I wake up with a start, sweat running down my face. Another
nightmare. I lean forward and put my face in my hands. Why me? Why am I chosen
to be in the Inquisition? Why me! I never wanted this life! If I survive my
service, I’ll be scarred for life with these nightmares. It’s better to die
in battle I guess, then to live the full life. “Over thinking your sins
boy?” A voice cackled from behind. “No Matthias, just wandering how long its
going to take to choke the life out of you.” Old Matthias, a redemptionist who
travels alongside the Inquisitor as a orator and madman. He should be dead
twelve times over, but somehow always manages to survive. He sat down in the
seat next to me and strapped in. “Please, Jahn, tell me. What’s bothering
you?” Sometimes he was annoying, but other times such as now, he was a kindred
spirit, who showed understanding and was like a father to me. “I’m still
bothered by these nightmares of my past. It’s not that I’m a psyker or
anything, but every time we go into battle or on a mission I get these dreams.
As if an warning for things worse to come.” A shiver is in my voice.
“Matthias, I wish I could forget! These dreams make me wish that I dead at the
first encounter.” He put a comforting hand on my shoulder and patted me. “I
understand my boy, but these dreams are perhaps a way of showing you that there
must still be work to be done. Maybe the Emperor himself lets you have these
nightmares as a reminder or as a warning.” I shake my head in denial, knowing
better. “They are my daemons… Until the day I die I will be haunted by them.”
Matthias unstraps himself and climbs down the ladder. “Take care lad, you’ll
need it.” I pull out my hellpistol and check its charge, still in the healthy
green. It’s so easy, just aim at the head and pull the trigger, all over.
Nobody to explain it, except for the Emperor. I mentally slap myself and put the
sidearm away. The intercom opened up. “Lady and gentlemen, this is your
Captain speaking. We are about to land at the main spire of Teresa. I hope you
all enjoyed the ride and we hope for you all to return safely with of course
souvenirs. Don’t forget about us out there. Out.” The last part was meant
for me, once again reminding me that I owe them. I wish I died there, nothings
worse then owing people something.
+ + +
“My lord, I’ll cover you! Go!” I shout as I pull the trigger and send out
a tight burst of laser bolts into the charging mob. “Good boy! Lissette and
Jurgen go and cover with him. Fall back after at least thirty seconds!” I
lower the hellgun and automatically eject the spent battery. Years of combat and
drills have made a reload an automated action. I reach in my thigh pouch and
pull out a new one, slamming it in with precision and raise it to my shoulder as
it hums back to full power and gives a small beep in return. I flick the
selector to single shot and start taking pot shots at bad guys below me. Their
return fire is sporadic and badly aimed, not even worth ducking away for. Behind
me Jurgen, the combat servitor guards the door of the stairway, his power fist
flexing impatiently as it awaits its targets. To my left Lissette fires her
heavy bolter in full auto, her suit of power armour ensuring that the recoil
isn’t throwing her around. She makes wide sweeping moves and more and more
spent shell cases pile besides her. “Thirty! Move!” The comm.-link screeches
as the Inquisitor gives the order to move away. “Go! I’ll cover!” I shout
as I can hear them coming up the stairway. Jurgen takes his defensive stance and
smashes the first mutant with his fist as it bursts through the door. “Go. I
will cover your retreat.” He said with a cold and dead voice. As we moved away
Jurgen kept on smashing mutant after mutant with his power fist. He could have
made it, if it wasn’t for the Chaos Champion that swooped in from behind with
a jump pack. Jurgen’s body fell to the floor without a head. I stopped dead in
my tracks and dropped to a knee, tracking the Champion as it flew away. I
flicked the charge setting to full power and pulled the trigger, hitting the
jump pack and hitting something vulnerable. It explodes and the Champion crashes
to the ground. I bark a curt but colourful curse at the doomed champion followed
by a maniacal cackle. Switching it back top normal power I start blasting at the
mutants. “Go!” Lissette shouted as heavy bolter shells flew past me in a
well drilled firing order. I got up and while running for cover reloaded the
hellgun again in a mechanical manner. I ducked behind a low wall and laid in a
new covering fire as Lissette fell back again. “Go! Get to the Hawk! I’ll
catch up!” She ran past me and shouted several obscenities at me. Bravado
always kicks in at those one-against-all moments. I gun down several more as
they advanced. “Mortz! Time to leave!” Tobin screamed. “Roger that, on the
way!” As I got up the floor below me crumbled in a dull explosion and I fell
into the building. Krak grenades! I land in a badly executed roll and raise my
hellgun in time to block a blade arcing in at my head. I kick out at the mutant
and blast it away from me with a point blank shot. I switch to full auto and
start blasting at every shadow and movement in the room. Dead? Yeah, I killed
them all! Then something bounced into the room and landed near me. A green
cylinder commonly known in the Imperium as a frag grenade. I dive away, trying
to avoid the blast, but get caught in the blast. I slam against the wall with a
sickening crack. Darkness momentarily overtakes me, but vanishes in an instant
as my shell injects adrenalin to keep me awake. I try to get up, but my legs
hurt like hell. Looking down I can see blood pool under my legs. I pull out my
hellpistol and blast at the doorway from which the grenade came. ”Mortz! Are
you still alive!” I pull a frag grenade of my own of my bandolier and toss it
in the open door. A explosion rocks the building. “Immobilized! Need a pick up
and a medic!” I snarl between my teeth as I pull another grenade from my
webbing and lob it into the other room. “Roger that! We’ll be with ya in a
sec!” Saul calmly replies. A second dull explosion rocks the building as
plaster and dust rain down. A loud whine fills the room as the hole in the roof
is filled with the shadow of the Thunderhawk. It’s hovering… Great, I’m so
rescued. “What do you expect me to do? Crawl onto the roof!” I scream out.
“That won’t be necessary lad.” Serat calmly replies as he jumps down into
the hole with a special winch attached to his shell. He grabs hold of me and
straps me onto the harness. “Okay, pull us out!” Serat shouted and as we
lifted away I could feel my blood streaming away. As we cleared the building I
let my head hang and look down. My legs, though still attached, are a mess. I
can see several fragments of shrapnel and bone jutting through my fatigues. In
rage I pull out two grenades and drop them into the hole of the roof. As we are
pulled inside Inquisitor Tobin immediately injects me with narthecium as a way
to ease my pain. “Rest lad, rest.” Matthias says as he hangs over me, his
head wound freshly stitched and cleaned. He puts his hand on my fore head and
starts to pray. “I’m not dead yet old man…” I can’t seem to hear what
he’s saying as the narthecium sets in and takes me away.
+ + +
We parade through the long halls of the ruling class of Hive
Teresa. Parade is quite the right word for it as the servants of the Inquisitor
are quite diverse sometimes funny looking. I walk at the end of the train,
alongside Lissette and Thomas, the acolyte of Lord Tobin. “Is something
troubling you?” He asked me in a polite manner. He is the youngest in the
retinue, only 17 years old. I, am on the other hand 30, an old guy compared to
him. Lissette had just turned 28. But because of her power armour it’s hard to
guess how old she is. For the ceremonial occasions she wears the Sororitas
standard pattern helmet. Which looks pretty menacing with the reflecting visor
and all. Thomas wears his ceremonial robes over his ordinary clothes. And me,
I’m wearing my standard issue fatigues like those worn by soldiers in city
fights. We all carry our weapons, though this is a ceremony, we are not unarmed.
I carry my hellgun over my back along with my hellpistol and short sword which
are both sheathed on my belt. Several grenades dangle there as well alongside my
ceremonial knife I carry for such grand occasions. Lissette carries her bolter
in one hand, her chainsword and bolt pistol clipped onto her belt. Thomas
carries a plasma pistol beneath his robes alongside a wide variety of blades and
other short ranged weapons. We are ordered to stay back and let all the
ceremonial crap pass by, nod at the officials with mock interest and stay behind
the red line. After that we would enter the under hive and go hunting for
heretics and most important: Daemons.
