Another Orkish invasion had come to Damaris, and all void scouts indicated that this would be a highly concentrated thrust to attempt to pierce their void defenses. With the In Purgatio Lumen still requiring extensive repair work at The Bulwark, the Inner Council of Lord Captain Jequin Hos decided to leave their ship docked to complete repairs, and trust the fleet to Captain Sylvia Locke and the Aegis.

The Emperor’s Bounty under the command of Antonio Cassis and the In Obscurum Veritas were dispatched to provide their support, but strangely Explorator Artifex Felicis was not aboard the Veritas, having departed to the surface to deal with the fallout from the death of Magos Hadron Shard at the hands of himself and Navigator Maturinus. With the Explorator out of communication, the only information available to the group was from the Navigator’s account of how the hand of Saint Drusus struck down the heretical Magos. The council decided not to reveal this information on the eve of battle for fear that it would cause a panic that could spell disaster during the coming battle.

With their vessel still under repairs, the Explorers decided to accept the invitation of Commander Orran Reynolds to monitor the void battle in the command centre of The Bulwark. The Commander was far more confident than at the Governor’s ball, easily coordinating the dozen or so officers bringing him reports and interpreting the data transmissions as they came in. The preliminary information appeared correct, and the massive Ork fleet was attempting to breach Damaris in a single location, but the assembled defense forces were prepared and ready to meet them. Reynolds was completely confident that this would be met by the Imperial forces, and despite the misgivings of both Astropath Eckhart and Arch-Militant Caine at openly expressing such sentiments, the battle did indeed appear to be going in the defender’s favour. After two hours the Orks had failed to make any progress, and the fleet was holding strong.

At this point in the battle, Captain Hos received an invitation from General Remi Dante to meet with him on the surface of the planet. Dante had recently managed to finish cleansing the major encampments of surviving Orks and was providing relief to the outer farmland of the planet. His intentions were to improve the relationship existing between himself and the crew, a statement that everyone found dubious but agreed to attend the meeting anyway. Their trip down to the planet took them far beyond the safety of Damaris City, and over megameters of farmland, most of which was now burnt or destroyed during the press of an Ork invasion. En route to their meeting with Dante they passed at least one convoy where a group of beleaguered refugees were treated to a rousing broadcast of Men of Hos, before the Explorers’ Aquila jetted off to the meeting.

Dante himself was overseeing operations in the North-west area of the planet, and was on the outskirts of a massive battlefield, where thousands of men and Orks lay slain – the casualties appearing to mostly be on the Orkish side. As his men gathered the Orkish corpses into bonfires and retrieved the bodies of their fallen, Dante greeted the Explorers, and invited them to travel with him to the last human settlement they had come to relieve before returning to the city in anticipation of any potential breaches in the void defenses. Traveling in the General’s personal command Chimera, the Rogue Trader was accompanied only by his Inner Council and a few members of his Honour Guard, with the remainder following in the convoy. The opening of the journey had Dante recounting the battle that had so far been unseen by most people, the frantic attempts to rescue civilians and supplies from the outskirts of Damaris who had not retreated to the city following the invasion. Dante was incensed that Governor Kapak had not ordered a mass evacuation, instead deciding to allow the farmers to make their own decision – a decision that cost those who remained their lives.

Drawn into the conversation, the Explorers recognised that the General was talking about implementing a military coup to seize control – but Arch-Militant Caine realised that the General had perhaps already implemented his plans, and was seeking the Explorers approval. The Council accused Dante of seizing control of the capital only for his own ambitions, to which he exited the convoy to bring once more into view the endless expanse of burned farmland and the thousands of civilians who were not evacuated in time. Dante’s goal was to take centralized control of the planet to coordinate defenses, and at the conclusion of which allow the people to choose between him and a return to rule under Governor Kapak. Though Captain Hos inquired about implementing free elections this was routinely mocked by everyone – his own council included. Dante hoped that the Rogue Trader would support him in this coup, which he had indeed already implemented. If they would not support him then they would be free to return to their ship, and as long as they kept defending Damaris all existing contracts would be honoured, but further support from the planet would not be forthcoming. Although the General promised they would be allowed to go free, it was not lost on the Explorers that the convoy far out-numbered them, and if it came down to violence it could take them a long time to murder everyone.

Captain Hos’s first instinct was to vox his Aquila pilot to contact Barnard Kroon and ascertain what was going on in the capital, and to come and prepare to extract them. Second, he agreed to Dante’s request to send out a broadcast to the planet acknowledging the change in leadership. Suspicious, but pleased with the outcome, Dante and his men quickly set up a number of long-range broadcasts amplified by his command gear to make a proclamation to the citizenry. With Jequin Hos in the background, General Dante reflected on the failure of Governor Dante, the support pledged by Rogue Traders Blitz and Hos, and the necessity for change in planetary leadership – a leader who would be Rogue Trader Jequin Hos.

His men understandably surprised, the captain then modestly accepted the need for a change in leadership and that he would humbly take command for at least the immediate crisis, before restoring control to the next in secession from Governor Kapak. Dante’s troops were baffled as to why their leader was not reacting to this change in plans – notably because they were unable to detect Astropath Eckhart having telepathically subverted the General’s mind for the purpose of this discussion. Archimedes Clement arrived in the Aquila, and relayed word that Kroon had confirmed Kapak had publically stepped aside, and though there were no soldiers in the capital there had not been any actual violence. Though Dante’s soldiers were ready to resort to violence, Eckhart-as-Dante convinced them to stand down, and that he was returning to the Lumen to answer for his attempted treason.

This broadcast reached the Bulwark and the waiting orbital fleet, and certainly a number of messages were waiting for the Rogue Trader when they returned. For the moment refusing all requests, Dante was escorted to the brig where he was locked in, and the mental domination released – whereupon he began violently cursing and pounding on the walls before the privacy field could be completed. Commander Reynolds continued his urgent messages to reach the party, as although he recognised that whatever had just happened on the surface was important, it could probably be dealt with after the battle – however Jeremiah Blitz and his three vessels were leaving the battle, and that had to be dealt with now. Attempts to persuade the Rogue Trader to stay were not immediately successful, so Captain Hos had to pledge a portion of his personal proceeds to compensate Blitz for staying as well as granting his ships prefered status when refuelling at Svard. Although the terms would cost the Captain – potentially dearly if Blitz’s ships were badly damaged – he agreed to the terms as this opened up the possibilities of increased revenues and trading for his colony world.

