a" too many!a"

a" abandon Reactor critical.a"

a" Fury is gone! She a"

a" ing destroyed! The Fury is a"

a"No,a" Thade said breathlessly, and then in a stunned whisper, a"Throne of Terra, no.a"

An explosion nearby jolted him back from the horror of what he was hearing on the vox. Now the Remnant was using frag grenades.

a"Zailen?a" Thade spoke calmly into his vox. Another detonation nearby elicited fresh screams.

Zailen was flat on his front some fifty metres away, his temperamental plasma gun hidden behind a gravestone in favour of his standard-issue lasrifle. Thade saw him roll back into cover, hidden from view, and heard his voice come over the vox.

a"Captain?a" Zailen was from Kasr Novgrad, on the other side of the world from Kasr Vallock, where Thade was born. His accent turned the word into Keptane.

a"Zailen, you need to kill the ones with grenade launchers. All our heavy weapons are with the squads in the north and east. Youa're it, Zailen. Copy?a"

a"Yes, captain. It will be done.a" Yiz, heptane. It vill be done.

a"Good hunting.a" Thade was looking around the edge of the wall, bolt pistol in hand. a"You see the domed chapel to our north? Look in the tower. Theya're up there.a"

a"Consider them dead, sir.a" Conzider zem dead, suh.

Thade ignored the sun-bright spears of plasma burning from Zailena's gun a moment later. He was already focused on his vox-officer. a"Janden. Janden, eyes on me.a"

a"Sir?a" Jandena's pockmarked face, acne-scarring ruining his good looks, was set in a worried scowl.

a"Get me Maggrig if you can. If not, get me Colonel Lockwood.a"

a"Sir.a" Janden started working, hitting keys and turning dials to reach some semblance of clarity on his vox-caster. Headphones on, mic extended, he repeated the same call, hoping for an answer with each new frequency he tried.

Thade resorted to his vox-bead for squad-to-squad contact.

a"Venator to Adamant, Thade to Horlarn, respond.a"

a"Adamant: Broken.a"

First Lieutenant Horlarn had to shout above the gunfire. His platoon was still taking position in the graveyard, the men setting up around small mausoleums and the unluckier ones using gravestones for cover. The Remnant came on in a horde, thankfully without heavy weaponry. The few heretics that sought safety used similar cover to the Cadians. The rest just ran on, closing fast.

Amongst the men, fighting with a borrowed lasrifle, was Inquisitor Bastian Caius. Evidently he had no desire to use his psycannon on these wretches.

Streams of angry red las-fire flashed across the distance between the two forces, scything down Remnant as they ran. The return fire hammered into the Cadian position. Not ten metres from Horlarn, Trooper Ceale flipped onto his back, spasming on the dry gra.s.s. A solid round had taken him in the right eye.

a"Horlarn?a" came Thadea's voice again.

a"Ia'm a man with a problem, sir,a" Horlarn racked his riflea's slide to single-shot. Killing these sc.u.m was chewing through his ammo reserves. He risked a glance over the gravestone he was kneeling behind. Remnant everywhere. Just ahead, several of his men were getting into some serious bayonet work, duelling with Remnant soldiers over gravestones and low walls.

a"We all are. The fleet is gone.a"

a"Say again, captain.a"

a"The fleet is gone, Horlarn.a" Thadea's voice muted and the throaty whine of a chainsword took over. After a moment, the captain returned. a"Get me the inquisitor now. We might be getting a dose of orbital bombardment in short order.a"

Horlarn yelled for the inquisitor, who disengaged from his half-hearted combat with an expression somewhere close to amus.e.m.e.nt. He acted (even smirked) like this bloodshed was somehow below him. Moving from wall to wall, Caius hunched and ran to Horlarn. His bionic eye whirred to bring the lieutenant into focus, adjusting from range-finding moving enemies.

a"Lord Inquisitor, Captain Thade has urgent news.a"

a"Give me your vox-bead,a" the inquisitor said without preamble. Horlarn complied. Caius attached the input mic to his throat and put the output bead in his ear.

a"Thade?a"

Janden was getting contact now. The other unit commanders of the Reclamation ground forces were touching base, and every story was the same. The fleet was being annihilated and screaming distress calls across every frequency. The soldiers on the surface were encountering an uprising of Remnant that came from everywhere at once. Across the city, the Archenemya's forces were ma.s.sing to repel the Imperial Guard.

Janden logged reports from the Kiridians that primary threats were being sighted as the Guard a.s.saulted the hab-blocks in the citya's residential district. The Uriah 303rd was doing nothing but yelling for immediate reinforcement to the southeast. Theya'd encountered intense resistance as they advanced down Solthanea's main avenue. The Imperial Boulevard, flanked by chapels, false reliquaries and rentable pilgrim habs, had disgorged floods of plague-slain. The Vednikan 12th Rifles were reporting armour contacts a- Remnant riot pacification tanks and troop transports corroded by poor maintenance, converted to bear heavy weapons.

