ConfessorThe battle is over, and silence descends once again upon the chapel. Flakes of ash whirl quietly in the air before coming to rest on the blood trickling slowly across the floor.
Kibellah"You ought to see this, Domin'[Name]." Kibellah leans over the confessor's body and slices off the edge of his collar with her blade, revealing a tiny scar on the back of his neck. It looks just like the one the captured worker in the plasma drive chambers had, except that this one clearly healed a long time ago.
YOU"So he was connected to the genetic aberration as well. Delightful."
Kibellah"We now know much more about the enemy." Kibellah ponderously runs her finger along the flat of the blade. "About just how deep the poison of conspiracy runs within the veins of your ship. But the Bloodspun Web has wrapped itself around its bays too tightly, and Nemesite can no longer hope to escape."
Jocasta SauerbackHer ruminations are interrupted by a furious hiss. Sauerback snarls a curse through her teeth and spits at Adalbert's smoking remains. Her left arm hangs limp and her face is mangled by shrapnel. "Lord Captain, we have a prisoner." She points her weapon at the man standing hunched over in pain. "Permission to finish off the cur."
Initiate Ziek"Down... with the tyrant..." The broad-shouldered initiate who calls himself Ziek clutches a deep wound, glaring at you with hatred.
YOU"Hrotko, how did you come to be here at just the right moment?"
Enforcer Hrotko"I was praying, Your Lordship/Ladyship. Ever since you spared me, I have been praying a lot." Hrotko's groomed face now looks haggard. His cheekbones jut out, and his former well-off appearance has taken on an air of noble piety. "And when I saw those vermin pull out their weapons, I considered it unacceptable to stand aside. I may have been found a bad officer, but not once have I been called a bad fighter. I am glad to see you in one piece. Today, I will be praying to the God-Emperor for your health."
YOU"Hrotko, how did you come to be here at just the right moment?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Address Ziek] "I have questions for you, traitor."
Initiate Ziek"I doubt you'll like the answers."
YOU"Were you serving Nemesite for a cause or simply for money?"
Initiate ZiekZiek flashes you a bloody grin. "He promised us freedom!"
YOU"Were you serving Nemesite for a cause or simply for money?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Where is Nemesite's hideout?"
Initiate Ziek"Even the confessor didn't know where it is. He was afraid of spies, or of giving his son's secrets away under torture. You see? You can't get to our champion!"
YOU"Were you serving Nemesite for a cause or simply for money?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Where is Nemesite's hideout?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are there any other senior officers helping you?"
Initiate Ziek"Officers? Ha! There is no one else among them who is pure! They only care about power and gorging themselves on the scraps you throw them, or else they would have long... long since turned against you." Ziek can barely finish the sentence before he is beset by a torrent of gurgling coughs.
YOU"Were you serving Nemesite for a cause or simply for money?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Where is Nemesite's hideout?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are there any other senior officers helping you?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"How many more of you mutineers are hiding on my ship? I want to know your names, I want to know where you meet — everything."
Initiate Ziek"The confessor said every compartment has people who fight for our cause. They promised to take me into the circle of our most devoted believers. Then I would know... But even then, I would tell you nothing, not even under torture!"
YOU"Were you serving Nemesite for a cause or simply for money?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Where is Nemesite's hideout?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are there any other senior officers helping you?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"How many more of you mutineers are hiding on my ship? I want to know your names, I want to know where you meet — everything."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I have learned all I need."
Initiate ZiekThe initiate only looks at you sullenly.
YOU"Hrotko, how did you come to be here at just the right moment?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Address Ziek] "I have questions for you, traitor."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"They were waiting for us. It was a trap."
Jocasta Sauerback"Yes, Lord Captain. Adalbert had been warned, yet he chose not to flee. Instead, he stayed behind to set a trap for us. Did he really believe this madness would succeed and he would somehow survive?"
Kibellah"He did not want to survive. His only hope was to kill. Nemesite managed to turn his adoptive father into a blade pointed squarely at the Domin's throat, just as Adalbert himself had once turned Nemesite into a weapon. Neither of them feared death."
YOU"Hrotko, how did you come to be here at just the right moment?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Address Ziek] "I have questions for you, traitor."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"They were waiting for us. It was a trap."continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Nod at Ziek] "Now, let us decide what to do with our surviving traitor."
Kibellah"Do not kill him in vain." Kibellah shakes her head. "Those who follow the Tenets of the Web know that, just as we serve death, so too does it serve us. Allow the death of this man to become an instrument in your hands, Domin'[Name]. Pass off the traitor's body as that of Nemesite. Instil fear in his supporters. The enemy will be forced to act to undo this deception, exposing himself in the process."
YOU"What would that accomplish?"
Kibellah"All warriors fight for something, be it fame, life, wealth, or their loved ones. Nemesite cares nothing for these things: he sacrifices his kin, scorns glory, and amasses no riches. I am sure he would gladly give up his own life if necessary. Nemesite fights for an idea, and so that is where we must strike. Make his idea bleed, and he will be obligated to respond. And whoever is forced to react instead of acting, dies."
