Back Story
This is based on the RPG I did yesterday trying to get my back story created but I expounded on the events. Checks and tests are included. This is raw with a slight peer review. Highlights are for my own use. Please leave criticism about style of writing and if you like the story as well as any changes. Trying to figure out if I should start writing more.
I never grew up as royalty. Navis Nobilite. They are they ones bred to be navigators. They're the ones who live in lavish. No. I'm bound to a merchant ship. Not that I mind. I would be in much more trouble had I been Nobilite.
what?
We weren't expected to drop from warp for several more days. I saved my journal entry just in time to..hm. Well. There went the power. Emergency red lights lit up the room. Expanding my senses with Psyniscince I detect the standard number of people outside my room, albeit moving quickly. [passed psyniscince]
The doors opened by themselves as I moved to them, passing by a mirror, and catching a glimpse of myself. My auburn hair and violet eyes, and skin that set me apart from the rest of the empire. The corridor was lit by the same lovely red mood lighting shared by my room. On a ship this big, there's really no escape plans, no one to report to. I didn't even know where my parents were right now. I decided to head for someone who might actually know something, Lady Venria. I had already succeeded in detecting the people outside my room and actually detecting a single person out of thousands of people on the Callidon would be, difficult, but I tried anyway. Closing my eyes and expanding the awareness of my inner eye, I saw everyone on the ship in a vague, shadowy sorts of way. I was looking for a specific aura...
And there she was! Shining brightly on the bridge [Passed psyniscince with degree of 2] Spending most of my time around her probably helped detect her.... but I doubt I could easily do it again. Turning off the energy devoted to maintaining that type of skill, I felt myself 'blinded' as I made my way toward the bridge
Upon reaching the bridge, I encountered 2 guardsmen. Arms folded, they eyed me. Normally the only way anyone like me was allowed on the bridge was with someone important. Like Lady Venria, who was already there. Oh well, it couldn't hurt to try.
"Um, Hi. I need to see Lady Venria?" I tried to sound confident.
One pointed at the red lights: "Do you see the emergency lights? This means *e-mer-gen-cy*. Silly people like you shouldn't bother those who actually know what they're doing" Dang. I was going to have to be more convincing.
"She, uh, asked me to come. Its possible in this 'e-mer-gen-cy' that she might need my help getting messages off the ship. "
The Guardsmen looked at each other. One of them sighed, and moved out of the way and then the other one followed suit. The doors opened and as I approched and I said curty, "Thank you."
The Bridge was a mess. There were people everywhere. A couple dozen at least. People supposed to be on the bridge, people not supposed to be on the bridge. I saw other astropaths. On a ship this size, there was probably 12 of them. Lady Venria was not among those that were...
I was knocked to the side, and the pushed over. [Failed Agility test] People were running about the bridge and I was in the way. One of the Bridge Guardsman saw me on the ground.
"HEY! Why are you on the bridge? You aren't supposed to be here."
He lifted me by the arm and escorted me to the door where he pushed me out. The doors shut in front of me, and I was left staring at the guardsmen I had seen not 3 minutes earlier. One was trying hard not to look amused.
"I don't suppose you'll let me in again?"
They remained silent.
Turning in a circle, I wondered what I could do. I didn't want to go back to my cabin. I wonder.... I wonder if being in this close of range might allow me to make a psychic connection straight to Lady Venria. I mean, I was being trained to send communications vast distances across the Galaxy.
I concentrated. [Passed WP test granted by GM] *Lady Venria* I wasn't expecting to receive a response back.
*WHAT* The mental strength of the words dancing across my brain back at me was..strong. I don't know how else to put it. Mustering everything I have I asked.
*What's going on?*
*DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT* I grabbed on to a bulkhead to remain standing. I had never done this before. She 'sounded' worried. As if I could hear her in my mind.
* Can I help?*
*No*
Well. that was.. not what I expected.
*Well, Where should I be?*
There was silence. I waited. And I waited. Then I 'heard:'
*Ember. Run. Hide. Go back to your quarters* It was almost a whisper. The emotion of fear was translated through the warp, and I shuddered at the coldness of it.
*Lady Venria?* There was silence. She was the person I trusted more than anyone else. If she said 'Run' then I will run. Looking one last time at the guards, I spun around and started running back towards my cabin. Half way there, the ship shuddered, and then there was silence. There's NEVER silence on a ship. There's always engines running. Engines, Life support, machinery. Nothing. The lights went dead. No more mood lighting.
