Chapter 32(orphan)

Franklin's muscles were still highly swollen from an entire day of muscle hypertrophy training with massive iron weights, as he dressed in the smart dark midnight blue camouflage combat dress uniform his mother had just laid out for him to wear.

The uniform was ceremonial rather than functional combat gear, with shiny polished metal buttons and no armour, but was thankfully not adorned with anything heretical. It came with shiny black polished boots, black socks, and a ceremonial white leather belt hung with a scabbard and pistol holster but no weapons to hold in them. It also rather embarrassingly included a... Condom, to wear all night to prevent sinful wet patches from staining his clothes...

Franklin embarrassedly put the condom on first, and then struggled to fit his swollen muscles into the uniform, it was much tighter and more uncomfortable than his usual plain grey robes. He nevertheless managed to dress perfectly with absolute discipline, careful to straighten out every wrinkle in the fabric before standing at attention.

"Oh Franklin, you look absolutely PERFECT!" His mother Wendy gushed proudly at his appearance.

His mother then started excessively photographing him, and getting Octavia to photograph Wendy standing next to Franklin in various posses, for her new replacement photo albums. Wendy had sadly found digital backups of all of the photos the nuns had burned, and had simply replaced all the lost albums!

"Sister Mary, take pictures of all three of us together," Octavia asked, holding out the photography device.

Sister Mary shook her head miserably from the torture wrack she was being stretched on, and Mother Superior spoke on her behalf.

"Sister Mary is not leaving the wrack today and will not be attending the feast tonight, she is in penance for her sins," Mother Superior explained sternly.

"Sister Mary WILL be attending and she is not going to be punished anymore. Liling will be happy to listen to anyone who has a problem with this," Wendy stated warningly.

The nuns all flinched and Sister Mary was VERY quickly released from the wrack and holding the photography device in her trembling hands.

Octavia jogged over to join Franklin and his mother in the picture, bulging breasts bouncing with mighty jiggles as she jogged, and Franklin staggered forcefully as horrifically strong lusts tore at his iron discipline, INSTANTLY having a sinful ejaculation into the condom!

Franklin had never desired ANYTHING as strongly as the draw he felt to the beautiful Octavia right now, he WANTED HER DESPERATELY! Franklin was shaking violently for a few tense moments before regaining his control by sheer raw discipline alone, and then stood still at attention as Octavia squeezed in tightly beside him for the picture.

"HOW!? Franklin how do you RESIST Octavia like that?!" Sister Mary exclaimed in utter shock.

"With extremely great difficulty Sister Mary," Franklin replied shaking with intense self control.

"Unlike you, Franklin has some self restraint!" Mother Superior spat harshly.

"Sister Mary kindly take the photographs," Wendy interrupted impatiently.

Sister Mary nodded fearfully and took photographs as Wendy and Octavia held a variety of different poses around Franklin.

Franklin's condom was filling fast now, as Wendy and Octavia posed kissing his cheeks from both sides at once! Oh Emperor this was too much!

"I humbly request permission to speak!" Franklin asked his nuns frantically.

"Permission granted, what is it Franklin?," Mother Superior asked.

"The sheath over my sinful limb is already full! If it is not changed then it will leak!" Franklin explained desperately.

"FRANKLIN! Yes change the sheath and clean up the mess you sinful boy!" Mother Superior barked angrily.

Franklin gratefully obeyed, very carefully cleaning his member and changing the condom sheath, blushing with shame as Octavia stood right in front of him and gazed at the entire process with rapt fascination!

"Oh my, that's a lot!" Octavia giggled sluttily as he removed the soiled sheath!

"Filthy boy!" Mother Superior chastised sternly.

This wonderfully stern rebuke from Mother Superior was too much for Franklin to take with Octavia standing right in front of him, and before he had time to put the fresh condom on he involuntarily ejaculated... All over Octavia's exposed midriff!

The nun outrage that followed was best left to the imagination, and only the poorly veiled threat of Liling kept the nuns from administering immediate retribution! Octavia's lust filled moans at the sinful fluid on her bare belly served only to escalate the situation...

