Glowing and smiling, I quietly crawled out the dumbwaiter, and into a darkened laundry room. I felt ready for anything, and I was feeling very strong, confident, and psychically powerful. Standing up (and slightly slowing time), I then felt the urge to stretch, so I did. Extending my arms and flexing my back muscles, my brilliant presence also reached outward in a metaphysical stretch, warming my body and soul with my light. It even somewhat felt as if I possessed a pair of large gold wings, and that I was extending them across the entire room as I stretched. The feeling was similar to the powerful sensation of being attached to the Divine Retribution. That felt a little unusual, and I dismissed the strange feeling as a side effect of being on the Spook drug I had been given earlier.
After my stretch, I studied the dark laundry room.
This room was a wide space filled with washers, driers, and long tables for folding and ironing. Faint scents of detergents and disinfectants hung in the air. This place was apparently not in use during the costume ball, and was darkened and shuttered away. I was able to confirm again that a handful of bright souls appeared to be hiding in here using my psychic eye. With another quick examination, I was able to see that Raula White was actually further down a broad hall outside of this room, and she was currently berating the kitchen staff while sweeping her own psychic senses outward, trying to uncover my location. Did that bitch really want a fight with me? I chuckled, and an eager shiver washed over me as I anticipated the challenge of destroying that woman, but first, I wanted to take stock of my immediate situation. Who was in here with me?
"It's you!" a quiet voice whispered near my feet. "It's the angel!" I looked below, and kneeled down to peer under a long wooden table covered in blankets. My heart caught when I realized something awful.
She was a little girl, only about six years of age. Curled up and shivering in a laundry basket, the girl had short, roughly cut strawberry blonde hair. She had large blue eyes, and wore a haunted expression. The rough tunic and threadbare shoes she wore gave her the appearance of poverty. Nevertheless, when she looked at me, she seemed to sigh with relief in a tiny voice, "You're here to save us!" She smiled, and reached toward me, the light of my halo reflecting off her eyes.
More hidden small whispers then passed quickly through this dark room like wind through the leaves of trees.
"The angel!"
"The Emperor!"
"She's real! I told you!"
"We're saved!"
"Shh, shh!" I quickly shushed the group of hiding children in the laundry room in a loud whisper. The room was now silent, and outside, I could now hear Raula White's distant singsong voice as she threatened the kitchen staff further down the hall. Quiet fearful crying began to crawl miserably through the air. Okay, fuck, what was I going to do here?! The cloying words of a Slaaneshi sorceress were making threats and demands down the hall, and this room was filled with frightened children!
And, if there's one thing Slaanesh especially enjoys, it's children, I realized with a shudder.
Gently, I placed my hand on the girl's shoulder as I continued to kneel beside her next to her basket. She began to calm down, and I asked her in a whisper. "Hey, I'm here to help! But, I just need a minute to figure everything out here, okay? Can you tell me anything about what happened?"
Before the girl could answer, I could sense that a confrontation had broken out down the hall. Angry cries, gunfire, and the Warp echoes of sorcery assaulted my perception. Images flashed through my mind of a short struggle, and now, people were bleeding on the floor, and the Tzaangor mutants I had perceived earlier were now bound with thick ropes. Three other individuals, two of which I recognized as the bartender I had met earlier this evening, and the valet that I had helped just after stepping of the flyer, were now bound in glowing pink cords. Intuitively, I knew that these people were psykers, and they were now being placed in what appeared to be a storage closet. After the brief confrontation, I heard Raula's cruel voice explain: "Pity you resisted," with a laugh. The Slaaneshi witch then angrily spat: "This can't be all of them. The gold witch is somewhere near, I know it. Through the blessings of Slaanesh, my strength has returned, and I've seen into their minds. Oh, how lovely it is to know that they have young children hidden! Keep looking, my fellow Am'Erikans!"
If the situation hadn't been so dangerous and sick, I would have laughed at hearing "My fellow Americans," but all I could do was cringe in revulsion.
With a glance of my Sight (which caused my Corona to flash in a rainbow under the influence of Spook), I could now tell that Raula White was now peering into a storage area further down the hall. She was now using both her minions and her psychic abilities to attempt to scour each room for hidden individuals. The laundry room was at the very end of the hall, but she would eventually search this area!
Bringing myself back to the present, I could now tell that the little girl was quietly crying, and I said, "Don't cry, sweetie. What's your name?"
"I'm S-sara," the little girl replied as she quieted her frightful tears. "The grown ups put us in here all the sudden and told us to be quiet."
