Tales of TCoC: Reginald Kasteen.
Reading up on Siblings
Reginald Kasteen, Prince of Adumbria, was no stranger to spending several hours on studying all matters of subjects; mostly by reading up very old, dry and thick tomes that would put but the most diligent and studious to sleep. For a normal Imperial Prince this would seem, at best, as a tedious chore and at worst, as a punishment imposed by their parents or tutors; but for Reggie, it was a matter of survival - For who knows if knowledge of obscure Xeno Flora could ever help save his life - and when it came to the survival of his person, he took it very seriously.
The current study session was no different; but what was unusual was the subject matter. Instead of Military Strategy or Xeno Biology, Reginald was reviewing all the available information, he had managed to acquire, about their upcoming guests when Supreme Ruler of a large portion of the Eastern Fringes of the Galaxy, Warmaster of the United Powers (Chaos), and his supposed Father, Lord Ciaphas Cain arrives to Adumbria.
Of course, Reginald had already re-reviewed everything about Lord Cain - His ever expanding biography, and the AAR's of his Military Campaigns - alongside those of the members of the Liberation Council that are accompanying him on this journey. He could honestly recite any and all pertinent details by memory at this point just as easily as recalling his own name.
No, the focus was not on Lord Cain or his retinue, but instead on a group of people that Reggie could count himself as a member; Lord Cain's Heir, Progeny and Wards. Reginald's fellow "siblings".
A group known as The Children of Cain.
The first of the list was none other than the very First Child of Cain, and the eventual successor of the Entire Cainite Protectorate as a whole, Zerayah Cain.
Paradoxically, very little was known about Zerayah Cain, despite the sheer amount of documentation there was on her; from news reports, books and even Holos featuring her.
In Reggie's mind, this reeked of Media Control by the Liberation Council as a way to manipulate the perception of the masses, into having nothing but a positive opinion on Cain's Heir and their utter acceptance whenever it was time for Zerayah to assume the Throne as The Empress of Cain's Dominion.
But thanks to his Royal Status and Clearance Level as Prince of Adumbria, Reggie was privy to information that the masses would never believe.
In truth, Zerayah Cain was a truly horrifying individual.
Not only was Zerayah a Mutant (having grown into adulthood in a very short amount of time), but she would regularly train by having fights against Sir Hektor, a FRAKING SPACE MARINE, and win against him at an age when normal human children still played with dolls.
If that wasn't enough, Zerayah was capable of shapeshifting her physical form in extraordinary manners that boggled the mind. She could easily dispose of and replace any person she wanted and no one would be none the wiser.
The Perfect Infiltrator and Assassin.
Yet, that was not what terrified Reginald the most.
No, it was the fact that Zerayah was responsible for single-handedly stopping a Tyranid Invasion of an Imperial World. How had she done it? He had no clue but what he did know was that the planet ended up defecting from the Imperium and joined the Protectorate out of sheer gratitude.
Ha! As if!
It was most likely that the devastated population joined out of fear, seeing Zerayah as a bigger threat than the Tyranids had been.
And as for why this story was not known far and wide throughout the Protectorate? Besides the aforementioned Media Control of the Liberation Council, the AAR of the incident was both severely classified and heavily censored. It was a miracle that Reggie was able to get a hold of it, let alone manage to read through it with the sheer amount of black bars over most of it.
Zerayah Cain was no mere Mutant, she was a Monster.
The Perfect Heir to inherit Lord Cain's Throne.
Reginald had to put his review on hold for a bathroom break before he humiliated himself by soiling his undergarments.
Next on the list was Lucia "Lucy" von Yastobaal. Daughter of Areelu von Yastobaal, and heir to the von Yastobaal Dynasty and their Warrant of Trade.
While not a direct descendant by blood or adoption, Lucia was only recognized as a Child of Cain by the upper echelons of the Liberation Council, and the Royal Families of the Systems under Cain's Rule, after the Warmaster had seduced the Rogue Trader into joining the cause of Liberation during the Torredon Liberation Expedition.
Reginald could only be impressed by Lord Cain's cunning into not only gaining the alliance of a powerful asset as a Rogue Trader, but their continued and future loyalty through the affection of the future heir and their subsequent descendants.
But that was not all, because Lucia was also a Mutant and a Psyker of exceptional power.
One report Reggie had read told the story of how Lucia had used her Psyker Abilities to put a stop to an Ork Invasion. Apparently she was able to "Punch" holes on all the ships of an invading Ork Fleet, including a giant Ork Battleship, before they could even reach past the planet's moon.
Compared to that, the fact that Lucia was also amassing an army of Mutants was almost not worth mentioning.
Unknown to the Imperium, the von Yastobaal regularly bought slaves from Imperial worlds in order to grant them freedom on the Protectorate. And for the Mutant Slaves whose mutation crippled them or disfigured them in a severe manner; they were given treatments from Psyker Biomancers - from or trained by The Protectorate Psyker Corp - to genetically get rid of said disadvantageous mutations.
