Stukov chuckled in response to the 'Tannan Suffering' he preferred. Sure, it was an acquired taste, but if anything was going to keep you awake and alert, it was that. Plus, better than the recaff that he had to rely on most of the time, and given how unnervingly nice this place was, he suspected he could afford an indulgence as mild as Tanna. The others were quick to make their own requests, and making jokes at his choice aside, he shrugged when even Aviza had her laugh as well. Smile's rather unusual offhand comment got a sideways glance from the Armsman before returning focus to what was going on in responding to the teasing on his choice of drink. "What can I say? Even I have my indulgences. Better than galley recaff, I'll tell you that much."

Cogs was going about her rather, well, unusual mutterings and chatter. He'd dealt with those of a mechanical inclination before, mind, but this one was a special kind of touched, even among her own kind. Not that he had the lack of intelligence to say that out loud or to her face without damn good reason, mind, but it was still a consideration he made all the same. Though the mention of other members got a cocked eyebrow of curiosity aimed at Aviza as she went about her work. "Who else did I miss while I was off on other assignments? Sounds like an even merrier band of misfits than usual, to be frank."

Andromedai finally chimed in after sufficiently stuffing her face with food, Stukov glancing over as he listened. After lunch, it was tour time, then picking out lodging and downtime to do whatever prior to heading out onto the first mission proper. The usual warning of 'enjoy your time while you can, for tomorrow you may be dead' line of thinking. There was always time for a quick nap or a quick break, whether those of her status believed so or not. Sneaking in micro naps and breaths of, usually figurative, fresh air was important in not going insane. Or getting killed, but those two tended to go hand in hand. "Should I avoid asking about how long it took you to assemble this little slice of decadence here, Celeste, given how jarringly different this is from even typical Inquisitorial fare?"

"Thank you very much. An act this fine deserves to not fall under the Prank Victim designation~, so thank you Celestian." Medaira replied with a smile when the woman confirmed she'd make her a coffee after all. In the group considering so far the only non prank victim was their own glorious leader, who admittedly could use some additional modified servo heads like her own to fly about and creep people out. Now the second Celestian also made it into the no prank list via virtue of lucky coffee break." And I've got to compliment you for the fine brewing skills." She mentioned in the end as her servo head flew away to hover around Stukov for some reason.

With the drink in place in a rather theme fitting cup, she took a good sip from it before starting to eat her portion of the food in well mannered small bites. Now the quesiton may rise about why Medaira was using good polite almost noble like manners? Well how can you prank the hell out of people if they only can take you as a brutish no mannered savage!? Sometimes the best pranks were best laid slow upon unsuspecting victims. Besides knowing how to handle proper table manners was always a plus.

She gave a nod of acknowledgement and a hum when they were told the arrangements. With a slow sipping of her coffe, she thought about it. So they'd get their room and a few hours to probably rest and prepare for the upcoming mission." Ohh, that's fine just enough of time to rest a bit and unpack, decorate and clean. I assume we can make... small rearrangements to the interiors of the room within reason?" She let out a happy chuckle as her servo head flew over with a chirpy sound making energetic rounds above her.

Needless to say there were a few possible upgrades that could be put in the room without her even seeing it. Bunkbeds for one... one could always use a bunkbead. Same with extra towels. However she most importantly needed to set up her own workshop corner. Without one how was she supposed to do her duties? Granted she could always make use of the place where the ship landed since there were bound to be ample tools avaible in that area, however that was public space and she couldn't exactly proceed with classified pranking operations there. But she supposed she should use that space for the usual repair and maintenance duties for her own and the group's gear. She had to maintain good security on some things she could make or use.' Bloody conservatives!'.

Medaira wondered if people here wanted to customize their weapons... or attach stuff to them. It was quite the rage in some circles, though usually just with adding more holy seals and sanctified nick nacks. Admittedly sanctified nick nacks made for great sharpnell." Maybe I should find somebody to bless a crate of screws, nuts and bolts... yeah... hmmm" She mumbled and went into thinking expression, ignoring Stukov's possible question as of how this place came to be. She liked it here anyways. It was different and in a good way. They could use more of these places, would be excellent place to hide tech. Probably the reason Necrons liked to chill in tombs. She then proceeded to down the rest of her coffe in a weirdly polite manner before standing up and walking to the side. She had plans to make while the others were finishing their meal! Time was of the essense! Sanctified shrapnel bombs were of utmost priority!

"Is this actually the real stuff?"

Adrianne pondered privately as she eyed the crystal glass as it was handed to her, swishing the deep crimson content around a bit and watching it with a tone of suspicion. Then she lifted it up to her lips, and took a sip.

"Blood of the gods, it's real!"

Her eyes widened as she looked at the genuine Synod Ministra vintage. She had expected some cheap off brand or replica, but not the real thing!

"Thank you, Aviza. How did you even acquire this?" Adrianne said with a bright smile while eying the Celestian, giving her an approving nod as she took another sip of the vintage; relishing the taste of it.

"It is just perfect, isn't it?"

The sickly sweet voice entered into the back of her mind mid sip. Adrianne felt the exquisite taste of the wine increase to ever new heights flavor. She paused suddenly; a look of alarm flashing across her eyes before she gently placed the glass back down.

"Almost too much... " She muttered quietly to herself, suddenly feeling apprehensive about taking another sip from the tasteful wine. Her gaze drifted around the room for a moment, impaling a few strips of bacon and munching down on them. It felt glorious, but parts of Adrianne suspected that the credit for the flavor did not lie entirely with the Celestian's cooking. She kept on eating, but at a slower pace; enjoying the meal though continually intrigued by its supreme taste. That was until the strange tech-priestess got up, and Adrianne did likewise; not wanting to lose sight of the erratic half-machine-thing lest she not find her before their mission started!

