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Captain Kalliston of the Thousand Sons, taken captive in the shattered ruins of his homeworld, is tortured and interrogated by an unseen foe. He is sure that he knows the nature of his captor, and plays a dangerous game to get him to reveal himself. But the truth is very different and far more dangerous than he thinks, and he is in more danger than he could possibly imagine...
Read it because
It's a look at the shattered ruins of Prospero and how it feels to lose your Legion, your world and your identity. And speaking of identity, the guest star will make your jaw drop...
39 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 2011
2 people are currently reading
212 people want to read
About the author
Chris Wraight
218 books380 followersChris Wraight is a British author of fantasy and science fiction.
His first novel was published in 2008; since then, he has published books set in the Warhammer Fantasy and Stargate:Atlantis universes, and has upcoming titles in the Warhammer 40K setting.
He is based in the south-west of England.
His first novel was published in 2008; since then, he has published books set in the Warhammer Fantasy and Stargate:Atlantis universes, and has upcoming titles in the Warhammer 40K setting.
He is based in the south-west of England.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
August 16, 2016
A great follow up to "Thousand Sons", and the mid-twist and the appearence of an unexpected at all guest star was really jaw falling!
March 24, 2024
March 2024 Re-Read using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project Reading Order Omnibus XI Ordu of the Khan (https://www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus...) as part of my Oath of Moment to complete the Horus series and extras.
I only listened to this a month ago, but it's one I always forget until the moment when I realise I always forget how it starts, but always remember this story.
I blathered on enough about this from different perspectives, so I'll keep this brief. This hits harder right after everything with Khârn and the World Eaters in Shadow Crusade III Chosen of Chaos and I was so confused as to why this was part of Ordu of the Khan that I went back to the website that informed me our Thousand Son protagonist here, Revuel Arvida, shows up more and gets in the mix with the White Scars.
I enjoyed returning to this and bumped it up to 4/5. I would give it full marks if it twisted the Butcher's Nails just a little more. It's well written and distinctly different, but I still want a little more oomf and heartbreak for this most epic of moments and potentialites.
Through using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project (www.heresyomnibus.com) and my own choices, I have currently read 19.41 Horus Heresy novels, 12 novellas, 55 short stories/ audio dramas, as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, 10 Primarchs novels, 4 Primarchs short stories/ audio dramas, and 2 Warhammer 40K further reading novels...this run. I can't say enough good about the way the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project suggestions. I'm loving it! Especially after originally reading to the releases and being so frustrated at having to wait so long for a narrative to continue.
***
February 2024 Re-Read Review as part of part Horus Heresy Omnibus Project reading guide Omnibus III: The Burning of Prospero
(https://www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus...) as a aspect of my Oath of Moment to complete the series.
You can really tell that I was listening to these stories in isolation with how much a saucy minx I was with my original review. Honestly, I stand by the spirit of everything below, though I found the weakness of Khârn's characterisation more upsetting than the voice, which is fine. It's just not as hot as the voice other narrators give him.
It is proving fascinating just how much reading these stories and listening to these audio dramas placed into the context of their narratives truly elevates them or makes them fall flat. With the amount I have been unbelievably emotional for both the Thousand Sons and (even more) for the Vlka Fenryka, this was a bit of a desert, despite the monumental cosmic weight of the events of this story that heartbreakingly aren't conveyed by the text.
As I said previously, Wraight is a great writer, Leman Russ: The Great Wolf was a slow burn for me, but came together with a monumental tidal wave of pathos and a perfectly finished account. Unfortunately, there is a bit of a case of the 'could be any Legiones Astartes', in spite of the magical references for the Son of Prospero, and a bit too feral without tortured, beautiful, tarrered soul behind it for Khârn. There's a little telling of the conflict in him, but none of the showing.
Since starting the Horus Heresy series again, the grading on a curve has gone because so many of these books are such glorious works of art it's a tragedy more people didn't read them and they get dismissed for being connecting to Space Nazi Yahtzee, so I'm treating them with the respect they deserve.
I want tragedy in my Horus Heresy, but in the text, not from missed opportunities and flashes of brilliance in a disappointingly dull smouldering wreckage of Tizca.
***
Initial Review 3/5
This is an above competent short story first published in the Age of Darkness anthology and later in the larger short story and audio drama collection, Lupercal's War. It suffers greatly from comparison to the tales that came before it in the main novel series, Prospero Burns, The First Heretic, and A Thousand Sons (Nemesis not so much) and other surrounding media, After Desh'ea, Butcher's Nails, and Kharn: The Eightfold Path. There is an established weight to this moment in time and the characters in it that bring additional scrutiny that, sadly, it does not measure up to. This is only compacted by a truly significant moment that is not rendered with the impact it deserves.
