Chapter 1

Riser Phenex, a 14 year old devil and third son of Marquis Phenex was lost and confused. Just earlier he had been talking to a cute magician and trying to seduce her and make her his first peerage member and the next he had found himself inside a devastated and burning ruin of a city with no soul in sight.

"Where am I?" Riser asked himself as he navigated the blasted ruins, "How did I get here?"

I must get to a higher vantage point. Riser decided seeing that he was unable to get a clear picture of where he was and was not even able get a glimpse of the sky which was blocked by the broken ruins of the towers and buildings.

He walked and climbed through the broken towers and ruins and made his way to the highest vantage point making sure to avoid the burning parts of the ruins. As he climbed he found scores of dead bodies, mutilated to the extreme with some looking like they were half eaten and some had their entrails wrapped around them in a twisted parody of bondage and those were some of the more tame examples of what he had seen.

Riser lost his stomach when he saw the bodies, not believing that such as sight and act was even possible. But as much as he wished that such acts of barbarism and cruelty could not exist, Riser could not deny the reality before his eyes.

He forgot about his previous goals of getting to a higher vantage point and began to search for survivors.

He smashed down doors, dug through the ruins and bodies of the death to search for just one survivor but all he found was dead bodies and mutilated corpses, laid out on the ruins and arranged in twisted shapes and circles and moulds. He searched and searched and finally found a survivor but calling him a survivor was too much as Riser saw his condition.

The man was a soldier as evident by his clothing, a armour like jacket and a helmet and in his hands he held a strange rifle and in the other he held a small box which he clung onto with his dear life.

The man had lost his legs and was bleeding, his stomach ripped opened with a clawed hand sticking out from it, a jagged knife was stuck in his should and one of his eyes hung out from his head and there was a hole in his chest near his heart.

Around that man was bodies of strange creatures and men with insane features that Riser was sure was sure could not be natural at all and he could not even imagine what kind of supernatural being would be twisted enough to mutate their followers to such an insane degree.

Riser could not believe the man was still breathing as blood pooled around the man.

He approached the man trying to help him but Riser could not even make out words, shocked and confused as how to help the man.

In that state Riser did not doubt that even turning the man into a devil would save his life as even the Evil Pieces could not replace the lost organs and heal the extreme wounds that the man had. 'Phoenix tears should be able to help' Riser thought and he began to approach the man who had now levelled his gun at him.

"I…I am here to help." Riser said as he approached the man who still had his gun levelled on him but slowly put it down.

"About time." The man gurgled as blood flowed from his mouth. He lowered his gun and lifted the box and extended it to Riser. "Take it, take it and bring the Charter back to the Imperium." The man said as he handed Riser the box.

Riser could not understand the man's action but took the box and reached out for a vial of Phoenix Tears, when he felt the man grab his arm and looked at him with his lone eye full of gratitude and said "Thank You."

Riser was stunned when he heard the man's words and felt the man's hold slip from him as his hand fell lifelessly on the floor.

"Oi, oi, wake up, wake up." Riser said, shaking the man but the man did not respond and Riser knew that the man was dead and beyond saving.

His mind was now blank as Riser took the box the man gave him and began to go out into the ruins and began to search for some semblance of civilization. The imperium that the man mentioned had to somewhere near here and all Riser could do was search for it and fulfil the man's dying request.

He walked through the blasted ruins, black corrupted land and fields of desecrated corpses, carrying the box with him, which to his magical senses gave of power that he was unfamiliar with, which just validated its importance.

He walked through the blasted ruins and saw nothing but more ruins and corpses and after what seemed like seeing the hundredth twisted pile of corpses, Riser decided that enough was enough and began to burn the corpses he found. He wanted to bury the bodies and give them a proper burial but knew that it was impossible for him to bury so many bodies and thus he as last rites for the victims burned the bodies.

He started with a pile of bodies on top of which there was an eight pointed star. The strange thing he found was that when he tried to burn the bodies was the twisted metal in the shape of an eight pointed star refused to burn and seemed to protect the bodies from burning too. Riser thought it was strange and found it stranger when the box began to glow with a golden glow and almost hiss at the mere presence of the eight pointed star.

He then sense the power emitting from the twisted metal, one which was nauseating and simply too unnatural to his senses and thus Riser did his best to destroy the star increasing the intensity of his flames but the eight pointed star refused to burn. His normal flames could not melt the star thus he began to recall lessons that were taught him long ago of how the flames of a Phenex despite being produced from a Devil still had small purifying properties which was proof of their connection with the mystical Phoenix of old.

It as an old lesson and Riser was not sure how true it was but he gambled with and focused deeper and deeper into himself and thought only about purifying the metal before him. His flames grew hotter and hotter and slowly but surely he saw it gain a distinct golden-silver hue under which he saw the very energies surrounding the eight pointed star erase from existence and the metal melt into slag.

"I did it." Riser said smiling as he felt a bit exhausted after that act. He was able to purify the eight pointed star and burn the bodies to ashes, after which he began to burn the other piles of bodies with his new found purifying flames and soon the area was bathed in golden light, as the flames burned the bodies and left behind ashes in their wake.

Riser noticed that the area seemed to become more radiant as he burned more piles of bodies and destroy the stars, the landscape losing its twisted black hue and the ashes beginning to cover the area in a golden glow.

He did it with all the corpses he found and prayed in his heart that they found peace in the afterlife.

Riser burned the bodies and walked the blasted landscape leaving behind ashes and molten slags of metal in his wake.

He walked and burned and soon enough he gained the attention of someone who came looking for him.

Riser saw a man, eight foot tall, clad in ornate thick ornate amour and large cauldrons that were painted with the same twisted eight pointed star. The man wielded a large gun and an axe in his hands and was flanked but humans who wore rages and pieces of armour and carried knives and pistols.

