Stones of Cavadi
The Stones of Cavadi are a large asteroid field, that is located within the Nachmund Gauntlet.[1]
History
Desolation of the Stones of Cavadi
In the aftermath of the Great Rift's creation, the Stones became located as far from the edge of the Warp Storm as any of the Gauntlet's regions. This allowed it to become a place of relative safety and the Stones became infested by human and xenos pirates. Only the strongest and meanest were able to secure sanctuary there and had to fight to keep their asteroid strongholds. A semblance of order was maintained between the numerous pirate groups there, as they preyed upon nearby Imperial worlds and shipping lanes. This continued for some time, until the pirates drew the ire of the Ordo Xenos Inquisitor Kirs Drova. After they plundered a ship belonging to her valued agents, Drova requested the Wrathhost Chapter's forces serving in the Wardens of the Gauntlet to cleanse the Stones of the pirates.[1]
The Inquisitor and the Wrathhost both thought it would be an easy campaign, as they did not believe the numerous pirate groups within the asteroid field would defend each other. They were soon proven wrong, as the pirates worked together surprisingly well to fight the Chapter and this began a gruelling guerrilla war between their forces. After the Wrathhost suffered the loss of the Coiled Viper and the Biting Jackal, and the Mistral became severely damaged, Inquisitor Drova was forced to call upon the Imperial Navy for assistance in blockading the Stones of Cavadi. This prevented the pirates from leaving the asteroid field to escape the Chapter's fleet and the Wrathhost finally began making headway. Eventually thousands of pirates were killed, as their warships were destroyed and the Stones' asteroids were cleansed by the Chapter and Naval Armsmen. This left hordes of resources in Drova's hands, which included hundreds of prisoners, along with the pirates' strongholds, filled with equipment, books, vehicles and esoteric artefacts. However just as it appeared that the Stones were finally purged, a single xenos ship escaped the Imperial Navy's blockade from what was thought to be an uninhabited asteroid.[1]
The Wrathhost Gladius Escort Leaping Pronghorn gave chase and its Space Marines boarded the ship after an hour-long chase. Once aboard, the Space Marines then killed or captured its crew of human, Kroot, Demiurg, Tarellian and Nicassars. They offered the Wrathhost fierce resistance and declared the Gue'ron'sha would not reach their leader. The crew proved to not be a match for the Space Marines, though, and when they entered the ship's bridge, they discovered a high-ranking T'au Water Caste envoy there. The Wrathhost realised it was the envoy who had been leading the pirates, explaining why the Stones' different groups had been able to fight so well together. For its part, the T'au congratulated the Space Marines for their victory in claiming the Stones of Cavadi and then promptly surrendered to them. The Wrathhost were left confused by the encounter, however, as they had never heard of any T'au being encountered beyond their Empire in the Eastern Fringe. They would then deliver the T'au envoy to Inquisitor Drova, where it joined her hundreds of other prisoners that had been captured during the battle.[1]
Sources
- 1: White Dwarf 475, pgs. 68-69 - Flashpoint: Nachmund - The Acts of the Wardens
