As soon as Jalan left, Moloch’s intelor began to buzz. “Looks like Legate Septimus is calling.”He said to Krasus.

“This should be good.” Krasus replied and walked over to join him.

“Legate, I was just about to call you..” Moloch began, but Septimus cut him off.

“Stow it Centurion. Where were you both? I’ve been stuck on the line with one of the most annoying Senators to ever take the oath of public service.” Septimus said as he appeared to stand next to Moloch and Krasus.

“By the void! What happened here?!” His digital form began walking around the battlefield of the chamber.

“Legate, you don’t know the half of it.”

“Well that will have to wait. We have received a priority one communication from Senator Aventus. He is representing a Drydellian complaint of Legion brutality on the level. “He is on standby waiting to talk with you lads at once. I hope you two have your story straight, because I’m going to be connecting you with him straightaway.”

Another figure appeared with them on the sand. He seemed to be a tall male, but his image was out of focus.

“Finally! It is like the Legion, to waste my time! So these are the two Centurions.” He spat, putting a special tinge of vitriolic emphasis on the last word.

He did not wait for Moloch and Krasus to reply but continued on with his tirade.

“Centurions that will be brought up on charges, if I have anything to say about it. It is utterly despicable that the Legion would practically invade the sovereign level of Drydellia especially under the false pretenses of a hybrid insurrection.” He continued.

“Senator if I may…” Moloch tried to interject.

“You certainly may not! What did you do, Centurion? Find a couple of pleasure clones who gave themselves cat ears and a tail or two and then charge in emitters blazing? Why, I’d eat the hem of my robe if there was even a hybrid that was big enough to pose a threat to any of you! Hrumph! He took a moment to breathe and then made a show of tugging the front of his robe straight, doing it with such efficiency that it had to be a lifelong habit.

“This is just another case of the Legion overstepping their authority and mark my words I will be representing the official drydellian complaint committee against you both in the Senate. Have you ever been to a Senetrial trial Son?”

Legate Septimus finally interrupted him. “Let's not be hasty, Senator. Perhaps you ought to suspend judgment until you’ve questioned the Centurions.”

“Very well Legate.” Aventus said thinly as he waved his hand around the chamber. “If my transmission wasn't so blurry, I’d like to look around this room and see your so-called evidence.”

Moloch’s lips were set in a firm line. “Take your time to adjust your instrument’s Senator. We’ll wait.” He growled out each word slowly as the bruises and cuts on his body began to pulse and itch with discomfort and pain.

Aventus turned from them and spoke to someone off camera. “Someone get over here and make this transmission clear.”

Krasus stood with his arms crossed, tapping his foot. “Anytime now Senator.” He said, affecting his usual tone of an annoyed nobleman.

“Aventus’ blurry face moved towards him. “What was that Centurion? You shall wait on me until I am done with you!” He shouted with his back to them, now facing the wrong way to the intelor sensor.

Krasus smiled and shrugged at Moloch. Apparently this Senator had a very short fuse and no talent whatsoever for using technology.

There was a sizzle of static and then the Senator’s face snapped into crystal clear focus. He was an old man, who had a heavy robe draped over his gaunt frame. He had two long wispy bits of white hair which flared out from behind large wrinkly ears. They were a carefully manicured vestige from a youth that had long since passed.

“Now take me to these hybrids so I can begin lettering the charges… and..then..and then…” He said absentmindedly his sentence trailing off, as his eyes grew wide at the death and carnage he was now able to see.

Moloch walked up to his projection. “Do you call ninety-three dead Legionnaires nothing?”

Aventus had no response, he just kept looking around the sandy pit that was littered with the dead albino abominations.

Moloch stood beside the fallen giant's head, which was now half buried in the sand, its cloudy dark bloodshot eyes staring off in different directions around the chamber.

“Is this the kind of pleasure clone you were referring to? Is it big enough for you?” Krasus added with a smirk.

The Senator let the jibe go, as he continued to stare mouth agape.

Even though the monster's head was half buried in the sand, it still came up to Moloch’s shoulder.

