Dark Heresy - Wisdom is the beginning of fear.

[Justice Augustus]

Xerxes turned to the two with him on the third floor and shrugged as he swung himself out of the exit. "While faithless traitors still live, there can be no forgiveness," he quotes from memory, as he begins his descent.

(If possible, once on the ground floor he reloads his shotgun while waiting for the others to follow him down.)

[Besyanteo]

Now wasn't the time to argue. And, technically, he'd advocated that particular course of action already anyway. Didn't mean he liked it, but it was a little late to call foul. He descended the ladder after Xerxes, intent on getting out of the damn building before the enforcers figured out that the bomb business was a sham.

[Kelne]

"Gentlemen," Cryvus said, "I suggest we adjourn to a less exposed position." He nodded in the direction of the burnt-out hab-blocks to the north-east, "Sooner or later, the enforcers will gather significant numbers together and resume their attempts to thwart His will."

Cryvus himself wasted no time in making in the indicated direction himself, eyes open for anyone who would seek to stand in their way.

[Jak Snide]

Mikolas's prodding gave the warden some semblance of decency, his limbs no longer resting at unnatural angles. The glint of something metallic under his coat prompted a quick search, though. What he'd seen had been a stub automatic, a serviceable looking pistol of local make which, unfortunately, was unloaded. Rummaging about for a clip yielded one other item: an obscura injector, empty and not the cleanest looking thing the man had seen in his travels. Finally, a simple baton hung from the man's belt, little more than a steel rod with a rubber grip at one end.

Xerxes was the first down the ladder, hoping over Locan's corpse and slipping another shell into his shotgun as the others descended. Gunner got a bit of blood on his boot as he dismounted, adding to the grime of close quarter fighting and his own injury. Crisis took a little longer than the rest, the newly acquired autocarbine now slung over his free shoulder.

Cryvus looked towards the various hab-blocks, noting a few onlookers peering out of windows. The firefight hadn't gone unnoticed, Julius pointing out a number of people had gathered near the statue to the south of the enforcer's station. Those looking towards the rail platform would see the three enforcers from before hurrying towards it, one man being supported by the other two, while the ones at the station appeared to be checking their weapons.

(Combat is over. For now, at least. The enforcers are backing off, but the potential for a second assault remains a possibility. Gunner and Julius have taken enough hits to make them Heavily Injured and, while this doesn't impose any mechanical effects, they'll be pretty sore and in need of medical attention and bed rest if they want to make a speedy recovery. Mik may loot any objects he's found while searching Locan though, as noted, the stub automatic is without ammo. Here's the map of the district again, the acolytes being just North of the enforcer station currently.)

[Besyanteo]

Now that things seemed to have (atleast temporarily) calmed a bit, Gunner allowed himself a moment to lean against a wall, the white hot pain refusing to be denied now that the adrenaline in his body had slackened off a bit. How Julius was standing was a mystery to him. For fuck's sake, man was bleeding out on top of all of this shit.

"Someone decide where we're going and lead the way..."

He flinched around "where", and for once found himself at odds with his flak armor. He couldn't hold or dress his wounds while he wore it, but there was no practical way to remove it while they got on their way. So, he'd just have to suffer until they got to a medical facility. He just kept reminding himself that Jules probably felt worse.

[Kelne]

"This way," Cryvus said, turning briefly before resuming his progress, "First we ditch the pursuit, then we find a comm terminal." Cryvus was already heading north-east, towards a more run-down part of the sector. Losing any pursuit in amongst all the ruined hab-blocks ought to be easy enough, but finding a working comm terminal in there might be a bit trickier.

[Capntastic]

Mik knelt and snagged the automatic.

"Sounds like a plan," he said to Cryvus, standing and pocketing the gun and making to follow. He slung his shotgun, and got his lasgun ready to roll. Never hurts to be prepared.

[Jak Snide]

The group made their move, Crisis lagging behind for a moment to reload his rifle before dashing after the others, easily catching them up. Those casting their eyes back could see the enforcers had regrouped but weren't making to follow them, or at least not yet. A small crowd had gathered by the rail platform as well, citizens probably wanting to find out just what had happened inside the enforcer station.

(Gunner:

Spoiler:

You watch Julius as you hustle after Cryvus, and it becomes apparent the man is putting on a brave face. He's looking pale and flinching occasionally, but doing his best to mask it.

)

Cryvus leads them into the third burnt-out hab stack along, bypassing the first two without even a glance. He leads them to the stairs and into a dimly lit room a few floors up, the illumination seeping through a the partly boarded up window. The stack has been utterly gutted by fire, with only the base rockcrete structure remaining. Julius carefully sits down against a wall and begins removing his flak vest, a single "shee-it" escaping from his mouth.

