Planting Season

Magsnik stared at the field before him, surveying the land before him as he adjusted the straw hat he wore. The fields had been left to rest for a bit, letting wild fungi grow on it unimpeded just like how it should be. They protected the soil while he prepared for the next planting season but now, they had to go. With leftover mulch and other flammable material spread over the overgrown field, it was now ready. “Dirt, if you could do the honors?” He asked the gretchin who cackled as they marched towards the field with torch in hand.

With all the tinder in the field, it didn’t take much to see the fields blazed into flame. The land surrounding his farm house burnt as the fire spread across the 3 fields surrounding his farm. The flame reached the stone wall of the squig enclosure, but the barrier kept the fire away from his farm animals. There was little smoke to be seen as the multicolor fire burned hot and fast, leaving behind blackened soil.

“You know, Hecate would love to see this,” Beel mused as she sat down beside him, watching the fire burn with him and the others. Justice was currently preparing the plow while Molly was preparing the bags of spores that they’d be using to the seed drill. Meanwhile, Emmy was herding Dirt to load up the manure cart with its load.

“Is she some kind of pyromaniac?” He asked as he sat up and rolled his shoulders. The fire was starting to burn out as they reached the walls surrounding the farm and the fire break surrounding his house.

“Oh no, she’s actually a Lady of Change that I’m friends with. She’s a big bookworm and loves to record stuff. She’s just a wellspring of knowledge. It’s so fun sitting down and listening to her while I eat the intruders in her realm,” She replied as she sighed fondly while she recounted her experience with her fellow daemoness.

Magsnik snorted before he replied, “No surprise there,” Considering her ravenous appetite, she might have eaten quite a lot of intruders. Bringing Beel over did sound like a good way to scare off minor daemons so he had to give credit to the Tzeentchian friend of Beel, “If you ever want to bring her along, just tell me in advance.” He then said as he gave Justice a look who gave him a cheerful smile.

He smiled back at her as he grabbed the harness of the plow and inspected it. While he did appreciate having people that were reasonable around him, having to deal with them when he didn’t expect it could be hard at times. He’d rather know they were coming than be taken by surprise, but he just had to deal with what life tossed his way like what he needed to do now.

Planting new crops could be a chore but he had more people to help him along. Turning to justice, he then said, “Justice, I’ll be wearing this harness. I pull, you steer, got it?”. The large horse collar was fit snugly over his neck and shoulders. As for the plow, it was a series of disk plows that were widely set apart. He wasn’t going to do intensive plowing as that would seriously damage the soil he was cultivating. Instead, he was doing strip tilling which, as the name implies, was leaving strips of soil untilled. It did provide him some tilling, which should weaken the previous crop’s mycelium, while not breaking the soil up too much.

“You got it boss!” The woman cheerfully replied as she made sure he was firmly attached to the plow. He patted his belt to check if he had his water gourd on. He didn’t want to unhook himself from the plow just to get a drink later.

Turning over to Emmy as she and Dirt came back with a cart full of composted dung, bones, and other refuse, he then ordered, “Emmy, help Molly over here. Let Dirt and Be-”. He paused for a bit as he glanced over at the cart and then to an attentive Beel, before he continued, “Let Dirt handle it. Make sure to grab a squig to tie the cart to.”

“Magnsik, you were going to say my name,” Beel complained as she marched up to him, pouting as she crossed her arms across her chest. He refused to meet her eyes as he turned to Emmy and Molly as they manned the seed drill.

“Molly, Emmy, I want you two to man. Tell me if it breaks and I’ll see if we can fix it.” He ordered. The drill was a simple device with a hopper for the spore pods and widely spaced pipes for the seed to drop down to the ground below. The wheel was attached to some mechanism to control the amount of seed that was spread out over the field.

“Of course master,” The two obediently replied as Molly pulled the carts of seed’s they needed for the field while Emmy grabbed on to the handle of the device.

“Damn it, Magsnik! I’m going to help. I’m not some fragile princess that’s too far above menial labor. Why didn’t you ask to help with the manure?” She pointedly asked, getting up close and personal as she leaned in close to get some answers off him.