There was no word from the 3rd Skarran Rangers. Nothing but silence from Overseer Maggrig.

a"Inquisitor?a" Thade kneeled in the shadow of the mausoleum, his chainsword purring in his hands. Next to him, Janden spoke rapidly into his vox-castera's speech horn, repeating himself as Kathura's interference stole the sense from his words. The vox-officer was still trying to establish contact with the rest of the 88th.

a"Inquisitor Caius?a" Thade asked again, leaving Janden to his work.

a"What ails you, captain?a" crackled the inquisitor.

a"Lord, get to Lieutenant Horlarna's vox-officer immediately. The fleet is under attack. The Guard on the ground is being hammered city-wide by this resurgence of the Remnant. We need to consolidate our forces immediately. I recommend regrouping and abandoning the spire objective. Ia'll be in contact soon.a"

At that moment, Janden turned to Thade and mouthed the word a"Lockwooda". Thade cut the link, s.n.a.t.c.hing the offered speech horn. Such was his haste, he almost crushed it in his augmetic hand without realising.

a"Colonel Lockwood?a"

a"Hea's dead,a" said the other voice. a"Who is this?a" Thade didna't answer.

a"Where is Major Crayce?a"

a"Also dead. Who is this? Confirm status of Captain Thade.a"

Thade swallowed. a"Confirmed alive. This is Thade.a"

a"Sir!a" the voice on the other end of the link was m.u.f.fled by violent distortion. a" Lieutenant Reval Wea're being overrun, capt a"

Thade could feel how pale hea'd become. His cheeks were as cold as ice. If Lockwood and Crayce were dead a"Reval, can you hear me? Confirm status of Colonel Lockwood and Major Crayce.a"

a" firmed. Primary threats sighted. Lockwooda's Chimera was No survivors I saw Crayce die myself. Frag grenade. Barely anyth left of him, sir.a"

a"Transmit exact coordinates immediately. d.a.m.n it, where are you all? Reval?a"

a" opy that, captain. Transmitting. Sir, the casualties are a"

a"Are what? Reval? The casualties are what?a"

a"Lost the link,a" said Janden. a"Ia've got the coordinates, though. Only six kilometres to the direct north. We can meet them on the way back to headquarters.a"

a"Wea've got to link up with them. Or theya've got to link up with us.a" Neither option seemed likely. Six kilometres wasna't far, but it became a nightmare trek when it was through enemy-held territory. It may as well have been a continent away.

a"You think we can convince the inquisitor that we need to link up with the colonel?a"

a"Ia'm not sure I care what the inquisitor thinks at this stage.a"

a"But the inquisitora's missiona-a"

a"Will have to wait,a" snapped Thade. a"The Reclamation is over.a"

All around him now, Thade could see his men being forced into hand-to-hand fighting. The Remnant was on them, vaulting the low walls and running among the gravestones. Thade geared his chainsword up and rejoined the fight. Blood of the Emperor, if he was going to die today, he was going to slaughter a hundred of these b.l.o.o.d.y heretics first. Rax ran at his heels, its Litany-etched jaws opening in readiness.

Chainsword growling, Thade carved through a Remnant soldier from behind. The man howled as Thadea's sword hammered into his lower back and churned his guts to soup in a whirr of grinding teeth. The captain tore the blade free and ran at the next closest heretic a- a filthy, skinny b.a.s.t.a.r.d with a blood-spotted lasrifle in his grimy hands. Thade sprinted at him, leaped from a tumbled gravestone, and snapped the heretica's neck with a flying kick that pounded into the traitora's throat. His bolter sang as he landed, banging out a thunderous refrain and slaying three more Remnant in showers of gore.

Rax leaped at a nearby Remnant soldier, jaws snapping shut on the traitora's throat in a vicious clamp like a bear-trap closing. The cyber-mastiff landed before the decapitated corpse even hit the ground, its polished jaws smeared with blood.

Zailen, hefting his steaming plasma gun, joined the captain. So did several other soldiers, rallying to Thade and lending their las-fire to his fury.

Thadea's vox-bead chimed. The signal was poor, but there was no chance to head back to Janden to use the vox-caster now. They were surrounded. Pistol in one hand, blade in the other, the captain moved from wall to wall, killing the Remnant that came within reach. The voice in his ear was m.u.f.fled beyond comprehension. His pounding heartbeat added to the maelstrom of noise all around.

a"Thade,a" he breathed, tearing his chainsword free from the chest of a Remnant soldier. a"Speak to me.a"

a" link up a"

Thadea's bolt pistol roared, cutting the voice off again. The soldier that had been running at him, bayonet lowered like a spear, collapsed without a head.

a"Repeat.a"

a"This quisitor Caius. Wea're being overwhelmed. Plague-slain and Remnant forces. We must retreat, Thade.a"

Thade laughed. He actually laughed. As the inquisitor demanded he abandon this doomed mission and his chainsword stripped the face from a howling heretic, Captain Thade laughed. Hea'd never expected to die like this, and now the time came, he found it inexplicably funny.

a"Wea're Cadian, lord. Ita's not called retreat, ita's called consolidation. I already gave the order: fall back to regroup. Otherwise, we die here.a" The trooper next to him took a hit in the belly and dropped like a sack. Thade and his shattered squad took a momenta's refuge behind a row of tombstones.

