Leman and the others traveled hastily towards the direction of the Queen's palace, where a thin plume of smoke could be seen trailing into the sky.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Fen said. "What happened to keeping a low profile?"
"I think that voidship has more or less crossed into the warp at this point." Leman said. "I just want to get off this damned planet before everything goes to hell… like last time. And the time before that."
As they approached the towering spires of the Queen's castle in the center of town, they caught sight of a small crowd gathered at a perimeter formed by the same crystal-adorned guards they had spotted before. The well-dressed petitioners were accosting the guards, waving scrips and insignias to indicate their privileged status. A stern-faced member of the guards appeared, dressed even more ornately with a velvety red robe, with his mustached face framed by the downward-pointing crest of his helmet and giving him an intimidating, albeit somewhat gaudy, appearance. The robed guard, their leader, if his attire was anything to go by, climbed atop one of the personnel carriers blocking the street and began waving his arms.
"Everyone, everyone!" the captain of the guard shouted. "Settle down! I know you all have some… concerns because of the temporary security measures-"
"I have a contract to uphold in the Magog Cluster! Shipping is unreliable beyond the Rift as it is, do you know how difficult it is to find insurance!?" One of the merchants shouted, a stern-faced man with a stiff accent. The crowd roared in agreement.
"Due to the current security restrictions, we can only allow one party into the palace at a time to seek audience with her majesty. There is already a queue in place, and we will be happy to place your names on the list… provided you can afford the security deposit. A matter of safety, of course." The guard captain said. "The higher the security, the more… trusted you are. Trusted individuals are more likely to meet with her majesty first."
The crowd groaned and sighed, bribery being but a common annoyance in their profession.
"500 thrones. I need to ship my goods before the next solar cycle." The stern-faced merchant said.
"700 thrones!" A powder-faced woman said, her obviously fake wig as white as her cheeks.
"850 thrones!" Another shouted.
"1,500 thrones!" Said another.
"50,000 thrones if I can gain an audience with the queen now." Leman said, his voice booming despite not even being raised. "No queue."
The crowd fell silent, intimidated both by his commanding tone and the magnitude of his offer. The guard, stunned by his proposal, blinked a few times as if in a stupor before stammering a response.
"U-uh, ah, of course, I'll… I'll see what I can do." He said, turning to speak into his vox communicator. "Uh, may I ask your name?"
"Rathvin…" Leman said. "Lucas Rathvin."
"You must be in quite a hurry if you're willing to throw that much around…" The powder-cheeked woman muttered.
"I am." Leman said, his face gravely serious.
Within the maze of spires and halls that made up the royal palace, red-robed servants and baronial troops continued scouring the halls for any trace of conspirators or saboteurs - though the culprits of the earlier attack were likely long gone. They had planted explosives within one of the Queen's three bedrooms, though seemingly by mistake they had placed it within her consummatory quarters. A mistake, as the Queen had not once used that particular room since her Prince Consort died several decades prior.
While her personal guard conducted one more sweep of the palace, Queen Lachryma III was perched atop her towering, ice-sculpted throne as she attended to a seemingly endless line of petitioners. The luxurious white furs that wrapped around her were really just to protect her from the chilling touch of her icy throne, though she often found herself having to hide her shivering. Hidden beneath the dense layers of thick robes and expensive pelts was a frail, aging woman, bordering on sickly in appearance. Ever since she was young, she had compensated for her natural-born infirmity with her stern and imposing personality, projecting the strength befitting of a ruler such as herself. That projection had begun to wear on her, like a glacier slowly grinding across a mountain, scraping and chipping away slowly but surely.
Before her stood a much younger man, dressed in a noble's attire with raven hair and sharp, grey eyes. His face was chiseled and handsome, bearing a look of sympathy.
