[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

CLINGING TO FAITH

Disclaimer:
I do not own the world of Warhammer 40,000, as much as I might wish I did. I am not
making any sort of profit from this, however. This is a derivative work based on the
intellectual property of Games Workshop, written without their knowledge or consent.
This is likely to include scenes depicting violence, sex and supernatural themes. Read at
your own caution.


Sitting in her room aboard the ET Skyslider, Kezia waited. Technically, every room was
hers; she owned the entire ship. However, Kezia wasn't used to owning so much, not just
yet. She had only recently completed her traineeship and presented with her badge of
office, the golden "I" of the Imperium of Man.

She leaned back and closed her eyes, thinking about it. There was no grand ceremony,
nothing of the sort. She had merely travelled with a small group, thought to be a
sanctioned Imperial Psyker under close watch of the Commissar. When the mission was
complete, a planet saved and the people spared the fate that surely would have befallen
them in the hands of Chaos, the group was met by her mentor, Matthias.

Matthias nodded his head once, and even as they all raised their hands in the Imperial
salute to this Inquisitor, he drew his pistol and shot both of the Imperial Guardsmen,
killing them.

"Well done, Kezia Mordecai, you are a true servant to the Emperor. You have proven
yourself worthy of the title and prestige. You are now an Inquisitor. Never lapse. From
this moment on, I will not be observing you, judging you to determine whether or not you
meet my standards. You have already done so. Instead, there are others who will always
be observing you. If you do not meet their standards, if they deem you to be faltering,
then death might come quick and mercilessly."

He handed her the insignia, made from pure gold and containing a tiny microchip to
identify it as legitimate. To attempt to forge a copy of one was punishable by death, so it
paid to make sure any Inquisitor could prove their identity.

"Now, go forth as your own master. Your duty is to protect all of humanity from the
heathen menaces both within and without. Let there be no mercy, no remorse and no
forgiveness, only swift justice. Good luck, Kezia, and blessed be the Immortal God-
Emperor of Humanity!"

Matthias saluted Kezia, and she was swift to return it. And then he left.

No longer did she have the luxury of travelling aboard Matthias's immense space hulk,
the Gift of Retribution. By the same token, her much smaller craft was a lot easier to
handle, with a limited crew. It took hundreds of people to keep a space hulk working, and

---

there was no chance of them entering the atmosphere of a planet, they were simply too
big. No, she was quite happy with the ET Skyslider. It was just large enough, sleek, and
could move at incredible speeds.

She glanced out her window, seeing the emptiness of space. Not even a star was in sight.
One doesn't need long to tire of space, once they realise how vast and empty it can be.
Still, by her watch, they would soon be arriving at their destination planet, the hive world
known as SNR-089914327 Flux. She had received reports of trouble in the system,
possible signs of rebellion or even heresy. It was her job to investigate, to root out every
last drop of heresy and purge it... one way or another.

Kezia knew she would need to quickly meet the governor of the planet, to assess whether
he was trustworthy and competent. Looking at his records, she wondered if the planet
could have done with someone better at the job. It was possible the levels of crime ­
while not horrific, still higher than many others ­ were as a result of the possible Chaos
influence, but it was also possible that he was just not suited for his job. There was no
way to tell just by the photo, showing a middle-aged man with thin brown hair, pale blue
eyes and glasses. It could mean anything. All Kezia had was information showing that the
planet could most likely be run better.

"Ma'am," her personal computer declared, transmitting a message from the captain, "we
will be landing within one hour. Half an hour after that, you should be good to go."

"Thank you, Heinrich. I will prepare myself."

Kezia stood and stretched. She would need to look her best in order to get her message
across. Inquisitors always need to show that they remain in peak condition, that they do
not let their guard down, and that they strictly adhere to every last regulation ­ even if
they do not actually adhere to those rules.

Letting her thick, woollen grey robe fall to the floor, the Inquisitor walked naked to her
small shower cubicle. It was certainly utilitarian in design, smaller than average due to
being on such a space faring vessel. She was glad for the gravity generators preventing
her from floating and having to take a simple sponge bath. She could actually stand and
let the water fall upon her.

Adjusting the handles, Kezia allowed the high-pressure spray of extremely hot water
pound against her back. It soaked her shoulder-length golden blonde hair, tore away at
any dust and sweat, and allowed her to truly relax. Her muscles, tense from all the
waiting and physical exercises, began to unwind. Pouring Imperial-approved body lotion
onto her hands, she rubbed it all over her taut skin. Her hairless arms were first, and as
she rubbed them, Kezia discovered a minor ache in her left bicep.

Next, she massaged her shoulders, groaning quietly as she relaxed, and worked her way
down to her modest breasts. She covered the entire surface of her small, firm mounds,
and spared just a few seconds rolling her thumbs over the large, engorged nipples.

---

Before her breathing and heart rate picked up, before she could get distracted from her
job ­ what with there being limited time ­ Kezia worked her way down over her flat
tummy, and couldn't help but admire herself. Before being collected by the Blackship she
didn't consider herself athletic or attractive. Before being collected by the Blackship, she
didn't consider her life worth living. But now... now, with her training regime, her body
fitted her ideal image of herself, and she also was given a purpose by the glorious God-
Emperor.

Next, her slender, muscular legs were cleaned, also completely hairless thanks to
Imperial-approved defoliating creams. She made sure to carefully wash her toes, nearly
paranoid about fungal infections ever since she discovered that orks, one of the less
terrifying yet more irritating alien threats, were a highly developed type of fungus
themselves. She had had nightmares about orks growing from her feet and trying to tear
her apart, ever wearing their dopey, split-toothed grins.

Sliding her hands up the backs of her calves, then her thighs, she pushed the thoughts of
the green-skinned menace from her mind and thought of more pleasant, wholesome
things. As her hands massaged her pert buttocks, Kezia's mind drifted to thoughts of the
Emperor and his love for her. Of all the Psykers chosen and loaded upon that Blackship,
she was deemed worthy to be trained ­ not only as a sanctioned Imperial Psyker, but as
an actual Inquisitor. Several others were trained as Psykers, but others... the rest were
taken back to Holy Terra, where their essence was fed to the Emperor upon his golden
throne.

Not a single day had gone by without her thinking of the Emperor and all he had done for
her. She took her religion seriously. Her life had taken such a turn for the better ever
since she was noticed by the blessed Inquisition and picked up. She hadn't lived a life of
crime, no. She had just drifted through life, unhappy, and looking for an opening, for
some kind of opportunity to make something better of herself. What Kezia truly wanted
was to live on another planet, away from the gang wars of the hive world, and to do
something useful with her life.

She had no regrets. There was nothing for her, back at home, with her low-pay job
directing tenant complaints. The best she ever managed was the odd piece of humour,
receiving complaints that would most certainly be met with great disapproval by the
Imperium.

"Four days ago, I complained that my fridge was making strange noises. The next day
you sent someone to look at it, and they left in a hurry. The very next day, a company of
men, clad it bulky armour, and standing at nearly twice my height, barged into my unit,
destroying the door in the process. They found the fridge, and obliterated it in a spray of
fire from their weapons. I now no longer have a fridge, nor a back wall, and demand that
these be replaced. I expect to be fully compensated for these losses. The men claimed they
were `Crimson Fists' or something to that effect, and said it as though the Emperor gave
his blessings for such actions. Please do something about these troublemakers."

---

Chuckling, Kezia drifted back to reality, and finished cleaning the inner folds of her sex,
not wanting to get distracted any more. Finally, she poured a little lotion onto a scrubbing
brush, and vigorously scrubbed at her back, just about taking a layer of skin off, but
ensuring that her body would be perfectly clean, something she demanded of herself
when meeting with people, and most other times as well. She would never be caught
looking sloppy and unkempt.

Once her shower was finished, the young Inquisitor stepped out and flicked her hair back,
flinging droplets of water at the shower wall. Picking up a fluffy white towel with the
Imperial eagle sewn in, she spent a good length of time drying herself off properly,
before opening her drawers and cupboards.

I guess it's time to get myself looking respectable then, she thought to herself while
absentmindedly picking items of clothing out. It wasn't exactly a matter of choice; she
knew what clothes she would be wearing ­ and what armour as well.

First, the Imperial-approved white cotton knickers were placed on. They even had the
black print of an Imperial eagle to show that they were indeed approved by the Imperium,
tested for elasticity and opacity by the finest servitors, and deemed worthy to be worn by
the Emperor's followers. With those fitting snugly against her backside, she then pulled
on a pair of silk trousers, light and almost form-fitting. They shone a reflective black, and
would provide comfort as she walked, being smooth and delicate.

Next was the top. Not needing a bra, Kezia skipped to a silk shirt, doing up every ivory
button to her neck, and carefully adjusting it to make sure she was as neat as possible.
She then strapped on a lightweight plasteel breastplate, aware that her stomach was
exposed should she be attacked, but feeling safe nonetheless. She then donned the
Inquisitorial insignia, hanging around a gold chain that she placed around her neck.

Following that was a pair of ankle socks, thin and designed to let air through, before
donning her thick leather boots, buckling them up to the tops. She looked like a member
of nobility before the armour, but now with that and the boots, she definitely seemed
more the no-nonsense warrior. Then a pair of white silk gloves was worn, before finally
the large, black cloak. It was not designed to be inconspicuous; it was an expensive cloak,
one that informed everyone nearby that they were dealing with someone in high standing
that was not to be messed with.

As one last addition, she attached a small holster to her side, placing a simple Hell pistol
inside it as a weapon. One can never be too sure, after all. She opted to leave the other
weapons behind. If this simple meeting called for her power sword and melta-gun, then
there was already far more trouble than she expected.

The final step was to neatly and carefully brush her hair. Kezia never bothered with any
form of make-up. It hardly mattered; she looked quite stunning as it was. Once she was
prepared, she merely waited patiently, knowing that business would soon pick up.

---

As they approached SNR-089914327 Flux, Kezia remained seated, attaching her safety
harness to avoid being thrown about if they experienced any turbulence. She could see
the hive world on her computer screen, the massive spires poking through the cloud ­ and
smog ­ barrier, the dark buildings lit up with millions of lights. There were tens of
billions of people on that planet, nearly all of them unaware that a single person with the
ability to sentence the entire planet to death would be walking among them soon.

Kezia closed her eyes and waited, thinking about her former mentor and wondering what
he was doing at that exact moment. Her mind then drifted to thoughts of her previous
successes. Her eye twitched a little at the thought of the barely civilised planet of
Martin's World, a place covered in sand, with few sources of water, and similar to
something out of an archaic movie about cowboys. She had in fact been stranded there
for two months, and ended up seizing control of the entire planet before support could
arrive and rescue her from there. Turning the place upside down, she executed a number
of corrupt nobles, had many rebels thrown into the cells, and for the first time in a
hundred years the place was peaceful.

She hoped this planet would not be like Martin's World. Although it was technologically
advanced, as much so as any other hive world, and although there were so many people,
with proper Imperial rule, there was always the slim risk of being abandoned there for
weeks on end, having to take control of the situation and handle everything herself.

Eventually, the craft entered the planet's atmosphere, carefully guided by landing crew so
as to avoid space vessels taking off, as well as the tall spires. Passing through a thick
layer of cloud, smoke and acidic fog, Kezia truly appreciated the strong design of the
Imperial craft ­ and the buildings as well. Without the superior design of the Adeptus
Mechanica, the toxic mist would doubtlessly make its way in, poisoning her as well as
the inhabitants of the city.

When they finally landed and were safely secured, with the dock cleared, the doors
opened, and Kezia made her way out. She was inside one of the stations, hundreds of
metres above ground level, the cavern-like room well-lit and echoing the quietest of
noises. People were working on various craft, refuelling, repairing and performing
general maintenance. A pair of arbiters met the Inquisitor as she walked down the ramp,
clad in polished black carapace armour, their faces expressionless. Once Kezia was at
their level, they saluted her, arms raised to form the Imperial eagle.

"Blessed be the Emperor! Welcome, Inquisitor Mordecai, to SNR-089914327 Flux. We
will be your guides during your stay here, and will also be taking care of any matters of
security. I am Arbiter Bertram, this is Arbiter Briggs."

"Blessed be the Emperor. I am impressed to find you both waiting here for me; it helps
me feel as though I am in good hands. I think I should probably visit the governor first of
all, but while you lead me, I have some questions. Tell me, what would you consider to
be the greatest problem faced on this hive world?"

---

As the two Arbiters started to explain the current condition of the city-planet, they began
guiding Kezia out towards the elevators. Once they passed a security check ­ passed
simply by revealing her identity, no more being needed for one of her stature ­ they
stepped into the dimly lit chamber and listened to the doors seal behind them. Bertram
pressed a button, and soon there was the hum of movement as they descended. A small
screen displayed their current floor number in an LED.

59... 58... 57...

Kezia listened intently while watching the numbers tick down. She knew that above all, it
would be her meeting with the various forms of administration that would truly give her
information, as well as digging around in their files ­ and in the physical vaults.

Finally, they arrived at the 21st floor, and the doors slid open. A long corridor lay ahead,
and Briggs took the lead. Bertram stayed behind Kezia, keeping her relatively protected
in the middle, even though no-one else was yet there. Glancing out the large windows as
she walked, she looked down and couldn't see the ground. Two many smaller buildings
and tunnels and walkways blocked the view, mostly with servitors and people in
environmental suits actually walking outside. To the left, a group was repairing an outer
wall, the welding torches crackling and spraying sparks into the air. To the right,
towering spires dominated her view. It was a true hive world, filled with people, all
housed safely. Countless such worlds existed across the Imperium, existing primarily so
that people had a place to live, providing occupations as a secondary concern. Mostly
there was administration, research and small-grade production, though there was a lot of
recruitment for the Imperial Guard as well.

The fluorescent lights in the ceiling buzzed quietly, and by this stage the two Arbiters had
little else to say, so Kezia started a new conversation.

"Tell me about your captain. How competent would you judge them, and do they remain
aware of the situation, engaging in active duty?"

"Captain Stump is a quiet man; he doesn't say much at all. That being said, he takes to
the streets often enough to know what's happening. He makes a good patrolman but..."

As Briggs paused, Bertram took over.

"But he isn't that good at delegating. Tries to do too much on his own. He's been shot
twice, and stabbed more than eighteen times. I'm thankful he survived all those ordeals."

"Well, it sounds as though you're blessed to have such a good officer, even if he does
need to develop his leadership skills. With any luck, he will have time to learn them, and
perhaps there will be greater organisation."

---

When the next door opened, a huge sprawl lay before them. They were in a gigantic,
circular room with people crowded in everywhere. A large hole was in the centre, with
metal railing, to provide a view to the floor below, and there were many doors around the
edge, leading to other parts of the building, or other buildings entirely. The two arbiters
started forcefully shoving people aside, making room for Kezia so as to not
inconvenience her ­ and more importantly, to make it easier to notice if someone was
trying to attack her.

"Come on, clear it you lot, out of the way!"
"Hey you, get away from us my son or things will be very sad for you. Move it!"

With enough violence and shouting, they managed to get the thick crowd to part, making
a vaguely clear path for them to shuffle through to their destination.

The next room they entered was empty, other than another security check. Again, this
posed no problem for the group, ushering them through when Kezia was confirmed to be
an Inquisitor by running her signal over the scanner. They walked past, entering an empty
corridor (unless one counted the inoffensive plastic pot plant) and made their way to the
door. The plaque above it read in High Gothic:

"Everybody Serves"

They didn't need to press the button to alert the governor; no sooner had they approached
than the doors slid open. Standing before them, in a tailored suit, wearing the chain of
office around his neck, was the governor, his forehead glistening with sweat.

"Blessed be the glorious God-Emperor of Humanity! Welcome, Miss Mordecai, to our
humble hive world. I trust your journey was pleasant?"

Kezia noted that he looked a little flustered. He was probably the kind to easily grow red
in the face, and exercise was unlikely something that came naturally to him. Still, he
wasn't vastly overweight, just a little out of shape. She returned his salute, never tiring of
the gesture.

"Blessed be the Emperor. I am pleased to finally meet you, Mister Reynolds."
"Call me Jacob, no need to be formal with a humble servant of the Emperor, Miss
Mordecai."
"In that case, I am pleased to finally meet you, Jacob. It was an uneventful trip, which is
the best anyone can possibly ask for. You look a little nervous; perhaps we should sit
down and talk?"
"Oh, yes, of course, right this way. Do forgive my lack of manners; it isn't often that I
speak with people of such high standing in the eyes of the Emperor."

Jacob quickly ushered her to a comfortable armless chair, and took a seat of his own,
opposite her behind his fine quality wooden table. He had a glass of what appeared to be
water there, from which he took a sip.

---

"So, perhaps we should start with some basic questions about the place. Do you run the
city yourself, or delegate to a committee?"

"Oh, I couldn't run the whole thing, no, I wouldn't know where to begin. I have a
committee who send daily reports, as well as letting me know if ever anything goes
wrong ­ which I can assure you is most rare!" he blurted, noticing Kezia writing notes
down on a pad.

"And, uh, every week we gather for a general meeting, to discuss things and make sure
the city works in fine order. I also have an advisor who assists, helping me make
decisions and providing similar cases from history so that my thoughts can be backed by
precedent."

"I see. Tell me about the members of this council ­ and the advisor as well. I wish to
know all I can about these people. Perhaps someone is not doing their job properly and
needs replacement. But don't worry; I'm not going to make any hasty decisions."

"Oh, yes, ah, just let me fetch my files then, so I can give you a full report on them and
not leave anything out."

The governor walked over to a cabinet and pulled out a few folders, opening one as he
returned to his seat. Before starting, he took another sip of water.

"Oh, can I get you a drink, Inquisitor?"

"No thank you, I had refreshments on the flight. Please begin."

Kezia gave a small, encouraging smile. She found Jacob to already be a little less than
capable of talking to people, possibly not very confident. Of course, it was also possible
that her presence as an Inquisitor intimidated him. Many people found themselves
intimidated by Inquisitors, with very good reason. It was just a matter of finding those
who had real reason to be nervous. Not yet trusting him to be all that he appeared, Kezia
nonetheless felt that this man probably wasn't a problem in his own right.

The governor started going over all of the details, describing each member of the
committee, including their strong and weak points, and any holidays taken. He went over
all information he had, until Kezia eventually decided it would be more useful just to read
through the records by herself, in her own time.

"Okay, that's enough. I'll go over these later, but it seems you at least keep detailed,
accurate records. That's good. I wish to look through the vaults now, to see what has
been confiscated, and what has been saved or hidden away. Will you have someone guide
me through?"

---

"Of course, Inquisitor. I shall ask for the treasurer to prepare immediately to lead you
through, it should only be a matter of minutes before you can be shown in."


On board the Gift of Retribution, Matthias put down his bowl of stew and let his mind
wander for a few moments. He swept his grey hair back and spared a thought for his two
former students, Kezia and Jeremiah.

"I wonder where my children are right now. Both following different paths; Jeremiah
always hated the abominable Xenos far more than anything else, while Kezia was more
concerned with traitors and witches within our midst. It makes an old Daemonhunter
proud."

Done talking to himself, Matthias continued to eat, impatient for his own voyage to be
over so that he could truly get back to work.


Kezia slumped into a chair in her hotel room. She was mentally exhausted, having spent
the day simply talking to many people and looking through dozens of files. Even going
through the vaults had been of little interest, not showing anything out of the ordinary.
Few confiscated goods remained, most being destroyed or sent off-world for
identification. She closed her eyes and went over everything again. There were several
council members, all of them apparently doing the best they could do, but unable to
actually root out the source of the problems. Even the advisor was stumped, and he
seemed to be the most knowledgeable and the best problem solver, just going by the
information handed to her.

Of course, who better than the advisor to be the one behind everything? It would explain
a lot, so perhaps I should keep an eye on him, even see if I can get a telepath here. I had
better be careful with this one though, he's very sly. Besides, I'd rather not level my
finger at him until I'm completely sure.

Deciding to relax a little, she quickly jotted a few notes down in her pad, for future
reference, and then removed her cloak. It was time for a well-deserved break, in her
books, even if there was little time for servants of the Emperor to rest. Inquisitors did not
take holidays, they were far too busy always chasing something down ­ or fighting
amongst themselves, however they didn't exhaust themselves unnecessarily. When the
day was over, they would eat and sleep like normal people, even seeking regular
entertainment. After all, they were all humans, the exact types of people they were
protecting, the exact people that the Emperor `died' for. To turn into automatons would
be to become less than human and to lose sight of what they were protecting.

Hanging the cloak up on a hook, Kezia wandered over to the fridge, checking to see what
had been provided for her convenience. It would be a simple matter to call and place an
order, of course, but why do that when there's something acceptable within reach
immediately?

---

Inside there was a row of small bottles, containing pure water, mixed fruit juice, the
planet's best red wine and a form of energy drink she didn't much care for. It was a
decent selection just to have there on demand without asking in advance. She took the
wine and the juice, deciding to mix the two in a healthy, delicious and relaxing blend.

As she poured the two into the one tall, frosted glass, she spoke out loud, to the voice-
activated electronics in the room.

"Radio: classical. Lights: dim."

While the room did her bidding, Kezia smiled and returned to her seat. Curling up in the
soft armchair, she sipped the cold drink and listened to the music, letting her mind clear
for the first time that day. All had gone reasonably well, even though she had no solid
leads. Still, it wasn't as though she had done more than interview a few people and
examine the vaults. She would have more information later on, after looking through the
streets, finding the sites where occurrences were reported, and trying to dig up a rogue
Psyker or two.

Taking another long sip, she glanced at her computer monitor through half-closed eyes.
The people in charge of security had even provided a way for her to connect to the
surveillance systems nearby, so she was able to see that she was indeed guarded at every
entrance.

Except the cameras suddenly switched off.

Kezia was no fool; she immediately dropped the glass, diving to the side. That action
possibly saved her life, as part of the wall exploded, despite the armour plating. Regular
bullets powered through the wall and missed her before the whole room rocked at the
sound of an enormous explosion. The frame was still standing, but several panels had
been demolished, and the outside guards were nowhere to be seen.

Killed? Or are they the ones shooting at me? It didn't take long for someone to figure out
I'm here and try to have me killed. Kezia thought, staying low, rolling to the side and
pulling her Hell pistol free.

As the flames died down, two heavily built men climbed in, dropping from cables. It
seemed to have been an organised attack, even though few people knew she was on the
planet, and even fewer knew where she was residing. Someone wanted her dead fast.

As soon as they were in, they unslung their powerful battle rifles, but that was all the
delay they needed. Kezia, her pistol already pointing forward, pulled the trigger twice.
There were two blinding streaks of bright red light, and the first man dropped dead, a pair
of holes in his neck. The second pulled his trigger just as Kezia fired at him. His gun
exploded, the magazine having been shot. Shards of metal flew all over the place, and it

---

was only by chance that Kezia had not been hit. However her assailant was not so lucky;
his entire torso was torn to shreds.

It was then, her heart still racing, that Kezia could hear the gunfire in the corridor. It
sounded like her guards were facing trouble indeed. The shooting soon stopped, followed
by shouting.

"Guest, all assailants are down but Bertram has fallen! I have contacted headquarters for
a security escort, do you need medical assistance?"

Despite the risk that it might actually be an attacker on the other side, she nonetheless
chose to answer the voice she recognised.

"I'm fine, Briggs. I'm not sure if any more are coming through here yet, but the wall has
been breached. It seems someone was expecting me."

"Praise the Emperor for your safety! I hate to think what would have happened had you
been killed. There's going to be a chopper swinging by to make sure no-one enters
through there, meanwhile the escort will arrive at the door to lead you down to an
armoured truck. We're going to go to a safety house with a gang that we have on the
payroll."

Within a minute, a black, armoured helicopter flew beside the damaged wall, sporting a
pair of assault canons to help dissuade further attacks. The noise it made was almost
deafening, and that was without even firing its weapons. Not long after, more people
arrived outside.

"Okay Inquisitor, we're going to open the door now."

There was a `blip' as someone swiped an access card through the reader, and the doors
slid open. A group of armoured enforcers stood ready, not holding their weapons. Instead,
they only had their riot shields. They understood the problem ­ Kezia wasn't in a
situation to trust anyone too much, so it was not in their best interest to open the door
with guns drawn.

She nodded, and lowered her pistol.

"All right, get me out of here. And see if you can get someone to identify the bodies, I
want to know who they are, and more importantly, who sent them. You don't need me to
tell you that they knew what they were doing."

"Yes, Inquisitor. Now, say close to us and let us get you to safety."

Several formed a human shield around Kezia, protected by their actual shields, while two
more were there for support. The support enforcers had the most body armour on, and
wielded stub guns. Perhaps they weren't the best of weapons, but they'd blow a whole in

---

most humans very quickly. They were more effective than the standard lasguns issued to
the Imperial Guard, at any rate.

They rushed down the stairways, not trusting elevators, and shouted directives for
everyone to stay down and well out of their way. People complied. It is easy to comply
when someone is pointing a gun at you and shouting very loudly. Eventually, they were
on ground level, and quickly loaded into the armoured vehicle. Just as the door slammed
shut and locked, the driver called out.

"Everybody get down and cover your heads, there's a rocket launcher!"

True to his word, on the screen, someone was shoving members of the crowd aside. He
had a cybernetic arm, upon which was mounted an Imperial Guard issue rocket launcher.
He pulled the plastic tag, took aim...

And then was torn to shreds by hundreds of rounds of assault gun ammunition as the
helicopter reappeared. It wasn't just hanging outside the damaged wall any more; it was
back on duty, providing air support. That rocket was not going to be launched.

"And yet again, we're left without anyone to question. Still, when they've already
condemned themselves this far, it probably does leave them feeling they may as well
fight to the death and keep on trying with more, never backing down and fleeing, or just
giving up."

"Don't worry, Inquisitor. With any luck, we can get an ID on these people and find out
where their orders came from. Now, let's get to our safe house, move it!"

The driver didn't have to be told twice. With cover provided by the chopper, they drove
ahead, people doing their best to simply stay out of the vehicle's way. It wasn't going to
stop for anyone, and was more likely to shoot at people than swerve.

In time, the rumbling of the personnel carrier stopped, and the door opened. They were
somewhere underground. It was dark and smelled of the kinds of chemicals one might
associate with illicit substances being "cooked". Somewhere nearby, someone was
playing loud, 38th millennium rock music. The rescue squad led Kezia to a moderately
hidden door, keying in the access code on the number pad hidden behind an old "No
parking" sign. The door clicked and opened, and Kezia was shown inside.

The light was better, but not brilliant. The air was a little smoky, and there was a pair of
heavies at the door, wearing dark robes that once used to be red, and with Imperial eagles
burned into the backs of their hands.

"This is our guest, guv?"
"Yes, so you take good care of her my son or it'll be what for, got it?"
"Gotcha' guv. Right this way, miss. We'll look after you; I don't think anyone can reach
you here. Besides, that's assuming they even know of it. Whoever is paying to have you

---

done for is clearly a higher-up, and they don't know what's what here in the underground.
Take a seat, have a bottle of piss and a bite to eat."

The heavy grinned, showing that one tooth had chipped. He then lit up a cigarette with a
lighter tampered with to burn excessive amounts of fluid, launching a 20cm flame into
the air just for a smoke.

"Right", Briggs said quietly, "we'll do what we can, Inquisitor, but I can't guarantee
we'll have you out any time soon. Is there anyone you want to make contact with, or
anywhere you want to try to get to?"

He looked worn out; the loss of his comrade had taken its toll on him. Wiping the dust
and grease from his helmet, his face was set hard, trying not to show any emotion.

"Back on my ship I have a number of weapons packed away, as well as an Auspex and
some Narthecium. If you could have those brought to me, that would be a great help. It's
the ET Skyslider, and the captain will know you represent me if you tell him the
password of Chapter Nine. Other than that, you should probably return to your
headquarters. You look like you could do with some rest."

"Thank you Inquisitor. I will do as you ask."

He put his helmet back on, and headed out. The other members of the rescue team
remained, some talking with the various members of the gang who had wandered in from
the other room. Kezia politely declined the bottle of "piss", smelling of engine cleaner,
that was offered. She did, however, accept a sandwich handed to her, hungrily digging
into it as she realised she was going to eat soon after finishing the drink she never had the
chance to finish.

Looking through the door into the other room, Kezia saw that the gang seemed to be in an
almost constant state of readiness for battle. Several were boxing, working on their hand
to hand skills, while others were servicing weapons. Yet more were simply resting, and
over in one corner, a bearded man, wild in the eyes, was preaching to his brethren, some
sitting down to listen. Kezia recognised the preaching. He was reading from the
scriptures of one of the many holy books dedicated to the Emperor. This seemed like a
logical choice, as far as gangs to buy out went. They were already bordering on being an
Imperial cult. When one of the boxers took a break and lifted a tarp to wipe his brow, the
Inquisitor's eyes widened. She couldn't be sure, but it looked a lot like the tarp was
covering an Imperial Basilisk tank.

When his speech was finished, the preacher took a seat next to Kezia.

"If you are curious, your grace, I could explain the origins of the Church of the Red
Redemption to you."
"Please do; I am interested in hearing about your faith."

---

He took a swig from a small flask of water and wiped his forehead on his red robe.

"Well, I suppose everyone else calls us the Cult of the Red Redemption. At any rate, we
come from Necromunda. It's where all the big boys are from, really. We started, oddly
enough, as a way of cleaning the scum out of the hives. Only we sort of became part of
the scum ourselves. Primarily, our job is to purge these lands of the filthy deviants and
mutants ­ the kind the Emperor himself despises. We cleanse with fire, and wipe all taint
from the Emperor's land, as our way of one day winning favour with the glorious
Emperor, perhaps enough so that He might wish to one day rise from His throne and join
us again."

