V3 Chapter 104: The Betrayal of Assassinorum Grand Master Fidicus
In the silent, circular chamber, Fidicus watched the holographic map above the black metal table. Several markers representing Duvette's group were moving fast along the Outer Palace's administrative corridors, their heading pointed directly at the Seventh Silent House.
At first, Fidicus had assumed it was simply a coincidental overlap of routes.
But over the following few minutes, the group bypassed three temporary blockades in succession, consistently following the shortest possible route toward the Shrine of the Unnamed Martyrs.
Fidicus didn't understand how Duvette had learned his location, but he could already confirm one thing: this safehouse was compromised.
Worse still, the group's speed of movement far exceeded his projections, and they didn't seem to have met any effective resistance along the way.
"Connect to the Myriad-Eye Hub."
As the order went out, the figure of the third assassin appeared at the side of the holographic map. That assassin, from the Vanus Temple, had already linked into the Outer Palace's information systems, his face covered in a mass of data interfaces.
"Why hasn't the interception order been carried out yet?" Fidicus asked.
"The order was denied certification by Chancellor Tyrion of the Imperial Council." the Vanus assassin answered. "He claims the Council's original resolution covers only detention, security review, and contamination assessment, and doesn't include pre-emptive execution of the target."
Fidicus's eyes darkened slightly, and he gestured for the assassin to go on.
"Both Lord Inquisitors have separately completed identity verification, proving they're acting of their own free will. They've registered this pursuit as an emergency Inquisitorial investigation, and registered Duvette and the accompanying Astartes as armed protective personnel."
"Traffic management authorities along the route have received conflicting orders. Tyrion refuses to certify the blockade under the joint authority of the Council of High Lords, and some management bodies have suspended enforcement as a result. Roads under Administratum control remain closed, but the target keeps managing to reroute in time."
Fidicus looked at the map. Duvette's convoy had just left a main artery under Administratum control, continuing on toward the Silent House along a secondary passage between two administrative towers.
"Maintain surveillance. Relay every route change to me."
Once the transmission with the Vanus assassin ended, Fidicus opened another emergency channel at once. After a brief wait, Master of the Administratum Ilthor Cimotrion appeared on the screen.
"Duvette has locked onto the Seventh Silent House." Fidicus said directly. "Tyrion has refused to certify the interception order, and the Inquisition has already granted them investigative authority."
Ilthor's expression shifted slightly, but settled quickly back into calm.
"I'll deal with Tyrion myself." he said. "You need to hold them off for twenty minutes. The Adeptus Arbites' rapid response unit and the Outer Palace's garrison will seal off the entire area."
"Under whose authority?" Fidicus asked.
"The Council of High Lords still rules the Imperium." Ilthor said coldly. "We'll set up a lawful checkpoint in their path. If Duvette leads those Astartes in forcing their way through it, his act of rebellion proves itself."
Fidicus watched the screen in silence. He caught the implication in Ilthor's words well enough: the man still refused to formally authorise lethal force, and meant instead to use Duvette's own act of breaking a blockade to redefine the whole incident after the fact.
"Twenty minutes." Ilthor repeated, then ended the transmission on his own.
Fidicus watched the screen go dark, paused a moment, then turned back to the holographic map. Duvette's group was still advancing, now less than fifty kilometres from the Shrine of the Unnamed Martyrs.
"Connect to the cryo-armoury."
An Assassinorum operative responsible for guarding the lower facilities appeared on the channel. Fidicus reached out and called up a file sealed under a black marking, releasing its first layer of restriction.
"Release the cryo-restraints on the assassin Iverson. Begin physical revival and complete mission imprinting. Restrict his operational zone to the Silent House's underground defence perimeter. Priority targets: Duvette, and the white-armoured Astartes."
"If the target breaches the third line of defence, authorise release. The two Lord Inquisitors are not on the execution list."
Once the order was confirmed, an image of the cryo-armoury appeared at the side of the holographic map. A frost-covered pod began to warm, and within it, a humanoid shape wired into a mass of cabling twitched faintly.
Fidicus closed the image, and instead pulled up the full record of communications between himself and Ilthor. Several private discussions, the original text of the Council resolution, and recordings left behind by other High Lords voicing their opinions appeared one after another on the black metal table.
He copied all of it into a private archive, isolated from the Vanus network, then opened an emergency channel to the Chancellor of the Imperial Council. After roughly ten seconds' wait, an aged, bald, heavyset face appeared before Fidicus.
Tyrion's breathing came somewhat quick, fine beads of sweat covering his forehead, as though he'd just been anxiously dealing with something. The Chancellor's physical condition wasn't especially good, but his eyes remained entirely clear.
"You have no authority to obstruct an assassination operation approved by the Council of High Lords." Fidicus said evenly.
"I haven't obstructed any approved operation." Tyrion answered. "I've only refused to certify content the Council never actually voted on."
"The original resolution permits lethal measures if the target refuses detention."
"But when the Vindicare fired, the detention order hadn't even been delivered yet." Tyrion said. "If the Council truly approved the direct execution of Duvette, send the complete resolution and the seals of eight High Lords to my clerk's office, and I'll certify it immediately."
Fidicus watched the bald, heavyset man on the screen.
"The Assassinorum's mission authorisations are classified at the highest level."
"Then I can only act on the Council resolutions I have the authority to verify." Tyrion answered. "The original text in my possession requires detention, review, and contamination assessment. Nothing in it permits an assassin to shoot the target on sight."
"Duvette killed an Administratum official, damaged an official vehicle, and led Astartes of unconfirmed identity in pursuit of Imperial personnel." Fidicus said. "That already constitutes armed rebellion."
Tyrion raised a hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead, then leaned back in his seat.
"The deceased was a disguised Callidus assassin. The vehicle was attacked by a Vindicare first. Lord Inquisitors Juno and Heinz have each completed identity verification, and submitted the relevant evidence."
"The assassin's identity cannot be made public." Fidicus said.
"Since her identity can't be made public, you can hardly ask me to declare Duvette in rebellion before the whole of the Outer Palace on the strength of her death alone."
Tyrion looked at him. "You're welcome to acknowledge the deceased was an assassin, and explain why she was disguised as an Administratum official. Or you can keep insisting she was an official, but that would strip the Assassinorum of any claim that this mission was lawful."
Fidicus fell into a brief silence. Tyrion hadn't proven the assassination illegal, but he had precisely cut off every path by which Fidicus might try to pin a crime on Duvette.
"At the very least, seal off their convoy." Fidicus said. "They're closing in on a facility holding some of the Imperium's most classified material."
"The Administratum is welcome to close roads under its own control, and the Adeptus Arbites has the authority to deploy its own personnel." Tyrion answered. "Both Lord Inquisitors have already registered this as an active investigation. I hold no authority to terminate that on the Inquisition's behalf."
"If your operation truly complies with the Council's resolution, send full authorisation to my clerk's office, and submit it for verification by the two Lord Inquisitors. Once the investigation concludes, I'll personally record every offence committed against a High Lord in the course of it."
Fidicus's voice grew colder.
"Tyrion. The Council of High Lords still holds power over the Imperium, even now."
"It is precisely because the Council of High Lords still holds that power that I must carry out only the orders they actually voted through." Tyrion said. "A handful of High Lords' private discussions cannot take the place of a formal resolution."
The Imperial Chancellor paused, his tone showing no change at all.
"Once the Emperor's son walks out of the Eternity Gate, I will hand him the original resolution, the assassination evidence the two Lord Inquisitors submitted, and a full record of this very conversation, together."
"If you would like me to remove anything from that record, submit the request formally, in your capacity as a High Lord. I'll record your request for removal in the file as well."
Fidicus looked at Tyrion, knowing that continuing the conversation would only leave more material on record working against him. He cut the transmission himself, and the heavyset figure vanished from the screen.
New messages soon appeared on the black metal table. The Adeptus Arbites was demanding re-verification of the operation's authorisation; the Outer Palace's garrison forces were refusing to use lethal weapons while two Lord Inquisitors remained present; and the blockade Ilthor had promised still hadn't materialised.
Fidicus looked at the markers closing in on the Silent House, then at the private communications and meeting records he'd preserved. The twenty minutes Ilthor had promised were slipping away fast, and the reinforcements he'd been counting on still hadn't left their post.
Once the Silent House fell, these records would become his last remaining leverage. Fidicus had already made his choice. He would protect the Assassinorum first, above everything else. The other High Lords fell outside the scope of his protection.
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