It is called Sanguinala, IIRC
The Galaxy is Flood, Not Food
- Thread starter Jackson Fox
- Start date
- Crossover Sci-Fi Horror
Hope SI brings back the original untainted christmas..or well already might have.
Tide isn't likely to introduce old Earth holidays, at least not by name. Instead, he's more likely to introduce certain traditions and themes, such as wearing costumes during spooky season or gift-giving during the end of the year. He'd try and encourage people to create their own events and traditions and holidays, rather than impose one upon them. Essentially, the Halloween and holiday special events are meant to implant the ideas of holidays in people's minds so they create their own. I think that would be more interesting to write and to read than just having Tide reintroduce familiar holidays, though I can understand the desire for something familiar in a (relatively) unfamiliar setting.
Most likely he would bring back the main idea of the holiday at the very least.
Highly doubt people would be joining it with the imperial faith anytime soon considering what the imperial faith thinks of them..most likely tech priests add some machine god lore inside it , sister's of combat puts some "tide teachings" and the locals add there own touch.
Concept of santa may or may not exist..well most likely would exist as tide is playing Santa but the way it would exist would be widely different.
So would tide think about putting some semi sentient life forms on planets he saved to assist the locals ?
Or he would use direct observation of his own.
Highly doubt people would be joining it with the imperial faith anytime soon considering what the imperial faith thinks of them..most likely tech priests add some machine god lore inside it , sister's of combat puts some "tide teachings" and the locals add there own touch.
Concept of santa may or may not exist..well most likely would exist as tide is playing Santa but the way it would exist would be widely different.
So would tide think about putting some semi sentient life forms on planets he saved to assist the locals ?
Or he would use direct observation of his own.
They know they can set them on fire.
For the longest time, I've been trying to figure out how Tide was pulling Souls into the Domain, then I remembered. The Flood can infect reality itself. Forerunners pulled the minds out of infected people, gave them new bodies, which promptly developed a Flood infection.
Yeah, the Imperium isnt winning, no matter how Tide goes about this. There is no cure for the Flood.
Yeah, the Imperium isnt winning, no matter how Tide goes about this. There is no cure for the Flood.
TBH, the imperium's only real chance is the emperor.
And based on everything we've seen, there's a good chance that he's not going to be doing much to fight them.
Strunkriidiisk
THE LEGEND
- Location
- Canada
- Pronouns
- He/Him
The funny thing is even that's not guaranteed. Tide has access to Ork genetics (and it's possible that he might be able to engineer some of that into his own), and even Exterminatus isn't enough to fully eliminate Ork spores sometimes.
Even aside from that, there's a reason the Forerunners went with "make every organism complex enough for Flood infection stop existing." Exterminatus is just attacking symptoms, not the proverbial disease.
Even if you somehow kill every last Flood spore, the driving consciousness, in this case Tide, will still exist within the Domain
The Flood never loses, it's victory only gets postponed
The Flood never loses, it's victory only gets postponed
questioningmeme
Just be yourself
- Location
- River of Light
Young-kid-me.
Because I was an idiot who stuck my hand into the flames once (very young) and learned the first harsh life lesson. Don't go touching Fire with your bare hand dum dum.
Chapter 77 - Newborn
New
Day 270
Cass let out a long, heavy breath.
"Are you alright?" Brunt asked, holding her hand as she laid back against the operating table.
"It… doesn't hurt very much," Cass noted, her voice sounding slightly strained. "It should, right?"
"It would if I wasn't suppressing the pain," Tide said. The… well, whatever Tide really was, he had chosen to take the form they usually saw him in, albeit garbed in a white overcoat, gloves, and a mask covering his face. Whether any of it was actually necessary, they hadn't asked, though they suspected it was little more than 'dressing the part' as he had sometimes referred to his face when the question of his status as a human or something else had come up. "If you'd like to experience it, I can remove that suppression."
"That's…" Cass paused, her brow furrowing and her jaw setting, almost like she were struggling with some mental problem like the math equations Tide occasionally tried to teach them. A few seconds passed, and her expression softened and she resumed. "That's alright."
"Is it… weird?" Brunt asked. Cass glanced at him with a long-suffering look.
"That sums it up pretty well."
"Hello everyone, my name is Purilla," the sanctioned psyker said to the gathered students, her students. There were fifteen in all as Tide had promised. She couldn't help the trepidation in her gut at the idea of teaching a class, let alone using the techniques that she had been trained with. Tide had assured her that she need do nothing she wasn't comfortable with and this was, primarily, an experiment. One he hoped would succeed, for a myriad of reasons, but there were other methods that could be undertaken to reduce the danger of incidents from untrained psychic powers occurring and reducing the harm when they did occur.
