"Now, remember to keep your feet firmly planted, such that your balance is not compromised." Leman said, watching Admu from a few feet away with a scrutinizing look.
Admu assumed the combat stance Leman had shown her. The glowing blade of her polearm, which had assumed the shape of a short sword, was pointed in the direction of a makeshift dummy propped up in the middle of the room. Leman had repurposed the storage bay of their Stormbird into a temporary training course, using their journey to Sepheris Secundus upon the Miriam Celeste as an opportunity to train Admu with her newly acquired weapon.
"Good, now remember to keep your shoulders square, your back straight, your eyes forward, your joints loosened, your feet-"
"Leman!" Admu said.
"Right, right." Leman said. "Go ahead."
Admu thrust the swordspear forward, effortlessly piercing the practice dummy with graceful form.
"Very good, exactly like we practiced." Leman said. "Now, just practice that for the next few days and in time we can move on to the second attack - a basic cross-slash."
"Ughhh…" Admu groaned. "It's been months since we started, Mister Russ. You only showed me how to do the thrusting technique after 5 weeks! How long is it going to take before you teach me some more stylish moves, like… a spinning attack or something?" She said.
"It's important to establish a strong foundation. Becoming skilled in any martial art begins with the basics: footwork, stance, posture, and then from there you work on the basic movements. The more complicated techniques are constructed from the more fundamental ones. It cannot be rushed." Leman said.
"Tell me, how did you learn all of these techniques again? How long did it take you?" Admu said.
"Well…" Leman said, pausing in thought. "Many of the basics were… instinctive. My Primarch heritage allowed me to learn a bit… faster…"
Admu's eyebrow was raised with an unconvinced expression.
"...perhaps we can accelerate the curriculum a bit." Leman said. Admu smiled confidently.
Leman and Admu's attention were drawn to the door to the Stormbird opening as Dori stepped into the shuttle. He was holding a platter of food, piled high with small pink crustaceans and a bowl of dipping sauce.
"So, you still teachin' Admu how to stand by herself or have you moved on to walkin'?" The Kin joked, popping one of the pink morsels into his mouth.
"Ooh, a snack! Could I have some, Dori?" Admu said.
"Help yourself, lass." Dori said, holding up the large plate.
She picked one up and tossed it in her mouth, savoring the rich, salty-sweet flavor.
"Mmmm… tastes like the prawns my siblings and I would fish from the rivers and lakes in our forest, only saltier. I like it!" Admu said. "Mister Russ, why don't you try one?"
Leman tentatively sampled one of the small shellfish, pleasantly surprised by its freshness.
"Reminds me of the rock shrimp they would fish from the seas of Fenris. Their shells were as hard as iron, and they had claws that could slice one of your fingers off with a single snap. Went well with ale." Leman said.
"They were given' em out for cheap in the mess hall. Apparently, when they were convertin' this ship from a cruise liner into a cargo ship, they forgot to clean out the freezers and left behind a few kilos of the stuff. The crew said they go bad quick, so they'd rather get rid of 'em to keep the less perishable rations in good supply." Dori said, generously coating one in dipping sauce and eating it. "They called 'em 'Nautilines', some kind of marine crustacean from a nearby ocean planet named Reth."
Admu's eyes lit up upon hearing the word 'ocean'.
"An ocean planet? Oh, I hope we get to visit it! Have you ever seen an ocean before, Dori?" Admu said.
"Ehh… from orbit once or twice. Ocean worlds usually aren't of much use to us Kinfolk. Undersea mining is a bit of a hassle, and water isn't exactly rare in the void. Besides, most Kin tend to, uh… sink. Like a rock." Dori said.
"Oh…" Admu said, dejected.
A muffled klaxon blared outside of the ship, emanating from the Miriam Celeste itself.
"They're exiting the warp; we must have arrived at our destination." Leman said.
"Ooh, let's go to the observation deck and see it!" Admu said.
"I concur." Fen said, appearing and stretching out his back. "I am looking forward to standing on true ground once again, with a sky above my head. Void travel… is not my favored activity."