“...” Still, he refused to answer even as he started to sweat. He kept his mouth shut, not wanting to answer as he looked over at the pile of steaming, decomposing mass that was composted remains of what everyone ate and threw away in this farm. Beel took one look at it before she turned beet red and turned towards Magnsik, fuming in anger.

“Oh come on! I might be Nurglite but I do not eat compost!” She growled out as she started hitting him with her fist. He shielded his face as she was putting some force behind her strikes. He did deserve this, however.

“I didn’t say that you do, but-” He reasoned out, trying to calm her down but Beel was having none of it.

“But what?” She bit out, squinting at him, daring him to say what he had in his mind. He gulped as he got stared down by the greater daemoness. Someone had to give but, unfortunately, it wasn’t her. He shouted in frustration as he raised his hands in surrender, knowing full well he misjudged the situation.

“Fine, I’m sorry that I thought you’d eat the compost. I was being stupid there,” He apologized as his shoulders sagged. Beel tapped her foot as she gestured to him to go on. He rolled his eyes as he gestured over to the manure cart, “You can handle the compost. Make sure to evenly spread it out but don’t hold back too much. That cart over there is enough for half a quarter.” He pointed out.

“Good, now is that so hard to say~?” The woman sang, smiling smugly as she skipped over to the cart. He shook his head at the ridiculous situation he found himself in. She could have easily skipped out on the work but she was quite insistent with helping him. Why she wanted to help him so badly, he didn’t know and he didn’t dwell much on it as he shrugged.

“Wapeesh!” Justice made a whipping gesture at him and snickered at his misfortune all while sporting a wide, shit-eating grin across her blindfolded face.

“Oh shut it you,” He fired back without heat as he turned to the now confused Dirt who was pushed out of the cart. Beel was the one manning it and it only took one person to use it as everything was handled through a mechanism that would slowly tilt the cart backwards as they go.

“Dirt, grab two of the squig’s and make sure to tie their jaws shut before you attach them to the watering tank and the muck cart,” He ordered him, giving him something else to do now that he didn’t have anything to do. His livestock had grown fat so a bit of exercise should give their meat some flavor.

“Do I haz to? Can’t we juzt strap them on the harness?” The small gretchin whined as he gazed over to the squigs pens as one of the bigger squigs grinned at the small git. Dirt gulped as the huge squig licked its lips while staring hungirly at the poor gretchin.

“No Dirt, or else they’ll try to eat the seeds,” He prodded him along, pushing him so he could get to work. It’s not like those squig’s would kill him. He’s made of sterner stuff and those squig’s looked like they’d just rough him up. The gretchin grimaced as they marched up to the pen’s with a defeated look making Magnsik roll his eyes, “So melodramatic, that one,” He described the gretchin as he turned his attention back to the field.

-x-x-x-

Magsnik huffed and grunted as he dragged the plow behind him. His calves strained as he pushed against the soft ground which made feet sink into the soil. Still, he powered on, refusing to stop as sweat poured down his form. His shirt clung to him tightly as he became drenched from the work. The only respite he had from the tedious task was the soft singing coming from behind. It was one of Justice’s many songs, songs long forgotten sung in words no longer uttered but they still carried their emotions of their composers even from the distant past. Still, he couldn’t help but feel like he heard this song once before…

“Un seul oignon frit à l'huile,

Un seul oignon nous change en Lion,

Un seul oignon frit à l'huile,

Un seul oignon, nous change en Lion~”

While he did not understand a single word, he couldn’t help but bob his head along to the catchy tune. Even Beel was in a jovial mood as she sang along with them, even as she dragged a cart full of crap. The only thing he wished was that he could sing along with them. He let her complete her song before he bothered them.

“Hey Justice, I’ve been wondering, why did you want to fight me earlier?” He asked as he reached the edge of the wall and he turned to make another line. With Justice holding the plow and guiding it, all he had to do was just keep dragging it along. “I know you’re a khornite and all, but climbing from another realm to this galaxy seems like it’s way too much effort for just a simple challenge,” He then added. While he knew the daemons of the war god can be quite blood thirsty, he did not expect them to be this determined.

