The Ringing of a Forge of Stars [Warhammer 40k/ Celestial forge V3||OC...ish]

[Hadrian.Caeser]

I wonder what he plans to do with the STC. Sell it to AdMech for a Writ or a Forgeworld? Or a normal world.

Click to shrink...

That would depend on how much is knowledge is part of it. It could be as much as all of it or as little as a pocket knife. If there is only a few things on it? He could keep a copy and sell them separately to different forges, or even the same designs to multiple forges, as they don't share much among each other

 

[Acolyte]

I don't see how a chozo suit is superior to a Valkryie frame. I haven't seen Samus do anything that is all that impressive.

 

[LollipoPReapeR]

I don't see how a chozo suit is superior to a Valkryie frame. I haven't seen Samus do anything that is all that impressive.

Click to shrink...

I would assume they have combined at this point. Plus ball mode. Ball mode man. But yeah, the suit maybe better than a standard frame but probably not the current one.

 

[Squid]

The STC would be worth a Warrant of Trade, so MC could probably become a Rogue Trader were they so inclined.

 

[Slider Zero]

Holy fuck who's throwing a boat!?

I don't even want you to fix this, just modify the rest of the chapter so someone's throwing a boat!

Click to shrink...

err...well now. I was not expecting that to happen. and as much as I want to allow it, I have to fix the typo. I apologize.

Both of these lines need to be capitalized.

Click to shrink...

Thank you, Fixed.

Speaking of which, a lot of my crazier ideas I have gotten from you. so be warned.

 

[Morkail]

So what's on that STC? Inquiring minds just got to know! Thanks for the chapter.

 

[ATP]

Chozo would be Chozo,and Sisters would be sisters.
But,considering that he eradicated Chaos cultist,i see this in future:

Daemon: sire ,thet destroyed our forces again
Khorne: no matter,blood and skulls are going for me anyway
Daemon : but there were no even dust left,not mention blood
Khorne: NOOOOOO!!!!! snif,snif,why i am bullied again ?

 

[Slider Zero]

Doesn't MC have a mental connection he used literally just before the fight with his waifu? Then he goes and shouts instructions... Man. Also I hope he won't just stand take contant shit from zealots and do nothing.

At least he got himself a Chozo suit. Hopefully he actually uses it unlike Thoth.

I wonder what he plans to do with the STC. Sell it to AdMech for a Writ or a Forgeworld? Or a normal world.

Click to shrink...

Figured I'd answer this one. Yes, he does have the link. Yes, he used it, even in the fight. However, he has not had that link for long, and old habits die hard.

As for the Sisters, Satori and Mio have already set a standard for not taking their shit. The second group got a pass because of other more pressing issues (Torizo breakdancing on your ass does that) and the fact that they got jumped. they are not going to just sit there and take it.

 

[Diver]

At least he got himself a Chozo suit. Hopefully he actually uses it unlike Thoth.

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Did you miss the part where Thoth got locked out by the Chozo Statue back when they first found this room several chapters ago? Before and during the Daemon Incursion he was starting to use the Thoth suit as it's existence had been revealed during the Genestealer Hive raid, which was his first time "out and about" since he first upgraded and integrated the thing. Then immediately after surviving the Warp Fuckery and Daemon chase, he encountered the bird person statue and something transmitted to Thoth that put him in time out.

 

[LollipoPReapeR]

Did you miss the part where Thoth got locked out by the Chozo Statue back when they first found this room several chapters ago? Before and during the Daemon Incursion he was starting to use the Thoth suit as it's existence had been revealed during the Genestealer Hive raid, which was his first time "out and about" since he first upgraded and integrated the thing. Then immediately after surviving the Warp Fuckery and Daemon chase, he encountered the bird person statue and something transmitted to Thoth that put him in time out.

Click to shrink...

Huh, it seems I did. Now it makes far more sense. Thanks for pointing it out.

 

[Mandabar]

That would depend on how much is knowledge is part of it. It could be as much as all of it or as little as a pocket knife. If there is only a few things on it? He could keep a copy and sell them separately to different forges, or even the same designs to multiple forges, as they don't share much among each other

Click to shrink...

A better question is it corrupted/damaged in some way or undamaged? Because undamaged STC have ALL the technology and know-how of the DAoT Humanity had for starting and thriving as a new colony and civilization if cutoff from the rest of humanity. Plus an AI (Or perhaps a smart VI?.. nah they used those men of iron, so AI most likely) to adjust produced blueprints to meet local conditions/materials.

So it either has EVERYTHING, or it's borked and has a little to nothing that wasn't already pregenerated by the oneboard AI during prior use. They aren't Blueprint caches, they are Tech Knowledge Libraries/Repositories with engineering AI's attached to hand feed you things on demand .

 

[Omni]

What I don't understand with the whole Fox Mod, is that the Perk said you could CHOOSE an Animal.

So a Critter with less overt changes or at least differently expressed changes could have been chosen.

As to Phantasy Star, never played it. So I'm a bit lost as to what is implied re the Light/Fake Light etc.....