In the fullness of time, the battle was won without surrendering any ground to the Orkish menace. The Inner Council – still surprisingly without Felicis who had not finished his “important matters” – now had to explain to Rogue Traders Blitz and Orleans, Captain Locke, Commander Reynolds and an assortment of dignitaries from Damaris what their plans were now that they had been declared Governor and their General was in prison for attempted crimes against the planet. Seeking a brief reprieve, the quartet secreted themselves away to a conference room to discuss their plans. They had a lot on their agenda – what to do about the troop distributions of the planet, whether or not they would appoint Calgar Ibram as the next Governor of Damaris or try to hold onto power, how to find the origin of the Orkish invasion, what the Mechanicus might do with the death of the Magos and a host of other smaller, political matters. Unsure of where to begin, the choice was taken out of their hands when their conference room was suddenly ambushed by a group of Eldar that abruptly teleported into the room and began attacking.

Navigator Maturinus’ attunement to the Warp detected their approach, and the warning he shouted out just barely allowed Captain Hos and Arch-Militant Caine to dodge attacks by the bizarre Eldar attacks, which seemed to shred the furniture and walls with nigh-invisible lines of force. Astropath Eckhart brought his mighty telekinetic forces to bear on one of the attacking aliens, pinning it with invisible force. Two other attackers reacted to this by levelling grenades at the Astropath, giving their companion a chance to teleport away, though the force knocked them out. Though the Astropath dodged the attacks, the Captain was unfortunately caught in the blast radius and thrown to the ground, badly injured. Navigator Maturinus responded by opening the full force of his third eye at one of the attackers reducing him to ash, while Arch-Militant Caine’s integrated plasma blaster all-but-disintegrated another. The fourth Eldar was again pinned by Eckhart, but before he could be questioned, his head was neatly removed by the Arch-Militant, feeling no chance should be taken with the Xenos.

Probing the mind of the only surviving Eldar, the Astropath learned that the Eldar was part of a massive worldship of Eldar, and had been dispatched weeks ago with orders to kill everyone in this room, at this exact time. He had been unaware prior to attacking as to who would be present, and didn’t know what the importance of the mission was, only that it was necessary. There was also an indication that somewhere in system was an Eldar vessel that had ferried him here, and a small ship hidden from the Bulwark’s sensors hidden nearby to ferry him back. to his vessel. The Eldar was also deeply concerned about a strange gem on the only-intact body of the survivors, but he was regaining consciousness, so the Astropath switched to restraining him with his mind. The Captain summoned Daila Gour and some of his Honour Guard to restrain the Eldar, and keep the Bulwark personnel at bay while the Astropath compelled the Eldar to remove his armour and cease activity. Questioning proved pointless, and the Captain decided to let the Eldar go – without his weapons but with his armour – in order to carry a message back to his people that the Rogue Trader meant no harm to them. Despite this message, as the Eldar retrieved the gem from his fallen companion and redonned his armour, he informed the party that they had to die, and vanished from the room…

For the first time since the liberation of Svard, the entire Inner Council of the Hos Dynasty had assembled together in order to determine their next course of action. With the founding of the Inti colony now well under way, the discussion turned to Captain Hos’ news that the Imperial colony world of Damaris had requested their assistance fighting an Orkish invaders. Captain Hos saw this as an opportunity to spread diplomatic and political influence throughout the Expanse, Navigator Maturinus saw this as his duty to cleanse Xenos filth from the stars, Arch-Militant Caine was practically vibrating with the chance to fight Orks for – what was him – the first time, Explorator Felicis was curious as to what new Xenotech he could study and learn from, and Astropath Eckhart thought this sounded like an unnecessarily dangerous waste of time, and that their interests would be better served attending to other matters. The Astropath yielded to the heretical ethers of democracy however, and the Dynasty decided to make one Hell of a statement.

Instead of simply bringing the In Purgatio Lumen, the Dynasty would arrive with their flagship as well as the In Obscurum Veritas headed by Explorator Felicis and the newly refurbished Emperor’s Bounty, commanded now by Antonio Cassis following his successful performance in battle against The Whisperer. The tactical situation from Rogue Trader Elizabeth Orleans indicated that the Orkish attacks had yet to penetrate Damaris’s blockade, and it was hoped that the three Cruisers would be more than sufficient to hold the line against any Orks, as well as being a powerful showing of their rising power inside of the Expanse. The Lumen, piloted through the warp by Maturinus would depart for Damaris first, while the Veritas and Bounty would arrive travel as a fleet presumably arriving sometime after the Lumen. The Vagaries of the Warp and the Wise Capitulation would both return to the Inti system for its defense, and Lindsay Garret would continue to oversee the Svard defenses, which were now viewed as being operational enough to be able to function without a larger capital ship during its defense for the time being.

The journey through the warp was as smooth as could be expected from the Navigator, with no Warp encounters nor damage to the vessel, but to the crew’s surprise upon entering the Damaris system they found that their time dilation was much greater than their fleet’s, and they were in fact the last to arrive. Explorator Felicis had been heralding the vessel’s arrival for almost seven days, and he was beginning to panic that he would have to take charge of the situation himself. En route into the system, the Dynasty was contacted by Jorun Alexander – chief aide to theplanetary governor and their liaison while on system. He exuberantly greeted the arrival of the Lumen, and the significant boost that it would provide to their in-system defenses. He provided a basic tactical summary of the situation, the Orkish attacks were growing in size and attacking with less time in between but the system defenses were holding strong.

In between matches of poker and research in the Dark Eldar Library, the tactical situation of the invasion was summarized thusly: Captain Sylvia Locke of Battlefleet Koronus was in nominal command of the System defense forces, coordinating with Rogue Traders Orleans and Jeremiah Blitz as to the dispensation of their forces. The actual Damaris SDF forces were still under the authority of Commander Orran Reynolds, out of their converted defense moon named The Bulwark. These forces were running a mix of impromptu scans for nearby attacks on the system, defending the actual orbital range of Damaris and scanning the Outer Reaches for the rumoured Rok Production facility thought to be therein. The ground forces had yet to see any actual combat, but the constant attacks were beginning to wear down the defenders and the bolstering from the Dynasty was more than welcome.

Landing on Damaris, Captain Hos brought his Inner Council, his Honour Guard in their best “dress” uniforms, and the newly rejoined Barnard Kroom as his representatives, and were let at the landing port by a procession of hover limos each opulently upholstered and well-supplied with liquor. Though there were a number of interesting places that members of the Dynasty wanted to visit, Alexander recommended that they made themselves known at the War Council beforehand. The members of the council consisted of Captain Locke, and Rogue Trader Orleans, as well as Planetary Governor Kapak and General Remi Dante. Rogue Trader Blitz also had an honourary seat on the council, but preferred not to involve himself in those details. Captain Hos asked if their success in the liberation of the world of Grace had been heard of, but Jorun mentioned that Rogue Trader Aspyce Chorda had taken credit for the rescue of citizenry from that world, and their own efforts had been minimized.