Things were now rather tense already before the feast had even begun as Franklin and his nuns accompanied Wendy and Octavia to go to this feast!

Sister Superior Clementine of course had not been invited to the feast, as she attacked heretics in her reach so constantly, that she was now permanently chained to a wall by a very thick chain that was securely welded to her metal neck stock. The chain was just long enough to let her reach the nearest half of the bed to sleep, and to let her walk around a bit and reach a toilet and bathing area that had been installed for her.

Sister Superior Clementine's arm muscles had atrophied from the long months with her wrists locked immobile in her metal neck stock, and she was now dressed in a conservative gown of mixed materials that the nuns had sewn themselves, designed with only buttons holding it all together to let it be put on and off even in the stock. The nuns had been keeping her alive and clean all this time, as she attacked any of Wendy's servant heretics who got within reach of Sister Superior Clementine's chains.

Even Franklin had sadly not been strong enough to break these extremely thick chains to release Sister Superior Clementine, and he was forbidden access to tools that could set her free. Night Lords regularly checked all of her restraints anyway, and Liling had surgically implanted a tracking sensor in her chest cavity to notify the villains if she ever left this room!

It went without saying that the other orphan boys were not invited to this feast, as they would ruin it even more quickly than Sister Superior Clementine would!

Franklin walked obediently as directed, and was led through the extremely dark ship to a dim but still surprisingly well lit feast hall room.

The room was absolutely massive beyond any obvious need, and Franklin had attended feasts here a few times before, enough to know what to expect. The war band had periodic feasts like this to celebrate various occasions like birthdays, always unnecessarily lavish affairs that wasted both food and time.

The birthday's of many individuals that were within a few weeks of each other were usually lumped together into combined birthday celebration feasts. This current feast was no different, with many more than just Franklin celebrating birthdays at this feast to save time, and any other recent occasions would likewise be celebrated at this feast.

The feast hall was filled with members of the Sevenson extended family and their favourite family friends, over a thousand people in all when you included the women and children as well as the Chaos Space Marines. Vast numbers of lowly heretic servants and slaves were scurrying around attending to the needs of the feast and guests, and a large fenced off area full of brightly coloured objects seemed to have been set up for the smaller children.

Franklin looked around and immediately noticed that once again, not all of the women present had their modesty properly covered! Some were completely topless but for crosses of shiny black ducting tape over their nipples! Some wore even LESS than that! Even some of those with corsets on had types of corsets that left the breasts (or worse) exposed! Most of the women maintained what passed for modesty here at least, the naked women were thankfully in the minority.

"Avert your eyes from those undressed ladies Franklin!" Mother Superior snapped vigilantly, and Franklin obediently stopped looking at the underdressed harlots.

Franklin's mother Wendy led them to the mighty head table that she traditionally shared with the Chaos Lord, and Franklin noticed his father and various siblings already sitting at the table.

"Grandmothers!" A cacophonous chorus of young voices squealed, and a number of children got up from the table and mobbed Wendy and Octavia.

Franklin had hesitantly come to accept, or at least tolerate, his HUMAN nieces and nephews, but he noticed in disgust that their were also MUTANT children cuddling his mother and Octavia right now! Not only were they mutants but also PSYKERS as well! Heretical witchcraft!

"Grandma, why does Franklin hate me so much in his thoughts?," one mutant 4 year old girl with a pink glow of witchcraft around her head asked innocently.

Wendy turned around and glared angrily at Franklin. The 4 year old mutant girl interrupted again.

"Grandma what do you mean that Franklin is a "bigot"?, what's a bigot?," the mutant asked.

"You shouldn't read people's thoughts dearest, you may learn things that are hurtful to know at your age. For your own good please stop reading thoughts until your mother says you're old enough," Wendy said kindly in a voice reserved for small children.

"Yes, stay away from Franklin's mind, don't read it!" An adult mutant woman agreed urgently from the table, beckoning to the child to come to her. Apparently the child's mother.

