HisRigHan Chpt 5

==His Right Hand - Chapter 5 -==
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===Final return to the lost world===
Uninhabited star system, 1 jump from Turbline3127
They had traveled in the unmarked expanse of the Inner Sphere for 4 months. The Philadelphia would be the first JumpShip to go into the Turbline system. The past decade had lead up to this Deback thought. Much had happened since. Freta and Deback had married three years after Corden had been decanted from his iron womb. They both had gone on to have two sons in total. Corden and Thomas. Corden was the feisty seven year old brat that would quote Blake to him all the time to justify his actions. He was a little stinker. Thomas on the other hand was a quiet contemplative five year old. Deback remembered the questions that he put forth of what it meant for his parents to be Manei Domini. He only needed to explain once. The kid had cried but understood why his parents would likely never return if the sign came.
They had been in the field doing Blake's work since. Many worlds freed from pirates and their equipment shunted into The Word's coffers. He had risen more in rank and was now called Phantom Adept Tau Deback. With the news of the "Turbline KF drive", Zaphkiel had recalled all expeditions back to the colonies.
So here he stood on the bridge of one of those artifacts he had captured. One jump away from Turbline. He floated in on the bridge waiting to give the command. The date on chronometer. June 6th, 3127. Almost sixty years since Corden left Terra and ended up stranded there. He had been one of the volunteers on the testing jumps. Faith put into Ramus' hands and his mathematical KF genius. The bridge captain gave him the word that everything was ready to go. Core was charged and the batteries too.
"Start the jump."
The jump sequence started down the ten minute operation. Klaxons came on and then reality shifted. Eternity seemed to go on. Blackness took over Debacks senses. Panic started to well up in him. This was not how the tests went. There was always light of some kind and some perception of it. This was something different. It was like an abyss had opened up on him and wanted to swallow him hole. Then reality slammed into him as he felt himself sensing the real world again. Quickly he looked himself over seeing if he had been shifted, shunted, or maimed. He was... INTACT!
Reports started to come in from the various DropShip and JumpShip personal that no one was injured. Systems showed in the green except for some slight shifts in armor shielding. A small price in a successful Turbline excursion. Deback motioned the communications station to send a HPG message from the newly installed unit to the adjacent system. There the warship Corinth would intercept the message of success and relay it amongst hidden protocols in the HPG network. They would stay there waiting for Deback to return and annihilate anyone else who wasn't the word if they entered the planetless system.
Scans showed only the primitive JumpShip wreck hovering where Deback remembered it being. No other data came in about traveling DropShip. Deback went to the radio and opened a channel.
"This is Phantom Adept Tau Deback of Turbline, Right Hand of the Iron Father. I have returned and Blake's blessing is upon you! No more despair, no more want of hoping, no more suffering and waiting!. Your breatheren are here and the night shall be alight!"
He waited ten minutes then an hour. No response came. The system appeared dead of any electronic activity. Deback was starting to get worried. A lot could have happened in ten years. Night haunts could have repopulated. Nobility or even the riders might seized power again. Technological depredation. Too many things went thru his head. It was time to go.
The full compliment of DropShip released from the Philadelphia. They then burned for the planet at 1G all the while Deback went over the details of what could have happened in his mind. He was placed in charge of the expedition due to him being a native Turbline and his connection to Corden. Zaphkiel had made sure he had everything he could need. Full choirs of battle armor, Celestials, and aerospace support. Pocket warships for orbital support. He even had access to calling in the Warship Corinth if he ever had too. Deback saw no reason to have a warship in system for a reunion with his Turbline family, but the Word was paranoid for a reason and being one jump away from Terra certainly put them at peak paranoia.
The personal he had chosen included Adept Frela, Adept Anne, Ramus the guide, Zombie Riddick, and Wraith Artechek. Each brought their own perspectives and witnessing their return there. Adept Anne would be the most interesting one. She had softened her stance against the Word enough that she earned the title of Adept in the Word in order to work in it... Though she despised the past members of the Word, but could gruelingly accept working with the current ones of today. The ones that had done the jihad atrocities were long gone and dead now, but she held onto the perspective that the Word would do it again if it had too. And rightly so.
