Each of you are, for your own reasons, aboard the Dire Retribution, an armed transport en route to Invidia when you receive a message (with Inquisitorial codes) ordering you to report immediately to compartment 3-171-b. Arriving, the door is open and a remarkably pretty young woman in a ridiculously impractical gown stands waiting at the head of the conference table.

The sound of metal on metal clicking began to echo down the hall, a gentle click followed by for more much heavier clanks, it grew louder and louder till the source of the sound became apparent. A tall man, if you could classify him by any gender anymore, walked into the room a slim yet robust metal cane in on hand as he walked and began to look around "I do hope that I am not the only one summoned aboard this ship, though if I am I sure whatever is asked from us is more then possible." He said in a strange grizzly, yet emotionless and flat, tone as he stood there a slight wheezing echoing from the strange respirator unit where his mouth an nose would have been "Apologize, these tend to start rasping if I don't mess with them." He said as he removed one of the hand sized pucks from the side of his face and shook it slightly a light rattling sound coming from it which soon stopped. He then put it back in and repeated the process with the other "I would introduce myself, but  I am sure you know all about me and my friend so I will wait for any others to join." He said as he moved to a corner of the room, the cyber mastiff that stood silently next to him following it's heavy foot falls now drowning out the light clink of it's masters cane.

Up close the woman's eyes betray her 'court butterfly' appearance, their cold hardness in sharp contrast to her charming smile. She runs an Auspex paddle over you and your companion, then nods. "Turn the vox off please, voice commands only in here."

You don't have any bugs or listening devices active barring the mastiff's control channel, right?

Once you have done so, she waves toward the table. "Have a seat or otherwise make yourself comfortable while we wait for the others."

Aurelius' footsteps were quite a bit far lighter than the ones that had recently passed through this route.  Arriving at the open doorway the woman and C3D-R1K could see that he was respectably tall and wearing black robes adorned with Ecclesiarchial accents rendered in iron.  His pitch black hair matched the robes but the slight smile upon his lips certainly didn't fit with the dour aura that his clothing set, nor did the sparkling golden eyes that searched the room.  Slung over his shoulder was a truly large shotgun that C3D-R1K easily could mark considering his duties as a Cyber-Mastiff handler as one that the Arbiters used frequently while hanging at his hip was a pair of skulls affixed to the straps that worked their way around his body and gave the loose robes form.  One was clearly a human skull half covered in melted iron while the other was some sort of stylized skull respirator.

Favoring C3D-R1K with a simple nod he bowed instead to the woman and held his smile on his lips as he added, "M'lady, how may I be of assistance?"

They had explained it and she had comprehended it but nothing felt correct... Nothing felt natural. It was all according to a logic that she had not been raised to appreciate but now she was apart of this vast machine, in service to the Most holy but never told her purpose. That her armour had been returned to her, that she had been given weapons... These things made sense and she could draw out a meaning of sorts from that but there was one more step to be taken and that was to meet the one who would be guiding her forward.

She wasn't gifted in stealth like the hunters and fighters of the Encampment had been nor had she quite learned the secrets of the hags and crones... but her steps were light because she could not trust that she was safe. Never safe, even by the fire and in the company of kin. That feeling never left her no matter how far she seemed to travel from Dusk and that her dreams were a little more trouble with every kilometer between her and that world gave a clear impression that it never would.

She found her way blocked then by a man in robes she recognized as those of a shaman or priest so she kept her silence then as he indulged in the pleasantries. Her own frame tall, battered, and weathered. She did not fit into the world that surrounded them all in her primitive banded leathers with a worn and many notched axe at her hip and a stub automatic at it's opposite, all engulfed by tattered robes that seemed to have been repaired so frequently that none of the original fabric remained. An oval shield of dark ceramic, meanwhile, was casually strapped to her back and tilted just so that it could be pulled free and mounted.

The last to arrive is a rather tall woman, her blue-black hair tied back in a series of intricate knots that may look strange to all but one. Her footsteps to the Throne has, so far, been far different than those normally taken by her ilk. From the blighted darkness at the edge of the galaxy she had been taken from the endless night into the cold stars to Throneworld of Mankind then back to the same series of trackless stars from where she came.

Her eyes seem to shift colours from near black to purple then blue and back again in a subtle but never ending series, never appearing the same as the last time they were looked at. Like the others she is armed, a heavy duty laspistol on her right hip, a heavy forward bladed sword at her left, an arbitrator shield across her back obvious to all who may look, but the promise of other weapons seem to be evident.

As she walks towards the door she waits for the others to be admitted before coming from the shadowed corridor and saying "I have been summoned so the Night has come" she says to the woman at the door waiting for further instructions.

The woman waves her paddle over each arrival...

If anyone is bugged speak now.

...then walks over to the hatch. About to close it, she pauses at the sound of running steps, heaving a sigh of relief as a muscular woman in Guard armor hurries in with a large bag. The paddle comes into play once more, and she closes the hatch.

She walks over to the table, nodding to all. "Your attention please. I am... no, cover is broken, so be it. I am Pearl Harkonnen of House Harkonnen. My authority..."
She places a rod on the table, twisting it to project an Inquisitorial rosette. "is that of Inquisitor Varsh. Does anyone have any issues with this?"

"Only an enemy of the Imperium would have trouble with that Lady Harkonnen..." remarked Aurelius.  Still his head turned to regard the envoy of the Cult Mechanicus momentarily who had their own...interpretation of things...as was allowed by the God-Emperor himself.  He shifted slightly so that Adela and Aoife were more easily in perspective allowing him to regard the mark of the Psyker.  He didn't think that she had summoned them into the room for the purpose of eliminating one or more of the five but if for some reason she had he'd be remiss to not be in position to execute such an order.

"We all serve God-Emperor" Aoife says making the sign of the Aquila "And the Inquisition is the Will of the God-Emperor" while standing aside from the others.

"These terms are acceptable and within the parameters of my standing as a member of the Collegiate Extremis." He said from his seated position the can between his legs as he rested his hands on it's head, his companion sat obediently next to him unmoving but giving off the air of a beast ready to strike at a moments notice "I take it you are in vox communication with the Inquisitor himself or another closer to him? Given that momentary pause and urge to sweep for bugs and other listening devices." He said making reference to her pause in her introduction and her seeming to answer a question not posed by anyone in the room.

