The Mortal Son

by FreedomOfThinking

Entombed on the Golden Throne, the Master of Mankind has been near helpless to combat the dangers humanity faces. However against all odds, the Emperor decided to try to tip the scale in Humanity's favor no matter the cost. The Herd has lacked a Shepard for far too long. It's time for something new... well, new-ish.

8. Act 1 - 4: Casting Off

AN: 100 follows! Thanks peeps! Sorry this took a bit, but here it is!

---

Explorator Magos Cortetis Nesyon felt their mechadendrites twitch in anticipation. It was so close now, so very close to completion.

The Skitarii that stood guard and the servitors that were bound to Cortetis' will shared this anticipation. Their neural connections to one another allowed for this data cascade, of what could only described as 'feeling', from the Magos.

Nearly two days in, a few failed attempts, a high number of dedicated prayers to the machine god and plenty of binary chanting… and it was finally ready.

A servo skull coasted up into the smouldering waves of heat that lingered in the air of the forge-room.

Cortetis observed parts of the skull to flicker and spark, the heat of the crucible it was floating to inspect affecting its outer layer.

Blackstone required very specific conditions to mould.

One of these conditions was a temperature range far above the one necessary to cast the Ceramite plates of a Space Marine.

As the servo-skull reached the peak of its flight, the Magos connected his ocular network to it.

The room stilled, the only noise or movement being the broiling temperatures of the forge and the churning fires of crucible.

Magos Explorator Cortetis was the first to lay eyes on the forged item. The first to witness technology constructed for the express purpose of their Inquisitor..

The Servoskull was melting from its exposure to the crucible's temperatures, the Titan forging technology producing so much heat that the simple observing tool could not hope to survive.

Yet the Magos could see through the skull's optics, they could see into the rolls waves of molten material. The image was flickering and imperfect, colorless unlike the Magos' own superior implanted technology.

But Cortetis could perceive what they were seeing. The mould was a success. The item had been forged.

It was…

It was so….

"Observation: Stunning"

The Skitarri chittered quietly while the Servitors moved into position from silent orders issued by their creator and owner.

Cortetis disconnected from the Skull just as it began to fail, an idle mechadendrite flicking it from the air in order to prevent it from falling into the Crucible.

A command was blurted out in silent Binary, and the closest Servitors to the Crucible began to follow through with.

Shambling toward the gigantic urn, they reached for the dark metal latches on either side. Three Servo-skulls, also ordered by Cortetis, flew as close to the lip of the maelstrom of fire and metal as possible. Two had maglocked pipes held beneath, each ready to dispense as much coolant as necessary to stem the reaction.

The third Skull was recording all of these processes for later. Solid evidence of this creation.

Cortetis did not need to raise a hand or limb to signal any kind of 'ready, set, go'. The Servitors reached forward and grabbed the four latches on each corner of the crucible. Superheated steel cooked their flesh and practically welded it to the handles.

As they yanked the seal open, the Servo-skulls dispensed their blueish white loads of coolant. The instant the calming liquid touched the chaotic fires of the crucible, a cloud of steam and air exploded out the top.

But the Crucible was opened.

The wave of molten metal absorbed the Servitors that had released it, killing them instantly before draining away through the hardened grates below.

Cortetis would replace them, as would the Servo-skull lost in observation.

A silent order pulled the cooling skulls back, the cloud of steam and mist still filling the air and obstructing their view of the mould.

Air ducts activated all over the room, the titan grade construction ventilation pulling away the smoke, steam and mist.

And as the cover lifted, the opened crucible lay before Cortetis' whirring and clicking gaze.

The Blackstone had been forged into two items, the only items that the Magos had possessed enough of the precious material in order to create.

But while forged, they needed to be prepared.

Even as the mold cooled, Cortetis issued orders.

Tools were retrieved, tables and benches were cleared.

For the first time since the man had been made nearly fully machine, Cortetis Nesyon, Magos Explorator of the Tempests Advance, the Adaptive Operator of the Omnissiah, felt.

Feeling, as human and as natural as their mostly mechanical mind could prehend, flooded their many millions of nervous receptors.

If they still had skin and hair, it would be bristled from this sharp feeling.

Excitement.

This was a monumental moment.

---

Security teams and the protectors of the palace had been responsible for clearing out the ballroom. The guests of significantly less importance were taken to various separate spaces by attendants and soldiers. They were all kept under guard for security reasons.

Among the handful of remaining individuals was Vownus Kaede, the unveiled Inquisitor who had ordered the complete and total lockdown of the De Chambaal palace.

His Emperor ordained authority could not be questioned. For those that had the brief thought that this was some elaborate ruse or nefarious plot… if the Inquisitorial Rosette Vownus had produced wasn't evidence, then the affirming words of Lula De Chambaal sealed his status as a member of the Inquisition.

Vownus, after dispensing his orders, had taken a few minutes of silence to study the dead body of Lorn De Chambaal. Lula's missing brother.

The man was dead, laying face down in a pool of his own blood. His body had been twitching earlier, but that had ceased quite quickly. After all, Vownus had aimed for the heart.

Caius and Lucian stood by the huddled up little girl, the one that everyone still remaining in the near empty ballroom could clearly see. The girl who could render herself and Lorn invisible….

Vownus was more than sure he knew exactly what she was and how she had accomplished such a feat as targeted invisibility.

Just by her presence alone, and the fact that he could still feel the after effects of her powers, Vownus knew what she was.

Her presence grated on his mind, a constant annoyance that he could not simply shake away. His Psychic Blade, the attack he had used to fell Lorn De Chambaal, had been muted. The effect wasn't clean cut or precise, as it should have been. Vownus' compensation of power to this dulled effect on his ability had led to the fist sized hole in the dead man's chest.

But even as she sapped his ability to draw from the warp, and the irritation her presence created tugged their barbs at the back of his mind… how come Lucian didn't seem to notice her?

The boy was in fact quite close in his proximity to the girl.

There were no obvious signs of discomfort, dislike, or uneasiness from Lucian. While the girl perhaps was shut down in some kind of way, perhaps not truly projecting her innate talent.

Vownus did not stare at the two as he considered them, his eyes fixed on the only dead body in the room.

'...a Blank is supposed to suppress a Psyker and their usage of Immaterium…'

The lessons regarding his one natural weakness had been drilled into the experienced Witch-hunter many times.

In his expansive career in both facets of the Inquisition, Ordo Xenos and then Ordo Hereticus, Vownus had only experienced the presence of a Blank twice.

And while this girl displayed the telltale emotional and physical signs of being a Psychic Blank… there was something off about her.

Something different.

A thought, unbidden, drifted to the forefront of his mind.

'She will stand at the Eye, where no life can tread, She will temper the fury of His Soul'

Vownus was glad to have his derailed thoughts be pushed aside by his current problem.

He'd sort the girl out later.

...and Lucian.

"My Lord" Lynwood words reached the Inquisitor's ears before the Agent marched to his side, his bolter having been returned to him under Vownus' orders.

Vownus nodded slightly in the man's direction, affirming Lynwood to speak about what he had uncovered. While the Agent spoke, Vownus was turning to face his Noble audience.

Of those that had been ordered to remain in the ballroom, Thaddeus Sabeder stood with his wife, Zariel, his face plastered in a grim downturn. He and his wife were far too proper to allow any fear or horror to dress their expressions. They were nobility, after all.

While the Marshal was ordered to stay, the family of Meserben Rhantz; little Cantos, Captain Vour and Tabitha Rhantz, were excused. Vownus could see the sweat on the Imperial's face.

'Probably bumped into an Inquisitor before' Vownus had chuckled internally to himself the moment he noticed the physical drops on the man's brow.

Another concerned looking face was the Port Master, Melaedon Al Mukaiji, who seemed to cower slightly behind Agrax's Marshal. Strange. Out of all the people here, Vownus knew this man was the most separated from this incident. Perhaps he was just worried his meek nature might draw the Inquisitor's ire?

'Sometimes it pays to be a mind reader'

The last expressfully concerned party was poor Soniah Naum. Who, going by the fearful look in her eyes, and the slight shake of her hand, wasn't so interested in Vownus anymore. A shame really. Vownus felt they had shared a connection.

Nothing was a bigger turn off than the highest achievable position of power in the Imperium it seemed. Or maybe she was just reacting like this due to Vownus being a Psyker? In all honesty, he didn't really care.

And last but not least, the unconcerned parties.

Madam Roza de Gisaal and Governor Lula De Chambaal.

They stood side by side, nothing from their expressions giving anything away. It was natural for them to be so static and controlled. They operated in this political playground quite often, one being the center of information across all of Agrax, and the other being the apex of political power… simple gazes and stares would not intimidate them.

