22

===Thread 22===

The engine revs underneath you, despite being riddled with holes courtesy of Eight and his Exitus rifle. Marvel the Orks are, however, it is somehow still propelling the bike along at a decent clip. Shame Karen didn?t have anything to do with it, she seems like she?d have made it even better somehow. Maybe you?ll haul some destroyed vehicle to her the next time you decide to head that way.

Lycheria is settled in on the rear, you?ve just escaped Abbadon, everything is going right. As right as your days ever go, anyways.

?How does that guy keep popping back up for more, anyways?? Lycheria ponders, though not letting go of you as the bike jerks and bounces from a rock.

?Eh? Abbadon? Gigantic inferiority complex.?

?Really??

?Maybe, who knows?? You shrug.

You push the looted bike harder, wringing out every bit of speed as you sail across the plain opening up. It may just be mud and grassland, but you really get screaming across it on the Orkish special.

Daylight turns to dusk as the ride continues. Lycheria shifts around uncomfortably in the seat, and you have to admit you are feeling the effects of the ride as well. You really went a long ways last night.

After what feels like another few hours, you finally arrive back at the Sister?s HQ.

And shit has hit the fan.

?Faster, Sisters! We?ve not much time!? The Canonness shouts, apparently having forgotten her fainting spell.

All around, Soritas are in a mad rush. They are piling into vehicles, snatching up flamers and bolters, checking their chainswords one last time.

?Canoness, what?s going on?!? Lycheria shouts as she dashes over to see what all the fuss is about.

?Hmph! Didn?t think you were coming back! Should punish you for this, but we haven?t time!? The Canonness frowns at Lycheria, and outright GLARES at you.

The older Sister herself is already walking toward a Land Raider, flamer in one hand and chainsword in the other.
?So, what exactly is going on?? You ask, downright confused. Blame the massive hangover creeping in.

?Nothing of your concern, Inquisitor matters, Grey Commissar.? The Canonness huffs.

?Bitch, I am the Inquisition, don?t you see this flashy assed outfit? Now tell me what?s going down.? You fold your arms and block her path.

?Ugh, whelp! If you must know, a massive contingent of Guardsmen is arriving today. We?ve been tasked to clear their landing zone of any enemy presence.?

You falter slightly, you hadn?t expected reinforcements, not this soon anyways. That means they are coming from a nearby planet, which means?

?Helena?? You can?t help but grin maliciously.

?Who??

?Dumb sister of mine. Anyways, I?ll assist you with the operation.? You tell the Canonness straight up.

?Hell no.? She retorts.

?As though you have a choice.? You >imply, tapping your armor with your axe.

?Tsk, fine! Just stay the fuck out of my way!? With that, the Cannoness storms off and almost charges into the rear entrance of the Raider. Other sisters have to lurch out of her way to avoid being plowed over.

?Knight!? She calls back at you as her tank starts firing up and going through pre-mission litanies complete with incense, ?You?ve got an assassin waiting for you inside!?

?Assassin?? Lycheria looks at you dubiously.

?A friend.? You assure her as you head inside.

Sure enough, Eight is waiting for you inside. Unlike the Tau who seemed so welcoming, the Sisters seem to be going out of their way to avoid him at any cost. They walk on the farthest side of the hallway that they can, never stepping within ten feet of the desk Eight sits on.

?Hey, what?s up with that?? You ask, quite honestly puzzled.

?Well? Even Soritas have been accused of heresy, and sometimes if it?s a powerful one, the Inquisition? They just deal with her, quietly. It?s not like one could know directly, but the corpse left behind makes it fairly obvious.?

Even Lycheria hesitates noticeably when she draws closer to the young Assassin, who doesn?t seem to notice or care that everyone but you is avoiding him like he may explode at any moment.

?Hey kid, what?s happening?? You grin, but your smile falters when you notice Eight being more morose than his usual self.

?What?s up??

