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littlemisscancer · 6 years ago

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“Save the last dance for me.”

a little story about a sororitas and an inquisitor. definitely. bent some lore a little bit for the sake of the setting, but it was fun to write.

The room was lively and full of merriment, as the crew aboard the Crocuta Invicta welcomed their guests to the main observatory.

Captains, Inquisitorial representatives, and Imperial officials of all sorts coming from across the fleet for this particular celebration. One of these Inquisitors had brought aboard his contingent of Adeptus Sororitas, with gowns that flattered his own formal attire.

The various attendees mingled together, glasses of alcoholic beverages being passed around via Servitors. Part of the observation deck had been cleared for an improvised ballroom floor, the distant stars shining upon mirrors set around the room to create ‘disco’ lighting. Quite a few of the couples and working partners had already made their way onto the dance floor, swaying and skipping to the joyous tunes being played by a very eager band of Imperial Acolytes.

Not all those attending were that happy, however. There was an Arch Magos, the head honcho Explorator of this fleet in attendance. He was sulking near the punch bowl, quite by himself. No one dared approach the hulking mechanical monstrosity, for fear of starting an intergalactic incident. Not even the Skitarii typically accompanying him were around. They had all been assigned other duties by him personally.

An Inquisitor, freshly Graduated from Inquisition School of the Arts™ leaned in towards a Celestine, remarking in a low tone, “He sure seems to be the life of the party. Any idea who pissed on his timepiece?”

The Sister merely laughed, her eyes sliding over to the miserable mechanicus, responding in kind, “Oh, he’s always like that I’ve heard. Never one to so much as give his peers the time of day normally, much less at a gathering like this.”

The Celestine elbowed a nearby Sister, nearly causing her to spill her undrunk champagne. She scowled, and readjusted a small brooch that adorned her dark black hair. Her superior continued to laugh, and tried to include her.

“Have you ever seen something as pathetic as an Arch Magos that’s on it’s last limb? Truly, Sister Anna, it’s an abhorrent sight.”

The blonde haired Celestine lifted her chin, head being held with a beaming pride.

“It is a disgrace to this Imperium, and a creature that cannot hope to be held as highly in regard as us.”

The Inquisitor laughed, and gently took the Celestine by the elbow to the dancefloor.

Sister Anna furrowed her brows, before shaking her head. Her grip on her champagne glass had tightened considerably, a small metal ring around her left ring finger glinting in the funky lights. It was shaped similar to that of a horseshoe, or the insignia of the Ultramarines. The sign of Omega… But it was more like a horseshoe.

She looked up, to find the Arch Magos staring directly at her. Although his face was now metal and motionless, his augmented eyes looked very sad. A pang hit her heart like a boltround, and she quickly looked away.

The brooch upon her head began to slide off her hair once more, and she narrowly avoided having it fall in her drink. Sister Anna was starting to feel slightly miffed, and stopped short of ripping it out of her hair. Confound Inquisitor Jarris, and his pining for them all to wear these wretched things! She’d rather wear her veil to show she was a Hospitaller, not some fancy hair clip that said the same thing!

Another pang to her heart. She didn’t even deserve to wear that veil, and she knew it. It felt like the ring was burning into her hand, but she dared not remove it.

The agitated Sororitas began to walk quickly towards the dance floor, handing her glass to a genuinely surprised Tech Priest. They let out a brief high-pitched squeak of thanks before she marched past.

The Inquisitor, called Jarris was chatting cheerily with his fellows of their various Ordos. But he wasn’t so enthralled as to not see Sister Anna walking straight towards him, so it didn’t catch him off guard when she placed his left arm in a death-grip.

“I… I wish to dance with you, Inquisitor Jarris.”

He blinked in surprise at that, however. The grizzled Inquisitor knew that this one was a handful, Hospitaller or not. But he thought it best to humor her outburst. Besides, she was definitely not the worst looking Sororitas in his retinue.

Arm in arm, the pair began to walk to the dance floor. Once the music kicked in once more, they faced one another, hand in hand, eyes locked, with barely any room between them.

It was a calming waltz, from some composer hailing Holy Terra itself. It was an old piece, but it was a piece that Sister Anna knew very well. She had listened to it often while aboard…

It was as if her heart was being twisted into a vice.

