Arioch Zagan

**This article, Arioch Zagan, was written by StealthyFiddle. It may be linked to any page without asking for the author's permission.**

## Character

### **Language(s)**

High Gothic,
 Low Gothic

### **Role(s)**

1st Company Veteran,
 Bladeguard Veteran

### **Chapter**

Charnel Guard,
 Deathwatch

## Biographical Data

### **Species**

Transhuman; Astartes (Formerly)
 Transhuman; Primaris

## Physical Description

### **Skin colour**

Pale (Formerly)
Gray

### **Hair colour**

Black (Formerly)
Gray

### **Height**

7'3" (Formerly)
8'4" (2.51 meters)

### **Weight**

780 Pounds (340 Kilograms) Unarmored
1246.4 Pounds (520 Kilograms) Power Armor

**Arioch Zagan** is a Primaris, formerly Firstborn, of the Charnel Guard Space Marine Chapter, and is currently serving a Long Vigil aboard Watch Station Black Bastion. As an Astartes of the Charnel Guard, very little is known of history, for the conjunction of his Chapter’s sparse actions amongst the wider Imperium, as befits a chapter of the former Maelstrom Wardens. As a former Firstborn, Arioch has leaps and bounds more experience than most Primaris Marines, and this experience allows him to use the new weapons available to him to their fullest extent. As a part of his Vigil Arioch represents his chapter, both its blessings, and curses, in Arioch the Curses are more than obvious. His gray and decaying face, his long eye teeth, and his milky white eyes.

## History

Arioch Zagan, is a dark and bloody Astarte, and the Emperor has something out for him. His first campaign was one of bloody retribution. For he partook in the Scourge Campaign, an operation in which himself, alongside an vast majority of the chapter, struck deep into the Maelstrom, time and time again. Through this Arioch was hardened, not by any semblance of training, but by the sheer flame of battle. Not only was Arioch’s first campaign one against the worst of the Imperium’s enemies, he quickly was subjected to the bureaucratic mess that is the Imperium, with the entirety of the Charnel Guard being removed from the Maelstrom Warders, the Scourge Campaign, and being sent to the Veiled Region in Segmentum Tempestus as apart the Thanatos Crusade. It was here which truly hardened Arioch, for many horrors inhabit the Unknown Region. Be them of inanimate nature, or of a more sentient nature.

Arioch served his Chapter faithfully for the next 3 centuries, first as a Devastator within the 9th Company, where his prowess with the heavy weaponry of the Chapter was proven. In the 9th Company, he served faithfully for a decade, handling his Heavy Bolter with precision befitting the Angels of Death. However, Arioch found his true calling within the 8th Company, amongst the Assault Marines. It was here where Arioch could let his bloodlust, the bloodlust his father so long ago had left him with, truly free. Only within the depths of a melee could his thirst for blood be truly sated. Such was the curse the Sanguine Brotherhood must pay, even if his own Chapter is not recognized as one of their number. This bliss was not to stay, however, for he had to make his final trip as a new Astarte of the Chapter by serving amongst the 7th Company, as a Tactical Marine. Here he proved himself just as he did in the 9th Company, however it became almost debilitatingly dull compared to the sheer thrill he found within the 8th Company.

Such was the price to pay, however. For once, he had served his time amongst them, he was finally transferred back to an Assault squad, where he could put his curse to work. Whenever he and his squad entered a melee, it was naught but a veneer of black and crimson. His brothers, making short work of any enemy of the Imperium foolish enough to engage them. It was here that Arioch found true happiness, he was surrounded by brothers of similar temperament, under a Captain who knew better than to try and temper their bloodlust, facing enemies who they could strike down. Such was the joy Arioch found in this role that his internal clock faltered, combined with the Charnel Guard’s habit of entering stasis, he had not realized nearly a century had passed since he entered the Galaxy.

