Marko turned his head back towards the passage with a grunt of apology.
‘But he doesn’t know where to go next,’ said Lukar. ‘Or if he does, he’s taking his time deciding what to do.’
‘Ancient defences,’ said Dor. ‘There must be something up ahead that he’s trying to figure out.’
‘He has a plan.’ Marko’s interjection silenced the others. The heavy weapons specialist did not say much, but when he spoke it was usually insightful. ‘The primarch knows it is going to be dangerous. He is facing a difficult decision.’
‘Aye, that’s it,’ said Dor. ‘Weighing up the different options. Just like that time in Fellhead.’
The Lycaeus veterans laughed. Alpharius, masquerading as Terra-born, knew not to join with their reminiscing from the time of the rebellion.
‘A right bad job that was,’ chuckled Lukar. ‘Do you remember Thaneus getting his finger snapped off by that vent slam-door?’
‘Shouldn’t have been poking around in dark places,’ said Dor. His laugh stopped quickly. ‘Wait, it looks like the primarch’s ready to go.’
Alpharius risked the sergeant’s wrath with another glance towards Corax. He was in conversation with the ranking Custodian and Commander Agapito, finger pointing out one of the arched openings.
‘Squad, stand by for orders,’ said Sergeant Dor.
EIGHT
Akin to Theseus
Dark Alliances
Hidden Defences
THE EMPEROR REMEMBERED this place as the Labyrinth, a name from ancient Terran legend that only had vague meaning for the primarch. Corax knew that it did not matter which of the corridors they followed initially. Each led into a randomly shifting network of passages and bridges that responded to the presence of intruders, directing them away from the inner vault. There were also numerous automated defences, both in pre-planned killzones and wandering the maze. It was a cunning artifice, allowing no strategy because there was no logic to out-think.
Corax remembered that the shutting and opening of doors, the shifting of movable gantries and the spinning of enormous turntables, was directed by the random melting of a glacier on the other side of the mountain, impossibly intricate to predict even for his superhuman mind.
He could have the entirety of his old Legion and not be able to find a route through by trial and error. At first he had been dismayed by the thought of getting trapped in the Labyrinth, but the more he had considered the problem the more Corax had convinced himself that the Emperor had implanted some clue or stratagem that would outfox the random nature of the situation. If not, he had been sent on a fool’s errand, and that seemed equally as impossible as the task at hand.
There had to be a way, and so the primarch wracked every memory he could pull from his thoughts, seeking some tiniest nugget of truth that would provide a solution. The Labyrinth had been activated after the Emperor’s final visit, and so the Master of Mankind had never traversed its depths. There was nothing to be learnt from first-hand experience.
A flash of inspiration had come to Corax. The Emperor had overseen the construction of the Labyrinth, and in that there was a pattern. As ingenious as its operation was, the Labyrinth was not infinite; there were only so many possible configurations it could align itself to at any given time.
Slowly an image formed in the primarch’s thoughts, of passages being delved and bridges erected. He saw the great engines being sunk into the rock that would power the Labyrinth, the power channels that linked those engines to the sensor beneath the glacier, the pneumatics and gears that drove the whole machine.
Just like the mosaic behind the door, there was a formula to be discovered, a single equation that could sum up the immense operation of the Labyrinth. Corax could not compose such an equation in his head, it was too vast, but from what he could now remember of the construction it was possible to make a start.
As the workings of the Labyrinth unravelled in front of his mind’s eye, Corax saw a weakness. It was possible to present the Labyrinth itself with a dilemma it could not solve, requiring it to respond in contradictory ways that could not be physically accomplished.
The Labyrinth could be tricked into jamming itself open.
‘I need three exploration teams,’ he told Arcatus and Agapito, speaking quickly. ‘Take the sixth, eighteenth and thirtieth corridors.’
‘Is it wise to split our force, lord?’ asked Agapito. ‘You warned us of defence systems.’
‘We mustsplit our force, commander. The squads must be on full alert.’ Other memories were becoming fixed in Corax’s mind. ‘They will encounter mobile sentry devices as well as fixed gunnery emplacements. They employ laser weaponry and solid shot cannons, easily powerful enough to penetrate Legiones Astartes armour. These devices use broad spectral analysis, heat and vibration detectors, and proximity trips. Blind grenades and plasma discharges will render them inoperational for short periods. Tell the legionaries to look for sensor plates, they are likely to be mounted on the weapons themselves as well as at points on the walls. Do not forget to check the ceilings and floors.’
‘Destroy the sensors and the guns will be blind?’ said Arcatus.
‘Best to destroy the guns as well,’ said Corax. ‘There may be redundancies and cross-weapon networks in the defence grid. Warn your warriors that the battlescape will be changing constantly. The area they are about to enter is highly active, capable of transitioning from one format to another. They will come across meeting points between the elements of the maze, likely doorways and bridges. Crossing the threshold of these points will activate a transformation of the layout. Our warriors must also be prepared for environmental and gravitic changes?’
‘Gravitic changes?’ said Arcatus. ‘What sort of place is this?’
‘Some of the tunnels can invert, and there are chambers set with gravity devices counter to the standard field,’ continued Corax. ‘Also beware of thermal and atmosphere changes. The maze is hazardous, but it contains nothing that our troops cannot surmount.’
‘This sounds like a nightmare,’ said Agapito. ‘How are we supposed to get any kind of force through that? And what about those who get left behind?’
‘I know how the maze will react, and every action will be guided by me. All movements and contacts are to be reported directly to me across the command channel. All orders from me must be acted upon without delay. Arcatus, you must be my spearhead.’
‘I am under orders not to leave your side,’ replied the Custodian.
‘I must remain here to coordinate the mission,’ Corax told the gold-armoured warrior. ‘I need your group, there are not enough Raven Guard to unlock the Labyrinth. I need your warriors, Custodian, and their complete obedience.’
‘My orders were specific,’ said Arcatus, shaking his head. ‘Who can say what will happen to us in that maze?’
‘You must trust me, Arcatus,’ said Corax.
‘The Legio Custodes cannot afford the luxury of trust,’ came the reply.
The primarch searched for an alternative, eyes settling on the cyborg creations of the Mechanicum. He dismissed them. The servitors were too slow to respond to orders, and would be more of a liability than an asset during this part of the operation. Corax turned back to Arcatus.
‘I am asking for your help, Custodian,’ said the primarch. ‘Your orders may be to watch me, but your role is to protect the Emperor. With the secrets held beyond the Labyrinth, I can forge a new Raven Guard Legion. That Legion will fight against Horus. If the Custodians wish to have such allies, you must aid me now.’
Arcatus remained silent for a while, the mask of his helm hiding any thoughts and expressions.
‘Do you require all of my men?’ he asked.