How could this happen? Billions of exorcists invade hell to curb a spontaneous surge of souls just to be curbed themselves. Hagar couldn't believe her eyes as this place she considered beneath her would most likely be her tomb, with those digging the grave shown to be more powerful than her. Such a variety of sinners now surrounded her as her wardens. Suits straight out of World War 1, and yet right next to them are creatures of sheer body horror—beings with metal form and robotic speech. The binary code spread in chants was almost religious, as the wire-heads began to cover their bodies in some strange liquid they came down to Hell with. The symbols on the bottles appear to be a language Hagar had never seen before.
Yet even with these features, the hulking marines were much more terrifying. Beings with metal and valor beyond what she has seen in millennia in Heaven. Their design appeared so alien: what design classes futuristic warrior with medieval knight? And the black ones have strange swords and large pistols just chained to their skeletons. The blue ones seemed the most reserved of all, ensuring the safety of their subjects. Meanwhile, the green and black ones were more aggressive. The very sight of her sisters' breathing appeared to enrage them. They had no mercy in cutting out their wings and snaring them in metal chains. Even those unfortunate enough to not escape fast enough were shot out of the skies to join their fallen sisters to become property to this invasive species. Whatever these freaks were, the term human couldn't possibly be accurate.
Yet, even more terrifying were the women in the crusader's ranks. Feminine faith more devoted or unwavering than she has seen in a collection of angels Hagar's entire life. Sure, there were select individuals who had such dedication to their beliefs, but they were few and far between. In combination, the barbarian's zealotry was unrivaled. The way they were skewering the angels in battle with their own weapons was simply brutality given flesh. Hagar had no idea how such humans were able to overpower divine beings. What monsters forced this new civilization to adapt into monsters themselves. She had little time to question her situation when the newly transformed human with angel wings makes an address to her audience.
"Warriors of faith! The Xenos scum has been thwarted! Let this well-earned victory not diminish the beast's wrath. They have proven themselves to be without caution. Yet like all the Xenos before them, they have failed! As long as I, Juneline continue to breathe, this outcome will be repeated! We are still alive! We are blessed with the Emperor's strength. AND WE SHALL CHANGE THIS HEATHEN LAND INTO THAT WHICH SHALL PLEASE OUR EMPIRE!"
Cheer was louder than any chorus Hagar had ever heard, more potent than any church could ever cheer. They seemed to draw power from another being. But that's impossible! There is only God who can grant such immense blessings! Unless…oh shit. They were not alone. The metal men excavate the area, scavenging for any relevant artifacts to use in the battlefield beyond spears, to no avail. But they do find pieces of steel that can be reused to hold the angels. Though these were not plentiful. Only 400 angels are able to be adequately contained. The rest suspected what was to come.
A metal man spoke to the Nephilim with words Hagar could hardly make out. "...restraints…the rest…heresy…" This Juneline flew again, a hand raised with what the Angel presumed was murderous intent. "This is uncharted territory, not yet cleansed by the light. The harpies will be of use to us. Though…not all of them are needed." Her fingers move into position to incinerate the remaining abominations ``PRAISE THE EMPEROR! HOLY BE HIS WORD AND THOSE OF HIS SERVANTS! MAY I BE REFORMED TO FIT HIS DESIGN!" The entire section of Hell was silent after that. Hagar recognized Karlel's voice from the speech and was horrified. Such words spoken in the face of death, the epitome of submission. Juneline was shocked to hear this, especially from the mouth of a xenos. It appeared there was opportunity for these harpies greater than anticipated. It wasn't everyday aliens bow before the Emperor's presence.
The pause is not eternal however, as the snap of the Nephilim's fingers followed by the screams of celestial immortals muffled by the roaring fires recaptured everyone's' souls. Hagar felt a chill run down her spine despite the immense heat emerging from Juneline's power. The angel winced in fear as the Palatine approached her, yet summoned the strength to retain eye contact. As intimidating as this figure was, somehow the celestial holds her own. A greaves hand clasps onto her shoulder, the muscles involuntary tensing up. "Speak your name, harpy." "...it is Karlel, Ma'am." With this response, Juneline shuffled through a nearby pile of rubble, until she pulled out a black leather leash. Presumably it was designed for the more expressive desires of lust. Now it was simply wrapped around Karlel's shoulder, "Soon, your faith will be genuine, Karlel." The Nephilim then ordered the soldiers to march through the wastelands for a proper home to rest in.
The sights of sinners and imps looking at the angels from a distance with awe and joy was a dreadful sight to behold. Hagar felt shame that she allowed herself to be taken by these apes. There was nothing more shameful than being forced to walk through the circle of pride without any autonomy. Once, the arrival of exorcists was too extreme to look at, as it reduced the chance of survival of their hunt. Now, the only revered reactions were toward their captures. A few thrown items were directed at the celestials just demonstrates their now found supremacy over their hunters. Their captures do nothing to stop this barrage, only tugging the chains to insure the line keeps moving. Four hundred angels were forced to be treated as witches, when once speaking of them was frowned upon. But now…there was a change in power.
