One of the medics left their patient to speak to Gabriella. “Your servant should recover, my lady. We are unfamiliar with Space Marine physiognomy, but we have done our best.” The grey-haired man shook his head. “I’ve heard of the Astartes’ regenerative abilities but I was a sceptic until witnessing it myself, today. May the Emperor be praised.”
Gabriella nodded as she stood beside Ragnar. She was a tall, slender woman, more angled and severe than beautiful, yet in her black dress uniform she made a striking figure. A black scarf stayed tied over her forehead, covering her Navigator’s third eye, and her long black hair flowed out below it.
One look at her pale skin made it apparent that she wasn’t from Hyades. The natives of the planet all had a reddish tinge to their skin. Ragnar wondered if it was something in the air, an effect of exposure to the sun or a result of vapours from promethium leaking from the soil. Whatever it was, it made it easy to distinguish those who lived on the planet from most of its visitors.
Ragnar kept his eyes on Magni. Ragnar felt guilty about the young Blood Claw’s wounds. He knew that he should have kept better control and not let Magni race him to the city. The young warrior lay across two tables, since one wasn’t large enough to support the massive frame of a Space Marine. Magni grumbled and complained as the medics continued to examine him.
The sheer number of mechanical limbs in the room impressed Ragnar. Prosthetics of all sorts, some utilitarian and others covered in attachments, such as electro-blades and fusion torches, hung all along the walls. The men of Hyades apparently lost limbs on a regular basis.
Gabriella turned to look up at Ragnar. “He’s out of danger.”
“I wanted to make sure. We need to talk.”
“Come.” Gabriella walked out of the infirmary into a quiet hallway outside the examination room and sighed. “Tell me why you think what happened outside the walls was not a mistake.”
Ragnar had given Gabriella a full briefing upon his arrival inside the city gates and she knew him well enough to tell that he sensed that something was wrong. “We should talk somewhere more secluded.” Ragnar glanced up and down the hallway. He couldn’t see anyone and yet he felt as if its walls might hold listeners.
Would you prefer we talk like this? Gabriella’s voice echoed in Ragnar’s mind.
The Space Wolf shuddered. He trusted Gabriella, indeed he was pledged to her protection and service, but there was something that bothered him about her psyker abilities. Although the Rune Priests of the Space Wolves had similar gifts, Ragnar still kept something of the superstitious warrior in his heart, and he clung to his old instincts.
“Let’s go to the shuttle,” said Ragnar. “It’s shielded and secure.”
If you insist, but it’s a good walk to the hangar. Gabriella’s voice echoed in Ragnar’s mind.
The Space Wolf shuddered ever so slightly, and Gabriella smiled, enjoying Ragnar’s discomfort.
As they walked through the upper floors of the palace, Ragnar gazed out at the city. From above, it looked more like a series of mining structures and service buildings than a city. Since Lethe had been constructed atop tunnels connected to the mines and underground refineries, the architecture made sense, although it held all the style of a series of rockcrete bunkers. Many of the buildings were solidly constructed and were a constant reminder of the potential danger of explosions from storage tanks filled with the precious promethium.
The one exception to the uninspiring city was the palace, where the Wolfblade were getting settled alongside the dignitaries of Hyades. The building conveyed a regal image with architecture that included finely crafted columns, wooden floors, arched ceilings and courtyards with gardens of imported flora. The entire palace made Ragnar uneasy, as if the imposed sense of civilisation was a blasphemy against the constant struggles of the people of Hyades and the natural power of the jungle.
Where the rest of Lethe was built for function, the palace was built as a symbol. It felt out of place to Ragnar, but the citizens of Lethe respected and admired it. For them, the building represented the promise of wealth and luxury, a future in which humanity would tame Hyades.
As Ragnar and Gabriella walked down the carpeted corridors, they were joined by Torin. “Ragnar, my lady, we need to talk,” he said.
“Join us, Torin. I think we all need to talk,” said Gabriella.
