Disclaimer: I don't own Warhammer 40k or Code Geass.
Chapter Fifteen: Desperate Times
Eldar Battleship Sword of Asuryan
Edge of the Terra System
"Autarch, the mon-keigh fleets approach maximum effective firing range. All gunnery crews report armed and ready."
"Identification signals decoded," another Eldar announced, "Numerous Imperial and Chaos ships identified, along with a significant number of unknowns."
"Explain," the Autarch demanded.
"Their identification codes do not follow any known format. Additionally, the drive and energy signatures do not match anything on record. However, preliminary sensor scans indicate they are fighting alongside the Imperial ships."
"They must be the 'Black Knights' the Crystal Seers mentioned, then," the Autarch whispered to himself before reverting to a more audible voice, "Target only the Chaos warships, but keep tracking the unknowns."
"Weapons locked on. Chaos vessels nearing optimal firing distance."
"Lost contact with forward scout vessel!"
The bridge fell silent for a moment, mourning the souls lost to She Who Thirsts.
"The crew managed to transmit footage right before they disappeared off sensors," a bridge officer reported after an appropriate length of time passed.
The Autarch nodded at his subordinate's unspoken question. The communications officer's fingers danced over his console, projecting the hard-won footage onto the bridge's main display.
As he watched the unfolding scene with great interest, the Autarch found himself silently reciting fragments of the Seers' prophecies. Small in number and in bulk, he thought as he witnessed a long and sleek but tiny ship dive towards the monolithic Chaos warship before it. Spears of blood and all-consuming spheres came to mind as the unidentified warship began its attack. Crimson lances punched through the Chaos ship's armor, followed by torpedoes that emitted a jade shockwave before detonating into an expanding violet sphere, leaving behind gaping holes in the ship's hull. The recording went blank soon afterwards, apparently the point where a stray shot found the tiny scout vessel.
"Autarch," a gunnery officer nervously interrupted, "Chaos vessels within optimum firing range."
"Open fire! Mael dannan!"
Command Bridge
Black Knights Cruiser Hrimfaxi
The Hrimfaxi shook as a lance punched through its nearly-depleted hadron fields and pierced its stern. Several crewmembers were thrown out of their seats and warning lights blinked crazily.
"Engines Two and Four damaged! Compensating!"
"That last hit just fried the skimmer drive!"
"Fires on Decks One through Six!"
"No response from engineering! At least one hundred fifty-seven casualties reported so far!"
Despite even a single direct hit spelling doom for the Hrimfaxi in its current state, Rudolf ordered it to charge the Chaos warships. His gamble paid off, the Chaos gunners driven to a state of panic and disarray by the sight of the charging cruiser. Many shots went wide, but energy from near-misses still exacted their toll. With its inertial dampeners damaged, the cruiser and its crew felt every nearby detonation. The Hrimfaxi's luck finally ran out when a plasma torpedo, by itself a respectable portion of the ship's length, grazed past its hull and detonated.
"Hadron field down! Emitter Array Three not responding!"
"Decks Seven through Twelve are open to space! Forty-three casualties confirmed so far!"
"What's the status of Array Two?"
"The explosion fused several primary power conduits! It's functioning at fifty percent capacity!"
Black Knights Attack Craft Callsign: Juggernaut Three
Edge of the Terra System
Juggernaut Three barely twisted away in time as an anti-starfighter missile tore the wing off of a neighboring Excalibur. The mortally-wounded attack craft spun crazily out of control as another Chaos fighter attacked it head-on. A final mental twitch from the pilot before the lascannon shots disintegrated him sent the craft smashing into the flank of a Chaos escort.
"Juggernaut Leader just bought it!"
Her squadron commander's sacrifice hadn't destroyed the enemy warship, but it did open up a gaping hole in its armor. As the remaining Juggernaut pilots exacted vengeance for their fallen leader, Juggernaut Three slammed open the throttle, screaming towards the wounded escort before its crew could react. Aiming for the gaping wound, she fired off the last of her anti-ship FLEIJA warheads and let loose with her hadron machine guns, pulling away only at the very last moment. The resulting explosions tore the warship in two and sent the debris flying into neighboring ships.
"The bastards are going for the Hrimfaxi!"
"Attention, all Juggernaught pilots. As the most senior officer present," Juggernaut Three carefully avoided using the term 'remaining,' "I am taking command of Juggernaut Squadron. All remaining units form up and prepare for attack!"
