Minervan State wrote:

Vol’shanar would immediately begin ordering all his men to wind down their attack after receiving confirmation from Talemus. Kholtar would be upset that he would not be able to capitalize on the attack and overrun the positions, but he would begrudgingly comply as they stopped their assault and left the valley.
As the Xenos retreated into the shadows in the dead of night, the base would be too damaged, and the units were too worn out to pursue the attackers to where they came from. It was one of their most significant and deadly operations in terms of casualties inflicted on the enemy while managing not to suffer even one dead. It was a cause for celebration for the rebels and a time for mourning and anger for the Humans.

Katharine lay on the ground, disoriented and bleeding from being hit by the blastwave caused by the explosion of ammunition. She was drifting in and out of consciousness. She would see medics carrying her to a medical transport heading for the medical facility on base as she fought to stay conscious and stave off her pain. She the bodies of the soldiers crushed by the falling wall, along with men who died from being shot, and most distressing of all was the corpses that had caught on fire from concentrated laser fire. It was a horrifying scene, the men in the same boat she was fighting to stay alive, the medics treating the wounded. It strangely reminded her of an attack she led against a Xeno camp; burned, dead, and dying rebels were strewn all about. This time it was her and her men on the receiving side. As they neared the medical facility, she finally blacked out.

Talemus would make his way back to the hideout where Vol’shanar and his men were waiting for him. He felt mixed emotions as he thought about what had just happened. He was glad that he had to fight robots despite how formidable they were. Robots weren’t living beings; they were still machines at the end of the day.

It would have been something else to shoot another person, see them bleed and fade away, and watch someone die. He looked at this prize, the pistol. There was something about it that felt off. It had the same feel as Talemus had being possessed. It could deactivate robots like it was nothing. He couldn’t even touch the robots because they were so hot from the laser, not that it mattered, as the memory data was corrupted, and he took the time to destroy all the footage there and destroy anything that could send a message to the outside world. He thought about outright burning the building down, but he did not want to stay there any longer and risk getting caught. He left his home, and he knew he couldn’t go back. As far as he knew, he was a wanted man. This was his life, running and hiding from the Hegemony.

Vol’Shanar greeted him and congratulated him for making it out alive. But for Talemus, his old life died in that building. Talemus could see other Xenos quietly celebrating, all congratulating themselves for their daring attack.
Vol’shanar would approach Talemus and talk further.
“Welcome to your new life. Welcome to our world; better get used to it.”
Talemus had earned some trust from the rebels by breaking into the DOI building and retrieving the pistol. However, he was still a human, rumored to be related to a ruthless human commander, which did not help his reputation among the Xenos, the only ones least likely to turn him in or put a laser through his head.

One of the main reasons that he didn’t get shot on sight was because of Vol’shanar’s orders. None of them didn’t agree with it. Still, command hierarchy is critical for a functional unit, partisan or organized. Not following it could get one killed or severely punished, but retreating when they had the upper hand was one thing. Harboring a human whose kind has caused total misery for their people is an order that would test the willingness of any unit. Still, Vol’shanar’s enigmatic contact would make it clear that Talemus is not to be killed by his men, and he must make sure they don’t get any ideas or let their anger and distrust get the better of them.

Talemus would tour the ad hoc but extensive headquarters of Vol’Shanar’s rebel force with the commander himself. It was rather elaborate for what he expected to be a ditch. They had dug out and reinforced a sprawling network of tunnels and rooms. It was impressive. He didn’t expect a rather elaborate headquarters for what was a rebel cell. As the tour winded down, Talemus would take some time to sleep.

The sun was rising, and a new day was upon them, the start of a new life for Talemus as he felt the world was against him. Talemus looked towards the skylines of Katarin city. They had never seemed so menacing before. He knew it was only a matter of time before he would have to undertake another dangerous mission in service for a man he never knew, guided by a sinister entity that torments him.

He didn’t have the luxury to dwell on it. Further, he was still living, and life still had to go on. The Lingerer knew it was a miracle that the plan went as well as it did. The Helenovicans would be increasing security. Talemus had to prepare for the next time they would have to infiltrate Hegemony territory.
“Talemus, you need to convince Commander Vol’Shanar to let you train more”

“It is a miracle that he trusted me with the pistol.”

