60,550
edits
Changes
From Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum
m
no edit summary
By this point, [[Governor]] [[Varkoff]] had sent an [[astropath]]ic call for assistance. The [[3rd Company (Salamanders)|3rd Company]] of the [[Salamanders]] [[Chapter]] responded, arriving in-system aboard the [[Strike Cruiser]] ''[[Vulkan's Wrath (Strike Cruiser)|Vulkan's Wrath]]'' and deploying via [[Thunderhawk]]. At this point, the Guard had retaken the major cities of [[Nimbaros]] and [[Cumulon]], following the Cult's unexplained retreat, but were still unable to make any progress assaulting Cirrion.{{Fn|1}}
The 3rd Company's commanding officer, [[Space Marine Captain|Captain]] [[Ko'tan Kadai]], agreed to lead the next assault on Cirrion, with their primary objective to eliminate the Cult's leader, a demagogue known as the [[the Speaker]]. At first the Salamanders deployed to the interior of Cirrion in an armoured assault but, despite meeting no resistance at first, they were forced to proceed on foot and split up due to rubble blocking off most of the roads. Eventually they finally encountered the Cultists, who launched a series of expertly-planned ambushes that caught the [[Space Marines]] off-guard. Worse still for the Marines, the Cult had released a gaseous hydrogen amalgam into Cirrion's atmosphere that prevented the Salamanders using their [[Flame weapon|flame-]] and [[Melta weapon|melta-weapons]] without them backfiring catastrophically. Several Marines were lost in the ambushes, including [[Apothecary]] [[Fugis]].{{Fn|1}}
The Salamanders were forced back to Cirrion's central square, but the Marines rallied there, successfully defending themselves and pushing the Cultists back. As the Company's [[Techmarine]]s reinforced the Marines' position in the square, the Salamanders encountered a band of surviving civilians.{{Fn|1}}
