Descent of Angels:The Horus Heresy Book 6 Part 4/6

AUDIOLIBRARY

Transcript

00:00:00before he had fought it, were becoming hazier in his mind, as though a grey mist had descended

00:00:05upon his memory. Life went on much as before with the Knights of the Order, and Zahariel's unease

00:00:11began to unwind, as Lord Sartana's dying warning seemed increasingly like the groundless mutterings

00:00:17of a frustrated foe. Hunts were organized, and each day knights would ride into the forests

00:00:23to clear out the last pockets of beasts. Each day brought fewer and fewer beast-trophies,

00:00:29and it seemed as though the completion of the lion's grand vision had finally been achieved.

00:00:34The lion ventured into the forests only rarely these days, spending most of his time locked in

00:00:39the tallest towers of Alder-Rukh, with the books taken from the fortress of the Knights of Lupus.

00:00:44Eliath and Attias both fought and defeated their own beasts, and ascended to the rank of knight,

00:00:50a day that brought much celebration to the halls of the Order. All four boys fought together in

00:00:56Sar-Hadariel's sword-line, venturing out into the forests time and time again to fight the

00:01:01planet's predators, and hopefully encounter one of the few remaining beasts. Raven-wing scouts

00:01:07brought word that each section of the north-wilds had been cleared, and Zahariel had scoured their

00:01:13missives for word of the dark forests around Enriago for any sign of the malaise that had

00:01:18engulfed him during his hunt for the great lion, but whatever he had encountered in the depths of

00:01:23the forest appeared to have vanished. Perhaps it had never existed, and try as he might he could

00:01:29conjure no solid recollection of the words spoken to him in the forest, nor any cogent memory of

00:01:34those who had spoken them. The world of Caliban still turned, life went on as before, and the

00:01:41Knights of the Order moved closer to ultimate domination—until the angels arrived.

00:01:48Light dappled the leaves of the high branches, and spread a glittering shadow-play on the ground

00:01:53before the horses as the group of riders made their way along the paths of the forest. The air

00:01:58was fragrant, rich with the promise of balmy days and peace. Zahariel held the reins loosely in his

00:02:05hands, letting the black horse at its own pace, and relaxed back into his saddle. The forests were

00:02:11no longer places of fear and horror to the Knights of the Order, they were magical places of peace

00:02:16they were magical places of light and adventure. Fresh paths were being cut through them,

00:02:21revealing landscapes of unearthly beauty and natural majesty that had previously been denied

00:02:27to the populace of Caliban thanks to the presence of the beasts. Now, with the defeat of the lurking

00:02:32monsters in the darkness, their world was theirs for the taking. Beside him Nemiel removed his

00:02:38helm and ran a hand through his hair, and Zahariel smiled at his cousin, glad to have him with him

00:02:44on this momentous ride. Sir Luther had sent for them that morning, summoning them to the stables

00:02:49to select the finest mounts to ride on this, the last of the beast-hunts. The lion had been

00:02:55animated, eager to be on the last hunt, to see its completion, as though a fierce imperative burned

00:03:00in his breast that even he did not understand. The opening portions of the ride had been made

00:03:06in relaxed, comfortable silence, each warrior content to enjoy the beauty of their world,

00:03:11now that it was theirs to call their own. The lion and Luther led them as they rode

00:03:16unerringly northwards, skirting settlements that were pushing further out from Alderook,

00:03:21now that the beasts had been exterminated. The new Lord Cipher followed a discreet distance

00:03:26behind them, the roll filled by a fresh, nameless warrior. Contrary to most people's expectations,

00:03:33Master Ramiel had not been selected to take the previous Lord Cipher's position,

00:03:37though who had was, of course, a mystery.

00:03:41A number of new knights, and even a number of supplicants, brought up the rear,

00:03:45so that the procession was a truly representative slice of the Order's members.

00:03:49"'A strange group to lead into the wilds, don't you think?' asked Nemiel.

00:03:54"'I suppose,' replied Zahariel. "'Perhaps the lion wants this last hunt attended by men from

00:03:59all ranks of the Order, not just the senior members.' "'You think where, senior members?'

00:04:06"'No,' said Zahariel. 'I think we're up-and-coming youngsters,

00:04:10who will soon make our mark on the Order.' "'You have already done that, young Zahariel,'

00:04:16said the lion from the front of the column. "'Remember, my hearing is very acute.

00:04:22You are here because of the brotherhood we share.' "'Yes, my lord,' said Zahariel,

00:04:29following the lion as he rode into a wide clearing before a great cliff of glittering white stone

00:04:34that reared up on their left. Tumbling waterfalls plunged from its top in a cascade to foam in a

00:04:40wide pool of churning water. Vibrant greenery stretched in all directions, and Zahariel felt

00:04:46peace spread through him, unaware of how empty his soul had become until it was filled.

00:04:52"'Yes, this is the place,' said the lion from the front of their procession.

00:04:58The lion turned his horse, the mightiest beast ever bred by the horse-masters of Caliban,

00:05:03and addressed his warriors as they rode into the clearing before the waterfall.

00:05:08"'You are all here because, as Zahariel rightly supposes, I desire all ranks of the Order to

00:05:15celebrate the conclusion of our mighty endeavour.' Zahariel tried and failed to quell the blushed

00:05:23reflex he felt reddening his face at this singling out for praise. "'Caliban is ours,'

00:05:30repeated the lion, and Zahariel joined with the others in cheering the grandmaster of the Order's

00:05:35pronouncement. "'We have fought and bled for ten years, brothers, and each of us has seen friends

00:05:42and companions fall along the way,' continued Johnson. "'But we stand on the threshold of our

00:05:49greatest triumph. Everything we have fought for is within our grasp. We have made no mistakes,

00:05:56and it is ours. This is our triumph.' The lion spread his arms and said,

00:06:04"'A golden age beckons us, my brothers. I have seen it in my dreams, a golden time of

00:06:11new and wondrous things. We stand on the very brink of that age, and—'

00:06:20Zahariel glanced at Nemiel at the uncharacteristic pause in the lion's speech.

00:06:25Their leader looked off to their left, towards the forest, and Zahariel was seized by fear

00:06:30that they had been ambushed, though what manner of foe would dare ambush a warrior as fearsome

00:06:34as the lion? His first suspicion was that the last beast had somehow managed to sneak up on them,

00:06:40or that some rogue survivors of the Knights of Lupus had survived the destruction of their Order

00:06:45to come seeking revenge. But as his hand leapt to his sword-hilt, Zahariel saw no such threat.

00:06:52Instead, he saw a great bird perched on a stout branch of a tree, its feathers golden and

00:06:58shimmering in the afternoon sunlight. A Calibanite eagle, its plumage vivid and perfect in this

00:07:04setting, regarded the warriors with regal grace, apparently unafraid of the gathering of humans.

00:07:11Such eagles were rare creatures, not dangerous, but regarded as birds of omen by the superstitious

00:07:16of Caliban. The warriors of the group looked from the eagle to the lion, unsure what to make

00:07:22of the bird's sudden appearance. Zahariel felt a shiver travel down his spine as the bird continued

00:07:28to watch them with its strange eyes. He glanced over towards the lion, seeing an expression that

00:07:33spoke of fearful anticipation, a look of foreknowledge, and hope that it had not been

00:07:38misinterpreted.

00:07:40I know this," said the lion, his voice barely more than a whisper.

00:07:46As the lion spoke, a strange wind blew, a hot and urgent ripple of air with an acrid aftertaste,

00:07:53like the tang that hung in the vicinity of the armourer's forge. Zahariel looked up,

00:07:58seeing something huge and dark roar overhead, a massive winged shape with glowing blue coals at

00:08:04its rear. Another passed overhead, and he cried out as the heat from their passing washed over

00:08:10him. The knights circled their mounts, and Zahariel drew his sword as the mighty flying

00:08:15beasts roared overhead once more.

00:08:18"'What are they?' shouted Zahariel over the din of the roars that filled the clearing.

00:08:23"'I don't know,' cried Nemil.

00:08:25"'Great beasts! How can that be? They're all dead!'

00:08:30"'Apparently not,' said Nemil.

00:08:33Zahariel glanced over at the lion once more, seeking some sign that what had happened had

00:08:38been expected, but their leader simply sat in his saddle, looking up at the behemoths

00:08:43as they flew over them.

00:08:44Luther was shouting something at the lion, but his words were lost in the screaming roar

00:08:49as one of the giant flying beasts splotted out the sun and hovered above them. Its terrible

00:08:54howls filled Zahariel's senses, and the hot bitter tang of its odour was almost unbearable.

00:09:00A powerful downdraft scattered leaves and bent the branches of the trees with its force.

00:09:06The eagle took to the air and soared over the great pool at the base of the waterfall,

00:09:11the misting water catching on its wings as it flew, making them shine like beaten gold.

00:09:17Zahariel followed the mighty bird's course, and looked up, shielding his eyes from the

00:09:21baleful blue glow on the hovering beast's belly, as a horrific squealing, like metal

00:09:27on metal, built from above.

00:09:29"'Put your weapons away!' shouted Luther as he rode through their number.

00:09:34"'Sheathe your swords, by the order of the lion!'

00:09:38Zahariel tore his gaze from the shrieking, stinking beast above them, incredulous that

00:09:42they should put themselves at such a monstrous disadvantage.

00:09:45"'Sir Luther!' he yelled over the noise and wind.

00:09:49"'You would leave us unarmed?'

00:09:51"'Do it!' shouted Luther.

00:09:54"'Now!'

00:09:54Though it violated everything he had been taught, the power of Luther's voice was enough

00:10:00to make him cease his questions and slide his sword home in its scabbard.

00:10:05"'Whatever happens!' shouted Luther through the whirling hurricane that surrounded them.

00:10:10"'Do nothing until the lion acts!

00:10:13Understood?'

00:10:15Zahariel nodded reluctantly as he heard what sounded like distant shouts from above.

00:10:21Then, amid the noise and confusion, he saw shapes resolving from the howling winds and

00:10:25noise—dark shapes, armoured and descending on wings of fire.

00:10:31Beside him Luther shielded his eyes and said,

00:10:34"'And the angels of darkness descended on pinions of fire and light—the great and

00:10:41terrible dark angels!'

00:10:44Zahariel recognised the words, having heard the fables of ancient times, when the heroic

00:10:50dark angels, mysterious avengers of righteousness, had first fought the beasts of Caliban in

00:10:55the earliest ages of the world.

00:10:58His heart leapt as the first of the fiery angels landed, his armoured bulk enormous,

00:11:03the detail of his form obscured by the smoke of his landing.

00:11:07Others landed beside him, until ten hulking giants stood before the lion's group.

00:11:13Zahariel was immediately struck by the similarity between the giants and the armour of the order.

00:11:19As the first of the giants took a step forward, he was struck by the similarity in size between

00:11:24him and the lion.

00:11:26Though the lion was taller even than this giant, there was a similarity in scale and

00:11:31proportion that was unmistakable.

00:11:34The fearsome downdraft of air from the great flying beast dissipated the smoke of the giant's

00:11:39arrival, and with its cargo apparently delivered, it moved off.

00:11:43The clearing was suddenly silent, but for the crash of water in the pool behind them.

00:11:50Though there was a fearsome martial power to each of these giants, Zahariel also saw

00:11:55a real sense of awe, a feeling that they had found something precious, with a value they

00:12:00had not previously dared believe.

00:12:03The giant reached up to his helmet, and Zahariel saw that he was armed with a sword and pistol

00:12:08similar in appearance to his own, though of an order of magnitude larger than those

00:12:12employed by the order.

00:12:15A twist of a catch brought a hiss of escaping air, and the giant lifted clear his helmet

00:12:20to reveal a startling face of human proportions, though his features were more widely spaced

00:12:25and gigantic than most men's.

00:12:28The face was handsome, and an uncertain smile began to develop as the giant looked upon

00:12:33Lionel Johnson.

00:12:35Curiously, Zahariel felt no fear, his apprehensions fleeing his body at the sight of the giant's

00:12:41face.

00:12:42Who are you?

00:12:44asked the lion.

00:12:46I am Midris, said the giant, his voice impossibly deep and resonant.

00:12:52He turned to his fellow giants and said,

00:12:55We are warriors of the First Legion.

00:12:59The First Legion?

00:13:00asked Luther.

00:13:01Whose First Legion?

00:13:04Midris turned to Luther and said,

00:13:07The First Legion of the Emperor, Master of Mankind, and Ruler of Terror.

00:13:17Chapter 15

00:13:20It's the machines, Nemiel said from his position on the battlements.

00:13:24That's what I find most impressive.

00:13:26What did you say they called them again?

00:13:28Crawlers, said Zahariel.

00:13:30Right, crawlers, nodded Nemiel.

00:13:33They cut down the trees, pull out the stumps, and level the land afterwards,

00:13:37and all three tasks are completed by just one machine, controlled by a single rider.

00:13:42Operators, corrected Zahariel.

00:13:45The men who work the machines are called operators or drivers, not riders.

00:13:50Operators, then, shrugged Nemiel.

00:13:52I ask you, have you ever seen anything like it?

00:13:55Looking at the scene below them, Zahariel shared Nemiel's sense of amazement.

00:14:00The two of them stood on the battlements of Alderook,

00:14:02gazing down at the forest.

00:14:05Except there was no longer very much forest left,

00:14:07at least not directly in their line of sight.

00:14:10As far as the eye could see, across the entire parcel of land

00:14:14below the northern slopes of the mountain,

00:14:16the ancient woodlands were disappearing.

00:14:19From their vantage point it was difficult to pick out much detail,

00:14:22but the scale of the operation unfolding below them was awe-inspiring.

00:14:27If you ask me, said Nemiel, without waiting for an answer,

00:14:30they look like insects, impossibly large insects, I'll admit, but insects all the same.

00:14:36Watching the machines at work,

00:14:38Zahariel agreed that there was something in what his cousin said.

00:14:41The restless activity below the mountain did put him in mind

00:14:44of the regimented movements of an insect colony—an image,

00:14:48undiminished by the fact that the fortress battlements

00:14:50were high enough above the scene to make the people below them look like ants.

00:14:54"'Can you imagine how long it would take to do that much work without the machines?'

00:14:59asked Nemiel.

00:15:00"'Or how many men and horses you'd need to clear that much land.

00:15:03I say this about the Imperials—they don't do things by halves.

00:15:07It's not just their warriors who are giants—their machines are as well.'

00:15:11Zahariel nodded his head absently in reply,

00:15:14his attention still riveted on the activities of the crawlers.

00:15:17The last few weeks had set them all reeling.

00:15:20By any standard it had been the most remarkable period in the entire history of Caliban.

00:15:25Nearly six months had passed since Zahariel had become a knight,

00:15:29the campaign against the great beasts was over, the Knights of Lupus were dead,

00:15:33and Lyon L. Johnson had ascended to the position of Grand Master of the Order,

00:15:38with Luther as his second-in-command.

00:15:41All these events, however, were as nothing compared to the coming of the Imperium.

00:15:46The news had spread across Caliban like wildfire,

00:15:49within hours of the first sightings of Imperial flying-ships in the sky.

00:15:53Soon it had become known that a group of giants in black armour had come to Caliban,

00:15:57proclaiming themselves as envoys of the Emperor of Terror.

00:16:02They were called the First Legion, and they had been sent as messengers.

00:16:07Zahariel well remembered the moment the Imperials had come to Caliban.

00:16:11"'We are your brothers,' the warrior who had introduced himself as Midras had said,

00:16:16as he and his fellows bent their knees and bowed their heads in front of the lion.

00:16:21"'We are emissaries of the Imperium of Man, come to reunite all the lost children of humanity,

00:16:28now that old night is ended.

00:16:31"'We have come to restore your birthright.

00:16:33"'We have come to bring you the Emperor's wisdom.'

00:16:37Not all the Terrans were giants.

00:16:39In the aftermath of their arrival it had become clear that the giants,

00:16:42or Astartes as they were called in the Terran language,

00:16:45had come to Caliban as the path-finders of a larger expedition.

00:16:50Once it was apparent that the people of Caliban were inclined to welcome them with open arms,

00:16:55more normally proportioned human beings had followed in the giants' wake,

00:16:58like the operators responsible for the crawlers, along with the historians,

00:17:02interpreters, and those skilled in the arts of diplomacy.

00:17:06Whether giants or normal men, the Terrans were united in one thing.

00:17:10They all spoke glowingly of their Emperor.

00:17:14"'I wonder what he's like,' said Zahariel, apropos of nothing.

00:17:17"'Who?'

00:17:18"'The Emperor,' said Zahariel, feeling a thrill of anticipation run through him.

00:17:23"'They say he created the Astartes, and that he can read minds and perform miracles.

00:17:28"'They say he is the greatest man who ever lived.

00:17:31"'They say he is thousands of years old.

00:17:33"'They say he is immortal.

00:17:34"'What does a man like that look like?'

00:17:37Earlier that morning Imperial envoys had announced that their Emperor intended to visit Caliban.

00:17:43"'He was nearby,' they said.

00:17:44"'No more than three weeks' travel time away.'

00:17:47With the agreement of the Order's Supreme Council, it had been decided that a landing

00:17:52site would be cleared for the Emperor's arrival in the forests below Alderouk.

00:17:57The crawlers the Imperials had brought with them had been put to work, and the ever-expanding

00:18:01clearing below was destined to become the place where the Emperor would first set foot on Caliban.

00:18:07Zahariel was not alone in looking forward to the prospect of seeing the Terran Emperor in the flesh.

00:18:12His imminent arrival sparking most of the discussions that had taken place in knightly

00:18:16circles since the giant warriors had arrived.

00:18:19Few could credit the tales the giants told of their leader.

00:18:22If their stories were to be believed, the Emperor was the absolute embodiment of human perfection.

00:18:29"'I'd imagine he'll be at least ten metres tall,' said Nemiel sardonically.

00:18:33"'Perhaps even twenty, if his followers are anything to go by.

00:18:36"'He'll breathe fire, and his eyes will be able to shoot out deadly rays like the

00:18:40beasts of legend.

00:18:41"'Perhaps he'll have two heads, one like that of a man and one like that of a goat.

00:18:46"'How should I know what he looks like?

00:18:47I'm as much in the dark as you are.'

00:18:49"'Be careful,' warned Zahariel.

00:18:52"'The Terran giants don't like it when you speak of their leader like that.

00:18:55You'll offend them.'

00:18:56Like most Calibanites, Zahariel found it breathtaking that the Imperials not only

00:19:01had such extraordinary technology at their fingertips, but also that they seemed to take

00:19:05it so much for granted.

00:19:07Even the things his people held in common with the Terrans only served to underline

00:19:11the breadth of the gap between them.

00:19:14The knights of Caliban were armed and armoured in the same style as the Astartes, but the

00:19:19motorised blades, pistols, and power-armour the Terrans were equipped with were demonstrably

00:19:24better and more effective in every aspect than the versions used on Caliban.

