'You can get all that from a card?' asked Daron Nisato.

'From the card and from you,' answered Leodegarius, drawing another card and laying it before the man standing next to Nisato. This card depicted a man hung by his ankles from a gibbet attached to an Imperial temple.

'That doesn't look very encouraging,' said Pascal Blaise. 'Is this going to be some kind of justification for executing me?'

'We need no justification for that,' hissed Barbaden. 'The lives you took in your pointless, silly resistance are all the justification I need.'

Leodegarius spoke again before Blaise could reply. 'Things have not reached fruition in your life and you must be patient. Keep your own counsel, let go of your hate, and trust your instincts in the days ahead. They will serve you well.'

Another card was turned up: a robed man sitting between two pillars with a pair of keys lying crossed at his feet.

'Cardinal Togandis, this is you, the Hierophant,' said Leodegarius. 'He symbolises the ruling power of religion and faith, the teachings that are palatable to the masses. This represents your love of ritual and ceremony, but also your need for approval from others. The Hierophant indicates the importance of conformity.'

The sweating cardinal did not answer, and Leodegarius went on.

The next card showed an old, grey-haired man on the edge of a snow-capped cliff, looking out upon the world. In one hand he carried a lantern and in the other, a winged, snake-wrapped staff.

'The Hermit,' said Leodegarius, looking at Serj Casuaban. 'On the long dark nights of the soul, the Hermit is there to guide us towards wisdom and knowledge. From the Hermit we can receive wisdom from the Emperor. The Hermit can guide us in our upcoming endeavours. He reminds us that our goals can be attained, but that the journey will not be smooth or easy.'

'I suppose I have a card?' asked Barbaden, affecting an air of studied boredom, but Uriel could see that he was intrigued to see which card would represent him.

'Indeed you do, governor,' said Leodegarius, slapping another card on the table.

The man on the card wore a long robe and stood before a table, upon which lay a cup, a wand, a sword and a pentacle. Flowers surrounded him, and above his head was a symbol that Uriel recognised as that representing Infinity.

'The Sorcerer,' said Leodegarius.

'A sorcerer?' snorted Barbaden, although there was a hint of unease in his tone. 'I may be many things, Brother Leodegarius, but I am no sorcerer. I can assure you of that.'

Leodegarius shook his head. 'You misread the card, Governor Barbaden. The Sorcerer is not literally a wielder of magic. He represents a man always in control of the choices that surround him. He holds his wand up to the heavens, and yet the opposite hand points to the earth. The Sorcerer is a warning of opportunity and, reversed like this, it indicates a person who is a perfectionist, a man who handles every situation calmly and coolly, but who uses power for destructive and negative purposes.'

'That is absurd,' said Barbaden, although from the look of those around him it was clear that they agreed with the Grey Knight's reading of the card.

'There is one final card to be dealt,' said Leodegarius, 'and that it yours, Captain Ventris.'

Uriel nodded. He had expected this, but he didn't know whether to anticipate or dread the card that Leodegarius would draw.

The card placed before Uriel displayed a tower standing high on a mountain, its structure blown apart by a lightning bolt from the heavens. A pair of figures fell from the tower.

'What does it mean?' asked Uriel.

'The fall of the tower reminds us that if we use our knowledge and strength for evil purposes, then destruction will be wrought upon us,' explained Leodegarius. 'When the Tower appears, it indicates changes, conflict and catastrophe. Not only that, but there will be an overthrow of existing ways of life.'

'Sounds just like you,' observed Pasanius dryly.

Uriel scowled as Leodegarius continued his reading. 'However, with destruction comes enlightenment. The Tower shows us that selfish ambition and greed will ultimately bring us nothing of value.'

Uriel released the breath he was holding and looked at the faces around the table. He knew them all, with the exception of Serj Casuaban, and he could see that the cartomancy had unsettled them all, even Governor Barbaden.

'So you see that you are all necessary to the coming conflict,' said Leodegarius. 'How, I do not yet know, but your destinies are linked to the fate of this world.'

'What did you mean that there was a greater threat to Salinas?' asked Uriel. 'It sounds like you are saying that what's happening now is a symptom of something more serious.'

'It is indeed, Captain Ventris, but to answer that I will need to instruct you in the history of Salinas.'

'We already know the history of Salinas,' said Leto Barbaden. 'We have a Gallery of Antiquities devoted to it should anyone feel the need to be bored rigid.'

'I meant the history of Salinas as it is known by my order,' said Leodegarius.

Before Leodegarius began his tale, he spoke into a wrist-mounted vox-unit and would say nothing until the seven Null-Servitors entered and took up positions around the edges of the room. They began their droning chant and Uriel saw that their dreadful appearance was a shock to everyone in the room. Even Barbaden recoiled in loathing at the sight of them.

'There are truths that must be spoken here,' said Leodegarius. 'And truth is powerful, it can reach beyond the realms of Men. I must speak words that should not escape into the world beyond this chamber.'

Uriel felt his skin crawl at the sight of the blank, empty-faced servitors, feeling the familiar dullness blunt his senses as their chant continued and Leodegarius began to speak.

'To understand what is happening on Salinas, you must understand a measure of the foe ranged against us. In this region of space, the walls between the material realm and the heaving madness of the Warp are thin. The currents within the Sea of Souls are felt in this world and stir the dreams and nightmares of mortals, goading their fractious hearts to discord. Voracious predator creatures lurk in the depths of the warp, and in most places, such creatures cannot force themselves from their abode of the damned to our world without willing conduits or debased followers to ease their passage. But here… here daemonic beings of great power can force themselves through on their own.'

Leodegarius paused and Uriel felt the skin beneath his armour crawl at the thought of the denizens of the warp. He had faced such creatures and knew well the havoc they could wreak. One such being was able to manifest on Salinas just over four thousand years ago, a fell Daemon Prince of Chaos named Ustaroth; a thousand curses upon its damned name. This prince of mayhem was a creature of almost limitless power and incalculable malice, and the stress of its passage from the warp allowed others of its kind to follow in the froth of its immaterial wake. Great was the slaughter unleashed, and hundreds died in the first hours of their arrival, thousands in the days following. In desperation, the Imperial Commander called for aid and a detachment of warriors from the Sons of Guilliman heard his plea. Though they knew there was little hope of victory, they diverted to provide what aid they could, for what warrior of honour could stand idly by while the forces of the Archenemy made sport with loyal servants of the Emperor?'

Uriel's heart filled with pride at the heroism of his brothers of the blood and he made a solemn vow that he would do honour to this armour, which had belonged to one of those heroes of long ago.

'The Sons of Guilliman fought alongside the planetary armies, but they were no match for the host of the Daemon Prince, who swept them aside and slew them in a great battle fought within a city in the shadow of the mountains.'