Nathaniel Garro - Betrayal: The Eisenstein was an unremarkable Imperial starship, an older pattern of vessel in the frigate tonnage grade, just over two kilometres in length from bow to stern.It bore some resemblance to the newer Sword-class craft, but only inasmuch as most Imperial starships shared a similar design philosophy. Garro knew that they would not be making much history on this day.Their primarch had ordered that they maintain orbit at high anchor and watch for enemy ships that might attempt to escape Isstvan III under cover of the ground assault. Garro became suspicious of Commander Grulgor's manner as well as their orders to change position and drop into lower orbit, deepening the uneasy feelings he had about the entire operation.Though the battle-captain suspected something was terribly wrong, he could not place his finger on what it was. Had they been carrying Drop Pods and Astartes for a second assault wave, then the reasoning behind the orders would have been clear, but the frigate was not configured for those sorts of operations. It was, in the most basic sense, only a gun carriage.Garro's Legion serf, the housecarl Kaleb Arin, made his way down to the launch bay to spy on Commander Grulgor on behalf of his lord and find out exactly what they had transported aboard the Eisenstein.When he saw them unload a crate and opened it to inspect its contents, the dark liquid contents contained within the glass pods represented something utterly lethal. With clarity Arin suddenly realised the threat that Grulgor's cargo presented.He also observed the work gangs busy detaching the warhead cowlings from thruster-guided glide bombs, exchanging the explosive charges inside for the globes of liquid.The 7th Great Company's Apothecary, Meric Voyen, also had his suspicions, and had also stealthily made his way to the launch bay to investigate. He saved the housecarl from narrowly being captured by Grulgor's warriors.Arin shared with the Astartes what he had witnessed. Digesting what the housecarl told him, Voyen realised with growing horror that the deadly cargo were Life-Eater virus bombs -- an engineered viral strain of such complete lethality that it could only be deployed in the most extreme circumstances, usually against the most foul xenos.The Life Eater virus was a true weapon of mass destruction, a world-killer. Only the largest capital ships were permitted to carry them in their armouries. Grulgor had brought the virus bombs over from the Death Guard capital ship Endurance.During the opening stage of the first assault wave, the Eisenstein picked up an unscheduled movement in their battle sector. They received a signal from another ship leaving the confines of the Lord Commander Eidolon’s ship, the Andronicus, from the Emperor Children's Legion.At first they thought that it might be the insufferable Lord Commander Eidolon making an unscheduled mission flight down to Isstvan III's surface, eager to take part in the glory. But they soon realised that the lone craft was a Thunderhawk, and behind it a cluster of Raven interceptors were in an attack delta formation.Confused by this turn of events, the Andronicus sent the Eisenstein a message ordering it to destroy the Thunderhawk on sight, as it was acting against the Warmaster's commands and was to be considered a Renegade. At the same time, the Eisenstein also received a message from the Thunderhawk.The occupant was none other than Garro's honour brother, Captain Saul Tarvitz. Garro's mind was awash with confusion: a rogue Thunderhawk, the signal from Eidolon, the incredible command to terminate the fleeing vessel and the ranking Astartes officer aboard it.Was this some kind of test? Some bizarre sort of battle drill to assess the mettle of the Eisenstein's command crew? Or could it be true that Saul Tarvitz had indeed turned Renegade and was fit only for execution?If it was possible for Isstvan III's Imperial Governor Vardus Praal to turn against the Emperor, then perhaps an Astartes might do the same. Tarvitz's next message was a dire warning, telling Garro that the entire operation was treachery.Horus had betrayed the Emperor! The fleet was going to bombard the planet's surface -- and the Astartes upon it -- with virus bombs!Tarvitz swore on his life that he would not lie to his honour brother. Every Astartes on Isstvan III was going to die. Coming to a quick decision, Garro acted of his own volition and ordered the Eisenstein to destroy the Thunderhawk. But in actuality he altered the firing coordinates so that the frigate destroyed the lead Raven interceptor, whose explosion caught the other interceptors in its wake, due to their close formation.As Tarvitz's Thunderhawk was close to Isstvan III's atmosphere, he used the sensor disruption to slip away. Garro's men had just witnessed their commanding officer disobey a direct order from their superior.This was dereliction of duty, grounds for severe chastisement at a minimum. If the Warmaster learned of the battle-captain's insubordination, it would taint them, and the entire Death