Navis Nobilite Houses of the Prosperitas Sector
Where some Abhumans suffer extreme discrimination within the Imperium for their deviation from human norms, Navigators are far removed from such prejudices. A mutation of humanity the origins of the Navigators are unclear, they first emerged during the Dark Age of Technology, long before the rise of the Imperium, and have lived alongside them ever since, engineered or a 'blessing' upon their human peers, Navigators use a mutant Third Eye set in their forehead to perceive the Warp in ways that others cannot and navigate vessels through the warp.
- They Are Nobility. Such is the precious nature of Navigators and the long-standing independence of their Houses that unlike other mutants and abhumans who live their lives as chattel or 'lesser' beings in the eyes of the Imperial hierarchy, Navigators are treated as nobility. Though they do not intermarry with human Nobles (in order to preserve the stability of the Navigator gene) an individual Navigator holds a huge amount of political weight and is treated as precious by the Nobility, should they grow discontent, the Imperium would be adrift without their aid navigating their vessels through warp space.
- They are inhuman. Over the course of a natural lifespan of around four hundred years (without the aid of medical treatments like rejuvenat) Navigator bodies change and become increasingly inhuman in appearance and many are born with physical aberrations. This is both a combination of the warp exposure their duties entail and the instability of Navigator Physiology, which is more so than any other Abhuman, which is what makes it so ironic that they hold the highest status of all Abhumans.
- They are rare. Not every ship in the Imperium has a Navigator most Chartist Vessels cannot afford the prices the Navigator Houses demand in Thrones and Favours, and go without, relying on short calculated warp jumps and sublight travel instead. Most Navigators are promised to the great Imperial institutions and the warships of the Imperial Navy, those in private service generally are only found on vessels of the Nobility of those helmed by Rogue Traders.
House De Sousa
Once upon a time, House De Sousa considered Nilvalis its home, and its close relationship with the Ecclesiarchy made it see the planet as a safe haven. However, the exposure of the Navigators of House Mal’Dracor as heretics triggered a planet-wide riot. This lead to the deaths of several innocent Navigators, including several from the De Sousa Family. After this disgrace, the House, like many other Navis Nobilite, fled their holdings, abandoning possessions and years of ties with the Ecclesiarchy. Since that day, the House has become nomadic, unwilling to return to Nilvalis with its newly appointed Ecclesiarchy overlords, and the brutal presence of the Order of His Sanguine Tears holding the reins. The De Sousa’s fortunes do not appear to have improved over the last few years; a number of its vessels were lost to Pirate raiders while traversing the Cadian Trade Spine, and this state of affairs means that many of its more lucrative contracts to provide Navigators to Imperial vessels have fallen through, in favour of Houses better positioned to snap them up.
In recent years, the desperation for allies and finances has seen the once-proud House turn to less conventional sources of income, trading its Navigators to serve aboard the vessels of less reputable Rogue Trader dynasties and, it is rumoured, the service of the Inquisition -- a bargain many Navis Nobilite consider to be a dangerous one, for the Houses that become too entwined with the Inquisition often disappear from the records of the Paternova on Terra, bound by ancient laws to provide solely for the needs that sinister organisation.
The current Novator of the De Sousa family is Sereaus de Sousa, an aging woman, well past her prime and wracked with a number of hereditary diseases, consequence of the inbreeding of the Navis Nobilite. The Scions of her House are nervous that she is reaching the end of her years, and few of them are prepared for the role, having lost so many senior Navigators to the violence on Nilvalis. There are rumours that her youngest son fled the family several years ago, as he has not been seen in public for some time. Plus, there is the possibility that the family may simply become extinct by its Scions fleeing or marrying into other Houses of the Navis Nobilite.
House Solon
The Navigators of House Solon have the prestige of once having been the companions of Warmaster Durovera, as it was a Navigator of this House who guided Durovera’s fleet and her flagship the Storm Chaser through the winding warpways of the Sol-Prosperitas Corridor. Thus, to the Navigators of House Solon goes the lion’s share of postings aboard the most prestigious ships of the Prosperitas Crusade. The House’s main branch is located on Durovera itself, where the Navigators lay claim to a vast fortified spire atop the planet's Northern Pole. It also has additional holdings aboard Polarnus Station, close to the beating heart of Crusade High Command, where the Novator of the House often visits and is welcome at the Warmaster’s table.
It is said that the Paternova of the Navis Nobilite on Terra once cast out the House, exiling them for crimes against their kind. But through Durovera’s patronage, they were able to bury and obscure their darker past, and be welcomed amongst the most powerful Navigator Houses within the Sector. Unlike many patrons of House Durovera, House Solon did not turn its back on the Primus House during its worst years -- a loyalty that has been rewarded when the Duroveras finally reclaimed the title of Warmaster. The current Novator of the House, Caius Solon, is one of the few members of the Navis Nobilite that actively engages with high society on Durovera, as he feels that partaking in Noble society is an essential tool for securing more clients for his House.
As the leading House of the Navis Nobilite within the Prosperitas Sector, Solon does have its enemies, many of whom are other Navigator Houses who envy its position and power. To this end, Solon is protected by a network of spies and other agents who keep an eye on its enemies, and end any threats to the House swiftly and quietly.