?I?d prefer we talk alone.? He glances over at Lycheria, who stifles.

?Relax, she?s cool. What do you need?? You ask, leaning on the power axe.

Eight produces a small envelope and extends it out, you take it without thinking it through.

?What?s this then?? You look at the white sealed envelope, unmarked but for the ?VIII? hastily scrawled across the front. Its deceptively plain.

?I?ve got something I need to take care of. If I don?t return?? Eight nods at the envelope in your hand, ?I want you to please bury that on Catachan, if you ever wind up there. If you don?t? Then burn it.?

The envelope in your hand, light as a feather, now feels as though it weighs a ton.

?What is this?? You finally ask.

?The only things I own.? Eight states simply.

It?s not like it would be appropriate, but you have the urge to open it and see its contents for yourself. At the same time, you are struggling on what exactly to do.

?So where are you going? I mean you?ve??

?Like I said, something I have to take care of.?

?Well I?m pretty much free, let me??

?Something *I* have to take care of. Sorry, Max, but I can?t take you with me on this.? Eight frowns deeper.

?Well you can at least tell me where you?re headed.?

Eight cocks his head, his eyes boring into your own.

?I?m not foolish, if I do that you?ll just follow me regardless.? He shakes his head.

Well, kid?s got a point?

?Not a good enough excuse kid, now spill the beans.?
Eight?s brow furrows.

?It?s nothing I can?t handle.?

?Yeah so you?ve said. Doesn?t mean I?m about to let my friend hand me something like THIS and run off to Emprah knows where.? You wave your mechanical arm for emphasis.

?You aren?t going to let me leave are you??? Eight sighs.

?Not until I find out exactly what?s going on.? You grin.

Sure he could try to slip past you, but in this narrowish hallway you could likely grab him before he could escape. He may be a tough sonovabitch but he's not tough enough to escape a power armor bear hug.

A long moment passes, before Eight finally nods.

?Alright, I?ll tell you. But if I do, you promise to take that envelope.?

?Fair enough.? You put the envelope gently into one of the pouches on your belt.

?Now,? You take a seat on another desk, facing Eight, ?Where are you headed??

Eight takes a long moment to fish out a cigarette, and gestures for a particularly young Sorita to come over to him. She looks entirely hesitant, but he insists with another wave of his hand. The girl approaches, flamer at the ready though she?s trying to not make it completely obvious.

Eight leans down as she draws near, right down to her flamer. The girl is visibly trembling now, and you wonder just how shaken this assassin in their midst really has them. Eight uses the pilot light of her flamer to light up, smiles, and watches for a moment as she slinks back with a calculating stare.

?You know anything about the Ordo I belong to? About Vindicare?? He asks, exhaling a plume of smoke.

?A little.? You admit. Not exactly something you are studied up on.

?Well the Ordo doesn?t exactly? Take kindly, to those who try to leave it.? Eight shifts on the desk.

?Which means??

?A kill team.? He says flatly.

?A what now??

?They aren?t about to let me go, Max. The Emperor himself could tell them to, and they would still follow the code of the Ordo, if quietly. That man you met earlier was just here to affirm my status, and unfortunately must have made a broadcast.?

Eight pulls out a small dataslate and hands it to you. On the small screen you can see what appears to be the outline of a ship, though the photo was taken at night.

?Is that a small landing craft or something?? You ask, tilting the screen around, trying to get a better view.

?Exactly.?

?Full of other assassins??

?At least half a dozen, all of them ranking members within the Ordo? Former instructors of mine, mostly.? Eight flicks ash onto the desk.

?All the more reason I can?t let you go alone.? You tell him, sitting up to the full height of the power armor.

?What makes you think you could even get close to them?? Eight asks flatly.

?Well I mean? Errr??

?Max, you?re a good fighter, but this isn?t going to be a fight. They would kill you before you ever even saw them.?

?Hey now, I don?t mean to brag but you didn?t kill me outright.?

