Part 8 (2/2)
Seth shuddered, his talents still open to the warp, and in that moment he could hear it again: the voice from the monastery. Something ( beneath his feet Something below ) crying out from a great, unknowable distance. He heard it each time he used his powers now, and feared the onset of warp taint in his mind. With a glance at the commissar, Seth sealed his mind off from the world, relying on his five natural senses.
a”Your drivers are skilled,a” said Tionenji, watching the gra.s.slands being chewed up into a mora.s.s of meaningless patterns. Hundreds of tank treads gouged across the muddy earth.
The commissar pointed to ten transports spread out in a V-formation, which promptly screeched to swerving halts in unison, forming a tight circle of armour with their fronts facing inward and rears out. Ten gangways slammed down into the ravaged mud and a hundred men ran from the vehicles, taking up positions with rifles raised.
a”I know that formation,a” Tionenji said.
Thade smiled at the perfect deployment, recognising Taan leading the hundred men there. He flicked a glance at the commissar. a”Is that so?a”
a”That is the Steel Star.a” Tionenjia's oak-brown eyes smiled even if his lips did not. a”Worthless in an urban battlefield, but extremely difficult to perform as precisely as I see it being done here. One might think you were showing off, captain.a”
All three Cadians laughed, though only Thadea's was a natural sound. Setha's laugh was a low, wet chuckle, Osirona's a mechanical wheeze. Thade shook his head.
a”We call it Opening the Eye, but yes, ita's the same manoeuvre. And in all honesty, commissar, we dona't show off. Perfecting moves like this is one of the ways the 88th trains for formation deployment.a” Thade inclined his head, gesturing across the field where ten Chimeras under Major Craycea's command repeated the move in an orchestra of grinding gears and roaring engines. Osiron closed his eyes, listening intently to the music only he could hear, making silent notes about which Chimeras to check over once the training was complete.
a”Tonight is used for this deployment training, yes? No combat exercise?a”
a”Not tonight. The colonel deemed this necessary instead.a”
a”Ah, I see.a” Tionenji nodded.
a”You do?a”
a”I am not blind to your, forgive me, our regimenta's expertise. The monastery fight must have tasted foul to many of the men, yes? There was little opportunity for the rapid deployment and tactical insertion the 88th excels at. And the colonel decided to allow the men to relieve some stress. Am I correct?a”
a”You see clearly, commissar.a”
Tionenji nodded, already looking back to the field. a”I try.a”
Thade looked at the jungle-worlder for a moment. Tionenji was making an open effort to connect with him and show his willingness to bond with the regiment, which was not what the captain had been expecting in a commissar appointed by the lord general.
a”I believe ita's time you met the men,a” Thade said. He was acutely aware of Setha's and Osirona's eyes on his back as he spoke to the commissar. Tionenji turned to the Cadian, regarding his violet eyes under the silver winged medal.
a”I was going to wait until tomorrow morning for a formal presentation alongside the inquisitora's briefing. What did you have in mind, captain?a”
Thade told him. Tionenji considered the ramifications for a moment, and eventually nodded.
a”I agree to this contest. But tell me, why is it to first blood?a”
a”Cadian duels are always to first blood. If you strike true, first blood is all you need to make the kill. And if you dona't strike true, youa're not Cadian.a”
a”Your people are very arrogant,a” Tionenji said without any real judgement. It was merely an observation.
a”Cadian blood,a” whispered Seth. a”The fuel of the Imperium.a”
a”We are the ones that die so all others might live,a” said Osiron.
a”That is a boast the men and women of many worlds can make, enginseer,a” retorted Tionenji.
a”Take one look where our home world is, commissar,a” Thade said. a”Now take note that the Imperium still stands. We have every right to be arrogant.a”
The gra.s.sland plain was silent but for the murmurs of men placing bets. Tionenji allowed them this, knowing it would be good for morale and seeing no need to begin his tenure with unnecessary confrontation. If the lord general was right in his a.s.sessment, the newly-appointed commissar would be making enemies aplenty soon enough. Once the executions began.