Torin was more at ease in these civilised surroundings than Ragnar, who preferred battlefields. A long-standing member of the Wolfblade, Torin had spent decades assigned to Holy Terra. He was the best-groomed Space Wolf that Ragnar had ever met. His hair was neat, unlike Ragnar’s wild mane, and he wore a moustache that would be the envy of most overly powdered Imperial nobles. Torin wore jewelled amulets and medals from many worlds, rather than the typical wolf teeth and runes of his Chapter. He constantly smelled of perfumes and cologne, which to Ragnar carried the stench of civilisation.
Torin had mentored Ragnar upon his arrival on Terra as he adjusted to the Wolfblade, and had continued to do so, because despite his time in the Wolfblade, Ragnar still had to make necessary adjustments. The Wolfblade could take him off Fenris, but no one could take Fenris out of his heart.
Despite his friend’s foppish tendencies, Ragnar respected Torin’s skill as a warrior and a diplomat.
Gabriella led the two giant armoured warriors to the hangar and they escorted her inside the shuttle. There, she led them to a private cabin covered in the heraldry of House Belisarius. She crossed to a large chair and sat down, then pushed a button, and the door slid shut. “We can talk safely now,” she said.
Torin started. “I spoke with Cadmus, the planet’s military commander, immediately after Ragnar returned from the jungle. He told me that sometimes promethium beneath the surface interferes with communications. The city guards were trying to maintain that kill zone. They’ve been working extra shifts to keep the entire area around the city clear, but with the increased activity in the jungle, they’ve only been able to protect about half of the walls. In the other places, the trees and vines come right to the city.
“They detected the movement before our men even broke cover and someone was trigger-happy. Once one of the men fired, the rest did as well. The officers on the walls were ordering everyone to stand down when Ragnar performed his acrobatics on the Hellhound. The planetary commander apologised for the incident.” Torin smiled as a thought crossed his mind. “Although, I think he was a little disappointed. With all the guns on the wall, two Sentinels and a Hellhound, his men didn’t manage to kill a single Space Wolf.” He looked at Ragnar. “You should have seen yourself leap onto that Hellhound while it was firing. What made you think of that?”
“I just knew what I had to do. I thought the comms were being jammed,” said Ragnar. “We found something out there in the jungle, a large ancient structure. The native life-forms killed some large behemoth near there, and there were Chimera tracks leading away from the temple.”
Gabriella raised her hand as she spoke. “Perhaps Commander Cadmus and the governor are aware of this temple. The commander asked to speak to all of the Wolfblade after you returned from your excursion. These people are part of House Belisarius and they have asked for help. That is why we are here, to help them.”
“She’s right,” said Torin. “Let’s go find Commander Cadmus, and see what you think, Ragnar.”
“I’m not going to like him,” said Ragnar.
“One day, Ragnar, I’m going to teach you how to act like something besides a barbarian,” said Torin.
“At least you can trust barbarians,” commented Ragnar.
The trio found Governor Pelias and Commander Cadmus sitting in a large stateroom, with windows open to the sun, and the colours of Hyades and House Belisarius prominently displayed. A tech-priest stood facing their chairs, unable to sit with his extensive cybernetics and appearing remarkably out of place in the elegant chamber.
Governor Pelias was the least imposing of the three. A slight man with the burnished glow that marke
d him as native of Hyades, he had a thin ring of silver hair around a bare scalp. His dress uniform included a clasped cape, a number of medallions weighing heavily on the front, and polished long leather gloves and boots. He looked uncomfortable, even lounging, as if he was the sort of man who had had the burden of leadership thrust upon him, rather than desiring it.
The tech-priest wore a crimson hooded cloak, as was their custom. Ragnar’s nostrils burned with the acrid scent of oils and smoke that clung to him. Faint whirring noises accompanied the priest’s breathing.
At least one of his eyes was false, replaced by a red light burning within his skull. He had a massive musculature, and Ragnar could not tell how much of the man was flesh and how much machinery. A large bundle of wires and gears clung to his back, like a giant mechanical insect hiding under the cloak. The six appendages on the man’s back were thick and short, suggesting that they weren’t fully extended.
“Governor Pelias, Commander Cadmus, Tech-Priest Varnus, allow me to present my Wolfblade. I know you’ve met Torin, and this is Ragnar, who along with his men, was a victim of the friendly fire incident this morning,” said Gabriella.
