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>>2406858
-=-

Blood. Headache. The lingering taste of charged, actinic lightning.
I open my eyes to find myself in the realm of the Ancestors. Grey-green foliage proliferate the dense jungle-forest, but I am in a clearing. I habitually check for crawling-skin-vines on the floor - the source of much burn-itch-pain as a broodling - and find the leafy ground empty of hostile plant life. The heady scent of Kroot-Kindred permeate the air and earth.

"<You do not belong here.>" The low, withery sigh brings me a portion of my memories, old-memories of before-times. Life on the paradise world of Pech. It is the language of Kindred.

I turn around. There is no Kroot, only Pech. The leaves-and-plants sway lightly to invisible winds. "<I have come far, Ancestor. I journey the living world to seek greater Essence to collect for Kindred.>"

"<YOU DO NOT BELONG.>" This time a chorus of murmurs join the first, building up from susurrus clicks-and-whistles of my people. It is then I realise the voices come from the very trees and plants and flowers and greens themselves. The world itself has come alive.

"<I am Kroot,>" I try to explain. "<If a Kroot does not belong in Pech, then where?>"

"<You are no Shaper,>" they - it - a billion breezy voices joined in one - hiss back. "<Who are you, O Intruder, to trample upon the Holy-of-Holies? By what right do you stand amidst the Realm of the Ancients?>"

-=-

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>>2406867

[I lied about the 1/2, it should be 1/3. Sue me.]

[3/3]

"<I stand alone as the last living member of the warband Khor-Phreet. For ten years we followed the edict of Master Shaper Anghor Prok, selling the lives and experiences of Kindred in exchange for Essence. Two years ago, we were destroyed by beings that could not be overcome even by the entire warband. Our Shaper's wisdom faltered, the spearstaves of my Carnivore-Warrior brethren broke asunder, and the eyes and ears of the hunters were rendered useless against such monstrosities.>"

You pause, waiting for a rebuttal. The jungle is utterly silent.

"<Venerable Shaper-Ancestors, you have seen the need for careful vetting of Essence so that not all may degenerate into Kroothounds. Your wisdom and foresight have allowed us to prosper and to see our malleability not as a curse, but an advantage. I ask that you allow me to experiment as Kindred once did, when the dreaded Green Ones fell from the skies and the earliest of Shapers feasted upon their flesh to gain sapience.

The destruction of my warband has opened my eyes to the dark things that lurk between the stars. There are beings far more powerful than us, creatures of sorcery and physical aptitude that overpower even the strongest of Kroot. To slay and consume their Essence, taking their strengths and improving our own - is this not the way of the Kindred?>"

There is no response, only the fading of the scent of Kindred. The Ancestors did not answer your request, but they didn't exactly forbid it, either.

"There are many roads to power, killer. Do not mourn overlong that this particular gate is closed" the wyrd says, striding into the clearing. He looks as he did right before you consumed his Essence, the still-pulsing blood staining his blue robes crimson. As he grins, the second smile that you drew around yous neck opens as well in a macabre imitation of his lips. His insouciant grin is maddening, a smile that seems to beckon at strange and exotic knowledge, and at the same time deny you access from them. The face of a know-it-all. "You are right, of course. Your stuffy race needs change to survive the hostile Materium. If only you could seize the kind of power that slew your friends!" His high-pitched giggling rings around the clearing of the jungle-forest.

He stops within arm's reach of you.

>Punch the wyrd
>Shoot the wyrd
>Stab the wyrd
>Write in

>>2406892
>Write in
I will serve no lurker between the stars, as you have. We are the Kindred, and we serve no one. We will TAKE your strength for our own, and become the stronger for it, but we will do so on our terms, and we will not bend knee to another, as you have in your weakness.
>Consume him
We're gonna be the coolest Kroot around.

>>2406941
Just FYI you already did consume him. The whole spiritual journey to "Pech" is basically you tripping balls because you just got yourself psyker'd. So the wyrd you see isn't in the material world.

My apologies if that didn't come across clearly! You can, of course, try to consume him. Try.

>>2406892
>If only you could seize the kind of power that slew your friends!" His high-pitched giggling rings around the clearing of the jungle-forest.
>Punch the wyrd
kick the cheeki cunts ass.

hes literally asking for an ass woopen. I glad hes not a worshipper of "he who thirsts" else he might enjoy it. or the aberration might. this is trippy as fuck.

>>2406892
>>Punch the wyrd
Why would you people vote to eat chaos. That's dumb and against the rules for a reason.

>>2407104
I didn't vote for it but I'm still curious. At the very least I hope its dope and not some gay chaos junk. I wonder what kind of thing we'll be getting.

>>2407109
It's dumb chaos junk. Chaos always leads to dumb chaos junk. He had 4 eyes. He wasn't a regular unlicenced psyker.

>>2406973
Oh yeah, I know we ate him earlier. I just want to do it again. In our dreams. Hopefully get the point across to that buzzard he works for.

>>2406892
>Stab the wyrd
kill him twice

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>>2407045
>>2407104
[Looks like punch won. Aww, no one tried to talk to him? It's not like he was trying to kill you or anything.]

You punch the wyrd. There is a sharp crack as his neck twists unrealistically to accomodate the motion. A mixture of blood and spittle fly out from his mouth, but he brings his head back around to face you with his hands. He doesn't seem fazed in the slightest.

"Is that the way to treat the herald of your ascension? The one who will assist you in achieving your dream? You ate me for a reason, bird-man. You defied the will and history of your people, risked turning into an unspeakable thing... all for one thing!

Power! It is a bewitching concoction, an unlimited stash of ambrosia of the gods. And what gods! They lurk behind every shadows, watching all mundane mortals' lives and wishing to assist them to their betterment, demanding very little for a taste from their divine amphorae. With the payment of an itty-bitty thing called your soul, and you will have to fear nothing. You will become like the very gods that strode forth to smite your Kindred!"

The wyrd licks his lips, and the second mouth you drew on his throat continues speaking.

"Indeed, you are the perfect candidate for the Lord of Change to vassalise, bird-thing. You seek evolution - He promises it! The mightiest of foes will be plucked from their thrones to be hurled down to the ground, and you will be given leave to feast on the carrion to search for their Essence. He will even help you re-open your connection to that Ancestral Realm of yours, so that all may enjoy the benevolence of the Raven God! What say you, avian?"

>"I will accept the patronage of the Changer of Ways. His philosophy aligns with that of Kroot - constant evolution. In time, I swear to assist Him in breaking down the veil between the sacred spiritual realm of the unbelieving Kroot so that they may all become enlightened."
>"I do not know this god. Perhaps, in time, I shall accept your offer. But for now, I will be attempting to master this newfound power of the psyker."
>Punch the wyrd
>write in

>Roll 1d100 to see how susceptible you are to psykic corruption! [DC 50]

Rolled 46 (1d100)

>>2407461
>>Punch the wyrd
Lets not be retards and just entertain chaos corruption. I'd rather not make an enemy of our entire race.

>>2407109
I'm gambling on us becoming psychic, since he clearly served Tzeentch.

Rolled 45 (1d100)

>>2407461
I swear, if we crit fail on this I'm gonna be pretty pissed.

>>2407461
>"I will accept the patronage of the Changer of Ways. His philosophy aligns with that of Kroot - constant evolution. In time, I swear to assist Him in breaking down the veil between the sacred spiritual realm of the unbelieving Kroot so that they may all become enlightened."
They respect strength and intelligence, things we can do

>>2407461
>write in
You are no "Herald to my ascension" human. You're, as we put it, an edible. I will take your strength for myself and my Kindred, but I will do so at the behest of no god, least of all the buzzard you serve. I seek change for my race so that we may further improve ourselves, as has always been our way, not so that we may please your petty god. I and my Kindred serve no god but ourselves.