"Tech priestess. Do you have a moment?" Adrianne interrupted, approaching Medaira and intercepting her path.
"I have been having some problems with my plasma pistol recently. Could you take a look a t it?"

She'd ask, gesturing towards her belted holster at the side of her hip before reaching down and unsheathing an ornamental plasma pistol. It was of an old design, with a gunmetal and brass tint. Its normally plain appearance had been decorated with numerous arcane glyphs and runes, accompanied by figures forming geometric lines; and spine of the weapon shone with a haunting violet light as opposed to the regular blue.

"It has been making some unusually high-pitched whining noises whenever I've primed it, and smoke was coming out of one of the cables the last time I fired it. Do you think you could repair it for me?"

Titus quietly nodded in acknowledgement as he suppressed a frown at the Planetary Governor's response. Though he certainly understood the reasoning behind the man’s response, the young scribe was still disheartened over not having the chance to look for (and deal with) any potential information leaks in the Governor’s estate. Then, before Titus could think of another question; the meeting abruptly ended, and the entirety of the retinue was ushered out as quickly as they had been brought in, passing a small group of Skitarii rangers as they left. Titus eyed them with slight confusion as he passed them by, That's odd... the boy thought to himself as his eyes scanned the group of Mechanicus soldiers, Why would Skitarii be sent to meet with the Planetary Governor rather than a proper tech-priest?

After giving the fleeting thought a few moments of consideration, I'm sure there's good reason for it. I'm no expert on Mechanicus protocol after all.

---

Titus kept to himself during the ride over to the Inquisitorial safehouse. His mind preoccupied with soaking up the breathtaking sights the world had in store; even the low altitude storm the Typhon had flown through possessed a majesty all it’s own. Unfortunately for Titus, this moment of quiet appreciation for the world’s awe-inspiring beauty was promptly cut short by the blaring alarm of the ship’s proximity sensors. The boy’s heart leapt into his throat as he frantically braced for an impact that never came to pass. Even as seamless as the flight continued to be (despite the frequent proximity warnings) Titus didn’t dare drop his guard for a moment, for fear they might strike something at any moment. The moment he stepped from the ship onto the landing pad, the young scribe breathed a heavy sigh of relief, ”I’m certainly glad that’s over...” he muttered to himself as his nerves steadied. Exiting the decontamination room doors, Titus found himself rather pleasantly surprised to find the first room of the safehouse was far different from what he’d pictured. Rather than something like a bunker ripped straight from the imperial guard and painted with silver trim, this was more akin to the abode of a noble. Even more surprising, was that another Inquisition agent had not only been waiting there for the retinue’s arrival-- but cooked them a meal as well!

”It’s a pleasure to meet you Celestian Aviza, and thank you so much for this incredible meal!” Titus thanked the sister enthusiastically with a polite bow as she brought them to the kitchen. His mouth watered in anticipation as he held the sandwich in his hands. The pain of going months on end of living off naught but generic Naval rations was washed away in a single bite.

The emperor has truly blessed this one with skills befitting of a devoted servant!

Wasting no time, Titus dug into his meal with a vengeance-- even going so far as initially forgetting to order a drink. About four bites in, the young scribe looked up from his plate, casually looking about the room as if expecting something, only for his brow to furrow quizzically. His eyes fell upon the tech priestess as he slowly chewed the bite he’d just taken. Was she toying with him? She did; after all, label him as ‘Prank Victim 3’. Before he could swallow and ask her himself, a certain remark about ‘Stoic Tannan suffering’ caused him to nearly choke on his food as he laughed. A fellow Scribe (who happened to be Vostroyan) back on the ship had gotten him to try it once, and it had taken Titus days to get that horrific taste out of his mouth. Needless to say, Titus was not keen on giving the heinous beverage a second try.

”If you wouldn’t mind Celestian Aviza, I too would like a cup of coffee.” the Scribe requested in a hoarse voice as he cleared his throat.

Upon receiving his drink, Titus a long whiff of the steam rising from the cup. It had clearly been brewed from freshly ground beans, and ones of the highest quality at that. It was no wonder the Tech Priestess had ordered this rather than a cup of lubricant and motor oil, the aroma alone proved the pristine quality of this brew! Titus took a slow sip of his coffee, relishing the fact he for once got to drink coffee that wasn't made from the powdered shit they provided back on the ship. Even the ship he’d served upon before he’d been transferred over to The Empherian allowed very few opportunities to be graced with coffee this good. In fact… Titus likely hadn’t had a cup like this since he first joined the Inquisition itself.

A realization suddenly clicked inside Titus’ head as a touched smile spread across his face.

Seems that crazy old bastard still has some faith in me after all …

Celestian Andromedai thought on the question posed by Stukov for a moment before answering, The safe house has never been used by anyone other than the Inquisition, and has only existed for a few very short years. I had spent many hours trying to convince my superiors to allow such a strange but welcoming structure to be built. They felt it was a waste of resources but I insisted that having the safe house the way it is currently would not only help improve upon moral, but also prove as a strategic position if the planet was ever invaded. After all of this and a few threats placed around in the right place, the safe house was constructed. I can assure you that very few have seen this structure, and even less know about it, like the planetary governor. As for the modifications to the rooms, please do not do such a thing Medaira. Unless they really are just small changes that I can remove once this is over." Andromedai took the last bite out of her sandwich before moving off of the seat she had been occupying, "Thank you for the lunch Aviza, I will return shortly after I get everyone situated within their rooms." Aviza would nod her head, cleaning up after the retinue, in silence.