Arriving at the Gubernatorial Palace, the Council was escorted into the lower levels where the War Council was apparently in the middle of a fierce argument with all parties. Governor Kapak seized upon the arrival of Captain Hos to call for a brief recess to the council, leading to Locke and Orleans to quit the chamber and Dante to enter into strategy meetings with his assistants. Escorted to the Governor’s chambers, the Captain watched in mute surprise as Kapak immediately took out an Obscura pipe, filled it from his private supply and began openly smoking it in front of them. Weary and overwhelmed, he confessed that he was wholly unsuited to leadership but that the other members of his council were also incapable of leading a unified defense. General Dante was clearly bucking to seize control of the planet, Captain Locke was viewed as an outsider due to her association with the Imperium and Rogue Trader Orleans was forbidden from directly interfering with internal matters in the Damaris system due to a clause in her Warrant of Trade. The need for their assistance was real however, as the SDF vessels on extended patrol had detected another wave of Orkish vessels inbound, estimated to arrive mid-day tomorrow. The Dynasty’s last chance to influence people prior to that would be at a ball held in the Governor’s estate later that evening. Though it was thought to be crazy to hold such a lavish event on the eve of an invasion, the Governor told the Dynasty that the people of Damaris had yet to truly grasp the seriousness of the situation they faced, and the ball was presumably their reaction to their uncertainty for their future.

Jorun returned at this point to confirm that the War Council had disbanded for the day, and with a complicated trade agreement pledging lucrative trade contracts to the Dynasty that would be equivalent to their support in the defense of the planet. Eckhart was incensed at the lack of concrete rewards, and again advocated leaving the world wholesale. Deciding to stall for time, Captain Hos left Barnard Kroom to review the documents, and went for a meeting with General Dante. The General was in the middle of meeting with his subordinates, a situation which was dealt with by Captain Hos pushing his way through the crowd and launching into a conversation. Proving recalcitrant, the General was forced to answer the Captain’s questions as to the dispensation of Damaris’ defense forces and their general state of readiness. Though working his charm amazingly well, some aspect of the Rogue Trader’s arrogance appears to have been detected by Dante, and he did not end the meeting with a favourable impression of the captain.

Some time now presented themselves for the Dynasty to explore Damaris and make a final decision as to if they would pledge to its defense. Arch-Militant Caine and Navigator Maturinus chose to visit the Shrine of Saint Drusus, a cathedral almost a kilometer tall, with an equally impressive statue of Saint Drusus on each of its four walls calling to the people. Before every invasion Bishop Arnit would reveal their sacred relic – a stasis casket rumoured to hold the preserved hand of the Saint himself – in order to bolster the population. Though hundreds of thousands of the citizenry flocked to the Cathedral prior to the battle, the pair were able to secure a private viewing area open only to the wealthier members of the planet where they witnessed the ceremony. Those in attendance seemed particularly moved by the service, and the Bishop himself was fervent in extorting the righteousness of their cause, and how the Orks would soon meet their doom.

Captain Hos used this time as a Rogue Trader should, by visiting the influential nobility and merchants of the sector to purchase influence that could later be wielded on planet. He settled on the palatial estate of the nobleman Ibram Calgar, whose family traced itself back to the founding of the colony itself. Despite convincing flattery and charm, he was unable to allow his Honour Guard inside and met with the nobleman alone. A man obviously centuries old, Calgar now only kept himself alive through constant – and expensive – rejuvenat treatments. Captain Hos opened with a long and convincing speech about the situation they all faced and the importance of a united front, but despite his advancing age the noble’s mind remained sharp and on focus, and eventually Captain Hos admitted what he was here for was to purchase Calgar’s favour at the governor’s ball that evening. Finally able to agree on a commonality of purpose, a payment was arranged and the introduction would be made that evening.

Explorator Felicis used this time to visit the local Adeptus Mechanicus shrine, flanked by the highest-quality servitors he could locate aboard the Veritas. The Shrine was located on an island offshore of the capital, but still close enough that it was responsible for maintaining the power and infrastructure of the large city. Approaching the shrine, Felicis believed himself alone until being surprised by two Skitarii guards that had managed to close on him without his notice. Presenting his credentials, he was admitted inside to a solitary room bearing only a Mechanicus access terminal. After waiting and receiving no further instructions, he eventually accessed the terminal where he was mentally contacted by Magos Hadron Shard – Explorator in charge of this facility. Attempting to ingratiate himself with the Magos and garner political support presented a stumbling block when Shard inquired as to if Felicis was aware of his work, and what sort of assistance Felicis could offer. Desperately stalling for time, he presented a plan whereby they could collaborate using the Mechanicus cruiser currently under his power, which Shard agreed to consider if Felicis would transmit schematics of the vessel to his facility. The Explorator agreed, and Shard said he would contact Felicis at the Governor’s party later that evening.

The night of the Governor’s party had arrived, and as promised all the members of the war council were there, along with several notable personnel from Damaris. Captain Locke was in a small knot of Battlefleet personnel and some Administratum functionaries, Rogue Trader Orleans was similarly clustered with men and women in a uniform similar to hers – presumably her crew, General Dante was with an older gentleman in a modified Imperial Navy uniform identified as Commander Reynolds, and Governor Kapak was milling around in the crowd mingling and chatting as appropriate. Captain Hos seized upon this opportunity to once again talk with the General, and despite affecting his usual charming and roguish air, the biting and disdainful comments were once again noticed, and Dante icily informed the Lord-Captain that he was not prepared to kowtow to the Rogue Trader through continued threats of departure. It wasn’t until towards the end of the conversation that Dante realised the focus of the captain’s charm was Commander Reynolds, who was left with an extremely favourable opinion of the Rogue Trader.

Navigator Maturinus spotted Bishop Arnit among the crowd and went up to express his appreciation for the stirring oration earlier. Outside of preaching, the Bishop seemed quieter and less confident in himself, and it was difficult for Maturinus to associate the modest, slightly hesitant man in front of him with the fiery orator from before. Approaching him with the tales of the recovered tome penned by Saint Drusus, as well as the two crusade vessels currently in the possession of Rogue Trader Hos. This proclamation seemed to shake the Bishop greatly, and he asked the Navigator to depart with him to the reliquary in his shrine. There he revealed that he had a vision from Saint Drusus himself that the reliquary was to be sent with one connected to his crusade, which he was now convinced to be the Hos Dynasty. Without another word, he presented the stasis casket to the confused Navigator.

