In the end, we didn't discuss anything of any particular interest. We mostly talked about the usual things, like who killed how many xenos during a campaign and how Cas beat an ork with to death with its own leg. Marines tend to do that, even the Emperor's Children, though they'll tell you it's completely different in their case.

I expressed some surprise over this and so the Captain had to sidetrack again. It seems it was becoming a habit.

Maybe I am being somewhat unfair. The Emperor's Children are as fine a Legion as any, but that does not mean they don't have their flaws, as loath as they might be to admit it. They are vain. They are arrogant.

Perhaps suicidaly I pointed out that some of Captain Kharn's statements may be viewed as arrogant as well. Luckily for me, he merely shrugged and continued.

It's not arrogance when one has the skill to back it up.

But, as I was saying, it might be that I am being unfair towards the Third Legion. I never liked them that much. I mean… they write poems. They paint. We're warriors, not peacocks. You'd have thought they had learned more from the Death Guard, but apparently it only made for some really odd friendships and really bad jokes.

Hm… Though, now that I think about it, I suppose they could be worse. They could use perfume.

But I'm off topic again. As I was saying I was talking with the Griffins and I suppose I was also trying to gauge where we would stand with one another. It's quite different to hear about someone, about their exploits, and then meet them face to face. In my experience, it's rare that you do not have to change your opinion on them. Don't you agree?

The jibe was not entirely unwarranted, it pains me to admit. I did harbor certain prejudices, after all. On the other hand, it seems the Captain didn't notice the irony of him complaining about the Emperor's Children just a few moments ago.

I have said my input shall be minimal, but I think it's one of the observations that I should share. It was at this point that I truly realized that the Emperor's Astartes are still human. For all their prowess in battle, their fearlessness and monstrous strength, they share our flaws. Some are vain. Some are grouchy. Some make bad jokes.

Luther of Caliban had once written that they are not "warriors with the warm hearts of men, but angels with the cold hearts of weapons." How odd that such words were uttered by a man who had known a Primarch so well, who had stood by his side as his Legion rose and yet could not see what had become so clear for me after mere days in the company of one Space Marine.

Though, I will admit the perspective of an Astartes can be very alien at times.

So, we traded old and new war stories and each of us was trying to make ourselves look the bigger, stronger and more ferocious one.* As it turns out, Adi was there when the Griffins razed Trujillo, though that was about as much as I got out of him. He just grumbled that it deserved what it got and that was it.

Quite disappointing really. I mean, we all know the rumors about Primarch's Janos planet of origin, but you'd want to have them confirmed, but the person who knows more will not talk. Still, we have to live with such disappointments. I think Cas was talking about his fight with an Eldar Wraithlord, when both Janos and Angron found us.

"Cas, I need you to contact our fleet," Janos said. "We need to decide what is our next destination—notify all the usual people. We need them here, in the briefing room on the Conqueror in three hours."

Cas was gone like that and so was I—after all, I was the only War Hound officer present and somebody needed to call our part of the committee. It was still a bit of a tight schedule and truthfully, I'd rather we wouldn't consider leaving until Lord Angron got used to Primarch Janos and the Griffins, but on the other hand, it was getting boring and I've been told I tend to… fret. About sixty three times until today.

By the time I notified everybody I needed to—that actually didn't take that much time: all Army officers and Space Marines have at least a commbead on themselves all the time, not to mention our armor does come with a communication array—Janos had started quizzing Angron on his knowledge of our Fleet.

He wasn't doing half bad from what I caught. The only big mistake he made was about how many ships we had in our fleet. Otherwise, he got everything right, including all the Army units and I'm pretty sure none of us ever gave him a list of them.

I suggested it might have been the reports about the fights between the ex-gladiators and the soldiers, to which I got:

That's possible. In any case, those three hours passed quite quickly and we all filed into the briefing room. We—the War Hounds—knew our places. Or rather had known. Now that we had a Primarch he took the main place and not Ghreer. Janos took a spot beside him, which had the Griffns stand on his right and us opposite to them. With the Army, the Fleet Masters and the head Adepts, we encircled the hololithic display.

"With your permission, brother," Janos said, "I have asked Master Graam to prepare a list of possible target locations."

Angron nodded.

"We have information of two habitable systems from old data found on this planet," the Griffin's Master of the Fleet said. "At the time the information was recorded neither system was inhabited by any sentient life forms. The first, four weeks travel away, consists of three terrestrial planets and one gas giant. Two of the terrestrial worlds are habitable; however, the system itself seems to be poor in resources. The second one, six weeks travel, consists only of gas giants; however, one of them has habitable moons."

"While we could flag the systems as viable for colonization, it might be prudent to at least send some scouts there, given that we have no current data on them," Graam added.

Angron started pacing, which as you might imagine, distracted the Master of the Fleet. He fumbled a bit before continuing his report.

"We have reports of several systems in the relative vicinity by our exploration fleets that might be of economical interest," he said. "Ten weeks travel spinwards, there is a cluster of systems that should be rich enough in resources to consider them viable for the Mechanicum to colonize. The next system, reachable in two weeks, had been colonized once. There had been no contact with them and our Navigator had warned us that the Warp is unstable in that region."

"We have also received a message containing coordinates corresponding to the location of a system that ought to have been colonized at the end of the first colonization movement. It appears that they retained enough technological know-how to detect our coming here and will welcome us."

* When I was editing this chapter, I stumbled on this piece of recording. While it did not fit into the narrative itself, we decided to share nevertheless, for sheer amusement value, if nothing else.

"So, we traded old and new war stories and were trying to make ourselves look bigger, stronger and more ferocious than the other one," Kharn said. He gave the Remembrancer a puzzled look as the man covered his mouth and snorted.

"Sorry," Maxim said weakly. "It's just… you were having a dick measuring contest!"

Kharn stared at him blankly, before musing, "Huh, I think I actually took part in some. When I was… uh… thirteen."

The Remembrancer blinked. "That's actually something I noticed—I mean I was sort of aware of it, but I didn't truly realize it until I started interviewing you—you don't really care much about sex anymore, do you?"

The Captain looked towards the ceiling, thinking. "Well, no. Why should I?"

"I mean… it's just odd," Maxim said. "Ah, but I've interrupted you. Let's go back to the topic."

"And keep your observations on contests to yourself," Kharn said.

AN

Some Remembrancers have more luck than brains.