A/N: I will say this thing one time and one time only! But consider it universal. I DO NOT OWN RWBY OR WARHAMMER 40K AND I NEVER WILL, BUT I DEARLY WISH I DID! CURSE YOU ROOSTER TEETH AND GAMES WORKSHOP, I SHALL EVER BE YOUR ARDENT SLAVE.

Two things, this story is about Ruby in Warhammer 40kville. I hope you have at least watched one episode of RWBY as it will help you understand her character and such. Besides, if you haven't watched it, stop right here, jump on YouTube, and go do it. This story can wait.

The other thing is that this is in Warhammer 40k, but I won't try to blow your mind with lore and such. It will be fairly easy to grasp methinks even if you are new to the universe.

Okay, one more thing. This story is several years down the road from Season 4 of RWBY, I'll let you decide ages in your own head.

Enjoy!

"Hey Lady!"

"Do you think she's dead?"

"Nah, she's too pretty to be dead."

"Go poke her, see if she wakes up."

Ruby groaned, she hurt everywhere. Why were people trying to wake her up? She was just so tired. Maybe if she got a few more hours of sleep she would feel better…. A sharp poke to her cheek ruined all hope she had of more sleep. "...!" Her body tensed as she felt the sudden contact. A ragged cry escaped from her raw throat as she jerked upright, immediately regretting the motion as her head felt like it was about to explode.

"Ah!" a little voice gasped, "She's awake!"

"Lady, are you okay?"

Ruby opened her eyes, and was immediately blinded by the sun which hung directly overhead. She winced and blinked rapidly to clear the glare. When she was sufficiently recovered from her momentary blindness, she saw two young children, not more than five or six years staring at her. They both wore roughly spun clothes with light blonde hair and blue eyes. They were so close in appearance, Ruby thought they couldn't 't be anything but twins.

She was more interested however, in where she was. Why was she asleep in the forest in the first place? The last thing she remembered was returning to Vale with her team… Her eyes opened wide at the thought of her team, her gaze snapped back to the children as she asked, "Have either of you seen three other girls around here? They're about my age? They're my sister and team." Her tone was soft, as one would use when speaking to children.

"No" said the little boy, who was suddenly very interested in his shoe with the 'Pretty Lady' looking at him.

"Don' worry about Brody, he gets shy sometimes. My name is Celia!" Celia beamed as she said this. She waited patiently for Ruby to respond, for about three seconds, "What's your name?"

"Ru...Ruby," she managed to sputter past the confusion that clogged her mind.

"Ru-Ruby? That's a weird name" As if to add to the adorableness, Celia had one eyebrow cocked in confusion. Ruby let a small smile adorn her face. Ruby just had a thing with children. They almost universally loved her and she adored their company, nothing seemed to keep them down.

She winced again as her head spiked in pain as she rubbed her eyes, which still hurt in the bright sunlight. "No, just Ruby" She said to Celia, her silver eyes still shut tightly.

"Oh... That's a weird name still."

"I think it's pretty," cut in Brody, now very interested in a small beetle crawling along a log nearby.

Ruby dropped her hands to her lap and looked at the little boy and giggled at his childhood awkwardness, but her smile quickly disappeared, replaced by a slight frown. "Can you help me? I need to find my team. Where am I?"

"Well, we're in the forest!" Celia said, making grandiose gestures with her arms high over her head. Sure enough, there were veritable walls of forest. The trees were massive though easily 50 paces around in some instances.

"Yes, but there are a lot of forests on Remnant, which one is this one? I've never seen trees this big before." She craned her neck backwards, the lengthy boughs all but engulfing the sky in every direction, save for the clearing in which she found herself.

"Remnant? What's that?" The small girl scratched her head, tilting her head to look quizzically at Ruby. "This place is called Teitam, and I don't remember what the forest is called. It's a really long word." Brody simply shrugged along-side her.

Ruby had never heard of Teitam, but figured that if she was in a forest that she had never seen before, she must be way off the map. She needed answers, and as helpful as these children were, they were but children.

Gathering herself, she stood and brushed the dirt off of her clothes. Taking a step forward, her boot clanked against something hard and metallic. Glancing down she saw her beauty, Crescent Rose was still with her. She reached down to grab it and felt comforted by its familiar weight.

"Welp, I can't stay here forever." She whispered to the forest, tucking Crescent Rose behind her back. She turned to the small children letting a small smile adorn her face once more, "You two are just the best for helping me! But…" She drew the word out as she worded her next question, "Can you take me to your parents? Maybe they can help you explain where here is."

