by Guy Haley
Backlist
Book 1 – HORUS RISING
Book 2 – FALSE GODS
Book 3 – GALAXY IN FLAMES
Book 4 – THE FLIGHT OF THE EISENSTEIN
Book 5 – FULGRIM
Book 6 – DESCENT OF ANGELS
Book 7 – LEGION
Book 8 – BATTLE FOR THE ABYSS
Book 9 – MECHANICUM
Book 10 – TALES OF HERESY
Book 11 – FALLEN ANGELS
Book 12 – A THOUSAND SONS
Book 13 – NEMESIS
Book 14 – THE FIRST HERETIC
Book 15 – PROSPERO BURNS
Book 16 – AGE OF DARKNESS
Book 17 – THE OUTCAST DEAD
Book 18 – DELIVERANCE LOST
Book 19 – KNOW NO FEAR
Book 20 – THE PRIMARCHS
Book 21 – FEAR TO TREAD
Book 22 – SHADOWS OF TREACHERY
Book 23 – ANGEL EXTERMINATUS
Book 24 – BETRAYER
Book 25 – MARK OF CALTH
Book 26 – VULKAN LIVES
Book 27 – THE UNREMEMBERED EMPIRE
Book 28 – SCARS
Book 29 – VENGEFUL SPIRIT
Book 30 – THE DAMNATION OF PYTHOS
Book 31 – LEGACIES OF BETRAYAL
Book 32 – DEATHFIRE
Book 33 – WAR WITHOUT END
Book 34 – PHAROS
Book 35 – EYE OF TERRA
Book 36 – THE PATH OF HEAVEN
Book 37 – THE SILENT WAR
Book 38 – ANGELS OF CALIBAN
Book 39 – PRAETORIAN OF DORN
Book 40 – CORAX
Book 41 – THE MASTER OF MANKIND
Book 42 – GARRO
Book 43 – SHATTERED LEGIONS
Book 44 – THE CRIMSON KING
Book 45 – TALLARN
Book 46 – RUINSTORM
Book 47 – OLD EARTH
Book 48 – THE BURDEN OF LOYALTY
Book 49 – WOLFSBANE
Book 50 – BORN OF FLAME
Book 51 – SLAVES TO DARKNESS
Book 52 – HERALDS OF THE SIEGE
More tales from the Horus Heresy...
PROMETHEAN SUN
AURELIAN
BROTHERHOOD OF THE STORM
THE CRIMSON FIST
PRINCE OF CROWS
DEATH AND DEFIANCE
TALLARN: EXECUTIONER
SCORCHED EARTH
THE PURGE
THE HONOURED
THE UNBURDENED
BLADES OF THE TRAITOR
TALLARN: IRONCLAD
RAVENLORD
THE SEVENTH SERPENT
WOLF KING
CYBERNETICA
SONS OF THE FORGE
Many of these titles are also available as abridged and unabridged audiobooks. Order the full range of Horus Heresy novels and audiobooks from blacklibrary.com
Audio Dramas
THE DARK KING & THE LIGHTNING TOWER
RAVEN’S FLIGHT
GARRO: OATH OF MOMENT
GARRO: LEGION OF ONE
BUTCHER’S NAILS
GREY ANGEL
GARRO: BURDEN OF DUTY
GARRO: SWORD OF TRUTH
THE SIGILLITE
HONOUR TO THE DEAD
WOLF HUNT
HUNTER’S MOON
THIEF OF REVELATIONS
TEMPLAR
ECHOES OF RUIN
MASTER OF THE FIRST
THE LONG NIGHT
IRON CORPSES
RAPTOR
GREY TALON
THE EITHER
THE HEART OF THE PHAROS / CHILDREN OF SICARUS
RED-MARKED
ECHOES OF IMPERIUM
ECHOES OF REVELATION
THE THIRTEENTH WOLF
VIRTUES OF THE SONS / SINS OF THE FATHER
THE BINARY SUCCESSION
DARK COMPLIANCE
BLACKSHIELDS: THE FALSE WAR
BLACKSHIELDS: THE RED FIEF
HUBRIS OF MONARCHIA
Download the full range of Horus Heresy audio dramas from blacklibrary.com
Contents
Cover
Backlist
Title Page
The Horus Heresy
Dramatis Personae
Prologue
Part One
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Part Two
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-One
Twenty-Two
Part Three
Twenty-Three
Twenty-Four
Twenty-Five
Twenty-Six
Twenty-Seven
Twenty-Eight
Twenty-Nine
Thirty
Thirty-One
Thirty-Two
Thirty-Three
Afterword
About the Author
An Extract from ‘Heralds of the Siege’
A Black Library Publication
eBook license
The Horus Heresy
It is a time of legend.
