Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Wow, pretty moody... Loving the atmosphere, and awaiting the follow-up with baited breath!

thanks khaine. The moodiness will continue for a little longer.

The scent of ozone had washed over the squad as they came upon another intersection. A gaping hole in the high ceiling had been blasted downward and smoke still hung in the air in lazy batches near the ceiling. Shar-Takazz could envision the high speed vehicles that had poured down from the hole and crashed into varies things as they were shot at. The fight, however, had exacted a high toll on the defenders.

Shar-Takazz reviewed his chronometer once again. The amount of time he had been in the Spire did not match with how he felt. They had moved from site to site, spending the minimum of time at each before moving on, yet the scale of the fighting and the size of the Spire had impeded the process more then he had anticipated. With a final glance at the time he focused back on the site before him.

Everywhere Shar-Takazz looked he saw wrecked vehicles and bodies. This position had been defended by the locals and judging by the look of it, they were surprised by the downward assault. Thick metal supports had fallen down into their midst along with chunks of rockcrete. Gunlines had been avoided, weapons hadn’t been turned in time. It had been a slaughter. Leman Russ varieties, chimeras, unknown hovering weapons platforms, and countless civilian vehicles had been torn up and shot through. Down one of the larger tunnels a bright light illuminated the darkness.

Slowly the squad of Ice Angels picked their way through the destruction. Devices sparked, several generators were still running. Lights from the vehicles still illuminated patches of death and scenes of decay. Larsa and Zaduga were deactivating the generators and other devices as they passed, only the vehicle lights were left on.

A yellow flash came across the right side of Shar-Takazz’s HUD. He quickly turned his head to his right to see Nillahfin, plasmagun raised, pointing down the light filled tunnel. The squad immediately stood motionless and fell completely silent. Shar-Takazz acquainted himself with everyones exact position in an instant and chose his next commands through everyone's HUD.

Three marines moved up to Nillahfin to support while Barru, with his missile launcher, took up position behind. Brother Dravok moved past to take up a better view point by a Leman Russ that had been shot through. Shar-Takazz waited until the first four had moved and stopped. He then moved up with the next five. Once everyone was in a better position they stopped and waited in silence once again. Sparks and soft crackles came from various pieces of equipment.

Shar-Takazz opened his mouth to speak when he heard something. A static rumbled from up ahead. It came in several short bursts then it stopped. The squad waited like hunters about to pounce, none moving or even altering HUD commands. The static rumbled a minute later. This time Shar-Takazz was ready. The cadence of the static sparked a level of familiarity that tugged at his memories. It was not instantly recognized.

He sent out a marching order and his marines moved. Four hugged the walls, two held back, while he moved at point with three right behind him. He held his grav pistol out before him. Two bolters were in his peripheral vision on either side. They were held perfectly level as they progressed forward. After fifty yards had been covered, the rear guard began to follow holding the formation. They moved watching every approach as best they could. It was made easy by the fact that after only a short distance the hallway was surprisingly empty.

The area became brighter and brighter as they approached the sound. The static continued to repeat every so often, but the intervals were not regular. Ahead of them dark purple vessels and equipment had been arranged in neat rows. Gun emplacements, floating platforms, hovering light crystals, and countless other xenos items arrayed the room before them. Shar-Takazz changed his pace and his squad altered their positions without command. They slowed and spread out as they got closer to the equipment. There were no other sounds and no other movement.

Moveable barriers had been placed in a circle around a massive shaft. The shaft went up into darkness and down but Shar-Takazz could not see the end in either direction without getting closer to the edge. He swept his gaze around the position as he took in all the details. He breathed in the smell of the cold xenos metal that always reminded him of cleaning solution. He studied the damage on the battlements that came from below. He saw several metal lines that hung from outstretched hooks slowly spin. He felt the warm breeze coming up from the shaft that brought with it the lingering scent of death that seemed to permeate the entire Spire.

The static came again, this time Shar-Takazz rushed forward. He stared down into the pit. At first he noticed the immense amount of damage along the walls. Next he saw that the bottom of the pit ended far below him and it was covered in hundreds if not thousands of corpses and wreckage. Hanging from one of the metal lines was the torso of a white dreadnought. It was limbless and facing away from him. Blasts and long scratches had torn into it and nearly every wire and port had been damaged. The heavy duty metal line was held to some sort of magnet that was slowly spinning the torso.

