Escape
‘Stay back!’ the skitarii commander rasped, as Quigox lurched forward, her skin darkening to a mottled green. The guard opened fire and the adept was sent flying back into the cogitators, her body erupting into a pack of snickering Nurglings.
‘Everybody out,’ Jeremias barked as the skitarii picked off the putrid pests, Corlak joining in the fight. Zelia didn’t run at first. She was rooted to the spot, watching in horror as the creatures swarmed over the skitarii commander. He tried to brush them off, but they wriggled through gaps in his armour, mouldy teeth snapping.
Mekki grabbed Zelia, pulling her towards the exit, Talen running alongside. They turned when they were safely over the threshold. The commander was convulsing where he stood, green sludge seeping between the joints of his armour. And then he raised his weapon and fired, the blast almost hitting Corlak.
‘He’s been infected!’ Jeremias shouted, ducking as another shot zapped over his head. ‘Destroy him!’
The skitarii turned on their commander, their blue bolts hitting him square in the chest. The guard’s body ruptured beneath his armour, and another wave of Nurglings spilled out. Talen yelled a warning as they scampered up the inquisitor’s coat, but it was too late. A Nurgling sank its teeth into his shoulder. Jeremias didn’t even scream, but slammed his back against the wall, the Nurglings popping on impact.
There was a scream as the second skitarius succumbed to the sniggering creatures.
‘Retreat,’ Jeremias commanded, squashing Nurglings beneath his boots as he raced for the door. The last skitarius hesitated before turning his rifle on his comrade and putting the howling guard out of his misery. The armour clattered to the floor, disgorging even more slime-bags.
‘Run!’ Jeremias bellowed as he and the remaining skitarius barrelled out of the wrecked room. The children didn’t need any encouragement. They tore down the corridor, a tsunami of Nurglings washing after them.
‘How are there so many of them?’ Zelia asked.
‘Trust me, that’s the least of our worries,’ Talen replied as he ran a few steps ahead. ‘The entire planet is swarming with those things and no one seems to know why.’ They reached a junction, the corridor branching into two. ‘Which way do we go?’
‘Down here,’ Mekki told him, holding his weak arm as they raced towards the lifter doors. Talen thumbed the buttons and the doors opened, the children scrambling in as Corlak and the skitarius attempted to keep the Nurglings at bay.
‘Come on!’ Talen said as the skitarius waited for the last moment before backing into the waiting lift, arc rifle blazing.
The doors closed, squishing at least three Nurglings who were trying to follow him through.
‘Do you think they will follow us down?’ Mekki asked.
There was a thud from above, followed by another and another.
‘Does that answer your question?’ Talen asked as the telltale scratching started up again above their heads.
‘What is your designation, skitarius?’ Jeremias asked the guard.
‘Kraxx-Eighty-Seven, sir,’ came the response.
‘Interesting name,’ Talen commented.
The guard’s goggles swung around to face him. ‘I was the eighty-seventh member of my batch.’
‘Your what?’
‘Skitarii are mass-produced,’ Mekki explained, staring up at the rusty scratch marks on the ceiling. ‘Constructed, not born.’
‘Of course they are,’ said Talen. ‘Well, I’m sorry about your friends.’
‘They died in service,’ came the cold reply.
‘They were infected,’ Jeremias said. ‘There’s a difference.’
‘Talking of which,’ Talen asked, looking pointedly at the inquisitor’s shoulder.
Jeremias glared at him. ‘It is nothing.’
‘You were bitten!’
Jeremias checked his beamer’s powercell. ‘My coat contains leech-spheres.’
‘I don’t know what they are,’ Talen admitted.
‘Tiny orbs that absorb harmful energies,’ Eighty-Seven responded, peering curiously at Jeremias. ‘They are sewn into skitarii robes. I wasn’t aware that the Inquisition also utilised them.’
‘We choose not to broadcast our secrets,’ Jeremias said, fixing the skitarius with a commanding stare. ‘You will come with us, Kraxx-Eighty-Seven. We need your protection.’
The guard nodded.
‘Where are we going?’ Zelia asked.
‘Back to Nalos’s chambers,’ the inquisitor replied. ‘We will wait there until Amity responds.’
‘What about Nalos?’ Talen asked.
‘We have a skitarius,’ Jeremias told him. ‘And I am feeling stronger by the minute. We will be able to deal with a single zombie.’
‘If we can even make it to his workshop. It’s madness out there, remember.’
With a ping, the doors opened on a bay filled with armoured vehicles. Zelia braced herself, but no Nurglings came running. They were too busy trying to chew through the ceiling.
‘Everyone out,’ Jeremias commanded, leading them towards a bulky transporter. It was no battle tank, but it looked robust enough. It was also locked, but Corlak made short work of the bolts and the doors slid open, revealing benches across the armoured walls.
Behind them, Nurglings poured out of the lifter.
‘They don’t give up, do they?’ Talen said, leaping into the vehicle.
‘Neither do we,’ Jeremias said, herding the children on board as Eighty-Seven picked off the scampering horrors before jumping in through the door. The inquisitor slammed it shut as Talen clambered behind the steering wheel, much to Corlak’s disgust.
‘I will drive the vehicle,’ the servo-skull insisted.
‘Not this time,’ Talen said, looking for the ignition.
Mekki leant over and pressed a big red button, the engine rumbling into life.
‘You sure you can handle this thing?’ Zelia said, sitting on the bench and strapping on a harness.
‘There’s only one way to find out,’ Talen said, slamming down on the accelerator.