>>2407461
>"I will accept the patronage of the Changer of Ways. His philosophy aligns with that of Kroot - constant evolution. In time, I swear to assist Him in breaking down the veil between the sacred spiritual realm of the unbelieving Kroot so that they may all become enlightened."
I can feel the warp overtaking me

>>2407639
>>2407516
Blueberry's totally going to shoot us if we turn to Chaos though. So is Monica, I'd assume, or she's at least going to flat out refuse to employ us. And we're currently chilling out on an Imperial World.

Rolled 28 (1d100)

>>2407461
I like power as much as the next guy, but I'm keeping my soul.
and considering we tower over him lets lift him up and break his back against our knee

I bet a certain red giant will feel this.

well shit. do we have any spare re-rolls left, or are we all out?

you anons should consider what >>2407672 is saying

>>2407672
It also makes us kill on sight by every single other member of our race.

>>2407721
if we can fix, mitigate, or unfuck ourselves then I hope we can at least take advantage of this.
Still a little soul about the soul thing. at least we can make things explode with our mind.

>>2407692
Good work anon. We're going by Dark Heresy rules, so lower is better.

>>2407732
Its chaos corruption. You can't seperate ink from water. We can't uncorrupt ourself.

>>2407461
Also, since my write-in's not gonna get support and I don't want us to sell our soul to Tzeentch of all gods,
>Punch the wyrd

>>2407733
>>2407739
GOD FUCKING DAMMIT HOW DO I KEEP FORGETTING.
does that mean its still all good to break his spine?

>>2407753
Yeah, we should be fine. I doubt we'll be able to avoid a little Warp taint, but if we'd failed it probably would have meant that we got possessed by a Daemon or turned into Chaos Spawn or something equally unpleasant. The roll was to resist it, not purge it. That'd kind of defeat the point of eating him.

We are kroot. We adapt. We change. We evolve. We accept because evolutionary progress alone is our master. What we dine on to get there is immaterium ... /rimshot

From what I can see it's a tie between punch and embracing Khay-oss. Some of the commenters haven't even voted, too :<

Oh and in case anyone wants to read the first one

>>2388769

>>2408167
why not both?

>>2408167
Then throw in another vote for punch.

Fuck I wish I'd been there in time to vote against eating the fucking forbidden fruit (cool though this trippy sequence is)

>>2408167
Embrace our future brother

>>2408167
Might as well follow our destiny since we decided to eat him

>>2408167
can we punch it and bend it to our will without sacrificing a bit of soul? I don't want to be the puppet of some warp entity.

>>2408264
You can't deal with chaos and not be a puppet. Even when you think you've won, you've lost just for playing. Especially with tzeentch

>>2408167
I think the punching wins 5 to 4, assuming this is a vote against embracing Chaos
>>2408025

>>2408301
Actually, sounds like it might be for Chaos to. Kind of hard to tell.

>>2408270
i wish we could choose not to, but it looks like the best way to deal with it is punching

>>2408264
I'm pretty sure punching it is the equivalent of us taking whatever powers we get from eating him without agreeing to serve Chaos.

>>2408322
Clever girl

yes

>>2408322
>>2408381
well thank god-
no, thank the emperor-
fuck no he's racist. thank the ancestors?

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>>2408381
can we still do this?

>>2408394
I think the Kroot's friendship with Ancestors ended as of this thread. Maybe. You DID break the taboo, after all. Still, they didn't issue a Pech-wide Kill On Sight* on you so there's that?

*yet

>>2408317
There is always the write-up option, brother

>>2408270
That's what Tzeentch would want you to believe!

>>2408220
I've already embraced it. Now the question is, what future do the Voices choose for our poor Kroot?

>>2408178
Give the poor QM some clear-cut answers anon T-T

Oh and I've archived the first post (yay I had no idea to do this as of two minutes ago), all the quests will have either Kroot Quest or Heretical QM tags:
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Kroot%20Quest
^ like so!

>>2408433
If punch wins I'll add that just for you anon

>>2408450
I stand by my desire to beat up the cultist, break his back and take the power without chaos and soul exchange bit, seeing as we can't exactly reject it after consuming the flesh.

punch
>>2407464 q0yCnMR3
>>2407521 g7sjQUHf (?)
>>2407686 4uZh6FEv
>>2408208 leGy4FZn


chaos
>>2407516 NTl94mae
>>2407639 Djr8bBQQ
>>2408220 uWS6/qYa


both
>>2408178 LpZ//awT

?????
>>2408025 +15EAkKS

>>2408503
We can induce vomiting.

>>2408503
Pretty sure the ???? is pro-Chaos, which results in a tie between punch and chaos

Honestly surprised that people are even considering Chaos route, DESU. Time to look up what Chaos Spawn do in their spare time, I guess

Jokes aside, how was the quest so far? There were some things on chargen thread that I'd have done better (read: clearer), and because I started writing it with first-person (for that I am Kroot joke) it became hell to write. You may have noticed that I switched away from it for this thread.

>>2408565
...why is there a giant capitalised "desu" in place of my contraction for the phrase "to be honest"?

>>2408565
colored text is good. quest is doing good so far.

Sorry, yah. I was saying embrace chaos. We care for the changer of ways as much as he cares for us. Which is to say not a whit. Yet he offers evolution. Change. A chance to evolve, and then, of course, betray.

>>2408576
you mean when the ruinous powers eventually betray us or we some how betray the spirit think inside of us?

>>2408576
And thus, the fate of Urist McKroot hangs in the balance. Will it (he? Her? They? Note to self: don't forget to clarify gender of character at the beginning.) choose to seize the power for itself, or follow the path of... whatever happens when you follow Chaos?

Another topic: I was looking up Kroot lexicon and names, and wow.

There is nothing.

So what are your prospective candidates for Ulrist McKroot's name?

>>2408594
M'lek

No Kroot Codex announcement :(

But Sisters of Battle are getting plastic figures, good for them

>>2408601
Reference to Mkell from Gaunt series?

>>2408614
>Gaunt series
nope, sorry. just something off the top of my head.
I can't believe people still want to accept chaos. what will our friends think?

>>2407461
>Punch the wyrd
I HAVE COME TO BREAK THE VOTE AND FREE US FROM THIS HERESY!

>>2408725
huh

>>2408614
is this good for a tie breaker or do you want to wait some more?

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>>2408725
>>2408025
>>2408220
>>2407639
>>2407516
>>2408208
>>2407686
>>2407521
>>2407464

>>2407461

"I do not serve."
The wyrd's smile freezes. "What?"
"I rule."
Your fist connect with his abdomen and he bowls over, expelling not-air from his gut. Your hold over this mindspace - whether it is psychic in nature or not - must be strengthening. That attack actually felt... physical.
"You... think you can tame the raw power of the Immaterium with brute force?" The wyrd cries, but there is no longer the smug grin that promised hidden knowledge. For the first time since he has met his killer, there is genuine fear in his face. Fear, and uncertainty.
"I have slain you before. I will do so again. What need have I of knowledge, when I can take them with the power of my will?"
You floor him with an uppercut that sees him hacking away a cough through a windpipe that no longer functions. So this is how the Carnivore-Warriors felt - exuberant with sheer strength pulsating through their veins! You had always thought them loud and bombastic dolts, idiots that hogged all the alcoholic drinks and the females. True, you still think that assessment is correct - but you also understand the why

I feel like I could take on the world.

You pick up the wyrd as he desperately claws at his esophagus to let through air that does not exist for his lungs that lie dormant in the material space. Up he goes, raised by your arms, and then down - a sizeable crack echoing in this mindspace as the mental apparition's back breaks in twain. The ruined man-form shudders once, twice.

>"Kneel." In this mindspace, I are king. At least, until it does not get broached from strenuous usage of the Warp. Perhaps I could... keep this apparition, gain insight and knowledge from one who has practiced sorcery for longer than I.
>"Die." No foul presence will taint my mind. I am myself, and that is that. Whatever knowledge I gain from this... thing, will be corrupted by its own intentions and desires.
>Other/Write in

>>2408859
Do we still keep the psychic powers if we kill him.

