Post by CELS on Aug 17, 2004 3:49:27 GMT -5
A short story, first in the line of many (hopefully) which will help to enrichen the worlds I've created.
I don't have a good name for it yet, since I'm absolutely horrible at making up names for stories, so without further delay...
Jason Efstathios faced away from the turbofans of his cutter. Normally, the strong breeze from the turbofans would feel delightful against his face, but in this choking heat and polluted air there was nothing delightful about it. Behind him, his workers were hurriedly operating small lifter-trucks which carried his cargo of wooden boxes off the shuttle, eager to collect their pay.
So this was Proteus, the sector’s ancient forgeworld, the legendary realm of the Cult Mechanicus. The starport was perhaps the biggest he’d ever seen, and quite certainly the best equipped one, which was saying something. Somehow though, it wasn’t how he expected it. It was too quiet. There were swarms of people here like in the starports of Anargo or Archaios, but there was no shouting and laughing, no constant noise of truck horns or Meksumian street musicians. Surrounding the great bay of the starport were huge depots for countless mag-lev trains and hangars for gargantuan aircraft that looked impossibly large for atmospheric flyers. The first thing to catch Jason’s eye when he arrived though, was not the impressive network of transports, or even the skyscraping manufactoriums looming in the horizon. It was an Imperial Titan stood on the starport’s main gate, gazing right at him, with enough firepower to level a Hive.
Jason had never seen a Titan before, of course. Naturally, he had seen illustrations on Imperial banners and the coloured glass of cathedrals back on his homeworld, Archaios, but nothing could have prepared him for the raw aura of fear and humility that this Titan exuded. It must have been fifty meters tall, and almost as wide, he guessed. It was a simple and obvious attempt at both discouraging trouble and making experienced traders shake in their boots, and he could tell it worked.
“Jason! Hey, Jason!”
Pushing his way through the other workers, Lucius “the Kid” Salvatore came shouting for Jason, quickly followed by his older sister, Maria.
“The mechs are sending someone to deal with this trade, Jason. I think that’s him over there.”
The Kid pointed to robed figure approaching them, surrounded by a troop of various servitors and two other robed giants that were probably also servitors, judging from their size and walk.
“That’s a woman, Kid,” corrected Maria, though she didn’t seem completely sure herself. Members of the Cult Mechanicus had a tradition of shaving their heads and all wearing the same clothes, so it wasn’t always easy to tell which sex they were.
“Remember, I do the talking!” Jason gave the other two a stern stare. “These mechs are sensitive and they don’t tolerate any kind of trouble in their backyard. We’re lucky to even be here, so take it easy or there’s gonna be trouble.”
“Alright already! Always with the drama,” sighed Lucius, holding his hands up in a humble gesture.
The Adeptus Mechanicus woman and her retinue finally reached them, stopping within spitting distance. She had only simple mechanical enhancements as far as Jason could see, connecting the back of her skull to a data-slate in her hand. Her eyes were silvery blue and her skin white and smooth like milk. Behind her, the retinue of massive servitors stood staring out into thin air as if sleep-walking. Each of them bore the famous crest of Proteus, a mark of quality like no other.
“Master Efstathios,” greeted the Mechanicus woman with a sharp bow of her head. “I am Adept Yori. I have been assigned to oversee this trade. I trust you had a peaceful journey?”
Not for the first time today, Jason was quite surprised. He had expected a machine-like corpse of a Tech Priest, with a mechanical, monotone voice, and they had sent a young, healthy woman with a soft, silky voice that reminded him of his late wife.
“Yes, I did, thank you. I must say I am impressed by what I have seen of Proteus so far. The honourable Adeptus Mechanicus use their sacred knowledge well.”
The female Adept made another quick bow with her head.
“I have brought the xenos equipment as promised,” continued Jason. “You’ll find what we believe to be some kind of cogitators in the yellow crates and-“
“There’s only fourty of them!”
All heads snapped round to look at Lucius, the Kid.
“They were supposed to give us fifty-five servitors. Thirty lifters, ten truckers, ten keepers and five autoguards. This is grox shit!”
Jason winced, terrified.
