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With that said Enjoy.

From the Journal of His most Holy God-Emperor of Mankind's

loyal servant and Inquisitor, Witch Hunter Ronin Jones of the Delphi Sector

313.026.M42

There are few times doubt the sanity of my chosen career path. Being pinned behind a rapidly shrinking pillar my bolt pistol just out of reach, one of my master crafted stub revolvers empty and the other near enough to count, is definitely one of them. I had tracked the heretic Count Baxton von Shale and his right hand man Severus for over a year before I caught up with them at the Count's summer mansion in the islands of the mostly oceanic world of Celvar's Haven. Severus' heavy stubber had whittled away most of my hiding place leaving me with little more then a foot of the majestic ballroom pillars width to conceal my self -behind.

"You know Inquisitor Jones your just making it harder on your self." the count laughed at me for the umpteenth time. "why don't you simply accept the joy that I have to offer you."

"Simple I have no other love then the God-Emperor." I called back fumbling with more of the anointed stub-rounds trying too reload. "Slaanesh an his "joys" can fraken jump."

Von Shale laughed again that insane maniac's laugh that you only really get in cheesy Holo-pict villains(1). "Come now Inquisitor no need to lie to me, we both know how you can be swayed by the temptations of the flesh." Severus let loose another burst of stubber fire at my shoulder which had become to courageous for it own good, I shrank back quickly avoiding injury but not advancing my situation any. "After all wasn't one of my associates that gave to that charm around your neck."

The charm he was referring to was really two Imperial Guardsmen dog-tags welded together with the regimental crest of the 597th Vahallen that was given to me with the request to keep it safe by a young women I romanced in a bar in the early months of my investigation, but I unhappily discovered that she was a low-ranking witch within the same cult(2). I later received a large amount of flak from my command for a woefully incomplete report on that incident.

"And your point is," I spat back, rage building from Severus' equally annoying nasally laughter among other things. "What I do with the things I take from heretics is my business."

If there was any response it was drowned out by roar of the twin-linked heavy bolters tearing through the ceiling like paper, my assailants dove for cover while Lela Korbs expert gunnery skill shredded the ballroom from above in my personal gunship. I moved quickly with the opening coming out of hiding in time to watch Severus reduced to a stain on the shredded floorboards. Baxton von Shale on the other hand slipped out of

the room and took off down the hallway. I moved in to the view of the gunship as it hovered above the damaged ballroom ceiling. I could just make out the idiotically grinning face of the pilot through the smoke. I replaced my hat back upon my head and pointed angrily towards the speeder garage in the direction von Shale had escaped in. Lela gave me a thumbs up sign and veered of in the direction I'd pointed. Recovering my bolt pistol and power sword form where they lay I resumed the chase. I persued my quary through the maze of the mansion's basment following the residual heat with my infra-scopic vision. I persued him to the door of the garage and batterd the door down with my foot.

Von Shale was preping a small atmosphere craft for launch when I entered, he spun around and produced a ornate laz- pistol from his multicolored jacket. "You are truly annoying Inquistor Jones." he spat, "you should count yourself lucky I let you live this long."

"Oooo, a threat of sorts. Im shaking in fear hereatic." I replied continuing forward in anger chambering a round in my pistol "save me the trouble and hold still."

"You may kill me but my dark lords bidding will still be done"

"That's what you all say."

"You shall never defeat the great Slaanesh your little Imperium will fall and your false god will be cast in to the refuse with the rest of the corpses."

"Are you done yet?"

He held his laz- pistol at me long enough to cry out in a demonic tongue,then turning the laz on himself, he whispered "Our brotherhood will seek vengence." With those words died one of the worst heretics in the Delphi Sector, and in fitting with his life Count Baxton von Shale caused me more years of annoyance.

