Inquisition games

Ricardo sat and watched Georgia sleep.

It had been a tumultuous day. Greyfax and Celestine had vanished as soon as other Imperial forces had approached the depot. Cypher had waited until he was sure Magos Rebekah was in proper custody before he too vanished. The Space Wolves who had survived the battle had been less than enthused with acting as prison guards for a cog, but a growl from Bjorn had ensured their compliance. They had suffered grievous losses against the massive traitor Titan, but they had claimed victory with Kay's help. Their surviving vehicles even now surrounded the wreck of the Filea Gloriosa and only a fool or someone with a death wish would dare that blockade.

It had taken both Celestine and Greyfax working in concert with Ricardo to calm Georgia down enough for the sedative that the Elyisan medic slipped her to take effect. She really wanted Lord Inquisitor Gornal dead and Ricardo couldn't blame her. To have such a bright light in hand and then to lose it in such an ignoble way…

Greyfax had confirmed that Gornal wasn't actually a traitor. He had been fooled by the Mechanicus. According to her, and Ricardo wasn't about to call her a liar, Gornal was just as shocked by what had happened as everyone else was. Part of Ricardo still burned to put a bolt round through Gornal's head. He might be able to do that, but the Inquisition frowned on subordinates causally murdering their superiors. If there was cause, that was one thing. If Gornal had actually been a traitor, Ricardo would have been well within his rights to do just that or just let Georgia strangle the man as she so wanted to. She wasn't as strong as her mom, thank the Emperor, but she had been determined and she was fast. Even Cypher's men hadn't been able to hold her, especially since no one really wanted to hurt her.

"Sir." Mace's voice pulled Ricardo out of his rumination. He looked up to see Mace standing there. Lornan was working at deciphering a console at a datacenter nearby and Lisa was off with the Elysians, checking the various vehicles in the hangar. "Message from the ship. We have company coming." Ricardo looked at Mace and the guardian frowned. "Are we going back to the ship, sir?"

"Eventually, Mace." Ricardo promised. "We still have a lot of work to do. The Inquisition's work is never done."

"No, sir." Mace agreed. He looked at Georgia. "And her?"

"Her choice, Mace." Ricardo said flatly. "Not mine. If she wants to go back to the sisters, I won't try and stop her. They would object." Mace made a face and Ricardo nodded with a small shiver. The few communications he had received from the various Sororitas Orders had been short and to the point. If anything further happened to Georgia, he was a dead man.

He looked around the small room he had carried Georgia into when she had finally fallen asleep and shook his head. The planetary defense center he sat in would shift this entire campaign. The Elysians had provided a bedroll for her. General Sentar's troops were incredibly happy with the new lodgings that Ricardo had provided for them. They wouldn't be able to stay for too long, they were needed far too many places for that, but a solid roof over their heads and clean water to drink were both rare luxuries to the hardened paratroopers. A solid defense point with many types of vehicles that no one had seen in millennia, really cool weapons and literal mountains of ammunition? Heaven.

He stiffened a bit as Georgia muttered in her sleep, but she did not wake. No one was surprised that her dreams had been troubled and Lisa had wanted to sit with her. The hardened master sergeant's heart melted around the broken Hospitallar and she had asked Ricardo if she could stay with the girl. Ricardo had been forced to refuse. He needed Lisa working. She understood, boy did she ever, but it had hard for both of them.

This whole mess had been hard for everyone.

"Who is coming?" Ricardo asked when Georgia subsided again. The medic had promised she would sleep for several hours, but who knew what odd quirks Kay had passed on to her daughter?

"He is." Mace said sourly. Ricardo grimaced, but then nodded. If Gornal was anything, he was both opportunistic and survival oriented. Without Greyfax and Celestine around to keep him in line, he had immediately reverted to type. He had ordered Georgia's arrest for attempted murder of himself. Ricardo had ignored him. He wasn't about to cross the Sisters again.

"Is he now?" Ricardo looked at a readout that only he could see and smiled a little grimly. "I assume he is still blustering?"

"He is claiming the facility and everything in it." Mace looked at his boss. "Um… He can't do that, can he?"

"No, he can't." Ricardo replied. "Oh, he can claim it, but he cannot take control of it. Whatever Kay did, I am the only one who can access the defenses. If I were to suffer some kind of accident, they would likely melt down. That would not be good for anyone within about twenty kilometers."

"He will try." Mace warned.

