Aftermath By Kondoru

Standard Disclaimers

Thanks to JP for betaing.

Notes. This is a Warhammer 40K/Nemesis the Warlock crossover fic, but hey, who reads the crossover section? And who reads 1980s 2000AD comic stories?

There is, Um, Exobiology bits, but nothing requiring an `M` rating, and Philosophy, which probably does require a warning. (And yes, this is a Kroot and Tau story…What do you expect?)

But I-I belong to wicked mankind,

To the communion of sinful flesh.

My transgressions, my iniquities and sins,

And the waywardness of my heart,

Condemn me to communion with the worm

And all that walk in darkness.

Dead Sea Scrolls

The aftermath of a battle is always depressing, even if you are the victor.

My name is Purity Brown, and I am a human…Unfortunately.

My enemies are the evil Terminators from the dark planet of Termight, and they are human.

Be Pure.

Be Vigilant.

Behave.

Nemesis the Warlock fights against Termight. He may be a demon…And I am his chief Aide…And girlfriend.

(How this came about is a mystery to me, but I accept it.)

(He accepts me too.)

Today we scored a great victory over the Terminators on the planet Garuda, the home of the avian Ruhkians, a typically peaceful alien race whom the Terminators wanted to exterminate because they think all aliens are evil.

(Not all aliens are evil but some I am not sure about.)

Nemesis fought as a cavalry general.

As Nemesis chief aide I was of course granted a position in the Rukhian cavalry too. Air cavalry, on a winged creature known as a hippogriff.

My hippogriffs name is Harpy. She is a powerful beast, with a hooked beak like the mightiest of eagles. She is fierce and fears not the rather poor fire of the Termight wyverns nor their dreadful riders. All I have to do is attempt to guide her and jab my sword in at opportune moments. I love flying on her back, at one with the wind. I come from a gloomy underground city on a planet devastated by nuclear war and fanaticism. Being a hippogriff rider makes me alive.

You know this sort of thing makes me throwing in my lot with the Cabal worth it. Hey, I threw away my humanity but I get to ride a magnificent hippogriff! Isn't that worth being a traitor to my kind?

(You will note I am not being ironic when I write this.)

I am alive now, a Citizen of the Galaxy and the Cabal, an agent of Credo, the freedom fighters of Khaos.

But Torquemada sentenced me to death, as he had my pathetically loyal father all those years ago and any alien he could get his hands upon.

I was about to be sacrificed to the fire at the feast of Zamarkland, but Nemesis had concocted a daring escape plan for me and my fellow Credo agents…He had concealed an interdimensional gate in the fire.

So, I leapt into the fire of my own accord, I wasn't pushed or anything. Khaos requires Free Will…Even to your death…

…And rebirth as Nemesis`s right hand agent…Rebirth into a Galaxy of Heavens and Hells.

Be Purity!

Be Khaos!

Believe! (Credo!)

Now I am a Hippogriff rider and go to war mounted on this terrifying flying monster. But hey, Purity, you are `in` the Bestiary now…No fearing its frightening inhabitants.

I wear a safety harness to this end. It is a bit like the one I grew up wearing in Mausoleum. Sturdy webbing with a clip at the front to attach me to solid objects. I used to climb gantries and run along pipes and cables. I wore magnetic boots and gloves, as did my fellow Termites, never did I once imagine such athletic skills would stand me in good stead in battle.

Battle, not for Mighty Terra, but against her human forces, the dreadful Terminators. My father died, and he was innocent. I'm going to have uncounted crimes against humanity against my name before Torquemada gets `me`.

But humans are evil creatures and I no longer wish to be one. I am an alien now.

Nemesis the Warlock is the founder of Credo the resistance movement, and the leader of the Cabal, the more official alliance of alien worlds against Termight. He is a hero across the Galaxy.

I am proud to fight at his side. It makes me a target of course, I am beyond caring.

Nemesis, despite his crooked legs is an expert rider. (It was years later I found out just why. Suffice to say, Nemesis is born to the saddle.)

He has no safety harness…But he can levitate.

"Don't get too attached to your Hippogriff, Purity," he told me, "we are setting them free after the battle."

So Harpy is looking a bit sad. I have taken off her saddle and bridle, but she still follows me around hopefully. Simurgh, Nemesis`s hippogriff is long gone. He knows good advice when he hears it.

Harpy stands around looking stupid, pecking half-heartedly at the dead. Being set free is like that. It takes time to adjust.

I had to adjust to life as an Alien. Being set free is scary. No wonder most people do not follow Khaos.

I'm no longer a Termite…Nor am I a Terminator…Instead I am in a numinous state, a dangerous state. Clearly I am becoming a monster…But what type?

And what atrocities will I commit next?

Here come the clean-up team. These are Kroot. Like the Ruhkians they are evolved from birds, and have a great serrated parrot beak that can bite though armour and crush steel pipes. Each has a coloured feather crest they can raise and lower, and stroobly pin feather covered skin.

I kind of like the Kroot. Even though they are savages. (But I'm not sure humans are exactly civilised folk either.)

An early Xenologist once described the Kroot as vegetarian. Obviously he had not observed them for very long.

The Kroot are actually very keen on meat…Meat of sentients…Or each other. They are cannibals.

But all this is to a purpose. Kroot evolve by absorbing DNA of their prey. They need to eat people to remain intelligent. Kroot who eat what we would regard as eating animals such as grox or varks regress into animals themselves.

I have quite a few friends among the savages, as many people judge them. The Kroot don't judge me, even though I am a monster.

"Purity!" screeches a Kroot. Here is a friend of mine. It's Kuihin.

Kuihin is muttering something to himself, he looks very sad. "What's up?" I ask, (Though I already know.)

"Better come with me. Zako wants to speak with you." He gestures, his crest is down, a bad sign.

