Chapter 1

It has been 57 days since I stepped foot on Okassis as part of my tour of the eastern fringe, my visit was only meant to last for a couple of days but due to the events that followed my arrival I decided to postpone my departure. When Haiken convinced me to extend my tour of the eastern fringe he couldn't tell me much, only assumptions about an enemy that may be lurking in the sector; if that came from any other Inquisitor I would have sent a polite reply about my schedule being far more important than simple assumptions but it is Haiken, he knows me and I know him…

Perhaps there is something to that theory of his after all, my contacts on Terra say that the Inquisition is conducting a purge of officials with ties on the Eastern fringe; furthermore many planets on the Eastern fringe have openly rebelled against the Imperium, Ichar IV in particular is receiving a lot of attention, the Inquisitor there has petitioned the Ultramarines for help; A direct result of these news is that many Sisters secretly question our continued presence here, there are worlds where the Sisters of Battle could make a difference in these turbulent times and to be honest with myself I share their concerns, although I do believe that our work here is not finished.

The Ultramarines should have arrived at Ichar IV a few days ago but astropathic communiqués have been very difficult for the last month and thus news have been sparse. I have finally found the time to send Anista to question the local representatives of the Ordo Astra Telepathica about the nature of these difficulties, if she can't get a clear answer out of the astropaths no one will ever be.

The Planetary governor finally managed to gather enough courage to ask about our continued presence here, probably he fears for his position; Anista was quite furious when she first read his message, her phrase 'How dare he question a Canoness Superior?' being the most polite part of her tirade against the governor's rather understandable question. After all, the planet has been going to hell for quite some time. The continued natural disasters that have plagued this planet have left only a shadow of its former self, for the past year the planet has been hit time and time again by abnormally powerful earthquakes and hurricanes, it is as if the planet tries to tear itself apart.

This has offered the perfect explanation for our continued presence here, without revealing anything about what we discovered. Merely the arrival of so many of the Daughters of the Emperor on the planet calmed and reassured the populace in its time of hardship and as it is our duty to suppress Heresy I deemed that our presence here was warranted in order to keep the populace firmly in the path of the Emperor after the Cardinal's heretical departure and our purge of the cardinal palace; despite the fact that the governor was one of the first we cleared of any possible affiliation with the genestealer cult we uncovered, I still haven't informed him about it. I am now confident that the cult we destroyed on our first day here was the only one but we still haven't cleared every high ranking official of the planet, it would take but one genestealer hybrid to remain at large and a new cult would grow in time.

Despite our presence the wave of emigration off the planet continues unabated; only the demonstrations and the riots have been far less frequent, probably because of the extermination of the genestealer cult, even the few earthquakes that have occurred since our arrival are weaker.

To be fair with myself, I don't know why I linger so long here, we have managed to clear most of the high ranking officials of any affiliation with the genestealer cult, without even alerting anyone about what we were really looking for; the local Arbites and the Caledonian 105th Imperial guard regiment could handle the rest and undertake a more open and thorough purge of any remaining genestealer activity.

Yet I chose to extend our presence here for a few more days, I have a feeling that we are still needed here. Perhaps it is more than that though, I thanked the Emperor when Haiken contacted me and asked me to extend my tour; is it wrong of me to not want this tour to end? I know what I will have to do should I return to the Convent Sanctorum. Sometimes I wish that the Costudes had chosen another sister.

Canoness Superior Anya Praxedes, Order of Our Martyred Lady

Personal Journal, 5 121 992M41

Praxedes inserted the electro quill back into its slot and glanced at what she wrote at the dataslate, after a few seconds she saved the text and deactivated the dataslate. She leaned back at her chair and relaxed as she observed the office she was in. The cardinal who once used it decided to leave the planet after an earthquake hit the capital city of Okassis but his presence had left its mark on the room; in particular the numerous holy tomes that decorated the bookshelves were practically new and unopened, left to gather dust, the names and the deeds of the saints that they spoke of were never recited in ceremony. In contrast other books, regarding accounting and economic management, were worn; their pages frequently opened and read. Next to them there were plenty of empty spaces where the wood showed signs that once there were several books on it; this alone would have alerted her of what was hidden beneath the cardinal palace, no truly faithful priest would ever put his estates and riches above the saints.

She sighed and smiled as she remembered the message she received a month ago about the former cardinal, apparently her message about the genestealer cult in the cardinal palace ruffled quite a few feathers; the freighter that carried him was destroyed by the Imperial navy and an Inquisitor of the Ordo Xenos started a purge on the planet he was heading to, furthermore all emigrants, whether they were nobles or lowly servants, are currently investigated.

She read the morning reports that were sent to her office, there were updates from the local arbites, the local priesthood, the PDF, even courtesy reports from the Imperial Guard regiment stationed on the planet. She went through them quickly as they didn't report anything that she didn't know already; the only noteworthy incidents were the usual demonstrations and occasional small riots that were quickly put down. From the day that the Sisters of Battle stepped on the planet things calmed down considerably; Okassis with its recent troubled history was in the brink of rebellion but that changed overnight with their arrival and the impromptu purge of the palace, many of the locals suspected that the lack of faith by the cardinal and the priests that followed him was the real reason for what afflicted them; the arrival of the sisterhood followed by the cleansing and reconsecration of the palace only reinforced that belief.

With the cardinal and his lackeys permanently out of the picture, she was the most senior representative of the Ecclesiarchy on the planet as well as the head of the strongest fighting force presently on the planet, although the 105th Caledonian would never admit that. This placed her in the rather uncomfortable position of becoming a leading figure for the local populace, with the cardinal abandoning his position and the governor maintaining order only through the use of the PDF, it was no wonder that the populace would turn to the Daughters of the Emperor for reassurance, the problem was that there wasn't much of a populace left on the planet to speak of.

Once a thriving trading hub, the planet has shed most of its wealth due to the recent earthquakes that have plagued it; most of the nobility who held power on the planet were quick to abandon it, taking whatever they could with them, anyone who could pay for passage aboard a freighter soon followed them, many in fear, others in search of a better future. The combined result of the increased emigration and the casualties from the numerous natural disasters shrunk the populace to a mere hundred millions of citizens, from an initial population of over five hundred millions.

She studied the orbital traffic reports and bit back a curse, there were enough ships in orbit to transport everyone off the planet but they were only there to fill the roles of carrion birds; the nobles that had abandoned the planet had contacted several rogue traders to come and retrieve anything of theirs, industry plants were disassembled and prepared for off world transportation, entire estates were dug out and shipped off, one palace in particular was lifted off by the foundations and then it flew up to the cargo bay of a waiting freighter; the noble who owned it managed to rent some heavy duty anti grav units from a forge world. To his credit only the planetary governor remained fully committed to the planet, perhaps due to the knowledge that the Imperium would not see him kindly if he left his post.

The doors slammed open as Palatine Anista rushed into the office, taking Praxedes by surprise.

"Canoness Superior, we have a serious problem." The Palatine closed the doors as she spoke.
"The astropaths? What did they say?" Anista went straight to the small bar which held several decanters of amasec, she took one, poured some into a shot glass and unceremoniously brought it down in one gulp. Praxedes raised an eyebrow at the out of character drinking of her subordinate. "How bad is it?"
"Bad enough that I really needed that." The Palatine replied, Praxedes observed as Anista took an amasec tumbler in her hand.
"Straight or with spring water?" Anista asked.
"Straight." The Palatine poured two fingers into the glass and put the lid back on to the decanter; with the glass and the decanter at hand she sat on one of the chairs in front of the Canoness.
"So what did they say?"
"Their exact words: There is a shadow over the warp." Anista offered the glass of amasec to Praxedes who took it without thought.
"Are they sure?" The Canoness asked while swirling the contents of the glass, observing how the liquid turned.
"They are psykers but they do know their trade; they are scared Anya, they haven't seen anything like this." The Canoness brought her glass to her nose and smelled its content, inhaling from the nose and exhaling from her mouth, taking note of every last aroma she could sense.
"Yet, we know what that means…" Both women stood in silence for a few moments, Praxedes unconsciously continued to swirl her glass.
"Assemble the Sisterhood, I will call in a meeting with all the officials we have cleared so far and the rogue traders in orbit... and then tell them that a Tyranid hive fleet is on its way." The Palatine stood up and saluted with the sign of the Aquila before she left her superior to her thoughts. Praxedes stood up as the door closed and with the glass of amasec at hand walked to the window.

The window had a nice view of the palace's courtyard, once a serene garden where priests meditated, now it was filled with tents occupied by those left homeless in these dark times; beyond the courtyard the city was in ruins; few structures on the planet were strong enough to survive a strong earthquake and the cardinal palace was one of them. She saw the pyre that still burned just in front of the palace's gates and her mind went back to the events of her first day on the planet. She took a sip of amasec and swished it around in her mouth, picking up all the distinct flavours before swallowing, the warmth of the ancient liquid paled in comparison to the fury she felt as she remembered what had transpired there 57 days ago.

Damn you Haiken, what have you gotten me into this time?