Lynwood's calm tone drew Vownus from his quick musings.

"Six bodies were discovered. Four attendants and two guests. There appears to be no pattern or-"

Vownus raised a hand, and Lynwood shut his mouth.

While still staring between the guests, the Inquisitor addressed the boy that stood behind him.

"Lucian"

His response was startled but quick.

"Yes my Lord?"

"Escort the girl out of here" those words drew a response from the Governor, who's slight wince made Vownus' head snap towards her, his gaze blank and emotionless. He kept speaking to Lucian, however.

"Caius will contact the Lander. It will retrieve the three of you before returning to the Tempest's Advance. You will lock the girl in the brig, is this clear?"

"Yes my-"

Lynwood cut off Caius with a barked order.

"Is this clear, Lucian?"

The boy answered clearly, his distaste palpable.

"Yes my Lord"

Vownus waved them away with a dismissive gesture aimed at the ground, "chop chop Kiddo"

He felt the daggers being glared into his back.

Lucian will learn.

Eventually.

Caius hauled the girl to her feet, and thankfully allowed herself to be marched from the room. She still sniffled and cried quietly, but eventually their three sets of footsteps disappeared into the distance. The sound of the grand wooden doors of the ballroom closing behind them.

Silence descended upon the room, broken up by the quiet breaths and shuffling of feet or clothing.

Vownus let them stew, his gaze still fixed upon Lula De Chambaal.

It was the Marshal that tried to break the silence, "My Lord-"

Vownus raised his hand at the man, causing Mesbern to flinch. There was now a notable shake in his shoulders.

The Inquisitor still had eyes for only Lula. She held his gaze, a veneer of defiance ever so subtly coating her look.

"How long did you know?" Vownus asked her.

Lula's gaze dropped into a glare, "know what, my Lord Inquisitor? That my brother was the killer? Or that he was a Psyker?"

Vownus didn't smile as he nodded at her, "both, actually. So let's start with the first part" he stepped up to her, and lifted his hand right up to her face.

Placing his index finger slowly upon her forehead, he allowed an inflection of frustration to come through with his threatening hiss of "and remember. I want the truth. I'll know if you lie to me"

He tapped her head, lightly, the threat of his ability coming across very clearly.

Her eyes darted up to the finger for a brief moment, her Ceramite resolve crumbling for a split second.

Only for an instant. A second later she was focused on Vownus' eyes again.

She took a shuddering breath in.

Vownus was forcing her to reveal the truth, something that she had desperately hoped to avoid airing to the others in this room.

Vownus would deal with them next, but first he needed to know the facts.

Lula's voice had dropped its layer of venom. She was resigned to the reality of both the past and present, a deep sadness holding her in check.

"It happened on the cusp of manhood, as he was growing from a boy to an adult. Father got him a pet… a vicious creature… Lorn was supposed to temper it, bring it to heel and teach it…"

Lula's gaze became distant. The Inquisitor could feel her sorrow on the surface of her thoughts.

Vownus let himself into her mind, taking in everything he could in order to confirm her words. So far, everything she was saying was true.

"...when it attacked him one day… he… he..."

"Drained it" Vownus muttered.

"Yes" Lula whispered, "Father made us keep the secret. To avoid the Black Ships… to avoid the destruction of our Family. Besides myself and my brother, anyone else who witnessed or knew what Lorn had done…" she trailed off, her gaze darkened by memories.

'They were dealt with' Vownus grimly acknowledged to himself. Lula didn't need to explain that.

"For a while things were normal again. We were happy. Lorn never did anything strange again... until Father died"

"Lorn?" Vownus questioned, wondering if it was the brother that had slain the father.

"No" Lula vehemently and immediately denied, "Lorn and myself were off-world when Father died. But the news… the manner in which Father died… we knew it was not natural, not an accident... We knew he was murdered" Lula glanced to the floor, the next words from her coming out as quietly as she could. This was a painful memory for her.

"Lorn… my brother took the news badly"

Pieces were falling into place, and Vownus was beginning to see where this was going.

"He was convinced that only he could uncover the enemies of our family" she smiled, but it lacked any joy or humour. It was cold and heartless.

"Regardless of what I said, what I tried to tell him… he went on his crusade… I don't know when exactly he started using his powers again, but I know that it was around then when he did…"

Vownus removed his finger from the woman's head, startling her with the sudden movement, before crossing his arms over his chest.

"Your brother was a biomancer" he glanced at the corpse, "a Psyker that draws upon the inherent biology of all living things, and uses the Immaterium to enhance himself or draw upon the flesh, bone and souls of others"

"Souls?" Melaedon muttered, his eyes unbelievably wide.

Vownus nodded, "as Lorn killed with his powers… he would have been absorbing the souls of his victims, dragging their consciousness to weld with his own… as an untrained Psyker, he would slowly fail to distinguish between himself, and all the voices that would have wound up within his head"

The Inquisitor turned back to Lula, who was also staring at the still body of her brother.

"He drove himself mad"

Lula's inhale was racked with sorrow, but she remained composed. No tear or cry escaped her body.

"I knew he was the killer" she admitted freely, "I knew something was… wrong. He just kept killing. He saw enemies and threats everywhere he went, he was convinced that everyone was spying on him, secretly plotting against him…"

"So you tried to put him down" Vownus simplified.

Lula's temper flared as she snapped to face the Inquisitor.

"I tried to be merciful! My brother is not… was not, a rabid beast!" The correction was painful, the shudder of admittance pulling a painful yet familiar cord in Vownus's chest.

Yet she was at fault.

Her attempted mercy had resulted in far more death, deaths that could have been avoided.

'And look what your mercy has wrought' Vownus thought to himself. He knew better than to share that sentiment. He couldn't fault the woman. In her place he would have attempted the same.

"But he escaped. He disappeared into the Hive, resurfacing to begin his killings of my family members…"

"...and trying to get to you" Vownus closed his eyes in contemplation, his thoughts running over and over in his head.

Lula's sigh and following words were inherent confirmation.

"At first… he used his own knowledge against us. Old passageways, security codes or aliases… those were changed, and he slowly began to find less and less ways to reach his targets… until one day we lost our ability to track and observe him all together. I remained in the central spire. The only protection between myself and the outside world being the access from the landing pad and the gate systems..."

'Huh. So that empty room was heavily fortified' Vownus recalled the space between the lifts in the spire, the ones that lead to the Governor's office.

Whatever strange ability the girl had to render Lorn and herself invisible… well everyone would notice the checkpoint randomly open and close in the Hive spire. Lorn could not have climbed the outside of the spire, thousands of meters into the air…

With Lula dealt with, and her knowledge of the case revealed fully, Vownus turned his attention to those that remained.

"I will say this only once" the Inquisitor addressed the others loudly and clearly, taking considerable amounts of time to gaze into their eyes.

"Speak the truth, and you will leave this place. Lie, and suffer the consequences"

The room grew cold, the feeling of the unnatural chill of the Immaterium's presence interacting with real space gripping each and every person.

Vownus touched the minds of each other person, gripping their thoughts and feelings, settling his presence upon the very surface of their consciousness. It was like staring into a handful of oceans, the upper layer crystal clear and revealing of what could surface from dark and murky depths.

Vownus asked his first question while observing each and every one of them, physically and mentally.

"Which of you knew about the murders?"

Vownus saw the truth before the answers filtered in.

"I did"

"Myself and my wife did, my Lord"

"I knew, Lord Inquisitor"

Between all the truthful and outspoken negative admissions, the Marshal, Madam Gisaal and the Sabeder's had answered truthfully.

Silence returned to the room.

Vownus looked at the four of them, individually sizing each one of them up.

He still remained in the minds of the others however.

"Which of you knew the identity of the murderer?"

The Sabeder's denied this. Which was true.

As did the Marshal. Which was true.

Madam Gisaal however, did not answer verbally. Vownus saw the answer in her mind, and approached the woman, staring down at her with an acute focus.

She met his gaze, unfazed by the intimidation and the closeness of a powerful Psyker. After all, she was a brave and bold woman.

"Well?" Vownus prompted.

"I had my suspicions, my Lord. They were confirmed today"

The truth. Hmm.

That dashed a theory or two. Vownus stepped back from the woman, slowly pacing as he brought a hand to his chin to consider things. He didn't really care as they all stared at him with many different feelings and emotions either subtly or obviously displayed across their faces.

Vownus evaluated what he would be required to do, even as his mental presence began to uncoil around each person.

Lula would be punished in some manner. This was unavoidable. Her family had harboured a Psyker from the Imperium, one that had significantly damaged Imperial foundations upon a tactically important world.

