Reptile led Kaida by hand down a narrow hallway with identical doors lining the walls on either side. She looked back and caught sight of Aun'Esa being dragged away by Esskrimar and doubt began to creep into Kaida's mind again. Was there any way Kaida could talk to the marines? And if she could, surely they wouldn't accept the greater good. Maybe they will listen to the wisdom of the ethereal; even savage renegade marines will take heed of teachings so wise.
Reptile led her into one of the rooms, it was identical to the room she had come from in terms of layout, but it had different trinkets on display. On the top shelf there was a set of strange helmets from around the galaxy, on the shelf below; there was a sword, not of human origin, and an empty space marine plasma gun. These were probably mementoes or trophies from battles long ago. The door closed and she spotted her own helmet. It was blue, as is the uniform colour of warriors from her Sept, and it had the unmistakably long tail to it that all pathfinder helmets have.
"You recognize it?" asked Reptile, referring to her helmet. Kaida simply looked up at him, as he continued, "I like it, it's got a nice shape to it, and the technology in the optics is very impressive. I'm afraid my head is a little too big to try it on myself."
Kaida failed to laugh at the joke.
"I like your hair; it's a shame that it was hidden under the helmet."
Kaida didn't know how to take a compliment from her captor, she reached round to feel her hair; she was shaved bald except for her red pony tail at the back of her head, a common hair style among Tau.
"This is my cabin. This is where I sleep, where I keep my personal belongings and for today, this is where I entertain guests."
Kaida remained quiet.
"I have been wearing armour for too long." He held his finger against a box on the wall and spoke into it, "I want to remove my armour, send someone up."
A distorted crackle of noise answered back, Kaida couldn't make out the words over the static.
"Now, shall we have a conversation?" asked Reptile as he sat down on his bed.
"What?" asked Kaida, very timidly.
"You speak Gothic, at least you seem to understand it well enough. And I have never spoken with a member of your species before." Reptile waited for Kaida to say something, but he was met with nothing but nervous silence from the pathfinder. "Have you ever spoken to an astartes before?"
Kaida looked at Reptile in confusion.
"'Astartes' means 'Space Marine'" clarified Reptile.
Kaida shook her head.
"Have you ever spoken to a human before?"
Kaida let out some words in the shakiest of whispers, "I learned Gothic from a human."
Kaida was about to repeat what she said louder when Reptile said, "That makes sense," she thought she spoke too faintly, but Reptile heard just fine. He continued, "He taught you well, you don't have the same strong accent that your leader has."
Kaida didn't reply.
"You must be worried about her," said Reptile, "An ethereal, isn't she?" Kaida nodded. "You have no reason for concern; Esskrimar may look like a brute but he can handle things with care when he is asked, although he would not be interested in talking like I am." This failed to ease her worries for Aun'Esa's safety.
"I fear all the talk of your 'greater good' will fall on deaf ears on this ship," explained Reptile. "We have no use for godless ideology here."
Kaida still said nothing, so Reptile filled the silence again, "There was doubt in her voice; she didn't believe in what she was saying, but how would you ever see that." He paused for a moment and leaned closer to Kaida. "Let me ask you, would you ever question an ethereal if you thought they were wrong?"
Kaida couldn't comprehend the idea of an Ethereal being wrong, in her mind it just didn't happen, they were beings of infinite wisdom and saw reason in all things. She didn't continue the conversation.
Reptile once again broke the silence, "You don't speak much, and I think I understand why."
"You killed my team," she could feel her emotions getting the better of her, just by mentioning her squad the faces of the friends she had lost flashed across her mind.
"I did," said Reptile, "and I know exactly how you feel. Do you wish that you had been with them and fought to the end?"
Kaida nodded.
"Do you hate me and my team more than anything in the galaxy?"
Kaida nodded again.
"Yes, I know that feeling," said Reptile as if recalling a memory, "and you're scared as well; terrified that I might do some manner of horrible thing to you."
Kaida didn't want to look weak in front of her captor, but she had to give him an answer. "Yes."
"Let me put you at ease about that, you will not be harmed in my company, I promise you." Reptile gazed at Kaida, he had a look of total sincerity on his face.
Moments of nothing but listening to the constant low rumble of the ship's engine, the occasional footsteps outside the door and staring into the face of Kaida's imposing captor. Then there came a tapping from the door. "Enter," said Reptile.
Four humans came in. They were normal humans, not hulking space marines, two were male and two were female. They were wearing black and purple robes with fine and intricate trim, each one of them had their right breast exposed and walked barefoot. They knew the routine for undressing Reptile, they lifted the big parts of armour, like the shoulder pads and the back pack, off as a team, and could slip off the smaller pieces around his arms with ease.
Reptile watched the servants briefly, and then looked back at Kaida as he stood up so the humans could remove all his armour. "There is no need for battle dress anymore," he told her, "you should take your armour off as well. We should have something more fitting for you here."
"You want me to undress?" asked Kaida in disbelief.
"It's an order," said Reptile, reaffirming his dominance over the Tau captive.
Thoughts of the violence the space marine would bring down on her if she resisted flooded Kaida's mind; she did what he said without resisting. She released the shoulder catches for her breastplate and caught it before it clattered to the ground; she then did the same for her back armour. It was then a simple task of slipping off her small pathfinder pauldrons and light gauntlets over her gloved hands. That's all it took for Kaida to remove her armour. She looked back at Reptile; he was still being worked on. The hard plates of his armour had been removed. Now the humans were working on a mechanical layer of the armour.
"You are not finished," said Reptile, eyes fixed on Kaida.
One of the human servants spoke up, "Apologies my lord. The interface layer will be off momentarily."
"I was talking to my guest." Reptile's gaze didn't leave his captive, but a smile did creep across his face.