These fifteen had been chosen from thousands to tens of thousands of psykers on Monstrum. Tide's capability in detecting psychic abilities, once he'd known what to look for, would have made him the envy of any of the Black Ships of the Imperium, were it not for everything else about him. The vast majority of those with psychic abilities weren't strong enough to warrant training as a full psyker, with only a few hundred possessing the necessary talent. Of those, these were the strongest and, as a result, the least stable.
Around three were from a noble background, one was even the grand niece of Governor Selvik himself, though kept very sequestered from public life to the point where even at the height of her influence on Monstrum, even Inquisitor Ellen had never heard whispers of her. That they had not been picked up by the Black Ships was surprising for a number of reasons, and Purilla couldn't imagine the exorbitant amount of wealth that had been thrown around in bribes and, more than likely, assassinations to keep them from being taken in the Tithe, let alone discovered.
Another three had been hive gangers at various points in their lives, while the nine remaining had simply been factory workers. Of the twelve of them, nine had been discovered and taken to be offered up whenever a Black Ship next came through the system, at least before Tide had replaced every one of them with a puppet and released them back to their homes. She was surprised to learn that Tide had already introduced himself to many of them back then, though she supposed she shouldn't be.
"You're a sanctioned psyker?" One of the nobles asked, a teen of around fifteen standard years named Mordias Girrard. His voice had a slight hint of disbelief that she could sense much more strongly from his mind. There was also disgust and she did not fail to notice his eyes flicker down to the unnaturally pale flesh of her hands, the physical manifestation of her mutation. It was more grating than it should have been, she had dealt with far worse after all. Perhaps it was from spending so much time around Tide and others who weren't horrible people.
"One of them-, uh, I guess one of us witches, right?" One of the hive gangers said, his own anxiety showing through. Abbit was his name. It was a general nervousness she could detect, not just at being around so many 'witches' but knowing he himself was one.
"I am," Purilla said, nodding and maintaining her calm. She gestured to the room around them, which was styled off of a lecturing hall that her own memories back during her training had directed the construction of. "I assume you all know Tide?" The room shuddered, just slightly, and spoke.
Hello.
Selvik's niece, Akora Monstrum, giggled at that, drawing a few gazes from others, something which swiftly had her stiffen up, amusement suddenly being replaced by embarrassment and shyness.
"Sorry," she managed. The students all wore the same uniforms, simple grey robes, though signs of their past lives could still be seen in the way they spoke, how they carried themselves, and their complexion. Akora had pale skin and even more delicate features than Purilla herself and an owlish appearance with wide eyes.
"Tide has been kind enough to lend us a portion of his Domain for our studies," Purilla said. "As I understand it, you're all aware of what he is?"
"The filthy xenos in secret control of this planet?" Mordias offered, glancing around in expectation of his fellow classmates' amusement. Instead, those who had been saved by Tide from their fate with the Black Ships just glared back at him and his face colored. Purilla herself felt more than a little annoyed at the boy already and his antics weren't helping him, but she set those emotions aside for the moment.
"Tide is not human, that much is correct," Purilla said with a nod. "And he is powerful, far more powerful than any of us and in ways we can't fully comprehend. However, psychic abilities are something he lacks the ability to wield. Hence why he has me teaching this class."
There were some notes of surprise, though well-hidden, from a few of the students, though others seemed to have already known this. Purilla couldn't help but wonder how Tide had revealed himself to each of them and what all he had told them.
There was a sudden burst of curiosity, one that went along with a question forming. Purilla turned towards the source, her eyes locking with Akora, who quickly looked down.
"Do you have a question, Akora?" Purilla asked. Both Mordias and the other noble student, Hadren, looked put-off by her use of the first name, both having already scoped out who was and who was not fellow nobility among the class practically the moment they'd arrived. Akora seemed surprised, though that could have as easily been from the familiarity as from being spoken to.
Slowly, Akora nodded, seeming hesitant to speak. Purilla gave her the best encouraging smile she could manage and it seemed to do the trick, as Akora finally spoke. "Why does he want us to learn?"
You didn't tell them, Purilla mentally asked Tide, getting only a shrug in reply. His next words reached her alone.
Only a few asked. Akora leapt at the opportunity without thinking too much about it.
That was… concerning. She'd have to have a longer discussion with Tide about the students after this.
"To put it simply, you're all dangerous," Purilla said, inwardly cringing as she realized how that sounded. "What I mean is, your psychic abilities will continue to grow more powerful as time goes on. I'm sure many of you have noticed the signs. Dreams so lifelike they seem real, especially nightmares. Sudden bursts of emotion that feel like they can send you to your knees. Objects moving without anything touching them."
There was familiarity and discomfort emanating from the whole class, but confusion as well.
"And, I assume each of you have also noticed that much of that stopped recently," Purilla said. "Particularly the nightmares. That is thanks to your connection to Tide."
"I know I've felt… weaker? I suppose, ever since Tide first spoke to me," one of the former factory workers, Catia, said. "I'm not ungrateful for him sending me back to my folks or anything though!"
