NationStates Jolt Archive

Ald Rhun Newsnet: Cooking with Company
Now, you drain the blood into the pot, like so. [screams in background] You'll want to make sure to use a sharp flaying knife, as human skin tends to be ha-
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WANTED FOR CRIMES OF HIGH TREASON: PRINCE HEINRICH OF RHUNHOLM
WARNING!!! SUBJECT IS ARMED AND HIGHLY DANGEROUS!!! DO NOT APPROACH! INSTEAD, CONTACT YOUR LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES!!!
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Name: Heinrich of Rhunholm
Rank: Prince, Military - Justicars
Height: 3.8 meters
Weight: 480 kilograms
Age: 70 years
Bounty: 100,000,000 dead/ 3,000,000,000,000 alive
Background: Heinrich was selected for the Warrior caste at a remarkably young age, and rose through the ranks at an almost unheard of speed. He tested incredibly highly for both telepathic and telekinetic (type N) potential, and showed remarkable aptitude in the entire range of training sims. His latest command was the ARS Excruciator, a Glaive Cruiser. On his last assignment, he was dispatched to observe Otagian operations on the quarantined planet of ORS-1421, where observation and feasability testing was ongoing on an alien life form. While exploring the surface of the plantet, he was mortally wounded by one of the native fauna, and relocated to the Excruciator for medical attention. The Excrutiator has since gone AWOL, along with her Prince. Heinrich was again sighted, 8 years later (1 year ago), on the Jordaxian ringworld of Monopoly, by an unamed Otagian source. He is noted to have obtained a classified suit of power armor (see file XAR-18392) in the period that he was missing. The prevaling theory for his desertion (unheard of in Rhunate society) is that he came into contact, and was infected by a xenomorph while stationed on ORS-1421.
Summary: Heinrich should be considered incredibly dangerous at all times, even when seemingly unarmed. He is wanted alive for study by the Arbiter, though a bounty will still be given for return of his corpse.
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Back on the Excruciator, Heinrich sat up out of his flensing-pod, and disconnected himself from the neural network.
So, they were still after him. No surprise, after he had stolen their little project.

No matter. He knew how to take care of himself. A few bounty hunters would just spice up life a little.

Warning sirens went off as the Excruciator prepared to enter atmosphere.

A minor hiveworld in freespace.

Just the place to renew the hunt...

Tag for interest/possible participation.

Tag, for same reasons as above

Tag

OOC: If you haven't gotten the drift yet, this is a character rp, and you all get the honor of hunting down Heinrich. And yes, that DOES say 3 trillion (USD). Happy hunting.

IC: Fredricks couldn't believe his luck. He'd spent his entire life in the Chelkazz underhive, gotten nothing, had to scavenge for a living, and now it all paid off! An entire spaceship, just sitting there, abandoned!

He had already done a lifescan to be sure. It was completley empty. And no one around to compete for the scrap, either!

The ship was an alien design. It was crude, with a large, forward-swept wing, with a bridge protruding from the center. It was heavily armed, but it looked like it had been through hell and back. Small wonder it was abandoned, with the damage it had seen.

The airlock opened easily to his clumsy hacking, and shut quietly behind him as he entered cautiously. Biolums came on around him, illuminating him, and just ahead and behind him.

Gods. There must still be working systems even! I'll be rich!

Fredricks made his way through the ship, looking for the bridge. Must be somewhere around here. What the-... Must have taken a wrong turn

The scavvie found himself standing in a smallish cargo bay, full of strange relics. Aw, shit. This must be some smugglers drop point. I'm gonna be in a world of hurt if I get caught here.

Unless I get it all out first... Now, what do I grab?

His eyes cast about the room, looking for some way of carrying off his newfound loot. There. A grav-clamp. Now what to steal first?

His gaze fell on a crate of golden statuettes. No. Too small. What was that behind the rear crates?

Jackpot!

A huge ebony statue, easily five meters tall, stood half-concealed behind the crates. It was carved in the image of a reptilian demon, the head disturbingly skull like. Fredricks leaned in for a closer look.

Like what you see?

Fredricks spun around, drawing his monogun. Nothing.

Did you think I'd leave all my pretties by their lonesomes?

Panic was creeping into Fredricks' mind. Did he miss someone on his scans? No. It must be automatics.

Could automatics do THIS?

Fredricks slammed against a pile of crates, scattering their contents to the floor. He jumped up, spinning towards the direction of the push.

Nothing.

"WHERE ARE YOU?!?"

Here

He spun towards the voice.

No, over here

Back here!

Right here!

Over here.

The voices bombarded him from all sides. His mind in a state of pure terror, he thrust around, the hold, letting off shots into the crates with his mono gun. He backed towards the corner of the hold, his mind picturing monsters hiding in the shadows, waiting to pounce on him.

Suddenly, he realized where the voices were coming from.

His own mind.

"Behind you."

Fredricks spun around, turning to see the grinning skull of the demon statue, leering grotesquely. He brought up his monogun out of reflex.

His fingers refused to pull the trigger.

I can't move!

"I know."

Fredricks could see the thing's jaws move now, as it talked. Horrified, he watched as the metal skin on it's head crawled, moving back, revealing black, scaly skin, and glowing red eyes.

