Cassian Dracos
Cassian Vaughn[1a] was a Salamanders Lord Commander during the Unification Wars, Great Crusade, and Horus Heresy.[1] He eventually became the leader of the "Disciples of the Flames".[2]
Overview
Mortally wounded in battle against Orks in the Taras Division, Cassian was the first Lord Commander of the XVIIIth Legion (later to be known as the Salamanders) before the coming of their Primarch Vulkan. Held in high esteem by the rest of the Legion, after his wounding Vulkan fashioned for him a unique suit of Dreadnought armour known as the Dracos Revenant. This unique sarcophagus of unparalleled resilience that was forged in nigh-impregnable alloy that was said to be a relic of the Dark Age of Technology.[1b][1c]
As the years went on, Cassian (now Cassian Dracos) began to suffer from the mental dilution common in those entombed as a Dreadnought. He began to only be awoken in the most dire of circumstances. Such a case arose during the Drop Site Massacre, where he spearheaded an attack against the enemy and later slaughtered vast amounts of Traitors during the encirclement of loyalist forces. Eventually, his armour was burned through and pierced in a dozen places by heavy weapons fire but he fought on, crashing into the encircling foes and leaving a trail of devastation.[1b]
Badly damaged, Dracos' sarcophagus was buried beneath Isstvan V. It was later recovered by the crew of the Ebon Drake, and upon reawakening Dracos informed his brethren that Vulkan lived. Dracos later commanded his mixed force of Salamanders, Raven Guard, Iron Hands, and Iron Warriors -known as the "Disciples of the Flames"- to a significant victory in the Mezoan Campaign.[2]
Sources
- 1: The Horus Heresy Book Two - Massacre
- 2: The Horus Heresy Book Six, pgs. 35–38
