Huron Blackheart:
"The strong are strongest alone." Lufgt Huron, Tyrant of Badab.
The Blood Reaver. Master of the Red Corsairs. Lord of the Maelstrom. The Tyrant of Badab.
These are just some of the names Huron Blackheart has acquired. But none of them are the one he was born with. Until 912.M41, he was simply Lufgt Huron, Master of the Astral Claws. Simply? Huron was the cause of four Space Marine Chapters defections, caused a war which lasted for 11 years and tied up the resources of twice as many Chapters again.
What caused the megalomania which gripped Huron and turned him from a loyal servant of the Imperium into first a corrupt ruler and then an out-and-out enemy is not known - the Astral Claws records where improperly filed with the Administratum, and most of them were lost when Badab was cleansed. It can be speculated that some genetic flaw which might have been corrected had such reports been logged in due time, and the proximity to the raw Chaos of the Maelstrom, contributed to Huron's mental state. Whatever the cause, the Tyrant of Badab steadily drifted from the Imperium, hoarding planetary tithes for himself and chafing increasingly under the rule of the Emperor until 901.M41 when he declared his seccession from the Imperium and ordered the destruction of the investigatory fleet which had arrived to query the missing revenues.
Initially, Huron was able to mount a successful defence of his territory. Two further fleets where destroyed in 902 and 903, and the Mantis Warriors, Executioners and Lamenters Chapters pledged their loyalty to him over the Emperor. But, eventually, the full wrath of the Imperium was bound to be brought bear against him. Timing had aided his early success; the Marines Errant were away on the Eastern Fringe and Ork incursions occupied other loyalist Chapters in the area. When these threats died down and the Errants were recalled, other loyalists brought to bear, Huron was ultimately outgunned and outnumbered. Slowly, his forces and worlds fell to protracted siege and ambush. Finally, the loyalist forces stormed Badab itself and laid siege to the Palace of Thorns. Around 200 of the Astral Claws escaped the fall of Badab, and Huron was believed to have been among the casualties - having been caught in a melta blast during the closing moments of the fighting.
His loyal Marines hid themselves in the Maelstrom, and Astral Claw Apothecaries and Techmarines worked ceaselessly to preserve their Master's life. After eight days of painstaking work, they had rebuilt the melted side of his body with bionics and the Master ordered the fleet to nearby pirate stronghold. Even a weakened force of Space Marines was more than enough to overwhelm the pirates, and the Astral Claws and Huron had a new home. From the Maelstrom, Huron Blackheart now commands the Red Corsairs; renegade Space Marines from all the Chapters who had fought on his side during the Badab Uprising.
Source: Codex: Chaos, 2nd Edition by various
Submitter: Simguinus
Hive World Terra