Karl Franz

Karl Franz was an Imperial steward and served the unofficial monarch of the Imperium of Man. He is famous for his liberal ideals, especially on matters of religion, politics, and xenos rights. He was loved by the people, but he was no stranger the realities of elite society. He had many enemies throughout his lifetime, so it was a surprise to some when his body was found outside the steps of the Emperor’s palace; a torrent of wounds were pierced deep into his body. His assailants are currently unknown, but time will the tell the truth.

## History

### Early Life

Albus Karl Franz grew up in a cramped household located deep beneath Terra’s towering landscapes on level 1331. As the eldest sibling, he was given the most care from his parents and he received the best education his parents could afford. When he was eighteen, he left his level to the upper levels to complete his education. During his tenure in university, he attracted a number of Imperial agents who saw him as a potential candidate for the Inquisitor program. When he was given the offer, he refused, asking instead to become a remembrancer for the Imperial Library. The agents complied and soon Karl would meet Lynn Asifah, an incredibly gifted psyker, and the two developed a fast friendship with one another.

### Rise to the Top

His time in the Imperial Library was incredibly short. Karl was gifted with the photographic memory, so he was able to record every single detail precisely without any fault. His predecessor, Steward Elanor, took notice of the young man and appointed him as her Librarian — a highly-prestigious position given only to those with remarkable gifts. Lynn was initially jealous at first, but she understood that appointing a psyker to the role of Librarian would have terrible consequences for the Imperium. On a cool Sunday evening, Karl asked her out, but Lynn rejected him. The two were never as close after that evening, but Karl cared little for his love life for he had a dream — where people like Lynn would not have to fear from persecution, where aliens and humans can coexist with one another in peace. Most called him naive, others a heretic, but those words did little to sway him from his dream.

After three decades of serving as Elanor’s steward, the old steward did the unthinkable and personally appointed Karl as her successor. For most of the Imperium’s history, a steward would be voted in by the Governor-Generals of the Sanctum Imperialis. Elanor’s decision would have major consequences for the future, but in the present, the people began to take notice of the naive Librarian. They refused to listen to him at first, but after he passed a law whereby the taxes on low-income families were cut in half, many viewed him as the Emperor’s chosen — a person with remarkable qualities and extraordinary ambition. However, his move to exempt the lower classes from paying their taxes deeply angered the nobility, who secretly began to plot against the steward.

Fearing a potential coup, Karl decided to embark on a crusade against the New Republic. He accused the Republic of abusing the rights of the Cardassians and, as a way to boost his popularity, chose to lead the assault aganst the Republican forces. Most of the nobility thought that he was going to die in the war, but he surprised everyone when he won the Battle of Cannae Secundus, where his fleet of thirty ships managed to defeat a Republican fleet of two hundred. It is also during this time when he befriended the young general Celestine Auditore de Fienze. After he conquered the entirety of the Cardassian sector, Karl negotiated a peace treaty with the Republicans which the latter accepted. Though the war officially ended in a stalemate, Karl was nevertheless greeted a hero’s welcome when he returned to Terra. When he returned to Terra, he ‘replaced’ many of his opposition with those who were loyal to him, but there were a few men who refused to bend the knee, one of whom was High Ecclesiarch Pompey. In a public announcement broadcasted all throughout the galaxy, the Ecclesiarch denounced the Steward as the daemonic figure that is foretold to destroy the Imperium. He rose his banners in revolt and retreated his armies to Segmentum Ultima, marking the start of the Imperial Civil War.

### Imperial Civil War

Karl had not anticipated a civil war to broke out so soon into his reign. His forces in Segmentum Nova were caught completely offguard when the Ecclesiarchy’s ships rained hellfire upon their fortifications. The Steward led a number of battles during the civil war, but the war was mostly fought by the Imperial Navy and the Imperial Guard. He chased Pompey all the way to the independent kingdom of Mandalore, where the traitor was caught by the Mandalorian sovereign. Seeking to please the Imperium, Ptolomey slew Pompey and gifted his head to Karl. Angered by the Mandalorian’s decision to execute Pompey, Karl diverted most of his military assets to the Imperial-Mandalorian border until he was approached by Ptolomey’s rival, Dido. The Mandalorian informed Karl that her cousin assassinated her father when it was revealed that she was secretly appointed as her father’s heir. She begged him to help her with her fight against the Usurper, and Karl, sympathetic to her cause, agreed. However, there was also a spark between the two. She was Karl’s equal in almost every way — their minds were as sharp as an adamantium blade, but they hold a soft spot for their people. The two quickly fell in love and it is believed that Karl intended to marry her. Unfortunately for the two, when Ptolomey was deposed from the throne, the two had to end their relationship due to political reasons. Nevertheless, the two remained in contact until Karl’s death.

The first law he enacted after he arrived on Terra was to incorporate all of the Ecclesiarchy’s armies into the Imperial Army. Secondly, he imposed a heavy tax on the Ecclesiarchy’s activities, essentially placing them in a position of debt. Some considered this to be heretical, but after the damages they had caused during the civil war, not many were too concerned with the well-being of the church. He was greeted a hero’s welcome once more by the citizens of Terra. After he reached the steps of the Sanctum Imperialis, he announced the implementation of the Nova Bill, a series of laws that sought to relax the discriminatory laws against xenos and psykers. The people cheered in joy when the bill was officially in-effect. Thousands of xeno slaves were released by their masters, allowing these few free xenos to taste the droplings of a brighter tommorow. But despite all of his efforts, the shroud of politics will always loom above him, waiting for the right moment to strike...

### Death

Karl Franz was found dead on the steps of the Sanctum Imperialis on September 30th, 991.M40, only twenty years after he took power. His body was covered in wounds — twenty-seven blades pierced into his flesh. A funeral was held before the marble church of the Ecclesiarchy. His friend, Celestine, wept over his body before she rose before the crowd and gave a rousing speech. She procured a scroll from her coat which states that she is to become the next Steward of the Imperium. The nobility was shocked by this revelation, but the people accepted her new mandate as steward.