But she had pulled him in to help, as secretly as she could manage because other elements were working against her.

Because the murders were eroding her powerbase, whoever wished for her position would kill her for bringing an Inquisitorial presence. The Inquisition would have been Lula De Chambaals best possible answer for finding and exterminating the killer… and uncovering something they, the party that wanted power from the De Chambaal's, did not wish for anyone to know.

But what?

Vownus had deployed subtly, as any other Inquisitor would have. He had taken all the necessary steps to ensure this, perhaps even going a bit too far, but nevertheless had caught the killer, saved the day. La de da.

So what was the catch?

What was the one thing he was overlooking?

Whoever wanted the Governor's position from Lula wanted it badly. They were prepared to let a murderer ravage her family and powerbase, a murderer that sadly came from within.

Vownus couldn't help but feel some kind of pity for Lorn. The boy had become a beast due to good intentions. He wanted the enemies of his family to be brought to justice.

After all, when his Father was…

Vownus stopped pacing.

"Lula" he turned to the woman in question, "what was your Father's name?"

Before she could answer, the audible spike of fear surfaced in the mind of another, a worry that Vownus was just able to make out the peripheral of, before it was buried.

"Aleyx De Chambaal, my Lord"

Vownus walked to the one person in the line who had reacted, the person who had given themself away with an instinctive response to such a simple question.

Everyone turned slightly to watch as Vownus approached Soniah Naum with a cold expression.

"Let's try that again, shall we?" Vownus asked her, placing a finger on her forehead.

The woman began to quake slightly, a shiver in her form as Vownus opened her mind up fully.

...she knew how to suppress thoughts, to keep them from surfacing fully.

It was an amateur mistake on Vownus' part, assuming the woman was just as fearful of a Psyker as most citizens of the Imperium were. She was scared because she wasn't sure how much he could actually see.

His cursory mental investigation was not enough to pierce her trained defenses.

Her instinctive reaction combined with Vownus' more personal interrogation however, would prove to be her undoing.

"Did you know about the murders?"

Soniah whimpered a "no", but looking beneath the murky depths, Vownus saw the truth. He saw reports and information, taken from spies and agents in dark hallways or blackened offices. He saw it all.

"Liar" he declared simply, locking her in place with the power of the warp.

The room grew colder still. The other flinched away from the source of the frost, Vownus.

The Inquisitor however, wasn't finished speaking.

"Did you know the killer's identity?"

"P-please my Lord" Soniah cried, "I…"

"You knew" Vownus uttered simply. He could see the memory of Soniah gazing upon a blurry pict of Lorn, of associating that face with the boy of the man she had ordered killed.

"Did you, Soniah Naum, order the assassination of Aleyx De Chambaal, in hopes of destablising the De Chambaal family, and the Administratum?"

"..yes" she whispered.

The words took a second to be processed by the others.

Even as Soniah cried and Vownus released her from his Psychic grasp, causing the woman to crumple to the floor, the man was already turning to catch the charging form of Lula De Chambaal.

Spews of anger and rage mixed with hysteria and grief flooded from Lula's mouth. Curses in both high and low gothic were flung at the crumpled woman on the floor. Vownus had caught her around the waist, his firm grip keeping her from surely mauling the woman.

After a minute of struggle against the Inquisitor's unmoveable figure, the woman settled down, her breathing deep and ragged as her wild eyes locked with Vownus'.

"Compose yourself, Governor De Chambaal" Vownus commanded this once, and simply, letting go of Lula in a brief moment.

She twitched slightly, but did not charge. Her eyes returned to Soniah Naum.

Vownus stepped back and beckoned Lynwood to his immediate side.

The man already had his bolter drawn… he knew what was about to happen.

Vownus cleared his throat.

"For negligence of duty and keeping a known Psyker from the Imperium, Lula De Chambaal, you are to be removed from your position of Governor effective Immediately. It is only due to extenuating circumstances that you are not granted the Emperor's mercy"

The woman didn't react. She didn't care.

Not that she could.

The one responsible for her father's murder was right before her. Vownus was impressed with Lula's fortitude. Were he in her position, Vownus knew would not have been as still and unmoving as she was.

"Marshal Mesbern Rhantz" the man addressed straightened his back and focused his attention toward Vownus, "at this time, and until a time you find it necessary to elect another to become Governor of Agrax, the duties and responsibilities of the office will be bestowed upon you"

The man instinctively saluted with the symbol of the Acquila.

"I will do my best, Lord Inquisitor"

Vownus nodded. He knew the man would.

And now his attention was turned to Lula's focus.

Soniah's eyes were glazed over. The woman knew what was coming.

Assasination of political rivals was a common thing within Imperial Politics. And it was definitely something people would be punished for.

If you got caught, that is.

Most of them were left unnoticed and forgotten over time.

Not everyone had access to a Sanctioned Psyker that could read minds as effectively as Vownus could. It was also one of the more dangerous disciplines for a Psyker. Like Biomancy absorption, prying into the mind of an individual also causes friction between the Psyker's soul and the target's. Sometimes this friction could alter and change traits of a Psyker's personality, edit and change their memories, or even completely render them as a new person altogether.

Scary stuff.

But a concern that was avoidable with experience and slow but steady practice. Prayer and constant evaluation allowed Vownus to remain entirely himself. The skill was too useful not to learn.

Soniah Naum was evidence of this.

If he couldn't do what he had just done, Vownus knew she would have gotten away with this.

"Soniah Naum" he addressed her, stepping aside slightly so Lynwood could get a clear line of sight on the woman.

"You have been found guilty of the Assassination of Governor Aleyx De Chambaal, and the following destabilisation of Agrax's governing family"

Vownus' hands were clasped behind his back, even as Lynwood raised his bolter. Everyone else stood back from the woman on the ground.

"By the authority of the Emperor's Inquisition, I, Vownus Kaede, sentence you to death"

Lynwood's bolter fired.

---

Besides the growl of the engine and the bumps and jolts of leaving the atmosphere, the ride to the Tempests Advance was a quiet affair.

The Aquila Lander had received them from where they disembarked. Palace Guards and security had given them a wide breadth, the word of their Inquisitorial association having reached nearly everyone who needed to know.

Their staring and whispers had been annoying, yet Lucian had drawn a bit of humor at meeting the looks of some guards, instantly getting them to break their gaze and glance away.

Fear.

He could inspire fear with a simple look.

Lucian was almost thirteen for Emperor's sake, and he could get grown men to cower before him with a look.

The youth hadn't dwelled on that for long. His attention was mostly focused upon the duty that Vownus had given him.

And well, Lucian had to admit, the girl that Caius was escorting was beautiful. Even as she was guided to her seat in the lander and practically placed in the seat by Caius, Lucian found it a bit hard to keep his eyes off of her.

Something was so strange yet alluring.

Beneath the dirt and horribly smelly clothing, a detail that neither Lucian or Caius had really picked up on until they had been marching the girl through the gardens, was innocent youth.

Her eyes, glossy and unfocused upon the metal of the Lander's floor, were a soft blue. While Lucian knew his own eyes to be of a similar shade, something about her gaze was softer. Calmer. If anything, she seemed empty.

Her cheeks were slightly hollow, suggesting that she did indeed have a sparse relationship with food.

Her clothing was far baggier than Lucian had assumed on first observation.

And her blond hair was frizzled and matted, jutting out in many directions with dirt and other things clustered in it.

She still looked beautiful to him… in a way, she reminded him of Vanella. While her features are not as strong or nearly as sharp as his old friend… there was just something that was there. Lucian was determined to find out what it was.

Because the boy could see beneath it all.

He knew there was something different about her.

He could feel it.

He-

"My Lords, we will be landing soon. Do you require an escort to the brig?"

The Lander's Pilot shook Lucian from his musings, giving him a second to notice the smirk Caius had been directing at him, before the older man turned away to reply.

"No Pilot, we can handle this prisoner, and thank you"

Through the porthole, the Tempests Advance was growing closer and closer.

---

Caius wished he could have gotten a picture or some kind of permanent image of Lucian's starry eyed gaze.

He'd keep it among he new collection of personal belongings, and only bring it out to torment the boy during their lessons.

A friendly ribbing, if you will.

Youthful infatuation, even between an incredibly powerful Psyker and a small girl that gave Caius the creeps, was something Caius was aware of.

After all, he'd been a boy once in the Schola Progenium on Helios, surrounded by beautiful women of various statutes and societal hierarchies.

He knew he had certainly stared and gaped until someone cuffed him over the head.

So while he couldn't fault the still growing Lucian's blatant fixation on the girl, he would be telling Vownus about it.

Lucian was a Psyker.

