From the moment the Rejects arrived on Tertium, Interrogator Rannick harboured suspicions that there was more to the invasion than met even his over-suspicious eye. Now, with the forthcoming Grim Protocols update, there are signs that the Battle for Tertium is entering a new phase. 

We sat down with Narrative Producer Michael Knight and Lead Writer Matthew Ward to find out more.

So, Tertium’s in trouble then?

Mike: It’s always in trouble, isn’t it? But yes, things are about to get worse. 

Matthew: Are they though? Isn’t it more the case that Rannick’s finally about to realise just how bad they’ve really been from the start?

Mike: I know, right? He’s probably known something was badly wrong ever since the Orthus Offensive last year, but that’s the problem with suspecting everyone and everything: occasionally you don’t see something until it’s bang in front of you.

Matthew: Even paranoids have enemies.

Mike: Exactly. Rannick’s about as paranoid as they come, and he has a lot of enemies.

We’re talking about Wolfer, right?

Matthew: Wolfer’s involved, sure. He’s been our Rejects’ dark mirror since the moment Zola stepped aboard the Tancred Bastion prison ship.  

Mike: Maybe even before that.

Matthew: We can’t talk about that, can we? Dan (Abnett) will kill us.

Mike: Dan wouldn’t do that. He’s actually a very nice man. But let’s play it safe. Wolfer isn’t nice. He’s been the face of the Battle for Tertium right from the start. He spearheaded the invasion. Every soldier of the Traitorous 6th - the ones we’ve seen anyway – answer to him. But he’s a purely military threat. It turns out that Tertium’s been rotten for a long time.

Matthew: We’ve seen the cultists fighting alongside Wolfer’s traitors. So far, Rannick’s assumed that their goals are the same and that they’re just a rabble militia fighting for Wolfer. The first is kinda-sorta-maybe true. The second? Not at all. To the leaders of the cult, Wolfer’s just fulfilling his part of a long-awaited prophecy. He’s a tool, nothing more.

Mike: I’m not sure he realises that. 

Matthew: At the very least, he’s in denial. But we’ve all been there.

Hang on, back up a bit. The cult’s leaders? Who are they?

Mike: We’ve met one already. He rescued Rinda after she and her brother (Rodin) fell foul of the Rejects and then set her loose during the Terror in the Dark event. We’ll meet the others soon enough. The hour of prophecy is fast approaching and they’re not the kind of people that lurk in the shadows for ever. They’re starting to flex their muscles. After all, it was the cult, not Wolfer, who attacked Commissar Dukane’s Moebian 53rd during the Rolling Steel mission. What we’ve seen so far is only the beginning.

That’s the second time you’ve mentioned a prophecy. Can you tell us more about that?
Mike: Only that Dan’s really excited about it. The rest you’ll have to find out as it unfolds.
 
In the Grim Protocols update?
Mike: It’s a watershed moment. Rannick, Wolfer, Zola… they’re all starting to see that there’s more going on than they realise. In the end, Wolfer and the 6th are pursuing victory the way the Imperium taught them. Theirs is a conventional war. The cult deal in dark sorceries and blasphemous powers. For them, the path to victory lies through embracing the Grandfather’s blessings. In life … and beyond.

Matthew: So much of what’s happened over the last year has fallen neatly into the cult’s plans, but now they’re taking an active role in the Battle for Tertium. Unknown to Rannick (and Wolfer) they have a ritual in the works. One that the warband need to stop if there’s to be any hope of winning. The Rejects are about to be tested as never before.

Mike: I’m sure it’ll work out. Right?