When it came around Shar-Takazz studied the member of the White and its tomb. Shar-Takazz was unsure if his brother could see or hear anything but the static came again. That was when he realized what the sound was. It was an old tribal code, one that the space bound tribes of the asteroid belt used. The rhythm and spacing between the burst of static created letters so you could send messages if your vox was damaged. Shar-Takazz looked around at his squad recalling their origins.

“Dravok,” he called into the vox” do you recall the old tribal codes? I think he is sending a message.”

Dravok came up from the rearguard while listening. The tall marine held his bolter at his side and stopped halfway to the lip of the shaft.

“Trap” he said in his smooth baritone voice.

Faaaaaaaaark, that tension. then you go and drop that last word....

Come on!!!

 Knightley wrote:
Faaaaaaaaark, that tension. then you go and drop that last word....

Come on!!!

Voice?

I am not sure I see the issue with that Knightley. lol

Yes, "Voice" is a really bad word to put last there . Nice writing!

Both of his hearts surged into action. His senses went into overdrive. Combat drugs were injected into his system right where they were needed. He scanned to his right and then down. His ears rang with the stress of seeking any bit of information. His nostrils flared as his olfactory reviewed the scents of everything entering his suit. The squad scattered around him did the same. Each one took turns shifting their view. The movements came within a familiar cadence. One that decades of service together had created.

They held their positions and continued monitoring their surroundings more so than ever before, but nothing came. No surprise assault or planted mine. No ceiling collapse or aerial bombardment.

The first sound to break their stalemate was the dreadnought coffin blurting its static warning once more. With effort Shar-Takazz lowered his grav gun. He willed his hearts to return to normal levels. He felt the heat from his body being absorbed by his armor and took several calming breaths.

“Combat squad Bravo, maintain vigilance. Zaduga, Nillahfin, get our brother over here and away from this pit.” He commanded.

Dravok took his half of the squad and shifted positions to better monitor the work. Shar-Takazz closely monitored the work as two of his Angels worked a crane like apparatus to swing the coffin onto the decking around them. In a few moments a loud thud reverberated through the floor. The coffin, containing the crumbled remains of an Ice Angel, was set to rest. The static continued its sporadic cant.

Zaduga pulled out an auspex while Nillahfin removed some damaged sections to reveal a port. The auspex was plugged in and Zaduga went to work. Shar-Takazz knew it may take a moment to realign the device with the ancient dreadnought suit so he took the time to reset his flock of servo skulls. They had been left behind a ways down the tunnel but quickly caught up. They spread out and took detailed vid captures. Shar-Takazz lost himself in the information flood when Zaduga finally spoke up.

“Sir, he’s dead.” Zaduga responded after looking up from his handheld device. Shar-Takazz let those words linger in the air. The sound of the static came once again. The rhythm of the broken word was one that he would never again forget.

“The machine spirit set up and continues to send the warning. He,” Zaduga paused, “is a strong spirit indeed.”

“We will salvage and return him to the artisans. He will once again fight with…..” Shar-Takazz froze. While he had been talking he was absently reviewing the various images the servo skulls were taking. He stared at one image with his mouth open. The one of a kind helmet of Captain Razzik was smashed in and covered in blood.

Shar-Takazz was paralyzed for the briefest of moments before he mentally sent a prayer, once again, to the Emperor. The sight of the helm brought on a thunderous tsunami of emotion but it broke against the stormwall of his mind. He knew, more than anything, that he had a job to do. One that Razzik himself had given him. He would not disrespect his captains final order.

A wave of cold calculation surged within him. His awful task may be coming to an end very soon. “We’re going down.”

NoooooooOoooooOoooo

The shadowed corridor was twice as tall as it was wide. Lights flickered here and there deep within the winding tunnel but mostly darkness welcomed the new comers. Wherever the light did shine, it revealed a gruesome sight. Bodies were smashed into the bare rock floor in greasy smears. Clumps of broken machinery and spent weapons were everywhere. Behind Shar-Takazz bright lights from the chute lit only a short distance into the gloom. Dreadnought sized machines that looked as if they were armored in rock were splayed across the tunnel in a jagged line right where the light from behind met the looming blackness. The smell of recent death still clung to everything and dangled in the air like a fine mist. A breakdown of the various scents was coming across his HUD but he ignored it. He had already ascertained what he needed. This had been recent. Several days ago at most.

