The Castigators Chaos Space Marines

Being an elucidation of the origins and vile nature of the blasphemous Renegades known as the Castigators.




The Castigators are a Second Founding successor of the Imperial Fists, although all records have since been expunged.
When the Primarch Rogal Dorn founded the Chapter from the Imperial Fists Legion, he appointed Themis, Equerry and Praetorian to the Primarch during the Great Scouring, as Chapter Master of the Castigators.
It was no secret that Themis believed Primarch Guilliman was questioning the Legion's loyalty and honour by enforcing the Codex Astartes upon them, indeed he vehemently argued such a case to Rogal Dorn. When his Primarch acquiesced to Guilliman's reforms, Themis viewed it as weakness and sought solace in the Pain Glove. Emerging from his self imposed penance, Themis was determined to prove his Chapter's loyalty and honour, declaring a Crusade to bring the Imperial Truth to the Segmentum Obscurus.
The Castigators embraced many and varied deviations from Guilliman's venerated tome, revelling in their unorthodox methods and seeing every victory and honour bestowed upon them a vindication of their practices.

The 'Eternal Jouissance' . This vehicle, once of the venerable Deimos pattern, is confirmed as having participated in the Golan Atrocity of 603.M39, where the entire population was rendered down for use as a stimulant.

"There are lies, damned lies and the Imperial Truth"

Operating on the outward rim of the galaxy, the Castigators shared few bonds of brotherhood with the Imperial Fists or their successors and with the loss of Rogal Dorn on board the Despoiler Class Battleship "Sword of Sacrilege," the Chapter became ever more distant from the scions of Dorn,
The use of the Pain Glove was prevalent throughout the Chapter and with the loss of their Primarch Themis became ever more reliant upon the pain induced visions to guide the Chapter. Themis began to question imperial dogma, and the Chapter was soon censured for its erratic behaviour and practices. The Castigators' reaction was to declare a Crusade to cleanse the Calyx Expense of its xenos empires and innumerable non-compliant inhabitants.

Predator Battle Tank 'Unbound Rapture' of the Castigators. This vehicle is listed as having engaged units of the Adepta Astartes Imperial fists in 997.M41. during the 'Sundered Gauntlet Massacre'.

That this infernal engine of destruction serves the Ruinous Powers is beyond doubt, what is uncertain is whether the vehicle's armour is the work of the Castigators fell artisans or some other insidious means.

The Calyx Crusade

The Calyx Expanse, later to become the Calixis Sector, is an Imperial sector located in the Segmentum Obscurus on the northern edge of the known galaxy. It lies a great distance from the Imperial heartland and represents a vulnerable fraction of the Imperium. To rimward lie the contested and unregulated Imperial frontiers of the Halo Stars where humans and xenos mix in the quest for power and profit in the infamous Koronus Expanse. 
Far from the millions-strong armies and mighty battlefleets of the Imperium, Themis soon realised that the Chapter was stretched beyond capacity attempting to purge the sector from the myriad raiders that plagued the system. Realising the futility of chasing shadows the Castigators quickly established a network of Chapter Keeps along the outer rim. From these bases the Chapter implemented an effective defence grid that facilitated in the rapid response required to hunt down the xenos raiders. In the wake of the Castigators success, the colonists soon followed. With the colonists came trade, and although the region was still plagued by piratical raids, the Chapters presence saw it increase tenfold.

Squad Sublime. If evidence is required that the Castigators have fallen to the depravities of Slaanesh, then one need look no further than the Chapter's growing contingent of Noise Marines.

Led by the cruel and arrogant Nephran Lustviper, Squad Sublime's screaming cacophony echoes across the battlefield, forever haunting the minds of the pitiful few who survive the Castigators' raids.

