The woman was brought before the Sigillite, scared and frightened. Until yesterday, she was just a simple person from Bakus III, a Hive World from Ultramar. She was also a fervent believer in the Imperial Cult and she initially thought that her capture by Xenos was their way of mocking the Emperor and His Faith. She thought they will torture her and they will defile her in unspoken ways to delight their Xenos deities. As a commoner, the woman couldn't differentiate one species of alien from the other so everyone who was not human was a despicable creature. However, to her great surprise, the Eldar treated her good, feeding her and allowing her to wash, giving her clothes and letting her pray.
Seeing the Sigillite's human face was a great deal of comfort for her. She, of course, didn't know that in front of her stood Malcador the Hero, the right hand of the Almighty Emperor of Mankind but she needn't not to be the wiser, at least for now.
"You are afraid, I can sense that! You need not to be afraid. In fact, you should rejoice!"
"Why? I was captured by alien filth! Emperor, please! Protect me!" Malcador smiled at her:
"I see that you love the Emperor! Your prayers surely are heard by him!"
"Of course I love the Emperor! He is our God, our Savior, and our Ruler!"
"That he is! What is your name, young one?" The woman's face changed and she started to shout at the Sigillite:
"I don't even know who you are! Maybe you some sort of an illusion or some kind of Xeno-construct created by these aliens to take me from the loving arms of the Emperor and lead me astray! No! I am not talking with heretics!"
Malcador smiled. It was interesting for him to talk to a human, especially a commoner. The great irony of his life is the fact that he seeks to protect humanity at all costs yet he had little contact with the common people of the Imperium, the ones who suffer the most, those who have the most to lose. For the Administratum, these people were numbers, percentages, and statistics. For the Astartes, they were potential recruits, to be transformed into a fearless Space Marine. For the Inquisition, they were either faithful or heretics. If they were faithful, they were let to continue their meaningless existences until they would have heretic thoughts. After that, some assassin or even an Exterminatus would end their suffering. Yes! The existences of the simple people of the Imperium were quite meaningless… They have to spend their entire lives in fear, drudgery and fanatical religious worship only to be ended whenever at the whims of Imperial authorities. Malcador knew the fact that this fanaticism was anathema to the Emperor's desire to free the humans from under religion's yoke. He remembered the moment The Ruler of Mankind punished Lorgar and destroyed the Primarch's city on planet Khur, Monarhia. He remembered this moment clearly, as he was slapped by Lorgar twenty meters in the air, but he survived and even got up immediately, to the chagrin of his attacker. Even then, before the Heresy, the Imperium was… not how it was envisioned by the Emperor. Oh… so much have to be changed for humanity to survive!
"You don't have to tell me your name, if you don't want. But still, I must address you somehow. So, I will address you as "Elthir corannir rhiantha en!" Hearing the Eldar language, the woman almost exploded:
"What kind of spell is that? My name is Ralia, not… like you said!"
"Well… "Elthir corannir rhiantha en" sounds better! It means… something sad!"
"I don't need to know what that means! It's probably something heretical! Shame on you! You are a human, yet you joined these Xeno witches!" Malcador just laughed and left the room, saying goodbye to Ralia and promising her he would visit soon.
A few hours later, Malcador and Farseer Keilon planned their next step in their plan.
"I have contacted the House of Belisarius. They can't help us right now. They have an Heir Apparent for the election of a new Paternova. Your Navigators have queer rituals." This Navigator House had a special relationship with the Eldar. At some point in the past, the head of the House was helped by an Eldar Farseer of Ulthwe to accomplish some unknown but tremendously important objective. To return the debt, House Belisarius created seven coins that were given to the Eldar, to be reclaimed only after they have helped Craftworld Ulthwe seven times. Five of the seven coins were reclaimed by the Navigator House and now, their help was required the sixth time.
"Not just them. I spoke today with the woman. Her name is Ralia. The level of indoctrination she possesses is astonishing. She wouldn't tell me her name, so I named her "Elthir corannir rhiantha en. She thought I would curse her!"
"It means The-Eldar-Maiden-Who-Weeps-Tears-For-Her-Warrior-Folk-In-The-Starlight-Of-Rhidhol-During-The-Winter. You could say the name is very fitting for the role she would play in the future!"
"It's the Eldar term for widow."
"Yes, but it means much more… It embodies all our sadness, our grief, our loss because of what happened…"
Malcador and Keilon's discussion was interrupted by a Space Marine. Tall, imposing, with a completely black armor and a dark blue cloak around, with a sigil resembling a crown on it.
"Captain Adamis Thailon of the Third Company of the Peace Seekers coming to report: "We have secured Pavar V and its laboratories." Malcador saluted the Captain:
"Very well, Captain. It seems the Second Legion are as always, ready to give their lives for our objective! Tell me, was the battle hard?"
"We lost 29 men. Good people. The Orks who controlled the Agri-World however, were exterminated. There were almost 40 000." The Farseer couldn't believe.
"You are telling me that you fought 40 000 Orks and you lost just 29 men?"
"Yes, Farseer. Because we had Primach Erion with us!"
"Good. Very good. You see, Keilon, even though many of the Eldar consider us primitive and weak, one man can change everything, even the course of a battle. Congratulations to the entire Second Legion. Your efforts and your men's deaths won't be forgotten." Captain Thailon bowed and left the room.
"Now we need to assure that the Belisarius candidate becomes the Paternova. It would help us tremendously. I will contact my agents on Terra. They will…manipulate the odds in House Belisarius' favor."
"More like… in our favor!"
"In the meantime, I want you to help me with another thing. But that's… very difficult!"
"Tell me, Malcador."
"I want to enter the Black Library. I need to see something there."
