The journey through the warp had finally ended, bulkheads opened, viewports unsealed, and the realm of reality was laid bare for those aboard to witness. Currently only Vylerine was at this observation port as the heavy blast shutters were raised. As the shutters were raised, so too did the head of the now-named canoness rise from the ground where she had been praying. To meet her gaze was the entirety of the Fengfu Keyan system, a lone white dwarf shining brightly at its center as two extremely thick and resource-rich asteroid belts circled it, and further out, the only inhabitable planet in the system, Keyan I.
She felt very fortunate looking upon the system; the Emperor had blessed her voyage with almost no noticeable difficulties. Of the two sisters that had traveled with her, one she knew from her time in the Argent Shroud. More importantly, the newly declared Canoness Superior of their order had given her authority over what would become one of the bastion worlds of their order, and she was to receive the first of the new sisters who would be filling the order's ranks, the largest single contingent outside of the holy shrine world that was the heart of their new order.
Currently, it was only Vylerine and her two sisters, Sister Chrana, a once Celestine, now the Canoness' Palatine, from an order she had never seen before, and Sister Bellolla, who was an Argent Shroud Seraphim Sister Superior. They had not spent much time socializing since they had begun this journey, but the Canoness felt she could certainly trust the judgment of either of her sisters, as well as their virtue and the power of their faith in battle.
With a content sigh, she rose from her kneeling position and began to leave the observation port. In the coming days the canoness would certainly need to rely on the judgment of her two sisters. The three had gone ahead of their new sisters to inspect the mission, which would soon enough be expanded to represent the order's new Commandery. This planet, and Vylerine's forces on it, would form the shield for the developing order, a bastion that recently completed missions and other prepared commanderies would then strike out from behind, lashing away at the faithless and the heretic in the space beyond.
The newly formed and developing Order of the Jade Rose has only existed for three years, Canoness Vylerine having begun the tests of purity necessary to advance to her current position two years ago and completing them last year before making full haste to Keyan I. Upon the ground, the canoness would begin her task of ensuring everything was to her expectations and that the local governor understood the importance of her position in the world. That she was there as the sword and shield of the Emperor's faith, that she would protect the faithful and purge any impropriety upon his world.
Indeed, an impressive arsenal was also to be delivered along with the new sisters. Two hundred Sororitas, their power armor and wargear, several seraphim jump packs, dozens of Mortis Engines, and Pentetent Engines ready for heathens and sinners to be strapped into so that they could find absolution through sacrifice in battle, and a full complement of vehicles. Rhinos, immolators, and even Castigators would all be added to their vehicle pool. Leaving only warships and aircraft out of Vylerine's command, and even that was only to be for a time, as once the Perceptories at the order's core finished training in the rapid armored assault doctrines, the Canoness Superior wished the new order to adopt.
With a deep intake of breath, the canoness prepared to go over her opening statements to the governor, only for the sounds of two different sets of armored heels and a steady metallic clicking to interrupt. With a swift turn, she faced the newcomers. To the leftmost stood Sister Chrana, who was, in her typical fashion, still in her power armor, the white base with green highlights and artistry and gold with silver trimming gleaming in the light. Chrana herself had short, nearly pitch-black hair, the Astra Militarum-like cut, and the several deep scars on her face making her look more like the soldier the Sororitas were in truth, rather than the would-be priestess' some confused them to be.
Next was Bellolla; the Seraphim was in her standard robes, her autogun slung on her back, chainsword at her side, and two tomes hanging where her plasma pistols would holster on her armor. Her face was bright with her seemingly never-ceasing smile, her brown hair hidden by the habit on her head. The Seraphim looked almost too excited, and with what little Vylerine had been able to learn of her, the Canonnes would perhaps need to lecture her on tightening the reins on her emotions with increased prayer and extra duties.