And a large, fanged mouth.

"Finally. Fresh meat."

Even odd occurences outside the borders of the Imperium attract attention; especially when money becomes involved. Yes, this may seem cruel and heartless; that some would pursue bounties for money, but there were other things to consider. Such as Xenos infection spreading. A risk, that even so far from Chronosian space, could not- would not- be tolerated.

The vessel tore through the blanket of atmosphere about the world, as well worn thumbs carress the pages of a book, turning its rough edges, before letting it slip to his side. Glancing out the window; his eyes taking in the splendor of the world as he descends; he rises; reaching for his great leather coat; its interior ridged in animal fur from some distant world. His Inquisitional Rosette glimmers on his breast; adorned in the Eight pointed star and the inscription; Manus Celer Dei.

The Swift Hand of God

The man stepped down from the vessel; alone, his retinue awaiting his instruction and invite at some later time; his hair was black and thick, greying at the edges; the lines of his face smooth, betraying his true age. One hand rested upon his Daemonblade as he breathed deeply of the air; sighing, a cloud of breath forming about his mouth.

This was Ezekial;
The Dread Inquisitor Ezekial; he who had tamed Daemons and broke their will within mortal bodies or in weapons. He declared as a Hero of the Imperium, and a true Warrior of the Inquisition. He was blessed by Warmaster Remiel himself...And now he had arrived here.

Letting his coat billow about him, he proceeded forward; his power armor gleaming underneath, his hands were great gauntlets; his eyes, staring out from the chill mask of his face, took in everything. Now the question was, where to begin...

The Lander slammed through the atmosphere, the limited AI only dimly aware. The Bolo on its back controlled the movements.

On the ground, the lander squatted, the Bolo tank trundeled from its harness.

I compute that money is of no concern, but this should be an interesting oppertunity to test the new circuitry...The Target is on this planet somewhere. I will find an abandoned ship, and identify it. My circuitry is primed and ready. I must go...

The Bolo's massive treads shattered hard stone to dust and plowed thick trees into pulp as its 33,000 ton bulk moved off.

I will find the Target...

OOC: A Bolo? On a hive world? I don't think it'd fit...

IC: Planet approaching. Activate entry shields.

The sleek Otagian transport Dirty Girl swooped down to the festering boil of a world that was Chelkazz. Moving downwards through the polluted atmosphere, the pilot signalled for clearance.

Otagian vessel, you have been assigned to landing deck Twenty-Seven Sigma. Landing protocols have been uploaded to your flight computer. Enjoy your stay on Chelkazz.

The pilot, Jason Marlin grimaced.
"Yeah, right. Like I'm going to enjoy myself wearing a chem mask..."

As the Dirty Girl descended Jason prepared to disembark. Donning his chem-mask and goggles, he abandoned the luxuries of his ship and stepped out into the ozone-starved air. Wincing, he walked inside, through customs and prepared to find a stiff drink. If he was to cope with this hive, he'd need it...

OCC: Too bad for the hive members...the Bolo is the smallest combat unit our automated factories can build. We could send a Maelstrom Planetary Siege Unit, if you would like....?

IC: The Bolo tank swerved down the streets, knocking around corners and trundeling over cars in its path. Loudspeakers blared "Sorry for the inconvienience....excuse me..."

Ezekial pushed through the crowds as he made his way from the space port, deeper into the hive; knocking past a man donning a Chem mask; his rosette glimmered in the harsh half-light. "Imperial Inquisition" He muttered, moving through the delicate throngs of humanity, glancing about, acquainting himself with the surrounding area. This was a typical Hivecity; a breeding ground of filth and depravity; impure. He spat, watching the liquid sear in the acrid air, sighing softly.

Of all the pits in the universe; I had to end up here

Continuing onwards, he took in the locality, glancing out of windows at the shimmering ash wastes. This world was like so many others; dead, save what humanity created. Perhaps they had exhausted it; the end result remaining the same, the cause, mattering little. Now; if he could only find his prey...

Jason walked crankily down the corridor-street. The spire was huge, and it would be quite a walk before he got to his destination. As he walked, he took in the scenery. Apparently, the Chelkazzi attempted to alleviate their suffering through sculpture, as evidenced by the masses of blackstone statues adorning the buildings. He stopped to admire a particularily impressive example, a 5 meter reptilian monstrosity. Gargoyles, demons, saints, heroes, politicians... I'm hating this place already. Continuing down the massive hallway, he finally arrived at his destination.

"Bartender, one Manhatten, and make it quick."
The bartender grunted, and turned to mix the drink.

As Jason waited for his drink, he began to notice a quivering, rattling the bottles on the shelf. The sensation grew in intensity, until with a crash, bottles began to fall off the shelves. Jason reached out and caught the bottle of sweet vermouth, and handed it to the shocked bartender.

Jason raised his voice over the constant rumbling.
"I don't care WHAT'S happening out there, I want that Manhatten. From the sound of things outside, I'm going to need it."

The Inquisitor entered the bar, feeling eyes rooted upon him as he moved to a bar stool and sat, a cigarette between aged lips. He glanced about him, shrugging softly as he struggled to get comfy.
"Whiskey, on the rocks"

That cold whisper drifted from his mouth, as he stubbed out the cigarette onto the bar and glanced around. His rosette shimmered in prominence as he looked about the bar; his armor gleaming beneath the leather shine of his coat.