So by Caius' understanding, there was no way the boy could be disciplined or taught by anyone other than another equally powerful Psyker. Caius would leave the birds and the bees conversation up to Vownus as well if he could.

The pilot's announcement had broken away his gaze upon Lucian's humorously dumbstruck face.

The Lander reached the Tempest's Advance with no problems, settling down in the hanger a moment later.

As the ramp of the vessel lowered, Caius stood, the first to unbuckle himself. Lucian was in the process of releasing himself as Caius began to detach the latches on the girl.

When she was finally released, Caius turned to Lucian, a veneer of command and order being delivered to the boy. He would need to know that this was no joke.

They had been given orders from Vownus, the Inquisitor they both served, and they were expected to follow them.

"Lucian"

The boy looked up to him.

"We have been ordered to take her to the brig, and she will be left there until further notice. You will be walking with her as I lead the way. Understand that her well being and survival rests now entirely on you. Should she escape or vanish, she will most likely be hunted down and killed, or worse"

Caius noticed how the boy's expression hardened.

But he didn't argue.

In fact, he affirmed the statement with concise words.

"I understand Caius. I will carry out my orders"

He was learning.

Great.

That meant Caius wasn't as bad at his teaching duties as he thought he was.

"Right. Follow me" he walked down the ramp a second later, two sets of steps closely following him.

It took them nearly fifteen minutes of silent walking to reach the brig of the Tempests Advance. A few curious glances were shot at them, and in particular at their dress code, but most of them stepped away

It was a small yet unassuming door that separated the rows of cages and cells. The two guards at the front let the trio through with minimal effort. Caius' face was recognised by a Cogitator as Vownus' Inquisitorial Agent, and not much discussion or complaint had followed that.

Most of the cells were composed of black steel bars, and hardly any of them housed any occupants.

Caius knew this to be the Imperium's nature.

Prisoners were rarely an issue when you tended not to take any. Military discipline was usually delivered with a lashing, or more commonly a bolter round.

Meaning these cells would more often than not serve to be some kind of drunk tank for officers or guardsmen between deployments.

Between all the empty cells, Caius marched the two youths down to the row at the very end.

The first cell of the row of ten was selected.

Caius gripped the handle, popped in his personal code to the door, one that was linked with Vownus' own, and gestured inside.

The girl was standing beside Lucian, her gaze fixed softly to the open cell before her.

Caius was prepared to verbally explain his order, but stopped when the demure voice of the youth sparked up.

Her dirty head turned to the youth that had escorted her, her singular word of question directed at him, and him alone.

Caius barely caught her words, as quiet and soft as they were.

"...safe?"

She glanced back to the cell, her eyes slowly drifting up and down the bars of the four by four meter cube.

Caius didn't get the chance to speak before Lucian did.

"Yes. It's safe. You'll be alright"

The girl looked back to him, his voice snatching her attention.

Another whispered word, directed toward Lucian.

"Promise?"

Caius watched the boy blink in surprise, before his budding formidable resolve kicked in. Lucian offered the girl a smile reminiscent of Caius' and his shared boss, before also politely gesturing at the cell.

"I promise"

She searched for something in his face, her eyes glancing over all the features and intricate details of the youth.

Finding whatever she was looking for, the girl nodded briefly and turned to the cell.

She shuffled in, found a spot in the corner, and sat down while pulling her clothes around her.

Caius closed the door behind her and walked away. Vownus would deal with this situation. He couldn't imagine why this girl had been brought on board, but it probably had something to do with the whole 'unseeable, invisible killer' shtick. After all, Lucian was the only one who-

Caius stopped and sighed, realising he was leaving the space on his own.

"Lucian" he barked.

Hurried feet upon steel sounded out, and Lucian was by his side, an embarrassed expression across his features.

"Back to your room. Change. Vownus will likely debrief us later" Caius ordered simply, pointing toward the brig's exit. He waited where he was till the boy left, adhering to his order. Lucian shot a look over his shoulder for a brief second before leaving.

Caius wasn't oblivious. He knew the gaze was fixed on the girl. A feeling nagged on him, touching the back of his head and causing the hairs on the nape of his neck to rise up.

Turning, Caius looked down the length of the brig, his eyes meeting the dull blue gaze that was focused on him.

Between the layers of clothing, the girl was staring at him.

The strange feeling intensified, settling in Caius' gut and causing him to twist away. He couldn't… he couldn't look at her.

Caius was outside of the brig in a heartbeat, exhaling a breath he hadn't even noticed he was holding.

As he gathered himself, nodded to the guards and began the walk back to his room, all he could think about was the girl.

'What in the name of the Emperor did I do to get roped in with this mystical grox shit?' Caius grumbled internally. Sometimes he wanted to rip his fabulous black hair out, but always restrained himself at the last second.

After he changed, he was going to find the nearest guardsmen fitness track or training room and work himself to the bone.

Everyone had their own ways of relieving stress.

---

Vownus waited outside of the Chapel, a prayer echoing out under his breath as he waited for Lula.

After the other Nobility and guards had departed under orders and supervision from Lynwood, Vownus had remained with the De Chambaal heir.

It had been a silent affair, only a few words exchanged aloud as the servitors appeared for the corpse. They were ordered to take the body of Lorn De Chambaal, and with Vownus' Inquisitorial permission, entomb it at their current location.

He would not be needing the body for any reason whatsoever, so the Inquisitor had allowed it to be given its due respect.

The body of Soniah Naum was to be disposed of at a later time. A complete lack of consideration given to it, for obvious reasons.

Vownus had trailed behind Lula and the marching Servitors, his gaze swishing left and right through the grand halls of her palatial home.

Each hall was devoid of other people, the beauty and art that decorated them all completely contrasted by the lack of life.

Eventually they reached the final resting place of every member of the De Chambaal family.

Vownus had stopped outside the Chapel, knowing it was not within his right to be present at the burial of Lula's brother.

After all, he had been the one to deliver the fatal blow, regardless of the justification of it. All he could do now was offer his own prayers, away from the ceremony as he leaned against one of the many admittedly pretentious yet grand pillars of the Chambaal hallways.

Lorn's interment within the Mausoleum took only an hour, and when Lula emerged, it seemed more color had returned to her expression.

She exited the chapel alone, the flickering lights of the many candles disappearing behind the now shut gate.

Still in her beautiful party attire, her stance proud and tall, she approached Vownus, walking toward him with an even gaite. The Inquisitor popped himself away from the wall, his hands drifting to the pockets of his own swishy clothing.

Lula reached him, standing a foot away from him as she looked up at Vownus.

They stayed silent for a few moments. Vownus wasn't going to be the one to speak first. Lula deserved to air her grievances. Even if he was an Inquisitor, he was also a man, not to mention a gentleman. Sometimes he had to put aside his duty in order to maintain his honor.

"I am surprised you didn't have me shot as well"

Her words were veiled with a harsh exterior. But Vownus could see the hurt, and the sorrow, that refused to be exposed so obviously.

"As an Inquisitor, it is my right to judge a situation as I see fit. The same way an Arbite can act as a Judge, Jury and Executioner of those that violate the Lex Imperialis… but you already know this," Vownus didn't smile, just stating the facts to the woman casually.

Lula cocked her head slightly, "my family has dealt with the Inquisition before, Vownus Kaede… you are an oddity"

Vownus coughed a laugh, "the word you're looking for is 'optimist', Lady Chambaal"

He shrugged slightly, "besides… from what I've seen, your family has been hurt enough. I believe in order to learn a lesson, one must still be among the living"

She nodded, her eyes looking to the floor.

"I… Lorn…"

Vownus sighed softly, knowing where her mind was going.

"You should not mourn the memory of what you have just witnessed, Lady Chambaal. Your brother was gone long before tonight. Consider yourself and your world lucky that the Archenemy did not find a way into his untrained mind…"

He didn't need to remark upon the selfishness of trying to keep Lorn hidden. The backlash of that decision was going to take a considerable amount of time to heal. Lula would bear the social and political scars for a long time.

But she would live.

"Mourn the brother you knew. Mourn the father that was taken from you. You may take heart that justice has been served, but it is only natural to feel grief at a time like this…" gently reaching forward, Vownus raised the woman's chin. He was slightly startled to see the tears in her eyes, the drops of liquid silently trailing down her cheeks.

"What is grief, if not love persevering, Lady Chambaal?"

Lula's eyes wavered slightly, a look of complete shock yet comfort managing to take hold of her. Instead of bursting out into more tears, she seemed to compose herself in a few moments.

She turned her head slightly, and Vownus removed his hold of her chin as she looked away. Composing herself with the back of her hand, Lula De Chambaal brushed away her sorrow.

