Iplanen had decided. He was ready to make the jump to a shell.

Simokh had given him… not an ultimatum, but simply an observation. If he did not take biotransference his studies would not be able to progress any further, because he needed to go to Mandragora and it did not have a breathable atmosphere, let alone things like water and food. Also, he would be required to swear loyalty to the Sautekh dynasty.

Iplanen had though long and hard about that second before deciding that he would officially change his loyalties. Luminous had been doing well, even prospering under the Stormlord's hand. Hope was a beautiful planet and very well run. The proof was in the pudding, as the saying went, and he saw no reason to hold back any further.

He did want to design his shell himself, though, and it was extremely custom made. He wanted to maintain the same form he had as a tech priest, which was what he'd made for himself and he was accustomed to. Jan helped him with that, assisting him in turning dreams into reality.

What they made was a work of art. Very similar to his Mechanicus body, it was a creation of cold bronze. Iplanen might have preferred gold, aesthetically, but that shade/material was reserved for the Phaeron and potentially, the King. Bronze was a very decent substitute and while there was no longer a need for it, Iplanen had the face modeled to match his mask. Enamelling was a common adornment, so he had red enamel on the head and shoulders of the shell, mimicking his Mechanicus clothing. And he kept his red robes, so when the transference was done, he could wear them again.

The process itself felt strangely like nothing. A moment of heat and pressure, followed by a quick adjustment to his new body. His soul was captured in a globe of ghost wood, then attached to his body with strict instructions not to disturb it. Apparently, it would gradually melt away and vanish completely in a week, as his body and mind reclaimed his errant soul. As he pulled on his red robes, Jan made an odd sound and Iplanen glanced at him.

"Sorry. Just thinking that unless someone looked closely, they probably wouldn't even realize you're not a normal Tech Priest." Did he think so? To Iplanen, the eyes of green fire would be a dead giveaway that something abnormal was going on. But even then, his thoughts would have gone to exotic implants first, not a full body conversion. So Jan did have a point.

"That could be useful. But can you show me glyphs?" Iplanen really wanted to see that. To his fascination, he registered the patterns in a way that was not really sight, part of the interstitial network? He knew what the necrons called it and that they were often communicating to each other that way, but it was fascinating to suddenly be included in it. "This will take some getting used to."

"Absolutely! It takes everyone a while to learn the glyphs. And if you want, you can learn to make entire poems with them and even puns and other hidden messages." Really, how interesting. Although Iplanen probably wouldn't bother besides learning the basics. He was not particularly gifted with linguistics.

After that, though, things did not go exactly as planned.

"I have received a request from the Stormlord… given your abilities, he would like you to put aside going to Mandragora for a time and go to Hive World Antioch instead. Are you aware of what is being done there?" Simokh said. Iplanen nodded as Jan tilted his head to one side, flashing runes of negation. "That is where we have sent the new STC, the planet that is being dedicated to the building of the Short Knives."

"Oh, that planet! I remember now. What is happening there?" Jan asked and Simokh explained.

"We have met with great success. They are producing Short Knives, albeit without the gauss flayers, those we are fitting them with later." Yes… gauss flayer technology was something the necrons were quite protective of. Also, given how incredibly difficult they could be and how dangerous factory defects were, it made sense to keep them in necron and Hopian facilities. "It's going so well that we're moving them up to actual Doom Scythe production and also, civilian grade shells." Oh really? "We're going to be switching Hope shell manufacturing over to military grade ones very soon. Perhaps within the year."

"Excellent news. I am curious though, how will they be styled?" Jan asked, which was not what would have occurred to Iplanen. "Will we be making them look more human? Or will we continue with the original styling, just making it slightly more distinct so pwi-Necrons will be immediately recognizable?" Hm, that was actually a rather intriguing question.

"That has been brought up… our preliminary plan is that we will have two designs available, one adhering to a more human pattern, the other a classical necron design. Warriors will be able to pick which they prefer." Oh, that was a good idea. Iplanen wondered which would be more popular. It was hard to say, given that warriors did tend to like the skeleton motif. They might be considered more intimidating and martial than a more human version.