The galaxy is in flames. The Emperor’s glorious vision for humanity is in ruins. His favoured son, Horus, has turned from his father’s light and embraced Chaos.
His armies, the mighty and redoubtable Space Marines, are locked in a brutal civil war. Once, these ultimate warriors fought side by side as brothers, protecting the galaxy and bringing mankind back into the Emperor’s light. Now they are divided.
Some remain loyal to the Emperor, whilst others have sided with the Warmaster. Pre-eminent amongst them, the leaders of their thousands-strong Legions are the primarchs. Magnificent, superhuman beings, they are the crowning achievement of the Emperor’s genetic science. Thrust into battle against one another, victory is uncertain for either side.
Worlds are burning. At Isstvan V, Horus dealt a vicious blow and three loyal Legions were all but destroyed. War was begun, a conflict that will engulf all mankind in fire. Treachery and betrayal have usurped honour and nobility. Assassins lurk in every shadow. Armies are gathering. All must choose a side or die.
Horus musters his armada, Terra itself the object of his wrath. Seated upon the Golden Throne, the Emperor waits for his wayward son to return. But his true enemy is Chaos, a primordial force that seeks to enslave mankind to its capricious whims.
The screams of the innocent, the pleas of the righteous resound to the cruel laughter of Dark Gods. Suffering and damnation await all should the Emperor fail and the war be lost.
The age of knowledge and enlightenment has ended.
The Age of Darkness has begun.
~ Dramatis Personae ~
House Procon Vi, indentured knightly cohort to the Legio Solaria
Baravi Hanto, Baron
Dashiel, Hanto’s servant
Legio Titanicus Solaria, ‘The Imperial Hunters’
Mal-4 Chrysophane, Vox Omni Machina
Goten Mu Kassanius, Magos Principia Militaris, Arc
hmagos Maxima Dominus Machina Dei
Mohana Mankata Vi, Domina Princeps Bellicosa Altus Xiliarkis, Great Mother of the Legio Solaria
Esha Ani Mohana, Princeps majoris of Domine Ex Venari, Second Maniple
Fenina Bol, Moderati bellatus of Domine Ex Venari, Second Maniple
Odani Jehan, Moderati bellatus of Domine Ex Venari, Second Maniple
Nepha Nen, Moderati bellatus of Domine Ex Venari, Second Maniple
Yeha Yeha, Moderati primus of Domine Ex Venari, Second Maniple
Mephani Ohana, Moderati oratorius of Domine Ex Venari, Second Maniple
Jephenir Jehan, Moderati steersman of Domine Ex Venari, Second Maniple
Omega-6, Magos plasmancer of Domine Ex Venari, Second Maniple
Soranti Daha, Princeps of Velox Canis, Second Maniple
Jehani Jehan, Princeps of Cursor Ferro, Second Maniple
Ophira Mendev, Moderati bellatus of Cursor Ferro, Second Maniple
Yulia Demonsany, Moderati bellatus of Cursor Ferro, Second Maniple
Natandi Fahl, Moderati steersman of Cursor Ferro, Second Maniple
Kalis Nen, Moderati oratorius of Cursor Ferro, Second Maniple
Perontius, Magos plasmancer of Cursor Ferro, Second Maniple
Toza Mindev, Princeps of Procul Videns, Second Maniple
Abhani Lus Mohana, Princeps of Os Rubrum, Second Maniple
Durana Fahl, Princeps majoris of Steel Huntress, Fourth Maniple
Akali Netra, Princeps majoris of Odercarium, Third Maniple
Kana Gallia, Princeps majoris of Arcadian Might, Sixth Maniple
Osha Mir, Princeps majoris, Eleventh/Thirteenth Maniple
Kansa Rit, Princeps majoris of Broad Spear, Tenth Maniple
Gophan Niri, Princeps of Pilum Aurae
Legio Titanicus Defensor ‘Nova Guard’
Guillame Ferré, Princeps majoris, Third Maniple
Fasadian Heavy Infantry
Bollivar, Lord general, Fasadian high commander
Vannes, Colonel, Fasadian 14th
Etan Boq, Line gunner, Fasadian 86th
Suruq Reming, First watcher, Fasadian 4th