"We work here with our parents," a slightly older boy answered me from under an adjacent table. "There was a lot of noise, and all the sudden, they told us to hide in the laundry room. Who are you? Are you an angel?"
"...was in a dream!"
"...Emperor's sister!"
"Hush, hush," I audibly implored again to the frightened hiding children. This sounded really bad. "I'm here to help," I answered.
"The bake room is clean, Matriarch," a man's voice sounded in the hall, now somewhat closer.
"Continue onward, and be cautious for more psykers. If you find more mutants, throw them with the rest," Raula instructed. I could feel the sensation of misery flowing through the Warp; the pain of this event was pleasing Slaanesh greatly.
One of the men that had been shot earlier expired on the floor, and I reflexively reached for his soul, which was drawn to me from down the hall. My ability to "catch" souls was apparently heightened by the Spook, and I felt my Key begin to brighten. He had been a cook, and his name had been Wara.
I couldn't just sit here and wait for these cultists to show up and take all these children away, I knew, so I decided to be brave and see if I could confront these people while I still had my superpowers.
"So, you're all hiding really well! How about you keep hiding for now? I'm going to go and find your parents," I quietly spoke to the kids hiding in this room. The children did as instructed, and I began to quietly walk through the dark room toward the exit. As I walked, I reached out and searched for Alberich.
My leader! My leader! Alberich's psychic voice wailed inside my mind. He was somewhat close, thank goodness. You live! They shut me away!
Alberich, we've got to get out of here. The governor is a lost cause, and on top of that, the Necrons are on their way here! I very quickly informed the beastman telepathically. Hearing myself articulate this, my heart caught in my throat. I turned backward, feeling the fearful hopes of the innocent children hidden in the laundry room behind me. There had to be a way to fix this world, I thought again! I continued walking to the front of the laundry room as I spoke to Alberich. Langwidere can change her head! She's got a collection of thirty heads that she stole from people! She put me in a warded room so she could take my head, but I escaped when the pylon was activated.
Pylon? Alberich asked me, confused. What pylon? Only Levant had those structures!
Nope, I said, picking my way through the dark, and emotionally readying myself for having to take more lives. An injured man was praying on the floor of the hallway outside; his thoughts were of his son, who was hidden in the laundry room. There had to be a way to fix this! There had to be! All these innocent humans would die if I didn't fix this, I thought with desperation. I continued speaking to Alberich: This world has at least one anti-Warp pylon. Null turned it on, I think! The only reason I escaped is because the wards lining my prison suite got deactivated. The governor isn't in the palace right now, but she'll be back, and she's a lot more dangerous than I thought she was!
I was able to sense that Alberich was bound in a dark room with other mutants, a handful of which were Tzaangors. The beastman was in the process of psychically burning the thick ropes that bound his arms to his body as the other mutants watched in amazement. Apparently, these people had missed that Alberich was a psyker. The beastman appeared that he had a bloody head wound over his left eye, and I expressed concern over it.
Answering my worry, Alberich said, The captain of the guard struck me in the face with the butt of his rifle, and I only regained consciousness when I heard your voice! I am tied up with others of my kind in a storage room. I will free them as well!
Be careful, I intoned. They just killed someone outside! I felt it through the Key!
"I want my mummy!" a tiny voice whispered through her tears behind me, startling me. Many of the children were quietly crying in their fear. I needed to help somehow! I needed to fix this, I thought again as I continued making my way to the exit. I reached into my cloak, and found the Nemeses Argentum. My palms here sweating. For better maneuverability, I tore off my lightning claw replica, and removed my fake sword that had sat on my hip unused for the entire evening. I didn't want anything getting in the way of a confrontation. I placed both items on one of the tables as I mentally prepared myself.
"Remember, we need the little ones alive and unspoiled, my dears," I sensed that Raula was speaking to one of the gaudy red, white, and blue robed men down the hall. "Am'Erika wishes them given to her in perfect condition. Not a mark on them, do you understand? No spoilage!"
"Yes, Matriarch. We obey."
I was now standing before the exit, which was locked. I was now breathing heavily, and filled with disgusted anger toward this cult. In my emotional response (and Spook use), my Corona was shining in a scintillating gold rainbow around my head and shoulders, and was actually illuminating this entire room. My Sight told me that one of the psychically inactive demi-Blank military guards was now advancing to the laundry room door, so instead of opening it with my skeleton key, I simply decided to wait for him to say hello as I waited just inside the doorway. Beside the guard, I sensed one of the robed Slaaneshi priests watching expectantly. He had, incredibly, not sensed me. "I think I can smell them nearby, you know. The sweet little children," the priest murmured in palpable excitement.
