Chapter 1.4

Chapter: The Gauntlet

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Part: 4

Onboard Departmento Munitorum: Imperial Transport 'Gauntlet'

Inquisitor's Quarters

Inquisitor Greybrand was not excited.

No, she was fuckin' terrified! What if she messes up? What if she does something wrong, something against the Will of the Emperor? She would end up being executed for heresy!

She was not prepared for this level of responsibility!

There was always a sense of pride in being selected as an Inquisitor, an achievement that very few in the Galaxy could boast about. But for Greybrand? Getting hit by a power hammer to the back of her head would've been more pleasant.

What kind of sick bastard suddenly decided to promote an inexperienced Acolyte to Inquisitor, that too of the Ordo Xeno? They all were a bunch of crazy xenophobes or xeno-lovers who were willing to wage war against even space dust.

And to do that, they had proper retinues! Fleets! Armies! Commanders loyal to them! Entire companies of Astartes! 

What did she have? Two rag-tag regiments of leftovers? A squad of Sisters of Battle from some random backwater Order that doesn't even have its own ships?

A few other Acolytes were promoted alongside her, they were supposed to be shipped back to Terra for the confirmation ceremony. But a cruiser intercepted them mid-way and before she knew it, her 'Promotion' became a 'Mobilization.' Something about a certain agri-world not paying their Tithe on time...

Was the Ordo Malleus busy? Was the Ordo Hereticus running low on Inquisitors? Was this a sick joke!?

So here she was, acting as some sort of space loan shark for the Imperium, on board the Gauntlet, an Imperial Transport ship. Its captain, Captain Hox, was a suspected violator of Imperial Laws, and for some obscure reasons, Inquisitor Greybrand had the secondary objective of investigating, and if need be, executing the Captain.

A task she was not at all enthusiastic about.

She knew she was in for a rough time since she first boarded the damned ship.

The captain in her books was a strange person - a Xenos-tech-loving fanatic whom she suspected had lost her sanity a long time ago. If she ever was sane that is...

*Sigh*

Greybrand let out a long sigh as she picked up the dataslate. The screen protector's glass was cracked and spiderwebbing along the glass's length. She lifted her fists and beat the air in frustration, but it was a halfhearted effort. This situation was a bloody mess, a total bloody mess, but she couldn't do grox-shit about it.

"Frak me..."

She mumbled to herself as she stared at the dataslate.

Greybrand knew she had to meet with Captain Hox, but she also knew that it was a death sentence on its own. She needed to have some sort of plan if she wanted to come out of this mess alive, or at least with some dignity intact.

Inquisitor Greybrand took a few breaths to steady her nerves and looked at the screen. Captain Hox's proposal is worth a shot. She thought to herself.

Perhaps, with a stroke of luck, she might make it out of here whole... or at least still breathing.

She turned back to the dataslate, swiping through a wide variety of documents such as 'Imperial Files' or 'Inquisition Files,' looking through the data she had barely managed to collect about her destination.

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Imperial File #2032-48843:

Sinaxria Sector

Size of the Sector: 57 Star-Systems - 440 Planets

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3rd: Sallur System

Capital Planet: Accazius IV

Planetary Information:

Accazius I - Dead World, Toxic Atmosphere, Extreme Weather Conditions.

Accazius II - Agri World, Rich Soil, Minimal Population.

Accazius III - Dead World, Barren Surface, No Population.

Accazius IV - Agri World, Rich Soil, Minimal Population.

Accazius V - Dead World, Extreme Weather Conditions, No Population.

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Name: Accazius II

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Planetary Characteristics:

Population: 8.9 Million

Surface Area: 36 Million km² / 13.8 Million mi²

Atmosphere Type: Oxygen-rich Atmosphere

Temperature: Moderate

Day Length: Standard 24-Hour Cycle

Gravity: Standard 0.95g

Landmass: 55% Land, 45%Water.

Geography: 27% Grassland, 33%Forests, 35%Plateau, 5%Habitation.

Industrial Capacity: Minimum

Agricultural Capacity: High

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Planetary Defence Force(PDF):

Strength: 30,000

Armor: 90 Leman Russ Tanks, 600 Chimera, 30 Basilisk Howitzers...

Equipment: Well Supplies with Standard Imperial Weaponry(As of the Last inspection) 

Orbital Defence: 90 AA/AO Turrets, 1 Orbital Defence Cannon... 

Airstrike Vehicles: None

Aeronautic Vehicles: None

Space Vessels: None

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The planet's information was not the most encouraging... if they were still loyal that is, if the entire planet had turned against the imperium, it would take less than a day to grant the Emperor's Benediction to every single man, woman, and child on this wretched planet.

But that order would likely meet with resistance from Captain Hox. 

She could meet the woman wearing that oversized cap and cloak, listen to what that woman had to say, record it all, and in case the mission fails, throw these recordings to the Ordo Malleus and place the entire blame on the Captain.

Not the most honorable decision, but this would have to suffice due to her lack of resources in terms of manpower, funds, and armament.

Inquisitor Greybrand took a deep breath, muttering prayers to the emperor for her soul's salvation, another method of keeping the warp's reach out of her mind. She closed the information appearing on the cracked screen and gazed up at the ceiling, after all, it was time she started planning on how exactly will she meet the Captain.

Their last meeting had been... less, than pleasant given the fact that the Captain barged in uninvited and Inquisitor Greybrand had nothing but a bottle of Amasec to use as a weapon of self-defense.

Consequently, the Captain had walked out dripping head to toe in the Imperium's cheapest liquor.

With another sigh and the final verse of a feet-long prayer, she stood up from the bed and walked over to the large wardrobe perceived in one corner of the room, stacked full of her worldly possessions tucked neatly in a single row.

Soon, she was wearing the Inquisitorial attire gifted to her upon her promotion, an elaborate doublet and breeches, a breastplate made of layered ceramite plate, a shoulder cloak decorated with golden filigree, as well as a pair of sturdy combat boots.

The Inquisitorial 'I' was emblazoned on the left breast, while the right shoulder was adorned with black epaulets with red edging. A golden Inquisitorial rope was tied around her waist, and above her belt hung golden chains with the sigil of the Ordo Xeno attached to it.

As far as weapons went, she had the Inquisitor's holy bolter hanging from the left-hand side of her waist belt and a Power Sword to compliment her leaner and faster build rather than the compact and bulkier form required to operate a Chain Sword.

She couldn't help but wonder. Why did the Inquisition provide her with such ornate armor? Something a little more practical would have served her better.

'Though they certainly had the style part down, if my task was to attend a ball, I could see this outfit working wonders.'

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