We are greeted to the forgeworld by an unaugmented magos. "Magos Biologis Tyr Tov greets the esteemed guests of house Hircus of the navis nobiliate to the esteemed forgeworld of HK47!"
That was a lot of words. My reply is. "House Hircus thanks you for your hospitality. We are here for trade."
The magos give me an enthusiastic nod. "Very well! I shall lead you to archmagos ACM001 himself! Do you wish to stay as our guest, or will you be returning to your sanctum?"
I turn my head towards Joline. She gives me a nod. I turn my head back to the magos and give him a nod. "We will be remaining here as your guests for some time."
The magos shows clear joy on his face. "Most excellent! The archmagos is just by this door!"
The magos opens the ten meter tall door that he's led us to, revealing the equally tall archmagos. The man is more machine than man, the only visible sign that we are staring at a human and not a steel murder blender is the human skin of ACM001's face, upon which haphazardly lie multiple mechanical eyes and a large number of vox.
The magos gives me an encouraging smile. "I shall leave you to your negotiations! It is my sincere desire that all of the parties involved reach an agreement that will leave everyone satisfied!" The magos closes the door, leaving us alone with ACM001.
The Archmagos turns towards us. "Greetings. What is it you wish to trade for?"
I clear my throat and begin listing the equipment we need for our household guard. "A hundred standard pattern human sized power armors, a thousand hotshot lasguns of a pattern specialized for close quarters and twenty thousand power packs of a pattern with as much quality as possible."
What I've listed is right on the edge of becoming a trade of favors. The lasguns are a trifle, they'd barely cost anything even if I bought ten times as many of them. The power packs are somewhat more expensive, but still not nearly enough to reach the level of becoming a favor. The power armors on the other hand are expensive, each suit has to be hand-crafted, mass production is practically an impossibility for something that complex.
I put a dataslate on the table between us. "This holds a list of materials that we wish to purchase along with the equipment."
ACM001's response comes from the vox on his face. "I have a counter proposal. We gift you your requests free of charge, but you provide us a guarantee for your services after your current contract is complete."
That's not disagreeable. We're currently only contracted to guide the imperial guard fleet to Kearus, we don't have any other obligations afterwards. "What is it that you offer in exchange?"
The archmagos hands me a dataslate with one of his many mechadendrite's. "A significant amount of imperial thrones along with twenty favors."
That's a pretty good offer, hopefully he doesn't want to get somewhere absurdly far away or stay there for a ridiculous amount of time. "Towards where do you require transport?"
The archmagos brings two of his mechadendrite's between us, he leaves a lot of empty space between them and points them at each other before they form a holographic display of the sector. "We require transport of an explorator fleet to systems KHA007 and KHA009. We will need to spend an approximate ten months on KHA007 and then two years on KHA009."
That sounds about right for that price offer, there's still a possibility to negotiate considering the amount of time that we're going to spend there. "Double the amount of thrones and make it thirty favors."
The archmagos lets the hologram disappear and hands me a dataslate with a mechadendrite. "Agreed. The dataslate contains our products, you can pick any patterns that you wish for your gift."
That's actually pretty nice of him, which means that I probably should have fleeced him. I take the dataslate and hand it to Dol. "Pick what you know is best for us."
In the end Dol ends up picking a rather obscure pattern of powerpacks that hold significantly more charge at the expense of charging much slower, a pattern of hotshot lasgun that prioritizes armor penetration over damage and a pattern of power armor that is just that little bit superior to the standard pattern in every aspect. A pretty good selection.
The archmagos concurs with Dol's choices. "I approve of your choices, your companion is well versed in the ways of the omnissiah. Your goods will be ready for transport in two weeks time. You are free to enjoy the hospitality of our forgeworld for as long as you wish."
And with that negotiations are over. We are going to spend a few nights here out of curiosity, afterwards we'll just leave for the sanctum if there's nothing interesting to do.
—
Turns out that the forgeworld does have some pretty good entertainment for their prospective guests. Whilst their accommodations can't really compare to the luxury present in our navigator's sanctum, they still have some amenities that the limited space inside of the sanctum can't really provide.
One such example is their wargame arena. Instead of having a small hologram displaying a 3d environment they have a gigantic ass hologram simulating a battlefield at a 1:1 scale.
—
We quickly return to the sanctum after we get bored of the forgeworld's accommodations. Unlike the agriworld there's nothing to really pull us in, there's no sun shining in the sanctum and there's no sun shining in the forgeworld either.
Joline is currently preparing for Flakey's ritual and Flakey is also currently preparing herself for her ritual. Janna and I are helping Flakey psyche herself up, while Dol is calmly observing as Joline draws the necessary glyphs in blood red ink.
We're using one of the larger ritual rooms, since the size of the ritual circle is gargantuan. Janna stares at the hundred meter diameter ritual circle. "Does it really need to be this big?"
I nod. "Yeah, from what Joline explained there's going to be a lot of human sacrifice involved. The blood from the sacrifices can't mingle with the lines of chalk, so it's safer to just have a giant ass ritual circle with as much space between the sacrifices and the chalk as possible."
