The unsavory traffics of the Space Marines
Space Marines kidnap children.
A rumor that had been circulating in the Expanse since time immemorial. Many influential figures had spoken at length against such nonsense. When words failed, batons usually followed. And still it persisted. Time and again, it had been dismissed as groundless, only for it to eventually resurface. Although seditious, this rumor was also sufficiently innocuous that authorities often allowed it to spread.
Jae Heydari knew the power of such rumors, and of the questions they raised. Parroting some trite words had never been the problem. Any fool could conceive an implausible story about the vices of the nobility, and this one was not even particularly out of the ordinary. Give him some liquor, and he'll come up with three different versions, one more outrageous than the other.
The real heresy was admitting that even gods made mistakes.
"Where did you learn this… Space Marines don't… the Adeptus Astartes do not 'kidnap' children!" Interrogator Henrix van Calox spluttered unconvincingly "What they do, is to offer the honor of joining their illustrious confraternities to the male population. Nothing more!"
How cute. Henrix was trying to deflect the question by providing what must have been a technically accurate answer. All the proof Jae needed to know that she was right on her money. She had heard this other rumor as well, obviously, but seasoned brokers like herself did not live long without the ability to read between the lines. The Interrogator was not lying, she concluded. Those kids were indeed offered a chance to become a Space Marine. They simply couldn't say no.
"And such 'opportunities' are only offered to the youths?" she pressed.
"Yes. Astartes' rites of ascension involve a number of bio-engineering medical procedures that would be fatal to adults."
"Like what?"
"Implantation of foreign bodies to stimulate physical growth." the Interrogator listed impassively "Repeated stimms injections to counteract the side effects of accelerated growth. Extensive surgery to install data-feed ports that act as an interface layer to the armor. Psychoconditioning therapy to ease the pain of the previous medicae procedures. The list is endless."
"This unit must protest." Pasqal objected, and Jae had to hold herself from telling him to shut up, now that she was getting somewhere "Divulgation of classified information to the laymen is beyond the prerogatives of the Inquisition."
"Objection acknowledged and overruled. Nothing is beyond the purview of the Inquisition."
"Historical records within Adeptus Mechanicus datavaults suggest a considerable level of restraint among inquisitorial agents." the Archmagos called him out.
"Only because our time is not unlimited."
Unsurprisingly, the most blessed Inquisition was still bound to the mundane laws of politics. There were matters in which it was subordinate to the will of the Adeptus Mechanicus and, by extension, to the whims of similarly powerful organizations. So, not only did this respectable institution lacked the absolute authority it claimed to possess. It was also inefficient. An interesting line of thought, but not what Jae wanted to hear right now.
"I trust my answers have satisfied your curiosity, Miss Heydari?" Henix asked, with the implication that she was supposed to say yes. But the smuggler was not going to give him this satisfaction.
"These rites of ascension seem particularly painful." she noted.
"They are. But a few years of suffering is nothing, when compared to the pain an Astarte is expected to suffer in His service."
Expected to suffer. Right. These Space Marines had not made a good first impression on Jae, and the more Henrix praised their magnificence, the more she liked them less and less.
There was a time, before Jae Heydari came to be, when another, younger, woman had to conform to a similar expectation. That woman died. But her older self doubted that these kids were going to be so lucky. Not people, but broken toys who will, in turn, break even more poor souls. There was no glorious ascension in the future of these children. Only a descent into becoming perpetrators of a new cycle of violence.
"I take it that these rituals are also resource-intensive?" Jae asked, without even bothering to conceal her growing contempt. The Interrogator's answer only exacerbated her revulsion. "Absolutely. It is not uncommon for requisitioning fleets to visit multiple worlds. And this is just to fully arm a single battle-brother, mind you. Maintenance of Astartes wargear, vehicles and naval assets is no less costly."
Cruel and wasteful. Not that she could ever say that out loud. Aside from irritating the most rigid among her associates, pointing out the obvious would have achieved nothing.
"I think I'm starting to see how Space Marines operate." the smuggler declared suddenly, as her business sense began tingling "They see planets are a source of bodies and provisions for their wars, and so their ships travel across the Expanse to gather what is available. Or rather, what they believe to be available. I may or may not be speaking from experience, but this difference is especially noticeable on worlds with heavy naval traffic. Let us suppose they were in urgent need of supplies..."
"No." the Interrogator cut her off vehemently "No. Don't even think about it. Not even the Inquisition will be able to save you, if a Chapter has reason to believe you have been interfering with its supply chain."
"I'm not suggesting shortchanging some Space Marines!" Jae retorted indignantly, although she caught the concern that Henrix had showed for her "All I'm saying is that cargo containers get lost all the time. Don't look at me like that, you know it happens. Eventually, some crates make their way into alternative markets, where the most pious among His congregation might feel charitable, and decide to put them to a better use."
The interrogator had questions about the sort of markets the smuggler was talking about, but decided to shelve them for a time when there would be fewer witnesses. "Again. No. Space Marines won't fill your coffers with currency they don't hoard nor use. If anything, they are more likely to just send their serfs to confiscate any cargo you may have conveniently gathered. Because war is the only product of value to them."
Men for whom wealth had no meaning? That couldn't be right.
"Do you expect me to believe there is nothing a Space Marine would be willing to pay a price for?"
"Believe it or not" Henrix replied firmly "material needs, beyond what is strictly necessary to wage war, are of no concern to an Astarte."
Ridiculous. A man might be more than his vices, but can a man without vices even be called a human?
"So what? Is their life all duty all the time? Actually, do they even value their efforts?"
"I haven't said that. In fact, many Astartes maintain extensive records of their campaigns. Not necessarily on parchment either. Imagine engraving your armor with the names of your fallen brethren. Or composing a hymn to celebrate a hard-won battle, right after winning it. Not sufficiently exotic for your tastes? I will tell you this: there are Space Marines who personally sew noteworthy kills upon their own cloaks."
Alright. Jae had not seen that last one coming.
"So let us not insinuate that Space Marines don't value the blood they pour into their efforts." Henrix continued, as he echoed Jae's words back at her "Even within the walls of his cloister, there is much that an Astarte might find worthy of being preserved into his Chapter's collective memory."
"Along with a few secrets, I bet."
"All Space Marines hide some unmentionable secrets, Miss Heydari. Some Astartes are simply more accustomed to secrecy than others."