40K Dark Heresy: The Danse Macabre

Raj Ahten · Post by **Raj Ahten** » 2008-02-25 11:02pm

As Lazarus kept up a watch in case things decided to take a sudden turn towards Korne worship, he couldn't help but think about the situation.

That bastard Verum is loving it, all this crazy shit. This ain't where I'd thought I'd be though; in a hive negotiating a hit for a bunch of gangers so I've got a place to sleep tonight. And in the Emperor's service to boot. So far it beats being shelled at least.

RIPP_n_WIPE · Post by **RIPP_n_WIPE** » 2008-02-26 12:35pm

Vehrec wrote:"Enough you two. We can negotiate later, after we've finished this job." Gelt looked at Grim with a shrug and then made an announcement. "We'll be moving out as soon as Diver gets back. Do you want him to watch, or should we send him back as soon as we get there?" Diver might complicate things, if he saw the psykers doing any Witch work. Those two should be kept as secret as possible for as long as they could manage it. Some people might react badly, and others would spread rumors that would draw attention to them.

Speaking to Gelt in a quiet tone "I don' know what typpa 'ive you's cum frum. But a cupla' warp 'eads ain't noffin'. D'ese 'ivers prolly seen worsen' dat livin' down 'ere. They'd mighty useful in a foight"

Walking over to Diver Octavius begins to chat up their scout. "Oi, Diver, 'ow's it mate? Names Druggo. I was wundrin', how you Grimlochs get such clean wata' this deep in the 'ive? Where I's frum we 'ave to steal tank o' the shite from the uppas. 'Ow you blokes do it? I'da given' me left leg for sumffin' like that back 'ome."

Hotfoot · Post by **Hotfoot** » 2008-02-27 09:53pm

Diver reappeared at ground level, a mottled cloak covering his frame. His rifle still in hand, he looked at the group through hard features. "Right then," he muttered as he moved up to Havelock, clearly ignoring the rest of the team. "Tell yer mates t'follow and shut the hell up. Especially that stunted Ogryn y'got," he motioned to Octavius. "We're gona go in as quiet as this lot can, and if he makes our position 'cause his senseless yabberin' lets them Balimeks get wiff of us 'fore we get where we're goin', I'll shoot him first."

Diver motioned for the team to follow him as he headed off in a direction off the route the team had come in on. "Come on, ain't got all day fer this. Sooner we're in and out, the better."

Raj Ahten · Post by **Raj Ahten** » 2008-02-27 10:06pm

As The team moved out, Lazarus was unhappy, which was pretty much his normal state off being.

Why the fuck is this guy leading the assault, and planning it?

Normally in the Guard whenever a local guide had been used on patrols, someone would be detailed to keep an eye on the guide and shoot him immediatly in case of an ambush. Lazarus had apreciated the utility of the tactic, even though he had a general distaste for such things.

From his position in the middle of the patrol Lazarus subvocalized into his comm,
"We just going to do what this joker says? He could be leading us into an ambush for fuck's sake. Lets not let him get ahead of us, ever. I don't want to be left in a kill zone while this asshole gets away."

Lazarus took out the Lasgun and tucked it up against his shoulder.

Block · Post by **Block** » 2008-02-27 10:29pm

Verum fell into step two paces behind the scout, and unslung his shotgun, holding it in a relaxed, but ready position. Moving as quietly as he could he took in the surroundings, looking for any possible ambush sites.

SylasGaunt · Post by **SylasGaunt** » 2008-02-27 10:57pm

Havelock nodded and looked at the rest.

"Alright quiet down we're getting onto their turf."

What he subvocalized a moment later though as he drew his autopistol was sure to let Lazarus know he didn't trust their guide farther than he could throw him.

"If he is he'll be the first one I shoot. I've spent too much time with Hive gangers to trust them that easily."

His eyes darted about, probing the darkness for signs of a trap all while keeping an eye on Diver.

Feil · Post by **Feil** » 2008-02-28 12:00am

Cyrine got her autogun from Lazarus, made sure it was ready, and held it in ready position as the team advanced. She, too, stayed wary for signs of trouble.

