Tales of the Amber Vipers Chapter 288
"Here we are again," Kazao sighed into his vox.
"Our guests deserve a formal welcome," Tebes argued.
"But does it demand the whole Chapter to put on a show?" Kazao moaned.
"Look at it this way, at least they all turned up at once," Joffel pointed out.
"True, at least we won't have to do this again," Larus sniffed.
On a broad hanger concourse the Amber Vipers waited, once more clad in shining plate and standing in orderly rows. The Serpens Rex had picked up vox-signals of all three envoys coming into orbit and had mustered to greet them. Primus, Secundus and Tertius, all those who could claim the title Amber Vipers, made to stand to attention to greet their guests. Coluber stood at the front, with his officers and the restored Maru Kysoto, his armoured chassis gleaming with blessed oils and festooned with purity seals.
Sergeant Reddam's squad stood near Coluber, one step behind and to his left. From here Kazao could see the gunships settling down, steaming billowing from landing struts as engines cycled down. A shimmering atmo-field covered the stars behind, but otherwise the bay was empty. Only the Amber Vipers and the gunships remained to be seen.
Kazao took time to examine the craft. The leading gunships were a trio of double-bayed landers with downswept wings. Overlord pattern, the new Primaris transports. Kazao had never seen one up close and inspected the advanced baffles and auspex-jammers hidden among the gun turrets and missile racks. Potent, sophisticated and totally beyond anything the Amber Vipers could boast. Their red and gold heraldry was quartered, making them appear a checkerboard and a rearing monster in black was their icon.
Further along a pair of Thunderhawks steamed. Red in hue and with a spread-winged bird, bearing a drop of blood on its breast, as a symbol. Kazao had seen Thunderhawks before but noted these were in a far better state of repair, every part gleaming and the heraldry pristine. They looked deadlier than the Amber Viper's precious pair of gunships, somehow more aggressive and bellicose, their Machine Spirits must wax strong. Perhaps it was the names stencilled to the sides, Hellhound and Dread Omen, titles that spoke of doom and destruction.
The last craft was disappointing by comparison, a simple shuttle, squat and box-like. Kazao would have taken it for a cargo-lifter were it not for the dark mark of the Inquisition on its side. It sent hackles crawling, the spectre of death hanging overhead. Perhaps the choice of transport was a subtle message, but if so it was lost on Kazao. He didn't care to study the intricacies of political manoeuvring.
"Stand straight and try to look less shabby," Reddam ordered over a closed vox-link, "The Howling Griffons are disembarking."
"You mean screaming pigeons," Larus snorted.
"Keep that to yourselves," Reddam hissed, "I'm in no mood for your backtalk today."
Kazao kept stum as the guests lined up. A Company of Marines, Firstborn and Primaris, though the ratio was heavily in favour of the new paradigm. They marched from the holds of their craft in straight lines, no shuffling or sidestepping required. A stern display of martial discipline and Kazao could not help but be aggravated by their bearing. At their head strode a Captain in Gravis armour, with a power fist and a magnificent bolter, one that stirred a hint of avarice in Kazao's hearts. To the left walked a warrior with shield and sword, to the right a Magos in a glittering robe of shining scales.
"Get a load of that peacock," Joffel chuckled over the vox.
"Who does he think he is, Fabricator-General?" Larus sniffed.
"That get-up must make him an easy target on the battlefield," Tebes concurred.
"I doubt he ever lowers himself to go near a battlefield," Kazao mused.
The Howling Griffons strode up to the Amber Vipers and were greeted, "Hail cousins. I am Coluber and I offer you safety and a warm welcome to my halls."
The Captain replied neutrally, "Hail, from the halls of Mancora we come to attend the High Conclave."
"Your presence is accepted and in the name of the Emperor I offer you parley. I vouchsafe your life and your Brother's, no harm shall come to you while you are my guest. So swears the Amber Vipers."
"I Ryneon accept your word as given and return it in kind, neither I nor mine shall spill blood so long as the conclave continues," the Captain affirmed with no trace of warmth.
