Capitulus Quartus: Duplicity

[Trogdor]

"We might be able to split up," Jericus replies to Xanthia. "Then again, ships are not so common that they only carry one set of passengers. It wouldn't be odd for two unrelated sets of passengers to be on the same ship."

Then, when Solaria offers her suggestion about Damien, he nods. "Having a clerk wouldn't be unusual," he says. "And it doesn't even matter what you write down," the adept adds to the psyker. "I'll keep it all up here," he taps the side of his forehead, "and correct any reports you make in private."

[ManWithDoor]

Damien chuckles, shaking his head ruefully. "Well at least I'm literate, so you don't have to worry I'll be writing down gibberish. And given my familiarity with the common ciphers of the Inquisition, I could even pass along notes secretly when you 'confer' to see my notes." He looks down at himself and frowns. "But I would need to keep some of my more esoteric equipment hidden, as well as my Sanctioning brand, and if I ever need to use my ... abilities, our secret would be out. Either that, or I would be taken for a rogue psyker, which would be worse for me."

[Vardaen]

OOC

A note, Jericus hasn't been named Prime. (as the books mention). He has been named Senior Acolyte among your group. As I take it if he was Prime he would be Sand's Prime, his second in command. THAT is not the case, he's only just slightly higher up than you guys (because you guys named him that!).


A few notes, I like the ideas you have going here for a cover story. Solaria trying to rely on her Arbite badge would probably cause you all the same troubles as showing Inquisition ties. You can't be a good undercover agent if everything thinks you are a cop! Beside you aren't working for the Arbites now, and even if you were, you're tied to Scintilla not Solomon's Arbites... they might take offense at that. Just things to keep in mind, you might be on your own here. Undercover means undercover.

Also only the dataslate with info from Sand directly is burned, up the basic Solomon planet guide one is your's to keep and use as you see fit. Assuming Jericus has it.

The dataslates are passed around, everyone manages a look at the message directly from Sand. As Xanthia is holding it the timer runs out and there is a scrambled display and then a burning smell. The warning LEDs light up and the slate becomes destroyed and dead. She tosses it away, no one will ever know what was on there.

The debate begins on cover IDs and alter egos heading into the mission.

The lighter takes flight and soon you are racing through the air against gravity toward the ship in orbit waiting for you. The transport lands in the hangar bay and you are escorted to quarters, Jericus is right about one thing, there are some others on board the ship. It may take you three weeks to get there. Checking the warp route you learn that Solomon in relatively close to Acreage, a fact that worries you some considering your last trip in that direction. But the Markayan Marches aren't the Josian Reach, and you can only hope the Deathwatch has already dealt with the Cold Vengeance.

Your trip across the Golgenna Reach is not what you would call exciting. The ship you travel on has little in the ways of amenities, but it isn't as ready to fall in on itself as the Brazen Sky was. Your ship, Defiance, is a minor ship belonging to a minor Rogue Trader. It isn't that fast, or that pretty, but it is sound. You and the other passengers provide the Rogue Trader with a supplemental income to his otherwise failing dynasty. You never actually meet the captain of this particular vessel, and the owner is never actually on board.

For weeks, you and a handful of other pass angers, along with a hold of cargo, make the long trek away from the core worlds toward the hive world of Solomon. It gives you plenty of time to work on cover IDs for landing on Solomon, and even more time to simply wait and grow nervous that perhaps the Churgeon and the Logicians might have moved on by now.
After what appears to be an eternity the klaxons on the ship sound followed by the announcement that the ship is nearing its destination. Coming out of the warp the void shields eventually drop and you return to real-space. The ship activity becomes frantic as crew and passengers begin the process of disembarking to the hive planet of Solomon...

OOC

Skiping us right to arriving on Solomon. I'm actually slightly unsure about official travel times, but in the long run it makes little difference, so off we go.

Map

You can see all the places you've been:
Prelude: Sepheris Secundus
Chapter 1: Scintilla
Chapter 2: Iocanthos
Chapter 3: Acreage
Chapter 4: Solomon

You guys have been all over the place!

[jigglypuff69]

As they gather their things, Solaria pipes up, "It may be smart to head down Hive once we get a place to stay squared away. We'll need fake cogomen or ID's and the best palce to get them will be from the criminal element. We'll see how much that will cost, might even get lucky, but it will help with the backgrounds and stuff. Anyone game?"

[Trogdor]

"We'll go with that as a start, Damien," Jericus replies. "It gives you cover and gives us a resource they won't expect. Don't worry, though," he holds up a hand. "If you have to use your abilities visibly, we'll make sure that sanctioning brand becomes known. Our fallback explanation is that my client was using a sanctioned psyker in hiding to try and get some advantage in a potential deal." This leaves Rego unaccounted for, but there's only so much that Jericus can do.

Once they get onto the ship, however, Jericus changes completely. An adept steps into his room, but an advocate steps out. He looks like Jericus, at least superficially. But he is in many ways entirely different. He dresses better, takes much more care for his appearance, and does something you've barely ever seen Jericus do. He smiles a lot, and quite frequently laughs. Not the short, wry laughs, but full throated ones, quite out of keeping with the adept you've come to know. "Jonath Draco," he says, introducing himself to you. And from that point on, he does not respond to the name Jericus. "You'd all do well to come up with names I can use," he says. "I need to know what to call my clerk," he gestures at Damien, "my bodyguard," he gestures at Xanthia, "my cultural guide," he gestures at Solaria, "and whatever you'll end up being," he gestures at Rego.

