Set between Xenos and Malleus, Dan Abnett’s short story Missing in Action sees inquisitor Eisenhorn returning to the field having recovered from the events of the Necroteuch affair. Sent to Sameter for a routine mission to ease him back into work, when bodies start appearing with signs pointing to ritual killings he realises there’s a much bigger puzzle for him to solve on Sameter. As he digs deeper into the horrifying crimes being committed a pattern begins to emerge, but it seems to point in an unexpected direction.
It’s Eisenhorn the super sleuth, intuitively making connections and gradually revealing to us – the readers – and his own companions exactly what’s been happening. It’s fun to see a little more of the investigative side of this sort of story, and while this is pretty short and sweet it is, as always, a delight to spend more time with Eisenhorn, Fischig, Aemos and co. It wouldn’t be an Eisenhorn story without plenty of pacy action, but that’s there to complement the more characterful elements of the story, which show a little of Eisenhorn’s more empathetic side and the cost – physical and otherwise – of being an inquisitor. Sometimes things aren’t black and white, even for the inquisition.
Click here to see how this fits into the wider Eisenhorn/Ravenor/Bequin arc.
