15: Beginning of the End

"Right! I've got a plan," Sona said exuberantly once she managed to stop sobbing and compose herself.

"When did ya come up with a plan?" Octus asked, obviously amused.

Sona blushed, "When I was crying… Well, half of it was one of my backup plans to spice things up. I just adjusted it now that you're with me."

"One of yer backup plans was to ruin the ritual?"

"Yeah!" Sona smiled brightly. "I figured it would cause some interesting chaos! Err… not capital-c Chaos. The other kind…"

Octus chuckled, his smile growing brighter as well now that it seemed he'd gotten Sona on his side, "Well, ya've certainly got my attention. Let's hear it."

Her smile wavered slightly, "This is where things get complicated. Based on what I know, the ritual is fueled by sacrifices…"

"And that didn't tip ya off to how bad Chaos is?" Octus interrupted sarcastically.

Sona rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah, it's obvious in hindsight. As I was saying… I'm still not sure what those sacrifices are meant to do but they limit our course of action. We can't go around killing all of the cultists. They want to die so we'd just be feeding into the ritual with that."

"Also, I'm pretty sure it's already started…" Sona winced. "But good news! I have a metric fuckton of explosives stashed away for just this purpose!"

"Of course ya do…" Octus said with humor in his tone.

"Never underestimate the good an explosion can do," Sona nodded sagely as if she was quoting something.

"And how do we make sure the explosion doesn't accidentally kill the sacrifices and feed the ritual?"

"We can't… at least, not completely," Sona had the decency to look sheepish. "But the ritual was supposed to rely on the location and some other preparations too. So I was planning on using the explosives to collapse the ritual room. Hopefully, that will limit the collateral damage and still stop the ritual."

Octus sighed, "This is starting to seem more up to luck than anything else…"

"Don't worry," Sona waved off his concern. "Once your Sister of Battle shows up, everything should resolve itself. She's got that main character energy just like you. No Chaos ritual can stand up to two main characters."

Octus looked at her queerly but shrugged, accepting it without really understanding it, "Alright, if ya say so…"

Then he blushed, "Sabine ain't 'mine' though. I dunno where ya got that idea from…"

"I honestly don't know if I should be worried about you, Octus," Sona said, shaking her head fondly. "Surely there is a limit to your density."

Octus cocked his head like a puppy, "I mean… yeah, there has to be. I still float in water after all."

Sona giggled, "Yes, that is exactly what I meant~"

Octus had the strangest feeling that he was missing something there. He paused for a moment but nothing came to him. So as usual, the thought drifted out of his mind. There were more important things to concern himself with right now.

"Cool… Anyway, I'm down for this plan. It's better than the nothin' I got at the moment. And it's not like we got a whole lotta time to be spitballin'. What do ya need me to do?"

Sona clapped her hands excitedly, "Oh~ This will be fun~ With you here, we can more than double the number of explosives! I just need you to put those ~strong~ muscles of yours to work, Papi~"

She started darting around to various places in the room, uncovering stuff, picking it up, and darting back to him. Octus watched on with surprise and open hands as a small mountain of… something began to pile up in his arms. Octus found himself holding several dozen individually wrapped packages of what he assumed to be explosives.

"Uh… Is it safe for you to keep all this in your bedroom? Or for me to be holding it?" Octus asked with a bit of trepidation.

"It's fine," Sona said dismissively and distractedly as she moved around the room. "They're not even primed-… Oh! Except this one. Let's just leave that there… Anyway, you're basically holding bricks right now."

"That wasn't very reassuring, Sona," Octus said cautiously.

The last thing Sona retrieved from the hidden spaces around her room was Octus' loaned bolter, "Whatever. C'mon, let's go! I can't wait to shoot this thing!"

"Uh, how about no?" Octus winced. "Sabine'd kill me if I let ya use her holy bolter."

Sona pouted, "Well, just don't tell her then."

Octus tried a different tactic, "Ain't this supposed to be a stealth mission? We ain't gonna be killing the other cultists so I don't see why you'd need to shoot at all."

"B-But…" Sona stuttered and then groaned. "Damn it!"

Octus chuckled, "Maybe next time, girlie. Now, lead the way. We've got a ritual to kick in the ass."

