IC: DH The Purity of Sacrifice

[Bennosuke]

Spoiler: OOC

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Marcella stood as the train came to a halt, her feet and muscles keeping her steady as they were all decelerated.

Just to clarify, the train has not yet taken off. It's supposed to be at the station for the next hour or so before taking off. The acolytes boarded early, deciding they were done in the underhive, and found Sola sitting on the train car.

Seeing the alarm in the visages of the guards, Marcella held her hand up gently to halt any advance they might pursue in the potential apprehension of their new "ally".

"It's alright," she said, voice calm and smooth, "she's with us. She has information that is essential to our work. Thank you officers."

As Marcella steps forward, Sola slips back into the train car to allow the Pskyer to stand in front of her. Enforcer Golt and her squad of officers are charging the train car, guns raised. Golt replies, "Out of our way. Underhive scum are not allowed on the train cars. Unless you've filed the proper paper work that ganger is not going anywhere." They seem to completely ignore Marcella's words, pushing past her to enter the train car.

But once the Enforcers push inside, they find that the woman from Clan Ryder has simply vanished. "Oh throne!" another officer shouts in frustration, "She's already ghosted!" Enforcer Golt curses as well, still scanning the room, pointing her weapon this way and that.

[dojango]

"Fer the love of bureaucracy," grumbles Luis. "Now ye spooked her. Just send the paperwork over to the Credit Guild offices and they'll take care of her. She's helpin' us in a repo operation down below an' we don't carry the forms with us for obvious reasons."

[Bennosuke]

"You'll have to apply for it up top," Enforcer Golt spits, slowly lowering her firearm though she does not stop scanning the train car. Still simmering with anger she adds, "There's a reason their lot are not allowed out of the underhive. No good godless scum down here."

[dojango]

"Fine, whatever, we'll get the paperwork sent down when we get to it. Been swimming in underhive drek all day on business, I'm gonna go take a shower and have a drink or five AT STATION TOLLARES" Luis says, saying the last part extremely loudly so that any hiding underhive ganger can hear it. Then he heads out...

[BananaPhone]

Marcella

The Psyker made a face for a moment that clearly communicated her dislike at being shoved aside and ignored by the arbites. Who did they think they were? How rude.

Pulling herself away from the train as the armed men insisted on searching it, Marcella heard her companions words and immediately caught on to what he meant. Shaking her head at the situation, knowing the underhiver was around somewhere, the witch turned and moved alongside Luis.

[Bennosuke]

The squad of Enforcers rummage about the train car, ignoring the foul smell and paying little head to Luis and the others. But of course they are left with no sign of the Clan Ryder woman. With frustration, Enforcer Golt sends two of her officers to check other cars; a search which also turns up nothing.

She gives the acolytes a scowl of distrust and says, "Well, have a safe ride back then," when the Enforcers have given up their search and begin to exit the train.

Not long after the Enforcers return to their guard positions, a harsh electronic chime rings through the station and the train doors screech shut. The train car begins to shudder after a few moments, and then the locomotive takes off for its destination in the Mid-Hive.

About ten minutes into the ride up, there is an electric crackling sound and the smell of ozone as Sola seems to materialize back inside the car. Pixels fade out from her chameleon cloak, and she stands in the middle of the car grinning. "Thank you," she says to the acolytes, "I guess I'm coming for a ride with you then."

[Morovir]

Saying nothing to the enforcers, Xerros-926 lets them root around in the carriage, knowing full well that they will not find anything.

After they have departed, he bows his head, waiting for her to reappear.

When she does so, he nods at her.

They needed her for now.

[Wyndeward]

Arl just smiled gently and shook his head as the car lurched upwards.

[dojango]

"You ever been to the mid-hive afore?" asks Luis, "It's a lot like the underhive, except, you know, there's a lot more of it."

[Bennosuke]

Sola shoots Luis a warm grin and shakes her head. "Nope," she replies, "as you might have guessed, underhivers really aren't allowed to go above. It's just safer to stay below, stay in your clan's territory." Her eyes go cold for a moment at this last bit, staring off at some distant bitter memory.

[BananaPhone]

Marcella

Marcella listened to what Sola had to say. It was interesting to the Psyker that she had never once been above the underhive - never once ascended to even the mid-hive where the standard of living was considerably better. Instead, her whole world, her whole life, had been the underhive.

