The convoy threw up a cloud of purplish ash as it drew towards the crash site. Two Chimera Transports and a brace of Armoured Sentinels trundled towards the burning scattered wreckage that lay between two large rock formations. A long furrow had been gouged in the earth where the shuttle had impacted and the path was strewn with debris. One Chimera and a Sentinel each ground to a halt at either end of the trail of destruction.
Brother Lek stomped down the descending ramp of the Chimera that had stopped nearest the initial point of impact. It was dark, the only light came his suit lamp and from the twisted and burning metal that littered the ground. The searchlight on the Chimera swung around to try to illuminate the gouge torn in the earth.There was little left, most of the pieces here were of the wings, torn away from the main fuselage as the craft had ripped itself apart. Suddenly the illumination increased considerably as a Valkyrie gunship flew overhead before settling into a circling hover pattern, a powerful spotlight casting its beam in a sweeping arc across the crash site. Lek looked up as it moved, calculating the shuttle's path
An overhead crystal outcrop had been shattered, shards littered the area and some of them had impaled themselves deep into the surrounding rock such was the violence of their destruction. Clearly the shuttle had hit this first and it had altered its trajectory enough to result in a horizontal slide rather than a meteor like impact into the earth. This was the only thing that had prevented the shuttle from being utterly obliterated on impact. The shuttle had then hit the ground on one side and a wing had been torn off, the shuttle then cartwheeling along, losing the other wing and shedding pieces of its hull, ripping itself apart as it went.
Lek kicked a piece of smouldering wreckage aside, there was little debris here that was big enough to have to be investigated but they had been instructed to look for a body. Were they doing the search for appearances sake or were they actually meant to bring the body back? That was for the Magus to decide. He could see His Yellow robed form a few hundred foot away, directing the other search team. Comprised mostly of 3rd Generation hybrids they were a little more brutish and less independent but they were truer to the vision of the four armed Emperor and therefore blessed and holy. He could see them flipping over pieces of wreckage, silhouetted by the flames. Another group nearby were gesticulating wildly and the Valkyrie moved to cover them with the spotlight, Ganvan strode over to their position and Lek broke into a run to join them.
As he approached he could see what had agitated the Thirds, Though there was no single piece of the shuttle left large enough to be called intact, the spread of wreckage did include some larger pieces of fuselage and interior partially covered in the strange grey/purple ash. Seats were strewn across the ground. One of them was still occupied.
The pilot worked it's jaw and what remained of it's right arm spasmodically. Various fluids leaked from tubes and ruined flesh, intermingling on the floor and soaking into the dark ash, congealing and solidifying. Like the shuttle there was very little of the pilot left and it was only the extensive augmentations and bionics that meant it was still alive at all. Alive might be have been the wrong term, functioning might be more accurate. In any event, it wasn't in that state for long, at a nod from the Magus a hulking Third ripped the pilots body from the seat and harness in a gush of blood and lubricants. Holding the stricken cyborg aloft in its claws it savagely blew its head apart with a burst of fire from it's auto pistol before tossing the ravaged remains aside with a guttural snarl. No survivors. The Magus nodded approvingly and turned to face Lek as the Valkyrie made another looping pass with it's searchlights.
"Well?" He swept his Staff in a wide arc encompassing the crash site, "any sign?"
Lek swallowed hard, though he did not fear the Magus, it simply galled and pained him to disappoint such a venerated figure. He bowed his head before replying.
"My humblest apologies Holy One. No sign of the human, but given the completeness of destruction of the transport it is unlikely that anything significant could be found." He raised his head once more to meet the Magus's piercing stare as he replied.
"Take no chances, continue the search and ensure that you are thorough. We need to be sure. We cannot afford a repeat of the incident in the mine. It is not time yet" Ganvan's eye's glinted, leaving no illusion as to what he meant. He abruptly turned and stalked away, a Sentinel coming to a halt to allow his passage. He boarded the Chimera accompanied by a guard of Thirds, the ramp closed and the tracked transport ground its way through the ash and departed, leaving Lek in charge of the search operation. Standing framed by fire Lek swore that he would not fail as he had with the previous human visitor. He strode back over to his squad to organise the search.