"The Most Holy wills it, I obey."

It was a simple truth and one that brought with it mixed feelings. It was by that hand that she had been plucked up from the mires of her youth and into this place of cold steel and distant starts. It was also by that hand that all she knew had been put to blade and torch but survival was a long game and one she knew well. She couldn't let herself not feel that anger but there was precious little to direct it at now. One person had acted on their faith and that did not mean all were the same... Though she knew they were all capable of it.

That went without saying as her eyes darted for a moment to Aurelius and that subtle shift in posture. It spoke of danger and teased at base instinct but she forced herself still. The brand on her cheek itching as it always seemed to when someone stared at it. Her attention turned to the machine man and his hound as he spoke then. The talk barely familiar to her for having grown up in a world without the wonders they were so accustomed to. The need for silence and discretion, though, was something she understood well and so held her peace to await what answers and dark work might come.

"Good." for the first time, Pearl's smile reached her eyes. "What I am about to tell you is Sealed to the Ordos, you may not discuss it with anyone outside this room. Because Guardsmen. Noob Guardsmen. Twenty thousand heavily armed First Founding brand new Guardsmen on this ship. Panic bad."

She paused, taking a breath. "Damn, I haven't told you why they might panic have I? Making a hash of this. Mm, cover broken, silly dress can go." She strips her dress over her head to reveal a flesh-toned (exactly her flesh toned) body glove, handing it to the muscular woman. "That's better. Silly dress gone, now I can think."

"Okay, start at the beginning. Four jumps ago, fluctuation in the Geller field, something comes through. Not serious, just one of those things that make space travel such an unremitting joy. Ships Chaplain does and extra exorcism, Enginseers anoint more anointy-bits, problem solved. Demons can't survive in real-space after all. Except that it wasn't. After the next jump, ship is off course. More exorcisy, more anointy, armsman patrols. Next jump, even more off course. Many many hoops jumped, Captain reverses course. Doesn't work, even further off course. Bridge Officer, Lieutenant Wilks, takes ships Chaplain, ships Psyker, company of Armsmen, heads off to find and eliminate problem. None come back."

"Captain screams for help, Inquisitor Varsh sends Fetch to me, all available Inquisition assets" She waves one finger in a circle "That's us, seconded to task as Activated Cell Seven Four. Welcome to the cell, we have a demon or at least a demonish thingie to hunt. We know that it is clever because dumb one would not last past a few seconds, that it can alter the course of the ship, that it is based somewhere around Engeneerium Deck 4B, and that it ate 120 well-led and supported men without burping."

"Any questions?"

Aurelius listened to the brief with attention and when it started to sound like they were going to be facing off against a daemon or some sort of individual able to bend their warp trajectory he frowned.  Shifting the shotgun from his shoulder he continued to listen as he flicked a lever on it and began unloading the large shells and when he moved aside some of his robes others could see the straps that held his Ecclesiarchal robes held webbing when they moved out of view due to the way the robes hung where he slid some shells into loops while sticking others into a pocket.

His lips seemed to murmur something under his breath  before removing a handful of shells from the webbing that appeared different.  They bore engraving on the case that bore resemblance to the symbols of office that he wore and slid them into position followed by the shells he'd put temporarily in his pocket.  Looking back up when she asked if anyone had any questions he spoke up in a confidant sounding tone similar to what some Priests used in theire more reserved sermons, "Lady Harkonnen, do you want us to start searching in a specific location first...where communications were lost with other teams sent or some fragment of information you have to start us off?  Are there guides in the form of ratings, servitors or servo-skulls that can lead us through the ship as we learn information and avoid spooking the rest of the ship as you've put it?  And are you leading us on this crusade or will you be providing microbeads and commanding from afar?"

Aoife looked around at the others and the equipment they possessed "We are expected to combat a neverborn with the equipment we possess?" she asks "Could we not seal the areas and open them up to the dark?"

Pearl listened intently, giving answers where she could.


"Well yes, Engeneerium Deck 4B."

"I will be leading you yes, but I also have organised vox, in helmets because broken cover still does not mean that you want to be a pict star, right? Come with with photovisor, flare comp and vox.


"You want a Main Battle Tank? We can requisition just about anything from the Guard Regiments on the ship. However, the more noise we make, the sooner and more likely the panic. And of course it wouldn't fit in the corridors and weaponry is in my experience of little use against a demon." She pointed to Illyovich's shot cannon. "With the exception of that specifically blessed against the Warp of course, but he already has such."

"If you are asking what I have put together, besides the helmets I have armored tabards, not Hex armor sadly but they might help. Respirators and air bottles because no maintenance on the life support there in two weeks Also a stim and a slaught all round. Oh, and pins with the barred I."

"If there is something specific that you want, speak up. No promises, but we can try."


"Useless. Demons do not need to breathe and do not suffer from decompression. In fact worse than useless as the death would feed the demon and the vacuum would damage machinery, in particular the life-support stuff."

"I assume that mean we will be refraining from warp travel for the foreseeable future." said the machine mane as he stood up from where he sat his mechanical beast seeming to tense at it's masters sudden movements "I have hunted and tracked my fair share of prey, but what you ask is to hunt something from mans darkest nightmare?" He asked motioning to everyone else in the room save Pearl and himself when he mentioned man "Well I will have to say this is very much against my normal routine but the chance to possibly gather some form of physical manifestation of this beast to send back for proper study is far to enticing to say no." he said with what almost sounded like excitement in his mechanical monotone voice "I have only question, when does the hunt begin?"

Aurelius nodded in agreement the more light-hearted initial voice slipping to something more serious, "I have exactly five shells from Cryptus that can be of good use if the thing is truly a daemon or otherwise spawned from the warp.  The rest will work well enough for most other things when they get close."

When Lady Harkonnen mentioned tabards, vox helms, respirators and air cannisters he murmured something that vaguely sounded like Praise the God-Emperor.  He didn't think that he needed to say that for best effect he was going to have to get far closer to an unclean thing of the warp than he'd normally like in order to have the best chance at removing it.

