The Emperor's Valkyrie

[Elva]

The sky above Joak was bright and harsh as it baked the badlands in its glow. The brownish yellow grit and sand stretched forever through gulleys and mountain ranges, only interrupted by the occasional plantlife. Everything about the world was dead; its bustling cities, almost abandoned; its rich trade now gone. Yet, deep within its depths, there lurked something old and mysterious, something buried for centuries. Something that an Inquisitor wanted, and that was being compromised.

The dirt cracked beneath the boot of a tall stauesque figure drabbed in a large great coat. The traveler was most certainly not a native. She had pale skin and short dusty blonde hair with steel blue eyes and carried an exotic lasrifle over her shoulder whose clip was located within the stock. With her coat dun up, the stranger continued on, seemingly enjoying the scenery and looking up ahead towards her destination.

She was not alone however, there beside her there where two others. An even taller, giant as some would say, a preacher in a pale green coat carrying a holy book. His hair was cut close to his neck and grew up spiked on the top of hs head. He wore a pair of circular galsses and looked as if he hadn't shaved his square jaw in days.

The second, who was dwarfed by both of his companions, looked to be an arbite. His gray armour seemed to be made of stone rather than metal, while his fatigues where trimed with dark blue and yellow in a proper naval fashion. Even bulkier than the large preacher and the lithe traveler, he was a good six foot and was a bull of a man, though he carried himself oddly civilized for one of such build along with a shotgun and his helmet.

The three walked on throughout the heat and the sun soaked landscape. The air was distorted with the heat. The arbite wiped the sweat from his brow with his wrist, as his hands where full, and looked at the woman.

"How can you bloody stand it?" he asked.

She looked at him and smiled cockily. "Bloody hell Church, you know I hate the frikin cold. This is a utopian climate for me."

The enforcer shook his head in disbelief as he had done a thousand times before.

"The spirit of thae Emperor keeps us all strong." The Preacher began. "It should not matter thae quest or t'is hardships; aye, as holy servants of the Imperium we must accomplish our task"

"Dammit Anderson I didn't ask for a bloody sermon." Church said frustrated.

"Calm on Church, don't tell me you've lost faith?" The woman seemed to be enjoying the friendly harassment. The arbite, however wasn't.

"Goddammit Captain. I'm bloody melting here and all you can do is piss me off."

She turned her head to him and showed her teeth in a grin, a small sharp canine showed. "Church, calm down, I'm only joking. If it makes you feel better we can gang up on Father Anderson next time."

"I'ed be strongly apposed to such measures."

"Can't we just move on." Jack Church had given up on the subject.
The trio continued for a few more minutes before they came to a cliff overlooking an old mining strip.

A figure was crouched in the brush overlooking. She had jet black short hair and seemed to be aware of everything around her. The two men stopped a few yards behind and waited as their leader crouched and kneeled beside the other.

"Report." the taller one commanded.

The scout turned and adjusted her glasses as she pointed down to the pit. "There are a few guards, either bandits or scavengers. They look well armed though I doubt they know how to use them."

The blonde haired woman patted her underling on the back. "Good job Kaede. See to it that they don't get a  chance to practice."

Kaede adjusted her glasses again and took out an archeotech pistol and jumped off of the edge to a lower section and continued on undetected.

The Captain turned to speak to her subordinates but a loud revving noise drowned out her first syllabols. "They have veichle support, don't they?" she asked unimpressed. But before anyone could answer she barked her orders. "Church, with me behind those boulders! Anderson, give Kaede some chaos to work with!"

"Aye!" The preacher drew his sword adorned with purity seals and followed the path of the Dark Runner. Church put on his helmet and dove behind a pair of red boulders and pumped his shot gun as the woman joined him and unslung her rifle.

"How's this for a-" she was cut off as a blast of stubber fire pattered the top of their location.

"Dammit they've got a 'eavy stub." she cursed.

Church looked around but his helmet was grazed by a shell and he jolted back."[EXCOMMUNICATE]!" he cursed through the filter.

"Report."

"Two buggies, one has a stubber, the other I couldn't make out."

"Right, wait till they come close and-" The immediate area heated up drastically as fire charred their cover and the flames barely missed them.

It stopped and they heard a loud clunk as the crew attempted to refill the pormethian tanks. The lionlike woman gritted her teeth and clutched her weapon.

"We have a few seconds." Church said. "And I think they're getting the hang of it."

"Right, on three, we split and move into the-" A sweep of flames incinerated the brush on either side, leaving the leap to safety without cover.

Church took another peek over, this time avoiding the stubber blasts.

"Duck!" he yelled and brought his commander down on the ground just in time to avoid a large flame.

His arm was cast aside and the lioness stood up with her rifle and began firing a full auto blast at the crews.

"[EXCOMMUNICATE] OFF!!" she yelled. A las round pierced the flamer buggy's driver and relaoder as well as the Stubber gunner.

Church pulled her down behind the boulder. She panted for a second.

"Better?" he asked.

She regained her composure rather quickly. "Ya," she huffed. "Right," she said, getting down to buisniness. "They've got one shot left with the flamer and can't manouver or fire the stubber." She exchanged her spare clip. "If we wait for them to use it, you can get the one driver."

"What about the other?" Church asked.

She grinned characteristically and opened her coat to show the handle of a pistol. "You just leave that to 'ol reliable."

"Right." Church pumped his weapon and the two ducked as the final flame charred the surrounding earth.

The lioness dropped her rifle against the boulder and got up as Church did the same and they ran towards the two survivors.

The driver had his auto pistol out and was half unbuckled as he fired two blasts at Church. They bounced off his armour and one grazed part of his exposed arm. Church responded with two blasts which tore apart the raider in a bloody spectacle.

The Captain ran forwards as the newly promoted gunner attempted to jump down and flee. She reached into her coat and pulled out a Plasma pistol and squeezed the trigger.

A large energy bolt with the heat of a sun hit the buggy causing it to explode in a bright blast which consumed the runner and knocked the assailant on the ground.

Church propped himself up from the hood of the buggy and looked at the destruction.

'Leave it to a Guard Officer to cause such chaos.' He thought to himself as he took off his helmet and survived the damage.

His commander got up as well and walked off the worst of it as she went to grab her beloved rifle.

Anderson and Kaede came from the road to the pit with a prisoner gripped in Anderson's arm.

"Th'ae area is secure for the most holy o' deeds."

The lioness slung her rifle and walked up and looked the bandit in the face.

"Is the tomb intact?" she asked.

He squirmed but Anderson tightened his grip.

"Y...es." he choked.

"Ahh good." she smiled and gave Kaede the order to fall in. "Church, take the bastard out and shoot him, he's been corrupted be Xenoid influence."

Anderson pushed the captive on the ground and Church grabbed him by the scruff of his neck.

"Who the hell is that bitch?" he asked.

"That," Church said. "Is Elva Bullen. Pray to the Emperor that he will forgive you for your sins. For you just got in the way of the his Valkyrie."