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von Gaussenberg and the Space Docks Crew clung on to the station with all the might they could muster, fighting corridor by corridor, room by room. But against the overwhelmning might before them it seemed pretty pointless. Still he tried to tell himself that binding a considerable force up here, helped in the grander scheme of things.
His general plan to blow up the station, should it fall still stood, but began to look a bit difficult with every passing minute. The heretics had taken most of the station and would likely try to sever his control over the reactors. They also would likely withdraw some of their forces when it became obvious, that the defenders dwindled, diminishing the losses they could inflict by detonating the station.

Von Gaussenberg checked again, if there was any sign of the Navy coming to their help, mostly to calculate if the wiser call of action would be to hold the dock at all costs or to use it to kill as many heretics as possible. If there was no relief in sight, the spacestation was lost anyway, blown to bits as act of defiance by the enemy. So in this way he put all his ability into finding the exact right moment to use what little control they still had to make the best of it. Ideally they would keep the heretic astartes occupied as long as they could, detonating the stations reactor just before they started to pull back their forces. If by then they still had a chance to reach one of the shuttles the Sororitas came in, he would try to evacuate some of the loyalists in the priority of: 1. Sororitas that were still fit enough to make a difference on world 2. essential technicians 3. Everyone else

Gaussenberg, was able to confirm that Captain Summers and the Lunar Class Cruiser, the Rightous, along with four system defense ships were still around one day away from reaching the planet.

That would be more than enough ships to relieve the defenders. However, until that happened, the arch enemy enjoyed orbital dominance via it's own powerful Devastation class cruiser which was now very close to entering low orbit and if any ground based planetary defense installations were compromised, it would be able to inflict serious damage on the surface.

The next 24 hours would be critical for the outcome of this war.


The planet's leader would have to think critically to make the right decisions. The arch enemy didn't have the assets to take and occupy the planet, so what was their objective? Inflict as much destruction as possible? Steal the salvaged cruiser from under your noses? Or something else?

Loisy was processing report after reports and trying to send down orders to all almost in real time. He now looked like a zomebie, having slept maybe 3 to 4 hours over the last days at most, kept up and running by the sole adrenaline pumping in his veins, truly embracing the relief that warfare was to his mind. In his parallel state, all politics, governorship, and otherwise have been replaced by that only thought: win the war. It repeated endlessly, win the war.

His mind was suddenly fixed on the fleet ETA given by von Gaussenberg. One day... One only day... Maybe with yet more troops, they could hold. But this would mean that some troops down there would have got to be disengaged and again shuttled away towards the station...

"Sir, artillery battalions report that they finally managed to crack open all of their ammo stocks, and they are ready to deploy and provide support". Boucher had came rushing into the room but Loisy's attention was so far away that he didn't even notice it.

But a plan formed in his mind.

"Boucher, find all pockets of resistance outside the city that might be equipped with heavy lasweaponry or hellguns. They are useless anyway in the plains now. The artillery battalions are to box barrage the enemy at the approach of valkyries, board them, and speed towards the decks. It can be held yet. When this transfer is ended, all artillery battalions are to carpet barrage the perimeters arounds the voidshield generators.

Go now".

He then voxed the Magos "Esteemed Magos, I need your troops to make junction with the Cardinals sororitas at the void shield generators and reinforce them. Halt the counter attack and cut through the enemy to that intend. we need to hold the void shields as well while I redirect all reinforcments I can scrap to the docks under the cover of artillery. Artillery battalion Astérix is tasked with providing you covering fire to help you break away. Relay them your coordinates.".

Mechadenrite, acknowledging that the Colonel probably knew what he was doing, went, and Loisy, having recieved confirmation from both he and the artillery, had the cardinal voxed to inform hil that while mechadendrite will try to break towards him, for now, he'll have to hold on its own, as according to the fleet ETA, something could yet be done to prevent the lost of the scavenged ships and the dockyards. Artillery support should be available to him circa 8 to 12 hours, when the transfer operation will be finished.".

In his frenzy, Loisy didn't even consider that he was, in a way, antagonising the cardinal further, leaving him on his own for what would feel like forever. But he was in war fueled mode, and couldn't care less; as he read the next report to be dealt with...

Battle Results

Colonel vs Chaos: Colonel scores 6 successes (burns 1 wrath) and Chaos scores 3 successes.

Cardinal vs Chaos: Cardinal scores 8 successes (burns 1 wrath) to Chaos scoring 4 successes + 1 Glory.