+ + +
“Tell me sergeant, how did you and Lord Tobin meet?” Thomas addressed me by
my old storm troopers rank. We were sitting in a small room with a modest meal
on the table. The food was good, but tasteless in my opinion. One of the prices
one must pay for such harsh years of horrors. I was trying to take a nap, but
the always nosy Thomas had other plans.
“I first met the bastard about eight years ago. We were involved in a bloody
city fight and he was pinned down in a warehouse full of mutants. My squad and I
dropped in, banged and cleared the structure, breached the basement and rescued
him from a certain death in the sewers.
“He was happy with my appearance and seconded me and my squad to one of those
black ships. Guarding and collecting freaks. By then we had done five tours
aboard it, until we were boarded by a Ork pirate boarding party. Heavy fighting,
I lost my entire squad in the process, the captain decided to self destruct the
ship, better then letting the skins get a hold of all the witches and such. I
was one of the three survivors they managed to rescue.
“From that moment on I was ordered to his retinue as an honour. At first I was
honoured, but after learning the truth about this all I’d rather be in the
regular Guard then here: battling nightmares whom, once defeated, turn into
nightmares themselves in my head.” Thomas tutted at my story. “You disgrace
his lordship with such thoughts. Have faith in the Emperor and He shall deliver.”
Stupid fool, so young and already so deluded. “I’m going for walk, I need
the fresh air.” A lie, but I need to get away from him. I get up, gather my
gear and exit the small room. I head for the landing pad, which should be
deserted by now, except for the Thunderhawk crew. Thomas, fragging little
inquisitor Thomas. If I could, I’d kill him myself. A few stabs in the dark
and he’s out of the picture. But with him out of the way, there will be
another acolyte. I punch the wall in anger at the way my life turned out to be.
I drop my pack and sit against the wall, my bent head resting in my arms. “Is
life a drag soldier?” A electronic voice asked. “Frag of, I don’t need a
confirmation of my life.” I raise my head to look at the one who addressed me.
“You do not say such things to a senior Arbitres Officer young man. I could
have fined and locked up for it.” A security officer with carapace armour,
respirator and shot cannon stands before me. “Life’s a bitch, go bother
someone else please.” A light hiss can be heard as the officer takes of the
respirator. “Tell me about it soldier, life’s a bitch.” A young voice says
as the officer sits down opposite of me. “Muril Freemen’s the name, Officer
of the 113th precinct. And yours might be?” I unclip one of my dog tags and
toss it towards her. “Sergeant Mortz, Jahn Erich, of the 21st Terrax Guard?”
She whistled at the information compressed on the dog tag. “Life’s that
bad?” Se inquired. “I can’t tell you shit lady, too much information might
blow that pretty head of yours.” She tosses it back. I catch it in one hand
and clip it back on. “113th? Aint that all the way down below?” She nods.
“Let me guess, you must be our guide to the shit?” She raises a eyebrow in
question. “You’re with the holy Inquisition?” I nod. “Oh great. Good
luck down there, because I am not going down to deep. It’s hell down there and
that’s something I almost never say.” She lowers her voice to a whisper.
“They say that traitors and cultists are active down there, busy on
resurrecting an old monster.” Resurrection? Monster? Oh shit, not this again.
Better get this over with before they resurrect the thing… “On your feet
officer! You just earned yourself a seat! You are going to guide us!” I get up
and strap my pack on, unsling my hellgun and slam a fresh clip in. “Wait a
minute! I said no way!” I grab her by the arm and pull her up. “Come on
lady! You get to be a hero, or at least die in the process!” I pull her into
the main banquet hall where Lord Tobin is dining. “Yes Mortz?” He dryly
inquires as others looked disturbingly at me dragging an Arbitres Officer with
me. “Sir! We’ve got a lead! It’s fresh and stinks like shit!” He shot to
his feet in a second. “Excellent! Gentlemen I must go now, when I return the
beast shall be slain!” With that we left the bedazzled nobles behind.