?I don?t mean to dismiss you as a warrior, but I had some kind of malfunction with my scope, some kind of inner glare inside of it. Nothing I?ve ever seen before.?

?Oh?? You pause, wondering what would have happened had this not been the case.

?And these aren?t Vindicare out on their first mission alone, these guys are all veterans.?

?So what makes you think YOU stand a chance?!? You blurt out.

Eight pauses, as though not having expected such a question. He takes another long draw and leans back.

?Like I said, they are former instructors of mine mostly. They?ve taught me everything I know, and most of them are getting quite old, for a Vindicare. I?ll stand a good chance so long as I get them all in one go, before they can split up.?

??And if you don?t?? You ask with a frown, ?What happens if they get a chance to split up??

?Well? Then things get complicated.? Eight nods, flicking the butt into a nearby trashcan.

Before you can ask anything else, Lycheria presses her finger to her ear and appears to be listening intently. Her face darkens and her gaze falls to you.

?Understood.? She states.

?Something up?? You ask, while still trying to come up with something more to ask Eight.

?Yeah, you could say that. The Guard need a place to land, now. Apparently they are encountering some massive resistance in the air, I guess Malal?s legion has more fighter craft than anyone expected.?

It feels like you swallowed a rock.

?Did they mention anything about the tank battalions??

?Nothing, but apparently Creed has gotten them through the worst of it. Now they just have to land, and there?s a whole damn legion setup on the field below them, apparently.?

You jump off of the desk, snatching up your axe as you do. Though with a flash of realization, you hesitate, and turn to Eight.

?Can you wait until this is over??

Eight shakes his head.

?If I do that, they will have split up, and if half a dozen Vindicare split up and want the same target dead? Well, it?s going to happen.?

?Max,? Lycheria looks worried, her finger back against her ear, ?The landing craft were going to try to break off and find somewhere else to land, but too many of their ships are shot up and wouldn?t make it. The orbital bombardment was blocked by some kind of? Field, I guess. If someone doesn?t clear out these chaos troops??

?Got it.? You tell her.

?Don?t worry about me, I?ve got a plan. Your sister and Guard need you, I don?t.? Eight states as he slides off the desk and hefts his rifle.

Now, you?ve got a choice to make.

You?ve got enough juice left in your communicator for two calls. Should have tossed the thing in a fire to give it a charge, but you?ve been busy. Also you forgot?

That means you can get some help together, for both you, and maybe someone to at least try to watch Eight?s back for you. You know he?ll slip any kind of direct support, but surely someone could at least watch him without him knowing. Maybe.

Who do you call in to support you? For Eight?

?Alright man, but you had better come back, hear me??
Eight nods, before turning to go.

What you didn?t tell him is that you are going to try to get him someone to at least watch his back, whether or not he wants it.

You and Lycheria head off to a different part of the structure as you dial your communicator.

?M-Max??

?Hey Mika, what are you up to today??

?M-me? Well I mean? I-I was going to maybe work on something with SLaDOS??

?Can you hold off on that? I need your help.?

You explain the situation to her, and Mika seems quite startled by the news as her stammering only grows worse the more nervous she gets.

?So you?ll help??

?O-of course! I?ve g-got a little s-s-surprise for them, actually! And Rex is in t-top shape!? Mika seems quite fired up.

?Great, meet us there!?

That call complete, you dial again.

?Max? Need something?? Esh sounds quite busy, lots of background noise.

?Yeah, it?s about my assassin buddy actually. He?s headed off on his own and doesn?t want any help, so naturally I want someone to help him by at least being there in case shit goes south.?

?Oh? A support team?? Esh inquires.

?Something like that, yeah.?

A flurry of activity in the background, and you hear Esh yelling something angrily, which is followed by more shouting.

?Everything alright??

?Just peachy, I?m trying to get these retards to quit being so stuck up and stubborn and listen to what your Emperor is saying. As much as I love my craftworld, a real planet is a nice thing to have.?

