Sycorax (Callidus Assassin)
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This article is about the Callidus Assassin. For other uses of Sycorax, see Sycorax (disambiguation). |
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The following paragraphs contain spoilers for: | Assassinorum: Divine Sanction (Short Story) |
Sycorax is a Callidus Assassin.[1]
History
Illsandor Mission
Sycorax was sent to kill and then replace the Imperial Confessor Thuselah Illsandor, after he began to sway his world into joining the Tau Empire.[1]
Her orders after replacing Illsandor, were to stall the Tau Empire's efforts and to also continue perpetuating the rebellion. This was so the Officio Assassinorum and Inquisition could see which of the world's powerful Industry Lords remained loyal and which would need to be purged. After reaching the Confessor's world, it took the Assassin months to get close to Illsandor, who lived within the city of Viridian, as he was an orator of rare skill and Sycorax needed to completely copy his mannerisms. In order to do this, she first replaced one of the Confessor's Apostolic Guard and later assumed the identity of his sermon-writer Thacceus Velso.[1]
This allowed her to safely study Illsandor, as Velso was part of his inner-circle and was co-creator of the New Confession sermons that the Confessor was using to aid the Tau Empire. After three months as Velso, though, Sycorax had finally studied the Confessor enough to replace him. As she prepared to, Sycorax ensured that she was alone with Illsandor in his office, by reminding the Apostolic Guard's commander, Captain Mascelle Rask, to check the perimeter of their fortress for any of the Confessor's foes. Before Sycorax could kill Illsandor, however, the Confessor was assassinated by a sniper who had made an impossible long distance shot, through a hidden drilled hole in the room. Only a Vindicare was capable of such skill and Sycorax wondered if they had been sent because she had taken too long to complete her task. She focused on her mission, though, and attempted to salvage it by assuming Illsandor's body shape. The Callidus was only halfway through her transformation, however, when Mascelle Rask stormed into the room, after hearing the gunshot.[1]
Caught in mid-transformation, Sycorax's appearance made her look like a member of the Tau and Rask assumed that the Xenos had turned upon the Confessor. She then fired upon Sycorax and called for more of the Guard, stating that the Tau had betrayed them and killed Illsandor. As Sycorax was pinned down behind Illsandor's desk, and was unable to reach the room's door or air vents, she attempted to buy time for herself by pretending to surrender. The Callidus then lied and said that Illsandor had become xenophobic and attacked her, which had led to his death. Upon hearing this, Rask sealed the room's doors just as more of the Apostolic Guard neared it. The Guard's Captain then asked if she and the Tau could come to an arrangement. Rask wanted to replace Illsandor and work with the Tau Empire, but would not turn her world over to the Xenos. Instead, she would secretly give them some of its resources every quarter-cycle, if the Tau allowed her to take command and kill those who wished to join their Empire. This would legitimize her to the Imperium and prevent any reprisals that the Tau's annexing of the world would cause. Sycorax agreed that would be a good deal - if she was truly a Tau and not an assassin. The Callidus then attacked and Rask realized what she truly was. This did not matter to the Captain though, as Rask told Sycorax she would be able to rule her world, if she presented the head of the assassin that had killed their beloved Confessor. Despite her skills, however, Rask was killed by Sycorax who escaped through the sealed room's air vents, moments before the Guard broke down its doors.[1]
They then found Illsandor and Rask's bodies, which fueled their revenge against the Tau delegation in the fortress. The Xenos died at the Apostolic Guard's hands and after hearing of Illsandor's death, the Industry Lords' forces then began attacking his followers. Sycorax meanwhile found the tower where she felt the Vindicare had taken the shot, that had killed the Confessor. As she traversed the booby trapped tower, Sycorax began to wonder if the Vindicare's bullet had been meant for her. The Callidus mission of continuing the rebellion after replacing Illsandor, was unheard of and possibly a violation of the vows she had made to her temple. Had see been sent on a rogue mission or was the Vindicare the true rogue? She had no answers, but soon found a spent Exitus Rifle casing round, where the Vindicare had taken the shot. Realizing it had been left there on purpose, Sycorax picked the casing up and a data-card tumbled out of it. She quickly entered the data-card into her Wrist Slate and two words appeared: Operation Vendetta.[1]
Dominion Mission
Later Sycorax was assigned to oversee an Execution Force led by the Vindicare Assassin Absolom Raithe and the Vanus Assassin Avaaris Koln to the Knight World of Dominion to assassinate High King Lucien Yavarius-Khau.[4a] At a grand ceremony at the Basilica of Dominion, Raithe, Koln, and Sycorax began their operation to eliminate Lucien.[4b] However Sycorax, disguised as the Knight Armiger pilot Linoleus Rakkan, came under attack from rival court assassins. Raithe was forced to intervene to save Sycorax, exposing the operation.[4c]
At the midwinter tournament the Execution Force tried to assassinate the High King again as he now openly talked of secession. A bomb goes off during the tournament, which the team uses to get close to the King. As Raithe finally got close enough to fire his Exitus Rifle, it is revealed that the High King has long since been killed, a victim of his own court intrigue. Sycorax, under the influence of their Knight's Machine Spirit, fires their Thermal Spear at Raithe's proxy, cementing her status as a hero.[4d]
The team soon managed to quietly reunite and learned that the Court had been secretly controlling the King for years to avoid civil war. They then planned to manipulate the court and install their own candidate.[4e] Eliminating other potential candidates for the throne, eventually, Lord Bazile Daggar-Kraine was selected to become the new High King.[4f] However, at Daggar-Kraine's coronation, the conqueror_wyrm virus contained within the Crown of Dominion, the ceremonial Knight piloted by the High Monarch, corrupted him and led to his fall to Chaos. This, combined with the sudden re-emergence of the Dread House Morvayne, led to a number of the other Knights of Stryder and Rau betraying the Imperium and joining the Dread House.[4f][4g]
The loyalist Knights, rallied by the loyal Baroness Symphonia Dask engaged the enemy forces. Sycorax, no longer fighting against the machine-spirit of her Knight, fought with a newfound ferocity. She, with Raithe's help, were able to destroy the Throne Mechanicum and kill Daggar-Kraine.[4h] In the aftermath of the routing of the traitor forces, the real Rakkan became the new High Monarch of Dominion. Sycorax and the rest of the team departed the world thereafter.[4i]