He then spoke up again, "If I may Lady Harkonnen...and auspex of suitable strength to aid us would be the limit of my additional requests at the moment.  It is an assumption that whatever arrived has killed all those sent to look for it.  There is always the chance that they were ultimately of weak character and will or heretics to begin with and thus were turned and now work with the enemy.  One we should be able to handle if we keep our wits and wills steeled...any significant force beyond that would be...trying unless we are given free reign to use fire bombs and other explosives to clear out the entire area."

"Did the men who reported all this... share any of the signs or omens that preceded the Neverborn? Their presence brings signs of just what they are." the Duskite said after yet more silent consideration, a hand coming to rest on their hip as conversations of equipment and weapons and tools that she had no reference for was bandied back and forth. It was a burning question, really, to know just what kind of creature of the mists she was being asked to hunt and pursue in the bowls of this metal vessel. That would do more to prepare her than any weapon or armor but that this was a woman willing to lead from the front was a comfort.

She knew there was danger in admitting such knowledge but it was almost an expectation, it seemed, of men and women from her world. She couldn't fault the stereotype, all things considered, when it lingered so close to cursed stars and the border between the world of men and the world of things... other than men was so thin when one strayed to far into the depths of the marshes or too deep into the long shadows between ancient trees. That brought her mind back to equipment then for an instant as she looked down to the ax at her hip.

"The attention of a good black smith wouldn't go wrong either." Adela added with something like a lopsided grin. The teeth beneath stained and weathered and clearly not her own.

"An incinerator, blessed promethium and a months training would be nice" she says getting up "But thats about as likely as the tin man rejecting Mars" she adds "Better get this over with, one way or the other"

"Soon. Just as soon as we get ourselves organised."

As you are talking muscle girl applied a static repeater to the 'silly dress', reducing it to a small panel of shimmersilk, then held open a skirted tabard.


Pearl suffered herself to be dressed, taking up the auspex with which she had checked everyone when they arrived. "Something wrong with this one? It is an auspex, and I know what I am doing with it."


"Not by the time it reached me at fourth-hand. What i know is 'ships psyker reported definite Warp presence."

She put the helmet on, snapping the visor down to check the darksight, then back up.


"Black smith we don't have the time for, but I have a whetstone if you want to borrow it."

A pistol, a long rifle with a silencer that nearly doubles its length and several knives later she was ready. Pearl waved at the pile of gear at the end of the table "take what you need from that, then we will go."

Everybody say what (if any) they are taking from one each of:
1)A grey-stripe tabard (mech is Flak Jacket, +10 Concealment).
2)A helmet (Flak helmet with photo-visor, flare compensation, vox and respirator).
3) I Stimm and 1 Slaught.
and update your character sheets.

There was no small annoyance she felt at the lack of omens or signs but she did not let that show beyond a soft huff of air from her nose. That there was no time for a black smith was about what she expected as she moved to collect the offered gear, stripping away what she could of unnecessary weight without much care for the impressions of others as there was business at hand to ensure the safety of the collective. For any that bothered to glance her way, scars aplenty could be seen as the banded leathers were peeled away to reveal the rough clothes beneath. The flak jacket presented little challenge or confusion to her but the way she held the helmet before her made it clear that there were mysteries there that her... less than civilized upbringing could not make sense of.

Still, she showed her faith in the great of this new world and strapped the helmet into place... Fiddling with straps to ensure it was snug but not too much so. Such done with imperfections that, perhaps, stood out more clearly to those used to the wonders of technology Adela set to rearming herself with the professional care of someone who had killed and would likely do so again. The axe returned to her hip, the pistol opposite, and finally the shield once more secured to her arm.

"To the hunt." she offered with a nodded salute towards their war leader.

Aurelius was no stranger to the items that were offered.  He waited his turn to advance and easily slipped on the tabard over his existing plain black robes.  As he strapped it into place he picked up the stim and slaught and slid them into a small pocket he had.  While the helm was the odd man out of the getup his eyes noticed that the visor that covered the upper face had options only seen on rarer equipment.  Lifting it up he pulled it down over his head and strapped it into place without trouble.

When she mentioned her auspex and if he had a problem with it he shook his head, "Nothing is wrong with it as long as it's coming along m'lady."

Like the others Aoife moved to the pro-offered gear and slung the grey tabard over her blue over-robes and slotting the drugs into a pocket, she had never used them and quite frankly didn't want to know what they would do to someone with her abilities but one of the others may need an extra dose. Picking up the helmet and weighing it in her hands she decides if its offered then its probably for the best and places it on her head where it provides an immediate feeling of claustrophobia for a moment.

With the priests comments to Pearl she mutters under her breath in her tongue

Adela spared a glance towards Aoife though the sealed nature of the helmet hid any semblance of expression. She had to stop herself from laughing though in the moment if she was correct in what she thought she just heard. She did not know this group well enough to trust them with anything other than the mask of warrior and shaman but time would tell what would come with that. At the very least someone spoke the tongue of sane and right thinking people.

C3D-R1K stood and threw back his cloak reveling an assortment of mechadendrites and tools which quickly moved aside and produced the stock of what looked like the body of a las gun "I might be able to assist in the field of auspex." he said as he let out a quick, though fairly loud, blurt of what sounded like white noise which caused the mechanical beast next to him to raise up on all four of it's leg and moved to extremely close by his side a mechadendrite slipping from under his robe into a port near the base of the beasts skull "Kappa-Ultima-Jonta-Zero here is equipped with an auspex array as well as an olfactory auspex array, I could see if I could modify the second slightly to how do I put this identify a scent that shouldn't be." He said all the while screwing the cane he had onto the body of the las gun before producing a scope from a mechadendrite up his sleeve leaving him with a completed Long-Las "Oh and apologies I forgot to introduce myself to the rest of you." He said turning to the rest of the group "I am Charlie-three-Rohm-one-Kappa, but if that is to much a mouthful for you feel free to address me as Cedrik, that is what the Arbiters I work with on occasion call me amoung other things when they think I am not or can not hear them. Here is a tip, I am always listening." He said and though his voice remained that robotic monotone and his face was completely devoid of any features, human or otherwise, that would devolve what emotions he was feeling it almost sounded as though he smiled as he spoke those last words.