Explorator Felicis finally witnessed the arrival of Magos Shard, who informed him that he had calculated the socially optimal time for an entrance, and would only be remaining as long as was viewed to be socially acceptable. Holding a conversation entirely in Techna-Linguam, Magos Shard admitted that the facilities of the Veritas would be ideally suited for his experiments into distributed cognition. With that clue as to the Magos’ true aims, Felicis was able to bluff his way into convincing Magos Shard to download a copy of his research to his private database for perusal and “enhancement”.

As Captain Hos debated his next diplomatic move, he and Astropath Eckhart were approached by Astropath Greya Staysis, a member of Captain Locke’s delegation. She had detected the mindlink between Captain Hos and Astropath Eckhart, and felt uncomfortable with the open use of psychic powers in the presence of so many people. The captain sensed that there was a further nervousness behind the Astropath’s words, and took the initiative by inviting her to waltz with him. Deliberately ignoring the scandal of dancing a sanctioned astropath, the Captain’s charm and poise, along with a conversation about the importance of morality over duty led Astropath Staysis to confess the cause of her discomfort. Captain Locke had received orders from the Battlefleet ordering her to depart the system, and leave the system to face the Orks alone…

With the plan to colonize the Inti system proceeding smoothly, the Hos Dynasty used their well-earned down-time to complete some more essential matters and secure their power base before continuing their expansion plans. With two new Raiders added to the fleet – and still predominately crewed by their original pirates – Astropath Eckhart planned to use his mental powers and the military backing of the Death Bastards to weed out any potential threats to the Dynasty’s line. Artifex Felicis volunteered to liaise with Magos Stein and continue diplomatic relations while the rest of the Dynasty would work to prove that they could enter into the Colonial venture on an even footing with the Magos Biologis.

Before departing for a supply run, Captain Hos decided to take one last attempt to find the two lost Frigates that escaped from Jacobus’s pirate fleet. Captain Herst and his Raider accompanied the In Purgatio Lumen on deep-patrol along the Outskirts of the Inti system. The odds of finding the Frigates after this long a period of time were extremely low, and the ship pushed itself to the limits of the OORT Cloud in the hope of even catching a glimpes of the missing vessels. Through superior planning, and the not inconsiderable skills of Void Mistress Nichols, surprisingly their quest was not in .vain and the blasted hulk of one of the Frigates was discovered.

The vessel, which had not taken any damage in the previous engagement was now all but hulked. No life signs emerged from the ship, and only a faint gravity field still persisted on the vessel. Arch-Militant Caine and his Razorwings led the boarding action on the enemy vessel escorting Captain Hos to secure their prize. The majority of the crew had been blown through the countless rents in the hull, and only a few stray crewmembers remained on board – trapped in the debris from the collapsing corridor. Inspecting the first body they found, Captain Hos narrowly avoided a Frag Charge that had been booby-trapped underneath the body, and Arch-Militant Caine realised another body had been electrified to kill the first person who made contact with it. Severing the connection to the conduit, the body was inspected to reveal a sinister eight-pointed star carved into its chest, as well as a number of other signals that could not be identified.

Filled with foreboding, the boarding party continued to the bridge but decided against checking any of the other bodies they found along the way. The bridge was a scene of carnage, the doors blown open from the outside and despite the lack of atmosphere the blood and viscera appeared fresh an vibrant. Refusing to leave the vessel uninspected, the Captain and Arch-Militant boarded the captain’s quarters where they discovered the body of the captain – even more ritually scarred than the remaining crew. His personal complement of artifacts and treasure were marked by whatever blasphemous ritual had taken place here. Both Navigator Maturinus and Astropath Poe urged the boarding party to return and leave anything they found behind, as the vessel must be destroyed. Grabbing what few items they saw as particularly valuable, the pair only stopped to download the logs from the ship before finally retreating to their vessel.

Sending a message to the Mechanicus for permission to destroy the tainted vessel, the crew reviewed the ship’s log to discover what happened. It seems that shortly after escaping the battle with the Hos Dynasty the two Frigates made for the edge of the system where they were plotting their next move. They then each claimed to receive a message – not from Vox nor Astropath – and opened fire no each other, with the Jacobus’ Pride falling to its companion and its crew slaughtered. The remaining frigate then fled deeper out of the system in an apparent escape attempt. Though the Lumen pursued its last known course, they found no trace of the surviving frigate, leaving them to suspect it had somehow fled.

Having no further leads to follow, the Vagaries of the Warp was dispatched back to the primary planets of the system to rendezvous with the In Obscurum Veritas, while Captain Hos would head on to Footfall to secure the necessary funds and supplies for the Inti colony. The long warp journey back was again skillfully handled by Navigator Maturinus, and despite a small outbreak of madness among the crew the voyage was otherwise successful. Footfall itself seemed subdued from their last visit, with orbitting traffic greatly reduced – and nary a Xenos vessels to be seen.

The first order of business when founding a colony is to find an ample supply of manpower – both for their colony worlds and the orbital space station that they had claimed. Heading to the habitation slums in Footfall, they leveraged their existing supply trade with Konrad Boethius to promote the more run-down citizens of Footfall for a new life in their startup system. As their station had ample agricultural production capabilities, it was a more attractive proposition than barely scrounging a living on Footfall. Konrad also let the Captain in on some of the later gossip around the station, including his less-than-glorious last appointment with the Black Brotherhood having been circulated.

Deciding to put that meeting off for a later day, the captain got in contact with Barnard Kroon, who greeted the return of the Rogue Trader with enthusiasm until he learned that he was being asked to set up another meeting with Calcus Calinnicus. Told that he had to do this himself, the beleaguered scribe eventually acceded to the request, whereupon Captain Hos dispatched a few members of his Honour Guard to shadow him to ensure that no overt harm came to him. Arch-Militant Caine offered to escort the scribe personally, but the Captain wanted to test his scribe’s loyalty and ingenuity, as well as hopefully record the event for his enjoyment later.

Since security and enforcement personnel were still pending, the next order of business was to procure equipment and resources for the founding of the colony. Eschewing the services of Jonquin Saul for the moment the Dynasty visited the Koronus Equipment concern, and met with Baxter Abhay to see what the competition had to offer. Though the storefront was minimalist and sparsely decorated, it was quickly spotted as a front, because anyone who could afford this level of supply and distribution inside the Expanse must have serious capital behind them. The business negotiations were fairly straightforward, with Captain Hos shrewdly bargaining the merchant down to a bottom line with promises of future expansion within their colony, and contract handling was turned over to Naoya Shitani, who would oversee the deployment and distribution of contracts and colonization.