“Come to think of it, what gives? You climbed through a portal that’s so deep you couldn’t see the other side and so long that you actually starved just to challenge Magi. It wasn’t all for a simple challenge was it?” Beel piped up from behind them as she turned with them. “For the Warp’s sake, the rope you have leading back to your home is severed and I do not know of any way for you to go back.” Beel further pointed out. Magsnik didn’t know how long that rope was stretched out considering the weirdness of the portal above.

There was a bit of silence between them as the sound of Magnsik tilling the soil mixed in with the sound of compost dropping behind him with the squicking the seed drill manned by the twins. The trail of compost her cart left behind covered the plowed earth ensuring that it doesn’t dry out and kill off the microorganism beneath. The death of those creatures might give a small boost now, but intensive plowing would effectively wipe out what made the soil healthy for the spore pods that the twins planted into the soil.

“Oh that? I actually saw his soul from a distance.” Justice replied with a smile. Magsnik took in a deep breath as sweat dripped down his neck. He gazed back at her, wondering if she took a deeper look. He saw her sigh fondly as she went on, “Even from the other side, he was just mesmerizing to look at. He’s like a torch in the dark, a blazing fire that burns brighter than any star in the sky. It reminds me so much of a warrior I once fought, someone that was far more than they appear.” For a brief second, Magnsik felt dread fill his gut but the words she uttered next made him sigh out in relief.

“You’re far more than you seem, which reminds me, can I have a look at your soul again? I just want a tiny peek, that’s all.” The woman asked hopefully while sporting a winning smile.

He gave her a flat look as he shot down that attempt to look into what he was, “No,” he denied her, refusing to let her see him that intimately.

“Aww, come on. Not even just a short glimpse? It’s nothing painful, I promise,” She begged but he remained unmoved as his face remained impassive.

Justice pouted before she pointed at the blindfold hiding her eyes. It was quite an intricately woven piece of fabric that not only sported Khornite markings but those of the other three, “You see my eyes over here? I’m not really blind. I just don’t want to look at things.” She admitted, making him raise a brow at that. For a warrior to hide their eyes, there must be some great reason.

“Ok, but I don’t exactly see why that means I should allow you to see my soul,” He deadpanned as he completed his turn and continued on his way.

“I’m getting there. You see, my eyes can see the truth in everything. All the good and the bad, nothing is left out so that’s why I keep my eyes behind these blindfolds else I’d just chop everything up. Every once in a while though, there comes a soul worth seeing just like yours! While I did see your soul back then, I haven’t had a close look at it,” She gushed out with excitement coloring her tone. He sighed as he rubbed the back of his head.

“This is exactly why I say no,” He refused her once more before he further elaborated to let her down easier, “Ok, let me explain. I really don’t want to talk about the past, ok? It’s the one reason why I accept you and everyone else in my farm without question. I don’t care what you were or what you did before now, I only judge you for what you do now,” He had things he wanted to hide, things like the small core of humanity he had inside wrapped around all the orky stuff he now had. He was not some incorruptible super ork, he was just himself.

The girls sighed in defeat as she relented. “Alright then, I respect that. I kinda like it even though I do disagree on your refusal to look into people's past. You do know it can bite you in the ass, right?” She then said as he nodded at her.

He merely shrugged in reply as he answered her, “I know and I do not care. I’ll deal with it when the time comes but now, all I want is to talk and have fun with the people I come to know,” It might be foolhardy and even stupid to think like this given what he is right now, let alone where, but that was how he chose to deal with people. If this was the hill he was going to die on, so be it.

“Hah! Quite the conviction you have there,” She praised him as she gave him an approving nod. He snorted at just how easily the girl bounced back.

“Or stubbornness,” Beel remarked in a joking manner as she giggled before she added. “But it’s one of the things that makes Magi, Magi,” He shook his head even as a smile stretched across his face. She might be a stupid sexy fly that crashed into his life but he couldn’t help but adore her.

“While I know you don't like talking about the past, there must be some things you want to talk about right? It’s not all doom and gloom is it?” She prodded him as she tried to tease out some details of his life. While he did not want to go too far into the past, the life he had so far here was quite colorful to say the least.

“Well, there is that one time…” He hummed out as he recalled his fight with Horus. They laughed together as he recalled how the fool hardy primarch blinded himself. He felt his spirit lighten as he recalled other such incidents. It certainly helped distract him as he struggled in the field. Thinking about things, maybe telling some parts of his past wouldn’t hurt.

