Blood Angel Chapter Master with Wings
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Decided to give a shot to writing some fiction, don't want to give too much away, hopefully what is going on is pretty clear by the end!
It was to be a momentous day.
Janus sat and watched his son playing with the other children in quiet contentment. It was a strikingly beautiful morning in the city, and he could think of nowhere better to enjoy it than on the grounds of the congregation’s sprawling compound. The white, graceful stonework of the walls bordering the property kept out the worst of the urban noise beyond, and the occlusion field built into them dulled the noise and obscured the view from the outside with a heat-haze shimmer.
The solitude from the adjacent city life was blessed. Nowhere else in his life had he felt so secure and welcomed as within these walls... all thanks to the congregation. He had met his wife a few weeks after joining the path, and it had not taken long for their love to blossom into marriage and the blessing of a child. He looked over at her while he contemplated his good fortune, she sat serenely under the bow or a Myyr tree, it’s decadent foliage in full bloom with the recent outset of summer.
Miria looked over and smiled back knowingly, as if she were thinking the exact same thoughts. She probably was. She too had come from the packed hab clusters of Soren Hive to the north, where she labored as a minor administratum adjunct for public works. It sounded better than charging las-packs at the Mechanicus Foundry just outside the hive, but the truth was she had spent most of the time slogging around sewers or other such pleasant locals checking infrastructure with her adept.
No... it wasn’t difficult at all to imagine she too was enjoying the feel of the sun on her already tanning skin, under a cyan sky, with their young child off in the distance splashing away with his friends under the watchful gaze of a group of young semi-divines. The grounds were well occupied with their fellow devotees, there must have been 500 of them outside enjoying the day, both divines and the touched.
Janus himself had not had much luck in life previous to joining the congregation. He used to crew on a deep space auspex relay station located in the mountains to the north of Soren Hive, well away from the lights and various sources of EM interference. There wasn’t much to do but monitor pings and log anomalies day in and day out. His routine was never ending, 3 months crammed in a relay station, 1 week out to return to his cramped Hab unit back home in Soren. It wasn’t hard work if you didn’t mind soul destroying boredom. The thrill of his day was usually praying to the God-Emperor and Omnissiah to help him get some rickety old piece of equipment working again, something was always breaking down. At least his fellow crew member Ronetti was around to keep him company. He wasn’t particularly intelligent, charming or entertaining, but Janus was close with him anyways. There wasn’t much other option.
Now, staring at the massive and elaborate compound he called home, it was hard to believe that old life had even been his anymore. He looked around at his green and well manicured surroundings, so far away from the endless industrial world of the hive and the desolate tundra around the relay station. So far away from the old him.
***
Janus’ life had changed in most unexpected ways 5 years ago... sitting there now, surrounded by family, friends and inspirations is something he never would have thought existed. He still vividly remembered the last few months before he first set his feet on the path. He remembered he was having trouble sleeping, feeling like he was being watched despite there being nowhere to hide in his cramped hab unit... which to be honest was more like a prison cell in both decor and furnishing... Then one morning he woke up feeling as if he had slept for literally months. He felt supremely rested and happy for the first time in years, or even perhaps for the first time in his entire life. He looked in his basin mirror, noticing his skin had color it hadn’t in a very long time, almost fevered, and a strange mark on his neck, like a tiny puncture wound. It made no matter though, he felt strong.
It only took as long as getting out of the door for the feeling to diminish greatly. He joined the herd of other Imperial citizens as they trudged out for morning shifts, and he remembered how offensive they seemed. Dead-eyed and broken things. So strange he never really saw it that way before. He boarded the shuttle to the relay station as he had so many times before, but this time it felt like being locked in a cage. He remembered feeling suspicious of the pilot, feeling as if the man was a threat, even though rationally he knew the old pilot was nothing of the kind. Upon arriving at the station, he set in to his routine with little enthusiasm, none of it seemed to matter. Ronetti greeted him cheerfully, but Janus felt no warmth towards the man, though he managed to remain polite. After a few days, Ronetti gave up talking to him.
The awkward tension was broken a few days later when unexpected visitor arrived. A short comm curtly informed them that an Adept was inbound to collect a burnt out cogitator from one of the sub-levels. It would seem like a pretty mundane occurrence, but the truth was that cogitator had been burnt out for years. Strange their replacement request had finally been noticed. Ronetti thought little of it, and went back to quietly reading the psalms of St.Sebastien. Janus felt no desire to engage in idle chatter as to why a courier would come now in any case.
The Adept’s ornithopter set down on the landing pad about an hour later. Janus and Ronetti went down to verify his authorization and greet him. The pressure hatch opened, and the figure stepped through. He was dressed in light weather gear, a dark blue hooded cloak pulled low against the cold.