?So? You?ll help him out??

Esh sighs, loudly, and must have turned away from the conversation because the level of background noise dies down.

?I?ll send someone, I?m far too busy at the moment, Max.?

?Thanks.?

Lycheria looks anxious as you finish the call, and you pause to give her a look.

?What??

?Consorting with xenos?.? She huffs.

?I?d be dead if it wasn?t for them. Besides, Emps thinks they are chill and that?s good enough for me.?

You grin at her reaction as she grumbles but nods.

?Anyways, we?d better get going or we?ll miss the good parts of the fight!? Despite yourself, you can?t help but feel a bit excited at the prospects. Has this whole thing changed you that much? It wasn?t too long ago that you think you would have gladly shirked out of something like this.

?Indeed, so quit wasting time and book it!? Lycheria regains some of her mojo and sprints out the exit, headed toward the other Soritas who have begun to depart.

You burst through the doors as well, the heavy metal moving aside effortlessly with the strength of your armor.

Settling onto the bike Mika hooked up for you, the engine fires up and Lycheria pulls up alongside you on a bike of her own.

Wait? No you recognize that bike?

?That?s the Canonesses!? You shout accusingly as you point toward it, "She got a new one?!"

?Just arrived this morning... And relax, she?s in the landraider so she didn't need it. Besides, I?ll bring it back.? Lycheria says coyly, waving off your comments.

The two of you rev up and head out. The ride behind the tracked vehicles is far too dusty, and soon you?ve moved up ahead of the pack, joining a contingent of other Sorita bikers. The rowdy bunch clamor for a fight, and you recognize a few you?ve had? Relations, with.

As you draw nearer the landing zone, you can already tell?
This is going to be one hell of a fight.

The Chaos ground forces are busying themselves spraying wildly into the air with everything they?ve got. Red tracers arc into the sky toward assorted Imperial fighter craft, already engaged with Chaos air assets. Above them all are dozens of Guard landing craft, many with smoking engines or other damage visible from the ground.

Several, you notice, are spiraling out of control, headed for the ground.

All you can do is hope that Helena isn?t on one of those.
?Come Sisters, we need to take out their guns to clear the skies!? Lycheria shouts, raising her chainsword above her head and beginning some kind of Sorita chant, which the other bikers pick up on.

You?

You just yell, crank the throttle, and pray these plasma guns work.

Chaos marines turn to face the charging horde of the Sisters and yourself, leveling heavy weapons. It may have been a poor idea to just go charging at them, but it?s too late to do anything now.

A massive boom and muzzle flash from your right.

Through the forest, trees crashing down in his wake, comes Rex. His main cannon blasting away, side guns beginning to engage as well. The Chaos troops are forced to split up their fire.

If they were even given a chance to fire.

A recognizable bolt of plasma arcs toward the Chaos lines from behind Rex. Something looms from beside Rex, another massive tank.

?S-sorry I?m late!? Mika exclaims through the battle channel.
You don?t have time to answer her before your line of bikes makes contact with the Chaos troops.

Mashing at the trigger button, the plasma guns on the bike erupt into fire that rakes across several Chaos Marines in front of you. Even their black and white power armor doesn?t stand up to the assault, and several fall.

Too close for the guns now, you grab your axe from behind you and heft it above your head.

With a satisfying crunch, it burrows through the helmet of another Chaos marine as you swing it on a pass. The Soritas behind you are engaged as well, and you hear the gurgling roar of chainswords meeting their marks and pained yells as flamers engulf others. Lycheria is praising the Emperor even as she barrels over a Chaos marine with her bike.

Thankfully, the two tanks coming up on your rear prove to be more than just a distraction. Rex is hammering away at the Chaos positions, most of their munitions simply bouncing off of his hardened armor.

?Mika, what tank are you in anyways?? You call out on the comm.

