Delphias Fedarsi was irate. It was a familiar state of mind, for Delphias has a very cynical person, and despite Gorson's coachings, had never quite gotten the hang of looking on the bright side. When the vox-call had come though from a street patrol that the Soritas were burning the brothel district to the ground, however, it looked like Delphias had been right. Seeing as he was the only officer on base, and as High-Judge Turpon believed that Delphias was the best man to liaise with the sisters, Delphias' patrol group was sent out to deal with what ever was happening. Indeed, perhaps if Veritas Gorson had gone with him, what happened next would have been rather different.
Delphias just stared at the sight before him in a mixture of shock and surprise. Slowly that mixture turned towards anger. The "pride" of the brothel district, easily the largest bath-house in the area, was in ruins, with piles of flaming dead neatly stacked near the entrances. Who should be doing the stacking but the people he had been sent to find? It figured that they would be here. Dismounting from his repressor, he walked towards the nearest Sorita, his arbites fanning out behind him.
Stopping in front of the woman, he almost spat. "Just what in the name of the Emperor has happened here?" He could barely articulate his words, such was his anger.
The youthful-looking sister shifted her feet as she glanced over her shoulder, "Purity sweep. Heretics. Ordo Hereticus business."
For one moment Delphias was frozen as he struggled to comprehend the sister's words. "Ordo Hereticus buisness? You're fighting in the streets! You've stormed and burned Imperial property. This is Imperial business!" He huffed for breath. "Who is in charge here?"
The Sister reached up to activate her microbead, "Mother Rachel? I have an Arbitrator here requesting to speak with whomever is in charge." She paused for a moment, then nodded. She pointed toward the entrance, "Mother Superior Katherine will meet you."
"Oh, will she?" he replied, venomously, as he stormed past her. looking back at his arbites, he shouted, "Fan out. Start checking the bodies for identification." Ahead of him, lurking in the doorway and holding a giant sword, was who he assumed to be the Canoness. Delphias paused, mustering his self control. "Mother Superior Katherine, I presume?"
"I am, and you are?"
Delphias wearily flipped out his badge and handed it to her. "Interrogator Fedarsi of Adeptus Arbites. I'm here to ask just why you felt compelled to destroy a large civilian facility and butcher all within." He stopped for a moment as sarcasm became too difficult. "Emperor's blood, woman, what have you done here?"
"My job, Arbitrator," Katherine said simply.
Delphias could have cried. "For once, Canoness, could you perhaps elaborate? Can't you see this isn't the time for pithy answers and withholding information?"
Katherine regarded the man for a moment before replying, "I am withholding nothing. That was the simplest answer. This place was a hive of Slaanesh cult activity. We have cleansed it."
"Alright, alright. Now we are getting somewhere." He paused again, taking out a vox-corder and tapping some words in with a stylus. "Now, why did you not notify anyone else on Byzantium?"
"If you have any further questions, you may direct them to the Ordo Hereticus," The Canoness replied coldly. "We operate under their orders."
Delphias; head whipped up. "That is not true, Canoness! That is just not true!" He took a step closer to her, beginning to yell. "I have spent the past several days with Inquisitor Godschilde almost constantly and not once have you nor any other sister had any contact with her. What is going on here?"
