EogunnEogunn frowns, closes his organic eye, and sits in deep thought for a while. "I... have reassessed the situation. I am plagued by doubts, and I am not entirely sure I am doing the right thing. But I will trust you. This is my final decision."
Eogunn"I will create a Triasomata of myself, Nuncius, and xenotechnology. The previous attempt was a failure, but since then, I have realised the true reasons for it — Imperial technology alone is not enough to restrain this corruption. I must resort to forbidden knowledge. There are still samples of our Necron finds here. They will allow me to perform the perfect transfer."
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.
NunciusNuncius struggles to say something, but Eogunn does not give him the chance. The mechadendrites dig into his flesh, extracting and replacing organs one by one — Eogunn rips something right out of his own body, quickly replacing it with implants or strange objects of apparent xenos origin. One of the mechadendrites continuously emits the Motive Force, targeting organs and augments, compelling them to function against all odds. Eogunn does not make a sound during the entire operation.
NunciusNuncius seizes the Tech-Priest's hand with immense effort. "Eo... gunn... Just... let... me... go..."
YOU"Eogunn, he does not want this."
Eogunn"I want it! Nuncius... will thank me later."
YOU"Eogunn, he does not want this."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"How much longer?"
Eogunn"Not long."
EogunnSuddenly, Nuncius begins thrashing around in convulsions — a seizure so intense that he bites off his mutated tongue and begins choking on his own blood. "No, blast it, no!" Eogunn roars gutturally, sending his mechadendrites swarming in panic. After a moment, Nuncius's body goes still.
Eogunn"I'm still... Yes, Nuncius, yes, endure a little longer, we will be one..." The Manipulus has lost his final shred of rationality — his gaze is now in full thrall to madness. He desperately extracts the distorted augments from the corpse and mercilessly reattaches them inside himself, heedless of the pain and blood. Last of all, he removes the cortical implant from Nuncius's head — a melted piece of dead metal covered in lumps of brain matter. Whispering words you cannot make out, Eogunn solders it next to his heart.
EogunnCoughing up blood, Eogunn collapses heavily to the floor. "The Triasomata... is complete. Nuncius is in me."
YOU"What have you done?"
Nuncius"I am the Triasomata, redemption from death. Nuncius and I are forever one, I will not be parted from him again." Looking somewhere beyond you, Eogunn smiles blissfully. "I am so glad I was finally able to save you, dearest colleague."
YOU"What have you done?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Eogunn. His implant has melted, you carry only his remains inside you. Nuncius is dead."
NunciusEogunn lets out a rumbling laugh, as if you had told some ridiculous lie. "Absurd, [Name]! How can he be dead if I can see him before me, feel him within me? Yes, Nuncius, that's what I told him/her — you are alive, we are both alive! This is an incontrovertible fact."
YOU"What have you done?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Eogunn. His implant has melted, you carry only his remains inside you. Nuncius is dead."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are you all right?"
Nuncius"I am ecstatic! Now that Nuncius is with me forever, together we can refine the triasomia procedure. How many triumphs await us, how much good we will deliver to Humanity! And for that we have you to thank, [Name]. Isn't that right, Nuncius?"
NunciusThe servo-skull is grimly silent. His eye sockets are as empty as a desecrated grave.
YOU"What have you done?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Eogunn. His implant has melted, you carry only his remains inside you. Nuncius is dead."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are you all right?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"
NunciusEogunn examines the stump of his mechadendrite. "It is dangerous. The risk of a similar situation happening again is high. I suggest we bury it here. But if you decide otherwise, I believe I could study its properties and develop a weapon based on it. I will trust your decision."
YOU"Leave it here."
Eogunn"As you will. Let us be off, Rogue Trader. We have nothing more to seek in the realm of the dead. The deeds of the living await us."
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YOU"Deliver it to the ship and make a weapon."
Eogunn"As you will. Let us be off, Rogue Trader. We have nothing more to seek in the realm of the dead. The deeds of the living await us."
end of branch
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"
Nuncius"Yes, Rogue Trader. All that remains is the matter of the artefact."
