A.N.: Hello hello! Thank you for the kind reception to this story, I hope you enjoy this new chapter; Let me know your thoughts and I will see you next time!

Ijan looked around in shock, confusion radiating through him.

Where… where was he? He'd been running away from some orks, and when he entered the nearest building…

This was… some sort of bar?

"Hello!"

The voice made Ijan jump, snapping into action as he swung towards its origin with his lasgun pointed at it. "Gah!"

"Wow, wow!" The origin of the voice was a young man… woman… person? Standing behind a bar counter. They were elegantly dressed and kind looking. Fairly beautiful, well groomed and clearly taking care of themselves. This instantly put Ijan on edge. No way was a building like this still standing in the ork ravaged hive-city, nor was anyone managing to look like that. Not after Grox-Masha had broken the back of the guard by having a trio of gargants ravage their last tank column.

Not after the boyz had flowed into the city, a torrent of rage and screams that butchered the inhabitants in an orgy of violence. There just hadn't been enough guards to keep everyone safe, and even less so as pockets of resistance fell one after the other.

"Identify yourself!" Ijan screamed, far louder than he meant to. He would admit, most of it was hysteria. "What is this place?!"

The barman blinked slowly, a reassuring smile appearing on their lips. "My name is Rea. This is the…" They closed their eyes, resignation in their voice. "The forty thousand ways to get smashed." He groaned. "I know, I know. I didn't choose the name."

Ijan did not even try to pretend he understood what by the Emperor's name they'd just said. "How did you keep the orks away?" Ijan's grip on his lasgun grew shaky. "Are you a psyker?"

"Orks huh? Oh, that's nasty. Sorry to hear it." Lower, they added. "Definitely not sending that one back where they came from." They looked back to Ijan. "But no, not a psyker. And I didn't need to keep the orks away. We're not on your world anymore."

Ijan froze. "That's not funny." He aimed his lasgun at the barman. "None of this makes any sense!"

"Seriously, of all the universes…" Rea sighed. "Look, just, look out the window. It'll help. Or make things worse." He shrugged. "It'll clarify some stuff at the very least."

Ijan glanced at the window, the grip on his gun nearly letting go entirely as he caught sight of the outside of the building.

Space. Endless, vast space. He'd seen it many times from the windows of the transport ship of his regiment.

"Oh merciful Emperor." Ijan mumbled. "We're… we're in space." Ijan turned to the barman, confusion evident on his face. "But how?! What are you?!"

"I'm a barman." Rea chuckled. "As to how, well I honestly have no clue. The place is sentient, see."

"Sentient?" Ijan said in disbelief. "How can a building be sentient?"

"Trust me, your galaxy has, like, way weirder shit." Rea shrugged. "But anyways, the place has a mind of its own. I'm just in charge of the drinks and conversation really." The youth gestured to the glass column behind them, filled with more drinks than Ijan had seen in his miserable life. "So, I know you're confused, and scared, and likely considering putting a laser in my skull, but can I offer you a drink? Don't worry, we serve non-alcoholic drinks as well." He grinned. "Can't have a man of the imperial guard drunk on the job after all."

Ijan stared silently for a moment, letting himself process the absolute madness he'd just been witness to. "...I… I was being chased by orks. I was trying to get them away from some civilians… if I'm no longer there…" His eyes widened. "You need to send me back!"

"Wow, that's… surprisingly noble." Rea blinked. "Not sure why that surprises me so much. But don't worry, time out there…" He vaguely gestured towards the front door. "It's pretty much frozen in place. You could stay here for days and not see a change outside." He paused. "Well actually not quite. Two days is about the most we allow unless extreme circumstances. But you get my point."

"What you speak of is… impossible." Ijan stuttered. "Even the strongest psykers…"

"Okay first of all, if you think this is out of the realm of possibility for your strongest space wizards, you haven't seen the bullshit they can pull." Rea sighed. "Okay look, let's make this easier. Shoot me."