The place is quiet, save for the odd rattle of debris toppling down some shaft. The acolytes are all pretty sure they broke line of sight with the enforcers before they ducked in here. They may very well come looking, but for now it seems safe to catch their breath.

[Justice Augustus]

Xerxes allows himself a rest, slinging his shotgun back over his shoulder and slumping against a wall. He glanced over his comerades. They were battered, injured, and tired, but they were all alive for now. Yet at this time he felt like the next step of their investigation was beyond their abilities and their condition. They needed help. He kept his thoughts to himself though. No use saying such cowardly sentiments aloud when he could wait for one of the others to voice their own concerns.

[Capntastic]

"Hey, we should ditch these coats. That's probably the big thing they're lookin' for."

[Kelne]

Cryvus tried, but there really was nothing he could say in response to Mikolas's suggestion. He settled for simply shaking his head.

"Our next order of business," he said, "Is to locate a comm terminal and inform the Inquisitor of what we have found. Even if we fall, what we have begun must not be allowed to go unfinished."

[Jak Snide]

"Hell," said Julius, spitting on the floor and laying his flak vest to one side, "where we goin' to find one of those? The whole town's a damn wreck."

[Capntastic]

"Well, maybe my Ma knows where one could be. But I don't wanna bring none of them filthy merc jerks to her doorstep, ya know? I think I already got a plan for how we could ask her, too, without having to move Jay here, an' gettin' all detected an' such in the process."

Mik folded his arms, leaning against a wall and smirking. He looked to Crisis.

"How 'bout you sneak on over to Ma's place. When you're there, you can give her your vox thing and we can ask her with it. The rest of us can rest up and wait for things to cool down."

[Besyanteo]

Gunner debated with himself. He could see what Jules was doing. He could tell that his injuries were more serious than the others seemed to understand. He could also see that Jules didn't give two shits about that, and would rather bleed the fuck to death than let on that he was in trouble. Pointing out his condition wasn't going to fix the matter, and they would ignore him in favor of their various ideas of how to best service the Emperor, being the good little sacrificial lambs that they were.

But any of them getting killed would be the last thing that aided the Empire right now. So how was he going to convince them that this was in their best interest? He was already at a disadvantage, being injured himself. If he pressed too hard, they'd think he was a coward and tell him off, and then return to ignoring the issue of the large black man who was one foot in the grave now, the other teetering on the edge of the freshly dug loam.

Of course, just what the hell did he expect them to do about it? This was a slum. It was a low-key location that didn't have the benefits that most of the upper levels possessed; That's why their adversary chose it to set up shop to begin with. So where could they get shelter, hopefully medical care, access to communications or directions to access to communications, and possibly means of disguising themselves for a while? Or, well, the best combination of most of those things.

A Parish. This was a hive in the Emperor's domain. Of course there would be a Parish.

"Stow all that. This place isn't a good spot long term, and "Ma's" definitely isn't. We need to get away from people connected with this shit, not closer to them. We can't get out, either, so we have to hide for a little while. And getting rid of our coats is only going to make us stand out more than we do, now that we've been spotted to begin with.

We're going to find a local Parish, we're going to ask the Chaplin where we can get some care, some food, and some way to contact our superiors. Problems solved, reliably and in a way and place that our enemy isn't going to expect."

[Jak Snide]

Julius muttered a prayer to Saint Elena as he examined his wound, opening up the shirt of his uniform to get a better look at it before fishing around in his pack.

"Weren't there a temple marked on the map he got?" The man nodded his head towards Xerxes as he produced a small black book and began leafing through it.

[Kelne]

"Unquestionably the best plan any of us is going to come up with," Cryvus said, exuding that air of certainty which he did so well. For a few moments, he'd been looking at Mikolas as if he were the crazy one. Gunner's plan, by contrast, was eminently sensible.

[Capntastic]

"Sure, that works."

If Mik was aware of any looks, he didn't show it.

[Jak Snide]

"So when we goin' to make our move?" The guardsman's voice trailed off at the end of his sentence, seemingly having found something in the book that demanded his attention.

[Kelne]

"The time is now," Cryvus said, "For the fall of night brings forth the Lost once more." He stood, glancing about, "Assuming everybody is ready?"

[Capntastic]

"Ready to rock'n'roll as always!" Mik asserted, raising his lasgun to the ceiling. One gets the feeling that if he were not with such sophisticated company, he'd be holding down the trigger.

[Justice Augustus]

Xerxes sighs, he was enjoying his first breather in a while. He yanks out the map and gives it a cursory glance. "Aight, I think we're here," he says, pointing to the northern-most hab-stack on the map. "So we got two choices. Either we cross the open square an' marketplace as targets of the biggest gang in this sector, or we head up inta the unmarked area on the map an' hope there's a back way around."

[Jak Snide]

Julius busied himself with washing and applying pressure to his wound, though with only a hip flask of water and his own hand he was poorly equipped to do so.