"So you wish us to help Hive Antioch to expand their manufacturing?" Iplanen asked, finding the thought rather pleasing. While it would be nice to go Mandragora to continue their studies, this sounded like an extremely valuable project. Simokh nodded. "I would be pleased to accept this assignment."

"I as well… we will have plenty of time to go to Mandragora later, and we're better suited to this than most Crypteks." Yes. The Technomancers of Hope were extremely well versed in human technology but they were the exception, not the rule. And even they were used to Hopian level tech… understanding the limitations and difficulties Antioch faced would be taxing for them. Iplanen knew those limitations extremely well and Jan was nearly as good, after spending so much time on Luminous. Simokh made a small glyph-poem that Iplanen could not read yet.

(it was a poem commending their dedication to duty)

"I am pleased to hear it. You will depart within the week, with the next troop transport." Excellent! Iplanen was actually looking forward to it. There would be many Mechanicus tech priests there and also another STC, along with challenging and worthwhile projects.

It sounded like an excellent time.

Ko'Shoka sighed internally as the meeting began.

A large number of the residents of their tiny colony were gathering around a large fire. Representatives for Water, Air, Fire and Earth had all been picked and would speak. Others would be allowed to talk, but only after the unofficial leaders of the community had said their piece. Ko'Shoka had taken command of the Fire Caste some time ago, so he would be speaking for them.

I wish we had an Ethereal. If only one of the Ethereal Caste were present, they wouldn't need to do this. Whatever dictate they made would be carried out without question. Alas, without the Ethereals they needed to decide themselves and there were hard decisions to make indeed.

They started with minor matters, a report from each of the Caste leaders on what they'd been working on. Ko'Shoka's report dealt entirely with the Flesh Rippers. The poison bait the necrons had made was doing well but unfortunately, some of the wretched things actually seemed smart enough not to eat it. Either they were really that intelligent or some of them had an aversion to eating anything that was not their own kills, it was hard to say. But there was still plenty of work for the Fire Caste. Still, they were overall doing well and rarely losing any cattle now.

The Earth Caste leader had the most voluminous report, talking about their agricultural growth and the prospects of the harvest. He had the largest group of Tau beneath his command and they were very busy, building homes and irrigation systems and all the things that would eventually turn this planet into a true home. Some of the Fire Caste would lend them muscle, at times, but by and large they were handling it themselves.

The Water Caste was primarily handling interactions with the necrons. That made their report the sparsest, as except for Nuhkes, the necrons wanted nothing to do with them. They did have quite a lot to say about their interactions with Nuhkes though, who apparently found them charming and talkative. Ko'Shoka sighed internally. Sometimes, the Water Caste could be too gregarious for their own good.

The Air Caste had nothing at all to say except to bring up the topic that was dearest to their minds.

"Will we be permitted to take mates outside of our Caste?" THAT was the loaded gun in the room. Ko'Shoka rubbed his forehead as there was an uncomfortable silence.

The problem was that the necrons had not intended to start a colony when they had taken Tau prisoners. They had honestly intended to just ransom them back. As a result, they had not taken an even mix of the Castes or sexes.

The Caste in the best position was the Earth Caste. Almost evenly split between male and female, they were also the most numerous, over three hundred individuals. Second was the Fire Caste. With more males than females, they were still in a reasonable position, a hundred strong. Water Caste had a problem… they were the administrators and diplomats. Only twenty of them had been swept up and they were largely male, with only three females in their number. Still, they did at least have females.

The Air Caste, however, was in a terrible state. Just a few fighter pilots that had happened to be taken, there were three of them and they were all female. If they were not permitted to find mates elsewhere, the Air Caste would cease to exist on Yanta'Kelosh. And from the mumblings of the Earth Caste, if the Water Caste was not permitted to take outside mates, they would have a more protracted but no less certain end. Three females would not be enough to give them genetic diversity.

And yet.

"This is forbidden by the Ethereal Caste and the Greater Good," the leader of the Water Caste finally said. The Earth Caste leader did not want to speak at all on this topic, as he and his were the least affected. Ko'Shoka decided he needed to voice his opinion.

"The Ethereal Caste never imagined a scenario where an entire Caste might come to an end. Two of them, if we include yours. I do not think that is the way of the Greater Good." Ko'Shoka said firmly. There were many nods, but also stares of contempt. Of all the leaders, he was the least respected for being the youngest and also a 'hot head'. Ko'Shoka wasn't sure how he'd gotten that reputation.