The child obediently returned to her mother but loudly asked, "mummy what do you mean Franklin's dangerous?,"

Wendy loudly talked over the growing tension, "Franklin was raised by the Imperium and was taught a lot of things the family doesn't agree with, but we still love him and AS LONG AS HE DOESN'T HURT ANY OF OUR FAMILY, we will treat him and his friends here very well!"

The clear warning that Wendy had emphasised was not lost on Franklin, and he gulped nervously remembering Liling.

"Mummy what did Aunty Liling do to Franklin's...," The mutant 4 year old began.

(SMACK!) (Sounds of bawling)

"I TOLD you not to read his mind! Stop it or I will smack your bottom a second time!" The mutant mother chastised the bawling child who was now bent over her lap from being spanked.

Franklin felt a tiny body cuddle against him as he was distracted by the mutants, and he looked down to see his niece Ying hugging his leg affectionately.

Franklin was much more welcoming of this fully human child, and gave her a slight smile. He liked Ying a lot more than her parents, and felt quite protective of her. She was so innocent apart from the sin of her birth, and with just 18 years on the Painful Path she would be able to be completely free of these sins of her blood, and be left only with the disarming innocence that was her defining character perk.

"You stay the hell away from Ying with ideas like that you sick brainwashed freak!" The voice of the mutant mother shouted inside his own thoughts!

Franklin turned his gaze to see the mutant woman glaring at him, with anger but mostly just terrible fear in her eyes, as though he actually meant Ying anything other than good!

"Sister Mary!" Ying said happily before Franklin could think further, and the little girl ran off to hug Sister Mary out of view of Franklin's perfectly disciplined pose standing at attention.

Franklin felt another tiny hand touch his leg and he looked down with his eyeballs, expecting to see another child. Instead he saw Liling!

Liling's face looked as cruel as it always did, with a sadistic sneer highlighted by the pinkly glowing blasphemous mark of Slaanesh on her elegant right cheek, but this cruel appearance was softened somewhat by her swollen belly and maternity clothes. Liling was pregnant.

Liling had not even let the horror of her crime with Ying find time to wear off, before Augusta had immediately gotten her pregnant with ANOTHER innocent child to join the damned! It was a terrible crime for these heretics to have children, condemning these innocent babies from birth to either the Painful Path or damnation!

In some ways Liling having so many children was her WORST crime, these poor children were better off not being born than being born of sinful blood!

Franklin gazed down at the evil Chaos Champion who was his sister-in-law, and felt terrible fury towards her.

Liling was squeezing at his leg muscles, Franklin had no idea what she was doing or why, but she had BETTER not be thinking of giving him a "blow job"!

"Muscle and bone growth is looking good, best I've ever seen in fact. I think that you are ready to be implanted with your Haemastamen and your Larraman's Organ already!" Liling said delightedly.

Franklin was relieved, Liling was just doing her job as Apothecary.

"As my birthday present to you I promise not to mutilate you during the operation. But it goes without saying that you get no pain relief this time," Liling said in what was apparently a tone of extraordinary generosity!

"THANK YOU!" Wendy exclaimed with relief from where she stood in earshot.

Liling waved away the thanks and continued probing at Franklin's muscles with painful little pinches. She seemed to get bored of this when Franklin didn't react, and returned to the table.

"Sit," the group was told by the impatient Chaos Lord, and Wendy and Octavia took their places to either side of him as his sinful lovers!

Franklin was sat down next to his mother Wendy, and his nuns waited expectantly for a seat when they noticed that the table was almost full already.

"Where do we sit?" Mother Superior asked after an awkward pause.

"On the floor under the table at your Master's feet with the rest of the concubines," Franklin's father laughed, lifting up the table cloth to reveal a group of beautiful young naked women cowering under the table!

"But but but! But we all NEVER had to sit under the table before! In the past you let us sit at the table with Franklin!" Mother Superior stammered.

"You are not ALL sitting under the table, Sister Mary gets to sit with her master, it's only the REST of you that should be under the table with the other concubines." Chaos Lord Luke Sevenson barked nastily with harsh laughter.

