Sorry for the massive delay. Since this is developing a lot slower than I'd anticipated, it's going to end up as a three-shot rather than a two-shot.
Disclaimer: I don't own Warhammer 40k or Elfen Lied
Three pairs of eyes fixed Rein in place with several degrees of disbelief. After what they'd all just seen, he could hardly blame them. The bodies of Choir and the Diclonius girl had been dragged over to one side of the room so that they wouldn't get in the way as he outlined the rest of their goal. Their reactions had been about as good as could be expected.
"You're gonna have to run that by me again." Fang said after a brief pause. "Because I could have sworn you just said we were supposed to take the rest of those things alive."
"That's exactly what I said." Rein replied. He didn't like the prospect of trying to subdue such potentially dangerous mutants either, but he knew that returning to Severus empty handed was a much worse option. This would probably kill him. Disobeying the Inquisitor would definitely kill him.
"Not to undermine the authority of our oh-so-glorious commander, but did he happen to mention how we were meant to go about doing this?" Stich asked, sarcasm dripping so thick from his tone that it could have been cut with a knife.
Rein sighed to himself. Cartwright had told him a fair amount about the capabilities of the Diclonius, but none of what he'd said was useful in trying to pacify one of them. Most of what he'd said actually made it sound like taking them alive was all but impossible.
"Just what I've told you." He stated. "They have some kind of built in weaponry that can slice through armor like an Ork Warboss through fresh conscripts. They trade off power for range, having an effective lethal distance of only two meters on average. Their weapons can also be used defensively to deflect projectiles including bullets up to around .50 caliber rounds. Lasbolts can't be blocked."
"And none of this information is helpful in the slightest." Stitch finished for him, speaking what they'd all been silently thinking. "It all just emphasizes the futility of this goal."
"Well if you want to be the one to tell Severus no, then be my guest." Rein shot back. "Me? I'll take my chances with the psychic mutants."
"Aim for the limbs."
He felt a chill run through his system at Des's words. The soft surety of purpose in them left a bad taste in his mouth. Stich was less impressed.
"Have you gone daft woman?" He demanded. "You realize that the shock of having a limb blown off by a hellgun will kill them just as surely as if you were to slit their throats yourself."
"I've seen plenty of men survive losing a few pieces." Fang replied gruffly. "Besides, it sounds like the best option we've got."
The hive-world criminal put a hand up to his face, slowly drawing it down over his rebreather with a long-suffering expression. An annoyed groan crackled over the device as he did so.
"Grown men may be able to survive losing a limb if they get the proper attention in a timely fashion." He began, speaking as slowly and condescendingly as was humanly possible. "Young children are much more likely to die of trauma. And, assuming they don't, we're not exactly equipped to give out medical aid to any of them now are we? Blowing off body parts isn't a smart way of taking them alive."
Rein was quickly losing his patience with this whole situation. They were up against an opponent that didn't follow the traditional rules of combat. He wasn't fond of that.
"All right, shooting them won't work." He said, directing a meaningful glance at Stich. "So what other options do we have at the moment?"
For the first time since the conversation had started, the man lost some of his attitude. He looked back over at the bodies piled in the corner, silently thinking. After several moments he turned back with a much more serious look in his eyes.
"Fear perhaps?" He offered. "Assuming they're still sane enough to recognize a threat, that could work. Other than that, I assume that Padro would have had at least some semblance of a failsafe option in place. If I were to make a suggestion, I'd say that's our best option."
Fang and Des turned to Rein, trying to gauge what he thought. There were still more unknowns than he liked, but at this point it was the best they were going to get.
"That's the plan then. We push farther in, search for survivors or information about the security protocols in place, and work from there. Avoid contact if possible. If they come to us, try to avoid killing them. Give a warning shot first. If they keep coming, then put them down. We won't be able to take any alive if they kill us before we have the chance to."
Short. Simple. Easy to remember. Perhaps not the most impressive plan ever conceived, but Rein was a firm believer in staying fluid when it came to strategies in the field. Without another word, the four troopers formed up and filed out of the room in search of their goal. The two new bodies were left where they lay. Assuming things went well, they'd be back to recover or destroy the corpses as the situation warranted.
Reaching up to his earpiece, Rein opened up a channel with the outside.
"This is Jerimiah, lord. Was there- ah- was there something you needed?"
The diplomat's voice was momentarily drowned out by a loud noise on his end. It might either have been someone screaming, or possibly a large machine breaking down. Considering that the man was likely assisting Severus at the moment, Rein was more leaning towards the former.