Now where to begin...This seems as good a place as any; but not yet; subtle. It is our mode and modus; stealth; the enemy cannot harm the foe it does not know or see

Heinrich watched the tank meander through the hive's streets from his perch.

It would be so much easier if you would just come back to us, child
But then we'd lose all the fun, wouldn't we, Grandfather? And we can't have that.
Don't you trust us, my Son?
Not anymore, no. The greater good just doesn't seem so great to me any more.
You were our favored child. Come back to us, and you'll have all that and more. After we treat your infection, of course.

That's exactly the point, Grandfather. I don't want the infection treated.

Heinrich watched the Bolo turn a corner, and wander away from him, vaguely towards the Excruciator's hiding place.

Time for another snack.

Heinrich crouched, and leaped off the building into the street. He lowered his antigravs, and fell directly towards a human, about to enter a bar.

The impact killed the man instantly, and punched a rhun-sized hole through the 5 meter thick floor, down to the next level. Heinrich crouched upside down on the ceiling of the floor below, feasting on his latest catch.

Now let's see how observant these bounty hunters are...

Ezekial turned his head, sipping on the whiskey as he heard the impact outside; as of something falling from a great height. Rising, coat billowing about him, he stepped cautiously into the street, glancing at the hole formed in the sheer metal of the ground itself.

There was the sense of death here, and as he moved around; a hand slid to his plasma pistol; drawing it to point it in the direction of the hole.

"Imperial Inquisition! Is anyone hurt?" He kept his distance, but watched, cautiously, mind closed, forcing himself into a cage, a box; a fortress...

"I repeat; Imperial Inquisition! IS anyone there?"

"Yeah, I'm here."

Jason grinned as the inquisitor whirled, pointing his pistol at Marlin, who was holding his hands harmlessly above his head.

"Settle down, I'm unarmed. So, you're an Imperial Inquisitor, eh? I'm Jason Marlin, a freelancer. Howd'ya do. So, you're here looking for that Heinrich character, eh? Me too. Why don't we work together? After all, that reward is easy enough to split, don't you think? Anyway, looks like something fell through the floor, doesn't it? Wonder what it was..."

Finally, Jason ceased talking and stared down into the hole...

For those of you using 15 posts per page, PAGE SLAIN.

Tag, I might join in later

Ezekial holstered his gun. "I could have killed you" He hissed softly, before turning back to the hole. "How observant of you, on all counts..strangely?" He let his mind drift, trying to probe at the boys mind. "If you wish to join me, then very well; I deputise you in the name of the Daemon Emper; Jason Marlin you are hereby identified as an acting agent of the Inquisition." He tossed a plasma pistol to him.

"Now; lets begin; we have to ascertain what is down there...I shall cover you; while you get a closer look"

OOC: He ain't a boy. Around 30, just annoying.

IC: "You want me to go down there? Ah well, could be worse..."

With a look of annoyance, Jason hopped down through the hole, activating his gravitic belt to slow his descent. As he dropped, Jason scanned around with his flashlight, looking for anything out of the ordinary.

As he looked about, he felt a drop of moisture land on his shoulder. Brushing it off, he continued to scan about, but again, the liquid dripped on him. Wiping it off, he looked at his hand and saw that it was stained a deep crimson.

The hell...?

With a shock, he realized what it was, and spun, aiming back above him with his sidearm. Peering through the darkness, he thought he could see one of the everpresent statues above him. But since when do statues move?

"Since now"

The shadowy form of the Prince dropped down from the ceiling, pirouetting in midair to land squarely on his feet. Jason stumbled backwards, away from the huge form.

"Prince Heinrich, at your service. I trust I don't disappoint?"

Jason lowered his pistol slightly, although it was still pointed in the direction of the mammoth Rhun, and began backing up slowly.

"I'm sorry if I seem rattled, it's just that I expected you to be shorter... You've grown at least a meter since the last time I saw you. Been eating your leafy greens? Or was it the sticky reds... So, I assume the whole blood sucking bit has to do with the Xeno organism that the data-sheet mentioned? Because it's kinda gross..."

Jason realized suddenly that he had run out of roof.

"Uh-oh..."

Heinrich's claw shot out and snagged the merc, leaving him hanging over a fifty story drop.

"You. You were on Monopoly, correct?"

"Umm..."

Jason contemplated the long drop beneath him, and decided that, in this situation, honesty was the best policy.

"Yes?"

"Good. I wouldn't want to leave any witnesses from that incident."

"Aw, shi-"

Heinrich let go, and walked away into the darkness.

The Bolo's circuitry screamed at it. It wheeled, bringing an infinite-repeater muzzel to bear on the bar.

Too many civilians. I cannot open fire. I still must find his ship. Destroy it, trap him on the planet. That would be a goal. The Target will be trapped. I can almost feel him under my treads. There!...No, another lander. This planet is so crowded. Wait! I believe I have a sensor trace...a ship, at least...

What are you doing, Heinrich?
Oh, just disposing of a few things before I... dissuade the rest of your lackeys.
You can't possibly escape. Just come back to us, and all will be forgiven.
We'll see about that, Grandfather.

