Prologue
Dusk settled over the city, and with it, rain. Not that it made much difference; it was always dark and wet here. Yet Alexander didn't feel miserable. He had grown up on this planet, and felt at home in the rain. He pulled his hood further over his face. A chill passed through him, wether it was the rain or something else… he wasn't sure.
"Keep up, Xander," Felix called back to him.
"I don't like it here," he replied. "It makes me… uneasy."
"Don't be so weak." Alex could see the thrill behind his friend's eyes. The two had been friends since childhood; Alex couldn't remember how they had met. Felix had always been the most outgoing of the pair. Alex could remember many a time he had picked his friend up after he had passed or knocked himself out.
Indeed, the evening they had planned was Felix's idea. Alexander remembered their conversation not a week past.
"My mate knows someone who can hook us up, if you know what I mean." Felix had said to him with a wink. "You still keen on trying some?"
"I suppose so," Alex had replied meekly. "Maybe at my place, or something."
"Oh, live a little," Felix grinned. "Besides, it'd be too dangerous walking around the streets with it."
Next thing he knew, Alex had been introduced to Felix's 'mate'. A sickly looking man who smelt as bad as he looked, Alex had been told to stand guard while Felix talked to him in hushed tones.
Now here he was, following his best friend through the capital's alleyways. They were so narrow that the two youths could only barely walk abreast. Caged windows littered the walls that rose over fifty metres above them. Dim light shone from some, voices echoed from others. Alex heard ten too many screams for his liking. This was a bad part of town.
The two exited the alleyway into an almost deserted street. At the end of the street to his right Alex saw two prostitutes standing under a flickering lamppost. He quickly averted his gaze. His mother had told him that prostitutes were the demons of Slaanesh in human form, and that they could kill a man by simply looking at him.
It seemed Felix had as much sense as he did, because he turned left and walked away from the women. For a second Alex thought the Emperor himself must have been leading him away from evil, until Felix stopped in front of a building blacker than the night sky. Dull thuds from inside could be heard.
"Here we are," Felix said cheerily.
"A club?" Alex said, shocked. "No. We'll die."
"Come on Xander, you know most of those things your mother told you aren't true." He shoved a wad of paper money into Alex's hand.
"This looks true enough for me." Without warning, the black doors swung open and two huge bouncers stepped out.
"Get in or keep moving," one said gruffly. Felix quickly stepped towards the entrance.
"Felix what are you doing?" Alex whispered urgently.
"Just follow me, there's nothing to worry about," his friend replied before disappearing into the blackness of the club. Alex looked hopelessly around him. He couldn't leave his friend in there alone.
Emperor, forgive me, he prayed as he walked into the thudding blackness.
He rounded a corner and entered a theatre-like room. The thudding music was so loud it shook the sense out of him. Smoke hazed his vision which had developed a purple tint. The club was split into two levels. The majority of the ground floor was taken up by a dance floor that was covered in a thrashing mass of people. Colourful lights flashed around the room.
A long bench was on the opposite end of the room. Grisly looking bartenders gave out exotic looking drinks to their customers from the wall behind them. The upper level of the theatre was dedicated to circular tables. Alex could see a clear distinction between the higher and lower class of city scum in the club.
Fights were breaking out all over the dance floor. Bulky men rushed towards them before anyone got seriously injured. He could see prostitutes with their clients, lost in their paid love. Drunks stumbled around everywhere, feeling and fearing nothing. On the balcony of the second floor stood a sinister group of men, richly dressed and looking down on the club. He couldn't see Felix anywhere.
His scanning for his friend was interrupted by an arm around his shoulder and a leg around his hip. Before he knew it, a woman had latched herself onto him.
"Come here alone?" She whispered into his ear. Alex's heart leapt into his mouth.
"Off." He shrugged her away and headed for the bar, trying to sound stern. It must not have worked because she followed him. He tried to lose her amongst the crowded floor, but to no avail.
Why is she following me? He thought to himself. Emperor, protect me. He had hoped to lose her before he got to the bar. He didn't even know what he was going to say once he got there, and he didn't want to look green in front of her.
He reached the bar and put an elbow on it in an attempt to look casual. Within seconds a huge, grisly man was in front of him. He wore an apron that was probably white once. Alex swore he could see fresh blood amongst the brown muck already present. The man raised an eyebrow at him without saying a word. It took Alex a second to realise that was his cue.
"Oh, I'll have… um," he stammered.