“You must earn more trust; forming connections is crucial at this point. You don’t have to worry about them abandoning you. You know too much for them to just leave and be hunted down by the authorities.”
The Lingerer was right, and he had to prove himself further in order to build connections and survive.

“So this is what it is like to be a Xeno, living on the edge; I wouldn’t say it is living, more like just surviving.

The Lingerer would chime in
“Before you start moping around, remember this is the beginning. You still have a long ways to go, Talemus.”

“Thanks for the consolation, whatever your name is. Can you at least give me some time to mourn what I just lost”

“None can pronounce my name, not even the Vizier himself. Do you mourn your old life of quiet desperation, condemned to live a meaningless life?”

“The meaningless life of not constantly living on the run. The life where my job doesn’t involve possibly having to shoot my sister and be even more of a disgrace to my family.”

“You will see, anyways; get some rest, for we have to lay low for now.”
The following day came.

Vilanas and some guards exited their Air Transport and began to survey the scene of the wreckage of the burned-out transport that had nearly claimed the life of Katherine. Vilanas took an interest in the attack as it was near a facility that had shown signs of a break-in, but the intruder had covered their tracks diligently with no trace left behind. He would talk with the aftermath investigation team leader.

It was a puzzling scene, and this did not match the Modus Operandi of the rebels; they usually attacked low-risk targets, rarely attacking heavily guarded military bases.
“What about the adjacent facility,” Vilanas asked.

“All sentries were destroyed, all had their CPCs, and any efforts to recover information from their memory banks have proved futile.”
“Send a request to all civil authorities to devote more attention to black market activity.”

Vilanas finally found his break, which could make his superiors care and give more resources to his department. He had to prove the connection, for they had overstepped this time. Shortly before the attack happened, he was due to visit the medical wing of the base to collect evidence regarding a deceased soldier and an unauthorized visit.

Meanwhile, Katherine woke up, her vision was hazy, and everything, the lights, the sounds of the machines, the conversations, everything felt overwhelming. She felt a searing pain in her abdomen.

The pain would subside after the initial searing burst, and her vision would clear. She didn’t attempt to get up. She felt distraught at her situation, not the injuries but the idea of being sidelined from the battle. She could still feel all her limbs and the pain was most concentrated on her torso. She had cuts and scratches from the battle. She had gotten lucky. The room was near identical to the room where she encountered Nila. It was a terrifying feeling being in a setting so similar.

“She’s awake,” she heard one of the people in the room say

“How bad is it?”

“Easy now. You only suffered concussions from the blast and mild burns, nothing that some pain suppressants won’t be able to take care of.” The nurse replied

“So that means I will be back to service.”

“Not for a few days,” The nurse plainly spoke

Suddenly the door was opened by Vilanas.

“I’m requesting that you leave us alone for a few minutes.”

Vilanas would then show his ID, and the nurse would quietly leave the room
“Who are you?”

“I am Director Vilanas Cess, and I am here to ask about your encounter with Nilas. You may have information relevant to my investigation.”

“So it was real,” Katherine muttered, lucid enough to realize the potential trouble she was in

“It was very much real. The security cameras saw you run back to your quarters. You would have been reprimanded for what you did in any situation, but these are extraordinary times, and this violation is too small for any substantial punishment.”

“So, what do you want to know?”

“I want to know if he said anything to you and what he said.”

“You wouldn’t believe what I would say.”

“No excuse not to tell me anyways, besides the investigation has forced me to have an open mind. Go ahead,” Vilanas said, clicking the record button on his device.
“All right then, when I saw him, he was burned and in excruciating pain, but he had this smile that he wore as he stared right through me. Here is the part where things got strange. He claimed that someone else was in the room. He referred to it as his friend. He was out of his mind. The things he said, the things he claimed that the “thing” was saying, and the injuries must have also fried his brain. Everything felt like dissolving into nothingness the more I talked to him, it was like a fever dream, and I started hallucinating as I saw what he was referring to as his friend appeared on the screen of the receiver in his room before everything around me was dissolving. I don’t remember anything after that.”
“Are you sure that is all you remember?" Vilanas asked.
“Yes,” Katherine answered.