"I was born on Sevastapol," Marcella said to Sola, gesturing upwards with her forehead to where the sky would be.

"I never thought I'd see things down here," she said.

[Bennosuke]

Sola looks up where Marcalle is pointing, but doesn't seem to really understand what she means. She nods her head with a shrug. "Anyways," she says as she crosses her arms over her chest, "I think I want to help you then. I think you can help us get rid of the weapons, and I think I'm just going to have to trust you all." She looks over at the head of the train car, clearly nervous about her voyage out of the underhive.

[dojango]

"Aye, we'll find ya a place to stay for a couple of day cycles. Somewheres outta the way, where you can enjoy yerself. I know there's a few bunkhouses at the top of Tollares Station. We can sit and talk and have a few drinks while we figure out how to solve this problem."

[Bennosuke]

A sudden excitement takes over Sola's face, her eyes light up and a genuine smile replaces her cold mask. "An upperhive hab?" she asks eagerly. Of course, it was not going to be any sort of upperhive palace, but perhaps even the smallest dive in the midhive would be like a castle to this underhiver. Then a flicker of hesitation crosses Sola's face and she coldly says, "I... I don't think I have the thrones to be living the good life out of the underhive."

[Morovir]

"Statement: I know a Magos who runs a forge-enclave in the mid-hive. Suggestion: As long as you don't mention the xenotech, I am sure that he would have no opposition to you staying there for a couple of days. Encouragement: You would be safe there."

[BananaPhone]

Marcella

It was almost adorable to Marcella the way the underhivers face lit up like a Christmas tree at the idea she'd be staying in the "above world". Compared to the wretched, filthy hive of scum and villainy that constituted the underhive, even Marcella's modest-but-comfortable room at the Psyker academy was a palace. Things really could be a matter of perspective.

Staying silent as she watched the conversation, Marcella just kept a smirk on her face as she followed the group.

[dojango]

Luis waves off her mention of thrones. "I'm sure the Mechanicus will let ya stay with them. This tech-priest has some pull with the men of Mars. And they got the finest protein powder down there."

[Bennosuke]

The underhiver's eyes go wide with unabashed awe and excitement. Turning to Xerros she asks, "Are you... are you certain? I... well it would be an honor!"

[BananaPhone]

Marcella


Marcella can't help but smirk. A little bit ago, the underhiver had the air of the mysterious, rogue agent about her. Now she seemed like an excited kid. It was genuinely quite cute.

[Wyndeward]

Arl smiled a small smile at the animated by-play between the Underhiver and his companions.

[Bennosuke]

Act 1 Scene ii

There is no place for the weak-willed or hesitant. Only by firm action and resolute faith will mankind survive. No sacrifice is too great. No treachery too small.

It has been almost two days since you returned to the Mid-hive surface with the ganger named Sola. True to his word, Xerros the tech priest had helped find her a domicile in the alien tower of Magos Petrovskii. Though the acolytes will be meeting with Sola shortly at the Commisar's Tavern, they have decided to first watch the recorded astropathic communication from Interrogator Havenshot, who is on his way to Helius to meet the acolytes and assist in finishing their business. The astropathic communication only having just arrived, the acolytes scramble to gather around the holo-pict.

The holo-pict shows a severe looking man with a gaunt face and pale flesh. His head shaved and his scalp sporting what look like a web of precise surgical scars that must have been related to some form of extreme cranial procedure, Havenshot is a man of near indeterminate age. Branded on his forehead is the scar tissue symbol of The Holy Ordos. He scowls at the recorder and says, "Acolytes, Inquisitor Zarkov has requested I come to Hive Hapheastein to assist you in your work. I trust your investigations have gone well. I will be arriving in what is likely two days time standard to Hive Planet Helius; assuming our warp travel remains stable." He clucks his tongue against his teeth at this. "I will be arriving via the Merchant Ship The Glorious Ruby, with a small team of acolytes loyal to Zarkov. You will meet me at Landing Terminal 451 of the Mid-Hive and will bring me to your headquarters. I expect a dosier completed, updating me on the results of your investigation so far. If you have done your job, perhaps you will have taken care of everything by the time I arrive," he says, but rolls his eyes with disdain. He finishes, "I look forward to meeting you," placing his hands across his chest in the sign of the Aquila and says, "May the Emperor guide you."

With that the pict fizzles out into motes of light and dust.