00:19:28Zahariel found the difference most visible when he compared the merits of his armour

00:19:33to that worn by the Astartes.

00:19:35Even beyond the gulf in physical stature, Astartes' power-armour was superior in every

00:19:40possible way.

00:19:42Zahariel's armour protected him from blows and impacts, whether from the claws of predators

00:19:46or the swords of men.

00:19:48He could even close his helm to filter out smoke or other hazards to breathing, like

00:19:52the deadly pollen of Caliban's sweetroot flower.

00:19:55In comparison, Astartes' armour offered a much higher level of protection.

00:20:00It gave its wearer the ability to see in absolute darkness.

00:20:03It allowed him to survive extremes of heat and cold that would otherwise be unthinkable.

00:20:08It included its own separate air supply.

00:20:11Equipped with this technology, the warriors of the Astartes could survive and fight in

00:20:15any environment, no matter how hostile.

00:20:18While such things seemed commonplace to the Terrans, among the people of Caliban they

00:20:22were regarded as little short of miraculous, even more so when it came to the wonders of

00:20:27imperial medicine.

00:20:29A few days after the Imperials had arrived, one of the Order's supplicants had suffered

00:20:33an accident in training.

00:20:35A boy named Moniel had been practising walking the spiral with a live blade when he had slipped,

00:20:40inadvertently cutting into his knee with his sword as he fell.

00:20:45The Order's apothecaries had successfully managed to stem the flow of blood, saving

00:20:49Moniel's life, but they could do nothing to save his leg.

00:20:53In order to prevent the flesh from turning gangrenous, the apothecaries had been forced

00:20:57to amputate the wounded limb.

00:20:59It went without saying that anyone missing a leg could no longer hope to become a knight.

00:21:04Ordinarily, Moniel would have been returned to the care of his family in the settlement

00:21:08of his birth.

00:21:10In this instance, however, the Imperials had intervened to ensure a happier ending.

00:21:15Upon hearing of Moniel's injury, a Terran apothecary had overseen his treatment—a

00:21:20treatment which in this case involved using esoteric methods to cause a new leg to re-grow

00:21:25from the stump where the old leg had been amputated.

00:21:30Naturally, the Imperials did not call the world Caliban.

00:21:33The Imperials had no way of knowing what name the people before them had given to their

00:21:37world, nor could they know of Caliban's culture.

00:21:40They had learned of the Knightly Orders, and it had been a source of surprise and delight

00:21:44to both cultures that the hierarchical structure of the Knightly Orders was very much like

00:21:49the structure of the legions of the Astartes.

00:21:52These were strange days—interesting times.

00:21:57The battle-halls of Alderook resounded daily to the clash of arms, supplicants and knights

00:22:02put through gruelling training rituals overseen by the Astartes.

00:22:06Giants in black armour marched the length and breadth of the halls every day, working

00:22:10with the Masters of the Order to gauge the level of martial prowess and character of

00:22:15every member of the Knightly Brotherhood.

00:22:17Sahariel had fought three bouts already to-day, his skin bathed in sweat, and his muscles

00:22:22burning with fatigue.

00:22:24He and Nemiel had passed everything the Astartes had put them through, pushed to the limits

00:22:28of their endurance.

00:22:30"'I thought the training for the Order was hard,' gasped Nemiel.

00:22:34Sahariel nodded, hanging his head in exhaustion.

00:22:38"'If this is what it takes to be an Astartes, I'm not sure I'm up to it.'

00:22:42"'Really?' asked Nemiel, hauling himself erect and performing a few mock stretches.

00:22:47"'I think I'm about ready for another few laps.

00:22:50Care to join me?'

00:22:51"'All right,' said Sahariel, climbing to his feet."

00:22:55Though a great many of the Order's warriors had filled the battle-halls, Sahariel could

00:22:59not help but notice that it was only the younger knights and supplicants who took part in the

00:23:03Astartes' trials.

00:23:05He and Nemiel were among the oldest present, and he wondered what bearing this had on the

00:23:09trials.

00:23:11Day by day the number of boys taking part in the trials had dwindled, as only the strongest

00:23:16and most dedicated were allowed to pass to the next stage.

00:23:19What the end result of these trials would be had been kept secret, but many believed

00:23:23they were competing for a place within the ranks of the Astartes.

00:23:27Sahariel pulled at his hamstrings and stretched the muscles of his calves and thighs before

00:23:32shaking off the lethargy of the morning's training.

00:23:35"'Ready?' he said, calling Nemiel's bluff.

00:23:39His cousin wasn't about to give him the satisfaction, and he nodded, wiping sweat-damp hair from

00:23:44his face.

00:23:45"'Let's go,' said Nemiel, setting off at a comfortable pace.

00:23:49"'Ten laps!'

00:23:50Sahariel followed him, quickly catching up and settling into the pace set by his cousin.

00:23:55His limbs were tired, and he had pushed his body to the extreme edge of its endurance,

00:24:00but this contest with his cousin had been going on for as long as he could remember,

00:24:04and not even exhaustion would let him pass up the opportunity to compete against Nemiel.

00:24:09They completed the first circuit of the battle-hall without too much trouble,

00:24:13but by the end of the fourth both boys were tiring, and their breathing had become ragged.

00:24:18In the centre of the hall fresh bouts had begun under the watchful eye of the Astartes,

00:24:23and Sahariel noticed that their race had attracted the attention of a giant in a

00:24:27suit of armour more heavily ornamented than that of his brother's.

00:24:31"'Tired yet?' gasped Sahariel.

00:24:34"'Not at all,' wheezed Nemiel, as they began their fifth lap.

00:24:39Sahariel fought to control his breathing, and ignore the pain building in his chest

00:24:43as he concentrated on maintaining his pace.

00:24:46He forced the despair at the idea of losing from his mind as irrelevant.

00:24:50He would not be second to Nemiel, and he would not be the first to break under the pressure of pain.

00:24:56The verbatim said that pain was an illusion of the senses,

00:25:00while despair was an illusion of the mind.

00:25:03Both were obstacles to overcome, and as he drew on his deepest reserves of strength he felt a

00:25:08curious lightness to his flesh, as though his limbs were borne up by a well-spring of energy

00:25:13that he had not known he possessed.

00:25:16By the seventh lap Sahariel had begun to pull ahead of Nemiel,

00:25:20his new-found energy allowing him to put on a spurt of speed that broke their stalemate.

00:25:25He heard Nemiel's laboured breathing behind him, and that empowered him further.

00:25:29The gap between them grew wider, and Sahariel was buoyed up with the elation of victory

00:25:34as he cruised through the eighth and ninth laps.

00:25:37A second wind filled his limbs with energy, even as it seemed to sap his cousin's will.

00:25:43As he began the last lap he saw Nemiel swaying back ahead of him,

00:25:47and he knew he could administer a final sting to his cousin's pride by lapping him.

00:25:52Sahariel pushed harder and faster, digging deep into the last reserves of his determination,

00:25:58eating up the gap between them.

00:26:00His cousin threw a panicked glance over his shoulder,

00:26:03and Sahariel wanted to laugh at the anguish he saw there.

00:26:06Nemiel was beaten, and that knowledge robbed him of whatever strength he had left.

00:26:11Sahariel surged past his cousin and reached the finish line a full ten metres before his cousin.

00:26:17With the race run he dropped to his knees, sucking in a great lungful of stale air,

00:26:22and clutching at his burning thighs.

00:26:24Nemiel crossed the line with an unsteady gait, and Sahariel cried,

00:26:28"'It's over, cousin! Rest!'

00:26:31Nemiel shook his head and passed on, and while part of Sahariel despaired at his cousin's

00:26:37foolish pride, another part of him admired his persistence and determination to finish

00:26:41what he had begun.

00:26:43Though he had not an ounce of strength left, Sahariel forced himself to stand and work

00:26:47through a series of stretches.

00:26:49Not to do so would result in his muscles cramping,

00:26:52and who knew when the Astartes would throw the next test at them.

00:26:56He had just finished his first set when Nemiel lurched over the line with a strangled gasp,

00:27:01and collapsed beside him, his chest heaving and sweat pouring from him in sheets.

00:27:06"'You took your time,' said Sahariel, an unaccustomed edge of spite in his voice.

00:27:10Nemiel shook his head, unable for the moment to reply.

00:27:14Sahariel offered his cousin his hand and said,

00:27:16"'Come on, you need to stretch.'

00:27:18His cousin waved his hand away, gasping for air, and keeping his eyes squeezed shut.

00:27:24Sahariel knelt down and began massaging his cousin's legs, working out the knots of tension

00:27:28in his muscles with hard sweeps of his fingertips.

00:27:31"'That hurts!' cried Nemiel.

00:27:34"'It'll hurt more if I don't do it,' pointed out Sahariel.

00:27:38Nemiel bit his lip as Sahariel carried on with his ministrations,

00:27:42his breathing gradually becoming more even as his body began to recover from the exertions of the race.

00:27:48At last Nemiel was able to sit up, and Sahariel began working the tension from his shoulders.

00:27:54Sahariel said nothing, seeing the wounded pride in his cousin's face,

00:27:58and regretting the need to pile added humiliation upon him by lapping him.

00:28:02But Nemiel was old enough to deal with a blow to his pride.

00:28:05The pair of them had done the same all the years they had known each other.

00:28:09Sahariel turned as he heard heavy footsteps behind him, and saw the Astartes in the ornate armour.

00:28:16"'You run a fast race, boy,' said the warrior.

00:28:19"'What is your name?'

00:28:22"'Sahariel, my lord.'

00:28:24"'Stand when you address me,' commanded the warrior.

00:28:27Sahariel stood and stared up into the face of the Astartes.

00:28:31His features were weathered and worn, though his eyes still spoke of youth.

00:28:35His armour was adorned with all manner of symbols that Sahariel did not recognise,

00:28:39and he carried a golden staff topped with a device that resembled a horned skull.

00:28:45"'How did you win that race?'

00:28:47"'I—I just ran faster,' said Sahariel.

00:28:51"'Yes,' said the warrior.

00:28:53"'But where did the strength come from?'

00:28:56"'I don't know. I just dug deep, I suppose.'

00:28:59"'Perhaps,' said the warrior.

00:29:02"'Though I suspect you do not know where you dug into.

00:29:06"'Come with me, Sahariel. I have questions for you.'

00:29:10Sahariel spared a glance back at Nemiel, who shrugged without interest.

00:29:14"'Hurry, boy!' snapped the warrior.

00:29:16"'Or do your masters not teach alacrity?

00:29:19"'Sorry, my lord, but where are we going?

00:29:21"'And stop calling me my lord, it irritates me.

00:29:24"'Then what should I call you?' asked Sahariel.

00:29:28"'Call me Brother Librarianis Raphael.'

00:29:31"'Then where are we going, Brother Israphael?'

00:29:34"'We are going elsewhere,' said Israphael.

00:29:38"'And there I shall ask the questions.'"

00:29:42Elsewhere turned out to be one of the meditation cells where supplicants were sent to think upon

00:29:47whatever wrongdoing they had been deemed to have committed by the masters of the Order.

00:29:52Each cell was a place of contemplation, with a single window where the penitent

00:29:56supplicant could look out over Caliban's forests and think on what he had done.

00:30:01"'Have I done something wrong?' asked Sahariel, as he followed Israphael into the cell.

00:30:07"'Why do you think that?'

00:30:09"'Have you? No,' said Sahariel.

00:30:12"'At least I don't think so.'

00:30:14"'Israphael indicated that Sahariel should sit on the stool in the centre of the cell,

00:30:19and move to the window, blocking out the meagre light with the bulk of his armoured body.

00:30:23"'Tell me, Sahariel,' began Israphael,

00:30:27"'in your short life have you been able to do strange things?'

00:30:34"'Strange things?' asked Sahariel.

00:30:37"'I don't understand.'

00:30:39"'Then let me give you an example,' said Israphael.

00:30:44"'Have objects around you moved without you having touched them?

00:30:48Have you seen things in dreams that have later come to pass,

00:30:52or have you seen things that you cannot explain?'

00:30:55Sahariel thought back to his encounter with the Beast of Endriago,

00:30:58and his vow to keep the strangeness of its defeat to himself.

00:31:02The people of ancient Caliban had once burned people in possession of such powers,

00:31:06and he could imagine the Astartes being no less strict with such things.

00:31:10"'No, brother,' Israphael, he said.

00:31:12"'Nothing like that.'

00:31:14Israphael laughed.

00:31:16"'You are lying, boy.

00:31:18I can see it as plain as day, without any need for warp-sight.

00:31:22I ask again, have you encountered any such strange things?

00:31:26And before you answer, remember that I will know if you lie,

00:31:29and you will forfeit any chance of progressing further with these trials,

00:31:32if I decide you are less than truthful.'

00:31:36Sahariel looked into Israphael's eyes, and knew that the Astartes was utterly serious.

00:31:41Israphael could have Sahariel thrown from the trials with a single word,

00:31:46but he wanted to win through and prove he was worthy more than anything.

00:31:50"'Yes,' he said.

00:31:51"'I have.'

00:31:53"'Good,' said Israphael.

00:31:55"'I knew I sensed power in you.

00:31:57Go on.

00:31:58When was this?'

00:32:00"'It was when I fought the Beast of Endriago.

00:32:03It just happened.

00:32:04I don't know what it was, I swear,' said Sahariel,

00:32:07the words coming out in a confessional rush.

00:32:10Israphael raised a hand.

00:32:11"'Calm down, boy.

00:32:13Just tell me what happened.'

00:32:15"'I—I'm not sure,' he said.

00:32:18"'The Beast had me.

00:32:19It was going to kill me, and I felt something.

00:32:22I don't know.

00:32:23My hatred for the Beast rise up in me.'

00:32:26"'Then what happened?'

00:32:28"'It was as if—as if time had slowed, and I could see things that I couldn't before.'

00:32:34"'Things like what?'

00:32:36"'I could see inside the Beast,' said Sahariel.

00:32:40I could see its heart and skeleton.

00:32:42I could reach inside it as if it were some kind of ghost.'

00:32:46"'Pterosite,' said Israphael.

00:32:49"'Very rare.

00:32:50You know of this?

00:32:52What is it?'

00:32:53"'It is a form of scrying,' said Israphael.

00:32:57The Psyker uses his power to look beyond the realms of the physical,

00:33:01and shifts part of his flesh into the warp.

00:33:04It is very powerful, but very dangerous.

00:33:07You are lucky to be alive.'

00:33:10"'Is this power evil?' asked Sahariel.

00:33:14"'Evil?

00:33:15Why would you ask such a question?

00:33:17People have been burned in our history for having such powers,'

00:33:21Israphael grunted in sympathy.

00:33:23"'It was the same on Terra long ago.

00:33:26Anyone who was different was persecuted and feared,

00:33:29though the people who did so knew not what they were afraid of.'

00:33:33"'But to answer your question, boy, no.

00:33:35Your power is not evil any more than a sword is evil.

00:33:38It is simply a tool that can be used for good or evil,

00:33:42depending on who swings it and why.'

00:33:45"'Will it exclude me from the trials?'

00:33:47"'No, Sahariel,' said Israphael.

00:33:50"'If anything, it makes you more likely to be chosen.'

00:33:54"'Chosen?' said Sahariel.

00:33:56"'Is that what before?

00:33:58To choose who will become an Astartes?'

00:34:01"'Partly,' admitted Israphael.

00:34:04"'But it is also to see if the human strain on Caliban

00:34:07is pure enough to warrant its inclusion

00:34:09as a world that our legion can recruit from over the coming years.'

00:34:14"'And is it?' asked Sahariel,

00:34:16not really understanding Israphael's words,

00:34:18but eager to learn more of the legion and its ways.

00:34:22"'So far, yes,' said Israphael.

00:34:25"'Which is good, as it would be a hard thing for the Primarch

00:34:28to have to abandon his world.'

00:34:31"'Primarch?' said Sahariel.

00:34:33"'What is a Primarch?'

00:34:36"'Israphael smiled indulgently at Sahariel, and said,

00:34:39"'Of course the word will have no meaning for you, will it?

00:34:43"'Your Lord Johnson is what we know as a Primarch,

00:34:46"'one of the superhuman warriors created by the Emperor

00:34:49"'to form the genetic blueprint for the Astartes.

00:34:52"'The first legion was created from his gene-structure,

00:34:55"'and we are, in a sense, his sons.

00:34:57"'I know that much of this will make no sense to you now,

00:35:00"'but it shall in time.'

00:35:02"'You mean there are others, like the Lion?' asked Sahariel,

00:35:06"'incredulous that there could be other beings

00:35:08"'as sublime as Lionel Johnson.'

00:35:10"'Indeed,' said Israphael.

00:35:13"'Nineteen others.'

00:35:15"'And where are they?' asked Sahariel.

00:35:18"'Ah,' said Israphael,

00:35:21"'therein hangs a tale.'

00:35:23"'Israphael then told Sahariel the most amazing tale

00:35:27"'he had ever heard—a tale of a world

00:35:29"'torn apart by war, and of the incredible man

00:35:32"'who had united it under his eagle-and-lightning-stamped banner.

00:35:36"'Israphael spoke of a time thousands of years ago

00:35:39"'when mankind had spread from the cradle of its birth

00:35:42"'to the furthest corners of the galaxy.

00:35:44"'A golden age of exploration and expansion had dawned,

00:35:48"'and thousands upon thousands of worlds

00:35:50"'had been claimed by the race of man.

00:35:53"'But it had all come to a screaming bloody end

00:35:55"'in a time of war, blood, and horror.

00:35:59"'Some call it the Age of Strife,' said the Astartes,

00:36:03"'but I prefer the term Old Night.

00:36:06"'It has a more poetic edge to it.'

00:36:09"'What had caused this monumental fall from grace,

00:36:11"'Israphael did not say, but he went on to tell

00:36:14"'of an empire broken, reduced to scrabbling fragments

00:36:17"'of civilization, clinging to the edge of existence

00:36:20"'by its fingernails, scattered outposts of humanity,

00:36:23"'strewn throughout the galaxy like forgotten islands

00:36:25"'in a dark and hostile ocean.

00:36:27"'Caliban,' he explained, was one such outpost,

00:36:31"'a world colonized in the Golden Age

00:36:33"'and severed from the tree of humanity

00:36:35"'by the fall of Old Night.

00:36:38"'For thousands of years the race of man

00:36:40"'had teetered on the brink of extinction,

00:36:42"'some worlds destroying themselves in feral barbarity,

00:36:45"'others falling prey to the myriad hostile alien life-forms

00:36:49"'that populated the galaxy alongside humanity.

00:36:52"'Others prospered, becoming independent worlds

00:36:55"'of progress and light, beacons in the darkness

00:36:57"'to light the way for future generations

00:36:59"'of men to find them once more.

