Early 36th Millennium, dawn of the Plague of Unbelief
Dacian Cluster within the Abalatian Reach
The Nest, orbital station over Dacia

The Warp disturbances within the Abalatian Pass continued to swell while the Breath of the Chimaera increased its intensity, driving Astropaths to tears. Finally, the Pass collapsed under the weight of the Chimaera's Breath, dooming those caught within to damnation. Voidships dared not attempt to pass through the massive Warp storm and no Astropathic messages could pass through either. But worst of all, the faint light of the Astronomican, which had shone through the Pass and made Warp Navigation manageable as far out as the Habalus Cluster, had been completely smothered.

The citizens of the Reach were completely cut off from the Emperor's Light and the Imperium at large.

But before the Pass collapsed, a final voidship had entered the Reach, a Dauntless-class light cruiser named the Emperor's Hound which brought an additional regiment of Inquisitorial Storm Troopers at Matthias' command as well as a letter from High Marshal Emond Kohrily himself, the Imperial Commander who ruled Thule in the Emperor's name. But it was not just any letter, it was a Letter of Marque and Reprisal naming Basil Cadmus as the Saviour of the Abalus Reach and Defender of the Imperium. The Letter granted Basil the right to draw vessels from the fleet of the Frateris Templars which had been mothballed in the Bennu cloud and also directed him to scour the Reach for foes of the Imperium, human and xenos alike. As an Inquisitor, Basil needed no such grant, but the Letter did allow him to wield power without invoking the name of the Inquisition. He immediately requisitioned The Resolute, a Lunar-class cruiser, and manned it with volunteers from the disbanded Frateris Templars who had served in the mothballed fleet, as well as with skilled menials from the Technomats Guild. He then requisitioned the regiment of Storm Troopers which the Emperor's Hound had brought in, and set out for the Dacian Cluster followed by Matthias in the Veiled Strike. Set out in search of the Fires of Purgation and the Condenser it carried under the guise of scouring the Reach for traitors.

The absence of the Emperor's Light in the Warp for the Navigators to guide themselves by necessitated that the two cruisers did little more than skim the surface of the Immaterium, making repeated short "jumps" before finally reaching the Dacian Cluster. The Resolute and the Veiled Strike entered high orbit over Dacia and each launched a shuttle to The Nest, an orbital station high above the planet. The station was an ad hoc fusion of two voidship hulls, one of an ancient Mass Conveyor and the other of a Goliath-class factory ship. Many sections of other broken hulls had been added using more improvisation than engineering, creating a vast orbital structure. Basil's shuttle communicated with the command center of the Goliath section and circled to board while the shuttle from the Veiled Strike circled to enter a landing bay of the reconfigured Mass Conveyor of The Nest.

Shortly after landing, the launch ramp to Basil's shuttle opened up and disgorged its passengers.

Moneka Joku followed in the wake of three Inquisitorial Storm Troopers as she made her way down the ramp and glanced to her left with her eyeless gaze. He's growing so fast, she realized while looking at Basil in his black tunic with the Inquisitorial icon emblazoned upon his chest. He must, for he is Humanity's Saviour. I now know that is what the Emperor was trying to tell me when I stood beneath the Golden Throne. It has to be, I just couldn't see it before. Moneka glanced to the bay in front of her while another Astropath followed in her steps, a tall and slender bald man dressed in long green robes that matched those she wore. The Astropath was in turn followed down the ramp by three more Troopers.

Moneka stepped off the ramp and onto the rockrete deck then looked around. The landing bay was old and in need of repair. Roughly half the light fixtures hanging from the roof were missing lights and the dirty, aged paint of the bulkheads poorly reflected what little light there was. A handful of packing boxes and dollies were scattered about the deck and it was devoid of any vessels other than the shuttle.

I need to guide him when I can, she told herself as she glanced back at Basil.

"The Void Clans have long been occupants of the Reach. I have received many messages from traders who met them in the void." Moneka began, trying to help him in any way that she could. "During the Time of Forging, Rogue Trader Mischa Habalus discovered the Three Brothers and led settlers there. Afterward, she took her fleet through the Pass and founded a settlement on the planet which would be named after her dynasty, Abalus. She later explored many regions in the Reach before finally meeting her doom against an unnamed foe." Moneka glanced at Basil for a moment, ensuring she still had Basil's attention, then continued. "After her death, she had no heirs, and contact by the Imperium with the remnants of her fleet was lost. After separating for many generations, the vessels of her fleet came back together here to form what are now simply, if unoriginally, referred to as the Void Clans. Now, they have settlements in perhaps a half dozen systems in this cluster."

