They heard the Wall before they saw it, with the sound of gunfire coming from ahead of them.
Stepping out onto the wall, she could see a seething mass of monsters. Brigitta looked down at them in distaste. They were disgusting creatures. The size of a medium-sized dog, with 6 legs and 2 pincers that reminded her of lobsters. Its mouth opened like an ant's, with powerful pincers, and finally, they had a carapace shell that just covered their backs.
On it, she could see markings and colouration, which to the untrained eye might just look like natural colourations in the shell.
But she could instantly see the symbology, and with so many present, she could feel the chaos corruption in them loud and clear.
She could see why they were little threat though, with the natural defences of the swamp and then onto the narrow ramp, acting as another chokepoint.
It looked relatively easy to hold them off; a large number were killed by their fellow monsters, either pushed into the swamp or pushed off the edge of the ramp leading up to the wall.
"Iskra, what can you sense?"
"Definitely chaos corruption, as I'm sure you can feel. I can feel their trail. It comes from that way." he said, pointing.
"Aleric, what is that way?" Indicating the way Iskra had sensed.
"East of us is the hive Pomaria."
"Rhassia…"
"It is a mining hive. The largest number of people out of the hive cluster. Ganger, do you know what is on the lowest level?"
"Not much, I'm afraid. I know there is a large settlement near the border, as we regularly trade with them. But that's it." She felt a brief spike of annoyance from the ganger, but again it flowed through him oddly, not dispersing into the warp. It might be because they were such weak emotions, but still. It had her intrigued.
"Are you sure about the trail Iskra?"
"Yes, more now than I was before. I sensed further out and can feel something at the very edge of my range. Like a blanket, smothering my senses."
That was it then. The first place they would look, but if they were swarmed on the road, she wanted some backup or at least some fodder.
Although she was pleased with the gangers around her, they looked to be far more useful than some she had commandeered over the years. "We're going to that settlement. Aleric, you have been conscripted. You will serve until dismissed. I want the best gangsters you have available and any transport the gang might have."
This time, she focused on his warp presence. Carefully watching his reaction.
It was as muted as ever; the emotion ran through him, anger and fear. But again, none of it was released into the warp around them. Peculiar.
"Very well Inquisitor." Turning from them, he started to speak into a vox. After a few minutes of talking, he said. "We have four trucks coming, and several of our best units. They will be here in less than an hour. Would you like to wait here?"
"Yes. You can explain what we might meet on the way."
"Very well. Not much, the area between the hives are fairly clear, just the Wastes. The Pomaria hive is abutted right next to us, so we can pass from one hive to the other. There is a small settlement there, but we should be able to pass through it with ease."
The vox crackled to life on his hip. Apologising, he answered and made some more commands. Several sounded like they would be delayed as they were on other jobs. She almost chuckled as he very firmly told them to get their fucking asses in gear and get over to him.
He didn't care if they had to dump the cargo out the back. Just to get there.
That in and of itself wasn't funny or interesting. It was some of the replies, like one ganger complained about how important the cargo was. She'd had some subordinates like that.
They didn't tend to last long.
Turning back to them once more, Aleric continued. "Then we are in the other hive, and it is more of the same, although the ground is unstable from the abandoned mining tunnels."
Brigitta kept on quizzing him, trying to get a clear picture of the path ahead. Knowledge was power after all, when the roaring of engines came from the distance. Turning, she watched as the trucks, already loaded with the gangsters, came into view. Passing a critical eye over them, she was pleased to see they looked to be in good condition. She didn't fancy getting into a death trap.
"Inquisitor." Aleric said, indicating the trucks.
"Let's move out."
As they moved out, Iskra hissed next to her. Looking at him sharply. He whispered, "There is a pariah ahead. A powerful one at that."
She threw her senses forward but could not find it, at least not until she looked closer and then had to wonder how she had missed it. The dead zone in the warp, like looking into the abyss. It was well contained and under control, only the size of the person, which made it harder to detect.