00:37:02"'Then, as the darkness of Old Night began to lift,

00:37:06"'the Emperor began to formulate his plan

00:37:08"'to weave the lost strands of humanity

00:37:10"'back into the grand tapestry of the Imperium.

00:37:14"'Israphael spoke not of the Emperor's origins,

00:37:18"'save to say that he had arisen long ago

00:37:20"'in the shadow of a war-torn land of brutal savagery,

00:37:23"'and had walked among humanity

00:37:24"'for longer than any man could know.

00:37:27"'The Emperor had fought countless wars

00:37:29"'on the ravaged surface of Terror,

00:37:31"'finally conquering it with the aid

00:37:33"'of the first genetically engineered super-soldiers.

00:37:36"'They were crude things, to be sure,

00:37:38"'but they were the first proto-Astartes,

00:37:40"'which, now that Terror was his,

00:37:43"'had gone on to develop into more sophisticated creations,

00:37:46"'all of which had inexorably led

00:37:49"'to the development of the Primarchs.

00:37:51"'The Primarchs, explained Israphael,

00:37:53"'were to be twenty warriors of legend,

00:37:55"'heroes and leaders.

00:37:57"'They would be the generals

00:37:58"'who would lead the Emperor's vast armies

00:38:00"'in his grand scheme of conquest.

00:38:02"'Each one would be a mighty being,

00:38:05"'imbued with a portion of the Emperor's genius,

00:38:07"'charisma, and force of personality.

00:38:10"'Each would bestride battlefields like a god unleashed,

00:38:14"'inspiring men to heights of valour undreamt of,

00:38:16"'and campaigning across the stars to ultimate victory.

00:38:21"'As Israphael told this portion of the story,

00:38:23"'Zahariel knew without doubt

00:38:25"'that Lionel Johnson was such a being.

00:38:28"'Israphael's tale took on a more sombre tone

00:38:32"'as he went on to talk of every forge on Terror

00:38:34"'churning out weapons, war-machines, and materiel

00:38:37"'to supply the Emperor's armies,

00:38:39"'even as the Primarchs matured

00:38:41"'deep within the Emperor's secret laboratories.

00:38:44"'But disaster struck before the Great Crusade,

00:38:47"'as many were already dubbing this grand adventure,

00:38:49"'could even be launched.

00:38:51"'Zahariel felt his anger rise

00:38:54"'as he heard of a nefarious subterfuge

00:38:56"'that had seen the infant Primarchs

00:38:58"'stolen from Terror and cast across the stars.

00:39:02"'Some had thought this would spell the end

00:39:04"'of the Emperor's grand vision,

00:39:05"'but he had pressed on,

00:39:07"'resolute in the face of setbacks

00:39:09"'that would have crushed the spirits of a lesser man.

00:39:12"'And so the Great Crusade had launched,

00:39:14"'pacifying the planets nearest to Terror

00:39:16"'in a whirlwind campaign

00:39:18"'that saw the Astartes bloodied

00:39:19"'in wars beyond their home world.

00:39:22"'Having secured alliance with the Priests of Mars

00:39:25"'and completed the conquest of the solar system,

00:39:28"'the Emperor turned his gaze

00:39:30"'into the great abyss of the galaxy.

00:39:32"'As the last vestiges of the storms

00:39:34"'that had kept his armies at bay for so long

00:39:37"'finally abated,

00:39:38"'he aimed his starships into the void,

00:39:41"'and began the greatest endeavour

00:39:42"'undertaken in the history of humanity—

00:39:45"'the conquest of the galaxy.

00:39:48"'Zahariel thrilled to tales of conquest and battle,

00:39:51"'and his heart leaped as his Raphael spoke

00:39:54"'of how the Emperor had soon been reunited

00:39:56"'with one of his lost Primarchs.

00:39:58"'Horus, as he was known,

00:40:00"'had grown into manhood

00:40:01"'on the bleak ashen world of Cothonia,

00:40:04"'and gladly took up command

00:40:05"'of the legion of warriors

00:40:07"'that had been created from his genetic structure.

00:40:10"'Named the Lunar Wolves,

00:40:12"'Horus and his legion

00:40:13"'had fought alongside the Emperor for many years,

00:40:16"'conquering world after world,

00:40:18"'spreading further and further from terror

00:40:20"'as the great crusade moved ever onwards.

00:40:24"'That brought his Raphael's tale to Caliban.

00:40:28"'We were all set to dispatch a scout-force to Caliban

00:40:31"'when we received word from the Emperor

00:40:32"'that the entire strength of our legion

00:40:34"'was to divert to this world,

00:40:36"'and that he would follow us as soon as he was able.

00:40:39"'Why?' asked Zahariel.

00:40:41"'Was it because of the Lion?'

00:40:43"'So it would seem,' said his Raphael.

00:40:46"'Though how the Emperor knew of his presence here

00:40:48"'is a mystery to me.'

00:40:50"'Will it be soon?' breathed Zahariel,

00:40:52"'unable to contain his excitement

00:40:54"'of the prospect of a man as mighty as the Emperor

00:40:56"'coming to Caliban.

00:40:57"'Will the Emperor be here soon?'

00:41:00"'Soon enough,' said his Raphael."

00:41:06CHAPTER XVI

00:41:09The days that followed were amongst the most tumultuous

00:41:12in the history of Caliban,

00:41:13seeing many changes wrought to the surface

00:41:15and to the people in an uncommonly short time period.

00:41:19Alongside the Astartes came all manner of men and women

00:41:22from Terra and other worlds,

00:41:23with exotic-sounding names.

00:41:26A great many of them were non-military—

00:41:28civilians, administrators, scribes, notaries, and tale-tellers.

00:41:32They spread far and wide

00:41:34in an apparently random swell of exploration,

00:41:37telling of the glory of Terra

00:41:38and the nobility of the Emperor's mighty endeavour.

00:41:41Around hearth-fires and in newly constructed townships

00:41:44they told versions of a tale related to Zahariel

00:41:47by brother-librarian, his Raphael.

00:41:50The glory of the Imperium and the Emperor

00:41:52became the most oft-told stories of Caliban,

00:41:55supplanting more ancient myths and tales

00:41:57in the space it took to tell them.

00:42:00Yet others came to the surface of Caliban,

00:42:02hooded figures of metal and flesh

00:42:04that were known simply as the Mechanicum.

00:42:07These mysterious figures guarded the technology of the Imperium

00:42:10and undertook frequent surveys of the planet

00:42:13from roaring flying-machines.

00:42:15Much was learned in these days

00:42:17beyond the histories lost to the people of Caliban

00:42:19over the thousands of years

00:42:20they had been separated from Terra.

00:42:22Technology and the advances of science,

00:42:25long absent from Caliban,

00:42:26were shared freely,

00:42:28and the people embraced such things

00:42:29with a vigour heretofore unseen

00:42:32on this grim and deathly world.

00:42:34Freed from the tyranny of the beasts,

00:42:36the people of Caliban had the leisure

00:42:38to devote their attentions

00:42:39to the betterment of their society.

00:42:41Utilising the technology brought by the Imperium

00:42:44to clear vast tracts of land for agriculture,

00:42:47open rich seams in the mountains

00:42:49to produce stronger metals,

00:42:51build more efficient manufacturing facilities,

00:42:53and lift them from the dark age

00:42:55in which they had been living

00:42:56to a more enlightened age of illumination.

00:42:59A great many of the new arrivals on Caliban

00:43:02were military personnel,

00:43:03and it was here that the first sources of friction

00:43:05were to emerge.

00:43:07The Astartes had been welcomed

00:43:08by the general populace of Caliban

00:43:10as the ultimate embodiment of the knightly orders

00:43:13that already ruled their lives,

00:43:14and by the knights

00:43:16as inspirational figures of legend.

00:43:19As much as the knights had welcomed the fact

00:43:21that the organisational make-up of the Astartes

00:43:23had closely matched that of the knightly orders,

00:43:26they were soon to find

00:43:27that there were more differences than similarities.

00:43:31Where the knightly orders

00:43:32revelled in their differences,

00:43:33and often resorted to combat

00:43:35to settle their feuds,

00:43:36the legions were united in purpose and will.

00:43:40Such division could not be tolerated,

00:43:42and at the behest of the lion and the Astartes,

00:43:45the individual knightly orders

00:43:46were disbanded

00:43:48and brought under the control of the first legion.

00:43:51Of course,

00:43:52such a drastic move did not happen overnight,

00:43:54and could not pass without dissenting voices,

00:43:57but when the lion spoke in favour of the union of knights,

00:44:00and the glory that would be theirs

00:44:01for the taking in the service of the emperor,

00:44:03most such voices were stilled.

00:44:06Most.

00:44:08But not all.

00:44:10More objections were raised

00:44:11when members of the other military arms of the imperium

00:44:14descended to the service of Caliban,

00:44:16the soldiers of the imperial army.

00:44:19The Astartes' trials

00:44:20had already identified the likely candidates

00:44:23for selection to that august body,

00:44:25but the vast majority of the planet's population

00:44:27would still be able to serve the emperor in the army.

00:44:31Where before military service

00:44:32had been an avenue

00:44:33open only to the nobility of Caliban

00:44:36until the inception of the order,

00:44:38imperial recruiters

00:44:39spread throughout the planet's population,

00:44:42offering a chance to journey from Caliban

00:44:44and fight in the emperor's armies

00:44:46on a thousand different worlds.

00:44:48They offered a chance to travel,

00:44:50to see strange new worlds,

00:44:52and to become a part of history.

00:44:54Tens of thousands flocked to join the imperial army,

00:44:57and the knights of Caliban grumbled

00:44:59that if the peasants were allowed to fight,

00:45:01then where lay the nobility of combat?

00:45:03War was surely a noble endeavour,

00:45:06one fought between men of equal standing,

00:45:08and if the low-born were given the chance to fight,

00:45:10what horrors might be enacted in such mass warfare?

00:45:14When the exactors of the army

00:45:16had achieved their quota of recruits,

00:45:18thousands of camps were set up throughout Caliban,

00:45:21where disciplined masters and drill sergeants

00:45:23began training the adult population of Caliban

00:45:26in the ways of the imperium's war.

00:45:29Within an unimaginably short time,

00:45:31the surface of Caliban was transformed

00:45:33from a world of sprawling wildernesses and castles

00:45:36to one of martial industry

00:45:38that rang to the beat of factory hammers

00:45:40and the tramp of booted feet

00:45:42as its populace geared itself up for war.

00:45:45It was a time of great wonders and hope,

00:45:47a time of change,

00:45:49but no time of change comes without pain.

00:45:55Zahariel and Nemiel walked the length

00:45:57of the outer walls of Alderuk,

00:45:59their strides long and their shoulders held erect.

00:46:02Both walked a little taller than they had before,

00:46:05their confident bearing more proud

00:46:06than it had been the day previously.

00:46:08Their armour was freshly polished,

00:46:10the black plates gleaming and reflective,

00:46:12and they had cleaned and polished their weapons

00:46:14as though their lives depended on it.

00:46:17No part of their attire,

00:46:18from their leather boots

00:46:19to the white surplices worn over their armour,

00:46:21had been neglected,

00:46:23and both boys cut a fine figure

00:46:25as they made their circuit of the walls.

00:46:28Interesting times, eh?" said Nemiel,

00:46:30looking down on a troop of newly invested soldiers,

00:46:33as they marched across the vast plateau

00:46:35created by the Mechanicum's crawlers

00:46:37in preparation for the Emperor's arrival.

00:46:40Scores of groups drilled, marched,

00:46:42or practised assaults in the glare of the noonday sun,

00:46:45and many more trained within the walls of the fortress,

00:46:48something that would have been unthinkable a month ago.

00:46:51Zahariel nodded.

00:46:53Didn't you say that was supposed to be a curse?

00:46:55It was.

00:46:56But what else would you call these days?

00:46:59Wondrous," said Zahariel.

00:47:01Uplifting, exciting.

00:47:03Oh, I won't deny that, cousin," said Nemiel.

00:47:05But aren't you just a little unsettled

00:47:07by how quickly it's all happening?

00:47:09No," said Zahariel,

00:47:11gesturing over the expanse of cleared land

00:47:13before the fortress.

00:47:14I mean, look at what's happening here.

00:47:16We've been reunited with terror,

00:47:18something we've all dreamt of for—

00:47:20well, I don't know how long,

00:47:22but as long as we've been able to tell tales of it.

00:47:24Everything we've wanted has come to pass,

00:47:26and you're questioning it.

00:47:28Not questioning it," said Nemiel,

00:47:30holding up his hands.

00:47:31Just—I don't know—expressing caution.

00:47:35That's only sensible, isn't it?

00:47:37I suppose so," allowed Zahariel,

00:47:40crossing his arms

00:47:41and leaning over the tall parapets.

00:47:43Pillars of smoke scored the distant horizon,

00:47:46and he knew that vast tracts of land

00:47:47had been cleared for the raising

00:47:49of giant factory complexes

00:47:50and worker settlements.

00:47:52He had ridden out to one of those complexes

00:47:54a few days ago,

00:47:55and had been shocked by the scale of industry

00:47:57the Mechanicum had unleashed.

00:47:59Great scars ripped in the sides of the mountains,

00:48:02and thousands of acres of forest-land

00:48:04torn down to make way for construction.

00:48:07Like it or not,

00:48:08the surface of Caliban would never be the same again.

00:48:11Yes," said Zahariel at last,

00:48:13it is happening very quickly, I'll grant you,

00:48:16but it's all for the greater good.

00:48:17As part of the Imperium,

00:48:19we have a duty to provide

00:48:20what bounty our world has to the great crusade.

00:48:23Indeed we do," agreed Nemiel,

00:48:25joining him at the wall,

00:48:27but it's a shame it has to be like this, isn't it?

00:48:30Zahariel nodded as Nemiel pointed

00:48:32at the boxy structures

00:48:33dotted around the outskirts of the fortress.

00:48:36Barracks, weapon-stores,

00:48:38mess-halls, and vehicle-parks.

00:48:40Ugly grey boxes on tracks were parked there,

00:48:43vehicles that were called Chimeras

00:48:45by the Imperials.

00:48:46They were noisy and uncomfortable to ride in,

00:48:48and they churned the ground

00:48:50they crossed to ruined mud.

00:48:52There was no nobility to them,

00:48:53and even their very name

00:48:55struck a chord of unease in Zahariel,

00:48:57after so long fearing such beasts

00:48:59in the dark forests of Caliban.

00:49:01"'You can't tell me you're happy

00:49:02about sharing Alder Rook with any old peasant.

00:49:05The new Lord Cipher's about

00:49:06to bust a gut at the thought.

00:49:09I'll admit it feels strange,

00:49:10but I truly believe it's for the better.

00:49:12Come on, aren't you glad

00:49:14that we've been selected

00:49:14for the final Astartes trials?'

00:49:17Nemiel flashed a smile,

00:49:18and his cousin's old arrogance resurfaced.

00:49:21"'Of course!

00:49:22Didn't I tell you we'd be in there?'

00:49:24"'Yes, you did, cousin,' smiled Zahariel.

00:49:27"'Once again you were right.'

00:49:29"'It's a habit,' said Nemiel.

00:49:31"'Don't get used to it,' warned Zahariel.

00:49:34"'I have a feeling we'll be wrong

00:49:35more than right

00:49:36the more we learn of the Imperium.'

00:49:38"'How so?'

00:49:39"'Just the other day

00:49:40I said to Brother Israphael

00:49:42that the Emperor was like a god.

00:49:44I thought he was going to have a seizure.'

00:49:46"'Really?'

00:49:47Zahariel nodded, and said,

00:49:49"'Aye.

00:49:50He clamped his hands on my shoulders,

00:49:52and told me never to say

00:49:53such a thing again.

00:49:54He told me that it's part of their mission

00:49:56to put an end to such mystical nonsense,

00:49:59gods and demons and the like.'

00:50:01"'They don't believe in things like that?'

00:50:03"'No,' said Zahariel emphatically.

00:50:05"'They don't, and they don't like others who do.'

00:50:08"'That sounds a bit close-minded.'

00:50:10"'I suppose,' admitted Zahariel.

00:50:13"'But what if they're right?'

00:50:14Nemiel turned from the wall and said,

00:50:17"'Maybe they are, maybe they aren't.

00:50:18But it strikes me that one should

00:50:20always have an open mind

00:50:20when it comes to the unknown.'

00:50:23"'Since when did you become cautious?'

00:50:24asked Zahariel.

00:50:26"'You're normally the first one

00:50:27to leap without looking.'

00:50:28Nemiel laughed.

00:50:30"'I know.

00:50:30I must be getting wise in my old age.

00:50:33You're fifteen, the same as me.

00:50:35Then I suppose I've been

00:50:36listening more recently.'

00:50:38Zahariel's eyes narrowed.

00:50:40"'Listening to whom?'

00:50:42"'People in the Order,' said Nemiel.

00:50:44"'Senior people.'

00:50:45"'And what are these senior people saying?'

00:50:48asked Zahariel.

00:50:49"'Best you hear for yourself,' said Nemiel,

00:50:52the earnestness in his eyes

00:50:53surprising Zahariel,

00:50:54who had only ever known

00:50:55his cousin to be flippant.

00:50:58"'What do you mean?'

00:50:59"'There's a gathering to-night,' said Nemiel.

00:51:02"'A gathering I think you

00:51:03ought to be part of.'

00:51:05"'Where?'

00:51:06"'Meet me at the cloister gate

00:51:07of the circle chamber at Last Bells,

00:51:09and I'll show you.'

00:51:11"'This sounds secretive,' said Zahariel.

00:51:13"'It sounds like trouble.'

00:51:15"'Promise me you'll come.'

00:51:17Zahariel took his time in answering,

00:51:19but the look in his cousin's eyes

00:51:20made the decision for him.

00:51:22Zahariel said,

00:51:24"'Very well, I'll come.'

00:51:26"'Excellent,' said Nemiel,

00:51:28his relief obvious.

00:51:29"'You won't regret it.'

00:51:32The echo of the Last Bell

00:51:34had barely faded when Zahariel

00:51:36found himself before the cloister gate,

00:51:38the lamp-wicks turned down,

00:51:39and the seneschals who swept

00:51:40the passageways absent for now.

00:51:43Though he couldn't say why,

00:51:45Zahariel had chosen to avoid

00:51:46being seen by anyone,

00:51:48understanding, without anything

00:51:49having been said,

00:51:50that secrecy was the watchword

00:51:52for this journey.

00:51:53He couldn't deny there was

00:51:54an illicit thrill at the idea

00:51:56of this clandestine meeting,

00:51:57a sense of rebellion that

00:51:58appealed to his youthful spirit.

00:52:01The cloister gate was closed,

00:52:02and Zahariel checked to left and right

00:52:04to see if he was being observed,

00:52:06before padding across the corridor

00:52:08and flattening himself against

00:52:09the warm wood of the door.