Victory Through Truth   

It was while responding to an Eldar raid that the Flag-Ship 'Per Dolorem Veritas' disappeared without a trace. The Castigators scoured the Calyx Expanse for any sign of the Battle Barge, convinced that Themis still lived. 
The Imperial Fists, seeing an opportunity to renew the bonds of Brotherhood, dispatched a full company to aid in the search. Later a contingent of Black Templars arrived to bolster the search, but still no trace was found. 
After several years, the Imperial Fists declared the Flag-Ship lost with all hands and ordered the Castigators to appoint a new Chapter Master. Such was the fervent belief that Themis still lived, that the order was refused. Tensions quickly escalated as the Imperial Fists and Black Templars manoeuvred into battle formation to enforce the order. As conflict between them looked inevitable, the Castigators' relented to the Imperial Fist's command and stood down. 
Titus Herennius captain of the 2nd Cohort was appointed Chapter Master and the Castigators were shamed further when a detachment of Imperial Fists were scattered throughout the fleet as 'advisers'. With the Castigators brought to heel, the Imperial Fists and Black Templars departed, leaving the Chapter to continue its work in the Calixis Sector.
Mindful of the 'advisers' scattered throughout the fleet, Herennius met with his Captains and Librarians, in what would later become known as the Cabal of Truth, the gathering discussed the visions granted by the Pain Glove and how the focus of these visions could be directed through psychic manipulation. Over the coming months volunteers were subject to ever increasing agonies and excruciating psychic manipulation in a bid to control the visions.

Defiler codified 'Exquisite Torment.' This pict-feed was captured at the Siege of Fort Mork 955.M41. The heraldry of the Castigators is clearly visible, although no further reports indicate that the Castigators were present at the Ork massacre.

In 989.M41 the twisted remains of 'Exquisite Torment' were discovered deep below the ruins of the Crimson Fists' Fortress-Monastery on Rynn's World. Oblivious to the Castigators existence the Tech Marines mistakenly identified it as the remains of an Ork walker. Chapter Master Pedro Kantor had all records of its existence sealed.  

The Cabal of Truth

The Castigators had long believed that the visions granted by the Pain Glove were a gift from the Emperor. A gift that guided them through the lies and deceits propagated by an Imperium that was ruled by fear. The Cabal cast aside all fear, caution was its first victim but it would not be the last in the search for truth. With each successful revelation, a profound sense of euphoria swept throughout the Chapter and the Cabal's first steps led them down dark and dangerous paths. Early successes soon slowed to a crawl however, and then to halt. It quickly became apparent that nothing further could be gleamed from the visions without acting upon the information already granted to them. 
Herennius ordered the Chapter to mobilise, only a small cohort would be left to man the Chapter Keeps and all patrols throughout the Sector would be withdrawn. The Imperial Fist advisers protested and Herennius order them confined to quarters aboard the 'Veritas Invicta'. With the fleet together again, Herennius declared a Crusade into the Koronus Expanse.    

Squad Schadenfreude, led by the abhorrent and Slaanesh touched Korath Vilehorn.

The Koronus Crusade

The Koronus Expanse was, and still remains, a scattered, barely explored region on the frontier of the galaxy. The Expanse is accessed through the Koronus Passage, a treacherous but navigable route through the great Warp Storms that bar passage to the Halo Stars. As is true of the Calixis Sector itself, the Expanse was untouched by the Emperor's Great Crusade--and so it is a realm of dark and dangerous voids, rife with rumoured terrors, undiscovered stars and worlds of men who have never known the light of the Emperor. There are no defined Warp-routes, no safe ways through the Empyrean. These regions hold the savage Ork, the treacherous Eldar, and strange ruins that lie beneath the light of dying stars. 
It was into this cauldron of chaos that the Castigators plunged. As soon as they entered the Koronus Passage the visions returned, guiding them to the warp conduit that would later be known as the Maw, a route connecting the Calixis Sector to the Koronus Expanse. As they travelled through the Maw, the visions increased in intensity, transcending the agonies with rapturous visions of blasphemous delights. Spurred on by the visions, the Castigators successfully navigated the Maw and entered the Koronus Expanse.
The Chapter quickly made their presence known, liberating several planets from the clutches of xenos raiders and significantly reducing the slave trade in the sector. Driving ever deeper into the Expanse the visions guided them to the nebula shrouded world of Jerazol. 
Jerazol was verdant, fertile, and supported a population of humans whose culture had regressed to the level of primitive tribalism. It offered no threat or answers and Herennius was at a loss as to why they were here. The Castigators returned to the nebula and once again sought answers from the Pain-Glove. Days turned to weeks, weeks to months and still no answers could be discerned. The Imperial Fists on board the 'Veritas Invicta', alarmed at the Castigators' predilection for pain and their erratic behaviour, petitioned Herennius to return to Imperial Space. The Chapter Master ordered them interred within Pain Gloves.

