Chapter 12: Traitor in the High Ranks
"Elias, I am Lucan, the current Acting Captain of this voidship. You say you saw the Master of Discipline with Lord Ludwig heading down below?"
Lucan quickly connected to Elias's vox. As he said this, Lucan also used his current perceptive abilities to sense Master of Discipline Scott, who was on the bridge.
At this moment, Scott still appeared diligent, handling a large volume of battle reports from the lower decks and personnel assignments, showing no sign of anything unusual.
"If the Master of Discipline went below with the Rogue Trader... then who is this one here now? If Scott truly accompanied the Rogue Trader below, then why didn't he report such crucial information to me?"
Something was fishy! Definitely fishy. If the Scott Elias mentioned wasn't an imposter, then Scott was absolutely hiding something.
"That's correct, my Captain! I wouldn't mistake him; it was definitely Master of Discipline Scott! The few surviving priests who were with me can also testify! They were by my side at the time! They said they were going to find something! I personally watched them head towards the bottom hold!" Elias said urgently.
"I understand... You should rest well for now. I will remember your service, and the Dynasty will also remember your contribution."
After disconnecting the vox communication, Lucan subtly contacted Verre.
"Verre, has the new batch completed their refit?"
"Captain! Two hundred soldiers have completed their refit, and five soldiers equipped with Marauder combat suits are also ready. They are preparing to go and support Lieutenant Damon," Verre's voice carried a distinct note of joy.
"First, recall 100 soldiers up here. Also, bring all the Marauders to the bridge."
"The bridge? Captain, have you encountered some trouble?"
"What do you know about Scott?"
"Scott? Why do you ask, Captain? Although his dereliction of duty this time was severe, he is usually quite competent. There haven't been any major issues in recent years, and he has even accrued considerable merit!"
"When did he come aboard this voidship?"
"He was born on this voidship. His clan has always worked on the lower decks. However, he was selected to become an Enforcer for the bottom hold. His lower deck origins made it easier for him to handle the disputes among those dregs below, and he quelled several riots, which is how he received commendations and rose step-by-step to his current position."
"The bottom hold... what exactly is that place on this voidship?"
"That's a place even the lower deck shipwrights are unwilling to go... The lower decks at least have basic living support. As long as you work hard, the ration cards you receive can get you enough corpse starch or small amounts of normal food, as well as filtered drinking water. If you're frugal, you might even have a surplus to get a couple of pieces of clothing, or trade for some smokes or booze.
Let's tentatively call them smokes and booze...
But the bottom hold... strictly speaking, it's not a normal deck. This Lunar-class cruiser has served the Dynasty for many years.
The Imperium only allows privately owned warships up to the Lunar class, and even then, only those decommissioned by the Navy can be purchased.
So, since acquiring this voidship, the Dynasty has spent a fortune inviting the Adeptus Mechanicus to repair and modify it to ensure its normal operation and enhance its combat capabilities.
After all, the capabilities the Dynasty requires from a warship differ greatly from those of the Navy.
And the closer you get to the bottom of the ship, the less maintenance the facilities there receive.
After countless years, many of the pipes and chambers there have completely lost their function. Even the Tech-Priests have deemed them beyond repair or salvage value.
And modifying the entire ship's overall structure is too costly.
There's no food there, no drinking water. Only those who commit crimes on the lower decks or undergo physical mutation hide down there. You know the Imperium's stance on mutants.
Moreover, some mutations are inevitable during Warp travel. The occasional strange phenomena always claim some lives; even losing half the crew during a long voyage is within acceptable limits.
In the past, Lord Ludwig would periodically purge that area. But as long as this voidship exists, people will always hide down there, and the complex network of pipes gives them places to conceal themselves. The bottom hold has long since formed a kind of equilibrium with the upper decks."
After listening to Verre's explanation, Lucan couldn't help but complain internally.
Wasn't this purely a breeding ground for Chaos corruption? But this was also the norm in the Warhammer Imperium of Man. No matter where, these heretics were never absent. As long as humans had desires, it would give those daemons an opportunity. Lucan had no doubt that even in the heart of humanity, Holy Terra itself, such individuals existed, though they likely couldn't cause much trouble there.
Ultimately, it depended on whether these cults grew strong.
Lucan told Verre the intelligence Elias had provided. After hearing it, Verre was also incredulous.
"Are you saying Scott was already corrupted while he was on the lower decks and in the bottom hold? And that Lord Ludwig's disappearance is even connected to him?!"
"That's right! Since we've found a lead, let's interrogate him thoroughly. Verre, you should be skilled at interrogation, right?"
"Of course! As Purser, these officers are under my jurisdiction! It's not as if similar incidents haven't occurred on this ship before.
However, we've never had a traitor of the Master of Discipline's rank. If it really is him, then it would make sense how the traitors could smoothly acquire weapons and reach the upper decks. As Master of Discipline, Scott has considerable authority. He must have used some special method to cover his tracks, which is why his involvement wasn't discovered when checking the Cogitator logs.
My Lord! I will bring men to the bridge immediately. Please do not make any moves before we arrive. Your safety is paramount right now!"
"I won't. And you, don't reveal your intentions as soon as you arrive. If he has truly turned to Chaos, he might have some special tricks up his sleeve. We absolutely cannot let this lead go cold. Remember to primarily select crewmen from the upper decks; do not pick from the Enforcer teams. Who knows if he still has informants among them."
"As you command, Captain! I know which men are absolutely loyal to the Dynasty!"
The communication ended, and Verre immediately led his chosen soldiers towards the bridge.
Scott, apparently, was still unaware he had been exposed and continued with his duties.
Before long, the hatchway to the bridge opened, and Verre, his face grim and radiating killing intent, strode in with a contingent of soldiers clad in CMC combat armor.
The five soldiers in Marauder suits at the front were particularly imposing. They also wore CMC-660 heavy combat armor, but unlike the Firebats' focus on heat resistance, more resources had been invested in the strength of their armor. The K-12 Quad Punisher Grenade Launchers on their arms were disproportionately large and looked devastating.
If their arm-mounted weapons were replaced with heavy bolters, would their combat effectiveness be even greater? Lucan was already pondering in his mind whether he could try combining StarCraft technology with that of the "grease monkeys."
They were less like infantry and more like humanoid heavy weapon platforms.
The arrival of Verre and his soldiers made the crew on the bridge extremely tense.
After all, they had just experienced rioters storming the bridge, and they were still somewhat on edge.
"Everyone, remain at your posts and continue your duties! There is no need for alarm!" Verre announced.
Seeing Verre's arrival, Master of Discipline Scott actually took the initiative to approach him.
"Purser Verre! Why have you brought soldiers here? The riot below hasn't been resolved yet, has it?"
"The Captain summoned us. Scott, just carry on with your own work!"
Saying this, Verre pushed past Scott and walked directly towards Lucan. However, the positioning of the soldiers began to shift, subtly forming an encirclement around Scott.
(End of Chapter)