Academia Nut · Post by **Academia Nut** » 2008-02-28 12:30am

Quietly taking out his long weapons as they advanced, by the time Havelock told them to be quiet he had his lasgun in hand with the bayonet attached and his shotgun and sword at the ready on his person rather than tucked away in his duffle bag where they would do him no good.

He attempted to be as quietly as he could, although he knew that he probably sounded like a lumbering grox. Wasn't his fault, he wasn't trained for stealth, although at least he knew to keep his mouth shut. Fortunately this was a Hive, it never got real silent here, not like the deserts back home...

A dark part of him wondered if the two loudmouths would end up catching a bullet down here. Even if it didn't kill them, might teach them to shut the frak up. He quickly pushed those thoughts aside, it would only make the already shaky team dynamic they had worse. Still, he had built up a great deal of the Emperor's Own Wrath in the past few hours and he hoped to find out these Balimecks had indeed been the ones shooting at his comrades, or better yet that they were heretics. He felt the need to smash something.

RIPP_n_WIPE · Post by **RIPP_n_WIPE** » 2008-02-28 07:14am

Octavius took out his shot gun and kept it at the ready, his pistol at his side. He waited for the signal from the group before the shooting got started.

Imperial Overlord · Post by **Imperial Overlord** » 2008-02-28 03:08pm

Varnius hung back. He wasn't keen on doing the bidding of duplicitous gang scum, but on the other hand these slime had already gotten in a fire fight with comrades and it was probably best that they send them to the Throne for judgment while the situation remained favorable.

DPDarkPrimus · Post by **DPDarkPrimus** » 2008-02-28 09:10pm

Xerxes brought up the rear of the party, lasgun out, making sure no one came up from behind and surprised them.

Vehrec · Post by **Vehrec** » 2008-02-28 10:08pm

All right, it was petty and small of him. But it was getting harder and harder to ignore the fact that his fellow Arbites was acting like a complete ogryn now that someone had come out and said it. He was starting to wish he could distance himself from Octavius more. However, he was stuck with the Emperor Botherer now, and he was going to suffer through it no matter what it took. Even if it drove him back to the rotgut before the day was out.

Moving up behind Diver he whispered in a low voice. "Mind telling us a bit about this place before we knock the doors down and go in with las and bullets flying? Like how many doors there are and how many Balimeks there might be in there?"

Hotfoot · Post by **Hotfoot** » 2008-03-05 04:18pm

Diver grinned as he lead the group through the dark, secret places of the underhive. As Serghar spoke, he just chuckled. "Fair question. I'll admit, I've been looking forward to breaking the Balimeks apart for years now. Bastards kept running up until recently. They had bases so far down we could never really get to 'em with any real sort of attack. Lately though, they took advantage that the law got thinned out. Moved up, kicked out a minor gang, and came together," He stopped the group, looked around, then started to climb down a ladder, going deeper into the hive. When he reached the bottom, he waited for Serghar before continuing.

"As for numbers, I put their entire gang at at least fifty gangers and juves. Most would be gone hunting now, but I don't know how many scavvies they got. 'Least a dozen, I'd bet, but I never got that good of a count. We'll get a good idea of what their place looks like on the way, don't worry."

DPDarkPrimus · Post by **DPDarkPrimus** » 2008-03-05 05:11pm

Hearing those numbers, Xerxes mutters a short prayer to the Emperor.

Things are never easy, are they? he thinks to himself.

Raj Ahten · Post by **Raj Ahten** » 2008-03-05 05:18pm

Fifty of these ganger assholes? By the Emperor! We should have stolen a fucking Chimera for this shit.

Lazarus was realy wondering what type of heavy toys these Balimeks might have, but the way the guide was talking it sounded like they would have a chance to scope it out for themselves.

Seeing that the other team members were keeping a very sharp eye indeed on Diver, Lazarus concentrated on navigating the hive and looking out for ambushes.

SylasGaunt · Post by **SylasGaunt** » 2008-03-05 05:27pm

Havelock shook his head.

"The Emperor Protects.. we'll just have to hope we finish this up before their friends come back."

His voice was quiet, kept low by the need for noise discipline.

Block · Post by **Block** » 2008-03-05 05:41pm

Verum, noting the others reactions, grinned. It looked like he might just be given a chance to show what he could really do.