“Then I believe I have nothing more to ask you about.”
Vilanas would then leave the room. He felt more vindicated than ever as Katherine’s account matched reports of similar cases, such as victims claiming the presence of non-existent beings to shared hallucinations of individuals who were not directly affected. He wasn’t just grasping at straws or simply desperate, as some of his superiors believed. Someone or something was out there, and he would find and stop them, not comprehending what he was getting into.

Vilanas would then collect evidence relating to Nila, such as the drives containing psychological interviews, and began working away. He made sure he had the files backed up to a physical device, given the disappearance of digital files. He already had the files sealed regarding the incident that led to Nila’s death. To Vilanas, not even whatever was hiding could escape the eyes of the Intelligence Directorate. Vilanas would hurry back to Katarin city to begin evaluating the evidence.

Meanwhile, Talemus would begin his quest to earn the trust of the Xeno fighters and prove himself useful as tensions regarding him escalated among the soldiers. The Lingerer continued to manipulate Vol’shanar by acting as their anonymous benefactor.
An atmosphere of paranoia would be building up among the Xenos. A human was among them who came out of nowhere. They had only been notified at the last minute when Talemus arrived before having to perform in a seemingly suicidal attack so brazen the entire planet must be after them now.
Kholtar was cleaning his rifle, reflecting on the previous day’s events. Everyone is on edge with Talemus. One of his comrades, Yatom, would approach him to talk about the matter.

“Vol’shanar has been acting strange. Lately, he keeps shutting himself in his quarters and talking to his contact, and don’t get me started about the Human,” said Yatom.

Yatom was one of the most skilled fighters in the entire cell, having been a criminal in his youth before joining the Auxiliary Corps. He was one of the most independent-minded in the cell as well.

“I know, but his bet on the human and the operation went off without any complications, too much to be dumb luck.” Yatom said

“You should know more than anyone else about how incompetent they tend to be” Kholtar replied

“That can only explain so much, We caught them entirely off guard, and they couldn’t seem to get it together. It went perfectly!” Yatom exclaimed, still trying to comprehend what had happened

“The Hegemony isn’t at its prime anymore. What if things are just finally looking up, and you’re just too cynical to see that.”

“The Human is a whole another case of suspicion. I’ve known people more skilled that died doing things only a tenth as dangerous as what he did, and he is no commando.”

“Look, my job was to make sure they kept their heads down while he did whatever he did.” Kholtar tried to dismiss what Yatom was saying

“Ugh, Kholtar, you sound like the Humans I had to put up with back during auxiliary service. They were just as robotic as the actual robots that did their dirty work. We don’t have the luxury of being idiots who blindly obey what their superiors tell them to.”

“You know, we raided a supply depot a few months ago. We got a few crates of ammunition. They fought so hard to reclaim a few crates. Your squad blew up a truckload worth of ammunition.” Valkna said.

“What does that have to do with anything?” Kholtar asked

“They are desperate even to the last round, and we just blew up at least several weeks worth of ammunition. I have to agree with Yatom here, something is going on.”

“What if the Human is an infiltrator, and they

Before they could continue their conversation, Yatom saw Vol’Shanar heading to the lower level of the base. Yatom’s curiosity finally burst forth and took hold of him. Valkna wanted to say something but Yatom was so quick that he already began going down the stairwell. He glimpsed them, going into one of the larger rooms on the left side of the hallway.

He quietly shadowed the commander, who entered one of the rooms on the left side of the hall. It was a room with some computers. Yotam could make out what Vol’shanar was saying.

“I know I have every reason to trust who you are, but what you ask of me will appear madness to my men.”

The mysterious individual replied, “Soon, all will be revealed to your men, and they shall see his vision.”

“Who’s he?” he could hear Vol’Shanar say with confusion and fear in his voice.