Shar-Takazz studied the scene for a moment longer to confirm his decision. He chose a spear headed formation. Three marines in front of him in an arc with three marines behind him in a line. The other three he had posted above the chute to control the xenos grav elevators. He was unsure how else they would traverse back unless they found another path.

He thought back to the trip down the chute. The supports of the Spire surrounded the chute and when he reached the bottom he entered an entirely new realm. The depth of the chute and the raw rock made it seem more ancient than the rest of the Spire. When he stepped onto the floor he saw carvings of knights etched into every stone and metal surface. Empty banner bars hung from the distant ceiling of the tunnel. Weapon mounts lay exposed and broken at regular intervals.

With an excited yet cautious sigh he sent the command to his squad. A score of lights came on from hovering servitors above them. Dravok took point and slowly moved forward. The rest fell into the formation with practiced ease and carefully moved to follow. Dravok stalked forward with Nillahfin and Zaduga protected his flanks. Shar-Takazz looked around with the others behind.

After traversing the wall of broken rock machines, it did not take long to see that this had been a much different clash then the others. The dark eldar here were better equipped and there were hardly the masses like previous assaults up above. Ahead he could see the shredded forms of larger xenos craft. Shar-Takazz shook his head at the site of such large vehicles in the confines of these tunnels. He looked at one wreckage on its side. Blast marks from melta bombs had taken out its thrusters. One of its barrels, a dozen meters long, was shorn from the top turret. The massive ogryn like humanoids of the planet were here as well. Symbols of their various clans were now all stained with blood and ichor. Ornate weapons and clan heirlooms were embedded in bodies and discarded up and down the length of the tunnel.

Shar-Takazz paused and his squad did the same. He stared to his left. An armored headless woman was sitting on the ground holding the body of another human who had been stabbed countless times in the chest. Bodies of other humans and eldar were piled on top of one another forming a perimeter of silence around them. For a moment he thought of how many times he had witnessed this same scene, how many times friends or loved ones watched their companions die in their arms.

He snorted at the thought. Emotions should never cloud your judgement like that. Had she not stopped fighting she may have lived and even avenged the death of her fellow soldier. The thought returned him to his task.

He stepped forward to the first sign of Ice Angels. A trio of purple trimmed Ice Angels were leaning against one another partially buried under eldar corpses. Members of Razzik’s old squad and now bodyguard, Squad Ashurbani. The strong scent of promethium and burning flesh clung to the area around them. Two empty handflamers were nearby along with half a dozen empty canisters. Right behind them several more large humans and a large lump of flesh and wiring that laid twice as high as Shar-Takazz was tall.

Nillahfin stepped out suddenly, he rounded the mound of flesh before lower his weapon. He absently shook his head. False alarm.

Parts of the fleshy machine craft twitched as he examined the mound. Shar-Takazz could not tell what the thing had been or even what form it had taken but it looked like most of it had been set on fire from the flamers.

The servo skulls continued their hovering vigil and paused as Shar-Takazz moved forward with his squad up to one of the rock machines that had a multibarreled weapon mount on its shoulder and massive hydrolic claws for hands. It did not seem to have a head, merely a lump of sensors between its shoulders. To Shar-Takazz, it looked like it was some sort of defensive construct, but he was unfamiliar with the design. There was a slight whirring sound from the fallen construct. Tiny sparks shot out from the machine. Shar-Takazz moved closer to inspect with Larsa. The others kept their guard and weapons up. Several parts of the machine still had power and tried to move.

“Ah, look. It still lives.” Larsa said. He pointed to an optical array. It followed Larsa’s movements, clearly tracking him. The whirring sound was from the strained motion of the damaged array trying to move. “This is not a construct I am familiar with Sergeant.”

“Nor am I Larsa but we should continue. We will return for this. It may have valuable knowledge but for now we press on. I feel like we are close to our goal.” Shar-Takazz urged.

Behind the fallen construct lay the site they dreaded yet searched for. A lone servitor hovered low to the ground at chest level. It’s spot light illuminated the damaged helm of Captain Razzik. A pair of terminators were both laying on their backs next to the fallen helm. The bent remains of a discarded thundershield was not far off. Black armored Dark Eldar with curved blades and teal plumed helmets were all around them.

The squad changed positions to form a perimeter around the scene as Shar-Takazz took a closer look. The front of the terminators had been melted off and the ground was rough and it too seemed to be in its own crater. Deep wounds of incredibly precision had finished them all off, it looked like the melted remains of many other things were here as well but they were no merely mush and goo on the ground in pools around the crater. His gaze began to drift further and further away from the helmet. There was no sign of the rest of Razzik’s body.