>>2408859
>"Die." No foul presence will taint my mind. I am myself, and that is that. Whatever knowledge I gain from this... thing, will be corrupted by its own intentions and desires.

>>2408871
You wouldn't have connected to ShaperNET in the first place if you didn't get that spark of a psyker

You did get banned from ShaperNET though for hacking your way in [read: not a Shaper], so no more Ancestor-assistance to you, m'lad

Now is not the time for posts... that comes later!
Baneposting aside, I need sleep. bai

>>2408871
dunno, but we can always eat the next psyker we find, regardless if we get any powers now or not.

>>2408877
oh, neat.

>>2408859
>"Die." No foul presence will taint my mind. I am myself, and that is that. Whatever knowledge I gain from this... thing, will be corrupted by its own intentions and desires.

>>2408859
>>"Die." No foul presence will taint my mind. I am myself, and that is that. Whatever knowledge I gain from this... thing, will be corrupted by its own intentions and desires.

Nice reference.
Though we're a Hunter Scout. Our job is literally to serve our shaper.

>>2408859
>"Die." No foul presence will taint my mind. I am myself, and that is that. Whatever knowledge I gain from this... thing, will be corrupted by its own intentions and desires.

Fucking chaos fags get out REEEE

>>2408859
>"Kneel." In this mindspace, I are king. At least, until it does not get broached from strenuous usage of the Warp. Perhaps I could... keep this apparition, gain insight and knowledge from one who has practiced sorcery for longer than I.

>>2408859
>>"Kneel

>>2408859

>Die

>>2408877
>Die, die, DIE
I couldn't resist. But yeah, we don't need this guy to help. He serves Tzeentch, scheming is what they do. We'll master our powers ourselves, if we must. Hopefully rejoining our ancestors will eventually be possible. They cut us off, but they didn't try and kill us, which leads me to believe that they at the very least see our point, but aren't willing to risk the entire species on us being right. So we're being tested, if I had to guess. Eventually, if we don't turn to Chaos, maybe they'll let us rejoin our brethren, having furthered the progress of our race.

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The being is untrustworthy, a worshiper of powers great and malevolent. To allow its survival by servitude in your own mind would mean having a spy working for these gods of his to lurk within your own head.

No. The rewards are too little, the risks too great.

You twirl the traditional hunter-rifle, making its scythed end-blade sing, not even surprised at its sudden appearance. You needed a weapon to kill with. You have been provided with one.

"Die."

-=-

"The hunter once again walks in the land of the living."

Sunlight streams across your face. You didn't have a window in your coffin-room...

"Where?" You manage to croak. Your throat feels dry. That was a harsher consuming of Essence than you're used to. You feel as though you'd been stretched and molded and pound into a new shape and form, and by the Ancestors, the headache!

"Easy now, you were out for a good twelve hours. Not a very good idea to do your grisly deed in the midst of a hostile zone, friend." The sympathetic eyes of the Tau looks down at you. "Still, very exciting! I've never seen the aftereffects of your race's feeding before. It made for interesting observations. Perhaps you will tell me more about it, yes? Come, drink. And after you feel a little better, we- well, she has some food prepared for you."

Sunlight. This must be in a nice neighbourhood to be in a place to catch it, given that you are in a hiveworld - a smaller one than standard according to what you've heard from other human mercs, but sizeable nonetheless. The silk bed that you belatedly realise you are lying on feels heavenly compared to the near-solid mattress of the cube you slept in what seems like years ago.

>Accept the drink
>"Where?"
>"Monica?"
>"Mirror!"
>Other

>>2409576
Mirror!

>>2409576
>>Accept the drink
>>"Where?"

>>2409576
>Accept the drink
>"Mirror!"
>"Monica?"
In that order.

>>2409576
>>2409582
Support

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>>2409598
>>2409582

Accepting the drink, you greedily guzzle the cool liquid down your gullet. The room you are in is simple, though clean. White curtain wafts breezily from the wind outside, lacking the usual stench of gutter-oil that you've grown used to in the mid- and lower-hives. Nice place.
"Mirror." You whisper. Your tongue feels stiff yet.
"Are you sure?" Ko'vash looks pitifully. "I'd rather you didn't lose your desire for breakfast, so early in the day and all."
"Hah hah," you say sarcastically. "Mirror!"

Ko'vash hands you his mirror, a simple utilitarian one used for one of his field surgeries. "Don't say I didn't warn you."
You look into the mirror and find your usual self. Thank the Ancestors, there was no horrifying mutation to your looks. That old man wasn't exactly a looker, after all.
You do note however that your eyes seem distinctly more human, and that the iris have changed colour from their usual murky grey - there is now a touch of violet in your eyes.

"Monica?" You inquire. Ko'vash understands and he almost-grins roguishly.
"Your lady love ventured forth to mingle among commoners after expressing desire to barter for items necessary for her holy quest."
"In Low Gothic, you mongrel-Tau."
"Must I use that vulgar tongue?"
"[The most vulgar of tongues is that of your mother,]" I respond in Tau.

>Turns out a Kroot knows Tau language. Colour me surprised. [REMEMBERED: You know Tau-ese. And a smattering of High Gothic. And Low Gothic, obviously. Kroot are known for being very good at learning new languages!]

[1/2 because 70 LETTERS JESUS CHRIST]

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>>2409623
[2/2]

"Very well," he says with a huff. "No need to dredge my noble language into this. She's gone to the markets so she can... "manufacture something for the nutrification of the Avian-Form"."
"..."
"Yep."
" Manufacture food?"
"Her words, not mine."
"There's no way I'm getting out of eating her "food", is there."
"Not unless you want to make her cry. Again." He throws a significant look my way. "Be grateful that I didn't let her spoonfeed you while you were unconscious. As a chirurgeon, I consider it my sacred duty to prevent the lethal poisoning of my patients."
"You're all heart, you rascal. If you care so much, why don't you scarf down the food she prepared for me?"
"Not a patient anymore, mon ami . I hereby present you with a clean bill of health. You're on your own."
"Tell me there's at least a good news, seeing as this is the bad."
Ko'vash chuckles. You do not like this chuckle. "If you think the food is the bad news, wait till you see our host. Speaking of which - what do the humans say? It's a bingo?"
"It's just bingo. What do you mean-"
Ko'vash pincers my chin with his hand, interrupting the rest of the sentence, and turns my head to the doorway. A woman stands with her arms akimbo, glaring ominously at my bedridden form, her piercing blue eyes achingly familiar.

Surena.

>Run
>Hide
>Accept your fate
>Go back to sleep
>"Ah, I see. I am still within the dream." Pinch your arm.
>Other/Write in

>>2409624
Oooh, backstory
>Accept your fate
As long as it doesn't involve purging by the holy fire of the Emperor.

>>2409624
>>Accept your fate
Oh boy hope this isn't bad

>>2409624
>>"Ah, I see. I am still within the dream." Pinch your arm.

>>2409624
>Other/Write in
I need to get the rest of my stuff from the hotel later. got the stuff we looted? we gonna give our friend a cut?

>>2409624
>Go back to sleep
maybe she wont bother us if she thinks we're asleep.

>>2409672
I'm pretty sure she's been watching us chat with Ko'Vash, so I don't think she's going to fall for that.

By the way, I did mention this lass before. Just sayin'.

====

"Anyway," I decide to change the topic, "who else is here? From the ever-shortening list of our common acquaintances, I mean."
The Tau looks thoughtful as he scans the room. "Mmm. I am myself new in this sector of Imperial frontier. I have heard from little erija-birds that your old flame was seen in this very hive-city, however. Her name - it eludes me... it was Surena, yes?"
Evades him my arse. He remembers her name perfectly.
"Old news." I grunt.
"Old love may be enkindled and bring flames anew," he counters. That damnable almost-grin of his shines in his blueberry face. "Either way, she will be most displeased that you have found another bedfellow. So soon after coming to this world, too! I really must compliment you in your philandering skills."

