Warhammer 40k is owned by Games Workshop and I make no money off the use of their work.

You know whats great about Warhammer. The whole Warhammer world is like a tool box for your imagination. You get these great races and rules but you can play around with them so it's not so set in stone.

This may be risky but I'm going to try for a more character driven Warhammer fanfic. Risky because if my characters suck then this will all be on me if this story falls flat on it's face. Still I don't think there's enough character driven fanficion in Warhammer. Just my opinion agree or disagree but that's how I see it.

Loyalty and The Greater Good

by Slayzer

+Part I+

+Tau Orbital Space Station over the Sept world of T'olku+

Aun'ui Au'taal Li'Sun'yi took a deep breath to calm herself. If nothing else the young Tau Ethereal could control her own breath even if the everything else was out of her hands. Her nervousness getting the better of her Li'Sun'yi toyed with her long brad of flame red hair. Unlike most Tau who either had no hair on only a ponytail Li'Sun'yi had a full head of long bright red hair. The cream and gold robes that she wore as an Ethereal felt tight and heavy as if the fabric knew she was unworthy. Even the honour blade on her hip felt like awkward even though she had trained tirelessly to master them.

Alone her privet transport felt like a coffin and that confronted her. As a little girl Li'Sun'yi liked small places to hide. It was as if the more walls she could place between herself and the world the safer she felt.

The transport stopped with a whooshed as the hover jets cut of and it came to rest on the ground. Li'Sun'yi took one last moment to collect herself before the door opened. Even as a low ranked Ethereal Li'Sun'yi had to at lest projected the serenity that the ruling cast had. It was all for the Greater Good and it was what the all Tau wanted to see when they looked at an Ethereal, even if it was a lie.

There to greet Li'Sun'yi were several full Cadres of Fire Warriors who snapped to attention at the sight of her. The Shas'vre of the Cadre greeted Li'Sun'yi personally and she was slightly intimidated by him. The large scared veteran of many battles for the Tau and here he was lowing himself to a girl who had done nothing but been sheltered her whole life.

"Aun'ui. I am Shas'vre Notan. Me and my Cadre are all prepared to die for you if you require it of us."

This would be her first mission as an Ethereal and even with all her inexperience and self doubt Li'Sun'yi could not let the honor of her cast and the Greater Good be damaged by her timidity.

"As we all must such sacrifices for the greater good." Li'Sun'yi said brushing past Notan and headed down toward the dock and the waiting ship.

Li'Sun'yi felt she didn't need such loyalty and wanted to say something about how their deaths would not be necessary. However the Fire Cast would have felt insulted if she so causally threw their oath of loyalty back them. The fact was those solders would be call on to fight and possibly die for the Greater Good. If not for her now then on some other day.

Standing in front of the docking port was the Kor'el or the ship's captain. He had come greet the ethereal and pay his respects as well. How Li'Sun'yi wished this would all be over. The needless posturing and gestures of reverence that shamed her because she had done nothing to earn them but be born into a cast. Yet just as the lowest of earth cast lived their life surviving in the roll they had been born into so must she, all for the Greater Good.

Just then a lone dark blue and red gun drone flew over head. It scanned the area as if on a hunting program and swooped this way and that. The gun drone then let out several loud synthetic chirps with heavy bass, it sounded like 'woof, woof.'

The lost drone then flew up to Li'Sun'yi and scanned her. It must have like what it saw because the drone then started to whimper happily as if begging. Li'Sun'yi smiled for the first time in days. The odd little drone had broken the tension that she herself could not. Looking closer at the gun drone Li'Sun'yi saw human script panted on left side of it's domed head. 'What dose this say, Bucky?'

The sound of heavy and fast moving footsteps followed, footsteps that were unmistakeably human. "Good work Bucky you found the ship!"

Li'Sun'yi and the whole Fire Warrior Cadre turned to face one lone human running up to them. The gun drone, Bucky, flew to be next to it's master's side like a faithful pet. The human took note of the many angry Tau eyes watching him. "Or is this not the right docking port."

The human was dressed in a long cobalt blue coat and pants over which he wore dark red Tau body armor. The Tau armor had to be enlarged to fit the taller human body but it was of the same make, with heaver armor on the left arm. His skin was a light tan color in the way that humans seemed to come in an madding number of hues. His long blond hair was tied off in a ponytail and his green eyes a sharp and alive.

