Secret War: The Annihilation Plague (Part 2)

Chapter 21

Enandra stood and activated her micro-bead. 'Yes, we're fine.'

Attelus didn't know who she was talking to, but "fine" was too stronger a word to describe how they were right now. The void shield had only been erected a second before the impact, and by the Emperor, it shook everything so much that the bottles fell off the table, and many of the Stormtroopers were thrown off their feet. Soloston was knocked from his chair. The Sisters and the power-armoured Throne Agent stayed standing.

Attelus had stayed sitting, but his heart was thumping so hard it seemed like it was thrumming a mile a second through his rib cage.

The Canoness reached to her ear. 'Report!' she snapped.

'What was that?' said Hadrel.

'Orbital lance strike,' said Enandra as if it was the most minor thing in the galaxy. 'Your enemy almost had us wiped out in one fell swoop. If it weren't for my people, you'd all be molten slag right now. The Adeptus Arbites weren't so lucky. As we speak, a void battle is being waged among the merchant and transport ships in orbit, but it seems more of a slaughter from the report.'

She turned to Soloston. 'I think it's you who owe me now.'

Soloston said nothing; he just kept on frowning.

'The shield has been overridden,' said the Canoness.

'Well, get it the hell back up!' said Enandra. 'It'll take less than forty minutes for the lance to recharge for another blast.'

'Yes, yes, of course,' said the Canoness.

'As I recall, I am in charge here,' said Soloston.

That made Enandra's gaze swing on him. 'You still think that, do you? Nor after you've shown your incompetence in letting this conspiracy go unnoticed right under your nose!'

'I came to this holy place for prayer and recompense,' said Soloston. 'For contemplation and quiet, to pray for forgiveness...'

'What? For your order of Exterminatus on Gurtar?' said Enandra.

Soloston's frown deepened, and his attention fell to the floor.

'Well, Soloston, only in death does duty end, and your duty as an Inquisitor overrides your need to wallow in self-pity no matter what you did. That is what led to General Tathe's fall.'

Soloston's reply was a grimace.

'Excuse me,' said a voice, and everyone turned to find it was the Palantine. 'I think there's one huge problem we have to speak about. One big thing we need to talk about.'

'What's that?' said Enandra.

'Now it is confirmed the plague is of heretical origin. What are we going to do with the thousands of sick people downstairs?'

Enandra exchanged a glance with the Canoness.

Attelus clenched his jaw. He could only think of one thing the Puritanical Sisters would do, slaughter them in mass, and Attelus wouldn't blame them if they did. His heart leapt in his chest, those poor people to be sent here in the hope of sanctuary and a cure or at the least a vaccine, but now they will be likely burned alive or shot into a paste, and they would have no idea why.

Enandra looked at Soloston. 'You said that their sickness was not unnatural according to your tests.'

He nodded. 'Indeed. You might think I am incompetent as an Inquisitor, but I can assure you, I am more than competent as a scientist, and their sickness was not warp based.'

Soloston looked at Attelus. 'It sounds like you were correct in your assessment, young man. The local government was sending us the normal sick, not the people locked in that horrific quarantine centre.'

'So we are not going to do a thing,' said Enandra. 'Just increase the guard on them considerably.'

This made another silence hang in the air.

'Hmm,' said Attelus as he stroked his thin chin, making everyone look at him. 'What if killing them is the trigger?'

'What?' said Soloston.

'Have any of the people you've been looking after died yet?' said Attelus.

'No,' said Soloston. 'Despite the fact there is a five per cent fatality rate according to the local authorities.'

'Okay. So, what if the quarantined people in the beds had died, and that's why they have stepped up in the uhh, symptoms?'

'But those people seemed alive according to your agent?' said the Palantine.

Attelus shrugged. 'If there's something I've learned a long time ago is: sometimes, death is not the end.'

Especially in my case.

'So you think, if we kill them, they'll be infected properly, boy?' said the Canoness. 'That's insane.'

He looked at her. 'Last time I checked, mamzel, there's nothing "sane" about the warp and the Ruinous Powers.'

'Well,' said the Palantine. 'As much as I hesitate to say this, I think if that is even a small possibility, we need to burn them. Alive, I am afraid.'

'We are not doing that,' said Enandra as she glared daggers at Attelus. 'Not unless there is confirmation without any doubt. Until then, as much as I respect the insight of one of my Throne Agents, especially one that has a...unique view of this galaxy, until then, it's just conjecture. We must assume they are loyal, innocent Imperial Citizens.'

'Unless they are not,' said Soloston as he pulled a laspistol from a holster beneath his robes. 'We have a few that are convicts with a history of murder and other criminal activities. We must test your boy's hypothesis. Many of them were to be executed for their crimes, anyway.'

Enandra clenched her teeth. 'If that's the case, why did you have them brought here? You wished to cure these criminals then?'

'It is in case we need to have a few dead specimens for autopsy,' said Soloston, and Attelus couldn't help gape at how cold the Inquisitor's voice was. 'This is my area of expertise, Inquisitor Enandra, so let me do what must be done.'

The motto of this organisation filtered through Attelus' mind, we do what must be done, and he looked at Enandra, whose jaw was grinding like never before.

'You are one ruthless bastard, Soloston,' she said.

A small smile crawled across Soloston's thin lips. 'Of course, it comes with the territory, does it not? You should know this by now.'

Soloston's goggled gaze swivelled to Attelus. 'We are going to do this, and you are coming with me as a witness; this was your idea, so you must take responsibility.'

Attelus gulped and nodded. 'O-okay.'

The Canoness turned to the Palantine. 'Take a squad and gather the criminal patients.'

'Yes, mamzel Canoness,' said the Palantine, and she stomped out of the room; she didn't hide the hesitancy on her face.

Enandra looked at the Canoness. 'Also, increase the patrols on the wall.'

'You think there might be a ground assault?' said the Canoness.

'I don't think there will be a ground assault,' said Enandra. 'I know there will be.'

Attelus shrugged and pursed his lips; only if we get the void shield back up in time, he thought.