A Sword Fights for Its Wielder

by stealthpastry

On the sparsely populated Imperium planet of Achilles VII, the small PDF is faced with the dual threat of a Slaaneshi daemon incursion and the sudden appearance of a Harlequin masque. A contingent of guardsmen capture a lone Harlequin player and an unlikely alliance forms as a result. This was my first crack at fanfiction that I wrote years ago so it's a bit rough.

2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - Preparations in the Webway

Mending a costume was a tedious job, but every stitch had to be perfectly placed in order to ascertain the holo-suit's proper operation in battle. The most recent performance of the Masque of Sword's Triumph reenacted the legendary battle between Khaine and Eldanesh for inhabitants of the nearby Eldar craftworld An-Iolsus. Playing the part of Eldanesh's sword, Anaris performed complex acrobatics which rapidly wore out a few key seams of her dathedi. The suit should still be fully functional, but Anaris would not accept anything less than perfection- to go out with even the slightest flaw in costume would be an unforgivable embarrassment.

Even in her concentration, Anaris was still intrigued by the recent commotion overcoming the Troupe Masters of Sword's Triumph. Lileath's Prophecy, the Troupe Master of Light, had recently returned from a scouting mission. She and the Shadowseers of Light had detected an upsurgence of daemonic activity uncomfortably close to the nearest Webway portal. This portal was in the middle of a great desert on an isolated Imperium-controlled planet, but was still held dear to the Masque of Sword's Triumph as it was the closest portal to craftworld An-Iolsus (besides the gate on the ship itself). The location of An-Iolsus was lost to many after it helped the Imperium defeat Chaos in the so-called Gothic War. Sword's Triumph hoped to help keep the location of the craftworld a secret while its inhabitants rebuilt their armies and fleets. Therefore, even the smallest incursion of daemons on a desolate Imperium planet was still a considerable threat.

Anaris watched as the other two Troupe Masters considered the Light Troupe Master's words. With a tilt of his head, the Troupe Master of Twilight uttered "Such a small force of daemons is not a concern. However, their presence could cause the Mon-Keigh of the planet to stumble upon the location of the portal. In the unlikely case that they are observant enough to understand the significance of the portal, we could soon be facing a flood of humans."

Red Moon's Downfall, the Troupe Master of Dark scoffed at these words. "You are Vaul's Redemption!" addressing the Twilight Troupe Master, "True, our God's battle was not specifically with these daemons, but their mere presence is an insult to our kind! I'm sure Vaul himself would throw these daemons into his forge and rejoice at their screams as they burn!"

Anaris chuckled softly to herself at this exchange. Of course Red Moon's Downfall wanted to fight the daemons; he lives the role of the war god Khaine. Anaris herself was consumed in her role as a weapon, so she had already internally committed herself to fight in this upcoming battle. She rushed to finish her mending as the Troupe Masters finalized the decision making process.

The three Troupe Masters eventually concluded to crush this uprising of daemons before they got too close to the Webway portal. However, they agreed it had to be done quickly and quietly to avoid attention from the humans. Vaul's Redemption would lead the battle since his Twilight troupe excelled at rapid response. Upon hearing this, every player of the Masque knew their part in the battle; they would be reenacting the flight of Faolchú as he delivered the sword to Eldanesh before the great battle against Khaine. Accordingly, the troupe of Light would rush in on skyweaver jet-bikes to hit the flanks of the daemons which would symbolize the wings of the legendary falcon. Next, the players of Twilight would crash into the ranks like the great sword itself sliced through the heavens. Anaris grinned, knowing that she and her fellow players would be arriving on starweaver transports and performing the Skystride. This difficult technique was a dance of sorts that involved the Harlequins jumping from enemy to enemy, snapping necks and slicing off limbs without ever touching the ground until they returned to their starweavers. Lastly, the troupe of the Dark would be looming in the shadows, waiting to descend upon any straggling daemons much like how the Eldar god of war waited for Eldanesh to make a mistake in the mythical battle.

Anaris joined her fellow players of Twilight as they donned their masks and adjusted their flip belts. She laughed along with the Phantom of Khaine, a Dark Death Jester who was all too eager to pierce the daemons with his bio-explosive ammo. "It's beautiful irony really," he sneered, "daemons come to the world through exploding corpses. It's only appropriate that they leave that way too."