Warhammer 40,000 The Lost Primarch

The Eyes

Joseph couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. He had felt it ever since the exchange with Sebian. He felt like there was someone, something, that was watching him from the tree line. He would snap around to find nothing occasionally a rustle in the forest. By rustle he meant a leaf falling or shadow shifting but to him it was obvious. He had to force himself to dismiss it and focus on his armor.
His father allowed him to take every other day off to make the finishing touches on his armor. The power cell was taking a very large amount of time to charge fully but on his days off he would hook it into the armor and test all of the areas. Most areas had minor flaws that could be ignored but certain areas, such as where he first began, needed the most work. A week passed and the battery was nearly fully charged but he needed to help with the farm once more.
     For every day that passed where he did not work on the farm they were breaking even or losing possible money. One years crop would pay for the next years crop and enough to pay the outrageous taxes but not much else. His fathers or his own hunting allowed them to make enough to possibly improve what they had. That fact alone was incredible and more than anyone else could hope for. That fact didn't help him with his mounting anxious excitement.
     He still had the later parts of the day to work on the suit but it was not enough time to put the suit on and do test runs. Every two nights he would stay up all night and do the test runs that the suit needed so desperately. The lack of sleep barely affected him and the next few afternoons he would make the adjustments, fixes, and reconfiguring required. The armor was nearly done and the eyes still stared burning holes into his back.
     He had just gotten in from working on the armor and he had only stopped because his parents didn't want him working in the dark even though he could see perfectly fine. It made his parents happy so he complied anyway. It was dark and his parents were usually in bed but instead he was greeted by an excited embrace from his mother who barely reached his waist. His father stood by the table with a rare smile painted across his face.
     "What's happening?" Joseph asked cautiously.
"We have been saving up for a while and we decided it was time that we bought another plot of land," His smile broadened,"We figured that this could be a wise investment because you finish your work so early that you could take on another plot without too much trouble."
David nodded, smiled to himself, and gave his dad a giant hug. This meant that he wouldn't be able to go hunting with his armor during the growing season. It was disappointing but it left the cold season, when crops would not grow to hunt the great beasts as much as he desired. Another downside was that he would not get the money that he made from selling the meats because money would be tight for a while after the purchase. The benefits outweighed the risks. It opened up the opportunity to make money for sure. The growth of the farm was unfolding in Joseph's mind and he already had ideas that he would share with his dad when things had settled down. That night he was extatic and could not force himself to sleep. That and he felt the eyes more than ever. One on each shoulder. It almost hurt.
His father gave him the next day off because he had to ask a neighbor about the process of purchasing more land. Joseph didn't waste any time and immediately began testing the armor in any way he could. This time he had no warning or error runes pop up with immediate urgency. He decided it was finally time to enjoy the armor. He jogged to the nearest thoroughfare and found what he was looking for.
There was a car coming down a bend headed quickly. He couldn't help but smile as he picked up his pace. The speeding vehicle caught up to him and he sped up a little to match pace. The astonished faces of the teenagers within were quickly replaced with wicked smiles as Joseph gestured wildly indicating he wanted a race. The driver shook his head but finally agreed after being punched roughly and berated with insults.
The car began to speed up and Joseph sped up a second behind it. His breath was coming faster and his second heart was waking up to begin pumping even more blood through him. He pushed harder. He could hear the strain on the armor but it was to be expected. He began pulling ahead of the car and he could hear muffled shouts over the wind as the driver was berated with more insults. The car was pushing at its limits and Joseph smiled even more as he leaned forward and poured as much energy as he could to his impossible sprint. He pushed further and further ahead and finally the car relented and slowed down in defeat. Joseph let his burning legs slow down as he howled his laughter into the air. He slowed to a jog and the car moved past with all its occupants leaning out the window and yelling out cheers and laughs before they passed and he slowed to a stop. He turned around and made his way home with a big smile plastered over his face.
When he reached the long trail back to his house he felt the burning pain on his back again. It was more intense and when he looked at the trail he was filled with suspicion. There were too many footprints in the dry brown dirt. He saw his father further ahead and gave a short bark before quickly catching up to him. His father had the same worried look on his face. He had the clasp on the holster was undone and you could see the ancient pistol sitting in it.
The eyes were burning into his back.