Fall of Macharius

by William King

  ‘Tell me, what do you think will become of you when Macharius departs?’ he asked. ‘He will have no more need of a personal guard.’

  ‘I will serve as I am told.’

  ‘You will be returned to your original regiment,’ said Mikhail.

  ‘I can think of worse things,’ I said.

  ‘I can think of better.’

  ‘Why don’t you tell me of them,’ I said.

  ‘You could be kept on as part of the retinue of the new commander, promoted, given special assignments, even retire with honour and great wealth.’

  ‘That would be pleasant,’ I said. ‘But we were talking about conspiracies against Macharius. We seem to have come a long way from there.’

  ‘There is evidence to be gathered, reports to be made,’ said Konstantin. ‘We will let you know when things are finalised. For now we must depart. It has been pleasant meeting you. I believe we shall meet again.’

  ‘I look forward to it,’ I said. They rose and bowed and departed. Sergei returned from the bar. I could not help but notice he had only brought two drinks.

  ‘Interesting conversation?’ he asked.

  ‘Very,’ I said.

  He smiled. ‘I thought it might be.’

  I was summoned to see the inquisitor as soon as I returned to the palace. It was becoming quite a habit of his. His bodyguard escorted me to his door and checked me for weapons before allowing me to pass inside. That had not happened in a long time.

  ‘Good evening, Lemuel,’ he said. He was standing with his back to me, looking out the window. Across from us the coffin-black starscrapers limned the night, black flames dancing over them. I did not doubt he was aware of me. If he could not follow my reflection in the window, his strange psyker powers gave him other senses than those we mortals are stuck with.

  ‘You wished to see me, inquisitor,’ I said. He turned to face me. His cowl was down and his lean, pale face was underlit by the glow-globe on his desk. His features gave me no hint of what he was thinking. He moved to the desk, sat down in the floating chair, leaned forward and steepled his fingers. He looked at me over them as if sighting a gun. I could not help but notice that a bolt pistol sat on his desk, unholstered. It was a not very subtle message.

  ‘I understand you were out drinking again this evening,’ he said.

  ‘I was.’ I considered telling him that I failed to see what concern that was of his, but I already had some idea of where this was going.

  ‘You met some old friends of yours.’

  ‘One old friend,’ I said. ‘Or rather one former comrade from the Seventh Belial and two of his friends.’

  ‘Who were they?’

  I gave the names of Konstantin and Mikhail and their descriptions.

  ‘And what did you think of them?’

  ‘Their conversation was elliptical.’

  ‘How so?’

  ‘They hinted at conspiracies against Macharius. They hinted that they might be seeking rewards. They hinted at a lot of things and in the end said nothing.’

  ‘Why do you think they did that?’

  ‘I don’t know.’

  ‘You don’t know, Lemuel, but you can guess. You are a clever man.’

  ‘I think they were feeling me out, to see how I would react to such talk. I get the impression they are hoping that I will become their agent.’

  ‘Why would they think that is possible?’

  ‘I don’t know, inquisitor. Perhaps you can tell me.’ He looked at me for a long time. I felt cold sweat appear on my brow, but I was damned if I was going to say anything more. Eventually he smiled, showing his small white teeth. It was not a pleasant expression. There was no humour in it.

  ‘Your friends, Konstantin and Mikhail…’

  ‘They are not my friends.’

  ‘I would be obliged if you did not interrupt me again, Sergeant Lemuel.’ The words were quietly spoken but there was a world of menace behind them. ‘Your friends, or perhaps I should say, your soon-to-be friends, Konstantin and Mikhail, work for Major Kelly, who is chief of staff, chief intelligence gatherer and some would say master of assassins for General Crassus.’

  He paused, glanced at his data-slate, then looked at me directly. ‘You don’t seem entirely surprised.’

  ‘General Crassus seems a most ambitious man,’ I said.

  ‘He is. He sees himself as the chief candidate to replace the Lord High Commander when he departs for Terra.’

  ‘Is he?’