Utilizing an ability I had learned recently, I turned on Chameleon [Passed WP check for Chameleon] This made me harder to see, and people shooting at me had a harder chance of hitting me. Feeling the bulkhead, I started making my way down the hall. I heard a creaking noise and some loud thumps behind me. I turned around and tried to peer through the darkness using the sparks of damaged bulkheads to light what was behind me. [Passed Awareness test] 10 meters behind me was a monster. I had heard of them before. Hullghasts. They lived in the bottom of ships, and were human mutants. They have Hairless leathery skin, vicious talon-like claws, Oversized mouths filled with layers of huge teeth, and pustules of flesh erupting in tusks and horns. And all they ever wanted to do.. was eat.
All I could do was stare at it. [Failed Initiative test] It started getting closer to me, and I finally turned and started to run. Before I could get anywhere, I was tackled from behind. This... Creature started clawing at my neck. [Armor + Toughness pass] I could feel it scratching through the skin.. I pushed at his face, trying to keep its many rows of teeth away from me, and pushed my way out from under him [Passed Agility, Monster failed strength] I whipped around, and gathering everything I had, I ripped at his brain using as much mental force as I could muster. [Passed Inflict pain] He stumbled as he only 'felt' he was in pain. I heard it whimper. It launched itself at me and I easily dodged it. Maintaining the source of mental 'pain' I reached in and twisted something in his brain, convincing him I wasn't here anymore, and he should forget about me. [Passed Touch of Madness with flying colors] I must have overdone it, because he stopped moving, and started drooling. He collapsed against the bulkhead and stared ahead blankly. I could still sense him living, but... he... was unresponsive. Whatever I did, it would last for a while. [Mental Trauma chart lists him as unresponsive, effect lasting for 4 days]
I back away and continue making my way to my quarters, tears coming down my face as I was starting to feel the shock of what had just happened. I was hearing screams all over the ship. Turning the corner, I noticed that the emergency lights were on in the area. I made my way to my room, where the lights around it were flickering and the door was partially open. Feeling something... funny, I invoked psyinicence to see if anyone was in my room. I didn't sense anything, but that didn't mean much. I could have just.. done it wrong, following the wrong warp tendril. [Failed Psyinicence] Hearing noises behind me, I ran to my doors and pushed them open the rest of the way and forced myself in my room. The doors shut, and I was alone in blackness. I turned around. I heard my own breath and heart, as I was trying to force down a sense of panic and foreboding. I heard a sob catch in my throat. It was cold in my room. I sniffled. Against the backdrop of the stars through my window, I saw a figure [Awareness test passed]. It shifted, and I heard a pleasant yet sticky voice.
"Hello Favored" and suddenly, EYES. This thing opened its eyes. And its eyes glowed. White. Pupil-less. Very, pupil-less. And then, the lights in my room turned on. I shielded my eyes from the sudden light, having not seen it for the last 30 minutes. Blinking a bit I took in my surroundings. I could see my breath in front of my face. My journal entry sitting where I had left it, and Him.
It was human in form. Okay. It was human. Male, tall, and fit, and a little older than I was. I recognized what it was wearing. Or, what it was trying to wear, as it was actually falling off of the body. Whoever it was, it was one of the Callidon security officers. But, that's not what I was worried about. This body, was covered in pins. Long ugly pins sticking out from visible areas of flesh. These pins had engravings, that I couldn't read.
I had done my studies. While wandering off I read books I shouldn't have read, and these forbidden books told me everything I needed to know. [Passed Forbidden Lore: Occult] This was a Daemon. Or, the body at least, was a host to one. I remembered what I had read: "The creation of a Daemonhost condemns the soul of the host body to eternal torment and provides a lasting home in the universe for a Daemon to work it evil." Now I knew why it was cold in here. I studied it a little more, as it was silent and waiting for me. The symbols and pins were broken. Brittle strips of paper that must have held prayers and wards flake to the deck. This was not a bound Daemon. Or, at least, it either wasn't done right or this was a powerful Daemon, with enough will power to break its bonds. This one was rogue. It had no master.
It was also floating in the air. It cocked its head at me, and only then did I remember it had spoken to me.
"I... i.. um" I was shaking. I was standing in the presence of the very things that the whole of humanity feared.
"Are you not favored of the warp?" It repeated itself, and I heard its voice with both my ears and my mind.
I swallowed, trying to find my voice.
"My name is Iltabriel" [Ilt Ay briel] "Do you understand me?"
I nodded.
"Ah. I do believe you can be of some use to me." The voice was pleasant. The type that you wanted to keep listening to, for whatever reason, but also, creating internal chills, much like the external ones from the coldness in the room.
"A...are you behind what's happening?" I managed to get words out\, sounding dumb. The creature blinked at me, and I couldn't see anymore. Something was in my head. MY HEAD. I saw, replayed right in front of me, the events of the last hour. I relived it, in a matter of 3 seconds. A mind rape. I felt myself collapsing against my bed, and vomiting as my vision returning. [Failed Willpower test] I tried to throw up any mental wards I had available and knew I was going to fail. Remembering Lady Venria, and how she tried to protect me by sending me away, I stood up. The Daemon was not in front of me anymore. In fact, I could sense its presence right behind me. Without the use of my Psyker ability. I could feel him. All of my senses were on edge. And I was trying not to cry. I heard its voice in my ear. And in my mind.