During the course of the journey, Jonath will make what contact an advocate like him might with the fellow passengers. He never talks business, beyond saying that he's traveling to Solomon "on business." But he does get to know them, and more to the point, lets them get to know him. Should anyone question the fellow passengers, they'll hear nothing to contradict Jericus's cover story.

At the end, of the trip, Jericus nods at Solaria's suggestion. "I have ID," he says simply. "And I'll wager it's better than what you'll get on the fly. But the rest of you should have some ID, preferably something that shows you arrived here from Scintilla with me."

OOC

Jericus will give the dataslate on Solomon to Soalria, his cultural guide. He's committed it to memory already.

Also, everyone should have an alter ego, if only in name. Solaria can get IDs for them as best she can.

Let's start an OOC thread to hash this out. In particular, we need to fit Rego into the plan. Military specialist? Second bodyguard? I'm not sure what. But it can't be a holy man. That's just too close and not anything that Jonath would need.

[jigglypuff69]

Solaria nods, "Call me Jet. That will do for now. As for ID's, once we're settled, then I'll head downhive with a second person and we'll see what we can get."

[MadVlat]

Rego turns to Jericus as he places the ornate scarf of crimson, that signifys his station as a confessor; around his neck and shoulders. "Father Marcus Derailius, advisor on spiritual matters and personal confessor to Jonath Draco". The normally grumpy priest almost friendly as he speaks. "No business should lack the emperor's blessing and wisdom. I also have a plan for keeping my idle time my own. I shall visit any and all holy sites on and under the surface, a minor pilgrimage you could say. This would allow me to be seperate from you from time to time should the need arise and a reason to confer with you privately when needed. We are here to investigate after all".

Rego draws in a deep breath as he then turns to Solaria. "Proper papers could be handy and open some doors as well", a hint that he would be interested in a false ID if it could be arranged. Then as if speaking to the air itself. "What could a businessman want to acquire from such a place? It is beyond me"...

[Brennor]

OOC

Not quite liking the name, but it seems to work.

"Call me Onyx. I'll be in charge of your security while we are planetside, Mr. Draco."

Xanthia settles her new bolt pistol into the place the spitfire used to occupy at her waist. She has yet to fire it as far as the others know, but it definitely looks different there than the previous weapon did.

[Trogdor]

"Jet, Marcus and Onyx," Jericus says. "I can work with that. "But how about we have Marcus be a representative from my employer? That would give both of us the freedom to go about independently. We could then have Onyx be Marcus's bodyguard and Jet be my combination bodyguard and local guide. That would let us split up into two teams at need without undue suspicion. And we needn't go into too much detail about who my employer is or what exactly your position is with them. Such things are often kept confidential in business circumstances."

The scribe smiles. "We let them think we're hiding things for business reasons and that lets them put us in a known category. Then when we do something suspicious - as we certainly will - they'll think we're doing it to try and make a few gelt, not for some other reason. The trick is to give them plausible reasons for the way we expect to behave."

[Vardaen]

The plan is made, new bodyguard nicknames are given to the ladies, they certainly look the part and know the job, those two are easy. Jonath's alter ego is, as you'll find out, well defined, with fake cognomen and papers already -- Jericus has been working on this one since your last time together. Rego becomes a representative, a scholar of sorts, the 'expert' on some matters of the business at hand. The scribe Damien looks the part well enough and wonders if this is how Jericus normally feels. Haxtes' look says too many things to try and be much of anything else, but the Tech Priest does his best to fill in as adviser and otherwise to his brother and the cover you're working out.

So down out of the ship, into the landing lighter you all load up. Once more you are alone on the ship, no other passengers are aboard and you thank the Throne for that as you have a few more minutes to work out names and remember them. The ship begins the decent down to Solomon's one hive spire of Gloriana. The windows frost over on decent in the upper atmosphere, but after breaking through the gravity and ozone the windows quickly thaw as the heat of the planet warms the lighter. Looking out the small portholes you can see a massive churning boiling sea of what you can only suspect his toxic sludge. The lighter is making for the massive hive spire Gloriana. From up here it looks like many hive spires, miles high of building on building, a pointed cone of oppression and caste. The higher levels live the nobles, the middle hive those that work to keep the Imperium running, and the lower and underhives teaming with scum and criminals. The lighter decends to toward the middle hive, about five miles above the lowest levels visible through the smog and poison clouds that cloak the lower reaches. Racing for a small balcony that just from the side of the spire the lighter begins its landing as terrible winds attack the structure's outer edge. Blade like structures, dozens of meters tall, stick up from all about the hive. The servitor-pilot sets the ship down without so much as a bump or a word. The rear door opens and the compartment is flooded with foul air and buffeting winds. A servitor appears at the door, his voice emotionless, "Welcome to Hive Gloriana, if you would watch your step and come this way. We must keep the landing pad clear." He turns and guides you across the wind scrubbed landing pad toward the shelter of the hive proper and a massive Gothic arch that will take you into the middle bowels of the spire. Munitorium guards, faced hidden before flank helm shields, watch the comings and goings on the landing pad.

Hurrying along you pass out of the scrubbing winds and into the hive tunnels that, like a maze, twist and wind their way through the middle hive.

Hive Gloriana