A vox-chime interrupted his thoughts. He switched off the display and activated the speaker.
‘Commander Agapito, I have a matter to discuss with you.’ He recognised the voice of Custodian Arcatus. The Custodian Guard had kept to themselves for most of the time since arriving on Deliverance, quartered in the mid-levels of Ravenspire that had once been home to the lost companies. Every now and then they would emerge, conducting inspections of the armourium, the docks and other secure areas. That was another inconvenience, but Corax had been adamant that the Custodians were given free range of Deliverance and Agapito’s protests had been ignored. The one concession the commander had managed to extract meant that the Custodians were not entitled to travel to Ravendelve. That would have been too much for the primarch, who guarded the gene-project and its secrecy the same way he had guarded his followers during the uprising.
‘I am in my chambers now, Custodian,’ said Agapito. ‘We can talk here.’
‘Very well, commander, I am on my way.’
Agapito wondered what subject would be up for discussion. It was unusual for the Custodian Guard to interact with the Legion in this way. He wondered if Branne had got involved somehow, and his thoughts soured again. At least the gene-tech and new recruits seemed to be a complete success. Branne would soon have no time to ponder other matters. As Commander of Recruits he would be kept occupied at Ravendelve.
IT SEEMED A pointless exercise, but Alpharius was not going to attract attention by mentioning it. He lowered into a half-crouch, arms a little apart, and circled around the recruit. As he sidestepped to the left, he could see Corax and Branne out of the corner of his eye, watching him and Kaddian gauging each other.
The newly-enhanced Kaddian looked the part: taller than, but not quite as broad as, Alpharius, with rangy limbs and a determined glare. He might possess the physical qualities of a legionary, but he had none of the training and experience. Alpharius had noticed the Raven Guard were prone to wagers, and had bet Sergeant Dor that he would best Kaddian within two minutes. The stake was ten days of armour maintenance. Alpharius flexed his fingers as he pictured the sergeant polishing his suit.
The two warriors wore only loose black trousers for the bout, leaving little for Alpharius to grip for a throw. He lunged, attempting to grab Kaddian’s left wrist, but the recruit was two steps away within a heartbeat, Alpharius’s grapple missing badly. The recruit’s face was a mask of concentration, eyes flicking between Alpharius’s hands, feet and face, looking for any warning of his next move.
Circling again, Alpharius could feel the expectation from the rest of the squad, urging him on to victory. There was no cheering though, just studied silence from everyone in the hall, the only sound coming from the slap of the combatants’ feet on the hard floor.
Kaddian sidestepped and swept a leg out, trying to trip Alpharius. The Alpha Legionnaire jumped just in time, already moving his weight forwards to shoulder-charge his opponent. He landed and leapt, only to find himself not connecting with Kaddian but running through empty air. A kick to his back sent Alpharius onwards a few more steps before he could halt his impetus and turn.
Immediately he was forced to throw up his arms to block a combination of punches aimed at his head, catching the blows on his forearms. Alpharius aimed a kick at Kaddian’s abdomen, catching a glancing blow on the recruit’s hip as he dodged back. Pressing forwards, seeking to exploit Kaddian’s imbalance, Alpharius again tried for a grapple. He seized hold of the recruit’s left arm and twisted, trying to force him down to the ground.
With a suppleness and strength that Alpharius had never encountered, Kaddian arched his back and heaved up with his trapped arm, lifting the legionnaire from his feet. Dropping to the floor, Kaddian turned to toss Alpharius over his back, forcing the legionary to release his grip to turn a hard landing into a forward roll.
A punch to the spine sent Alpharius sprawling, the attack coming so quickly from behind he had no idea how Kaddian had regained his feet in the half-second that had passed. He half-rolled to his right, coming up to face his opponent.
Just in time for his chin to meet the heel of Kaddian’s right foot.
Slamming back into the rockcrete, Alpharius smashed his head against the floor as he fell. He rolled away as the recruit’s foot slammed down onto the floor where Alpharius’s throat had been a moment before. Kaddian’s other foot lashed into his ribs almost instantly, forcing the air from the legionnaire’s lungs.
He anticipated the next kick, managing to twist far enough to grab Kaddian’s ankle in both hands before his foot connected with Alpharius’s gut. Surging to his feet, the Alpha Legionnaire heaved up, seeking to force Kaddian to his back.
With precise timing, Kaddian used Alpharius’s hold on his ankle for support, surging up to crash a knee into his chest. Alpharius toppled backwards and the two of them fell in a heap. Alpharius let go with one hand and hammered a fist into Kaddian’s side, even as the recruit slammed the tip of his elbow into the legionnaire’s cheek. Snatching his foot free from Alpharius’s grasp, Kaddian turned and knelt across his throat, pinning him down. Gasping, Alpharius locked eyes with Kaddian and saw ferocious intent. The recruit drew back his fist, aiming for Alpharius’s face.
‘Stop!’ Branne’s shout cut through the pounding of blood in Alpharius’s ears.
Kaddian jumped up and stepped away immediately, retreating with light steps. Alpharius’s head was ringing. The ceiling swam in and out of focus for a few moments before his vision cleared.
Sergeant Dor approached, hand outstretched to help him to his feet. Irritated, Alpharius ignored the assistance and pushed himself up. He glanced angrily at Kaddian, who was looking at him with a polite smile. Behind Kaddian, the other eight recruits were grinning at their companion’s victory.
Still smarting from his defeat, Alpharius returned to his squad, ignoring the smug look on Dor’s face. Another recruit and another legionary were called forwards, and the next bout began.
Recovering his senses, Alpharius could hear the conversation between Branne and Corax, standing not far to his left.
‘Reactions and strength are better than a matured legionary,’ said Branne. ‘I’ve never seen anything like it.’
‘Which is fine for unarmoured, unarmed combat,’ replied Corax. ‘Those advantages will be much reduced when they have their power armour.’
‘I’ve been thinking about that, lord,’ said Branne, eyes fixed on the two warriors sparring. ‘The new Mark VI suits… They’re far superior to anything else we have, except for a few artificer suits for officers, and even they’re pretty bashed up. We can’t implant the experience and guile of a veteran into these men, but the new armour and their advanced systems would go some way to helping with that.’
‘I was thinking the same,’ said the primarch. ‘These are not just recruits, they are the start of something new for the Legion. I have told Sixx to progress with another one hundred implantations. If we can successfully scale up, you’ll have a fighting force within fifty days. Commander of Recruits doesn’t seem to reflect your role properly.’
Branne glanced at his leader.
‘You said this would be a combat force when you gave me the title, lord.’
‘They need a name, Branne,’ said Corax. ‘We can’t keep calling them recruits, but it isn’t right that they simply get absorbed by Agapito’s Talons.’
‘I have a suggestion,’ said Branne.
‘Then share it, commander.’
‘We have the Talons, Falcons and Hawks, lord. I think we should be the Raptors.’
‘The Raptors?’ Corax smiled and placed a massive hand on Branne’s shoulder. ‘Yes, that will suit perfectly. Swift hunters. You are the Commander of the Raptors now. I’ll inform Agapito, Solaro and Aloni.’
With a grunt and a thud, the legionary duelling with the Raptor ended up face-first on the floor, one arm twisted hard against his back. The Raptor snaked an arm around his neck and pulled, eliciting a pained snarl from the legionary.