"I am not responsible for what you've been through. These creatures are from your ship. Not part of the plan I've spent 800 years putting together. Well, 793, but who's counting. They will not bother you anymore, they are running from something bigger than I. I, however require your assistance. I need to get off the ship."
I was gasping, puffs of cold vapor appearing off my lips. I dared not turn to look at it, lest I make it mad.
"Why me?" I whispered. Remembering all of the other astropaths on the ship, I couldn't help to wonder why it was asking me for help.
"You are the only one favored of the warp left alive on this ship." He seemed to state it matter of factly. With no emotion behind it. "The others like you were a threat.; they had to be removed"
This creature was still in my mind, he felt the need to show me what he had done. He appeared in front of the astropaths, and as they tried to attack it, he used their own psychic biofeedback against them. I saw faces melting, and bodies imploding. Lady Venria, she just.. Dissolved. I tried to force his memories out of my mind with no success.
"If you want my help, this is not the way to get it."i hissed. The images stopped abruptly, and my mind was my own. I'd heard talk about those who went insane from consistent interaction with the Warp, or the creatures from within, and I could see the gaping black hole of insanity waiting to suck me in. I pushed it out of the way. [ gained insanity points] Impulsively I gathered my strength, and threw everything I had at him, trying to rip his brain like I did with the hullghast earlier. Instantly I was the one in pain. The same biofeedback was being used against me [Failed Inflict pain] I heard him chuckle, its breath on the back of my neck. Trying to control my sobs, I looked for my focus, I was going to try again. It wasn't on my desk anymore.
"Are you looking for this?" Its pin infested arm extended from behind me and my crystal was being held up near my face, swinging back and forth slightly. Slowly, the intensity of which I could feel him was receeding. He was containing his mental presence, which, as interestingly as I can say this, was making things more... comfortable. I found myself being able to react better. I reached forward and took my crystal from him, still staring forward, as I saw him circling around back in front of me, putting himself less than a foot from my face, its glowing pupil-less eyes looking down at me. I put the crystal around my neck.
"Like I said, all I want is to get off the ship. And in return, I shall give you your life"
Assessing my options, I needed to get off the ship as well. I'm sure I could take him to a shuttlebay, and force him on a different ship than mine. The shuttlebay was 10 minutes away. And a being like this could protect me from the hullghasts.
"What's to stop me from trying to get you killed on the way?" I found strength returning now that he had pulled away from my mind and was not setting off every mental alarm I had.
"Nothing, but I assure you, you won't be able to. Anyways, is there anything you want to take with you when you leave?"
I considered. I didn't have much time, and I had my focus. A weapon might be nice. But I only had Las Pistol training. "My Compact Pistol from the armory. But that's out of the...." And my awareness sensed a tendril of psychic power leaving the room like a lightning bolt. "...way."
"I assure you, your pistol will be here soon. Shall we go?"
I backed away. I really didn't want to turn my back on this... thing, but that had already happened earlier, hadn't it? My mind was getting fuzzy. Shock and everything catching up to me. I looked at the door and angrily spit out: "Well, why don't you make sure there's no one on the other side. Mr. Big and Powerful. Perfect. What a great time for my belligerent attitude to appear. Lets just piss him off so he blasts me apart. He was silent.
I turned and walked to the door, putting my ear up to it to see if there was anything on the other side. And waited, and listened. I would have used Psyiniscence but with him behind me, I wouldn't have been able to hold it long, if at all. I continued listening. He floated up behind me.
"You needn't worry, there's nothing outside" I heard this in my mind, the air around me was silent. I glanced behind me and then bracing myself against the door, I pushed the door open, and forced my way out into the corridor. Behind me, I heard metal groan as the Daemon psychically made the doors buckle outwards and he floated through the doorway.
"What did you say your name was?" It was becoming easier and easier to speak, and more of my strength was returning. Whether it was the Daemon doing this, or just, nervousness disappearing, I don't know.
"Iltabriel"
"Ah."
We started making our way down the corridor. I was tip toeing along the bulkheads, peering around corners preparing to throw mental forces at anything ready to surprise me. As we got closer to the shuttlebay, I was hearing screams. Growls. It was, disheartening. Everyone I knew was dying. I turned around, and tentatively asked:
"If I'm doing this for you, and you're so powerful, can you make it stop? The screams?" He floated towards me."
"Come here"
Hoo boy, as if this whole thing wasn't making me nervous, the idea of being asked to approach him made me... sick. "I...." I paused.
"Suit yourself" He floated ahead towards the direction of the shuttlebay. I heard the screams. People were being ripped apart.
