Sector Report XI

+ From the Blind Scribes of the Ordos Prosperitas+

+ Thought for the Day + «The present changes the past from moment to moment. Only pray for the future to vindicate your actions.»

++ Begin Data Inload ++ Pending…. ++ ++ The current date is 4-125.598.M41 ++ ++ Report Begins ++

++ Major Events ++

++ Be aware that the detail and annotations provided in these updates is available only to the servants of the Inquisition – the full contents of these reports is Consignarus Obscurus Maximus, and should not be shared beyond our ranks ++

4-094.598.M41 - The Fiery Vengeance

Thousands of bodies devastated by what appears to be incendiary bolter-fire - in more than one of these incidents investigators discover them to be hidden lodges and the cannibal slaughterhouses of the Red Hand cult. In several cases, survivors - captives intended as sacrifices - reported the arrival black armoured Astartes wreathed in flickering flames and bearing charnel symbology. Perhaps most fascinating is that for all, except for the most direct witnesses, the memories of these attacks rapidly begin to fade from memory; plus, all recording devices in the area appear to be heavily distorted by unknown static. Just as the power of the Plague God has diminished in recent years from its cult’s setbacks, so too does the Blood God’s star seem diminished in the auguries performed following this vengeance.

Inquisitor Rilke Haslinger - Ordo Malleus - I believe that we have seen the God-Emperor's hand manifested, and that our spectral visitors are the so-called “Legion of the Damned” described in Quadrimesta's Thesis of Perpetual Martyrdom - no successful investigation into the Legion has ever been carried out, and, given the cases of amnesia in this and other cases, we never will. Still, many, myself included, believe that the miracle manifested here is a sign that He walks amongst us, and that He might well be seeking a way back to us. Regardless, we are blessed; Glory Be to Him on Terra.

Ẅ̵̧̘̩́̐̾͆́̔̇͐͊̉̑̅̅̏ͅo̸͕̫̪͚̫̻̰͉͖̮͂̆̏̐͐́ͅű̵̺͈̅͝l̸͉̍̈́̎̕ͅd̴̼̫̥͕̼̦͎̯̘͇̝̲̩̩̬͋̂ ̶̳̹̗̺̙͓̌̾͒̋͋͂͌̾̎̾̚ỵ̷̡͕̩̦͈̱̾̈́͒ò̵͇̲̟͉̜̥̇́͆̇̀̋̾͜͝͝ū̵̼̪̙̰̲̬̯̘̙̤̗̭͔̻̐͂̆̍͜͝ ̵̘̭͈̦͔̻̯̮̜̃̿̐̚͝k̴̛̙̺̪̮̱̼̱͍̠̟̻̬̃́̐̾̕ȋ̴̢͚̪̥̻̟̜̙͙̬̫̩̖̗̕͘ͅn̶̡̛̩̩͎͖̞̮͊̆̈́̈́͐̐̋̓d̵̞͚͉̫̤͔̙̏̅̾̉͜l̷̛̟̠̞̼̥͕̏̃̾̇̈͛͊̔̎̊͂̚͜͝y̷̡̖̼̝̩͓̣͐͌̆̎͊̊͂̉͂͘ ̶̨̥̲̱̮̳̙̯̟̰̲͖͑͋͝͝a̷̤̦̱̝̞̝͇̰͚͎͚̎̒̎̆̓̎̓̆̀̂̈̃i̷̛͇̮̎̈́͛̓̈́̐̓̀̍͝͝d̸̡̟͎̤̮̠̰͔̫̞͙̊̒̆̿̋͘ ̵̣͇͔̳̹̮̲̜̼̦͉̹̦̑̃͘Ṭ̵̻̏̈̄̕̕̚ḫ̴̑̆͗̈́͂̀â̷̻͆̔̎̿̓̀́̒̋͗͆͝t̵̡̨̘͍̠̰̥͍̣̗͚̣̑̒̏̀͋̆́͗̈́̈́́̓̕͝-̵̨͇̹͉͇̯͓̀̀̓̾̍̊͜͠w̶͍̰̣̲̘̣͑͊̆́̌̀̅̆̈͠͠h̸̛̠͌̂̐̂͊͂͐͑̄͠͠͝i̵̢͕͕̱̬͔̺̞͕̤͔̱͛͛͛̊͗͂̽̇͒̓̈́͠͝͝c̶̡̢̧̠̺͎̖̭̭̠̭̯̖͌̕ḧ̵̬͙̬̯̥̪́͆̉͊̀̔̀̉͜͠-̶̞̦͈̞̻͉͔͉͍̝̟͇͈̱͉̽͗̂w̶̛̘͕̿̔̊̑̓̽̾͝a̶̢̬̤̺͇͎̫͚̬̻̬̍̑͌́̆͒̈́̅̐͒̎̾̚̕͠ͅl̵͕͍͚̞̟͍̮̞̜͕͋̀̔͛̈́͗̊̐͝k̷̩̙̦̯͂̑̽̈́̊͆̓̓͒ṣ̶͝-̵̧̡̡̗̫̘͈̲͚̯̲̥̯̳͉̈́̆̆b̷̢̡̛͈̘͈̥̥̩͎̗͗̐̇̈́̔̓̚̕͝ë̶̩͕̻̖̲̖̙̥̗͇̭̫̰̲͖̐̉͒̎͌̊̿̾̃h̶̛̤̞̮͕̗̉͑̓̇͂̓͌̂i̵̢̨͎͎̖̳̦̜͖̻̞̥̰͓̾̈́͗͘n̶̢̥̲͇͙̫͓̯̖̫̪͆͆͑́̎̽̈́͆̀̾͠d̵̛̳̄͐͗̽̓̓͝ ̸̧̰̫̻̥̞̘͉̠̥̂̄̍͗̔̎͘͝ͅ - It is spectacularly arrogant to see the hand of the Emperor in any unexplained manifestation of the supernatural - we are not always worth Their attention, and, if my colleague had perhaps read Quadrimesta's Thesis of Perpetual Martyrdom, she might have been aware that my Peer Quadrimestra theorised that the Legion likely suffers from a warp-corruption that causes them to experience time in a non-linear fashionable. Whoever these legionaries are, they likely have, or will at some point, experience a catastrophic event that de-anchors their corpus from the linear experience of time. Look not to the God-Emperor's hand in all things, but accept that we are witnessing a unique warp phenomena.