  

Shaithis, first captain of the Castigators' 1st Cohort.

  

Shaithis was elevated to first Captain after single handedly cutting down an Avatar of Khaine and slaughtering the 20 Guardians accompanying the Eldar deity. His cruelty was matched only by his hubris and his fate is a salutary tale to all within the Chapter.

Truth Through Pain

The Castigators faith in the visions were soon vindicated when a Dark Eldar Corsair fleet entered the system and took up position around Jerazol. Pausing only for the Dark Eldar to launch their raid upon the planet, the Castigators fleet emerged from the nebula to wreak havoc amongst the unsuspecting xenos. Several of the Eldar craft were boarded and not a single Eldar escaped the Chapter's grasp. 
While scouring one the vessels clean of xenos, the Castigators discovered a trophy rack containing armour plates and helmets belonging to the Chapter. Herennius ordered as many of the Eldar taken alive as possible and when the battle was over the Cabal of Truth reconvened to interrogate their xenos captives.
Initial attempts at extracting information met with little success, the Eldar's tolerance for pain proved insurmountable. The xenos invariably died before giving up their secrets, leaving the Chapter with no clues to the 'Per Dolorem Veritas' fate.  
The Cabal once again sought answers through the Pain Glove. The intensity of the visions escalated, whether by urgency or a desire to reach their goal, the visions overwhelmed the Librarians' attempts to control them. Ecstatic seizures swept throughout the fleet, seductive glamours lashing their minds with forbidden knowledge, gifting the Chapter with sinister purpose.
With their new-found knowledge, the Dark Eldar's exotic instruments of torture and the interred Imperial Fists, the Cabal took the final step, condemning the Castigators to eternal damnation.          
  

Squad Divine of the 1st Cohort often accompany their Lord, Nestor Lustheart, outflanking the enemy and wreaking havoc amongst their horrified foes.

Led by Darius Lewdgrip, a zealous if somewhat reckless champion whose devotion to his Lord is second to none. 

Forbidden Arts

Deep in the bowels of the Eldar ship, the Castigators had discovered pain racks and torture tables. Above these vile and sinister devices, crystalline pods arrayed in concentric circles rose up into the vaulted ceiling. These sarcophagi held semi-cocooned Eldar in some form of regenerative state. The Cabal soon discovered that the occupants fed upon the resonant energies of their victim's agonies, quivering in their amniotic fluids with each shriek or howl of torment. Fascinated by their design, the Cabal had them moved on board the 'Veritas Invicta.'
Guided by the visions the Castigators' began to experiment with them. Apothecaries and Librarians worked in conjunction with volunteers taken from the many pain cults that had sprung up throughout the fleet. Early efforts showed some success but the volunteers proved inadequate. Despite the best efforts of the Apothecaries, the cultists fragile bodies and minds deteriorated too quickly for the Librarians to control the energies released. Chief Apothecary Chiron requested a trans-human be used and the Cabal supplied him with the Imperial Fist Marines, the results were beyond the Cabal's wildest expectations.
Every grotesque act performed upon the Imperial Fists was amplified by the Librarian's sinister arts, each pin-prick of pain magnified into a symphony of torment which echoed throughout the ship and across the Immaterium. The cocooned Eldar fed upon the cacophony of shrieks, the leering and red raw fiends shivering with ecstatic tremors from every fresh scream. Throughout the fleet crowds held twisted parodies of vigils while Flagellants lashed and tore at their bodies in their desire for enlightenment. In the Warp, what started as barely a whisper became a crescendo, screaming its song of desire into the abyss. 

Rhino armoured carrier 'Divine Bliss,' favoured transport of Squad Divine when not accompanying their Lord.