Purilla nodded. "From what I've been able to determine, a connection with Tide makes wielding your psychic power slightly more difficult, but the positives far outweigh the negatives."
"Wouldn't it be better to be as strong as possible?" Hadren asked, but Purilla shook her head firmly.
"The stronger a psyker is, the more powerful their will has to be to ward off the dangers of… the Warp." Purilla said, unsure if she should go into Chaos with essentially a class of children. For the moment, they were as safe as could be from the Ruinous Powers and she was simply trying to get everyone on the same page. She could go into Chaos at a later date. "Few psykers of such power are capable of wielding that might for long."
"And… we're powerful psykers," Mordias said, suddenly leaning forward in his seat a bit, concern suddenly sprouting within him.
"No, not really," Purilla said, almost dismissively. Mordias' concern was replaced with confusion and then a bit by annoyance. "We'll be learning about the Assignment, the scale the Imperium uses to grade psychic ability in a person. Most of you are on the lower end of what most sanctioned psykers are, in the Zeta grade. A handful of you are in the same grade as myself, the Epsilon grade, which is one higher. There are grades much higher than this."
She paused to let everyone absorb that for a moment. Her eyes glanced towards Akora, who had an introspective look on her face. Purilla continued, her tone taking on a warning element.
"However," she said, eyes watching the class to make sure all were paying attention. "That does not mean there is no danger to you, merely that it is lessened. You will still have to learn to control yourselves, mind and soul, if you wish to survive. Your powers have the potential to hurt not just others but yourselves as well, in ways you cannot imagine."
Some had looks of fear on their faces, others intrigue, and some excitement. A few, however, had determination. Of the lot, Purilla couldn't imagine any of them surviving Imperial Psyker training. Likely, they'd all have been shipped off to the Imperial Palace in the company of golden warrior-lords, never to be seen again.
She would just have to do better.
"Today, however, we won't be doing much but learning about one another," Purilla said. "We can start with introductions."
Hours later, Purilla flopped onto her bed in Selvik's palace. Her face buried in a silken pillow, she let out a long, animal-like groan.
A good first day.
"We haven't even really started and I'm already this tired," Purilla said after flopping around onto her back. She stared up at the ceiling.
You'll get better at almost anything if you practice.
She rolled over again onto her stomach, clutching the pillow and resting her chin on it to glare at the wall. "I think I hate Mordias and Hadren."
Give them time. They are unused to this environment, as you are, and coping with it in their own way.
She sighed, but nodded. "They have the 'potential' to be great, is that it?"
They all do. May I ask something?
She arched her eyebrow, though there was no one to point the look towards. "Go ahead."
You led them to believe that the whole class was either in the Zeta or Epsilon categories.
"Why did I do that?" Purilla asked for him and she felt his affirmation. She considered her words, sorting her thoughts. "I felt that if I let the three strong ones know they were strong they'd either get frightened or… overblown opinions of themselves."
Will you tell them before or after you share the truth about Chaos and its dangers?
She rolled around again, hugging the pillow to her. "Why don't you tell them about it? Why didn't you?"
For the same reasons you did not share the full class' grades. Some would have been too frightened to ever learn to harness their powers and, as a result, have caused harm when those powers inevitably ran amuck. Some would have thought themselves strong enough to withstand the Dark Powers, to the same end or worse.
"Would any have fallen?"
Possibly. I cannot predict every outcome, but I can certainly see how they might be tempted. Whether they could be corrupted, I do not wish to test whether its possible in any case.
"Is… Akora one of the ones who would have…?" She trailed off. If that was the case, then teaching the governor's niece to wield her powers might be doomed to fail or even simply the wrong thing to do as it might allow Chaos further means to harm her and others, even with Tide's protection. Purilla had a good first impression with the girl, she seemed sweet if sheltered, but that meant nothing when the Warp had caught the scent of such a powerful soul.
Everyone can be tempted.
"Tide, I need to know this," Purilla said, worry gnawing at her. "If she's a danger, then…"
Then what?
Purilla went silent.
Would you have me lock her up as her family has done? Keep her trapped within the Domain, where no one can be harmed by her psychic powers once they've grown too strong for her to keep them under control?
His tone was neutral. It didn't need to be anything else, Purilla already knew what she was asking of him was something he'd never do. Nonetheless, she had to.
"It would be safer."
Akora has been a bird in a cage for all her life. You were no different.
"I'm not an alpha-grade psyker," Purilla countered.
It doesn't matter. I will do all I can to help her. I hope you will as well, but I will not force you to teach her.
"I just…" Purilla sighed. "She's going to grow fast and I don't know if she has the willpower to keep herself under control or if a connection to you will be enough to keep her from going insane all on her own, daemonic possession or not. We don't have access to the kind of augmentations psykers even close to her power usually need to control their talents and I don't know if that would even be enough for her."