The muscular woman, noting Adela's difficulty and that none of her cell were offering to help her, came over, introducing herself with a jerk of her thumb towards her impressive cleavage. "Lydia." She tugged on straps and adjusted buckles until the kit rode comfortably, demonstrated the use of the jaw lever "here talk far, here talk normal" and of the visor "here see night, here see day".

Nodding satisfaction, she moved on to the others, checking their fit.

C3 you may make a tech-use roll if you wish with Lydia's close proximity.

"Well come along Cedrik, we have work to do." Aoife says over her shoulder at machine-man "Perhaps one of your machines will find this neverborn before it is taken apart"

"Adela. Thanks."

There wasn't much more than that as she repeated the instructions to herself for confirmation's sake. She didn't seem slow or stupid by any measure but it was clear she had been brought up in a world that did not have these things beyond the most primitive of apparatus or artifice. A gun came easily, it's care and maintenance were simple things even in the form of the more finicky automatics but communication tech, proper seals of vacuum equipment and other such... novelties of technology were not quite so familiar or easy in their details. That thought alone brought with it a certain chagrin that she crushed beneath sheer force of will.

"We can only hope, I'd feel better if we had some notion of the omens that came before it's arrival. We might be able to know, in some way, what's waiting there...."

Beyond death, anyway. she thought to herself and left that particular connotation without voice to it but any Dusker knew such beings were among the worst that could be conjured up in the nightmares of the wilderness.

Aurelius shook his head ruefully, "My apologies, I am Aurelius Valerianus Illyovich, 132nd in line to the head of House Illyovich by way of labyrinthine marriage contracts that bypass my scion status by birth for their carefully calculated choices in future marriages and power conflicts...my eventual Ecclesiarchial choice put me a bit further down the proverbial totem pole.  Seeing as we don't need any mouthfuls while hunting daemons or daemon-kin just call me Val while we are busy here.  In the same vein of things Charlie-three-Rohm-one-Kappa I'll stick to Cedrik for this jaunt."

Looking over to Lady Harkonnen he nodded, "By your lead m'Lady."

He followed the woman letting out a moment of a strange burst of audio which caused his companion to follow "Believe me, your flesh will break before machines do." He said as he continued to follow her pausing a moment as he leaned down to check his companions equipment.


23:49, Today: C3D-R1K rolled 57 -- 1 degree of failure using the Warhammer Test system with a target number of 44.  Tech Use (Fate Reroll).

23:49, Today: C3D-R1K rolled 57 -- 1 degree of failure using the Warhammer Test system with a target number of 44.  Tech Use.

What are the odds? I feel like I almost did something wrong when rolling to get the same number twice in a row on a d100.

Pearl didn't comment on C3's choice, simply scooping up the drugs and fitting them into slots on her armor and telling him "vox channel Aleph-4-1." she looked around and nodded. "My Lord, goodfolk, move out!" she called as she headed out the door.

Two strides out of it, she halted, her pistol appearing nearly magically in her hand to level itself at the figure that steps out of the shadows, a man in full Guard armor.

You have a chance to react, then I will carry on.

Having switched to the appropriate vox channel Aurelius followed Pearl out of the room.  When she 'magically' had her pistol in hand it caused him to flip his visor over to thermal and go to a knee.  Aiming the overly large combat shotgun not directly at the man but covering another portion of the darker passageway where she wasn't aiming and others could be hiding as he searched for additional targets...

As the man walks from the shadows Aoife draws the steel burner and aims it at the man and waits to see what pearl does.

Action: 1/2 Draw gun, 1/2 aim

Val detects many warm bodies (40+) in the corridor. Blocking shows that they are armored, and probably armed.

"Forty plus contacts front," Val subvocalized to keep at a minimum how many heard his actual words.  He didn't feel that he needed to say more regarding their armed or armoured status...this guy looked to be so meaning everyone else was likely similarly ready.

Instinct, more than anything, guided Adela through the moment as she drew her own sidearm and set her shield at the ready toward the doorway. A quiet step shifting her weight and position just so as to be out of the way of line of sight while letting her see out just enough to draw bead.

OOC: half action to draw pistol, half action to ready shield if need and position myself.

Adela, if you have Two-weapon fighting(either) you may ready both with the same action. Otherwise, two half actions standard.

There was a lithe figure that detached itself from the shadows of compartment 3-171-b when the colorful group of newly inducted Acolytes had left to begin their mission. When fully revealed by the glow-globes of the hall, the figure was revealed to be a young woman. From the casual way that she walked, it was clear that she had not been intending to hide from observation. Perhaps it was simply an old reflex that she wasn't conscious of any more.

In truth, that was Drezla Mallus' way.

Drezla Mallus is a Hiver, there is no denying that. It would be impossible to mistake those eyes that have seen all the horrors of humanity, and the faint smell of too many unwashed bodies pressed together that Hivers can never fully wash off, for anything else. But unlike the countless wretches that make up the factories and reclamation centers of her native Volg, she is no malnourished waif. Hers is a body thick with muscle, and length of bone has given her some impressive height. The intimidating form of the Volgite is only enhanced by old scars that speak of countless back ally fights, and calloused hands that are used to violence. In a pragmatic move, her long brown hair has been gathered into a more manageable mass of dreadlocks.

Beyond the blessings of nature and proper nutrition, Drezla's choice of attire does nothing to dissuade her dangerous air. The simple ganger leathers she sports bear the scars of many firefights on its scratched surface. A dual hip rig holds a peculiar pair of knives that rest easily in their sheathes. The shorter weapons are perfect for the cramped tunnels of Underhives and labyrinthine decks of starships. These deadly tools are almost completely hidden by the heavy flak greatcoat that lays comfortably over her frame. On the heavy leather belt around her waist, she displays an old tin icon bearing the glorious form of the Golden Throne. This marks her as one of the faithful, which shouldn't be too surprising in a place like the Imperium.

When everyone began the pleasantries by introducing themselves, Drezla looked to each in turn, as if forming a dossier in her mind.