"Huh, the light is on," the soldier observed on the other side of the door. "Could have sworn it was off earlier. Anyway, I'm unlocking it. Don't know why we didn't check this room first." He began to whistle as I heard the jangle of what keys being produced.
The Slaaneshi priest that stood beside the soldier was now merrily humming too. He quietly sang out in a sadistic coo, "Little pigs, little pigs, let us in!" Hearing this reminded me of the first daemonette I had ever burned to death back in the farmhouse on Levant, so I decided to have a little fun.
The soldier began to unlock the door, and I psychically drew back my energy, wanting to completely destroy these animals who would want to offer children up to a greater daemon. I found that I was absolutely furious, not only at the messy Slaaneshi situation on this world, but at life in general. People trying to kill me all the time while also treating me without any modicum of respect was getting fucking old, and the fact that this world actually felt realistically unsavable was filling me with a sort of impotent fury.
Distantly, I again felt the gaze of something inconceivably vast and filled with unyielding rage affix itself to me, pleased at what I was feeling. I felt my anger burn even hotter, even causing part of my halo to briefly flash red. Kill them all, it seemed to almost suggest. It didn't even want me to use magic, and suggested that I tear these degenerates apart with my bare hands.
"Oh little pigs, little pigs, let us in! Let us show you pleasure. Let us show you sin..." the robed priest happily sang in anticipation.
At the last moment, I sensed that Raula had discovered my location, and she whirled around in surprise. Her psychic eye had perceived me and my intentions, and she began to shout, "No!" as the military guard unlocked the door.
Even before the door had opened after being unlocked, it was obliterated in a violent torrent of incandescent retribution. I hurled my fury and frustration through the door in a scream of rage. The military guard directly behind the door was devoured by gold flames of pure concentrated hate. He was able to get out a single choked scream of surprise before he became a glowing pile of ash on the floor. The robed priest who had been standing adjacent to him had not been directly struck by my energy. Unfortunately, he had only partially succeeded in jumping out of the way. The Slaaneshi priest's robes were now fully aflame as he fled in terror, his screams music to my ears.
Kill them all...
"I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house in!" I boomed through the hall as I stepped forward through the flaming ashes. I turned to face Raula White, who stood a few paces down the hall next to another priest and two other guards. The tawdry priestess was actually stepping backwards, fear in her black eyes. The robed man that I had set on fire screamed as he bolted down the hall in a wild panic, his body now completely engulfed in flames as he passed the Slaaneshi witch and the second priest. I laughed. "If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen!" I bellowed at Raula, and took another deep breath.
While the witch and the priest standing beside her had been successfully able to put up some kind of invisible shield to protect themselves, the same could not be said for the two military guards beside them, and the gold ball of energy I threw ahead of me connected with a satisfying explosion. Two new screaming human torches were now also scrambling away from me in maddened terror as they burned!
An alarm began to sound as the primary lights in this hall went out, and the dim red emergency lights now illuminated this room, making this area look particularly hellish as three large balls of screaming fire bolted down the hallway.
I stood smiling angrily as I held up my left hand, ready to throw more fireballs at jerks. My brilliant Corona brightened the hallway in my shimmering gold light. Maybe Rasputin was right? Spook really was a fun drug! "Alright, who's next?" I growled as I began to approach the witch and her priest, rallying my energy again for another barrage of magic.
The robed priest adjacent to Raula stepped bravely forward, rallying himself with a wreath of pink energy and chanting in a dark guttural tongue. In response to whatever evil magic he was doing, I laughed and said, "I don't think so, pal!" With an easy motion of the Nemeses Argentum, I telekinetically picked him up and slammed him against the wall, which actually cracked under the force of my motion. I began to crush the priest. "So, feel like telling me what your evil plans are, guys?"
Raula stood nearby, her head wreathed with filthy blackish-pink Slaaneshi energy. I then put my attention on her as I continued to crush the priest to death against the wall. Pinning my enraged glowing eyes on the witch, I even began to slightly levitate. I smiled wickedly. "You can either willingly tell me what you're planning or I'll hunt each and every one of you down and devour you all!"
No one responded for a split second, but then, I felt a wave of agony lash at me from the man I was crushing against the wall, causing me to flinch and to drop the priest, who was bleeding from his eyes, ears, and nose. Distracted, I turned my anger away from Raula, who then used this as an opportunity to somehow retreat in a flash of pink light through a set of large double doors further down this hallway.
The red eye in the Warp was then forcefully driven away, and I felt something else begin to whisper at the edge of my senses instead.
