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sleepyfan-blog · 10 months ago

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Lestra's Arrival

Author’s Note: This is the second part of the mini-arc involving new Primaris Black Templars arriving in the husbandry AU. FIrst. Next. Other Cedric fics here and here. Thank you to @gallifreyianrosearkytiorsusan for allowing me to borrow Hura and Zariel

Tagged: @egrets-not-regrets @kit-williams @bleedingichorhearts @i-am-a-dragon34

Warnings: graphic description of wounds, blood, character death,

Summary: A badly injured Lestra is found by a renegade warband and brought to the clinic for treatment.

The scent of blood was thick and heavy in the air as the wind changed directions. A small frown appeared on Tallis’ face and he signaled to one of the Cousins he was currently traveling with, as he was on point before speaking “Something… Someone is bleeding heavily nearby. Smells like an Astartes. I’m going to go check it out.”

“Careful, sorcerer. The Warp is much harder to reach in this time period.” The Raven Guard Sargeant who was the leader of the little warband that Tallis had been found and semi-adopted by, warned.

“Yeah, Yeah. I know. I’ll be careful. First sign of trouble, and I’ll vox for help.” The Thousand Son hummed in acknowledgement as he carefully made his way over to where the scent of fresh blood was strongest.

It did not take long for Tallis to find the other Space Marine, who was leaning heavily against a tree. The other was naked from the waist up and badly wounded. There were bright red, raised lacerations covering every inch of skin on his back from the neck down. On top of those wounds were fist-sized bruises every four to five inches apart, too regularly placed to be randomly placed. Worse than that, however, was the wounds on his chest, as Tallis carefully turned him over.

Tallis couldn’t tell what color the other marine’s short hair was originally, as it was matted and discolored with blood. Both of his eyes had been scratched out by what looked like lightning claws. He swallowed hard as whoever had used the lightning claws on this poor marine’s eyes had liberally used them on his chest and abdomen as well, having carved words into his chest in a language that he did not recognize, though that might be in part from the amount of blood oozing from his wounds.

“I NEED AN APOTHECARY AT THESE COORDINATES IMMEDIATELY!” Tallis yelled over vox, making sure that he was using the broadest and longest-range frequency he could as horror settled in his stomach, a heavy leaden weight.

The other marine was breathing, but his chest was rising and falling unevenly, and was more gasping than breathing regularly. He reacted to Tallis’ yelling by curling defensively, a pained whimper leaving him.

Tallis knelt down in front of the other marine, his voice quieter as he aimed for soothing, and landing on frantic “Hey… Hey. Easy. I mean you no harm, oh throne, you have no studs. You’re a scout. Who the kriff did this to a scout? Keep breathing and stay awake as best as you can. I’ve called for an apothecary. I do have some first aid training, and I do have some supplies on me, so I’m going to start treating you as best as I can, alright? Please don’t startle when I touch you. Can you tell me your name, scout?”

The scout whimpered and turned his face towards him, opening his mouth and revealing -

Oh.

This poor bastard had his tongue ripped out too, did he? Tallis silently wondered if he’d been found and overpowered by a group of Drukhari before being translocated to M3 Terra. “Okay, no talking, for you. That’s okay. I can talk enough for the both of us. So, right now I’m grabbing the wound cleanser I have in my bag and I’m gonna spritz those claw-marks with it. Its’ gonna sting a little, but I know that you can handle it. Here. I’m gonna move one of your hands so that you’re touching my knee, so that you know that I’m here and I’m real.”

He heard Sargeant Malish crash through the underbrush in his direction at the sound of his shout, the rest of the warband on his heels. But all Tallis could do was to focus on the poor, unfortunate scout in front of him, to try and reassure the lad that he wasn’t alone in a strange place, left to die slowly.

“Enki, Rao, make us a stretcher. There’s a hospital a ten-minute sprint from here that treats Astartes, and he’s going to need a lot more than whatever first aid we can give him in the middle of this forest. Tallis, you stay with the kid until it’s time to move him. Do you see any signs of neck or spinal damage?” Malish asked, looking the injured marine over critically.

The scout who had black painted leg and boot armor whimpered and flinched at the sound of the sargent’s yelling, his shaking getting worse.

