Yrule's Gambit
Yrule scanned the ruins, looking for signs of his quarry. For a fleeting moment, his eyes lingered on Khaine's statue.
He found it entertaining that the creature he was hunting had chosen such a place to hide. Not that it made any difference to him, but he was sure that a heathen such as Daisan Verkhosian would have taken an issue with that. After all, Daisan's pet ur-ghul was carrying a tiny spec of the Drachon's skin, safely esconced inside it by the dark craft of the Haemonculi.
All of this, Yrule had been told by Daisan's gyrinx. If he could get hold of the only thing granting eternal life to Daisan, the Void Phoenixes' place in Commorragh would have been secured, and with quite good 'patronage' to boost.
A sudden movement in the shadows dragged Yrule away from his musings. He drew his sword and prepared for the final leg of the hunt.
The ur-ghuls lurked at the edges of the temple, blind faces turning around, nostrils rythmically flaring.
Yrule flew on the platform overlooking Khaine's statue, not even attempting to hide himself. He knew Daisan's pet must have learned a trick or two in its service to the Drukhari and would not come out of hiding until forced to.
As he had expected, one of his quarry's pack mates rushed snarling to the feet of the platform.
Yrule landed gracefully on the sacrificial platform in front of Khaine's statue. Two more troglodytes came at him, one racking his armour with its filthy claws.
The Thanarch pushed the creature aside and swooped forward. He skirted too close around the crumbled statuary outside the temple, slashing his thigh on the ragged stone.
But the wound turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Lured by the scent of blood, the beast he was looking for charged at Yrule.
The creature ignored Yrule's cuts, its bloodlust making it insensible to pain. Yet, it could not land a single telling blow. Its pack, meanwhile, approached.
They fell on Yrule at once, as frenzied as their leader. The Thanarch dodged and parried, until he found an opening. His wings damaged and armour torn, he launged for the pack leader.
Yrule's blade cut deep through the ur-ghul's side. The beast screamed wildly as its black blood gushed out. It bowled over Yrule and rushed for the darkness at the far side of the temple, its pack following close behind.
Yrule made to pursue them, but his wounded leg collapsed under his weight.
His wings useless, he cursed through gritted teeth as the ur-ghuls vanished in a crack leading to the darkness underneath Low Commorragh.
A Deadly Feint
"Here's what I heard from my contacts, Thanarach.' Over the Whisper, Thresyn Neverbreath's voice sounded heavy with urgency. "Lady Anielyn's torturers couldn't get any useful information from the Parched. She's now convinced we know more than she wants about Hurrikhaine. The Bleaksouls are on the move to bring her any of us."
"Very well..." replied Yrule "Inghfar, what about the Shards and our employer?"
"Lord Verkhosian didn't make any overt move" came the Ranger's reply "But voices have reached the Shards he will pay them with our souls. Apparently, he's not satisfied. The Shards couldn't track us, but are shadowing the Bleaksouls."
"All is in place, then" Yrule pondered with satisfaction. "Thresyn, I'm sending you support, Excrucia in the lead. Keep both our friends busy. Give the impression you are after captives, just like them. Do not take any unnecessary risk. I repeat, do not take any risk. I only need time to take a peak at Daisan's secrets."
The Void Phoenixes stepped out of the webway portal onto the chill air of the Sorrowshards. Jair and Halt’har primed Bhanlhar and readied their shuriken catapults.
Excrucia and Uless advanced to the left of the Sorrowshards while Fachean joined Thresyn to their right.
The Bleaksouls were in front of the Kabalite and Corsair, taking shelter from their fire in a structure hosting a Couldron of Souls.
Some distance away, the Shards placed their heavy weaponry on a crumbling balcony. A towering Sslyth nodded to Kaerathir and each took a fighter with them towards the nearest webway portal.
Morghdrax and Lakbyrn peeled off from the rest of the Bleaksouls and jumped through another portal. They stepped out of two different ones at either side of the portico leading to the Sorrowshards.
