C. Goto - Dawn of War

“The Imperial Guard can attend to the evacuation, inquisitor. We have already given them the use of some of our transport vessels to assist with the wounded civilians. The matter is already in hand, and I am sure that Colonel Brom here is more than capable of ensuring the success of such a logistical exercise. The Blood Ravens, however, are not logisticians, inquisitor. We are Space Marines, and we have more pressing issues to attend to,” replied Gabriel, conscious of Brom’s eyes from the cockpit.

“More pressing issues?” asked Mordecai, raising an inquiring eyebrow.

“Yes, inquisitor. I have reason to believe that there are forces of Chaos working on this planet,” answered Gabriel simply.

The inquisitor said nothing for a few moments, and Gabriel could only vaguely see his face in the shadows. Then Mordecai leant forward, pushing his face towards Gabriel, his eyes dancing in the sudden light.

“Strange that I sense no taint here, captain,” he said, almost whispering. “In any case,” he continued in a more casual tone, “if there were a Chaos presence on Tartarus, it would be better for us to leave it here with the orks, rather than wasting any more lives trying to combat it. Believe me, captain, we could not dispense any fate worse than that which will be dealt out by the storm itself-these forces of Chaos and the orks will not be able to stand against each other and the storm.”

“What if they do not need to stand against each other? I suspect that the orks and the Chaos powers are in cahoots on Tartarus, inquisitor. Could they not stand together against the storm?” asked Gabriel, his voice earnest and firm.

“They are welcome to try, captain. But we must leave here, and we must leave now,” said Mordecai, leaning back into the harness once again and letting out a quiet sigh of exasperation.

“You may leave whenever you like, inquisitor, and the Blood Ravens will gladly donate the use of our transport facilities for your purpose. We, on the other hand, will stay long enough to satisfy our suspicions and settle our affairs. How long until the storm arrives?” asked Gabriel, his mind made up.

“Three days, captain. Perhaps less.” The inquisitor turned to Brom for the first time and waved his hand dismissively. “Colonel Brom, would you be kind enough to leave us alone for a moment? The captain and I have some matters of faith to discuss.”

The Imperial Guard colonel stared back at Mordecai and then shifted his gaze to Gabriel, searching for an unlikely ally. “With all due respect, Inquisitor Toth, this affair involves me and the Tartarans as much as it does any of you. Tartarus is our home, and we know it better than anyone. I have heard stories of this warp storm before-legends speak of it visiting this planet once every three thousand years, bringing with it-”

“-that’s all very interesting, colonel,” said Mordecai, cutting him off and rising to his feet. “But perhaps I did not make myself clear? When I asked you to leave us, I expected that you would leave the Thunderhawk now.”

Brom’s mouth snapped shut and his eyes narrowed as he met the inquisitor’s gaze. “As you wish, Inquisitor Toth,” he said, forcing the words out through gritted teeth. He turned to face Gabriel and bowed very slightly. “Captain Angelos, I take my leave.”

Gabriel did not stand, but he nodded an acknowledgement to Brom as the latter turned and strode rigidly down the boarding ramp. “Thank you, Colonel Brom,” he said softly, unsure whether Brom could hear him or not.

“This does involve him, inquisitor. He may well have some knowledge that could be of use to us-and knowledge is power, as you well know. You could have shown him more respect,” said Gabriel as Mordecai retook his seat.

“Captain Angelos,” began Mordecai, ignoring Gabriel’s protests on the behalf of Brom. “I understand that you uncovered deep-rooted heresy and the taint of Chaos on the planet Cyrene. That was your homeworld, was it not?”

Startled by this sudden shift in the conversation, Gabriel recoiled. “I fail to see how that is relevant to the present situation, inquisitor, even if I were disposed to discuss it, which I am not.”

“You should feel free to discuss such things with me, Gabriel,” said Mordecai ingratiatingly. “I may not be your precious Chaplain Prathios, but I am an agent of the Emperor’s Inquisition and nothing needs to be hidden from me.”

“Even so, Inquisitor Toth,” replied Gabriel formally, “I cannot see what Cyrene has to do with this situation on Tartarus.”

“That is why you are not an inquisitor, Gabriel,” said Mordecai, smoothly persisting with his familiar tone. “As I recall, you were the one who requested the assistance of the Inquisition in the performance of an exterminatus on Cyrene-the systematic annihilation of all life on the planet-genocide by another name.”

“Toth, I’m not sure what you’re trying to do here, but you are succeeding in trying my patience,” said Gabriel, anger tingeing his voice.

“I am not questioning your loyalty, captain. But I am concerned that your actions on Cyrene may have affected you in ways that even you do not fully understand.” Mordecai paused to take in Gabriel’s response, but the Blood Raven’s face was simply knitted in anger. “In particular,” he continued, “I must wonder whether your actions there might have affected your judgement here.”

With a sudden crack, the harness behind Gabriel whipped out of its fixings in the wall, sending a little shower of adamantium raining down over the two men. Gabriel released his grip on the straps as he realised that he had been pulling them unconsciously. He said nothing, but just stared at the inquisitor with burning green eyes. Mordecai held up his hands, as though signalling that he didn’t mean to be confrontational. He knew that he had gone too far, and he made a mental note of Gabriel’s limits.

“Perhaps that was a… poor choice of words, Captain Angelos,” said Mordecai, retreating into formality once again. “My fear, captain, is simply that you may have become oversensitive to the appearance of taints of Chaos following the ordeal on Cyrene. It would be quite understandable.”

“Are you suggesting that I am making this up? Have you seen the Marines in the clearing outside!?” asked Gabriel, his voice grating with volume and indignance.

“No, captain. I am merely asking that, as a loyal subject of the Emperor, you keep the interests of the Imperium in mind before your own… agenda.” The inquisitor was choosing his words carefully now, intending to make Gabriel think without being overly inflammatory.

“I suggest that you leave my Thunderhawk, inquisitor,” said Gabriel, rising to his feet and indicating the boarding ramp, “for the good of the Imperium.” Inquisitor Toth may have commandeered the vessel from the Litany of Fury, but it was still a Blood Ravens’ gunship.

Toth rose and stood directly in front of Gabriel, staring him in the face with deep brown, almost black eyes. He was shorter than the captain, and lighter. Gabriel’s power armour transformed him into a giant, superhuman warrior, but Toth faced him calmly. He had confronted Space Marines before and was not about to be intimidated by this captain. “Thank you for your time, Captain Angelos. We will talk again soon,” he said, before turning and making his way out into the forest.

Isador and Corallis found Gabriel still in the Thunderhawk. He was kneeling quietly, as though in meditation, and Isador could hear faint whispers questing through the air. The captain’s face was calm and his eyebrows were slightly raised, as though he were listening to a majestic symphony. A tear ran down his rough cheek, vanishing into the depths of an old scar, and a trace of light danced along its tail. In the shadows at the far end of the chamber sat Prathios, half hidden and perfectly silent. He nodded to the two Marines as they entered the chamber.