[Catherine] The last few few weeks for Cath passed like a mirrage before her eyes. Not too long ago she was just a regular soldier in the imperial guard and then suddenly she got sent on this insane mission to infiltrate this cult of Slaanesh. At first she suspected the whole thing was just a joke, but as she arrived on her designated place to begin her infiltration it proved to be real. She still had no idea how they chose her for this insanity... to become part of a chaos god's cult so she can spy on them.Inquisitor Zhevon... now there was a person she had no idea what he was thinking, she herself realized how impossible the lure was. It was impossible for him not to realize it as well, that she will eventually succumb to this place's influence. Sure enough It didn't really take long for it to happen, at first she just followed her duties, avoiding to attract attention, but as time passed the whispers in the back of her mind only grew stronger and stronger. It really became hard to keep track of her own mind as the strange emotions she never suspected she had, started to grow beyond her control. She really thought she was going to go insane and completely lose herself to this place... untill she met Salithrielle. She met the Euphorian in one of the underground gatherings of the cult. At first it really didn't seem like anything special that heppened between them. Cath planned to use to other woman as a way to release all these pent up emotions, but now it was different. What she started to feel for the Euphorian was beyond simple friendship. She loved her, wanted to be with her. In her attempts to quell her building up desire to give herself to the darkness of this place, she invited it right into her heart. She couldn't stop it anymore, everything just started rolling into the current place of things. And here she was now, in a closet in the mansion, a place that was outside any observation. This fortress had very few blind spots and this was one of them. She originally planned to use them to secretly relay back the information she gathered to the Inquisitor in case things got dangerous and there was a danger of her being found out. Now she just used those places when she wanted to be alone with Sali. "What am I doing..." Was one of the things that haunted her mind at first. She endangered her mission, her duty towards the Imperium and the Emperor. At first she couldn't really find a reason for it... she couldn't admit it. Torn between her duty and her present emotions, she waged battle inside her own mind, but in the end the duty towards the Imperium for it lost." This won't endanger the mission..." Was how her thinking changed. Slowly but surely she lost herself to this place. Now more than ever she was at the edge of her own willpower to resist. Just a little bit more and she would probably throw all her past life away for Salithrielle. And this is how she once again found herself here, in this closet. "I couldn't wait... to get away from those pesky duties..." Cath whispered to Sali as they were cuddled up in the closet." When I'm away from you... everything just doesn't seem right!" She stated with a pleased smile. She loved the Euphorian... Maybe it was going ot be fine to tell her..." Sali... I ..." Cath started to say something when suddenly gunshots started ring through the mansion. Cath's heart contracted at the horror as she realized what probably was happening. [Salithrielle] "You mirrored my own thoughts exactly... " Salithrielle would respond in a soft voice, gently stroking through the janitor's white hair with the softer rubber underside of her power armored glove. "You can't believe how dull my shifts have been lately, and my sisters have lost about all of their old fire and vigor. I don't know what I would have done without you." Salithrielle spoke, sitting as she was on an iron bucket in the cramped janitor closet with Catherine sitting on her lap. If someone had asked the purple haired Euphorian whether she would ever enter a relationship with a simple mansion janitor some months ago, she would at best have laughed at them, and at worst have shot them. "Sali... I ... " "Oh?" Salithrielle raised an eyebrow as Catherine was about to speak, going quiet herself; when suddenly the sound of some silenced bolter rounds going off in the corridor outside could be heard! "What was... " Salithrielle would almost exclaim, looking towards the door, then back at Catherine. "Maybe some of my stupid sisters forget the safety again... " She mumbled to Catherine, letting out a sigh when smiling. [Catherine] "I..." Cath was struggling to speak at this moment as she was hearing the bolter sounds. She very much doubted it was some of Sali's moronic sisters(though some really were so to the extremes). The janitor was struggling between admitting to her lover what she suspected was going on, probably revealing who she really was in the process or keeping quiet, hopeing it would all just go away while they were in the closet. Maybe while they were cuddling in here, the fools outside will just kill each other, leaving the two of them to escape in freedom... there were more than enough planets where they can hide. Somewhow she doubted it would play out that nice though." It's... probably a raid..." Cath managed to mumble with trembling voice." They... are probably... searchign to obliterate the cult..." Cath finished her statement with her trembling voice, keeping her eyes downwards, unable to look at Sali from feeling guilty. [Salithrielle] "What... ?" There was a visible