"Yup, yup!" Without a moment of hesitation, Celia began tugging on Ruby's skirt to the north, babbling on about whatever came to mind while Brody came and held Ruby's hand.

Of all of the people to have found her, Ruby was glad it was Celia and Brody. She knew she could trust children unequivocally. It helped ease her discomfort in being alone and directionless.

Oh Yang, where are you? Ruby thought as she took one last look at the clearing before she followed the children into the shadows. The small duo pulled eagerly, unaware of the fear in the eyes of the woman they led.

"I'm… not on Remnant?" Ruby's eyes were large and jumping between the man and woman in front of her. "How….." She paused, a more pressing question entered her mind, "Where am I then?"

In front of her were Brody and Celia's parents. The two were polar opposites of each-other. Brody was the father's name, obviously, his son was named after him. He was tall and built like a lumberjack, which judging from some of the equipment she had seen outside, was exactly his profession. Massive shoulders and arms filled in his just under two meter high frame. He was pale, with almost black hair and blue eyes. He had a large booming laugh and a crass tongue.

Merith was his wife, soft-spoken, kind and empathetic to Ruby's apparent state. She was taller than Ruby, but equally as thin and her blonde hair and blue eyes looked kindly upon Ruby. If it wasn't for the fact that she had scolded her children severely for wandering into the forest alone, Ruby would have assumed that this woman didn't have a mean bone in her entire body.

Merith sat near Ruby and placed a hand on her arm, "I have never heard of this… Remnant. It's obviously not in the sector. We don't usually get visitors though, so it's not strange that we haven't heard of it.

"Not since the last shipment pick up a year ago at least," cut in Brody Sr., "and we never have had anyone dropped off and left before. Save for that bloody idiot Marshall…" He devolved into a few choice words vilifying some unrelated subject.

Merith glared at her husband, "Love, focus."

"Huh? Oh, right."

She continued, "You are on the planet Teitam…"

Ruby spoke up, "Yeah, Celia did mention that, but do you mean like…. Planet planet, or planet planet?" Brody and Merith looked at her incredulously, neither quite sure how to answer that.

Merith simply smiled and continued, "Teitam is an actual planet, one of thousands in the Emperor's light. We are specifically, if it helps, in the Titan Sector in Segmentu…"

"Woah, woah slow down," Ruby's head was spinning, "I'm still getting over the whole uh, other planet…. Thing…" Merith cocked her eyebrow, Ruby noted that this is where Celia learned that little trick. Ruby continued, "Wait….What year is it?"

Merith's eyebrow did the impossible, it lifted even higher as she scrutinized Ruby. "We would consider it to be 500 years since we came to this planet. But our Imperial Calendar marks it as the 41st millennium."

Ruby stared. If what they were saying was true, then what about everyone she ever knew? How did she even end up in this place and time? Could she even go home? Was anything still there?

Disastrous thoughts flicked through her head, one after another with increasing frequency. Her head dropped into her hands as panic began to take her. She started to take less functional breaths as her body tried to compensate for her increased stress. She was dimly aware of Merith putting a hand on her shoulder and saying something to her, but she didn't care what it was. She wasn't aware of how long she sat like that, it felt like hours, but it was in reality only a few minutes, trying to come to grips with what she was thinking and feeling.

She felt like she needed to fight something to feel normal again, but since that wasn't a viable option, she had resort to memories instead. She brought up happy thoughts of Remnant, of her father and Uncle Qrow, speaking to her mother at the Cliffside and building the fourth iteration of Crescent Rose. Her breathing slowed back to a manageable rate and she felt a small hand grab hers. She peeked down to see little Celia next to her glaring at her mother and father her other hand cocked on her hip.

"Mom, Dad," she said flicking her eyes between the two, "You are scaring RuRu"

"Ruby…" Ruby whispered between her hands, one eye poking out between her fingers to peer at the little girl.

"Yeah! Ruby… I think we should keep her," Celia said with complete seriousness. Ruby couldn't help but snort in amusement.

Tall Brody Sr., as opposed to short Brody Jr., laughed warmly at his little girl's assertation, "Don't worry Celia, we'll help her as best we can." He shifted his focus back to Ruby, and she could see the gears turning in his head in response to her mini panic attack when she learned the year, "You really aren't from around here then, are you missy." It wasn't a question.