"I need directions." He stated, casting a sidelong glance at a series of numbers that had been carved into the halls for the sake of differentiating them. "We're currently in the living quarters, section A-0334. How can I get to the main security terminals from here?"
A painfully loud snapping sound and the whirring of some kind of engine blared across the link and into his ear as he finished. Gritting his teeth in discomfort at the noise, he held did a quick check on his surroundings. The others were currently watching all sides but it paid to be diligent regardless.
"Uh… Security… Yes… Uh… If I recall correctly, the security terminals should be located about one hundred and fifty floors beneath you. There should be a service elevator to take you down there. Just keep following the hall you're in until the end."
"A hundred fifty floors down?" Rein questioned. "No wonder this fething place is overrun. How the hell are they supposed to secure the station if the security measures are buried at the bottom of the mountain?"
He could practically hear the man flinch at the rebuke.
"I-I can't be sure what the original reasoning for it was but… I… ah… I think that they were trying to keep it hidden. The facility wasn't meant to act as an actual military structure when it was first designed. Argentinus-"
"All right, I get it! I didn't ask for the damn place's history!" Rein snapped irritably. Stitch eyed him curiously for a moment, but a meaningful glare sent his gaze back down the hallway.
"M-My apologies lord. I d-didn't mean to... ahem... Yes. One hundred and fifty floors down. I'm sure of it. The service elevator will take you right there. Once you get to the proper floor, it should be clear enough."
Rein let out a weary sigh, cancelling the connection without bothering to dismiss Jerimiah on the other end. This whole business was starting to wear on him. Too many unknowns. Too many variables. He'd grown spoiled during his time with Severus. The man was rarely caught off guard, and usually had vast amounts of information at his beck and call.
There was no helping it. They'd find a way to deal with these mutants. The servants of the God Emperor were not so easily dissuaded.
"Where to boss?" Fang asked, seeing that he was finished speaking.
"We follow this hallway down to the end." Rein replied, eyeing the number markings on the wall one last time. "There's a lift that'll take us where we need to go. In case you didn't overhear, it's a hundred and fifty floors down from where we are now."
The Catachan frowned like he'd bitten into something distasteful at the news, but nobody spoke up. They'd all known from his reactions during the questioning that it was going to be a very inconvenient journey.
"I don't suppose our guide offered any enlightenment on how to deal with the creatures?" Stitch questioned, covering the way they'd come. Rein didn't dignify the question with an answer.
"Weapons at the ready." He ordered, taking the lead. "Keep your eyes peeled. They might only be dangerous within two meters, but that won't make much of a difference if they manage to sneak up on us."
Rein was starting to get an idea of just how large the facility was. It took another twenty five minutes of walking in a straight line to reach their destination. During that time, they'd all strained their senses to pick up even the slightest disturbance. Stitch had taken to glancing down at his wrist-mounted auspex device every thirty seconds. Not that he truly trusted it. The damned thing was temperamental at the best of times, and seeing no signs of hostile movement on it only meant that they were marginally less likely to be killed in the next few moments.
Eventually though, they arrived in front of a massive bulkhead door which appeared to be made out of high quality ceramite. Whoever designed it had made sure it couldn't be blown open easily.
An unassuming panel with a voice receiver looked to be the only way past it short of heavy ordinance. Stepping forwards, Rein hit the button just underneath the panel. After a momentary pause, a static-filled synthetic voice issued from the speaker.
*ACCESS TO TRANSPORT LIFT RESTRICTED. SECURITY LOCKDOWN IN EFFECT. PLEASE PROVIDE PROPER AUTHORIZATION TO PROCEED.*
"Rein Darius." He said, speaking as clearly as possible. "Personal bodyguard to Inquisitor Severus Cartwright of the Ordo Hereticus."
The machine was silent for another few seconds. When it next spoke it cracked, stumbling over itself several times. Rein was no expert on mechanical systems, but the cogitator sounded as though it was badly damaged.
*UNAB-B-B-BLE TO IDENTIFY [REIN DARIUS]. PLEASE PROVID-D-DE PROPER AUTHORIZ-Z-Z-ZATION TO PROCEED*
Letting out a low hiss of frustration, he reached up to his micro-bead to hail the outside once more.
"Jerimiah? This is Rein. We've reached the lift but it needs some kind of voice command to open." He said. Silence was his only answer. He thought at first that the man might simply be hesitating again, but as the lack of response stretched on he realized that wasn't the case.
"Jerimiah? Are you hearing this?" He repeated, frowning at the development. Once again, no voice answered him.
"Fething hell."