(he'd completely forgotten the utterly insane challenge he'd issued to a necron when they arrived over a minor matter)

(it had actually worked out well for him as it had been a pwi-necron who admired his chutzpah)

"This is an iron clad decree of the Ethereals. There is no doubt of their intentions. If we do not follow it, can it be said we are still following the Greater Good?" One of the Earth Caste, not their leader, said. It wasn't surprising, the leader of the Earth Caste really did not want to speak on this matter so the others would do it for him. And despite that…

"How dare you speak! Your Caste is the best among us." The Air Caste leader flared back. Ko'Shoka groaned internally as the Water Caste leader tried to calm the waters.

"Please, Ma'Elsha, you know the Earth Caste must be allowed to speak even if they are least affected. It is not fair to consign them to silence." Oh no, don't bring up the word 'fair'.

"It is not fair to consign us to a barren existence," one of the other Air women opined. "How is the Greater Good served by this?" It was a good question.

"It is the place of the Ethereals to judge what is for the Greater Good, but they are not here," Ko'Shoka observed. "So we must be the arbiters. We must take this duty upon ourselves." He sensed a great deal of disagreement to that statement and hardened his tone. "Do you truly disagree? Will we just go without making decisions, without exercising thought? How long can we continue in that manner?"

"This is how we return to the Mont'au." One of the oldest of the Earth Caste said. Ko'Shoka ground his teeth together and wanted to retort, but held himself back. He would only hurt his own point, now.

"The Mont'au… I have mentioned it to the necron Nuhkes. He pointed out that such conflicts arise from lack of resources. This planet is vast and fertile and there are only five hundred of us. We shall not have to worry about such things for many generations," one of the younger Fire Caste put in diffidently. He got several dirty looks, and Ko'Shoka understood why… he was taking it very literally but Mont'au was also considered a state of mind.

"It pains me to say this but in terms of simple practicality, I support Ko'Shoka's position. We cannot refuse to make decisions, no matter how hard they might be." The Earth Caste leader said and there was less disagreement when he said it. Ko'Shoka was resigned to it but it was still annoying, how his opinions were treated. "I suggest we put this to the vote. Who shall be the tiebreaker?" Hm.

"I know it is difficult but I suggest that you be the tiebreaker, as the one least affected." Ko'Shoka suggested and there were no true objections to that although the Air Caste didn't like it. But it seemed the only reasonable choice, the Earth Caste leader had taken no true position.

"Very well… white stones for permission to chose mates outside our Caste, black for not." All the leaders were given two stones and placed their choice in the box. Ko'Shoka instantly picked the white. It was bad for their society, letting Water and Air die, but it was also grossly unfair to the Air females who wanted mates and children.

(Ko'Shoka knew that considering individual fairness should not be valid under the Greater Good)

(fortunately, he thought they went together in this case)

When the contents of the box were revealed, to his surprise, it was a small pile of white.

"It is decided then," the Earth Caste leader sounded relieved and the leader of the Water Caste nodded.

"I mostly argued against it so we would consider all sides." Fair enough, that was part of the purpose of the Water Caste.

That decision being done was a great weight lifted from the shoulders of the community. Even those who disagreed with the decision were pleased to at least have it settled, and the meeting broke up after then. Ko'Shoka walked back to his tent with a few others from the Fire Caste, but then one of them stopped abruptly, looking into the sky?

"What is going on there?" Ko'Shoka looked up. It was dusk and the stars were beginning to come out, so it was easy to see what the other male had spotted… flashes of light in the heavens.

"Starships, very close and many of them. A fleet? The Air Caste might know," one of the others murmured and Ko'Shoka nodded. "Probably here for the orks." Yes, they had heard about that by now, mostly from Nuhkes but also a few comments from other necrons. This planet was on the far edge of the Sautekh Dynasty, a bit close to the Ghoul Stars and very close to some annoying Ork settlements. They were not even close to an empire, for some reason they were having difficulty growing, but they did conduct many raids on Sautekh held worlds. Imotekh wanted to discourage them, heavily, from such activities.

