And presently, she is brought to the man himself. Kunrad Voightvir stands on an elaborate balcony, overlooking one of the ship's cavernous decks. Thousands of serfs and servitors go about their business, keeping the ship operational. Near the middle of the deck is an enormous temple to the God-Emperor, all sacred skulls and hanging banners. In addition to the usual collection of Imperial saints, several stained-glass windows depict members of the von Valancius dynasty. 

"An excellent place for contemplation." He gazes out into the massive temple. "One has the best view of the cathedral from here. Mesmerising, wouldn't you say? An impeccable manifestation of the God-Emperor's sublimity."

“And how many of his faithful could have been armed against his enemies if all this excessive use of gold had been sold instead of plastered across every available surface. If this enormous space had been used to house macrocannon shells or generators or barracks.” She gestures while she talks at all the gilded skulls, murals and statues and the truly enormous vaulted arches. “I am no tech-priest, but surely something more useful to a voidship could be installed here.”

Of course Tanya couldn’t give a rats ass about what the Emperor wanted done to his enemies, or how armed his faithful were (except for when they were between her and danger) but you had to justify every single one of your opinions that way or you would get branded a heretic, so her distate for waste needs to be framed piously.

"Macrocannons may be the Emperor's sword, but the cathedrals serve as His shield." Reverence is clear in the man's voice. "How many of His faithful would fail in their hour of trial if they did not have great monuments to His glory such as these?"

“Most of his faithful in the hives never see more than a small workplace or hab-block shrine, many of the most pious preachers I’ve ever known will make do with the middle of a market square or preach in front of the ration line.”

This conversation already bores her, she doesn’t care what the preachers do, but the insane shipboard cathedrals are a waste.
“Ortillery is the greatest shield of all. Do our daily devotionals not ask for Him On Terra to keep us safe? The Xenos and Heretic cannot harm us if they are bombed from orbit, and the lasgun or flamer will do for the mutant.”

Time to pull out the conversation winner for every zealot.

”If you require all.” She gestures to the cathedral. “This, just for you to believe in the Emperor, that’s barely a step away from being an apostate. Their faith should be made of sterner stuff.”

Pull the old ‘my opposing opinion is heresy’ card first and you win, and it also helps deflect the possibility of them thinking she was a heretic.

Tanya is so tired of the constant zealotry of the average imperial.

"An... interesting opinion." Kunrad smiles, seeming pleased rather than offended. "But allow me to introduce myself. Kunrad Voightvir, Master of Whispers in the employ of Her Ladyship, Rogue Trader Theodora von Valancius. At your service. I haven't had the pleasure of speaking with you before, Miss..."

“Tanya Degurechaff. Or sometimes called Tanya Von Degurechaff in certain circles in the Calixis Sector. Though that is a little joke they make at my expense, It does not mean I claim true nobility like the house of Von Valencius.” She says with a polite smile that does not reach her eyes, hiding her annoyance at him and this entire situation.

So he is the master of whispers? Some kind of spy master in all likelihood. Maybe now she will finally be told why she was practically kidnapped on Getadum Tertius and forced into this gilded cage of a ship.

"My regards, Tanya. Naturally, your... stature in the Calixis Sector is not entirely unknown to me. Your enterprising and... ambitious spirit are quite admirable, as is, if you'll forgive my bluntness, your refusal to die. It is as though you were carried here on the wings of fate itself." He smiles, looks over the railing once again, and then continues.

"I will be frank with you: you may forget your past titles, true noble house or no. From the moment you and the other candidate were brought aboard the voidship, your fate changed: You now serve Lord Captain Theordora von Valancius and carry the burden of an heir of this house. Henceforth, you share your dynastic name with Her Ladyship. Wear it with honour, Tanya von Valancius." Kundrad pronounces the title with finality and no small degree of smugness.

”Heir? Low born hive scum like me a Heir to a Rogue Trader house? The line of succession must be quite perilous for them have so run out of legitimate heirs as to have had to dig me out of the underhives.” Tanya chuckles. It’d be almost comical if they hadn't dragged her out of her relatively safe and secure criminal empire. Nowhere is truly safe in this horrible future that Being X sent her to, but her little empire of crime was surely relatively safe, even as a crime lord she had slightly less risk of poisoning than a high born!