00:52:11He tested the handle,

00:52:13not surprised to find it unlocked,

00:52:14and gently pushed down

00:52:16on the black iron,

00:52:17pressing his back against

00:52:18the door to open it.

00:52:19The door creaked,

00:52:20and he winced at the sound,

00:52:22slipping through and closing it

00:52:23as soon as a wide enough gap

00:52:25had opened.

00:52:26Zahariel pressed himself

00:52:27against the wood,

00:52:28and turned to the centre

00:52:29of the chamber.

00:52:31Little light filled the circle chamber,

00:52:33only a few candles burning low

00:52:34upon iron candelabras

00:52:36around the raised

00:52:36plinth's circumference.

00:52:38The stained glass of the tall windows

00:52:40glittered in the flickering light,

00:52:41and the eyes of the painted heroes

00:52:43seemed to stare down at him

00:52:44in accusation at his trespass.

00:52:47He silently asked their forgiveness,

00:52:48as he ventured into the chamber,

00:52:50casting his gaze left and right,

00:52:52as he searched for any sign of Nemiel.

00:52:55Shadows cloaked much of the chamber

00:52:56in darkness,

00:52:57the fitful light of the candles

00:52:59unable to reach much past

00:53:00the first few rows of stone benches.

00:53:03"'Nemiel!' he whispered,

00:53:05freezing in place

00:53:06as the acoustics of the chamber

00:53:07carried his voice

00:53:08to its furthest reaches.

00:53:10He called his cousin's name once more,

00:53:12but again no answer

00:53:13was forthcoming from the darkness.

00:53:15Sahariel shook his head

00:53:17at his foolishness

00:53:17for agreeing to this meeting.

00:53:19Whatever game Nemiel was playing

00:53:21would have to be played without him.

00:53:23He turned away from the stone benches,

00:53:25and started as he saw Nemiel

00:53:26standing at the centre

00:53:27of the raised plinth.

00:53:29"'There you are!' said Nemiel,

00:53:31with a smile.

00:53:32Nemiel stood with the hood

00:53:34of his surplus raised,

00:53:35his features hidden in a wreath

00:53:36of dancing shadows.

00:53:38But for his voice and posture

00:53:39it would have been impossible

00:53:40to tell who had spoken.

00:53:42Nemiel carried a hooded lantern,

00:53:44which cast a warm light

00:53:45around the lowest level

00:53:46of the chamber.

00:53:47Sahariel quelled his annoyance

00:53:49at his cousin's theatrics,

00:53:50and said,

00:53:51"'Very well, I'm here.

00:53:52Now what is it you want to show me?'

00:53:54Nemiel beckoned him to climb

00:53:55up to the central plinth

00:53:56of the circle chamber,

00:53:58and Sahariel chewed his bottom lip.

00:54:00To climb the stairs

00:54:01would be to go along

00:54:02with whatever Nemiel had planned,

00:54:04and he sensed that a threshold

00:54:05would be crossed

00:54:06that might only be one way.

00:54:08"'Come on!' urged Nemiel.

00:54:10"'You can't keep the gathering waiting!'

00:54:13Sahariel nodded,

00:54:14and climbed the worn stone steps

00:54:16that led to the plinth,

00:54:17where only the masters of the order

00:54:19were permitted to walk.

00:54:21He felt curiously light-headed

00:54:22as he climbed up

00:54:23and took his first step

00:54:24onto the smooth marble of the plinth.

00:54:26Level with his cousin,

00:54:28Sahariel saw why he had not seen him

00:54:30when he had first entered

00:54:31the circle chamber.

00:54:32Nemiel stood beside a stone staircase

00:54:35that wound downwards in a spiral

00:54:36through the centre of the circle chamber.

00:54:39Clearly his cousin had climbed

00:54:40from whatever chamber

00:54:41lay below this one,

00:54:42though Sahariel had not known

00:54:44of the existence of these stairs

00:54:46or any secret place beneath.

00:54:48"'Put your hood up!' said Nemiel.

00:54:50Sahariel complied

00:54:52with his cousin's request,

00:54:53and said,

00:54:53"'Where are we going?'

00:54:55"'Below the circle chamber,' said Nemiel.

00:54:58"'To the inner circle!'

00:55:00The interior of the stairwell was dark,

00:55:02only a fitful light

00:55:04from Nemiel's lantern

00:55:05illuminating the descent

00:55:06into the depths.

00:55:07Nemiel led the way,

00:55:09and Sahariel followed,

00:55:10his trepidation growing

00:55:11with every downward step.

00:55:13"'Tell me where we're going,' he said.

00:55:16"'You'll soon see,' replied Nemiel,

00:55:18without turning.

00:55:18"'We're almost there.'

00:55:20"'And where's that?'

00:55:21"'Be patient, cousin,' said Nemiel,

00:55:23and Sahariel cursed

00:55:24his cousin's obtuse answers.

00:55:27Knowing he would get

00:55:28nothing more from Nemiel,

00:55:29he kept his counsel

00:55:30as they continued,

00:55:31and he counted over a thousand steps

00:55:33before they finally reached the bottom.

00:55:35The stairway opened up,

00:55:37into a brick-walled chamber

00:55:38with a low vaulted roof,

00:55:40which was bare of all ornamentation.

00:55:42Like the chamber above it,

00:55:44it was circular,

00:55:45the stairway piercing

00:55:46the centre of its roof.

00:55:47A number of oil lamps

00:55:48hung from the ceiling

00:55:49at each of the compass points,

00:55:51and beneath each lamp

00:55:52stood a hooded figure

00:55:53in a white surplus.

00:55:55The figures stood motionless,

00:55:57their features hidden

00:55:58in the shadows of their hoods,

00:55:59and their arms

00:56:00folded across their chests.

00:56:02Sahariel could not help but notice

00:56:04that each one carried

00:56:05a ceremonial dagger,

00:56:06identical to the kind

00:56:07used in the Order's

00:56:08initiation ceremonies.

00:56:10The surpluses the figures wore

00:56:12were bereft of insignia,

00:56:14and Sahariel looked to his cousin

00:56:15for some indication

00:56:16of what was going on.

00:56:18"'This is your cousin?'

00:56:20asked one of the figures.

00:56:22"'It is,' confirmed Nemiel.

00:56:24"'I've spoken to him,

00:56:25and I believe he shares our—

00:56:27concerns.'

00:56:29"'Good,' said a second figure.

00:56:31"'There will be consequences

00:56:33if he does not.'

00:56:34Sahariel felt his anger rise,

00:56:36and said,

00:56:36"'I didn't come here

00:56:37to be threatened.'

00:56:39"'I was not talking

00:56:40about consequences for you, boy,'

00:56:42said the second figure.

00:56:44Sahariel shrugged, and said,

00:56:46"'Why am I here?

00:56:48What is this?'

00:56:50"'This,' said the first man,

00:56:52"'is a gathering

00:56:53of the inner circle.

00:56:54We are here to talk

00:56:55about the future of our world.

00:56:57Nemiel tells us that you enjoy

00:56:59the special favour of the lion,

00:57:01and if that is so,

00:57:02you might be an important ally to us.'

00:57:05"'Special favour!' said Sahariel.

00:57:08"'We've spoken a few times,

00:57:09but we have no great closeness,

00:57:11not like the lion and Luther.'

00:57:14"'Yet you both rode with him

00:57:15when the angels came,'

00:57:17said the third figure,

00:57:18"'and you will march alongside him

00:57:20as part of his honour-guard

00:57:21when the Emperor arrives.'

00:57:24"'What?' gasped Sahariel.

00:57:26That was news to him.

00:57:28"'It will be announced tomorrow,'

00:57:30said the first figure.

00:57:31"'You see now

00:57:32why we had your cousin

00:57:33bring you here?'

00:57:35"'Not really,' confessed Sahariel.

00:57:37"'But say what you have to say,

00:57:39and I will listen.'

00:57:40"'It is not enough that you listen.

00:57:42Before we go any further,

00:57:44we should be sure

00:57:45we are all agreed

00:57:46on our course of action.

00:57:48Once we are committed,

00:57:49there is no going back.'

00:57:51"'Going back from what?'

00:57:53asked Sahariel.

00:57:54"'From stopping the Imperium

00:57:56taking Caliban from us,'

00:57:57snapped the third man,

00:57:59and Sahariel saw hints

00:58:00of a hawkish face

00:58:01and prominent chin

00:58:02beneath the man's hood.

00:58:04"'Taking Caliban from us?'

00:58:05said Sahariel.

00:58:06"'I don't understand.'

00:58:09"'We have to stop them,'

00:58:10said the second figure.

00:58:12"'If we do not,

00:58:12they will destroy us.

00:58:14All our dreams,

00:58:15our traditions,

00:58:16our culture will be torn down

00:58:18and replaced with lies.'

00:58:21"'We are not the only ones

00:58:22who see these things,'

00:58:23said the third man.

00:58:25"'Do you know I reprimanded

00:58:26a wall-sentry today

00:58:27for being lax in his duties,

00:58:29and he talked back to me.

00:58:30I have never known

00:58:31the like of it.

00:58:32He said we didn't need

00:58:33to guard the walls any more,

00:58:34because the Imperium

00:58:36was coming to protect us.'

00:58:38"'It was the same in my order

00:58:40before we were disbanded,'

00:58:41growled the second man,

00:58:43and Sahariel realized

00:58:44that these were men

00:58:45of different knightly brotherhoods,

00:58:46not just from the Order.

00:58:48"'The supplicants would not

00:58:49listen to their masters,

00:58:51too eager to submit

00:58:52to the Astartes trials.

00:58:53It is as if the entire world

00:58:55has gone mad

00:58:56and forgotten our past.'

00:58:58"'But they are showing us

00:58:59the future,'

00:59:00protested Sahariel.

00:59:02"'Which only goes to prove

00:59:03the cleverness of our enemies,'

00:59:05said the first man.

00:59:07"'Imagine if they had been

00:59:08more honest

00:59:08about their intentions,

00:59:09and made clear from the first

00:59:11that they intended to invade us.

00:59:13All Caliban would have

00:59:14risen up in arms,

00:59:15but instead they were

00:59:17more subtle,

00:59:18claiming that they came

00:59:19to help us.

00:59:20They say they are

00:59:21our lost brothers,

00:59:22and we welcome them

00:59:23with open arms.

00:59:25"'It is a cunning stratagem.

00:59:27By the time the majority

00:59:28of our people realize

00:59:30what has really been going on,

00:59:32it will be too late

00:59:32to change things.

00:59:34The oppressor's boot

00:59:35will already be at our throat,

00:59:36and we will have helped

00:59:38put it there.'

00:59:39"'True, but remember

00:59:40it also demonstrates

00:59:41their weakness,'

00:59:43said the third man.

00:59:44"'Keep that fact in mind.

00:59:46If they were confident

00:59:46they could conquer us easily,

00:59:48there would be no need

00:59:49for this subterfuge.

00:59:50No, our enemy

00:59:51is not as all-powerful

00:59:52as they would have us believe.

00:59:54To hell with their flying machines

00:59:56and their first legion!

00:59:57We are the knights of Caliban.

00:59:59We destroy the great beasts

01:00:00and drive these damned interlopers away.'

01:00:03Zahariel could not believe

01:00:04what he was hearing.

01:00:05"'Haven't these knights heard

01:00:07of the Emperor's great crusade?

01:00:09Knowing of the glory and honour

01:00:10that could be won,

01:00:11why wouldn't anyone

01:00:12want to join it?'

01:00:13"'This is madness,'

01:00:15said Zahariel.

01:00:16"'How can you even think

01:00:17of making war

01:00:18against the Imperium?

01:00:19Their weapons are far superior,

01:00:21and the wars of the fortress monasteries

01:00:23will be smashed down in a day.'

01:00:25"'Then we will retreat

01:00:26to the forests,'

01:00:27roared the third man.

01:00:28'From there we can launch

01:00:29lightning attacks

01:00:30and disappear back into the woods

01:00:32before the enemy

01:00:33can counterattack successfully.

01:00:35Remember the words

01:00:36of the Verbatim.

01:00:37The warrior should choose

01:00:38the ground on which he will fight,

01:00:40with an eye to strengthening

01:00:41his own efforts

01:00:42and unbalancing

01:00:43the best efforts of his enemy.'

01:00:46"'We all know the Verbatim,'

01:00:48replied the first man.

01:00:49"'The point I was trying to make

01:00:50is that we cannot win

01:00:51this battle on our own.

01:00:53We need to rally

01:00:54the whole of Caliban

01:00:55against the invader.

01:00:56Only then can we hope

01:00:57to win this war.'

01:00:58"'We need to create an event

01:01:01that will let the people

01:01:02see the true face of our enemy,'

01:01:04said the second man.

01:01:05"'We need to get them

01:01:06to look past

01:01:07all the surface smiles

01:01:08and mealy-mouthed words

01:01:10to the evil hidden within.'

01:01:13"'My thoughts exactly,'

01:01:14the first agreed.

01:01:16"'And we must do it quickly,

01:01:17before our enemy

01:01:18can strengthen their hold

01:01:19on our world any further.

01:01:21I am sure,

01:01:21given long enough,

01:01:22the enemy will inevitably

01:01:23show its true colours

01:01:24to the people of Caliban,

01:01:26but time is not on our side.

01:01:28We may need

01:01:28to speed events along.'

01:01:31"'What in the name of the lion

01:01:32are you suggesting?'

01:01:34demanded Zahariel.

01:01:35"'I am saying

01:01:37it would help our cause

01:01:38if the enemy committed

01:01:39an act of terror so vile

01:01:41it would immediately turn

01:01:42every right-thinking soul

01:01:43on Caliban against them.'

01:01:46"'Then you'll be waiting

01:01:46a long time,'

01:01:48snapped Zahariel.

01:01:49"'The Imperium would never

01:01:50do something like that.

01:01:51You're wasting your breath

01:01:52and my time with this talk.'

01:01:55"'You misunderstand me, boy,'

01:01:56said the man.

01:01:57"'I am saying that

01:01:58we should stage the act

01:02:00on their behalf,

01:02:01and make sure

01:02:02they are blamed for it.'

01:02:04There was silence

01:02:05as the others digested

01:02:06his words.

01:02:08"'You want to create

01:02:09an atrocity and blame it

01:02:11on the Imperium?'

01:02:12said Zahariel.

01:02:14"'Nemuel, you can't

01:02:15possibly agree with this!'

01:02:17"'What choice do we have, cousin?'

01:02:18responded Nemuel,

01:02:20though Zahariel could see

01:02:21that he was unconvinced

01:02:22by the words spoken

01:02:23in this secret conclave,

01:02:24and was as shocked as he was.

01:02:27"'The Imperium is not

01:02:28to be trusted,'

01:02:29said the first man.

01:02:31"'We know they are plotting

01:02:32to enslave us

01:02:33and take our world

01:02:33for themselves.

01:02:35They are not men of honour.

01:02:37Therefore, I say

01:02:38we can only fight them

01:02:39by using their sly

01:02:41underhand methods

01:02:42against them.

01:02:43We must fight fire with fire.

01:02:45It is the only way

01:02:47we will defeat them.'

01:02:48"'You are talking about

01:02:49killing our own people,'

01:02:51said Zahariel.

01:02:52"'No, I am talking

01:02:54about saving them.'

01:02:56"'Do you think it is better

01:02:57we do nothing,

01:02:58especially when,

01:02:59by our inaction,

01:03:00we may be condemning

01:03:01future generations

01:03:02of Caravan's children

01:03:03to slavery?

01:03:05Granted, the course I propose

01:03:07will result in a few hundred,

01:03:08perhaps even a few thousand,

01:03:10deaths.

01:03:11But in the long term

01:03:12we will be saving

01:03:13many more millions of lives.

01:03:15More importantly,

01:03:16we would be preserving

01:03:17our planet,

01:03:18our traditions,

01:03:19and the way of life

01:03:20gifted to us

01:03:20by our forefathers.

01:03:22I ask you,

01:03:23is that not worth

01:03:24a few deaths?'

01:03:26"'Those who die

01:03:26will be seen as martyrs,'

01:03:28said the third man.

01:03:29"'By the sacrifice

01:03:30of their lives

01:03:31we would be ensuring

01:03:31our planet's freedom.'

01:03:33"'Yes,

01:03:33that is a good way

01:03:34to put it,'

01:03:35agreed the first.

01:03:36"'Martyrs.

01:03:38They die

01:03:38so that Caravan

01:03:39can be free.

01:03:41I know our views

01:03:41are not popular,

01:03:42Zahariel,

01:03:43but this will make

01:03:44them more palatable,

01:03:45so that when the time comes

01:03:47our people

01:03:47will fall into step

01:03:48behind us.

01:03:49This act will show

01:03:50our enemy

01:03:51in the worst possible light,

01:03:53and incite hatred

01:03:54against them.'

01:03:55Zahariel looked

01:03:56at the four men

01:03:57in disbelief,

01:03:58amazed they thought

01:03:58he might join with them

01:03:59in this madness.

01:04:01Of the four hooded men

01:04:02surrounding him,

01:04:03one had not yet

01:04:04voiced any opinion,

01:04:05and Zahariel turned

01:04:06to this figure.

01:04:07"'What of you, brother?'

01:04:09he asked the fourth man.

01:04:10"'You have listened

01:04:11to this insanity,

01:04:12and you have chosen

01:04:13to remain silent.

01:04:14It is not acceptable

01:04:15for you to stay quiet

01:04:16at such times.

01:04:17I must ask

01:04:18your opinion, brother.

01:04:20In fact,

01:04:21I demand it.'

01:04:23"'I understand,'

01:04:24said the fourth man,

01:04:25after a short pause.

01:04:27"'Very well,

01:04:27if you want my opinions,

01:04:28here they are.

01:04:30I agree with almost

01:04:31everything that has been said.

01:04:33I agree we must take action

01:04:34against our enemy.

01:04:35Also, given the strength

01:04:36of the forces arrayed

01:04:37against us,

01:04:38we must suspend

01:04:39the rules of honour.

01:04:40This is a war

01:04:41we cannot afford to lose.

01:04:42Therefore we must

01:04:43dispense with scruples,

01:04:44and commit acts

01:04:45we would normally find

01:04:47dishonourable.'

01:04:48"'Well spoken, brother,'

01:04:50nodded the first man.

01:04:51"'But there is something else.'

01:04:53"'You indicated you agreed

01:04:55with almost everything

01:04:56we said.

01:04:57With what do you disagree?'

01:05:00"'Merely on a matter

01:05:00of tactics,'

01:05:02said the fourth man.

01:05:03"'You talked of staging

01:05:04an act of atrocity,

01:05:05creating an incident

01:05:06so terrible it will turn

01:05:07our people against

01:05:08the Imperium.

01:05:09But I would argue

01:05:10for a more straightforward

01:05:11attack.

01:05:12The atmosphere

01:05:13in the chamber

01:05:13seemed as a Hariel

01:05:14to become thicker

01:05:15and darker,

01:05:16as though the light

01:05:16fled from what

01:05:17was being discussed.