"Of course he will." Ricardo shrugged. "Even if we cannot find STC fragments…." No one had found any yet and Ricardo wasn't sure if they would. This place was a military storehouse, not a data repository. "...the sheer amount of military hardware in the bays is enough to make any Astra Militarum General start to weep. For such a political animal as Gornal? This place is incalculable leverage, not tools for protecting the Imperium." The disgust in his tone spoke volumes. "I guess I better meet him."

"We don't want him anywhere near Georgia." Mace shivered slightly. The girl's rage had been almost as impressive as her mother's. If not for the Space Marines and Celestine, Georgia would have succeeded in throttling the Lord Inquisitor. Non-militant or no, she was scary when she got angry. Like mother, like daughter.

"No!" Ricardo agreed. Georgia stirred again and he paused in the middle of rising, but again Georgia subsided. He looked at the wall nearby and a screen flared to life, showing a space capable Valkyrie landing on a rapidly built pad at the surface depot. He shook his head as he saw Gornal stride off it, surrounded by Storm Troopers. His eyes flicked to the side, but he did not stop. He rose to his feet and strode from the room. Mace followed, but paused as Ricardo held up a hand. "Tell the others, Georgia is priority. Ward her, not me."

"Sir!" Mace protested.

"You think I am vulnerable, Mace?" Ricardo asked as the Storm Trooper squad that General Sentars had seconded to him formed up around him. All of them were hardened veterans and all of them knew the stakes. If Ricardo died, this place would likely melt down. Even if they managed to escape that, the loss of such a treasure would not sit will with their superiors. Their lives would likely be short and painful.

"You do take foolish risks, Sir." Mace allowed. "He has to have a plan and without the others..."

He trailed off. None would say the names. Greyfax and Celestine were not to be officially recorded as present. Unofficially, Ricardo was appalled that they had left without killing the Magos or Gornal, but officially, he was still Gornal's subordinate. However long that lasted.

"I know, Mace, but right now, Georgia is priority." Ricardo sighed. "Not the least of which because of what the Sororitas will do to us if anything else happens to her. But also because of who she is and who her mother is. Kay's enemies will come for her and we must protect her. If we don't… Kay will be unhappy."

"You really think Kay is coming back?" Mace asked as he took up station by the door.

"I don't know." Ricardo admitted. "But I do know one thing. His Daughter scared the hell out of everybody. Even me." Rare for an Inquisitor to admit such, but totally true. Every one of the Storm Troopers nodded. They had seen records of what she had done and even Storm Trooper discipline had its limits. "Inquisitor or no, I am not going to cross her wishes on the off chance she is permanently dead this time."

"Probably wise." Mace smiled grimly and then closed his visor and set himself. It would take overwhelming force to get past him. Or an Astartes. Same difference. Of course, if that happened they had massive other problems and so would everyone else.

Ricardo smiled a little as he started off, his escort following. The cavernous halls echoed with excited Guardsmen working to clear rooms and set up facilities. Ordinarily, such an undertaking would be proceeding at a glacial pace as tech-priests sang and spread incense or whatever all over everything. He had flatly refused to allow any tech-priests entry into the facility. The few servitors and spy drones that had tried to enter surreptitiously had been summarily destroyed by internal defenses. He didn't fool himself that he had caught them all, but he had caught quite a few and surprise, surprise, most had been Mechanicus designs. He had requested Inquisition techs and the response had been quick. The Inquisition as a whole disliked being reliant on the tech-priests so the Conclave had jumped at the chance to edge around them. It wouldn't last. The cogs were nothing if not sneaky about forcing themselves on everyone. He hadn't spoken to anyone of his talk with Kay about the Omnissiah, but such was never far from his mind. He had never trusted tech-priests, but that? He was worried.

"Illusmar!" The shout came from the now open main entrance to the facility and Ricardo fought back a sigh as he saw Gornal at the opening. The Elysian guards there were blocking his path and the Storm Troopers with Gornal were aiming at the Elysians. Not wise. General Sentars had three squads with heavy weapons positioned to cover that entrance. That didn't even count the four servitor controlled turrets that were hidden around said entrance. More were secreted inside the walls of the facility and Ricardo was still finding them. Multi-lasers, grenade launchers, heavy bolters, flamers, missile launchers… The Emperor had protected his secrets well. And now? Ricardo pointedly did not look to to the halls that branched off to either side of the entrance.

"If your men open fire, it will be the last thing they do." Ricardo said mildly as he came to a stop just within the facility. The Storm Trooper with him also aimed at the men surrounding Gornal. If anyone so much as twitched, this would get bloody. "What can I do for you, Lord Inquisitor?"

