[Story] And so it Begins...

[Ksenia Vail]

AND SO IT BEGINS... KSENIA VAIL The servos of the elegantly hand-crafted doors whirred softly as massive slabs of metal parted and receded into the walls to admit Archamagos Vail. She stepped into the conference chamber and discussion tapered off as she slowly, but purposefully made her way to her seat at the table opposite the high monarch. “How nice of you to join us,” Inquisitor Alessio Lapice mocked from his seat while he lazily rocked back and forth. She received nods of acknowledgement from the others seated around the table, which was sufficient enough greeting for her. For the inquisitor, however, she smiled and said nothing, which seemed to grate his nerves. “Where’s the real you, hm? Shouldn’t they be here considering the importance of this meeting?” There were some concerned looks exchanged among the others. The sentiment may have been shared by a few of them, but it did not concern her. “And where is lord inquisitor Varn?” The inquisitor sat upright in his chair and narrowed his eyes slightly, but before he could speak she continued. “You’ve been unable to locate him. Perhaps you should continue your duty before you assume to take his place.” “I don’t—” “Inquisitor.” Alessio bit back his words rather quickly as the high monarch spoke. Rather than press the matter, he sat back again and pulled one foot up onto his opposite knee. He managed to glare at Ksena with contempt for a time, but his attention would be taken by other things soon enough. “We have plenty to discuss,” Thaddeus began. “The people are now aware we are beset by a number of troubles, and my address to them likely did little to ease their minds. This meeting marks the beginning of our struggle.” He let his words hang in the chamber for a beat before he released a heavy sigh. “I will not mince words. This does not bode well. The sudden onset of… all of this, will undoubtedly push us all to our limits,” again, he paused, but shortly thereafter turned to a young woman seated in towards the center. “Choirmaster, have you learned anything?” Ksenia’s eyes moved across the woman’s face and it became abundantly clear that she was not the choirmaster from several days ago. The mousy woman cleared her throat and shook her head. “I’m afraid not, your highness. We lost so many astropaths when the warp surged that we are struggling to replenish the choirs, much less get any communication through. All I can tell you at this moment is that we are cut off. Corinthe is on its own.” Nervous murmurs rose from those assembled but they were calmed by a wave of the high monarch’s hand. “Thank you, Euthemia. Continue your investigations, and do your best to contact the rest of the sector. We must continue to do what we can, because the other worlds will need our support. Admiral, what is the status of our fleet?” Admiral Andreas Lubtiz rose to his feet and took a deep breath before he spoke. “Less than ideal, my lord. We’ve our flagship, a few cruisers, and a handful of escorts for each, but it’s hardly enough to defend Corinthe, much less the sector. Fortunately, more ships continue to arrive from the warp every day, but with all that has been happening, we’ve been taking our time verifying identities and performing the necessary crew purges to ensure loyalty.” Thaddeus slowly nodded, appeased by the answer. “Press any private ships into service as needed. Magos Vail, what can we do to reinforce our fleet?” As Admiral Lubitz took his seat, Ksenia leaned forward. “We are aware that the fleet is below strength. We have already begun waking our slumbering production lines, but it will take some time. As you are aware, we had been meeting our tithe requirements, but little more. Once our forges are fully operational, the fleet will be reinforced in short order.” “How long until your… forges are ready?” Admiral Lubitz inquired. “Under current conditions,” Ksenia considered for half a second, running every number of possible contingencies through her head. “Several months, we believe. If conditions were to change, we could move that timetable forward.” “What conditions?” Thaddeus asked. “We will require laborers and servitors,” she replied. “Increasing manpower will improve productivity, as would increasing work hours and relaxing workplace safety.” “Put together a list of what you need and I will see to it.” Ksenia slid a datapad onto the conference table before he could even finish. “The fleet is one thing, my lord, but our armies are woefully inadequate to defend us against attacks,” General Stellio Arcadiou interjected before conversation could continue. “We need weapons, armor, vehicles — by the Emperor, we need everything!” A pall of discontent and unease fell over those assembled. It was becoming painfully clear that Corinthe remained vulnerable. “We have already begun increasing production,“ Ksenia