“That is not of concern; for now, your men must be suspicious, paranoid, their instincts rising, maybe even against you. Some will try to act against you or Talemus, maybe at this very moment.”

“They have gotten suspicious about everything, and the presence of Talemus has amplified it by multitudes.”
“You would think they would grasp the idea of a need to know basis at this point, but as mentioned before, the time is near that their curiosity will be quenched.”

Yotam felt like it was a veiled acknowledgment of him listening in. There was something about the individual, Vol’Shanar was talking to. He could hear it clearly while he struggled to make out what Vol’Shanar was saying. Whatever it was, it wasn’t human, much to his relief, but it sure wasn’t any known Xeno.
Yotam would stop listening in, there was something not right about the whole situation, and he didn’t feel like finding more.
As he made his way to the upper levels and got up to one of the floors, he heard a voice.

“Nice work avoiding detection.”

Yotam looked around, but there was no one there

“I’m not here physically, per se.”

“You’re the same person talking to Vol’Shanar.”

“Correct”

“HOW.”

“He thinks I am just someone who communicates only through text or voice via devices, but my nature is something that beings like you could call supernatural.”

Yotam felt frozen, stuck, and struggling to move. He had to think.

“Why would beings like you care about us now of all times.”

“If you paid attention to the little chat you were eavesdropping on, I said it would be revealed soon.”

Suddenly the presence was gone, and Yotam made his way to the main room where he was before.

“So, what did you find out?” He heard Kholtar ask

“I heard nothing suspicious,” Yotam replied. He dared not discuss what had just happened.

“We talked about it more while you were gone, and yeah, you are right. There is something suspicious about the Human. Something needs to be done about him”
Meanwhile, at Katarin City, Vilanas had begun assembling the case to find the spies within. He felt obsessed with the mystery he hadn’t felt before. He opened up the case and took out the drives containing the recordings and documents regarding Nilas. He put the first recording labeled “PVT N REC no. 1”.

He put it in his computer, and within a few seconds, the audio file was ready to play.

“This is Dr. Varnos interviewing Pvt Koyar Nilas. Due to the circumstances of his injuries, we have fitted a translator on his body for convenience of conversation.”
“It is such an honor to meet you, Dr. Varnos,” the flat tone of the translator said.

“You reported that you have been experiencing hallucinations, both auditory and visual, is that correct?”

“I did, but now we know they are very much real. I mean, We have seen the truth that lies beyond our senses.”
“By we, who else may be in this room?”

“You are talking to him now, don’t you see it?” the translator suddenly processed the sentence in a different tone that was much more sinister.

“No, I don’t.”

“Of course, you don’t. I didn’t either until being shot” The translator suddenly returned to the standard flat tone.

“Should I call a technician to replace that translator? It seems to be having technical problems.”

“So you don’t see, but you do hear. It is not, in fact, a faulty translator; the Vizier would never have approved a faulty product.” said the sinister tone
“Who is this Vizier?” Varnos asked as he became increasingly disturbed

“Doctor, tell me, what model of translator is this?”

“I wouldn’t know?”

“Then check the hardware assembly on the left.”

“That is not relevant to this discussion, Nilas.”

“I SAID CHECK IT,” The translator said at a volume not possible with the translator.

“Fine, Its an Occultek NX-1.” Varnos said nervously”

“And who is the CEO of Occultek?”

“Enzo Varkanowicz, and what does that have to do with anything?” Varnos asked, puzzled.
“There is your answer, doctor.” The sinister tone said.

“He became a recluse about fifteen years ago, and he is now commanding you, Pvt. Nilas?”

“I am not Nilas, but yes, I am acting under his orders. I admitted it right in front of you, but that is our greatest strength, your inability to believe that we exist and only now just beginning to acknowledge us when it is too late to stop us now, but the game must continue for fate enjoys a show.” The sinister tone said in a confident voice.