"I see no reason not to. However, keep in mind we do not intend to stay for long." Leman said.
Leman and Admu, their disguises active, walked alongside Dori and Fen through the upper levels of the Celeste. A few passengers gave sideways glances to the strange-looking humanoid, but most seemed to dismiss him as just a strange-looking human from some far-flung corner of the Imperium. After all, they were more put off by the abnormally large and fearsome-looking unaugmented cyber-mastiff trailing them. Sensibly, the onlookers all decided to keep to their own business at a healthy distance.
They arrived at the grand observation deck, a structural remnant of the cargo liner's previous life as a luxury transport. Normally it would have been reserved for only the wealthiest among the passengers, but this was no pleasure cruise. The hard-nosed crew manning the Miriam Celeste now cared only about hauling their quarry from one planet to the other without being swallowed up by the void. As such, the four approached the large translucent panels of reinforced plastiglass. All they could see were the heavy metal slats that protected all viewports of the ship during warp travel, but soon the sound of heavy winches whirred as the slats slowly raised.
A bright, white planet streaked with shimmering ribbons of color came into view, beaming in the star-spotted blackness that surrounded it. It looked like a great marble of alabaster, its surface glittering in the light of its star, Sepheris.
"It's so beautiful… like a perfectly round gemstone." Admu said.
"I don't recall visiting this world in the past… Dori, you're from this part of the galaxy. Are you familiar with this planet? Do you know what the conditions are like on the surface?" Leman said.
"Does it have an ocean?" Admu asked.
"You know, now that you mention it… I do remember hearin' of an Imperial mining world in this sector. The quality of its ore was unmatched, such that even some Kin who reportedly laid eyes upon it were envious of the stuff. 'Course, the Imps put strict controls on its trade, keepin' it all to themselves. Can hardly blame 'em really, if it's as good as everyone said it was. Beyond that, I heard it was an icy world covered in deep ravines and vast, uncolonized ice plains… not many oceans, unfortunately, lest you count the frozen-over ones." Dori said. Admu pouted. "I also heard stories of wild forests deep in the untamed highlands inhabited by strange creatures, but it was probably Imp superstitions."
"What kind of creatures?" Leman asked.
"Some sort of feral humanoid that lurks in the howling blizzards and remote taigas with long arms, hairy faces, and twisted horns growing out in all directions. What did they call them…? Ah, that's right. Beastmen." Dori said.
"Beastmen…" Leman said, scratching his beard with a contemplative look. "Something that name rings familiar… but I cannot place why."
"Horns…? Like… animal horns?" Admu said, parting her hair where her own horns would normally be.
"Oh, right… suppose I can't go dismissing things like that as mere superstition anymore." Dori said.
"Well, regardless, so long as these 'beastmen' stay in their highlands, I doubt they will pose any threat to us." Leman said.
Admu glanced back towards the glittering icy surface of Sepheris Secundus, gazing intensely at its streaked colors wistfully.
The Miriam Celeste descended towards Sepheris Secundus, docking at an orbital spire in low orbit just above the capital city of Icenholm. It was a far cry from the bustling spaceports above Vigilus, designed only for cargo haulers bearing essential supplies like food, fuel, and anything else that couldn't be manufactured locally on the barely hospitable ice world. Their only export, of course, were the countless tons of raw minerals extracted from the planet's rich interior. Dori taxied the Stormbird into a small hangar space near the Miriam Celeste, their landing jets causing dense clouds of mineral-dust residue to fan out in all directions. As the party exited their shuttle, Dori watched the cargo liner's crew unload their surprisingly meager payload.
"That's odd…" Dori said.
"What is it?" Admu said.
"This is supposed to be the heart of Imperial resource extraction in this sector… but from the looks of it, they're bringing in barely enough mining equipment to chip away at a small asteroid. Take a look over there." Dori said, pointing to the other side of the hangar.
A man in heavy, fur-laden robes was speaking with one of the crewmen of the Miriam Celeste, inspecting a sample of their cargo before it was to be sent to the surface below.
