Divine Intervention

by CAN I SEE YOUR PASSPORT

Two Girls are saved by a Guardian Angel and Saint Celestine, forging her own path, navigates a world that she has no knowledge on.

24. Eternal Guardian

Eternal Guardian

The sloppy sounds of flesh being poked and prodded slowly grew on her nerves, as it had been for the past few hours. Each pile of gore was touched and toyed with in some form, and Celestine had to wonder what Lelith would have done if she was alone… perhaps nothing, or maybe-

"Having fun?" Celestine grumbled, ignoring the other possibilities outright, and sat back in the chair, the Ardent Blade lit with bright flames and provided all the heat that the building needed while the flames cast dancing shadows across the walls.

Lelith looked up from the pile of ribs and stopped prodding the skull, "no, this is a regular human,"

"Was human," she corrected with a scowl, "it is a defilement to the image of man,"

Lelith shrugged, "it is a creature like we all are,"

Celestine sighed and placed her head in a hand and stared at the Ardent Blade, "it will die all the same,"

The Succubus blinked once and turned back to the pile of gore boredly.

It amazed the Saint that she could sit still for more than a few minutes, let alone hours. Celestine chuckled to herself, "who are you and what have you done with Hesperax?"

The redhead shot her a confused look and then a deadpan one, "funny. Get better jokes,"

She laughed at that. "fine, I'm trying to ease the boredom,"

Sitting in an abandoned building in a now-abandoned mine was more than tiresome. Sure, the odd Grimm was out and about, but they largely disappeared once they realised there was no getting in. Or getting a kill.

It was one of the few familiarities this world had with what she knew.

"What do you think they were mining for?" Lelith was suddenly in front of her, hands-on-hips and a raised brow,

Celestine pulled the Ardent Blade away from her after drawing the blade on the Drukhari, "not sure. It could be a manner of all things; hidden cache of some type, excavating a hidden location… or, Emperor forbids, a Necron tomb…"

Lelith laughed sharply, "I doubt the last one, the Necrontyr would have made themselves known by now,"

Celestine sighed and sat up slightly, "yes, but we never know with them,"

Slowly, Lelith nodded, "true, they are a…" she trailed off as the ground rumbled and sounds of rocks falling drew their attention, "finally, something to do,"

Celestine stood with an eye roll, "am I not interesting enough?"

Lelith twirled a blade as she picked them up and marched over to the table blocking the door, "no, you're not,"

"Ouch," Celestine deadpanned back as the table was moved out of the way. Immediately, snow rushed in, ridding what little heat the building held.

The Saint let Lelith leave first, letting her take the first hits if something was there and followed after her into the courtyard. The tipped truck nearly vanished under a pile of snow that stuck to its freezing metal surface, while the few remaining corpses were nothing more than lumps in the snow.

It was astounding how quickly the tundra reclaimed land once people left.

Lelith in front of her was gone in a blink, replaced by a rapidly dying Beowulf where she stood.

And it was amazing how quickly the Grimm moved in as if trying to deny Mankind the territories they once held.

"The tunnel has an opening," Lelith's voice rose over the night winds. The fact she could see in such little visibility was a surprise. As was how quickly she vanished into the hole.

A groan left Celestine and she rolled her eyes. She approached it and looked into the hole, "I can't fit into the hole,"

There wasn't a response, nor a sound and she sighed while clutching the Ardent Blade closer for the heat. She turned her back to the rubble and looked out over what little she could see.

Fifteen minutes. That's all it took.

Fifteen minutes for a Custodian to put an end to assault within the compound. How long would it have taken him without her arrival? The Grimm were numerous and nearly unending, but so was he.

She gave it twenty minutes, maximum.

Granted, there was Alexea and then Lelith there as well, but the fact the giant managed to kill so many so quickly. Custodian Longinus was just as fast and unrelenting, but she was blinded by Decius' treachery and deception to truly witness him fight.

Now she could watch Kotek spar with a Drukhari as if it was the most normal thing in the world. Technically for the native humans, it now was…

It was now, though and that fact threw her for a loop.

Behind her, the debris and rubble slowly collapsed enough to create an opening for her.

"That better?" Lelith asked from inside the mine,

Celestine rolled her eyes and squeezed herself through the gap, "were there any of the parasites in there?" she questioned as she came through the other side.

Lelith shook her head and moved closer to the Ardent Blade, "dead ones, yes." she gestured across the ground and Celestine held the Ardent Blade out to light the way.

Rotting flesh and bone lay in piles. Dark brown stains covered the dirt floor and stone walls, leaving behind what was once the parasites.

"They don't live long," Celestine kicked a skull across the floor and regretted it as what was left of the brain matter covered the sabaton,

"Probably designed to cause chaos, not be a permanent being when 'born'," Lelith guessed and shrugged, "doesn't matter in the end,"

Celestine blinked and let her eyes light with power, "lets go exploring, shall we?"

Lelith held a hand out in front of herself, "you may go first,"

The Saint shrugged and complied, proceeding to march down the dark tunnel with the only source of light, "I am not scared of the dark,"

Lelith followed after her with a snort, "believe me, I can make that change,"

"I am sure you can," Celestine agreed, partly to appease the woman's ego and because it was true. The Wyches were a terrifying display of acrobatic grace, beauty and above all else, death. The same could be said of all Drukhari, but most of all, the proclaimed Queen of Wyches.

No matter how harmless the woman seemed, she continuously gave a dangerous impression, even when relaxed.

"I have made even Astartes cower from the dark," Lelith spoke with satisfaction, "your Lords of Night were nothing more than parodies of our art,"

Celestine fell back to walk alongside Lelith, "you made Night Lords fear the dark?"

Lelith nodded and avoided a rock that jutted out of the wall fluidly, even if that meant pushing Celestine to the side, "they're nothing more than children with a sadistic streak, apes that carry a crude gun,"

"What, so you aren't as scared of them as we are?"

"Hah!" Lelith snorted, "I fear nothing, but carry a health caution when regarding the Astartes, let alone the tainted and ones you deem traitors," she licked her lips with a grin, "their egos are surprisingly large and more satisfying to break. They believe turning against your Imperium makes them righteous and just, that they are the heroes of their story. Others are clinically insane.

"Either way, their independence complex breeds ego and sometimes god complexes amongst them," Lelith sighed happily at apparent memories replaying in her mind, "so, yes, we broke the Night Lords and enjoyed every second of it,"

Celestine wanted to back away slightly, yet the nature of the mines prevented it with tight spaces. Instead, she took a step back and let Lelith lead the way, which she did happily, "colour me morbidly interested,"

"It is a story I keep for regaling to prisoners," Lelith looked over her shoulder, her head turned unnaturally further than a human ever could- just far enough to feel alien and impart a sense of wrongness in the pit of Celestine's stomach, amplified by the perfect camouflage the darkness gave to the woman, "to break them just a bit more; because what is worse than a story of nightmares and monsters?"

Celestine shrugged, ignoring the unsettling way the woman's body contorted, "tell me,"

Lelith grinned widely, "knowing that there is something that broke those nightmares and that I am one of them," she faced ahead, something the Saint was thankful for, and spoke regularly, "a tactic Vect uses regularly with tales of our rise and fall, but never finishing them, leaving the victim with one thing to obsess over; the ending. But I am not like him, I prefer outright misery to subtle prods,"

Celestine snorted and shook her head, "I can verify that subtlety is not your strongest point,"

"I like being straightforward, it is harder to be misconstrued and people have the tendency to listen more often if I am to the point," Lelith agreed with herself with a gentle nod that was barely discernible from behind, her copious amounts of hair blocked most of her… nearly. Her rear was still visible, something that the Saint felt was intended for a mix of distraction and exhibitionism.

"Do you really wear as little for a direct purpose?" Celestine looked over Lelith's shoulder down the darkness of the mines, nothing moved, not a shadow stirred.

"Why do you think I dress the way I do?" Lelith asked and glanced back, thankfully not bending her neck the way she did before, "genuinely."

"Lack of shame and exhibitionism," Celestine shrugged, "but you did say once it's a distraction,"

"Correct on all fronts," Lelith confirmed, "I do not mind the attention, I live for it in the rings-"

"Attention whore,"

Lelith nodded, "I say again, you and Emerald are rather similar," she shook her head, "it serves as a distraction to the weak-willed. My presence alone is enough to make Archons cower, my body is fought over by Kabals and lusted for by all of my wretched kind-"

She spun around to face Celestine and walked backwards with a grin on her face- "millions flock to the rings when I am there to see me and no one else. Whether it is a performance of acting or fighting, I am the main attractor," Lelith finished by trailing her hands over her body, but never touching her skin.

Celestine bore a look of mixed disgust and confusion, at both the woman in front of her and her own mind for being so vivid. The bile that crept up was swallowed, "so… you weaponise yourself in every way, reputation and all…"

"If I am to cause as much damage, I have to use what I have," Lelith chuckled under her breath and ran her hands down her sides, "you humans put it like this; if I have it, flaunt it. And I know I'm attractive, in both Aeldari and human societies,"

"Oh, Emperor, that's what Emerald meant by you 'smelling funny'…" Celestine groaned, "why are you like this?"

Lelith laughed openly, and Celestine found it to be disturbingly sweet like her voice usually was; easy to listen to and wanting more, "of the five of us, I have little else to do, so I may as well satisfy myself,"

"An actual whore," Celestine muttered, "is it easier to list what you haven't bedded?"

"Perhaps. I know I haven't slept with a Neverborn, but I do enjoy a firm partner," Lelith chuckled darkly and shook her head, "why do you think I find no offence in being called a whore?"

"Because you know giving no reaction pisses people off more?"

The woman blinked and nodded, "...true." Lelith sighed, "though it is getting worn, find something better than the same few insults. The truth is only ironically funny for so long before it gets irritating,"

Celestine laughed at the casualness of the request and the strangeness of being mentored by a Drukhari on how to insult them…an oddly entertaining concept that was just as terrifying, "sure. I'll have Emerald do it for maximum ego damage,"

Lelith turned down a tunnel, one of many they went down, Celestine finally noticed, and into an open cavern littered with bodies and empty Bolter cartridges, "I would be more proud than anything if she finds a successful insult that works on me,"

"That makes two of us," Celestine grinned and held the Ardent Blade out to light the cavern better, "you are a strange woman,"

Lelith shrugged with a small smile, "I like it that way. Now, I think we've found where they were digging,"

Celestine nodded and looked around the cavern. In an open part, a female's body lay without the chest and head, fluids dried and frozen stuck to the cold corpse and the ground, welding it to the floor.

