The Multiverse Project: Warhammer 40,000

The stupid motherfuckers were forming up again, staying well beyond the effective range of their weapons. Tangmo, with Henry, Erik and Damien at his side, stalked across the battlegroup's impromptu defenses around the barn they had rescued Celestine and Greyfax from, the mismatched wall of sandbags, vehicles and random pieces of buildings belayed the fuckton of firepower they had brought to bear. The barren, smoldering eight hundred yards that separated the heretics of Izennir from the Immortal Spirit battlegroup was littered with broken, blasted corpses and body parts, even then the scums couldn't take a fucking hint.

"You look tense," Tangmo blinked, wrenching his troubled mind back to the present, and found himself standing amongst the Celestians and Banshees. Adjusting his awesome commissar cap, Tangmo glanced at Miriya and was honestly surprised to see genuine concern in her eyes.

"Yeah, sorry about that," Tangmo offered. "My head's a little bit in the cloud right now."

"More like a storm," Firnera added, arms folded across her chest, but like Miriya her gaze was kindly. The Banshee was silent for a moment, contemplating whether to say the thing on everyone mind, before pressing on guardedly. "Have there been news?"

"No," Tangmo sighed and the glooms on the nuns and elves' faces darkened visibly, the eldars themselves were close to tears. Even the Sororitas appeared frustrated, but whether this stems from concern for Isha or Celestine, Tangmo didn't know.

"Jesus Christ," Henry leaned heavily against a pile of sandbags, took off his awesome general cap, and ran his hand slowly down his face, trying and failing to hide how wrecked his nerve was right now. Erik joined him and placed a firm hand on his pauldron, earning a weak smile from the American.

"Do not abandon hope," Damien declared, the distorted voice amplified by his awesome Space Marine helm, unshakable in conviction. "Never lose hope, because if you lose hope then…well, what's the fucking point, right? Might as well put a bolt in your skull if…"

"Tangmo, come in, you there?"

"Go ahead Laura," Tangmo's heart dropped when he heard Laura across the intercom. He thought about keeping the conversation private but decided against it, instead opening the channel for everyone to hear. Around him Henry, Erik, Damien, humans and eldars froze on the spot, bracing themselves mentally and physically, the hollering mob beyond forgotten. "Give it to me straight."

"Celestine did it!" Laura screamed into his earbud, unrestrained in her bubbly joy. "Celestine exorcised Isha mate, she saved the goddess! We won! We fucking won! Isha's weak as fuck though, but Celestine is taking care of her right now!"

For several seconds all that greeted the British inquisitor's announcement was silence. Then the battlegroup exploded in cheers and jubilations. Humans and eldars leapt into each other's arms, hugging and jumping, hands were shaken with smiling vigor, weapons discharged victoriously into the sky, hats, caps and helmets thrown into the air, the cacophony of triumph rolled rapturously across Izennir ruinous vista.

"We did it! We fucking did it you motherfuckers! We fucking did it!" Tangmo spread his arms wide and ran at his friends. "Give me a hug you beautiful motherfuckers!"

Laughing boisterously, their cheering lost in the deafening cadence of celebration, Tangmo, Henry and Erik collided in an epic embraced, the three holding on tight, nearly losing their mind from all the jumping and screaming. Damien, although equally elated, was more composed as he drew the three into his great, armored arms, joining in with vigorous shaking that quickly morphed into bouncy happiness.

"We saved both Isha and Celestine! Holy shit!" Space Marines voice was not supposed to sound merry, but goddamn Damien managed to make it happens.

"Suck it you Chaos bitches!" Henry yelled then held up two middle fingers at the Izennir mob. "Fuck you too you degenerate pieces of shits! Go choke on a massive dick!"

"Oh my God, I'm so happy! I'm so fucking happy I'm gonna faint…shit," and Erik really did faint, the Swede swayed for a moment then collapsed bonelessly into Damien, who rightly gawked at the unconscious elf.

"Ah! Erik! Hang on man, we got you! Don't go toward the light!" Henry got hold of Erik and fanned his awesome general cap over the elf's face, while Damien spun around to greet his Space Marines buddies, shaking hands and slapping pauldrons in congratulations. Remembering that Leilatha was with the Cadian and the Praetorian, Tangmo adjusted his awesome commissar coat and turned his attention to the raucous feminine cheering on his left. Damn, he knew the Sororitas were somewhat chummy with the Aeldari now, but the last thing Tangmo expected to see was the two factions behaving like him and his homies, with embraces and cheers abound. Miriya and Firnera were one of those more restrained in exchanging congratulation, unlike the hugging Verity and Alnelle, the Celestian and the Banshee settling instead for firm handshakes, nothing but respect and joy passed between them.