It was during his 100th year present in the Galaxy where his joyous time amongst the 6th Company’s Assault Marine’s came to an end. Around him, his squad fell to their curse. Their bloodlust controlling their minds, seeing time as it was nearly 10 millennia ago, aboard the Vessel of the Arch-Traitor himself, and their traitorous Uncle. Arioch knew it was his inevitable fate, but watching as his brothers he so dearly held in regard fell to naught but Berserkers to rival the followers of Khorne, simply put, broke Arioch. His will, though stalwart, had been pushed to the brink and had been irreparably altered. He had been told stories of the Black Rage by the Chaplaincy and his Veteran Brothers. But seeing it in person frightened him, in this state of paranoia he, along with his squad, was encountered by Astartes of a chapter whose name was omitted from the annals of history. This new squad saw the Charnel Guard possessed by the Black Rage as naught but corrupted Astartes, and prepared to kill them all. In Arioch’s state of paranoia, and sheer desperation to save his fallen brothers, an almost instinctual rage rose up from the depths of his soul. He charged forward, launching himself with the full force of his Jump pack at an almost horizontal charge towards the Astartes. The sheer force of Arioch colliding killed the first Astarte, with his Chainsword cleaving the second. The sheer speed at which it occurred allowed Arioch to dispatch 2 more of the Astartes. In the blink of an eye, 4 Astartes had died. The rest of the squad, dumbstruck at what occurred, seemed to stand still. . . Until Arioch struck again, bisecting another Astarte with his chainsword, the sheer, animalistic brute force he applied to the weapon caused it to quite literally snap in half. No longer still from shock the remaining 5 Astartes started their assault, equipped as a Devastator Squad they were far too close, 3 of them carried Heavy Bolters, one carried a Bolter, and the last, the Sergeant, carried a Power Sword.

Arioch struck with brutal savagery, equipped with nothing but his hands he leaped at the sergeant, the force of his leap benign stopped by the Sergeants lenses, Arioch’s thumbs plunging straight through the tough material, straight into the Sergeant’s eyes. Using his newfound point of leverage, Arioch ripped his hands to each direction, quite literally ripping the Sergeant’s skull in twine. The squad of Astartes, or rather, the 4 Astartes remaining took this chance to open fire, a chance they took, and under a hail of bolts Arioch thrived. Ripping around the now deceased Sergeant, he used him as a meat shield, dashing towards 2 of the Devastators, he threw the Astarte at the third just as he reached the 2, now equipped with the Sergeant’s power sword he cleaved them just as if they were paper, the last devastator fell, the weight of the Sergeant pushing him to the ground. The lone Astarte opened fire, nailing Arioch in the pauldron, blasting it away, and throwing Arioch to the ground. It was in this position he saw his end, standing above him stood the last two Astartes, helmets off, upon their visage lay nothing but sadness, sadness not for the loss of their own brothers, but for how far one of the Emperor’s own can fall.

They removed Arioch’s helmet, anticipating naught but a corrupted monster, but instead found beauty characteristic of one of the Sanguine Brotherhood. The face of beauty was twisted into one of pure rage, the long eye teeth bared. Arioch, knowing he was about to meet his end, rested, though his rage remained, he closed his eyes, rested his face, and prepared for the end. Two bolt shots rang out across the landscape. Two bodies collapsed, their weapons landing first. Their bodies falling second. Above Arioch, replacing the two Astartes with vengeance and disgust in their eyes, stood a Chaplain and Priest. To his left his squad was all collapsed, each with a singular puncture mark through their chest piece. Arioch knew his end was nigh, and anticipated censure from the Chaplain, but instead words of understanding emerged.

Though censured, and under the watchful eye of the 1st Company, Airoch served the Charnel Guard faithfully. Taking up the role of a Vanguard Veteran within the 1st Company, Arioch served faithfully for the next 2 centuries, hoping he might be able to overcome the rage which emerged within him.

