Hello everybody. I know it's been a hot minute since I've updated this story. I didn't abandon it; it just got forced onto the backburner by life and some other stuff. This chapter also had to be redrafted a few times because I wasn't happy with it. It should be good now. I'll try to be a bit more proactive with it going forward, but no promises.
Chapter 3: Implication
"His guts were smashed, his spine was snapped, his blood went spurting high. His helmet rolled a hundred feet and his head was still inside. It lay there on the ground, leaking out his brain. And he won't ever march again."
-Excerpt from an Imperial Marching song
The current residents of the Owl House were assembled in the living room. Their now-conscious prisoner sat on the floor, his hands bound behind his back. His weapons had been confiscated and secured. He stared ahead blankly as though he wished to ignore his captors. Before him, Amity and Luz sat on the couch, with the latter electing to inform the others of her hallucinations later. Eda and Raine weren't far off, carefully watching the armored man.
"Let's start with something simple," Eda began. "Who are you."
"ISN-1218-65-1421."
"He actually understood you?" Raine wondered as Eda frowned.
"Shame we still can't understand him." Raine's face lit up as they realized something. Pulling out a small whistle, they blew into it. The magical music wove itself around the man as he watched in apprehension. Without warning, the music dove into his mouth. He gasped and tensed up as he waited for something to happen.
"What did you do to me?" He asked furiously, struggling against his binds. Eda raised an eyebrow.
"What kinda spell was that?"
"Some ancient magic Lilith uncovered on one of her expeditions," they replied. "A translation spell used long before Belos's rise to power." Their prisoner ceased his struggles, electing to return to his blank stare.
"Alright, let's try again," Eda said. "Who are you?"
"ISN-1218-65-1421."
"I asked for a name, not a password," she muttered. "Where did you come from?"
"ISN-1218-65-1421."
"Is this guy a broken record or something?" Eda asked, furrowing her brow.
"What were those things that attacked us?" Amity chimed in.
"ISN-1218-65-1421."
"You don't say," Eda deadpanned, growing impatient with their captive. She tapped her hook arm while Raine patted her shoulder reassuringly. Getting an idea, Luz spoke up.
"Wait, I know what he's doing. When captured, soldiers are trained only to repeat their name and rank." Everyone looked at her, causing the girl to blush slightly. "What? I read things other than Azura."
"If that's true, then I think I know a way to make him spill," Eda said with a glint in her eye.
Lilith awoke to the sound of a metallic clicking. Her head pounded as she tried to blink the shadows out of her eyes. Looking up, she saw one of the men who had attacked her. It was the one with the cloak. She tried to stand up, only to find herself tied down. The man glanced up at her, one eye shining in the dim light.
"Welcome back to the land of the living," he said, returning to tinkering with his rifle. Lilith eyed it. It was almost as long as she was tall. Her captor fiddled with a telescope-looking apparatus on the top.
"Come on, Redeye, leave the lovely lady alone," another voice said. Lilith searched for the source of it, eventually finding two other men sitting on the ground playing a game of cards. They were fully shaven and featured matching skull tattoos on their faces, though the patterns were on opposite sides. The one with the markings on the right side of his face, Ringo, grinned coyly. "You need to treat a woman with respect."
"How would you know? Neither of us has ever met a woman," his twin shot back.
"Vinda, you should know that, as the older brother, I have life experiences," Ringo said with an air of smug superiority.
"You're five seconds older than me, you ugly prick."
"We're identical, dumbass." At that, Vinda took a playful swing at his twin. Ringo caught the blow and quickly stuck him in a headlock. Lilith and Redeye watched the brawl with confusion and apathy, respectively. The ranger sighed and turned to the Witch.
"I'm sorry about them," he said, "and… this." He gestured to her binds. "Can't have anyone know we're here yet. Sarge still hasn't figured out what to do with you yet. The little fuzzy critter is fine; he's right over there." He pointed to a spot not far from himself. There was King, curled up in a ball and sleeping peacefully. "And the worm-tube-thing is outside with Singe. It was driving us crazy with all the chatter."
"I have no idea what anything you just said meant," Lilith deadpanned. The man seemed to understand that well enough and shrugged.
"Well, there's not much you can do but sit tight." He leaned back, eyeing her up. "You know, you don't look like most other aliens I've seen." He drew a knife for its sheath and lightly tapped the point to test its sharpness. "You're almost Human. Close enough that I probably wouldn't be able to tell at a distance."