"Everyone, follow me and I will show you the full layout of the safe house, from there you can pick your own rooms and do as you please as I stated earlier." Celestian Andromedai would not wait for her retinue before walking, she would merely start moving in the directions she wanted everyone else to follow her in, and would expect the others to do so. "As I am sure most of you have assumed by now, the safe house is mostly underground. There are a few parts that are not and we will cover those when the time comes. You have already seen the landing pad, the rear entry way, the kitchen, and somewhat the living room. Celestian Andromedai would stop as they once more entered the large living room with sunk in couch and large metal coffee table in the middle of it. "This is the living room, there is plenty of space for all of us to sit among the sunken couch. The rest should be obvious, like the large screen amongst the wall to my left. I am unsure what shows upon pleasure planets, but I am sure that none of it would fall under what we would consider tasteful entertainment."

Andromedai would pause for a moment before walking once more, down a large hallway made out of smoothed stone, on the walls were cylinder shaped lights that gave off a soft, warm light that flooded said hallway. On either side of the hallways walls were pieces of art, some from the bizarre, to beautiful, to some that made no sense at all. "All of the art you see on the walls around you, was collected by me, in one way or another. The group would then enter into another large room, though this one had three hallways connected to it. In the middle was a massive statue of Saint Celestine, holding a torch into the sky above her, with golden light coming down and painting the figure in its vibrant rays. The hallways on my right leads to the medical area, the hallway to my left leads to the armory and engineering bay. The path in front of us, leads deer into the safe house. Follow me, the medical bay is our first destination.

As the retinue walked, Andromedai kept at a good pace, wanting to make time for all they had to do and how much was still left to show. Once they reached two large metal doors that automatically slid open for them, another Sister awaited them, though this one was a Surgeon of the Sisters Hospitaller. "Sister Myra, this is the retinue. The Surgeon would turn and nod her head silently, "An honor, if any of you ever need anything, please let me know. I must return to work amongst this specimen, please excuse me." She spoke in a much softer, soothing sounding voice than any of the retinue had heard. The woman then turned back to some sort of advanced medical equipment, her hands quickly resuming the delicate task she was focused upon. "The engineering bay has modification stations and other equipment set up for you to use as you see fit, just be weary around all of it so you do not end up injured by mishandling any of it.

Once they had left the medical bay, Andromedai would point in the direction of the engineering bay, that she had just spoke about before motioning for the squad to follow her. The hallway in front of us leads to the living quarters, here you will find many vacant rooms for you to choose from." Andromedai would walk into yet another large room lined with secure doors, she would move to one and open it to show what was inside. "I do hope it is to your liking and not to over the top to cause any discomfort." The room presented was quite large and spacey, it held the same look as the rest of the house, though less intrusive upon the eye. It had a large screen like the living room, though not as large. Along side this was a full size bed of exquisite design and comfort, followed by a few large dressers made out of metal and wood, a desk with a working terminal and data system built into it, a coffee table with some sort of plant placed upon the middle of it, and many other items one would expect to find in such a room. Andromedai would walk over to a door within said room and open it to show the bathroom, set up just like the rest of the house with its sleek and ultra-modern look, though there was a walk in shower in one corner lined in the same glowing stones that made the countertop in the kitchen.

Without saying anything, Andromedai would leave the room and shut the door behind her once everyone had left. "Through the hallway to my left, is the armory, you may find all sorts of weapons and equipment there, feel free to take anything you feel you will need. On my right though, is the path that leads outside to something less conventional, please follow me." The Sister of Battle would walk down the hallway and through a set of metal doors that opened for her, there was apparently a vehicle bay, fulling stationed and ready. Within it, all sorts of vehicles from the Imperium of man could be found, even something that looked a lot like a Baneblade. I saved one last thing for all of us though, please follow me." Said Andromedai as the group left the vehicle bay once more, and returned to the junction. Now approaching the final hallway, the squad would move down it and arrived at yet another set of large metal doors, though these had a glass panel on them, showing what laid outside of the safe house.

"This more for looks, but please feel free to use as you see fit. From where they stood, they would be able to see a large outdoor pool, overlooking the ocean in the not so far distance. On one side there was an outdoor bar that could be used, next to some sort of large cooking platform and metal table that shared the same look as the rest of the safe house. On the other side was a large open garden that could be used for whatever someone wanted, and a path that lead down to the beach below. "I assure you, that the security systems at this safe house will keep this one weakness greatly protected from anyone trying to intrude upon us." There would be a short pause as Andromedai stepped out into the area around the pool, before speaking once more. "You are all dismissed to do as you see fit for three hours, once that time is up I will let you all know and we are to meet once more in the living room.

Andromedai would then depart, returning to Aviza to have a private talk with the woman, that no one would hear or know about.

Stukov took the good natured ribbing over his preferred brand of suffering, as they called it, in stride. Let them lack the taste for something a bit finer in life. Bold thoughts for an armsman, of course, but he wasn't going to argue the fact the drink was strong at the best of times. Brewed poorly, and one could all but strip paint with it. Fortunately it was brewed well, and wouldn't take the lining of his throat with it as he drank. Having finished his food, he casually nursed and took his time while the discussion on this place, in response to his own question, was made. A stronghold should the planet be assaulted, from within or without, and of course a rare monument to the activites and glories, indirect as it may be, of Celeste's accomplishments. He'd not say that out loud, of course, but he finished his drink in a timely manner, sighing quietly in a rare content. Smiles and Cogs got up to discuss Throne knows what, and he glanced at the Kid. "You've been quiet, Kid. Relatively speaking, what's rattling in that head of yours?"

The Kid was an unknown, literally and figuratively. Sure he carried fancy kit, but that wasn't any promise that he knew how to use it. Cogs might have written him off as another Prank Victim, and Throne knows what Smiles thought, he didn't pretend to, but he didn't like unknowns. No sense being a prick about it though, might as well offer him a chance to speak up. He'd spent enough fights being the odd one out, a mad bastard with a shotgun surrounded by faceless Inquisitors, seasoned veterans, irate Bolter Bitches, obscenely powerful psykers, and that was just to name a few. Kid was probably going to need an eye kept on so he didn't get his head removed not so neatly from its neck. He'd rather know he can't rely on the Kid than have it come up as a rude shock, if he was lucky the Kid might be salvageable. Sure, he'd gotten a dressing down from Celeste, but he'd butted heads with her before as well. And now she was in charge. Such was life in the Imperium.

