"How long before it dawns on us that the world we see no longer reflects the world we inhabit, that we are blind?"- 'Blindsight'
They were letting them out of the manufactory, the orks had been beaten back, and the masked guardsmen were allowing the refugees to go back to their homes. Jericus looked around him at the faces of men, women, and children as they walked, some in tears, some elated at the nightmare finally being over, but most seemed blank faced as he was.
They were being escorted through the ruins of their city by the grim masked shepherds, the guardsmen kept a distance to the crowd's sides, front, and back as the column of humanity trudged through the war-torn streets. People were allowed to split off from the column where their homes were located, if their homes were still standing, the rest were allowed to do as they pleased only told to report to designated shelters at the proper time should they have nowhere to go for the night.
Jericus soon found himself going down familiar yet completely alien streets as he made his way home. Alone save for two quiet masked shadows he made his way over rubble covered streets and through alleyways when road he had known his whole like could not be taken. The guardsmen behind him made no comment and he had no particular idea as to why they were following him a lone civilian through the wreckage, but he didn't question it, he was on a mission to get back home.
Broken and crumbled buildings loomed in the distance like the ruins of a lost civilization, and Jericus reflected that in a way they were. Finally cresting a particularly big hill of a road, one he had walked up everyday after his manufactorum shifts Jericus finally got a view of his hab. Blown to pieces only support struts and a crumbled wall or two remained of what was once his home, last he had seen it was at a time very much like this. Except he was running desperately toward it as the war raged all around him before the guardsmen forced him into the escort column, at that time when he had crested the hill Jericus had watched as it was blown up in the hail of artillery fire, his family still inside.
He had known they were inside because they had always gotten home before him, his father and mother owned a small shop down the road from the hab so they would have gotten there the moment the public announcement had said to get back to places of habitation. That announcement had been made before the orks had overrun the defensive lines set up by the guard, and by the time the new one had been made it would have been too late for them to get out.
His little brother and sister had to have been there too, education centers had been shut down and they had been sent home even earlier in the day. It hadn't been a fiery explosion as he imagined it would be, no it seemed as though the building had just crumbled in on itself as barely seen streaks ploughed into it.
Jericus had watched that from a distance, now he wanted to get closer, he walked down the hill toward the wreckage. Finally getting there his footsteps crumped through the rubble and debris, he glimpsed the occasional body lying half-buried and covered in dust giving their skin an ashy look. He looked away from each and every one of them out of fear that he'd recognize one, though he had come for the closure he didn't want to find it that way.
Coming to the roughly where he knew his families apartment was he stopped, there was nothing but the debris from the building, any family heirlooms completely buried beneath tons of rockcrete and metal. Jericus breathed in the brisk Surris air and looked around in all directions from where his home had been. He tried to picture his past as he looked around, but all he could see was the rubble of it, and the two skull-masked guardsmen a short distance off looking vaguely in his direction.
Finally his sight found the horizon of his broken city, the sun was starting downward in the sky, its rays cascading through the broken bones of buildings, reflecting off of the ever present ice of Surris, it was a moment of beauty in the devastation. Taking a deep shivering breath Jericus paid his respects to the rubble.
It was the feeling of the air against his naked face that woke him up, not the noise of guardsmen working just outside the medical tent, or the sounds of far-off weapons-fire, no it was the fact that his mask was gone. He mulled over how wrong it felt to be free of the stifling comfort of the korps-issue breathing apparatus. Looking down at himself he could see that his wounds were dressed and that he was naked from the waist up, the thin sheets having been kicked off in his sleep apparently. Placing his right hand to his right eye he felt for what was left of the organ, only it was then that he remembered he didn't have a right hand anymore either.
So it came as quite a shock when he finally noticed the simple augmetic replacement that was now clinking against the equally bulky augmetic optic he now sported in place of his original eye. Sitting up abruptly he put the arm down placing it into his view to study it, strange thing was he could feel the limb, he didn't know if this was phantom feeling or artificial but he didn't really care at the moment.
Using his left arm he began to probe at the limb, it was simple, ball joints, and solid construction it replaced his entire arm including his shoulder now also a ball joint connected to the rest of his body permanently. The point at which augmetic and organic met seemed a fused mass, somewhat ugly to look at, the skin still red and puckered at the point of connection. Jericus let out a deep breath, the limb reminded him of Magos Chevel's own.
"Oh, it's good to see you're finally awake," Jericus looked up to see the cog-girl in question walk into the tent which he now realized he was the sole occupant of.