Another bore the hallmarks of a Bolter round to the chest, while another looked much like the corpse. The more she looked around, the more bodies she found, all of which had gaping cavities where the ribs and head, "ground zero,"

"And a few explosives as well,"

Celestine turned to Leith's voice and found nothing but cold air. Her head reared back in shock and she looked around, "hello?"

Nothing was at the entrance just off her left, so she turned to her right and screamed at the upright corpse and slashed with the Ardent Blade, setting the corpse ablaze spontaneously.

The body fell to the ground and Lelith stood behind it with an untamed and unadulterated amusement on her face, barely holding the laughter in,

"You asshole!" Celestine admonished, but that broke Lelith's will causing her to cackle loudly at her as she bent over with her hands on her knees,

Celestine frowned, yet her lips twitched, "I could have killed you!"

Lelith stood again, this time with a grin and heaving breaths, "No you couldn't, but it was entertaining all the same." a small, mischievous glint formed in her purple eyes, almost making Celestine forget about the black sclera surrounding them,

She caved and smiled a little, "at least you chose a cultist's corpse to desecrate,"

"I have taste," Lelith held a hand to her chest and tilted back with an exaggerated frown,

Celestine shook her head at the darkness of the humour, not entirely to her taste, "we've had our fun," she glanced at the small set of explosives left scattered across the floor, then the void that was a small opening in a wall, "some is wet,"

Lelith picked up an explosive, "with blood and other fluids, yes. The one that detonated must have been unstable from the previous fight,"

The Saint shrugged slightly, "we're here to secure the site…" Celestine gestured to the hole now in the wall, "we're not bored. No, we're ensuring all avenues are secure,"

A large grin spread across Lelith's face, "yes. Clearly, we need to investigate,"

Celestine laughed gently with a shake of her head, "come along, child,"

"You are not my mother,"

---

Kotek stood to the side as the footage played.

It didn't take much to get his hands on it, the film crews were more than happy to rid off it when he asked. Though it clearly wasn't the only recording since the news networks were abuzz with the skirmish for the past few days. Surprisingly, they did well enough to quell fears and speculation.

There was no feasible way to deny or cover up such an event with the way the Kingdoms were structured. All it took was someone's significant other or child to not come home, a missed meeting or even a sudden cheque to spark suspicion and fears. Doubly so if no one was informed through official sources and found out on their own.

Leaving out the death toll and specifics, in this case, particularly, made it easier for the public to handle.

Even if it meant Celestine and himself were front and centre for it… again.

Jacques was not particularly happy about it, ranting between moves in a game of chess.

It was a small price to pay for the copious amount of Lien it earned not only himself but Alexea as well. Something she was more than happy about, even if it went on a bottle or two of alcohol and the single most expensive takeaway food she could get.

He didn't care, so long as she performed her duties and remained in fighting shape, she could do whatever she wanted. The same went for the others, including Lelith to a point.

"Is there any way we can get more of you?"

Kotek faced the Councilman, a greying, overweight man by the name of Sebastian Sleete, "no."

Sleete frowned, "why not?"

"This armour is worth more than all resources on the planet combined," he answered truthfully, "and I will not allow a foreign power access to it."

The other Council members shuffled and Sleete shook his head, "and this is the man you put in our army, James?"

Ironwood sighed from the seat next to Kotek, "the Custodian is more than capable of the position and has knowledge in facing threats similar to this cult,"

"Not to mention a formidable warrior," Councilwoman Sepria cut in, "we've all seen enough of him in combat to know that,"

Kotek glanced to the final, empty seat.

The woman that held it retired just over a month ago, leaving suspicious timing to question. However, the brief look into it he did, the more coincidental it became for Fria to retire- a sixty-two-year-old woman with health issues regarding her prior Hunter career, it was no surprise she retired so early.

Her face was one he recognised. Not through meetings or anything alike, but as a face that was around on the odd occasion in the background. Which made sense since she still lived in Atlas and remained a frequent visitor to the Academy.

"So? Having armour like his would be beneficial to the defence of the Kingdom!" Sleete exclaimed in frustration.

Kotek placed the Guardian Spear on the table, letting it land heavily with a thunk, "as of right now, I am one of four people with advanced power armour, mass-producing it would lead to theft and invaluable technology being stolen. This I can not allow."

Sleete rolled his eyes, "and risk a major attack actually succeeding?" he waved his hand at him dismissively, "bah!"

"To make up for it I train your military to higher standards," a partial lie, all four of his comrades knew, but it was what had to be said to placate listening ears.

"'Higher Standards'?" the man laughed, earning the ire of Ironwood and Sepria, "we're Atlas, there is no 'higher standard' than us,"

"There is me." Kotek stated blandly and factually, "until you have seen battlefields where the blood of innocent and guilty alike are spilt without mercy, you have no say on military matters."

Sleete scoffed with indignity and a look that reminded him of the looks Emerald would give Lelith, "I am on this Council, not you, Custodian,"

"I will ask a baker to make a fortification in a timely manner," Kotek scolded the man, "you have no experience, thus no say. So, regarding the next topic, please remain silent."

To emphasise the order, Kotek took the Guardian Spear back in hand with ease and grace that made it look as heavy as a feather. The clunk it made when the end of it hit the tiled ground, however, did not and echoed in the room.

The Council members stared at him with various degrees of shock at the display. With people like Sleete, the ones who knew not about what they spoke of, a reminder that a warrior held all the cards when the topic of war came up was necessary.

Ironwood cleared his throat, "we need to start actively fighting back,"

Sepria nodded, "if they're going actively be a danger to the Kingdoms,"

Kotek adjusted his stance, "Vale, Atlas and Mistral have already been targets- Mistral has an entire city under their control,"

"Are you suggesting Mistral is already theirs?" Sleete argued, "they're more honourable than that,"

"They are the aggressor in the largest conflict this planet has seen," Kotek shook his head, "the world is not so cut and dry. One man doing a single good dead does not outweigh the piles of bad. Mistral may have once been the ally to this Kingdom, but they may not be now,"

Sleete made to speak but was cut off by Sepria, "and given the nature of those… creatures, the parasites, anyone could be corrupted,"

"We still do not know how they function or if they control the host," Kotek said, "they may just be latent until death,"

Ironwood groaned, "it's like the Nightmare all over again,"

Kotek snapped his gaze to the General, "Nightmare?"

"A Grimm type. Incredibly hard to rid off once it infects the mind and degrades the host till death," Ironwood said, "as someone who has had the unfortunate experience of being infected by one, they're horrible to get rid of,"

Enslavers. Was the first thought that ran through the Custodian's mind. Far and few between as they were to the wider galaxy, they were drawn to the power of the Astronomican and the Emperor. It was threats like these that made him realise why He made the Custodes incapable of being psychic.

"I will need a full dossier on these Nightmares as soon as possible," Kotek told the General. There was every real chance that they were a true Enslaver, "one question; are they drawn more to Aura users?"

Ironwood slowly nodded, "most of the time, yes… thankfully over the last decade we've been hunting them to extinction, so few remain now that they're a non-threat,"

"Everything is a threat till it is completely eliminated," Kotek looked back to the Council members, "as for the previous topic at hand, we will be conducting increased training and hunting of cells across the Kingdom,"

Sepria crossed her arms and sat back, "they've hit too close to home with the mine,"

Ironwood nodded and interlocked his fingers, "thwarting the threat would secure the Kingdom and allow us to aid the others freely,"

"We can't go to war, what would the public think?" Sleete argued back, a hint of concern in his voice,

"That we're finally using the military to defend them," Ironwood shot back, "we've got too much going on and sitting by idly will cause more damage to the people I've sworn to protect,"

"This we can not allow," Kotek added.

And recruitment would be far easier due to the war being against an actual threat the planet has dealt with since humanity first came to be. A threat to the collective was easier to draw forces for than a select, needless foe.

Ironwood nodded in agreement, "not so close to the Festival. Both Atlas and Mantle will need to be reinforced," he looked to Kotek, "patrols will need to be planned,"

"We can arrange that. I am sure Hesperax would like to prowl for kills,"

Ironwood shook his head, "I'm concerned for her,"

"Do not be," Kotek dismissed, "she is my concern. Back to the topic; logistics will need to increase across the board, including recruitment drives,"

"Don't be absurd, we are not going to war"

Kotek nodded, "correct, we are not. We are preparing for it,"

Sleete made to retort but Ironwood stood and clasped his hands behind his back, "please, the last thing we need is a division and hostility amongst ourselves. With the Council down one and elections not until after the Festival, we must cooperate for the benefit of Atlas and Mantle as a whole,"

Kotek nodded, "I agree. However, politicians should not mix with military matters."

All the times Governors held the Guard back from their duties, resulting in the decimation of a Hive, or even the planet came to mind. This man was one of those types, self-righteous and egotistical.

Overall, a potential barrier to anything in the future. There was a reason why his son left him behind and was amazing he remained in the seat for so long. Then again, people like Jacques were drawn to the self-interest types to secure business.

His eyes scanned over Sleete- the chances of a successful assassination were next to none without being caught. A Callidus would be useful, replace him with someone else entirely.

Neither options were viable.

Political sabotage then, if he made it through the next elections. Doubtful, but necessary.

Before anyone else could speak up, Ironwoods Scroll started to ring as the sun finally began to shine through the snowstorm.

---

Greyfax marched down the corridor, Atlesian soldiers milled about and conversed amongst themselves. Well, there weren't any civilians in sight, so that became a benefit to their presence even if they muttered about the body that was found.

At least they had the decency to move out of her way as she glared at them.

"Inquisitor," Clover greeted her as she rounded the corner.

The man's usual display of aloof confidence was replaced with apprehension and uncertainty. He shifted on his feet and glanced around, looking for a threat.

