In Flames, Our Salvation: A Sisters of Battle Quest

[Miriam]

In Flames, Our Salvation: A Sisters of Battle Quest​

It was a day like any other when Morvenn Vahl, Abbess of the Adepta Sororitas, arrived at your Cloister. Perhaps it was a quiet day of contemplation of the God-Emperor's glory, perhaps it was day full of hymns extolling the death of the Imperium's foes, or perhaps it was a day of penance and grief for your mistakes of your Sisters, old and new. But nonetheless, the routine and structure of that day would be shattered when the Abbess's ship hailed your Cloister's voxcasters. The necessary introductions were made, and if Sisters later noted that the Abbess seemed rather curt, they didn't make note of it to her face. Few made that mistake twice.

Having been slightly ahead on your duties for the morn, you pressed your nose against the glass of the window, feeling like a novice again. You watched as a golden-armored figure dispersed from the landing craft, striding purposefully towards the front door of the Cloister. You made yourself scarce quickly. No matter your deeds or your position, you did not want to get spotted by a clearly busy leader of the Adepta Sororitas.

Spoiler: Abbess Morvenn Vahl

Normally any visitor would be stopped at the door, but the Sisters there dared not obstruct Morvenn and you could hear shuffling and then the groaning of metal as the Cloister was opened for the mightiest of all Sororitas.

You could hear the heavy step of the Abbess' armored boot resound through the halls of your home, and it wasn't long until the more keen-eared amongst your Sisters excitedly whispered that she was headed for the Canoness's office. Even the most experienced Sisters gossipped quietly as they continued to work at their daily chores and training. After all, the Abbess was a paragon of unparalleled skill and devotion, and was often on campaign. Few Sisters saw her in person. What could her abrupt appearance mean?

An hour passed with silence from the Canoness's office, then two, then three. Finally, at the turn of the fourth hour, Abbess Morvenn emerged from the depths of the Canoness's domain and turned her gaze towards you, unsmiling and rigid in her expression. Your blood ran cold for a moment. Was there something you had done to displease the Ecclesiarchy? To displease the Emperor? No, if you had horribly displeased either, the Abbess of all the Adepta Sororitas would not be here in peace. And yet Morvenn Vahl was not known to take social visits. You kept your face carefully blank of expression, sure that she could hear the rapid beating of your anxious heart.

"Sister." She growled, as if her voice was unused to a conversational tone. "State your name and position in the Order."


What is your name? (Latin-inspired names are most common, though medieval German, French, Spanish, or Italian inspired names are possible as well)

[ ]

You currently serve as a Palatine, or captain within the Adepta Sororitas, but what was your previous role in the God-Emperor's blessed Sisters of Battle?

[ ] You were a Dogmata, spiritual enforcer of the Order. You watched and judged your Sisters for any sinful behavior, and if deemed necessary, you consigned them to the Repentia.

[ ] You were a Reliquant At Arms, keeper of the holy relics of the Order. You maintained the relics the Order held, and sought out those which had been lost.

[ ] You were a Seraphim, bringer of death from above for all those who scorned the God-Emperor. You took to the skies in your Jump Pack and dreamed of dropping on His foes like a meteor.

[ ] You were a Celestian Sacresant, an elite bodyguard for your Canoness. You were a living wall for your Order, and broke the enemies of humanity against your might.


Nodding sharply at your words, Abbess Morvenn placed a gauntleted hand on your shoulder. She took a deep breath, as if bracing for an amputation without tranquilizers. "In the name of the God-Emperor of Mankind, and the Holy Eccelesiarchy, you are to form a new Order of Adepta Sororitas and associated non-militant orders. You will have support from your parent order in establishing this Order. You will be required to advance the interests of the Imperium wherever you are stationed, and failure will not be tolerated. You will be voxed additional details in the coming months." By the Throne, it looked like it hurt her saying all those words at once. No wonder the Abbess preferred deeds to speeches.

You blinked, your surprise evident on your face. You… hadn't even considered the possibility that the Abbess was here to form a new Order of Adeptas Sororitas, with you at the head. In the end, you could only muster two words in response to her command. "Why me?"

