Leandros
The Codex Astartes does not support this action.[2a]
 Leandros as a Firstborn | |
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| Homeworld | Tarentus, Ultramar |
| Active Period | M41 - Present |
| Species | Human |
| Type |
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| Gender | Male |
| Relatives |
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| Occupation(s) |
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| Affiliation(s) | |
Leandros is a member of the Ultramarines, who served in the Command Squad of the 2nd Company under Captain Titus.[1]
Biography
While he was still considered a young Battle-Brother, Leandros served in the Ultramarines 2nd Company under the leadership of Captain Lucian Trajan. Their company was sent to deal with an Aeldari invasion of the Civilised World known as Beta Arcturus. The company arrived late and the Biel-Tan warhost had beset the world over a week prior. Captain Trajan would duel the Aeldari Autarch, eventually defeating her, while Sergeant Titus lead Trajan's Command Squad against the xenos general's elite Aspect Warrior bodyguards.[4]
As the warhost retreated, they captured Leandros, seemingly out of spite; in truth he was used as bait. Captain Trajan pursued the fleeing Eldar with a squad after having ordered Titus to hold the battlefield and await their return. Trajan died in a cruel ambush against fresh Aeldari held in reserve. Titus took interim command and routed the xenos from Beta Arcturus. He also retrieved the corpse of former-Captain Trajan to be taken to the Fortress of Hera to be interred. Upon their return, Chapter Master Marneus Calgar would make Titus' captaincy permanent. Captain Titus led the 2nd Company in many victorious battles over the next 10 years. Eventually, the 2nd Company was sent to defend the Forge World of Graia against Waaagh! Grimskull.[4]
Graia
By the time of the Graia Invasion, Leandros had taken on formal mannerisms and was fairly aloof in nature, now believing in strict adherence to the Codex Astartes with little deviation. These overly zealous beliefs in stricture and doctrine also extended to his belief that all ends must serve the Emperor. This resulted in Leandros having little tact and a habit of expelling frequent condemnations of other's perceived failures. He questioned the motives of anyone he suspected of not giving their all for the Imperium, even his fellow Ultramarines. However, he still held admiration for his brothers, such as Veteran Sergeant Sidonus. Eager to prove himself, Leandros zealously pursued what he believed was right and held Chapter doctrines close to his heart. He saw Captain Titus as the type of Ultramarine he aspired to become.[1]
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The following paragraphs contain spoilers for: | Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine |
Leandros was the most recently appointed member of Captain Titus' Command Squad[1] when he took part in defending Graia, after it was invaded by Warboss Grimskull's Waaagh!. However, the 2nd Company's fleet came under attack by the Orks when they arrived at the forge world and Titus deployed them while the Company was under fire.[2a] This chaotic deployment led the Ultramarines to be separated, but Leandros soon regrouped with Titus and their fellow Ultramarine Sidonus.[2b] The three would fight beside 2nd Lieutenant Mira's 203rd Cadian Regiment against the attacking Orks,[2b] but Leandros thought little of the Guardsmen - his ascension to an Ultramarine had caused him to lose his Human perspective. Leandros was especially patronising to the surviving Guardsmen he encountered on Graia.[1] In the course of defending the Forge World with the Cadians though, Titus' group crossed paths with Inquisitor Drogan.[2c]