The metal skin flowed off of Heinrich, settling into a head-sized sphere. He left it floating in midair. Stepping to the control panel of the Excruciator, he set a few coordinates, and left his ship.

As soon as he had stepped off, retros fired, and the Excruciator flew off into the smoggy sky.

Now, I shall settle this with honor. As a warrior.

OOC: ONI, you're inside of a Hive. You can't see the ship taking off.

Jason had time to contemplate what went wrong as he fell. As he fell past floor after floor, he began to talk to himself aloud.

"Hrm... Maybe honesty wasn't the best policy. Note to self, next time, shoot him. Well, not with plasma, that might kill him. I can't kill him, after all, he saved my life. Now, lets see, how can I fight him without killing him..."

At this point, Marlin noticed that he was getting awfully close to the floor. Flipping a switch on his belt, he slowed, then began to fall upwards.

"So, if I can't kill him, I'll have to stun him. Pulse weapons? Sonics? Hrm... I'll have to ask around about that. What the hell will KO a Rhun, especially one with a xeno infection?"

Stopping his ascent, he landed back on the top of the building, and looked upwards at the hole in the cieling.

"Hey boss," he called. "All clear!"

OOC: Sky? What sky? You're inside a hive city. There IS no sky, just the ceiling of the next level above you. Kindly revise your post, as there is no possible way you'd be able to SEE the ship, much less shoot it down from inside the city.

OOC: Sky? What sky? You're inside a hive city. There IS no sky, just the ceiling of the next level above you. Kindly revise your post, as there is no possible way you'd be able to SEE the ship, much less shoot it down from inside the city.

OCC: Ok, sorry...I still think that a machine with gravitometiric, magnetic, sonar, radar, laser, vibration, and matal-lobe sensors can see through most stuff. But a hive world is pretty crowded

OOC: Maybe, but I doubt it can see through over 6 kilometers of city in each direction.

The Bolo continued its search pattern, frustrated by the lack of a target.

I cannot find the Target's ship. I must conduct an active search. No doubt there are more bounty hunters searching. I will find them, the ship, or the Target himself. I will widen my search pattern. This is...inconvenient.

Ezekial leapt down, weapon readied, as he glanced about, turning to Jason, smirking softly. "And what exactly did you see?" He turns his roaming eyes about the room. "I assume we were close? Close to the bounty? Damn..." He sighed softly, closing his eyes. "Tell me what you saw"

"What I saw? I saw that we're screwed. Ya see, I've met this fether before. I just realized that when I met him down here, and he tossed me off the edge of this building. This guy will kill us all. He's big, he's mean, he's got weaponry from hell... I've seen this guy take down a war machine a klick long single-handedly. He just fragged it, and it took only a minute or two! And now, we're after him, and he know's it, and he ain't happy about it. We're dead. We're all dead, unless we put him down first. And we can't even kill him, unless we want to blow the bounty. For that matter, I don't know if we can even kill him!"

Letting his rough hand slam against Jason's face, Ezekial turned from him, being to look for clues; searching the area. "Get a hold of yourself man!" He snarled. "We are not doomed till the moment of Death. The God's do not favor the weak, nor the cowardly. We shall prevail, do you understand? We shall survive!" He sighed, stepping up again. "So where did he go?"

"I'll be damned if I know. He threw me off the roof, remember? Between falling to my death and talking to you, I didn't really have a chance to see."

Cursing under his breath, the Inquisitor touches buttons upon his comms unit, built into the armor of list. "Prey, evokes release. Hunter confounds; thorn pierces flesh..." A crackle of static and a hissed reply echoes in his ears, and he smiles softly.
"The time is not yet right" Ezekial chuckles. "Not yet time for you to join me, but soon; I promise. I will hunt this fiend myself; should I risk my very life to do so" He shuts off the comms and moves, silent, softly..."Come, Marlin. We have to track the foul thing..."

For some reason, landfall had always made Ange sick to her stomach. She hunted people, hunted her fellow sentient beings like game, which they were to one in her profession, the less-than-honorable profession of bounty hunting. She had killed all kinds of folks during her career, had seen all sorts of disgusting, foul sights, and had done many things that had hardened her to the harshness of the universe. Landfall, however, still made her very sick.

Her ship, the Jordan, completed the landing process on Chelkaaz shortly, Ange breathing in one last deep breath of fresh air before putting on her mask and goggles and debarking, locking up her vessel and activating the security systems after she was sure she had every little weapon and device she normally carried from her ship on these trips.

“Well, it looks like I’m ready,” she said to herself. “I might as well get to it.”

OOC: Let me know if there is anything wrong with this short entry post, folks.

"Sure, what the heck. What's the worst that could happen, besides being eaten by a giant blood-sucking lizard?"

Ignoring the look he got from the Inquisitor, Jason continued his monologue as they walked down the corridor-road.

"Well, I'm sure that Heinrich isn't living on the upper levels. Too much chance of being spotted. Now, in the Under-Hive, he'd have plenty of hiding places, and more than enough prey. Plus, nobody would be able to bring their big guns to bear on him in such a cramped environment. I say we start our search there, maybe check with the locals for rumors of a monster. Now, there's enough critters living down there that not all of the monsters are gonna be him, but its worth a shot."