Although now she had noticed it was impossible to ever miss it again, she was hyperaware of it. Pushing the crawling feeling away, she moved forward and climbed into the offered truck. Thankfully, not near the pariah. A clanging of metal caught her attention; it was the cyber mastiff from earlier landing on the roof of another truck.
Rhassia climbed in next to her, and their guide next to her. Not everyone could fit into the trucks, so the gangers latched onto the outside where they could.
"Let's move." Aleric told the driver.
"Got it boss."
The truck shuddered around her as they set off in a convoy, ploughing through the still swarming monsters. But the teams sitting on top of the truck made short work of them, carving through them with their rifles.
Once out of the swamp, the density of the creature died down to nothing, and it was a straight, easy route passing over the dunes of ash for mile and miles, until the walls of the hive loomed into view. They stretched off in both directions, rusted, worn and dilapidated, with large areas where the plasteel and rockrete were missing, letting in the harsh sunlight.
In front of them was a small settlement threaded in one of these holes. As they approached, they could see the gates were closed, and the walls were packed with gangers.
They had noticeably worse equipment, Brigitta noted.
"Pull up here. How would you like to handle this Inquisitor?"
Rhassia spoke for her. "Quietly."
Aleric nodded. "Okay, stay hidden for now. But I don't like this. They should have let us through, no questions." He said, putting on and locking his helmet, the faint hiss as it sealed.
Through the vox, on a now-linked channel, she heard Aleric bark. "Everyone out and look lively, something isn't right."
He hopped onto the side of another truck without any of her retinue, which drove him closer, pulling up a few dozen metres from the locked gate. When it stopped, the gangsters hopped out, forming up around him. One of them caught her eye, an armoured woman. In the same style armour as Aleric's, a blade was strapped to her side.
"Rhassia, that woman's sword…"
"You're not mistaken, a power blade." She replied, her voice laced with the surprise Brigitta felt. While not truly rare, seeing one on a ganger was a shock. That, combined with her armour, made her actually better equipped than some of her kill teams, which was a concerning thought.
How good she would be, they'd soon find out. Reaching out, she confirmed the warrior was the Pariah. One interesting thing was her position.
All pariahs she had met made others uncomfortable, if not worse, and yet she moved through the gangsters with ease. None flinched, and if anything, they respected her.
Strange.
"What is the meaning of this!" Aleric shouted.
Someone leaned over the gatehouse. "The passage is blocked; you will need to go around."
"That's funny, as I've just had confirmation of a convoy making it through. So, what is really happening Grint?"
"We can't let you through Thumper. Not today."
"Grint. We supply you. You are here at the Court's and guild's pleasure. You can't make that decision. So let us through, and we can forget this episode."
She could feel their fear from where she was. If it was of Aleric, she didn't know. But she could feel the corruption just as clearly, coating the settlement. The leader didn't have much in him, but many of his subordinates were soaked in it.
On a private channel, she asked. 'Iskra anything?'
'Nothing more. But we are definitely on the right track.' Nodding, she focused back on the conversation at the gate.
"No. We've been paid to have it closed for the day."
"Which gang?"
"Who said it was a gang?" He said evasively.
"You're right." Aleric said with a laugh. "If they were a relevant gang, I would have heard about it."
That seemed to spark a response from one of the other gangsters on the wall, who shouted. "The Claws are the largest gang in Pomaria."
"Ahh, thank you." She could feel the rising anticipation of the Court members around her, so she had enough warning to command her teams to move. They were just piling out when Aleric said. "Very well. GO!"
Before he had even finished the work, violence erupted around him. The heavy guns atop the trucks and the gangster's rifles raked the walls, forcing the enemy behind cover. Her men joined in shortly afterwards, but she kept her psykers out of it. It wasn't yet time.
Out in front, the pariah charged forward with the cyber mastiff along with a squad in Carapace armour.