And lastly was the...thing Vylerine least wanted to see. While some of the Mechanicum's deluded heathens were not only tolerable but outright pleasant to be around, Artisan Imm3s was far from that example. Under her robes, the sound of mechanical mobility devices continued to clink against the floor, and the false woman's sculpture of a face was again smiling in what was certainly a calculated measure to try and instinctually put Vylerine at ease. Instead the Canoness scowled back at the red-robed tech-priestess.
"Sister Vylerine, such unpleasantness is entirely unnecessary. We have passed through the realm of thought and emerged safely. Now together we each will be arriving at our joint destination to experience more of the reality down below." The voice was soft and distinctly feminine, but Vylerine felt the machine's lips did not quite match the words.
"The Canoness does not need you telling her the obvious, Mechanicus." The sharp voice of Chrana admonished, "Canoness, I am ready to depart, and the captain has informed me that our shuttle will be in range for departure within three hours." Chrana stepped forward, making the sign of the Aquila, to which the Canoness responded in kind.
The tech-priestess simply ignored Chrana and pressed forward with her own agenda. "While we have not had much chance to establish a good working relationship, as I am now responsible for Keyan's entire astropathic communications network, I hope you can put aside your prejudices and even accept my advice and assistance. To begin with, might I make a suggestion concerning your Adaptas' stance on psychically capable individuals? I am sure we could even improve on your combat..." Imm3s was mercifully saved from either Chrana's or Vylerine's soon-to-be-violent response by harsh laughter from Bellolla.
"What a sense of humor you have, Tech-priestess. However..." Bellolla's autorifle was already in her hands, something she made apparent with a simple gesture, "...I must insist that you do not make such blatantly unorthodox requests of my Canoness directly. I am certain that if you were to follow the proper channels, she will receive and consider your requests in due time." Bellolla's smile never wavered, and the cheer in her voice never matched the tension her sisters felt, nor the rifle she was marginally subtle in aiming at the tech-priestess.
It was then in short order that the priestess quickly bowed to the three Battle Sisters and made a slow retreat from the room. Once the tech-priestess was gone, Vylerine allowed herself a unsuitable sigh of relief. Meanwhile, Chrana was growling at the hall the Mechancus servant had fled down, while Bellolla laughed softly. This whole mess needed to be quickly cleared for the canoness, while she did not like the tech-priestess and understood that she would be working on the same world. The manner in which she would have to interact withithad dramatically changed.
"Would either of you care to explain what has happened?"
Chrana was first to report, "Uncertain; beyond what the priestess has told us, we know nothing of note concerning the astropathic communications of the planet. We might have to look into acquiring our own means of Astropathic communication, though, to avoid dealing with...her in the future. I would suggest making an appeal to the governor."
"I'm sure we're being led to believe that she's more of an issue than she really is. We should ready our gear and prepare for planetfall. Canoness." Bellolla's voice was still tinged with laughter but spoke of a more immediate problem that Vylerine's combat experience could quickly deal with. An issue she was eager to deal with.
"Right, Sisters, prepare for planetfall; we are setting out the moment the ship is within range of the planet. Our point of landing will be the Imperial Governor's landing pads outside the Planetary Capital. A delegation is expected to meet us there to take us to the mission for inspection; afterwards, I feel we can then free ourselves up for prayer, a meal, and a short meeting to determine how to correct any inadequacies we might find. " The Canoness quickly intoned. And with that she and her sisters left to prepare for their departure to the world, which would be the center of Vylerine's holy service to the Emperor for years to come.
The fires of reentry broke, the Aquila Dropship had descended and was closing on the landing pad. The moment the doors opened, the three Sororitas inside would begin their newest quest. To prepare their Mission before the sisters who would be occupying it would arrive. Closest to the ramp stood Bellolla, her jetpack's new gold, white, and green occupying the majority of Canonness Vylerine's view. Vylerine's armor had undergone some significant changes since she had begun her own ascension to her current rank two years ago. Now the armor was much more ornate, each piece now specifically redesigned to match her body and her performance expectations precisely. Gold script and robe-like embellishments adorned the armor; a shoulder-length red and gold cape hung from her pauldrons.
