Prologue: A Cruel Joke

The Celestian carved through her foe. These Chaos Daemons were easily dispatched. Turning she looked upon the small squad she had taken with her, comprised mostly of Battle Sisters. They seemed to be fairing quiet well, despite their lack of experience. As she turned back to her foe, she paid for her lapse of concentration. A Daemon Maul smashed across her chest, hurling her backwards through her squad, and shattering her breastplate. This new adversary, a Chaos Marine in black and red armour with a golden trim, easily tore through her sisters, crushing them all into bloody ruin with his maul. After he tore them apart he reached down and began to rip apart their bodies, soaking his armour in their blood and chanting in praise to his false god. The celestian hauled herself back to her feet, a righteous fury burning in her soul.

"Heretic!!", she screamed, "the Emperor shall have no mercy upon ye!"

She flourished her power sword and charged the slayer of her sisters, though the gesture proved to be futile. The marine simply batted her sword aside and planted her back on the ground.

"Pathetic, I truly wish that we could find someone better to mess with than the feeblest of forces in the Imperium", a sorcerer laughed from his perch as he watched the fight below, "perhaps it is time for my Blood Raptor brothers and I to have some fun."

"Traitorous scum!" the Celestian yelled, her black and white armour torn and tattered, shattered when the maul hit it.

"Oh, look at you! No bionics, lot of blood!" the Korhne Berserker chuckled as he reached down to pick her up.

Her armour was shattered from the waist up, her skin was torn in many places, streams of blood ran down her chest as she heaved heavily trying to breath. The Sorcerer placed a hand upon the red marines shoulder, and the latter dropped the exposed battle sister.

"What is it Sirrus?" he asked, upset at being denied his blood.

"Lets have some fun brother." Sirrus said as a warp rift opened behind them.

"Not going Slaaneshi on us now are you?" he asked with a half laugh,"If you do then you'll be the only one."

"Nay brother, I just want to see if I can break her faith." Sirrus replied darkly.

The Celestian punched him in the ribs. A futile gesture which only served to break her hand. He didn't bother responding to the useless attack, instead picking her up and throwing her in to the warp rift. As the loyalist flew through the warp screaming, her thoughts came upon the name of the Warband. There had been a Space Marine Chapter that had been lost to the Imperium with that name. Had they defected to Chaos? Or were these just more Chaotic tricks? The sister had no more time to give it thought, as she was thrown from the warp, slamming bodily into dead trees, tearing her exposed top half up further, and breaking her right arm.

The sister said a silent prayer to the Emperor, thanking Him for her continued life so that she may still be of use to Him. Upon standing she noticed her surroundings for the first time, though she didn't pay much mind when she heard a feminine scream from the other side of the field. Pushing herself up with her left hand, since her right arm and hand were effectively neutralized, she ran towards the primal cry for help. What she saw made he stop in her tracks. Two creatures that existed on Terra stood before her, only they were speaking in her tongue.
One was holding a gun to the others head. Upon further examination, the Celestian realized that the female was tied to a broken lamp post on the side of the crumbling street, and their were five other female bodies lying in pools of their own blood behind them. Drawing her knife, she did the only rational thing she could. She charged, with the full intent on killing the male.

"Purge the unclean!" she yelled as she drove her power knife into the stallions flank and grabbed his neck.

The stallion had no time to react as the Sister of Battle jerked his head clean off of his body and allowed it to roll from sight. The mare remained silent with her emerald green eyes fixated on the human, her kelly green coat splotched and matted from her abuse. The wounded sister cut the ponies bonds before smiling down upon her.

"I am Celestian Lucia, of the Imperium's Sisters of Battle, who are you pony?" she asked, her brown eyes cutting straight down to the very soul of the rescued pony.

The pony shook her head and pointed her hoof to her mouth, which was running red with her own blood.

"You are hurt, we must find you medical help at once." Lucia proclaimed as she stood up and drew her bolt pistol.

The green pony took a few unsteady steps, then collapsed on her side. The sister followed the mare's gaze towards a small wooden wagon that was overturned. Lucia knelt down and closed the mares eyes before she walked over to the wagon and lifted it slightly. She was rather surprised when she heard a young colt yelp in surprise and fear upon seeing her.

"M...mommy?" he sniffed as he cautiously peeked out from below the wagon that Lucia was holding up.

"I am sorry, but she is dead." the Celestian replied, frowning at the child as he ran to her motionless body.

The colt wailed over his mothers desecrated figure, his tears mixing with her blood as the sister stood off to the sidelines so she wouldn't disturb the mourning.

After a heart wrenching hour the colt pried himself off of his mothers body, gave her cheek a soft kiss, then walked slowly back to the sister.

"I shall help you find a safe place, then I must find my way back to where I belong." Lucia stated as she began to walk away, the colt remained silent as he followed close behind.

Many hours had passed and the colt was now sleeping in Lucia's one good arm. Seeing as though he was still young and what he had been through, the sister couldn't blame him. She set him down under a living tree as they came out into a clearing of the woods, and looked at him. From his white coat with its green speckles, to his brown mane and tail, this colt was almost calming to the sister.

"I swear, I wouldn't last a day as a pony, especially if the Imperium found me." she said, unaware of the blue vines approaching her from behind.

She stroked his mane before walking closer to the vines and sitting down opposite of him, though where he was he was hidden well. The sister had no chance to scream when the killing joke wrapped around her chest and she was enveloped in a white light.

Author's Note

Okay, I know there are no Space Marines yet, but they are coming in the next chapter. I decided that it would be best to start with Lucia, since she would have been hard to explain later. Hope you all will enjoy this, and pleas do tell us what you think of it!

Stay Brony Everypony!