XXX

The trip back to Veen IV was thankfuly uneventful, two weeks of travel in the warp in Delphi and the sourounding sectors caught up in the turbulent backwash from the Eye of Terror could quickly turn a simple trip in between systems in a navigational nightmare. Siren Manor, my estate on Veen IV was a simple beach front cottage, I had inherited from my master Inquisitor Typhon Cyrus upon his death, sat much the way I left when I began my travels. The grounds keepers going about the lawns pruneing the hedgerows while my personal security force petroled the grounds. Lela and I pulled in to the drive in front the main house where I was greeted by the rest of my outfit, Duren Gorbic my Psiker twitched nervously as he stood next to Renalestra Gessa a Hairless shrine-maiden from the sector's shrine world to Saint Orzen the vengeful, and Len Torgenson a former sergeant of the Agien 32nd infantry. The last member of my staff to greet me was Elasa Shen my trusted housekeeper/chief of security who updated me on the status of security upon our entry to the house and then fussed over a pair maides having them prepare the dining room and bring meals for my retinue and I.

The eveining passed without major incident with Gessa telling the tale about gathering information for me on the hive world Torrent and Gorbic's twitching getting so bad it was wonder he kept his robes clean through the whole meal. The wonders of Psikers. I soon retired to the study with a glass of amasec, good stuff dated 875 M41, and began finalzing my reports to the sector conclave and my Ordos. I was a little confused as to who I was supposed to send it to as the most recent leader of the Delphi Sector's Inquisitorial conclave had vanished three years before and my self being the only member of the Ordo Hereticus in the sector made me default head of the operation till a sutable replacement could be found, which the minor Ordos Electoris was dragging its feet on the process of doing(3).

"I have recovered the data slates you require master." said Seldic Piner, the aged arcivest my master Cyrus had employed years before I joined his retinue and inherited in to my sevice, bringing me stacks of the requested item jerking me from my thoughts. "any thing else you ask of me?"

I leafed through the stack, "Check through the rest of the files on Slanneshi cults. See if you can find refrences to a brotherhood."

"Any particular refrence master?"

"Sadly no," I sighed tugging at my beard irritability "I want a general list of files by this time tomarrow night."

Seldic bowed and disappeared behind the rows of shelves. I withdrew a data slate and scrolled through the contents till I found what I was looking for. The smiling face of a young girl stared back at me, some where in her early teens the schola uniforms shoulders covered in her bright golden hair, her eyes the same crystle blue as the ice spierers of her home-world. Not at all like the scantily clad bloodshot eyed witch I had met a year before. Heidi Oslo as the name the investigation turned up, was the daughter of Imperial Guard solders from the famous regament of the 597th Valhallen. A pair of squad sargents Alonzo and Crei Oslo somehow had rasied Heidi in the belly of a troopship for a year till the regament made its once in a decade return to Valhalla, where the Oslos had eagerly mustered out and settled down. Tragicly both had been killed in the Cadian sector after being reactivated during Abbadon the Despolier's 13th Black Crusade, leaving 10 year old Heidi and her three year old brother Caiphus orphaned.

After that not much else was listed she had been inducted in to the Schola on Valhalla and spent seven years there till her own disaperince.Which left me with the question of how wide spred was this cult, if it's witches hailed from as far away as Valhalla. Leaving the plate to oneside I began to backtrack through the information I had aquired thoughout my investigation but nothing solid appeared, names or refrences to other sectors crossed the charts but the farthest was only a two sectors away in Corinth. Sullenly I compiled the information for my report and composed a long patronizing letter to Senior Inqusitor Alice Cherenkov of the kabal of Corinth Sector requesting an audience with her. Being the only Inquisitor in the sector to hold the title of Witch Hunter ment that she was the only inquisitor of the Ordos Heraticus I could talk to without the Normal standoffishness that comes with the feeling that one is under investigation for heresy, an occurrence that makes all loyal inquisitors cringe(3). It would be 8 months of travel to Tanor the world Inquisitor Cherenkov operated out of so I arranged travel with a rouge trader that had arrived in system when I had arrived earlier, and owed me big for ignoring his unsanctioned astropath. Once again the pleasing thought of vacation I had a year be for vanished.

(1)and one of the many reasons why I had done a happy dance at the prospect of putting him to the flame

(2)How I discovered this is need to know information. Which the Inquisition most certainly dose not need to know.

(3)Again.

(4)with the exception of those of Ordos Malleus who enjoy an imaginary position as above scrutiny by His noble inquisition.