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Leon ­Chirastes

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Leon ­Chirastes was a Cardinal Astra of the Ecclesiarchy, who waged a shadow war against the Space Wolves Chapter.[1e]

History

Spoiler!
This page contains spoilers for: The Helwinter Gate (Novel)

He was once highly regarded within the Ecclesiarchy and it had seemed possible he would come to dominate the politics of the Church[1c]. However Chirastes was also driven to investigate any claims of Heresy against the Imperial Cult. This led to his downfall[1e], when Chirastes learned that such heretical beliefs were being practiced on the Space Wolves Chapter's Homeworld, Fenris. He began investigating the matter and though it took a lifetime, Chirastes was able to gather enough evidence to initiate an investigation on the world. As the Ecclesiarchy's protocols dictated, he led a delegate-fleet to Fenris, but the servants he sent to investigate the Space Wolves were killed by the Chapter. If the Space Wolves thought this would dissuade Chirastes from his cause they were mistaken. It only made him more driven to find proof of their Heresy and he later returned with a large fleet[1f] composed of his own warships and those of three Orders of the Adepta Sororitas. The fleet then attacked Fenris and invaded with its armies to purge the world. However they were beaten back and after three weeks, Chirastes and his commanders knew they were defeated. Chirastes would not retreat, though, until he had gathered the names of every Space Wolf battlefield commander and squad leader who had opposed him. Using a Sensor-vessel, he scanned into their comms and secured a list of names from the battle-cant the Chapter was using. With that complete, Chirastes vowed they would return to gain revenge against the Space Wolves and then ordered his ravaged fleet to retreat.[1a]

In the battle's aftermath, it became known as the Fenris Incident and official records stated that Chirastes later resigned from his position and withdrew from the Ecclesiarchy[1e]. In truth, however, he had become obsessed with gaining revenge against the Space Wolves and began a shadow war against them[1f]. He adopted the name Fulcrum[1b] and with his loyal followers' aid, Chirastes began translating the Space Wolves' battle-cant he had recorded. With their Gothic names now in his hands, Chirastes created heavily augmented soldiers known as[1f] Fulcrum Hunters[1i], who would be his weapon of choice against the Space Wolves. He also began building a network of bases to track down each of the listed Space Wolves from the Fenris Incident. However his greatest resource was the Ecclesiarchy itself, as Chirastes still possessed his badge of office. Though he had resigned from the Ecclesiarchy, he knew that simply having the image of a Cardinal Astra's badge attached to any unsigned orders he sent out, would be enough to ensure they would be obeyed. This allowed him to stay unnoticed by both the Ecclesiarchy and the Space Wolves, as there would be no name to link back to him. Using this tactic, Chirastes was able to have Astra Militarum Regiments he had infiltrated with his Fulcrum Hunters, sent to fight beside the Space Wolves he targeted for death. The Fulcrum Hunters then worked to be near the Space Wolf and secretly killed them, when they were isolated from other members of their Chapter. In the chaos of the battle, the Space Wolves believed the slain member had been killed by the foes they had faced.[1f]