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===Greeted with ruins===
Five days later, five DropShip hovered over the planet. Two were of the Interdictor class. Armed with sub capital weapons, they would bombard the planet where it was needed to rid any infestations on other continents. The other three contained Celestial OmniMechs and spectral aerospace fighters. They were preparing to drop in on the planet. No response had come from their transmission that the Word was back. Upon arrival at Turbline orbital scans showed some towns looked like they had been ripped apart. It looked like the night haunt menace had not been blunted fully and had come back. But why? This worried Deback. Corden's sacrifice looked like it had been in vain. They were here now and Blake's judgement would rain on down. Baltmare itself looked like a ghost town from orbit. The plan was to drop in and assess the situation there then spread out.
Deback awaited the release time from the DropShip. His contingent of Se'irim battle armor was attached to his archangel waiting for the order too. They had elected to go with the anti infantry configuration. The MG and flamers would be of better use in the confines of the town. Five other choir mates would accompany him down. A Malak, Peta, Deva, Grigori, and Seraph. Each one was in a the Luminos configuration. The pin point accuracy of the weapons and no need of ammunition would serve well in the operation. They too would carry a contingent of Se'irim in the same configurations.
Over his newly blessed buffered VDNI he issued the command to pre-launch everyone. The drop pod would do fine until they hit the atmosphere and then he would descend to the planet on the mechs own wings of fire. He looked at his reflection in the cockpit glass. His true left eye glowed red. Then he looked at his left true arm and then made a fist. He nodded to himself and with a few simple words he started the drop sequence.
"Brothers and sisters, it is time. Let Corden's memory fill your hearts as we go. Blake's will be done. Corden's last will be DONE!"
With a thump Deback felt gravity take over and his stomach lurched. He met atmosphere and indicator lights showed that the drop pod was ablating away as the heat rose from reentry. After two minutes, klaxons sounded, and the drop pod halves fell apart. Wind greeted Deback and he felt the sensation thru his VDNI. It was exhilarating. He waited the appropriate amount of time till he mentally signaled his team. All of them fired their jump jets to slow their descent. 
Baltmare rapidly approached and Deback waited till the last seconds to put on the Gs. He landed the archangel and quickly looked for targets. Nothing came to his hud. His other team members reported in and nothing appeared on theirs too.
"Se'irim choirs, disengage, and enter the town. Sweep for targets and save any populace you find."
The squads made their way into the town thru the main gate. No one was found there. No guards, no travelers, and no guides. Minutes passed and reports started to come in. Dead fresh bodies that were found. Some squads started going thru homes and located some people barricaded in cellars and closets. They were escorted out of the town to the meet up where the six Celestials had met up at. The people were in shock and some fell to their knees once they realized who was here. Something horrible had happened and Deback didn't know what to make of it. Then machine gun fire erupted.
"Deback, choir IV reporting in, we have lost III and have rendered two targets eliminated. Proceeding on."
"I am sending Phantom Beta Nils to you choir IV. May III rest with Blake."
Deback ordered Phantom Nils within his Preta to choir IV's location. He then started walking around the walls leaving the other four behind. He mentally put Phantom Beta Kampan in charge. The walls were scratched all over the place. It looked as if a night haunt horde had tried to dig thru the walls. The ramparts seemed intact yet there were some breaches. Likely the population had retreated to the caves. Then Deback made it around a corner.
He had found the main entry of what ever horde had pushed thru. He engaged the jump jets and landed on top of the wall. From this angle he could see battle had been wrought. Houses had burned, carcasses laid on the ground, and a ruin of an old Republic 'mech lied on the ground. From there he could see where the battle ended and the massacre began.
"Deback to all choirs. I am now sending information of the breech. It appears this occurred recently in the week by my estimation. I am proceeding in and linking up with my choir. Everyone but Phantom Kampan, proceed in and link up with your Se'irim. Retrieve anyone and escort them out still. I am proceeding to what would be the underground cave entrance."
Deback made his way down the ruined streets. Mentally noting the town had changed in what it looked like. It had become a town dedicated to Blake and Corden. His absence had not been for naught. In one street he caught a night haunt out in the open snacking on a carcass. He over killed it by firing all his medium pulse lasers making the beast burst. He kept going in the direction of the entrance when his VDNI told him something had attached itself to his archangel. Then another. The sensation of something climbing up the legs made Deback skin crawl. He immediately engaged his jump jets. Ninety meters later he slammed into the middle of another street and felt one of the sensations leave the archangel. The other had made it to his torso.
