Asmodai

From Codex: Angels of Darkness

"Repent! Repent!"

The Interrogator-Chaplain's words echoed resoundingly off the rough walls of the cavernous cell. Rather than sounding like one man, the echoes created the impression that a whole army of Chaplains were interrogating the Space Marine. The Fallen Dark Angel said nothing.

The Chaplain paced across the stone floor before the restrained Dark Angel. The glow of halogen lamps reflected off the polished black surface of his armour while with one hand he toyed with the rosarius around his neck. Asmodai had served the Chapter for over a century and in all that time only two of the Fallen had repented of their sins to him.

The Chaplain stopped in front of his prisoner and turned to face the broken warrior. Cold, dark eyes stared out from behind the skull-mask of Asmodai's armour. "Repent!" he hissed.

The Fallen shut his eyes tight in an attempt to avoid the Interrogator's piercing gaze.

"Repent now and your death will be swift and relatively painless," Asmodai stated cooly. "Continue to refuse to admit your guilt and you will die in agony, the likes of which you will only have imagined in your worst nightmares. The savagery of the daemons of the warp is nothing compared to the wrath of the Emperor!"

The Fallen Dark Angel opened his bloodshot eyes again and looked about him. The cold, unforgiving walls of the gloomy chamber held no encouragement. The imposing figure of the Interrogator-Chaplain glowered back at him.

The constant drip of water from the damp walls of the dungeon filled the captured Space Marine's ears. He closed his eyes, trying to shut out the sound of the water. The dripping became a tapping, the tapping became a thumping until it was the panicked beating of his own heart pounding inside his head.

Shadows flickered and writhed across the fissured rock and the darkest shadow in the cell moved closer.

"Who is your lord?" demanded Asmodai.

"I have no lord and master."

"The Emperor is your lord!"

"The Emperor rjected us, Chaos curse his soul," whimpered the Fallen, his spirit on the verge of breaking. "Lion El'Jonson betrayed us!"

"The Primarch is our savior!" the Chaplain roared. "The Lion sacrificed himself that the order might survive. It is to him we owe everything: our Chapter, our strenght, our salvation, the very fibre of our being. And you dare say you have no lord?" Asmodai spat, his growling whisper full of contempt.

The Fallen Dark Angel knew not how long he had been imprisoned within the Rock or for how many days the interrogation had lasted so far. All he knew no was that he just wanted to get away from the Chaplain's constant goading and torments. Restrained by the plasteel clamps, however, all he could do was turn his head away from his interrogator.

His voice composed again, the Interrogator-Chaplain Amsodai spoke matter of factly in an emotionless tone as if he were reciting words he had uttered on countless occasions: "As you will not admit to your wrong-doing and will not repent of your sins then it falls to me to relieve you of your guilt by whatever means are necessary."

At this moment the Fallen noticed the device the Chaplain had picked up in his other hand. Its many sharply-honed and polished blades gleamed red in the dim light.

"It is my sacred duty to save your soul form the Dark Gods of Chaos," Asmodai intoned, "and I will save your soul, even if you die in the process."