Acuitor Set

“We still have no explanation for the death of the passenger. The only witness claims the void-lock unexpectedly opened just as that poor soul walked nearby, while the outer lock was also open. For both to be open is impossible when the auspex registers open void against the hull, yet it happened. I doubt we will ever know why he was so desperate to leave that system, though I am relieved he did pay in advance.”
–Captain Artesia Carnelline, Killian’s Prize
Killers come in all sizes and shapes, some silent and subtle, others
brazen, some clad in flesh, some in cloth, and some in steel. There
are countless orders dedicated to the art of death in the Calixis
Sector, and one among them is the Acuitor Set of the Lathes,
less formally called the Mech-Assassins. These executioners are
answerable only to Magisters Samadhi of their own order, and
usually move according to their masters’ will without scrutiny,
hidden beneath heavy red robes. Though most are trained in the
art of stealth, initiates of the Acuitor Set often infiltrate in plain
sight; after all, the Priesthood of Mars is a wholly inscrutable
order to all but the most knowledgeable outsiders, and even the
greatest citizens across the Calixis Sector do well to treat these
strange, mechanical half-men with reverence and fear. It is rare
for lay folk to question the actions of even a lowly initiate of the
Adeptus Mechanicus, odd or arcane as his behaviors may be, and
so the Acuitors pass, seen but ignored. To anyone but the great
lords of the Machine Cult, and certain individual Inquisitors with
close ties to the Adeptus Mechanicus (or bitter enemies within
it), nothing distinguishes an Acuitor Mech-Assassin from the
shuffling, augmented, and veiled ranks of Tech-Priests who fulfil
the innumerable duties that allow the Sector to grind forward one
more day. Nothing, at least, until it is far too late. It is, in no small
part, this anonymity that makes the Acuitor Set so very deadly.
Though the truth of the origins of the Acuitor Set is
scattered throughout the Lathe Worlds like scraps of data
disrupted with an ferromagnetic purge, some shadowy
records still remain. During the days of the Angevin Crusade, a pious Magos by the name of Samadhi led his
modest forces to several key victories in the Mechanicus’
grand campaign against the Adrantians in what would
eventually become the Calixis Sector. After the Grant of the
Lathes in 380.M39, when the Lathe Worlds were granted
to the Cult Mechanicus for their efforts in the Crusade,
Samadhi used his new-wrought influence to form a secret
organization. Some stories say that this was with the tacit
permission of the already-powerful Lords Dragon, based
on a promise of future service to their cause. He then
trained and dedicated the members of this sub-cult to the
art of eliminating the enemies of the Omnissiah. Samadhi
established the hidden fortresses scattered throughout the
realm of the Lathes, such as Rasamal on Lathe-Hesh and
Tumala in the heart of the shrouded Panopticon, in which
his disciples could be sharpened into perfect tools of the
Omnissiah and terrifying instruments of death.
It is whispered that, one day, Samadhi himself vanished
into the depths of the archive of Tumala, perhaps finally
betrayed by the frailty of flesh, or perhaps becoming one
with the ancient cogitators contained in the fortress. No
matter the circumstances of his departure, Samadhi’s disciples
rallied around the data-tracts that the first Grand Magister of
the Acuitor Set left in his wake. His adherents believe that
these data-tracts, based on recordings of his own cogitations,
contain his ultimate scheme---a plan in which all disciples
participate, but that none fully understand. Decanting his
stored knowledge into their own minds, the agents of the
Acuitor Set followed in their patron’s footsteps and tirelessly
hunted any they saw as obstacles to the Adeptus Mechanicus.
Starting with the first disciples to succeed the patron of the
Acuitor Set, all those who have claimed the title of Magister
within the organization have taken on the cognomen “Magister
Samadhi” upon their ascension to this elevated rank, and
through them, Samadhi’s name has become death itself.
In this day and age, the Acuitor Set has quietly expanded,
and though its members are still fleetingly rare, there are
several worlds upon which they recruit those gifted in treading
the Omnissiah’s darker paths. Most of the recruits are already
seasoned Tech-Priests, those who have already had to call upon
their unique skills to slay their foes, either because of battlefield
appointments, poor luck, or a logical reason that required violent
conflict. After passing rigorous trials, recruits are infused with the
data-tracks of the order’s long-missing founder. Though recruits
remain individuals, each carries a part of the vast, calculating
mind that spun the Acuitor Set into being. With the knowledge
contained in the ancient data-tracks, all Acuitor Mech-Assassins
can act according to a single, immense plan without ever setting
eyes on other agents after their training or even grasping the
true extent of the design. The labors of all become one in the
shadows, casting the grim silhouette of Magister Samadhi over
the Calixis Sector long ages after his disappearance.
So it is that these disguised agents roam the Sector, maintaining
voidships, repairing cogitators, unjamming weapons, and
occasionally slaughtering their unsuspecting prey. The methods
by which a Mech-Assassin can kill are varied; some value a clean
kill at a distance, while others prefer to slay with elaborately
created traps or carefully scripted malfunctions. There are also
those who like to feel the “wet-iron” of their victims run in crimson
rivulets down their bladed mechadendrites. Many Acuitors also
train themselves to enter a state of terrible frenzy on command,
flooding their minds with the Samadhi data-tracts that it might
guide their movements in the thick of battle. This practice makes
them fearless in the knowledge that all proceeds according to
the Grand Magister’s plan. These counterpoints---clinical,
razor-sharp forethought, and savage battle-fury---balance
to make a fully trained Acuitor Mech-Assassin one of the
deadliest individuals the Lathes have ever honed.
In all cases, however, the sharpest weapon an
Acuitor possesses is his mind. Whenever
possible, an Acuitor elaborately plans a
kill, running simulation after simulation
in his augmented cranium and including
a wide array of factors that few without the
gifts of the Omnissiah could effectively
consider. He might stalk his target for
months or years at a time, gathering
ever more information to be
filed away for his grim purpose.
An Acuitor Mech-Assassin’s honed, clicking
mind allows him to utilize nearly anything as a
lethal weapon; steam pipes become a scalding trap
to an unwary passer-by, a firearm becomes a time-bomb
for its user, and an ancient cogitator becomes a
shadowy maze from which a known Heretek’s mind
cannot escape, even as his body sits helpless before
it. Even if he cannot kill with his surroundings,
an Acuitor might depressurize a voidship’s cabin
or redirect a reactor’s vent into a nearby air
duct, all to force an enemy into a vulnerable
position. Infinite possibilities for murder
unfold before a member of the Acuitor
Set, and finding the best one for an enemy of the
Omnissiah is simply his role in the great Quest for Knowledge.
==Alternate Career Rank==
Tech-Priests who are chosen to become Acuitors are pulled
from across the Lathes and beyond, and instructed in secret
fortresses scattered throughout the Calixis Sector, such as
Tumala and Rasamal. Most candidates are those who have
proven both faithful and capable of using the skills of the
Adeptus Mechanicus to deadly effect. To become an Acuitor
is to become a part of a pattern greater than oneself, as all
members of the Set mentally carry the data-tracts of Magister
Samadhi, which guide them to the targets of their wrath and
aid them in making short work of those who oppose the Lathes.
Those who can survive the weight of the data-tracts and even
begin to decipher the ancient, inscrutable memories, become
killers of the greatest calculable efficiency and ruthlessness.
Required Career: Tech-Priest
Alternate Rank: Rank 2 or Higher (500 XP)
Requirements: Logic
Benefits: Cogs Within Cogs (Talent)