“How much are the Drydellians bribing you to distract from their malfescense?” Moloch asked.

“It looks like fifty thousand ducats.” Krasus said, holding out his intelor and pointing to the screen.

That statement brought Senator Aventus back around, and he looked at them defensively.

“Those ducats were perfectly legal campaign donations!” Aventus said. The wrinkly jowls of his face and the bald patch of skin on the center of his head turning beet red.

“What’s the difference?” Moloch grated, his voice dripping with disgust.

“Well, I have never been spoken to so rudely by the rank and file!” Aventus blustered. “Don’t you forget who you are talking to boy! I am a Senator!”

“Now, Now, I’m sure the Centurions mean no disrespect.” Septimus interjected quickly, talking over both parties. “It has been a long day for everyone, lets not not exchange words we might regret later” He said, turning to Moloch and Krasus and giving them both a hard stare, as he tried to cool down the conversation as it was about to boil over.

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Moloch took a deep breath and took out his emitter pistol and began to idly pick off the grime that had accumulated on the sight picture. He didn’t even bother to look up at Aventus.

“If you wish to pursue your investigation, We will await your arrival down here in Drydellia, where you will personally inspect the site to verify your claims and take your evidence. Since it is a Legion matter, by law it will require your personal attendance. We cannot wait to take you through the hybrid nest and show you everything from the flesh storeroom to their privy pit. But I must warn you the smell is truly nauseating, so bring an air filter down here with you when you arrive.”

Senator Aventus let out a long and exasperated sigh. Moloch knew that the Senator would never dain to leave the safety of surface city, even with his security retinue and trudge through a festering hybrid den, after knowing that he was personally obligated to document the carnage.

Moloch continued. “Also there is the small matter of War Paragon Jalan, he showed up and burned Supervisor Rofoscues' men alive and from the inside out.

“And he broke his legs.” Krasus added as he moved the intelor down to show Supervisor Rofoscue who despite being unconscious was still blubbering and fitfully begging in quiet whimpering tones.

“WHAT? War Paragon Jalan was there? With you?” Aventus said nervously. He could throw around his Senatorial weight and mess with Legates, Centurions, and Legionnaires, but to pick a fight with a War paragon, that was another matter altogether. They were so powerful that politicians of all stripes gave them a wide berth. The only being they respected was the Emperor, and they didn’t follow the laws they tolerated them. Awakened at that level usually spent their time trying to advance themselves in their cultivations and did not bother with the trifles of the mundane world, unless they were called upon by the Emperor or had some personal reason to do so. When they did it was in everyone's best interest to stay out of their way. There was no greater bastion of defense for the Republic and her citizens than those individuals that were capable cultivators of the light.

Krasus continued for Moloch. “I’m sure you would like to intrude on his meditations and harangue him about this matter. I’m sure he would love to hear your accusation of excessive brutality, and would love to receive chastisement from you and your lofty senatorial committee. I’m sure he won’t take it personally.” Krasus stood beside Aventus’ projected form and pointed to one of the twisted and charred gristle patties that used to be a Constable. Then he nudged it with the tip of his boot. The crust of the exterior ashes crunched as the black wet matter inside made a squelching sound. “This was a Drydellian constable just an hour ago, look what Jalan did to him in under a minute! Brutality indeed!”

Senator Aventus suddenly looked very uncomfortable at this and he tugged at the collar of his under robe shirt as if the room he was in had suddenly become too hot and the fabric was starting to smother him.

“It seems the Drydellians must have exaggerated their claims of Legion brutality. From what I can see your actions and those of Paragon Jalan were totally justified.”

Then he pursed his lips and closed his eyes for a long moment, internally willing himself to say the next part.

“Good work, Centurions. Thank you for your service.” He said, and then waved at the technician controlling his intelor station. “Cut it!” He barked harshly at the technician. The transmission ended, winking out abruptly.

Krausus and Moloch looked at each other and broke into grins. Despite all they had suffered and lost today, being alive and not brought up on charges by the Senate was something to smile about.

