Sodden Streets

[Mechanized Haggis]

Asteri Lambda woke up at some Omnissiah forsaken time in the dead of what seemed to be an eternal night. His mind slightly groggy, his organic eye not yet properly adjusted to the light; or rather lack thereof. A pain shot up his left side as he moved to get out of the piece of hard, smoothe metal that classified to the man as a bed. He threw off the few salvaged pieces of cloth that did as covers, staring down at the old injured limb. It had gotten worse, as anticipated without help from a medical specialist and there were none in the underhive for commoners like him. He arose to his feet, grimancing as his left foot touched the ground but attempting to ignore its overall effect on his mental composure. "The flesh is weak, the machine is strong," he muttered, an old adage learned on Opus Macharius that seemed fitting at the moment. He stared up towards the crudely made symbol of the Mechanicus on the wall above his bed. As usual, he muttered an apology towards the Machine God for the lackluster symbol's worth however it was the best he could do with the materials on hand. Besides, the Omnissiah had more important things to do than look after some Enginseer who had already received his help on several occasions already, at least according to Logus. Asteri limped through to the next and only other room in his apartment, water was dripping through the ceiling; at least it could've once been called water. Now it was little more than industrial sludge tainted by salvage operations on the level above. Lambda had done his best to make the place comfortable for his companion however, as he gingerly went to awake Hypatia from her rest.


"The soul of the Omnissiah surrounds thee, the soul of the Omnissiah invests thee, the hate of the Omnissiah drives thee, for his sake can you please just get up Hypatia?" Lambda said, exasperatedly butchering the Ritual of Ignition commonly used to re-awaken machine spirits. Hypatia and he had long evolved past that formal boundary, to the extent where he considered the Servo Skull to be the truest friend he'd ever had. Hypatia gently floated, moving back and forth to suggest a nod. Lambda chuckled, he had always found the movements she made adorable. He would interface with her later on and have a bit of a chat but at the moment, he had far more difficult concerns. Namely that of more scrap metal for his latest project. Which meant leaving a position of relative safety to head outside into the festering streets of the Underhive. Which meant a very high probability of not getting back to work on the afforementioned project. Asteri's hand twitched slightly as it moved for his laspistol, which contrasted with the rigid, unfeeling movements of his mechadendrite that grabbed his robes for him. He patted the thing gently in appreciation before getting dressed, talking to Hypatia as he went.


"You know, there are regular people out there that would call me insane for talking to you and there are insane people out there who would find what I do incomprehensible. The only people that can understand are you, Logus, Errexus on a good day as well as the many people who want me dead," he tried to say in a relatively upbeat manner, "Am I therefor mad based on the whims of the majority or are we the only truly sane ones?" Lambda asked quizically. Hypatia made a gesture that they equated to a shrug.


"I'll take that as tacit agreement that it's best not to think about." Lambda smiled, his smile faltering as his hand shook relentlessly when he moved it to open the door. He was dressed by this point, the only thing hindering him was his own subconcious. He sighed.


"The brain is but one complex machine. It can be reprogrammed." He muttered in an effort to control his emotions through mental recitation of many Mechanicus texts. None of them worked except the one that signified his promotion to Enginseer, from the ceremony of commission.


"This Machine is discharged into your care, fight with this machine and guard it from the shame of defeat, serve this machine, as you would have it fight for you." He looked at Hypatia as he spoke the words, reaffirming his confidence in himself as he realised what he was entrusted with yet again.


As he stepped out onto the dimly lit cesspool of the Underhive, he immediately trod in something unpleasant that he stamped off of his boot about an instant after it was on. He looked around, scanning the area to make sure it was safe with the help of Hypatia, his optical implant allowing him to see through her eyes. As was customary for Lambda, he sent her to scout out the neighbourhood from above, watching his back as well as checking out the quietest places that should be safest to meet in, if the term "Safe" could apply to this quarter. Lambda didn't even know the name of it, he had just moved in one day because there was nowhere else, now he found himself neighbour to an old friend and a probable drug dealer or worse. Asteri made a concious effort to try to avoid limping as he moved down the street, limping made you look vulnerable and looking vulnerable was a surefire way to get yourself shot, stabbed or bludgeoned to death. All the time he moved forward in the way Hypatia advised, Asteri's right hand twitched involuntarily at his side.