"Shit, I'm gonna get castrated for this, but what the hell!" Riding the euphoric high, Tangmo threw his arms wide and, doing the unthinkable, drew Miriya and Firnera into a fierce hug, rightfully drawing startled gasp from everyone in the vicinity. Bracing for pain, especially in the groin area, the Celestian and Banshee instead returned the hug. And not some weak smattering thing too, but a full blown embraced sprinkled with light chuckles and powerful smacks on his back. "Holy crap, you two haven't killed me yet, thank you!"

"We're in a good mood," with a last parting squeeze, Miriya detached herself from Tangmo and Firnera, breaking off the hug. Miriya doesn't smile much, but that little upward tugging of her lips was beautiful to behold. "I rarely let a man touch me."

"Bet I'm pretty low on the list of people you wanna hug, huh?" Tangmo made sure his grin was snarky.

"You'll be surprise," Firnera gave Miriya an infuriatingly cheeky look, earning a narrowing one from the Celestian.

"Aww, I knew you always loved me!" Tangmo pouted, trying to emulate that puppy face Yuki had perfected, and not quite succeeding.

"Don't push your luck."

"Ahhh! Erik!"

Before anyone can react Verity, with Alnelle at her heels, dashed for the still unconscious Erik and relieved him from Henry. Within moment the hospitaller had the Swedish elf sprawled across her lap, a look of deepest concern on her face as she held a scented vial to his face, the American general and the elven medic stood nearby, watching and giggling at the romantic scene.

"Whoa, you must really be in a good mood for allowing that shit," Tangmo deadpanned but couldn't stop the mirth from entering his voice.

"I already let you touch me, what's one more act of generosity going to hurt?" Miriya shrugged, glanced over the wall, and tensed, all hilarity wiped away by returning intensity. "Someone approaches. Battle station! All guns at the ready!"

Following Miriya to the ramshackle defense, Tangmo drew his bolt pistol, assumed his bad ass commissariat persona, and found that indeed a group of the people on horseback bearing a white flag was strolling across no man's land toward them.

"I'll take them out," Casandra, Miriya's right hand woman and large caliber ballistic expert, hefted up her heavy bolter and leveled it at the approaching entourage.

"Now, now Casandra, let's us all chill the fuck out a bit," Tangmo placed his hand on the heavy bolter's barrel, unpleasantly warm but not scalding thank God, and pointed it downward. Cassandra swung her helmeted head at him, obviously glaring, but allowed the Thai commissar to move her weapon nevertheless. Adjusting his awesome commissar coat and cap, Tangmo vaulted easily over the defenses and approached the group, waving his friends to follow. "Come on, let see what those fuckers have to say, it'll be fun, trust me." He quirked a brow at the still unconscious Erik, "hey Verity, stay here with him, I doubt he, you and Alnelle are gonna like what I'm about to do."

"We will be here, lord commissar," Verity nodded and Tangmo tapped his earbud as Henry, Damien, the Space Marines, the Celestians and the eldars matched steps with him. "Korri, do you read?"

"Go ahead sir," Korri responded. "Be advice, I think what you're doing is an extremely bad idea."

"Duly noted, that's why I want every sniper within the vicinity to take aim at the dandy fuckers in front of us, more specifically their horses," Tangmo came to a stop about twenty paces from the richly dressed horsemen in shiny armors that had never seen a day of battle. They shuffled uneasily when the battlegroup spread out before them, "fire only on my command."

"You got it," was Korri chirpy reply.

"Noble lord commissar," a young man who couldn't be a few years older than Tangmo kicked his gilded horse forward, took off his hat, the wide brim European kind with the feather on top, and bowed with a highborn flourish. "It saddens me that our two parties must meet under such pitiful circumstance. The misunderstanding that had occurred is nothing short of heartbreaking and…"

"What the fuck do you want?" Tangmo snapped, causing the young man to gasp.

"Lord commissar, please!" The young man daintily clasped his hand over his heart. "There is no need for such profanity and hostility!"

"Bitch, I don't have time for your bullshit," Tangmo went on with his trademark charm. "So get on with whatever the fuck your hoity-toity ass has to say."