-x-x-x-

It took almost the entire day for Magnsik to drag the plow across the entire field, but by the time the light of the portal was just starting to dim they were finished with the field. He groaned out in relief as they stopped by the side of his home after the third and final field. Pulling off the horse collar, he sat down as he gazed upon the prepared field before them.There before him was a field of his own, tended to by himself and the people under his roof, that was just waiting to grow.

The rich black earth mixed with compost wasn’t the prettiest sight to see, but it filled him with a sense of pride unlike no other. He snorted, chuckling, as he sat down and watched Dirt raise a large Orkish scarecrow made of his old clothing stuffed with straws. Seeing the crudely carved mask in his likeness gave him quite the chuckle.

Turning back to his home, he shifted a bit away as he sat a bit too close to the intricately drawn circle around his house. The fractal geometry of the circle made his eyes water if he was to look any closer. Even the backyard was included in the circle.

Speaking of his backyard, he did not know why they enclosed an area of it behind some wooden walls but he did not prod any further from the excited look Dirt had. He definitely deserved a house of his own and he did plan on getting more gretchins one of these days.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Gazing towards Beel, he then asked, “You sure this circle will keep the house safe?” He looked uncertainly at the markings. While they were chaotic in nature, he could not feel anything strange near it for some reason. They looked as inert as the stone and dirt they were etched upon.

The daemoness puffed out her chest as she proudly replied, “Of course, I made this myself after all. So long as this circle remains, there will be a pocket of reality protected from the unreality of the Warp. It’s not as good as the ones my friends make, but this should hold.” He gave one look back at the circle before nodding slowly.

“I do hope it holds as I'd rather not have a daemonic beast burst in my bathroom while I wash. Speaking of washing, dibs!” He shouted as a smirk stretched across his face. With how sweaty and dirty they all were with the muck and sweat clinging to their form, all of them except the twins who looked as immaculate as ever, needed a good long bath.

“Actually, Magnsik. Mind if you come with us first? We have a surprise for you,~” Beel happily told him as she clung to him and wrapped his arm around. He blinked as he found himself held nor only by Beel but Justice as well who slipped her arms around his back.

“But we need you to wear a blindfold.” Justice then said as she lifted up a blindfold similar to the one she wore.

“What is this all about? If it’s not a bath, I’d rather have it after.” He replied. He was sticky and he stunk to high heaven. As good as a potential meal, or maybe even a secret party might be, he wanted to be clean first.

“Oh it’s a bath but better! I promise,” Beel reassured him. She smiled back even as he looked at her dubiously. It wasn’t her words that convinced him, though, but those of his lovely maids.

“Please Master Magnsik? Just this once?” Emmy pleaded, gazing up to him with those big blue eyes of hers. His shoulders sagged as he finally relented and grabbed the blindfold offered to him. Could he really say no to those innocent eyes of hers?

Tying the cloth across his eyes, he then warned them, “Ok fine, but I swear if you gals do something fishy, I’ll spank the lot of you.” Despite how thin and soft the blind folds were, it still did its job well as he could neither see any shape or shadow before. All he could see was darkness and the thoughts inside his head.

“Don’t threaten me with a good time,~” The daemoness teased him, making him groan.

“Justice?” He asked the other daemoness as he turned his head to where he thought she was. The smack he heard afterwards was like music to his ears.

“Ow! Ok, ok, I’ll lay off on the lewd jokes for now,” Beel mumbled out petulantly as he found himself guided to the direction of the house. He walked unsteadily but the duo holding his arms and the maids hands pressing against his back put him at ease as he tried his best not to trip.

“Thank you,” Magnsik thanked the khornite as his foot soon found the soft doormat in front of his house. As he was guided inside, he then asked, “What’s with all the secrecy anyways?”

“You’ll see,~” Beel replied cryptically as he was guided through his house. He found no scent of food in the air aside from those that he had set on the table for them to snack on nor any smoke to tell him that they made a campfire. So they really were telling the truth, he thought to himself as he smelt and heard nothing amiss. Could it be a pool? He didn’t have to wonder for too long as finally, he smelt something. He smelt steam as well as the scent of fragrant soap filled the air.

