Call of the Lion (Short Story)
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| Author | Gav Thorpe |
| Performer | Peter Wickham |
| Publisher | Black Library |
| Series | Horus Heresy Series |
| Collected in | Tales of Heresy |
| Length | 1 hour 16 minutes |
"Call of the Lion" is a short story in the Horus Heresy series, written by Gav Thorpe.[1]
Cover description
The Dark Angels Legion is couched in layers of mystery and secrecy, harkening back to the days of the knightly orders of Caliban that helped to raise their infant primarch. But Lion El’Jonson’s greatest strength often proves to be one of the most divisive issues amongst his sons – rarely can any two commanders agree upon one single course of action from the start. As they seek to bring the world of Byzanthis to compliance, Chapter Masters Astelan and Belath are among those with very different notions of what victory might require.[1]
Synopsis
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The following paragraphs contain spoilers for: | Call of the Lion (Short Story) |
After five years of fruitless exploration, the Battle-barge The Spear of Truth finds traces of human civilization in the DX-619 system. Chapter Commander Merir Astelan, a Terran veteran, must contend with the hawkish mindset of his equal Belath, a Calibanite recently promoted to higher command. While the latter contemplates immediate conquest of the inhabited world, the former insists on offering its population the opportunity to join the Imperium of Man peacefully.
In order to determine the better course of action, Astelan leads a reconnaissance force to apprehend locals and gather information. Unfortunately, the small urban area targeted for the operation turns out to be a large military base, and the Astartes find themselves fighting a significant battle. The recon force is reinforced and falls back to its ships in orbit. There, Belath informs Astelan that the world is called Byzanthis by its inhabitants, is divided amongst six continent-wide nation-states and has a Committee of Nations — an organisation nominally in charge of international cooperation but considered weak by its own members. Astelan speaks against further military action and decides to go through the Committee, a decision Belath calls all but cowardly.
After frustrating exchanges, Astelan agrees to a meeting between the Committee and himself accompanied by Belath, both unarmed. The talks start peacefully enough, but the situation gets out of hand when one of the representatives decides to make hostages of the commanders, in response to Astartes ships positioning themselves in low-orbit above the world's capitals — an initiative of Belath's unsanctioned by Astelan. Terminators teleport in and slaughter soldiers and representatives both. Given no choice in the matter, Astelan consents to Belath giving the order to conquer the planet. As orbital strikes and drop ships rain down on Byzanthis, Astelan promises to have his counterpart punished, to which the latter replies he has had Astropaths send word of the Terran's "disobedience" and expects the Lion to lay judgment on the matter.
Setting
- The Battle Barge Spear of Truth
- The planet Byzanthis in the system designated DX-619
Characters
- Merir Astelan, Chapter Commander, master of the ship The Spear of Truth
- Belath, Chapter Commander, member of the Order of the Raven's Wing
- Paldrath Grane, Chairman of the Committee of Nations
- Kinloth, President of Confederate Vanz
- Lashkar Kerupt. This may be the name of the woman or of the power block she represented.
See also
Sources
- 1: Black Library: Call of the Lion (archived from the original 3 February 2023, last accessed 2 July 2024)