We walk to the Kroot encampment, the kroothounds start warking at me, as they always do with non Kroot. Kuihin hoots, and the animals fall silent.

Zako Lekota the great Kroot shaman is dying.

I duck inside the crude shelter. Inside Zako lies upon a pile of furs. "Purity" he moans weakly.

Nasty. It's a gut wound, now infected and rather smelly.

I hunker down, trying not to gag at the smell. "Isn't there anything the Ruhkians can do for you? Or even Nemesis?" I ask. But I know full well that petronitis is often fatal.

He shakes his head. "I wouldn't be a shaman if I didn't know when to pass my gift onto others." He says. Zako is `gifted. ` He is also old. Kroot like to die before they get old and decrepit. To give a weak body for the rest of the tribe to consume would be shameful. The Kroot are a generous race.

"I have things to show you, Purity." He says. Zako lies playing with his Tau made minicomputer. (The Tau are actually very good at miniaturisation, Giant robots aside.) He hands it to me.

I have never seen anything like it. It is small enough to fit into your hand, and about a centimetre thick…It's tiny. It had no buttons beyond an off/on switch and at first I am at a loss as to what to do with it.

Zako shows me. You switch the screen on and pictures appear on the screen. You touch the pictures and they take you to the programme.

There are `lots` of programmes. I count at least twenty screens of them…and each screen has at least ten pictures.

Some pictures lead to lots more programmes. This is an incredibly powerful machine. It has a phone, a music programme, books, navigation, translations, a calculator, a scanner.

Zako is smiling behind his jagged beak. "With this Pech is always with me, however far I travel in the Galaxy."

This machine is not just a computer…It can…How do I put this? It can communicate with other computers…literally billions of them, access their information.

The Tau call it the EtherealNet.

Access to this is regarded as a basic right, whether you are a Tau or one of their subject races, it doesn't matter if you are a mining Demiurg or a savage Kroot, Everyone gets it.

It takes a while for this to sink in.

We would never be permitted anything `remotely` like this at home on Termight. Though we could travel by wire. Information was precious and tightly controlled by the Terminators. Even if you can be wired all over Termight, you are never free if your mind is shackled in the Dark Age of Technology.

I can see why Torquemada hates aliens…Freedom of thought is like having a hole cut in your head…And the Galaxy jammed in.

I'm not even sure that Nemesis approves of this. As a Warlock he loves his little (and not so little) secrets. The idea of free knowledge would be anathema to him.

But hey, it was Nemesis who introduced me to the sweet temptations of Heresy…Total Knowledge is even sweeter. I'm a human and we love to dabble in things best left unmessed with.

Of course the mini computer is a vehicle for Tau propaganda. Stuff about the `Tau`va. ` I will have to ask Nemesis about this. The blue skinned aliens are a mystery to me. Nemesis seems snooty when the Tau are mentioned…And yet they are said to be the most technologically advanced race in the Galaxy.

Zako shows me Pech. (1)

Every Kroot tries to make a pilgrimage to Pech, their homeworld.

Pech is a delightful world of lush jungles, blue skies and white beaches. There is only the simplest technology there and the planet is in a pristine state. Pech is holy to all Kroot (Aside from humans one of the most wide ranging races.) and they keep it in mind wherever they travel. Pech is their ideal.

I secretly think if Pech has now been colonised by the Tau, it might have been changed a bit.

You know all those giant robots you see in the holos? Chances they were built by the Tau.

I know full well what a mess humans made of their homeworld of Termight, all in all to build a whitehole/blackhole system to enable easy interstellar travel. Terra is one big highway interchange now. (2)

I escaped `my` homeworld years ago. I'm now trying to get over it. I doubt I ever will.

Pech is beyond Zako's reach now…And yet he doesn't mind. He has Pech in his hand. I would give a lot to be as content as Zako…Even if it meant a painful death.

Zako believes that Pech is pristine, and I guess that is all that matters.

"It's my funeral tomorrow." Zako sighs, "I would like you to attend, Purity."

"That is so kind of you." I start to weep, and not just for Zako, but I know what a Kroot funeral will entail. A feast.

"I will my heart to you." He lays his clawed hand in mine.

"The Kroot believe that their hearts are the seat of their strength and intelligence.

This is a very great honour, but surely this must go to another of your kind, one who can make full and worthy use of your strength?" I ask. "Humans cannot absorb a warrior's spirit as you Kroot can."

"You will need my strength, Purity, you are an enemy alien amid the Cabal, never forget that. You may think you are one of us, but your human blood will come to the fore one day, and it will end in your destruction. I foresee this," his scarred face wrinkles, "Or your salvation. But only if you have the strength to save yourself."

"Wouldn't Nemesis?..." I begin, seeing as the vegetarian option isn't for me.

Zako shakes his head sadly. "He's already very strong…You need it more than him."

So I bid my goodbyes to Zako, who has been a great comfort to me this campaign. I very seldom get to make friends on Nemesis`s campaigns. I am a traitor after all. People are polite to me, I can even issue orders, but I always see that accusation in their eyes. The Kroot understand me. They suffer a lot of (sometimes justified) prejudice too.

I go back to Nemesis's encampment. He is away, probably drinking with the Rukhian leaders I bet.

Harpy is hanging around, still looking lost. I'm touched that she would want to stay with me.

Next morning I return to the Kroots. (Secretly I suspect they thought I might duck this one.)

The day is spent in mourning, and preparing for the feast. I help by scouring the camp for alcoholic beverages, Kuihin has tactfully kept me away from the cooking…I might recognise what is for dinner.

And I don't mean Zako who is lying in state surrounded by neatly sliced garnish…

So I take a basket and go booze scrounging. Fortunately the Ruhkians like ethanol. I acquire several half bottles of spirits from happy victors…Luckily the Terminators have brought mead…I like mead.