Prospero has burned. Magnus and his remaining sons have fled. The Sisters of Silence and Custodes are on their way back to Terra. The Wolves of Fenris slink into the shadows with bloody maws, nursing the nihilistic trauma from their duty as the executioners of their brothers. A squad of the Thousand Sons, returns to the ashes of their world with no knowledge of the perfidy that fractures the galaxy. Their leader discovers an unexpected hound digging among the ruins of this world devoured by war. When their paths cross, their fates are sealed.
I'm guessing if you have read/ listened to this you are familiar with the ludicrous Council of Nikaea (allusions with a letter or two different? Just do it) and the tragedy of Magnus. That is unless you followed the unfathomable directions of the Lupercal's War collection: Start Here. In a nutshell, the Emperor, one of the most powerful psykers ever to exist ever, said, "no more space wizards!", whistling, looking coy, and winking at his platonic life parter, who just happens to be another of the most powerful celestial sorcerers of all time. Magnus did a whizzbang to get to Terra at gods speed when he found out Horus was doing a Heresy, totally wrecking the shit out of his dad's mancave in the process. To teach his wayward son a lesson he sent his were-executioners, quiet daughters, and Oscar trophies to destroy his son's world, slaughter all his sons (their cousins), and murder his boy.
All that literally just happened right before this story takes place, as well as us having spent some time with the Red Angel, reigning champion of tragic parenting and valedictorian of the school of hard knocks. He is a precious, traumatised, angry baby, and his sons, the newly christened World Eaters represented by Khârn, the charming, charismatic, and loving member of a polycule with a Bearer of the Word, Argal Tal, and the Daemon who possesses him (collectively known as Khârgal Tal). Up until this point Khârn has the voice of a Russian Daemon of whiskey and lust (this might only be relevant to me). The important thing is the World Eaters and their Primarch are kicked puppies/ Warhounds with big teeth, Khârn is very cool, and we are all super smart because we know about a certain special character that has existed in Warhammer 40K for a very long time...
With everything more interesting than this story relayed and my disappointment delayed enough, the out of the loop Thousand Sons come back to a World Eater welcome and their leader has a tete-a-tete with Khârn. That's it. A little bit of action. Some underwhelming dialogue and exposition. What should have been a moment where I cried at other possibilities that fate is to cruel to allow to happen, so they must surely live on in fanfic. And, far and above the greatest atrocity committed by this story, and something that actually cannot be blamed on Wraight at all, Jonathan Banks didn't get the brushed cotton and bourbon sex voice memo for Khârn. I'll never be happy again.
Obviously, this is all a little hyperbole and fangirling because I have to cope with my disappointment and my own Butcher's Nails of AuDHD. Wraight does a decent job and Banks is a brilliant narrator when he is not burying a chainglaive in my heart. This is an almost impossible moment to get right, not least of which because of the expectations and established emotional tone, not to mention the many, many different writers and performers who have left their own individual marks on the narrative leading up to this.
Honestly, if I wasn't so heartbroken and constantly re-evaluating the grading on a curve I personally feel necessary for works from the Black Library, simply because the quality vacillates so wildly, there may have been a fate where I gave this a very generous 4/5. But self-pity causes the Nails to sing like the Redeemer in a bag of cats and so a respectful and earned 3/5 it is.
Next up in Lupercal's War is Little Horus by Dan Abnett featuring the second pretending to be part of a sculpture play of this collection, which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice. Right?
I only listened to this a month ago, but it's one I always forget until the moment when I realise I always forget how it starts, but always remember this story.
I blathered on enough about this from different perspectives, so I'll keep this brief. This hits harder right after everything with Khârn and the World Eaters in Shadow Crusade III Chosen of Chaos and I was so confused as to why this was part of Ordu of the Khan that I went back to the website that informed me our Thousand Son protagonist here, Revuel Arvida, shows up more and gets in the mix with the White Scars.
I enjoyed returning to this and bumped it up to 4/5. I would give it full marks if it twisted the Butcher's Nails just a little more. It's well written and distinctly different, but I still want a little more oomf and heartbreak for this most epic of moments and potentialites.
Through using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project (www.heresyomnibus.com) and my own choices, I have currently read 19.41 Horus Heresy novels, 12 novellas, 55 short stories/ audio dramas, as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, 10 Primarchs novels, 4 Primarchs short stories/ audio dramas, and 2 Warhammer 40K further reading novels...this run. I can't say enough good about the way the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project suggestions. I'm loving it! Especially after originally reading to the releases and being so frustrated at having to wait so long for a narrative to continue.