Anna gasped, and nearly tripped over Jarris’ quick footsteps. He caught her as the music dipped, faces inches apart from one another. His eyes, bright green with flecks of gold stared into her darker hazel ones. But it wasn’t just his gaze that she felt. She felt something, no, someone else’s eyes boring into her.

It was as if the God Emperor himself was glaring at her.

The music ended and there was much applause, Inquisitor Jarris gently lifting her back up onto her feet. Anna noticed that one of his hands was placed on her lower back, but she made no move to distance herself. She looked around, having this sinking feeling she knew precisely who had been looking at her. But no matter where her eyes lay or how far her neck craned, she didn’t see anyone. Not so much as an awkward Servitor had been looking at them.

Perhaps it was her overwrought nerves, she reasoned internally.

Inquisitor Jarris in the meantime had been guiding her back towards his small circle of friends, and she barely heard one of them remark on their well-executed performance. Jarris laughed, wincing a little bit.

“Well, Hospitaller Anna had a future in dancing herself before being tragically moved to my ship.”

He gave her hip a light pinch, and she perked up immediately. A smile flashed and she giggled politely, quietly admitting her thanks.

The smile, however bright it may have looked to the other members of the Inquisition, was quite fake. It felt wrong, all of it did. She shouldn’t be there.

Anna looked up at Jarris with her tired eyes, leaning into his broad shoulder much like a wife would her husband.

“Excuse me, but I am quite dehydrated after all that dancing. Will you be alright with me gone?”

A few chuckles from an Ordo Xenos Inquisitor, a hearty old fellow with a big red mustache.

Jarris rolled his eyes at him, before looking down admiringly at Anna, “I do believe I will find a way. Go one now, can’t have you dying off the battlefield now can we?”

She gave a much meeker smile, before not so gently removing herself from his embrace and making a beeline for an exit. He wouldn’t be able to spot her sneaking out through all these people, she mused.

And so, the Hospitaller slipped out of the main observatory, and found herself in one of the much smaller rooms adjacent.

The entire ceiling was comprised of glass, and for a moment she thought she had stepped out into the vacuum of space. Nebulaes floated off in the distance, adding wonderful colors to the forever night sky.

To think that beyond her vision, countless battles were being won or lost across the entire Imperium made her feel… Very, very small.

It took her a moment to realize she had walked to the very edge, hands pressed up on the glass as she looked up and around.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” A familiar voice said, sounding as if the owner of such a voice was right behind her. Anna did not move, for she was not fazed in the least. He always had a habit of sneaking up on her, anyway. At that moment she also realized that something had placed its hands on her shoulders.

“It’s rare to see it completely still like this outside of a painting.” She replied, now looking directly above her head.

All she could see were red robes, the shine of a medallion, and the beginning of a metal encased face.

“Yes, just as it is rare for me to find you alone.”

Arch Magos Explorator Velut Equo looked down at her, the augmented eyes dimmed to mimic a blink. They were blue, an ever curious and never changing bright blue. They were merely lights, artificial. Hers were the true beauty.

“You normally like these sorts of things, I thought. What’s changed?”

The Sister sighed, and she turned her gaze back to the stars.

“Do not play coy with me, Velut. You know why tonight was different.”

All she received as a response was a mechanical ‘hmm’ noise, and a tightening grip on her shoulders. It quickly relaxed however, but she still flinched.

“You were upset by me merely hanging about those of my… Status. You truly are terrible at being subtle about it, too.”

Again, no response apart from the sound of him breathing. They stared together in silence, the faint sound of music being heard through the thick walls. The Arch Magos began to sway slightly as he listened, gently tugging on her shoulders as he did so.

He finally let out a mechanical sigh, and lowered his head. His face, or what would constitute as one was buried in her hair.

“In all my years, and after all I have seen, you must understand that this kind of emotional attachment is… New to me, as much as it is to you. I do not look it, but I am still… Human.”

Anna didn’t say anything, instead looking up once more at him. Even though his face couldn’t move anymore, he still looked sad. Like a lost puppy that thought it had known the way, but was sorely mistaken.

“Oh, a… And you, er… You dropped something.” Velut let go of her very suddenly, backing up a step or two. She turned around, confused until she saw what he was holding. It was her brooch - Bearing the insignia of the Hospitallers. A pained smile crossed her face, as she graciously accepted it.