When she looked back to him, her smile was so weak and soft, yet honest and warm.

'She will heal' Vownus affirmed himself, 'in time'

"May the Emperor bless you, Inquisitor Kaede" she curtsied for him as she spoke.

"Thank you for all that you could do, and all that you did not have to, yet still did, for my Family"

Vownus chuckled, trying his best to improve the woman's mood as she came back up from the polite gesture.

"Please Lady Chambaal, call me Vownus"

She flicked another smile at him, "only if you call me Lula"

Vownus conceded the request with a smiling nod, "of course Lula"

Silence once again blanketed the room and the short space between them. While Vownus had assumed he would be the one to break it, it was the now ex-Governor who spoke.

"I don't suppose you're particularly busy right now?"

Vownus' brow arched up in mild surprise, and was admittedly taken aback at the suddenly brazen question of the woman.

He dutifully replied regardless of his sudden confusion.

"Not in the slightest. The Magos will inform me when his work is complete and I was planning to await his call aboard my ship"

A strange look entered the woman's eye.

Her question, even stranger.

"Would it be inappropriate to invite you to dinner, Vownus?"

Vownus blinked.

He blinked again.

Her words made sense, but they fried his brain ever so slightly.

Eventually his mouth managed an answer just as his brain caught up.

"Am I to presume this is a private dinner, Lula?"

Her singular nod was simple and clear.

Vownus' reply was equal in its simplicity and clarity.

"I would be delighted"

She gestured for him to follow her, and Vownus did, striding behind her as he made his way further into the De Chambaal Palace.

While he didn't expect much, a man could only hope…

It definitely wouldn't be the weirdest thing to ever happen to Vownus.

Not by a long shot.

---

Caius had been in an Imperial training room before. He knew what he had expected. It was a small tunnel that led into the cavernous room, probably the first sign that what he expected might be altered from what he was used to. But at the time, Caius had just chalked up the difference to just being onboard a starship.

It was his first time after all, being a member of an Imperial vessel, not to mention an Agent of the Inquisition.

He'd gone to his room to change into something comfortable for exercise, marched his way down here in complete and focused silence, only to be halted by one of the weirdest things he'd ever seen.

While the title of 'room' did little to encapsulate the gigantic cavernous space before him, what Caius had discovered was almost entirely different from what he knew.

Sure there was the standard parade ground for marching exercises, martial training mats, and a simulation zone designed for habitation area combat, all under use by the Inquisitor's Guardsmen regiment.

Such things were normal and he had looked to them for only a moment before being drawn to the other side of the space.

Half of the room was dedicated to a crowded mass of… devices.

Caius didn't have words to describe what he was looking at.

All of these devices, strange and different to anything had seen before, were currently being used by numerous guardsmen in training uniforms.

There were tall metal posts with cables attached to them that were tugged and pulled by those that stood near them.

A tracked belt, with a figure running in place atop it as the belt spun below them…

Levers and bars of metal were being lifted by sweaty men and women. Some lifted what could only be weights with handles, exerting themselves physically while cohorts looked on.

The sight had stopped Caius mid step as he entered the space.

However his curiosity drew him to the edge, close enough to make out the faces of the people which trained and toiled.

Caius never noticed the figure that approached him from the machine filled space.

"Welcome to the Gym Agent Caius"

He wasn't startled by the voice, merely taking a second to break his gaze from the physically intensive sight before him.

He recognised the figure with a sharp face and rimmed glasses, also dressed in the general fatigues of the Guard that occupied the room. A black tank top, long green pants, each stamped with the skulled symbol of the Necromundan 501st.

It was the man who had taken Caius, Lynwood and Lucian to their rooms.

The Corporal of Kilo Squad.

"Corporal Junix" Caius greeted the man that had approached him with a friendly nod, "my thanks, but if I may say… I find it hard to understand what I'm seeing"

The keen eyed corporal smiled at that, briefly wiping at the sweat from his face from the towel that hung from his shoulder.

"As did the rest of us" he gestured to the space, "what you see is a gift from Inquisitor Kaede. He expressed his need for all of the 501st to be at peak physical condition"

Caius nodded, but was still not understanding of the scene before him.

Junix continued, knowing that man was lost by the obvious confusion sprawled across his face.

"Some time ago, while the Tempests Advance was berthed at a void dock, Magos Cortetis implemented some changes to our training room. He created the Gym, as we all have come to call it" it was with a sweeping hand that Junix referred to the strange rows of devices and machinery.

"The technology you see before you was officially uncovered by Magos Cortetis, who supposedly believes it can be traced back as far as the Age of Strife… but that's all just rumour. At first we were all a little concerned about using it" Junix gestured for Caius to follow him, taking him toward a small cluster of people around a group of machines.

The Agent followed, his curiosity getting the better of him as he watched all the men and women physically strain and exert themselves.

His mind was piecing together what he was witnessing.

"Besides the bare weights that 1st Company likes to solely use" Junix gestured vaguely to a far off end of the room, "we of the third company will use these" he patted a machine as he stepped past it.

The user of the machine was tugging down a metal bar with a cord attached to it. A stack of metal plates visible within the machine were lifted with each tug.

Caius noticed a considerable amount of them were being raised, and if the sweat and redness of the man's face was anything to go by, they were extremely heavy plates.

"Resistance benches and Running Grounds…" Junix stepped past two devices that the occupants were sprinting upon. The conveyor belt that made up the bulk of the device was moving at their speed, allowing them to run yet go nowhere.

It was incredible.

"Yeah" Junix said, pointing at Caius' incredulous expression, "most of us had the same reaction" he gestured to the cluster before him, familiar faces for Caius.

"First Company has Gym time today. Second Company is on Marching orders, combat training and war games"

Caius assumed that's what the imitation of the hab structure had been. However due to them being within a ship, there was no live fire that he could discern.

Caius shook his shoulders slightly, looking toward Junix who now stood just a bit away from his squad.

"Don't suppose you could show me the ropes?" he asked. After all, he was stepping into a completely foreign situation with machines he'd never used before.

The Corporal nodded, "you'll get used to it in time" before gesturing for Caius to follow him toward the rest of his squad.

---

"Oooh he's coming this way" Jacinta tittered, taking a brief break from her weighted squats to explain the obvious.

"No…." Kin grunted from the bench he lay across, "...shit…" he placed the metal bar on the rack behind him, sitting up to glance at Sergeant Haylay Halliday.

"Why are we doing this again Sarg?"

Halliday released the cables of her device slowly, before turning to look at the approaching Jun and Agent Caius.

Junix had been the one to spot and identify Caius as the man entered, but it was Halliday who had ordered him to take advantage of the man's startled look. A fish out of water was an easy catch.

"It's nice to have friends in high places" was all Haylay offered Kin.

The large man grunted, but didn't return with any biting remarks, instead laying back down on his bench to continue his work out.

Millock was beside him, working at his own strength machine. He was the one who shot the Sergeant a questioning look whenever he could the moment after she had ordered Junix to retrieve the startled Caius.

But he did not say anything, and Haylay didn't need to tell the man otherwise not to pry. As far as anyone should be concerned, she was just helping out the newbie.

And if one of the Junior Commissars came by, questioning why they had slowed to include a new individual… well Caius being an Inquisitor's Agent would shut them up.

Haylay stepped away from her machine and walked to meet the approaching Caius and Junix.

"Agent Caius" she greeted politely, placing a hand on her cocked hip, "here to inspect the troops?"

Junix walked away to resume his exercise, but Haylay noted the look he shot at her.

'Don't push it'

Junix knew what she was up to. Nothing simple slipped by the observant Corporal.

Caius grinned at her comment but shook his head, "just looking to kill some time, Sergeant Halliday. I was always fond of training to pass the down time"

Haylay quite obviously looked the man up and down, planly remarking, "I can see that"

Caius seemed startled by the remark, but Haylay didn't give him time to reply, turning to the machines before them and beckoning at the man to follow.

"Let's get you started on something simple, and work our way up from there"

Caius nodded, not that she saw, but followed after the beautiful Sergeant.

She led him to the Running Ground device first.

The conveyor belt was two meters long and a meter wide, made of black and a strong material. Big enough for an Ogryn to stand upon, yet not a Space Marine. It was the largest out of all the physical exercise devices in the clustered units of equipment within the Gym.

A panel on two metal legs was raised above the front of the belt. A series of dials and knobs dominated its surface.

"Copy as I do" Haylay ordered, stepping onto the black platform of the Running Ground. As she stepped up onto the panel, Caius stepped upon his, making his way toward his own devices set of dials and buttons.

"The soul of the Machine God surrounds thee" Haylay began the prayer, flicking switches and dials as she prepared to activate the track.

