The Thirteenth Psalm

The Thirteenth Psalm by Peter Fehervari. A Warhammer 40K short story, originally appearing in Inferno! Vol. 2, originally published January 2019 by The Black Library. Approx. 42 pages.

HachiSnax Note: Happy New Year Everyone! Hope all of you out there reading this are doing well; and all the best to you in 2019! The first 3/4 of 2018 were pretty dead here on the blog, but I tried to get back into the rhythm of review writing at the tail end of the year and punch out some reviews.

Will the trend continue this year? Here's hoping so. What I can say is; I cannot imagine a better review to kick off the new year than one of a story written by personal fave author, as well as good friend, Peter Fehervari! This story, The Thirteenth Psalm, appears in the recently released Inferno! Vol. 2, by The Black Library. I love the idea of resurrecting the Inferno! brand; and seeing it used as a showcase for some new talent (pulled from the pool of 3500+ submissions to BL's open callout last year). Yes, Inferno! features a lot of authors I'm not crazy about, as well as a ~50% share of dreaded AoS stories, but, you can't have everything.

Alas, this means that I am picking this story out (for now) and reviewing it singly. If I ever go back and read all the other entries (doubtful), I'll add this review to that. Don't hold your collective breaths...

~Cheers, Hach.

August 2019 update: The Thirteenth Psalm has been given its standalone digital debut; buy it here. And check out the cover:

The Thirteenth Psalm, from Black Library's Inferno! Vol. 2, marks the most welcome return of the Angels Penitent, the morbid Chapter introduced to us (along with their original iteration, the Angels Resplendent) by Peter Fehervari in his profoundly deep, heart-wrenching story The Crown of Thorns.

Side note: This is for those who, perhaps, are reading a story by Fehervari for the first time. I mention this since part of the appeal of Inferno! is outreach to new readers. Peter Fehervari is, in my opinion, and in the opinion of many others, the finest, deepest, and darkest author in the Black Library stable. Throughout the course of his body of work, he has masterfully woven a bizarre, mind-twisting tapestry known as the "Dark Coil". Ergo, each of his stories are interwoven with all the others, and all contain both important bridges between them, as well as cryptic, nuanced strands and references. 

If you are going into this story as a first-timer, I'd highly recommend, at least, reading The Crown of Thorns first. That is your best primer for witnessing the fate of the Angels Resplendent, and the current state of the Angels Penitent. On a side note, a reading of the outstanding novella Fire & Ice will introduce you to the planet Oblazt, upon which the action in Thirteenth Psalm transpires. 

And now, back to the review proper.

Formerly unparalleled artisans and craftsmen, the brothers of the Angels Resplendent fell into brutal religious zealotry with the arrival of the Undying Martyr, a mysterious and terrifying figure who espoused a regime of piousness and penance. Reborn as the Angels Penitent, the brothers have adapted an iconoclastic stance - going to far as to dispatch teams to expunge the artifacts crafted in their 'former life' from points across the galaxy (their creations were highly sought after in days of old).

Heading up one particular team (Absolution Company) is Bjargo Rathana - a former Artisan Illuminant turned Chaplain Castigant (a member of the dreaded 'Crown of Thorns' - the brutal conclave of Chaplains which oversees the draconian tenets of the Angels Penitent with an iron hammer; errrr, crozius.

In The Thirteenth Psalm, Absolution Company is tasked with the censure of a particularly heinous artifact; a massive, magnificent mirror crafted by one of the most-esteemed (former) artisans. What causes their mission to be markedly more onerous is the fact that this artifact in particular is a prized piece in the the collection of an Oblazt aristocrat, one Konteza Esseker. Esseker's tastes run towards the baser pleasures; suffice to say her manse is named the 'Concupiscent Hearth' with very good reason.

Now, if you know 40K stories, then you can guess that those with carnal desires have usually brokered deals with carnal beings. And, if you know Fehervari, then you know that whenever a mirror appears, some dark, painful truths are bound to be revealed.

The Thirteenth Psalm is Fehervari in top form. As bizarre, deep, and twisting as it is, it is still remarkably accessible. Also, what helps it stand out is that it is, bar none, Fehervari's most outright 'horror' story (to be honest, I am extremely perplexed as to why Black Library did not place this under the umbrella of their fledgling 'Warhammer Horror' imprint; in my opinion this would have been a fantastic inaugural work for it).

So how do all the parts stack up?

Story:
As with most Fehervari stories, The Thirteenth Psalm unfolds via a nonlinear narrative. We open in front of the reviled mirror, as Rathana recounts the events of the mission to the double who stands before him.