Very good armour in fact. She would need to check, but it looked to be very near in quality to what her kill teams wore. The pariah and hound effortlessly scaled the walls and slaughtered all they found on top, with brutal efficiency.
The pariah had skill.
It was looking more and more likely she would be worth bringing with them.
From further in the settlement, she felt spikes of corruption.
On the walls, two figures twisted and changed into chaos spawn. Swearing, she was about to act herself but held herself back. Curious to see how the gang would do, and more importantly, the pariah.
Her patience paid off, as the Court members reacted with calm, quiet confidence. Alaric's voice over the comms gave out clear instructions.
"Chaos spawn incoming. You know the drill. Heavy weapons concentrate fire on them and force them to Zardelle to finish off. The rest keep on the raiders."
Brigitta sat back as the gangsters and her kill team made short work of the remaining heretics. The heavy weapons cut down and injured the chaos spawn, but not finishing them. That was left to the pariah, who moved with deadly precision, her armour deflecting the few shots that managed to hit her.
When the battlefield finally fell silent and the gates were forced open. Aleric said. "Back to the trucks."
Brigitta also ordered her teams to do the same. She had little interest in hanging about; there might have been some information to find, but they had a good lead, and she didn't want to waste time. She needed to get there as soon as possible, before the Ex-Inquisitor could be warned if he wasn't already aware of their presence.
They passed through the rest of the shanty town, and once out the other side, they picked up speed again. The landscape was radically different; gone were the rolling dunes and instead was a rocky landscape.
Scraped bare, with unstable paths and bridges, over large ravines and tunnels from the harsh mining for 1000s of years. Just rock and dust.
They travelled maybe 15 minutes when their guide gave them the warning that they were not too far out. She relayed it to Hal to pass out to the rest of the kill teams as well as to Iskra. If anyone was going to notice anything, it would be him.
She had her senses cast wide as well, and by this point, she was almost sure they were in the right area; the uneasiness of the warp had only been increasing.
As they were crossing a particularly narrow bridge, they were attacked with little warning. Iskra called out at the last minute, as more of the corrupted beast swarmed out of the tunnels. The narrow bridge became an advantage as it acted as a natural choke point, allowing them to finish them off with ease.
But this set a trend, with constant attacks every few minutes, by a new swarm trying to wear them down. But finally, they crested a slope, and the mining settlement came into view. This would be where they would find the gang and some answers.
If they were lucky, she would also find her heretic here.
Iskra voxed her, echoing what she felt. Several powerful demonic presences lay within the town, but they were obscured by heavy wards. Brigitta turned to Aleric. "This is the place."
He nodded, "How would you like to do this?"
"Pull up near the main gate out of sight."
---
Brigitta could feel her heart rate start to beat faster in anticipation as the truck went round the final bend and eased to a stop, everyone hopping out. She knew this wouldn't be an easy fight, but she was looking forward to it nonetheless.
Her team formed up around her, the gangers, doing the same around Aleric and Zardelle, off to the side but in front. They would be her team's meat shield.
"Go." Brigitta commanded.
They surged forward, charging for the gate, into a wave of gunfire. Mostly small calibres, so she threw out a force shield, tightening the warp around her, wrapping a weaving of steel and chains made from her mind in front of them. The shots pinging off harmlessly, she grunted as a heavier shot from a cannon cracked into the shield.
It held, and she could hold it for a long time, but it would weaken her for the fight to come. Something she could not allow. Luckily, a deep boom echoed from her right, and the turret gunner dropped head missing. Glancing to her right, she saw Aleric, crouched rifle in hand, although not one she recognised.
As they crossed the fifty-metre mark, she felt Vortjren's presence in the warp flare, the pressure building before the force rolled out like a battering ram. No finesse, just a powerful, blunt force fitting Vortjren to a tea.
He was a hammer, not a scalpel.
And he was good at it, she sensed the force collide with the gate, which trembled, its hinges shattering before getting blown backwards, collapsing a building behind it. They charged through the now-open gate, cutting anyone they met with ruthless precision.