"Hope you like the arm and the optic, they're a few of my spares," she said hoping to break his silence. It took him a moment of breathing to finally find his voice, a few hundred thoughts running through his mind at once. Mainly how he rated to get augmetic replacements, and also how he was alive and from what he could feel in pretty good shape.
"Um, what happened after this trooper was incapacitated," was his first question.
The cog-girl smiled at him thoughtfully. "You blanks, always so concerned about the mission, well if you must know we all jumped out the window. Our Randon friends managed to land us on one of the upper levels of the hive where we were able to vox command about the situation. At the moment your fire-team is on standby waiting for your recovery, and being debriefed, same as everyone who went on the mission."
Jericus looked down at his new arm, opening and closing his fist. "How…"
"I owed 63 a favor, and had more than enough spares. They're a little bulky, but sturdy, just what a strapping Korpsman like you needs for his line of work." Seeming to have read his mind she responded. "Anyway, how do they feel? It can be a bit jarring at first, your new arm should be able to feel pressure, but not temperature or much other sensation other than any phantom feeling that is."
Jericus thoughtfully rotated and stretched the new limb, getting the hang of it and its ability to rotate 360 degrees at the joints. Trying his new eye though he found the augmetic seemed to be unresponsive. "The arm is fine, but I don't think I know how to work the eye."
"Oh, it can be a bit tricky to get used to at first, my bad for not explaining," she stifled a snort of laughter. "Your new optic has a few different vision modes, low-light, regular, heat, various magnifications and a few other features I'll let you find out about on your own. It's connected to your fleshy brain, so the mental commands may be a bit slower than what I'm able to do. You have to actively think about the command to activate the modes, start slowly, think about how you would normally see and it'll happen. With enough practice it'll become second nature and you'll hardly have to think to make the adjustments at all,"
Pausing for another moment Jericus thought about how it felt to open his eye, how he viewed the world. A barely heard soft whirring sound emanated from his augmetic optic as the lens opened, and suddenly he could see again, his mind connecting the stimuli gathered from the optic and his natural eye, and his vision was as it had been, as if he hadn't lost his eye at all. Though once he thought about that fact a sudden pain flared up where his right eye had been forcing him to grimace and the augmetic to shut involuntarily. He put his hand up to where the pain was, clutching the right side of his face, though only the clanking of the composite parts of the augmetics was heard and the pain continued on for another moment before fading abruptly as it had come on.
An intake of breath to his right drew his attention back to the cog-girl. "That may happen from time to time, baseline bodies have a bit of a hard time adjusting, especially if the body part was lost due to a traumatic event. You may have phantom pains from time to time, but that should lessen the more you get used to the augmetics," she said soothingly.
Another few breaths and Jericus found he was able to open the augmetic again, to see without the pain creeping up on him like before.
"This trooper is ready to be debriefed when its superiors are ready," he said after a moment of thought.
"Yes, I should probably let 63 know that you're awake, you know there's been a lot of talk about you over the past two days you've been out. No one else can remember what happened after breeching the control room prior to our rapid exit, but you were awake and it looked like you'd been through one heck of a fight," the cog-girl said, curiosity lacing her tone. "Anyway, I'll go let him know and he should be in here soon."
She turned quickly leaving Jericus alone with his thoughts for however long it would take Watchmaster B-63 to get to him. Glancing around he noticed that the tent he occupied was fairly small, just the cot he occupied, a medical tray on a stand to his right along with his war-gear stowed away neatly, his mask gone the hole punched through it when he lost his eye probably ruining its integrity. Its absence concerned him greatly and he sincerely hoped that he would get a replacement; he wasn't sure how much longer he could be without the surrogate face.
The rustling of the canvas material of the tent brought his attention to his approaching Watchmaster, the 82nd veteran looked no worse for wear, his uniformed appearance gave nothing away as he walked up to his wounded subordinate.
"Kerelia informs me that your augmetics have integrated successfully," Jericus used his right arm to snap off a sincere salute, both out of training and to answer B-63. The veteran chuckled in response, saluting him back and putting him back at ease. "Well it's good to see that you're well… maybe well enough to explain what exactly happened up there. It has a lot of the higher-ups understandably concerned trooper S-1049, and to be honest I have to agree with them. Out of everyone on that mission you were the only one to have purportedly stayed conscious long enough to sustain injury from what we now are certain was a rough psyker. Do you have anything to say in your defense?"