 

[Cheetored20]

What I don't understand with the whole Fox Mod, is that the Perk said you could CHOOSE an Animal.

So a Critter with less overt changes or at least differently expressed changes could have been chosen.

As to Phantasy Star, never played it. So I'm a bit lost as to what is implied re the Light/Fake Light etc.....

Click to shrink...

So from what I understand from Phantasy Star, the opposing force is basically the warp if it was smart. Also author has said the character fought him on the mod.

 

[Jeff]

If mc didnt look like mutant he would probably be r.ecognized as a saint of the omnissiah

 

[Slider Zero]

I needed to put this out as a just in case.

*Ahem.*

DUE TO THE AUTHOR CONTRACTING COVID-19, THERE WILL BE NO CHAPTER POSTED TODAY, NOR LIKELY THIS WEEK.


I will keep everyone updated as necessary with details.

Thank you for your patience, and I hope to have beaten this thing off completely by the end of the week.

 

[ATP]

I needed to put this out as a just in case.

*Ahem.*

DUE TO THE AUTHOR CONTRACTING COVID-19, THERE WILL BE NO CHAPTER POSTED TODAY, NOR LIKELY THIS WEEK.


I will keep everyone updated as necessary with details.

Thank you for your patience, and I hope to have beaten this thing off completely by the end of the week.

Click to shrink...

Do not be fooled ! it is Nurgle attacking again.Maybe if you made your SI Nurgle worshipper,you would be forgiven....
Jokes aside - keep your time,RL is always more important.

 

[LollipoPReapeR]

Get well soon!

 

[Slider Zero]

I will admit it. I got completely and utterly lost in my new power suit.

It was a freaking CHOZO POWER SUIT. you would be geeking out too, dammit.

Looks-wise, it was nothing like anything the Chozo had put out for human (read: Samus) use that I had seen. For one, the normal arm cannon was now minimized and split to be a part of the gauntlets and vambraces of the armor, and not just one big cannon. There were even interface ports for using other external weaponry as needed, which was a big step up from the completely self-contained unit of the games.

Second, the overall aesthetic of the suit hadn't changed much at all. It was still the same sleek piece of tech, but now with bicep-mounted shoulder protection akin to old samurai armor rather than the usual pauldrons that were common setup for most systems, including the Chozo. To use "official" terminology, it was a hybridization of a spaulder and the Japanese sode, all mounted on the rerebrace as was normal for a set of spaulders...as to how I knew that much about armor pieces, I blame Thoth.

[As you wish.]

Moving on, and ignoring certain things that will be addressed later, I saw that a lot of what was nominally underlayer for the armor had been merged with the remaining pieces of "overt" armoring into a new super-flexible armor material that seemed to not have any real areas of weakness, not even joints. The torso and chest sections were equally improved, this time using a thicker, stronger, and yet oddly just as light piece to protect all of the needed vitals without compromising mobility. Somehow, the entire suit maintained my nominal color theme of green and blue, even going so far as to redistribute the colors and shading in a more visually pleasing manner. The helmet and visor remained similar to what it was as a standard Valk Frame, though, even with the massive improvements to the internals--

My elation at having one of my furthest-flung childhood dreams become reality was cut abruptly and terribly short by an outburst of Bolter fire. Annoyed, I turned towards the source, only then remembering the detachment of Sisters of battle that were in the chamber with us. A quick scan showed that the sister in charge here--I hesitated to call her a sister superior, as I saw no extra flourishes or markings on her armor denoting such--had apparently decided to do a little property damage to the cave ceiling to get attention.

"While I do very much enjoy the fact that we are still alive, we do have a task we were set about accomplishing. I would like to complete it. Please move aside."

As much as I wanted to ignore her, she was at least trying to be polite about it.

Instead, I asked a question. "And what task is this? We may be able to assist you."

The Senior Sister shook her head. "Unfortunately, you cannot. We have been tasked with recovering this STC and delivering it to the Mechanicus as swiftly as possible."

I felt Mio's fury even from over here, without the link, though I was somewhat confused as to why she was so mad. Anyway, I needed to defuse this shit before my dragon starts killing people.

"I happen to be part of a Mechanicus detachment for that very reason. We can assist--"

The sister waved me off dismissively, though I noted a bit of a grimace in her features. "No need. We have orders to secure the STC and deliver it to the local forge as soon as possible."

Oh. that was why. It made sense now. Local pissing match and tons of Ecclesiarchy lies. Even I knew that there was no way in hell that the Mechanicus would allow that shit to happen without at least an observer on site.

Mio had finally had enough, and damn near teleported into the poor Sister's face, all but snapping at her for merely trying to perform her admittedly shitty duty. "If that is the case, then why is there not a techpriest on-site to handle the movement and excavation of such a priceless relic? Why is the Ecclesiarchy involved in any way or fashion in what is clearly Mechanicus business?"

Another wave of dismissal from the Sister, along with a less disguised grimace. "That is none of your business. Now, I will request that you leave this area, in light of your assistance, instead of adhering to the letter of my orders and cutting you down where you stand. I strongly encourage you to do so."