Abbess Morvenn grimaced, her expression full of a mix of a dozen different moods, all angry at someone who isn't you. "Politics." And with that singular word, she stomped her way out of the Cloister, leaving you with the knowledge that whosoever arranged for the greatest living Adepta Sororitas to undertake this, she thought you capable of achieving it.

 

[Miriam]

Reserved for Later Use.

 

[Miriam]

Building the Order​

The next five years were busy, as the Eccelesiarchy and your parent Order transferred resources and Sisters to you, whether those of the Orders Militant, or those of the non-Militant orders, like the Sisters Hospitaller and their armies of medics, or the Sisters Pronatus and their quests for old imperial artifacts. 24,000 Sororitas in all were given to you, with 8,000 of those belonging to the Sisters Militant.

You were sent to one of the Sectors of the Segmentum Pacificus, the galactic west as measured by Imperial administration. Pacificus is a territory wracked with rebellion and conflict, first in the Macharian Crusade and subsequent Macharian Heresy, then once more in the Night of a Thousand Rebellions. And even as holy war and heretical rebellion wracked the Segmentum, a Tyranid incursion threatened the westernmost edge of Pacificus. Truly it was a place in need of the God-Emperor's light. And you would give it to them.

But first, the Administratum would like to ask a few questions that only you can answer.


From which Order does yours claim descent?

[ ] The Order of the Bloody Rose, devotees of Saint Mina. These Sisters are particularly fierce and wrathful, specializing in furious hatred backed up by bloody melee. (+1 Weapon Skill, +1 Strength, -1 Perception)

[ ] The Order of Our Martyred Lady, devotees of Saint Katherine. These Sisters are grim and mournful, and specialize in relentless frontal gunnery assaults, to the point of martyrdom. (+1 Ballistic Skill, +1 Toughness, -1 Fellowship)

[ ] The Order of the Valorous Heart, devotees of Saint Lucia. These Sisters are level-headed and guilt-filled, and specialize in both fanatical Repentias and enduring pain. (+1 Perception, +1 Toughness, -1 Ballistic Skill)

[ ] The Order of the Sacred Rose, devotees of Saint Arabella. These Sisters are relatively altruistic and kind, and do not specialize in any one tactic, but are known for skilled oratory and piety. (+1 Willpower, +1 Fellowship, -1 Weapon Skill)

[ ] The Order of the Ebon Chalice, devotees of Saint Alicia Dominca. These Sisters are the firm bedrock from whence all other orders sprang, and are often the most elite of the Sisters. (add +1 to any one stat, choose which in your vote)

[ ] The Order of the Argent Shroud, devotees of Saint Silvana. These Sisters are silent and mysterious, and specialize in hit-and-withdraw assaults and shock troops. (+1 Agility, +1 Weapon Skill, -1 Fellowship)

What will be your Order's homeworld?

[ ] Stelai Major, a Shrine/Mining World

Stelai Major is a gas giant ringed by a crown of artificial colonies and floating tributes to the God-Emperor and His saints. The slightly mutant Voidborn colonists harvest quantities of gas for use in Promethium, the catch-all term for fuel in the Imperium. To them, Promethium is sacred, and the Emperor has blessed every molecule of it. Small craft dot the atmosphere near-constantly, and nearby asteroids have been commandeered for even more living space for the tightly cramped inhabitants.

[ ] Trebula Secundus, a Hive World

Trebula Secendus is unlike most Hive Worlds. In most of them, the poorer inhabitants live deep in the earth and the richer inhabitants live on top, but on Trebula, the unique geology of the planet renders the underground pleasantly temperate and the surface wracked with smog and volcanic eruptions, leading the rich to live far underground and the poor to live in higher levels and even on the surface, where they collect the few things the underground nobility need from above. Vast catacombs cobweb through the lowest levels, where the upper classes keep their dead. The poor of the surface have no such honor given to their deceased.