"Your flirting game needs work, Redeye," Vinda said, his head still trapped in Ringo's grasp. Redeye flipped his knife around and flung it at Vinda. The hilt smacked him in the center of his forehead, causing the man to curse as Ringo laughed.
"There's something off about you," Redeye continued without missing a beat, "Your skin's too tight, there's a flash in your eyes that sets me off the wrong way, and who could miss the ears." He frowned and looked back down at his rifle. "You're an alien, no mistaking it. And that means we're enemies. But the Sergeant says we need to keep you alive for now, so we will until he decides what to do with you."
Blitz lowered himself into his seat, his eyes busy deciphering the myriad of reports on the screens before him. The casualty reports were still coming in, but they painted a grim picture. Imperials were accustomed to taking heavy losses, but Blitz's forces were already depleted. Estimates said he still had just under twenty thousand soldiers, the strained remnants of multiple devastated divisions. Twenty thousand was technically a lot of men, but it made the ship feel abandoned. It didn't help that Blitz was used to seeing armies numbering in the hundreds of millions.
Jaco stood behind him, silent and patient. Two others had joined him; Malta, his standard bearer, and Silo, one of his lieutenants. The rest of his entourage were dead, slain either at the battle on Calixis or while repelling the recent assault.
Leaning back in his seat, Blitz sighed. Not only has his ranks been culled by the Hierarchy, but members of his own retinue have been cut down. And, to make matters worse, he could not establish contact with his team on the ground. Flak had not returned, so he had no choice but to presume them dead.
"Kilt, any further signs of movement from the Hierarchy?" The AI flashed for a split second as she scanned. There was the briefest of pauses before she confirmed that all was quiet on their front.
"Contact Engineer Micaer," Blitz instructed. "Tell him to step up his crew. We need those repairs completed ASAP."
"You know he won't like being rushed, sir," Malta advised.
"He can vocalize his complaints after he finishes his job."
Gelan's Striker cut through the dark void. The aircraft's engine hummed as it flew toward the Hierarchy Destroyer. This ship, Axe of Xulan, was a mighty vessel that had fought hundreds of battles in its long career. Gelan tapped a few buttons and transmitted the clearance code. There was a second as the hangar crew processed it. They sent a message of confirmation, allowing him to dock.
His Striker slipped into the hangar, where a crew was waiting for him to dock. As he lowered his vehicle, he began to worry. How was he going to report this? Wajek would not be happy to hear of Velik's fate. And then there was the matter of the Harrows on the planet. Perhaps it would have been better if he had died down there.
Gelan disembarked from his vehicle and pushed past the hangar crew. He tried to slip out, only for a Heval-Casd to grab him by the shoulder. He looked up at the higher form as they towered over him, his features obscured by an ornate helmet. His armor was extensive, featuring exaggerated shoulders and forearms. This was one of Wajek's personal guards.
"The Fleet Lord wishes to see you," he growled. Gelan could do nothing as the Casd dragged him through the ship. He offered no resistance, not that anything he could do would have mattered. It wasn't long before they arrived at the bridge where Wajek awaited them. The Casd stopped before his Fleet Lord, Wajek, who was too busy conferring with some of his crew to acknowledge them. After a painfully long moment, he dismissed the Heval-Dein and turned to the newcomers.
"Report." His order was quick and sharp. Gelan took a breath and began to speak, only for the Casd to interrupt him.
"This Arok is one of the pilots sent to intercept the Harrow craft. He alone returned."
"Where is Velik?" Wajek asked cooly, his voice one of controlled neutrality. Gelan glanced at the Casd, waiting for him to speak again. After he remained silent, Gelan opened his mouth.
"Dead, slain by Harrows on the planet."
"Impossible," Wajek said, "You lie." At those words, the Casd grabbed the back of Gelan's neck and squeezed. Gelan cried out in pain, and Wajek signaled for him to stop.
"It is truth, my lord," Gelan gasped. "We shot down their craft. Velik wanted to confirm the kill. We encountered two Harrows at the crash site. One was Startouched and summoned a purple golem that bested me in combat. When I came too, Velik was dead."
"So you fled like a coward rather than fight to avenge your superior's honor!" The Casd began to crush Gelan's neck again. His eyes bulged as his mandibles clicked wildly.
