Grim
Everything was dark and cold. It smelled wrong. She couldn't see and she was so cold. Why was she so cold? What was going on? Why was she so- wait a minute! What was her name? She couldn't remember her name! She tried to recall but nothing came to hurt, but she was so-
+++Anomaly identified+++ Light slammed into her wide eyes from the darkness, oddly strident green light that seeped over her and swept all around. She couldn't move, couldn't think straight. Everything was shrouded in fog. She couldn't see anything but the bright green. +++Human. Female. No identification.+++
"Don't touch it!" Someone warned as something nudged her and she whimpered. The voice was androgynous, neither male nor female. It also held a malice as cold as space itself. "You don't know where it has been!"
What language was that It wasn't English, so she shouldn't have understood it, but she did.
+++No weapons.+++ She cried out as something grabbed her and held her off the ground. Not hands. Whatever it was, it was not gentle. Green swept over her and back over her as she sobbed in pain.
+++No gross injuries, but damage to cortex.+++
"Okay. This I did not expect." The other said with a sigh. "Mission is done. We need to get to the lighter. But this… This is odd. She wasn't on the floor where when we came in. So, she appeared while we took out the cult. Did anyone see anything?" A chorus of 'No' answered the speaker. "She is not a genestealer, so she wasn't here or they would have converted or eaten her. So… A trap of some kind. For me or for someone else?" That one mused.
+++Alert. Movement detected. Enemies closing on this position.+++ The first voice spoke again.
"Of course, we didn't get them all. That said, the mission is done and our bounty is dead. We have injured and are running low on ammunition. With the leader dead, that gives us a little time. We can come back to finish the purge. The Conclave will be curious." The other speaker heaved a huge sigh. "Bring her with us. Secured."
She could not restrain a sharp cry as her hands were roughly pulled behind her back and cold metal bound them. Something else wrapped around her head, covering her eyes that she slapped closed. She was sobbing as something grabbed her mouth and shut it, holding it closed. Then she was lifted like a sack of potatoes and being carried across someone's shoulder! Then the other was running. It was extremely unpleasant but she forced herself to relax. Vomiting with her mouth clamped shut would not end well.
It seemed like an eternity, but was likely only a few minutes before the running ended and she was laid on a hard, cold surface. Something firm rolled her onto her stomach and pressed her into her back, holding her down to the surface. Said surface stank of blood and worse things. Something else went 'click' nearby and she went still as something cold and round pushed against the back of her skull. It took no imagination to know it was the barrel of a gun.
"If anything changes, don't bother asking, just shoot." The second voice declared as a rumble sounded close to her face. Were they moving? "The ship is replying. We are on course and speed to rendezvous."
"Orders?" Came from someone else. A soldier from the sound. Neither of the first two had been soldiers.
"Get her to the Magos and maybe she can determine what we are dealing with. We are behind schedule and will have to speed up a bit to make our next mission." The voice made a noise of confusion. "This attire is not in my databanks. No weapons. No armor. In the middle of a genestealer lair? This stinks."
"A trap, sir?" The soldier asked.
"Probably." The other had a shrug in his or her voice. "But for who? Who knew we would be there? We wouldn't have been without that last bit of intelligence." A hand touched the back of her skull and whatever was holding her mouth fell off. "Well, you were clearly left for us to find. We need to protect ourselves, but there is no need to be rude. You will tell us what we wish to know and telling us now will save you a great deal of pain."
There was malice in those words, but it wasn't personal. It was clinical, sterile. Terrifying!
"I don't know anything!" She gasped out. "I can't… I cannot even remember my name!" Utter silence greeted her words.
"We shall see." The hand touched the back of her head and she was falling into a starfield, but each star was a grinning skull.
Later
When she woke, she was lying on something that was both hard and soft. She couldn't move but her head felt less foggy.
"Ah, back with us, I see. I undid some of the damage to your cortex. Better?" A soft, melodious voice sounded from nearby and she turned her head to see a horror bent over a bank of machinery. Many mechanical looking tendrils swept out from the red robbed being. She tried to cry out and nothing came out. "Easy. You have no need to fear me, child. I am Magos Biologis Metrodora Thelema." The woman, yes, that was a woman under that robe, did something and soothing numbness swept through her. "We have found your name in the morass that is your mind at the moment. It is Kate Bishop."
That sounded both right and wrong. She tried to voice a query but her voice wasn't working. Terror rose anew. The other made clucking noise and something moved nearby. Then a voice came from nowhere. Young, female, scared!
'What have you done to me?' That was her voice, wasn't it?
"We had to make sure you were not a threat." The Magos Biologis' replied. What kind of title was that? There are many who would use a form such as yours as an elaborate trap. "They did not and we have done no permanent damage. I am seeking the cause for your brain damage and I think I can correct it, but I am not certain. If I fail, it will kill you and we will be denied answers."
From her tone, it was clear that the second one bothered her, not the first.
'Please…' Kate begged as the other worked controls.