"Reckon we ain't got no choice. Get seen an' shot up or work our way round all sneaky like."

He looked up from his chest and over to Gunner. "You doin' alright there?"

[Besyanteo]

Gunner was slowly standing, moving wobbly like. Still, he got there. If he was bleeding like Jules was, it wasn't right out where anyone could see. However, he was starting to twitch when he made certain movements, and he kept his left arm stiff most of the time.

"Ok for now. Better once we get moving and get into that Parish. Let's go around and trust in the Emperor to keep unfriendly eyes off us."

He only waited for Xerxes, as map holder, to lead.

[Jak Snide]

Once Julius has strapped his armoured vest back on the acolytes moved out. Crisis had been keeping watch from the window while the others had talked and, in his own way, let the others know they hadn't been followed. Heading North and into uncharted areas, they found that what Xerxes hoped they would; a way around the large tunnel leading out of the sector or, rather, a bridge mounted on it's cylindrical form. It was only wide enough to travel in single file on, and the sheer steepness of the steps made the going slow and initially tiring. The descent was easier, though not something to be rushed. Still, an hour or so later they found themselves back on the ground and making their way through deserted streets.

It didn't take them much longer to reach the Templum. It was a simple metal building, most likely of a pre-fabricated somewhere uphive, with a few tattered banners of the Imperial Creed affixed to the outside walls. Checking quickly for any observers, the acolytes made their way inside, metal doors squeaking as they opened. The first thing that struck them was how the place was lit; hundreds of tallow candles flickering away, adorning almost all raised surfaces. The temple was otherwise sparsely decorated, save for a few half-rotten rows of pews and an alter with the Aquilla displayed above it. A few people were scattered around, most laying on makeshift beds, but one stepped away from tending to a prone man and approached them. A young girl in a simple grey robe, hair tied neatly back into a pony tail, putting on a smile as she drew near.

"Welcome to the house of the Watcher, He Who Shines His Light on us all. What brings you to our door?"

[Justice Augustus]

"His divine will and grace." Xerxes replies, and then winces and holds his arm, looking back at his fellows with a face full of sadness and worry. If we can get supplies out of these people without telling them what happened, then that would be for the best. Let's see how charitable and gullible they are.

[Jak Snide]

(Since I forgot before, map updated.)

Xerxes' could see he'd gotten the desired result. The girl noticed the injuries of the group and her expression changes to one of shock and concern. "By the saints, come in and find yourselves a place! I'll be back in a moment."

She scurried off towards the back of the chapel, allowing the group to find themselves somewhere to take a load off their feet. There were a dozen or so downtrodden looking people strew around, a few of whom shuffled away from the group as they settled down.

(Cryvus, Gunner, Xerxes:

Spoiler:

One of the prone men is wearing the robes of a priest. He appears to be asleep and clutching an empty bottle. You can smell the stench of alcohol from two meters away.

)

The girl returned a few moments later, a first aid kit in her arms, and moved over to Gunner. "What happened to you? I heard there was trouble near the station earlier."

[Kelne]

Cryvus couldn't help but wonder whether this descent into vice was typical of all the leaders here. Always assuming, of course, that the drink-addled priest was supposed to be in charge of the Templum. No wonder their adversary had selected the sector for her nefarious deeds.

He repressed the temptation to do a bit of shouting. He doubted the man would be any use to them, and it would only unnerve the other poor souls.

"There was a firefight," he said, neglecting to mention that they'd been on one of the sides in that fight. The woman would no doubt figure it out for herself as more information trickled in, but hopefully, they'd be ready to depart by the time that happened. It wasn't fair to involve these people in their war any more than it would have been to involve 'Ma'.

"My apologies, miss, but could you point me in the direction of the nearest working comms terminal? There are people we should be checking in with."

It was a remarkable feat of coherence, coming from Cryvus. Then again, he'd demonstrated the ability to make sense when it was important.

[Jak Snide]

Cryvus got the feeling that the girl was making her own assumptions, intelligent eyes flickering to the larger weapons that the acolytes carried. The fact Gunner was wearing body armour probably wasn't lost on her either. Still, despite her wary expression, she began to administer some first aid to the man after he removed his flak vest. His wound didn't look as bad as Julius', but there was still a bullet in there. She didn't seem to have the skill to remove it, instead washing the wound and bandaging his torso, muttering a prayer to one Saint Clessus as did her work.

"Those enforcers are skirting damnation, I tell you. Not a care for their fellow man. They've done nothing to reduce the number of candles lit here." She moved onto Julius, the guardsman having stripped off his flak vest again, and did to him much as she did to Gunner.

"A vox, though? Don't have one of those here. The enforcer station would, but..." She looked over the group once again. "Well, the Workers Union might have one. I hear it's not what it used to be, though. But then nothing has been the same since the fires."

