Welcome to the Gathering of Angels! In the summer of the year 2003 Games Workshop launched their most ambitious world wide campaign in the form of the Eye of terror campaign. The build up to this campaign was highly electric and the design efforts by the GW Web Team was second to none. The campaign would depict Abaddon's thirteenth crusade which was culmination of all his previous efforts. He would strike in to the Cadian sector with the aim of destroying the pylons of Cadia, expanding the eye of terror and controlling the real space in the region of the Cadian Gate. The campaign would be fought by players and hobbyists from all over the world, and the results be allowed to be input via the web. Intricacies, which late revealed themselves, were incorporated to enhance the experience. Much back ground was created and many armies commissioned during this period. As the build up for the campaign gained momentum I had a unique and rare opportuniyy to do something for the unforgiven forces on the side of the imperium. The activity of the fallen and sightings of Cypher had increased out of all proportions within the region of the Cadian sector, and the involvement of the unforgiven chapters a foregone conclusion. A group of like minded individuals had already congregated sometime ago, under the auspices of GW Dark Angels guru Owen Rees, who created the organisation that we call the INNER CIRCLE. At that time this mostly included a handful of members, mostly from the Dark Angels forum of the Bolter + Chainsword Space Marine chat board. The members of the inner circle are listed below:

FOREWORD Chronicled By ( Shadow Guard )

GATHERING OF ANGELS

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Owen Rees - Commander of the Dark Angels fifth company, webmaster of the Outpost site and creator of the inner circle. Grandmaster ZeussS - Dedicated Deathwing player B+C moderator  and webmaster of the Gods of War web site Brother Bish - Commander of the Dark Angels third company and webmaster of the Angelicus Mortis web site Vet Sergeant Malyr - Intrepid veteran of all things Dark Angels and an moderator at the DA B+C forum Project XXVIII - Venerable dreadnought, B+C moderator and soon to be owner of the Deathwing company. Shadow Guard - B+C moderator and webmaster of the Fortress of the Unforgiven site.

The purpose of the inner circle was largely to develop the Dark Angels chapter and legion further, create opportunities for the gamers and hobbyists to be involved through the auspices of the B+C board and generally be at the forefront of anything that was related to Dark Angels. Having four of the more comprehensive Dark Angels websites under our purview and four amongst us being moderators at the Dark Angels forum gave us the opportunity of seriously working on the Dark Angels back ground. We came up with the idea of creating a background for the involvement of the unforgiven forces in the EOT campaign. That gradually underwent metamorphosis in to the Gathering of Angels EOT campaign, which consisted of a series of missions that would be released to the gaming public, who could register with our own web site and send us the results. The results of each segment would affect the missions in the next. This was designed in a linear fashion simply because we would only be using input from Dark Angels players, on the results of their battles. The participants could choose which of the five missions they wanted to be involved in and send in their results. Missions for EPIC and BFG were also included. It was the web mastering genius of Owen Rees which allowed the successful creation of the GoA web site. Every member of the inner circle contributed their precious time and much effort. The campaign missions were matched to the events occurring in the EOT campaign and modified as the war see sawed from victory to defeat. We launched the GoA campaign three weeks ahead of the EOT to get the preliminary missions under way, and a each segment was completed I would have the narrative story for that segment ready to be released. Such was the beginning of the GoA narrative story. Sadly real life involvement and the burn out caused by the EOT campaign meant that the final segment of the story, including the outcomes and the end of the plot lines were not completed until late January 2004. My humble apologies to the patient masses of the Unforgiven. This piece of fiction is written in a fashion to try and depict the massive width and scale of the conflict. Most characters make appearances in single chapters and often end falling to the enemy. Such was the carnage in the EOT that I wanted to capture the feel that no hero or villain was beyond te clutches of death. A few supremely gifted characters are seen to direct the fate of their followers in these desperate times. This is seriously the first full length piece of fiction I have written. (previously they have been either short stories or backgrounds for armies and strike forces) I am but a simple amateur trying to put in words my imagination and my creative thoughts. I have lived the campaign in my mind, trying to capture the feeling of impending doom that most characters faced in this awesome event. I have tried my best to weave a web of intrigue in this storyline, while keeping true to everything in GW history. I hope that the end result keeps up with the expectation I had for it. I am most grateful to the members of the Inner Circle, for the support and creative help they provided and mostly for the feedback and direction on the chapters I had written. Much thanks also to the members of Games Workshop Development Team, especially Andy Hoare, who never ceases to encourage the hobbyists. Lastly, but most importantly, I wish to thanks the gaming public, the fanatic Dark Angel players, whose enthusiasm and support was instrumental not only in the successful culmination of the Gathering Angels  campaign and story but also the continued growth of the Fortress of the Unforgiven. Thanks You The Shadow Guard

This section provides the narrative history of the events that took place during the Gathering of Angels campaign conducted by the Inner Circle, during Abaddon's Thirteenth Black Crusade. This is in no way the official GW version nor is it in anyway an attempt to infringe on their IP. There are many versions of imperial history buried within the sands of time and this is but just one of them. Read on if you dare!