"All Celestials, stay with your battle armor, there are night haunts that seem proficient with climbing 'mechs. Choir V, return to Beta Kapan. Chior VI, I am making my way to you in case I am not able to shake my stow away."
Deback jumped again and landed closer to his choir. However the threat had not been dislodged. He felt it creeping up to his cockpit. With a quick thought, he grabbed the Mauser 1200 that he had stowed away. He then stopped the 'mech completely and waited for the threat to show itself. He had the advantage of knowing where it was by feel. Whatever it was had decided to come from the left side. Deback detached his seat belts and willed the cockpit to open. He stood and pointed his laser rifle at a surprised night haunt. He aimed at an elbow and fired. CRACK!
The creature screeched and slid down the torso. Deback fired again, this time at a knee. CRACK! It slid again. The creature was full of hate and managed to bring itself up again. This time Deback willed the medium pulse laser it had moved in front of to fire. Giblets and gore sprayed over the front of the archangel and Deback. Without a thought, he sat down, willed the cockpit closed, and reattached his seat belts.
"Choir VI, I am free of my threat. Still proceeding to you."
Affirmatives came in mentally in response. Deback missed the use of battle armor, but he had dedicated his path on another. The visage of what Corden had used in the past would be his symbol to his people. So far he only wished he had chosen a different configuration.
More reports started to come in. More people found, more dead targets, thirty percent of the town cleared. No more causalities. His brethren had become more cautious with the fatalities and near misses. The lessons of pirate hunting had paid off. But night haunts were a different opponent altogether. Slowly but surely they reclaimed the town. By that time, Deback had reconnected with his choir and the entrance to the cave.
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Deback slid down the chain link ladder along with his Mauser 1200. The entrance to the cave had been secreted in the Keep of the Faiths centuries ago. He had been there many times before talking with the guides. The plans drawn up on how to get out of the system and ones for his hopeful return.
His choir and himself entered the place and what greeted him took his breath away. No more had the old religions occupied this place. It had been fully converted to Blake. Murals of Jerome Blake and Corden littered the walls. Scripture and quotes from the Word were etched into the stone walls. It... it was magnificent. Deback motioned for his choir to stay put and he proceeded down a hidden stairwell. Down there he found dead night haunts and humans. Then he found the main door. Made of thickened steel, he could see the marks left behind by the beasts. Murder holes existed on this door where spears or gun fire could be unleashed. Deback raised his hand and knocked on the door in a human rhythm.
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===Recounting the ruinous years===
Aaron The Guide was asleep when he was awaken by commotion. Not another incursion! He got up and grabbed the old Mauser 1200 he had used over the years. The guides had turned into a military unit in itself to coordinate the defense of the populace. A lot had happened and now he prepared to fight again. Except what met him was an individual he hadn't seen since the JumpShip had disappeared from the Turbline system. Before him stood a man with a metal left arm, metal left eye, and metallic like units on his head. No more was the face a ruin, instead a bueatiful crafted symmetry of metal and man stood in place.
The two embraced each other like separated family. Aaron cried with the revelation that the Word had returned. Deback just patted him on the back. After what seemed like a minute they released and sat down on the meager furniture.
"The town is being cleared of any night haunts as we speak. What has happened here Aaron the guide?"
"There is much to tell you, Deback. For starters we have been backed into a corner. We were making progress in rebuilding and extending the walls to other towns. Then this world decided to push us to the edge of oblivion and we have been fighting for survival since. After you had left the system. We experienced earth quakes that rocked the continent. New caves had opened and we saw new unseen before night haunts. We killed them no problem, but they were different than the ones we knew of. We investigated the caves but they were not the source. Then Tony the guide noticed on one of the DropShip flights that the land had reshaped itself. Some how a land bridge had formed from one of the other continents. There was volcanic activity in other areas of the planet and we think it pushed them here."
"Where is the DropShip?"
