| abstract | - Grey Knights Chaplains act in a similar role to those of other Chapters by serving as spiritual leaders for their fellow Battle-Brothers. However, the challenges facing a Chaplain of the Grey Knights are unique. The rigours of serving in the Grey Knights can sometimes be daunting, for the life of a Grey Knight is one of sacrifice and duty as they face the worst horrors of the Warp. They will never know peace or respite for their war is an eternal one, fighting against the vile daemons of Chaos. Over many centuries of facing such malefic creatures, a Battle-Brother will lose many comrades should he survive the countless trials and struggles against his daemonic foes. Even a nigh-incorruptible Grey Knight can have his faith sorely tested; overcome by nearly overwhelming sadness and impotent rage at the loss of a close comrade or commander. Space Marines are extraordinary men; Space Marine Chaplains even more so. A Chaplain of the Grey Knights is a rare specimen indeed, and the Chapter has precious few. A Grey Knights Chaplain had to minister to the spiritual needs of soldiers destined to fight the most horrible of foes. The men of their flock constantly looked upon the Warp and heard the whispers of daemons, and yet, thanks to the Grey Knights Chaplain and those who had preceded him, not one Grey Knight had ever been corrupted by the Archenemy. But sometimes there was doubt, especially in regards to the seeming futility of the Inquisition's endless struggle against Chaos and the corruptible nature of Mankind that allowed the Archenemy eternal purchase on human souls. A Grey Knight never doubted the righteousness of his cause, for fighting the daemon was not a gesture of futility. They believed that it was a true and righteous purpose, for they had seen the results of the daemon's depravity. But their fight was only half the battle, for the daemon was but one manifestation of the Archenemy and its violence was but one weapon of the Warp. The Inquisition battled the plans of Chaos just as the Grey Knights battled its soldiers. But sometimes, even an Inquisitor could fall to the pernicious will of the Ruinous Powers. Over the millennia, many Inquisitors had been lost to the temptations of Chaos, though a Grey Knight knew they should not speak of such things. Sometimes there were Renegades who hid themselves amongst the Ordos. No one knew how many other Heretics were wearing the Inquisitorial Rosetta. There could possibly even be some within the Ordo Malleus that directed the Grey Knights. A Grey Knights Battle-Brother knew that it was their place to leave the thinking about such matters to the Inquisitors, but how could they trust them if they delved so deeply into the corruption of Chaos? Sometimes a Battle-Brother questioned if the battle against the corruption of Chaos could ever be won. A Grey Knights Chaplain was there to ensure their troubled Battle-Brothers and assuage any doubts, for during their centuries of service they had led Grey Knights through every trial of the mind that Chaos could inflict upon them. The Archenemyʹs atrocities knew no bounds, and only men like the Grey Knights could stop the insidious crimes of Chaos. In a Battle-Brother's moment of doubt, all they had to do was reflect on the fact that the Emperor continuously sent the Grey Knights to the bloodiest battlefields of the Imperium. This was no mere coincidence. By throwing themselves into those battles and butchering the daemon, they would see the Forces of Chaos broken and fleeing. A Battle-Brother had to take these victories and immerse themselves in them, letting victory blot out everything else. By glorifying in it, all doubt would vanish. The enemy had made a grave mistake in bringing the fight to the them, for the Grey Knights would drive all foes of Mankind before them. All Grey Knights were psykers. While most Space Marine Chapters made use of some psykers in their Librarium, only the Grey Knights required psychic potential from all their recruits. It was what made the Grey Knights capable of fighting the daemon, for a daemonʹs most potent weapons threatened the soul itself. Daemons brought with them moral corruption, and fighting them exposed a Grey Knight to that corruption. They were trained to resist it, taught prayers of will‐power so potent that they drove some recruits mad. Their armour was impregnated with sigils against the powers of the Warp, the same epigrammatic, arcane symbols of protection tattooed on their skins so that their bodies were shielded against corruption, but the most powerful defence was a Grey Knightʹs psychic shield. A Neophyte was taught in the very earliest stages of his training to imprison his soul in a cage of faith and contempt for Chaos where no daemon could reach it. It was the only weapon a daemon truly feared: an incorruptible mind, anathema to the Warp. The mere existence of the Grey Knights was a victory of sorts against Chaos. Battle-Brothers in the Grey Knights are constantly exposed to horrible truths about the true threat of the daemon lurking just beyond the circle of the Emperor’s light. They will witness sights that would shake the faith of an ordinary Space Marine to his very foundations. A Grey Knights Chaplain must always stand ready to renew a Battle-Brother's devotion when he falters, and to remind him of his duty and his vows when hope seems lost. Their stern demeanour and critical eye watches over every action of a Battle-Brother from his initiation to his last breath in service to the Emperor, ever alert for signs of a slackening zeal or any wavering in belief. Above all, Grey Knights Chaplains remind their fellow Battle-Brothers to honour and keep their faith with the Emperor. Young Neophytes must also be monitored and indoctrinated as they progress towards becoming full Battle-Brothers. Grey Knights Chaplains are treated with awed respect by their Battle-Brothers, and like many Chapters, it falls to them to choose which Aspirants will undertake training to become Astartes. During the Trials for new Aspirants, the Chaplains are the ones who inculcate the culture and values of the Chapter into them, as well as weeding out the spiritually weak and faithless individuals they find unworthy to become a Grey Knight. The development and guidance of such super-human warriors is only entrusted to the wisest and fiercest members of the Chapter, mighty heroes who have demonstrated their own enduring devotion and uncompromising zeal on countless occasions. Chaplains are renowned for their sense of duty and responsibility to their Battle-Brothers, knowing that only through unshakeable faith can a Space Marine stand firm against the darkness rampant across the galaxy -- and in every human heart.
|
