First War of Red Swords

The First War of Red Swords (a.k.a. the First Terralban War or The Marqashian Heresy) (dubbed as the Great Truth by heretics) is a series of battles that occurred from 897.M41 to 901.M41, throughout the three planets in the Terralba System. It consisted of a plan by the corrupted Golden Lions 5th Company to break apart the Imperial (Clanranald) control over the Scottorum Sector and provide anarchy for the Chaos Gods.

Seeds of Heresy
In 895.M41, the Astropathic Choir in the Golden Lions Fortress-Monastery, the Fortress of the Lord, received a distress call coming from the Agri-World Uibhist a' Deas in the Scotia Minor System that a massive Ork incursion was taking place. Along with the newly founded Knight House de Haye, 5th Captain Marqash of the Golden Lions takes his entire 'Royal Vanguard' Company in 897.M41 when all forces on the planet were presumed killed.

After heavy fighting and losses, the combined forces establish a fortified perimeter on the small planet's surface which becomes the Knight House's Keep in future years and the tide quickly turns in favour of the Imperium. In the Ork retreat in 899.M41, second-in-command 15th Captain Urquhart takes his two bodyguards and hunts down the main Warboss of the Klan. Urquhart and his two men cause mayhem among the biggest Ork ramshackle outpost of tents until they find a crude teleport device leading to the Warboss' Capital ship.

Onboard the ship, Da Kollekta Fo' Mork, the kill-team successfully assassinates the Warboss and locates his Treasure Room. Drawn at first by the stock of insurmountable knowledge and then faint whisperings at the back of his mind, Urquhart enters the room, leaving only with the horned helmet of a long dead Space Marine.

As a prize and memento of the glorious victory, Urquhart gifts the helmet to his Captain Marqash who becomes similarly enthralled by the artefact. Wishing to know more, he orders the Company Librarian Bo'ortan to study it on the journey back to Terralba Majoris. Bo'ortan discovers that the artefact known as the Helmet of Korsk had a rich and glorious ancestry, linked to the old Terralban legend about the Three Swords, but also the taint of a Daemon inside of it. Before he could do anything about the knowledge he gained, he had already become enthralled by its whispering embrace. With the already tainted Captain Urquhart and his bodyguards, Bo'ortan gifts it back to Marqash. As Marqash decides to incorporate the Helmet in his armour, the Daemon's whisperings become one with his own mind. In the long journey back to the Homeworld, the whole of the Royal Vanguard had been twisted into the enthralment of the Daemon artefact.

In the last day of travel, the Company gathers a sermon in the Grand Hall of the Strike Cruiser, The Fellhammer, and all vote to change their name to the Red Swords, in memory of the Three Swords Legend, and to let the Daemon of Korsk become their new master, swearing allegiance to the Dark Gods and drawing plans on how to de-stabilize Clanranald rule on the three Imperial Sectors.

Resistance on The Fellhammer
There was two votes against the change in becoming the Red Swords, however. The Chaplain, Dunwald, and Apothecary of the Company stayed vigil to the Emperor and tried to strike up any resistance they could against the Daemon's enthralment. In spite of their pitiful attempts, the newly baptised Red Swords hunted the two rebels throughout their Cruiser, cornering them two days later.

Neither Marqash nor Korsk wanted to execute the two who resisted their power, seeking to try and incorporate their strong wills into their ranks. Marqash ordered for them to be sacrificed in the name of Korsk as their first offering of many to come. The Gellar Fields were disengaged during their warp-travel and ruinous powers immediately flooded the Strike Cruiser. Almost instantly, all humans on the ship were slaughtered by the full power of the immaterium, and even some Astartes - including the Champion - were driven to pure insanity.

The Chaplain and Apothecary were ritually sacrificed and their bodies possessed by Daemons chosen by Korsk. Their eyes were lit aflame and the Apothecary disintegrated into Warp Dust, unworthy of his new soul. But Dunwald was accepted by his Daemon with open arms and fully under the thrall of Korsk. Now there were no opposition to the Daemon's rule upon The Fellhammer.

Break of War
After a year of seeping into and corrupting many strong influencing bodies within the Clanranald, including the Lord Admiral of Battlefleet Scottorum, the Lord Commissar on the Penal Moon Terralba Minoris, and the presiding officer of the stationed 64th Harakoni Warhawks.

On the day 2.624.900.M41, two official meetings started simultaneously. One called by the Lord Admiral aboard his dry docked Flagship, The Malice, for all the non-Astartes leading Clanranald officials whom the Red Swords had not corrupted. Only the Knight High King and the Mechanicus official did not attend. And the second by Captain Marqash himself, for all his commanding Brothers currently stationed on-world. To Marqash's discontent, only the two Captains of the 4th Company, the Hebrideans, 4th Captain Mordu and 14th Captain Astra arrived, leaving the 1st and 9th Companies missing. The covering story was that they were planning on a secondary reserve Crusade force to relieve the Astartes and Guard brothers currently fighting the Tyranid threat far to the galactic South. On the twelfth hour of the Terralban day, the corrupted would draw their weapons upon those that resisted Korsk.

Three Swords Incident
In the aftermath