-XVII-
Two buggies was at the front of the convoy, Malik rode the shotgun in the second one as Julius walked beside him. His eyes and ears were scanning the area for possible targets, he didn't show Malik any attention than required. The giant brute of a man, Alexis was sitting at the back of the buggie atop the ammo crates.
"So, lord Astartes." said Malik towards Julius trying to get his attention.
His right elbow sticking out of the window as he smoked his lho-stick and watched the road.
Julius made a grunting sound instead of a proper reply.
"No offence but your attitude is a tough as the armour you wear." said Malik trying to break ice.
"Smoking on duty, slavery, looting, don't you guardsmen have any discipline?" Julius said.
"Well, I've seen some iron companies during my time with the guard, served alongside many, however I've never seen anyone so clear cut as you marine." he commented.
"By clear cut you mean proper."
"Proper is what's written in the books, this is life."
"Life without honour in no life to be had."
"We have honour but we also need requirements, war isn't free you know. You Space Marines are always quick to judge, luckily for us your lord wasn't the executioner type." Malik said.
"He knows what he is doing."
"But you don't agree with him."
"It doesn't matter if I agree or not, he is my lord and these are his orders." said Julius.
"The perfect answer from the perfect soldier." quipped Malik.
"You wouldn't understand, your and mine war are two different ones."
"These man and women we gathered from the hive cluster, you know what they do for a living?" asked Malik.
"Not looting I presume." said Julius.
"You don't know anything about the people you protect and yet you judge us the bad guys and these wretched slugs the good."
"I see armed guardsmen dragging Imperial citizens through the streets to sell them at a profit." said Julius.
"Then you need to see more, my friend."
"After this day maybe I don't want to see more." said Julius.
"They are corrupt servants of the aristocracy of the Imperial elite, they spent their time getting into all sorts of perversion while you and I fight battles for them." explained Malik.
"I fight for the Emperor." replied Julius angrily.
"Me too. But the masters of these man and women take from the Emperor for their own ends. Look at us, look at my men, do you see a dozen Leman Russ rolling with us? Or Valkyries flying overhead? No. We have to conduct a war based on our own wits and our own resources."
"Don't you get requisitions from the Imperial command?" asked Julius.
"Not unless you're one of the glory boys, you know, Cadian, Catachan, Armageddon, we get the short end of the stick." said Malik.
"And your homeplanet?"
"They are poorer than a desert hermit." said Malik.
"You still haven't convinced me on anything, fighting for the Emperor means more than weapons at hand."
"I'm not trying to convince you, just telling you how things are, you accept it or you don't."
"So who buys these people you gathered?" asked Julius.
"Imperial nobility of course, who else."
Julius was puzzled "So you kidnap them from one hive to sell to another?"
"The good ones bring good reward that's why we need to keep them in pristine condition, wounded and scarred whores make no profit". said Malik.
"You mentioned perversions, what kind?" asked Julius feeling ashamed for his want to know more.
"Sex cults, obscura raves, blood hunts, you name it." said Malik.
"And the Imperial nobility supports these?"
"They are the host, lord Astartes."
"These man you accuse of perversion is the lords and masters of the Imperial citizens."
"I don't accuse them, its what they do." said Malik.
"I can't believe a word of it."
"Believe or don't hell if I care."
They kept going the entire street until Julius stopped dead in his tracks.
"What's wrong?" asked Malik signalling his driver to stop as well, the buggie came to a halt.
"Engine sounds, at five-three." said Julius walking both into his vox and at Malik.
Gun fire showered at the first buggie and took out its driver. Luckily the vehicle came to a dead stop.
Several motorbikes turned the far corner and drive full throttle towards the convoy.
The riders of the bikes were shouting as they drove recklessly towards their prey.
"Shooters at the windows and bikes coming in." reported Julius being the foreguard of the Extus.
Ioras ordered two more marines including Achagon near the second buggie while the rest of them took cover at the back to counter any flanking attacks.