YOU"What would that accomplish?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"We will do as Kibellah proposes."
Jocasta Sauerback"We will make certain that the lower-deckers believe their 'hero' to be dead. We will leave the body to hang for a good long while, that the hopes of the mutineers may rot along with the corpse."
Jocasta Sauerback"That is one traitor dealt with, Lord Captain, but how many more have been poisoned by the false confessor's heresy? A new spiritual shepherd must be appointed quickly to banish any mutinous thoughts sown by the traitor from the minds of the crew and to strengthen their faith and obedience. Without the ship's confessor, the rabble will begin to whisper that the Emperor has forsaken us, and such doubts will only play into the rebels' hands."
YOU"The Creed must be strictly observed aboard the vessel. Since the voidsmen are wavering in their faith, let the High Factotum find a true servant of the Ecclesiarchy elsewhere."
Jocasta Sauerback"As you command! I will order the chapel be restored as well."
Jocasta Sauerback"I will send agents to every deck. The next time Nemesite rears his head — which, I am certain, will happen sooner rather than later — we will be one step ahead of him, and not the other way round."
KibellahSauerback staggers away, and your gaze turns to the motionless Kibellah, staring at her own reflection within a pool of blood.
YOU"Is something wrong?"
Kibellah"I am thinking about Nemesite, my adversary. The more I learn about him, the more I see a vague reflection of myself. A twisted reflection, perhaps... but all too familiar. Like me, he was forced to tread the path of servitude from an early age, stripped of anything that might stand in the way of duty — a champion and a zealot left with nothing but an idea, forged and tempered by his mentor."
YOU"To equate a true servant of the God-Emperor with this apostate is a heresy unto itself!"
Kibellah"You may be right. Perhaps we are defined not by what we are, but by what we serve. Thank you for this insight, Domin."
Confessor(sequence)
KibellahShe looks away... but then turns back to you as if remembering something. "Domin'[Name]... our conversation is not yet over. Please, stay with me for a few moments. There is something I want to ask."
end of branch
YOU"You are different. He is a murderer, but you understand the true value of human death."
Kibellah"This is true. Like a puppeteer, he pulls at the threads of other people's destinies, tangling and severing them. When I cut these threads, it is only as the Undying One commands: with timely precision. I must stop Nemesite so that I might save your subjects from premature death."
Confessor(sequence)continues where this line first appears above
YOU"You are indeed alike. And it is up to you to prove before the God-Emperor's gaze that the Tenets of the Web are stronger than whatever Nemesite believes in."
Kibellah"Yes, Domin'[Name]. Your words echo through my soul, and we are in accord. Nemesite will fall, for his ways are dark and have led him astray." Kibellah trails a metal claw across her lips, sealing her promise with blood.
Confessor(sequence)continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Yes, both of you have been brainwashed. Stop looking for omens and try using your own judgement instead."
Kibellah"Omens are not just the idle whimsy of a sluggish mind. They appear everywhere to those who have eyes to see them. And yet, your words ring true. Thinking about how alike Nemesite and I are is deeply distressing to me, and this is a weakness. I must instead focus my thoughts on the thread that will lead us to victory."
Confessor(sequence)continues where this line first appears above
YOU"It is not my place to judge."
KibellahKibellah gives a barely perceptible nod of agreement but maintains an aloof expression.
Confessor(sequence)continues where this line first appears above
YOU"We are done here. Come."
KibellahKibellah gives a barely perceptible nod of agreement but maintains an aloof expression.continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Appoint a loyal crew member who is known for the strength of their faith — someone the children of the void will recognise as their own. We do not want any outsiders."
Jocasta Sauerback"As you command! I will order the chapel be restored as well."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I trust the Bloodspun Web and grant the cult the honour of guiding the congregation aboard my ship."
Kibellah"You honour us with this boon, Domin. I will relay your words to the Vizsier so that he may choose someone worthy."
Jocasta Sauerback"I will send agents to every deck. The next time Nemesite rears his head — which, I am certain, will happen sooner rather than later — we will be one step ahead of him, and not the other way round."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I want you to find a preacher on Dargonus who would kill their own mother for me. I will accept nothing less than absolute loyalty. Is that clear?"
Jocasta Sauerback"As you command! I will order the chapel be restored as well."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Deal with it yourselves."
Jocasta Sauerback"As you command! I will order the chapel be restored as well."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Enough blood has been spilt. I hereby pardon this deluded fool, to show the rest of the vessel that I am not the monster that Nemesite paints me to be."
Initiate Ziek"P-pardon? Does this mean I can go?" Ziek glances nervously about like a harried animal. "Have you really... Forgive me, Your Lordship/Ladyship... I thought you... But then... I'm so sorry!"
