The other master

The inquisitor beckons her two servants from the cage. She wastes no time with small talk. After a short greeting, she uncovers the reason for the hasty summons, a three-word code telling Yuri and Drizz to appear with all haste and to bring all the equipment they need in the service of the Golden Throne. “Someone used his political clout to force a carta mutuum dedit. A rarely employed tool within the Holy Ordos. It pleads for the temporary use of a member’s private resources, like a warp-capable ship or a personal library, without stating the purpose of that use, citing utter secrecy and urgency. To use it on someone’s personal retainers is nearly unheard off, but certainly possible.” She coughs. “Inquisitor Marr of Solomon is in urgent need of your assistance, and he resorted to the carta to take you from me, if only for a time. It is most peculiar. The destroyer Hand of Finn is bound to the Solomon system and only waits for your arrival to leave dock. As soon as you reach Solomon, seek out Marr in the Chancellery Court. He will brief you on your duties personally. Obey him as you would obey me.”

The acolytes are shocked, although they are wise enough to hide their surprise. Drizz is the first to recover: “M’lady, two questions, if I may.” Inquisitor von Shech nods. “Who is this Inquisitor Marr, that he may command your resources in this way? What does he want of us, of all people? How does he even know that we serve you?” After a short pause, the inquisitor answers: “He is an old and powerful member of the Ordos Calixis, and as connected as one can be, although he is far away from the politics of the Tricorn Palace. Even hidden away on Solomon, he is lord of a vast network of spies and informants. Whatever his reasons to ask for you specifically: They will be well-founded on knowledge. He extended himself when he wrote this carta, and do not doubt that I will exact my price for this. The carta itself stays vague on the nature of your employ; it only states the temporary nature of it. If you survive.”

“What if he wants to employ us in some heretical scheme? He might use us instead of his personal acolytes to pull off an unsavory gambit. We would be deniable assets to him. Maybe he wants to use us to blacken your name. What should we do in this case?”

“You serve the Emperor first. I trust you to act appropriately if Marr has strayed from the path of the righteous. You will bring no shame upon me: You’ve proven to be excellent independent agents on the His Omniscience, when she traveled far from the Emperor’s light. I have no reason to suspect that your abilities decreased in the mean time. On the other hand: The carta is officially presented to the Conclave, even if only a very small number of inquisitors know of it now. If Marr uses you for heretical or radicalist aims, his responsibility would become common knowledge among his peers in short time. Finally: Marr would know of easier ways to recruit cat’s paws than to use the carta and ship you across the sector.” She smiles again, but privately, her acolytes are not persuaded of Marr’s good intentions. Drizz speaks up: “One last request, if I may: As our report clearly states, our success on the His Omniscience rested firmly on our ability to keep our communication secret even in a environment as treacherous as a Adeptus Mechanicus explorator vessel. Delian Cassano employed a powerful stummer for this purpose. At the moment, we do not have such a device at our disposal. Would our kind mistress deign to help us in this regard? I plead not for our personal safety, but only to be able to serve you in the future as a faithful servant.” The inquisitor smiles: Maybe it is Drizz’ readiness to suspect Marr of foul play, or maybe his new-found verbosity. He seems to take to the role of a minor noble with gusto, even though he stems from a rough tent on a windswept desert. “I will see to it that such a device will find its way to you. But time is of the essence. Leave now for Solomon.” With that, she points to the elevator. With a short bow, the two men leave the cold sanctum of their mistress. Behind them, in the darkness, the robotic manipulator lifts another skull from the endless pile, scans it, measures it, and takes it away.