“You can pull off your blindfold now, master!” Emmy eagerly told him as the girls let go of him. Reaching for the knot, he pulled and there before him was a sight that left his mouth hanging in disbelief.

“Tada~!” Beel exclaimed as she presented a pool buried deep in the ground filled to the brim with steaming hot water. Not only was the ground around the hot spring paved with cobblestone but the pool itself was lined with rocks and all of this was enclosed in a wooden fence shaped to look like bamboo.

“Did you just make a bathhouse in our backyard?” He asked them, bewildered at the sight. Turning around, he found that they were just behind his house with the picnic area peeking outside the entrance to the onsen. “Wait, isn’t this where you landed? You turned that crater into this…” He pointed out as he gaped at the work that they did behind those wooden walls.

“Yup! Justice was the one that made it, by the way.” Beel nodded as she pointed at the grinning Khornite leaning against the wall.

“Consider it my formal apology,” She answered as he just stood there, looking at the lovely bath before him.

“I’m… actually speechless here. This took you how many hours?” He whispered out as he sat down. Beel cooed as she latched on to him and hugged him tightly. No one had done something this nice for him ever since he woke up in this reality.

“Oh this, just a few nights actually. You’re quite a heavy sleeper so I didn’t have to worry about waking you up,” She replied and he couldn’t help but laugh at that. How he missed all this was certainly on him now. She then went on to list down all the things she used, “All this took was just a bit of lumber, a lot of steel, some piping, the usual elbow grease, several kilos of thermite and a whole lot of explosives. I had to ask Princess over there to get some for me.”

He paused as he looked at her just as she mentioned explosives. His eyes twitched as he muttered out. “... Now I’m concerned.” He turned and stared at Beel who whistled innocently while looking away.

Justice barked out laughing as she slapped his back before she explained, “Hah! I’m just messing with you. I needed the explosives to pry the jacuzzi Beelzebub found in a far off wreck. Fully functional and, thanks to these two angels, we got it in proper working order!” He looked over to the twins who beamed at the praise while Beel pressed her cheeks against his. He breathed out a sigh of relief as the thought of having to deal with an explosive powered bath did not sound fun.

“S-so Master, do you like it?” Molly then asked as she looked up to him demurely. Emmy had her hands clasped together as she awaited his answer with bated breath.

Smilingly widely, he hugged Beel with one arm before reaching out and ruffling the hair of both maids. “Oh fucking yes I do!” He answered as the maids tried to pull away from his hands even as they blushed and smiled happily. “I just have one teeny tiny question I’ve been meaning to ask you. Where’s the dividing wall?” He then asked as he noticed that the bath before him was just one large bath. There was a washing area by the side but there was no clear divide for both genders.

Justice frowned before asking back, “What dividing wall?”

“You know… the one section for men and women.” He trailed off as the look of incomprehension remained. Magnsik’s hands soon found itself on his face while Beel excitedly hummed as she nuzzled against him. Off course there wouldn’t be any dividing wall with Beel involved.

-x-x-x-

“Come on Magsnik, it’s not that bad!” Beel squealed out happily as she laughed while she washed Magsnik back. All he could do right now was sit in mortification as the only thing keeping him decent was a thin piece of cloth wrapped around his waist and even then, the towel was just barely enough to keep everything hidden.

“I’d be fine with this, but do you really have to wash my back?” He asked as he sat there while he blushed up a storm and his bare foot tapping against the stone floor. He was not used to such intimate contact. Sure, it felt nice to have all the mud and dirt washed away by someone else but he felt self conscious with not just one set of eyes on him but four; five if they counted Dirt but the gretchin was far too happy swimming in the small kiddy pool/large wooden bucket they made for him. He couldn’t blame the git as he was playing with a wooden duck.

“You know we can’t go in without cleaning ourselves, right?” Beel reminded him and all he could do was groan. With all the effort the girls placed in the pool, it felt disrespectful not abiding by their rules. This might be a gift to him, but they made this and damn it before he even spit on their effort. Still, that didn’t stop him from complaining about it.

“Damn fly. You really went through all that effort just to wash my back?” He grumbled as he crossed his arms across his bare chest. At least the woman was decent with the large towel wrapped around her body. Justice on the other hand…

“I say it’s worth it,” She giggled out while the towel she held scrubbed at his back. He was kinda thankful that he had not yet bred that hair squig else the woman might have it in her head to wash his hair as well.