Li'Sun'yi took note of the human. By his armor, kit and pulse rifle slung over his shoulder he was clearly a Gue'vesa. The shield on his left arm was emblazoned with the sigil of the Tau Empire but the armor color was that of red human blood.

The lone human back away and pulled himself up into a sharp salute. All that did was make the natural height differences between him and the fire warriors all the more pronounced.

Shas'vre Notan marched purposefully next to the human. "How dare you disrupt the procession of an Ethereal!" he said glaring at the human's chest with all the furry he could muster.

The human stayed at attention his chest out and eyes forward. This meant he couldn't see the face of the enraged Shas'vre. Even so Notan was not about to ask the Gue'vesa too lower his head so he lock eyes with him.

"My apologizes Shas'vre. I had no idea there was an Ethereal present."

"How could you not recognized one from the Ethereal cast!"

The human didn't say a thing as he knew his answer would only upset Notan even more. A soft and amused giggle from Li'Sun'yi broke the tension. "Is it because all Tau look alike with our Blue skin, flat faces and hooves?"

"I wouldn't say that but even as one raised among the Tau I still have trouble with picking out individual Tau faces..."

For the first time the human looked the Ethereal cast woman. She was taller then the fire cast troops. She looked more like the water cast teachers who raised him but the way she carried herself was totally different. The "Y" shaped indention on her face that all Tau women had gave her face an almost human like proportion. Then add in her long brad of flame red hair and she was the most unique Tau he had even meet.

"... but I'm sure I would not forget yours."

Li'Sun'yi turned to face the Kor'el of the ship. "Was this Gue'vesa to have passage on your ship?"

"Yes but that was before we knew we'd have the honor of transporting one such as yourself, Ethereal. It seems as if he didn't get the notice for a rescheduled flight." the Kor'el explained.

The human got frustrated. "I did and the next transport heading to Ko'io'Run'al won't leave for a Kai'rotaa." he said using the Tau word for month. Ko'io'Run'al was the world that Li'Sun'yi was being sent to observer and make a report on it's progress. Her visit had overridden much of the ship's schedule and so the human was left without a ride.

Li'Sun'yi ignored the outburst. "Kor'el surely there is room on your ship for one more body?"

Naton could not hold back his shock. "Ethereal! Even after all this Gue'la as dared to..."

All it took as a wave of her hand to silence the Shas'vre.

Li'Sun'yi walked around the Gue'vesa slowly looking him over. This was the first time she seen a Gue'la that was not a holographic picture from one of her study programs. Li'Sun'yi ran her four fingered hand across the heavy left shoulder shielding of his armor.

"The Sigil of the Tau emblazoned over the red color of human blood. There is meaning in this I take it. "

"Yes, The red human blood of my fellow Gue'vesa surrounding and emboldening the Tau emblem is to me us Gue'vesa supporting the Tau Empire."

"I would know your name Gue'vesa."

"Karl T'olku R'myr."

"You've gone so far as to take a Tau name and it is one that is not unknown to me. I have heard the name T'olku R'myr spoken by others of my cast."

"Then I am honored."

"I did not say it was spoken well of. You humiliated the Fire Cast before billions of loyal Tau when you defeated Shas'O'Jeth'ri and his army in a war game. Some of the fire cast believe it was an attempt to stir a Gue'la revolution within our empire."

"I thought the purpose of the war game was to ready the Shas'O'Jeth'ri and his troops for battle against the Imperium. If I was to play my part well I had to lead my men as if we wanted to win as the Imperium will not care how badly they hurt Shas'O'Jeth'ri's ego in battle. Also I was against the water cast broadcasting our training battle across the Sept."

"Your lucky it was. O'Shaserra herself saw the record and with a few words of praise for your tactics and efforts removed all doubts from your loyalty. Shas'O'Jeth'ri was reassigned away from a planed annexing of a Imperium world because of his lose to you."

Karl smirked at the news. "Then his men should thank me. Otherwise he would have gotten them needlessly killed."

"Jeht'ri has sworn to regain his honor for his humiliation at your hands."

"Shas'O'Jeth'ri hated me for being human. Defeating him only gives him an excuse for a vendetta. I just wanted to prove to him and the other Tau like him that the Gue'vesa are true followers of The Greater Good."

Li'Sun'yi half listened to Karl as she saw the long combat knife strapped to his hip. It wasn't a ceremonial bonding knife but a tool of war. It was what gave Karl his Tau name R'myr 'long knife' and he was something of a legend with it. A gifted master of hand to hand combat, the one form of fighting that the Tau weren't naturally proficient in.

"So you would have us trust all Gue'la based on nothing but your word. A Fire Cast Warrior would take his own life on only the word of an Ethereal. Do any Gue'veas have such strong loyalty to us?"

Karl locked eyes Li'Sun'yi and she found herself unable to hold his gaze. It was something in the un-Tau like human eyes. Those rings of white and green with a deep soulless black center that made up a human's eyes. "That sounds more like control then loyalty but if that's what it takes..."

With a speed and grace that took the Tau Fire Warriors by surprise Karl grabbed his knife and put it in Li'Sun'yi's hands. Then with her hands holding his knife he brought the blade's edge to his neck. "...then take my life if it will prove my devotion to the Greater Good."

Once over the shock the gather Fire Warriors sprang into action. Dozens of pulse riffles were expertly trained on Karl's head. The only thing that gave them pause was how close the Ethereal was to their target and they could not bring themselves to endanger her.

However to Li'Sun'yi and Karl the only thing that existed in that moment was each other and the knife between them. Unlike the honor blades that she trained with the knife felt awkward and heavy in her hands. It was not so much the knife itself but the fact that this wasn't training. If it weren't for Karl's hands holding her steady they would be shaking. He was unflinching even as he willing up his life in her unsure hands.

Li'Sun'yi didn't want this!

She never wanted to be in a position like this. To have someone's life in her hands be it a Tau life or not.

A Earth Cast builder can always rebuild and fix a mistake.

A Fire Cast Warrior can win in the next battle if he retreated.

But an Ethereal was to be infallible. Thousands of lives ready to die at her word but what if she chose wrong? One mistake could damage the faith and loyalty of the Tau people and how could she make that up?

The blade cut lightly into Karl's neck drawing a thin bead of blood. The brightness of fresh human blood was shocking to Li'Sun'yi. Red blood was such an alien sight to her.

"Your hands..." Karl spoke softly.

At first Li'Sun'yi didn't know what he was talking about but then she got it. His callous hands felt like her own hands. Hands made rough by countless days and nights of training and practice, him with a knife and her with her honour blade. Those the human and Tau hands that were so different in number of fingers and color but Li'Sun'yi and Karl's hands had the same feel.

With a clatter the knife hit the floor.

A fraction of a moment later and had Li'Sun'yi slapped Karl across the face. Her four digit hand leaving a unique imprint on his peach skin.

"HOW DARE YOU!"

The Fire Warriors tensed up at Li'Sun'yi's agitated voice.

Karl was as indifferent to her anger as he was to the knife to his throat. "All my life all I wanted to do was walk in the path of the Greater Good and repay the Tau Empire for the many blessing they have given me. However it seems that I have committed the one unforgivable sin of the Tau, I have dared to standout. Now I am separated from my comrades and reassigned to a garrison on a unimportant farming world. They even dare called it a promotion as if I can't see it for what it is."

Li'Sun'yi bent down and picked up Karl's knife. "If you truly believe in the call of the Greater Good then you will act when it calls upon you to act. Even if what the Greater Good asks of us is not what we would ask of ourselves."

Karl couldn't read the look in Li'Sun'yi's alien eyes but he did notice that she switched form using singular to plurals. It was almost as if that was a speech she often told herself.

Li'Sun'yi returned Karl's knife to him. "Also know that there is no such thing as an 'unimportant' world in the Tau Empire. Nor is there such a thing as an unimportant life in the Greater Good."

Karl bowed respectfully to Li'Sun'yi. "The Ethereal is most wise."

Li'Sun'yi faced Naton and the ship's Kor'el. "This man will travel with us but I don't want to see him during the trip."

The Kor'el handed Naton an data tablet with the list of ships crew and troops that would be accompanying them. Naton saw something and smiled. "As you command. I believe I've found some appropriate accommodations for our Gue'la guest."

With that Li'Sun'yi and the Fire Cast accompanying her started to board the Emissary-Class cruiser.

Karl waited with his trusted reprogrammed gun drone Bucky. Somehow he thought that was too easy and knew that this would be an interesting trip.