Excrucia seized on Morghdrax's confusion and charged the Hekatrix. The two started sparring, as they had done for so many years in the arenas.
The portal behind them flared again and in rapid succession the Sslyth and Des'rashi joined the fight.
Lakbyrn and Uless saw the danger for their leaders and rushed to their sides.
Mazrayth and Ynado've started pouring fire into the mass fight. A Dark Lance beam slammed onto Uless, but the Rune of Ynnead wrought into the former Wytch armour absorbed the shot.
The Sslyth lashed at Excrucia, seriously injuring her and leaving her exposed to Lakbyrn opportunistic thrust. Uless felt Excrucia's spirit leaving her body, together with all the other souls she harboured.
Uless wounded Morghdrax, ducked under his resposte, grabbed Excrucia's body and run for the Sorrowshards. Behind her the whistling of the Shards' fire mixed with the wailing of departing aeldari souls.
Buffled by Uless' suddden retreat, Morghdrax was unprepared for the Sslyth's assault. Lakbyrn stepped in just in time to stop Des'rashi finishing the Hekatrix off.
Under the cover of friendly fire, Uless made it to the Sorrowshards. Screaming for Fachean and Thresyn to retreat, she raised a silent prayer to Ynnead, reached for Excrucia's vanishing essence and tethered it to herself. The Sorrowshards started to thrum and glow as they absorbed the other souls that had been in Excrucia.
No longer threatened by Thresyn's flamer, the Bleaksouls moved to meet Kaerathir, which was advancing towards them.
The fight between Lakbyrn and the Sslyth at the portico was at a standstill.
Although injured, Kaerathir withstood the assault and took Bahreneq down.
The Shards hammered the Void Phonixes with fire. Her Rune of Ynnead now spent, Uless succumbed to her injuries, letting slip of Excrucia's soul. Jair just managed to hold onto it before she, too, was hit by dark light.
Gasping for air, Jair dragged herself to the closest crystal. Her scanner had picked a unique frequency and the Guardian knew there was only one chance. Only one hope.
She placed her hand over the glowing, thrumming surface and poured all the souls she carried into it. The vibrations reached a fevered peak, as the damaged crystals struggled to contain all the energy pouring onto them.
Suddenly, the crystals flared, blinding light spearing the false sky before inverting its trajectory and streaming into Excrucia's body.
The body jolted. Excrucia's eyelids slammed open and a banshee's howl filled the air.
***
In a distant, even darker corner of Commorragh, Yrule saw the light spear and heard Excrucia's howl. He prayed to Ynnead her suffering would be short. Then, he spread his Swooping Hawk Wings and glided over the ruined streets. Hunched, snarling shapes stirred and followed his shadow.
Agents of the Enemy
"What part of 'Do it discretely' was not clear to you, Yrule?" Daisan Verkhosian once again sat on his throne, the gyrinx cub resting on his lap.
"Not only your Reborn blew up the Voidfall Tower, they fought running battles all over the Sprawl. They even brought those loose dogs from the Splintered Heart into the conflict. How long do you think it'll take them to figure out who you work for?"
"How I lead my brothers and sisters is none of your businness, Daisan", just like during his previous visit, the Thanarch and the gyrinx stared into each other's eyes.
"Everything is my businnes down here, Yrule!" Verkhosian's voice seethed with spite. "Down here, you are at my service, not at your God's! A single word, and hundreds of Commorrites will be after you, dreaming of Vekt's bounty on Ynnari heads."
The icy silence that followed the threat was suddenly broken by a sharp hiss. The gyrinx tensed on Verkhosian's lap and then sprang to chase something scuttling in the darkness.
"What do you want me to do, Lord Verkhosian?"