"Oi. The name is Drezla Mallus. People call me Drez. You can too if you want..." she shrugged casually by way of greeting.

While she was keying into the proper Vox channel, she noticed that Pearl had drawn her weapon. Without taking the time to see if there was any danger, or what form it might take, she drew one of those wicked-looking curved blades from her belt and held it at the ready. One didn't survive in Volg by asking too many questions when weapons started coming out. She crouched into a seemingly well-rehearsed fighting crouch, and eyed the man in armor closely.

"Well, hello there," Dezla said, flashing a fierce grin.

OOC Mechanics
Half Action: Ready Weapon
Half Action: Aim

Pearl holstered, straightening up. "Oh, it is you" she said, an edge of contempt in her tone. "What do you want Atreides?"
The Atreides, for he was indeed one as the red hawk on the breast of his IG uniform attested, moved forward well into her personal space. "What do I want? Oh, that is too simple my dear Lady Harkonnen, I want answers. I want to know what you are up to with this lot. Such an odd group. All the same dress, armed, and their faces hidden. Mercs, or is that what House Harkonnen wears when it is being plausibly deniable? I want to know why this ship has not jumped for the last day, and I want to know why the crew forms worried whispering clusters in the corners then break up and refuse to speak when confronted. I want to know what you have done! And since I am sure you don't want to give me any answers, I brought along a few friends to help jog your memory."

"Sergeant!"

From behind him, an IG platoon moves forward, their weapons not -quite- pointed at you.

Appropriate rolls: Lore: Imperium will tell you about the Houses, Lore: Nobility will give you deets, Lore: War will tell you about the troops, Scrutiny will give you the actual relationship beyond the faux politeness between the two.

Aurelius's eyes flicked over the troops thankful that the visor hid his face as well as where his eyes were looking over them.  He similarly didn't quite point the massive Arbite shotgun at the troops but the fact that they had just closed the distance into what most would call slaughtering range for a weapon like his he didn't really have to.  Of course there were over forty of them and only six on their side so the results wouldn't be good considering they needed to deal with a daemon and not some ignorant meat-sacks.

He was too focused on the potential need to suppress the platoon using his weapon to note anything of particular import but he knew that he should at least keep his mouth shut regarding their status as Inquisitorial agents...especially since this Atreides fellow seemed to believe she was just another noble but somehow responsible for what was going on.

Drezla glanced at the platoon as it moved in. She wasn't fool enough to think that she could overcome more then twenty men in close combat when they were well-trained and kitted out in military grade arms and armor. However, the fear of death had left her long ago, so if it came to it, she would take down as many of them as she could before they overwhelmed her. But since they hadn't raised their weapons yet, they were still in the talking phase. So the lithe young Hiver waited for Lady Harkonnen to do the talking. Drezla had many skills, but diplomacy wasn't one of them. She only hoped her new companions followed suit and didn't exacerbate the situation.

Adela kept her shield ready and to the front but otherwise kept the auto-pistol low and pointed away from any of the armsmen they found themselves staring down. The insidious feeling that she had gotten herself caught up in the squabbles of tribal chiefs with no idea as to who was aiming to be about what in whatever hierarchy existed aboard the voidship. The feeling brought with it a knot of tenseness in her stomach. Not quite fear but that readiness to act that slowly radiated outward as she just focused on the environment around her and her breathing. The only two things that really mattered at the end of it.

Aoife continues to maintain her aim at the leader until she gets told to lower it or all hell breaks out.

No applicable lores Im afraid.

Pearl leaned in until she was nearly kissing him, neatly reversing his intrusion into her personal space, and smiled like a shark. "Answers is it? Sorry, don't have any for you Atreides."
"Don't be stupid Pearl, I have forty men with me!"
"Forty-two actually, but that is not the point. You see Colin" Pearl replied, also switching to first names "I am authorized to go as overt as I need to on this one." She turned her head to look at the rest of the cell. "Put your pins on now."
Colin leveled a finger at her pin. "What? Inquisition! That can't be real."
"Oh, and am I faking this?" The corridor lit with the blue glow of her Rosette.
"I... You... ..."
"Move aside Colin."
"..."
Pearl waved a hand in front of his face. "Colin? Hmm, think I broke him. You! Sergeant! Do you recognize this?"
"Yes Inquisitor."
"Acolyte. Move him aside please."
"Yes Inquisitor. Jenkins, Hicks, help the Colonel to his quarters."
"Aco- Oh never mind." Pearl broke off as a trooper took each of the Atreides's arms and hustled him down the corridor.
"The rest of you, on me!" The IG made haste to follow.
Pearl smiled, then set off with a ringing stride.

A few steps later she stopped, muttering about inconvenient architects who messed up a perfectly good dramatic exit and revered course to follow the IG towards the main axial.

With Lady Harkonnen effectively 'pulling rank' on Atreides...since Inquisition trumped IG Command after all...he lowered his shotgun slightly further and when it was clear they were acceding to the authority without question he let the weapon go to rest and stood again.  He was glad he didn't have to use any violence against otherwise loyal Guardsmen...there was lots out there that needed them to fight and die for and make a difference rather than be wasted in a corridor on a voidship for no reason at all.  He kept his tiny smile well hidden when Pearl realized she was walking the wrong way and made sure to keep any thoughts well under lid while following.

While part of Drezla loved the thrill of a good fight, she was grateful that the fighting men had wisely chosen to stand down. She had no intention to die over some trivial pissing contest anyway, and shedding the blood of the faithful over a misunderstanding would have been a poor show of piety to the Emperor anyway. So, the knife disappeared back into its sheath with the same speed and dexterity that it had first appeared. When she fell in Lady Harkonnen, she had the wisdom not to say anything when the woman fouled up her own exit. It took an effort of will however, as a Hiver she was always quick with a sarcastic word.

Okay, I am not waiting on everybody for what is essentially a 'still here' post. Moving on.

Pearl proves to be a dab hand with a map, leading the cell easily through the maze of corridors (she only gets lost twice, something of a miracle) until an hour or so later you stand staring at a huge bulkhead marked 'Engeneerium 04 Beta. Pearl stares at it a moment, then shrugs. "Okay, wasn't expecting that I admit. Cedrik, how do we open that?"