"Wait." He turned and looked at me, still floating in the air. I walked towards him, trying to control every ounce of fear. I got closer, hoping he would tell me to stop, but he didn't. I got within arm reach of him, and still he said nothing. Taking one more step, I stopped. He reached out a hand, with a finger outstretched, and he paused, inches away from my face. Then, the deep breath before the plunge, he touched my forehead. The screams went away. I blinked. Had he really... wait.
"Did you...did you make the hullghasts go away? Or did you just mute every.... "
A finger was placed on my lips, and his face came in very close to mine. Again, the glowing eyes distracting me from everything else. Staring at me, I heard the words slowly and deliberately in my mind, "Reality. Is not always what it seems" And then he blurred in front of me. His face changed. Any disfigurement he had shifted into perfect skin, lacking in blemishes. His head which had originally had patches of bald and copper from when the body had tried to pull its hair out, refilled with longish black hair. All signs of pins disappearing from his body, I saw a full strong chest appear out of what had looked like a collapsed ribcage. There was no sign that this creature was a monster. Except for his eyes. Those same glowing eyes, studying me. His finger moved from my lips, tracing my jawline to my hair, where he flicked it away from my face. He was lowering to the ground, no longer floating. And from behind his back, he had my pistol, which he placed into my hand. "I believe this belongs to you."
I looked down at it in my hand, and when I looked back up at Iltabriel, he had conjured up clothes from somewhere. He was wearing standard civilian clothes, similar to what people would be wearing on the ship.
"Do I look like I can blend in?"
Finding myself not able to know what I was supposed to feel, I blurted out sarcastically, "You should have more wounds, to match the people dying on the ship."
He pointed at the pistol in my hand, and said, "Then shoot me, right here." he pointed at the right side of his torso, just above his hip.
Well, I can tell you, my instinct was NOT to shoot him, for a variety of reasons I'm not sure even I want to admit. Trying to come up with a reason not to, I said, "I don't want to waste my limited ammo on you. I might need it."
He chuckled. With that voice. We wandered down several more corridors, with him actually walking just behind me. The corridors were clear, but every so often I swore that I saw glimpses of blood on the walls out of the corners of my eyes. After the 5th time this happened, I said something out loud. "Something strange... i Don't. hm"
"Something strange besides me?"
I stopped and turned around. I reached out Psychically, trying to figure out what was happening. Something was... wrong."
"You don't want to see the carnage I'm hiding from your brain. Your brain much more... fragile, then you might believe."
I looked around. The walls were silver, the ground carpeted looking like they have always looked for as long as I can remember. But my psychic senses were telling me something was very wrong here.
"I help those who help me, and you do not need to see this. If your brain snaps, you are of no further use to me" He twitched.
"Are you...." The question "Are you Okay" seemed like a dumb question to ask my captor. He seemed to understand my question though.
"I.. am, mentally fatigued from maintaining several forces, plus protecting your mind. I believe you are acquianted with the phenomenon?"
I was. Having gone through Psyker training every day for the last 8 years had me in a mental fatigue state every evening depending on what, Lady Venria had.... Lady Venria. I forced the memories out, and turned to continue down the hallway.
Just ahead of us was the storage bay. This would provide a quick shortcut the rest of the way through to the shuttlebay. We entered the room, which looked as pristine as ever, and I glanced behind me to see Iltabriel's head snap backward, as if the physics of his spine didn't matter. My world around me shattered. I was standing in a puddle of blood. Following the blood outwards, I saw the carnage. People had been ripped apart. There were people stabbed to the bulkheads, splatters everywhere. And, then there were people who were mush. They had been mashed, eaten, and ripped that the bodies looked no worse than soggy bread in my morning soup. Except my soup wasn't bright red.
I fell to the ground, ignoring the fact that my body suit was starting to soak up blood. Iltabriel crossed the space between us in a matter of steps reaching for my arm, still looking as creepily attractive as he had in the hallway. I felt sick. He was touching me! Somehow I couldn't get over the shudders that formed every time he got close. He was trying to lift me off the ground when the door opened on the other end of the room, and in walked a Man I hadn't seen before wearing full Carapaice armor.
P.S. Check out my 101 in 1001 and see how I'm doing!
I never grew up as royalty. Navis Nobilite. They are they ones bred to be navigators. They're the ones who live in lavish. No. I'm bound to a merchant ship. Not that I mind. I would be in much more trouble had I been Nobilite.
My name is Ember Aeire. I am a Psyker. Born with the abilities to manipulate the warp. The abilities to manipulate the matter around me. Those bound to work with the Inquisition might be a Pyromancer someday, or a Telepath, however I am more than happy tobe an Astropath, being the incoming communications source from the Empire. Anything important coming to, or leaving the ship, would go through my head. Well, someday it will.