The Rhino's disturbingly esoteric visage instils fear and rapturous wonder in equal measure. Accounts of  seasoned veterans lulled into a lethargic trance as the Castigators butcher them are well documented.

The decadence of the Castigators is clearly evident in the interior of the vehicle. Lined with a thin veneer of marble, only a follower of Slaanesh would covet such opulence. 

Lewd frescos line the walls.....

........while a lissom maiden riding the most obscene of runes adorns the floor.

Heralds of Themis

As the Apothecaries continued their grisly work the song reached its climax. The Eldar's quivering tremors became violent spasms, their leering faces twisted into a horrified rictus mask. Hideous soundless shrieks issued from their throats as dark energies infused the amniotic fluid, staining it with a lilac hue. Lithe and sensuous creatures bathed in the viscous liquid, luxuriating in the Eldar's terror. They moved with a languid, beguiling grace, their every movement redolent with sexuality and the promise of dark pleasures undreamed of. 
A soporific musk permeated the deck, evoking a sublime bliss in all who inhaled it. As the Librarians struggled to contain the discordant energies, a psychic zephyr carried the sweet, cloying scent throughout the fleet. Madness and excess followed in its wake, all those it touched gave themselves over to the wildest, darkest delights of their inner psyche.
Wails of anguish resonated from the crystalline pods as razor sharp claws caressed the cocooned Eldar's raw flesh. The Eldar thrashed against their the crystalline shells, creating a spider web pattern of fractures as needle like teeth and probing tongues thrust into their flesh. A siren song of such longing and intensity pierced the air, shattering the crystalline pods and showering those below with daemonically infused flesh.
Below them, a chorus of screams added to the cacophony. the abused forms of the Imperial Fists twisted in a manner no human limb was designed to, bones cracked and organs burst, showering the Apothecaries and Librarians with viscera. Tearing free of their bindings, six of the Imperial fists rose into the air, limbs spread eagled as some unknown power seized the broken meat and gristle of their bodies and warped it into some new, hideous form. Their shattered limbs straightened, becoming lithe and graceful, the flesh taking on the same lilac hue that stained the Eldar's shattered cocoons. 
An obscene wet sucking noise engulfed the Imperial Fists as whatever force had previously held them aloft released them. They landed with supple grace amongst the mesmerised Castigators.
None of them had ever seen anything so simultaneously beautiful and repellent, a creature that produced both a potent loathing, and a perverse sensuality. Elegant horns swept back from oval faces with alluring, green, saucer-like eyes, fanged mouth and luscious lips. Their limbs were lithe and sensuous, a single breast added to their conflicting nature, and their skin was loathsomely tattooed and pierced. Their arms terminated in crab-like claws of glistening violet chitin and moist flesh. For all their ethereal attributes, at their core they were still Marines, albeit a twisted perversion of them.
As one, the possessed creatures raised their heads, their jaws distended to inhuman lengths and instead of emitting some horrific scream, a voice issued from their throats. The Castigators recognised it immediately as their lost Chapter Master Themis. 
"Hear me Brothers, I send Heralds to guide you. Make haste, the enemy is upon us. Truth will out."

Heldrake operating in support of the Castigators during the Siege of Hydra Cordatus 565999.M41. 

Enlightenment

With the Possessed to guide them, the Castigators fleet entered the Warp, traversing the treacherous currents and roiling eddies with ease. On their journey through the Warp, the Possessed, or Heralds of Themis as they became known, instructed the Castigators in the Primordial Truth and the lies propagated by an Imperium too frightened to embrace their destiny. With honeyed words the Heralds seduced and beguiled the Cabal, stimulating their minds with esoteric allusions and corrupting their bodies with intoxicating elixirs. When the fleet finally reached its goal, the Chapter had embraced the delights of Slaanesh in all their glory. 
Translating into real-space, the fleet discovered the 'Per Dolorem Veritas' adrift. Moored alongside the Flagship were several Dark Eldar ships, many more of the xenos craft circled the stricken vessel, like scavengers waiting for a meal. The Castigators' fleet unleashed a hell-storm upon the xenos ships, destroying several and crippling many more with their opening salvo. While the rest of the fleet engaged the xenos ships in running battles, Storm Eagles punched through the enemy's picket lines to land support for their beleaguered Chapter Master.