Flakey grabs the hem of my robes. "I'm scared."
Janna pats her head. "Don't worry, Joline would never do anything to hurt you. Isn't that right Krauss?"
I nod. "Janna is right, Joline would sooner cut her hand off than hurt you."
Flakey gulps and gives me a timid nod. I ruffle her hair. "Don't worry too much, you just need to sit there and be pretty, Joline will take care of the rest, allright?"
Flakey gives me another timid nod. Dol continues observing as Joline draws the glyphs and Janna stares at the numerous prepared sacrifices. "How long is this ritual going to take?"
I continue to ruffle Flakey's hair. "Most of the ritual is prep work, the actual ritual itself isn't going to take that long."
We sit in silence until Joline rises up, having finished drawing the ritual circle. She comes over to Flakey, Janna and I, making sure not to step on any of the drawn chalk as she does so. When she reaches us she leans down, bats my hand away from Flakey's hair and then begins to ruffle Flakey's hair. "Don't worry too much, I'll take care of everything. All you have to do is sit in the middle of the circle and not get bored, allright?"
Flakey gulps and gives Joline a timid nod, before grabbing the hem of her robes and beginning to follow her to the center of the ritual circle. Once they arrive Joline gives Flakey her final instructions. "So, you need to drink from this vial, then I'm going to cut my hand and mark your forehead. Afterwards I'll get to doing the ritual, allright?"
Flakey gives her a timid nod. She takes the vial from Joline and drinks my blood from it in one gulp. Joline then does just as she had informed her that she would, she cuts the palm of her hand and leaves a smear of blood on Flakey's forehead before ruffling her hair with her uninjured hand.
Joline takes a deep breath. "Hanc animam sub nostra protectione pono, sub alis nostris celabuntur."
The blood on Flakey's forehead begins glowing, making the girl nervous. Joline continues chanting. "Sanguis meus id a communi et insolito aspectu celabit. Sanguis fratris mei id a communibus et insolitis periculis proteget."
The glow of Joline's blood dims. Joline begins walking to the first sacrifice, she places her ritual knife on the man's throat and continues the chant. "Haec erit sors"
She slits the man's throat, before preparing to do the same to the second. "eorum qui audeant"
She repeats this with the third sacrifice. "aedere ei qui"
The throat of the fourth sacrifice is slit. "sub mea protectione est."
The bloody chalk has now begun to glow, providing a crimson hue to the dimly lit root. Joline slits the throat of the fifth sacrifice. "Hoc erit fatum eorum"
She cuts the neck of the sixth sacrifice. "Hoc erit fatum eorum"
The seventh. "Hoc erit fatum eorum"
The eighth. "Hoc erit fatum eorum"
She continues slitting the throats of the sacrifices as the chalk starts to glow brighter and brighter as the number of living sacrifices dwindle more and more. She finally reaches the hundredth sacrifice. "Qui tutelam meam laedere volunt, primum cum fratre et sorore, cum marito et uxore contendere debent."
And with that the chalk begins dissolving into blood, which slowly moves towards the center of the circle, where Flakey is standing. She gives me a nervous look, I respond with an encouraging thumbs up. Flakey takes a deep breath and steadies herself, putting her trust in Joline and I.
Joline walks slowly towards Flakey, this time taking no care not to step into the slowly liquifying chalk. When she reaches Flakey she kneels to the same level as the now shaking girl. Joline places her hands into the pooling blood below, before pinching Flakey's cheeks, marking them with fresh blood. "And done! You're now safe from the ickies in the warp. If any come after you I want you come screaming for me or Krauss, we'll take care of 'em"
Flakey stares dumbfounded at the smiling Joline. "The maids are going to clean up this mess, let's go for a swim until then."
Dol stares at the unnaturally watery blood. "Is there any use for this blood? It appears to have become imbued with warp energy."
Joline shakes her head. "Not really. It won't do anything if it gets in your skin or if you happen to swallow a tiny amount. If you drink it by the bucketfulls you're going to quickly turn into a blob though."
Dol gives Joline a nod. "May I keep it for research?"
Joline shrugs. "Sure, just don't drink any of it."
—
Now that Flakey can finally safely train her psychic abilities we can finally find out what she is capable of. Flakey looks at Joline and I for reassurance, we both respond with a thumbs up.
Flakey takes a deep breath and concentrates on the man sized steel cube in front of her. It slowly begins to lift into the air. Seeing that whatever she is doing is working gives flakey the encouragement to almost effortlessly keep it floating.
I point at another identical steel cube. "Throw it at that one."
Flakey gives me a nod and pushes her arm towards the second cube. The first cube is violently launched towards the second, sending them both flying and skidding until they smack into a reinforced wall. Joline blinks. "That's actually pretty strong, I can't wait to bring you with us now."
Flakey gives Joline a radiant smile.
I give Flakey an encouraging smile. "Before that you'll need to pass Khaeyl's training. Once you can tag her at least one out of ten times during sparring you'll be ready for actual combat."
