Secret War: Upon Blood Sands, BAD Agar, Adrassil [children's ebooks online .txt] 📗

nodded back before charging at one of Delathasi's enemies and severed his spine with a slash. Another turned to this new enemy, but it opened him up for Delathasi to open his throat with one of her mono blades. She weaved beneath the third cultist's chainsword, then half his torso exploded, sending his limp corpse smashing to the sand. Attelus turned and saw Adelana knelt, her bolter raised and smoking. She gave him another nod.

The fight lasted a few seconds more, as the last seven cultists were cut down by Jelket, Verenth, Helma and Hayden in a vicious crossfire.

Attelus forced his breathing to slow; adrenaline pumped through him painfully. Blood sprayed over him.

Delathasi approached. "Is that it?" she said.

Attelus nodded dumbly, and with a shaking hand, he looked around. No one was down; no one had suffered an injury.

Attelus knew they could've avoided the cultist mob; he knew it was a huge risk. This engagement It'd used precious munitions they may need later. But they needed this. They needed a morale boost.

That was why he'd risked this; that's why he'd risked everything.

He just thanked his luck that it worked.

Attelus activated his vox link.

"Everyone, regroup!" he ordered.

 

Chapter 8

 Hayden Tresch paused as he stood and started to approach the others. He looked east, furrowed his brow, then descended the hill with Jelket, Verenth and Vark.

Attelus was finishing the injured enemies with Delathasi and Adelana as Hayden approached.

"We are being watched," said Hayden.

"What?" said Attelus as he tore out his sword from a cultist's heart and turned to Hayden. Eyebrow raised.

"Two kilometres east," said Hayden. "Movement."

Attelus nodded. "Enemy?"

Hayden shrugged. "Maybe? The Velrosian 1st have reconnaissance specialists. Their elite. It could be them. Maybe following the cultists?"

"Hmm, makes sense. You saw them a while ago, didn't you?"

Hayden frowned. "I saw something following their mob. Wasn't sure it meant anything."

"Nice work," said Attelus.

"I can't believe it!" said Jelket. "Seventy of the bastards!"

"Well, seeing is believing," said Adelana.

"Or kicking is believing," said Vark, as he kicked one of the corpses. "Heretic scum!"

Adelana looked at Attelus.

"You don't think that these cultists just so having to come this way is a coincidence, do you?"

Before Attelus could answer, Jelket stepped forward.

"Of course it isn't! Somehow, they know we're here!"

Attelus stroked the chin of his mask. "Perhaps. Perhaps someone could've seen us land, somehow. Or Darrance taking off."

"It was their blasphemous god," said Jelket. "It told them. Kelitia is still fifty kilometres away! They must've been walking for ages! They must've known where we'd be before we even arrived!"

Attelus shrugged and frowned, looking like he wanted to argue, but Jelket's logic seemed sound.

While they talked, Hayden kept glancing at the source of the movement. He saw nothing more. He could only assume that movement was them turning back to fall back. If they were still moving, there was no sign. They were good, very good.

Attelus had briefed them on the Velrosian 1st and the rest of the Elbyran contingent. The young assassin master's description had been glowing, full of pride. Hayden had thought, due to his bias, Attelus had exaggerated their abilities. That the propaganda had fooled him, but now Hayden was re-evaluating that assessment.

If Attelus found out Hayden even considered that, he would explode.

"Or maybe the psyker gave us away?" Vark.

"The 'psyker' could be the reason," said Karmen, her voice hard as she approached, her power armour boots sinking into the sand. "It's always 'the psyker,' isn't it? But we don't have all day to stand around making guesses. We've better start moving."

"Agreed," said Attelus as they turned back to the ATV and the bikes still hidden beneath their cameleoline tarpaulins. "Although I beg to differ, we do have all day. Sarkeathan days last forty-eight hours."

Hayden glanced over his shoulder again, across the rolling blood dunes. He just hoped they were this famous Velrosian 1st. But even if it was, it didn't mean they were the same Velrosian 1st Attelus once knew.

Hayden looked around. With the world turned into this hell, he doubted it.

There was an old saying, 'never meet your heroes.' A saying Hayden was afraid will soon be proven true.

It was only a few minutes later before they were moving again. Attelus' bike bounced and bounded over the dunes. He smiled behind his re-breather as he listened to the comm chatter of his squadmates. His gamble had paid off; spirits were high. Jelket was awestruck at their achievement, Vark was enamoured that they'd killed the 'heretics,' Helma was in a state of grim determination, unsurprised and unmoved by their achievement. Still, her usual state of negative snarking had almost disappeared. Halsin passive-aggressively bragged about being the one with the biggest kill count so far and how successful his distraction was. Verenth was his typical 'man of few words' self, but what he contributed to the conversation was positive; he too seemed to enjoy 'slaughtering heretics.'

