abstract
| - In 930.M41, the forces of the infamous Necron Overlord Imotekh the Stormlord, Phaeron of the powerful Sautekh Dynasty, descended upon the frozen plains of the Imperial Ice World of Schrödinger VII. The Necrons drove the local defenders to the shelter of the labyrinthine cryonite mines, but were unable to prevent the planet's Astropathic Choir from despatching a distress hymnal. A counterattack swiftly arrived in the form of a Black Templars strike force under the command of Marshal Helbrecht. Imotekh was not caught by surprise so easily, and had already shifted his undying Necron armies into a formidable defensive configuration. Helbrecht led the assault, intended as a crippling alpha strike, but was instead blunted by a series of impeccably-planned Necron ambushes on the Drop Pod and Thunderhawk drop zones. As the frozen caverns echoed to the roar of explosions, scores of Black Templars and Necrons alike were hurled into rivers of molten cryonite. Eventually, Imotekh and Helbrecht met in single combat atop the stalactite-heavy span of an ice bridge. In the battle that followed, Helbrecht, driven by zeal and hatred of the xenos, dealt Imotekh a dozen ruinous blows, but each time the Phaeron's living Necrodermis was able to quickly repair in a matter of seconds. Despite being the better swordsman, Helbrecht failed to land a truly crippling blow on his opponent, and as the duel drew on, the Marshal finally collapsed under the assault of the Necron Lord, blood flowing from a score of serious wounds. However, instead of finishing off his opponent, Imotekh brought his scythe down and merely severed Helbrecht's right hand to remind the Marshal of his "much-deserved defeat". Helbrecht roared in fury and pain as Imotekh pitched him off the ice bridge to the frigid cavern floor far below. The surviving Black Templars quickly rallied to their fallen Marshal's side and made a fighting retreat, leaving Schrödinger VII in the Stormlord's hands. Following this humiliating defeat, Helbrecht swore an Oath of Vengeance against the Necrons in general, and Imotekh in particular, vowing that the next time they met, only one would leave the battlefield alive.
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