Andrei's Last Stand

The event known as *Andrei's Last Stand'* was an engagement involving the Knights of Sol Space Marine Chapter and was a part of the much larger Barcinian Insurrection.

## History

Following the events of the Barcin Prime Excoriation, Chapter Master Vanarth returned to the Crusade in shame, the battle had been lost thanks to his short vision, his brothers from other Chapters shunned him, and there were cries for the Inquisition to judge the Chapter as Renegades for their crime, the Crusade had been set back heavily thanks to the Chapter’s abandonment, and now the threat of the rebels had increased.

They were, by all accounts, a dishonorable and disgraced Chapter, and the morale of the Knights had gone to the ground, kneeling before the heads of the Crusade, Vanarth gave an oath: never again would the Knights of Sol abandon an ally, and never again would they falter in their oaths, they would fix their mistake and earn their redemption with blood.

As the crusade retreated and reorganized, Vanarth led his warriors to assist and reinforce the companies spread around fighting in the Sector, helping them win their battles and making the heretics retreat as he slowly gathered the whole Chapter once more, preparing for a full assault on Barcin Prime once more.

On Barcin Prime, the stranded 6th Company controlled a large cathedral near to the place where their Strike Cruiser had landed, the company led by Captain Andrei had reinforced the Cathedral as best as they could, but most importantly, they had gathered the bodies of their battle-brothers who had been killed.

Their gene-seed was at stake, and the Word Bearers, alongside their heretical allies, wanted to claim their gene-seed for their own, something that would have spelt doom for the Chapter, They were only 100 Marines and the few Guardsmen remaining loyal against a whole sea of heretics and their traitor brothers.

Turning to look upon his brothers, Andrei raised his Thunder Hammer and rallied his men with the words, "We shall be the Martyrs of the Chapter, let us go down in glory!" and the battle began, hordes of cultists and their Traitor Master, as well as Renegade Guardsmen and corrupted PDF, charged upon the cathedral's defenses.

For whole months did the 6th Company stood, fighting back the assaults from the Word Bearers as they defended their brother’s gene-seed, but they were falling, one by one the Knights began dying, their ammunition ran out and their bolters jammed, yet their fought on with Chainswords and knives.

As the 6th Company was besieged, Vanarth’s fleet finally arrived once more upon the Barcin System, and they came prepared, the rebel fleets were spread out, hunting down the weakened Crusade, leaving their home system open for attack, and the Space Marines were keen on vengeance.

The whole Chapter landed upon the capital Hive of the wretched heretic world, Vanarth and the 1st Company landing upon the besieging forces in front of the Cathedral, the much needed reinforcements breaking the siege and finally saving the 6th Company, Vanarth came inside the cathedral to find the bodies of those he had lost in the first assault, was well as the bodies of almost all of the 6th company, most were dead, a few were too wounded to recover, and only five marines remained fighting, as well as their captain Andrei, his thunder hammer broken, his left arm cut off and countless wounds on his body.

Upon gazing on the reinforcements and the apothecaries rushing to retrieve the bodies of their brothers and their gene-seed, Andrei smiled in victory and succumbed to his wounds, his glorious last stand a great tale for generations of Knights to come.