"How did you get here? Where are you from?" asked Merith. The way that the two adults appeared to be assessing Ruby made her nervous. Some 6th sense told her to blur the truth a little bit as to who she was exactly as far as aura and her semblance when she talked to these people. Her gut usually was right, after all. It always led her to cookies, so it had a good track record.

Lifting her head out of her hands, Ruby nodded, thinking quickly of a story she could use that would at least be believable, "Well uh, like I mentioned I'm from a, uh, planet called Remnant," she shrugged as she said planet, it was just too surreal to refer to it as such. "Our world has these evil creatures called Grimm that try to kill people that live there. I'm a Huntress, it's my duty to fight these creatures and help people." The little spark of determination shone in her eyes once more as she remembered her purpose.

"One day I was out hunting a, um.. really dangerous Grimm. In the middle of the battle I was…. Injured and blacked out. That's the last thing I remember." She pressed the tips of her index fingers together as she finished.

"Nothing else? No one picked you up or anything?" Pressed the parenting duo, staring at her intently.

"Maybe someone did while I was unconscious but… I'm sorry, it's all I remember." She averted her eyes, not wanting them to see the lie she was sure was visible in her silver irises.

Merith and Brody Sr. shared a glance. Ruby could see some unspoken conversation happening between the two. Finally, Merith spoke up once more. "Well dear, the Emperor has a plan for all of us, we can't know what it is but who are we to question. Stay here for a while if you would like until you can figure out how to get back to your home." This was said not unkindly and Ruby knew she meant it. Ruby didn't know who this Emperor fella was, but she did need somewhere to stay.

Ruby's smile would have blinded any passerby, "Oh! Thank you!" She leapt forward and grabbed the flabbergasted duo around the neck in a choking hug, "Please don't let me be a burden, I can help if you let me!"

"Yay! A new sister!" Giggled Celia behind Ruby.

Brody, through mighty effort extricated himself from Ruby's grasp, "You said you can fight, that you were a uh… hunter?" Ruby let go of Merith and stepped back.

"Yup, I'm a Huntress!" Nodding her head once emphatically, she put extra emphasis on the Huntress part. She didn't work so hard to earn the title for nothing after all.

"Right… What else can you do?"

Ruby took a deep breath, "Well, I can fight, build weapons," Counting on her fingers as her speaking pace picked up, "fix vehicles, bakecookies, cookandIcantravelreallyfastandIknowsomebasicmedicinethattheytaughtusatschool.." The end of this was one blur of words.

"Woah woah, little missy, I can't hear that fast! But I caught the gist of it."

Ruby's face turned scarlet, "Sorry!"

He rubbed his jaw absentmindedly, "I think I have just the thing for you. I'll let you know tomorrow, but we might be taking a trip into town."

Ruby nodded deeply, "You got it boss!"

The rest of the evening passed with a more light-hearted tone as they shared a meal and showed Ruby to her room they would let her stay in. With little Brody and Celia hanging onto the thin woman's legs they came to the door. She was mercifully saved as Merith shooed the two small children off of Ruby, to her great relief. As Ruby entered the room she noticed it had all the trappings of a young woman, a teenager perhaps. "Do you have another daughter?" asked Ruby.

The smile left Merith's face at the question. "We do, but her space will be perfect for you. Lucy doesn't need it anymore."

Understanding filled Ruby at the unspoken meaning and she dropped her gaze to the floor, "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"It's fine, you couldn't have. I hope it suits you, it has been empty for far too long."

Ruby's empathetic heart went out to the woman, "What happened to her?"

The silence stretched between them as Merith stared at nothing in particular. "The world is a dangerous place, she got lost in it." Ruby swore she saw her eyes glisten, "Good night Ruby, let us know if you need anything."

Before Merith could leave, Ruby wrapped her in another hug, "Thank you again, you are truly a wonderful woman. I know your daughter is in a better place."

Merith smiled as she pulled away, and quietly closed the door behind her.

Ruby looked around, for being a logging town planet…thing… It seemed pretty standard for a teenager. There were pictures of what she assumed were musical groups and a little shrine in the corner displaying a majestic figure on a throne.

There was even a picture of who Ruby assumed was Lucy. She looked just like Merith. Blonde hair and blue eyes completed the smiling face in the picture. She seemed like a happy young woman and for a moment, Ruby recalled her younger days when she was far more innocent. Before Cinder Fall and Salem who, as far as Ruby could remember, were still ruining her home if she didn't believe the apparent time traveling that she had done.