Large cranes, crushers, and other heavy machinery all scattered and discarded loomed up over her and her team as they moved towards the warp signatures. Built up around these machines were shanty towns of sheet metal, rusted and warped, but giving a semblance of homes as well as narrowing the streets.
She could feel the precise presence of Iskra as he nudged those around them, not in the overt way Vortjren did, but in a more subtle way, a prod, knocking someone off balance here, a push of a gun there, directing it into its allies.
Still, she marched forward, shield held strong. She grunted as she converted it into a dome, weakening the barrier slightly, but with the separated fire, a strong one wasn't quite so important.
"That way!" Iskra called, pointing off to the right of the main gate.
Brigitta nodded, "Aleric!" she said, pointing.
They moved through the streets at a light jog, killing anything that got in their way. As they got closer, the demonic presences became clearer and clearer. Reinforcing that this was the right way, but even this close, she could not lock their location down, her mind sliding off the area they were most concentrated in.
Glancing up, she saw a looming structure, a gravel factory, with conveyor belts, crushers and slurry pipes rising high into the sky. As a gangster stepped onto an unremarkable section of road, a psychic presence erupted as a ward was triggered.
She shouted a warning, mirrored by Iskra, but it was too late; it set off a chain reaction. All around them, other wards were tripped, striking their entire party. She could feel the barbed hooks of corruption striking at the souls of those around her.
Some collapsed, others staggered. Those around Zardelle were fine, as soon as the barbs entered her sphere of influence, they collapsed, losing all energy. To her side, she saw several strike Aleric but failed to find any purchase on his crystalline soul.
She felt a few strike her mental shields ineffectually. As she was about to strike them out, a golden light flared in the warp. Like a rising sun banishing the darkness as Tolven marched forward, chants and rituals on his lips and his reliquary bones help aloft.
The lesser demons were pushed back, like a candle in darkness, losing strength and cohesion before fading. Even with them fading, Tolven stayed chanting, the golden influence of his faith swirling around them. Now the demons were banished, most recovered, but she noticed several failed to stir, dead. Their souls, ripped from their bodies.
Stepping over their dead comrades, they advanced once more, more cautiously now. They had to fight off or disable several more traps, from special wardings and more entrapped demons to less refined methods, like explosives. Now aware of them, they suffered no more deaths, but it slowed them down.
They crossed some threshold and whatever had been disrupting her senses fell. Shouting a warning, but too late as 2-gun turrets opened up, cutting down several gangsters and one of her men. Most managed to move out of the way, and with the turrets dealt with moving forward once more.
Now wise to the trick, they were not caught again, Vortjren crushing any turrets they came across before they could start firing, or the boom of Aleric's rifle sniping them with impressive precision. It became a slog, a war of attrition as they suffered almost constant assaults by possessed, or cultists.
But no Ex-Inquisitor Domikio, so she didn't call the Grey Knights. It wasn't time yet.
Impressively, they only lost a few more men on the advance, far less than she'd feared, the gangsters doing very well for themselves, proving that the Astates were right to recruit from their number all across the Imperium.
The narrow alleys gave way to the muddy open area, with the gravel manafactorum looming over it. Brigitta felt a spike of psionic pressure, too fast for her to counter, and the building some of the troops were taking cover in was crushed, trapping them within. There were some still alive, but they would need to be dug out.
But the presence flared again, ready this time, she threw her might into an attack, dropping the tight shield she still held around her. Her power slammed into the enemy's psykers, halting them in their tracks. They were obviously untrained, she thought with contempt. She felt dozens of minds linked together in a psychic symphony, but there was none of the trained harmony.
It was shaky and unstable, and with a contemptuous flick of her mind, she crushed the mind of the lead sorcerer, causing a feedback loop as the energy he had gathered flowed back into the rest of the choir. Pulling back, she could hear them scream as their souls lit aflame, unable to control or contain the warp energy now flowing through them.
