"Governor Bastonne, we have completed every task you assigned. Please issue new orders."
On the Cadia fortress world, within the command hall deep inside Kasr Kraf Fortress, countless Cadians clad in fully enclosed mortal power armor hurried about their duties.
A young, resolute-faced Kasrkin with a plasma gun still slung from his body passed through security at a brisk pace, then stood before Bastonne, Cadia's Governor Primus, to report on the mission's completion.
As one of the human worlds closest to the Eye of Terror, Cadia's society had long since become highly militarized. Almost everyone was required to serve in the Cadian Shock Troops.
A deeply accepted saying circulated here: any Cadian who still could not handle a lasgun by the age of ten had been born on the wrong planet.
Even underage Cadians had to enter the Cadian Youth Army, also known as the Whiteshields, to learn essential combat skills and wartime discipline. Only the finest among them qualified to join the Kasrkin.
Hearing his loyal sergeant's report, Governor Bastonne, who had been studying defensive deployments and troop allocations with intense focus at the command table, set down his pen and asked for more details.
Unlike on other Imperial worlds, Cadia's planetary governor was practically a military-political office, also known as the Governor Primus.
Should the Governor Primus die or lose command capability during a crisis, Cadia's fortress lords would, after obtaining public approval, immediately assume his duties and become Cadia's new supreme commander.
Of course, Cadia's current situation remained fairly stable. Governor Bastonne was deeply respected and admired by the Cadians, and his heroism and fearless courage had earned him considerable renown and support.
Bastonne did not immediately answer the sergeant's question. He gestured, and the two passed several Kasrkin before arriving outside the command hall.
The governor