NPCHeinrix raises his head. The cold haze that surrounds him begins to dissipate. "[Name]... have you been looking for me? I tried to find somewhere out of the way where I could recover from the torture."
YOU[Look closely at him]
NPCCompared to how he was in the Anatomical Opera, Heinrix looks almost like his usual self. But you cannot help noticing the sag in his shoulders and the twitch at the corner of his mouth — he is exhausted. His biomancy must have sapped more energy than he expected.
NPCNoticing your examination, Heinrix laughs under his breath. "Pay no attention. Serious internal injuries require particular focus and painstaking effort to remedy, that's all. I'm almost as good as new. Moving is no longer excruciating, at least."
YOU[Look closely at him]continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I was worried when I discovered you had disappeared."
NPC"I did not disappear. I just thought that the others didn't need to see me in that state." Heinrix casts a sidelong glance at you. "You don't need to see me like this either... I'm already on the mend, anyway."
NPCHe reaches out and gently strokes your cheek. "I still haven't asked what happened to you after we were captured."
YOU"I can tell you what happened to me."
NPCHeinrix nods. "I'll listen."
NPCYour recounting takes a long time. When you finish, Heinrix is silent for several seconds. "So, the Drukhari thought that you were working with one of their accursed kind... and it was all because of Achilleas? It seems that I, among others, are responsible for us ending up here..."
YOU"You had nothing to do with it."
NPCWith a bitter smile, Heinrix shakes his head. "No, [Name]. The work of the Inquisition often draws the attention of Humanity's foes to individuals who have crossed paths with the Golden Throne's agents. I wish it wasn't so, but, if I hadn't sought Achilleas's help, we could have avoided... all of this."
NPCSilence hangs in the air. Heinrix looks at you with a strange expression, then he sighs and brushes his fingers across your cheek again. "Thank you for checking up on me, but you don't need to wallow here with me. I'll put myself back together and rejoin the others soon, I promise."
YOU[Embrace Heinrix] "I'm not going anywhere."
NPCHeinrix lets out a choked moan when you hug him, but he immediately wraps his arms around you. "No, don't let go. This is better. Much better."
NPC"Healing deep or old injuries using biomancy takes time. It's a slow, painstaking process. Especially if you have to grow new tissue."
YOU"You've had to do that before?"
NPC"Yes, I have." Heinrix smiles, but it does not reach his eyes.
NPC"When my family disowned me, they also removed all the Knight pilot implants from my body. They don't stand on ceremony when it comes to sorcerers, so after my vivisection, I was left with a paralysed arm and a significant chunk of my cranium missing — the hole was sealed with a plate. When the Lord Inquisitor took me out of the Guard, he had me remove the augments installed in psykers when they become sanctioned. So I lost an eye and gained some nerve damage."
NPC"Xavier didn't care that I was a maimed freak — he needed me for my sorcery, nothing more. But I decided I would be more useful if I could start to look more like a human again." Heinrix brings his hand to his face. "Repairing my eyeball took the longest. Even the nerve connections took less effort. Years went by before I managed to eliminate all the visual aberrations and I could see as well as I had when I was a child."
YOU"And after all that, you are still loyal to the Imperium and the Inquisition?"
NPCHeinrix pulls away from you. "Why... why wouldn't I be? The Imperium deemed me stable enough to keep me as a sanctioned psyker. The Inquisition gave me a new, higher role, a more honourable role. How could I not repay those debts?"
YOU"They mutilated and maimed you purely because of what you are."
NPC"I'm a psyker, [Name]. The very fact of my existence is anathema and can only be excused by my usefulness, up until the point that I turn into a mutant or a portal to the warp. I am under no illusions — sanctioned or not, that is the future that awaits any sorcerer."
NPC(sequence)
NPCHeinrix stares past you, confusion and doubt plain on his face. "It was with you that I thought about what I wanted for the first time. I can remember it clearly — back then, all that time ago, I wanted to live. And I was given the chance to. This has already been a great gift from He who stands above all of us. It would be... amoral... to wish for more from my fate."
end of branch
NPCHeinrix gives you a questioning look and smiles crookedly. "This sentimentality is new. I only wanted to give you an example of how biomancy works on long-standing injuries. And I didn't mean to upset you."
YOU"And after all that, you are still loyal to the Imperium and the Inquisition?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Lean closer] "We will find a way out of here and go home, won't we?"
NPC"I could calculate our chances based on my limited knowledge of this place... but I don't think this situation calls for cold facts, does it?" Heinrix gently turns your face to his. "If it comes to it, I will lay down my life to get you home."
NPCHe leans forward and you feel his breath brush your lips. "And I will do it gladly."
NPCThe tender kiss changes, becoming something different, more passionate and demanding. Heinrix's hands begin to skim over your body, slipping down to your hips...
YOU"I suppose I could... stay with you for a little while longer."
NPCHeinrix chuckles softly between kisses. "Thank you for your cooperation, Lord Captain."
end of branch
YOU"At least Commorragh managed to kill off the prude in you."
NPCHeinrix can't hold back the exasperated chuckle between kisses. "Throne curse you, woman... Now be quiet."
end of branch
YOU"No. Not here."
NPCHeinrix withdraws from you with obvious effort. "I'm sorry. You're right. Just... just stay beside me for a little while longer."
YOU"Of course. I shall stay as long as you need."
NPCHeinrix brings your fingers to his lips and closes his eyes.
end of branch
YOU"I really must go."
NPC"Of course." Heinrix moves away from you and clears his throat. "I will finish up here soon and rejoin the others, I promise."
end of branch
NPCHeinrix presses his lips to your forehead. "Stay with me a little bit longer. Just be next to me."
YOU"Of course. I shall be here as long as you need."