"We need answers, child." The other was calm and merciless as machinery swept down around Kate. "This probably won't kill you." That was the only warning before red hot agony tore through Kate's entire body. After a time that might have been seconds or days, Kate was left gasping for breath atop whatever she lay on as the red robed being turned and other voices were heard.
"...and the ship was wrecked, Inquisitor." That was the soldier from before. "No life signs and the Orks took everything that they could. The vaults were empty."
"That is not possible, Sergeant." The terrifying androgynous voice from before spoke up even as Kate gasped through the memories of pain.
"Possible or no, those are the facts and I have helmet cam footage." The other was calm even as two mismatched beings appeared in Kate's vision. One towered over the other, gray armor with huge, over sized pauldrons on each shoulder and a backpack that looked as if it had seen better days. The pistol and sword he carried almost seemed dainty in his hands. There was some kind of heraldry on the armor, but it was hard to make out. When he eyed Kate, his face was almost as expressionless as a full face mask would have been.
The other though…
The being was small. In form, it looked sort of female, but the red and black robes it wore made it hard to tell. A black hood covered the form's face but red pits of hell shone in the darkness and Kate fought a whimper as the terror from before eyed her.
"Anything new, Magos?" The voice was still the same. Utterly impersonal. Utterly merciless.
"Some. Not much, I am afraid,. The cortex damage is extensive and any truly deep probes will destroy anything we try to salvage. We have a name for our mystery now. Kate Bishop." The Magos did not bow or anything, but it was clear that both respect and wariness were order of the day.
"This mystery is a sideline. We are ordered to continue searching for any survivors from Inquisitor Illusmar's retinue." The other did not take her eyes off Kate and Kate dared not look away. "Highest authority wants any of them found and interrogated. Sergeant?"
"Every body that was found was checked for identification. DNA samples were taken for the Magos from any without proper IDs." The gray armored mountain was calm, but his gaze never left Kate. "None of his known retinue were found among the bodies."
"His known retinue." The Magos Bologis repeated. "He had secret ones?" Then she scoffed. "What am I saying? Of course he did!"
"Secrets are what the Inquisition does, true." The cloaked and hooded form stepped close to Kate who tried to shy away and could not. "Awake and aware, but not entirely cognizant?"
"The subject is in extreme distress due to shock both physical and mental." Again, clinical, impersonal and scary as hell! "The tech priest scanned odd energy around her from the servitor's senses, but it faded before he could get conclusive scans. He is rather upset about that."
"I can imagine." The other wasn't quite humorous, but humor was there, nonetheless. "Let me see what I can get. Monitor." That was a command to both of the others. Kate quailed as the sergeant raised his pistol and aimed at her. The Magos turned back to its controls as the robed being reached up and dropped her hood!
The woman who eyed Kate from close range now was a horror. Her face was scarred from long conflict and her eyes were red pits of hell. Kate screamed but no sound came. She tried to writhe away as the other reached for her, but she couldn't move.
The the other's hand touched her brow, a soft, gentle touch, but something happened!
The world fell away!
"Hello Jane." A calm, firm voice sounded as Kate landed on her stomach on a golden floor. Kate stared around wildly. The walls, floor and ceiling were all golden. They shimmered as if made of energy as red energy hit them and rebounded. "None of that! You know better."
"You! You know you cannot hold me in this mockery." The voice of the Inquisitor was cold and hard. "Release me. Now."
"You can leave anytime, but when you do, you will doom Kate Bishop and likely your Imperium as well." The other said coldly. "Feel free to go, Jane. I am going to see what your quack did to this poor girl." Metal hands touched Kate and she shied away, but they were gentle as they eased her into a more comfortable position. Something washed over Kate and it felt good! "Easy, girl. Let me see. I know it is scary. It is all right." The man or whatever crooned. "It is all right. You are all right." Somehow, Kate was being rocked in gentle metal arms as she cried. "It is all right."
"What have you done, Ric?" The Inquisitor demanded as Kate sobbed.
"I didn't do this to her. I am trying to save Cecelia just like you are trying to save Nils." Ric replied. "She told me not to try, but I had to. No matter the cost, I had to. Just like you."
"I am nothing like you!" The Inquisitor snapped. "Maybe I was once, but now? I know the truth that you spurn. I know what Lorinos wants."
"Do you?" Kate felt a shrug through the arms holding her and Ric continued. "From what I can tell, this one wasn't intended for you to find. If you had been even slightly more pressed for time, you would have shot her and likely doomed everything." That was cold, but Kate felt comforted somehow. "She is not intended for you. You know where she had to go."
"I am not betraying her to him!" Jane snapped, fury rising.
"No, you are betraying her to Elizabeth." Ric retorted. "Both of them are stark raving mad. Both of them are seeking allies everywhere they can, jockeying for power while the multiverse trembles. Jane, I don't give a shit that you came here. I don't give a shit that you lied to Nikis of all people!" There was sudden, utter silence and Ric continued. "You think the First Nekros didn't know you lied to him? Didn't know that you would come back here to try and find your husband? He knew. He let you go."