But on very rare occasions, a Mutation could actually be modified into becoming a blessing instead, and an asset for the von Yastobaal Dynasty.
Acid Excretion, Bone Claws, Fire Control, Organic Diamond Form, Hypnotic Gaze, Invisibility, , Laser Eyes, Levitation, Massive Intellect, Body Multiplication, Rapid Regeneration, Super Strength, etc; these were some of the few Beneficial Mutations that the ever-growing army of Mutants under the command of Lucia von Yastobaal possessed.
And because these "abilities" were not connected to the Warp whatsoever, they did not suffer from the disadvantages that untrained Psykers usually bore.
Reggie shuddered at the thought of the future of Humanity if these Mutations were to become a norm. How could anyone ever feel safe?
The next entry was thankfully not as terrifying as the last two, but it was still alarming nonetheless.
Anya von Yastobaal, sister to Lucia, was the only child of Areelu to be actually sired by Lord Cain, and much like Lucia, she was a Mutant Psyker as well.
Luckily, Anya apparently did not possess the same sheer power as her big sister. No, Anya's Psyker abilities instead focused into the more subtle ways than direct combat.
It was noted that Anya was instead an Empath of great ability, capable of discerning the feelings and emotions of whoever she talked to to such a degree that it almost felt like Mind Reading.
Honestly, that simple ability really worried Reggie the most. Sure the previous ones were Monsters of unfathomable powers, which regular Human Beings like himself couldn't compare to, but Anya had the uncanny ability to destroy him in a different way; his reputation.
If it came to light how much of a cowardly piece of shit he was, then everything he had worked for would turn against him. His defence against treason from the Palace Staff and the Guards would be gone, and he could be stabbed in the back at any moment.
If that were to happen, he would not be able to peacefully rest inside his home ever again!
That is if the Plebs don't rebel and chase him down the streets in retaliation for his lies!
Luckily for Reggie, he had an answer to the problem that was Anya von Yastobaal, and his name was Juri.
Ah, good old reliable Juri.
And to think he had doubts when he recruited the young orphan Blank as his subordinate.
A few years back when Reggie noticed how lonely and isolated the only other person his age training with the Troops was, he was worried.
What were these people thinking treating a soldier-to-be like an outcast? Did they not know the disastrous consequences it could lead to? What if the exclusion and isolation were to make the young lad snap? He would then take his anger on those who mistreated him! Coupled with the fact that the lad also had experience and access to military grade weapons meant that if the worst case came to be it would be a total bloodbath.
So Reggie had taken upon himself to approach and befriend the quiet loner as a way to ingrain himself into his good sides and be spared if the lad ever decided to go on a rampage.
It was difficult at first, because when he approached him he was met with this sense of unnatural "wrongness" that made Reggie really uncomfortable.
It was not until he got a good look to his face that Reggie understood why. He was unfortunately unbeautiful. He wasn't deformed nor grotesque, but his facial features made Reggie want to avert his eyes and walk away for fear of becoming sick.
Yet, this strange sense was nothing compared to the absolute terror he felt whenever he thought about the grim darkness of the galaxy he had the misfortune of living in.
So he sucked it up, curbed the "wrongness" and approached the lad.
That day was the day he met Juri.
It was a long and exhausting endeavor, but Reggie had managed to finagle Juri into having a positive opinion of him. They would often train together and have competitions to see who could do better than the other, be in the shooting range or while sparring with Practice Swords and Chainweapons. Reggie knew he had accomplished his goal when Juri would end up taking it easy against him when they clashed swords and he would get disarmed by Reggie, or when he would Juri's last shots would hit off center during their shooting competitions.
Part of Reggie was happy that Juri would have such a positive opinion of him that he would take a dive whenever they competed, but another part despaired that his unearned reputation among the other soldiers grew whenever he would win since Juri was shown to be an incredible shot and duelist.
Despite that, after a long day of training Reggie then would treat Juri to dinner; and as Prince of Adumbria feeding one person hardly made an impact to his personal wealth. And before long, Juri would follow him around much like a young canid after their master.
Not long after that Reginald decided to bite the bullet and offer him the job of his aide for fear of antagonizing him by repeatedly instructing him that he did not want him shadowing him. But in exchange for this position, Juri would have to dress appropriately and according to all events he would accompany him. Which included a variety of face masks that covered the lower half of his face to diminish the sense of wrongness his appearance produced.
It was until much later that Reggie learned that Juri wasn't unfortunately ugly but instead he was a Blank, or a Psychic Null, meaning he was granted, and those standing closest to him, protection from the warp and from Psyker Powers!
Thankfully, Juri was already given a room next to Reggie's in the Palace beforehand, so it was not as obvious that the Prince just wanted the Blank as close to him for protection.