OOC: And nothing wrong with your post at all, Romandeos.

Ezekial chuckled. "You do have your uses after all; you seem to know this place relatively well; and while it bears similarities to our own Hive Worlds; I can only be confused by Xenos ways" He looks up. "Now; which way to the Underhive? And where do we start?" He turns from Jason for a moment, letting his eyes rove the area. "There must be something here; otherwise he would have killed you...Why spare you?"

Jason laughed.

"Spare me? He threw me off the bleeding roof! I only survived because I'm wearing a grav-belt! He probably thinks I'm dead! On the bright side, he won't be looking for me. Now, we'll just need to find an elevator down to the under-hive, and we can start looking for him. There's a decent bar down there, we'll start looking there for rumors..."

Pulling a datapad out of his pocket, he began searching for the nearest elevator.

Ezekial followed after him. "Good; he thinks your dead; you can surprise him when I use you as a meatshield" He turns to Jaon, face cold and serious as every, before he chuckles wryly. "Just kidding." He leans against a wall. "So, tell me about this world. What do I need to know?"

The Bolo continued to crunch its way around the city, searching. It had not found anything.

This is irritating. I am disturbed. I must locate SOME trace of the Target, or his ship or persuers. I will now search the next quadrant. This is annoying. I compute that the Target has not left the planet. Nor is there a net to hack into. This is most disturbing.

The Bolo lumbered off, smashing anything in its path. It was a bit suprised at the willingness of this planet to allow it to wreck such a large amount of infrastructure, but it was not unthankful. Military intervention would harm the mission profile quite a bit.

"It's like pretty much any other hive world: big, overpopulated, and polluted. The hives here are mound-shaped, though they're still referred to as spires by the populace. Population is in the low trillions, I think."

"The spires are for the most part self-sufficient, everything being recycled. And I do mean everything: water, urine, solid waste, corpses, you name it, they eventually eat it. And don't get me started on what the scavies eat..."

"Now, where we're going, is the the foundations of the spire. They go down for another couple of kilometers, letting the hivers utilize the planet's geothermal energy. So, on the bright side, it's warm. On the down side, it's filthy, populated by the lowest of the low, and is a godsend to criminals everywhere. So don't go around flashing that rosette everywhere and we'll be fine."

Finding the elevator, Marlin called it up, and stepped in.

"Just don't attract attention, and try to keep an eye out for our guy. This place is primarily human populated, so Rhunfolk aren't going to be seen often. If you hear any rumors about a lizard daemon, chances are its our man."

The elevator clanged down noisily to the bottom of the shaft. Stepping out, Jason pulled his pistol and promptly fragged a trio of overly large things that were in the process of leaping in his direction.

"What in the name of the Daemon Emperor were those things, Marlin?"

"I honestly have no idea, but I doubt they were being friendly."

Walking over to the body, he could see that the plasma was still burning away at the body, though the flames had subsided to simple blues instead of the blazing white that had fired from the pistol.

"Odd, seems that the bastards were flammable. Wait... Shit! Whatever these things were, they used to be human! And it looks like they had their throats torn out."

Jacob looked up from his impromptu dissection with a look of confusion on his face.

"What the hell is going on here?"

Elissitriessa moved through the streets, her skin swirling colours of annoyance. She had landed on the planet a day ago, why? She wanted somewhere to have more playthings. She had found many, and for the last day she had been toying with one of the spires, acting out apon them a Horror movie they so sourly loved. But after she had killed a few hundred, she had recived a message that a very valuble play thing had landed on the planet. She had been tracing it for a time, keeping a long way away, following it by the death it was causing.

It had been a few hours, Two at most, when the others had begun to follow him. She had at first become annoyed, but when she knew of the Inquisitor, her Intrest had Piquied up. Chronosia had been in records of the Old Empire, it had assisted those who had followed Chaos in the Civil war. She followed, covering her minds presance with Psykic power, her body with her own defences, and the sound was made very little with her body anyway. She had however, missed the Elevator they where in.

They would know of her now.

Her body flashed into normal colours, and she had the look of an elf to her. Quite honestly, she looked like a harsher version of the Lady Liv Tyler, and taller. Wearing a tight fitting body armour, she moved into the elvevator just after they had taken it down, then began moving downwards to meet them.

As she reached the bottom, the doors opened. Without waiting for them to react, she began to speak, a Steady voice.

"I am Elissitriessa, A Lady of Valshare. I am tracking the same as you." she looked harshly at them. "I will join you, this is not negotiable."

"Oh, we shall, shall we? I think not girl" Ezekial hissed, sneering as he pushed past the girl, holstering his plasma pistol as he bent to examine the bodies. "What the hell could have done this to human beings? What could cause such glorious and blasphemous mutation in such a short time? If the beast is bending others to its will, then it must be destroyed; quickly.

He turned back, taking in the sight of the girl.

"If you wish to aid us; you shall listen to me; you shall abide by my laws, as Marlin does. You shall be part of my retinue and aid me in the capture or destruction of the beast. Am I understood?"