Sighing somberly at the thought of home, even if they weren't happy thoughts, she put the picture down and looked to the bed. She was exhausted. Teleporting, or whatever she did, through what seemed to be time and space was a pretty good excuse she figured.

Collapsing on the bed without bothering to change or remove her boots, she was asleep instantly.

Corporal Cadian "Cade" Blackshire was tired. Not the tired that one might feel from just awaking. Or even after those marathons the drill sergeants just loved. This was a tired of the near dead. He was just sure he was moments from being a zombie.

Cadian Blackshire was, well… A Cadian, and yes, it was confusing for everyone involved. Most people just called him Cade except his mother. She was determined to not only name him something egotistical, but also make sure him and all those around knew what his name was. The damnably wonderful woman.

Cade was tall, but fairly thin for a Cadian. His skin was tanned from being on battle-lines in the heat of different suns on different planets. He had black hair and the beginning of a beard on his face which he usually kept well-shaven, but current events had prevented such matters of grooming. He had a faint scar that ran from the middle of his right cheek to the bridge of his nose. Most vivid of all, were his dark violet eyes, so iconic for Cadians who usually had very bright purple irises. In all, some would call him attractive, others... battered.

Regardless, Cade had been on the front for three weeks. His regiment had come to some backwater planet that he couldn't even remember the name of, to make sure the tithes were being sent in. Cade thought it was an enormous waste of resources, until the entire populace thought it was a great time to throw a party. Their definition of party was taking all of their alcohol and making Valhallan Cocktails, and then throwing them at any guardsman within five meters.

It was the hottest party Cade had ever been to.

Now he was alone. Just him and his long-las he lovingly called Snips. He had been alone and awake for three days and was on a constant diet of stims to stay awake. His squad likely thought he was dead and command didn't care if he was alive or dead anyway. He chuckled darkly at the thought of command even caring as he steadied his rifle on the rough rubble. His violet eyes magnified through the scope and the worn leather fit comfortably around his eye.

Through some… less than humane means, he had… coerced a rebel to provide him with information. He had learned that the leader of this little soiree, the "Priest of Light" as he called himself, would be making an appearance. Cade and Snips weren't invited of course, but from his vantagepoint, he would have an excellent view of the proceedings. From his vista on the third floor of a burnt out and crumbling building he could see to the city center where the guest of the hour was to appear. A massive domed structure stood, minus the dome, on a hillock. Massive artillery shells had left most of the city in tatters, a corpse with nothing left to bleed save for this mighty structure.

All he had to do now, was wait.

For several hours, he fought sleep. Cade would always pride himself on never falling asleep at a post, but it still wasn't easy. His mind wandered and sweat dripped into his eyes in the afternoon heat. He would think of home, shake his head and refocus, ramming the scope back up to his bloodshot eye.

And wait...

In his vigil, crashes were heard below him as a small group of rebels entered the house. He could smell their musk, the stench of one who hasn't bathed in weeks and has been surrounded by dead and dying. He could only hope they wouldn't climb the ruined stairs behind him as he wouldn't be able to take all of them. He heard them speaking and grunting to each other as their footsteps moved to the back of the building. His blood froze as he heard them shifting the rubble on the stairs.

Cade reached down slowly and unlatched his autopistol from its holster. He raised the pistol with adrenaline filled arms and aimed at the door. He silently cursed his luck as one man was almost at the top of the stairs, just one more step and he would be seen! Cade began to squeeze the trigger on his laspistol as a hand grasped the doorframe.

His luck turned as another man shouted from below. "Hey! I found some more amasec. Come help me carry it." The unknown man released his grip and began climbing back down. Cade released the breath he was unconsciously holding as the men exited the building, carrying their liberated drinks with them. Lowering his autopistol, he slumped against the soot-blackened wall in relief.

And wait….

Thrice a casually fired shell careened down near him, shaking the building and causing small avalanches of dust to fill his lungs. It was all he could do to not sneeze.

And wait….

The light was shifting, casting beams of light through the miasma of ash and dust. The sun was now behind him, the perfect time for a shot.

And wait.…

The self-proclaimed "Priest of Light" was about as competent as he was holy. But the interesting thing about humans, they have an innate desire to follow instructions. It seems so much easier to commit actions if they are in fact, not your own, but are rather orders. Couple this with the paradox that humankind loves to rebel and you will have a ready-made army at your fingertips. So, when a well-supplied and attractive authority figure steps forward proclaiming that the Emperor wants you to keep your hard-earned goods rather than have them taxed…. It's a convincing argument. But ultimately, a folly.