"True machines do not fear. Such machines are the perfect form of being. I should strive to emulate them." He muttered to himself in an empty attempt to calm himself down, he moved through deserted streets that had once thirved as well as bustling streets where he was barely noticed. In at least five of them, one gunshot went off. In the same five, Asteri had frantically began speaking prayers in the Cant Mechanicus and hid. He resorted to having Hypatia trail closer behind him as he felt he was constantly being watched, even on the empty streets. He looked on the reason for his cowardice, the event that had happened a scant week ago. A bad gang raid on his street had ended in the deaths of 25 people in numerous horrible ways, five of which were caused in self defence with Asteri's own Laspistol. Marrik sure knew how to protect his turf though and everyone that survived had become more essential. Good for an Enginseer's business, bad for an Enginseer's already fragile state of mind, Asteri reflected as he finally got to Errexus' scrap pile, a little known place quite among the bustling Underhive.


"And here comes the man in red." She gave a theatrical bow as Lambda tentatively entered one of the few safe havens he had in this Omnissiah-forsaken place. Her hair was a shade of auburn, messy and unkempt due to a lifetime of poor maintenance in the Underhive. Her clothes were patchwork, tatters of old cloth covering what would be large gaps on a standard shirt and trouser combo. She was of medium physical build; probably stronger than Lambda himself, with a more rounded face and jade eyes. The most confusing thing about her to Lambda was her personality, somehow relaxed as well as carefree in such a hellish landscape. He suspected it was because she knew no different and for that, he held deep sympathy for her. As did Hypatia.


"Good day." Lambda said, cordially, as he limped towards a makeshift seat, attempting not to betray his various fears as he sat down. It was in his nature to give little away.


"Fairly long trek you've made for a couple of parts. Must be more than that today," she sighed as if already figuring things out. "That bastard Makkir is getting you to sort something, isn't he?"


Lambda looked up, slightly distressed and dismayed. "Heavy stubber. Needs it for "Crowd Control". Omnissiah preserve me, machines weren't made to cut down the innocent."


"Here's a wild thought," Errexus said in a delightfully sarcastic tone. "How about not bothering or at LEAST in forming the Arbites about it. Couldn't do any harm if you're quiet about it."


Asteri stroked his beard quizically. "It could do quite a lot of harm actually, greivous physical harm that I'm not prepared to undergo." He spoke without a hint of irony, sarcasm or humour, yet Errexus still burst out into seemingly erroneous laughter.


"You're so hard to take seriously when you're so stern faced! Remove the stick or mechadandrithingy from your arse and lighten up."


"My mechadendrite is implanted into my spine."


That comment earned him a slap in his machine like face.


"I said lighten up!" Errexus said, still laughing, as Asteri flinched from the violence and Hypatia moved to engage the perceived foe. Asteri frantically got Hypatia to cease this attempted attack after a series of garbled exclamations in the Cant Mechanicus. He then began laughing in spite of himself at how absurd the situation was to him. How in such a wretched place could there be such mirth? Their laughter died down a few moments later.


"Can I get the parts then?" Lambda asked, his serious, machine like exterior reforming.


"Only if you promise to go to the Arbites." Errexus said, her tone becoming uncharacteristically serious.


Lambda rolled his eyes, nodding. "I'll go to the thrice damned Arbites then. My death is on your head if anything happens, though."


Errexus smiled, not her usual carefree smile but one more of genuine gratitude. "Thank you, Asteri."


"Omnissiah protect you, Errexus." Lambda said in a similar sincere tone, he patted her on the shoulder in a manner that was the least awkward he could muster. She put the parts into a makeshift trolley that had been cobbled together Omnissiah knows how long ago. As Asteri turned to go the arduous journey back to his apartment.