Mio, of course, was not budging. "I will not, and as a duly sworn techpriest I would be remiss in my duties if I did so. My detachment will remain here, and we will ensure the safety and proper handling of the STC. any complaints will need to be forwarded to the Adeptus Mechanicus directly, and will likely invoke an official...reaction from those who feel themselves affected."

The Sister tried valiantly to hide her flinch, but I knew better. Any attempt she made to force the issue against Mio would end in disaster for her and her troops, and she knew it. There would be only one outcome here, and it would not be theirs.

I saw it the moment the Sister decided to back down, and mentally breathed a sigh of relief. I had no desire to watch loyal Imperial Fighters die for no other reason than a pissing match. Mio's smirk could be felt across the entire room, and I made a point of sending waves of disapproval through our link...which only made her even more smug about it. Ugh.

Credit to that Sister though for being willing to follow orders to the bitter end, though. In fact, her willingness to be flexible could be helpful here…

I took a gamble. "Lady Granliss, would it be possible for us to enlist the aid of these Sisters in our mission instead?"

Mio stared at my armorclad form for what felt like a very long time, before shrugging, although I could feel her understanding and mirth clear as day. "I see no reason to not allow it. More guns for the defense, and all. Does the Sister agree?"

Said sister looked at us for a bit before nodding. "I do. Please assign us as you see fit." her tone was admittedly lighter than it was before....my guess is that the olive branch I allowed to be handed out saved her and her troops a lot of headaches later. I had no issues with this.

The one thing I was mildly concerned about was that I had effectively ceded mission command to Mio, and from the growing mirth and not insignificant vindictiveness I felt she knew it and was planning something that would probably not end well….which meant I needed to distract her with the shinies before she did something that we might end up regretting.

I still had the feeling that I was being played rather thoroughly, but that could wait in the face of Mio deciding to go off on people.

Distraction time. "Should we begin inspection of the STC while the Sisters handle security, ma'am?"

I know she knew what I was doing. She was making a point of making sure I knew. But after a moment of her giving me a downright gimlet stare, she acquiesced.

"Very well. We can begin our inspection while they clear the area. It should not take too long, if everything is as it appears." I made a point of not calling attention to the downright giddy look that had appeared on her face at the thought of getting her hands on that STC. I suspect the Sisters did the same, even as their leader rounded them up to move out of the cavern proper.

So far, in spite of the setbacks, we were doing somewhat decently. There was still plenty of time for it to get worse (and I suspected that we would be fighting our way out of this cavern one way or the other) but so far we were in a reasonably good spot.

[I concur. Also, I have a lock on the second artifact from the 'Torizo' creature. We might want to store it at some point.]

Which gave me time to deal with this part. Namely, that Thoth had somehow managed to scrape together a sort of VI for himself. I suspected that the Chozo tech infusion had something to do with it--

[Correct. The infusion of the Chozo technology allowed my complexity to exceed a specific value, and pushed me to a form of semi-sentience. I am still effectively running on your hardware, but the sheer amount of mental power you have available has allowed me to act as a 'smart' VI for most purposes.

And before you ask, yes, most of the 'Valkyrie Cores' do the same for their partners as well. The only reason most did not speak of it is because it is meant to be personalized to the user, and normally requires tens of thousands of sync hours before the proper structures have formed, and the partner is sufficiently adapted and upgraded.]

...and that answers that. So now I have an adaptive VI linked o my brain meats, which is not as big a deal as it sound considering just how deep core/partner connections go. It does explain about the odd sync gains I was getting, even beyond what my upgrades had managed.

"This...this is...it's...complete. Actually Complete."

THAT caught my attention. I had most definitely heard the outright reverent tone in her voice. And that Capital, too.

Standard Template Constructs were usually found as bits and pieces of what was once a form of cornucopia machine for old earth technology. The intent, If I remembered correctly, was that you could take one into nearly any environment and use it to rebuild the old technology from base principles using even the lowest forms of technology. What was usually found nowadays was the fragments of what had been generated by those machines.

If what Mio was implying was true, then we had found something beyond any price in the Imperium, and equally something that would be fought for tooth and nail by every faction even within it. If this was truly a full, complete and uncorrupted STC as intended by its builders, its mere existence could destroy the Imperium.

No wonder the Ecclesiarchy was so hard up on this to have sent out the Sisters. It was their ticket to absolute power...which meant that as much as I detested getting involved, I had to keep it away from them, if only to prevent the outright genocidal purges that would come once they thought they had secured their power.

I deliberately did a sensor sweep of the cavern as a precaution. I also grabbed that artifact that I had been distracted from by Mio's proclamation and stored it withing Thoth, and then stepped towards the STC.

"So, what is it? Do you know for certain?" I was deliberately playing up the "don't know shit" angle of this for the onlookers in case I needed to make a move. Mio. however, was still enraptured and had laid a hand onto the STC proper. I noticed that she had synced her core for this, and suspected that she was interfacing with the systems within.