The humans and the face of the large man were scarred with jagged lines cutting across the face, some forming the shape of an eight pointed star on their foreheads and cheeks. He saw them grinning which showed him their shark like teeth, some filled with pieces of meat which Riser doubted were animal meat and saw their eyes glowing with insanity and madness that unnerved him.

"So you are the one who is burning the shrines I built in dedication to the gods?" The large man said, his voice booming across the field, carrying an edge of madness, anger and anticipation.

Riser did not say anything and instead began to cover himself with invisible magical barriers and channel his flames in his hands.

"Your flames little sorcerer, are quite intriguing." The man said staring at the flames in his hand. "I wonder is it the gift of the corpse Emperor or something more." He said, laughing. "Regardless of its origins, I will learn of the secrets soon after I tear your limbs, rend your heart from your chest and drink every drop of blood from your body and sacrifice you soul to the Chaos Gods. You, who have desecrated the holy shrines of Chaos, will now feel the wrath of its champion." The man said as the axe in his hand began to rev up like a chainsaw and he leapt at him ignoring the streams of flames that Riser sent his way.

"I am Bialus Soul Renderer and I AM YOUR DEATH!" The man roared swinging his axe towards Riser, who stood as the Axe came and was blocked by the magical barrier he had erected which glowed blue upon being hit.

Riser saw the opportunity to attack the man but the man was faster as he levelled his gun on him and began shooting him. The bullets bouncing off Riser's barriers as they failed to penetrate but distracted Riser as he was surprised by the sheer speed of the man, who took the opportunity to swing his axe and hammer the barriers which slowly began to crack under the relentless attack of the man.

Riser was shaken out of his stupor as he felt his barriers strain under the barrage of attacks the man rained down on him. Riser quickly in order to get some breathing room sent a wave of fire towards the man who was unaffected by it but was distracted enough by the flames that allowed Riser to paddle back to a higher ground.

The followers of Bialus saw this and began to chase after Riser alongside their master, taking potshots at him from the distance, not caring whether or not they hit their master. The bullets flew and bounced of the barriers leaving Riser unharmed but they did their job in distracting him and Bialus was soon upon him, swinging his axe and leaving a large crack on his magical barrier which took the brunt of the attack.

"You are no ordinary prey, young sorcerer. The Chaos Gods you be more than pleased with me when I sacrifice such a unique soul to them." the man said as riser felt the axe eat away at his barriers.

Riser sent out a powerful stream of flames, with the same purifying properties as he had used before and unlike before Bialus seemed frightened at his flames as they boiled away his armour burnt his skin.

Bialus roared in anger and pain but did not fall as his armour fused inside him and his skin began to mutate into something twisted.

Riser took the opportunity to create some distance between him and the howling man but found himself surrounded by the Bialus' men who descended upon him like carrion birds with shouts and screams of madness and attacked him with guns and swords.

Riser was quick to kill them burning them to ashes but they just came at him unheeding of the death of their brethren and did their best to get to him, even as they all burned to cinders and ashes.

Riser was so focused on the mad men that he did not sense Bialus descend on him with his axe, shattering his magical barrier with his blow and bite down into his shoulders.

"AHHHHHHHH." Riser screamed as he felt the axe rip apart his flesh and he felt Bialus kick his back shattering his spine and sending him crashing into the cultists.

The pain was too much, it was just too much but Riser felt his body regenerate from the pain as his phoenix constitution kicked in and he burned the cultist around him to ashes.

Bialus glared at him as he saw the flames heal his wound and Riser could not help but smile upon seeing the look of anger on the man's face.

No words were exchanged as Bialus rushed towards Riser intent on killing him and Riser after feeling his spine set back into place greeted Bialus with lances of fire. Bialus in a surprising display of dexterity weaved through the lances of fire, dodging them by a hair's breadth even as his armour melted from the proximity of the flames and swung his axe towards Riser's head intent on killing him with a single blow.

Riser simply smiled as he saw the axe descend and Bialus saw that smile and was confused, confusion which turn into shock and understanding as he saw a familiar barrier ripple into life taking the blow, shock turned to anger as he felt flames come to life and that anger turned into acceptance as he felt the lances of fire wash over his face turned it to cinders.

Riser took a breath of relief as he saw Bialus fall, his head turned into ashes by his flames. He looked around and saw Bialus' men look at him with fear and uncertainty and while Riser was no cold blooded Killer, he knew that these men were too far gone and were mad beyond reason and had been participants in desecrating the bodies he had found.

They would find no mercy from him and Riser left the ruins filled with ashes and he silenced the screams of madness and pleas for mercy with his flames.

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Riser did not know how long it had been but he was tired dead tired and he wanted to rest. After the fight Riser had found the box in the hands of the man men who tried to destroy it but failed to do so and Riser was quick to kill them and recover the box.

In between Riser tried to teleport home but found something interfering with the spell, making it unstable and Riser erring on the side of caution decided not to go home for now.

It was not like his family would be too worried as he was on a vacation on the human world in search for his peerage, and they would knew his habits well enough that they were not too worried not him calling home for such a long period of time.

For now though Riser simply wanted to return the box to the Imperium and get out of this hellish place.

He wish was granted as he saw strange crafts fly overhead, unloading scores of soldiers and men, who seemed to be attacking the bases of the mad men.

He saw one of those crafts land and out of it came men clad in red cloaks and red robes with strange mechanical limbs sticking out of their body.

"Hello there." One of man clad in red-robes holding a strange mechanical staff with a gear at its end greeted him.

"Hello. Are you from the imperium?" Riser asked.

"That we are. I'm surprised that you have did not recognise us by our appearance." The man replied, and Riser could feel the man's curiosity rise.

"I am not from around here and all I found in this place was corpses and mad men that were trying to kill me." Riser said honestly, seeing no reason to lie.

"Not the best first impression of the Imperium, I take it." the man said, sounding a bit amused.