"I just need to find out if Inquisitor Ipabog passed through here, and if so, where he went afterward," Basil said.

The group stepped within the painted confines of a walkway and followed it to a large open hatch in the middle of the bulkhead. The three leading Storm Troopers stepped aside, with Moneka sliding behind Basil, allowing him to enter the compartment first.

Moneka glanced around as she entered the compartment and quickly recognized it as the command center for the landing bay.

The compartment was filled with light and its interior was cleaner and more organized than the landing bay she had just left. The left and back walls were covered by antiquated communications gear with missing covers and exposed wiring but the surfaces and box interiors were clear of debris and the wiring was neatly bundled. They are just doing the best they can out here, Moneka concluded. She glanced toward Basil then turned her attention to the room's occupants as the other Astropath entered behind her. To the right of Basil stood two men with one woman between them, each light skinned with dark hair and dark eyes. All were wearing simple clothing, shirts and pants with a belt, and had no visible weapons.

"I am Basil Cadmus," he began. "And I have been named Saviour of the Abalus Reach and Defender of the Imperium by High Marshal Emond Kohrily, who rules the Thule Sector in the Emperor's name but his proclamation means nothing." The three in front of Basil stared at him, growing uncomfortable at his statement that the proclamation was meaningless. "The icon upon my chest is all that matters. It is the symbol of the Emperor's Holy Orders of the Inquisition, and the power we have has been granted to us by the Emperor himself. It is a symbol of the power we wield to discover and root out threats to Humanity from without, the Xenos. It is the symbol of the power we wield to root out traitors to Humanity from within our very race. And it is the symbol of the power we wield to root out all threats to Humanity from any source." Basil calmly gazed into the eyes of each, one at a time, before continuing. "And that is why I'm here. Out here, beyond the reach of His Light even when the Chimaera's Breath is at its weakest, you are still a part of Humanity. And I wish to see you protected from the dangers that lurk from within as well as from without." The three simply stared at him.

"I am Gavril," said the man on the left. He glanced at the other two and said, "And these are Mila and Milo" Each simply nodded at Basil.

"I need one of you to take me to any records you may have regarding voidships which have docked here and left within the past couple of centuries."

Mila glanced to Gavril and he quickly answered, "I can do that. Follow me." The man started toward the hatch through which Moneka and Basil had entered. Basil glanced at Moneka and then followed the man out the hatch. All six Storm Troopers followed Basil and Gavril away.

Moneka glanced at the remaining two who stood silently looking at her. They are afraid to speak, she realized. That is why Basil left this up to me. Moneka smiled at the two in front of her. "Feel free to speak your mind."

Mila spoke. "We cause no one any harm out here," she said. "We just do the best we can to survive. Survive without being shackled into slavery by Xenos or even other humans. We don't want trouble from anyone and just want to be left alone."

"I both believe and appreciate that, but times change," Moneka answered. "So, Basil is presenting you with the services of the Astropath, Adnon Mosik. He has stood in the presence of the God-Emperor himself and received His Grace, as have I." Moneka glanced over her shoulder at the pale eyeless face of the tall Astropath. "His presence will ensure that you have regular communications with both Parm and Cassius 6. Will that not be a significant benefit?"

"Yes, it will," Mila answered.

"See, things are looking up," Moneka said and smiled. "Now, I'm betting you don't keep a lot of records, but have any voidships recently passed through here that do not normally do so?"

Mila stared at her a moment in deep thought then answered. "A Goliath-class Factory ship named the Omnissiah's Blessing passed through here three standard days ago. It had just left Tanais and was headed toward Putnik Station in the Mittani Drift. I remember it well because half of The Nest is the hull of a Goliath."

Moneka's knees buckled and she fell forward. Only Mila's quick hands prevented her from smashing her face into the deck.

She stood beneath the Golden Throne.

Moneka knew something was important, but just didn't know what. She glanced down at her hands. They held a small puzzle. It was flat and rectangular in shape with countless small squares which could be moved. Moved by sliding them into a vacant spot, moved by effectively moving the "hole" in the puzzle's surface. Some of the squares were stamped with the Inquisitorial icon. Three were stamped with the flaming bird. One had the Opus Machina. Another had a skull and tabard. One reminded her of someone lighting a torch. One piece was stamped with a "6" and finally her eyes rested upon the eight-pointed Star of Chaos. How am I supposed to arrange these pieces? I don't understand!

"What were you trying to tell me when I stood before you?" Moneka screamed to the Emperor's vision, then raised her head to stare into Mila's dark eyes. One of the visions I saw when standing before the Throne, she said to herself. Why did it resurface now?