"Two doombolts, if you please," Alex's pursuer cut over him, sidling up next to him. The bartender grunted and turned away. The woman turned her head and looked into Alex's eyes, her face rich with flirtation. Black hair billowed over her bare shoulders. Alex couldn't tell if her skin was purple due to the lighting or not. "First time?"
"No," Alex shot at her defensively. "You?" The girl laughed. The sound made Alex's heart jump.
"Does it look like my first time?" Alex couldn't help but smile.
"I suppose not," he mumbled. "What do you want?"
"What do I want?" the girl moved in closer. Her hand brushed against the inside of his thigh. He could feel her breath on his lips. Alex could sense something amazing about this girl, something thrilling. He lost himself in her exotic perfume. He tilted his head in closer…
…and was jolted out of his stupor by a loud thud on the counter. He snapped his head towards the commotion and saw in front of him two large glasses filled with a frothing blue drink. The bartender grunted and held out a meaty hand. Alex fumbled in his pocket with the notes Felix had given him and gave the bartender several. He must have overpaid, given the way the oaf departed with a dark grin on his face.
He looked back at the woman. He thought he saw a flicker of annoyance dart from her face when he looked at her, but it must have been the lights.
How could one so pretty get annoyed? He thought to himself. He took a brazen gulp of his blue drink. The liquid burnt his throat and sent his world spinning. For a second he thought he was going to spew it out, but he managed to restrain himself. He didn't want to embarrass himself in front of his new friend.
"You haven't told me your name," he said, almost shouting at her thanks to the music. The girl regarded him. For a split second, Alex thought she wouldn't answer. Then the girl smiled.
"Jenette. What about you?"
"Alexander."
"Alexander," she repeated, savouring the name. "What brings you here, Alex?"
"My friend Felix," he replied with a stupid smile. He paused to take another sip of his drink. Jenette hadn't touched hers. "He's here somewhere; I was looking for him when you found me."
"Oh?" Jenette raised her eyebrows. "Well, I'm sure we can find him."
"I'm not so sure," Alex said, concern piercing its way through the haze that was clouding his mind. "There are a lot of people here." Jenette laughed, again.
She laughs a lot, Alex realised, his brow furrowing. His moment of clarity passed as suddenly as it came, and the haze covered his mind again. She must like me.
"The owners of this… establishment… like to appeal to a wide audience," she said. "All the regulars find a niche to settle into, your friend has probably found his."
Alex took another gulp. It went down easier than his first.
"How do I find my niche?" he asked.
"Aren't I your niche?" Jenette replied, playing coy. A dark thought crossed Alex's mind.
Heh, niche, he thought to himself. Clarity hit him again. What are you doing?! He shouted to himself. He found himself taking another gulp of his drink. Jenette still hadn't touched hers.
"Xander!" a familiar voice called from behind him before he could reply. He turned around to see Felix with a drink in his hand and a smile on his face. He clapped him on the shoulder. "I told you everything would be fine!" Felix shouted over the music. "And who is this?" he inquired with an unconcealed wink. A pale, slender arm extended past Alex's head and into Felix's hand. Jenette's perfume washed over him again, sending him into a state of ecstasy.
"Jenette. A pleasure," she introduced herself. Alex couldn't tell if she was flirting with his friend or not, but felt a pang of jealousy nonetheless that snapped him back to sanity.
"Pleasures all mine," Felix replied with a light kiss on her hand. He flicked his gaze back to Alex. Clearing his throat, he said: "My mate has the stuff. He wants us to do it now."
Alex raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"I didn't ask; he doesn't seem the type to like being questioned."
"Fair enough, let's do it."
"What's this?" Jenette piped up. "Let me come." She hugged Alex from behind and breathed on the back of his neck. His heart leapt again. His face must have betrayed his thoughts.
"Fine," Felix snapped. "Let's go."
He led the pair across the dance floor. They had to weave amongst the thrashing mass and try not to nudge anyone too hard, lest they start a fight. Everyone seemed on edge on the dance floor. Felix led them to the stairs.
Once on the upper floor, the mood seemed to relax. They walked along the edge of the balcony, passing the group of creepy men. Alex looked down to see the chaotic scene of the first floor. Even in his drunken state, it disgusted him.
I forgot my drink, he realised sadly. The group stopped at a closed door. Felix opened it and a cloud of greenish smoke escaped the room.
