Ku'Motsk II

II

	After five years, the fleet had changed dramatically. Ku’Motsk was more overlord than admiral now and those under him had taken to acknowledging this fact. He and his choice lieutenants, Argen Vel and Kieres, were given nothing but the utmost respect and the finest there was to offer. Vel had stayed by the admiral’s side from the beginning as his strongest supporter; he was occasionally tactless and blunt but well trusted by the general population. Kieres was a different sort; he had risen to his position through combat alone. The people had a name for him, Kieres Eakionlir or ‘Kieres without heart.’ He was the cruelest and most unrelenting soldier Ku’Motsk had ever seen; he would slaughter whole tribes of Mon’keigh alone for but the smallest inkling of resistance to his admiral. Kieres was nothing if not loyal.
	He distinguished himself during the acquisition of Dynar II, a gunpowder-level civilization. The most powerful king on the planet had held out against the Eldar forces for two months in a massive fortress. Kieres was known for a high level of skill and was ordered to be dispatched with a specialized sabotage team to break the siege. Kieres said he would do it alone, it was nothing more than simple pest control. Despite the protests of many of his advisors, Ku’Motsk permitted him a day to do his work. Kieres left with many of his superiors shaking their heads at his folly, but the admiral was not so convinced. Exactly one day later, Ku’Motsk was greeted with the site of the great stone door of the fortress lowering. As the Eldar forces charged in, they were not met by the enemy but by Kieres slowly walking toward them. As the soldiers looked around they saw guards dead at their posts and bodies lying still in bed with their throats cut. Kieres handed Ku’Motsk the human king’s head, crown still atop it.
	Each was given command of a battleship; while Ku’Motsk directly oversaw the command ship and both supply vessels. The fleet began to settle into a routine, with Kieres collecting from planets that had bent the knee and Vel selling to others. Ku’Motsk had provided for his people, and his fleet operated quite well. Over the next two years, conflict was practically non-existent, and military campaigns were few and far between.
	The admiral himself was dissatisfied with the slowing. Kieres’ intimidating presence during collections made resistance rare, and his people were reluctant to push forward into the unknown of the void with their needs met. The admiral’s color was fading, his eyes were tired, and he was bored, and drained of energy. Ku’Motsk knew what he needed.
	The next month Kieres and Vel arrived on the bridge of Ku’Motsk’s ship. He sat them down and made his proposal, they would go forth in search of a new challenge and leave those who refused to die in the void. Kieres was delighted, Vel was furious.

	“Sir, I think that’s extremely unwise,” said Vel without hesitation, “We have such an excellent network in this region, what is there to gain by going forth.”

	“Glory, Argen,” spat Kieres, dripping with contempt “Not that a statesman such as yourself could understand that.”

	“How dare you, you abominable,” Vel began, but was silenced by the admiral’s hand.

	“This is not a discussion. The men need this, Argen,” said Ku’Motsk with finality, “We have been stagnating out here, and you seem blind to it. Since the pacification of Gynen, this ship has felt as though it were a crypt. My people act as walking corpses. There is no other choice.”

	“The men have complained, sir, certainly” said Vel carefully, “But some pedantic thrill-seeking will not fix our problem. Our people are grey because of the loss of home. We are alone, sir”

	“We are the Eldar Empire, you coward,” spat Kieres, “It matters not that we are alone, we are the greatest military force in the galaxy whether we have six ships or sixty-thousand ships. The galaxy is ours, and we will take from it as we desire.”

	“Sir, please listen to me,” bid Vel to his admiral, growing despirate, “You cannot seriously be planning on listening to this madman!”

	“I listen to my lord,” said Kieres, bowing slightly to Ku’Motsk, “I do not dare to command him, as you do, statesman.”

	Argen stood, visibly shaken, “I will not stand by and let you lead our people to their death, Ku’Motsk.”

	He drew his pistol and pointed it at his former commander, sorrow in his eyes. Ku’Motsk was furious but before he could react, Kieres leapt forth and tackled Vel to the ground. His teeth sunk into his former colleague’s throat. Ku’Motsk was shocked enthralled by his lieutenant’s viciousness, he felt the act wash over him like the great spectacle that it was. Vel fought back, but he was no match for the animal that was Kieres. Each move that Vel attempted was crushed by the serpent-like swiftness of and precision of his foe. In a few minutes, Argen Vel lay with both legs broken, three fingers bitten off, and a massive gash down his throat. As his opponent laid crushed before him, Kieres looked back at his commander.

	“We still have use for Argen Vel,” said Ku’Motsk quietly.

	The admiral ordered forth to the entire ship that there was to be a special event held in the common area, attendance was mandatory. He had his communications officers set up transmissions with each of the other ships in his fleet. The Eldar gathered for the spectacle, muttering to each other in confusion.

	“My people,” said the booming voice of Ku’Motsk from above and all fell silent, “I have arranged this lesson for you all.”
	“This,” said Ku’Motsk, pointing at Kieres hoisting up the bloody and broken Argen Vel, “Is the subject.”

	“Argen Vel was a despicable coward,” said Ku’Motsk with measured anger, “He would not fight for his people, for all of you. Though our people are weak and tired, we must fight if we want to survive. He refused to fight and, when questioned as to this sudden cowardice, turned upon his commanding officer.”

	The crowd murmured and gasped, but Ku’Motsk raised his hands in a silencing gesture, “Let this lesson go to all those who would turn against the empire, those who would commit blood-treason against their own people!”

	The crowd was stirring up. Voices of dissent were drowned out by those calling for blood. Ku’Motsk turned to Vel. His eyes welled up with tears as he looked to the commander he had followed for so long.

	“I am sorry, Argen,” whispered Ku’Motsk, his face suddenly pained, “You do not understand, but your sacrifice will save us all. We would have withered away without you.”

	Ku’Motsk put away his sorrow as he lifted the body of Argen Vel up to the crowd and said, “Those without honor will be broken.”

	Ku’Motsk brought Argen Vel down over his knee, breaking his back, and threw his ruined body into the swirling crowd below. The frenzied Eldar below tore the man to pieces. Kairies licked his lips, and Ku’Motsk watched silently. The night turned into revelry, the Eldar proclaiming Ku’Motsk’s glory and tearing apart any who challenged the new regime. Ku’Motsk was lord now, and he would save the empire.
	The newly proclaimed Lord Ku’Motsk wasted no time putting his plan into motion. Dissent was non-existent, due to the fervor of his acolytes, so the fleet moved outward into unknown space. For two years, the Eldar pillaged and plundered, taking whatever they wanted from their victims. Any foes who proved skillful or exotic were taken aboard the Lord’s ship, rechristened the Hand of Khaine, for gladiatorial matches in front of Ku’Motsk himself.
	This life was satisfying, thought Ku’Motsk as he watched a brutish oversized ork crush a human man in his massive hand. After spending nearly a decade lost in the darkness of the galaxy, Ku’Motsk found his place. He and his men were hardened from a life of distance from civilization; their experience taught them to be vicious in order to survive. No one could have predicted how well they took to it.
	Suddenly, as they drifted through space, Ku’Motsk’s fleet came across a functional webway portal. This portal led to the port of Umis, where the long-stranded Eldar would find their kin. They feared that they would face judgment for their questionable choices, they did not know what they were about to face. All the Eldar knew now was that they were not alone. Ku’Motsk thought of Argen Vel, without his example they would have faced untold resistance in their path of conquest. It seems his sacrifice truly did save them after all.