There was no static or signs that his connection to the outside had been cut off. Merely dead air. That could only mean one of two things. Either everyone on the other end was dead, which seemed unlikely, or they'd passed inside of something that was masking the transmission.
"The voices have fallen silent?" Des asked, drawing up beside him. Her soft tone left it feeling like more of a statement than a question.
"Something's blocking us." Rein replied, closing his eyes momentarily against the dim, crimson lighting that filled the halls. The sound of settling metal and stone droned on in the back of his mind. "We've lost communications with the outside and the lift won't grant us access."
Stitch eyed the panel out of the corner of his eye, tapping one finger against the wall absently.
"If you wish, I could attempt to… persuade… it to open for us." He offered. "I have some moderate experience with getting machinery to work."
For a brief moment, Rein entertained the idea of letting him have his way with the mechanical blockade. It was a tempting thought, but he knew far better than to accept.
"Not a chance." He stated flatly. "The last thing we need right now is to piss off the thing's machine spirit. I'd rather not have the lift drop us while we're on the way down."
"What the hell are we supposed to do then?" Fang demanded, his eyes never leaving the trail his weapon sighted off to the leftmost branch in the hallway. "Pack up and leave? I don't think the boss'll be too happy if we show up empty handed."
"Probably not, but we don't have much choice in the matter." Rein said with a note of finality. "Taking chances puts you on the fast track to an early grave. Besides, these things don't seem like they're going anywhere anytime soon. If they haven't tried to bust out of the facility yet, they probably won't be doing it in the next couple of hours."
"If I could interrupt…" Stitch proposed, looking down at his auspex once more. "Wouldn't it be simpler to find a survivor and have them open the door for us?"
"Yes it would be easier." Rein said, sighing in annoyance. "But in case you haven't noticed, everyone here looks to be suffering from a rather severe case of violent death."
"Not everyone…" He replied, still turning his gaze to the device on his wrist. Rein was about to demand he explain just what in the Emperor's divine name he was getting at when it hit him.
"You're kidding."
He could practically hear the smug smile that would have split the convict's features had it not been for his rebreather. Stitch loved his toys, and he was never happier than when they worked.
"Two heat signatures." He said, speaking as though it was only a minor note with no real significance. "About a hundred fifty yards down the hall that our unwashed friend is watching so intently."
Fang grit his teeth at the underhanded title, but remained fixed in his position. Rein couldn't help but feel weary at the thought of the fight he'd need to break up after this was over.
"Just hold on a second." He began, fixing Stitch with a serious gaze. "First of all, there's no guarantee that those signatures are anyone friendly now is there?"
The man simply shrugged.
"Maybe they're survivors and maybe they're more of the mutants. Either way, wouldn't it be better to investigate? Even if they are Diclonius, it will give us the opportunity to capture a couple of them and present them to Severus. He'll likely be more forgiving of the delay if he has something to examine in the meantime."
Rein nodded grudgingly, accepting his point. They likely wouldn't get a much better situation in which to capture a pair of the creatures. If they knew where to find the Diclonius, they had an advantage.
"That may be true, but how do we know your auspex isn't just acting up again?" He questioned. Stitch looked aghast at the mere suggestion that his tools could be wrong.
"Are you implying that it may be mistaken in its readings?" He demanded, glaring indignantly. "Do you have so little faith in my methods that you think it could be wrong in such a simple situation?"
"The fact that you need to eat everything through a straw should tell you how highly I value that thing's guidance."
That shut him up. At least for the moment. The incident on Seronious was still a sore spot on Stitch's pride.
"There was interference. The planet was smothered in all kinds of unnatural energies." He defended, doing his best to retain some semblance of dignity. "And I still maintain that those greenskin vehicles were hidden by some manner of sorcery…"
Rein answered with a long stare born of repetition. They'd had this discussion dozens of times in the past.
"…Regardless, it's still better to take this opportunity." Stitch went on. "We won't waste more than ten minutes if it's a false alarm, and if it isn't we'll have something to show for this beyond the corpse of our comrade."
"I don't care what we do so long as we do something soon." Fang interjected. "Standing around here is just getting on my nerves."
Raising his hand to silence the group, Rein stepped forwards.
"We'll check to see if you're actually picking someone up." He conceded, nodding towards the auspex. "But don't let your guards down. Just because it's picking up two people doesn't mean it's picking up everyone."
He didn't bother giving the order to fall in line. They all knew the drill at this point. He took the lead, with Stitch standing nearby and directing him towards the occupied room. With one hand raising the scanning device and the other holding his laspistol, the man quietly nodded in the direction they needed to go.