I live on a ship, the Callidon. Life isn't that bad. The ship was big enough that I would probably never see everything on it and when I wasn't doing my duties, I spent most of my free time exploring. At 24, I shadowed another Astropath, Lady Venria. Even when I wasn't receiving messages and attempting to translate them from the garbage coming in from the warp, I was training to be a standard psyker and awakening the abilities of my brain. At any point, something I try and do, can go very wrong, and I can invoke Daemons... or worst, lose myself in the warp.I stopped typing and looked fondly at my focus: A light purple crystal on a chain. No one notices me. Every time we visited Soryth, I found myself wandering off by myself and exploring the glow caverns. Crystals of every color. I liked the purples. Every time I used my focus, I find myself exploring those caverns with happiness and calmness. I resumed my Journal entry.
Again, when I wasn't doing my duties, I was exploring. That didn't happen often. Even as I sit here and write this, I'm expected for duty momentarily. I guess I wonder sometimes what it would be like to live in the Hives, or even on the Imperial worThere was a shuddering throughout the ship and the natural feeling of the warp dissipated from around me.
what?
We weren't expected to drop from warp for several more days. I saved my journal entry just in time to..hm. Well. There went the power. Emergency red lights lit up the room. Expanding my senses with Psyniscince I detect the standard number of people outside my room, albeit moving quickly. [passed psyniscince]
The doors opened by themselves as I moved to them, passing by a mirror, and catching a glimpse of myself. My auburn hair and violet eyes, and skin that set me apart from the rest of the empire. The corridor was lit by the same lovely red mood lighting shared by my room. On a ship this big, there's really no escape plans, no one to report to. I didn't even know where my parents were right now. I decided to head for someone who might actually know something, Lady Venria. I had already succeeded in detecting the people outside my room and actually detecting a single person out of thousands of people on the Callidon would be, difficult, but I tried anyway. Closing my eyes and expanding the awareness of my inner eye, I saw everyone on the ship in a vague, shadowy sorts of way. I was looking for a specific aura...
And there she was! Shining brightly on the bridge [Passed psyniscince with degree of 2] Spending most of my time around her probably helped detect her.... but I doubt I could easily do it again. Turning off the energy devoted to maintaining that type of skill, I felt myself 'blinded' as I made my way toward the bridge
Upon reaching the bridge, I encountered 2 guardsmen. Arms folded, they eyed me. Normally the only way anyone like me was allowed on the bridge was with someone important. Like Lady Venria, who was already there. Oh well, it couldn't hurt to try.
"Um, Hi. I need to see Lady Venria?" I tried to sound confident.
One pointed at the red lights: "Do you see the emergency lights? This means *e-mer-gen-cy*. Silly people like you shouldn't bother those who actually know what they're doing" Dang. I was going to have to be more convincing.
"She, uh, asked me to come. Its possible in this 'e-mer-gen-cy' that she might need my help getting messages off the ship. "
The Guardsmen looked at each other. One of them sighed, and moved out of the way and then the other one followed suit. The doors opened and as I approched and I said curty, "Thank you."
The Bridge was a mess. There were people everywhere. A couple dozen at least. People supposed to be on the bridge, people not supposed to be on the bridge. I saw other astropaths. On a ship this size, there was probably 12 of them. Lady Venria was not among those that were...
I was knocked to the side, and the pushed over. [Failed Agility test] People were running about the bridge and I was in the way. One of the Bridge Guardsman saw me on the ground.
"HEY! Why are you on the bridge? You aren't supposed to be here."
He lifted me by the arm and escorted me to the door where he pushed me out. The doors shut in front of me, and I was left staring at the guardsmen I had seen not 3 minutes earlier. One was trying hard not to look amused.
"I don't suppose you'll let me in again?"
They remained silent.
Turning in a circle, I wondered what I could do. I didn't want to go back to my cabin. I wonder.... I wonder if being in this close of range might allow me to make a psychic connection straight to Lady Venria. I mean, I was being trained to send communications vast distances across the Galaxy.
I concentrated. [Passed WP test granted by GM] *Lady Venria* I wasn't expecting to receive a response back.
*WHAT* The mental strength of the words dancing across my brain back at me was..strong. I don't know how else to put it. Mustering everything I have I asked.
*What's going on?*
*DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT* I grabbed on to a bulkhead to remain standing. I had never done this before. She 'sounded' worried. As if I could hear her in my mind.
* Can I help?*
*No*
Well. that was.. not what I expected.
*Well, Where should I be?*
There was silence. I waited. And I waited. Then I 'heard:'
*Ember. Run. Hide. Go back to your quarters* It was almost a whisper. The emotion of fear was translated through the warp, and I shuddered at the coldness of it.
