It's been a few years since Psody, Nedland, Jochen, Marjan and the others regularly went down the burrows to retrieve small Skaven. But today was a special day: for the first time, Kristofferson and Sigmund were part of the expedition. Sigmund had not quite reached adulthood yet, but by his nature of Black Skaven, he was already taller than his brother, even taller than Marjan, who was not short though. Sigmund had insisted on being part of the expedition. His mother had naturally worried, and the White Skaven had finally accepted on the sole condition of taking not the slightest risk.
Also, Romulus and Nedland had spent a week brewing enough dormant gas globes to lull the entire population of a small colony. And while the three Skaven were preparing to descend, Nedland came out of the tunnel.
- That's it, I checked. Your plan was great, Psody. I trapped all the chimneys, and I just went for a ride. They are all sleeping like marmots!
- Perfect. My children, your first Harvest will be in the Brissuc colony!
- Why this one, Father? It's not the closest to the border!
- You're right, but it's the one where I was born. So that's the one I know best. It is not very big, so for a first try with you, it should be easier. And then... I have an account to settle with the Skaven of this colony.
- I thought it had been annihilated by the Empire?
- It was a long time ago. According to the Lorekeepers, some fugitives didn't have the courage to go too far-far, and returned once the Imperialists left.
- They are still few, said Nedland. I imagine that, as the village just above was razed by the Sigmarites, there are not many resources to exploit to feed them. If I followed Psody's plan without a false note, I gassed the places we'll be passing. Other areas have not been affected, but we won't have to cross them. And if Skaven hidden in these districts come for us, they'll be asleep in a few seconds.
- Good. Let's get ready!
Jochen opened a bag. Immediately, a strong odour infected the nostrils around. The Human went out one by one pieces of rotten meat.
- It stinks!
- It's a lesser evil, Kristofferson. If we don't smell like them, we'll be spotted when they wake up. The fragrance of rotten meat is common in the burrows, it will make us impossible to track. We must not take unnecessary risks if we can avoid it! Rub it on your clothes!
Kristofferson hesitated a while, but finally obeyed, imitated by his brother. Once all impregnated with the smell, Psody looked at his two sons in turn.
- Listen to me: our goal is to bring back Skaven children, especially girls. The youngest must be selected in priority, because they'll be the least degenerate-contaminated by warpstone. Above all, remember that we probably will not be able to take them all away. It will be very hard, I know it. You will feel bad, you may feel guilt. Unfortunately, that's the way it is. We can never save everyone. Let's try to save those who are most likely to live healthy lives. If it can help you choose, remember that the unhealthiest are probably already condemned by warpstone. They could contaminate others. Just leave them there. We are not yet able to cure warp diseases.
- And... what about the mothers? Sigmund stammered.
The white Skaven turned to his son, and looked him straight in the eyes.
- We'll have to abandon them.
- Wh... what?
- You didn't think we would collect them too, did you?
Sigmund raised his arms to heaven.
- How monstrous! Do you realize what we are going to do?
- That's what we do for a few years, my dear. That's how we brought your classmates.
- Do you mean we separate the little ones while they are still in their mother's arms?
- What did you believe? Do you imagine the little Skaven would be picked up in the burrows of the different Clans, and would follow us nicely-wisely? No, it would be too late. They are conditioned as soon as they leave the nursery. The Pestilens are immediately infected, the Eshin mutilated, and some Masters Mutators like to experiment on the smallest, because they are defenceless and their loss-death is not a tragedy.
Psody's second son was stunned. He could barely hear his father's voice continue his explanation:
- We must take them while they have not yet separated from their mother. And we have to abandon her on the spot. It is impossible to take the ratmothers. The little ones may be afraid, you'll have to endure-bear their cries. That's what will be the most difficult. If that can help you not to think about it, Sigmund, remember that the breeders usually have marmalade instead of brains. They don't notice anything.
- I... right.
Psody paternally patted the shoulder of his son.
- Come on, don't forget we're doing this for a good reason.
Then he spoke again to the group.
- I'll do a check on those you pick up. With luck, they all will be viable. Remember: those who are clearly in poor health will have to stay put. Anyway, even out of this burrow, those ones will not live long-long.