She could see the flame of their burning corpses glowing down one of the many passages that led to the courtyard. She reached out and, with Iskra's help, cracked the last few wards barring them entry to the factory.
This had to be the place. The wards were incredibly potent, some of the greatest she had come across.
Stepping through the wide, rusted sliding doors, they came under instant assault from cultists. They were cut down before they could close the distance, but more kept pouring in, with even chaos spawn mixing amongst them.
Still, they dealt with it and advanced, pushing the horde back ever so slowly, the mastiff leading the way. Its claws able to slash through even the heavily armoured cultist.
Something else the gang had that was overachieving. Although Brigitta was no longer surprised by this point.
Even then, they were going slowly. Too Slowly.
So slowly in fact she removed the shield surrounding herself once more, ready to attack the heretics directly when she felt him. A monstrous mind, twisted and corrupted, but nonetheless dwarfing hers in power, pressed down on her. Brigitta tasted copper in her mouth and a throbbing behind her eyes, but ignored it. All her might was in countering him.
She could feel him reaching out to crush those around her. She blocked it, pushing the mind back; she groaned under the strain, and it was all she could do to hold on, even as Vortjren and Iskra helped where they could. They threw their effort behind her, and even the faith of Tolven helped blunt the psychic attacks. But she was only holding on, and she had little capacity for anything else.
She had enough presence of mind to feel the powerful deamon approaching them and, upon spotting it, knew they were going to take heavy casualties. The daemonhost charged, closing the distance with giant bounding steps.
The daemonhost, a powerful daemon trapped in a human body, with a deceptive appearance of an average human, the only hints he was different being his blood-red eyes and the detailed script tattooed onto his body.
She couldn't shout, needing all her focus to hold back Domikio. Thankfully, Rhassia shouted the warning. Several times she tried to reach into her cloak to pull out the beacon to summon the Grey Knights now she had found the target, but whenever she did, the assault intensified.
She expected to watch as the daemonhost cut through everyone with ease; she had seen them fight and even kill Astarte's, giving rookie Grey Knights a tough battle.
This one might not be up to that standard, but it would be too much for the gangers, and her kill team was going to have losses.
But as it advanced on them, it was met by a blur as the pariah Zardelle met its change with one of her own, stopping it dead. Her aura flaring, smothering the daemonhost presence in the warp and snuffing out the grey green flames it had conjured.
Brigitta could feel Zardelle's void fluctuating, intensifying around her, stronger than ever before. Several of the demons nearby crumpled, banished back to the immaterium. Maybe she had underestimated her strength, as she had seen daemonhost push through the pariah resistance before.
The rest of their party moved out of her way as several men caught in her aura collapsed from its intensity. But even as impressively as she was, Zardelle was slowly forced back, step by step. Until another blur stepped into her aura without flinching or even acknowledging it and moved to her shoulder, his las pistol firing with pinpoint accuracy.
With Alaric's help, his las pistol striking the daemonhost's weak points, the 2 of them pushed it back. They flowed around each other, covering the other's weaknesses, clearly very experienced working together, but at the blisteringly fast speeds they were fighting at, it only took one mistake.
For a terrible second, it looked like Aleric had made that mistake. He appeared to move too close, which the daemonhost lept on, springing forward with glee. But it was a feint, throwing himself back and leaving the daemonhost wide open for Zardelle to slash with her power sword, slicing through flesh and bone, severing its arm and leg.
Roaring, she brought it down once more, finishing it off. Domikio's presence paused for a moment; she could feel his surprise through the warp before his presence flared once again in rage and irritation. But it was enough to allow her to reach into her cloak and activate the beacon.
Its silver script humming to life.
She felt several more daemonhosts rapidly approaching. Only two seemed to be well made; the other four were rushed, clearly of a worse quality, but no less dangerous for it.
The new daemonhost presence washed over the battlefield. She could feel the gangers start to waver, some moving back fearfully in the face of more of the monsters.