“Almost sixty days have passed since we last spoke, my Masters. The price estimate you were given then is no longer accurate. We have already received two other shipments of this xenos equipment, probably from the same source. As a result, I cannot offer you the same price as before.” The voice of the female Adept was as calm as ever, her expression sympathetic.
“We had a deal! Jason, this machine bitch is trying to sucker us!”
“Lucius!” Maria hissed to her brother, too scared to raise her voice.
“Relax, Kid!” Jason reached out to grab Lucius’ arm, but he just twisted away.
Surprisingly, the female Adept didn’t even flinch. Instead she made another bow to acknowledge the Kid. “Master Lucius, if you do not calm down, you will all be escorted away and this business will be over.” She put one hand behind her back.
“Shut your damned hole, warp whore! We ain’t leaving this pit until we get those servitors! And neither are you.”
The Kid put his hand on a gun tucked in his pants. Maria immediately began sobbing, pleading her brother to stop this madness. Petrified, Jason could do nothing but watch.
“You are in no position to make demands, Master Lucius. This meeting is over. Be gone or you will suffer the consequences.” Her voice was the same – soft, comforting - but there was nothing sympathetic about her face now.
The Kid grimaced, and he pulled his gun. “I told you-“
A loud gunshot echoed through the star port, and Jason jumped back. Lucius’ heart exploded out his back as a small caliber bolter round tore through his chest. Maria screamed. The Tech Adept stared at Jason, her gun pointed at his chest. She seemed scared, wondering whether or not she should just kill the rest of them. Behind him, the workers were shouting, some fleeing back to the ship, others running over to Lucius. Half a dozen search lights from distant guard towers blinded him. Maria was still screaming, clutching to her dead brother. Everything was just happening so fast!
“Adept Yori, please,” stammered Jason. “We will accept your new offer, and we shall leave immediately, in peace.”
“The offer has been withdrawn, Master Efstathios. Be gone now, before more blood is shed.”
Her hand was shaking.
“No, wait, please.” Jason was lost for words. He couldn’t believe this was happening.
Behind him, some of the workers had armed themselves and were coming over, perhaps intent on finishing the trade as well.
“You will stop,” the adept shouted to the closing crowd. “This is the realm of the holy Mechanicus, and you are in violation of our laws. The trade has been canceled, now be gone or you will be punished accordingly.”
The crowd started shouting and increased their pace. Suddenly, one of the workers raised a rifle and unleashed a burst of fire into the sky. The Adept turned her pistol to the crowd and clutched a pendant hanging around her neck. Immediately, the two robed figures flanking her rose to their full height and tore their robes off with long steel claws from mechanical arms. Praetorian class combat servitors, eight feet tall, armed with assault cannons and shimmering claws that could cut through steel, roared and opened fire on the crowd.
A dozen workers fell instantly, the others opening fire with cheap autorifles and laspistols. Crying, Maria drew her brother’s bolt pistol, but was riddled with the giant bullets of the assault cannons before she could even arm it.
Maddened with grief, Jason lunged at the Adept, knocking the gun out of her hands and landing on top of her with his hands around her throat. She stared up at him, terrified, her hands fumbling in her robes. He pinned her arms with his legs and tightened his grip, putting all his weight on her fragile throat. Something hit him hard in his stomach, and he was thrown clear.
Gasping for air, Jason looked up at the coughing Adept who was walking over to him, power maul in hand. He tried to lift his hand to block her next attack, but she easily avoided it and hit him hard in his back. Everything went black.
Jason opened his eyes again, but saw only a blur. His body was shaking, he couldn’t feel his legs. The fighting seemed to be over, yet it seemed as if only a moment had passed. Concentrating, he could make out the shape of servitors carrying the wounded away. Some of them were kicking and screaming.
Adept Yori appeared in his field of vision, standing over him. Blood ran from her nose, and her eyes glittered with fury. In the grey sky above, dark clouds pulsed with the light of thunderstorms.
“You have violated our holy realm with your treachery, trader. You are found guilty of attempted murder and robbery, with penalty of life service in the custody of the blessed Adeptus Mechanicus. May you serve mankind better as a servitor than you did as a man. Nomine Deus Mechanicus, Ex Cathedra Imperator…”
Jason’s vision blurred again. He heard screaming, but he wasn’t sure if it was someone else or himself. Then once again, everything went black.