That is why she must be taught. Of every psyker I am connected to, she improved the most out of all of them once she was no longer haunted by dreams and nightmares. Had I not found her when I did, its possible Deimos itself would not have survived the cataclysm to follow. Her potential for harm is great, but her potential for good is practically unlimited. And regardless, she deserves the chance to live her own life free from fear. You all do.
Purilla sighed again, buried her face back into the pillows… and then nodded. Like the motion of the waters receding from the shore after which he was named, Tide's presence drew back to the recesses of her mind.
She didn't bother turning off the lights, too tired to even try, though she did note they turned off anyways, just before she fell back into a sleep of pleasant dreams.
"Here you are," Tide said, gently holding out the tiny bundle. Cass and Brunt both had looks of unabashed love on their faces as the mother accepted the newborn, holding him gently. Cass cradled the infant in her arms, fighting down tears.
"He's beautiful," she said.
"Would you be comfortable with visitors?" Tide asked, speaking to both of them. Brunt glanced at Cass, who nodded. Tide made no move towards the door, but it opened from the other side as, at first, only one person walked through. A woman they had known for only a short time from occasional visits, but she was another like Gratis who showed no fear or disgust of either of them and much friendlier than Gratis. Serrita, dressed in grey robes, the Fleur de Lis infested by vines prominent upon their back.
"I'm honored you allowed me to attend," Serrita said, bowing her head in thanks and greeting. "Blessings upon you and your child."
For that, she received small smiles from Cass and Brunt, while Tide gave her a withering sidelong glance.
"Not with me here, please," Tide murmured, quiet enough that only she could hear him. She had a wicked look in her eyes when she replied.
"You are always with me," she murmured back and Tide held down a groan.
"Would you like to hold him?" Cass offered and she herself seemed surprised at the suggestion.
"If you would let me," Serrita said, equally surprised. She stepped to the other side of the woman and, now moving somewhat stiffly, carefully accepted the infant child, holding him with a sudden tenseness coming over her, as though she were afraid of making some mistake. The babe still slept soundly in her arms. Both Cass and Brunt's eyes were on her like a hawk, nervousness joining their joy.
Soon, Serrita smiled and handed the child back, Cass accepting her gratefully, nerves fading away. Brunt glanced at the closed door.
"Is Gratis out there?" He asked. "He said he would attend."
"I'd thought it best to keep visitors to one at a time," Tide replied. "Gratis did not come alone."
"He made friends?" Cass asked, sounding legitimately surprised.
"They're 'prior acquaintances', lets say," Tide replied. "They're alright in the presence of blanks of your strength, but I should let you know that Gratis is wearing special gear in order to keep his own strength suppressed to be more… manageable for them. It might be frightening."
"For the baby?" Brunt asked.
"For you," Tide replied. "If you'd like them to come in, I'll tell them, or I can keep it to one at a time."
Cass and Brunt quietly discussed for a few moments before coming to a decision. "They can come in," Cass said and Tide nodded.
"Very well," he said and the door swung open. Both Cass and Brunt went ramrod still as a figure with the head of an elongated skull stepped inside. Its myriad weapons systems had been painstakingly removed after months of rigorous study, with only the blank aura suppressing technologies being left intact, leaving only the polished skull to be seen. For a normal human, even with the suppressed aura, the sight would have been terrifying.
Though no one in the room was affected by even a suppressed Pariah's blank aura, more mundane sources of fear were fair game. For Cass and Brunt, the sight was merely an unsettling one, while Serrita seemed entirely at ease in his presence.
Following the Culexus Assassin into the room, Sadara the Callidus and Morus the Vindicare stepped inside, both dressed in plain brown and grey tunics.
"Is the child healthy?" Sadara demanded, her steely eyes focusing on Tide.
"The healthiest newborn I've ever seen," Tide replied simply.
"We will conduct our own medical checks," Morus said. A glance from Gratis had him add, "With the parents' permission."
"That's alright," Cass said, adjusting her hold on the child as she did so. "We trust Tide's expertise."
Morus grimaced, glancing at the other assassins, but ultimately nodded.
"I… apologize for my appearance," Gratis said, entirely unprompted, and the surprise in the room from everyone was genuine. There was a long silence afterwards, but the man said nothing more, nor could his emotions be seen from behind his helmet.
"Its… nice to have visitors," Cass said with a small smile. "I never thought I'd have anyone to talk to or share these kinds of moments like this with besides Brunt."
"Mm," Brunt agreed, reaching down to hold his lover's hand, sharing a smile between one another.
"Have you thought of a name?" Serrita asked, after giving them a moment. Cass paused for a moment, glancing again at Brunt.
"This child is only possible because we survived long enough to meet each other," Cass said, and Brunt nodded. "While we… We have no love for the God-Emperor, it was one of His saints who saved us from a mob when we hid under their statue."
