Galen Czytel
Galen Czytel was a Major of the Hyrkan Eighth regiment, active during the Sabbat Worlds Crusade.[1]
Biography
Czytel advanced through the ranks of the Hyrkan Regiments to the rank of Major. As a result of this, he had little patience for those who were born officers. In particular, he was one of a group of officers who requested Cadet Ibram Gaunt to be transferred to a new regiment after he graduated to the rank of full Commissar, seeing him as an over-privileged Scholam boy with not enough actual field experience. This request was denied by General Caernavar, but Czytel persisted in his opinion of Gaunt, believing it would damage the regiment's morale. Despite this, most of the rank and file of the Hyrkan Eighth seemed to have no issue with Gaunt's appointment.[1]
During the initial Imperial advance in the Sabbat Worlds Crusade, the Hyrkan Eighth were deployed on Formal Prime. Major Czytel and Commissar Gaunt led a squad ahead of the Imperial lines to assist a survey team lead by Wal Desruisseaux which had uncovered a shrine to Saint Sabbat. However, the "shrine" turned out to be a prison containing something that would aid the forces of Chaos in the region and Desruisseaux was actually a Charismite Chaos cultist. Desruisseaux tried to kill the Guardsmen so he could use their equipment to unseal the prison, but was killed in the ensuing firefight when Gaunt flushed him out of cover using his bolt pistol, allowing Zennet, the squad's Sharpshooter, to kill him. Czytel came to respect Gaunt much more after that action, as he was the one who had voiced suspicions about the "survey team".[1]