“Come on Magnsik, It’s just a bit of skinship! I thought you were a military man? Didn’t you guys have baths?” Justice called out as she rested her hands against the rocky edge of the pool. He refused to look her way considering the towel she had set aside after entering the pool. Like the onsen this bathhouse was based on, this pool was for skinny dipping.

“Yes, but there’s a difference between that and what we have here, damn it!” he protested. Yes, Ork baths were a thing, but they were an all ork thing. They were just him and the boyz without any alluring sights like Beel and Justice. His cheeks darkened further as the Khornite stretched and showed off her muscular physique. Even the girls had him all flustered despite their far more modest appearance, wearing bathing suits and all.

“Oh don’t be a big baby. It’s just a bit of skin.~ It’s not like we're strangers here.” Beel teased him as she dumped another bucket of water on his back before she started washing off the suds on his body.

“Fine,” He sighed as he threw up in surrender. As much as he was embarrassed by this ordeal, he still liked it. He promised himself to take a bath here as often as he could even if he had to construct a water tower. He hummed out as he stroked his cheeks. Thinking about it, he could start installing plumbing to his house.

Turning to Emmy who was tending to Justice, he then ordered her, “If Beel whistles, make sure to give her smaller portions at the dinner table,” Let it be said that he could be a petty man when prodded and teased.

“Of course, master,” Molly replied sweetly.

Beel gave him a pat on the back after she poured the last bucket of water over him. Having washed his body, all that's left now was to cleanse himself in the hot water of the bath. Slowly he stood up, stretching to his full height as he worked on the kinks on his back. It was then that he heard a sharp wolf whistle which had him turning to Beel. It wasn’t Beel, however, that whistled at him as the nurglite pointed at the real culprit. The Khornite waggled her eyebrow at him which made him pinch the bridge of his nose.

“What? Can’t I appreciate a good physique when I see?” She asked as she gave him once over. He felt his cheeks heat up at the comment. Even if it was a bit self-aggrandizing, for an ork, he was quite well proportioned and well built. He wasn’t some hunched brute nor a bulging monster for he stood straight like that of a human. He did have a bit of a gut but it came naturally with his choice of weapons.

Yes, he felt flattered by her comment but it still messed with him. He squinted at him and the girl grinned back unapologetically as she tapped at her blindfold. He groaned as he slapped his palm on his forehead. Dragging his hand across his face, he then growled out “... You know what, fine. Have it your way.”

Without much fanfare, he pulled the towel’s knot loose and let it fall down the floor. He clenched his jaw as the maids squeaked out in mortification as they hid their eyes behind their hands, even if he could see Molly trying to sneak a peek, “L-lewd!” Beel stammered out as she turned beet red. Justice on the other hand looked around before crossing her arms and pouted at him; She was missing the show.

“What? It’s just a bit of skin afterall,” He fired back with a grin across his face.

“Y-you know what I mean!” The girl shouted as she turned around. He laughed out merrily as he marched up to the pool to save the girls from further embarrassment. He had his fill, now he just wanted to relax.

He sighed out as he felt himself submerge the pool. He found that the pool was shaped so that one end was deeper than the other. Molly and Emmy could join them if they ever wanted to and even join them at the deeper end with some rocks resting beneath to serve as seats or stepping stones. Justice sat in the middle part as she stood taller than Beel. Looking at the bath, he noted that he could have a dozen more people around. A bit overkill, but that just meant there was more space for them to relax in.

He closed his eyes as he leaned against the edge of the pool. The warmth of the water against his weary was like a balm which melted the ache away. He almost drifted off to sleep when he heard a splash beside him. He opened his eyes as he found Beel beside him who submerged herself up mouth level. He snorted as he lifted his arms and gave her a pat on the head.

“U-um, would you like a massage, master?” Molly asked as he heard her kneel behind him.

“That would be lovely,” He replied as the girl started to massage his aching muscle. For a girl her size, she had quite the grip and she could really dig in and massage those deep seated aches he had from working in the field. He groaned out happily as he felt himself pampered. “Retiring is the best decision I ever made,” He said out loud as he looked up at the sky. The portal he came through pulsed as it started growing in size once more.