He walked up and looked at it for a moment his ever present hound next to him "I would recommend carefully, Omnissiah only knows what could be waiting for us." He said pausing letting it sink in that he had just made a joke, a bad one at that, but a joke none the less "Give me a moment." He then said as he walked over to one side of the door looking for a panel that he could interface with, if he didn't find it on one side he would calmly walk to the opposite wall to look for it. Once had found it, or if he was forced to get more physical and cut his own panel out of the wall to gain access to the doors mechanics he would get to work "It should not take long to open all ships, save for vessels of rogue traders who I believe to be to paranoid for there own good, tend to run off the same means of bypass."

18:30, Today: C3D-R1K rolled 47 -- 1 degree of failure using the Warhammer Test system with a target number of 30.  perception(if needed).
18:31, Today: C3D-R1K rolled 2 -- 4 degrees of success using the Warhammer Test system with a target number of 44.  Tech Use.

Adela followed in silence, her shield and side arm at the ready as her will steeled itself against the horror they now hunted. Grim memories of her distant and benighted home resting heavily on her mind and that subtle twist of bitterness at the death of clan and home as she was plucked up and away for the gifts and talents that had taken root in soul and body. Their arrival at the bulkhead felt strange as Cedrik set to the task of opening the bulk head. Her mind running once more through the checklist of her weapons, the ammunition she had at hand, and the state of her equipment... unfamiliar as it is.

"Shouldn't we have disarmed that man?" Aoife asks the others as the man is arrested and dragged away while she lowers her pistol and unlimbers her shield. "We could probably use whatever weapons he may have"


*** At the door ***

As they stop at the doorway she moves to the side of the corridor, looking for cover and if none we found she would place the shield forward of her and aims at the doorway.

The access panel was clearly marked, and yielded easily to Cedrik's tech codes and expertise. Likewise the machine spirit proved well maintained and co-operative. Lacking sufficient time or interest or legs to work the treadmill he was limited to what power could be gained from the counterweights but that proved to be half the bulkhead's length and half the length of such a bulkhead was plenty indeed for the cell to pass.

Lydia straightened up from peering round the edge with a periscope grudging "Looks clear".
"Draw weapons, advance." Pearl did not take her own advice however, instead moving forward with her auspex raised.
A little way down the passage she stiffened, raising one hand for a halt then dropping to one knee to conduct a conversation with an unseen partner. "Yes my Lord. I see. How did... never mind, I suppose it does not matter. Yes my Lord. Bloody wonderful. Yes my Lord. Yes my Lord. Alive then? Yes my Lord."
Standing, she turned to the cell. "Okay, seems that the 117'th has stormed the bridge. Reason unknown. Captain and Astrogator are dead. This adds an extra detail to our mission, we must recover Lt Wilks, as the only surviving astrogation officer, alive. If he is spouting Chaos nonsense or something knock him out. Do not kill him. It is a very long trip to the nearest system at sub-light. Everybody got that? Good. Also, it seems that there is a Warp barrier, whatever that is, in front of us. Be wary of Warp... stuff. Right, advance."

"Great" she mutters under her breath in a strange language "There goes a chunk of my usefulness" before returning to low gothic "Anyone have a stun grenade or shock maul? keeping the pistol and shield are raised.

"I am afraid not. I don't really do...non lethal..." Drezla responded to Aoife, spitting out the last word like it was a poisonous curse.

That wicked looking knife appeared in the Hivers hand yet again, and the young woman crouched down into that easy fighting pose. She began moving forward at a cautious pace. She was no expert in Witchcraft, so for once she wasn't sure that the skill of her sword arm would be enough to handle the danger.

"Master of Mankind, be my shield..." she whispered under her breath as she advanced.

Non-lethal huh... his eyes flicked unseen to the massive shotgun in his hands...I guess I can hit him in the side of the head with the thing if I need to.  "Understood," was all that came over the microbead as he adjusted his position and place.  Keeping pace with the others in the new cell his kept his eyes peeled for the Warp barrier.  It was bad news based on what little he knew but perhaps there would be a way to deal with it when they finally found it.

A little further along the auspex flashed alert-red, and Pearl stopped, peering at the axial in front of you.
Sure enough, there is a faint shimmer in the air, easy enough to miss if you had not been alerted.
"Um, okay. Hmm, I got nothing. Psykana?"

At the question Aoife closes her eyes and tries to reach out with her other sense but fails to notice anything definitive. "Sorry boss, I can't tell you anything for sure here."

Aoife Aithne rolled 47 -- 2 degrees of failure using the Only War system with a target number of 33.  Psyniscience .

Adela had to consider just how they might capture a lunatic without force when all of them carried with them only killing potential. Her thoughts turned to then to the axe at her hip and the shield on her arm. One could be used as a club whilst the other could be used to restrain or pin if another was ready to indulge in the maneuver beside her.

"Figure between you and I might be able to pin him against a wall long enough for one of the others to restrain him?" Adela asked with a nod towards Aoife and her own shield. There wasn't time to wait for an answer thought as the Lady Harkonnen asked the question of Aoife and, by proxy, herself. Adela readied her shield as she moved a step forward, muttering prayers in the tongue of Dusk to herself to focus her will and thoughts... Her breathing slowing as her senses spread beyond those most intimately familiar to her into the dangerous realm beyond the flesh.

19:46, Today: Adela Reinhard rolled 25 -- 1 degree of success using the Only War system with a target number of 34.  Psyniscience.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:14, Mon 24 May 2021.

Adela concentrated on the shimmer, learning...
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:27, Tue 25 May 2021.

While the psykers did their...psyker thing...he was more concerned with what could come from beyond the warp wall.  As tempted as he as to find some detritus from the floor to toss through and see what happened he held his urge and instead simple made sure he was as close to the wall as possible and down on a knee to provide as little a target as possible while aiming the large bore weapon down that direction.

Adela held her concentration for just a moment longer before releasing the breath she realized she had been holding for just long enough to bring a spark of pain to her temples. She shook her head then as she centered herself once more on the physical world and glanced back towards the Lady Harkonnen. There were a lot of questions that came from the answer she now had burning in her brain and she wasn't quite sure she was fond of where they took her thoughts and the momentum of their hunt.