“It is not a good idea to lose important trinkets such as this, you know.” He eyed her very carefully, his forever unamused expression illuminated by his eerily lit eyes. She knew he wasn’t talking about the brooch, and she also knew he didn’t mean the veil she had left behind.

The ring felt like it had just been removed from a forge on Nocturne, and she twisted it nervously. Velut’s eyes brightened as she did so, and knelt down in front of her. His hands, cold and metal, gently clasped her own. One of the metal fingers rubbed against the ring, a faded out set of markings coming back into the light.

It had been inscribed in binary, that short summer ago. A quiet evening, stealing away to the barracks of the Cadian infantry. Then, with the help of his Guardsman acquaintances, a short get-away to one of the nearby lakes.

Tears welled up in her eyes, as she suddenly embraced Velut. He was only slightly surprised, gently putting his arms around her. Her body shook as she sobbed, and he murmured words of comfort she could barely understand.

Her eyes moved to the galaxy surrounding them, the twinkling lights creating a strange silhouette of the starstruck couple. Funny that.

“Anna Ciocanu, will you do me the honors of… A dance?” Velut asked shyly, looking down at her.

The Sister looked up at him, the tears having left streaks down her pale cheeks. She nodded shakily, smiling.

“Yes, it would be an honor and a privilege to dance with you… My dear.”

If he could have smiled, she was sure he would have. But she knew that she had somehow messed up, as he didn’t perk up nearly as much as she thought he would.

Odd.

Velut took lead, gently guiding her across the floor. The humming of the engine mingled with the distant music, creating a strange and erratic melody. The pair did not mind, as Velut moved off-beat regardless. He watched in silence as Sister Anna danced alongside him, keeping in step with his less gracious ones. Her tired face seemed to brighten with each beat, as if she was finally becoming… Comfortable.

The Arch Magos had only seen her expression like that once before, and in snippets as he would find her whilst in the midst of his work. If it took him around the fleet, at least.

Soon the music stopped, and the distant sound of applause could be heard as the pair bowed before one another.

Velut rose last, and rather stiffly at that. His breathing had become more ragged, but only now that she was not distracted did poor Anna notice. She stepped towards him until there was no space between them, reaching up to touch his face. He bent down so she could grasp onto the tubes that allowed him to breathe, her hands gently caressing the intricate carvings that made his face.

“When will I get to see you again?” She whispered, her smile beginning to fade. The realization that they would be separated again was dawning on her, as she came back to reality.

The old mechanical man looked away from her, staring out into space. His shoulders sagged, and the mechadendrites milling beneath his robes clacked in anxiety.

“I’m… I’m not sure. But I will tell you this.”

He sank down to her eye-level, robes swathing around her as he did so. His hands were on her shoulders as he pulled her close.

“You will join me and never have to worry about this again. It will be soon, I promise you that.” A mechadendrite snaked out and caressed her cheek, wiping away at the tears that began to reform.

“I just need a little time. Then you can be my wife without fear.”

He brought his left hand and placed it in her right, the light catching a similar ring to her own. The medallion around his neck jangled as he moved - The symbol of the Mechanicus, and his own Forge World glistening. A permanent reminder, as if his appearance wasn’t enough, that the two of them would never truly be one.

Anna smiled tearfully, and gently placed a kiss against his mask. Velut’s eyes dimmed completely, as his head craned downwards.

“I will wait for you, as I always have Velut. For I am yours, and you are mine. I will be your wife, faithful as always.”

Her eyes locked with his, as they flared to life once more. He stared at her in silence for a few seconds, his artificial eyes narrowing.

“And I will be faithful in return.” He stated, monotone voice wavering. Albeit what he said earlier was true, she was more prone to human flaws than he was. This evening proved that in his mind. She was painfully aware, but her expression didn’t change.

The eyes gave away her fear, though. The way they darted off to the side towards the main Observatory told him all he needed to know.

He did not say anything.

Instead he gave her a reassuring wheeze, and squeezed her shoulder as he stood up. Instead, he waved her off, telling her he did not mind it when she danced with others. Instead he hung back, claiming to not like the noise.

Instead he stood there and watched the love of his life walk away with what felt like would be the last time.

Instead he saw the door close with a hiss, as the room sealed off. Instead he stayed completely still, not even moving to look back at the starry void behind him.

Instead, he just stood there and waited.

Completely alone.

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