====

That was from the first thread.

>>2409676
sssshhh. we're part ork. if we believe hard enough it might just work.

>>2409677
of shit. you're telling me our old flame is a sister of battle? damn, like just...wow.

I think our kroot should probably be male.

>>2409677
Yeah, I remember her being mentioned . Didn't think she'd be a human though. Or a SoB. That's quite the bit of Heresy she's indulged in, surprised she hasn't been fired or something.

>>2409686
maybe our Tau friend is only over romanticizing it

>>2409689
He is calling Monika our latest lady love, so I feel as if it's either wishful thinking, or teasing.

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>>2409628
>>2409637
>>2409647
>>2409672

Ah. I see. This is just a drea-

"If you go back to sleep I swear in the name of the Emperor (beloved by all) I am going to shove my bolter so far up your arse, everyone will hear why we're called Bolter Bitches."

Beat.

"This... this is beautiful," Ko'vash says in between bouts of sniffing. Do Tau even cry the way humans do? "The old gang's back. It's like one of those reunion scenes from my trids!"

Meanwhile, you have entered a zen-like trance. It is said that before battle, the Tau Fire-Warriors engage in ritual melee combat to hone their "fighting spirits" to its utmost. Perhaps this is comparable to that - you may not be dueling mano-un-mano, but you certainly are readying your mental faculties for the avalanche of verbal abuse ahead. Deep breaths. Everything is one. All is tranquility. The state of ultimate acceptance, the letting go of emotional attachments.

You are the eye of the hurricane, the steadfast rock against the whirlwind. Fifteen thousand men besieged castle Kyo-ou-machi in the infamous Imperial Guard campaign in the fortress-sept world, but despite months of earth-shattering artillery fire the castle stood proud. You are that castle. You are the cherry blossom petals that fall five centimeters per second in the spring-

"You are ready," you can hear the gruff voice of a wizened old Tau sensei reverberate in your head. Yes. I can withstand this. You open your mouth to say-

"Ehhhhh, so this was your ex? He looks very heretical!"

"Sister Anya, I am currently trying to conduct a serious interrogation."

"You should have called me!" Says the Sister Hospitaller attached to Surena's back. "We're experts in torture techniques, you know! Chems can work both ways." She certainly seems enthusiastic.

"Th-there's no need to go that far yet! I am just making the initial interrogation to see how willing the subject is-"

"Ho, I can see why you like him. He has that... roguish charm, you know? And doing it with him would be interesting~"

"SISTER ANYA!" Surena shouts, her face red. "I do NOT like him! Whatever happened between was ended when I joined the sisterhood!"

"You know, nobody else in the convent takes that vow of chastity thing seriously. Did you see Sister Olga's new whipping boy yesterday?"

Well then.

>"Oho, so you do still have feelings for me? [Tease]
>"I appreciate offering us sanctuary, sisters. Though I must admit I am surprised that my presence here is tolerated..." [Formal]
>"I am a patient. I am going back to sleep." [Coward]
>"<Sorry, you got the wrong Kroot. I know, I know, we all look alike to you humans.>" [No hablas español]
>Punch Ko'vash

>>2409868
I...what...but...how would that even WORK!?!
>"I appreciate offering us sanctuary, sisters. Though I must admit I am surprised that my presence here is tolerated..." [Formal]
I feel like the first, second and third options are going to get us a bolter up the ass we don't have.

>>2409872
Imagination of course. Strap ons, fingering, oral play
....
I should shut up now.

>"Oho, so you do still have feelings for me? [Tease]
I don't expect her to outright kill us, but I do expect to get a armored fist to the face and a black eye, maybe worse.

>>2409868
>>"I appreciate offering us sanctuary, sisters. Though I must admit I am surprised that my presence here is tolerated..." [Formal]

>>2409868
>I appreciate offering us sanctuary, sisters. Though I must admit I am surprised that my presence here is tolerated..." [Formal]

>>2409868
>"<Sorry, you got the wrong Kroot. I know, I know, we all look alike to you humans.>" [No hablas español]
>>Punch Ko'vash
Going for both of these

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>>2409872
>>2409904
>>2409915

"I appreciate offering us sanctuary, sisters. Though I must admit I am surprised that my presence here is tolerated..."

Sister Anya giggles. "My, how gentlemanly! If I was blind, I'd think I was speaking to a lord." She gives you a curtsy, her snow-white hair falling low as she bows. "Welcome to the convent of Our Patient Lady. As you can probably tell by now, we aren't one of those melta-to-the-face convents. Our Lady Saint began as a member of the Missionaria Galaxia, you see, so we tend to have a little more... shall we say, tolerance, for young strapping Xenos!" She is definitely eyeing your lean Kroot-muscled chest now. Which is when you remember you aren't wearing anything below the waist.

"Sister Anya!" Looks like Surena has had enough, and she furiously drags her antagonist away with her. Before she fully exits the room, she turns and shoots you a glare. "This is not over," she mouthes silently, before closing the room explosively.

"Well." Ko'vash is all smiles.

"You had to bring me to the one place in the entire hive that I would be in mortal danger in."

"More than one, I'd say. There are some fanatics going around murdering Xenos, don't you know? Even with the lax anti-alien rules of a frontier world, zealots will be zealots."

"But a Battle-Sister convent?"

"Technically, half-Galaxia, half-Hospitaller. I am daring, not stupid," he says, munching on an apple that seems to have materialised in his hand.

You sigh. At least that was over with. You'd half expected to be blasted with one of those melta guns these psychotic nuns seemed to love carrying. "Why is Surie here? She's neither of those two. Nine Hells, she's the most bloodthirsty woman I've met in my career."

The Tau shrugs. "Who knows? The way of the Greater Good is often mysterious. Yet all has purpose to fulfill the grand scheme of things. This, I know."

That damnable certainty of the Tau.

"How did you come to meet her, anyway?" He asks. "I never did get the full story."

>"She was a war orphan. Rescued her from one of the many battlefields. We traveled the frontier territories together back then, going where the war-sphere (and the job) took us."
>"Met her in the battlefield. We were working for some Rogue Trader then, who wanted us to attack a settlement of humans that went native in a newly found world. Turns out the Missionaria Galaxia had found the world first. We traded bullets until their Ecclesiarchic representative could get a vox through to the Rogue Trader's ship."
>"You'll never believe this, but there was this infiltration mission on an Imperial Governor's dinner party..."
>Other/write in

>>2410596
I'm surprised he doesn't know, since we seem to be long time compatriots. Guess
>"Met her in the battlefield. We were working for some Rogue Trader then, who wanted us to attack a settlement of humans that went native in a newly found world. Turns out the Missionaria Galaxia had found the world first. We traded bullets until their Ecclesiarchic representative could get a vox through to the Rogue Trader's ship."
Works.

>>2410596
>"She was a war orphan. Rescued her from one of the many battlefields. We traveled the frontier territories together back then, going where the war-sphere (and the job) took us."

>>2410596
>She was a war orphan. Rescued her from one of the many battlefields. We traveled the frontier territories together back then, going where the war-sphere (and the job) took us."
I think this one makes the most sense

>>2410596
>"She was a war orphan. Rescued her from one of the many battlefields. We traveled the frontier territories together back then, going where the war-sphere (and the job) took us."

Anya hates her adoptive dad. rip.

>>2410596
>>"Met her in the battlefield. We were working for some Rogue Trader then, who wanted us to attack a settlement of humans that went native in a newly found world. Turns out the Missionaria Galaxia had found the world first. We traded bullets until their Ecclesiarchic representative could get a vox through to the Rogue Trader's ship."

>>2410992
eh, change to
>"She was a war orphan. Rescued her from one of the many battlefields. We traveled the frontier territories together back then, going where the war-sphere (and the job) took us."