  ‘That would be Cardinal Septimus’s decision, but my guess is that he is. Or at least he would be, if Macharius actually departed.’

  ‘The Lord High Commander has already said he would.’

  ‘What the Lord High Commander says he will do and what he actually does may prove to be two different things, Lemuel. It seems that General Crassus has already begun to think so. He is not alone in this. All of Macharius’s commanders know about his talent for feint and deception.’

  ‘As you say, inquisitor.’

  ‘And you are wondering why I am telling you this.’

  ‘I am sure you have your reasons, sir.’

  ‘And I am sure you can guess them.’

  ‘I am a simple man, sir. I like to have my duties and responsibilities spelled out for me.’

  He shrugged. ‘If either of these two men approach you again, or anyone else does in a similar capacity, you will agree to whatever they ask, and then report the matter to me.’

  ‘Even if they suggest disloyalty to Lord High Commander Macharius, sir?’

  ‘Particularly if they do that.’

  ‘That would be treason, sir.’

  ‘You are worried that you might be branded a traitor if you do this.’

  I nodded.

  ‘You will be branded a traitor if you do not.’

  I stared at him. ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘There is already enough evidence to suggest you are part of a conspiracy, Lemuel.’

  ‘I can assure you I am not.’

  ‘And I believe you, and I trust you, which is why I am asking you to do this. These are interesting times, and many things hang in the balance. Your duty is to see to Macharius’s safety and I am asking you to do your duty.’

  ‘You wish me to help smoke out potential traitors, sir.’

  ‘Precisely so.’ He paused for a minute. I looked over his shoulder at the black flames dancing over the black starscrapers and considered his words. Drake did not really need any evidence against me. He had the power to make me disappear at his whim. I was not sure whether he really believed in my innocence, but I could see that did not matter to him. I was simply a tool he was going to use in his hunt for traitors against Macharius. I was a pawn in his great game.

  ‘I will do it,’ I said, as smartly as I could, as if I were volunteering for dangerous duty, as if I had any real choice in the matter.

  ‘I am glad to hear that,’ Drake said, and sounded as if he really meant it. He stood up and I noticed that there was a hypodermic in his hand. He indicated that I should come closer. I wondered what he was going to do.

  ‘There’s no need to be so skittish,’ Drake said. ‘If I wanted to kill you, I would not need to do it this way.’

  ‘What is in that?’ I said. The needle was very long and sharp and I did not like the way its point glittered in the glow-globe’s light.

  ‘It contains a very powerful anti-venom,’ he said. ‘It should increase your resistance to all drugs and poisons for the period of about one moon.’

  ‘You think someone is going to try to poison me?’

  ‘I think someone may try to use certain serums on you.’ As he spoke, he slid the needle into my arm. It stung and then an odd coolness spread from it. He reached out and touched my forehead with his fingers. I suddenly felt dizzy. Strange images flickered through my head. He spoke words and I knew I would remember them some day but I could not remember them now. They vanished from my consciousness like mist before a strong wind, leaving only the
awareness that I had once possessed the knowledge of them.

  I tried to move and found that I could not. My muscles seemed paralysed and I felt a completely stark and utter terror the like I had not felt before. This was what it was like to be totally helpless when danger threatened. My head reeled with the knowledge that something had been done to my thoughts. I glared at Drake, in that moment hating and fearing him in equal measure.

  ‘Tell no one about this little chat.’

  I nodded even as I wondered whether Drake had his own agenda in this. I was beginning to get the sense that my life might be in real peril here.

  ‘You are dismissed, Lemuel.’

  Eighteen

  I met Sergei in the tavern. Konstantin and Mikhail were with him. They were dressed as they had been previously. They greeted me warmly as I sat down in their private booth, which I could not help but notice was in a corner, and commanded clear lines of sight to the exits. Drinks were placed on the table by Sergei and nothing was said except toasts until we had downed a few. All three of them looked at me with slightly glazed eyes that were supposed to hint at drunkenness. I suspected they were less so than I.

  ‘Things go well in the palace?’ Konstantin asked. He was taking the lead again, but as before I suspected that Mikhail was his superior.

  I nodded. ‘Things go as well as can be expected.’

  ‘The Lord High Commander makes ready to depart?’

  ‘That is not my place to say,’ I said.

  ‘Your discretion is to be admired,’ said Mikhail. ‘But everyone knows he has agreed to go to Terra with Cardinal Septimus. Or has he not?’

  ‘Macharius does not confide his plans in me.’

  ‘But you are his trusted bodyguard.’

  ‘And I will remain so as long as I keep his secrets,’ I said. If these men were really trying to recruit me into some conspiracy I was not going to make it easy for them. Sergei smiled and nodded as if I were being very wise.

  ‘You are also on good terms with Inquisitor Drake,’ said Mikhail suddenly.

  ‘I would not go that far.’

  ‘You talked to him after the last time you saw us,’ he said. He was smiling unpleasantly and I felt the urge to punch him in his smirking face.

  ‘I was summoned to his presence,’ I said.

  ‘What did he want?’

  ‘He wanted to know who I had been seeing.’

  ‘You told him, of course.’

  ‘I told him I had been drinking with Sergei here and he had introduced me to you two, and that you claimed to have information concerning a conspiracy against Macharius.’

  ‘What did he say to that?’

  ‘He told me to keep in touch with you and report to him any conversations we might have.’

  I saw Sergei and Konstantin exchange glances. ‘Is that all?’

  ‘Drake is a busy man,’ I said. ‘I am sorry to have to tell you this but I doubt you are all that important to him. I doubt I am either.’

  ‘Yet he takes enough interest to ask about us.’

  ‘These are troubled times. Like I said, I don’t think you are that important to him, but if you insist I can bring your names up again.’ I let a little malice show in my voice.

  ‘That won’t be necessary,’ said Mikhail.

  ‘So do you have any more information about this supposed conspiracy?’

  ‘We do, but first we have some questions to put to you.’

  ‘And what would those be?’

  My skin felt tingly now, and his outline swayed a little in my field of vision. ‘This is strong booze,’ I said. Mikhail’s smile became ever more mocking. ‘I can’t say I’ve noticed,’ he said.

  ‘What questions did you have?’ His face seemed to be growing larger. It became just about the only thing in the room I could focus on.

  ‘Do you think Macharius really intends to go to Terra?’

  ‘Not if he can help it,’ I said. The words just seemed to slip out. Mikhail looked very friendly and very trustworthy. Surely it was safe to tell him.

  ‘And do you think this is wise?’

  ‘I don’t think it’s wise for anyone to disobey a direct order from the Imperium.’

  ‘You think Macharius can get away with it.’

  ‘If anyone can, he can.’

  ‘And you, a sworn soldier of the Emperor, don’t see anything wrong with that.’

  ‘It is wrong to disobey the Emperor’s commands,’ I said.

  ‘And yet you have just said Macharius might.’

  ‘I did, didn’t I?’

  ‘Do you think Macharius is right to do so?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘What do you think of Macharius?’

  ‘He is the greatest general alive, a hero of the Imperium, a legend…’

  ‘But?’

  ‘But he has made mistakes. He is not the man he once was, not the man I once served.’

  I was surprised to hear myself saying the words, even more surprised by the fact that I believed them to be the truth.

  ‘He has made mistakes, you say?’ Mikhail’s voice was friendly but disbelieving. ‘Where?’

  ‘On Loki. We died in the hundreds of thousands there and only afterwards did he reveal he has discovered the weaknesses of Richter’s position.’

  ‘You resent that.’

  ‘Yes. I saw thousands of good men die. I saw friends of mine die.’ Again I was surprised to find the depths of anger in me.

  ‘Some would say that what you are saying is traitorous,’ said Mikhail. I stared at them. There was no denying it. My head was swirling. I realised that I was more than drunk – I had been drugged. It seemed that Drake had lied to me about the anti-toxin.