Gaussenberg vs Chaos: He uses the Cardinal's glory + an extra dice from the Colonel to score 4 successes, tying with Chaos's 4 successes.

On the ground outside the Hive, the Colonel's leadership proved to be effective, and the complex maneuvers were executed without too many setbacks and delays. Once the reinforcements were en route to the orbital docks, the Valkyries were attacked by a wing of Chaos fighter aircraft and a massive air battle broke out in the skies. Fortunately, a squadron of Thunderbolt fighters intervened, and as a result most of the valkyries survived the encounter and were able to power their way to low orbit.

The battles outside the hive at the various military bases and outer shrines were still ongoing though, and some areas had fallen into enemy hands. As a result the Colonel's advisors advised against sending any more reinforcements to the Hive or Dockyards until the outer regions had stabilized.

In the Battle for the Void Generators, the Sisters of Battles turned the battle around and utterly annihilated the demon host even before the Skitaari of the Adeptus Mechanicus or the Colonel's promised artillery barrage arrived. Word spread throughout the defenders that at one point in the Battle, Saint Celeste appeared and annihilated a large part of the demon host single handedly before disappearing herself. The Cardinal didn't see much of the battle though as he was in the rear guard but many in the Ministorum immediately attributed the miracle to the fervent prayers of the Cardinal.

As a result, the enemy attack on the Hive was all but over, though there were rumors abound that some traitor astartes had slaughtered the defenders of the Cathedral, looted many sacred relics from the cathedral, and had fled beneath the underhive.

On the Orbital Docks, several additional squads of PDF Soldiers arrived at the station via Valkyrie transport and immediately began counter attacking enemy positions. Once that happened, the last surviving Sisters of Battle joined in the counter attack. The attacks were marginally successful, and the enemy was forced to cede some ground to the defenders, though casualties were heavy on both sides and the defenders were quick to mine sections of the station with melta bombs which resulted in several sections of the station losing pressurization and atmospheric integrity. However the battle was seeming slightly less dire now, and had more or less settled into a stalemate.

One of the Tech Priests though presented an idea to Gaussenberg. "The enemy cruiser will enter our line of sight in 2.35 hours. If we could coordinate with the orbital missile and lance silos, I could potentially power up the lance of the salvaged cruiser. Combined with the defense silos, we have a chance to puncture the enemy cruiser's void shields and inflict damage. Of course...I would fully expect the cruiser to return fire...and our own void shields could not be sustained if we re-route power. However, the cruiser could shoot at us regardless of what we do anyway. It is your decision to make my Lord."

Loisy quickly voxed the Cardinal to congratulate him for the effective resistance- something no one would ever have imagined, and had word go to the Sororitas that they had served the emperor well today.

But with the spine of the enemy assault broken in the hive, Loisy was not yet victorious. It remained a serious side danger that the Hive would end up being encircled and vulnerable to a two prongs attacked from beneath and outside if the chaos forces were allowed to tear apart the net of surviving pockets of resistance that surprisingly remained outside of the city.

Without delay he ordered the Sisters to remains in the city and start patrolling to engage any leftover elements, while the bronthians received order to march out of the city along 2 armoured groupings of the PDF, and to spearhead the assault outside the city as a relief force. The Valkyries that made it back from orbit were repurposed as an emergency extraction group if more soldiers became needed in the Hive.

The Bronthians acknowledged and went, however, it was obvious that they had paid a tremendous price and the formation would no longer be a regiment after this engagement... Pity, but, Loisy thought, this is what they're made for - his regiment was butchered as well by those emperor damned half xeno mutants... He shook his head. No Loisy, this war is not over, there are still enemies to cull and sacrifices to be made.

"Panthère Alpha, over".

Von Gaussenberg is quite surprised that he is still alive and the defenders still managed to hold the station. Something he had to thank the relief forces Loisy managed to send up. To be honest he would likely not have done the same if it had been his call, judging that the dock was done and it was not worth it throwing reinforcements after a lost cause, but right now he was thankful to have been wrong in this regard and that the General made the call.