"It's a ward of some kind, I think an alarm if we want to be specific. The question that bothers me is who put it here. Someone in the crew or the Neverborn? I'm not too happy about the thought of the latter wanting to know who is coming and going..." the Dusker offered with a shrug of shoulders as she took her time looking over the wall now for some physical... anchor for lack of a better term for the ward that might help her better understand it's purpose.

Looking around the edges of the passageway Val looked to see if there was some sort of scrawl or madness there that formed the borders of the 'alarm' as Adela described it.  Looking over he asked, "If we used a rating service conduit or different approach could we slip by? Or is it a sphere instead of just a marker?"

Pearl glared at Adela and Aoife. "Listen, when I give you an instruction you will carry it out, not give it a lick and promise then give up! We are Acolytes of His Most Holy Ordos, not straying children. Now you" she reached out and pulled Aoife forward "reach out and sense while you" she moved Adela behind Aoife "Back her up. Then you reverse, then you confer with me since we have no Adept. Then you do it again and again until you can no more or you are satisfied that you have gained as much information as there is to gain. Clear?"

"Carry on."

Okay, I want at least two more rolls from both of you (max is Wip bonus as usual and you have already made one). These rolls gain +40 (20 from aid, +10 for taking your time and 10 from Pearl's Team Player talent). You may not accumulate successes for this task but you should definitely take the best of your rolls.

Aurelius didn't so much as try to look at Pearl's auspex to see if there was a secondary passageway showing up that might be used as an alternate route that it could see even if he still wondered if there was.  He also suppressed a smirk at Pearl getting on the two psykers cases.  Instead he kept still by regulating his breathing and watching for any movement and continued to see if he could spot any features or markings where the 'wall' met the real wall.


___
16:00, Today: Aurelius Valerianus Illyovich rolled 88 -- 6 degrees of failure using the Only War system with a target number of 35.  Awareness, looking for scrawl or other barely perceptible information more than its barely visible.
Yup clear failure...

Adela had choice words for Pearl but bit her tongue, literally. Explaining colour to a man born blind was pointless as it was lost on them with out the nuance of it. They could claim all they wanted of theory and formal education... but it meant nothing in the moment because they couldn't do it. They couldn't experience it. She pushed those thoughts aside then as she drew abreast of Aoife and spared a glance towards the other woman before tipping her chin towards the ward and closing her eyes once more.

It was easier to perceive the world beyond flesh through the medium of prayer... The words of the prayer had changed, granted, but it was just easier all the same as she recited invocations to the Most Holy on Terra in the tongue of Dusk... Asking pointedly for guidance and direction as she let her senses slip away one by one to focus purely on the witch work before her. Whether she'd admit it or not... There was always a measure of... momentum that came from such hostile encouragement and having someone else close at hand. It wasn't the only thing her mind focused on though as she picked and pulled at the strings of the ward to better understand it's nature and compare it against what she had been taught by the witches and sorcerers of distant Dusk.


Scholastic Lore (Occult) to better understand the potential sources and possible methods used to create the ward. Psyniscience to do the obvious of probing out it's effects and nature to the fullest extent.

19:52, Today: Adela Reinhard rolled 21 -- 2 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 36.  Attempted fate reroll of Scholastic lore (Occult).

19:44, Today: Adela Reinhard rolled 85 -- 5 degrees of failure using the Only War system with a target number of 36.  Scholastic Lore (Occult).

19:44, Today: Adela Reinhard rolled 32 -- 5 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 74.  Psyniscience (34 + 20 + 10 + 10).

As Pearl grabs her, her eyes flare, almost seeming that her iris' flare with purple-blue flame  but she suppresses her anger and backs away from her and stands just outside the shield's area of effect and extends her senses which seem to unlock vastly then the last time as she extends her own, relatively untrained skills out to gather what information she has and tries to link that up to her own slight knowledge of Daemons.


Aoife Aithne rolled 4 -- 10 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 99 with rolls of 4.  Psyniscience .
Aoife Aithne rolled 90 -- 8 degrees of failure using the Only War system with a target number of 16 with rolls of 90.  FL: Daemonology.

Pearl beamed, pleased. "Well now, that is more like it!"

On conferring, you come to the following conclusions:
1)It is a ward, triggered by sentience, with a secondary Divination effect on trigger.
2)From curvature, it is a sphere with a radius of 563 meters. The center is slightly above you (10m or so, not a Deck by any means).
3)It is likely solid in Astral space. Combining this with 1) above, it is likely the demonic equivalent of a mud hut. It keeps minor nuisances out, and warns of more serious intrusions.
4)To bring it down you need to attack its anchor.

"Hmm, no, I still see nothing to kill." She looked over at Aurelius. "Ecclesiarchy, try an Exorcism. Might work."

Aurelius nodded, "It likely would Lady Harkonnen you would be correct.  Unfortunately I've not been ordained into performing an exorcism alone of this type.  That knowledge is proscribed with a notable few exceptions.  I may be able to learn them later on Maccabeus Quintus if they accept me back.  That said give me a possessed host," he nodded his head towards Aoife and Adela, "like if they lost control and something took over their bodies and you didn't have them killed immediately and instead somehow restrained...I'd have a fair chance at sending the thing back to the Warp.  Of course with my current knowledge and practice I'd give it a seventy five to twenty five chance at also killing them but, and it is very important, they wouldn't have the stain of the thing on their soul when they went to judgement before the God-Emperor.  Though like they say...practice makes perfect."

Pearl shrugged. "Fair enough." She listened to his offer, then shrugged again. "I will bear it in mind, but I trust you won't mind if I say that I hope we never need your skills."

Sge eyed the barrier once more, then gave a little snort, half amused. "Sod it, I am not going to let fear stop me." Taking off her helmet, she hung it from her belt, turning to Lydia. "You know what to do if..."
Lydia nodded, very nearly showing an expression before raising her rifle, the red dot centering on Pearl's nose then following her as she nodded and stepped into the shimmer.

