I'm re-reading the Horus Heresy in preparation to start the sub-series Siege of Terra, and this is my review of Heralds of the Siege , book 52 in the series. Heralds of the Siege is an anthology, consisting of several short stories, and I'm going to review each one. Blackshield is the fifth short story in the book, written by Chris Wraight.
The 14th Legion, called the Death Guard, are masters of pestilence. Having come from the feral world of Barbarus, with an atmosphere thick with poisonous gases and an unforgiving landscape, they're accustomed to virulence and pride themselves on their ability to withstand it. When Sergeant Khorak and his crew land on the methane swamp world of Agarvian, it's a little like returning home to Barbarus. It doesn't feel like a homecoming, though, because they land there out of desperate necessity. They're being pursued by an unknown, but presumably loyalist, foe.
Most of the story is about Khorak and his crew making their way through the unforgiving marshes of Agarvian, keeping out of sight of the unknown chapter of space marines hunting them down.
Eventually, they're discovered by a unit of space marines in black armour, without identifying heraldry. Khorak wears Terminator armour, so he and his men put up a good fight, but their enemy has the advantage of numbers. Reinforcements keep flooding in, and soon Khorak stands alone against the unknown legion before him.
And that's when it becomes clear that the men pursuing him are also of the Death Guard legion.
It's strangely easy to fall into absolutes, even in Warhammer, which makes it pretty clear that there are no such things. In one story, your hero is loyal to the Imperium, in another your hero is sworn to chaos, in another it's a rogue trader, and in another it's a xenos from far away. It's practically impossible to choose one side to champion in the Warhammer universe. It's just too messy.
This story reinforces that idea. Khorak and his pursuer, Crysos Morturg, are both Death Guard. Khorak had chosen to be loyal to Horus Heresy, but some recent events had caused him to doubt his resolve. Morturg considered himself allied with neither Horus or the Emperor, and instead was on a mission to hunt down all Death Guard still loyal to their Primarch, Mortarion.
Khorak and Morturg don't join up, or anything. Their face-off ends with Khorak's death, but it makes Morturg question the state of things.
The story of Morturg and Khorak is interesting to read, and it's a really good vehicle for demonstrating how there are exceptions to every "rule" in the lore. Just like in the Black Fortress novel, sometimes you find unlikely allies based on circumstance. Other times, as in Blackshield, you discover that your former allies have changed allegiance.
This was a good story. Space Marine psychology is fascinating, and it's genuinely interesting to read about how each one deals with the concept of having a "gene father" and a hundred thousand brothers It's even more complex when civil war enters the equation, and this story is right in the thick of it.
All images in this post copyright Games Workshop.