The fact was that this "Priest of Light," also known as Lauss Hemmers, was a nobleman's son who had a terrible case of mediocrity. Granted he was attractive, with a strong jaw and rich eyes, endowed with wealth and an orator's tongue. But he had about as sound of a grasp on tactics as a grox. Somehow, the people trusted him to guide them to 'freedom.'

Slapping away the filthy hands that but adored him, Lauss Hemmers strode through the shattered entryway fighting the disgust he felt inside. He hated the way they stank of liquor and blood in this mangled city. Outside was a large congregation. They were very brave; a single artillery shell would certainly ruin their day if they were caught out in the open as they were. Bravely stupid thought the false priest. Yet the noise of cheering as he stepped into view still made him stagger back under its volume. He smiled broadly and cast his arms wide to his followers.

"My dear brothers and sisters! My dear children!" His voice was loud and strong hiding any note of disgust that he truly felt. "You are a light unto this darkened universe, fighting against those who would oppress you and enslave you!" More cheers rose up to greet him. "None of us would have thought this day would come. We have fought against the mightiest that could come against us, and we have beaten them. These ragged hounds sent to destroy our home and take our livelyhood cannot defeat us! The Emperor is with us, desiring us to be happy and content in this dark universe." Greater cheers shouted still at the thought of their God-Emperor condoning their actions.

"Tomorrow, we will unleash our great divine strength upon our foes. We will drive them from our homes and our lands. No more will our sons and daughters die for causes not their own!"

He raised his hands, this time to calm the crowd. They quieted, hanging on his next words. "I ask for one more day from you my dear friends. Will you follow me into the fray once more?" Cheers louder than before rang out.

"Then follow me and we shall gain v….." At that precise moment, a lance of hellish red met with Lauss Hemmers. As the beam of energy connected with his attractive cranium, the liquid in his head superheated and explodedBits of superheated traitor stained the area around him. The rest of his body fell moments later, as if not realizing it was quite dead until that moment.

A kilometer away, violet eyes confirmed the death. Although he couldn't hear what the man was saying when he died, he could now hear the screams and shouts of panic that filled the courtyard. Gunfire rang out as traitor fought traitor, seemingly forgetful of the cause of the Priest's death. Cade was grateful for the confusion. He still had to pack up his gear, climb down this building and make his way back 20 kilometers to the front lines.

Collecting himself and his equipment, a moment was spent taking satisfaction in his perfect shot. He was still priding himself on his shot as he clambered down the ruined staircase, when he tripped and tumbled head over heels the rest of the way down. Groaning, he stood up, dusted himself off and muttered, "I hate Mondays."

He was jerked awake by the noise of a blaring klaxon. Checking the chronometer in the barracks, he had only arrived back to his own lines three hours before. In five days he had three hours of sleep. If aliens wouldn't kill him, lack of sleep certainly would. In fact, he was sure he was hallucinating. Gunnery Sergeant Fenrick wouldn't stand over him like that, would he?

"Get off your lazy ass Blackshire!"

Apparently, he would.

Jumping to his feet Cade began his usual routine for when alarms were sounded. Grabbing his longlas and fieldball cap he was ready to go in seven seconds. A new record, he thought sarcastically. Yet they weren't running out the bunker just yet, Sergeant Fenrick stood appraising Cade with a menacing stare as the klaxons faded into silence. It was rather terrifying, as both of his eyes were green-lit cybernetic replacements.

"Corporal Blackshire, I'm so glad you could make it back to us this morning. Enjoy your stroll through the country?" The way he grinned made Cade nervous, what was going on?

"Yes sir! Best time of my life, I ate delicious rats and walked both ways uphill in four feet of snow, sir!" He replied sarcastically.

His sarcasm was not well received, "You're a funny man Blackshire." The grizzled Sergeant was most assuredly not laughing. The corners of Cade's mouth turned down slightly, mentally slapping himself for his sarcasm. "It seems that some unknown trooper managed to publicly execute a certain individual, leading to a surrender of the rebels. Would you happen to know anything about that?"

"No sir, I killed a lot of people this week," True statement, "They tend to blur together," False.

The bionically inclined Sergeant just grunted, "Well, some higher ups noticed and wanted to reward the sap who did it with a promotion. Last Sergeant of your squad was killed ya see. Need a replacement. And since someone ain't fessing up to killing the Priest fellow, you get the honors." Opening his hand, he had a Sergeant's tags for Cade. Violet eyes opened wide, he hardly expected that.