"Look at those tools. Hand-drills, picks, shovels… looks more like a foundling's toybox than heavy mining gear." Dori said.
"Maybe they keep the heavier stuff down below, where it's used?" Admu said.
"I don't know… just seems a wee bit peculiar." Dori said.
"Leave the crewmen to do their jobs, we've our own tasks to complete. I'd rather not stay here any longer than necessary." Leman said.
"It seems you've been saying that every time we reach a new leg of our journey." Fen said.
"...and every time I mean it no less than the time before." Leman grumbled.
Descending from the low-orbit spire by transit elevator, they caught glimpses of the city below. The capital of Icenholm was built around and atop the edges of an immense quarry, carved into the heart of a large crown of craggy mountaintops. At the center of the great, yawning pit, suspended above the smoke-spilling darkness below by great chains and cables, was the heart of Icenholm: a huge, amorphous complex of stone and glass spires arranged like tips of hoarfrost.
"A rather strange way to build a city." Leman said.
"I heard it used to be a ship docked over the city, before this here orbital spire was constructed." Dori said. "It never left, and the city just sorta… grew over it."
"It must have been there a long time…" Admu said.
"Aye, one or two thousand years maybe." Dori said.
A fraction of the time I was gone. Leman thought.
A strange feeling gnawed at Leman's heart, thinking about how much time he'd truly been gone. He'd seen how much different the Imperium was from the one he knew, but so far he'd yet to visit anywhere he remembered from before. He hadn't taken much time to consider just how much the places he'd visited had changed.
Ten thousand years… he thought, a dark expression cast across his face. How many generations lived and died while I stumbled through Hell chasing fairy tales…
"Mister Russ?" Admu said, gently tugging his arm. "Doesn't it remind you a little of my uncle's palace?"
"Aye, aye." Leman said, his expression lightening up a bit. "Perhaps a bit less… magical." He said, with a slight smile.
Admu laughed, returning a warm grin.
The four emerged onto the streets of Icenholm, stepping on cobbled stone with great glass spires looming above them. Leman was surprised to find that the climate was surprisingly balmy, perhaps just above freezing. The small puddles of meltwater they stepped in confirmed his assessment.
"It's not as cold as I thought it would be." Admu remarked.
"Probably heat from the mine below." Dori said. "Makes sense a city this big would gather around it, like moss growing around a thermal vent."
The city appeared fairly well-kept, and only moderately filled with pedestrians and transports navigating the mazes of inclined streets. Those they did see appeared to be of higher status, dressed either like foreign merchants as they were or in elaborate furs and jewels - signs of nobility, no doubt. These nobles, often riding in motorized or horse-drawn transports, seemed to always be closely followed by retinues of more plainly dressed servants, though even they were dressed as presentably as possible.
"A gleaming veneer… most likely hiding an uglier underside." Leman said.
"We Kin prefer not to keep the 'ugliness' hidden on the inside. Wear your true self with pride, I've always thought." Dori said, beating his chest.
"I don't think you're ugly!" Admu said.
"It's a figure of speech lass." Dori chuckled. "But, uh, thank you."
"Rrrrgh… Do you humans ever tire of building cities? Wherever we seem to go there's always more of them." Fen growled. "I swear, you're like ants… or beavers."
"What's a beaver?" Leman said.
"Nevermind… at least I can see the sky." Fen said.
"We should head to the central district, I overheard some of the passengers on the ship saying there was a transport hub there. We can make arrangements for passage to the next step of our journey there." Leman said.
Making their way through the winding streets filled with half-melted snowfall, they entered into a large square that served as Icenholm's city center. Small crowds of merchants and rogue traders weaved in and out of the labyrinth of kiosks and trade stations, haggling over contracts and seeking to profit from the riches beneath their feet. Leman and Admu blended in with their mercantile disguises, and the stout humanoid and oversized canine accompanying them was not too out-of-the-ordinary amongst rogue traders. Aside from a few nervous or curious glances, they were luckily able to pass through without notice.