Kaida knew what he wanted, he wanted her to be naked, naked along with him. Is this normal for a space marine? But she didn't hesitate. She pulled off her gloves one by one, and then slid her top over her head. She then worked her boots over her hooves, then her baggy pathfinder trousers. She then stopped with only a vest and shorts covering her decency, waiting for as long as she could for Reptile to say to stop.
Reptile was slipping out of his interface layer with the aid of his servants. Kaida could see his bare body for the first time, she had not seen any anatomical pictures of Space Marines during her education. This could be the first time a Tau has seen a living space marine outside his armour. He was still massive; his entire body was bound in highly developed muscle, which was so well defined by the light glinting off every ripple of his physique. All over his body were small holes; they looked like electrical nodes for interfacing with his armour. "Now you can see me," said Reptile, the servants moved away so Kaida could see Reptile's entire naked form. "What do you think?"
Kaida didn't answer, out of her clothes, she felt more vulnerable than ever.
"The astartes were created to be gods among men," continued Reptile, "and we are, in both presence and combat ability."
One of the female servants spoke, "You are magnificent, my lord."
Kaida still didn't answer; Reptile gave her the order, "Continue undressing, I want to see all of you."
She slowly slipped off her vest and dropped it down, then slid her shorts off her hips, and stepped out of them when they landed on the ground. She stood trying to cover herself with her arms; she was feeling extreme fear at the thought of being so vulnerable, not only that, but Reptile and his servants were now staring at her naked body as if it was a specimen on display in some kind of living museum or a zoo.
"Beautiful," said Reptile with a smile, he seemed to be sincere and Kaida could see now that maybe, just maybe, Reptile wouldn't hurt her.
"She's very small." dismissed one of the female servants. "Her chest is flat and her hips are too thin." The small amount of comfort Kaida got from Reptile left her.
"You speak out of turn," snapped Reptile at the servant. "I'm done with you; you have my leave to go." The human servants swiftly left the room, leaving the armour behind.
The door closed with a slam and when the gust of air blown in by the door sent a chill down the spine of the young Tau pathfinder, she found that the whole atmosphere of the room changed. She was naked and alone with the man that lead the fight that got her entire team killed. He was domineering in his appearance. The way he had been looking at Kaida finally made sense to her; this was how it was going to end. She was going to die when this hulk rapes her, he would crush her, beat her, maybe she would live through it; maybe she would live out her days as Reptile's play thing. This is why she was brought to his cabin, so he could have his way with her. No more fighting for the greater good, no more honour, no more dignity, only shame until death. Kaida felt a tear creep down her face, but she wiped it away quickly so Reptile wouldn't see; then moved her arm quickly back to cover herself. One last look at Reptile was enough, the lump in her throat grew and she could stand the sight of his naked body no more; she pulled her gaze away and closed her eyes, squeezing yet more tears onto her face.
Then warmth, covering, something had been laid over her shoulders. She grasped it and pulled it around herself, covering her body and keeping it warm, it was lined in fur and was a soft and welcome relief against her cold skin. She looked up to see who had given her this gift, it could have only been one person but she could scarcely believe it, she needed to see it. Reptile was standing over her. She looked up at him as he walked over to his footlocker to retrieve a robe of his own. "Thank you," said Kaida softly.
"You were getting cold," said Reptile, "and you are my guest." as he slipped his own robe over his head.
Kaida spoke nervously again, "I'm your prisoner."
Reptile stood in front of Kaida and sat down on the floor, Kaida took a step back to avoid his feet coming forwards. He was just below eye level with her, "I killed your squad, this is true. But I chose to bring you back, and now you are not my enemy."
"You won't hurt me?" asked Kaida.
"I will look after you, for as long as you are under my protection."
"I thought Space Marines were all savages."
Reptile laughed, "Is that what they told you about us in Tau school; what else did they tell you about us?"
"They said you were to be feared in combat, and you worship the human emperor." The smile dropped from Reptile's face. "But you are not a part of the Imperium, so I don't think you do worship the emperor." What she said echoed the words spoken by the ethereal.
"You are right." said Reptile "Do you know who we fight for?"
Kaida very cautiously said "No," as she was unsure as to whether she wanted to know the answer.
"We are called the Knights of Ecstasy, our origins lie in the legion of the Emperor's Children; we are full in our devotion to Slaanesh," explained Reptile.
This meant nothing to Kaida, she just stared blankly at Reptile.
"Maybe you have heard of the forces of Chaos," he continued.
Alarm bells started ringing in her head, "Chaos!" she exclaimed, as she took some steps back from Reptile. She remembered that her teachers had always said that the Water Caste would seek out diplomatic relations with enemies before an engagement; all enemies except, Tyranids, Orks and Chaos.
"Not all Chaos is the same, Kaida" argued Reptile, "they might have taught you about the bloodthirsty forces of Khorne, or the forces of Nurgle who spread decay and disease wherever they go, or maybe the forces of Tzeench who dabble in sorcery and great elaborate schemes. We devote ourselves to Slaanesh and he gives us the greatest pleasures from the most extraordinary sensations imaginable. We do not kill and maim everyone we come across like the other parts of Chaos, and we will not kill you just for being an alien like the Imperium."
The initial shock of the word 'Chaos' had left Kaida, she didn't remember enough from her education to know fully what chaos meant, and she was doubtful that they even told her the full story.
"Kaida," began Reptile with a smile, "You are so young, you can't possibly understand everything Slaanesh can offer you."
"Is Slaanesh your god?" asked Kaida carefully.
"Yes," said Reptile, "but no false god like the God Emperor, Slaanesh and his power is real and divine beyond doubt. Maybe you will hear the music we play in praise of Slaanesh; maybe you will see the creations that are made here in praise of her; maybe you will experience all the pleasures Slaanesh has to offer you."