Celeste decided it was time for them to go on the grand tour now, and Stukov offered a nod to Sis as he stood up and made sure his kit was slung properly. Moving in step with Celeste, he quietly considered what she said as they moved. It reeked of Rogue Trader tastes, near as it was to his encounters to compare to. Moving down a corridor of artwork, of varying...interest, and he couldn't help but make an offhand remark, directed at no one in particular. "Long as you aren't keeping a corridor of statues, I won't have any comments to make..."

Smiles probably would remember that one, but Stukov didn't elaborate for anyone who didn't. Striding along into the medical wing, another Bolter Bitch was working the place. It wasn't surprising, mind, but he still was going to make a mental note of it. Drawing from old postings was smart, it ensured loyalty, doubly so beyond the whole Inquisitorial authority business. Still, given the fact she'd be the one stitching them up when the injuries began mounting, no sense being rude. Of course, not rude by Stukov's means was, well, still nicknames and offhand commentary. "Honor indeed, Sawbones. I'll try and keep the internal lacerations to a minimum after nasty brawls."

The tour continued, and Stukov made mental notes of each location. A swing by the armory would be in order, he wanted to grab a mono knife to serve as a last ditch backup weapon, do some digging to see if any other toys stuck out to him before heading for the engineering bay to do routine maintenance on his kit. The shotgun was going to be the quick one, and if the opportunity arose, he would have to see what Cogs could do to make it hit harder. He wasn't quite as, what was the word, twitchy over 'inventive' modifications. But that would have to wait, no doubt Smiles roped her into some madness or another. The last thing to be shown was a swimming pool, which was apparently just for show. He...didn't know how to swim, it wasn't something an armsman really needed to know. Sure, he could probably figure it out if it was swim or drown, but that wasn't something he was going to engage in for his own amusement. Booze served that well enough.

"We'll see how long that lasts, knowing our luck. Right, have fun you lot, I'm flagging a room for myself, doing an inventory of the armory, then going to put some elbow grease into my kit in engineering. Make sure its all shiny and good to go, you know where to find me." Stukov would first make his way to the Armory, true to his word, finding himself a mono knife to strap to his boot, buckling it in place and giving it a few experimental weighs and basic motions. It would do nicely for a 'Fuck me' moment. He then took some time to inventory the armory, doing a count of what was around and available just in case he was in a hurry coming through here at some point. Next was flagging the least gaudy room available, not that he suspected there was much difference, and then he was off to engineering. He'd find himself a bench to start field stripping and working on his shotgun, and over the next remaining two and change hours would be other weapons and such, chain-cutlass included. If anyone needed him, well, they knew where to find him by his own admissions.

Praise the Omnisiah! Medaira was smiling as she was pacing back and forth at one side of the room, tilting her head occasionally, making a thinking expression, mechadendrites twitching whenever she would suddenly resume moving. The techpriestess was in the process of the mythical brainstorming, a process so ancient and secret that about half the priesthood had forgotten it! Those were the hardline conservatives! The ones who had left the technology degrede and knowledge of crafting the great marvels of hte Omnisiah vanish into obscurity.

"Mm Yes~" She had a plan, now only needed the plans. Her thought process suddenly froze however as the psyker of all people came to her to ask for apparetnly a tune up or at least check up on her good old plasma pistol.

'This is new...' She thought, tilting her head innocently at the way taller woman, a servo head flying circles around them, taking photos and images for future refererences.' I usually have to PRY the things out of their twitching arms to give hte poor things a good maintenance and repair.' The tech priestess mused in her head, smiling innocently at the woman still, having fond memories of incapacitated fools who weren't taking good care of ther gear. Seems the woman earned herself some Don't Prank me points here! Good Medaira appreciated people who knew that their gear needed help! She'd ease up on the PSyker's pranks for a bit.' THUS IT'S BEEN DECIDED! Praise the OMNISIAH!' She giggled as she thought and nodded.

"I will, give it a tune up and see where the problem lies~ So is my duty~!" She practically sang with chirpy childish glee in her voice as her arms were brought forward to grasp the weapon. Her fingers twitched, face filled with glee and very wide grin, eyes lookeing at the plasma weapon like a starving man at food.

To her bad luck, the Celestian decided to bring them around for a last time and give them the free time to prepare. She prompty picked one of the rooms to leave what little luggage she carried on her and well she left her trusty Servo head to guard her base of pranking operations. The rest of the group were potential pranking rivals and enemies! She couldn't allow them free reign of her living space, thus she left it guarded." Come now, Psyker Friend! We've got plasma pistol to repair! We shall make use fo the tools that have been provided to us! Off the the Armory~!" Medaira proclaimed, removing the title of 'prank victim' from the woman for the time being, until the Don't Prank me Points are used up.

Medaira moved with glee as she rushed into the Armory with a wide childishly innocent grin on her face. WEAPONS! Sure she liked the vehicles, but weapons were good and she was to repair a misbehaving plasma pistol! Was it being possessed!? Was it... EVIL!? Maybe it was a prankster gun, that would explain everything as it's Machine Spirit was pranking it's user. She could understand such logic, but she had to confirm it wasn't dangerous to everybody involved first. Now that seh was in the Armory, she did a rare thing for techpriests and removed her hood, letting her gray hair fall free as she looked with her big expecting eyes at the tall psyker, arms reaching out expectingly, waiting for the weapon to be handed over like it was a precious treasure." I will make it work~! BETTER~!" She chirped happily, already wondering why stop at violet glow when you could have it glow in a rainbow colors! Raibow colors were better! Not as much as gold, but gold color glow pasma weapons, she felt were best suited to be developped and delivered to Terra!

