The Beast Arises

‘And not terribly accurate,’ he said.

‘I noticed.’

‘I’d sack him, if I were you.’

‘Drakan,’ she said, done with his games, ‘I’m impressed. All right? Does that satisfy you? I’m impressed that you got in here without setting off any alarm or countermeasure. It is almost inhumanly chilling that you were able to do so.’

‘Thank you,’ he replied. ‘For what it’s worth, when it comes to the private Palace apartments of the High Twelve, this is by far the hardest to get into.’

He looked at her and affected an expression of innocence.

‘So I’m told,’ he said.

‘I presume you came here for a purpose,’ she said.

He sat down again, leaned back and crossed his legs.

‘I presume,’ he echoed, ‘that you read the transcripts this morning?’

‘In particular?’ she asked.

He sighed.

‘You’re really going to make me work for it, aren’t you?’ he asked. ‘The first intercepts are back from Heth’s valiant rescue mission. Ardamantua is a mess. Worse than could be imagined. The sheer scale of the loss isn’t yet reckoned, nor is the true nature of the threat. But… it’s bad news.’

‘Yes, I saw that,’ Wienand replied.

‘You’re very calm about it,’ he observed.

‘There’s no point panicking,’ she answered. ‘There’s every point making a considered and rational response. It is a threat. A severe threat.’

‘Just as you originally suggested,’ he said. ‘That’s why I thought I’d come and have a little word with you. You used me slightly, Wienand. You used me to move against Lansung in the Senatorum. That’s fine. I quite enjoyed it. It’s nice to feel wanted. You were concerned about the threat, because no one seemed to be taking it particularly seriously, but you were far more concerned with Lansung and his power bloc of allies, and the way the threat — and others like it — might be mishandled by them. It was a political manoeuvre to realign the High Lords. That’s how you sold it to me.’

‘Agreed. So?’

‘The threat’s very, very real, Wienand. It’s not a valid excuse for brokering, it’s a palpable problem. And I think you knew it was when you co-opted me. What does the Inquisition know that the rest of us don’t?’

‘I was concerned with Lansung’s high-handed attitude towards—’

Vangorich raised a hand.

‘There is a threat to the Imperium that is of far greater magnitude than anyone imagines, but the Inquisition is reluctant to disclose it. Instead, the Inquisition attempts to use political subterfuge to alter Imperial doctrine and policy.’

‘Not so,’ she said.

‘One would hope not, or that might be regarded very badly. The Inquisition taking over effective control of Imperial policy? There’s a word for that.’

‘A word?’

‘The word is “coup”.’

‘Drakan,’ she said, ‘you’re beginning to frustrate me with your paranoia. The Inquisition is not attempting to mount a political coup from within the Senatorum.’

‘Well,’ he replied, ‘it would seem to be one thing or the other. Either the Inquisition is trying to take control because it knows something the rest of us don’t, or you really are very concerned at the fitness of Lansung and his kind to sit at the high table.’

She said nothing.

‘What is the threat, Wienand?’

‘It is what it is.’

‘What is the nature of the threat?’

‘You know as much as I do, Grand Master. It is a xenos threat that requires attention.’

He rose again.

‘So you’re sticking to your story. This is all about your concern about power balance and the fitness of Lansung, Udo and the others to rule?’

She nodded.

‘Well, that rather makes it my problem, then, doesn’t it? An issue for my Officio?’

‘What do you mean?’ she asked, with a slight note of anxiety.

‘Well, if any High Lord is deemed by his peers to be unfit or unworthy, the ultimate sanction has always been the Officio Assassinorum. It’s why we exist. It is our purview. Political subterfuge is entirely a waste of time when you have the Officio to clean house.’

‘Vangorich, don’t be medieval.’

He leaned on her desk and stared into her face.

‘Then I suggest you start trusting me,’ he said. ‘Tell me the nature of this threat. Share it with all of us. Tell me what is so terrible. What scares the Inquisition so much it needs to take control of Imperial policy? What do you know?’

She stared back at him, and hesitated.

Then she said, ‘There’s nothing. Nothing to tell.’

He stood up straight.

‘I see,’ he said. ‘I see. If that’s all you’ll say, I see I must take you at your word. I suppose I had better get about my business.’

‘What does that mean?’ she asked. ‘Drakan, what are you suggesting?’

He walked to her side table, picked up the glass of water she had poured, and drank it down.

‘I’m not suggesting anything,’ he said. ‘I am going about my business and performing the duties entrusted to me.’

He walked towards the door.

‘Drakan,’ she called after him. ‘Don’t do anything. Don’t do anything foolish. Please. This situation is very sensitive. This moment… You mustn’t act rashly.’

‘I’ll try not to,’ he replied. ‘But if no one tells me where the sensitivities lie, I cannot help but step on them, can I?’