"What." Ijan blanked at that.

"Shoot me. Trust me, it won't do anything." Rea pointed to himself. "Had a guy shoot a bolter at me yesterday and if that didn't leave a scratch, I doubt your lasgun will do much. No offense."

"I am not shooting you for no reason." Ijan protested. "This is all… very strange, but I am not about to just summarily execute someone!"

"But… but you're an imperial…" Rea said, confused. "Isn't executing people… nevermind." Rea sighed. "Damn, why does getting the imperial with a conscience somehow make things more complicated?"

Ijan glanced around. "...Sorry, I am really trying to make sense of all this… so let me get this straight. This building is, in some definition of the word, alive and sentient."

"Correct." Rea nodded.

"And has power to both preserve itself… pluck someone from an entirely different world from out of space… and freeze time whilst we are here…"

"All correct so far."

"And with all of that incredible power it… what, decided to kidnap some lowly guardsman?" Ijan let out a humorless laugh. "Not some space marine, not a general, not even a high lord of holy Terra… but me? Why?"

"I mean, it did start off with a space marine, but if you want my frank opinion…" Rea shrugged. "The bar is weird. Like, an unknowable god-like entity sort of weird. I've just learned to go with the flow. The only consistent pattern I've noticed so far for who it chooses to take is it'll settle for a theme for a while, and then grab people who are in trouble and could use a break for a while before plopping them in." He paused. "Also who just passed through a door. Not sure why, but that part is important. Or at least some kind of entryway." Rea pointed at him. "Given the whole 'being chased by orks' thing, I'll assume you meet the criteria."

Ijan contemplated that for a moment. "I suppose I do."

"You're being very accepting of this compared to the previous guy." Rea chuckled. "Don't get me wrong, not complaining, but I'll admit it's a bit surprising."

"I am… eighty percent sure I am hallucinating right now." Ijan admitted, walking up to the bar and taking a seat. "In all likelihood, one of the damned orks got to me, and these are the last delusions of a dying man." He gestured to the bottles. "I'd like… you know what? Just some water." He laughed, a bitter, twisted thing. "It feels like years since I had some proper water."

"One glass of water, coming right up." Rea said with a smile, reaching under the counter for a crystalline glass. "Do you want some ice with that?"

"You have ice?" Ijan shook his head. "No, nevermind. Of course you do. Yes please, that would be great."

"Very well." Rea tapped the column of glass, which started to shift and move with a gentle musical song. After a few seconds, a bottle of pure water was presented to him, Rea grabbing it and starting to pour it into the glass. A few cubes of ice poured from the bottle, which was quickly placed back into the column.

"So what did me in?" Ijan asked. "Shoota to the back? Choppa in the gut?" He shivered. "Please tell me it wasn't one of those freaky squigs that did me in."

"Afraid you aren't dead sir." Rea said, handing over the glass which was accepted gratefully. "So I can't rightfully tell you."

"Damn. I suppose if you're a product of my mind trying to reassure me, you wouldn't give me details."

Rea sighed. "I really am not. But I'm not sure how to prove that without sharing information I'm pretty sure will get you killed if the wrong person hears it." Rea leaned against the counter. "So, what happened to get you here?"

"Hm?" Ijan sighed. "It's not a pretty story. I suppose I'll indulge the idea that you're not a part of my subconscious for the sake of explaining. We were told there were some wild orks causing some ruckus that was getting out of control on some backwater world. The PDF was struggling, so we were sent to reinforce them." Ijan's hand clenched on the glass. "They weren't just wild orks. This was a full blown waagh in the making. Or at least, that's what the colonel said. He's got more experience with this stuff. Regardless, we had to deal with looted vehicles, tens of millions of orks and even some Emperor-forsaken gargants." Ijan shivered. "It was horrifying. We held the line as best we could, but the orks showed more cunning than our head officer expected. We were bled out through battles, whilst their numbers never seemed to lower. Before long, we were down to one hive-city. Billions of people, all looking to us for protection…" He looked down, his eyes burning. "We didn't stand a chance. We bombarded them with everything we had, and it wasn't enough. They made their way in and the massacre began." A tear fell from his eyes as he wiped them. "Fuck… sorry, I'm just…"

"It's alright." Rea softly said. "That sounds pretty horrific. You'd have to be some flavor of insane to stay stone-hearted there." He sighed. "Damn, it really is different when they're real people."

