ValenithHe let himself ever so slightly open, just a tiny trickle, less than he wanted but just enough to do what he needed.

  The by now familiar rush of power filled him, itg to be used, tempting him to just reach for it.

  Dark thoughts tried to take root in his mind but were purged before they even formed but a few still made it through, not strong enough to stick or be a problem but Valenith's mouth twisted in displeasure.

  'A newborn child is more powerful than you. How pathetic.'

  'No wonder Master sent you, instead of his other disciples, he'd rather be rid of you.'

  'Just reach for it, the power is yours, just open yourself up to it and the gaxy will be yours, kill the girl, torture the Mon-keigh, twist the metal abomination into scrap!'

  Annoying, Valenith noted as he purged these thoughts and sed his mind for any lingering taint, his mind was a fortress, stable, strong, impregatic...static. Static wasn't a good thing but when your mind remaihe same it was easier to spot tumrowing in it before they sprouted into problems.

  That pitifully small trickle of energy rushed through him, leaving behind a trail of bliss and yearning before it jumped into his staff. The staff hummed in power as lightning gathered into an orb, staying there until he .

  He thought back to houre energy going through him felt. It revolted a part of him, a part of him that was addicted to the way the felt, a part of him that o die but another part of him just felt calm, rexed, sere ower that came without side-effects, that didn't want to eat your soul iurn for the tirickle of power.

  To an Eldar who lived his long life shag himself from his first breath to his st, that serenity was more precious than anything. He couldn't rest for a single waking moment of his life, never doubt, ray and never give in even an inch to his emotions and i sadism.

  Peace … Serenity.

  Those cepts were only foolish daydreams of younger Eldar. Valenith khere will never agaiime when an Eldar live freely, tap into the freely, and not worry about their souls being tortured for millennia after their deaths.

  No w about taint, about possession, about She Who Thirsts. Valenith breathed in and out deeply, he'd been alive long enough to know that despite the future lighting up in his eyes, the shadows lurked around it to snuff it out.

  Peaot just for me but all of us. It is worth anything, everything.

  As he positioned himself between the rampaging Space Marines he wondered why he was here. The easy answer was that Master Eldrad wanted him here, to rey information which was his initial mission. 'Opee and stay close, learn what you of 'it' a it back.' It was a simple mission.

  Valenith didn't believe for a sed that was all his missioailed, Eldar hadn't ever spoken straight, without riddles aaphors or dozens of yers one would o uncover before they even glimpse at his true iions. So of course Valenith doubted his mission, he did report back when they were on Dagon, sending a small packet taining what little he mao gather of the enigmatian.

  'Shape-ging, biomass version superior to Tyranids, Regeion beyond even the Phoeni, Psychic potential rivaling Farseers' Were the main parts he reported but upon further sideration, he added some more: 'Open-minded, Vain, Arrogant, Careful, Dangerous, Sadistic, g, Overprotective and finally Perpetual' he added the st part after seeing her regee herself out of nothing, it wasn't how other humauals worked but it was the closes thing he could think of.

  He of course started with her absolutely pure and untainted Soul Energy. He assumed that was the main reason he was even here, just the existence of that made him think that the woman was somehow outside of the dreaded four's influence.

  It gave him ideas, ideas he didn't even dare dream of a week before.

  'Stay with them, ie yourself.' Was the answer he received from his master. Short and to the point. Something is very wrong.

  He stayed, not just because of that order, he didn't want to think about whether he'd have disobeyed his master's orders if he'd been ao return but thankfully he wasn't forced to choose.

  Lightning leaped off of his staff, zipping past a golden armored warrior and into a Tyranid, a ifex. The -fueled lightning scorched through the armor, ied the insides of the beast and did the same on its way out. It tinued on to do the same to a dozen other bio-forms behind the ifex.

  He received a grunt from the warrior before he leapt bato a, he felt their minds shift further and further away from what he sidered human. They were being more beasts than men, hungering and thirsting for blood in more than one meaning of the phrase.

  So savage.

  Valenith sneered in disdain behind his illusion, he'd lucked out with those three, though the Magos was a weird one and he really wao smack that thing apart whe stared at him like a Drukharii would at their sves.

  He sent another arc, this time it scorched the air and ed between a small swarm of flyis.

  Disappointing.

  He stared at the woman he was supposed to protect, well he roteg her, he'd done just that now as she showed no sign of notig the flyers diving towards her as she wrestled with a rge psychic beast.

  I should have taught her better than this.

  He recoiled at the thought, his brows furrowed as he tried to e to terms with his unusual feelings.

  I suppose I'd o train them better to ie better.

  It wouldn't do if the one possible savior of his species died because he was being stingy with his knowledge after all.