As it was now late in the day, the Inner Council decided to dine at the Liege’s Court and plan things for tomorrow. The affair at the court was strangely subdued, even the dishes seemed to lack the lustre of some of the past events. Of Rogue Traders, the Lady Elizabeth Orleans and the trader Jeremiah Blitz were in attendance, the former of whom indicated through various cyphers that the Inquisition had been rumoured to be stepping up efforts to enter Footfall, resulting in many existing trade routes to become interdicted. The latter was largely reticent during the affair, but did indicate he partook in the Cold Trade, and was at least tangentially aware of the Dynasty’s affairs with the Dark Eldar.

Leaving the tepid dinner affair aside, Rogue Traders Hos and Orelans retired to the Starweaver, Orleans’ private vessel. Over a relaxing post-dinner goblet of Raenka, Captain Orleans discussed that her home system of Damaris had been under siege by slowly escalating attacks by Orkish invaders. Although so far the system had easily been able to hold off the invasion, the size and frequency of attacks have been relentlessly increasing, and she had come to Footfall to seek allies as the Imperial Navy – despite being sworn to defend the system – had contributed nothing beyond a single Light Cruiser for defense. The unfortunate interdiction by the Inquisition had resulted in a difficulty securing allies, and she directly appealed to the Rogue Trader to visit the system to personally discuss matters with the Planetary Governor, indicating that he was prepared to offer generous compensation in exchange for their defense.

Having exhausted all her appeals, Captain Orleans was quitting the system to head back, while Captain Hos returned to the Lumen to debate matters with his council. Deciding that their ordering of materials was nearly completed they decided to send an Astropathic message to Inti and the In Obscurum Veritas, ordering them to meet the Dynasty at Svard once matters here were completed. The morning brought news from a beleaguered Barnard Kroon, who had successfully arranged a meeting with the Black Brotherhood, and an unexpected but welcome message from Leopold Phipps that the mission to Seldon’s Folly had been completed successfully. Leveraging the latter news first, a visit was paid to Kadin Hopko who was enthusiastic about the renewed success of his business and cut Captain Hos a good deal on armour and weapons for security personnel on his new space station, as well as satisfying a few acquisitions for the crew in attendance.

The fact that he lacked any security personnel did not deter Captain Hos in the slightest, as he made for his meeting with the Black Brotherhood along with Barnard Kroon and his Arch-Militant and full Honour Guard in tow. Arriving at the foreboding entrance to the Brotherhood, the initial debate was done over the Vox, as Captain Hos was not entirely welcome given the less-than-noble result of his last meeting. Although he eventually gained entrance to the premise, his bodyguards were forced to wait outside and he found himself and Kroon alone with the imposing bulk of Calinnicus as well as a number of armed watchmen present. Fortunately being flush with Thrones made all his business dealings smoother, and not only did he negotiate a number of trained personnel to ensure order on the station, but inspired by the “refreshments” offered by the Lady Orleans also secured a number of good quality recreational supplies for his workers. Nothing that would be addictive or debilitating, but something to take the edge off of boredom – something that he could also enjoy in his own private quarters to ensure the effectiveness of naturally.

With ample supplies procured for the founding of the Inti colony, messages were dispatched to both the Under Wry Beginnings and the Abs Innocentina to temporarily suspend their duties and head for Footfall to begin transporting supplies to the colony world, and the Lumen set course for Svard to rendezvous with the other two Cruisers in the fleet, and decide what to do about the Damaris situation…

Following the unexpected attack of Benetek’s Device, Navigator Maturinus awoke confused, but apparently unharmed. Submitting himself to the medical scans of Salamar Morestran, he could find no obvious signs of injury with the Navigator – although his unusual physiology made that diagnosis less than completely guaranteed. Worried about the worm however, he decided to move his quarters to be closer to Astropath Poe and her Choir for emergencies. Despite Astropath Eckhart’s beliefs that he could provide better protection than the Choir, the Navigator’s mind was set and he repositioned himself for his safety – and potentially the safety of the rest of the crew.

With the In Purgatio Lumen still undergoing repairs in the Svard system and the In Obscurum Veritas still waiting to arrive in system, the crew had some time to make a few long delayed acquisitions. With Leopold Phipps having arrived with the Under Wry Beginnings, his superior commerce skills aided the Dynasty in locating several key pieces of technology – though none as exciting as the Best Quality Resolution Arena given to the Wry Beginnings to facilitate trade and provide some entertainment for the crew during their downtime.

Eventually it was time to get down to business. The Veritas along with Explorator Felicis and Arch-Militant Caine arrived in system, and it was time for the Dynasty to consider its next move. With rumours of pirates operating nearby, the Lumen and the Veritas decided to go and explore in search of this potential threat to Svard. With the Wry Beginnings not viewed as needed for this mission Phipps was instead ordered to fulfill the outstanding request from Kadin Hopko and transport his shipment of arms to the war world of Seldon’s Folly.

Though The Cauldron was a vast region of space, Captain Hos and Navigator Maturinus combined their knowledge to find the most likely system for pirates to base themselves out of – the Inti System. Purchasing some Warp Routes from the Navigator Houses contracted by Navigator Dionisio, Captain Hos decided to chart a clockwise-path around the Cauldron to reach Inti by the known warp routes, and then make an uncharted jump back to Svard to finish the “path”. Although normally Warp Travel has been very smooth for the Dynasty, when travelling with an escort the powers of Navigator Maturinus were somewhat blunted, and the travel was rougher than they were used to. Fires broke out on the ship, a piece of the warp impacted the hull and a brief burst of madness caused the crew to turn on each other. Truly, it spoiled their tradition of a relaxing tea time during warp travel.

Difficulties aside, the transition to the Inti system was as smooth as can be expected. As a precautionary measure, Captain Hos ordered the Veritas to enter silent running, and follow in its wake in an attempt to confound enemy sensors. The first order of business was to check the massive gas giant on the fringes of the system, as well as its moons. The first two moons were a lifeless hunk of rock, and a highly radioactive moon that did not appear to have any items of interest. Scans by Void Mistress Nichols indicated that the third moon had a powered STC Space Station in orbit. As there was still some distance, Captain Hos ordered the Lumen to also be put on Silent Running, and they would attempt to coast in undetected until they were at nominal weapons range.

Unfortunately this plan did not work, as when they powered back up their sensors and drives, they found their ship surrounded by a half-dozen vessels. Silbannacus Jacobus, the so-called “admiral” of the attacking fleet, hailed the Lumen and demanded its surrender, stating that it was outnumbered and outflanked. The Admiral unfortunately let it slip that their scans had only detected the Lumen, and the plan to mask the Veritas had been a success. After offering to accept the Pirates’ surrender, the battle was joined.