He nodded to the Tech Priest "Yes, prepare everything accordingly. We will try and take the shot. If they fire back when our void shields are down, they would kill their own boarding parties..." which should sound encouraging for the defenders, implying the enemy would not happily fire on their own. For himself von Gaussenberg fully expected them to not hold back, but if the cruiser wanted to do his work for him, why not. His own plans an hour ago would have them all die together anyway. "how fast can the void shields be online again, after the shot? Can we maybe limit it to only the command center and the most dense pockets of our resistance? Maybe that could speed things up a little bit."
He opens an encrypted link to the surface, still somewhat suspicious if the enemy already cracked their codes. "Panthere Alpha, here Gerbile. We won back the station. Everything according to plan, so prepare the amasec to celebrate. Do you remember the game we played after our last round of regicide? Remember the last move I did before you won? Let's have another round sometime. Maybe 15:27, after the next council meeting?"
Loisy knew all to well that the fight for the docks was far from over and that Gaussenberg was none for overenthusiastic optimism, so hopefully he got that this was a crude code. The game they had played was some fleet simulation using little imperial ship models and his last move had been a lance strike. And the time he called was the one the Techpriest gave him and not their usual meeting time.
Another thing bothered the Administrator and he called it down to Loisy and the Cardinal if possible "Something is very foul here. The enemy doesn't act sensible. If they wanted the docks, they could have focussed on them and already have them before starting the ground offensive. And if they wanted to conquer ground, they might as well have blown us to bits and focussed on the offensive there. Our Navy is inbound and their raiders lost, so staying here means they still think they can achieve their objectives. Which means it's nothing simple like just getting the cruiser or plundering. I suspect they have some high value target on ground. Maybe steal something incredibly valuable to them, kill someone of utmost importance or prepare some kind of dark ritual. Try thinking outside of a strictly military mindset, 'cause what is going on here isn't just a normal war..."

Loisy blinked "Gerbille, this is Panthère Alpha, Say again after amasec, over".

He listened closely, but he didn't quite catch it as it was. He rattled his brain to understand, and tried a counter-question to elaborate further, the calm and professional kind of question he asked when, in a game, he witnessed a bold move from the opponent.

"Gerbille, is that your last word? Over. ". The Boldest move Von Gaussenberg ever pulled of in one of their games was to declare an almost suicidal lance battery strike, that left King ship vulnerable to a boarding counter attack he launched after all voidshields were depleted as per the quite realistic game rules. If this was his last word then, that could mean he had decided to take a shot at the ennemy vessel using the scavanged ship that laid in the docks.

Loisy was thinking hard in the seconds that separated this question from its answer. Should he try to talk him out of this folly? On the other hand, as long as the vessel was still in orbit, she could deliver pin point orbital strikes down below and utterly annihilate the counter attack he was making to break the outer pressure, around the hive, and thus destroy one of the axis of assault the ennemy would have. On the other hand, they possibly couldn't risk the chaos vessel firing back and now annihilating.what he they managed to save from destruction.

But with the confirmation from Gausse'beg that this was his last move, the sky lit and light even whitened all optics in the room for a moment as a tremendous amount of energy blazed from the docks towards the looming chaos vessel. It was too late, it had been done anyway, and Loisy truly hoped that this wouldn't come back to bite them in the hours to come.

For the first time since this all mess began, he felt worried that something was slipping, that he maybe hadn't got as much control over this as he thought. Because Von Gaussenberg was right. Something didn't make sense at all. And this realisation was a sand grain to jam the Colonel's machine of a military mind and big him down for a few minutes.

Hopefully, his trusted advisor, Boucher, was nearby, and jumped at his commander.

"Sir, is something not right? Call a medic".

It was it. Apparently, Loisy had broken under pressure at long last, realising that he had possibly failed to actually prevent chaos from winning when this report flashed again on the screens before his wary eyes: they stole relics from the shrines, and they left... This made no military sense. And somehow, he felt guilty about not being able to see it. He wondered if the Munistorum could be at fault here, not doing their duty of warning him of this peculiar perils? Or maybe, someone in his entourage had deciphered and said nothing? He was being overwhelmed by visions and voices from his nightmares, making fun of him, calling him a blind, sorry fool, pointing the disaster at him in hybrid cultist form, as a crowd accusing him.
Younger Boucher knew better. He recognised the signs of his commander crumbling, and took immediate action before it was too late. He had all people in the room left, and caught Loisy by the uniform to lift him up. He made it clear to him: the war was on, it was not the time to fail, and if he was about to, Boucher would have to throw him out and take up command, in front of everyone, and in front of the Cardinal's representatives. Is that what he wanted? The play in the Cardinal hands by showing himself as a feeble madman?