01:05:19With a single act

01:05:20we can deal a crippling

01:05:21blow to enemy morale,'

01:05:22said the fourth man.

01:05:24"'Perhaps if we are

01:05:24truly fortunate

01:05:25we might even win

01:05:26our war

01:05:27in one fell swoop.'

01:05:29"'This act

01:05:29you speak of?'

01:05:30the first man asked.

01:05:32"'What is it?'

01:05:33"'It is obvious,

01:05:34really,'

01:05:35the fourth man said.

01:05:36"'It is one of the first

01:05:37tactical lessons

01:05:38in the Verbatim.

01:05:40To kill a serpent

01:05:41you cut off its head.'

01:05:43"'Sir Hariel

01:05:44realized the truth

01:05:45a moment before

01:05:46the others.'

01:05:47"'You can't mean—'

01:05:49"'Precisely,'

01:05:50answered the fourth man.

01:05:52"'We must kill

01:05:53the Emperor!'

01:05:55The words

01:05:56echoed in

01:05:56Sir Hariel's skull,

01:05:57but he could not

01:05:58quite believe

01:05:58that he had heard them.

01:06:00Yet as he looked

01:06:01from one hooded figure

01:06:02to the next

01:06:02he could find

01:06:03nothing to indicate

01:06:04that these men

01:06:04were anything but serious.

01:06:06He felt his gorge

01:06:07rise at such base

01:06:08treachery,

01:06:09and wanted nothing

01:06:10more than to get

01:06:11as far away from

01:06:11this place as possible.

01:06:14He turned from

01:06:14the gathered figures

01:06:15without a word,

01:06:16and began to climb

01:06:17the stairs

01:06:17back through the darkness

01:06:18to the circle chamber above.

01:06:20From below

01:06:21he heard raised voices

01:06:22and urgent imprecations,

01:06:24but he ignored them

01:06:25and carried on upwards.

01:06:27Sir Hariel's anger

01:06:29burned like a hot coal

01:06:30in his breast.

01:06:31How could these men

01:06:32have thought

01:06:32he would join them

01:06:34in their mad scheme?

01:06:35And Nemiel,

01:06:36had his cousin

01:06:37lost his reason?

01:06:39He heard hurried

01:06:39footsteps on the

01:06:40stairs behind him,

01:06:41and turned to face

01:06:42the climber below him,

01:06:43sliding his hand

01:06:44towards the hilt

01:06:44of the knife at his belt.

01:06:46If these conspirators

01:06:47meant to do him harm,

01:06:49they would find him waiting

01:06:50with his blade bared.

01:06:53A light built from below,

01:06:54and shadows

01:06:55climbed ahead of his pursuer.

01:06:58Sir Hariel drew his knife

01:06:59and braced himself to fight.

01:07:01The light drew closer,

01:07:03and he let out a breath

01:07:04as he saw that Nemiel

01:07:06climbed from below,

01:07:07the hooded lantern

01:07:08held before him.

01:07:09Whoa, cousin,

01:07:10said Nemiel,

01:07:11seeing the knife-blade

01:07:12gleaming in the darkness.

01:07:14Nemiel, said Sir Hariel,

01:07:16lowering the knife.

01:07:17Well, that was—

01:07:19Intense? said Nemiel.

01:07:22Don't you think

01:07:22that was intense?

01:07:24That's one word for it,

01:07:25said Sir Hariel,

01:07:26resuming his climb

01:07:27as he sheathed his blade.

01:07:29Treachery is another.

01:07:30Treachery? said Nemiel.

01:07:32I think you're making

01:07:33too much of this.

01:07:34It's just some die-hards

01:07:35venting some steam.

01:07:37They're not really

01:07:37going to do anything.

01:07:39Then why did they get you

01:07:40to bring me here?

01:07:42To gauge your response,

01:07:43I suppose, said Nemiel.

01:07:45Listen, you must have

01:07:46heard the talk

01:07:47that's doing the rounds,

01:07:48now that the knightly

01:07:49orders have been disbanded.

01:07:51Folk aren't happy with it,

01:07:52and they need to grumble.

01:07:54Any time there's change,

01:07:55people like to grouse about it,

01:07:56and fantasize about what they do.

01:07:59They were talking

01:08:00about killing the Emperor.

01:08:02Oh, come on, laughed Nemiel.

01:08:04How many times,

01:08:05when we were in training,

01:08:07did we say that we hated

01:08:08Master Ramiel,

01:08:09and hoped that a beast

01:08:10would eat him?

01:08:11That's different.

01:08:12How so?

01:08:13We were children, Nemiel.

01:08:15They are grown warriors,

01:08:16it's not the same thing at all.

01:08:18Maybe it is different,

01:08:20but they're not really

01:08:21going to try to kill the Emperor.

01:08:22It would be suicide.

01:08:24You've seen how tough

01:08:25the Astartes are,

01:08:26so imagine how much tougher

01:08:27the Emperor is.

01:08:28If the Emperor is as

01:08:29magnificent as the Astartes say,

01:08:31then he's got nothing

01:08:32to worry about.

01:08:34That's not the point,

01:08:35Nemiel, and you know it,"

01:08:36said Zahariel,

01:08:37as he continued to climb.

01:08:38Then what is the point, cousin?

01:08:40If this is just talk, fine.

01:08:42I will forget you brought me here,

01:08:44and that I heard treason

01:08:45plotted within the walls

01:08:46of our fortress.

01:08:47But if it's not,

01:08:49I will make sure

01:08:49the Lion knows of it.

01:08:51You would renounce me

01:08:52to the Lion?"

01:08:53asked Nemiel, hurt.

01:08:55Unless you can convince

01:08:57the men below to cease

01:08:58this talk,"

01:08:59said Zahariel,

01:09:00it's dangerous,

01:09:01and could get people killed.

01:09:03It's just talk,"

01:09:05promised Nemiel.

01:09:06Then it stops now,"

01:09:08said Zahariel,

01:09:09turning to face his cousin.

01:09:10You understand me?"

01:09:12Yes, Zahariel, I understand,"

01:09:14said Nemiel,

01:09:15his head cast down.

01:09:17I'll speak to them.

01:09:19Then we'll say no more of this.

01:09:21Right," agreed Nemiel.

01:09:23We'll say no more of it.

01:09:25I promise.

01:09:29Chapter 17

01:09:32It began with a day

01:09:34like no other.

01:09:35In all the history of Caliban,

01:09:37in the annals

01:09:38of the knightly orders,

01:09:39in the folk tales

01:09:40of the common people,

01:09:41there would never be

01:09:42another day like it.

01:09:44There would be

01:09:45other momentous days,

01:09:46it was true.

01:09:47There would be

01:09:48darker days ahead

01:09:49as part of an era

01:09:50of death and destruction.

01:09:51But this day was different.

01:09:54This was a day of joy.

01:09:55It was a day of happiness

01:09:56and excitement,

01:09:58a day of hope.

01:10:00It was the day

01:10:01the Emperor descended

01:10:02from the heavens.

01:10:04It would become known

01:10:05as the beginning

01:10:06of the Time of Angels.

01:10:08At this moment, though,

01:10:10that name was unknown.

01:10:11Giants, Astartes,

01:10:13First Legion,

01:10:14all these names

01:10:15would be used

01:10:15to refer to the newcomers.

01:10:17But as the day

01:10:18of the Emperor's descent dawned,

01:10:19the people of Caliban

01:10:20resorted to a name

01:10:21with mythic resonance.

01:10:23They called them

01:10:24Terrans once more.

01:10:27It was a good name,

01:10:28for it spoke of

01:10:29humanity's lost birthright

01:10:31and the origin

01:10:32of the first settlers

01:10:33who had come to Caliban.

01:10:35For two hundred generations,

01:10:36ever since the fall

01:10:37of Old Knight,

01:10:38stories of ancient terror

01:10:40had been told

01:10:41around the hearth fires

01:10:42of Caliban.

01:10:43Now, those stories were real.

01:10:46They had been given

01:10:47visceral form

01:10:48in the armoured shapes

01:10:50of giants.

01:10:52The moment of discovery,

01:10:53the moment when the Astartes

01:10:54made first contact

01:10:55with the people of Caliban,

01:10:57was already being mythologised.

01:10:59A vast tree of myth

01:11:01would sprout

01:11:01from the tiny seed

01:11:02of real experience.

01:11:04There would be different stories

01:11:05and competing legends,

01:11:07or too soon

01:11:08the truth of how it actually happened

01:11:10would be forgotten.

01:11:11But Zahariel knew

01:11:13he would never forget

01:11:14the truth of that day,

01:11:15for he had been

01:11:16in the deep forest

01:11:16with Lionel Johnson and Luther

01:11:18when it had occurred.

01:11:21That Luther had been

01:11:21the first to call them

01:11:22angels was true,

01:11:24for the Astartes

01:11:25had descended

01:11:25on pinions of fiery wings.

01:11:27It was a phrase

01:11:28uttered in the heat

01:11:29of the moment,

01:11:30provoked by wonder

01:11:31and amazement,

01:11:32but Johnson had

01:11:32remembered his words

01:11:34and kept them

01:11:34close to his heart.

01:11:36Zahariel and the others

01:11:37in the riding party

01:11:39were already being

01:11:39pushed to obscurity,

01:11:41the story needing

01:11:42grander players than them

01:11:43to tell such lofty histories.

01:11:45In time,

01:11:46his name and deeds

01:11:47would be lost,

01:11:48and though his part

01:11:49in the story

01:11:50would soon be pushed aside

01:11:51in the countless retellings,

01:11:52he was not saddened,

01:11:54for he knew that the story

01:11:55was what mattered,

01:11:56not the players

01:11:56who stalked in its background.

01:11:59In any event,

01:12:00the truth of the tale

01:12:01hardly mattered.

01:12:03The people of Caliban

01:12:04wanted stories,

01:12:05they needed them.

01:12:06So much was changing

01:12:07in so short a period

01:12:09that they felt the need

01:12:10to be anchored back

01:12:10to reality.

01:12:12Zahariel knew that

01:12:13stories helped them

01:12:14to make sense

01:12:15of their lives.

01:12:16Of course,

01:12:17there would be

01:12:17dozens of different stories,

01:12:18all claiming to be the truth,

01:12:20but in some ways

01:12:21that made his exclusion easier.

01:12:23With so many versions

01:12:24of what had happened

01:12:24that day,

01:12:25each person could pick

01:12:26the one that suited them best.

01:12:28Some would be

01:12:29ribbled,

01:12:29others reverential,

01:12:30some full of adventure,

01:12:32and others more prosaic.

01:12:35All would agree

01:12:35on one matter, however.

01:12:37The name of this tale

01:12:38would remain the same.

01:12:40From the far northern mountains

01:12:42to the great oceans

01:12:42of the south,

01:12:43no matter the variation

01:12:44within the narrative,

01:12:45it would always be known

01:12:47by the same title.

01:12:49It would be known as

01:12:50The Descent of Angels.

01:12:53Following the arrival

01:12:54of the angels,

01:12:55wonders and miracles

01:12:56had been shared

01:12:56by those who had come

01:12:57from the stars,

01:12:58but greater even than those

01:13:00was news that the creator

01:13:01of the angels,

01:13:02the Emperor,

01:13:03would descend

01:13:04in all his glory.

01:13:06In the wake of his arrival,

01:13:07nothing on Caliban

01:13:08would ever be the same.

01:13:12Zahariel watched

01:13:13the tens of thousands

01:13:14of people as they filled

01:13:15the mighty arena,

01:13:16cleared before the walls

01:13:17of the Order's

01:13:18fortress monastery.

01:13:19He had never seen

01:13:20such an assemblage

01:13:21of people in one place,

01:13:22and the presence

01:13:23of so many gathered in joy

01:13:25was like a roaring

01:13:26pressure in his head.

01:13:27Come to think of it,

01:13:28he had never seen

01:13:29such a vast open space before,

01:13:31the vistas of Caliban

01:13:32being primarily unbroken

01:13:33swathes of forest,

01:13:35but the machines

01:13:35of the Mechanicum

01:13:36had been thorough

01:13:37in their destructive creativity.

01:13:39The enormous metal behemoths

01:13:41had rolled across

01:13:42the landscape,

01:13:43slicing down trees

01:13:44and stripping away

01:13:44their branches.

01:13:46Those same machines

01:13:47then swept across the land

01:13:48they had cleared once more,

01:13:50this time uprooting

01:13:51tree-stumps

01:13:52and levelling the ground,

01:13:53until the whole area

01:13:54was as smooth

01:13:55as the flat of a blade.

01:13:57The tree-logs left over

01:13:58from the process

01:13:59were deposited

01:14:00in immense stacks

01:14:01by the side of the newly

01:14:02created clearing

01:14:03to be used as lumber,

01:14:04while the roots and branches

01:14:06were reduced to wood-chip

01:14:07to be burned

01:14:08in massive bonfires.

01:14:10It had been almost apocalyptic,

01:14:12the smoke,

01:14:13the red glow of the fires,

01:14:14and the great metal machines,

01:14:16so large as to be monstrous.

01:14:18Looking at them,

01:14:19Zahariel was put in mind

01:14:20of the great beasts of Caliban,

01:14:22though those monsters

01:14:23had been hunted to extinction.

01:14:25Zahariel could hardly believe

01:14:26the good fortune

01:14:27that saw him here

01:14:28on this day of days,

01:14:29for the entire strength

01:14:30of the order

01:14:31was assembled here,

01:14:32as well as senior knights

01:14:33from those knightly orders

01:14:34that had been gathered together

01:14:36under the banner of the Astartes.

01:14:38He recalled the words

01:14:39of the hooded men

01:14:40in the room beneath

01:14:41the circle chamber,

01:14:42and shivered,

01:14:43despite the heat of the day.

01:14:45He had not seen Nemeel

01:14:46this morning,

01:14:47and he was glad,

01:14:48for he was still angry

01:14:49that his cousin

01:14:50had dragged him

01:14:50to that dangerous conclave

01:14:52of rancorous malcontents.

01:14:54To see such martial power

01:14:55gathered in one place

01:14:56was humbling,

01:14:57for though the knights of Caliban

01:14:59were strong and proud,

01:15:00they were as striplings

01:15:01compared to the might

01:15:02of the Astartes.

01:15:04Towering giants,

01:15:05the Astartes were golems of men,

01:15:07though to call them men

01:15:08seemed a gross disservice,

01:15:09so removed were they

01:15:10from any common humanity.

01:15:12They soared above Zahariel,

01:15:14their armour burnished

01:15:15black and gleaming,

01:15:16and their voices

01:15:17so gruff and deep

01:15:18that it seemed

01:15:19wholly unnatural

01:15:20that they issued

01:15:20from human mouths.

01:15:22Even without their armour

01:15:23they were enormous,

01:15:25more so,

01:15:25for while encased in plate

01:15:27Zahariel could almost believe

01:15:28that the majority of their bulk

01:15:29was artificial.

01:15:30Seeing them without their armour,

01:15:32such doubts were removed.

01:15:35Midris had been the first

01:15:36of the Astartes to be seen

01:15:37without his armour,

01:15:38his body massive and lumpen,

01:15:40his flesh packed

01:15:41with too much muscle

01:15:42and hard bone,

01:15:43as to be almost without

01:15:44shape or definition.

01:15:45Robed in a simple

01:15:46cream body-sheath,

01:15:48Midris had arms and legs

01:15:49like the great trees

01:15:50of the North Wilds,

01:15:52and the muscles

01:15:52of his shoulders

01:15:53rose to either side

01:15:54of his cranium

01:15:55without apparent recourse

01:15:56to a neck.

01:15:58One Astartes was

01:15:59impressive enough,

01:16:00but over a thousand of them

01:16:01filled the great space,

01:16:02surrounding it

01:16:03like great black statues,

01:16:05and hundreds more

01:16:06ringed the great amphitheatre

01:16:07of the centre of the plain

01:16:08that had been bulldozed flat

01:16:09by the Mechanicum.

01:16:11To-day was the day

01:16:13the Emperor would descend

01:16:14to Caliban,

01:16:15and Zahariel could

01:16:16barely contain his excitement.

01:16:18Nemuel would be jealous

01:16:19of Zahariel's inclusion

01:16:20in the Lion's Honour Guard,

01:16:21but such was the lot

01:16:22of their friendship and rivalry.

01:16:24His armour was polished

01:16:26to a reflective sheen,

01:16:27its ancient technology

01:16:28is hardly the equal

01:16:29of the Astartes' mighty armour,

01:16:31but on this day of days

01:16:33such differences

01:16:33hardly mattered.

01:16:35The angle of the ground

01:16:36and the press of bodies

01:16:37around him as he marched

01:16:38through the crowd

01:16:39prevented him

01:16:40from seeing the Lion,

01:16:41but Zahariel knew

01:16:42the Grand Master of the Order

01:16:43was ahead of him

01:16:44without being able

01:16:45to lay eyes upon him.

01:16:47Cheers and adoring faces

01:16:48pointed the way to the Lion

01:16:50as surely as an illuminated sign,

01:16:52and though it was unusual

01:16:54for their taciturn leader

01:16:55to walk amongst

01:16:56the common folk of Caliban,

01:16:58Luther had suggested it

01:16:59as a means of ensuring

01:17:00that the Emperor knew

01:17:01he was a man of the people,

01:17:02that he was loved by all.

01:17:05An excited hubbub filled the air,

01:17:07for who would not want to see

01:17:08a being of such magnificence

01:17:10that he could command

01:17:11the likes of the Astartes

01:17:12and inspire such devotion in them?

01:17:14A being with the vision,

01:17:16drive, and power

01:17:17to set out on the reconquest

01:17:18of the galaxy

01:17:19was surely to be revered,

01:17:21and perhaps even feared,

01:17:22for what singular purpose

01:17:24of violence must surely

01:17:25lie at his heart.

01:17:27The thought had risen

01:17:28in Zahariel's mind unbidden,

01:17:29and he recalled again

01:17:30the secret meeting of last night.

01:17:33His expression turned grim,

01:17:34as he thought of the sentiments

01:17:35espoused there,

01:17:37but he satisfied himself

01:17:38with knowing that he had

01:17:39forestalled the seditious talk

01:17:40of the warriors gathered

01:17:41in the deep vaults

01:17:42of the fortress monastery,

01:17:43with his threat of exposure

01:17:45to the lion.

01:17:47Seeing his gleaming armour,

01:17:48the crowds partied before him,

01:17:50and he nodded in appreciation

01:17:51of the respect

01:17:52accorded to his status

01:17:53as a Knight of the Order.

01:17:55The sense of fevered anticipation

01:17:57among the people of the crowd

01:17:58was palpable,

01:17:59and their excitement

01:18:00passed to him so easily

01:18:01that it was like an electric

01:18:02charge running around his body.

