Black Crusade IC

[Lucretia]

Zasz returned to Setesh, noting the new arrival as well. If Katria had been following him, Zasz would have spoken to her --

Spoiler

"Little one, I will be having surgery for the next two days. I hope you will watch over my belongings, to prevent thieves from obtaining them. But when I am conscious and able to look over these things on my own, I have a task that I ask of you. There are sorcerers devoted to Tzeentch across this vessel. Search for them, other than Setesh. If I am to work with him, the Plaguefather will require some satiation to prove my loyalty -- and to that end, I intend to sacrifice to his Garden several champions devoted to the Changer of Ways. If you could perform this reconnaissance, I would be most grateful, darling granddaughter."

-- and if not, he would search for her once he approached the group. If he found her, he would gesture for her to come closer, although he wouldn't speak his piece yet.

Once he was near the group, regardless of whether he had spoken to Katria or not, Zasz would speak to Setesh and the new-comer. "Setesh, I've a question for you! Do you see that sorcerer?" He would gesture to the sorcerer who had been torturing the slave from before, presuming he was still within eyesight. If so, Zasz would continue speaking. "Tell me, does he appear to be a worshiper of the Changer of Ways? I am not as well versed in the information on Psykers, but as I recall from some time ago, you were. Is that still the case?" He smiled beneath the helm, aware that no one could see it but happy to smile anyhow. The chance to slay a champion of Tzeentch was too great an opportunity to simply pass up! "But while you think on it, brother, I wish to extend a hand to you, newcomer. Welcome!"

Spoiler

Forbidden Lore test to see if Zasz recognizes Slathissin from the Good Ol' Days. (1d100)[84] v. 30, probably a failure.

"You'll have to forgive me, brother, I cannot recall your name. I am Zasz, sometimes called the Ancient -- do not trouble yourself if you have not heard of me, I am an unremarkable fellow. But I wish to greet you heartily, and with open arms!"

[Donan]

Katria had been watching some of the chased slaves wistfully, her head tilted in thought and with an amused smile showing. She seemed to tire of it fairly quickly though, their state of health providing little challenge or interest in the events and when Zasz found her, she returned her attention to him, speaking back in a hushed tone.

Spoiler

"I'll watch them and take care. My swords will help me." She nods with a warm smile. "The sorcerors? Can some be my hunt? The slaves are booooring."

She keeps quiet as they reach the other two chaos marines, her head ducked humbly to both ancient warriors.

[Lucretia]

As they walked towards the pair of warriors, Zasz replied quietly.

Spoiler

"If you are interested in chasing after them, yes. But we mustn't simply assassinate them, no matter how great the thrill might be. Enraging our hosts would be a poor end to our story, darling granddaugther. We must be cautious and patient. Such is the way of the Plaguefather."

Once they arrived at the pair of warriors, Zasz rested a hand on Katria's back, patting her extremely gently.

[Donan]

Katria nods quietly, though she pouts a little.

[watupwithdat]

Not sure if the Death Guard was mocking him or not, Setesh nevertheless shared the answer of the allegiance of the sorcerer Zasz had gestured towards. "No, it's not one of the Lord of Magic's devoted. However, all psykers are The Changer's, no matter they know it or not. Even your Bloated One's psychic disciples spreading disease and rot." Like he wouldn't be able to tell a sorcerer's devotion from but a glance. "Why do you ask? You should be aware you would not have to look far if you were searching for one." he said. What kind of intentions did he have asking specificly about one devoted to the Changer of Ways? Setesh's curiousity had caught on fire, and he felt the rising urge to still it, as he subtly reached out with his own mind toward's that of Zasz', as he talked to his companion. Annoyingly he wasn't able to delve far. The Ancient's willpower proved to be too strong at the time. Maybe it was the little girl strengthening his mind, somehow.

Spoiler

Subtle use of Mind Probe without the target noticing
Half Action, Fettered, Mind Probe, -20 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[42] vs 65
Full Action to sustain, need 5 rounds to break mind fully. Pages 223-224 for effects.
Round 2: -20 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[94] vs 60
Round 3: -20 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[65] vs 60
Round 4: -20 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[39] vs 60
Round 5: -20 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[12] vs 60

Result:
One – Initial Contact
The psyker makes initial contact, and learns basic information about the target, such as his name, mood, and his approximate state of physical and mental health.