To the Canoness' rear, Chrana was overseeing the Cherub Servitors as they tended to and prepared to transport the small reliquary of armaments that were to become the Mission's first of such stockpiles. Chrana was the only of the three sisters who seemed prepared for a battle, with a Stormshield, plasmagun and powersword all locked into their places on her armour.
"Sister, I think you will send a wrong message to the governor walking out of the Aquila like that." Vylerine decided to chide Chrana lightheartedly. Chrana didn't need proper chastisement, only a reminder of her place and the nature of their objective.
Narrowed eyes and a sharp voice were both a part of Chrana's response. "This world has not had a suitable ecclesiastic presence in over two hundred years. I wouldn't be surprised if they armed themselves expecting us to begin a purge the moment we step off... my Canoness. Those of weak faith are always prone to fearing those of conviction and understanding of the Emperor's divinity."
Before Vylerine could respond the familiar thump of the lander settling on land could be felt and the lander's ramp began to descend. With a single glance back, the Canoness confirmed that Chrana, in her strangely silent and overly serious manner, had already attached her combat helmet, steeling herself behind its mechanical eyes. Thus the Sororitas made it to Keyan I, all three descending down the partially opened ramp as the embodiments of the Ecclesiarchal will, the will of the God-Emperor.
The air of the world was thick, but not unbearable; the temperature was mildly warm, generally good conditions for fighting in without having to worry about the atmospheric conditions. However, as Vylerine descended, she noted the terrain had no thick cover, and the rest of it was sporadic. Difficult to quickly make a defensive line in, and easy to find oneself outflanked in when making an offensive.
After a quick glance across the distant planet, the Canoness allowed herself to focus on the small party that had come to meet them. At the center was a single slim individual in what appeared to be the military uniform a bureaucrat would wear to try and impress a Guardsman. What appeared to be actual officers surrounded him, each standing at attention with their adjutants on hand holding various scrolls and documents. And several meters behind, a small clustering of Ministorum priests in armored robes waited patiently, each making a show of being in prayer or genuinely lost in their contemplations of the Emperor's divine rule of humanity.
"Governor De La Torre, I presume?" Vylerine greeted courtly and with a sign of the Aquila.
"I am sorry to disappoint you, Canoness. I am Antonius van Daalen, finance minister of Keyan." The thin man's voice had a slight squeak to it and was higher pitched than what Vylerine had expected. He barely filled out the gaudy uniform he wore, and his bony fingers looked like they would snap if the canoness accepted his offered handshake.
Though distorted by a Vox grill, Chrana's anger was still palpable. "We were told to expect the Governor and his support." The Palatine's hand seemed to inch towards her sword, but Vylerine paid it no heed as she knew her palatine would never actually act against the needs of their order.
"I'm sorry, but new developments have preoccupied the governor. With so many militant factions on the planet, any misstep could lead to a minor civil war." The finance minister said as he gestured towards a Repressor armored transport, a vehicle built off the Rhino chassis meant for riot control with a forward shield and heavy flamer. One vehicle that was occasionally popular among the Sororitas but never in quantity enough to replace the Adepta Sororitas Immolators and Rhinos.
The three Sororitas filed into the rear compartment of the Repressor, followed closely by Antonius and his staff of officers, though things quickly became uncomfortable for all involved as the cherubs, each loaded with a relic weapon, piled into the transport. The spare attendants and personnel piled into other vehicles, auto-carriages of a local design that allowed them to closely follow as the repressor shot off away from the urban centers and out into the less inhabited regions of the world.