- Are you sure there's no way to cure them?
- No, Kristofferson. This is the first step in natural selection among the Skaven. From birth, the fight-perpetual fight begins.
Psody paused for a moment before adding:
- I probably wouldn't have crossed this step if I had been an ordinary Skaven.
- What do you mean? Sigmund asked.
- Have you seen how I am built? Life in the fresh air and healthy food have pretty much fixed me, but before that, I was very sickly. Any one of my five brothers could have broken me in two in the leap of our mother's side!
- Especially Uncle Chitik!
The children had never seen their father's older brother, the huge Black Skaven, the first-born of their siblings, but Psody had talked them a lot about him. He nodded.
- Without a doubt. Fortunately he loved me hugely. Let's go! Remember: we only kill to defend ourselves, and only if there is danger.
- Are you sure we cannot kill one or two of them? Nedland grumbled.
- As savage as they are, they are living and intelligent beings, like us! Marjan protested. It would be behaving even more cowardly than them!
- And then, these are not true warrior methods! Sigmund added.
The Halfling growled.
- Yeah... You make a point, little black rat.
- Good. Masks! Put on your masks, Psody ordered.
Humans and Skaven donned airproof metal helmets, with a long spout containing a poison filter, and thick lenses to protect the eyes. Marjan was the first to descend into the burrow, followed by her brother and then Nedland.
The other Humans had just disappeared. Kristofferson was sitting on the edge of the hole, ready to drop there, when his father put his hand on his shoulder.
- Kristofferson?
- Yes, Father?
- You know I do not oblige you. If you want to stop, we stop everything, and we leave. If something happens to you, I'll never forgive myself... and your mother will be upset against herself all her life long. Sigmund, that's the same thing for you too-too. If you have a bad feeling, we go away.
- That's what Mother wants, that's what I want too, responded the eldest son of Psody. You had the courage to give up their society, and we can live a better life. Now, it's up to me to do something so that others have a brighter future than the rape pits or the life of a scavenger!
- I agree! Sigmund added. They don't scare me, and I want to save the children.
The White Skaven put a hand on the neck of his two sons.
- I don't know if I'm right, but I'm proud of both of you! Come on, follow me!
And the three Skaven sank into the depths of Niklasweiler Hill.
They walked along the tunnel for long minutes. Kristofferson heard his father's voice, stifled by the mask.
- The first time I saw the outside world, I went through this tunnel. I was with my five brothers.
- And you go back to your native burrow through the same tunnel. It was written.
When they reached the end of the tunnel, they saw Nedland and Marjan waiting for them.
- Jochen went further with the others, explained the young woman.
- I think they won't have too many problems, if they are all like this one.
As he spoke, Nedland tapped with his foot an inert body. It was a Skaven, spread out at full length, snoring loudly. The two brothers remained motionless in front of this show. Indeed, for the first time in their lives, they were observing a Feral Skaven.
- Ugly... Damn, it's ugly! Kristofferson winced. I have never seen anything so unsightly!
- Still, a similar blood runs in your veins, Marjan reminded. You should talk about him as an intelligent being rather than a repulsive thing.
- Yes, I know, but it's... look at it! It's filthy, malformed, it has bad scars everywhere... even its face is aggressive!
- Don't be so complaining, will you! With your mask, you don't suffer the smell! sneered the Halfling.
Psody planted himself in front of Kristofferson.
- Marjan is right, Kristofferson; never forget that you could be one of them. Feral Skaven are different in manners, but you must not regard them as inferior creatures. It would be to enter into their game-delirium, they who believe themselves above all other peoples, while they live below. But also remember that if they are our equals on the physical level, there is no comparison-similitude about the social behaviour.
- Psody? Your son's gas may be effective, but it only has a limited duration, Nedland recalled. It would be better to start!
One of Jochen's men ran out of a tunnel.
- No one on that side, Master Mage.
- Good. Follow me, I will open-open the march!
They joined the other Harvesters who had stayed with Jochen, and the whole company hounded the White Skaven.
