StarKrakChro5

Sharks and Krakens

Carchardon Captain observed the procedures of the warp translation with no small amount of interest, his pale deathly face was set in a savage grin exposing his wet triangular and razor sharp teeth.

There was the bright flash of reality breach as the ship juddered and strained breaking out from the roiling miasma of the warp, strange energies of teh warp clashed with the straining tear in reality from which the Strike-Cruiser emerged, three other like it followed it with a huge battle-barge trailing not far behind.

"Prepare main batteries, cycle the guided munitions to all Star Kraken ident-markers," the grating steel voice of his ship captain echoed through the bridge, "Brother-Captain Gulik you may prepare your boarding squads."

The immense captain in the dark grey warplate turned to regard the morose and melded form of the old captain, more machine than man the old captain had suffered catastrophic damage with the ship a decade earlier while engaging in the Cyros Intervention, ever since then a life sustaining machine pod was created and the old captain installed in it to let him serve even in his half-dead state.

"Thank you, captain," was all the giant growled before exiting the bridge as he made his way to the assault bays.

Thirteen thousand kilometers from the warp anomaly usually identified as a translation breach, the Star Kraken's Defence Group Carcharius formed up and readied their response, all ready a silent stream of plasmic tipped torpedoes made their way toward the thirty six unique Imperial Battlefleet Utaris and Adeptus Astartes Fleet elements and most of them had Carcharadon identifiers, the blood-rivals of the Star Kraken's.

Brother-Captain Gulik racked his bolter and maglocked it to his thigh plate while unsheathing his power-axe, he moved away joining his command-cadre of five of his finest from the Third Company.

All the five bowed their heads in deference, Gulik grinned as he issued the order.

"We hunt!" he declared. Th space marines in the livery of the Star Krakens, ducked and advanced over the barrage of bolter fire that was hammering into the bulk head around them, one of the Marines lobbed a frag grenade and awaited its fuse to expire, as soon as the bang of the explosion was felt the marine was up and unloading accurate shots on the memorized position of the Carcharodon squad.

The Star Kraken hit three targets, the first was hit in his head, which exploded in a shower of red gore and gray ceramite. The second was hit on his chest plate, the bolter deflected and exploded on his pauldron.

Seven more Carcharodons appeared from cover and fired back with their bolters as they charged the Star Krakens.

"Death to the Krakens!" the Carcharodon with the Sergeant marking yelled as he charged the closest Star Kraken marine, a power sword in hand.

The charging blade swung toward the defending Kraken's head who bought up his bolter to fend of the blow and stepped backward.

The bolter parted and melted as the power blade sliced through the thing, a quick cross cut followed the demise of the bolter, but the Kraken was quicker, his free hands shot out to grapple with the Carcharodon's and defeated the momentum of the Marine.

Kraken followed through with a wrecking ball head blow into the Carcharodon's faceplate, shattering the lenses and twisting and breaking the grilled maw of the helmet and followed up with a blow to his right hand, disabling his grip on the pistol. Before the Kraken could entirely disarm him the carcharodon broke from the grapple.

"Tricky Kraken!" the Carcharodon grunted as he backed away and ripped his helmet.

The brother sergeant exposed his pale and tattooed face and the set of razor sharp teeth through which he spat thick crimson blood.

Without a moment to rest the Carcharodon was on the Kraken swinging the power blade in lethal arcs of blue fire. The Kraken backed away and bought his own combat blade up in defence.

Brother Captain Gulik, swung his body left as the immense form of the Terminator's Thunder Hammer smashed into the bulkhead ripping into the carved and ornate structure, the groves and angle of the wall trapped the thunder hammer in place as Gulik backed up and swung his axe in a upward stroke severeing the offending Kraken's arm with the Hammer and follwoed through with a severing arc that beheaded the behemoth marine.

The Kraken's behind the behemoth howled and grunted in dismay as they unleashed a shower of bolter fire at the Captain.

Gulik leapt left toward cover, three dead Carcharodon, those of his command cadre lay next to him, the Terminator's work. The rest of his men were excahging fire with the enemy from sparse cover somewhere to his right.

The damned Kraken's were a hard nut to crack.

So far the engagement was going in the Kraken's favour, the Inquisitor was adamant that the ships be taken intact, something about a location locked within the ships to find their Frotress-Monastery.

But Gulik had argued against this, the Kraken's cannot simply be conquered by force, there needs to be a certain amount of guile and surprise, they were a dedicated boarding fighters, attacking them was like expecting to put a fire out with promethium. His vox bead buzzed and stole his attention from the brief reverie.

"Captain, this is First Sergeant Juka, Squads Musar and Veiyo are understrenght, we need support on Decks 17 and 28," his stoic First Sergeant reported without much ceremony.

"Damned, Krakens! Tell the techmarines to rouse the Ancients. We are going to take this ship at all costs."

A vox bead affirmation clicked in his ear.

A dozen Carcharodons flooded into the deck from an adjacent entrance and began firing into the flank of the advancing Krakens.

"Cadre! Rise and advance!" Gulik shouted as he swung his axe and charged at the enemy. "Torvo! Get down!" the order was precise and commanding.

The Kraken known as Torvo ducked the Carcharodon sergeants swinging power blade, a trio of bolter shots pushed the Carcharodon sergeant back as they struck his chest and thigh, the shots would have disabled any other foe, but the armour and the astartes in it was made of sterner stuff Astartes did not die easily.

Torvo charged the reeling Carchorodon and tackled him to the ground, the monomolecular combat blade shoved into the sergeant's exposed head.

The carcharodon was dead before he hit the ground.

Torvo gathered himself and retrieved his blade from the forehead of the dead sergeant, and whispered a little prayer for the soul of the Carchardon.

"Take this," the commanding voice spoke to him.

Torvo turned and saw the form of the hulking Terminator Iarund with his immense thunder hammer and a wrist mounted bolter, its hand aiming at the discarded power sword of the dead Carcharodon.

"We need it," he explained. Behind him the seven other survivours of his squad set about ridding the enemy of their weapons and ammunition.

"Aye, Varangian," Torvo nodde as he took the blade from its fall and thumbed the rune.

Torvo swung the blade testing the weight of the weapon.

"Be wary, young Torvo," the varangian adviced, "that blade has a new master, so measure twice and cut once, always."