***
February 2024 Re-Read Review as part of part Horus Heresy Omnibus Project reading guide Omnibus III: The Burning of Prospero
(https://www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus...) as a aspect of my Oath of Moment to complete the series.
You can really tell that I was listening to these stories in isolation with how much a saucy minx I was with my original review. Honestly, I stand by the spirit of everything below, though I found the weakness of Khârn's characterisation more upsetting than the voice, which is fine. It's just not as hot as the voice other narrators give him.
It is proving fascinating just how much reading these stories and listening to these audio dramas placed into the context of their narratives truly elevates them or makes them fall flat. With the amount I have been unbelievably emotional for both the Thousand Sons and (even more) for the Vlka Fenryka, this was a bit of a desert, despite the monumental cosmic weight of the events of this story that heartbreakingly aren't conveyed by the text.
As I said previously, Wraight is a great writer, Leman Russ: The Great Wolf was a slow burn for me, but came together with a monumental tidal wave of pathos and a perfectly finished account. Unfortunately, there is a bit of a case of the 'could be any Legiones Astartes', in spite of the magical references for the Son of Prospero, and a bit too feral without tortured, beautiful, tarrered soul behind it for Khârn. There's a little telling of the conflict in him, but none of the showing.
Since starting the Horus Heresy series again, the grading on a curve has gone because so many of these books are such glorious works of art it's a tragedy more people didn't read them and they get dismissed for being connecting to Space Nazi Yahtzee, so I'm treating them with the respect they deserve.
I want tragedy in my Horus Heresy, but in the text, not from missed opportunities and flashes of brilliance in a disappointingly dull smouldering wreckage of Tizca.
***
Initial Review 3/5
This is an above competent short story first published in the Age of Darkness anthology and later in the larger short story and audio drama collection, Lupercal's War. It suffers greatly from comparison to the tales that came before it in the main novel series, Prospero Burns, The First Heretic, and A Thousand Sons (Nemesis not so much) and other surrounding media, After Desh'ea, Butcher's Nails, and Kharn: The Eightfold Path. There is an established weight to this moment in time and the characters in it that bring additional scrutiny that, sadly, it does not measure up to. This is only compacted by a truly significant moment that is not rendered with the impact it deserves.
Prospero has burned. Magnus and his remaining sons have fled. The Sisters of Silence and Custodes are on their way back to Terra. The Wolves of Fenris slink into the shadows with bloody maws, nursing the nihilistic trauma from their duty as the executioners of their brothers. A squad of the Thousand Sons, returns to the ashes of their world with no knowledge of the perfidy that fractures the galaxy. Their leader discovers an unexpected hound digging among the ruins of this world devoured by war. When their paths cross, their fates are sealed.
I'm guessing if you have read/ listened to this you are familiar with the ludicrous Council of Nikaea (allusions with a letter or two different? Just do it) and the tragedy of Magnus. That is unless you followed the unfathomable directions of the Lupercal's War collection: Start Here. In a nutshell, the Emperor, one of the most powerful psykers ever to exist ever, said, "no more space wizards!", whistling, looking coy, and winking at his platonic life parter, who just happens to be another of the most powerful celestial sorcerers of all time. Magnus did a whizzbang to get to Terra at gods speed when he found out Horus was doing a Heresy, totally wrecking the shit out of his dad's mancave in the process. To teach his wayward son a lesson he sent his were-executioners, quiet daughters, and Oscar trophies to destroy his son's world, slaughter all his sons (their cousins), and murder his boy.
All that literally just happened right before this story takes place, as well as us having spent some time with the Red Angel, reigning champion of tragic parenting and valedictorian of the school of hard knocks. He is a precious, traumatised, angry baby, and his sons, the newly christened World Eaters represented by Khârn, the charming, charismatic, and loving member of a polycule with a Bearer of the Word, Argal Tal, and the Daemon who possesses him (collectively known as Khârgal Tal). Up until this point Khârn has the voice of a Russian Daemon of whiskey and lust (this might only be relevant to me). The important thing is the World Eaters and their Primarch are kicked puppies/ Warhounds with big teeth, Khârn is very cool, and we are all super smart because we know about a certain special character that has existed in Warhammer 40K for a very long time...
With everything more interesting than this story relayed and my disappointment delayed enough, the out of the loop Thousand Sons come back to a World Eater welcome and their leader has a tete-a-tete with Khârn. That's it. A little bit of action. Some underwhelming dialogue and exposition. What should have been a moment where I cried at other possibilities that fate is to cruel to allow to happen, so they must surely live on in fanfic. And, far and above the greatest atrocity committed by this story, and something that actually cannot be blamed on Wraight at all, Jonathan Banks didn't get the brushed cotton and bourbon sex voice memo for Khârn. I'll never be happy again.