"I, uh, yes sir! I will perform to your ever-rising standards of perfection!" He snapped crisp salute after taking the tags.

Otherworldly metal-green eyes whirred in their sockets as Fenrick returned the salute. It looked like he was almost smiling, "Now then, get your men together, were going on another trip. Have these rats ready to leave 15 minutes ago!" The smile was gone, and cruel crass Fenrick was back, storming away across camp and shouting at anyone in his way.

Looking around the barracks, he saw that the rest of the squad… Correction, his squad, was looking at him. It was sobering to think that there were only five of them left, including himself, when they arrived with twelve.

One trooper spoke up, his name was Tyberon Thalllius, but Cade called him 'Trunks' due to his enormous tree-trunk thick arms. He was unusual in that he was a portly Cadian, but he was a good soldier as long as he remembered to suck in his stomach when bullets were flying. "I think you're the only person who ever gets away with sarcasm in this place. Last time I tried, I ended up digging the latrines for a month." He shuddered at the memory. "But uh, we're behind you boss."

Each of the others nodded in agreement, save for Trooper Samantha Grandy, she never liked Cade. Maybe he shouldn't have remarked at how big her guns were. He was being serious at the time, she was the heavy weapons specialist after all, but she took it the wrong way. His face still hurt from the punch she gave him. He should have stopped there, but he had to tell her how "grand" it was to have her around. She didn't appreciate the pun. The other side of his face still hurt too, but he was still sure she was smiling when she walked away.

Troopers George Lovelock and Barry Bearings rounded off his squad. Lovelock spoke with a heavy accent filled with slang from his home Kasr. While Bearings walked and spoke like a perfect nobleman.

Cade's smile at the support of his squad was more of a grimace as he fought the urge to yawn, promotions don't replace sleep. He still stood a little taller and in his best Sergeant voice said, "Alright boys and girls, you heard him. One hour to pack your gear and get to the transports. I won't save you from latrine duty if Sergeant Freaky-face comes back and you aren't ready!" In a softer voice he added, "Don't tell him I said that," which was received with small chuckles as they set to work collecting their gear.

Time quickly passed, within six hours the entire regiment was in orbit save for their materiel and munitions. They were billeted in a troop transport called the Distant Hand. It was a massive vessel, old and venerable as far as troop transports went. It was more of a massive block of metal rather than an elegant and iconic vessel, such as the sizable fleet of cruisers and escorts that surrounded the Distant Hand. But it served its purpose superbly.

Cade spend the time sleeping when and where he could but it wasn't much. He was currently a glorified guide, making sure that all his squad was squared away and secured. But in his wanderings from place to place he did overhear officers speaking as he stopped to let them pass.

"Teitam? I've never heard of it, why there?" One lieutenant asked his fellow officer.

"Do we ever know why? But I overheard that we are evacuating it. We can't get a astropathic message through though, their astropath died or something a while back and no one has heard from the planet in months. Anyway, I heard this all had something to do with…"

As fate would have it, a crewman down the hall dropped a crate and the air was filled with the shattering of glass. The conversation was over as the two officers and an unnoticed Cade stared at the crewman.

"Sorry sirs!" The man said, scrambling to collect the fallen goods.

The officers nodded and moved on. Cade followed suit, first wondering where this Teitam place was and why they were going there. But they would be leaving soon, yet another trip in the void to some planet that wasn't his own. He lost himself in his thoughts as he made his way back to his squad's bunking area. He stayed there in his thoughts for some time, drifting in and out of sleep. Until, finally he was pulled from sleep fully as a loudspeaker crackled to life.

"All hands prepare for warp transition, The Emperor points and we obey"

The Imperial Navy loved their little quotes before entering the Warp. Cade didn't think it helped, but even he enjoyed the routine. If he could see what the ship Captain and navigators saw he would be more understanding. If one was to look out the bow of the Distant Hand, they would see great maelstroms of energy forming in response to the power of the ship. Great engines shuddered, the air filled with the smell of ozone as the Gellar Fields winked into existence to protect the flimsy humans within from the predations of the Warp.

As the Distant Hand entered the Domain of the Damned the loudspeaker continued. "Through the Warp and faraway"

As the warp tugged on the sanity of their souls, Cade had a distinct vision of a single rose, and silver eyes.