Rounding on the two Raiders in their flank, the pair of Cruisers managed to heavily damage one and cripple the others. As the surviving vessels closed, the mighty lance of the Lumen swung around and targeted the closest Frigate with their lance battery. The strike was as effective as could be hoped, puncturing the warp drive of the Frigate and opening up a momentary breach in the Warp, into which Jacobus was sucked into the Warp, his screams only briefly audible before being silenced forever. The two surviving Frigates attempted a retreat, whereas the still functional Raider surrendered to the Dynasty.

Augustus Herst, captain of the surrendered Raider was all too happy to throw his support behind the Hos Dynasty and happily filled them in on the results of the system. The STC Station was discovered by “Admiral” Jacobus and had been used to finance his piratical endeavours. With him gone, the station and its contents were turned over to the Dynasty, and could now be sold for massive profit.

The true wealth in the system came from a realisation by Captain Hos that the pair of planets in the Primary Biosphere were both rich and life-supporting, and would be valuable to the Magos Biologis, and perhaps help patch up the strained relations following the loss of Kybu earlier. During their survey of the two planets the badly damaged second raider also surrendered during this time, and accompanied the Dynasty back to Svard for repairs. The Veritas remained behind to repair the damaged raider, as well as catalogue the available Archeotech and search for the two escaped Frigates if possible.

Negotiations with Magos Isabella Stein of the Mechanicus were initially tense, as the Mechanicus would bear the brunt of the research and setup costs, but she seemed open enough to the idea of exploring the system for herself and evaluating the potential benefit of an alliance. With her in tow, the Lumen made an independent warp jump back to the system – this time easily accomplished with Maturinus free to navigate at his own pace – and the Dynasty prepared to once more expand its borders and influence…

As soon as The Whisperer fell to the mighty lance of the In Purgatio Lumen, the change in the atmosphere of the Svard system was palpable. The Xenos influence on the system has been banished, though not without cost. Tens of thousands of Hos Dynasty crewmembers lay dead, and the Hand of Redemption was crippled and in far worse shape than the Light Cruiser. Fortunately, Antonio Cassis and his Svard Defense Force Frigate had not been damaged in the fight, and was on hand to aid in repairs, and assist the two vessels in their return to Svard Prime.

Long-range vox contact with the system indicated that there had been a massive and violent uprising on the capital, corresponding roughly with the appearance of The Whisperer in combat. Despite the ferocity showed by the civilians, the rebellion was over almost as soon as it began with the destruction of the Yu’Vath vessel. A united front by the Crystal Council, as well as the Enforcers and Arbites left behind contained the worst of the damage. A similar report from Cog indicated an uprising there, but the presence of Leopold Phipps and the Under Wry Beginnings assisted Magos Tevla in keeping the damage under control.

With a long journey ahead of them, the vessels set off for a return to Svard Prime and the repair facilities that awaited them. En route, Navigator Maturinus confronted Astropath Eckhart regarding his earlier mind-reading of Commander Daniel Keel. The Navigator’s intuitive knowledge of the warp had detected the intrusion, but unwilling to risk the immediate execution such a revelation would bring had kept silent. Nonetheless, he made it clear that future indiscretions would not be forgiven so lightly.

Halfway to Svard Prime, the Dynasty was hailed by Magos Commodore Gnothis Trannarch, who had arrived in system with a Mechanicus relief fleet following the distress message from Explorator Felicis had Astropathically transmitted. Arriving to secure Cog and Kybu, the Magos requested the presence of the Dynasty in orbit around Svard Prime. Though Felicis wanted a chance to meet Magos Isabella Stein of Kybu, he ultimately acceded to the Magos’ request to meet over the homeworld.

In orbit around Svard, the Dynasty met Magos Trannarch’s flagship – the Ascendence of the Omnissiah. An escort vessel approached the hanger bay, where it was welcomed by the entirety of the Inner Council. Instead of a representative, a lone servo skull flanked by Servitors approached the group, and passed a Mechanicus icon to the Explorator. Upon taking it, he was teleported to the Mechanicus vessel where he met once more with the Magos-Commodore. Upon reflecting on the glory of the Omnissiah, the Magos then solemnly proclaimed that he knew of the Explorator’s sins. Though initially fearful that he meant something else, the Magos went on to say that the looting of the Promise of Agony has left the vessel in a condition that was less then pleasant for the Mecahnicus, and they would like the looted components restored.

A meeting then ensued with the Inner Council, where what they were willing to give up was discussed. Though Astropath Eckhart was reluctant to give up anything, a compromise was eventually reached where the Dynasty would return the Recovery Chambers and a good-sized portion of their looted equipment as a sign of good faith. Unfortunately, when informing the Magos-Commodore of this plan he sent a shuttle full of teleportarium beacons to retrieve the goods – and inspect the vessel for anything hidden.

Attempts to control the situation by Arch-Militant Caine only convinced the Magos-Commodore that Felicis had lost control of his crew, and the Explorator was again beamed over. Fortunately this gave him a chance to convince the Commodore in person to halt his looting, and a respite was given to allow the Hos Dynasty to send the equipment over themselves. With a few days needed for equipment transfer, the Dynasty confronted the people of Svard about the rebellion. As it initially started with a legal protest by Lillia Kusinen about the encroachment of the Dynasty in Svard, they decided to issue amnesty to all involved, along with a warning that their initial complacency led to the Xenos raiders to encourage this rebellion.

When the transfer of equipment finished, the Mechanicus revealed their reward for the Hos Dynasty – the In Obscurum Veritas. A special Mechanicus exploration vessel suited for long-range combat and salvage, its highly servitor crew would obey Jequin Hos and his crew as long as they were properly identified. With a new vessel under his command, Captian Hos ordered Astropath Eckhart and the crew to lead a salvage operation for the Emperor’s Bounty still in the Magoros system. Phipps had managed to procure a working warp drive, and with the Veritas’ upgraded salvage systems it would be possible to install the warp drive remotely, and then bring the ship back to Svard for extensive retrofitting.

The salvage operation went incredibly smoothly. Maturinus’s keen senses at the helm piloted the vessel back to the system first visited so long ago. The expert oversight of Explorator Felicis replaced the warp drive in short order, and in less than a week the two cruisers departed back to the Svard system. Maturinus and Eckhart stayed on board the Bounty, while Felicis and Caine piloted the Veritas back to Svard. The difference of navigators was apparent, with the Bounty arriving back in system in only a few days.

