WH40K: Rise of Kelinas

[lurker]

A re-writing of a old story I posted on the MiniWarGaming site ages ago, though I felt like needing a writing outlet for a few days now. Hopefully more writing turns into a trend, eh?

---

“And the servants of the gods will conspire against each other, leading for them to torment a mortal in an attempted show of strength. And it will come to pass that instead of rejecting one of them, she will accept them both. Thus, this chosen will be gifted by these daemons, as well as cursed. And let it be written that she will see the folly of her allies and her foes, and smite down the greatest foe of man, Man itself.”
-High Prophet Blankrot Mechthoric, of the Prophets of Pestilence Chaos Marine Cult

A System of Turmoil

The Atarius system is one of the most undersupported systems in the Imperial sector. Comprising of four planets- Malar IV, Malar V, Shakuria, and Antiga Minor- and located deep on the outer rim of Imperial space, Atarius has had to deal with itself over the course of the years since the last major infraction hit the system- a small fragment of Hivefleet Kracken, which mysteriously was destroyed or abandoned the system without much of a fight. It is often credited to Eldar or Imperium intervention that the colonies were not destroyed during those days.

Malar IV acts as the main planet of the system. Home of several hive cities, the planet is one half wasteland and desert, one half untamable jungle. This acts as the home of the Atarius Nova Space Marine Chapter, a relatively new chapter who has splintered from at least two chapters for the first founders: The Emperor’s Fist and White Scar Chapters. This mix has led to a chapter that combines innovation and reliability on the chapter instead of Terra for their equipment. Very often they are experimenting with variant equipment and new designs, and are even experimenting with ways to better accept the geneseed into the fairer gender, so that the relatively small chapter may not discriminate on their new recruits they can seek.

Malar IV’s surface itself has several factions on its surface, though at the present moment only three active forces show intent of threat. First are the Imperium’s defenders, the Malar Defense Network Imperial Guard. Having adapted to fighting in the more-populated wastes, these guardsmen focus on artillery and ranged firepower, allowing the enemies to strike forth in order to receive the barrages from the heavy support and explosives. Second of these forces is the local Ork infestation- a large contingent of brutes that call themselves the ‘Bolt Bustaz’. These Orks tend to see themselves as speed freaks of the highest order, and when they are not harassing the smaller settlements in the Wastes, they race their ramshackle rides down the large stretch of broken craters and cliffs that make up Khankiller Alley- which more often than not leads to an emergency artillery practice for the Guardsmen.

The contender for the greatest threat, however, is easy to dispute- with rumors of Tyranids and strange, unearthly creatures in the jungle, to the Dark Eldar cadres that appear, raid settlements, then leave with their new slaves, the Imperium’s biggest threat is a splinter group of their own- Renegade soldiers who have defected in response to the harsh punishments and scrutiny of a firebrand Inquisitor known as Pauline. In response to the discovery of a pleasure cult in the depths of an Imperial compound, she had the entire encampment leveled. Most of the guardsmen that defected were in a uproar for the pointless destruction of their own flesh and blood, and swiftly grew heretical in nature, taking control of outlying tank storage facilities and fortifying themselves in ruins, in preparation to fight the Imperium for their foolish actions against their own, even if they must fight their former brothers in arms.

And yet, it would be an inconspicuous event that would eventually lead to the fall of the system. A small town known as Tamerine was raised to the ground by a Dark Eldar raid, with only one survivor found when responders arrived. The young girl was moved to Antiga Minor’s orphanages, with later plans to move this lucky survivor into the hierarchy of the Adepta Sororitas- otherwise known as the Sisters of Battle more commonly.

And then the rumors began to circulate. A legend of a prophet’s words began to to circulate into the Renegade’s camp. Rumors of a ‘gifted’ soldier who would unite the forces of Chaos to her own crusade. One who would know intimately of the falsities of the Emperor’s preaching and would gladly give whatever it takes to bring the False Emperor down. And as the rumors reached the Imperium, the one who had caused this mess in the first place- Inquisitor Pauline Kithura, Guardian of Terra- was called back into the system. To find this ‘gifted’ and to remove this fairy tale from their lips.

---​

UTILITATUM ADMINISTRATUM BAKKA
Transmitted: Osteopath Spiralis, in the service of Inquisitor Pauline of Terra
Received: Conclave of Har
Destination: Inquisitorial Records
Mission Time: 16 092 351, M41
Telepathic Duct: Terminus Malkine
Ref: OrdoMallius/524398612/HV
Author: Inquisitor Pauline of Terra

By the Authority of the Immortal Emperor of Mankind, I have been given one of the most dubious of tasks. I must track down and log whatever rumors, information, and any form of details under this strange, almost mythic creature to some of the heretics I have detained since my last transmission. I have managed to get out of them that she is indeed located here on the planet of Malar VI, A portion of me wishes to find this ‘god’ so I may dispose of her. But as usual, I distracted myself. Now, on with the info I have managed to achieve about her.