"Lost. The last transmission from its last flight indicated that there were night haunts on it and they were ripping into the crew. It crashed into the western ocean. From there we couldn't repair or refit the mechs. The DropShip was the key to everything. The battle armors have held up, but attrition has done them in. We might have four or five left functioning down here. All the ammo has been spent and they are only good enough for close combat. We did manage to fashion some cheap rockets to use on them, but nothing like the SRMs that we use to have. Its bad, Deback, really bad."
"It matters no more, Aaron. The Word of Blake is here and as the Right Hand of Corden, I swear this planet will be cleansed. His will be done."
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Reports started to come in from other towns that Deback dispatched choir forces too. Fifty percent of them were absolutely depopulated. Others where everyone was dead. Others had held out but they had been connected via the caves so they knew their status. One place in particular had held up really well. It was one of the towns that had no access to the caves and in fact Deback remembered it being the last town Corden and him freed from the nobles. The most militaristic. Still the deaths that had happened was astounding. Down in the caves a command center was being erected. Points of interest plotted and missions being drawn up.
The first was freeing the cities of any night haunt infestations. Second was re-establishing order and defenses. The other objectives would be to investigate the land bridge and see what to do about it. They also needed to visit the old rider's lair and get what ever was left in that library. A decade of neglect on the keep would have certainly caused further damage than the burnt books. Then there was the site of Corden's death. Deback wanted to go there to make peace with Corden's passing. The site would no longer be radioactively hot and tolerable. It was the last thing to be done as there were lives at stake. Deback had the first mission drawn up in his head and contacted his Wraith squad.
"Wraith Atechok, take stealth tank Bolla 1 out to this land bridge. Take Tau Riddick with you and his platoon. Have my choir of Se'irim go with you. Also load up on infernos. Night haunts have been proven to fear fire."
"Your will be done, Deback."
Deback turned and saw Adept Anne setting up more computers. She had shell shock of seeing the carnage that she had to walk past. Deback made his way over to her.
"How are you holding up?"
"I am doing well. Work therapy I guess. I still don't understand why you brought me here."
"To see and witness. To experience that which you might think isn't true. To see that the Word does have good intentions and meaning for mankind. I could go on and on. Ultimately there will come a day when The Word does return to the inner sphere. If you are alive, I would very much like you to reconnect with Comstar and maybe. MAYBE the two can be reunited. Don't give me that look. I know you have been conversing with the True Believers. They are the closest to Comstar and are always holding out on reunification.
"That will be an... interesting time. I have my doubts."
"I do too, but we are new generation. We shape the future by our choices and decisions. Blake himself and even The Master fore saw us returning when all the lights went out in the inner sphere. Comstar use to follow those tenants or have you forgotten them?
"I have not."
"Good. Believe in Blake. If not as religious icon. At least believe what he taught and most of all. Believe in mankind. Go about your work Anne and thank you for helping us here."
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===Enlightenment from the Sky===
Wraith Atechok had been coped up in the infantry compartment for days. The journey was even rougher for the Se'irim choir riding on the sides and back. They had trained for this and now all the pirate hunting actions had come full circle. They were on orders to head straight for the land bridge and ignore any packs of night huants unless they attacked or neared the tank.
As they approached the land bridge the land started to get rough. It appeared as fresh igneous rock. Volcanism had sprouted up. Using DropShip topographical scans they plotted the tanks ascent higher and higher up to the top of a plateau. From there the Se'irim and Tau Zombies disembarked and secured the area. Wraith Artecheck finally exited and scanned the terrain. Using his mutli-modal eyes he zoomed in on the land bridge and was taken aback at how big it was.
"Interdictor, Blake's Light, come in."
<<"Blake's Light here, go ahead.">>
"I assume you are in position. Take down these coordinates. Fire for effect and chain SubCapital weapons."
<<"Firing in 30 seconds.">>
They waited and watched. Then the sky became alight as subcapital laser and autocannon fire came down onto the land bridge. Firing went on for two minutes before it ceased. Atechok watched and waited for the debris and smoke to clear. It had only put a small dent into the bridge.
<<"Atechok to Deback. Orbital bombardment has negligible effect. Its going to take a nuke.">>
"That is a negative. The down winds fly over the towns. I am calling in warship support."
Atechok whistled.
<<"I read you. You want us to return or stay in position?">>
"Stay in position. Observe migration patterns and note night haunt forms that are in the area. Standing order of not engaging unless they get near you."
