Title: Angelus Erroneous: Fabricati Diem
Author: Spike
Chapter: Fourteen
And so we left the Wave Serpent behind. Bishop insisted that we had spent too long at the crashed site and the noise we had created will no doubt create unwanted attention. So we carried on along the mountain ridge as quickly as possible.
Not sure why – it wasn't as if we had anywhere to go.
But the thought of that sniper encounter never left me. Sure I wasn't able to bring it up with Deacon watching my back but the thought of someone who was aware of our presence, watching our progress and knowing we exist when we're not supposed to – our singular advantage in this war for survival - was an alarming one.
It was anyone's guess to see how this unexpected third party would have on our mission to stay alive.
Even if we had little left to live for.
The rest of the day progressed quickly. We had made good progress across the long mountain range, attracting little attention from the greenskins. Thus it seemed that Bishop's plan to head this way was bearing fruit.
The mountain range certainly was a large one, being able to cover much distance across it in the space of one afternoon. Above us loomed high mountains that looked steep indeed – It made me wonder what could be hidden up there....
However how much distance we traveled, by the late afternoon, the pace had taken it's toll.
Currently, we had all stopped to rest. Deacon was sitting with his back to a rock and his heavy stubber cradled with an intense grip. Jessie leant against a tree, her face bearing signs of being disinterested – an obvious indication of her Mellow Mood. Xerxes stood keeping watch, his lasgun in hand but his face sullen, no doubt brought about by being threatened by Bishop earlier in the day. But Laertes was pacing in a circle, his face scowling and his lips muttering words under his breath. Bishop meanwhile was scanning the landscape with a viewing scope in hand.
"See anything?" I asked Our Fearless Leader.
"I see.................. Absolutely nothing"came the curt reply.
I groaned. That was before I looked up and noticed Laertes striding towards us a black look across his face.
It was then I groaned even more.
"Bishop!" barked Laertes "Why are we running from the heretics? This is not the will of the God-Emperor!"
"Father" Our Fearless Leader replied calmly "What makes you think we're running away? It's not as if we have any where to go"
"The heathens are down there in the jungle!" the pirest snapped "We're up here in these mountains! We are shrinking back from our sworn duty to the God-Emperor!"
"We're not running away Father" Bishop said "We are merely planning our next move"
"Next move?!" Laertes shouted "What next move I there to make?! The Orks are there and we must bring to absolution! It is the will of the His name!!!"
Bishop paused. Then he turned and faced the priest.
It was then I realised that the rest of the camp had turned silent. Laertes' bellowing had brought all eyes on this drama unfolding between Bishop and the priest.
With the shouting and exasperation, Laertes' face had grown a ferocious red. He looked ready to snap Our Fearless Leader's neck.
And boy wouldn't that be doing us all a favor.
But Bishop didn't bat an eyelid at the angry priest. But then again, being an Imperial Guard lieutenant facing grunts who would rather snap your neck than follow your orders was all part and parcel of the job.
"Tell me something Father" he said slowly "As this afternoon progressed, did you encounter any Orks at all?"
"Of course not!" Laertes bellowed "We've been up here in this mountains whilst the green-skins are done there! We are nowhere near where we need to be!"
"True that" Our Fearless Leader said.
And then he paused.
Laertes fumed as the rest of us gazed in, waiting for what was going to happen next.
The tension was unbearable.
Then, after what seemed like an eternity, Bishop continued:
"Actually I was thinking more along the lines of the noises the Orks make
"The greenskins sure like to make their presence known, right? As such we would've heard them yelling, firing their guns, setting off explosions and generally making as much as possible. Did you hear anything of that kind all afternoon?"
"Funny you should mention that" Xerxes chimed in "I haven't seen any Ork activity of that kind since we discovered the Wave Serpent"
"Obviously we had come in on their off day." Deacon grunted sarcastically.
"I was asking the priest!" Our Fearless Leader barked.
Laertes blinked. Despite his fuming, he still managed to speak:
"Well now that you mention it....No, I haven't heard any activity from the heathens"
"Well then, we haven't been running away then – the enemy has been silent":
And with that he turned away.
I raised an eyebrow.
Silent?
What the hell?
I looked at Laertes – he ground his teeth in disgust before turning away and stalking off. Everyone meanwhile lost interest in the argument and went back to what they were doing.
Leaving me with Bishop.
I blinked, trying to comprehend what I'd just witnessed.
Silent? The Orks being silent?
