Faction Focus: Deathwatch

Deathwatch Marine
The Deathwatch are a unique and specially trained Space Marine Chapter that dedicates its every hour to xenos hunting. They are the Chamber Militant of the Ordo Xenos, charged with protecting it in its search of information, containment, and ultimate destruction of all xeno species. Consisting of Battle-Brothers drawn from many Chapters, the Deathwatch operates from Watch Fortresses and Watch Stations across the whole of the Imperium.
The deathwatch chapter is known to deploy small kill teams to a planet to complete operations directed by the inquisition and are usually led by an inquisitor, Commander, Librarian or sometimes Chaplains.

Such a Kill Team is now on Belis Alta, but why?

The Omega Vault is a mysterious chamber deep within the Deathwatch Watch Fortress Erioch.
The Omega Vault
Who built the Vault and what purpose it holds remains a mystery, but no living creature can open its doors. The Vault seems to have a mind of its own, dispensing gifts and opening at seemingly random intervals. It is however known to yield mysterious artifacts during times of upheaval in the Jericho Reach. In the past, the Vault has provided tomes of archaic lore, strange fragments of alien devices, ancient weapons forged in times long gone, world-slaying virus canisters, enigmatic star charts, and bizarre xenological specimens. On one occasion, its gift was an ancient Astropath held in a stasis field. When awoken, the Astropath sent one brief astropathic message and spoke two words before expiring from extreme old age, his final duty discharged. At the centre of the Omega Vault lies another, inner vault: a secret of secrets, bound with scores of locking mechanisms which have slowly opened themselves, one-by-one, down the centuries. It is believed that certain events or the recovering of Relic Artifacts set the unlocking proces in motion.

And this is what brings the Deathwatch to Belis Alta.
The deathwatch have Watch fortresses and Watch stations scattered across the galaxy. Though not always manned by Adeptus Astartes, most Watch Stations are homes to skeleton crews of sensor techs and watch-serfs. These individuals spent their entire lives performing their duty and are vigilant for any Xenos threat. When such a threat is detected the Deathwatch are alerted and dispatched in force. This also happened when the tyranid Hyve fleet Hydra arrived in the Belis system. A deathwatch kill team nearby the Belis system was sent out first to investigate the distress call from watch station Spector Vigilis. They had just returned from a secret mission clearing and inspecting a mysterious and long lost Space Hulk that drifted steerless through the galaxy. It was believed they retrieved an ancient artifact. When they arrived at Belis Alta they started their investigation at watch station Spector Vigilis. The small company of Deathwatch marines set out from there not knowing the enormity of the tyranid invasion. Although they fought hard and long they were eventually killed and destroyed when they had run out of ammunition. The Artifact was never recovered or seen again. As Deathwatch protocol describes the Kill Team secured the artifact in the watch station's Data Vault. However when a Watch station is overrun by the enemy it sets an automated self destruct proces in motion which destroyed the entire structure and everything in it.

Only a few hours ago an imperial Astropath picked up a signal, feint and far away. The signal was encoded and although there were large pieces unclear or missing from the transcription it was a fact that this signal came from Belis Alta and could only came from the Watch station's Data vault. for a brief period of time it transmitted a signal which meant it was still operational. Could this mean the vault survived the tyranid invasion and even the destruction of Spector Vigilis? What triggered the signal and did this mean someone or something now held possession over the Relic Artifact?

Once more a deathwatch company of several Kill Teams was dispatched to Belis Alta. The operation under command of Chaplain Ortan Cassius was about to begin...


No comments:

Post a Comment