Boucher threw Loisy back into his sit, took the stills the medicae had provided for such a case, and injected it into the shocked governor's shoulder. A few minutes later, Loisy had got a hold of himself and was back into the fray...

Boucher grabbed the vox, and relayed Von Gaussenberg's doubts to the Cardinal.

"Gerbille, this is Panthère Alpha. Need to consort with Carabosse. Over."....

Battle for Outer Reaches Loiuse 8 successes vs Chaos 3.

Orbital defense vs Chaos Cruiser. Gaussenberg 2 to Chaos 3.

The Battle for the Outer reaches occurred at the end of the final day of the war. The chaos horde of heretic astartes, traitors and deamons found themselves trapped between the PDF Defenders, and reinforcements that poured out of the hive. It quickly turned into a massacre as massive artillery and air strikes bombed the horde into oblivion.

Loise may have been at PDF headquarters but he could still hearing the cheering from across the vox channels. All the officers at HQ were clapping and congratulating each other. There was even talk of breaking open a bottle of Amasec. Today had seen incredible victories for the Imperial defenders. In spite of great odds, the Emperor's forces had prevailed...

But the Chaos gods would not be denied their vengeance...

Orbital Dockyards...

An officer in the command center reported information in real time.

"Charging up the lance shot now. Coinciding with missile silo Alpha 1. And..executing."

Out of the view port, the command staff could visibly see a small flicker of light in the distance. The lance strike and missiles had found their target it had seemed.

"Assessing damage...assessing."

A warning siren echoed throughout the chamber.

"No damage beyond the shields. Repeat, strike was ineffective." "Emperor help us."

"Contact, two Infidel Raiders are coming about. They're launching torpedoes...turrets are off line. 30 seconds to impact!"

Around the time of the torpedo impact, the cruiser unleashed a punishing bombardment on the unshielded Imperial Guard forces thsat were in the process of celebrating their victory. The losses inflicted were significant, maybe a third of the total forces, but it could have been worse as much of the bombardment hit sparesly inhabited areas of the planet far from the field of battle."

Then the enemy cruiser broke into high orbit, just as several small craft returned from the surface and landed in the attack craft bays.

The torpedoes crashed into the station and for Gaussenberg everything went black and silent...

PDF Headquarters:

"Enemy cruiser is breaking for high orbit. Naval reinforcements are only an hour away. They're retreating. We've won sir we've won."

"Still no contact from the orbital dockyards. It's orbit remains stable but it's taken heavy damage."

And then the massive array of melta bombs placed under the HQ building went off...

Loise would feel the floor give way underneath him and everything went black as he found himself falling..and falling deep into the bowls of the underhive, chased by mounds of falling rockcrete and the corpses of his PDF comrads.

24 Hours Later: The Aftermath

The Cardinal

The Cardinal finds himself wherever he sees fit to comfortably govern in the aftermath of the war.

The Colonel and Gaussenberg were oficially missing and very likely dead, so nearly all of the power players on the world, along with various Imperial Officials, Captain Summers, Mechandrite, and Munitorium Representatives were looking to him for leadership as the world set about rebuilding.

One of the Cardinal's servitors provided updates on the events of the day.

-Search and rescue efforts to locate the Colonel continuing, some survivors of the PDF HQ bombing found, but so far nothing on the Colonel.

-The Imperial Navy is set to begin search and rescue operations on the station later today but they are not expecting to find any survivors.

-The head Palatine of the local Order of the Sisters of Battle, Sister Elizabeth, is scheduled to meet with you later today at the Cathedral.


-The war is being heralded as a spectacular victory for the Imperium as the world survived a massive surprise attack while sustaining very limited damage to lives and infrastructure, though the ransacking of the Cathedral has led to some voices of discontent with the Ecclesiarchy as it was the Cardinal's order for the Sisters of Battle to focus on defending the Outer Shrines at the expense of the Cathedral.


The Underhive:

[Colonel starts with max wounds but a traumatic injury to left leg. The leg is un-usable until augmetic surgery is completed. All equipment missing]

The Colonel awoke in a simple cott, in what appeared to be a dimly lit shed made from scrap. His body was in utter agony, and when he tried to move his left leg, it wouldn't move.

A man and a woman are sitting on chairs in the squalid hut. One is scrolling through a data slate, and the other is sipping a cup of recaff. They appear in ragged clothing, but wear blue bandanas around their left arms and sport similar skull tattoos. They are also sporting some wicked looking knives and autopistols. Likely Hive Gangers.