Feeling my body begin to react with sickening burning pain and weird pleasure at whatever the half-broken priest had done, I turned and snapped his neck with a motion of my fingers. Within, I felt a deep well of dark energy attempting to consume me, and I realized what the priest had done. He had assaulted my very soul, and had implanted me with a large amount of Chaotic taint!
Intuitively, I knew that if I had been a normal human, this action would have caused me to explode into a mess of eyes and moaning tentacles. However, I much stronger, and my energy was anathema to that sort of Chaotic bullshit. I took a deep breath and began to concentrate on burning away whatever darkness that threatened to consume me.
What happened next was unusual. As I continued to hastily metaphysically cleanse myself, the priest's filthy soul attempted to flee into Slaanesh's gullet, and still angry at these acts against me, I turned my eye against the profane god. I reached forward with an ethereal hand to grapple at the freed soul's energy, preventing its consumption by the Dark Prince.
A voice of countless screams and moans then whispered in a voice of silken needles through the Chaotic taint that remained within me. He is mine by right, Young Queen, the impossible voice said to me in a strangely matter-of-fact tone. He has been ritually sworn to me.
He came after me! I responded with indignation to the entity. He and that stupid fucking Raula White bitch! If someone tries to kill me, I want to eat them in revenge!
A pause, and a... smile?
Voracious hunger, it purred. I respect that, Young Queen. Very well. I will allow you this gift, and I smile at your insatiable nature! Come to my embrace and away from the anger of the Murderer, and the pointless games of the Conspirator, and be free to eat as much as you wish!
"No thanks," I said audibly as I felt the rest of the taint within me burn away. Despite this, the Key had captured the filthy soul of the priest. Uh, thanks, Slaanesh? Slightly winded from all this fun, my feet touched the ground again, and I caught my breath. Woah, I had to be more careful, I thought. Settle down, Erika...
I took a deep breath, and finally opened my eyes. Around me in the wide hall (which was now lit with red emergency lights, and filled with a haze of smoke), groups of frightened servants watched me with wide incredulous eyes, and my gold Corona was still burning brightly around my head and shoulders. Most of them stood behind a makeshift barricade that surrounded the kitchen doors down the hall, and by the looks of it, some of these people had been injured. The remaining three military guards had fled, and the people I had set on fire had fallen to the floor to roast to death down the hall. Their bodies were now filling the area with the vile smell of burning flesh. I was now also able to see that two large men were beating one of the guards that had fled into submission, so it appeared that only two guards had escaped.
I walked down the hall toward the barricade, and as I turned my attention to the people here, I realized that I could feel their fear, awe, and worship. Standing before the group, I then watched as the entire group slowly fell to their knees before me.
"No, no, no," I said, coughing in the smoky air. While I was outwardly embarrassed at these displays of deference, inwardly, of course, I enjoyed them, so I didn't scold the kneeling people too harshly. "We have shit to do, folks. We have to-"
The sprinkler system above then activated, briefly showering us all with water. Great. Not wanting to deal with that, and pretty sure I was finished with throwing fireballs around in enclosed spaces, I reached up and deactivated the fire suppressant system and the irritating fire alarm with a thought.
"My leader!" Alberich shouted as he trotted toward me from a door further down the hall. He was accompanied by a small group of Tzaangors, one of which had a broken horn, and what appeared to be a more goat-like beastman, who immediately fled inside the kitchen behind the barricade. Part of the gold paint on Alberich's feathered head had been washed away by the sprinkler system, revealing his white feathers. Above his left eye, he had a bloody cut on his brow, and that area of his face was swollen, confirming that he had been struck in the head. From another door down the hall, a familiar handsome blond-haired man was now making his way down the hall to me, and he wore a large smile. I recognized him as Luukai, the psyker bartender. The other psyker I had sensed was not with him.
"Well met once again, my lady," Luukai politely greeted me with a light bow. His face was also bruised, and wet blood caked his damp blond hair. The rest of the kneeling group slowly began to rise to their feet, very visibly relieved, and partially soaked with water.
"Is someone going to fill me on what's going on?" I asked hastily to the group of servants and mutants. "Where did Raula White go? Did anyone see?"
"She's back in the main hall," Luukai responded to me. "I sense it cleanly. The whispers of Change tell me that since we were not easy to subdue, that she will attempt to influence a hall of the wealthy, or enact a ritual of summoning to aid her."
"Okay," I quickly replied, and turned to Alberich who now stood beside me, patting his bruised face with a cloth. Nearby, two hulking horned Tzaangors bowed respectfully to me. "Alberich, tell me what happened after I was taken away."