The Immolator shacked as it passed over some debris that were on the road, Praxedes grabbed the holding bar by reflex, Anista chuckled at the sight.
"What?"
"Canoness I have seen you stand tall in the middle of Eldar raids and Ork incursions without even flinching, yet you still seek something to hold whenever we pass over the smallest pebble."
"That was not a mere pebble."
"Whatever you say, Canoness." Anista said with a smirk, causing Praxedes to chuckle.
"Have you read the message by the governor I sent you?" Praxedes asked her second.
"Yes."
"What did you make of it?"
"He is furious with the Ecclesiarchy, that much I am sure." The Palatine replied.
"If half of what he accuses the cardinal and his retinue is true, he has more than a right to be." Praxedes bit back a curse as they passed over a wall that had fallen on the street "The cardinal alone started a riot when he abandoned the planet and those he left behind are trying to outdo him in stupidity."
"I doubt that what he said can be trusted; he is the planetary governor, it's one of their habits to blame others for their failures."
"I doubt it Olivia, I spoke with him via vox when I reached the surface. Emperor as my witness he sounded relieved for having us here." The Palatine was surprised at that.
"Relieved? That's a first." Anista spat.
"I told him that his accusations are serious and that I wanted some hard evidence; his response: 'see for yourself'."
"All I see is a ruined city, the PDF on the streets and a hungry populace." Anista waved to the general direction of the city. "Hardly the fault of the local ecclesiarchy in my opinion."
"No one is blaming him for the earthquakes, yet."
"But they do blame their priests for that." It was Praxedes's turn to flinch at her second's remark. "You know it's true, they dare not speak of it but they do believe it; just like they believe whatever they want about us."
"We shall see what we shall see sister." At that Praxedes opened the top hatch to the gunner's position and stood up.

The small column of Immolators, Repressors and Rhino transports traversed the ruined city, a couple of arbites on their motorbikes were ahead of them, clearing the road of anyone who might slow them down. Praxedes stood up at the gunner position of the Immolator and casually took in the surroundings; everywhere around her all she could see were ruins and devastation. She had been on many planets hit by wars and nothing could be compared with what she was seeing now. Okassis's capital city had simply ceased to exist; not a single building in sight was left intact after the earthquakes, all around her the people tried to scavenge whatever they could from the rabble, they all looked worn, tired and starving.

The column passed one of the mobile kitchens that the PDF had deployed throughout the city, an entire platoon of troopers was with it, trying to maintain order to the long line of people who waited to be served a single bowl of soup. A few meters down the street there was an open space that once could have been a park, now it was dug up and was used as a mass grave but again there simply wasn't enough room for all of the dead, the bodies of those who starved to death littered the streets and no one was paying any heed to them; only a couple of women were mourning over the bodies of their loved ones.

The smell of the decaying dead was everywhere and yet no one seemed to be bothered by it, perhaps they didn't care anymore after living in such conditions for months. She knew that everyone noticed their small column but many dared not to look at them, the expressions of those who met her gaze were those of fear, despair, loss and anger; the people of Okassis had been pushed to their limits but still, she wondered if their spirit was broken.

What perplexed her more than anything was that there wasn't a single priest in the streets, not one to read the last rites for the dead, not one to recite prayers and give the people faith in the face of adversity. In their time of need the people of Okassis needed the Emperor more than ever, yet no one from the local ecclesiarchy was to be seen in the streets. She looked back at the way they came and saw that a crowd was starting to gather behind them, following them to the cardinal palace. The people could not keep up with the motorized column but they didn't need to, they knew where the Daughters of the Emperor were heading and she could see in their eyes that they would be there to see what would unfold.

When she could not stand the sight of the dying city no longer she went back into the Immolator and closed the hatch. Anista saw the expression in her face and made to ask her but before she could speak Praxedes raised her hand and stopped her.
"There is heresy on this planet sister and the local priests are part of it, of this I am certain."

The rest of the way was short, uneventful and drowned in silence, when they reached their destination Praxedes was surprised to see that the gates to the cardinal palace were closed to them. As she disembarked from the Immolator the first thing she saw was the wall that surrounded the palace, a wall that stood three meters high and surrounded the entire estate of the palace. A few meters in front of the Immolator, the great iron gates stood closed, defying the sisters of battle.
"Palatine Anista!" Praxedes barked. "Were the priests informed of our arrival?"
"Yes Canoness, I contacted the confessor in charge myself." Came the reply from inside the Immolator.
"Vox them again and tell them that we are here and we are willing to forgive this mistake on their part."
"Yes Canoness."

