Tallarn: Siren

The Horus Heresy #Short Story

by John French

In the immediate aftermath of the Iron Warriors' attack, the loyalist forces on Tallarn mount a desperate mission to locate the last surviving astropath on the planet, so that they can send a distress call to the rest of the Imperium.

Read it because
It's a tense, desperate mission that shows another (somewhat less tank-y) side to the war for Tallarn.

Genres: Science Fiction, 40k, Short Stories, Audiobook

42 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2016

About the author

John French is a writer and freelance game designer from Nottingham, England. His novels include the Ahriman series from Black Library, and The Lord of Nightmares trilogy for Fantasy Flight. The rest of his work can be seen scattered through a number of other books, including the New York Times bestselling anthology Age of Darkness. When he is not thinking of ways that dark and corrupting beings could destroy reality and space, John enjoys talking about why it would be a good idea... that and drinking good wine.

Reviews

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘What were you?’ asked Lycus.
Kulok looked up at Lycus with surprise. The Space Marine tilted his head to the side. ‘Before this, what were you?’
Kulok shrugged. ‘An evader of taxes.’
A low growl came from Lycus, getting louder as the warrior’s armour shook. After a second, Kulok realised that the Space Marine was laughing.

In Tallarn: Executioner novella, loyalist reinforcement arrived on the dying planet besieged by the Iron Warriors after receiving a distress call.
This short story filled with atmosphere, defiance, sacrifice, humanity and desperation, is the lost chapter giving you the details about how sending that message was possible.

An excellent, fine and enjoyable tragic short tale.

[DarkChaplain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tallarn: Siren is a damn fine short story. Not only does it show a very interesting, less Astartes-focused glimpse of the wider Heresy War, but it also adds a very cool element to the Tallarn story arc that was previously only implied but not fleshed out.

It is a story of defiance and sacrifice, abandoning hopes of rescue for oneself to buy the time and opportunity to rain down retribution on an overwhelming enemy. It is a key piece in the Battle for Tallarn that was exceptionally presented.

However, it is not a mandatory read. Tallarn: Executioner already makes it clear that Imperial reinforcements will arrive. Other Tallarn stories bank on that fact too. So the mission's success is never in doubt, and the story's placement falls somewhere amidst Executioner.

But if you ask me, this one is well worth reading. If anything, it is another piece of humanity within a galactic civil war mostly waged by superhuman warriors. It is a miserable story to tell, but one that enriches the setting a lot.

[Dylan Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh man it was nice to seeTallarn again! John French proves once again he can box with the best of them. The story's atmosphere was glorious. From the hope inspiring action of the lone plot armoured Imperial Fist to the grim darkness of war torn Tallarn. I will say I was a little disappointed that the Iron Warriors didn't do very well, but all in all it was a Damn fun short, even if it was a little late coming!

[RatGrrrl · Rating 5 out of 5]

May 2024 RRead using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project Reading Order Omnibus XX Shadows of the Warmaster IV The Dead and the Dying (https://www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus...) as part of my Oath of Moment to complete the Horus Heresy series and extras.

At this point I would gladly read a shopping list written by John French and I am beyond excited to eventually get to his various 40K series, but as far as I am aware French doesn't have his own Gaunt's Ghosts style Imperial Guard/ Astra Militarum epic series and Tallarn is screaming like a siren about how much that needs to be a thing.

In the disparate desperate groups hunkered below the deadly surface of Tallarn or braving its lethal atmosphere in various metal boxes there is a single Loyalist Space Marine and single surviving Astropath. Can a Son of Dorn reach his destination and give Tallarn a single hope in a desperate call for help?

This is an incredibly classic situation and storyline for a Warhammer story. There's two groups and only one of each are needed for the mission, so it's likely everyone else is going to die various noble and ignoble deaths along the way, but sacrifice and honour and all that shit. But French is one of the Black Library stable that truly *gets* Warhammer and that honour and sacrifice aren't enough to tell a good story or differentiate yourself from any authoritarian propaganda and/ or fascist fantasy. And that's what makes French one of the best and one of my all time favourites.

Sure, there's sacrifice and honour, but there's the explicit acknowledgement of the empty words and exaltations of being important and remembered and honoured in turn as being just that. But the situation still is an absolute nightmare so shit has to get done, but at least done with a mite more honesty.

Like I said before, this is a classic setup and the end is very obvious very early, so it's all in the telling and French tells an engrossing tale that feels real and visceral, even as the bright yellow armoured giant is saying platitudes and being the only one to just about survive long enough to get the job done. I actually felt for those who stood up and faced certain, agonising death to try to save more lives and I will always love French for imbuing such honesty and horror at the core of the heightened ridiculous grimdarkness.

I'm going to be sad when the Tallarn train comes to a halt!

Through the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project and my own additions, I have currently read 43 Horus Heresy novels (inc. 1 repeat and 5 anthologies), 24 novellas (inc. 2 repeats), 131 short stories/ audio dramas (inc. 10+ repeats), as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, all 17 Primarchs novels, 4 Primarchs short stories/ audio dramas, 3 Characters novels, and 2 Warhammer 40K further reading novels and 1 short story...this run, as well as writing 1 short story myself.

I couldn't be more appreciative of the phenomenal work of the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project, which has made this ridiculous endeavour all the better and has inspired me to create and collate a collection of Horus Heresy and Warhammer 40,000 documents and checklists (http://tiny.cc/im00yz). There are now too many items to list here, but there is a contents and explainer document here (http://tiny.cc/nj00yz).

[Matt Argueta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid short-story that gave good insight to the open acts of the events on Tallarn and how the Loyalists were made aware of the unfolding planetary take-over

This one was straight-forward and easy to follow - a quick story depicting the heroic acts of a small few that changed the tide of battle

[Danny Saines · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fantastic addition to the Tallarn arc.

[doowopapocalypse · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know if it was the strongest Tallarn story, which might be due to its brevity.

[Lanfear · Rating 5 out of 5]

El relato de la muerte y sacrificio de Tallarn a manos de los cobardes guerreros de hierro.

[Michael Dodd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set early on in the Tallarn arc within the wider Horus Heresy series, John French’s Tallarn : Siren finds a handful of Imperial citizens holed up in a tiny underground shelter with the last surviving astropath on the planet. As they desperately try to make contact with any other survivors, they attract the attention of both Marshall Lycus of the Imperial Fists and the invading Iron Warriors, one determined to use the astropath to send word of the planet’s fate, the other keen to prevent that happening. The shelter’s occupants await rescue, but fate may have something else in store for them.

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

[Chris Dennison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another excellent outing from John French. Very enjoyable.

[Alexander van der Pol · Rating 4 out of 5]

If your life is given in service to the Emperor, your death shall not be in vain.