Tiaru looked out at the people who had come down into the Underhive. She looked at the creatures they had killed.
Well, they had helped her, even if they didn't know it. Those things had been attacking her since she had gotten here.
Should she thank them?
Tiaru studied them for a moment then decided not to reveal herself. At least not just yet.

"Well...I could go into Service of a Mon-Keigh, or I could just help you." She thought. "Helping is better, I do not searve Anyone but the Eternal Seer, or the Harlequins should they require My services, but I will NOT bow to a Mon-Keigh." She looked harshly. "Especially one as outdated as your own. Have your people evolved not at all since your Empires Fall?"

"You'd be amazed, little being" He chuckles softly. "I might as well ask if you still sit in your towers, scrying the future and directing the wrath of the universe from your...dwindling bastard race, upon those you view as lesser than yourselves? Are you amazed that more than simply yourself survived the fall of Man? Or should I expect that, in your arrogance, you though that your will had prevailed against the darkness. We have come far; we have learned much, and soon..." He leaned in, watching her intently, tongue playing across lips. "All the secrets will be ours."

He chuckled softly, moving past her. "You may aid me if you do not serve me; but do not expect me to courtsey and bow 'superior race'"

Tiaru watched as two of the new people argued and insulted each other. If this was how they reacted to someone new then maybe she had been wise in not revealing herself. And on that thought, wouldn't it be even wiser to simply leave now that the creatures were dead?
No, that would be rude and ungrateful, and it went against her nature and the ways of her people.
But was it wise to reveal herself? Not quite yet. Not until she knew more.
She looked on as one of the larger ones walked her way. Time to get out of sight. She looked up and jumped into the ventilation shaft above her, pulling her legs up, in and out of sight. She then twisted her tiny body around inside the narrow shaft to replace the grill and to watch those below.
Had they seen her? It was possible. She wasn't transparent at the moment. Well, she would just have to wait and see. And if they had seen her it would be interesting to see their reaction.

Elissitriessa was about to speak back, when she noticed movement out of the coner of her eye. She swiftly turned, and she ripped the ventalation shaft out of its socket, lifting it above them and looking at it intently.

"Come out little fly, come out and let us see why you listen to our convosation." She looked at the Inquisitor. "I will searve you, to a degree, but watch your orders, I won't hesitsate to kill you."

He ignored her, turning to examine the newcomer as he spoke almost dismissively to her.

"Yes yes, of course; my suffering shall be great and your War God shall strike me down. Terrible. Slaanesh shall have you one day" He chucl;es softly. "One cannot fight the inevitable pull; not with all your Craftworlds and Soul Stones can you resist the power of that which you birthed."

He walked towards the hidden being. "And who are you? Or should I ask what are you, Xeno?"

Tiaru jumped slightly when the woman pulled the grill out of the ventilation shaft. She had known they could have seen her but she didn't expect they're reaction to be so violent. Well, what's done is done and she may as well reveal herself now that they knew she was there. She twisted herself around again so that her legs were toward the now open grill. And slid down to the floor.
"Little fly?" She remarked as she landed on the floor. "Hardly. I was listening because I was curious who the people who helped me were." She looked up at the other person who had spoken to her, nearly cricking her neck in order to look at his face. "I'm Tiaru. I don't know whether you should ask me what I am, it'd depend on what you'd like to know about me." Here she turned and looked at the other man who had come into the hallway. "Thank you for killing those creatures, I have no idea why, but they have been attacking me since I arrived..." She stopped here, not sure what else to say to these people who were so much bigger than she was. She was sure that the shortest of them were at least twice her size and she was nervous about their reaction to her words as she was wary of telling them too much about herself. They each seemed Xenophobic to different degrees and it would probably be unwise to let them know what she was. She also didn't know if they knew about her people, and she didn't want to take the risk.

Marlin smiled.

"We're not sure what they were either, but we'll know soon. Now, please don't touch me for the next few moments."

Pulling off one of his gloves, Jason reached down and pressed one palm against the head of one of the corpses. As he did, his eyes rolled back into his head. For a few moments he sat completely still, then bolted backwards suddenly.

"Well, at least I know what they are now... The things were created by Heinrich, although I can't say if it was intentional or not. The parasite in Heinrich seeded the bodies of his exsanguinated victims, bringing them back from the dead. The parasites in the spawn are a lesser breed, but still need blood to survive, so it hunts other life-forms."

Standing up, Marlin wiped off his hands and pulled his gloves back on.

"Oh, and they're not dead, just disabled. Burn the bodies."

The Inquisitor brought his plasma pistol to bear upon the corpses; fuelling their destruction with his psychic abilities before turning back to Jason. "Psychometry?" He chuckled softly. "And where did you learn that trick?" He bends to kick aside the ashes that remain of one of them. "So these are...lesser forms of Xeno-Vampire?"

"I've been around a while, picked up a gland from Pale Rider Arms Creative Weapons. A bit risky, but damn it helps to detect ambushes."

Staring at the burning bodies, he flicked aside a spark of burning vampire from his sleeve.