4-097.598.M41 - The Fall of the House Stanford

Inquisitorial Agents investigating a report from Lord Hector Stanford discover that the House’s head, Lady Georgina Stanford, was a doppelganger; in her place was Justine Stanford who, for years, has impersonated her cousin and led the House. The real Lady Georgina has been held in the attic of the House since manifesting as an Alpha-tier Psyker several years prior. It is also discovered that the House’s attic is host to a nest of Chiropterans, a form of malevolent warp xenos; as if that wasn’t enough, the building has been modified through sorcerous means into a warp-weapon designed to strike against THREAT SCENIC. If activated, it would have devastated Merewald, leading to a sector-wide famine. Inquisitorial Agents are able to neutralise the threat by successfully destroying the House Stanford Estate Mansion, thus preventing the culmination of the Sorcerous act.

In the aftermath of the investigation, the representatives of the Ordo Hereticus within the Prosperitas Conclave make representation to the Great House of Palamyr, to report the straying of their subject-House. Ysabella Palamyr, a well-known puritan among the eclectic and exotic nobility of the Prosperitas Sector and Head of the House, is swift to act against the House. She offers up its surviving members to the Ordo, and officially revokes the titles and position of House Stanford, with swift confirmation from the Orders Famulous of the Adepta Sororitas. Within days, House Stanford’s noble holdings are dissolved and handed to other Houses who have better demonstrated their loyalty to House Palamyr: the House is rendered legally extinct, and the surviving trueborn members into the House are delivered to the Black Ships for judgement. Those not genetically of the House are granted annulments of marriage and adoption, returning to prior family names. Most savagely of all, in a display of Merewald’s cruellest possible punishment, it quickly becomes a social faux pas to bring up the House in polite conversation: damnatio ab mōre.

Inquisitor Corvinus - Ordo Hereticus - The destruction of House Stanford is a necessary act. The people must see the Nobility to be pure of corruption, otherwise, the hierarchy of the Imperium and the social structures we use to maintain control of the Sector will be undermined.

Inquisitor Duplesis - Ordo Xenos - House Stanford's removal from the picture has undermined the Followers of Saint Ludlam by removing one of their most powerful supporters, and has opened the door to change on Merewald. With the damage done to Persephon by the Orks likely requiring years to rebuild, and our dependence on fickle xenotech to maintain the fertility of Midsummer, we can ill afford Merewald remaining backward technologically.

4-114.598.M41 - Crushing the Will of Iron

At high anchor over Duroverum, in the tightly-controlled voidspace of the Sector Capital, Imperial authorities scramble to respond as a garbled distress-call comes from an unexpected source. In the reserved orbit enjoyed by the vessels of the Sector Governor’s House, an explosion in the vox array cuts off the transmission from the Trade Surplus, a Tempest Frigate in the escort group of Governor Hermione Durovera’s own flagship. Thanks to the Rogue Trader’s insistence that her vessels’ voidroom not be infringed, very little is in range to intervene as the little escort and its five sister ships turn in space and accelerate directly toward their principal, weapons flaring to life and firing wildly. The Durovera flagship, Will of Iron, has startling manoeuvrability for her size; the battlecruiser turns to meet the assault. One treacherous vessel is forced into head-on collision, breaking apart as she meets the battlecruiser’s armoured prow; two more fail to evade the arcs of her broadside batteries, and in short order the shattered remnants of their superstructure fall burning into atmosphere. Even a Mercury-class cannot match the manoeuvrability of the smaller vessels, though, and the Will of Iron is raked by brutal short-range fire from within her own shield envelope. Only at the last minute does it become clear what the surviving traitor vessels intend; two break off their attack runs, turning toward the battlecruiser’s stern; the Trade Surplus plunges onward and is still accelerating when she rams the Will of Iron amidships. The escort is obliterated, her drives and magazine detonating - simultaneously - as she impacts.

Mercury battlecruisers are fast for their class; they are also under-armoured, their structure lightened to manage their heavy weaponry and vast drives, and it is immediately clear that the strike was made with devastating precision to exploit this. The main magazine of the battlecruiser was struck almost directly, and as the oncoming System Defence Vessels rush to her aid, Durovera’s flagship is rent across her middle by a series of terrible explosions and her drives flare out, leaving her drifting, shedding escape pods into atmosphere and howling her distress calls across the voxwaves of the capital.

The mayhem in orbit continues as the two escaping escorts careen wildly through the tightly-controlled voidlanes, pursued by an uncoordinated mixture of Durovera and Arbites patrol vessels, System Defence pickets, such of the Navy as decide damn the clearances, and miscellaneous fire from bystanders caught up in the excitement. One, despite impressive flying that drags the chase out nearly an hour, is at last cornered and tidily disabled by a precision lance-strike to the drive from a Naval cruiser who got a clear shot. Before she can be boarded, enough other vessels have enthusiastically fired on her that there is only so much scrap metal left to examine. The last traitor vessel manages only to fly in a haphazard circle, her thrusters firing unevenly and weapons likewise, barely under control; she is seized intact by a wave of Astartes assault boats and brought into impound.

The Will of Iron burns in the sky over Duroverum for nearly sixteen hours before the fires are brought under control, and the furious Lady-Captain orders a complete news blackout enforced with the full weight of the Adeptus Arbites. Fragments of the devastated vessels continue to deorbit intermittently, rendering this somewhat futile even on the capital world alone as areas of hive are struck. Word spreads out into the wider Sector like wildfire despite the Imperial censors’ best efforts - and the reason for this becomes clear as the Rising Flame claim responsibility for the strike, broadcasting their message across the Imperium’s worlds: There is a flame in the heart of humanity, and that flame is called freedom; however high the occupiers think they stand, however safe they think they are, they too can burn.

Inquisitor Duplesis - Ordo Xenos - The Silence came at the worst possible time for dealing with the Flame. We had them on their back foot, and then they gained two years to recover. We suspected they have access to xenotech for communications, and the level of coordination in this strike has sufficient hallmarks that I consider it proven. My concern is now whether they can also have access to this tech for travel. We may be able to find out: some of the Flame’s agents were successfully captured alive aboard the last of the escorts.