"It's exactly s I have said. This is a fully complete and undamaged Standard Template Construct. It has everything…" The words came almost breathless to her. I' on the other hand got even more nervous. Having all the technology was fine…

{It has an intelligence within. It has told me that it seeks to adjust plans and pieces with available materials and technology available...this is incredible. I understand now--the fragments that we have always hunted...they were nothing more than the prebuilt plans from these.}

Oh no.

It was the real deal, and I was now on a time limit.

{Mio, I apologize for this, I really do, but I gotta either steal this or destroy it.}

Her shock was visible, and she turned to me with a look of horror on her face, despite our conversation using no words. {Destroy? We cannot destroy this!! It's too important!!}

{And it's too powerful. If any one faction gets their hands on this, the rest will suffer for it. I am especially not keen for the Ecclesiarchy, and through them the Inquisition, to get their hands on even more power within the Imperium. Until and unless we can find someone worthy of holding it, it has to go.}

And that was really the crux of the whole matter. We had in our hands the ability to ensure the rise of humanity back to its golden age...and because of the internecine power struggles that happen within the Imperium every day, we couldn't use it. It was frustrating in the extreme, and one way or another I would be a pariah for what happened next, all in the name of preserving what little remained of the last bastion of order for humanity.

I really hated choices like this, but it had to be done--

(Lord, are you alright? Do you need assistance? You have been out of contact for some time.)

...or I could just ask Rico to play dummy mode for me and then have him do a vanish/unison to get away. That works too.

I made a decision, and explained everything to Rico (We are going to have to sell this HARD, Rico. make it look good.)

(Yes, Lord.)

The things I do in the name of duty…

---

Harry was having one of his strange days. It by all rights should have been a good day, what with them recovering an utterly priceless STC, and a potentially whole one from what Satori had seen when they had passed through previously. The Ruinous Pawns trying to take the device for themselves was regrettable, but understood to be something that happened, and they were repulsed with utmost swiftness and discretion. Even the encounter with the Adeptas Sororitas somehow managed to go quite well, to the point that there had not been one drop of loyal blood spilled. Satori and Mio had then moved inside to collect the relic, at which point they would make their merry way to an access hatch and get the hell out of dodge.

So when the strange childlike intelligence calling itself Rico motioned for his attention, he knew that things were about to go horribly wrong.

Knowing that this was likely the beginnings of it dropping in the pot, Harry kept things brief and businesslike. "Yes, what is it?"

Rico deliberately gave him an odd look. And mouthed something to him out of the visual of the currently bound Sororitas.

Don't ask, just roll with it. Will explain later.

That was the only warning that Harry received before all hell broke loose.

Rico had gone from being the calm, if oddly cheerful floating child with binding powers to a mad dervish of power in a mere moment, throwing his Magic everywhere in a wild and uncontrolled manner...or at least it seemed that way, if you weren't paying attention. Harry was, and, along with his advance warning, could see the obvious gaps in the "random pattern" that were there to be exploited for a quick escape route.

Instead of running, though, he decided to trust his instincts and opened fire on Rico, who easily dodged every shot...when he didn't shield them just to prove a point.

Oh, and he was taunting people too. "Thank you very much for leading me to my objective, fools. I will be acquiring this technology for my own purposes. You all enjoy yourselves now!!"

For reasons unknown to Harry, doing this required Rico to release the binds that the Sisters were currently in, and The Sister Superior and her contingent wasted no time whatsoever in taking advantage and opening fire on the device with everything they had...and none of it was enough. Rico danced through the bolts and Volkite rays like it was molasses, all the while throwing out massive amounts of firepower...and moving towards the alcove which contained the STC.

The movement was very much noticed by the Sororitas, for all the good that "noticing" it did, for they still lacked the needed firepower (or even speed, for that matter, in Harry's not-so-humble opinion) to actually do anything. The complete failure to stop Rico's advance was apparent;y quite frustrating to the Sisters, who were shouting some of the more...provocative oaths of fury and vengeance at the Device in an attempt to do anything to actually stop him. Harry was unimpressed, but kept his fire up anyway. After all, he could use the practice, and Since Rico volunteered…

The commotion moved within the alcove, which caused another stir to break out, and what sounded like a second set of bolter fire as well. Harry nodded to himself, having had his guess of a second squad of sisters being present confirmed, although he was curious as to why they only opened fire now, and not previously. He suspected the answer was something in the realm of complete bullshit.

More sounds of battle echoed through the cavern as something happened within the alcove, and then Rico came zooming back out, cackling madly, and dodging fire from not only a second group of sisters, but Miolala as well, and what he assumed was Satori, considering that the figure was covered in a type and pattern of armor that he had never seen before, and was shooting strange energy blasts out of his very hands. Nothing was connecting, of course, as Rico was moving faster than even their Techpriest, throwing out more magical blasts all the while, even as he shielded against the bolts now coming at him from nearly all sides.

One of the Sisters from the cavern steamed out a warning, utter fury in her voice. "STOP THE DAEMON SPAWN!!! IT HAS THE STC!!!"

Oh.

Harry definitely understood what was going on now. Something about that STC has spooked either Mio (unlikely) or Satori) far more likely) into making a point of ensuring that the wrong hands could not gain access to the contents...even if it meant that one of their own would be labeled as an Enemy of the Imperium. He suspected that it had a lot to do with the presence of the Sisters, and by extension the Inquisistion, into the matter.