"He's in there," he said. For the first time in his life, Alex couldn't read his best friends face. Was he worried, or excited? After a moment of analysing, he decided to blame his lack of perception on the drink.
Alex entered the room, Jenette on his heels. Inside was a group of men and women, sitting on cushions in a circle. Candles lined the edges of the room. At the centre of the room was a fire with a bubbling cauldron resting over it. The liquid inside was black and spewing the green smoke that enveloped the room. It made Alex dizzy to inhale it. It was what they had come for. This drug. He saw Felix struggle for balance. Jenette didn't seem to have any trouble.
"Sit," the figure at the head of the circle, if there was such a thing, commanded. Alex and Felix sat on the two vacant cushions. Jenette wrapped her arms and legs around Alex's back, latching her small body onto him. He was glad for her company.
"There's no going back now," she whispered into his ear.
What's she talking about? He watched a scraggy woman rise off her cushion and bend over the cauldron. She took an elaborate looking cup out of the folds of her robe and plunged it – and her arm – into the depths of the boiling cauldron. Alex winced for the woman who didn't seem to spare a second thought.
The woman drew the cup out of the cauldron. Dark green drops ran from her arm. She passed the cup to the person closest to her, who took a deep breath of the fumes before passing it to their neighbour. A strange feeling crept into Alex's chest as the cup approached him; a combination of excitement and dread. Jenette hugged him tighter. She was stronger than she looked. The man next to him passed the cup.
As soon as his hands closed around it, a jolt of fear spiked its way down his spine. He looked at the cup and saw it was a hollowed out human skull. Green smoke billowed over the edge of its broken crown. Every fibre in his being told him to leave. He tried to stand, but Jenette's grip tightened on his chest, knocking the air out of him and stopping him from rising. He heard a snap and felt a spear of pain drive itself into his chest. She had broken one of his ribs.
"Inhale!" someone commanded him. He couldn't see who. His eyes had gone blurry, from tears or smoke he knew not.
"There's no going back now," Alex recalled. It seemed like forever ago. I wish I never came here, he thought as he brought the cup to his face. He glanced over the brim of the cup at Felix. He was still wearing his expression of anxious excitement. He doesn't know what's going on, Alex realised. He tried to open his mouth to warn him, but his lips wouldn't move. He could hear the blood rushing in his ears. He turned his gaze back to the black liquid.
He breathed in.
The smoke hit him like a punch to the face. His vision went black. The rushing in his ears stopped. The pain in his chest subsided. He felt his brain spin in his skull. Slowly, his vision came back to him. He heard chuckles around the room.
"Hits you pretty hard, eh?" the man next to him said. "You've no pain to fear anymore."
Who are these people? Alexander thought to himself. He mindlessly passed the cup to Felix. He saw his friend clench up when he grasped the skull, but no expression reached his face. He pitied him. Oh Felix, you always were so brash.
The sight of his arm tore his attention away from his friend. His skin had gone from the healthy brown it once was to a putrid green. His once-strong, young muscles had seemed to wither and age. He looked around the room and cried out when he saw that the figures in the room had become nothing but a bit of skin on bones. A wretched smell filled his nose.
They're all dead, he realised as he kicked himself off his cushion, away from the zombies. He managed to throw Jenette off him as he frantically crawled backwards into the wall behind him. When he saw her he screamed again. Her transformation was the most startling of all. The beautiful young girl he had been flirting with before was gone, replaced by a horrific abomination. She retained much of her face, yet two horns sprouted from her forehead. Giant claws had replaced her hands, and great hoofs her feet.
He saw Felix faint.
"He was too weak," a voice boomed. "Dispose of him."
Without hesitation, Jenette jumped on Felix's body and ripped his throat out with her mouth. Alex watched with horror as his best friend was ripped apart by the deamonette, and within minutes his bones had been picked clean.
He could do nothing but cower in horror. Jenette looked up at him again. Even with her disfigured body, her face still sent thrills down Alex's spine. He hated her for it. She crawled over and sat next to him.
"Welcome to the primordial truth," she whispered into his ear. He looked straight ahead, too disgusted to look at the girl.
He sat in silence as the ruinous cup made its way around the group. He stared into the green smoke. A figure began to form in it. A bloated, horrific face, scarred with countless eons of disease and decay looked at him. Somehow, Alex knew that face, and that only he saw it.
"We had no idea, Papa Nurgle," he whispered.
"I know, child. Now rest."