NPCHeinrix brings your fingers to his lips and closes his eyes.continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Grasp Heinrix's belt buckle] "I have a better idea about how we can spend our time together."
NPCHeinrix arches an eyebrow and casts a dubious look at your surroundings. "Right... here? The setting isn't exactly befitting a Lord Captain, don't you think?"
YOU"Listen. We are in the forsaken city of the Drukhari. Tomorrow we will probably meet our gruesome and sudden ends. Do you really give a damn about respectability in the face of imminent death?"
NPCHeinrix looks back at you, and then pulls you in close to him. "To the void with it all..." he says with a barely audible sigh, before bringing your lips together in a kiss.
end of branch
YOU"You're right, we shouldn't, not if you don't feel up to it in your condition..."
NPCHeinrix stares at you with a mixture of astonishment and indignation. Then he sets his hands on your hips and wordlessly drags you in for a kiss.
end of branch
YOU"I suppose you're right. We shouldn't."
NPCHeinrix brings your fingers to his lips and closes his eyes.continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I really must go."continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Kiss Heinrix] "Your presence gives me strength."
NPCHeinrix presses you tightly against him, and the warmth of his body chases away some of the dank chill closing in around you.
NPCThe tender kiss changes, becoming something different, more passionate and demanding. Heinrix's hands begin to skim over your body, slipping down to your hips...continues where this line first appears above
NPCHeinrix presses his lips to your forehead. "Stay with me a little bit longer. Just be next to me."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I must go."
NPC"Of course." Heinrix moves away from you and clears his throat. "I will finish up here soon and rejoin the others, I promise."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"It pains me even to listen to you. I cannot imagine the agony you suffered."
NPCHeinrix is lost for words for several seconds. "[Name]... pain is inevitable. It is shameful to dread it." After a pause, he adds very quietly, "What you just said, no one has ever said anything like that to me before. Thank you."
YOU"And after all that, you are still loyal to the Imperium and the Inquisition?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Lean closer] "We will find a way out of here and go home, won't we?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Kiss Heinrix] "Your presence gives me strength."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I must go."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You're right. The Imperium warrants any sacrifice."
NPC"Without a doubt." Despite his confident tone, the look Heinrix gives you is full of uncertainty.
YOU"And after all that, you are still loyal to the Imperium and the Inquisition?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Lean closer] "We will find a way out of here and go home, won't we?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Kiss Heinrix] "Your presence gives me strength."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I must go."continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Lean closer] "We will find a way out of here and go home, won't we?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Kiss Heinrix] "Your presence gives me strength."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I must go."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You sound like you are speaking from experience."
NPC"When my family disowned me, they also removed all the Knight pilot implants from my body. They don't stand on ceremony when it comes to sorcerers, so after my vivisection, I was left with a paralysed arm and a significant chunk of my cranium missing — the hole was sealed with a plate. When the Lord Inquisitor took me out of the Guard, he had me remove the augments installed in psykers when they become sanctioned. So I lost an eye and gained some nerve damage."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Please, I don't want to hear about this."
NPC"Right. Sorry."
YOU"And after all that, you are still loyal to the Imperium and the Inquisition?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Lean closer] "We will find a way out of here and go home, won't we?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Kiss Heinrix] "Your presence gives me strength."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I must go."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I wish there was something I could do to help you."
NPCHeinrix smiles, and creases form at the corners of his eyes. "All the same, it's nice to hear. Don't worry — I've come through situations like this before. I just need a little time."
NPC"Healing deep or old injuries using biomancy takes time. It's a slow, painstaking process. Especially if you have to grow new tissue."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I suppose I should go."
NPCHeinrix lifts his hand away and nods. "You should. Give me a little longer, and I'll be at your disposal once again."
end of branch
YOU"Do you think there is any truth to it?"
NPCHeinrix says nothing for a long time. "I won't deny that acolytes sometimes resort to working with xenos... but that typically happens only in dark and desperate times. It's possible that one of Achilleas's spies stooped so low... but after the events on Dargonus, I gave the order to disband the network of informants."
NPCSilence hangs in the air. Heinrix looks at you with a strange expression, then he sighs and brushes his fingers across your cheek again. "Thank you for checking up on me, but you don't need to wallow here with me. I'll put myself back together and rejoin the others soon, I promise."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Let's not talk about that."
NPCHeinrix nods, his expression anguished. "Of course. We'll leave it."
NPCSilence hangs in the air. Heinrix looks at you with a strange expression, then he sighs and brushes his fingers across your cheek again. "Thank you for checking up on me, but you don't need to wallow here with me. I'll put myself back together and rejoin the others soon, I promise."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"It's not important. It's behind us now."
NPC"Ha!" Heinrix barks out a laugh, and then winces in pain. "No, [Name], we're still in the belly of this beast. Escaping Commorragh alive... that is the best we can hope for now — escaping unscathed is already off the cards."
NPCSilence hangs in the air. Heinrix looks at you with a strange expression, then he sighs and brushes his fingers across your cheek again. "Thank you for checking up on me, but you don't need to wallow here with me. I'll put myself back together and rejoin the others soon, I promise."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I don't want to revisit it."
NPCHeinrix casts his eyes down. "Of course. I won't force you to."
NPCSilence hangs in the air. Heinrix looks at you with a strange expression, then he sighs and brushes his fingers across your cheek again. "Thank you for checking up on me, but you don't need to wallow here with me. I'll put myself back together and rejoin the others soon, I promise."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"How are you?"
NPC"Don't worry. I've been through worse... It's hard to draw a comparison though, since I've never fallen into the clutches of the Drukhari before... but I'll survive."
NPCHe reaches out and gently strokes your cheek. "I still haven't asked what happened to you after we were captured."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I was worried when I discovered you had disappeared."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"How are you?"continues where this line first appears above