Editing Nobledark Imperium Imperial Society and Culture (section)

===Religio Mortem===
The Religio Mortem is a loose group of cults and sects that worship death in some capacity, typically believed to have either one god that comes in the form of three figures or three gods acting as one. The first and oldest of the three is Hal — a mistranslation of the word Hell, itself an older mistranslation of the name Hel. In the form of Hal, the god is a female human who wears a pitch black hood with matching cloak that light cannot escape. It is she who reaps the dead, to be tortured for eternity or to lay them to rest in eternal peace. It is anybody's guess how accurate Hal is, and whether she's based off of Aza'gorod — although the Death Cultists do worship and welcome death. The second form is Apepoatl the Dark Serpent, with shadowy feathers that devour those who refused to transition from limbo to death. The name is thought to be from somewhere near Merika and Nord Afrika, though again it is a probable mistranslation. Said to follow the shadow of the sun, the Dark Serpent brings with it war and chaos to those near the unwilling to die. The very nature of Apepoatl has made some jurisdictions outlaw its worship, not helped by the common belief that the Dark Serpent requires blood sacrifice from a heart to be summoned. Last is Germberus the Guard Hound, the fiery-red dog who protects the dead from being disturbed and acts as the first and last barrier between the living and the dead. Some sects say Germberus has multiple heads, but this detail changes from planet to planet. It is thought Germberus originated from the tales of Astral Hounds and myths of Ancient Terra. Almost no Space Marines and Eldar worship Germberus, as the core tenet of this god is to never revive the dead in any way.

Though the religion itself had its foundations on Terra, the Religio Mortem became increasingly decentralized as it followed the expedition fleets of the Great Crusade. By M40, there are a multitude of different interpretations and variations regarding the depiction of the gods, but there are common features most sects agree on and the Death Cults do collectively tend to attract the suicidal, insane, and serene zealots of the Imperium. Commonly, the cultists themselves either wish to die, spread death in the most efficient way possible, comes to terms with death to find peace, or some combination of the three. The most infamous Death Cultist is believed to have been Mortarion, but the question of whether he actually worshiped the Death Gods or simply believed in their existence is entirely up in the air. Some worlds have also associated the Religio Mortem with Chaos — specifically to Mala, Nurgle, and Khorne. It is not unusual for the Death Cults to be driven underground when a jurisdiction outlaws them.

Unsurprisingly, the Assassin Temples prefer to recruit from the Death Cults, as there is a strong historic association between the Assassins of the Salt Wastes and the Religio Mortem, notwithstanding the considerable overlap in practices and traditions. This preference seems to have borne fruit, as the cultists have proven time and again that they are willing go to great lengths to kill a target. The criminal elements of a Death Cult will likewise tend to work as assassins for hire. The most famous use of Death Cultists as assassins is the failed assassination attempt of the Traveling Court by Inquisitor Fyodor Karamazov; where — after seeing how using Death Cultists worked so well for the Imperium [[Nobledark_Imperium_Imperial_Forces#The_Assassins|when they turned the Assassins of the Salt Wastes into the Officio Assassinorum]] — the rogue Inquisitor convinced an isolated sect of Death Cultists into trying to kill the Imperial Family. The Imperial Army frowns upon Death Cult practices and beliefs within its ranks, as there is a stigma that the tenets of the Religio Mortem turns soldiers' wills weak and convinces them into acting as suicidal cannon fodder instead of effective warriors. This stigma is not entirely true, as even when Death Cultists are suicidal, they will try to kill as many enemies as possible whilst dying.