"When you were taken, they took me and placed me in here in this servant's hall. I tried to tell them who I was, but they would not listen. They said some strange things and told us all to gather in this hallway, if I recall correctly." Alberich glanced around, and saw that the servants were nodding. "Shortly afterward, Langwidere's captain of the guard came to us and said that you would return, and that the governor was convinced fully of your divinity after speaking with you. Another of her men even said that you would lead this world to a glorious new splendor under the banner of the Family of Liberty."
I snorted and actually started laughing at this, as did Alberich. Behind me, I could hear that people were now rushing into the laundry room to retrieve their children, and their happy cries when reunited.
Alberich laughed. "Yes, I had a similar reaction. I openly doubted these words, and said that the Family of Liberty was a foul cult, and that even though I had only been on this world mere days, their lies and degradation were easy to see. I listened as the servants here began to chime in as well, also agreeing with me concerning the Family's corruption. Not pleased with that, and not pleased that I attempted to shield a small girl from being beaten in anger, I was struck on the head by the captain, and lost consciousness. I awoke tied up in a storage room when you spoke to me."
"He speaks the truth," the psyker bartender confirmed. "When Alberich was knocked unconscious, we were told to stay where we were, and they locked us in here before informing us that someone would be here to correct our so-called "confusion". They bound Alberich and the other mutants up in ropes, and put them in a storage room." Luukai explained further. His soul smelled funny, and I recognized the peculiar scent of the touch of Tzeentch on him. "In the brief period when we were left alone, I beheld a terrible vision that the cultists of the Family of Liberty had entered the palace, and that if they were not stopped, they would do... terrible things. Shortly thereafter, the Warp's whispers strangely ceased, and I could no longer sense its power. We presumed it was a strategy to cut us off from any sort of psychic strength or help."
"That's from the Tower of Reason," I explained. "There's an anti-Warp pylon inside that tower. I'm guessing that they activated it to knock out any sort of Family shenanigans. It's unstable too, and it shuts the Warp out for everyone, not just you. It might activate again soon, so beware."
"We directed the children to hide in the laundry room, and we locked it," a young red-haired woman said as she held her daughter, the same girl I had seen earlier. She offered our small group a sack of towels, and each of us took a towel to dry off from our brief shower under the sprinklers. "I never liked those people. The Family is no family of mine. They speak lies."
"The Family blames mutants for everything," the tall Tzaangor with the broken left horn said from above, now wrapping one of his clawed hands with a bandage. He shook his head sadly. "They call me a mad beast. I am a cook, and always have been. I've lived here for twenty years."
"It was Alberich here who was brave enough to speak firstly against the cruel captain of the guard when they first instructed us to stay put, and when they told us even more lies. And, he also stood before a young girl when the captain attempted to strike her for crying out in fear," Luukai informed us, his voice beaming with pride.
A whisper of "White-Feather" was heard behind me somewhere, and Alberich smiled as he continued to dry off, revealing more of his white coloring.
"Well, this is all just great and super heartwarming but does anyone have a plan here?" I asked, feeling my head swim. Obliterating people was hard work, but at least I had more than enough fuel for the Divine Retribution later in the Key. "While the governor isn't in the palace right now, Raula White is definitely here, and this world is in danger."
An uncomfortable thought welled up in me. Even if I stayed here and helped to conquer the Family of Liberty, the Necrons would flay this world alive. They were speeding their way here through space, furious and following Null through either some sort of virus or his belt. Maybe if we left as soon as possible, the Necrons would leave this world alone and just follow us instead? But, if I left early, then it appeared that the Family of Liberty and Am'Erika would conquer this world. This felt like a lose-lose situation!
My Corona began to flash irregularly again as I sensed more pylon instability. I awkwardly began to ask, "So, er, do any of you folks have an easy way to get off world? I mean, uh, just being safe here."
"You mean a shuttle, or a Warp-capable vessel?" Luukai asked, his features becoming serious. "Is the danger truly that bad? We know about the terrorist attacks, but..."
"Warp vessel," I looked at this large group of downtrodden servants, cooks, and other palace aides as they continued to lay more tables on the floor, and distribute more kitchen knives among their numbers. The crying of frightened children was easily audible in this red-lit space, and this upset me on a deep instinctual level. Aside from this group, this world contained five hundred million people that I should also be concerned about. If I didn't help them, they'd all die. But if I stayed to help them, they might still all die!
Luukai briefly crossed his arms, and made a thoughtful expression. He then turned to me, and his blue eyes flashed with a strange light. Alberich tells me that you are familiar with the organization of the Blue Architects. Is this true? the Tzeentchian bartender asked me in mind.