I just hope it doesn't make me homesick. Or as sick as a defeated Terminator. (Who have other things on their minds at the moment.)

Like Nemesis…Who has a reputation for not being magnanimous with prisoners.

I scan around for his two necks and horned head, but I see no sign of the Warlock. He is up to no good. I know it.

My diversions are quite harmless in comparison.

My basket clinking, I trudge back to the Kroots. On the way I meet Suginobe, a Rukhian captain.

"Going to a party?" He asks, in a voice that is very like a Kroot, probably because of his beak.

I nod. I decide not to say just who it is with. "Have you seen Nemesis?" I ask lightly, though I know what my commander is up to.

"Earlier, yes." Suginobe replies. He gives a cawing laugh. "He's busy lecturing humans on good behaviour." The avian alien says in a manner that suggests he thinks this a waste of time.

"Nemesis is like that."

"I think they should all be put to the sword. Fodder for our hippogriffs." Of course Suginobe isn't afraid to say what he thinks to my ugly human face, is he? "It's the least they deserve."

"Nemesis is going to make them pay for what they tried to do to you." I say levelly. "Dead humans don't learn the error of their ways."

Suginobe gives a nasty snort. "Humans are not capable of learning!"

I shake my head "where does that leave `me? ` I grew up on Termight, I learned to hate aliens…Now look at me."

Suginobe sticks his claws in his flight harness and stalks off. I shake my head; I would probably feel that way if I had been the target of a cleanse and purify project by the Terminators. (But I am, as are my fellow Cabal humans. We will be first to die.)

Back at the rather squalid Kroot encampment all is ready. Zako who is Kuihins brother takes the basket off me, and I sit down in pride of place, on a fur rug.

A big lump of cooked meat is handed to me and I begin to eat without hesitation. Its human flesh, and a pretty boringly predictable Kroot test of an allies mettle.

It's juicy and tasty, much nicer than the protein bars, ships biscuits and unidentifiable dried things that are my general campaign diet. I think I am going to like being a monster.

I continue on my chewing, my leather jack is filled with mead by Zako, who is nodding to himself at an ally passing the test.

Zako Lekota is brought out on a bier. He looks at peace, no longer smelling of infected wounds. The Kroot cheer. They are hungry, and all will partake of his DNA and his strength today. In his death he will not die, but will become a multitude.

It seems a nice outlook on life.

A lumpy red thing is presented to me on an aluminium platter.

It's the heart of Zako Lekota.

All white Kroot eyes are on me expectantly. I cannot let them down.

I'm thinking, `that looks like a human heart, I cannot eat this. `

And `don't be stupid Purity, you are already a cannibal! Isn't this what Torquemada warned you about? He warned you about becoming a monster? `

But now `I` get to choose what sort of monster I become. Not a human monster.

So I bite into the gristly thing to hoots from my fellow monsters. I chew and gulp it down, and much to my surprise am not sick.

Khaos is bountiful.

Harpy wanders past, a human leg in her beak.

I drink some more mead and eventually fall asleep.

Only to be woken by Kuihin, who is chummily beak rubbing me. "You're a Kroot now, Purity," Kuihin chirrups happily. He wriggles in next to me, handing me a bottle. I take a pull of it. Kuihin rests his beak on my shoulder.

Oh, it's like this, isn't it?

I am thinking, `he wants to do `that`, ` which is not at all bothersome, and that `No human male has ever done `this` to me, ` which is at this minute somewhat disturbing.

I give him a good rub along his crest, which he then raises in interest, in spite of his sleepy looking face.

Suddenly I realise nothing really matters anymore.

I am off with my flight harness, my titanium link shirt which is several sizes too big for me and covers up a multitude of sins follows. Kuihin gleefully tugs off my undershirt while I struggle with my trousers. "You're wearing far too much, Purity" he chides.

Underneath I wear a webbing belt with a dagger sheathed along it. I do not remove that from my person ever, unless I am certain I am perfectly safe.

Perfect safety has eluded me for some months now. I keep it on.

"Far too much…even now." He swiftly divests me of my loincloth. (But he has a utility belt on too.) "And what's this?" Kuihin places a hand on the tattoos on my shoulder (Four fingers, two of which are opposable thumbs)

"Those are my prison tattoos." I tell him.

The fact is, to the uninitiated they look like something a Vestal Vampire would bear.

The fact that my mark is Theta (Death, damnation.) rather than the Tau (life, resurrection) doesn't matter. I have seen many of the dreaded Vestal Vampires tattooed similarly. (And since, unlike me, they don't wear much in the way of armour, that's all too easy.)

"I was in Terminus, the dungeon of Torquemada." I explain. "Nemesis helped me escape."

These marks were placed upon every damned thing in that thrice condemned place. The teaspoons, the soap, my heretics robe…

They even had a mark that imprinted it on my breakfast toast.

Nobody gets out of Terminus alive…And I'm not sure I am alive even now…I am marked for damnation. Worse, past caring.

"It should be Tau, like my overlords." The Kroot muses.

(And I was amused to hear that there is an alien race who call themselves the Tau.)

"Naaw, I have kept it, reminds me just of what I escaped from." I pause. I suppose I could have had it removed. "Anyhow, makes me look a hard as nails bitch."

This has caused awkwardness several times. But my very presence in Nemesis`s retinue has caused awkwardness, -my tattoos simply show who I am.

Kuihin grunts "Typical human impreciseness," he says in a manner that sounds more like a scientific Tau than a savage Kroot. He begins to run his claws though my hair, tracing the lines of my badger stripe.

I nuzzle into his wiry neck. Amid this is fear, fear of rejection. Will he find me ghastly?

But Kuihin gives a little cheep of pleasure, he takes me into his sinewy arms and pushes me down.

My only emotion is relief, relief that my friends regard me as one of them.

Next day is overcast.