Explicator Majoris Vithimir - Retinue of Inquisitor-Militant Corvinus - Initial questioning uncovered that all of the traitor vessels were intended to ram the Will of Iron, but it seems one lost their nerve and the others’ crew successfully mutinied. Yes, mutinied - the Flame had either placed sleeper agents among the Durovera fleet, or had suborned their officers in situ. Following information received, we have noted in particular the disappearance of one Scion Zenobia Durovera, a senior figure in their House fleet with responsibility for their void security at Duroverum. They might be expected to flee before the Lady-Captain’s wrath after such a failure, but cowardice was not in their assessed personality profile, and they jumped to Warp from the edges of the system not long after the attack. Interrogations will continue, but there is cause to suspect treachery in the innermost circle of the House.

4-134.598.M41- The Annexation of Castellum

In a move that catches the Crusade by surprise, the Fabricator-General of Ferraeus, Archmagos Myrioi-513, orders half of the Legio Ferraeus and its accompanying transport fleet away from the front lines of the Regency incursion at Helaerus. The reason for this rapidly becomes clear: despite the Ferraeans’ long tolerance of the deviation of Castellum, the cold war brought about by the severing of diplomatic ties with Naximus Prime, has prompted the older Forge to petition Mars and the Fabricator-General of the Mechanicus to grant it right of rule over the younger secessionist colony on Castellum. Ferraeus’ claim over Castellum has at last been presented before the Macro-Synod of Mars - and immediately ratified as Martian conservatives recoil in horror after seeing the ‘latest model’ of datapad produced by the Castellum Priesthood. Offended by its non-Martian smooth lines and un-sanctioned ergonomics, the Macro-Synod votes to immediately censure Castellum’s Magoi for Tech-Heresy and grant dominion over the colony to Ferraeus.

The annexation is bloodless: the threat of fully half of the Legio Ferraeus being deployed to their world is enough for Castellum’s Magoi to surrender themselves to the Prefecture Magisterium (the Machine Cult’s own internal quasi-inquisitorial body) and permit the takeover of their facilities by their former colleagues on Ferraeus. Offered a choice of exile to the Explorator fleets or reeducation and reinduction to the Machine Cult of Ferraeus, many Castellan Magoi agree to shed their borderline techno heretical ways in exchange for the relative freedom of the Explorator fleets - though a good number accept the Martian red and necessary neurological procedures to correct their religious deviance.

Meanwhile, Cerastes Salient under General Astara rushes to plug gaps in the Crusade ground forces left by the departure of the God-Machine’s armies. Forces are pulled in from across the Subsector Secundus front, in a rushed flurry of redeployments across the front; in particular, from the forces held in reserve along the Sol-Prosperitas Passage. Elsewhere, Imperials who had been drawn in by the siren song of Castellum’s technology find their dataslates and bionics unsupported and viewed with renewed suspicion; and the Explorator Fleets look askance at the influx of newcomers who seem certain to bring increased scrutiny in their wake.

4-139.598.M41- Arbites Convocation Called on Duroverum

In the aftermath of the Rising Flame’s strike in the very orbit of the Sector Capital, Provost-Marshal Carrick summons the High Marshals of the Subsectors to a Convocation to, in a manner of speaking, lay down the Lex. He orders an end to the employment of variant doctrines of enforcement without his personal authorisation. The order cites a few local planetary variants, but is widely understood to target the Virellian and Vox Doctrines - the former of which encouraged lower-key and restrained enforcement to lower population tensions, while the latter focused on suppressing native Annwfyn and Ruwwad populations on the grounds of their weaker Imperial loyalties.

Political observers note that two of the Subsector Marshals have their own doctrinal variants rapidly approved and ordered into use across the Sector: High-Marshal Jabez of Subsector Primus is authorised to draw greater use of preemptive policing via Augury and deep intelligence work, expanding the role of Verispex-Haruspicy; and Lady-Marshal Sparksmith of Subsector Secundus is commended for her highly-mobile approach, and authorised to train and deploy greater numbers of Frontier Marshals. The combination enables the Arbites to deploy agile task groups to maintain Imperial rule on the worlds of the Prosperitas Sector beyond the Primus Overprecinct - Arbites forces increasingly deputise local Enforcer units, and it is not uncommon for Arbites overseers to be present on the front lines. The move is widely seen to increase the ageing Provost-Marshal’s grasp of the Sector Arbites - and also to suggest Jabez and Sparksmith currently stand roughly equal in the question of who is likely to succeed him, with both beginning to gather supporters. It seems likely that both Vox and Virellian doctrines will see less deployment, not least as the Arbiter that the Vox doctrine is named after has been named a wanted fugitive after Arbites consultation with the Ordo Hereticus.

Inquisitor Corvinus - Ordo Hereticus - The Virellian Doctrine was an effective tool for managing the initial growth of THREAT SCENIC within the Prosperitas Sector, but it came with costs, and our prognosticators had begun signalling diminishing returns in recent months. Imperial rule has always been restrictive and dominant by its very nature, and, in the absence of that, other threats were emboldened. There was no way we could prevent the Marshal’s Court from adapting, in particular in the face of this latest provocation. We have ensured that they are informed of the unique esoteric environment within the Prosperitas Sector, and of Vox’s personal allegiances; this has curbed the Provost-Marshal’s reaction to the Rising Flame’s activity, which would otherwise have focused on the ordinary retributive repercussions against communities suspected of harbouring rebels or sympathisers. A secondary effect is a marked lack of Arbites support for Hermione Durovera’s “Imperium Prosperitas” campaign; her response to the Provost-Marshal’s approach will no doubt be visible from orbit.

4-273.598.M41 - Quadripartite Schism

No longer unified against the Temple of the Saviour Emperor or under the ruthless heel of a Cardinal of the Faith forcing it to unite, the Ecclesiastical factions within the Prosperitas Sector’s Priesthood following a disastrous summit between the various religious groups on begin to align behind four powerful factions of the Faith;

The Nongentist Omnicult has long grown its power despite opposition from within both the Machine Cult and the Imperial Cult. Its members persecuted by the religious enforcers of the Ordo Malagra and those of the Imperial Cult alike, but with the upheaval from the annexation of Castellum the Nongentists have found purchase amongst many displaced Tech-Priests adapting to the new order among the Sector Mechanicus. Perhaps surprisingly, the Omnicult has also found newly-fertile ground on Merewald, where its Omnissian-Emperor fusion-rites have found receptive ears amongst both Serfs and Nobility after the technophobic Followers of Saint Ludlam lost the faith of the population during the Silence. The bionic modifications adopted by the Omnicult’s followers in their pursuit of a perfect balance of machine and humanity might be no more disturbing than those of the Machine-Cult proper - but their Macro-Temples, raised as edifices of the Emperor-Omnissiah with their tableaux vivant filled with electively servitorised devotees posed in religious scenes are unsettling to many. The Nongentists have their heaviest presence amongst the worlds outside of Subsector Primus, where the Omnicult’s Tech-Wrights are valued greatly for maintaining critical machinery. Their Priests’ willingness to encourage adoption of bionics to weather the extreme conditions on many worlds on the fringe make a deal of sense to allow humans to adapt to unexpected environments their bodies were not made for, and engender a groundswell of support on the frontiers.

