Daily Trifles

The young Emperor's Children corporal, Kius Solani, was meticulously maintaining his power armor.

The maintenance bay was unbearably hot. Its cramped confines made even an Astartes feel the heat, so the corporal decided to complete the tedious work bare from the waist up.

Firelight flickered across his back, revealing countless scars of varying sizes that crisscrossed his skin. They had already claimed the body of this young man, who had served for barely nineteen years, utterly ruining the once-balanced contours of his muscles and leaving no trace of beauty behind.

Yet he relished them.

He believed a warrior's scars represented honor.

In the past, Kius had been a brewing apprentice of some renown before Vindicators Saul Tarvitz took him away. However, this was not because of any extraordinary skill at his craft, but because of his excessively delicate face.

After passing the selection trials and receiving the gene-seed implantation, he had become ever more noble and handsome. His tearful eyes were bewitching and soul-stealing. Though this infuriated him and earned him no small amount of teasing, it also placed him near the top of the candidate lists for certain diplomatic functions.

Naturally, he hated this—rather, he hated all of it. He had no desire to encounter unwarranted enthusiasm at those banquets. Everyone in the Third Legion knew that young Kius Solani was wholly devoted to preserving the Third Legion's honor.

Maintenance tools clanged and banged, sparks scattering from time to time. Before long, the corporal had completely repaired a dent left on his left vambrace not long ago. He examined it for several seconds, replaced the armor plate, and began oiling and maintaining the entire suit of power armor.

This was another unpleasant task, but he handled it with ease, even taking a certain pleasure in it.

Sixteen minutes later,