"You are very religious, a good man. You seem to have strong morals and a sense of
what must be done."

"Yes, your grace-"

"Please, call me Kezia."

"Kezia... I am Derrick Yates. My parents are both officials working in administration. As
a result, well, I never had my dream. Ever since I was a little boy, I wanted to fight the
good fight for the glorious God-Emperor of Humanity! I wanted to stand with the troops
of the Imperial Guard, going from planet to planet, meeting new alien races and
exterminating them for the good of mankind!

"But alas, they forbade it. I could have been a Commissar, some say. I would have liked
to. I wanted to inspire the troops on. So, that path having been denied, I simply did the
next best thing, and fought the internal menace. I even did my own tattoo with a lighter,
some ink and a sharp nail. See?"

Pulling his robe aside, Derrick revealed the scarred flesh on his chest, a message reading
"Everybody Serves" and a crude Imperial Eagle, with wings afire. He appeared to have
the zeal and fanaticism required to be a Commissar, that was certain. He had the kind of
attitude one needed when their job was to be scarier than the things in front of the troops.

"You are serious about your faith. That is excellent. I believe you truly have what it takes,
even if you were guided to another path in life. I feel safe with you around, as though you
should be a trusted ally in this battle against corruption. The entire group here seem to
know what truly matters, and fight the good fight, even if you do so without the blessings
of the law."

"Well, even there it's a bit iffy. After all, we do have the blessings of the enforcers. They
keep us in pay, use our area as a safe house, and sometimes we even provide assistance
for raids. Last thing the fucking Goliaths expect is for us to start burning their bases down
when the law comes knocking on their door with a shotgun, right?"

---

"Hmm, in that case, perhaps I could take advantage of this situation. After all, I believe I
have access to a few recorded incidents and could probably find one nearby. If we were
to figure out which groups tend to be near the area, a raid could be performed and
prisoners could be taken. I know there would be casualties involved, but the ends would
justify the means."

"We can easily get moving. If it involves scrapping with any of the filth out there, it's
worth it all on its own merit."

"I like your style, Derrick. Let me just pull up some info and we can work out the best
course of action. I feel I need to work fast here, if someone in administration is trying to
have me killed. It would be a lot easier if I just knew who is working against me here. Oh
well, at least this way we can keep ahead of them, and maybe throw them off guard when
they discover that this wasn't just gang warfare."

Kezia had already opened her portable computer and started going through her files,
searching for reports of problems close to where they were located. Eventually, she found
one a few kilometres away in the underhive.

"That one there?" Derrick asked, "That's Vermont territory. If we go there, there'll be a
fight on our hands all right, but honestly, we still need to get them back for the number
they did on us back when we were helping House Tithe out for a bit. I don't think we'll
have a problem with burning their hidey-holes out and nabbing a few to beat the
information out of. So, when are you thinking of moving out?"

"Just as soon as I have my equipment."
"In that case, I'll get the gang together."

By the time a team was organised, Briggs had arrived again. He had returned via another
APC, just to ensure the package was delivered safely to the Inquisitor.

"Here you go, Inquisitor. If that's all, I'm going to go take that break."
"Yes, you are dismissed, Briggs. Get some rest, it will do you good."
"Yes, Inquisitor. For the Emperor!"

They saluted one another, then Briggs was gone. Kezia immediately went through the
bag of goodies, making sure she had everything. By this stage she had already holstered
the Hell pistol, so lifting the melta gun was an easy feat. It appeared to be in the same
condition she had left it in when onboard her ship, so she slung it over her shoulder. Next
was the sheathed power sword, the scabbard still attached to a belt which she put on. The
backpack was quickly donned, containing a few things, such as a single-use mini-missile
launcher. There were also a few grenades, all of which were clipped to the belt, along
with a hand-held Auspex, and finally, encased in a shock-proof container, a syringe filled
with Narthecium, the wonder drug.

---

With everything carefully stowed on her person, Kezia felt properly armed. She was no
longer left vulnerable, if she could have previously been considered such. There was a
team of five cultists, three wielding chainswords and two with flamethrowers, and a
backup crew consisting of two snipers and a couple of men with battle rifles. Derrick was
in the lead, Kezia having declined the offer to lead. She would be out there, but arriving
shortly after the main assault and before the backup. Besides, Derrick knew his own
troops better.

The enforcers decided that they had a duty to protect Kezia, however also understood the
importance of making it seem like a regular raid at first. Their plan was to arrive after the
fighting started, as though there to break it up, though in reality they'd only be breaking
the Vermont gangsters. They all loaded into their APC, ready for the signal, while the
raid team set out on foot. They would need to travel through long-unused railway tunnels
for a large part of the journey, and there was the distinct possibility of running into
mutants.


Meanwhile, in another part of the hive world, far above the surface, someone was
nervous. They were plotting against the Inquisitor, and she was not yet dead. From the
point of view of someone who had just indirectly made an attempt on her life, that was an
extremely bad thing.

"Okay, we mustn't panic. I thought that would be enough while she was relaxing. Cut the
cameras, and then attack immediately after from all sides. Apparently I put too much
faith in those men, and not enough in the security of this planet. Your men carried no ID,
right?"

"Don't worry, boss, they're blank. They won't be traced back to anyone. Look, for now,
just focus on your job. Keep things running smoothly. We'll have more time if we can get
her off-world, and I might just have the ticket for that. I'll get in contact with some
people and see what I can do. If we can at least get her to focus on something else for a
little bit, we can figure out a solution, don't you worry. Best case scenario is we kill her
while she's elsewhere."

"Okay, Rio. I'll leave this in your capable hands."
"Naturally. Look, leave it to me, and you just talk with a pleasure girl, she'll take the
stress away. Later."


The group tried to be quiet as they walked along the dark, abandoned tunnel. They didn't
need to be too quiet. Enough noises filtered through from all around that they could hold
a conversation without being likely to be heard by humans. Of course, it wasn't humans
they were concerned with being heard by at the time. Mutants of all varieties could be
found deep in the underhive. About twenty minutes into the journey, they passed a pipe
that was spraying a warm mist everywhere within ten metres. Water was trickling out,
down into the depths below. Kezia briefly wondered how much was going to waste, and

---

how much money had been wasted by such a small, forgotten problem. She made a
mental note to hold it against the planetary governor later on if she decided he really
wasn't doing a good enough job. So far, she wasn't sure. On the one hand, she had been
attacked, but on the other, it was unsuccessful. Security wasn't even his job to organise
anyway.

A constant, low moaning sound could be heard, as though the structures around them
were mourning their existence and waiting for the day that they would hold no more and
collapse. To some, who might not be used to such things, it could be considered eerie, but
the gangsters were if anything relieved for the sound constantly covering their own noises.

Eventually, they reached their destination, having encountered nothing more than a
moderately large sized insect. They didn't even need to deal with it; the bug scuttled off
quickly before it could be harmed. Sitting ahead, covered in dust from years without use,
was an old rail train, back from when there were fewer layers and such a thing was
actually convenient. Apparently, there was always a guard in the driver's cabin, it being
one of Vermont's frequent ways down into the tunnels. Derrick signalled for the team to
halt, slung the flamethrower over his back, and quietly drew a weighted knife. He then
snuck ahead, keeping low and staying in the shadows. They had to hope he wouldn't be
spotted, as stealth would play a large part to start with.

As soon as he neared the doorway, long without an actual door, Derrick simply jumped
forward, throwing the knife as soon as he could see in, not even waiting to check if there
was indeed a target. The guard took the knife to the side of his neck, grunted loudly, and
fell to his knees, blood spurting from the wound. Soon, he was gurgling, and unable to
reach for the alarm in time; Derrick had already grabbed him and twisted his neck,
snapping it. The guard died. The others were then signalled to move on ahead, and from
there, the raid officially started.

The first group rushed through to the third carriage, at which point they helped each other
jump up through the emergency escape, where they climbed onto the roof, and from there,
out of a manhole to the surface, or at least what was once the surface. There were no
civilians there; it was a wasteland filled with garbage and ruins. However as soon as they
were up, the trouble had already started. House Vermont must have been ready to go
down, or perhaps a hidden alarm had been triggered. At any rate, the assault team was
greeted by the fire of lasguns and shotguns. They scattered, and flashes of red light
flickered across the deserted road. Pellets flew through the air, tearing cover apart, and
then the cultists responded with a spray of flame.

It might have not been military grade incendiary, but it did the job admirably. The line of
fire was blocked by, well, actual fire, and tick black smoke also blocked vision and
choked airways. The welcome party scattered, and quickly the cult started torching
buildings. Next, the roar of chainswords being revved into action could be heard,
followed by the screech of them grinding through metal walls. When more of the
Vermont's started to emerge, a real firefight started. Bullets flew everywhere, though at
one entrance, none managed to emerge. They were all caught in a cone of deadly fire.

---

At the other end, however, things weren't going quite so well for the cult. One cultist
took a shot to the face and dropped, instantly killed. They all went out there
understanding that death was a reality, but it was still a blow against their morale. They
also knew they had to take survivors; the enemy only had to fight them off. Still, it was
close. The initial onslaught had been hard, and at this point, it would come down to
whether they could last long enough for either form of back-up to arrive.

And at that point it did. Just as two more foes stepped out, ready to add support and
possibly rout the remaining cultists ­ at which point only three remained ­ Kezia climbed
up and swung her melta gun into position. She aimed, and pulled the trigger.

There was no kickback, and almost no noise, just the quiet hum of the power supply, and
the click of the trigger. The air in front of the muzzle glowed bright yellow, and the target
immediately started to burn and vaporise. That was the work of the melta gun, a weapon
that was not only lethal against humans, but effective against vehicles as well. There was
a reason why melta guns were illegal for non-military personnel.

The other man almost threw up at the sight of his colleague dieing in such a way, but
spun to face his attacker, only to be grabbed and hurled to the ground by one of the other
cultists, wearing a gas mask. He was knocked out with an elbow to the back of the neck,
then restrained, while violence raged on around them. Several others were not dead, just
lying on the ground in various stages of trauma and injury. Soon, the cultists and
Inquisitor had things under control, so stormed the main building, a small housing block.

Kezia glanced at Derrick, wanting to quickly find the actual site where a group of Psykers
had been shot down amidst a Daemonic ritual. He nodded, and led her towards the back.
Already, the back-up had arrived, to keep the Vermont's reinforcements at bay.

Inside, the Inquisitor dealt with the last of their resistance, cleanly slicing a gangster in
two with her power sword, the energy-wreathed blade crackling and humming as it
glowed and pulsed with energy. The others there all surrendered, knowing when they had
truly lost, and Derrick pointed to a door which had been bolted and welded shut. It
seemed the Vermont's weren't happy with the happenings themselves.

Kezia's power sword easily sliced the door open, and she walked through. She had seen
the photographs, and was surprised to see that the corpses had in fact been removed.
There was no pile of bodies, their blood used to inscribe the strange insignia, however the
symbols themselves still remained. Likewise, hundreds of smashed bottles, and strange
powders all lay in a heap, presumably some form of sacrifice or part of a ritual. However
there wasn't much there any more, nothing that would prove an immediate hint of what to
expect, other than the main symbol itself: the Chaos god being contacted was Tzeench,
the Lord of Change.

Storming back out to where the captives were being held, she pointed her sword at one
randomly and began her questioning.

---

"What do you know about the room in there? What was it like when you took this area?"
"I- we- I don't know anything about it!"
"Wrong answer."

That one was beheaded on the spot. She spun to face another, looking angrier than she
actually was, and hoping one would at least e able to tell her something."

"How about you? What do you know about that room? Tell me something useful!"
"Okay, look, we settled in after all that. We thought it was pretty safe. The boss knew
some of the witches that were behind all that, that's why we claimed the spot after they
were waxed, right? We got here after all that!"
"Your boss, you say? Who is he? Is your boss here?"

"I am now!"

That last answer came from another doorway, where a man in a fine suit stood. At a
glance, it seemed to be nothing but silk, though when a bullet hit him in the back from
outside, it seemed clear that he had armour underneath, or that it was the expensive
armoured clothing. He held a four barrelled shotgun in his hands, and was pointing it at
the room in general.

"Nice try, getting this far and killing so many of my boys just so you could get some
information on that. Why didn't you just go ask the scum though, hey? Could have saved
a lot of trouble, really. They could give you information without you getting shot. Oh
well, too late for that now I suppose. Good bye."

However he had not seen Derrick, who was still in the other room at the time. Just as the
gun was raised and ready to fire, the would-be Commissar hurled himself out and
slammed into the boss with maximum force. He then put all of his weight behind a single
punch, hitting him in the face. The boss went out cold.

"Well, we might have someone with some info after all. Pretty lucky that the boss was
actually visiting. I mean, they have half a dozen hide-outs all over the place, it's up to the
Emperor which one he's at."

They were fortunate. It was about then that the final part of the plan went into action. The
APC came into sight, and the team of enforcers charged out. They helped to viciously
assault any remaining members of the Vermont gang, engaging in the planetary sport:
Police Brutality. The boss was then loaded into the vehicle, the others ignored, and Kezia
and Derrick joined them while the rest of the cultists torched the building and retreated.
The mission, though there were losses, could be considered a success.

---

An hour later, the boss of the Vermont gang was bound to a chair, with a pair of enforcers
keeping watch to make sure he was secure. Kezia took a seat opposite him, the traditional
"bad cop". As the "worse cop", Derrick paced in the background. Significant bruising
was forming around the side of the boss' jaw.

"Why don't we start with something simple? What can I call you?"
"Yer can call me a sack o' shit if yer want, it doesn't make much difference. But my
name is Anthony Vermont if yer have to know."

"Very well then, Anthony. Listen to me. I will ask you some more questions. The less
you lie, and the more useful information we tell you, the less we will hurt you. You might
get out of this none the worse, just thrown out to go rejoin what's left of your pathetic
gang."

"Hey, I don't want to mess with the Inquisition, I'm not stupid. What do you need to
know?"

"Well, we seem to be having a good start already. Tell me about those people you knew ­
the witches that were killed during their ritual. Tell me how you knew them, and anything
about them that might remotely interest me."

"Okay, they were originally friends of mine, back before they were ever Psykers. We'd
hang out and shoot the shit. They then went off to Solace ­ the agricultural world near
here. They were sent there to help work things and make money for the Imperium, so we
never really saw each other after that. I tell you, they were normal, everyday people,
regular as anyone else, right? But they came back, not only Psykers, but also a bit...
weird. You know, funny in the head. Strange ideas. Well, this is the end result. I tried to
distance myself when they spoke of things like the Lord of Change, and the higher truths
they claimed to have seen. I didn't want any of that, I like to keep things real, and leave
religion out of it.

"Next thing I knew, I heard they were all dead, killed in the middle of one of their weird
gatherings. Seeing as the place they were staying in was abandoned, I figured we could
make use of it after that. I made sure we stayed clear of that room, but the place hasn't
shown any psykic phenomena, no mutants crawling out, nothing. It seemed safe."

"So... You make it sound as though this happened when they were off-world. What sort
of habits did they have when they returned? What kind of psykic abilities did they
display?"

"Well, the main strange thing was they had that obsession with their Lord of Change, and
telling people about him. Also their babble about change itself, as though three guys like
them could turn the world upside down and make themselves kings or some nonsense. It
seemed like crazy talk ­ but the kind of crazy talk that gets people killed. I didn't want
any part in it.

---

Now, I can't really say much about them as Psykers. I mean, sure, they claimed to hear
whispers from beyond, and were sure they could all communicate telepathically, and I
have no reason not to believe them on that. But there was none of the big stuff, nothing
flashy. However, Trevor, he did start to show what might have been a disease, might
have been a mutation near the end there. His arms and face were sort of... I don't know
how to put it. It was like the skin was melting a little and becoming loose. It wasn't nice,
I tell you that. But many things can cause that stuff down in these parts. I didn't want to
ask, at any rate. That's all I can really tell you about that side of things. I didn't know
them as well after the move."

"Right... did they seem more agitated, more prone to violence after they returned? Or
perhaps they were detached and not completely aware of their surroundings?"

"I can't say for sure. They weren't violent, but it's possible they weren't all there.
Sometimes it seemed like someone else was doing the talking and they were just on
autopilot, but I don't want to make any assumptions about it."

"Well thank you for being so helpful. Tell me, have you heard anything else strange
about Solace?"

"I haven't heard much at all. Look, I'm not a sage or librarian, I just knew the people.
That place might just be a big farmland where a few people had an unfortunate accident
or something. Or maybe it's crawling with bug-eyed lunatics. I really don't know. You're
better off asking your own people about that, right? Why not just ask the people running
this planet if they can hook you up with information about the others in the system?"

"I might have to do that. Thank you for your help. What do you men believe should be
done with him now?"

"Well, normally there would be a lot of trouble, Inquisitor, but he seemed very helpful to
you, so maybe providing incentives by releasing him or giving him a cool-off night in the
cells would be beneficial. Of course, if we catch him in future, he may be held
accountable for his numerous crimes."

"That sounds wonderful to me. Well, don't let me keep you. I have things to arrange.
Derrick, would you be willing to assist me with this?"

"Of course, Inquisitor!"

She then left the room, allowing the enforcers to release the captive. The would-be
commissar followed close-by, honoured by his chance to really prove his loyalty to the
Emperor. Once the door was closed behind them, Kezia headed to the communications
room.

"How far can I get a message sent from here?"

---

An officer was quick to respond.

"We can get a message delivered to a satellite, and they have a communication team. I
don't know the specifics, not my field, but apparently they can get a message anywhere
from there."

"Excellent. I need to send a message to the nearest planet harbouring the Adepta
Sororitas. I wish to gain their assistance in a little job."


Far away, on Ophelia VII, it was time for Morning Prayer in one of the many cathedrals
dedicated to the Immortal God-Emperor of Humanity. Hundreds of Sisters of Battle,
Order of the Bloody Rose, were gathered. Many stood in neat formations, completely
motionless as the Canoness preached words of the Emperor. She spoke of His love for all
people, of the evils of the heretics and traitors within, of their duty as the Adepta
Sororitas. She went on to read a passage from their scriptures, highlighting the dangers of
Psykers left unwatched, witches allowed to run free in the streets.

Following that came a speech about Chaos, and how their minds must always remain
guarded against its taint, no matter how subtle or powerful it might be. Every sister stood
and listened intently, hanging on to every single word that was spoken. After a half hour
sermon, they all stood silently as they prayed to the Emperor, all asking for Him to return
to the Universe He helped found.

Finally, the prayers were over, and all that remained were confessions ­ and the penitence
that went with them. Even more so than Space Marines, the Sisters of Battle were loyal
and devoted to the Emperor. Yet they understood that perfection was unattainable, merely
a goal to strive for. Whereas the Imperial Guard had Commissars to notice and deal with
insubordination and breaches of conduct, and the civilians were policed by enforcers and
arbiters, the higher up servants of the Emperor were expected to police themselves.

A small number stepped forward as the others turned and left to eat breakfast and begin
their daily training. Aside from the Canoness and two Palatines, only Sisters Lucrecia,
Vicky and Sylvana remained. The first two looked mildly guilt-ridden, hanging their
heads ever so slightly so that they were forced to look up at the Heroines of the Adepta
Sororitas. Their shoulder-length hair, raven black and snow white respectively, gently
swept across their necks and cheeks, in the case of Sister Lucrecia, covering the tattoo on
her neck. Sylvana on the other hand looked nervous, gently biting her lip. Her wide,
ocean blue eyes looked up at the Canoness and she did all she could to stand still.

"Only three girls come forth on this day. It eases my heart to know that we yet again have
little sin amongst us, few unfaithful thoughts or actions. Still, it is with understanding that
I ask you three girls to step forward and announce your misdeeds before me, so that a
suitable penance may be determined and your souls cleared of all wrongdoing."

---

Canoness Tabitha looked stern, but was known for her fairness. She much preferred to
spread word of the love of the Emperor, and to direct anger and violence not toward her
fellow Sisters but instead toward enemies of the Imperium. However she did raise an
eyebrow at the sight of Sylvana, who was standing before her for the second time in only
one month.

Lucrecia was the first to speak. She slowly raised her head, hands folded in front of her,
and squared her shoulders.

"I, Lucrecia, have sinned against our beloved Emperor. Yesterday, I committed the sin of
Sloth, as I did not check and maintain my flamer."

"Sister Lucrecia, you should know that is a moderately serious offence. If we had been
called to arms, your weapon may have malfunctioned, endangering not only your life, but
the lives of your fellow sisters. In future, you are to make sure to clean it, without any
excuses, and to ensure this, I will designate someone to monitor you for the next few
weeks, and keep track of your maintenance. For this transgression, however, I think
twenty lashes with a plain whip should suffice. Learn to love the lash, Sister Lucrecia.
Embrace the lesson the pain brings, and know that you are still loved by the Emperor."

"Yes, Mistress. I repent in the name of the Emperor, and will strive to never again be lazy,
and to treat my weapon with the utmost respect."

Vicky was next. She cleared her throat nervously, and then stood straight. She was a little
worried, hoping she would get off easier than Lucrecia.

"I, Vicky, have sinned against our beloved Emperor. Five days ago I returned from a
small battle off-world, and had misplaced my loincloth and cape before leaving. Though I
was covered by my armour, I went to battle completely devoid of the sacred cloth, not
matching the unit and improperly dressed."

"Have you since found those items?"

"Yes, Mistress."

"Very well. Sister Vicky, you appeared unkempt on the glorious field of battle, showing
our foes that you hold little regard for decency or appearance. It may have affected the
morale of your unit, or it may have made you look disorganised and lifted the spirits of
our hated enemy. Furthermore, going out to fight without those coverings is to indecently
flaunt your body in times of war. You need to take better care not to lose these things.

I would just suggest a minor penalty of perhaps ten strokes of the cane, however it has
been five days and you have only now come forth. Therefore I will issue a penalty of two
lashes with a plain whip for each day you delayed. We will not count this day, nor the
day of arrival itself, as you should have waited until the morning after. You shall receive

---

eight lashes before your caning. Learn to love the lash, Sister Vicky. Embrace the lesson
the pain brings, and know that you are still loved by the Emperor."

"Yes, Mistress. I repent, and will do my utmost to always know where my belongings are,
to always be properly dressed on the battlefield, and to not delay, to come forth and
confess immediately."

Finally, Sylvana swallowed and looked the Canoness in the eye. She knew she was likely
to be in greater trouble due to the frequency of her visits ­ two in just one month, after all.
And her last confession before that would have only been a month or two before. In the
last Earth-year she had needed to confess no less than nine times. She stood still, her
muscles tense, and took a deep breath. It wasn't even the pain; she could handle that
easily. It was knowing she had disappointed the Canoness. She knew she had done wrong,
and was ridden with guilt.

"I, Sylvana, have sinned against our beloved Emperor. I let anger get the best of me and
harboured ill thoughts towards Sister Alecto. In my anger, while on cooking duty, I
intentionally stuffed a portion of meat with peppers and grease, putting that on her plate."

"A childish prank, I see. Anger and hatred are tools to be used against the enemy, not
against each other. We need to love and care for one another, not think ill of each other. It
saddens me to think that you thought so poorly of Sister Alecto, even though the prank
itself was harmless. There was no risk of poison, though you may have left a bad taste in
her mouth and upset her stomach. But that kind of attitude is unacceptable here.

Furthermore, when was the last time you stepped forward to confess a sin?"

"I last confessed only nineteen days ago, Mistress."

"So you are in trouble again within three weeks. Your record has not been excellent.
Though you have a pure soul and would never slip and fall to the enemy, you do lack
discipline, and you are constantly, well... childish and naughty. If you have to be
punished again any time soon, I am afraid we might need to use an electro-whip. I do not
want to have to do that to you, so I will do my best to ensure you behave from now on.

For now, you shall be punished severely. I think twenty with each of the strap, whip and
cane should serve a strong message, as well as a dose of the groove strap. Six and a dozen
should suffice. Please do not make me have to punish you so severely ever again, Sister
Sylvana. I think it might be best if you receive counselling too. Simple weekly meetings
to see how you are keeping up, and to apply mild maintenance discipline if need be.
Besides, I wonder if you will react better to having your bottom smacked like a child,
rather than harsh penance. Learn to love the lash, Sister Sylvana. Embrace the lesson the
pain brings, and know you are still loved by the Emperor."

---

"Yes, Mistress. I repent, and will do all I can to keep from sinning in any form. I will
strive to direct anger only at mutants, witches, heretics and Xenos. I will make amends
with Sister Alecto, and strive to hold only love for my fellow Sister, and all humans."

"Good girl. Now, all three of you, remove your vestments and prepare for the penance
dictated."

Quickly, all three began to strip, not embarrassed at being seen naked by one another ­ as
they had done hundreds of times before ­ but embarrassed to have earned a punishment.
First, they unclipped their capes, neatly folding them and placing them on a bench. Next,
they slid their gloves off, exposing their surprisingly soft hands. The belts and loincloths
were next to come off, followed by their boots. Just like the gloves, they had to be
unlocked from the power armour the Sisters wore. After that, they unlocked their power
armour suits and slid them open, carefully stepping out. Beneath the strong, mechanical
armour, they were almost naked, wearing only simple undergarments which were also
stripped off and placed on the bench. Finally, they all stood in a row, none with a single
stitch of clothing worn.

The two Palatines silently fetched a large frame designed to secure a human body,
placing it at the front of the large room. It was made of plasteel, with reinforced straps
made from the skin of space monsters, so that they could not break it in their struggles. It
would be important for a penitent Sister to remain relatively still, especially if barbed
whips or electro-flails were used, in which case for their own safety they would need to
stay in one place.

As Canoness Tabitha beckoned, Lucrecia stepped up to the device, and knelt. She rested
her shins on the tough padding, forcing her legs wide apart to do so, and the leather straps
were then attached, buckled up firmly. She then leaned over a thick, padded bar, placing
her upper body low and arching her back. Her shoulders rested on a pair of padded
sections, and her forearms on two more. They were also secured, as well as one belt tied
around her waist. She knew that from her position, her legs and buttocks were spread
wide enough for everything to be on display to her Sisters. However she did not have
much time to dwell on that.

Palatine Cassandra then fetched a leather whip from a cupboard, the cupboard containing
all implements of punishment. She had one of the few keys to it, mostly just for tradition,
not out of fear of Sisters stealing them. The whip she returned with was nearly four
metres long, and quite thick, though it tapered at the end. She then ran a hand over
Lucrecia's back and buttocks, feeling her skin and making sure there were no injuries or
weaknesses where the skin would easily break or allow for muscular damage. They
wanted to deliver a painful lesson, not injuries. She then took several steps back, and
drew the lash over her shoulder.

The whip cracked violently across Lucrecia's upper back. Immediately, a thin line of skin
darkened to pink and rose in a vivid weal, stretching out from her right shoulder, down to
her left ribs. Lucrecia grunted, gritting her teeth, and breathed deeply. She was given a

---

few seconds to compose herself, while Cassandra moved to a different position, and then
the second lash struck. Another pink line formed, making an "X" with the previous one
and nearly breaking the skin where they overlapped. The whip was not a flimsy, pathetic
device at all. It had to be tough to constitute punishment for a Sister of Battle.

Lucrecia still kept her nerve. Though her muscles clenched and she was breathing heavily,
she still had not cried out. After a few more seconds, the whip fell again, this time just
near the bottom of the "X", crossing over both weals a little.

That was enough to do it. Finally, the dark-haired Battle Sister cried out in pain. It was
just one shout, however, not a drawn-out scream. She could endure. She would have to
endure. The whip cracked again, landing a mere inch lower than the last. This evoked no
response, nor did the blow that hit just a little lower than that. She was a quarter of the
way through her punishment, and she knew she could make it through. At the same time,
Lucrecia was aware of the burning pain, and knew it would get worse. However she felt
relieved. The pain would last a few days, however the lesson would last forever, and her
soul would be unburdened.

Cassandra picked up her pace, suddenly striking thrice in succession. Each of the lashes
landed so close to one another, all on her lower back, that there was a little overlap;
however it looked so neat as to possibly be intentional. Overcome by the pain from the
flurry of lashes, Lucrecia cried out in agony. Her body was sweating at this point, and her
well toned muscles were completely taut.

The Palatine decided Lucrecia's back had taken enough punishment, and she moved
significantly lower, to fleshier areas that could withstand more. The whip struck the very
middle of the girl's pert buttocks, causing them to ripple slightly from the impact despite
being clenched firmly. Finally, the half-way mark was reached as the whip struck the
very tops of her thighs, just where they met the crease of her buttocks. Lucrecia again
cried out in pain, and tears started to spring to the corners of her eyes.

A full five seconds went by. Cassandra waited, and then snapped the whip only just
below the first welt on Lucrecia's bottom. Two strokes later ­ one just a bit further down
and another above the first ­ and tears ran freely down Lucrecia's cheeks, dropping in
spatters to the ground. She still tried to retain her composure, but it was difficult. Tabitha
walked over to her head and knelt down, brushing her hair aside.

"Let it out, Sister Lucrecia. You will feel a lot better after releasing everything."

The next lash of the whip struck her upper thighs, stinging the pale flesh painfully, and
still Lucrecia remained mostly quiet, letting out only a quiet grunt. She was being tough
and resilient, but it could not last forever. The next also hit her thighs, causing her to
twitch and try squirming about a little, to no avail. After a couple of seconds, the lash
returned to her bottom, hitting the under curve of her buttocks and again making them
ripple from the impact. Another hit higher up, near the top of her shapely posterior,

---

before the whip again struck the very tops of her thighs, right over a previous welt and
making it an angry red.