For long minutes, they crossed dark galleries. The Skaven naturally saw well in the darkness, and thus the underground hoses were never well lit. Some of the men in the group held up torches.
Sigmund was surprised.
- I didn't think the tunnels could be so big, and so tall!
The vault above them rose about fifteen feet above them.
- It is necessary, also the Rats-ogres or the Technomages war machines can circulate!
As they plunged into the depths of the colony, the Harvesters came across more and more asleep Feral Skaven. Sigmund had a gag on seeing one of them, who had many signs of illness: rotten teeth, many festering wounds, buboes on the parts of its face that were not hidden by black bandages of filth glued to body fluids... Psody put a hand on his arm.
- It's a Pestilens. Do not get too close, it can be contagious.
The tall Black Skaven hurried away. He mumbled:
- They all look unhealthy, or have injuries as if they spent their days fighting each other.
- That's what they do. Let's turn right!
Psody led the group to a huge room at the bottom of which a construction for the least strange could be seen: a sort of temple made of odds and ends, with a steeple that seemed about to hit the rocky ceiling. The White Skaven pointed to another hole in the wall facing them, on the other side, leaving the building on their left.
- Is it a temple for the Horned Rat? Kristofferson asked.
- Yes, son, and that's where I was named Grey Seer, and I ate warpstone.
- It looks rather in ruins.
- It was not already in very good condition when I left, but now... Without their spiritual leader, they left everything in disuse. The only one who could have maintained a few coherence was Master Assassin Tweezil, but if he had any brains left, he had to use them to run away the fastest he could.
They didn't hang out. Jochen observed:
- So far, so good, but I still wonder if we don't risk crossing Skaven able to attack us?
Nedland explained:
- Gabriel's gas was tested on a band of Orcs. Do you know how strong the Orcs are? And yet, they stayed unconscious for more than six hours. And it was in a meadow, in the open air! Do you imagine in these poorly ventilated caves?
- Let's hope it does not kill them.
Suddenly, the great Black Skaven realized:
- Wait! These are grown up, but what about babies? They are more fragile!
- The nursery is isolated from the rest of the colony. You'll see, first there is a large room with drafts, and then there is a watertight door. Hey, this is the most important place in the burrow, with the most valuable-precious resources inside!
- Yes, but they will breathe the gas, when we go back to the galleries!
- That way, we'll have peace for the first few hours, Marjan mumbled.
- But it'll kill them!
- No, Siggy, don't worry. This gas is not deadly. I had the same fear-fear as you at first, but Gabriel did an experiment on rats. They slept longer than the Orcs, but had no problems. Since we use this technology, everything has always been very good. On the other hand, there is a risk that there will still be a few ratwives still awake.
- They expect to see us arrive?
- Not necessarily. Sometimes they stay a couple of days without a visit. But anyway, they will not oppose resistance. Be careful, it's going to be steep.
The company tumbled into a large cave. They couldn't see the ground, for an obscure chasm was tearing the earth to an indistinguishable depth. A complex network of rope, wood and copper bridges stretched over the void. Jochen thought of a monstrous cobweb in which scattered pieces of material would have intermingled. A warm wind came up whistling from the immense natural well.
- Hey, Psody, are you sure it'll be tough enough? worried Jochen, not reassured.
- I am. Aside from the Skryre Clan inventions that use warpstone, everything the Feral Skaven builds is functional-functional, even if it does not look like much.
The White Skaven engaged on the bridge. The metal creaked under his toes, but the construction didn't move. A few minutes later, the whole troop was on the other side of the chasm.
They were now facing a large round metal door.
- I forgot that door.
- Ah... Yeah, good. And how do we come in? asked the Halfling.
- This rope, next to the door, maybe a bell? Kristofferson suggested.
- Possible, said Jochen.
- The gas probably has not penetrated so far, Nedland observed. Let's get ready!
The Human grabbed the noose, and pulled. The clinking of a bunch of bells echoed through the tunnel. Nobody moved. All stood ready to action. At the end of a half-minute, some mechanical rattling sounded, and the door slowly opened in a long squeak.