Ko'Shoka couldn't know, but the fleet in the skies had picked this particular time to arrive because of prognostications from some of the lesser Chronomancers. They had foreseen that the Bone Kingdom of Drazak would soon be moving to gather a harvest and if the system was lightly defended, they might strike at it and destroy the small Tau settlement. Moving the fleet they intended to use on the orks anyway directly into the system would prevent that, causing the Bone Kingdom to move on to the orks instead. A clear win on all counts, from Imotekh's perspective, so he'd immediately moved the fleet.

Having those who could see into the future, even imperfectly, was a great asset. Of course, others had that ability as well.

The star of the Sautekh rises. It is a star that sears with the brilliance of life. The rise of the Szarekhan rises in opposition and it is a star of cold death.

The Nihilakh Crypteks adjusted the neurographic resonators attached to the preserved head of the alien prophet, to get a better image of the future. They saw endless armies marching against each other, as always, but now they were seeing stranger things that were hard to interpret. A great fleet of the Imperium but interspersed with smaller vessels of what appeared to be necron origin. An eldar craftworld surrounded by a great serpent of metal. Great Tyranid fleets withering and dying, popping like bubbles. Great necron armies standing against each other, locked in a battle that would not end.

Will you choose the painful, scorching, glorious life? Or will you choose the cold, quiet, peaceful death? The voice of the prophet, insane in so many ways, mocked them as the visions played out. A life of endless struggle or utter boredom?

Choose.

Choose!

CHOOSE! The psychic scream made the Crypteks wince. The prophet hated them, and so he should, although he also did deserve his fate. He had been no innocent victim, oh no, although perhaps his fate was much harsher than he truly deserved. The Nihilakh Crypteks ignored the screams – they were no more meaningful than a temper tantrum – and tried to understand what he was talking about.

It was always difficult to puzzle out the mad ramblings of an insane psyker who hated them, but they would understand in time.

Semephren and Tadutep had been returned to their cell, and were now joined by Overlord Kallathsek, who seemed badly worn by his experiences. Apparently he'd been the unlucky first subject, who had needed to deal with fairly inept psykers trying to ease his pain over weeks, rather than a half-hour. Semephren was sure a few others had suffered nearly as harshly, as those inept psykers also learned how to replicate Manric's technique.

Still, suffering for science was simply a thing. Semephren wouldn't say it to Kallathsek of course, and it was easy to think when he hadn't been the one to suffer, but sometimes this was how progress was made. Folding his hands together, Semephren quietly cogitated on his own situation.

Until his re-souling, Semephren had possessed no memories of the Flesh Times at all. Now he suspected that was by design, because to his absolute surprise, he was not Charnovokh at all. He had been a visiting Cryptek from the Nihilakh Dynasty, with no loyalty at all to Charnovokh. He could recall requesting that he be allowed to travel home for biotransference, but his request had been denied and he had gone through the Furnace on a Charnovokh world… apparently SOMEONE, probably a C'Tan, had decided that returning him to his proper place was just too much trouble and it would be easier to wipe his mind instead.

"How infuriating," Semephren muttered to himself. He was nobility and closely related to the Nihilakh Phaeron! And he'd had NO IDEA! Instead, he'd thought he was likely just some commoner born, since he could claim no relations among the Charnovokh. In a way, it didn't matter that much – he wasn't THAT attached to his birth family, it was why he'd been wandering around – but still. It was disgusting, that the Star Gods had just stripped that from him for pure convenience.

"What is?" Tadutep asked and Semephren came back to reality, glancing at the two Overlords. This felt a bit perilous. Tadutep would probably just commiserate with his issues, but he wasn't exactly a loyal bastion of the Charnovokh. Kallathsek WAS very loyal and might take exception. But he might as well say it… Semephren had absolutely no intention of returning to Charnovokh now, although he hadn't decided if he would go back to Nihilakh.

"I am not a member of your Dynasty," he stated and Kallathsek lifted his head, fixing him with a stare. "I am Nihilakh, I was visiting your Crypteks when the biotransference began. I honestly believe the C'Tan wiped that from my mind because returning me to my proper place was a nuisance!" How utterly infuriating. "And I am actually high nobility, as well. I am closely related to the Phaeron and Trazyn." Semephren vaguely recalled Trazyn the Infinite as a withered old uncle, amusing in his obsessions over the past.

