Is this a defensibe position? You are no longer alone. What supplies do you need, ammunition?
Are you wounded? Jene does her bit as makeshift quartermaster.
Not perfect but better than nothing.
"Any idea where the enemy is holed up? We can distract them from coming here if their own place is coming down around them. Otherwise, we guard you while you translate."
"My defences are limited, but getting in here is not a simple matter. I have monitors on the entrances. If I had suspected you were here to do me harm, you'd have found the mines there a little less...pleasant." He thought about it, and said, "I am unwounded."
"Your statement is troubling. They were just cutting away loose ends and trying to deal with your group. We've tried to avoud identifying ourselves to the locals."
"The Arbites can be commended on their vigilance, they recognised we were tailing them before we knew who they were. We're trying to avoid their attention in particular. If a raid is imminent we'll have to asses who locally we can trust... or at least who would be limited risk to trust."
Lothar drums his fingers noiselessly on his hip. "The Imperial Navy might be more likely to be harder for them to influence. Patrols would take time and while out in the void are like tiny worlds unto themselves. Like the Imperial Guard they're not only a more rigid military structure but one being scrutinised by Comissariat."
"If the xenos feel we are getting too close they might enact their plan and hope for the best."
Perhaps, if I treated the language as a code... I cipher, I could help you translate it.
Do you know any names that could be on the list? By matching one, we could create a partial key.
Though not optimal, we'd them know whom we could... not trust.
"Navy makes sense. They have storm troopers, right? Could be very handy for smoking xenos and their human friends."
"Storing drugs of that potency in vast quantities might require specialized equipment. I wonder if we can use that to track them"
The old man turned to his lecturn. "The reports from the Arbites is that they found your vehicle and are running simple testing on it...after you opened fire on officers?" He looked somewhat bemused at the idea. "Calling on the Navy would be a suitably neutral force, but we would need a target first. Without a full Inquisitor's rank and ability to command we would need to give them great reason to aid us. There is currently one naval vessel in system - the Cruiser [b]Balasar's Fall[/i] is loading provisons, which should take them the better part of a week. We should assume to SDF vessels have an equal chance of being compromised compared to there ground-based contemporaries."
"Given a little time I should be able to translate enough to give you a key," he said nodding to Jene, "At least enough to get some idea of what it says. Eldar grammar and syntax aren't anything like Gothic, of course, but it should help."
Tapping on the lecturn again, he continued, "The drugs seem to be relatively stable compounds. So long as they're kept in a vacuum they degrade slowly, so they will usually be in airtight packages. Looking into any places the deceased would have had access to that could provide that kind of storage might yield the best results."
Damn.
"The safe. We found a secret safe in his apartment but ran out of time to search, since the 'biters were snooping around. That could be it."
Lothar feels obliged (and a little embarassed) to elaborate. "We did not know who the Arbiters were when we began trying to follow them. The decision to open fire by a member of our group to draw them away from the main group is not one that has gone without some contention... however it is the current state of affairs and there is some logic behind the choice even if I don't personally agree with it. The vehicle was not ours and has no real connection."
"For now we've been cautious and avoided returning to our lodgings. They may be monitoring the apartment more closely. Our last excursion went well with a smaller infiltration team and the rest of us ready to divert attention, repeating the action to gain access to the secret safe might be our best course of action currently."
"I would be remiss if I did not suggest a secondary route. We determine what secondary targets would hurt the primary leaders and serve as an effective message. We purge secondary targets in an open manner and place a small portion of the drug as a calling card. Those targets that have not been turned will find out about the drug shipments and begin investigating, those targets that have been compromised will have been shown the penalty for treason and may begin to correct their error."
"Whatever is in the safe will probably be valuable," he replied slowly. "But might not be worth the risk if they have started watching it more closely again. And your colleague's suggestion of causing a secondary investigation has several benefits, including clouding your own operations. Do you have any other potential leads?"
Can you boost a commbead frequency? You seem rather... savvy. Astrid motions with her hands around the place.
It's actually, yours... but we could see if someone else was listening in? Did you have any contact with local authorities upon arrival?
"Why don't we try to size the main supply of drugs? That way the heretics would have to come to us if they wanted to live. Does anyone have any ideas where that might be?"
"Several, yes, and the Govenor's palace. We were not subtle. It is certainly one of these that betrayed us to the Eldar." He looked at the commbead. "With some parts I could see who was listening into our channels."
"As long as the parts are not too rare I should think we can acquire them."
"It just so happens that we have a list of high-grade tech merchants.", Vasyl adds.
"Navy reports show plenty of infiltration attempts. They boarded a crippled, seemingly empty eldar vessel - which then blew up. I wonder if someone or something didn't get on board that time."
"Most of the parts are common enough, I imagine it would be about 75 thrones to buy them all." The old adept started typing up a list. "As you can imagine from the thefts I had to commit to try and assemble the transmitter that I am lower on funds than I would like."
"A damaged Eldar vessel, hmmm? Uncommon. They have a dislike of letting their tech fall into our hands. Some of it seems to be as sacred to them as the great Machine Spirits of the Mechanicus are to them. Do you have any more details?"
"I still have sufficient funds to cover that expense. No point risking drawing attention at this juncture. As for other details I believe a warp taint was detected."
