Editing The 13th Black Crusade (section)

==No Rest for the Virtuous==

===Cracks in the Facade===

The defenders, having been fighting for days, took what rest they could, but many would push the limits of their bodies and sanity, if only to avoid the nightmares such fitful sleep would bring. The Chaos forces, obviously wanting this to continue, kept up the pressure to further demoralize their enemy.

The walls would be swept clear of daemonspawn, only for more to show up in that same location. Kasr Jask finally fell to the spells of Elek Stane's '''Cyclopia Cabal''', while three times did Master Korahael and his Dark Angels hurl back assaults from the berserkers of the World Eaters. The eastern curtain wall fell in spite of the efforts of the knights of House Raven.

Through this breach came the [[Night Lords]] and [[Chaos Raptors]] hungry for new prey. Initially the defenders fell back in good order, but eventually the pressure from the Chaos shock troops cracked the discipline of the defending forces. The stragglers were soon overwhelmed, and the rearguard followed not too long afterward.

Creed ordered the gates of the second curtain wall sealed, making the difficult decision to sacrifice thousands to preserve ten times that number. Many died in either stoic acceptance or despaired disbelief, but while eight of the great gates slammed shut as planned, two remained open.

===Faltering Faith, Faltering Defenses===

At the East gate, the commander waited too long for stragglers. When the gates finally tried to close, Chaos [[Chaos_Dreadnought#Helbrute|Hellbrutes]] were in position to hold the doors open. Desperate defenders hurled everything from plasma guns to expended ammo packs into them, and while they were able to take them down, a large warband made up of [[Possessed]] had managed to slip through the breach.

Before the warband could do any damage, the remains of the [[Novamarines]] 2nd Company and Cadian 403rd intercepted them, and under the shadow of the Jorus Redoubt made their stand. It bought time for the tanks of 185th to turn their battle cannons on the traitors, but while the traitors were annihilated, scarcely a hundred of the 403rd remained, and none of the Novamarines survived the encounter.

The West gate, on the other hand, could not at all, as its locking mechanisms failed due to supernatural decay. The commander there ordered the 113rd Death's Head [[Baneblade]] company to use their tanks to block the opening, but it was too late; wave after wave of deranged [[Chaos]] [[Cultist]]s streamed through. The traitor Astartes of the [[Black Legion]] followed, but by this point it was far beyond what the weary defenders could throw off. The gate was lost, and with it the second curtain wall.

===Snuffing Out the Candles===

[[File:Dark_Angels_at_Cadia.JPG|thumb|A battle joined]]

On the seventh day of the siege, the Dark Angels came under attack from the ''Terminus Est''. The bombardment was far more substantial than anything else in the Chaos fleet, and forced a withdrawl from the vulnerable position across hostile ground. Korahael ordered the 4th Company to evacuate but they were not out of danger yet, as the plains outside were still teeming with World Eaters eager to spill their blood.

At the Shrine of Saint Morrican, the sisters of battle didn't fare too much better. They were worn out from bored from burning everything with flamers over the past few days, and while the structure had held admirably against attacks it had not been designed to defend against, there were limits to what it could endure. Its end came at the hands of a trio of [[Lord of Skulls]] that led an armored spearhead to break through the defences.

[[Canoness]] Genevieve led a counter-attack, with [[Seraphim Squad]]s clearing a line of fire for the [[Retributor Squad]]s multi-meltas. The salvo nuked one of the Lord of Skulls, and the resulting explosion consumed the other two, along with the NorthEastern portion of the shrine. The victory was phyrric for the defenders, as the defensive position had been lost, and forced an overall withdrawl back to Kasr Kraf.

However, Orven Highfell's [[Space Wolves]] finally triumphed against Krom Gat after days of trench warfare. The warsmith was torn apart, and his body was left to burn in his citadel, but the victory came at the cost of half the Ironwolves number. But the Wolves could not savor this victory, as Wolf Scouts came with news of the traitor Titans of Legio Vulcanum on the move. At his [[Wolf Guard]]'s advice, Orven ordered his men to recover their fallen, and board their transports to make for Kasr Kraf. By nightfall, they were joined by Master Korahael and the remnants of his 4th company, whom they had assisted from being encircled by the [[Berserker]]s that hounded them.

One after another, the outposts surrounding Kasr Kraf fell, but in the south defiance still burned brightly. Martyr's Rampart still stood thanks to the outright insane defense by Marshall Amalrich's [[Black Templars]]. Despite being completely outnumbered, the Templars continued to resist the Word Bearers and Black Legion.

===Too Much, Even for Faith===

By the eighth day the walls of Kasr Kraf came under bombardment from artillery units stationed in the wastelands, causing further demoralization. Rumors spread amongst the ranks, and despite the BLAMing of the Commissars and the regimental preachers, morale dropped like a rock.

If not for Creed, the fortress would have long fallen, and the Lord Castellan quelled the fears of the men and women under his command not with mere words, but by example -- he fought with on the ramparts, ate with them, stole what furtive sleep he could with them. And where Creed went, Kell went as well, with the tattered colors of the Cadian 8th held high. Under the Lord Castellan's watchful eye, the Kriegan gates held firm, but at the Eastern defenses, the situation teetered on a razor's edge.

There was no end to the defenders' resolve, at least. The surviving Valkyrie gunships of the Howling 118th ferried the remnants of the Northern and Eastern garrisons behind Kasr Kraf's walls, and soon Battle Sisters joined the guardsmen on the ramparts. These were soon joined by the Ironwolves and Korahael's 4th Company survivors, though not all of the Ironwolves apparently deigned to join the airlift. Unconfirmed reports indicated that Wulfen had been unleashed on the wastelands, but Orven Highfell said nothing of these claims.

===The Howling 119th's Last Ride===

The traitor Titans of the Legio Vulcanum continued their implacable advance, and princeps '''Malas Tiron''' was a veteran of the Long War. Thanks to a gift of the Dark Gods, his mind commanded the God-Machines directly, and the Titans moved as if part of one body. Nothing could close without getting utterly raped by death guns. Anything that did manage to somehow knock the void shields off of some of his units moved back and allowed the less-damaged Titans take their place in the battle line. Despite the defensive fire of the defenders, the legio came closer and closer to the walls of Kasr Kraf.

The Eastern defenses were saved once more through the efforts of the Howling 119th. With low munitions, the surviving Valkyries were deployed to intercept the Legio. With the skies above the Titans swarming with [[Helldrake]]s air support, the 119th were fully aware that it was a suicide mission. Days of observing Legio Vulcanum allowed them to deduce that if they could somehow take down the [[Warlord Titan]] ''Vessel of Damnation'', the others would fall as well.

The void shields of the Warlord faltered at the expense of the majority of the 119th, and by then they were out of munitions. With a prayer commending his soul to the Emperor, Strekka drove his Valkyrie hard into the traitor machine's helm. The ensuing explosion that marked his martyrdom could be seen from the ramparts, and the Warlord shuddered to a halt. Its slaved machines spent a precious few moments in confusion, which the defenders took advantage of and destroyed an enemy warhound.

Soldiers cheered, but those soon faded as the subordinate Titans seemed to have come to their senses, and recommenced their march. Only the Warlord remained unmoving for now, its head obscured by billowing black smoke.