Lucrecia screamed in pain, her body shuddering, as the skin darkened and burned with
pain. She was given several seconds to recover, crying freely, but Cassandra then stepped
back and decided to finish the punishment. First, the whip cracked diagonally across her
backside, from upper-left to lower-right, and then, less than a second after, from lower-
left to upper-right, twice crossing over every other welt on her sore bum in another neat
"X" pattern. Lucrecia continued to cry loudly, her body shaking slightly, and was given a
minute to compose herself. When she finally settled down, the Palatines unbuckled the
belts and helped her to her feet. She sniffed, then wiped her eyes, and kissed Cassandra's
hand.

"Thank you for delivering my penance, Palatine Cassandra. Blessed be the Emperor."

She then stepped back, and as was allowed, immediately grabbed her buttocks, squeezing
them with her hands and rubbing furiously to work the pain from them. She was careful
not to scratch the welts with her nails. Vicky then swallowed and nervously stepped up to
the plate, all eyes now on her. She climbed up onto the platform, and the Palatines began
to tie her down. As with Lucrecia, her smooth, hairless mound was on display, as was her
small, puckered anus. Just as Palatine Cassandra handed the whip to Palatine Despoena
Laetimortis, Canoness Tabitha held a hand up.

"Just wait a moment. I wish to check something."

She walked up to Vicky and crouched behind her, receiving a very close-up look at the
Sister's most private places. Inhaling deeply, a familiar scent drifted to her nose, so she
inserted one finger into Vicky's damp sex. Withdrawing it, she noticed the layer of
transparent, slippery juice.

"Just as I suspected." She said, standing up again and licking her finger clean.
"You are showing signs of sexual excitement, Sister Vicky. Tell me why this is. Would
this be merely a physical reaction to the situation you are in, one that has nothing to do
with your mind?"

"No, Mistress. I... I became aroused watching Sister Lucrecia be punished. I had
indecent thoughts about her penance."

"Sister Vicky, we are not here for the fulfilment of sexual fantasies. Punishment is
serious business. You should hold only love and compassion for Sister Lucrecia, not lust
at watching her flesh be whipped. This saddens me, and I feel it is only just that you serve
an additional penance. After your first sentence has been served, you will be turned over
and receive ten strokes with the ruler on your nether-regions."

"Yes, Mistress." Vicky said quietly, deeply ashamed of her sin. Lucrecia looked
somewhat embarrassed herself, but said nothing, once again standing still.

---

Walking back to her original position, Tabitha motioned for Despoena to begin.

The first two of the eight strokes were almost identical to those received by Lucrecia,
forming an "X" on Vicky's upper back. There was a gap of a few seconds between the
lashes, and then she waited for Vicky to relax again. She then took one step back and
delivered another, this time to the girl's lower back. It was also diagonal, and as she
walked over to the other side, it confirmed Vicky's guess: the next crack of the whip
struck at an angle, forming an "X" on her lower back.

Despoena stepped back and admired her handiwork, leaving Vicky to gasp and pull at her
restraints. She wasn't as stoic as Sister Lucrecia; however she was still doing fine. The
four red weals on her back were not bleeding, merely in great pain. The Palatine then
continued.

The fifth lash struck Vicky's pale rear end, leaving a diagonal line across it. Both ladies
knew that would make the upcoming caning very painful indeed, but she kept herself
together still. Again, Despoena walked to the other side, and a red "X" of the lash was
formed on Vicky's bottom this time. At least this one did not cross over, the whip only
striking the outward mounds of her buttocks, and not sticking to the curves of her skin.
Instead, she appeared to simply have four lines, all with a gap in the middle, but it still
looked like the usual pattern.

Out of places to recreate the pattern, what with Vicky's legs being spread, Despoena
stood to the girl's side again and struck with a line to separate the two crosses on her back.
Repositioning, she waited for a few seconds and delivered the final blow, a simple crack
of the whip across Vicky's pale posterior. Vicky groaned softly from the pain, but was
not yet in tears. However her punishment was far from over. The whip handed back to
Palatine Cassandra to hold in the meantime, Palatine Despoena returned to the cupboard,
from which she fetched a long, thick, painful looking cane. It was somewhat flexible, and
very smooth, obviously sanded down to avoid the notches biting in extra deep, however it
still looked to be well preserved and as though it would be just as effective as the whip.

She swished it through the air a few times while returning to Vicky, slowing down to
build up the anticipation. She felt no penance should be completed too quickly, so took
her time. Once in place, she looked over the marked bottom, and then slid her fingers
down the crease between Vicky's buttocks, checking for where her tailbone ended.
Satisfied that she would do no damage, Despoena drew the cane into the air behind her.

With a strong swing, and a flick of her wrist, the cane cracked into Vicky's backside. Her
flesh shook from the impact, and a white line was immediately visible. It then started
reddening, turning almost purple and looking worse than the welts left by the whip.
Vicky was surprised by the impact, but felt no pain until a second or two after the cane
landed. Then, it was a furious burning sensation, building up in her rump with no way to
ease the pain. And that was only the first stroke.

---

The second landed two centimetres above the first, only just missing the line left by the
whip. It did, however, clip part of the "X", and this time Vicky wailed with pain. The
other girls stared in fear and sympathy for their Sister, and Sylvana was well aware that
she would soon be next.

The third stroke hit a centimetre below the first stroke, also clipping the edges of the lines
making the cross. She now had three vivid crimson weals in addition to the red line left
by the whip, and still had seven more to go. There was a delay of a few seconds as
Palatine Despoena let the pain build up. Part of the reason for doing so was to let the
lesson sink in, the other part was so as to not overwhelm Vicky's senses. She was strict,
but not cruel.

The next stroke landed a little higher than the second, getting close to where the muscle
and fat tapered down. Much higher and she would risk striking bone, and that was
undesirable. Still, that stroke merely hit the buttocks, causing Vicky to cry openly. On
some level, she was aware that she was halfway through the caning, and drawing close to
the end of her original punishment. Five more seconds, and the cane struck lower, on the
under curve of her tightly clenched bottom. Again, her skin bounced from the impact, and
a vivid red line formed. Her backside was burning, throbbing with pain. It hadn't
previously occurred to her just how strong the Palatine was.

The next landed lower still, leaving a sixth burning red line across Vicky's exposed
posterior. All were parallel, perfectly lined up. Her skills with swords clearly had other
uses.

"You are nearly done, Sister Vicky. Just four more strokes."

Palatine Despoena held the cane in both hands and waited. She silently counted out ten
full seconds before resuming position. Suddenly she drew back and immediately
delivered a rapid stroke, aiming for the crease where thighs and buttocks joined. It was a
very tender location, and the cane hit with full force. Further still, Vicky's vulva was
protruding just a little too far in that position, and was barely clipped by the cane. Still,
she certainly noticed the stinging in her nether-regions, and cried out loudly.

After another few seconds of waiting, Despoena stepped in with full force, and swung
low, letting the cane strike the inner curve of Vicky's upper left thigh. The cracking
sound was not as loud as usual, however a brilliant red mark was still left, and Vicky
struggled against her bonds.

"Easy, Sister Vicky. Your ordeal is coming to an end."

The next stroke was swung back-handed. The cane hit the inner curve of her right thigh
this time, burning with pain. Vicky sniffed and cried some more, her face wet with tears,
and she tried to remember how many that was, nine or ten.

"Now for your last one, Sister Vicky. Be a good girl, and receive the Emperor's mercy."

---

The cane was swung one final time, striking the crease again. It half-overlapped with the
previous line, not quite touching her vulva this time, but still burning with incredible pain.
Vicky screamed and went limp, sobbing and shuddering from the pain. Sylvana
wondered how she would manage to endure.

After a minute, Vicky's bonds were undone, and she was helped to her feet. She was then
led to one of the benches, where she lay down on her back. Palatine Cassandra pulled her
arms back past her head, holding onto them just to prevent any attempts at covering
herself, while the Canoness stood over her. Grabbing her by the ankles, she then pulled
Vicky's legs up, and spread them a bit, locking the legs firmly into her armpits. This
resulted in Vicky's bottom to be sticking in the air, thrust out with her vulva facing
Despoena and slightly open. Her juices still glistened inside.

Despoena placed the cane down and solemnly approached the cupboard once more. So
many implements of punishment were being used on that day. She retrieved the thick
wooden ruler with the Imperial Eagle stamped into it, and went back to Sister Vicky,
letting the tip of it rest on her mound.

"May you remember that penance is serious business, and not be filled with lustful desire
while your Sister is serving her punishment from here on out."

She then raised the ruler up until her hand was at eye level, and quickly flicked her wrist,
swinging it down. The end of the ruler smacked loudly against Vicky's sex, right over her
slit, and left a light pink mark where it struck. It was in fact less painful than the previous
punishment, more a light reminder, something that would sting for most of the day and be
symbolic of her sins. Nevertheless, Vicky let out a quick yelp as it struck.

The ruler swung down again, accurately landing on the exact same place, and leaving it
even redder and a little puffy. Vicky yelped louder, but before she could really react, was
smacked again. This time the ruler landed a little to the left of her entrance, just hitting
her vulva. The next hit to the right, causing the entire front of her outer labia to be pink
and puffy, and red where the blows overlapped. Next, the ruler slapped down onto her
mound of Venus, eliciting another squeal. There was no pubic hair to soften the blows;
the ruler slapped against her bare skin.

After a few seconds of waiting, the Palatine smacked her again, still aiming at the soft,
fleshy mound. The whole area was quite sore by this point, stinging tremendously, and
yet Vicky still felt the need to touch herself ­ a need which of course went unfulfilled as
her arms were held securely.

Two more smacks landed, one to each side of her mound, leaving the whole area a
mixture of pink and red. The ninth landed once more over Vicky's slit, causing her to
shout out with a mixture of pleasure or pain, before Despoena called Lucrecia and
Sylvana over.

---

"Girls, please step to both sides of her, one each, and carefully take hold of her labia. Pull
it to the sides, out of the way, and don't let your fingers get caught. This will be the last
one, and it needs to be something Sister Vicky will remember for some time."

The two did as they were told, nervous and embarrassed. They carefully spread her moist
lips, revealing the soft, pink, wet inner folds, as well as pulling the hood back a little to
let Vicky's clit peek out. Vicky closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, knowing she was
about to feel a lot of pain.

With less force than before, wanting to be careful not to damage the Battle Sister, the
Palatine smacked the ruler down quickly, hitting the inner walls of her sex, and also
striking her little love button.

Despite the pain still being less than the end of the caning, it was an unfamiliar pain,
something Vicky was not used to, and she shrieked loudly. Soon, when she stopped
bucking and squirming, she was released, and gingerly got to her feet, where she wiped
her eyes and kissed Palatine Despoena's hand.

"Thank you for delivering my penance, Palatine Despoena. Blessed be the Emperor."

She then immediately rubbed her crotch with vigour, trying to ease the stinging pain
without inserting any fingers. As much as she felt the need to masturbate, it was not the
time or place. Quickly, she swapped to squeezing and rubbing her caned buttocks, hoping
for at least some small reprieve from the pain.

Sylvana took a deep breath. She knew it was her turn. She was not looking forward to her
long punishment session, especially after how Vicky reacted to a significantly lesser one.
Still, she stepped forward and approached the dreaded restraint. The Palatines were quick
to help her in place and secure her, making sure the straps were done up tightly. The
Canoness herself then took the whip and uncurled it on the cold stone floor. She looked
over Sylvana, trying to judge the best way to spread the lashes out.

She decided to get the whipping over with quickly. She was accurate enough to be able to
be fast, and quickly delivered three crosses on Sylvana's back ­ upper, mid and lower
respectively. She then placed a line across the middle of each cross, sparing barely a
second between lashes. Finally, she struck again, landing on untouched flesh between
two crosses. Ten pink-red weals formed a pattern on the girl's skin, and she was
shuddering and gasping, not expecting such a rapid assault so soon.

"Sister Sylvana, your back has been punished enough, and I wish to spare your bottom
for the strap and cane. You will be turned over so that your front is facing up. That way,
your stomach, loins and breasts will feel the kiss of the lash."

Sylvana nodded, her chestnut hair flapping about with her head bowed, and let the
Palatines reposition her. She ended up bent backwards a little uncomfortably, but looked

---

forward with determination and nodded, accepting the discipline and knowing that the
Canoness loved her as much as the Emperor himself did.

This time the lashes were slower and more evenly drawn out. After each blow of the
whip, there was a delay of a few seconds. Six lashes fell across Sylvana's flat, athletic
tummy, leaving painful welts, and then another two a little lower, striking her pubic
mound. These all elicited gasps and grunts of pain, but she felt as though she could still
get through, and held ye contact with the Canoness, who gave the briefest hint of a smile.
That one small facial movement conveyed a lot of compassion.

However, despite the compassion, she had a job to do. The next time, the whip landed
across Sylvana's breasts, stinging them fiercely. She shouted with pain, her chest not
used to such impact. The next also hit her breasts, mercifully not crossing over, but still
causing them to bounce and jiggle from the force of the impact. The Canoness then
returned the whip to its rightful place, and fetched the cane.

"Very good, Sister Sylvana. You have made it through the first part of your penance. I
hope you are learning your lesson from this."

She then pressed the rod against Sylvana's buttocks, tapped a couple of times, and then
raised it above her head. She paused for a moment, and swung firmly. There was a loud
swish, followed by a crack like a gunshot as it struck her previously unmarked, lightly
tanned bottom. Her finely shaped posterior bounced from the impact and the white line,
followed by the deep red, started to form. A shrill grunt emitted from Sylvana's lips, but
she held her nerve. She kept her control and gasped. The burning pain was incredible, but
she was strong. All Sisters of Battle were.

One stroke down; only nineteen more to go.

The burning line across the centre of her bottom throbbed painfully, and served as a guide
for the rest of the strokes. Sylvana guessed what the pattern would be to start with. After
a full ten seconds, the cane landed a single centimetre above the first stroke. She gasped,
and wondered if the skin would bruise afterwards. She hoped not. She thought the current
pain she could manage, releasing endorphins, and her bottom would look hurt yet
attractive. Bruises, on the other hand, were ugly, and their deep aching pain would just
hinder her.

Ten more seconds passed, and the third stroke landed, this time just below the first. Three
red parallel lines had formed, all close together, and stinging constantly. Still, Sylvana
remained calm. She breathed heavily through her mouth, amazed at the agony she was
enduring all over her body. The usual delay followed, allowing the pain to build up and
peak, followed by another loud crack that echoed through the whole cathedral. The cane
struck higher than the second stroke, causing her buttocks to twitch and throb.

Internally, Sylvana counted to ten, knowing the Canoness was doing exactly the same. As
soon as the tenth second passed, the cane struck once more, hitting lower than the third

---

stroke. She was only a quarter of the way through her caning, and would still have to
endure the strap afterwards. It would be difficult indeed, but she knew she would
somehow manage.

While counting, Tabitha reached out and felt around, finding Sylvana's tailbone and
judging whether another stroke could be delivered higher up. Judging it a little too close,
she instead aimed carefully between the second and fourth strokes, knowing they would
almost overlap if she was careful, and would overlap if she wasn't ­ either way, it was
supposed to be a punishment. At the end of the wait, she struck again, and her aim was
perfect. The three welts there seemed to meld into one, without actually crossing over.

Sylvana was barely in a position to admire the precision, though the other two Sisters
were quite impressed. She was too busy focusing on the pain, and couldn't see her own
backside anyway. She continued to gasp and pant, wondering when the pain would end,
but at the end of the usual count, the cane struck the under curve of her backside. Once
again, her buttocks jiggled enticingly from the impact.

The next stroke was lower still, nearly hitting that sensitive crease the others had all
suffered blows to. Her ass was nearly as red as it was white, covered in neat lines, and
burned with agony. Ten seconds later, the cane struck once more, diagonally this time,
and neatly connected every previous welt like a fence. Where it crossed over, there were
purple dots, and the pain flared up immensely. Finally, Sylvana screamed out in pain.

Even while crying, she still knew what was coming. She counted the seconds, took a deep
breath and gritted her teeth, waiting for the impact. The next blow landed, forming a
cross with the previous one and overlapping points of all the previous welts as well. She
continued to cry out loudly, well into the tenth stroke which landed right across that
sensitive sit-spot.

Canoness Tabitha looked down at the target. Sylvana's bottom was a blaze of red welts.
Her thighs, however, remained untouched, so she moved down to target those. After all,
she was only halfway through the caning. She would need to find as much flesh as
possible so as to not strike the same area too much.

Sylvana started breathing normally again, calming down, and Tabitha was truly
impressed. Here she was, taking the harshest punishment, and she was determined to take
the entire thing with grace and dignity. Still, she kept counting until she reached the ten
second mark, and then let the cane fall, striking the backs of both thighs, fairly high up.
Sylvana gave only a small yelp in response.

Tabitha longed to lecture Sylvana; she felt it would do her good. Still, she kept quiet. It
was more appropriate for her to not speak. Instead, she paced for the ten seconds, and
struck again. The cane hit two centimetres below the previous stroke, creating another
deep red line on her tender thighs. Another yelp, another sudden tensing of the muscles
before going limp again and regaining her composure.

---

Tabitha lined up her next stroke. She aimed a little below the last, and tapped the cane
against Sylvana's thighs a few times, counting out the seconds in her head. At the end,
she suddenly drew it back and swung with full strength, again letting the loud crack echo
through the halls.

We're nearly there, she thought to herself, just seven more strokes to go.

The next hit Sylvana's left inner thigh, fairly high up. It didn't quite line up with any on
the back of her thighs, instead being somewhere between the lowest two. Again, there
was a loud squeal, and then the soft sound of crying. Perhaps she had finally broken ­
although she had recovered quickly before. She was strong; there was no doubt about that.

The next stroke came whistling down and hit a little higher this time, almost in line with
the top welt on the back of her thigh. The burning pain was incredible, but still she didn't
struggle and try to escape, merely cry from the sensation. After another ten seconds, the
third came, swung at a difficult angle, and struck right at the very top, almost in the groin.
If the stroke had been just a little more to the right, it would have hit Sylvana's vulva, but
instead it reached the very top of her inner thigh, only reachable due to how her legs were
spread by the device, and barely grazed her outer labia on the way. This caused her to let
out a short shriek.

As she counted, the Canoness slowly walked to the other side. Despite her whimpering
and sniffling, Sylvana was aware of it, and knew what was going to happen. There was a
pattern, a method to the way the Heroines delivered discipline. The next three strokes of
the cane mirrored the last three precisely, down to their alignment with the existing welts,
and the stroke to the very top of the thigh, grazing her vulva. All that was left was a
single stroke.

The Canoness tapped the cane a few times, right at the top of the thighs, at the sit spot.
Sylvana winced every time it touched her existing welt there, gasping at the pain. She let
out a quiet whimper, but knew there was nothing she could do to avoid it.

The cane struck. Sylvana shrieked in pain, and the red line darkened to an angry purple.
The other two girls winced at the very sight of it, and Sylvana cried real tears of
repentance as well as agony. She was sorry. However her punishment was not over, and
she knew it. She had a long way to go.


Back on SNR-089914327 Flux, Kezia and Derrick were once again travelling together
via APC, complete with a heavily armed escort. The vehicle pulled in as close as it could,
and they all stormed the building, making their way to the space port. However it didn't
take long for security guards ­ more enforcers and an arbiter ­ to head them off and wait,
all pointing weapons at the group.

"We carry orders from the Adviser to halt the intruders. Identify yourselves!"

---

Kezia was suspicious. Surely it was clear who they were, at this stage. Still, she decided
to give them a single chance to move.

"I am Inquisitor Kezia, here is my identification. Stop impeding Imperial justice
immediately!"

At that, the mere sight of her insignia was enough to make the security guards stand aside,
apologising profusely. In the end, they were a mere delay. If the advisor has sought to
gain anything from that action, it seemed to fail.

It didn't take long for the pair to board the ET Skyslider, already ordering everyone to
prepare for launch. The captain was pleased beyond words to see the Inquisitor back
safely, and as the hatch opened, he was already readying the engine for lift-off. The
enforcers merely stood on the other side of the door, making sure no-one would enter and
interfere.

One minute later, they had blasted off, piercing the smoke and cloud barrier and
beginning to escape the planet's atmosphere and gravity.


Sylvana had nearly had a minute to rest, still in position. The Canoness had returned the
cane and retrieved a single tailed, thick leather belt. One end was thin and looped for ease
of grip, but the other showed no signs of such comfort ­ it was all business. Half a metre
in length, it was still less intimidating than the cane or whip, except for the fact that it
would be landing on places already kissed by the above.

When Tabitha decided the delay had been long enough, she brought the strap down hard.
There was a tremendous slapping sound, and Sylvana's beautiful ass cheeks flattened
from the impact. An inch wide strip of flesh slowly turned pink where it wasn't already
red from the cane. She had started at the stop of Sylvana's bottom this time, and started
counting down.

The Battle Sister counted too, breathing deeply and trying to filter out the pain, instead
focusing on actually being sorry. She thought of forgiveness and redemption, and prayed
to the Emperor for guidance in actually doing the right thing and not being so impulsive.
She knew she'd need assistance, and that it would be hard, but it was a goal she wanted to
achieve. She would succeed.

Partway through her thought process, she was reminded that she had been counting. The
strap crashed into her rear end again, just below the first, and causing her buttocks to
quiver from the incredible force put behind the blow. She gasped, managing to not yet be
in tears again.

The strapping continued, ten seconds between each strike. After a total of five, her
bottom was entirely covered in pink, except for the red weals left by the cane. Not a spot
of her skin remained the same light tan as there was before. Sylvana wondered if the

---

Canoness would strike the sit-spot and continue down to her thighs, or if she would go
down over her bottom again, or cross over.

Tabitha aimed down. One hard blow of the belt slapped against the back of her left thigh,
covering two of the cane welts. Sylvana cried out at the pain, her voice breaking halfway
through. Once more she had been brought to tears. The next hit just a little lower, going
over the remaining stroke of the cane, but mostly covering untouched flesh. The next two
mirrored those, and she was thankful for that pain to be over.

However, her thighs weren't left alone. The next struck her inner right thigh, lining up
with ­ and slightly overlapping ­ the lower of the smacks to the back of her thigh. The
next was just that little higher, and even as Tabitha paced to the other side, she knew
what to expect. The process was, of course, repeated.

Her buttocks and thighs burning, Sylvana continued to cry, though she hadn't completely
lost control. It hurt, but pain was something she knew she could deal with ­ otherwise she
could hardly call herself one of the proud warriors of the Imperium. How could someone
serve the Emperor if they were afraid of a little pain? Even the next blow, hitting her sit
spot over both cane marks, she could manage. Yes, it was excruciating, but she knew she
had to ignore it.

Taking deep breaths, she tried to recall how man she had already received. She had ten
seconds, knowing Tabitha's approach. She recalled the five to her bottom, the one to her
sit spot, and four to each thigh. Fourteen total, only six left. She waited, wondering where
the next would hit, and unsure of how long to go.

SMACK! The strap hit again, starting back up the top. The wide band of pink darkened
dramatically. The Canoness was stronger than nearly any regular human, and when
imbued with the burning flames of faith in the Emperor, would be a match for a Space
Marine! Luckily, she was not utilising that sort of strength, but still, the pain was quite
intense. She slowly worked her way back down; covering all five original stripes, until
only one remained. By this stage, Sylvana had almost recovered again; such was her faith
in the Emperor.

"This is the last one, Sylvana."

The strap hit again, right across the middle of her bottom. That was it, done, she had
weathered it and the punishment to her buttocks and thighs was over. There was only one
thing remaining, and then she would be able to return to her daily schedule. Of course,
that one thing was hardly a trifling matter. The groove strap was a fierce, painful device
designed for smacking the most sensitive, delicate areas. Tabitha gave Sylvana a brief
respite as she returned the regular strap to fetch it. There was a handle made from a loop
of the leather, clipped together by a gold emblem of the Imperial eagle. From there, there
was a thin strip of treated leather, thirty centimetres long.

---

"Palatine Cassandra, Palatine Despoena, please stand at either side and hold her buttocks
wide apart so that I may accurately finish Sister Sylvana's penance. This will be a lesson
remembered for a very long time, I am sure."

The two Palatines did as they were told, flanking Sylvana. Trying not to be too firm, they
carefully took hold of her swollen ass cheeks and pulled them to the sides. Though it was
visible before, her small, pale brown anus was then exposed and vulnerable. She twitched
slightly, causing her pucker to clench a little. The Canoness waited a little longer,
standing right behind her, and then lashed the groove strap down across the smooth,
sensitive rosebud.

Sylvana had settled down. She had previously managed, but despite the minor soothing
of her sore cheeks, the screamed when the thin leather struck her ring. She clenched right
up, and the Palatines had to hold on more firmly. Tabitha waited still, expecting her to
relax and loosen up by herself. While she did, she looked at the thin pink line running
down the middle of the discoloured area. She knew it was painful. She wasn't about to
tell either of the girls there, but when she was a regular soldier for the Adepta Sororitas,
she had been quite troublesome herself during the first year. She had felt the touch of the
groove strap on one occasion, but had changed. She grew up, and she knew Sylvana
would be able to do so as well.

Tabitha watched carefully. She didn't want to hurt Sylvana too much. She knew she had
to be careful so as to not cross over too much. It required better accuracy than the caning
and strapping did. She struck again. With another snapping sound, and another scream,
the groove strap left another line, close to the first but to the left. Once again, Sylvana
instinctively clenched, and the Canoness waited patiently. She wondered how the girl
would fare in her regular training, but knew she had a tough spirit and would manage.
She hit for the third time, this time a little to the right. She knew she couldn't get by
without some overlap, but did her best.

Screaming and crying, Sylvana still managed to eventually relax, though her back door
kept twitching as a result of the stinging pain. The other two Sisters were pale in the face,
and felt incredibly fortunate that they had not earned such a severe punishment as her.
When the fourth blow landed, it clipped the first, though was mostly unmarked skin.

The Canoness glanced at the floor. There was a wet patch from the tears, but she had to
harden her heart. Ten seconds later, she swished the groove strap down again, slashing
across all of the others. She tried to ignore the wailing, and instead just silently counted to
ten, before striking once more. She then took a glance at Sylvana's sore, pink-red,
stinging rosebud. Her face remained expressionless, but she did feel sympathy.
Nonetheless, she had a duty to perform. She had declared the sentence, and Sylvana was
handling it as well as could be expected.

"That was the six... now the first half of the twelve will be on the back side."

---

Sylvana sobbed and sniffed a bit, but nodded. The two Palatines kept holding on, helping
keep the target clear and exposed. Sylvana's vulva had parted slightly due to the way she
was spread out, so Tabitha aimed very clearly. At least, she thought, she had an easier
target and less chance of overlapping welts.

Looking down carefully, the Canoness slowly drew her arm back. She took aim, then let
fly. The small lash struck the outer edge of Sylvana's left lower lip. As the stinging pink
line formed, she reminded herself that it looked worse than it really was, that the
protective outer labia was not nearly as sensitive as the target she had previously
assaulted. Her next stroke, ten seconds later, hit closer to the centre, but still just on the
vulva, not going inside.

Sylvana was also beginning to realise that the pain was not as bad as she had expected.
She was being punished on new, untouched skin, and it was not as sensitive on the
outside, stinging but not unbearable. She decided she had the strength to last through the
whole thing without a problem, as long as she didn't receive any on the inside like Vicky
did. The next hit her on the right side, again towards the outer edge. She counted down,
and reliably, the next to be hit was closer to the middle. That just left two more.

The groove strap was swung diagonally. Despite the awkward angle, the Canoness was
accurate, and it fell across all four previous welts, also barely stinging her inner labia.
Caught off guard, and surprised by the sudden pain to her inner lips, Sylvana cried out.
And yet it still wasn't as bad as it could have been. She simply took a deep breath and
waited for the next. It came soon enough, hitting diagonally across the opposite way and
once again stinging her inside.

"There. The first half is complete. With your penance almost at an end, all that remains is
for you to take the position Sister Vicky took previously."

The two Palatines were quick to release Sylvana, letting her rub her arms and legs briefly
before guiding her to the bench. Sylvana took the opportunity to look at the faces of her
companions, and saw the looks of sympathy on their faces. Vicky certainly wasn't
excited any more, at least.

Sylvana was careful as she moved onto the bench. She made sure not to let her throbbing,
swollen buttocks touch the hard wood, and cooperated with the Palatines holding her
hands and legs. Just like Vicky, she was positioned with her bottom pointing up and her
legs spread, fully exposed. Her little anus and slightly open sex were pointed right at
Tabitha, and she took a good look at the damage, knowing that in less than a week, it
would all be healed up. She loved her girls, and looked after them.

However, to take care of them, she did indeed have to dispense discipline from time to
time. She swung the strap down, letting it land just to the left of Sylvana's slit, more or
less lining up with a previous blow from the first six. Sylvana squealed a little, but didn't
react too badly. Indeed, she didn't even make a noise when the next three lined up with
the others as well, leaving four vertical lines running down parallel with her slit.

---

For the last two, the Canoness paused. She briefly considered asking the other two girls
to hold Sylvana open, forcing them to participate so that they would understand the
consequences fully, as well as leaving a lasting lesson on her. But in the end, she decided
it was not necessary. She instead struck diagonally across, then ten seconds later,
completed the cross with another diagonal. The punishment was over. The Palatines
released Sylvana and she slowly got to her feet. Instead of kissing, Tabitha's hand, she
hugged her tightly.

"Thank you for delivering my penance, Canoness Tabitha. Blessed be the Emperor."

"Blessed be the Emperor, my child. You did well. Now, all three of you, get your clothes
and armour back on and go out to morning training. I don't want to have to discipline any
of you again for quite some time."