Shaithis the Penitent. Recently interred while fighting in the Pandora Cluster against the Death Guard.

The Bliss

The interior of the flag-ship was a charnel house. Bodies, both Eldar and human littered the decks, obscene runes daubed in blood and other bodily fluids covered the walls. Herennius, accompanied by Terminators and the Possessed added to the carnage, slaughtering the Eldar whenever they discovered them. The Castigators scoured the decks of xenos, each exhilarating combat heightening their senses and filling them with euphoria. Eager to experience more of the intoxicating rush that coursed through their bodies, the Castigators pushed on, discarding their helmets to experience the sensations better. Cordite, blood, sweat and the smell of roasted flesh assaulted the Castigators' senses, evoking a terrible hunger in them. The staccato bark of gun fire flooded their brains, nerve endings screamed in ecstatic bliss with each shriek that added to the din of battle. Long suppressed emotions wracked their minds, driving them into a frenzied blood-lust. The pores of the Marines' skin began to exude a sweet, cloying vapour. As they fought on, the vapour became a violet mist that swirled around them. The Castigators could taste the fear emanating from the Eldar as they inhaled its sweet aroma, relishing their opponents horror as the blissful mist stimulted their senses.

Silenus the Damned. Responsible for the deaths of a dozen Black Templars Sword Brethren during the 'Fall of Agrella' 902.M41. That the Castigators will ally themselves with brutish Orks is testament to how far the Castigators have fallen.

Reunion      

Herennius quickly secured the Engine Rooms and Plasma Reactor Chambers, reuniting with over forty of their long lost brothers. With the ship's integrity assured, the Castigators pushed on towards the Bridge. 
Trapped between Herennius' strike force and Themis' stalwart defenders, the Eldar Corsairs had nowhere to run. In an orgy of violence, the Castigators tore them limb from limb, revelling in their wanton blood-lust. As Herennius cut down the last of the Eldar corsairs barring his path, the Eldar Archon emerged from the Bridge. A chitin claw pierced the Eldar's chest, lifting him from the deck to reveal a being so divine that Herennius fell to his knees in rapture. Its skin was smooth as porcelain, with a soft lilac hue that glowed with an ethereal vitality. From its well muscled shoulders rose a pair of velvet-smooth wings that writhed with ecstatic faces trapped beneath their delicate surface. Its lower torso had warped into the shape of a lithe and sinuous serpent, bedecked with stones that shimmered from within. It moved with an impossible grace, swaying to a song of lost innocence. As irresistible as it was, there was something profoundly sinister to its beauty, evoking a self loathing and feeling of utter depravity that sickened the soul.    
Casting aside the xenos leader, the being turned its gaze upon the enthralled Marines. Its jade green eyes burned with a wanton inner-light, promising terrible pain and boundless pleasure to all who would stand against it. A malicious smile spread across its hauntingly alluring face.
"Stand Brothers. Only those who deny the glory of Slaanesh shall bow down to the Chapter Master of the Castigators." Purred Themis. 

Chiron the Fleshmaster. Reports confirmed this twisted abomination fighting alongside the traitorous Red Corsairs at the nine Hollow Worlds of Lastrati. Many Space Wolves were lost in the failed attempt to reclaim the worlds.

