‘Ever since the conclusion of the Great Crusade, it has become harder and harder to hold on to things…’ Eurotas sighed. ‘Our fortunes are on the wane, my friend. I have tried to hide it, but it grows worse every day. I thought perhaps, when we return to Terra, I could petition the Sigillite for an audience, and then–’
‘Where is the Warrant of Trade?’ Spear was growing tired of the Void Baron, and he struck out with the question.
Eurotas reacted as if he had been slapped. ‘It… In the reliquary, of course.’ The lie was a poor one at best.
‘I am your senior security operative, sir,’ Spear retorted. ‘Please credit me with some intelligence. Where is the real Warrant?’
‘How did you know?’ He shot to his feet, knocking the water glass to the floor where it shattered. A service mechanical skittered in across the carpet to clean up the breakage, but Eurotas paid it no heed. ‘Only three people…’ He paused, composing himself. ‘When… did you find out?’
Spear studied him. ‘That is of no consequence.’ After the abortive infiltration of the reliquary, the killer had been careful to ensure that no trace of his entry remained. ‘What matters is that you tell me where the real Warrant is now. If you are correct about these agents in the employ of the Warmaster, then we must be certain it is secure.’
‘They were looking for it…’ whispered Eurotas, shocked by the thought.
When the baron looked up at him with cold fear in his eyes, Spear knew that he had the man in his grasp. ‘My sworn duty is to serve the Eurotas clan and their endeavours. That includes your… network. But I cannot do that if the Warrant becomes lost.’
‘That must never happen.’ The Void Baron swallowed hard. ‘It is… not with the fleet. You have to understand, I had little choice. There were certain arrears that could not be paid, favours that were required in order to keep the clan operating–’
‘Where?’ Spear cracked Hyssos’s gruff voice like a whip.
Eurotas looked away, abashed. ‘The Warrant of Trade was touched by the hand of the God-Emperor of Mankind, and so in the eyes of those who embrace the word of the Lectitio Divinitatus, it is a holy object. In exchange for the nullification of a number of very large debts, I agreed to allow an assemblage of nobles involved with the Theoge to take possession of the Warrant for… for an extended period of pilgrimage.’
‘What nobles?’ Spear demanded. ‘Where?’
‘They have not answered my communications. I fear they may be dead or in hiding. When Horus’s forces find them, they will be wiped out, and the Warrant will be destroyed…’ His lip trembled. ‘If it has not already been.’ Eurotas looked up. ‘The Warrant is on the planet Dagonet.’
Finally. The answer. For a long moment, Spear considered breaking out of Hyssos’s restrictive body and reverting back to his kill-form, just to show Eurotas what sort of fool he was the instant before he ripped him to shreds; but instead he let the rage ebb and gave a sullen nod. ‘I will need a ship, then. The fastest cutter available.’
‘You cannot go to Dagonet!’ Eurotas insisted. ‘The government there has already declared for the Warmaster! There is word that the Sons of Horus are on their way to the planet at this very moment… It’s suicide! I won’t allow it.’
Spear twisted his proxy flesh into a sorrowful smile, and gave a shallow bow. ‘I swear to you I will recover the Warrant, my lord. As of this moment, my life has no other purpose.’
At length, the nobleman nodded. ‘Very well. And may the Emperor protect you.’
‘We can but hope,’ he replied.
THIRTEEN
Faith or Duty / Bonded / The Warrant
The summons came from the Vindicare, and so Iota joined Kell and the rest of the Execution Force in one of several storage rooms down in the web of caves, away from the more heavily-populated sections of the hideaway. The room smelled of promethium; drums of the liquid fuel were stacked to the ceiling in corners, and the air circulation system worked in fits and starts.
Kell had been careful to time the gathering to coincide with the regular overflights of clan patrol craft; every time it happened, the rebels would fall silent, go dark, and wait for the flyers to make their loop over the Bladecut before heading back to the city. It meant that Capra, Beye, Grohl and the others were all occupied, allowing the assassins to gather unnoticed, at least for a little while.
The Vindicare surveyed the room, looking at them all in turn. Iota noted that he looked to Soalm last of all, and seemed to linger on her. She wondered if his sibling understood the meaning behind that fractional moment. Iota regarded her understanding of human social interaction as an ongoing experiment, but her limited knowledge also afforded her a clarity that others lacked; for all the distance between the brother and sister, it seemed obvious to the Culexus that Kell cared for Soalm more than the woman knew – or wanted to know.
‘We’re entering the final phase,’ Kell said, without preamble. ‘Beye’s contacts in the city have sent word of sightings at the perimeter of the Dagonet system. Warp disturbances. The prelude to the opening of a gateway.’
‘How long until we know for sure?’ asked Koyne. The Callidus looked like a child’s doll the size of a man, all sketched, incomplete features and pale skin.
‘We can’t stay put and wait for confirmation,’ Tariel said, without looking up from his cogitator gauntlet’s keyboard. ‘By the time the warships enter orbit it will be too late.’
The Garantine made a rumbling noise in the back of his throat that appeared to be an affirmation.
‘We commit now,’ said Kell. ‘The Lance has been concealed, yes?’ He looked at Tariel, who nodded.
‘Aye,’ said the infocyte. ‘Grohl supplied transport from the star-port. I supervised the assembly of the component parts myself. It’s ready.’
‘But there’s no way to test it, is there?’ Koyne leaned forwards. ‘If this doesn’t work…’
‘It will work,’ Kell insisted. ‘Everything we’ve done has been leading up to this moment. We’re not going to start second-guessing ourselves now.’
‘I was only making an observation,’ said the shade. ‘As I will be the closest to the target, I think it’s fair to say I have the most invested in a trouble-free termination.’
‘Don’t fret,’ said the Eversor. ‘You won’t get too dirty.’
‘We have fall-back options in place.’ Kell ignored the comment and nodded towards Iota and Soalm. ‘But for now, we concentrate on the primary schema.’ He paused and threw Tariel a look.
The Vanus operative consulted a timer window among the panes of hololiths hanging before him, and then glanced up. ‘The clanner patrols should be heading back to the capital at any moment.’
‘And we’ll follow them.’ Kell reached for his spy mask where it hung from his gear belt. ‘You all have your own preparations to make. I suggest you complete them in short order and then head out. Each of us will go back into the capital individually via different routes, and rendezvous at the star-port. I’ll be waiting for you aboard the Ultio after sunset.’
The only member of the group who did not move after Kell’s dismissal was Soalm. She looked at the Vindicare, her lips thinning. ‘Has Capra been informed?’
‘Don’t be a fool!’ snorted the Eversor, before the other man could even speak. ‘We may have killed one of the turncoats in this little play-gang of rebels, but there are likely others, watching and waiting for something juicy to report before they betray this place.’ The Garantine opened his clawed hands. ‘These people are amateurs. They can’t be trusted.’