Balthazar finished his porridge and drank the last of his water. Then he spoke.

"Even with the Emperor's blessings on our side, it would be prudent to find out more about this place before we rush into a dangerous environment. If official channels are silent on the matter, perhaps unofficial ones would be more fruitful. Do we know of any specific individuals who visited the Skydock close to the time the entrances were sealed? They may know of changing circumstances aboard the station that fortold this event, or if some catalyst event caused the lockdown."

"This means...", she probed cautiously, "that this claim prevents an official investigation? The Adeptus Arbites cannot simply quarantine a station with such an ominous history?".

"House Rosa has legal claim to the station, and as of now have shown no illegal activities are knowingly taking place on the station. The Arbites are not always allowed to just investigate rumors. I would assume this likely also has the fingers of the Consortium, the Nobility of Desoleum, and quite possibly the Inquisition and Ordo Famulous not wanting them to...well act the way Arbites can act on occasion. Righteous and correct as they might be. We don't want House Rosa needlessly hindered if there is nothing taking place."

She finishes this sentence with some obvious disbelief, looking across the table with a face that is easily read as knowing everyone has something to hide.

"Even with the Emperor's blessings on our side, it would be prudent to find out more about this place before we rush into a dangerous environment. If official channels are silent on the matter, perhaps unofficial ones would be more fruitful. Do we know of any specific individuals who visited the Skydock close to the time the entrances were sealed? They may know of changing circumstances aboard the station that fortold this event, or if some catalyst event caused the lockdown."

"From what I've been provided with those records would be in the station itself, the previous owners of the Skydock, or possibly with the Mechaicus, as they did cursory investigations into the matter. But like I mentioned, they never set foot on Skydock 4/4. The previous owners of the Skydock would also be within the Consortium's records."

She smiles at Balthazar, a warm gesture, thanking him for the intelligent idea.

"And how do we go about . . . investigating . . .such rumors?"

She sits back in her chair and looks at the three of you.

"You use each other, you make due. You are agents of the throne now, even acolyte as you are. You were specifically chosen because it is believed that you are capable of handling this in whatever manner you deem fit. I can only provide you with this information for now. My duties are soon to lie...elsewhere." She looks longingly out the window of Kappex Orbital as if something is calling her elsewhere.

"You are part of the Adepta Sororitas and Ministorum, you have influence, and fire and zeal. I can help at least discuss whatever ideas you might currently have, and point you in some directions, but this is not my investigation."

Estelia, absorbing what the Father and Inellia had said, came to a conclusion, relieved that finally she felt she understood some part of the situation, "Then perhaps we should start with the previous owners of the station," but another thought occurred to the Novice, "but I imagine that they might not like having the Inquisition asking about their affairs."

Estilia felt the weight of her pistols. She knew they could fight if the Skydock's previous owners refused to help them, but she suspected they might be outmatched. Everyone had guns, Even heretics. Especially heretics.

((Balthazar simply has no questions at this time I suppose since it's been 48 hours))

"The local starport or the Imperial Navy have no record of shuttles approaching or departing from the station? Surely, there must be something ..."

She looks back at Ariela thinking, A cunning one yet it'd seem.

"It's possible that the Adeptus Arbites of Port Gyre’s may have those records, they have a field station out there for incoming visitors, but it is also likely that the massive amount of traffic is far too much for their number to fully police, with the understanding that the Auctoriates Porteus and Sanctionaries also monitor the port activity."

She pauses for a moment thinking.

"But that doesn’t mean it will be information concerning who visited Skydock 4/4, merely those who ended up in the port that day.

As for the navy, they may likely have information on what ships entered the system that time, but I don’t know if they’d have visitors to the station specifically. The navy guards this station as well as the other two currently in working order.

I am not aware if they are stationed on Skydock 4/4 currently but I would find it unlikely. House Rosa probably employs their own guards for such things."

"Then perhaps we should start with the previous owners of the station," but another thought occurred to the Novice, "but I imagine that they might not like having the Inquisition asking about their affairs."

She rifles through a couple of data slates scanning quickly through the contents, but frowns.

"I do not have the records as to who laid claim to Skydock 4/4 before its fall. I would assume those records are with the Consortium, as House Rosa’s claim is with them currently as well."