a"Captain Thade. Give me a full tactical a.s.sessment ofa-a" Caius started.

a"Not now!a" the captain barked. He looked back at the downed trooper. It was Zailen. a"Cover me, gentlemen,a" he said to the three soldiers crouched with him. And then he started running. a"Rax. The gun!a"

It was only fifteen metres, but he felt shots whickering past his body as he covered the short distance. Thadea's gloved bionic hand gripped Zailena's collar, knuckle-servos closing with silent, inhuman strength. Bolter up and firing, Thade dragged the bleeding man behind the insignificant cover of a large gravestone. Rax was at his heels, jaws clamped on the grip of Zailena's priceless plasma gun, moving backwards as he dragged the weapon.

a"Sir,a" said Zailen, unsuccessfully holding in a gush of bright blood from his stomach. Even if he survived the gut-shot, which was unlikely if he remained in the field, the chances of infection in Kathur were almost one hundred per cent. All Reclamation troops were issued with anti-infection gel to fight the increased risk of wounds turning foul on this fallen world.

a"Ia'm here, Ia'm here.a" Thade gunned down another Remnant soldier that was too close for comfort, and turned back to Zailen. a"Still with me, Zailen?a"

a"You have no idea how much this hurts.a" Bright blood oozed between his fingers, soaking his uniform. a"Wasna't this sector supposed to be almost clear? The Vednikans cleared it, they said.a"

a"Shut up and stop dying,a" Thade said. He pulled his blood-wet gloves off, taking his anti-ague gel pack from his hip webbing. He was out of bandages. a"Tasoll, get over here!a"

A nearby trooper made a break for Thadea's limited cover, throwing himself p.r.o.ne to clear the last few metres. Tasoll was clutching a laspistol in each hand, which he holstered as he knelt up next to the captain. He also removed his dirty gloves, reaching for the medical narthecium pack at his hip. Syringes and bandages were packed neatly within.

a"You got shot, Zailen?a" Tasoll said. He had a gentle voice, totally at odds with his hulking form.

Zailen hissed through clenched teeth. a"Looks like it. The Vednikan 12th said theya'd cleared this place. What is this, then? Ia've a- ow, that hurt, watch your fingers a- Ia've been shot in the b.l.o.o.d.y stomach.a"

a"Yeah, yeah, life in the Guard. They dona't give medals for getting shot, boy.a"

a"Boy? Ia'm twenty-five.a"

a"And Ia'm forty, so shut your mouth, boy. On three, move your hands. Understood?a"

Zailen made a teeth-gritted noise approximating an affirmative. Thade tapped the anti-ague gel and tossed it on the ground next to Tasoll. The medic acknowledged it with a curt nod and started counting.

Then the feeling hit Thade. A skin-crawling feeling, like a wave of insects under his armour, a million legs tickling his sweating flesh. The yells started from just ahead. Something was coming.

a"Thade?a" A voice in his ear. The inquisitor again.

a"Copy,a" Thade was already moving, his eyes flickering through the flashing las-fire and duelling groups of men, seeking the source of unease.

a"Wea're falling back to you. Is that understood, captain?a"

The source of Thadea's unease was almost three metres tall, clad in ancient armour, and swollen with disease. An oversized bolter chattered in its greenish fists. And it was not alone. From the spire ahead, more Death Guard marched slowly, bolters held at the hip. He had no idea if they walked because their ruined bodies made them unable to run, or if it was just another intimidation tactic, but they fired and Cadians started to die. Soldiers were hammered to the ground all around him. The Death Guarda's volley scythed down Imperials and heretics alike. The Traitor Astartes cared nothing for butchering their own minions.

a"Understood, inquisitor. The faster, the better,a" Thade said, throttling his chainsword. a"Primary threats sighted.a"

a"The XIV Legion?a"

a"In the flesh. And lord, we absolutely dona't have the men to win this.a" Thade ducked back into cover, firing his pistol at nearby Remnant soldiers before they could run into close combat with his men. The Death Guard were still a distant threat, out of the range of his bolt pistol even as they cut down his soldiers.

a"General order, Cadian 88th. Consolidate all force on Venatora's vox-caster coordinates. Vox back acknowledgement.a"

Miraculously, every platoon leader voxed back.

Caught in the jaws of the Archenemy, the 88th abandoned its objectives and now fought just to survive. The squads fell back, metre by metre, in an organised retreat. Like a flower closing its petals, the scattered elements of Thadea's forces came together in unity. They were bloodied, beaten, and suffered losses each step they took.

Above the ash-grey clouds, the Imperial fleet burned. Vox-casters on the surface picked up stray screams from the men aboard those dying ships.

CHAPTER XI.

Consolidation Solthane, Yarith Spire Graveyard, Monastic sector Tech-priest Enginseer Osiron swept his metal fist in a gentle panning motion, from east to west. The signum in his hand pulsed its electronic signal to his attendant servitors, and the half-living drones followed the path of their mastera's hand, unleashing a withering hail of fire. Heavy bolters surgically attached to the servitors in place of their left arms chattered and blasted. The graveyard vista before Osiron cleared as the few Remnant left alive after the volley sought shelter.