"Your hands are shaking." Errexus said as she watched him leave, Asteri hung his head and froze in his tracks.


"I'm scared, Errexus." He spoke in a deflated, sincere manner. "Scared that the Mechanicus will catch up with me. Scared that I'll meet my end in some gutter with only Logus, Hypatia and you remembering me. Things have stayed the same down here for far too long, barely scraping by in a decrepit mess of a place yet I am unsure about how to change them."


She walked up to him, putting a hand on his shoulder to reassure him. "Go to the Arbites, Asteri. They'll help you."


"I will, Errexus." Asteri said sincerely, yet hurriedly as he limped into the darkness.

 

[Mechanized Haggis]

"Go to the Arbites, Asteri. They'll help you." The words echoed in his mind as he limped home through the ruins of the underhive, he would wonder about the history of the place as he did so, the magnificent histories, kings and conquerers that would've called this place home.


"Go to the Arbites, Asteri. They'll help you." Asteri looked towards Hypatia, making sure she was following him as well as keeping an eye out for any undesirables. He wondered if he was the first to attribute human qualities to a machine, he had read about the humans of old creating the dreaded "Soulless Sentience," a machine that could think as well as feel without a cogitator born of flesh.


"Go to the Arbites, Asteri. They'll help you." Being unable to shake the constant thought from his mind, he cynically decided that perhaps in some cases that it would be a good thing. He gazed about the streets, suddenly realizing he had no idea where he was, his only reassurance was Hypatia floating gently at his side, who didn't appear to have any sign of where she was either.


"Go to the Arbites, Asteri. They'll help you." Errexus' words rang in his mind, he cynically rolled his eyes. Arbites have too much to deal with, let alone a citizen who was questioning the competancy of his biological cogitator as his friend's words repeated in his head. Speaking of cogitators, an idea popped into his mind, which put it at ease. He could hold up on the abandoned street for a night or so, talk with Hypatia, perhaps even build up a small shrine to the Omnissiah and relocate. It was quiet here. Peaceful even, which confused the poor Enginseer. Asteri then began the ritual of interfacing with Hypatia, a small rtitual conducted entirely in the Cant Mechanicus, which said something roughly along the lines of "In the Machine God's name, open thy mind", followed by "Oh for the Omnissiah's sake, can we not have a bloody conversation?" to which the response was a nod from Hypatia. They began to converse.


"It is a good place for a shrine, is it not?" Asteri spoke pleasantly as he climbed up to the presumably abandoned second floor of the apartment, finding that it was just so. He sat down on a piece of Ferrocrete, ancient broken glass, likely millenia old had spilled out across the floor, the remnants of some ancient gang war, likely.


"The Omnissiah would appreciate your dedication, Asteri. He would appreciate it more if you gave me a clean once in a while." Hypatia responded in Cant Mechanicus, something Asteri believed he had installed in her cogitator long ago.


Asteri looked up apoligetically. "I'm sorry but you know fine well the only water I can get I need to drink. Unlike your happy existence floating around, I have to conduct maintenance on myself more regularly."


Hypatia fluttered around in a circle on the vertical plane, indicating rolling of eyeballs.


"At least this fleshy body can do some things you can't, like pour a bloody drink. Yes, I do remember that time you smashed that bottle of vintage Amasec and yes, you still owe me another one." The two made a series of clicks that passed as laughter in the Cant Mechanicus.


"At least I can aim a laspistol properly, whilst your hands jitter about like a malfunctioning servitor." Hypatia retorted in a manner that could only be described as "Sassy".


Asteri's happy demeanor instantly vanished. "The flesh is weak. The machine is strong. I'm well aware of my own imperfections."


Hypatia tilted herself to one side, indicating a quizzical expression. "I was only doing that human thing you do. "Joking" I believe it's called."


Asteri stared to the floor for a moment. "She was right, you know. The Arbites. They can help me. Help me get out of this mess. End the status quo that has plagued us both for so long. Advance like we did on Macharius, rather than wallow in our own filth." He stroked his beard in thought, Hypatia floated down next to him.