NunciusEogunn examines the stump of his mechadendrite. "It is dangerous. The risk of a similar situation happening again is high. I suggest we bury it here. But if you decide otherwise, I believe I could study its properties and develop a weapon based on it. I will trust your decision."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are you all right?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Eogunn. His implant has melted, you carry only his remains inside you. Nuncius is dead."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are you all right?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Say nothing]
EogunnSuddenly, Nuncius begins thrashing around in convulsions — a seizure so intense that he bites off his mutated tongue and begins choking on his own blood. "No, blast it, no!" Eogunn roars gutturally, sending his mechadendrites swarming in panic. After a moment, Nuncius's body goes still.continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Draw your weapon] "This was a mistake. I shall end his suffering."
Nuncius"Don't you dare! I'm on the verge of a breakthrough!"
EogunnSuddenly, Nuncius begins thrashing around in convulsions — a seizure so intense that he bites off his mutated tongue and begins choking on his own blood. "No, blast it, no!" Eogunn roars gutturally, sending his mechadendrites swarming in panic. After a moment, Nuncius's body goes still.continues where this line first appears above
YOU"How much longer?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Say nothing]continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Draw your weapon] "This was a mistake. I shall end his suffering."continues where this line first appears above
Eogunn"I was so fixated on the idea that he could be saved that I failed to notice that there was nothing left to save. The Nuncius I knew died on this very spot half a century ago. But cold remains are not all that a person leaves behind. Memory. The Imperium is built on memory. The memory of the fallen. Of the technological covenants of those who came before us. Of the great sacrifice of the God-Emperor, who guides us through the darkness of unforgiving space." Eogunn takes a long look at Nuncius through the blur of the stasis seal. "I will grant him the Emperor's Mercy, and afterward I will honour him as is his due as a servant of the Omnissiah."
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.
Nuncius"Eo...gunn... You must... Please..."
NunciusEogunn places a hand on Nuncius's chest. "Hush, old friend. I have returned to end your agony. You will die by my hand, not of the xenos' filth. Here to witness is [Name], who reunited us."
YOU[Make the sign of the Aquila and offer a prayer] "Cast off fear and pain. Eclipse them with His light and let it burn all corruption to dust."
NunciusPerhaps it is just a glint or a reflection from one of the devices, but for a moment, a shaft of light seems to illuminate Nuncius's face. His pupils dilate, and his hand reaches up, as if trying to touch something. His breathing becomes clearer and more even. Barely audibly, he whispers: "Omnissiah... at last... I comprehend..."
Nuncius"Genetor Extremis Nuncius, by the Emperor's Mercy, I hereby end your algorithms and cognitive processes. By the right granted to me by the rank of Magos, before the all-seeing gaze of the all-thinking Machine God, I name you a martyr worthy of sanctification as a servo-skull. Your Quest for Knowledge has come to an end, but your service is not over." Laying both hands on Nuncius's chest, Eogunn asks gently, "Are you ready, dearest colleague?"
NunciusWith his last vestiges of strength, Nuncius clasps a mangled hand over Eogunn's and nods.
NunciusEogunn's galvanic coils crackle, and a powerful discharge passes from his hands directly into Nuncius's chest in a flash of azure. Nuncius's entire body shudders, then goes still forever. Gently removing the dead man's hand from his own, Eogunn stares at him for a time. Finally, with a decisive swing of his mechadendrite, he cuts off his colleague's head, and takes it. Then, he takes the servo-skull that has been hovering at his shoulder and sets it at the foot of the stasis sacellum. "I have done what I had to do. Now I am ready to walk the path of atonement myself. I excommunicate myself from the xenarite sect and dedicate myself to the Quest for Knowledge as it has been established in His covenants. [Name], thank you for being with me."
YOU"Are you all right?"
Nuncius"Yes. For the first time in a long time, my mind is completely clear. I have no regrets about what I have done. Nuncius is free of corruption at last, and I am pleased that I had the fortitude to end his life myself. I have learned a harsh lesson that I will not dare to forget, but should my memory begin to fade, I will always have a reminder of what deviation from dogma leads to." Eogunn looks mournfully at Nuncius's head.
YOU"Are you all right?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You did the right thing. That is an incontrovertible fact."
NunciusEogunn smiles. "This statement is true, colleague."
