Hero of the Imperium (Ciaphas Cain Book 1)

Apparently I struck a heroic figure, though, shrieking what was taken for a stirring battle cry rather than an incoherent howl of terror, which encouraged the men no end.

‘When in deadly danger, When beset by doubt, Run in little circles, Wave your arms and shout.’

I’ve seen more than my fair share of tribunals over the years, even been in front of them on occasion, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned it’s this; it’s easy to get the result you want out of them. The trick is simply to state your case as clearly and concisely as possible. That, and making damn sure the members of it are on your side to begin

That worked for me; even back then I realised commissars who threw their weight around tended to end up dying heroically for the Emperor, even if the enemy was a suspiciously long way away at the time.

If you let people feel superior to you, they’re childishly easy to manipulate.

‘The commissar’s always right,’ I said, smiling. ‘It says so in the regulations.’

I’ve never really bought the idea that His Divine Majesty can spare some attention from the job of preventing the entire galaxy from sliding into damnation to look out for my interests, too, or anyone else’s for that matter, which is why I’m so diligent about doing it for myself.