True to his word, Stitch directed them to their destination in only a couple of minutes. It was easy to pick out the room that held the survivors as it was the only one with a door still intact. Unlike the one's they'd passed, this one looked to be of a heavy duty magnetically locked style. The emergency lighting in the mine gave its metallic exterior an almost watery quality as though it were covered in blood.
Rein felt his previous sense of danger start to return as they approached. After watching Choir be torn in half in just such a situation, he wasn't at all comfortable with getting too close to that doorway.
"Keep me covered." He stated, watching the metal blockade for any signs of a disturbance. His muscles were tensed to spring the moment it looked like the door was being torn open.
The steps towards the entrance, he paused. Something was off. In the small gaps between the door and the walls, he could see the barest suggestions of light peeking through. Somehow, the room on the other side still had power.
"Hello? Is someone out there?"
The questioning voice stopped him dead in his tracks. His mind instantly processed several thing about it. Male. Older, probably middle-aged. Accented like the upper-class members of the planet rather than those born in the dregs. Likely not a miner.
"Open the door!" Rein barked, raising his weapon. "By the order of the Ordo Hereticus, this facility has been found to house heretical activity. Come out with your hands in the air! Any resistance will be seen as an act against the will of the Inquisition and dealt with accordingly."
"The Inquisition is here? Oh blessed Terra, finally! I was beginning to wonder if anyone was coming. Hold on just a moment. I'll have the door opened up in a second."
Whoever was on the other end sounded very unconcerned with the threatening order. Rein eased back slightly, but kept his weapon raised and aimed at the doorway. The prickling sense of danger in the back of his mind had yet to leave. At some point Des had moved up, taking a position in front of Stitch and dropping to a crouch with her own hellgun at the ready. Rein was tempted to check over his shoulder to see if Fang was guarding the rear alone, but resisted.
The sound of mechanical servos whirring to life heralded a wave of light as the door pried itself open. Momentarily blinded by the sudden brightness, he fixed his weapon on the blurry outline of a figure standing on the inside. As his eyes became adjusted to the new illumination, he made out the image of a moderately tall spectacled man dressed in a dull colored rough-spun tunic that was common of the people on this planet. Upon seeing the group, the man's face broke out in a relieved grin.
"Oh throne, you have no idea how good it is to see another person." He chuckled, showing no signs of fear despite having three guns trained on him. "I was beginning to think that my career was going to end prematurely thanks to this little breach in security."
"Little breach?" Stitch questioned, raising an eyebrow. "You realize that this entire facility is overrun, and almost all of the staff are either dead or missing don't you? This is more than just a 'little breach'. It's a full blown outbreak."
"Oh, don't be so dramatic." The man chided, waving away the statement as though it was a trivial matter. "Yes we've lost some staff, but sacrifices are needed when you're work is as vital as ours. Anyhow, now that you're here there's an important matter I need your help with. You see, I-"
Rein stepped forwards, gripping the front of the man's clothing and pulling him up roughly.
"I don't think you understand what's going on." He said, his voice low and serious. "This place has been rumored to be involved in research of a heretical nature. So far, I'm inclined to believe the rumors after having one of my team dismembered by a horned she-daemon. Let me be painfully clear with you right now. The only reason I haven't shot you on sight is because you might have information that is useful to me. Do you understand that?"
The man gaped at him, blinking owlishly at the unveiled hostility in his tone. His composure wavered for a brief moment, but he quickly recovered. Giving a good-natured chuckle, he raised his hands in a gesture of submission.
"Oh, so serious. Yes, I like that. A man who's willing to get the job done." He began, not openly bothered by the fact that Rein had yet to release him. "I apologize if I've come across as overly forceful. I'm told that I need to work on that. And look at me forgetting my manners! I haven't even introduced myself. I'm Joseph Agmundale, senior officer of the Kakuzawa collective. Who might you be?"
This guy was wrong. Everything about him felt off. The more Rein looked at him the less at ease he felt. He was about to open his mouth to demand some answers out of him when a flash of movement from inside the room caught his eye.
It was a surveillance hub, with dozens of screens and panels displaying the different stations of the mine. A smart place to shelter in. All avenues to the room were under observation so he'd have been able to see any threats coming a mile away. Every machine looked to be jury-rigged together in such a fashion as to make even the most emotionless Mechanicus agent break down and weep at the sight. Wires and metal plating were hashed together, extending across the floor in a menagerie of mismatched pieces, only broken up by the odd desk and chair from which the workers could watch their charges.
From behind one of these desks, Rein spotted a glimpse of pink hair as a child's head poked around the corner.
"Contact!"