It was clear to the three Sororitas that the minister and his aides were rather uncomfortable in their seats. For some inexplicable reason, their discomfort slightly amused Vylerine; in her blessed power armor, the Repressor was as comfortable as any luxury auto-carriage she had ridden in before. Also, if the expression on Bellolla's face was anything to judge by, the way she held her smile, with an eye locked on one of the minister's attendants who happened to have a Cherub sitting in his lap while holding a plasmagun, she was also enjoying the current situation.
"Umm, as... uerg... as you know, the facility you've received is now approximately three hundred years old and has served the Adepta Sororitas well during that time of service. Having never had to battle against any traitors, its presence is a perpetual reminder that the Emperor is always watching." Antonius clearly attempted to start a conversation with the Sororitas.
"I know the history, Minister; I do not, however, have anything more than a statement of its previous purpose and the acreage. If you could provide me with a thorough description of the defensive capabilities of the temple. I also do not know what its current stockpile of armaments is or if it is capable of smithing sacred arms." Vylerine asked of the man as courteously as possible.
In response, the minister snapped his mouth shut and looked ahead, his gaze carefully fixed on the cherub across from him. The small servitor ignored him, instead focused entirely on the duty of carrying a small relic that would find itself housed in the mission that Vylerine and her sisters had come to repurpose, to remake from a long-abandoned bastion of the Sororitas and into the bastion for their Commandery.
"My, my, it would appear, my Canonness, that this man knows nothing of use. Yet the Governor sent him to us anyway... I wonder why he would do that." Bellolla said, the mockery in her tone masking what slight annoyance she was feeling at the minister. Which caused the man to balk and glare in response.
"As I had said before, the governor had important issues arise that could lead to an inter-faction war on the planet. I was the only member of the ministry who could be spared due to my ability to stay ahead of all tasks I am assigned. Indeed, I control this world's tithes and purse strings; my word for your needs is vastly more important than a polite showing for the governor. Without me, you will never achieve anything in this world. Or do the Ministorum's Sororitas seek to have a war on this world so shortly after they arrive?" Antonius snapped in return; the man clearly held an inflated ego.
"Canoness!" The sharp and annoyed voice of Chrana broke in, "Instead of debating with this man, who does not have anything of value to provide, I suggest we dedicate this time to prayer to the Emperor. Might he who sits on Terra now have more power over our futures and our fate in our new mission than these...men, do?" Bellolla began snickering, while Antonius and her attendants scoffed in offense, which only caused the sororita to break into full laughter.
The Canoness' decision was left ultimately unstated but obvious as she began to pray nearly silently. Both of her sisters quickly joined in; to the rear, one of the minister's advisers winced and was kicked by one of the Cherubs. Meanwhile the finance minister and those closest to him just sat and waited for this stressful and awkward trip to end.
After a significant time of prayer and silence, the transport reached its destination, the rear ramp lowered, the convoy of auto-carriages halting behind it, and all the passengers eagerly leaving. While the Sisters had not allowed their hopes to be too much, the sight they were met with was nothing less than complete disappointment.
"You can't be serious. What blasphemy is this?" Chrana seethed as she and the other Sororitas got out of the Repressor; on each of their faces, the sting of insult and offense was obvious. Though Vylerine had prepared herself for this eventuality, it was still a painful reality.
The entire structure appeared to be seven meters tall and perhaps twenty meters by twenty-five wide. A number of embrasures dotted the structure's outline, but each was poorly designed, and the spacing suggested an even worse internal layout. The structure's materials also seemed subpar, certainly not the ceramite, which was standard for most imperial bastions. Such size could barely support a full squad of Sororitas, a far cry from the needs of the order from the commandery bastion that they required, and still less than the mission station that was supposed to be on this world for the Sororitas.
Bellolla took several steps past her canoness before using her thrusters to speed ahead, soon shooting out of Vylerine's line of sight. Meanwhile, Chrana made a direct line for the front entrance of the structure and forced open its doors. The sight inside was just as disappointing as outside; the main chamber was an empty hall with only some old and rotted prayer mats. Meanwhile, an acceptable shrine to the God-Emperor lingered unkempt and only saved from decay due to a mixture of the materials used to craft it and ritualistic cleaning that appeared to be rather infrequent from the footprints in the dust of the floor. From there, three doors showed that this structure had at best three other rooms: a dorm, a kitchen, and finally the office for the superior.
