As Leni starts to think about ways to find out whether the trains are still running, Cormaeg suddenly holds up a hand, stopping the idle talking.
"Something is coming from the right... Closing in..."
During the sudden silence, you finally find the piece of mind to focus on the very faint echoes in the immaterium around this place.
You feel the disturbance of this place.
It seems to miss the masses of people coming and going through here somehow.
But it is long, since the last living being passed here.
Only the ever more sporadic passing of metal entities rushing over the rails now remains.
Then you are interrupted by the voice of Sybyll coming from behind you, somehow though, her words seem to echo the feelings you had during your trance...
"Lonely. Emptiness.
Nothing remains but forgotten darkness.
And failing machines,
discard and forgotten,
grinding themself to dust,
following orders long since null."
The gloomy voice of Sybyll really matches this place.
But ... it is really rubbing your nerves the wrong way.
Tell me where it's comin' from and I'll set up a suppression field! Simmins says with his Stubber at the ready.
The right tunnel, idiot! Notch says and he moves toward the center of the platform to maximize the spread of his flamer. Thud moves in front of the civvies and the wounded and sets his shield as protection for them.
Whose right darn it? Speak the right lingo!
Notch points toward the right as you're facing the tracks. That way!
"Right, get ready. But remember what I said, check your targets, don't fire until you know they are unfriendlies."
"Who knows? We might just meet something on this planet NOT out to kill us for a change."
A thought suddenly strikes Cormaeg, the possibility that the traumatic experiences that the civilians had endured might have opened Sybyll to something.
Could she be some form of seer? Her ramblings certainly SOUNDED prophetic.
If what is coming now is a machine, which admittedly is not exactly long odds, I may have to speak to our pair of psykers later...
Krish moves up to the edge of the platform all the way next to the right wall with his staff at the ready.
After everyone got into position, you have to wait two nerve-wrecking minutes, while the sound of the approaching-something grows every louder.
At first it is faint, but soon it is loud enough to drown any non-shouted conversation. It is cacophony of metallic whirring, clicking and scraping intermixed with a high pitched singing of lethal-level electrics.
As the sound has swelled to level loud enough to pain the ears, you suddenly notice a bright light appearing inside the tunnel and closing in on you quickly... and only the Sergeants explicit orders make you hold your fire, hands trembling in anticipation of battle...
...
... then a massive train rushes into the station, brakes emitting a horrible sound of metal scratching over metal. Bright fireflies spring from the decelerating train and steam billows all around it.
With a final jerk, it stops and a blaring, synthetic voice announces:
"TRAIN 7-BETA ARRIVED AT GATE 762-EPSILON.
NEXT STOP: GATE 782-ALPHA, HAB-BLOCK-ECCHELON.
PASSENGERS: BOARD NOW.
ALL PRAYS TO THE OMNISSIAH."
The train has clearly seen better days.
Its dark (is it blue, is it violet, is it black, hard to tell) sides are torn, dented and scrapped from a multitude of smaller crashes and passes through too narrow tunnels from the look of it. It has seen combat too, several bullet holes all along its side and a massive hole in the second compartment (from some kind of explosive) makes that very clear.
Nevertheless, the doors to its four compartments open (some more slowly and screeching than others) and a flickering light stabs out from inside.
This nightmare machine is exactly what Thud was worried would come, but when the doors open a friendly light shines into the darkness! A beacon to the sky in the terrible darkness! Thud practically herds everyone else on board.
Yep, the wording checks out, got to have that talk with the psykers as soon as possible.
"Well, you heard the canned voice, next stop hab-block Ecchelon. Is that where we want to go?"
"All lines pass through two stops in every direction from here, Sarge.
Only then do they split up.
But Hab Ecchelon sounds right for general direction.
If it is the wrong one, we have to change trains at the Iron Cross gate."
Ralph's memory seems to come back better and better.
While at first he was struggling with the names under lines, memory seems to come back now that you are on the way!
"Right, since it's clearly been fired on before, we should take our place in the least damaged cars for maximum protection."
It seems to be intended to do so, but the compartments are connected via a not-too-stable, non-fixed grid.
No problem crossing during a stand-still, not trivial during travel.
"Seconded. Not that my opinion matters tho right Sarge?" Leni actually peaks out the tip of her togue with that remark
"That thing is loud, ugly and full of holes. If I didn't know it was here long before the orks I'd think they actually built it. At the very least they would probably very much like it. Can we sweep all the compartments with a dose of flamer, Sarge? Just to make sure no purple frackers apear out of previously thin air."
Glad to finally leave the tunnel, Thud'dr pushes on and enters the second compartment with his handler, slightly having to squeeze through the double-doors.
Everyone else follows Cormaeg into the first wagon, hoping to stay as close as possible to the engine block.