The governor and commander stood to greet Gabriella.
Ragnar met Commander Cadmus’s gaze. Something was missing. When Ragnar looked upon most men, he saw fear, no matter how well they hid it, but Cadmus showed no such emotion.
The commander was a massive man, although not quite the size of the towering Space Wolves. His eyes struck Ragnar: pale blue and very calm, watching everything. Ragnar felt the hair on his neck rise. Cadmus didn’t have the typical Hyades skin colour, marking him as an offworlder. The commander wore a uniform jacket over mesh armour and his sidearm was a plasma pistol.
“My apologies for the earlier incident, Ragnar,” said Cadmus, returning to his seat. “My guardsmen are trained to react to anything coming out of the jungle as if it were a threat. I must admit, I’m surprised that your men escaped the initial volley with so little damage. I hope Magni — that is his name, isn’t it?—is recovering?”
“Wolves don’t die easily.”
“Evidently,” said Cadmus.
“Lady Gabriella,” said the governor. “I hope that you and the Wolfblade realise that the earlier incident was exactly what the commander said, an accident. I’m ordering a review of the defence procedures immediately, so nothing like this will ever happen again.”
“Sir,” said Cadmus, “is that wise? It was a foolish error to be sure, and I’m already disciplining the men involved. If I have my men slow down operations to review the defences the jungle will reclaim sections of the kill zone. We’ve almost completely cleared it from around the city. If we don’t, something might find a weakness in the wall and make its way inside.”
“By the way, commander, what sort of threat are you preparing for?” asked Torin.
“The ape-lizard creatures are the greatest danger. We call them the reptos, although I’m not sure that the Imperium has approved our choice of name,” said Cadmus, “but I believe in being ready for anything. I’ve travelled from one end of this sector to the other, and I’ve seen a lot of fighting. An invasion could come at any moment. We need to be eternally vigilant.”
Cadmus nodded. “I have security concerns. There are strange structures out in the jungle, buried deep under the canopy. We think that the reptos built them, but they could be remnants of a lost colony or, well, anything. I’m sure you can understand and respect that, as members of the Wolfblade.”
“Indeed, we can, commander,” said Torin.
“Has anyone contacted the Inquisition about these structures? What does the local Ecclesiarch have to say?” asked Gabriella.
The governor answered. “Centuries ago, the Inquisition declared the structures abandoned and safe. We’ve been busy mining as opposed to worrying about such things, and I’m afraid the priesthood is poorly represented here on Hyades. It’s a harsh world and we do dangerous work mining the promethium.”
“We ensure the wellbeing of the workers,” said Tech-Priest Varnus, his metallic voice hollow and echoing. “If the Ecclesiarchy wishes to send representatives, we will do our best to accommodate them.”
Ragnar bristled. Before he had been part of the Wolfblade, he had learnt that the Space Wolves didn’t trust outsiders, even members of the Inquisition. Some could be trusted, but others had their own agendas. He had learned on Terra that not all servants of the Imperium were on the same side.
“I want to know more about the structures and the behaviour of the reptos. I believe that such investigations may uncover the truth about the attacks and why the flora and fauna of this planet have decided to remove humans from their soil,” said Gabriella.
“Lady Gabriella, have you sensed any disturbances with your Navigator’s gifts?” asked Cadmus.
Ragnar thought the question was unusual. Although it was no secret, indeed quite the opposite, that House Belisarius was a Navigators’ House, and the abilities of the Navigators to guide ships through the horrors of the warp were the key to Belisarius’s wealth, such a frank question seemed strange. It would not have been asked in mixed company on Terra. He reminded himself that everyone in the room was supposed to be supporting House Belisarius.
“No. I would have let the governor and you know if I had. Governor Pelias, I’d like Commander Cadmus to consult with my Wolfblade on the progress of the investigation of these structures and the activities of the reptos.”
“Of course, Lady Gabriella,” responded the governor.
“If you’ll excuse us, governor, commander, I wish to check on the drop in production and review your records,” said Gabriella. She rose, as they did, and exited, flanked by Torin and Ragnar.