01:18:05All here gathered

01:18:06knew they were witnesses

01:18:07to history,

01:18:08the passage of which

01:18:09only really allowed

01:18:10the ordinary man the chance

01:18:11to witness its unfolding.

01:18:14At last he reached

01:18:14the outer circle of knights

01:18:16surrounding the lion,

01:18:17and Zahariel felt his pulse

01:18:18increase as he stepped

01:18:19towards his fellows.

01:18:21Though much younger

01:18:22than most of them,

01:18:23they partied respectfully

01:18:24before him,

01:18:24allowing him to pass

01:18:26into the clear space

01:18:26between the outer

01:18:27and inner circles.

01:18:29The senior masters of the Order

01:18:31gathered like supplicants

01:18:32around the lion,

01:18:33their bearing regal

01:18:34and majestic,

01:18:35but still as children

01:18:36compared to the mighty warrior

01:18:37at their centre.

01:18:39Zahariel had no doubt

01:18:40that Lionel Johnson

01:18:42was the single most gifted

01:18:43and remarkable human being

01:18:44who had ever lived.

01:18:46Each time he looked at the lion

01:18:47he felt exactly

01:18:48the same sensation,

01:18:49a sheer mass of presence

01:18:51that seemed to press

01:18:52inside his skull

01:18:53by some mystical osmosis

01:18:54to create a feeling

01:18:55of well-being and trust.

01:18:58More than that,

01:18:59he felt something else entirely.

01:19:01Awe.

01:19:03He felt awe.

01:19:05The lion was a truly

01:19:07imposing physical specimen.

01:19:09A giant,

01:19:09standing at a little

01:19:10under three metres tall,

01:19:12it was impossible

01:19:12to escape the suspicion

01:19:14that he had been cut

01:19:15from a broader canvas

01:19:16than the majority of men.

01:19:18His body was perfectly proportioned

01:19:19and entirely in scale

01:19:21with his height.

01:19:22He was powerfully built,

01:19:23lithe, yet muscular.

01:19:25Given that the people of Caliban

01:19:27had black hair

01:19:28for the most part,

01:19:28the lion's most arresting feature

01:19:30at first sight

01:19:31was the russet-golden shade

01:19:32of his hair.

01:19:34The combined effect

01:19:35of his physical characteristics

01:19:36paled into inconsequence, however,

01:19:38in comparison with

01:19:39his more intangible qualities.

01:19:42Johnson exuded a raw majesty,

01:19:44an unspoken aura

01:19:45of such magnetic authority

01:19:47that it was clear

01:19:48from the very first instance

01:19:49why Sir Luther had chosen

01:19:51to give him the name Lion.

01:19:53There was no other name

01:19:54that could ever

01:19:55have possibly fitted him.

01:19:56He was the lion.

01:19:58No word could have

01:19:59better described him.

01:20:01As Zahariel approached,

01:20:02the lion turned to him

01:20:03and gave a brief nod of his head,

01:20:05an unspoken acknowledgement

01:20:06of the brotherhood they shared.

01:20:08Zahariel greeted his companions,

01:20:10knights who in years past

01:20:12had been distant,

01:20:12unreachable figures

01:20:13of authority and might.

01:20:15Now they were his brothers,

01:20:16by virtue and by valour.

01:20:19His past life of insignificance

01:20:20was over.

01:20:21His new life as a member

01:20:22of the Order

01:20:23had begun in blood

01:20:24and would no doubt

01:20:25end the same way.

01:20:27At last we are assembled.

01:20:29We can go.

01:20:30said Lord Cipher,

01:20:31a note of impatience

01:20:32audible in his powerful tones.

01:20:35There's no rush,

01:20:36said the lion,

01:20:37his voice deeply musical

01:20:38and filled with sonorous tones

01:20:40that seem to seep

01:20:40beneath the listener's skin

01:20:42and thrill the nerve endings below.

01:20:45My—the Emperor

01:20:48is not yet arrived.

01:20:50Nevertheless,

01:20:50we should be ready,

01:20:52said Lord Cipher.

01:20:53The proper traditions

01:20:54and protocols

01:20:55must be followed as always,

01:20:56now more than ever

01:20:57in these times of change.

01:20:59Sir Hariel smiled

01:21:00at the fresh tones

01:21:01of this new Lord Cipher,

01:21:03and caught an amused glance

01:21:04from the tall, powerful warrior

01:21:05who stood next to the lion.

01:21:07Sir Luther had been

01:21:09Johnson's boon companion

01:21:10and closest brother

01:21:11in all things

01:21:12since the day he had discovered

01:21:13the feral wild man in the forest.

01:21:16A great man,

01:21:17Luther was still dwarfed

01:21:18by the lion's stature,

01:21:19but his broad shoulders

01:21:20and open face

01:21:21were those of a man

01:21:22who bore no ill feelings

01:21:23to his mightier brother.

01:21:25Ready?

01:21:26asked Luther.

01:21:27I have a feeling

01:21:28this might be

01:21:28an interesting day.

01:21:31Interesting?

01:21:32said Sir Hariel.

01:21:33Let's hope not too interesting.

01:21:35What do you mean?

01:21:36asked Luther.

01:21:37Nothing, replied Sir Hariel.

01:21:39Just making conversation.

01:21:42Luther looked

01:21:42askance at him,

01:21:43sensing there was

01:21:44more to his comment

01:21:45than he was letting on,

01:21:47but content

01:21:47to allow him his secrets.

01:21:49Come, said Lord Cipher.

01:21:51It is time.

01:21:53Sir Hariel looked

01:21:54into the sky,

01:21:55seeing a dim glow

01:21:56building behind the clouds.

01:21:58An excited ripple

01:21:59spread through the crowd

01:22:00as heads turned to the skies.

01:22:02Only the Astartes

01:22:03encircling the mighty arena

01:22:05kept their gaze

01:22:06resolutely fixed on the crowd,

01:22:07and Sir Hariel

01:22:08had the distinct impression

01:22:09that they were looking for someone

01:22:11or something.

01:22:13Even on a planet

01:22:14that had welcomed

01:22:15the coming of the Astartes

01:22:16and the Emperor,

01:22:17these warriors

01:22:18never relaxed their guard

01:22:19and never flinched

01:22:20from their duty,

01:22:21and Sir Hariel

01:22:22was filled with admiration

01:22:23for the great warriors

01:22:24from beyond the stars.

01:22:26His musings

01:22:27were interrupted

01:22:28as the lion set off

01:22:29towards the amphitheatre

01:22:30at the centre of the cleared space,

01:22:32a twin line of knights

01:22:33holding open a path

01:22:34through the cheering crowds.

01:22:36Sir Hariel almost missed step

01:22:38with the warriors around him,

01:22:39but recovered well enough

01:22:40for no one to notice

01:22:41his momentary hesitation.

01:22:43Faces surrounded him,

01:22:44the people of Caliban,

01:22:46wild and ecstatic,

01:22:47to have been reunited

01:22:48with their ancestral brothers,

01:22:50the root-race of their culture,

01:22:51and brightly coloured banners

01:22:53flew above their heads.

01:22:54They had lived in fear

01:22:55of the beasts for too long,

01:22:57and of the wars

01:22:58between the knightly orders

01:22:59and the countless other dangers

01:23:00that could part a man

01:23:01from his life,

01:23:02but now they had something

01:23:03to look forward to,

01:23:05an age of peace

01:23:06and prosperity beckoned,

01:23:07for what could the technology

01:23:09and resources of the Imperium

01:23:10not achieve?

01:23:12With such tools available,

01:23:13and such men to wield them,

01:23:15what undreamt-of glories

01:23:16might be attained?

01:23:18His mind filled with

01:23:19such heady thoughts,

01:23:20that Sir Hariel almost missed

01:23:22the sudden vertiginous sense

01:23:23of cold purpose

01:23:24that slithered down his spine.

01:23:27Dread suddenly seized him,

01:23:29for no reason that he could explain,

01:23:30until he saw the face

01:23:32that stood apart

01:23:32from the expressions of hope

01:23:34and wonder in the crowd.

01:23:36The man stood out,

01:23:37by virtue of the seriousness

01:23:38etched into his face,

01:23:40the intent written in every line

01:23:41and crease of his skin.

01:23:43His eyes were fixed

01:23:44on the marching honour-guard,

01:23:46and even amid a sea

01:23:46of cheering faces,

01:23:48Sir Hariel could pick out

01:23:49the man's face

01:23:49as he kept pace with them

01:23:50towards the arena.

01:23:52There was something familiar

01:23:53to the cast of his features,

01:23:55but the memory of how he knew them

01:23:56eluded Sir Hariel,

01:23:58until a shadow fell across

01:23:59the man's face,

01:24:01and he recognised

01:24:02the hawkish nose

01:24:03and prominent chin.

01:24:05The question of how the man

01:24:06was able to move

01:24:07through the crowd

01:24:08with such ease,

01:24:09was answered when Sir Hariel

01:24:10caught a glint of armour

01:24:11beneath a plain woollen cloak,

01:24:14and suddenly he knew

01:24:15where he had seen the man before.

01:24:18He remembered the vaulted room

01:24:19beneath the circle-chamber,

01:24:21the lanterns at the compass-points,

01:24:23and a hooded confraternity

01:24:24of legitious discussion.

01:24:26Hooded surplices

01:24:27had been worn,

01:24:28but enough light

01:24:29had lit the interior

01:24:30of one hood

01:24:31to illuminate a face—

01:24:33a face that moved

01:24:34with sinister purpose

01:24:35towards the great podium,

01:24:36where the lion and the emperor

01:24:37would meet face to face.

01:24:40Thoughts tumbled

01:24:40through his mind

01:24:41like a body in a torrential river

01:24:43that bounced from the rocks

01:24:44as it was carried

01:24:44towards a roaring waterfall.

01:24:47Fear rose in him

01:24:48as he realised

01:24:48that his words to Nemil

01:24:50had clearly not been

01:24:51as convincing

01:24:51as he had thought,

01:24:53that the warriors

01:24:54gathered in the depths

01:24:54of the fortress

01:24:55had not been as swayed

01:24:56by his threats of exposure

01:24:58as he had supposed.

01:25:00He turned to issue a warning,

01:25:02but the words were still

01:25:03borne in his throat,

01:25:04and he realised

01:25:05that he and Nemil

01:25:06would be implicated

01:25:07in whatever mischief

01:25:08this man had in mind.

01:25:09Who would believe

01:25:10that their presence

01:25:11had been innocent,

01:25:12that he had been lured

01:25:13with promises

01:25:14of open discussion

01:25:14on the future of Caliban?

01:25:17Zahariel felt a suffocating fear

01:25:18rise in his gullet,

01:25:20and a hot rush of nausea

01:25:21settle in his belly,

01:25:22as he realised

01:25:23with utter certainty

01:25:24that something terrible

01:25:25was soon to happen.

01:25:27Caught to extguilt and fear,

01:25:29he made a bold decision

01:25:30and broke step

01:25:31with his brothers.

01:25:33Surprised gasps

01:25:34greeted his departure

01:25:35from the honour-guard,

01:25:36and he felt Lord Cypher's

01:25:37angry glare on his back

01:25:38as he marched,

01:25:39with grim purpose,

01:25:40towards the line of knights

01:25:41holding back the crowds.

01:25:44Each warrior wore

01:25:45an enclosing helmet

01:25:46and hooded surplice,

01:25:47but Zahariel could feel

01:25:48their surprise and shock

01:25:49in their sudden

01:25:50stiffening of pose.

01:25:51They partied before him,

01:25:52not knowing what else to do.

01:25:54And Zahariel scanned

01:25:55the faces and heads

01:25:56of the crowd

01:25:57as he pushed his way

01:25:58deeper through

01:25:58the mass of bodies.

01:26:00For a terrible moment

01:26:01he thought his quarry

01:26:02had evaded him,

01:26:03but caught the purposeful

01:26:04glide of the man's head,

01:26:06moving against the direction

01:26:07of the crowd's adoration.

01:26:10Zahariel made his way forwards,

01:26:12one hand pushing people

01:26:13out of his way,

01:26:14the other gripping

01:26:15his sword-hilt.

01:26:16A rush of emotions

01:26:17flooded him,

01:26:17a potent mix of fear

01:26:19and betrayal.

01:26:20Didn't this traitor realise

01:26:21the magnitude

01:26:22of what he planned?

01:26:23Didn't he see the ultimate

01:26:24folly of his course?

01:26:26As the distance closed,

01:26:27it seemed as though

01:26:28his target became aware of him.

01:26:30A hurried glance

01:26:31over his shoulder,

01:26:32and their eyes met

01:26:33over the bobbing,

01:26:34smiling faces of the crowd.

01:26:36A light built in the heavens,

01:26:37and heads were turned upwards

01:26:38in joy and rapture.

01:26:40But Zahariel had no time

01:26:41for such sights.

01:26:42His attention fixed

01:26:44on the man before him.

01:26:45Though he moved with purpose,

01:26:46his posture was stooped,

01:26:48as though he bore

01:26:48some great weight,

01:26:49and his pace was slower,

01:26:50much slower than Zahariel's.

01:26:53Aware of his discovery,

01:26:54the man pushed harder

01:26:55in an attempt

01:26:56to evade Zahariel,

01:26:57but as the crowd surged

01:26:58in response to the building

01:27:00light in the heavens,

01:27:01his passage was impeded

01:27:02to the point where

01:27:03forward movement

01:27:04was next to impossible.

01:27:05Zahariel saw his chance,

01:27:07and pushed through

01:27:08the press of bodies,

01:27:09sparing no thought

01:27:10to the damage he was doing

01:27:11as he cleared a path

01:27:12with fists and shoulders.

01:27:13Angry voices berated him,

01:27:15but he ignored them,

01:27:16too intent on his prey.

01:27:18The man tried to force

01:27:19a path through the crowd,

01:27:21but alerted to the presence

01:27:22of troublemakers in their midst,

01:27:23the people gelled before him,

01:27:25becoming an impenetrable barrier

01:27:27of angry faces and raised voices.

01:27:29Zahariel reached out,

01:27:31and grabbed a handful

01:27:32of the man's cloak,

01:27:33turning him around

01:27:34and pulling him off balance.

01:27:36The light above him built,

01:27:37bathing everything

01:27:38in a golden glow,

01:27:39and it seemed as though

01:27:40a great searing spotlight

01:27:41was trained upon them.

01:27:42Get away from me!

01:27:44Howled the man,

01:27:45his cloak pulled aside,

01:27:46to reveal the shimmering

01:27:47glow of light

01:27:48upon his breastplate.

01:27:50As Zahariel feared,

01:27:51the man was a Knight of the Order.

01:27:53I won't let you do this,

01:27:55said Zahariel,

01:27:56sending a thunderous left hook

01:27:57into the man's face.

01:27:59He fell back,

01:28:00but the press of the crowd

01:28:01prevented him from falling.

01:28:03You don't understand,

01:28:04said the man,

01:28:05struggling in Zahariel's grip.

01:28:07The crowd pulled away from them,

01:28:09and Zahariel pushed

01:28:10closer to the man,

01:28:11pressed chest to chest

01:28:12with his adversary

01:28:13as they grappled.

01:28:13It has to be this way!

01:28:16The man was broader

01:28:17and taller than Zahariel,

01:28:19older and more experienced,

01:28:20but his discovery

01:28:21had robbed him of conviction.

01:28:23He tried to turn away

01:28:24from Zahariel,

01:28:25tearing the cloak

01:28:26from his shoulders

01:28:26as he did so.

01:28:28Zahariel saw that the man

01:28:29carried a canvas satchel

01:28:30across his back

01:28:31that clearly bore

01:28:32some considerable weight.

01:28:34Hampered by his burden,

01:28:35the Knight could not

01:28:36fight as effectively

01:28:37as Zahariel,

01:28:38despite the clear difference

01:28:39in age and experience.

01:28:40Zahariel threw another

01:28:41punch at the man's face,

01:28:43breaking his nose

01:28:43and sending a squirt of blood

01:28:45in a high arc.

01:28:46More cries of alarm

01:28:47circled them,

01:28:48and Zahariel followed

01:28:49his punch by hooking

01:28:50his leg behind

01:28:51that of his opponent,

01:28:52and slamming a shoulder

01:28:53into his chest.

01:28:54The stricken Knight fell,

01:28:56dragging Zahariel with him

01:28:57as they crashed to the ground,

01:28:59clawing and punching

01:29:00at one another.

01:29:01The satchel tore

01:29:02at the sudden movement

01:29:03of the heavy weight within,

01:29:04and six discs of

01:29:05bare, matte-finished metal

01:29:07clattered onto the ground.

01:29:09They were simple in appearance,

01:29:11each no more than

01:29:11thirty centimetres across,

01:29:13a few centimetres thick,

01:29:14and equipped with

01:29:15a rubberised grip

01:29:16on one face.

01:29:17Though he did not know

01:29:18what they were called,

01:29:19he had learned enough

01:29:20in his time

01:29:21with the instructors

01:29:22of the Imperium

01:29:23to know that the

01:29:23pictographic symbols

01:29:25on their faces

01:29:26denoted explosives.

01:29:29Zahariel's elbow

01:29:30hammered the Knight's jaw

01:29:31as they hit the ground,

01:29:32and he followed up the blow

01:29:33with a cracking right cross

01:29:34to the cheek.

01:29:35"'It's over!' he yelled.

01:29:37"'It was just talk!

01:29:38You were to stay your hand!'

01:29:41His opponent could not reply,

01:29:42his face a wreckage

01:29:43of blood and broken bone,

01:29:45illuminated by the golden glow

01:29:47from the heavens.

01:29:48Even through the damage

01:29:49his eyes widened

01:29:51in amazement,

01:29:52wet with tears.

01:29:53Despite himself,

01:29:55Zahariel turned his head

01:29:56to see what might provoke

01:29:57such wonder

01:29:58in one so wounded,

01:29:59and his mouth fell open

01:30:00and slack

01:30:01as he saw a great

01:30:02floating city

01:30:03descending from the heavens.

01:30:05Like a mountainous spire

01:30:06shorn from the side

01:30:07of some basalt landmass,

01:30:09the city was studied

01:30:10with light and colour,

01:30:11its dimensions

01:30:12enormous beyond imagining.

01:30:14A great eagle-winged

01:30:15prow of gold

01:30:16marked one end

01:30:17of the floating city,

01:30:19and towering battlements,

01:30:20like the highest towers

01:30:21of the mightiest citadel,

01:30:23flared like gnarled stalagmites

01:30:25from the other.

01:30:26His opponent

01:30:27struggled weakly beneath him,

01:30:28but their fight was forgotten,

01:30:30as the crowd

01:30:30turned its full attention

01:30:31on the mighty vessel

01:30:32above them

01:30:33and the flock

01:30:34of smaller airships

01:30:35that surrounded it,

01:30:36as it descended

01:30:37in fire and light.