In one fluid motion he threw Joseph to one side, jumped back to put distance between himself and the Diclonius, and raised his hellgun to aim at her tiny frame, his finger hovering mere centimeters from the trigger. On either side of him, Stitch and Des mirrored his stance.
"Wait! Please, lower your weapons! You have no idea what you're doing!"
In an act that could only be described as inconceivably stupid, Joseph managed to catch himself before falling over and actually ran to put his body in-between the armed weapons and the mutant.
"Have you gone mad!?" He demanded, shooting all of them accusing looks. "Put those guns down this instant! What in the Emperor's name do you think-"
Whatever he was about to say was cut off as Des slammed her fist into his throat. Joseph lurched backwards with a chocked cry of surprise, tumbling to the ground when his legs weren't able to follow him. In an instant, the quiet woman was standing with her foot on his chest and the barrel of her hellgun pointed directly at his forehead.
"A man neck deep in heresy has no right to invoke the Emperor's name." She stated with a veneer of icy calm.
A tense silence descended on the group as they fell into a standoff. Joseph's previous sense of ease was shaken as beads of sweat began to form on his brow. Rein and Stitch kept their aims on the Diclonius girl who'd frozen like a Grot in the searchlights of an oncoming Chimera the moment they'd spotted her.
"Easy Des." Rein cautioned, watching the child for any signs of sudden movement. "We need information, and it's somewhat difficult to interrogate a corpse."
She frowned distastefully, keeping her weapon pointed right between Joseph's eyes. Inching his way forwards, Rein reached out one arm and gave her a meaningful pat on the shoulder.
"Alive Des."
With a barely perceptible sigh, she lifted her foot off the trembling man and stepped back into her earlier position. Joseph got to his feet unsteadily, massaging his neck where he'd been struck. Coughing experimentally, he cringed before shaking his head.
"I have to say, you keep exceptionally violent company mister…?"
"Rein Darius." He answered. "And I don't think you're in much of a position to judge. Would you mind explaining to me why the hell one of those things is hiding here with you?"
Joseph stared in confusion for a moment before he realized who was being referenced. When he did, he chucked once more, a sound which was almost an exact copy of the one he used earlier.
"Is that what this is about?" He asked, brushing himself off. "Oh, you don't need to worry yourself mister Darius. Number Forty Two is entirely harmless, isn't that right? How about you come out and show the nice people?"
His final sentence was directed at the Diclonius as he turned to face her. Instead of obeying the offer, she fervently shook her head and ducked back behind the desk she'd been hiding under. Clucking his tongue, Joseph offered an apologetic smile to the group.
"Sorry about that." He said. "She can be a bit shy around newcomers. We usually have to get her acclimated to any unfamiliar staff members. Hold on a moment. I'll get her out."
Before Rein could even think of protesting, the scientist had made his way over to where she was cowering. The veteran trooper watched in morbid curiosity as he stepped well within the mutant's two meter kill zone, expecting a shower of blood at any moment. Much to his surprise, Joseph was neither torn in half nor ripped limb from limb. He was partially blocked from sight for a moment before reappearing with his hand wrapped around the child's wrist. She gave several half-hearted struggles, but was none the less pulled away from her hiding spot.
"Now then, if we can begin proper introductions like civil people, this is number Forty Two." He began before turning his gaze downwards to the reluctant girl in his grasp. "Forty Two, this is mister Rein Darius. An agent of the Inquisition. You remember your lessons about the Inquisition don't you?"
She nodded timidly, casting her eyes to the floor. Now that she was out in the open, Rein was able to get a better look at her. Just like the first Diclonius they'd encountered, she had unusually colored pink hair, bordering on purple, as well as two horn-like protrusions on the top of her head. She was smaller in size than the other had been, and was actually wearing something. A lab coat, obviously meant for a full grown man rather than a child, had been fixed around her torso. The hem had been cut off at around knee level, and the sleeves had been removed at her wrists.
Just laying eyes on her made the alarm bells in Rein's head increase one thousand fold.
"As you can see mister Darius, Forty Two is an exceptionally well behaved subject." Joseph stated, patting her on the head and causing her to fidget uncomfortably. "You have my condolences if you've run into difficulties with less… amiable… subjects on your way here, but there is no need for violence. I certainly hope you aren't the type of man who holds a grudge. Now please, if we're going to have a discussion I think it would be best to do so inside rather than through a doorway. Don't you?"
Silence returned as Rein weighed the situation in his head. It could easily be a trap. Docile or not, Forty Two was still a Diclonius and he had no reason to doubt her lethality. Perhaps Joseph had struck a bargain with her and his whole demeanor was simply an act. He could feel Stitch and Des giving him questioning looks out of the corner of their eyes.