Whether through some forgotten technology or through Warp sorcery, the remaining Chaos attack craft sensed the Hrimfaxi's predicament. As the enemy moved in for the kill, the remnants of the Juggernaut Squadron, somehow the most intact portion of the cruiser's badly-mauled Excalibur contingent, moved to defend their mothership. Already decelerating for their attack run, the first wave of Doomfire bombers stood little chance and were blown apart by a furious barrage of hadron bolts.
"Here come the escorts! Scatter!"
The five remaining pilots of Juggernaut Squadron, less than half its original number, broke away with a series of impressive maneuvers as the Swiftdeath fighters began their attack run. Lasbolts, missiles, and the fighters themselves passed through the recently-vacated space. In the crucial moments the enemy pilots spent re-acquiring their targets, the Juggernaut Squadron attacked.
"Warning: hadron field density at twenty-five percent."
Juggernaut Three dismissed the message with a thought as another lascannon bolt splashed against her fields. At such low densities, some energy from the blast leaked through, scorching some of the paint where it hit. As Juggernaut Three's craft screamed head-on towards the Swiftdeath, the enemy pilot decided to call her bluff and accelerated towards her. Lining up the reticule on her display, Juggernaut Three let loose a lengthy burst of hadron bolts. To the enemy pilot's credit, he did try to evade. The belated maneuvers did little good, serving only to expose a greater cross-section to the deadly crimson spears. Juggernaut Three pulled away as the Swiftdeath's engine containment failed.
"Second wave of bombers incoming!"
"Juggernaut Seven, inter-," the voice disappeared in a burst of static, and Juggernaut Seven's lifesigns went dark.
"They've launched missiles!"
The gunners aboard the Hrimfaxi put up a furious barrage, shooting down the wave of armor-piercing missiles a significant distance from the cruiser's hull.
"Three Chaos fighters on your six!"
"Warning: rear hadron fields depleted."
The attack craft shook as a lascannon blast struck it full-force. Juggernaut Three slammed open the throttle and sent her Excalibur into a steep dive. Another vibration told her that the Chaos pilots had emulated her maneuver. She closed the throttle slightly just as Juggernaut Nine roared past her, their craft coming within centimeters of one another. A very satisfying display of pyrotechnics and twisted metal ensued as both pilots' respective pursuers collided.
"Second wave of missiles launched!"
"Juggernaut Eleven, intercepting!"
Juggernauts Three and Nine pulled up alongside Juggernaut Eleven as he accelerated towards the missiles. When a squadron of Chaos fighters pursued, the two escorts flipped over and flew backwards. The withering hail of hadron fire shredded one of the Swiftdeaths and forced the others to abort their attack run. As Juggernaut Eleven opened fire on the armor-piercing missiles, Juggernauts Three and Nine broke off and made a beeline for the bombers.
"Bomber formation spotted! Begin attack run!"
The two Excaliburs roared off in opposite directions as the bombers' escorts move to defend their charges. Simultaneous Split-S maneuvers put both pilots on collision courses, and the Chaos pilots banked away to avoid the predicted disaster. Juggernaut Three nudged her craft upwards at the last moment, her craft's dorsal surface coming within millimeters of scraping Juggernaut Nine's. By the time the Swiftdeath pilots managed to turn around and begin accelerating again, several bombers were already reduced to flaming hulks.
"Another formation closing in!"
Juggernaut Three's heart sank as she visually confirmed the new Chaos formation. She could pick out a dozen bombers and at least three times that number of fighters, and more were just behind them. The withering hail of lasbolt fire disintegrated Juggernaut Eleven's attack craft before the enemy fighters even broke formation. Juggernaut Nine's lifesigns went dark moments later as Swiftdeaths swarmed his fighter.
"The Hrimfaxi's hit!"
Through the swarm of enemy attack craft, Juggernaut Three saw the cruiser slowly spin away, venting atmosphere and glowing from numerous fires. Perhaps some of the crew managed to survive, but the Hrimfaxi was out of the fight.
"Juggernaut Six, I'm hit! Going down!"
The lifesign flickered for a few moments before disappearing.
"Warning: primary power conduit severed. Gravitric drive not responding."