01:30:39Mighty winds

01:30:40whipped around

01:30:40the surface of the planet

01:30:42whatever means

01:30:42the great spire

01:30:43utilised to stay aloft,

01:30:45generating a terrifying

01:30:46exhilarating

01:30:47downdraft of force.

01:30:49Shadows played over him,

01:30:50and he looked up

01:30:51to see the broad outline

01:30:52of a giant

01:30:53standing over him,

01:30:54its bulk

01:30:55massive

01:30:56and threatening.

01:30:58Astartes.

01:30:59Though no outward change

01:31:00had been manifested

01:31:01in the appearance

01:31:02of the Astartes warrior,

01:31:03Zahariel suddenly felt

01:31:05an overwhelming terror

01:31:06engulf him

01:31:07at the sheer physical threat.

01:31:09Where before the Astartes

01:31:10had been benign giants,

01:31:12albeit with a clear potential

01:31:13for great violence,

01:31:15this potential

01:31:15was now unbound.

01:31:17A gauntlet

01:31:18seized his throat

01:31:19and yanked him

01:31:19from his opponent,

01:31:20his feet dangled,

01:31:22and his throat

01:31:22ceased to draw air

01:31:23as the pressure

01:31:24on his neck increased.

01:31:26The power in the Astartes

01:31:27was immense,

01:31:28and Zahariel knew

01:31:29that with a tiny fraction

01:31:30of movement

01:31:30his neck could be snapped

01:31:31like kindling.

01:31:33Through greying vision,

01:31:35Zahariel saw

01:31:36yet more of the Astartes warriors

01:31:38as they unceremoniously

01:31:39scooped up

01:31:39his fallen opponent.

01:31:41"'What do you have, Medrus?'

01:31:43asked one of the

01:31:44newly arrived giants.

01:31:46The warrior

01:31:46looked straight

01:31:47into his eyes,

01:31:48and Zahariel felt

01:31:49the fury

01:31:49of the warrior's hatred

01:31:50burning through

01:31:51the red lenses

01:31:52of his helmet,

01:31:53as consciousness

01:31:54faded to blackness.

01:31:56"'Traitors!' spat Medrus.

01:32:02CHAPTER XVIII

01:32:04When Zahariel awoke,

01:32:06it was to find himself

01:32:07in a gleaming cell

01:32:08of bare metal walls,

01:32:10illuminated with a soft

01:32:11off-white glow

01:32:12that had no obvious source.

01:32:15He lay on a metal shelf

01:32:16set into the wall,

01:32:17and as he took a breath

01:32:18he winced at the painful

01:32:20constriction in his throat.

01:32:22He remembered

01:32:22the Astartes Medrus

01:32:24holding him at arm's length

01:32:25like a piece of refuse,

01:32:26and the feeling of anger

01:32:27that had radiated

01:32:28from the warrior

01:32:29like a physical blow.

01:32:31He remembered the word

01:32:32"'Traitor!'

01:32:33spat in his face,

01:32:34and he sat up quickly

01:32:35as he remembered

01:32:36the scuffle of bodies

01:32:37and the attempt

01:32:38on the Emperor's life.

01:32:39Had the other conspirators

01:32:40also been present

01:32:41at the descent of angels?

01:32:42Had their vile plan succeeded?'

01:32:45Cold fear settled in his gut,

01:32:48and he clutched at his throat

01:32:49as he fought for breath.

01:32:51Though he could not see it,

01:32:52he felt sure that his neck

01:32:53must be blackened with bruising

01:32:55from the pressure

01:32:55Medrus had applied.

01:32:57His legs dangled

01:32:58from the metal shelf,

01:33:00and if this was a bed

01:33:01in a cell,

01:33:01then it was clearly designed

01:33:02for someone

01:33:03far larger than him.

01:33:05Looking around,

01:33:06he saw nothing

01:33:07to give any indication

01:33:08as to where the light

01:33:08was coming from,

01:33:09or where there might

01:33:10be an exit.

01:33:12The walls were bare and smooth,

01:33:14gleaming and unblemished.

01:33:17"'Hello!' he rasped,

01:33:19the effort of speaking,

01:33:20painful,

01:33:20rendering his shout

01:33:21little more than

01:33:22a wheezing gasp.

01:33:24"'Is there anybody out there?'

01:33:26He received no answer,

01:33:28and slid from the metal bed

01:33:29to the floor.

01:33:30He had been stripped

01:33:31of his armour,

01:33:32and wore a simple

01:33:33penitence robe.

01:33:35Did this mean he had been

01:33:36judged guilty already?

01:33:38Zahariel made a slow circuit

01:33:39of the room,

01:33:40the cell,

01:33:41and attempted

01:33:42to find an exit,

01:33:43or some means

01:33:44of communicating

01:33:44with his jailers.

01:33:46He found nothing obvious,

01:33:47and banged his fists

01:33:48against the walls,

01:33:49but heard little difference

01:33:50in the tonal quality

01:33:51that might indicate

01:33:52the existence of a door.

01:33:54Eventually,

01:33:55by pressing his face

01:33:56to the cold wall

01:33:57opposite the shelf,

01:33:58and looking along its length,

01:34:00he discovered a pair

01:34:01of vertical seams

01:34:02on the wall,

01:34:02suggesting a door,

01:34:04though one without

01:34:04any clear means of opening.

01:34:07He was no longer

01:34:08on Caliban,

01:34:09that much was certain.

01:34:10Was this one of the ships

01:34:11upon which the First Legion

01:34:12could travel between the stars?

01:34:15The walls hummed

01:34:16with a low resonance,

01:34:17and he could hear

01:34:17what sounded like

01:34:18a faint drumbeat

01:34:19that might have been

01:34:20the slow rhythm

01:34:21of the vessel's mighty heart.

01:34:23Despite his current

01:34:24predicament,

01:34:25he had to admit

01:34:25that he was a little excited

01:34:26to have left the surface

01:34:27of the world of his birth.

01:34:29He returned to the bed,

01:34:31frustrated at his inability

01:34:32to communicate

01:34:33with the outside world,

01:34:34and protest his innocence.

01:34:36He had stopped the traitor

01:34:37from committing

01:34:37his act of atrocity.

01:34:38Couldn't they see that?

01:34:40With nothing to distract his mind,

01:34:42his imagination conjured up

01:34:43all manner of dark possibilities.

01:34:46Perhaps the Emperor was dead,

01:34:48and his Astartes had wreaked

01:34:49terrible retribution on Caliban,

01:34:51razing its towns and fortresses

01:34:53with their great weapons.

01:34:54Perhaps the Knights of the Order

01:34:56were even now being held

01:34:58in cells like this,

01:34:59implements of torture,

01:35:00used to extract

01:35:01confessions of guilt.

01:35:03As ludicrous as the idea

01:35:04of Astartes becoming

01:35:05torturous seemed,

01:35:06he could not shake

01:35:07the impression of hot brands,

01:35:09knives, and all manner

01:35:10of terrible punishments

01:35:11that might be employed.

01:35:13With nothing else to do,

01:35:15he lay back on the bed,

01:35:16but no sooner had he

01:35:17laid his head down

01:35:18than he felt a whisper of air

01:35:19shimmer across him.

01:35:20Zaharia looked up,

01:35:22in time to see two Astartes

01:35:23enter the cell

01:35:24through the strange door.

01:35:26Both wore plain,

01:35:27unadorned black armour,

01:35:28and they hauled him

01:35:29from the bed without ceremony,

01:35:30and dragged him from the cell.

01:35:33Outside, brother Israphael

01:35:36was waiting for him,

01:35:37together with another

01:35:38Astartes warrior,

01:35:38in white armour,

01:35:40who wore an enlarged

01:35:41gauntlet on his right arm.

01:35:43They dragged him down

01:35:44the corridor constructed

01:35:45of the same bare metal

01:35:46as his cell,

01:35:47though without the

01:35:47brightness of light

01:35:48that had woken him.

01:35:50"'Please,' he cried,

01:35:52"'what are you doing?

01:35:53Where are you taking me?'

01:35:55"'Be silent,' said one

01:35:57of the Astartes

01:35:58who carried him,

01:35:59and he recognized

01:36:00the voice as belonging

01:36:01to Midris,

01:36:01the warrior who had

01:36:02hauled him from the

01:36:03struggling saboteur.

01:36:05"'Please!'

01:36:06"'Brother librarian,

01:36:07Israphael,

01:36:08what's going on?'

01:36:10"'It would serve you

01:36:11best to remain silent,

01:36:12Sahariel,' said Israphael,

01:36:14as they turned a corner

01:36:16and dragged him towards

01:36:17an arched opening

01:36:18that led into

01:36:18a darkened chamber.

01:36:20Passing through the portal,

01:36:21Sahariel felt the

01:36:22temperature drop.

01:36:23He smelled a rank odour,

01:36:25and saw his breath

01:36:26misting the air before him.

01:36:28The only light came

01:36:29from the corridor

01:36:30he had been carried along,

01:36:31but as a door shut

01:36:32behind him,

01:36:32even that was taken away,

01:36:34and he was plunged

01:36:35into darkness.

01:36:36Armoured gauntlets

01:36:37hauled him upright,

01:36:38leaving him alone

01:36:39and blind in the darkness.

01:36:41"'What's happening?'

01:36:42he asked.

01:36:43"'Why won't you tell me

01:36:44what's going on?'

01:36:45"'Quiet!' said a voice

01:36:47he didn't recognize.

01:36:49He jumped in surprise

01:36:50at the sound,

01:36:51for he was as blind

01:36:52as if his eyes had been

01:36:53plucked from their sockets.

01:36:54He heard footsteps

01:36:55circling him,

01:36:56but how many people

01:36:57were here was a mystery.

01:36:59He knew Israphael,

01:37:00Midris,

01:37:00and the warrior in

01:37:01the white armour were here,

01:37:02as well as the other

01:37:03Astartes who had

01:37:04carried him.

01:37:05But were there others

01:37:06in the darkness, too?'

01:37:08"'Zahariel,' said Israphael,

01:37:10from the darkness.

01:37:11"'That is your name?'

01:37:13"'Yes.'

01:37:14"'You know it is.

01:37:15Please tell me

01:37:16what's happened?'

01:37:17"'Nothing,' said Israphael.

01:37:19"'Nothing has happened.

01:37:21The plot failed,

01:37:22and the conspirator

01:37:23is being interrogated.

01:37:24We will soon uncover

01:37:25those who sought

01:37:26to do us harm

01:37:27and deal with them.'

01:37:28"'I had nothing to do with it,'

01:37:30said Zahariel,

01:37:30wrapping his arms

01:37:31around himself in fear.

01:37:32"'I stopped him!'

01:37:34"'That is the only reason

01:37:36you are not strapped

01:37:38to an excruciator table,

01:37:40having your secrets

01:37:41wrung from your flesh,'

01:37:43snapped Midris.

01:37:44"'Tell us everything,

01:37:46and leave nothing out,

01:37:47or it will go badly for you.

01:37:50Start with how you knew

01:37:51what Brother Ullient

01:37:52was planning.'

01:37:54"'Brother Ullient?

01:37:55Is that his name?

01:37:56I didn't know him.'

01:37:58"'Then why did you

01:37:59pursue him in the crowd?'

01:38:02asked Midris.

01:38:03"'I saw his face

01:38:04in the crowd,

01:38:04and he looked—

01:38:06I don't know—

01:38:07out of place.'

01:38:09"'Out of place?'

01:38:11asked his Raphael.

01:38:12"'Is that all?

01:38:13One face in thousands,

01:38:15and you saw it?'

01:38:17"'I felt something was wrong,'

01:38:18said Zahariel.

01:38:20"'I just knew there

01:38:20was something wrong

01:38:21in the crowd,

01:38:22and he ran

01:38:22when I challenged him.'

01:38:24"'You see,' said Midris,

01:38:26"'he lies.

01:38:28We must use pain

01:38:29to render his confession

01:38:31meaningful.'

01:38:32"'Confession?'

01:38:33cried Zahariel.

01:38:34"'No, I am trying

01:38:35to tell you what happened.'

01:38:37"'Lies!' spat Midris.

01:38:39"'You were in on the plot

01:38:41from the beginning.

01:38:42Admit it.

01:38:43You knew exactly

01:38:44what Ullient was planning,

01:38:46and you panicked.

01:38:48You are a traitor

01:38:49and a coward.'

01:38:50"'I am no coward!'

01:38:52snapped Zahariel.

01:38:53"'But you do not deny

01:38:55being a traitor.'

01:38:57"'Of course I do,'

01:38:58said Zahariel.

01:38:59"'You are twisting my words.'

01:39:01"'Spoken like a true traitor,'

01:39:04said Midris.

01:39:05"'Why are we even

01:39:06bothering with this one?'

01:39:08"'Because,

01:39:09whether he is a traitor or not,

01:39:10he will know the identities

01:39:12of the other plotters,'

01:39:13said Israphael.

01:39:14"'One way or another

01:39:16he will tell us.'

01:39:18"'Please, brother Israphael,'

01:39:20said Zahariel.

01:39:21"'You know I am no traitor.

01:39:22Tell them—'

01:39:24The voices continued

01:39:25to circle him in the darkness,

01:39:26each one darting in

01:39:27like an unseen assailant

01:39:29to wound him

01:39:29with their accusations.

01:39:31As each barb came in,

01:39:32Zahariel felt his anger growing.

01:39:35If they were to kill him

01:39:36for some imagined treachery,

01:39:37then he would not give them

01:39:38the satisfaction

01:39:39of seeing him broken.

01:39:41"'I have done nothing wrong,'

01:39:42he said.

01:39:43"'I am a Knight of the Order.'

01:39:45"'You are nothing!'

01:39:48roared Midris.

01:39:49"'You are a mortal

01:39:51who has dared to consort

01:39:52with the enemies

01:39:53of the Imperium.

01:39:55No fate is too harsh

01:39:57for one such as you.'

01:40:00"'I stopped him, didn't I?'

01:40:02said Zahariel.

01:40:02"'Or are you too stupid

01:40:04to see that?'

01:40:05A hand shot out of the darkness

01:40:07to seize his throat,

01:40:08and though he could not see it,

01:40:09he gasped in pain

01:40:10as the gauntlet

01:40:11threatened to crush

01:40:11his already battered windpipe.

01:40:14"'I will kill you

01:40:15if you speak out of turn again,'

01:40:18said Midris.

01:40:20"'Put him down, Midris,'

01:40:21said Israphael's voice.

01:40:23"'I will look into him.'

01:40:26Zahariel was dropped

01:40:27to the metal floor

01:40:28of the dark chamber,

01:40:29and fell in a wheezing heap

01:40:31as he felt the presence

01:40:32of another warrior come near.

01:40:34He heard heavy footfalls,

01:40:35and shivered

01:40:36as the temperature around him

01:40:37dropped even further.

01:40:39"'Brother, Israphael?'

01:40:42he said hesitantly.

01:40:44"'Yes, Zahariel, it is I,'

01:40:46said Israphael,

01:40:47and Zahariel felt a bare hand

01:40:49settle on the top of his head,

01:40:51the digits massive

01:40:52and tingling

01:40:52with a strange internal motion.

01:40:55He gasped as he felt

01:40:56a jolt of power

01:40:57snap through his body,

01:40:58as though a surge of adrenaline

01:40:59had washed through him.

01:41:01He fought against the sensation

01:41:03as he felt himself

01:41:03becoming drowsy and compliant.

01:41:06His defiance

01:41:07of this interrogation

01:41:08began to fade,

01:41:10and he struggled

01:41:10to hold on to the feeling

01:41:12as he felt his memories

01:41:13being sifted through

01:41:14by some unknown presence

01:41:15within his mind.

01:41:17Zahariel tasted metal,

01:41:18though his mouth

01:41:19was clamped shut in pain.

01:41:21His skull filled

01:41:22with bright light

01:41:23as whatever power

01:41:24Israphael was using

01:41:25seared its way through him.

01:41:28He screamed

01:41:29as white-hot fingers

01:41:30brushed the inside of his skull,

01:41:32and he reached

01:41:32for the same power

01:41:33that had defeated

01:41:34the beast of Endriago.

01:41:36"'Get out of my head!'

01:41:39he screamed,

01:41:40and felt the touch

01:41:40within him retreat

01:41:41at the force of his imperative.

01:41:43Blinking after-images

01:41:45flared in his mind,

01:41:46and he saw a glittering

01:41:47silver web of light

01:41:48form behind his eyes—

01:41:50the outlines of armoured warriors,

01:41:52their bodies limbed

01:41:53with light in the same way

01:41:54as he had seen the beast.

01:41:56Zahariel twisted his head,

01:41:58and saw that the chamber

01:41:59was circular,

01:42:00and an almost exact mirror

01:42:01of the structure

01:42:02of the circle chamber

01:42:02on Caliban.

01:42:04The edges of every surface

01:42:05trailed a nimbus

01:42:06of glittering light,

01:42:07like shimmering dust

01:42:08blown by unseen winds,

01:42:10and he saw the Astartes

01:42:11around him as clearly

01:42:12as though they were

01:42:13illuminated by spotlights.

01:42:15"'I see you!' he said.

01:42:18He could see the warriors

01:42:19looking at each other

01:42:20in puzzlement,

01:42:21relishing their sense

01:42:22of unease at his

01:42:22burgeoning power.

01:42:24The glittering silver

01:42:25outlines of the Astartes

01:42:27faded, and Zahariel

01:42:28had a fleeting impression

01:42:29of immense power

01:42:30pressing at the edges

01:42:31of his mind.

01:42:33"'Careful, Zahariel,'

01:42:35said a soothing,

01:42:36sourceless voice,

01:42:37one that eased the pain

01:42:38searing along

01:42:39his every nerve-ending.

01:42:41"'You are unschooled

01:42:43in such matters,

01:42:44and it does not do

01:42:45to tap so recklessly

01:42:47into such power.

01:42:49Not even the most

01:42:50powerful of our breed

01:42:51can know the dangers

01:42:53of such things.'

01:42:55Though he heard

01:42:55the words clearly,

01:42:57Zahariel knew they

01:42:58existed only for him,

01:42:59that Israphael,

01:43:00Midris, and the others

01:43:01could not hear them.

01:43:03By what means they

01:43:04were transmitted

01:43:04into his head

01:43:05he did not know,

01:43:06but he suspected

01:43:07it was the unknown

01:43:07power that had helped

01:43:08him to defeat the beast,

01:43:10one that the unknown

01:43:11speaker was also

01:43:12clearly imbued with.

01:43:14No sooner had the

01:43:15voice soothed him

01:43:16than it vanished,

01:43:17and Zahariel gasped

01:43:18as Israphael said,

01:43:20"'I can find what I

01:43:21need to know in your

01:43:22head without your consent,

01:43:23but what will be left

01:43:24of you afterwards

01:43:25will be less than you

01:43:26were, if anything

01:43:27remains at all.

01:43:29It would be better

01:43:30for you if you were

01:43:30to tell us everything

01:43:31you know—willingly.'