"Very well," the young man sat ramrod straight on his saddle, no longer flowery in his politeness as he glared down his nose at Tangmo. "You have unjustly interfered in the dispensing of Izennir's justice, and have without provocation brought untold suffering upon the people of this great and noble planet. The whore Celestine, the false saint who had blasphemed the divinity of the God Emperor with lies and treacheries, along with those who had helped and harbored her escape, will be brought to justice, as was decreed by the holy law of Izennir. We demand that the Immortal Spirit battlegroup surrender the woman to us, failure to do so will be met with swift, righteous retribution of our armed forces, backed by the full authority of the Ecclesiarchy." The stupid bastard was very pleased with himself, the self-righteous little grin was so woefully misguided. "I shall await your answer."

No answer came, only silence that stretched and grew until an oppressive vacuum encompassed the entourage, the kind that preludes violence.

"You finish?" Tangmo deadpanned, one brow quirked.

"Very much so, sir!"

"Pop their horses."

The resplendent equines didn't even neigh their death throe when the streak of las lanced into their skulls. The Immortal Spirit's snipers did not disappoint, their godlike accuracy ended the horses' lives before they even knew they were dead, none of them suffered, because Tangmo and his bros were nice people like that. The bodily death though, was not so graceful. The las must I've struck a nexus of nerves or some damn thing because the dead horses jumped and leapt into the air, throwing off their riders or crushing the dumb fucks in the process. Loud boos and screams of horror erupted from the watching Izennir mob, and with an easy flick of his hand Tangmo and the main characters closed in on the dazed noblemen trying to get up. And holy shit, the battlegroup went full mafia, cartel and yakuza on them, as in they beat the shit out of the highborn fuckers, their pampered, manicure faces pounded to pulping meats by falling fists and feet. Shrieks of dismay rolled from the watching mob while the battlegroup cheered thunderously, whooping and whistling as the Sisters of Battle and female eldars went berserk on the entourage.

"Should we…I don't know, do something?" Damien glanced at his buddies, earning only apathetic shrugs, and winced when a group of Battle Sisters led by the cackling Marie, the Harley Quin Sororitas of the Avenging Knights, started toying with the wailing survivors, drawing out their demise.

"Why? I'm fucking enjoying this," Tangmo groaned when specks of blood splattered across his awesome commissar coat. But before he can complain he noticed the leader of the entourage flopping miserably on the ground as Miriya, Firnera and the other Celestian leaders closed in on him, the women deaf to the young man's sobbing plea, "hey, whoa, whoa! Yo, stop! Don't kill him yet!"

"Is he always like this?" Ingonyama Zola rolled her eyes as Tangmo placed himself between the warrior women and the blubbering young man, making a pretty good recreation of the Chris Pratt and Raptors scene from Jurassic World.

"Unfortunately," Emmanis sighed and stopped her advance, although she refuses to sheath her dagger.

"Damn kill joy," Hitomi glared at Tangmo, katana braced on her shoulder like a badass samurai.

"That he is," Jenatea pointed her power war hammer at the cowering young man. "For all your boast and declaration, you will still show mercy to his kind? People who would torture and defile Saint Celestine?!"

"Oh, praise the Emperor! I throw myself at your mercy, lord commissar!" The young man leapt at Tangmo, looking to grab his leg, but the Thai commissar easily sidestepped out of the way, causing the highborn to dive face first into the mud.

"Did you fucking missed the 'yet' part when I said don't kill him?!" Tangmo sneered and the Sororitas and Banshees chuckled maniacally. "Fucking hell, you actually thought I was gonna spare your worthless ass?! What in the actual fuck?!"

"W-Wha?" Tangmo might've been moved by the young man's heartbroken visage if he had a speck of fucks to give, too bad he had no fucks to give and was also fresh out of mercy.

"Where the hell is Astrid? Yo Astrid!" Tangmo waved energetically at the Frost Bringer huskarl, the blonde Viking Sororitas skipped merrily up to him, a sunny smile splitting her face in two. "Bro, get your knife ready and start heating the damn thing, because we're giving the good and pious people of Izennir a very vivid answer to their bum fuck request about Celestine. A Blood Eagle should more than suffice, don't you think?"

"We're doing Blood Eagle?!" Astrid could barely contain her excitement.

"We're doing Blood Eagle," Tangmo tipped his awesome commissar cap as the other huskarls, all of them equally elated, started dragging the struggling young man away.