The former Sister of Battle nodded in understanding. The assassins studied the pair closely. Tide stood in the back, his face considerate of something only he was aware of.
"Malcador. His name is Malcador."
Cass let out a long, heavy breath.
"Are you alright?" Brunt asked, holding her hand as she laid back against the operating table.
"It… doesn't hurt very much," Cass noted, her voice sounding slightly strained. "It should, right?"
"It would if I wasn't suppressing the pain," Tide said. The… well, whatever Tide really was, he had chosen to take the form they usually saw him in, albeit garbed in a white overcoat, gloves, and a mask covering his face. Whether any of it was actually necessary, they hadn't asked, though they suspected it was little more than 'dressing the part' as he had sometimes referred to his face when the question of his status as a human or something else had come up. "If you'd like to experience it, I can remove that suppression."
"That's…" Cass paused, her brow furrowing and her jaw setting, almost like she were struggling with some mental problem like the math equations Tide occasionally tried to teach them. A few seconds passed, and her expression softened and she resumed. "That's alright."
"Is it… weird?" Brunt asked. Cass glanced at him with a long-suffering look.
"That sums it up pretty well."
"Hello everyone, my name is Purilla," the sanctioned psyker said to the gathered students, her students. There were fifteen in all as Tide had promised. She couldn't help the trepidation in her gut at the idea of teaching a class, let alone using the techniques that she had been trained with. Tide had assured her that she need do nothing she wasn't comfortable with and this was, primarily, an experiment. One he hoped would succeed, for a myriad of reasons, but there were other methods that could be undertaken to reduce the danger of incidents from untrained psychic powers occurring and reducing the harm when they did occur.
These fifteen had been chosen from thousands to tens of thousands of psykers on Monstrum. Tide's capability in detecting psychic abilities, once he'd known what to look for, would have made him the envy of any of the Black Ships of the Imperium, were it not for everything else about him. The vast majority of those with psychic abilities weren't strong enough to warrant training as a full psyker, with only a few hundred possessing the necessary talent. Of those, these were the strongest and, as a result, the least stable.
Around three were from a noble background, one was even the grand niece of Governor Selvik himself, though kept very sequestered from public life to the point where even at the height of her influence on Monstrum, even Inquisitor Ellen had never heard whispers of her. That they had not been picked up by the Black Ships was surprising for a number of reasons, and Purilla couldn't imagine the exorbitant amount of wealth that had been thrown around in bribes and, more than likely, assassinations to keep them from being taken in the Tithe, let alone discovered.
Another three had been hive gangers at various points in their lives, while the nine remaining had simply been factory workers. Of the twelve of them, nine had been discovered and taken to be offered up whenever a Black Ship next came through the system, at least before Tide had replaced every one of them with a puppet and released them back to their homes. She was surprised to learn that Tide had already introduced himself to many of them back then, though she supposed she shouldn't be.
"You're a sanctioned psyker?" One of the nobles asked, a teen of around fifteen standard years named Mordias Girrard. His voice had a slight hint of disbelief that she could sense much more strongly from his mind. There was also disgust and she did not fail to notice his eyes flicker down to the unnaturally pale flesh of her hands, the physical manifestation of her mutation. It was more grating than it should have been, she had dealt with far worse after all. Perhaps it was from spending so much time around Tide and others who weren't horrible people.
"One of them-, uh, I guess one of us witches, right?" One of the hive gangers said, his own anxiety showing through. Abbit was his name. It was a general nervousness she could detect, not just at being around so many 'witches' but knowing he himself was one.
"I am," Purilla said, nodding and maintaining her calm. She gestured to the room around them, which was styled off of a lecturing hall that her own memories back during her training had directed the construction of. "I assume you all know Tide?" The room shuddered, just slightly, and spoke.
Hello.
Selvik's niece, Akora Monstrum, giggled at that, drawing a few gazes from others, something which swiftly had her stiffen up, amusement suddenly being replaced by embarrassment and shyness.
"Sorry," she managed. The students all wore the same uniforms, simple grey robes, though signs of their past lives could still be seen in the way they spoke, how they carried themselves, and their complexion. Akora had pale skin and even more delicate features than Purilla herself and an owlish appearance with wide eyes.
"Tide has been kind enough to lend us a portion of his Domain for our studies," Purilla said. "As I understand it, you're all aware of what he is?"
"The filthy xenos in secret control of this planet?" Mordias offered, glancing around in expectation of his fellow classmates' amusement. Instead, those who had been saved by Tide from their fate with the Black Ships just glared back at him and his face colored. Purilla herself felt more than a little annoyed at the boy already and his antics weren't helping him, but she set those emotions aside for the moment.
"Tide is not human, that much is correct," Purilla said with a nod. "And he is powerful, far more powerful than any of us and in ways we can't fully comprehend. However, psychic abilities are something he lacks the ability to wield. Hence why he has me teaching this class."