### Devestation of Baal

The Charnel Guard, like most all the Sanguine Brotherhood, answered the Blood Angels call when their ancestral homeworld of Baal came under attack by the Hive Fleet Leviathan. The Charnel Guard answered the call, and though their contributions were not recorded, they stood defiantly along so many of Sanguinius’ sons. Arioch, and the squad he was apart, stood defiant against the Tyranids, defending the Astropathic Array upon Baal Primus with their lives. Arioch killed uncounted thousands of Tyranids, his Power Sword was caked in blood, his once black armor now a disgusting orange. His helmet was all but destroyed, underneath the characteristic Charnel Guard geneseed reared its ugly head. Where beauty once lay naught, but horror remained, his face, now gray and ghoul-like, and eyes white as snow. All around him his cousins fell, taking hundreds of Tyranids alongside them, Arioch, though distraught, understood the level of import that the Astropathic array carried; if it fell, all chances of communication to the Imperium were lost.

Arioch’s battle would not last till the end of the attack, however. His skill with the blade failed him as he was surrounded and fatally wounded by a swarm of Tyranid Warriors. Retrieved from the battle, and treated best they could, Arioch could do nothing but watch. Watch as his brothers fell, holding the gap he himself should have held. His cousins fell to the relentless assault; and Arioch could do nothing but watch. Such was his injury, he could not even man any of the defensive stations. The shame and horror took hold of Arioch, his rage, repressed since the events nearly 2 centuries earlier, retook him. Rage at himself, rage at the foul Xenos, and rage towards the Galaxy. His anger overtook him, and the Red Thirst revealed itself. His tenacity to spill the foul blood of the Tyranids was such, he required chains to hold him back.

The Rage and Red Thirst held him till the end of the battle. Only from second-hand sources did Arioch learn of the return of the Sire of the Ultramarines, the new Primaris Astartes, and the arrival of Ka’Bandha, Arch-Rival of the Blood Angels, and the one who laid Sanguinius low. With him, Guilliman brought the technology needed to raise any of the Firstborn up to the might of the Primaris. Arioch volunteered to be the first of the Charnel Guard to cross the Rubicon. Vowing vengeance against the Tyranid, he would not stop pestering his Chapter Master to allow him the right. Thus, Arioch underwent the procedure, his Grey skin was peeled back, his rib cage broken apart, and the three new organs were implanted. The final phase of the procedure involved his own death, the final moments before his ascension were ones of pain, tenacity, and rage, the same rage he experienced while helpless on Baal Primus.

### Crossing the Rubicon

When Arioch awoke, he immediately felt the difference than when he slept. Everything seemed more distant, lighter, and simpler. He closed his hands, the unfamiliar feeling of his fingers nearly ripping through the flesh put a stop to it. Every limb, every extremity, felt off, as if his soul was placed into a body completely unalike his own. As he stood, the world seemed smaller, his brothers standing head and shoulders below him. Looking down towards himself, his skin, once gray and decomposed, was simply gray in complexion, the decomposition of his body seemed to have gone away. His frame was unfamiliar, the proportions seemed off. The world seemed strange. Then, it all went black. Arioch awoke again, this time surrounded by what must of have been the entire Charnel guard Apothecarion, or what was left of it. Fascinated by his transformation, and the possibilities the Rubicon allowed them. As he stood again, this time supported by the Apothecarion, he noticed one of their number, clad the same, but different. The typical Grisly decorum as seen on any of the Charnel Guard was missing, he seemed uptight, by the book, unfamiliar with the practices of the rest of the Apothecarion, but the most noticeable detail was his height. He stood a shy shorter than Arioch, and must be one of the Primaris bestowed on the Charnel Guard; he, unlike Arioch, was always a Primaris, and would not understand the shift in perspective. But Arioch knew, regardless of their differences, they were Brothers, and must stand together against the darkness.

Since his ascension, Arioch has proved himself again and again. Rising to heights he previously thought impossible. His new Primaris body gave him an impeccable edge, both in wargear, and physical might. Knowing his personal vengeance would be unfulfilled by his Chapter, he demanded the Long Vigil, knowing his vengeance will be fulfilled by the Deathwatch, his demand was accepted. Now, as of 012.M42, Arioch Zagan has been a proud member of the Deathwatch upon the Watch-Fortress Black Bastion.