According to the rumors I have managed to gather, the history of this foe is thus:
According to the heretics I questioned, the girl was only elevated to her current status as a ‘Champion’ due to a challenge two of the heretic forces made. A servant of Nurgle, the lord of decay and death, and one of the dark prince of excess, Slaanesh, argued over the might of their powers between the pair of them. Eventually, after much bickering on Nurgle’s side, of his powers over death and destruction, and of Slaanesh’s boasts that if it wasn’t for the temptations between a female and a male, that life itself would not exist, that a final ultimatum was thrown- the one managed to convert a target they both agreed on to their force, would be considered the ‘master of life’ between the pair of them.

Many faces and minds were prodded for their susceptibility to the ruinous powers, finally selecting a young girl- nearly the age of 17- under the enslavement of the Dark Eldar. Originally, she had lived with a family, in one of the world’s smaller settlements. However, the resident dark creatures soon took notice, and swept through the settlement, destroying anything that moved and enslaving anything they missed. Thus, the girl was grabbed swiftly and pressed into service. Even without the daemon’s prodding, she doubted much of what the teachings that had been taught to her were truthful or fictitious. In other words, the perfect target for the seeds of Chaos.

The two drew lots to see who would get a chance first. Nurgle’s won this act of luck, and his attack commenced. The entire settlement of the Dark Eldar found them under a barrage of diseases, but none more so then the girl. Riddled with diseases, the girl was cast out, as the Dark Eldar surmised she was the source of the bad luck. Just because of her release, though, didn’t mean the diseases stopped. For a month, the girl was tormented with all manner of the Lord of Decay’s plagues, until finally, towards the end of the god’s tenure with his victim, the girl could no longer move, eat, or even sleep from the manners of poxes and boils that plagued her flesh.

And then it was Slaanesh’s handmaiden’s turn. Appearing in the guise of a woodsman, the daemon spirited her to a quiet, serene portion of his personal realm- a great honor, according to heretic lore- and set his servants to treat the girl to every fancy and whim, the goal to always make her the center of attention, even showing her all forms of excess and sensations. Her state from Nurgle’s work was not the deterrent in the slightest; in fact, some of the Deamonettes were overjoyed with the excuse to lavish more attention to her.

At the end of her tenure, the two demons appeared to the soon to be servant, informing her of the true nature of her strange plague, and the location she had been taken. And then of course, she was given a choice- Serve under the one that gave her freedom, Father Nurgle, or the one that pay heed to her during her great sickness, Lord Slaanesh.

It was odd, then, that when the two demons checked with her later, that she had gotten servants of both gods to graft her shoulders with both gods’ symbols. Surprised and slightly delighted, they granted this servant strange powers, though the exact details of these powers are quite sketchy.

This is all rumors and speculation, however. If anything, a simple and complete fairy tale. I have yet to confirm any of this with true Imperial techniques. Something I will personally take pleasure of after capturing this so called ‘Connector of Paths’.

I hope to bring news of this fugitive’s capture upon my next correspondence.
-Inquisitor Pauline of Terra

“The Daemon has many forms. You must know them all. You must tell the Daemon from his disguise and root him out from the hidden places. Trust no-one. Trust not even yourself. It is better to die in vain than to live an abomination.
The zealous martyr is praised for his valor: the craven and the unready are justly abhorred.”
-The First Book of Indoctrinations

 

[lurker]

Re: WH40K: Rise of Kelinas

Part 1: Return to Materialism

On the borders of Ramshackle- one of these smaller Imperium settlements- an armored contingent would slowly begin to roll down the dusty road separating it and the hive city of Hanthruan. Inside the lead vehicle, several of the troops manning the Chimera were in a quiet discussion...

“Man, I can’t believe we’re being set out on extra patrols. There’s been neither hide nor hair of the renegades for months now...”
“Vigilance, we got to keep the place well guarded. Besides, we still got the Orks to worry about around here.”
“True, I guess. But stopping anyone that’s not in the cities and doing searches of the settlements? Isn’t that the Inquisition’s job?”
“It’s best to do the job and be done with it. Heads up though, we got another stop.”
The soldier at the pintle hatch sighed, dragging himself upward out of the opening, until his body rested in a standing position near the mounted heavy stubber. Squinting in the waste’s harsh sun, he got a good look at the figure they were approaching.
The woman seemed young, probably close to just turning into womanhood, with blazing orange hair with violet and green streaks in it. Even at the sound of the approaching transport, she kept resolutely going forward, the light ragtag clothing the usual wear for the slightly-desert climate of the planet.