"That is an understatement." Riser huffed at the man's strange attempt at humour. "But anyways I have this it to you. It was given to me by a dying man who guarded it till his very last breath." Riser said as he handed the box to the red-robed man, who took it and opened it with the mechanical appendages on his back.

Whatever was inside the box must have been of great import as the man shook in reverence and said, "By the Omnissiah."

"I take it that it is important." Riser commented seeing the man shake.

"Yes, yes it is." The man replied as he closed the box and held it like it was an object most holy. "You have done a great service to the imperium, stranger in guarding this box. What is your name?"

"Riser, Riser Phenex." Riser replied.

"A good name, a good name." The man commented "Now let us depart from this place shall we."

Riser saw what the man was offering and took it. He had enough of this blasted landscape and did not want anything to do with it anymore. During the travel he talked with the red-robed man whose name he found was Galius and told him of what had happened and how he took down Bailus.

Riser noted that the man turned a bit cautious when he showed him his flames and was eyeing him with a cautious gaze but otherwise was quite friendly with him for the most part.

They soon reached a city and Riser was offered a place to stay and he took it. It was small and not too decorated but it was better than the ruins he had seen and Riser after cleaning himself and having a small meal, he slept and let dreams of home and his family take him.

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Galius considered himself quite blessed and lucky, that he had found the strange boy Riser.

The box, the boy had been carrying held not only the sector charter but also three pieces of the Armour of the Emperor and an ancient and unknown pattern of an Ancient Gamma Pistol along with star charts which if he had read them correctly showed him locations of ancient lost factories and facilities which were no doubt full of ancient archeotechnoloy.

The pistol was a great find, one that would elevate his position in the mechanicus. The shards and the Charter though, were great political tools and Galius would be sure to reward the boy for that. The star charts though were of great importance and were such a find that it was enough for the boy to be seen as a Saint in the eyes of the Mechanicus. The fact that he had killed Bialus, a well-known Chaos Marine that plagued the sector with his raids and acts of butchery would only cement the boy's status as someone important.

This was why he was arguing with the Inquisitor on questioning the boy and torturing him for information and to ascertain his loyalty, the boy was going to be important down the line and dragging him for torture in the guise of interrogation was a sure way to alienate the boy and make a powerful enemy out of him.

"…So you see inquisitor we cannot simply torture the boy. Not only has he been in constant contact with the relics which would have protected him from the taint of Chaos but he has also slain Bialus in single combat, something that no ordinary man is capable of doing so. The Ecclesiarchy would have our heads if they learn that you torture the boy, whose actions in their eyes would be enough to give him the status of a Saint, a minor one granted but the boy would become a Saint whom we cannot just provoke at will." Galius said, trying to keep the inquisitor from doing something foolish.

"That may be so but you have admitted that the boy is not fully human and is not from the Imperium. As such I cannot in good conscience let him go without interrogating him." The inquisitor replied and Galius had to admit that she had a point.

"Very well, inquisitor as long as you don't torture the boy, you can interrogate him." Galius conceded, knowing full well how the game was played and he did not want an irritated inquisitor after him due to damaging her power base and reputation by refusing her.

"Oh, I won't need to torture him at all." The inquisitor smiled as her eyes glowed with bright red.

'Psyker' Galius thought as he saw the tell-tale sign of the warp powers the inquisitor displayed. "Then be careful not to shatter the boy's mind. Despite being a powerful psyker himself I fear that his mental defences are not strong enough."

"I won't" the inquisitor said, her eyes losing her glow and she picked up her sword and went to see the boy. "Do take care of the Relics, Magos. The Sororitas would be most crossed if you lose them."

"I won't" Galius replied as he took the relics and headed to the base, thanking his lucky stars that he was able to calm the inquisitor and nothing bad happened.

He would deal with the Sororitas and the elements of the Ecclesiarchy later once the battle was over and he was going to enjoy putting those fanatics into their places. They had been quite zealous and had such a large presence and influence in this sector and this was a grand opportunity weaken their hold and strengthen the elements of the Mechanicus in the Sector.

Already arguments and rebuttals were forming in his mind, one which he would use to get what he wanted and he would make sure to elevate the boy and use him to further the ambition of the Mechanicus in the region.

'Should I volley for the boy to become a Rogue Trader? That would at least keep the boy safe and neutral among the Imperial factions who I have no doubt would try to claim the boy for themselves.' Galius thought, thinking about how the other factions would chase after the boy and try to bend his mind and make him a slave to their whims and plots. The boy did not deserve such a fate and deserved so much more than being turned into a willing pawn of the imperial factions.

Galius had to be careful here and create strong ties with the boy for the benefit of the Mechanicus. It could also allow the Mechanicus to have a powerful Rogue Trader Dynasty as an ally too if they played their cards right. 'It is an appealing idea, one that could allow the Mechanicus to have gain more influence inside the Imperium. The Omnissiah knows that we need to be more in touch with the other parts of the Imperium and having the Rogue Trader on our side would allow us to better influence the Sector policies. Not to mention that this would also keep the'

While Galius did not want the Mechanicus to dabble to much in the political field of the Imperium, some sectors were just too hostile to the Mechanicus and not too friendly, especially the industrialised worlds who seem to think that they knew everything and were better off without the Mechanicus oversight so that they could innovate and carve out their own path.

Galius admire their dedication in the pursuit of the truth of the universe they were in but those worlds were naïve in their thinking and did not take the proper precautions to appease not only the machine spirits but also prevent them from being possessed by the Daemons of the Warp and pursue avenues of technologies that were better left untouched.

He knew that he could not change the minds of the people but the people of this sector were almost adamant in purging the Mechanicus and chasing it out of the sector not knowing the damage they were causing. Already they had prevented the establishment of any proper Forge World in this sector, depriving the sector of an industrial powerhouse that would help it compete with other sectors, but were also keen on creating laws that almost guarantee that the Mechanicus would not have much of a presence in a long time. The Inquisition and the Ministorum were not too helpful in helping the Mechanicus establish a foothold in this sector, establishing their own hold in this sector in the form of numerous Shrine Worlds and Hive worlds.