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Astrid leapt up and down in unbridled joy. Tangmo knew he should be disturbed, but instead found himself smiling along with the huskarl. "Mother always hogs all the fun, now it's my turn! I've been waiting so long for this!"

"I've heard of this Blood Eagle, but only in whispers," Agrippina of the Eternal Legion spoke up, head titled to the side in genuine curiosity. "Forgive my ignorance, but what exactly is a Blood Eagle? A ritual of some kind?"

"Why tell you when we can show you?!" Tangmo laughed as they started walking back to the battlegroup's defenses. "But seriously though, try not to barf after the first few minutes."

"Lord commissar, do you read?"

"Go ahead Solveig," Tangmo tapped his earbud and glanced up at the sky, giving the high admiral of the Immortal Spirit fleet an easy wave.

"I've just received a message from the Macragge's Honor sir," Solveig said. "Lord Guilliman's crusade fleet had just entered the edge of the system and is heading to Izennir with all haste. They should arrive in ten days."

"Thank you Solveig," Tangmo glanced back at the pissed off mob in the distance, an insidious grin carved across his face. "That leaves us plenty of time to have some fun."

Isha opened her eyes, and felt nothing but fear. She was awake, but this knowledge brought her no joy as she braced for the calamitous noises of a hundred daemons, the acidic rot of their presence, and the touches that rends and violates. Seconds passed, stretching on to the minutes, another blink, the unfamiliar ceiling remained unchanging and no attack on her body or mind manifested, all that surrounded Isha was silence, absolute and peaceful. Isha dared to blink once more, twice more, thrice more, and released a shuddering breath, one of such relief that tears prickled her eyes. The monsters and daemons were no more, and she had not awoken in Nurgle's Garden but a place of serenity where his diseased touch cannot reach her. She was free…she was free. Sobbing and smiling, Isha sniffed, wiped tears from her eyes and sat up on the bed she currently occupied, the many pillows were delightfully soft and the velvety blanket flowed down her body, now robed in glittering grey silk. She leaned against the wooden headboard, glanced right, and found a human woman, black of hair and clad in a simple habit, seated on a large armchair, a soft, disarming smile gracing her face.

"Good to see you awake, I was starting to worry," the woman yawned and sat up straighter, and Isha recognize her after a moment.

"…Saint Celestine?" Isha asked and instinctively pulled the blanket up higher, a flimsy display of defense. The gesture made the woman snickered lightly.

"Indeed," Celestine nodded, got up, easily picked up the armchair, carried it over to Isha's bed, and placed it down not a pace from where she was propped up. It was strange to see the woman who had saved her without wings and armors and performing such a mundane task. "Isha, I presume?"

"Yes," Isha's voice dropped by several octaves when Celestine leaned in close, remembering the canonesses' overt hostility and disgust. She wouldn't dare hope this interaction will be any different.

"It is good that we can be properly acquainted," Celestine reached her hand toward Isha, a friendly gesture of greeting, the woman's visage conveyed nothing but kindness, "nice to finally meet you."

"Thank you," Isha gingery clasped hand with Celestine, shaking slowly at first, before growing more cordial as her apprehension subsided. "I owe you my life, angel of the God Emperor, without your help Nurgle would have surely destroyed the Immortal Spirit battlegroup and reclaimed me. You have my deepest gratitude."

"You are most welcome, the God Emperor guides me and brings His light to all," Celestine released her hand after one last shake. "And I would not have been successful without your help. You were equally instrumental in excursing those daemons."

"I did nothing," Isha lowered her head gloomily, the familiar weight settling across her shoulders. "All I did was…suffer, and scream, and cry. It was your sword, and your unbreakable will that banished the Greater Daemons, I was nothing but a burden."

"You are stronger than you give yourself credit for," Celestine said kindly, but firmly, pulling Isha from the dark ravine of her mind and toward the woman's stern, caring eyes. "I was going to kill you when I realized my power was not enough to expel the Greater Daemons. My hope and faith falter, and I was ready to commit the unforgivable crime of slaying you, against the wish of the God Emperor…against my own wish. The blade was moments away from piercing your heart when you helped isolated the daemons, allowing me to strike them down. You are courageous and unbreakable. I have seen great men and women of faith who succumb to the daemons of Chaos, yet they were not able to make you yield. Take pride in that."

Isha nodded, Celestine's compassion was a balm on her tired her soul, spoken absent flowery veneer. But before she can stop herself, she said, "why are you kind to me?"

