The first 2 weeks passed in a blur. When I was not locked in my room, studying schematics, battleplans, statistics, fire drill accuracy charts from the guardsmen, common void battle tactics, information of armaments, common trade goods, uncommon trade goods, expected random happenings, knowledge about the world that were situated on the edge of Imperial space, restricted information about the different xeno species, of which I took special note of the Tau empire. Sure, they were communists in space, but there had to be a way I could abuse it to my advantage. It would also annoy Elris to no end if we had to deal with them, and I had to admit I got perverse pleasure out of annoying her. The way she looked at Trokk was enough to make me smile, so I could only dream of one day introducing her to the Tau. But that would have to wait until such an opportunity presented itself.
A thousand other small things required my attention and we quickly reached the first time we had to transition out of the warp for our navigator to get a new bearing and rest up. The time in real space was greatly appreciated by the crew, as it was the only time we could look out of the windows in the ship, as the blast shields were lowered for the duration of warp travel There was no reason to risk insanity, corruption, or worse, just because some idiot guardsman or crew member wanted to take a gander at warp space.
It also allowed us to take status of the Gellar Field Generator*, which thankfully was intact and operating at peak efficiency. The mechanicus adepts were not at all happy that I invaded their sacred spaces, but as captain of this ship, there was little they could do to stop me. There were quite relieved that I didn't touch anything, evidenced by the lack of interference from the tech priest that followed my every move.
"Any problems with the machine spirit?" I asked to try and appease the neurotic tech priest and the robotic voice of his kind answered me. "The machine spirit is appeased and functioning, captain. No problems are registered."
I decided to take his words at face value. No member of the mechanicus would not lie about something like that, especially not about the machine spirit. "Very good. We would not want to upset it needlessly, lest it decides to give it when we most need it. Take care to anoint the engines and read your rites carefully. I would rather you do it well, than fast." I figured it wouldn't hurt to get a good reputation among the ships mechanicus adepts, and my words seemed to please the one in front of me if that was even possible. Who knows, maybe I could even get some Skitarii** under my command in the future. For now, though, I would have to be content with the Guardsmen I was already commanding, which was quite good in and of itself.
A single Lasgun was barely worth noting. But 3000? That could do some serious damage in a very short amount of time. Or it could delay a great enemy for a short while. Either case, it was their duty and destiny to die for the glory of the Emperor, or in this case, me, as his divine explorer.
I suppressed a sigh, the thought making me miserable. The fact that human life was so casually thrown away was a heavy burden on the mind and one that was best forgotten if one wanted to stay sane. Better to see them as tools to be used, so I didn't have to face reality. Was all command like this? Or was it only like this to those that cared? I abandoned that train of thought before it sucked me in deeper,
A different issue forced its way into my brain. Elris. She had found, and executed, no less than 47 crew members, on grounds of heretical activities and worship. I could of course try and keep her distracted, but my studies demanded my every waking moment. I needed to prepare for when we reached our destination, The Veiled Region was rife with pirates, heretics, Xenos, and outright Chaos worshippers. I would need every advantage, every scrap of knowledge I could get my hands on, to have a chance to not only survive but flourish in that region. And having an overzealous Inquisitorial agent at my side was not going to help things along if I wanted to try and use a bit of guile and deception. She would not be able to control herself, her passion for play in the captain's cabin only being surpassed by her passion for her work. It shouldn't surprise me, 300 years was a long time to convince yourself that your cause was righteous and just. It was only natural that fanaticism had entered the equation about 200 years back.
That was the great mystery in her fascination with me, my behavior so far would have caused anyone else to get executed more or less on principle. I stuck out. I might have had enough prior knowledge of this world to blend in, but I completely lacked the mannerisms. So far, I had been able to chalk it up to being a goofy individual, but I wondered how long that would continue. As a rogue trader, I was bound to run into very powerful people from time to time, be it "regular" humans, or Astartes, but they would be individuals who had spent literal millennia assessing people and their character. They would label me instantly, just as the Ordo Malleus had done with me when I entered this world. I had been careless and sloppy and combined with the confusion the system brought me, it was getting increasingly harder to not fall back into old behavior patterns and the endless praying was also taking its toll. But I had to keep up appearances or suffer the consequences.
This insistence on piety would also make me stand out among the other rogue traders, since the general level of freedom afforded such exceptional individuals, such as myself, freed them from such menial things, allowing them to focus on acquiring power and wealth, expanding their fleets and their influence. Having officially ascended from flea to pest, on an intergalactic power scale, I had entered a new pond of fish, once more being placed at the bottom of the food chain.