Juggernaut Three detached her Knightmare moments before the storm of lasbolts destroyed her crippled Excalibur. She had enough power and oxygen to last for a while, but she doubted any rescue was coming. In the distance, the Hrimfaxi birthed a new star as the crippled vessel self-destructed.
The area around Juggernaut Three suddenly became much brighter and more crowded when a dozen Chaos attack craft were suddenly reduced to fire, hot gas, and shrapnel. A few selective applications of gravitric impellers put her out of harm's way as several more enemy attack craft exploded. The pilot looked around confusedly, only to jerk backwards in surprise as an Eldar fighter screamed past her, passing within centimeters of her faceplate.
Operations Room, Space Station Ikaruga
Seven Hours Later
"We have confirmation of the Baltia's self-destruction. Nearby ships have picked up approximately six hundred survivors, and rescue operations are ongoing."
"Message from the Eldar fleet: one of their pilots picked up a survivor. A pilot from the Hrimfaxi, callsign Juggernaut Three."
With thousands of gutted hulks littering the battlefield spewing radiation and atmosphere, long-range combat quickly progressed from difficult to impossible. In just a few short hours, the battle at the edge of the Terra system had devolved from a fairly organized defensive action into a brutal close-range brawl. Enormous slab-sided Imperial and Chaos warships practically piled atop one another and exchanged devastating broadsides until one or both ships were destroyed. Eldar and Black Knights ships disrupted enemy fleet formations with hit-and-run attacks and flanking maneuvers, but even they were slowly being drawn into the melee.
"Reports of dwindling FLEIJA reserves all over the fleet!"
As the battle raged, Valkyrie-class utility vessels darted between the shells and lances, hurriedly repairing and rearming Black Knights warships and attack craft squadrons. When an allied ship was destroyed or self-destructed, they were often the first to initiate search-and-rescue operations. Even as torpedoes nearly a tenth the size of their ship exploded all around them, the famously level-headed crews continued their work. Despite ferocious protection from nearby warships, Valkyries were lost by the dozen.
"Report from the Pendragon: left flank collapsing! 17th Fleet at seventy-three percent strength!"
"Report from the Rio de Janeiro: Chaos fleet is regrouping for another charge! 18th Fleet at fifty-eight percent strength!"
A mass of red triangles dominated the tactical map, slowly but surely pushing the allied fleets back. Though the Chaos fleet hammered every portion of the defensive line, the ships assaulting the arbitrarily-designated left flank were grouped together so tightly that they appeared as a crimson blob.
"Report from Fleet Admiral Jez: 20th Fleet moving to support left flank! She's allotting one-third of her remaining ships to shore up the line!"
Chaos Battleship Eternity of Blood
Edge of the Terra System
"My lord, Captain Aaugngg is requesting reinforcements. He claims to be on the verge of a breakthrough that can potentially shatter the entire enemy line."
"Then he shall have them. Reallocate the Screaming Executioner and its supporting elements to Augngg's assault. Inform him that he either returns with the Imperial Admiral's head or not at all."
"It shall be done immediately, my lord," the thrall gulped.
Warmaster Izolham spared the thrall no second glance and turned back to the hololith display. His predecessor, that fool of a Warmaster Rusin, had made the mistake of drawing out the battle, choosing to slowly grind down the Imperial defenders, and it cost him dearly. If the Black Knights hadn't killed him, their leader surely would have. Izolham would not make the same mistake: his plan consisted solely of overwhelming attack after overwhelming attack, all culminating in a series of crushing hammer blows. He cared not if he lost a thousand warships doing so: the Despoiler made it abundantly clear that all ships and soldiers deployed to the vanguard force were considered expendable.
The Chaos Warmaster leaned back in his command throne and tuned his vox set to the Eternity of Blood's dungeons, relishing in the agonized screams that met his ears. Captured enemy soldiers, members of rival warbands, even thralls who had displeased him, it mattered not. The twisted imaginations of Izolham's personal torturers could extract the most delightful screams from anyone. They tirelessly carried out their duty, knowing that displeasing their Warmaster for even a moment or allowing their charges to expire too quickly meant joining their victims on the torture rack.
"My lord…" a thrall nervously approached the command throne.
The unfortunate messenger paid for his interruption when Izolham's enormous hand wrapped around his head. The thrall's body thrashed about, much to the Traitor Astartes' amusement, for several moments before the Warmaster crushed his head. The body had barely hit the ground when explosions rocked the Eternity of Blood and nearly threw Izolham off his command throne.