"My Queen, your palace guards are the finest on all of Sepheris Secundus… but even still, House Rosenvald would be more than willing to supplement your forces with our own in their efforts to root out this insurgency. I'm sure you are aware of our successes in the Highland Campaigns. The violet rose of our house will be feared by the Beastmen for generations! As the Castellan of Hou-" The young lord said. The queen raised her hand dismissively.
"I am ever appreciative of your offer, Lord Edgar, but I would not burden your noble house with such menial tasks." She said, her voice commanding yet rasping like a worn violin. "House Rosenvald has been loyal to the Sepherian Dynasty for generations. You need not prove your fidelity to the crown any further." Lachryma said, the lines in her face creasing as she spoke. A resigned expression flashed across the young lord's face, and he sighed in acceptance. He knelt down in a customary display of fealty.
"Very well, your majesty. My only concern is your safety." He said.
"I am touched by your concern. If only the other houses were led by men with kind hearts such as yours, instead of hearts of stone." She said. Her tone made it unclear whether it was a compliment. The doors to the inner chamber opened slightly, and both Edgar and the Queen directed their attention in response. The captain of the palace guards stepped inside cautiously.
"Your majesty, the next petitioner is here. The, uh, wealthy one." He said.
"Very well, send them in. Lord Rosenvald and I just finished." The Queen said. Edgar rose to his feet, his long, fur-lined cape draped over his shoulder as he exited the room. His expression grew colder and dourer as he left the Queen's presence. He was consumed in his own thoughts to the point that he did not notice the large figure walking past him… until his shoulder bumped into it, nearly knocking him off of his feet. Jolted to awareness, once he had regained his footing he looked up at the figure with an indignant expression.
"Excuse yourself, do you know who I-" Edgar began to say, before he was silenced by Leman's sharp gaze meeting his own. For just the briefest moment, a shiver of true fear shot through the young noble, as if he were staring down the jaws of some great beast.
"My apologies." Leman said half-heartedly, before continuing into the throne room. Edgar blinked, then composed himself.
"Just… watch where you're going next time." Edgar said, trying to re-assert some level of authority to the imposing foreigner. Leman wasn't paying attention.
The imposing figure was followed by a motley crew consisting of an even taller woman, a bizarrely stout strange-looking man, and an enormous canine that seemed to snarl a bit when Edgar looked down on it. Breathing in and out deeply, the young lord put the incident behind him and continued on his way.
Leman and the others walked up to the foot of the towering throne, and the Queen looked down at them with a cold gaze. She waived her hand, signaling the guards to leave and shut the door behind them.
"Lucas Rathvin… my administrators could not find any record of a trader going by that name traveling this route before." The Queen said.
"I haven't." Leman said. At least, not for quite a long time… He thought.
"...And yet you seem to be in quite a hurry." The Queen said.
"My… delivery is extremely urgent. I'd like to avoid any unnecessary delays." Leman said.
"I'm afraid I cannot lift the off-world travel ban until the culprits of my attempted assassination are found." The Queen said resolutely.
"How long will that take?" Leman asked.
"My men tell me it could take weeks… or months." The Queen said. Leman's jaw tightened. "If they cannot get to the bottom of it, we'll simply be forced to wait until the Inquisition returns-"
"Is there no other way to lift the restriction?" Leman interjected.
"Well… I'll have you know that I did not summon you just to tell you what you no doubt didn't want to here. In fact… I have a proposal for you." The Queen said.
"A proposal?" Leman said.
"I'd like to hire you. To uncover the conspirators behind my attempted assassination." The Queen said. Leman's eyes narrowed with suspicion.
"You want us to help?" Admu said, her eyes lighting up at the chance.
"Now wait a minute…" Dori said, emerging from behind the other two. "Why would you entrust this task to us? What reason do y'have to trust us?" The Queen's eyes seemed to raise a bit as she remarked upon the short humanoid.
"So, it is true…" She said, cryptically. "Normally I would trust my own men… but truthfully, they have been investigating this conspiracy for quite a long time, even before today's incident. Either the plotters are exceedingly good at hiding their tracks…"
"Or your guards have been compromised." Leman said.
