Just outside the Warp Storm, he finds the remains of the merchant ship crashed on a planet.
Searching for survivors, he finds... Klingons! Regressed technologically to the Iron Age, but culturally similar to "modern Trek" Klingons. He is trapped for several months on the planet by a spur of the warp storm, forcing him to make a complete investigation. He eventually finds the descendants of the merchant ship.
Upon completing his investigation, he logs the following facts:
- Morphological differences between of the natives and purebreed humans include the following:
- Characteristic forehead ridges.
- Increased bone and muscle density.
- Redundant vital organs that resist damage.
- A third lung.
- Slightly decreased gestation times (~7 months).
- Faster physical maturation (reaching full adult height at approximately 8 years.
- Noticably reduced aging effects, with combat abilities little impaired until death.
- High levels of aggression.
- Decreased tolerance for cold.
- Genetic characteristics of the natives appear to include the following:
- Genetic similarity is close enough for natives and purebreeds from the ship to interbreed.
- Scans for particular sequences used in early genetic enhancement of humans test positive in a small fraction of the population ("The Augments.")
- Native features appear dominant. The inquisitor cannot distinguish between first generation hybrids and natives by appearance.
- Second and third generation hybrids with only one Klingon ancestor are in many cases nearly indistinguishable from purebreed humans, except for a tendency towards increased aggression and strength.
- There are no signs of any native psykers.
- The natives have a most peculiar and disturbing culture. The Inquisitor finds the following elements interesting:
- The native culture is focused upon warriors, tolerance of pain, and ritual combat as well as less ritual forms of violence, and has an intent focus on martial honor, reminiscent of Khorne worshippers.
- A strong disdain for "softness" similar to that found in Khorne worshippers.
- In spite of these similarities, the natives do not recognize the name "Khorne," although both "Kurn" and "Kornan" are reasonably common native names for male babies. The natives claim, in fact, to have slain their gods for causing too much trouble.
- An immortal Emperor named "Kahless" figures prominently in their mythology and is widely venerated.
- A certain number of natives outright worship Kahless as divine and claim that he will return to lead them in their hour of greatest need.
- Ancient artefacts and craters found on the surface suggest the natives did not come from this planet originally.
- Although the inquisitor is unable to identify the food crops and animals used by the Klingons, they are strongly genetically dissimilar with the truly native flora and fauna, and edible by humans with no complications.