41K RPG : Primitive Beginnings

[Josh]

Brother Sergeant Realane Masran stood next to Prius, observing through the one-way glass as Zala made her way through the ship's hydroponicum.

"Her woodcraft is adequate," Masran commented. "For a first-year scout."

In other words, she was near the peak of human performance in such affairs, Prius translated mentally.

"Combat skills?" he asked.

"Not as refined at that," the marine said. "Above standard Guard baseline, though. Primitive weapons only, of course. But in my opinion, she has the mental agility to assimilate the usage of higher forms of wargear into her repetoire."

Prius nodded. He watched the woman vanish into the vegetation, hardly a leaf rippling at her passage. The Emperor had sent this tool his way for a reason, for as in all things the Emperor had a design for this as well.

He pondered this a moment. "I am generally not given to subtle methods."

The marine gave one of his rare smiles. "A masterful understatement, Inquisitor."

"But when the Emperor places a tool supremely designed for such tasks before one, it behooves one to make the maximum use of it. She must be trained."

[Bratty]

Yar works in mysterious ways. One thing is always certain - that which does not kill makes stronger in its stead. Praise to you, Yar, god of the three suns.

What a strange and magickal place that Yar has placed in her path - gardens on flying machines which carry from place to place in the sky. Though she has time to accustom herself to these things these warriors of Yar take for granted, she is still amazed.

The Warrior Leader has placed before her a trial like the rites of passage she is accustomed. In her mind, If she fails, she dies. If she succeeds, she is a warrior to fight and stand beside Yar through all life's time. Perhaps this is Gahala - the afterlife that the strongest get to enter and eat at the table of Yar with himself and other warriors of measure.

She sees her target. A simple bak bak bird, with pink and blue feathering and a sheer sheen to its down. The tricky part about the bak bak bird is that the bird is five times faster than a human. As soon as the bak bak bird knows one is there, it flies to safety. To spice things up a bit, the Warrior Leader has put a couple of men within the trees to shoot at her if she shows herself within the folage.

At least, he did put a couple of men in the trees to shoot at her. They were her first target. She came up behind each of them without their knowledge. Before they knew it, she had hit the back of their neck in a manner where the exact pressure would leave the victim incapacitated. Too much and there are two less soldiers. She knows they are not her mission, however, and they are merely put out of commission.

Approaching the bak bak bird, she is silent even to the most trained and observant of eyes. Closer...Closer....

[Josh]

The report came along the vox from the observing marine in the hydroponicum. Prius tilted his head as he absorbed it. Interesting, she hadn't slain the armsmen. A tad more restraint than he would've shown in similar circumstances, but then he wasn't given to mercy for those in a position to kill him.

Very intelligent of her to target the hunters first, though. It was akin to something he would have done.

He waited.

[Bratty]

The bak bak bird is within her reach. She now moves slowly. Patience is something that is instinctive when Yar requires it. So slowly, in fact, hours pass. She takes her time, just slowly moving her hand out, centimeter at a time, so as not to frighten off the bird.

Finally, a total of 8 hours later, she grabs the bak bak bird by the tail with one hand. With the other, she snaps its neck. It is over.

[Josh]

Prius and the marine had waited the entire time. He triggered his internal vox, summoning Nerriss.

When the savant arrived, he gestured toward the hydroponicum. "Begin her indoctrination into the tenets of the Imperial Cult, and educate her as to her place as a servant of an Inquisitor."

[Bratty]

As Nerriss briefs Zala, she listens in the chatter she has come to learn as low Gothic. Too many words.

When all is explained to her, she nods her head slowly. She is aware of her place, and now she is aware that the Yar was bigger than she expected. She will give retribution for her doubt later with contrition and penance. But for now, she is expected to serve.

She motions, "

Take me to the Inquisitor. He will find me ready for service. "

[Josh]

Prius recieved the call from Nerriss on his internal vox, and signaled an affirmative.

Then he resumed. Stripped to the waist, he was a patchwork horror of machine and flesh, obvious modifications and replacements interlaid with bare patches of skin, made all the more stark by their rarity. He raised the chainsword to a defensive position and triggered from his vox that would begin random initiation of the servitors.

Four high-end combat servitors surrounded him, the latest models of Adraxis, powered not by human minds and consecrated machine spirits, but by cold, soulless independent machine intelligences.

For all that he knew now that the injunction against soulless machines was in large part propaganda of the Adeptus Mechanicus in their bid to maintain monopoly on the means of war and life in the Imperium, it still made him uneasy to deal with such.

That was one part of this exercise, to test himself against the soulless... 'abominations'. The other part was a simple exercise of devotion. Were it actual combat training, he would be wearing his armor, or other clothing such as he might be wearing in conflict.

This, on the other hand, was akin to a dance of death that highlighted his piety. By accepting danger and by dealing destruction did he express his eternal servitude to Him on Terra.

The servitors could activate at any time between immediately and half an hour. It was incumbent on him to maintain his focus and awareness.

There. A touch on his warp senses, a flare of danger. He was already pivoting to the left, bringing the chainsword up to parry a desending chainaxe that would have cleft him in two had it struck.

[Bratty]

As they enter the room, Zala's eyes narrow, taking in the machines which afflict the Inquisitor. After a second's observation between the focus of the Inquisitor and Nerriss, it is clear that this is intentional. He is testing his strength for Yar; she has seen such rites before. Never with machines though. Never. He dances with the strange afflictions with grace and ease. She watches a bit spellbound, but outwardly shows no sign of distraction.

[Josh]

A pair of nondescript cats watch from the corner of the room as Prius dances his dance of death. The new servitors test him far more than the old ones ever have. An energy blade nicks his side, oily greenish unguent leaking from the punctured augmetic that resided there. A hammer blow sends him reeling two steps backward.

But for every strike landed upon him, he lands two, three, four strikes upon the machines. First falls one, then another, and as his opponents decrease, his speed increases. Within seconds, the remains of all four machines lay in smoking, shattered heaps around him. The cats scamper forward, searching through the debris in a futile hunt for edibles or vermin, as he drops to his knees, blade settled perpendicularl to the floor, his forehead resting against its hilt. Blood and fluids leak from his 'wounds', though the flesh has already begun to mend itself.

The cats clamber over and around his legs, sniffing and rubbing against him, as he reposes in prayer.

[Bratty]

Without a sound, Zala takes her place beside him. Dropping to her knees, she prays to Yar. Her heart soars with her Master's strength.

In all things, Yar is great. When one's heart remains with Yar, one's enemies fall below feet for grazing