"Fine." He said at last. "But back up and take her with you. Make sure she keeps her distance."
The scientist complied; ushering Forty Two back into the room until Rein was satisfied. Filing inside, he, Stitch, and Des took up positions near the screens while Fang hit a button on the wall panel and sealed the door behind him. Turning around, the Catachan gave a noise of mild curiosity at the sight. While he'd been able to hear the whole exchange, his focus had been on keeping their backs covered.
Joseph nodded with a smile. He was about to open his mouth to speak when Rein raised his hellgun and casually pointed it at his chest.
"Let me just stop you right there." He said, giving the man a meaningful look. "I'm not in the mood for small talk so here's how this is going to work. I ask you questions. You answer. If I don't like your answers, you get a lasbolt to the chest. Understand?"
Joseph chuckled once again. The noise was starting to wear on Rein's already strained nerves.
"Don't you worry mister Darius, I'd be happy to help in any way I can." He said, tapping Forty Two on the head when she tried to hide behind his legs. The girl mumbled something inaudible before shuffling into a slightly more exposed position.
"First question." Rein began, casting a quick glance over to Stitch. "We haven't been able to open a vox with the outside recently. Thought it was some kind of jammer at first, but my companion's auspex still works. Care to explain that?"
Joseph offered a carefree wave, seemingly unbothered by the question.
"That's simply an old security measure." He explained. "Padro was extremely paranoid about information regarding this facility reaching the outside so he had some manner of techno-wizardry installed to keep transmissions from reaching beyond a certain point. Some Techpriest was mucking around quite some time ago, setting everything up. I'm afraid I don't know the details, but it's meant to block outgoing signals. Everything on the inside of the barrier still works, but it can't reach past a certain point."
Rein frowned, considering the information. No doubt Severus would be very interested to hear that a member of the Adeptus Mechanicus had helped work on this place. Now that the immediate issue of communication was explained…
"Second question. What the Warp damned hell is going on in this place?"
Joseph's face lit up like celebratory lights on Emperor's Day. He wore the kind of ecstatic expression of one who took the utmost pride in their work and never missed a chance to speak about it.
"Something incredible my friend." He said. "Let me ask you something if I may. How familiar are you with the history of this structure and those who built it?"
Rein's eyes narrowed, observing the man suspiciously. He was tempted to force the conversation back on topic, but the scientist showed no signs of verbal misdirection or some kind of ill intent.
"I know enough." He stated, adjusting his aim very slightly. "It was constructed by Argentinus Vaserian when he went mad and started spreading the mutant plague. I'm not interested in old history right now though. I want to know what you're doing here at the present."
Joseph nodded sagely, taking in the information with the air of someone who'd been expecting just such an answer.
"Ah Argentinus. Mad, certainly, but his goals were nobler than most give him credit for." He remarked wistfully.
"Noble huh?" Fang scoffed. "Keep talking like that in front of Cartwright and see what happens. Better yet, keep talking like that in front of me and see what happens."
The man gave him a mildly annoyed glance for the interruption.
"True, his methods went beyond the boundaries that all good citizens of the Imperium should abide." He said. "But I think with time, many people will be able to agree that the ends justified the means. The ends of course, being this precious little thing."
Joseph placed his hand on the back of Forty Two's head and pressed her forwards, causing the others in the room to flinch back. The girl began nervously picking at the frayed edge of her makeshift dress as all eyes turned towards her.
"Her?" Rein questioned, taking an extra step away from the girl just to be safe.
"Not her specifically, but rather the Diclonius as a whole." Joseph explained. "What would you say if I told you that these girls are not simply the result of some exotic form of mutation? What if I told you that they, in fact, originated from holy Terra itself?"
That got their attention. All eyes turned to the scientist, drilling into his face for even the slightest sign of deceit. Stitch raised a hand to his rebreather and gave the device a contemplative stroke as the weight of the information set in.
"I'd say you're full of shit." Fang stated bluntly. The reaction was apparently exactly what he'd expected, causing him to chuckle once more.
"I can hardly begrudge you your disbelief." He said, placing a hand to his forehead. "In truth, I also didn't believe it at first. It wasn't until I witnessed the workings of the man Kakuzawa, for whom our collective is named after, that I saw the truth. The Diclonius existed on our blessed home world countless centuries ago, inhabiting a place that was known at the time as Japan. They were few in number, but one of their people possessed the power to ravage the entire planet."
His eyes became distant as though recalling something vivid and incredibly important to him.