look of surprise on the tattooed face of the Euphorian as she gazed down at the worried looking Catherine. Salithrielle usually found the white haired girl to be rathe confident in most matters, but the worry now displayed by Catherine left the Euphorian feeling troubled herself. " wha... what makes you say that?" Salithrielle was about to begin to ask, gazing down at Catherine with a worried look herself, when suddenly a loud crash could be heard from the outside, followed by a distant voice yelling! *CRASH* *CRACK* "Did I hit them?! Did I hit? Are they dead?!" Salithrielle remained quiet for a moment, simply listening to the commotion going on outside before looking back at Catherine. "Is there... something else you should be telling me? ... " [Catherine] "I'm..." Cath began quietly so only Sali can hear her. The janitor's voice was weak and trembling, afraid of what probably was about to happen."... part of the imperial guard... an Inquisitor sent me to spy, but... I never reported back!" Cath said, her eyes closed, afraid of Sali's wrath. The janitor was sure she was going to get probably hated for this... maybe even killed. Frankly the second was basically not even catching her mind anymore... it was the first she was completely terrified of. The fear of losing, of being hated by Salithrielle, was in Cath's mind so much more worse than dying. "They probably decided to act now for some reason... I didn't know they were going to attack..." Catherine said afraid." I'm sorry... I wanted to tell you, but... it just..." [Salithrielle] There was only silence from Salithrielle's face as the Euphorian stared at her with intense, green eyes. At first her expression had been that of utter confusion and an inability to comprehend the words of the girl, but slowly, her gesture would move towards that of shock, and a sign of horror. "Cathy... " Salithrielle would utter, the Euphorian looking completely at her own wit's end as she merely looked down at Catherine, clueless as to what she should do! Salithrielle could feel at least a dozen different feelings flowing through her mind at the same time! One part of her told her that she was supposed to be angry, that she was supposed to hate Catherine for holding such a terrible secret from her, because she was the enemy, sent to do harm to all she had participated in and worked for! But despite her brain telling her that, she couldn't mount any ire or hate towards the sorry looking girl in her lap, no matter how hard she tried or how hard her brain told her to scorn the little girl! Catherine had been the light in her life for the past weeks at least. A ray of happiness in her otherwise dull days! The look in Catherine's face spoke of guilt and mistakes, and Salithrielle couldn't bring herself to hate it. In fact she loved her too much, and so placed her hands on either side of Catherine's shoulders. "We need to get you out of here! Before they know, either my sisters or the loyalists!" [Catherine] "...No...no! I'm not getting away without you!" Cath said in horror, throwing a quick glance back towards the door of the closet before looking back at Sally. The Euphorian's face didn't seem to carry the hatred and anger that the janitor expect would follow after her confession. "Sally, what are you going to do if I escape now?" Cath asked, wrapping her arms around the bigger woman. She had the scary feeling her lover would choose to stay and fight the intruders, but considering the inquisitor was also here along with who knows how many of his posse were with him. She didn't want to let Sally face them in any case!" Don't tell me you plan to fight them!?" [Salithrielle] "I don't know! I don't know!" Salithrielle would exclaim at the question of what she was going to do if Catherine escaped! "I... I never imagined anything like this ever happening, I don't... " Salithrielle was on the edge of simply starting to ramble when Catherine threw herself around her, and a voice could be heard as the vox device on the side of her collar started to crackle into life. [i]"This is Euphoria Exarch to Euphoria Team Secundus; the estate is under attack. Commence tactical sweep and eradicate all hostiles, out!"[/i] When Salithrielle heard the voice of Exarch Lucia through the vox device, she could feel hear heart suddenly skip a beat. She remained frozen in place for a moment, her hands hanging loosely around in the air, before she slowly moved one hand behind Catherine's back. A tear ran down Salithrielle's eyes as she merely gazed blankly out into the air in front of her, before slowly turning to look down at Catherine who was wrapped around her chest. "We... first of all, we need to get you to safety; then we'll think of what to do!" [Catherine] "Fine..., but I'm not letting you leave me alone... if I escape you come with me! I don't care what happens anymore, just don't want to be separated from you!" Cath said, releasing her hold of Sally. "We can't leave through the closet door... they are on that side." The janitor said, throwing a quick glance backwards. Then pointed towards the vent that was just above them. It was one of her escape routes that she had planned." I will fit in there..." Cath said and shook her head." You will not though..." "Alright... I will use the vents to head towards the kitchen. From there the access to the garage is easy." Cath said and looked at her lover." Let's meet there... we can run away... both of us. I used to be stationed at the backwater systems a lot. I know more than a few where we can go and vanish. They