"Why her?, Why not me?," Mother Superior stammered desperately.

"Because I say so! GET under the table, NOW!" Luke snarled with warp distorted rage.

The nuns yelped with fright and scrambled under the table, as Sister Mary fearfully took her seat next to Franklin at the table.

"Tell my son that he can speak freely and move as he wishes so long as it isn't violent and isn't going under the damn table to be with his harem," Luke growled softly at Sister Mary.

"Franklin do as he just said, for the rest of the night!" Sister Mary ordered quickly.

"Yes Sister Mary. Father, why are my nuns under the table?!" Franklin demanded.

"To teach them some much needed nunly humility. Your chief concubine here is the only one of them that isn't insufferably arrogant! Until the others are humbled I will MAKE them humble!" Luke said sternly.

"Franklin don't say any angry words to your father!" Sister Mary commanded before Franklin could explode!

Franklin had nothing but anger to say, so he held silent.

"I like your chief concubine more and more," Luke said approvingly.

Franklin angrily held silent.

"Luke I'm bored, play with me," Octavia announced without warning and climbed up on the lap of Luke's terminator armour, provocatively licking the side of his brutal bare face.

Octavia was then shrieking with laughter as Luke squeezed her bare midriff with an armoured hand. Octavia's bizarre fixation with being tickled had always been weird and unnerving, but it was also so innocuous and technically speaking not actually sexual, that Franklin didn't feel holy anger towards it, he just found it weird in the extreme!

Franklin could feel the strange power of Octavia tugging at his mind, with her occupying Luke's lap she was now close enough to affect Franklin, when she stayed in her seat she was just out of range to affect Franklin! Franklin immediately angrily left his seat and moved a safe distance away from Octavia, joined quickly by Sister Mary.

Franklin and his nun stood awkwardly watching as Octavia and the Chaos Lord carried on with this bizarre activity, the pair of heretics were not TECHNICALLY committing a sin of the flesh right now, but it nonetheless was quite disturbing to watch.

Franklin was about to look away when Octavia squirmed out of Luke's lap in her thrashing, sprawling over Wendy's lap, only to have Wendy enthusiastically join in on the attack on Octavia. Octavia had barely been in Wendy's lap but a moment when nuns erupted from under the table to sexually assault Octavia!

"Mother Superior!" Franklin exclaimed in horrified shock!

"By the EMPEROR! What am I DOING!" Mother Superior squawked in horror as the giggling Octavia pushed her now bared breasts back inside her cleavage!

"Just as planned!" A booming daemonic female voice roared with laughter from somewhere behind Franklin!

"Wife?!" Franklin's father exclaimed with joy as everyone in the room turned to look at the speaker.

Sister Mary shrieked with terror and hid behind Franklin as he saw the speaker. Had Franklin lacked discipline then he would have screamed too.

It was a monster, easily ten meters tall and resembling a hybrid of woman and bird, with mighty blue feathered wings towering behind it's back. It was almost completely covered in bright blue feathers that constantly changed slightly in hue, in a discordant blue kaleidoscope of mad changing patterns, and around it's distinctly feminine torso it wore strange white robes, a pair of large breasts seeming to bulge under the tight fabric.

It had long thin arms and legs like an extremely tall skinny woman, but with bright blue skin and largely covered by shifting blue feathers. It's feet were the feet of a bird, big and scaly with razor sharp claws, but it had human hands at least, which were holding a colossal unholy looking staff with blue lightning arcing over it's surface. The pair of massive wings at it's back were separate limbs independent from it's arms in a way that seemed unnatural, but most disturbing was it's head.

It's head was the head of a blue skinned woman, with a beautiful face that looked horribly similar to the faces of Franklin's mutant "siblings". The head was at the end of an unnaturally long flexible neck and had long blue bird feathers hanging down around it's head like hair. It could ONLY be a DAEMON of the dark powers!