"And yeah, they're lesser xeno-spawn. Nothing compared to the father, though. A while back, I was hired for a mission to a Jordaxian orbital by some Arizonans. They also picked up a pair of real bad-asses as heavy artillery: an Otagian by the name of Marduk, and Heinrich. By god, they were amazing. They slaughtered thousands of war-machines left on that ring-world, and weren't even scratched. While we were on the ship, headed for the orbital, I overheard a conversation between the two of them. Talking about the parasite in him. Called it a Leech, a Wamphyri. As long as Heinrich keeps it fed, he's in control. But when he can't feed for a time..."

"Just pray he eats well here."

"A hive of filth and degenerates such as this; all we have to worry about is him running out of food; that, however, I hope, would take a while. Now, if this Eldar and her new toy are coming; then lets get moving. If not, then I suggest we keep as far away from the Xeno filth as possible. Their overblown arrogance is nauseating."

He spits to one side. "Jason; where do you think we should begin? These...Hives seem more familiar to you than I; but I can still help, once we get into the thick of it.."

Tiaru stood and listened as the conversation went on around her, understanding very little of what was said and done around her. Though when one of the people called her a toy she felt hurt and didn't prevent her feelings from showing on her face.
"I'll come. I'm sorry if you misinterpreted what I said. I didn't mean to come across like that..."

Marlin grinned.

"Ah, don't worry about it. They're just a couple of sticks-in-the-mud. Not much entertainment. Anyway, all, I know just the place to dig for rumors, and maybe a drink if you gals need one. A regular hive of scum and villany. And absinthe, for that matter. C'mon, I'll take you there."

Marching down the tunnel-street, Jason walked into a dive with a rather seedy exterior, and an even seedier interior. Waltzing up to the bar, Jason sat down and ordered another Manhattan.

"So, know anything about giant lizards?"

The bar tender gave Marlin an odd look.

"Giant lizarrs? Don't know anythin' 'bout those."

"Dammit. Right, then any idea where these new predators we've seen out there are coming from? You know, the ones that rip open your throat and drink all your fluids?"

"The devil corpses? They've been coming from somewhere in the Foundation. Deep in the Foundation. We've bottled up a few of the main paths up, but they keep findin' new ways."

The bartender leaned closer.

"We'd be much obliged if you'd take care of this... problem. Of course, the ones that have tried already... Well, lets just say that they come back. But not alive anymore. Or dead."

"Hrm. Well, thanks for the info, and thanks for the drink. I'll see what we can do about your little vermin problem."

Standing up, he grabbed the shoulders of his companions and ushered them out the doors. Walking out into the street, he lead them towards the edge of the habitation.

"Well, looks like we got the info we need. Heinrich is definitely down here, somewhere in the Foundations. Ready for a hunt?"

"Always" Ezekial checked his plasma pistol and then turned back to Jason. "We shoot to kill; nothing more, nothing less. We cannot allow the abomination to live; as such; we must strike hard; fast. We will trap him in his lair and then purge him from the earth. We can expect heavy resistance; thus I took the liberty of retrieving something from my ship. Reaching under his voluminous robes; he slides the archaic weapon from his back, tossing his sword to Jason as he wields the great Hammer for himself.

"This is Soulrender; a great gift from Remiel to myself; inscibed with prayer and rune; made of adamantium and psychic amplification crystals, even warpstone ingrained within; it shall be enough to cleanse the heretic..."

Marlin hefted the sword, getting a feel for its balance. He took a few practice swings and turned back to Ezekial.

"Not bad. Not bad at all. However, I'm going to have to disagree with you. We shoot to wound. He's worth more alive than dead. Much more. Anyway, I've got another trick up my sleeve. Just tie him up for long enough, and we'll have him down easy."

OOC: Dear God, shoot to wound, or I'll be forced to wank slightly. And none of us wants that, do we?

Tiaru followed, watched adn listened, curious, as the people went into a bar and came out. When they started talking about killing and wounding something, a heretic, she asked, "Who's this heretic? And why do you want to hurt him?"

"The 'heretic,' as my dear friend Ezekial calls him, is the Rhunate Prince Heinrich. He was infected with some sort of xeno parasite, and we think he's the source of the devil-corpses. He's got a huge bounty on his head, and we're going to cash in on it."

OOC: Taking slight liberties here. I'll change it if anyone complains.

IC: The Underhive was a tourist zone compared to the Foundations. Waste water flowed down across the massive adamantite supports holding up the bloated weight of Chelkazz Hive Primus. The smell of sewage permeated the air, while an oily cloud drifted in the breeze of heavy industrial fans, threatening to become a firestorm at the slightest spark.

Heinrich watched his stalkers from atop a structural buttress. You should kill them all.

Give me one good reason to listen to you, Xenos. These fools will deliver me to my destiny, unwitting though they may be. Grandfather has seen to that, as unintentional it was.

You know you want to. Feel their blood sliding down your throat...

The thing in Heinrich's chest let out a psychic sigh, like silk sliding through a pool of blood.

SILENCE, XENOS! I will NOT tolerate your insolence! Perhaps I should let Grandfather's puppets remove you after all.

Ooh, you know you'd never do that. We're friends, you and I, of a fashion. Both outcasts. Both hunted. Both hungry...

You will have your fill when I fulfill my fate, leech. Now, let's make this look realistic, shall we?

You know I only await your word, my Prince. My dear, bloody Prince...

Heinrich leapt off of the buttress, landing silently on the huge catwalk, directly behind his stalkers.