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>>2410963
Anya is the Sister Hospitaller anon. Surena ("Surie") is the ex.

>>2411004
>>2410992
>>2410950
>>2410769
>>2410766
>>2410620

"She was a war orphan. It was one of our earlier jobs, defending a riverside human settlement from other humans. It's weird how they fight each other more often than not, isn't it?"

This takes you back. The shriek of artillery, sporadic lasfire sounds from the opposite end of the village, where a regiment of Imperial Guardsmen were waging a war of attrition... your warband had been merely an auxiliary for the main IG force, and had been given recon duties. It was during your reconnaissance mission that you found a crying girl, clutching her weird-shaped doll, her eyes closed to block out anything around her.

When your scout-leader tried to coax her into coming with your group back behind safe (relatively speaking) lines, she refused in that obstinate way children are wont to do. It was your hand that she took, not his. Perhaps she saw something in the shared fear between the two of you. You were only ten, then, fresh out of Pech, and frightened half to death with the chaos of the battlefield. She couldn't have been older than nine or ten herself, and this, too, was her first war. She had seen a kindred soul.

"...could probably rule the galaxy, if that incorrigible race stood together," Ko'vash is saying as you return from your reverie. "So, that was it, then? Love at first sight? Two fresh-faced youths facing the galaxy together, sharing love forged in the fire of battle!"

>"Let me make this clear: there was absolutely nothing between us."
>[Blush wordlessly and cover self with blanket]
>"I never had the metaphorical balls to find out. It remained a one-sided crush..."
>Other/write in

>>2411292
>"Let me make this clear: there was absolutely nothing between us."
Well, now she’s too young, since we were basically an eighteen year old by Kroot standards by the time we met her. Besides, I feel like Ko’Vash is gonna tease us no matter how we put it.

>>2411305
I see it more as a period of apprenticeship. Think squires from ASOIAF, they can range from nine years old to older, I think? You weren't considered an adult at ten.

I'm making up most of these as I go on because there is very little canon information on Kroot, by the way.

>>2411292
>>"Let me make this clear: there was absolutely nothing between us."

>>2411309
Well, they’re regarded as adults by the age of twelve, as most of their maturation occurs in the first decade of their lifespan.

>>2411353
The more you know! How long is the avg lifespan of Kroot?

>>2411292
>>[Blush wordlessly and cover self with blanket]

>>2411355
While they mature quickly, their lifespan as are similar to humans, since they can live as long as 100 years old. They apparently age well, since the only real indicator of their age of that their skin grow leathery and more pitted.

>>2411378
Lifespans*

>>2411378
While they mature quickly, their lifespans are rather similar to that of humans, since they can live as long as 100 years old. They apparently age well, since the only real indicator of their age is that their skin apparently grows more leathery and pitted over time.*
Decided the just rewrite the whole thing.

>>2411292
>>[Blush wordlessly and cover self with blanket]
100%

Two blushes for no relationship and crushing. We need a tie breaker.

>>2411504
I vote for the blush. Why not honestly

>>2411508
Maybe be a little more subtle than that

>>2411292
>"Let me make this clear: there was absolutely nothing between us."

>>2411292
>Blush wordlessly and cover self with blanket]
>>"I never had the metaphorical balls to find out. It remained a one-sided crush..."

Old relationship
>>2411368 4uZh6FEv
>>2411388 KoHweMoF
>>2411508 mhF+X5KY


Just friends
>>2411305 wgfvl+IZ
>>2411349 q0yCnMR3
>>2411595 YXS5kmtS

Another tie it seems.

>>2411292
>[Blush wordlessly and cover self with blanket]

>>2411612
>Old relationship

>>2411739
prefer it not to be the blush but ah whatever

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>[Blush wordlessly and cover self with blanket]

The usual banter from Ko'vash does not follow. Peeking out of the blanket, you find him gazing wistfully out the window. Clambering onto a kneeling position on the bed, you also check out the view.

It is a nice day. As nice as could be in a hive city, in fact. The sisters must be favoured by the hive administrators to have been allocated a place in such high altitude. The air up here is cool and fresh, even fragrant from little pots of flowers hanging by the windowsill. The very act of opening a window feels like undeserved luxury. When was the last time you drank in unrecycled air?

Shifting your focus downward, you notice a squad of sisters training, fighting with quarterstaves in mock battle. The sound of their exertion rings pleasantly in the morning atmosphere. It's impossible to tell from this height if one of them might be Surena.

From somewhere within the depth of the nunnery, bells are ringing.

To think that this serene place coexists with that scummy underbelly of urban decay. Humans are such strange creatures.
Speaking of humans, you ate one yesterday. Or was it this morning? Hmm. The word "ate" triggers an intense growling from your stomach, reminding you that you hadn't eaten anything since you left the cube hotel last night.

"Monica is sure to come in any moment now with your grub," Ko'vash says distractedly, still looking out the window.

>Wait for Monica
>Go see what the bells are about
>Head to the kitchen to look for some food that isn't Monica's home-built cooking
>Check out the courtyard with the training nuns
>Other/write in

>>2412470
>>Go see what the bells are about

>>2412470
>>Wait for Monica
then we can train with the nuns

>>2412470
Wait for M

>>2412470
>Wait for Monica
Can we meditate, or whatever it is Psykers do to start Psyking while we wait? Want to see what we got out of eating our Kayoss friend earlier.

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>>2412674
>>2412654
>>2412510
>>2412505
[Thanks for the idea! I will try to incorporate suggestions into the writeups, so I always appreciate stuff like that as long as it doesn't conflict with the Kroot too much (ie "Can we have the Kroot cut his own fingers off?) It also makes the writeup that much easier since I can pluck sentences from the suggestions.]

The warm, maternal touch of the sun. Rose-scented breeze caressing your form. The presence of an old friend.

You reach out into that place you hastily dubbed the mindspace after you ate the old man. It is difficult, not because of the faint sound of training echoing from the courtyard or the delicious smell of hearty broth snaking up from below, but because of the very idyllic nature of your current disposition.
In other words, you feel lazy, like a cat napping on its owner's bed covers, unwilling to accomodate for the human who is late for work.

>Roll 1d100 to see how good your Willpower is!

Unrelated to the story, but after looking around for images for the stories I am getting super nostalgic for the days I spent in the Swiss Alps. The cute goat herds and their bells ringing me awake in the morn, the breathtaking vistas of the jagged mountain-spires, and the air! I wish I could put down in words the grace and natural beauty of the place, anons.

Fucking expensive as shite, though.

Rolled 76 (1d100)

>>2412703

Rolled 26 (1d100)

>>2412703
Here we go again

>>2412703
So, out of curiosity, are we operating by Dark Heresy rules with regards to Pskyers, or have you get something else in mind?

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>>2412726
So, it wasn't just a temporary thing, after all. You did inherit the power of the psyker. Though you are merely a broodling in this art, and wholly untrained, someday you may become more powerful than the wyrd ever was.

That is, if you survive long enough.

For now, all you know is that it takes an immense effort of will to even flex this newfound "muscle". Because of the lack of examples, you aren't quite sure what would happen if you somehow failed to properly harness this power...

>Gained 10 Willpower! Your Willpower is now 40. [This is a requirement for being a Psyker in the first place in DH2E]
>Gained trait: Rogue Psyker: Characters without the Adeptus Astra Telepathica background who gain the Psyker elite advance are not sanctioned. They do not gain the Sanctioned trait and count as rogue psykers.
>Gained trait: Psyker [Rating 1].

You shiver as you shake away a thin film of frost that seems to have materialised around your hands. Quickly looking up, you confirm that he hasn't noticed anything amiss.

Just as you consider trying it again, the door opens, revealing the presence of Monica. She is carrying a tray of... surprisingly tasty looking food. The smell is not bad, either.