“I… No? I don’t think so, but we should be careful in how we move him, anyways. He’s in really rough shape, and I think at least one of his lungs have been ruptured, front he way he’s breathing. Easy… Easy, scout. No one’s yelling at you. You’re doing a great job staying awake.” Tallis murmured, gently patting one of the other’s shoulders, trying to get the poor scout to calm down a little.

The scout whimpered wordlessly, but he seemed to relax a little, which was progress.. It did not take long for Rao and Enki to build a make-shift stretcher that would hold the kid’s weight. “Alright, we’re going to put you up in the stretcher, now. On the count of three, we’re going to lift you up and put you on it. One… Two… Three!” Tallis counted, helping to heave the surprisingly heavy scout up and onto the stretcher. Tallis ran ahead of the four carrying the injured scout, guiding them to the astartes-friendly clinic-hospital.

Despite the stench of blood, the slow, agonal gasps of the brother on the operating table, and the chemical scent of cleanser in his nostrils, Part of Cedric silently wondered if htis was a nightmare of some kind.

Lestra was on the operating table, again. Cedric was part of the medical team trying to save his life. Again.

Hopefully Chaplain Petras and Sargeant Brenthom would not come bursting into the roo, half-way through the procedure, with the former bellowing at them to stop all but the most necessary procedures to keep him from dying, as these wounds had been inflicted due to punishments that Lestra had somehow earned.

Quiet, obedient, dutiful Lestra.

Lestra, who had some of the best scores of any of them when it came to marksmanship and tech-repair outside of the snipers and tech-marines.

Lestra, who murmured the prayers to Him on Terra most fervently, who delighted in aiding the Chaplains in any duties they asked of them, no matter how menial the task.

Lestra, who never questioned orders. Who tended to their weapons and armor with a patient reverence that bordered on nearly obsessive.

Lestra who, despite every effort that Cedric and the other Apothecaries were making, was once again dying, drowning in their own blood, as it filled their lungs faster than could be siphoned away. Whose blood loss was causing a cascade of effects that was shutting down their body. Lestra, whose body was rejecting the blood and fluids that they were trying to pump into them.

Lestra, who coughed wetly and grabbed Cedric with desperate, waning strength,pressingtheir forehead to his for several seconds before going limp, their hearts stopping.

Lestra, whose blood coated Cedric’s hands, arms and chest. Even after it had been washed away by an older Apothecary, when it had become clear that Cedric had locked up, unable to move.

“I failed them… Again.” Cedric muttered as he stared down at Lestra’s still warm body. Two of the Imperial Fist Apothecaries were preparing to open them up, to carve out the necessary organs that could be saved and reused.

“Sometimes patients die, lad. Even though we do what we can to help them. They were in a bad way, lad. It was unlikely that they were going to survive. Do you know which chapter they belonged to?” One of the Imperial Fists asked, reaching out to try and touch Cedric.

Cedric flinched, stepping a half-step back not-trusting the touch to be painless. “Lestra, Primaris. Black Templars. They were… They were one of the first I -” found badly hurt. Before he… Before he knew what was going on. Before he knew which of his Firstborn brothers was beating them to the point of death. Not that he was fool enough to say that out loud where other firstborns could hear that. “The Bellasarian engine will explode if you try to remove it from their body, causing considerable damage, so leave it in place.”

“Ah… They were one of the first patients you lost? That’s always rough. Come on, lad. You can leave the grisly work of organ harvesting to the others.” Of all people, Captain Ash’val murmured.

Where had the salamander scout captain come from? He was no apothecary.

“But I… They need…” Cedric tried to find the words, his hearts bleeding and lungs seizing up.

“The others will handle the organ removal. After that, Ramiel can guide their final rights, and you and the others can give them a final goodbye. Losing a patient is rough… Especially you’re first one, and I can’t imagine what losing your first patient twice must feel like.” Ash’val murmured, wrapping one arm around Cedric’s shoulders and steering him out of the operating room.

“But… But I was able to save Olivar… Why wasn’t I able to save Lestra? It’s not… It’s not fair!” Cedric managed out, trembling violently, though he did not resist Ash’val’s touch, nor his orders.

“Olivar’s wounds were less severe, and he was closer to treatment than LEstra. These things happen. You did your best, lad. That’s all we can ask of you.”

Cedric crumbled into Ash’val’s steady body, weeping until he passed out.

“Did you discover anything during the Autopsy, Zariel?” Ash’val, asked, his voice quiet, so as to not wake up the distraught young apothecary passed out in his arms, hours later.