Guard.Nevertheless, Garro ordered the ship's crew to contact the Andronicus and inform them that the rogue vessel had been destroyed, and the explosion claimed their pursuit ships as well.Though some of his warriors were made uneasy by the battle-captain's actions, Garro explained to them that as an honour-brother, Tarvitz only spoke the truth, and his words were no falsehood.Garro soon saw the larger picture. The sheer horror of it, echoed inside his thoughts. Betrayal. The idea of it made him go weak. And with that realization there came another. If Horus had prepared this treachery, then he had not done it alone, it was too big, too monumental an endeavour even for the Warmaster to have managed by himself.Garro realised that Horus' primarch brothers would have taken part in this treachery as well: Angron, ever ready to take any path that led him to more bloodshed; Fulgrim, convinced of his own superiority and perfection over all, and Mortarion himself, in secret conspiracy with the Warmaster due to an old grudge he had long held against the Emperor.To compound matters further, Garro’'shousecarl arrived on the bridge of the Eisenstein and informed his lord that Grulgor and his warriors were loading the main guns with Life-Eater virus bombs. With only Apothecary Voyen, Battle-Brother Sendek and his housecarl, Garro confronted Commander Grulgor and his entire command squad and a handful of naval crew.When confronted by Garro, Commander Grulgor made a seditious announcement, explaining that the Emperor had abandoned them, leaving the Legions behind so that He could flee back to Garro's precious Terra. He had sold off the Space Marine Legions' birthright to a council of weak-willed fools and politicians, taken civilians who had never known hardships or the kiss of war, making them lords and lawmakers in the primarchs' stead.Grulgor claimed that Emperor held no authority over the Death Guard. Only Horus and the Death Lord could command them. What they were doing on Isstvan III, they did by the will of Horus and Mortarion.The three Loyalist Astartes and the Human housecarl leapt at their foes with righteous fury. During the ensuing melee, the housecarl saw Commander Grulgor taking aim with his Bolt Pistol at Garro while he was preoccupied fighting off one of his men. Realising the immediate threat, Arin instinctively fired his Stub Gun, his shot released an instant before Grulgor's finger tightened on his trigger.The stub-bullet from the handgun struck the frame of Grulgor's Bolt Pistol, ricocheting off a girder near Garro's head. Reacting with preternatural speed, Grulgor turned and threw his Combat Knife at the housecarl, mortally wounding him.But Grulgor's errant bolt presented a new threat, as it had ricocheted off the metal bulkhead and into one of the virus warhead spheres, releasing its deadly cargo. Using the last of his ebbing strength, Arin launched himself forward and hit an emergency release switch.Garro flung himself under the closing blast shield door, landing hard and rolling out to where Voyen and Sendek were crouched in the next compartment. The hatch was proof against the virus.The housecarl had saved their lives, as well as the ship, at the cost of his own. Grulgor and his warriors suffered the lethal effects of the Life-Eater pathogen and died screaming in agony.After the altercation, Garro explained to the rest of his seventy Death Guard warriors on the Eisenstein about his confrontation with Grulgor and the virus bombs. He also told them of Grulgor's declaration against the Emperor and the horrifying results of the ensuing melee on the gunnery decks.He explained to his horrified warriors the entire truth. Grulgor and Eidolon were not two errant souls pursuing some personal agenda, but soldiers in a war of betrayal that was about to unfold. What they had done was not of their own volition, but under the orders of the Warmaster himself. Horus, with the support of Angron, Fulgrim, and though it sickened him to say it, their own Primarch Mortarion, had done this.As a warrior lodge-brother, Voyen confirmed Garro's words. There has been talk of the Warmaster at second- and third-hand in the lodges. Talk of how far away the Emperor was and of discontent over the commands of the Council of Terra. The tone of things had been strained ever since Horus was injured at Davin, after he returned from his miraculous healing at the hands of the shamans of the Temple of the Serpent Lodge.Horus had personally chosen all the units for the assault on the Choral City. He picked only the Astartes of the gathered Legions who he and his brothers knew would remain loyal to the Emperor. The virus bombing would rid him of the only obstacle within the Legions to open insurrection against the Imperium.Had Garro not been grievously injured on Isstvan Extremis, he had no doubt that he would be alongside their fellow Loyalists below on the planet's surface, unaware that a sword was poised at their necks. The turn of events had played in their favour, and they had to seize the opportunity in the name of the Emperor.