"Sorry for the wait!" she declares, none of the shadow from the death of her friend last night on her face. "The cook threw away everything I made and gave me this instead, for some reason. She only created more work for herself, how inefficient... it's not like taste matters anyway, since it gets all mixed up in gastric acid in the end. Ecclesiarchy and their silly rules."

In this particular occasion, you find yourself mentally cheering for the poor Sororitas cook that probably had to wrestle the tray of... whatever Monica "cooked" up away from her.

>"Monica, from what I've heard your food, if you could call it that, was absolutely inedible. If Ko'vash hadn't stopped you, I would probably be actually dead by now from toxin overdose!"
>"What a tragedy that I don't get to eat your homemade cooking. Well, we can't always have what we want."
>Say nothing
>Other

>>2412768
Mostly following DH2E, yeah, though again I'm looking into simplifying a lot of things so it fits smoothly with the whole forum roleplay nature of quests. I've been begging Forgotten QM for his Black Company homebrew so I can take a gander at the personal - squad - army combat turns thingamajig, but he said it will be some time before he can post it.

For now assume DH2E-lite-kind-of!

>>2412810
>Other
Just thank her (And the Sororitas, mentally) for the food, don't want to give her any ideas about trying to hard to get her personal cooking into us. So, are we eventually going to be able to take on a discipline in the distant future, or is that more of a sanctioned psyker thing?

>>2412834
Sanctioned Psyker basically means you're a "legal" Psyker and went through the kind of training Imperial Sanctioned Psykers go through. It is something that's taken as a background thing BEFORE paying off the XP to get the "elite advance" that is Psyker, I believe.

Seeing as we'll never ever be admitted to be tested and trained for psychic stuff by the Imperium (and these things take years, if not decades), we likely will never see the poor Kroot be a Sanctioned Psyker.

Mechanically, being Sanctioned means you start at a Psy rating of 2 instead of 1, and not gain Corruption points for opening your mind to the Warp for the first time. Seeing as we already wrestled with the wyrd in mindspace, I decided to null the Corruption points.

Or should I be more stringent on applying those insanity-related modifiers?

>>2412849
You can be an illegal psyker in dark heresy?

>>2412849
Here's the DH2E chart on some more mechanical differences between the two.

https://i.imgur.com/k43Pun7.png

>>2412834
support.

>>2412853
Why would you not be able to?

>>2412863
I only have first addition which is apparently a lot different.

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>>2412853

>>2412849
Ik what Sanctioned Psykers are vs. Unsanctioned, but I was unsure if it was during official training that Psykers began to train in a specific discipline, or if Psykers naturally developed a specialty on their own, and the training for Sanctioned Psykers simply built on that specialty.

>>2412889
To be sanctioned psyker just means they got the stamp of approval as well as training from Scholastica Psykana

>Psykers naturally developed a specialty on their own, and the training for Sanctioned Psykers simply built on that specialty

Nope, usually psykers are sent to the Black Ships for the tithing where they're kept contained. Freely developing psychic powers is not something the Imperium allows since it may devolve into the psyker becoming a gate for daemon incursions,

>>2412905
I know, but does a Psyker naturally develop towards a specific discipline, such as Biomancy or Telepathy, or are they simply educated in a specific discipline during their training?

>>2412916
I'd guess that's after training because that stuff costs heaps of XP

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>>2412905
If we get guud enough, could we tap into Waaagh energy?

>>2413089
Need to eat more ork for that I bet. Maybe some brain boys.

>>2413157
One day I hope we can eat non-chaos space marine. Some of their Genesee, brains, carapace. A little of everything that makes a space marine so awesome.

>>2413157
If we got the chance to eat a space marine, what chapter do you think would be a good candidate?

>>2413162
Ultramarine would be purest. Everything is in order for them. Though salamander or dark angel would also be pretty good.
Imperial fist would be the next best, though they lack some features.

>>2413162
Ideally any of the ones lacking a significant genetic defect. Ultramarines ideally, though the Fists, White Scars, Salamanders, Iron Hands, Raven Guard and Dark Angels would probably do the job. Maybe avoid the Space Wolves or Blood Angels, since their genetic defects may have an adverse affect on us.

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Speaking of Blood Angels....
https://1d4chan.org/wiki/Mephiston

>>2413183
I wanna eat Alpha Legion, the sneaky gits

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>>2412834
"Thank you, Monica." Simple words, but they seem to make her happy, turning her sulk into a smile. And thank you, unnamed Sister-cook. "I appreciate that you made the effort. Isn't that a little heavy?" You ask, with no little concern. The dishes are being handled precariously with her mechadendrites. Monica does not seem to feel laden in the slightest, but the wobbling dishes makes you worry for the food.

"No worries! If there's anything I'm good at, it's manual labour! Magos Hotep once told me I was better than a servitor at it."

Shrugging, you dig into the food. There is no time to feel sorry for the slightly airheaded girl... that comes later.

The first dish - pan-fried whole trouts. The fish were skillfully deboned, liberally sprinkled (both within and without) with a fanciful combination of salt and fresh-ground pepper, and breaded lightly with a flour-and-cornmeal mixture. The dry-crumbly texture of the breaded fish was accentuated by the lemon slices stuffed into it just before being sent for consumption, adding a wondrous zesty touch to the whole thing.

To go with the fish dish is the mushroom and Gruyere cheese pastry. Pleasantly plump heads of mushrooms peak from beneath the pastry layers, promising bouncy fungi goodness with every bite. The combination of parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme makes it slightly over-done in the herbal department, marring the pastoral simplicity of the dish, but you are not one to complain for the results of overachievers, especially if it's this good.

You finish up with the dessert, a sizeable blackberry and apple cake. The roasted apple slices are not exactly your thing, since dried apples are a crime against good apple-eatin', but the blackberries surreptitiously spread throughout the cake is marvelously juicy, causing a veritable explosion of sweetness in your mouth every time you take in a slice with blackberries.

And to wash it all up is... water.

"Really? No wine to accompany this feast?"
Ko'vash screws up his face, his mouth half full from the food. "This is a nunnery, not a monastery. They don't cultivate vineyards here."
"Yeah, but it seemed thematically appropriate to have wine..."
"No doubt the sisters thought it dangerous to provide a hardened criminal like you with alcoholic drinks in a place filled with women. Why, you've practically a harem here to yourself," he chortles, coughs, chokes, and then swallows. What a messy Tau.
"So, Monica," you begin at the girl sitting opposite to you around the table where the food is set, "tell us more about this 'saving-the-world' adventure of yours. There wasn't a lot of time to get into it, but now seems like the perfect time."
Ko'vash indicates his interest with his hands as well, his throat still too raw to speak. This really is the perfect time.
"Hmm?" She gives a blank smile, her head tilted to a side. "Saving the world?"

[1/2]

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"You know, from last night, when you last saw... Kuu." You are as delicate as an Elysian drop trooper hurtling down an Ork-infested world. "The cafe Yberia?"
"Oh, Kuu!" She says happily. "I didn't know you knew him, too! Did you know he got married last year? He and Therise are such wonderful matches, don't you think?" She babbles on. "You know, Magos Hotep says I shouldn't be too involved with "organics", but I think that's just wrong! I mean, that's the whole point of my existence, you know? Magos Hotep is so silly! He doesn't even use me the way all the other Magi do, too!"
She leans in, whispering conspiratorially. "Magos Zhukov says Magos Hotep is slated for a 'semi-permanent off-world vacation' because of his morale. Or was it morals? I guess his eccentricities are obvious to the others. Still, I think he's earned a vacation. He's... he treats me kindly, I mean all the other tech-priests do too, but... I know I should be impartial, but I like it best when Magos Hotep is with me. The other magi don't b-b-b-bother me too much while he's around."
The stutter sounded more like an old holodisk stuck on repeat than a natural one. Monica seems oblivious it, however.

What the zog have you gotten yourself into?