"What was that?" Izolham demanded.
"An Eldar fleet has appeared behind us! They've begun their attack run!"
"What?" the Warmaster roared in fury, "Why was I not informed sooner?"
Nobody dared correct him that he had killed the chosen messenger. As Izolham's gaze raked the bridge, the crew sank into their seats in a futile effort to turn invisible.
"You!" the Astartes settled on the highest-rank sensor technician, "To the dungeon with you!"
The thrall screamed for mercy as two of Izolham's black-hooded masters of pain appeared and dragged the officer off. The remaining bridge crew tried their best to ignore the condemned man's frantic pleas, lest they join him.
"You!" the second highest-ranking sensor technician cowered as Izolham pointed to him, "Congratulations on your promotion. Now, I want information on that new Eldar fleet!"
"Yes, my lord!" the thrall somehow managed to avoid stammering.
Chaos Cruiser Bloodthirsty
Thirty Minutes Later
Aaugngg, bearer of the Mark of Chaos Undivided, chuckled throatily as a massive volley of torpedoes and plasma blasts outright incinerated a Lunar-class cruiser and crippled its neighbor. Lance fire from the ships under him carved up the crippled Imperial warship.
"My lord, the requested reinforcements are within optimum firing range! It's the Screaming Executioner and a fleet of support ships!"
"Excellent," Aaugngg rumbled, "Have it fire a volley from its Nova Cannon at these coordinates."
"My lord…" the thrall flinched as the Chaos Champion whirled around to face him.
"Is there a problem?" Aaugngg asked in a deceptively-calm voice.
"My lord, these coordinates…the Slaughterfrenzy and several support ships are…"
"Had they carried out my orders as I had given them," Aaugngg thundered, "I would not have needed to request reinforcements! This is merely the price they pay for their incompetence! Now, order the attack!"
Aaugngg faced the thrall once more, only to see that he had died of fright. Enraged, he grabbed the corpse and removed its head with a savage twist. The Champion of Chaos Undivided yanked the first thrall to stumble within arm's reach off his feet and threw him down into the communications officer's still-warm seat. The rest of the bridge crew carefully averted their eyes, lest they draw their lord's ire.
The Nova Cannon's initial blast incinerated the Slaughterfrenzy and all but two of the ships under its command along with several Imperial warships. The survivors attempted to withdraw, but the volley of lances and torpedoes that followed ripped the cowards to shreds. Some of Aaugngg's prior anger melted away at the sight of such indiscriminate destruction, and whatever choler remained morphed into glee when he noticed a dagger-shaped hull spinning through space, venting atmosphere from multiple breaches in its armor. It was tiny, yet bitter experience said that warships of its type could take and deal out a level of punishment on par with any of their capital ships. Caught in the edge of the blast zone, the ship was heavily damaged but not quite out of the fight yet.
"Helm! Pull us alongside that ship!" Aaugngg gestured towards the disabled warship, "I want boarding pods ready to launch as soon as we're in range!"
Three years ago, Aaugngg had presented a captured Lunar-class cruiser and its crew to the Warmaster. The tribute had so pleased Izolham that Aaugngg was promoted on the spot and granted command of the Bloodthirsty. He could only imagine what reward would await him if he secured such a prize as a Black Knights dreadnought.
Black Knights Dreadnought Rio de Janeiro
Fifteen Minutes Later
"Defensive positions! Ready hadron cannons!"
Twenty pairs of hadron cannons silently slid forward on their rails. The rounded hexagonal casings split open along hidden seams, revealing handles for waiting hands. The militiamen pointed the deadly weapons as far upwards as the joints would allow, aiming out of the great rent in the dreadnought's hull and towards the rapidly-growing specks in the distance. The Rio de Janeiro's point-defense batteries inflicted a dear toll on the enemy boarding craft, but more were just behind them.
"Drop pods incoming! Volley fire!"
At such ranges, even the Archangels' powerful hadron cannons only annoyed the heavily-armored Dreadclaw assault pods. However, hundreds of cultists, eager for bloodshed and glory, had simply thrown themselves out of airlocks with little more than void suits and the blessings of their patrons for protection. Among them, the weapons inflicted horrific casualties. Many cultists were outright vaporized, and even a glancing hit was a death sentence. Many were left writing in space, their limbs flailing ineffectually as precious oxygen leaked from ruptured air tubes. Others were reduced to desiccated husks, the vacuum violently sucking out their blood and internals through open wounds.