So the Hunters were useful after all. Good.

Greyfax nodded into the apartment he guarded, "who was it?"

Without a response, Clover led her into the sparse housing. She noted how it was nothing like the one Celestine now resided in. Small but spacious enough to be comfortable to live in.

She followed the Specialist down past the kitchen and into a study of sorts. Almost spontaneously, she sighed at the name plaque on the desk.

"I know how you feel, believe me," Ironwood said as he dismissed a soldier, "I figured you'd be perfect for the job,"

Greyfax glanced at him and moved to the right side of the desk. She crossed her arms as she observed the body of Tanner splayed on the floor, slit throat and multiple stab wounds to his chest.

Multiple cuts and bruises to the face and specifically the forehead. Her auspex's eye found traces of glass and an aged fermented grain liquid. Alcoholic in substance.

Kneeling down, she pulled up his left arm's sleeve. Cuts ran up the forearm and hands in a defensive manner.

"He fought, that much is certain," she spoke over her shoulder, "but was most likely taken off guard,"

Ironwood and Clover came and stood on either side of her. Clover crossed his arms, "does the pattern match Tyrian?"

She shook her head and stood, "no, too clean, not as brutal in execution," she moved to the desk next. Gass and dried whiskey lay spread over it from an impact point just shy of the centre, no doubt where the first strike occurred. Her eye narrowed and she picked up a wet roll of paper, "did he ever smoke?"

Ironwood shook his head, "no, not since graduating from the academy,"

Her eyes flicked to the General and back, "low chance of him relapsing then; that was two decades ago…"

"So, what are you thinking?" Clover asked, sounding like he didn't want an answer to his question.

No other people would have gone against him, not unless they were capable of it or suicidal. So there was a thin list of people, Tyrian being one of them but he was ruled out, nothing fit the murders he was known for.

She had a strong suspicion on who, it was just a matter of finding the evidence.

Greyfax wandered over to a bookshelf and examined it while she spoke, "I want all security footage from the last week,"

"That's a given," Ironwood said and sighed. He gestured to the corpse, "normally that would be his job to do,"

"Who's is it now?" she asked as she turned to face him,

He bit his bottom lip, "for the time being, yours,"

That came as a surprise to the Inquisitor, but of course, she hid it behind a mask of cold observation. The observation found immediate regret on Ironwood's face once he realised his the weight his words carried. She nodded, "very well."

Ironwood clasped his hands behind his back, "this is only temporary, don't get too comfortable."

They both knew she would. That she was now in that position, it would be hard to get her out. And the best way to keep that place, results would be needed.

Roman was a side job for herself and, as loathed to admit it as she was, Lelith to deal with and to gain an information source on Ozpin. That left him out of the equation. No other group or person on Remnant came to mind, outside of the cult, Tyrian, Merlot and Marcus.

And with Marcus being the only one in the immediate vicinity of Atlas- the current corpse in front of her being evidence to that- he was her first ticket to keeping the power she now had. And if she could get a cultist base location or two by the time the festival was over the more sway she could gain, especially with Ironwood.

She put a finger to her ear, "Kotek, Tanner is dead. I believe Marcus may be in Atlas,"

"Understood. I assume this is why Ironwood got called from a meeting with the council?"

"Affirmative," Greyfax looked back to Clover and Ironwood, "Tanner lost his semblance to Marcus, it isn't a stretch to believe he did this,"

"What good is an assassin if your victim lives?" Clover muttered and sighed, "I'll let the others know quietly,"

Ironwood nodded, "I'll let the fleet commanders know as well,"

Greyfax looked back down to the corpse and placed a hand on her armoured hip, "you wanted us to work together, General. Time to prove you're worth our time,"

"Excuse-"

She cut Ironwood off with a glare, "If you require me, I will be interviewing the owner of the hotel,"

Clover crossed his arms, "why her?"

She turned on a heel and spoke over her shoulder as she left, "where else would Marcus stay? Besides, I have to start somewhere,"

She didn't let either of them respond as she stormed out of the building onto the cold street. A couple of Atlesian Military vehicles sat in front of her, just as they were when she arrived and drew attention from the civilians.

For a population that lived under an air fleet, the slightest sign of military presence drew eyes from every corner and countless speculations from the newscasters- annoyingly so.

Then again, little seemed to happen in their lives, so the thrill of something new would be sought after, craved even. An angel? Talk of the Kingdom until it became regular. A golden giant? Same deal. It was a contradiction, they wanted excitement, but dropped anything new the moment it became commonplace.

Hell, she knew hundreds of worlds that would still be praising the appearance of a Saint or Custodian thousands of years later. Yet here they grew bored.

Was it due to the nature of the Fuanus being so varying from one person to the next, or the Hunters being naturally showy? Both?

Nothing short of a fleet in orbit would draw attention for more than a few months at best, with how short-sighted the Kingdom goers appeared to be. If it wasn't always in their face, always affecting them, it was forgotten. Left behind.

She shoulder-checked a man who refused to move aside, nearly knocking him to the ground. She paid him but a glance and continued down the street to a series of stairs that lead up to the Academy grounds and military complexes. Looking up the winding stairs, she almost wished Celestine could drag a Valkyrie back with her, or just be able to teleport others.

Over an hour had passed in travel time already, even if she sped walked the entire way. At least getting down the stairs was faster, though still an obstacle in a combat scenario. She mentally noted to go over the maps of Atlas again to find faster routes in and out of the city as she ascended the final step onto the grounds.

A flash of gold to her left drew her attention and found Kotek with Emerald by his side. Both headed to the apartment.

She turned back to the academy and took the entrance to the military complex down into the depths of the floating island.

Few places could be used to take prisoners; outside the Kingdom would be a waste of resources to defend a pile of emotions. Emotions that would attract Grimm. The design and location made sense under that light, something that otherwise be an incredibly poor choice of location.

The guards at the first high-security checkpoint froze at the sight of her and shuffled. They saw the way she left after the interrogations. Probably heard it as well. Yet, to their credit, held a hand out to stop her.

They were learning.

"We know who you are, but we're going to need ID," one said with a slight nervous shake of her voice. Gently, Greyfax probed her thoughts, they swirled with panic and fear, but they were held in check by duty. Good.

Greyfax handed over her Scroll and the second guard held it to a scanner. It dinged with a green light and the two stepped aside to let her through.

She eyed them both off for a second then marched through the checkpoint, snatching the Scroll off the guard as she passed. They did their job, that was all that she asked for and they passed even though the 'security check' was lacking any real checking. Give a Tech-adept a day and she was sure the Mechanicus could replicate the same clearance.

A part of her wanted to use her Inquisitorial Rosette as clearance, but that would allow outside source access to her clearance levels within the Imperium.

She shook the insane idea away and counted the doors along the corridor and turned to the sixth door. With a press of a button, the door opened and she brushed past another guard as she went down the cell-filled corridor. Some were empty, others were not. All were quiet as she marched past with the hard thumps of her armoured feet.

Greyfax came to a stop in front of a cell, "Marcus Black. Familiar?"

The Madame, or whatever her real name was, scowled, "no."

Katarinya nodded once and produced her Scroll. She flicked through the images till she came to one of Marcus and showed it to the jailed woman through the Hardlight barrier, "familiar?"

The woman stared for a moment, "yes."

"What name was he under?" she shoved the Scroll away,

The dishevelled woman shrugged indignantly, "I can't remember, criminal,"

"I am an Inquisitor, if I am a criminal for being just then so be it," Greyfax said cooly and probed the woman, "name. Give me it."

"I don't remember, as I said," she spat, yet an answer echoed just out of reach.

"Did it start with an 'a'?" Greyfax asked, patience wearing thin for the antics and evasion,

"I think," Madame thought for a moment, "Aurelius, maybe?"

Greyfax cocked the bolter and forcefully probed her mind, "Maybe or is?"

"Is," Madame bent over with her head in her hands and gritted teeth, "it is,"

Her thoughts echoed the words, never once deviating from them to indicate a lie. Greyfax nodded in satisfaction, "last name?"

"Grey." the woman glared, "now leave me alone,"

"Aurelius Grey was the name of the man?" she asked for confirmation and received a nod, "good. I may be back later."

Greyfax turned and left the silent cells. Her mind working on a course of action. Between Atlas and Mantle, it was impossible to tell where he'd be, not with an incompetent military and a single Inquisitor. She knew she was good at finding people, but that was with the resources of the Inquisition behind her. Not to mention the weight the title held.

Here it was nothing or very little.

Unlike where Marcus could be hiding. The possibilities were endless. The hotel, an old factory in Mantle, as a worker…

And all that depended on what Semblances he had if any other than his own default one was there.

That left him as dangerous as Lelith is until more concrete information was found.

She growled quietly to herself. How much more was that to add to the pile of crap to do? The assassin came first, he was an immediate threat. The translation was next, then the Maidens and then Roman.

Not many things, but two dealt with multiple moving parts within multiple moving parts and a governmental body. Technically both did.

Tanner's office was a decent first stop and race just in case Ironwood had something to do with the murder. Doubtful, the man was trusting and cooperative enough as it was, but he could have had a part to play and cover-up.

Tanner himself most definitely had something to hide. Having it in his office was a suicidal idea but within the realm of plausible-stupid that made so many Governors so easy to deal with.

She resigned herself to the next few hours of reading everything she found in his office with a sigh.

The Sooner it was done, the quicker she could get back to everything else. Unceremoniously marching down into the office, one she was determined to call hers permanently, Greyfax got to work.

The minutes ticked by slowly, too slowly, she found. Each paper was as dull as the last, with little relevancy to what she was looking for. So little had much to do with anything. For an intelligence agency, they dealt with the more mundane cases that an Arbite would take care of.

Were the world's Arbites and equivalent Inquisitors linked?

A murder, or five, would cause negative emotion, thus attracting Grimm… the best way to prevent that was to either catch the killer quickly or hide it all so the public never hears of it.

"They're play-pretend Acolytes…" Greyfax shook her head in exasperation. Emerald was a better Acolyte than most of these people.

Then again, they must be doing something right since the Kingdom was still here. Somehow.