I don't have a good name for it yet, since I'm absolutely horrible at making up names for stories, so without further delay...
Jason Efstathios faced away from the turbofans of his cutter. Normally, the strong breeze from the turbofans would feel delightful against his face, but in this choking heat and polluted air there was nothing delightful about it. Behind him, his workers were hurriedly operating small lifter-trucks which carried his cargo of wooden boxes off the shuttle, eager to collect their pay.
So this was Proteus, the sector’s ancient forgeworld, the legendary realm of the Cult Mechanicus. The starport was perhaps the biggest he’d ever seen, and quite certainly the best equipped one, which was saying something. Somehow though, it wasn’t how he expected it. It was too quiet. There were swarms of people here like in the starports of Anargo or Archaios, but there was no shouting and laughing, no constant noise of truck horns or Meksumian street musicians. Surrounding the great bay of the starport were huge depots for countless mag-lev trains and hangars for gargantuan aircraft that looked impossibly large for atmospheric flyers. The first thing to catch Jason’s eye when he arrived though, was not the impressive network of transports, or even the skyscraping manufactoriums looming in the horizon. It was an Imperial Titan stood on the starport’s main gate, gazing right at him, with enough firepower to level a Hive.
Jason had never seen a Titan before, of course. Naturally, he had seen illustrations on Imperial banners and the coloured glass of cathedrals back on his homeworld, Archaios, but nothing could have prepared him for the raw aura of fear and humility that this Titan exuded. It must have been fifty meters tall, and almost as wide, he guessed. It was a simple and obvious attempt at both discouraging trouble and making experienced traders shake in their boots, and he could tell it worked.
“Jason! Hey, Jason!”
Pushing his way through the other workers, Lucius “the Kid” Salvatore came shouting for Jason, quickly followed by his older sister, Maria.
“The mechs are sending someone to deal with this trade, Jason. I think that’s him over there.”
The Kid pointed to robed figure approaching them, surrounded by a troop of various servitors and two other robed giants that were probably also servitors, judging from their size and walk.
“That’s a woman, Kid,” corrected Maria, though she didn’t seem completely sure herself. Members of the Cult Mechanicus had a tradition of shaving their heads and all wearing the same clothes, so it wasn’t always easy to tell which sex they were.
“Remember, I do the talking!” Jason gave the other two a stern stare. “These mechs are sensitive and they don’t tolerate any kind of trouble in their backyard. We’re lucky to even be here, so take it easy or there’s gonna be trouble.”
“Alright already! Always with the drama,” sighed Lucius, holding his hands up in a humble gesture.
The Adeptus Mechanicus woman and her retinue finally reached them, stopping within spitting distance. She had only simple mechanical enhancements as far as Jason could see, connecting the back of her skull to a data-slate in her hand. Her eyes were silvery blue and her skin white and smooth like milk. Behind her, the retinue of massive servitors stood staring out into thin air as if sleep-walking. Each of them bore the famous crest of Proteus, a mark of quality like no other.
“Master Efstathios,” greeted the Mechanicus woman with a sharp bow of her head. “I am Adept Yori. I have been assigned to oversee this trade. I trust you had a peaceful journey?”
Not for the first time today, Jason was quite surprised. He had expected a machine-like corpse of a Tech Priest, with a mechanical, monotone voice, and they had sent a young, healthy woman with a soft, silky voice that reminded him of his late wife.
“Yes, I did, thank you. I must say I am impressed by what I have seen of Proteus so far. The honourable Adeptus Mechanicus use their sacred knowledge well.”
The female Adept made another quick bow with her head.
“I have brought the xenos equipment as promised,” continued Jason. “You’ll find what we believe to be some kind of cogitators in the yellow crates and-“
“There’s only fourty of them!”
All heads snapped round to look at Lucius, the Kid.
“They were supposed to give us fifty-five servitors. Thirty lifters, ten truckers, ten keepers and five autoguards. This is grox shit!”
Jason winced, terrified.
“Almost sixty days have passed since we last spoke, my Masters. The price estimate you were given then is no longer accurate. We have already received two other shipments of this xenos equipment, probably from the same source. As a result, I cannot offer you the same price as before.” The voice of the female Adept was as calm as ever, her expression sympathetic.
