Beneath the chapel, Elias discovers the secret Serek was hiding — the cult wasn't purged, it was absorbed. The priest is a latent psyker feeding on ritual execution to fuel his growing power. Elias confronts him in the reliquary vaults. Outmatched and injured, Elias reaches the edge again — and the System finally gives him a weapon.
The reliquary vault wasn't locked.
It should've been.
Doors this deep in a hive always groaned, always hissed, always shrieked open like metal remembering pain.
But this one?
It opened silently.
Like it was waiting for him.
The room beyond was round. Dome-shaped. Black stone walls carved with holy scripture — and deeper beneath those carvings, something older. Hidden runes. Carved over. Not erased.
Buried.
The vault's center was dominated by a single iron altar, choked in chains. A massive, cracked Aquila sat behind it — snapped at the wings, defaced with wax.
And chained to the altar...
Were bodies.
Not dead.
Comatose.
At least a dozen, linked together by red cord, their mouths sewn shut, their skin pale and inscribed with prayer-markings and counter-sigils.
This wasn't a reliquary.
It was a battery.
Elias stepped inside.
The air felt thick. Electric.
Then he heard the voice behind him.
Smooth. Gentle.
Like velvet around a knife.
"You weren't supposed to see this yet."
Elias turned.
Serek stood in the doorway.
Still smiling.
But his robes were gone.
Now he wore something older — deep crimson vestments marked with the symbol of the Ordo Apostate.
And beneath that?
Warp sigils. Inked into his chest.
Glowing faintly.
"Wasn't purging them enough?" Elias asked.
Serek stepped forward, staff in hand — no longer ceremonial. It pulsed with psychic heat.
"I didn't purge them. I refined them."
He gestured to the chained bodies.
"They're bridges. Vessels. Memory-holes, burned and scrubbed and sanctified. The soul doesn't die when you lobotomize it. It just quiets down."
He smiled wider.
"And the quieter it gets, the more the Warp listens."
Elias clenched his fists.
He could feel chakra stirring — weak, unstable.
His body still bore the burns from earlier. One leg barely held weight.
But he was awake.
And the System was too.
Serek raised the staff. Energy shimmered across the room. Candles lit themselves. Chains rattled.
"You don't belong here, Mercer."
Elias didn't move.
Serek's voice dropped.
"You still think there's a difference between faith and madness. There isn't. Only focus."
The staff flared.
Serek released a wave of psychic force that blasted across the chamber — Elias barely threw up a hand in time, chakra sparking across his forearm. He skidded back, boots scraping against the stone.
Pain bloomed behind his eyes.
A nosebleed.
His vision blurred.
And still…
No new ability.
No new power.
He was too alive.
The priest advanced.
"You survived the underhive. You refused to die. That impressed the Flame."
Elias blinked.
"You know about the System."
Serek nodded once.
"I've tasted it."
He stepped closer, voice growing colder.
"But the Flame is hungry. And it doesn't care who carries it — only who bleeds the most."
Serek raised his staff again.
Elias whispered:
"...good."
Then he stepped into the strike.
The psychic blast hit him point-blank — his chest lit with agony, ribs cracking, knees buckling. He dropped hard to one side, vision spinning.
Something snapped inside.
Blood flooded his mouth.
The System screamed.
> Chakra Threshold Exceeded
> Life Preservation Condition Met
> Unlocking Combat Surge: Chakra Infusion – Weapon (Rank D)
> Status: Bleeding – Critical
> Chakra Remaining: 1.1 / 2.5
Elias pulled the knife from his belt with a shaking hand.
It glowed — faintly at first.
Then violently.
Chakra wrapped around the blade, lashing like a storm tethered to steel. It crackled, hissed, shimmered violet-white.
Serek paused.
Surprised.
Not afraid.
But curious.
Elias pushed off the ground and charged.
The priest raised his staff to block — too slow.
Elias struck low, ducked under the defense, and drove the chakra-infused blade into Serek's hip, cutting through the cloth, armor, and half of his side.
The priest screamed — and not just in pain.
The psychic backlash was immediate — violet light burst from his wound like smoke igniting into fire. One of the chained bodies shriveled, turning black in seconds.
Elias didn't stop.
He spun, reversed the grip, and stabbed again, this time through the chest.
Serek dropped.
Not dead.
But dying.
The chains on the altar snapped — one by one.
The "vessels" began to burn from the inside, the ritual collapsing.
Elias backed away, breathing hard, knife still lit in his hand.
System Update:
> Combat Complete
> Ability Unlocked: Chakra Infusion – Weapon (Rank D)
> Duration: 5 seconds
> Cooldown: Adaptive (based on threat level)
> Passive Gain: Chakra Pulse Efficiency +5%
> WARNING: Severe internal damage
> Find treatment immediately
Serek lay on the floor, eyes wide, body trembling.
His last words were a whisper — not to Elias.
But to the System.
"Choose me…"
Elias watched him die.
Then turned and left the vault.
Outside the sanctum, the chapel burned.
Purity seals curled in flame.
The choir vox had gone silent.
And the people?
Still sat on their pews.
Still unmoving.
Still "faithful."
[END OF CHAPTER 5]
----
Next Up:
Chapter 6: Ashes Speak Softly
Word spreads of what happened in Tarsis Theta — and Elias is caught between silence and suspicion. Commissar Vael doesn't punish him. He promotes him. But nothing is free. Elias is now part of a special operations unit sent into the most unstable conflict zones… and watched every step of the way.