"As long as you aren't keeping a corridor of statues, I won't have any comments to make..."

"Some memories are best left buried, Stukov... " Adrianne muttered quietly, but not without a sly smile as she continued to look ahead; following along for the rest of the tour.

And she was impressed by what she saw. The rest of the safehouse was as ostentatious and as alien as she would have come to expect from it. Just what had driven the otherwise pious sister to desgin it in such a manner eluded the psyker, a fact she could not entirely wrap her head around.

Walking through the hallway of paintings, she found herself gazing each way; taking in the strange, almost bizarre sights.

They lacked the usual majestic splendor that was so common with most gothic paintings, with symbols and geometric patterns that often made no sense; whilst other pictures were more designed to assault the senses with a riot of colors and impressions.

"What even is this... "

Adrianne privately thought.

"I think they look kind of nice. The artists had quite some creative souls."

A familiar voice sang throughout the back of her head. But Adrianne would not be the only one to hear it. Nearby, Titus would also be able to hear the voice. It would move through his mind like a brief glimpse, touching the edges of his mind like a razor wire coated with narcotic drugs; both revolting and delightful. For a brief moment he was in the presence of some hungering entity; and then it was gone as soon as it had appeared.

Adrianne noticed nothing out of the sorts. She continued the rest of the trip, noting the vast size of the armory. Just how the battle sister was ever going to crew all these weapons and vehicles she did not know. Did they have a contingent of battle sisters assigned as their strike force in case of emergency, perhaps? Either way, Adrianne found herself dragged along with the barely-sane tech priestess shortly afterwards.

" I will make it work~! BETTER~!"

"Uhm... I don't need it to be better. Just to work like normal, okay?" Adrianne said, raising her fingers in a gesture as if it could somehow calm the ranting tech-priestess. Somehow. She knew the dangers of tampering with plasma weaponry. Whilst this was by all accounts a tech-priest before her; part of the cult mechanicum; she knew it didn't make her immune to mistakes.
"Could you like... just make it work, and save any tech-heresy for the rest of the weapons we have in the armory? Pretty please.... ?"

Cole, unlike most of his companions, stayed quiet throughout the time they arrived at the safehouse. Barely saying a word or interacting with Andromedai or anyone else. Almost like he was not even there, and this suited him. Cole was not a man of many words, choosing to speak when he wanted to, and he did not feel the need. While this would surely make him seem distant to Andromedai and his companions. This is just who he is and Cole doubts that anyone could change that. Still, he is bound to make some form of chat with his fellows sooner or later.

Then it came time for Andromedai to give them a tour of the safehouse. Cole nodded and got up from his chair. Following her without making a sound and silently watched. Noting that the interior seemed to him like something that would be on a Free Trader ship. Not saying that is bad but looked like a nice change of pace from what he is used to. The art though that lined the walls was interesting. He was not a fan of art but found some that caught his eye. Though some of it well.. off is not the right word. Bizarre was the right word, and he cocked his head to the side while looking at one. When Andromedai said that it was artwork that she had collected. Cole could only think that Andromedai had some... peculiar tastes in that case.

The next stop was the medical wing. Cole found it reassuring that someone would be fixing up their wounds if harm came to them. He could not help to remember the last doc that worked on him after a particularly fierce engagement with Orks. Nearly sawed his arm off even though his arm was still fixable. Cole shuttered at the thought of convincing her not to saw off his arm. Sure he could get a new prosthetic and continue fighting unfazed, but he was not ready to give up on his flesh. Hopefully, this doc is not as saw-happy, and Cole will not have any problems with her.

Now they came to the armory and the other rooms. Everything seemed up to standard for him, and when it came to the last room. A pool with a bar and a garden. Cole was amazed by this, a pool with a bar? This is a welcome surprise though he was not sure that he would even dive into the pool. The bar probably when it came down to it and the garden. It could be a good place to relax in silence even though he would be more comfortable if it were not outside the safehouse. The point of a safehouse is to hide people, and having outdoor rooms seemed unwise. Even with Andromedai assured that the security system would still be effective here. However, it is not his place to judge Andromedai for this. She is his boss and an Inquisitor at that. Better to trust in her judgment, and if she thinks that this is safe, then it is safe.

Once the tour was over and Andromedai freed them to do whatever for three hours before being recalled to the living room. Cole headed straight to the armory. He needed to perform maintenance for his weapons for some time and now seem like the perfect time to do it. Finding that he was not alone and Stukov was in the armory doing his own business. Cole gave a friendly nod before finding a spare bench and putting down his lasgun. Here Cole would spend his time performing maintenance and making sure that his weapons worked well. Along with checking out what else the armory had. If Stukov wished to speak to Cole at all, he would not object to talking and, if not. Then that would suit Cole fine.

"This is Celestian Andromedai, all members of the retinue, please report to the main living room for mission assignment and departure." Andromedai's voice would suddenly be heard over the safe houses internal com system when she had decided that they had received plenty of time to get settled into their new surroundings. Moving to the large screen that was placed upon the wall near the sunk in couches and coffee table, she would stand along side it and await for her retinue to arrive. Aviza, of all currently present inside of the safe house, would be the first to arrive. For the last three hours, she had taken her own leave and spent it inside of Andromedai's ship, looking over all of its systems to ensure it was ready for whatever laid ahead of them. "You called for the retinue?" asked Aviza, taking a seat on one of the large sunk in sectional couches before crossing her left leg over her right. "I did, yes, I will have a full brief of our mission once everyone arrives." Aviza nodded her head once in acknowledgement.

"You've been quiet, Kid. Relatively speaking, what's rattling in that head of yours?"