She gave a pair of gentle (yet painful, in the circumstances) pats to Sylvana's bottom, and
kissed her forehead, smiling. Sylvana nodded, and rushed over to her clothes. The others
were already dressing, and she hissed in pain as the cotton underwear brushed over the
marks on her bottom and mound. Soon enough, the three girls were running out of the
cathedral to join their Sisters.

Another Palatine entered.

"Canoness Tabitha, we have a message. There is a request for assistance from an
Inquisitor of the Ordo Hereticus."


"So, mister Vermont. Did you give her the information as we asked?"
"Yes, mister Rio, it's all in place. I think she might have taken the bait, and might even
be flying off out of here. How did you know she'd be hitting us, anyway?"
"It was simply closest to us. It made sense that she'd start there, at that site, though it was
sooner than I thought. That Inquisitor likes to move fast, so chances are she's already off-
world. Now all I need to do is get rid of that meddlesome man who's preventing my boss
from running this place properly. We've tried just keeping him in the dark, but he's
outlived his welcome..."


Back on Ophelia IV, the Sisters of Battle were engaged in their training. Some took to
long-distance jogging (in and out of their armour). Some worked on weight-lifting to
improve their strength. There was also a shooting range in use, and duelling going on. In
short, they could work on their skills and physical, athletic abilities.

Part of Sylvana considered working on her accuracy, but she knew it would be a cop-out.
It would not require much movement at all, so she wouldn't be aggravating her sore,
spanked flesh. Instead, she decided to head over to the garden where some of her Sisters
were wrestling. Although she would be roughly manhandled, at least she would be able to

---

take the power armour off and have some cool air to sooth her. Indeed, given the usual
choice of clothing used in their wrestling, she would be able to lose the irritating cotton
and have nothing between her skin and the air.

"Sylvana, you want to join?" Sister Atraxia asked with a grin, holding Sister Serenity's
legs and pulling them back to put pressure on her spine. Serenity struggled, trying to twist
her body to relieve the pressure and throw Atraxia to the side. Eventually, she slapped the
ground three times, submitting to the superior wrestler.

"Sure, I could do with working on my grappling skills. Last time we needed to take
someone in alive I wasn't as good as I could have been."

"Well, get your gear off and join in! I'll teach you a move or two, and work on your
groundwork if you want."

"Thank you." Sylvana smiled, quickly removing her power armour and getting naked.
When the others saw the marks on her body, they gasped.

"By the Emperor's light, Sister Sylvana, what did you do to earn that? Turn around, let
me see your back and arse."

Sylvana did as they asked, showing the whip marks on her back, and the results of the
cane and strap on her bottom and thighs. She even bent over and spread her cheeks to
show the marks of the groove strap.

"This is sort of why I want to wrestle, to get some air on me, without getting off too easy.
I do need it to keep hurting, but I could also do with the fresh air. And I played a bit of a
prank on someone I was angry with, but had been in trouble far too much lately. Still, all
is forgiven now, and the Emperor will help me improve my behaviour."

"Well in that case, get over here and I'll see where you could do with some improvement,
skill-wise."

Serenity stepped aside, letting Sylvana take on Atraxia. As soon as they were instructed
to begin, Atraxia had grabbed Sylvana over one shoulder and under the other, holding her
tight and pressing their breasts together. Both spent some time repositioning, shuffling
about and adjusting their stances, trying to find the leverage to throw the other. Sylvana
attempted to place her foe in a bear-hug, but with her being grabbed, she couldn't get it
properly locked on.

A weakness was found! Just as Sylvana took another step to the side, Atraxia took that
opportunity to twist, and then throw her opponent back over her own body in a take-down
suplex. Sylvana landed on her back, the air taken out of her, but kicked up almost
immediately to avoid being pinned. She was up quickly, but so was Atraxia, and behind
her. Quickly she grabbed Sylvana from behind, getting her around the neck and

---

beginning to choke her. She knew that to cut off the breathing of an enemy was to win
the battle.

Sylvana struggled. She felt that her opponent was indeed the better wrestler, but still had
to continue. She could just breathe, by holding her head at an angle, and then jumped,
swinging her body up. She couldn't get all the way over, merely turning upside down, but
it helped to relieve the pressure and gave her momentum swinging back. Her posterior
rammed into the stomach of Atraxia, hurting them both equally. Atraxia lost just enough
grip for Sylvana to get an arm up, breaking the hold, then grabbed her attacker's neck and
dived to the ground, bringing her down in a Diamond Cutter. Both hit the ground and
bounced.

Slowly, they got to their feet. Both felt their adrenaline pumping, and were ready for
more, even though Sylvana's skin was burning in places. They eyed each other off
carefully, and then pounced. Atraxia was just that bit faster, spearing Sylvana to the
ground, As soon as they connected with the grass, she flipped over and grabbed one of
Sylvana's arms, quickly wrapping her legs around it ­ and the girl's neck. She locked
them tightly, and felt that victory was assured. She had a triangle choke hold locked on,
and few could actually escape that hold reliably.

Sylvana tapped out. She knew she was outclassed, no matter how determined to win. Still,
she had lasted some time, and escaped a few holds. At least she had done that well.
Atraxia quickly released her.

"Well, you're not bad. You could beat any Imperial Guard without your suit, that's for
sure. But you're still no match for me. Don't feel bad though, it's my area of specialty.
The Emperor gifted me with the ability to grapple and wrestle better than most, and as
such my other skills aren't as spectacular. But I can still teach you a few things, come
on..."


Within half an hour of the training beginning, there was an interruption. Palatine
Cassandra approached, and waited patiently for a demonstration to finish.

"Sister Atraxia, there is a quest to be fulfilled. An Inquisitor has requested a unit of
Adepta Sororitas to assist her in digging up the cause of witches and heresy within a
planetary system. I am thinking of sending your unit. You are all experienced warriors,
and know how to act. How soon do you think you could assemble your unit, ready for
action?"

"If you give me an hour, we should certainly be ready, Palatine Cassandra. It is an honour
to serve the Emperor by joining with an Inquisitor on a holy quest. Although, that being
said, Sister Elena is still undergoing surgery to repair her knee. We would be down one."

"Palatine Cassandra!" Sylvana blurted, dropping to her knees and taking one of the
Palatine's hands, grasping it tightly. "Please allow me to join the unit on this quest! I

---

need to redeem myself, I need to put my life on the line and actively do something in the
Emperor's name. If I could go with them, relieving Sister Elena while she recovers, I
could make up for my wrongdoings by helping my fellow Sisters!"

Cassandra looked into Sylvana's pleading eyes. She could see it would do the girl a lot of
good to join the unit for the quest.

"Let me speak with your unit leader, and with the Canoness. However it will likely be
approved. I want everyone suited up and in front of the cathedral within the hour."


Eventually, ten ladies clad in gleaming power armour stood in formation. Sylvana wasn't
as well trained as the others, but she was certainly skilled enough to be among them.
They didn't have long to wait, as the Palatine approached.

"Well, it has been approved. You have a full unit, and Sister Sylvana will be able to feel
relieved at having redeemed herself, even though the Emperor has already forgiven all. I
will pray for your safety, and expect to see you all again when the mission is complete.
Please do your best for the Inquisitor, and make her proud of the Adepta Sororitas! Now,
the ship is ready, go ahead and board it. I have a few additional supplies and weapons
packed. May the Emperor watch over you all, and protect you with his blessings."

"We will return safely, I promise. Blessed be the God-Emperor of Humanity."

Atraxia led her unit to the ship, but just as Sylvana followed, Cassandra motioned for her
to stay behind for just a moment. She pulled out a sealed envelope.

"Please hand this to the Inquisitor for me. It is just to ask her to keep an eye on you,
particularly your emotions, and to help harvest your love for your allies and your hatred
for our enemies. May the Emperor bless you, Sister Sylvana."

She then hugged the Battle Sister, and sent her on her way.

"Thank you, Palatine Cassandra!"

Sylvana hurried to catch up with the others and board the vessel that was ready to blast
off into space and join the Inquisitor in her holy quest against heresy.


The trip didn't take long at all. Kezia instructed the pilot to land on one of the
uninhabited moons, and to wait there until they received assistance from the Sisters of
Battle. Of course, seeing as the Adepta Sororitas were located some distance away, she
had a while to wait. The Inquisitor whittled the time away by looking through
information on the planet. There unfortunately wasn't much to go by. It seemed as though
it was a fairly ordinary planet, not very noteworthy.

---

Particularly, there was no information suggesting abnormal levels of Psykic activity, nor
were there reports of heresy or mutations. It seemed to be fairly quiet and peaceful, not
the type of place that would cause the problems that had been occurring back on SNR-
089914327 Flux.

Derrick was passing time by praying, mostly. He also spent time lifting weights,
seemingly preparing for whatever battles might lie ahead. He was focused and
determined, even though they had no idea what to really expect on the planet. Kezia did
keep herself in shape, but didn't focus as much as the would-be Commissar. Mostly, she
just wanted to know what they would be facing, and what would happen once they were
there.

Several hours later, they received the signal that the Sisters of Battle would be joining
them soon. Kezia took that as notification to prepare herself. She informed the captain to
get ready to land, and headed to the shower, wanting to make a good first impression.
The Adepta Sororitas put their lives on the line to exterminate enemies of the Emperor, so
she had a lot more respect for them than for the governor of a planet. She wanted to make
sure they would be pleased with her appearance and her efforts, that they would enjoy
working with her and following her goals.

By the time she had finished showering and dressed herself in her new, clean clothes and
armour, they were soon going to land. Kezia sat down and strapped herself in, playing it
safe for the landing, though it was relatively smooth. When the engines cooled and the
captain gave the all-clear to disembark, she collected the gear she would be taking with
her and headed out, knocking once on Derrick's door as she went.

Heading down the ramp, the two saw that it was indeed a productive agricultural world.
For kilometres in every direction, there were enormous fields irrigated with water tubes
and with mechanical harvesters slowly sliding along and collecting vegetation. It didn't
even seem as though people lived in the area, though Kezia knew there had to be humans
in control of the machines. The vessel carrying the Sisters of Battle had landed only a few
hundred metres away, and the door slid open once the Inquisitor and her cohort were
safely on the ground. A ramp lowered itself to the ground, and then the Daughters of the
Emperor, led by Sister Atraxia, descended, looking serious and professional.

They gathered in formation, facing the Inquisitor, and Atraxia stepped forward and knelt
on one knee.

"Blessed be the Immortal God-Emperor of Humanity, my Lady. I am Sister Atraxia, and
this unit of Adepta Sororitas is at your disposal until you see fit to relieve us of our duty
and send us home."

"Blessed be the Emperor, Sister Atraxia. Please rise and introduce your unit to me. It will
help if we get to know each other well enough to not get confused in the middle of battle.
My name is Kezia Mordecai, and the gentleman with me is Derrick, a member of the Cult
of the Red Redemption."

---

"As you wish, my Lady."

She introduced the entire team by name, every member bowing her head when mentioned,
and told Kezia of their individual skills, finally getting to their stand-in member.

"This is Sister Sylvana, a member of another unit, however she is replacing one of our
own, who is recovering from a serious injury. I can vouch for her prowess and dedication,
however, as well as her loyalty to her friends and the Emperor."

"I trust your word, Sister Atraxia. It seems we have a fine team assembled here. The
Daughters of the Emperor truly are impressive to behold, and I have heard the tales of
your effectiveness. I only hope I can prove myself worthy of your assistance in this
matter. Now, the basic plan is this: We need to scour the populated areas and weed out
whatever signs we can of there being witches and mutants. Additionally, I have
information on a few people, and we need to question people about them and see if they
can be identified. We may be able to locate the source of the trouble ­ if I am acting on
correct information to begin with."

"My Lady?"

"Yes, Sister... Sylvana?"

"Before we begin, I was told by Palatine Cassandra to deliver this message to you. I
believe it is advice."

"Thank you, Sister Sylvana."

The Inquisitor opened the envelope, breaking the seal in the process, and read the letter
silently, not wishing to make the information public.

Dear Inquisitor Mordecai
Blessed be the Immortal God-Emperor of Humanity, Saviour of Mankind

While I give you my full blessings in your quest, and provide you with these Daughters of
the Emperor in good faith that they will serve you loyally, I wish to talk to you regarding
Sister Sylvana.

She is a loyal, dedicated servant of the Emperor, and her skills and strength are not in
question. However, her attitude is a different matter. She is impulsive and tends to act on
her emotions. Additionally, she is known to be petty and childish at times, and
occasionally rude. She also needs assistance in directing her anger out at our hated
enemies, rather than thinking ill of her brethren. She would never attack one of our own,
but still needs to learn to have nothing but love for her fellow humans.

---

She has recently been severely punished for her shortcomings, and as such, we would be
grateful if you could help her develop. Please talk with her when you have the time, and
help her to grow into a true Daughter of the Emperor with no impure thoughts. It is also
advised that you keep an eye on her, help to keep her emotions under control and even
counsel her as need be. She could also benefit from more discipline, if the unit is with you
for an extended period of time, and I would recommend a long, firm, bare-bottom
smacking, however defer to your better judgement.

Wishing you the very best in your quest, and praying that the Emperor favours you,
Palatine Cassandra

Kezia raised an eyebrow, and refrained from chuckling, simply folding the letter back up
and placing it in a pouch.

"Very well, I will take that information under advisement. Palatine Cassandra seems very
thoughtful. It is good that she cares so much about you all. I feel as though the Emperor
Himself is watching us and giving us His blessings. Let's get to it. The nearest population
centre is a small town this way. We should be there within a few hours."

The entire group moved out, the Sisters insisting on surrounding Kezia so that she could
be well protected by them should any kind of danger appear. However, as it was, the long
walk was uneventful. They watched machines harvest plants, and made small talk on the
way, mostly asking about each other to get more information, as well as the Inquisitor
explaining the details of the quest so far, and where difficulty had been faced.

Eventually, they arrived at the town. The populace were a little intimidated, some even
terrified and fearing for their lives. It didn't take long for an enforcer to meet with them,
curious as to what the group could be after ­ they were, after all, mostly in power armour
and openly carrying deadly weapons.

"I am Inquisitor Kezia Mordecai, and I am here for information. I know of some people
who had spent time on this world, and need information as to where exactly they were
housed. Any assistance would be appreciated."

She then handed a folder to the enforcer, who quickly flipped through the contents.

"Well, I can safely say they haven't lived here in the past five years while I was here.
You'd be best off going to one of the cities. They actually keep records there, and should
be able to help you find where they were located. The nearest is about thirty clicks out,
but I could get a truck to send you there if you like. It'd be easier than hiking the whole
way."

"That sounds like a good idea. Thank you for your help, the sooner we can track down
their origins, the sooner we can make this place safer for the hard working citizens."

"Blessed be the Emperor, Inquisitor."

---

"Blessed be the Emperor."

Soon enough, they were all gathered in the back of a solid, heavy truck, rolling along the
bumpy road at a decent speed. They all sat down and continued to chat, moving onto
hobbies and personal interests, as well as what life was like back on their various home
worlds. It was a pleasant journey, however Kezia was restless. She didn't want to
continue to sit and do absolutely nothing. She wanted information and progress. They had
already done enough sitting around, and she just wanted to actually get somewhere with
the research, and either start investigating thoroughly or head back to start asking some
serious questions on Flux.

By the time they all arrived in the city, such as it was, the sky was beginning to darken. It
was barely a city, being comparable to 3rd Millennium Adelaide. Compared to the hive
world, it was positively spacious, and quiet as well. That did have certain benefits ­ they
would be able to keep an eye on people more easily, and notice any incoming attacks. It
did provide problems, however, in that the city council office had already closed. That
was something Kezia's rank couldn't actually overcome ­ she could demand all she liked,
but everyone had actually gone home, so short of kicking the door down and storming the
place in an effort to seize all files, they could do nothing but wait until morning.

"I can't believe this. It isn't even late, and they've already closed the office and headed
home. Well, there's no choice but to stay here the night, I guess. Sorry about the lack of
action so far, I was envisioning something a little more fast-paced, but this world is so...
quiet and peaceful. It really does feel like we're in the entirely wrong place."

"Don't worry, Inquisitor, we will just come back in the morning and get the information
then. We can have an early start, and perhaps have everything sorted by nightfall. As for
now, there isn't much we can do."

"You're right. Let's find a place to stay that is close, and just have an early night. I'll see
if I can get some local food brought up to us as well while we're at it."

It didn't take long to find a hotel that had openings. They did need to take six rooms to
accommodate the whole group, but that was easy enough. They even managed to get a
whole row of rooms, so they were all relatively close to one another. As one, they all
turned to Kezia and waited for her to decide who would be sharing with whom.

"Well, let's see. I was asked to provide counsel for Sylvana, so this could be an ideal
opportunity. Does that bother you at all, Derrick? I know it might be awkward for you as
the token male here."

"I'm fine, really. We are all faithful servants of the Emperor, nothing more. Actually, I
was speaking with Sister Elena earlier about the Church of Redemption, and she told me
some interesting things about where our faiths differ, so I wouldn't mind sharing with her
to continue the discussion."

---

"That sounds good to me, if Elena is happy with that as well. In actuality, if people
already want to form your own groups, don't let me stop you. For that matter, seeing as
it's ideal to always have someone on look-out patrol, there's nothing wrong with a
rotating system and people swapping rooms."

Soon enough, they had paired up in groups, the remaining eight Battle Sisters simply
pairing up alphabetically; such was their unity and lack of favouritism. It was not like a
high school sports team with one person exceedingly popular and one person being stuck
as the last choice. They all held equal love and value for each other, and relied on an
arbitrary system to split up.

The allocation of rooms was a lot simpler ­ Kezia simply threw one set of keys to each
pair, and that determined who had which room. It surprised her that the hotel was so old-
fashioned as to be using non-electronic locks, but she reminded herself that they were on
a simple agricultural planet, not a hive world. She would have to get used to things being
a little old-fashioned. Orders were then placed for drinks and local food to be brought up,
and they all gathered in the one room.

It was quite a nice room, with a simple entertainment package ­ radio, micro-drive player
and holo-projector. It was well-lit, and there was a little bar fridge containing the usual
selection of alcoholic beverages. In a way, it felt as though they had stepped back in time
several thousand years, but it was relaxing.

For the next hour, they all sat and talked as a team, discussing the plans as well as
continuing to get to know each other better. Kezia felt that she was getting close to the
team of Battle Sisters, and hoped their alliance would be successful, that she would be
able to request their help in future and work together.

After a hot meal consisting of various green and red vegetables and a strange, slightly
rubbery meat bathed in thick, salty gravy, the group decided to call it a night and head to
their respective rooms. Once the two were alone, Kezia took her armour off and set it
down beside the bed, sitting down and patting the spot beside her in a motion for Sylvana
to join her. The Battle Sister obeyed hurriedly, already out of her power armour and clad
only in her underwear.

"The Palatine cares about you, that is easy to tell. But she has some concerns about your
attitude and behaviour. Now, while I am a Psyker, I cannot read minds nor scan souls. So
let's do this the traditional way, and just talk. Tell me about what you think the cause of
the trouble might be, and where you find difficulty, and I'll see if I can help you out and
give you any useful advice. There was... something else she asked me to give you, but I
would rather talk first and determine whether that would be useful or necessary."

"I'm not entirely sure. I guess I just... I get very angry sometimes. And no matter what
my emotion, I just can't stop and think rationally. I just react, based on how I feel at the
time. Sometimes that's beneficial, but at other times, well, it isn't.

---

Now, I've never hated a fellow Sister or anything like that, just, sometimes I'll get angry.
Maybe it'll be at a specific Sister for a habit that just annoys me or something, or perhaps
I'm in a bad mood and just get angry at whoever is there. I think... what pushed it too far
was when I sabotaged the meal of Sister Alecto, filling a piece of meat with peppers. I
shouldn't have done that, I shouldn't have even thought like that. And if I had just
stopped and thought for a bit, I wouldn't have done so. And even after being punished, I
feel so guilty. Whenever these things happen, I keep feeling bad for so long, as though
I'm not really forgiven and need to do something to redeem myself."

Towards the end, she was practically blurting everything out, just saying everything that
was on her mind, and Kezia nodded understandingly. The girl was confused, and holding
herself to a higher standard than she needed to, and had learned that the hardest person to
gain forgiveness from is oneself.

"Well, it looks like you certainly have a good heart. You do have a lot of love in you, and
you experience emotions with great intensity ­ I think that might be part of the problem,
the fact that you feel so strongly. You need to learn to forgive yourself, I think, but at the
same time, you will need to learn a degree of self-control. But we also need to get you to
have an eternal enemy, that way there's something you can focus all thoughts of anger
towards. I'm sure the time will come."

"Thank you, Inquisitor. It's a relief to hear it from you, even if just hearing the solution
doesn't really make everything better yet. And, I think I know what she said but... what
was it that Palatine Cassandra suggested you do?"

"Well, she said you'd benefit from me smacking your bare bum quite soundly. Now, it'd
have to be one of the stranger things I've done with someone I've only just met, but I
could do so if it would help relieve your guilt and let you sleep with an easy conscience.
Why don't you get those knickers off at any rate? I noticed the painful looking marks on
your back and thighs there, so let's see what shape you're in."

Sylvana nodded and stood up, about to bare herself before another for the third time that
day. She bent over as she pulled her underwear down, with her shapely posterior pointing
straight towards the Inquisitor, who winced slightly. Even though she knew the pain was
relatively minor, not something she'd bother trying on a captive to gain information from
them, it still looked painful to her.

"It's not only on my buttocks; look here."

She then reached back and spread her cheeks, embarrassed to have a virtual stranger
examining her most intimate locations, but she knew she was safe with an Inquisitor, that
she could trust Kezia implicitly. As she exposed herself to the other woman's gaze, she
just hoped that she looked appealing.

---

"Well, that does look quite painful. You certainly did serve a thorough penance, and I
can't say I envy your position. So, it looks bad, even if it's already faded a little from the
look of things. But tell me, do you think it would do you any good if I smacked your
bottom tonight? I am leaving this decision to you. Don't force yourself. Just consider
whether it would benefit you and help you to forgive yourself, keeping in mind that you
don't want to overload with too much pain in one day, and I don't want to damage your
beautiful bottom."

Kezia gently rubbed the marked globes in front of her, a little aroused but not wanting to
say anything just yet. She was attracted to the girl she would be sharing a bed with, and
as such, felt she had to specifically not do anything improper, because to take advantage
of her position of power would be despicable.

"Yes, Inquisitor. I think it would be best that you spank me, and provide me with a little
punishment before we go to bed. It might help me sleep more easily, that way. Please
punish me and help me feel less guilty. I submit myself to you completely, just as we all
submit to the Emperor."

Sylvana then positioned herself over Kezia's lap, taking her underwear off completely
and letting it fall to the floor. She lay there, bottom pointing up into the air, and waited
for her punishment to begin, a little nervous about what was about to happen.

"Please, call me Kezia. I think, given the circumstances, we're probably on a first-name
basis. And afterwards, if you permit, I will help soothe the pain before we go to sleep."

As she spoke, the Inquisitor rubbed and massaged Sylvana's firm, muscular bottom. But
just as she finished speaking, without waiting for an answer, she struck. She wasn't as
strong as the Canoness, and she wasn't as experienced in handing out corporal
punishment either. Furthermore, her hand was a lot softer than any of the implements, but
it did still sting a little. It left just a brief, warm tingle, and with a blush, Sylvana realised
she would likely enjoy it if it didn't hurt enough.

Getting a feel for how tough the Battle Sister's buttocks were, Kezia applied a little more
force to her next smack. She then kicked up the pace, laying down a rapid, steady pattern
of slaps to the beautiful naked bottom upturned over her knee. At a rate of about three
smacks per second, she continued to fire away at Sylvana's rear end. After quite a few
spanks, her skin started to glow a touch more than they previously did, becoming a little
warmer than they were before. The marks from the strap had largely faded, leaving just a
pink sheen, but this spanking was reigniting the fire in her ass.

The Inquisitor was really getting into things. She delivered several rapid flurries, focusing
on one small area at a time, but changing targets between each group of smacks. She tried
working the skin so as to slowly change it to a delightful cherry-red hue, but it had to be
said, Sylvana was tough, and her skin wasn't going to deepen without a fight. For her part,
Sylvana could feel the heat and the stinging and tingling, but it still didn't properly hurt.
She felt as though the ritual was there, that she was at least being punished in a fashion,

---

but the fact of the matter was that she was enjoying the Inquisitor's touch. She had
already admitted to finding the Inquisitor to be more than just pretty, and was delighted at
the possibility of sharing a bed with her, but to have her rosy red ass cheeks spanked by
her, that was too much to ask for. She merely hoped that the punishment would actually
help her feel forgiven, and more at ease.

However it was about then that she realised something. Kezia realised at the same time,
as well, as she had a view of the Battle Sister's sex between her legs: Sylvana was
aroused. There was just a small amount of fluid leaking, just enough to glisten in the light,
but she could feel it, and she blushed even more.

"Sister Sylvana... I know I'm not as strong as the Palatine, so this mustn't be much of a
punishment for you; however I am trying to let it build up into something painful to help
you. You are excited though. That's nothing to be ashamed of, don't worry, but do you
want me to stop? Am I making you uncomfortable, sexually?"

"No, Miss Kezia. Please continue. Please spank my naughty bottom red-raw. I think it'll
work if you keep on going, and as for the excitement and me enjoying it, well, if I look
like I'm too aroused, just spank my crotch! That should set things right, but the truth is
that it does feel good at this stage, and you're so beautiful..."

"Thank you, Sylvana. I find you most gorgeous as well. I imagine I will be dreaming of
you tonight, should the Emperor permit."

"Thank you, Miss Kezia. You are being so good to me, helping me avoid the path of a
Sister Repentia. I must become more pious and vigilant, but I know you can help set me
on the right path, even considering my attraction to you."

"Those thoughts are not impure. Indeed, it shows that you do have love for other servants
of our beloved Emperor. I know the Daughters of the Emperor need to be pious and to
deny yourselves many things. I know you try to live humble lives, consumed only with
prayer and training, and you do not engage in most pleasures or forms of luxury in an
attempt to give back to the Emperor. But to show love and affection is to be human, and
humans are what the Emperor lives for."

As they spoke, Kezia continued to smack Sylvana's bottom. She repeatedly struck the
beautiful buttocks, occasionally stopping to squeeze and rub them, and watched with
adoration as they slowly reddened. On the part of the Battle Sister, she squirmed and
slowly kicked her feet about, providing constant glimpses of her welted rosebud and
damp sex to the Inquisitor. Her rear was beginning to hurt a little, having warmed up
considerably, and she rubbed gently against Kezia's leg.

"Good girl... I don't know how effective this is, but if we can help you feel forgiven, and
understand that the Emperor loves you, and help you to hold good feelings for other
people. The more you love and admire your fellow human, the more you will grow to
hate our enemies. Come on, good girl, there we go."

---

"Yes, Miss Kezia. Our lifestyles are not as Spartan as you imagine. We do dedicate most
of our time to our duties, engaging in training and devotion to our benevolent God-
Emperor, but we also dedicate time to contemplation of what is human, and we pursue
that. Perfection can never be achieved, but the quest to attain it is what is important, and
that is unique for every Sister. We do not keep unnecessary possessions, nor do we
engage in the dulling of the senses or any acts that could be remotely heretical.

Yet at the same time, we are allowed to pursue love, and enjoy the human pleasures of
the flesh as long as they do not interfere with anything else. I know that, and that is why I
feel so comfortable with you, an Inquisitor of the Ordo Hereticus. You know what is right,
and you can guide me. Please do so, please punish me, and then hold me and kiss me and
help lead me along the narrow path of the Emperor's light."

"Oh, I shall, Sylvana. Do not worry. I shall. Now, perhaps I should do something about
your excitement, punishing you further yet at the same time intensifying the pleasure you
feel."

Kezia licked the middle finger of her unused left hand, and placed her palm over the
Battle Sister's tailbone. She then slid the wet finger down to Sylvana's sensitive pucker,
and gently pressed against it. Though the touch stung the welts that were laid down over
the sensitive skin, and she instinctively clenched at first, she slowly accepted the digit and
relaxed, allowing the Inquisitor to press her finger inside. Once there, Kezia smiled and
began to deliver slightly lighter slaps to Sylvana's moist folds, slapping the soft, smooth
skin and working on making it a brilliant shade of pink.

"Oh! Please, Inquisitor. Please, continue to punish me and teach me a lesson. I need to
behave; I need to be a good daughter for the Emperor. Please show your love for me and
punish and pleasure me. Let me feel more pain and discomfort, even knowing the
pleasure I am receiving from you. Thank you, Kezia!"

"Yes, such a good girl, obeying the Inquisition. I'll send a glowing report back with you,
don't you worry. You'll make the Palatine so pleased with your progress, and they'll see
great improvements I'm sure! Oh, you help a weary Inquisitor feel better after a few days
of difficulty and stress. You are wonderful, dear Sister Sylvana."

Kezia slowly twisted her finger inside Sylvana's warm, tight anus, helping to stimulate
her as well as exciting the sore skin where the groove strap struck. As she does so, she
continues to slap and spank at the Battle Sister's damp, pink crotch. Every time her palm
and fingers struck, there was a satisfying wet smacking sound and her fingers came away
a little sticky. With a smile, she pressed her finger in a little further, eliciting a squeal and
causing the Emperor's Daughter to spread her legs in surprise. As her vulva parted, Kezia
took the opportunity to deliver a quick smack to her open sex, providing a mild,
pleasurable sting to her sensitive inner folds.

---

"Well, she has left the planet, and probably reached them by now. We won't have that
much time before she realises there is nothing of interest there. Also, there are reports
that another vessel, Imperial Navy, has entered the system and will be landing there. This
suggests she has back-up ­ Guard, Sisters or Marines. It's unlikely to be equipped for
Exterminatus, but still, we can't be too careful."