This must be Being X’s doing, interfering with her life again, though he hadn’t shown up to gloat in this entire life… but nothing is bad luck when you have a petty fake god wanting to prove something in your life.

”and what of this other candidate? Candidate for what?”

Kunrad shrugs. "The other candidate to inherit the title of Lord Captain. You will meet him soon enough."

“Lord Captain? Of the ship? So not just a distant heir but possibly THE heir?” This news breaks her composure. What nonsense is this? Tanya has never met a Von Valencius in her life and now she is to possibly take over the Dynasty? Absurd! “By the Emperor…”

Okay, nothing she can do about this right now. Prioritise to something she can effect. “Do you know the condition of my men? They were also taken when I was cordially invited.” Threatened with orbital bombardment more like, but pettily mentioning that probably wouldn't do her many favours. She needs to know what happened to her guards.

Her squad of Ogryn guards were hard to train! If they’ve been purged by some idiot zealot who cannot tell the difference between abhumans and mutants she will be downright angry.

"What... touching concern. They've been given quarters aboard the ship. You can discuss who will command them when you meet with Lady Theodora."

“The Ogryn can be kept calm with ration flavour 4Epsilon, and whatever vox cast propaganda you have for young children would also work well. Especially if there’s a Commissar character. Or just give a menial a Commissar hat to wear and have them talk about the Emperor.” Ah her stupid but endearing Ogryn, but to their credit they are unable to be bribed and will follow simple orders better than any hive ganger she could recruit.

“Would that meeting with Lady Theodora be anytime soon?”

"Indeed. I imagine that you have many questions for your new patroness... and I am sure she has just as many questions for you. It is regrettable that you haven't yet had the opportunity to speak -- it has been an arduous journey thus far." Kundad smooths an invisible wrinkle from his sleeve. "The Lord Captain and Master Edelthrad von Valancius are conversing on the observation platform. Let us join them there."

So the other heir has a head start… she normally wouldn’t care or want to be involved in this, but she knows that the high born of the Imperium are all too happy to kill family to secure an inheritance. Now she has to worry about this Edelthrad taking the position and having her eliminates. She doubts they will just happily drop her off at the next void station to go back to her home hive. So she has to actually play these political games now.

”Lead the way, Master of whispers.”

"With pleasure." Kunrad leads her through a conference room of absurd opulence. At the centre is a large table made of real wood and surrounded by ornately carved armchairs. Naves in the vaulted walls contain various cogitators and holy objects on display.

He presses a button to open some unnecessarily tall doors and leads her into what appears to be a warehouse. A Leman Russ battle tank stands on a pedestal, cannons pointed near the entryway. A pair of menials are polishing it.

"One of the Von Valancius trophy rooms. Perhaps you would like to take a look around, after your audience with the Lord Captain." Other "trophies" are present on other pedestals, or behind thick glass cases.

A pair of heavily-augmented servitors are moving a heavy crate across the floor, escorted by a pair of workers. They stop in the middle of the room, carefully place the crate on the floor, and then, in perfect unison, turn and kill their human minders.

They begin advancing methodically amid the panicked shouts of nearby voidsmen, killing any who stand in their way.

"Tanya, shoot! Shoot, and don't let it get close!" Kunrad takes cover behind a nearby column, which is conveniently positioned further away from the berserk servitors.

“Emperors shite.” She curses and pulls out her personal stubber pistol.

She hates servitors, what a waste of human resources to turn a productive worker into an idiot automaton, and then they break and go berserk like this sometimes! A similarly augmented human will always do a better job and yet cannot malfunction like this.

Enough of the servitor closest to her is made of meat that she can kill it without issue with some shots through the neck and face. The other servitor is brought low by the nearby guards before she can switch targets to it.

"I can scarcely believe it." Kunrad seems shaken. "What... suspiciously poor timing for such an accident. Servitors malfunction on the officers' deck at exactly the same moment that the Rogue Trader and her heirs are being gathered here." Kunrad takes a small vox-caster from his belt and begins muttering orders into it. "There. I have sealed all passages between ship sectors. If this is a deliberate attack, it should stop the culprits from advancing their plan." He looks up and barks more orders at the armsmen entering the room. "Spread out. Search the area. Nobody gets in or out!"

