‘Come on!’ he called. ‘Come on, all of you!’
White bodies advanced on all sides. Claws, screaming, blood, ichor. Goedendag stood at the top of a mound of naked, bound bodies, bathed in blood, and he fought like a daemon himself. But there were too many of them. The sheer weight of numbers began to overwhelm him.
And then he heard a shout. There, in the distance, he saw Telramund, armour half broken, bathed in blood and ichor. And behind him, Fastlinger, and then Franosch.
The shout came again.
‘The humans are clear.’
Tired though he was, Goedendag smiled.
‘Now,’ he said, holstering his chainsword. ‘Now it is time for meltaguns!’
The Iron Knights looked at the bodies of the fallen. Goedendag and Franosch watched the shrinking remnants of the closing portal.
‘Anything?’ asked Goedendag.
Franosch shook his head.
‘Sorry. Nothing.’ He wiped his forehead, removing a splash of blood. ‘Did it occur to you that the daemon could be lying?’
Goedendag looked thoughtful.
‘I don’t think so,’ he said. ‘It knew too much.’
‘Then the Iron Brethren exist somewhere in the warp. The story is true.’
‘Perhaps…’ He place a warning hand on Franosch’s arm. Kelra, the Imperial Guardswoman, had entered the room.
‘So, Goedendag,’ she said, ‘you succeeded. The tower is secure. The civilians are safe. Thank you.’
‘We don’t do this for gratitude,’ said Goedendag. ‘Don your helmets, brothers. It’s time to leave.’
‘But–’ called Kelra.
‘Thank you, sister,’ said Goedendag. ‘We’ll see ourselves out.’
About the Author
Manchester-based author Tony Ballantyne has written a number of SF novels and short stories, and has been nominated for the BSFA and Philip K Dick awards. For Black Library, he has penned the 40K short story Tower of Blood.
The Black Dragons battle treachery and daemons, and two Chapters unite to cleanse a space hulk of alien horrors in an all-action Space Marines omnibus.
A BLACK LIBRARY PUBLICATION
First published in Hammer and Bolter Issue 6 (2011).
This eBook edition published in 2015 by Black Library, Games Workshop Ltd, Willow Road, Nottingham, NG7 2WS, UK.
Produced by Games Workshop in Nottingham.
Tower of Blood © Copyright Games Workshop Limited 2015. Tower of Blood, GW, Games Workshop, Black Library, The Horus Heresy, The Horus Heresy Eye logo, Space Marine, 40K, Warhammer, Warhammer 40,000, the ‘Aquila’ Double-headed Eagle logo, and all associated logos, illustrations, images, names, creatures, races, vehicles, locations, weapons, characters, and the distinctive likenesses thereof, are either ® or TM, and/or © Games Workshop Limited, variably registered around the world.
All Rights Reserved.
A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN: 978-1-78572-298-1
This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to real people or incidents is purely coincidental.
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