"You mean your filth. I cannot wallow, it's beneath me." Hypatia spoke in a mockingly snide manner, Asteri looked up puzzled.


"The Mechanicus chooses to emulate machines as a way of bettering themselves. Do you look to humanity as a way of bettering yourself?" He asked, sincere and confused, although well aware what he was discussing went well beyond the average scope of most Enginseers, infact it'd probably get him turned into a servitor. It was a fact he didn't bother to dwell on, if the Mechanicum discovered why he was on Necromunda he'd be transformed into one anyway.


Hypatia tilted herself in confusion. "You yourself are a machine that dedicates a wasteful amount of cycles to emotion. I am a machine that dedicates cycles to emotion when it is necessary. I am far from human, yet engaging one's emotions can offer new perspectives that would be idiotic to deny." She reasoned.


Asteri nodded, understanding his companion's reasoning in a way. "Then perhaps their intolerance of fleshbags is misguided. After all, we're all machines, just using different cogitators." Asteri stood up, moving to drag the parts for the heavy stubber up the stairs. "Bugger Makkir and his Heavy Stubber. This is better used for venerating the Omnissiah."


Hypatia floated next to him, picking up a piece of scrap metal, in order to lighten the load, which made Asteri smile.


Over the next few hours, they worked, creating as much of a display as was possible with which to venerate the Omnissiah. A lot of the iconography was burned on with their laspistols, tuned down a setting or so in order not to vaporise the mixture of materials, ferrocrete and plasteel. At the end, they had a shrine of higher quality than that of the one they possessed in Asteri's apartment. Here, they had discovered a zone of tranquility. Asteri stood up, admiring his work, thinking of the Picts he could take if he had a pict-recorder. He then turned.


"Hypatia. Remember this location. We're coming back here after a little trip." Asteri said, feeling a significant weight leave him.


"Where are we going to?" She asked, inquisitive as usual.


"We're going to the local arbites precinct to get Makkir dealt with." He arose, withdrawing his laspistol and striding into the streets.

 

[Mechanized Haggis]

Lambda nodded politely towards the Captain, urgently moving towards the storage at the back of the room. The Machine Spirit was in danger of ceasing to function within roughly four hours without emergency maintenance as well as a possible data scrub. There was also the possibility of some scrap code having infected it, which had caused several basic functions to undermine. Lambda's thought processes ceased as after a few steps, he was confronted with the man with the large augmentics that had brought him here in the first place. That in and of itself wouldn't bother him, it was the fact that the man who he'd heard identified as "Lieutenant" had a suitably large stub pistol in his hand pointed at Lambda's head. Immediately, the Enginseer froze up, biological responses infesting his previously clear mind like the scrap code that possibly infested the Machine Spirit in the other room. He'd been in situations like this before of course but at least then he had help and not as many potential opponents.
The Machine Spirit. Cogitator. Biological Cogitator. We're all just machines using different Cogitators...
Lambda's earlier conversation with Hypatia reminded him of the urgency of the situation at hand. Dedicating cycles to emotion was all well and good but sometimes those cycles had to be shut off, hard to do with a biological cogitator but possible. He began reciting classic Mechanicus theology. The Litany of Ignition. The Rite of Percussive Maintenance. These helped calm him in this situation. As he did so, he raised his hands. He couldn't help the poor thing if he was shot in the head after all. As the Lieutenant mentioned 'The Skull' a slight part of rage hit Lambda. Hypatia was more than a classic servo skull, she was a friend. A companion. One of the only people who had always stuck by him.
"Hypatia is more than just a skull, Lieutenant. She has been with me since I was a child on Opus Macharius and has a considerable amount of sentimental worth to me." The Enginseer's voice had moved from the cowardly, timirous chords that he had uttered since he got here, into more pronounced, cold tones.
"As for questions, please do hurry up. There is a Machine Spirit dying in the other room. I need to save it." The cold tone was once again replaced by one of involuntary urgency, whilst Lambda stared at the stubber in front of him with a look of slight defiance and little fear, completely focused on the task at hand. Saving the Machine Spirit.