My face is tender where I have been using my mail shirt as a pillow. I have a hangover and wonder what I was doing last night.

I seem to be naked in a pile of scaly Kroot bodies. (Though to be more precise, scaly and prickly pin feathered bodies which is worse) interesting.

I wake up fully, see Kuihin next to me and think oh.

He blinks his white eyes and says "What a sight!"

I realise my cheek is all over red marks where it has been rested against my mail. I rub my face sleepily. "Where's some water?"

After a bit of whining and pecking amid the Kroot a water skin is handed to me, I take a long drink, wiping the rest on my face.

I'm an alien too, don't forget.

Nemesis is away passing judgement on the defeated humans.

He makes a good Judge, with his red robes and demonic visage. The humans have been bad and now their sentence will be severe.

I'm glad I am not joining them. I am not like them. I am an ally of the Cabal. I fight on their side in battles, I take part in their rituals, I eat their food, I…er….Complain when they call me `Alien lover`…

Do not look in the mirror, Purity, you might not like what you see.

Late morning I decide to go find my boyfriend before he finds me. (In a compromising position with some feathery savages…)

I evict a Gribbly from my boot.

I struggle into my mail shirt. Titanium sure is heavy these days.

I buckle on my flight harness…I don't know why. I doubt I will ever need it again.

I find my sword.

I bid my goodbyes to the Kroot. Kuihin gives me a big hug and a beak rub. "I'm sure we will meet again." He says happily. "We will see Nemesis anyhow." (Everyone knows Nemesis the Warlock, of course.)

I just hope it's not on the wrong side of a battlefield.

"Feast on your enemies!" His pack cry gleefully. (Nice to think that a battle is an excuse for a feast…)

Slowly I make my way back to Nemesis's encampment.

Nemesis is busy dismantling our camp. He has taken down the tent (Not ours, borrowed from the Ruhkians along with those nice rugs which were a joy to sleep in. Most campaigns we have our cloaks for bedding and that is it.)

The Blitzspear is parked nearby. Sure sign he is getting ready to leave.

Normally he stores the magical craft mentally.

Nemesis is packing some small items into a bag. "Oh hello, Purity, I was wondering where you were." He says by way of greeting.

Kroots give an oily secretion on their skins, this I was now liberally smeared with. Probably for the best as it has antiseptic properties, certainly now my numerous cuts no longer pained me. However it has a very distinctive smell.

Nemesis`s nostrils were working. "You've been off with Kroots?" He says as if I had come back from a night on the tiles on the wrong side of the tracks. (I expect he can smell other Kroot secretions too.)

"Yes."

"I hope you didn't eat anything while you were there." He grunts.

"It's ok, they weren't using it at the time," I say lightly. "Zako Lekota is dead."

"Well, I hope you cooked him well before you ate him." Nemesis says snippily.

"Oh, Nemesis, you have been invited to Kroot funerals before haven't you?" I add. "You know you would have been invited if you wasn't dealing with all those humans."

He winces at this. Anytime he has to deal with humans that doesn't result in their messy demise Nemesis gets uppity.

"Of course Zako wasn't cooked! Do you think we would insult a respected Shaman like him by cooking him?"

"You can get tapeworm from hanging round with Kroots, they are riddled with parasites." He adds, slightly nastily. "If you have to get wormed I will say `I told you so. `"

(Nemesis is also talking about venereal disease, isn't he?)

"I trust you have found something to eat on the journey?" I ask.

Nemesis doesn't eat when in the Blitzspear. He drinks a little, and that's it. I need to eat, drink and do things that require an efficient recycling system. (Actually these journeys he mostly meditates. The Blitzspear is autonomous, after all.)

He had to completely configure the machine when I began to travel with him. Arrange it around two people with completely different personal needs. It's a bit of a jam but I am used to it by now. I have been on journeys lasting up to two weeks, which as long as you can manage without things like hot food, washing and standing up is doable. (I have a whole exercise regime I can do horizontal.)

This puts pretty much the whole Galaxy in range.

Now the whole Galaxy can be kept safe from Torquemada.

Nemesis opens up the locker my side. "Yes, iron rations for a month."

I notice his neck pouch is bulging. Nemesis might play the ascetic but he has had two good feeds for the journey, one for his stomach, and the other for his pouch. He won't want to eat for a few days.

"Are we going far?" I ask. I don't want to end up eating hardtack, dried meat and vitamin pills for a month.

"Novala." He says tersely. "Couple of days?" He leans over and checks under another panel. "We are leaving in half an hour. Have you said your goodbyes?"

I nod. "Yes I have, and yes, I have my things packed. Just need to get my wargear off." I say. I will be wearing just a T shirt and pyjama bottoms in the craft. Experience has told me this is most comfortable.

Twenty minutes later I am sat in the cockpit. Nemesis is outside talking to the Rukhian commander. He says his goodbyes and jumps into his seat. Nemesis is naked. He doesn't do flight suits.

(As a matter of fact I don't think he does clothes at all, beyond maybe a cloak or robe. I have seen Nemesis wear a lot of different things over the years including human clothing, but when staying in my apartment he was naked and he prefers it in the Blitzspear. Even Kroots wear utility belts.)

I've been readying the craft. (Or more like, telling it to get ready. The Blitzspear has some sort of intelligence though it is not of the degree of a true robot.)

The canopy slides to and Nemesis revs the turbine. "Ready?" He asks.

"Let's go." I love flying in the Blitzspear, it's such a responsive craft. Except maybe too responsive to Nemesis's sometimes conflicting emotions.

And so we leave the planet of Garuda…Now safe from Termight.

I'd like to say I am so happy and satisfied…but I am not.

I nap a little, glad to be safe. Wars always take a lot from me. Doubly so as I am on the `wrong` side.