Blood Angels, Legiones Astartes IX Legion
Sanguinius, The Great Angel, primarch
Raldoron, First Captain
Azkaellon, Commander, Sanguinary Guard
White Scars, Legiones Astartes V Legion
Jaghatai Khan, The Warhawk of Chogoris, primarch
Legio Titanicus Vulpa, ‘The Death Stalkers’
Terent Harrtek, Princeps majoris Nuntio Dolores, Maniple Seven
Bennif Durant, Shield warden, princeps of Tenebris Vindictae, Maniple Seven
Maklaren, Princeps of Dust of Ages, Maniple Seven
Feydoon Bavin, Princeps majoris, Maniple Nine
Wesselek, Princeps majoris, Maniple Eighteen
Venedir Antekk, Princeps majoris, Maniple Four
Peshin Clenn, Princeps, Maniple Five
Bassack, Princeps
Casson, Personal duluz to Terent Harrtek
Word Bearers, Legiones Astartes XVII Legion
Dark Apostle Vorrjuk Kraal, Word Bearers, attached to Legio Vulpa
Dark Mechanicum
Ardim Protos, Magos, first disciple of Sota Nul
Prologue
The Final Gambit
The spires of the Phalanx formed a cityscape as glorious as any once boasted by Terra’s orbital plates, now all the more impressive for lack of suitable comparators. The plates were gone or changed as part of Terra’s transformation to fortress world. Only one remained that rivalled the Phalanx, and its beauty was much curtailed, its towers cropped back to take heavy guns, and its adornments buried beneath walls of rockcrete.
Rogal Dorn had not set foot upon his immense flagship for months, being occupied with the fortification of the Throneworld, but the time had come to ascend into orbit if but for a while, for defence was giving way to attack. In the high orbits of mankind’s home world and about its lonely moon a vast armada was taking shape, the blood red and bright white vessels of the Blood Angels and White Scars Space Marine Legions at its core.
Terra’s battered orb gleamed before the oculus of Lord Dorn’s personal observation deck, high upon a tower of the Phalanx’s spine. In a few precious places, the fragile signs of rebirth engineered by the Emperor clad Terra’s tired greyness in a fuzz of green, and the blue mirrors of infant oceans painstakingly coaxed back into being reflected Sol’s light.
The sun shone as it always had, and would for a billion more years. Man had little purchase upon its fiery orb, but the world that was Earth had suffered under mankind’s dominion, and what little reparation had been made was at risk.
‘My father’s work is under threat as never before,’ said Dorn to Malcador, the sole other occupant of the chamber. ‘This is the moment the enemy dare the walls. My brother Horus is at Beta-Garmon. He is at the outermost gates of the city. The end is near.’
The deck was wide, circular, with an unbroken window the height of several men making up the majority of the wall. So clear and perfect was the glassite compromising it that if the bronzed plasteel dome was ignored, it seemed that the chamber was open to the naked void.
‘Your fondness for siege metaphors has never been more apt, I am afraid to say,’ said Malcador.
‘How you manage to maintain a light spirit in all this is your greatest gift,’ Dorn said. ‘We all do as we are, old man. I was a castellan long before I was a praetorian. Beta-Garmon is the gateway to Terra. If Horus takes the subsector,’ he paused, and drew in a deep, weary breath, ‘when Horus takes Beta-Garmon, the way will be wide open. The race reaches its conclusion. Guilliman comes from the east. The Lion lays waste to the enemy’s holdings. Horus must make his move soon, or he will fail. He knows this, and so he will rush. Then he will make mistakes.’
‘If only he could be stopped before he reaches Terra,’ said Malcador.
Dorn looked down at the Sigillite.