The woman notices Loiuse wake up and brings him a cup of water, holding it out for him to drink. "Hey Brick" she gestures to the man. "The guy's awake."

She looks back to Louise. "Take it easy old man. Your body has been through a lot of trauma. Good thing we found you when yah did."

Brick nods. "Yeah well...since we figured your some rich guy from up hive, we knew there'd be profit in it."

The woman nods. "True, the power refractor was a nice pay off, even if no one gonna pay up to get him back, twas probably worth it."

The woman looks at Louise again. "I'm Ava, an this me boss Brick. Who are you?"

The Orbital Docks

[Gaussenberg starts with max woudns but traumatic injury, non functioning right arm]

Gaussenberg also awakens to enormous pain, and he can't move his right arm, likely broken at best. The command center is lit only by a single emergency light. No one in the room moves. It looks like everyone is dead.

A servo skull floats up to him.

"Station status critical. Numerous hull breaches. Reactor leaking plasma. Attempting to maintain orbital velocity. Communication offline. Advise you to abandon station." "Nearby void suit in locker B" It flashes a laser toward a supply locker.


[Sister Elizabeth Image] https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/warhammer40k/images/a/ab/Sister_Piety.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20140804141143

Von Gaussenberg groans, clutching his broken and battered arm, taking in his surroundings through partly clouded vision. He rubs some sweat of his brow, only then realizing that it is blood. It seems he indeed still isn't quite dead - a surprise to be sure, but a welcome one.
Slowly he starts to drift towards the locker the servoskull pointed him to, the artificial gravit being offline. Here and there he has to navigate around floating corpses and debris, or kick it away, often flinging him offcourse due to Newtons law of reciprocal force. The trip to the void suit seemed to take ages.

Finally processing some of what the Servoskull said, he asks it "Hull breaches secondary for now, can anything be done from on station to stabilize the orbital velocity and stop the reactors from leaking? If not, can the reactor be ejected and exploded in a safe distance to ride the shockwave to a stable orbit?" Hopefully the machines processors were still able to assist. Von Gaussenberg was old and he felt it now more then ever. He did not really see a meaningful way to make it to the surface alive, but he might still make a difference up here, even if he was the lone survivor.

Cardinal Richemont was in charge now.... and he didn't like it that much. His methods were to stand behind the most powerful and watch from over their shoulder, and whisper in their ear. He was a power behind the throne, so when someone else took a shot at the top spot, he was out of the line of fire.

A massive assortment of courtiers from the Church, the Ad-mech, the Arbites, the Administratum, and more were swarming around him as he slowly trod up the stairway of the blasted and badly damaged cathedral of St. Bonafactius.

He answered as many questions as he could, and tried to give clear directions, his head spinning from it all. Or maybe it was fatigue from the fight? Or possible a concussion from being too close to a blast?

"We need to make sure the supply lines from the agricultural areas are cleared. We need food moving into the hive now. If people can not eat, the peace will not hold."

A bruised Bishop approached and half-dazed look in his eyes, he croaked out a report about the state of the Cathedral. The Cardinal nodded, and told him to follow him into the inner sanctum and privacy from the masses. Only Sister Elizabeth was with them.

The Cardinal's voice croaked from over-use, " I need to know three things right now:

One. Where are the others? Mechandrite, Governor Loisy, Adept Von Gaussenberg, the Arbites Judge? The Choirmaster? Who is dead and who is missing? Who can we find?

Two. Is the orbital docks safe. or is there a danger of it crashing down on us?

Three. I heard some of the priests prattling about lost artifacts and heretics on this holy ground. What did they take?"

Guilles fell down into a chair, the exhaustion starting to catch-up to him. His sword scabbard caught awkwardly as he tumbled and caused him to almost miss the chair.

"Sister Elizabeth, I thank you and your Order for a great service. Pray, can you help the Arbites and Enforcers secure the streets and root out any remnants?"

The Cardinal turned back to the Bishop, " I have a feeling we are going to miss out tithe deadline......".

There would be questions. Many, many questions. There would be precious few answers. With that, exhaustion finely got to him and he fell asleep.

Loisy groaned, partly with rage, partly with pain.

He had lived by brute force and courage, he would go down.the same. He stood as best he could on his only leg, balancing himself on the couch.