Sona continued to pout and grumble slightly but she still led Octus out of the room. They found themselves walking down a dark passage that looked as if it was buried within the walls of the Hive and forgotten about. Octus could barely see Sona a few feet in front of him but she seemed to have no trouble navigating the dimly lit space.

"Where are we anyway?" Octus asked.

"Right on the border between the Underhive and the Lower Hive," Sona explained. "This is where I made my home. The cult had requisitioned a space right below this so it was just convenient."

"So… we're in the cult's attic right now?"

Sona giggled, "Yeah, that's about right. They chose to settle in an Imperial cathedral for… obvious reasons."

"Ugh, Sabine's gonna flip," Octus groaned. "Couldn't ya've chosen anything other than a frakking church?"

Sona shrugged, "It just seemed fitting. I didn't put too much thought into it."

"That seems to be a recurring theme with ya," Octus teased lightly.

Sona turned to look at him with a wicked expression on her face, "I don't know. I put plenty of thought into what I want you to do to me, Papi~"

Octus didn't get the implication but his face flushed with color involuntarily. Sona turned back forward, satisfied and smiling at Octus' naivety. They continued walking in silence until they came to an opening that led out onto a sort of rafter or catwalk.

Below the catwalk, a once-grand Imperial cathedral opened up to them. The ceilings were high enough to fit one of the Emperor's God-machines beneath them. The walls were dotted with stained glass and murals that previously displayed dedications to the Emperor of Mankind. Altars and pews lined the floor, once receiving the holiest of offerings from the Emperor's faithful. A giant statue of an Imperial Saint that Octus couldn't recognize dominated the center of the cathedral's spacious halls.

But all of these symbols and examples of the Emperor's glory had been defaced and corrupted almost beyond recognition. The magnificent stained glass windows had been splattered and coated with filth and the blood of heretics. The pews were cracked and broken. The altars were damaged and sullied by the actions of mad cultists. The only place that was still sacred was the arched ceiling and that was only because the profane heretics couldn't reach them.

The worst of the violations of the Imperial Creed was perpetrated upon the statue of the Imperial Saint. The visage of what once must have been a beautiful, righteous, and awe-inspiring Sister of Battle had been defaced and vandalized beyond recognition. The holy wings on her back had been broken off and trampled upon by impure feet. Her halo had been broken into pieces that now hung around the statue's neck. Her face had been corrupted and recarved into a mien of pain and distress that pulled at Octus' loyal heartstrings.

The heathens had even gone a step further than just vandalism. Unholy symbols of their Dark Gods were carved into the statue's flesh and filled with heretical blood. The statue's pedestal was covered in the things and the floor around it wasn't any different. And the longer Octus looked at the symbols on the floor, the more they started to look like a deliberate pattern. A horrifying thought hit him and he gasped despite himself. They were going to use the Saint's statue as a focus for their vile ritual…

Hearing Octus' gasp, Sona hurried to defend herself, "I-I didn't have anything to do with this! I was too busy pulling strings to do… to do… this. Hell, I haven't even been here since I set up the cult!"

Octus shared his revelation with Sona in a breathless whisper, "They're… They're gonna use the Saint. This is where the ritual's gonna happen. Where they'll damn everything we hold sacred and holy…"

"No they won't," Sona reassured soberly. "You'll-… We'll stop them."

Sabine paced back and forth. Anxiety and impatience radiated off of her. Enough so that even the non-Psykers, Diana and Miko, could feel it in the air.

Not long ago, Miko had heard back from the people she had trailing the fleeing cultists. They'd thought that they were close to finding the cultists' main hideout. Now, the quartet of women were just waiting anxiously to hear back from them again.

And while the other three women had assured Sabine that Octus would be fine, she couldn't help but worry slightly. She knew they were most likely speaking the truth. But that sliver of a chance that the cultists and the Maestro had done something to him tortured Sabine's heart.

"Sabine-dear," Diana advised. "Please sit down. You'll worry yourself to exhaustion. Then you won't be able to help anyone. We need you at your best."

"You think I don't know that!?" Sabine snapped. Diana and Miko recoiled slightly and Sabine took a deep breath to calm herself. Strangely, Violet didn't move at all. As if she expected the outburst…

Sabine let out her breath, "Apologies. I did not mean to snap at you, Lady Diana. I am simply on edge. You are right, of course. I should conserve my energy for the fight ahead."