Such a decrepit place could not be ever dared as anything close to worthy of a full commandery and was an affront to the faith, showing just how little this world cared for the Ecclesiarchy and its servants. "Minister Antonius, I assume that the order of the Jade Rose has been given..."
"No." Antonius immediately cut Vylerine off. "Your Order has done nothing to warrant access to any of our planet's resources, and we hold no obligation to provide for your Order yet."
Vylerine could only glare at the minister for a moment. "And you think the Ecclesiarchy and its good graces are not worth supply and labor?"
"It is not that Canoness. If you'd look behind yourself, there are those who would provide for you already. However, in our current situation, the governor has given the ministers clear instruction. We of the planetary government are currently not to display anything that can be seen as favoritism to any order or faction. As such, if I, the finance minister, were to provide you with anything beyond what I have already, then the other factions would demand more of us, causing the political balance to spiral out of control." Antonius explained straightly with a quick nudge towards the small gathering of clerics who had followed the Minister and Sororitas. An excuse to ignore the callings of the Imperial Creed and to skirt their duty to the divine God-Emperor but an excuse that Vylerine had to accept.
Vylerine cast her gaze behind her towards where Antonius had gestured. Indeed, there was a small grouping of various priests, each with various parchments, scrolls, and a few with odd pieces of equipment on hand. All of them waited patiently, yet with a nervous eagerness to them as well; some even paced as if they could barely contain their own energy, but clear and obvious prayer was keeping their passions in check. "So what you're saying is that the Ecclessiarchy is to provide for its own. While you're not necessarily helping us, I should be grateful and thank the Emperor that you have at least gotten me in contact with the churches of your world."
"Indeed. If your Order should need anything more, you will need to speak with the governor, or at least his daughter, who in the upcoming elector vote is pushing to become his heir-elect by vote of the representative lords of the regions. While none of the ministry, nor the governor himself, may help you as of now. His daughter might be open to having those with influence in her debt." The finance minister informed as he began to climb into the Repressor.
"Emperor, bless your journey, minister." Vylerine offered as the hatch if the Repressor closed, separating the dissatisfied canoness and the irksome finance minister.
As the Repressor began to pull away, the priests compliantly gathered around Canoness Vylerine. The small mob of attendants each clamoring for her attention. However, a series of clicks from her helm saved the Sororita from having to deal with the priests currently around her. Instead, Chrana's signal meant that she had something important that needed the Canoness' attention, and in the narrowing distance away, Vylerine could see that Bellolla had decided to rejoin her sisters.
With a placating gesture to the ministorum priests and a quick flourish of her cape, Vylerine retreated into the humble structure. Inside she was met by Chrana, the Sororita apparently even more aggravated than before. With a slight grunt, the Sororita closed the Mission door, sealing out the overly eager priests before reporting to her superior.
"The structure as it is is indefensible. The walls are too thin, and there is far too little room to store a proper reliquary, let alone a fully stocked armory. However, the current building commands good lines of sight for defense, and more importantly, the shrine and sanctification are excellent. We will have to build around this position and risk building upward despite this structure's substandard construction."
"The terrain surrounding us will be an issue." Bellolla interjected, slipping in through the doors loudly while the devoted of the Emperor's Faith waited outside, their voices begging for attention following the Seraphim's entrance. "Clusters of large rocks make for decent approaching cover despite our advantage of elevation. If we wish to withstand an attack, we will need to mark our perimeter with a wall and then manually clear the stones on the approach to what should be our primary defensive position."