Hagar could see an imp hiding behind a trash can staring at an Ultramarine marching through what was formerly a road meant for cars to travel through. The sheer wonder at the sight of something so historic with armor reminiscent of medieval knights the humans would share, and yet was also futuristic with metals and weapons beyond what he knew. Every step felt dynamic, as if the gravel that held up several modes of transportation was not strong enough to hold them. Soldiers dressed for trench warfare, abominations straight from H. R. Giger's drawings and even…Valkyries? The crowd could not stop staring at the strange combination of forces far too numerous to count, that were capable enough to take down the horde of the divine.
Delilah was not going to allow these savages to use her for their own gains. Their barbaric mindsets were likely susceptible to her preferred methods of manipulation. So she would evade through a different way. Through great pain and bodily mutilation, she was able to free herself of her chains. But midway through the breaking of her arms, she remained inconspicuous. She knew simply running from these brutes wasn't going to be enough. They weren't that mentally malnourished. So she would keep moving right until she had some opening to slip through. Security would be too tight to navigate through otherwise.
Suddenly, a metal car drives through the alleys. Sinners screaming for their lives, shouting "Bugs!" as their green liquid covered red Corvette steamrolls through the garden area and directly towards the Imperial forces. A few Mechanicus tech priests fell to the assault, but the others were able to hold themselves against this swift construct of steel. The demons begin speaking of "Purple dinosaurs with marble blades," much to the disinterest of the cyborgs. A rips out the door, as the demons try to warn of the bugs. Creatures with purple skin and white blades. What a perfect opportunity, one which Delilah used to make her move. The sinners were thrown aside, their warnings taken with no serious consideration. Then the crew tends to their property, when they notice one of them is gone. The sight of disturbed trash in an alley gave away the harpy's location. 4 marines moved to pursue the survivor: 2 Black Templars to the right and 2 Salamanders to the left to cut off the prisoner.
The charge to earn freedom would not be easily won. The black armored hulks pursue the angel with untamed ferocity. Their enlarged proportions led Delilah to assume the abominations would be slower. How surprising to see them sprinting through the tight corridors, yet the angel sees a way to avoid the beats once and for all, through the city's dark corridors. One of the marines pulled out their large gun and shot out a few bullets. Very large bullets, more like tank shells. Trash exploded as Delilah looked for any possible cover before taking a right. The clicking of the trigger was heard along with an annoyed grunt, telling her it was empty. Whatever ammunition they had before the angel attack, it was heavily expended. Another subtle advantage she had.
The other black berserker keeps up with the angel still. She knocked over a few cans of garbage, only to see the beast crush them under his steel boots. Fighting this man was useless at her strongest, with the exorcist army's spears bouncing off their strange metal cover. So, she decided to do something they most likely couldn't do, and jumped up towards a fire exit on a building. Pulling out his chainsaw sword, her pursuer swings violently at the metal in his way. She could tell the stairs would be too much for the big boys, and so ran to freedom. The templars recognized they were outplayed, and described the situation with their coms.
To think this is where she would end up. First a Philistine looking over Israeli slaves only to have a relationship with some judge. Despite her attempts to remain professional around him, he always had a way to delve into her heart. After their marriage, Delilah learned she was not his first. A woman from Timnah and a harlot in Gaza were claimed first. He didn't have the decency to even remember their names! It was a wonder it took the promise of a fortune for her to start trying to kill him. After many attempts of having the secrets to his strength fail, she finally discovered the hero's weakness: his hair. After cutting it and gathering the Philistine forces to take him away, she decided to check up on him one last time to see if he was truly remorseful for his deception. Only to end up being another casualty in his destruction of the temple was flogged in, apparently getting his strength back. Fortunately, she was still faithful to Yahweh, so ended up in heaven. To think she would end up an angel turned to a weapon against a rising population of sinners, and now was climbing up a metal staircase up a building just to get away from this infestation. She arrived at the top of the structure, witnessing the chaos unraveling on the north side of the pentagram.
A moment of rest that would be fatal, as the exit door at the top of the apartment was blown off, flying right at her. Delilah was barely able to dodge the metal object, only having her left leg damaged. This was not the main threat she would need to overcome. The following marine was that. Her bowels exploded into a gold bath as the green covered beast buried his gauntlet in her stomach. The Salamander then lifted her up and threw her down to the ground. The fall caused her body to explode, covering the surrounding area in her ichor. The Black Templars chuckle as they arrive on the scene, followed by the winning champion to slide down the skyscraper by gripping onto the wall, causing great destruction as gravity does the rest. Delilah's body regenerates to no surprise, but it was at her own expense. The marines begin to absolutely rock her world. Limbs contoured to degrees beyond natural limitations, ichor continually pouring from her mangled anatomy, organs ripped out multiple times. Delilah screams began to dim, as she considered how this event was simple torture porn, serving no purpose beyond advancing her suffering. Surely these apes would lose interest eventually.