Slowly, he picked up the helmet and was relieved to see that his head was not in it. It did give him an idea. He opened up his HUD and hoped.

He accessed his vox controls and sent out a very strong burst among all sorts of frequencies. Hoping that something would respond. This only worked at very short distances and even shorter in the underground confines of the Spires stone basement. The burst contained no words but a hidden code that any astartes would recognize.

A moment later a response came but not as he had expected.

The sound of running feet came from a side tunnel up ahead. Weapons snapped up and marines knelt in cover around Shat-Takazz. The servo skulls shut off all of their lights instantly and went silently hovering forward. A flickering light occasionally illuminated the intersection ahead of them. One moment there was a marine running across the path ahead of them and sharply turning to run towards Shar-Takazz and his squad. The next second the light went out. The marine hurdled himself over debris and deftly barreled through the war torn hall before climbing up the broken hull of an eldar vessel.

In the darkness Shar-Takazz waited with his squad. They were in good cover and could easily see the marine who was standing under one of the few lights in the immediate area. He was not far away. The marine wore no helmet and was in a dark bodysuit with a typical power armored backpack. He drew two wicked blades and pointed to the intersection behind him. The light flicked back on back at the intersection and briefly illuminated a coven of wyches running across the space in near silence.

Shar-Takazz quickly sent out several commands to his squad and servo skulls.

The wyches slowed their run and began to dip into the dark shadows seeming to melt into the darkness of the dank expansive tunnel. Several of them began to laugh or chuckle sending echoes around the remnants of the fallen.

“It is over monkeigh. We have you and you can not get away this time.” One of them said with a smile in her voice.

The marine smiled and held his weapons in a defensive stance, “perhaps,” was all he muttered.

She snarled and began to leap forward when the servo skulls above the marine flashed on their blinding lights. The wyches paused and it was all Shar-Takazz and his marines needed to light them up with bolter fire. The tunnel resonated with the brief cacophony but none of the wyches took another breath.

The marine on the wreckage leapt down from the pile and walked towards them with a cocky swagger. In a few moments he was standing before them. This close Shar-Takazz could see how ragged the marine was after a month of supplyless guerrilla war. He wore bits of his armor and all of it was heavily damaged or torn. He mostly wore his under bodysuit. He had no weapons other than his blades which hung from his belt. Neither appeared to be Imperial issue. He was not a marine that Shar-Takazz was familiar with nor did he had any Angel markings or tattoos.

“Wow, the Captain was right. You guys did show up.” He looked around at Shar-Takazz and his squad. “This may do it if we’re quick about it. Come on let’s go.” The marine turned to leave.

“Wait,” Shar-Takazz snapped. “Is Razzik alive?”

The marine shrugged, “not sure. I haven’t seen him but there are still people to save. Come on, we’re running out of time.” He began to move away in near silence.

Shar-Takazz and his squad did not move, “and who are you?”

The marine paused and looked back over his shoulder. “You can call me Tek’Ar. Can we move now?”

“Once you give us more information,” Shar-Takazz began.

“I will explain as we move, right now, we need to stop the Cabal from breaking into the last vault and slaughtering all of the civilians we had hidden there. If your Captain lives, he will be there too. I am the only one outside of it left alive.”

Shar-Takazz thought on that a moment before he began to stride forward after Tek-Ar. His squad followed after him. The servitors began to sweep the hallway with their lights, once again seeking out Ice Angel wargear or possible survivors. The marines left the lights of the servitors to their task and went further into the dimly lit corridor.

“How shall the eight of us stop this slaughter? What is your plan Tek-Ar?”

Tek-Ar did not answer but instead thought about it. After a few moments Tek-Ar scoffed to himself and spoke, breaking the near silence of marines stalking down the hall.

“You Ice Angels really enjoy your plans. Your Captain was marvelous at it. Planning was never my specialty so I will let you decide once you see what we’re up against.”

Shar-Takazz raised an unseen eyebrow with in his helmet. He appreciated the compliment towards his captain but did not like rushing into a fight. He attempted to send messages via his HUD but found that something was wrong, he had lost contact with everyone above the chute. He only saw his men that were with him. He sent a servitor to relay a message and narrowed his eyes. This ornate section deep within the Spire was more then he had anticipated. In fact this whole day had been more than he had anticipated. His mind began to wander before his mental focus shoved it aside.

