A few orks lingered, struggling against the quagmire, but they were dispatched by las-volleys. Shard brought the Vulture about as the Chimera squads disembarked, dragging the ork bodies together for disposal, and attaching krak grenades to those few airboats that remained unsunk. It seemed wasteful. The orks profited from our war efforts, most of their equipment constructed from co-opted Imperial technology. But we could not retrieve it now, for it was xenos-tainted, and to salvage it would invite execution for tech-heresy.

Shard slowed; the Vulture hovered twenty feet above the ground.

‘Did you get all that?’ she asked, turning in her seat.

‘I got enough,’ I said. ‘Was that fly-by for my benefit?’

‘Thought you’d appreciate the footage.’

Her voice was flat, but I did not dwell on it. It was a relief to finally have something, short as it might be. The Guardsmen had struck down or driven off the greenskin attackers without a single casualty. Shard’s approach had been flawless, her attack timed perfectly for maximum disruption. The ork confusion and infighting was precisely the material I needed, for it showed how we could triumph against them. For the first time since arriving on Bacchus, the world felt ordered. Yes, the orks were a threat. They were strong and savage, and far more capable than I first realised. But fearlessness made them headstrong. They lacked tactical acumen and subtlety, too anxious to close the distance and attack. They lacked guile.

My focus shifted to Mizar, who bobbed amongst the troopers, capturing their relief and joy in victory. There was even laughter, though the sergeant was quick to stifle it with an admonishing look. Still, I do not think his heart was in it. The troops needed a moment’s levity, just sometimes. Just to stay human.

The ork dead were being dragged into a mound, the squad’s flamer trooper preparing to incinerate them.

I glanced to Shard. ‘Why burn the bodies? Why not just leave them to the swamp?’

She shrugged. ‘Old superstition. If you don’t burn them, they come back.’

‘The bodies… revive?’

She laughed. ‘No. Those are just stories. For the most part.’

‘The most part?’

‘That’s a separate conversation. All you need know is you cannot get rid of orks. Were you to wipe out every last one, somehow they’d find a way back. I’ve heard old soldiers claim their fallen just sprout back from the earth like weeds. That’s why they burn them.’

‘You think it makes a difference?’

‘I don’t see the harm. They must come from somewhere.’

‘Are there… ork females?’

‘For all we know these are the females,’ she replied with a smile. ‘They’re certainly tough enough.’