Bock's Journal: Entry 156

The Battle of Kurtzmann's Dale continues, and shows no sign of abating. I arrived to take command of the battle personally, relieving Commander Rayner of the Steel Talons, though I cannot fault his conduct of the battle so far. This 'Chaplain' Enoch has not made any effort at communication thus far, not even to offer an excuse for his blatant disregard of the Emperor's Will. I am left to assume that the frequent contact with the alien and the warp storms of this region have tainted him and his Chapter, and they are irretrievable. It is grevious to me to think that another band of Space Marines have fallen into worship of the Dark Gods, but there is no other explanation.

The walls of this fortress are solid, and despite the heavy fighting and bombardment, have only been breached in one place. I believe we can hold Kurtzmann's Dale indefinately, though our losses shall surely mount. The last round of pitched battle cost Mother Superior Dahmnait many Sisters, most in an attempt to destroy the Chaos-spawned war machine that has appeared on the battlefield. Von Kohl, the Rogue Trader Duke, has been freeing up as many Steel Talons as he can for this campaign, so perhaps I should take back some of the harsh words I had for him in earlier reports. I will consider it. *Sidenote: Send notice to the Imperial Rolls of Honour to add Sister Jana and her 3rd Platoon of Seraphim to the list of Honoured Dead for the bravery in assaulting the vehicle the enemy has desiginated 'Juggernaut'. While the extent of damage is not completely known, observing Tech-Marines feel that its void shield was destroyed beyond the ability to field repair, and that much internal damage was done by the placement of Sister Jana's and her squads melta-bombs.*

I have ordered all possible reinforcements to be brought into this fortress, with the special request of whatever heavy weapons can be spared to deal with the flood of enemy armour. *Secondary Sidenote: Delay the transmission of previous Inquistorial report detailing the strange mutations on Chapter Master Modeus' Celestial Lions. The supplies received from them were put to good use at Kurtzmann's Dale, and though such mutations are a blight in the Emperor's eyes, I am sure that he is willing to overlook them for the time being.*

Lastly, I have ordered the preparation of the virus bombs to cleanse this world at the end of the campaign. Though I have not received specific orders as of yet for an Exteriminatus, the treachery of the Black Guard must surely be reason enough to believe all but the most fervent of the Emperor's followers on the planets will fall to the taint eventually if they remain here. While I do not doubt the Order of the Revered Martyr, I have suggested to Mother Superior Dahmnait that she add an extra prayer session to the daily routine to ensure their faith can overcome the obvious seeping taint of this world.

I will be glad to see the last of it.