Balthazar had been silent for some time, digesting this information. Now he sits up and speaks:

"The Imperial Navy may be a good place to begin our investigations. If there are indeed heretics at work, looking into ship transit records will likely rouse less suspicion than inquiring about Skydock 4/4 directly."

Estelia nodded, looking down at her hands. She was relieved that the Father had spoken, "that makes sense."

((I can't think of anything else right now))

((That's alright servant, never feel bad about a small post.))

"Certainly, the Navy should be far more willing to share its records, at least, imperfect as they may be."

Estelia nodded, looking down at her hands. She was relieved that the Father had spoken, "that makes sense."

"The Imperial Navy may be a good place to begin our investigations. If there are indeed heretics at work, looking into ship transit records will likely rouse less suspicion than inquiring about Skydock 4/4 directly."

"A good theorem as any, how would you propose to ask them for access to such records? Your approach, as with anything will define the measure of your success."

She looks at them all poignantly, not approving or disapproving. Merely letting you all move along at your own pace.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

"What in the blasted eye do you mean 'Redacted'?!" the security overseer armsmen we saw earlier exclaims furiously.

"Sir, I believe it mea-" the passive voice replies.

"I KNOW BLOODY WELL WHAT IT MEANS!" he yells, he sighs calming himself, not blaming the servitor. We see now that this servant is actually a servitor with some much more subtle cybernetics behind their ears and replacing the back of their cranium.

Now, nothing I understand, cancelled yes, little to no information possibly, but redacted? That requires effort, and access, or...authority. Who's clearance?"

The servitor seizes up speaking in a purely mechanical voice, "ACCESS. DENIED. MAGENTA. CLEARANCE. REQUIRED."

The armsman looks at the servitor scared for a moment, "Magenta, what's magenta?" His brow is furrowed in thought as if he's trying to remember anything in his training about security clearances.

He sighs defeated in his endeavor, "Alright, bring up anything you have on those three and their movements, and anyone that's gone in or out of C within the last...week."

The servitor now seemingly done with their lapse of sense calmly responds, "Of course, my lord. Right away."

The overseer turns back to the viewscreen and narrows their eyes, "What on Terra are you up to?..."

Balthazar leans forward slightly and addresses the other Acolytes. "It does seem like we will have to board the Skydock eventually, regardless of what we discover beforehand. The Emperor alone knows what we will find up there, and I have a feeling that some of our questions will never be answered unless we investigate it in person. That said, I would prefer that we have some idea of what to expect before boarding that accursed facility."

"Perhaps we could approach under the guise of searching for a particular pilgrim ship? We can say it was supposed to arrive sometime around when the Skydock fell. This is a bit of a shaky justification though, do you have any other ideas?"

Ariel blinked, an impression of naive confusion briefly showing on the novice's face.

"If our inquiry first leads us to the Imperial Navy, why do we not state our intentions and ask them directly?" She paused, before adding, somewhat warily: "Are there concerns that elements of the fleet have some sort of connection to whichever shadowy group is currently operating the dock?"

Estelia mumbled something unpleasant under breath, obviously not pleased at the thought of having to work around spies in the Navy.

"The Father's work is with the dead, is it not? Perhaps he is looking for a missing ship that was transporting the bodies of the faithful to his homeworld. Warp travel takes time, and, so far as I know, it might make sense for no one to bother looking for a missing ship for some years. If the Skydock was that ship's last reported location, the Father may have reason to inquire with the Navy."

The girl shrugged, putting her hand over the bulge one of her pistols made in her robe.

((I hope that isn't too out of character. The Schola is supposed to provide a solid education, so the basic way in which warp travel works doesn't feel too out of line to me.))

"The Father's work is with the dead, is it not? Perhaps he is looking for a missing ship that was transporting the bodies of the faithful to his homeworld. Warp travel takes time, and, so far as I know, it might make sense for no one to bother looking for a missing ship for some years. If the Skydock was that ship's last reported location, the Father may have reason to inquire with the Navy."

Inelia shakes her head, "From what I've read of Father Throne, the only ship that sends bodies to Thaur is the Oath Unspoken, no?"

((I may be wrong here Bathlazar, feel free to correct me.))

"Perhaps we could approach under the guise of searching for a particular pilgrim ship? We can say it was supposed to arrive sometime around when the Skydock fell. This is a bit of a shaky justification though, do you have any other ideas?"

Inelia looks at the Father with neither acceptance nor denial, "A possibility, as any."

