The Angofalma transport gracefully wove between clusters of trees southwest of the city. The craft that humans called Wave Serpents used the bizarre and mystic technology of Eldar gravity manipulation, making it the fastest and most maneuverable armored personnel carrier in the known universe. It was also armed as well as any Imperial Tank with twin Alcarehtë "Bright Lance" beam weapons that could shear through enemy armor easily. Its versatility, armament, and speed made it a true terror on the battlefield.
Inside, the Farseer Tultisairinorë sat brooding, idly toying with a piece of frayed leather that had come loose from the hilt of his Witchblade. The three Istari Warlocks had sensed his foul mood and remained at the far end of the troop compartment. "Indocca na morna, toron."("Your mood is dark, brother.") He heard his sister's voice and raised his eyes to meet hers.
Helwahawen stood before him, dressed in full battle regalia of bone white and glossy black. The material known as "Wraithbone", crafted by Eldar smiths with centuries of experience could be molded into a wide variety of materials, from their personal armor to weaponry, to the structure of the Wave Serpent the rode in. His sister was tall, even for the Eldar, and moved with a sinuous grace. She had always been superior to him in the arts martial, a fact she had continually teased him with in their youth. While he was in command of this mission, she was the soldier who led the troops onto battle. Her hair was long, bound into twin streams of black that trailed behind her like the tails of equines.
He sighed, "Na. Ernat mauyila i alm orëva. Ernat útancawa. Osanwan ya…"("It is. Something is tugging at the back of my mind. Something formless. I have a feeling that…") He let his voice trail away, the thought unfinished.
"Nye quentocce."("Tell me")
Tultisairinorë looked away, "Tuvan ya osanwila…selerëlva, Nyërëlindë. Antarëa luvua cuivëa orë."("I find myself thinking of…our sister, Nyërëlindë. Her face haunts my waking thoughts.")
"Ninare qualin loarin, melda."("She has been dead for years, dear.") Helwahawen laid her hand upon his shoulder. Even through the "wraithbone" gauntlet on her hand, and the shoulder greaves, he could feel the warmth and intimacy of their contact.
He closed his eyes, "Unanye ya nas nyarë…"("I'm not so sure…")
Before she could question him further, one of the Warlocks called out to them as he gazed into the view-crystal with which he was watching the strike force. The two Farseers approached, looking into the crystal to see what had alarmed him. Bending the crystal to his will, Tultisairinorë turned its view to look down upon the small army as it moved stealthily through the lightly wooded hills. He could feel the warding enchantment over them was still strong, secure that the force could not be detected by human sensors.
The plan had proceeded to perfection thus far. Once the High Council of Uthwë had received the call for aid from the Biel-Tan craftworld, they had answered with Helwahawen's task force, called Ungolokë, the Dragon of Shadow. It seems a Biel-Tan Farseer named Machi had reported the Imperium of Humans had discovered some ancient artifact of war on this world. It was powerful enough that the Council of Biel-Tan judged it needed to be destroyed. The power of the young race had to be curtailed to prevent them from foolishly destroying the galaxy with their xenophobic insanity.
Unfortunately, the Biel-Tan did not have a task force near enough to support the Farseer, so they called out to other craftworlds for assistance. As it was, the Ungolokë were less than a parsec away. They were perfect for this sort of mission, so the task had been passed to them. A small stealth transport had approached the planet, with a team of Palanradiri Rangers and a disassembled Warp Gate. With the humans distracted by battles against the Orks, Chaos, and Necrons, they had easily avoided detection and erected the Warp Gate. The rest of the force had gated in, and they were now only a few miles from their objective. With luck, they would strike quickly and without warning, destroy the artifact, and be gone before the humans could mount a counterattack.