Caius copied her words, his eyes tracking to her hands and flipping the appropriate dials, switches and buttons.

"The power of the Machine God invests thee. The Hate of the Machine God drives thee. The Machine God endows thee with life" Haylay twisted a dial and hissed, "Live!"

With a gurgle and a growl, the device sprung to life, the belt below her beginning with a steady pace she could match with a short stride.

Caius was about a second or two behind her, his own Running Ground sparking with his movement.

"These ones here" Haylay said, gesturing at the set of buttons with arrows pointing up and down. She was speaking to him just loud enough to be heard over the noise of her device and the rest of the Gym and its many occupants.

"They control the speed"

Caius nodded, a question of his own already formed and ready. The man was very interested in this technology it seemed.

"And these?" he gestured to the customising controls.

"Elevation" Haylay explained, "as if you were running up steep terrain"

She pushed her speed, moving into a short jog. Caius followed her example.

Haylay decided to make the first move. Caius was hopefully new to the game, and it would take him some time before he acclimated to the actions of others onboard the Tempests Advance.

From what she already knew about him, he was just a member of the Adeptus Arbites, an Enforcer, before he was drafted into the Inquisitors direct service.

The 501st had served under Vownus for years. Agents had come and gone in that time, most of them utilised as disposable targets for immediate missions or duty. Vownus only ever handed out power to those that were equally disposable. Ergo, the lower on the rung of the ladder of power you found yourself, the longer your life expectancy turned out to be.

Caius and Lynwood had been with them for a long time now, above the average time expectancy for most of Vownus' previous agents.

Haylay and the other Sergeants of 1st platoon already had a bet going as to how long the two would make it under their tenacious and odd Inquisitor.

So far, Haylay owed quite a few Sergeants, and even the Lieutenant, a debt and a handful of favours. Not something she was proud of, but had swallowed as fact along with the rest of her pride. Owing favours to people such as Sergeant Lorquan wasn't ideal, but gambling was never risk free.

Haylay shot a smirk at Caius, her tone challenging.

"Want to play a game?"

Caius turned to her. He was judging her, weighing up her words and what could possibly lay behind them.

The wink she shot him was a bit of a push, but seemed to convince him.

"Sure, I'm game" he decided to reply back.

Haylay's smile was sharp and predatorial. Aside from the little fishing she was doing, the woman enjoyed a nice challenge.

It would also prove to see if Caius was up to the tasks that would inevitably be laid out before him.

"Match my pace for five minutes, and I'll answer any question you want" her hand hovered toward the control panel, "fall off or quit… you answer a question of mine"

Caius nodded, a brief haze of uncertainty settling over him before he did.

Haylay was still grinning as she upped the speed on her device.

The newly inducted Agent followed suit.

Haylay continued to ramp up, her legs now pounding against the tread.

Caius, his body slowly adjusted to the run, matcher her.

Reaching a dead sprint, Haylay stopped increasing, her arms and legs swinging side by side as her feet pelted against the Running Ground device.

A swift glance to her side showed that Caius was fully committed to the challenge, his face pointed forward and his expression scrunched.

In that brief moment, Haylay noted that the man's breathing was correct.

...he might actually do it.

Her mind went back ahead of her, the goal crystallizing within her head. She hadn't gotten this far to be physically bested by another human.

And so for the next four and half minutes, Sergeant Halliday remained focused on the victory.

Sweat poured from her face, her lungs and legs burned, but she continued running.

At five minutes, she finally zoned in again, turning to look at Caius as she lowered the speed of her machine.

By the Emperor…

He had succeeded.

But while he had won, and survived the grueling physical challenge, he was not the visual image of victory.

Face red, breathing hard, sweat pouring down him in rivers. It was a good run, and he had managed to keep up, but Haylay believed it was more out of sheer determination than physical ability.

An admirable quality.

Caius, noticing he was being observed, began to lower the speed on his own machine.

Eventually the two of them came to a dead stop.

Caius stepped off his Running Ground and practically dropped onto the steel ground of the Gym, his head pointed upward and his eyes closed.

He took deep breaths of air.

The Sergeant studied him for a moment, before taking a modicum of pity on the fellow. Even if she didn't like it, Haylay wasn't that much of a sore loser.

Walking away to a small stand at the center of their little hub, Haylay swiped two canisters of water.

She met the gaze of both Junix and Kin for a moment each. Her glare was enough to get them to look away.

Returning to Caius, it was a little surprising to find the man on one knee, slowly making his way back onto his feet.

She handed him one of the canisters which he took with a gasped thanks. As he stood, he practically drained its contents.

After a refreshing gasp of air, the now hydrated man glanced at her, a look of exhausted bemusement across his features.

"I thought you said we'd start off with somethin' simple? Then we'd work our way up" he chuckled slightly, wiping his brow with his free hand. His black hair was now matted with sweat. Haylay couldn't help but smile at his words.

The man had a sense of humor it seemed.

Caius took another large swig of water before exclaiming "by the Emperor, that felt good"

Haylay clapped her hands together, grabbing the man's attention.

"So."

"So?" Caius repeated with a touch of confusion, still tired, but more composed than before.

Haylay fixed him with an unimpressed look, "your question?"

Caius raised a brow, looked to the Running Ground devices, and then looked back at Haylay with slightly wider eyes.

...he had completely forgotten.

Probably zoned out when he began to really run.

"Well… is a beautiful woman such as yourself single?"

Now Haylay was on the backfoot. Admittedly, out of all the questions the now politely smiling handsome Agent could have given her, she had not expected that one.

So she went with her regular and decidedly default answer, the same one she had given nearly everyone who asked her such a thing.

"Officers should not be fraternizing with others. Relationships of any kind are expressly forbidden"

Caius' smile turned to a charming smirk, "that's not a no, Sergeant Halliday"

Unlike Vownus, Caius was someone Haylay was actually attracted to. So as her mind raced to find an appropriate response, her mouth settled for a quicker answer.

"No it isn't" she affirmed, "and call me Haylay"

She turned on her heel, ignoring the wide eyes of the members of her squad. And the damned smile on Fuelip's face. A part of her knew her face was burning red.

Instead she decided to trudge on, directing Caius to follow her.

"Let's lift something heavy now? Yeah?"

It was a rhetorical question, but Caius nevertheless hummed in agreement. He was only a few steps behind her as they approached Haylay's first, and favourite, targeted row of machines.

There had been a seminar for the guardsmen, ordered by Vownus and conducted by the members of the Cult Mechanicus, on how important it was to pacify and care for a Machine Spirit, especially if you wanted it to work for.

The devices of the Gym were to be treated as the Guard would their own equipment, weapons and armor. While those tools kept them alive in the field, these devices would allow them to acutely train and improve their bodies short of adapting to flesh.

Thus, prayer was conducted before the use of each and every device.

Some individuals among the Guard had joked how the Omnissiah was receiving more praise than the Emperor onboard the Tempests Advance. Others had questioned why they didn't just switch most of the Guard out for Skitarii and the like.

After the Commissars whipped the individual for such comments, no one bothered to make light of their additional prayers or new equipment. Vownus had further expressed that such items were both a gift from him and an order for the guard.

He needed the best, and short of a regiment of Tempestus Scions or a contingent of the Adeptus Sororitas, Vownus would make excellent use of equipping and arming his favoured Regiment. Haylay also knew for a fact that Vownus did not have a lot of good favour with most of the Sisters of Battle. Every time he had crossed paths with them, both parties had gone their respective ways afterwards.

Seems they drew a hard line when working with a man like Vownus.

Haylay looked up and down the chosen Resistance Machine, recalling what prayer she needed to give the device.

It was annoying at times, since most of the Guard didn't actually believe in the Cult Mechanicus and abiding by their practices felt inherently wrong for some.

But it was manageable. Many facets of the Imperium would not function without the Tech Priests and their technology.

Such convenient and excellent technology came with the price of increased prayer and attention.

Besides, the small number of individuals attached to the armored units aboard the Tempests Advance had given the Guard some pointers on different kinds of prayer or worship that could invigorate the spirits of the devices that said Guardsmen had fallen in love with.

Even better was how well the Machines were kept under the Mechanicus' vigilant attention.

Between Gym sessions for each platoon Tech Priests would swarm in, incense, oils and blessed clothes between them all. Personal cleaners, some might say. Out of earshot of the Commissars of course.

The Sergeant directed the man toward the machine she had been operating before he entered. It was a device made up of two thin beams, each conducting a cord through them that led to a stack of plates. A small pin was placed within the stack, holding them to a metal rod that was attached to the cord.

One would have their arms extended to the maximum length on either side of the body, before pulling the ends of each cable inward to the chest.

