+ + + [Subject: Ribhus-Legionary Vaja] + + +
The Ribhus represented one of the more obscure warrior-brotherhoods of the IVth, being only seriously attested at the time of the Heresy amidst the numbers of the loyalist Terran veterans of the exiled 'Ayasa BhutaGana' formation ['Battalion of Steel Ghosts' in the ancient Terran language in-use at the region of their original recruitment].
The Brotherhood of the Ribhus was never particularly large, even at its height in the eighth and ninth centuries of the thirtieth millennium; and it is therefore of little surprise that by the time of the Crusade's zenith some two hundred years later, the IVth Legion's habitual strenuous way of war had worn down their numbers to only a literal handful. This was a situation exacerbated by the rise to prominence of other, less anciently-rooted technologic and artificer societies within the IVth such as the Apolakron and Lyssatra - which lead to significant competition for what had once been the Ribhus' primary recruiting pool, and consequent further diminishment due to a lack of new initiates.
It is therefore a matter of some conjecture amongst specialist-analysts of the subject as to whether the comparatively limited evidence for there being any more than three Ribhus-Sainaks in service by the outbreak of hostilities in Ultramar is a function of the generally shoddy Imperial records of the time, or the above aforementioned factors.
In any case, the multiple pict-captures of Ribhus Vaja in action [as well as the extensive first-hand accounts still preserved of the mortal Remembrancer cadre which accompanied the BhutaGana throughout the later Crusade and Heresy] serve to admirably confirm his existence, at least.
And it is to the Legionary in question we now turn.
The name 'Vaja' suggests an Indic origin for the recruit, in common with many other of the Terran legionaries of his attached formation; and also with several other Astartes forces raised in the dying days of the Wars of Unification, before the Crusade had truly begun in earnest [cross-ref: 'Pishachas' VIIIth Legion detachment]. However, given the etymological analysis of the term suggests a meaning-field concerned largely with both 'war' and 'energy', it is entirely possible that this is a cognomen adopted at some later date [for instance, upon his successful induction into the Ribhus brotherhood], rather than any reliable indicator of his ethnic origins.
From what we know as the result of the accounts of those who served with him, Ribhus-Sainaka Vaja appears to have been something of an optimistic and 'up-beat' character; a situation arguably at compete odds with both the customary dour and fatalistic temperament of the stereotypical member of the IVth, as well as the more 'emotionless' presentation of many Techmarines and other Machine-Cult allied specialists.
This, once again, speaks to his early origins on Terra - before the later psycho-characteristics of the Legions and their ways of war had truly become set in stone, and quite possibly before the Adepts of Mars had been incorporated into the nascent Imperium and its war effort proper. Indeed, it has been remarked that quite a number of legionaries drawn from the Airyavarta recruitment-grounds of Northern Ind appeared similarly positive in their dispositions; although whether this was the result of a genetic or cultural influence from the origin-population in question, or merely a natural outcome of serving in the more hopeful times of Man's early re-ascent to the Stars is a question lost to the ages.
However it arose, Vaja's optimistic nature may possibly have induced his decision to carry to war with him a notoriously unreliable plasma-blaster weapon - with the ongoing results of its temperamental nature being plainly visible in the scorch-marks and plasma-burn corrosion covering much of its outer casing.
In the hands of other legionaries, the choice to continue to employ such an obviously temperamental device might have been regarded as either a penchant towards noble self-effacing sacrifice, or alternatively sheer bloody-mindedness. But with Vaja, it appears that he viewed the somewhat problematic service-history of his mainline weapon as being something of a challenge - acting under the (hopeful) belief that each new set of post-engagement tinkering would finally deliver a reliable and non-self-hazardous weapon.
The rest of his Panoply of War might also be read as connotating certain aggressive tendencies, with the combination of a Breacher Marine's boarding shield and 'Thunder Edge' chainsword suggesting a strong desire to engage the foe in close quarters - rather than the proclivity towards ranged support and behind-the-lines battlefield repairs more common for Techmarines of all Legions, and particularly the IVth.
However, in light of Vaja's attested expertise with shipbourne systems, it is quite likely that he had instead found himself attached to the BhutaGana's breacher squads due to his demonstrable utility at swiftly crippling an enemy starship from the inside instead of any overweaning bloodlust. The fitting of a custom-wrought duelist's hilt to his chainblade further suggests a Marine who let precision and skill guide his actions, rather than mere visceral aggression.
A final note of importance concerns Vaja's armour - a somewhat modified suit of Mk.VI.
This is, obviously, a pattern of war-plate entirely uncommon within the ranks of the IVth, both due to their innate preference for heavier suits such as the Mk.III as a function of the nature of their approach to warfare, and because the production-sets of Mk.VI had not yet been made available to many of the Legions by the time the Heresy's outbreak almost completely disrupted Galactic supply lines.
However, for reasons that are still not entirely clear, the BhutaGana appear to have been almost entirely equipped with the pattern. The main hypothesis at this time suggests this came about as the result of the same set of circumstances which saw them cast out in exile from their Legion by Perturabo. This appears to have occurred at a point roughly coterminous with the IVth Legion's field-testing of a relatively limited-number of prototyped Mk.VI suits [then referred to as Mk.V]; and given the demonstrable disfavour with which the Lord of Iron appears to have held both the armour itself and the BhutaGana, it appears likely that orders were made to pass off any remaining warplate of this pattern to them when they were sent away - on the understanding that it was a fitting punishment and visual signifer of those 'unworthy' of the Legion, and more likely to lead to their 'redemption' via death in combat.
Vaja's armour has been altered largely via the addition of improved plating about the legs, a larger and heavier pauldron on his left shoulder [presumably with the intent of absorbing the weight of fire likely to be coming towards him from that direction, given customary Astartes firing stance], improved power-transmission and plating about the chest [notoriously one of the production Mk.VI's weakspots], a ballistic-apron between his legs [a reasonable common feature amongst assault-oriented IVth Legion Astartes, with the presumption that the large plating would better absorb shrapnel from ordnance detonating near the bearer, and thus help minimize risk to his squadmates even in the event of his own expiry], and enhanced servos about the knees and thighs to better bear the additional weighting-load of all of the above.