One day, the Mechanicus would become a part of this sector but Galius feared that when that day come countless worlds would be lost. It would be such a waste to lose so many brilliant minds who could better serve the Omnissiah and the Imperium.

A Rogue Trader may just turn things around for the Mechanicus in this sector.

'Hmmn, what an interesting idea.' Galius thought as he plotted how to win the boy over and shape the future of an entire sector while he send a message to the Archmagos and told him about his plans. "Yes what an interesting idea."

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A few hours later Riser followed Galius to the chamber where he was going to meet the other members of the imperium and they wanted to hear what happened from his own mouth.

The chamber was small and in between there was a round table with chairs that looked more like thrones than anything and seated on those chairs were some of the scariest persons Riser had ever seen.

There was one man who Riser could easily identify as a Priest of high ranking as the man wore garments similar to that of catholic priest and simply oozed an aura of holiness that was sure to scare away most devils, except that the symbols and crosses on the priest were of the wrong type and had little to almost no connection to Christianity as Riser while could feel the holiness radiating from him, it was welcoming him like an old friend instead of burning him for being a devil.

Then there was the woman who wore a large purple cape and a brim top hat with a high collared coat. She had blond hair with faint red streaks and blue eyes that held the gaze of a predator eyeing him with a critical gaze and sizing him up, evaluating his value and no doubt making plans to turn him into a pawn for her plans. The woman really reminded him of the day Riser had met ZEkram Bael who looked at him with the same gaze the woman had, and that was the scariest thing he had ever experienced.

Shifting his eyes away from the woman, Riser sight fell on the mechanical figure seated between the priest and the woman. The figure was like that of a large serpent with the lower half being a myriad of interconnected sections of metal plate fitted together in a twisted parody of a snake's tail while the figure's torso was acting more like a plug connection by which multiple metallic limbs, wires and other strange gadgetry were hanging out of it. The head if it could be called as such, was shaped in the form of a chameleon with the two eyes sweeping across the room restlessly while a third eye resting in the middle of the forehead stared at him.

Riser saw no mouth attached to the head and instead saw a series of wires attached to the throat of the man and a smooth metallic curved plate in the shape of a jaw attached to the base of the skull making the mechanical figure look even more inhuman.

All in all, Riser knew that the three people before him were dangerous and influential to the extreme and he was not skilled, experienced or even brave enough to handle whatever plans they might have for him.

"Riser Phenex, we have been expecting you." The priest said in a warm tone which eased his nerves a bit but Riser knew that he could not afford to let his guard down.

"Yes, we have heard much about you and your deeds from Galius." The woman said, her voice soft and smooth, sensual in a way Riser was not expecting and had such a soft melodic tone that Riser could not help but be drawn to her. "Though we would like to hear of it from you, after all there is nothing more accurate than first-hand accounts after all."

She was dangerous Riser decided then and there. 'Dangerous like a Siren luring her prey' yep he was going to avoid her like she was a plague and more, which was why Riser was quick to recount the events and how they came to pass, down to how he had slain the mad beast of a man known as Bialus.

"Interesting can you perhaps show us your flames by which you admitted to have purified and destroy the eight pointed stars." The woman requested and Riser complied not wanting to earn the ire of the woman before him.

He called upon his flames and turn them to the same golden hue that helped him destroy those corrupted marks and he could see the woman's eyes dance with unbridled interest as she stared at his flames.

"What do you think Father Jovan?" the woman asked the Priest whom Riser noticed was also staring at his flames with the same intensity as the woman.

"I…I-I feel the purity of the flames." The priest said quietly, his voice shaking as he uttered the words. "I feel it cleanse the very air around us." The priest continued his voice rising with every word he spoke. "I feel it burn the corruption of the Warp! I feel the power of the Emperor himself flowing though the flames!" he shouted hysterically. "He is a chosen of the Emperor, a Saint in both deed and power." He declared then glared at the Inquisitor "And you would not harm him Inquisitor or else you and your ilk would be committing Heresy of the highest order."

Riser was utterly baffled at what the priest was sprouting as he thought of the irony of his words, 'A Saint? He is calling a Devil like me a Saint?!'

The woman simply sent a small glare at the priest, anger evident in her eyes but did not let it show in her voice as she spoke. "If you say that he is a Saint than I will acknowledge his Sainthood, Father Jovan. But I will remind you that the boy is an outsider and as such is still very much ignorant of our ways of life." The woman said and Riser had to admit that stating that he was an outsider to their realm was a good tactic to curtail his influence in their organisations. He did not doubt for a moment that the title of a Saint would allow him to have great power and influence over their realm.

"Then he would learn and we would teach him of our ways and the laws of the Imperium and make him one of us." The priest replied with conviction daring the woman to refute his words.

"I would still advise caution in this matter." The woman said as her face betrayed no emotion but to Riser who was a devil, a being that thrived on the desires of others, she was a veritable volcano of anger waiting to burst out at any moment.

"Your lack of faith in this matter is strange inquisitor. I have said that the boy is chosen by the Emperor and that should have been enough." The Priest said sceptically, "I wonder if I should be worried about your faith in the Emperor."

Riser gulped as he heard what the priest said and knew what his words meant. He was outright threatening the woman and in doing so had firmly put him on his list of the scariest people he had ever met.

"My faith in the Emperor is unquestionable, Father Jovan." The woman said glaring at the priest. "It is your judgement that I find wanting. After all even the most pious of faith can be fooled by the trickery of Chaos. Should he turn out to be an agent of the Ruinous power, would you Father Jovan bear the responsibility for it?"