The Voluntas Concedists find their support amongst the Nobility of the Prosperitas Sector. Often considered the worst excesses of the union of the Imperial Faith and the Imperial State, the Concedists’ doctrine strongly reinforces amongst their flocks the “divine right” of the bloodlines of the Imperial Nobility. Their opponents call them cynical and corrupt, saying that Concedist Priests are the tame ‘pets’ of the Nobility, seeking only to benefit from wealth and indulgences offered by their noble patrons and putting their political ambitions before their duties to the Creed. Concedists would argue that their close bonds with the Imperial Nobility are enshrine in the core hierarchical values of the Imperial faith; and that the Ministorum’s role is consequently to minister to the purity of the Nobility, that their moral virtue in leadership will be in turn conferred on the souls under their stewardship. It cannot be denied that the Concedists are the most wealthy of the preeminent sects of the Prosperitas Sector, but they are also the least religiously philosophical one at the same time and have little purchase amongst the myriad of Priests found on the colony-worlds of the Sector - many of whom found themselves assigned as missionaries for their lack of support of the state-aligned hierarchy of the Eccliesarchy proper. Although the sect finds its greatest support in Subsector Primus, it often finds it easier to found temples in the outlying colonies of the Prosperitas Sector thanks to its relative wealth and welcomeness amongst the nobility. These displays of wealth and power have not helped it win over its enemies within the Priesthood, reminding many of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor’s priorities and trappings even as it treads on their toes; and its greatest weakness is how vehemently it is disliked by the Adepta Sororitas, especially the Order of His Sanguine tears.

The Hierocratic Orthodoxy represent those members of the Imperial Cult who remain devoted to the hierocratic order of the Ecclesiarchy and would maintain the status quo common across most of the Imperium. Because of its frontier nature, the Prosperitas Sector has over its history attracted a myriad of Priests who clashed with the hierarchy of more settled Imperial sectors, and as a result the Orthodoxy is the smallest of the three major factions warring for religious control. Their strength comes from their alignment with the Ecclesiarch on Terra, who has taken a specific interest in the Prosperitas Sector since the attempted uprising of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor. Through that endorsement, the Orthodoxy enjoy the support of the local Adepta Sororitas and the Ordo Hereticus.

The Myriad Sects are not a unified faction in and of themselves, but represent an important factor in sector religious politics. The Prosperitas Sector has attracted a great number of divergent religious beliefs in the God-Emperor, ones that would face persecution in more established regions of the Imperium. While the Nongentist Omnicult has been the most successful of these, it is not to say others lack followers; many simply aren’t focused on securing power like the other factions of the ecclesiarchy. Foremost amongst these in terms of growth has been the Gearwright sect, but their general distrust of the political hierarchy of the Imperium and disinterest in pursuing power in favour of continuing the exploration of their faith and providing care to others means they have not factored into religious political struggles as yet. The question of how to react to them is one heavily discussed amongst the three major factions, and there are those who would see the Gearwrights exterminated as Grulge and the Temple attempted; but there are those who actively seek to tame the sect and realign it to the political reality of the Sector so it becomes a more acceptable part of Imperial society. Other groups such as the Prosperitas Redemption, the Tomb-Priests of Amenophis IV’s Empty Quarter and the Death Cults also factor into the planning of those who seek religious power in the sector. Some like the Redemption are disruptive internal threats in the eyes of the Sector elite, while others, especially the Death Cults, are courted by those members of the faith who might use their allegiance as a threat against their rivals.

Inquisitor Corvinus - Ordo Hereticus - Apparently I am the ‘orthodox’ voice in the Conclave, for supporting the Imperial Cult as set down by Saint Thor following his reformations? So be it. Have we not learned the lesson of tolerating deviant belief in the God-Emperor with Grulge and the Temple’s failed coup d'etat? I do not trust the Gearwrights. Callum Gearwright was an Astropath. If through them the God-Emperor acted, given that they were already a psychically prepared channel for His power, this should not be presumed to represent saintdom and merely the divine hand of the God-Emperor in play. Enough tolerance of divergence; our alignment as agents of the Throne should fall behind those who represent the religious will of the Throne and not beliefs of their own making.

Inquisitor Zahid - Ordo Hereticus - I maintain my respectful disagreement with my colleague. The history of the Imperial cult was written by good people who did not always agree with the hierarchy, and Saint Thor is a perfect example of this. Though I agree that the Gearwright tendency towards anti-establishment views should be discouraged, it cannot be said that they haven’t been an effective balm against SCENIC as well as Archenemy Cults; could we not be said to see the Emperor’s hand in that? The Omnicult concerns me. More and more in recent years it feels like they have become less of a unification of the faiths and more of a way for Ferraeus’s leadership to exert wider political control via the conversion of those of the Imperial Faith. Archmagos Myrioi-313 has long dodged my requests for an audience, and the annexation of Castellum cannot be ignored as they consolidate their control over the Machine Cult in this sector. It would be wise to maintain the division of both cults, no matter how appealing a unified faith may be. Ferraeus already holds enough power with its longstanding bonds with House Durovera.

Magos Assert-The-Doctrinal-Code-And-Bring-The-Machine-To-Heel - Inquisitorial Advisor to the Ordo Machinum and Ordo Hereticus - ++Error: Context not provided++. This one feels compelled to note that the Omnicult also provides notable benefits, just as the Gearwrights have; many Omnicult members can be found within technical Guilds providing essential maintenance tasks. It would be presumption.exe to say there is no benefit from their position on the sector stage. I would caution that too the Concedists represent Noble overreach and should not be ignored as a potential risk either.