Yeah, I know about you guys. I can smell Chaotic taint a mile away. No offense, I said offensively.
I imagine you can, considering what you are. And thank you for not outing or killing us. Our organization is a benign group of truth seekers that-
You're a Tzeentchian cult, I know. But, you guys are small enough that you're not the ones putting this world in immediate danger through mass sacrifice or the summoning of a greater daemon to animate a statue, I interrupted, massaging my temple. My halo brightened briefly again, and dimmed.
Luukai didn't respond to me immediately, but he did nod gently, his expression resigned. He then said, "You seem to want to get off this world as soon as possible, and you are recommending we do the same."
"Yeah, you got it," I replied. Distantly, I again heard a strange whisper for "help" somewhere at the edge of my senses. I couldn't place where it was coming from, so I just tried to ignore it.
Luukai's eyes then suddenly glowed, and a blue shine rose from around his head and shoulders for moment. Shortly afterward, he relaxed, and turned to me again. He made a strange motion with his hand, which caused me to feel a cold shiver, and a ringing in my ears. Luukai then said, "I have cast an enchantment around us. Whatever I say in this conversation will not be heard beyond you, me, or Alberich. And it is to be kept secret, please."
Alberich and I both nodded, interested in what the psyker wanted to tell us.
"Through Alberich's commendable behavior and your helpful information, I and my superior wish to offer to you safe refuge in our hideout in Evna. My superior has just authorized the use of the secret tunnels for you and Alberich's passage. This will allow you to bypass security in the departure of the palace grounds, and our hideout is on the way to where your vessel is located at Port Aubergine."
Alberich smiled, but I was uncertain. "What about all the people here?" I asked quietly, motioning to the makeshift barricade that was still being swiftly being constructed ahead of the kitchen. Even the little children now had knives, and they worked to stack objects even as they trembled in fear.
A dizzy sensation swept through me, and the Key on my chest suddenly became warm again. Someone had died in great fear nearby. My senses told me that the decedent had passed in the ballroom, which was not a good sign. I shuddered to think what Raula was doing in there with her followers!
Luukai then answered my earlier question in a quiet voice with, "The tunnels cannot accommodate all these people at once. Only senior members such as myself are knowledgeable enough to lead others through the tunnels, as it is a literal maze filled with traps. And, we can only lead a few people through at a time. While we might be able to arrange transportation off the world for some of these people, we cannot have them in the tunnels."
"Where are the tunnels?" Alberich asked. I had a feeling that I already knew where they were, as Rasputin had mentioned that he knew of an escape route through the palace grounds.
"In the hedge maze outside. Since the palace is currently locked down, we will need to use the second floor exit and climb down a wall, but I suspect it will not be trouble for you. Funny enough, I overheard that you came down from the warded second floor using the dumbwaiter that we use to transport our operatives. It appears the governor wished you to be locked in the accursed "visitor's wing", of which, we could never fully explore, as it was covered with powerful impenetrable wards. You'll have to tell me how you escaped some other time!"
"Yup, second floor linen closet," I answered as I nervously continued to watch the large double doors. I felt woozy, and I shook my head. "And, holy shit, when we have more time I need to tell you about what the governor has been doing! She's... she's fucking terrible!"
"Well, if fate permits, we'll be out of here soon, and safe from the Family's terroristic ways," Luukai remarked.
I was about to respond until I was struck with a marked dizzy spell. I sensed that another soul had been captured within my Key, this one also originating from the ballroom. I gripped my heart, and turned toward the double doors. Something terrible was happening in there!
A strange musical noise then began to groan from the ballroom, and all the servants in the hallway paused their defensive preparations fearfully.
"What was that?" Alberich asked the psyker bartender in concern. "You told me this wing was soundproof."
"It is," Luukai responded with a flash of his blue eyes. "Normally..." Worried, he then turned back to the group of servants, and walked to them. Feeling the enchantment of silence around us break, Luukai then ordered all the people who could not fight to flee into the kitchen, and all those who could fight were instructed to stand behind the barricade.
My psychic senses shivered with revulsion when I sensed a deeply evil Warp shadow passing through the ballroom on the other side of the doors. A chilling electric screech began to tremble through the air here. Whatever was making that horrible sound had a daemonic origin!
"Listen to Luukai! Everyone prepare yourselves or hide!" I quickly instructed the people that were still standing around as I walked to stand before the large set of double doors. A strange fearful hush passed through this wing, and even the children ceased their crying. Everyone was watching me, and a small whisper of, "The Empress protects" came from somewhere behind me as I stepped forward.