And Riser was now really scared of the woman before him, seeing how she cornered the Priest so easily and totally ignored his threat. Riser was going to make sure that he never met her again after this meeting, potential peerage member, be damned. The woman was just too scary for him.

"Yes" the Priest replied resolutely not fearing the woman's words at all and Riser had to wonder just what did the man feel from his flames that he was willing to put so much faith in him, "but I know that I would not have to bear responsibility for it as the young Saint would not fall to Chaos so easily."

"Then now we should discuss who is going to take responsibility for him." The woman said as she now stared at him.

"Is there any doubt that the Ecclesiarchy is going to take care of him. He is a Saint after all."

"And we have not yet verified his origins yet father and as such he is still subjected to an Inquisitorial review."

"And what is an inquisitorial review but wanton torture in disguise." The priest spat. "No, the boy is going to be taken in by the Ministorum and we would interrogate him using our own means, ones that do not rely on senseless and unnecessary torture of the innocent."

Riser saw them bicker throwing all sorts of allegations and facts towards each other that he was sure they were going to duke it out here. All the while the mechanical figure who had been keeping silent slowly backed away from the two and glided towards him and said.

"I must congratulate you on earning the title of a Saint, Young Phenex." The mechanical figure said, "It would be really be interesting to see how the others would react to having a Saint as a Rogue Trader." The man said as he handed him a parchment. "This is your warrant of Trade young Saint keep it safe and it would keep you safe from the more zealous and fanatical members of the Imperium. Also if you need to commission any kind of ship tell Galius over there and he would pass on the information to us and we would prepare any kind of ship to your liking, even if that ship is a battleship. So don't be shy little Saint and feel free to state your wishes." After saying that, the mechanical figure left leaving Riser with the priest and the woman who were gaping at the retreating figure of the mechanical man.

"Looks like the Mechanicus has staked their claim if they are offering a battleship to a newly minted Rogue Trader, nothing much we can do now huh, Inquisitor." The Priest said sparing the woman a sidelong gaze.

"Yes. I guess so." The woman gritted, "and with that we can end this meeting here." and with that she left.

"Anyways, Saint Riser if you require anything of us than you can approach any members of the Ecclesiarchy and they would do their best to help you to their best capabilities in both trade and even combat if it comes down to it. So please do not be afraid of asking for help." The priest said as he followed the woman out of the hall, leaving Riser with Galius as he stared at the parchment with one question in his mind.

"What just happened?"

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"You know Archmagos Triach, you could have warned us that the High Lords had issued a warrant of Trade for the boy." Inquisitor Janine said as she followed the Archmagos.

"I could have but then you two were concocting such complicated plots that I felt I should not bother with such small details." The Archmagos replied as he slithered across the corridor.

"The boy is going to be a Rogue Trader Triach and our act was to ensure that the boy would join or at least request the aid of the Ministorum after which we could have surrounded him with agents of the Ecclesiarchy and the Inquisitions and even some Callidus Assassins to ensure that the boy was kept loyal to the Imperium and in case he fell to The Ruinous Powers killed with extreme Prejudice." Father Jovan said as he followed the two out of the corridor.

"Did you not say that the boy's power had no connection to the warp and was in fact a power similar to that of the Emperor?" Triach asked curious about Jovan's motives for going along with this charade.

"Aye and I still stand by that statement." Jovan replied. "But the purity of his flames was less than that of the Emperor and could easily be matched by even some low-level purity seals and while he may have been uncorrupted by the Ruinous powers, his powers which do not use the warp at all are intriguing enough that having members of the Inquisition and the Ministorum study them which might have yielded some good results."

"Sadly due to him being a Rogue Trader we can't simply surround him with agents of the Ministorum and the Inquisition and would also have to watch out for possible turncoats and heretics in his retinue and kill him at the first sign of corruption. Not to mention the fact that due to him gallivanting across the Imperium with his Trade Warrant we would not be able to use specialised tools to examine his powers which would no doubt lead to an ineffective research into his powers." Janice added and Triach could feel the irritation oozing off her voice

"Well don't worry I am sure Galius would be able to win the boy's trust and recommend men and women to recruit and if those men and women turn out to be agents of the Ecclesiarchy and the Inquisition…well, we can hardly blame a Magos for not making the connection can't we." Triach said nonechalantly, to which the Inquisitor and the Priest could not help but smile.

"So does that mean we are free to change the recruitment list?" Janine asked wanting to confirm the fact before she did anything.

"Of course, in fact it would be much easier for the Rogue Trader to recruit men and women recommended by people of status and experience and surround him with Advisors who are well educated and well informed about the realities of the Imperium don't you think?" Triach asked in an innocent manner. "We would just be helping him out. After all not only is he a young boy but also quite ignorant about the Imperium as a whole."

"Yes that he is." Father Jovan admitted.

"Really sometimes the two of you miss out the obvious and go about things in the most complicated way." Triach sighed "The boy is young and ignorant and as such complicated plots would do more harm than good and having a straightforward approach would yield faster results with deceptions and plots kept are counter measures and not primary means of approach. Seriously you father and daughter duo should know when to use straightforward measures and not keep on sticking to plots and deception." Triach said admonishing the two.

""Yes Granfather Triach."" Jovan and Janine said in tandem.

"Honestly, how a descendant of mine became part of the ministorum and the Inquisition still baffles me to this day." Triach sighed once more lamenting the state of his family. "Now tell me about your plans and I would see to it that the equipment needed for examining the Young Saints powers are fitted into his ship alongside a contigent of Tech Priests experienced in their use."

With that the three relatives plotted and plan, eager to turn the new Saint into a paragon for their own purposes and uncover the secret of his flames.

##################

Riser slept as others plotted to use him as a pawn in their game and he slept as people of high places debated about his future.

