The Arch Angels: The Iron Plague Legion.

Chapter 7.

Back with the remembrance.
"Wait a moment," the remembrancer interjected, her brow furrowing in disbelief. "Are you seriously suggesting that you have some kind of kinship to the Emperor?" Her skepticism was palpable, and I couldn't help but chuckle. With a genuine smile, I replied, "Well, I wouldn't go as far as claiming to be related. However, as a member of the 2nd Legion, we Astartes possess genetic enhancements bestowed upon us by the Emperor of Mankind himself. But really, that's not the heart of the matter, is it? All of us Astartes are merely tools crafted by him, instruments in his grand design, with various genetic advantages." I maintained my smile as I spoke, trying to ease her doubts.

She regarded me with a serious expression, her eyes searching mine, before finally uttering, "Now we're back at it again, Eric. Don't you see yourself as nothing more than one of the Emperor's weapons?"

The smile on my face faded, and I looked at her with indifference, answering her question exactly as I saw it. "We Astartes are reengineered on a genetic level to become soldiers, nothing more, nothing less. Who I was before I had the honor of becoming one of the Emperor's Angels of Death is completely irrelevant. Now, and until the day my service ends, I am nothing more than a weapon in the Emperor's hands." She looked at me, a mix of sympathy and understanding in her eyes, before speaking the words that became the foundation of my existence, "Only in death does duty end," the familiar phrase that echoed through the voices of my fallen battle-brothers.

I continued to gaze at her with the same indifferent look and replied, "What is your duty? To serve the will of the Emperor. And what is the Emperor's will? That we fight and die. Death, to us, is our duty." She remained silent, the pity in her eyes growing more apparent. I waited for her to break the silence that hung heavy between us. After a minute, she finally spoke, her voice filled with a mix of curiosity and empathy. "Please, Eric. Continue your story."

Chapter 7.
As we made our way out of Partaqlus private quarters, I quickened my stride to catch up with Josef. There was something I needed to understand, something that puzzled me deeply. After finally reaching him, I paused for a moment, gathering my thoughts before finally voicing the burning question. "Josef," I hesitated briefly, my words hanging in the air, "how did you acquire those magnificent wings? Was it through some sort of advanced surgery or perhaps a robotic enhancement?"

An amused chuckle escaped Josef's lips in response to my inquiry, a reaction that irked me slightly. Suppressing my annoyance, I chose to remain silent, patiently awaiting his explanation. Instead of directly addressing my query, Josef posed a different question of his own. "Eric, do you recall the final trial that marked our initiation into the esteemed ranks of the 2nd Legiones Astartes?" His diversion only fueled my growing irritation, and I almost blurted out the answer without thinking. "Of course I remember," I replied, a hint of exasperation lacing my words. "How could any of us from the Arch Angels ever forget the trial that molded us into who we are today?" Taking a deep breath to calm myself, I concluded my awser to his redicelus question, "The Angel's Chalice..."

A shiver raced down my spine, awakening haunting recollections of the year I spent confined in a coffin. Memories flooded my mind, suffusing me with an icy chill. Josef, his voice trembling, broke the silence. "I remember every second of that dark year," he confessed, his voice trailing off as his body quivered. I held my breath, anticipating his next words, hoping he would find the courage to continue. And he did.

"It began with a tingling, an unbearable itch right at my shoulder blades," Josef resumed, his voice filled with torment. "That's when the nightmare of my life truly commenced. I lay there, imprisoned in the darkness, unable to find solace in sleep or escape the agony of my wings sprouting from my back. It was a slow and agonizing process, spanning months."