In the Grimdark Sector with a System

Author Notes:

Thank you Private Hugo Bicudo for supporting Belkan Reich and the Imperium!

Now, onward to a cliffhanger! Oh, and don't forget to check the discount :D

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"Alright, look alive, people!" Sergeant Johnson shouts as the Guards disembark their Chimeras.

Back in the Kasr, Elyzabeth, Tsavorae, Tu'shan, and Vel'cona spectate the 3rd Platoon's deployment beneath a hilltop through real-time pict feeds, broadcasted by the helmet-mounted pict recorders on some members of the Platoon. More than that, the Chimeras IFVs deploy a Sensor-skull each from a special compartment behind their main turrets. Useful for multi-aspect scouting purposes and infiltration, the Sensor-skulls float about the Guard Platoon, silently awaiting new inputs.

Being a highly mobile, Platoon-sized QRF Patrol, the 3rd Platoon under Sergeant Johnson has 24 men and women. Other than the normal Guards, the Platoon hosts a Special Weapon Squad of six that carries two grenade launchers and a missile launcher, making the whole unit fit to engage a wide variety of roles. And since Ein is now taking on the rookie Weiss under her wing, Sergeant Johnson proceeds to coin the pair as the Platoon's Sniper Team. That leaves the remaining 14 Guardsmen and Guardswomen under the command of Johnson, though Ein is introduced to be the fallback girl if Johnson is indisposed. Other than that, the Chimeras' are attached under Johnson's command as the Patrol Leader, thus giving the unit additional firepower through their Multi-Laser turrets and hull-mounted Heavy Bolters.

Hearing how Johnson introduces Ein's role in the Platoon to the Rookie actually causes Elyzabeth to be proud.

'Umu, that's my girl!'

They then watch as Johnson starts rolling out some orders with the hill acting as the Sergeant's backdrop.

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Smacking his lips, Johnson says. "Righto, boys and girls, up for some hill climbing?" The Cadian Sergeant gestures his head behind him where a gentle slope of rocks and grass leads to a foilage-covered hilltop. "Not you, Snippy girls, you get to pick that rocky outcrop over there. All chill and under the shade up there, eh?"

Weiss and I look to the left, where a mountainous path, formed by Cadian nature, leads up to an outcrop half-hidden by ancient trees and dirt mounds. The position Johnson indicates is substantially higher than the hill with adequate cover for a two-person team to set up an overwatch there. We're currently standing on the edge of the anomalous site detected by long-range sensors so that outcrop should have good line-of-sight down on Johnson's advance to the target.

I turn to Weiss. "You packed your magnoculars?"

Weiss nods while pulling out the Warhammer equivalent of a handheld laser designator. "Since I don't have a feel for my role in the unit just yet, I fit everything I could without encumbering myself."

Both Sergeant Johnson and I nod at her in appreciation, with Johnson adding. "It will take some time, but you will find your spot in the unit soon enough. Now then, sync your chrono if you have one, and double-check that you have set your micro-bead to the correct frequency. We don't want a repeat of last time when Ein had to shout her lungs off because some of you forgot to switch your freq to channel 69, hah!"

Some members of the Platoon shake their heads in amusement, while others outright laugh. Weiss can only tilt her head in confusion, being too late to experience the near Blue-on-Blue incident when the Platoon's Special Weapon Squad nearly lobbed a grenade at friendlies in an urban conflict. I chuckle before explaining it to Weiss as a precautionary tale.

Back then, the Squad had recently exchanged their vox equipment after the previous one was faulty. It only came to light later on that the new vox sets operate slightly differently. Enough to cause some confusion in their operation that nearly led them to fire on Sergeant Johnson when the Platoon had to change their vox frequency due to a potential compromise. Hearing that, Weiss gulps before giving her micro-bead a one-over just in case.

I shake my head with a wry smile, letting Sergeant Johnson finish. "Oh, and Ein, take a Sensor-skull with ya."

I nod, as one of the Servo-skull floats near Weiss and me. "Just like the usual then."

Johnson returns the gesture before saying. "Alright people, I hope you all practiced your cardio."

And with that jest, we're off. Johnson leads the sizeable portion of his unit on the hill while Weiss and I travel to the outcrop. The Chimeras hang back with their crews popping out to be vigilant until we're done with our recond. This style of cautious advance may not be a well-used tactic in the Warhammer 40K universe, but it's what got 3rd Platoon through many hairy situations. Despite my short tenure in the Platoon, I have encountered many skirmishes under the command of Sergeant Johnson, some even before I received Battle Meditation as a skill. Yet, every single time, the Sergeant managed to pull us through without any severe casualty. In the Warhammer universe, that's nothing short of a miracle. Still, his feats of leadership are but a footnote in the Imperium, quite unfortunately. It also doesn't help that the man is fully content with where he's at, leading us roughnecks quite happily.

