Where was he?

He was in pain...that much was sure. Pain and with the odd feeling of being distraught.

He was...Edwin Loansan...yes that fitted. Failed medical student, survivor...survivor of what? He couldn't quite remember, he remembered being afraid...he was still afraid...why? Undead? Yes, he remembered the zombies, loathsome creatures, swarming the planet, hunting him...them.

Why wasn't he dead?

Opening his blue eyes Edwin found himself staring up into a grey ceiling, to his right an equally grey wall pressed up against his shoulder. The bed he was lying on was hard, the blanket over his naked form rough against the skin. Grimacing he managed to move his aching arm, pushing the blanket downwards and revealing a body covered in thin bandages, a dozen small tubes ending in needles stuck in his flesh. Some sort of medical aid?

Edwin's eyes followed the tubes, finding them disappear into the left side of his bed, a bed he now realised was attached to the right wall. Further to the left there was another wall, together with a small toilet riveted to the floor. A toilet...next to the bed...was he in an arbiter prison? The heavy looking door at the end of the small room seemed to confirm it.

Ignoring the small voice telling him he should let the tubes stay attached Edwin sat up, brushing hand pushing the many needles out of him. The floor was cold under his bare feet, cold and...vibrating ever so slightly?

Frowning Edwin ran a hand through where there was supposed to be long blond hair, only to find himself touching a mere stubble. "Oh for..." His curse disappeared as he coughed violently, his throat ragged. "What the...what happened?" He wavered where he sat, mind too sluggish to really panic, but not enough not to feel increasingly worried.

The arbiters were all dead, the entire planet, dead...so why was he in a cell?

Joan, the battle sister...she was dead. Edwin grimaced, suddenly remembering the horrible sight of the sister being torn apart before...before the two imperial troopers had dragged him away. Ron and Li, yes that was their names...where were they? They had...gone through a door? Lots of undead...then nothing.

Groaning Edwin got to his feet, then reached down to wrap the blanket around his waist, despite its itchiness it was better then standing naked in the cold room.

"A toilet..." He glanced to the left, seeing a small faucet. "A faucet..." He glanced to the right, seeing nothing but the door in the distance. "Aaand no food or chairs...great." He shrugged, then grimaced at the pain running through his sore body.

Then the door opened.

Recoiling at the sight Edwin was filled by dread as the memories flooded over him. The space marines, the creatures of evil that had slaughtered all the people in the chapel...who had killed Ron and Li...and who had taken him. Edwin wasn't a small guy, yet the marine towered above him, the dark red armour with black shoulder pads pockmarked by burns and craters.

The marine's helmet was off. Revealing a square skull shaved bald, the eyebrows of the man was gone, a hint of a white burn mark covering them and part of his forehead. The brown eyes looking over at him were devoid of kindness...in fact he seemed to be considering Edwin as one would a slab of meat.

The monster was oddly familiar...

"You!" Crying out Edwin rushed forward, his body screaming in pain even as he leapt up with a wide swing towards his foe's jaw.

Hitting the marine's jaw was like hitting granite.

Edwins cry of pain was cut short when he bounced against his foe's chest, pushing all air out of his lungs and sending him tumbling unto the ground. A burning feeling telling him a few wounds across his body had opened up. He coughed, the pain of his lungs wanting air competing with a sore throat for priority.

"Good, your spirit hasn't been broken." The marine's voice wasn't as dark and booming as Edwin had expected. It was cold, uncaring, and a little grating. Looking up Edwin found the marine cocking an 'eyebrow' at him, Edwin just glared back, still unable to move. "Do you know why you're here?"

"No." Edwin managed to croak, arms pushing him up into a sitting position. "Food? Target practice?"

A small snort escaped the massive warrior. "Amusing idea, but no." He put his hands behind his back, apparently, and most likely correctly, judging Edwin to be no threat. "You are here because an apothecary saw you fit to become one of us, though I have my doubts."

Edwin blinked, not really understanding what the marine had told him. Then it hit him, making his cheeks flush and his hands to tighten into fists. "Never!" The word emboldened him, helped him to get to his feet, fist raised in defiance. "I'll never become one of you! You killed my friends! Innocent!"

"No one is innocent." Was the calm reply, the marine's face unreadable.

"You monster! I hate you!" Edwin took a step forward, the marine didn't react, not even when Edwin kicked at his leg, almost breaking his toes in the process. Wincing Edwin forced himself to continue looking the monster in the eyes as he continued: "I'll always hate you! You're evil to the core!" He moved to strike at the beast once more.

This time the marine moved, or at least he must have. For one moment he was few feet away, the next he was practically in Edwin's face, fist closed around his throat as Edwin found himself hoisted into the air. The eyes looking at him weren't even angry as they held him there, slowly squeezing the life out of him...Edwin gasped, uselessly kicking at his foe's chest.

"No..." The word was but a whisper, but stopped Edwin's struggle none the less as he saw the marine smile a ghost of a smile. "No, one day...you will be proud to call me...'brother'."

Edwin felt himself grow cold.

Then he spat the marine in the face.

And all went dark.

--

Michael wiped the spittle off his face with the back of his hand, smiling slightly as he looked over at the crumpled form of the new neophyte he had thrown into the corner of the room, the weak human obviously unconscious.

"Interesting...you might just survive."