A task that could be quite hard the larger the weight set.

The system of which the weights were lifted was left to the imagination of the guard, but the Magos had explained any tampering or personal touches to these resistance devices would infuriate their machine spirits.

"Pay attention" was all the Sergeant said as she approached the machine.

Haylay made the prayer to the machine as she adjusted the weights on the device. Caius watched her closely, memorising what she was doing.

"Not very complicated" Haylay explained, demonstrating the movement's possible with the device.

Caius watched her toned body adjust, something Haylay wasn't oblivious to.

He spoke to her as he watched her move.

"You've got a question for me..." she relaxed the cables as he spoke, turning to face him even as he asked, "...don't you?"

She nodded.

"Shoot" he affirmed, stepping back a bit to allow her to step out from between the pillars.

Halliday brushed her hair back before stretching her arms briefly, reevaluating what she was going to ask him.

Caius didn't seem like such an idiot. In fact, besides being a burgeoning flirt, he was a seemingly charming man. Him being handsome certainly helped, but it wasn't the driving point. The fact alone that he was willing to answer not only her question, but address the fact that she had one in the first place and was obviously holding onto it…

Now she decided to test him. To see where the man's belief lay.

"Why is Vownus so scared of the kid?"

He took a second, a flurry of emotions and playing across his face in a matter of seconds.

Haylay was able to spot confusion, thought, fear and determination in the subtext of his physical display of feelings.

Eventually the Agent settled on a soft smile.

"Officially, I don't think I'm supposed to answer that question"

The Sergeant was prepared for that. What she wasn't prepared for was his next movement. He stepped forward, getting within Haylay's personal space with a serious look on his face as he spoke quietly.

"Unofficially… you haven't seen what I've seen…" his gaze was serious, "and I don't care what you may think about Vownus. I'm more than willing to bet he's ridiculously strong, a powerful Psyker, or whatever you want to call it…"

Caius shook his head slightly, his eyes drifting over Haylay's shoulder.

"But Lucian… is… is something else" he eyes were picturing a memory. Haylay had seen the look in some Guardsmen, typically those that weren't mentally fit for duty any longer.

She stayed focused on his hushed words.

"Sometimes it's hard to imagine him as just a boy… he still acts like one, talks like one, complains like one" he smiled at that, "and laughs like one…"

Caius shook himself, looked left and right, and then gazed deeply into Haylay's eyes before delivering the last bit of his thoughts.

"The kid had his entire family and everything he's ever known taken from him under… extraneous circumstances. Most children would bawl, cry or develop some kind of mental problems to something like that?" Vownus shrugged a bit, layering humour into a tone that failed to convey as such. He sighed to himself, rubbing his face briefly before dropping his voice even lower, a near silent whisper.

"Instead he killed about six hundred people with his mind" Caius raised a hand and snapped his fingers, "like that, he turned every single one of those traitors into a spray of blood…"

Caius stepped back.

"Ever since then, I've stayed on his good side"

Haylay nodded at him, her mind processing everything Caius had said.

"Forget that" the Agent declared, wiping his hand through the air, "I gotta blow some steam off"

Haylay looked at him, a little grin on her face as the previous conversation was shelved in her mind, but not completely forgotten.

She'd speak with Jun later.

"I couldn't agree more" she gestured to the two metal poles, "be my guest"

As Caius moved into the machine and began to pull the cords inward, Haylay had one thought in her mind before devoting her attention to the immediate situation.

'I hope you know what you're doing Vownus'

---

Vownus returned to the Tempest's Advance a day later. After a wonderful night spent at the De Chambaal palace, he and Lula had parted on amicable terms.

Agrax was one of the few worlds that Vownus believed he'd actually be welcome to return to.

Thaddeus Sabader had also notified the Inquisitor of a gift of munitions and weapons. A token of good faith from the Departmento Munitorum's representative.

Not an entirely surprising sight, nor an unwelcome one.

No, the strange thing was the armored and imposing Space Marine that waited for him at the end of the landing pad in the Tempests Advance.

As Vownus strutted down the ramp, he regarded the helmeted Captain of the Astral Knights with a curious gaze.

"Captain Germael. Is something wrong?"

The red eyed helmet had slowly swiveled to track him as he descended onto shared ground, the smaller man looking up at the greater form of the Astartes.

"Inquisitor Kaede. Your presence is required"

The Knight's were one of Vownus' most important assets. And their purpose was twofold. Having command of any faculty of the Adeptus Astartes was a great boon to Vownus' missions that involved ground deployments. Secondly…

Based off of Germael's toneless voice and address to the Inquisitor, something that was not atypical but had been slowly rescinding for the superhuman, Vownus knew something was up.

He'd have more chance of believing Thade wanted to talk to him or something. The Chapter Master of the Knights only conferred with him in times before battle, so this solemn and solo greeting by Germael was… somewhat worrying.

"Right" Vownus nodded, "I don't suppose I could go change first?"

Germael uttered another decry before marching off.

"That will not be necessary"

Vownus sighed, following after the Captain a second later. Everything had been going so well… of course something had to go wrong.

By the directions of the corridors and the brief stop in a lift, Vownus could already guess he was being led toward the Chapel.

Germael wasn't talking, so Vownus didn't bother. Figuring the Knight wouldn't speak to him even if he had tried, Vownus just remained silent as they approached the beautiful stone surface of the Chapel's exterior.

Germael stood forward, and opened the door for Vownus.

The gesture was clear in its intention.

'You first'

Fixing the front of his suit ever so slightly, Vownus steeled himself and marched in. It would be tough, but if the situation called for it he'd probably be able to take them all on.

If this actually was an ambush.

And if Aethod didn't get the drop on him at least.

Vownus was good, but enough Bolter fire would definitely crack his shield as he and the Librarian duked it out. Vownus didn't possess the raw strength and ability of Lucian. His talents were focused into survival, divination, and a very pointed offense.

The other Knights were within the Chapel, each stood between some of the many pillars in an arranged square.

Germael stepped in from behind, and Vownus found himself boxed in by the Adeptus Astartes. None of them carried bolters, but each had their swords and blades by their sides.

Dominius had his arms crossed over his chest, with no visible weapon on him… Vownus knew better. If the Librarian was dealt with, Dominus would be the second largest threat.

Aethod's head was beneath his Librarian's hood, his gaze glistening beneath the shadow of the Psychic tool.

He hadn't attacked.

So far, a good sign.

Raduriel spoke, his cadence still discernible through his helmeted head.

"Inquisitor Kaede" he started, "the Knights have questions. You will answer"

Vownus nodded, "I shall"

It wouldn't be advantageous to piss them off.

In fact, Vownus needed to do his best to placate them right now, seeing as they were obviously rubbed wrong by something.

Raduriel continued.

"We have been with you for some time, Inquisitor. We have served under your command dutifully. Never have we had to sully our honor or our purpose after all these years"

Raduriel's tone never shifted, the invisible accusation slowly surfacing with each word.

"You have promised us so much. Gene-technology, Inquisitorial funding, the potential restoration of our chapter… Yet between all of this all, there is a scent. One of deception"

Vownus turned to look at Raduriel, his battered armor singling him out amongst his battle-brothers.

"Dorrhitas was the last time we were deployed in force. The little siege amounted to almost nothing. Before that, Nekkyrrius Minoris. We've hardly been called to serve ever since we first set foot aboard this vessel"

Vownus chuckled, relaxing himself as he glanced at all the others with disbelief.

"I'm sorry. But are you complaining that I don't let you all out enough?"

"No Vownus" Aethod's strong timber joined that of his brothers, "it's why you do not send us out"

The Librarian easily captured the Inquisitor's focus.

"Many times your own forces, agents and specialists suffered egregious casualties… The 501st is but a fraction of its original fighting force… needless to say, you could have sent any or all of us to accomplish what their lives need not be wasted for. This, coupled with your promises Vownus… There is a reason you do not risk us besides our already dwindling numbers. A reason you will not allow our lives to be held to fate and chance. Unless you can guarantee the battle… you will not send us" Aethod explained, gesturing to his brothers with a singular hand.

"There is a reason for this. Something you are not sharing with us Vownus. And now the time has come for you to give us the truth"

Vownus couldn't help the sigh.

He knew this conversation was a long time overdue.

In fact, he had wondered when the declining Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes would finally notice his tendencies and habit.

It seemed the time had finally come.

"I'm not a man who likes to waste any kind of resources, especially the lives of those that serve me" Vownus fixed his eyes above Aethod, studying the statue of the Emperor behind the Librarian.

"But you are right. I do not risk any of you, because… because I can't. Not yet"

Vownus rolled his shoulders, trying to get a bit of the soreness out of his body.