"Not much at the moment, just reflecting on some rather fond memories." Titus responded warmly to the voidsman, a cheery smile wide on his lips. The boy took another long sip of his coffee, "Say Stukov, you don't suppose this is to fatten us up before we're thrown to the wolves do you?" the scribe chuckled lightly at his own joke as he emptied his glass. From what Titus could tell, Stukov was the closest thing here to a 'normal' person among the retinue, and was likely the only one other than the Celestian herself that the young scribe would feel comfortable trusting. Overall, the rest of the facility seemed both well-equipped and lavish. Though the decorations were a bit over-the-top for Titus' tastes, it was certainly a welcome change to the drab uniformity of the voidship's many halls. "If I didn't know any better, I'd assume this was the residence of a rogue trader!" Titus quietly remarked to himself as the group entered a large corridor lined with strange artworks of exquisite quality. Despite the clear level of craftsmanship and artistry put into each work, some of these creations made the young scribe uneasy. They reminded him things best left forgotten and buried beneath the fog of time's passage and intentional repression.

"I think they look kind of nice. The artists had quite some creative souls."

For the briefest of moments, Titus heard a voice within his mind, its heinously sweet voice sending shivers of ecstasy down his spine. Yet as the sensation passed, the entity's hunger lingered a bit longer before fading into nothingness. The void left by the passing of these invasive sensations was promptly filled by Titus' own sense of overwhelming dread.

It had been months since he'd heard the whispers last. Disciplined management of his null collar was supposed to have negated them entirely. But even before the collar the whispers had never been this clear, this pronounced. Bile rose in his throat as the paranoia built, the walls seemingly closing in; every shadow a whisper of conspiracy-- something was here, and it was close. Cold sweat built on the boy's brow as he felt the world constricting around him. His head pivoted fearfully, franticly searching for where this abomination was hiding. Teeth grit, his heart pounded, his blood ran cold.

And then... Nothing.

The moment the retinue passed into the the room containing the statue of Saint Celestine, it was as if a colossal weight had been lifted from Titus's shoulders. Snapping back to reality, he immediately moved to adjust his collar, but stopping his hand midway to his neck. The last time he'd publicly adjusted his collar, Andromedai had scolded him heavily; and the last thing he wanted was to incur the sister's wrath atop this terrible omen. Rather, he opted to fidget with his sleeve instead; a hopeless attempt at distracting himself from his own fear. He payed little attention to the rest of the tour, his mind overtaken by the prospect of a malevolent entity having already invaded their foothold.

The moment the retinue was released to do as they pleased, the scribe opted to instead immediately retire to his room and lock the door behind him. When it was time to reconvene, Titus was the second of the retinue to arrive for the meeting. Whatever the young man had been doing; he now reeked of holy incense; his eyes red with exposure to the fumes. He took his place on one of the available couches, wordlessly staring at the floor as he awaited the meeting's start.

The armsman laughed at the question of whether or not they were being fattened up before being thrown to the wolves. Oh no, if they were being treated well before suicide, they'd have broken out the liquor. You didn't waste expensive food on grunts, liquor was cheap and the rank and file wouldn't know the good shit from what got them drunk, for the most part. Some regiments that came from jumped up nobility might know, but they were the relative minority, far as he was concerned. "We're fine Kid. It's when they break out the strong booze that you should start worrying. Good food? You'll be fine, hell, that's a reward if anything else."

Stukov had laughed, but he was honest in his words all the same. Kid needed an eye kept on, but at least he wasn't maladjusted or otherwise unable to work with others, he suspected whatever had caused that little dressing down that Celeste had given was, well, an anomaly rather than a standard. Well, he hoped that was the case at least, he would save his prayers for more dire straits. Another relative unknown, though a far more dependable one from profession alone, had offered him a nod when setting up to work on his kit. The armsman returned the nod politely, not having much to discuss given the fellow had been relatively silent during the tour and such leading up to now. Guard kit, looked like a pressure helmet was kept on hand, probably Guard that deployed from Valkyries and the like. Good men, those, finding folk who could stomach deploying like that were rare, and he'd have to keep half an eye on Icarus there to make sure he didn't end up dead too fast. "Good to see someone else cares about keeping their kit in order. Sound off if you need to borrow any tools I ain't using."

In due time, as he finished maintenance and fine tuning his kit, the alert came to report for duty. Stukov nodded to the Guardsman, assembling his kit and slinging it before making his way to the meeting point. The Kid had beat him here, that was surprising, while Celeste and Sis had also been here already. Those two were less surprising, mind, but he gave the Kid a joking tone as he remarked on him. "Beat me here Kid, good on you. Always was faster on voidships, though. Alright Celeste, once our merry band of misfits has formed up, what're we looking to do? Kick some doors down, hopefully nothing subtle, Throne willing. I don't think our skills lend themselves well to subtle."

“NonSENSE!” Medaira objected, looking with a horrified expression at the taller psycker woman.” That’s impossible! “ She objected with mock horror. Medaira was amused and while she looked horrified, her servo head took similar mock horror expression and sounds as it hovered next to her head.” Very well… You are unlucky… I fear we will not have enough time to perform proper repair and upgrades for tactical gear, including the research needed for such a deed.” Her tone did a complete 180 from her previous mock horror as she now sounded serious and calm.