?The s-stormblade! I?ve been fixing it up after R-Rex found her!? Mika yells excitedly even as she obliterates a group of Chaos Terminators with the blastgun.

?Good call, I dig it!? You laugh, though it?s cut short when you are forced to duck to avoid a chainaxe.

Out of the corner of your eye, you see Lycheria being tossed from the bike as a Chaos marine kicks it over, his boot on the front tire. You won?t be able to turn your own bike around in time, so you leap for it.

The jump carries you over several traitor guard, and you drop them a nice surprise in the form of a frag grenade.

With a roll you land, slashing out with the axe. The arcing swing slices easily through yet more traitors, and Lycheria is back on her feet and letting loose with the flamer in her hand.
?Thanks for the save!? She shouts over the din of battle.

?Don?t mention it! We need to link back up with your girls, we?re too far out!?

It?s true, you are too deep into Chaos lines with no support nearby. The two massive tanks are getting bogged down by more and more heavy weapons as the Chaos marines turn to deal with them, and are being forced to hang back and rely on their heavy frontal armor, while keeping their sides and rear safe.

?Going somewhere Max!? I should think you would stay a while, after all, we have a lot of catching up to do, you and I!? A voice all to recognizable from behind you as you and Lycheria try to fight back to friendly forces.

?Fuck you Abbadon, how many times do I have to beat you before you learn!?? You shout back to him.

?We shall see how well you fare without any tricks, worm!?

Bolter rounds slam into your back, thankfully stopped by your armor.

You stop, and turn around to face the warmaster.

?Max, what are you doing?! We need to get out of here!? Lycheria shouts, having opened up a line back to her friends.

?Go! I?ll catch up! But first, I?ve got to settle this.? You glare at Abbadon. You are really, really tired of putting up with his shit.

The Chaos marines stop attacking, forming a circle around you and Abbadon. The towering figure in power armor has a wicked grin across his scarred features. He?s enjoying this.
Something you plan to put a stop to.

?We?re going to settle this, once and for all.? You tell him, and both of you approach the other. Despite your own power armor, you are still craning your neck to look up at his face.

?Will we, eh? I?ll feel settled when I?ve adorned my armor with your skull, maggot.? He spits furiously.

You notice he has a sword much like the one you saw Horus wield, as well as a lighting claw of some ancient make. He?s going to be tough to take on in close quarters.

At the same time, given the small proximity of the area the Chaos marines are giving you to fight, you aren?t going to be able to rely completely on your ranged abilities, either.

Without warning, Abbadon slashes out with his sword. It?s all you can do to step back and block the blow with the blade of the axe. The force of it knocking you back slightly.

Abbadon laughs, he knows he has the advantage here. Hell, you know he has the advantage here. That doesn?t mean you are going to duck out and run now.

He doesn?t expect the plasma cannon surprise attack, you made it seem as though you were getting ready to come at him with the axe. Still, the shot only catches him in the side and seems to do little to his terminator armor.

Though it seems to have pissed him right off.

The warmaster attempts to rake you with his claws, comes again with the sword? You are forced to fall back, along the edge of the encircling Chaos marines, who shove you forward roughly. Under the furious assault, you draw out the blade Nurlge gifted you, hoping the Sisters aren?t seeing you doing so.

Catching Abbadon?s sword with your axe, you step in and thrust with the corrupted blade of the sword. The warmaster seems to recognize the danger of this new weapon, however, and quickly backs away. Both of you continue to circle as he eyes the plaguesword.

Rustling up your ji? Mind powers, you summon as much energy as you can muster.

?TIID KLO UL!!!!?

You aren?t sure if time slows, or if you speed up. Either way, it seems as though you move effortlessly while everything around you is stuck almost in a standstill.

Which gives you more than enough opportunity to lash out with your axe.

The blade carves into Abbadon?s frontal armor, and despite its toughness, the axe is sinking in. Abbadon?s face is slowly turning to panic rather than fury, and his lightning claws are coming in at you.

