The Cadians rushed forward. Shouts echoed up from stairwells and ventilation shafts. Sirens were sounding deep within the great bastion.

The Cadians plunged deeper. They could hear the sound of batteries up ahead, the persistent thud-thud of an autocannon. They went straight towards it.

The conversation of the artillery crew did not sound like the chatter of the Jackals. This had the crisp, efficient tone of well-drilled troops.

As the Cadians gathered, readying for a charge, there was a sudden shout from behind. A supply squad had come up behind them. Minka spun about. She could make out the sight of troopers in smart uniforms jogging down the corridor.

There wasn’t a moment to lose. ‘For Cadia!’ Minka shouted and charged.

As Minka battled inside the fortress, Colonel Baytov led the elite of First Company up to attack the northern side of the Lone Redoubt.

They could see the damage done by the orbital barrage. Smoke was already rising from its air-vents and loopholes, but as they approached the dry trench, determined defenders responded with accurate las-fire.

Baytov put his hand up for a pause. His squads had pushed on, as they were trained to do, finding weak points and smashing through them.

He signalled them to either side. The Cadian kill-teams picked their way around the walls of the redoubt, looking for a weak spot. Along the next face of the hexagon they found it. An orb­ital strike had sheared off the front of a ground floor gallery. The rockcrete wall lay shattered on the floor, the arched ceiling of the chamber revealed within.

‘I’ll lead the attack!’ he ordered, and hastily divided the forces into three. One to attack, one to cover, and the other to attack the same point from the other side.

In the tight confines of the Lone Redoubt, the discipline of the Swabian Fusiliers showed. They worked without any of the shambolic attitude of the Jackals. They did not panic, but shouted their own war cries. Las-bolts stitched the air between them as the two bands closed at speed.

Ilina crouched and started to hose flaming promethium into the narrow space until a well-aimed las-bolt hit her full in the face, and she fell back with a groan of pain.

Out of the corner of her eye, Minka saw Yedrin grab the hose from Ilina’s hands. He engaged the firing handle and a flaming gout of promethium flared out. There was a furious hand to hand battle. The Cadians outnumbered the Fusiliers and the element of surprise weighed in their favour.

The Fusiliers fell back into the hab-zones of the fortress. Scattered and furious battles erupted through the outer galleries. The las-bolts were so intense that they set off fires among the heaps of bedding. Yedrin stayed close to Minka, clearing side-chambers with gouts of flame.

‘I feel like we’re being herded,’ Orugi hissed.