“The lash-markings on Lestra’s body are consistent with the ones found on Ramiel and Olivar, when they were first brought in for treatment. As is the lichtenberg scarring and the way that the lightning claw wounds were on Ramiel’s and Lestra’s bodies. It’s likely that whoever went after our two surviving Primaris Black Templars was the one who killed Lestra.” Zariel dutifully reported to the Salamander.

Hura offered “Cedric was equally unsurprised to see the wounds upon Lestra, as he was on Olivar and Ramiel as well, which means he was likely one of the apothecaries who tended to the three of them in M42 before he and they were all brought here to Ancient Terra.” He was frowning as he watched the young apothecary in training sleep. “When I brought young Ramiel to view Lestra’s body, he was understandably distraught, but not surprised that they died, despite all efforts to save them.”

“You know… For as bad as they are at lying, they sure do seem to be keeping dark secrets and deep sorrows hidden in the deepest corners of their hearts.” Zariel murmured with a small frown.

“They correctly guessed the colors of your armor within weeks of living here. A feat most of the rest of the base has yet to discern.” Ash’val pointed out. “They may be young, but they are clever.”

Zariel huffed at that, looking away. “Point taken.”

“We should go, before Cedric awakens. Our presence will only confuse and worry him, given his recent trial.” Hura remarked, standing up a moment later and dragging Zariel out of his chair.

“Hey! I can walk on my own. Let me go, you giant bastard.” Zariel grumbled reluctantly allowing the Death Guard to manhandle him.

#cw injuries #cw character death #oc: lestra #oc: tallis #oc: malish #oc: cedric #oc: hura #oc: zariel #oc: ash'val #warhammer 40k #space marine husbandry sentience #my writing #space marine husbandry #chaos death guard #alpha legion #salamander #raven guard #black templar

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sleepyfan-blog · 1 year ago

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Curse

Author’s Note: Tallis part three! I hope you enjoy :D first. Previous

Tagged: @the-pure-angel @egrets-not-regrets @whorety-k @gallifreyianrosearkytiorsusan

Warnings: flesh-change, unhappy ending

Summary: The apothecaries attempt to reverse Lord Tallis’ accidental shrinking.

You patiently wait for Lord Tallis' name to be called in the waiting room, carefully cradling the currently tiny Astartes close to your chest. He's been grumbling for several minutes about the intricacies of the magical spell he had been attempting to create for minutes now. You really don't understand the intricacies of warp-craft, and as you are not warp-touched yourself, you would not be able to use any of the spells or learning that you had observed as you had served the Thousand Sons and Lord Tallis in particular. But you patiently and attentively listened to his grumpy ramblings, offering understanding noises and gentle taps on the back with the tip of one of your fingers at the appropriate points. It was entirely possible that Lord Tallis would be able to figure out what had gone wrong and reverse how he'd accidentally shrunk himself before the apothecary sorcerers were able to treat him.

Tallis eventually settled down in your hands, smiling warmly up at you, one of his currently tiny hands lightly squeezing one of your fingers "I am grateful that you are so dutiful and careful... Especially when mishaps like this happen."

"You saved me from oblivion or worse, my lord." You respond, smiling back at him "Of course I will serve you to the best of my abilities for as long as you will have me, my lord."

"Still... Your diligence and care have long since repaid any life debt that you owed me, and yet you stay. For that I am grateful, truly." Tallis murmurs, leaning into you, a soft rumbling sound coming from his chest. It sounded similar to a purr.

You nod wordlessly in response, unsure as to just how to respond. You truly felt that it was an honor to be able to serve the Adeptus Astartes in such a direct way... And you were much better treated by Tallis and his brothers than you had been on the merchant vessel that you'd been born on, and you'd expected to live out your life and die on. Unlike with the merchant vessel, Tallis had allowed you to explore some of the worlds that he visited - if it was safe for you to do so.

Before your mind could wander too far, Lord Tallis' name was called out and you walked over to the Apothecary, holding out the tiny Tallis in your cupped hands. You weren't sure if he could swim through the air in this form, nor if it was safe for him to use even that minor warp-based ability while shrunken down. "Here he is, Lord Apothecary." You murmur quietly.

Tallis waves sheepishly up at one of his older brothers, explaining the spell he'd been tinkering with, and what he'd intended for the spell to do. He wasn't sure what exactly had gone wrong, and had woken up to you hovering over him some amount of time after the spell had backlashed and knocked him out.