Wrenching the axe out at the last minute, you duck out of the way of the claws and roll backwards. Breathing heavily, you can barely get back onto your feet. Your head hurts. That much power must be more than you?re able to sustain at the moment.

Despite the wound in his chest, Abbadon doesn?t seem fazed.

Knocking aside yet another attack, your arms feeling quite noticeably weaker, you activate your comm.

?Creed you old bastard, I know you?ve got something up your sleeve and I know you?ve got a plan but I need it now damn it!?
As though on cue, the ground beneath you starts to tremble.
What you had thought were low hills around you, were in fact, something quite different.

Baneblades.

A dozen baneblades.

?Holy shit, how did you get this many?!? You shout. Abbadon isn?t letting up, his strikes becoming faster and more furious at the appearance of the new threat.

Mika and Rex are pressing forward with the new massive tank assault, the Chaos forces numbering too few and too lightly armed to deal with so many. They seem on the edge of retreat.

And that?Is when the drop-pods start falling

Blue and white drops pods.

?With gold trim.

?Oh fuck no!? You howl.

Abbadon steps back, looking around at the pods crashing into the dirt as well as Chaos marines. He must have decided it wasn?t worth sticking around.

?When this final battle is upon us, fool, you and I shall stand and fight alone!? He glares, before stepping through a warp hole.

?You fucking coward! I had you!? You cry after him, and Abbadon sneers as he disappears and the warp hole closes.
All at once, the drop pod doors fly open.

Doves.

Thousands of doves.

The Chaos marines try to shoot at the Partridges as they depart the pods, but find themselves quite unable. The white birds are swarming everywhere in their attempt to fly. The Chaos marines are slapping at them, trying to brush them aside to get a clear shot. Any round they do fire just falls short, caught up in the flurry of feathers.

Which leaves the remaining Chaos forces quite exposed to the newcomers?

***
?Ah, nothing like fresh glory in the morning.? Harry grins as he steps onto the battlefield, lazily shooting a nearby Chaos marine as he struggles to get the doves out of his face.

He sticks a Partridge flag into the head of the Bloodletter that his drop pod landed on, crushing it?s skull.

?Thank the Emprah! The Partridges save us all!? A Sorita shouts, her face one of complete and utter infatuation.

The Egomancers all grin, their work already taking effect.

?All in a day?s work for us, I assure you dear Sister.? Harry takes a drink out of his space wolves mug, his beaming smile belaying his happiness.

***
?Hey man, should we??

?Dude, DON?T go in there! Are you fuckin? crazy or somethin??

?But we-?

?NO! You know how pissed old man Creed is going to be??

?H-huh? Pissed about what? I?m just glad the Galactic Partridges came to our rescue.?

?Yeah, me too. What were we talking about again??

***
Creed puffs on his cigar as he watches the screen, eyes glued to what he hoped he wouldn?t see.

?Fuck.? Is all he says.

***
Logan Grimnar slams his fist into the wall of his ship, repeatedly. He had been planning on entering the fray first, providing the Sisters some aid and splitting the Chaos forces.

Unfortunately, somehow, none of his drop pods were functioning.

?It just doesn?t make any sense, the odds of them all going out at the same time?? The tech marine shrugs, quite baffled.

"Can you get them up in time to make it down there at all?" One of Logan's retinue asks, his voice gruff and angry.

"Sorry, it's going to take some time I'm afraid." The Tech marine shakes his head.

Logan doesn?t say anything, if he opens his mouth he will probably just scream.

Partridges?

He LOATHES Partridges.

As the doves finally clear, you see that the fight is over. They may have arrived late. REALLY late. But the Partridges have polished off the last of the Chaos forces and are now busying themselves erecting banners and statues. There is already a crew filming it and reporters from every Imperial channel commentating on the glorious victory the Partridges had here today.

