Myriad

The Horus Heresy #Short Story

by Rob Sanders

Mars, the red planet, home to the Adeptus Mechanicus, a mysterious cult dedicated to unlocking the secrets of the universe. In this sequel to Cybernetica, a loyalist resistance made up of rag-tag survivors from Titan crew, enginseers and tech-adepts, conducts guerrilla raids on the Dark Mechanicum forces of Kelbor-Hal. Out in the wastes, they discover a Kastelan robot that carries inside itself a rare secret – a technology that has the power to break the stalemate and swing the war in the loyalists’ favour. But what is the cost of deploying such a power? The loyalists now face a hard decision – just because they can, does this mean they should?

Read it because
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Read it because
It's the sequel to Cybernetica and picks up a vital plot thread from that novella, asking a question that echoes through the Horus Heresy – is it right to use darkness to fight darkness?

Genres: Short Stories, 40k, Science Fiction

29 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 19, 2016

About the author

Rob Sanders is the author of twelve novels, as well as numerous anthologised short stories, novellas, audio dramas, computer games and comics. His fiction has won national writing competitions, been featured on the BBC and appeared on the New York Times Best Seller list. His poetry has been short listed in national contests. He lives off the beaten track in the small city of Lincoln, UK.

Reviews

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read in the Heralds of the Siege anthology

A more than good sequel to Sanders' Cybernetica. Loved the ending and the depiction of Titans and other machines corrupted by Chaos. Really hope Rob Sanders is going to write a full lenght Horus Heresy/Siege of Terra novel about the final phases of the war on Mars between loyalist resistance/Tabula Myriad and Dark Mechanicus because this short tale left me craving for more.

[RatGrrrl · Rating 3 out of 5]

CW Self-Harm/ Self-Mutilation

March 2024 Read using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project Reading Order - Omnibus IX Omnissiah I Death of Innocence (https://www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus...) as part of my Oath of Moment to complete the Horus Heresy saga and extras.

I mean, at least this was infinitely better than Cybernetica!

Martian Loyalist rebels are doing their thing fighting against some creepy cool Dark Mechanicus stuff when they discover, what if absolutely not a friend, might just be a useful enemy of their enemy...

Between having an awful time with Cybernetica and actually being interested in the things going on in this story, it's hard for me to really judge this one. I'm getting the same feeling I had with the Primarchs novel, Lorgar: Bearer of the Word by Gav Thorpe, which is that I am fascinated by the subject, but not the medium.

This at least had some fun weird Chaos mech descriptions and the concept going forward is wild, which is pretty decent for a Black Library Advent Calendar short, but lest we forget McNeill really blew the bloody doors off how good those can be with The Lightning Hall that I read last night as part of this Omnibus.

It's not bad, I guess?

Through using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project (www.heresyomnibus.com) and my own choices, I have currently read 17.41 Horus Heresy novels, 10 novellas, 46 short stories/ audio dramas, as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, 8 Primarchs novels, 3 Primarchs short stories/ audio dramas, and 2 Warhammer 40K further reading novels...this run. I can't say enough good about the way the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project suggestions. I'm loving it! Especially after originally reading to the releases and being so frustrated at having to wait so long for a narrative to continue.

[Joanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Will Overton · Rating 3 out of 5]

The flesh is so MFing weak

[Thomas Langley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick little extra that shows that abominable intelligence has spice in the 40k universe.

[Ross Cudmore · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short story that serves as a sequel to the novella "Cybernetica". This story follows loyalists insurgents on Mars, fighting from the Shadows to undermine the Dark Mechanicum.

The Myriad is an abominable intelligence first introduced in "Cybernetica". It once sought to strip Mars of organic life, but now it appears capable of stripping Mars of the taint of Chaos. The loyalists must decide if the enemy of their enemy is their friend.

I enjoyed what this short story had to add to the overall picture of the Horus Heresy. But I didn't feel too emotionally invested in the characters which is a shame.

[Dylan Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Myriad was a fun little short story that follows up on a relatively small plot-line from the Limited Edition novella Cybernetica* (by the same author). It was a plot line I was actually very interested in, because while it certainly seems small at first, and even later in this story, the ramifications are definitely anything but.
Rob Sanders might be one of the better authors that I have read take on the machine-men (and women) of Mars, and it definitely remains true here. Our cast of characters are unfamiliar enough to remain very minor in the grand scheme of things, but also for the most part have enough uniqueness and personality to make them memorable. The freedom fighting/rebel aspect of the story was great, especially in the scenes that showed their home base, which I thought was a very unique idea.
The action is relatively normal, though I do always love getting to see the Admech (and Dark Admech) go to war, as they always have the most exciting devices and weapons, and it was also nice to see Sanders take on the warp corrupted God Machines.
And speaking of our “chaosy” God Machines, I really would have liked to see a little more of it, as they don’t really appear in the Black Library fiction very often (Dies Iraes in the Iron Warriors story, but outside of that?). The story also ended a little early, which did detract from it. We have our rag-tag gang find this killer robot, and get to really experience the madness that ensues, and then are simply told what was going to happen. Hopefully we see this story line again down the line (and hopefully Mr. Sanders is the one writing it!), but for now, a solid 4/5 story perfect for any admech fan.

*I would REALLY recommend reading Cybernetica before this story, as the main “twist” is directly dependent on having read Cybernetica.

[Michael Dodd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Day five of Black Library’s 2016 Summer of Reading campaign sees a return to the Horus Heresy with Rob Sanders’ Myriad, which follows on from his 2015 novella Cybernetica. Mars is overrun by the twisted machines of the Dark Mechanicum, yet small cells of loyalists remain in hiding, doing what they can to fight back. Kallistra Lennox, formerly a princeps of the Collegia Titanica, leads a mission to sabotage a corrupted Warlord Titan, but returns to the rebels’ hidden base bearing something which might change the face of the war for Mars completely.

Read the rest of the review at https://trackofwords.wordpress.com/20...

[Danny Saines · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice little follow up to Cybernetica and should be read directly afterwards. Sanders better works come when there is limited action and a greater focus on character and setting development and thankfully this is one such story. The ending also leaves us with hopefully further works to follow.