'Answers would come in time. Right now, we need to coordinate an escape plan before the Sisters start blaming everything but themselves for the incident…'

Harry once again looked to those very cozy escape routes, and decided he knew what Rico was planning after all. Shifting his own position to cover the retreat, he continued to pour fire down on the Device's location in an attempt to create a smokescreen from the kicked up debris of his misses...not that he needed to do much, as the bolts flying everywhere were doing a magnificent job of it. He noticed Miolala shifting towards a side tunnel that they had previously determined would be their best bet for an outside passive, and saw what he believed was Satori in direct pursuit of the Device itself, who was now moving at speed to make his escape.

Miolala and Satori were moving to intercept, but even he could tell that they would not make it in time...nor were they really attempting to. The picture of what was happening became ever more clear in his mind's eye, and he suspected that the time to egress was coming soon...and from the looks of it, he would have to make his own escape from the Sisters before he could link back up with the group.

So, pretty much just like one of his last missions, then. Nothing new under the sun, except for the fact that he had good weapons and equipment this time.

Now, to get himself out of the pickle that will be the Sisters realizing that they can't win this…

---

The plan was, so far, going somewhat reasonably. There were a few setbacks, like us nearly losing Harry to the damned crossfire that the Sisters were putting down (much to his embarrassment) but for the most part we had managed to exfiltrate from the area under the guise of tracking the "daemon" with the STC. the problem we currently had is that the sisters knew that the "daemon" had it, and would stop at nothing to see it destroyed.

Not that Rico was complaining. We just needed to make our exit from the hive as quickly as possible before the net closed in, which is why we were moving at speed (and Rico was unisoned with me, not that anyone could tell with Thoth still at full expression)

I turned to Harry for a moment."So, any ideas on how to get past the security cordon for the exits?"

Harry shrugged. "The known exits will likely be locked down because of the Sororitas presence, along with whatever message they managed to get ahead of themselves after we got clear. As for the unofficial methods...well, those are obviously less guarded, but the few that I am aware of we don't have the equipment to access. There are likely more, but the info will be a hot commodity and everyone will know why we want it. It's not a good look, all things told."

Mio chimed in as well. "There is also the issue of the standard monitoring of the radio channels by the Mechanicus. Knowing that there is--or in this case, was--an STC down in these depths will cause a furor unlike anything that has been seen here. We do not want to be here when the whirlwind for that comes due."

Both equally valid points. And nothing I could counter, which meant that it was time for the go-to-hell plan. Stupid STC fucking things up for everyone.

"Alright, guess that means we have to do this the silly way. I had wanted to test this out first, just in case there was some method of tracking or other shenanigans involved, but this is looking like a use case for it anyway. Gather around."

"What about the other guys we left behind, though? Those were some survivors from Van Saar. shouldn't we go back for them?" Harry's question reminded me of something that I did not want to think about, especially because of what it was forcing me to do...but he deserved an answer.

"We can't. I want to go back for them--hell, I wanted to try and bring them with us--but right now we have a literal DUTY to get clear of this hornet's nest as quickly as possible. The saving grace of all of this is that they are not implicated in any of the shenanigans here, as they were helping to repulse the cultist attack, so at the least the Sisters can't hold that over their heads. But we have other concerns."

Harry was not convinced. "You still haven't told me what was so important that we kicked the Ecclesiarchy directly in the 'nads for, friend. In case you haven't noticed, they are not the kind of people you want as enemies."

More good points, and again nothing that I could answer for. "Not here. We need to leave first. Now, I need to focus, so give me a moment...and be ready for toxic atmo."

Harry gave me a look, but got his filter gear ready all the same. Meanwhile, I was in deep focus.

(We find anything yet?)

(Still working on a decent exit point, Lord. Once I get that, we should be able to go whenever you're ready.)

Dimensional Transferences were surprisingly difficult to do discreetly, and the planet being as messed up as it was didn't help in the slightest. We kept finding places that would have killed us within seconds of landing, which was a definite no-go, or were too close to the hive proper, which was also bad. We needed something that was stable while also being far enough out to not be noticed and investigated before we could break the trail and get to ground proper.

But somehow, we had to find a way, or else we would likely have to slaughter our way out. For me, it would be distasteful, at best, but something I could handle. Harry would probably be capable of doing so as well, even though he would likely hesitate to spill loyal Imperial blood.

Mio would be devastated, though: her Imperium was nowhere near as cutthroat as this, and being forced to shed the blood of loyalists would very much be an issue.

(Got a lock. Standby for imaging and coordinates.)

Or we could just sidestep the issue by being successful at our task and getting the hell out of Dodge.

"Okay, everything is ready. You guys set up?"

Harry nods. "Good to go."

Mio nods as well. "I am ready."

"Then we are go. Standby...and...Transfer!"

And with those words, we left the underhive of Primus behind.