"I wished to inform you," he managed to stutter out. "So that you could plan your retaliation!" Wajek remained impassive, staring at Gelan as his neck was crushed. Fortunately, he held up a hand, signaling the Casd to stop. He dropped Gelan to the ground, where the Arok grasped at his neck, gasping in pain.
"Rejoice, puny Arok," Wajek said contemptuously. "You have earned the distinct honor of serving in the speartip for our ground operations."
Backfire knelt on the ground, his arms bound behind his back. He did not know where he was or how he had got here. All he knew was that he was in the custody of strange creatures who had performed some strange devil magic on him to communicate. He felt impure, even desecrated.
Now, he was attempting to cleanse himself by reciting various prayers and holy scriptures. Two of his captors, precisely the elder two, had departed to conduct some profane ritual if his observations were correct. The younger two had remained to stand guard. If he had access to his equipment or the entire facility of his limbs, he did not doubt that he could kill them quickly and slip away. In his bound state, there was little he could do but pray. At least he could draw solace from the annoyance he was causing to the pink-haired one.
"Glory to he who reigns from Signum Prioris," Backfire recited. "He who guided Mankind from mud and shadow. He who clad us in steel and fury. He who armed us with fire and hate."
"Who are you talking about?" One of his captors asked. She had short hair and dark skin. If Backfire didn't know better, he would say she almost looked Human. She was easily the closest of her companions. But she was far too small, and her features too soft.
"Venerate his will and obey his design," Backfire continued, ignoring her. "Serve him in all things, and you shall be rewarded."
"She asked you a question," the purple-haired devil snapped. Backfire stopped his recitation and stared her directly in the eye with indignance.
"Do not interrupt my mantra. Even Ferradian savages are not so ignorant." He could see that his words had an impact. She grew visibly frustrated and opened her mouth to scold him.
"Amity, don't," the other chastised. Amity complied, frowning as she glared at Backfire. He remained impassive as he prepared to resume his chant.
"Who are you talking about?" His other captor asked. "The 'he' you're referring to." Backfire glanced at her for a second, wary of her question. On the one hand, it could be a trick to pry information from him. On the other, he would be remiss to pass up an opportunity to sing the Emperor's praises.
"I venerate the Ruler of Mankind," he answered. "The Immortal. The Unyielding Lord. Scourge of the Stars. The God-Breaker. He Who Sees All Potential. The Ashen Emperor." The two girls were caught off guard by that.
"Luz, I thought you said Humans didn't have one ruler?" Amity asked, turning to her companion.
"We don't."
The elder two returned before Backfire could press her on what she meant by that. One of them, the one with a mane of light-grey hair that even Backfire had to admit was impressive, held a small vial in her hand. A strange glowing liquid in the vial drew the soldier's eye.
"Good, he's still here." She popped the cork off the top of the vial with her thumb, letting the potion's aroma wash over the room. Backfire recoiled at the scent, eying the Witch venomously.
"Keep your dreaded poisons away from me!"
"Quit being a baby; it's not poison," she scoffed, prying his mouth open with her hook hand. She poured the potion down his throat. Backfire sputtered as the liquid slid into his system.
"Nothing like Blabber Serum for getting people to talk," she said, crossing her arms smugly. Backfire coughed and retched violently before finally settling down. He could feel the potion swirling within him, compelling him to speak.
"Alright, now to business." His captor thrust her hook just under his chin to intimidate him. Fortunately, Backfire had been conditioned to be resistant to intimidation. "What's your name?"
"ISN-1218-65-1421." The words slipped out before Backfire could stop himself. His captor frowned.
"That's not a name," she muttered. "Anything else you go by?" Backfire tried to restrain himself, fighting against the Blabber Serum with all his might. He could feel it burning within him, threatening to consume him if he resisted. Eventually, he gave in, unable to hold himself back any longer.
"My name… is… Backfire." He panted heavily from the strain as Amity rolled her eyes.
"What kind of name is that?" She questioned. Backfire's head snapped to her, a glare in his eyes.
"It was bestowed upon me by my brothers, and I wear it with pride!"
"Your brothers?" Luz asked. "Like Flak?"
"Indeed, though I did not know him well."
"How many brothers do you have?" His final captor, the one with mint-green hair, asked. Backfire allowed himself a slight grin.
"Hundreds of billions."