will never find us there..." [Salithrielle] Salithrielle would grab Catherine's wrist with one of her hands, looking down at the girl. "Always so crafty, aren't you.. " Salithrielle would throw her a smile, glancing briefly at the hatch to the vent above them. While Catherine was indeed small enough to fit into it, Salithrielle in her power armor, heavier figure and more than two meters in height would not. "If you want, we can still go together. I can keep you safe on the way." Salithrielle would suddenly say, tilting her head at Catherine. "not that you'd really need my help, but still... " [Catherine] "Alrighty... I don't want to separate from you after all! Let's go together, I've memorized the plans of the entire mansion. I will lead us away from the path of the intruders." Catherine said with a smile and she slightly rose from Sally's lap and leaned on the closet's door, listening for what was happening outside." It seems that they actually aren't exactly outside. If we leave now, we should be able to get away without anyone spotting us." The janitor quickly and carefully opened the door, taking a peek outside. [Salithrielle] "Wait," Salithrielle would suddenly say, placing a hand on Catherine's shoulder. "Let me go first." She whispered into the back of her ear, ushering the smaller girl a little further back in the closet as she herself stepped forward. "I'm the armored one, remember? Just stay behind me and you'll be fine!" She smiled, offering Catherine a look of reassurance as she reached to unholster her purple glowing plasma pistol at the side of her thigh. [Catherine] "Ehh!?" Cath made surprised sound as she was pushed back into the closed by Sally, who took point and left first. The janitor made a mildly annoyed expression, but din't really say anything. She knew herself that true enough Sally was armored like a tank. "How I wish I had my trusty chainsaber..." Cath muttered as she followed after her lover." I'm pretty good with that..." She said as she looked around, listening to sings of where the fighting was." I think that way we can evade the invaders and all the people going to fight them. [Salithrielle] "That sounds like a good idea, hun. Let's go!" Salithrielle would respond, as she slowly opened the door, stepping out with her plasma pistol in hand and her left hand reaching for the fleshy whip at her side! * Standing out in the doorway and looking at the sorry mess that was the heap of Aviza and Lilith, Adrianne would suddenly raise her eyebrows when she heard the sound of a door opening to her left. Spinning around, the psyker would find herself standing face to face with Salithrielle just as the Euphorian stepped out of the closet! Adrianne barely even noticed the smaller figure of Catherine walking behind the almost eight feet tall figure of Salithrielle, only noticing the former. [i]"Crap, so much for surprise!"[//i] Salithrielle blinked for a moment when she first saw Adrianne, seeing as the psyker was dressed much like any other guest with her sparkly blue and form fitting dress! Yet the uncertainty to would not remain for long, as Adrianne would suddenly raise her hands, and a torrent of purple lightning shot out from the tips of her fingers and flew right into Salithrielle! As she was hit by the fray of lightning, she would be thrown back; into Catherine; before they both flew into one of the nearby pillars with a thud, sparks flying everywhere! "We got company!" Adrianne called out to Aviza and Lilith as she was turned towards where Salithrielle have landed. "You guys catch Lady Zara. I'll hold off the reinforcements!" [Catherine] "Ohh heck..." Cath muttered as she saw the psychic attack and the next moment she felt Sally colliding into her and then both of her crashed into the pillar behind them. In one brief moment it took Cath to realize what happened, she suddenly screamed as she felt the immense pain in her left arm and her chest. Her arm was hanging in a wierd way and she could feel the already familiar pain of broken rib. In a moment of panic and pain, while still unable to move due the big powerarmored woman on top of her, Cath quickly reached to Sally's whip with her right hand and swung it towards the psyker. Even if she didn't hit her, it would keep her occupied enuogh to dodge it while Sally get's her bearing together. [Adrianne] Adrianne was surprised when she saw a smaller arm reach out from behind Salithrielle as the Euphorian sat against the bottom of the pillar, and suddenly lash out against her! Acting on pure instinct, the psyker barely managed to dodge to the side in time to avoid the whip! In the meantime, Salithrielle, still groaning in pain as bouts of smoke rose from her electrocuted armor, would roll off to the side of Catherine and onto the floor, turning around and raising her plasma pistol to fire. Seeing the raised pistol, Adrianne would immediately extend an arm towards them - causing Salithrielle's arm to suddenly shoot up towards the ceiling and the shot burn a hole in the roof as her aim was thrown off course by the psyker's invisible power! Having thrown the shot off course, Adrianne would step closer towards the couple lying in front of her; extending her other arm outwards to reach towards a decorative weapons rack on the wall. As the weapons on it began to rattle, one saber would fly off its slot and into Adrianne's right hand as she approached Salithrielle and Catherine, channeling her telekinetic spell holding Salithrielle in place with her left hand! [Catherine] Having Sally slump off her, Cath, quickly