"Before humanity had reached into the stars and started spreading our righteous influence, there was a Diclonius girl who went by the name of Lucy. She was the herald for a species so close to our own that the two are almost indistinguishable. Though she and the original Diclonius are long dead, we've managed to find remains that held enough of their genetic information to replicate them. The 'mutant plague' as you call it was Argentinus trying to spread a new generation of these creatures using unborn infants as molds for Diclonius genetics."
"What's more, these are no simple mutant. They are practically human in almost every way. The only difference between us and a true Diclonius are the horns protruding from their heads, and an enlarged pineal gland in the frontal lobe of the brain. Though perhaps their most startling features would be the invisible limbs known as vectors."
He paused in his explanation to gauge the reactions of his listeners. For the most part, the four stood with expressions ranging from skepticism to open hostility in the case of Des.
"Invisible limbs?" Rein questioned, not entirely sure how to interpret the information. "You're telling me they have some kind of natural camouflage?"
Joseph pursed his lips, raising a finger to his mouth as he pondered the best way to explain.
"Calling them invisible limbs may not have been the best description." He said at last. "Rather, they seem to act like mental projections in the shape of hands. They extend outwards from the host's body and can move at lightning speeds. They're even capable of breaking down targets at a molecular level, making them an all but unblockable weapon."
"That sounds an awful lot like psychic powers to me." Fang remarked, turning to Rein. "Told you they were Psykers."
"Oh, no, no, no!" Joseph interjected, rapidly waving a finger like some kind of school teacher. "Psykers they most certainly are not! That's one of the glorious things about them. They can wield these incredible powers with no threat of being possessed by daemons or spreading the taint of the Warp. Think of the possibilities! A group of Diclonius could all but singlehandedly stop and Ork charge. Those trained well enough could make for peerless duelists, able to find and neutralize any threat ranging from Chaos Lords to Eldar Farseers. No armor can stop them, and no sorcery can turn away their vectors. The only limiting factor is their range."
"The only limiting factor?" Rein asked, sensing a catch. The question caused Joseph to pause his enthusiastic description.
"Well… there is one slight issue that comes with their incredible powers." He admitted hesitantly. "For reasons we don't entirely understand it would seem that Diclonius are genetically predisposed towards… excessively violent behavior that is entirely directed at humans."
"You're saying they're hardwired to kill people." Stitch finished dryly. Nobody was fooled by the fanciful decorations Joseph had put on the explanation.
"To put it simply… Yes." He confessed. "They show an almost physical need to kill humans. We have yet to figure out why, but they don't seem to show the same kind of aggression towards other species such as xenos or animals. Still, it is merely a temporary setback. Take Forty Two for example!"
He gave the quiet girl a solid pat on the back, nearly toppling her over and causing her to let out a startled noise at the unexpected contact.
"She's the model of an ideal subject. After extensive gene and behavioral therapy, she shows no signs of blatant hostility towards humans, and no sympathy or hesitation when ordered to dismantle xenos. Isn't that right my dear?"
Silence filled the room for several moments before she realized that he actually expected a response.
"Yes doctor Agmundale sir…" She muttered obediently. "We all need to strive to do the Emperor's work…" The phrase sounded heavily rehearsed. No doubt it was something she had to recite regularly.
Stitch raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.
"So you have one individual who knows better than to kill humans." He said blandly. "That doesn't mean much when you're standing waist deep in the blood spilled by others like her."
"The other girls just need to be better adjusted is all." Joseph assured. "Once everything is under control again, we'll be able to ensure that they abide by the Imperial Creed just as any good soul should."
"The other girls?" Rein interjected. "What happened to the males? Are they too unstable or something?"
"Oh, there are no males." The scientist answered offhandedly, earning him several questioning glances. "You see, these girls aren't true Diclonius. They're what's referred to as Silpelits. Essentially, they're clones with minor genetic differences from the true Diclonius who created them. In this case, clones of Lucy whose genetic code they're all based off of. As an added bonus, Silpelits age at twice the rate of a normal human. Only half the time wasted on an unproductive childhood."
"If they're all female how the hell are they supposed to be any good in the long term?" Fang interrogated. "I doubt you're gonna find many worlds willing to let you infect the population with that plague just to get a couple new psychopathic little girls."
Joseph's expression grew somewhat guarded at that. His mouth thinned into a fine line and he seemed almost embarrassed, rubbing the back of his head with one hand.
"Well… that's not entirely a problem." He said, carefully weighing his words. "You see… the plague created by Argentinus was only ever successful in creating one Diclonius."
The sense of danger in the back of Rein's mind, having dulled into a background sensation at that point, rocketed back to the forefront of his consciousness.