"So you can be reasonable, Yrule! I'm led to believe the Hex is double crossing Lady Anielyn and selling Hurrikhaine to others. I'm told the Parched at Port Carmine are in a craze about a new drug. Get all they know out of them and bring me the source of Hurrikhaine."
"What of the Parched?"
"Oh, I'm not devoid of consideration for those who work for me. What you do with the Parched, I leave it to you. See, Yrule, it was not difficult to settle this matter amicably."
The Thanarch ignored the latest barb and walked away, a thin smile briefly curling his lips.
Down the corridor, the gyrinx emerged from the darkness and weaved around his ankles, tail raised high.
"So, little friend, what else do you have for me?"
The Parched wandered around Port Carmine, their emaciated hands clawing at the air, desperately trying to grab a whif of suffering and replenish themselves.
Led by Lann, the Void Phoenixes entered the area, Yrule's voice reaching them over the Whisper. Remember, no harm has to come to them. They will join us and then share what they know.
On the Void Phoenixes' left, the shadows stirred as the Shards of the Splintered Heart made their presence known.
Split into two groups, the Bleaksouls swaggered onto the dock.
What they did not know was that Inghfar was watching them through his sight. As the Bleaksouls advanced, the Ranger opened fire and wounded Morghdrax.
The Shards rushed for the Parched lingering at the Cauldron of Souls.
Bahreneq and Jaenis leapt onto the Venomport platform, ready to pounce upon another Parched.
Lann and Dis'ar rushed to the platform where another Parched was about to be snatched by Mardre the Scourge.
Lann tossed a plasma granade at the Scourge and below him Barahir and Jair opened fire on the Shards at the Cauldron of Souls.
Under the intense barrage, the Shards were unable to confront the Parched. As one of their numbers fell to the cadaverous Aeldari's knives, the Shards fled.
A Parched dashed past Lachean as she tried to run away from the firefight.
Lakbyrn sprung out of the shadows, his dagger hungering for Inghfar's flesh. But the Ranger lept through a webway portal to the Venomport. There, he quickly drew his shuriken pistol and opened up on Bahreneq.
As the Wych Fighter fell, the Parched she had marked jumped down from the platform, only to find her way barred by Raveneth. Yariaq joined in and the Parched was quickly subdued.
Jair and Barahir approached the Parched they had saved from the Shards, their hands open and weapon holstered. But the Parched spat at them and run away.
Lann followed Fachean to an overgrown ruin where two Parched were stalked by Morghdrax.
Jaenis stared at Inghfar and screamed her challenge. The Ranger once again dived into the webway portal, but the Wych followed close. Embattled, the two pushed past Lakbyrn. At the feet of the Voidfall Tower, the chase came to an end, Jeanis claiming bloddy revenge for Bahreneq.
Basking in Fachean's pain, Lakbyrn felt emboldened. He stepped onto the portal. On the other side, his knife flashed and the former Parched drank deep of the soul of one who was once his compatriot.
Morghdrax turned his attention away from the Parched and charged Fachean. The Corsair stood little chance against the Hekatrix, but Lann interposed himself.
Yariaq left Raveneth in charge of the Parched they had captured and moved to intercept another.
Jair and Barahir split. The Guardian countercharged Yariaq, the Dire Avenger went after the Parched they had approached earlier.
Yariaq met Jair's charge with a well placed thrust. The Parched slashed madly at Barahir.
Lann and Morghdrax sparred, neither able to land a telling blow. The Whisper thrummed with pain. The Autarch put some space between himself and the Hekatrix and looked around. One last Parched was still at large, way too far to be reached. Knowing the stakes were now too high, Lann ordered the Void Phoenixes to fall back.
The Thanarch listened carefully to Lann's account of the clash. Then, as the Autarch bowed his head in shame, Yrule spoke.
"There's no shame in putting the spirits of the Reborn ahead of the whims of a heathen. And worry not, Lann, a little friend told me of Verkhosian's dirty secrets. Soon, he will no longer be of our concern."