"Oh really? That does explain why no one ever claimed you as a relative. We all thought you were just a brilliant commoner." Yes, that was the logical conclusion. Honestly, in a bizarre way, it was dismaying to find out it wasn't true… it was a true point of pride for a commoner to transcend those origins and become a Cryptek. Semephren felt a touch hurt that his own imaginary backstory was completely untrue. Disgusting on all levels, that the C'Tan had done this to him!

"Already excusing your disloyalty, I see. Are you going to swear yourself to Sautekh?" Kallathsek's tone managed to be full of wormwood, despite their existence as machines. Semephren wanted to take umbrage but held himself back. His skill with fighting was absolutely non-existent, even stripped down to Necron Warrior level, Kallathsek could easily destroy him.

"Kallathsek, stop it. If he is truly Nihilakh, he has no reason to be loyal to us in the first place. It might have been an accident, but we thieved him from his Dynasty." That was true, in a sense they had, although the blame lay with the C'Tan. But that just prompted Kallathsek to round on Tadutep.

"And what of you, Tadutep? Are you planning to abandon the Dynasty for a better offer, you mercenary?" Yes… that was known about Tadutep, that he'd once been a paid mercenary in service to the Charnovokh. Not the most loyal but extremely good at his job. Tadutep, though, didn't answer the question.

"What is eating at your insides, Kallathsek? You're not saying this like you mean it, more like you're just saying what you know you should while your mind chews at something else." Oh really? But Semephren didn't know either of them nearly as well as they knew each other. Kallathsek's eyes glowed with something like rage.

"Where are the females," he said in a low tone after a moment and Semephren felt baffled. Females? "Where are they, Tadutep?" Tadutep was just as confused and displayed it with a few glyphs, but Kallathsek continued. "Why am I suddenly remembering my two sisters, one married to our Phaeron? Why am I suddenly remembering my daughters, so dear to me, who also married my allies?" Kallathsek sounded choked and Semephren was not sure if he was speaking from rage or grief. "Why did I forget them? Where are they?"

"…" Semephren exchanged a glance with Tadutep. He'd never thought of it before, but now that Kallathsek had said it, where WERE the female necrons of the Charnovokh? He vaguely remembered that the entire Dynasty had always been extremely patrilineal. Females were not allowed to inherit; they could not hold positions of power and were not allowed entry into the Crypteks. The most high-status occupation a female could hold in Charnovokh was something artistic. "What did the C'Tan do with them," Semephren muttered to himself. His own experience supported that the C'Tan would ruin lives just to dispose of a minor nuisance. Had the females of the Charnovokh also been a nuisance?

"I… I really don't know. I never had a family, not like that. I was adopted by an old pirate… it's a long story." It sounded like an interesting story but he could get that out of Tadutep later. "You think they're among the Warriors?" Semephren flinched at the thought. Zivok was rather open about his experiments so he knew about that poor creature that had been irredeemably insane. And even if they weren't insane, how in the stars would they find the noble females among the teeming hordes? And that was assuming they were even alive, after all the Charnovokh Dynasty had been through. Not to mention that no one cared a bit when a mere warrior had a recall failure.

"If so, they are lost," Kallathsek muttered with glyphs of the bleakest despair, a rhyming couplet of mourning. Then he started muttering the funereal chants. Semephren exchanged a glance with Tadutep and he carefully reached out, establishing a private interstitial message with him.

I fully intend to swear loyalty to Sautekh, if they will have me. You? Tadutep said and Semephren flashed him a silent glyph of agreement.

I don't know if I even want to go back to Nihilakh. I was wandering for a reason, and it seems that interesting things are happening here. That was really all he wanted, to be part of interesting things. Charnovokh had been rather interesting for all the worlds that were destroyed and needing work. Semephren had enjoyed attempting to recover that one broken Tomb World, even if there had only been a handful of survivors in the end. I want to be part of this. Yes, I will swear loyalty to Sautekh.

Kallathsek has already guessed, but let us not rub his face in it. Yes, that was practical. A shame they'd been put together, but Semephren was confident it wouldn't be for long. Their captors were probably just deciding what to do with them now that their use as test subjects was done.

He only hoped they would be given the opportunity to swear loyalty.