“Very well, guide us to those who need to be saved.” Shar-Takazz spoke as he saw a limp arm under a pile of armored eldar corpses. The arm was that of an Ice Angel reaching for a fallen chainsword. One finger was touching the edge of the hilt. “I believe my men have a debt that needs to be paid.”

Just wanted to note that after some prodding from Ice in-person at AdeptiCon I've started my read through . Greatly appreciate the consolidation of Book 1 on pages 43 & 44! I assume similar will happen when Book 2 is complete

Will check in after I'm further along!

RiTides!

I will edit and consolidate book two once it is complete. I hope you're enjoying it so far. I think book two is turning out much better, by the way. It's amazing what some planning can do for a book.

YOU MEAN THEY ARENT ALL DEAD??

ICE you beautiful bastard you.

Dude, you had me on the edge my couch on this one. All the small strands of hope just wafting in the wind, you devil you!

I'm glad you enjoyed the ride so far. It's taken me longer then expected to get these last posts ready but I think they've been worth it.

Tap Tap Scratch

Tap Tap Scratch

Savra smacked her lips as she tapped her fingers on the ceramite Ice Angel helmet in her hands. She gazed down the hall passed all the lounging and dying Eldar. A gaggle of machines and devices worked their craft on a expansive door trying to crack it. Progress was being made, but it was painfully slow.

Tap Tap Scratch

Tap Tap SNAP

She twitched in irritation as she looked down at her broken nail. A small dab of blood trickled from the tip of her finger. She scoffed and rolled her eyes. Without any other word she gracefully spun up to a crouch and then she stretched. She caught the attention of several warriors around her but she paid them no mind. They knew she would kill them if they said a word to her. Absently she tossed the helmet aside with a clatter.

Her stomach growled at her and she realized she hadn’t eaten in several days. “No matter,” she thought. Absently she reached for one of her blades but remembered that at some point she had also lost all of her weapons. Flashes of intense combat throbbed in her mind, each bloodletting slice bringing back memories of pleasure. One memory paused as she saw a hallway full of corpses. The moment of distant pleasure evaporated and her snarl returned. The frenzy of battle against these Ice Angels had taken a heavy toll, but she immediately lost interest in that line of thought the moment it came to her. She was a bit perturbed that all of her coven had been killed. It was tiresome replacing capable wyches and the process took her away from her more pleasurable tasks.

She paused for a moment just an instant away from taking a step. In the span of several heartbeats her emotions and thoughts had jumped all around. Emotional instability she was used to but the lack of control…. “I need a nap or someone to speak to that won’t annoy me,” she murmured to herself.

With that in mind she went to go seek her favorite toy, Vonsokah.

She prowled the tunnels past damaged vehicles and dying warriors. The air smelled old down in these tunnels and the typical Imperial decor was even more drab than usual. Memories of plundering palaces and Imperial elite came to her thoughts as she reminisced on better times. She passed a group of corpse haulers being loaded up with countless members that needed to be brought back to life. The homunculi were giddy with glee knowing how well they would be paid for their services.

Savra did not spare them another look as she went to a side tunnel. There she found her target, Vonsokah. He was one of the few remaining archons still alive and in the tunnels with Master Scuvven. The two were speaking in hushed tones behind a collection of incubi guards. The guards looked haggard and several were leaning against the wall of the side passage. Two were missing their great blades and one was missing an arm, but that did not make them less dangerous. They scanned the halls and the movements of all around, they were worth the cost, whatever they were paid.

She silently approached the guards that paid her no mind, but to her surprise Master Scuvven noticed her and stopped speaking. Vonsokah was quick to follow.

Master Scuvven, with his woven hair face mask, gave her a disapproving glare and then spoke to Vonsokah once again. “Make it so Archon, I demand it.”

Savra gave Master Scuvven plenty of room as he stormed past. His guards fell in step behind. She regarded Vonsokah and noticed how weary he looked. She suddenly had no desire for the man and thought about killing him. He had been rather dull lately anyways.

Vonsokah took a long pull from a tall goblet. She could smell the bitter and tart alcohol. It made her stomach curl, she never understood why Vonsokah drank that filth. He knew it and grinned.

“I have something for you?” he whispered while looking down at this drink.

Her eyebrows sprang up at the comment. She was truly surprised. Then the moment passed and she narrowed her gaze. “Is it something tedious? I am in no mood,” she smoothly stated.