[dojango]

The illiterate tribesman pulls out the sheaf of papers that make up his report for Havenshot. Using the crude color sticks that some of the children in the habs use, he has illustrated some of the high points of the investigtion; a man shooting a bow at some mutated creatures, a man in red drinking a beer, a blond woman with lighting bolts shooting out from her heads and hands, another man shooting a rifle at a ganger, a man in red holding a severed hand, a drawing of boss half face angrily scowling, and the acolytes pointing weapons at a smug-looking young woman. He finishes the coloring on the last one, satisfied with his report. He stuffs the pictures into his bag and heads out to meet Sola. Perhaps she would have something interesting to report... and perhaps he should bring his crayons to take notes. He grabs them and throws them in the pack as well with some paper.

[Bennosuke]

(OOC: I am going to post here in case people are not checking the OOC thread. So, does no one want to spend their XP??? Should I send PMs out to players who might have gone a little MIA with the holidays?)

[Morovir]

Having delivered Sola to the tender care of Omnicron-5038 and Magos Petrovskii - with an update for the Magos on the bolt pistol that his associate had discovered - and, after extracting a firm assurance that there was to be no servitor conversion of his guest (at least, not whilst she still had use), Xerros-926 returned to their headquarters.

He spent his time composing his report on a dataslate, describing their travails in painstaking detail, though ensuring that his exploits were not overshadowed by anyone else's contributions. He shuddered as he recalled the savage and his crude pictograms. No, it was better that he was the one to recount what had happened.

[Wyndeward]

Having delivered Sola to the tender care of Omnicron-5038 and Magos Petrovskii - with an update for the Magos on the bolt pistol that his associate had discovered - and, after extracting a firm assurance that there was to be no servitor conversion of his guest (at least, not whilst she still had use), Xerros-926 returned to their headquarters.

He spent his time composing his report on a dataslate, describing their travails in painstaking detail, though ensuring that his exploits were not overshadowed by anyone else's contributions. He shuddered as he recalled the savage and his crude pictograms. No, it was better that he was the one to recount what had happened.

"A moment of your time, please." Arl cleared his throat. "Is there any way to trace the owner of that hand we found? It may serve as evidence of who was selling the Xenos weapons."

[BananaPhone]

Marcella


Marcella had no love for the pompous Inquisitor staring down his nose at them. However, keeping her thoughts to herself, the Psyker simply looked up at his holographic image as he spoke and nodded once he was signalling an end to communication.

Marcella's own report was more concise than what Morovir might have put together, as the two of them hailed from the most...academically inclined branches of the Imperial government. He the Magos, she the Pyker.

In her report Marcella was rather fair, recounting the events as they had happened in the most objective way she could.

[Morovir]

Turning to face Arl, Xerros-926 replied:

"Statement: I gave the hand to Magos Petrovskii when I visited the forge-enclave - if anyone can get something out of it, it will be him."

Spoiler: OOC:

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@Bennosuke

I completely forgot about the hand - since there hasn't been an update yet, can I retroactively say that Xerros gave Magos Petrovskii the hand when he mentioned the bolt pistol, and asked him to see if he could glean anything from it?

[dojango]

Luis nods. He pulls out a piece of paper and starts sketching the strange Magos putting a hand in a weird machine. He wasn't sure what strange techno-sorcery would find out about the severed hand, but as long as the red priest said it was so, than it would be so.

[Bennosuke]

The acolytes departed their base of operation, leaving to meet Sola at The Commisar's Tavern. The Tavern was a location of relative ill repute in the mid-hive. A dive of low lighting and and stale air. The acolytes were stopped outside the large iron door by a pair of bouncer servitors, both sporting heavy but worn augmentation. These two were near faceless vat grown meat slabs, with clicking green lenses for eyes and a round vox piece for a mouth.

Thing one, which had one human hand and a second shaped like a giant hammer, asked to scan the acolytes' ID badges in a high pitched electronic voice. Fortunately the fake ID's made for each individual was made by the Inquisition.

Thing two opened a small crate and instructed the acolytes to place any firearms they owned inside.

(OOC: Will give you all an option to follow instruction or try to sneak something past the bouncers)

[Wyndeward]

Arl smiles and divests himself of all of his weapons.

"Things should be relatively quiet -- they take the "no fighting and no vendetta" rule seriously here.