"You have shown reason enough to wish for the travel restrictions to be lifted by your own accord. You have no roots on this world, no history, and thus no entanglements or hidden loyalties- not to mention, your seemingly bottomless pockets mean you would not be swayed by the kind of meager bribes handed out to palace guards." The Queen said. "The perfect agents to get to the bottom of this conspiracy."
"What makes you so sure we would be capable of such a thing?" Leman said. The Queen's eyebrows lifted.
"Many merchants with a fraction of your wealth travel with a private army to secure their goods… the ones that don't tend to have experience in far more than facilitating trade." She said.
I had not thought of that… Leman mused. It seems age has not dulled her intuition. All the more reason to be suspicious of her intentions with this 'deal' He thought. "Even still… this is all rather risky, is it not? To entrust such a critical task to total strangers." The Queen sighed, her shoulders drooping slightly as if under some incredible weight.
"I am an old woman, sir Rathvin. Without an heir, there are many houses that covet this throne. I am used to relying on those who I cannot trust." She said.
"I don't believe that answers my question." Leman said. The Queen cocked her eyebrow.
"Call me superstitious… or perhaps old fashioned…" The Queen said, her lips drawing into a slight smile. "When I was a child, my grandfather would tell me stories passed down from generation to generation. Ancient tales of Sepheris Secundus from before The Waning, before the 'Great Houses', before the lords and bondsmen..." She said, her gaze growing slightly distant. "Anyway… the people of this world did not always know of the bounty beneath the earth, nor did we know how to extract it. Legends say it was taught to my ancestors by a people called the "Zorioneki"... 'the blessed' or 'lucky' in the old tongue. A squat and hirsute race of void-travelers, who would wander the stars in search of mineral wealth. The House of Sepheris rose to power with the wealth gained from these transactions, or so the tales go. It was said that to keep company with the Irulegi was a sign of integrity and good fortune. Of course, the Irulegi haven't been seen for centuries… until today, that is." She said, casting her eyes down towards Dori.
"Me?" Dori said, pointing at himself.
"It would seem so." The Queen said.
"Alright, fine." Leman said. "We find the culprits of the attack and whose behind them, you lift the security restrictions, and we'll be on our way."
"I'm not so heartless to make you perform such a task for me without proper recompense, of course." The Queen said.
"We can discuss the details when we've finished the job. I really am in a hurry, after all." Leman said. And I'd rather be long gone from here if those Inquisition forces she mentioned turn back up.
"My Seneschal, Walder will be waiting outside to give you all of the information we've gathered on the attack so far, he can tell you where to start your investigation." The Queen said. "He has served my family for even longer than I have been Queen, he is more trustworthy than most."
"Very well. I'll be back when we've gotten to the bottom of this." Leman said, turning to exit.
"Don't worry, you can count on us!" Admu said, before following behind him.
"I am." The Queen whispered.
After the party exited through the throne room's towering doors, a balding, heavyset man subtly entered through the open doorway behind them. His rounded face was tinged pinkish red, with a small, curled mustache perched on his upper lip. He was wearing expensive clothes, though in a more cosmopolitan style than the nobility of Icenholm, singling him out as an offworlder. The Queen's guards stood aside as the man's own armed personnel entered alongside him. They were armored in less flashy but far more effective wargear, more akin to a contingent of Tempestus Scions than the largely ornamental palace guards.
"Ambassador Simeon." The Queen said. "I trust your journey from Scintilla was without issues? I apologize for the current circumstances, I imagine you're eager to get back once we've settled our business."
"We're both too old for these games, Lachryma." Simeon said. "I can see what you're playing at. It seems age has not tempered your boldness."
"I didn't fake the bombing, if that's what you're thinking." Lachryma said. "Merely a happy coincidence… though Walder had suspected something like it was going to happen while you were here."
