Apocalypse Diaries (40k)

“I hear tanks up ahead.”, I tell Regret.

“I know. I could feel them five klicks back, and don’t give me that face. It wouldn’t have done you any good to know.”

I kept a well worn glare at him for some time, not sure if I should ask him what was going on, kill him and put me out of my misery, or kill me and do the same. Sadly it seems my hand was played for me.

“Why don’t you ask me what in the blue blazes is going on, pretty one.” he said with the first smile I’d seen on him. It wasn’t a bad smile on anyone else, but on him, I think everyone short of  punch Drunk Ork would run away in fear. So what did that make me?

“Well, since you know what’s on my mind, freak, ‘what in the blue blazes is going on?’”

“Space Marines no doubt. Judging from the number of psykers, they are of the Inquisition. Oh, this is a suprise.”

He’s suprised. That can’t good. “What so damn odd, Regret?”

“Dark Angels, and lot of them. Why would they be here? They hate the inquisition…Hide!” With a flick of his wrist, I was thrown into the bushes, and he hid in a tree.

A trio of bulky commandos in green armor walked past where we stood. Each of them wore a faded blue armor, and carried a sniper rifle. Their commando scanned the surroundigns with his one, red bionic eye. I heard him curse from under his breath, something on the lines of his bionics were all screwy again. We waited fifteen minuts after the trio had finished scouting ahead.  Regret jumped down from his perch, and I crowled out of my little hole.

“Odder still. I thoght the Ultramarines died durring the last Tryanid invasion.”

“I don’t care, why did you push me?”

‘Unknown woman who is as dangerouse as a Traitor Marine, and a Psyker who is not on the database walk into you while you were patroling. What do you think the fools would have done?”

“Anything else you’d like to mention?”

“Yes, stay out of any clearings. We need to find the Sisters of Battle, and soon, or else our fate is to die.”

S0 I continued on with Regret, regreting ever coming along with him. By nightfall we found one of the refuelling stations Redcliff used when doing long hauls of supplies and convices. It wouldn’t be permanant, but it beat sleeping outside. We both figured it would be anther week of hicking to find the main facility, if it was still standing.

I am inmate 7318426-26/11, and this is going to be a long week.

One foot in front of another. A drudge. A walk with a purpose. I took another step.

It happens many times when your mind, body, and soul become tired. Everything becomes mechanical. You forget the feel of weariness or the aches of muscles overused. The cogs within the body just follow the automatic response and take another step. Your purpose is to survive and to survive you need to take another step. It’s not like basic training and the commissar will shoot you and put you out of your misery. What happens if you stop will be worse and most of all, you know it. Step.

Your mind though is another matter when it becomes tired. It begins to wander. Part of it is always on duty, ordering the rest to preform what needs to be done. The drudge. If I stop I might be dead or worse. I took another step. The other part of your mind is like a bookshelf full of books, but instead of starting in a logical order at the top and to the left it is illogical, its associated.  I take the tenth book in from the second to the bottom shelf. I remember that I need to take another step. The routine helps. I took another book.

I am in some wooded highlands paralleling a trail that leads to salvation or destruction. I know that I am headed in the right direction since near the trail is a stream going down the high country. Most civilizations are located down stream is what’s taught in basic survival. I wonder if Redcliff still survived and if it was still civil? I did what I do best at this point and took another step.

Regret followed me at his own pace. That was his way. Regret never tired, he never rested, but I knew Regret could be destroyed. I took another step.

I looked up startled. I hear the sound of a tracked vehicle. Is it friend or foe? Now what do I do?

I am inmate 7318426-26/11 and for the first time in my life, I do not know what lies ahead of me.

Regret was aptly named. Remorse and recriminations were what it was made of. If it weren’t for the Sister Superior, I would swear it was almost a daemon made flesh itself.  It watched over me as I slept. Regret never slept. Regret was aware of my short comings. Regret was aware of my weakness.

The sun peaked over the horizon looking around the razed buildings. It was a sickly green colour. There were carrion animals everywhere. Rats and crows ate the festering bodies of the fallen. Arbites, Sisters, and criminals alike had fallen in the defense of this world. Some say that all sins are absolved in the Emperor’s Service. There was no one to give a final benediction to the fallen. Just myself, left alone with Regret.

We continued onward, not stopping throughout the day. We managed to dodge patrols and firesweeps. I almost trod on the limp body of one of the 8th. The Spiders, the gang that Kellen had. His face was twisted in grim deterimination with his finger still squeezing the trigger of the Sororitas pattern bolter he was holding. Every dead person was holding a weapon, and a look of either fear or detrimination on their face. The last stand they gave would have done for any of the exemplar units of any of the Emperor’s military.

We walked on, and on. Almost never stopping.

I am inmate 7318426-26/11, I am alone with Regret.