He slept as the gaze of the four Ruinous powers fell upon him but their gaze was turned as the man on the Golden Throne looked at him with hope and protected him from Chaos. He slept as a dragon sleeping on mars monitored him through the machines in his room and wondered why he felt a sort of kinship with the boy. He slept as the Eldar Farseers panicked due to getting conflicting imagery of the future one filled with both ruin and prosperity for their kind but could not help but scowl in disgust as they saw a mon-kiegh wield the mantle of the Phoenix King but bow down to the Emperor of Mankind, while Cegorach laughed at their predicament.

Riser slept unaware that the Gods and Players of the Immaterium plotted and move intent on uncovering the new gambit that the God-Emperor of Mankind had played while the Emperor sitting on his Golden Throne looked down on the sleeping boy and said.

"I thank you old friend for sending me help through the boy. Now all I can hope is that the gifts you have bestowed upon the boy would be enough to remake the dying Imperium and save it from this slow death."

He looked at the boy hope in his heart, one that he had long discarded and never thought he would ever dare to feel again. He thus reached out to the mind of the sleeping Devil and through it talked to him in his dreams.

Riser slept and dreamt, he dreamt of a world untouched by man, he dreamt of a world unmarred by war, he dreamt of oceans full of life of lands filled with beasts he had never seen and plants he had never even heard of, he dreamt of Earth long past and he dreamt of a man sitting on a mountain top looking at the world below it.

"Hello Riser Phenex." The man said and Riser greeted back.

"Hello sir."

"You must be wondering why you are here talking to me or even why you are here?" the man said not taking his eyes from the scenery below him.

"No, I am just confused." Riser replied feeling more than lost at why he was having such a strange dream.

The man sighed and as if reading his thoughts he replied, "Don't wonder why you are having this dream, Riser. Just humour this old man and his antics for now."

Riser's gut feeling told him that this was no ordinary dream and that somehow the man had invaded his dreams and was showing him these sights. The question though was why and what was the purpose of this dream.

"You know Riser you are not what I was expecting." The man said, "I was expecting someone of great virtue, one that was brave and could inspire and lead others. I was even expecting someone shy and timid or even an arrogant but well intentioned man but not you. I was really not expecting a lustful, boastful and arrogant boy. That I was really not expecting."

"You were expecting a human." Riser stated the first thing that came to his mind when he heard the man's words.

"Yes, I really was expecting a human not a Devil."

"Does that mean that you know who brought me here?" Riser questioned wondering if the man knew the witch that sent him here and if he could go tell him what was interfering with the teleportation spell.

"Yes, the woman that sent you is an old friend of mine whom I ask to send someone that could help Me." the man said, "I thus expected her to send a hero not a devil. She really must have taken my words literally when I said that I was desperate enough to even make a deal with a devil."

Riser could not help but be amused at that and said "Are you? Are you really willing to make a deal with a devil?"

"Were it the traditional Devil kind than no, I am not." the man replied then grinned as he said "But you are not a Traditional Devil are you, young Phenex?"

"No." Riser said matching the man's grin with his own. Contacts may be created for Reincarnated Devils to gain power but that did not mean that High Class Devils could not make them. "But I have to tell you the price you pay would be quite high."

"As long as it does not involve selling my soul or the soul of other humans, I am willing to pay any price you ask, be it in material wealth or power and knowledge." The man said resolutely and Riser knew he would uphold his words.

"Then state your task and I, Riser Phenex pledge to complete it to the best of my abilities." Riser stated knowing full well that there were but a few tasks that a devil could not accomplish.

The man scoffed but smiled, "Like I said, arrogant. But I guess it would have to do." The man stood up and the scenery changed and Riser found himself and the man floating in a sea of darkness, he saw stars flew by and worlds inhabited by men and planet sized constructs float in the edges of a system.

"Then this is your task Riser Phenex, the Imperium of Mankind, the Empire that I have forged." The man said as the stars flew by and Riser saw legions of men march to war and fought horrors that should not even exit. "It is dying a slow death, being kept alive only by the deeds of heroes and the blood of martyrs. Your task is to save it and bring it to a new dawn."

Riser saw the stars, the wonders of architecture build by human hands and the wars they fought on all sides. It was big, bigger than he could imagine and the man was asking him to save this vast dying empire that consisted of countless humans.

"Still up for it boy?" the man asked in a mocking tone and Riser could not help but sneer at the man and he said.

"A Devil is immortal and his life measured in eons, even if it takes me thousands of years I would fulfil my task and complete it. I just hope that you're still capable of paying me when I fulfil my task." Riser boasted not willing to back down from this challenge no matter how big and impossible it may seem.

"Oh, I am more than willing and capable. To prove it I have something to give you, think of it as an advance." The man said as he brought to life 35 chess pieces. "I must say that whoever made the Evil pieces is a genius despite his bad naming sense that man truly is a genius."

"The ability to resurrect and change one's species while keeping all the qualities of their previous species intact is remarkable. I truly have to give my praise to that man."

Riser did not heed the words of the man as he was stunned upon seeing the chess pieces. He as familiar with the Evil Pieces and knew how their presence felt like, having his own set and thus he knew how different the Pieces before him were.

The pieces radiated with a power Riser had never felt before and knew that these were not like the Evil Pieces that Lord Beelzebub had created. They felt more…pure, in a sense, free of the strange darkness that existed in the Evil Pieces. How, how in the world did the man recreate the Evil Pieces and what changes did he make to make these pieces so powerful?

The man saw Riser's dumbfounded face and smirked. "Judging by the expression on your face, I see that my efforts have not been in vain and that these pieces are more than enough for an advance payment." He said and Riser nodded dumbly, still unable to wrap around the fact that the man had recreated the evil pieces.

"Then let me tell you about these pieces." The man said and the pieces began to float around him and he began to explain the qualities of all the pieces.