"You don't know that!" The Inquisitor snapped, rage fully fanned.
"Yes, I do." Ric retorted. "Because when I got yanked out of our reality, he found me. I asked him and he told me. I can likely never return to where I came from now, and I don't care. I am trying to save Cecelia and nothing else. You and your whole Imperium can rot for all I care. This human is the key to all this, somehow and if you break her, you doom us all. I won't let you do that." That was pure warning.
"Nils isn't a Blood Angel." The other said slowly. "I managed to determine that. Can you-"
"No." Ric interrupted. "I cannot interfere in your Emperor's work. You know this. I am trying to save my wife. You are trying to find your husband. Neither of us want to fight the other, but we are going to, aren't we?"
"I serve the Imperium." Jane said softly. "I have for a long time now. This threat, your master… Did he do this?" A familiar hand touched Kate's brow, but this time, nothing happened. Just a gentle touch that rubbed her scalp, trying to soothe.
"Not that I know of." Ric admitted. "He has a lot of allies in a lot of places, but I don't think so. This isn't the kind of thing he would do. You know about him and pretty girls." Pure disgust sang in his tone.
"I do." Jane allowed. Then she sighed. "So, Elizabeth or another player in this?"
"Probably another player. Even insane, Elizabeth would not have dropped her into a Genestealer lair." Ric rocked Kate as she cried. "If you hadn't been right there, she would have been lunch for the monsters at the very least."
"I know." Jane said heavily. Then she heaved a sigh. "Are we enemies, Ric?"
"I don't know." Ric was sad now. "I have no quarrel with your Imperium or your quest to find your husband. That said? Every single clue we have says that this girl is the key to this conflict somehow. If you kill her or mind wipe her…"
"Then the conflict can never be resolved." Jane said slowly. "And if the multiverse is damaged or destroyed then the Imperium will be too." Her tone hardened. "My duty is clear even if my feelings are conflicted. The Imperium will be protected. What needs to be done?"
"She needs to go to Kay. Let the Magos take her to healing." Ric said softly. "She wants to. Metrodora Thelema is kind, in her own way and she feels for Kate's pain. She knows that Kate will get no further help on an Inquisition ship."
"What the Magos wants is insane!" Jane snapped.
"Aren't we all?" Kate felt movement and then she was in another set of arms that held her as her sobs slowed and stopped. Gentle golden light surrounded her. It felt so good and she was so calm as the world shifted back to dark and grim.
"Inquisitor?" The Magos seemed unsure.
"She is not a threat." The Inquisitor, Jane, said softly as Kate relaxed on the hard surface she lay on. "Not an agent of the Ruinous Powers. A pawn if anything. I can sense no taint within her. Fear and confusion. She is odd, but also oddly protected from taint. That said? She is not my problem. I have a mission to complete. I need to find out if Inquisitor Illusmar lives and if so, end him."
"Ah, Inquisitor… My request?" The Magos asked very slowly.
"Magos, if you go down there, you are not coming back." The sergeant was still aiming at Kate, but she wasn't afraid now. Odd.
"They won't kill me out of a hand." The Magos said quietly. "And this one needs more care than I can give. More research into her condition than I can do at the very least."
"The Inquisition would like answers." The Inquisitor put her hood back up but she was still eyeing Kate. Far from scared now, Kate felt comforted. "On the ship, we have neither the equipment nor the time for such in depth research. They do." Was she musing? "Magos, their edict was clear."
"I can heal the breach. If that costs my life, so be it." The Magos was calm, but firm. "I have a replacement in mind, should they demand my life. A Magos of my own rank who would be honored to serve you."
"Magos Biologis Metrodora Thelema. You are an integral part of my retinue." Jane was shaking her head. "We have served together through many investigations. We trust one another as much as I can trust any."
"I am mortal, Inquisitor." The Magos was still bent over her controls, but it was clear she was touched by the concern that the Inquisitor was showing. "I was asked by my Genetor to see if I could talk to the sisters. Offer aid in some way. But this…" She turned to look at Kate. "This child is hurt and we cannot help her or inquire further to how she was hurt. The Sisters of Serenity can."
"That is if the militant sisters don't fire as soon as they see you." The sergeant protested. "They have been known to do that."
"The Adeptas Mechanicus have given them cause to hate." Metrodora Thelema drew herself up to face the other pair. "But maybe I can remind all sides that we are in this together."
"Don't expect miracles, Magos." The Inquisitor said mildly as Kate felt sleep beckon. "They never come when expected."
"I know."
So many realities.
Jane Talona was introduced back in Warframe: Faith and she perished in Warframe: Penance, but death is not the end for such as her. The Emperor of Mankind still had work for his Inquisitor and she wants to find out if she can save her husband. Ric's wife Cecelia went with Avalon's population into exile when it was destroyed back in Warframe: Family. More on that later.
Sergeant Caius Thorn and Magod Biologis Metrodora Thelema are from Warhammer 40000 Inquisitor Martyr.
We will see Kay and other characters from my fiction Inquisition Games in the next chapter.