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The Churches

There are 5 Churches per level in this Spire, except in the PentHive which is overseen by the Cathedral and the lowest level whih has no Ministroum presence. Each has a Re-Cyc & a Preacher with armed Deacons and zealous laypersons. The Churches are massive structures which cotain Administorum offices and Arbite barracks. They are built as a part of the support structure in this Spire. As a symbol this expresses that the whole Imperium depends on the Church for support, for survival. As a practical measure, making the Chruches part of the support colums means that if they are ever destroyed, the area would collapse in a Hive quake, surely killing the offending part also.

Each Holyday bells ring caling the parish to Church. The congregations of the Churches gather to receive Mass, singing hymns, praying, scapegoating and receiving food and water in return for tithes. Attendance is made mandatory by law, but also by practicality. Those who do not show, or are excommunicated will starve unless they attack those weaker than them for their rations. (Gang fights are often motivated by food and water, often UnderHive gangs will fight each other becuase they want more rations, or have had them taken from them in a previous fight.) The Indoctrination takes place before vast Holo-Icons of the Emperor in dark Gothic surroundings. Psycho-active incense is burnt and an atmosphere of mass-hypnosis and pious devotion pervades over the ceremony.

A gang cannot possible racketerr a Church. It is too well armed and can bring down the wrathof the mperial authorities too easily. A gang could attempt to plunder a Church however, as the ones in the higher levels are rich in tithes and donated credits as well as weapons. Such an undertaking is only possible by the strongest gang who are heretics or atheists.

The Cathedral

Here lives the Pontifex and an army of armed Deacons. It is the Administratum headquarters and main Arbite barracks. The Cathedral is huge and sits at the very top of the Spire forming its pinnacle, again this is a symbolic and defensive measure. Most Hivers will never see this place, and only the very rich gather here for services. At the top in the belfrey where the caraytids roots one can view the breathtaking surrounds of the grey-red sky above, the black spires of the Hive behind and below and away in the distance and the Trans-Cable strecthing out over the irridescent wastes to its point in a Cross-Roads.

Three Caraytids fly around the Nave with thuribles, and burning incense in huge braziers add to the awe-inspiring effect of Gothic might an mystery. The Pontifex stands high above the Congregation, behind his double-headed eagle lecturn with the Alter behind him. Behind the Alter is a huge strained-transplasteel window of the Emperor before his Ascension. This window faces the East so that in the morning as the Red Sun rises, the whole Cathredal is bathed in a red light for a few miniutes, which seems to emenate from the face of the Emperor. The ceremonies are the same as in the Churches below, but more glorious and beautiful.

The Prison

The Prison is heavily fortified and out on a limb from the main spire as a seperate Spire unto itself. It has only one entrances - from the Courthouse. The Prison has no guards, these positions are filled by the strongest prisoners who have fought and kiled their way into these positions. They are given weapons by the arbites to control the others. They are allowed to enforce discipline and get their own cell. Killing them is allowed (but naturally difficult), but only so as to replace them and not to try to escape. These "guards" get their own cells, whereas most prisoners are crammed into small dark, empty cells with only a bed or two and one waste unit. Violence is epidemic.

The Prison has its own Chapel and Re-Cyc, but these are handed out each day rather than on holyday to prevent rations from being stockpiled as part of an escape plan. Each prisoner has an explosive collar which can be detonated at anytime by the Judge (or whoever has the controls) or by the Prox detectors if they are passed (these are outside the Prison gate). As a result, escape is virtually impossible. Prison will wear these collars permanently as they are wired into their spine. When they are brought togetherto serve in the Penal battilion in far away wars, these collars will be used to coerce them to fight. Escape is made all the more impossible by the bridge that joins the prison-spire to the main-spire and the Courthouse exit. This bridge can be collapsed in an emergancy, and it overlooked by automated machine guns.

Judge Torquamda is waiting for the Imperial Blackship to take these prisoners away. Everyday a Confessor speaks to these Prisoners about redemption.

P-Wing

This is the most important part of the Prison overseen personlly by the Judge. Each cell is single and more comfortable, though the prisoners still have to wear collars. This is where the Psykers are kept, each is solitude and isolation. Mind-control technques are used to Indoctrinate these prisoners more thoroughly than any normal Hiver. The only person they see regularly is the Confessor, who visits each of them for an hour everyday to speak to them of their glorious fate. There are 23 prisoners here presently most of them await the Blackships arrival with pious anticipation, hoping to serve their Emperor well. This wing of the prison is ptrolled by Arbites for maximum security. A small group of Preachers stay here also, to pray for the souls of the psykers. Robotic gargoyles are posted around this area to keep away daemons.

The Trans-Cable

This is the main route for importing and exporting goods into the Spire throgh whih the Ministorum makes a great deal of money from families that own the means of production an transport through taxes (the legitimate form of racketeering!). It is the main artery of the Spire and locus of control. There is no other way outside of the Spire except this way (this Spire lacks an airport or other T-Cables) and acts as the prison door for 99.9% of the population. Everything must pass through here and the Spire would be an impoverished, forgotten and isolated nothing without it.

One reaches other parts of Hive Primus (to which this Spire belongs) via this sealed Cable which contains many lanes of road and rail track. If one travels to the correct Cross-Roads one can get to other parts of the Palatine Cluster, or even across the wastes to other Hives - if one dares. Cross-Roads are whispered to be magical and dangerous places, and their is a Church at each one. The Cross-Roads out in the Wates are dangerous an heavily fortified places. A gang with cars and bikes could have an interesting time sweeping up and down the milions of strands in this vast web of roads and Cross-Roads. Though patrolled by mobile Arbite units, travellers are still atacked by gangs with vehicles. Though Nomads regularly attacks such cables, the Nomads that are presently in the Spire arrived via this route.

Trading takes place around the mouth of the T-able whenever anything new arrives (usually everyday). The T-Cable entrance is fortified and nearby is the highly popular and cosmopolitan club "The Black Ace". This entrance is subject to regular checkings and interrogations by the Arbites to ensure the purity of that which is entering or leaving. Smuggling is punishable by death. A Hiver has to pay 1000 credits to buy a ticket out of the Spire, or try to stow-away if s/he is desperate enough.

The main types of traffic are: products from the Spire's factories headed for the Off-World port, slaves (usually going to work in a chemical factory opr mine in the wastes), psykers and prisoners (for the Imperial army's penal legion) taken off-world by Imperial authorities whenever the Blackship arrives (roughly every 10 years), clan officials on important business, rich gangs moving between Hives as part of a holiday or escape, imports of synthetic vitamins for the Re-Cyc, import of chemicals which cannot be found in this Spire.

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