"At their core the pieces would boost the physical abilities of the host by 200 times, make them biologically immortal and give them an impressive regeneration that is equal to yours and gives them a magical reserves again equal to yours while also giving them the ability to use your brand of magic while keeping them Human and make them Human while keeping all the pros of their species or give them a Humanoid form in case their genome is incompatible with humans, which is rare as Humans are pretty mouldable and thus almost all species can create a Hybrid form from their combined genomes. The pieces would also allow their hosts to grow in power and skill at a rapid rate and allow them to adapt to the circumstances quite easily too. They also allow the person to learn any skill, technique and magic of human origin. If a human can use it, then they can learn it."

"What?"

"Let's now focus on the pieces themselves. First, the eight Rooks.

The Rooks are meant for denying area to you enemy on the board and having great defence and strength is a good strategy but focusing on only physical strength and defences to endure an attack is pointless and thus I have given the Rook piece overwhelming magical defences in the form of seven omni-directional magical barriers with each barriers capable of matching a titan's void shields and a special series of spells that would empower the weapons and armours they wield to new heights.

I would suggest giving you rooks some really extensive training to find out the limits of the spells.

Next are the Eight Bishops, the ones whose ability to control territories and spaces and support other pieces is unparalleled. For that I have given them immense magical reserves and spells to that would heal, boost attributes of other pieces, curse their enemies and turn them from warriors to frail harmless beings, control the battlefield and change it to their liking and create magical and physical fortifications and traps that would make even the strongest of beings hesitate to attack. Their magical powers would be unmatched as well as their magical defences and knowledge. In fact they would be able to learn and cast any and all magical spells and rituals in record time with little to no difficulty."

"What?"

"Moving on we have the Eight Knights, known for their mobility and unpredictable moves, quickly moving on the board and even entering enemy lines. For this I have given them the ability to Teleport and possess immense speed as well as have great strength and defences to take down their enemies.

Knights, in history are renowned for their mastery of their weapons and ability to inspire others and for this I have given them an special ability that allows them to gain supreme mastery of any weapon they wield, enhance the power of the weapons and armours they use in combat by 20 times and exude an aura that would inspire and heal allies while terrify and hurt their enemies. They are masters of combat and would easily learn and master any martial technique, battle strategies and tactics and employ them with devastating effects."

"What?"

"Then we have the Eight Pawns, they possess little bit of everything of the other pieces but at a reduced scale and are mostly generalised unlike their specialist counterparts but possess speed equal to that of a Knight piece and have the ability to hide their presence from their enemies. They are the scouts, assassins and soldiers that would lay the foundations for the other pieces on the battlefield and aid their allies by promoting into other pieces and helping them fix any holes in their strategies. They also have the ability to scavenge and repair any technologies they find and quickly learn to reverse engineer and understand any new technologies they encounter."

"What?"

"Now we move on to the two Empresses, Fairy Chess Pieces, which has all the abilities of the other pieces as well as the ability to give special commands and boons that would allow the other pieces to do things that are normally not possible, like teleporting a rook from one system to another or healing even near fatal wounds providing a sort of pseudo-resurrection, even though it would exhaust the Empress it is possible. The Empress also gains the ability to empower normal combatants on the field, observe the battlefield on a strategic scale and even give boost to construction, building and training of soldiers, buildings and combat vehicles and even heal and repair them instantly with ease.

The Empress has also other abilities but I would let you find them out for yourself."

"What?"

"Lastly we have the King Piece, which you would be using. Is nothing special apart from the base boost it provides but it is powerful as it would allow you to learn everything your pieces know, gain their skills and knowledge, even grant the unique power they wield no matter how alien they may be the King Piece would break them down and allow you to use it, you can also grant your pieces those same powers and abilities. It like the Empress also has other abilities but I would let you find them out yourself.

And thus, those are the capabilities of the Saint Pieces." The man said completing his explanation, putting the pieces in a box and giving it to Riser.

"What?" Riser said, repeating the same word as he had been doing for the past few minutes upon hearing the explanation. "No seriously WHAT?! There is simply no way, NO WAY! THAT! Everything you said about these pieces is true and there is no way that you could have created them by simple analysing the Evil Pieces."

"I assure you that everything I said was true, though be glad to prove me wrong by showing me that the pieces work much better than I describe." The man said with a kind understanding smile looking like a great scholar but Riser could feel the sheer smugness oozing off of him.

"You mean how the pieces don't live up to the hype, because frankly everything that you said is impossible." Riser spat out, still trying to wrap his head around the powerful abilities of the Saint Pieces.

"I assure you that it is quite possible." The man replied with a serene smile, not bothered by the rising anger of Riser.

"There are just some things in life that is not possible." Rise shouted back, unable to accept that someone able to easily copy one of the most priced artefacts that the greatest genius his species made in order to aid the survival of their species with a glance.

"You who are a devil with the power of Phoenix and one that does not hunger for the souls of humans or plot their demise, exists, thus anything is possible. One just has to find the correct path." The man simply said.

Riser's mind blanked as if someone dumped a bucket of cold water on him. He found himself unable to retort the man's words and thus simply asked him, "How did you do it?"

The man smiled like a child and eagerly answered Riser's query, "Magic of course, Devil magic to be more precise. It being a system of magic that ran on imagination allowed me to do things that was out of my usual capabilities and thus using your magic I was able to circumvent the whole rules of magic and simply magic away the snags and obstacles in my way."

Riser knew well that Devil magic was powerful and since it ran on imagination the sky was the limit for it but he never thought that someone other than a Devil would use it like this. "How, just how?" he asked again still unable to accept this strange reality that he found himself in.

"Like I said, Devil magic runs on the Imagination of its user allowing it to achieve almost anything. I simply followed the logical course and DARED to Imagine." The man replied and Riser realised that the man before him was really no ordinary man.

He had known that no ordinary man would be able to create a galaxy spanning empire but he would not have been surprised by it too as the man could have had the help of many to achieve it. Thus upon hearing the man's reply Riser realised just how out of the ordinary the man was and felt that the man was like the legendary heroes of old and that his enemies would have been truly terrifying to bring such a man to hopeless despair.