Before they could close the distance, the air howled as space screamed apart. Lighting crackled around them, dancing on the metal pipes and walls, then a pillar of lightning slammed into the centre of the group like the Emperor's fury. The thunderclap defended her, even with the armour on.
From the arcing lightning, six Grey Knights emerged, in full Terminator armour, their scripts glowing and their seals flashing, some burning away in the presence of chaos.
The battle seemed to pause in a split second of stillness.
They took the battle in at a glance and then moved, blurring forward. The ground powdering under their feet as they smashed through the cultists with ease. Their psychic presences unfurling, blazing with power and purity.
She ignored the awe she felt from the gangers and their whispers of The Emperor's Angles.
The Grey Knights might pressed back the Heretic with ease, giving her the first respite in the battle. Slumping back, she panted, wiping the sweat from her eyes. Glancing back, she checked on Iskra and Vortjren, who were slumped over, Vortjren clearly better off. His greater strength helping him.
The paladins tore through the cultists before breaking into groups, avoiding Aleric and Zardelle and moved to engage the daemonhost, one each, pushing them back with casual ease.
She took stock of the battlefield. She was pleasantly surprised by how well the gangsters were doing; she had complete faith in her kill teams, which were advancing with confident ease. But the Court members had put up a good fight, although she noted those who had retreated a step back.
They would not be coming with her and would need mind wipes.
She paused to watch as Zardelle and Aleric took down another daemonhost, an unstable and weaker one this time. They followed a similar strategy, with Aleric creating an opening for the pariah to exploit.
With the Grey Knights now summoned, they could move forward with ease. The daemonhosts pushed back. But not killed, as whatever commanded them pulled them back before they could perish. Only the one in the pariah influence wasn't.
The Grey Knights could have finished them, but were content to let the hosts retreat, using them as shields for their advance.
A large factory floor, covered in gloomy darkness, spread out before them. They were in an office area of some sort, and out in front of them was the workshop floor. Taking it all in with a glance, Brigitta's attention was captivated by her target.
A target she had been chasing for decades.
Finally, she had found him. Finally, she had cornered him. Now they just needed to finish him.
She took delight in the rage on his face. But no fear, which would have been even sweeter. Gone was the sharp, handsome man she remembered; in his place was an abomination, twisted and corrupted, hunched over with his pale, sallow flesh clinging to the bone.
His eyes were black voids, almost reflecting the warp back at her.
Brigitta shouted. "Domikio, surrender and face the Emperor's purifying justice."
He laughed, a deep haunting sound that seemed to echo all around them. "You shall not stop my work heretic. I am too close to fail now. For the Emperor!" He screamed. She felt a twinge at how lost or led astray he was if he still thought he was still doing the Emperor's work.
But that was the danger of chaos, it was so easy to lose your way and not even realise it.
Then the time for talking was over, the Grey Knight pressed harder, angry that he had taken the Emperor's name in his corrupted mouth. She advanced with them, helping where she could. Four daemonhosts still held the paladin's attention, if barely. Two knights split off to fight the mad Inquisitor. From his armour, she recognised one as Justicar Demiz.
Still pouring in from the various corridors around them, cultists charged with a single-minded ferocity. Some armed with guns, but most using clubs, bars or even corrupted beast arms or claws.
The knight's psychic presence blazed with power, battling him both in the warp and in the real space. Their nemesis force halberds hammering him, but it showed how much he had been corrupted when his flesh resisted the mighty strikes. He was driven back, but even holding them off for a moment was a feat. In fact, if anything, he was gaining strength.
Where before they pushed him back, now he was standing toe to toe with them. Looking around, concerned, she spotted the sigils and piles of scattered corpses below them, all set out in a grand ritual. There must have been tens of thousands of sacrifices, if not more.
The sigils engraved onto the concrete floor were lit with the green light of the warp. "He's powered by the ritual!" She said, pointing below them.