Janus remembered feeling instantly intrigued and comfortable with the man who was now standing before him and Ronetti, his arm extended with his ident chip and wax sealed authorization papers. He could not say why. The man handed the items off to Ronnetti, who gibbered away, obviously relieved to finally have someone to talk to... or so he thought. The stranger said little, barely acknowledging Ronnetti, but Janus could not help but feel he was an object of study. The man asked to be taken to the maintenance levels with due speed, and addressed Janus directly with the request. Ronnetti piped in that of course they would be happy to show him the way, but before he took two steps to lead the way, the man brusquely informed him only one would be necessary, and thanked him for his time.
As Janus led the man to the maintenance bay in respectful silence, he was surprised at the sudden change in his demeanor.
‘I thought he would never shut up, how do you stand it Brother?’ he asked with a laugh.
Janus was momentarily taken aback by the change in tone, but quickly answered in an equally personable way.
‘I don’t know sir, he isn’t a bad type, just a little… well a little plain sir… in every way. I used to enjoy his company a bit more, but lately I find his every move to be… well wrong I suppose.’ It never really occurred to Janus he felt normal and healthy again as he began to talk to the man.
The man seemed amused at his formality though. He let out a small chuckle as they came up to a pressure door in the cramped corridor leading to the cogitator bay. ‘Please Brother, I am no 'sir', my name is Hiero, but you can call me Brother if you would.’
Janus felt unreasonably shy while he keyed the access codes and the door hissed open. ‘No sir, I couldn’t possibly! I’m just a scan-reader sir. Speaking of which, the cogitator you are looking for is right over here.’
Hiero stepped through into the cool room, and eyed the banks of twinkling lights, cast from both status indicators on cogitators and the guttering votives and incense burning near a small shrine to the Omnissiah. He eyed the cogitator with disinterest and turned to Janus.
‘You may call me Brother, for that is what I am Janus.’ He said with another smile.
‘I… I don’t understand sir? And, how do you know my name?’ Janus bowed his head in a submissive manner as he said it.
‘I know a lot about you Janus. I know you have worked here for more than half your life. I know you have never been out of Quadrant D22 in Soren other than to come here. I know your parents died when you were young, and that you were apprenticed to the Cogs until they deemed you only fit for system maintenance. I know you look at your life and you search for a way to be more, a way out. Am I wrong?’
Janus stared blankly for a moment. ‘No… but for the last that could go for anyone in that dirty hive. The details about me though… why would you know any of this about me??’
Hiero leaned on the wall, and pulled his hood back casually. He had a shaved head and ears full of golden rings. The lights flickered in his eyes in a strange way, they looked far too black. ‘I know about you Janus. We know about you. I come from a group of people who feel the same way as you do. Or they did anyways. And praise be to the Father of All, who shines a light on those we could call brothers and sisters. He shone a light on you Brother. Our congregation is small and private Janus, but when we know we have found a new member, we act quickly and decisively to bring them safely home. We are not like them Janus. We believe in family. We believe in supporting one another. We believe that together we are unbreakable. Most of all, we believe in helping others. It is beautiful… is that something you wish to be a part of Janus?’
Janus had no idea what to make of it. He payed homage to the Emperor and the Omnissiah like any good Imperial citizen, but he never felt moved by any Ecclesiarch sermon as he did by the short statement from Hiero. Why would a handful of breaths from a stranger move him so? Where had this feeling come from?
It didn’t matter… Janus was already prepared to trust Hiero implicitely, reason be damned.
‘Yes… Brother…’
***
And so, here he sat, in the green with so many more brothers and sisters, and among them, the divine. A whistle sounded shrilly from the heart of the compound. Miria glanced up and asked ‘Is it time?’
‘It is… Tirio!’ he called to his son.
Tirio came bounding over, still soaked from the fountains. He laughed and Miria kissed his head.
They began walking towards the main courtyard with the rest of the congregation. The mood was strange... happy laughs and proud statements mixed with the occasional tear. Janus could not help but feel both ends of the spectrum himself as he shuffled his family to a good spot in the rapidly forming crowd of spectators. He could just make out the podium in the distance, but he was near the parade route. He passed a few minutes laughing with his son and chatting with nearby brothers and sisters, waiting for the event to begin.
A silence fell on the crowd as the Hierarch of the Magi finally took the stage. His deep magenta robes and golden staff resplendent in the afternoon sun. The podium stood high at the apex of a multitiered platform, a white marble pyramid of 3 levels. Hololiths projected his image so even those in back could clearly see the warm look on his face.
The Hierarch raised his arms wide and began to speak.
‘My Brothers and Sisters! Children of the Father and keeper of his holy light! I welcome you to this most special and blessed of days!’
The crowd roared in approval, shouts of ‘Bless the Divine!’ and ‘Light our path!’ shouted with enthusiasm and love.
The Hierarch slowly lowered his arms, the crowd falling silent and ripe with anticipation.