Despite the strange layout of the world coupled with the even more bizarre political structure, the world still survived.

"Made yourself comfortable already?" the voice was gruff, more than Qrow's and even more unknown. She glanced up and put her hand on her Bolter, only for Marcus to wave her off, "can't touch me, not like this…"

His body shimmered and stepped through the chair in front of the desk, "taunting is unwise for an assassin,"

He smiled and the projection lit a cigarette, "my, my. Think you know about me?"

"More than you know," Greyfax growled, "you're a dead man,"

He pulled a puff from the cigarette and blew it out. Whatever was projecting him failed to register the smoke, "I know I am. But I ain't going down easy, Katarinya,"

She held the surprise in check and glared at the man. She tried focusing on the figure but discovered there was noting to latch onto or read. Definitely a projection of some type and with her mental defences up, he wasn't tampering with her mind.

"I know things too," he tisked with a shrug and puffed on the cigarette again, "well, not anymore,"

"I retract my previous statement," Greyfax stood, "you will live. But I am sure Hesperax would love to have her way with you,"

He grinned and flicked the cigarette away, "the redhead? I wouldn't mind some time with her, she's got a great pair,"

Greyfax rolled her eye at him. The Wych Queen was more than deserving of death, but even she could say there was more to the Wych than her body. No matter how much Lelith wanted others to believe. Marcus was just falling for the obvious trap. She was beyond certain that Marcus' opinion would change rapidly the moment he was alone with the thing. An idea formed as quickly as she wished it didn't.

Greyfax kept her face as natural as possible as she snarled, "I can organise that,"

"Please do," he let a twinkle in his eye, "though we could have some fun,"

"No." she deadpanned and clenched his fists, "I will end this and you,"

"I look forward to it," he grinned widely, bloodlust in his eyes, "let the best man win,"

Greyfax stood, ignoring him, "Shame you're here then,"

He blinked out of existence with a smug smile and left her alone in the office.

Alexea would be needed to negate his Semblance if they worked like Psyker abilities that is. Then… he wanted to be left alone with Leith, that was something she was sure the Drukhari would enjoy all too much.

May as well get some use out of the woman.

Now, the question was, and still is; where the hell was he?

---

"What's a…" Emerald paused and read the word again, "what's an Archmagos?"

Kotek put the plate of food he made for her on the countertop, "a Magos who has mastered a field of expertise,"

Emerald hummed and looked back at Cain's biography, "what's a Magos, then?"

"A high-ranking member of the Adeptus Mechanicus who specialises in one area of study or 'discipline'," Kotek squeezed through the gap that made the entrance to the kitchen out to the living room, "any other questions?"

Emerald exchanged the book for food, "is everyone in the Imperium so… dangerous like you all are?" she asked then took a bite of the meaty wrap,

"No." Kotek shook his head, "the majority of the Imperium's fighting forces is the Astra Militarum and Navis Imperialis. We are the select few who are third to His sons and the Emperor Himself,"

She hummed in interest, "So, you're all special?"

"Yes, we are," Kotek responded after a moment, "Celestine is not just a Living Saint, but the Living Saint. One of the few to have such notoriety as herself on the battlefield and politically,"

"Politically?" Emerald repeated the word slowly and Kotek nodded at her pronunciation,

"Celestine has sway within an and all Governments within the Imperium," Kotek explained, "her status as a Saint within the Ecclesiarchy and with the backing of the Ecclesiarchy itself makes her a valuable political asset and high target for assassination,"

Emerald chewed slowly and blinked, "wha?"

Kotek sighed and rethought the approach, "do you know and understand how the Kingdom Councils work?" with Emerald's slow nod of confirmation, Kotek continued, "in the Imperium, Celestine holds half the seats on any given planet's government,"

She swallowed her food and widened her eyes in surprise, "what about you?"

"I can overrule a government; my word is akin to the Emperors and a Primarchs," he glanced back out the window briefly, "a Custodian, specifically ones of the Hetaeron Guard, were His Companions and councillors- we aided Him with monumental decisions and every-day tasks a man of His status had to do, too. We were sent out in his stead when orders of grave importance were needed or followed when a Primarch was discovered,"

"You found the Prime-guys?" Emerald rose a brow, "what about being his sons?"

"Primarch's," Kotek corrected and shook his head, "they were created, not birthed, and were scattered across the galaxy. I was there for the rediscovery of Rogal Dorn, Roboute Guilliman, Corvis Corax and Magnus…"

"Isn't Guilliman the Regent?" Emerald blushed slightly, "I also still don't know what a 'Regent' is…"

"There are two meanings for 'regent' in traditional English," Kotek started and crossed his arms, "English being an ancient language from Terra that is well over twenty millennia old and mostly forgotten. What do you think it means?"

Emerald finished her bite and hummed, "uh, like a leader or something?"

"Essentially, yes," Kotek nodded, "it is a person appointed through blood or declaration to take the place of a monarch if they are too young or absent,"

Emerald looked back to his golden armour, "can I be a Custodian?"

Kotek tilted his head and she felt his eyes study her. It was a weird feeling when he did that, it wasn't predatory or dangerous, just hyper-observant and critical. She ignored the weirdness from him and continued eating while she waited for an answer.

"Perhaps." he said after a long silence, "you are still developing and the process could kill you outright, however, unlike the Astartes the process of becoming a Custodian starts at an early age, something you have already passed,"

Emerald scoffed down the rest of the wrap and spun on the chair to face the man, "so… if it's that dangerous, do you think I have a chance to be big and gold?"

His eyes looked her up and down again, "perhaps. There are only ten thousand of us, made with such a minuscule success rate that being hit by a meteor is more likely than becoming one of us,"

Emerald frowned and shrugged, "I… kinda like the way I am,"

"Good," Kotek nodded firmly with what looked to be an attempt at a small smile, but all it did was make him look slightly disgusted, "if you are not confident in yourself, how can you fight confident enough to come out alive?"

It was a good point, even if she only just started to understand completely what he was Kotek, Lelith and Greyfax were saying.

"Yeah…" she sighed then piqued up, "oh, your portraits are really cool!"

Kotek bowed his head, "thank you, they do not take long to produce,"

Emerald whistled and glanced at the portrait of the Emperor, "I don't believe that,"

"Do you have some paper and a pencil?" he asked, "I also have an idea I would like for you to test out,"

Emerald nodded and slid off the stool. She jogged to her room and picked out the requested items off her desk and ran back to the armoured giant, "here you go!"

She sat back at the counter as Kotek placed a piece of paper down and started drawing rapidly. The pencil moved in a blur as lines rapidly made a figure; a head appeared first, then a chest and torso before the arms and legs manifested. Then two lines sprouted out from behind the figure to form wings.

As more and more detail was rapidly added, Emerald watched in fascination and awe at the full portrait of Celestine.

She glanced at her Scroll's time, "that was fast!"

"I told you, they take little time to produce," Kotek said as he handed the pencil over to her, "now, you struggle with finer details when projecting with your Semblance, yes?"

Emerald took the pencil and nodded unsurely, "yeah… Lelith is the easiest one to project, but her hair is hard to get right…"

"I want you to draw me in my armour," Kotek said and stood at attention, "take a picture and use it as a reference to draw from. Get every detail down as much as possible."

Emerald stared up in confusion, "why?"

He placed a hand on his hip, "because it will help improve your ability to notice finer details, something that will be more useful than you think,"

"I mean," Emerald shrugged slightly, "I'm good at remembering images already,"

"Yes, a likely side-effect of your Semblance, but it is not perfect and needs to be improved upon," Kotek tapped a finger on the paper in front of her, "this might help that,"

She sighed and nodded, "alright,"

There was already a lot of writing, reading and all-around training she had to do; adding this on top of it was getting annoying already. Lelith was bound to find a way to make it tedious or about her in some way.

Emerald put the pencil down as she thought of something to avoid doing the work, "What's the green box that Celestine has?"

"A Master Vox." Kotek responded, "it is a communication device that can transmit planet-wide. You should have been given a small device to put in your ear, yes?"

Emerald nodded and picked at her right ear, "yeah,"

"It is a Comm-Bead, it links to the Vox and allows for a more secure and reliable communication between us all." Kotek sighed through his nose, "use it to inform us of a situation or danger, nothing more. Wear it whenever you are awake in case of an emergency-"

"Celestine told me all that," she cut him off, "I know,"

"Good," he nodded, "now, practice with portraits and busts. Studying the human form will allow easier use of your abilities,"

Emerald tilted her head. It made sense, "okay…"

"I am going to inspect the wall that separates the wheatfields from the Kingdom, soon" Kotek rose, "you may come if you wish,"

Emerald nodded, "okay! Lemme finish my food,"

"Of course, I will be cleaning my armour before we leave," Kotek turned and took his helmet in his hands. He stared into the red eyepieces for a moment then placed it on the couch. He picked the Guardian Spear up and turned back to Emerald, who was scoffing down the wrap as fast as possible.

"Slow," he ordered, "you will only make yourself sick,"

"Buh-" Emerald swallowed the mouthful, "but you gotta go soon!"

Kotek nodded, "yes, but you being sick will help no one. Pace yourself,"

Emerald nodded and ate at a somewhat slower rate happily- though the food was colder after all the talking.

As she finished off the food, a slight hiss came from behind her, followed by a light-yet-heavy thud. She spun around and found one of Kotek's large pauldrons on the floor in a corner. The other one joined it a moment later.

"So you can take it off," Emerald muttered to herself,

Kotek glanced back at her, "what gave you the idea it did not?"

"Celestine takes hers off all the time, you never have…"

"Reasonable enough," Kotek nodded and undid his gauntlets, "however, my amour requires a more thorough clean despite the difficulties in armouring again by myself,"

"Can I help?" Emerald asked after finishing her wrap, "cleaning, I mean,"

Kotek was silent for a moment, "You may,"

She slid off the stool as the giant removed the final pieces of armour and placed them gently down.

Being so close to the armour made so many details visible. Little bits of writing covered most of the flat surfaces on the Pauldrons and Gorget. Patterned etchings of lightening and symbols gave the chest texture and heightened the sense of regality the armour held. Infinite details were found on all bits of the armour, everywhere she looked there was something to be found.

