He unbuckled one of his belt pouches and reached into it, pulling out five small, dark objects. They were glossy and opaque, nearly spherical, and refracted the light oddly.

‘Do you know what these are?’ he asked Eichner. The archivist shook his head. All around them, members of the cult leaned in a little closer, fascinated by this potential disclosure.

It was an unwise move. Even removed from the skulls of their previous owners, the eyes had power. One man, perhaps weaker of mind than his companions, began to tremble and then fell to the floor, thrashing. The other Children drew back, making noises of concern and alarm.

‘These are the warp eyes of Navigators,’ Radimir explained, raising his voice to regain their attention, and drawing a collective intake of breath from his audience. ‘Look too closely at your peril!’

‘Help him,’ Eichner directed, looking embarrassed at one of his cult being so easily overwhelmed. Two others towed the thrashing man out of view, and Eichner deliberately looked at Radimir’s face rather than what was in his hands, returning the floor to him. ‘Navigators, goodsire?’

‘Navigators,’ Radimir repeated. ‘The useful mutant. The accepted mutant.’

There was a muttering and grumbling, and several sympathetic glances cast at Svet, or the other members of the cult who exhibited traits that had taken them beyond the accepted boundaries of humanity.

‘These eyes represent the Imperium’s most finely honed genetic advances into harnessing and navigating the warp,’ Radimir continued. ‘These eyes have gazed upon the realm, perhaps even the very faces, of the gods themselves. And what do their owners do with that blessing?’ He snorted derisively. ‘They move starships around.’

The rumblings grew louder, and there were cries of ‘Shame!’

‘These are our keys,’ Radimir said, holding his hand up. ‘We will use their connection to the warp to draw the gaze of the gods here to Vorlese, and then we shall receive our rewards!’

Excited cheers, applause and self-congratulatory exclamations ensued. Radimir smiled, knowing full well that they’d take it as pleasure rather than him laughing at their gullibility.

‘But in answer to your question, Sulaman,’ he continued, pocketing the eyes again, ‘I still need three more. So while you make our preparations, I will be hunting these pampered tools of the Imperium’s will through their gilded corridors and pleasure lounges, ready to make them serve truly worthy masters.’

Sulaman Eichner fell to one knee and bent his head in awed devotion, then bounded back to his feet and waved his arms at his congregation. ‘Go! Get whatever you need! We have our purpose!’