A Skaven of rather small size, but with a huge belly, was standing in the circular frame of the heavy door. It was surprised to see a procession of Skaven, Humans and Halfling all masked.
- What the…?!
It didn't have time to finish its sentence. Sigmund lunged at it and punched it on its muzzle. The ratwife crashed against the wall with a short squeak of pain, slid to the ground and didn't move anymore.
- That's old Garog! chuckled the White Skaven. This puffy slimeball has not changed!
- There was already that ratwife when you left?
- He even gave me birth! He got on well to live so long! Right, let's go! Kristofferson, go take a tour of the cells. If there is a Feral Skaven mating, neutralize it. The others, prepare the baskets.
The hallway into which the entrance opened contained ten doors, five on each side. All had a small opening. Jochen quickly inspected each cell, peeking through the holes.
- No riding Skaven!
- Right. Little ones?
- Yes, they are not very numerous, we will be able to take them all, if it is.
- Good! It does not surprise me, they must have lost all consistency since the disappearance of Vellux.
Psody turned to Sigmund.
- I prefer that you stay here, rather than see the nurseries.
- Ah?
- Yes, really, it's a really nasty show to watch, and you're still a bit young for that. The next time. Stand guard, you never know.
The Black Skaven didn't protest. He squeezed the pommel of his sword on his belt a little harder, and faced the tunnel towards the cave.
Psody crossed the threshold of the circular door, walked down the hall, glancing through the openings. The Harvesters had already begun their work. They acted with speed and precision, always in groups of two: one carried on his back a large wicker basket with straps whose interior was lined with fabric, the other took small Skaven, usually placed on the huge belly of their mother, and put them carefully in the basket. As Psody had explained, they were careful to select only babies which looked healthy. Over time, they had learned to distinguish those who had the best chance of survival, but especially to close their hearts and ears. Others, less solid, had not borne the heart-breaking cries of the young rats that were torn from the breasts of their genitals, and could not participate in more than one mission.
The White Skaven saw his eldest son come out of the back cell.
- There are no pups in there, just a breeder.
Psody wanted to take a brief look at the creature by acquired consciousness. He passed his head through the door, and suddenly froze.
A female Skaven was lying on foul straw. Naked, chained to the wall by a heavy iron collar, she didn't seem to be very old. She looked haggard, and gave a silly laugh as she saw Psody. She had not yet become huge and deformed. Her hips were a little wide, probably she had already given birth to two or three litters, but she was still relatively fit. Her warpstone treatment had only recently begun. But that was not what shocked the White Skaven.
She leaned on her hands to straighten up and flickered her eyelids. Their eyes met through the lens glass of Psody's mask, and he recognized a presence. A presence from the bottom of the ages, who had once called for help, and who he had fetched.
- Father? Father? Kristofferson called. We have them all. Let's go!
- Not without her.
The brown Skaven had a start of surprise.
- Huh? But, Father, you said that...
- I know what I said, Kristofferson. But this girl goes away with us.
- Wh...
- Do not argue, please! The others will soon-soon wake up. Go get your brother, he'll carry her. Come-come on!
Any discussion was useless. Without waiting, Kristofferson dashed. A moment later, he was back with Sigmund.
- Kristofferson, go help the others. Sigmund, can you free her?
The tall Black Skaven approached. The girl didn't react. She remained crouched and motionless while Sigmund wrapped the chain around his arm. The young ratman pulled with all his might. The chain was rusty, and didn't resist very long. Sigmund then heard a slight rustling, and felt a hot liquid moisten his naked toes.
- You must be kidding…
The female giggled happily, without being aware of having indisposed her saviour.
- You could have warned me, if you could not restrain! Sigmund reproached her.
- Sigmund, her mind is shattered. She is hardly more aware than a poisoned-intoxicated infant! Now, give her a meatball.
- You want me to... oh!
The Harvesters always had on them a few spare drugged paste balls, if they needed to quickly anesthetize a Skaven. Sigmund pinched the female's snout, she squeaked, her mouth wide open. With his other hand, he stuffed the soporific into her throat, and held firmly with his both hands her jaws closed. The female roared, and swallowed the dough. Sigmund released her. She stepped back, trembling with panic, then wobbled, and her eyes closed. The Black Skaven caught her by her armpits, and remained motionless, not daring to make the slightest abrupt gesture. His father wanted to reassure him.