+On board the Emissary Cruiser+

Karl was always grateful that when the Tau were building the new class of Emissary star ships that they took in to consideration the possibility of non-Tau passengers. Whenever Karl traveled on an older Tau vessel he was always banging his head on the doorways. The Emissary had been built with doors and ceilings that a Tau would find a little to big but the right size for other races.

However the Fire Cadres had taken most of the bunks and no one wanted to share a room with the odd human out. Naton had said that there was another group of auxiliary soldiers on board and that Karl could bunk in with them.

'Kroot. I just know it.' Karl thought sourly.

It had happened more times then he could count on join missions. The Tau would place the Gue'vesa between them and the Kroot so they could be spared the sights, sounds and smells of the Kroot eating habits. Just how long would it take them until the Kroot absorbed some DNA that taught them hygiene?

Karl and his trusty pet gun-drone reached the room they were assigned he sniffed the air. Nothing, none of the fresh kill cadaver body order that follow the Kroot around like a cloud.

The doors slid open and a blast of hot wet air hit Karl like a fist. Whoever was in here had the climate and humidity set all the way up. Stepping into the room Karl saw who and what is roommates were.

It was a group of Tarellian mercenaries.

Tarellian dog-soldiers. A lizard like alien race that had a small empire until 31st Millennium when the Imperium virus-bombed their homeworld. Now the sell their martial and military skills to any alien race willing to pay.

It goes without saying that even after 10 centuries the Tarellians still hated the Imperium and while Karl wasn't Imperial he was human.

From the looks of inborn ancestral hate in their cold eyes Karl knew that his not being part of the Imperium would mean nothing to them. He licked his lips and tossed his backpack and kit onto and empty bunk but kept his back to the door.

"I have to say that I never thought I meet a Fire Cast with a sense of humor and a nasty one at that." Karl said ruefully as he flexed his arms readying for a fight.

Karl beckoned the Tarellians to come at him. "I quickly learned that nothing I say will ever make what my people did to anyone in the Galaxy go away. So I've stopped apologizing for my long dead ancestors because they wouldn't give a shit and nether do you. So why don't we just get on with it?"

The room full of Tarellians started to move toward the lone human like a pack of hungry dogs.

+End Part I+

like I said this will be more character driven then action but there will be battles later, after all this is Warhammer 40k not the UN.

Now on to some short character bios.

Aun'ui Au'taal Li'Sun'yi

A young and beautiful Tau (if you think a Tau woman can be beautiful) Ethereal.

Personalty wise she's a bit of a daddy's girl and sheltered. She loves and respects her father but feels the wight of his shadow and the her duty as an Ethereal is crushing her. Li'Sun'yi greatly doubts her own untested abilities against the exceptions of being an Ethereal. Yet under her insecurities is a strong and compassion heart filled with just cause.

Her name means Wild Flower in Tau.

A/N: I have no idea what an Ethereal dose in a fight other then being better in close rang combat then most Tau. I also learned that an honour blade is like a pike or spear and i thought it was more like a katana. I'll have to sort that out...

Karl T'olku R'myr

A human child raised by the Tau.

Even though Karl embraces the Greater Good his fellow Tau haven't been as embracing of him. He fights for recognition as hard as he fights for the Greater Good but that to has only made him enemies. Skilled in both human and Tau weaponry as well as close quarters combat. Being raised by Tau and the Greater Good as made Karl very open minded for a human.

Another benefit of his Tau eduction is his knowledge of technology. To him Technology is just an extension of civilization and a tool so he doesn't worships it as if it was some god like the Adeptus Mechanicus. He reprogrammed a Gun-drone "Bucky" to give it a dog's level of independent intelligence and treats it as a pet.

A/N: He's the rarest thing in 40k. A free thinking, open minded and pragmatic human. Maybe a little Felix Jaeger in him.

Tarellians?

Other then some fluff for background I've got nothing on them but I see them having a family and pack like mentality. I've seen some cool Lizardmen Fantasy customized with Tau parts as Tarellians but I picture them more like the Dragonborn from D&D and Krogans from Mass Effect. So male and female genders and a much more hotblooded then the Warhammer Fantasy lizardmen. That may be taking more then some liberty with them but without much to go on that's just what mind jumped to, Dragonborn and Krogans.