"If our inquiry first leads us to the Imperial Navy, why do we not state our intentions and ask them directly?" She paused, before adding, somewhat warily: "Are there concerns that elements of the fleet have some sort of connection to whichever shadowy group is currently operating the dock?"

"There's no reason you couldn't approach it in this manner." She looks at Ariela gravely, "but you should always be concerned of loose lips."

Estelia's eyes light up, as a much more pleasing idea comes to mind, "Surely the Skydock contains a chapel! If it does, its altar most likely contains a relic of some kind! We wouldn't even have to pretend to be interested in recovering an object such as that. We would hardly need to disguise our Ministorum Affiliation at all . . .

"Unless the relic has already been recovered."

((I'm basing Estelia's reasoning off of the Roman Catholic tradition of placing a relic (usually a piece of bone, as far as I know) below an altar before its dedication, since the Ministorum draws so strongly on real-world Catholic tradition.))

A smirk crept into Ariel's expression at the suggestion of her fellow novice. It was a bold, audacious deception, but kind of fitting for Estelia. It was the kind of reasoning that had kept getting the two of them into trouble -- ironic how it would now benefit their mission. Truly, the Emperor works in mysterious ways.

To answer Inelia's question, Balthazar replies: "Many ships bring the honored dead to Thaur. The Oath Unspoken carries the inhabitants of Hive Desoleum, and it brings more human remains than any other ship. But each world has its own transport ships, and particularly influential nobles or priests will arrange private passage for their bodies after death. At least one ship arrives at Thaur every week. It is easy to imagine that one of those ships was lost in transit. If a Thaurian priest like myself were on Juno, it stands to reason that we would look into the tardiness of that ship.

"Novices, I commend you for your zeal, but I do believe we should at least look into the ship transit records before boarding the Skydock. A relic retrieval will be the perfect cover when we do board it."

Inelia sits back, enjoying watching the three of you work. It is a sad and happy thing to see. Rustling the shackles of ignorance to let loose the curiosity necessary to do what must be done is a grave endeavor. She worries that the novices will not, cannot, be the same again.

]"Many ships bring the honored dead to Thaur. The Oath Unspoken carries the inhabitants of Hive Desoleum, and it brings more human remains than any other ship. But each world has its own transport ships, and particularly influential nobles or priests will arrange private passage for their bodies after death. At least one ship arrives at Thaur every week. It is easy to imagine that one of those ships was lost in transit. If a Thaurian priest like myself were on Juno, it stands to reason that we would look into the tardiness of that ship.

"Novices, I commend you for your zeal, but I do believe we should at least look into the ship transit records before boarding the Skydock. A relic retrieval will be the perfect cover when we do board it."

She nods, "I see, thank you father. Then it would seem a plan is in place? Investigate the navy's records of ship transit within the system 50 years ago for possible leads onto the Skydock 4/4, and then board Skydock 4/4 if possible under the guise of searching for a lost ministorum relic?"

She looks pursing her lips, "The matter remains, how do you plan on approaching the Navy to get access in the first place?"

Estelia fidgets in her seat, anxious to get moving now that a plan of action is coming together. She forces herself to be calm. There was still more to do.

She realized that she did not know how the Navy would be organized. Would they have a facility on this station? Could they contact them there? Would they need to find a vox operator, or, the girl though uneasily, an Astropath?

She looked to Ariel, wondering what her fellow was thinking. One look at her face gave her a pretty good idea.

Registering Estelia's attention from the corner of her eye, Ariel allowed an expression of surprise and perplexity to wash over her face, if only briefly. Wide eyes quickly narrowing again, the novice leaned forward, supported by both elbows on the table, as if her comrade's attention had spurred her into action.

"Well ... the Fleet could hardly refuse a request from the Inquisition, could it?"

Before the Sister Superior could intervene, she quickly raised her hands in a defensive gesture. "Yes, those of weak faith and small mind may threaten to expose us, but all this means is that we have to be careful as to whom we should approach, yes?"

Shooting each of the attendants a quick glance, the novice continued. Like Estelia, she knew little of the Navy's organisation -- but she did know of the Ministorum.

"The Navy's command ships are certain to have a Confessor aboard to tend to the crew's spiritual well-being, yes? If so, perhaps we could contact this Confessor and arrange through him, as proxy, a meeting with a trusted officer whose faith and loyalty are beyond question?"