“Teenagers,” the soldier muttered, before giving his voice a sharp yell over the trundling metal beast under him. “Oy! You there! Hold up a bit!”
Slowing after being challenged, the girl turned around as the Chimera rolled to a halt next to her. The other vehicles of the convoy slowly swerved around it, the several pieces of artillery and other Chimeras soon moving ahead of the stopped transport and continuing their journey.
“Yes?” the girl asked, batting her bangs away from the bright violet eyes as she looked at the soldier.
“Spot check Ma’am, just need to see your identification and we’ll be on our way,” the soldier explained, referring to the digital identification connected to the Malar system’s population database.
“Oh, r-right,” the girl replied, swinging the bag around to her front as she searched inside. Idly the soldier noticed the holstered autopistol on the lass’s thigh but didn’t comment. It wasn’t uncommon for the populace to be holding weaponry, especially out in the waste slums.
Quietly and calmly the girl handed up her identification, which the soldier quickly swiped through a database reader. “Seems to be all cleared, Ms. Soulstorm. Sorry about the bother, just procedure.”
“Right... Thank you for just doing your job,” she replied with a short nod, and causing the soldier to give a small smile. The surprise kindness was a change from the constant distrust the higher ups in the army usually gave.
“All right boys, roll it off!” he called down, sliding back into the vehicle’s mercifully air-conditioned cabin.

---​

Kelinas kept her breath even, even as she let the vehicle drove off down the road a few miles, until it was safely out of distance to bother returning. Then quickly, she moved from the road, half-sprinting to the collection of dried trees and rocks near one of the older hills. It actually felt good to run, she mused to herself, especially after two months of being under Nurgle’s disease, and then before that the Dark Eldar’s wicked bondage barely allowed any of her muscles to move. Thus, a dash of several yards almost felt like child’s play.

Only after she had made it into the grove did she finally allow the breath of relief to come, the bag she had been wearing on her arm falling beside her with the clattering of the large quantity of autorifle clips stored inside it. Leaning against the dead tree, she felt the slight dry spots on her otherwise-impeccable form tingle, as she quietly allowed herself to calm down. She still remembered Kurthroth’s warning- his ‘gift’ would not only be triggered at will, but when her emotions would get the best of her. She was sure if she had panicked in front of those guardsmen, they would have just opened fire on her before she could have suppressed it again.

Deciding that invoking it would help her calm herself more, she focused gently, letting the tingling grow. Very slowly, the skin on her arm would first grow a green pallor, before slowly it would twist and contort, growing thicker and more organic in appearance, before her arm soon resembled a bestial, rotten claw, the edges of the clawed appendage dripping a pale ichor.

“So, I guess I’m with the Dark Powers from here on,” Kelinas sighed, letting the words sink in. And yet, she didn’t feel the sickening hatred that the Emperor’s teachings had told her. If anything, it was the legends of the ones that had gotten drunk with the powers of Chaos that made her wary. Individuals such as Fabius Bile, Abbadon, Kharn, Typhus, Lucius, Ahriman, Sindri Myr and countless more, who practically sold their humanity for the powers of Chaos, only to be twisted and malformed to the point where humanity would be a passing glimpse of their history. If one got too drunk on their power, they may as well be another slave to the power, she thought- though the Imperium too shared that fault. Political corruption, unsympathetic hierarchy of command, mountains of paperwork that could doom a system, only for assistance to arrive centuries too late, and other faults. And yet, they stuck to the ancient teachings of the Emperor and the Primarchs, which were showing their age if just the Malar system was to be taken into account. Perhaps, though...

Her musings were broken with the roar of a high octane engine and the random guttural yells that Kel’s ears sharply understood over the clattering. Instantly she grabbed her bag of pilfered ammo and darted behind a tree, quietly peering around it. With a short curse, she returned to her hiding, letting her sharpened hearing and other senses take the front as about five Orkish warbikes came hurtling towards the grove she had been habituating.

---​

“Twelve times has the Despoiler held the galaxy within his grasp, and each time he had but to claim what was his for the taking. I am now sure there exists some greater scheme, some unfathomable logic driving Abaddon in his endeavors. I ask myself, ‘why has he not claimed the gifts the ruinous powers must certainly have proffered him? Why does he still walk amongst mortals when surely the path of elevation to Daemonhood has been set before him twelve times and more?’ The one conclusion I can raw is that the Despoiler’s motives lie not with the abstract, spiritual powers of the Empyrean: more, they lie with the mundane, with physical, earthly power. Abaddon is driven by hatred and bitterness, to see an extent that he will not rest until he sees righted the wrong he perceives committed against him and his kind ten millennia past by our lord the Emperor. Perhaps after his thirteenth Black Crusade he will consider his mission complete, and only then will he assume the mantle of Daemonhood, over the very ashes of the Imperium."
-The Heretic Archivist of the Gethsemanae, Reclusium (excecuted 963.M41)

 

[lurker]

Re: WH40K: Rise of Kelinas

Part 2: Warboss

The bikes skidded noisily to a halt close to the grove, soon followed by a loud booming harsh laughter of the Orks on it. Kelinas only knew of these creatures of legends and history, mainly that they were crude, annoying, and favored brawn over brains. Either way, considering there was five of them, she figured stealth may be the best option and kept quiet.