The first Dreadclaw to touch down was scythed apart by concentrated fire before the outer panels could fall away and disgorge the troops within. Several militiamen stowed their cannons and pulled out their assault rifles as the first cultists touched down. Disoriented for several seconds by the sudden reintroduction of gravity, the first waves were quickly mowed down.
Eldar Battleship Khaine's Wrath
Edge of the Terra System
"Autarch, the fleet is in optimum firing range."
The Autarch stared intently at the tactical map for several moments, her subordinates holding their breaths in anticipation. The short-sighed mon-keigh commanders had correctly anticipated Autarch Tadbuar's hammer-and-anvil maneuver, but the fools fought assuming his fleet was the entire Eldar force. The miscalculation had allowed Areciberd more than enough time to set up her encirclement.
"Drop holofields and open fire! Mael danaan!" Autarch Areciberd screeched.
With all the confusion surrounding the bloodbath at the system's edge, the Chaos fleet failed to notice the Eldar battle fleet quietly breaking off its attack runs. Sensing something was amiss and perhaps fearing betrayal, the Black Knights and Imperial fleets began falling back as Tadbuar's warships withdrew to the edge of the battlefield. Driven wild with bloodlust, Warmaster Izolham ordered all his ships to press the attack. His ignorance cost him dearly as the Eldar fleet regrouped and began a synchronized attack run.
A violent barrage of sonic torpedoes and pulsar lances shattered the Chaos charge and sent the survivors reeling. Diving between newly-opened gaps in the formation, the Eldar warships prioritized the largest and most intimidating ships, taking out many of Izolham's middle-ranking commanders and decapitating the enemy command structure. In the precious moments of respite granted by the confusion, the remaining defenders rallied and launched a withering barrage of plasma torpedoes, FLEIJA warheads, lances, and hadron beams at the Chaos fleet.
The Warmaster's roar of rage as his fleet was ripped apart before his eyes drove several thralls insane with fear, and many others abandoned the bridge in a desperate bid to escape his wrath. When Autarch Areciberd's fleet revealed their presence, the fates of Izolham's fleet and his ambitions of ascending further in the Despoiler's hierarchy were sealed.
Sector A-32
Black Knights Dreadnought Rio de Janeiro
Second Lieutenant Cody Guiterrez cracked a nearby cultist across the face with his rifle butt, breaking the man's neck with an audible snap. Cody stumbled, dropping his rifle, as a pair of cultists jumped onto his back, intending to restrain him as a third man charged him with bayonet lowered. The Lieutenant slammed into the wall, shattering all the bones in one cultist's body, and drove his elbow into the other's stomach. The man relaxed his grip around Cody's neck just enough for the militiaman to wrench the cultist's arm away and throw him over his shoulder. The flying cultist slammed into his charging comrade, sending both of them flying backwards.
"Blood for the Blood God!"
Cody straightened just in time to see another cultist charge him, chainsword in hand. He dove for his fallen rifle and vaporized the man's torso with a point-blank shot from the underslung spread cannon. Standing up, he watched one of his subordinates throw the last cultist to the ground and impale him with a hadron blade.
"This is Lieutenant Guiterrez to command, Sector A-32 is clear. Repeat, Sector A-32 is clear."
"Roger, Lieutenant Guiterrez. Picture is clear. Good work."
"This is Lieutenant Maclin!" a new voice broadcasted over the general frequencies, "We're under heavy assault by Plague Marines supported by Nurglite cultists at Sector A-24! We need reinforcements!"
"You heard the man!" Lieutenant Guiterrez switched to his squad channel, "Move out!"
Operations Room, Space Station Ikaruga
One Hour, Fifteen Minutes Later
"Report from the Rio de Janeiro: boarders successfully repelled! They're joining the allied advance!"
"Report from the Pendragon: they've broken through! The enemy's left flank is confused and disoriented!"
"Warp jumps detected! The Chaos fleet is retreating!"
A great cheer echoed throughout the Operations Room as the Chaos ships disappeared in ones and twos, then by the tens. Allied ships surged ahead, tearing apart many ships before they could retreat. Others successfully escaped, but the amount of damage they sustained beforehand ensured they would not survive the journey. The image of Chaos ships, their Gellar fields damaged moments before entering the Warp, torn apart by ravenous Warp-beasts, proved deliciously karmic.