With Captain Hos’s research still progressing, and the Veritas still awaiting its return to realspace, the Navigator and Astropath rejoined the crew of the Lumen to assess how they were adapting to the aftermath of the fearsome ordeal they’d been through. In general spirits were high, though upon return to his quarters Navigator Maturinus was annoyed to find that Benetek’s Device had reappeared, haunting his steps once more. Taking it upon himself, he approached it and opened his mind to the Warp, to scan the thing once more.

But unlike the past, the device reacted to his scans, but leaping at him, striking him directly in his warp eye…

The arrival of Commander Daniel Keel of Battlefleet Koronus caused some stir amongst the inner council of the Hos Dynasty. However with two Corrupted Svard Frigates and a successful mining operation from the Hollow Worlds completed, as well as the knowledge that they had learned the name of the Xenos behind the attacks in Svard, the crew was confident in their ability to explain the situation. The only potential snag was the new Xenotech sensor array installed by The Jokaero which rather blatantly marred the status of their vessel as a Mechanicus shrine. Fortunately, Lord-Captain Hos and Explorator Felicis decided to pass it off as an attempt to “blend in” with the corrupted vessels, an action orchestrated by the deceased Syros Yurth, and though it failed they haven’t had time to correct it yet.

The return to Svard Prime was everything the captain hoped it would be. With the Crystal Council able to take pride in the performance of Lindsay Garret and her assistance in battling the Xenos threat, the power generators were once more at full efficiency and full-scale repairs of the Svard space fleet could once again resume. Though Councillor Kusinen continued to prove unhelpful, the other members all seemed ready to support the Captain – though Councillor Rhea was still disgruntled over the lack of attention paid to Kybu.

One day of anticipation later, the Hand of Redemption arrived in orbit. Inviting the Inner Council for a personal meeting, Commander Keel confirmed Captain Hos’ suspicions that the Imperial Envoy was his brother, and that he was here in response to a personal message indicating that Kaal had discovered the artists of Silence had fallen victim to Chaos, and he would personally dispatch the heretics on the Svard Promethium Refineries. This was the point at which Commander Keel contacted Captain Hos to deal with the situation, and as there had been no further updates he arrived in system to deal with the situation.

Fortunately, the Commander did not appear to be on the verge of condeming the system to death without establishing the truth for himself. Upon consideration of the Xenotech defiling of the Svard frigates, as well as the accumulated evidence he withheld judgmenet until he could ascertain the fate of the Envoy. Sending his crew away created a brief opening for Astropath Eckhart to probe Commander Keel’s mind – learning much of his deployment in the Battlefleet, and confirming that while he was prepared to believe the Hos Dynasty’s assertions, if it came down to it he would side with his brother. As well, the Adeptus Arbites’ frigate Ironclad Precedence had jumped into the system with the Battlefleet, and was evacuating the survivors of Exclusion. If the Battlefleet failed to report in, or too much time had passed, the Arbites may be willing to pass judgement on the planet itself. He also truly had no knowledge of the Yu’Vath, and his apparent demoted rank was due to him abandoning one of his long patrols to assist another Battlefleet vessel without waiting for permission from his superiors.

Ultimately Commander Keel was unwilling to waste too much time in negotiations, and was certainly unwilling to abandon his vessel in potentially hostile territory, and made ready to depart for the Promethium Installations. Captain Hos was of course willing to bring the In Purgatio Lumen alongside for security, and also brought along a single Svard Space Defense Frigate as an escort. Captain Garret was ordered to remain in orbit around Svard Prime for its defense and the currently unbloodied captain Antonio Cassis. En route to the Installation, Astropath Poe informed the Captain that Leopold Phipps and the Under Wry Beginnings had arrived in system, complete with a newly acquired Warp Engine for the Emperor’s Bounty. Unwilling to delay his mission, Captain Hos relayed instructions to head to Cog to “drop off” replacement workers for the Mechanicus, and then make best speed to Svard Prime to aide in any potential defensive actions required.

The journey to the Promethium Installation was thankfully uneventful, although the thickening cloud of stellar particles from the gas giant resulted in steadily worsening Auspex returns. About one hour out from the Installation, their scanners finally detected it, and Void Mistress Nichols reported that while the Station appeared fully functional there were no signs of activity or returns on the scanners. Commander Keel initially wanted to board the station immediately, but after words of caution from Astropath Eckhart, relented and allowed one platoon each of his own Stormtroopers, Svardic PDF and the Razorwings as led by Arch-Militant Caine to secure the facility. The boarding action was successful, and though neither the Hos Dynasty nor Svardic troops were that skilled in securing the immediate area, the professionalism and training of the Stormtroopers quickly swept the area and reported no contact nor traps laid.

A full boarding began, with Explorator Felicis, Astropath Eckhart and Arch-Militant Caine securing the Engineerium along with the Death Bastards and Razorwings, while Navigator Maturinus and Captain Hos accompanied the Battlefleet to the bridge. The station itself did appear to be functional and even still processing, as the Halo Barges were able to successfully extract Promethium from their full reserve tanks. The cogitators in the Engineerium showed that the Mechanicus Personnel were escorted to the command deck well before the rebellion “officially” began, and afterwards suffered memory degradation preventing further analysis. The bridge itself was found to contain hundreds upon hundreds of corpses – the station’s missing personnel – many of whom appeared to die by their own hands. Unwilling to allow his captain to suffer any more risk, Caine and Eckhart immediately quit the Engineerium to make it to the bridge. Exiting into the Hall however, they found Imperial Envoy Nathanial Kaal surrendering himself to their custody, and requesting an audience with the captain. Believing him to be no threat, Eckhart approached the Envoy to scan his mind, but before he closed enough distance, Kaal unsurprisingly revealed himself to be under the sway of the unseen powers in Svard, and lashed out with psychic assaults of his own.

The doorway exiting the Engineerium warped and twisted under the sway of warp energies, and those inside began to react to the threat externally, but the battle was over too quickly for them to be able to render much assistance. Both Arch Militant Caine and Explorator Felicis were badly wounded by the corrupted Envoy, and Astropath Eckhart managed to decisively end the blow with one concentrated blast of warp energy delivered via force sword. Unfortunately, this is what Kaal apparently desired, and as he died in a flare of warp energy on the bridge Navigator Maturinus suddenly sensed a strong concentration of warp energy born out of this death that was recognisable to him as a Warp Beacon. A slightly worried message from Mistress Nichols answered his predictions of doom as the massive signature at the heart of the Gas Giant initially thought to be the Jokaero not understanding the Captain’s orders was now moving towards their position – and quickly.