A few seconds after everyone moved through the doorframe, the door close with a resounding, snapping sound and the whirring and sirring increase in volume and the train starts to move out with a sudden jerk that causes everyone to search for a handhold.
The interior of the compartment is ... functional.
There are no seats in sight and only here and there handholds in the form of durable plastec grips sprout from the ceiling.
Beside the semi-transparent doors (made of a thick armaglass), no windows are crafted into the hull.
Dull glowglobes are set into the ceiling at regular intervals, surrounded by tiny scriptures in high gothic and there are standard issue bulwark-doors at both ends showing off the cogskull symbol of the Omnissiah. One connects the compartment to the engine, the other one must certainly lead to the second compartment with Notch and Thud.
The floor is quite clean but dusty and carries the vibration of the accelerating train all too well.
In the mid of the ceiling, another bulwark probably allows access to the roof of the compartment - if one has a mean to reach it, as the ceiling is nearly three meter high.
All in all, the shuttles that were used to deploy you on this planet, had more features than this compartment - and those were meagre as well.
Thud couldn't be happier. Well, he could, but given the circumstances this was a big step in the right direction. He keeps his shield toward the hole in the side, but the three meter ceilings are a welcome thing and they were finally out of that horrid place.
Things are looking up!
What is the squad doing during the train ride?
Given that you have to wait for at least two stops, you will probably be spending some time here...
Notch proves that he's really a Guardsman at heart and almost immediately passes out.
Thud is far too paranoid to sleep. As long as he was down here in the cramped darkness he would be on high alert. He keeps a constant vigil as the train travels on its track. Most of the time he's "reading" his Imperial Cult Picture Scripture and trying to sound out simple words.
Really not much to do for Simmins, Closed tube seems like a real bad place to use a stubber so he'll have his shotgun out instead and kinda be avoiding the civilians out of embarrassment.
Krish will brace his back into a corner, sit on the floor and meditate as well as he can. He will also periodically use Psynicience to try to sense as much as he can, in particular any strangeness coming from Sybill.
She (or anyone else but Monia for that matter) does not appear to be an active Psyker (or worse).
Monia, still weary and very much a guardsman in this respect, takes any opportunity to rest. She posts up opposite of Krish, takes a swig from her canteen and forces herself to eat a ration bar to keep her energy levels up.
On the upside, at least the lack of windows meant that anyone on the outside of the Mars-Alpha Pattern Mechano-Motive Engine would be unable to see them.
The downside was, orks being orks, they probably wouldnt know that there were any xenos on the outside until they started shooting the craft up for the fun of it.
"Alright, I don't think I'll do any treatments on this rumbling heap of junk. If we run over a piece of junk once we'll have a medical tool stuck in places where it does NOT belong. No use letting the wonuds get infected thought. So everyone with even a small wound step up, gotta disinfect that with a dose of good old high grade alcohol."
With that a round of 'pssssst' "ouch!" "Next!" comences.
After being done Leni looks for a 'cozy' places at the back of the wagon. Sitting down far towards the center as possible with still having wall behind her. She cradles her lasgun so she won't accidently pull the trigger but is ready to heft it in a moments notice - then dozes off just enough so she'll still instinctivly react to commands.
"Hmmph, it may be difficult to report in from down here. Psyker Monia, make the attempt. Better we learn if it is so now rather than later.
And if you can get contact, advice them on us being in a possible area of radio interference."
"Everyone else, we'll set up a rotation of keeping watch, anyone not on watch, take the chance to eat, rest and check your weapons.
It may be a while before we have another chance like this."
"First watch is mine, but before that, Psyker Krish, Psyker Monia, join me at the back of the car, we need to have a little talk."
With the aid of his staff, Krish rises to his feet and joins Cormaeg at the back of the car.
I don't know anything about your powers, but is it possible that her experiences might have woken some ability in her?
It is possible of course that she is merely in shock and her rambling sounds prophetic due to being about an area she knows well enough.
But I'd rather you keep an extra eye on her just in case."
"The last thing we need is to attract more..."things" like that Ork..entity from before."
Having the sergeant call them both over, Monia raises an eyebrow in curiosity and complies swiftly making her way over to the Sergeant.
"I have read cases of other humans having seemingly formed sympathetic relationships with the area they inhabit; being able to...feel...the life of the place and those within. If Krish says he hasn't found sign, then I'll take his word for it. For all we know, she's a latent psyker who's yet to awaken. Either way, if she doesn't die at some point, we're going to have to bring her in for testing."
"If you wish, we could have a chat with her?"
++Command, this is Squad Cormaeg; 15 minute check-in. Do you read, over.++
"No, The suggestion she is a psyker might agitate her, or her family. At this point I would rather not risk agitating a bunch of war weary civilians with guns."
His eyes narrow and he leans closer, his voice becoming low and dangerous.
"There is also the possibility of them deliberately leading us into an ambush to get our gear.
