The ground crunched as I walked over the small brittle bones of long dead things, and the decaying landscape. The wind picked up and blasted white sediment against my helm, I looked back to shield myself against and glimpsed my companion trudging along the path I had created in the ground. It was easy to follow due to the fact that rest of the ground was akin to bleached bone, showing no signs of being disturbed. I ask myself why he even joined me in the first place, he know that my quest is a fools errand. As we grew closer to our destination I could hear the roars and screams of the hive below, "uck, now I know why I wanted to avoid this place." he said " you wanted to come" I said over the com device in our helmets. "I couldn't resist seeing the most alluring tourist attraction I could think of" He said laughing. "lets go" I said sternly, " okay okay, pushy" he said trying to get a laugh out of me. " I do not have time for jokes! " I said through clinched teeth trying to calm myself and failing. Light started poring out of my helm in spurts, his eyes widened in shock. I forcibly took a few steps back and in a fit of anger grabbed the nearest thing I could throw, and sent it plummeting down into the gorge below. "lets go, I do not have much time" I said breathing heavily, "its getting worse isn't it" he said concerned tone in his voice. I responded by moving on down the grade of the lip of the chasm, my boots kicking up clouds of dust as I made my way down. Then we saw it as we neared the bottom of the incline, a giant metal door with several locks on it. " Looks sturdy" my companion commented, "not sturdy enough" I said as I pulled gjallahorn from my back and fired a rocket into the door, sending a concussive blast from it picking up dust and grime and sending us reeling. Then the screams began, it came from the thoroughly opened door. "They're coming" I said readying myself that was when they swarmed forth like so many locusts. Thralls with there chitinous armor backed up by acolytes and a contingent of knights. I started rushing towards the hoard, hearing solar grenades whiz by my head and land in front of the mass of hive stalling them burning there armor right off there pitiful bodies. Then I picked up speed and leaped over the grenades and plummeted into the ground right into the mass of them destroying all of them in an instant the lighting spreading to each of them. The shock wave continued towards the door of the temple running down more the of the disgusting creatures, I stood to collect myself and look about the charred bodies. Right at that moment a knight came bounding around a boulder, swinging his sword down at me. It trailed green as it speed towards me, it then hit my helm opening the cracks even further and causing me instant and excruciating pain, that sent me into a rage so deep that I lost myself completely. When I came too, I was pounding a face into mush just punch after punch feeling the armor crunch under my heavily armored gauntlet. Then the body disintegrated as its life left it, then I looked around wearily seeing the carnage. Bodies disintegrating every where the eye could see, the alcove littered with dead. Then I see my companion lean out from behind a outcropping from the right of me, "how much of this was you?" I said straining to get up. "I would like to lie and say half, but I do not want to piss you off" he said with a laugh, " I lost control" I said moving towards the door to the temple readying my weapons. "I noticed... are you sure this will work?" "That it will halt your decline?" He said warily, "no, but what choice do I have?" "lets go" I said stepping into the entrance. I looked around as my ghost lit up the building, I Spied a ogre feasting on something down in the area below me. I tossed a lightning grenade which stuck onto the rock behind it firing bolts of into the beast frying it instantly. I Then jumped down into the pit below, that was when I saw exactly what the ogre was feasting on.... A guardian. "A shame, he was fresh too His light had not awakened fully. He was not ready for this." I said turning him over . I stood up and walked down the ramp leading deeper into the temple seeing the marking of many hive residing here. Ranging from scratches along the walls to the living growths and crystals leaving the area bathed in a sick green light, I walked further hearing the screams and scratches from down below. " Looks like the welcoming committee was short a few fools" my companion said with laugh, " well lets not keep them waiting" I said speeding up jumping down the last few ramps. Then we walked into a room with two raised platforms and a sword glowing with a dark energy, it instantly captivated me. I started towards it, that was then that I saw the green eyes turn towards me. Peeling themselves from the walls to drop onto the floor to begin running towards us. My companion was instantly overwhelmed by 3 knights, I fired round after round into there faces bring down there organic shields and peeling away there flesh. "hold on!" I yelled, that was when I saw a sword plunge into him bringing him to his knees and the knight placed its foot upon his chest pivoting itself and yanking its sword out followed by a rush of gore. "Noooooo!" I yelled then pulled out my shotgun and blew the nearest creatures head off watching it body writhe and disintegrate. That was when I heard a sound coming from near my fallen companion, almost like when your ears are about to pop when changing elevation. All of a sudden the loudest crash sounded and he rose to his feet covered in light, the light traveling through his limbs and torso mending him. He then threw a couple solar grenades onto the faces of the nearest knights to him "peekaboo! You miss me?!" Laughing manically watching them burn to death. "don't... do that again" I said turning away, " awww you did miss me" he said laughing. " I did not" I said while moving towards the sword, " you did too! I heard you yell" . I remained silent as I moved to grasp the blade exuding a energy so dark it drained the light around it leaving it in eternal shadow. "So, this is it. Isnt it?" He said staring at it "well, at least its pretty" he said laughing, but he couldn't take his eyes off of it either. I Then grabbed the blade feeling the darkness travel up my arm and into me, "arrrrrrrgggghhhh!" I screamed with pain and rage losing all reasoning. That was when the hive crawled out of the ground I rushed towards them cleaving them limb from limb screaming all the while. I could hear a voice " Kill them all" it said with raspy voice not unlike gravel moving across metal, I could feel it speaking to my very being coming from me. "I could remake you...take your pain away" it said pleadingly, " No!" I yelled aloud, startling my companion and the nearby hive. The hive stopped and stared sensing the dark energy building in me, " You will feel no pain... You will be immortal..... remake you in my image." Finally my will failed. I let it in, let it take me over. "yesssss!.... You will be my champion!" At that point The darkness that was building up inside me rushed forth blasting everything in the room, I then turned towards my warlock companion. Fear filled his eyes as I moved closer, he tried to glide over me but I jumped up and grabbed him slamming onto the ground. Then picking him up and bringing him to face me... He then grabbed his revolver and fired into my chest until it clicked empty. I felt none of it, I then rammed my sword into him impaling him into the ground. With his last words he spoke " ..... why.... Krota?'" I answered " I found my cure" and then drained him of his light healing the cracks in my helmet and my eyes glowed a emerald green as I smiled cruelly.