***************
Some distance away weary and pained eyes watched the crash site activity though they could not make out any details. Carn didn't know how he was still alive. He had been thrown far from the site of the crash, landing in soft ash rather than hard rock and somehow escaping the conflagration of the shuttle's demise. There was no wreckage around him. It was dark and he was more or less invisible, not least because he was covered in purplish ash. Nonetheless, he had not escaped entirely unscathed. At least three of his ribs were broken and one arm hung uselessly by his side, his shoulder dislocated. He would have to take care of that at some point. Blood and ash also covered his face and he had a number of minor lacerations to his torso and arms. However, from what he could see of the wreckage of the shuttle it was nothing short of a miracle that he had survived. Truly the Emperor Protects, he thought, mentally reciting a prayer of thanks to the Master of Mankind. Through a haze of pain he watched the indistinct figures go about their search. He'd seen one transport depart and now only one remained accompanied by two walkers and a couple of flyers circling the crash site.
Lying on one side Carn contemplated his next move. Injured and suffering from shock there was no way he could take immediate action. In addition his continued survival even should he remain undiscovered was by no means guaranteed. Aside from natural predators that might hunt him he had no supplies and no idea where he was. The Emperor may have saved him from certain death in the crash but it would be up to Carn himself to continue to stay alive. He resolved there and then however, that he would not spurn the Emperor's gift, he would not waste His benevolence and make the most of the miracle he had been granted.
Wincing, he reached inside his jacket with his good arm, feeling for the data slate. He pulled the slab from his pocket, gratified that there was no obvious damage, though it was dark enough that he could not see much in any case. After turning it over in his hand a few times feeling for any major damage he was satisfied that somehow it had survived largely intact, though it was obviously scratched and battered from its calamitous journey. He elected not to thumb the activation rune lest the telltale light betray his position, He would have to check it's functionality later. He slipped the slate back into his pocket and as he shifted position the sudden pain from his wounds made him pass out and he slumped into the dust with a dull thud.
It was
daylight when Carn awoke, blearily blinking ash and dust from his eyes. The
periodic ash storms that beset Worth had left even more of him covered than
before and he actually had to dig himself out, prying clumps of blood soaked purplish
ash from his person. He was stiff and sore but at least he could move. The
search party were long departed and the wreckage of the shuttle little more
than smouldering debris in the distance but he was careful with his movements
nonetheless, partly for fear of drawing attention to himself and partly from
necessity due to his damaged frame. He slowly extracted himself from the ash
and dirt and groggily got to his feet, grimacing as his various pains
intensified. Upright at last and granted light to see by, he surveyed his
surroundings;
He stood in a
small clearing among pillars of igneous rock and crystals, walled off by a
mighty formation of Basalt. indeed the entire area was almost entirely
inaccessible save for a gap up between rock formations no more than ten foot
across. The odds for him to be hurled from the crash through that small space
were beyond calculation, a few foot to either side and his death would have
been a certainty. He looked up and bought his undamaged arm across his eyes to
protect himself from the glare of the suns. As he did so the Aquila charm
glinted across his field of vision, dangling from his wrist. He bought his arm
back down and inspected the golden charm. He didn’t remember looping it around
his wrist but there it was, more puzzlingly the chain was fused. He likely
could break it but something told him that wasn’t a good idea. He looked up at
the gap in the rocks again and then floor around him where the light rays
filtering through the gap formed a crude Aquila on the dusty ground. The
charm keened, echoing off of the walls, resonating in the crystals, piercing
his soul.
Alistae Carn
had never been the most pious of men. He dutifully worshipped the God Emperor
of Man as all good Imperial citizens did, but it was rote, more as an
autonomous indoctrinated impulse rather than a deliberate and heartfelt act.
His obeisance was as unthinking to him as breathing, an everyday observation.
In an instant all that changed. He crashed to his knees, ignoring the pain
shooting through his body. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he gave himself to
the Emperor utterly in a way that he had never thought was possible, body and
soul immediately surrendered to His will. He wept as he gave thanks for his
deliverance and continued protection under His Aegis. For Carn knew in that
moment that he had purpose, divine purpose, and he would not fail in his given
task. He swore to this in all that he was. Framed by the Aquila of divine light
and fuelled by Holy intent, Alistae Carn was born renewed.
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