Ven sees nothing
With the fishermen rescued and singing their praises, Enoch slowly moves around the vessel. He had heard that there were things that could float in the water, surviving the storm. This thing seemed like it could but didn't somehow. Maybe there was something wrong with it.
Not noticing anything there, he returns back to men as they were explaining what had happened.
"You heard...thunder? Did your ship get struck by lightning?"
Pens listens to the adulation and smiles at the sound. It is good to be loved instead of feared. She looks along the line of the vessel and notes the oddity.
"Friends, there is a hole in the vessel, but I do not know what would have caused it."
A fisherman scratches his head while replying to Enoch:
"I assume so. There was thunder and a flash, but I did not see the lightning."
Now that Pens has drawn attention to the matter, it is plain that there is a hole in the vessel, below the waterline.
”Can we hurry this up? Let’s drop them off and keep moving. It’s not like we don’t have places to be and things to do.” Valdear said. She wondered what the inquisitor would’ve think about them endangering the mission to save two random civilians.
"I don't recognise that blast mark, it could be lightning"
Coming down from the cockpit, he listens to the conversations between his team and the fisherman. He goes over and inspects the damage to their vessel.
Xipil considers whether the damage was caused by the wrath of the machine spirit, a genuine accident or sabotage.
Daxio and Xipil both realise that this hole was caused by a krak explosive - most likely a standard pattern man-portable rocket.
Xipil motions the others to the side leaving the abomination to distract the fishermen. "The damage was caused by an implosion, by it's size most likely a krak missile fired from a launcher. They're heavy but man portable, Imperial Guard forces usually have a secondary crewman to carry munitions and aid the gunner. The technology has considerable range for a man portable weapon and is not overly rare on the battlefield but I find it unusual to observe evidence of it here."
He turns to the fishermen and speaks. "I seek further information. You, your vessel and your masters, additional data is required on these and particularly any enemies you and your masters have. Is there a trade war under way for example?"
”Kinda seems like a hard thing to miss, getting krak’d.” Valdear observed. ”And too expensive to do it to strangers.”
[Ven leans in to Enoch.
"They must have something valuable to onboard for someone to risk using a Krak missile on them. Can you search their ship while we keep them distracted?"
He then turns towards the sailors.
"Perhaps, in exchange for our help you could tells us about yourselves and what kind of cargo you were carrying"
Kneeling by the damaged hull alongside the techpriest, Daxio traces the damage and burn marks with his fingers.
"Damn, dat's gotta be a tredfedder, y'know? Tear a blas' like dat, ain't nottin' bu' twigs an' glue lef' - Emperor's ligh' kep' dem afloa'. P'rhaps dey go' too close teh sometin', yeh know? Like a secre' base, or anodder vessel?"
Instinctively, Daxio flicks the release on his pistol's holster, getting it ready for a quick draw. 'If someone tried to sink this ship, they might still be watching. This could be an ambush...'
His eyes scan the horizon and the storm clouds alike.
Enoch gives a small nod to Ven as he makes the suggestion to look over their ship. After all, using weaponry like that on a fishing boat was might suspicious.
While the others were looking away from the innocuous man and being questioned by the rest of the warband, Enoch would try to slip away upon the ship itself and looking it over high and low. There had to be a reason why this ship was attacked.
He turns to the fishermen and speaks. "I seek further information. You, your vessel and your masters, additional data is required on these and particularly any enemies you and your masters have. Is there a trade war under way for example?"
The gaggle of fishermen appear a little confused at Xipil's questions.
"War? No, sirrah! The Harvest-Father and his Saints protect us from war! Our fleet has done well these last three seasons, our crew and the Lake Maiden here in particular. The Kathrinkas are lords in Recompense, the Faithful tell the Sodality what to plant, and the Sodality tells us - and collects."
"Perhaps, in exchange for our help you could tells us about yourselves and what kind of cargo you were carrying"
"Well, we fish. Drawing nets behind us. They fill up quickly with each pass. We report to the Sodality centre at the other side of the lake, long-wise. I'm Lancel, captain of the Maiden, if you need it."
”Kinda seems like a hard thing to miss, getting krak’d.” Valdear observed. ”And too expensive to do it to strangers.”
Their confusion resumes with Valdear's comments.
"Cracked? Yes, we heard the crack of thunder, then the Maiden began to lurch to one side and sink!"
"Damn, dat's gotta be a tredfedder, y'know? Tear a blas' like dat, ain't nottin' bu' twigs an' glue lef' - Emperor's ligh' kep' dem afloa'. P'rhaps dey go' too close teh sometin', yeh know? Like a secre' base, or anodder vessel?"
And increases at Daxio's entire dialect.
"Wha-what're you saying? Vessel...the others were on their way, we were doing a few minor repairs before catching up with them then got pressed back by the storm."
Enoch enters the Lake Maiden undetected. The vessel is a metal hull with wooden fixtures over it, replaced as needed over the fishing boat's long lifetime of use.
