“I have fought in more than thirty battles on as many worlds. Spoken with gods, battled demons. I’ve broken bread with the Scourge of Earth itself, and treated with Kharn Sagara. I have served the Emperor loyally for more than three hundred years, and I have loved only three women.” I raised my three-fingered hand for emphasis, ticked the fingers down as I spoke. “One I lost, the second I betrayed, and the third . . .” I gestured to Valka’s creche, “is right there.”