She followed Diana's advice, taking a seat next to the other woman. Composure returned to her face, betrayed only by her anxiously bouncing knee. Miko breathed a sigh of relief now that the Sister was containing herself somewhat.

"Hey, I'm nervous too," Miko offered, trying to take Sabine's mind off her worries. "This is a big deal. We're raiding and destroying a cult. I've never done anything like this. Sure, my boys and girls have raided rival gangs and stuff but I doubt this will be the same…"

Sabine nodded, "There will be differences. Mostly in how I expect you and your people to behave and perform. You have been conscripted into His service by my authority. And you will represent Him-on-Terra with as much grace and respect as possible. I will not have it any other way…"

Miko stiffened at Sabine's stern tone and snapped off a clumsy salute, "Yes, Sister! Of course, Sister!"

"That said… You are as prepared as you could possibly be in this situation. And I will be asking you, Miko, to lead the troops in this excursion. I will be too busy with… other duties to truly coordinate them."

"I won't let you down, Sister!" Miko said, straightening her back and holding herself with pride.

"I suggest you lean on Lady Diana if you are worried it is too much for you to handle alone. She commands as much respect in these troops as you do, though in a different way. And there is never any shame in turning to others for help. Even the Emperor Himself needed His primarchs."

A bit of hidden tension drained from Miko's stiff form, "Right… 'course, Sister. I'll do my best…"

Sabine gave her a satisfied nod, "See that you do…"

The group fell into silence. The only sounds were the distant chatter of the rest of the troops and the tapping of Sabine's power-armored boot. Violet was by far the calmest of the four women. She was sitting crosslegged with her eyes closed and looked to be meditating. She was, in a way. More specifically, though, she was enjoying the nearly calm feeling of the Warp since she'd been sanctified by His divine miracle.

Diana kept sending her quick glances as if she was repeatedly checking to see if her pet Psyker — and best friend — was truly okay. The seeming close call when their connection had been cut had shaken Diana quite a bit. Miko sat mostly still. Her bunny ears twitched as she seemed to psych herself up for the battle ahead. The last thing the Abhuman ganger wanted was to disappoint Sister Sabine.

When the call came, it came on an old, shoddy, slapped-together Vox radio. Miko answered it instantly. Her face paled as she listened to the information she was being told. She glanced at Sabine warily as she hung the radio back up.

"So… good news. We know where the cultists are located. Bad news… it's in a… church or something…" Miko said.

"They dare?!" Sabine hissed.

"Yeah, I was afraid you'd react like that," Miko winced.

"We shall show these infidels the Emperor's fury for violating one of His sacred places!"

"Riiiiiight… Well, we gotta get there first. It shouldn't be far. But we kinda gotta rally the 'troops'."

"Hurry," Sabine grunted. "We have already wasted too much time."

Miko let out an ear-splitting whistle. The distant noise of chatter ceased instantly. Miko's ganger siblings knew what that whistle meant and quickly informed the rest of the troops. Miko didn't even wait to see if she was going to be followed. Sabine nodded, impressed yet again by the bunny girl.

Sabine surged slightly in front of Miko at a steady, power-walking pace. Diana followed behind Miko, pulled along by a surprisingly energetic Violet. A cacophony of footsteps trailed after them. Sabine and her ragtag army were off to war…

All of them — aside from Sabine who had more important things on her mind — knew this was history in the making. They were marching to save the last of their planet's Hive Cities from a heretical ritual. They were led by a Sister of Battle, the most faithful of His servants any of them had ever met. And they were going to save the purest and most simply likable of His servants as well.

Violet had a unique perspective of the events as they unfolded. She was the only one who could see Sabine's conviction made tangible. She was the Zionite most affected by Octus and his special presence upon the world. She could read the minds of everyone there and see how they dreamed and worried and pushed on through it all.

She watched this eventful march, experiencing Sabine's faith and determination swell as they got closer to their final destination. The Sister's conviction and courage spilled out over everyone there, somehow infecting the gangers and pushing them to stand straighter and more professionally. They almost looked like an Imperial Guard regiment now with Sabine that their helm.

And as they drew near the cultists' HQ, Violet's unique perspective deepened. She started to feel minds that had been corrupted beyond repair. Minds that were twisted and distorted beyond recognition. Minds that were deadset on the death and torture of everyone and everything in the galaxy.