The apothecary sighed, shaking his head a little before responding "A spell of that magnitude should be fairly easy to reverse." He addresses you directly "Place him in the cleansing basin carefully. I will then begin to activate the runes of reversal and see how they affect him."

"Yes sir." You answer as you do as you're told, waiting and watching with baited breath. Most of the time reversing spells like this went well and the Thousand Son in question was able to return to their duties without issue. Sometimes attempting to reverse whatever they'd done to themselves brought on the awful and terrible Flesh-changing curse and the Thousand Son would either need to be killed as the accompanying madness would make him a danger to himself and everyone else around him... Or if the flesh-change curse was in the beginning stages, he would be put into stasis, in the hopes that one day a cure would be found and those brothers in stasis could be saved.

The Imperium of man worshipped no gods. It was, in fact, banned and strictly enforced on the ship that you'd been born and raised on. Still, little rituals for good luck and good fortune were common amongst your fellow star-sailors. The desire to perform several of them as the blue light of the warp washed over Lord Tallis was nearly overwhelming, but you held fast, not wanting to potentially distract anyone. The warp-light intensified and you heard several alarms sound at once.

You were grabbed by one of the apprentice apothecaries as the light further intensified, his voice quiet but firm "You must come with me, something is going wrong in the cleansing basin, and we don't want to put you in danger. Once things have settled down, then you might be allowed to see him again."

Your heart sinks in worry, though you know better than to try to struggle against the might and strength of an Astartes. "I... yes, lord."

You wait what feels like several long eternities and was definitely at least hours - if not days, though it's hard to tell the time on a ship in eternal twilight - before First Captain Ahriman himself knocks on the door to the small but comfortable quarters you'd been assigned as Lord Tallis' personal serf. The expression on his face is somber and does not bode well. You bow deeply and murmur "Please come in, Lord Ahriman. How... How is Lord Tallis?"

The first captain looked at you for a long moment before answering "He has been put in stasis, due to showing signs of the flesh change. Were you aware that he'd been feeling poorly?"

Guilt and horror flash across your face and echo through your soul "No, I... I had no idea, Lord Ahriman." As a personal serf... As you had been a personal serf to a Thousand Son, part of your training involved learning the signs and symptoms of the Flesh Change... But as far as you knew, Lord Tallis hadn't been showing any of the signs or complaining of any of the internal symptoms of the curse-illness or whatever the fuck the Flesh Change was.

He looks at you carefully for several moments before nodding "Very well. While I would hope that the curse for the flesh change occurs in your lifetime, as it would mean that my brothers in stasis would be able to be freed of such a thing, and that any other brothers who begin to fall ill can be cured without being killed... I do not know how likely that is. Would you like to see his stasis pod, and say goodbye?"

You nod, tears blurring your vision "Yes please, lord Ahriman." You manage out, voice shaking and cracking with the grief and sorrow you were feeling.

First Captain Ahriman is kind enough to shorten his stride as you stumble behind him, sniffling and trying to keep the tears out of your eyes, leading you to where Lord Tallis had been put into stasis. He was his proper size, but his scales were a duller shade, and you could see the bubbling ripples of something beneath his skin, trying to escape and frozen by the force of the stasis field.

Your knees buckled and you shamelessly threw yourself at the edge of the forcefield, arms wrapping around it as best as you could, weeping, mumbling endless apologies for not realizing that he was suffering, wishing that he would be able to be saved. You choke back the words that you love him - which you do. How could you not have fallen in love with such a talented, charismatic, charming individual? Of course you had. You weren't sure if Astartes could feel such things, and you'd... Tended to his personal needs when he asked with zeal and enthusiasm. But you hadn't known if he felt the same - and you'd been happy to serve at his side, in his shadow, for the rest of your life. It wasn't fair that he was gone now. He wasn't supposed to be gone first. Astartes were near-immortal unless they were killed. He was supposed to have out-lived you by centuries.

First captain Ahriman quietly excuses himself from the room, allowing you to grieve and wail in private. You weep and cling to his stasis chamber until you fall unconscious, heartbroken.

#flesh change 40k #ahzek ahriman #reader insert #thousand sons #adeptus astartes #my writing #Celestial Seas AU #thousand sons x reader #oc: tallis

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