She made to move towards it but was dragged back into the fray. But she heard Aleric and Zardelle shout that they had it and could see out the corner of her eye as they pushed back the cultists before vaulting to the floor a dozen metres below them and out of her sight. She wasn't sure what she expected from them, but hopefully the pariah field would disrupt the ritual in some way.
He was still ramping up, now actually pushing the paladins back.
Brigitta glanced around the battle. She couldn't help the Knights fighting Domikio, but she could help the others. With her assistance, another daemonhost was cut down, and the paladin joined the fight against Domikio, forcing him back once more. But still his presence rose, the warp becoming more and more unstable around them.
His body twisted as he gained new strengths, powered by the corrupting influence of chaos. Then he flinched, screaming in rage, he unleashed a wave of force, pushing them back, the Grey Knights' armoured feet dragging great gouges in the floor.
Brigitta was thrown further, sliding along the floor.
Domikio spun towards the ritual where she now saw Aleric and Zardelle at the centre of it. Zardelle's aura at full blast, standing over Aleric, protecting him from a steady stream of cultists. Aleric was hunched over the ritual side. She couldn't see what he was doing from her angle, but whatever they were doing was working. Brigitta felt the power enhancing the heretic flicker. In a roar of rage, he threw out his hand, and a gout of purple flame shot out, washing over them all. She threw a barrier up just in time to protect herself and those around her.
It was fleeting, passing them by almost instantly and swirling into a brilliant ball of roiling flame above the ritual sight before falling on Zardelle and Aerlic, hiding them from sight.
But that was all the time Domikio had, as the Paladins engaged him once more and as his enhancements flickered once more and then extinguished, the Paladins gained the upper hand once more. That gave her time to take stock once more.
She was glad the flame had done little to harden the troops with them; they only looked a bit singed and worse for wear. Down below, she could see the flame clear with both Zardelle and Aleric unharmed. The room and cultists were less fortunate. In a ring around them, everything was scorched. The stone blackened and melted with bodies burned to ash.
She had definitely underestimated her power. She was coming with her at the end of this.
A flare in the warp as Domikio pulled out a pendant, wreathed in corruption. At its centre lay a tiny beating heart, that of a baby. Another paladin was charging at him, having slain another daemonhost, but it was too late; he crushed the pendant, the baby's heart popped, and black blood spewed out.
Around him, a great vortex howled into being, forcing everyone back a few steps; it wasn't much, but it was enough. He screamed out. "Fools, you will not stop me here. With the vault now open, I can claim my prize, and the Imperium will be rid of you!"
In seconds, a great flash and the warp rippled around her, like a large stone thrown into a still pond.
Then he was gone.
Just in time, as with a mighty roar, Justicar Demiz slammed his force halberds down where the Ex-inquisitor had been only moments before. She tried to reach out to feel where he had gone, but the warp was too noisy.
Using her micro-bead on the open channel, 'Iskra, did you sense where he went?'
'Passed us. But I can't be sure, but I believe it is back the way we came, at that settlement.'
'I concur.' A deep, steady voice agreed as the Justicar.
Swearing, she turned back to the endless wave of cultists distracting them. With the last few daemonhosts cut down, they were no threat, only a distraction. Making a decision. There was nothing left for them here. They could come back to clear it up later.
For now, they had a heretic to hunt.
She called the retreat before they lost the trail, as she had little hope of finding it again.
Another voice came over the vox, one she hadn't heard before, soft, quiet, but still somehow able to cut through the sounds of the battle. It was only now that Brigitta noticed how close the pariah was, and flinched, expecting to feel her presence. But she noted, with approval, that it was masterfully controlled, drawn in close to her skin.
"He's likely going for the ruins."
"Agreed." Aleri said, standing next to her. "It is the only thing that makes sense. The vault sounds like the ones found deep in the ruins. Which is soon going to be opening the widest I have ever seen."
"Good, we know his likely target. Let's move." She ordered. Everyone started a slow and careful retreat in the direction of the trucks. As they moved, she asked. "Justicar Demiz, what is your plan?"
"We will follow for now."
"Got it."