The Glamour Worlds

Reunited with their Chapter Master, the Castigators returned to the Calixis Sector. Great celebrations were held on the worlds containing a Chapter Keep as Themis visited them one by one. Every world visited soon began to fall behind on its Imperial tithes and over the years whispered rumours began to circulate about the 'Glamour Worlds' as they became known. Requests for military aid went unanswered and Rogue Traders avoided the area after many ships failed to return. When an Inquisitorial fleet sent to investigate, also failed to return, the Inquisition turned to the Imperial Fists.
A strike force composed of Imperial Fists, Black Templars and Crimson Fists was mustered to investigate the disappearances and to re-establish ties with their estranged brothers. The strike force entered the Calixis Sector and soon made planet-fall on the outer Glamour worlds. All of them appeared to be idyllic worlds dominated by thick, temperate, tropical forests. Clearings revealed towns and cities of wondrous design, resplendent in their opulence. Statues lined the plazas and markets. An abundance of galleries and amphitheatres attested to a life devoted to the arts. The appearance was a deceit, a lie to tempt and seduce the unwary into the lush green forests. Beneath the treetop canopy was a twilight maze that rarely glimpsed any sunlight. Deep within the forests, obelisks of bone and ivory led to obscene palatial buildings that defied logic with their disturbing angles and geometry. A hauntingly eerie and expectant atmosphere pervaded the deserted worlds. 
Localised Warp storms buffeted the strike force as they travelled deeper into the system, every Warp jump becoming more treacherous than the last. Each of the Glamour worlds visited was as deserted as the last, with no clues as to what had befallen the inhabitants. With the storms intensity increasing, the strike force's progress slowed to a crawl. So far from the heart of the Imperium, the fleet's Navigators could no longer rely on the Astronomicon to guide them. A brief respite in the roiling maelstrom revealed the faint warp signature of the Inquisitorial fleet and the strike force followed the warp trail to the Tygress System.

The March Violates. One corrupted perversion of a Dreadnought is sacrilege enough, but the Castigators excesses know no bounds, they regularly deploy three of these vile and horrific machines to wreak havoc amongst their enemies. 

Excommunicate Traitoris

As soon as the sons of Dorn entered the Tygress system, long range auguries detected a vast armada orbiting Tygress IV. Composed of Inquisitorial ships, Rogue Trader vessels and vile xenos craft, the armada outnumbered the sons of Dorn strike force by three to one. What the strike force lacked in numbers, it more than made up for in fire power and righteous fury. Strike Cruisers and Battle Barges tore into the tightly packed ships, crippling strategic targets and blocking the larger vessels egress. The sons of Dorn simply picked them apart as they struggled to manoeuvre around the wreckage. As the battle raged, a Black Templars Battle Barge launched Drop Pods to land two full companies upon the surface of Tygress IV.

As soon as the Black Templars made planet-fall they were assailed by countless renegades and heretics. Mutants smashed aside cultists in their eagerness to engage the Templars while Demagogues roused their fanatical followers onto the disciplined bolter fire that shredded their ranks. The hard pressed Marines quickly secured a perimeter as wave upon wave of degenerate cultists threw themselves at the Black Templars. With each death, the walls of reality grew thinner, oblivious to the perils, Rogue Psykers unleashed horrific Balefire, incinerating friend and foe alike. As witchfire threatened to overwhelm them, it suddenly ceased, only to be replaced by a far more dire threat.

The walls of reality tore apart, each Rogue Psyker becoming an open portal to the powers of the Warp. From these portals emerged Warp-induced nightmares given physical form. Lithe and graceful Daemonettes accompanied by elegant and sensual beasts pored forth from the gash in reality. Realising the extent of the corruption the Black Templars requested immediate extraction, Tygress IV was beyond redemption.

The Black Templars made a fighting retreat into a deep ravine where the foul heretics couldn't bring their numbers to bear, confident they could hold out until their Thunderhawks arrived to extract them. Their confidence was ill-founded however, the Castigators lay in wait. Eschewing the option to simply gun down the Black Templars, the Castigators engaged them up close and personal, relishing the thrill of combat with their brother Marines. Themis, born aloft on daemonic wings, led the way. Chitinous claw gifting the Templars with excruciatingly painful caresses as his Daemon-forged sword delivered the most delicate and tender of killing strokes. The Ravine became a killing ground, of the two hundred Black Templars to make planet-fall only twelve left its surface.

The battle in orbit faired much better for the sons of Dorn, as the pitiful remnants of the Black Templars returned to their fleet, the last ship of Tygress IV's armada twisted slowly in its death throe.

Appalled at what had become of the Castigators, the Sons of Dorn prepared the ultimate sanction, Exterminatus would be used. As the missile delivered its deadly payload the captain of the Imperial Fists Battle Barge opened a channel to the doomed world of Tygress IV.