Fortunately for my fears, the Transfer went off without a hitch, and we reappeared in a barren wasteland many days away from the hive, one of the few places within covert transfer range that was an actual solid landmass. To the east of us, the strange and utterly polluted sludge seas stretched on for as far as the eyes could see, and more. The other directions had more of the same: either barren wastes stretching out for at least a good few miles to the north and west, or more of the sludgy sea to the south. I would guess that we'd ended up on an island of some sort, but I'd need to do an active pulse to be sure, and I wasn't sure how good the auspex units of the hives were. I didn't want them picking up my scans.

[Low-power scans in progress. Mapping data will be available shortly. I can also construct a recon drone for a similar purpose.]

And as usual, Thoth already has me covered on all counts. Gotta love having a supercomputer attached to your head.

Go 'head and set it up, then. Try not to take too long, I want to get our camp situated soon.

[Understood.]

I turned to my companions, who were looking out at the wasteland with what I assumed were varying expressions on their faces, covered up by the breather gear as it was.

"This is going to be our new home for a while. Lets' get a quick shelter set up, and we can use it to get access to the Hangar for some real relaxation. I doubt that anyone is going to come all the way out here to try and find us."

The amused grunt and affectionately exasperated sigh from Harry and Mio were my only answers, and together we worked to set up our base shelter structure to use as an access point.

---

Janus Farhish currently found himself in a bit of a bind.

A plain, easy milk run of a meet and greet had turned into an utter nightmare. This was supposed to just be a quick check in with the remainder of the local Van Saar forces, and a way to get a status report back up to the actual bosses that not all was lost in his sector, despite both Valerie and Amos being missing. He knew they weren't dead, as one of the dead drops had their mark on it, signifying that they were going to ground...a decision he agreed with, and wished that he could join them in.

His only problem was tracking down his wayward info broker and miracle maker of a mechanic, whom he had on reasonable rumor were both alive and well, despite being at or near ground zero for the event. He'd planned on locating them, linking up, and extracting the duo back to a safehouse he'd set up some years ago in harder times...but then the stirrings came, of a discovery unlike anything that had been seen before.

He'd taken some men to investigate, solely as a recon run, mind...and ran straight into the Adepta Sororitas doing the same, and being quite murderous about keeping whatever it was that they had found ultra quiet. It would have been easy to comply and beat a hasty retreat, too, except that then the damned cultists attacked, and he and his scratch team of men were forced to join with the Sisters in a fight for their lives.

That was when he'd gotten a look at what was in that damned cave that they were guarding so desperately...only to see that it was an STC, whole and unmarked. He'd understood completely then.

He wasn't fully read in on the secrets of the House, but he was a man who, by his very nature, "heard things"...and one of the things that he'd so happened to "hear" was that Van Saar's rise to power and influence was fueled by a relatively intact STC, that had enough damage to it to cause varying degrees of wasting sickness by being near it. Knowing that getting their hands on a fully operational STC would likely allow them to fix their own...that was worth more than the house itself.

The cultists, however, refused to let up, and the combined group of gangsters and Sororitas were taking rather noticeable casualties in trying to hold the line.

At least, they were, until the damned strike team showed up. They swept in and utterly demolished the cultists, leaving no survivors to tell any tales. It was then that he'd managed to get a good look at their saviors...and saw none other than Harrisyn Cain himself, and what he'd assumed was his assignment in the form of Mr. Satori Green...except what he saw didn;t quite match up.

It looked like Satori, sure. It even talked like him. But that thing with the odd animal ears and tails could not have been Satori by any metric, not with such obvious mutations...and yet Harrisyn seemed completely unconcerned by it, even amused somewhat, which only served to confuse Janus more, The woman with them, another mutant from the looks of it, with a strange thick tail and horns on her head, claimed to represent the Adeptus Mechanicus.

The Sisters, of course, were not convinced, and more or less shot on sight, as any good Imperial would do. And then the woman somehow did the impossible and outright dodged a point blank bolt before all but shoving the offending shell up the Sister's ass, at which point the thing that wore the face of his friend Satori walked up and delivered one of the most brutal and excoriating verbal smackdowns he'd heard in some time.

This, of all things, is what finally convinced him that this was his friend. Only that man would have the sheer balls to literally walk up to a Sister of Battle, a Sister Superior no less, and slap the taste out of her mouth, then follow up with a verbal smackdown.

What followed was much less amusing.

Something or another had happened inside the cavern. Exactly what he was not sure, but the last member of the assault team, a strange floating childlike creature, had gained Harrisyn's attention for a brief moment, and seemed to relay a message of some sort...after which he went completely insane and began shooting everything in sight. The usual moments of commotion and loss of time in a battle happened here, and the end result had all four of the strike team which held his friends and comrades cone, along with the STC that nearly everyone had come to collect. All that remained was a group of very, very angry Sisters of Battle.

Which leads to his current predicament, having been strung up inside an interrogation chamber by what he suspected was a junior member of the Inquisition. Oh, sure, no one had flashed a rosary or any such, and the robes and cloak he was wearing was utterly plain in appearance, but you learned to spot those types when you saw them in the hives.

Needless to say, they had been "questioning" him for some time now.