Even on the inside of the chest, the was some writing, she didn't know what any of it said, but it was definitely writing.

The little rubies in the armour shone brightly under the lights, especially the ones on the Pauldrons.

Red and blue caught her eye and she shuffled closer to the feathers. They were pretty, especially with the fading to the other colour… it was pretty. But was it as soft as Celestine's feathers?

She glanced at Kotek and found him attentively cleaning a Sabaton, so she let her curiosity get the better of her and she placed a finger on the feather. It wasn't as soft as Celestine's, or as bright, but it held the feel of latent electricity. Like power was trying to escape.

Just as she had that thought, a small spark jumped from the feather to her fingers and the world went black.

---

The ancient ruins maintained their unnatural silence and stillness, even as it was broken by the metallic steps of armour and patting of bare feet entered it. Crackles of green energy held the small spires of rubble suspended in the air, like explosions frozen in time.

The resemblance to Necron weaponry discharges sat uncomfortably close for the Saint. And the fact no one was found concerned her more than the eerie spires.

The further they went, the quieter it became. She was not Underhiver, but the expectation of hearing something from above never left, even as the expectation of some sound filled the void.

Towering buildings held the large cavern up, much like Mountain Glenn's underground city, however, unlike Glenn, the stone brick buildings here were covered in overgrown vines. Rusted metal and dull gold accented the edges of the dirty white buildings.

"They're alive."

One of her hands came to rest on the hilt of her sword, "what do you mean?"

"Can you not feel it as well?" Lelith questioned, "the pulsating, breathing of the spires?"

Celestine looked around for one, upon finding one she took small, cautious steps towards it; two small, spindly arcs rose from the ground into a large cluster of rocks, from the top of the cluster another two small arcs protrude from either side. In the centre of the top, just below her eye level, a small cluster of rocks floated. All of which were held together and connected by the green lightning.

Celestine moved a bit closer and the pulsating grew in intensity. Slowly she circled the spire and then glanced at Lelith who was eyeing it down, "it looks… Humanoid…"

Lelith slowly nodded, "stasis?"

"If it is, it's nothing like what I've seen," Celestine reached a hand out to it slowly, "what could do this?"

The Drukhari shrugged, "many Haemonculi could-"

A finger touched a stone and the world changed with a snap. Lelith ceased existing and the vines, dirt and rust over the buildings vanished. A figure in front of her walked past; their clothes were more robe-like than anything, just as every other figure around her was.

"Hello?" not a single figure paused in their day, "Hesperax?"

With no response after a few moments, the Saint's face hardened. Suddenly the world became engulfed in a purple wave and the figures froze in what appeared to be confusion.

Then fear took hold.

A wall of purple surged forth, overwhelming everything and everyone. Many tried to flee, stumbling over themselves and others until they too were washed over, becoming nothing but dust.

Before she could react, the purple washed over Celestine, causing her to stumble backwards slightly and restored the world to its decrepit state.

Celestine regained her bearings and glanced around, finding Lelith only a few metres away, flicking her gaze between the Saint and the spire- turned small pile of rubble.

"What happened?"

The Saint ran a hand through her hair, "I-I'm not sure; a vision of some kind, of when the city was lived in,"

Lelith's head swivelled as she looked around, "hundreds, if not, thousands of years ago,"

One of the smaller spires caught the Saint's attention. Then the one closest to it, and another, "they're in the same places as the people…"

"They are them." Celestine cast an inquisitive look and Lelith continued, "their very presence is breathing, Mon'kiegh. It was not a vision, but a memory burnt into this place," Lelith's gaze slowly fell on the dozens of humanoid spires,

"To state the obvious, something has happened here…" The Drukhari trailed off as she approached a small spire; one that held what looked to be emerald gems. Her steps were slow and methodical, almost as if she was afraid she'd frighten the spires.

The woman was oddly subdued when compared to the normal extremes she jumped between. It was vastly more concerning to see her like this than in full-blown anger.

It's like she wanted something and knew brute force would not help get it. The question was; what did she want? Or better yet, what did she think the spires were?

Lelith growled as the spire crumbled after she touched it.

"I- do you think Tyrian had something to do with this?"

"No," she snapped back, "they're nothing but fractured souls, partially rebuilt out of desperation,"

Celestine took a cautious step towards her, "can you tell who tried this?"

Purple eyes narrowed, "Who or whatever did this was desperate enough to leave it imprinted and nothing more… or they didn't understand what they were doing."

The semantics of how such a thing could be possible was lost on the Saint. Celestine rolled her eyes, "and in a world of rogue psykers, anyone could have done this…"

Lelith shook her head, "no, only someone powerful, very powerful." the Drukhari approached and touched another spire, "they are literally fractured souls made physical, Saint," the spire crumbled like the previous two, "I am surprised you haven't noticed it."

"That's almost a compliment," a wiry, cautious smirk formed on the Saint's lips,

Lelith rolled her eyes, "let's find whatever your Inquisitor inevitably wants,"

"Oh wow, you used her title," mock concern laced her voice, "are you alright?"

The Drukhari promptly stormed past Celestine and further into the city, touching every spire within reach, "hurry up, melted snow is in places I would rather it not be,"

"Finally, you bathed," Celestine snorted,

"I bathe regularly, thank you," Lelith fired back, "even if it is with your annoyingly simple showers,"

Oh, how sad.

Celestine ignored the sarcastic thought, "I will inquire with the General on who might be powerful enough to do this,"

"I doubt he will know," Hesperax rolled her neck and shoulders, "this place is ancient, and these… souls may be just as old,"

She wasn't wrong, now that it had been pointed out. But what could have done such a thing? Why would someone or something do this?

The structures remained silent. Only whispers of a breeze removed the stillness of the air.

"How old are you again?" Celestine asked curiously, "I can't remember if you told me or not,"

Lelith glanced at her, "around nine-thousand, give or take a few centuries. I know I was born after the Emperor was placed on the machine,"

Celestine nodded with a hum, "so, that makes you and Kotek the oldest of us all,"

"It does, yes," Lelith sighed and glanced at her, "what about you?"

"I look thirty but I'm, what?" the Saint thought for a second, "five thousand-ish years old. Most of that time being spent fighting,"

Lelith looked Celestine up and down, "you are not bad looking for a human of your age,"

"Thank you?" Celestine said slowly, unsure of how to respond to her specifically for a brief moment. She shook her head and went for the polite route, "you are… not so bad yourself…"

The words hurt a bit to say, but a pleasant Drukhari was a tolerable one, so sacrifices had to be made. Even if she, as much as she ignored the fact, liked Lelith when she wasn't so…Lelith…

Then again, 'like' might be a strong word, but it fits. The woman was all sorts of wrong and deranged, but she felt so normal in many other ways. Just an emotionally stinted psychopath.

So an average Inquisitor? Celestine joked to herself and vowed to never let Katarinya hear it, no matter how correct it was.

"Being a Succubus, does that make you invulnerable to those below you?" Celestine asked as she looked around the buildings,

"No, power struggles and assassinations are as common as breathing, even my purebred status leaves me a target," Lelith sighed with an eye roll, "especially by other purebreds,"

Celestine rose a brow and glanced at her, "why?"

"Many think that because they are purebred that they deserve my service, or that they deserve my place as a Succubus because they've been alive for a few hundred years," Lelith scoffed, "they soon learned to not test my patience nor skill,"

"I'm sure they would have," Celestine nodded slowly and cautiously. The self-absorption of this woman was astounding.

"I have a question,"

She rolled her eyes inwardly at the incoming strangeness, "yes?"

"What is cheese?"

Celestine blinked once. Twice. "You weren't being facetious?"

Lelith shook her head, "no, I wasn't,"

The smallest of laughs left Celestine, "it is as I said, fermented milk,"

"That truly sounds disgusting," the woman's tone matched her words, "why would someone want that instead of meat?"

"If it makes you feel better, I will buy a cheese platter back in Atlas for you to try," she couldn't help the smile on her face as she spoke. The know-it-all, self-entitled Xenos was oblivious to the simplest things. And it was by far an amusing thing to watch unfold, "how do you not know what cheese is?"

"I will pass, thank you," Lelith frowned, "I am literally a different species that has meat and wine as the main cuisines... I will pass on cheese,"

"Emerald will mock you," Celestine said smugly,

Lelith turned her nose up slightly, "Her opinion is nothing to me,"

"You like her,"

"No, she is disgusting." Lelith scowled, though it didn't reach her eyes, "As are breeders,"

Celestine snorted, "Stop lying to yourself,"

"No," red hair flung side to side with the headshake,

"HA!" Celestine exaggerated her win with her voice echoing off the ruins, "I was right,"

Lelith rolled her eyes, "I can admit this; her ability to push herself is something I can respect, but until she is up to my standards I will not respect her,"

"She is a remarkable little girl," Celestine agreed, "and don't lie, you like her,"

"Will you shut up if I say; I like her?"

"No,"

A large sigh left Hesperax, "you are an annoyance, you know that?"

"Greyfax has told me many times," a smug smirk adorned Celestine's face, "its a part of my charm,"

"You have no charm nor personality, just gold to make up for it," there was a small amount of amusement in the woman's voice.

"Like how you only have your body to compensate for your atrocious personality?"

"My personality and body are perfect, Saint,"

Celestine dramatically waved her off, "So you tell yourself,"

"Stabbing you would be easy," Lelith pointed a blade at the Saint,

She crossed her arms, "Reviving is easier,"

"I can do it again,"

"So can I,"

They settled for a small glare at each other, a small amount of tension sat between the two of them knowing that the disguised threats were just that; threats.

The Drukhari lowered her blade, "you are lucky, Celestine,"

"Oh, why?" using her name now, had someone died?

Lelith flicked offending strands of hair back over her shoulder, "one; I want off this planet. Two, I hold a modicum of respect towards you,"

"You? Respecting someone other than yourself?" Celestine held a hand to her armoured chest in mockery and disbelief, despite the conversation less than a minute ago,

Lelith's eyes flattened, unamused, "don't get an ego. If killing you would save me, I would not hesitate to drive a blade through your skull,"

There was another thing they held in common. Not a good thing, but something.

