might not go as smoothly as they had expected, the Black Templars drew their Longswords and switched to close combat.

The Orks seemed to have some inexplicable sense of cooperation. Upon seeing their enemies draw Longswords, they too threw down their ranged weapons and charged the Black Templars, waving Choppas and all manner of other melee weapons.

Soon, a slaughter began, sending flesh and blood flying.

The Black Templars had been founded by High Marshal Sigismund, renowned for his superb swordsmanship and the warrior most valued and beloved by the Primarch Rogal Dorn.

Throughout those ten thousand years of history, though Sigismund had fallen in battle, his spirit had lived on.

Every Black Templar was a master swordsman. Their close-combat prowess was virtually unmatched among the other Chapters, and even their recruits underwent rigorous sword training.

Against these Orks, who relied almost entirely on physical reflexes, the warriors of the Black Templars cut through their foes with unstoppable force.

Their Power Swords swept through seamless arcs, every slash and thrust killing an Ork that came too close.

The Disruption Fields flickering along their blades flashed constantly, sometimes cleaving an Ork in two along with his weapon.

Blood sprayed freely across the black ceramite Power Armour, gathering into thin rivulets over its dark surface.

Watching his subordinates being butchered, the Ork Warboss at the rear soon lost patience.

The Warboss of the Blood Axes strode forward, brandishing his Power Axe.

"Strange warrior! I admire your fighting strength, and I grant you an honourable duel with me!"

Though he had seen the Khorne Space Marines of a Chaos Warband before, that did not stop the Ork Warboss from demanding single combat.

After all, he was the most cunning of them all.

If a squad of five Astartes rushed him together, he might genuinely be unable to beat them. But single combat was honourable. As long as he defeated one head-on, he could kill the rest one at a time.

Besides, he had been watching from the rear for some time, and he had a vague impression that these warriors were not much stronger than the enemies he had encountered in the Warp.

Moreover, the Ork Warboss had grown after several battles.

He was taller, heavier, and stronger.

He did not believe there was any chance he could lose.

Faced with the Ork Warboss's challenge, the Black Templars' blood surged with excitement.

They would find a worthy enemy on the battlefield, fight an honourable duel, and offer the glory of victory to their Primarch and the Emperor.

Soon, the most senior warrior among the Black Templars present stepped forward.

The others continued swinging their Longswords and cutting down the remaining enemies.

The Ork Warboss did not care whether the other Ork Boyz lived or died, but he was pleased to see that the other Astartes were not charging him.

It had never occurred to him that he might lose to this enemy, who was still rather small and scrawny compared with him.

"I accept your duel and bring you death. I am Hubern Mord of the Black Templars Chapter."

Seeing his opponent announce his name, the Ork Warboss bared his teeth and roared.

"You face the leader of the Blood Axes!"

Hearing their Warboss's roar, the other Orks nearby, still hacking away with their huge blades, roared in excitement as well.

"WARRRRR! Fighting! Feels good!"

Unfortunately, these ordinary Ork Boyz could do little against the remaining Black Templars, especially after the Astartes drew their blades and abandoned ranged attacks, prompting the Orks to throw down their own ranged weapons as well.

Though the Orks were robust and astonishingly strong, they lacked close-combat skills and relied mostly on fighting instinct.

The Warboss of the Blood Axes swung his haphazardly modified Power Axe in a vicious chop at Hubern.

Hubern sidestepped nimbly, and the Power Axe swept past his face with a faint red glow and a shrill whistle.

The modified Power Axe was larger and more destructive. Hubern knew full well that if it struck him, even his ceramite armour would probably not spare him a grievous wound.

Swordsmanship honed through long training and experience earned over years of warfare made Hubern instinctively lay his Power Sword against the axe's haft.

One upward sweep would sever the Ork Warboss's arm entirely.

The Ork Warboss clearly realised this. Relying on his tremendous physical strength, he wrenched the axe's haft sideways.

The Power Axe had evidently been reinforced considerably through a mechanic's tinkering. Even a Power Sword shimmering with a Disruption Field failed to cut straight through its haft.

His slash blocked, Hubern was forced into a contest of strength with the Ork Warboss.

But the Ork Warboss's strength had clearly surpassed that of an Astartes.

With a violent swing, he swept Hubern sideways. Had Hubern not reacted swiftly, deactivating his sword's field and gripping the blade with both hands to hold it upright and block the blow—

That sweeping strike alone would probably have grievously wounded him.