"I've been wondering…what do Eldar drink?" one of the operators asked his neighbor over a private channel.
"Who cares?" the second operator shouted in response, "I'm treating their admiral to enough drinks to kill an Ork, and I've got enough spare luxury goods chits to do it!"
If the operators' remarks were anything to go by, Autarchs Tadbuard and Areciberd and the crews under them would never need to pay for an alcoholic beverage ever again.
Golden Throne, Sanctum Imperialis
Two Hours Later
Though they hid it well, the Companions looked on in great interest as Psychic Special Warfare operatives flashed in and out of existence, each holding nondescript-looking electronic components as they reappeared. The Tech-Priests leaned in for a closer look as the other Knightmares assembled the components into a holographic projector. Several jumped back in amazement as the device activated and began initial diagnostics. The display was crisp and clear, unlike the flickering and static-laden projections of Imperial devices. The head Tech-Priest practically cried tears of joy when Nunnally offered to leave the projector with them after the meeting.
The image of an Eldar Farseer flanked by two Autarchs suddenly bursting from the projector caused several Custodes' fingers to tighten around their guardian spears.
"I am Nunnally Lamperouge, governor of the Black Knights," Nunnally opened with a polite bow, "On behalf of my people, I thank you for the assistance you have given to us and our allies today."
"I am Farseer Elehdibn," the center Eldar returned her bow, much to the onlookers' surprise, "I accept your thanks on behalf of Craftworld Altansar."
"I mean no insult, Farseer," Nunnally carefully ventured, "but we've never received aid from the Eldar without strings attached."
"And so you're wondering about our ulterior motives?" Elehdibn finished with a tone one would normally use to discuss the weather.
Nunnally slowly nodded.
"Shortly after our Craftworld's escape from the Eye of Terror," the Farseer began, "a message arrived in the Dome of the Crystal Seers. The message was brief, consisting only of a set of spatial coordinates and a time, but since that day, there has not been a Farseer on Altansar who does not know the message by heart. The intrusion had already caused a huge commotion amongst the Craftworld's inhabitants, but it paled in comparison to the one caused by the messenger herself."
As she mentally compared a few dates, Nunnally had a feeling she already knew the messenger's identity.
"Even today," Elehdibn concluded, "the children of Altansar learn the story of the green-haired witch."
Chaos Battleship Chaos Ascendant
?
"We were on the verge of breaking through, my lord, but the arrival of a second Eldar fleet tipped the balance to the Imperial's favor…"
"I see," Abaddon interrupted, "Tell me, Izolham, who gave you permission to withdraw?"
"My lord?" the Warmaster, prostrate upon the floor, looked up in confusion.
"Firing solution locked, my lord," Abaddon's gunnery officer announced.
"Open fire."
Izolham's pleas for mercy abruptly cut off as the hololith display went blank. As his gunners methodically destroyed the condemned warships, the Despoiler turned around and casually strode off the bridge. The defenses around Terra were battered and weakened, but they stood. A fleet of experienced ships and crews, lost. All things considered, the initial assault on Terra was a resounding success. True, the commanders he assigned to the assault were all rising stars, but a meteoric rise led to dangerous amounts of ambition. He had weeded out the seeds of future rebellion before they took root. He now knew what the Imperium's new allies were capable of. Most importantly of all, he had forced the Eldar out of hiding, drawn their fleets away from his real goal.
"Summon Fulgrim," Abaddon ordered as the blast door closed behind him, "Thus begin the final days of Craftworld Altansar."
A/N: And so, our main antagonist appears at last! And still...why? Why would there be an Abaddon the Despoiler, and Abbadon of the Dark Mechanicum? Oh, and for those who don't know or don't want to comb the Lexicanum, "Mael danaan!" is a term originating from the second Battlefleet Gothic novel, Shadow Point, according to the Lexicanum. It means "No mercy!" or "No quarter!" according to the same source. Anyhow, another omake! Unfortunately, not a fun one... There's only one more of these, I promise.
Omake: Encyclopedia of the Black Knights, Volume Seven: Society
In the lull following the Despoiler's initial assault on Terra, several Inquisitors and high-ranking Imperial officials were allowed aboard the Ikaruga. Several of the visitors later called the Black Knights "an army with a supply depot the size of a small hab level," and many parallels with the former Imperial Fortress World of Cadia were drawn. Such an evaluation is not completely inaccurate.
