'Please/ he said. 'Renounce it all. Repent your sins and accept the Emperor for the-good of your soul. It's not too late/
'You're still trying to save me/ I managed to get the words out through the pain. 'Glory be, Fischig… you actually shot me so you could try and save my soul?'
'Renounce the warp!' he stammered. 'Please! I can save you! You're my friend and I can still save you from yourself!
'I don't need saving/1 said.
He aimed the gun at my head. His finger tightened on the trigger. 'May the Emperor protect you, Gregor Eisenhorn/ he said.
He twitched. Once. Twice. He swayed. The bolt pistol wandered in his lolling hand and fired, harmlessly, against the corridor wall. He dropped to his knees and then fell forward onto his face as if he was praying.
I struggled to pull myself up so I could lean my back against the wall. My legs were crippled, bloody and useless.
Medea crouched down next to me. Tears were streaming down her cheeks. She let go of the needle pistol and let it clatter onto the deck.
Kara appeared behind us, a las-carbine in her hands, with Eleena and Aemos at her heels. They all looked in horror at the sight of me and Fischig.
Aemos was deathly pale, and leaning on my runestaff like a penitent pilgrim.
'Help me up/ I said, from between clenched teeth. Kara and Medea hoisted me up between them.
I looked at Aemos. 'You summoned Cherubael? It was you, wasn't it? You summoned him into one of the Essene's poor bloody astropaths?'
'They were going to burn us as heretics/ he said softly, 'and then we'd never be able to stop Glaw/
'But how did you perform the rituals, Uber? You didn't even have the book any more/
'That book/ he sighed. 'That damn book. It's all in here now/ He tapped his wrinkled forehead with a scrawny finger.
He'd memorised it. During those weeks of study he'd memorised the Mains Codicium. Thanks to a meme-virus, he was a data addict. That's what made him such a fine savant. And now his addiction had taken him to overdose.
You memorised the whole thing?'
'Word/ he swallowed and then finished, 'perfect/
There was another juddering boom and a rush of hot air gusted down the corridor.
'Are we gonna stand around like ninkers all day or are we gonna get off this ship?' Kara snapped, bracing against me.
'I think that might be wise/ I agreed.
But the way was blocked. Cherubael had come back for me.
Its malicious rampage had crippled the Essene. It was still seething with the pain I had inflicted. It wasn't even talking any more.
It surged down the corridor towards us. I couldn't reach the Malus Codicium now. I was having enough trouble just standing up.
Eleena cried out in terror. I cursed, helpless, useless.
Aemos hobbled forward and place himself between us and the charging warp-spawn. He braced the runestaff against the floor and lowered the tip towards Cherubael. He knew what to do. May the God-Emperor show him mercy, he knew better than I.
There was a release of power and light so powerful that it was beyond sound. The host body disintegrated, showering us with a hail of burned flesh, charred bone and blackened augmetic debris.
Aemos and the runestaff shuddered and jerked as they both lit up with corposant that crackled and flashed up and down them.
The last few electrical arcs sizzled away into the deck. Aemos remained standing where he was with the staff still upraised. A tiny plume of smoke licked off the headpiece.
Aemos? Aemos!'
'I've… dispossessed it… for a moment…' Aemos said without turning round. His voice was low and his words were emerging only by huge effort.'.. .So it's weak… and confused… but that won't… last… we need… a proper host vessel… for it to… occupy…'
He turned to face us. The destruction of the astropath's host body had singed his clothes and knocked his eyeglasses off.
'What did you do with it?' I asked.
He didn't answer. The effort would have been too great. Aemos would only ever say two more words to me.
'Aemos, what did you do with it?' I repeated.
He opened his eyes. They were blank. Completely blank.
It took us ten minutes to make the daemonhost safe, ten minutes we really didn't have. I was encumbered by the fact I couldn't move unaided. Eleena had to hold the