  Maybe...maybe...I be free of this shackle and el Sorcery like her, free of Her trol.

  Selene VossShe was deep into the enemy lines, she'd been thrown around a fair bit, bsted away, and bit down on but her armor held without even a crack.

  She sensed no other human mind in anywhere close to her, so she made ample use of Ea's gift.

  She kicked out, her feet g in the hardened carapace of a quadrupedal best. As her armor touched the bloody flesh hundreds of hair-thin tendrils dug into the by now dead beast and Selene saw a ter trickle upwards at the edge of her vision.

  [21] it showed. She could regrow her whole body 21 times now, o it was a ter. [0d6h21m] meaning she had that much time remaining on full bat capability.

  A handy thing. She'd made use of the healing fun a few times. The padding was great and the weird fluid in it dampehe kiic force of attacks, but she'd still been thrown into a wall faster than bullets flew so some things inside her body gave way.

  She bit her lips in frustration as she felt her arm crack again as a beast smacked into her side. It wasn't her mind, ons, or armor that gave way, but her body. She was the weakest link. Again.

  Maybe I should...

  She shook her head. No! That'd be a step too far. Using Xeno biotech was ohing. It would be another eo ge herself. But why is my human body so weak??!!

  She growled and her Psychic powers roiled along with her fury, emp her body and armor. Her fist crashed into a skill, the skull gave way easily as her fist liquified the brain held inside easily.

  But she is already so far ahead of me...

  'Just give in, use the power!'

  'Beo your will! Have her groveling at your feet!'

  'How dare she be better? She doesn't deserve that power! Take her power, defile her body as you wish, defile her mind, defile her power! TAKE IT! TAKE HER! TAKE IT! TAKE IT!'

  "URggghhh," Selene groahese incessant whispers and shouts had beelessly crashing against her mental shields ever since she'd stepped foot bato realspad now with the flowing through her veins they became louder, more powerful and more tempting.

  "N-no," she grit her teeth, "I'd rather die a powerless human than give in to you."

  She pushed out all ower from her body, leaving only a tiny stream dripping through her, just enough to keep her mind from degrading into want and need for that power. The energy exploded out of her in a swirl of indescribable colors ahe ravenous beasts flying back but new ones crawled over the tumbling ones and came rushing at her.

  I'd rather let Ea turo one of her drohan give in to these whispers.

  That ohought ted itself in her mind.

  Selene Voss would rather bee a heretic colluding with Xenos than a raving lunatic worshipping the Great Enemy.

  Zedev"Finally," Zedev couldn't help but groan out as the Mae spirit finally felt satisfied.

  He climbed on top of the vehicle, a Lemann Russ Battletank and ected himself to the mae...maes.

  Engines roared to life as tires groaned against dirt, bent steel pting cried and the tracks of tanks crushed rocks beh them.

  '56 Battle tanks, 20 in good dition, 25 in manageable, and one barely operational,'

  '16 Transport vehicles armed with autoons, all in good dition.'

  '10 Artillery, 6 in a good state, 4 in [Warning: High ce of failure]'

  '2 Banebde Super Heavy Tanks in good dition'

  That should do. They barely required some guidand reassurance.

  Plus most Mae Spirits were eager to head bato the fight and sughter the enemies of mankind. They really only wanted some fixups and for Zedev to throw out the mangled corpses of their te operators.

  Zedev surveyed the surroundings, his mind ected to the Noosphere acquired battle reports iime, trolled all vehicles and calcuted the optimal path forward.

  He held his power axe tightly in hand as his Auspex sed the surroundings.

  He might not be specialized for this sort of warfare but he was still a Magos-Dominus, he'd only have some problem if he had to work aire pary defense by himself.

  All within expectations, Calcutions and putations swirled around in his head, and a map of the fortress and its surroundings sprung up with real-time reports of all three of his 'allies' marked. optimal path found, engage!

  Then the one he marked with deep red for importance disappeared, then reappeared a few seds ter, then disappeared once again.

  Zedev tilted his meical head.

  ive. Termination impossible. Assumed Cause: signal disruption; no teological resistance found, assumed Psychiterference.

  After a moment of sideration, Zedev put that thought out of his calcutions. Ea was impossible to predict but he refused to believe she'd die just like that.

  First Priority: preserve Selene Voss.

  Sed Priority: Dispy petence.

  "[Ehe enemy,]" he hissed in Lingo Teis, speaking to the elusive Spirits of the Maes directly "[For the Omnissiah, terminate all hostile bioforms.]"

  Emotional suppressants held down the disdain when he spoke the war-cry. The Omnissiah was an inactive corpse barely funing through are means.

  'Not even he could rival Her.'