- Don't worry, in a few hours, she'll wake up and have forgotten everything. The gas will have her asleep anyway, so we lose less time. Let's go!
Sigmund gently took the Skaven girl in his arms, and both left the cell. They joined the other Harvesters. Some seemed surprised, but no one objected. Already Nedland, Kristofferson and Marjan each carried a basket containing a few small pups. Everyone hurried to the exit. Once outside, they boarded the chariots and left Niklasweiler as quickly as they could.
They didn't stop until after dark, a dozen hours later. They had to tie the girl to the bottom of the cart to avoid losing her. She didn't seem determined to flee, besides too surprised and dazed by what she could see. The outside world was something completely new to her.
The company, gathered around the fire, was silent. Usually, each harvest was followed by a meal where the pressure of the previous hours fell. All the men and women remembered with a good laughing the most intense moments, to relieve the nervousness experienced. If there were losses, they were solemnly honoured. But this night, no one said a single word. All that was heard was the crackling of the campfire, the wind in the branches, and the whistling of their strange guest who slept soundly.
Psody stood up, and decided to give the explanation everyone was waiting for.
- When I quitted the Brissuc colony, I left ten children behind me. Kristofferson, Sigmund, you have ten half-brothers, all from the same litter. I don't know if any of them is still alive. I don't know their names, nor their faces. But I didn't care, it's part of the education-mentality of the Feral Skaven that I applied myself to follow. One evening, shortly before my... "banishment" from this burrow, I met three little girls. They were prisoners of the Chaos wizard Aescos Karkadourian, and I felt for the first time empathy. It was my first contact with children, pure emotions. They were terrified. They were counting on me to get them out of their jail. I felt it. I brought them back to Vellux. The next day, he explained to me that two of them, the older two, were no longer good at producing pups because the wizard had already experimented on them. So he had dissected them alive, without hesitation, to study them better.
- How horrible... Sigmund murmured.
- What happened to the third one? Oh, I understand! Kristofferson realized, looking towards the cart.
The pink eyes of the White Skaven shone in the semi-darkness of the twilight.
- I don't know if this poor girl is effectively the baby I tried to save. When I saw her, she was really young, she had been born only a few weeks earlier, maybe a month. It is unlikely to be really the good one. But there still remains a chance, the age matches. I abandoned my first ten children, I abandoned this unfortunate kid, I refuse to abandon her again.
- Are you sure it's the same? Nedland asked. However, the imperial troops completely cleaned this burrow after Gottliebschloss. They would have spared her? No way!
- You're right. I think instead that they have not taken the time to search everything, remember that the nursery is isolated from the rest of the colony. The ratwives probably stayed hidden there during the battle-purge. And even if it's not her, I would have given a Skaven girl a chance, which I have not done before. Anyway... yes, when I think about it, I really think she's the good one. Behind the warpstone vapours, I felt her fear, it's the same one that attracted me to Maraksberg that famous night. And I wonder if she did not recognize me?
- She only saw you a few hours years ago, when her intellect was not developed enough to constitute memories, and you really think she can recognise you now?
- It's not intellect, Marjan, but instinct. Skaven trust a lot their instinct.
- And you have an idea of what you will do with her? Do you intend to adopt her?
- No, Jochen. I'm afraid she's a defective-defective all her life long. I don't feel able to take care of her, especially to the detriment of my own family. I will entrust her to the Shallya priestesses. They will know how to take care of her.
- Priestesses always need happy simpletons to wash their clams, if I can speak so, Nedland said ironically.
Finally, there were a few hesitant laughs. One of the Skaven asked:
- Master Mage, do you know her name?
- Feral Skaven do not bother to give names to their females. No name, no identity. No identity, no soul.
- So how are we going to call her? Sigmund asked with his deep voice
- Excellent question, son. Hey, the Twins, what godly people do the Imperials celebrate-celebrate today?