Affirmatives rang at Ioras' ear as the squad moved to their designated positions.
Riders closed in fast as the Balharethi guardsmen returned fire with their autoguns.
The street rang loud with autogun fire as both sides fired the cheap weapons at each other.
Alexis dropped from the back of the buggie and hefted his stubber in one hand muscles bulging distorting his tatooes.
He opened fire at the bikes blowing out the front wheel of one, the bike flipped as its speed became his undoing. The ride broke his neck at the pavement as the bike flew out of control.
Julius fired two shots that killed one of the drivers, Achagon was focusing on the targets at the windows. His sniper rang loud and one of the assailants fell from the building with a huge gaping hole at his chest. The rest turned and fled the scene as several made to the street and resumed the firefight from there.
They hid behind the cargo crates and barrels which was no cover for boltguns. Deciaci fired a burst that blew and arm and a head from two assailants.
Another two of the assailants came out of cover shouting and running towards the Astartes in frenzy. Deciaci used the butt of his boltgun to crush first one's head and then slowly kicked the next one's knee, breaking it. The assailant which was apparently a women screamed in pain as she fell to the ground still trying to stab Deciaci with her switch blade at his armoured boot.
Deciaci looked at her and took a step back annoyed with her useless effort, it was distracting him.
Two remaining bikers was able to get past the buggies and rode hard towards the group of slaves at the end of the convoy.
When the slaves saw the bikers riding towards them they screamed and tried to run from the path of the bikes but the guardsmen forced them to stay together.
One of the Adi Balhareth guardsmen fired his autogun on full auto emptying half a clip and still manage to hit nothing.
Lead biker had an auto pistol fixed to the stern, as the biker pulled the thrusters the pistol fired several shots. Hitting the guardsmen in the chest, one bullet found its mark in his face ripping into his brain. The Balharethi died as he fell back.
A second guardsmen broke cover firing from hip at the bikers and manage to hit the lead biker. The force of the bullet dropped him from the saddle but he rolled on the ground and was able to get up without any bones breaking.
The second biker's wheels screeched as he turned the bike towards the guardsmen and smashed his face in with a mace as he rode past him.
Guardsmen fell on his back, head split open, brain spilling on the ground.
The first biker was on his feet and ran towards his fallen bike but Ioras came out of several cargo crates and hit him in the face with the hilt of his chainsword.
Biker's face caved in on his head at the force of the blow. Second biker saw Ioras killing his friend and rode in screaming in rage.
Ioras raised his boltpistol and put one through the man's chest. The bike with lower body attached rode a while before it crashed into a nearby lifter and stopped while the upper body landed a few metres before Ioras.
"I'm glad we brought you along." said Malik holstering his pistols.
"Who are they?" asked Julius.
"Hive gangs." said Malik closing towards the wounded gangster women which still try to swing his useless blade at Deciaci.
Malik looked at her for a moment then took out one of pistol and shot her in the face.
"Why did you do that? We could interrogate her." said Deciaci.
"No need to, they won't tell you anything useful for the next few hours. See those needle marks on her neck? Liquid sniff-musk." said Malik holstering.
"What's that?" asked Deciaci.
"Psycho-active drug produced from grin-leaves." cut in Ioras walking towards them.
"Well, well, your white lord wasn't as pure white as his armour seem to give." said Malik grinning.
"Your street scum knowledge cannot be compared to my medical knowledge." said Ioras curtly which erased the grin on Malik's face.
Alexis came near them and started doing hand signals to Malik.
"He says that the front driver and his companion is dead, as well as two of my man." said Malik clearly annoyed with losing man for no good reason.
"Assign two more to drive the vehicle, we need to move now. Gunshots will attract attention." said Ioras clearly not caring for Malik's losses.
In a few minutes after the guardsmen robbed their own dead and the enemy of their ammo and weapons, the convoy kept on their way.