Celestine's eyes grew bigger, obviously not expecting the question, and Isha immediately felt ashamed of herself. To reciprocate kindness with suspicion…what have become of her? Isha was about to apologize when Celestine held up her hand.

"You have nothing to apologize for, I understand your apprehension," Celestine chuckled. "I heard the Adepta Sororitas have not been very cordial, to put it lightly, is that correct?"

"They saved me from Syrathel, the Tzeentchtian Champion, many times, even when they despise me," Isha grinned. "I believe they can be forgiven for a little lapse in manner."

"On their behalf, I would like to apologize," Celestian made a little bow, graceful even when seated. "They are great women of war and faith, their piety toward the God Emperor is commendable, even if it becomes too rigid at times."

"Thank you, even if the apology was not needed, I am safe and free because of them after all," Isha went on. "Forgive me for asking again, but why are you not like your peers? Why are you…courteous to me, a goddess of a species that had warred with mankind for the last ten thousand years?"

"It is the will of the God Emperor, as perplexing as that maybe, to see you safe from harm for the foreseeable future. He commands and I obey," Celestine smiled suddenly, sheepish and shy. "That's what I told myself, because although it is true that this is the directive of the Master of Mankind, I am also guided by my own heart and morality. I admire you Isha, after witnessing your stout spirit in the face of such impossible odds. Such action bespoke greatly of your character and I like what I see."

"Besides the Eight, you're the first human to say that she likes me, thank you," Isha said and lifted her hands to her face. She turned them over, pulled back the sleeves of her robe and looked at her arms, then ran her palms over her pale flesh. "I am clean."

"Your caretaker, Elnys, and the handmaidens were very reverent when they saw to your needs," Celestine told her. "They barely left your side, even at the detriment of their own health. That's why I sent them away for the moment."

"That sounds like Elnys," Isha said. "How long was I unconscious?"

"Almost two weeks," Celestine said.

"By the stars," Isha slouched back against the headboard and gazed at her palms again. "I am clean."

"…Is something wrong?" Celestine asked, concerned.

"I have never been clean, truly clean, since escaping Nurgle's Garden," Isha tried to force away the memory, but the black torrent poured forth unbidden. "No matter how hard I scrub my skin until blood flow, not even when I scald myself raw with boiling water…I can never be clean again, no, after everything the stain will never come off."

"Oh Isha," Celestine reached her hand out and clasped it kindly around Isha's own. She flinched at first, but Celestine's exuding warmth prompted Isha to squeeze, fingers coiling so tight that she shook. And with a firm anchor to hold on to, Isha continued.

"Nurgle would…use me, force himself upon me and violate me until he is satisfied. He did this without mercy, indulging in the pain he inflicted upon me, my suffering was his pleasure. Some time it was quick, but he usually made sure to draw out the rape, especially after he had learned that I've saved eldars and humans from his pathogens. And when he wants me to scream, he gave me to his minions, a toy to be broken over and over. I beg for death, even when I know it would never come."

She didn't know when the tears finally broke through, but by the time she was sobbing openly Isha found herself leaning into Celestine's shoulder, the sadness and pain so long pent up at last finding an outlet. Celestine pulled her closer and, with maternal care, slowly stroke the back of her head, the motion calm and soothing, the act of selfless kindness made Isha wept all the harder. Minutes passed until at last Isha was spent, her tears ceased its flow, a hollowness all that remained of where agony and shame had held dominion over her soul, like pus expunged from a festering wound. The emptiness felt…nice, strangely enough. The poison Nurgle had imparted upon her was no more, a vessel once more clean, a vessel that can finally heal.

"All will be well Isha, all will be well," Celestine patted Isha gently on the back and let go of her hand. She nodded her thanks and reclined back against the headboard. "You are clean Isha, I can say that with confidence. I saw the rot Nurgle had seared deep into your soul, so when I plunged the Ardent Blade into you I made sure that the sickness was purged permanently from your being. I cannot erase the memory of what he has done to you, but I can clean the scars. For this, I am sorry."

"You have done more than enough, Celestine, thank you," Isha smiled and glanced around the room she was in. Spacious and opulent, with all the amenities one could need to live comfortably. "Where am I?"

"Well, you're in my room actually," Celestine snickered lightly. "I was the one who suggested that you be place here until you wake up and recover fully."

"And keep me in a place where I can be monitor, in case any traces of the Ruinous Power remains," Isha said with a bit of resigned humor, one which Celestine received with a grin.

