In the midst of a vast gas nebula lies a remote watch-station, hanging silently against a tapestry of dying stars. It sits alone, patiently awaiting lost travellers adrift in the freezing vastness of the void. To such souls it appears as a blessing, a safe haven from the warp storms that wrack the immaterium and destroy the ships of those foolish enough to test the tides. To Captain Arq and her crew, it is one thing - refuge. But things are never so simple.

This collection brings together three bone-chilling stories of terror from the 41st Millennium – ideal for spreading some spine-tingling ambience. Test your will with three tales of terror set in the grim darkness of the far future. Each offers a different lens through which to view the horror of life in this frightful galaxy.

The wind screams. The dark night is freezing. Vossk, a Vostroyan Firstborn, shrinks into a rock against a howl of memories. Having disgraced himself by deserting his post during a terrifying encounter, Vossk had resigned himself to penal servitude, though yearned for the chance to redeem himself. But in the 41st Millennium, such dreams are hollow when a man’s reality has been shaken to his core. Found in the shadows of a pitiless cave, Vossk relives his tale to his rescuer....

Exile to the miserable world of Sedh, the disgraced Necron Lord Oltyx is consumed with bitterness. Once heir to the throne of a dynasty, he now commands nothing but a dwindling garrison of warriors, in a never-ending struggle against Ork invaders. Oltyx can think of nothing but the prospect of vengeance against his betrayers, and the reclamation of his birthright. But the Orks are merely the harbingers of a truly unstoppable force. Unless Oltyx acts to save his dynasty, revenge will win him only ashes.

The Cadian Gate is broken, and the Imperium is riven in two. The might of the Traitor Legions, kept shackled for millennia behind walls of iron and sorcery, has been unleashed on a darkening galaxy. Among those seeking vengeance on the Corpse Emperor’s faltering realm are the Death Guard, once proud crusaders of the Legiones Astartes, now debased creatures of terror and contagion.

After seven years of bitter war, the end has come at last for the conflict known infamously as the Horus Heresy. Terra now lies within the Warmaster’s sights, the Throneworld and the seat of his father’s rule. Horus’ desire is nothing less than the death of the Emperor of Mankind and the utter subjugation of the Imperium. He has become the ascendant vessel of Chaos and amassed a terrible army with which to enact his will and vengeance. But the way to the Throne will be hard as the primarch Rogal Dorn, the Praetorian and protector of Terra, marshals the defences.

The Blood Angels Chapter of Space Marines is under threat. Having obliterated all human life in the Red Scar region of space, the largest tendril of Hivefleet Leviathan ever seen in the Imperium has converged and is making relentlessly for Baal. To face this awesome foe, Commander Dante has called upon the Successor Chapters of the ancient Ninth Legion. The Sons of Sanguinius gather in numbers not seen since the dark days of the Horus Heresy.

For Ianthe, war is all too familiar. A former soldier in the Astra Militarum, she now serves Inquisitor Covenant as an agent of the Throne. Her first mission sees her investigating a cult called the Children of Eternity. Falling foul of the local Enforcers, Ianthe soon learns that war in the shadows is seldom straightforward and that the local, angry law-keepers are the least of her troubles.

Ufthak Blackhawk and the green tide descend upon Hephaesto - an Adeptus Mechanicus forge world bristling with loot - only to find it already under siege by the notorious Freebooter Kaptin Badrukk. When his warboss, Da Biggest Big Mek, orders temporary co-operation, Ufthak seeks to make a name for himself by crushing some of the Imperium’s most advanced defenders and claiming the greatest prize.

On the forge world of Morod, the machines never stop and the work never ends. The population toils in the mines and factoria to protect humanity from the monsters in the void, while the Adeptus Mechanicus enjoy lives of palatial comfort. Genetor Gammat Triskellian seeks to end this stagnant corruption. When he learns of a twisted congregation operating within the shadows, one which believes that the tech-priests are keeping people from their true salvation, he sees in them an opportunity to bring down Morod's masters and reclaim the world in the name of progress.

The primarchs, nigh-immortal sons of the Emperor of Mankind, take the stage in a series of short stories showcasing some of their great deeds and hideous acts from across the Great Crusade and the Horus Heresy.

In the jungles of Aztlan a deadly war of the shadows is being fought. And the Imperial Guard are losing. The alien t’au, though few in number, greatly outclass the soldiers of the Imperium and are taking a serious toll on their forces. A call for aid is answered by the fearsome Mortifactors Chapter, who come to the world full of grim purpose. Adoni, an unblooded neophyte yet to earn his place, is amongst the war party. As the Mortifactors descend into the jungle vastness, they hunt for a killer, one that will not die easily but that whom Adoni must slay if he is to become part of the Chapter and a Taker of Heads.

Before the being called the Emperor revealed himself, before the rise of the aeldari, before the necrontyr traded their flesh for immortal metal, the world was born in violence. Even when they inhabited bodies of flesh, Trazyn the Infinite and Orikan the Diviner were polar opposites. Trazyn, a collector of historical oddities, presides over a gallery full of the most dangerous artefacts - and people - of the galactic past. Orikan, a chronomancer without peer, draws zodiacs that predict and manipulate the future.

After fleeing the authorities in the Imperial city of Altdorf, Felix Jaeger swears a drunken oath to dour dwarf Gotrek Gurnisson to record his death saga. In the cold light of day, Felix's worst fears are confirmed as he learns that Gotrek is a Trollslayer - a dwarf doomed to seek out a heroic death in battle to atone for an unknown personal disgrace. Their travels throw them into a string of extraordinary adventures as Felix tries to survive his companion's destiny.

He is known by many names - Clonelord, Manflayer, Primogenitor. He is the epitome of deceit and perversion, and feared by man and monster alike. Once the Chief Apothecary of the Emperor's Children, the madman known as Fabius Bile possesses a knowledge of genetic manipulation second to none.