Something heavy then struck the double doors, and the low electric strumming noise vibrated again through the air. People gasped in fright, and an eerie pink light began to shine through the minuscule seams in the door frame. In a terrible surprise, I felt my Key react, devouring yet another newly freed (and very terrified) soul from somewhere within the ballroom!
"Everyone, keep as quiet as you can and stay hidden!" I instructed again. "I'm going to see what's going on in there!"
"I'm with you, my leader. I will guard you as you view it," Alberich quickly said to me as we walked to stand directly ahead of the doors to the ballroom.
Okay, okay. I can do this, I thought, bracing myself as I now stood before the entryway. I had just blown up some guards, and I shrugged off a Warp attack that would have transformed me into a Chaos Spawn if I had been a normal human. I even back talked Slaanesh and took a soul from him, so this was definitely a good strong day for me. Definitely main character Mary Sue nonsense if I was in a Warhammer 40k fanfiction, I thought with a trembling smile. I swallowed, as I closed my eyes, getting ready to remote view what was on the other side of this barrier.
A scene of bloody debauchery assailed my mind. A portion of the maddened wealthy costumed guests had lost themselves to Chaos. Another group of guests now banded together; they were invoking the Emperor, praying, and holding their ears against the bizarre dissonant noise that had begun to blast from the mezzanine. A handful of bleeding corpses lay strewn randomly on the reflective gold ballroom floor. Again, I sensed more desperate cries for help echoing through my mind like lost songbirds.
The cries were somewhat drowned out by strange female chanting that echoed in the ballroom, along with the terrible screeching noise I had heard earlier.
My attention was drawn up to the noisy mezzanine. Normally, this would be where the small orchestral band would be performing music for the delight of the crowd, but now, their instruments were silent save for one shadowy figure.
The musicians of the orchestra lay in an eviscerated pile on the mezzanine. All were obviously dead, and I could now see that the terrible noises I had heard were originating from the harpist I had seen earlier during the evening, who somehow still lived. Or, no, wait... An aura of profanity surrounded the musician now; she was no longer human! Some sort of monster was wearing the skin of the harpist as a shell, I sensed. It had changed and mutilated the woman to suit itself.
The chanting continued to echo through the hall as I continued to study the daemon on the mezzanine.
The former woman was now a tall, willowy thing, and possessed many features typical of a daemonette of Slaanesh, with pale lavender skin, taloned feet, and sharp black claws. I could see hints of the harpist's original form through the possession of the daemon, and she still had long braided black hair that now flowed behind her in an invisible wind. Her eyes were wide blue saucers, and a mouth of sharp fangs sang and grinned as she played her instrument.
I felt sick as I watched the daemon strum the tall gold harp, but my Sight informed me that there was now something abnormal concerning the instrument she played. I felt sick when I realized that while it was the same harp I had seen earlier, it had now somehow merged with the body of a very unlucky partygoer into some kind of amalgamation of metal and flesh! At the base of the instrument, I could now see an unfortunate man's spine and vertebrae fully exposed to the air, and each ridge of glistening living bone had become an anchor point for a thin cord of braided gore and gold! Even worse, I also sensed that the man was still alive!
The female chanting also continued. I then recognized that this indecipherable chanting was originating from Raula White, who I could now sense was dancing in the shadows behind the harpist daemon. She seemed to be reveling in the noisy chaos within the ballroom.
I watched as the daemon deftly strummed and caressed the living strings attached to her mutilated "instrument", causing the man who had been melded to the harp to sing in unnatural agony. When each cord was struck, the man screamed a supernatural symphony of pain through the ballroom, sending waves of blissful agony and madness through the partygoers as they danced and fought madly in the bloody space!
Once again, I heard a strange cry for help, and this time it was more coherent. It came from within a group of sane partygoers who were desperately defending themselves against the others who had lost their minds. As I watched the lucid group, the plea was heard again, and I pinpointed the plaintive cry as coming from a woman dressed as a Sister of Battle. She was defending herself from a slathering madman who had removed his entire costume save for his devilish mask and had attempted to grab at her.
"Empress, help us!" she cried out! I realized then that this woman was one of the two friendly sisters I first met outside the palace. She was crying, and trying to protect her younger sister, who stumbled behind her with a bleeding head wound!
Another voice also called out: "Empress, save us! We're sorry we rejected you! We believe now!"
And another: "Curse governor Langwidere! Warp take her, for she is the great liar, the great betrayer! The whore of Tar Vigaz!"
"Holy God-Empress! Save us!" a man cried in fear as a maddened woman clawed at his face while attempting to bite him. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
"...Little Sister! Help-!"