"Sir, this trooper did engage the enemy, it remembers the rest of its comrades falling unconscious, and it then proceeded to fire upon the hostile. The target had some sort of personal shield and then disarmed this trooper taking away its primary weapon, this trooper engaged the enemy in melee combat afterward. It was incapacitated by the enemy, who then escaped via air-car, sir this trooper believes that you know the rest," Jericus breathed out heavily. He knew what B-63 was implying, anyone resistant to the powers of a psyker was often suspect of being witches themselves.
"Aye, I know the rest trooper," B-63 leaned in closely. "To be honest with you I'm grateful that you essentially saved us, even though you were defeated you managed to force the enemy to retreat and probably saved us all from being killed in our sleep."
Jericus stayed silent, studying the Watchmaster's battle scarred skull-mask, and it seemed to be set in a rictus grin, making the man seem slightly off-kilter.
"But, as I said before everyone is worried about this, and it seems that we all have good reason to be. Very few individuals can resist that kind of witchcraft, well very few who aren't tainted by the warp themselves anyway. They want the regiment's sanctioned psyker to examine you for signs of taint trooper; if you have anything you'd like to tell me now would be the time. I can't help you once the examination is done," B-63 stated calmly.
Jericus paused for a moment. "I remember the witch saying that I was a blank… not in reference to the other regiments nickname for us sir, he said it meant I was a null. I have no idea what he was talking about sir, but I would never turn my back on the Emperor, or my comrades," the last was stated with conviction, misgivings he may have had with the regiment at first had faded.
Looking thoughtful the Watchmaster turned, his hands behind his back. "I think that's the first time I've heard you refer to yourself in the first person trooper. As for what you said… I believe you, but we have to abide by protocol in this case. You can come in now," he beckoned.
Through the tent flap a man in robes walked, he was tall and proud looking, with a shaved head, bandages were wrapped around his eyes, and in his right hand he carried a simple stave with a worn gun-metal-grey Imperial Aquila atop it.
"Alright Watchmaster where is this trooper of yours," he stopped abruptly. "Oh, this isn't good, something is very wrong here."
Jericus had the distinct feeling that his situation was not going well at that comment and the way that the man seemed to stumble once he got the first part of his statement out. Watchmaster B-63 looked worried as well and despite his earlier statement of believing him Jericus could see him subtly reaching for his laspistol.
"Is he tainted," B-63's tone was slightly strained and Jericus thought he looked ready to put a lasbolt in his head at any moment such was a korpsmans duty.
"N-no, but this is something that warrants attention, it's very disturbing, I can't see him, as a matter of fact since coming into this tent I can't see anything. My connection is being blocked, I've only heard of this in whispers, Watchmaster your trooper is a psychic null. Not particularly powerful granted, but a null nonetheless." The psyker continued haltingly as though he was having trouble.
"What does that mean for him," B-63 asked relaxing and letting his hand fall from the pistol grip.
"I'm afraid I don't know Watchmaster, he isn't a danger to anyone except possibly those touched by the warp like myself. Now with your permission may I please go, being in his presence is… uncomfortable for me," the psyker seemed eager to be out of the tent.
"Yes you may, I'll send the report along shortly," the psyker nodded before feeling his way back out through the tent entrance. Watchmaster B-63 turned back to his subordinate.
"What does this mean sir?"
"Well S-1049, as far as I'm concerned, you're not tainted and therefore you're fit for duty," B-63 said clearly.
"But, what about this trooper's condition," Jericus questioned a hint of trepidation in his voice.
"Not any concern of mine trooper, after the missions events I consider it an asset. As for command, I don't think they'll really care; they have more pressing matters than the condition of one korpsman to worry about. My report will simply conclude that you are free of taint and fit to fight, I'm sure their curiosity will be sated and you'll continue on as you were," the Watchmaster was obviously on his side, though Jericus had no idea why.
"Why are you helping this trooper sir," his curiosity had gotten the better of him.
Watchmaster B-63 sighed exasperatedly. "I wouldn't question it too much if I were you S-1049, suffice it to say that I happen to like you and feel a bit indebted to you since you did save us all, so consider us even."
"Yes Watchmaster," Jericus replied in deference.
"So, with all of that out of the way I expect you to be back with us for a patrol tomorrow, there's no rest for the weary as I'm sure you know. Though we did miss the main show, it appears that the offensive was a success, as we speak the rebels and traitor elements of the PDF have been crushed in the main spire. Now all that's left is to mop up the leftovers, the rebellions back has been broken and they're really running now."
Turning to leave he stopped. "Oh, I almost forgot, you're going to be needing this," he threw a new gasmask into Jericus' lap, skull motif already attached. Jericus looked up and gave his Watchmaster a nod, received one in return and then B-63 was gone, tent flaps swishing shut in his wake.
