The Beast Arises

‘Verraux is dead,’ said Yendl. Haast nodded, her eyes fixed on her prisoner.

‘That I suspected,’ said Isolde. ‘I have had no word from her for some time.’

‘I was nearly discovered,’ said Yendl.

‘Are we further compromised?’ asked Isolde.

‘They look for me, but cannot find me,’ said Yendl. ‘My information gathering suffers — I must find new access to the Martian noosphere. They are watching the old ways.’

‘That is acceptable,’ said Isolde. ‘Tybalt?’

‘He is hidden still,’ said Haast. ‘I moved his cryo-pod a week ago and checked on it before coming here. No signs of detection.’

‘Then matters could be worse,’ said Isolde. ‘Let us deal with this one while we wait for the message.’

Haast bent to the man’s head and ripped his gag free. He looked at the three Assassins confidently.

‘We work to the same goals,’ he said without preamble. ‘I mean you no harm. You can release me.’

‘We will be the judges of that,’ said Yendl. ‘Who are you, who do you work for?’

‘Whoever I’m told to be, but I’ve been ordered to reveal my purpose should my life be threatened by you.’

‘I’d say it is threatened,’ said Isolde, her hand straying to her knife.

‘I can only agree,’ said the man.

Isolde squatted down next to him. ‘Your name is Raznick. You work for Wienand.’

‘Now how did you come by that information?’ said Raznick.

Isolde tapped her head. ‘Memcore implant. I have a record of every Inquisitorial agent active in the Sol System.’

‘The ones you know about,’ said Raznick.

‘I know about you,’ said Isolde.

‘Wienand’s dead,’ said Haast. ‘You’re out of a job.’

‘Is she now?’ said Raznick.

‘What is your mission?’ asked Yendl.

‘Observation, nothing more. I was told to keep an eye on you, make sure Lord Vangorich doesn’t have you do anything rash.’

Isolde scowled. ‘You of the Inquisition, the keepers of the Imperium. Amateurs.’

‘Maybe I wanted to get caught?’ said Raznick.

‘Right,’ said Isolde. ‘Because you want me to make a hole in your brain. Clever.’

‘Shh!’ hissed Haast.

Suddenly, all three members of the Assassinorum cell had pistols in their hands and trained on the drainage door. A faint skittering came up the enclosed canal outside. Isolde moved to the bottom of the ramp. They waited as the pattering grew louder.

A rat appeared in the door, weirdly long-limbed and long-bodied, a Terran animal adapted to the lower-gravity conditions of Mars.

‘It is here,’ said Isolde, holstering her weapon. The rat remained stock still as she bent down and picked it up. It immediately sank its teeth into the web of her thumb.

Blood welled from the bite as she returned to the others and offered the rat to them. Yendl and Haast allowed it to bite them.

‘Red Haven gathered,’ said Isolde.

‘Red Haven confirmed,’ said the rat, and expired in Haast’s hands.

Yendl extended a fine cutting tool from her augmetic hand and sliced the rat from jaw to the base of its tail. Haast spread the belly. Inside, the rat was mostly cybernetic, a tiny mechanism surrounded by meat. Haast retrieved a silver ball from a housing at the centre. It bleeped, and a recorded message began to play.

‘Red Haven. This is Grand Master Vangorich. I have received Yendl’s troubling information regarding Kubik’s new experiments. Our suspicions that he is working entirely for the good of Mars and not the Imperium as a whole are being sadly borne out. We must prepare contingencies for a final solution.

‘Yendl, gather information on this new venture. Find out what the Adeptus Mechanicus want so many ork bodies for, and what they are doing with them. Prime your noospheric plague phage for release. If the Adeptus Mechanicus make their move, we shall decapitate the priesthood and destroy its informational network. Haast, hand over the care of Tybalt to Isolde. You are the most talented infiltrator in the cell. I want you to watch Kubik night and day. Build up a complete picture of his every habit. Operational level detail to be collated and submitted to me by the end of next week via the usual channels. Once you have this, Haast, you and Isolde are to find a suitable deployment site for Tybalt, and secrete him nearby. Isolde, begin preparation to infiltrate Kubik’s household as soon as Haast has performed her task. I want all three of you in position. One Assassin may be stopped, four cannot be.’

‘He’s going to assassinate the Fabricator General of Mars? He’s overstepping his office,’ said Raznick. ‘Can’t you see that? Let me report to my superiors! If you go through with this, it will mean civil war.’

‘Preparation does not betoken execution,’ said Isolde. ‘Preparedness is the watchword of the Officio Assassinorum.’

‘We’re going to have to kill you, Raznick,’ said Haast.

‘Your task is great, but you have my utmost confidence,’ Vangorich was saying. ‘The survival of the Imperium hangs by a thread. No matter your duty, I know you will perform it without question. I know you will succeed.’

‘Raznick’s death was the only outcome,’ said Isolde. ‘Did you think we might let him live, Haast?’

‘No,’ Haast said.