Now let us see who is the true hunter...

[OOC: Too late to join in?]

OOC: Just a little bit yet. This one is almost over, though, so feel free to join in the upcoming Blood Prince: EP 2: Strands of Fate [/shameless plug].

[OOC: Sure, thanks :)]

Marlins ears perked. What the...

Spinning, Marlin drew his sonic crusher and fired shot after shot at the falling monstrosity. He grinned as each shot impacted squarely on Heinrich, cracking bones, rupturing muscles. He kept grinning, until he noticed that the flesh around the impact zones was already knitting together. Within seconds, the beast's skin would be completely healed.

Leaping out of the way, Marlin barely avoided being crushed under the massive bulk of the rapidly descending lizard. Back on his feet, Marlin grinned again, pulling the sword Ezekial had given him. Blade in one hand, crusher in the other, Marlin faced his opponent.

"So, Heinrich, I don't suppose you want to come peacefully?"

Heinrich reached out with his mind, and slammed Marlin into the air, sending him skidding across the metal catwalk.

The voice in the back of Heinrich's mind giggled inanely.

We've waited too long for this...

Tiaru was about to respond to Marlin when all of a sudden she sensed a presense behind them. She stopped walking for a moment, trying to figure out what it was. She hadn't encountered anything like it before... Except for the devil corpses...Of course! The devil corpses!
She turned around a moment too late, only to see Marlin attack the creature that had come up behind them. And then Marlin was thrown into the air and across the catwalk, just as she heard a mental voice giggle and say, We've waited too long for this... She shivered at the cold sound of the voice.
Should she fight in her true form? Or fight as she was? She looked at Marlin and decided that it was worth the risk to change. She pulled her crystal out from underneath her shirt and changed, her form flickering and then stabalising again. Though she now had creamy-gold wings, pointed ears and her body was now transparent, making her small body hard to see and at the same time, complimenting her vivid green eyes and soft golden hair.
She willed fire to her hands, making fireballs of white hot flame, these she threw at the lizard creature, making more as she did so, hoping all the while to have more success injuring the creature than Marlin had and directing her fireballs away from the oil cloud. A firestorm wouldn't affect her, but she wasn't so sure about the others.

"Foul heretic!" Ezekial spat as he lunged at Heinrich, swinging the great crackling hammer, its surface alive and seething with psychic force. He slammed it towards the beasts side; eyes blazing as his potent psyker mind fuelled the impact of his weapon. "Come on! I've waited too long for this..." Eyes gleaming; he lashed out again, and again; intent to at least injure the beast...

Heinrich watched, amused as the daemonhammer slammed into his side. The flesh crawled around the hammer, clearing a path for it's momentum, letting it slide through him unobstructed.

"Still looking for a fight, litle man?"

Heinrich's laugh froze in his throat, and turned into a scream of pain, as he felt Tiaru's fireball sear into his back.

Fire!

GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF! GET IT OOOFFF!!!

Heinrich threw a psychic wave of force towards the Inquisitor, and spun towards the new threat, his back still aflame.

"I'm going to enjoy eating you, sweetling. No one does that to me and gets away with it."

Panic He had sensed it; smelt it from the foul being, before it had hurled him; his back slamming against rock as he coughed, spitting blood to one side as he lifted his plasma pistol and opened fire at the things back.
"Let us see how you enjoy burning in righteous flame; worm..."

This isn't going quite as well as planned...

Off to the side, Marlin leaned against the wall, clutching his side with one hand, and expertly attaching a tube to the underside of his pistol. Standing, he grasped his sword again, and ignited the force-blade. Simultaneously, he triggered a dose of neurohormones from his gland, energizing him with psychic power.

"Hey, lizard-boy! Over here!"

Heinrich whipped towards Marlin, the plasma bolts ripping through the air where his head used to be.

"You! You should have fled while you had the chance, warmling!"

Heinrich's arms formed into a menacing pair of blades, as he advanced towards Marlin.

Marlin grinned bitterly.

"I gave you your chance to surrender peacefully, but you refused. What happens now rests on your shoulders. HALT!"

With that final word, Jason let out a hellish blast of psychic energy. While not nearly enough to harm the behemoth, it would make him hesitate, and that was all that was required.

With a loud thump, the tube slung under the barrel of Marlin's pistol exploded, launching a coruscating web of fibers at the hulking xeno. Slamming into Heinrich's chest, the threads ignited, flooding the room with a harsh glow. For a moment, Heinrich screamed with rage, and then his voice was suddenly cut off by a sharp snap. The light intensified, blinding those left standing in the room.

Blinking, Marlin looked questioningly towards the spot where Heinrich had once stood. In his place was a large white-glowing ovoid. A stasis field.

Prince Heinrich screamed his fury and
[[[DISCONTINUITY]]]
found himself in a bare, sturdy cell. From the feel of an engine shaking beneath his feet, he was on a starship.

So, they were taking him back to Rhunholm. He missed the place. The smell of blood in the air. The sounds of the arenas. It had been too long since he had been home. Far too long.

Soon. Soon we will be home.

And then you can take me to meet your Grandfather.

______________________________

And in deep space, somewhere near the Crysham system, the Excruciator began to come back on line...