"It is okay, Rio, do not worry. I will have everything under control. I have some...
friends there, thanks to a good friend in the Ecclesiarchy, and they will solve everything.
If not, well, it is a simple matter to arrange for them to be destroyed before they leave. It
will be unfortunate if we need to resort to the more powerful devices, but we have the
option if necessary. Tell me, how are the plans going with that man?"

"The fool doesn't even know he's going to be dead soon. I have arranged for a gentleman
to have a meeting with him, and help him retire. Soon, you will have unrestricted control
and can do as you wish without interference. You might also want to dissolve the
council."

"Well, once I rise to power I will have them dealt with. It should be of little difficulty to
have done. For now, though, they are useful, taking care of other matters."

"I agree. Well, things look like they're going to work quite well. Shall we have a little
drink?"


Back in the hotel, while the others were chatting, sleeping and lovemaking, Kezia
continued her ministrations to the Sister of Battle lying across her lap. She pumped her
finger slowly within Sylvana's bottom, and kept spanking her on her soft, smooth,
beautiful nether lips. Sylvana was gasping and panting at this point, her love juices
smeared all over her sex and the Inquisitor's hand. Her excitement was mounting as her
privates slowly reddened, and she began to twitch, each time clenching her rear and
holding Kezia's finger in tight.

"I think you're nearly there, Sylvana dear. I think you are just about to get the release you
need. Thank you again for volunteering for this quest. It has been such a delight so far, to
have you here with me. I love smacking your bottom, turning your beautiful skin red and
feeling your warmth."

She sped up a little, spanking at a faster rhythm and twisting and turning her finger
quickly inside the Sister of Battle. Sylvana gasped and squirmed even more, whimpering
and moaning in pleasure and pain, while bucking her hips to try to reach climax. Every
now and then, her legs would part enough for her sex to open, allowing Kezia a chance to
smack her inner folds. The Inquisitor was, of course, only too happy to take advantage
every time it happened.

"Yes, please, Inquisitor, please do it..." Sylvana quietly squeaked out, frantically
squirming about and rubbing herself against Kezia's knees, filled with pleasure as the

---

finger twisted about inside her pucker and the Inquisitor's hand repeatedly slapped her
nether regions. The burning heat made her leak freely, and she panted, eyes lit up with
pleasure. After just a few more hard smacks, she began to shudder, crying out loud and
shaking uncontrollably. Kezia was alert, and very quick to react to the orgasm. As soon
as Sylvana's ring tightened around her finger, she started delivering a flurry of rapid, hard
smacks to the Battle Sister's bare vulva, making a mess with the strong scented fluid of
Sylvana's pleasure. For her part, Sylvana cried out, surprised by the sudden rush of pain,
and shivered as a wave of pleasure washed through her whole body, intensifying the pain
at the same time. Combined with the Inquisitor now pressing a thumb to the outer rim of
her rosebud and pinching her through the tender and sore skin, the two sensations
overwhelmed her and she didn't know what to think. Was she sorry? Did she feel
punished and forgiven? Was she in love? Was she merely enjoying the pleasures of the
flesh? She didn't know any of the answers, but she did know that her heart felt lighter ­
as did her head ­ and given the chance, she'd do it again.

Kezia stopped, no longer pinching or spanking, and as soon as Sylvana relaxed, she
extracted her finger. The Battle Sister gasped from the sensation, her little rosebud
continuing to twitch and spasm. She then squeezed Sylvana's buttocks and began to
massage them, noting how delightfully red they were, shining brightly like her power
armour. Every time she squeezed and rubbed those tender, hot cheeks, Sylvana let out a
quiet gasp of pain then relief, and soon she started pressing her hands into the red cheeks,
rubbing them in circles and to the sides. Each time, this provided her with another
wonderful view of everything that lay between, so she kept it up for some time, until
Sylvana seemed calm and content, almost purring and falling asleep.

"Okay, Sister Sylvana. I think it's time you stand up again. Let me kiss it all better."

The Sister of Battle slowly slid off, getting to her feet and leaving a smear of her love
juices on the Inquisitor's lap. Blushing, she then turned around so Kezia could press her
lips to each buttock, kissing her all over her sore bottom. After several kisses, she started
to slide the tip of her tongue over the cane welts, noting the heat and the almost salty taste,
the blood being so close to her skin. Several more kisses, and she decided to move on.

"Okay, now bend over, Sister Sylvana. Bend over, reach back and spread those delightful
cheeks for me."

Sylvana did as she was told, allowing Kezia to lean forward and kiss her sore little
rosebud. After a few seconds of pressing her lips there, she moved down to the reddish
pink mound of her vulva and started to cover it in kisses. She then slid her tongue over
the warm flesh, licking the sexual fluids from her. After cleaning up every last drop, her
tongue running over Sylvana's sex and inner thighs, she allowed it to slide inside,
entering the Battle Sister's tight slit and licking her sensitive inner folds.

As Kezia teased her, licking at her sex, Sylvana moaned loudly. She had of course
pleasured herself on many occasions before, and shared a bed with her fellow sisters from
time to time, however had never felt as good as she did just then. Her entire body was

---

filled with pleasure, and somewhere in the back of her mind, she was aware that the pain
she had previously felt had intensified everything and made her more aroused.
Furthermore, she felt relief. She had not only been punished, by two different women in
higher positions of power, but she had also been forgiven by the first and accepted
unconditionally and lusted after by the second. Both loved her. She knew she would be
okay, that she would not end up as a Sister Repentia, as much as she admired and
respected them.

However, the part of her mind contemplating those things was in the minority. For the
most part, she was preoccupied with the incredible sensations she was feeling,
whimpering every time Kezia's dextrous tongue slid past her clitoris and sent tingling
ecstasy through her body. The Inquisitor hadn't even been with another woman before ­
truth be known, she was a complete virgin. However, she didn't let that stop her. She
might have been inexperienced, but she let her intuition take over, playing it all by ear,
and it was working. She wanted to let the Sister of Battle feel good, so nothing would
stop her. For her part, she was incredibly damp between the legs herself. She could feel
her moisture dampening the bedsheets beneath her, and she hoped Sylvana would consent
to helping clean her up and provide her with relief. But in the meantime, she didn't worry
about that; she just continued to pleasure the Battle Sister.


A pair of people, wearing robes to conceal their identities, walked into the foyer. The
robes were plain brown, nothing showing any special identification. However, at the
receptionist's desk, the first handed a disk over. Placed into the computer, it showed a
digitally signed request to join Inquisitor Kezia Mordecai on private business. It was
requested by the Inquisitor and authorised by a member of the Ecclesiarchy, Johan Bates.
The two figures were sent upstairs, given directions.

The group were not fools, however. There was one guard actively keeping watch. Sister
Stella, standing with her back to the wall and holding a Melta gun, saw the cloaked
figures and trusted her instincts. Kezia would have said if they were expecting guests,
after all. She opened fire, the muzzle flashing white and microwaves of scorching heat
fired out. The two assassins leapt to the sides, the cloaks bursting into flames instantly.

"Everyone, we're being attacked!"

One of the assassins, clad in skin-tight black carapace armour, ducked low, then sprung
forward. She drew a pair of scything daggers as she ran, ready to kill the guard, while the
other, wearing red, kicked the door open and dived in, seeking her prey as she drew a
long, curved blade.


Kezia stopped short of actually bringing Sylvana to climax, slowing down to let the
pleasure build up and drag out in a long session of wonderful sensations, and just left her
with a warm tingle.

---

"Okay, Sylvana dear, I think..."

The two were interrupted. There was the sound of a weapon being fired, then the warning
shout. The door then shattered open, and the red-clad assassin charged in, drawing her
blade on the two naked women. She didn't bother waiting to identify her target; she leapt
in for the kill.


Mere metres away, the black-clad assassin dodged another burst of Melta fire, and
pounced at Sister Stella. Her blades scraped the power armour, spraying sparks but
actually damaging it. She was too close for Stella to bring her gun to bear, so she
delivered a solid kick, hurling the assailant towards the wall. She hit it with a solid thud,
and dropped to her knees, dazed. By this stage, the other sisters and Derrick, all in
various states of undress and wielding weapons, emerged.

The thunderous roar of a bolt pistol being fired by the only other person in power armour,
Sister Atraxia, awoke everyone in the building, and the explosions as bolter rounds hit the
walls and floor were nearly deafening. Yet still, the assassin somehow stayed out of
harm's way, taking the merest of injuries. Two Battle Sisters, completely naked, swung
their legs in strong kicks, determined to take her down, and though she twisted through
the air, the kicks were too close together, and she was clipped. Rolling on the floor, she
sprung to her feet, though not soon enough. Sister Stella pulled her rigger again, and the
assassin's hand burst into white searing flame. The leather glove melted to her flesh as
her skin bubbled, vapour rising from the injury. Her blade also liquefied, pouring all over
the blistering injury, and the death cultist shrieked in agony, somehow avoiding going
into shock. However she was then tackled to the ground by another sister and held tight,
pinned so as to be questioned after.


The assassin in red had the perfect chance for two easy kills. She swooped in, and then
flicked the sword up and across, expecting Sister Sylvana to drop dead...

But things did not go according to plan. An Inquisitor never has a weapon far from their
body, due to training in the ways of paranoia. Kezia had grabbed her sheathed power
sword and, holding it in two hands, blocked the sword. The scabbard was nicked, but the
life of her guard and lover was saved. All she had to do then was somehow draw the
sword and counter.

Sylvana provided the opportunity, repaying her Inquisitor. She drove the heel of her foot
into the assassin's face, knocking her back to the ground, stunned. Kezia quickly
capitalised, drawing her power sword and closing in. The swords met, but the assassin's
blade was no match, instantly cut in half. It didn't dissuade her though, as the stump was
still sharp enough, she darted in close, but her thrust was badly aimed due to the Battle
Sister suddenly grabbing her, forcing her to the ground and pulling both arms back. There
was an audible pop, and the assassin blacked out, her arms dislocated from their sockets.

---

Kezia, on the other hand, gasped, looking down. Had Sylvana not intervened, she might
have taken a fatal injury. As it was, she had a deep cut in her side, and blood was
trickling out. She stepped back, sheathing her sword, and clutched her side, trying to stem
the blood flow. It took her a brief moment to remember what to do, and by the time
others rushed in to make sure she was okay, she already had the syringe filled with
Narthecium. It was one of the most potent medicines known, capable of forcing the body
to rapidly accelerate all necessary healing. She jabbed herself with it.


When she came to, Kezia found herself lying, still naked, in Sylvana's arms. The freckled,
worried face of her bodyguard looked into her eyes as they slowly opened, and she
seemed to be using the Battle Sister's bosom as a pillow. The bleeding ha stopped, and all
that was left was a white scar. She had survived. Both assassins were restrained, not only
in manacles but also being held down by Sisters in full power armour.

Slowly, she sat up and pulled herself to her feet, though Sylvana was quick to assist her.
She still looked concerned, though immensely relieved to see her Inquisitor standing

"I'm so glad you're okay, Inquisitor. It didn't look fatal, but it was deep, and then you
blacked out when you injected the Narthecium..."

"It's okay, Sylvana dear. It usually happens with this drug. The body works so fast that it
over-stimulates the brain and exhausts most of the body. Passing out and sleeping is quite
normal for Narthecium. And now I have recovered, so we can question the two would-be
murderers here."

Kezia turned to look down at the assassins, their masks torn off and revealing stubborn
faces. It was possible the two captives would not talk at all.

"As you know by now, I am an Inquisitor. Whoever has sent you to kill me has made a
serious mistake. Not treason, no. Treason is not their mistake, that is their crime, and for
that there can be only one fate. But the mistake was to try to have me killed, as I have
loyal, skilled guards with me. So, why don't you tell me who sent you? A nice easy
question to start with, and for that matter, the most important one."

The assassins did not open their mouths. They sat there, glaring at Kezia and refusing to
give up the name of their customer. Kezia was not in the mood for games, however, and
didn't want a long, drawn out torture session just to discover information she hoped to
gain anyway. She put all her weight behind a punch, driving her fist into the gut of the
first, and she gasped in pain and shock. That was the opening the Inquisitor wanted, and
she jammed the pommel of her power sword into the assassin's mouth, forcing it open.

"Perhaps the right drug can loosen her lips a little and provide us with a useful answer.
Can one of you please go through the medicine box there and get the truth serum?"

---

Sister Katrina was closest, so she quickly handed the small vial over. Kezia removed the
seal, then tipped the contents down the throat of the failed killer, at which point she
started to count the seconds in her head, waiting a full minute.

"Now... I want you to listen carefully. You want to tell me the truth. The truth is good.
Silence is bad, and lying is bad too. You are afraid of lying, and telling me the truth
brings you comfort. Truth relieves your soul, and helps you be happy. So I need to hear
the truth from you. Tell me, truthfully, who sent you to try to kill me."

The death cultist's face contorted in pain and panic, and she quickly stammered out "I... I
don't know. Someone asked us through our priest, but he only handles the administration.
He filters things out and sends us the right missions, he isn't a bad man. But I don't know
who asked him."

"I need to talk to him then. Tell us who your priest is, and where I can find him."

"He's on this planet... his name is Father Ronald Stetson."

"Where on this planet is he? Tell me. I need to know this, so I can talk to him. You want
to tell me this."

"He is in the church of this city. He resides there perpetually. Please do not harm him."

"Unless it turns out he was contracted by another Inquisitor, I shall have to. Likewise,
you shall find absolution in death for your misguided actions. May the Emperor accept
your eternally repentant souls."

With that, Kezia coldly beheaded the assassin she was speaking to, with neither malice
nor mercy. She nodded, and Sister Atraxia pressed her bolt pistol against the head of the
other, right at the back where it joined the neck. She tapped the trigger once, and there
was the sound of an incredible explosion. Blood covered the floor, and the death cultists
were dead.

"It saddens me to have to do this, yet it cannot be helped. If only more people accepted
the Emperor's light, they would not bring such fates upon themselves with these actions.
Now, I think it is time to go to bed. We can have these corpses disposed of in the
morning."

The others nodded grimly and filed out, again leaving Kezia alone with Sylvana. The
Battle Sister wrapped her arms around the Inquisitor in a tight hug, running her fingers
over the back of her superior.

"I was scared, Inquisitor. I thought for a brief moment that we were going to lose you. I
could never let that happen... I love you."

---

"Don't worry. I won't die on you here. I love you too, Sylvana, even though I haven't
known you for very long. From what I can tell, you really are a sweet, devout, pious girl,
a true enemy of the heretics and traitors. Would you like to go to bed? You have
protected me, but there are other things you could do for me tonight."

"May I really pleasure you, Inquisitor?"

"Please, call me Kezia. Don't worry about my title unless I'm punishing you or if we're
out dealing with the general public. Even the rest of your squad may know our love."

"Okay... Kezia."

The two finally climbed into bed, the Inquisitor giving Sylvana one last pinch on her sore
bottom ­ which the rest of the girls and Derrick had undoubtedly seen ­ and embraced,
starting with just a gentle cuddle. Slowly, Kezia let her hands roam all over the Battle
Sister's body, feeling about and exploring, though much of it she had already seen up
close, and kissed and licked. Sylvana did the same, finally having the opportunity to
touch the naked skin of her mistress. She slid her hands over the firm globes of Kezia's
ass, giving a gentle squeeze, and then ran down her muscular thighs. Moving her hands
about, she then slid back up the fronts, and skimmed past the crotch, instead trailing
about the slender stomach.

The two women gazed lovingly into one another's eyes, and leaned in to kiss at each
other's lips. The kisses were light and soft, but even so, they still carried a lot of emotion
and fierce passion. It took all of Sylvana's restraint to not just pounce upon her Lady and
lover and take her there, but she managed, slowly reaching up to hold Kezia's breasts
while she kissed her. Kezia, for her part, was already sliding a finger inside Sylvana and
probing about, the hot, wet vaginal walls pressing down on the exploring digit.

Sylvana gasped lightly at Kezia's touch, rubbing her knees together in response to the
sensations and shivering a little. This encouraged the Inquisitor further, and she started to
pump two fingers in and out rapidly, going as deep as she possibly could. The Battle
Sister responded eagerly, finally placing one hand over Kezia's warm, wet mound. She
rubbed her palm against the Inquisitor's slit, her fingers reaching back and making the
smallest of entrances. Slowly, she slid her fingers in, curling towards her and then
brushing past the clit.

Kezia let out a sharp cry of pleasure, and then bit down on her lip. Sister Sylvana's touch
was so gentle, yet at the same time she knew just how to touch her the right way. She was
sure that she would not last long before reaching orgasm, and possibly passing out again.
She continued to rapidly pump at Sylvana's nether regions, hurrying to bring her to
orgasmic bliss, and this in turn spurred the Battle Sister into quickening, circling her
fingers around her lover's clitoris before gently holding it between thumb and forefinger,
the direct contact making the Inquisitor buck and squirm.

---

Soon, their mouths locked together in a passionate kiss, the two managed to bring each
other to climax at close to the same time. Sylvana came first, her gasps and moans
muffled by Kezia's mouth, though she bucked and squirmed with vigour and accidentally
pinched the Inquisitors clitoris firmly. That was what brought Kezia to her climax. With a
strong shudder, she gasped, breaking away from the kiss to throw her head back and
moan, and then blacked out.


Early the next morning, all were assembled in the foyer. Kezia swiped her symbol and
used that to arrange for a reimbursement ­ for the rooms, the damages and the cost of
cleaning. While she did so, Atraxia grinned at Sylvana and held up a hand. The two
engaged in a silent high-five, and a couple of the other girls slapped her on the back,
smiling. She had the honour of pleasuring an Inquisitor, one of the people with the most
influence and superiority in the entire Imperium of Humanity. It ranked right up there
with personally killing a Chaos Sorcerer or sending a daemon back to the Warp, even if it
had less military value.

"Okay team, we have a new plan. We're not going to go and check the records if we
don't have to. I say we go straight to the church and find this priest. He is now officially
under investigation for Treason. The verdict is guilty."

That announcement came as no surprise to the Adepta Sororitas. It was extremely rare for
someone to be investigated and not be found guilty, and with most Inquisitors, it meant a
death penalty just for them to turn their attention to a suspect. Besides, they saw the
attack, and they heard what the assassin said under the effects of the drug, even though it
wasn't one hundred percent reliable. They believed the priest to be guilty, and they would
not be satisfied until they saw him killed. His offence was grave indeed, and retribution
would not come lightly.

As one, the entire group of twelve marched out, into the city where a mass transport
vehicle was requisitioned. They filed in, and with little difficulty, managed to make their
way to the church. After all, the traffic was light compared to what they were used to. It
was a simple matter to just navigate along to the location indicated by the electronic
guidance system.

Once at the gates of the church, they stormed the place. Electing to deal as little structural
damage as possible, they merely ran up to the large wooden doors, and threw them open.
Fortunately, the doors were unlocked, so didn't need to be broken. A couple of young
acolytes squealed and backed away with fright at what they saw. Kezia seized one
quickly.

"You! I am Inquisitor Kezia of the Ordo Hereticus. Tell me where I can find Ronald
Stetson!"

The acolyte was pale in the face, at risk of going comatose with fear. It took him a
moment to assemble his thoughts coherently enough to answer.

---

"He... he is on the second floor, in his office. But Father Stetson is currently in
meditation and prayer! Please don't make me disturb him, I-I feel it would be a sin on my
soul to do so."

Kezia dropped him.

"We'll go see him in person. Come along, team, we need to have a word with Father
Stetson."

The acolyte watched in fear as they all marched towards the stairs. Hurrying along to the
first floor, and managing to do no more damage than leave wet footprints from the light
rain outside as they made their way to the offices. Though they knew the noise of their
movement must be disturbing all, they cared not. Eventually, they found the room
marked "Father Ronald Stetson: Senior Priest".

Kezia tried the handle. It was locked. Using all the tact and patience required, she
motioned for Sister Stella to kick the door open, which she gladly did, shattering the
entire thing. Fragments of wood littered the floor, with only small segments attached to
the hinges. Stella smiled. She often jested that her personal motto had always been "I
never do anything half-arsed. I always use my full arse, even if it means not using my
brains."

A middle-aged man who seemed to be in the process of getting up from his desk jumped
with fright, or possibly sheer abject terror, and dived to the ground, prostrating himself.
He knew who the Inquisitor was, and he also knew why she was there.

"Forgive me, Inquisitor Kezia! I did not wish to turn my hand against a member of the
Inquisition, the very people that dig out the cancerous heresy that kills from within.
Please understand that I was receiving instructions from Witch Hunter Tyrus himself! I
would never order your assassination if it did not come from another Inquisitor."

"So either you believed him, in which case you did what you believed to be right then but
are a turncoat and a coward now, or you did not believe him but elected to send people to
kill me anyway, out of fear. Which one is it? Or perhaps I should ask the real question...
if I were to send a message to Witch Hunter Tyrus, would he actually know what I was
talking about, admit to ordering my death, and openly declare me a treasonous witch? Or
would he, perhaps, be far off, doing something else, and not even know who I am? He
enjoys a lot more fame than I do, after all. So keeping in mind that I can actually get in
contact with him, and am willing to wait here for over a month should it take that long for
a reply, are you telling me the truth?"

The priest began to sweat, glancing from Kezia to Derrick to the Sisters of Battle, back to
Kezia. He knew he was trapped, and that there was no way out.

---

"Okay, the orders didn't come directly from him. I was told by someone in a planet you
were investigating that he had been instructed by Tyrus to see to it that you were killed
on charges of heresy. I swear, I was acting on good faith!"

"And yet Tyrus somehow decided he didn't have the time to perform this matter on his
own. So you were lied to, perhaps. And yet I think you knew that, but you just did what
seemed to be convenient, perhaps as a result of bribery. I'm sure I could find interesting
things if I pulled this room apart, but we could just as easily start with you. Derrick,
please hold Father Stetson down so that I may begin the careful process of exposing his
spinal cord. It's time to see if his central nervous system holds out longer than his
stubbornness."

Ronald gave a pathetic whimper, but before he could say anything more, he was already
on the ground, with both arms twisted painfully behind him. He began to plead.

"I beg of you, please have mercy! I will tell you everything I know. I'll tell you who told
me to have you killed, please, anything, just let me go!"

"Remarkable. When your lies are exposed, you quickly change your tune. You make a
rather poor leader of the people ­ as an honest priest in service to the Emperor; you are
too dishonest to begin with. As a leader of heresy and rebellions, you are too much of a
coward. Utterly pathetic. Still, go on; tell me who it was that gave the order."

The priest broke out in sweat as he committed himself to breaking the trust of those he
conspired with, fearing for his very life.

"It was a man named Rio. He is a spy who has contacts within several of the Underhive
gangs, and works strictly on the orders of the Governor."

Kezia's eyes widened a little.

"Do you mean to tell me that the Governor himself is behind this?"

"It would seem to be the case. I can't know for sure, though I'm sure Rio, a good friend
of mine, would not just have this arranged without the instructions of the Governor, but
it's possible someone else influenced the Governor's decision. I don't know precisely!
Please have mercy, please..."

Kezia sighed. The priest was utterly pathetic, and seemed to have no more useful
information. Still, the Inquisitor felt that he was guilty, that he knew he had made an
unwarranted attack on a member of the Inquisition, and in doing so had committed
treason. Such a crime could be punished not by death, but by Arco-flagellation, the
process of taking a criminal and transforming them into a servitor of battle, their limbs
replaced by mechanical tendrils and blades, and their heads covered in special visors.
Normally, the visor projects images of saints and plays calming music, and thanks to the

---

brainwashing process, it keeps them sedate. When a trigger word is said, the images and
music stop, and the Arco-flagellant goes berserk.

However she wondered if there could possibly be any more information at all that might
benefit them to know. She considered all the details.

"This friend of yours, Rio, what can you tell us about him? I want to know about his
contacts, his spy network, anything that might let us know what else he could have at his
disposal. I also want to know everything you know about Chaos."

Stetson let out a little sound of distress. Something seemed to bother him there.

"I don't know much about Rio's network, but considering he could get me to send
assassins, it isn't unreasonable to suspect that he could have heavy influence amongst one
or more gangs, and then you have the actual defences of the planet itself. After all, he
works on the orders of the Governor. If you went there to arrest them, you would face the
planetary guard, possibly the enforcers, as well as any planet defence systems."

"I see. Now, about Chaos?"

"I know practically nothing about Chaos! I was told that it corrupts and poisons you, that
to even know a little can turn into an obsession with it. I chose to adopt the point of view
that ignorance is bliss, I swear. I can't tell you anything at all about Chaos. I didn't think
this was a matter of that sort of thing. Please have mercy."

"There is no mercy within the Inquisition. There is no forgiveness, no mitigating
circumstances, and no defence. You have been found guilty of treason against the
Inquisition and conspiracy against the Imperium, and will be put to death."

With that, she drew her power sword, and cleanly severed his spine, causing him to die
with a short cry of pain. She then stood up, watching the remaining blood disintegrate on
the tip of the sword.

"Our work here is probably done. He told us what we needed to know ­ that one of the
people in the highest ranks has set everything up. So far, I am of the belief that this planet
is almost completely free of the influence of Chaos, and that it was merely thrown our
way as a distraction, and so that the assassins could be deployed. With that being said, I
think we should soon be off."

"Hang on," Derrick said, "I thought I heard a quiet whimper somewhere."
"And it smells like sex." Atraxia added bluntly.

"I think you're right. So, perhaps he wasn't praying, and in fact he had a guest in here.
Not something forbidden in and of itself, but that he was covering up by claiming to
pray... besides, we should talk to the girl if she's here, and see if she knew of his
treason."

---

It didn't take the group long to search his office, and soon enough, upon tearing the door
off the stationary cupboard, they found a naked woman hunched down, facing away and
shivering, holding her knees tightly. Her hair was bright green, something a little strange
on a planet like this, but not too unusual.

What was unusual, however, was the fact that she had horns similar to a goat. She was a
mutant, and Ronald Stetson had hidden her away despite knowing that. Kezia grimaced,
and pointed her sword at the mutant.

"Stand up and turn around. There is extremely little chance of you living, but you might
be able to say just the right thing. If those horns are just props, take them off and explain
yourself to the Inquisition."

Slowly, the girl stood, her exposed flesh remarkably pink all over, and turned around. It
then became obvious that the horns were real, and that this was no mutant. Her eyes
seemed to link straight into the warp, trying to drag all the others in through them. She
had six breasts, lined up in three rows, and her fingers ended in barbed claws. On her
throat was a birthmark dedicating her to Slaanesh, the Chaos god of secrets and excess.

She leaped in the brief moment Kezia was taken by surprise. Pouncing over the
Inquisitor's head, and narrowly missing the roof of the cabinet, she started running for the
door even as all of the others drew their guns. Kezia, however, was the fastest. She
simply glanced at the running daemonette and focused her hatred towards it. Her eyes lit
up brilliantly, channelling the might of the Emperor and arcs of psykic lightning leapt out,
splitting the air into a dozen pieces and leaving a bright after-image burning in the eyes of
those who watched.

The crackling energy struck the daemonette, sizzling through her body and causing her
back to blister and burn. She screamed horrifically, and died in a burst of bright flame. As
she dropped to the ground and burned, the disgusting monstrosity dissolved, fading back
into the Warp where she belonged.

"Another daemon, born from the filth of Chaos, cleansed from this world by the might of
the Emperor. All bless the Immortal God-Emperor of Humanity, for He is merciful."

The rest all echoed her last statement, almost a prayer to the undying Emperor, and tried
to steer clear of the scorched carpet where the daemonette once stood as they left.

"So, the priest was in league with Chaos. This makes things even more difficult, for now
we not only have the problem of there being some problems here on this planet that need
investigating, we also have to consider that perhaps he was lying and the Governor had
nothing to do with this incident whatsoever."

"So, we check the records as planned yesterday, and see what we can find? All we need
to do is look for information on those men, and check any reports on any kind of heretical

---

activity. If there isn't anything to go on, we could just head back and confront the
Governor. Worst-case scenario, his incompetence led to the problems existing."

"You make a good point, Sister Atraxia. Well, let us go find this information."

They made only one brief stop to inform another priest of the events that had transpired,
telling him merely what would be useful to know, then went back to the bus so as to
return to the council office. Once there, it was a very simple matter to look through all of
the files that were available, checking every piece of information.


In six hours time, they had made their minds up: there was no useful information. One of
the men had indeed spent time working on the planet, but there were no reports of
anything unusual happening at all. The others had no data on the planet, so it was
assumed they had never been there before. Again, someone had lied to Kezia, and she
didn't take kindly to liars.

Furthermore, there was almost nothing in the way of information of heretical crimes. The
most common were driving offences, acts of being drunk and disorderly, and graffiti.
Even white-collar crime was relatively low, most likely due to it being easier to notice
and punish in the less populated worlds.

Eventually, they decided it was a pointless distraction, designed to waste their time and
kill Kezia. At that, she made her decision.

"We are going to attack. I will contact the Adeptus Arbites to ask if they will assist us
from within, along with any loyalist planetary guard and enforcers, as well as, if we are
fortunate, the Church of the Red Redemption, and then we shall hit them with an air
strike if necessary, before going in to land. From there, we shall launch an assault on the
government offices and do our best to take out all resistance before finally arresting or
executing all who are suspected of treason and heresy. From there, a temporary leader
will be put in place until everything can be sorted out."

With that, they all filed once again into the bus. They were fairly quiet on the long drive
back to where their ships were. There was a little bit of talk, but mostly they all prayed.
Derrick and Sister Anoxia took turns driving, and the trip back was uneventful, letting the
prayer and rest go without interruption. The sky darkened, and all became quiet outside,
save for the hum of machines harvesting vegetation.