Time and space didn’t seem to matter anymore, only the constant threat of danger. Whatever or whoever was here, it wasn’t friendly. Corpses of strange armored behemoths and what was left of my fellow inmates covered everything. Some were simply bludgeoned to death; others looked as if they had been chewed up by a chain weapon, while others had their flayed bodies hanging from the ceiling like macabre decorations.  Even the elite armored division and a few of the assassins I saw on the day I first met Regret were no match to these things. All of them were large, possibly a good three meters in height, with runes and disturbing images etched into the black armor they donned. While I guess I shouldn’t be surprised what I see now, considering everything I saw in this hell hole, the spiralling pair of horns growing out of their skulls was more than enough to send shivers down my spine. What were they?

The words Chaos, and Marines echoed in my mind for a long time, and a sense of familiarity was coming over me. Maybe for too long, for I could hear heavy footsteps of at least a dozen individuals in heavy battle armor, possibly more of these… Chaos Space Marines. Whatever they were, I didn’t want to find out. With the strength and bearings I had left, I ran down the bloody hall away from the marching doom approaching me. Like a small animal in a hunters trap, I was afraid of what was to become of me. Would they skin me like the others, or would that be merciful compared to what else they could do to me?  Fortunately, if you could call it that, I didn’t have to find out.

A hand grabbed mine and pulled me into the shadows. With one hand wrapped around my face, and an arm around my waist, I could hear some foul breathed monstrosity shush me in my ear. Then it came to me, mental images, and a voice telling me what to do. ’Stay still pretty one. It will be over soon. In the shadows, you must wait a little longer. Wait until they have found a new toy to play with before you come out.’ Although I could hear him, I knew no sound was coming out of his lips, just a foul smelling, raspy breath of someone scared out of his mind. A mind that violated mine. 

As he predicted, a dozen black-clad individuals walked past, carrying some kind of spherical device on their shoulders. The leader, a massive beast, even by their standards, lead the way wielding a huge battle axe. His helm, reminiscent to that of a medieval knights, was remarkably clean; a clear contrast to the gore encrusted, and blood stained body it was attached to. He peered around a few times, and ordered his troops to continue on, he mutterws something along the lines of ”By Great Papa Nurgle’s hindquarters, move yar arses! We bloody well don’t have all day! If we get ‘tiss done soon, we’ll be able to get some more Blood for the Blood God, and Skulls for Skull Mount!” The group grumbled a bit, but you could tell they all agreed with their leader. They continued their slow march, ignoring us for now. Still, neither one of us wanted to move for quite some time. It must have been ten minutes before I thought it was safe to move again. My captor must have thought the same thing, for he let go. I ran into the light, pulling my blade from my boot. It had been far too long since it tasted blood last. 

“Hello, Regret.” I began. “What brings you out?” 

“My sister is dead. I destroyed the body so it would not be violated.” he said in a solemn voice. For the first time I noticed how young he looked. I had heard rumors how old he was, at least ten years older than Berkley. But for that instant, at least, he seemed like a young pup, no more than twenty years of age, if that. Well, in any case I finally got some good news.

“Is that so? Why should I care?”

 ”Because it is you she believed you would save us from ourselves. It is you, Pretty One, that will purge this place. Please, come with me.”

 ”And why should I do that?” I yelled, not trying to hold back my anger.

 ”Because I can help you survive this. You must trust me in that regard.” He timidly held out a hand. I had questions, he had answers, but I also wanted pay back for what he did to me. 

I am inmate 7318426-26/11 - and I am unsure whether I should to take his hand or cut it off.

Everything can change with a word.

How many times do we really think about what we say? The spoken word can convey joy or pain, happiness or heartache and once it is spoken there is no retracting it. Nothing within your power can grasp it as it had never been said. The spoken word is permanent.

“Shit…”

My ears were still trying to clear themselves from the pressure of the explosion that had just occured. The siren was growing louder and there was weapons fire. 

An event can change everything. The touching of a singular button on a pad. The illumination of pixels on a screen and then you read, ‘you are on your own’. The message was loud and clear. Redcliff and others were on there own against an ‘unknown’ excursion and were ‘expendable’. If they could survive six months they would be resupplied and possibly reinforced.

I ran for daylight and the gunfire. I was weak but getting stronger. I just needed to be away from here where it wasn’t safe.

Just as I hit an opening in the wall of the building, a blood covered inmate ran towrds me howling. The streaks of blood were self inflicted and stained his clothes. It looked like more blood than his but the crude mace made of a hunk of pipe distracted me from my observations.

Swing, dodge, and a miss. ‘Crude and clumsy’ over swung the weapon and hit the side of the building that was still standing. I deftly kicked him where the sun didn’t shine as he turned and he crumpled to his knees. I could almost see his face turning blue from being unable to catch his breath through the crude war paint.

I grabbed his hair and showed him my knee up close. His last vision would be the ground as I dropped him to it face first. He never lost the grasp on the pipe. It was wired in place around his clenched fist. I filed it away to contemplate later.

The gunfire was getting closer. So I ran. I had no idea if it was friend or foe and needed to find out.

 I am 7318426-26/11 - And this time its war!