(Gunner and Julius have gained 1 wound through a successful application of first aid.)

[Kelne]

"One never skirts damnation for long," Cryvus remarked absently, "If there are no objections, gentlemen, I'll see to the message myself while you rest." Cryvus unslung his newly acquired autogun and regretfully laid down his staff. It was just a tad distinctive.

As the only completely unscathed member of the group and the least physically imposing, he felt that he ought to be able to move about more or less unremarked.

[Besyanteo]

Gunner simply nodded to his fellow acolyte, though he regretted the motion almost immediately after.

"Take care."

[Capntastic]

"Go for it, yeah? Well, be careful."

Mik then did what came naturally to him when told to make himself at home; he sat down at the nearest seat or spare piece of floor and stacked his guns by his side. He then got down to watching what the other acolytes would do.

[Jak Snide]

Outside

Cryvus slipped out the door, making his way towards the market. A quick glance over at the station told him that only two enforcers were on guard there now, though the populace were keeping their distance. The market itself was heaving with activity, many those who would otherwise be working trying to occupy themselves with whatever was available. His short stature helped him disappear into the crowds, the market once again proving to be the exception to Coscarla's gloom and sparseness.

He emerged from the collection of stalls and shacks, the Worker's Union directly ahead of him. A quick glance told him no enforcers were nearby, and he made his way over to the entrance, passing by a man lying in a puddle of something unpleasant as he entered. The inside of the place was heavily vandalised heavily, the metal walls sporting a large range of graffiti and the occasional bullet mark. The place was packed, though the mood was dour. Alot of drinking, but no cause for celebration, it seemed. The woman behind the bar was a mean looking sort, the left side of her face disfigured in a manner that caused it to appear that she wore a constant scowl. Cryvus also noted the stairs leading up to the second floor, complete with two heavy set thugs at the bottom ensuring that nobody got close to them.

The Templum

The robed girl finished tending to Julius and looked over the rest of them for a moment before packing away the first aid kit, apparently satisfied that they weren't in need of attention. She left for a moment to fetch them some water, the taste tinged in the way all water in the hive seemed to be, before seating herself near the group, silent for a few moments before speaking up.

"Please....tell me what's happening out there."

[Capntastic]

Mik sipped the water, testing it.

"Well, those enforcer fellas are pretty damned crazy, like ya said. Lockin' the whole place up, firin' guns all willy nilly, shootin' at us when we go to ask 'em what's up. Heh. Not at all, uh, friendly like."

Mik then gulped down the remaining water, and raised the cup to show gratitude.

"Thanks!"

[Justice Augustus]

Xerxes looked up at the girl. "Ya see, it was that question that got us inta that little scrape. We just wanted to know what was up. But them enforcers, they aint right, ya know?" Perhaps she knows something... "Seems like they're more mercs than arbs. Ya see, we're kinda new to the area, just transferred ya dig, and we aint seen anything like this before. Have they always been like that?"

[Jak Snide]

The Templum

The girl hadn't look surprised when they'd told her about being attacked by the enforcers, instead mulling over their words before speaking for a moment.

"No...no, not always. The magistratum officers here were never known for their kindness, but over the past weeks they've come to possess an...poor reputation. They keep the peace, but they have done little to right the wrongs committed against His people. They say they work to solve the nightly disappearances, but every day we light more candles for the lost."

[Kelne]

Deciding that the barkeep was his best first port of call, Cryvus made his way over, speaking just loudly enough to be heard over the background noise, "Good afternoon, miss. I was hoping to make use of the establishment's vox terminal."

[Jak Snide]

The woman turned to him, mouth already forming a dismissive curse, but stopped when she got a proper look at him. It took her a moment to actually speak.

"Shit out of luck. Vox is upstairs, an' you dun look like yer in with the crowd. Drink?"

[Kelne]

"If you would, please," Cryvus said, more for the diplomatic aspects of buying a drink than out of any particular desire for one. As he fished out the requisite thrones, he continued, "My business is fairly urgent, though. Is there anybody I could put my case to?"

[Jak Snide]

The bartender poured a glass of some brown looking spirit and placed it down on the counter, leaning forward as she did. Cryvus noted offhand that she had a ten digit number tattooed on her right bicep.

"Listen, dunno where yer been fer the past weeks, but Luntz runs the place now. An' he don't like no visitors unless they got a real good reason ter bother him."

[Kelne]

"Believe me, mine qualifies," Cryvus said with his trademark certainty, "Whether Luntz would see it that way is, I admit, another matter."

If Luntz turned out to be yet another corrupt and ineffective 'leader', Cryvus was going to start giving serious thought to suggesting a wide-ranging purge of the entire leadership structure. Assuming he lived through all this, at least.