Admu followed behind Leman and the others, taking in the exotic sights. Much like on Vigilus, what was to most a mundane, backwater spaceport was to her a wondrous banquet of brand-new experiences. The towering spires of patchwork masonry, the ice-slick cobbled streets, the bleak, snow-capped peaks of black stone rising above the horizon, even the peculiar, warm scent of prometheum haze which mingled with the frosty winds descending from above. She looked around with fascination at the merchants and petty nobility ambling in the square in their thick furs, listening to them speak in a myriad of local tongues and distant dialects of High Gothic. Her eyes widened when a particular sound caught her attention. She had been so engrossed in the sightseeing that she barely registered it consciously. It almost sounded like someone had said her name. Her focus captured by the fleeting notion, she absent-mindedly drifted off into the crowd in search of it.
Leman, his senses always keenly on edge, noticed immediately when the girl had wandered off. He turned and shook his head with a sigh.
"You two wait here. I'll go get her." Leman said.
Dori saluted to Leman's order, and Fen simply sat back on his haunches with his furred tail lazily wagging back and forth.
"This ought to be entertaining." Fen said.
Leman weaved and pushed his way through the gathered crowds in the direction he saw Admu wandering. He pushed a portly rogue trader with a swollen red nose to the side and began scanning his surroundings. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a lock of flaxen hair. She was standing near the center of the crowd with her back turned to him. He sighed and waded through other pedestrians before placing his hand on her shoulder. She turned to him with a strange look, and before he could speak, she motioned to what she and the rest of the crowd were gathered around. With a raised eyebrow, Leman turned to the center of their attention.
A lone man was in the center of the pavilion, standing on the raised platform of a statue. His hair was long and unkempt, and he wore the faded, austere robes of a pilgrim. He spoke with his arms outstretched, his eyes filled with a fiery conviction.
"Heed my words, people of Imperium Nihilus! In this, our darkest hour, we have been abandoned by those who swore to protect us. The Inquisition, who once lorded over us with their iron claws, claiming to protect us from the evils of Chaos, fled when as soon the holy light of the Astronomican was occluded. They left us to fend off the horrors of the night ourselves, alone in the darkness! Now they return, but offer no protection or salvation… no, you saw what they did just weeks ago! They ransacked your homes, pilfered your wares, terrorized the faithful who they themselves abandoned, then left as hastily as they arrived!" The zealot exclaimed.
"The Inquisition was here?" Leman said with a dire expression.
"No… they are not our protectors… but tell me, brothers and sisters of the Emperor, did you truly believe that our holy protector would abandon us to our fates? No! For into the dark of Imperium Nihilus… the Emperor has sent his divine emissaries!" The preacher said.
"Divine emissaries…?" Leman said.
"A saint, radiant and pure, whose touch can heal any wound, cleanse any corruption! Her very presence brings daemons to their knees, sends the foul servants of the dark gods fleeing in terror, as if the Emperor himself stood before them!" The preacher said.
Leman felt a pit growing in his stomach. He glanced over at Admu, who was covering her hand with her mouth as her face grew flushed.
"At her side, she commands a mighty warrior, a spiritual avatar of the Emperor's wrath and divine judgment. He walks through shadow unseen and unheard, and can take on the form of a beast to strike down the enemies of Man when they least expect! He wields a flaming sword, black like the night sky, a symbol of the Emperor's wrath burning even in the darkest abyss! No man, Astartes, or daemon can stand against him!"
Transform into a beast? Leman thought. Does he think that… Fen and I are the same person?
He rubbed the bridge of his nose as a dull headache grew in his skull. He wasn't sure how exactly he was feeling about this, but it certainly wasn't anything good.
"They are known as Saint Admus and her leal hound, Sir Enoch… but you may encounter them under many names. For you see, they walk among us, wearing the guises of travelers, merchants, and commonfolk. In fact… they could be here, on this world, watching over the Emperor's children and hunting down his foes at this very moment!" The zealot proclaimed.
Leman looked around with a sense of unease.
If this keeps up it may be difficult to maintain a low profile… Leman thought.
Then a man from the crowd spoke up, a barrel-chested scribe with a bushy brown mustache who held his hand aloft. The preacher raised his brow and glanced towards him.
