Warhammer 40,000: Stavrakis- The Hunt For Valakt

Health concerns

The Magos was poring over a control panel.

"It is done, Inquisitor." He blurted. His vocal cords and mouth had all been replaced with augmentation, and his voice had a metallic fuzz to it. The machine lifted and stowed itself away. I looked up at the ceiling. That damnable white ceiling. With any luck, this was my last visit here.

" Would you like me to give you the results now? I could always send a comprehensive report up to you later." He blurbed.

I scratched at my chest. The pain had receded somewhat, but I still felt weak. Damn it all.

"Both." I said pulling my shirt on, trying to hide my annoyance.

The Magos buzzed as he walked over to the readouts he had been reviewing during my 15 hour stay. My second one in as many months, I should add. I noticed that although he was risen to the rank of Magos, his outer augmentation was minimal. Despite the changes to his vocal cords and mouth, the rest of his body was hidden underneath his Mechanicus robes. His lower half was most definitely augmetic. The Magos was nearing half a millennium old, and had seen fit to discard his true name in favor of his title.

"As you wish." He acknowledged, shuffling some of the papers around.

"Unfortunately, there is no good news." What little body language registered on his frame suggested he felt uncomfortable with his news.

"As you have noticed, this Valakt was not human. He was an aberration."

I nodded. "It seems that your failing physical health can be attributed to his attack on you."

"I was afraid of that." I sighed, pulling on my greatcoat. "What is the cause? And what can I do about it?"

"Nothing." He answered with finality. "I am no expert, Inquisitor, so you might still live."

"Speak plainly Magos." My irritation was plain. "Either I am dying, or I am not." I would not admit it, but the news of my sudden mortality unnerved me.

"I will try." He stated simply. I realized that the Magos was out of his depth. What was happening?

"The moment Inquisitor Valakt revealed to you his true nature, your report states that he placed his malformed hand above your chest."

He walked around to sit in his chair. He placed his hands on the surface of the armrests. The skin on his fingers flowed away from where his hand made contact on the surface. In their place were data jacks which he inserted into the ports on his chair, connecting himself with his systems aboard the Radiant Dawn.

"I want to make it plain, Inquisitor. Valakt is a pawn of the Ruinous powers. In the moment where he made contact with you, a series of diseased micro-organisms were transferred into your own body. You are dying."

A panel on the wall near the door slid open and a holographic display projector came to life. A fuzzy and distorted image came to life. It was an almost perfect replica of Valakts malformed hand.

"I am a Magos." The Magos declared. "I am not psychically attuned, nor do I endorse the use of psychic talents. I venerate the Omnissiah in all things and abhor the flesh." He pointed at the projection of the hand.

"This was made using psyk-reactive imagery lifted from your brain, and the brain of the Warlock. It is extraordinarily detailed."

The hand hovered and turned suddenly red. The image distorted and returned as a close up dissection of the hand. A stream of grubby green-red dots were being released into the space near the hand.

"This is what has happened. I suspect that these are not warp manifested grublings, but instead corrupted organisms of our own reality. There is no telling how long you will remain active, nor what damage will be caused first. From the incident in the stasis chamber, the extreme cold caused them to go into a frenzy, destroying more tissue before succumbing to the cold."