Pretty soon I wake. Nemesis is also awake. He is listening to some music on his headphones. (Nemesis is a great music lover and quite talented himself, though his tastes are rather old fashioned.) He is not meditating and so I am free to disturb him.

In more than one way.

"Tell me about the Tau" I ask. I have never met any Tau…Though I have heard about them from others, and seen holos. They are a humanoid race, with blue or blue grey skins, brown hair and no noses.

"Mph" says the Warlock.

Nemesis doesn't like the Tau.

True, they share the same ideals of fighting the monolithic Termight Empire and making the Galaxy safe for peaceful people to share, be they humans or Kroot or warlocks.

"The Tau are a strange bunch." He begins thoughtfully. "They have been described as, I quote `Weeaboo Caste besotted space Communists. ` And to an extent this is true."

"Whew! That is a mouthful," I reply, "and a brainful. Can you explain all that? The Kroot told me the Tau love philosophy…is these long words part of it?"

"Yes, but a bit of background first." He rubs his flanged snout thoughtfully. Nemesis does this a lot. It's a sensitive part of him. (And said to be part of his species reproductive system. I kiss that part of him and all…)

"I heard that the Tau have the most advanced technology of all." I begin. "Zako Lekota showed me his minicomputer…Have you seen one?"

"Yes, I have, and I have seen those famous giant robots too."

It is obvious he is not impressed by this. But Nemesis`s attitude to technology is peculiar; He doesn't use it much but the Blitzspear is highly advanced.

"And yet the Tau are a very young race; They have only been space farers for just under a thousand years."

By contrast the Warlocks are extremely ancient, having travelled in space for millions of years, according to Nemesis.

"This must affect their attitudes a lot. The Galaxy is a new and exciting place." I am new to space too, and am delighted to see each and every new planet we visit. Nemesis is the old hand. Or at least he plays at being experienced.

"The Tau live by a philosophy called `Tau'va` it means the Greater Good. Each and every citizen puts society first." Nemesis looks thoughtfully though the cockpit window for a moment.

"So they are selfless?" That's unusual.

He grunts in assent. Nemesis twists his two necks. "Well, communism you already know…"

"It's about sharing things…like the Yologs do? They hold all goods in common." I suggest. The Yologs are yet more of Nemesis`s wild friends, who like nothing better to fight and party and are too happy go lucky to worry over material concerns.

"Yes, all businesses and infrastructure is state owned. The Tau encourage free enterprise on subject worlds but not in their empire. The Tau regard all citizens as equal."

I nod at this. "So what is a caste system? I have not heard that term before. Is it like a meritocracy? That would go well with communism, yes?"

Nemesis rolls over in his couch, inviting me to give him a back scratch. Like me he is dirty and presumably itchy. "I will try to explain it. The Tau have five castes, the Earth, who are farmers and artisans, the Fire who are warriors, The Air who are space farers and traders and the Water who are negotiators and diplomats." He blinks in thought, "and the Ethereals, who rule. Each are distinct races."

"Ohh" I say, this is interesting. "What happen if people from different castes fall in love?"

"They aren't allowed to." Nemesis goes on to tell me more.

Tau have no family life. Biologically they are mammals, and in their pre Tau'va state probably lived like humans (Or Warlocks, though Nemesis is no mammal.) do.

These days the Ethereals choose a couple, they go away and have sex (recreational sex is a perversion to Tau…And they would go totally Jokerioshit over what I was doing with the Kroot. But Kroot are savages and know no better…Humans too.) The female has a baby, which is put into a crèche, and she goes back to her job.

So Tau are naturally more attached to their communities than they are family.

"Don't go thinking Tau are unemotional…in many ways they are ruled by their hearts." Nemesis told me.

"How can the Ethereals rule so tightly? Do they have lots of police?" I ask, well remembering life back on Termight.

Nemesis sniffs. "They have some mysterious power that makes all their decisions seem wise." He says eventually.

"You don't say! This is mad!" I pause. "Are they magicians like you?"

"No. Not Warlocks." He says firmly.

Nemesis doesn't like to be reminded of his homeworld. Nemesis had a wife and baby…Once. I'm afraid Termight happened to them.

He used to be fairly tolerant of humans…now he struggles, oh he struggles. But I'm his family now, and since he is a Khaotic he sees nothing wrong or absurd in having an enemy for a girlfriend.

Khaos does that to you.

One day he will flip and kill me.

But I can live with that.

I give this a bit of thought. "But these two concepts of communism and caste system are mutually exclusive. One says people are different and the other says they are the same…How can such a crazy society work?"

He nods. "And now you know why I don't like the Tau. They are crazy."

The Kroots think the Tau crazy. But they accept them as their overlords, as do many different alien races…And indeed human communities. The Kroot attitude to Tau is that of how I would think of a zany technology loving geek worshiping big brother, they are mad and admirable and you love them for it.

And it's how I feel about Nemesis as well.

"Ethereal powers work not just on Tau." Nemesis said grimly.

We are silent for a while.

"What's Weeaboo?" I ask.

"Um…" Nemesis has a big backside scratch by way of thought.

He doesn't know. (3) I am annoyed. When I first left Termight with Nemesis on his quest, I was very ignorant of the ways of the Galaxy; Nemesis has always proved very willing to explain things to me. It's kind of disappointing when he himself doesn't know.

"They love technology…I think it's something to do with that." He offers, "They are addicted to technology. The Tau believe that Science is the cure for the Galaxy's evils."

I have to smile at that. "That's incredibly naïve."

Nemesis nods. "And more so…They refuse to believe in magic."

This is serious heresy in Nemesis ideals. His race are not colloquially called `Warlocks` for nothing. Status with him is tied up with his occult powers.

"I didn't believe in magic before I met you." I tell him.

He nods. "You and most of your kind. But there is a big difference between you and the Tau." He holds up a taloned hand and conjures a flame. "What do you think when you see me do this?"