pulled the Euphoria's sword as she saw the psyker pull one from the nearby rack. Fighting through the pain and heavy breathing, Catherine quickly jumped and dashed towards the woman attacking them, swinging the sword towards her. She made one final correction to her attack just as she neared the psyker. In the final moment, she jumped to the side, then propelling herself from the nearby wall in the opposite direction so instead of attacking the psyker form the right... she was on the left in one brief moment. "Leave us alone dammit!" She shouted as the sword was already mid swing. [Adrianne] Adrianne was about to prepare her initial defense when she noticed the shift in Catherine's attack just in time to switch her own defense as Catherine leaped from one side to the other, blocking Catherine's blow with her saber! A piercing metallic groan could be heard as Catherine's daemonic sword clashed with Adrianne's saber, the mundane steel saber immediately beginning to fracture as it clashed with the supernatural blade previously belonging to Salithrielle. "I think not, little girl... " Adrianne responded from the other side of the parry as she glared back at Catherine with her purple eyes. Tilting her sword and brushing Catherine's own away, Adrianne would strike out at her at multiple times; each time their swords met causing shards of metal to fall off the rapidly withering saber. On the fourth blow, Adrianne would suddenly reach in and grab Catherine's wrist, pulling her towards her. But as Catherine was being pulled, the world felt as it completely shifted for a moment and everything turned black! In one moment, she could feel the warm air of the mansion interior, and in the next split second, she could feel the fresh, cold night air! In the blink of an eye, they would have disappeared from the hallway and instead appeared on top of the roof of the mansion! Adrianne was still pulling in Catherine's arm, stepping away, only to reveal the edge of the mansion roof whom she was pulling her towards before letting go; the kinetic inertia having carried through the teleportation and now leading her towards the edge! [Catherine] "Ohh no you don't!" Cath shouted, pulling suddenly the whip that she tugged in her belt before charging the psyker. In a quick move, she swung it, towards the leg of the annoying woman. As the whip wrapped around the leg of the psycker. Using the momentum and the suppoort of the unexpecting psyker to swing herself back inside the mansion via the window that was just beneath the positon she got thrown out of. As she shattered the glass and was inside, she flicked her wrist to make the whip loosen form the psyker's leg and started painfully moving inward the mansion towards the stairs... hurryign to get back to Sally. She could feel the blood runnign down the edge of her mouth, but she cared not. [Adrianne] A smirk passed Adrianne's lips as she watched Catherine soar towards the edge of the roof. What she had not accounted for would be the whip that she lashed out with, causing it to wrap around her leg without any warning. "Huh ... ?" Within the blink of an eye, the smirk on Adrianne's face would soon be replaced by a surprised expression as her leg was pulled out from under her, and she fell flat on her ass onto the roof! The sound of glass crashing could be heard from beneath, and soon the weight on the whip abated, allowing her to stand up. "That cursed harlot!" Adrianne muttered as she staggered back onto her feet, reaching one hand up into the air. Soaring down from the night sky, a familiar black raven would pass over where she stood, letting go off Adrianne's staff as it flew away. Catching the staff as it fell mid air, Adrianne would turn it vertically and click it against the roof beneath her, disappearing in an instant! * Down below, as Catherine was about to walk out of the door to the room she had jumped into; she could hear a sudden snap as the air in front of her was expelled outwards and Adrianne appeared out of nothingness in front of her. With a glare and almost as soon as she had even appeared, she would thrust the bottom of her psychic warstaff upwards in an arc - hitting Catherine in the bottom of the face and knocking her back into the room. "Did you think losing me would be that easy?!" Adrianne exclaimed as she stepped in after her, holding her staff with both of her hands as she entered the room. [Catherine] "I hoped..." Cath replied, doing a quick swing of her hand, using the wip to throw a vase from the nearby table towrads the psyker. Fankly she didn't really have the strenght to stand anymore. She was barely standing and moving earlier. The pain in her chest was one that was enough to send many unconcious, but she... training in that area. For a moment in her mind, she wondered if she should try the codeword now... she didn't really want to because that will probably lead to her having to either leave Sally behind... or her surviving while the Euphoria not. There was also the chance that this group had nothing to do with the inquisitor that tasked her here. There wasn't really any other choice right now though... "What do you want anyways..." Cath managed to say through the pain." Don't your guys downstair have need of help... there are a lot of guards in this place you know... why taking the time to deal with me?" [Adrianne] Adrianne looked down at Catherine as she raised a brow at her. "Want?" Adrianne repeated, looking down at Catherine whom at that point looked worse enough for wear that she doubted she would be