Flakey gives me a look of despair
—
Joline and I watch as Khaeyl drills Flakey in close quarters combat. Khaeyl can be called many things, surprisingly enough a good teacher is one of said things. Khaeyl makes a lazy lunge, hitting Flakey in the forehead with the sparring rapier. "Don't look at my eyes, my shoulders or anything physical. If your opponent is wearing full body armor then any tells that they may have had are gone."
Flakey gives Khaeyl a determined nod. Joline crosses her arms. "You know, I never expected her to actually be able to teach well. I expected her to half-ass the job on purpose or something."
Flakey lunges at Khaeyl. Khaeyl takes a lazy swipe at Flakey's head. Flakey parries, going for a slash at Khaeyl's hand immediately after. Khaeyl parries and counterattacks, hitting Flakey in the head. "Good, you're getting faster when counterattacking. All weapons rely on speed, the faster you can strike the less time your opponent will have to react."
Joline leans on my shoulder, I hug her over her shoulders. "Khaeyl is extremely proud, maybe it's one of those things where her pride doesn't let her half ass the job? Since not performing well would be an insult to her capabilities."
Joline stares at Flakey and Khaeyl as they reset. "Probably, we should still keep an eye on them for now. What's Dol been up to lately?"
I continue observing Flakey and Khaeyl sparring. "She's trying to incorporate the new powerpack into the wraithbone lasgun, the problem is that the wraithbone lasgun is made specifically for the standard powerpack. She basically has to design an entirely new one for the new, better powerpacks."
Joline giggles. "At least that'll keep her busy. I wonder how Anesh is putting up with her current sleep schedule."
I continue observing the spar. "Going by the bags under her eyes? Not that well. I'll need to have a talk with Dol about letting the girl have some rest. Overworking Anesh is probably doing more harm than good to her research anyway."
—
Dol has called us over to show us her new wraithbone lasgun. This time it only took a month for the design to be complete. I look at Anesh, who is looking like she might just drop dead from sleep deprivation. I sigh. "Anesh, go get some sleep. I'll have a talk with Dol about giving you proper rest."
Anesh mumbles a quick 'thank you', before immediately dropping asleep like a log. Dol stares at the snoring eldar. "I may have gone a little overboard."
Joline gives Anesh a light kick, to no reaction from the ungraceful Anesh, who continues snoring without a care in the world. "A little? You literally tired the grace out of an eldar. I didn't even think that that was possible."
Dol shakes her head. "I shall endeavor to take more care of my assistant in the future. Now, I wish to present you with the new and improved wraithbone lasgun!"
Dol reverently holds the new wraithbone lasgun for all to see. It looks exactly like the old one. I blink. "What's the difference between this one and the old one?"
Dol begins talking while keeping the wraithbone lasgun unmoved. "It is 41.2% superior to the previous design in everything! It now also incorporates an armor piercing mode, which lowers the overall damage caused but increases its penetrative ability! This is a gun that features the logistical ease of the lasgun and the penetrative power of the bolter!"
It is a pretty nifty design when you put it like that. Shame that it can't be widespread in its use. Joline crosses her arms. "I have a request."
Dol and I stare at Joline. She elaborates. "Can you make a power rapier superior to the ones that we are currently using? They are not archeotech, so that shouldn't be too difficult, right?"
Dol gives the idea some thought. "Perhaps, but not now. I do not hold enough knowledge in the working of this material to undertake a project of that calibre. After some more simple projects are undertaken I will revisit your request. My apologies."
Joline shrugs. "Eh, don't worry about it."
—
The two months quickly pass, Dol and Anesh continue designing and researching. Joline and I spend most of our time relaxing while Janna has somehow managed to befriend Khaeyla, having now started joining them in their spars.
Joline and I look as Khaeyl easily dismantles the defenses of Flakey and Janna while providing to the point commentary on the exact mistakes the two made. Joline whistles. "Now that's impressive, here's your reward!"
Joline takes out a remote and presses the button on it before I can stop her. Khaeyl stiffens momentarily, before somehow putting even more energy into teaching the two. I stare at Joline. She leans on my shoulder. "What, how did you think her and Janna became friends? I handed Janna a remote and told her to go ham on it whenever Khaeyl did something that pleased her."
Janna and Joline have literally pavlov conditioned a drukhari with pain. I sigh. "Did you tell her what the remote does?" It activates the pain implants in Khaeyl.
Joline shakes her head. "Nope." She then gives me a quick peck on my cheeks.
I sigh. "I'm going to start preparing for the jump to Kearus, we'll find a ship that needs to go to HK47 once we arrive there."
Kearus is a sort of storage hub for imperial tithes. The arbites bring in the imperial tithe collected from the various nearby planets. Kearus stores and distributes them according to the whims of the adeptus administratum, so it's pretty easy to find a return trip from there, so to speak.
I head over to the room where the navigator's throne is. Opening my third eye in the vicinity of anyone not of navigator descent is not a wise idea. Unless they are enemies, then it's an extremely wise idea.