Then, her head was forced onto the ground, her limbs reorganized to look as if she was kneeling rather than struggling. The Salamander proceeds to speak something so repulsive, so derogatory, so utterly inhumane she almost barfed the repaired body parts. "Eat the dirt." Further struggle was levied by the angel, to little effect. She turned her head away from the ground, standing her ground so that she wouldn't be reduced to a dog. The Salamander proceeded to stomp his boots onto her skull, reducing it to pulp. The repeated assaults force regrowth to take longer, as her body was being pushed to its limits. The Salamander once again placed his greaves on her head again. The grunts of distress and resistance turn to whimpers and cries of oppression. The Black Templars looked at this harpy and saw…a soul. Not some xenos lessor equivalent, but an actual soul. A being with hopes and dreams being pushed into the crimson dirt. "Uh…Brother Kulop? The female is resilient. Would you consider-?" "QUIET!" The Templar recognized his place and backed off. And he could only watch as the celestial finally submits to the command and begins devouring the dirt like a pig. She was not released until the contents were swallowed, at which time she was thrown against a wall and told a message even more chilling than the last: "Remember this moment, xenos scum. Remember this as the moment you came face to face with your reflection."
With their lost livestock recovered, the Imperial forces continue their path. The need for shelter was obvious, they were in xenos territory with an unknown star system and creatures that can swarm them at any time. They locate a nearby building that looks as if it would serve their purposes. Carmilla's Factory. Given the neon lights resembling a firearm of sorts, it appears to be their production of weapons against the harpy race. The sights of the new landlords cause great fear in the building's employees. The rumors were true! The sights of exorcists were scary to see flying down to purge sinners everywhere. Somehow, the sight of them chained was worse. Headquarters were contacted as soon as they were spotted emerging from the premises, awaiting reinforcements. Instead, the commands were to extract whatever valuable product they could leave with and retreat, no questions. Little time was spent on contemplating the orders. Little time was all they could afford. Few were stupid enough to fight the collection. Juneline made sure they were dealt with in seconds.
Properly organizing the warehouses into living quarters and taking inventory were tasks that would take hours to complete. So far these crates the demons were protecting were weapons of inferior design. However, after studying their components, it is revealed the metal these rifles were composed of were the same as the spears the harpies wielded. And their inventory was loaded with these items. Adeptus Mechanicus tech priests swiftly convert the assembly line to produce weapons they were more adept in, like bolters and plasma pistols. However, the Saint orders a group of Engiseers to get a better understanding of their enemy. A room is reserved for them as they escort a random slave to be examined in excessive detail.
All this metal…every instrument used to cut her. Soon she couldn't figure out which organ was cut out when, which liquids were piss, tears or blood. It didn't help that she wasn't allowed a moment of rest to get her mind out of this relentless chamber. However, all those minutes of witnessing how else her body can be remangeled made her ponder: what was the point of hell? For sinners to build themselves back up from the ashes of their failures? Then when you die effectively determines how you can affect the lives of others after you. Was it a sign of dominance over humans to make them obey? Then God is cruel for implementing such a system solely for the humans to gravitate towards a destructive world. Her leg snapped again, was it the 80'th time now? At this point, Hagar was so numb to the pain she could debate these moral topics in her head without the surgery interrupting her.
The wounds were permanent. Sure, her flesh repaired what the Mechanicus had removed, though at greatly reduced speeds due to the extensive experiments. But even when laying on the hay covered ground right next to her sisters, Hagar could never forget the sense of control they had over her body. As she buried herself in the makeshift mattress, her mind fails to bury the scars away. She found some reflective surface in the wall, or rather a damaged one. She witnessed herself in her ascended yet broken form. She recalls, thousands of years ago, how her previous owner treated her. Sarah was hardly considerate, her hours were long, food was scarce and good behavior was rarely if ever rewarded. Her body was used for Abraham's pleasure, and her son Ishmeal was robbed from her arms. Her unmonitored escape was a feeling beyond any organism to her, She couldn't recall which rush was more exciting: the barefooted charge through Israeli sands under the night sky, or her fantasies swiftly pondering how to spend her well earned freedom in Egypt. It wasn't until the Lord Himself came down to ease her mind. Much to her annoyance, Hagar couldn't recall His exact words. Then, her search came to a close.
"Go back to your mistress and submit to her."
It then hit her. She was never free. Her time as a slave was as property, and she was expected to simply take it. That's why he told her to call her son Ishmeal. It was her suffering made manifest, and she wasn't even allowed to keep him. She was forced back into captivity to serve their purposes further, all under the promise her descendants would be like grains of sand. Even in heaven, there were certain things you cannot say nor question, such as whether or not the exterminations are necessary. She pulls a great amount of hay towards her, trying to get used to the fact that she would be a slave again. Yet, there was a constant thought lurking in her mind, pondering if she ever stopped being one.