Welcome Home

 As darkness came too to close my vision, I spoke these last words, "Goodbye father."

I am starting to hate this kind of travel. I opened my eyes with the feeling of pain washing over them, like I was seeing for the first time in an age. The world was cursed in an eternal sandstorm, even with my eyes and helmet's different type of vision the ground was all but gone from sight. I walked forward keeping my ears sharp for anything, but the raging storm has made it hard to hear expect the howl of the wind, as I walked through the storm my armour was bombard with sand, with every step I changed my helmets vision inferred to night vision and surface vision being able to render images far better than the naked eye only for the fact that the storm and sand is what interferes with the imaging.

I walked through kilometres of baron wastes feeling the earth beneath me crushed under my feet, but something felt wrong like it was dead. days had passed since I had arrived on this world, on my travels I found the land scared by a past war, but I know it was not recent by the looks of the unexploded ordnance it has been here for a long time the exact time I am unsure of, but my guess is 100 maybe 200 years old. I pushed myself further into the storm seeing more craters around noticing that this spot was at the centre of a bombardment, "where am I?" This place that has been stained by death, I am surprised to not a single body or even skeleton of those who died in battle is nowhere to be seen.

Though a Astartes of my calibre does not stumble or fall but I stumbled upon a bunker which looked Imperial in design I careful approached the outer door of the bunker, bolter in hand, the door was barred by sand I pushed the door open, peering inside, no light only sand for it has claimed this place. I stepped inside the passage that would bring me to the inner part of the bunker, I crushed something under my armour, I gentle kicked the sand away, I saw armour that I recognized a space marine of the Death Guard, three of them, one against the wall no bones just life less armour of a proud warrior, the other was on the floor separated for there was nothing to keep it hole. I bent down on to one knee and picked up the helmet as the glass from the helmet fell to the ground, I put the gun down and wiped the sand and dust away, I saw the faint symbol of the Death Guard as if I was steering into the past.

I stood back up, not pressing further into the bunker understanding that it was a tomb for those who had died in a war long in the past, I salute you my brothers you have died in the Emperor's service rest now and be at peace. I walked back out into the light for luck was on my side as the storm had lessened, and I saw trench lines that spanned kilometres, these would have fitted thousands of troops and more. I remember these but I don't no where I have seen them; I have been in a thousand trenches, but these ones looked more familiar than others. I walked a few hours more as the storm is almost over thank the Emperor for small miracles, I stopped and waited for a minute and what I saw was my past coming back to haunt me.

The sky opened, as if parted by the fleet of the Imperium and the sky illuminated the truth of the world. A wall, one that had been breached and that was the last bit of the puzzle that tells me where I am, Isstvan III. I spent the next few hours walking over the remnants of space marines, it was like walking over the graves of the fallen. I now stood upon the ruined wall looking back at where my friend Rylanor stood proudly claiming his right for vengeance, turning my head I looked towards the former governor's palace where the worst fight of our lives took place.

Let's see if that Thunderhawk is still at the hanger and what ever happened to that dam tech priest. I walked through the rubble of a dead city remembering the Dies Irae's destruction as if it was hours ago, the only part that doesn't make sense is where the fallen Titan machine is for it's giant body is not where insight which is concerning, and I hope it doesn't walk these grounds for I would need an army and more to bring it down again. 

I now stepped onto the grounds of the palace, walking its war-torn halls as the dust and old air passed through my helmet's rebreather basking in my memories of day that felt only now so long ago where death was certain and near. I made my way to the hanger where I left the Thunderhawk, having to force the doors open with my hands as rusted gears and mechanism turned and moved. There was no light nor any fresh air in here since it was opened, I walked towards the ship placing a hand on its body and moved along it towards a panel leaving a streak of green showing the colours of the Sons of Horus. pressing a few buttons, I manage to get the front ramp open after suffering the sounds of a unused piston.

I step forward onto the ramp, noticing the lack of dust inside of the ship admiring how airtight it was, I proceed further inside of the ship going towards the pilot's seat and engaged its power systems and reserves. Checking its systems making sure nothing was wrong or broken from lack of use but what caught my eyes was long range scans, " There's a beacon, that has been roughly transmitting for the last 9000 years!?"