Blood Angels 2nd Company

The Blood Angels 2nd Company are known as "the Blooded" -- a hundred loyal battle-brothers of the Blood Angels Space Marine Chapter, gathered together under the command of Captain Donatos Aphael. Within the Chapter they are renowned for their purity, both in mind and body, and of all of the companies theirs is among the least prone to mass instances of the Black Rage. The Blooded embody the perfection of Sanguinius in both word and deed and, when unleashed upon the battlefield by their commander, strive to live up to their Primarch's glorious example. However, this thirst for perfection is not without a price for the battle-brothers of the 2nd Company -- a price that must be paid in blood.

History
Just as each Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes is unique among its peers, so too are the companies of the Blood Angels ancient and sacred brotherhoods in their own right. Legends say that the "Blooded" earned their name long ago from Captain Athaeus, remembered as one of the first to command the 2nd Company. As the tale goes, Athaeus the Blooded was among the first of his brothers to master the Red Thirst. Some say it was just after the Second Founding, when the Chapter was forged from the Legion that had fought to protect the Emperor from the treachery of Horus, others that it was alter, during the dark centuries that followed. Whenever Athaeus lived, the stories agree he was a great warrior, created in Sanguinius' image. Even in those days, the Flaw had already started to make itself known within the ranks of the Blood Angels. Athaeus learnt that only by giving in to the Red Thirst was he able to master it. This revelation came upon him when he was drenched in the blood of his foes. It was amid a broken citadel of the Emperor's Children, when Athaeus had just finished quenching his rage with the lives of the traitors. Only when he came back from the brink of madness did he feel a calm fall upon him, and knew in that moment that the Red Thirst no longer had mastery over his mind, and that he could channel it to his will.

Thus, millennia later, the Blooded still relate tales of Athaeus and strive to master the same Flaw that assailed their ancestor. It has become a practice within the secret circles of the 2nd Company that no battle-brother can know the Red Thirst until they have completely given themselves over to it. This process is known to the company as being Blooded, and it is from this that they draw their name. Although casting down any foe while in the grip of the Red Thirst is sufficient for the Blooding, it is considered favourable to expend this rage upon a cursed traitor, just as Athaeus did. Whether or not the process of Blooding grants the battle-brothers of the 2nd Company any more mastery over the Flaw than other Blood Angels is unclear. However, Captain Aphael encourages the continuation of the tradition -- he himself having undergone the rite before earning the mantle of Company Captain. What is apparent is that, while the Blooded more frequently display the Red Thirst than their brothers, they are less likely than any other Blood Angels to fill the ranks of the Death Company.

This polarisation of the Flaw led Sanguinary High Priest Corbulo to become very interested in the Blooded in his quest to cure the Black Rage. However, he has as yet been unable to discern any specific reason for this discrepancy from among the traditions and secrets of the 2nd Company. The company's gene-seed likewise holds no answers, drawn as it is from the same stocks as the rest of the Chapter and burdened with the same mutations. Corbulo has begun to suspect that whatever drives the Blooded to perfection is as much of the mind as it is the body. Unlike the Flesh Tearers, which under the stewardship of Gabriel Seth have given in completely to the Red Thirst, the Blooded channel the Flaw with every action and deed. When the urge to rip apart their foes with tooth and nail swells up within their hearts, and the very scent of blood seems to hang heavy upon the air, the battle-brothers remember their Blooding. They recall the feeling of bringing death to their enemies and how their foes' flesh came apart under their crushing fingers. In this moment their bodies succumb to the Red Thirst, charging towards their quarry, but their mind remains clear and filled only with exacting purpose. To their foes, in the fleeting moments of terror and hatred before they are hacked down, the channelled rage of the Blooded is an essence indistinguishable form the battle-madness of other Blood Angels. And yet, to the Sanguinary Priests, the Blooded are unique. As they fight, their expressions remain serene and purposeful, the light in their eyes unclouded by the madness commonly seen in a battle-brother in the grip of the Red Thirst.

In recent centuries the Blooded have found themselves at the forefront of the Chapter's fighting time after time. It was the Blooded that destroyed the Mirrorfane on Hydris V. When the Hydris PDF fell to possession and madness, the planetary lords sent out a plea for aid from the Imperium. First to arrive were three regiments of Valhallan Astra Militarum, six thousand veteran soldiers fresh form the warzones of the Shardfell Reaches. These too succumbed to the Keeper of Secrets trapped within the Mirrorfane, swelling the armies of Chaos. By the time Captain Aphael and the Blooded reached orbit above Hydris they found a world fortified against them and thousand of enemies hungry for their blood. Without hesitation, Aphael divided his company into two demi-companies and launched lightning strikes against both the planetary lords of Hydris in their Stormwrought Citadel and the Mirrorfane fortress. Guided by the masterful command of Aphael, the fury of the Blood Angels crushed the traitors' defences. Aphael himself shattered the Mirrorfane with his Power Sword, banishing the Greater Daemon of Slaanesh back into the Warp.

The Hydris War was a perfect example of how the Red Thirst is tempered by the discipline and planning of the Blooded. Captain Aphael organised the demi-company that struck the Stormwrought Citadel around his Devastators, Dreadnoughts and heavy tanks. Their combined firepower allowed them to tear apart the traitors and blast a way into the inner sanctums of the planetary lords. Meanwhile Aphael personally led the other demi-company, this one built on a foundation of Assault Marines and fast-moving armoured transports. These warriors embraced the fury of the Red Thirst to overcome the superior numbers of their foes. With this tailored battle-group Aphael was able to take the forces defending the Mirrorfane by surprise, obliterating them completely in a furious close-quarters engagement.

The Blooded

 * Command Squad - As part of the Blood Angels Chapter the Blooded adhers to the teaching of the Codex Astartes. The Captain and his Command Squad lead ten squads of ten battle-brothers -- six Tactical Squads, two Assault Squads and two Devastator Squads, just as laid out in the sacred text. However, even within the rigid organisational and operational guidelines of the Codex Astartes, each company in the Blood Angels retains its own personality. Captain Aphael and his Command Squad encapsulate this identity and the ancient traditions of the Blooded. Each of its battle-brothers is clad in unique suits of Power Armour, covered in the blood, wing and chalice iconography of the Blooded, like the blessed company standard, displaying the winged chalice of Sanguinius and a yellow blood drop upon a field of red and yellow. The blood drop in this context is not only the symbol of the 2nd Company, but also represents the blood of the Primarch, carried in the veins of the Sons of Sanguinius.
 * Ancient Warriors - Dreadnoughts are the armoured fists of the Blooded. These ancient walking tanks often take on the role of the Company's shock troops, smashing aside enemy defences with Power Fist or missile and opening the way for their battle-brothers. Each Dreandought is both a favoured weapon of war and a connection to the Chapter's past, to be honoured and respected.
 * Squad Angelon - Squad Angelon is a Tactical Squad of the 2nd Company.
 * Sergeant Borgio - Squad Borgio is equipped for close range destruction, augmenting their trusty Bolters with a Meltagun and Heavy Flamer. At close range and in close quarters this allows them to unleash a torrent of searing death, burning their enemies to cinders and turning tanks to smoking scrap.
 * Sergeant Daento - Squad Daento is the brother squad to Forian. Squad Daento can either work in concert with the 2nd Company's other Assault Marines or range out on the opposite flank to create a skyborne pincer. Similarly armed to Squad Forian, the two groups of Assault Marines can be distinguished by the squad markings on their right knee plates -- one black upon yellow, the other yellow upon black.
 * Sergeant Forian - Sergeant Forian is an assault squad that brings their mobility and close combat prowess to the battlefield. Like all Blood Angels Assault Marines, the battle-brothers of Squad Forian wear yellow helmets. Boosted by their Jump Packs, Squad Forian is able to bound swiftly across the battlefield to hammer into foes that are beyond the reach of their earth-bound comrades.
 * Sergeant Goriel - Squad Goriel favours plasma weaponry for its raw destructive power in long-range engagements.
 * Sergeant Inortros - The blue helmets of Squad Inortros mark them as Devastator Marines, their role to lend long-ranged fire support to the Blooded. Their deadly heavy weapons are designed to deal with both tanks and heavily armoured infantry. Their Plasma Cannons, versatile Missile Launchers and Multi-Melta can destroy any tank known to the Imperium. From a good firing position, Squad Inortros are often employed to soften up enemy formations before the Blooded launch a furious assault, or take out vehicles that threaten their lines.
 * Sergeant Karos - Squad Karos primarily serves in an anti-infantry role. Squad Karos' Plasma Cannons serve to sear their way through dense lines of infantry while their Heavy Bolters prove excellent at scything down massed foes.
 * Sergeant Ludvaius - Sergeant Ludvaius is the veteran 1st Squad of the 2nd Company, bearing the white skull on a black field upon their knee plates. Veterans of the company, Squad Ludvaius often has the honour of being the first into the fray.
 * Sergeant Meteros - Squad Meteros benefits from the many ancient and honoured weapons from the Blood Angels Chapter's extensive armouries, as can be seen by their mix of armour and helmets, showcasing various marks of Power Armour used by the Adeptus Astartes during their long and illustrious wars for the Emperor.
 * Sergeant Vorlois - Squad Vorlois is often employed in close range assaults. Armed with a Heavy Flamer, Meltagun, they are able to incinerate their enemies in blasts of holy flame and superheated melta fire. Able to tackle swarms of lesser foes or even armoured threats when the need arises, this is a versatile squad.