commented, breaking the silence. “To date, only twenty-three percent of our forge capacity is being utilized. Again, we will require more manpower, but equipping the army will be a small concern.” The general let out a sigh of relief but Thaddeus leaned forward in his seat and pressed steepled fingertips to his lips. “I do not like the sound of this. How hard can we work our people?” “As hard as need-be,” Inquisitor Lapice quipped. “Any that refuses is little better than a heretic. Give them to the magos to make into servitors and they work either way.” “I’d rather not see our own people as enemies.” “The people are among our greatest threats,” Lapice countered. The high monarch waved a hand to silence the inquisitor who merely smiled in smug satisfaction. “We will make as many laborers available as we can, and working hours will be increased.” Ksenia bowed her head in thanks. “We must be conscious of our obligations, your highness,” Chancellor Nadia Calvera pointed out. “We must still meet our tithe, and —” “We suspend the tithe,” Ksenia cut her off before she could get any further, and in doing so, drew everyone’s attention. “We cannot suspend the tithe!” Master Avlonitis of the departmento exacta lamented. “The Emperor demands it of us!” “We cannot possibly meet those demands. We cannot safely travel, much less ship materials to the other end of the galaxy. We must look after ourselves, now.” “Your words border heresy. I could execute you for such,” Alessio growled. Ksenia locked eyes with the inquisitor. “You might find your authority greatly lessened for the future, inquisitor.” After a brief moment of hesitation, Alessio roared with righteous fury. He shifted his weight and moved to rise while working to draw the bolt pistol from his hip, fully intended to do away with the fake fabricator general next to him. However, his roar quickly turned to a pain cry as the magos’ hand clenched his shoulder and drove him back down into his seat in the blink of an eye. Apart from the mewling of discomfort as the inquisitor’s shoulder strained against the impossibly strong grip of his rival, the only sound that could be heard was Ksenia’s chair rolling across the floor and finally coming to a stop as it collided with a wall. “We do not have time for this!” Thaddeus bellowed. “The tithe will be suspended until communication and warp travel are restored.” Ksenia slowly released the inquisitor who nursed his bruised shoulder and went to seek out her chair. Avlonitis let out a pitiful wail at the proclamation, but Dimitris Horn, the munitorum master, chimed in shortly after. “It will certainly lessen our burden and make it far easier to supply our citizens and soldiers. That is… a discussion we must have. Corinthe consumes an astounding amount of food. I suggest immediate rationing on all levels. If we are lucky, our agri-worlds will be able to sustain us, but we will need to look into other sources.” “There are no other sources!” Admiral Lubitz protested. “We cannot even leave the system without risking the entire fleet. How can we contact the other systems?” He got to his feet and gestured aggressively to the newly anointed choirmaster who wanted nothing more than to melt away into nothingness under the scrutiny. “We can’t even communicate with them. As far as I can tell, we’re lucky that we can even transport goods in-system.” “Enough!” Thaddeus slammed a hand on the table. “We must keep our wits about ourselves.” Ksenia wheeled her chair back into place and set back down, “Secure the agri-worlds.” Thaddeus looked to her, as did several others. “We suggest sending enforcers to ensure compliance. We also suggest doing everything possible to improve yield, which will undoubtedly create unrest.” General Arcadiou pinched the bridge of his nose, “We do… have enough active regiments available to do so. It might be wise.” “See to it,” Thaddeus confirmed. After a moment or two of relative silence, he leaned back in his chair and sighed. “This meeting is over. Tensions are high, but we must keep ourselves in check because our people are counting on us. Enact rationing, put curfews in place, expand mandatory working hours, and increase enforcer presence to account for possible dissenters. We need to get our fleet back to full strength and our armies equipped and trained, so see that it is done. May the Emperor watch over us and his light return soon.” Everyone rose in unison, most making the sign of the aquila. “May the Emperor watch over us!” “I need to speak with magos Vail, but the rest of you are dismissed.” It took a minute or two before the room was cleared, and in that time, Thaddeus had risen from his seat and moved to gaze out the viewport and into the sky. Once the others had left, including Alessio who glared at Ksenia the entire time, Thaddeus sighed and turned to her. “I hope you have a plan.” She smirked, “We always do.”