I had been amazed at first but now I was completely unimpressed at such minor cantrips. "I think, `there is Nemesis doing magic. ` That is it."

He nods. Now think what a Tau would think if they saw me do that?"

I frown. "I can't always put myself into a mind-set of aliens…Tau are rationalists…But I think they would be surprised to see you do stuff like that. They then might get used to it as I have."

Nemesis puts out the flame and rubs his nose. "You are correct. Tau are rationalists. But they are not so rational as you are to accept my supernatural explanation. A Tau would look for a lighter hidden in my hand, something they could understand…they won't believe in magic even when they see it."

I understand now what Nemesis is getting at. "So if they are always looking for normality…Then the Tau are unable to embrace Khaos as you and I do?"

Nemesis looks smug "You understand entirely now…Khaos and the Tau'va are mutually exclusive."

"And the Ethereals rule by controlling the minds of others…if they have no occult ability, then how do they do that?" I ask.

"That is something I have no knowledge of" he admits. "I could control your mind." Nemesis looks smug.

"Yes you could." He can get into a human mind as easily as I can run along a pipe in magboots. I have seen him do this during interrogations.

The Terminators make themselves out to be tough…I do the initial questioning.

Once they have had a nice little hysteric fit at the idea of a human working for Credo then they are much weaker…Anger makes you blurt out stuff.

I smile nicely and give them a choice; I can ask questions or Nemesis can get to work on them.

The term `get to work` can be interpreted in many ways, and on Termight that inevitably means torture.

Nemesis has got a most unwarranted reputation for being a master of excruciation…Completely needless as he believes that torture is a most inefficient way to get information.

(Really he doesn't like to hurt people in cold blood at all….Though he is fully capable of horrible things if angry. He can also make his victims think they have been though a session that makes the efforts of the famed College of Torturers look like tickling.)

In most cases that means I get to sit and listen to some dratted Terminator tell me his/her life story…All but the toughest, who laugh at my efforts.

Its then Nemesis drops in, quite casually. (I have called him in using telepathy.)

One look at Nemesis and they turn to jelly. All but the really meanest and most fanatical. To these, Nemesis gives his evil little laugh, he looks in their eyes and soon they tell him everything. It's pitifully easy for him to get into your mind.

"But I never have." Nemesis says.

He has been in my mind…But only in dire need. Otherwise Nemesis respects my privacy. (Or else he is aghast at all the stuff he finds.)

`Free Will is central to Khaotic tenets. ` Nemesis has always said.

Nemesis has given me a lot to think about. "Thank you for telling me all this." I say. "I'm sure one day we will have dealings with the Tau Empire."

"But I in my own way follow Tau'va." He said thoughtfully. "Most leaders in the galaxy, yes, even the non-human ones, Purity, they get corrupted, and they seize more power and wealth for themselves. The Ethereals do not."

"That's unusual. I say." But he is right. Nemesis never demands anything for going around saving people. He's been offered it, of course, but he never wants more than a full stomach. (Or a full stomach and neck pouch, more to the point.)

He's the leader of the Cabal too, but mostly he leave the Cabal to its own devices…He's more like a Varkherd in a way. The Varkherd takes his birds to pasture and protects them from enemies but they feed themselves, fight for flock leadership and choose their own mates.

(Bit like the humans on Arachnos, really.)

But then Nemesis is a Khaotic. When I asked him about this he told me that his society have got past material concerns, nor are they much interested in politics. The Gandarvans are an ancient race who once had an empire, and have now given up interest in the rest of the galaxy.

Nemesis is a rare exception.

I shudder to think what might happen if his fellow Warlocks stirred themselves and re-entered galactic politics. (Termight would no longer be a problem.)

(And I rather suspect that Nemesis has little status at home. He told me once that he is my age…in spite of the fact he is well over a century in earth years. Nemesis is just a young hotspur.)

So I asked him what just did his race do?

And he said one word; "Parties."

I left it at that.

Our conversation turns to more grave matters. Such as the fate of the captives.

I ran away from Termight with a death sentence and a big price on my head, I have been all over with Nemesis and seen the horrible things humans do to aliens.

And yet I am deeply concerned over that fate of the defeated. Nemesis is without mercy.

"It was…horrible, wasn't it?" I whimper.

Nemesis gave an evil snort. "I thought you had given up your humanity."

"I don't want to be a monster." I reply.

"Such a small and precious thing humanity is, you gave it up without a thought, did you not, Purity?"

I hung my head "yes I did. I want to become like you."

"Be careful what you desire!" He laughed. "And now I think the Terminators might sorely miss theirs…Still, I left them their lives…which they will now spend in regretment of their actions," he laughed still more, "better than killing them!"

I shuddered to hear this, not least Nemesis`s shameless delight in his atrocities.

"I hurt nobody, -they are safe in their new home on Arachnos now."

Ah, Arachnos. A place of green jungle and white beaches, where primitives enjoy a simple life free from the cares of the galaxy.

It sounds like Pech except the primitives are disinherited humans who have been placed in reserves watched over by Arachnos gamekeepers…they are managed wildlife.

What does `Disinherited` mean? It means civilised folk will have nothing to do with you. They will not treat with you or trade with you, and you only get a minimal amount of aid if you need help.

Humans will be tolerated in the Cabal but they have to take their place at the bottom until they prove they can act like civilised beings…This means effectively being treated like animals.(4)

He gives that little snout gesture that is his equivalent of an evil grin. "Still I now know what those Terminators are hiding under their masks."

"What is that?" I ask morosely.

"Fear."

I fall asleep.

Pretty soon I wake, the Blitzspear continues. I play Tetris, have something to eat. Nemesis sleeps.

Presently he stirs. "What were you doing with those Kroot?" He asks lightly.

"None of your business," I snap, rather too quickly.