Once they were a mere hundred metres away from the ships, they pulled over. There was
no need to risk damaging the vehicle in the take-off process, after all. They marched on,
and were halfway there when Sister Stella pointed at the sky.

"Something is incoming!"

---

All threw themselves to the ground, on the defensive, but they were not the ones targeted
by the lights increasing rapidly towards the planet. The Sister's ship was hit by the salvo
of missiles, and the series of large explosions tore it to shreds. The fuel supply was then
ignited, and one more eruption of flame finished it off. Shrapnel flew out, barely missing
the group, and they could feel the intense heat from where they were.

Soon, they shakily stood up, looking around. They were all safe, and they were all alive.
However, they could not guarantee that for very long. Already, a few other flickers of
light in the sky suggested more were incoming. They all ran for Kezia's sip, hoping the
captain would have it ready. The Emperor had blessed them; the ship was indeed ready.
The door was already open, so they filed in quickly, and it closed behind them. Kezia
immediately called for a careful take-off, preferably leaving the area before leaving the
atmosphere. They all crammed into Kezia's sleeping quarters, certainly not designed for
so many people, especially when five sixths were clad in power armour.

"Okay, we'll just have to hang on, seeing as there isn't enough room for us all to be
strapped down." She told them, praying to the Emperor to continue protecting them. They
all made do as best as they could. A few Sisters could sit down, though they didn't bother
with the safety harnesses ­ their own armour would hold them in place, with luck.
Sylvana pulled Kezia onto her lap and held her tight.

"I will protect you, Inquisitor. Do not worry. If I have to, I will even follow you to the
gates of death to bring you back."

The Inquisitor smiled, and allowed her head to rest against Sylvana's power armour.
Derrick was likewise held in place, not worried about being held in such a childish
manner when his life was on the line. The other Sisters crowded in, and in general held
onto each other so that they were more like one whole, and less likely to individually be
thrown about and damaged.

It seemed to work. The take-off was not smooth, what with the pilot trying to get them
out of the area quickly, but they mostly stayed in one small group, rocking and swaying,
yet Kezia felt perfectly safe being held by her lover, and surrounded by her team. As they
sped away, she glanced out at the burning crater that was once an Imperial gunship used
by the Adepta Sororitas, and saw another series of explosions strike the farmland some
distance away.

At least they don't have access to Cyclone missiles, she thought.

Soon enough, they were away from the bombing. A matter of minutes later, they were out
of the atmosphere, again flying through space. They kept a wide berth from where the
missile salvos seemed to be originating from, but knew that they would likely be picked
up. Aside from the fact that cloaking technology had been surpassed by detection
technology, there was the fact that they most likely had some form of satellite video link
and could possibly just see the ship. They cruised through space, and while they did so,
plans were made.

---

"Okay, I'm going to see what I can get my friends in the Adeptus Arbites to do. I just
pray that they will be on our side. We don't have time to call for more support, so the
people and equipment we have now... that's about all we have. We'll hit the defence
systems with orbital bombardment, and try to flatten an area. From there, we're going to
hit them hard and the ship is going to focus on shooting down anyone who tries leaving
the planet. We are probably outnumbered here. As the invading force, we could easily be
killed on the way in. We must rely on the Emperor's guidance and protection, however
that is all we need. We are upholding His commands and virtue, whereas they are sinners
against Him. We shall surely win."

There was a cheer of agreement. All of them knew they would not win without the
blessings of the Emperor. Things looked fairly grim and dark for them, and in a normal
situation, they would be almost certain to lose. In their favour, they possibly had allies on
the planet, and their ship had impressive offensive weaponry. Furthermore, they were not
just twelve regular soldiers. They were one insane cult leader who spoke with righteous
zeal and fury, hardcore enough to be a commissar, ten Sisters of Battle, some of the
toughest and best trained ­ and most piously devout ­ warriors of the Imperium, armed
with great weaponry and faith itself, and of course, one Inquisitor, gifted with Psykic
powers, the latest and greatest technology and a force of will so strong it couldn't be
cracked with a cyclone bomb.

Overall, they felt pretty confident despite the situation.


"Shit!" the Governor shouted.

"They've escaped. I knew it; we should have killed her before she even arrived in the
first place. We're done for now. We can't even pretend the Advisor was to blame and ad
controlled or manipulated me. Why did I have to rush things and have him killed so
early?"

"Relax," Rio said somewhat casually, "look, so the assassins failed. Stetson is probably
dead as well, for that matter. It doesn't matter. At least they gave us the most important
resource: time. We would have been discovered sooner or later anyway. This is where we
make the stand and prove that we have what it takes to win. Come on, an entire planet!
We can shoot them out of the sky, and even if they do land? So what, if we throw enough
of the army at them, they will eventually die because of our superior numbers if nothing
else. I'm going to ask for some gang activity, to rouse the people into a panic, that way
we'll have the best chance to either escape, or get into a good hiding position. Maybe I
can even ask the girls to bring something a little bigger down here to help out."

"You seem awfully calm. This kind of heresy could actually bring more than just those
upon us."

---

"Ah, only if this lasts too long. They can't actually afford to give us any more time, so
they're going to strike right now. This means that as long as we take them out, it isn't
going to get any worse for us. They won't be able to send a message on, and it could be a
very long time before anyone ­ if anyone ­ comes to investigate her death."

"I just hope you are right. I'll tell the planetary guard and police to step up security and
prepare for an invasion; you talk to your contacts."

"Already on it, boss."


"Briggs, this is Kezia. We have a lot of trouble going on here. I am coming in to land
again, and with me there is Derrick from the Red Redemption and a squad of ten Sisters
of Battle. We are passing a sentence on heretical traitors within the government. Most
likely the governor is at the bottom of this, so I am issuing an arrest warrant. The Hive's
defences are probably already activating, but I need to know if I can count on the
Adeptus Arbites to support the Emperor's servants."

"Everybody serves, Inquisitor. We pledge our allegiance to you, Inquisitor Kezia, in
service to the Emperor. We will also try to get the enforcers on our side and talk to the
Redemptionists for assistance too. As for the planetary guard, well, the best we can do is
demand they stand down or be convicted of treason and conspiracy."

"If necessary, I will sign any death warrants after the fact. Consider yourselves to all have
my authority to arrest or execute anyone who interferes with Imperial justice."

"Yes, Inquisitor. I'll get to work immediately. It's time the heathens running this show
were buried."


Eventually, the planet came into view. The entire team had remained vigilant, praying for
almost the entire journey. Short rests were taken, and they tried to remain in peak
physical condition by finding other rooms to train in, but mostly they were praying, and
on edge. This would be less a battle of sheer strength, and more of allies, planning and
faith.

As the ET Skyslider approached the Hive world, they prepared for battle yet again. They
all gathered as before to ease the landing, if there would be a landing, and the ship's
weapon systems activated. There was a loud clunking that could be heard as missiles
locked into place, and the Hell Canons began to charge up with power, the thermal lances
soon ready to rock and roll. They merely had to wait, watching as the planet got closer
and closer, and preparing to avoid any defences.

They were in luck. It seemed that the Arbiters had managed to have the early warning
satellite system deactivated from within. They were not under attack, and would
hopefully only have to worry about that as they got close enough for missiles to be

---

launched from the planet itself. Lower down, there would be canons, both ballistic and
laser based. Neither would be particularly pleasant, but the ship was well armoured, and
could survive a few hits. Besides, the captain intended on not getting hit, by dealing
significant damage first.

It then started. Before reaching the cloud barrier, a dozen flickering lights zoomed
towards the planet, penetrating the smog very briefly. Next, the smoke lit up brightly, the
explosions showing through. A few of the enormous skyscrapers that poked through the
cloud barrier caved in, very slowly tumbling back down to the surface. Another volley
was launched, and then they slowly made their descent, able to see the might of the
explosives employed. Turrets and buildings were torn apart and vaporised, and several
levels of ground collapsed. Water sprayed out incessantly from ruptured pipes, and the
Hell Canons opened fire. The air was brilliantly lit by blazing blasts of laser weaponry,
slicing through other turrets and missile silos, destroying local defences before they could
even mobilise. All that remained of the entire are was a mess, with smoking craters, fire,
water and collapsed buildings. There didn't even seem to be any survivors. Next to be
unleashed was a gigantic wave of hot plasma, slowly expanding as it left the space craft
and ploughing through the ground into deeply fortified bunkers. The heat was astounding
even from inside the ship.

The ground damage was substantial to the point that they had no need to worry about
ground-based defences. No tanks would be mobilised towards them, nor ground troops.
All they needed to worry about would be aircraft and possibly ballistic missiles.

"Inquisitor," the voice of the pilot spoke over the communication line, "I will be moving
through the street now, and may need to damage civilian architecture in order to block the
path and help safely deliver you to the building you will be boarding. We should be there
in ten minutes."

"I understand. Thank you."

Moving at a much slower speed, now in hover mode, the Skyslider started to dart
between two ruined buildings, weaving over and under walkways. Every now and then, it
fired the Hell Canons to cut through buildings and walkways, collapsing pieces of the
Hive behind them and to the sides. Still, it didn't take long for several helicopters to come
into sight, opening fire with automatic weapon fire. The bullets mostly bounced
harmlessly off the armour, barely even noticeable. When the helicopters were hit by
rockets, however, they certainly did notice, exploding into tiny fragments of hot flame
and raining metal onto the ground.

The next group fired rockets, however. They weaved through the air, trying to lock on,
and it was only a sudden dive that caused them to fly overhead and explode on impact
with a pile of rubble. This dive, however, scraped the bottom of the ship on the ground,
tearing up sections of road and spraying a cloud of sparks. The ship had most likely taken
damage, and the crew were rattled. The only way Kezia stayed in her position was the
fact that Sister Sylvana was holding onto her and praying the litany of battle.

---

As the Skyslider gained height again, it let loose with the Hell Canons, missing, yet
causing the choppers to swerve out of the way. Not only did it ruin their chance of firing
again soon, letting them sail past, but one of them moved too far and hit a wall. It crashed,
and then fell to the ground, breaking apart. The fuel did not ignite, however, so it was
merely taken out of action and the crew possibly alive.

Soaring along at a reasonable pace despite the potential damage taken, they eventually
encountered ground forces, with several light tanks rolling out; however they then saw
why they didn't have to worry so much: the Arbiters had managed to lead the enforcers
into placing the military under arrest. Security vehicles were firing upon the tanks and
infantry, and then a wave of firebombs went off, scorching the military vehicles and
causing internal explosions. They seemed to be home-made bombs, and Kezia strongly
suspected the cult of the Red Redemption to be behind it. She thanked them silently, glad
to have been given so much support. At this stage, it didn't actually matter that they had
so many foes, for their allies were sufficient to take care of the problem.

Soon enough, they arrived at their destination. A wave of plasma, exhausting the small
supply the vessel had available, was sufficient to grant entry, and it stopped in place,
slowly turning as it hovered there so as to allow the entire group to disembark once the
molten steel had cooled enough for entry. They all piled out, leaping into the building
with weapons drawn, and they knew that anyone still there would be willing to fight them
to the death. A handful of planetary guard soldiers were in the sector they entered, and
they opened fire with their lasguns. The flashing red lights literally bounce off the power
armour of the Adepta Sororitas, not being anywhere near strong enough to penetrate. One
brief spray of bolter fire later and they were well and truly dead, no longer bothering
Kezia and her retinue.

"Okay, this is where we have to be careful. That I know of, we have no allies in here, and
any number of enemies lying in ambush. We need to watch each other and not be divided.
Shoot anyone on sight and just keep moving. Once we find the culprits and lock the
entire area down, we can take a breather and decide what to do next. The frantic part is
over, but here is where we are most vulnerable. Let's move out."

They slowly advanced, carefully looking about for any sign of movement whatsoever,
and likewise listening for the sound of enemies. The building was huge; it would take
them a very long time to search, but they did what they had to. The governor's office
would be well monitored and well defended, with access to communication equipment,
so it would make a good place for the villain to be located. The Inquisitor decided it was
the best place to start, at any rate.

Moving up the stairs, they were careful to check the surrounding area each time they
ascended a level. It would only be a matter of time before the area would be flooded with
opposition, she was certain. And then they heard it. A hissing noise, like a goose or a
serpent, but with a hypnotic hum as well. Whatever it was, it was distracting, and no-one

---

trusted it to be anything good. They stood as a group, weapons carefully sweeping the
area as they looked for the mystery foe.

That was when the Chaos beasts of Slaanesh pounced, diving over a number of low
barricades. They were like bright pink velociraptors, though with tubular mouths housing
long, thin tongues, and bulging eyes. Riding atop their backs were more of the pink-
skinned pleasure daemonettes of Slaanesh that they had seen before, only this time they
were equipped for battle, their forelimbs morphed into vicious purple scythelike blades.

Kezia gasped. They were officially in the territory of the Ordo Malleus, the Daemon
Hunters. Still, all enemies of humanity and the Emperor were valid targets for the
Inquisition, no matter which branch. Indeed, it was the duty of all humans to fight their
hated enemies ­ the alien, the witch, the mutant and the daemon.

The team was quick, but the daemonettes were quicker. They pounced, their limbs ready
to slice into their enemies. Fortunately, they were stopped by the most armoured targets,
and locked into combat. Sister Atraxia's power armour took a hit from the claw, and
though it pierced and scraped at her breastplate, it did not go through. She was fine and
only needed to worry about being overpowered. The Sister Superior thrust her
chainsword up through the belly of the monster, carving out a long gash through which
she stuck her bolt pistol. One grip of the trigger, and the back of the mount's neck
exploded, bolter rounds flying out into the exposed face and breasts of the daemonette.
The Slaaneshi scum fell to the ground, dissolving and fading before their very eyes.

They had no time to stand and watch, however. The others were just as busy. Sister
Stella's arm managed to be sliced even through the armour, and the mechanical part
damaged. It refused to aim properly, but she did what she could. With a hard shove, she
knocked the daemon back a few steps, then fired the melta gun with one hand. The very
air burst into flames from the heat, and the chaos beast erupted into flame, throwing the
daemonette to the ground as it died and evaporated. The rider was stunned, lying on her
back and cradling her neck. Meanwhile, Sister Anastasia had a Sarissa on her boltgun.
The sharp, heavy spike was rammed into one eye of the chaos beast she had to face. It
squirmed about in fury, but the daemonette was fast, jumping over her back to try to get a
blow into Anastasia's exposed back. This, however, put Derrick at her own back, and his
chainsword hacked through her with a terrible grinding noise. Blood covered the floor,
making standing difficult, and just as the riderless mount was about to charge, berserk,
Anastasia finished it off with a quick burst of bolter fire.

The last of the daemonette chargers leaped right over the others, aiming for the Inquisitor.
It never got that far. Sylvana had a storm bolter, which she raised and kept trained on the
flying beast. Holding the trigger down, she tore it to shreds with round after round of
miniature missiles. This left the rider falling, blinded by the spray of light, only to be hit
by the last bolter rounds in the magazine. All was quiet, so Kezia purposefully strode
over to the surviving daemonette, slinging her melta gun back over her shoulder and
drawing her Hell pistol, which she placed against its throat.

---

"May the hated foes of humanity be slain without mercy in the name of the Immortal
God-Emperor of mankind."

She pulled the trigger. There was a click, a loud crack, and the splatter of burning blood.
The daemonette quickly started to fall apart, and even the blood on the floor was fading.
The others were already checking on Sister Stella. Though her armour could not be
repaired there with their resources, they could stop the bleeding. It would be painful and
hard to fight with, but she considered herself capable, so they took her word for it.

"Well, that was the first serious attack made against us. We still have a few floors to
cover though, if they are where we think they are. Let's move on, and be careful. The
next set of stairs should be close. How irritating, I can understand separating the
stairways to make an invasion harder, but when the enemy are the ones entrenched
here... never mind. Let's go."

They continued to move in formation, making their way across a large, empty space, one
that would normally be filled with people shoving about to get to their destinations. This
time, it was eerily quiet, and the team was able to spread out a little, keeping on the look-
out for absolutely anything suspicious.

Nothing could be found, however. Even the next floor up was surprisingly empty. Kezia
wondered if that was a result of the Arbiters or if the traitors had all gathered for one
large-scale assault in one small location. The sound of an immense explosion could be
heard from outside, and the floor shook a little. That hadn't occurred to them before:
there was nothing special to protect their building from collapsing in the battle. The
Inquisitor stopped her group for a moment, flicking her computer open to check on the
status of the Skyslider. It was still in action. That brought her some relief. The cameras
showed the status of the battle: thousands of casualties scattered across the ground,
smoking craters and burning buildings everywhere. It was a nightmare. However there
was hope. Somehow, blasting the traitor tanks into tiny fragments was something that no-
one on the planet except for her should have had access to: a Space Marine Land Raider.
Those tanks were considered nearly indestructible, built from many thick layers of
specially treated armour, infused with a kill-crazy machine spirit, and equipped with
twin-linked heavy bolters, a storm bolter, a hunter-killer missile and two sets of twin-
linked las-canons. It was demolishing all opposition, and she was glad it was on her side.

But why is it there at all? The Space Marines are not on this planet.

She closed the computer, safely storing it away again, and swapped back to the melta gun.
It was much better at ensuring foes would be killed. They moved on, while she explained
what the situation outside was like.

"We have a Land Raider on our side. I just have no idea how it actually got there, as it's
impossible that it would be stolen and still working, and likewise there aren't any
Marines here. For starters, I would have been informed, and secondly, that's the only
Space Marine vehicle in sight, with none of their troops around either."

---

"You're right, Inquisitor. I can't see how we could have such a thing on our side, but at
any rate, I'm thankful. It's helping our cause a lot, and buying us a lot of time. With them
too busy being killed by the tank, they're not chasing after us in here."

Still no resistance was met, all the way until they were about to approach the governor's
office. Standing outside, there was a group of the daemonettes, this time holding strange
firearms, along with an entire unit of soldiers with lasguns and shotguns. Those with the
lasguns were first to open fire, thin beams of red light flashing through the air and
striking the power armour ineffectively. Such weapons might have been just fine for
instantly killing unarmoured humans, but against Imperial grade power armour, they
were worthless.

The team stood their ground and returned fire. A Spray of bolter rounds erupted,
scattering their foes. Many were killed before they even hit the round, and others lay
there, trying to shoot back with little success. However the smarter ones had taken cover,
so Kezia's squad had no choice but to advance, at which point the daemonettes began to
move back into view with their weapons. Each time they fired, arcs of shadowy lightning
fired from their gun barrels, seemingly tapping into the Warp and channelling pure Chaos.
Sister Miriam was hit in the torso, and the armour warped and rippled. Parts cracked and
fell to the ground, and from the look of agony upon her suddenly pale face, it seemed as
though the blast went right through. Sister Miriam was dieing.

Dropping to all fours, she collapsed and started to shiver. The other Sisters gasped, and in
that brief moment that they stopped, the shooter dropped her gun and pounced upon
Sister Miriam. Cackling, it rolled her over and knelt on her chest, forcing her to gaze up
at its grinning, malevolent face. It raised its hands, forming a spine...

And was shot by no less than four other sisters. The body, halfway faded already, fell
back towards the ground, and Sister Miriam smiled a little as she continued trying to
breathe. Still, the other daemonettes were not put off, and continued to fire. Possibly the
only thing that saved Sister Superior Atraxia was the fact that the lightning seemed to be
stopped by the melta fire, hitting the barely visible ripples of super-heated air and
microwave heat, and wrapping around the "beam". Two of the daemonettes fell to this,
killed by the two melta guns that were being wielded.

Only another pair remained, so they both charged, knowing the guns would be little better
than shields against the melta guns. Leaping into the air and hurling their weapons aside,
they each landed upon one target ­ Atraxia and Derrick, wrapping legs around torsos and
grabbing around the neck in an attempt to strangle and choke their enemies. As they did
so, they started to grow bony spines to jab in.

Derrick was the first to react. Being the sort of person that makes a good commissar, he
took hold of his eviscerator chainsword, revved it, and then plunged it through the back
of his daemonette, sending the blade straight through her and into his own side.

---

Nevertheless, he continued to impale and saw until she shrieked and fell back, fading into
nothingness.

Atraxia couldn't see what was happening, what with her face being pressed into the
somewhat generous bosom of the daemonette, and was for a brief moment worried about
the humiliation of being killed through such a means of suffocation, but then responded
appropriately. She swung her chainsword around, skewering the daemonette sideways,
then used all her strength to tear the blade upwards, cutting it in half from the waist up.
She backed away, gasping as it faded back into Warp space, and coughed once or twice.
Derrick was also trying to regain his breath. At this point, the remaining guard soldiers
were backed up against the door, almost cowering, while holding their shotguns.

"Come no closer! By the laws of the Imperium, we will have no choice but to end your
treason!"

Kezia's eyes narrowed in anger, and she pointed her melta gun forward.

"You dare accuse an Inquisitor of treason? Such heresy will earn you a quick death, but
only because I haven't the time to have you sentenced to Arco-flagellation. Consider
yourselves lucky for that one small thing."

"Inquisitor, I think Sister... I think Sister Miriam is going to live. I think she can make it,
despite the injuries. She hasn't quite lost consciousness, so if we can end this now and get
her to some kind of medical facility, she could remain with us."

"In that case, we must put an end to this, for her life and for the honour of the Emperor.
Charge!"

The soldiers fired their shotguns, but the pellets had absolutely no effect on the power
armour. The two Battle Sisters who took the lead, wearing helmets, merely charged right
into them and slammed them into the wall. The impact was enough to do it, but being
crushed afterwards ensured that they were killed, their remains falling to the ground.

They knew what they were doing and risking long before the conflict. They had time to
turn away and lead righteous lives, but instead they allied themselves with daemons
which were right there! Now, let us go in and finish this."

Sister Rosetta continued to look after Sister Miriam, doing all she could, and even placing
a kiss upon her cold lips, not of amorous love, but sisterly, and trying to assist her in
breathing. As it was, the power armour would have helped stabilise her with a built-in
resuscitation unit, except it was not working as a result of the Chaos weapon used against
them. Meanwhile, Kezia used her power sword to cut through the plasteel door, kicking it
to the ground afterward. The group stepped in, cold masks of anger upon their faces, and
saw the governor and Rio, along with, of all things, a pair of Chaos Space Marines. The
marines looked upon them, and laughed, raising their huge, spiked chain-axes. Rio,
wearing his obnoxious green suit, chose that moment to take his leave.

---

"Well, it has been a pleasure doing business with you, governor, but you see, this is
probably the end for you. You should have stuck with that foolish advisor, because now
you're ruined! If these big lads finish off the bitch squad and the little man, you're pretty
fucked anyway and they're going to take the leads. But if not, well, I don't want to be
here for it."

He didn't run. Instead, there was a blur, and a crackle, and Kezia gasped, her psykic
senses alerting her to the fact that someone had just moved into the warp. She could
vaguely see him, superimposed over the physical world, and from there he ran.

"Curse you!" the governor shouted, drawing a pathetic auto-pistol.

"I'm a better fighter than I look, you know. You two, attack them!"

As he shouted the command, he took aim and pulled the trigger, sending a small burst of
bullets out to flatten against Kezia's armour, but the Chaos Marines sprung as well, and
they meant business. Just as the Inquisitor began to swing her power sword, wishing she
had not stopped to listen to the speech, the chain axe came down towards her face...

And then, Sylvana was there. She pulled Kezia, her lover, back and threw herself in the
way, standing bravely and proudly. The axe hit, however she did not fall. Instead, the
blades continued to whirl as though they had struck nothing. A pale aura extended from
the Battle Sister, her hair flicking about as though in the wind, and she looked holier than
ever. Suddenly, a brilliant, well-decorated velvet and fur cloak extended from her
backpack, showing the insignia of St. Aspira. It was one of the rare, blessed cloaks of the
Ecclesiarchy, however never before had one simply made itself manifest. Completely
unharmed by the axe, Sylvana looked up at the nine foot tall monster of a marine, raised
her storm bolter so that the barrels pressed into where his neck would be under the
armour, and fired.

He dived, putting his surprise aside, and battle resumed. It seemed as though time
actually had slowed down for an instant and had only just returned to normal. With a
whirl of her cloak, Sylvana stepped to the side to continue battling the Chaos Marine.
This allowed Kezia to lash out with another bolt of psykic energy, striking the face of the
other marine, and causing him to stagger. Blood trickled from the gaps in the helmet, and
he staggered, trying to bring his axe to bear again. This gave Derrick the opportunity to
pull the handle on his eviscerator. A gout of flame erupted from it, sliding along the blade,
and scorching the armoured foe. He ignited, burning brilliantly and filling the room with
choking black smoke, and Derrick wasted no time in hacking into the breastplate with his
now burning chainsword. The marine dropped, and he quickly started to behead it.

By the time he was done, Sylvana had run out of ammunition. But that did not stop her
from protecting her beloved. She charged forward, driving her shoulder into the marine
while reaching back into her pack, then swung something from it, connecting with ­ and
sticking it to ­ the rear of the left shoulder guard. She pulled a handle on it, then jumped

---

back, calling for the others to follow suit. Soon, it became clear why. Though the power
armour of the Chaos Marine was indeed hard to pierce, she had attached a melta bomb to
him, and those devices were designed for destroying tanks. It ignited into a white burst of
heat like a sun, and when the flame died down, only twisted molten metal and bone
remained. The body was essentially a carbon shadow lining the inside of the armour. All
that remained was the governor with an empty gun. He was terrified.

"Stay back! I can summon powerful daemons, and if you force me to, this entire planet
will be lost!"
"In which case I will merely order the Exterminatus of the planet. That is not my concern.
Bringing you to justice, however, is my concern. I present you with the option of
surrender."

Sweating, the governor realised he was doomed at this point, and dropped the auto-pistol.

"Please keep my surrender in consideration when delivering the sentence. I'm going to
die for this, but if it could be quick? Last meal, last request, and a cell to wait in then a
shot to the head? Or even here and now?"

"No, you will have the luxury of being tried afterwards. All others have been killed in
their attacks on us, but you will go on trial as the cause of this. It is possible you will die
with dignity, but for the traitor, there is not even absolution in death. You will be just as
hated in the next life as this one."

He was bound in manacles, and Kezia informed her pilot of their position.

"Understood, Inquisitor, and we have a little present headed our way as well. It looks like
someone prophesised certain events here and sent some needed supplies. Another
Imperial gunship will soon be here, with ammunition, additional Daughters of the
Emperor, and another tank. It seems something important is going on."

While they waited for the Skyslider to show up, Kezia began to question the governor.

"So tell me where that other man can be found."
"What, Rio? I'm not sure. I'm not even sure he's human ­ he came tome in the first place,
he's the one who caused all of this. Were it not for him, I would not have made the
decisions I did."
"Were it not for your weak will, he would not have manipulated you, but I will also note
that you were influenced by his words. But you can't tell me where he is?"
"I don't know. He could have gone back into the Warp to join the daemons, or maybe
he's at a safe location. Have you seen the Underhive here?"
"Yes, yes I have. On that note, due to poor maintenance, there is a leak down there,
wasting precious Imperial resources. That is unacceptable, and I would bring that charge
against you, were there not more important things."

---

Soon, a wall outside exploded, hit by the last remaining rockets the Skyslider had. It was
well equipped, but it wasn't limitless, and the pilot had saved them just for busting the
building open. As soon as the smoke and flames died down, Kezia and Derrick dragged
the governor over, and Sylvana helped Rosetta carry Miriam on-board.


Half an hour later, they met up with the Imperial warship belonging to the Adepta
Sororitas. Both landed in a demolished area while the war raged on elsewhere, and a
Sister Hospitaler emerged, her face covered by a white silk mask, carrying a box of
medical supplies. With the press of a button, it slid open and she retrieved a syringe filled
with Narthecium, the wonder drug.

"Please relax, Sister Miriam. You were most brave, and you must continue to live on in
the name of the Emperor."

She accepted the needle and blacked out, the healing already beginning to take place. The
Sister Hospitaler then took three more syringes and gave the shots to her ­ adrenaline, a
genetic decontaminant (for Warp contact) and a recalcifying agent to help her bones
regrow.

"Given an hour, she should be fine again. Blessed be the Emperor, for he is loving and
merciful. Now, Sister Stella, I can fix your arm, though Narthecium won't be necessary,
however I am not adept in the ways of armour, so that cannot be fixed for now."

Soon enough, all were healthy again, though sisters Miriam and Stella stayed behind with
the Hospitaler, as did Derrick. The adrenaline had finally run out, so he was feeling the
effects of his shallow self-inflicted injury. He was also being seen to, to be brought to full
health again while he rested.

"Wonderful, now we will send the Sisters Dominion out to help clean up the battlefield,
and everything will be sorted. I hope you can catch that man named Rio. This planet
likely will be lost if he cannot be found and executed."

At that point, another tank rolled out of the Navy vessel. It was an Immolator, a vehicle
that could hold a small group and was equipped with twin-linked heavy flamethrowers,
designed to wash the battlefield clean with the fire of purity. Even the promethium used
as incendiary was blessed by the Ecclesiarchy. It sped out, rolling over rubble in its way
and with the crew eager to cleanse and burn.

Of the Inquisitorial team, nine remained: Inquisitor Kezia, Veteran Sister Superior
Atraxia, Sister Sylvana, Sister Elena, Sister Anastasia, Sister Rosetta, Sister Kasanja,
Sister Lucille and Sister Dominique. Kezia still considered that sufficient for the task at
hand. They had made it that far, facing assassins, daemonettes and Chaos Space Marines,
so one simple unknown factor would fall before the might of the Emperor's servants. It
was just a matter of how many he would take down with him, given his powers were so
unknown. She led them on.