The room was silent as his captors collectively shared a nervous glance. One could not lie under the effects of a Blabber Serum. But such a number was ludicrous on the face of it.
"What exactly are you?" The mint one continued. Backfire tilted his head proudly, the closest thing to a salute he could manage.
"I am a proud servant of the Emperor, beloved by all. A soldier of his vision. A child of Mankind. I am a Revenant, one of the Sons of Marigold."
"That's… a lot to unpack," the hooked lady said. "Let's start at the end. Revenants, what are they?"
"We are among the Empire's countless legions," Backfire said proudly. "Born of ancient sin, cast in a uniform mold, made to be discarded." He stared straight into her eyes with the zeal of a religious fanatic. "We are dead men walking."
"You're a Grimwalker," Luz said. When Backfire responded with a raised eyebrow, she corrected herself. "A clone." Backfire nodded.
"It is my duty to fight and die against the enemies of man," he said wistfully. "And when I fall, I rest well knowing that a hundred more will take up the march behind me. Such is how we bring the Emperor's dream to fruition."
"That's monstrous," Amity said, horrified by the implications. Backfire shrugged.
"I would not expect you to understand. You exist in isolation, unaware of the horrors lurking in the gaps between the stars," he said. "I am proud to serve and prouder to die!"
"Your brothers," the hooked one continued, "how many are here?"
Backfire tried once again to lock up. Every part of his being ordered him not to divulge military secrets, especially not those that could lead to jeopardizing his brothers or, even worse, the mission. The potion acted up again, forcing him to spill what he knew. Backfire's eyes bulged as he fought back.
"Our ship is in orbit," he relented. "Six of us, along with our pilot, were sent planetside to determine if you posed a threat."
"And your pilot was Flak?" Backfire looked over at the girl as she asked her question and nodded. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a pair of dog tags. "He died saving us from one of those creatures you were chasing."
"Those are Hierarchy," Backfire spat. "Vile, perfidious scum who would love nothing more than to hunt us down and tear us apart. We expunge them from the Universe by the Emperor's will."
"This all feels a little familiar," the hooked woman said uneasily. As she did, Luz felt a strange pressure mounting behind her eyes. She rubbed her face, the foreign feeling of mild annoyance building up in her head. She shook the feeling away.
"Why are you here," she asked. Backfire's eyes darted between his captors as he tried to resist the serum coursing through his system. Several veins on his neck bulged as he fought against the potion. Eda almost considered relenting before he broke something.
Before she could, Backfire finally yielded to the serum. "We were withdrawing from Warzone Calixis when we ran into a small Hierarchy battlegroup. Our Captain managed to escape, destroying most of their fleet. But we were dragged into the Otherworld and spat back out here. Our ship is too heavily damaged to contact the broader Empire, and we don't know where we are."
"This is all insane," Raine said. "How can we believe any of this?"
"It's impossible to lie under a Blabber Serum," Eda countered. "He must be telling the truth."
"I can show you just how true my words are, alien," Backfire spat. "Simply remove my binds." A deep rumbling cut through the sky before anyone could reply to his threat. The very ground seemed to shake. Backfire looked up, a hateful look spreading through his eyes. "They are here."
Luz ran to the window and threw open the blinds. A large ship flew overhead, as dark as the night sky. More of that burning orange glow emanated from the vehicle as it cut through the air. Smaller craft flanked the airship as it moved to the nearby crash site.
"They have found you," the strange voice said in her mind. "You must defend yourself." There were a few flashes of images in her mind: worlds burning beneath orbital bombardment, civilians being hunted down and eaten alive, and stars being caged to fuel engines of war.
"Hierarchy!" Backfire growled. "Oh, how I have been aching for war. Remove my binds and allow me to venerate my Emperor through service upon the bloodstained grounds."
"Yeah, let's free the suicidal fanatic so he can cut our throats," Eda said. "Great idea."
"You may be a perversion, but my true enemy lies before me," Backfire spat. "They have butchered countless Human lives, and I yearn to return the favor. I will not harm you; you have my word." Eda looked to Raine only to receive a shrug in response.
"He can't lie under the serum," they reminded. Eda nodded, though she didn't like it. But if these Hierarchy were anything like the one's Luz and Amity had encountered, they would need all the help they could get.
"Don't make me regret this," she said, holding her hook to Backfire's face. He seemed unimpressed, and Eda used the hook to cut his binds. The man stood up, rubbing his wrists.