"You have got a worthy price indeed. Governor Loisy himself." If he died or if he was exchanged as an hostage, he didn't know. Nor did he care. He was as good as dead now. He had no idea if he even won his war in the end, didn't now if his pal Von Gaussenberg was still alive, nor Boucher. He probably had failed. And the fears and nightmares that plagued him were becoming too much to endure anyhow. He almost wanted to go down here, leaving behind the fame of a hero and the statuesque charisma he sported. He hoped that when that lasbolt caught his head, his hard work turning this, HIS newfound home would not be lost and his legacy co.tinue.for.the betterment of this colony and the Imperium. He cursed the Cardinal who had spawned that under hive, and stood still, almost defiant in spite of his injuries, his stature imposing even in his dreadful state...

"Kill me now and exact vengeance, or trade me, the choice is yours. I am not afraid."

He prayed the Emperor for his good graces, hoped he had been a worthy servant, and prepared to suffer and die.

The Orbital Dockyards

The servo skull whirls and groans before answering, performing innumerable cogitations.

"Probability of reactor core overload in next 24 hours...25.7%. Probability of loss of thruster control due to power loss in 24 hours...75.2%."

"Solution...calculating."

"I can guide you to welding kit and guide you to the reactor. Some, simple repairs might seal breach. Lethal radiation expected, even with void suit."

"Alternative...I can attempt guide you to nearest escape pod. Increase your immediate survivability beyond 0%."

The Underhive

Ava and Brick didn't look surprised to hear the Colonel's pronouncement. They even smirked a bit.

"Governor...we have a Governor?" Brick asked Ava in a heavy sarcastic voice.

"Aye, Ava nodded. I think he's the one always trying to kill us off an make our lives harder and what not."

"I bet he's rich though." Brick mused.

Ava snickered. "Aye, but I also reckon he's got lot's of enemies. Might be a bit of a risk trying to get him Up Hive."

Brick nodded. "Well yeah, but we've sort of been down on our luck since we found im, so maybe the risk is worth it...assuming he's tellin us the truth."

Brick turns to Louise and folds his arms. "We might be able to get yah up hive, but it'll be a risk on our part. So other than the refractor field, and the las pistol, which, the way I seez it, is propah payment for our current hospitality, what else can yah give us as payment?"

The Cathedral

Seething crowds of the distressed faithful swarmed through the ruins of the Cathedral as servitor teams frantically worked to clear away debris and paint over the many obscenities and profane graffiti that the heretics had left behind.

A gaggle of enforcers and even a few Arbites nominally stood guard, while swarms of clerks, friars, and clerics pressed in around the Cardinal, providing him with the latest information on the recovery efforts.

"Gaussenberg and Louise...presumed dead sir but no bodies have been found. It will be at least a day before the Navy is even ready to board the docks and they are still finding bodies in the rubble of the PDF HQ. "

"Fear not Cardinal...if the dock can be maintained than the salvaged cruiser is saved. That should provide for a deferment in the Tithe. The Imperium owes us a great debt after a great victory."

"It was not a great victory." Sister Elizabeth cut in, flanked by more than a score of the Adeptus Sororitas.

"So many Sacred relics, the bones of our most revered Saints, Holy Rosarios, all stolen by the Arch Enemy and taken aboard their cruiser. And all because of the greed of one man."

It may have taken a moment but soon every realized whom she was talking about. After she pointed her chainsword at the Cardinal...everyone absolutely knew who she was talking about.

"Cardinal. You gave the order for my Sisters to Defend the Outer Shrines, where your own prized agri zones were near. And because of that negligence, our sacred Cathedral was left under protected. And...they were able to do so much damage." It looked she was very distraught, caught between crying and executing the Cardinal on the spot. "All because you put your personal wealth above defending the Holiest place on our world."

"So Cardinal, please tell my Sisters. What will your public penance be for your sin? How will you repent for what you have done, so that our faith in you can be restored?"

Loisy was not impressed in the slightest. And that showed through. He took his lecknace on which his id plates where tied. "Is that proof enough?"

The both of them made a step backwards in awe. Now, they had caught a big fish!

"As to what I can offer? Something beyond you're wildest dreams. Good life."

Ava and Brick's eyes lit. "Three meals a day, safety, warm and cosy couches, purpose in life, salary. I've offered this a million men already, and I can offer it to you as well, forgetting your past crimes as I, as a governor, may give amnisty as I see feat in rendering judgement. Take me up, and I'll take you up with me. Is that good repayment enough?".