“GAHAHAHA! Perfect! I’ll hazta give creditz to Branktor when we git back! Best ride I’ve evar had!” One of the voices piped up as the engines grinded to a halt. “Doh from all dis smoke I think it needs more coolin bitz...”
“Gotta point Bozz,” another point replied. “What I wanna know is if he actually got dem gunz workin on it.”
“Good question! Let’s shoot up dis tree den to find out!”
Kelinas winced, then quickly slid to a crouch at the sound of whirring, before a storm of bullets started bursting through the trunk she was hiding behind, luckily high enough that the bullets that penentrated whizzed over her hair.
“Aww, it didn’t just cut it down. NEEDS MOAR DAKKA!!!” the ‘Bozz’ roared, the sound of metal being struck following that sentiment.
“Watch de fist! It’s gotta last de rest of de ride before ye break it aftar all!” one of the other orks yelled out.
“Oh finez... lousy idea of weaponries, the chainsawz on de axels are nowhere near enough for de loss of dakka....” the boss muttered. “How long ye fink till de enginez cool down... I wanna level a settlementz today!”
“Probably a while bozz...”

Kelinas froze a bit at the mention of an attack. She may not like the thought of the Imperium’s way of running things; however she couldn’t just let the Orks flatten a settlement due to a difference of views. Still, the more she thought of her original plan- trying to locate the renegades- and the ork vehicles just sitting around the now-bullet-laden tree, a crazy but just might work ability started to come to mind....
Slinging the bag onto her shoulder and banishing her warp gift- for now-, Kelinas drew her bolt pistol, unhitched the safety, and then with a dramatic clearing of her throat, spun around the tree, her weapon leveled at the group of Orks.
If the situation she had thrust herself into wasn’t so dire, she would have laughed. Four smaller Orks, and one huger specimen, were mounted on what Kelinas figured were some of the most pitiful excuses for motorbikes she had ever seen. At her appearance, all five of them had given loud expecives, and all gripped at various guns, and in one person’s case, a large rocket launcher mounted on a simple launching platform. “WHAT THE ZOG?!? WHERE YU COME FROM YE GIT?!?”
Kelinas raised an eyebrow. “A bit overeactive, gentlemen? I can assure you I am the only threat in the current vicinity.”
“Oh fer Gork’s sake, de runt’z usin de big wordz...” one of the orks muttered. “Well what the zog you doin’ here all by yerself, and pointin’ dat ‘eashoota at uz?”
“It’s not obvious, you uneducated brutes? I require means of transportation, which you so happen to have, even if they quite shabbily constructed...” Kelinas replied, smiling slightly at the Ork’s confusion. It would make it easier if they got riled up, they’d stick to their brutish ways.
“Ya wot? Bozz? Can we jus shoot it nowz?” One of the Orks asked- only for him to get punched so hard he fell off his bike. The biggest Ork was looking at Kelinas coldly, like he was trying to get his pea of a brain around something. “Yu humiez are suppozed to be hidin’ from dem spikeh humiez... and yet yu ain’t. Well ain’t dat jus one little coincidenze...” he growled, grabbing a large, cleaverlike blade from his bike, as well as a long link of chain as he dismounted. “So wat yu on aboutz, muckin about like dis...”
“A clever Ork. I guess there can be an odd one out every so often,” Kelinas quipped, now watching the large brute with more intrest. “From that proclamation I’m guessing you’re their leader of some caliber?”
“I’M DE ZOGGIN WARBOZZ FOR ZOG’S SAKE!!!” the monsterous Ork roared. “AND I’M NOT GONNA LET A RUNTEH HUMEH GET DE BETTAR OF DE GREAT WARBOZZ GRATZGORATH!!!”
“Great? More like ‘Great Temper’”, Kelinas quipped, quickly ducking as the chain whizzed past her ears. Perfect, the Ork had fallen into prideful anger. Khorne would be pleased if he was a greenskin, Kel thought disdainfully.
As the Ork continued to bellow in rage, he’d continue to swing the chain in terrible arches, but each time Kelinas was able to sidestep or dodge it at just the right moment, her slim figure and augmented agility allowing her to easily dodge the projectile. Deciding she had toyed with the brute enough after about the sixth swing, she raised her right arm as if to defend herself as the chain swung for her again, quickly focusing on her gift from Nurgle’s servant.
Gratzgorath sputtered a bit as he watched the girl’s arm burst into greenish growth, the beastly limb allowing it to get wrapped around the chain, only for the metal to rapidly corrode as her claws closed down and the ichor coating it contacted the metal. “Da fu- yu one of de spikeys, huh?”
“If only by beliefs,” Kelinas said quietly, flexing the rotten appendage as she once again checked if the safety of the bolt pistol was off. “Now I ask again. Vacate your rustbuckets of a vehicle or I will be forced to use more deadly measures...”
The Ork gave a lecharious grin. “Back off boyz. I’m wantin dis one’s ‘ead for de pointy stick at ‘ome...” stepping back to his bike and grabbing a large-caliber bolt weapon, pumping at the seemingly needless shotgun pump installed on it, so a expended shell fell out of it.
Kelinas actually blinked at that, but quickly grew an impassive face again. “So be it. Your funeral.”
There was a few tense seconds before the two combatants moved, which was soon broken as the Ork charged, releasing a shot from his strange weapon, which exploded in a fragmented fashion, causing Kelinas to spin behind the tree to avoid the flak. Seconds later, the Warboss cleaved right through the dead tree, with Kelinas rolling away to avoid the monster’s choppa, quickly springing up and retaliating with a quick swipe at the monster’s back with her claw.
“GAAH! Stand still ye runt!” the creature roared, spinning around with another loud blast of his shotgun-esqe shoota, Kel once again rolling fast enough to avoid the flak released. Raising her bolt pistol, she squeezed the trigger twice.
Kel wasn’t quite sure why the bolter’s shots burst into violet flames halfway along- whether it was because of contact with her, or from the fact it had been one of the few things still on her when she was taken into the warp realm- but either way, the bullets struck into the Ork’s face with small bursts, causing the brute to fly back, striking into another tree, splinter through it, and skid a few more yards beyond it.
“Wa- BOZZ!” the remaining Orks called out, quickly abandoning their vehicles to go inspect their leader. Kel, figuring it was now or never, quickly rushed to the leader’s Warbike. She had to admit, it was a interesting specimen, with what looked like chainsaws for the axels and twin assault cannons mounted between the handlebars. Shame she was more than likely going to ditch it when she was done.
“GITOFF ME! STOP HER YE GITZ!!!”
“Time to go!” she quickly said under her breath, grabbing at the vehicle and quickly trying to find the starter controls. Noting a big red button, she quickly pressed it in her panic, only to give a squeal of surprise as the bike roared into gear and started to shoot forward. Even as the Ork’s crude guns started to fire after her, bullets wizzing around her and the rocket the one was carrying whizzing past her head, she looked behind her to see the Orks rapidly speeding away.
A short thrill of elation came from her as she speeded away. So this is why the Orks enjoyed speed, the thrill of the wind blowing around her and the land rushing around, however there was a small worry.
She still had no idea how to stop this thing...

---​

“Zog, she got awayz! I still dun see how she didn’tz get shot upz...”
“CAUSE YE CAN’T SHOOT FOR ZOG YE GITZ!!!” Gratzgorath yelled, cleaving one of the offending subordinates in two. “Now I gotta haz Branktor build me anuddar onez! I swear, if I evar see dat ‘umie again, I’ll make SURE she payz for dis...”
“Er, I guez dis callz off de raid, dun it bozz...”
“If you say it doesn’t you’s guts are join’n hiz on my blade! NOW GET ON DEM BIKEZ AND GO AFTAR HER! I’ll take hiz and go back to de Waagh! Dey need to know bout dis little shitz....”

“Told yer I knew where da best fightin’ woz.”
-Great Boss Tuska, after dooming him and his boyz to an eternity of fighting for a demon’s amusement on a Blood World in the warp.

 

[lurker]

Re: WH40K: Rise of Kelinas

Part 3: Chase

As Kelinas sped across the wastelands that made up this hemisphere of the planet, her mind wandered slightly, flitting between subjects and thoughts as they came. First, came the rumors and hearsay she picked up during her travel of the last few hours. The renegades were holding up in old Imperium supply factotums and tank hangers, so her best bet would be to explore some of the more unkempt waste areas until she found a suitably abandoned area to search. She still thought it was a rash plan, but it’s not like they were holding rallies or conscription centers like the Imperium’s guardsmen.
Second, came the battle she was rapidly leaving behind. A small bit of elation soared in her heart, having crippled and bested a creature that even Space Marines would more than likely lose a man to, even in the best of circumstances. Though the fact she didn’t gut the beast right then and there, however, meant that if anything, if they met again the creature would be more then eager to repay those cursed pistol bolts to his cranium.
Most worrying of all, at least to her mind, was what would happen if she found the Renegades. Would they accept her insane story of being dragged into the warp? Would they take the pilfered ammo, considering the amount she found could easily expend in a small firefight, if not a prolonged defense? What if they didn’t even bother to ask questions and opened fire? The questions without answers almost blinded Kel, causing more than once for her to interrupt her thoughts to careen away from a boulder or cliff face.