"I suppose?" Ijan didn't fully understand the barman's words, but he was too focused on his misery to try and ask. "Damn that governor. If I had to guess, he didn't want to owe any major favors and tried to pull in less forces than needed, hoping we'd pull it off."

"Or he just underestimated the threat." Rea argued. "Where I come from, we have a saying. 'Never attribute to malice what can be explained by stupidity.'" He paused. "Well, then again we don't have demons regularly pouring from literal space hell to kill everyone, and our governments, no matter how bad, aren't quite as messed up… Nevermind, I don't know where I was going with that."

"...No demons?" Ijan snorted. "That sounds quite nice."

"You know about demons?" Rea said in surprise. "I thought the inquisition liked to… you know."

"Some of them do." Ijan admitted easily. "Others recognize it could be useful to have people with experience when dealing with such horrors. The one that showed up after that particular battle was the latter." Ijan drank the glass, looking longingly at it. "You know, I might want something a bit stronger than water."

"Well, it's part of my job. What can I get you?"

"Just… anything. Could use a bit of liquid courage when I go back. Maybe I'll take down a few orks on the way out." Ijan chuckled. "If this isn't the delusion I think it is."

"Well, one liquid courage, coming right up." The glass shelf began spinning. "You know, this place can drop you off anywhere. Wouldn't you rather be somewhere else than that ork ridden hell-hole?" Rea asked curiously.

"Seriously?" Ijan sighed. "Of course it can. Well, I can't say I particularly look forward to the orks getting their filthy hands on me… but I don't know if I could live with myself if I left the civilians on their own."

Rea stared at him silently. "You won't make a difference, you do realize that? One imperial guardsman by themselves, against millions of orks. These people will die no matter what." The barman had a conflicted expression. "You going back would be a waste."

"It's never a waste to die for the God-Emperor." Ijan said with certainty. "And yes, I am aware. But I cannot stand by and do nothing. I wouldn't have joined the guard if that was the case."

Rea stared silently for a moment, before shaking their head, a grudging respect in their voice. "Damn, really need to remember you guys are actually people. Good and bad." They grabbed the bottle from the glass column, pouring a glass of strong smelling, clear liquid. "Here. It's got a strong taste but little actual alcohol. Better to keep your wits about yourself." Rea gestured to the door. "Still, it won't open for some time. Why don't you tell me about your homeworld?"

"Ah, well… it's actually surprisingly beautiful." The man grinned softly. "My wife and two daughters still live there, and I've always held out the hope I'd go back during my retirement. If I ever hit that age." He shook his head. "So much for that. But it is a beautiful world. Most of it is preserved since the previous planetary governors liked their natural views. Forests and rivers as far as the eye can see… Honestly it's near feudal now that I've been to more places and gotten to see more of the galaxy, but it's home." Ijan shook his head. "I haven't been back in twelve years."

Rea frowned. "You left your wife and daughters to join the guard?"

"I know what you're thinking. And yes, I do regret leaving them behind." Ijan's voice grew tight, filled with loss and melancholy. "A lot. Especially now knowing I'll die without seeing them again." He took a sip of the drink, coughing. "Damn, that's stronger than I expected. Anyways, when we had just gotten married our world was invaded by… not too sure really. Some xenos species that has since been exterminated I think. But they would have killed us all if the guard hadn't showed up. It was a… a wake up call. The knowledge that there were these… things out there. Horrible things, willing and able to kill us all." There was a distant look in his eyes. "And knowing that it was only thanks to people like the men and women of the guard that we got to live safely. It felt… right, joining the guard after that. My wife knows well how to handle the farm, and her brothers help around when they can. But if I can make a difference out there? Be the reason someone else gets to come home to their family alive?" He smiled softly. "Even if just once, then it'll have been worth it."