‘Family… My family. Our Family. As many of you know, today, some of the congregation will be leaving us. It is never an easy thing to bid farewell to those we love. But we must never forget that the love we share is not being removed, but shared further into the dark reaches of the void. Opportunities to do so are rare indeed… As you know, the Imperials are always watchful for anyone who would undermine their apathy and hate. When the ark appeared in system, it was a sign that the time of sharing was upon us. We have precious little time to act, and the Father, in his wisdom set us to preparations immediately. But no event such as this comes without a cost… Today we say goodbye to 100 of our cherished loved ones. 30 divines, 25 semi divines and 40 touched will be leaving us before the sun sets. 5 Magi will accompany them to guide their way to a new home, there to search for more souls, that much like yourselves once were, are seeking a path away from Imperial Stagnation. Away from being alone and isolated. Towards the warm embrace of the love and family our congregation represents. I too will miss our brothers and sisters who leave us today… but I find comfort in the fact our family will grow! More souls will find the true path of the Father! Is this not a great work?!’
The crowd once again roared, with even more enthusiasm than before. It wasn’t forced. It wasn’t for show. They believed. They loved.
The Hierarch closed his eyes and smiled. Janus felt a squeeze from the hand of his little son, and looked down and saw a smile of wonder he had not seen before on his son’s face, showing just about every tooth he had. He squeezed back, a smile slightly less toothsome but equally meaningful lighting his own face. The Hierarch had begun to speak again, above the cheering that did not seem to want to stop.
‘The ark is of impressive size. Much of it remains functional, and it will provide comfort and succor to our brave missionaries on their journey, fear not for them. The Father has decreed the hour is upon us, and so it is. Missionaries! Step forth!’
The 2nd and 3rd tiers of the pyramid began to fill with 100 faces that would be oh so dearly missed. As is rightful, the divines arrayed themselves below the Hierarch, proud and strong and pure. The semi-divines and touched arrayed themselves below, dressed in the colors of the faith, the family arms. By the Father, they were magnificent. Amid the deafening adulation of the crowd, it truly began to hit home just how much Janus would miss them… each and every one.
The Hierarch did not wait for the crowd to die down –
“Look upon our brave brothers and sisters one last time my family! Give them a gift now, a memory to take with them across the stars of the love that will always be here and burning bright, no matter the time, no matter the distance! Tell them something they will never forget!!!’
Janus thought it had been deafening before… he was wrong. The noise and outpouring of emotion from the congregation was literally a physical thing, his sternum pounded like the skin of a drum to the cries and claps. His ears felt as if he was 30 feet underwater… Like everyone else there, tears flowed around the corners of a smile tinged with anguish.
The noise didn’t drop one decibel as the missionaries began to file down off the pyramid and make their way down the causeway towards the shuttle fields. Confetti and flowers rained upon them, and occasionally they would stop to embrace a loved one one last time.
The procession was making its way past Janus and his family when he finally caught glimpse of someone he did not know how to say goodbye to.
‘Hiero!’ Janus screamed, hoping against hope that his dear, dear friend and brother would hear him.
Despite the impossibility that his lone voice would outstrip the tidal wave of noise from the crowd, Hiero seemed to know he was there. It took another minute or so for him to make it down the edge of the crowd to where Janus and his family. He stopped and took them all in with his eyes, an approving nod and the smile Janus had come to know so well touching his lips.
‘Hello Miria, hello Tirio… Hello Janus.’ He was at the limit of screaming just to be heard, despite being 3 feet away.
‘Hiero… I… I…’ Janus tried to speak, but tears and sobs overwhelmed him.
Tirio stepped forward and embraced his friend with liquid grace. He held Janus for a long moment, and then turned his head and spoke to him.
‘I know Janus… Little Brother… I know. I will miss you more than I can say. I want you to know how very, very proud I am of you. You have been a perfect member of this congregation, and a perfect husband and father. Your son will do great things one day, and I wish I could be here to see the siblings I know will be coming soon. I am so very, very honored to have helped set your feet on the path… Think of me from time to time, and know I will be doing the same my Little Brother. It is time for me to go now though… but first…’ Hiero slowly released him and turned to kiss Miria on the cheek, before turning his attention to little Tirio.
Tirio was staring up at his Uncle Hiero with sorrow in his eyes, it was dawning on him what was about to happen. Hiero knelt down and unclasped his Icon of the Congregation from it’s place on his pauldron. He cupped the golden disk in his hands and stared at it a moment, as if to make sure it’s importance was known. He then passed it to Tirio, his little hands wrapping around the icon reverently. He stared in wonder, as Hiero stood up and with a last smile, turned and made his way with the other missionaries to the shuttles bound for the ark.
Janus knew the shuttles would make it to their destinations safely. Members of the congregation had ensured there would be a gap in the sensor net this afternoon, ensuring the secrecy of this most holy of missions. The intelligence Janus had provided on the workings of the sensor station had of course been invaluable.
As Hiero, faint in the distance turned one last time to look back upon the crowd as he stood in the entry hatch of the shuttle, Janus turned to his son.
“Tiero, my little semi-divine… Show your uncle his icon, show him it is in good hands.’
The boy smiled his big toothy smile, and took his father and mothers hands and squeezed. The third hand held the icon aloft with pride.
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" -KingCracker