She barely kept herself from reacting physically. The minds of the heretical cultists were just… wrong. Especially to her newly-sanctified mind. They pressed against her awareness like the thick, cloying scents of decay and blood, like the debauched depravities of overwhelming pleasure, and worst of all, like the everchanging mystery of entropy. Each cultist had their own feel to their minds that made them easy to tell apart but Violet could tell that they were still united in their goal of seeing this planet — and the rest of the galaxy — in flames.

Two stars lay hidden within the ranks of disgusted, corrupted minds. One of them was bright enough to blind and familiar to Violet on an instinctual level. Octus was the one responsible for her sanctification after all.

The other was a bit of a surprise. It was lightly shielded from Violet's unconscious probing and coated in a false sense of 'normality'. Beneath that false coating, this presence was just beginning to bloom. Like a sinner working toward redemption or the embers of a dying fire brought back to light.

The two stars — Octus and his for-now mystery companion — were working together to accomplish something. Violet couldn't exactly figure out what but they were sneaking around the interior of the cathedral, avoiding cultists as they placed things everywhere. Violet got the vague sense of sabotage from both of them but they were too far away for her to get a proper reading.

Of course, as Sabine and her army approached the cathedral, everything went to shit immediately. They weren't confronted or stopped by cultists but Violet could sense a change deep within the cathedral proper. Minds began to wink out of existence in bursts of Warpfire. The ritual was starting. She cursed the fact that she couldn't tell Sabine for fear of revealing herself as a Psyker. The best Violet could do at the moment was implant an urge to go faster in Sabine's mind.

Sabine broke into a light jog as the front of the cathedral came into view. A grand, bronzed Aquila lay embedded in a stained glass window. The window was broken in places and otherwise in disrepair. The Aquila was in a similar state. Heretic blood ran down its glorious bronzed features and a shredded body was placed in each head's beak.

The scene caused a shiver to run down Sabine's spine. That these heathens could twist one of His most holy places into such a corrupted visage chilled her blood. She didn't have to shout a battle cry. Everyone behind her could feel her righteous fury and indignation as it bubbled up out of her soul. Their souls rose up in the same way and as one, Sabine and her army fell upon the twisted temple.

The cathedral's doors were barged open. The crash of multiple tons of stone against stone heralded Sabine's arrival. The cathedral's entrance hall was filled with cultists on their knees, seemingly dead to the world.

The report of a holy bolt pistol echoed through once-hallowed halls. Sabine's aim was true and sharp. Heretical squatters were purged from existence before they knew what was happening. The lesser cracks of stubbers and autoguns followed. Blood ran, filling unnatural cracks, lines, and symbols in the once-pristine temple floor.

Deeper within the cathedral at the site of the ritual, Octus and Sona jumped and looked at each other. They knew that the cavalry had arrived and their time was now limited. Though neither of them was especially sensitive to Warp fuckery, they could've sworn that a strangely cold feeling of electricity began to fill the air. They hurried to place the last of their charges as cultists streamed into the cathedral's main chamber and crowded around the defaced Saintly statue in the center.

The lines of blood flowed toward the statue, pooling at its base in a bubbling lake of red. The blood-filled symbols pulsed with unholy light. The statue's stone visage seemed to scream silently. The cultists raised their hands to their Dark Gods, accepting their deaths without reaction. Sabine's righteous slaughter just fed the ritual with sacrificial essence and lifeblood.

A dark chant started softly and quickly grew until the words boomed into every mind there.

"Blessed are the ignorant, for they are unaware.

Blessed are the curious, for they will know the truth.

Blessed are the unseen, for they are the prophets.

Blessed are the witnessed, for they are the symbols.

Blessed are the sinners, for they have reached understanding.

Blessed are the innocent, for they shall burn forever.

Blessed are the heretics, for they are made immortal.

Blessed are they faithful, for they shall be consumed first.

Blessed is the catalyst that ignites the flame.

Blessed… is a galaxy that burns in Chaos…"

Each line echoed more than the last. Whenever a cultist was killed, their voice remained chanting as a ghost in the collective ritual. By the end, no one was left alive, yet the chant persisted…

The statue of the Imperial Saint let out a ghastly screech that coincided with the last line of the chant. There was a great ripping sound and the pool of blood at the statue's feet opened up as a tear in reality. Warpfire surged through the tear, engulfing the statue. As the flames of Chaos licked at the stone skin, the statue morphed into an unnatural Hellspawn…