As if he didn't know.

"You have duties elsewhere, Inquisitor Illusmar." Gornal smiled at Ricardo. "The Emperor thanks you for your service, but you need to leave. Now."

"I do?" Ricardo pursed his lips. "And I assume that you have someone in mind to take over here?" He did not react as Gornal smiled evilly.

"I will humbly take over the administration of this ruin." Gornal said with a nod. "I have authorization." He produced a scroll and held it out to Ricardo who looked at it.

"From the Mechanicus, no doubt." Ricardo did not move to take the scroll. He slowly shook his head. "And… Out of curiosity, what did they promise you?" He inquired mildly. Gornal stiffened as Ricardo's utterly disinterested tone registered.

"You have your orders!" Gornal declared. "Obey them!"

"I do have my orders." Ricardo replied, still calm. "And you were here when I got them. I am not about to cross her wishes. You shouldn't cross His Daughter either." His eyes went hard as a red robed form appeared in the hatch of the Valkyrie.

"You speak heresy!" The Tech-Priest declared stepping down the ramp.

"Do I?" Ricardo inquired of the Lord Inquisitor, not taking his eyes off the tech-priest. "Guards? If that thing sets a foot on the ground of this sanctuary, shoot him." The red robed tech-priest did not stop and Ricardo shook his head. "You are not welcome here, tech-priest."

"You speak heresy and you hold that which does not belong to you!" The tech priest started to plant a foot on the ground, but a lasgun flashed, the ground near his feet scorching. He backed up a step, his tone turning even angrier. "You dare!"

"Not fair, I know." Ricardo shook his head as Gornal stared at him in shock. "Only you red robes are allowed to spout heresy, huh?"

"You will surrender this holy place and you will surrender the person of Magos Rebekah!" The priest bellowed. "Or we will send word to Mars and-"

He broke off as the shadows behind Illusmar came alive. Huge, hulking forms strode from the side corridors out to loom over Illusmar. All four Space Marines had weapons in hand. Their weapons were as varied as their heraldry. The Space Wolf bore bolt pistol and chainsword. The Dark Angel held a plasma gun. The Ultramarine had a bolter ready and the Iron First hefted a two handed thunder hammer.

"And what?" The Ultramarine said coldly. "You will announce to everyone what your precious Magos did? We know." At that, Gornal went white and Ricardo couldn't blame him. Four of the most powerful Space Marine Chapters knew the truth? 'Oh shit' didn't even come close to covering that!

"Easy, Sergeant Grias." Ricardo held up a placating hand. "Kay would want us to at least try and keep things peaceful."

"What is the point?" The Space Wolf snarled. His chainsword whirred for a moment and Gornal retreated a step. "You know what they will do just as well as we do."

"The point, honored Astartes..." Another voice, softer, kinder, but no less firm, spoke up and Ricardo stepped aside as the other person who he had been negotiating with stepped into view. Reverend Mother Malina was not a militant sister. She was one of the heads of the convent where Georgia had been raised. Ricardo had called for help when he had finally gotten Georgia to sleep and she had been in transit already with a full team of militant Sororitas to try and come to Kay's aid. They all felt shamed that they had been too late, but Ricardo had proposed an idea and they had retired to think it over. He hadn't heard their response yet. "...is that none of us wish to cross the Emperor's Daughter. Do we?"

"No." The Space Wolf allowed. He did not lower his weapons. Not that Ricardo expected him to.

"What…" Gornal started and then paused as everyone looked at him. "What is going on?"

"I had a thought." Ricardo said quietly. "This is a planetary defense center. This planet, this entire system needs help. They need the Emperor's Light. We may have lost Kay, we may not have. Only time will tell. I cannot hold this place all by myself, no matter her orders to me."

"So you will-" The tech-priest started, but all four of the Marine readied their weapons and he shut up. Wise.

"So..." Ricardo continued as if there had been no interruption. "...I could have asked for Inquisition help, but I fear my superior is less than equal to the task that Kay laid on me. No offense to him..." Ha! "...most anyone would not be equal to such a monumental task. That makes any support I might get from the Inquisition suspect. I know it is nothing personal,..." Double ha! "...but if he orders them to betray me, they will." All four Astartes radiated disapproval. Gornal's face was furious, but he did not speak. "Also, Kay was Sororitas. The best of the Sororitas."

"She would have denied that with every fiber of her being." Mother Malina said sadly. "Humble didn't begin to describe that dear girl."