Impossible! It was unlikely that such a warlike
It may be sign of some relief but not much: there's something about that notion that just didn't sit well.
"What about now?" I asked Our Fearless Leader "Anything shown it's ugly mug?"
Bishop shrugged and lowered his scope.
"Nothing but trees and jungle for miles" he muttered.
"Don't know why you're bothering" I said "It's not we have anywhere to go now do we?"
I chuckled a chuckle that enough cynicism to drive a Shadowsword through. Bishop however, did not laugh.
"Yes we do" he said sternly "We have mission to accomplish"
Upon seeing that he was serious I ceased laughing.
"We are here" Our Fearless Leader went on "To claim this planet for the glory of the Imperium. We may be renegades but that doesn't stop us from doing some good for the God-Emperor"
"You think He cares?!" I yelled "We are all marooned on a planet with no one knowing or caring where we are! Do you really think the God-Emperor will give two creds worth about a bunch of crims on the run?!"
"You got any better ideas?!" Bishop thundered back.
Immediately I fell silent. So did everyone else – now they were looking up at our bickering.
Bishop looked over his shoulder. Realizing he now had an audience, he turned around and sat down, cross-legged with his elbows on his knees and his hands resting under his chin
"Lady and gentlemen" he said "You're probably wondering what Mr. Narc was screaming his guts about"
I mentally cursed as all eyes fell on me. But still no one answered, thus allowing Bishop to continue:
"Well, I have seen some things since arriving on this planet" he said "And it has occurred to me that we have nowhere to go and nowhere to hide."
"You mean you only realized this now?" I growled softly.
No one seemed to hear me as Bishop continued:
Considering we each have a criminal record, which is enough to make the Inquisition raise an eyebrow, and seeing as we're not going to be off this planet any time soon, we may as well make the most of it.
"That being said, what we need a sense of purpose"
"Purpose?" Xerxes spluttered.
I raised an eyebrow – this was the first time since that altercation this morning that Xerxes had spoken out against Our Fearless Leader.
I guess courage truly does come form the oddest places.
Bishop noticed this too.
"That's right, a purpose" he growled "beyond shooting Orks and staying alive!"
"But they're Orks!" Jessie mumbled "They're there to be killed – what more do you need for a purpose?"
"That's right!" Laertes chimed in "This planet is full of heretics that have shunned the God-Emperor and who need us to bring them to light!"
Bishop snapped his fingers.
"Exactly!" he said "Father you've got it in one"
Laertes blinked.
"I have?"
"Yes we have been killing the Orks for so long" Our Fearless Leader went on "So long we should be making more of it.
"So yes the Imperium may not know we're here and most likely doesn't care but if I know one thing is that that the Imperium is always pushing it's boundaries. Whether it be by force in herding hundreds of Space Marines, Imperial Guardsmen or Adeptus Soriatas into battle or through exploration through paying off Rogue Traders or some Navigator house to explore some unknown corner of the galaxy.
"My point is, that it is only a matter of time before we're discovered. Even if we discovered by an exploratory ship or some scout of some kind, it will only be a matter of time before a larger force follows in it's wake."
"So what do we do?" Deacon asked.
"I say we claim this planet for the Imperium!"
My eyes widened in disbelief. Xerxes also looked astonished. The other three exchanged looks.
"Think about it!" Bishop said "If we can kill off enough Orks, then by the time the Imperium will arrive, we'll have done them a great service!"
A stunned silence followed.
Only to be broken by the slow clapping of two hands,
Which happened to be mine.
"Great suggestion" I sneered "Couldn't have thought of a better one. We'll be rescued and we'll become big heroes. We get our own ticker tape parade and I get to drive the cruiser"
"Well there's a first" Bishop snapped back, with sarcasm of his own "It would seem that Mr. Narc has finally agreed to one of my plans"
"I give you credit Bishop" I snarled "You've come up with some far-fetched plans in your time"
"Which have all ended up working one way or another" Our Fearless Leader interrupted.
Well, there was some truth in that but I carried on regardless
"True but out of all your hare-brained plans, this has got to be the most preposterous yet!"
"What, you don't think this is going to work?" Bishop coolly replied "Tell me where you think I'm going wrong. I'll listen"
"But it still won't make a difference" I muttered.
"You got that right, private"
"What make you think this won't work then Narc?" Laertes inquired
"Yeah, out with it" Deacon chimed in.
A cold shiver ran down my back at the gunner's voice but I still carried on.
