As Kaebo finished his explanation, a deathly silence fell over the scene.
That silence weighed on every heart like something tangible, making their breathing heavy, their heartbeats slow, and their thoughts sluggish.
Hundreds of veteran Space Marines stood in the corridor, among the bodies of the Justaerin Terminators, on the bloodstained floor, their faces filled with complicated emotions.
They were all veterans who had followed Horus into battle for more than a century. Some were Terran-born, old warriors who had stood beneath the great Legion's banner since its founding and witnessed the Luna Wolves rise from nothing to become the Imperium's finest Legion.
Others were Cthonian-born, warriors who had fought shoulder to shoulder with the Warmaster in battles steeped in blood and glory.
They had known Kaebo for a hundred years, from his days as a recruit to his growth into an outstanding warrior and a trusted brother-in-arms.
They knew Kaebo was not a man who fabricated lies, much less one who deceived his own Legion brothers.
He had always been honest, always straightforward, always spoken his mind. If he said this...
Then it was the truth.
And there was everything happening now: Brutus imprisoning them, the Warmaster sending the Justaerin Terminators to execute them, the sounds of unrest and battle from across the warship that they had heard over the Communications Channel.
Abaddon had to acknowledge the truth he had refused to accept.
The Warmaster had turned traitor.
The Sons of Horus had turned traitor.
The father they had followed for more than a hundred years, the Warmaster for whom they would willingly give their lives, the hero they had revered.
He had betrayed the Imperium, betrayed the Emperor, betrayed everything they had once fought for.
But that applied only to the Sons of Horus Legion. Those who had