There were some notes of surprise, though well-hidden, from a few of the students, though others seemed to have already known this. Purilla couldn't help but wonder how Tide had revealed himself to each of them and what all he had told them.
There was a sudden burst of curiosity, one that went along with a question forming. Purilla turned towards the source, her eyes locking with Akora, who quickly looked down.
"Do you have a question, Akora?" Purilla asked. Both Mordias and the other noble student, Hadren, looked put-off by her use of the first name, both having already scoped out who was and who was not fellow nobility among the class practically the moment they'd arrived. Akora seemed surprised, though that could have as easily been from the familiarity as from being spoken to.
Slowly, Akora nodded, seeming hesitant to speak. Purilla gave her the best encouraging smile she could manage and it seemed to do the trick, as Akora finally spoke. "Why does he want us to learn?"
You didn't tell them, Purilla mentally asked Tide, getting only a shrug in reply. His next words reached her alone.
Only a few asked. Akora leapt at the opportunity without thinking too much about it.
That was… concerning. She'd have to have a longer discussion with Tide about the students after this.
"To put it simply, you're all dangerous," Purilla said, inwardly cringing as she realized how that sounded. "What I mean is, your psychic abilities will continue to grow more powerful as time goes on. I'm sure many of you have noticed the signs. Dreams so lifelike they seem real, especially nightmares. Sudden bursts of emotion that feel like they can send you to your knees. Objects moving without anything touching them."
There was familiarity and discomfort emanating from the whole class, but confusion as well.
"And, I assume each of you have also noticed that much of that stopped recently," Purilla said. "Particularly the nightmares. That is thanks to your connection to Tide."
"I know I've felt… weaker? I suppose, ever since Tide first spoke to me," one of the former factory workers, Catia, said. "I'm not ungrateful for him sending me back to my folks or anything though!"
Purilla nodded. "From what I've been able to determine, a connection with Tide makes wielding your psychic power slightly more difficult, but the positives far outweigh the negatives."
"Wouldn't it be better to be as strong as possible?" Hadren asked, but Purilla shook her head firmly.
"The stronger a psyker is, the more powerful their will has to be to ward off the dangers of… the Warp." Purilla said, unsure if she should go into Chaos with essentially a class of children. For the moment, they were as safe as could be from the Ruinous Powers and she was simply trying to get everyone on the same page. She could go into Chaos at a later date. "Few psykers of such power are capable of wielding that might for long."
"And… we're powerful psykers," Mordias said, suddenly leaning forward in his seat a bit, concern suddenly sprouting within him.
"No, not really," Purilla said, almost dismissively. Mordias' concern was replaced with confusion and then a bit by annoyance. "We'll be learning about the Assignment, the scale the Imperium uses to grade psychic ability in a person. Most of you are on the lower end of what most sanctioned psykers are, in the Zeta grade. A handful of you are in the same grade as myself, the Epsilon grade, which is one higher. There are grades much higher than this."
She paused to let everyone absorb that for a moment. Her eyes glanced towards Akora, who had an introspective look on her face. Purilla continued, her tone taking on a warning element.
"However," she said, eyes watching the class to make sure all were paying attention. "That does not mean there is no danger to you, merely that it is lessened. You will still have to learn to control yourselves, mind and soul, if you wish to survive. Your powers have the potential to hurt not just others but yourselves as well, in ways you cannot imagine."
Some had looks of fear on their faces, others intrigue, and some excitement. A few, however, had determination. Of the lot, Purilla couldn't imagine any of them surviving Imperial Psyker training. Likely, they'd all have been shipped off to the Imperial Palace in the company of golden warrior-lords, never to be seen again.
She would just have to do better.
"Today, however, we won't be doing much but learning about one another," Purilla said. "We can start with introductions."
Hours later, Purilla flopped onto her bed in Selvik's palace. Her face buried in a silken pillow, she let out a long, animal-like groan.
A good first day.
"We haven't even really started and I'm already this tired," Purilla said after flopping around onto her back. She stared up at the ceiling.
You'll get better at almost anything if you practice.
She rolled over again onto her stomach, clutching the pillow and resting her chin on it to glare at the wall. "I think I hate Mordias and Hadren."
Give them time. They are unused to this environment, as you are, and coping with it in their own way.
She sighed, but nodded. "They have the 'potential' to be great, is that it?"
They all do. May I ask something?
She arched her eyebrow, though there was no one to point the look towards. "Go ahead."
You led them to believe that the whole class was either in the Zeta or Epsilon categories.
"Why did I do that?" Purilla asked for him and she felt his affirmation. She considered her words, sorting her thoughts. "I felt that if I let the three strong ones know they were strong they'd either get frightened or… overblown opinions of themselves."
Will you tell them before or after you share the truth about Chaos and its dangers?
She rolled around again, hugging the pillow to her. "Why don't you tell them about it? Why didn't you?"