4-171.598.M41 - House Palamyr and Caerlyn assert dominance over Merewald

After a month of frosty negotiations with the smaller Houses of Merewald, House Palamyr and Caerlyn jointly move against them. Long have the Great Houses considered their inheriting of the backward planet both a blessing and a curse, and with the authority of the local Nobility degrading, they put into motion plans to finally bring the planet to heel. For years, both Houses have intermarried with their subjects, positioning lesser scions of their Houses within the ruling bloodlines of nearly every powerful family on the planet. On this day, they produce their joint writs of dominion over Merewald, and use the Imperial Law of Primus Sanguinae to name those members of the families of Merewald that bear their blood the de facto rulers by law of their territories. On some estates, this was already the case, but, in others, children are suddenly elevated to rule, and stewards from the High Houses descend to guarantee their positions. There is little the lesser planetary Houses can do to resist this: most Household Guards on Merewald rely too heavily on archaic technology and have little hope against a functioning Imperial military force of any kind. By invoking the Lex, Palamyr and Caerlyn have ensured their word is backed by the Arbites, so any talk of resistance against the regime-change is stifled. If any attempts to halt the consolidation occur, no stories get offworld.

Palamyr and Caerlyn begin shipping in industrial farming equipment and new technologies are introduced to the serfs of Merewald by patient, usually Nongentist, Tech Wrights - many of them drawn from the cities of Merewald where technological uptake has been more common. Though Merewald is now in the grips of a technological revolution, neither Great House has any interest in altering the established order, and soon enough the Nongentist Omnicult Temples erected in opposition to the Followers of Saint Ludlam are aping the mythology of the ‘Great Sin’ that has been used to oppress the serf-caste for generations. Though the next few years will likely transform the face of Merewald entirely into the same industrial farmland that feeds the rest of the Imperium, much of the core feudal order is left intact even as the world’s more bizarre anachronisms are washed away.

4-228.598.M41 - Defeat at the Epona Stars

The Imperial Navy clashes with a Regency Fleet in the binary system known as the Epona Stars, in Subsector Secundus. Containing little more than a handful of dead protoplanets and a Servitor-manned Naval listening post, the Epona Stars are nevertheless strategically important to Imperial control of the trade route along the most vulnerable stretch of the Sol-Prosperitas Passage, where it skirts closest to Subsector Tenebris. They form a primary warp jump point along this critical warp corridor, and one which allows the Regency to bypass the Crusade’s blocking forces around Olethros Secunda. Imperial forces are initially confused how the Regency came into possession of charts for warp route, until a Regency Admiral hails the rapidly scrambled battlegroups of Cerastes Salient who deploy to defend the system. The enemy commander appears on the hololiths carrying the still-twitching and grimacing head of Athelaus de Sousa, the former Navigator of House Majid’s flagship. Unlike his Mistress, the former Lady-Captain, Athelaus was captured at Olethros Secunda and kept alive by foul sorcery; it is clear the enemy has plundered his mind for the hidden routes of the Prosperitas Sector. Those who saw the grim broadcast claim his head mouthed apologies in between its silent screams.

The Regency Admiral, Jehanne Anointed-Sword-of-the-Bladed-Fleet, cuts a contrast to many of her foes: she is a young woman, ritually scarified by the rites of her heretical people but deeply charismatic and passionate, and throughout the battle maintains a constant open-channel broadcast of heretical scripture to the Naval Fleet. At first, the Imperial Captains leave vox channels open, intending to mock the leader of the foe as little more than a mad child, but such orders are swiftly rescinded as the dire scriptures of the Archenemy begin to corrupt the very vox units they are pouring through. With the element of surprise, Admiral Jehanne’s fleet is able to prevent the Navy engaging in its preferred formation. Preceded by waves of fighters and torpedoes using overgunned engines, they draw into close quarters with the lead ships of the Imperial fleet. It is there that the Imperium discovers the Archenemy’s deadly cargo: blistering lance salvos bring down shields, and black-armoured Traitor Astartes with sea-green shoulder pads teleport aboard the vessels and wreak slaughter within. The Archenemy’s forces capture several craft intact, much to the shame of the Captains who failed to self-destruct in time to deny the vessels to the enemy. How many more Navigators’ disembodied heads might even now be spilling the secrets of Imperial warp-traffic to their captors is a topic that keeps more than one Admiral awake at night.

The rout at the Epona Stars is the first decisive victory for the Regency since their attack on Olethros Secunda, and forces Warmaster Khan to deploy reserve fleets from Subsector Primus to reinforce the dead Strayvia system against the Archenemy’s most likely future line of advance into Subsector Primus. It is a savage blow to General Astara of Cerastes Salient, who finds Crusade High Command rife with whispers about how her lack of caution in deployments, her reliance on the support of the Mechanicus and her willingness to consider creative approaches might have contributed to the defeat.

Inquisitor Valtrois - Ordo Astartes - We knew a warband of Traitor Astartes were acting in coordination with the Regency, but so far we’ve had nothing approaching a real estimate of numbers; reports from the Epona Stars suggest multiple boarding parties, and a realistic strength of no less than thirty Traitor Astartes took part in the battle. We are dealing with a foe that can muster a considerably higher number of Astartes than we can reliably call upon. Esoteric intelligence from the Saint Sanguinius suggests that there are greater agents of the Dark Gods in play in all this, though we may still be dealing with a lackey coordinating this particular assault.

Captain Severian Raul - Attache to Inquisitor Militant Corvinus - The Commissariat have been quick to begin disciplinary actions against those ships able to make it out of the Epona Stars; the Warmaster has not stayed their hand in this matter, as it is necessary politically that examples are seen to be made, especially if she wishes General Astara not to be one of them. Strategic prediction and seer augury indicates that the enemy will likely next attempt to take Strayvia as they have done in the past. This is a contingency long prepared for, as Strayvia is at the end of a warp route out of the Eye Storms of Subsector Tenebris, but the capture of the Epona Stars means the enemy now controls two out of the five egress points from the warp into the Strayvia system. This increase in their options and poses the threat of a pincer strike manoeuvre against Vallum, which their forces have yet to test the defences of. With Kelper Prime in Archenemy control, Vallum offers Imperial forces the shortest warp jump into the Polarnus Nebula; should it fall, then we can only rely on the ore-carrier route from Bachian IV or the Storms’-edge corridor via Amenophis to ensure the Archenemy does not encircle Polarnus Station. This is not discounting a potential punch inwards towards Letifer, or bypassing both to assault Korimesta down the Sol-Prosperitas passage, a direction which would put the Archenemy one jump away from Duroverum. The Warmaster had hoped to commit forces to a counter-attack at Kelper or Olethros Secunda, but, until Admiral Jehanne’s fleet is routed, we cannot reasonably utilise those troops for anything but defence. This is likely why the Archenemy has risked extending one of their fleets so far out into our territory.