Looking down at his new mask Jericus noticed that the skull motif was not in fact new, it was his, he could tell by the slash running vertically through the right eye of it. Where the sword had punched through, stroking the mark thoughtfully he again reached up to his new augmetic idly tapping it with his new arm a soft clink, clink resounding through the space. He let out a tired sigh, this was only his first campaign, and he had already gotten major scars.
Hearing the tent swish open again he looked up expecting to see the Watchmaster again, but the figure that greeted him was definitely not B-63, too short and even through the heavy Death Korps uniform recognizably feminine. He knew who it was instantly, and if he was honest he was surprised, and yet not surprised at the same time that she had come to visit him.
"The Watchmaster said that it was okay to come in and visit you, he also said that I should bring you along to where the rest of the squad is billeted," her voice was monotone to the untrained ear, but he could tell that she was worried, maybe a little shocked.
"That bad huh," he said having picked up on her concerned tone and barely detectable glances in the direction of his new body parts. She seemed taken aback for a moment, though quickly recovered coming closer to him and kneeling so that her masked face was level with his bare one. She traced his new eye, the lens that served as its lid opening and closing of its own accord and Jericus tried to focus his augmetic. Then she moved onto the rest of his face idly tracing it for another brief moment before taking her hand away.
"Not exactly as I remember it, but close enough," he noticed that she wasn't speaking in the third person. "I was worried that you'd die S-1049, you weren't in good condition when we arrived at the field-base. I'm not sure how I would have taken it, and I don't want to find out." She had sat down on the side of the cot facing him.
He reached out and gently as he could grabbed her hand in his own, it was only after he had done it that he realized it was his augmetic one that was holding hers and probably a bit tighter than was comfortable, but she didn't make a comment, she only tightened her own grip.
"I'll always remember S-1050, nothing in this galaxy will make me fail to keep that promise, I'm not going to die on you," he said trying to comfort her, he could tell that she was more upset than she let on.
She simply nodded and then stood up and walked around the bed to where his war-gear was stashed. "I'll help you get into your uniform, and with your injuries it'll be easier this way."
"Okay, I was a righty, I think I'll have to get used to my new arm," he acquiesced as she brought his under shirt over his head. Next came the layer of chemical resistant clothing, his trench-coat, carapace armour, and then his webbing. The final pieces were his mask and helmet, the mask he insisted he put on himself, finding that his new hand was a bit clumsy but suitable for the task and that the mask fit surprisingly well over his augmetic eye easily allowing him a good view through the lens. Last but not least Fenria placed his helmet atop his head clasping it in place and then pausing for a moment to trace the scar left down the skull motifs right eye.
He caught her hand with his flesh and blood one gently and brought it down to rest at her side, not in anger; he couldn't explain why, maybe shame.
He took a breath. "How do I look?"
She chuckled. "Like a blank," the nickname was not said with any malice and in fact despite recent events Jericus found that coming from Fenria he didn't mind it all that much.
"Good, now lead the way, you said I was to go with you to where the squad was right," he said.
"Right this way S-1049," the duo walked through the exit of the tent Fenria leading the way as they began to traverse the field-base. Various troopers were roaming around some getting back from operations, some heading out, and some on base for R&R. It was a veritable tent city set up in an open plaza and guarded around the perimeter by various emplaced heavy weapons.
Soon enough their squad came into view, the mix of 121st, 145th, and 82nd troopers making the scene diverse and a little odd with the mismatch of red, on green, on dark grey.
B-80 was playing cards with Xavier, his buddies, and some Randon trooper Jericus vaguely recalled meeting, her eyes suggested she was from Surris. He decided to go over to them, maybe join in on the game they had going, he was a little off as he walked, the weight of his arm new to him along with slight pain from his stitched up slash wounds. As he neared the group Xavier stood up from the small crate they had been using as a table and walked straight up to him.
Without warning the man threw his arms around him in a tight hug, surprising Jericus greatly, he certainly hadn't expected that, had his condition been worse than Fenria had let on? The thought was put off quickly though once he felt the slight discomfort of his wounds acting up.
"It's good to see you're up and about man, mind if I steal him from you for a moment," he said turning to Fenria, she shook her head in response and Xavier gave her a warm smile. "Hey guys check it out it's the blank of the hour, kept on fighting when our sorry butts got knocked out," he stated to the group jovially.
There was a slightly mocking applause in good humor as the group of guardsmen clapped with gusto. "What say the hero joins us for a game?" B-80 said from his seat, "could use someone else that has a good pokerface, you're all too easy."