“Regular maintenance and repair it will be. I will make this weapon perform to the best of it’s previous ability and maybe just a tad better.” She stated in confirmation and got to work. She still wanted to get rainbow plasma colors in here somewhere. She was going to get those working later. Maybe she’d make it cycle the colors instead of all at once. That seemed easier to manage and less likely to cause problem with her poor Psycker Companion! Eventually though they needed proper rainbow weaponry! Right after they finish the gold colored plasma project and send it to Terra.

~~~~~~~~~~~

“And like this the MACHINE SPIRIT shall prevail!” Medaira proclaimed as she walked down a corridor. She actually didn’t quite remember how she reached the topic of machine spirits, but they were called for the mission briefing and she had just finished the maintenance on the plasma weapon.” Ohh… remind me to do more work on the fine weapon later. There are UPGRADES to be made… also need to later replace some questionable parts that won’t be issue for now. I will put in new ones. New and improved! Also blessed! I will have every little separate part blessed separately! So no evil can ever take hold of this treasure!” She stated with a voice sounding just a touch too innocent to be quite alright given the subject matter.

“Ohh, arrived at last!” She chirped happily as she reached and entered the main living room.” Greetings to you all again, Our Glorious Leader, Her right hand, Victims of suspicious coincidental looking mishaps of minor harmless nature and of course our Psycker friend who got removed from the Prank Victim List temporary and should likely be arriving ANY MOMENT NOW!” She greeted them in turn all as she walked into the room, starting from their Head Celestian, her most rusted Aviza, the other … retinue members. With that she also tossed her hood back on to fix the proper look for the mechanicus and put on the rebreather device, assuming her usual look with most of her face hidden, leaving only her gleaming eyes to almost appear sparkling with mischief.

” Very well… You are unlucky… "

"I think I 'lucky' is more appropriate term."

Adrianne privately thought to herself as she watched the rambling half-toaster, doing her best to maintain a neutral expression and suppress the growing sense of unease she felt as she started to reconsider the wisdom of handing her venerable plasma pistol over to this particular tech priestess.

It was with some relief that Andromedai summoned them, and she joined Medaira on her trip back to the main living room.

Even though Adrianne knew little about just how such archaic plasma weapons actually functioned, she had still not allowed Medaira to be alone with her pistol while she was working on it - in hopes that through some supernatural sixth sense, she might sense any mischief, sabotage or unnecessary modification.

"There are UPGRADES to be made… also need to later replace some questionable parts that won’t be issue for now. I will put in new ones. New and improved! Also blessed! I will have every little separate part blessed separately! So no evil can ever take hold of this treasure!”

"Yeah, uhm... no? The weapon is working fine, thank you very much. I have gotten quite used to its settings and feel so far, I'd rather not change anything!" Adrianne replied as she accepted the plasma pistol; while trying to sound as cordial as she could; though she was finding herself more and more tempted to look for the tech-priestess's reset switch.

"Throne of Terra, I have dealt with warp entities more sensible than this one!"

Adrianne took a moment to look her plasma pisol over, listening for any growing whining sounds and gently moving a finger across the weapon to check for heat; before putting it back in its holster and closing it securely. Mostly to keep it out of sight and away from Medaira!

*

As they entered the living room, Adrianne was about to greet Andromedai when Medaira suddenly launched into another of her ramblings in front of the psyker. The psyker soon found herself becoming part of the background audience as she waited for Medaira to finish, tilting her head slightly at some of the statements.

" ... and of course our Psycker friend who got removed from the Prank Victim List temporary and should likely be arriving ANY MOMENT NOW!”

"You do realise that I am standing right behind you, don't you?" The taller psyker asked with a slight smirk, before stepping off to the side in the living room so as to reduce the risk of being hit by a sudden-flailing mechadendrite around the unstable priestess.

"Will do," was all he said to Stukov as Cole went back to work on his lasrifle. Carefully cleaning the rifle's integrated lamp pack. He liked Stukov even though he does not know much about him. Seems like a friendly sort of person, especially from his handling of the rookie Titus. Cole knows Stukov was in the navy before joining Andromedai's retinue. Other than that, not much else, partly because of his own silent nature. He did waste a good time to get to know Stukov while they were both in the armory. Such things tend to slip his mind when he is working on something. Still, there are bound to be more opportunities later. Then again, he does not know much about his fellows in the retinue. He might change that, or he might not. It depends really on how he feels, though with Medaira, he might keep his distance. Due to him most likely being on the prank victim list. Cole sighed at the thought, a tech-priestess with a knack for pranks. That is certainly a new one, and Cole guesses he will see if she ever pulls a prank on any of them.

A short time after Stukov, Cole was finished with the maintenance of his gear. He did one last weapon check, first his pistol, and then his rifle. Cole smiled, "Good," he said quietly to himself. Once satisfied with his work, Cole gathered his gear and departed the armory. Soon, he reached the living room and found that already everyone was there. Hmm, so he was the last one to reach the finish line. Not that he minds it. Just means that with him there. They can finally start the briefing and get this show on the road. Cole simply making a friendly nod towards everyone and took a seat on one of the couches. Then he turned to face Andromedai, "So what is the mission boss?

"I do believe everyone is now here?" said Aviza as she glanced around at the retinue who had now gathered in the main living room of the safe house. Andromedai nodded her head once in acknowledgement before raising her hand to silence everyone present, "If you would all turn your attention to the screen on my right." Celestian Andromedai would make a slight motion towards the screen, which suddenly turned on to show a section of the main city within the heart of Erathell. "This is the city of Dalenarth, we were here earlier when when visited Nickolai, the Planetary Governor within his personal office. Andromedai frowned slightly, remembering the overly pragmatic individual who had informed them of the Chaos situation within the Hyperion system. "As I have stated before, this world is part civilized and part pleasure planet. It is nearly impossible for us to move around in such a setting while remaining inconspicuous. I believe that if we attempt such, it could hinder our operations. So for the moment I will allow us to move freely around the city as we see fit without worry about being seen. Perhaps we could even draw the Chaos forces out of hiding and into the open." Andromedai would pause for a moment as the screen next to her adjusted to show the south eastern edge of the city, this area was much more open and appeared to be filled with large mansion like homes and other residential buildings one would expect in such a location.