YOU"Are you all right?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You did the right thing. That is an incontrovertible fact."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You did the right thing. That is an incontrovertible fact."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I see you, son of the Imperium. May you be granted the Emperor's Mercy."
Nuncius"Genetor Extremis Nuncius, by the Emperor's Mercy, I hereby end your algorithms and cognitive processes. By the right granted to me by the rank of Magos, before the all-seeing gaze of the all-thinking Machine God, I name you a martyr worthy of sanctification as a servo-skull. Your Quest for Knowledge has come to an end, but your service is not over." Laying both hands on Nuncius's chest, Eogunn asks gently, "Are you ready, dearest colleague?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Eogunn, it's time."
Nuncius"Genetor Extremis Nuncius, by the Emperor's Mercy, I hereby end your algorithms and cognitive processes. By the right granted to me by the rank of Magos, before the all-seeing gaze of the all-thinking Machine God, I name you a martyr worthy of sanctification as a servo-skull. Your Quest for Knowledge has come to an end, but your service is not over." Laying both hands on Nuncius's chest, Eogunn asks gently, "Are you ready, dearest colleague?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Say nothing]
Nuncius"Genetor Extremis Nuncius, by the Emperor's Mercy, I hereby end your algorithms and cognitive processes. By the right granted to me by the rank of Magos, before the all-seeing gaze of the all-thinking Machine God, I name you a martyr worthy of sanctification as a servo-skull. Your Quest for Knowledge has come to an end, but your service is not over." Laying both hands on Nuncius's chest, Eogunn asks gently, "Are you ready, dearest colleague?"continues where this line first appears above
Eogunn"It took me fifty years to understand that Nuncius was doomed as soon as he touched that artefact. All my searching for a panacea was not for his sake, but for mine. I could not let him go, so instead I lulled my conscience into a false quest — anything to rid my soul of this pain, all the while ignoring the very real suffering of the person I had forsaken. It is time I learned to say goodbye." A sad smile touches Eogunn's lips. "That is an incontrovertible fact."
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.
Nuncius"Eo...gunn... You must... Please..."
Nuncius"I know, old friend. I've come to release you. [Name], Rogue Trader, has given me the chance to do this."
YOU[Smile] "I have heard much about you. Eogunn is forever talking about you."
NunciusThe corner of his lips where flesh remains struggles to lift in a grateful smile. Struggling to force out each word, Nuncius rasps, "I'm glad... that he was... not alone..."
NunciusEogunn takes Nuncius's hand gently in his own. He leans closer and whispers something, then pulls away: "It's time. You were not always right, and neither was I, but you were never wrong about the things that truly matter. Forgive me, and farewell, dearest colleague."
NunciusWith his last scraps of strength, Nuncius gives Eogunn's hand a barely perceptible squeeze, before letting his arm fall to the cold metal of the sacellum. One last attempt at a smile frozen on his lips.
EogunnEogunn closes Nuncius's eyes. He stares at the body in silence for a time, then summons the servo-skull and issues a command in binharic. The servo-skull's eye socket goes dark and its manipulators freeze, and the Tech-Priest places it at the foot of the sacellum. "Now I have let him go for good. [Name], thank you for this opportunity. And thank you for being here with me."
YOU"What did you whisper to him?"
Nuncius"Something only the two of us would understand. Allow me to keep this mystery unsolved. I want to have a memory of him that belongs only to me."
YOU"What did you whisper to him?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are you all right?"
Nuncius"My heart rate is higher than usual, and my mind is awash with grief. But I also feel... relieved. It may sound strange or cynical, but now that I have let him go, I feel that I can go on living. But I will never dare to forget Nuncius ever again — it is a pain I will carry inside me until the end, and I will be... glad to have it with me."
YOU"What did you whisper to him?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are you all right?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You did the right thing. That is an incontrovertible fact."
NunciusEogunn smiles. "This statement is true, colleague."
YOU"What did you whisper to him?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are you all right?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You did the right thing. That is an incontrovertible fact."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You did the right thing. That is an incontrovertible fact."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are you all right?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You did the right thing. That is an incontrovertible fact."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"What will you do with the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Is the melodrama over? Can we leave now?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You don't have much time. Say what you have to say."