Rea contemplated this for a moment. "I guess I see where you are coming from. I don't know if I would have had the strength to do that. Leaving my family behind for the greater good." He chuckled, laughing at a joke that Ijan did not understand. "Ha. Greater good. Wonder if one of those will drop by one day."

"It's not for everyone. And I don't think you'd be weak to stay." Ijan shrugged. "Just never been one that could sit by when injustices happen."

"I suppose so."

"And what of you friend?" Ijan pointed the glass to Rea. "Where are you from?"

Rea grinned. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"I'm still not sure any of this is real. Try me."

"I come from a different dimension, from a different Earth, from a different time before we went to space." He paused. "Well actually we did go to space, but the moon is as far as we got people really."

Ijan stared, before shaking his head. "You're right. I don't believe you." He frowned. "Are things like this bar common where you come from then?"

"Not in the slightest. In fact, no one would believe there either if I told them." He laughed. "But hey, I've always wanted to travel, and this is a great way to get to know new people. And it was either that or die of blood loss. Overall, I'd say it was a fair trade."

"I'm afraid I don't quite understand." Ijan admitted cautiously, draining the rest of his glass with a grimace.

"Tell you what. If you make it here again, I'll tell you the whole story. In the meantime…" He raised his glass. "To the men and women of the guard."

"Make it here again? That's one hell of a longshot." Ijan shook his head. "To the guard."

They continued discussing about Ijan's world as the hour passed by, Rea occasionally interjecting with questions and curious remarks. When the time came, Ijan stood before the door with a resigned expression, his lasgun in hand.

"You know, when I send someone back, I get… well. A perfect view of the place they ask to be sent back to." Rea commented. "I can never tell where they come from when they first arrive, but the moment I send them back? Boom, perfect temporary knowledge. Like a snapshot of the moment. I'm not really supposed to interfere, but I'll tell you this much. There's reinforcements arriving planetside. A good amount of them too. Now, I could send you back right where you came from, you might even take down a few greenskins if you're lucky, and will die saving no one. You've already bought time for the civics you were trying to help, and at this point you going back will help no one." He pointed to the door. "Or I drop you close to the landing zone, giving them precious intel when you go to them which they can use to more effectively kick the orks' arses and save lives, along with giving you a much better shot at life. You might still die, but you'll be a hell of a lot more useful."

Ijan stared at the barman with an unamused expression. "That's hardly a choice when you put it like that." Yet there was a note of gratitude in his voice.

"Sue me, I like you. And this galaxy is miserable enough as it is." Rea's expression darkened, eyes melancholic. "I'd like to make it just a little brighter, if I can."

"I thought you said you weren't supposed to take sides?" Ijan said, turning to the door, his mind made.

"Not really. But I'm only human, you know." Rea winked, an amused chuckled escaping him. "No one's perfect. And I am hardly picking the side of the Imperium. It certainly doesn't deserve it. But…" Rea's grin softened to a smile. "I do try to pick the side of the innocent where I can."

"I see." Ijan opened the door, a brilliant white light greeting him. "Well, either I am about to stand before the God Emperor for judgment, or this was all real and I will have an existential crisis once the orks have been defeated."

"You can tell me about it next time." Rea said hopefully. "Good luck,"

"Thank you for the hospitality." With that, Ijan crossed the brilliant threshold, finding himself in the desolate wastelands of the world he'd been defending once more.

He took a deep breath. It had been real then. He could still feel the taste of the drink on his lips.

He shook his head, his eyes snapping to the sight of massive transports bearing the Aquilla descending planetside not a few kilometers from where he stood.

Work now. Crisis later.

There were lives to save.

Next chapter: Green and mean!