Culture: If one were to distill the entirety of the Black Knights' culture down to one core value, the result would be "service to the Fleet." From birth to death, every Black Knight is expected to serve the Fleet in some capacity, barring extraordinary circumstances. Even the most menial of jobs has little stigma attached to it, as far more emphasis is placed on figuring out how one can best serve the Fleet than doing so in the most visible possible manner.
As one may expect, the concept of military service is deeply ingrained in the Black Knights' psyche. Most civilian clothing is based off of military uniforms, and the vast majority of entertainment features decidedly martial themes and subject matter. Physical activity—whether organized sports or group calisthenics—is a popular pastime, and most citizens will have seen a Knightmare and shot a hadron weapon by the age of thirteen. Due to the ever-present dangers of the galaxy, all citizens above the age of sixteen are issued a hadron pistol and are required to keep it charged an on their person at all times. In reference to this, "receiving your first issue" is synonymous with growing up.
Though not exactly xenophobic, citizens of the Fleet rarely come in contact with outsiders and, even in the case of allies, usually treat them with caution. Considering the number of highly-dangerous alien species the Fleet has come into contact with and even exterminated over the course of its long history, such an outlook is understandable. In addition, while the average citizen is aware of the Ruinous Powers and daemons, the Black Knights tend to view the universe in a starkly scientific light.
Education: "Knowledge is power," according to long-forgotten human scholars, and the Black Knights fiercely cling to the principle. After the initial hard times following the exodus, Governor Lamperogue instituted a policy of compulsory education at the Fleet's expense for all children between the ages of five and sixteen. Any ship expected to house a considerable number of civilians for extended periods of time is constructed with purpose-built classrooms.
School is held in three three-month cycles, with one-month extended breaks in between. As all citizens are required to serve in the militia, subjects such as xenobiology and extreme-conditions survival are given particular emphasis. Physical education and basic mastery of one's psychic abilities are also stressed. However, students also receive at least a basic schooling in the sciences and the liberal arts.
Following this basic education, most will enter apprenticeship programs or directly into the work force. A few will pursue advanced education in preparation of entering professions such as research. Such training is usually carried out aboard the Ikaruga or specially-converted Valkyries.
Economy: "So long as you look after the Fleet, the Fleet looks after you," a teacher once remarked. Even after countless thousands of years, nobody has come up with a more succinct definition of the Fleet's economy. Basic necessities of life—clothing, food, housing, medical care, et cetera—are furnished by the Fleet in exchange for its citizens' labor. Though such a system is admittedly easy to exploit, thousands of years of societal programming allows this system to function rather well.
However, trade does occur aboard the Fleet. As resources are usually far from plentiful, bartering of unused rations is both commonplace and encouraged. The closest thing the Fleet possesses to a currency is luxury goods chits. Though physical scrip was issued in the early days following the exodus, the Fleet has long since switched over to an all-electronic format. These chits can be exchanged for various goods, ranging from entertainment holos to alcoholic beverages, to supplement the adequate, but far from exciting, Fleet rations.
Government: Though ultimate authority lies with the Black Knights' immortal quadrumvirate of leaders, they rarely govern directly. Usually, they are content with allowing their subordinates to handle day-to-day administration and instead focus their efforts on their inscrutable plans for the ships tend to follow a strict, military-style hierarchy, but most administration is handled by a highly-efficient bureaucracy. In the battle fleets and the militia, the strict hierarchy continues all the way to the highest levels of administration. Production fleets, on the other hand, are governed by councils of ships' captains and their representatives at the highest levels. The quadrumvirate directly appoints high-level administrators, but the other positions tend to be elected.
Citizens of the Fleet are granted fairly extensive personal freedoms, so long as they do not negatively impact the Fleet's overall welfare. Though any citizen has the right to bring another before a tribunal, such a course of action is considered the last resort. Such tribunals are formed as needed and vary in composition depending on the nature of the charges. Only a very tiny number of crimes are punishable by execution, with the preferred punishment being hard labor or deployment to a particularly undesirable battlefront.
A/N: Dear 2011 Soraga: The Black Knights are a socialist military dictatorship. Signed, 2012 Soraga.
Dear 2012 Soraga: Very funny. Which one of my friends put you up to this? Signed, 2011 Soraga.