Haegr stood outside the doorway. “My lady, mighty Haegr stands ready to protect you.”
“Thank you, Haegr.”
“Lady Gabriella, Ragnar and I will go and check on the shuttle,” said Torin. “I want to make sure that the crews have resupplied it and the proper litanies have been chanted over its engines.”
“You have my leave. I’ll be safe enough with Haegr,” she replied. “We may go and inspect the promethium refining facilities. I’ll contact you if I need you.”
“I assure you, you won’t need them with me around,” said Haegr.
Torin guided Ragnar down a wood-floored hallway covered in tapestries depicting the history of House Belisarius. One of them showed Leman Russ holding his spear. It was a scene with which Ragnar was familiar, but it always painfully reminded him why he was a Wolfblade.
“Torin, why do we need to check the shuttle?” asked Ragnar.
Torin gave Ragnar a look that made him feel like an ignorant Blood Claw before realising that his friend simply wanted to talk to him in private.
“Brother,” started Torin, in a tone that was a sure sign that the older Space Wolf was irritated with him. “Do you remember the lessons you learned on Terra, or has traipsing through the jungles of Hyades purged them from your mind?”
Ragnar sighed. “Of course, I remember.”
“Well then,” said Torin, “let me remind you of what I told you there. On Terra, you never have the whole picture. It’s true here in Lethe as well. Be cautious.”
“I don’t trust Cadmus and I’m not sure why,” replied Ragnar. “He’s dangerous. He carries himself like a man who isn’t afraid of Space Marines. Outside of the Inquisition, I’ve never met a man who wasn’t a little intimidated by us.”
“Brother, of course he’s dangerous, he’s the commander of the planetary defences. If he wasn’t dangerous, we’d be standing in a jungle or dealing with a rebellion. The people here mine promethium. There are as many servitors as men in those mines. The citizens here have more in common with Terra than they do with other people from frontier worlds. They are a soft people. Cadmus is a hard man.”
“Torin, he’s not from here. Why don’t they have a leader from their own world commanding their military?”
“It should b
e obvious even to a young pup like you that he’s seen his share of combat. Be careful about making assumptions about who your enemies are and who your friends are. If he wanted to harm Gabriella, then he threw away a fantastic opportunity to eliminate some of the Wolfblade this morning,” said Torin.
“He’s not afraid of us, Torin,” stated Ragnar.
“I know, brother, but I also know that he’s afraid of something,” said Torin, rubbing his moustache in thought. “No one emphasises preparedness as much as he did without fearing something. It’s probably his previous battle experiences. You’d be the best person to find out,” said Torin.
“Why me?”
“Because he knows you don’t trust him,” said Torin.
“Do you trust him?” asked Ragnar.
“This isn’t about me,” answered Torin. “We’ll talk more later. Go check back on Magni. I better make sure that the food supplies are stocked in our quarters. After all, Haegr will be looking for a good meal when Gabriella finishes with him.”
Ragnar tried to think of a reply as Torin walked away. He couldn’t come up with anything worth saying, so he walked towards the infirmary.
Torin was right. Even though the planet of Hyades bore little resemblance to Holy Terra, the city of Lethe itself tried to emulate Terra and mask the fact that it was a frontier colony. The people stayed away from the world around them and insulated themselves, instead of learning how to survive in the jungles.
Ragnar had made it halfway back to the infirmary, when a voice came over his comm. “Wolfblade Ragnar, please meet me at Tower 4 on the city’s north wall.”
It was Cadmus.
Ragnar considered saying no, but he was sure Torin would tell him to meet with the commander. The summons was close enough to a request for Ragnar to decide to go along with it, despite his instincts.
“I’ll be there,” was Ragnar’s reply.
A Chimera met Ragnar at the main entrance to the palace. He thought having an armoured vehicle drive him through the city seemed extreme, but Cadmus was in charge of the military. He sat alone in the back of the tank as it rumbled to the mighty wall protecting Lethe. Ragnar took note of the way, committing it to memory as a tactical lesson.
[Space Wolf 05] - Sons of Fenris Page 5