The sting in his ribs tore at him as his optical implant's vision distorted and fizzled, his organic eye's vision was blurred and a brutal headache had taken ahold of him. His biological cogitator ached as if the thousand hammers of forge world workers attempting the rite of percussive maintenance on it. He had never liked that bloody rite and now understood the Machine's pain.


"Blessed Omnissiah," He groaned, moving onto his side, his optical implant successfully interfacing with Hypatia, he was now staring down at himself. Lambda looked up to see Hypatia in a forlorn glare, tilted towards the ground and moving on a horizontal plane to indicate the shaking of a head. As Hypatia saw him return to conciousness, she moved from her stupor into an energetic motion, lowering her altitude to match Lamda's on the floor.


"Asteri, are you alright?" She clicked in Lingua Technis, signifying to Lambda that they must be in a relatively safe place. That was not what he focused on however but at the now strange realisation that his left leg was completely numb.


"My head feels like it's experiencing percussive maintenance, Omnissiah's cogs, what happened? Are you alright?" Asteri grimanced as he attempted to shift himself into a more upright position, feeling a pain like a precision strike with a laspistol. He succeeded and now got a better picture of himself. The wrenched limb that had long been an imperfection of his had now been fully, for lack of a better term, buggered; appearing to have been quite badly broken. Strangely, he did not feel the pain however that did not make the sight of it any less sickening.


Hypatia floated into the field of vision of his organic eye, what made Lamda's head hurt was the fact he was staring at himself through the linked optical implant. The sight wasn't a pretty one.


"After your little episode with the enforcers, you got an augmentic fist into your right side, then the butt of a stubber into the temple. You were then taken to a part of the underhive we have not yet traversed, left there to presumably die or at least no longer be a problem. They appear to believe you were working with Makkir," Hypatia clicked in a slightly concerned tone. "Based on risk assessment of intervention I decided it would be best to see where they'd put you. They didn't appear to deliver the leg damage, that was done before I got here," she paused for a moment, visibly shaking. "I'm sorry I let you down." She clicked, attempting to convey the emotions of sadness and regret, within a language whose architects held both in poor regard. Her actions alone were enough to tell Asteri that she was visibly disturbed by what had occurred.


"Hypatia, you made the logical assessment, as you said, sometimes emotions cannot interfere with logical thought. You've nothing to be ashamed of. The Omnissiah has decreed my fleshy form is to be crippled for the moment," Lambda said, attempting to placate his friend in Lingua Technis. Whilst he did so, the thoughts of the night reeled back to him. There was a Machine Spirit that was now unavoidably doomed and not to mention he had poisoned his own cogitator with a profane oil the citizens of the Underhive had deemed 'rotgut'. He shook his head despite the pain it brought him, turning back to Hypatia.


"It's probably best we get back to the shrine and plan our next moves from there. Do you still have its location in your memory banks?" Lambda asked in an inquisitive tone, thinking up a plan as to how he could actually move.


"Of course, I may be upset but my Cogitator isn't suffering from a reboot. Unlike yours." Hypatia clicked in Lingua Technis. Lambda smiled as he realised she was getting back to teasing him rather than mope over a perceived grievance.


"Very funny. Sort of switched places now, I'm the one completely broken down due to neglect and you're the one patching me up." He quipped, keeping the banter going as he moved his mechadendrite, using it to apply downwards pressure, enough to get him on his one working foot. It'd be tartarus to walk on but would suffice.


"My malfunctioning servitor comparison is getting more accurate everyday..." Hypatia replied as Lambda took a few steps and fell flat on his arse. He grimanced, the pain from his ribs verging on the intolerable.


"Omnissiah's cogs!" He muttered as he pushed himself to his feet, "At least I'm in better shape than I found you in. For example, it doesn't take me twenty seven attempts to re learn the word 'Hello' and not ask for another oil margarita." He managed to take a few more steps, more like hops, really. Focusing on coming up with semi witty comebacks was improving his mood and making everything a bit easier. It would be a long trek back to the shrine...