With a dejected sigh, you sheath your sword and hang the axe at your side. While you want to confront Harry, call him out on his shit, you know it would be pointless. You can feel the power resonating from the Egomancers, and despite your own mind kung-fu, you can?t compete with this many of them.
At least you?ve got one thing to look forward to, or you hope you do anyways.

?You there, Guardsmen!? You shout, pointing at a group freshly emerged from a landing ship.

?S-sir!? Knight? Commissar? Sir?? Their Sergeant tosses a very confused salute.

?I?m looking for the tank battalions, tell me where I can find the Russ?s at.?

The befuddled guard lead you through the craft as they continue to land. You look over your shoulder and see Lycheria perched atop a landraider, scanning the battlefield. She spots you and jumps excitedly, waving. You wave back to let her know you saw her, and continue on.

?Right here, sir!? They stop outside a few dozen ships.

Sure enough, meeting up in the middle of their dropped ramps, is the Russ division.

Wasting no more time, you rush out into the center of the pack. Spinning around, you search each face, desperately seeking to find her.

?Hah, didja think I?d get taken out before I could even land?? A sarcastic voice.

?Pfft, if I hadn?t come to your rescue you wouldn?t have had a chance!?

Despite yourself, you grab Helena around the middle in a bear hug, lifting her off of her feet.

?T-tooo hard?!? She gasps, and you set her back down where she rubs her sides and looks annoyed.

?Whatever you wuss, man the fuck up. And you! Tits McGee! Get on out here so I can ogle you!? You shout at Sarah?s head which is poking out through a hatch on their tank.

?Fuck you.? She states blandly.

?Round two? Name a time and place girl.?

?Asshole?? The busty girl mutters, dropping back down into the vehicle.

Helena appears to be looking around now, much as you had been just a few moments ago.

?Sorry, I don?t think they have vibrators of your required girth on this planet.?

?Shut up! I?m trying to find someone!? She storms off toward an officer barking orders.

You follow along, not quite sure where she?s going with this.
?Hey, where did the tech-priests land at? I only see about half of them here.? She asks the officer, who looks as though he was about to tell her off before he spotted you walking up beside her.

?The tech priests took the brunt of the assault on the descent, this is the lot of them.? He says gruffly, before turning back to his work.

?Frederick?? Helena whispers, her face pale.

?Huh?? You help her to the ground as her legs falter. Tears flow down her usually teasing and happy face. It?s a rare day that you see your sister cry, and never something you like to see, no matter how annoying she can be at times.

You don?t know what to say, but you hope maybe the Sisters can help her out a bit. Helena doesn?t leave your side as you start the walk back through the battlefield toward their lines. Weaving through the massive landing craft and Guard.

Despite your usual self, you can?t honestly come up with anything to say to Helena. A thought which frustrates you, because you feel like you should say something. Anything.

?I knew it was stupid of me.? Your sister says quietly as she walks beside you, holding your arm for support, be it physical or mental.

?You can?t blame yourself.?

?I can?t for what happened, but I can for letting myself get involved like this?? She breaks off, hanging her head.

You don?t look up as two massive tanks come up alongside. Without looking you can already tell it?s Rex, as he woofs happily upon seeing you. The other tank?

Did it just meow?

?Need a lift??

?Sure, thanks.? You smile sadly up at someone you?ve never seen before as he offers out a hand.

?FREDERICK!!!? Helena screams, and in the blink of an eye has tackled the tech-priest off of the tank and pinned him on the ground. Once there, she both berates him loudly in between snogging him to the point he?s almost gasping for air.

?G-gross?? Mika states from her position atop the hatch.

?Huh? Well yeah, I mean it?s weird seeing my sister like that I guess?? You shrug.

Mika looks to Helena, then back at you, her brow furrowed.

?That?s your sister? That?s weird.?

?Eh? Why?s that??

?Because she?s c-currently? Erm? With my b-brother.?

You pick up a bolter round casing and toss it over at the pair still on the ground, Helena glares and snaps something you can?t quite make out.

