Brotherhood of the Yellow King Chapter Nine

9: A Violent Ingress.

It was three days (such as Worth reckoned them) later that Carn approached Endomaw mine. His path had diverged from the convoy's tracks some time ago but he had followed the tank treads far enough to be able to see the plumes of industrial waste in the distance and the City of Endomaw in the direction of the tracks and he knew there were no answers to be found in that metropolis. No it was the mine in which Larkarsky had chanced upon whatever it was that so desperately being hidden. His task, his Holy appointed task, was to uncover it and expose it to the Emperor’s light. He would not fail. He had made good progress, fuelled by divine purpose and Ashworm meat, travelling during the day and fitfully resting at night, plagued by dreams and visions. Only once had he had to fire Emperor’s Fury. To dissuade a stalking quadruped predator lean of frame and lank of fur that had stalked him at dusk with glowing feral eyes. A warning shot had been enough to drive off the opportunistic hunter and it had not returned.

On the second day he had come across one of the rare copses on Worth, a grove of strange purplish trees shooting up between crystal formations. Though he had Ashworm meat to spare it was of little succulence by now and he sampled the fronds and leaves cautiously. Most were so bitter as to be unpalatable but he had eventually found a growth that had yielded a sweet nectar that quenched his thirst. He had lopped off some extra stalks and taken them with him. He had also taken some branches in the hope that he might be able to produce a campfire but alas they proved to be entirely non combustible and he had to endure the bitterly cold nights huddled and shivering. Still, endure he did, triumphing against the elements and hardships, conquering the terrain and inhospitable environment, and now, NOW his destination was in sight.

He crouched behind a boulder on a rocky bluff slightly overlooking the mining complex. He had never been to Endomaw but he had studied the plans that had been made available. Unlike those of the city these still seemed to be mostly accurate, at least above ground. Carn had no illusions that subterranean developments would have altered the underground layout drastically. For now though, he needed a point of ingress. Lacking any type of mag scope he had to rely on his own eyes but thankfully he had gotten used to the frequent ash storms and squalls and could see through the clouds of dust around the complex. There! A utility entrance, and only monitored by a single guard. Carn watched him for the next couple of hours, hoping to establish a patrol pattern he might exploit but the guard largely kept to his post, departing only for a moment to relieve his bladder against a nearby wall. Carn became resigned to the fact that he was going to have to kill the sentry. He grimaced, he would have much preferred to sneak in without resorting to violence. Not for regard for the guard’s life, he was the enemy and therefore deserving of such a fate. Besides, Carn had killed before, albeit not for some time. No, it was simply a matter of efficiency. He did not want to have to hide a body and there was the chance that the missing guard might be noticed or the alarm might be raised when he failed to call in.

There appeared to be no choice however, and he prepared himself for the seemingly inevitable confrontation. First he discarded the wrappings that he had cloaked himself in, Scorched cloth, Ashworm hide, tatters of overcoat, all were discarded and placed in a pile at the top of the bluff. After all, there was no guarantee they would not be needed again. He tore off the ragged sleeves of his shirt and made sure Emperor’s Fury was secure in his waistband. His leg had healed somewhat and he had been able to rid himself of his metal crutch the previous evening, he had considered keeping it as it made a formidable club, but his knife was more subtle a killing tool than a metal bludgeon and he was glad to be rid of the weight.  Sporting only his improvised satchel, which he securely tied to his chest, and his weapons, he slowly descended the rock face. It was not a perilous or particularly lengthy descent and within a few minutes he was crouched on the ground behind a formation of crystals. He regarded the sentry; the guard seemed slight and though Carn was no longer young he was powerful and had no concerns about besting the guard in a fight. The trick was to make the fight as quick and quiet as possible. A length of large industrial piping would allow him to close within striking distance, although he would not be able to take the guard totally unawares. He would have to hope that the element of surprise and the Emperor’s grace would prove enough for him to triumph. Before he made his move he drew his knife and made a swift short incision on each forearm, he squeezed the wounds to maximise the produced blood and smeared it all over his arms. He then coated them in ash. The cuts stung as he rubbed the ash into the blood but the desired effect was attained. He knew his face was still covered in ash and blood but where he had removed his sleeves his bare arms, though dirty, were showing far too much flesh that might divulge his position. Now thus camouflaged he was ready.