He liked Thade, he had to admit. The captain was honest, if not entirely open, and his record spoke of an accomplished officer, perhaps even a gifted one. Would he shoot Parmenion Thade dead without a seconda's hesitation if the need arose? Absolutely. Would he regret the deed afterwards? Maybe. It would certainly not sit well with the men of the 88th. Tionenji scanned the crowd now, already committing faces to memory. Pale skin, bright eyes of blue or violet A fey breed, these Cadians.
Initially the gathering had been limited to Captain Thadea's three hundred men, but as the news had sped across the vox a- a”Thadea's fighting the new commissar!a” a- the entire regiment had parked up and formed into a wide ring around the captain and Tionenji. Men sat and kneeled on the ground, others stood behind, and still others stood atop their Chimeras, eager for a view of the action.
Seth had gripped Thadea's wrist before the crowd had gathered.
a”I need to speak with you, sir.a”
a”I wona't let him shoot you, Seth.a” Thade found it easy to relate to his brothers in the regiment, but something about Seth always unnerved any who spoke with him. His ragged appearance, the psy-feeds buried into the back of his skull, the way he looked as if he was drowning in his own too-large jacket, the sucking of air through his teeth to avoid drooling; it was all something of a wretched picture, but that wasna't the whole story. Setha's power set him apart. In a culture centred so closely around the tenets of unity and brotherhood, those who stood alone were doomed to be forever distrusted.
Seth had grinned at the captaina's rea.s.surance. The effect was ugly, revealing several shattered teeth, lost when his powers had raged out of control and almost snapped his neck some months before.
a”I do not fear the new political officer, captain. I need to speak with you about the cards.a”
a”Tomorrow, Seth.a”
a”Parmenion.a” Setha's frail grip tightened on the captaina's bionic wrist. Thade quelled the rush of instinct that almost made him pull his bolt pistol.
The use of his name unnerved him along with the grip and the sincerity in the sanctioned psykera's voice. a”What is it?a”
a”Tomorrow is fine. But this is important. For you, certainly, but perhaps for the entire Reclamation. Please, speak with me tomorrow. The tarot cannot be ignored.a”
Thade nodded and pulled away. a”Fine, Seth.a” He hesitated before walking off. The tension between himself and the sanctioned psyker was something he was grudgingly hoping to wear down one day. He looked at Setha's retreating back, hunched over as the smaller man leaned on his staff for support.
The moment pa.s.sed. Others came to steal Thadea's attention.
Colonel Lockwood was next to speak with the captain. He rested a hand on Thadea's armoured shoulder, his weathered fingers covering the twin eights marked in white.
a”Dona't try to talk me out of this, sir,a” Thade said. a”We both know this is a good idea.a”
Lockwooda's scowl spoke volumes. His lined face was a route map of battles hea'd been fighting for longer than Thade had been alive. Veterans, true veterans over fifty years of age, were rare in the Cadian Shock. Such was the fate of the Imperial Guarda's most often-tested regiment. No matter how good you are, the odds will always get you in the end.
The colonel pulled him aside. a”Ia'll get him transferred. Wea'll have a Cadian appointed before we leave for the next campaign. You have my word on that, son.a”
Thade glanced around to be sure none of the nearby soldiers could overhear. a”Last time I checked, sir, men with violet eyes were trained d.a.m.n hard not to complain about orders. We do what we do because we can and we must.a”
a”Ita's an insult. We all know it.a”
a”Ita's an order. The implied insult is meaningless to me.a”
a”Ita's not meaningless to the men, Parmenion. Not to the regiment.a” The conversation halted as a cl.u.s.ter of soldiers approached to salute the colonel and wish Thade luck. The two officers nodded and waited until the men had moved away.
<script>