All of this Attelus had predicted would happen; what he hadn't predicted was when they'd stopped and searched where Hayden had seen the movement that there was nothing. No footprints in the sand, no trace of prone figures. Attelus trusted Hayden's senses, perhaps even over his own; if he saw movement, he saw movement, there was movement. Attelus smile fell into a frown. As much as he admired them, the scouts of the Velrosian 1st weren't that good. Amongst his many talents, Hayden was also a supremely skilled tracker. Attelus, too, held some skill in tracking, and no matter how hard he tried, he also found nothing. Karmen also didn't sense any trace of life.

Attelus sighed. But in all honesty, she wasn't all that reliable, now. The only one who hadn't perked up was her.

He activated her private vox line, and it took a few seconds for her to answer.

"Are you all right?" he said.

"No, do I seem all right to you?"

Attelus didn't answer.

Karmen sighed. "I'm sorry, Attelus. I didn't mean to jump down your throat like that."

"Karmen...Estella. I've never seen you like this before-"

"Yes, you have."

Attelus' gaped. Yes he had.

"You know you aren't useless; you don't have to prove anything to anyone."

"Attelus! I can barely use even the most basic psychic techniques! I am useless."

"Remember, nine years ago, when we first met and how well you did? You killed how many of the elite Blood Pact single-handed? You didn't need your powers back then-"

"Since then, I've specialised in my gift! I'm no way near the shot or swordswoman I was then!"

"Even if that's true, you'd still be better than most!"

"Stop grox shitting me! You're just trying to make me feel better, Attelus. You're just afraid I'll become a liability."

"I'm not grox shitting you, Estella! You've still got your armour and weapon; you can still fight!"

"Yes, but you forget this is a stealth mission! I've lost most of my skill at stealth, and power armour isn't the best to wear and-"

Rage welled in Attelus, and he fought the urge to cut the link.

"Well, Karmen! Will you become a liability? Because the way you talk now, it certainly makes me think that way. Of all the people in the squad, I would've thought you the least likely! Vark, Torris, Verenth but not you."

Karmen sighed. "I think I already am."

"No, you're not! Estella! If you let this negativity get the better of you, you will!"

She laughed.

"This is familiar, isn't it? Back when you begged me not to scout the enemy base knowing in my pride and effort to prove myself, I'd get myself killed. Whoever said that history never repeats is beyond stupid. But now you aren't begging me; you're pretty much ordering me. Back when you loved me."

Attelus bit his lip, fighting the urge to splutter out, 'but that hasn't changed.' He loved both Estella Erith and Adelana. He'd hoped his feelings for Karmen would've withered over the years, but it hadn't, and he suspected they never would. Despite everything she's done, despite how she tried to brainwash him.

It was messed up.

"Estella-"

"Stop calling me that! Please!"

"Karmen, don't give in to depression. We need you...I need you, please."

"I'll...I'll try," she said, then cut the link.

Attelus sighed. Why did everything have to be so damned complicated? Why couldn't they be Space Marines? The warriors of the Adeptus Astartes never fell in love, never felt attraction for another. They just had their duty and brotherly bonds. Or as far as he knew, anyway.

He revved his bike and sped up, shaking away the thought. He couldn't help wonder if Jelket was right. There was no way in hell that those cultists showing up then was a coincidence, but he doubted their god had a hand in it. Attelus suspected Etuarq. He also doubted the movement Hayden had seen were the Velrosian scouts.

It was Etuarq's agents.

Attelus remembered his encounter with Rodyille three years ago how the psychotic bastard seemed to be able to just mould into the shadows. That he'd almost killed Attelus if his faint movement hadn't caught the corner of his eye.

They had to be here; they had to have contributed to this.

And if that were true, perhaps that'd mean he'd finally see Elandria again.

The thought caused Attelus to clench his jaw, and he sped his bike more.

 

Chapter 9

 

About twenty kilometres away, they got their first view of Kelitia as it loomed in the horizon ominously. It was set lower than the surrounding dunes, so only the tallest buildings were visible.

With Karmen's power practically out of commission. Attelus was forced to re-evaluate their approach. Needless to say, Karmen wasn't happy about this, and while he hid it, Attelus was far from happy either. Her being so handicapped was turning into a huge pain in the arse; now, they had to waste valuable time.

Four kilometres from Kelitia, they stopped inside the shadows of a small outcrop and hid the vehicles underneath their cameleoline tarpaulins. Then Hayden, Attelus, Adelana and Delathasi scouted forward on foot.

They were walking for about half a kilometre when they got their first proper view of Kelitia, and there they stopped. From the apex of the man-made ledge hill, which sloped down for two kilometres. Attelus couldn't see his comrades' expressions beneath their masks, but he imagined them gaping, just like him.

Kelitia was once a huge, bustling city. About forty million people had lived in its depths, mostly miners who'd toiled underground, night and day. Sarkeath was once the biggest exporter of minerals in the sub-sector and had been for nigh five hundred years. According to reports, the planet wouldn't last another century before being mined out.

But now that was the least of the planet's problems. Karmen was right; the