Published in 2004’s long out of print anthology What Price Victory and strangely never subsequently reprinted, Simon Spurrier’s short story Elucidium offers a chilling, complex exploration of a Genestealer Cult secreted at the heart of an Imperial world. When the sinister Cardinal Arkannis arrives on Garial-Fall, the structures and certainties underpinning the world begin to change, from the heights of the ruling Plureaucracy to the depths of the long-hidden Underchurch. For G’Hait, the Cardinal’s arrival turns his entire world upside down and challenges everything he thought he knew, about himself and his place in the world.
Even with the Genestealer Cults lore established much more firmly these days, this is the sort of story which requires you to take your time and trust that it will all make sense in the end. Spurrier’s writing is characterful and engrossing, albeit sometimes a touch over-complicated, and he brings Garial-Fall to life as a vivid backdrop to a plot crammed full of twists and turns. Along the way there’s so much to take in, and while the occasional detail doesn’t quite fit with the current lore, it’s all remarkably consistent as well as stunningly wide-ranging. It’s not an easy read as such, but as complex and challenging 40k stories go this is one of the best.