Chương 120: Chapter 16 Part 5
Chapter 16: Tenuous pacts
=ATBS=
Part 5
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Victory Bay
Kronus
Random tingles went up and down my new arm, while my shoulder itched something fierce. Originally, I had thought that there would be almost no circumstances under which I would consent to let someone fuse a Necron arm to my body. Recent events changed that particular calculation in a hurry.
While the primary threat – subversion was very much something to worry about, the potential threat vector changed. All it took was a report from Karom. The Necrons didn't need physical contact to infest some poor bastard with Mind-shackle scarabs. Releasing those tiny horrors in the general vicinity of anyone without proper counter-measures would be enough. In that regard, everyone who leaves leaving Kronus would be screened both after boarding one of the Imperial ships in orbit and at the final destination. Including us Inquisitors. Or should I say, especially us Inquisitors?
Of course, this bit of intelligence didn't mean the Necron gifts were safe, just that they didn't need them to subvert us if and when they turned on us. That's why, when the news about finding the Daemon's prison arrived, I agreed to get myself a new arm in a hurry, to go along with the rest of the gifts.
The Necrons looked like they approved of my choice, though it was hard to tell.
According to Amberley, I was a reckless fool. However, every little would help when facing a Daemon.
There was just one immediate problem with my hasty choice – the Daemon failed to materialize. We found traitor corpses inside, and while void of blood, they were more than fresh enough to tell us what happened. Closer examination of the area by General Alexander's Psykers and an Eldar Warlock pointed at a ritual taking place while the final assault on the Deimos Peninsula was underway.
The only surprise there was the fact that an apparent Greater Daemon of Khorne had chosen to return to the Warp instead of trying to ruin our day. The current theory was that it fled because there was no prospect of glorious bloodshed. If it manifested within that Emperor's forsaken desert, the Navy would burn the region to the mantle, denying it combat, blood and skulls anyway.
Instead of finding and fighting a Daemon, I returned to Victory Bay with a few Eldar stalkers in tow. I still wasn't sure why they came. I was merely being polite, all right, trolling the bastards with an invitation to come to visit and witness the official signing of the alliance between the Imperium and our new Necron friends.
They weren't supposed to accept!
Amberley wasn't happy. My security detail was even less happy. General Alexander looked at me as if hoping he could give me all the shit details he could think of until I died of old age.
The Necrons might have found it hilarious.
The Eldar ended up with a huge security detail, to protect them from the locals. Said detail had at least one unit of Necron Warriors attached to it, who went out of their way to be polite and helpful.
No one knew what to make of it, including the Eldar.
At least Selene liked the flight and meeting new people. Thinking about it, the Eldar might have accepted because they were afraid I would sic her on them otherwise…
As a consequence, I was beginning to regret my inability to get bloody drunk. On top of that, I suddenly didn't have any pressing duties to attend to so no distractions either. That's how I found myself in the Blood Raven compound, visiting Anteas who finally got himself a new arm as well. I found him at the Apothecarium and explained my current predicament.
"Inquisitor, I'm not sure if I should congratulate or pity you." My large friend peered at me from a large metal slab that passed for an operating table around here. Meanwhile, an Apothecary waved all kinds of scanners over me, looking for unpleasant Necron surprises.
The Blood Raven found nothing, not that, was saying much.
"Tell me about it. Pray, say, do you nice fellows have alcohol that works for you? If so, I would love to borrow a few bottles."
"After the last deployment, the first three Companies of the Chapters were declared dry. However, we might have a bottle or two of Fenrisian Ale in the Reliquary." The Apothecary rumbled.
I looked up at him questionably.
"That's one of the few good ways to keep Space Wolves off your back when they become rowdy. High doses of sedatives help as well." Something whirled in his gauntlet and a huge needle poked out, "however, those are much harder to administer. Bribing them causes fewer headaches for everyone involved."
"I'll have a word with the Captain when I'm out of here. Speaking about leaving?" Anteas looked at the Apothecary.
"You will sit right here for a few more hours to confirm good graft and no residual corruption." The Apothecary pointed the big needle at Anteas' chest.
"I'll leave you to rest then."
"Keep safe, Inquisitor. For what's worth, I know you've got the Emperor's blessing to guide your way. Keep a stout heart, no matter what."
I nodded at his words, while my wings preened and fluttered.
"It's a good thing we aren't a Chapter of the Blood or I won't hear the end of it." The Apothecary grumbled looking at my wings. "They're insufferable around Saints."
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"You're still alive." Amberley peered at me in a manner very similar to the way Anteas looked at me earlier.
This time, it was Karom whirling around, poking me, and whistling in Binary as if it was the Sanguina.
"No Mind-shackle scarabs that I can detect." The Magos Biologis proclaimed. "While I would prefer to open your brain and check directly, remote scans will have to do for now." He sounded disappointed.
Karom was obviously still salty I got him arrested.
"You know what? I don't care anymore. Just do me one single favor?" Amberley smiled at me in a very unnerving fashion. It was unnerving enough that my wings tried to spread around me in a protective posture and I had to consciously hold them back.
"What do you wish, Inquisitor Vail?" I asked politely and attentively.
"Stand down and don't do anything that might get us shot until you're no longer my problem!"
"It's not like I go out looking for this kind of trouble! Besides, there are only two things on our to-do list in the foreseeable future!" I reasonably pointed out.
We sent feelers to the Tau to see if they were willing to negotiate and would deal with them soon if they failed to respond. The other thing was a standing invitation to attend a Mechanicus ceremony tomorrow when they would finish excavating the Titan cannon. We would attend it, of course! It would be the polite thing to do. The Propaganda Department would love it, and so would the crowds. In theory, unveiling that weapon would serve as a reminder to everyone watching that the Imperium didn't deploy its most destructive assets to Kronus.
"Just stay out of trouble, or I'll leave you to deal with the next Inquisitor who turns up alone!" Amberley threatened. "Magos, what can you tell us about your patients, before my colleague summons more problems on top of our heads?"
"The Crypteks tried an obvious solution – they sent deactivation codes. Unfortunately, they didn't work on Trazyn's Mind-shackle scarabs. Our current theory for removing them is to suspend them using energy fields, then physically get them out, while fixing any damage we might cause in the process. There are obvious downsides to this approach. It can cause permanent memory loss among other issues. The Inquisitor might need implants to repair her afterward. We can provide those."
"Of greater concerns was a deep scan provided by one of General Alexander's Psykers. Necron scans offered a partial corroboration. Inquisitor Greyfax's memory has been modified by Psychic means. The Necrons don't possess the means to do so. It had had to happen sometime before she ended up in Trazyn's hands."
"I might be able to help." My wings twitched eagerly at that. "These come with various new abilities I'm still learning about. However, it might be best to try after you've removed those things from her head. I don't know how they'll react to a Psychic intrusion. I won't be just looking, but pocking around."
"We'll make a test run on the Corporal late tonight." Karom continued, ignoring my input. "After that, we'll decide how to proceed based on experimental data. The best-case scenario is we'll begin treating the Inquisitor tomorrow evening. Our current projections show that with Cryptek aid it should take no more than twelve hours to remove the devices. Or it will if we're on the right path."
"Carry on and inform us of any relevant developments," Amberley ordered. She pointed at me. "You're with me. It's high time we began writing a comprehensive report for the local Inquisition Conclave. We'll have to figure out a good way to explain all of this to our reinforcements. The next group should arrive in the next few days."
So much for finding the time to properly go over the user manual of my new arm. It was supposed to have several built-in functions I had no idea how to use at this time.
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