Punisher Priests

**Punisher Priests** or *Homo Tortorus* are a genetically engineered human species that are entirely composed of Psykers, native to the Ice World of Tormunglaciem and the members of the Cult of the Punishers.

At the beginning, they could only be created through a genetic modification process, which was only compatable with males. After the Daemonic Incursion in Legacium, there were only a handful of Punishers left, as they were not able to breed with normal humans, in order to secure the continuation of their kind, they took action. They gathered the Cypriests and Biopriests dedicated to their service, recovered the blueprints of the technology that is necessary for the creation of Punishers, and settled Tormunglaciem. They kidnapped hundreds, thousands of female psykers from all around the galaxy, which they qualify both powerful in mind and body, and brought them to Tormunglaciem for experimentations, to create the Punisher "Priestesses" %98,6 of the subjects died during the experiments or were too weak after the modification to be impregnated or carry a child. But in the end, they succeeded. They created their own mates which their reproductive cells are compatible. Now what they seek is to find and bring powerful Psykers to the Tormunglaciem and turn them into one of theirs, for the creation of more powerful offsprings.

 Early Creation of a Punisher

In order to get recruited as a Punisher candidate, individuals had to have strict qualifications.

* Psionic
* Perfect physiology
* High willpower

Once agreed to become one, there's nothing to return to but death. Candidates are not allowed to see or get in touch with their former families, friends or loved ones. Besides, %92.4 of the candidates fail to complete the process of becoming an official Punisher, they mostly die, some get taken as a slave, fall into madness or go rogue.

First, candidates take part in series of genetic modification processes. Thus increasing their physiological traits, making them highly resistant to heat, cold and radiation. Making them taller, stronger and agiler. A fully trained Punisher can be as fast as a Wych, if not faster. As the benefits are many, risks are great.

This process is divided into five phases.

1. **Implanting** - Candidate's body is cut open from several locations and gets his body implanted with dozens of tiny machines, working similar to gene-seeds.
2. **Tissue replacement** - Implants replaces almost every tissue in the body, making them durable to harsh environments and impacts.
3. **Shifting** - After the tissue replacement, tissues such as veins, bones and muscles expand or elongate, making the candidate taller and athletically muscular.
4. **Regeneration** - Once the shifting process is complete, implants are removed from the body and body stays contained in a tank to heal the scars and slightly more expanded tissues.
5. **Adaptation** - This process is the simplest, but much as important. The mobility, flexibility, receptivity of the candidate's body is tested, along with his mental health, due to the intense pain felt during the process.

If they survive the process, the candidates are taken into a training program, where they explore their new limits. They are educated with the best of martial arts known to men or humanoid Xenos like Eldar and Tau. They are taught to be able to use every single kind of blade there is, and they are taught to be able to fight against almost every kind of creature known to the galaxy. And meanwhile, they train their psionic powers, to prevent what happened in the Legacium from happening once again.

But it is not the only training they receive. Punisher candidates are taught with such an ability not known or used widely in the galaxy. They are taught to operate and manipulate the electrical surge through neurones, without the help of psionic powers. This ability is called several similar names, such as Neuric and Neuronic. First, they are taught to use it on their own body, to remove the pain in case of a deep wound or amputation, inflicting pain to test their willpower, or boosting their muscles with extra charge, to move faster than the Punisher standards. In the next level, they learn to recognise the electrical identity of their memories occurring inside their brains. Later on, they learn to manipulate them too. In the last level of Neuronic powers, candidates learn how to operate and manipulate an another individual's electrical surge, through skin interaction. They learn how to remove another's pain, and if it is the case of "punishment", they learn how to constantly inflict pain, without letting their victim faint. They learn how to monitor another's thoughts and memories, and if needed, to manipulate them. They learn how to show their own memories to others. It is unknown that if it has ever been needed, but they also learn to manipulate the feelings such as pleasure too.

The Neuronic powers are fascinating, but it is probably the second most dangerous ability to master - first being the Psionic Powers. During training candidate may stop his own heartbeat, crush his internal organs with the pressure inflicted by spasms, break their own bones apart, again, by the pressure inflicted by spasms, manipulate themselves into madness, manipulate themselves into a retard, stopping some or all their brain functions, and all of above to an another individual, in a wrong attempt. And these are but a fraction of what can happen if something goes wrong. It requires focus and hundreds of thousands of hours of training to master it.