You are Princess Genevieve Holystone Mi Eriventa III, crown Princess of the world of Etumar and heir apparent to the noble house of Eriventa. Your father is King Uriel Bladecrown Eriventa XV, one of the greatest Knightly defenders of Segmentum Solar. Your family has in recent centuries been stagnant, the High Lords of Terra not wanting to risk one of their most famous and powerful Knightly Families. Aside from a few battles deemed important enough by the High Lords of Terra, your father has seen little combat in his fifty years. But then, the 13th Black Crusade happened. Cadia fell and Terra was attacked by the forces of Chaos. Your father led his family to Terra's defense, as ancient honor dictates. But he was too late, the battle was over. This was a moment of intense dishonor for King Uriel and the house of Eriventa, especially when the returned Primarch, Roboute Guilliman, gave King Uriel a short but brutal reprimand.
"I remember House Eriventa," Guilliman had said, "Your ancestors fought well in the Great Crusade. You were good warriors, bold and strong." Your father almost wept as he recalled Guilliman's grim look of disapproval, "If you have even a fraction of that strength, it behooves you now to improve yourself and your house." Even though you weren't present for Guilliman's speech, you feel the sting of his words.
But from such dishonor, comes great opportunity, for Uriel has taken Guilliman's critique to heart. Now, with the Empire in shambles, is the time for House Eriventa and the World of Etumar to regain its honor and prestige. Your father has made the decision - you and your sister, Alexandrite, along with a knight named Sir Vali (a man attached to a dishonored house, you note with some distaste) are going to be attached to a regiment of Kratosians. The Kratos Armored Seventh is headed up by one Brigadier General Tycho Helios, an up and coming Regimental Commander who happens to be a friend of your father's. Your Knights have already been loaded into the cargo hold of the Kratosian cruiser
Blade of Ares along with a small team of Sacristans. General Helios sent a transport for you and your companions, promising to meet you when you disembark.
Transport Ship: Argo's Hull
Any excitement you felt upon seeing the beautiful bronze ship touch down on the surface of your homeworld, the first proper Imperium ship you've seen in your life, dies the instant you step in. The interior of the ship reveals the truth: the ship is old, smells like a mixture of sweat and urine, and seems to have been crudely repaired a thousand times. Already you feel unclean, your beautiful golden dress, the one that received so many complements at the last ball you attended, feels like it is attracting the stench and filth. Your hair suddenly feels sodden, the fashionable golden drills seeming to loosen.
"You going to sit down, Gene?" Alex says dryly, "General Helios won't like it if we are late." You and Alex share some similarities, gold hair and bright green eyes. But your dispositions are quite different, with you holding on to all proper ways of behavior, and Alex only putting up a slight veneer. You'd blame her being sent to join the newly famous house, House Waindrich, for training, but she has always been odd to you.
"I…I will not…" you say with a dignified snort, "This thing is disgusting, if I set down, my dress will get dirty."
There is a rather irritated groan from the cockpit, the pilot clearly wants to leave as much as Alex.
Sir Vali hasn't said a word, but now he raises, and with an elegant flourish, sets his handkerchief on the filthy seat, "May this aid you, your highness," he says somewhat flatly. Sir Vali is dark-haired and powerfully built, but has an odd tendency to fade into the background. Often, it feels like he wishes to avoid drawing attention to anything aside from noble actions.
You smile daintily at such a wonderful display of chivalry, "Why, thank you, kind Sir Vali, I see rumors of your house's failings are greatly exaggerated." You laugh brightly, as Alex rolls her eyes in irritation, and Sir Vali returns to his seat. You sit delicately, the handkerchief doing a fair job of keeping your dress clean. The straps that keep you in are also quite filthy, but required for the escape from Etumar's atmosphere. You buckle yourself in, trying to keep them from touching your dress too much. After this bout of drama, the pilot is finally free to do his job, lifting the ship off the planet. For a moment, there is pressure beyond what you have ever experienced, and then, you are in the Void of space.
Alex's smile is infectious, and excitement burns through your veins. Finally, you are off-world, about to see the glorious Imperium of Man!
The pilot speaks up, "We should be coming up on the
Blade soon," you hear the smile in his voice, "You should watch for it, first time seeing an Imperial Battleship is memorable." Alex and Vali move to the window. You follow, trying to remain as elegant as possible while doing so. Not because the lower gravity is treacherous, certainly not, but because as the Crown-Princess, you must be elegant in all things. But when you see the massive war ship,
Blade of Ares, you let out a very inelegant gasp of amazement. The ship is massive. It is larger than the biggest city on Etumar by far. The same bronze shade as
Argo's Hull,
Blade of Ares is a pure warship. Weapons cover every inch of its massive bulk, and the thought occurs to you that you have no idea where your transport could possibly enter. It seems that the pilot knows where to go, however, and soon the smaller ship is swallowed into the
Blade's hanger. Slowly, your thoughts turn to your upcoming meeting with the Kratosian General Tycho Helios. How will you initially respond to him?
[] General Helios is now your commanding officer, you must treat him with the same amount of honor and respect as a high-ranking knight.
[] Immediately start complaining about the filthy transport, how dare he send such a vile thing to carry someone as important as you.
[] You find yourself unable to contain your excitement, question General Helios about as much as you can think of!
[] Write-in