"It was the sons of Dorn who gave you life, it is those very same sons who now take it. It shall be as if you never existed!"

As the world eater virus entered Tygress IV's atmosphere a transmission was received from the planet below.

"Know this brother," taunted Themis. "As worlds quake with fear at the name of the Castigators, the sons of Dorn will bow down to the glory of Slaanesh. This I vow ." 

It took two days for the atmosphere to burn off from Tygress IV, every living creature perished in a raging inferno that consumed the planet in its fury. Throughout that time, the sons of Dorn maintained their vigil around the doomed planet. Cyclonic torpedoes launched against the planets surface shattered its mantle, leaving nothing but an empty ball of rock.
With their work done, the sons of Dorn set sail for Imperial space.

Nestor Lustheart, Chapter Master of the Castigators. Responsible for countless atrocities committed in the name of Slaanesh.

The Hunters of Dorn     

The Castigators hadn't perished. As the sons of Dorn debriefed the Black Templar survivors, the Castigators had already left Tygress IV.
Themis had learned many things from his ascension to Daemonhood, amongst them, the hidden passageways that exist between the material dimension and the Warp. The same baleful energies that scoured the surface of Tygress IV had also ruptured many of these secret pathways. Amongst these shattered and treacherous webways are many tendrils, byways and mazes that can entrap the unwary. Some lead to places long since abandoned or destroyed, others are inhabited by Daemons. One such pathway existed on Tygress IV, a portal which led to a world deep inside the Warp Rift known as the Screaming Vortex. 
As Exterminatus was delivered to Tygress IV, Themis simply stepped from one world to another.
Over the years, countless sightings of the enigmatic and perverse Castigators have been ruthlessly suppressed by the Inquisition. Throughout the long millennia, the Castigators have missed no opportunity to demonstrate their total dedication to Slaanesh. Their whole existence seems to be based around the need to indulge in their every desire. Reports of them fighting alongside Orks, Dark Eldar and the fell Chaos legions attest to their whimsical nature.However, it is plain that these degenerate Marines care only for themselves, their allies can suffer and die for all they care, just so long as their own desires are satisfied.
As unsettling as these sightings are, darker and far more disturbing reports tell of the perverse parodies of Marines that fight within their ranks. That Chaos renegades would suffer from mutations and Daemonic possession holds little surprise to the Inquisition, what alarms them is that these vile and twisted abominations are armoured in the heraldry of the Imperial Fists, Black Templars and Crimson Fists.
Unknown to the Inquisition, the Castigators' random alliances and mercurial attacks are driven by one thing and one thing alone.....their desire to hunt the sons of Dorn. The Castigators will go to any lengths to do battle with them. 
Those sons of Dorn that are unfortunate enough to be taken alive suffer the most excruciating torments imaginable. As the Chapter's Flesh-smiths violate their victim's bodies, Sorcerors defile their minds. Many last only days, others weeks, some even months, but eventually all break under the relentless agonies inflicted upon body and soul. As their mind fractures under the psychic onslaught, their abused bodies are plunged into vats of daemonically infused flesh where twisted and shifting forms ripple across its surface in frenzied lust. Most of these unfortunate souls are dragged slowly into its depths, never to surface again as Daemonic entities battle for possession of the Marine. Flesh, gristle and sinew break down to become one with the abhorrent matter. Some however, resurface, clawing their way free as a Daemon infests their physical form, moulding the flesh to better suit their peculiarities and staving off the attentions of their weaker and jealous kindred to claim their place in the material world.
The most recent eye witness accounts invariably report more frequent sighting of these Possessed Marines. To the upper echelons of the sons of Dorn and the Inquisition, it can only mean one thing.......that the Castigators are slowly making good on their vow!    
  
  

The Enlightened sighted at 'The Khai-Zhan Uprising'  968.M41 fighting alongside the Night Lords. The Imperial Fists 5th & 9th  companies successfully defeated the Night Lords as their right flank suddenly collapsed. Thirty Imperial Fists bodies were mysteriously reported missing.

Led by the Champion known as 'Tantalus,' the Enlightened are reportedly being hunted by Inquisitor Dragosani and the Grey Knights.