NunciusEogunn takes Nuncius's hand gently in his own. He leans closer and whispers something, then pulls away: "It's time. You were not always right, and neither was I, but you were never wrong about the things that truly matter. Forgive me, and farewell, dearest colleague."continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Say nothing]
NunciusEogunn takes Nuncius's hand gently in his own. He leans closer and whispers something, then pulls away: "It's time. You were not always right, and neither was I, but you were never wrong about the things that truly matter. Forgive me, and farewell, dearest colleague."continues where this line first appears above
Entry point 7 of 12
EogunnEogunn shakes his head. "With all due respect, Rogue Trader, this is not your choice. Nuncius is my responsibility, and I will decide for myself what to do with him. Do not deny me this. And now I must begin."
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.continues where this line first appears above
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.continues where this line first appears above
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.continues where this line first appears above
Entry point 8 of 12
Eogunn(no text)
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Entry point 9 of 12
Nuncius(no text)
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Entry point 10 of 12
Nuncius(no text)
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Entry point 11 of 12
Nuncius(no text)
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Entry point 12 of 12
NunciusSomething is enveloped within the sarcophagus's stasis field, something that one would struggle to identify as a human being. The body is locked in a foetal position, the mouth open in mute agony, and only the tears streaming from the eyes, reminiscent of some weeping holy statue, reveal that the person is alive. Merciless waves of transmutation slowly and inexorably remake the body — the augmented fingers are covered with veins, vessels, and bones, and the blood that drips from them turns to mica. All in sepulchral silence, broken only by the breathing of the stasis sacellum apparatus. A funeral dragging on for half a century, attended by no one. Until today.
NunciusClutched in his hands — no, fused with his fingers — is a black cube of unnaturally smooth black material. In the endless cycle of excruciating metamorphoses, it is the only object that is unmoving and unchanging.
EogunnEogunn touches the sacellum delicately with the tips of his fingers, as though fearing that the machine and its contents will crumble to dust. "We meet again, dearest colleague. I would give anything to have you look at me now, your eyes brimming with reproach, resentment, even hatred. But all I see in them is pain and yearning. Is it yearning for life or for oblivion? I do not know. I stopped understanding myself long ago — madness and guilt are bewildering, they muddle the brain. I have grown accustomed to it. But that I stopped understanding you — I can never forgive myself for that."
YOU"This cube is the artefact?"
Nuncius"A refractive transmuter. I had to confine it together with Nuncius — if it were removed, death would follow almost instantly. Of course, this is only a hypothesis based on an analysis of my colleague's condition. A hypothesis I have no desire to test."
YOU"This cube is the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Why are mutations continuing even while in stasis?"
Nuncius"I don't know. This device is older than Humanity itself — who knows what else it is capable of? Stasis can only slow its effects."
YOU"This cube is the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Why are mutations continuing even while in stasis?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"And you left him like this? That's monstrous."
Nuncius"Yes, it is. Monsters are born of hope and fear. I was driven by both."
YOU"This cube is the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Why are mutations continuing even while in stasis?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"And you left him like this? That's monstrous."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Greetings, Nuncius."
Nuncius"He cannot hear you. But I appreciate that you still see him as a human being."
YOU"This cube is the artefact?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Why are mutations continuing even while in stasis?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"And you left him like this? That's monstrous."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Greetings, Nuncius."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"It is time to end the experiment, Eogunn. What will you do?"
Eogunn"I will save Nuncius. Fifty years of searching, calculating, and experimenting cannot have been for nothing — I have travelled too far to surrender at the very end. This is a debt I owe to my colleague. No, to humanity. If I master death here and now, then I will pave the way for a new age in the Imperium. The methods do not matter. Does anyone remember the hundreds of failed attempts and sacrifices that are made in the search for a solution to a problem, if that solution ends up being the only correct one?" Eogunn asks vehemently, without looking at Nuncius.
Eogunn"I will create a Triasomata of myself, Nuncius, and xenotechnology. The previous attempt was a failure, but since then, I have realised the true reasons for it — Imperial technology alone is not enough to restrain this corruption. I must resort to forbidden knowledge. There are still samples of our Necron finds here. They will allow me to perform the perfect transfer."