>I'm not dealing with a crazy, possibly partially broken, and definitely amnesiac techpriest. 5k Thrones Gelt, here I come!
>Other/write in

[What are some memorable food you've eaten anons? I have no idea what Sisters eat, especially in more "civilian" convents like these, so I just dug out "medieval" recipes.]

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These bridge captchas are getting very irritating. Not as much as the cars, though. Here's the last image for the pie.

>>2413525
Well, that’s a tad...odd.
>Other
Try to send Monica off to do something for us without hurting her feelings, we need to speak with Ko,Vash alone. When we’re alone, we need to ask him a few questions. “Is Kuu still alive, or...? What exactly has transpired while I was recovering? Monica seemed rather...amnesiatic. A full recounting would be appreciated.”

>>2413525
>Other/write in
Ko'vash, by my ancestors. She can't remember. You'd think that they might have some technology for amnesia.....i am, slightly disappointed.

[What are some memorable food you've eaten anons? I have no idea what Sisters eat, especially in more "civilian" convents like these, so I just dug out "medieval" recipes.]
Blood sausages/pudding, baked salmon, big turkey leg, gnochi soup, lobster ravioli, de-seeded stuffed jalapenos. A few of many.

>>2413527
Man I could kill for some fish and chips. I bet people on agri-world eat good.

>>2413577
support this.

>>2413577
Oh yeah, let’s send her off to get us another water. Act all raspy, like our throat’s still dry.

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>>2414244
>>2414336
>>2413577

"Monica, do you think you could grab more water for our friend Ko'vash here? He's got something stuck in his gullet like a fish hooked line and sinker."

"Sure!" She certainly is chipper today. Watching her dash downstairs, you close the door and sit opposite to Ko'vash.

"How long?"

"I found it out this morning. It seems she cannot remember anything... traumatic. Like a partial memory wipe of the cogitator type, you understand."

You raise an eyebrow. "She wasn't amnesiac last night after the battle."

"No," he agrees, steepling his fingers, "which is what confounds me. Now the gue'la mind has ways to cope with stress, some of which involve memory deletion, but this... it's too methodical, precise. She couldn't remember anything five minutes after entering the cafe last night."

"What are you suggesting?" I ask with trepidation. In the mercenary circles, Ko'vash was known not for his terrible sense of humour, nor his unusual background (who ever heard of a Fire Warrior deserting?), but his tendency to overexamine the patients he did get his hands on.

He gives me a mirthless smile. "We enter her thinking-box."

"...can we make that Plan D?"

"The least you could do is hear me out. Look, I have operated on one of those... "enginseer" or whatever the gue'la call them. It was not consensual, I grant you, and the patient died rather messily. He had a bit too much of the machine in him, and I misjudged the level of pressure those internal valves could withstand."

"You are not helping sell this project of yours."

"All in good time, my apprentice...ah, but I see you are on the verge of losing your breakfast. In the interest of brevity, I'll make it short. That enginseer I operated on had some sort of cerebral cogitator on his head."

"A cogitator."

"Mhmm."

"In his head."

" On his head. Well, it sort of wrapped around the hind regions of his cranium. It appears these lovers of machines that the humans employ for their IT love their redundancies. Fortunately for us, that means there may be a data-dump of her short-term memories, if she has similar cerebral augments to that one enginseer I worked on. That, or one of those augments is the source of her selective amnesia. Either way, we find an answer instead of sitting around doing nothing."

"Great. So we might now whatever it is that she won't tell us because she forgot. And how do you plan to make her agree to this plan?" You ask sarcastically.

Wordlessly, the Tau combat medic raises a hypodermic needle filled with some clear liquid.

>wat do

>>2415153
I guess that could work, but no one is going to take kindly to a tau working her. Maybe if we asked someone else to check for us, or supervise.....

>>2415153
Uhhhhhhhhh, Ko’Vash, wtf? Dodgy morals aside, we are in the middle of a SoB hospital. I don’t care what they call themselves, they’re probably not going to take kindly to us drugging and operating on an innocent, relatively young girl. By which I mean they’d string us up by our heels and flay us alive. Also, we still don’t know what happened to Kuu.

>>2415153
Lets talk with the hospitalier. She likely has a better idea of how cogitators work, and how to better access her mind

>>2415257

"Are you insane?" You hiss, "we're smack dab in the middle of an Imperial stronghold, and you want to dissect a human?"

"Technically the Ecclesiarchy and the enginseers worship different religions-"

"No, Ko'vash. We're not burning bridges just so you can mess around in that poor girl's head."

>>2415278
>>2415223
"Maybe if we asked someone else to check her... one of the Sisters, perhaps?"

The Tau looks at you dubiously. "I would not rely on those women knowing anything about machines, comrade. You have to understand, the Imperials don't have a standardised system of education like us. Well, me. I have no idea what they teach you on Pech."

>Look for Sister
>Go with Plan Tau
>Put it off for later, do something else for now (write in)

>>2417544
>>Look for Sister
I doubt your "standardized" education covers gue'la brain surgery.

>>2417544
"I wouldn't rely on YOU knowing anything about machines, comrade."
>Look for Sister

>>2417544
>Look for Sister

>>2417544
>(write in)
So like what. We go outside and distract anyone who enters? Friend. This plan of your worries me. What if wwe told a sister or someone what we were going to do, so that way they to kill us on the spot?

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>>2417553
>>2417607
>>2417649

"And your education system covered human brain surgery?"

"Well, not exactly-"

"Then no. We're going to look for a Sister who actually understands how human physiology works."

"Such distrust over my skills! Oh, you wound me endlessly with your cynicism and lack of surgical imagination, Kauyon. But, if you insist..."

"I do."

There is a pregnant pause as Ko'vash sips some water. The breakfast before you is completely gone - unsurprising, given your appetite.

"What happened to Kuu, anyway?"

"He would be, how do the humans say it? "Pushing daisies", yes, but for my chirurgic ministrations that you so cruelly scoff at. He should be somewhere in the convent, recuperating from his hideous wounds. I believe the Sisters mentioned some sort of Magos coming over to see to him, given his extensive augments."

A Magos belonging to the Cult of the Machine God... here? The wounds must be severe indeed, if the sisters are willing to let someone like that in. You are no expert in Imperial interdepartmental politicking, but you have ears. There is very little love lost between the zealots of the human Emperor and adherents of the Machine God, supposedly a facet of the same Emperor. Unless, of course, there are other reasons for his visit.

Wait a minute, wasn't that Georj Zhukov fellow a Magos?

Somewhere in the convent, bells are ringing. It is not the pleasant ringing peals of jubilant melody you heard before the breakfast, but a larger, grave thing, drumming throughout the marble firmaments of the monastery. You glance out the window to notice part of the curtain wall that protects the convent from the rest of the hive creation a partition - it must have been a gate, you realise - to let through what seems at this distance a train of red dots. Behind the arrayed lines of the red beings is a sizeable crimson vehicle, far larger than any land tank that you've encountered in your days as a private military contractor. It has an ugly look to it, and even from this distance you can tell that it is something made with military capabilities in mind, not pleasing aesthetics.

"Did you guys hear that?" Monica says as she enters the room, carrying a jar of water. "I think one of my friends is here!"

Ah, of course. She's forgotten the bounty on her head, as well as the reason she was trying to hire a mercenary last night for... something.

>Write in

>>2417728
"hey how about you let the sisters handle the visitors while you tell us more about yourself. What do you do in your free time? How do you like this planet? What sort of cyberwear do you have in your headmeat?"

>>2417728
Well fuuuuuck. Noe I'm considering letting pur friend work on her. Ok. Let's say they you do this. How long would it take?

By the way, it's not like the Mechanicus will be allowed free reign in here, so if you want to keep her somewhere more private that's definitely an option.

Or you could take this chance to turn her in! 5 thousand thrones gelt, guys!

>>2417825
Ko'vash doesn't plan to search her mind himself, he was only gonna be complicit in the "knock her out" bit. He knows a guy who knows a guy who knows a bit about cogitators.