Casually Vonsokah motioned with a finger to a pile of rubble. “Take a look on the other side of that.”

She bit her lip and stared at him before taking a sharp breath and stalking over to the pile. She deftly leapt to the top of the rubble to stand poised on the tip of a ferrocrete piece of ceiling. On the other side were two pieces of a corpse. Her wicked grin returned as a feeling of joy filled her black soul.

“Master Scuvven was not very impressed with her performance over the past few weeks. I think she even had a few dozen survivors in her coven. They may be in need of some new leadership.” Vonsokah said while rummaging through a container that sat on the floor near his feet.

“Take her coven?” she barked a short laugh, “doesn’t she have a contract with the Haemonculus to be brought ba…” she stopped and her grin widened.

Vonsokah held out a pair of acid flasks and a torch, its nozzle already ignited with a blue flame.

“They need a body to do that.”

And the script was flipped.

Being so wrapped up with the new comers I had forgotten about the DE and relished the damage they have taken.

I've missed this please post more!

 Knightley wrote:
And the script was flipped.

Being so wrapped up with the new comers I had forgotten about the DE and relished the damage they have taken.

I've missed this please post more!

Thanks Knightley! I have missed it as well. I will try to find the motivation needed to finish this. I keep saying it but I can't seem to get it done. Ugh! I must push forward!

Please Ice! Please! Give us MOAR!

“The stone is too dense and the shielding to efficient,” Dravok said once again.
“There must be a hard line we can use.” Zaduga whispered.
“Of course, but that could take hours, days, weeks, to try and locate a working line!” Nillahfin complained.
“We can’t just wander around, where would we even start?” Larsa added.
“If Tek-Ar doesn’t have,” Nillahfin began.
“How can we even trust,” Dravok interupted.
“ENOUGH!” Shar-Takazz hissed over the vox to his squad.

They were spread out around an intersection. Each member was well hidden behind blasted walls, damaged panels, or wrecked vehicles. They had spoked to one another as if they were huddled together but none of them were within five strides. They watched and waited, but the wait was grating on them. Now the silence of the vox line hung like a stench you could not escape.

Tek-Ar had left them to sneak ahead to look around. Shar-Takazz knew that his squad did not like the idea but he had no argument for Tek-Ar’s logic. The astartes was truly a master of stealth and they needed more information. More than a hundred yards away the edge of the Dark Eldar encampment loomed. Vehicles and gear were clustered in groups in the massive tunnels they had been traversing. Time and time again Shar-Takazz looked up at the distant ceiling, often to dark to even see. The tunnels were enormous. Small titans could easily pass through them and he found that unnerving.

Staring up at the ceiling he saw a series of sparks. He could not hear the crackle of discharge but his mind created the noise the spark should have made. As the light faded the mental image lingered. He studied the pipes and torn wiring. He followed the lines with his eyes to a bulkhead.

Sparks once again shot out and he took the opportunity to revisit his ocular path. The collection of wiring were contained in a pipe that went down the interior of a reinforced wall not far from where he stood, just a little deeper into the tunnel towards the Dark Eldar.

“Three bulkheads ahead, right hand side. It looks like a live wire is in there. We are going to open that panel to see if any of those lines can get us a signal through to the survivors.” Shar-Takazz ordered. The focus of process took over as they silently moved forward one at a time. Carefully making sure they did not have any unneeded onlookers.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Banging, machine whirring, expletives in binary, the sounds had a hidden rhythm and every few minutes silence would break the noise as some checks were run. The expletives in binary would start up the process all again, any minute now. It felt like the process had been going on for days. He began to wonder what day it was. Down in the tunnels without a HUD or any device he truly had no idea what day it was or how long he had been down here.

“Are you ready to cooperate? Yes, I think you are. This will be it.” A monotonous voice spoke to itself. A crackle of power, flashes of light, and expletives in binary were the response.

“Was that it Philosir?” Captain Razzik asked without looking down into the hatch he sat next too.

An aggravated sound gurgled out of the tech marine then another blurt of binary.

Razzik thought on the sound, he never took the time to learn any of the binary cant but he had gathered what some of the expletives were from his time with endless techmarines over the years.

“Why do you think the first words we learn of new languages are expletives?” Razzik asked to himself.

“Probability would suggest that they are some of the most used words in any language. Therefore they would be an obvious place to start.” Philosir blandly stated while the whirring sound of one of his tools spun up once again.