*Lady Venria?* There was silence. She was the person I trusted more than anyone else. If she said 'Run' then I will run. Looking one last time at the guards, I spun around and started running back towards my cabin. Half way there, the ship shuddered, and then there was silence. There's NEVER silence on a ship. There's always engines running. Engines, Life support, machinery. Nothing. The lights went dead. No more mood lighting.
Utilizing an ability I had learned recently, I turned on Chameleon [Passed WP check for Chameleon] This made me harder to see, and people shooting at me had a harder chance of hitting me. Feeling the bulkhead, I started making my way down the hall. I heard a creaking noise and some loud thumps behind me. I turned around and tried to peer through the darkness using the sparks of damaged bulkheads to light what was behind me. [Passed Awareness test] 10 meters behind me was a monster. I had heard of them before. Hullghasts. They lived in the bottom of ships, and were human mutants. They have Hairless leathery skin, vicious talon-like claws, Oversized mouths filled with layers of huge teeth, and pustules of flesh erupting in tusks and horns. And all they ever wanted to do.. was eat.
All I could do was stare at it. [Failed Initiative test] It started getting closer to me, and I finally turned and started to run. Before I could get anywhere, I was tackled from behind. This... Creature started clawing at my neck. [Armor + Toughness pass] I could feel it scratching through the skin.. I pushed at his face, trying to keep its many rows of teeth away from me, and pushed my way out from under him [Passed Agility, Monster failed strength] I whipped around, and gathering everything I had, I ripped at his brain using as much mental force as I could muster. [Passed Inflict pain] He stumbled as he only 'felt' he was in pain. I heard it whimper. It launched itself at me and I easily dodged it. Maintaining the source of mental 'pain' I reached in and twisted something in his brain, convincing him I wasn't here anymore, and he should forget about me. [Passed Touch of Madness with flying colors] I must have overdone it, because he stopped moving, and started drooling. He collapsed against the bulkhead and stared ahead blankly. I could still sense him living, but... he... was unresponsive. Whatever I did, it would last for a while. [Mental Trauma chart lists him as unresponsive, effect lasting for 4 days]
I back away and continue making my way to my quarters, tears coming down my face as I was starting to feel the shock of what had just happened. I was hearing screams all over the ship. Turning the corner, I noticed that the emergency lights were on in the area. I made my way to my room, where the lights around it were flickering and the door was partially open. Feeling something... funny, I invoked psyinicence to see if anyone was in my room. I didn't sense anything, but that didn't mean much. I could have just.. done it wrong, following the wrong warp tendril. [Failed Psyinicence] Hearing noises behind me, I ran to my doors and pushed them open the rest of the way and forced myself in my room. The doors shut, and I was alone in blackness. I turned around. I heard my own breath and heart, as I was trying to force down a sense of panic and foreboding. I heard a sob catch in my throat. It was cold in my room. I sniffled. Against the backdrop of the stars through my window, I saw a figure [Awareness test passed]. It shifted, and I heard a pleasant yet sticky voice.
"Hello Favored" and suddenly, EYES. This thing opened its eyes. And its eyes glowed. White. Pupil-less. Very, pupil-less. And then, the lights in my room turned on. I shielded my eyes from the sudden light, having not seen it for the last 30 minutes. Blinking a bit I took in my surroundings. I could see my breath in front of my face. My journal entry sitting where I had left it, and Him.
It was human in form. Okay. It was human. Male, tall, and fit, and a little older than I was. I recognized what it was wearing. Or, what it was trying to wear, as it was actually falling off of the body. Whoever it was, it was one of the Callidon security officers. But, that's not what I was worried about. This body, was covered in pins. Long ugly pins sticking out from visible areas of flesh. These pins had engravings, that I couldn't read.
I had done my studies. While wandering off I read books I shouldn't have read, and these forbidden books told me everything I needed to know. [Passed Forbidden Lore: Occult] This was a Daemon. Or, the body at least, was a host to one. I remembered what I had read: "The creation of a Daemonhost condemns the soul of the host body to eternal torment and provides a lasting home in the universe for a Daemon to work it evil." Now I knew why it was cold in here. I studied it a little more, as it was silent and waiting for me. The symbols and pins were broken. Brittle strips of paper that must have held prayers and wards flake to the deck. This was not a bound Daemon. Or, at least, it either wasn't done right or this was a powerful Daemon, with enough will power to break its bonds. This one was rogue. It had no master.
It was also floating in the air. It cocked its head at me, and only then did I remember it had spoken to me.
"I... i.. um" I was shaking. I was standing in the presence of the very things that the whole of humanity feared.
"Are you not favored of the warp?" It repeated itself, and I heard its voice with both my ears and my mind.
I swallowed, trying to find my voice.
"My name is Iltabriel" [Ilt Ay briel] "Do you understand me?"
I nodded.