"Buying works too. Not much else to go on with that case. Enforcer copy of a report. Might be redacted. You capture any Eldar tech in your time?"
"A warp taint? Mmm, mmm," the old man span around with surprising speed. "That is deeply unusual. The corrupted Eldar, although we assume it was caused by the ruinous power, find such things even more anathema that the Imperium does. It might mean the other Eldar faction, the more common ones, were somehow involved. They have harnessed much of the power of the Warp."
He nodded to Vasyl's question. "Smaller components, mostly. I have served in the Ordos Xenos and helped counter their plots a few times. Mostly the more normal ones, if you can call them that, but I assisted with the tainted variation when they attempted a raid."
He seems to being completely honest, since he assumes you should have access to this information.
"Interesting. Any field-experience suggestions for how to deal with warp-tainted gear? So as not to get warp-tainted ourselves? Precautions, etcetera?"
Afan sighs and looks over to Vasyl, still cleaning his gun as he keeps an eye on the entrances in case of assault. "That would be why I was assigned to you."
At the same time as Afan's words, Sister Callidia speaks, "Absolute faith in Him serves well. As does not touching them, looking at them, or thinking overlong about them."
Lazerus remembered that his lessons were more or less what the others had said. Mental and spiritual contamination was difficult to avoid. Even those with seemingly no contact had occasionally been corrupted, usually, it was believed by unnoticed psyker powers. The Soritas was famed for it's faith being strong enough to resist such effects, and Afan's gifts could block out the sources of mental manipulation, if not the results.
The man nodded. "Much what you have said. The only thing I can add is to be weary of anything that can impact on your thoughts. Books and images have power that can linger and corrupt in the long term, long after the initi-"
He paused as a panel started beeping. Turning, he looked at one of the building entrances on the screen that was no open, one in the rear. "I do not suppose you came in through the entrance as well, did you? Or perhaps were followed?" He didn't sound hopeful on either idea.
"We did not, if there is an infiltraitor they'll have to be neutralised." Lothar draws his steel burner las pistol. "I'd prefer alive but we don't always get what we want."
Callidia's response is eloquent in its simplicity: the sound a bolt pistol slide as it chambers a round.
"I would suggest caution," the old man replied as he opened the door. "I can't seem to pick them up. I fear this may be the Eldar.
If they have infiltrated this deep into the Hive they are likely quite skilled but small."
"Maybe I can find them"
Afan finishes cleaning his Las and stands ready to kill an xenos that might threaten his mission.
Conversation was getting interesting too.
"Let's hunt them."
Vasyl looks at his auspex and starts seeking unusual emissions.
At the news that they are difficult to detect, Callidia readies her flail as well as her bolt pistol.
Lazerus is able to sense the mind of three hunters. They are twisted, sick with glee that they will get to hunt and kill a human. They are clearly not expecting more - but would relish it.
The auspex picks up three signals from the North, the opposite side of the vat to the door, approaching smoothly.
Lazerus gags at the contact
"There are 3 hunters and, oh Emporer, they are looking forward to killing us. I don't think they're human, at least I hope they're not"
Lazerus will draw his hellpistol and aim it at the door
"Be steadfast, put your faith in the Emperor, and lay these filth low, whatever they may be."
Sister Doranis brings her weapons before her in a posture of prayer and begins to recite:
A spiritu dominatus,
Domine, libra nos,
From the lighting and the tempest,
Our Emperor, deliver us.
From plague, temptation and war,
Our Emperor, deliver us,
From the scourge of the Kraken,
Our Emperor, deliver us.
From the blasphemy of the Fallen,
Our Emperor, deliver us,
From the begetting of daemons,
Our Emperor, deliver us,
From the curse of the mutant,
Our Emperor, deliver us,
A morte perpetua,
Domine, libra nos.
That thou wouldst bring them only death,
That thou shouldst spare none,
That thou shouldst pardon none,
We beseech thee, destroy them.
Can you jam their long distance communication?
"Long distance, yes, although it will block our communication as well." He looked at the incomplete transmitter. "I assume that won't be a problem."
They are looking for one human, when they see the rest of us... we don't want them reporting that back.
Jamming. Good idea.
As the others plan jamming, Vasyl raises his mesh hood, wraps his cameleoline cloak about him, and checks the silence on his Orthlack.
"I suggest that those who can, hide, then ambush."
Vasyl does his best to be difficult for others to notice, before the group gets moving.
Afan waits patiently for the team to engage the enemy, forgoing his rifle for the simple fate bringer on his hip.
The acolytes moved into position, getting ready to attack the intruders. The huge building was terrifyingly quiet still, but nothing could be heard.
Callidia clicks her combead twice to alert the others she has seen something, and speaks two words very quietly over the com, "Above. Walkways."
Gene's got a pistol... 'nuff said. She tries to find some nook.
Lazerus will pull out his hell pistol and axe, looking up at the walkway above
Good eyes on Callidia.
Vasyl smoothly raises his Orthlack and his gaze towards the walkway, trying to see.
With a smooth, graceful motion the three warriors turned and fired down into the acolytes as the humans prepared to shoot back. Thin spikes of crystal shot down on the humans, but not many.