Psody shook his head, to finish chasing those painful memories. He entered the room, closed the door behind him. The Skaven's eyes quickly got used to semi-darkness. He could see inside the room: two beds, a table and two chairs. Everything was tidy. No dangerous objects were within range. There was no one. At first glance. He said aloud:
- Hello, Teresa!
A burst of laughter answered his salvation. Something stirred under one of the beds. The White Skaven winced a tense smile.
- Do you want to play hide and seek? Where are you?
A rustle of fabric sounded, and a form leaped from beneath the furniture with a long cry of joy before falling on Psody and hurling him to the floor, on the carpet.
- Psody, home! Psody, home! shouted the apparition before getting up again, bursting out laughing again.
An unsuspecting visitor might have panicked or lost consciousness, but the Master Mage was used to these enthusiastic bursts. Teresa seemed to be in good shape. The young ratgirl had grown since her arrival. Better treated and feed than at Brissuc, she appeared in good health. Her coat was brilliant, maintained at best, considering the difficulty of any hygienic operation on her. Psody sighed, looking a little better at Teresa's dress. The Skaven girl had completely ripped it apart.
- Oh no! You should be gentler with your stuff, my dear!
- Gentler? Gentler!
Teresa leaped on the table, then jumped to the bed, arms outstretched, as if to imitate a bird. She crashed on the mattress. The bed, a solid construction, held firm.
- Magda will have to fix your dress! It's not funny to arrange your foolishness, Teresa!
- Funny, Teresa, Magda... Psody! Teresa happy Psody home!
The girl yawned loudly. She sat down on the bed, and amused herself rocking her tail from left to right. The White Skaven took place beside her. With a slight chuckle, she dropped her head on his knees. Understanding what she was waiting for, Psody began to caress her head, gently. He lowered his eyes.
- I'm glad to see you in such a good mood.
But he couldn't hold back a tear. He knew that the Feral Skaven had poisoned the unfortunate with large doses of warpstone incense, and her brain had been greatly altered. She would forever be that chirping creature with intellect as limited as that of a little child barely able to articulate a couple of words. Heike recognized herself in her, for she had known the same fate, except that she had escaped the medications of the Sons of the Horned Rat. His adoptive father, Prince Ludwig the First, was convinced that one day Teresa would wake up, and acquire at least a little maturity, but the White Skaven had serious doubts.
The mere fact of keeping her in this little house was for him something very painful. Feral Skaven kept their layers permanently, never allowing them to leave their cells. The case of Teresa was different: several Human women volunteers, as well as Bianka, took turns to be always with her. They tried to educate her, while ensuring her safety. Indeed, Teresa was a small child in an adult body, and several times she had almost caused an accident. And when circumstances intermingled in such a way as to oblige the girl to remain alone, she had to be locked up in this little house equipped with the bare minimum to reduce the risks. Normally, every night, there must always be one of the women volunteers to occupy one of the two beds.
The less sad thing was that the girl didn't seem to suffer. Admittedly, being shut up alone unaccommodated her, but as soon as she was outside or accompanied, she immediately forgot her sadness. She was perpetually amazed, often laughing loudly, and her good humour was quickly shared by people willing to show a minimum of patience.
She looked up, and asked, looking unusually serious, and a little worried:
- Psody leave again?
He could smile at her sincerely.
- No, my Darling. I finished my job outside. Now I stay at home.
Teresa gave a cry of joy and dropped to the bed. A moment later, she snored loudly, her mouth wide open. It was as simple as that. The White Skaven got up, left the room on tiptoe.
When he was outside, he saw someone waiting in front of the house; that was Magdalena, the most faithful servant of the Prince. This generous blonde woman has been serving the Steiner family for over a dozen years, and was Heike's confidante. She had no equal to look after children, Human or Skaven, and had helped the couple on many occasions. And now, she was the one who watched over Teresa's well-being.
- Oh, hi Prospero! I knew I had seen Kit from a distance!
- Hi, Magda! Teresa is asleep-asleep.
- I'll take over, the Prince is waiting for you to report.
The little ratman handed the key to the Human, and returned to the manor with a good step.