He then turns back to her, smoothing his panic behind his previous courtesy. "I'm afraid I must remain here, Tanya. For Lady Theodora's safety, I must oversee this investigation personally. You should have no trouble reaching the observation platform on your own: it's just at the end of this corridor." He gives her a curt bow.

Perhaps her rival heir orchestrated this? An assassination attempt? Seems a bit half hearted of one if it was.

At least Tanya doesn’t have to talk to the master of whispers anymore, he rubs her the wrong way. Something about his high born smugness perhaps.

Tanya heads to the observation platform, finding one woman and two men talking. Perhaps she is the Lord Captain?

"...That is simply irrational, Lady Theodora." This man speaks with animated disapproval. "Assimilation into the trade structure would be political and economic suicide, practically an admission of heresy!"

Lady Theodora is unquestionably a Rogue Trader. Even if she had not been named as such, the mountain of fine furs and silver chains she is wearing would announce her identity for her. She looks at the other heir coldly. "Then suggest an alternative that will satisfy me. I have described the situation, provided all the information you would get in my place. What will you do with Aion VI, Edelthrad?"

"Ah, but our second candidate has joined us. Tanya. Approach, and give me your answer."

"Consider this hypothetical situation. Aion VI. A new world on the fringes of the Koronus Expanse. High seismic activity, regular magma eruptions, metamorphic rock deposits, prospects for large-scale mining." Theodora describes a world with the cold efficiency of a captain who has evaluated hundreds. "The world is populated by natives who worship some heretical ‘underworld spirits’ that protect those who offer them sacrifices. Flights of fancy, you might say. But attempts to install ore extractors have failed for a second time – the mining crews sent to the planet’s surface simply vanished overnight. My question to you is: what would you do with this poisoned treasure?"

Theodora's red cybernetic eye glows intently as she waits for Tanya's answer.

“Why was a risk assessment not done to find things like this out before mining commenced. I would fire the man in charge who would send valuable equipment and human resources onto a new planet without properly studying it first. The services of the astra telepathica would also ascertain the truth behind these stories of spirits. It’s entirely possible that there are warp xenos on the planet who are taking out your mining crews.”

Tanya only calls them warp xenos because she doesn’t know if the Lady Von Valencius is in the know, or if Tanya is allowed to know about the Daemons in the warp. Wouldn’t do to be arrested for heresy. “If the locals worship, and worse, sacrifice to warp xenos, it might even be the locals killing the mining crews. So my suggestion is send a well armed team, ideally with psyker support, to investigate and then kill whatever needs killing.”

Sadly the fact of human sacrifice does not automatically make them cultists of the warp gods, plenty of sanctioned Imperial cults do human sacrifice as well. But the warp cults will have you dealing with Daemonic mutations and possessed psykers. 

Lady Theodora responds quickly. "A very methodical approach. Not unwise. But you must remember that this line of work sometimes requires risks. If you refuse to act until you have perfect information, you will never act at all."

"Methodical", Edelthrad sneers. "Cowardly is more like it. And wasteful. A single psyker from the Adeptus Astra Telepathica would cost us dearly, never mind several."

“And losing work crew after crew and valuable equipment forever, without even knowing why is so very affordable. The infinite money pit is surely the best of investments. I bow before your wisdom.” She gives a sarcastic bow to this moron.

The colour drains from Edelthrad's face, causing his augmentics to stand out against his paper-white skin. "Insolent, ignorant upstart! How dare you speak to-"

"Edelthrad." The Rogue Trader's intensity has turned from Tanya to the other heir. "I believe I gave you an assignment on this ship. Explain to me, then, why my Senior Congregator is still dawdling about the officer's deck and engaging in pointless squabbling, instead of proceeding to the middle decks to commence the inspection of the compartments within his purview?" Theodora doesn't gesticulate as some might, instead speaking acerbically while remaining entirely still and impassive.

"I beg your forgiveness, Lady Theodora." Edelthrad's tone and body language shift in an instant. "Your presence has such a profound effect on me that I well forgot the time." He bows ceremoniously and takes his leave.