YOU"Then do not delay. Do what you must."
Eogunn"Yes, it is long past time."
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.continues where this line first appears above
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.continues where this line first appears above
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Wait. You do not have to do this. You can make a different choice."
Eogunn"I thought our views on the situation were similar. What do you propose?"
YOU"You have to say goodbye to Nuncius and let him go. Just be with him. You have to do it for him and for yourself, not for anyone else."
YOU"Nuncius is a servant of the Emperor. His service is over — grant him the Emperor's Mercy and immortalise him in a servo-skull."
YOU"You have been working toward this for fifty years and you want to give up now? Are you or are you not a great Genetor? Save him!"
YOU"Actually... Do as you wish."
Nuncius"Then begin."
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.continues where this line first appears above
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.continues where this line first appears above
NunciusEogunn takes a deep breath, then enters a chain of commands into the stasis sacellum's cogitator. The field flickers and goes dark — then the silence is shattered by Nuncius's inhuman screams. Eogunn's mechadendrite plunges into the black cube and wrenches it from his colleague's hands. Before the mutations can spread through his tentacle, Eogunn cuts off the end of it with a plasma cutter and hurls it and the cube into the container where the artefact was once kept. The remaining mechadendrites inject Nuncius with stimulants. The Tech-Priest stops writhing, but it is clear that he has little time left.continues where this line first appears above
Eogunn"Xenotechnology bound Nuncius and me together, and it also doomed us. Believing that it was possible to master the technology of the xenos and use it for good, I allowed corruption to enter me and I cultivated it for years until it reaped its harvest. This entire place, along with the xenos and his cursed artefact, should have been burned to the ground as soon as we set foot on this world. It was not the xenos that killed Nuncius, or the transmuter, or even the Inquisition's avarice. It was me. Every choice, every decision I made, ultimately formed an equation with only one possible answer: the death of Nuncius. What is left of him? A mangled shell that has known nothing but torment for these last fifty years."
Eogunn"I was so fixated on the idea that he could be saved that I failed to notice that there was nothing left to save. The Nuncius I knew died on this very spot half a century ago. But cold remains are not all that a person leaves behind. Memory. The Imperium is built on memory. The memory of the fallen. Of the technological covenants of those who came before us. Of the great sacrifice of the God-Emperor, who guides us through the darkness of unforgiving space." Eogunn takes a long look at Nuncius through the blur of the stasis seal. "I will grant him the Emperor's Mercy, and afterward I will honour him as is his due as a servant of the Omnissiah."
YOU"Then do not delay. Do what you must."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Wait. You do not have to do this. You can make a different choice."continues where this line first appears above
Eogunn"I have grown accustomed to playing the role of mentor, and this habit has done me a cruel disservice — if only I had stopped talking and listened, I could have learned a great deal. From you I have learned acceptance and mercy. Survival does not equal life. I have argued that death has no meaning — it still doesn't, it is unfathomable and merciless. However, the same is true of life — meaning is something we give it, whether it be service to the Imperium, the Quest for Knowledge, or forging bonds stronger than blood. I have made my meaning self-destruction through guilt and false hope."
Eogunn"It took me fifty years to understand that Nuncius was doomed as soon as he touched that artefact. All my searching for a panacea was not for his sake, but for mine. I could not let him go, so instead I lulled my conscience into a false quest — anything to rid my soul of this pain, all the while ignoring the very real suffering of the person I had forsaken. It is time I learned to say goodbye." A sad smile touches Eogunn's lips. "That is an incontrovertible fact."
YOU"Then do not delay. Do what you must."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Wait. You do not have to do this. You can make a different choice."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"It is time to end the experiment, Eogunn. What will you do?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Greetings, Nuncius."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"It is time to end the experiment, Eogunn. What will you do?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"And you left him like this? That's monstrous."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Greetings, Nuncius."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"It is time to end the experiment, Eogunn. What will you do?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Why are mutations continuing even while in stasis?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"And you left him like this? That's monstrous."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Greetings, Nuncius."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"It is time to end the experiment, Eogunn. What will you do?"continues where this line first appears above