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.

4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 - Amidst the Brawl

Anaris relished the adrenaline rush she gained from the SkyStride. Each pull of her shuriken pistol's trigger resulted in a new pathway being opened for her macabre dance. Moreover, each broken body beneath her was one more blow to the army of She Who Thirsts. However, dealing harm to Slaanesh was not the primary goal of this battle; the true defensive nature of this performance was going spectacularly well. Though there was the occasional wound, not a single Harlequin was yet to be slain meaning there would be no evidence to spur a search by the humans. That is, if the humans even wander this far into the desert. Anaris' troupe simply had to mop up the rest of the daemons and the Webway portal would be safe for another day.

At this point, late in the battle, the SkyStride was always a little more difficult. Gaps between foes grew increasingly larger and the enemy generally was more aware of the Harlequins' presence. Anaris had just made a long leap to the next foe when the daemonette's spine snapped more easily than expected when she landed on it. Trying to regain her balance, Anaris somersaulted into the air towards the nearest victim. However, this was not part of her expected path so before she ended her flip, another SkyStriding harlequin kicked that daemonette out from underneath Anaris' feet. As it was falling, the daemonette flailed its scythe-like arms, one of which plunged deep into Anaris' leg.

Screaming at the red-hot pain, Anaris crashed downwards and landed atop a pile of fresh daemonic corpses. With a heavy heart, she realized that she, the greatest of Vaul's swords, had failed the SkyStride. Even though she would be greeted with endless shame and mockery for touching the ground, she tried to stand so she could return to her skyweaver. Her leg, however, collapsed at the effort so Anaris could only crawl towards the waiting transport.

Suddenly, the skyweaver tore away with unprecedented haste. Looking around, Anaris wondered why her troupe would leave her behind. She knew she was now an embarrassment, but why would they risk having any Harlequin corpse for the humans to find? There were no daemons left, so there was no reason they couldn't pick her up. Yet she was alone. There were no other Harlequins to be found, dead or alive.

Her despair grew when she glimpsed movement in the distance. She now understood why her comrades had left- it would be better for one random Harlequin to be found than for anyone to know the size and nature of her masque. Perhaps if humans found her, they would think her a sacrifice made by the daemons. Frantically reaching for her pistol in hopes of defending herself from the approaching threat, she realized she must have dropped it when she acquired her wound. Could her shame grow any more?

Thankfully, she was still equipped with her Brathuangau attached to her wrist and the wound on her leg was bleeding slowly enough that she was still able to think clearly. Gingerly, she eased herself behind a pile of daemonettes, hoping the corpses would remain in this world long enough for her to stay undetected by whatever was approaching. Ideally, the threat would pass without finding her, but if she was discovered Anaris wanted the element of surprise on her side.