[Lucretia]

Spoiler

Opposed willpower test! (1d100)[19] v. 40

Zasz's name was Zasz the Ancient. He was placid and happy, with a tinge of anticipation. His mental health was as expected for a 10,000+ year old devotee of Nurgle, and the same could be said about his physical health. Still, he was a tough old loon, that was apparent.

"Oh Setesh, you know me! It is always worth knowing who your enemies are. While I do not particularly fear your sword in my back, there are always a hundred others devoted to your God who would gladly perform such a task." He looked around again and nodded. "For the time being, however, I have a surgery to attend. Katria, if I could steal you away? I do hope to run into you fine gentlemen again, brothers!"

[watupwithdat]

"On that I agree on. Knowledge is power. That phrase was a core in Setesh's belief. "And you have no reason to fear my sword in your back unless you give me a reason to, which I presume you would not be stupid enough to do, no matter which God you call your own or what that God might think of mine and vice versa." Atleast Setesh had some measure of honour, despite using deception as a standard tool. "Yes, and most likely I sense, too."

[Donan]

Katria offers a formal, elegant bow to both of Zasz's brothers before nodding up at him. "Yes grandpa, I'd like to come."

[Elurindel]

Slathissin reached out to the one who called himself Zasz, offering a clattering of gauntlets, in the manner battle brothers would. "Unremarkable fellow indeed. Why, trying to focus on you, it feels as though my mind is trying to grip an eel. That is truly a talent worth knowing." he shakes his head a little as though to clear it, finding the effect of the Ancient's gift somewhat maddening. "I am Slathissin of the Night Lords, though there are few that know the old ways anymore."

Spoiler

FL: Horus Heresy test to see if I know Zasz the Ancient. Int is 35. Hoping Ancient Warrior gives me a modifier, but if not it's a basic test.
(1d100)[38]
Ok, probably not. I'll do an Awareness test on my wrist-mounted auspex to scan him for signs of Astartes nature, like the power supply. Perception is 40+30 for Best-Quality Auspex. (1d100)[52] 2DoS

[Lucretia]

"We will have to speak later, then. Good day, Slathissin of the Night Lords!" With that, Zasz moved to the medicae bay again, handing over the bolt pistol and starting all that jazz.

[watupwithdat]

"I assume you overheard Zasz calling me by my name before?" Setesh asked the Night Lord. "It is Setesh, if you were not paying attention." He had little knowledge about the Night Lords, as they had never interested him in particular, even less so after the corpse-god's betrayal. Their fear-mongering was an unsubtle tactic he seldom employed himself. But all to their own. If they cannot wield sorcerous might they may as well try other less refined ways to accomplish their goals.

Setesh looked around for something to catch his interest. Maybe some other tzeentchian wielders of sorcery to discuss the arcane arts to pass time, and perhaps collect valuable rumours or information. "Now it is time for me to take my leave as well, Night Lord. We may meet again. However, next time you would be wise to not touch me as you did before." he said with an overly diplomatic tone, and walked off to explore some for himself.

[Henry the 57th]

As Zasz and Katria turn and walk towards the exit, Slathissin's auspex reveals what his eyes failed to see - Zasz is clearly Astartes, and wearing Terminator plate at that.

Setesh's efforts to locate fellow devotees of Tzeetch bear fruit, and he senses no less than 5 fellow sorcerers of the Great Changer aboard the ship. 3 of them seem to be weaker in the ways of the Warp than he, showing merely as dim candles to his witchsight. One seems to be perhaps his equal, showing up more clearly in his mind. Finally, the last one shines like a bright beacon in the Warp, majestic and terrifying in his psychic potency.

[Elurindel]

Slathissin shrugs to himself. Given that nobody seemed willing to interact with him just yet, he would follow them unseen and see what they got up to. Stroking the patterns of his cameleoline cloak, he faded in amongst the shadows that inevitably gathered on an ancient ship like this. It would make good practise for stalking their quarry on Davron III, he reasoned to himself as he made to follow them, feeling his twin hearts thrill even from this little play-stalking.

Spoiler

Stealth Test, Agility 60 +20 for Stealth due to Camoleoline Cloak. Stummer provides +30 to Stealth for the purposes of being heard, and for ****s and giggles I'll spend an Infamy point to add +10 to the roll. (1d100)[21]5DoS on moving stealthily,7DoS on moving silently.