Inquisitor Zahid - Ordo Hereticus - While General Astara is naturally carrying responsibility for the defeat, on the heels of accusations of over-reliance on the Adeptus Mechanicus, come questions regarding why the Ferraeans made the decision to undermine the Helaeran front, and disrupt the Salient as a whole. The Crusade’s morale has been shaken by a loss of confidence in the Machine Cult, and Crusade High Command is outraged. With Ferraeus so closely allied to a Sector Governor who openly resents that she is not also a Warmaster, questions arise of which Imperial authorities were or were not forewarned of the intended withdrawal. Ferraeus may find they have expended more goodwill than they intended with this manoeuvre, however much they valued the prize. The Machine Cult in this Sector is becoming volatile in ways we can ill afford.

4-245.598.M41 - Probing Attacks at Jaculus Salient

After years of relative stalemate, reconnaissance forces under Commodore Kirill at the Jaculus Salient report a stirring of increased activity on the surface of Kelper. Naval zintelligence quickly re-tasks assets to focus on the area around the planet. When the agent reports and comms intercepts begin filtering in, they paint a dark picture. The plague-blighted surface of Kelper has become a hive of enemy activity, with hordes of Eye Tribe barbarians training and manoeuvring for battle. Eyewitness reports from embedded agents speak of the grisly fates of Kelper civilians who are used as human training dummies in the Children of Tain’s battle-practice.

Kelper is not without resistance forces - and as they range freely across the permafrost and tundra, the Eye tribes often trigger concealed culvert-bombs and command-wire explosives. A few mid-ranking commanders are killed in this way, with smuggled recordings of their deaths transmitted quickly across the Sector as cheering propaganda holovid reels. However, the sheer numbers of the Tains’ forces on-planet cannot be dramatically affected by a few hundred explosions, and the successful attacks are more symbolic than materially damaging.

More worrying still is the strategic assessment from under Admiral Holz’s office that the activities on the ground at Kelper may be a distraction for other, more subtle activities. In the makeshift orbital docks scavenged from the remnants of the planet’s orbital defence platforms, sleek hulls of Tain fast-strike vessels are being quietly refitted and prepared for action. The forces drilling in orbit are the elite of the Tain twins’ personal guard - small strike teams of the Eye Tribes’ most hardy warriors, accompanied by foul sorcerers capable of rendering their allies immune from pain and fear in battle.

Armed with reports of the increased threat, albeit with much of the sensitive detail redacted, the governors of Agrial III, Bachian IV and Amenophis IV all begin mobilising their planetary defence forces. Painfully aware that they exist a single short warp-jump away from a planet of festering Archenemy corruption, these worlds are quick to awaken from their Silence-induced slumber and begin drilling and preparing their own forces in response. Commodore Kirill, meanwhile, his pleas for reinforcements unmet as the Warmaster commits her reserve to the Strayvian Gateway, finds his Void forces spread more and more thinly. Sensitive agent reporting indicates that, in response to the latest incoming vox hail from Governor Mindinha Vilas-Lobo of Bachian IV, demanding he commit more ships to her world’s orbital defence, the Commodore instructed his senior aide to “station the last person to graduate Polarnus on the vox and tell them to make static noises with their mouth if she keeps it up, Sarina’s never caught on when I’ve done it”.

Lord-Inquisitor Aétos - Ordo Malleus - The massing of substantial forces on the surface of Kelper should be a concern to everyone. A strike in force by the Children of Tain would leave them deeply vulnerable and cut off from their supply-lines deeper in Tenebris, but that is precisely the sort of mad risk the Tain Twins might take if it meant cutting us off from the mines at Bachian or the factories of Amenophis, and, taken in concert with the fleet assault at the Epona Stars, those threats are of very serious concern. I do not give the business in orbit the same credence as Admiral Holz’s office: the sort of small harassing strikes those warbands might carry out will never bear the same strategic significance as a full-scale deployment. We must ensure that the bulk of their forces are prevented from leaving Kelper, and stop this menace before it begins.

Inquisitor Valtrois - Ordo Astartes - I must respectfully disagree with the Lord-Inquisitor. The pattern of large, overt manoeuvres on the surface speaks to me of nothing but a distraction. The Eye-Tribes have always been raiders at their heart, and Greppur and Arnkatla are doubtless restless after years of enforced stillness. We should be spending our forces reinforcing sensitive targets, critical facilities and valuable cargoes in transit. The war-games on the ground are simply training - painful for the civilians caught in the crossfire, but not a serious threat to the Crusade.

4-259.598.M41 - The Serpent’s Fangs

Flares of local unrest are common across the Prosperitas Sector; righteous obedience must often be enforced on fractious populations, and in the aftermath of the Silence, an uptick is to be expected. Nonetheless, Imperial Prognosticators say ill-omens lie between the stars, and draw hazy and twisting connections between far-flung events. The first to come to Imperial attention is a peasant rebellion on Midsummer. At first, reports arose of recidivist activity by the Drughu, a local Annwyfn culture. House Volkov naturally responded with increased presence of Enforcers and round-ups of the hillfolk - only to discover the weapons and supplies they had sent to the disrupted region being turned on their House troops, in the hands of a much more concerted rebellion from within the Imperial lines.

Fortunately for the Sector’s food supplies, if not for the Great House’s pride, the immediate call for reinforcements pulls back part of their fleet - which is more than sufficient to demonstrate that beyond those suborned weapons, the ‘real’ rebels are armed with little more than scythes and harsh language. Even so, they are surprisingly tenacious, and in their short tenure in control of scattered areas they do a disproportionate amount of damage relative to their numbers and equipment. Imperial forces are met with hails of stones and spite from ordinary citizens, and the inevitable response to such disrespect to the uniform decimates the farming population of the main landmass’ northwest. The instigator is never named, their followers dying rather than betray them, and it is here that the Inquisition’s Seers become involved in the hunt - and see omens of a parallel situation brewing under the same stars, in the high spires of Letifer Secundus.