+ + +
“Misfit, why do I always have to be the misfit. Why can’t
I just have a donut and stay at the precinct?” She can’t stop yammering.
Above that, I have to take point alongside her. I grab her by the shoulder
roughly and turn her to face me. “Listen lady, shut up! Show us the way and
you can leave!” She faintly nods and points to a large metal elevator. “That
way?” Another weak nod. I grunt and move forward, slapping my infra red over
my eyes. “No heat, no movement, nothing. Clear!” I step onto the elevator
and look down the shaft. Several red blurs are at the bottom. I switch the heat
sensitive off and zoom in on the shapes. “Got movement below. Humanoid, but in
a certain stage of decay. We’ve got some zombies down there.” Thomas and
Matthias are standing besides me now, looking down. Matthias held his
Eviscerator and Thomas has several blades in his hands, anxiety across his face.
“It’s zombie time!” Matthias gunned the Eviscerator into life with a loud
cough. “Amen to that!” Tobin shouted as he pushed the rune that lowers the
elevator. “Try not to waste too much ammo Jahn.” Thomas orders me. He,
ordering me. But then again. “Be careful shitstain, not to fall down or get
bitten by them, a single bite is more then enough to infect you. I give you the
Emperors Kiss myself if it should ever happen to you.” I shout at him with a
snarl. Almost there now, three meters to go. I clamber over the safety rail and
drop the last meters down, landing in a firing crouch. Instinct kicks in as I
start firing tight bursts of laser bolts into the darkness. I can hear them
shuffling towards us. Thomas rushes past me, blades spinning in his hands as he
hacks them apart. Matthias simply lets them walk towards him as he hacks them
down in wide sweeps and arcs of his Eviscerator. Officer Freemen fires her shot
cannon in full auto at the monsters, blowing away large chunks of rotting flesh
and whole limbs. Lissette fires her heavy bolter in single shot mode, each
carefully aimed shot utterly destroying a zombie. Lord Tobin just stands there,
examining the corpses. We advanced through these hordes inch by inch, cutting
down dozens as we got deeper and deeper into the bowels of the hive.
+ + +
'Get away!' Thomas screams as it comes round for another charge. 'Kill it!'
Tobin shouts as he shoots his plasma pistol again. I flick the charge setting to
high power and take aim. The dull bangs of the shot cannon and the wail of the
recharging plasma pistol are joined by the high screams of my hellgun pumping
bolt after bolt of white laser into the thing. It turns to face Tobin, screaming
a gut wrenching cry and starts to stomp forward. I run over to intercept it,
elbow Tobin out of the way and avoid being hit by one of it’s fangs. Matthias
jumps forward and plunges his Eviscerator in its flank, screaming litanies to
the Emperor in the process. I rise to a crouch and continue to fire at it,
switching my hellgun to full auto. Thomas also pulls out his plasma pistol and
fires a searing bolt into one of its eyes. The thing drops to the ground.
Dead?
I walk over to its head and blast it away with several more bursts. 'It’s dead
all right!' I state with sarcasm dryly. 'We need a bigger party of
reinforcements.' Tobin stated. He produced a golden teleport homer and pressed
the activation rune. 'We need brother sergeant Malachai on this one. I fear we
may have struck the hornets nest.' A sudden acitnic tang filled the air and blue
lightning leapt from the chamber's walls, crackling and buzzing as an enteric
wind whipped around its circumference. 'What the frag!' Freemen exclaimed.
'Relax lady, helps on the way.' The lightning discharged and there stood ten
Grey Knight Terminators. One of them stomped over, his armour decorated with
purity seals, scrolls and a prayer book. 'Brother sergeant Malachai! Have this
vessel cleansed at once. They are near, we need your assistance.' The huge
Terminator simply nodded and one of the other Terminators ignited his
incinerator and started burning the corpse. 'What are they? These aren’t
normal Astartes…' I look at Freemen with sorrow. 'No Muril, they are the end
of your normal life.' Yhey who sees the Grey Knights has two options: join the
retinue if you are useful or die, because you know too much. 'Stick close, cause
this will be tough.' The Terminators engage their searchlights and take up point.
