Changes

By the time of the [[Horus Heresy]] Berossus had risen to the rank of [[Space Marine Captain|Captain]] of the 2nd [[Grand Company]]{{Fn|2a}}. When the Iron Warriors were tasked to eliminate the [[Imperial Fists]] battle fleet marooned in the [[Phall system]], Berossus eagerly volunteered to command the fleet, but [[Perturabo]] overruled him, insisting on taking command himself.{{Fn|2b}}

The planning of the Iron Warriors' attack fell to [[First Captain]] [[Forrix]], while Berossus had the dubious honour of acting as Perturabo's adjutant - dubious because the Lord of Iron was not above taking out his anger on the messenger who brought him bad news.{{Fn|2c}} Sure that [[First Captain]] [[Sigismund]] was the commander of the Imperial Fists fleet, Perturabo insisted that he be captured alive, and brought to the [[primarch]].{{Fn|2c}} However, Berossus had to confess that, based on the [[vox]] intercepts from the fleet, Sigismund was absent and the enemy commander was [[Space Marine Captain|Captain]] [[Alexis Polux]], whom the Iron Warriors dismissed as of no account. Perturabo took the news badly, smashing Berossus's armour with his fists and leaving the Captain to slowly bleed to death on the deck of his flagship.{{Fn|2d}}

Berossus was later entombed in a [[Dreadnought]] chassis. The fact that he had been crippled by a blow from his own gene-father, rather than in battle, caused a corrosive bitterness that slowly drove him mad.{{Fn|3}} He later appeared during the muster of traitor forces on [[Ullanor]] in preparation for the [[Siege of Terra]].{{Fn|4}}

In [[M41]], Berossus and Warsmith [[Toramino]] were embroiled in a dispute with Lord [[Honsou]], who had stolen [[gene-seed]] from an [[Adeptus Mechanicus]] facility on the planet [[Hydra Cordatus]]. Lord Honsou reneged on a promise to share the geneseed with his fellow Warsmiths, leading to civil war amongst the Iron Warriors.{{Fn|1a}} Lord Toramino and Lord Berossus went on to besiege Honsou's fortress, [[Khalan-Ghol]], for many months; Berossus bore the brunt of the fighting and lost thousands of soldiers. His Dreadnought body was Augmented and extensively engineered since his interment, his mechanical form now towered above the other dreadnoughts of his grand company, his leg assemblies strengthened and widened to allow him to carry heavier and heavier breaching equipment. The dreadnought's upper body was scarred and pitted, the testament of uncounted sieges engraved on its adamantium shell. One arm bore a mighty, piston-driven siege hammer, the other a monstrous drill ringed with heavy calibre cannons. Four thick, iron arms ending in vicious picks, blades, claws and heavy gauge breachers sprouted from behind Berossus's sarcophagus and hung ready for use over his armoured carapace. It also had a leering bronze skull face.{{Fn|1b}}

Eventually Berossus met Honsou in battle during the latter stages of the war, where he almost killed Honsou with a [[Assault Drill|siege drill]]. However, Honsou's [[Daemonhost]] bodyguard [[Onyx (Iron Warriors)|Onyx]] managed to inflict enough damage to Berossus's dreadnought form. His sarcophagus was opened by Housou, who proceeded to rip Berossus's last mortal remains from the dreadnought. All that remained of Berossus mortal form was a monstrously swollen skull and spinal column, fused with wires like veins. Honsou then swung the spinal column like a club against its former dreadnought body, smashing its skull to splinters of bone and killing Berossus. Berossus' troops then defected to Honsou shortly after his death.{{Fn|1c}}

*1: [[Dead Sky, Black Sun (Novel)]] - — [[The Ultramarines Omnibus]] by [[Graham McNeill]]**{{Endn|1a}}: Prologue, pgs. 524-528524–528

**{{Endn|1c}}: Chapter Eighteen, pgs. 715-718715–718*2: [[The Crimson Fist (Novella)]] by [[John French]] - — [[Shadows of Treachery (Anthology)]]:

**{{Endn|2b}}: "Twenty-eight days before the Battle of Phall", pgs. 59-6059–60**{{Endn|2c}}: "The day of the Battle of Phall," pgs. 85-8685–86**{{Endn|2d}}: "The day of the Battle of Phall," pgs. 93-9493–94

*{{Endn|4}}: [[Slaves to Darkness (Novel)]] - — Chapter 19 [[Category:Characters (Chaos Space Marine)]]

[[Category:The Characters (Horus Heresy)]]