Obviously, this is all a little hyperbole and fangirling because I have to cope with my disappointment and my own Butcher's Nails of AuDHD. Wraight does a decent job and Banks is a brilliant narrator when he is not burying a chainglaive in my heart. This is an almost impossible moment to get right, not least of which because of the expectations and established emotional tone, not to mention the many, many different writers and performers who have left their own individual marks on the narrative leading up to this.
Honestly, if I wasn't so heartbroken and constantly re-evaluating the grading on a curve I personally feel necessary for works from the Black Library, simply because the quality vacillates so wildly, there may have been a fate where I gave this a very generous 4/5. But self-pity causes the Nails to sing like the Redeemer in a bag of cats and so a respectful and earned 3/5 it is.
Next up in Lupercal's War is Little Horus by Dan Abnett featuring the second pretending to be part of a sculpture play of this collection, which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice. Right?
May 21, 2022
Would have worked much better if we had more contact with Kharn before this. The interrogation scenes were fine, the remembered action scenes were meh. Would only make sense if they make the bed for further characters to be introduced, which I think they might. That future seeing guy might return.
September 11, 2023
Dažādajiem Horusa atbalstošajiem leģioniem ar pārsteiguma elementa palīdzību ir izdevies gūt neskaitāmas uzvaras, brutālas un nežēlīgas Imperatora lojālistu sakāves, bet pēc vairākiem stāstiem no ‘’slikto’’ tēlu nometnes, rodas jautājums, vai nesaskaņas un neuzticība pašu rindās nenovedīs uzurpatora Horusa centienus pie nozīmīgākās sakāves.
https://poseidons99.wordpress.com/202...
https://poseidons99.wordpress.com/202...
July 10, 2021
I still don't like Martin Ellis :( 3
April 19, 2025
"Knowledge is power"
A quick story involving some Thousand Sons lost to the warp, returning home to Prospero after it's sacking. This was a quick and eventful story, but I enjoyed it's addition to the events at Prospero and involvement of the World Eaters
Horus quickly making his advantageous moves. I honestly think I just really like the Thousand Sons
A quick story involving some Thousand Sons lost to the warp, returning home to Prospero after it's sacking. This was a quick and eventful story, but I enjoyed it's addition to the events at Prospero and involvement of the World Eaters
Horus quickly making his advantageous moves. I honestly think I just really like the Thousand Sons
February 12, 2023
A very interesting story. I really like the Thousand Sons stories that focus on the characters and dialog more than on the action and this book delivers on that. It also sets up for other storylines and makes good use of its characters.
December 13, 2024
Semi interesting twist in this one, although I wasn't sure where it was going or if there was meant to be any sense of urgency in the story. I feel like this one is more like a mini prologue for a novel I've yet to read, nothing of note occurs.
March 28, 2018
A nice short story sequel to The Thousand Sons
October 25, 2021
I always enjoy hearing more about the Thousand Sons and getting a look at Prospero in ashes is interesting as is the nice twist part way in to the story.
November 16, 2022
Love anything to do with the Thousand Sons and this was quite insightful to post destruction of Prospero.
January 19, 2025
Some interesting throw backs to the aftermath of Prospero in this one.
Collected in age of darkness anthology.
Collected in age of darkness anthology.
January 24, 2025
Good dog. Yes, good Emperor's lapdog. You're a good boy, aren't you?
Oh.
Wait.
You're not THOSE dogs. Oh dear. This isn't going to end well for me at all....
Oh.
Wait.
You're not THOSE dogs. Oh dear. This isn't going to end well for me at all....
July 24, 2025
A direct follow-up to "Thousand Sons" by McNeill.
Surviving members of the Thousand Sons return to the Prospero seeking a sign of their father. Dark and depressing.
Surviving members of the Thousand Sons return to the Prospero seeking a sign of their father. Dark and depressing.
March 21, 2016
Rebirth shows us what a wayward group of Thousand Sons, following the true Desolation of Prospero. It was an interesting short, and it was awesome to see some of the Thousand Sons that weren't killed or ghosts. The short also focused on Kharn, surprisingly, and it was awesome getting to see Kharn's descent into madness. Going from his noble portrayal in Galaxy in Flames, to his beginnings of bloodlust that he is known for in the 41st millennium.
September 26, 2024
A delightful short story that answers an oft ignored question of what did the other Thousand Sons too far from Prosper do once Magnus ordered this legion to stand down? Captain Menes Kalliston learns the hard way that you can never really go home.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews