Avantiak, The Ravenous Eye

Avantiak, The Ravenous Eye

Rise to power

Avantiak trod, as many eldar did in those dire times, the Path of the Warrior. Ambitious and skillful, the young Avantiak went from aspect to aspect, always mastering the aspect and understanding the concept of each before moving onto the next. He particularly liked the Aspect of the Fire Dragon and the Aspect of the Reaper, whose direct destructive capabilities fascinated the youngster. Particularly disliked was the the Striking Scorpions, Avantiak feeling that their craft was too subtle to be applied effectively in opposition to the more direct destructive power of the other aspects. Avantiak was incredibly gifted despite his innate spite and soon attained the rank of Autarch upon the Craftworld Celyennath. As opposed to many Autarches however he was generally disliked as a leader. Eldar tactics are ordinarily based upon preservation, aversion and hit-and-run strategies. Avantiak was not in direct opposition to these strategies and acknowledged how their use suited eldar troops excellently. However, no matter from which angle one looked at it, his methods were extremely radical. One incident during the Verakz Campaign tells of how he ordered an infiltrated unit of Striking Scorpions to open fire upon an imperial battle formation in order to slow them down while the eldar host battled a space marine detachment. When the exarch ordered his scorpions to retreat, Avantiak overruled him and ordered them to lay down their lives in the ensuing firefight. The squad was shocked as their mission turned suicidal but obeyed nonetheless. A single survivor returned to the craftworld laying down testimony of Avantiak's actions. The following trial did not find him innocent, but determined that his actions had ensured success in this case and that he would be exscused for now. In extension of his direct tactics Avantiak was an excellent combatant and could often be found at the forefront of the Craftworld's attacks power sword and shuriken pistol dancing their deadly waltz. Despite his excellence in the field of combat and his supposed just intentions, the farseers watched carefully over the prominent warrior, because his destiny was omniously clouded to their minds.

The Corpse of an Autarch

It was during the Veriax Incident in 0.173.307.M39 that Avantiak's fate would start to unravel itself. Leading the assault against the Slaaneshi daemon Shin'yal, Avantiak had plunged his strike force deep into the heart of the enemy host, utilising Dark Reapers to cover his personal Banshee assault. The objective was simple: Kill Shin'yal itself, which acting as both the general of the daemonic forces and the beacon allowing the unholy creatures to invade the planet of Euthos VII. Avantiak's risky rapier thrust was effective. The insertion of his forces had been beyond successful and minimal casualties were sustained despite the best efforts from Shin'yal to coordinate a counter-attack. Victory seemed certain until Shin'yal itself joined the fray. Several banshees were cut apart by the foul creature when it finally eyed up Avantiak. Avantiak had no fears and attacked the demon relentlessly. For Avantiak this was one of his finest moments. The Autarch moved with the grace and certainty of Asuryan himself and fought with the fury of Khaine. But despite his best efforts he was easily bested by the daemons preternatural speed and brute strength. With two swift strikes the warrior was disarmed and in the crushing grasp of the Keeper. With one poke of its immense fingers it pierced the breastplate of the squirming Autarch and his struggles instantly ceased. Now that a hole had been made the slaaneshi daemon inserted its tongue into the lifeless husk, the slithery limb emerging with a small shining object: Avantiak's spirit-stone.

It was as if time stood still for a second, the Greater Daemon carefully running its tongue around its prize caressing it like a lover. The eldar strike force were disheartened from the fall of their champion and all around them the slaaneshi daemons were closing in for the kill, the momentum of the eldar assault gone with the death of their leader. All hope seemed lost until the Dark kin chose to interfere. With a distinct sound of a firing mechanism the greater daemon's tongue was severed from it's mouth and it recoiled in panic and pain. Behind the Dark Reapers covering the assault opened a gigantic webway portal, and through it came innumerable Raider and Ravager craft spitting death down in the midst of the lust-daemons. It wasn't long before several raider craft reached Shin'yal and in an eyeblink riddled the monstrosity with splinter fire leaving it but a penetrated corpse on the ground before it was banished back to the warp. Seemingly the Dark kin came as allies this day, and the craftworld eldar threw themselves upon the daemons with renewed vigour. Denied reinforcements and general from Shin'yal's death, the daemonic forces were banished in short order.

The dark Kin had no intentions of explaining themselves whatsoever. Avantiak's spirit-stone, despite not having been consumed by Shin'yal, had been shattered upon a stone when it fell from the grasp of the daemon. Despite the in-built precision of the hexrifle, the haemonculus firing had not been that accurate with his shot. The dark kin had but one request from the eldar in exchange for this assistance: Avantiak's body.

This came as a surprise to all eldar present there. And an alarming one at that. The defilement of the dead was not a thing to be taken lightly, and the traditional burial rites were yet to be performed back on the craftworld. Eventually, it was agreed upon that the donation of the body was not acceptable, however it was agreed upon that the body could be loaned to the haemonculus, provided it was not disgraced in any way and returned within 2,49 Terran weeks to the craftworld. The haemonculus leading the raiding party readily agreed.