Stop fretting my little servant, you’re going to mar that pretty face if you keep this driving up... a soft, cool voice reverberated in her head.
“Isn’t this a bad time to be talking to me Zionis?” Kelinas asked rhetorically, recognizing it as the daemoness of Slaanesh that was part of the reason she was in this predicament. “I didn’t even know how to drive a crawler before crawling onto this rustbucket...”
You seem to be doing admirably, I may add, at least that is until you started doubting yourself incessantly. I felt you may need another person to speak to. At least, considering the alternative...
Kelinas shivered a bit, remembering one of the rights she’d have to do in order to keep herself relatively in one piece. “No thanks, I rather not being possessed at the present moment. Anyway, didn’t that fight back there count as a ‘peak of emotion’ enough to fulfill that?”
Perhaps, my sweet, perhaps. However, this isn’t the main reason I’m contacting you. Your little antic back there stirred something up; I felt the reverberations in the Warp. That Ork you leveled must have been furious.
“No doubt. One could say the little runt stole his favorite bike,” Kelinas quipped. “So why does that warrant a visit from my benefactors?”
Because I’ve fought these creatures a lot longer before you and insulting a Warboss without any form of support is certainly not going to go unpunished. If anything, you have stirred attention to yourself before your time. Your act of recklessness probably has dropped you into a danger you could have easily avoided...
“And let those beasts flatten a harmless village?” Kel retorted, banking hard to avoid a bend in the rocky face she was shadowing. “Even with me interfering, there’s a good chance the rest of the boys have abandon their leader and continued-“

A burst of automatic fire flew past Kel’s head, pattering the rocks a split second behind her.
You were saying? the daemoness’s voice echoed with a slight sense of mirth.
“Ok, ok, I get the point...” Kelinas grumbled, gripping at the handlebars tighter. Tramping on the break, she allowed the vehicle to circle around, soon facing opposite where she had been speeding through.
Three of the remaining Orkish bikes were following, the leader of which having been the offending shooter, and was rapidly approaching, the twin guns mounted between the machine’s handlebars spitting lead wildly in her direction. Probably explaining the reason the gun had missed her earlier, the back stabilizers had broken on the weapons, causing them to steadily fire upwards until they were more likely to scatter on the cliff face then get anywhere near hitting her.
“All right then, Mr. Warboss...” Kel muttered, grabbing at the firing controls on the autocannons slung in front of her, “Show me what this baby of yours can do...” Depressing the more obviously welded jury-rigged trigger, Kelinas felt her wrist twinge as the weapon soon sped to firing speed, before releasing a large spray of bullets at the offending bike, several of the bullets colliding before the guns bent too far for the current recoil to strike. By that time, however, the bike had taken several rounds, and only got a few extra meters before exploding, showering the canyon with debris.
Seeing the two remaining bikes, Kel went to treat the other two in similar manner, only to be met with a loud snap as the mechanism broke. Cursing her black luck, she swung the machine around and began rushing up the canyon again, with the two Orks soon screaming battle cries behind her.

The canyon quickly exited into a cave, and Kel squinted her eyes to see in the sudden darkness. Luckily, it seemed she wasn’t the only one having trouble as a loud boom echoed behind her. Even still, one more bike pursued, a patter of bullets whizzing here and there as she went through the cave, before opening through to flat open ground.
It was definitely apparent that the open ground was where these bikes worked best, as the Ork’s ride sped up faster and faster. The stream of bullets from the Ork’s ride soon stopped, seemingly running out of ammo, and forcing the Ork to try to close the distance, soon catching up to Kelinas. The Ork let out a loud warcry as it grabbed it’s choppa and prepared to swing, driving closer to her every second.
Now utterly panicking, Kelinas looked madly for something that would be useful, before noticing a second switch on the handlebars. Flicking it, she was rewarded with the whine of the chainsaw blades mounted to the axles. Grinning, she took the initiative, giving a sharp nudge to the right and ramming into the opposing bike.
The impact was violent and catastrophic. The roaring chainsaws struck into the other bike’s wheels and innards, ripping the components to shreds as the Ork gave a loud cry of surprise, desperately grabbing the handlebars to try and keep it under control. Meanwhile, Kel tried to pull free, only for the machine to snag between the two vehicles.
The two vehicles, now easily meeting maximum velocity, careened towards the foothills ahead, with both drivers fighting ferociously to break free of the tangled mass, but it was not to be. With a sickening CRUNCH, Kel and her adversary were thrown from the wreckage as it hit a particularly large stone. Whereas Kelinas was able to at least soften the fall via curling her body up a bit, the Ork landed with a sickening cracking noise.

Groaning, Kelinas got herself up, dusting some of the parched wasteland dirt from her arms. “Well that was fun, any more?”
Impressive... Zionis’s voice echoed into her head. You seemed so comfortable with the carnage, as if this was natural.
“And yet that was really the first fight I ever got into...” she mused, glancing up and noticing the rapidly setting sun. Looking around for any nearby cover, she noticed a nearby crevice in the rocky cliffs. She sprinted into it, pausing in the opening for her eyes to adjust.
It will be nowhere near your last, the demon replied, causing Kel to shiver a bit, but not from the cold.

