| abstract
| - High-ranking Plaguebearers are known amongst the Daemon legions as Plague Drones; a title that conveys commendable humility, yet belies the power beneath. Also called Blighted Swarmers, Festerwings, and Bubonic Buzzers, these stewards of Nurgle's Garden ride into the mortal realm mounted upon Rot Flies — colossal Daemon-insects whose appearance is so repugnant it leaves festering scars upon the mind. From their lofty positions the Plague Drones can properly tally the diseases running rife across the battlefield, as well as swiftly intervene should Nurgle’s divine plans meet with heavily-armed resistance.[1a] The Rot Flies themselves are amongst Nurgle’s most loathsome creations. Some Beasts of Nurgle, perpetually disappointed by the rag-doll inactivity of their mortal playthings, develop a kernel of bitterness in their ebullient souls. Crestfallen puzzlement leads to frustration and ultimately an aching resentment of the mortals that spurn its company. Over the millennia, a thin seed of malice grows in such a Beast’s heart, feeding upon depression and angst until it throbs like a canker at the Daemon’s core.[1a] The final straw comes when the Beast is betrayed unto death by those it wishes to call its friends. Banished to the Realm of Chaos by some ingrate’s blows, the Beast flollops and huffs into a tremendous sulk, its tiny mind gnawed by the knowledge that it cannot return to the mortal domain.[1a] This is when the Rot Fly that lurks within begins to take over. Over the centuries that the Beast is bound to remain in the Realm of Chaos, it slowly pupates, secreting a thick mucous of negativity to protect it from the harsh reality outside. As the chitinous nub of hate that lurks within the Beast grows strong on the sallow bulk of its former incarnation, a daemonic metamorphosis takes place. Eventually the creature within bursts out of its fleshy sac as a full-grown Rot Fly, a creature of pitiless malice hell-bent on wreaking its revenge upon an uncaring universe. Plaguebearers prize such steeds even above the Palanquins of Nurgle, for in their haste to punish the mortals that spurned their larval form, Rot Flies will speed into battle at great pace.[1a] As the Rot Flies fall upon their prey, blade-sharp legs sink into soft flesh and leathery wings buzz in a flapping purr of motion. Prehensile probosces and posterior mouth-parts latch onto the faces of their victims, and the Rot Flies let out titters of mean-spirited laughter as they pluck heads from necks and swallow them whole. W hen facing the unremarkable warriors of the mortal realm, a Rot Fly will slowly digest all meat from a skull before spitting out a plague-infused death’s head that its Plaguebearer rider can hurl at the foe. Given the chance, though, Rot Flies will hunt down the impertinent mortals that slew their previous incarnations. A special fate is reserved for such individuals. Opening their maws wider than physical law should allow, they consume their persecutors whole, keeping them trapped in their mucous-filled abdomens for eternity as punishment.[1a]
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