Of course, there is one thing he wouldn't tell, albeit all that he spoke was true through and through. It was that someday, paranoia might take back his hold on him, and he will cut their throats. But that day was apparently not today.

While von Gaussenberg slips into the void suit in an awkward motion due to his broken arm he considers his options. But in a strange way the choice doesn't seem that difficult to him. He was old... really old. And more importantly he felt it, felt tired, so unbelievably tired. With a clarity he hadn't for decades he realized that a live spent in the service of the Imperium had kind of turned into waiting for the end. And thinking about it, going down doing something important instead of hanging around waiting sounded... nice.

He floated in zero gravity for some moments taking a look at the destruction and the dead bodies floating around him. Had it been a mistake to call the shot at the cruiser? Would it have retreated anyway and keeping the void shield up have saved the lives of all these brave men and women on the station? He would never know. It had seemed right at the moment. In some way the thought strengthened his resolve - he owed it to them to not flee but stay and make their sacrifice count.

"Guide me to that wielding set." He coughed painfully "Are there any other survivors?" He considered for a Moment as the pain from his cough faded away all too slowly, realizing that while he did not fear death, he did fear dying painfully. "Are there any anaestetics on board that you could bring me after the repairs are finished?" Maybe he could at least make his way to the golden throne a little easier.

The little Servo wasn't aware of any survivors, which didn't surprise Gaussenberg too much, but it gave him an optimistic 37% chance that it might get some morphine from the sick bay after they did the repairs which gave him some hope.

After listening intently to its instructions, asking all questions he could think of and making notes, von Gaussenberg adressed it again "Make a record, please..." what followed was a report of what had transpired on the station - but a rather heroic version of the truth to be honest. Von Gaussenberg highlighted the heroism of the stations crew, mere civilians that took up their tools as crude weapons and not only stared down the face of humanities worst nightmares but even held the line. Until they were delivered by the holy Sisters of him on earth, bringing the emperors light and turning the tide against the abominations. And finally the brave soldiers of the PDF bringing the fight to the enemy and driving them from the station.

Edit: He allowed himself one little vanity though, making the recording in front of the background of the reactor door, alarms blaring and warning signs flashing "do not enter, deadly radiation", while he obviously put on his suit and prepared to enter it for repairs - he might as well let them know what he was about to do. "I saw to live 187 years, but it was the proudest moment of my life to fight in the side of these heroes, these pinnacles of humanities spirit. They rest at the emperors table now, looking down at the world they gave their lives to protect. Sons and daughters of Bonifatius Reach, soldiers, priests, commonfolk. Remember their sacrifice and honor it. Remember that only together can we fight the darkness encroaching on us, raging against the dying of the light. Hold fast and bury your grudges, build the glorious future we died to protect TOGETHER, for the emperor and humanity."

He wasn't the best speaker, but he hoped this would make a small difference. With that he sighed and nodded to the Servo Skull "Ok, it won't get any better, so lets get this over with." Putting down his vizor and opening the hatch to the reactor room.

Cardinal Richemont was taken aback by Sister Elizabeth's accusation. He expected there to be questions about his choices, his conduct in the war.

"Sister Elizabeth, I recognize your distress and offer you the Emperor's blessing. Seek his comfort in this moment of tragedy," Guilles made the sign of the Aquilla, his voice low for only the Sister and those nearby to hear.

'No decision in His Name can be made without sacrifice. I therefore, made a difficult choice. One I will not apologize for to you. The Emperor will judge me."

Now the Cardinal projected his voice for all in the ruined hall to hear him

"The Cathedral was within the HIve. The Hive was defended by our gallant PDF and the brave Brontian regiment. Who would think that would not be enough? It was the most powerful fighting force on the planet, and raised to protect St. Bonafactius Reach and to crusade in the Name of the Emperor. Please, do not cast aspersions on their fighting prowess. They have all paid a heavy price."

The Cardinal was tapping into all the Oratory skills and forms of rhetoric he had been taught, knowing that he had to dispel this seed of doubt before it bloomed into a flower of revolt.

"You are a warrior Sister. Therefore, you know that guns and armor are no protection against an empty belly. Without food, there can be no resistance. Wars are not won by killing the enemy, they are won by sustaining your own troops in the field. Without protecting our food supplies, there would be no victory. There would be no recovery."