Truly employing Juri turned out to be a great and fortuitous boon in the end.
And since it was already well known that Juri was his aide, then it would not be seen as strange to have him next to him whenever Anya was around, protecting his thoughts - and more importantly: his reputation , from the Empath.
Still, Reggie trained both his emotional control and his Poker Face in the off-chance that he found himself separated from Juri in the proximity of von Yastobaal's second child.
If only her Bonehead Bodyguard and Company of over a hundred Ogryn in Power Armor under her command were as easily dealt with.
[-]
Then came Maeldanaiah Mortalyss - which according to the best translation he got from the Aeldari language, meant: Total and Merciless Extermination - better known to the Protectorate as a whole as Mercy Cain.
A Half-Human Half-Eldar Hybrid who, according to official protectorate paperwork, was born from a cloning experiment gone wrong.
Ha! As if! Why it was a nice cover story for those who like to leak rumours into the masses, Reggie was skeptical and accustomed to look underneath the underneath of any and all information he managed to get either as rumor or from official channels.
The common citizen might believe the cloning accident story since they remained unaware of the sordid details of Xeno and Chaos Matters. But not him.
It was most likely that Mercy was the end result of years of experimentation to create a new race that combined the best aspects of the Human and Eldar species with minimal drawbacks.
A new Race that could resist and handle the strain that came from the worship of the Dark Powers. And seeing the reports on Mercy, Reggie was convinced that Lord Cain had succeeded on his goal.
If Zerayah Cain was the future Empress of the Cainite Dominion, then Mercy Cain was to be the High Hierophant of the Cult of the United Dark Powers.
One would only need to read up her accomplishments to see the Sheer amount of Favor she had from the Chaos Gods by the Influence she wielded as their Champion.
Mercy had an entire world under her total control, a Gift from Lord Cain, which after some terraforming became a mix of Hospitaller and Agri-World combined, named Merced.
Merced was a planet dedicated to food production for the Protectorate while also researching and experimenting with the creation of new species of flora and fauna and their maintenance and viability. Not to mention the experimentation of recreating Panacea for other species other than just Humans.
But underneath that research for renewable crops and livestock and better medicine for different planets and species. Mercy also conducted experiments for her Dark Masters.
For those who were not knowledgeable about the Warp and the Daemons that live inside it - besides those of Nurgle of course - they wouldn't give a second look at the bizarre creatures that Mercy had brought to life.
Slaanesh Ponies, Khorne Dogs and Tzeentch Rays, may appear as new and exciting animals for the population of the protectorate to honor the Gods. But Reggie knew what they actually were, Daemon-Animal Hybrids that could permanently remain in the Materium while retaining the ability to come and go back to the Warp.
Reggie wasn't sure what the end goal was - either they were creating a vast Daemonic Army to wage war against the Imperium, or the creation of a Second Eye of Terror - but whatever the case might be, the main point was clear: Mercy Cain was extremely dangerous.
He ought to stay clear from her, or if evasion was not an option, remain on her good side, since unlike Zerayah or Lucia who could obliterate his physical body, and Anya could destroy his carefully constructed House of Cards that was his Fraudulent Reputation, Mercy Cain was capable of Damning his Immortal Soul, at least more so than being part of a Heretical Dominion opposed to the Imperium, hopefully he could be given the chance to plead his case whenever he ended up in front of the Golden Throne before He on Terra decides to throw him to the Warp.
So caught up on improving his arguments for clemency from the God Emperor that Reggie almost jumped out of his chair when a knock on the door of his private study snapped him back to the present.
Taking a few seconds to compose himself, he allowed the visitor to enter.
"Sir, it is time for Dinner." Juri informed, acting as dedicated as ever when he was "on the clock" as the Prince's aide.
"Thank you Juri." Reggie said with a soft yet tired smile. "Give me a minute to clear up my desk." accepting his petition as an order, Juri was quick to close the door to the study and head outside to most likely wait by the door of Reggie's chambers.
Reginald sighed as he gave a look at the amount of research he still had to do to be ready for his "Siblings" before they arrived at Adumbria for Lord Cain's visit.
Thankfully there was still time to read up on the rest of them.
For now, he better enjoy a quiet Dinner with his Mother and close Family, before such a pleasing event was disturbed by the influx of guests at the Palace. Well at least as quiet and pleasing as it could be with Auntie Sulla and her Daughter in attendance.
NOTES
Ok, so this Omake really got away from me, because it grew longer than expected. This was supposed to include the dinner scene which was going to include the introduction of Sulla Jr.
Maybe for the next Reggie Omake.
But hey, here is Juri, Reggie's Aide in exchange.
BTW, The joke , for those who could not see the image link, is that Juri is actually a pretty boy bishonen, but because of his Blank Status, he comes across as incredibly ugly.
The Children of Cain Omake Series.