The sergeant leads you through the camp, to a prefab hab unit, of the type seen on any Imperial world. Just outside you are confronted with a short, stubby man, with a thick moustache, shaved head, aquila tattoo on his neck and dressed in a flak vest and armed with a laspistol in a holster at his side. He pulls a chewed cigar from his mouth and all but growls out "The Commissar'll see you now. He's been expecting you."<br/><br/>Constructed of metal alloys and painted with a utilitarian red colour, it features the Battalion’s number, as well as the eagle of the Imperium. A single access hatch in the face of the structure allows access to the interior. Once inside, the place is sparsely decorated, with a desk for the secretary and a second desk for the Commissar himself.<br/><br/>Nihilius, as the Commissar is introduced to you by the cigar chewing adjutant, is in his late thirties, with coal black hair, matching dark eyes, and a craggy face. He wears a black uniform<br/>decorated with his rank and a few badges of honour. His Commissar hat rests on a hook behind his desk as does his long black leather coat. He sits himself down, steepling his fingers as<br/>he assesses you.<br/><br/>"Please, be seated." he says, gesturing towards the handfull of thin chairs that are spread near his desk. “Well, I presume you are from the Inquisition? I was told help was on the way, but I must say I am always surprised by the agents I meet. I’m sure you are eminently qualified for the task at hand, so let’s get down to business and get this over with shall we? "<br/><br/>“As you may or may not know, this world is vital to the commercial interests of this sector and anything that threatens this world ultimately threatens the larger community. Thus when renegade activities on this planet destroyed valuable and, in some people’s estimations, irreplaceable equipment, it was deemed necessary to create a show of force and eradicate all insurgents in and around the lucrative Gorgonid Mine”. He gestures expansively around him."<br/><br/>“Now, attending to a few rebels is easy work and as expected, the scum lacked grit, leadership, and dedication to their cause, and so in a matter of hours we had contained the site, rounded up a few captives and were ready to ship out. But as I toured the grounds, something caught my eye. One of the rebels was carrying a sheaf of papers. I examined them quickly and it appeared they were queer texts of some kind, copies surely, but describing unspeakable acts. It was clear that these rebels were foot soldiers for something worse."<br/><br/>“I know my duty, and so I sent a dozen squads into the mines themselves. Many of our enemy fled the certain death of our superior firepower for the cover of the mines. It was as I feared. The Guardsmen descended and after three-quarters of an hour, they returned, much diminished and suffering terrible casualties. Reports of twisted mutants, daemons, and worse came in and so I decided that until I received proper support, the mine would be closed."<br/><br/>“Clearly, the Inquisitor does not share my concern… no offence, of course. I just expected a… larger group to attend to this matter. Well, who am I to question the ways of the Ordo, right? Right. Here is a map. Follow the directions and they will take you through the upper levels of the Gorgonid Mines. My men didn’t encounter much of anything there, but when they entered the tunnels known as the Shatters”, he points at the map, “that was where things went wrong”.<br/><br/>“I should warn you, it takes a great deal of effort to lift the seal and it’s not quick. We’ll let you out of course, but there’s nothing fast about it so try not to be in a hurry. I presume you’re armed? Not many things on your persons I see. That’s a shame. See our Quartermaster and he’ll properly outfit you. Meet me at the seal—you can see it from the door—in say an hour. It takes a good 30 minutes to walk it, so don’t dawdle”.