01:43:34The touch was

01:43:35withdrawn, and Zahariel

01:43:37let out a strangled

01:43:38moan as he collapsed

01:43:39to the metal decking

01:43:39of the floor.

01:43:40"'Very well,' he said.

01:43:43"'I'll tell you everything.'

01:43:46Zahariel pushed

01:43:47himself to his feet,

01:43:48and stood proudly

01:43:49before his accusers,

01:43:50determined to show

01:43:51no fear before

01:43:52their interrogation.

01:43:53He had faced the Lion,

01:43:55Luther, and Lord Cipher

01:43:56in his ordeal of

01:43:57initiation to the Order,

01:43:58and he would face

01:43:59this with the same

01:43:59determination.

01:44:01The silver light that

01:44:02outlined everything

01:44:03began to fade,

01:44:04and he told his tale

01:44:06in the dark.

01:44:08He told them of the

01:44:09clandestine meeting

01:44:10between the conspirators

01:44:11and the chamber beneath

01:44:11the great meeting-hall

01:44:12of Alderrook,

01:44:13though Zahariel left

01:44:15out the part played

01:44:16by his cousin,

01:44:17knowing that even to

01:44:17mention Nemiel's name

01:44:19would be to damn him

01:44:19in the eyes of the Astartes.

01:44:22Nemiel's mistake

01:44:23had been naivety,

01:44:24as had his own,

01:44:25and he hoped

01:44:26these warriors

01:44:27would see that.

01:44:28Better to be thought

01:44:29young and foolish

01:44:30than treacherous.

01:44:32He spoke of the four-hooded

01:44:33conspirators,

01:44:34and how he had

01:44:35recognized the man

01:44:36in the crowd

01:44:36from the brief hint

01:44:37of his features

01:44:38that he had seen

01:44:38beneath his hood

01:44:39that night.

01:44:40Zahariel then told

01:44:42them of the sensation

01:44:43of unease and cold

01:44:44purpose that he had

01:44:45sensed while walking

01:44:46alongside the Lion

01:44:47as part of his honour-guard

01:44:48to meet the Emperor.

01:44:50This time they did not

01:44:51question his recognition

01:44:52of Brother Ooliant,

01:44:53though he could feel

01:44:54Brother Israfael's

01:44:55interest once again

01:44:55piqued by his strange

01:44:57power to sense

01:44:58his presence and purpose.

01:45:00They questioned him

01:45:00over and over

01:45:01on his story,

01:45:02and each time

01:45:03he told them

01:45:03the same version of events.

01:45:05He could feel

01:45:06the presence of

01:45:06Brother Israfael

01:45:08lurking in the back

01:45:08of his head,

01:45:09his mind-touch

01:45:10filtering everything

01:45:11he said for lies

01:45:12or obfuscation.

01:45:14If Israfael sensed

01:45:15his vagueness

01:45:16in how he came to

01:45:17the room beneath

01:45:17the circle-chamber,

01:45:19he gave no sign of it,

01:45:20and Zahariel had

01:45:21a sudden feeling

01:45:22that Israfael did not

01:45:23want to delve too closely

01:45:25into that part of his story.

01:45:27Zahariel had a sudden

01:45:29intuitive sense

01:45:30that Israfael wanted

01:45:31him to be exonerated

01:45:32so that he might yet

01:45:33become one of the Estartes,

01:45:34so that he might

01:45:35further train him

01:45:36in the use of his powers.

01:45:38The thought made him bold,

01:45:39and his tale surged

01:45:41with confidence.

01:45:42Once again he finished

01:45:44his tale with his

01:45:44tackling of Brother Ooliant,

01:45:46and he sensed the hostility

01:45:47in the darkened chamber,

01:45:48which had once been

01:45:49terrifying in its intensity,

01:45:51diminish and change

01:45:52to a growing feeling

01:45:54of admiration.

01:45:56At last Israfael's

01:45:57mind-touch withdrew,

01:45:58and he felt a pressure

01:45:59he hadn't been aware of

01:46:00lift from the lid of his skull.

01:46:02A light began to build,

01:46:04and this time it was

01:46:05from an external source.

01:46:07Glowing globes set

01:46:08into the walls of the chamber

01:46:09began to fill with light,

01:46:10and Zahariel shielded

01:46:11his eyes from the

01:46:12rising brightness

01:46:13as he saw his interrogators

01:46:15standing around him.

01:46:18"'You have courage, boy,'

01:46:20said Midris,

01:46:21all his earlier collar vanished.

01:46:24"'If what you say is true,

01:46:26then we owe you a great debt.'

01:46:30"'It is true,' said Zahariel,

01:46:32wishing to be gracious,

01:46:33but still smarting

01:46:34from his harsh treatment

01:46:35at the hands of the warrior.

01:46:37"'Just ask Brother Israfael!'

01:46:39Israfael laughed,

01:46:41and Zahariel felt

01:46:42a pleasurable vindication

01:46:43as the librarian said,

01:46:45"'He's right, Midris.

01:46:47I sense no lie in his words.'

01:46:50"'You're sure.

01:46:52Have I ever been wrong?'

01:46:54"'No, but there's

01:46:55always a first time.'

01:46:57"'He is not wrong,'

01:46:59said a voice

01:47:00from behind Zahariel.

01:47:02He turned to see

01:47:03a tall figure resplendent

01:47:04in a mighty suit

01:47:05of gleaming armour

01:47:06silhouetted in the doorway.

01:47:08The voice was the one

01:47:09he had heard in his head

01:47:10before he had begun his tale,

01:47:12its tones mellifluous

01:47:13and as deep as an ocean trench.

01:47:15Zahariel tried to see

01:47:16past the glare of the light

01:47:18behind the figure,

01:47:18but his eyes were still adjusting

01:47:20from the total blackness

01:47:21to the light,

01:47:22and he could make out little,

01:47:23other than the golden halo of light

01:47:25behind the armoured warrior.

01:47:27Around him

01:47:28the Astartes dropped to their knees,

01:47:30heads bowed against

01:47:31the figure's magnificence,

01:47:32and much as Zahariel struggled

01:47:34to see the new arrival's features,

01:47:36he knew that he was

01:47:37not worthy to do so.

01:47:39"'Do not kneel,'

01:47:41said the figure,

01:47:42seeming to carry the lights

01:47:43with him as he entered

01:47:44the circular chamber.

01:47:45"'Stand!'

01:47:47The Astartes rose to their feet,

01:47:49but Zahariel remained

01:47:50rooted to the spot,

01:47:51his eyes locked

01:47:52on a portion of the floor.

01:47:54The light spread over the deck,

01:47:55rippling like golden water,

01:47:57as it radiated

01:47:58from the armoured warrior.

01:48:00"'It seems I owe you a debt,

01:48:02young Zahariel,'

01:48:03said the golden figure,

01:48:05"'and for that I thank you.

01:48:08In time you will forget this,

01:48:10but while your memories

01:48:11are still your own,

01:48:12I wish to thank you

01:48:14for what you did.'

01:48:16Zahariel tried to answer,

01:48:18but found his mouth

01:48:19welded shut,

01:48:20his tongue lifeless

01:48:21on his palate.

01:48:22No power in the galaxy

01:48:24could have forced him

01:48:24to look up into

01:48:25the warrior's face,

01:48:26and like the certainty

01:48:27that had gripped him

01:48:28as he looked into the darkness

01:48:29beneath the watcher

01:48:30in the dark's hood,

01:48:31Zahariel knew

01:48:33that were he to look up

01:48:34he would be driven

01:48:35just as mad.

01:48:37He tried again to form words,

01:48:39but each time

01:48:40they formed in his mind

01:48:41they were snatched away

01:48:42like leaves in a hurricane.

01:48:44Zahariel could not speak,

01:48:45yet he knew that

01:48:46the wondrous figure

01:48:47knew his thoughts

01:48:48as surely as if

01:48:48they had been his own.

01:48:50He felt the warrior's presence

01:48:52like a vast weight

01:48:53pressing in on his mind,

01:48:54an immense strength and power

01:48:55that was only kept

01:48:56from snuffing out his existence,

01:48:58because it was held in check

01:48:59by a will stronger

01:49:01than the rock of Caliban.

01:49:03The power he sensed

01:49:04growing in his own mind,

01:49:06and that which he had brushed

01:49:07in his Raphael's mind,

01:49:08were like candles in a storm

01:49:10next to this warrior's ability.

01:49:13Zahariel felt as though

01:49:14he was being smothered

01:49:15beneath an enfolding blanket,

01:49:17and the sensation

01:49:18was far from unpleasant.

01:49:20He has a touch of power,

01:49:22said the warrior,

01:49:23and Zahariel felt his spirit

01:49:25soar at such notice,

01:49:26even as he feared

01:49:27the import of his earlier words.

01:49:30He does, my lord,

01:49:31said his Raphael.

01:49:32He is a prime candidate

01:49:34for the librarius.

01:49:36He is, indeed,

01:49:37agreed the warrior.

01:49:39See to it,

01:49:40but be sure he remembers

01:49:42nothing of this.

01:49:44No suspicion of any dissent

01:49:46must exist within the legion.

01:49:48We must be united,

01:49:50or we are lost.

01:49:53It will be done, my lord,

01:49:54assured his Raphael.

01:49:59Though the line

01:49:59was half a kilometre away,

01:50:01Zahariel felt as if he could

01:50:02reach out and touch him.

01:50:04The senior members of the order

01:50:05occupied the great podium

01:50:06where the Emperor

01:50:07had stood the previous week.

01:50:09Thousands of knights

01:50:10filled the parade-ground,

01:50:11resplendent in polished suits of armour,

01:50:13and proudly standing to attention.

01:50:16The day had dawned,

01:50:17bright and full of promise,

01:50:19the sky crisp and blue,

01:50:20the sun beaming and yellow.

01:50:23Names had been called,

01:50:24rosters taken,

01:50:25and identities confirmed

01:50:26by hooded adepts in red,

01:50:28with genetic testing apparatus.

01:50:30Each of those called

01:50:31to attend this great gathering

01:50:32had been individually selected,

01:50:34chosen from the best of the best

01:50:36of Caliban's martial cast of warriors.

01:50:39Zahariel rubbed shoulders

01:50:40with knights whose courage

01:50:42had been proven beyond doubt,

01:50:43whose stamina,

01:50:44endurance, and strength

01:50:45were the envy of those

01:50:46who had failed the Astartes tests.

01:50:48No other warriors on Caliban

01:50:50were as fearsome,

01:50:51nor had the potential

01:50:52of those gathered here,

01:50:53and Zahariel felt justifiable pride

01:50:55in his achievements.

01:50:57Events had passed in a blur

01:50:58since the Emperor's great speech

01:51:00to the masses of Caliban,

01:51:01and, try as he might,

01:51:02Zahariel found he could remember

01:51:04little of that moment.

01:51:05A fleeting vision

01:51:06of a warrior in gold,

01:51:08words that stirred his heart,

01:51:10and a sense of belonging

01:51:11that was stronger than anything

01:51:13he had ever known.

01:51:15Ever since that day

01:51:16he had known,

01:51:17just known,

01:51:18that something big was coming,

01:51:20and when word had come

01:51:21from Luther that the Astartes

01:51:23had made their final selection

01:51:24for advanced training

01:51:25and enhancement to their ranks,

01:51:27Alderook had almost erupted

01:51:29in a riot,

01:51:30as boys had raced to find out

01:51:32if they had been chosen.

01:51:33Zahariel's heart

01:51:34had been in his mouth

01:51:35as he perused the lists

01:51:37doing the rounds

01:51:37of the Fortress Monastery,

01:51:39though some nagging insistence

01:51:40in his mind had told him

01:51:42that he had nothing to worry about.

01:51:44Sure enough,

01:51:45his name had been on the list,

01:51:46as had Nemiel's,

01:51:48Attias's,

01:51:48and Eliath's.

01:51:50He had sought out his cousin,

01:51:51but it had taken him

01:51:52the better part of two days

01:51:54to find him.

01:51:55Nemiel had been quiet,

01:51:56and Zahariel could not understand

01:51:58his cousin's reticence

01:51:59at the good news

01:52:00of their choosing.

01:52:01Once again,

01:52:02their brotherly rivalry

01:52:03had spurred them on

01:52:04to great things.

01:52:06As the day had gone on,

01:52:07Nemiel had relaxed around him,

01:52:09though Zahariel could think

01:52:10of no reason

01:52:11why his cousin

01:52:12should have been so anxious.

01:52:13He had put it down

01:52:14to nervousness

01:52:15over the Astartes' selection,

01:52:16and forgotten the matter,

01:52:18for more important considerations

01:52:19had quickly overtaken

01:52:20any lingering worries

01:52:21over his cousin's behaviour.

01:52:23It had been announced

01:52:25that those chosen

01:52:26by the Astartes

01:52:27were to gather

01:52:27on the great parade-ground

01:52:29before Alderook,

01:52:30to hear the lions speak,

01:52:31and tell them of their destiny

01:52:33as warriors of the Emperor.

01:52:35Only those chosen

01:52:36by the Astartes

01:52:37were to attend,

01:52:38and a palpable ripple

01:52:39of frenzied excitement

01:52:40flashed around the fortress

01:52:41in the space it took

01:52:42to give voice to the notion

01:52:44of what the Grand Master

01:52:45of the Order might say.

01:52:47Zahariel and Nemiel

01:52:48had marched on to the parade-ground

01:52:50with the others

01:52:50who had passed

01:52:51the Astartes' trials,

01:52:52the pride and martial bearing

01:52:54of every one around them

01:52:55filling them with a sense

01:52:56of brotherhood

01:52:57that far exceeded

01:52:58anything he had felt

01:52:59as part of the Order.

01:53:01Though thousands

01:53:01filled the parade-ground,

01:53:03Zahariel knew

01:53:03that this represented

01:53:04the elite of every knightly

01:53:06order of Caliban.

01:53:07Hundreds of thousands

01:53:08of knights had been tested,

01:53:10but only these few thousand

01:53:11had met the unimaginably

01:53:12rigorous standards

01:53:13of the Astartes.

01:53:15The sense of anticipation

01:53:16as the knights had awaited

01:53:17the coming of the lion

01:53:18was almost unbearable.

01:53:20The majority were younger

01:53:21than Zahariel,

01:53:22he and Nemiel

01:53:23representing the upper age

01:53:24group of those chosen,

01:53:26and he wondered what it was

01:53:27about the transformation

01:53:28into an Astartes

01:53:29that mandated such a young age

01:53:31for their members.

01:53:32Then the lion and Luther

01:53:34walked on to the stage

01:53:35flanked by Lord Cipher

01:53:37and a robed cabal of Astartes

01:53:38in black armour

01:53:39clad in the ceremonial

01:53:41bone-white surplices

01:53:42of the Order.

01:53:43To see these great warriors

01:53:45adopting the habits

01:53:46of the Order

01:53:46was gratifying indeed,

01:53:48and Zahariel turned

01:53:49in excitement to his cousin

01:53:50embracing him

01:53:51in a spontaneous gesture

01:53:52of brotherly affection.

01:53:54All the hurt and jealous

01:53:56feelings between them

01:53:57seemed so absurd

01:53:58in the face of the new brotherhood

01:53:59they were about to join.

01:54:01Even standing beside the Astartes

01:54:04the lion looked enormous,

01:54:05towering over the armoured warriors

01:54:07and dwarfing them all

01:54:08with his presence.

01:54:09A great amplification system

01:54:11had been set up

01:54:11to carry the lion's words

01:54:13to every corner

01:54:14of the parade ground,

01:54:15but the lion needed

01:54:16no such apparatus,

01:54:18for his voice was tuned

01:54:19into the hearts and minds

01:54:20of every warrior

01:54:22gathered before him.

01:54:23Brothers!

01:54:25began the lion,

01:54:26forced to pause

01:54:27as the swelling cheers

01:54:28of the young knights

01:54:28threatened to drown out his words.

01:54:30We stand on the brink

01:54:33of a new age for Caliban,

01:54:36where once we stood

01:54:37on our little rock

01:54:38and thought that our world

01:54:39was only as far as the horizon.

01:54:42We now know

01:54:43that it stretches

01:54:44far beyond such petty visions.

01:54:47The galaxy opens out before us,

01:54:49and it is a dark

01:54:50and forbidding place.

01:54:52But we are warriors

01:54:53of the Emperor,

01:54:55and it behoves us

01:54:56to take his light

01:54:57into the darkness

01:54:58to reclaim our birthright.

01:55:01Once, a lifetime ago,

01:55:03it seems,

01:55:04I declared a great crusade

01:55:06to clear the forests

01:55:07of Caliban of the beasts,

01:55:09and that was a worthy aim.

01:55:11I see now

01:55:13that I was merely emulating

01:55:14a greater man's dream,

01:55:16that of my father,

01:55:18the Emperor.

01:55:20A roaring cheer

01:55:20once again drowned out

01:55:22the lion's words,

01:55:23for where all of Caliban

01:55:24had been speaking

01:55:25of the Emperor as his father,

01:55:26it was the first time

01:55:27he had given voice

01:55:28to such a sentiment.

01:55:30The lion raised his hands

01:55:31to quell the rising emotions,

01:55:33and continued.

01:55:35We are part

01:55:37of something larger now,

01:55:39part of a brotherhood

01:55:40that encompasses

01:55:41more than just our planet,

01:55:43one that encompasses

01:55:44the entire race of man

01:55:46throughout the galaxy.

01:55:48The Emperor's crusade

01:55:49is still in its infancy,

01:55:51and hundreds,

01:55:52thousands of worlds

01:55:53remain to be liberated

01:55:55and brought back

01:55:55into the realm

01:55:56of the Imperium.

01:55:58You have all been chosen

01:56:00to become part

01:56:01of the greatest warrior order

01:56:04the galaxy has ever seen.

01:56:06You will be stronger,

01:56:08faster,

01:56:09and more deadly

01:56:10than ever before.

01:56:12You will fight in wars

01:56:13beyond counting,

01:56:14and you will kill

01:56:15the enemies of mankind

01:56:16on worlds far distant

01:56:18from our beloved home

01:56:19of Caliban.

01:56:21But we will do

01:56:22these things willingly,

01:56:24for we are men of honor

01:56:26and courage,

01:56:28men who know what it is

01:56:29to have a duty

01:56:30that transcends

01:56:31personal concerns.

01:56:33Each of you

01:56:34was once a knight,

01:56:36a warrior,

01:56:37and a hero.

01:56:39But now you are

01:56:40far more than that.

01:56:41From this day forth,

01:56:43you will forget

01:56:43your past life.

01:56:45From this day forth,

01:56:47you are a warrior

01:56:48of the Legion.

01:56:50Nothing else

01:56:51is of consequence.

01:56:53The Legion

01:56:55is all

01:56:56that matters.

01:56:59Zahariel!

Category

Transcript

Recommended