The Inquisitor was on Graia developing a weapon powered by the Warp called the Psychic Scourge, and required their help in defending it. Titus, Sidonus and Leandros succeeded in saving the Scourge from the Orks[2c], though in the process the Captain was forced to grab hold of the Scourge. This surprised Drogan, as he thought that anyone who made physical contact with the weapon would be killed: the Scourge was powered by unstable Warp energies. Leandros noted this, suspicious as to how Titus was able to survive. The Captain stated that he did not know, but ordered them to move before the Orks attacked again. Leandros reluctantly dropped the matter,[2d] and the Ultramarines escorted the weapon and Inquisitor to another base where it could be used. In doing so, Drogan hoped the weapon would defeat Grimskull's invasion. However, when activated, it instead opened a Warp Rift above the Forge World and allowed the Sorcerer Nemeroth's Chaos forces to invade Graia. It was revealed that Inquisitor Drogan had been slain before he made contact with Titus' group and had already been possessed by a Daemon serving Nemeroth. Before the three Ultramarines could be killed by Nemeroth, however, Warboss Grimskull attacked the Sorcerer and the Ultramarines were able to reclaim the Psychic Scourge.[2e] Under Titus' orders, the group then used the weapon to empower the Imperial Titan Invictus, which fired upon the Warp Rift and weakened it. Afterward, Titus gave the Scourge to Sidonus and ordered the Veteran Sergeant to take it to their Strike Cruiser Fury of Descent, for safekeeping. The Captain and Leandros kept Nemeroth's forces at bay, while Sidonus raced towards a landing pad to wait for an aircraft to evacuate him. However, when he reached it, Sidonus was killed by Nemeroth who teleported behind the Veteran Sergeant and impaled him with Lightning Claws. Titus and Leandros saw this, but they were unable to save Sidonus before he was killed and Nemeroth escaped with the Psychic Scourge.[2f]
A vengeful Titus then told Leandros to safeguard Sidonus' body until an Apothecary arrived and to then join the Imperial counter-attack. The Captain, however, planned to hunt down and kill Nemeroth, before the Sorcerer could use the Psychic Scourge's power to become a Daemon Prince. Leandros vehemently disagreed with this and stated Titus' course of action was suicide or worse. He explained that the Captain had shown repeated resistance to the Warp since Nemeroth had invaded Graia - a fact that the Sorcerer was aware of, interested in Titus' ability. Though Leandros denied fearing that Titus would fall to Heresy, he believed that whatever was behind the Captain's resistance would only aid the Sorcerer. Titus disregarded Leandros' concerns and insisted that he would not embrace Heresy, before leaving to confront Nemeroth.[2f]
However, Leandros' concerns led him to become convinced that Titus had become corrupted; contacting the Inquisition, he claimed Titus was a Heretic.[2h] Meanwhile, the Captain succeeded in killing Nemeroth and closing the Warp Rift[2g] as more Imperial reinforcements arrived. Despite this, Leandros' charge against Titus led him to be taken into custody by Inquisitor Thrax. Before he was escorted away, Leandros told Titus that the Codex Astartes left no doubt; no one could go unscathed from contact with the Warp as Titus had. The Captain rebuffed him, saying that while the Codex was a set of rules that guided the Ultramarines, how they lived with those rules was the true test of a Space Marine: a test, Titus concluded, that Leandros had ultimately failed.[2h]
Fourth Tyrannic War
Over a century later in the Era Indomitus, Leandros had become a Chaplain within the Ultramarines 2nd Company. During the Fourth Tyrannic War, the Company would be sent to aid the Cadian 8th in defending the Recidious System against a splinter of Hive Fleet Leviathan.[3b]
Demetrian Titus, whom had been serving the Deathwatch as a Black Shield, would be recovered near death from Kadaku. Upon surviving the dangerous, but lifesaving procedure to make him a Primaris Marine, Chapter Master Maneus Calgar immediately reinstated Titus as a Lieutenant of the Ultramarines 2nd Company.[4]
Sitting by Titus' bedside, Leandros waited for his former Captain to awake. Leandros kept his identity hidden from Titus as he closely monitored the now-Lieutenant for any signs of corruption. Leandros was distrustful of Titus's purity and his actions throughout the conflict in the Recidious System. After Titus helped defeat Imurah and his Thousand Sons, Leandros revealed his identity to Titus and stated he would be keeping a close eye on him.[3b]
Images
Leandros during the Invasion of Graia.[2]
Sources
- 1: WH40K: Space Marine, Single Player characters (archived page, last accessed via Wayback Machine 24 September 2021)
- 2: Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine:
- 3: Space Marine II:
- 4: White Dwarf 498, pgs. 54-61 - Lieutenant Titus of the Ultramarines
