Ina watched as Tal ran through the various diagnostics. His arms were crossed and he eyed the younger technomancer. Something about him didn’t sit right with Ina. He didn’t know what it was and he’d already vented his apprehensions with Anadrov. The thaeruun had dismissed the concerns.

“You’re just sensing the imbalance of power my old friend. Do not worry, that is why I am now paying tithes to have you oversee Korsha. What would my opponents say if they believed I was letting my pet mage rule over a technomancer, even a disgraced one. That’s a president we don’t want to set, now is it?”

Ina agreed. It was unbecoming. Though with him now installed as their overseer it brought matters back into their proper alignment.

Soon Tal had finished and Anadrov had ordered them to one of the testing facilities to put the armor through its paces. Ina had turned to escort them.

“I require your presence Ina.”

He hesitated as the mage passed him. Though she’d proven herself worthy of his trust, it was the darkness that lingered within her he didn’t trust. He’d seen far too many mages, good people, fall into the darkness of the Betrayer’s temptation. His mind flashed back to Korsha standing before the icon of Azaelah. He knew his order had already had words with the facility’s masters, the Great Houses, but the statue remained. Unfortunately, Azaelah, fifth daughter of the Imperial Goddess, was a necessary stain upon the Dominion’s history. A blight whose presence was better left in the open than swept away and cast out into the darkness of the abyss.

He didn’t agree but it didn’t matter.

In that moment he saw that perhaps coming into Anadrov’s service might not have been the best choice. The man was a thaeruun and now a member of the Great Houses. It was no secret that the Great Houses despised the Ecclesiarchy, claiming they had lured the Imperial Goddess away from Throne and had set her upon a false throne at Valsanctum. The Great Houses had seen this as a way of seizing power. Yet why wouldn’t they, that’s what they understood. Power. At least power in the terms exerting will upon the material universe. They couldn’t understand the power of a goddess, couldn’t worship, revere, honor, glorify and sustain such a rare one as she.

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He brushed the thoughts aside.

Anadrov watched over Ina’s shoulder as Korsha and Tal had left. Once the door had sealed them into their isolation he turned his full attention to Ina.

“I have been instructed to initiate you into a secret but I must first know where your allegiances lie.”

Ina blinked. Was this a test?

“I am loyal first and foremost to her Imperial Majesty.”

“Is that true?”

Ina hesitated not liking where this conversation was going. Part of him felt a rush of anger but a quick dose of chemicals flushed it from his system. He knew Anadrov. The thaeruun wasn’t accusing him. It was a genuine question. It was meant to make him reflect deeper.

Ina turned his focus inwards. He thought through the question. Where did his allegiances lie? His earlier doubt had revealed that there were layers to his loyalty. He wasn’t solely loyal to the Goddess. He was loyal to her through the Ecclesiarchy. He grunted at the revelation. Never before had he considered this. His mind raced as he worked through the implications. There were problems here. A multitude. The one doctrine he saw particular problems with was the Nine Purgatories. It was one he’d always had unsettled feelings for yet had never voiced them. To do such a thing was blasphemy. Yet was that true?

He could see the strings of the doctrine, manipulated by the archpriestesses to ensure loyalty to the Ecclesiarchy instead of the Goddess. It was a control mechanism. One that was meant to ensure a stability to their power over generations.

The realization left him wide eyed and sighing.

“I see you understand now.” Anadrov said, taking a device from his pocket, “I have been authorized by the highest echelons of House Damaran to grant you access to ancient secret knowledge. We’ve adapted it so that you can download the information using your particular cybernetics.”

Ina took the chit without hesitation and slid it into a slot on the side of his eye. An instant later he was overcome by a torrent of information. Lifetimes of accumulated data flashed before his eyes, each as vivid as it was fleeting. He couldn’t hold onto them even as he tried, yet he knew they were now a part of him as he sensed the feeling of their truth residing within him. It would take much time for him to parse through the information, perhaps weeks of constant meditations but through it all one thing was clear.

The Ecclesiarchy had lied.

Had used him.

And now, joining Anadrov, they could fix the fundamental problem that dwelled within the darkest trenches of the Dominion and it would all be through a single organized operation that had taken nearly a hundred years to come to the brink of fruition.

Anadrov smiled, “Welcome to Operation Reclamation.”