On Letifer, it is not the peasants but the Lords and Ladies who boil over first. Responding to recent news of miracles associated with the Bones of St Lucas, a surge of pious sentiment has permeated the Hive, and comes to focus on a charismatic young preacher, Sister Solanacea. Speaking to the normally-jaded fashion salons of Hemlock Spire, she cries out that it is time to purge Digitalis of its lingering corruption, and seems to catch the collective imagination. At first, it is a normal purge - mutants from the depths of the hive, suspected witches and other deserving victims are dragged out of their hiding holes to face venomed scourges and recant their sins. But, then, the young preacher begins to address corruption she sees within the planet’s rulers - and, all too suddenly, officials of the Adeptus Terra and servants of House Ruttyer are coming under attack. Warned by the omens, Inquisitorial agents are deployed in time to prevent the Arbites Planetary Marshal being dragged out to face the venomstorms as “purification” for some mob-decried sin, and the Arbites begin sealing hive sections to contain the spread of rioting and sedition. Even with this intervention, pitched urban combat reigns through the upper levels of Hemlock as Solanacea calls her followers to scour “traitors and invaders” from the surface of “her” world. Ruttyer ground forces respond with characteristic restraint and calm, and the nascent revolt is broken in the rising… but as on Midsummer, unusually loyal followers buy enough time for their ringleader to flee - in this case, out into the poisonous atmosphere in the midst of an acid cloudburst, with no sign of hesitation or harm.

Inquisitor Rilke Haslinger - Ordo Malleus - Where the Hand of the Emperor is seen, the Archenemy’s backlash follows. This is plainly the Serpent Cult’s “Hidden Aristocracy” showing their fangs. Perhaps my esteemed colleagues will acknowledge that the enemy are seeking to undermine the soul of Letifer in response to the miracles wrought in the name of their patron Saint.

4-283.598.M41 - The Defence of Subsector Tertius

With Crusade forces stretched thin, the Great Houses and their allies ruling the planets of Subsector Tertius see the looming threats at Strayvia and Kelper, and begin to take matters of system defence into their own hands.

From her palace in orbit above Bachian IV, Governor Mindinha Vilas-Lobo calls for a levee-en-masse of the abhuman population. After intense negotiations with the Clanmothers, the Governor is able to secure several brigades of shock troops ready for deployment to the moons: these are swiftly incorporated into the Crusade roster as the 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th Bachian Auxilia. While their equipment and training leaves much to be desired, the popular assumption is that they will be thrown at the Children of Tain’s forces as cannon fodder and shock absorbers in the event of an incursion. There are rumours that Mindinha has made significant concessions to the Clanmothers to raise such a large force so quickly - but since the ore quota from Bachian remains unaffected, nobody in the Crusade seems inclined to ask too many questions.

Meanwhile on Agrial and Amenophis, the presence of the Sisters of the Order of the Eternal Gate, busily returning relics seized by the Templars to their proper places, bolsters the morale of local defenders. A detachment of the Order even pledges a rotation of the Sisters to minister to the Jaculus Salient fleet, to the awe and envy of the Guard. While the sisters of the Eternal Gate are scholars rather than Battle-Sisters, they are, nevertheless, regarded with a healthy respect by the local Crusade and civilians alike, heady with the propo-vid tales of their derring-do on the fringes of Imperial space.

Even the scholars of Agrial are doing their part for the war effort, with the Scribe-Priests of the planet’s vast Libraries sending detachments of their best and brightest scholars of military history, strategy and prognostication to Polarnus and the various satellite headquarters of the Jaculus Salient. Local commanders quickly come to rely on these sages, and some are heard to claim that they will never deploy without an Agrial haruspex on the staff again.

++Current Affairs++

++ Be aware that this information, while available to those beyond the Inquisition – is provided only to your clearance level and should not be discussed with Citizens. The penalty for perversion of ignorance is one hundred lashes at a public corporal square. Repeat infractions will result in execution ++

Overworked Officio Munitorum Scribes working in the Departmento Militia Doctrina - a section responsible for assessing staff essays for the Imperial Navy - accidentally misfile a Junior Officer’s essay on the superior features of the Mercury-Class Battlecruiser in a sheath of papers destined for the fleet-yards at Kuatis. By the time the mistake has been noticed it has been presumed to be a missive from the Admiralty to the Magoi operating the Kuatis Fleet Yards. Arriving alongside urgent requests for more fleet force, the result is frenzied activity that sees several already-laid cruiser hulls retrofitted to comply with the design specifications of the Mercury. The Adeptus Mechanicus' stubbornness and ego means that little can be done to rescind the misfiled essay without further loss of face for the Admiralty of Battlefleet Prosperitas, and Crusade High Command begins adapting its mid-term plans to assume access to the Mercury’s unusual sprint propulsion and readying requisition requests for Nova warheads.

Scion Safir Vilas-Lobo, a senior aide to Dominus Śikārī and head of the House’s outreach programme to its vassal worlds, perishes in one of the House’s notorious blood-duels. She is swiftly replaced by her murderer, Scion Alenyá Vilas-Lobo, a young blade with a good service record in the House’s Abhuman Auxilia regiments. Dominus Śikārī seems to have no objection to the replacement of one of his closest allies, having been overheard to remark that if she didn’t want to be replaced she shouldn’t have been so careless as to get herself killed. Scion Alenyá moves swiftly to withdraw the Vilas-Lobo “Ambassadors” which are posted to vassal and allied planets and replace them with her own minions. Monacus, Butonia, Amenophis and Vannin all receive new representatives from the House, with their previous envoys either submitting to Alenyá’s leadership or vanishing - voluntarily or otherwise.

There are reports from our allies in the Alnukhae on Nivalis of sightings of several vessels matching the description of Shasvastii Disk-craft. The Xenos vessels have primarily appeared in the mountainous regions where they have been hunting an escaped prisoner from one of the planetary vaults that has been preying on the minds of the local population, leaving villages devastated in its wake. Such aggression and coordinated activity amongst the Shavastii is unusual due to the high level of distress that being in each other's presence causes them, due to their collective psychic trauma. Of greatest concern, the Alnukhae have reportedly fought a pitched battle against Shavastii with no reports of the “Noise” that surrounds them. The Ordo Xenos are to investigate, with prospective support of the Astartes of the “Lions of Nemea” still onworld.