A different sound came from ahead of him. The mountainous door creaked, parts of it were glowing. They were running short on time. He scanned the ceiling above the doors, the walls, the ground, everything was as ready as could be. He continued his routine inspection. His gaze fell over the line of trenches, tanks, and bedraggled survivors. Everyone wore the same blank expression under the dirt and filth. There was no more fear, no more hope, no more anything. When the door fell he wasn’t even sure they would try to stop the enemy.

Movement from his left made him slowly turn his head. A young man, Kaihiro, was his name, walked up with some provisions. Razzik watched the man, he still moved with purpose, with hope.

Kaihiro motioned to throw the food up to Razzik. Razzik nodded and easily caught the item with his one remaining arm. The stump of his upper right arm still itched every time he thought about it. He took a bite without taking his gaze from Kaihiro. The youth looked away and around at the tank.

“Umm, Captain Sir,” Kaihiro began hesitantly, “I wanted to say thank you for protecting us this long. None of us would be alive had you…” he trailed off.

“It is my duty Kai, to serve and protect. The Emperor wills it that we all play our part. Thank you for doing yours,” Razzik responded while taking his gaze back up to the doors in the distance. “Do not think your help throughout the fall back has not been noticed.”

“I was merely doing what I can,” Kai began.

“That!” Razzik said with surprising fervor. “That is all we ask. When your time comes you give your all to protect and serve. And you have done so, with honor.”

Kai furrowed his filthy brow, dirt and grime covered his once pristine clothing. “Thank you for your kind words Captain, it just…. It just doesn’t seem like much. I wish I could do more,”

Razzik thought on that when he noticed a red armored hand reach up out of the land raider chasis he sat on. “Captain, call for you” the voice of philosir said from below.

Razzik held the unit up to his ear and listened. The voice of Omicron Eighty Eight began but then a voice cut across he thought he would never hear again.

“Shar-Takazz!” he spat. The excitement reinvigorated him. He leapt to his feet with a million questions. He looked back down to Kaihiro who looked puzzled.

“Reinforcements have arrived Kai, tell everyone! We must hold out just a little longer.”

Kai was already running and shouting. The faces of all that heard instantly changed, just like that, hope brought new life to the bedraggled survivors.

“Where are you and what strength have you,” Razzik began as the mountainous doors that held the enemy at bay screamed in defiance one last time before falling with the weight of an army right behind it.

* * * * * * * * * *

I got chills, literal chills that these guys are still alive.

The one thing I dislike.... I have to wait for the next bit to be posted and, to misquote an SNL sketch, "The time to wait is to damn long!"

I really did miss this story

Thanks Knightley. Thanks to Azalle too. You guys have really helped keep me going through this process and it means a lot. Who knows when the next section will be ready, but it'll be great. It'll be worth the wait!

Imagine my surprise when I read your post of February 26th... about 3 minutes ago.

I'll get caught up today. You didn't kill him again in the mean-time did you?

All caught up. Wonderful work Ice. Very exciting and you've certainly learned the art of the cliff-hanger!

Gitsplitta!

Thank you sir. Im glad it's held up the way it has. I think a lot has happened since February. One thing that i learned after editing my first book is that writing slow like i do can leave some great little tidbits on the way side. While you worked through it did anything feel left out or forgotten?

Actually, I love the friendship between Inushi & Aquillum. I think it's far more interesting, enjoyable and genuine that anything else you could do with either character independently. It does a great job in humanizing these genetically engineered, religious fantatic, killing machines. Very well done.

Good call Gits. I have been doing a lot more reading and listening to audiobooks over the past several years, and while writing my own story its made me really reevaluate what has worked and what i need to focus on. Well defined characters and their development is something I've wanted to improve upon. Inushi and Aquilum was one of my first decisive attempts to do so. I'm glad it's paid off.

It has indeed. There's humor there that (by it's nature) there isn't a lot of opportunity for in many of your other passages. There's also growth in both characters as they subtly influence one another through their friendship.

Most of our view of the other characters is in the heat of combat... or preparing for combat or dealing with the aftermath of it. Because of what's happening to both characters... we get to see how they interact during "down time". I think that's a wonderful interlude between all the great action that's going on in your story.

ahhhhhhhh yes! Sorry im late but thank god! Love it!

Good to see the story continue

Thanks Azalle and Khaine! Tomorrow we should see our next update. Time to see how Razziks last stand holds up.