He nods wisely. "I see." Big pause. "You are blushing you know."

"Hah!" I say. Of course he knew, -or suspects what I was up to.

"But you are correct, it's none of my business."

Yes, it's none of your business, Nemesis. He knows full well if his bits were remotely compatible with mine what we would be doing.

But they are not and so…

A day later the Blitzspear is skimming though the upper atmosphere of Novala.

Novala is a terraformed world of the first human empire. But ages ago the terraforming went haywire and the whole planet is now a dense jungle covering the remains of the old cities.

(There are myths connecting Nemesis to Novala, and so humans stay away. I do not know how true those stories are, and I have never asked Nemesis on this.)

It's now the base of the Cabal, The union of alien planets to combat the Termight Empire.

We land amid cheers from councillors, Nemesis is a big hero. He sticks his grimly horned head out of the hatch, evidently basking in glory.

I keep my head down. There are no cheers for a traitor to their race. Not even one who has fought for the Cabal.

Nemesis clambers out, waving regally. I follow at a respectful distance, head bowed, eye's not meeting the eyes of aliens.

Nemesis chats with the spokesperson, and turns to me. "In good time," he says cheerily. "Let's take a break."

"That's good." I pull on my cassock, (The red one, a robed aide to match the Cabal leader, but I nicked it off a dead guard during my time in the dungeons of Terminus and haven't been able to get the bloodstains out yet.)

"This is a very important meeting, Purity," he said, "The Cabal are going to decide on the future of your species…That is, if we will even let them have a future."

I decide to say nothing to that. It might come to that. I don't want to think about it.

Before that we retire to a quiet spot by a river to get ourselves clean.

I haven't had a bath in what seems like ages. I am sweaty and gritty. Nemesis is covered in the dusty grey gunk he sweats. He needs a good scrub down. He smells like a collection of long squashed ants. I have long since given up worrying what I smell of.

Nemesis loves water though actually he doesn't swim well. He is soon splashing around, ducking his long snout in and making an ass of himself.

I quickly make sure both our clothes are out of tidal wave range and get in myself. He ducks me and I scoosh water into his face in return. He snorts and thrashes his head from side to side.

"Let's get you clean." I shove the sponge in between his necks.

He pulls me close and begins to wash my hair. Mutual preening is part of Warlock social life. I've had to get used to this, and indeed like it now. (But it was a big step to allow him to touch me with those sharp talons at first. Actually Nemesis is very gentle and has never scratched me even in rough play.)

However we are both pensive

So I rub his bony back, same as I used to in my bathtub at home…It seems a lifetime ago.

Now our carefree games, both political and personal, have taken a more serious turn. We are no longer innocent…I doubt we ever were.

"You, Purity are my chief aide, and as a human will be the only one to represent your kind at this meeting."

"That's a very big responsibility." I say. Somehow I had seen that coming.

He raises a taloned hand, "however, humans have observer status only. This means you will not be permitted to talk."

"No?"

"Yes, you will keep your mouth shut." He pauses, "Military discipline." He tells me firmly.

This means I am under his command and as his subordinate will follow his orders. If not, I will be well whipped. Normally our relationship is of equals, or as far as equals as two very different people can be. In a combat situation I have to defer to him as the more experienced.

He has never dealt me more than a few hard smacks.

This shows just how serious this meeting is. "How can I frame our defence?" I ask, though I already know the answer.

Nemesis gives one of his nasty laughs. "You won't be getting one."

"That's hardly just."

"It is very just. Did you give all those aliens you killed a chance to speak up for themselves?"

I hang my head. "What will you say?"

Nemesis points his snout to the sky in thought. "I'll tell them about Chira…And Thoth."

His wife and infant son. Victims of Termight. Killed at home on Gandarva in the far distant Netherworlds. A place he thought safe from evil humans. Such is the power of Torquemada.

I have heard him crying in the night, whimpering their names. I can do nothing to comfort him, for I am his worst nightmare. I can fight by his side in the thick of battle but I am helpless in the face of his nightmares.

What would Chira want? I wonder. Would she want this? Would she want her husband to become a monster like Torquemada?

(And would she want her husband to become an Alien lover like me?)

Nemesis was once prepared to be nice to humans but now he wants them all dead. And as Nemesis is a completely just person then…

I know what his suggestion to the Cabal will be. I know which way he will vote. I know I will not be leaving the council chambers alive.

I will be first to die. By his hand.

I am truly naked in a supernova.

Nemesis climbs onto the bank, dripping water. He shakes himself like a dog. I follow, and let him strip the water from my skin with firm hands.

"I know one representative who `might` speak up in your defence." He says thoughtfully. "Zelotes."

Ah, yes, Zelotes…

Zelotes is in charge of Nemesis radical `prisons`.

He's one of the nicest people ever…But Zelotes is an Arachnos…meaning he's an alien alien. He's not an ordinary mammal/bird/ordinary sort alien, he resembles a spider. His thought processes are alien and he doesn't understand humans…Or warlocks or most Cabal folks.

You know.

But in actually he's probably the wisest choice for a head warder for war criminals most Cabal members would gleefully slaughter and go away, with the smug satisfaction of having put a bunch of bad dudes underground.

He has no bad experiences or cultural baggage with humans, nor any real violent tendencies himself. He can hogtie an errant prisoner with his web, and then give them a quick bite. Zelotes bite isn't a poison…It's a sedative.

So he and his gamekeepers are pretty handy at curbing violence. Otherwise he lets his charges do as they please. The Arachnos are used to life in the jungle, and their new charges follow them and learn how to find food. (Bit like Varks.)

The climate is mild, and there are pools to swim in and trees to climb. The place resembles one of those tropical paradise parks that are constantly touted as the most desirable luxury holiday destinations by the holos. (And beyond most budgets.) All Nemesis`s cunning plans. Prison for Terminators means being sent off on holiday, -permanently.