"Then I surmise you know exactly why I am here?" Simeon said.
"The matter of succession, of course." The Queen said. "What else would it be?"
"Sector Lord Marius and his advisors have grown… impatient with your wavering. He sent me to ensure you had selected an heir to prevent unrest in the event of your passing. Sepheris Secundus is a vital economic asset to the Calixis Sector, especially with the disruption of trade routes caused by the Rift. Thanks to Lord Marius's decisive and iron-fisted leadership, we have managed to stave off total collapse- unlike many other unfortunate sectors in Imperium Nihilus. He intends to keep it that way, and ensuring the continued stability of this world is a crucial part of that." Simeon said. "In short… I know why you closed the skies. You're buying time."
The Queen laced her fingers together in an arch, her gaze remaining cold and aloof. "I will have a successor by the time you leave." she said.
Simeon pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "What is stopping you from choosing your successor now? Surely one among the great houses of Sepheris Secundus would be suited for the role." He said. "What about that, uh, Rosenvald fellow? They are a mighty house, are they not?"
"Sir Rosenvald?" The Queen said, with a tone almost approaching pity. "The boy has… determination… but not much else. His attack on the beastmen, while perhaps… brave, was also brash and foolish. The highland tribes have not troubled us for generations, and no amount of punitive expeditions in the past have ever been successful in removing them. My Grandfather always believed they were best left alone."
"If not him, then who?" Simeon said.
The Queen turned to the side, casting her gaze off into the distance. Her eyes settled upon the great snowcapped peaks surrounding the city of Icenholm. "You speak of preventing unrest by settling upon a successor… but the truth is that this world is built upon a foundation of snow, not rock or ice." She said.
"I… don't follow." Simeon said.
"When I was child, my father took me to the edge of the Gorgonid Mine. He was visiting a wealthy baron to discuss the latest mineral harvest and brought me along with him. It was highly unusual for the King to visit the Commons in person, even to visit a member of the landed gentry. The high nobles all live here in Icenholm, you see, far removed from the source of their power and wealth. When we landed in the Baron's estate, the first thing I noticed wasn't the smell of industrial fumes barely concealed by heavy perfume and incense, nor the soothing holotapes of classical music to drown out the sounds of the workers toiling below… it was the Baron's face. He was trying to appear strong, collected, even sophisticated. It's an expression I recognized on the face of every noble I saw in Icenholm. Arrogance, self-assuredness, the lot. But on this man's face, below his facade of nobility… I saw nothing but naked fear. A trembling, nervous man, surrounded by suffering of his own making. So, he chose to hide from it. We all did. To surround ourselves with walls and armed guards, to lift ourselves above that pit just to be away from the toiling serfs. I thought that I might be different, that I might change things for the better." She said, a hint of the fires of her youth flickering in her eyes. "But I only reinforced it. Perhaps I did not have nearly as much power as I believed I did… or perhaps that's just something I tell myself to ease the burden of responsibility. Even I do not know the full extent of the suffering endured by the serfs in the vast underground mines. It's not safe for a monarch to go down there, I was told. Even if you aren't the sentimental type, there are other signs of how broken this world is, ones more difficult to dismiss. Mineral yields have been steadily declining, even as tool imports and mortality rates among the serfs increase. The barons tell me that the surface veins are simply running thin, and that there is a wealth of new ore waiting to be uncovered just a bit further down… but I do not trust them. I fear the day our mines run dry… or worse, when the serfs no longer bow to their barons. Perhaps it is mere selfishness… but I do not want to be remembered as a Queen who ruled over slaves and drove her kingdom to ruin."
"So… you're looking for someone who can fix your mistakes… right the wrongs of the past." Simeon said, with a slight sardonic tinge.
"Someone from the outside, not of the noble houses. Someone untainted by the sins of this rotten world…" She said. "Perhaps… blessed with a hint of luck." She added, with a slight smirk.