"Rodger, how long will we be out here."
"Estimate at most two weeks. I have already sent the orders to be relayed to Corinth."
"Atechok out."
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A week later. A warship jumped into the Turbline system. FFL codes are transmitted and it applied full thrust to make it to the planet. There it parked itself above the land bridge and awaited contact with the ground team. Aboard the warship more man and material waited to be brought into the fight. 
(("This is Specter Adept Omega Mike to Commanding Corinth. We are over the designated target. Tau Wraith Atechok we will fire one volley to gauge target acquisition then report back to us."))
Atechok watched from a kilometer away as the sky turned into a brilliant azure as naval scale capital lasers came down on the ground. The atmosphere shook as a gigantic CRACK formed as it super heated. Atechok estimated the distance off by half a kilometer and returned the information to the Corinth. Orders then came to clear the area as in one hour they would unload their magazines. His team mounted up in their Bolla stealth tank and got the hell out. They took a vantage point later from one of the cliffs that had formed in the last decade and awaited for the show.
Naval artillery and lasers rained down from the heavens. The bombardment was walked from north to south to create a cutting line to separate the two land masses Soil and rock turned turned to magma. Half way thru the firing the sea started to move in and it boiling upon contact. Still the warship kept its fire relentlessly on. Atechok had never seen this scale of destruction unleashed in person and it was absolutely glorious. It was as if Blake's hand had reached down and seized the land bridge and yanked it like a weed.
After a half an hour of bombardment the sea finally collapsed in on the bridge and it was no more. Fire was sustained for a further half hour to deepen the under sea valley that was being crafted from orbit. Then everything got quiet. Steam had engulfed the area but Atechok stood his post. Then he got a good site on the new water channel that had been formed.
"Corinth, main land bridge connection is gone. Proceed west and finish the rest. No more surgical striking. Fire for effect. Good work. My team is moving out."
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===New Tools for the liberation===
By the time Atechok had returned, DropShip from the Corinth had landed and were unloading their contents. Deback had been called to one of them for a briefing.
"You have new Celestials? What manner of invention have we been blessed with?"
The tech pulled up a docket.
"They are calling them cherubs. Ultra light fifteen tonners with the speed of a Malak but armed with battle armor weapons. The AI on Obeedah thought you would like them."
"What armaments are we looking at?"
"Rocket launchers are on all of them, but the one that will interest you is the Invictus config. They made it specifically for Turbline. Eight, count them, eight medium recoilless rifles. They will chew up any horde they come across."
"By Blake, it is over kill. Just what we need and they can carry battle armor?"
"Yes, there will some slight strain on the myomers being such a small design, but we can get support moved around a lot quicker with the amount of these cherubs we got. They are made using standard off the shelf parts. Truly a simple design, but it suits our needs well. At least it isn't ProtoMechs that you will have stuff Manei Domini torsos in."
Deback remembered reading about the experiments of bridging clan tech with the VDNI. Only a certain kind of breed of Manei Domini would seal themselves into those walking coffins of blasphemy. Yet they were maintained just in case.
"Count our blessings. I will have the organizational manifest drawn up and who will be where. Thank you."
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===War of Liberation Continues===
Zombie Tau Riddick was on the way to the riders lair aboard Bolla 5. His team was ready to enter the old location and extract what secrets it might have. The only problem is that Deback theorized that old night haunts from the riders past days lurked there. It would make sense as they were conditioned animals and behaviors are predicable. He had opted to bring a squad support laser this time around. He hefted the 2 person crewed weapon as if it were a rifle. His myomer muscles went taunt. It had been a long time since he had used one of these. For back up, he kept his old trusty Mauser 1200 slung on his back. They had come with a choir of Se'irim in anti-infantry config. One flamer, two machine guns, and a mounted Mauser 1200 to boot. If things really got hairy, they also had two armored claws. Not the vibroblade that Deback had recommended, but Riddick had always favored ranged weapons.