Taking the box that contained the Saint Pieces, Riser contemplated his decision and realised that he might be truly out of his depths.

"Having second thoughts?" the man asked and Riser remembered that the man could hear his thoughts. "Don't, for I know that the task is impossible for you to complete by yourself which is why I have given you those pieces. Create a peerage Riser and allow them to help you in your quest, make allies and new friends and inspire the masses to follow your example.

You are now not just a Devil, scion of House Phenex but a Saint of the Imperium of Man. Lead them in this Grim Times and let the look forward to a new dawn."

"Easy for you to say." Riser said letting loose a hopeless laugh "How? How would I help the imperium?" Raiser asked feeling so out of his depths and Riser knew that when he accepted the contract he would have to see to it to its end and ensure that this Imperium come out on top.

"By trading of course," The Emperor said "You will become a Rogue Trader, I would see to that"

"How would that help?" Riser asked, wanting to know what that new title along with that of a Saint would help him.

The mans smiled and said, "A Rogue Trader's job is to trade and explore and go to places where no one can go and act as a representative of the Imperium. They trade in all manners of goods and technologies and exploring unexplored space that hold artefacts of great power and use.

When I asked my old friend for help she said that the person she would send would have a special ability that she would bestow upon them, the ability to travel through the multiverse at will, which would allow you to access realms that no Rogue Trader could think of going and find artefacts and technology that they could never find much more easily. Bringing those back and trading them with the Imperium and would allow the Empire to grow and gain technologies that would help it recover and strengthen itself, maybe even turn the tides of the many wars the Imperium is engaged in.

The worlds and realms that you would visit hold the key to the survival of the Imperium and by exploring them and gathering those artefacts and technologies you would help the Imperium survive."

"Okay, that is just too much don't you think?" Riser said feeling more than a bit overwhelmed by the sudden revelation.

"No it is not. We humans have a penchant for overkill and this is fairly standard for the most part and in fact allowing you to conquer other universes and create your own little multiversal empire, is a fair price to pay for your aid in helping the imperium recover I suppose." The man replied and Riser had to admit that sounded like a more than fair price for the monumental task he had foolishly taken.

"I guess that's fair." Riser said, accepting the whole deal.

"Good. I guess now it's time for you to wake up now little Phenex." The man said making riser confused as the world shifted and Riser fell into the deep void.

#################

"AHHHHHH." Riser screamed as he fell from the bed into the cold hard floor. "Ouch"

He sprang up and looked around and found himself in the same room that Galius had given him. He steadied himself up and found no sign of the strange man nor felt his presence around him.

"Now that was a strange dream." Riser said as he clutched his head, trying to come to terms with the things he had seen in that dream. He was about to sit down on a nearby chair when his eyes fell on something.

A wooden mahogany box that was stylised with a two headed golden eagle and with his family crest etched on top of the eagle.

Trembling Riser approached the box and opened it. He gasped as he saw the red and black chess pieces, his Evil Pieces lined alongside the 30 Saint Pieces, with a simple note on top of them. Riser knew his life had been irrevocably changed as he read the words.

"It was not a dream and Good Luck
on your Quest Little Phenex.
Sign: The Emperor of Mankind"

###############################################################################

AN: So this is a rewrite of my other fic the Phoenix Rogue trader.

Riser still is the main character and people were complaining why I did not use Issei as the main and instead used the Fried Chicken. Well apart from having a legitimate reason of a 14 year old killing a space marine which no normal as hell 14 year old boy could do even with the Boosted Gear and die from the subsequent injuries he suffered which Riser could simply shrug of using his bullshit regen. I wanted to use the Evil Piece Shenanigans which would have not been possible if I used Issei.

Also I did not have to pull out a really asspull explanation for why the MC was able to kill The Space Marine.

Phenex flames and Regeneration is OP and it is going to stay that way, heck even in canon storyline it too Issei accessing a high tier skill of a Longinus-Class Sacred Gear with Holy Water to boot to beat Raiser and that too after sacrificing his arm. And a single Chaos Marine is nowhere near as powerful as Issei was at that time. Remember Issei was able to Blow up a mountain with a standard Dragon Shot at that time that is like a 40K Titan level power right there and still had to gain more power to beat Raiser.

Phenex are totally bullshittingly OP and that is staying that way because unlike the low level mooks that Raiser faced the Greater Daemons and Veteran Space Marines with the blessings of their gods can and will take down Raiser if he is not careful and rape his soul hard.

Now that is out of the way and I hope I don't get any more flake for it, as per the story concept I am going to send Raiser to other universes as a Rogue Trader to trade, and this is the short list of worlds he is going to go to.

Star Wars (Epic Space Fantasy)
NIeR: Automata
Gate: The JSDF fought there. (Gothic Lolita and other fetishes)
Familiar of Zero, (Familiars and pink haired monsters)
Any Wuxia, Xianxia story, (Chinese epic fantasies and bullshit martial artists)
Mass Effect (Epic Space Opera)
Game of Thrones (Fantasy Politics at its finest)
Star Gate (Empire Builder)
BattleTech, (Discount Mechas)
Gundam Seed (Mecha Jesus)
Gundam in General (Only Humans are allowed to build killer Mechas not those damn Tau)
Code Geass (C.C and pizza, that is all)
Supreme Commander, (Bullshit Commander and their bullshit technology)
Warcraft (All hail the Lich King)
Avatar (Who wants to be a Fire Bender)
Naruto, (Ninjas and Aliens. You know it is true)
To love Ru (Again for the Aliens, I swear! Why don't you believe me?!)
Fallout (Rad as hell)

Yeah that is a lot and the fantasy worlds would act as downtime for Raiser and it is not like the Imperium of Mankind is unfamiliar with feudal worlds.