I am suddenly pulled out of my mulling when Weiss, who is surprisingly not struggling to keep up with me, asks.

"Corporal Ein, have you been doing this a lot?"

I smile while stepping over a jagged piece of rock. "Ever since I left the Whiteshields, which is more than a year ago already, I think? Honestly, I don't really keep track of dates and times, given that we're living on Cadia. And just call me Ein, I don't think I deserve to be called by honorifics."

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"Sometimes, she's just too humble for her own good." Elyzabeth comments, earning a nod from Tsavorae while the Salamander Space Marines look at the way the 3rd Platoon conducts themselves with interest.

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"Then Ein, how did we get assigned as a Sniper Team, anyway? None of us is fitted with a rifle scope, much less a long-las. I mean, I guess we can do recon as a two-person element?" Weiss asks, curious to get to know her senior and battle buddy more.

"Well, I am certainly qualified to mount a scope on my lasrifle. I ignore it most of the time in favor of an unrestricted field of view unless the mission requirements call for it. I do carry one in secured storage in my backpack just in case. As for zeroing it on the field, I will cross that bridge when I get there, though I can do it by experience alone." I explain nonchalantly. "Oh, and watch your steps over there. Follow my footsteps just in case there's a hidden pitfall." Though I don't think you will need it, is left unsaid.

Weiss sidesteps where she intended to set her foot down and oblige my instruction like a little duckling. This girl...

"Anyway," I continue after Weiss nods at me in gratefulness. "I seem to inherit my Mother's skill in marksmanship, it's why I am so good with a rifle. Sergeant Johnson defaults to me for long-range accuracy most of the time if there is no supporting sniper team around. Other than that, I work recon and target designation for friendly units. However, with you here, I can offload some of my duties to you. It's not gonna be much, but the Platoon is counting on you to do your job well so that we can all get home."

"I will do my very best." Weiss makes a simple vow.

In the Warhammer verse, that's the best you can ask from anyone, so I nod at her with a degree of seriousness. Certainty is a luxury in the grimdark galaxy.

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While Elyzabeth is preening at Ein saying she has inherited her skill, Tsavorae can only roll her eyes.

"Pretty sure genetics don't work that way when it comes to adoption."

Tu'shan and Vel'cona opt not to comment on that sentence.

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As they steer clear from a husk of a dead tree, with the Sensor-skull straight up floating over it, Weiss continues her Q&A session.

"Are you nervous, Ein? This is my first deployment as an official Guardswomen, so I can't help but feel this odd feeling."

"Nervous? I am pretty sure in my first outings, I was nervous, even having some fear back then." I reply simply, obviously not offering much

information but just enough to keep the conversation going.

"Fear? Yeah, I guess I can understand why. I am fearing that I may stumble somewhere and drag the unit down." Weiss admits. Her demeanor does seem sincere, according to my instinct.

"Then remember this as my first lesson for you, Weiss." I glance back at her with a small smirk. "All fears stem from insufficient firepower."

I gesture to the weapons on myself. My trusty lasrifle, surprisingly two laspistols, my inseparable yoroi-doshi, three Frag Grenades, and three Ssmoke Grenades. "Not a very standard loadout, I know, but given that I was running solo before half of the time... Well, this is truly needed. I don't carry Krak Grenade because if I am to be the one to lob one, then the 3rd is probably too deep in trouble for a single grenade to do anything."

Weiss gives me a curious look before nodding to herself. "Yeah, yeah... I can probably see why you're packing so much heat now."

I smile at her before gazing beyond and seeing the small semi-entrenched position Johnson has made on his hill.

"Chill time is over, Weiss. It's best we set up on that outcrop in the next two minutes before Johnson has the rest of the Platoon dig their own graves." I urge lightly, though we're already near the top.

Weiss jumps slightly before doubling her pace. "O-Oh...! Right! I'm right behind you, Ein!"

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"The Guards sure has a... Unique sense of humor." Vel'cona comments, seeing how easy it is for Ein and Weiss to familiarize themselves with one another.

On another screen, Sergeant Johnson and the rest of the 3rd Platoon are staking out the terrain, though they can't seem to find much of anything even with their Sensor-skull. To stave off the boredom, the group trades cantina tales with one another despite their eyes never leaving the horizon.

"Do we even qualify to comment on their taste in such fine matters, brother?" Tu'shan asks back with a jesting smile on his scarred face.

Elyzabeth also adds. "Even I must admit that normal Space Marines and Sisters of Battle are unfit for humor."

"Normal, you say?" Tsavorae raises an eyebrow at the Canoness Superior.

To this, the Canoness shrugs, though all the banters die when Ein and Weiss climb to the top of the outcrop. From their point of view, the pair lays their eyes on very, very interesting findings.

"Well, this changes everything." Elyzabeth sighes, knowing that things just got more and more complicated.