"So, we begin again, Mr. Farhish. Will you give me the truth this time, I wonder?"

Janus coughed up a bit of blood as one of his newfound injuries twinged badly. Had to hand it to the punk, he knew his stuff. "I already told you everything I know. I have nothing else." The sad part was that was entirely true. As much as he'd hoped to be able to spare his comrades, the interrogator was too good. He'd spilled on everything that had been asked of him long ago.

"We shall see, Mr. Farhish. Now then, once again. Who is Satori Green?" the Interrogator rattled Janus slightly for emphasis.

Janus coughed again as the jostling agitated his wounds. "I don't know where he came from, just that he showed up one day and was too good to be true. Advanced training that we assumed was from the Guard, language knowledge, even Mechanicus rites and skills. We hadn't seen anything like him, and he only got better as time went on. It was surreal. Every attempt I made to try and dig into his past was rebuffed, although he'd mentioned wanting to train the tithe troops up to his standard."

The interrogator nodded. This matched with what was said earlier. "And did you know of his foul mutations?"

Janus shook his head. "No. when we met, he did not have any signs of mutation; we made a point of checking for such before we agreed to meet him. Any mutations were recent."

Another nod, and another story corroborated. "And what of his companion, a Mr. Harrisyn Cain? Who is he?"

Again, Janus repeated himself." Harrisyn is officially a small-tine info broker tied to house Van Saar who works as a neutral party. In truth, he was a Delaque plant meant to keep tabs on things in the local Van Saar district that was placed with our blessing. Past that, he has no past that we know of, and isn't fond of talking."

"And would he have known of the perfidy occurring under his nose?"

"I don't know. He went missing a few days before the psyker attack, and Satori led a team to go and find him. When he came back, he was wearing an odd suit of armor, and was carrying Cain in his arms, but Cain was all but dead at that point, and missing at least three limbs. It made no sense how he survived the night."

"And this armor. Was it the same armor that this mutant was seen in when he attacked the Sororitas?"

Janus again shook his head, mentally grumbling at the repeated questions...again. "No. the armor he was wearing when he exited the cavern with the STC in it was similar, but different." Yeah, he'd rolled on the STC too. Again, the Interrogator was entirely too good at his job for him not to have.

"And do you know where he might have gone? Any places that he would choose to hide?"

"No. All of the safe houses that my team could contact were warned to keep an eye out, but no one has seen any of them."

The interrogator stopped for a moment, seemingly lost in thought. This allowed time for one of his associates to enter the room, who turned to the Interrogator with a frown. "Anything?"

The interrogator shook his head in a negative. "No. the same story, and what little we can get to corroborate it checks out. This Green, is a total anomaly in the system, and a dangerous one at that."

The other person gave a minute nod that Janus only caught because he happened to be looking that direction. "And as for Cain? Did he know anything useful?"

"Nothing. It would seem that the traitor covered his tracks well."

Janus blinked at that. Harrisyn Cain, a traitor? He'd believe that Ambull could fly long before he would believe that. But what did that mean…?

"If that is the case, then we have nothing more here for us to do. We will be leaving within the hour."

The interrogator nodded. "Understood. I'll finish up here."

Janus suddenly had a sickening feeling in his gut.

The interrogator turned towards him, reaching into his robes for something as he moved closer. Janus tensed up, ready to try and defend himself by any means necessary…

Only to have the straps holding him in place cut away, freezing him from his bondage. "You are free to go. Do not tell anyone of what you saw here."

Janus looked on at the interrogator in utter confusion, before snapping himself out of the shock he was in and taking the opportunity that was presented. All the while, he refused to present his back to the interrogator for any reason, and did his best to keep the second person in his sights as well.

This is why he never saw the lasbolt that blew his head off coming from the third person, hidden in a small alcove in the room. The bold was a significantly high-power variant, and cauterized everything that was left, leaving no mess.

The "first" spoke. "We must hurry and recover the STC before any harm can befall it, and most importantly, before the Mechanicus can learn of its existence."

"I concur," The "second" replied. "We must also inform tour master of the presence of the two...variables in this endeavor, especially of the fact that Harrisyn Cain is still alive."

The interrogator spoke next. "Communications are still very difficult at this time. At best, we can send a coded transmission through the Sororitas and hope that the right people see it."

The First nodded. "Then do so, and make haste. The longer we wait, the more time that Cain has to prepare. We must not fail in this task.The fate of the Imperium, and the Inquisition as a whole, depends on us retrieving that STC. Do not expect any form of reinforcement beyond what we can round up from the Convents, at least until we can get a message out to our master."

The trio nodded as one, and spoke. "In the name of the God-Emperor."

---

---

So. COVID-19, specifically the Delta variant, happened. I was laid up for a full week recovering, hence this chapter being late. It is also likely to be riddled with errors and somesuch. It is of no matter, as you're getting it anyway.

And I'm going to clarify this right now, even though It will be mentioned in the next chapter: That STC? When Mio said it was complete, she meant It. Was. COMPETE.

Yes. it has everything.

You are likely not getting a chapter next week, as Axion Verge 2 shadowdropped and I will be playing the hell out of it. Should I change my mind, you will know.