Vilanas was disturbed by the remark, it did not feel like the ramblings of madness. No, it had a purposeful and calculating weight to it. It tormented him as to confront it, one would have to surrender their rationality and dive into the world of superstition to even look at its face, and it knew. It admitted the truth so nonchalantly, and because of Helenovica’s inability to humor madness, their kind wreaks havoc on the planet. It was like whatever entity was talking was directly acknowledging himself. He turned off the recording as he could not bear to hear it more.

As night fell and the members of the cell were all going to sleep, Kholtar and Valkna hatched a plot to take down Talemus. Both brought knives in case Talemus was to fight back. They slipped out of the barracks section of the underground compound and made their way to the nearby room where Talemus was. They had to be quiet, as any loud noise would alert Vol’Shanar and the rest of the soldiers.

They could hear Talemus seemingly talking to himself as they were near the door.

To them, he was talking to his superiors. They burst forth and lunged at Talemus, but before their knives could get close to him, they felt a force holding them back.

Talemus looked in shock as his attackers were kept from moving. Kholtar and Valkna felt a force strangling their arms.

“What are you doing!” Kholtar shouted

“I am not doing anything,” Talemus said as he was in as much disbelief as his attackers.

Suddenly a deep and low laugh came, and the Lingerer made itself visible. A figure almost 7 feet tall and pitch black with no features except on the face. It’s touch was wet and cold, and its grip was stronger than adamantium.

The noise made alerted the others, and soon, the scene was visible to the shocked soldiers, including Vol’shanar. The Lingerer looked straight at the small crowd in the hallway.

“And now all is revealed as you gaze upon me no longer concealed.”

“What are you?” Valkna asked, strained from the it’s unrelenting grip.

Soon Kholtar and Valkna were released and fell to the floor.

“I am a herald of The Vizier”

Minervan State wrote:

The Lingerer stood there, and for a few moments, there was only silence as the soldiers gazed at it. None had their weapons on them, not that they would dare draw theirs on it. Vol’shanar made his way past his men to see what was going on. There was murmuring among the soldiers as they looked at the scene of Kholtar and Valkna on the ground.

Talemus felt a sense of terror. Until then, it was only within the confines of his mind and in screens, and he had just assumed that only he could see it.
Kholtar and Valkna began sitting up. They were both covering the part of their arms that had been touched by the Lingerer. They both felt a searing sensation that was pulsating through their bodies which began to subside.

“Do you not recognize me, Vol’shanar?” The Lingerer said, and suddenly, the lights turned on. Despite the lights now being on, the room was darker than it should be, almost as if the being was a black hole that no light escaped from it.

Vol’Shanar came forward and looked straight at it. He had seen many species of aliens throughout his life, but nothing was as disconcerting as the demon.

“You are all dismissed. Return to your quarters,” Vol’shanar said, but they weren’t dispersing, only keeping their eyes fixed on the Lingerer.

“No, the time has come for us to stop hiding in the shadows.” The Lingerer said before Vol’shanar could say anything else. Vol’shanar was incensed that it was telling his men to disobey his orders, but He didn’t know what the demon was capable of, so he took it in stride.

“We are not that different, hiding in the shadows of the Hegemony, living on their hubris. Their arrogance is our camouflage. However, The Humans have held firm, and the pockets the FCS have managed to carve out are under constant strain. Meanwhile, Helenovica is extinguishing the fires in their sphere of influence.” The Lingerer said

“The Free C’ylvan States learned well from the humans in terms of their cruelty and ego, but their rebellion is a spark that will not catch fire precisely because of the FCS targeting non-C’ylvans and killing them along with the Humans. Your kind fights alone and shall die alone and be a footnote in this chapter of history. Do you not feel slighted that your kind has been only a thorn in Humanity’s side in the grand scheme? I sense rage and indignation at my words but know that I only speak the truth as far as it is concerned.” The Lingerer continued

“The Humans are falling, We have struck at them with impunity now, and they can’t do anything about it,” Kholtar said, still in pain.