What better way to neutralise his enemies? And what better way to get Terminators, the most fanatic of alien haters to get to know aliens by making them dependent on a bunch of harmless, yet scary looking creatures who are very alien? And what better way to punish his enemies by setting them free? Free from hatred and the terror of Termight? Free from all cultural baggage and material possessions? Free to be safe and happy?

Best of all, it costs very little beyond shipping the happy campers to Arachnos. Indeed they profit. The humans plant wild gardens, Arachnos don't eat much fruit, they like insects, and so any surplus fruit becomes exported luxury products. There is also tourist revenue in Cabal members coming to see `wild humans in their natural habitat` (Which oddly enough doesn't involve our natural habitat of underground cities…)

Nemesis has transformed a backwater planet into one of the most famous in the Cabal. (And he has transformed Terminators, symbols and upholders of Law, into Khaotics themselves…Poetic justice indeed. Nemesis is such a smug bastard.)

I have seen holos of Arachnos. I'm sure it's very uplifting and amusing to the Cabal to see humans, the most terrifying lifeform in the galaxy reduced to naked beasts (Arachnos don't wear clothes and so why should their prisoners?) finding fruit, digging for insect grubs and generally mucking around…They look a bit doped up too.

No thank you, Nemesis. I am not a pet to dance for your entertainment. I threw away my humanity for you…I'm not going to throw away my rights to be recognised as a sentient being too…That's a big difference. I'm an alien now.

(But haven't I done that many years? I am only alive because Nemesis finds me useful. Yet he loves me enough to risk my life for me. He puts up with my quirks, he cuddles me at night…He is a perfect boyfriend.)

"Zelotes is a decent soul…I would want him speaking in my defence…But he firmly believes that humans are animals." I pause. "I want to remain a sapient. I don't care if it means I will die."

"Do you?"

"There are fates worse than death, Nemesis." I tell him.

He has nothing to say to that.

I cuddle up to him. "Nemesis." I say. "I am scared."

"That is unusual for you, Purity," he rumbles, "what is upsetting you?"

"I don't want to die."

He gives a dolorous sigh. "I thought you were also afraid of `fates worse than death`?" It's not that Nemesis is a rational being and I am controlled by my emotions…He can be very irrational too.

I nod my head.

"I'm sorry, Purity, it may come to that…Die, or become an animal and so protected by Cabal law."

"A hard choice." I say.

"Anyhow, if I can possibly avoid it I will not see you executed, my dear." He reply's gently "you will have to spend some time in prison, I'm afraid, at least until the Cabal are more amiable to pardon you."

"Uh huh." I say. I know just what that will mean.

"Zelotes will treat you well." He reassures me. "He is a good friend of mine."

"Zelotes! I don't want to end up in with humans!"

He sighs wearily. "I hate to break it to you, Purity, you `are` the genuine article."

"Anyone would think I have done something wrong." I growl.

"Being human is a serious crime in itself," Nemesis reminds me sharply.

"I don't want to be a human…Anyhow, I am your chief aide. `You` accept me, don't you?"

Nemesis has nothing to say to that. He has accepted me, all those years ago in the underground city of Mausoleum.

And I accepted him. He was the first alien I had ever met. I didn't care about his demonic visage.

I fell in love.

Funny how you can love someone you have always been taught to hate.

Back then he was the Arch Anarchist, devoting his life to roaring round the travel tubes in the Blitzspear, breaking every road lore, and bearding the Terminators in every way he could.

Nowadays he's a war hero, politician and the leader of the Cabal, a galaxy spanning alliance of well over a hundred planets (and more apply to join every week.)

Nemesis is respectable.

And he has Purity Brown, Deviant, Alien Lover and Traitor to her Species as an encumbrance.

In spite of all the work I have done for him, the battles I have fought by his side, I suspect I am rapidly outliving my usefulness.

The Leader of the Cabal cannot be seen to have a Human girlfriend, can he?

Nemesis still loves me.

I have no occult powers, I'm small and weak, and `that filthy human Purity Brown; she cannot keep her trousers up`. (As I caught one of his friends whispering to another once.)

I suppose I will have to creep away to my cage and fellow animals and leave him to glory, he deserves someone better than me.

Like another Warlock.

"I cannot be seen to make an exception for you." He says sadly.

"No," I agree. How he treats me will prove to the other Cabal members just how trustworthy Nemesis `really truly` is. They all know he is a Khaotic and so a dodgy type.

"Arachnos isn't a bad sort of place. If you had to remain in Cabal custody you would be put in a max security jail. You would have no freedom and no chance of socialising." He warns me. "Look at it as a permanent holiday."

So that's it. I'm being forcibly pensioned off. Nemesis wants me put in with humans so I will go off with some man and he will be free of me.

He loves me…Enough to let me go.

I have a choice again.

Become a corpse, an animal or…I look thoughtfully at Nemesis`s ghastly horned visage, become a demon…

(1) The first time I was shown a smartphone it was by the local Ihram. He had an app that allowed him to see the latest prayer direct from Mecca as it happened. Truly wondrous is technology! These days I have a smartphone too, I only ever use it for calls, not knowing how to access its other functions, and more to the point; not being at all interested.

(2) In Purity's original writings she refers to a `Spaghetti Junction` A lost cultural reference, but it's obvious what she means.

(3) Nemesis has never heard of Japan and so naturally he doesn't know what `Weeaboo` means.

(4) The Cabals ruling seems benign until we ponder just what life without technology would be like. Very Hobbesian for a start, and probably unsurvivable for those used to living in hi tech cities. Canonically Nemesis prisoners are very happy; we can assume they are given proper shelter, food and healthcare when they are not busy running naked round the jungle re-enacting every Tarzan movie ever.

Of course there are examples of this in the Real World. Look up `North Signal Island` if you like.