Catechism leave Tarsis

"Who is the master and the slave?"

Lieutenant Irenicus watched from the bluff as thousands upon thousands of ragged men, weak from fever and exhaustion, marched in unison below. And though they had not been given water they continued to shout in their hoarse voices as they had for the hundred miles they had been marched, flanked by silent Thousand Son warriors.

"Moonface, who has control of our will in order to serve us."

The words were hardly audible, coming from parched mouths and men stifling groans of pain. And the cry had to contend with the constant rumble of machinery that the masses were herded towards. It mattered not that Irenicus could barely hear the shouts, he knew the words.
"Who takes with one hand and provides with the other?"

Irenicus turned, the helmet's visor keenly zooming towards the contraption ahead of the men. It was still a mile away, yet towered over the landscape. It belched a thick red smoke into the atmosphere, poisoning the sky and bathing the land in a sickly light during the day. It had no name that Irenicus knew of, it was only referred to as the device. It had not been powered up since the Catechism arrived on Tarsis Major. That a million souls were being sacrificed to its engines could mean only one thing – the Catechism was leaving.

"Moonface, who takes our freedom in order to give us life."

The grim death march was mesmerising, but Irenicus turned away from his vantage point at the sounds of transports arriving behind him. Moonface had called him here, no doubt to discuss plans for... for what..? The march of the Catechism had seemed so strong, yet Irenicus knew it was a retreat. He chided himself for even thinking of the word.

The lead Land Raider halted as Irenicus approached. His lord Moonface disembarked on one worm like tail, slithering down the ramp and onto the scorched earth. His crescent face was, as ever, inscrutable. It betrayed no fear, nor anger at leaving the world set to be the staging area for the Catechism.

No sooner had Moonface turned towards Irenicus then there was an audible crack from behind the Chaos lord, like the sound of a hundred bones being snapped. Moonface turned to gaze upon a rift in the air, through which a towering Daemonic figure pulled itself. Bat-like wings unfurled from the Daemon as it raised itself up, lifting a sword as tall as a marine above its head. Irenicus began to raise his bolter at the sight, fearful his lord might be in danger.

"Moonface!" The Daemon cried. His voice was like a thousand insect buzzing at once. "This cowardly act will not be forgotten!"

"Cowardly?" Moonface replied, Irenicus detecting only the slightest of trembles in his master's voice. "Tarsis is lost, our allies cannot stand up to the assaults."

"Allies? You use them as an excuse to cover your own incompetence, little worm."

Moonface turned away then and Irenicus could see pure anger upon his lord's face, the face that was so normally a blank mask. But the Daemon was not finished with Moonface, with a wave of a clawed hand a translucent lash of energy flicked out at him. The lash circled Moonface, pulling him back to face the Daemon and then hurling him face down into the earth.

"Fool!" Cried the Daemon as Moonface lay sprawled. "The deal cannot be broken. Regroup with the Iron Warriors. The Imperium will suffer for..."

But suddenly Moonface sprang up, his tail propelling him straight at the gigantic Daemon. From nowhere Moonface had produced two gleaming blue swords which he used to slash at the Daemon's neck and face. The monster roared and staggered back, his huge sword flailing in a wild arc. With his other hand he grasped out, grabbing Moonface's crescent head. But Moonface twisted one of the swords in his hand and stabbed directly into the Daemon's wrist, with one twist severing it.

Moonface dropped to the ground as the Daemon raised his greatsword again. Irenicus desperately unloaded a bolter clip into the monster's face. Briefly it was distracted, looking at the lieutenant from a ragged visage, the wounds suffered leaking an eerie pink light. As it bought its sword down Moonface was ready and sprung close to the Daemon's belly, driving his sword deep into the monster and bringing up in a visceral arc.

The weapon slid from the Daemons fingers at it collapsed back. Irenicus could see the pink light streaming from the cuts.

"Foolish child..." Gasped the Daemon. "Foolish... You cannot... cannot escape my..." But the Daemon evaporated even as he threatened Moonface, pink whips of light disappearing in the wind.

Moonface turned to Irenicus, who bowed his head. "Lieutenant, prepare all Catechism troops for strategic withdrawal from Tarsis."

That was all, Moonface turning back to his transport. Irenicus could hear in the distance the last few hundred men being herded towards the Device. In their last doomed moments they cried out as one.

"Who is the ally and the enemy?"

And with them, Irenicus whispered back. "Moonface, who must destroy us to bring us to life."