A slight smile tugged at my lips as I held the gaze of the nearest knight of grey. His spirit felt more akin to a Custodes than an Astartes.

  "You are made using my father's gene-seed, yes?"

  He remained silent, staring me down. I shifted to a more comfortable position. "That makes you more akin to a brother than a nephew to me..." I giggled softly. "Well. May I have your name?"

  He still didn't move.

  "I won't bite, and I don't know the magics that use a person's name. Well, I can't use them, even without all these..." I reached up and touched the metal collar around me neck. "Please?"

  The knight of grey shifted. "Captain Olfren Kilhoun."

  I bowed my head and crossed one arm over my chest. "It is a great pleasure to meet you, Captain Olfren Kilhoun. I am Evaria Manoash, Primarch of the Unbreakable Legion."

  The door opened, and I lifted my gaze to see a man halfway to being a machine, but dressed more like the Inquisitor than the tech-priest Omnac. He approached me with a great sense of importance and purpose, and just as he reached the perimeter the knights of grey had made, Olfren stepped between us.

  "What business have you here, Grand Inquisitor?"

  "I needn't explain myself to an Astartes."

  I narrowed my eyes slightly. All of this rivalry between the parts of the Imperium... How did they accomplish anything? Competition is good, but this... Disgust touched my expression as I recalled my brothers having called such activities 'pissing contests'.

  "No one is to speak with the prisoner without express approval from all members of the tribunal, including members of the tribunal." Olfren gripped his power halberd tighter.

  "And yet you just revealed your name and rank to her." The Grand Inquisitor narrowed his remaining eye. "As such I should have you removed from duty, as her abilities have already affected you."

  I could feel the murderous intent in Olfren, and I began to wonder if many on this world would question or care if he struck the Grand Inquisitor down then and there.

  The door opened once more, and the Adepta Sororitas that seemed to lead the rest on this world swiftly approached.

  "Grand Inquisitor Richten! What do you think you're doing?"

  The Grand Inquisitor rolled his eye and turned to face her. "I merely wished to ask the self proclaimed Primarch for proof of her lineage."

  The Sororitas leader narrowed her eyes, her hand gripping the hilt of her blade. "And what form would that take?"

  "A blood sample to be tested against the Blood Ravens that chaperoned her, even tested against a Grey Knight would suffice, as she'd have some genetic markers in common with them, being of the God Emperor's gene-seed. I explain this as a courtesy, Prioress Alessandra, for I am using your facilities to house the self proclaimed Primarch. But know that this world is within my sector, and even were it not, I answer only to the Emperor himself." He returned his gaze to Olfren. "Let me pass."

  Olfren didn't budge. "The effects of the being are too great to trust any that aren't explicitly immune. Grand Inquisitor, it would be best if you removed yourself from her reach and re-evaluate, to ensure she is not having such an effect on you. My brothers all are prepared to cut myself and the three others here guarding her without hesitation should we prove corrupted."

  The Grand Inquisitor bristled, and I sensed his retort building up within him, yet he stopped himself.

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  "Your recommendation is duly noted and respected, Captain. Unfortunately, time is of the essence. If she is what she claims to be, and even if she isn't, she is liable to be a beacon for the forces of Chaos, and we need to know whose side she's on before they get here." He looked back at the Sororitas. "Wouldn't you agree, Prioress?"

  Alessandra considered the Inquisitor's logic. Her eyes kept darting to me, and I kept myself as docile and nonthreatening as possible. She seemed to nod.

  "I will collect the sample, Grand Inquisitor, should Evaria permit me. The God Emperor's light has protected me thus far, and so it shall protect me still."

  Annoyance brewed within Alkin, but he acquiesced and took a few steps back. The one called Alessandra approached me, confident, yet respectful. Before she could ask, I held out my arm to her.

  "You have my consent. For the sake of not being called into question, do not allow my blood to come into contact with your skin."

  Alessandra eyed me, but nodded. A tech-priest approached with a servitor and a cardinal. I sighed inwardly at the inane rituals these people afforded for themselves as they prayed and swung censers. The tech-priest handed Alessandra a syringe, which she stabbed into my wrist. She drew my blood, and once she'd pulled her draught she handed me a bandage. I tended the wound myself as I spoke.

  "Prioress Alessandra?"

  She handed off the syringe to the tech-priest. "Take this immediately to Denyal and have it sequenced with a Grey Knight and a Blood Raven’s gene-seed." She then turned to me as the tech-priest, Cardinal, and servitor scurried away. "Yes?"

  "I trust you've taken good care of my sons, daughters, and nephew?"

  She narrowed her eyes slightly at me. "All are under observation, but ultimately well. I ask, however, how you purified the World Eater?"

  I sized up the woman before me, much as I had Sarai. My father's Will surrounded and permeated her, eking out her every pore. The Grand Inquisitor spoke before I could respond.

  "Is it by the God Emperor's Will?"

  "My father's will is that the chaos-touched burn eternally." The words slipped from my lips before I could stop them. I slowed myself down, took a breath, and continued. "My Will can divorce the ties between a Chaos God and beings not born of Chaos."

  Alessandra crossed her arms, skepticism radiating out of her.

  "My nephew is proof enough of that."

  She watched me for a moment longer before she spoke. "So you can purify Chaos-felled worlds?"

  "Within reason. If a person has changed too much physiologically, it would take me too long to purify them fully, and they are unlikely to survive the process if I don’t focus most of my attention to each individual. At that point putting them down is the only mercy I can offer. And, it took quite a bit of focus to purify my nephew. My body and powers feel like a newborn's: I have much to do to regain my full strength."

  Alkin took a step forward, causing the knights of grey to shift. "And the reach of your powers?"

  "Further than you think, but still not far enough..."

  The one they called Alessandra took a step closer. "This chamber, it doesn't actually contain you, does it?"

  The sharp intelligence in her eyes seemed to cut through me, and I noticed the Grand Inquisitor had come to the same conclusion.

  "I have submitted to the authority of those who would vindicate or condemn me. It would be rude to break or circumvent your restraints after having already promised co-operation. Though I must ask, this world was beset by Tzeentch at some point between the Great Crusade and now, correct?"

  The Grand Inquisitor and Prioress shared a glance. Alkin took in a breath. "How did you know?"

  I turned my gaze to him. "I felt his presence on orbital entry amidst that of my father."

  Alessandra slowly nodded, her hands shifting to her hips. "The Tyrant of Blueflame, a Lord of Change, invaded and oppressed this world after the fall of Cadia. It took Regent Guilliman himself with a contingent of Black Templars to liberate the world."

  I ruminated on the title, but ultimately shook my head. "I do not recognize this daemon. I at least never faced him before, though I was most oft crossing blades with the followers of Khorne and Nurgle during the Great Crusade. My brother Magnus would more likely know, or Malcador."

  I could see it in their eyes, and feel it in their hearts. The confusion. The revulsion at my brother's name, the sorrow at Malcador's.

  "What is it?"

  Alkin spoke first. "Suffice it to say we won't get answers out of either of them."

  The mix of emotions wafting off of the people around me confirmed my fears, but left me only with more questions.

  "I see. In any case, Prioress Alessandra, Grand Inquisitor Richten... I suggest you root out the source of the Tzeentchian influence. It has likely gone unnoticed due to how much my father's presence perforates this world."

  I watched as the Saint and Grand Inquisitor shared a look, and the latter left the room without another word.