Or the Administratum has been overrun by Orks already.
I'm relying on you two to be my eyes and ears for now."
"Roger that Sarge. If it comes to it, know that I can make em Hallucinate or put fear of the God Emperor into them. Can attempt some Mind Control but its not easy."
Monia quickly notes that the box cannot reach out of whatever tunnel network they are traveling through right now.
Everyone's half-dozen is interrupted after ten minutes by the sudden, stretching breaks and a deceleration force that causes everyone to seek for a handhold.
The first station.
Hab block Ecchelon.
The doors open...
... and no one is there to board the train.
The doors close again and the train accelerates into the darkness of the tunnel network...
"Well, that is unfortunate. We will just have to make sure to call it in as soon as we leave the tunnels.
Make sure you mention that the trains are still running Monia. Our troops may be able to use them strategically. It could be valuable intel."
"Next time we approach a station, I want everyone combat ready, just in case there are any xeno waiting for us."
"Aye, sir. Will do." she nods sternly in acknowledgement.
The three next stop ("Hab Block Elias", "Cathedralis Imperialis Minoris" and "Upper Spire Lift 7") all passes by uneventful as well and everyone prepares for the important next stop: "Omnissiahs Crossing".
Ralph stresses that if the announcer says anything but "Administratum Sub-Block Beta-2", everyone has to get out on the next stop for a train-change.
Soon, the sound and feel of the moving train slightly changes.
Your ears pop, as if a sudden change in air pressure and the whirring and sirring becomes less all-surrounding and more directed (from below).
Through the hole(s) you can see what is happening first hand.
The trains has left the ever ongoing tunnels and is now travelling through a massive steel cavern - likely deep in the heart of the hive - that is criss-crossed by rails supported by a mind-boggling, complex network of support structures.
You can see at least two other trains traversing high upon other rails, traversing in different directions than yours.
Should you be brave enough to lean outside to look where the train is heading:
The rail your train is following is taking a long upwards curve and heads towards a massive structure build in the core of the hall, where all rails seem to run together.
Cormaeg taps his microbead to the squads channel.
"Trooper Notch, come in, this is Sergeant MacCammon. This is important. If the next station we enter is announced as anything but "Administratum sub-block Beta-2 we are to leave the train.
Can you confirm instructions?"
Notch jerks awake and scrambles for a second. Ya, Ya, Copy, sir, Anything except Admin sub block Beta-2, confirmed.
Enjoying the view and rush of wind, you did not notice the deep blue train that is catching up on a parallel rail no more than five meters beside and slightly below you until the bright light of a rocket engine pierces through the darkness and an ill-aimed rokkit is spiralling past your compartment!
Looking around in surprise you finally notices the train running to the left and slightly-down ...
... and that it is crawling with Orks pointing towards you!
The other train looks even more torn and ragged than your own, two of its three remaining compartments have lost the upper part of their sides as well as the roof, allowing an easy view into its innards and its greenskin passengers.
*BOOOM*
Suddenly and unmistakably, the echo of a distant explosion pierces the monotone sound of the travelling train!
Having been concentrating on the discussion with Cormaeg about Sybill, you had not checking your surroundings as frequent as before - but now, there is no denying it.
There are Orks nearby.
Their impossible, green presence seems to close in from the left and slightly ... below - however that may be possible inside a tunnel.
Thud spots the train of orks below and bellows a challenge! It's more of a roar, really, but still. And it's exactly what Thud needs right now. A distraction.
Notch gets on the comms.
Sarg! I've got three open-top cars of orks below and behind us on a parallel track! I'm pretty sure Thud's going to engage.
Thud reaches to his back and the ogryn-size frag grenades stored there. He pulls the pin with his teeth and waits for a moment, then he fires the grenade at the car like it's coming from a launcher!
- 4 DoS
Correction, Thud just cooked one of those big 'nades of his! We're officially engaged!
-> front wagon!
-> one direct hit, 3 dive to ground, 2 stand
Damage is @ -6
Rapidly spinning around its axis, the grenade flies true...
... and lands to the feet of a surprised Ork. Two of his comrades tries to jump away - but the enclosed space and well-timed throw ensues that none escapes the shower of deadly shrapnels filling the inside of the first wagon!
The one directly hit Ork is blasted apart by the force of the explosions and every single one of his comrades is bleeding from shrapnel wounds!
Two are down, unmoving for the moment - but given their resilience no one would bet that they are dead yet.
"Squad, arm up, I want those Orks dead before they become an issue!"
Knowing that his chain sword will not be much use at this point, and that a las gun is not terrbly effective against Orks (from personal experience) Cormaeg attempts to inspire the others.
Yuri looks with an expression of disgust at the inside of the trains hull.
"Shall we just blast a few holes in it so that we can fire back or what?"
"Smash out the windows so you can brace your weapons against the panes."