"Then where did the others come from?" He demanded, already knowing he wouldn't like the answer.
"…We don't know…"
For a long while, the only noise in the room was the sound of Forty Two shuffling her feet and the odd crackle from the monitors.
"You. Don't. Know?" Rein repeated, putting dangerous emphasis on each syllable. Joseph gave a shaky shrug in response.
"From what we've been able to see, they appear to be spreading without any help from us." He said. "We've taken every possible safety protocol into account. Regular contamination drills, all kinds of blood tests and other… intrusive… means of looking for infected individuals, everything you can think of. None of it seems to help. More and more Diclonius are being born on Cyrridus Delta, though almost entirely centralized around this facility. No doubt you can understand the difficult position this has put us in. Needing to round up strays, silence witnesses, file all the necessary paperwork and keep thins under wraps… It's been quite the chore."
Rein was about half a second from pulling the trigger of his hellgun and reducing the infuriating scientist to a quivering corpse. It was only the possible aid the man could provide that saved his life. While he had no wife or significant other to speak of at the moment, he certainly didn't want to need to worry about hearing that his firstborn child had horns sprouting from her head. When this was over, he was getting every detoxification treatment he could find. He didn't care if it involved servitors scrubbing half his skin off with acidic liquids, he'd take it.
"I think that's enough questions for right now." He growled, clenching his teeth as he fought down his need to open fire. "We've been sent here to contain the threat and capture any Diclonius we can. We need to get down to the security terminal through the main lift, but it needs some kind of code word or something to get through. Apparently, it doesn't recognize the authority of the Inquisition. I assume you know the code?"
He half hoped he didn't know. That would take away one of the only things keeping him alive.
"Oh, that sounds wonderful!" Joseph exclaimed, brightening up immediately. "I'd be happy to help you along. I know just about every code and security protocol in this place by heart."
Damn.
"Is there actually anything down there that can stop these creatures?" Stitch questioned. "I don't want to be travelling down there for nothing."
"Of course there is!" He replied. "It's somewhat complicated, so I'll explain the details on the way, but there is a system in place that will fill the facility with gas and render the Diclonius harmless without causing fatal injury."
"We're going to drug them?" Des asked, speaking for the first time since the conversation had started.
"Something like that. As I said, I'll explain on the way."
Turning sharply on his heel, Joseph clapped his hands together in a gesture of eagerness.
"Let's get going shall we?" He offered. "Time's wasting and we have places to be. I'll of course rely on you strapping individuals for protection seeing as we'll likely encounter a fair number of unrestrained subjects in the lower levels. But that shouldn't be a problem for true Imperials such as yourselves."
He walked directly to the door, slapping the panel on the way there and opening the way without breaking stride. Stitch, Des, and Fang filed out behind him, though in a significantly more professional fashion as they watched the hallway for any signs of danger. Rein was about to follow when something unusual stopped him in his tracks.
For the barest fraction of a second, he could swear he saw the air distort as though something was moving through it. He didn't get a chance to ponder the strange occurrence as, without warning, all sensation halted. It was like someone had thrown the off switch in his mind, rendering him unable to process any kind of outside information.
Standing there, unable to move or even think, he became distantly aware of something that felt like icy fingers reaching into his chest. They flowed through his body like water, brushing against his ribs and internal organs. He should have been afraid, but he was incapable of interpreting the sensation of fear.
All at once, feeling slammed back into his mind and the ethereal touch vanished. Shaking his head, Rein quickly looked around for any sign of the disturbance. Nothing had changed except…
It was then that he spotted Forty Two. The girl was looking up at him, wide eyed and filled with innocent curiosity. He didn't notice her expression however. What he noticed was that she was standing far too close.
"Back up!" He barked sharply, raising his weapon. She jumped with a squeak of fright, frantically backpedalling until she met the desk she'd hidden behind earlier. For several moments, he simply stood there pointing his gun at the trembling child.
With a loud sigh, Rein slowly lowered his weapon.
"Don't do that." He ordered, feeling his heart hammering in his chest. Even if she looked tame enough, he wasn't about to take chances. "Keep your distance and we won't have a problem. All right?"
She nodded quickly, stammering out a quick apology before rushing through the door after the others. He watched her go, rubbing his temple.
This place was really getting to him wasn't it? Phantom sensations could never mean anything good. Once this was over, he'd get a stiff drink at the local bar. He didn't even care that most of the alcohol on this planet tasted like piss, anything that could get him drunk would do.
Shaking his head and pushing the memory of the cold sensation out of his mind, Rein stepped through the door.