"Ah. I do believe you can be of some use to me." The voice was pleasant. The type that you wanted to keep listening to, for whatever reason, but also, creating internal chills, much like the external ones from the coldness in the room.
"A...are you behind what's happening?" I managed to get words out\, sounding dumb. The creature blinked at me, and I couldn't see anymore. Something was in my head. MY HEAD. I saw, replayed right in front of me, the events of the last hour. I relived it, in a matter of 3 seconds. A mind rape. I felt myself collapsing against my bed, and vomiting as my vision returning. [Failed Willpower test] I tried to throw up any mental wards I had available and knew I was going to fail. Remembering Lady Venria, and how she tried to protect me by sending me away, I stood up. The Daemon was not in front of me anymore. In fact, I could sense its presence right behind me. Without the use of my Psyker ability. I could feel him. All of my senses were on edge. And I was trying not to cry. I heard its voice in my ear. And in my mind.
"I am not responsible for what you've been through. These creatures are from your ship. Not part of the plan I've spent 800 years putting together. Well, 793, but who's counting. They will not bother you anymore, they are running from something bigger than I. I, however require your assistance. I need to get off the ship."
I was gasping, puffs of cold vapor appearing off my lips. I dared not turn to look at it, lest I make it mad.
"Why me?" I whispered. Remembering all of the other astropaths on the ship, I couldn't help to wonder why it was asking me for help.
"You are the only one favored of the warp left alive on this ship." He seemed to state it matter of factly. With no emotion behind it. "The others like you were a threat.; they had to be removed"
This creature was still in my mind, he felt the need to show me what he had done. He appeared in front of the astropaths, and as they tried to attack it, he used their own psychic biofeedback against them. I saw faces melting, and bodies imploding. Lady Venria, she just.. Dissolved. I tried to force his memories out of my mind with no success.
"If you want my help, this is not the way to get it."i hissed. The images stopped abruptly, and my mind was my own. I'd heard talk about those who went insane from consistent interaction with the Warp, or the creatures from within, and I could see the gaping black hole of insanity waiting to suck me in. I pushed it out of the way. [ gained insanity points] Impulsively I gathered my strength, and threw everything I had at him, trying to rip his brain like I did with the hullghast earlier. Instantly I was the one in pain. The same biofeedback was being used against me [Failed Inflict pain] I heard him chuckle, its breath on the back of my neck. Trying to control my sobs, I looked for my focus, I was going to try again. It wasn't on my desk anymore.
"Are you looking for this?" Its pin infested arm extended from behind me and my crystal was being held up near my face, swinging back and forth slightly. Slowly, the intensity of which I could feel him was receeding. He was containing his mental presence, which, as interestingly as I can say this, was making things more... comfortable. I found myself being able to react better. I reached forward and took my crystal from him, still staring forward, as I saw him circling around back in front of me, putting himself less than a foot from my face, its glowing pupil-less eyes looking down at me. I put the crystal around my neck.
"Like I said, all I want is to get off the ship. And in return, I shall give you your life"
Assessing my options, I needed to get off the ship as well. I'm sure I could take him to a shuttlebay, and force him on a different ship than mine. The shuttlebay was 10 minutes away. And a being like this could protect me from the hullghasts.
"What's to stop me from trying to get you killed on the way?" I found strength returning now that he had pulled away from my mind and was not setting off every mental alarm I had.
"Nothing, but I assure you, you won't be able to. Anyways, is there anything you want to take with you when you leave?"
I considered. I didn't have much time, and I had my focus. A weapon might be nice. But I only had Las Pistol training. "My Compact Pistol from the armory. But that's out of the...." And my awareness sensed a tendril of psychic power leaving the room like a lightning bolt. "...way."
"I assure you, your pistol will be here soon. Shall we go?"
I backed away. I really didn't want to turn my back on this... thing, but that had already happened earlier, hadn't it? My mind was getting fuzzy. Shock and everything catching up to me. I looked at the door and angrily spit out: "Well, why don't you make sure there's no one on the other side. Mr. Big and Powerful. Perfect. What a great time for my belligerent attitude to appear. Lets just piss him off so he blasts me apart. He was silent.
I turned and walked to the door, putting my ear up to it to see if there was anything on the other side. And waited, and listened. I would have used Psyiniscence but with him behind me, I wouldn't have been able to hold it long, if at all. I continued listening. He floated up behind me.
"You needn't worry, there's nothing outside" I heard this in my mind, the air around me was silent. I glanced behind me and then bracing myself against the door, I pushed the door open, and forced my way out into the corridor. Behind me, I heard metal groan as the Daemon psychically made the doors buckle outwards and he floated through the doorway.
"What did you say your name was?" It was becoming easier and easier to speak, and more of my strength was returning. Whether it was the Daemon doing this, or just, nervousness disappearing, I don't know.
"Iltabriel"
"Ah."