The Lingerer pointed its hand at a large screen in the room. It lit up and displayed a star map of the Outer Rim. The Xenos fixed their gaze on the vast expanse of space. Then there were colors covering parts of it. Red for the Civilized Coalition, green for the worlds in anarchy or Xeno control
“Can’t even discern your homeworld from this map, all these planets you see in the red zone, all under Humanity’s thumb. Their numbers are unfathomable. One race alone can’t stop them. Your people reside in the dark heart of the Coalition against all the non-humans, even other Non-Humans are aligned with them. The FCS is but a thin layer of dirt on them. A speck of atolls amid an ocean. Some of you should know best, having served under the Vitruvian man before.” It said with a psychotic smile forming on it’s face.

The Lingerer felt it, so heavy and black, much like himself, the taste of despair rising from the minds of the fighters as they truly see their predicament. It was utter sweetness for it. It then began to pick up on denial of it in their minds. The map began to change as the red expanded slowly until it covered the entire map.

“Then, little by little, moon by moon, star by star, they will retake what they believe is theirs, and all will be for nothing.” It said as the screen once again faded to black.

“As far as the Humans are concerned, this cell is merely just a group of bandits hiding out and deep within the Human-held territory, far away from the nearest FCS territory. It is not just Human incompetence, but because of us, that this cell still eeks out an existence. Every piece of intel and every lucky break you get is because of creatures like me infiltrating and digging it up, covering your tracks, not just your cell. The entire resistance wouldn’t be where it is now without the Vizier. We are your only hope of breaking free from Human rule.” The Lingerer continued

“So a Herald of The Vizier has made itself known to us humble freedom fighters,” Yatom said with sarcasm and disbelief.

“Our Vizier, chosen by the Immaterium!” The Lingerer said with triumph in it’s voice.

“Why would we ever work for someone we don’t even know,” Valkna said with rage coursing every part of him. The rage and vitriol caught the attention of the Lingerer.

Talemus wanted to speak out and reveal who the Vizier was, but the Lingerer wouldn’t allow it.

“I see that all of you have no reason to side with the Vizier. Doubt is hard to kill, but it will drag you down and will be your doom. Leave them behind in the rotting carcass of this ancient order, or you shall die in the same inferno as your oppressors, for hatred doesn’t discriminate between the two. Kholtar! If not for Talemus, would you have gotten the opportunity to wreak havoc in a way that matters? Or you, Vol’Shanar, do not feign blindness to the foolishness of your leader’s ways. Put aside what all of you know and join the Vizier and see your enemies fall and purpose bestowed upon your existence! For this is an offer that no one can refuse, it is at these moments where fate does not allow choice, for, at this point in time, there is only one road before all of you!” The Lingerer exclaimed ecstatically,

The Lingerer’s form was becoming slightly unstable, looking like a black being of liquid. There was static in the air of the underground compound. All the Xenos and Talemus were in awe as it fed their deepest desires to be free and to have power over their lives and have meaning where so many of their brethren died meaninglessly.

Talemus thought to himself as he could only watch as he saw the Lingerer use the desires of the Xenos to manipulate them. He hadn’t moved since the moment Valkna and Kholtar had tried to kill him. It was disturbing seeing all of the Xenos bend to it’s will so easily. He didn’t know if they were desperate or brainwashed or even a combination of both. However, Talemus gained some insight into how demons like it operate from watching the being manipulate them with expressions of glory and the promises of freedom.

“So, are you ready to embrace destiny?” The Lingerer said to all of the Xenos in the room.

Vilanas slumped back in his chair in shock as the recording ended, proceeding to listen to it over and over, listening to the translator speak. It fascinated him to no end as he tried to think of any rational explanation for what he was hearing. He ordered that tech workers be sent to the building to inspect the recordings, the devices, everything.

The rank file had become concerned about how fixated he had become over the recordings and cases.

“No signs of tampering or corruption were found in any devices during the inspection, sir,” A technician said to Vilanas.

“Our greatest strength is your inability to believe that we exist and only now just beginning to acknowledge us when it is too late to stop us now.” the statement played in his head repeatedly.

“Every possible explanation ruled out. What does that leave us?” Vilanas said to the subordinate officers in the room.
They all said nothing; for a few moments, there was an awkward silence before Vilanas began to speak.