The day after we transitioned back into real space, the Navigator, Farsyn, called me on the vox. "Captain, I must inform you that our travels will be extended by a number of days. Warp anomalies are in the way and we will have to redirect into Segmentum Solar for our next scheduled realspace transition. Shall I send a message, informing Battlefleet Solar of our arrival?"
"By all means, inform them, I have no interest in incurring their wrath. They are likely to shoot us down before asking questions." I replied before returning my attention to the issue of the day. This day it was a growing sense of dissent among the crew, having to suffer under Elris's constant scrutiny, and I had to figure out a way to reel in her murderous ways. And maybe, just maybe, I had stumbled upon such a way.
That evening as I finished up my studies, I sent for Elris and she showed up with a stack of papers in her hands. "Take a seat, Elris, have a glass of amasec, and relax. You are working yourself to the bone with the crew." I gestured to one of the leather chairs and she slumped down in it after getting herself a glass. "There are more worrying practices on board this vessel than I thought possible. I have so many leads and hints from those already interrogated..." She trailed off to empty the glass and cast a longing glance at the bottle on the far table. I slowly rose and made my way over to it, "Then we have a happy coincidence, as I need someone to gather notes on important people near our destination. Everything that can be found, from their taste in clothes to their favorite drink and food. Whatever advantage you can give me, I want." I picked up the bottle as I spoke and brought it over to fill her glass.
"That would give me time to sit down for a while and go over my notes as well..." She mused as she played with the liquid in the glass. "But what of the heretical practices among the rest of the crew?"
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"Given your recent storm of activity, you can be sure they are going to keep a low profile. Hang back for a bit, let them fall into a fall sense of security, then strike once more." I encouraged her, playing on her desire to purge anyone she deemed unclean and using her responsibilities as the dominant factor in my reasoning. Admittedly, I was playing a somewhat dangerous game, but I was fairly certain I could make this fall out to my advantage, given the intimate relationship I shared with Elris.
My efforts earned me a weak smile, but I noticed a glint in her eye. A glint of something cold. Calculating. Still smiling, she looked at me and said "It seems as though you have given this a lot of thought, Björk?" Her voice was the same as before, tired and slightly frustrated. Nothing appeared changed. And yet, that glint in her eye had me on edge. "Elris. As much as it pains me to admit, your years working for the Imperium give you an insight I simply do not have. I am still in the first stage of my first lifetime. My experience is rather limited. This is why I ask you for this. Yes, there are heretical practices taking place among the crew, but they are not going anywhere unless I approve, and anyone you deem worthy of putting on lockdown, we can arrange it. You have your orders, but I also have mine. Or rather, a lack of. And therefore I have to make my path through the galaxy, serving the Emperor the best I can. But I need help along the way, and right now I am asking for that help." I had to try and reason with her, and the best way to do it without revealing the truth and looking like I sympathized with those she hunted, I had to hide behind false pride. Thankfully, it was a common trait in the Imperium, and my relatively short service in the greater ranks allowed me a bit of ignorance and goodwill from the people I interacted with.
Elris stared at me for a long moment before she emptied the glass once more. "Alright. But you owe me a favor, Björk" She was smiling again, a genuine smile, as she answered and she held out her glass for me to fill it once more.
"I don't suppose you accept payment in the form of sexual favors?" I asked, more to tease than anything, but a small voice inside of me was screaming for her to say yes.
"Pay for something I already get? Nice try, but you are just going to have to get used to the thought. I promise to be reasonable when the time comes." Elris laughed and the evening took a more comfortable turn from that point. The bottle of amasec was emptied, replaced, and emptied again. We joked, we laughed, and we acted like regular people instead of the figures of authority we were. For me, it was a pleasant break in my new duties. For Elris, it was a very rare chance to cut loose without fear of getting judged by everyone around her. needless to say, we both jumped at the opportunity. This universe had a way of grinding away at joy and happiness wherever it presented itself, so to llow oneself to remember the joys and good things, rather than the grim darkness we lived in, was an exceedingly rare luxury that would be tresured in our memories for a long time.
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The days until the next entering of real space went off in calm silence, the crew was relieved that Elris spent the vast majority of time in her quarters, studying and making small notes for me to hang on when dealing with nobles, royal houses, Astartes, the various branches of the Imperium, behavior in front of regular troops, the importance of spending enough credits to look the part as much as being it, everything that could be imagined I Would need to know without knowing the reason behind why. That would come in its own time. Usually, a person would know all of this by heart, since noble houses always made sure their members were extremely well educated. But my case was a special one, since the Ecclesiarchy wanted a rogue trader without any ties of any kind, to anyone but the Emperor and those that gave him the power know wielded.
This routine was broken when we entered real space for the second time. I was summoned to the bridge to answer an incoming hail the moment we left the warp.
"This is Captain Antaros of the Imperial Fists 6th company, The Siege Hammers, in command of the strike cruiser Justitia Fides. Halt your ship and submit it to inspection by Astartes forces immediately. Refusal will be met with swift and deadly force." The voice that boomed out of the vox was not human. It was too deep, too rumbling to be human. Even filtered through the helmet vox of the Astartes on the other end, it was abundantly clear that this was not a regular human being.
"We will halt our ship and submit to inspection, as ordered. Is there anything we can prepare for your arrival?" I said in a calm and collected tone, doing my very best not to reveal the panic and turmoil going on in my mind.
"Have your Warrant of Trade ready to present to our representative." The Astartes responded.
"I do not possess a Warrant of Trade, only a Letter of Marque. I shall have it ready to be presented at your command." I said and heard the other end of the conversation disconnect from the call, as our engines died down and our inertial dampeners brought us to a halt. Barely 2 minutes passed before the expected Thunderhawk made itself visible on our scanners and a minute after that, it had landed and I was informed of a contingent of Astartes approaching the bridge at a brisk pace.
I was standing on the bridge with the null box in my hands, Elris at my right side, and Trokk at my left. I heard them coming long before I saw them, the impossibly heavy footsteps of a Space Marine in full armor sounding like the approaching steps of death.
"Something is coming!" Trokk said with conviction as he looked around for something to use as a weapon.
"Relax Trokk. The Emperor's Angels are coming to see us." I said, using an expression I knew he understood.
"Emperors Angels?" Trokk repeated slowly while scratching his head, the gears grinding audibly as he tried desperately to remember.
"The Emperor's Angels of Death, Trokk. Bringing the Emperor's anger to the filthy xenos, remember?" Trokk had earned his right for the Biochemical Ogryn Neural Enhancement, or Bone'Ead status by fighting Tyranids, also granting him a burning hatred towards the interstellar cockroaches. Having lost every other Ogryn in his squad during the fighting, only surviving thanks to his freakish size and strength until reinforcements arrived at their position, his favorite pastime was now stepping on every bug he could find on the ship. Needless to say, he was plenty entertained when not busy being my enormous shadow of protection, like now.
"Oh, I remember! They kill the bad bugs very fast!" Trokk exclaimed and looked happy both with himself for remembering and with the prospect of seeing these Angels for himself. He hoped they were big and good at killing bugs. He hated bugs, they hurt you and killed your friends, and you couldn't even eat them.
As stimulating as this conversation was, the footsteps had come close enough that I anticipated them walking around the corner any second, and was not disappointed. 6 battle brothers were approaching fast, one with a helmet attached to his hip, all of them carrying the signature bolter and chainsword. They came up to the 3 of us in formation and didn't stop until they were close enough that I had to look up at the 7-foot superhumans.
"Letter of Marque!" The one without a helmet demanded, his barrel chest making his voice impossibly deep and forceful. He sounded old, the 3 gold studs and 3 iron studs indicating 330 years of service as a full Astartes. I opened the Null box and he carefully extracted the letter and scanned it before placing it back in the box. As he did, the remaining five relaxed the grip on their bolters. I had not realized it, but they had been ready to open fire at a moment's notice if their leader had commanded it.
"You can never be too careful in Segmentum Solar. We require your aid, rogue trader." The unhelmeted one said as he fixed me with a stare and I felt myself going weak under his gaze. It was like I was being stared down by a deadly predator that was only restrained by the greatest amount of self-control that had ever been exerted. "Pirates are operating further in the sector, and we need you to find them. Our ships are known to their navigators and we cannot get close before they flee. The Emperor's justice must be fulfilled!"
"Of course.. umm, I didn't get your name?" I said, a little confused on how to approach an Astartes.
"Sergeant Demias Iagimoz," The Astarted Rumbled.
"Sergeant Demias, I will aid you in any way I can. But we must have a clear plan present, otherwise, this operation is doomed to fail before it begins."
"Let us begin then." Demiias rumbled, and just like that, I was roped into a 5-hour-long meeting going over what he referred to as "The beginning stages of a proper plan". Fuck my life, and the neck it rode it on!