We started making our way down the corridor. I was tip toeing along the bulkheads, peering around corners preparing to throw mental forces at anything ready to surprise me. As we got closer to the shuttlebay, I was hearing screams. Growls. It was, disheartening. Everyone I knew was dying. I turned around, and tentatively asked:
"If I'm doing this for you, and you're so powerful, can you make it stop? The screams?" He floated towards me."
"Come here"
Hoo boy, as if this whole thing wasn't making me nervous, the idea of being asked to approach him made me... sick. "I...." I paused.
"Suit yourself" He floated ahead towards the direction of the shuttlebay. I heard the screams. People were being ripped apart.
"Wait." He turned and looked at me, still floating in the air. I walked towards him, trying to control every ounce of fear. I got closer, hoping he would tell me to stop, but he didn't. I got within arm reach of him, and still he said nothing. Taking one more step, I stopped. He reached out a hand, with a finger outstretched, and he paused, inches away from my face. Then, the deep breath before the plunge, he touched my forehead. The screams went away. I blinked. Had he really... wait.
"Did you...did you make the hullghasts go away? Or did you just mute every.... "
A finger was placed on my lips, and his face came in very close to mine. Again, the glowing eyes distracting me from everything else. Staring at me, I heard the words slowly and deliberately in my mind, "Reality. Is not always what it seems" And then he blurred in front of me. His face changed. Any disfigurement he had shifted into perfect skin, lacking in blemishes. His head which had originally had patches of bald and copper from when the body had tried to pull its hair out, refilled with longish black hair. All signs of pins disappearing from his body, I saw a full strong chest appear out of what had looked like a collapsed ribcage. There was no sign that this creature was a monster. Except for his eyes. Those same glowing eyes, studying me. His finger moved from my lips, tracing my jawline to my hair, where he flicked it away from my face. He was lowering to the ground, no longer floating. And from behind his back, he had my pistol, which he placed into my hand. "I believe this belongs to you."
I looked down at it in my hand, and when I looked back up at Iltabriel, he had conjured up clothes from somewhere. He was wearing standard civilian clothes, similar to what people would be wearing on the ship.
"Do I look like I can blend in?"
Finding myself not able to know what I was supposed to feel, I blurted out sarcastically, "You should have more wounds, to match the people dying on the ship."
He pointed at the pistol in my hand, and said, "Then shoot me, right here." he pointed at the right side of his torso, just above his hip.
Well, I can tell you, my instinct was NOT to shoot him, for a variety of reasons I'm not sure even I want to admit. Trying to come up with a reason not to, I said, "I don't want to waste my limited ammo on you. I might need it."
He chuckled. With that voice. We wandered down several more corridors, with him actually walking just behind me. The corridors were clear, but every so often I swore that I saw glimpses of blood on the walls out of the corners of my eyes. After the 5th time this happened, I said something out loud. "Something strange... i Don't. hm"
"Something strange besides me?"
I stopped and turned around. I reached out Psychically, trying to figure out what was happening. Something was... wrong."
"You don't want to see the carnage I'm hiding from your brain. Your brain much more... fragile, then you might believe."
I looked around. The walls were silver, the ground carpeted looking like they have always looked for as long as I can remember. But my psychic senses were telling me something was very wrong here.
"I help those who help me, and you do not need to see this. If your brain snaps, you are of no further use to me" He twitched.
"Are you...." The question "Are you Okay" seemed like a dumb question to ask my captor. He seemed to understand my question though.
"I.. am, mentally fatigued from maintaining several forces, plus protecting your mind. I believe you are acquianted with the phenomenon?"
I was. Having gone through Psyker training every day for the last 8 years had me in a mental fatigue state every evening depending on what, Lady Venria had.... Lady Venria. I forced the memories out, and turned to continue down the hallway.
Just ahead of us was the storage bay. This would provide a quick shortcut the rest of the way through to the shuttlebay. We entered the room, which looked as pristine as ever, and I glanced behind me to see Iltabriel's head snap backward, as if the physics of his spine didn't matter. My world around me shattered. I was standing in a puddle of blood. Following the blood outwards, I saw the carnage. People had been ripped apart. There were people stabbed to the bulkheads, splatters everywhere. And, then there were people who were mush. They had been mashed, eaten, and ripped that the bodies looked no worse than soggy bread in my morning soup. Except my soup wasn't bright red.
I fell to the ground, ignoring the fact that my body suit was starting to soak up blood. Iltabriel crossed the space between us in a matter of steps reaching for my arm, still looking as creepily attractive as he had in the hallway. I felt sick. He was touching me! Somehow I couldn't get over the shudders that formed every time he got close. He was trying to lift me off the ground when the door opened on the other end of the room, and in walked a Man I hadn't seen before wearing full Carapaice armor.
P.S. Check out my 101 in 1001 and see how I'm doing!
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