'You are about to witness a miracle at work. They are the most holy warriors.
And the fact that you have seen them ends your normal life as an officer.'
Freemen look at me in shock and bring her shot cannon to bear. 'Are you going to
kill me!' I slap the barrel away and sigh deeply. 'No, I am a soldier, not a
executioner. Lord Tobin will decide whether you are useful for the coming battle
or not. Until then you are my charge, so please, try not to run, or I will shoot
you.' The comms crackle into life. 'Mortz! Get up here, we need you.' Malachai
called out. 'Roger that.' I pull Freemen with me as I slot my lamp-pack under
the barrel of my hellgun and head into the darkness.
+ + +
'Get away!' Thomas screams as it comes round for another
charge. 'Kill it!' Tobin shouts as he shoots his plasma pistol again. I flick
the charge setting to high power and take aim. The dull bangs of the shot cannon
and the wail of the recharging plasma pistol are joined by the high screams of
my hellgun pumping bolt after bolt of white laser into the thing. It turns to
face Tobin, screaming a gut wrenching cry and starts to stomp forward. I run
over to intercept it, elbow Tobin out of the way and avoid being hit by one of
it’s fangs. Matthias jumps forward and plunges his Eviscerator in its flank,
screaming litanies to the Emperor in the process. I rise to a crouch and
continue to fire at it, switching my hellgun to full auto. Thomas also pulls out
his plasma pistol and fires a searing bolt into one of its eyes. The thing drops
to the ground.
Dead?
I walk over to its head and blast it away with several more bursts. 'It’s dead
all right!' I state with sarcasm dryly. 'We need a bigger party of
reinforcements.' Tobin stated. He produced a golden teleport homer and pressed
the activation rune. 'We need brother sergeant Malachai on this one. I fear we
may have struck the hornets nest.' A sudden acitnic tang filled the air and blue
lightning leapt from the chamber's walls, crackling and buzzing as an enteric
wind whipped around its circumference. 'What the frag!' Freemen exclaimed.
'Relax lady, helps on the way.' The lightning discharged and there stood ten
Grey Knight Terminators. One of them stomped over, his armour decorated with
purity seals, scrolls and a prayer book. 'Brother sergeant Malachai! Have this
vessel cleansed at once. They are near, we need your assistance.' The huge
Terminator simply nodded and one of the other Terminators ignited his
incinerator and started burning the corpse. 'What are they? These aren’t
normal Astartes…' I look at Freemen with sorrow. 'No Muril, they are the end
of your normal life.' Yhey who sees the Grey Knights has two options: join the
retinue if you are useful or die, because you know too much. 'Stick close, cause
this will be tough.' The Terminators engage their searchlights and take up point.
'You are about to witness a miracle at work. They are the most holy warriors.
And the fact that you have seen them ends your normal life as an officer.'
Freemen look at me in shock and bring her shot cannon to bear. 'Are you going to
kill me!' I slap the barrel away and sigh deeply. 'No, I am a soldier, not a
executioner. Lord Tobin will decide whether you are useful for the coming battle
or not. Until then you are my charge, so please, try not to run, or I will shoot
you.' The comms crackle into life. 'Mortz! Get up here, we need you.' Malachai
called out. 'Roger that.' I pull Freemen with me as I slot my lamp-pack under
the barrel of my hellgun and head into the darkness.
+ + +
'A tunnel. It could be a trap. And our approach would alert them. You must scout
ahead to check things out.' Knee deep in crap and ichors, I wade towards the
entrance of the tunnel. 'Okay, just forget to send me flowers on my funeral.' I
switch lamp-pack of and quietly make my way forward. 'Wait!' Freemen carefully
wades in behind me. 'Let me in.' What has gotten into her? 'Fine, but keep quiet!
No noise, no firing unless I shoot first.' I carefully continue down the tunnel,
instinctively going through the deepest part where it reaches up to my chest.
The stench must be unbearable, good thing my respirator is filtering it all out.
+ + +