There are rudimentary facilities for pre-processing fish hauls. Tables and blades for gutting and filleting, and many crates of ice packed with healthy-looking fish.
"My colleague was inquiring as to whether this is an area you normally harvest. Is it part of your normal routine for your ship?"
"Are the Kathrinkas of Recompense members of the Faithful or part of the Sodality. Or perhaps external to both those groups. Clarification on the chain of command and how tithes are managed would be useful." Xipil left out his suspicions were probably an example of surplus hereditary populous.
"I don't think there's anything suspicious about this ship but I think we should be weary going forward. If the locals have krak missiles to use on fishing boats then an aerial approach might not be the safest.
Enoch would appear out of the ship again, shaking his head at Ven. There was nothing to be seen out of the ordinary below decks, just what one might expect from a fishing crew.
"Our fleet does a circuit of the whole lake. The fish are plentiful so we keep fishing. The Kathrinkas are neither. They rule from Recompense. The Harvest-Father knows his own."
Any time Kathrinkas is brought up, the fishermen get nervous and move the topic quickly.
As the fishermen talk, Enoch stalks back with the rest of the group. He was almost ready to call an end to this whole ordeal with them when he noticed the little mannerisms here and there. How quickly they moved off of the topic of the Kathrinkas, how the other seemed nervous talking about them.
"The Kathrinkas, they worry you don't they? Why is that?" Enoch asks, locking eyes with the man that they were talking to. A ship almost sunk by weaponry force, a fear of those that rule Recompense. Something was definitely off about this place.
"We have saved you from great peril, we do not know the Kathrinkas and therefore owe them no fealty. Therefore we will not seek to do you harm for speaking freely about them regardless of any negative comment. It is a logical conclusion."
Daxio curses at himself under his breath. "Damn, I need to keep the cant in check - the people here can't even understand me. I had a handle on it shipboard, why is it coming back so fast now?"
Daxio moves over to the Guard Sergeant Ven. Leaning in close, he keeps his voice low, "dere's someone out dere, in da storm. I know i'. Tried teh sink dese boys, prob'ly teh 'ide sometin'. P'rhaps we le' the storm pass, den take a look 'round?"
Catching on to Xipil's plan Ven follows along
"Tell us what's going on here any maybe we can help"
The fishermen look at each other uncomfortably, mutter, then come to some consensus. Lancel speaks up:
"Well, sirrahs, you must be from above then."
Another pipes up:
"Are you here for the tithe? After all these years?"
Lancel turns and glares at the man, then resumes:
"You will be able to say that one way or another, I imagine, sirrahs.
The bone of it is that Kathrinkas are inbred sops. Stories have that they commit constant debauchery and are rarely seen outside of Recompense. They must have a place in the Harvest-Father's plans, but it is a hard one to see from where we stand."
"Maybe we shall pay them a visit and find out what part they play in the plan."
Enoch thought back to the dataslate that they had been given; the Kathrinkas was this planet's nobility and rulers. Overindulgence was not something he was surprised about, the upper class always ate more than they could ever need and left scraps for the lower classes. It is what drove him to sedition and even now, it still angers him to some degree.
[b]"Have the Kathrinkas just been claiming the tithe for themselves? Most nobility are wasteful bastards so I don't blame you for not liking them. It is important though, what have you seen that makes you think of them that way?"[b]
"To your knowledge when was the last time the tithe was collected? An event of some note to your world?" Xipil held back any threats of dire retribution if they spoke of their intervention... for now.
"Have you heard of any other vessels being lost at sea or having accidents of late?" Xipil began to look around to assess the level of technology the ship had, particularly if they had a vox system, what kind of engine the vessel had... battery fueled, internal combustion engine, a furnace or even more depressingly using sails or oars
"The Kathrinkas keep the Harvest-Father's rule. Word spreads of how they do that, even to humble villages such as ours. They never hunger, or are short of fine clothes. But you clearly have authority of your own."
"It has been a generation since the last tithe, sirrah, maybe more. You should speak with a Seed-Scribe or even a Harvest-Scribe for details like that."
"Terrible things do happen, sirrah. They happen more often if a farm is too productive or a fleet brings too large a haul."
The fishermen seem extremly reluctant to speak in much more detail about these 'terrible things' or the Kathrinkas.
Xipil is able to quickly determine that the Lake Maiden is powered by an internal combustion engine, albeit an aged and poorly-maintained one. There is no vox unit of any sort. It appears that the crews communicate using a flag system, judging by such items placed in strategic locations throughout the vessel.
"Efficient food production leads to more frequent misfortune... how have your hauls been of late?"
Looking at the sorry state of repair of the machines Xipil can not stand by. Shaking his head in dismay he begins a few basic rites to assuage the machine spirits.
”Can’t say this makes sense. Why would better harvests lead to...hmm...” She stopped, having come to the conclusion that someone was acting against the interests of those who owned said fortunate harvests. She just didn’t know who. The politics of the imperium were more foreign to her than those of the orks on her home world.
Xipil is able to coak the machine spirits into smoother functionality. The trawler will operate more smoothly once back on the lake waters.
