Unexpected guests
Yrliet Lanaevyss first heard of an unforeseen difficulty when her host summoned his closest allies.
She could have refused the invitation. True, that man was a powerful ruler in its own right. He was also the captain of the ship she was traveling on. Refusing to make an appearance would have been akin to an insult. But she was a daughter of Asuryan. She was under no obligations towards these...Humans, as they called themselves.
Yes. Humans. An alien term for an alien species.
An Eldar word for these primates would have been improper. She had studied their tongue extensively, and found little nobility in it. Conversely, they would inevitably butcher hers whenever they attempted to do the reverse. No, Yrliet concluded, it was better to keep both tongues and both species separate. Still, the Elantach had asked for her presence, and she would answer his call.
When the time came, Yrliet found herself in an enclosed room with a single entrance. Curious. The ceilings of this iron-clad ship were notoriously tall, yet this particular room seemed to have been built with secrecy in mind. There was only a round table, a small number of chairs, and a lone chandelier to provide illumination. Not an assembly hall, then, but a place where conspirators could discreetly gather.
Yrliet studied the Humans in attendance around the table. The Elantach had summoned his entire inner circle and, in her absence, they had been consuming refreshments.
The Chief Enforcer was savoring a herbal infuse from a porcelain cup. The Faceless and the Shortseer were guzzling down some sort of low-grade intoxicant. The Shrine Maiden, the Helmsman, the Castigator, and naturally the Elentach, were sampling what appeared to be holy wine. As she entered and approached the table, he gestured at her with his chalice in greeting. The Artificial Construct, as usual, refused to partake in any and all rites of such occasions.
"Elantach? What is the meaning of this gathering?"
"I am concerned about some unexpected guests who barged in at the very last moment, Yrliet."
Guests. Not enemies, but not allies either.
"So the source of your distress is a third party of uncertain allegiance that has entered this system." Yrliet surmised "What manner of visitors are you expecting, Elantach?"
"The overbearing ones, I am afraid. I have been informed that the blessed Adeptus Astartes will join us in the war effort."
The Shrine Maiden beamed radiantly at the news.
"Space Marines! Emperor be praised, He blessed our efforts with His Angels of Death!"
"Indeed. And they have been making demands from the moment they came here unannounced. They have been very insistent so far, and I cannot negotiate concessions because I am unfamiliar with their customs. And I believe I am not the only one, which is why we are all here. We need to pool our knowledge so that we are all prepared for the upcoming war council: the last thing we want is to accidentally insult some Astarte with our ignorance."
"So, make yourselves comfortable. We shall not leave this room until each of us is able to address a Space Marine."
For once, Interrogator Henrix van Calox was the one who had to provide the answers.
"Given the...issues that occasionally arise in the exercise of my profession, I have had considerable experience with Space Marines. Both on the field of battle, and outside of it. If those in the know are to share their knowledge, then I suppose this task falls on me first."
No one challenged him. That alone was reason enough to be concerned. When it came to Space Marines, did the others even knew anything substantial at all? He would have to gauge the extent of their knowledge.
"First of all, I will start with a question. How many among us have personally met an Astarte?"
Abelard and Idira raised their hands. Pasqal raised neither hand nor mechadendrite, but simply confirmed that he had.
"Four out of nine, including myself." the Interrogator counted. Not a bad start, all things considered.
In truth, Henrix knew that, out of all the people who were currently in the room, only the Rogue Trader, Lady Cassia and Archmagos Haneumann were important enough to sit at the negotiating table. Senechal Werserian and himself would be there as advisors, obviously, while the rest of the retinue would remain in the background. The only wildcard, as always, was Jae Heydari, an opportunist whose impersonating skills were sufficient to grant herself a seat at the table. The thought alone was terrifying.
"Archmagos, your order has tight connections with the Space Marine Chapters. Would you be willing to share some details with us?"
"Query refused. Information regarding Astartes biology, weaponry, operative protocols and lineage is classified as highly confidential, and will not be disclosed outside of a need-to-know basis."
"Given that half of us are basically in the dark, when it comes to Space Marines" the Rogue Trader noted "I believe that we do need to know, Pasqal."
"Request denied."
The Rogue Trader's demand was met with a wall of steel as thick as Pasqal's carapace. He conceded defeat, and moved the conversation forward. "..very well. Abelard. Idira. I am going to assume that the two of you met Space Marines while on duty."
"That is correct, Lord Captain." the Senechal confirmed "We once met them on the Forge World of Kiava Gamma. At the time, there was a trading dispute over production slots, and we had been sent to solve it on Lady Theodora's behalf."
"And what was your impression of them, Abelard?"
"Quite a memorable one, I must say. Hmm, how should I put this?"
"They were terrifying!" Idira preempted Abelard "They don't think like us, Lord Captain. They came, they took what they wanted, and we even had to kneel for the privilege."
"So you are saying that they like to throw their weight around."
"That was the case." the Senechal admitted "But there was more to it than a simple difference in negotiating power. Despite our best efforts, we failed to connect on a personal level in any meaningful way. It was as if they were too...different from common mortals, Lord Captain. I found their concerns to be most alien. Frankly, they seemed more interested in pursuing their own affairs, than with the protection of His holy domain."
Henrix chuckled at Abelard's words, but refused to comment. But there were others who had reason to be offended by this snide remark.
"Seneshal Werserian! What are you saying?! They are His Angels of Death! What gives you the right to disrespect them in such a manner?"
"Have you ever met an Astarte in person, Sister Argenta?"
"No, but..."
"Then, I suggest you to start downsizing your expectations of holiness."
A snort, this time from Idira. The Rogue Trader made a mental note of the Astartes' unusual priorities, and then urged Abelard and Idira to go on.
"Anything else to add, you two? No? Then please continue, Master van Calox."
"Of course. Now. How many among us have ever witnessed an Astarte on the field of battle?"
Abelard and Idira raised their hands again. After exchanging some mutual glances, they were followed by Cassia, Argenta, and the Rogue Trader himself. Pasqal still refused to offer more than a terse reply.
"Good. One way or another, most of us have already encountered a Space Marine. Although I suspect that our latest additions have the same unpleasant individual in mind. But we'll get to that later. As we are now, seven among us have at least a cursory understanding of the Astartes. That leaves Miss Heydari and the Xeno."
"Xeno. Not that I am expecting an Astarte to ever lower himself at your level but, have you even heard of Space Marines?"