Cawl stood up from the chair, and began to unplug himself. 'Right then,' he said. 'I suppose I'd better go and wake up the Navigator. A little bit of rapid edification is in order as to whose side we're all on.'

The Silencia was swift. In very little time they had passed far from the battle and the notice of the godlike beings at war there.

Cawl was right. He could talk the Navigator around.

Half a day later they were in the warp.

Twenty-Seven

Twenty-Seven

The Wolf's Eye Opens

Silence brooded in the command deck. Few warriors spoke. Not since the early days of the Crusade had the Legion lost so many of its warriors. Not so long ago, the Imperium had become supreme. The major xenos empires were shattered, the most dangerous human cultures tamed, and so the Vlka Fenryka had thought they would never take heavy losses again. Even now, in this age of treachery and pitiless war, when they knew the mission against Horus would demand lakes of their blood, the scale of Morkai's tally shocked them nevertheless.

The wolf of death was not yet done.

'We are still losing ships,' said Lufven Close-Handed.

He, Helmschrot and Oki had ended up on the Hrafnkel in the chaos of the retreat. Hvari Red-Blade of Sepp had somehow escaped the Vengeful Spirit. He and Skunnr of Sesc were present as hololith ghosts. There was no word yet on the other jarls.

'We will survive,' said Ogvai. 'Most of our vessels are nearing the gravipause where they can make emergency jumps. The Hrafnkel nears the Mandeville. What we have lost is gone. What we have still we shall keep.'

'This is a disaster,' said Hvarl. 'We run like cowards.'

'How many are dead?' said Skunnr. 'Does anyone know how badly we fared?'

'Badly,' said Ogvai Helmschrot flatly. 'My company is below one-fifth of its strength. I have thousands dead.'

'Mine also,' said Lufven.

'Niddhoggur gone, no word from Russvangum, three more capital ships lost. We are a tribe with a shattered fleet, far from the sight of land,' said Oki. His scarred face was haggard, his skin white.

'The question is, what now?' said Skunnr.

'Ogvai, you are senior. What are we to do?' said Lufven.

'Scatter, or consolidate,' said Skunnr. 'Those are our choices.'

'If we scatter, we might survive. We can run before the traitors. They'll give up pursuit in favour of bigger targets,' said Lufven. 'Targets like Dorn's Great Muster,' said Oki. 'We should be there.'

'We cannot go there,' said Skunnr. 'We are too weak.'

'I am not one for running,' said Hvarl.

'I do not mean to leave the foe in comfort,' said Lufven. 'We could harry them from behind, pick off the weak. We can help Dorn's plan that way.'