Notable Members of the Blooded

 * Captain Donatos Aphael -
 * Sergeant Angelon - Sergeant Angelon is a squad leader of the 2nd Company, having served the Blooded for over two centuries, as is hinted at by his ornate armour and golden laurelled helmet, and he has been entrusted with a rare and potent Combi-Grav.
 * Sergeant Borgio - Sergeant Borgio is a squad leader of the 2nd Company. Borgio and his battle-brothers are equipped for close range destruction. Borgio himself carries an Inferno Pistol, enabling him to fight at close range and in close quarters, to unleash a torrent of searing death upon his enemies.
 * Sergeant Daento - Sergeant Daento is a squad leader of the 2nd Company. His assault squad is the brother squad to Forian.
 * Sergeant Forian - Sergeant Forian is a squad leader of the 2nd Company. His assault squad bring their mobility and close combat prowess to the battlefield.
 * Sergeant Goriel - Sergeant Goriel is a squad leader of the 2nd Company who favours plasma weaponry for its raw destructive power. He carries a combi-plasma for long range engagements and his squad is armed with a further Plasma Gun.
 * Sergeant Inortros - Sergeant Inortros is a squad leader of the 2nd Company. He leads Squad Inortros in their designated role of long-ranged fire support to the Blooded. Armed with Bolter and Chainsword, Sergeant Inortros commands expertly, spotting targets and ensuring that his squad's impressive firepower is put to the best possible use.
 * Sergeant Karos - Sergeant Karos is a squad leader of the 2nd Company. Armed with a crackling Power Fist and a deadly Plasma Pistol to ward enemy assaults, he leads his squad in an anti-infantry role.
 * Sergeant Ludvaius - Sergeant Ludvaius is a squad leader of the veteran 1st Squad of the 2nd Company. Veterans of the company, Squad Ludvaius often has the honour of being the first into the fray. Ludvaius himself has a bionic eye, a testament to his long years of war in the service of the Emperor.
 * Sergeant Meteros - Sergeant Meteros is a squad leader of the 2nd Company. His squad benefits from the many ancient and honoured weapons from the Blood Angels Chapter's extensive armouries, as can be seen by their mix of armour and helmets, showcasing various marks of Power Armour used by the Adeptus Astartes during their long and illustrious wars for the Emperor.
 * Sergeant Vorlois - Sergeant Vorlois is a squad leader of the 2nd Company. He often leads his squad in close range assaults. Armed with a Combi-Melta, Vorlois and his squad are able to incinerate their enemies in blasts of holy flame and superheated melta fire.