It lights up with golden Glyfs as she touched it, then sprays of rainbow light came off as she forced her way in. The lights flicker, then form pictures, pictures of Pearl doing things. Slaughtering her way through an army of foes, lying in the arms of a lover, hitting the books to track down a cult, thousands of images. Most of them dispersed, fading, until only one dominated, Pearl shooting her way through a demonic army. That too dispersed as Pearl made her way out the other side and turned to face you.

"I think it is all right. There is resistance, but you can get through it and I don't feel any urge to overthrow the Imperium or anything. Come ahead."

Okay, five hits (accumulated) on Easy(+20) Wip rolls needed to get through. No penalty for failure but dramatic failure means that you have given up and cannot pass through.

"I pray that we never need it as well Lady Harkonnen," agreed Aurelius.

Watching Pearl go through the barrier he marveled at the images that he was seeing and he took quiet note of them.  Trying to remember as much as possible to find out if this Warp spawned barrier was showing the past or the future.  After making it through completely and telling them to follow Val didn't have any hesitation.  He strode forward with the huge shotgun pointed downwards...

And it was almost as if he had hit a solid bulkhead...except not quite.

Gritting his teeth he took a deep breath before began to quietly sing an old, old lullaby that he remembered his first teacher using to teach him about projection, breathing and timing as he pushed against the unyielding barrier.  It was a silly little tune but as he got to the first refrain it was as if the wall was melting away for him and the slow push became a full step and then another and another where in short order he stood on the other side and breathed a sigh of relief.

When he stood on the other side he simply nodded to Pearl, "Lady Harkonnen." and then brought up the shotgun to aim past her and went back to a knee to keep watch till the others made it through.

___
ooc:
09:33, Today: Aurelius Valerianus Illyovich rolled 85 -- 4 degrees of failure using the Only War system with a target number of 55.  Willpower Easy (+20) to pass through barrier, Req: 5 Suc, Base 35 + 20 = TN55.
09:36, Today: Aurelius Valerianus Illyovich rolled 20 -- 4 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 55.  Willpower Easy (+20) to pass through barrier, Req: 5 Suc, Base 35 + 20 = TN55 Attempt 2.
09:36, Today: Aurelius Valerianus Illyovich rolled 24 -- 4 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 55.  Willpower Easy (+20) to pass through barrier, Req: 5 Suc, Base 35 + 20 = TN55 Attempt 3.

The Neverborn would know they were here and likely where they were when they pushed through the barrier rendering them prey rather than the hunter. She wasn't happy to remind herself that this was the normal order of things as she watched the Lady Harkonnen push through followed by Aurelius. There was no lack of courage in her heart in either case as she had been called to serve by the Most Holy's trusted agents and she would do so... even if that summons had been through the lens of pain and loss.

The Duskite drew a soft breath than and focused her will, envisioning the parting edge of a blade and shaping the expression of her soul accordingly. She then exhaled as she stepped forward, her body sliding through the conjured barrier with little resistance... As though a knife parting flesh, the arcane energies flowing around and over her but doing little to hinder progress. Once on the other side she raised the pistol and set her shield accordingly as she advanced to the opposite side of Lady Harkonnen to cover what avenues and angles Aurelius could not.



10:54, Today: Adela Reinhard rolled 2 -- 6 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 54.  WP Easy (+20) Passing through barrier.

10:54, Today: Adela Reinhard rolled 21 -- 4 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 54.  WP Easy (+20) Passing through barrier.

Drezla had no experience with witchery. Such things were usually stories told around barrel fires, and more often than not these stories took place in far off worlds. Volg had more than enough horrors on it's own without having to worry about mystic threats. Although, there were always rumors every few years about something...bad...happening among the teaming masses of the other levels. But those were easy enough to discount. This however, was solid, tangible proof. However, her training had trained her for such things.

At least in theory.

Holding up her blade, the young woman took a deep, steadying breath, and began whispering a prayer to herself as she walked forward.

"Love the Emperor,
for He is the salvation of mankind.

Obey His words,
for He will lead you into the light of the future.

Heed His wisdom,
for He will protect you from evil.

Whisper His prayers with devotion,
for they will save your soul.

Honor His servants,
for they speak in His voice.

Tremble before His majesty,
for we all walk in His immortal shadow."

Once she touched the barrier, the blade stabbed forward, as though she was engaged in combat with some invisible foe. For violence was the real prayer for the Death Cultist. So as soon as she was through the barrier, she was already in a fighting crouch and ready for any danger.

OOC Mechanics
11:12, Today: Drezla Mallus rolled 6 -- 5 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 55.  WP Easy (+20) Passing through barrier.

The techpriest walked towards the barrier and for a moment hesitated "Interesting." it said as there were clicks and the sound of lenses slotting in and out as whatever machine parts hid behind the goggles tried to make sense of it. The Mastiff seemed to have not trouble pushing through shaking like a dog that had just gotten wet would after getting through. But when the techpriests turn came he seemed to struggle and had to almost force himself through stumbling as he finally broke through.





17:53, Today: C3D-R1K rolled 23 -- 3 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 45.  Test for Mastiff.

17:53, Today: C3D-R1K rolled 29 -- 2 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 45.  Test for Mastiff.

17:51, Today: C3D-R1K rolled 8 -- 5 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 53.

17:51, Today: C3D-R1K rolled 60 -- 1 degree of failure using the Only War system with a target number of 53.

17:51, Today: C3D-R1K rolled 76 -- 3 degrees of failure using the Only War system with a target number of 53.

17:50, Today: C3D-R1K rolled 23 -- 4 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 53.

Aoife raises her shield, braces it to her body and leads with the pistol and moves through the barrier, feeling resistance at first before going through to the other side.

Aoife Aithne rolled 28 -- 5 degrees of success using the Only War system with a target number of 69.  WP Easy (+20) Passing through barrier.
Aoife Aithne rolled 65 -- 1 degree of success using the Only War system with a target number of 69.  WP Easy (+20) Passing through barrier.
Aoife Aithne rolled 60 -- 1 degree of success using the Only War system with a target number of 69.  WP Easy (+20) Passing through barrier. (nice).

Move to 'Testing the Daemon'.