Kar En Tuk Chapter 23 (Doom Eternal/Warhammer 40K) (Patreon)

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The Bloodthirster roared at him, weathered scaly leather wings swept out like a dark canvas that blot out the sun in its outstretched terror. He took a step forward with one terrible hooved foot, the very air around it seemingly distorting as he poured his dark and hateful will against reality itself. His clawed hands grasped at a mighty axe that oozed sheer and mind-numbing rage. He was an ugly dreadful thing, his skin a malevolent red. He bore black armor decorated with the skulls of mortals and creatures the Slayer had never seen before. Its head was marked with a crown of horns. Its face, that of a twisted ox. If he were a lesser man, the Slayer would just be driven mad at the sight of such a thing.

But he was no ordinary man.

The Bloodthister struck first, charging towards the Slayer with his horns bared like the animal the Daemon was copying. The Slayer side-stepped him, letting the foul daemon crash against a far concrete wall. Then, he brought forth a rocket launcher, the golden aquila crest glittering despite the unnatural darkness brought by the Thirster.

He pulled the trigger and the missile screamed, its warheads designed to pierce armor and in this case, the Thirster's brains. The Bloodthirster snarled, the missile pouring fire and shrapnel inside his head. He swiftly turned, issuing a load roar in both rage and challenge.

For his reply, the Slayer simply launched another missile and struck the Thirster square in the face. He tried to fire another but he received nothing but a loud click. He then discarded the missile launcher, willing a Heavy Bolter from Hammerspace. He aimed it square at the Bloodthirster and pulled the trigger. Repeated staccato booms echoed as the Guardsman Pattern Boltgun did its bloody work, splattering the Greater Daemon with unrelenting fire.

The Thirster did not take this lying down. He advanced, daemonic axe raised and screaming for blood. He charged once more, the floor groaning underneath his weight but it held, terrible hooves staining the very molecules with the insanity of Khorne's bloodlust. He brought his weapon down where the Slayer stood, a cursed thing that had seen countless of battlefields and had claimed many skulls for his blood-drowned god.

The Slayer side-stepped most of them, going into a run as the Thirster chased after him. The Greater Daemon was fast, but the Slayer was also faster, darting around the battlefield and changing weapons when it suited him. The boltgun still sang but its song would soon come to its conclusion. For a moment, the Slayer thought of how to defeat the screaming thing.

He could shoot at it until his ammunition ran out. No, that would not do. And judging by the looks of things, he was trying to break a wall with a spoon.

Not that he hadn't tried before but it was a waste of time.

He could still do it but it would take too long. He didn't exactly have the exact details on the daemons of this universe but he had a feeling that the longer the Bloodthirster was on Tantive, the stronger it would become.

Hayden, who had been so far been silent at the entire exchange, finally spoke up. "I have a solution to your troubles, Slayer."

The Doom Slayer gave him a non-committal grunt.

"Beat it to death," Hayden said simply.

For a moment, the Slayer was momentarily taken aback at the scientist's suggestion. Hayden the Scientist, suggesting that he beat something to death and rip its guts out?

Now, the scientist was starting to speak sense.

Now, how to do it....

His eyes landed on the Thirster's horns.

The Greater Daemon knew the fight had changed when he saw the Slayer's stance shift slightly, his fists tightening as the rage behind the Slayer's eyes intensified. This pleased and frustrated the daemon. He felt that finally, there would be blessed melee where their strength would be tested against each other. The frustration came from the mortal's sheer refusal to submit to his fury.

The Daemon could feel it, the magnificent and beautiful anger that radiated from the Slayer, if it was any lesser, he would have been banished just by the sheer aura the Doom Slayer gave. Only few could come equal to the mortal's blinding fury, those who stood higher than he in Khorne's legions, but the Mortal simply refused to submit to it!

Still, his spirit and fury was something to be seen and he would claim the Slayer's skull for the Blood God. He, Lakk'ron the Mighty, would mount the Doom Slayer's skull on the Brass Throne of Khorne.

Just as he was about to move, he felt a horrible and searing pain from behind him as an orange beam of light struck him.

The Thirster let out a frustrated growl as teams of Sentinels arrived to reinforce the Slayer, their Arbalests fired at full capacity. Not just the Sentinels however, Menervyn who was still disguised strode forward, her eyes glowing with power as she lead the Imperials forward. Singing Spear in hand and her will manifesting in the minds of the Guardsmen. a necessary thing for they would be driven mad at the mere sight of the Neverborn.

"Do not let this daemon rule this world! Unleash everything you have at it, Hammers of the Emperor!" she urged them

To this, the Guardsmen roared out, "FOR THE EMPEROR! FOR CADIA!" as they blasted their weapons at the Bloodthirster. Lasguns, stubbers, plasma. Everything and anything, they threw at it.

