Eternal Zealots
Summary of Legion XVI
Proud, Zealous and self-righteous, the Zealots were the first chapter turned by the Children of Armok, and were used to turn Hektor himself.
Legion Tactics
They favour close combat and fast attack tactics. The legion used to an over abundance of medically trained marines, Now they favour simply crushing their foes, crushing the weak under foot, no time to heal the sick and wounded, when there is more important matters, letting the sorcerers bother with healing their allies. They also employ Centaur styled Devastators, inspired from the Interex warriors, however a dark twist has come in the form of the Cult of the Juggernaut, fusing marines with the bodies of Juggernauts. They will take any opportunity to duel a loyalist marine, to prove their superiority - especially since gaining the favour of dark gods.
Legion Equipment
Following on from their Loyalist days, the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Companies, who were the foremost users of the "Astartes Centaur Exo-Suit" found themselves presented by their Xeno allies, the Juggernaut, a daemonic steed.
The Captains, Cyllarus, Hylonome and Kinnaras, then sat and their entire companies pledged to Khorne, upon a battlefield of 10,000 dead...that their armour may be blessed with such power, such rage of the steed, they would use their burning passion and hatred for the ones who betrayed them, assaulted them, that they would in his name and turn that tragedy upon them, a thousand fold.
Khorne listened...The Blood God was amused that a Legion that was thought to belong to Tzeentch, that 3,000 men would pledge to him...and he gave them that gift.
In a flurry of red energies, the Astartes changed...their legs shifted and changed into the headless bodies of the steeds they had once seen, made of living metal and burning blood, soon the armourers equipped their bodies with the heavy weapons they once wielded, so the Cult of Juggernaut was born.
Devastators would continue to use the Centaur suit, until they would be interred by a Khornate ritual, becoming a shard of the Legions rage, Half Daemon, Half Astartes.
Legion Doctrine
They desired to be shining examples of what Medicae and Fair tolerance to all castes and Xenos alike, using a Xenos Auxiliary that is widely debated upon within the Imperium. This open-mindedness and somewhat naive perspective of the universe lead to their downfall however, as their Xeno Allies enacted a Coup coup d'etat, set into motion by the Children of Armok.
Aubrey The Grey, Primarch of The Eternal Zealots
Appearance
A lean physique, coupled with a gaunt and angular face, tends to have a certain warmth to his face. His skin tone is pale, almost pure white in colour, his hair is silver, parted towards the right of his face and flowing, a pair of emerald coloured eyes, a pair of curved scars under his left eye which curl towards the edge of his lip, the outer scar dwarfing the smaller scar and curling around it.
If he isn't seen with a pondering look on his face, he is either in battle, or conversing with his valued brothers, normally with a small smile on his face.
When out of his armour, he wears a black coat, seemingly made of scales and leather, with a green lining made of the same material, underneath a soft leather cuirass, made of weaves. Inside of his armour, he wears a cloak made of this material, purely green over his armour.
Youth
Aubrey's childhood was an oddity, even for a primarch, when he was lost he was thrown onto a planet that was already inhabited...by Xenos by the name of Tarellians. It was a grand debate on whether or not the small primarch should live, only upon the mercy of a sadistic general, deciding to see whether or not the small child could survive the rough life of a Tarellian.
Aubrey was brought up in the lowest caste of Tarellian culture; The Doctors. In Tarellian culture, it was the doctors who were the disgrace, for a warrior, the highest honour and caste of the Tarellian, to have his blood spilled in anything but combat, thus the surgeon, was the most vilified. Aubrey showed prowess in learning, quickly becoming one of the most renowned doctors of the Tarellians in his early twenties.
It was then his life came to a twist as he saved the life of the general who decided to save his life...the General and Aubrey made a pact, if he told no-one of his surgery, he would allow Aubrey to become a warrior.
Aubrey rose through the ranks as quickly as his rise through the medical world, becoming a valiant warrior and leader, he soon took the place of the now retired general.
The Coming of The Emperor
When Aubrey had put down the fourth "Aubreyian Rebellion." Tarellian purists, mostly from the far flung planets in the system, he was prepared to launch a colonisation effort, when the Emperor appeared.
Aubrey was a devout atheist, he never stopped the faith of his Tarellian subordinates, of their old gods, but Aubrey could never relate to a god of lizardian visage, until the Emperor arrived, he seemed large than life to him, royal, holy. He was shocked, someone who resembled him, he trembled in front of him, bowing before him, however, his tongue was...different, the Emperor was somewhat shocked himself to hear the Primarch speaking in a serpentine tongue, as well as his son standing infront of Aubreys own legion, attempting to stop them from purging the Xenos around him, The Emperor realised that these Xenos were under Aubreys command...
After a few months, Aubrey had the beginnings of Higher Gothic under his belt, he was able to finally debate with his father over the continued existence of these Xenos.
By the skin of his teeth, as well as an agreement of quarantine, the Emperor allowed the Xenos to live.
The Great Crusade
After years of inspiring Xenos, beings fundimentally different to him to his core, it did not take the Primarch long to gain the trust of his legion.
