IC: DH The Purity of Sacrifice

[Wyndeward]

Arl looked at his companions.

"I think it is time to take Boss Half-Face's most generous offer and leave."

[Bennosuke]

"That would be a wise choice," Boss Half Face remarks darkly.

[Morovir]

There was nothing more to be done. Affecting a look of disinterest, Xerros-926 adjusts his robes, thumps his staff once on the floor and turns away.

They had learnt much from this confrontation, and would return the stronger for it.

[dojango]

Luis merely gives an exaggerated bow and follows the tech priest. Once they are outside, far away from prying eyes and ears he shrugs and says "Guess they don't have it. Let's keep watch on this place and ambush them when they return with the goods."

[Bennosuke]

The underhive is a twisted maze of tunnels and abandoned hab streets. Some pathways lead to dead ends of rubble, others meander nonsensically in strange directions, and with no sun, stars or other landmarks, navigation is treacherous .

Spoiler: OOC:

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Anyone who has Surface Navigation, please give me a roll at +10. I will allow anyone who was Hive Born to roll half their Intelligence. If you have Surface Nav and are Hive born your roll is instead at +30.

Also, please everyone give me an Awareness check.

[dojango]

The twisting passages of the underhive reminded Luis of the shattered ice shelves and rocky moors of his homeworld. The principles of navigation were the same, and so he cautiously tried to retrace his steps back to their safehouse, while keeping an eye on his back for any following gangers.

Spoiler

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Navigation: (1d100)[59] v. 35, Awareness: (1d100)[1] v. 29

[Morovir]

The underhive was a mystery to Xerros-926 - even the data-catacombs of Lathe-Het made more sense in comparison to this place.

Spoiler: OOC:

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Awareness: (1d100)[69]

[BananaPhone]

Marcella


Marcella stuck to the centre of the group as they moved away from the sordid pit that was Boss Half-Face' domain. Prusing her lips, the Psyker wondered to herself what their next move would be, as they still had a mission to perform within the purview of their Inquisitors direction.


ooc:

Spoiler

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Awareness: (1d100)[6] vs 32.

Psyker: Sense Presence: (1d10+5)[11] vs Target 7.

[Wyndeward]

Arl considered what they had learned as he walked. They now had the name of Half-Face's noble ally.

Spoiler: OOC:

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(1d100)[85] vs. 35

[Bennosuke]

The group tries their best to navigate their way through the abandoned streets and winding tunnels. But as they move along, the passageways becomes somehow less familiar. Narrow alleys seem to head downward no matter how many times the group changes direction or tries to turn around, and the temperature continues to drop till not even the acolytes' heavy cloaks can shield them from the biting cold.

Both Luis and Marcella had been aware of the distant footfalls and telltale presence of a small group that had followed the acolytes away from Half Face's tent, but as the acolytes continue to wander even their tails seem to disappear. The tunnels here are narrow and ancient, and darkened due to an outage of nearly four out of every five overhead lamp. Brownish toxic sludge pools to near ankle height on the tunnel floor, spashing and slurping with every foot fall. It is almost to the point where glow lamps would be needed to continue navigating, when in the distance a massive hooded figure appears. The giant, sloped over so that it's crown and back scrapes against the roof of the passageway, studies the approaching acolytes without movement. In it's hands, the size of a Space Marine's, it clutches a twisted piece of scrap metal that it is clearly using as a walking crutch. Plumes of smokey breath appear and dissipate in front of it's hood-shadowed face.

[Morovir]

Although he does not raise his lascarbine, so not to provoke unnecessarily, Xerror-926 nevertheless tightens his grip as he calls out:

"Request: Identify yourself!"

[dojango]

"That how you treat the elders?" mutters Luis under his breath. "Greeting, greybeard! What brings you to this fine place? Would you care to break rations with us?"

[Bennosuke]

"Upwilders," the giant says in a broken sort of Low Gothic, it's voice husky and too low for any human's. It is hard to truly tell in the dark, but it seems that the towering figure takes a lumbering step back, away from the group. It starts with a question that quickly transforms into shouts of fear, "What brings... stay back! Stay back! No light!"

[Morovir]

Holding up a hand to indicate the rest of the group to halt, Xerros-926 dims the light of his photolenses slightly - hopefully enough to indicate a lack of threat to the giant.

"Reassurance: We mean you no harm - we will not bring the light. Interrogative: Who are you?"

