Bride at the Altar
The sun rose on a battlefield obscured by blood-soaked fog. The High Priestess of Khaine, Tayrathi, had been planning this battle for months. She and her cult had finally cornered their target; a Greater Daemon of Slaanesh called H'Kat'y The Perverse, and her harem of daemonettes.
Countless skirmishes and battles had led H'Kat'y to this realm which was in the middle of nowhere... far from any known Realm Gate. No surrender would be given, and there was nowhere to retreat. Tayrathi would claim her stolen piece of Khaine and end her heretical quest to raise Khaine as her escort.
H’Ka’ty had turned her force to face Tayrathi’s and the bloody work of battle began. While Tayrathi had lost many on this quest she still held the advantage and those who died would be mourned for later. Today was about honoring their losses with victory!
As the battle waged on Tayrathi was brought the same message by her numerous scouts. More and more daemonettes were manifesting from the mists and flanking her forces. The High Priestess had prepared to deal with a few reinforcements, but the number of daemons being summoned was greater than any expected.
“H'Kat'y must be getting desperate and fueling the summoning with her own essence,” Tayrathi thought, “Which means, she's in a weakened state.”
Confident of this change in her opponent, Tayrathi felt sure enough to act upon it, regardless of the sacrifices. She organized her remaining reinforcements as the spear to pierce H’Ka’ty’s heart…and she would personally throw that spear by leading the battalion.
A tragic amount of Khainite blood had been spilled to get pierce deep into the daemonette lines, but the High Priestess’s presence emboldened to shrug off wounds that would normally kill. The sworn enemies locked eyes with stares that could stop hearts. Tayrahi’s vengeance was at hand.
H’Ka’ty saw her end in sight and ordered all at her dispose to collapse on the enclosing spearhead. Seeker Chariots and twisted mockeries of Khinerai began to trample over daemonettes unfortunate enough to be in the way. The clash of Daemons and Aelves threw even more blood into the hanging morning mist darkening the area even more in a bloody red hue.
The mist, thick with blood, obscured Tayrathi's vision only for a moment, but a moment was all that was needed. H'Kat'y and her honor guard ran as hard and as fast as their unnatural legs could move towards the only thing that resembled shelter in the barren land.
Tayrathi fought as the living avatar she claimed to be and cut a swathe through the daemons to continue the pursuit. By the time she and her retinue made it through the final ranks, they had lost sight of H'Kat'y. Those scouts close at hand were sent ahead to the structure and make sure H’Ka’ty didn’t flee any farther.
While reorganizing the remnants of her spearhead they suddenly heard a loud explosion from the structure ahead, and the smell of blood in the air was replaced with gunpowder.
“Those are Duardin weapons High Priestess.” Said one of Tayrathi’s Hag Queens nearby.
Tayrathi's heart sunk at the thought of any other being, let alone a Duardin, killing her hated foe. Her and her cult needed to move with all haste if she was to claim her prize.
They followed the sounds to the structure which, upon a closer look was one of Sigmar’s secreted Stormvaults.
“First Duardin, now the human's God-King...” Tayrathi thought in disgust.
As Tayrathi entered the ancient vault, she could see that H'Kat'y was completely focused on a small, and shrinking, group of Kharadron Overlords. She and her followers didn't waste a moment, driving forward, sinking their blades into daemon flesh.
The Aelven blades and Duardin guns were able to make quick work of the daemonettes, leaving Tayrathi within striking distance of H'Kat'y.
“THAT ONE'S MINE!” a heavily accented voice boomed and echoed throughout the halls, as a shot rang out.