Infernus

• World: Infernus

  

  A view from the bottom of one of the rock mines of Infernus, leading up to the base of the main fissure.

• Location: Subsector Cryptus
• Type: Penal World
• Tithe: [Milites][Metamorpha] Infernus provides penal legions for the Imperial Guard, as well as valuable rock such as granite and marble.
• Population: 44 Million [44 000 000]
• Government: Arbites Dictatorship. The highest ranking Arbiter on Infernus is the planetary governor and he rules the convict masses with a merciless, iron fist. The current Marshal of Infernus is Marshal Victor Barrack.

Description

​When this planet was discovered by the Imperium in the Great Crusade it was considered little more than another worthless rock floating too close to a star to inhabit. After a few millania however, an Adeptus Mechanicus explorator party took interest in the colossal fissure - approximately 5000 miles long - that cuts deep into the planet's northern hemisphere. Forging down to the very bottom of the crevice they found no structures of worth, though discovered the base of the crevice was habitable by humans - just barely.

After running some standard tests the Techpriests detected residual radiation that indicated the fissure may have been caused by a weapon of human origin prior to the age of the Imperium. Upon learning the base of the fissure was habitable the Imperial authorities decided to utilise it as a penal colony, naming it Infernus due to the intolarble hot and oppressive conditions within the crevice.

In the present day Infernus is classed as a maximum-security prison world, reserved for the most dangerous and intolerable criminals of all. Whereas the larger prison world of Sepulchrum houses 'lesser' lawbreakers like thieves, assaulters, Imperial dissentors and petty hive gangers, Infernus is reserved for more terrible crimes. Murderers, serial killers, terrorists, hardened hive gangers (who are almost all serial murderers or worse by trade) and heretics are all crammed into the crevice base to repay their debt to the Imperium. Overwatched by harsh and unforgiving arbites, the dangerously psychopathic population of Infernus is contained with the most extensive security procedures possible as they work in the mine shafts.

Thousands die every day from the terrible conditions as they cut out and haul away dense rock for use in the luxery palaces of the Sector Nobility, and other ornate constructions. In fact at the base of one of the hundreds of beautifully carved marble pillars in the Tombstone is a tiny etching: We work in hell to die in hell to go to hell - Infernus Prisoner #14770293'. It would appear the prisoner forgot his own name.

Infernus raises far more Penal Legions than Sepulchrum, many of its psychotic inmates willing to volunteer for legion service if only for the chance to commit wanton slaughter again. Because of this Infernal penal legions are used like single-use weapons - pointed at an enemy strongpoint and unleashed alone with the assurance that the legionnaires will die with an insane grin on their face and covered in blood not entirely their own. They are never used anywhere near proper Imperial Guard regiments for fear that they will attempt to murder their allies despite the explosive collars around their necks.

• Technology: [IV – Imperial] Only the hardiest technology is of any use in this place.
• Military: Infernus has a large supply of explosive collars to outfit it's prisoners and press them into combat if needed, and they will be commanded by the core of experienced combat Abites equipped with stormtrooper-grade equipment. It is also the anchorage of the Arbites' Subsector patrol fleet, including several strike cruisers and numerous patrol ships.
• Strategic importance: [Minima] The exported rock and penal legions are of relative unimportance, so the Imperium cares little for the wellbeing of this world. The only real concern is that any criminals taken by raiders would eagerly join their captors as ravagers.
• Loyalty: 
  • Non-prisoners: [Imperial 99%] The Adeptus Arbites that guard this world are fiercely loyal to the Imperium.
  • Prisoners: [Imperial 1%] The psychopathic inmates of Infernus despise their guards just as they despise almost everyone. Many do still believe in the godship of the Emperor but only a miniscule fraction retain any loyalty to the Imperium.

Notable Locations

Infernus' surface is inhospitably hot & barren, while inside the chasm the climate is very warm and features primitive life such as plants and insects. Strewn throughout the chasm are Penal-Forts and mining encampments that house the convict population and the Arbitrators that watch over them.