RIPP_n_WIPE · Post by **RIPP_n_WIPE** » 2008-03-05 06:51pm

Fifty? Octavius though Fair odds. Hopefully these bastards will be every bit as foolish as the Sodomites.

"Oi Diver. 'A many shooters do they 'ave? Any 'eavy stuff?"

Academia Nut · Post by **Academia Nut** » 2008-03-05 07:52pm

"As they say, it's not the size of the grox in the fight, but the size of the fight in the grox. How is their morale? Their leadership? Are they likely to hold if they encounter heavy fighting, or will they break and be swept away if we hit them hard? Numbers mean nothing if you don't hold," Quintos asks while double checking his ammo load-out. They would need to make their shots count for this one.

Hawkwings · Post by **Hawkwings** » 2008-03-05 08:06pm

Fifty gangers was a large number to take on all at once, but Diver had said that there would be a lot of them out and about doing their business. Camillia guessed that there might be twenty actually in their base, which was definitely a manageable number. After all, they weren't expecting an attack, and she was confident that the guardsmen and arbites were much better trained than any hive gangers around here.

The only issue was the mutants. Who knew what they were and what they could do? Especially if they were psykers too. Camillia resolved to pay careful attention to the warp currents around the Balimek base.

Camillia stayed silent and followed the group as they approached their destination.

Brother-Captain Gaius · Post by **Brother-Captain Gaius** » 2008-03-05 08:09pm

As Zakary shuffles along, he adds to the conversation in a low voice.

"I hate to be pessimistic, but isn't, ah, assuming your enemy has a disadvantage and planning around that rather, um, foolish? While I believe this whole thing to be a fool's errand, I'd rather see it succeed than not, so I suggest we consider the enemy to be well-disciplined and well-armed as we make our plans."

Hotfoot · Post by **Hotfoot** » 2008-03-09 05:45pm

Diver shrugged, "Like I said, things have been different lately. Used to be they'd run if one of them got a scratch, and they didn't have much in the way of weapons, but now, well, just be ready for a scrap. Most of them should be out looking for what lot bloodied their boys up, so if we hurry in and out, we shouldn't have to worry about it too much. Just be sure to kill anyone that shoots at us. Far as anything else, we'll talk more once we get there."

The trail through the underhive was well off of the beaten path. Strange noises echoed through the cavernous route, sounds that did not sound human or mechanical. Lighting was sporadic, dark stretches of nearly pure black sometimes. Finally, Diver stopped the group and looked through a hole in the tunnel. He motioned for everyone to be quiet. "Right, we're almost there. Through this hole you'll be able to see their base. I count maybe half a dozen on patrol right now, but I can't see all the angles. They've got some barricades set up, so there's some cover, but they've got some high ground."

Diver stepped aside and let others take a look at the view from the hole. Through the hole, the Balimek base was clear to see, though base was a generous term. A dome was at the center of the base, surrounded by various ramshackle structures and barricades. A few elevated positions with mounts for heavy guns were currently empty, but below were several gangers on patrol. They carried long guns, but the distance made it difficult to tell what sorts. A few of the guards were gathered together off on one side of the base.

Raj Ahten · Post by **Raj Ahten** » 2008-03-09 08:07pm

Longuns eh? Fuck. Here's hoping they can't shoot worth a damn.

Lazarus didn't like gunfights. Especially against foes who outnumbered him, had the same or better weapons, or both. A Guardsman had to make do however.

Hopefully we'll sit here awhile and see what these gangers patrols are like. Who knows, some of them might go to sleep or something. I hope we don't plan on just rushing outa this hole all at once or some shit.

Lazarus said a quick prayer and checked over his lasgun, and waited to see what the leadership decided.

Feil · Post by **Feil** » 2008-03-09 09:29pm

Cyrine leaned towards Gelt. "If we can attack from above, it should cut off most of their cover, right? And if they have any grenades in there..." she shrugged.

Block · Post by **Block** » 2008-03-10 05:20pm

"Perhaps taking one alive would be a good idea? Might be able to find out a bit more about why they're feeling so bold lately. As for the rest, from above sounds good, we can use the nests to lay down supressive fire and we can work in close with the shotguns and blades. Maybe we could make use of Varnius and Lady Camillia's talents as well." Verum shrugged, and smiled.