"This is the main residential area of Dalenarth, besides living quarters, one can find Chapels dedicated to the God Emperor, stores to purchase needed supplies for anything one could want, and a large open park within the middle." Pointing with her right hand to a large archway of gothic Imperial Architecture that was the gateway into the residential living area, one could easily see a figure of a hulking golden eagle perched upon the top of it, with the creatures wings outstretched and posed in a way as if the avian form was swooping in to attack its pray. "This is the Aquila Arch, it is the entry way into the residential area of Dalenarth and an important location for our investigation for a number of reasons." The screen would adjust to show the archway from a first person view below it, before Celestian Andromedai would speak once more."The first reports of Chaos forces within the city came from this location, and the people who gathered at this location shortly after the report makes me quite interested in beginning here. I was given a list of those who attended this poorly timed gathering, and we shall be paying each of them a visit, shortly." Andromedai would then take a step forward, "This is where we will begin our investigation into the corruption of Chaos. Now, are there any questions that any of you would like to ask before we move out?"

Adrianne watched the presentation, and could not deny a sense of trepidation that she felt growing within her chest at the sound of it. And it was not just from the malicious presence creeping around at the corners of her mind. Sure, she always preferred pleasure planets. Even if it contained a problematic amount of snobs and pomps, it was at least safer and cleaner than other imperial planets. On average at least. The one exception would be when said planet was under the influence of chaos cults, when anything and everything on the planet could be turned against them.

"Now, are there any questions that any of you would like to ask before we move out?"

"Actually, there is... " Adrianne said, the psyker having found a comfortable seat in one of the leather bound chairs. Her lavender eyes shifted to the screen that Andromedai had been pointing at.
"You mentioned that it is unlikely that we will be unable to maintain stealth. Do we have some sort of quick strike or reaction force that we could summon should we encounter heavy resistance?"

Adrianne inquired, before raising a gloved finger and looking towards the rest of the retinue around them; the motion causing her snow white ponytail to shift behind her.

"By the way things sound, we could be walking into a hornet nest. Especially if we draw the chaotic forces out in the open. And I do not fully trust the local forces. If we get in over our heads or risk being overrun, I would like to have options other than the PDF to pull us out."

Stukov offered a nod to the rest of the group as they filed in to begin the briefing, and he turned back to focus on the briefing once it began proper. The longer the brief went along, the more trouble he expected this mission to be. Sure, it was probably their best approach since none of those present were exactly going to be, well, able to undertake quiet or subtle operations easily. Crossing his arms, he was about to speak up with Smiles beat him to it, asking if there was backup when it came to rapid response forces. A squad of stormtroopers on standby would be a huge relief should things go poorly, being able to have an escape option is always good.

"Took the words right out of my mouth, Smiles. Having an escape option in terms of backup would be extraordinarily useful. How much resistance are we expecting from these individuals that we're...paying visits to? Element of surprise should be on our side for the first few, but bad news is one of the fastest things in the galaxy. And for heretics? An inquisitorial retinue is some very bad news indeed." What would concern him would be that, should the first of those visited would already be ready for them, that would give away the fact that someone high up in the chain tipped them off that trouble was heading there way. Nothing that couldn't be sorted out with a shotgun, just need the right ammunition. Still, he was waiting to hear the word on any potential backup, as well as the targets in question and their readiness for intrusions.

Cole listened and watched intently to the briefing. As it went on, he had some concerns about the mission. While sure, he was used to dropping headfirst into danger literally and had to rely on himself or his squadmates. There was always had some support like Sentinel walkers or a Tauros vehicle to back him up during a mission. Emperor knows how many times those things had been helpful and even saved his life on one occasion. That he always knew who the enemy was, and in this case, it could be anyone, and that fact did not sit comfortably with him. Plus, without the chance to blend in with Chaos around. They may walk into trouble and get caught out in the open.

Cole was about to speak up when Adrianne and then Stukov spoke. He simply nodded; instead, it seems his companions beat him to the punch. It would be nice to have some reliable backup if things get dicey. Preferably some stormtroopers then the local PDF. They may be protecting the planet, but they generally lack the Imperial Guard's precision or skill. Probably never seen actual combat before either. It would be interesting to see what could Andromedai could muster up if not the PDF or stormtroopers. If there are going to be back up at all, which he hopes there would be. So Cole silently waited for Andromedai's response and what else his companions had to say.

„And just a moment later you’ve arrived, didn’t you?” Medaira replied to Adrianne with a cheeky grin and voice underneath the breather, but her eyes carried her smile quite clearly as she made her way inside proper, making sure to not wave her mechadendrites around… too much.

Now attention back to the task at hand a the mission briefing, important information was to be had! Yes Medaira did recall the personal office which she left in permanent temperature offset. That was a great prank in motion. The type that you knew will be uncomfortable, but not that annoying for anybody to do anything about. The victim might not even realize they are pranked! Most likely the poor sap would be just regulating manually his AC for a long while yet! Still half pleasure planet half urbanized one was a weird mix! How glorious must the juggling between nature and industry be. Certainly many would would benefit even without a pleasure world status. If for nothing else, but to keep the populace more content. Living with less respiratory complications would likely improve the average morale! This is why she had the breather unit! Suddenly she snapped her attention back on track, she was getting off… track...road… rails?’ Focus~!’ She looked back at the celestian.

Listening the rest of the briefing she frowned. A display of chaos on such a public location? Must be pretty brave… maybe stupid or both! Maybe the corruption is far deeper seeded and this display was just caused by stupidity of new overconfident members! Will she get the chance to say that the wife or the butler did it?” I’ve got a question. There MUST be cameras at a location such as that no? Have those been disabled? As for those who were there, are all of them present in the city at latest reports or have some vanished mysteriously in the interim?” Medaira asked, making mental notes.

She gazed upon Prank Vict… Stukov and Psyker friend Adrianne for a moment.” I would endeavor to establish contact with the local Mechanicus presence to judge potential for corruption and reinforcements from them. Should they be cleared for our needs, we could expect relevant Skitarii squads to be capable of deployment in limited numbers as this is not a Forgeworld.” Medaira quipped.” As for another question, aside this safe house, are there other discreet hideout locations we can use in the events of emergencies~?”