[watupwithdat]

After a few hours of observing the multiple warbands present, Setesh had an estimation of how powerful the Tzeenchian sorcerers among the heretics were. One of the largest warbands on the vessel was devoted to the Changer of Ways, which made them distant kin, but nonetheless not below his caution or suspicion. If there was something to be said about those devoted to the Lord of Lies, it was that they shouldn't be trusted so easily and Setesh knew that all too well. But he wanted to find out if they had knowledge of something interesting he wanted to know, not to offer up to his God as that would be moot, but to further his own goals -- and where better to find something like that than from followers of his own Dark God.

Setesh approached one sorcerer he had estimated to be weaker than himself, whom also wasn't with any others from his warband at the time, in hopes he could glean some information. "Fellow follower of the Lord of Magic. I see you are part of quite some warband! You must have a powerful leader, yes?" He tried to sound impressed, as to make himself seem more humble and have him feel less cautious of Setesh. "I am Setesh, a humble follower of our Lord of Sorcery as well, despite all these spikes." he jokingly added, assuming the seemingly recent chaos-inducted wasn't aware of who he was. "What grand promises of rewards have the Word Bearers given you all to bring your whole warband out here to squash some splintered heretics?" It seemed unlikely a Tzeentchian warband would be swayed by just monetary gains for something as brute as the task it seemed like they were to perform.

[Henry the 57th]

The sorcerer Setesh finds is wearing blue, red, and gold armor, minus a helmet, which dangles by a strap from his waist. "Our leader is... eccentric." He raises an eyebrow at Setesh's question. "And why should I tell you?"

Zasz and Katria are able to make it to the apothecary and iron out a price for the desired surgery without any notable complications.

[Lucretia]

Once they were within the medicae bay, Zasz spoke to his granddaughter softly.

Spoiler

"Darling granddaughter, I haven't been out of my armour in... years. I will need your help in getting out, I think. But when you are searching for what I asked you before, if you can bring me a... memento of sorts, something you might consider a trophy, I would be appreciate. But you mustn't risk yourself, do you understand? Be safe, little one."

[Donan]

Katria's eyes widen and she nods eagerly. She keeps near Zasz to help him, seeming utterly untroubled at the risk of illness in the air.

As soon as he seems content though, she races out of the room, hood down and long hair streaming in her sprint.

Katria'll seek out the thousand sons herself and then track one of their more important looking servants until he/she is somewhere nice and secluded.

Spoiler

Stealth. Base 60+20(cloak)+30(stummer)
(1d100)[91]

[Elurindel]

Slathissin satisfied himself with stalking Setesh, finding him easier to pick out in the bustle of others than the Terminator, given his unremarkable appearance. He eyed him with interest to see what would happen between him and this other sorceror.

[watupwithdat]

"Ah! Eccentric can be good!" exclaimed Setesh. Of course he expected one of a Tzeentchian warband to not divulge information to anyone who asked, especially not to an unknown Lord of Lies devotee. "I see no fault in a little curiousity, and I did not mean to pry in warband matters of course. It just struck me as odd to see such a large and powerful warband wanting monetary gains from the pious likes of the Word Bearers. But maybe it is due to an eccentric leader as you said..." As Setesh was conversing with the sorcerer he made sure as to subtly try to probe his mind, to glean what he was thinking of as they spoke. He knew it would not be easy to overpower a fellow's mental strength, but as he had chosen a sorcerer weaker than himself it could prove fruitful.

Spoiler

Use Mind Probe without the target noticing
Half Action, Fettered, Mind Probe, -20 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[84] vs 65
Full Action to sustain, need 5 rounds to break mind fully. Pages 223-224 for effects.
Round 2: -20 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[38] vs 60
Round 3: -20 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[15] vs 60
Round 4: -20 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[76] vs 60
Round 5: -20 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[42] vs 60

[Henry the 57th]

Katria has an uncanny feeling of being watched, even as she stalks the human serf.

Zasz begins his surgery.

The sorcerer replies to Setesh "Yes, our leader can seem a bit... off at times. Nonetheless, he knows what he is doing."