An indignant grunt met Bellolla's advice as Chrana interjected. "Ma'am, if we do that, we will cluster ourselves too close; a decent artillery or mortar barrage will reap horrendous costs from us. It would be better to spread out defenses throughout the region and give our sisters multiple bastions to defend themselves from."
"Not if we have a shield." The Seraphim offered with a hopeful tone.
"And do you think with this waste we've been given any of the locals will be able to provide us with a shield, Bellolla?" Chrana countered with a bitter tone.
"It's better than allowing the enemy to take advantage of approach vectors with excellent cover to use against us." Bellolla snapped back.
The two Celestians began to bicker, igniting their debate over mobility and control over terrain against fortification and range of fire. If left alone, the two would likely continue well into the night. However, Vylerine did not have the time to spare to allow the two their chance to argue. With impatient haste, the canoness forced open the doors and addressed the crowd of Ecclesiarchy attendants.
"Is any of your orders capable of acquiring a shield generator capable of defending this entire compound?" The Canoness' voice carried all the authority of her position, and the gravity of the question stunned the attendants, while the uncaring Cherubs continued to fly about guarding their hoard of Ecclesiarchy weaponry as best they could.
Only one priest raised his hand. "My lady, I think the Church of the Divine Will may be best suited to provide for your demands." And then all at once the priests began to speak, each trying to say what the Canoness wanted to hear before the others could.
The crowd of priests, all of whom began speaking at once, nearly overwhelmed the canoness and made it impossible to discern who was saying what, but between her training and focus, Vylerine was able to learn everything she needed to know. The Church of the Divine Will, as Vylerine quickly discovered, was the third largest Ecclesiarchy church on Keyan I. The Church of the Divine Will had been a present force on the planetary religious sector for nearly two hundred years and at one point had been vying for the top position but fell out of the public's favor when one of their leading priests had challenged the Governor. However, they remained closely tied to many of the planet's primary suppliers of weaponry, the vehicle manufactorums, and many of the labor leagues.
At first this excited the Canoness; if a church was willing to donate a large supply of labor to the enforcers of the Ecclesiarchy's will, and to fulfill the Adepta Sororitas needs, then surely the monastery would be complete well before the arrival of the sisters who would fill out the ranks of the Mission. However, several hours of vox transmissions without the attending priests giving any report to the canoness left her uneasy.
While they waited, Bellolla and Chrana had left the small chapel to watch the activity. Besides their fellow Ecclesiarchy, the three sisters knew that there wasn't another human soul besides themselves for kilometers. The closest human settlement was blurry and difficult to see without an augment or enhancement tool.
"Well Sister, do we know if these devotees are worthwhile?" Chrana chided from the side as the leading priest slammed down his receiver and began walking to the gathered Sororitas.
"This doesn't seem to bode well." Bellolla seemed to joke as the priest approached.
The priest quickly joined the sisters, bowing in respect to them before giving his report. "Sororitas, I apologize, but while the Church is able to provide the resources you have requested,. Our most sacred of duties has been impeded due to interference by the planetary government. The companies, manufactorum, and traders that the Church of the Divine Will would normally turn to have all been placed into suspicion and are forbidden from conducting large-scale business until their names are cleared."
Vylerine only afforded the priest a simple glare. Meanwhile, Chrana, to her side, set slip an enraged growl to which Bellolla added a mirthless chuckle. The answer was becoming far too clear to Vylerine, and she suspected that someone had pulled political strings to arrange this situation. Politics rarely were worthwhile to Vylerine; you either served the Emperor's divine will with the entirety of your being, or you engaged in apostasy and corruption, and ultimately, if you lived long enough, you saw yourself a heretic.
"Priest, I will change out of my armor. I expect a vehicle prepared by the time I have changed. I have to meet with someone who is most likely waiting for me." The command was simple enough, though her sisters seemed confused; they stood ready for her command. "Bellolla, do what you can to mark out the parameters of our mission for future use; Chrana, see to the reliquary."
"Yes, Canoness."
"As you command, Sister."