Spoiler: Perk for this chapter

-Construction (Battle Action Harem Highschool Side Character Quest) (600CP)
You gain a complete understanding of modern UN technology and how to produce it. This includes everything from standard infantry power armor, to battleships, to even modern archologies. You also gain a large bonus to your Valkyrie's construction ability. With training and the right tools you could construct advance equipment in your Core's storage space, such as delicate processor chips, or build an entire town in a day like Anna.

 

[Cyrus2]

Well they just shot up on the most wanted in the imperium list, they are gonna have to get to Terra and heal the Emperor if they want to get that rescinded.

 

[Ashesofthedragon]

So I have a bare bones knowledge of warhammer, but I know that stcs are valuable remains of ancient technology. What I don't know is just HOW advanced it is compared to the current era tech and just what would be in it.

 

[Slider Zero]

So I have a bare bones knowledge of warhammer, but I know that stcs are valuable remains of ancient technology. What I don't know is just HOW advanced it is compared to the current era tech and just what would be in it.

Click to shrink...

I'll get this one before I go to bed.

STC's were designed by the previous Terran government, the Federation, to be used in case of a Fall of Civilization type scenario and as colony starters. A full-up STC has everything needed for a colony to advance itself back to full federation tech level piece by piece, and were specifically designed with the oddest and absolute lowest tech levels in mind, which is why you have things like Lasguns that can be made by hand on a non-industrial world.

Federation tech level is not just equivalent to the mythical Dark Age of Technology; it IS DAoT tech.

 

[Cheetored20]

....dam the inquisition is brutal.

I have no idea what factions are in it though.

 

[Morkail]

Wait how big is this thing? A complete STC database is quite different from a complete STC constructor aren't they like any where from the size of a warehouse to the size of a midsize city?

And he's the only person who "can" take it because if any of mankind's factions get it and the future shows it leaving the planet either the warp gods or the elder assholes will destroy that world. It was the eldar and warp gods who went out of there way to destroy so much of mankind's tech.

high level warp based technology is outright Clark tech bullshit or worm tinkertech on crack before mankind's fall they were on the verge of replacing the eldar as the strongest race in the universe so they were made to fall. Of course the eldar fall shorty after and the warp gods make sure they can't make a come back. The men of iron rebellion "broke" mankind and after the thousands of years of old night they may as well be completely different species like humanity from halo pre forunner war and after.

god I Love 40k lore fuck you games workshop.

 

[PinkShadowReader]

Ah yeah! Nice chapter! Damn that inquisition is brutal though. They aren't doing any half assed interrogations.

-Construction (Battle Action Harem Highschool Side Character Quest) (600CP)

Click to shrink...

Woaah! He'll will be rolling before long with that perk.

 

[stads]

ah the good old inquisition want to have a nice talk over tea best place to be in the imperium
nice escape to the wasteland best place to hide out me thinks

 

[Nimeroni]

How to get hunted by the Imperium in one easy step, inquisitors hate him.

Every factions that learn about the STC will want it, over his dead body if needed. It's only the inquisition for now, but c'mon, every faction is spying on every other factions, so that secret won't last.

On the bright side, a full STC is a wonderful smokescreen for the Forge. "Yeah, yeah, that FTL drive that doesn't use the warp was totally built from the STC, I swear !"

 

[ATP]

Inquisition is using Sororitas,local Mechanicum knew nothing,and Chaos is trying,tooYour SI need few miracles to survivr,not mention save anything else then himself&waifu.
And local gangsters are less evill people serving Emprah there.It is indeed funny,when only half-decent people in your state are gangsters.IoM truly is soviet in space.
But - that is why we love WH40.It is so grimm.

 

[Engineseer]

His best bet is getting a ship and dropping the STC into a Radical mechanicus world
Ryza would be my first choice because of its industrial abilities and general close-ness to Necromunda

(also adding more out of context tech to the STC like non-warp FTL and other stuffs like that seems like the best way to go )

 

[Squid]

If it's a complete STC database, then it has plans for blank STC databases on it one would presume. Which means you should be able to make copies of it and distribute it to ALL of the Forge Worlds if you wanted to.

 

[Nimeroni]

Inquisition is using Sororitas,local Mechanicum knew nothing,and Chaos is trying,tooYour SI need few miracles to survivr,not mention save anything else then himself&waifu.
And local gangsters are less evill people serving Emprah there.It is indeed funny,when only half-decent people in your state are gangsters.IoM truly is soviet in space.
But - that is why we love WH40.It is so grimm.

Click to shrink...

Eh, the situation isn't particularly grim. Satori isn't in immediate danger, and he have a small ship with non-warp FTL in his workshop. All he need to do is to get the hell out of Necromunda.

The inquisition won't even look for him on other worlds, at least not now (the inquisitors mentioned "communication difficulty"). Chaos can't do anything against non warp travel either.

But even better, he now have the tools to make the imperium better... if he play his cards right. I like engiseer's idea of dropping a STC on a radical mechanicus forge world (with a non-warp FTL template added in), althrough I'd start by duplicating the STC first.