Chapter Text
“Cursed creature… DIE!”
"Your name?"
She slowly blinked from the bright light of the lamp right above her. Tears streamed down her cheeks, it was unclear whether it was from this light, or the dull pain all over the body.
"Can you hear me, girl?", spoke the elderly voice a little softer.
"Where are my parents?.."
"Who are your parents?"
The girl closed her eyes. No.. she knew where, of course. Unless their bodies had already been recovered and packed for burial in the family catacombs.
"Valsiren…"
"Alright, Valsiren…", nodded the medicae, sitting beside her cot, and looking at the girl with an intense studying glance. "You are stationed in one of the Officio Medicae local departments, your condition has been assessed as stable". he paused. Then he pulled out an infopad, possibly seeking more data on the patient.
Valsiren turned her head to the side, focusing gaze on the ugly man. A downright xenomorph! He clearly did not consider appearance a priority factor. Or perhaps the imminent aging cruelly dried him up for any further rejuvenating procedures.
She wrinkled her nose a bit, feeling a jab at wrists and tried to look at what was there. Now fully awake, she was able to examine the ward. The room was dimly lit. She could hear a faint crackling of electricity, the low and the soft beep of medical equipment. Infusion bags at the bedside. The room was filled with the smell of disinfectants, iodine, candle wax and… something unidentifiably strange.
Valsiren looked at a holo-screen measuring her pulse, as she turned her head to the other side.
"Ah!.. so that's who you are... hmm... ", he coughed a little, tapping at the infopad again. "Well, Valsiren, I must prepare you for further transportation.."
"To Schola?.."
The old man glanced with astonishment.
"Merciful throne, child... How come you are so sure?"
"My parents are dead. Relatives won't take me in.. I'm alone now."
The medicae paused for a moment, then only sighed.
"It is only logical that a young lady such as yourself could come to the conclusion. However, no one wishes to send you to Schola. Your curator is coming soon. Now, be on your best behaviour, will you?"
The old man left before she could ask more.
***
"I felt no fear", I concluded.
Was it a smile, I wonder… He smiled.
"Your turn now. You promised to tell me about your sacrifice, right? A story for a story."
"I did. But, to be honest, there was none. Compared to you..", he paused. "I was always alone."
That made me tone it down a bit.
“I was always alone.”
"Petty larceny at farmers markets. During one of the raids, a couple of my accomplices were beheaded on the spot, as a preventive measure", he spoke slowly, calmly and horribly serene. "I was a lucky bastard. The youngest of them all, but stronger in body. They threw me into a cage with a few other boys. Like an animal. But I promised myself that I wouldn't let go of my life so easily."
"They set us down in a rain-soaked forest, by a small lake hidden in its depth. I clearly remember that day. Because never after I saw such pristine water. Not man-made", he gestured, raising his hand, and moving it slowly.
"How poetic."
He bared his teeth in a grimace. Laughing Astartes... Their laugh tears your heart to shreds. It never warms one.