[Lucretia]

The Ancient's skin was a horrific color due to the centuries of being confined within the same suit of armour, floating in the same horrific accumulation of fluids. Luckily, that didn't matter thanks to the gift from Papa Nurgle, which made him as normal and unremarkable a patient as ever. He hummed sonorous hymns to himself as they performed the surgery, keeping his eyes on the pile of armours in the corner of the theatre. It wouldn't do to let someone steal one of those things!

[watupwithdat]

"So you say, yes." Setesh was a little annoyed that he was not able to glean anything from his subtle use of his telepathic powers. Of course, it is a very difficult task to do such feats unnoticed, but he was expecting more from himself. His attempts at manipulating the sorcerer had failed as well, he felt. His disposition seemed more suspicious now than before. Could the Lord of Lies be preventing him from using his powers on a fellow devotee? It must be so, or else he would not fail like this. It could be some scheme of His Setesh couldn't disturb if he tried. "No matter, it was a pleasure speaking to another follower of Him." he said before he left to once again find something to glean from someone. He felt a hunger for some information. Any information. Almost like a predator who had gone too long without a killed prey. "hummmmmmmmmmm..." He looked down at Vra'tzaen. "You too? It has been a while since you last tasted blood. Patience. Soon."

Setesh continued exploring the vessel and observing the heretics on board. He was now on a hunt, a hunt for knowledge. If he could find someone out of the way of others who he could deal with without anyone noticing, then that would be optimal. Maybe someone asleep or already unconscious. It would be best not leaving any witnesses, as the Word Bearers might bother him if someone would see him and reporting his actions. Forcibly mind probing and then killing someone to avoid having him found out could probably be an possible outcome, which would help sate both himself and Vra'tzaen.

[Henry the 57th]

Zasz finds that his surgery seems to be going off without any real hitch, unless you count the dozen or so human sacrifices that went on during the procedure, along with plenty of cult chanting. But hey, what could go wrong?

Setesh comes across a lone human serf wearing robes in the colors of the Tzeentchian warband.

[Lucretia]

Originally Posted by Henry the 57th

Zasz finds that his surgery seems to be going off without any real hitch, unless you count the dozen or so human sacrifices that went on during the procedure, along with plenty of cult chanting. But hey, what could go wrong?

While the chanting was going on, Zasz turned to look at one of the Medicae. "What's all that about?" he asked with a booming laugh.

[Henry the 57th]

"Merely an aid to assist in the success of your surgery great one. The bodies of the warriors of the True Gods are not known for their stability, and as you might imagine, that renders medical practices... difficult."

[Lucretia]

"Oh fantastic! I was simply wondering if there would be any children of the Gods prancing about shortly, but I suppose not. Carry on, gentlemen!"

[Henry the 57th]

Zasz slips into something of a dreamlike haze, in which he remains for the next two days. However, he does observe that he is not the only one the Word Bearers are performing this bizarre chanting ritual on during surgery.

[Donan]

Katria, for her part, used the two days to study the movements of the Thousand Sons, as much as she could.

[watupwithdat]

First stalking the serf Setesh came across, followed by simple conversation out of view or hearing of anyone else, he felt that it was time. It did not matter that the serf was a member of a Tzeentchian warband, that would even make the probabilty of the serf knowing what he should not greater.

"Relax." Setesh said as he grabbed and prevented the serf from making any loud sounds. He started digging at the barriers of the serf's mind, and violently ripped open his mind and hungerly consumed all he could. When he was done, he drew the excitedly humming Vra'tzaen and swiftly slew the serf in a shower of blood, as to not leave any traces of a probing taking place. What was one dead serf onboard a vessel with hundreds upon hundreds of heretics and astartes.

But once again, his hunger was still not sated. He needed more. The serf had given him nothing of value. His hunt continued.

Spoiler

Half Action, Fettered, Mind Probe, +0 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[58] vs 85
Full Action to sustain, need 5 rounds to break mind fully. Pages 223-224 for effects.
Round 2: +0 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[91] vs 80
Round 3: +0 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[7] vs 80
Round 4: +0 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[31] vs 80
Round 5: +0 Opposed Willpower Focus Power test: (1d100)[53] vs 80

[Elurindel]

Slathissin stalks behind him, at one point taking a piece of the shattered corpse and taking a taste to see if his Omophagea could yield any information.