Assault at Aycliffe

Looking up at the servitor, a gift from Inquisitor Grilli, Adept Low tried to recall his designation. “Argos, what is the situation?” The servos in Argos` neck whirled as he looked down at the data slate and his cold mechanical voice responded “The bulk of the research team`s security force has been despatched on retrieval duty.  They should return from the Volkstan dig site in 3.2 days.  Until then our defences are minimal.  They consist of Carnacki, Silence, Burrage, Heron, this unit, and yourself.  There are two long arms, and two small arms available.  In the stockpile there are two thousand rounds of.”  Low cut the servitor off with a motion of his arm.  

Located on the outer edge of the Aycliffe sector close to the Volkstan wastelands research station beta was about as far from the centre of civilisation as you could be on Dubris XXI.  A location and situation that usually suited Adept Low perfectly, his work was always of the utmost importance to him, and civilisation tended to interfere with occult psychological research.  

But ever since Inquisitor Grilli had instructed him to set up a dig site deep in the Volkstan tribes’ territory tensions had been growing and now a raiding party had been spotted on the outer sensors.  Adept Low sighed to himself there was not much that could be done.  “Argos, instruct the others that we are expecting guests, and they should be met with a warm reception.  I will keep working on these crystal memory fragments that were brought in with the last shipment from the dig site until the locals arrive.” The servitor nodded and went outside.

Adept Low instructed the defenders to take up defensive positions around the research station. 

As the tribesmen moved towards the research station the defenders settled into their positions and opened fire.  The dense foliage around the research station meant that only Silence and his auto-gun found its mark.

The Volkstan leader calmly strode through the fire being direct at him. Focusing his mind, he channelled the warp through himself.  He pointed his staff at Heron and Burrage an unnatural hurricane pinned them to the ground.

Knowing that the only way to survive the overwhelming odds that they faced was to break the morale of the Volkstan, Low ordered Carnacki and Argos to charge two groups of tribesmen.  Argos was fortunate the group he charged were only armed with melee weapons.  In the melee, Argos felled one of the tribesmen with a devasting kick from his bionic leg but was overwhelmed by the blows from the other tribesmen.

Carnacki was not as fortunate as he rushed towards the tribesmen, they opened fire with their archaic weapons.  A massive wall of smoke surrounded the tribesmen and as Carnacki emerged out of it he staggered and fell.  A musket ball had hit his unprotected skull.

The tribesmen whooped in triumph. Having dealt with the armoured threat that was Carnacki they turned their attention towards Adept Low.  They fired their weapons as one, several musket balls hit him, throwing him to the ground, but none of them penetrated the mesh armour he wore under his lab coat.

Realising that the research station could not be held Adept Low gave the order to retreat.  Silence, Heron, and Burrage laid down covering fire, felling another tribesman, as Low led the retreat. 

The Volkstan leader was not finished with the defenders of research station beta.  Once more he called forth the powers of the warp and shattered Silence`s mind with the raw power of that infernal realm.

Sensing that they had won the day the tribesmen surge forward hoping to catch some of the defenders before they could escape. 

Neither Burrage nor Heron liked being beaten by the Volkstan.  They had faced xenos in the quiet of space and survived.  Now, they were running from primitives, but they would not leave Silence to the mercy of the tribesmen.  As they fled from the field, they scooped up the power armoured warrior.

The Volkstan warriors followed the survivors of research station beta, but without much fervour.  They had got what they had come for.

Or had been sent to retrieve.