Dolan Chirosius

"I tread the path of Righteousness. Though it be paved with broken glass, I will walk it barefoot; though it cross rivers of fire, I will pass over them; though it wanders wide, the light of the Emperor guides my step."

- Confessor Dolan of Chiros - Sermon on the Road to Gathalamor

Confessor Dolan Chirosius of Chiros, known as the Great Confessor, is an Imperial Saint. He was martyred by the Apostate Cardinal Bucharis during the Plague of Unbelief which was part of the Age of Apostasy during the 36th Millennium.

The Apostate Cardinal
Only a few decades after the death of High Lord Goge Vandire and the ascension of Sebastian Thor to the Ecclesiarchal throne, Cardinal Bucharis headed a diocese centred on the world of Gathalamor to the galactic southwest of Terra. Gathalamor was not a rich diocese but Bucharis, driven by jealousy of his peers' achievements, vowed to build one of the largest temples to the Emperor's glory on his Cardinal planet. After brutally enslaving the population of Gathalamor, Bucharis still needed more men and resources. Using an army of thugs and cut-throats he conquered the nearby world of Rhanda. With access to the richer mines of that world, Bucharis' wealth grew. It was also in the Rhonda system that Bucharis joined forces with the renegade Imperial Navy Admiral SehalIa and a colonel of the Rigellian XXV Imperial Guard regiment called Gasto. With Imperial Guamsmen and Navy warships at his disposal, Bucharis carved out a amalI empire to the galactic west of Terra and within the next seven years fifty star systems had fallen under his control.

Bucharis' realm was cut off from much of the Imperium by a dense concentration of warp stonns, and news of Sebastian Thor's ascension and the reorganisation of the Ecclesiarchy had not yet filtered through. As Bucharis now controlled interstellar travel in his empire, he continued to suppress any information regarding the events on Terra. Using evidence from the time of Vandire he declared himself the true mouth of the Emperor and declared himself the head of the Adeptus Ministorum. To those who heard his elegant speeches, Terra was a lost cause and Gathalamor was the centre of faith from then on. The Plague of Unbelief spread and Bucharis' teachings became the word of law. The worlds under Bucharis' control became intolerable places filled with looting gangs and power-hungry nobles. Neighbour fought against neighbour and families split over the spoils of the chaos. Those who rose to prominence amidst such turmoil caught the eye of Bucharis and were rewarded with more power. Companies of the mercenary guard were despatched to enforce omer in the name of Bucharis, led by those fortunate enough to have Bucharis' favour. Those who served the Apostate Cardinal well were suitably rewarded and those who failed him were appropriately punished. In this way, Bucharis' dominion spread north and west. Cautious of approaching too close to Terra until his power was total, Bucharis continued to forge his bloody path. The continuing northerly advance of Bucharis brought him into the territories under the protection of the Space Wolves. Conquering multiple systems within the Albia system, Bucharis continued the expansion of his empire. But Bucharis' arrogance would prove to be his undoing, for the fifth system contained the Death World of Fenris, the homeworld of the Space Wolves.

Turmoil on Chiros
With Bucharis' attention focused on Fenris, the continuing expansion of his empire had been slowed but not stopped. He had many sub-commanders still exploring westward and more systems had fallen into his clutches during the Battle of the Fang. However, reports began to COme through of setbacks suffered in one newly discovered system - Chiros. The Apostate Cardinal heard that despite horrendous carnage on the world of Chiros, the Chirosians were no closer to surrender. The commander in charge of the assault had wisely restrained his use of the more destructive weapons in his arsenal, fearing that he would scar the beautiful planet, which would make an ideal retreat for the aging Cardinal. Bucharis was pleased with the commander's foresight and sent him three extra companies of men, confident that with these reinforcements he would soon be hunting the abundant game of Chiros, chasing down the prey over the rolling hills of the natural paradise. It was not to be, the mercenary captain attacking Chiros regretfully reported his surrender to the Chirosians.

Bucharis was stunned. He knew the Imperial Guard were not the most elite fighters of the Imperium, but a whole regiment of them should have been easily capable of defeating whatever meagre forces Chiros had to offer. Bucharis' agents returned from the system to make more detailed reports. The mercenaries had not faced a few hundred poorly armed, badly motivated defenders. The whole population had risen against them, each with his hunting rifle and other weapons. Millions of marksmen had riddled the hills and forests, ambushing the Guardsmen and gunning them down in droves before using the hunting trails and lodges to disappear into the wilderness once more. The whole countryside was hostile, there were no supplies, there was no respite and when a suicide squad had charged into the heart of the captain's camp and detonated home-made explosives, the army lost the will to fight on.