---

"Let us head down. The battle is raging up here, and we will travel better by avoiding it.
Besides, I have a feeling that our prey is trying to lose himself in the Underhive, hoping
to be able to avoid our wrath there. He is wrong, of course, but we will find him no
longer how long it takes."

The team headed out, Kezia leading them to the nearest access road she knew of. Though
it was just a suspicion, she considered the possibility of a certain gang led by a man that
fed her false information, possibly on behalf of this Rio character. It was the only hunch
to go by, so she decided they may as well follow it, even given the small chances of
finding him on their own. In the worst case scenario, she thought, they could just wait for
the fighting to die down, then call for assistance and have the place swept carefully for
even a trace of his presence.

They kept going for quite some time, eventually finding the way down. Though they
didn't meet any more resistance on the way there, they did have to clamber over rubble
that the Immolator had simply driven right over, and there were many scorch marks
where things had once been. The sky seemed even worse than usual, filled with acrid
smoke and raining ash down upon everyone. It was unhealthy to be outside to begin with,
but with the war on, it was outright dangerous. A series of explosions rocked another
building, seemingly hit by stray ordinance rockets. It wavered, one side caving in and
burning, before eventually crumbling apart and dropping enormous fragments of wall
upon the battlefield.

Kezia hurried to the control panel for the gateway into the lower sectors. She pressed the
button. Nothing happened. Clearly it was out of order, which was hardly surprising given
the crisis at hand. With irritation, she was about to simply melt it down when she saw the
large wheel for manual access.

"I don't know why I bother to limit structural damage at this point, but let's crack it
open."

Sisters Rosetta and Lucille were quick to obey, grabbing one end each and turning the
wheel with ease, thanks to their power armour. With the current rust and disuse, it would
have taken three regular humans and twice as much time. There was a loud creaking and
grinding noise, and the door opened. With that done, they all rushed through, down to
where the Cult of the Red Redemption was located, even if none of them were actually at
the base at that time.

The sounds from above could still be heard for quite some time. They were only filtered
out when the group had descended thirty to forty metres, and even then the occasional
large or nearby explosion could be heard and felt. Darkness surrounded them, and the
only sounds were the echoes of their footsteps and their conversation.

"Down here is the base where I recruited Derrick. We might have some allies still here,
but even if not, I can remember how to get from there to our target destination. Let's just

---

find out what we have available first, and see where we go from there. This situation
clearly isn't the kind of task for a small group like us, but at the moment, we are the only
people available, so we shall serve the Emperor as best we can and protect humanity from
this danger."

"You're right. Even if the surface is stable again by the time we get back, we will find
and neutralise this threat eventually. It doesn't even matter what is happening up there.
That's all going on because of this entity and his conspiracy with the governor."

"That's exactly right. Besides, to be honest I think the Land Raider and Immolator alone
could handle the situation up there. We really aren't needed for something like that when
such pieces of Imperial mastery can annihilate everyone who stands against us. With any
luck, our foes might even surrender, reducing the number of deaths that must occur here.
I shudder to think how many civilian lives may have been lost because of Rio. If he is
found to be a Psyker, death will be too good for him, and he will only be useful as Psykic
fuel or a conductor. If he is a daemon, on the other hand, we will just need to send him
back in the name of the Glorious Emperor."

"Hail the Immortal God-Emperor!" the others shouted. Their voices echoed loudly
through the tunnels, and the cry of "Praise be to the Almighty God-Emperor!" echoed
back. They stopped, a little cautious, but Kezia motioned to lower their weapons when
she saw who was approaching, equally cautious.

"So, there are a few members of your... church remaining back at the base. I thought you
were all out there taking the word and fire to the streets."

"No, Inquisitor Mordecai, some of us have sustained injuries, so others are here to protect
them in case any scum try to hit us while we're weak. Word has it the Vermont gang are
all in a panic lately. Does this have anything to do with what you have been unleashing
upon the traitors, Inquisitor?"

"It might have something to do with it, yes. In fact, I rather hope it does. There is a target
we are searching for, and killing him might put an end to all of it. If he does happen to be
running to the Vermont gang, then you're in luck, as taking him out will probably strike a
blow to them as well ­ besides, we'll give them one chance to hand him over, and if they
choose not to comply, every one of the heretics will be annihilated."

"Truly we are blessed by your presence, Inquisitor. If you come back to the base first, we
can at least hand you a map so you remember the way, and perhaps give you some
supplies. We have tinned stew of quality good enough for any Imperial citizen, airtight
sealed bacon substitute sandwiches, water and a few weapons that might come in handy."

"We thank you for your hospitality. The Church has been most gracious to this servant of
the Emperor, not at all like a rebellious gang and more like the most loyal of preachers
the Ecclesiarchy has available."

---

"You give us too much credit, Inquisitor. Many of us just enjoy violence and hate things
that are different, and it just so happens that works well for our beliefs. Plenty of us lack
piety, but we look after one another and get along."

Kezia smiled. To hate things that are different was to be human ­ the Imperium favoured
that kind of healthy attitude, and when most different things tended to try killing humans
at the earliest convenience, it was a very healthy decision.

"Incidentally, Inquisitor, I see Derrick isn't with you, though I do admire the fine ladies
of war by your side. Is our preacher still alive?"

"Do not worry; Derrick is merely being treated for an injury. I'm sure he can tell you
about it later, after we have won this wretched battle. As for my retinue, they are the
Sisters of Battle, and I trust them with my lives. These ladies have done much for me, and
I'm not ashamed to admit my human amorous love for Sister Sylvana here."

Sylvana blushed a little, and by this time they were inside the base, beneath the light, so it
was obvious to the others. There was a bit of a chuckle from the other battle nuns, but
their guide, Rufus, merely smiled and opened a cupboard, revealing food inside.

"Here you go. If you could do with a bite, grab one now, same with a drink. We have
plenty of bottles, so take some with you, even a few snacks. Now for weaponry, there
isn't actually anything too special here. A few firebombs we rigged up, as well as some
things we have never used and never been proud of making, but you could put them to
good use. See these?"

He lifted some thick plastic bottles filled with a blue, cloudy gas. They were connected to
small, aluminium devices with levers to open them. They also had "chemical hazard" and
"poison" stickers on them.

"These gas grenades will fill a room like this one pretty quickly, and they're pretty toxic.
The lungs, nose, throat and eyes will start burning, they all close up, and the person
becomes blind and unable to breathe. It's then that their blood starts to burn and their
lungs dissolve. Their eyes too, in some cases. The poisoned blood then eats through the
blood vessels and starts spreading through the body, soaking them with blood but not
doing any good. Even if they didn't bleed to death, other organs would shut down, and of
course, the lungs aren't doing their job anyway. Be careful, Inquisitor. We have some
simple gas masks, designed when we made these, but they're easily damaged in combat."

"Thank you. I'll only use chemical weapons if I deem it necessary. If there's another
option, I'll use that instead, if only for our own safety. We ate on the way to this planet,
so I think it best we keep moving. May the Emperor protect you while you reside here."

"And may the Emperor look down upon you and aid you in your quest."

---

Again, the Inquisitorial team headed out, this time not towards the possibility of allies,
but towards the certainty of enemies. At least there was the certainty. With all of the
panic and confusion going on ­ as well as the fact that they were mostly in power armour,
attacking people from a direction they had recently been attacked in ­ they decided not to
even bother with stealth. Instead, they moved at a relatively quick pace, not fast enough
for the Inquisitor to lose her breath, but still reaching their distance in considerably less
time than her previous journey there.

This time, guards were stationed outside the train. It hardly mattered if it was because
they had been overheard or not, as they didn't last long enough to even be considered a
hindrance. A pair of bolters fired, and the bodies of the guards literally exploded into
gore. They could hear shouts from above; they had declared their presence loudly by
opening fire.

When the access hatch was in sight, the plan was simple. A fragmentation grenade was
hurled out, and it exploded into many shards of hard metal, with a burst of flame in the
process. As soon as that happened, enemies diving for cover and being struck and
wounded, Sisters Kasanja, Dominique and Elena launched themselves up and out into the
open. They fired a few short bursts, stepping forward, and in doing so allowed Sister
Sylvana, with Kezia behind her, to climb up. The rest of the team followed, making sure
no-one was sneaking up behind them, and then, as a team, they stood their ground.

"Vermont, I give you one and only one chance to surrender right here and now. If you
comply, there will be no more deaths and you will simply hand over the man named Rio.
Doing so will result in you being pardoned for intentionally misleading an Inquisitor in
an investigation. If you fail to surrender, you will all be immediately put to death."

The gang members that were emerging looked uneasy, however they had chosen to
remain when informed of the approach of an Inquisitor. They knew it would be all or
nothing at this point. Vermont himself, laughing, stepped out several stories up in the
rafters of a building that was abandoned halfway through construction.

"Nice try, Inquisitor, but I think you know the answer. We're still here. That means we're
not giving up now. We would have run off instead, you know? No, we'll fight, and I
think we'll win. Don't have the surprise this time, don't have a whole gang, don't have
the police... oh yes, and we have a little friend on our side."

The last was in reply to an interruption: Kezia had already fired at him with her Hell
Pistol. The Melta gun didn't have the range she wanted, so instead it was just a blast of
focused light. However the beam stopped right in front of him. When his little speech
finished, he pulled out a pair of stub pistols and opened fire, however the distance made
his shots go wild. Only a couple hit anyone, and the bullets burst into splintering
fragments against their armour, clearly designed for softer targets.

"Oh well, it's not like guns will solve this one anyway. Rio, if you please?"
"I'm working on it."

---

Kezia could then feel the churning movement. She could sense the activity of a Psyker
focusing and using their energies in a power. It was then that she saw the dust and gravel
start to get swept up, slowly spiralling in the air and forming what looked like a miniature
whirlwind.

"Let's move away from that. We need to find Rio and put him down if we want to stop
this."

The gangsters started to open fire again, however were silenced by an enormous spray of
bolter fire and flame. The Inquisitorial retinue headed towards the base, looking for a
brief respire from the cover, however it was clear there were still people inside. Loud
blasts rang out and they pulled back, aware of the ever-increasing forces of the wind. A
coil of barbed wire was pulled free, and began to wind in, parts lashing out at everything
nearby.

"We don't have time for this. We need to charge in and force them out, I'm afraid. If it
weren't for the fact that we need to go in there, I'd risk using the gas on them."

From where they were, they were safe: the other grunts had run for the safety of the
various buildings, and if Vermont had tried shooting, the bullets would just get caught in
the whirlwind. Were it not for the increasing strength of the thing, they would be just fine.
With that in mind, they charged, Atraxia first, followed by Anastasia. As soon as they ran
in, guns blazing, they charged at the closest enemies in sight. One had sharp spikes added
to her bolter, the other had a chainsword; none were ideal people to fight in close combat.

The rest followed in, and enjoyed relative safety. The only problem left was the fact that
there were several doors, so they could be attacked from many angles. And something
was making a low rumbling sound. Whatever it was, Kezia was willing to believe that it
was bad.

"Inquisitor, if we take this door here, I will lead and take care of any threats. Possibly, we
could split into groups so that no door is left unassaulted. We can clean out every
opponent we find, and capture this base for ourselves that way."

"I agree, Sylvana. Team, let's follow her plan. I want someone leading a group through
each door, so we can claim the entire place and flush all of them out. Kill anyone you see.
Once we have this to ourselves, we can decide on the best course of action to get up there
to where Rio and Vermont are."

They split up, as dangerous as the idea was. Three doors were kicked down, and the three
groups ran ahead. The assault didn't take long at all. Guns were fired in short bursts and
the explosions could be heard by all other teams. Occasionally there was the sound of a
chainsword grinding through someone, or the blast of the Inquisitor's Melta gun. There
were only brief screams of agony; the gangsters were killed far too quickly for it to be
drawn out.

---

Eventually, they all met up again. The groups had moved through various rooms, but it
was not a maze, and was designed for easy access in a crisis. This was simply working
against them due to being attacked on three fronts by superior foes. However when the
next door was kicked open, an explosion went off and Sister Superior Atraxia was hurled
back, a chunk blasted clean out of her armour and causing massive bleeding from her
shoulder and chest. She grunted, and then the assault canon was fired.

Kezia didn't bother asking how they secured an assault canon. She was just angry that it
had happened. Hundreds of bullets whizzed past and tore the wall to pieces. Luckily, it
was mounted due to humans being too weak to wield them effectively, so it couldn't aim
down at the prone Sister Superior. The others all tried diving for cover, and were lucky to
be wearing power armour. Still, Sister Lucille took several bullets to her arm, blood
slowly seeping out from the armour in what appeared to be a minor injury, and one came
far too close, grazing Sylvana's cheek as she tackled Kezia to the ground to protect her.

They all waited for an opening, the automatic fire too fast to allow them to easily make a
counter-attack. However, once again, the Emperor blessed them. Although no-one ever
admitted it, there were certain faults with the superior Imperial technology. Just a few
flaws remained here and there, such as plasma weapons occasionally overheating and
exploding when used, or in the case of assault canons... the gun firing too fast, a
discarded shell bouncing off another on the way out and getting caught, and the whole
machine grinding to a halt. The barrels suddenly stopped rotating as the whole
mechanism jammed. There was silence.

"Oh, shit fucking damn Mars-made piece of crap. Fucking good-for-nothing Emperor and
his timing!"

As one, the Sisters of Battle stood up. The foul-mouthed man had sworn at the Emperor.
Their Emperor. The beloved deity who had sacrificed himself on the battlefield for all of
humanity. They would not allow it. Sister Kasanja was first to rush in, backhanding the
man across the room with a spray of blood and teeth from his mouth. He hit the wall and
tried to focus.

"Blasphemy will never be tolerated. Purge the blasphemer, for they are unrighteous and
befoul the beloved Emperor with their tongue and mind."

She fired, point-blank into his skull. He then lacked a head. The blasphemer was no more.

Sister Rosetta rushed over to Atraxia, pulling out a field med kit. She quickly injected
adrenaline and sprayed disinfectant onto the area, before trying to find pieces of shrapnel
from the carefully rigged krak grenade. Several blood vessels had been torn, as had
muscles. The bones were chipped a little, and it was going to be painful. She pulled out a
few of the small patches that could almost be considered band-aids, and started trying to
use them to hold the blood vessels together and at least slow the bleeding down. When

---

she had done the best she could, she finished up by spraying a sealant over the whole area,
keeping it as safe as possible in the meantime. She then helped the Sister Superior sit up.

"Try not to move too much, Sister Superior Atraxia. We will get help as soon as this is
over. You'll be just fine."
"Don't worry about me, Sister Rosetta. I'm fine. You did an admirable job in treating my
wounds, so I'll just need to get to the Sister Hospitaler at the end of all this."

Her voice betrayed the fact that, despite the adrenaline, she was weary. The blood loss,
pain and trauma had weakened her significantly, but she still tried to keep going. Sister
Elena, however, was having more luck with Sister Lucille. When the seals were undone
and the glove removed, it turned out that her injuries were relatively minor in comparison.
The bullets were pulled out, the area sprayed with disinfectant, and then her arm
bandaged. She felt lucky to have gotten off so easily when faced with a weapon usually
wielded by Space Marine Terminators.

Sister Sylvana lifted Kezia to her feet, checking to make sure her Inquisitor was okay.
Aside from a sore shoulder from the takedown, she was unharmed, and this brought a
smile to the Battle Sister's face. Kezia wiped the graze with her finger, noticing that it
was almost, but not quite, bleeding. She was also relieved.

"Okay, I think that is everything. Clearly, the Emperor has blessed us once more. From
the sound of things, we have a bit of time but not too much. That Psyker Rio is really
causing a huge storm. And can anyone else here that rumbling?"

"I think it is below us, Inquisitor." Sister Dominique ventured.

Kezia looked out one of the broken windows and tried to formulate a plan. It seemed as
though there was possibly a way to get to Rio from where they were. It would be risky, as
was everything they did, however they had few alternatives.

"Okay, I want Sister Rosetta to stay here and guard Sister Superior Atraxia. We will
come back for you both, don't worry. Now, Sister Sylvana and I are going to make our
way around there, behind the cover until we can get to the construction site. From there,
we should be able to make our way up and put an end to it. However I know they have
people in there, so we need the rest of you to provide covering fire as we go."

"Yes, Inquisitor!"

Ammunition was changed over, and then the pair started their run. Sylvana threw her
cloak up as a shield, and the other Sisters started strafing out and providing short bursts
of covering fire every time an enemy stepped out to fire at them. Mostly, they kept their
foes pinned, and with that, the couple didn't have much difficulty. The one thing they
didn't count on, however, was Vermont rushing for the manhole; he was trying to escape
and they couldn't stop him from there.

---

"He can't make it far without someone finding him. Let's hurry on!"

Both ladies rushed forwards, occasional laser blasts and bullets flying past them or
striking the Cloak of St. Aspira that Sylvana wore around her shoulders. Without taking a
single injury, they made it to the safety of cover, and only needed to find a way up
through the maze of ramps and girders.


On the surface, things seemed to be looking up. The Immolator was rolling over smaller
vehicles as well as infantry, and the turret was rotating every time a cluster of foes was
sighted, or enemies attacked from behind cover. With a pull of the trigger, the holy
promethium flooded the pipes and a burst of brilliant white flame erupted, spraying out
and melting and incinerating nearly everything. Smoke and flames rose to the sky as the
Laud Hailer speakers continued to blare deafening music of praise to the Emperor.
Mostly, the enemies scattered.

Likewise, the Land Raider ploughed through rubble and flattened planetary defence
vehicles. For regular foes, the pintle-mounted storm bolter fired rapidly, taking them out
quickly. For everyone else, the forward-facing twin-linked heavy bolters let loose, tearing
vehicles and buildings to shreds as the twin-linked las-canons cut through rows of men at
a time. Those two vehicles really were doing more than anything else at all, even the
Skyslider which was still picking off key targets and keeping groups pinned.

However there didn't seem to be too much of a limit to their targets. More and more
infantry and lesser daemons poured forth at every opportunity. The Redemptionists had
set some large fires, dividing the battlefield so that enemies could be isolated and the
sectors cleaned out, and the enforcers and Arbiters were doing all they could to keep
areas locked down as well, but there was still a target-rich environment. The ground was
painted red from the blood of the fallen, and yet more still stepped out.

Even the Retributors were having difficulty guarding the naval vessel used by the Adepta
Sororitas back-up. They stood their ground, and whenever enemies came close, there
would be a hail of heavy bolter rounds, a dual stream of heat from a multi-melta or gouts
of flame from the heavy flamer. No-one could get close, but still they tried.

"If Inquisitor Mordecai doesn't succeed, they might never end, and we could eventually
fall. Whether we run out of ammunition, or fatigue takes us, we cannot hold out forever."

"Inquisitor Kezia will succeed. Do not worry, do not falter. The Emperor smiles upon us,
whereas He has nothing but anger for our enemies. Continue to fight in His name!"

"Look! Up there!"

In the sky, another vehicle was cruising along. It looked like an Imperial Naval vessel,
except it was an ugly dark green, and had a bright yellow angry face painted on. It had
large rams attached, made from plasteel, and appeared to have a number of small

---

explosives also held in place, though not attached to weapons capable of firing them.
There were also a few drop pods, arranged awkwardly.

It then became clear why. The drop pods were not dropped; they were launched. With
afterburners flaring, they soared through the air and left smoking craters where they
landed, killing groups of daemons. The doors then slammed open, and out stepped...

From each of the two drop pods, there was a tactical squad of ten Space Marines, each
wearing the same ugly green armour with the angry faces on their shoulder pads. They
had bolt guns, rocket launchers and flame throwers, and the sergeants had chainswords
and power fists.

"FUCK YOU, ASSHOLES!" the sergeants declared loudly. The Angry Marines had
arrived. Immediately, they set to work slaughtering all the foes they could see.

"Rip and tear, rip and tear!" one sergeant shouted, as he dismembered a commander.
"I fucking hate daemonettes! They make me ANGRY!" bellowed the other, punching a
daemonette so hard she disintegrated upon impact. The squads started to move out, as
Assault Marines launched themselves from the ship, cruising through the air with hatred
for everything.

The transport vehicle then turned sideways mid-flight. Through the loud-speakers, one
phrase could be heard.

"FUCK YOOOOOOU!"

It then hit a pair of helicopters, smashing into them. The explosives attached to the side
detonated, and the trio of aircraft hit a building, the impact causing all three to drop to the
ground where more explosions occurred. The building remained standing, though it
didn't look very stable afterwards. A single Terminator pulled itself free from the remains,
hurling pieces of shrapnel to the sides as its beady eyes scanned the battlefield for
anything that could possibly be killed. Arcs of electricity crackled between its pair of
lightning claws, the long, plasma-wreathed blades twitching eagerly.

He spotted a foe. A squad was hurrying, tripping over itself to escape, however it was no
use. He was more than twice their size, so simply started lumbering after them with very
large steps.

"You can't get away from me! Fleeing and surrender simply make me ANGRY!"

The Angry Marine commander was, as was usual for them, in a very bad mood. It was
times like that where a ranged weapon might have been useful, however it didn't take
long to catch up. Simply wading through the slower ones, his feet crushing them into a
red paste on the road, he swung both arms out, and the electricity arced between humans.
The claws sliced through them as though they were simply air, and he just kept moving,
spinning when he reached the front, so as to dismember the last of the squad.

---

One of the tanks saw the new threat, and focused exclusively on the commander. Tank
shells repeatedly struck his armoured shell, however Terminator armour was even thicker
and stronger than regular power armour. The shells crumpled on impact and were unable
to penetrate. People didn't even bother trying to use lasguns or machine guns; they knew
how ineffective such weaponry would be, and merely hoped the tanks could get a lucky
shot in and take him out.

They couldn't. He charged forwards, shot after shot flattening against him with no effect
at all other than to make him angrier, and collided shoulder-first with the tank. His claws
then came around, slicing through the armour and severing fuel-lines, wiring and crew
members. Steam filled the vehicle, escaping from ruptured pipes, and the crew were
scalded to death. He then merely stomped on through the tank, and finally hit something
explosive. The entire tank detonated, surrounding the Terminator with flames but still
only serving to make him angrier, just like everything else.

And yet even with the assistance of the Space Marines, there still seemed to be no less
enemies than there were before. It was actually possible that not even the Angry Marines
would be able to stem the flow of soldiers they would face. It was possible that the planet
was lost and that the Imperium would have to resort to the most extreme of measures:
Exterminatus, sentencing an entire planet to death.

The battle raged on...


Meanwhile, Kezia and Sylvana were trying to reach Rio. They could still hear the
rumbling, and wondered what it could possibly be, and the loud explosions from above.
They were amazed that such an area could still exist underground. Of course, with the
number of pillars haphazardly placed, and the fact that mostly the ceiling was a series of
pipes, tunnels and walkways that simply connected the buildings together, they were
technically outside. But only technically. In that sector, most buildings were unused at
their level, and they couldn't see the sky. It was merely a support system for the next
layer up. One day it would get too big, and possibly collapse in on itself. It would be a
sad day indeed.

Kezia thought she could hear particularly loud shouting and swearing. She shrugged, and
continued. The two girls ran up a ramp, dodging the occasional bullet, and shooting
anyone who they could spot. Soon, they had to jump across to a support beam, and from
there it looked like climbing the girders and railings would be the only way up. That was
a problem. The pair started to climb, however in doing so they had no way to defend
themselves. The other Sisters were still keeping enemy heads down where they could, but
there were plenty that were completely safe. Blasts of laser fire flickered around them,
and bullets ricocheted off the metal frame, getting too close for comfort.

---

"Kezia, perhaps if I climb, and you hang onto my back and return fire, this could be
easier. Better still, you could climb around to my front so I can shield you with my
body."

The Inquisitor reluctantly agreed. She hugged Sylvana tight, wrapping her legs and one
arm around the Battle Sister, and used her free arm to aim the Hell pistol. Every time she
managed to get a glimpse of an enemy, she would take a shot. Occasionally, one dropped
dead. Mostly, the stray bullet that hit would simply be absorbed by the Cloak of St.
Aspira, however some did get too close. One laser weapon actually did manage to hit
Kezia in the inner-elbow, causing her to wince and almost drop the weapon. Her armour
absorbed most of the energy, but there was a burn, and every movement of her arm
caused pain, making it hard to concentrate.

Still, she persevered. The pain was not enough to distract her from her duty, and she
simply returned fire at the one who dealt her the injury. Her shot caught him in the knee,
burning a hole through it, and he collapsed instantly, falling off balanced and dropping
from the structure to his death.

Finally, they climbed high enough to leap down to another platform. The sound of
Sylvana's feet hitting the metal was enough to alert the grunts there, but she pulled her
storm bolter up just as Kezia let herself drop, landing on her non-injure side and taking
aim. Both fired simultaneously, and wasted the thugs. It turned out they were actually
guards. Rio stood there, his concentration broken only then, and turned to face them with
a throbbing head. His veins stood out against his pulsing skull, and he glared, smoke
pouring from his mouth.

"How dare you... ruin my... concentration!"

The whirlwind started to slow, however they had a new threat. Bolter rounds exploded all
around him, but the rippling field of Chaos energy surrounding the Psyker kept him
perfectly safe.

"Nice try there... weaklings."

With a grunt, he hurled a blast of mental energy and both girls were forced back a few
metres, sliding roughly into another support beam. The attack burned the eyes from his
face, and his scorched eyelids revealed nothing beyond. He was dying and breaking down,
suffering the effects of being a rogue Psyker with no control. Kezia responded by
showing what control could allow, a blitz of Psykic electricity soaring from her head and
striking him, flaying his skin.

Rio gasped and panted, surprised that he was still able to bleed. However the battle
wasn't over, in his mind. To him, he could still keep going, and would probably win. He
fixed his gaze upon Kezia...

---

And the Warp rushed in to fill him. Rio had over-exerted himself mentally, and his brain
was consumed from within. His entire body started to crumble, Warp energies ripping
him to shreds. However it was not over yet. Were his skin peeled away, something new
was forming. Enormous, multi-coloured talons started to reach out, connected to
pulsating blue limbs. Enormous blue-steel feathers burst forth in places, before sparkling,
starting to reflect many colours of light. His head burst open to reveal a beak, and the
Lord of Change started to speak.

"That idiot thought he was doing the bidding of the Secret Keeper, Slaanesh. No! To
throw this planet into chaos and disarray, to institute such changes for me... all went
according to plan. This is the work of me, TZEEEEEEENCH!!!!!"

The last was a high-pitched squeal from the throat of the greater daemon of Tzeench.
Kezia and Sylvana both knew they were in a lot of trouble. Greater daemons were beyond
being merely "difficult" to fight. It was a near-impossibility. Sylvana unloaded both
barrels of her storm bolter, sending a swarm of exploding bullets into the hide of the
monster. Very little damage was done, though it gave Kezia enough tie, if barely, to run
up and slide between its legs, jumping up behind it with her power sword. She swung the
weapon down, and it grabbed the blade. The daemon actually gripped the plasma-
wreathed blade in one hand, ignoring the fact that it was slowly cutting and burning
through its talons.

It turned its head around to fix a beady eye upon the Inquisitor, and opened its fang-filled
beak. Just as it seemed ready to strike, Sylvana slammed her gun into its gut and pulled
the trigger. The burst of explosive rounds managed to break a hole open, more bolter
rounds flying into its body and exploding. They couldn't tell whether damage had been
done at all, but at least it noticed. With one kick, it hurled Sylvana off the edge. She did
not scream. Instead, she prayed, while frantically looking for something to stop her fall.

Blessed is the Merciful God-Emperor of Humanity, for he shall place us away from harm.

She saw it. A thick cable was hanging free. She managed to grab hold of it, sliding
another metre to a stop with sparks flying everywhere. Kezia was vaguely aware of what
had happened, and the Sisters watching the battle held their breath, hoping the two would
be okay.

Kezia knew she wouldn't be able to outwrestle the monster. Instead, she shrugged her
Melta gun around under her shoulder, and pulled the trigger with her injured hand. The
air rippled, and the greater daemon's face burst into dazzling white flame. It filled with
fire, flames licking from its eyes, smoke pouring out from every opening, and clenched
its fist, slicing its talons off in the process. Kezia was hoping for that effect, she
immediately pulled her ceremonial power sword free and ran, leaping for the cable just as
it exhaled all fire it swallowed. The mouth of the monster had become a melta gun in its
own right, melting a hole through the titanium girder she was previously standing on.

---

The Inquisitor managed to grab the cable as well, hitting it before she started to fall, and
wrapping her legs around it while grabbing with her injured arm. She then sheathed her
sword and hurried down out of sight, right above her bodyguard.

"Kezia! If we move down towards the end before it cuts the line, we could swing across
to a lower point!"
"Let's hurry then, Sylvana."

They slid down several metres, bit by bit, but they then saw the grinning bird-face
peering down at them. It reached out with its regenerated claws, chuckling to itself.

"Looks like you have nowhere left to go except down! All goes according to my plan."

It quickly gripped the cable, and just as they started to swing away, the fibres began to
tear, shredded by the daemon's razor sharp claws. As they swung forward, the cable
snapped, cut by its talons. It cackled with glee as they fell, however they had just enough
momentum to fall forward and hit another support beam. It snarled as they scrambled up,
but shrugged its shoulders and dived down. Only when it was at their level did the wings
unfold, allowing it to hover.

"You may have noticed that you can't actually escape me, my dears. Oh, the fun I'll have
with your corpses, the things I could transform you both into. Oh yes, what delight."