>>2417789
Everyone else agree on using this?

>>2417853
Sure. That coupled with asking for the most tech savvy sister around.

>>2417843
At the worst I hope they don't know what we're doing so we still get the 5k at the end of all this.

>>2417876
>Sister
>Tech-savvy

I'm not sure nuns are the best people to go asking for fixes on a toaster, let alone something connected with a girl's brain...

>At the worst I hope they don't know what we're doing so we still get the 5k at the end of all this

They did stress the "unharmed" bit. Do you reckon tampering with her mind crosses the boundary?

>>2417881
>Sister
>Tech-savvy
We'll, shit really? Well if our friend really does know someone....

>They did stress the "unharmed" bit. Do you reckon tampering with her mind crosses the boundary?
Depends but overall it's probably fine. If the guy doing the brain thing fucks up them we stab him yeah?

>>2417881
Don't we still have the jacket and swords from Kireto? If we tore off the sleeves could it be used as a sleeveless jacket?

>>2418046
Yes, though I don't know why anyone would want to wear his apparel.

>>2418715
I thought his jacket had a lot of pockets, and more pockets is always good. Well if not to wear it them how much would we get if we sell it?

>>2417789

"Oh, are you interested in self-perfection?" she asks brightly. "The flesh is weak! I learned that from Magos Hotep. He said that humans must seek perfection in the image of metal, and that the more we discard our weak bodies, we become closer to the Omnissiah. You should see Magos Zhukov, he's the best at augmenting..." her voice fades, as she begins to frown."Magos Zhukov. There was something about him... oh, probably nothing," she shrugs, the cheerfulness returning.

"I'm surprised you were interested! I didn't know Xenos also wanted to become one with the Omnissiah."

>"Oh yes, I am very interested." Spend a few days with Monica while waiting for the strange red men downstairs to leave, learning things about the Mechanicus and technology in general.
>"Perhaps later." Investigate the Mechanicus guests. Good thing you are very sneaky!
>Other/write in

>>2418735
It's a normal jacket, and given the bullet holes you might get 15 scripts.
The swords, though, probably worth around two thrones each.

>>2418739
Should sell them the next time we get the chance.

>"Oh yes, I am very interested." Spend a few days with Monica while waiting for the strange red men downstairs to leave, learning things about the Mechanicus and technology in general.

>>2418739
>>Other/write in
"Actually, it's our friend Ko'Vash here who is very interested in learning more about your glorious Mechanicus."
Give him a pat on the back, excuse ourselves for a bit and go
>Investigate the Mechanicus guests. Good thing you are very sneaky!

>>2418921
support this

>>2418739
>>"Perhaps later." Investigate the Mechanicus guests. Good thing you are very sneaky!

>>2418921
>>2418948
>>2418951

Before the poor Tau has a chance to protest, you slither down the stairs. It turns out you were being roomed in a tower - explains the height, at least. The isolated tower is a long stairway from rejoining the main body of the convent, and by the time you manage getting to where you assume to be the ground floor, half an hour has passed.

Pausing for a break in your tireless staircase-climbing (how DID Monica bring the food all the way up there?) you look around. Before you is a hallway that is more ornate than the austere staircase you were running along - further proof that you are indeed on the ground floor. Statues of saints gilded and silvered lean solemnly against great trunks of columns, and the floor is patterned into mosaics with precious metals, telling ridiculous stories of human virtues, no doubt.

>Roll 1d100 to see how stealthy you are

Rolled 76 (1d100)

>>2419005
Sneaky sneaky

Rolled 47 (1d100)

>>2419005

Come on third guy!

Cmon anons, we need a third roll. Distinctly mediocre probably isn't going to cut it here.

Rolled 11 (1d100)

>>2419005

>>2419491
Yyyyeeeeaaaaahhhh!!!

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>>2419491
There's something about a Kroot that makes them superb in advanced reconnaissance. The Tau recognised it as well, and compared the skill of the Kroot to that of their stealth battlesuits.

You scoff at the estimates of the Tau. Your people are if anything stealthier than those clunky suits who only manage visual camouflage. There is so much more to the art of being seen yet unrecognised than mere technosorcery.

Hopping through alcoves and opening ancient doors like they were freshly oiled, you eventually find the Mechanicus delegate, a "Magos" as Monica called it. It is a figure swaddled in red robes not unlike the ones you saw Monica have (before she somehow switched the colours to white) but it is far shorter, and less imposing, than the Georj Zhukov character you met last night. He is being guarded by four masked and helmeted soldiers similarly red-robed, though they do not seem to carry any weapons.

And opposite the strange machine-men stand the Sisters.

An elder lady, likely the head among the Sisters, walks in front and nods stiffly. "Magos Hotep. How kind of you to come here yourself for the annual inspection. We did not expect this... honour."

"The honour is all mine, Prioress," Magos Hotep rasps out stiffly. He has the rough outline of a hunched man, leaning on a battle-axe that crackles with pent-up energy. "There was an... incident during the night. A reorganisation, of sorts. It appears I am to do menial labour usually given to a lesser techpriest in this new... order."

Whatever gruffness there is in his voice, it is not toward the Prioress herself. She evidently recognises this, and relaxes a bit. "Well then, allow me to offer you the hospitality of the Convent of our Patient Lady. It is not often we gain the pleasure of hosting so many outlandish visitors."

Magos Hotep perks up at that. "There are... others?" He rasps out.

>Intervene: if so, write in how
>Keep watching from the shadows

>>2419676
>Keep watching from the shadows

>>2419676
>>Keep watching from the shadows
We don't know if he's of the "purge the xenos" variety

>>2419676
>Keep watching from the shadows
Best not to interject just yet.

>>2419676
>Intervene: if so, write in how
I have questions that I wished could be answered, Magos Hotep. Like why Magos Georj Zhukov wanted Monica and why she can recall the events of last night.

>>2419802
>>2419815
>>2419827
Maybe we can give him a chance? He cares deeply for Monica, so if it's related to her than he might not immediately purge us?

>>2419890
Well yeah, but we can't simply go blindly trusting him just yet. We should at least see how he reacts if he learns Monica is here.

>>2419914
I guess. He's going to be here forca while, so we can probably talk to him once he starts with the inspection.

>>2419890
Giving him a chance means watching him from the shadows to assess his character. Nor giving him a chance would be sticking a knife in his back at the nearest opportunity.

>>2419802
>>2419815
>>2419827
>>2419918
>>2419914
>>2419940

"A more unlikely trio of vagrants I never thought to see," the Prioress replies. She gives the Magos a cryptic smile. "Perhaps you will meet them in the dining hall, later this evening."

"Perhaps," the Magos Hotep agrees, "But for now, the faulty plasmic generator you were having problems with."

She nods, and motions for him to follow, Her retinue of power-armoured women and the Magos' detachment of red-robed troops stay within their own ranks, wary from each other, but the Prioress seems much more relaxed with the Magos.

It's impossible to tell what emotions the Magos is feeling, if any. It does not seem like he's hell-bent on looking for you and your friends.

It is late morning. There is almost an entire day before the dinner, which seems to be a communal affair from the sound of it. What do you do until then?

>Training Sisters?
>Back to Monica/Ko'vash?
>Look for Anya, the Hospitaller?

>>2420480
>Back to Monica/Ko'vash?
Climb those stairs. Gotta be prepared for leg day.

>>2420480
>>Back to Monica/Ko'vash?

>>2420480
>Look for Anya, the Hospitaller?
May as well go find her, while we're out and about. We can let Ko'Vash suffer a little while longer.

>>2420480
>Back to Monica/Ko'vash?

Sorry for the lack of response guys, something came up yesterday (fucking Mondays). I'll try to continue the quest within the week.

>>2422594
It's all good. Not like there's a shortage of quests on /qst/ to tide us over. I look forward to the next session.

>>2422594
No hard feelings, Krootqst is worth waiting for

New thread is up! >>2431228