• Styx - Named for the passage to hell from ancient Terran legend, this massive Arbites fortress sits on the edge of the vast chasm and is the centre of Infernus' command & control systems, as well as the home base of its tens of thousands of Arbitrators. Styx itself is a broad ferrocrete complex kilometres across, adjoined to a massive lifthouse hanging over the edge of the chasm. Studded with defensive guns & housing a considerable starport, Styx handles most of the traffic of convicts arriving and leaving Infernus (mostly arriving). Notable inhabitants:
  • Marshal Victor Barrack - Head of the Adeptus Arbites here and governor of Infernus. Barrack is a harsh, merciless Arbitrator who treats the prisoners of his world like savage beasts - which in many ways they are. He is not particularly malicious or sadistic, but holds the prisoner' lives as utterly worthless. Before he took this post he was noted as a friendly and popular Arbitrator, but some whisper that his service commanding Infernus and the untold suffering of millions has affected his mental state.
  • Vice Marshal Evany Barrack - Wife of Victor. Evany is a fiercecly pious Arbitrator and stern to her underlings, relaying the Marshals' orders resolutely. Behind the scenes however she has been trying to encourage Victor to take on another posting.
  • Master of Infernus Janus Goring - Head of the Administratum on Infernus, Goring's primary concerns are the cost/output of the prisoners (how much food they consume against how much they mine) and the equipping of raised penal legions. He is a close friend of Marshal Barrack and highly intelligent.
• The Stockade - A large space station in geosynchronous orbit above Styx, the heavily guarded gangways and holding pens of this station handle thousands of convicts at any one time as they're transferred from prison ships to large barges that take them down into the crevice. The Stockade is also heavily armed to ward off any pirates and raiders, for letting the convicts be taken as slaves is unacceptable as they would almost certainly end up joining their captors.
  • Vice Marshal Ralf Dekker - Commander of the Stockade, Dekker tuns a tight ship and regularly drills the defense fleet of Arbites Strike Cruisers & patrol ships. Meticulous and calculating by nature, Dekker is utterly dependable.
  • Judge Aylie Starr - Shipmaster of the Indomitable Reach, a heavily modified Punisher-class Strike Cruiser and jewel of the Infernus fleet. The Reach patrols all across the subsector and Judge Starr is a fairly young but experienced Arbitrator as well as a talented void commander. Some say she was more destined for the Navy but Starr disagrees, arguing that the Navy offers far fewer opportunities to personally crack skulls.
• Penal-Fort Alpha 1 - The largest penal-fort, located directly beneath the enormous lift of Styx. This male penal-fort labours in preparing ore & rock for transport, loading it onto containers, securing it, and so forth. They handle vast amounts of ore from across the breadth of Infernus, and this penal-fort is the critical hub of the entire planet's mining industry.
• Penal-Fort Delta 3 "The Cauldron" - This male penal fort is built in the deepest cracks of Infernus and is dedicated to mining the rich mineral and rock seams that can be found in the sweltering environment. Known as the worst assignment for prisoners, being transferred here is a common punishment for unruly prisoners that effectively amounts to a death sentence. The incredible heat and impure air takes a horiffic toll on the miners and few last long. Those that can resist the conditions of the Cauldron and keep surviving are incredibly tough, and often inducted into Penal Legions.
  • Warden Hafuzi Shah - A native Erban and Judge in command of Delta 3. Many of this penal-fort's staff are Erbans due to their remarkable resistance to heat, and of these Shah is the most senior.
• Penal-Fort Gamma 5 "The Edge" - This small male penal-fort is constructed on a massive ledge on the inside face of the fissure. Suspended kilometres above the base of the fissure, this fort mines rich veins of precious metals that run along the rockface. The convicts perch from precarious spurs & ledges to mine the face, and lethal collapses are frequent.
• Penal-Fort Epsilon 2 - This large female penal-fort is located near the base of an enormous vertical fissure in the side of the main chasm. The convicts here mine large amounts of metamorphic rocks from the surrounding quarries and formations, but must also contend with the vicious creatures that dwell within dense, caves and fissures in and around the vertical crevice. Dangerous insects, lizards and other horrors predate on the convicts as they work leaving only the tough and/or cunning alive, and by necessity the convicts of Epsilon 2 develop respectable fighting abilities. Epsilon 2 has a very high level of penal legion volunteering, the convicts preferring to fight the imperium's enemies than the creatures of Infernus.
  • Warden Zenya Kilitz - Commander of Epsilon 2, Kilitz enjoys hunting the nearby creatures for sport and is a skilled tracker and markswoman. She also actively works to expose certain mining crews to creature swarms in order to whittle down the chaff, before offering the tough remnants NCO positions in penal legions.
• Penal-Fort Rho 3 "Ratways" - This female penal-fort is located at the far end of the fissure, where the splintered crust breaks into a mass of maze-like canyons and crevices all interlinked with innumerable tunnels ranging from vast to tiny. These tight areas are home to plentiful veins of precious gems & metals, and the miners make their way through tight gaps and spaces all day to excavate them.
• Penal-Fort Zeta 6 "The Pit" - A unisex penal-fort that is used as punishment for any unruly prisoners. Once sent here convicts are locked in solitary confinement on the edges of lava flows and exposed to vicious small creatures like scourgerats and lava beetles, doomed to suffer for days before being used for target practice in Arbites training exercises or suffering other inventive executions. What happens in Zeta 6 is made well-known to Infernus' population, fear keeping most of them in line.
  • Warden Melody DeVoor - A fierce Arbitrator in charge of Zeta 6. DeVoor is exceptionally pious & loyal to the Imperium, but some of her superiors believe she enjoys torturing & tormenting convicts a little too much.