  ‘You drugged me…’ I said. They looked at me and laughed as I fell face forward onto the table.

  They lifted me to my feet. I tried to call for help but the words just came out as drunken, slurred babbling. I saw heads turn to watch me go, but all they saw was a drunk soldier being carried out by his not-quite-so-drunk comrades. There was nothing unusual about it.

  I was bundled into the back of a groundcar, large and luxurious, and driven off into the darkness. I was aware of the heavy door thunking shut behind me and large men getting in.

  The car drove off into the night, moving through the corpse-black, mirrored starscrapers. I was only partially aware of my surroundings. I could hear voices as if from a great way off. They seemed to be discussing something of no great importance, so I lay there, trying to avoid being sick. It suddenly seemed of great importance that I avoid vomiting over the clean, luxurious interior of this great vehicle.

  The car drew up at a run-down building on the edge of the city and slipped through a raised door which slid down behind it. I knew that I had vanished off the face of the planet as far as anyone looking for me was concerned.

  I was taken into a huge room, lit by dimly glowing globes that just seemed to hover in the air. A man in white robes stood there. He indicated a surgical table with one long lean hand. The men carrying me put me down on it. I tried to struggle, but my hands just flailed the air uselessly as I was strapped down. The man in white robes produced a long hypodermic. If he started making promises about anti-toxins I was going to hit him, I thought, if I was capable of it. I noticed that he was wearing small pebble glasses that caught the light. At times they were like mirrors full of flame. At times I could see cold grey eyes studying me.

  My sleeve was pulled up. The needle went in. This time it burned like fire. My muscles suddenly felt under control again. My mind felt lucid. I tried to rise but I was strapped down.

  The medic studied me the way a man might study a new and particularly interesting form of insect. He said, ‘I am going to give you another injection. It will not hurt you as long as you answer me truthfully. If you answer all the questions with the truth no harm will come to you.’

  ‘For some strange reason, I don’t believe you,’ I said.

  ‘It matters little whether you believe me o
r not, you will answer, and you will answer truthfully, your life depends on it.’

  I did believe that, so I remained silent. Another injection was given and suddenly things did not seem so bad. I felt relaxed and amiable and I wondered why I had been so bothered just a few minutes ago; after all, these people were friendly.

  The questions began, about Macharius, about how I felt about him, about my loyalty. I answered honestly. I spoke of my doubts and resentments and as I did so the questions took on a different tone. I was asked whether I really was prepared to oppose Macharius and what reward I would do it for. I spoke openly and honestly and was surprised to find I had a price, a high one, but it was there. The medic nodded as I talked and I realised what seemed like a high price to me seemed like a small price to him and I told him so. The price went up. He smiled and I could see that he was pleased. He wanted to help me. He wanted me to be happy. He wanted me to have a price and I knew that no matter how high it was he would meet it.

  In the end, the questioning stopped and my white-robed interrogator looked over at Konstantin and Mikhail. ‘He is telling the truth,’ he said. ‘He will betray Macharius if his price is met.’

  The two men looked at each other and then at me. They were measuring me now, testing me, weighing what I had said against other things that they knew, and I could see that my life hung on their decision. If they decided they did not believe their medical friend they had no reason for letting me live. I looked back at them, numb and a little afraid. I could just move my head. There was no chance of me breaking free from the table. Even if I did I was surrounded by enemies.

  Konstantin looked at the medic. ‘You are sure?’

  ‘Certain. At this dosage, there is no chance he could lie to us. This man is, for our purposes at least, trustworthy.’

  Mikhail still looked dubious. I could tell he did not like me, but then again, it looked like I was the sort of man he had been sent to find. He knelt down beside me and spoke very slowly and very carefully. ‘I am going to let you up now. Do nothing sudden and nothing stupid and you will become a very wealthy and powerful man. Do you understand me?’

  I nodded. He undid the straps. I noticed a small but powerful-looking pistol was pointing right at me. Konstantin held something similar.