"Well first, do you really think the Imperium will really come to this planet? We are well beyond the Imperial borderline as it is"
"How far?" Bishop countered.
".......Well that I'm not sure of that" I said slowly
"Really...." Deacon growled
"But!" I went on "We have no communication apparatus whatsoever! And the one's I found on the escape pods and your ship showed nothing in range!"
"So what?" Our Fearless Leader snapped "If we can't reach the Imperium, we'll make it come to us"
I blinked. Regardless I went on:
"And that's the next problem. You really think the Imperium will reach this planet?"
"It's not impossible" Bishop said "The Imperium is sending explorers out all the time. If it isn't a large military force than it's a sanctioned Rogue Trader or a Missionary"
"Indeed" Laertes chimed in "You'll be surprised to know how far the Imperial Creed can reach"
But how long will that take?" I argued "It could take years!"
"Well then" Our Fearless Leader grinned "That gives us plenty of time to wipe this planet clean of green-skins, right?"
"Okay then, suppose this plans works: The planet is extinguished of Orks and the Imperium arrives. Then what?"
"We get acknowledged for our efforts and we get pardoned"
"Bullshit!" I shouted "We're trapped on an Ork World! Do you have any idea what will happen to us if we're discovered?
"We won't be pardoned at all! Most likely we will be executed as criminals! And at best the Imperium won't recognize our heroic deeds immediately: No, they will see us more as a threat in being on an Ork world for so long!"
"Meaning?" Xerxes asked
"They will see as coming into contact with the Greenskin genes and bacteria. This planet will be terraformed and eradicated of any trace of the Orks. This then leaves us to the mercy of Imperial scrutiny"
"What will they do?" the Rogue Trader inquired.
"They will either kill us or keep us in quarantine" I replied "And considering we're all wanted as criminals, it would be easier to dispose of us than hang onto us
"Heroes or not"
A silence hung over our group, each of us looking thoughtful over the the point I had made.
Even Deacon seemed to take heed
But it didn't take long for Bishop to clear his throat.
"You know" I challenged "I figured that being an Imperial Guard lieutenant you world know about shit like that"
"I'm surprised that you know about this" Bishop growled "You seem to know an awful lot for a Grunt"
I felt a cold chill run down my spine. Although I couldn't see him, I could sense Deacon was readying his heavy stubber.
"You know what they say" I said "You gotta know a lot in order to survive here in this universe"
"So tell me genius" Our Fearless Leader growled "If my idea is hopeless, then what are we supposed to do? Sit around and wait for death to come and claim us all?
"If you've got any better ideas than out with them!"
Immediately all eyes turned to me, waiting for my ultimate response.
"If you have better idea for survival than let's hear it" Bishop snarled.
And it was then that something snapped.
"All right then!" I burst out "I have a better idea! I'm quitting!"
Xerxes and Jessie blinked. Laertes and Deacon hardened their faces. Bishop however chuckled.
"So that's your idea of survival?"he sneered "For all of us? Having you go out on your own?
"Well I can see how having one less to worry about helps me..."
"Narc?" Jessie asked "Are you for real?"
"Bah!" Laertes snapped "He's running away! He's a coward, shirking from his duty to the God-Emperor!"
"And what if I am?!" I shouted "He hasn't been exactly generous with giving me some lucky breaks!"
"You heathen!" Laertes roared
"SILENCE!" bellowed Bishop.
Immediately the bickering abruptly with the sound of Our Fearless Leader's voice (how does he do it?)
He then fixed me with a steely gaze.
"So Narc you think you can do better in making decisions and progress?"
I nodded.
"Well then" he growled "Prove it"
"You bet I will!"
"Okay then" Bishop snapped "Everyone? He's in charge now"
WHAT?!?
Everyone was taken aback by this sudden announcement. So much we all staretd speaking at once.
"What? No way! Are you serious?!"
Bishop raised his hands for silence.
"You heard me" he announced "I'm relinquishing my command. My. Narc thinks he can do a better job than me at keeping you alive so you can now follow him"
I spluttered in disbelief but no words came out.
"I'm going to hunt down those Orks and claim this planet for the God-Emperor" Bishop declared "As for the rest of you, have him guide you out of here"
And with that, he turned and headed down the slope, to the jungle.
This left me with four pairs of eyes all turned towards me, all looking for guidance, answers and a plan so we can all keep living.
None of which I had.
Oh, this just keeps getting better and better....