Heretic?

by Lim Jyue

"It is nice to see you again, Inquistor. I hope I'll see you in good health the next time we meet."

With that, the Traitor Marine shimmered and teleported away, leaving a stunned audience behind.

The Inquisitor looked grimly around the room. None of the occupants could meet his gaze, none save the Canoness. The Canoness looked at him, a frown upon her face.

"He knows you."

The Inquisitor almost laughed at the remark, but a metallic clatter behind him made him stop. He turned around, and found himself staring at the barrel of a boltgun. He looked at the owner of the boltgun, and stared into the cold eyes of the Sister Superior.

"Put the gun down, Sister."

The boltgun stayed rock-steady.

" 'Let it be known that those who trafficked with the Daemon are damned traitors, and worse than damned. For they have broken faith with the Emperor, and have turned from His light and even now thread on the path of damnation.' "

"I do not traffick with Daemons, Sister. Put the gun down."

Instead of doing that, the Sister Superior reached forward and charged the boltgun. The sound of the bolt sliding into the chamber of the boltgun is greeted by the silence in the room.

" 'Let it also be known that for these damned heretics and all around them there can be only one sentence, death, for it is better that one hundred innocents fall before the wrath of the Emperor than one kneels before the Daemon.' "

"I am not a heretic, Sister. Put the gun down."

The safety of the boltgun came off with a omnious click.

" 'Let it also be known that it is the duty of the servants of the Emperor to destroy these heretics. For these traitors, there can be no mercy. They have shunned the Emperor's Light, and as such deserve no mercy. Thoughts of mercy towards these damned heretics have no place in the minds of the servants of the Emperor, for such mercy weakens us and saps our resolves. Thoughts of mercy towards these lost and damned can only led us towards damnation, and thus are to be purged from our minds.' "

"I am neither heretic nor traitor, Sister. I am a loyal servant fo the Emperor, just as you are. Put down the gun!"

" 'But beware the unseen traitor, for he shall bring even the mightiest down into heresy. Watch and wait, for such traitors will surely rise against the Emperor. When these traitors rise against the loyal servants of the Emperor, there can be no mercy and no quarters given to the lost and damned. Smite them with the Emperor's fury. Render upon them the Emperor's Judgement, and rest not till every one of the heretics is Judged and the sentence pronounced and executed. Deliver upon them the Emperor's Peace, for only with His Peace can such traitors and heretics return to His light. Then, and only then, can the servants of the Emperor be considered worthy of His protection.' "

The Sister Superior paused. The silence in the room was complete.

The Imperial Guardsmen in the room fidgeted nervously with their lasguns. The Guards Captain had pulled out his bolt pistol, but it was wavering between the Sister Superior and the Inquisitor. Various Sisters have taken up positions around the room, waiting for the bloodbath they were sure would happen. Only the Canoness sat unmoving, her eyes boring into both of them. The boltgun came up, until the barrel was pointed directly at the Inquistor's forehead.

"The truth, Inquisitor!"

"THE TRUTH? YOU DEMAND THE TRUTH FROM AN INQUISITOR, CHILD?" The Inquisitor exploded, the pent-up tensions within him releasing. "I SPENT THE LAST TWENTY YEARS IN PURGARTORY BECAUSE OF THAT FIEND, WAITING FOR A CHANCE TO REDEEM MYSELF, AND YOU DARED DEMAND THE TRUTH FROM ME?"

Reaching down, the Inquisitor took his bolt pistol up and threw it upon the polished table between the two of them. The thud of the pistol landing went unnoticed as every weapon in the room came to bear on the two of them around the table.

"IF YOU WISH TO JUDGE ME, CHILD, JUDGE ME NOW AND DELIVER THE EMPEROR'S JUDGEMENT!" the Inquisitor roared, pointing at the bolt pistol.

"TAKE UP THE INQUISITOR'S GUN, CHILD, AND JUDGE ME!"

Silence decended onto the room.

The Sister Superior locked eyes with the Inquisitor. Then with swift, practiced motion she safed her boltgun, removed the magazine and ejected the loaded round. Catching the ejecting round, she turned from the Inquistor.

"Dare you not judge me, child?" The Inquisitor asked to her back.

"It is not my place to judge you, Inquisitor," the Sister Superior said in a soft voice, "It is not my place as I am also lost and damned, given a chance by the Emperor to redeem myself. I cannot judge you, because I am the same as you."

She pushed the boltgun round into the magazine and slid the magazine back into her boltgun with a metallic snick. She turned back towards the Inquisitor and looked at the aged man. She could see on his face where the years of knowing that he had failed the Emperor has left their marks. It was easy for her to see the marks, for she bore the same burden as the Inquisitor. It was like looking into a mirror.

She reached out and took up the bolt pistol. Taking it by the barrel, she offered it to the Inquisitor, butt first. The Inquisitor looked at her.

"Perhaps, if you survive this, you can judge for yourselve whether you have redeemed yourselves. Perhaps, you can decide whether you have earned the Emporer's Grace."

The Inquisitor shook his head.

"There can be no redemption for those who failed the Emperor, Sister, no peace for us. We are forever marked, and as such cannot redeem themselves. The best we can hope for is death in battle, slaying the enemies of the Emperor."