"Tell us, oh wise preacher, what great deeds can be attributed to this… 'Saint Admus'? Surely, you can provide proof to support your claims?" The scribe said indignantly.
"Alas, the good Saint's deeds are too numerous to count… encompassing many worlds too distant from this one to be known by anyone in attendance… except for one." The preacher said.
The crowd murmured, and a swelling expectation grew within the masses at the zealot's oratory performance. Leman crossed his arms and sighed.
"No doubt you heard of what happened on Vigilus, which the Inquisitors claimed to be investigating? The great Cardinal Bogomil, revealed as the leader of a heretical sect, and cast down from his perch? Indeed, the Ministorum would claim it was their doing, but they are as powerless here as the feckless Inquisition! No, it was none other than Saint Admus and her retainer Enoch!" The preacher shouted.
The crowd stirred, seemingly at least a little convinced of the man's words. It seemed he had a natural talent for this, despite his lack of real evidence to back his claims. A slight chill ran down Leman's spine. He turned to Admu.
"Come on, we should-" Leman said.
Admu's face was beet red, and her hands were slightly trembling as she held them over her face in embarrassment. Leman's face softened, surprised by her reaction. He placed a hand on her shoulder, and she peaked at him through her fingers.
"We should probably get going." Leman said. "Don't want to attract any more admirers."
While they walked back to the group, Admu kept her head lowered. It seemed she was not used to receiving so much attention.
"That was… something." Admu said, her face still slightly flushed.
"I had a feeling all of this 'saint' nonsense would come back to bite us… all the more reason to be as discrete as possible and without delay. You heard what he said. The Inquisition was here… no doubt searching for us. I didn't quite expect them to find us this quickly." Leman said.
"What if… our delay with the Kin prevented them from intercepting us?" Admu said. "Because they thought we would arrive here sooner."
Leman stroked his beard.
"That is a possibility… but I do not like blind luck. We can't rely on such coincidences to avoid our pursuers. All the more reason to leave quickly. Let us find this transport hub before they realize their mistake and return." Leman said.
Admu nodded, her hands resting on her head as she dealt with her newfound fame.
"Leal hound… hah!" Leman muttered to himself.
When they located their destination, Leman, Admu, Dori, and Fen approached the large structure where outgoing and incoming transport was managed. It appeared to be the oldest building in the city, its drab and brutalist prefab architecture clashing with the locally sourced stone, wood, and crystal which surrounded it. Then, without warning, a distant explosion rang out.
"What was that?" Admu said.
Leman squared his stance and kept his head on a swivel, looking out for any sign of a threat.
"I don't know…" Leman said.
"Sounded like a minin' blast…" Dori said.
"From the mine below?" Leman asked.
Dori shook his head.
"Too loud… must have come from within the city." Dori said.
"Maybe it was an accident…?" Admu said.
Several minutes passed without any more signs of danger, as carriages filled with armed guards began to patrol the streets. They wore strange, glittery armor, carrying shining silver halberds with seemingly ancient lasguns slung on their backs.
"The situation is under control, I repeat, the situation is under control." Shouted one of the guards over a vox-speaker. "a 500-meter perimeter around the Queen's palace has been cordoned off from all non-government activities."
"I don't like the feeling of this…" Leman said. "The more time we spend here the more danger it seems we're in. Let's get going."
Leman slammed his fist on the counter of the transport hub.
"What do you mean all off-world transport has been delayed indefinitely!?" Leman shouted.
"I-I'm sorry sir, but it is a highest-priority decree from the planetary government. After the assassination attempt on Queen Lachryma III, no outgoing or incoming flights are to be approved to facilitate in the search for her attackers." The augmented scribe said.
Leman dragged his palm across his face in frustration.
"How long will that take?" Leman said.
"Unknown." The official said.
"Is there… someone we could talk to?" Admu interjected.
"Only the Queen herself may lift the decree." The official said.
Leman raised his head above his shoulders, breathing deeply with a low rumbling in his throat.
"How might we gain an audience with this 'Queen'?" Leman said.