Coluber didn't seem put out, "Let me introduce my advisors, Battle-Captain Ferrac, Apothecary Shrios, tech-artisan Nathanal and Maru Kysoto."
"Nyoir," Ryneon replied with a glance to the left then the right, "This is Posix, envoy of the Martian Forge Synod."
"Greetings!" Posix exclaimed, "I am pleased to meet you. In the name of the Omnissiah I expect a swift resolution to our negotiations. The STC's shall be returned to Mars post haste."
"We haven't begun yet," Coluber pointed out.
"Details, details!" Posix waved off, "You will find my offers most generous."
Coluber didn't sound convinced, "Perhaps a tour of the Serpens Rex would be appropriate."
Ryneon barely kept a sneer off his lip, "I have no interest in touring this… facility. We have no time to waste on frivolities, let us move on to more important matters."
"I would like to know you better," Coluber argued, "The Howling Griffons are an honoured Chapter, your name features heavily in the annals of the Imperium."
"We did not become so by engaging in idle chatter. Show us to our billet immediately, I have duties to perform that cannot wait."
Coluber didn't seem offended, "Straight to the kill I see, admirable. Battle-Captain Ferrac will show you the way."
Ferrac glanced at his master but moved off, leading the Captain away. The Howling Griffons turned in perfect unison on their heels and followed, moving in rigid lines towards the doors as they departed. Kazao didn't like their cold manner. The Storm Heralds were proud, but willing to meet the Amber Vipers on their own terms, the Howling Griffons seemed offended by the very notion. Kazao's impression was their standards were high, and they held any who failed to live up to their expectations in utter contempt.
"They're a lot of fun," Joffel scoffed.
"They look at us like something they scraped off their boot," Kazao sighed.
"Let them go, I want a closer look at their gunships," Larus ventured.
"Try it and get a bolt round to the face," Reddam warned, "They won't have left those craft undefended. Any who approaches will be gunned down."
"Here comes the next," Tebes called.
From the Thunderhawks came another party, in red and black. These were all Firstborn, their plate far more worn and damaged than the Howling Griffons'. Scuffs and scrapes told of hard battle, marks hastily repaired and less than perfectly painted over. A quick head count revealed only fifty-four of them, and Kazao suspected the gaps in their ranks were recent. They nearly matched the Amber Vipers dilapidated state, though their bearing was prouder.
At their head strode a woman in a stiff skirt and boned corset. Her head was held high and crowned by a mess of white hair in a complex bun. She carried a walking stick in one hand, that clicked as she walked and her pale eyes were piercing. The rosette of the Inquisition was on her throat but her expression would have revealed her rank regardless, the haughty look of absolute authority that defined the Emperor's Left hand. Her companion was stranger, a Marine in grey-blue plate, with a rising hood of crystal over his scalp and a golden staff in hand, topped by a bronze cast of an open book. His hips bore strange totems and artefacts of eye-watering geometry and he carried an aura of dread, one who had seen things no man should ever see. Kazao could not mistake his nature, none could, for he was a Librarian.
They came to a halt as Coluber called, "Hail cousins. I offer you safety and a warm welcome to my halls."
The Librarian replied levelly, "Hail cousin, I am Epistolary-Captain Auriga of the Blood Ravens. I come to attend the High Conclave."
"Your presence is accepted and in the name of the Emperor I offer you parley. I vouchsafe your life and your Brother's, no harm shall come to you while you are my guest. So swears the Amber Vipers."
"I accept your word as given and return it in kind, neither I nor mine shall spill blood so long as the conclave continues," Auriga pledged.
Maru leaned in, "Forgive my question, but you bear the titles of Librarian and Captain?"
Auriga sighed, "A twist of tragic circumstance, therein lies a sorry tale, Maru Kysoto."
"You know him?!" Coluber started in shock.
"By reputation only," Auriga explained, "The Blood Ravens prize knowledge, and the name of the warrior-poet Maru is no stranger to us. Your writings are most moving."
"You've read my works?!" Maru exclaimed.
"I obtained a collection of your scrolls, and they were most insightful," Auriga flattered, "I particularly liked: Learn the subtle art of living in accord with both the pen and the sword, for only through balance can ye know oneself."