"One can never be too careful," Celestine shrugged. "Also, I can personally guarantee that nothing of Chaos lingers within you, I got rid of them after all."

"I shall take your words then," Isha said. "So…what is to happen now? Forgive me, but since I was possessed I do not know what have happened with the Immortal Spirit battlegroup. Is everyone safe?"

"Although a lot of nuns and priestesses suffered Nurgle's sickness while trying to keep you contained inside the sarcophagus…you do recall being placed inside the sarcophagus, yes?" Isha nodded in answer and Celestine continued. "Very good, now, as I was saying, many were afflicted, but after you were exorcised the healing was done with ease, there was no casualty."

"Thanks the stars," Isha let out a breath she'd been holding. "Where are we right now?"

"Orbiting Izennir, the capital of the Akamon system," Celestine's face fell, the welcome glow fades from her visage. "Or should I say, ex-capital of the Akamon system. A thorough Exterminatus is being conducted as we speak. Within a few days nothing will remain of Izennir, its people, its history, all will be purge by fire, none will know they ever existed."

"How horrible," Isha drew the blanket tighter around herself. "Why did they need to suffer such a fate?"

"…They have betrayed the Imperium of Man," Celestine was not happy as she began her explanation. "Myself and inquisitor Greyfax was lured to Izennir by a renegade priest with great influence, with the objective being our deaths. The high lords of Izennir planned to have me and Katarinya…publicly raped and tortured, for the amusement of the populace, which is why the battlegroup is so vehement in punishing the planet. By the Emperor, Guilliman and Jagatai themselves are now overseeing the purging."

"Such violence is unproductive and unnecessary," Isha quirked a brow when Celestine nodded her agreement. "You agree with me? Sorry if I sound a little callous, but I had assumed that you would be pleased by this development, considering what the people of Izennir planned to do to you."

"Yes, the Adepta Sororitas are famous for their zealotry and grudges, and being their patron Saint, who better than me to emulate such quality," Celestine chuckled, but the mirth was hollow and within moment the same despondency returned. "But to answer your question, what is happening on Izennir brought me no joy, only grief and disappointment."

"May I ask why?" Isha pressed.

"I would love to see the leaders of Izennir brought to justice, with punishment meted out correctly and justly," Celestine sighed. "But the people…they did not deserve to die for the evil of their masters. I do not doubt that a large number of them were guilty, but many more were innocents goaded to do evil by their peers, lest the same brutality be turned upon them. They had no choice, like lambs led to the slaughter, they didn't deserve to die."

"I share the same sentiment," Isha's kindly smile was able to lift Celestine's spirit. "This is a nice breath of fresh air, to see sense and kindness in these trying times. If it's any consolation, the Aeldari are as bad as mankind when it comes to violence and vindictiveness."

"Oh yes, I fought your people many times, even got kill by them on several occasions," Celestine's idea of a joke will take some getting use too. "But I found you to be very amiable and honest in your kindhearted conviction. You make a better conversation partner than Yvraine, that's for sure."

"I found her very hard to get along with," Isha felt her mood sour. "We ask for aide from the Ynnari when the Vhilytra system was under siege and they turn away at our moment of greatest need."

"I dislike the woman the first moment I saw her," Celestine said, "unlike you. Even possessed I admire your fighting spirit from the start."

"Thank you," for a few heartbeats that follows the two of them sat without words parted, sharing the quiet pleasure of each other's company, before Isha continued. "Will you be staying with the Immortal Spirit battlegroup, lady Celestine?"

"The God Emperor wishes me to safeguard you, lady Isha," Celestine said. "Where you go, I shall go."

"I believe I shall remain on the Immortal Spirit, I have nowhere else to be, after all," Isha said. "I am glad to have you as company."

"So do I," Celestine looked her up and down. "Are you thirsty Isha? Hungry? When was the last time you have eaten anything?"

Isha's treacherous stomach chooses that moment to growl, loud and long like an artillery barrage. Squeaking in embarrassment, Isha drew the blanket over her burning red face, made worse by Celestine unbridle laughter.

"I believe we have our answer then," Celestine drew a data-pad from her habit after settling down, not quite successful in stifling her grin. "I'll tell Elnys to bring foods and refreshments then, she'll be happy to know you're awake."

"Yes, I believe she will be most ecstatic," Isha was already grinning from the mental image of an overjoy Elnys. "Will you stay Celestine? I do enjoy our conversation."

"I believe I will Isha."