[Bennosuke]

The giant stops retreating, but it's position is still guarded and it makes no steps forward.

(OOC: Wanna give me a charm roll please?)

[Morovir]

Xerros-926 tries to smile to reassure the giant. Unfortunately, given that the lower part of his face has long been replaced by a metal rebreather, this has as much success as can be expected.

Spoiler: OOC:

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6 DoF...

[BananaPhone]

Marcella

It rarely happened.

Normally, the youngest looking group member, the blonde sitting at the back of the group, she was a quiet one.

She usually held her tongue and said nothing while watching the events unfold at the behest of those around her.

But after the mismatch and pear-shaped events of Half-Boss Face, Marcella knew she had to try and speak up when this...man approached them from the dark.

"Please don't leave!" her gentle voice echoed across the tunnel.

"We seek answers, just as you do, sir!"

[Bennosuke]

"I don't seek answers," the giant replies, his low voice somber and echoing in the hallway as he stops in his tracks, only to take a few steps forward. He comes closer to the group saying, "I only seek safety." But as the giant steps forward, his silhouette sharpens, and the acolytes can see the details of his twisted face. The mutant's mouth is a long lipless slit that moves from one bat-like ear to the next, and the remaining real estate of his face is covered in an array of large rheumy yellow eyeballs, each one roving independent of the next. Though the underhivers seemed to dress in bundles of rag's and furs, the giant's skeletal frame was draped in dirty rags so thin and ragged that it looked like they might rot off of his body where he stands.

[Wyndeward]

Arl holds his ground, his eyes scanning for an ambush.

Spoiler: OOC - Die roll

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(1d100)[19]

[Bennosuke]

Arl quickly scans the area, but sees no sign of a possible ambush in this narrow dark tunnel. Looking closer at the mutant, Arl notices that he has the handle of a tin pail hanging over one gangly arm, the bucket filled with what look like moldering heads of fungus, and Arl can only assume that the giant has been foraging.

[dojango]

"Ask your friend if he wants any of them ryder meat, maybe?" whispers Luis to Marcella. "And ask if maybe he's seen some weird stuff down here? Cause he's pretty weird too?"

[BananaPhone]

Marcella


Normally, Marcella would have dismissed such an idea. But in this context, it wasn't absurd.

Reaching a gloved hand out to receive the ryder meat that was offered to her, Marcella turned to the mutant and presented the item.

"A token of good will?" she asked.

"We're not interested in harming you."

[Bennosuke]

The man-thing stumbles closer, a hand instinctively reaching out for the prize Marcella held aloft. "Is that... fresh ryder meat," he asks with excitement, his slit mouth turning slick with saliva. The ryder meat was already more than a day old, and was beginning to turn ripe and grey, but this did not seem to bother the mutant.

[dojango]

"Our tribe shares with your tribe in our season of plenty," Luis recites, left unspoken that they will reciprocate if the time comes, "So, friend, what news from your hunting grounds?"

[BananaPhone]

Marcella

The mutant enquired to the nature of the meat she was offering. He seemed excited. Good.

Then Luis spoke up: "Our tribe shares with your tribe in our season of plenty. So, friend, what news from your hunting grounds?"

Marcella then gestured forward with her hand to allow the mutant to take the meat from her.

"As my partner here says, we want to know things about this area."

[Bennosuke]

The giant takes another step closer, still very hesitant, but his slit-like mouth is now starting to dribble saliva, it's many eyes focused on the chunk of meat. But he stops himself, and studying the group says, "These tunnels... these tunnels are Ant territory. You... you are not Ants... you are Norms! Why would you come this way?" He takes another couple of steps forward, and now the mutant is less than ten yards away. As he approaches, the tunnel becomes thick with his rotten stench.

[Morovir]

Understanding that his particular skills do not lend well to such situations, Xerros-926 remains silent, letting the others communicate with the creature.

[dojango]

"Why are we here? The Emperor's light guided our every step, right up until SOMEONE decided to take a short cut through the broken access duct a few levels back. We're looking for... well, crap, I don't even know what we're looking for. The exit to the upperhive, is that around here somewhere? Or perhaps the Squat's Behind?

[Bennosuke]

The mutant stumbles back at Luis' sudden anger, bringing his hands up before his broken face as if for protection.

[dojango]

"Whoa, steady on there, big fella. It ain't you. Say, you wouldn't have seen some of our friends lurking around? They got shiny coats like we do. Seen any fellas like that lately?"