They spent the next hour on the intelor with Legate Septimus, answering his questions and giving an account of all that had happened. When Moloch mentioned Silhouette, Septimus frowned.

“This one is known to us. We had no other information until today about her physical characteristics but it seems she has been instrumental in several heists of recovered Krakon tek.

“Now what would a hybrid lover want with Krakon tek?” Krasus asked.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Moloch said “I’d bet a months pay that she was trying to infuse Krakon genes into these hybrids.” Krasus crossed his arms and frowned.

“Don’t make stupid wagers Centurion.” Septimus said, with a sour laugh.

“The Krakons were exterminated a century ago. They aren’t even from our planet, there is no possible way they could hybridize with our biology. Also where would she have gotten fresh genetic material for such an operation? This is the case of one rogue eccentric gene smith who was obsessed with Krakons and was probably able to create some physically similar hybrids out of genes from our own reptiles.”

“Well why was Forrester interested in her tek?” Moloch said, suddenly feeling defensive.

Septimus sighed, taking the tone of an annoyed parent who was forced to explain something again to a particularly dense child.

“Everyone is interested in Krakon tek. Reverse engineering is what caused our civilization to advance so rapidly after the war.

A single novel piece of tek could result in billions of ducats in untold profits for a savvy company. Not to mention every other sentient race in our world is seeking it. Forrester works for the beggars guild. It should really be named the thieves guild if half of what our intelligence networks report about their activities is true. She probably stole the tek from our facilities before Forrester and the rest of his thieving bums could. Never could get any evidence on the slippery buggers though.” Septimus mused wistfully, speaking more to himself than to any of them.

“Well I will bring one of the reptile hybrid bodies back for our gene-smiths to examine. Then we can be certain.” Moloch said.

Septimus looked up at him, his jaw set in a firm line, making eye contact with Moloch.

“Belay that Centurion. I’ve received orders from above that our cleanup team is to melt all the bodies on site to avoid further scandal and social unrest.”

“But Sir!” Moloch protested, “Isn’t it worth double checking?”

The Legate spoke over him, lifting a finger to point at his chest for emphasis.

“Enough, Centurion! Isn’t it enough of a scandal that ninety-three fine Legionnaires from the first Legion die in Drydellia after a conflict with some hybrids? What an embarrassment! You should pray to the light that this matter has been resolved as quickly and as quietly as it was! The social and political landscape of the Republic has become much more tense in recent cycles. Not only in the pillar cities but in the settled estates as well. As the wealth gap increases and the Corporate Alliance becomes more powerful, they have been capably shifting the blame of the hardships the average citizen is experiencing towards us. The last thing we want is other levels with dissatisfaction at their treatment from the Republic and the Corporations, to catch wind of this debacle and try to imitate what happened here today. A group with rebellious inclinations and some genejuice could cause a great deal of disorder and chaos!”

Moloch and Krasus looked at each other.

“Understood?” Septimus said with a hard edge in his voice.

“Understood Legate.” Moloch and Krasus said together.

“Good, now sort yourselves out and be ready to hand things over to the cleanup team when they arrive.”

“As you command sir.” Moloch and Krasus said again.

The Legates transmission winked out.

“By the void Moloch, Krakons really?” Krasus chided him, crossing his arms and shaking his head.

“You saw the creatures, what did she pull the genes from a mud lizard?” Moloch said, now even doubting himself in the face of all their collective criticism.

“You know how gene-smiths can modify someone’s code. Earlier today we saw a bull man with spider fangs coming out of his chest. You don’t think some Krakon obsessed nut job couldn’t cobble together some kind of creature that resembles them?”

“When you put it that way. You might have a point.” Moloch said, scratching the back of his head.

“I just have one regret.” Krasus said, cracking a grin.

“What’s that?”

“I didn’t take your stupid wager when you made it.” Krasus laughed. “I’d have gotten double pay this month!”

Moloch shoved him. “Let's get out of this festering void cursed place and wait for the cleanup crew in the fresh air.”

“Right behind you brother.” Krasus said, as the two plodded their way up the sandy dune and scrambled out of the hole and onto the Drydellian street.