Balls of plasma were forming in each hand, crackling and burning away, with clouds of
green and purple smoke drifting through the air. He then hurled them, one after another.
The bright balls of burning matter flew accurately, exploding out into clawed hands at
almost the last moment. One just missed, striking a pillar and fizzling out quickly while
the other struck Sylvana in the thigh. If she hadn't thrown her cloak up, she would have
lost the leg. As it was, the heat still radiated through, even through the armour, and she
gasped at the scorching pain. Both girls opened fire, but the melta flame and bolter
rounds seemed to be doing nothing, merely causing a brief distraction. It pounced.

The greater daemon flew through the air at a tremendous pace. Both Inquisitor and Battle
Sister dived to the nearest ramp, hitting the metal floor hard but avoiding the monster. It
stopped suddenly, just short of striking a wall, and then rapidly descended upon them. As
they clambered over and under beams, leaping from support to support and occasionally
managing to get a shot off, it spun through the air and writhed nimbly after them. By this
stage, the Melta gun was empty and Sylvana was down to her last magazine of
ammunition. Knowing there was no point in wasting bullets on it, the Daughter of the
Emperor refrained from shooting, as Kezia struck out with her sword every time it got too
close. Each time the sword struck the greater daemon, it recoiled and bled, feathers flying
free. At least they had one weapon that could hurt it.

Throughout the course of the battle, they had worked their way down, for the most part.
That was fortunate, as with one swoop, it clipped Kezia, sending her flying from the
beam and hitting the ground with a dull thud. For a moment, she didn't move, waiting for

---

the pain in her bones to stop and her vision to clear. Sylvana delivered a solid punch to
the daemon's face to knock it off course, redirecting it into another support, and then
leapt down to join her Inquisitor. As Kezia slowly started to rise, still gripping her sword,
Sylvana shielded her with her own body.

"Kezia... it's about to leap at us, I think. It's recovered from the impact."
"It's now far enough."

She spit dust and blood from her mouth, hoping it was only a split lip and not internal
bleeding, then pulled a small device from her pack. It was the disposable one-shot rocket
launcher. She pulled the handle out, clicking into place and the trigger sprung free.
Holding it a little unsteadily, she took a deep breath, pulling the plastic tag free to mix the
propellants. She then flicked the safety off, pulled lightly on the trigger to make use of
the laser targeter...

It swooped just as she squeezed the trigger. The small explosive, far more powerful than
a bolter round, cruised toward the daemon just as fast as it was racing towards them. The
two collided, and an enormous explosion rocked the ground, a pillar of flame shooting
upwards. A cloud of dust, smoke and feathers rapidly expanded, obscuring their vision;
however no attacks came while the two girls slowly picked themselves up from the
ground. Their heads were spinning, their ears ringing. They hadn't fared too well, but the
daemon had suffered the worst of it, and was no more. The feathers started to
dematerialise, and soon, there was not a trace left. As they slowly walked towards the
building, their allies rushed out to embrace them.

"You did it!"
"Now, let's go catch Vermont... actually, that sound below..."

They rushed to the entry hatch and saw what it was. The train engine had been started. It
had gone for over a hundred years without being used, so had taken a long time to get
going, but on the other hand, it was just beginning to move, a testament to the quality of
Imperial technology. Even after all that time, it was still able to run, albeit with a slow
start.

"Why did they bother with the train?" Kezia wondered out loud. "They could escape
faster just by running, given how long it took to get started."
"Perhaps they intend on travelling a long distance, even to the other side of the planet just
to escape us?"
"That would make sense. Well, no point in letting them escape. Let's go."

One by one they dropped down the manhole onto the slowly accelerating train. When the
group of nine were all there, they crawled across the tops of the carriages until they were
close together. As it was, they had no trouble standing up, but the train was going to get
faster, and there would undoubtedly be things hanging from the ceiling in future. With a
nod, they began to crawl forward, listening for signs of the enemy.

---

On the ground level, the fighting was beginning to die down. Thanks to their combined
efforts, all of the invading forces had kept the daemons and planetary defence forces at
bay, but now, something was actually happening. Daemons seemed to stop spawning out
of nowhere. They seemed finite in number once again. Likewise, though there were many
troops, there did not seem to be a limitless amount.

Arbiters and enforcers proceeded to beat humans into submission, and they actually did
respond with surrender, while the Red Cultists continued the assault on daemonkind. The
main two tanks continued to unleash holy vengeance upon the battlefield; laser blasts and
flames of purity cleansing the area of all opposition, and from the vantagepoint, the
captain of the Skyslider could see less enemies pouring out. Indeed, he knew Kezia had
won.

The Sisters of Battle, constantly reloading from the supplies the vehicle brought, could
tell as well. Things were a little quieter. The battle was slowing down, and they were
almost in a position where they could rest. Their hair matted to their faces with sweat,
mouths dry and muscles aching, they felt once again that they could fight their way
through to the very end.

Meanwhile, the Space Marines had discovered that they had fewer enemies remaining.
This only made them angry. Soon, they were reduced to rapidly assaulting every foe they
could find, in a desperate attempt to not have their kills stolen by each other. Bolter fire
cut swaths through the rapidly thinning crowd, rockets detonated almost at random, and
fire was sprayed into the air, raining down on the foes. The assault marines ploughed
head-first into groups, some carrying impaled enemies on their chainswords until they
were finally ripped in half and flung to the ground. Even the commander was having a
hard time finding as many things to kill, so started demolishing disabled vehicles in his
path just to let out some of the Emperor's eternal fiery anger.

One soldier, his comrades hanging back in fear, approached stealthily behind the
commander. Still feeling heretical enough to continue fighting, he pulled his plasma
pistol free and pointed it at the back of the terminator's head. He pulled the trigger. There
was a high-pitched whining sound, and the plasma gun felt incredibly hot in his hand.

"What's happening? My gun has never done this be-"

In a ball of superheated plasma, the gun exploded while still held. The run of bright green
flame engulfed his entire arm, reducing it to a molten goo, and he dropped, screaming
before blacking out.

His comrades gasped.

"That's impossible! Imperial plasma weapons never malfunction or explode! It says so in
the Uplifting Primer!"

---

The commander slowly turned to them, seething with unbridled fury.

"The Emperor has abandoned you, traitors! You have no Emperor now, and there is no
Imperium that you belong to. Your very weapons disown you and divorce themselves
from you. Forsaken by your god and your guns, all that you have left is your pathetic
lives."

He stepped on the head of the unconscious soldier, crushing it beneath his boot. There
was a sickening splatter of blood.

"But not for very long."

They tried to run, but he had anticipated it. Leaping into action, he was in their midst
before they had finished turning, and the lightning claws blazed with battle fury once
again as he entered a berserker rage.

"Our Inquisitor has proven victorious and ended whatever Chaos witchcraft that was
haunting the battlefield." Sister Stella remarked, observing the carnage.
"Indeed. We should have had greater faith in her from the beginning. Soon, the battle will
be over and the traitors executed in the name of the Emperor." Sister Miriam replied.
"I feel bad for having the smallest touch of doubt. I guess when we return we will both be
stepping forward for confessions."
"It was looking so desperate for a moment," Sister Hospitaler Ambrosia pointed out,
"that I think each and every one of us will be stepping forward. We can only pray that our
penance will be precisely what is required."
"I have faith in Canoness Tabitha."

As one, they all nodded and waited for the next wav of enemies, if any were forthcoming.

"FUCK YOU, COCKSUCKER!" an Angry Marine bellowed, repeatedly driving his fist
into the head of a prone daemon not ten metres away from them. They could hear the
impact of metal with flesh and bone.

"I will eat your bone marrow and violate you with a rake." It managed to gurgle out,
spined tentacles latching onto his throat in an attempt to strangle him.

"BONE MARROW? RAKE? YOU'LL BE DUST WHEN I FINISH! FUCK
YOOOOOOU!" was the only reply other than more punching. The last thing the daemon
ever thought was "why did I try to strangle something with an armoured neck?"


The train was rattling along steadily, slowly gaining pace. It was, at this stage, reaching
perhaps 30 kilometres per hour, however it wouldn't be long before the speed was
actually something to worry about. The dark tunnel rushed past, the walls covered with
grime and pipes and cables sometimes hanging low enough to make them glad they were
crawling.

---

A few carriages ahead, Sister Superior Atraxia thought she could hear talking from within.
It was hard to tell, with all of the noise of the engines and wheels and other bits and
pieces moving about, however it seemed to be a good enough time to make an entrance
and, if necessary, lay down some proper Imperial justice. Sylvana gave the signal, and
they all shuffled to the sides, gripping the edge firmly, before dropping down and
swinging in legs-first. They all kicked the windows, shattering the glass inwards as they
entered. The two thugs were previously sitting down, chatting and smoking. They had
thought they were safe.

"Smoking in the trains is strictly prohibited!" Kezia declared, placing a hole in the head
of one of the men with a single shot from her Hell pistol. She considered that rather witty,
given she had come up with it on the spot. The other was gunned down by Sister
Anastasia. Both lay dead on the floor, bleeding out.

"Well, that was two of them, but there are bound to be more. I expect they have guards
and mechanics about here, as well as the escapees. We'll need to be careful from this
point on, seeing as there could be any number of enemies. Let's move out. Injured people
in the middle, with the least weary at the front and rear."

The Inquisitor went to step forward and take the lead, but Sylvana held one arm out to
stop her. She had a serious expression on her face, and was holding her shining coat up as
an extra deterrent.

"You have fought so hard already, my Inquisitor. Kezia, the others were able to rest while
we fought the daemon. You should now take your turn."
"You're right. I can't fight this whole thing on my own. It'd be better to delegate a bit."
"Thank you, Kezia."

Kezia looked into Sylvana's eyes and saw nothing but relief. Four more able Battle
Sisters took the front and rear, leaving Kezia in the middle with the injured, and Sylvana
there to guard her. As a group, they began to move forward to the door. It slid open easily
enough, showing a gap of almost a metre to the next door, with just the coupling device
between them and the fast-moving ground.

Sister Anastasia reached over, then flicked the door open with the Sarissa attached to her
boltgun. The gangsters in the carriage, all drunk except for a couple of guards, were
certainly caught off guard. One by one, the Inquisitorial assault team leaped across into
the carriage, the first two standing shoulder to shoulder and opening fire. The guards
went down, and they charged, meeting the drunkards who were barely able to lift their
weapons in retaliation. It wasn't a fight; it was a slaughter.

Just as they were getting ready to assault the next carriage, however, a small hitch
occurred. They had made too much noise, so the others were prepared. The door blew off
its hinges, torn to shreds by the shotgun blast. Deadly pieces of shrapnel were flung in the

---

direction of the Battle Sisters, and Sister Rosetta took a cut to the shin. She winced, but
that was all. The rest of the shrapnel had been blocked by the armour.

The thug who fired pumped the next round in, then leapt across to have a better chance of
piercing the thick power armour; however that turned out to be a mistake. Sisters Rosetta
and Anastasia charged him, and jus as the shotgun fired, point blank, ripping a layer off
Sister Anastasia's armour at the side, they collided with him and launched him back off
the carriage. He landed head-first on the coupling device, the weight of his body
compressing his spine, then rolled sideways, falling under the train where he was
probably sliced apart.

There were three others, however. Two stood in the doorway, wielding modified
engineering tools that seemed to be perfectly good polearms. The other crouched behind
them, carefully aiming a stub rifle. Though they were jostled by the movements of the
train, he didn't fire blindly. Instead, he wanted to pick them off by shooting at an
unarmoured face. A few of the sisters, and the Inquisitor, didn't wear helmets after all,
and he felt safe enough to take the time aiming...

Unfortunately for him, the two at the front were chosen almost precisely because they
were wearing helmets, aside from their lack of injuries, so he had difficulty getting a
target. He pulled the trigger just as his two guards were shot. They fell over backwards,
sailing over his body, but one heavy bullet flew through the air at Sister Dominique. It
struck her just above her right eye, and though it didn't penetrate far, there was a spurt of
blood and she dropped. Sisters Lucille and Kasanja immediately held onto her, providing
cover with their own bodies as they checked on her. Her power armour immediately
started to resuscitate her, keeping her breathing in an attempt to awaken her.

Kezia glared with fury, her eyes lighting up with the light of the Emperor as she fixed her
gaze upon the rifleman. He saw her eyes, and froze with terror. Unable to move, he was a
sitting target for when Sister Anastasia took one step then jumped across the gap, tackling
him to the ground. With the first punch, he was out cold, most likely in a coma and never
to awaken. With the second punch, it was guaranteed: she crushed his windpipe and spine,
killing him. Gripping her boltgun tightly, she drove the Sarissa deep into his forehead,
making sure he would stay dead, and finally stood, shaking with anger and fear.

By the time this was finished, the bullet has been extracted, the wound site disinfected,
and a sealant patch placed over it. Adrenaline had also been injected into Sister
Dominique, keeping her heart beating so that she would not die. If she could survive long
enough to reach the Sister Hospitaler, then she would likely walk away just fine.
However as it was, she was unconscious and in danger of being killed by anything.
Atraxia volunteered to carry her, given the fact that she was not in a condition to fight
either, and Sister Lucille aided her. That meant only six of the group were really in any
condition to fight, but they had a renewed motivation. They would get revenge.

---

He war zone had practically transformed into a graveyard. The fighting was almost over,
with ruins still smoking and burning all over the place, and the ground was covered in the
bodies of the fallen. The Adeptus Arbites sat down to drink some water and catch their
breath, knowing they had done their duty well. They had upheld Imperial law and played
their part in stamping out the treason. Large sectors had been damaged, yet all in all, the
majority of the planet was really untouched. The Hive World was huge, so they would
merely need to spend time and money rebuilding, forgetting the dead. The corpses would
be stripped of any goods, which would be reused, and the bodies would likely be ground
up to be used as fertiliser and animal food off-world. It would just be another bloody
battle fought to protect humanity.

The surviving cultists all dropped to their knees, some laughing, others crying, and began
to pray, thankful to the Emperor just to be alive, even more for having been able to play
such an important role in the life of their planet.

The Angry Marines, trapped with no way to leave the planet yet thanks to their ship
exploding, marched around angrily in search of something ­ anything ­ left of the
opposition to kill. They were furious, however it needed to be noted that they were
always furious, so that was no different to their usual state of mind.

With the exception of Ambrosia, the Daughters of the Emperor were sitting and resting,
praying thanks to the Emperor for blessing them with a victory, all the while cleaning
their weapons. The guns had seen much use; barrels had scorch-marks, chambers needed
wiping, the fine pieces of machinery needed tightening and in some cases, disassembly
and full maintenance were in order. However, the weapons almost seemed to glow with
pride, their spirits pleased to have played their part and aided their mistresses so faithfully.

"So," said Sister Miriam, her prayers complete, "how do you think our Sisters are
faring?"


They slowly moved ahead, aware of their relative vulnerability compared to only minutes
before. Each battle seemed to take a small toll on them, but they kept marching on. They
would not die at that stage, having succeeded up to that point. They considered it to be
completely out of the question.

They had rested very briefly; noticing how years of disuse hadn't left the interior worse
for wear. Dust had covered every available surface, however other than that it was fine.
Water had not leaked in, people had not vandalised it and bugs had not claimed it as their
home. They grudgingly moved ahead, finding the next carriage empty probably because
it had been used as a makeshift storage room and was still loaded with crates. A brief
inspection revealed that the crates contained wood and cloth. There was nothing they'd
find particularly useful, so they moved on.

The carriage after that, however, had a few people in it, and they were quicker on the
mark than the others. Using their heavy battle rifles surprisingly effectively, the gangers

---

unleashed a payload of automatic fire. Bullets ricocheted off the power armour,
scratching the surface, and a couple penetrated, getting caught in the armour, but only
one actually penetrated, hitting Sister Anastasia in the shoulder. She shouted with pain,
and fired upon all armed with guns. They were soon killed, their light body armour no
match for Imperial bolter rounds. She jumped across, as did Sister Rosetta, and the ones
with odd motorised chain-daggers started to back away.

As the Battle Sisters stepped forward, the ganger hiding next to the door swung his
modified tool down. It was like two spanners connected with a large wheel, and an
electrical piston serving to add more force to the swinging of the second part. The end
was similar to a bulky, mechanical claw, and as it clamped to Rosetta's helmet, dazing
her with the impact, it revealed one more surprise. The handle had a thin, sharp metal rod
that was forced out with another piston, slamming into the helmet and piercing it. Blood
sprayed out, and then the device tried to compress the helmet. Were it not power armour,
it would have caved in, crushing her skull. As it was, she also dropped unconscious. As
she fell, Anastasia gasped and reached across, pinning the ganger to the wall by the eye
socket with her Sarissa.

"The Emperor will never have mercy for the likes of you, traitor!"

She then pulled her weapon free, dropped to one knee to check on her Sister in arms, and
didn't even look as she held the boltgun away and fired at the others. Two were actually
killed, leaving one to leap at her. He would have driven his weapon into her head, too,
had his body not suddenly shuddered and slumped forward midair. Kezia had shot him
twice with her Hell pistol. The only living people in the carriage were Sisters Anastasia
and Rosetta ­ however in her case, it possibly wasn't for very long.

"Should I take her helmet off to try treating her, or is it better to leave it on to keep the
injury from being aggravated?"
"I'm not sure, but I think, this being power armour, it's better to keep it on. The Emperor
will protect her. Once more, our number of active fighters has been reduced. Vermont
will pay for this. If we capture him alive, we will have his skin used for medical grafts,
and the rest of him will make good fuel. Who can carry her?"

Soon, Sister Rosetta was also being carried, in the middle, although her life support
systems had not yet switched on: they were not necessary. She was unconscious but not
dieing; that was one small mercy.

From the sound of it, others had moved up and noticed a carriage filled with dead
gangsters, so were moving along to investigate. This meant, of course, that they needed to
get to the front to put a stop to it as quickly as possible. The next door opened to reveal
engines and machinery, along with a narrow corridor ahead. They had reached the front,
it seemed. With that, Kezia had the others move ahead first, and left one small present
before she crossed, throwing it to the far end and closing both doors behind her: she had
used the gas grenade, to help dispose of any would-be pursuers.

---

Quietly, the few able-bodied combatants that weren't carrying the fallen crept through.
The rest remained behind to deal with anyone who could actually make it through the
poisonous gas. Kezia peered through the window of the next door and saw that, in the
driver's cabin, there were two others alongside Vermont himself. He seemed to be quite
relaxed, despite the fact that they were about to drive straight into a barrier. They all
braced for impact.

The train hit the fence, but it went right through it, merely rattling them a little. Kezia hit
the door as she was jolted around, and that unfortunately got the gang leader's attention.
His eyes widened, and he started to pull out a pistol just as she swung the door open. He
fired, and the pair of bullets lodged themselves into the steel door. With his free hand he
drew a vibro-blade, and the fight was on. Kezia jumped in close, unsheathing her power
sword and entering combat with him. Due to the close confines, the others on both sides
could merely stand back and try not to get in the way.

One thing could be said for Vermont: he was a good fighter. Every time there was an
opportunity, he fired. Kezia had to continually dodge, her body twisting about to avoid
the bullets at that close range. Holes were blasted into the walls, and all the while, their
blades flashed about. Each would swing for the neck and thrust at the head and chest. It
was likely to be a battle where the first to land a hit at all would win.

The driver realised a moment too late that there was a corner coming up. He pulled the
lever to turn right, also attempting to slam the brakes on, but they were travelling way too
fast. The train slid, sparks flying in an enormous spray, and it looked like the other
carriages would flip over, causing them to roll as well. He slammed a button, and the
other carriages decoupled. He was willing to sacrifice all of the other men, if any
survived, just to get out of there alive. This created the problem of more speed, though
they did lose a lot of momentum driving them on, at least. The back of the train slid
across with a heavy bump, knocking both combatants in different directions, as it drifted
across both sets of tracks, still with sparks spraying freely.

Just as they thought it would still fall over, the train steadied itself once again and kept
going, rattling all of the inhabitants violently. Vermont was no fool; though he had lost
his gun and Kezia was already bringing her sword up to defend herself, he jumped
straight up to the hole in the ceiling, pulling himself onto the roof quickly to get away
from her. He thought he could jump if worst came to worst, but waited at the top with his
blade, ready to stab anyone who tried to follow.

Sylvana stepped forward into the cabin, guessing his plan.

"Let me try something, Kezia."

She stood roughly beneath him, aimed her storm bolter straight up, and fired. The ground
exploded beneath Vermont and he was hurled back, bouncing on the roof and nearly
falling to his death. Only by jamming the blade into the train was he able to stop himself,
and he slowly got to his feet and waited.

---

"Thank you, Sylvana. I will now go up there to fight him. Follow me if you like, but be
careful. We'll have our backs to anything hanging low that is oncoming."
"Inquisitor, I ask that you let me go up in your stead. I would be a worthy sacrifice."
"No, my love. However, perhaps if you simply stick your head up and warn me of
anything. The girls here can look after the crew and make sure they don't try anything
funny. For that matter, you could destroy most things that approach."
"Very well, Kezia. Still, be careful."

She kissed her Inquisitor's lips briefly yet passionately, just as the rest of the team started
to clamber in, keeping the crew under control. Kezia nodded, and then began to climb,
and Sister Sylvana stepped up after her to keep an eye out for anything that would hit her
mistress.

As soon as Kezia was on her feet on the unsteady train, Vermont dashed forwards. He
knew that he had to push the advantage the whole way, and if he could push her back far
enough, she could lose her footing and fall down the hatch with the others. He charged,
and so did Kezia. However, as their blades clashed for the first time, he discovered that a
non-power weapon did not fare well against a power one. The end of his blade flew off,
cutting a lock of hair short from the Inquisitor. She forced him back with her foot,
pushing the air from his lungs, and then delivered a backhand stroke with her sword. Had
he not fallen back and rolled, he would have been dealt a mortal wound. But on his feet
again, he lunged, his blade just as sharp, if a little shorter.

The fight raged on, each making a little ground before the other would counter. Due to
the deadly weapons, the fight was all about not getting hit. They circled and weaved,
eventually ending up in the exact same positions they started in, albeit with more fatigue.
It was then that Kezia noticed something in the background. She did her best not to
change her facial expression. Any give-away would ruin the surprise, so she instead
advanced as the hatch at the back of the train lifted, and Sister Kasanja quietly climbed
up. With a kick, Vermont sent Kezia back a metre, drew his hand back to deliver the
killing blow...

Kasanja grabbed his wrist, crushing the bones within his arm. She then whirled him
around forcefully, the arm coming out of its socket, and only let him go when he was
upside down and being swung forward towards the rapidly moving tracks. He hit head-
first, and at that speed, he didn't fold up, roll and stop, no. His head was grinded off as
though a sanding belt was applied to it, and he died a quick, messy, painful death. It was
over, except for one little thing.

They were still on a train that was travelling at horrific speeds, and they were likely to be
killed if it came to a sudden stop. They were quick to make their way back down, where
it was politely suggested to the driver that he stop the train. Over the next twenty seconds,
it screeched to a halt, again sending a trail of sparks. The driver didn't bother to move,
expecting to be killed.

---

"Had you stopped the train earlier, we would have died. You would have as well,
possibly slowly and painfully, but that would have been a much harder blow on us than
on your cause. You showed the tiniest glimmer of hope, and for that, you shall live. I
sentence you here and now to ten years in a penal colony. After that you are a free man."

Sylvana grabbed the relieved driver, and as a group, they slowly pulled themselves out of
the train and made their long, slow journey back to the surface world, giving the captain
of the Skyslider a call to pick them up and take them back to the war zone.


Once the team were assembled with the Adepta Sororitas' carrier, they carefully carried
the wounded over to Sister Hospitaler Ambrosia. She had a full schedule, injecting
Narthecium, checking wounds, cauterising injuries and generally fixing the entire group
so that they would recover. Sister Rosetta was still unable to talk for nearly an hour as her
jaw repaired itself, regenerating like a Space Marine thanks to the chemical augmentation.
The Angry Marines in question had briefly dropped by, paying their respects to the
Inquisitor with much restraint and requesting Narthecium for their own injuries before
returning to the Land Raider.

When Sister Dominique woke up, she brushed her fingers over where the head wound
used to be. In its place was smooth skin, barely marked by the bullet wound. She was
surrounded by the smiling faces of her unit, and helped to her feet. They all embraced
Sister Ambrosia, trying not to smother her in their gratitude.

By this time, the Adeptus Arbites had gathered, along with the cult of the Red
Redemption, and they all said their farewells to Kezia, knowing that she would soon be
leaving them. Derrick also bid his former comrades farewell, deciding on a new life at the
side of his Inquisitor.

"There is just one more thing, then, before we leave for Ophelia VII."

Kezia marched over to where the Angry Marines were gathered, by the Land Raider. She
held her Inquisitorial badge of authority up as a reminder. They fixed their eyes on her,
but made no move, nor did they say anything ­ most likely to avoid swearing in their
perpetual anger. Instead they watched as she pounded her fist against the main door.
There was the sound of heavy bolts sliding across, and it slowly opened, revealing a
young man in power armour, with the large Inquisitorial "I" connected to the back of the
collar like a standard. His brown eyes were partially glazed as though suffering a form of
blindness, and he kept his blonde hair tied back loosely.

"Can I help you, Inquisitor Kezia?"
"Well, that would explain the presence of such a vehicle, and how the marines knew to
come here. Might I have your name and Ordo?"
"Why certainly. It would be rude otherwise, don't you think? My name is Inquisitor
Urseus of the Ordo Malleus. I was here investigating rumours of daemon sighting. How

---

curious that you were also here, presumably looking for those the daemons were
connected to?"
"Indeed. Still, I am confident that both problems have been solved now. Thank you for
your part in the war."
"Oh no, thank you. You did most of the actual work, I hear. I just rolled around in this
invincible tank and executed traitors and daemons. You should try it some time, it's
rather fun."
"I'll keep that in mind. Hail the Immortal God-Emperor of Humanity!"

They both saluted one another.

"I shall see you again some time perhaps, Miss Mordecai."
"It is unlikely. I am of the Ordo Hereticus; if we meet again it means something bad for
one of us."
"Aha, too true. Farewell then."

Kezia walked back to join her colleagues, and eventually, the ET Skyslider launched into
space, the Imperial Naval vessel following close behind with the other Daughters of the
Emperor.


The Sisters of Battle stepped out, their armour worn and damaged, yet polished to look as
best as it could. Likewise, though they were obviously weary despite sleeping on the
journey, they all looked proud and zealous. As soon as Sylvana, still wearing the Cloak of
St. Aspira, saw the Canoness, she marched over and hugged her once more.

"It is good to be back, Mistress. However, I think I have a new calling, one that will take
me with the Inquisitor, though I will still return here whenever I am able."
"I know, Sister Sylvana. I somewhat expected that might be the case, when I received
reports of what you had accomplished. I look forward to hearing the full story... and
there is the lady of the hour. Inquisitor Mordecai, welcome to Ophelia VII. The Adepta
Sororitas are your humble servants."

Kezia smiled and saluted Tabitha.

"It is good to finally meet you. I have heard wonderful things about you. I am here to
return your girls, and also to hold a pair of trials. Have you the facilities?"

"Most certainly. We have cells the captives can be held in until all are refreshed and
looking proper for a trial. I take it you wish for witnesses, but require no actual jury?"


An hour later, they were gathered. Kezia had showered, with a little help from Sister
Sylvana, and was wearing her official robes as she stood at the podium some five metres
high, looking down upon the two captives. On every side, there were rows of Sisters of

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Battle, and both villains were held in chains. There would be no escape, and even if there
was, they were on a planet filled with the Adepta Sororitas.

"Reginald Cinder, you have been found guilty of the crimes of conspiring with and
assisting traitors, assisting heresy, rebellion against the Imperium and obstructing justice.
Due to your actions at the end, leniency shall be shown, and you are hereby sentenced to
ten years in a penal colony. Should you survive and not extend your sentence through
your behaviour there, you will be released at the end of your term, a free man once
more."

Relieved that the Inquisitor had indeed spared his life, Reginald merely nodded. Kezia
then turned and glared at the governor, who was once again very red in the face.

"Now, Jacob Reynolds, you have been found guilty of treason and heresy against
humanity, the Imperium and the Emperor Himself. You have been found guilty of
inciting rebellion and declaring war against agents of the Imperium. You are guilty of
conspiring with a heretic and harbouring a witch. You are guilty of consorting with
daemons... I could go on. You have performed only one action that is even mildly
redeeming, in that you surrendered when you were already outnumbered and outgunned.
Therefore, there is only one suitable punishment found available..."


Inquisitor Matthias, sitting aboard his enormous Space Hulk, received a message on his
computer. It was not long, merely saying:

I have sent a gift to you. Contact the Administratum to arrange for delivery. ­ Kezia

With mild curiosity, he sent a message to the administrators to work out the ideal place to
collect the gift that was sent. Three days later, he arrived at a small planet where there
was a large metal crate, requiring ID-scanning to open. Without a second thought he ran
his Rosarius over the scanner, and the door slid open. Standing there, bound in chains and
seemingly content, was a slightly overweight man with a variety of metal attachments. A
melted helmet and visor, covered in purity seals, was bolted to his head, and his arms
were replaced with flails, mechanical tendrils and power tools. There was also a sheet of
paper, with all the information he needed:

Name: JA-R3N 294110
Activation Phrase: Swift Mercy
Deactivation Word: Harm

He smiled, pleased to see that his trainee had been successful. He instructed the arco-
flagellant to follow him, returning to his ship.

THE END

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Document Outline

Beginning Arrival Things go pear-shaped Red Redemption Scheming I The Assault Interrogation Penance I (porn) Leaving the planet Penance II (porn) Scheming II Training Mission Arrival again Kezia and Sylvana (porn) Scheming III Discipline (porn) Assassins Awakening Next Morning Leaving again Scheming IV Declaration of War Reinforcements Angry Marines Lord of Change Clean-up Train End of the war Train (still) Aftermath Home THe End

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