++Rumours++

++ Be aware that the veracity of this information has not be ascertained and carries with it a class-2 warning of unreliability [class-2.information is gathered via un-enhanced interrogation or state surveillance]++

Despite heavy suppression by the Commissariat, the battlefront of war-torn Lerwick is riddled with rumours that the “True Queen” of the world has returned to the destroyed capital of Summerhome. This rumoured figure is rallying defenders who will supposedly be able to drive the invaders from her world. The rumours are notably unclear as to who constitute the ‘invaders’ in this scenario, but defections from the PDF reach levels that cannot be wholly hidden from public view. Worse, it leaves ground commanders looking particularly askance at the local Annwyfn troops under their command, with distrust further sapping already wavering morale.

On Merewald, the much-rumoured Doomsayer reappears after a brief lull in their activities. Despite increased scrutiny on the world in the wake of the shifts in the balance of power, they resurface warning widespread settlements about misfortunes to follow. With the capacity to respond quickly to their presence still hampered by a lack of anything beyond the most basic vox-comms, they slip away from the attempts of multiple arms of the Imperial state to ask them follow-up questions.

A battered Lunar Cruiser, HIMVS Blade of Providence, limps out of the Shard Reef at a minor star in the vicinity of Monacus and sends a distress call. She has lost her partner vessel and her escort group, and she is reduced to a starved skeleton crew - no wonder, as it transpires she was present at Macharion just prior to the silence and was in orbit during what has, until now, been believed to be a Regency attack on the system. She brings intelligence from behind the lines that gives more picture of the fate of Macharion. The frontier world fell prey to a technovirus not dissimilar to the one that all but exterminated House Majid years previously, and the Lunar’s surviving crew bear horror stories of their vessel being boarded and commandeered by technological horrors as both planet and vessels in orbit were overrun. Those who survived were enslaved, some processed for servitorisation by this unknown foe; the battered cruiser was being gutted to turn her into a heretekal mishmash with the loading gear of a mass conveyor, presumably to transport these abominations to other worlds. During a shakedown test-jump, her crew took a mad, desperate chance on a mutiny to seize control and flee the system. All survivors report receiving orders from a mechanical feminine voice, and nothing shows the taint of chaos on the vessel before it is sequestered for study.

In Subsector Tertius, the wider reorganisation of House Vilas-Lobo’s internal structure has seemingly been taken for an opportunity by some unknown force; unrest among the abhuman mining-clans is reported, including claims the Clanmothers have undertaken some form of internal purge. The House of Jackals has been swift to suppress detail on what gave rise to the disruption, and Governor Mindinha Vilas-Lobo publicly avows that the mining output is stable and there is no cause for concern save her need for further void-defence from the Crusade.

On the edges of the annexation/reclamation of Castellum, a standoff has flared between the Prefecture Magisterium of Ferraeus and House Globex. It is well known that the House’s “flagship facility”, Cyprus Creek on Asteroid 24334-1 in Subsector Primus, is staffed by techpriests from the conquered Forge. Rumours creeping out in the Ferraean expeditionary force’s wake say that House Globex has refused to turn over Magos-Ordinary Totally-Ordered-Ring-Zero-Precedes-Element-or-its-Inverse McLelland or her staff for confirmation of their orthodoxy, and nor have they permitted the elder forgeworld access to the supposed Omnissian Shrine recently excavated on the asteroid.

++ List of Wanted Individuals ++

Be Aware: This list is drawn from Arbites and Reclamation and Apprehension Guild records. Unlicensed pursuit of any of these individuals by someone not an Arbiter of the Lex Imperialis, or a deputised and sanctioned representative [Cit.Ref Enforcer or Bounty Hunter], is strictly prohibited.

The Coalition of Reclamation and Apprehension Guilds kindly reminds citizens that unsanctioned bounty hunters are criminals, and subject to the harshest penalties by Guild Law. The law is for sanctioned professionals. Taking the law into your own hands is against the law.

++Active Bounties++ The following bounties remain active for collection.

Paschalis the Whisperer [Wanted: Dead]: Private Bounty - Governor Midinha Vilas-Lobo of Bachian IV So much for “everything’s fine on Bachian”, eh? Those rumours of disruption down among the mine-mutants are true, and it’s been pinned down to one particularly elusive agitator. Whatever trouble they were causing was stamped down pretty hard, but the planetary Governor either thinks it’s not over or just wants revenge for the embarrassment. Briefing says there’s no signs they’ve left the world, so pack a rebreather. And don’t spread this one outside the limited list - there’s a bonus available if you can put this one down quietly as well as painfully.

General Bounty: Castellum Renegades [Wanted: Bionics Intact] for the Crimes of: Tech-Heresy No specific names on this one, because it’s an open call from the Fabricator-General of Ferraeus on any Castellum hold-outs.. Anyone still wearing the Castellum blue version of the cog-trim robes is a valid target; any rank, anywhere, bag ‘em up and bring ‘em in. Alive or dead, the meat doesn’t matter that much - the only target condition stipulation is the machine spirits had better be in working order on arrival. A nice easy earner if you can get to anywhere that hasn’t heard the good news about the Machine cult “reunification” before you arrive.

Jehanne Anointed-Sword-of-the-Bladed-Fleet [Wanted: Dead] for the Crimes of: Heresy and Witchcraft The last job on the list was a nice easy one, so here’s the flipside of the coin. Frankly, nobody’s really expecting a result here - if you can take out a Regency Admiral in the middle of her fleet, you’ve probably got bigger fish to fry than the Guild Lists. Last seen at the Epona Stars in the middle of a veritable void graveyard made of what used to be one arm of General Astara’s salient. Pull this one off and you’re going to be popular with the Crusade for a very long time.

Scion Zenobia Durovera [Wanted: Alive]: Private Bounty - Lady-Captain Hermione Durovera, Governor of the Prosperitas Sector Alright, it’s payday - this one’s backed by the Sector Governor’s own coin. This luckless Scion was responsible for void-security over Duroverum the day it all went to hell for her flagship, and has gone on the run since. Their ship jumped out from Duroverum toward Carthusia, so there’s a start for you. But whatever else you do, keep those trigger fingers under control - if Hermione Durovera wants a chat with someone before the bleeding starts, they had better be in pristine condition when you hand them over.

++ Notes ++ No change to the bounties for Weaver, Quill, Princeps, or the passel of Tech-Priests who’ve annoyed Naximus. All still open, all still waiting for someone to grab the money. Let’s step it up, people, we’ve got a reputation to uphold.