Taking advantage of a sudden ash cloud he crawled towards the cluster of piping. Keeping a low profile he progressed along the side of the pipe until he closed within four foot of the sentry. Looking between the pipes he could see his target more clearly. Wearing a mining suit and lackadaisically carrying a poorly maintained lasrifle he nonetheless determinedly performed his duty, maintaining a dutiful vigilance. The guard wore a yellow bandanna over his face, presumably to keep the ash out, and stooped slightly, suggesting some deformation. There was a power to the way that he carried himself however and Carn revised his earlier assessment of the ease of the coming combat. The pipe lay between him and the guard and he would either have to crawl under it or go over the double length of piping to attack. Going under would be slow and leave him far too vulnerable. Mounting the piping would prove no easy task though, especially attempting to do so quietly. He looked back along the way he had come, noting where the piping curved and ran along the building that the utility door led to. He carefully crawled back along the pipe and then pulled himself up on top, hauling himself up as quietly as he could, Crouching on top of the pipe he crept back along to his previous position, going slowly so as to maintain his balance. Before long he was near his original position, though he dared not get quite as close for fear of being spotted atop his perch. He was about ten foot away, slightly behind the guard and entirely visible. A leaping attack was out of the question, even in his prime Carn would have been unable to make the distance. He removed his boots carefully, placing the knife between his teeth. Leaving his heavy footwear atop the pipes he lowered himself carefully to the ground. Absolute silence was impossible, Carn was a big man after all, but he managed to descend without the guard noticing. He was thankful he cast no shadow betraying his movement.  There were shadows at the foot of the piping however and he now crouched in these, considering his next move. The door was too far away for him to reach and the odds of him doing so without the guard noticing were zero. He began to slowly edge towards the guard, leaving the sanctuary of the shadows and holding the knife low in one hand so as to keep it out of the light.

Suddenly he froze as the guard turned slightly, cocking his head. Carn contemplated a knife throw but his skill in such things was a far cry from that in his youth. Instead he tensed like a coiled spring, ready to launch himself at the guard should he be made. Thankfully the guard halted just short of seeing Carn and muttered something, bringing his free hand up to his head and cradling his lasrifle in his other arm. He was obviously reporting in, there would likely not be a better time than this. Carn waited for the sentry to finish his communique and then as he turned back Carn crept forward the final few feet. At that moment fate changed. A squall of ash saw the guard spin around to protect his face and suddenly his eyes widened as he saw Carn crouching in front of him.  Carn resorted to the knife throw in desperation but as he had feared it was inaccurate and glanced off the guard, the knife spinning into the dirt. The guard went to raise his rifle to firing position but Carn lashed out with a sweeping kick toppling the sentry and knocking the rifle from his grasp. Carn looked to follow this up with a elbow to the guard's windpipe, ending the fight quickly, but the sentry was more agile than he had credited and rolled to the side quickly. He went to activate his comm but Carn delivered a precision chop which disabled the device and tore away the face mask. The guard responded by hurling Carn away from him and with the few seconds bought got to his feet. Carn stood as well and the two combatants regarded each other.

Carn was aghast at the visage of his opponent, where he had torn away the face mask there was exposed no human face but rather the features of some beast. The nose was more of snout and the snarling mouth showed pointed fangs rather than teeth. What heresy was this? What den of depravity and horror did the mine contain? He must find out, bring it to the Emperor's light and see it burned to purity. First though, he would have to contend with this guard. He launched himself at the loathsome figure with both fists knotted, intending a critical double handed uppercut blow. It never landed, once again with an ease belying his awkward frame the guard swayed to the side, avoiding Carn's strike. Carn had been expecting this however, and the telegraphed blow was in part a feint. He kicked out at the guard's leg, sacrificing balance for the quick strike. His foot crashed into the guard's leg just below the knee, forcing it in a direction that the joint was not designed to go in and he was rewarded with a bellow of pain and his opponent toppling to the floor. Carn also hit the ground but rolled quickly to come back up scooping his knife up in the process. The guard was still on the floor, trying to rise but unable to do so, able to get to his knees but no more. Carn sprang at the guard knocking them both to the floor, stabbing his knife into his foe's torso. The blade pierced the sentry's side and Carn felt hot blood flow over his hands. They rolled, Carn's blade still stuck, as they vied for position and the guard fought for his life. Carn knew that the longer the fight went on the more disadvantaged he would be, he was injured and as as they struggled he felt wounds reopen and his shoulder jar. He had to end this quickly. 