Franklin's father paused only to shift Octavia's legs off his lap, and then got up and ran to the horrifying daemon and hugged it's leg, the mighty chaos lord small as a child in comparison to the monster! The daemon picked Franklin's father up in its arms like a toddler and hugged him to it's chest lovingly, bending it's neck at an unnatural angle to kiss his face all over!

"(Squawk)... MUMMY!" Franklin's "sister" Hyacinth squawked in joy, hobbling over to it, accompanied by all the other mutant psykers!

Franklin blanched pale white, this monster was Hyacinth's MOTHER! Franklin did not relish the prospect of this giant daemon deciding to avenge it's burned mutant offspring in a rampage of maternal outrage!

"Hyacinth my darling daughter, how are... WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?! WHAT MONSTER DID THIS TO MY DAUGHTER!" The daemon roared in rage so loudly that the entire hall vibrated!

Franklin panicked and desperately summoned the full power of the Emperor to protect his nuns from the coming rage of this monster! The power of the Emperor would vanquish even this fell foe!

The monster loudly snapped it's fingers together and hatefully said, "dispelled, I'm an ascended Daemon Princess of TZEENTCH you foolish mortal!"

Franklin felt all of the power suddenly stop flowing, blocked by the power of this monster!

The daemon suddenly then flew on it's wings at him with truly astonishing speed, and snatched Franklin and Sister Mary up together in one hand! It's grip was horrifyingly strong!

Franklin's twin hearts were pounding with fear as he struggled to somehow protect Sister Mary from this monster! He had NEVER been more afraid of anything!

The monster glared at Franklin with maternal outrage and hatefully hissed, "wicked mortal fool, burner of my precious gentle daughter! I have only ONE thing to say to you!"

Franklin tensed, this was it!

The daemon then hissed, "...happy birthday stepson", and kissed his cheek, exploding into laughter!

"I'm just messing with you, I already knew all about Hyacinth and calmed down months ago! The look on your face is hilarious!" The daemon laughed happily and put Franklin and Sister Mary down unharmed!

Franklin and Sister Mary sat on the floor and gasped in great lungfuls of air in relief! The daemon wasn't hostile!

The entire feast hall was now echoing with laughter, at what was apparently some sort of demonic humour, and Franklin could barely breathe in the air fast enough after that fright. By the Emperor that was terrifying!

The daemon was still holding Franklin's father this entire time, and he was roaring with laughter too.

"TigerLily my dear you have excelled yourself yet again!" Luke choked out through his laughter.

It took Franklin a few moments to recover enough to speak, and when he was able to he realised that he didn't know what to say anyway. This was too strange a situation!

"Let me introduce myself properly, I am your Stepmother TigerLily Sevenson, I am married to your father since back when I was mortal, oh and yes I am also an ascended warp spawned immortal Daemon Princess of the chaos god Tzeentch. Sorry Franklin but I can't be "saved" by your delightful Painful Path, I am literally a Chaos Daemon now," the daemon said fondly.

"You can't have his soul!" Sister Mary squeaked, apparently forcing herself to be brave.

"I am not interested in his soul, I already feasted heavily on highly psychic Tyranid souls before I arrived. I breed my own as snacks, tyranids of the gaunt genus can grow from eggs to full adults in only two hours with enough food, and lay hundreds of eggs every hour if you feed them enough. One lowly gaunt has more psychic powers and therefore richer soul substance than Franklin's paltry soul does, and I eat them by the hundreds. Franklin is honestly not interesting as food," TigerLily rambled cheerfully.

"Lies!" Sister Mary hissed.

"In your closed little minds both of you cannot accept that a daemon would ever speak the truth, so I shall not waste our time trying to convince you otherwise. I took time out of my busy schemes to come here today simply to attend this party and be with my family, I shall be gone soon enough little ones," TigerLily said kindly and walked away with her husband still in her arms...

***...

Some time later Franklin and Sister Mary had been coaxed back into their seats at the table. The daemon was squatting down at the other end of the table with her mutant mortal offspring, excitedly cradling what looked like a large mottled egg of some sort?