"And I would set you ablaze if the situation called for it,"

"However," Hesperax ignored the threat, "the one time you could have ended me, you did not, so I return the favour by tolerating your being,"

Celestine's lips pulled into a thin line, "Thank you?"

"You are welcome," Lelith stretched, "if it makes you feel better; I would make your death quick,"

That oddly did. Being in the clutches of her kind was an experience she would rather not live through again. Though there was the chance the woman would go back on her word.

Yet Lelith tilted her head gently and her ear flicked in the breeze. She was as genuine as she could get and the movement reminded her of Emerald.

Celestine smiled, "you are more kind than I imagined,"

"Emerald is a friend," she cocked a hip and placed a hand on the other, "that, by extension, makes you one,"

Her mouth opened then closed, "uh…" Celestine sighed, "I would rather you be a friend than an enemy,"

"I appreciate that," Lelith tipped her head forward in thanks, "you make the fifth friend I've had,"

She didn't know what was weirder- the ruins under the mountain or a Drukhari calling her a friend. Celestine ignored the small confusion, "Who are the other four?"

"Emerald and three Durkhari," Lelith scowled deeply, "they betrayed me and paid the price,"

Despite the knowledge of what her kind did, and can do, Celestine still let the curiosity get the better of her, "may I ask how?"

Lelith nodded to the side, "they turned on me when I was gaining the reputation I now have. I was naive in thinking they would never do such a thing, that I was better than my gene-sires, not as arrogant," Lelith scowled down at herself, "I- I nearly lost my life to them; the wines were drugged and I was the target. I was used however they wished and only saved through luck with a kitchen knife-" Lelith spun a blade in her hand and stared at it carefully- "it is how I came to like blades as a weapon, they were fast, efficient and saved me." a sigh left her, one filled with vulnerability,

"One became my plaything for whatever I wished, he lasted a good century before I let his soul go to Slannesh. The others, I had one hung up by a hook through their feet and cut open from their genitals to voicebox- pumped with toxins and fluids to keep them alive to this day as their body and mind decayed, living corpses in my quarters,"

"o-oh…" Celestine muttered and gulped shakily, "I… don't know what to say…"

"Nothing." Lelith told her firmly, "do not repeat it. This is an act of trust- I know you won't believe everything I say, but that should be personal enough to work as a sign of trust and a warning; I can do much, much worse if you betray me; I was an amateur then, not now,"

Celestine nodded, "my mouth is shut on the subject,"

Lelith gave her a small smile, "good. What about you?"

"I have never been in something like that," Celestine said after some thought, "I apologize,"

"Don't, I didn't expect an answer anyway," Lelith shrugged her bare shoulder, "you now know more about me than anyone,"

"I will keep it that way," Celestine promised, "as I said, I would rather you a friend than my enemy,"

With that, Lelith nodded once more and looked back out to the dark street and sauntered down it.

Celestine watched the enigma go for a moment, then shook her head in confusion. Whatever just transpired, ended without as much threatening as she expected and maybe even a genuine friend out of her.

An odd and treacherous outcome, but the situation called for it, Celestine repeated to herself.

She looked out to the dozens of spires lined the streets, some in decayed and collapsed market stalls, others stuck going about their business. Piles of debris from collapsed buildings made the paths tedious to traverse, but it was nothing like an artillery-riddled Hive.

Slowly, she caught up to Lelith's shadow and followed silently.

"They're detailed now,"

Celestine faced Lelith who was in the stony face of a spire. And it was definitely a face, she noted as the Saint got closer, tiny pebbles made the nose and eyes while thin slabs mimicked the lips,

The Saint hummed, "we're getting closer to the centre of the city…"

"Ground zero for this," Lelith gestured to the other spires, though her gaze remained on the one in front of her, "can you read the air, Celestine?"

She felt her eyebrows narrow, "no? There's nothing here…" not psychically at least.

Lelith tilted her head, "this person is more intact, much like what I have seen Hemonculi do," Hesperax held her hand a millimetre off the surface of the face, "Inquisitor Greyfax would do better than I at this, I am not even consciously psychic,"

Celestine stood next to her and gently moved Lelith's hand away, "let me…"

She focused on the statue, opening her mind to her surroundings; she did not have the skill Katarinya did when it came to mind, but a Saint was more potent, powerful in fortitude and determination.

Whispers in the wind became words, gods and prayers flew through her ears. Blasphemous to be sure to hear such things, Celestine was certain, but no one of import was around to witness the sin. The Emperor would forgive, it was in His name she did this anyway.

Her mind brushed the energy within the statue, like a tide on a beach- stripping it away grain by grain. The energy swirled, and pressure came from it, forcing her back.

The Saint pushed slightly harder and the connection severed as the statue suddenly crumbled. Celestine propelled herself back, nearly knocking a distracted Lelith over in the process.

Two pairs of eyes glanced at each other and back to the pile.

Celestine glanced around her surroundings and let her eyes settle on a quiet Lelith, "What?"

"There was a psychic scream just before it crumbled," Lelith shuddered slightly, "it was mostly intact… alive,"

The Saint bit the inside of her lip and sighed through her nose, "we'll keep moving. Find whatever stands out and take it if we can,"

Lelith stared out at the other spires, "I believe we may have already found it, Celestine,"

---

The books smelt terrible. Mould permeated the air and a water duct collapsed a century ago but never stopped flowing water, essentially turning one-quarter of the books into sludge.

It felt horrible on her bare feet, but Lelith hid it under a face of indifference even though Celestine was on a different floor of the ancient library.

The cold wetness was as irritating as anything. It stuck the little clothing she wore to her skin, wrinkling it and being all-around uncomfortable.

Though the annoyance and embarrassment that radiated off the Saint when the top was removed to wring it out were all too amusing. The Mon'keigh were far too concerned with decency to the point of being a prude about it. Which was surprising given the Saint's indifference regarding her own state of dress when in the apartment and sometimes lack thereof.

The bount of hypocrisy was beyond annoying.

It made little sense to her; what do you do with an annoyance? You remove it.

She rolled her eyes to herself. It was also unbearably humid down here. The entire cavern was nothing more than a place to make people uncomfortable.

Lelith continued browsing the shelves for anything of importance, or anything that looked important.

Though the entire cavern was important, she supposed. A relic of bygone eras.

"So, the Custodian," she joked to herself and pulled what few books remained on the shelves, carelessly off them as she wandered around the building.

In a different age, the entire cavern could have been somewhat remarkable to look at. What remained of it was of little pieces, a shadow of the civilisation that lived here. Their ghosts wander the afterlife.

The fact there was one here was astounding. Had the Warp not been entirely corrupted over millions of years? Clearly not, as even now, the corners of her eyes caught apparitions reliving the same cycles they died in; trying to complete tasks that no longer existed.

Some remained conscious, the misery of the repeated cycle long since gone. A husk remained of what they once were in every way.

Lelith picked out a random book and flicked through its pages. Sharp, neat lettering of a different language resided within it, faded and mostly illegible. "Waste of time."

She looked over her shoulder as wet slops sounded and found Celestine walking through the muck, "the scripts are similar to that of the note Alexea found, I believe,"

Lelith let the book drop out of her hands into the water as she turned, "so whoever wrote the note, knows of this location or another,"

Celestine nodded, "yes, which raises more questions than answers," she sighed and crossed her arms, "I'll ask Greyfax about it later,"

Lelith nodded and let her eyes roam the building, "I wonder how many ruins like this there are,"

"I know there's some by Vale…" Celestine trailed off, "under Ozpin's ownership… he is not making himself look the greatest,"

"He's an aging man with delusions of grandeur," Lelith said despite only having one interaction with the Headmaster, "he wanted control over you, remember?"

"So did the Echlessarchy," the Saint grumbled as anger boiled under her words. It vanished with a sigh, "he will not get it,"

"Good."

The Saint tilted her head curiously at her but shook her head, "pick a random book out and bring it with you, we can use it to compare the scripture on the note,"

Lelith turned on a heel and pulled a random, leatherbound book off the shelf and followed Celestine out of the library.

---

Her eyes fluttered open, allowing a blast of bright sunlight into her eyes.

Emerald blinked the dry and hot air out of her eyes as she held a hand up to block the light. Doing so gave her eyes enough respite to adjust to the bright sunlight and she lowered her hand.

She forcefully closed her eyes again and reopened them to the same sight before her.

Pristine white pyramids towered into the bright blue skies, higher than Atlas ever sat, all of which were accented with gold and bronze and surrounded by flying vehicles of some kind.

On the ground, people milled about, dressed in robes and conversed amongst themselves as they went about their day. With one group, a man held his hand out with his palm up, runes and patterns made of purple energy swirled about, dancing to their tunes and the wind.

Ever so slowly, Emerald started to move forward and found it to be sluggish- as if her legs were in water. But the sights and sounds of the alien city were marvellous. Stalls served dozens of people at a time with ease, while children ran between the crowds playing a game only they knew with laughter.

Emerald gulped slowly as the laughter carried on, melding together as the city darkened. The laughter morphed and grew higher in pitch, more akin to screams as flames burned around her.

Then as suddenly as it began, it was gone.

Slowly, Emerald continued to walk the city again with more than enough worry and concern in her heart to do so carefully. Each step as was planned as she could make it, almost silent.

Completely silent. She glanced down and placed a foot down harder. Nothing. Then stomped.

Not a sound came from it, despite her body shaking as if she stomped on solid ground.

She blinked and glanced around, straining her ears. There were the gentle steps of the wizard-people and the hard pitter-patter of the children running but not her own steps.

"What the hell?" she mumbled to herself, "where am I?"

"Prospero."

Emerald jolted and spun around to the voice. A small child stood with one hand overlapping the other. He stood out against everything, with his red skin and hair.

She took a small step back as she felt her waist for the Las-pistol. It wasn't there. "who are you?"

"Many knew me as Magnus," he spoke with an accented voice as he bowed slightly in greeting, "now I am but a shard of a fractured soul,"

Emerald blinked, "uh… what-"

"Memories, vile and content ones." Magnus said, a strange calm about him, "this is Prospero before everything went wrong- when I was but a child learning the powers I held,"

She rose a brow, "but, like, how am I here? What is this?"