Maru's voice grew wistful, "It is a long time since I discoursed with one who appreciates the ancient wisdoms."
"Then we should speak further," Auriga proposed.
"I would like that."
"Ahem!" The woman at his side hissed.
"Ah yes," Auriga sniffed, "May I introduce Inquisitor Velpecula, of the Ordo Hereticus."
"Inquisitor," Coluber said with a nod.
"I am not accustomed to being kept waiting!" Velpecula spat.
"Apologies, I can…"
"Get me a to a decent cabin and draw me a bath!" Velpecula hissed, "After weeks trapped on a smelly Strike Cruiser, you better have someone around here who knows how to treat a lady of high standing!"
Coluber frowned in annoyance, "We are a Brotherhood of warriors, not bathing servants."
"Don't give me that, I've been on the Phalanx, and the Imperial Fists treated their guests better than this. If they can do it, you can too."
Coluber's face darkened but Maru interjected, "We can have the Chattels make arrangements. May I show you to your quarters?"
"Hurry up, the smell of this place is getting to me!"
The Librarian-Dreadnought turned and marched off, leading the woman and Blood Ravens away. Kazao watched them go and was sure he saw a look of distaste pass over Auriga's face. Kazao didn't blame him, if he'd been trapped on a ship with that woman for weeks he'd be equally vexed. Merely a few minutes listening to her harp on made his skin crawl.
"Thank the Throne she's gone," Joffel muttered.
"Emperor Wept, how did they not shoot her in the head?" Kazao grunted.
"Typical Terran-high born," Larus sneered, "Born with a silver spoon up her arse and her nose in the air."
Reddam however countered, "Don't be fooled by that façade."
"Brother-Sergeant?" Tebes asked.
"Never believe anything an inquisitor says, least of all about themselves. She was acting the harridan, deliberately."
"For what possible purpose?" Kazao inquired in confusion.
"I don't know, probably some elaborate game she's playing. An Inquisitor of any breed is dangerous, doubly so when enacting a scheme to obtain power."
"Power?" Joffel pressed.
"Knowledge is power," Tebes mused, "An STC is valuable beyond measure. She wants it, she already jockeys for advantage."
Any further debate came to a halt as the last shuttle opened its hatch. "Two down, one to go," Joffel muttered.
"Better be more agreeable than the last lot," Larus sniffed.
Kazao saw them alighting their shuttle, stepping into the light of the bay, Primaris in nature, all of them, a squad of Intercessors with long rifles. Their colours were dark purple, chased with gold and at their head strode two figures, one a mortal man in a long coat, with dark skin and flinty eyes that hid a mocking glint of superiority. The other was a towering figure with a skull-helm. He wore his Chapter symbol in gold upon his shoulder and in his hands was a Crozius Arcanum, while around his neck hung a Rosarius. A Chaplain one of the fierce warrior-zealots who embodied the Adeptus Astartes' spirit. Kazao had heard of such figures, usually while being berated for some mishap or other, but had never laid eyes on one in the flesh.
He glanced at Reddam but was surprised to find the Sergeant locked ridged, helm frozen as if seeking a targeting lock. A sudden stillness overcame the crowd, a sense of silent tension filling all. It was coming from the Old Seventeen, all of them similarly overcome by silent dismay. Kazao had never seen the like, Reddam had never been so shocked, never.
"Sergeant?" he voxed.
"It can't be," Reddam breathed, "It's not possible."
"What can't?"
"This is impossible, there's no way this could be allowed."
"Sergeant, you're not making any sense," Kazao protested.
Oblivious to the distress he was causing the mortal man led his Primaris bodyguards towards Coluber. The Chapter Master seemed stunned, utterly lost for words as the man smiled, "Coluber of the Amber Vipers, on behalf of the Ordo Xenos I greet thee."
Kazao had no idea what was going on but Coluber gasped, "Who are you?"
The man grinned knowingly, "I am Inquisitor Verral, come to attend this Conclave. And may I introduce my comrade, this is Chaplain Daggon, of the reborn Soul Drinkers."
