Amid his many demands, Azrael found time to reject the Ravenwing Grand Master's request to deploy the Rock, and ordered more Astartes to gather here.
The World Eaters ahead were strikingly disorganized, apparently serving several leaders. Their attacks were scattered, but the Khorne cultists were formidable fighters.
Reports arrived of one ship after another being boarded, before the entire communications system was disrupted by the power of the Warp.
The World Eaters cared nothing for flanking attacks or ambushes. Once they chose an opponent, they charged straight at them.
Whether Khorne's forces observed any rules of combat depended entirely on whether the two sides were evenly matched. If one Astartes fought another in single combat, other World Eaters rarely interfered. Against a Primarch, however, they would swarm him.
The Dark Angels had no fear of the World Eaters. They wanted nothing more than to devour their flesh and drink their blood. As the ships closed, furious boarding actions erupted on both sides. Ancient, sacred power clashed with the Blood God's savage blessings. There were no successor Chapters here-this was a clash between the First Legion and the World Eaters.
Over the preceding fifty-eight years, the World Eaters had attacked far and wide, securing large numbers of excellent recruits. At certain special moments, under the Blood God's blessing, even powerful followers past the age for augmentation could be transformed into Astartes.
And these recruits were stronger than ordinary World Eaters. Most of their biological organs had been dredged from the Blood God's pools of blood.
These mighty neophytes attacked in an almost daemonic frenzy. The moment they saw their enemies, deafening lion roars tore through their eardrums.
Azrael had ordered the sacred Lion's Roar Plasma Emitters brought out of the Rock and issued to warriors on important missions. With every pull