Franklin and Sister Mary cautiously put food on plates and passed them under the table to the other nuns, before then cautiously getting food for themselves, eating fearfully. The daemon seemed perfectly happy to just be with it's own spawn, much to their relief.

Octavia at least seemed to be behaving herself now, and was cuddling her granddaughter Ying on her lap, feeding the small child with a spoon. Ying seemed to be completely unaffected by Octavia's terrible power, it apparently only effected people after they began puberty.

When everyone had eaten, Franklin's father stood up and addressed the feast hall.

"Family members and treasured friends, we have gathered here today to celebrate many things, but most especially we celebrate one very special birthday in particular."

Franklin looked expectantly at his father, knowing that he must surely be talking about him.

"I speak of course of the birth a few days ago of my newest grandchild, the first egg ever laid by my daughter Hyacinth."

Franklin hadn't been expecting this and gazed over as TigerLily very protectively held up the massive mottled egg for the entire room to see.

"(Squawk)... Thank you Father... My boyfriend... (Squawk)... Jack and... I are... (Squawk)... So thankful... To be parents!" Hyacinth squawked excitedly.

"Not even married?! How shameful!" A nun's voice said a little too loudly under the table.

"Who DARES to say such a thing at my daughter's celebration!" Luke snarled in genuine rage.

TigerLily blazed blue energy around her head and a moment later one of Franklin's nuns floated out from under the table, the nun surrounded by blue energy as she levitated upside down in front of the outraged Chaos Lord!

"Father please don't kill her!" Franklin begged desperately.

"You DARE to insult my daughter!" Luke roared at the nun, ignoring Franklin.

"I'm sorry!" The nun squeaked desperately.

"Get this woman out of my sight before I kill her!" Luke ordered.

The nun was floated over to the door they had entered in through, and was flicked out through the doorway onto the hard floor outside, evicted from the hall with no serious harm.

Luke angrily returned to talking about his newest grandchild as Franklin worried about his nun too much to pay attention. Franklin heard only snippets about the new "egg" that Hyacinth had laid, her reproductive system so heavily mutated that she even gave birth like a bird!

Hyacinth and her Night Lord boyfriend Jack had only conceived the unholy vile offspring a few days before it was laid, and now it had to be kept warm for 9 months till it hatched! Blasphemous filthy mutation!

Franklin was disgusted but didn't dare to voice his disgust, but this silence didn't stop Hyacinth and all the psykers from glaring at him!

"Franklin whatever you are thinking, STOP IT!" Wendy whispered angrily into his ear, having noticed the looks.

Franklin deliberately cleared his head of thoughts, and the angry glares gradually subsided.

"That's better, keep your thoughts under control and we can all have a nice evening," Wendy whispered in his ear.

The egg was eventually put back away into some sort of heavy padded portable incubation device on wheels like a pram, apparently where the egg was kept when it wasn't briefly being carefully cradled by adoring female relatives, and the incubator was protectively sealed closed by Hyacinth and Jack. Whatever else he could say, Franklin had to concede that the egg was greatly loved...

"(Squawk)... VERY greatly loved!" Hyacinth's voice spoke directly into Franklin's mind!

Franklin desperately cleared his thoughts completely!

"(Squawk)... I don't... Hate you... (Squawk)... Franklin... Please don't... (Squawk)... Hate me!... You have... (Squawk)... Disfigured me... Hurt me... (Squawk)... Tried to... Kill me... (Squawk)... For what... I am!... (Squawk)... But I... FORGIVE YOU!... (Squawk)... Can you... Accept me?," Hyacinth squawked in his mind.

Franklin did not know if he could ACCEPT Hyacinth, but he felt that he could maybe, just perhaps... TOLERATE, Hyacinth's continued existence! Franklin was astonished that he was being this cravenly soft hearted! He would have to confess this sinful tolerance in his next confession!

"(Squawk)... THANK YOU!... I know... (Squawk)... That was... Hard... (Squawk)... I tolerate... You too." Hyacinth telepathically replied in happy relief.