“You know, this retirement thing is kinda relaxing. Damn shame that you have to give up fighting permanently,” Justice replied as she shifted in her seat. He gave her a glance. The steam had grown thicker allowing him to have a look without getting an eye full by accident. Now that her armor was off, he could finally see the various scars which covered her form. Truly, she looked like she belonged more on a battlefield than in a farm.

“Who said that you have to retire permanently?” He asked her in turn.

“Oh?” The girl tilted her head as she gave her a look of confusion. He snorted at the girl's misunderstanding on retirement.

“You know you can just come back, right? Hey, if your body can still take it and if your heart is set, then what’s stopping you from fighting once more? I just don’t have any cause or anything worth a damn to fight for so I retired,” He vented, when he met that man, he realized that his goal was really empty. What use would it be for him to continue fighting when he had to face something like that. He was mortal, he had limits and he was brutally reminded that when he decided to step into the battle with those banana guards.

“All being a warboss ever gave me was one headache after another as I had to deal with all the shit Orks go through. They were fighting just fine before I came along and they’ll fight just fine after I’m gone,” He grumbled out in frustration. All he ever did was give the orks a bit of an organization. It took the most unorky of orks to whip them up to shape, but what was the purpose of it all? There was no fight worth it, there was no cause. It was just fighting for the sake of fighting and it was rather orky, something he strived not to be. Besides, he already had his fun. Best to just cut his losses while he was still whole and intact.

“Hah. You have a point there,” Justice nodded in agreement. She then stood up from her seat and moved closer to him. He averted his eyes as she decided to sit by his side. He kept his gaze up in the sky as she then asked, “Say, if you do find something worth fighting for, could I fight by your side?”

“That’s a big if right there,” He replied. He had enough of the battlefield for one lifetime. The only thing that would truly pull him back into the fight is if something threatened to destroy his little slice of heaven. It was selfish, yes, but he wasn’t the right person to champion for this galaxy. There were humans and, to a lesser extent, eldar for that.

“Humor me on this one,” She asked him.

“I don’t see why not?” He shrugged. With a galaxy like this, he might just be forced; though he did derail a little heresy if his guess was right.

Looking up at the portal, he waited for it to swallow everything up but all it did was grow and nothing more. It was taking its sweet time, it seemed “So, how long till the portal swallows our hulk?” he asked as he looked down at Beel.

“J-just a few minutes give or take,” The girl mumbled out a reply as she shrunk deeper into the water.

He nodded as he waited. It was then he felt a shift in the air. He felt a shiver crawl up his spine as the portal suddenly stopped pulsing and just stretched out without pause. The cavernous opening suddenly grew larger as he felt a pull from above. Light sparked around them as a multi-colored bubble suddenly formed around them; just in time for what happened next.

He gritted his teeth as the chaotic mass above them pulled them in. The air around their house shifted to that of a swirling mess. Things stretched without rhyme and reason while daemonic creatures fled from the vicinity. Everything looked familiar but there was a sense of strangeness all around them. The four colored sky didn’t bode well and he dared not stare for too long as he felt them stare at him.

Even though they were protected from the unreality that was the warp, there was a certain sense of lightness all around them. He gazed towards Molly and found her surrounded by a silver colored halo. He blinked as he found Emmy sporting the same silver colored halo along with everyone else, though theirs were that of a different color. Beel’s aura went in deeper, coloring her body even, as her skin took that of an emerald sheen while Justice was a deep scarlet. Even Dirt had a brown colored aura. It was then that he realized that it was no mere illusionary effect but those of their soul or something akin to that of a soul. He was so busy looking at them that he almost missed the look of concern everyone sported.

“Magnsik?” Beel asked him cautiously as he looked around, wondering why they looked so worried? He then looked down and realized why. While the halo around his companions were solid, his was a shifting and roiling mass akin to that of a flame which made him look like he was burning.

He lifted up his arms and watched as the flame wafted off him, sending out tongues that had bits of it flaking off. He watched as the green flake quickly darkened as it danced in the wind before turning to ash. “This… this isn’t normal, is it?” He whispered as dread started to seep into his guts.