For the same reasons you did not share the full class' grades. Some would have been too frightened to ever learn to harness their powers and, as a result, have caused harm when those powers inevitably ran amuck. Some would have thought themselves strong enough to withstand the Dark Powers, to the same end or worse.
"Would any have fallen?"
Possibly. I cannot predict every outcome, but I can certainly see how they might be tempted. Whether they could be corrupted, I do not wish to test whether its possible in any case.
"Is… Akora one of the ones who would have…?" She trailed off. If that was the case, then teaching the governor's niece to wield her powers might be doomed to fail or even simply the wrong thing to do as it might allow Chaos further means to harm her and others, even with Tide's protection. Purilla had a good first impression with the girl, she seemed sweet if sheltered, but that meant nothing when the Warp had caught the scent of such a powerful soul.
Everyone can be tempted.
"Tide, I need to know this," Purilla said, worry gnawing at her. "If she's a danger, then…"
Then what?
Purilla went silent.
Would you have me lock her up as her family has done? Keep her trapped within the Domain, where no one can be harmed by her psychic powers once they've grown too strong for her to keep them under control?
His tone was neutral. It didn't need to be anything else, Purilla already knew what she was asking of him was something he'd never do. Nonetheless, she had to.
"It would be safer."
Akora has been a bird in a cage for all her life. You were no different.
"I'm not an alpha-grade psyker," Purilla countered.
It doesn't matter. I will do all I can to help her. I hope you will as well, but I will not force you to teach her.
"I just…" Purilla sighed. "She's going to grow fast and I don't know if she has the willpower to keep herself under control or if a connection to you will be enough to keep her from going insane all on her own, daemonic possession or not. We don't have access to the kind of augmentations psykers even close to her power usually need to control their talents and I don't know if that would even be enough for her."
That is why she must be taught. Of every psyker I am connected to, she improved the most out of all of them once she was no longer haunted by dreams and nightmares. Had I not found her when I did, its possible Deimos itself would not have survived the cataclysm to follow. Her potential for harm is great, but her potential for good is practically unlimited. And regardless, she deserves the chance to live her own life free from fear. You all do.
Purilla sighed again, buried her face back into the pillows… and then nodded. Like the motion of the waters receding from the shore after which he was named, Tide's presence drew back to the recesses of her mind.
She didn't bother turning off the lights, too tired to even try, though she did note they turned off anyways, just before she fell back into a sleep of pleasant dreams.
"Here you are," Tide said, gently holding out the tiny bundle. Cass and Brunt both had looks of unabashed love on their faces as the mother accepted the newborn, holding him gently. Cass cradled the infant in her arms, fighting down tears.
"He's beautiful," she said.
"Would you be comfortable with visitors?" Tide asked, speaking to both of them. Brunt glanced at Cass, who nodded. Tide made no move towards the door, but it opened from the other side as, at first, only one person walked through. A woman they had known for only a short time from occasional visits, but she was another like Gratis who showed no fear or disgust of either of them and much friendlier than Gratis. Serrita, dressed in grey robes, the Fleur de Lis infested by vines prominent upon their back.
"I'm honored you allowed me to attend," Serrita said, bowing her head in thanks and greeting. "Blessings upon you and your child."
For that, she received small smiles from Cass and Brunt, while Tide gave her a withering sidelong glance.
"Not with me here, please," Tide murmured, quiet enough that only she could hear him. She had a wicked look in her eyes when she replied.
"You are always with me," she murmured back and Tide held down a groan.
"Would you like to hold him?" Cass offered and she herself seemed surprised at the suggestion.
"If you would let me," Serrita said, equally surprised. She stepped to the other side of the woman and, now moving somewhat stiffly, carefully accepted the infant child, holding him with a sudden tenseness coming over her, as though she were afraid of making some mistake. The babe still slept soundly in her arms. Both Cass and Brunt's eyes were on her like a hawk, nervousness joining their joy.
Soon, Serrita smiled and handed the child back, Cass accepting her gratefully, nerves fading away. Brunt glanced at the closed door.
"Is Gratis out there?" He asked. "He said he would attend."
"I'd thought it best to keep visitors to one at a time," Tide replied. "Gratis did not come alone."
"He made friends?" Cass asked, sounding legitimately surprised.
"They're 'prior acquaintances', lets say," Tide replied. "They're alright in the presence of blanks of your strength, but I should let you know that Gratis is wearing special gear in order to keep his own strength suppressed to be more… manageable for them. It might be frightening."
"For the baby?" Brunt asked.
"For you," Tide replied. "If you'd like them to come in, I'll tell them, or I can keep it to one at a time."
Cass and Brunt quietly discussed for a few moments before coming to a decision. "They can come in," Cass said and Tide nodded.