The lair was one click out and he powered up the squad support weapon. Deback had provided vivid details and maps of the place. This would be a cake walk, well it was until they approached the gate. In mid day sun, night haunts came out of the entrance charging the tank. Phantom Adept Beta Thomas willed the turret in the direction of the horde and fired infernos. 18 napalm splashes later and the horde was stunted. That is when the 2 machine guns started firing and everyone dismounted. It was a blood bath. In less than a minute the teams were moving in and clearing halls and rooms of any infestations.
Reddick followed the route to the basement checking corners and even the roofs in large halls. He went thru an old open hall with strewn plates, chains, and tables. A fight had happened here a long time ago. Remembering the debriefings he looked up. Sure enough there were two of the damned things. The squad laser hummed and a carcass fell to the ground. The other night haunt leaped to the ground and went wide. It used the debris as cover to make it to him before he could retarget. Shit.
This one was faster than expected and it bowled into him. They skidded and slammed into a wall and he dropped the support laser. On the ground the creature snapped as him and took hold of his torso. He resisted what would have been pain in his mind if not for his blessed pain shunt. With a thunderous roar he smashed his blessed arms into the things face and he felt bones snap and break. He wailed on it cracking the jaw and freed himself. It screeched and backed off. Riddick then raised both his true arms and extended them palms out. The embedded TK enforcers in his arms went full auto. Forty bullets peppered the beast and it thrashed around as blood spilled from various holes pumped into it.
Sliding to the side, Riddick took hold of the squad laser and fired blindly. With a shriek the beast stopped moving. Riddick went over his body checking his status. His dermal armor had been breached and there was no telling what internal injuries he had. At this point there was nothing he could do so on with the mission. He did quick reloads for his internal TK enforcers then went onwards. He came to the stairwell he was looking for and listened. There things down there. His squad mates eventually had cleared the upper levels and were converging on him.
"Forward Se'irim choir. Lets make our way down to hell."
Six of them made it to the bottom before anything happened. Machine gun fire began as they went deeper and deeper. The tau zombies used the battle armor as mobile cover firing inbetween legs and arms. Eventually the place had been gutted and secured. That is when Bolla2 was called in for retrieval of any tactical data, books, and what not that was never recovered by the guides.
Outside, Riddick was being attended to when Bolla2 pulled up and the teams stepped out. One of the support teams noticed Riddick and made their way to him.
"Riddick, I wasn't expecting to see you here."
"Adept Anne. I see you are helping and I see you are with Aaron the guide."
"Yeah, his company has been a change of pace compared to you guys." Adept Ann replied
"Say what you will."
"I have seen you walk thru fire, Riddick, but you look absolutely horrible for a tau zombie."
He chuckled. "Yeah, got in scuffle with one of those damn beasts. Medic says my liver will need to be replaced. Another blessing. They will have to tear my chest armor open and I will be on the slab for a month healing. I hate these damned things. I can't imagine Deback riding one of them. Seems almost implausible."
"It is hard imagining that people rode these things once. I have to go. Peace of Blake be with you."
Riddick almost snapped his neck looking back at Anne. He was surprised that the heretic had recited the phrase. As she walked away he contemplated that maybe the Turbline system had changed her. In either case he was glad to hear it from her.
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===Turbline Protocol===
Crates of books were being unloaded at Baltmare. The guides finally got to do what they did best. Read and absorb information. In a few months, what they found was disturbing. The night haunts were a genetically fluid species that adapted and changed every other decade. Man had sped up that evolutionary system. The riders then took it to a higher tier. 
With no technology at hand due to humanity being stranded here, they performed abdominal procedures that injected human dna into them. And the mutagenic systems responded in kind. From there they bred them to what they were today. But what turned up was that there were two strains. The ones kept by the handlers of course and the wild ones. The handlers had in fact used the cave as a self contained breeding ground. Sealing in an ecosystem that was wholly controlled by them. Corden nuking the place had been the right call per Heres Domini in later reports.
From the loss of the DropShip and the material recovered, the Turbline protocol was born. Any DropShip leaving the system would be searched at orbit by special Manei Domini death squads outfitted with stream lined cybernetics for night haunt detection. Every nook, corner, box, and bulk head was to be searched for any hint of a night haunt boarding. The species was to NEVER leave the Turbline system as what was directed by Zaphkiel years ago. Any DropShip refusing would was to be shot out of the void. Not that the Word had to worry about such things, but Heres Domini made sure that it was codified by the Word.
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