Ven, and perhaps others, would be aware that krak missiles and similar weapons can and do feature in planetary defense force munitions. It is however unclear whether the Novabella Sworn Protectors would even have a stockpile at this stage.
Daxio listens intently while keeping his eyes peeled. The fact that someone would fire a missile at a fishing vessel for pulling to big a harvest has him thoroughly perplexed.
"Yeh say bad tings 'appen when yeh 'ave teh good a 'arvest, or pull teh many fish, eh? Seems kinda backward of what yeh'd expec'. I mean, dis an agriworld, supposed teh produce food. Who'd wanna punish som'ne fer dat? Besides dees Katrinkes, dere any'ne else dat's no teh kind on yer workin' folk?"
"Are you aware of any Kathrinkas personal lodgings outside of Recompense such as an estate?"
The fishermen continue to mull over these questions.
"Only heard of Kathrinkas in Recompense. Maybe some joined the Sworn Protectors?"
Thinking back over the words of the fishermen, Daxio shakes his head then turns to the others. "A 'ole bloody generation since deh las' tithe?! Dat confirms wut deh Inquisidor's ledder said. Ain' no one been doin' anythin' wi' deh food. So, is it jus' spoilin' den? Sounds like we need teh ge' teh Recompense, an' 'ave a few words."
"I agree, we need to get to the bottum of this. That said we should be on the lookout. If they have missile to waste on fishing ships then they are either every reckless or have a supplier, possible off world. Either which way our original plan is still a good one and we should continue onwards"
"Point me towards our next targets, I will not be stopped by any in our way."
The weather is still stormy, though it appears to passing swiftly.
"A pervasive system of policies and procedures to hinder harvesting combined with targeting groups who are performing too well? A bit blatant."
Xipil turns towards the crew. "We have saved you and now I have tended to the machine spirits here. You should refrain from mentioning us in any way, failure to do so will end in harsh and permanent consequences." He considered if that might be too subtle considering the world. "For example we might flay you slowly."
Daxio looks at the techpriest with his overly aggressive threat and chuckles. "Aim teh be makin' a few friends then, do yeah? Well lads, le's get in deh bird, hunker down til the Emp'ror's rage be dyin' down. Den is on teh Recompense."
Daxio throws a wave to the fisherman, scans the horizon one last time, then withdraws to the safety of the shuttle.
The fishermen decide that it is best to back off and focus on their beached boat.
The cell withdraws to the shuttle. The storm visibly eases off within the hour, as the bulk of the clouds continue moving overland.
The shuttle rises and resumes its flight to Recompense, with some time remaining to discuss discoveries and fine tune an approach.
"So someone who has access to anti armour weaponry timed their attack around when a storm hit. Either they are extremely familiar with reading this worlds data patterns or they had access to machine spirits that aren't common on this world I'd suspect. If a vessel sank in the middle of a storm who would question it."
"From what we have seen there seems to have been a sustained effort resulting in the marked reduction of productivity of this worlds main purpose. These Kathrinkas seem to be involved though they may not be the masters of this conspiracy."
"Seems to me that the best way to get answers is to find one of their men and kidnap him. A good, old fashioned raid. Once our mark talks, we'll know more about what we're working with here."
"I'm against high risk raids into unknown territory as even if we succeed they're no guarantee that the target we grab will know anything.
I suggest sticking with the original plan. This planet probably doesn't have the means to make many Krak missiles so they either have or would want an offworld supplier to replenish their stocks.
For that reason I think a Free trader would interest them"
As the shuttle flies overland, enormous caravans pulled by scores of brightly adorned footmen carry tonnes of foodstuffs to Recompense. More and more become visible the closer to the city the cell draws.
It appears that Recompense has expanded - at least in terms of storage complexes. Fresh construction of warehoues and grain silos is clearly underway across the growing edge of the city.
"Firstly the planet may have limited means. The sole tech priest may yet live. I could produce a krak missile with the materials on this world but it would be... painstaking and very slow. They may also have limited supply. Either way it would be no small investment and a new means of supply will likely interest them, in this you are correct."
Taking note of recompense he adds "Even with their incompetence they need more storage room... clearly any off world contacts are not often here."
Daxio keeps on eye on the controls and the other on the land below. "Seems like dey be fixin' teh be keepin' i' all 'ere. Yeh tink dey be selling' teh som'ne else? Roight, sarge, dey need weapons, an' yeh be needin' fud - cud be a set o' matchin' shells, if'n yeh follow." he says in response to the guardsmen's words.
"Course, if'n dey don' be getin' many folks from o'world, dey migh' no' be so trustin'. Bes' be 'avin' our blades sharp an' our mags rocked."
"Lets investigate those storage Complex's. I'll pose as the quatermaster of a free trader if we're challenged. Unless anyone has any objections"
Taking Ven's lead, Daxio dips the craft slightly, bringing it into a path toward the storage complexes. [n]"Ay, sounds roight, Quar'ermas'er. Bes' be ready fer trouble, som'ne's out fer blud."[/b]