[ ] Mictlan, an Agri/Jungle World

Mictlan is one of the most ancient worlds in the sector, containing ruins and secrets from four prior ages of interstellar civilization. The inhabitants believe that the God-Emperor wrested the planet from four ancient evils in turn, and in their canal and mountain cities they worship him through dancing, cleanliness and (usually mild) bloodletting. Apart from their agriculture, rituals, and ancient history, the Mictlani are known for their love of the obsidian-like Symanthite.


In your past, you committed a valorous deed alongside your three devoted companions, the jovial Seraphim Perpetva Eclessiae, the stern Dogmata Maethild, and the paranoid Celestian Sacrant Aurora Nerva, earning your place as Palatine, and evidently impressing the Abbess. However, you earned a sort of nemesis from the victory. Who is your nemesis?

[ ] Skrolla 'Eavyhand of the Steelgitz

You burned out the eye of the Ork Mekboy Skrollka 'Eavyhand of the Steelgitz. You thought you had killed the mad Ork mechanic, but he sent you a vox afterward thanking you for the fight and expressing his desire for an even better fight from you in the future, his crude cybernetic eye winking. Eugh. You didn't even know Orks could wink.

[ ] Reshep Fatesworn of the Fractal Host

You fought the Tzeentch Chaos Space Marine Reshep Fatesworn, a Thousand Sons Sorcerer of the Fractal Host, breaking his staff. While you did not manage to actually harm him, he declared that your act of valor would face retribution, and that he would strike when you least expected it. The mad laughter either enhanced or ruined the effect, you're not sure.

[ ] Kubien-144 of the Dark Mechanicum

You strode into the depths of a Forge World, and broke the siege of Kubien-144, Archmagos of the Dark Mechanicum, cutting the traitor tech-priest in two. They survived, and reports came to your desk of a Heretek with cybernetic spider-limbs leading raids on Adeptas Sororitas garrisons in retaliation. As did a long message in binary that local tech priests tactfully translated as a declaration of war.

[ ] Quintessa Elmas of the Society of the Radiant Sunrise

At the head of your companions, you recovered the Cloak of Saint Sejanus, a Saint of the Macharian Crusade. In the process, you fought the Slaaenshi cultist Quintessa Elmas, leader of the Society of the Radiant Sunrise, permanently severing her right leg with a blessed blade. She didn't seem too put off by the loss, and praised you for your "chainsword kiss", promising that she'd return the favor one day.

Your duties as a Sister of Battle have also lead you to acquaintanceships, even friendships of a sort, with varied individuals within the Imperium. Choose one.


[ ] Xi Thassoris of Atar-Median

Archmagos Xi Thassoris of Atar-Median. The Archmagos is a particularly strange woman, even for a tech priest. Excitable and erratic, she has waking dreams of the ancient technology of the Heresy and even the Age of Night before that, and frequently expounds upon the starships and armaments of those eras. She is also half a millennia old, and remembers a time before the Segmentum Pacificus's current woes.

[ ] Valaria Carsk of the Immirian Tenth

Lord General Valaria Carsk of Immir. The Lord General is terse and calculating, a third-generation veteran of the wars erupting from the Night of a Thousand Rebellions. She commands the Immirian Tenth, also derided as the "Frigid Tenth" by other regiments for their legendarily unfriendly demeanor and icy home planet. Oddly, she distrusts the Blood Raven Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes.

[ ] Marcion van Larraal of the Inquisition

Inquisitor Marcion von Larraal. The Inquisitor is a remarkably friendly man for an Inquisitor, and keen to exchange knowledge and resources with those he considers allies. Like you. However, under his gregarious exterior, von Larraal is obsessed with uncovering the secrets of all he comes across. Be you loyal, traitor, Xeno or Chaos, Guard or Tech Priest, or even a Sister of Battle, the Inquisitor wants to know how to find your weaknesses.


What will be your Order's name, colors, and iconography? The Administratum asks you to please refrain from using iconography and other such elements associated with the Ruinous Powers.

[ ] Name
[ ] Colors
[ ] Icon