‘We both know that he will come here,’ said Dorn. ‘The question is when. The task is not to stop him, but to slow him. We can weaken him at Beta-Garmon. If he can be brought to a halt before the walls of the palace, my brother will come, and trap him.’ Dorn gestured out at the cancerous smear of the Imperial Palace, clinging to the highest mountains of the world. ‘Horus’ forces are as battered as ours. Though greater in number, they abandon discipline for the barbarism of their new gods. They fragment. Sanguinius says Roboute’s Legion remains close to full strength, and his other forces are numberless. Not even Horus can resist the Ultramarines. His grip on my traitorous brothers’ egos will last only so long. If Horus is delayed, then he will lose, even if he breaches the walls of the palace itself. The calculation is then what damage will be done, and what can be prevented.
‘We will win. I will not consider the possibility of defeat. It is the manner of victory we achieve that troubles me.’ He walked closer to the oculus, turning away from Terra to the armada of ships gathering around Luna. ‘Sanguinius and the Khan are ready to depart. The Great Muster is under way at Beta-Garmon. Thousands of ships, hundreds of regiments, dozens of Titan Legios. Forces loyal to my father gather from all over the Imperium. They will ensure that Beta-Garmon is Horus’ final victory.’
Malcador walked to the primarch’s side, his staff tapping quietly on the granite floor.
‘We will pay a heavy price for this action,’ he said. ‘We will lose many resources in challenging Lupercal, and it is regrettable that the cluster will be ruined in the process. The number of Titan Legios present there alone guarantee devastation to every world. The realm of Beta-Garmon has proven most useful to the Emperor, these last centuries.’
‘Every planet lost is a despicable shame, but this is total war,’ said Dorn. ‘Beta-Garmon sits upon a confluence of st
able warp routes. A blessing for five thousand years, they are a curse to those worlds now. They offer the fastest route to Terra. The Garmon Cluster is the key to victory to whoever holds it. It is already lost to us, but in attacking it Horus has no room left for manoeuvre. He has no space to outwit us. We know where he is. We know what he is doing. His options are limited, so his genius for strategy is a lesser advantage. He must come through Beta-Garmon. If we can hold the core system, retake Nyrcon City perhaps, the front will be stabilised, not forever, but the longer the better. Sanguinius and the Khan must buy Roboute time. I would gladly sacrifice many more than the worlds of the Garmon Cluster for that. Many, many more.’
He looked to the gathering fleet.
‘The armies of the Warmaster attack the Garmon Cluster with unmatched fury. He pushes at us.’ Dorn’s eyes narrowed.
‘It is time the Imperium pushed back.’
Part One
Into the Fire
One
The First Huntress
There was wind upon her skin.
The breeze was a memory, but it felt real all the same. Life in the tank blurred the past into the present. What was and what had been existed in the same moment for her. Her life had become one long book to be browsed at will, so it did not seem so very strange to smell the animal scents of the mega-herds on the breeze, even though for over a century all she had smelled, tasted and felt was blood-warm amnion. At one and the same time Mohana Mankata Vi was entrapped in the skull of Luxor Invictoria, and she was astride her mount, Hamaj, and she was a sleeping child. She was telling the story of the day the Legio was born to a class of her daughters on Tigris. She was young. She was old.
Memory bled into dream when Mohana Mankata Vi slept. In what lesser minds regarded as the present, her naked body twitched feebly in the fluid that gave her life, her arms brushing against the network of feeder tubes, data tethers and synaptic linkage cables cocooning her.
She did not feel them. She did not see the tiny confines of her bubble world. Her body was imprisoned, but her spirit roamed free.
The wind carried fertile dust off the steppes, depositing it over the forest lands of House Vi. As the wind nourished the trees, so it blew vigour into Mohana Mankata Vi’s soul.
Sunlight blazed through hazy air, and she remembered other sensations long denied her. The trees shushed and roared as the breeze blew gently then strong. The flavour of mare’s milk lingered in her mouth. It was spring weather, hot and cold at once; the sun was warm on her face even as the raw iron of cold air burned her lungs. She panted lightly. Her face tingled, her body thrilling from her ride to the top of the bluff. Her fingers were numb about the leather of the reins, though she would never let them go. Her grip was too practised for that.