Magnus let out a sigh, "as I said, memories. Unintended ones. Ones that have been held onto out of spite, to fuel it more,"

Emerald glanced around; children still ran about, people conversed and the wind blew clouds overhead, darkening the city entirely. It was not Atlas, that much was certain. Not with how free they all appeared to be, with small smiles and loose bodies.

She looked back to the shard of Magnus but found someone else in his place- taller than even Kotek and in black armour that held a faint green underglow. Red rubies took the form of eyes while chains with severed heads hung from his waist. The being lifted a hand, more akin to claws or a birds talons, with wild fury and hatred in his eyes.

Emerald staggered backwards as sick laughter echoed around him, swirling in colours of red, green, blue and purple, shading his face to make the wild eyes somehow brighter with power.

He pulled his arm back and took large steps towards her as she scurried away backwards, unable to turn and run. She felt the rage overwhelm her, sapping energy from her as he grew closer.

She screamed and closed her eyes as the talons swiped down at her, wishing Celestine was here with her.

The ground gave out from beneath her suddenly and slammed into hard rock and dirt with ear-rending noise blasting into her. With pain that faded quicker than normal, she staggered to her feet with a shake and tears of confusion and terror in her eyes.

From her vantage point above the ginormous plains, the skies were dark orange of flames and thousands of aerial vehicles- some were falling like meteors from beyond the smoke and clouds while other winged aircraft fought frantically for dominance in the tight space above. Some clipped each other during maneuvers while others went up in flames and debris.

And the ground was no better. It looked like a sea of ants, not a speck of dirt was visible, but the explosions and Bolter shots were. Screams of rage, anger and betrayal were only matched by the infinite amount of Bolter fire and pounding of Drop Pods landing in the thousands.

Flames burned out entire flanks while artillery pounded everything in sight.

She staggered backwards, but lost her footing and fell onto her rear with a yelp. With a wince, she stood but once again, things were not the same.

A massive man in purple armour with long, flowing white hair knelt down next to a headless corpse. Maniacal laughter forced itself out of him while his wide, insanity-stricken eyes leaked tears.

Her eyes searched the figure for anything that would explain anything that was happening but the heat from the remnants of the battlefield made her blink.

She reopened them, though now she looked through lenses of a helmet, in a body not her own. A sense of realisation of what she just saw was what was left of the cave.

It held a pistol up to the head of another armoured man, an Astartes with blue and yellow colours, that held out one hand and held a staff tightly in the other. Energy flowed from his palm to the large missile behind a Dreadnaught,

"He deserves better than you!" the body she inhabited spoke and the massive snake glared with poison in its eyes and a snarl on its face, "He deserves better than all of us!"

Despite the terror she felt, the calmness in which the body pulled the trigger was almost infectious.

The moment the helmet and head of the Astartes burst, a blinding light enveloped them all, and somehow she knew what little life was left on the planet ended a second time as she was tossed back onto Prospero.

She glanced around in confusion and felt herself, not a single piece of armour was on her, no pistol nor staff.

"Amazing, isn't it?"

Emerald startled at the voice and turned around, she found herself having to crane her neck to look up, "what's happening?"

"Of course it is," the large man said to no one in particular, ignoring her question,

Beyond the strangeness of him talking to himself, Emerald found the red of his skin and hair to be bizarre. And if she looked carefully, she could see that the left eye was gone, nothing but melded skin while his right was… she couldn't tell- it swirled with energy and power, such colours her mind knew not how to comprehend it, just that it was there. Was this an older Magnus?

"Magnus?" she asked the grown man but got no answer.

The people around her slowed their paces- the ones who were showing off their strange patterns of energy winced and groaned as they turned their eyes to the sky.

Emerald copied them after a moment as her limbs went numb in expectation.

Nothing.

Clouds floated freely in the wind.

Then ever slowly, from above the pinnacle of the clouds in the sky, a shadow was cast down over the populace, making the hair on her arms stand up as a low, methodical drone echoed across the city while a rumble made the ground shake.

She turned around in time to watch as flashes of displaced air and energy dispatched a wall of gold at the opposite end of the bridge.

Civilians and children alike froze in confusion and fear as the wall progressed down the bridge towards them. Yet were calmed by the presence of Magnus as he stepped forward to meet the arrivals.

The closer they got, the more distinct the homogeneous group of warriors became. She recognised the figures, knew what their armour was; dozens upon dozens of Custodians, all marching in synchronisation behind two massive men- both of whom she knew the faces of from the portraits.

The man on the left, the shortest of the two, carried a far more ornate and intricate Guardian Spear- Constantin Valdor, the first Custodian and original Captain-General.

But it was the largest of them that drew her eyes. Details scored the armour more than any other as a red hip-cape fluttered in the wind, much like his long, black hair that was held in place by a golden wreath. Blazing, golden energy burst from his eyes, leaving them difficult to look at for even a second.

Emerald's mouth dropped open as her mind circled around itself in confusion, unable to make heads or tails of what was happening.

"Father," the Primarch greeted, "It is good to see you,"

The Emperor nodded in kind as he held out an open hand, "and same to you, Magnus,"

The two beings, father and son, clasped their hands and shook. Magnus smiled widely and gestured back to the largest pyramid, "come, Father, we have much to discuss and for me to show!"

"First, Magnus," the Emperor halted him his voice as calm as a summer breeze but just as commanding, "I bring a gift, one that will come in great use as time marches forward,"

"What is it, Father?" Magnus rose his brow in anxious surprise,

Without a word, the Custodians stepped to either side of the bridge with a direct and even split down the centre. By this point, most of the population had paused to come to watch the ginormous warriors and their ships in the sky, but they gasped in awe at the hundreds of thousands of armoured giants in blank, grey armour that now marched down towards Magnus.

The only thing that stood out with them was the large, white 'XV' on their pauldrons.

With a firm nod, Magnus agreed to unspoken words, a conversation only he could hear. The moment his head straightened, the world around them changed.

No longer was it bright and cast with the shadows of warships, but now filled with dark clouds as small lights fell from the skies above.

The first hit the side of a pyramid, detonating in a spectacular light and a thunderclap of a boom, throwing debris out and haking the ground. Another followed and hit the bridge with a similar result. Four more, then six, fifteen- hundreds of missiles fell from the skies, tearing down everything they hit.

Streaks of anti-air weaponry came online too late, spraying the clouds with explosive rounds and barely hitting a single missile or the newer, larger lights that now fell to the ground.

One by one these impacted but did not explode, instead, the sides of the large crafts opened and out came what looked like Astartes, covered in skins of wolves and baring axes that held intricate carvings. They butchered everything in sight, civilian and red Astartes alike.

Energies swirled off some of the Thousand Sons, exploding the enemy Astartes in gore and mutilation, or simply tossing them away like rubbish. For every one of the grey Astartes that took out a Thousand Son, dozens fell to the powers they possessed.

Emerald looked down the bridge and gasped- what Thousand Sons that defended the bridge fell in droves to the horde of unstoppable force- Constantin Valdor marched through the swaths of Thousand Sons, tearing them down with ease and speed while the Sisters of Silence performed their duties-

Blocking all Psychic powers and ripping the marines apart, somehow keeping up with the Custodes.

The only thing more threatening was the largest of all the beings in the burning city- long, blonde hair and a dishevelled set of armour- barreled through the Thousand Sons with ease and brutal efficiency.

Then he met head-on with Magnus.

Emerald could feel the rage from both of them, the betrayal and hurt.

It was overwhelming, suffocating. Or was that the ash and smoke that filled the air?

Her eyes widened as she watched the Primarchs duel to the death and cared little for the chaos around her- if it was real, if she was actually here, then to her mind and logic, she knew she should have been dead.

No, this was a dream- a memory not of her own.

And just as suddenly as it began, Magnus was lifted into the air and brought down on his brother's knee and the city was enveloped in light again and faded from sight. The blinding light forced her to blink again. She expected something else to be before her instead of Prospero.

And as she looked around again, she was more than correct as ginormous walls towered over her and thousands of Astartes flooded through the massive breach. Yellow marines met them with a wall of shields, backed by a few dozen Custodes and Sisters of Silence.

She even caught the sight of regular adults mixed in with both sides being cut down quicker than the rest.

A deafening screech overpowered the cacophony of Bolters and through the gap in the wall, a massive walker toppled over, flames bellowing from between its shoulders and slammed into the ground causing it to shake violently.

She looked back to the Imperial Fists, now intermingling with red marines that held winged blood drops on their pauldrons, that used anything they could get their hands on as a weapon.

Though in amongst the sea of Astartes and Guardsmen, even the Custodians, one stood out amongst the chaos of the combat. Something drew her attention to him, calling out almost.

Even as the red marines let out cries of despair and rushed forward, tearing the traitor marines apart while they retreated.

The Custodian tilted his head slightly, receiving some message over the Vox-thing in his helmet. He suddenly turned and sprinted faster than she could follow into the massive doorway and everything went black while nausea took hold.

Pressure built in her skull, from within and out, trying to force itself in. The scene around her blurred and melted. Shapes flashed in and out of existence, trying to form an image she could understand but all she could feel was pain, hers and someone else's.

Colours melded together, swirling amongst themselves into two spheres, both of which were a radiant blue that was slowly fading.

She unfocused her eyes, trying to make sense of what she was seeing and large steps became visible- forming before her in moments. She trailed her gaze to the top where a throne sat, cables flowed from them in all directions into the dark void outside the imagery. For the briefest moments, the fastest of flashes, something sat upon it in decay and agony, as the personification of misery made manifest.

But the man upon the throne was always there, from the moment it manifested. His head rested against his fist, a small frown and darkened, red eyes that were ringed with blue. Blood seeped down his face, dripping onto the golden armour with each drip diluting it to red as massive wings sprouted from behind him like a butterfly.

As if she went noticed till now, the man straightened as the being from before overlapped him making them seem like one. Their gazes- golden blazes of unbridled power and red- pushed her to her knees.

She clenched her eyes shut and bent over to hold down the bile forming from nausea, and reopened them to Kotek and Alexea's faces staring down over her, both with concern.

"Who am I?" Kotek asked,

Emerald gulped back the bile with a cringe, "Kotek…"

"And the woman next to me?"

"Alexea," Emerald muttered and tried to sit up, "what happened?"

Kotek put his hand on her back to help her up, "you touched the feathers and went unconscious,"

She nodded slowly, "I saw them, Magnus, the Emperor, Valdor…" she glanced up at him, "it was nice, the city was pretty, but it all got destroyed,"

"Prospero," Kotek nodded, "you saw Prospero and its destruction,"

Emerald shuddered, "t-there was so much more… I- there was a man, a big man, laughing while crying over a body with no head, a snake being told someone deserves better… a wall being defended by Imperial Fists and Custodes as a big walker fell…"

She sat up and glanced around frantically, "Magnus spoke to me, I-I saw his memories, I think?"

"Magnus spoke to you?" Kotek asked, a significant amount of concern in his voice, "how?"

Emerald shrugged and curled up into a small ball, "a shard, he called himself, told me I was seeing things, not there… but it was real, planets burned,"

Kotek stood slowly and hummed, "the Custodian you saw, do you remember anything else?"

"He looked like he got a message and ran into a massive building," Emerald said as Alexea placed a hand on her shoulder, "red Astartes cried out and tore through the enemy Astartes, while yellow ones beat them to death with anything they could use…"

Kotek's brows narrowed, "that was not Magnus' memory. It was mine."

Alexea blinked up at him in confusion while Emerald gulped, "I hated it… there was too much, so much destruction," She gently shrugged off Alexea's hand and stood carefully, "I'm… I'm going to have a shower and sleep…"

"Alexea, make sure she is fine," Kotek rolled his neck, forcing loud cracks to sound, "be alert, if there is the chance Magnus and the Thousand Sons make a show we must be prepared,"

Alexea nodded and signed something to Kotek and he nodded without a word.

Not that Emerald cared much about that with her mind frozen in confusion and mild fear. A fear that was growing as she comprehended the chaos that she saw. The speed of each marine, the brutality of them against each other…

It was mindboggling how many there were- from the Astartes to the Custodes- there were so many, each a killing machine of their own.

But it was the golden demi-gods, the Custodians, that sent a chill down her spine. Imposing and brutal. Their speed and ferocity were… they chewed through the Thousand Sons, marching in silence and cutting all in their way down as if they were never there.

Emerald blinked as nausea never left and turned around to glance at Alexea- she was out of her armour, only in a pair of shorts and a tank top, clearly never getting the chance to put her armour on. And she didn't know if that her feel better or worse.

The others, the Sisters of Silence, kept pace with the Custodies- built for being their equal.

Alexea tilted her head in concern and crossed her arms. The movement made the muscle stand out more and flex naturally, warping the tattoos slightly and making them look as though they were scowling with anger.

"I saw others…" Emerald muttered, "other sisters,"

Alexea's brows furrowed and she pulled her scroll out of the shorts pockets, "and?"

Emerald shrugged, "they kept up with the Custodians, fought alongside them with ease…"

"We are all trained to do so, it is our role and purpose," Alexea wrote, "together we make the Talons of the Emperor,"

Emerald nodded and sighed, unsure. Just, unsure. "I don't know what to do…"

"Things like what you saw is why you are being trained. As Kotek said- it will keep you alive," Alexea knelt down in front of her, "you are no Pariah or Living Saint, but you will have the skills to fight alongside us,"

"I-" Emerald hated the idea in her mind, "I'm going to kill, aren't I?"

"Yes." Alexea pulled her lips taught, "In our work, it is kill or be killed, survive to see the next brush with death,"

Emerald held back the small whimper. Barely. She let out a sigh, unwilling to give in to the cold fear at whatever she was bound to be put through and dreaded the future. She bit her bottom lip and gulped- as long as Celestine was here, she'd be fine, right?

What else was she going to do against an entire galaxy? A galaxy that was out there, actually out in the depths of space, and filled with horrors.

Everything felt so small now. So, so small.

An entire nine-year-old in an infinitely large galaxy.

Alexea tapped her shoulder, drawing her out of her mind, "you never really believed us, did you?"

Emerald shook her head, "n-no… I didn't know what to think, but Celestine looks after me and is really nice, so I didn't care much…"

"You'll get used to it," Alexea smiled toothlessly, "maybe you will never experience what we all have,"

Unsure of what else to do, Emerald nodded silently before she turned to the shower and only then realised she was in the bathroom, "I'm going to shower,"

Alexea held her arm over Emerald's head from behind and let the Scroll dangle in front of the girl, "Want me to leave?"

Emerald bit her lip, indecision knawed at her. She faced Alexea, "you're probably cold, right?"

The Sister of Silence shrugged, "a bit."

They both knew how poor of an excuse it was, and where it was leading.

"You can stay," Emerald left the small sentence without the pleaful tone. The more she thought about Prospero the more she hated the knowledge. The more she wanted company. Celestine.

"Alright." Alexea stretched out her arms in front of her, popping her shoulders.

Despite ever-present nausea and dizziness, the woman made her feel, her presence was comforting. She knew Kotek was still outside, the thumps and thuds of what was probably him putting his armour back on, or cleaning it, could be heard. But it was nice to have someone near, someone who showed emotion.

Besides, it could have been worse.

It could have been Lelith… then again, the woman isn't too bad. Sort of. She still liked bullying her whenever she got the chance.

But as Alexea sat down on the closed toilet, she was thankful for her presence. It wasn't often they 'spoke', but it was nice when they did. And the more she thought about it, the more comforting it was knowing that she could keep up with Kotek.

Was it possible to do that as well? She knew she was only a child, as Lelith loved reminding her, but could she get as good as them?

If the bad Astartes came, would she be able to fight them? Or more importantly, win?

She stood under the shower and poorly held back the frustrated and scared tears, finding comfort only in the fact that she had Celestine.

If the Saint was around, she'd be safe.

Rhetoric she repeated to herself in an attempt to make herself forget the orange skies and galaxy that burned relentlessly.

---

Omake:

The restaurant was pristine and white, but spartan in design. Almost brutally so to the point, it hurt to look at.

But she didn't care. No, Lelith had heard of the bizarre meal they sold here. She'd eaten many things, flesh, steak, grass and anything else in between, but not something as strange as this.

She sat as poised as an upperclassman with her legs crossed and superior air about her, turning up her nose to other patrons who dared look at her and sully the atmosphere such a regal restaurant as this held.

Lelith rose a hand and clicked once for it was that was needed.

In moments, a waiter in a wine-red suit came over, "yes, Mam?"

"so, you're telling me," Lelith rose the open menu for both of them to see clearly and pointed at the meal she came for, "a shrimp fried this rice?"

---

A/N

I've had the idea of having Emerald encounter the world of 40k on its own turf, like Ultramar, Baal, Terra or Mars, to name a few. But the question of how to bring her back without Celestine or a ship stopped it.

So now she saw memories, of Magnus, Kotek and the Sorceror that helped Rylanor before it was overtaken. Someone's messenger is gonna come knocking. I purposely made it a bit hard to follow at times, cause dreams do be like that.

I'm having fun paralleling Celestine and Emerald, both learning of each other's worlds in similar ways- books, verbal and now visions.

Just Celestine and Lelith becoming somewhat friends, Marcus being a goblin and Kotek

As for the Omake- me and my friend ruined Lelith to the point that she's just a walking meme with homicidal tendencies. And I can see her doing exactly that just to fuck with the waiter.

Next chapter will have them all sit-down and talk about the fuckery that happened here and form an actual long-term plan, cause they've kinda just been dicking around so far.

---

Review time,

Saitiama1155:

Greyfax's mind reading is exactly why Alexea is always nearby when the plot could be revealed. Gotta stop early reveals somehow lol.

Now, Ozpin, in canon, sat on his ass while Cinder was being NefariousTM and the White Fang was legitimately committing terrorist attacks.

He's useless. So, yes, it's very good that the group give no shit about getting bloody. Overkill? Hell yeah. But I'm having fun with the mix-match of characters.

As for the JLxRWBY crossover, I honestly couldn't care less. I was never a major fan of superheroes in general so I'm not a part of the target audience for it.

---

Xealchim: LowKey why i dont like Inquisitors like GreyFax tbh, they claim to be human but I see no humanity in them, just as much an Agent of Chaos as a cultists.

And that's the reason why I kinda like them. The Imperium is no better than Chaos and stuck in an unending cycle of self-destruction.

She was ripped a new one in Our Martyred Lady by Custodian Longinus for being the way she is.

---

Maglad: I liked the chapter, nice job. Curious on where you're going. I mean, it feels like you want to kill Salem before the chaos gods learn about a vessel that won't burn out like mortals often do.

Ozpin should be different though since his physical vessel dies just as well as any other, thus its not really useful to the chaos gods, I think.

Not that he's useful to anyone, though. Ironwood was right in that Ozpin pretty much gave up and its just waiting for technology to advance far enough where Salem is irrelevant. Honestly, that may actually kind of work

Yup. kill the immortals before Chaos can get them. Even if Ozpin is just a soul, Chaos can still use him. Arguably, his soul jumping makes him even more dangerous. He can end up anywhere and in anyone. If Oz was corrupted, he'd be really dangerous.

But The Gang don't know that yet. Yet.

---

BloodRedRoses11: Damn, two chapters in a day? with Sanguinius? and Ironwood talking with people? that's a quite lot, and also, we can say that this is the start of the new arc of the story! excited for the next chapter.

btw, i think the sisters of silence can use a vox caster that can translate hand signs and transmit to allies, no idea how it works, but it works, unfortunate i don't remember the name, so that is all i can help with.

anyway, keep the good work and see you next time

Alas, we're back to irregular chapter uploads since life is a thing. Alexea communicating through the Vox has been fixed, but not really used much yet.

Ya Hawk Boi is back, Ironwood won't be just forgotten about anymore, a mistake from the last 'arc'.

---

I'm going to try and get the next chapter done as soon as I can, but no promises. It'll be out when ready.