Brother Ganthel

This article, Brother Ganthel, was written by The Pale Kestrl. Please do not edit or 'acquire' this fiction without the writer's permission.

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The Daemonslayer
Brother Ganthel
Biographical information & physical traits
Date of birth	504.M41
Homeworld	Dorn's Rest
Height	9'8"
Hair color	Dark Brown
Eye color	Blue
Wargear	Various
Service history & affiliation
Chapter	Grey Knights
Company	7th Brotherhood
Role	Close Combat Daemonslayer
Rank	Captain
Battles	Numerous
Status	Active
Affiliation	Grey Knights The Inquisition (Ordo Malleus) The Imperium of Man
[Source]

"We hold the last light of hope for our kind. If we fall, humanity falls with us. So, if I must give my life so that the light can shine on, then so be it."

―Brother Ganthel of the Grey Knights

Brother Captain Ganthel, born Zakil Galaive, is a well respected member of the Grey Knights space marine chapter. Born on the pilgrim world of Dorn's Rest the young boy lived the life of a servant. As he grew older he began to develop innate psychic powers, and a few years later he was claimed by the Black Ships. He was chosen by the Gatherers to become an initiate, and despite the odds stacked against him the young aspirant survived and was fully brought into the chapter.

In his time as a Grey Knight he would face down all manner of foes; human, alien, mutant and daemon. His strength of will and skill in combat are known throughout the order. Even in the dark and dire times that humanity finds itself in Ganthel still holds to his oaths, staunchly defending his people. Even if he must do so without them knowing.

Biography

Early Life

The child that would one day become the hero Ganthel started his life simply. Born on the pilgrim world of Dorn's Rest, named so because the great Primach Rogal Dorn once stayed on the planet, to a guard and priestess of the temple. They named the boy Zakil Galaive. Due to his mixed parentage his life was a mixture of prayer and preparation to join the Ecclesiarchy with his mother while his father took time to teach him physical training in the hopes he would join the guard, perhaps being chosen to join the Imperial Guard as part of the planet's tithe.

As he grew older the young boy begun to escape his parents clutches and would hide away to learn about far off lands. His studies eventually lead him to discover the Adeptus Astartes, specifically Rogal Dorn's Imperial Fists. He became amazed by the stories of these hero's and their mighty leader and wanted nothing more than to join them in their fight for humanity. While his parents found this incredibly funny, watching their child play around pretending to be a mighty space marine for him the dreams of becoming a space marine were as a real as the statue of Rogal Dorn in the temple he lived in.

As he grew older he began to become the centre of strange events, objects moving of their own accord or things breaking with no explanation as to why. Stranger still he began to suffer from a persistent dream. In the dream he was standing on the roof of the temple at night. After a while he would turn and next to him was a huge figure. Dressed in blue grey armour and holding a huge spear, after a while the figure would turn to look at him. He would ask the figures name and what it was. The figure never responded, it just turned to look at him and then in a flash of blinding light the dream would end.

What the boy didn't know was that he was developing psychic powers. Something that would come to a head two years later. On Dorn's Rest the rule of the Ecclesiarchy didn't go unchallenged and their was a fairly large chaos cultist group massing on the world. One night the cult chose to attack Zakil's home temple. They attacked in the night though they were soon discovered and the guard raised. At the time Zakil had been studying again and was heading back to his house when he stumbled upon the battle. A cultist caught sight of him and tried to grab him but his father leapt to his defence. He killed the cultist and was moving to help his son when he was stabbed from behind.

As his father lay dying before him the boy's powers finally made themselves known. He pushed both arms forward and unleashed a shockwave of psionic energy. The blast pulped the chaos worshippers near him and scattered the rest from the temple. As the blinding light subsided the boy passed out and fell into a coma from the effort.

This burst of untapped psychic energy caught the attention of the Black Ships, vessel's that prowl the Imperium searching for psykers. They arrived a few days later. Coming to the temple and claiming the boy, there was nothing anyone could do. This would be the last time anyone would see Zakil Galaive.

Before he woke from his coma the boy received one last dream. This time the figure turn to him and told him that the path was set and that the Knights of Grey would guide him to it. Before he could ask what that statement meant he was forced back into consciousness. Upon awaking he was greeted by two huge men garbed in grey robes, they were ordering him to go with them. Believing them to be the knights that his dream referred to he followed them out of the ship.

Trials of the Aspirant

Upon his arrival to the Grey Knights citadel on Titan the young aspirant immediately begun his trials. Known as the six-hundred and sixty six Rituals of Detestation were designed to test the young boys to their limits and were capable of standing against the horrors that they were to face, if they survived the trails themselves. In order to ensure that the aspirant is worthy of the Emperors Gift the trails are as harsh and brutal as any other space marine chapter, perhaps even more so.

The first trail, the pilgrimage across the haunted plains of Xanadu Regio, is considered the trail by fire. Only one in a thousand make it to the other side. The second trial, the trek through the Glyphite-stalked caverns beneath Ganesa Macula, usually claims one in a million. And so on through all the trails, be they a test of physical prowess, mental fortitude or strength of will, the novitiates will be whittled away until only the worthiest remain.

Zakil, now known as Forty One in accordance with tradition, passed through the sisyphean tasks set before him. Not always with victory grasped in his hands, on many occasions he had nearly been taken. Nearly been another name to be marked down in the Annals of Failure. But he survived and proved his worth to the brotherhood of titan.

Satisfied with the few that remained once the trials had been completed the aspirants were to be forever changed. Shedding their mortal body's and elevating them to an astartes of the grey knights. Their body's were remoulded by the bio-engineering and psycho-surgery that they had been submitted even as their minds were scoured of their past and remade to become one of the knights astartes. Only with the final implant of the chapters gene seed did they finally become one of the chapter.

But even as they were born again in service to the emperor their training continued. With the brotherhood champions were they taught how to fight their enemies physically. How to strike their foes down with bolter and blade. Our young hero favoured the nemesis force sword, a common weapon but one that he wielded with skill. On the other end of the spectrum the chapters Librarians instructed them how utilise their psychic gifts. Forty One was a telekine and though not the most powerful among his peers he was strong enough to stand his ground against most of them.

Eventually, after years of training and conditioning, it was over. He had gone from human youth to post human warrior. As a sign of his acceptance into the Grey Knights forty one was finally given a name. On that day he took up the mantle of Ganthel. A name not heard of in a few thousand years. The last Ganthel was slain fighting a daemon horde far to the galactic east, his name listed on the great marble wall in the Dead Fields. Promising to honour his name Ganthel was passed over to a new squad, Squad Arthus.

Personality

Ganthel's personality embodies the noble standards set by his chapter, he is loyal, honourable and selfless. These however are all to be expected of a knight of titan, the true qualities that set him apart are those of a sympathetic and kind soul. He is greatly loyal to any he calls friend and will fight through anything to ensure that they are safe. Whether he remember his past or not Ganthel's personality mirrors that of Rogal Dorn, the Primach of the Imperial Fists.

Early on in his life as a grey knight he was very inquisitive in nature and spent much of his time studying the mysteries of the warp as well as the battles of the grey knights over the millennia. He never fully grew out of his searching nature and would spend much of his time on Titan in the librium. His good natured attitude did extend into the field and he would do everything he could to avoid contact with those that didn't need to see him, for fear of damning them to execution.

Trivia

• Ganthel is based, in some area's heavily, off of the Grey Knight Brother Hyperion. Whom the author likes a lot.