After several blocks, the cultist either ran out of bodies to throw at them or wised up. Regardless, the endless horde slowed down to a trickle and then stopped, allowing faster progress to the trucks. Once there, they piled in and started hammering it back the way they'd come.
The Grey Knights were running casually alongside them, looking as if they were out for a morning jog, not running over 40mph.
They'd taken more casualties than she would have liked, but nowhere near where she feared, only losing 20 to 30% of their number. The kill team proved they still warranted the faith she put in them, but more surprisingly, were the gangers. Yes, most of the casualties came from them, but that was to be expected.
She doubted anyone else would have held up nearly so well. She was already making plans to replenish her numbers with some of the Court members. Zardelle and Aleric, of course, but several of the others caught her eye and would be worth recruiting into her team… if they wanted to or not.
It was a tense ride back; the engine floored the entire way. They encountered a few ambushes, mostly the swarm monsters, but with the grey knights around them, they were no threat and didn't slow them. As soon as they neared the settlement halfway between the hives, she could feel the twisting of the warp, like someone had shot a slug through a pane of glass.
Fractured and cracked.
On the central path in the middle of the settlement, she spotted blazing runes that had been burned into the floor, forming a massive circle and pentagram.
The grey knights ran ahead and inspected them. 'We are on the right track.'
'Iskra?'
'His trail leads back the way we came, too Glow Gate.'
'Good move.' She hoped this was the right trail and not a false trail. He'd done so before.
They tore through the dunes, the Knights jogging beside them. In the front seat, next to her, Aleric cocked his head. "The defences should now be lowered."
"So he can enter."
"Yes."
"Where can he enter?"
"There are tunnels all over Glow Gate, but the largest are near the Court's HQ and another a dozen metres from the Wall."
"Very well. She relayed this information to her team and Justicar Demiz. She could feel herself getting antsy and had to force herself not to shift nervously. But soon enough, they were rounding the last turn and the swamp came into sight.
Off in the distance the wall had a huge, damaged section with smoke pouring off around it. Like the mighty hand had ripped it away.
They were clearly going in the right direction.
Seeing this, the Grey Knights burst forward, leaving them far in the dust as they accelerated across the swamp. Seemingly able to pick the path, their auspex strong enough to detect the right route. Where they didn't, they made large jumps or subtle uses of the warp to provide solid footing.
They had to take the slower route, and they were soon out of view. By the time they pulled up to the entrance, she was surprised to see them waiting, having expected them to be well ahead of them by now.
She also didn't see anyone else. She'd have expected to see the place swarming with hive dwellers, but not one was in sight. A few pinged on her auspex, but that was all.
Curious.
"Justicar Demiz." She said, nodding as she reached him. "You are waiting for us?"
"Indeed. The tunnel splits to become a maze several levels down. Something in the walls blocks out sensors and vox."
"It looks like a labyrinth one." Aleric said. The Paladin's attention snapped to him. He froze for a moment as she felt fear flash through him.
"Labyrinth one?" she prodded.
"Y-yes. When there are lots of branching paths leading down. Some will be dead ends and others faster routes."
"And you would be able to pick a path?" the paladin sergeant asked.
She could see him hesitate. She could almost see him think about lying before thinking better of it. A sensible decision.
"Yes." Aleric said nodding
"Good, then you will come with us. Hal, get the men ready. Zardelle, you will also join us." She commanded. The large cyber mastiff was hovering next to Zardelle and trotted after her, making it clear it was coming with them. Having seen it in action, Brigitta had no problems with that.
"What about the rest of my men?" Zardelle asked.
She contemplated having them killed, even if it would leave a sour taste in her mouth, wasting resources like that. Obscurity was one of the Grey Knights' greatest strengths. That came with costs, but she wanted to recruit some for her teams, not to mention the Pariah.
She still might have to have their minds wiped, but she decided against it for now. They would only say they saw Astartes.
They deserved that much. At least some of them did.
"They will guard the entrance. Move Out."