The mission, of course, had been a rapid descent into madness, as Esseker's insidious presence hounded the stalwart Astartes from the moment they stepped foot in her cursed estate.

To say more would risk spoilers. This is a short story, and Fehervari, as always, makes every word count. In short, The Thirteenth Psalm is a true Warhammer 40K Space Marine haunted house story. To put it like that makes the premise seem ludicrously incongruous; yet through Fehervari's masterful writing, it is an effective and terrifying slice of horror.

Characters:
Exceptional. When dealing with Space Marines, an author has to be creative to accommodate their particular emotional palette. Fehervari works within these parameters, and still imbues his characters with gravitas, with passion, with despair. Always despair. Despair which knows no bounds; constrained by no falls, allowing emotional tumbles which are never rewarded with even the catharsis of hitting bottom.

The Angels Penitent walk the endless path of perennial contrition; their grim raison d'etre the search for absolution for their past 'transgressions'. Of course, simple censure will never remedy these vain crimes, as the pride upon which their passions were predicated remain a fixed smear upon their souls.

Of course, the Konteza, as well as her vile mirror, find fertile ground for manipulation within these troubled souls.

Action:
Fehervari has stated elsewhere that action is never the focal point of his stories. That may be true, but in each of his stories, the action, when and where it occurs, is always top-notch. I've stated before, Fehervari has a director's eye for orchestrating action setpieces, and the results are as brutal and ugly as one would expect of combat involving genetically-enhanced humans encased in ceramite armor, and wielding wicked weapons of mass destruction.

There is one blistering action scene at the climax of The Thirteenth Psalm. It is all things mentioned above; and the ramifications are disastrous for all involved. The descriptions of all that transpires in this scene are palpable, real, and terrifying.

Name Game:
One of the highlights of reading anything by Fehervari is connecting the dots between stories; as well as searching for hidden meanings (or outright Easter Eggs) behind character and place names.

The primary connection in The Thirteenth Psalm is, of course, the return to Oblazt. Oblazt is still, as we saw in Fire & Ice, in the throes of revolt as those who've opted to throw in their lot with the Greater Good are in the process of overthrowing their aristo overlords.

As for names, Fehervari chooses those, especially for the brothers of the Angels Penitent, which carry connotations of beauty as well as religious significance.

However, there is one 'name-string' which I found particularly well done; both meaningful and clever. It involves my absolute favorite character in the story, Brother-Redactor Anselm (the main reason why Anselm became a fast favorite should be absolutely no surprise at all 😁). Anselm, a beautiful name on its own (an Italian name which emerged from Germanic roots), means "with God's protection". However, it also links to to painter Anselm Kiefer, who created a profound piece named "The Hierarchy of the Angels", seen here:

...which is roughly the same size and shape of the mirror in the story. Also remember that a true "Hierarchy of Angels" stands before the mirror in the story, as we have Brothers, a Sergeant, and Bjargo, a Chaplain Castigant (the ruling faction in the Angels Penitent). Pretty cool, right?

There's a tad more. Taking Anselm's last name, Kiefer, we saunter over to Kiefer Sutherland, who starred in a movie called Mirrors, which featured a pivotal character named....Esseker.

See, not only do you get a fantastic story; you get bonus word games as well.

Get your copy of Inferno! Vol. 2. If for no other reason than to experience this story, do it. You won't be disappointed.

Here's What It Is:

Peter Fehervari finally gets to unleash his horror chops in a terrifying, atmospheric, emotional haunted house tale.

The fear is effective, keeping us peeking around every corner, pondering what horrors might lurk there. The terror becomes real when we realize the horrors have nested in our very souls.

Also, as with The Crown of Thorns, there is an oppressively pervasive sense of sorrow permeating throughout the narrative. Perhaps the true horror here is the prospect of art, of dreams, of beauty, lost forever, scorched away from the eternal annals of time.

Cover:
No real use in critiquing the cover, as it is for the Inferno! collection and not solely for the story. I personally like this picture though; it has a nice, classic flair to it. I think it ties in to Guy Haley's serialized installment story, but I'm not sure.

The reason I even mention this is because I knew this was being used as the UK cover, but Amazon US was floating this atrocity as the potential US cover:

And yes, I can read the "Cover not final" note. Just, and no offense to lovers of Sigmarines, I can't stand them, and my distaste begins firmly with their aesthetics.

So, cool cover. Great story. Take care, everyone!