Lula had been… Vownus had not been expecting the ex-Governor to conduct herself as she did. He knew his words, as honest as they were, had touched her deeply… he just hadn't believed he really did that much.

In fact he had expected her to vilify him, and not wake up in her bed the following morning, sore and tired.

Aches and muscle strain aside, Vownus refocused on the impatient Astartes.

It was time for a bit heavier language.

They needed to understand… After all, they were a crucial piece of his plan.

"You are needed for something… something greater than this ship, the crew, all of you, your Chapter, the Inquisition, witch hunting…" Vownus sighed, slowly, knowing he was tempering the fire of his current company with the "greater than your Chapter" comment, but it was true.

"What you are needed for… what I need you to live for, is perhaps the greatest duty any person of the Imperium could be given"

"Vownus" that was Germael who spoke from behind the Inquisitor, "enough. Speak plainly and tell us"

He looked back to Aethod who was the only one he could lock eyes with. Knowing that it was not just the Librarian that was fixated upon his words, Vownus turned slightly as he spoke. Each of them, the last of their Chapter, were prepared for anything to come out of the Inquisitor's mouth.

"Have any of you ever heard of the Prophecy of Calixis?"

---

Captain Olivina stood within the Tactical Room aboard the Tempests Advance. This space was rarely used, due to Vownus typically just picking and choosing their next destination on a whim or Psychic suggestion.

And of course the one time in the last few years that Vownus actually does call a meeting in said room, he's the last one to show up.

Beside said Inquisitor, all the notable faces of the Inquisitor's retinue and personal armed forces were present.

Agents Lynwood Deculus and Caius Helix stood side by side, their posture and expressions stiff and uncompromising as they waited silently for Vownus. They had placed themselves on the far end of the large rectangular holotable, neither opting for the seats that were available.

To be fair, Olivina was certain that only a person like Vownus would sit in the pretentious chairs. Especially so if he would be the only one seated.

Closest to the stoick Agents was the Colonel of the Necromundan 501st regiment, Xavier Wilk.

Colonel Wilk was a broad and tall man, his skin an ebony black that was very unlike most of the Necromundan population. Sporting a shaved head and plenty of notable facial scars yet zero bionics, Xavier was a well respected Colonel but a feared man.

His burning temper had pushed the 501st through some of their darkest moments, some of these moments that Olivina had bore witness to. In times of turmoil and strife, when Vownus had deployed the men and women under the Colonel's command, he stood proudly against whatever challenge they needed to overcome.

Vownus' battle objectives were his own. If the Inquisitor ordered Colonel Wilk to lead a charge into the Eye of Terror the man would see it done.

Leading said hypothetical charge by the Colonel's side would be the Commissar Captain, Leona Vervash. The traditional hat of the Commissariate sat upon her head, and the opened red lined black coat revealed the top of her torso and collar bone. Imperial scripture dominated the woman's body, a mass of black inked litanies that blotted out all the war and battle wounds.

Like Xavier, Vervash was devoid of any Bionics, but unlike him, she was a white haired and spindly woman, older than the Colonel and with an accented voice so thick it reminded everyone of her non-Necromundan roots. Which was strange, since Regiments from most worlds trained from the ground up with their Commissars. Leona had replaced the previous Commissar-Captain of the 501st, one who had been executed by Vownus.

The details of such an event were quiet and had been stifled, but all everyone knew was that Leona was a hard woman. Tough as Ceramite and with a loud voice that could crack like a whip, the 501st respected, feared and obeyed her. The brutal tendencies that she initially displayed were tempered by exposure to both the Colonel and Vownus, something that allowed the 501st to willingly adopt the harsh woman.

She had her moments, and Olivina was more than happy to work alongside her. As a Cadian, she knew the lengths people could go to accomplish their duties. Leona was no different from her.

The doors to the Tactical Room opened, drawing everyone's quiet gazes to the figure of Vownus, once again clothed in his typical Witch Hunting outfit.

"Sorry I'm late" he smiled, removing the hat from his head as he swept into the nearest chair to the door "needed a shower"

While everyone all nodded to Vownus, their attention was quickly stolen by the two figures that followed after the Inquisitor.

Having to bow their heads slightly to make it under the frame of the entrance, the blue and silver hued gigantic tones of the Adeptus Astartes marched in.

The tabard that swung between the legs of the first coupled with the swords by his side, and the face that Olivina had committed to memory, identified the Marine as Captain Germael. His helmet was maglocked to his side, his face stern but still welcoming.

The second Astartes was the one who never had a helm, only a hood. Aethod, the slight facially tattooed Librarian of the Astral Knights, and arguably Vownus' closest friend aboard the Tempests Advance.

They rarely made visits to the bridge or even meetings. Vownus would delegate to them later if they were to be used in any planet side stratagems or missions.

To have not one but both of them now silently standing behind the Inquisitor… this was a rare sight.

One that Olivina was not the first to recover from

"My Lord Inquisitor, my Lord Astartes" the Colonel was the first to salute them, greeting them in their order of appearance, "your presence is most welcome"

Everyone knew he was referring to the Space Marines, and Vownus' silence allowed the taller superhumans to reply. The Inquisitor was no way slighted by this idle chatter, in fact he reveled in it. Olivina knew that Vownus liked it when all his toys and assets got along with one another.

"Colonel Xavier Wilk" Germael nodded to the man, "I had heard of your swift recovery. Had it not been for you I fear the events of the Siege would have unfolded differently"

Xavier redirected the praise. Not only was he a humble man, but he was truthful too. Everyone knew who had stepped up in their darkest moment during the Dorrhitas Siege. Olivina had heard the jokes, about how Vownus should have just sent Leona to deal with the insurrection that had occured upon that world.

"Your praise should be directed to Commissar Captain Vervash my Lords. She held the command center together during the enemy's flank"

Leona's rough and accented voice sparked up, "I did my duty, my Lords. Nothing more, nothing less"

Aethod, the Psyker Space Marine, commented on this.

"Your role in the Imperium allows only the Emperor's greatest mortal servants to succeed, Commissar Captain. Take pride in knowing you are one of the better ones"

The woman merely nodded to this, "the Emperor protects"

Nearly everyone in the room replied automatically and at the same time, "the Emperor protects". The Colonel even began a swift prayer.

Vownus followed a second later with his own, "the Emperor does indeed protect" before slumping back in his chair slightly.

"Sooooo… your probably all wondering why I've called you here today?"

The Colonel straightened up, Aethod and Germael remained still, Olivina watch Vownus with her hawk like expression, the Commissar hardly moved, and Lynwood and Caius shared a look with one another.

'Yes' was the obvious answer, but Vownus was doing his annoying dramatics once again, so no one bothered to send anything.

"I find myself in a unique situation… my Inquisitorial priorities remain… but it is time for some upgrades ladies, gentlemen, and Astartes" he clapped his hands together and began to rub them in a childish display of mischievery.

"Not only will we be refurbishing the 501st to return it to full fighting strength" he tapped the table before him, "but we will be drafting in some new blood for the ship! Long have we traveled with only a fraction of our potential might. No longer!"

A star chart flickered forth, the holographic display showing an expanded view of the edge of the Ultima Segmentum.

As the holographic image zoomed in on the planet east of Nocturne, west of Macragge and north of Bane's Landing, Vownus pointed an empirical finger at it.

Olivina wasn't particularly found of the twinkle in the man's eye, but his smile did most of the convincing.

"Our next destination, for a period of time until I receive a Priority Order from the Ordo Hereticus, is Balor"

'Balor' Olivina ran through her mind.

A fortress world from what she could recall… guardsmen, mostly, some agricultural disputes.

Relatively out of the way, but not a tiny location like Helios.

It didn't sound so bad.

….if only she knew.

---

AN: And that's a wrap at 100k words. Holy SHMOKES people! Thanks for all the words of support and encouragement. Every single one of you that offers me support: Imperial Fisting, Undying Vindication, LuckyDru, Sunhater, Crestowl, human dragon, michiarumble and CrowKrowQrow! Yall are the real MVPS.

So this is the last chance to vote guys, for the orks (nice and Simple A or B, I'm not telling y'all which is which, but the war will be very different depending on which one y'all choose)

Vote is currently 1 to 2 in favour of B Orks. Even if y'all have already voted I'll allow another vote it ya really feel the need.

Balor will be the focus for the next couple of chapters, and following this one, we will be building the world and some new characters and individuals for Vownus to pull under his command.

For those of you that feel more creative and want to help me out! I need guardsmen! Names, height, ages, personalities and specialisties! If y'all want to help contribute to this story, now is the time! Be seeing y'all next chapter.

The Emperor Protects,

Freedom