 

[lurker]

Re: WH40K: Rise of Kelinas

Part 4. Inquisitor

UTILITATUM ADMINISTRATUM BAKKA
Transmitted: Osteopath Spiralis, in the service of Inquisitor Pauline of Terra
Received: Conclave of Har
Destination: Inquisitorial Records
Mission Time: 18 242 936, M41
Telepathic Duct: Terminus Malkine
Ref: OrdoMallius/524398612/HV
Author: Inquisitor Pauline of Terra

Established contact with the Adeptus Arbites stationed in Hanthruan. Not ten years after my last visit and they already sank into idleness. I will teach them to fear the Imperium’s laws again before I am through.

Status report of the local guard has improved since last venture. Numbers of guardsman have swelled to around equal to the time of my last visit, traitor revolt notwithstanding. Ork population has also been level according to reports, meaning either they’re up to something or they’ve spread in other areas. Hive corruption seems low surprisingly, at least in comparison to most fringe worlds I’ve been to. The traitor guard is the primary concern, after the rumors.

Speaking of, tipoff from the guardsmen convoy from outlaying settlements pointed to a suspicious figure that moved into the desert shortly after confrontation. ID matched to colony records; however the settlement related was destroyed during my last visit. Will investigate, may lead to the fugitive.
-Inquisitor Pauline of Terra

The sound of her own movement echoing through the relatively long cave system, Kel moved further into the caves, before finding a quiet spot with a spring. Looking around to ensure she was fully alone, she dropped her bag down, arranged it against the wall as a pillow, and then lay down, hoping to get some rest…

---

Several hours pass. Night falls on the desert wastes, and quiet echoing of various traffic barely permeated the area, being so far from civilization.

Until the rumbling of several armored vehicles echoed into the nearby area, as two chimeras and a rhino roll forth. The Rhino marked with the skull and I of the Imperium’s inquisition, a jet black shade of its armor plates further cementing it as an Inquisitorial craft. Following the twin Chimeras, marked with the black and red coating of the Adeptus Arbites, the Rhino cast a searchlight over the nearby area, all three vehicles slowing upon catching first glimpse of the tangled mess of Ork bikes jammed nearby.

Inside the Rhino’s transport hatch would be eight figures- Six Sisters of Battle, armed and cowled, bearing the coloring of Crusade Group Pandemica, and two other figures that looked sorely out of place in comparison. First was a man armed with what seemed to be most the weapons of the Arbites, customized flak armor forming a concealed suit around him as a suppression shield hanged on his left arm, a hellgun and a shotgun strapped to his back. Beside him was a woman, dressed in a red hood and robes, strange and bulky bracers locked onto her arms and holding a staff, easily denoting her as a psyker.

“What do you mean, you ‘sence’ something?!?” the Arbite grumbled, fidgeting irritably as he stared at the psyker. “We’re miles away from any settlement and yet the only thing of interest in this area is a tangled wreck and a ork corpse! You’re pulling straws now?”

The psyker gave a slight smile under her hood. “You were always an impatient one, Zieg. You fail to realize there is two vehicles there and yet only one driver. Besides, I feel yet another presence here, further away but far closer than the villages.”

The man’s lip stiffened, but he did not remark as he slid the hellgun free from his back. Finally, he asked, “Even still, how can you be sure it’s who we’re looking for, Mira? It’s not too uncommon for an Ork to escape injury from such a catastrophic accident...”

The woman shook her head again. “No, it contains none of the animalistic imprinting a mere ork would have. I sense instead that who this person is indeed is warptouched, almost tainted. But yet, also conflict. This person could still be a threat, but if we play our cards right, we can avoid bloodshed...”

Zieg looked unconvinced, but shrugs. “Very well. We’ll begin the search from here. Sisters, with us, we have a fugitive to find.”

---

Kel’s relatively blank dreams were suddenly interrupted by a sharp poke in the ribs, causing her to give a groan as she opened her eyes- only to freeze at the sight that greeted her.

Five figures had made it into the same chamber she had entered in. Four of them she instantly recognized- Members of the Sisterhood, more specifically the Malar special forces of them, Crusade Group Pandemica- held back along the walls, the black plates and orange cloth of their armor acting as silent visages behind the fifth figure. This figure stood strait, but was hidden by a large cloaklike robe. Her face was covered by it, and the arms of her robe were locked down thanks to a pair of heavy bracers on her arms. Kel assumed the large staff she was leaning on was what she had been prodded awake with.

“Good, you still breathe,” a calm, collected voice stated from the robed figure. “Now, what are you doing in a place like this, young one?”


Kel’s eyes however had locked onto something hanging from this figure’s waist, which further paled her light complexion- strung on a string of rosaries hanging from the woman’s belt was the inquisitorial mark, something that put the fear even in the Imperium’s faithful. Had she been caught by the Inquisition already, before even barely tasting non-warp tainted air again?