Seeing all of this, my heart began to beat heavily in distress, but I continued to listen and watch the terrifying scene unfold before me.
"Empress, save-!"
The chanting paused.
"Now, now, now," Raula White's voice sang loudly above the daemonic harpist's obscene music as she floated down to the dance floor from the mezzanine to confront the familiar young woman dressed as a Sister of Battle. "We can't have this sort of heresy, now can we? We need the area to be nice and clean so we can invite more angelic reinforcement."
The woman stood tall and defiant against Raula's evil energy, and bravely roared, "You and the governor can't keep doing this, and you won't get away with this! All the lies you told us through the media about your heretical cult! For this, you shall be judged in fire and you will be destroyed! You can't-!"
Raula White then struck the young costumed Sister of Battle in the face with such power that her neck broke! The brave woman crumpled to the ground, lifeless. Her younger sister wailed in horror! The group of maddened partygoers laughed, cheered, and moaned in delight at her pain, and some even kneeled down to cry on the floor, mocking the sister's sorrow!
"Would anyone else care to dance with me tonight?" Raula hissed to the ballroom as she flexed her fingers. She then began to project her voice, making herself heard over the mad exaltations in this chaotic space. "Come to me then, oh daemonic confederacies! Dance with me! I will destroy all who would go against blessed Am'Erika, for through Am'Erika I am blessed, and so I cannot be defeated! For at my command, angels have been dispatched from heaven right now to aid us! They're coming here! Angelic reinforcement! I hear the sound of victory! I hear the sound of an abundance of pain!"
I had seen enough, and within me, I felt myself snap as the Key absorbed the brave woman's energy. A strange power filled me as my Corona blazed in a very strong light. Infuriated, I felt myself begin to step fearlessly forward, and with another pull of my energy, I willed the locked double doors to open before me. This caused cries of fear to echo from the barricade behind me. I continued walking ahead, almost as if on autopilot. A powerful protective imperative was racing through my being like a river of fire, and all my energy wanted to help the innocent humans in this ballroom. No more of this. No more.
The innocents behind me were still crying out in fear, so, without turning around, I commanded them, "Know no fear." I felt their fear turn to courage. Good.
I dimly noticed that other brave souls had followed me as I walked ahead into the damned ballroom, and when they were through, I shut the door behind me with an easy gesture, locking it again. I sensed that at least one of these individuals that walked beside me housed at least a small amount of Chaotic taint, but my foremost imperative right now was to put an end to the murderous debauchery in the ballroom. I could deal with smaller problems later.
Everyone in the ballroom, maddened or sane, had frozen when I had stormed onto the dance floor. Even the daemonic harpist had stopped her infernal performance, and she hissed when she realized what I was. The population of the maddened ballroom, I realized, was roughly split. One third of the people here seemed to be unaffected by whatever daemonic enchantment was charging the air; they were huddled protectively together in a group on the left side of the ballroom. The Sister of Battle I had seen struck by Raula White lay dead on the gold floor in the center of ballroom. The remaining two thirds of the partygoers reeked of Chaotic bewitchment, and they were in various states of undress and injury, covered in the blood of themselves and others. Each group watched me with wide eyes, and Raula White currently stood in the center of the space over the body of the defiant young woman. I could see that the witch's red, white, and blue striped gown was now splattered with far more red. Her expression was shifting from surprised fear into furious rage, and her own vile halo of black and electric pink energy wreathed her head like a cloud of flies.
It was easy enough for someone like me to see that this witch was afraid, and no amount of foolish bluster could conceal that from my Sight.
"You dare interrupt the holy actions of the Family of Liberty, whore?!" she shouted at me. Raula then even began to slightly levitate above the gold floor, and around her, I could hear otherworldly voices singing in some kind of evil choir. The witch raised her arms and grinned madly down at me. "Don't you understand, pretender? The Family wishes to save this world from the silver death that comes from the stars! To hurt us is to kill this world! We have foreseen this! Walk away, pretender Empress, and allow this world to live under bliss and ecstasy, defended by the beautiful dance of the Dark Prince!"
I continued fearlessly advancing as I smiled, brightening my halo when I sensed the secret prayers echoing in the minds of the humans to my left. These whispered adulations empowered me further, and I gripped the glowing Nemeses Argentum, in my right hand. With a growl behind my resonant voice, I laughed coldly before I boomed: "If you wish to dance with someone, then why don't you dance with me, Raula White? And, I hope you brought better music than that ugly ass harpist daemon, because you're in my house now, bitch!"