Both Keel and the Hos Dynasty made it back to their respective vessels and made ready for battle as a massive, impossibly constructed vessel of the Yu’Vath emerged from the warp, flanked by a number of smaller Void Wasps. Captain Cassis aboard the Svard Defense Frigate made an excellent showing for himself, downing three of the Void Wasps in combat leaving the Lumen and Hand of Redemption free to concentrate their fire on this new threat. The creature proved itself resilient and deadly, with weapons that seemed ill-suited for massiev damage, but so numerous and persistent that many key systems were damaged or rendered inaccessible during the fight. The Hand of Redemption was the initial target, and its torpedo bays were destroyed early in the engagement. The Lumen was also brought down to near destruction, but the steady hand of the crew alongside their traditionally excellent discipline inflicted as good as they received onto the impossible vessel, and as it turned to flee the system it was finally brought down by one last strike from the Archeotech lance.

With the Lumen’s crew devastated and its ship in bad need of repairs, as well as the Battlefleet Cruiser all-but-crippled, Captain Hos voxed over to Commander Keel, telling him that this was his introduction to the Yu’Vath…

The encounter in the Garden of the Broken Saints left the Hos Dynasty on its guard, so in the peak of Silence when a giant statue of the God Emperor came to life, not only were the Explorers unsurprised, they nearly expected it. With a cry of disdain for the heresy witnessed so far, Navigator Maturinus let fly one of his Cataclysmus Devices, and for the first time their awesome fury was unleashed in the battlefield. Turning the area where the statue stood into an nova as bright as anything encountered to date, it seemed impossible anyone could survive. And yet, though heavily damaged, the statue was not destroyed yet. Its exterior cracked and broken, it revealed purple lightning underneath that somehow animated its form together, as it charged the group.

Astropath Eckhart was the first to face its fury, and a powerful swing of its sword was only barely deflected by the Astropath’s force sword, causing him to roll to the side. The combined firepower of the Crusaders could not damage the creature, but Zacharya Caine had better luck with his plasma arm upgrade. With the statue damaged but not destroyed, Navigator Maturinus turned the fury of his warp eye upon it, and though the creature reacted with a devastating sound that nearly deafened the group, Caine got in a massive blast with his plasma arm that felled the creature.

The Astropath and Navigator both confirmed that the warp presence in the tower fled at this destruction, and Captain Hos ordered that the tower be swept to ensure there were no survivors, nor any surprises still waiting. With the Pathfinders now reinforcing the group, a swift yet measured search turned up no survivors, although they did notice a gene-locked container of some import bearing the design of the Hos Dynasty. Reacting to the Captain’s gene-coding, he discovered inside the Svardic Testament of Victris Hos which contained a mention of the Yu’Vath, a race of Xenos that may have been behind the problems inside of the system.

With no further risks detected, the Captain then searched the Sculptor’s Nave, and found an exquisite statue of Saint Aesceline the Martyr of Sinophia Magna, apparently only recently finished and of exquisite quality according to Explorator Felicis. Taking it as a symbol for the people of Svard Prime, as well as the sword of the God-Emperor statue that was still in good repair, the Captain made to quit the tower and return to Svard. Before leaving, he was confronted by both his Astropath and Navgiator, who were for once united in their opinion that the Eris Transform be destroyed. The Captain had intended to turn it over to the Inquisition as a show of his piety, but at the urging of his two warp-attuned colleagues, as well as his Explorator once he could be convinced that there were no Xenos writings in there, the Captain relented and the book was destroyed.

One Svard Defense Force Frigate was dispatched from Silence to Cog for orbital defense, the remainder set off for Svard Prime. En route, Void Mistress Nichols reported that the augur array, which had been giving her trouble for the last few days had finally cut out. Looking into the matter, Explorator Felicis discovered that the Magoros Shards appeared to have been grafted into the array, and were currently not functional. Though most parties suspected the Jokaero, neither Captain Hos nor his Honour Guard could track the elusive creature down. Arriving at Svard Prime, brief negotiations were conducted with Councillor Rhea, who appreciated the fine statue that had been acquired, and could parlay that into Ecclesiastical ties, though she still requested help restoring Kybu.

Such a thing would have to wait though, as Captain Hos met with Councillor Kane in order to discuss the restoration of the Hollow Worlds. With only one functional mining transport, the Councillor wished the In Purgatio Lumen to personally lead this expedition for defense. Though a third frigate was now operational, one was left on defense and only the Frigate led by Captain Lindsay Garret – having previously fought these Xenos, accompanied the crew. While travelling to the Hollow Worlds, the augur array suddenly came back online – the Jokaero having completed whatever it was doing. It now steadily returned a contact from the gas giant in system, and was very clearly a Xenotech component on the Archeotech ship. Though questioned about this, the Captain and Explorator shifted the blame to the deceased Syros Yurth as part of his madness – which the crew appeared to believe.

Arriving at the giant asteroid field, the crew prepared the transport as best as possible, and then the ships went to patrol. Halfway through the operation, long-range scans detected three modified System Defense Vessels en route to their location. Leaving Garret on defense, the Lumen set forth and managed to personally destroy two of the vessels – receiving minor damage in return. However, during the battle three new contacts were detected by the Lumen, yet not by the Svard frigates. Warning Garret to stay on her guard, the unknown contacts soon resolved themselves into Void Wasps – the foe previously faced near Exclusion.

Out of position, the Lumen wheeled itself around to bring its guns to bear on both targets. Finishing off the two damaged frigates, its broadsides accounted for one Wasp, and Garret herself took out another. With one frigate and one wasp left to close in on an attack run, the Lumen took out the converted frigate’s augur array, and fortunately the Transport escaped damage on the first attack run. There would not be a second, as the Lumen and Defense Frigate drove down the middle of the enemy fleet, and finished them both off.

Though one enemy frigate was completed obliterated, and the three Xenos vessels faded into the Warp as before, two frigates were hulked, but theoretically salvageable. Dispatching the Svard Prime defense frigate to come and tow the vessel back, the crew had time to study their new foes. They had modified the lance weapon, as well as inserted strange components that increased the Frigate’s speed in exchange for some armour and hull integrity.

Still two days out from Svard Prime, the captain was surprised by Astropath Poe, who reported an incoming astropathic message. Reading it, the message was from Commander Daniel Keel of Battlefleet Koronus. Responding to a distress message from the Imperial Envoy that the Svard system had fallen to heresy, he had arrived to examine the situation, and would be in orbit around Svard Prime in three days, insisting on meeting the Hos Dynasty in person to answer these charges…