Kelinas slowly slid to her feet, her gaze instantly darting between the robed figure and the other four sisters- one guarding the spring, another flanking the robed woman, and two almost pointedly guarding the cavern’s entry, limiting her escape plans further. Even still, she quickly tried to calm herself, and replied, her voice as even as she could keep it. “Hiding from the desert heat. I was assisting with a geological research survey and got separated from the rest of them due to an Ork attack. After wandering I found myself at this cliff face and figured rescue would eventually arrive,” she lied, remembering another fragment of the rumors and news she had heard earlier.

The cowled woman smiled kindly, her face tilting a bit to better show it under the hood, where Kel noted a bandana wrapped around her eyes. “I see... pray tell, do you have identification so we may verify this? And don’t try anything either. I may cover my vision but I can still see you well enough...”

Kel’s hand stopped as she realized she had been reaching for her bolter instead of the ID card. Sheepishly she changed her hand’s direction, fishing it out and holding it out, only for it to be snapped out of her hand by the Sister behind the robed woman who scanned it, looked at the readout, and then whispered into the woman’s ear.

“...Dear me, Miss Soulstorm. If part of the information is correct, you’re still registered to a city that doesn’t exist. Unless...” The woman paused, before reaching into her hood and lifting the blindfold free, piercing ice blue eyes staring at Kel from head to toe.

A pit began to form in Kel’s stomach. How had she been so stupid to think that would have worked the second time?!? This time she really did reach for her pistol, feeling the unyielding metal resting in her hands as a small comfort with a potential magician and four bolters in close vicinity.

The robed woman stared for a long while, even as both her guards and the person she scrutinized tensed, safeties unclicking and stern glances exchanged. Before finally, the robed woman once again covered her eyes. “I see... You look a lot like her for a reason... Tell me, do you know of a Seraph by any chance?”

Kel felt her heart skip a beat, and before she knew it her bolt pistol was raised, the inquisitorial figure backing up a step as her arm shot up. “Why?!? Was she part of the people butchered like my parents?!?” she spat, her emotions finally snapping. “Just what are you on about, already!?! Either charge me with something or leave me at peace!!!”

The figure seemed to give a slight smirk. “Well, for one, you would be happy to know that she was found in the remains of the town, and the Imperium’s finest ensured of her protection. However, Madame Soulstorm, less forgivable is you threatening an Inquisitorial agent. Calmly put the weapon down, and you just may get to see Seraph again, please...”

Several tense moments passed, as Kelinas thought her options. Four armed and leveled bolters aimed at her, while someone offering something else- a change of a different option, a new path... but was it worth it, as tempting as it was? She doubted an inquisitor would be any more hospitable than her last captors, and the prospect of this just being a ruse was raining strong on her mind.

Quietly, Kel let out a deep breath, as her grip on the weapon tightened more. “As tempting as an offer it is, miss, I cannot take it willingly. I know the tricks and trappings of the required of your profession, and even then, it may be for the best she does not find out of me. It will be for the best that you and your guards leave, before I am forced to make an entry for myself through you.”

Almost as soon as Kel had finished speaking, a sudden, sharp pain slammed into her torso and a bright angry red glow filled the cave for an instant, causing Kelinas to crumple back against the wall and slide down, a silent scream at her lips.

Even as her jumbled mind tried to figure out where the shot had come from, action swirled around her. A sudden heated argument between another man and the woman started again. “She was almost surrendering!” “You think headed warp magnet! You almost got yourself killed!” “If you have given me more time...” “The Inquisitor will hear of this, trying to convert with the damned. “You. Are. An. IDIOT!!!” And then, the Sisters, more then before, drew closer, weapons still raised and wary even as Kel felt...

Actually, she didn’t feel too far off. After the initial shock of taking a heated laser blast through the torso, she didn’t feel what she had expected from such a blow. Instead, it felt like it had just tickled. Bemusedly, she looked down, and noted the craterous hole the laser had made in her abdomen, however even as she watched, strange purple mist began forming, agonizingly slowly mending it even as she watched, amazed.

Oops, I forgot to tell you about that gift, oh silly me, Zionis’s voice echoed into her head with some mirth. Just don’t squander it, it’s not like I can keep you from getting torn apart or anything anyway.
Bitch, Kel thought as her hand gripped her weapon again. You could have told me this earlier...
And ruin the element of surprise you just got? Zionis added.

One of the sisters noticed the effect her wound was showing as well, and quickly backpedeled. “I-Inquisitor! S-she’s healing!”
“What?!?” The harsh male voice stated, swiveling around with the robed figure looking over as well. Just a bit too late though.
Springing to her feet, her rotten claw bursting from her arm in midair, Kel gave a powerful backhanded swing with it, knocking several of the Sisters over and giving her the opening she was looking for. And with that, she ran towards and then through the entry, just as a cacophony of bolter fire caused the walls she was just leaving to splinter from the explosive payloads.