It was then that with caution and the Emperors unknowing, that the Tarellians formed an Auxiliary under his legion, careful to keep his secrets from his brothers.
The Betrayal
Aubrey was leading his Legion, upon the Warmasters orders, to recapture a human colony, to bring it back to the Imperium, however, things had been set in motion by Uriel, Primarch of the Children of Armok. Whilst in combat with the heavily fortified foe, the Tarellians, the Zealots Xeno Auxiliary, as well as the host of the homeworld of Aubrey and his legion, had began their Coup.
The Captain of the 1st Company had been felled, and a number of the Xenos were beset upon him and his Legion.
He survived, wounded and set out a message to his homeworld, the third of the Legion stationed there to keep an eye on the Xenos, on the Emperors strict orders. There was no response from the homeworld and he feared the worst, however his hands were tied, he couldn't pull out of the world without withstanding un-needed losses, so he called out to one of his brothers, Bohemond.
Bohemond rushed to the planet, vengeance in his heart, these filthy xenos had betrayed his brother, regardless of his Naivety, when he landed, he was received with the glares of the Captains of the Eternal Zealots as the Knights of Justice opened fire on the Tarellians, only for the Zealots to return fire.
The messages from the Primarch had been intercepted by the group responsible for the betrayal, a large anti-Imperium faction, they had manipulated the message, reporting the Captains stationed there that Aubrey had been slain by Bohemond and he had come to the planet; Lazarus, the homeworld to finish the job.
The fighting lasted for a week before A wounded Aubrey and Uriel, who arrived in time to bolster his forces on the world, for him to arrive there. Aubrey was livid, most of his forces were killed, he shouted, bellowed and threatened to beat Bohemond, they were about to come to blows before Uriel stepped in, saying his must return to his legion...
Aubrey was contacted by the Emperor, his face stern and unamused. He bereted the Primarch for allowing this to happen, reminding him of what he said the day he arrived to Lazarus, that Xenos were never to be trusted, that they were treacherous, selfish beings that wanted nought but their own advancement, not theirs. Aubrey was silent through the entire communcation, until the Emperor, after reminding him of his naivety and his disappointment with him, that Bohemond has been ordered to purge the system of the Xenos and he was to stand down while they did their work. The Primarch said with a sorrowful heart that he understood, he went then to watch, as the people who raised him from infancy burned for their betrayal. He felt it was unjust. He felt sorrow. He felt rage.
After his Xeno allies betrayed him and were then destroyed, planet and all, by the orders of his father, whom he admired greatly, who passed the task onto one of his brothers Bohemond and his legion, he festered a hate, deep inside him for Bohemond and his faith in the Emperor shaken.
Aubrey became distraught, the normal life and warmth in his face began to fade, becoming a much darker man, throwing himself in the pursuits of sorcery.
He was confronted by the Primarch Kranios, who openly mocked him for his trust in xenos, laughing at his expensive, before the pair came to blows, the two Primarchs already began to hate eachother after Nikaea Council. After an seemingly endless number of hours, Kranios bellowed and chortled, it was the final straw for Aubrey, he struck his brother with a violent fist of rage, knocking out the other Primarch, fostering a rivalry that would continue for millennia to come.
The Heresy
After the betrayal, their Primarch threw himself further into his studies of magicks, to be used for an alternate form of healing, It was then that Uriel, Primarch of the Children of the Armok, introduced to a race of Chaos worshiping Xenos; The Cyfecti.
A race close to the Eye of Terror, who worshipped the Great Eye and the mighty beings that dwelt within. Uriel had kept this secret, in the hopes it could be used and no other would be so easy to fall to this bait then Aubrey. When contacted by the Zealots, they invited them down and Aubrey was witness to a summoning of a Daemon, which spoke to him. Thus was his eyes opened, showing him the proof of these magicks, giving Aubrey the deal he could never refuse, in the name of medicine.
Aubrey used these powers to corrupt the wounded Warmaster Hektor and cause him to fall to Chaos.
Aubrey wanted an Imperium, a better Imperium, where men and xenos could live in prosperity, this was his vision and no one could get in his way now he had a god on his side, His legion believed now, fully, that they would be the ones to lead a new Imperium, A perfect Imperium. The Eternal Zealots then soon believed that the loyalists were beneath them and should therefore, die, the name of Aubreys new Imperium.
Now with zealotry and fanaticism, the Eternal Zealots pursue Mankind and the Imperium, world by world, shrugging off their hippocratic oaths of healing, in favour of cutting out the tumour that is corpse emperors followers, so that he may heal the Imperium and shape it into his own image.
Post-Heresy
Aubrey resides on the planet of the Cyfecti, just outside of the eye of terror, with an ancient rune placed on the planet, it seems to have blinked out of existence, an aura surrounding the planet making whomever gazed upon it, un-ease and discouraged to go near it.
He continues to hunt for the rest of the Knights of Justice, as well as any high priority target in the Imperium, to cut out the cancer of the Imperium, wishing to keep most of the Imperium intact so that he may instate his own "perfect" Imperium, free of any xenophobia.