Hive Bastion Omega, Midnight
Sergeant Dain moved through the dim corridors of the command center like a shadow, his heartbeat steady despite the revelation that gnawed at his mind. The Adeptus Custodes—the Emperor's own warriors—were coming. Not just for the Tau. Not just for the Archivist.
For him.
The knowledge settled like a weight in his gut, pressing against his faith, his duty. The Inquisition was preparing something, something vast and terrible. A purge. A world-ending decision that Dain could feel creeping closer like a storm at the edge of the horizon.
He needed answers.
And he had little time to find them.
---
Orders from the Inquisition
At dawn, he was summoned back to the Inquisition's war room. The tension in the chamber was thick, a silent storm brewing beneath the surface. Inquisitor Malkior stood at the center of it, his hands resting on the edges of a holo-display.
Dain saluted, keeping his expression neutral.
"My lord."
Malkior didn't look up immediately, studying the shifting tactical layout of the planet. Finally, he spoke.
"Sergeant Dain. You will be reassigned immediately."
Dain stiffened. This was happening too fast. "Reassigned, my lord?"
Malkior's gaze locked onto him, cold and calculating. "The war has changed. The Tau's retreat has left behind an unstable front, and we require capable men to reinforce our efforts elsewhere. You will be attached to a new unit, leading a detachment deep into the ruins of the fallen city of Kardhal Prime. The enemy left something behind, and we mean to claim it before they return."
A mission. A relocation. A way to move him off the board.
Dain kept his expression unreadable. "Understood, my lord."
Malkior studied him for a moment longer. "Your loyalty to the Imperium has not gone unnoticed, Sergeant. See that you uphold it."
Dain saluted again. "Always, my lord."
But inside, his mind was racing.
---
The Hidden Interface
As he left the war room, the unseen power within him stirred once more.
---
[New Mission Assigned: Retrieve the Lost Artifact]
Objective: Deploy to Kardhal Prime. Investigate the ruins. Survive.]
---
Dain's hands clenched into fists. Damn it, Archivist.
Ever since the entity had gifted him this ability, it had remained a silent, lingering presence in his mind. A hidden force that reacted to his actions, guiding and shaping his path in ways he barely understood. At first, he had resisted, determined to cling to his faith, to his loyalty.
But now, he wasn't sure what to believe anymore.
The Inquisition was hiding something. The Custodes were coming. And now, he was being sent into a dead city to retrieve some unknown artifact?
This isn't just war anymore. This is something else.
The Emperor had given him purpose, given him strength. But was this path still His will? Or had something far older already set him on a different course?
Dain tightened his grip on his weapon. He would obey his orders. He would march into the ruins.
But he would not be blind.