These historians do know how to mince words don't they?
Minor acclaim indeed?
Still, everyone knows history is written by those who are the best with the pen.
Every tale must begin somewhere I suppose.
Halemnet, my first assignment as a full Inquisitor, it had been a year since I had been active in the field and I my mentor had taken a replacement interrogator before she had even put my name forward for election.
Custom dictates that a newly appointed Inquisitor must conduct their first assignment with the supervision of their fellows. Halemnet seemed to be ideal, the world had fallen behind on delivering the tithe, riots and strikes were becoming a cause for concern but it was seen as a fairly routine proceeding, if one can apply such a word to Inquisitorial proceedings.
Duriana, my old mentor had pulled strings to have me included in the taskforce dispatched to investigate the latest rumblings. The problem was a full Troika of Inquisitors had been assembled to investigate and prosecute the matter, so I had been put in command of the "Tactical Support Team". In theory this entailed leading a platoon of Storm Troops in case things got out of hand. In practice this meant not getting in the way of the professionals.
So I was spending the first three weeks of the investigation kicking my heels on the command ship in orbit around the planet reading whatever information the other troika members deigned to send and compiling the reports on their findings. After all, I was surplus to requirements, right?
Even if I wasn't learning much about the case I was learning a great deal about my supposed colleagues during the weekly conferences, which was the only time my presence in their company was required.
"I think it was highly unprofessional of you to charge in unannounced when I was in the middle of an examination of a suspect Kreiser." Jugash Rabkrin, renowned more for his ability to intimidate than to act had used a Stormer platoon to threaten the alders of a manufactory township to surrender two of their most experienced workteam supervisors for collusion in smuggling a weapons cache destined for a tithe. They had denied it, but had admitted to having been approach by an underhive prospector asking for arms who had take lodgings there. He was convinced that the shortfall on the delivery of the tithe was due to manufactory workers pursuing wealth rather than fulfilling their duty to the Imperium
"Unprofessional be damned Rabkrin, your cowardice cost me two bodyguards and an arco-flagellent, do you have any idea how much I must now pay the Fabricator General on Zpandex as recompense?!"
Bastian Krieser on the other hand saw the trouble as coming from mutant cults and rebellious underhivers stirring up trouble. He had been pursuing and a group of underhive gangsters when they had run for a bolthole in the same township Rabkrin had been conducting his investigation.
The ensuing pandemonium gave the prospector, Endrik Kern, the chance to skip town and return to the underhive. Rabkrin had refused to support Kreiser and so the round of recriminations proceeded for nearly half an hour.
I was making futile attempts to shut these two blowhards up and proceed with the meeting when Kaesa picked up a small vox caster from attached the conference table through a length of cable.
"Shut up"
The volume setting was loud enough to sake one of data slates onto the floor.
"Thank you, now this incident had raised two major concerns, firstly, Inquisitor Rabkrin, your refusal to deploy troops allowed Kern the opportunity to escape, secondly Inquisitor Kreiser, you have not yet produced any evidence that under hive cult activity is in anyway linked to the current political demonstration." This was not a loud accusation but a bland statement of fact that needed no emotional embellishment.
"It is an Inquisitors duty to cleanse the unclean wherever he finds it." Kreiser retorted hoarsely, with particular emphasis on the "he" slumping back into his seat, overcome with exhaustion from his verbal sparring match with Rabkrin. I was at a loss as to how this could be the same bombastic, power armour clad firebrand who had served on the battlefields of the Imperium.
"That is true, but we are given the specific task of ascertaining the shortage in delivering the tithe and I will thank you to remember that."
"Inquisitor Kaesa, I believe you have something to report from your investigations in the upper hive." I said quickly, hoping to defuse another long argument before it had begun.
"Indeed feuding among the houses minor controlling much of the military output of the hive has become a great deal more serious. Yesterday an assassination was attempted against the patriarch of house Ferrier. The Ferrier chief steward was quick to accuse House Varro of attempting to expand gain access to the Ferrier rifleworks through assassinating the leading members of the presiding family, although matriarch Tasia denies this."
"She would wouldn't she" I observed
The assembled inquisitors ignored my comment.
"She is calling for the execution of ten Ferrier bondsmen as recompense for the destruction of a Varro body armour manufactory which was burned down this morning."
"In that case I shall dispatch one of my interrogators to examine this Ferrier fellow, I am sure we will be able to find something linking his sort in this business, I have heard that house is damnably ambitious." Rabkrin said standing up.
"I would recommend that you concentrate your efforts on finding this prospector and determining his involvement." Duriana said sharply.
"You may recommend whatever you wish Vernius, you have no authority over any other inquisitor in this room and no right to question my judgement."
Her hand reached for her hip, where her sword would have been, but she steadied herself swiftly.
"With the Troika's permission may I suggest that I investigate house Varro."
"Seconded" Duriana said automatically.
"Chase
is not a member of the Troika."
"Inquisitor Chase
possesses the authority to make an independent investigation, and he
will be sharing his findings with us."
"He does not have the resources" Krieser said suddenly.
"Inquisitor Chase has no staff, I would second the request provided he accept Rabkrin's interrogator as an assistant."
"I accept."
Rabkrin on the other hand was emphatically against the idea.
"You cannot commandeer my personal."
"The Troika has the power to reassign staff on a temporary basis and you have been overruled in this matter Inquisitor Rabkrin."
"Very well, Interrogator Levrenti will meet you at the Ferrier High Residency at 08:00 tommorrow."