“We had a deal! Jason, this machine bitch is trying to sucker us!”
“Lucius!” Maria hissed to her brother, too scared to raise her voice.
“Relax, Kid!” Jason reached out to grab Lucius’ arm, but he just twisted away.
Surprisingly, the female Adept didn’t even flinch. Instead she made another bow to acknowledge the Kid. “Master Lucius, if you do not calm down, you will all be escorted away and this business will be over.” She put one hand behind her back.
“Shut your damned hole, warp whore! We ain’t leaving this pit until we get those servitors! And neither are you.”
The Kid put his hand on a gun tucked in his pants. Maria immediately began sobbing, pleading her brother to stop this madness. Petrified, Jason could do nothing but watch.
“You are in no position to make demands, Master Lucius. This meeting is over. Be gone or you will suffer the consequences.” Her voice was the same – soft, comforting - but there was nothing sympathetic about her face now.
The Kid grimaced, and he pulled his gun. “I told you-“
A loud gunshot echoed through the star port, and Jason jumped back. Lucius’ heart exploded out his back as a small caliber bolter round tore through his chest. Maria screamed. The Tech Adept stared at Jason, her gun pointed at his chest. She seemed scared, wondering whether or not she should just kill the rest of them. Behind him, the workers were shouting, some fleeing back to the ship, others running over to Lucius. Half a dozen search lights from distant guard towers blinded him. Maria was still screaming, clutching to her dead brother. Everything was just happening so fast!
“Adept Yori, please,” stammered Jason. “We will accept your new offer, and we shall leave immediately, in peace.”
“The offer has been withdrawn, Master Efstathios. Be gone now, before more blood is shed.”
Her hand was shaking.
“No, wait, please.” Jason was lost for words. He couldn’t believe this was happening.
Behind him, some of the workers had armed themselves and were coming over, perhaps intent on finishing the trade as well.
“You will stop,” the adept shouted to the closing crowd. “This is the realm of the holy Mechanicus, and you are in violation of our laws. The trade has been canceled, now be gone or you will be punished accordingly.”
The crowd started shouting and increased their pace. Suddenly, one of the workers raised a rifle and unleashed a burst of fire into the sky. The Adept turned her pistol to the crowd and clutched a pendant hanging around her neck. Immediately, the two robed figures flanking her rose to their full height and tore their robes off with long steel claws from mechanical arms. Praetorian class combat servitors, eight feet tall, armed with assault cannons and shimmering claws that could cut through steel, roared and opened fire on the crowd.
A dozen workers fell instantly, the others opening fire with cheap autorifles and laspistols. Crying, Maria drew her brother’s bolt pistol, but was riddled with the giant bullets of the assault cannons before she could even arm it.
Maddened with grief, Jason lunged at the Adept, knocking the gun out of her hands and landing on top of her with his hands around her throat. She stared up at him, terrified, her hands fumbling in her robes. He pinned her arms with his legs and tightened his grip, putting all his weight on her fragile throat. Something hit him hard in his stomach, and he was thrown clear.
Gasping for air, Jason looked up at the coughing Adept who was walking over to him, power maul in hand. He tried to lift his hand to block her next attack, but she easily avoided it and hit him hard in his back. Everything went black.
Jason opened his eyes again, but saw only a blur. His body was shaking, he couldn’t feel his legs. The fighting seemed to be over, yet it seemed as if only a moment had passed. Concentrating, he could make out the shape of servitors carrying the wounded away. Some of them were kicking and screaming.
Adept Yori appeared in his field of vision, standing over him. Blood ran from her nose, and her eyes glittered with fury. In the grey sky above, dark clouds pulsed with the light of thunderstorms.
“You have violated our holy realm with your treachery, trader. You are found guilty of attempted murder and robbery, with penalty of life service in the custody of the blessed Adeptus Mechanicus. May you serve mankind better as a servitor than you did as a man. Nomine Deus Mechanicus, Ex Cathedra Imperator…”
Jason’s vision blurred again. He heard screaming, but he wasn’t sure if it was someone else or himself. Then once again, everything went black.