“our greatest strength, your inability to believe that we exist and only now just beginning to acknowledge us when it is too late to stop us now.” it played in his head once more.

“Perhaps we are thinking the wrong way this whole time,” Vilanas said with a hint of madness in his mind.
“Sir, what do you mean by that?” asked Hellane, one of the newer members of the Directorate.

“Sir, We are pulling long shifts already, We can’t just devote our whole—” Karolin said before being cut off.

“Karolin, listen, we are the Abnormal Warfare section. Investigating strange cases is our job, and Hellane, what I am saying is that we take ‘Abnormal’ to heart and started thinking that way,” Vilanas said, staring directly at her.

“What do you mean by that, sir?” Hellane said hesitantly.

“Abnormal, the opposite or absence of normal. We are investigating cases of abnormal nature that continue to defy all rational explanations. The key word here is rational.” Vilanas said as he pressed play on the audio player.”

“Our greatest strength your inability to believe that we exist.” The audio file played before Vilanas paused it once more.

“That was what someone or something said via a translator.”

“It doesn’t sound like—” Hellane said before being cut off again.

“But it very much is a translator, and they even state the model of the translator in the recording. But I get it. It is just an audio recording, and seeing is believing, and fortunately, we have video.”

Vilanas turned on the projector and began playing some of the video evidence. The group, except Vilanas, was shocked as the projector beamed the image of a severely burned man hooked to a translator.

“Due to the extraordinary circumstances of this individual, this session is to be recorded for posterity,” Dr. Varnos said.
“By all means, Doctor, let them see.” The translator dictated in its regular tone.

“Could you give more clarification about this, uh, entity that is with us now?” Varnos said

“What is there to know about beings like me? We serve the Vizier, his command is our purpose, and our purpose is his command.” The translator turned to it’s sinister tone before laughing.

The shift in voice sent shivers to the people in the room watching. Suddenly, the room became cold, and none felt safe there. Arlos wanted to leave, but Vilanas wouldn’t allow it.

“How many entities like you are out there?” Dr. Varnos asked with as much firmness as he could muster.

“I am not at liberty to disclose that, but I am not the only one here. We are the talk of many bases among your soldiers.” The translator spoke in that horrid cadence.
“What do you mean by that?” Dr. Varnos said.

“I’m sure you know what I mean, Doctor. You heard the tales of the undead Xenos and the brass chalking it up to nerves and stress. While the human mind is quite feeble, we are not simply the creations of weary minds.”
Vilanas paused the video.

“Notice how when it is on the normal tone, the lips are moving, but when it is in the abnormal tone, they aren’t. Or how it is directly contradicting the official position about those rumors,” Vilanas said

“What are you implying, Sir?” Hellane said nervously.

“What I am implying is that maybe those rumors are true,” Vilanas said.

“You seriously can’t be entertaining---” Arlos said before being cut off

“Last I checked, I am the head of this position, and if you haven’t been paying attention after seeing this, we can no longer entertain any reservations at this point,” Vilanas said calmly.

“He’s right, after seeing just a snippet of this, we can’t rule out anything,” Karolin said.

“Non-material entities might explain a lot about our existing cases. Think about it, strange behavior among both Xenos and our personnel.” Karolin continued.

“Vilanas, you are proposing that what are essentially spirits of some sort are taking over the bodies of Xenos and humans. Unless this is some Children’s ceremony, no one is going to buy it,” Arlos said dismissively.

“Children of the Warp? You might be on to something, Arlos.” Vilanas said.

“What about those xenophile cultists is there to say?” Arlos said.

“They aren’t the small cult they once were, after contact with Terra was lost, they have been growing exponentially,” Hellane chimed in.

“Well, what do we know about them?” Vilanas asked.

“The directorate has very little outside a crude understanding of their beliefs since we haven’t found them worth investigating. They mostly stay out of trouble and pay their taxes. They aren’t laser-happy terrorists.” Hellane said.

“And they just operate in plain sight?” Vilanas asked.

“Not exactly, they seem pretty decentralized because there seems to be no leader or official hierarchy,” Hellane said.

“Not that we know of,” Vilanas said.