The guard got the upper hand however and landed a punishing blow into Carn's face, he felt bone break, though whether it was his cheek or jaw he was not sure. The guard sat astride Carn and smashed another fist into the Prefect's face snarling in fury. Carn tried to throw his opponent off but his strength was failing him, his gun was pinned underneath him out of reach. In desperation he reached for his knife, still lodged between his enemy's ribs. blood slicked fingers grasped and slipped on the handle as the guard wrapped both hands around Carn's throat and started to squeeze. Carn's struggles grew weaker and weaker as the guard, hissing triumphantly, choked the life from him. No, not like this, he wouldn't fail like this. He, wouldn't fail the Emperor, be unworthy of his light! But that light was fading, Carn's vision started to darken as his brain was starved, his efforts to dislodge the guard growing ever more feeble, his mind fogged and despite the situation he started to calm, a strange peace filling his body.

Then he was free, the guard's crushing weight was gone. Carn was able to move, more importantly, he was able to breathe. He sucked down great greedy lungfuls, of air, gasping as his mental faculties returned. looking to one side and then the other he saw the prone figure of the guard. As the blur faded he then saw a knife sticking out of the guard's chest, his knife. He had no recollecting of landing the killing blow, no recollection of even obtaining the knife. Carn sat up, aches and pains shooting throughout his body as his mind attempted to make sense of what had happened. The guard was quite dead, his rictus snarl intact despite all life being absent from his form. Carn regarded his vanquished foe for a moment and then rolled to his hands and knees before shakily getting to his feet. he leaned against the nearby length of piping, hands on knees, recovering from the fight. He was conscious of the noise the struggle had caused and tried to listen for any activity or alarm over the blood pounding in his ears. It seemed that the fight had not drawn any attention however and after a few moments recovery he cast his mind towards what came next.

The body caused a problem, though he had been fortunate to catch the guard just after a check in he would no doubt be missed at some point. However long that took was pretty much how long Carn had undetected. He contemplated hiding the body, there was not all that much blood on the ground and he could kick ash and dirt over that easily enough. But, no, the body would be discovered before long and a hidden corpse would cause suspicion. Just then, as Carn was weighing up his options,  a solution was once again provided for him. Stalking from the shadows came a skulking form, a quadruped of the kind he had encountered before. Carn snapped his head up and as swiftly as he could, retrieved his knife. The predator was not interested in him though, there was an easier meal available. The predator hesitated as Carn prepared to defend himself, but upon seeing that Carn was making no further aggressive move approached. Still though it would not feed on the corpse, it's instincts taking precedence over it's need to feed. Carn fished about for a strip of the Ashworm meat, selecting the most tender portion, he tossed it to the far side of the dead guard and the beast approached it, sniffing it cautiously before wolfing it down. It was clearly hungry. Carn stepped forward, knife in hand, and threw another scrap of Ashworm flesh. The creature regarded him cautiously with glowing eyes, sniffing the proffered food tentatively before once again eating it whole. Carn used this moment to slit the guard's throat. A slash across the torso would have been preferable but the mining suit was thick and difficult to cut through , though the knife would have done it given time. In any event the result was the same. As the blood poured from the ruin of the guard's throat and Carn retreated, the predator-turned-scavenger turned its attention to the corpse, lapping at the pool of blood before fastening its jaws upon the dead guard's throat.

Satisfied that he had utilised the Emperor's gift as best as possible and that the guard's death would now be explained away as an animal attack, Carn turned around and walked back to the door without a second glance. He had the presence of mind to retrieve his boots from atop the pipe first, slipping them back on though he ached and his right foot was swollen.  Hefting the door open with a grunt Carn stepped into the darkness of Endomaw mine at last.