Aeldari Succubus

A white robe appeared in the gloomy alley, utterly out of place amid its surroundings.

Bona gripped the Drukhari before him by the throat and hoisted him high, while the captive trembled uncontrollably.

"Urgh... urghhh, aaaaah!"

The poor wretch rapidly caught fire, flames from the depths of his soul searing his pitiful body.

His armor clattered to the ground, leaving only a pile of ash.

Before the Drukhari's soul burned away, Bona quickly found what he wanted.

He discovered that most Drukhari civilians, members of the underclass, and even the expendable rank-and-file troops of the Kabals had extremely fragile souls, weaker even than those of ordinary humans.

Yet the high-ranking Drukhari he had encountered earlier had shown no such symptoms. Even the most unremarkable among them had not ignited at the slightest touch.

As a result, Bona had to attack these lowly Drukhari with extreme care along the way, hurriedly searching their relevant memories before they burned to ash.

Only after burning roughly a hundred Drukhari did he finally find a lead.

In truth, Yvraine was hardly renowned. She was neither a powerful Kabal Archon nor a Wych or Succubus who won cheers in the Arena.

She was merely a recently emerging Gladiator, and an outsider from the Craftworld Aeldari at that.

Bona could not understand how such an ordinary figure had caught Slaanesh's eye.

But who cared? It was none of his business if the Aeldari blew up. Given the chance, he would even organize a fleet to blow up all their Craftworlds.

Suddenly, Bona sensed something.

He drew his Chainsword and slashed behind him, knocking away a spike launched in an ambush from above.

Then he darted backward as countless barbed chains lashed at him, batting them away one after another.

He caught the last chain and yanked hard, dragging down the Drukhari standing on a flying skyboard, then drew his Bolter and shattered his attacker's head with one clean shot.

The distinctive shrieks of Ethereal Hounds came from the alley entrance behind him. These pink, tentacled, many-eyed beasts charged at Bona.

Bona tried to ignite the hounds' souls directly, only to discover that their affinity with the Warp was so strong that they remained unaffected.

Warp creatures?

Bona lashed out with the chain, smashing several Warp hounds to pieces, then raised his Bolter and fired precise single shots.

But these abominations kept slipping briefly into the Warp, narrowly evading the incoming Bolts.

In the blink of an eye, the Ethereal Hounds were upon Bona, and the roar of his Chainsword mingled with their shrieks.

Yet wherever that figure's Chainsword swept, Ethereal Hounds were chopped in half, their brief spatial jumps rendered a joke.

Pink blood splashed across Commorragh's scrap-metal ground, while the white-robed figure stood unmoved.

Suddenly, sharp prickles ran through his neck, and the body that had fought for untold ages in the Blood God's Arena reacted instinctively.

A twisted blade struck squarely against the Chainsword before him.

Before him stood a Drukhari woman who was strikingly beautiful even by human standards. Her healthy, wheat-colored skin was utterly out of place in Commorragh, and her graceful figure wore only enough clothing to preserve her modesty.

Her violet eyes radiated a deadly allure.

Succubi (Daemonettes) were the undisputed stars of the Drukhari's bloody arenas, enjoying a status akin to royalty in the dark city of Commorragh.

Their beauty was usually utterly at odds with Commorragh. These blade-wielding courtesans excelled at tormenting their opponents through every conceivable means, satisfying the spectators' perverse desires to the fullest.

This deadly rose exhaled softly, letting her warm breath wash over the human's face.

"Hello, human. You're the one who wrecked my operation, aren't you?"

"Yes."

Two Bolts exploded, but the Succubus leaped gracefully away, landing lightly a short distance off and even offering a polite bow.

"So brutal? Don't you have the slightest courtesy toward a lady?"

But when she saw Bona's impassive face, she realized he might genuinely feel nothing.

"Hehehe, even those beings among you called 'Astartes' show a little reaction."

Hmm... a neurotoxin.

Perhaps the Nurgle broth Bona had drunk was so toxic that he could not feel this substance affecting him at all.

"Xenos, stay out of my way," Bona said.

"That won't do. You wrecked my operation and released so many slaves. You've cost me dearly."

In an instant, the Succubus's gaze turned seductive and lethal, her tongue gliding lightly over her lips.

"You're so special. I'll have to capture you, lock you away, and take my time playing with you."

The next second, Bona sensed something hurtling toward him from behind. He dodged without hesitation, only to discover that they were mere illusions.

The toxin-coated blade slashing toward him, however, was all too real, as was the side kick that struck him squarely in the chest and drove him back several steps.

Before he could react, several poisoned darts came flying at him.

She's too agile.

Perhaps Horus could handle her easily, but with my body still in its human state, I can only be forced onto the defensive.

He tried to ignite her with his psyker power, only to discover that the dark elf before him had a remarkably substantial soul, unlike the fragile souls of the Kabalite Warriors he had encountered earlier.

"Hehe, human, did you think you could hide those little tricks from me?" the Succubus mocked.

Then the Succubus seized an opening and drove her twisted blade through Bona's right shoulder.

In an instant, Bona lost all sensation in the right half of his body and collapsed to the ground, with only his left leg stubbornly trying to drag him upright.

But the Succubus kicked his left leg out from under him, forcing him to his knee, then smugly lifted his chin with her right hand.

"Be good, human."

"I'll take good care of you. You'll be the first work of art I train with such care."

For some reason, the Succubus felt this human was different. A faint, elusive allure kept drawing her toward him.

But Bona smiled slightly, and every hair on the Succubus's body stood on end.

The next second, psychic lightning blasted the Succubus away. She rolled several times across the ground before coming to rest.

Bona bit open his ring finger and gently pressed the blood welling from it onto his wound. In the blink of an eye, the injury healed, and sensation returned to his body.

Fool. All it took was a little acting, and you swallowed the bait.