?Get a room!? You cup your hands and shout at them.

----

Eira leads the small contingent of Eldar forces through the marshy swamp, quite annoyed at the mud coming up to her knees. She?d just washed her armor too.

Not letting herself sigh, she continues to follow quietly behind the leading scout. An older man, well versed in tracking targets. He?d picked up the trail of Eight, and the group had followed it for quite a while. Until it dead-ended and they realized they?d been had.

Now they had spent the last several hours weaving around, backtracking when met with more dead ends. By this point, Eira was getting quite frustrated. She was downright mad.

Eshwe had told her to gather a small force and be a reactionary asset to Max?s friend, but she had failed to mention anything about the assassin trying to ditch them. Which he had done quite successfully up until now. The tracker was pretty sure they were headed on the main path now, and wouldn?t run into many more side-routes. Whatever the Vindicare had wanted time to accomplish, he?d had it in droves.

Either that, or he?d met a swift end without any backup to assist him.

Either way, Eira didn?t really care. She had no love for assassins, even if they seemed different up close than they appeared from afar. They were still mon-keigh, emotional and not to be trusted. She would rather be somewhere else entirely than be chasing after this idiot on his fool?s errand.

?Farseer, we are drawing near. Best keep low, lest we be spotted.?

Eira nods and drops down to a crawl, matching the scouts as they slowly move through the dense underbrush. Mud smears the front of her armor, her arms. Eira isn?t adverse to getting dirty, but she certainly doesn?t like it.

The scout holds out a hand to signal them to stop as he peers out into the clearing from the position on the ridge. After several moments, he motions them forward.

Eira, disgruntled at having to go this far for a Vindicare, moves up beside the lead scout, and surveys the scene before her.

The ship is clearly wrecked, massive holes opened up in its hull, slag pouring out. Melta bombs, most likely. Though how or why is a mystery to her.

There are remains of several corpses, riddled with holes of varying diameters. Most are going to be completely unidentifiable, their heads having been targeted. Before or after death, she does not know.

Several look like Vindicare to her, and she beckons her team forward, cautiously moving down into the slight depression as she looks for traps. There don?t appear to be any, though Eira doesn?t allow herself to relax.

Yes, Vindicare. She would recognize those suits anywhere, and what remains of their masks.

Eira puts her finger to her ear, contacting Eshwe.

?What have you found, Eira??

?Eshwe. We?ve come upon the remains of a fight, no one alive in sight but I?ve sent the scouts to push out and check the perimeter. Seven corpses here. Did the one we?re searching for have any identifiable features? Not on the face, none of them have heads.?

?Wait one.?

Eira gazes around at the bodies, pushing aside several Exitus rifles with her feet as she flips each corpse onto its back. The bloodied remains aren?t quite stiffened at this point, though the blood has congealed and stained the sandy ground around the bodies.

?None that I?m aware of, I?ll have to contact Max a different way, his communicator is inactive. Eshwe out.?

Eira looks around again, scanning each of the bodies. She doesn?t remember much about that assassin, and doesn?t care to. Though if she discovers him, she can return to the base. Though she doesn?t exactly want to find him here, like this, she keeps looking.

She spots something she recognizes. A human habit, one of their smoking sticks. Wretched things. Its clutched in the fingers of one of the Vindicare corpses, one of the headless ones. After a quick check, she confirms none of the others have any death sticks, and contacts Eshwe again.

?Go ahead.?

?Target confirmed, terminated. Returning to base.?

----

You gaze at the envelope in your hand as Rex bounces along the ground, his treads flattening the corpses of the Chaos marines underneath their massive print.

Though you don?t know where that kid wound up, you don?t think he?d want you peeking at whatever is inside the plain white package.

More interested in teasing your sister at the moment anyways, you place the envelope back inside the pouch. Eight couldn't have gotten himself into too much trouble. You hope.