“Lord Captain.” She bows less sarcastically this time and then stands at ease, but in a vaguely military way. A force of habit from her second life.

The Lord Captain nods. "Tanya. So. Why are you here?"

“Because you willed it so.” Threats of violence do wonders for compliance, but Tanya isn't crass enough to say that out loud.

She nods. "Quite right. But I must ensure you understand exactly what that means."

Theodora launches into what feels like a pre-prepared speech, one she has given many times already. "My name is Theodora von Valancius Massimo af Scarus. I am a Rogue Trader in the service of the God-Emperor of Humanity, and my rights and freedoms are vindicated by a most sacred relic: the Warrant of Trade held aboard this vessel. Mine is the honour to venture into the darkness beyond the Imperium, to carry Humanity's light where powers wicked and heretical reign, where the darkness bodes death and ruin for us all."

She barely pauses for breath before continuing. "It is my decision alone to determine the fate of whatever I find past the bounds of the observed void. Every world I discover, and all thereon, is mine by right. I command millions of lives, rule over numerous planets, and possess fortunes that no planetary governor or commander could dream of amassing in a thousand years. And you, Tanya von Valancius, are one of those with a rightful claim to this inheritance when the hour comes."

“And the fate of the heir that doesn’t inherit?”

The loser probably gets consigned to a convenient ‘accident’ to ensure they cannot challenge the throne as it were. Why else would they so run out of heirs that a distantly descended hive dweller ends up an heir. This is so dangerous! But obviously Tanya cannot let any of her internal panic show. 

"They can be useful in other ways. If not as Lord Captain, then as their close ally and advisor. The skills that you learned in your former life may prove invaluable here in the Koronus Expanse." She shakes her head. "Alas, blood alone is not enough to ensure competence. Kunrad Voigtvir served me well for many years before he made his mistake."

“Voigtvir is related to you?” Oh joy, he’s part of the family, yuck. “And It saddens me to hear he failed your ladyship.” Some flattery usually helps with nobles.

"He is a most distant relation, as are you. Although he carries the name von Valancius, he does not bear it publicly. The door of inheritance is... closed to him, but he has been satisfactory in his current role. Or was, until recently."

“If I may inquire, what has been unsatisfactory about his recent preformance? Most workers can be brought back to effective performance with the right incentives or additional training. I like to think my success in my previous occupation.” That sure is a way to phrase being queen of the under-hives. “Was in the proper management of human resources.”

Since she will be employed by the Von Valencius dynasty either way, as its heir or in another role, Tanya better make herself seem as valuable as possible.

"I agree, and that is why he was pushed out of the line of inheritance instead of the airlock. His error cost me tremendously, but he may still be valuable." Theodora is clearly dancing around the exact circumstances of the mistake.

"As for your 'previous occupation', one could not in good faith describe it as one of... exemplary service to the Imperium." She permits herself a sly smile. "However, I am intrigued by your past. To have survived and prospered between the letters of the law is a rare feat for those in our circle. You will have good opportunities to apply your skills for the benefit of our house."

“I find the imperium has much need of those with the ability to be… flexible and pragmatic around the dictates of the Lex. When a guard captain needs lasguns and the administratum only sent a surplus of cold weather gear, on a magma world no less. Then someone needs to be able to move goods around to where they are needed. And you will never find underhives so clear of cults and heresy as the ones I controlled. If the criminal element is managed by the sane instead of the heretic, then that only does the imperium good. There are criminals, and then there are criminals.” Tanya feels a little conflicted about how second nature it has become to easily twist and justify all her acts as serving the emperor.

It was a bit of a stretch to call her areas of influence heresy free, the harmless kinds of heresy she didn't give two shits about, but she sure did stamp out any chaos cults in her sphere of influence, and pskyers were closely monitored and eliminated if they showed any loss of control or possession. 

Theodora gives a single approving nod. "Oh, I always do like it when the most patriotic, pious option just so happens to be the one which is the most lucrative. You'll do well here, Tanya." The vox at her hip hisses and squeals. "It sounds like I'll have some time before I'm needed on the bridge for the warp transition. I'm sure you have many questions, and you may take this time to ask me a few of them."