The Chaos Lord was now speaking about other events, other birthdays but not Franklin's, and gifts were being given to various people as Franklin's attention was distracted. This speech was dragging on and on, and getting a bit dull to follow as it spoke about people Franklin was unfamiliar with.

Franklin prudently erred on the side of politeness and just sat at ease, pretending to be interested as the boredom grew in his mind. This was a waste of time that could be better spent submitting to his nuns or training, or reading... Or indeed pretty much any sanctioned activity would be a better use of this time!

Franklin was tempted to politely get up and go to the bathroom just for something to do...

"And now of course we come to the birthday of my son Franklin." The Chaos Lord finally said.

Scattered booing sounded around the feast hall at these words, as Franklin was extremely unpopular with much of the war band by this stage...

"GET OUT! If you don't want to respect my son then get out of this room RIGHT NOW!" Franklin's father snarled demonically at the boos.

Over HALF of the people present at the feast got up and left the room! Franklin was SERIOUSLY unpopular it seemed!

The Chaos Lord was nonplussed, and struggled to regain his momentum at this. TigerLily burst out laughing...

"Luke cut the speech now before anyone else storms out, skip to the big news!" Wendy urged him quickly.

"YOU tell them the blasted news! I've had it with this disrespect!" Luke snarled and sat down angrily.

Wendy stood and dominantly called for attention from those that remained in the feast hall.

"Family members, I have great news! We have made excellent speed through the warp towards the Eye of Terror and are now just a day away from the beginning of the Cadia Gate!" Wendy announced with deliberately raised excitement.

(Author's note, I am operating under the assumption that this is the Warhammer 40k universe of what I call the "golden time", before GW board of directors decided "we need to sell new types of miniatures" and added shit like Primaris space marines and hull points, great rifts, the resurrection of Robert girly-man, and the fall of Cadia. Letting Matt Ward loose in the fluff was pretty much the final straw and I just ignored further destruction to the fandom universe sometime during the 2000's. In this story Cadia is alive and well and the galaxy doesn't have a massive great rift cutting it in half.)

Franklin thrilled with fear as the feast hall filled with murmurs of excitement.

"We have already made contact with other war bands of the Night Lord Legion who have bases in the Eye of Terror, and they are expecting us. In exchange for some trade, and just a teeny tiny bit of fighting alongside them in a silly little war against the Word Bearers, our Night Lord brothers in these local war bands will give us all the fuel we need to get home!" Wendy continued over the murmurs.

"TigerLily, I humbly request that you extend your stay with us for the fighting, your skills will be invaluable," Wendy addressed the Daemon Princess.

"I suppose I could find time in the convoluted will of Tzeentch to stay a bit longer..." TigerLily drawled indulgently.

"Thank you for that, having a Daemon Princess during the face to face negotiations will help a LOT!" Wendy said relieved.

Franklin trembled, this was getting worse and worse!

"Psst, Franklin, here's your birthday present before I forget," Luke whispered to Franklin as Wendy continued talking.

The Chaos Lord pulled a weapon out from under the table and handed it to Franklin. It was some sort of gun with two barrels and a metal shoulder stock.

"It's a combat shotgun, Necromunda pattern Imperial Navy Rating standard issue, pump action loaded, solid steel. It is brand new from the armoury of an Imperial Navy vessel we captured a while back, has just been sitting in one of our armouries onboard ever since we took it, never been "defiled" as you put it. It isn't loaded and you are NOT to bring ammo or bring it loaded into Wendy's home! You will have access to ammunition ONLY at the firing ranges of the ship and during any battles, is that understood?," Luke said firmly but with fatherly pride.

Franklin nodded in agreement and tested the weapon curiously, making a loud "click" as it fired without ammo. It was a brutal looking weapon made of unnecessarily thick steel, Franklin doubted he could have even lifted it properly back before his gene seed organs.

"When you have learned to master the shotgun I will think about letting you try some other weapons, make me proud son," his father whispered proudly.

Franklin felt a faint smile cross his face, he now had his first weapon of war!

***...