'This way,' said Uriel plunging into a ridged opening in the far wall, emerging into a long, curving passage, knee-deep in sloshing fluids. Fronds of cilia dangled from the roof and walls of the passage, waving as though in a gentle breeze. The sludgy liquid flowed away to the right and Uriel waited for Brother Damias to join them.
As the Deathwatch assembled, Damias led them to the left, splashing through the foetid ordure against the flow. Wormlike organisms swam through the sludge, latching onto their armour and attempting to feed.
The Space Marines plucked them from their armour in disgust. They were annoying but hardly dangerous. Uriel pushed onwards through the circular tunnel, the fronds above him brushing against his helmet.
He halted as he heard a strange sound over the constant ramble of the hive ship. It sounded like distant thunder, like standing at the end of the Valley of Laponis on Macragge and listening to the noise of the far-off Hera's Falls.
As he realised what it was he shouted, 'Hold on to something!'
He punched his fist through the tough walls of the veined passage and gripped a handful of the hive ship's substance as hundreds of tonnes of organic waste thundered along the passageway towards them.
Snowdog hustled the wounded men up the stairs to the upper levels of the medicae building, wondering how long they had before the tyranids got here. The damned alarm bells were still ringing and he smashed the butt of his gun against one until it shut up. Jonny was on the landing above him and Lex was busy wiring the main door of the building with the mother of all explosive devices. Tigerlily was keeping an eye on Silver who was now stable, but still unconscious. He had no idea where Trask was, but didn't much care one way or another. He still carried the backpack filled with valuables taken from the crashed starship, so it wasn't as though Trask was off stealing that.
He pushed his way down to the vestibule, seeing the skinny shape of Lex still working at the door.
'Lex, whatever you're doing, do it quicker, man,' he said.
'Hey, I'm going as fast as I can. You know, if you helped, I could get done quicker.'
'No way, man. Me and explosives? Forget about it.'
'Well thanks for offering anyway,' sneered Lex.
'No problem. Everyone off this floor?'
'Yeah, I think so. Everyone except that crazy sister.'
Snowdog pushed his way into the main ward area. The place was deserted except for Sister Joaniel, who stood behind the central nursing station with a plain wooden box before her.
Snowdog jogged towards the nursing station and slung his lasgun. 'Hey, sister, we don't have time to hang around here. Time we was gone.'
'Is everyone safe?' asked Joaniel, tears streaking her face.
'Yeah, more or less. They're all on their way upstairs if that's what you mean.'
'Good,' nodded Joaniel. 'I couldn't save them before.'
'What? Save who?'
'All of them. On Remian. They called me the Angel of Remian because I put them back together after the war had broken them, but in the end I couldn't save them. They all died.'
Joaniel held up the wooden box and said, 'They gave me this for all the good work I'd done. It's a medicus ministorum… I don't deserve it.'
'Okay,' said Snowdog in puzzlement, 'as fun as it is to trip down memory lane, Sister Joaniel, I think we need to get going.'
As if to underscore his words, a thudding boom impacted on the thick wooden doors of the medicae building. Even through the thick walls, Snowdog could hear the scrape of hordes of aliens swarming around the building.
Lex stuck his head in the door to the wards and shouted, 'Come on, let's get the hell out of this place.'
Snowdog turned to Joaniel. 'You heard the man, now come on.'
She gathered up the wooden box, but didn't move. Cursing himself for a fool, Snowdog grabbed her by the arm and pulled her along the ward.
'Why the hell do I let myself get into these situations?' he wondered aloud.
Together they emerged into the vestibule, the doors already splintering under repeated blows from something massive. They skidded across me stone flags of the floor, sprinting for the armoured door that led to the stairs. Jonny Stomp stood at the bottom, his massive hunting rifle slung over his shoulder.
'Come on!' he yelled.
With a crash of shattered timbers, the main doors were ripped from their frame and scores of snarling creatures poured in around a massive battering ram of a monster. Its claws were massive, sheathed in splintered wood and its jaws screeched with burning fires.
It took a thunderous step into the medicae building, the stone cracking under its weight, just as Lex's bomb went off.
Snowdog gathered Joaniel in his arms and threw himself flat as the detonation slammed them both into the wall. Fire and dust and stone filled the air as the blast took out the aliens as well as the columns supporting the roof and walls of the entrance. The giant beast staggered, but didn't fall, its armoured hide painted with the gory rain of its smaller kin. It reeled at the edge of a crater gouged in the ground, blocks of stone tumbling from the walls around it.
Snowdog rolled onto his stomach, his body one giant mass of pain. Strangely, his back felt fine, but then he remembered his backpack of valuables and figured it must have protected him from the worst of the blast. He tried to push himself to his feet and cried out in pain, feeling at least one rib broken.
Joaniel pushed herself up against the stone wall, still clutching her medicus ministorum. Snowdog groaned beside her as the gigantic monster recovered its wits enough to take another stamping step towards them.
Jonny Stomp stepped down into the vestibule, his enormous hunting rifle wedged tightly against his shoulder.
The massive beast was almost upon him, the fire building between its gnashing mandibles.
Jonny sighted along the barrel and pulled the trigger.
And the beast's head vanished in an explosion of blood and bone.
Jonny was hurled through the stair door by the recoil and landed in a sprawling heap. He whooped with glee, thumbing another shell into the breech.
The monster crashed backwards into the crater blown by Lex's bomb as Joaniel pulled Snowdog to his feet. He cried out in pain as she pushed him into Jonny's arms.
'Go on!' she shouted. 'Get him out of here!'
'What you gonna do?' said Jonny.
'I'm right behind you,' said Joaniel, crouching by the medicus ministorum and flipping open its lid.
Jonny saw hundreds more of the smaller beasts gathering outside. 'Whatever you say,' he shrugged and half-carried, half-dragged Snowdog after him.
Joaniel lifted a gleaming bolter from within the box and slid home a magazine of shells.
She glanced upstairs, seeing Jonny and Snowdog rounding the first landing.
And closed the door, hearing the heavy clang of the lock as it slammed home.
Hissing monsters cautiously stalked into the medicae building, wary of more traps.
Joaniel cocked her bolter and smiled to herself. She hadn't been able to save those on Remian, but here and now she was going to do everything that was expected of a Sister Hospitaller of the Order of the Eternal Candle.
'Come on!' she screamed. 'Are you going to make me wait all day?'
She smiled beatifically as she opened fire, blasting the nearest creatures apart in controlled bursts. She fired and fired, killing dozens until finally the hammer slammed down on an empty chamber.
She dropped the weapon and spread her arms wide as the beasts leapt forward.
The Angel of Remian died with the last of her guilt washed away in blood.
Learchus ran through the rains of District Quintus, the last remnants of the defenders of Erebus falling back in disarray alongside him. Swooping creatures dived from above, tearing at the routing soldiers and even the formidable strength of the Space Marines was sorely tested.