Jocasta Sauerback"That is one traitor dealt with, Lord Captain, but how many more have been poisoned by the false confessor's heresy? A new spiritual shepherd must be appointed quickly to banish any mutinous thoughts sown by the traitor from the minds of the crew and to strengthen their faith and obedience. Without the ship's confessor, the rabble will begin to whisper that the Emperor has forsaken us, and such doubts will only play into the rebels' hands."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Sauerback, get him an escort so that he may tell the lower decks that Nemesite is a liar and a scoundrel. You will persuade him to be eloquent, will you not?"
Jocasta SauerbackSauerback gives Ziek a bloodthirsty smile. "Did you hear that, wretch? It is not over for you yet. You are mine now, so you had best sing sweetly about your Nemesite. You may yet earn yourself an easy death."
Jocasta Sauerback"That is one traitor dealt with, Lord Captain, but how many more have been poisoned by the false confessor's heresy? A new spiritual shepherd must be appointed quickly to banish any mutinous thoughts sown by the traitor from the minds of the crew and to strengthen their faith and obedience. Without the ship's confessor, the rabble will begin to whisper that the Emperor has forsaken us, and such doubts will only play into the rebels' hands."continues where this line first appears above
Confessor(sequence)
Yrliet"This mon-keigh makes her traps deftly — with sharp edges and relentless bonds. Yet, once again, she uses blood. Blood and death... Not as a hunter, but as a killer."
end of branch
Ulfar"You hunt with skill, blood scryer." Ulfar nods in approval. "To smoke the foe out of his putrid burrow and provoke him to fight? Much smarter than chasing him around dark corners!"
end of branch
YOU"We will do as Kibellah proposes."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Enough blood has been spilt. I hereby pardon this deluded fool, to show the rest of the vessel that I am not the monster that Nemesite paints me to be."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Sauerback, get him an escort so that he may tell the lower decks that Nemesite is a liar and a scoundrel. You will persuade him to be eloquent, will you not?"continues where this line first appears above
Confessor(sequence)
Heinrix"Too much evidence points to Nemesite being a Kelermorph, a special xenos unit bred for subversion. A Kelermorph utilises the discontent of the masses and incites them to revolt, with the end goal of removing local rulers loyal to the Imperium and installing Genestealer cultists in their place. This creature wears the mask of a populist leader, one who inspires the mutinous rabble. It will not stop until one of you is dead, [Name]."
end of branch
Jocasta Sauerback"That devious, mind-twisting beast..." Sauerback frowns with worry. "I have been going through my predecessor's archive recently, and I may have an idea as to what manner of creature this Nemesite is. We are dealing with a Kelermorph — a special variety of mutant filth in service of genetic cults. These creatures are made and raised to play the part of the people's leader, an inspiration for the mutinous rabble. A Kelermorph's purpose is to sow disorder and use the rebellion to eliminate the ruling elite, those who might be capable of opposing the xenos."
YOU"Hrotko, how did you come to be here at just the right moment?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Address Ziek] "I have questions for you, traitor."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"They were waiting for us. It was a trap."continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Nod at Ziek] "Now, let us decide what to do with our surviving traitor."continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Nod at Ziek] "Now, let us decide what to do with our surviving traitor."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I have learned all I need."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"How many more of you mutineers are hiding on my ship? I want to know your names, I want to know where you meet — everything."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I have learned all I need."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are there any other senior officers helping you?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"How many more of you mutineers are hiding on my ship? I want to know your names, I want to know where you meet — everything."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I have learned all I need."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Where is Nemesite's hideout?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Are there any other senior officers helping you?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU"How many more of you mutineers are hiding on my ship? I want to know your names, I want to know where you meet — everything."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"I have learned all I need."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"They were waiting for us. It was a trap."continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Nod at Ziek] "Now, let us decide what to do with our surviving traitor."continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Address Ziek] "I have questions for you, traitor."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"They were waiting for us. It was a trap."continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Nod at Ziek] "Now, let us decide what to do with our surviving traitor."continues where this line first appears above
Enforcer Hrotko"Lord Captain, are you unharmed?" Hrotko, formerly an enforcer and now an initiate, has not lost his usual cold composure, despite the fact that his white robes are stained with blood.
YOU"Hrotko, how did you come to be here at just the right moment?"continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Address Ziek] "I have questions for you, traitor."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"They were waiting for us. It was a trap."continues where this line first appears above
YOU[Nod at Ziek] "Now, let us decide what to do with our surviving traitor."continues where this line first appears above
YOU"Groxshit!"
Kibellah"We now know much more about the enemy." Kibellah ponderously runs her finger along the flat of the blade. "About just how deep the poison of conspiracy runs within the veins of your ship. But the Bloodspun Web has wrapped itself around its bays too tightly, and Nemesite can no longer hope to escape."continues where this line first appears above
Kibellah"We now know much more about the enemy." Kibellah ponderously runs her finger along the flat of the blade. "About just how deep the poison of conspiracy runs within the veins of your ship. But the Bloodspun Web has wrapped itself around its bays too tightly, and Nemesite can no longer hope to escape."continues where this line first appears above