Now, it was time for his big finish, the cresecendo that would either unite those around him or cause his own fall from grace,

"The Emperor expects us to protect Humanity! Not relics. The people can not eat the bones of the Saints, or Rosaries, or sacred texts!" Food is what fuels the Emperor's divine plan and food is the foundation of Faith. Take and eat, for it is his body and spirit given to you."

The Cardinal dropped his voice down to a harsh whisper, for those close by, "Now, what penance are you offering ME for YOUR petulance? For YOUR threat to the recovery of the Emperor's divine realm? For YOUR anguished attempt to sow discord amongst His holy followers? For YOUR shirking of your holy duty before the masses? "

The Fate of the Colonel

Brick and Ava paused for a long moment, then looked at eachother.

Finally Brick offered a little nod. "Sounds like a good deal. We'll take it."

Soon enough the Colonel found himself being put into a motorized wheel chair with tank like treads, and wheeled out into a ramshackle settlement in the deep recesses of the underhive.

When they all came together, ten moderately armed gangers were geared up and ready to set out.

Brick addressed the crew. "Right, this is gonna be the big pay day. We got ta get this fancy Noble Up Hive. Probably gonna be fair amount of dangers along the way. But the pay off should be a good one."

Meanwhile...beyond anyone's sight, in a tunnel beyond the reach of the settlement, a six armed creature looked out at its prey. It thought little beyond the basic need to infect...and tear, and claw, and destroy. But something in it's consciousness informed it, that the Colonel and his enotourage was indeed it's prey. And it would not be denied.

The Genestealer watched...and waited.

The Fate of Gaussenberg


Gaussenberg died believing that he had saved the orbital docks and the salvaged cruiser. He died believing that he had saved the world that he had been so instrumental in building.

In reality...the Navy Breachers would have arrived in time to make the repairs themselves. Everything would have been saved anyway, and his final sacrifice had been in vain. If only some form of communication was possible, the tragic fate of Gaussenberg would have been prevented. But the universe was a cold and uncaring place. Tragedy it seemed, was unavoidable for most...even among the privileged.

Nevertheless the legacy of Gaussenberg would live on through his successor, "Young Gaussenberg," and the institutions he had built up over decades. Indeed the legend of Gaussenberg was destined to quickly become even larger than the man himself. So in many ways, it was said that Gaussenberg endured a Good Fate.

The Fate of the Cardinal

The Cardinal was unmatched in charisma and rhetoric, and soon Sister Elizabeth had dropped to her knees weeping and crying. "I'm sorry my Lord. I will repent..I will do penance for this."

It was a moving moment, interrupted only by the sound of an old bearded man, a friad by the looks of it, clapping his hands. Clap...clap...clap.

Only he wasn't a friar anymore. The robes came off, and the shining holo-lith of the badge of the Inquisition lit up prominently before all.


"That was quite moving Sister Elizabeth. But, you were actually right. The arch enemy got EXACTLY what they came for. It wasn't a relic though...it was a shard of Caliban, that long forgotten homeworld of the Dark Angels Space Marines."

The man pointed to the Cardinal. "You probably don't even remember acquiring it. It was so insignificant, just another trinket picked up during one of your long pilgramiges."

"No, the Cardinal's sins are all forgivable. There is no way he would have known, or could have known how important that trinket was."

The old man then pats the Cardinal on the back.

"And don't discount your victories either. The arch enemy would have slaughtered every soul on this world if you had allowed them. So, I would say that at the end of the day, everyone did their duty, and that is all the Emperor asks of any of us."

He then turns back to Sister Elizabeth and chides her gently, the way a father would speak to a little girl. "But you should know better than to denounce your superiors. So for your penance, you will serve in my retinue, and perhaps, you can help me recover some of what was stolen."

The sister wiped her tears away and nodded. "I will serve my Lord. Thank you."

The Inquisitor nodded his head then turned back to the Cardinal. "In any case, I'll leave you to your business cardinal. I don't like to get involved in local politics. But let it be known, the eyes of the Inquisition are everywhere. And if any of you fail in your duty in any way, than the next penance I administer will be far more exacting than what I gave to this wayward sister today. The Fate of your world rests with you all. Emperor be with you.

Before the Cardinal could even ask a question the Inquisitor disappeared into the crowd with the Sister. How? It didn't make sense. But Inquisitors had their ways...

And so...the Cardinal was left to manage the aftermath of the conflict, and perhaps begin to shape the future as he saw fit.

But for now, the world turned on. It's fate...NOT yet sealed.


The END