­Chirastes operated this way for over a century[1f], but in the last decades of the 900's of M41, the Ecclesiarchy became aware of his actions. At first their investigation uncovered only that either someone or a group of people called Fulcrum were exploiting the Ecclesiarchy's resources for their own gain. In time, Chirastes' true identity was uncovered, as the Ecclesiarchy discovered his hidden bases and they learned of his shadow war against the Space Wolves. This led the Ecclesiarchy to begin a war of their own, to put Chirastes' organization to the flame and arrest him for his Heresy against the Church[1e]. By then, Chirastes was too involved in killing the Space Wolves on his list and refused to stop. This led him to bleed his resources and supporters by both continuing to wage his shadow war and destroy any evidence that the Ecclesiarchy could use to find him[1f]. This did not curtail the Ecclesiarchy, however, and it began destroying Chirastes' hidden bases and killing his allies[1e]. By the early years of the 13th Black Crusade, his shadow war and the Ecclesiarchy had cost Chirastes his battle group of warships he once commanded[1f], including his flagship the Righteous Flail[1a], and the worlds he once had dominion over. Most of Chirastes' hidden bases were also destroyed by the Ecclesiarchy, with his only remaining base being on the Mining World Ojada VII. Chirastes and the last of his resources were located there, though, he knew the Ecclesiarchy was aware of the base's existence. With time running out and only one name left on his list, Chirastes used the majority of his remaining Fulcrum Hunters to complete his revenge. He had[1f] 500 of them infiltrate the world's Ojada Perennials Fourteenth Advanced Armoured Regiment[1i] and then ensured they were sent to Cadia. There they would kill the last listed Space Wolf who took part in the Fenris Incident[1f]: Blackmane Thunderfist[1h]. With that, Chirastes was content his vengeance was finally complete[1f]. When the Ecclesiarchy fleet of Cardinal Axith Orquemond reached Ojada VII, however, it had become one of the worlds invaded by the 13th Black Crusade's Chaos forces[1c]. This did not stop them from carrying out their orders and their fleet held orbit above Ojada VII, while sending their forces to capture Chirastes[1e]. They faced harsh resistance from the invading Chaos invaders, however, and only a portion of their forces were able to attack Chirastes' last base.[1d]

By then, however, Chirastes and his deputy Buta Avelina had taken heavy dosages of the poison Acherosa in order to prevent themselves from being captured[1f]. With the last of Fulcrum Hunters defending his base, Chirastes prayed and waited for the poison to kill him. Despite their larger numbers, though, the attacking Ecclesiarchy forces were killed by the Fulcrum Hunters. They had left only a few alive, however, which allowed the Space Wolves' Járnhamar Pack to kill the last of the Hunters, when they later invaded the base[1d]. The Pack had uncovered Chirastes attacks on the Chapter as well and had tracked him down to avenge the Space Wolves he had killed. With his end near, though, Chirastes was only too happy to explain his actions when they pressed him for answers. He laughed and smiled as told the Pack what he had done and that he had killed all the names that were on his list, including the Pack's former member Hjortur Bloodfang. In a rage the Pack member Gunnlaugur killed Chirastes and the Space Wolves then fled with his dying deputy, Avelina to interrogate her[1f]. Meanwhile, Cardinal Orquemond's fleet was informed by its forces, that the Chaos invaders were overrunning them. Unless further reinforcements were sent, they would not be able to capture Chirastes. Orquemond refused to do so, however, and instead enacted their last option - destroying Chirastes' base, with an orbital bombardment in order to ensure his death.[1g]

The Járnhamar Pack successfully escaped before the base was destroyed and later interrogated Avelina, about the last name on Chirastes' list. The Pack did not believe that Chirastes had completed his task and sought the name in order to save the targeted Space Wolf. Nearing death, Avelina relented as she had become bitter that her loyalty to Chirastes, had led her to waste her life, fulfilling his vengeance. With her dying breath, Avelina then told the Pack that the last name on the list was Blackmane Thunderfist[1h]. They knew of no Space Wolf by that name, however, and the Pack suspected that Chirastes had mistranslated the Chapter's battle-cant. This likely meant he had sent his Fulcrum Hunters after Space Wolves who had taken part in the Fenris Incident, as well as those who had not. With the name being Thunderfist, however, the Pack believed it referred to the Wolf Lord Berek Thunderfist, who had gained renown defending his Homeworld in the Fenris Incident. He had long been dead, though, and the Pack suspected the Fulcrum Hunters had been sent after his successor Ragnar Blackmane due to his name containing Blackmane. They knew he fought on Cadia and rushed to save him from Chirastes' last attack[1i]. They succeeded in doing so and reached Ragnar's side, as the Fulcrum Hunters were attacking him. Between the Járnhamar Pack and the Wolf Lord, the Space Wolves killed the Fulcrum Hunters and thwarted Chirastes from completing his vengeance.[1j]

Sources