## Personality

Arioch Zagan is an Astarte possessed by Rage and shame. Rage at himself for his inadequacies to his squad nearly 2 centuries earlier, and rage at himself for becoming injured upon Baal. His rage possesses himself always, he constantly fights for control of his own soul, but the rage he knows for both the Xeno, and himself drives him onwards, his new Primaris body has not helped his control. His new body yearns for battle.

Since his ascension to the Primaris his already hot-headed and aggressive nature became one of aggressive desperation. His very soul yearns for combat, when not in combat he yearns to fight, himself, his brothers, inanimate objects, anything will do, but his body and soul crave the rush of combat. To those of the Sanguinary Brotherhood, it would appear he is constantly beleaguered by the Red Thirst, but such is not the case. For when he becomes by the call of blood, his acts become one of Red Debauchery, suitable for an Astartes of the Eighth or Thirteenth.

Arioch’s consumption of so many pieces of Genetic Material, especially those of the Traitor Legion’s has caused notable persona’s to develop, dependent on circumstance. Typically, Arioch is himself, devoid of these irregularities. However, in the midst of battle his Angelic cries may become one of pure unadulterated Rage, not born of the Great Angels Curses, but of an enslaved thirst. His attitude towards strategy may twist, bend and become one addicted to the execution, an execution which is so perfect, so right, it’s fulfillment to be worthy of a tapestry all itself. His kindness be replaced by one of pragmatism, suitable for those of Iron and Steel, not an Angel of blood and flesh. His tempered acts of Terror become naught but a madman carrying out a sick fantasy. His blissful ignorance replaced by one of unnatural intellect. Such examples are the result of his over-active Omophagea, and both his curse, and his blessing.

## Appearance

Arioch Zagan’s appearance is unsightly to say the least. His skin is gray as steel, and appears lifeless. His eyes, once so full of life, are now naught but white as snow. His gray exterior is covered, head to toe, in scars, marks of Self inflicted harm. All across his arms, marks devoted to each Son of Sanguinius who fell on Baal. Each one’s fate may have changed should Arioch have not been injured. This self injury to those who have no idea of its meaning may see it as corruption of the Flesh, where those who understand its intention may see Arioch as a lost soul, full of Self-Loathing, Rage and shame.

His Power Armor, typical of scions of the Great Angel is well decorated, and characteristic of the Charnel Guard, it is covered in Grisly decorum, bones dangle from his armor as if golden chains, skulls adorn his armor like brilliant golden baubles. His armor, black as night, is contrasted by the Brilliant Silver of the Deathwatch, and the Maroon of the Charnel Guard. He wears a hood around his Head, both as an act of shame and one of hope. He does not want those around him to gaze upon his face, and yet he also yearns for death in battle.

## Abilities and Traits

Arioch Zagan is what can only be described as an unwilling expert of the sword. His skill with it was by no means of his own. But a result of one of the many times the Red Thirst claimed him. Awaking atop a fallen Champion of Chaos, the brain completely missing, and Arioch drenched in gore, what had occurred was all but obvious. Such events occurred many a time during his service, to his own horror he knows the depths of depravity to which many of the Legion’s of Chaos have descended. If asked the way Lucius the Eternal fight’s, Arioch could answer near perfectly, albeit with a grim haze, but he could answer the way in which Lucius fights. If questioned as to the organizational structure of the Death Guard, he would know, the memories gained causing Arioch immense horror and disgust. Arioch’s skill is primarily not of his own work, but the work of the curses. The Red Thirst pushes Arioch, and compels him to consume blood, the consumption of which typically depraves into naught but angelic cannibalism, and when he awakes his skill has improved. The result of this is an eccentric, and some may say possessed Astartes, whose skill with most forms of combat is unparalleled.

## Equipment

* Artificer Mark X 'Tacitus' Power Armor
* Stormshield *Condylus Iracundia*
* Relic Blade *Vexilliferum Sanguis*
* Artificer Plasma Pistol *Angelus Incensio*
* Frag and Krak Grenades