The Experiment (Akame ga Kill Fanfic)

Chapter 45- Clashing Legions

3rd Person POV

News had reached Helsreach, the Blood Angel reserves had been deployed. A company of one hundred astartes with Bols and Run included, were heading north. Already ahead of them however, were the Dark Angels with their primarch and Alexander. They had no time to waste, and had to make it there as soon as possible.

On the northern line, the Black Legion was crashing against Vandenberg's forces. Men were dropping left and right, even the sisters of battle had began taking casualties. The situation grew dire as every minute passed by, soldiers dying constantly. Vandenberg and his forces were now at their fallback position, doing their best to hold back the enemy.

The skies were littered with explosions as horrific heldrakes soared above. These daemon engines echoed the resemblance of dragons. They roared fire that burned through the ranks of many legionnaires. Vandenberg and Galatea had regrouped and formed a defensive line, barely holding back the tide of heretics.

Bolters fired from both sides as lasguns went off constantly. Vandenberg himself had fired his bolt pistol at the enemy over and over, he was running out of ammo. As he began to reload, a chaos marine charged through his men and butchered them. The marine then went straight for Vandenberg, chainaxe revving as he closed the distance.

Just before the chaos marine could land his upcoming strike, Vandenberg managed to raise his sword up in time. He barely managed to block the blow, but was sent off his feet in response. As he hit the ground, the marine went in for the kill. But before he could bring down his chainaxe, a barrage of bolter shells and lasgun fire tore through him.

As the heretic collapsed, Vandenberg looked towards where the fire came from. There he saw Malcolm and twenty legionnaires accompanied by Galatea with a squad of sisters of battle.

Malcom: Commissar! Are you alright?!

Vandenberg: I will live to keep on fighting

Galatea: The Emperor wills it, we must hold them back

Vandenberg: Do we have word from our other lines?

Malcolm: They're holding strong sir, they haven't been pushed back

Vandenberg: Then it is clear, we must not falter whatsoever. If we do, the whole defensive line will be compromised

Galatea: We are losing people every minute, we might have to fall back

Vandenberg: "Retreating is not an option" he said while getting up "We will hold out or die trying!"

Malcolm: Well said commissar!

Galatea looked onward, the chaos marines were now coming at them in full force. She kept a stoic expression, but on the inside, she was nervous. There was doubt slowly creeping its way into her mind. Vandenberg led those with him onwards, intending to face the chaos marines head on.

Malcolm, the other legionnaires, and even the sisters of battle followed him. As Vandenberg made his way forward, more legionnaires joined him alongside the remaining tanks they had. Bolters and lasguns went off alongside the tank battle cannons as they crashed against the chaos marines. The barrage of fire tore through some of the ranks of the Black Legion as the battle raged.

But for every Black Legionnaire that went down, ten guardsman would follow. Galatea herself fired upon one chaos marine and killed him, but was then knocked off her feet by a marine who flanked her. Her bolter was knocked out of her hand as the chaos marine raised his chainsword. But before he could bring it down and kill her, his head exploded.

As his body fell to the side, Galatea saw who had saved her. Vandenberg held his smoking bolt pistol, being the one who had killed the marine. But before he could go over to help Galatea up, a power sword pieced through his back and came out of his chest. Galatea looked on in shock and even horror as the blade lifted Vandenberg as the life slowly left from his body.