"Only because you're wearing a mask you blank bastard," Eli stated in jest.
"That's Corporal blank bastard to you trooper," B-80 shot back. "Anyway, S-1049, S-1050 get in on this, the three of us stand to make a killing."
"Sure, sounds like a good time," Jericus replied steadily, Xavier then lead him and Fenria to the group pulling up two smaller crates for them to have a seat. The game began again Hack dealing out a new hand to all the players and everyone began the process of betting and bluffing. Rations were the currency of choice, the small nutrient and protein packed bars none to tasty, but for the game they would do.
"So, can we see it?" the question was posed by Eli, and from the looks the rest of his squad mates were giving it was clear that they were curious too.
Jericus sighed for a moment, he knew what he was asking to see, and after all they had been staring at his right arm since he had sat down. Placing his cards face down he rolled up his sleeve so that all could see the augmetic arm in all its glory.
"Thought it'd be fancier," Hack commented. "For field medicae training they let us see some examples incase we ever had to work around one. From what I remember that's an older augmetic."
"I think it's awesome, looks just like the one Magos Chevel has," Eli said with enthusiasm.
"It was actually one of her spares," Jericus responded.
"Whoa really, Can I touch it?"
Jericus looked up with confusion and feeling a little disturbed if he was honest with himself, at Eli's request and his look Cain felt the need to interject to clear things up.
"Eli has somewhat of an obsessive crush on the cog-girl," he scratched his stubble. "It's a little weird, I wouldn't let him near the arm if I were you," he added as an afterthought.
Looking back at the now slightly embarrassed but still hopeful Eli Jericus gave him an answer drawing his new limb away slowly. "In light of that I'll have to say no to the request," the man frowned but didn't press the issue and everyone seemed to erupt into laughter at his expense.
"Leave the lad be," B-80 interjected between chuckles. "Better men than him have fallen for Magos Chevel before, and much harder I may add."
Now that had caught some attention, Jericus had noticed that the Watchmaster and Magos Chevel seemed to have some history between them, especially with the way the Watchmaster constantly seemed to be concerned with her plans and her person in general, and if he remembered right B-80 had even told him as much, though the details of the mission were a little hazy now.
The question would certainly nag at him, and he could tell that Fenria felt the same, but neither voiced any further curiosity about it, B-63 though good-natured probably wouldn't like them snooping about such a subject too much.
Time passed quickly as the card game progressed, Jericus' wasn't really paying too much attention to it though, which showed by the fact that by far he was not fairing so well and losing quite often. His mind preoccupied by other recent events and more specifically how his gut feared for his future.
He folded during his ninth round and excused himself to go and relax, everyone bid him goodbye, Fenria followed him. The pair found a spot overlooking the sprawl of city 32 from what seemed the edge of the plaza, the height being great even though they were only on the middle level of the hive city. Jericus sat on a bench that in better times would have been used by those who wanted to enjoy the view offered in-front of them, he had to admit that even through the grit and damage caused by the war city 32's sheer size was somewhat breathtaking.
Fenria sat next to him, about and arms length away taking in the view herself, simply just there as she always was. Ambient sounds echoed through the city, mostly those of war, though even these were almost drowned out by what was probably the daily din of a hive, some sort of humming and the indistinct sound of people, voices, footsteps, and other such mundane echoes of a living city.
"It's quite a view isn't it," Jericus opened up.
"Yes it is," Fenria reached for something in her webbing. "I meant to give this to you earlier, but I didn't know if you'd wanted after… well you remember," she produced his trench-axe.
Jericus looked at the weapon that was used to take his arm, the weapon that saved his life, he reached out with his augmetic arm taking the axe by its handle and holding it out. Studying it for the moment it was obvious that Fenria had cleaned it up, slowly he put it in its place on his belt, decision made.
The sight from their position flared into brilliance as the glass windows on distant spires glittered with the light of both explosions and the dust choked rays of the Tartarian sun. Moments of beauty flared up even as the city was wounded and continuing to tear at itself in the final death rattle of the campaign, and even with all the horrors he was sure he would have to face Jericus felt as though he was supposed to be here, even though he didn't want to be.
A/N: Whelp there's another chapter for you, things for Jericus and co.'s first campaign have wound down and soon it'll be time to move on. Kindly review, don't be shy now get me over fourteen and I'll be happy, I think that's a reasonable request, new reviewers welcome! I do so enjoy those who leave multiple reviews as well, but new names will be welcome. Don't stop at thirteen though, that'd be bad luck. See you next week.
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