The Thirster turned to regard them. How dare these insects interrupt him! The Slayer's skull was going to be claimed and they dare stop him?

The Greater Daemon charged, its chain-axe roaring in delight as it bisected and heaved those that stood in its path. But the Sentinels and Imperials rallied, some continuing to fire and those armed with melee weapons charged.

At the forefront of the charge were the brothers, Arkanos and Arkyn. "Assist the Slayer! Earn your keep, Night Sentinels!" Arkanos yelled, his voice booming.

Ballista fired boomed, striking the towering daemon. The Thirster held up his arm to defend itself, hissing as the orange blasts damaged it. It pulled back a scaly arm to roar at the white-armored men but a blast of plasma scoured its face.

"Strike it down! In the Name of the Emperor!" Raguel boomed, his plasma weapon would have sung once more but it needed to cool down. The brothers and select Night Sentinels would do the singing for him however.

Arkanos sang praises to his King as he brought his Halberd down at the Thirster, Arkyn followed, his weapon tasting daemon flesh.

The spear-armed Sentinels struck forward, burying their spear tips into the flesh of the beast.

Lakk'ron pain was palpable, the weapons unlike anything it had felt before. It burned with a fire unlike any other, its flame far too similar to the Anathema's. That only fueled its rage even more.

It swiped at the Sentinels, bisecting the nearest to it with great speed. Arkanos pulled his weapon back to strike at the Thirster but he was launched as the Thirster's tail lashed against him. Arkyn grit his teeth as he saw his brother fly off. Concern filled him but he had to focus first on the raging beast threatening this world.

He had seen his home fall to demonic forces. He wasn't going to allow the same thing to fall on the Imperials.

With speed worthy of the Slayer, he brought his halberd out and dug the Halber's axe-head into the Thirster's chest. The Thirster turned to strike at Arkyn but a pure white spear struck it between its chest.

Lakk'ron screamed.

A terrible and bone-chilling roar that would drive most men into insanity. But now, the Sentinels and the Imperials were not most men.

Not anymore.

Menervyn willed the Singing Spear back and the weapon obeyed, landing back into her hands. The Thirster glared at the witch with hate-filled eyes, the Khornate loathing of sorcerers coursing through him.

The Eldar Farseer merely slammed her spear down onto the concrete, her eyes narrowed in challenge at the Neverborn abomination.

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As the Eldar and Bloodthirsters glared, high above in orbit stood an inquisitor. He was Inquisitor Lord Johannes Martell and alongside him was an Inquisitorial Fleet ready to deliver exterminatus upon Tantive IV. His height was tall and his body was muscled, the result of a lifetime of hardwork and enhancements. He was clad from head to toe in the usual power armor worn by most Inquisitors, a stylized golden I on a silver and black chestplate. A cape of white silk was draped over him and its hood covered his face. A single cybernetic red eye glowed in the dark.

"Why have we not begun bombardment yet, Inquisitor?" asked a voice from behind him. Despite the announcement they had made, the planet still yet lived. Martell turned to regard the man behind him. A man clad in the uniform of the Navix Imperialis. A bright blue greatcoat with the aquila pinned to his chest. His features were aristocratic but unlike most fellows that had that description, his features were harder and rough, battle-scars on his cheek.

"So eager to see this world burn, Captain?" questioned Martell. Captain Vercourt shook his head.

"No, my lord. You've given orders for the declaration to be carried out yet no bombardment was undertaken. The gun crews wish to know why we've withheld from firing," informed the man. Martell looked at him from head to toe before snorting, turning to face the observation window he had been looking out of. Out of it and below, he could see the vastness of Tantive IV below him.

"It is a beautiful world," remarked Martell, taking note of the sheer greenery and lushness Tnative IV had. "Did you know that this single planet supplies most of this sector's food supply?"

Captain Vercourt shook his head. "I did not know that, my lord."

"Worry not about it, Captain," smoothed Martell. "I was simply explaining Tantive's importance, among other things." Martell thought about the Planetary Governor all but declaring his planet was lost, hinting about how it should be destroyed. At that, Martell and his colleagues concurred that it was a lost cost and had audibly agreed that an Exterminatus should be considered.

Audibly, but not in writing.

In truth, Martell had no intentions of following through with erasing the planet. It was simply too valuable with it supplying most of the sector it occupied. Oh it was possible to simply reroute smaller agri-worlds to supply the sector's needs but that would take too long and the loss of efficiency was unacceptable.

Plus, Tanner had been so kind as to inform him that the world also harbored humans from humanity's ancient past and also had with them caches of technology that would prove beneficial to the Imperium. Now at this point, there would usually be a catch to all this. STC's rarely came without strings attached. But out of sheer luck, there was no such arbitrary disaster that would ruin it.

Even the most simple-minded ratling could recognize the implication of the bounty of Tantive.