The Ambassador squinted, then his eyes widened with realization. "You never cease to surprise me, Lachryma." He said. "Though it remains to be seen whether this scheme of yours will play out as you hope. I am leaving this world only when you have chosen a successor… regardless of what happens."
"As I said… you will have your successor." The Queen said. One way or another. She thought. "Though, I must admit… it is rather uncharacteristic for the notoriously meticulous Lord Marius to send an ambassador on such short notice."
"These are… unusual times." Simeon said.
"How unusual?" The Queen said, her eyes narrowing.
Simeon sighed, running his hand through the sparse hairs clinging to the top of his balding head. "Well, there's the usual influx of bad news from across Imperium Nihilus. We narrowly avoided losing control of the Nachmund Gauntlet to a traitor disguised as a Cardinal, More Drukhari raids along the Periphery, increasingly bold Rak'Gol attacks on merchant ships everywhere from Scarius to the Gothic Sector… Lord Marius even received a long and incoherent dispatch from a far-flung sector previously believed to be lost in the Cicatrix Maledictum, rambling about a Necron Overlord proclaiming himself to be the Emperor reborn fighting a brutal war against an abnormally intelligent Ork Warboss…" Simeon said. Queen Lachryma raised her eyebrow suspiciously. "...the Astropaths were rather incredulous on that one; they and the tech-priests operating the long-range communications station believe it to be either a mistranslation or outright fabrication - someone's idea of a bad joke, perhaps. Regardless, all of that is just standard background noise… what's really disturbed Lord Marius and his council are a series of startling reports from the sectors bordering Segmentum Ultima. Communication is difficult on this side of the Rift, but what's gotten through is troubling to say the least. They appear to be heretic forces, attacking swiftly and without warning. At least 12 systems have fallen in a matter of months, mostly outposts and sparsely populated worlds, but there have been further raids and skirmishes recorded on at least 73 separate systems… and those are just the ones we've received reports from."
"The Warmaster's forces? Are they staging a new offensive in the wake of the Fall of Cadia?" The Queen said breathlessly, unwilling to speak the dreaded name of the arch-traitor who led the 13th Black Crusade and cleaved the Imperium in two.
Simeon shook his head. "It doesn't appear to be the case. From what little information we've gathered from the independent fleets operating along the border, they appear to belong to a faction that calls itself the Exilarchy." He said.
"The Exilarchy… I've never heard of them. Did they appear recently?" The Queen said.
"In this Segmentum, yes." Simeon said. "They were originally based out of the Elara's Veil sub-sector in the Ultima Segmentum. At the time of the Sundering of the Great Rift, they were embroiled in a conflict with a coalition of the local Astartes chapters - the Adeptus Vaelarii."
"Lord Commander Guilliman reinforced the chapters of all the sectors in the Ultima Segmentum with Primaris reinforcements, did he not?" The Queen said.
"That he did… and according to the last reports we received from them, the Exilarchy was on the verge of defeat thanks to those reinforcements." Simeon said.
"Not anymore, it would seem." The Queen said.
"These reports were highly out of date… even the more recent reports we've received from the border regions are on a heavy delay due to difficulties in long-range communications… most disturbingly, some of our agents in the Severan Dominate have relayed rumors of unexplained raids on the Renegade Duke's outposts, ones that bear a striking resemblance to the kind coming from the border regions." Simeon said.
"So what you're saying is that an army of heretics may be knocking at our doorstep." The Queen said, bearing a dire look upon her aged face.
"Reliable information can be hard to come by out here in the darkness beyond the Emperor's Light. The only assurance is strength, as Lord Marius likes to say. I assume you now understand the importance of ensuring this world's continued stability."
"I understand, Ambassador. You will have your successor." The Queen said. As the Ambassador departed, she leaned back into her icy throne, closing her eyes and releasing a tired breath. Let's see what you can do, Lucas Rathvin. You may have a far greater prize in store than you realize.