getting up to fight anytime soon. "I guess in this dress, it might not be obvious... " Adrianne mumbled as she threw a sideway look down at her glittering blue dress, which was far different from her usual battle suit. "Put simply, little heretic, we are here on imperial authority to wipe out your little nest of villainy!" Adrianne said as she held her staff up horizontally, grabbing each end before pulling it apart, revealing a long, curved and hidden powerblade that glowed brightly in an ominous purple color as it was released from the shaft of the staff that acted much in the way of a sheat for the sword. "And I figured I would work myself down from the list, not necessarily from the weakest to the strongest. That would be rather cliche." [Catherine] Listening to the woman, Cath smiled amused. It was a very distant smile, one that showed as if she took the woman standing in front of her as a joker that just told something very funny. "That dress... your 'mission'... you really botched this infiltration job eh? Hahhahahaaha... ouch...*cough* " Cath began laughing before a bloody cough started. "Well... too bad... " Cath said with a smile." Teacup... *cough* ...*cough*" She wanted to repeat the codeword a few times, but the cough started and she was coughing out blood. [Adrianne] " ... what?" Adrianne would mutter, her eyes growing increasingly narrow as she looked down at Catherine with a distinct 'WTF look' on her face. Tilting her head to the side, she gaze suspiciously at Catherine. "What did you just say?" It was hard to tell what the girl was actually trying to say, between all the coughing and blood spitting, and Adrianne's face grew increasingly narrow, as if her brain was working overtime on figuring out what on earth Catherine had just said! [Catherine] "I said..*couch* teacup... tea..*cough* cup..." The woman on the floor replied a few more times in struggle." Damn... " She muttered frowling in pain. It was a very bad luck earlier... to get squished between the pillar and Sally. If she didn't she actually was going to show this woman a thing or two of how she faced psykers, but due everything that happened it wasn't going to turn out that way. Now the thing that was in Catherine's mine was Salithrielle... what had happened to the Euphoria... was she still alive...? [Adrianne] As the dialogue went on, the confused expression on Adrianne's face only grew rapidly in size and scope. Teacup? What on earth was the girl trying to say, as she was half dead and repeating the word "teacup"? Had she officially lost it? Had she finally gone insane? Was it the warp that had burned through her mind? [i]"That.... does not make sense!"[/i] Adrianne thought to herself. There was obviously some kind of meaning her. No one would waste their last moment of life spouting random nonsense for no reason. "Teacup", the word must surely carry some kind of secret meaning! But what was it? Was it some kind of riddle? A codeword for a secret project? Was it the name of some kind of superweapon?! "ENOUGH RIDDLES!" Adrianne would finally exclaim, extending her arm and suddenly levitating Catherine above the ground! "Answer me; what does "Teacup" mean? Is it a weapon? Is it a secret bunker? Is it the next phase of your vile plan? ANSWER ME!" [Catherine] "*cough* I should... have known it would... turn...out...this way...* cough*" Cath managed to say as the woman was shouting at her. A vague smile appeared on her face, thinking that she was indeed send to this place with no plans to bring her back after all... she so should have confessed to Sally a lot earlier." I was told that was my codeword... when I was send to infiltrate this place... by Inquisitor Zhevon... *cough*" Cath said as blood was running down the edge of he mouth." Seems like you were never told... have you? Was I trully send here to die... after...all?" Cath was talking, but in reality she was gathering her final strenght to do one last action in case the psyker decides to kill her. There was still chance... as small as it was. The moment she tried to kill her, Cath was going to use the whip pull herself towards the window. If she get's close enough... she may just gather the last strenght to jump out... chance of survival were infinitely close to zero, but it was better than nothing. [Adrianne] Adrianne merely stared at Catherine for a moment as the girl was hanging in the air in front of her, looking confused as ever. Leaning her head to the side, she would activate the vox bud in her ear and speak. "Adrianne here... do any of you know what the word "Teacup" means?" She asked into her comms, simply standing there for a while, still holding Catherine off the ground with her powers. Seconds passed as Adrianne listened for a response, when suddenly the psyker's eyes grew wide, and she looked back at the almost half-dead Catherine hanging in the air in front of her. "Oh crap!" In an instant, the invisible force hanging Catherine would disappear and she would be free to fall crashing onto the floor beneath her with a heavy thud! Walking up over to Catherine, Adrianne would look down at her, raising a hand. "I, uh... am sorry about that. Are you okay?" [Catherine] "Ughhh!" Cath made a heavily pained sound as she crumbled on the floor, her mind racing as she wanted to reply a very sarcasting thing to this insane woman, but her body was failing on her. She wanted to talk, but she had not the strenght to do so... the pain finally defeated her as she started to lose conciousness." Sally..." She barely whispered as her eyes closed.