"Tell the men that it was all a drill and write that in the records," ordered the Inquisitor Lord. "Alert the Knights and the Scions that they will be due for a drop. Let's go and assist Tanner, shall we?"

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Returning to the planet below, Menervyn held her Spear close as she attacked. The Sentinels followed after her, their weapons ready to turn the Bloodthirster into paste. The Greater Deamon whipped the nearest Sentinel with its tail in a speed that the Argenta could barely register.

He was launched away, his armor cracking at the force of the whip. The Khornate turned its attention to another Sentinel, its chain axe singing its terrible song as it split the man in two. Khorne's laughter echoed in the Bloodthirster's mind as it took in the iron-copper smell of blood.

Lakk'ron then turned its attention to the charging Aeldari and brought down its axe to crush her but it missed, cracking only concrete where the Farseer was. Menervyn saw her opening and with a cry, she thrust her Spear with all her might straight into the Daemon's chest.

The Bloodthirster hissed, the spear like fire on its body but it was not enough. It impaled itself deeper into the Aeldar's spear, its eyes on blazing with sheer anger and bloodlust.

"Did you think that would kill me?" the Bloodthirster rumbled, its voice like the grating of granite. Lakk'ron's fury intensified when he saw the Aeldar smirk at him. What cowardly sorcery did the witch plan?

It roared again in pain as he felt searing hooks embed themselves against its back. Curses unfounded streamed forth as Menervyn pushed her spear even deeper into the daemon's chest.

"No, but he can," the Aeldar laughed.

Another roar came from the Bloodthirster as the Doomslayer activated the meathook and with speed, attached himself to the daemon's back. The Slayer grabbed a horn to keep himself balanced as he aimed for the base of the thirsters neck and fired.

The Super Shotgun boomed like cannons as chunks of daemonic flesh splattered against his armor. His shotgun emptied, he switched to a chainsword and with a grunt, he plunged it deep into the chunks the super shotgun had made, and then, he activated it and jagged shark-like teeth ate into the daemon's flesh. Menervyn pulled back as the Slayer and the Thirster battled but her spear she left embedded into the daemon, its psychic nature and runes weakening the Neverborn the longer it stayed embedded.

Arkanos pushed aside the Sentinel that was trying to assist him as he stood to his feet, grasping for his ballista. Wrapping his finger around the trigger, the Sentinel levelled the weapon at the flailing Bloodthirster.

"This our chance!" his voice boomed as he fired a concentrated shot of energy at the thirster. "Let the daemon have it!"

Arkyn followed his brother example as he reached for his ballista and joined the fusiliade of laser and concentrated energy chipping away at the daemon. From amidst the fire, Raguel rushed forward, his armor illuminated amidst the orange and red bolts. In his hands, an Argentan axe deployed and ready for blood.

He plunged the axe's head first into the daemon's leg, the daemon fell on one knee nearly knocking the Slayer off from his back. He reached forward to grasp for the Dark Angel but Raguel side-stepped from its incoming hand and cleaved it off with a another clean swipe.

The Sentinels saw this and charged, axe and spear tasting daemonic flesh.

This was his chance, the Slayer saw. He flicked his wrist and the Doomblade flourished, its steel had tasted demons and daemons. And now, it was going to taste one more of the disgusting abominations. With great speed and force, the Slayer swiped down at one of Lakk'ron's horns, he quickly grasped it as the Thirster thrashed around.

Then, he beat the Thirster with it.

Again and again, Lakk'ron's horn stabbing at him with force, each one greater than the last. The Doom Slayer did not keep up, pouring his will, his fury, his anger in his strikes against the daemon.

But he did not fall to the darker promises of his rage, he did not let himself be consumed by his hate. He used it but he did not fall it. His anger was a tool he would control, not the force that would drive him to madness.

Lakk'ron fell on the floor with a dull thud, his wings crumpling right next to him. Despite the assault the Slayer had given, the Thirster was still there in the Materium, still alive. With that, he jumped off the Daemon's back and made his way to Raguel, his eye's own the Sentinel axe the Dark Angel was holding.

Raguel quickly knew what the Slayer wanted as the man made his way to him. The Dark Angel held out the weapon and the Slayer accepted, deadly promise in his eyes.

Returning to Lakk'ron's side, the Doom Slayer lifted up the Sentinel Axe, its wraith energy fuelled blade humming before bringing it down with one terrible swing.

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A/N: It only took me months but here is the returning chapter of Kar En Tuk. I had an entirely storyline planned for the fic, a storyline I didn't pursue because of IRL reasons. But anyway, this fic is back from the dead to kick ass in the name of the Slayer and the Emperor.

Also, I saw Kar En Tuk in TVtropes. I am quite pleased at that addition. Being in TVtropes has been a good dream of mine.

So, what do you guys think?