She maintained a stern expression, having long since learned to hide her fears, but her fingers were nervously kneading the slab of bread now.

Registering Estelia's attention from the corner of her eye, Ariel allowed an expression of surprise and perplexity to wash over her face, if only briefly. Wide eyes quickly narrowing again, the novice leaned forward, supported by both elbows on the table, as if her comrade's attention had spurred her into action.

"Well ... the Fleet could hardly refuse a request from the Inquisition, could it?"

Before the Sister Superior could intervene, she quickly raised her hands in a defensive gesture. "Yes, those of weak faith and small mind may threaten to expose us, but all this means is that we have to be careful as to whom we should approach, yes?"

Shooting each of the attendants a quick glance, the novice continued. Like Estelia, she knew little of the Navy's organisation -- but she did know of the Ministorum.

"The Navy's command ships are certain to have a Confessor aboard to tend to the crew's spiritual well-being, yes? If so, perhaps we could contact this Confessor and arrange through him, as proxy, a meeting with a trusted officer whose faith and loyalty are beyond question?"

She maintained a stern expression, having long since learned to hide her fears, but her fingers were nervously kneading the slab of bread now.

Balthazar started to raise his voice in protest, but as he considered Ariel's suggestion his face split into a wide grin. "Your plan is audacious, but perhaps decisive action is our best option. A ship's Confessor is likely to be staunchly loyal to the Emperor, and will likely know others of such unimpeachable character. We need not reveal or allegiance to anyone besides the Confessor unless absolutely necessary, so we likely will not attract unwanted attention." He gives a slight chuckle and adds, "That's exactly the sort of plan I'd have suggested were I a younger man."

He turns to the other Novice and asks, "What say you, Estelia? Does your Sister's zeal alarm you, or do you endorse the direct approach?"

Estelia grinned broadly, "I'm the one who she says is always getting her into trouble by not thinking, and here you're asking me if her plan is too direct? The more direct the better!"

Inelia nods considering the plan as of now.

"There are boons, to being overt in these cases sometimes. Stirring up the nest allows one to track where the insects scurry off too, but as you note they scurry off with the knowledge the Eye is upon them."

"Your plan is audacious, but perhaps decisive action is our best option. A ship's Confessor is likely to be staunchly loyal to the Emperor, and will likely know others of such unimpeachable character. We need not reveal or allegiance to anyone besides the Confessor unless absolutely necessary, so we likely will not attract unwanted attention." He gives a slight chuckle and adds, "That's exactly the sort of plan I'd have suggested were I a younger man."

He turns to the other Novice and asks, "What say you, Estelia? Does your Sister's zeal alarm you, or do you endorse the direct approach?"

Estelia grinned broadly, "I'm the one who she says is always getting her into trouble by not thinking, and here you're asking me if her plan is too direct? The more direct the better!"

"So, then, it would seem you have a plan of contact now. Get ahold of a confessor of the Navy and ask for access through them, or a confidant about the system's ship logs from 50 years ago under the guise of searching for a particular pilgrim ship that may have had a certain relic aboard it bound for Skydock 4/4 but got lost when the Skydock fell? And now you are under the call of the Ministorum to retrieve it if possible?"

((This is as I understand it, do feel free to correct me.))

Uncharacteristically flustered, Ariel flashed a nervous grin towards the priest and the other novice before quickly lowering her eyes, as if the table had suddenly become a lot more interesting.

"It was merely an idea, Father", she explained herself hastily, adding: "As you say, who could we trust if not the Church?"

An ironic, perhaps dangerous statement, coming from an aspirant of the Sisterhood, whose role includes keeping watch over wayward clergymen. Then again, lack of experience and sheltered upbringing would easily explain such naive perspectives. All of this would likely change soon as the trio would venture forth into the shadows of the cloak-and-dagger game that had unfolded above the skies of Desoleum.

As the Sister Superior summarised their plans, she looked up again, having regained the aura of professional detachment the dark-skinned girl apparently liked to clad herself in.

"Once we have our contact within the Navy, I am sure we can build a wider network providing us with all we need to progress further. A Confessor is unlikely to be able to grant us any direct access, but he will know who can."

Estelia's excitement is visible on her face. She runs her prayer beads between her fingers, and addresses the Sister, "what would be the best way to contact a ship's Confessor? Do you have a secure means of communication which we could use?"

((sorry, accidental double post))