"I will require my rifle," he said. Raine produced the man's weapons and offered them to him. He snatched them from the Bard, checking them to ensure they hadn't been tampered with. Once he was satisfied, he slipped his weapons into place.
"Now you shall witness a Revenant at war."
Redeye set a hand against the side of his head. His augmentations tracked the descent of the Hierarchy ships. Riley stood beside him, waiting for a verdict.
"Small landing force, little more than a scouting party," Redeye said as he analyzed the types of ships being deployed. "There'll be about fifty Squires, tops. Maybe a few Warriors."
"What are they so interested in?" Riley asked.
"If Flak's trajectory remained constant, that would be roughly where he crashed."
"How long will it take us to get there?"
Redeye paused for a moment as he thought. "An hour if we move carefully, forty minutes if we don't care about being seen, thirty if we shed excess weight." Riley nodded and returned to the cave entrance, where the rest of his squad was waiting.
"Leave our new guests behind," he ordered. "Grab everything else and get ready to move. It's time we picked up our lost brother."
"You think Backfire will be there?" Redeye asked.
"You know him, he won't be able to resist," Riley said. "Grab your Long Rifle; it's time to get mobile."
Gelan crouched in the hull of a Slicer as it passed through the air. He clutched a rifle tightly and cursed his rotten luck once more. He was a pilot, not infantry. He was supposed to be shooting down targets who didn't have enough time to shoot back. But no, his superior just had to get himself killed because his damned pride demanded a duel.
He would never voice these gripes, of course. To do so would invite punishment of unimaginable proportions. Such was his status and all Arok's. They weren't even second-class citizens, instead they were the fourth rung on the social ladder. While the Ruut may technically be lower, they were far too stupid to understand anything beyond following basic instructions and chasing down their prey.
Venar, the Casd leading this operation, stepped out of the cockpit. His mandibles clicked a few times, and Gelan quickly stood up in the landing craft, along with the rest of the Arok.
"Be warned, the Harrows have a Startouched," he said, his voice a guttural growl, likely due to a wound from some distant war. The Casd donned his helmet, the plates sliding into place with a mechanical click. Venar grabbed a lever on the side and counted down from three. Once he had one, he pulled it down. The floor under Gelan swung open, and he dropped like a falling star. Gelan tried to steel his nerves as the mag-lev repulsors in his leg armor activated. His fall slowed to a gentle glide as he hit the ground. He stumbled a little on landing, though the other Arok around him had a much easier time, already being trained infantry. Venar landed before them as the second Slicer passed overhead. Venar signaled for them to spread out and establish a perimeter. He looked to Gelan intently, and the Arok led him to where Velik had been felled. The downed Harrow craft was still there, a decrepit and ugly thing.
"The Harrow's will pay dearly for this," Venar said. He reached to his belt and drew an axe hilt. A flick of the weapon and the blade sparked to life. A matching shield was activated on his other hand. "Disperse, find them, and tear them limb from limb."
Backfire crouched behind a dense thicket of brambles not too far away from the Hierarchy landing. Eda, the hook-handed woman, was directly beside him, much to his chagrin. She had insisted on being present, partially to see what kind of threat the Hierarchy posed and partially to keep an eye on Backfire. Raine was a little further back,
"Two Slicers," the Revenant said to himself. "Twenty Squires per craft. At least one Warrior. No heavy weapons in sight."
"So these are Hierarchy," Eda said. "They don't look so tough."
"Do not be fooled. While they may be inferior to Humanity in all ways, they are still prideful and dangerous." Backfire slid back into cover as he began formulating a plan. "I've dealt with worse odds, but this will be messy." He patted his belt, counting the grenades returned to him. He pulled one free and set it beside him. The soldier lowered himself onto his stomach and poked his rifle through the brambles. He let his breath settle and pulled the trigger.
I know I'm throwing a lot of weird terms at you, so I'll just leave this here.
Imperial Standard vs Heval Script
Aetherborn = Startouched
Humanity = Harrow
Hierarchy = Heval
Knave = Heval'Ruut
Squire = Heval'Arok
Warrior = Heval'Casd
The Franninator: judging by what havel said i'm guessing luz is startouched, and now she is going to have a big target on her back. hopefully lilith, hooty, and king can get out of there. i'm guessing that luz will understand them soon. great chapter! see you next time!
Possibly, I can't go confirming anything just yet.