"Very well," he said and the door swung open. Both Cass and Brunt went ramrod still as a figure with the head of an elongated skull stepped inside. Its myriad weapons systems had been painstakingly removed after months of rigorous study, with only the blank aura suppressing technologies being left intact, leaving only the polished skull to be seen. For a normal human, even with the suppressed aura, the sight would have been terrifying.
Though no one in the room was affected by even a suppressed Pariah's blank aura, more mundane sources of fear were fair game. For Cass and Brunt, the sight was merely an unsettling one, while Serrita seemed entirely at ease in his presence.
Following the Culexus Assassin into the room, Sadara the Callidus and Morus the Vindicare stepped inside, both dressed in plain brown and grey tunics.
"Is the child healthy?" Sadara demanded, her steely eyes focusing on Tide.
"The healthiest newborn I've ever seen," Tide replied simply.
"We will conduct our own medical checks," Morus said. A glance from Gratis had him add, "With the parents' permission."
"That's alright," Cass said, adjusting her hold on the child as she did so. "We trust Tide's expertise."
Morus grimaced, glancing at the other assassins, but ultimately nodded.
"I… apologize for my appearance," Gratis said, entirely unprompted, and the surprise in the room from everyone was genuine. There was a long silence afterwards, but the man said nothing more, nor could his emotions be seen from behind his helmet.
"Its… nice to have visitors," Cass said with a small smile. "I never thought I'd have anyone to talk to or share these kinds of moments like this with besides Brunt."
"Mm," Brunt agreed, reaching down to hold his lover's hand, sharing a smile between one another.
"Have you thought of a name?" Serrita asked, after giving them a moment. Cass paused for a moment, glancing again at Brunt.
"This child is only possible because we survived long enough to meet each other," Cass said, and Brunt nodded. "While we… We have no love for the God-Emperor, it was one of His saints who saved us from a mob when we hid under their statue."
The former Sister of Battle nodded in understanding. The assassins studied the pair closely. Tide stood in the back, his face considerate of something only he was aware of.
"Malcador. His name is Malcador."
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Imagine if Malcador was reborn here. If so, I can imagine him and Tide upon noticing each other doing this almost immediately in tides domain
Oh fuck. Oh shit. Oh fuck
Nice
Having an Alpha-grade is both a blessing and a curse......though how much use they'll serve might be little given how scared (rightfully so I'll admit) Tide is of Warp shit.
The baby being named Malcador........was already beaten to the punch of the joke of it being a reincarnated Malcy, though if that is the case then that would make things interesting.
The baby being named Malcador........was already beaten to the punch of the joke of it being a reincarnated Malcy, though if that is the case then that would make things interesting.
... Going by the Effort the imperium spent to get that child, and the name, theres a non 0 chance it actually is a reincarnated Malcador, which would have implications because he was strong enough to sit in the golden throne even if only for a little while. Might be enough to get Big E enough respite to actually heal back. I dont think this is gonna happen at all, would be rad as hell tho
DocMatoi
Theoretical Lover of Girls
- Location
- within 2 hours of the White House
- Pronouns
- They/Them
E: "malcador what the FUCK do you have in your cells. is that a fungus? die immediately and go reincarnate in something pure. ugh, and i just had the throne cleaned..."
That would warrant the full-house of Assassinorum assets as an extraction team, and keeping the Inquisition in the dark about it too.
- Location
- Minesota, USA
Well shit.
If this actually IS Malcador the Hero, then Tide has one HELL of a bargaining chip.
I don't mean like "do what I say or Mal goes back into the respawn queue", but more like "Your god's right-hand-man is on our side. Are you sure you want to proceed with your plan?"
- Location
- united states
somewhat fandom blind to 40K, who is Malcador?
- Location
- Minesota, USA
Big E's second in command and the second most powerful human psyker.
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- Location
- united states
Ah, so this is biiiig, if it's not just a coincidental name at least.
That's never stopped Imperium before. Even Guilliman needs to work around Imperial systems in nu-lore. Imperium has too much inertia. Big E himself coming back would have a shitton of problems due to his stance on religion.
Assuming this is a reincarnated Malcy, Tide's lucky he wasn't in a state to become a hidden boss fight right that second.
However, this could also be the key for Tide not getting smited by Big E, as who better to vouch for him than Little M himself.
Oh goody, at least we won't have to deal with any wacky Radical Inquisitiors trying to use Malcador 2.0 for any Chaos-flavored schemes then.
However, this could also be the key for Tide not getting smited by Big E, as who better to vouch for him than Little M himself.
Oh goody, at least we won't have to deal with any wacky Radical Inquisitiors trying to use Malcador 2.0 for any Chaos-flavored schemes then.
- Location
- United States
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Oooh, really interesting! I'm actually hoping it IS Malcador, since I want to see the conversations between him and tide.
As a general request, does anyone have a good resource for the varying power levels of Psykers? Like, what sorts of feats we see at each grade?
As a general request, does anyone have a good resource for the varying power levels of Psykers? Like, what sorts of feats we see at each grade?