A PDF lieutenant run towards her, fear and awe clearly drawn onto his face, he stood at attention in front of her and clumsily made the sign of the Aquila. "Canoness, we were informed of your arrival by the governor himself." He said with a trembling voice "We are under orders to let you pass."
"Let us pass? Access to the cardinal palace is forbidden?" Praxedes asked him.
"Ah... yes Canoness, the governor himself posted a company in order to keep the perimeter of the cardinal palace safe."
"The governor has tasked you to protect the cardinal palace?" The mere thought that a temple of the Emperor be attacked by imperial citizens was parallel to heresy.
"Ah... no... Canoness, our orders are not to protect the palace but to protect the citizenry from the priests inside."
"What?"
"I don't know how to tell you Canoness." The lieutenant seemed to pale slightly "You better see for yourself Canoness, you wouldn't believe even if I managed to tell you." She tuned the vox unit of her armour to the standard Sororitas command frequency.
"Anista, send Lina's squad out, I am going for some sightseeing." The rear ramp of her command Immolator opened and Sister Superior Lina and her Celestian squad disembarked, with a single hand signal she ordered them to follow her and to keep alert; Sister Lina nodded and her squad fell in behind the Canoness, their bolters and flamers at the ready positions. The lieutenant gulped at the sight that the six Celestians offered.
"Lead the way lieutenant." He hastily made the sign of the Aquila once again and crossed the street, the seven sisters of battle close behind him.
"Any news from the palace?" Praxedes asked in her vox unit, she would swear that Anista had just cursed someone.
"That damned confessor, I am going to shove that vox unit of his where the Emperor cannot find it." The Palatine replied in an angry voice.
"What did he say?"
"He said that the entire planet is guilty of Heresy and that its people are paying the price for their sins, anyone who stands with them is guilty of Heresy in the eyes of the Emperor and they shall all be devoured by the divine beasts."
"Divine beasts? Local folklore?"
"He didn't elaborate and now he refuses to even acknowledge us."
"Keep vox silence, I will see what we will do about him when I am back."

The lieutenant led them across the street and into a building that should have been a high class restaurant before the earthquakes, now it was used as an outpost by the PDF since it was the only relatively intact building for quite some distance. Most of the troopers inside averted their gaze as they passed, only a handful were curious and brave enough to stare at them and they looked the other way when they crossed their eyes with the Celestians. After two flights of stairs they reached the second floor, the entire second floor must have been the VIP section of the restaurant, the extravagant surroundings and the balcony that offered a clear view to cardinal palace attested to that, oddly enough there wasn't a single trooper posted in that floor.

They stepped at the broken glasses that once offered a barrier between the balcony and the interior, once outside the lieutenant gestured at the direction of the palace and the giant courtyard behind the wall. Praxedes had seen the barbarity of war, she had fought every enemy of man and triumphed over every last one of them; yet what she saw in the grounds of the Emperor's house could only have come from the hands of the most depraved minds. Dark Eldar, Chaos worshippers and heretics, only they would do such things.

Behind the wall and into the courtyard, hundreds of men, women and children were crucified or impaled; they formed a second wall, a wall of the hanging dead behind the stone wall. Beyond them there were worse spectacles, torture devices were littered all over the gigantic courtyard, one could easily see the blood that was still on them and the dead that were around them.
"Some of them... Some of them are still alive." One of the Celestians behind her whispered.
"What crimes could they have done to deserve that?" Praxedes asked the lieutenant, she knew that he had seen this before yet even he became pale at the sight.
"I don't know Canoness, most are the ones who went to the palace for shelter after the first earthquakes." The man shook as he remembered what had transpired a couple of months ago. "The cardinal left the planet, said we were all guilty of heresy and the planet was punishing us. Then the remaining priests of the palace, two hundred of them at least, started doing that." Not being able to look anymore he averted his gaze and looked at the floor.
"Then the riots started, mobs went after every last priest they could get their hands on, even the ones who denounced...that." He raised his hand and pointed at the palace's courtyard
"We were ordered to protect the chapels and the cardinal palace; when things calmed down the confessor came out with hundreds of priests, by force of arms they rounded up dozens more before we stopped them."
"Why didn't the governor send you into the palace to stop them?" Praxedes asked the lieutenant who seemed conflicted, as if he couldn't decide if he should burst to tears or if he should start shouting obscenities.
"He was afraid, at least that's what most of us think... The PDF openly attacking a shrine of the Emperor... it would be heresy."
"There is not a single servant of the Emperor in there lieutenant, the house of the Emperor is sullied by the presence of heretics inside it." She took a deep breath as she decided what to do next but there really wasn't a choice to be made. "This is an ecclesiarchy matter and it will be handled by the ecclesiarchy alone." She turned and faced him. "Withdraw your men and cordon off all of the surrounding streets; no one but the sisters of battle is to be allowed near the palace and no one but them is to be allowed to leave it alive; is that understood?"
"Yes, Canoness" The lieutenant saluted and ran downstairs, without looking back even once.
"Sister Lina, leave two of your sisters here, we are going to need some eyes on the palace for the time being." The sister superior gestured to two of her squad mates who didn't seem particularly happy with their given task. Ignoring them Praxedes activated the vox unit.
"Anista, contact the Wrath of the Faithful and tell them to mobilize the sisterhood."
"Canoness, you are not seriously considering attacking the cardinal palace?"
"When you see what I see right now, you will understand why there is work to be done in there."
"Yes, Canoness."