"Most of the time." Ricardo nodded at the mother and she smiled back. "So, I cannot do it alone and I cannot trust the Mechanicus. I can trust the Sisters to do what they think is the Emperor's Will. I may not always agree with what they choose to do, but only a fool doubts their faith."

"Never for very long." The Iron Fist agreed sternly.

"So… What?" Gornal rallied gamely.

"Reverend Mother?" Ricardo asked as he turned to her. "Did you get a reply?"

"I did." The Reverend Mother's eyes were glistening. "They said 'Yes'." Ricardo sighed in relief and nodded to her.

"Yes to what?" Gornal demanded, suspicion rising.

"Inquisitor Ricardo Illusmar has asked my Order to built a convent here in this facility." Mother Malina said serenely. Gornal stared at her in disbelief and she smiled. That smile was not friendly in the slightest. "This world is the Emperor's and his daughter fell in battle here. This place must be returned to the Emperor's Light. There are faithful here." She said sadly. "But they are overwhelmed by the darkness that surrounds them. My order will built a chapel here in this facility and various orders of militant sisters have promised their support."

"You can't stay here. This planet isn't even close to safe." Wonder of wonders, Gornal looked worried for the Reverend Mother! A first in Ricardo's experience.

"We go where the Emperor wills." Mother Malina said quietly. "Kay would want this." Her eyes held Gornal's. "These Astartes have promised to protect us while our militant sisters assemble a force of their own."

"All four of your chapters?" Gornal asked, his face turning remote.

"Nine." The Dark Angel corrected him. Gornal stared at him and the Dark Angel shrugged a little. "My chapter, Ultramarines, Iron Fists, Space Wolves, Black Templars, White Scars, Raven Guard, Blood Ravens and Blood Angels have or are sending troops. Those were the confirmed ones. There are likely more by now."

"All of those." Gornal winced a little. "And… Who is in command?"

"That is being discussed by our chapter commands. They have decided on forming a provisional company. We will protect the sisters here until the Sisters of Battle arrive." The Ultramarine said firmly. "No matter what else happens, we will not let this planet fall."

"I see." Gornal shook his head slowly. "I was mistaken in thinking that Kay's daughter would be vulnerable here." Was he actually sincere? It was hard to tell with that man.

"You will surrender Magos Rebekah!" The Tech-Priest said with snarl from the ramp.

"You should rephrase that." Mother Malina said quietly. "I am not a militant sister, but angering all of these staunch defenders of the Imperium will likely not be a good idea."

"You will-" The tech-priest took another step and the guards all took aim as the red robed being raised something to point at the Reverend Mother. The Space Marines all moved to ward her and Illusmar and raised their weapons. Before any could use them, the head of the tech-priest fell off!

Mother Malian sighed as she nodded to the white garbed woman in synthleather who had appeared behind the tech-priest and cut his head off with one clean blow from her dual swords. The Death Cult Assassin kicked the bolt pistol the priest had held away from his hand and then bowed to the Mother before vanishing back into stealth.

Gornal stared at the very dead tech priest and then at Mother Malina. He shook his head.

"You said you are non-militant." He said with a sour chuckle. "You didn't say you were defenseless."

"Deception in war is permitted." Butter might not have melted in Mother Malina's mouth. "Only an idiot would come here without protection." None of the Space Marines or Storm Troopers chuckled, but all seemed amused. "As for the Magos? She is not here. A delegation from the 1st Legion came and collected her." She shuddered. "They were rather upset with her."

"You are definitely not an idiot." Gornal said softly. Then he looked Ricardo full in the eyes and spoke slowly. "I have been one. I will do my best to keep the mess from landing on the sisters here, but please boy, try to keep from killing more of them?"

"If they keep pushing..." Ricardo said sourly. "...they will keep getting hurt."

"You know they will. Maybe my report added to others will do something. Maybe." Gornal sighed and waved at his men who relaxed. "I know when I am beat. Well played, Inquisitor Illusmar."

"This wasn't my game." Ricardo said as he turned to look out at the horizon beyond which Kay's Titan lay. Some were talking about turning it into a memorial, but the Mechanicus of course were raising a stink. He had tried to explain to everyone that he had no control over the self destruct of that vehicle. Maybe they took him seriously? Maybe not. It was far enough away that if it did blow? The facility would survive.

"She won. Game. Set. Match." Ricardo bowed his head. "Well played, Kay. Well played indeed."

"You would have made a hell of an Inquisitor."