Driving a massive iron vehicle, Gabriel Santor rushed over, only to be stunned by the golden angel hovering in the sky.
In his daze, his foot remained pressed on the accelerator.
The iron vehicle roared toward the lava lake. At that moment, Gorgon's thunderous voice rang in his ears:
"Brake!"
Santor snapped back to his senses and slammed the brakes.
The vehicle screeched to a halt, kicking up clouds of dust. When it finally stopped, it was only a few meters away from the molten lake.
Opening the door, Santor stepped out, staring blankly at the golden angel in the sky.
'An angel…'
He forced himself to stay composed, steeled himself in his heart:
'Other than Gorgon, I will kneel to no one! Never!'
Alpharius, however, could clearly tell that the golden figure in the sky was Nareth. Unlike Santor, he was not deceived.
His father had told him Nareth would change, and countless images had flashed through his mind. But he never imagined Nareth would take on the form of a golden angel.
Ferrus Manus, with his silver eyes piercing through the magma, saw Nareth's transformation. He wasn't particularly shocked. As always, he observed from a craftsman's perspective, studying the golden armor and wings.
Those silver eyes gleamed as he silently assessed:
'Its defense is weaker than my Iron Hands, but it has unique traits. The wings grant him speed beyond imagination.'
The Emperor's golden eyes shone with delight as he gazed at Nareth, smiling.
'It's better than I had anticipated!'
Nareth spread his wings and descended slowly. The golden liquid flowing over his face receded, revealing his true visage.
"My pet, Freddy, fell into the volcano. I'll find him first," he said calmly.
"After that, I'll assess the value of the ruins I've uncovered."
At the Emperor's nod, Nareth flapped his wings again and soared toward the ruins where the shard of the Burning One had once been imprisoned.
The air rushed past him as he arrived in an instant at the collapsed Necron ruins.
Activating Warp Insight, he immediately spotted black ripples glowing faintly within the Sea of Souls, Freddy's presence.
'Good. Freddy is weak, but still alive. Thankfully, he survived. Otherwise, gaining these golden wings while losing a mythic creature capable of pulling enemies into dreams would hardly count as an upgrade.'
'If I can find a dead beyonder trait, once one of my subordinates reaches Sequence 4 and can craft miraculous items, I'll be able to regain that dream-pulling ability.'
That dream-drawing was a crucial support ability. Without Freddy dragging the Burning One briefly into a dream, Nareth would never have had the chance to harm the shard with his "Bashee Mask" alone.
'Aside from temporarily losing that support, Freddy is still pleasing to the eye, a satisfactory pet.'
With that thought, Nareth beat his wings and smashed into the ruins.
After some effort, he had gained basic control over the wings.
Golden feathers shattered rocks as he forced his way underground, where he found Freddy, fur scorched black, body frail and stumbling.
Seeing Nareth's angelic form, Freddy's eyes went wide in disbelief. But their deep bond let him know this was still his master.
"Master… why have you changed into this?"
The transformation was even more drastic than when Freddy himself had awakened his mythic form, sprouting two extra pairs of legs from his belly.
"You'll know soon enough," Nareth replied, scooping the black wolf into his hand.
Too weak to care about the mechanical eagles or Nareth's transformation, Freddy simply nestled into the familiar, protective hand and drifted into sleep.
Nareth lingered, clearing debris with his gauntleted left hand. He noted that most of the golden mechanical eagles were barely damaged, and the Necron materials were remarkably durable.
He recalled the Psyber-Eagle Iron Hand's Garuda from the future's Shattered Legions.
It was like the crew of the Sisypheum. tormented, yet unyielding.
Even after enduring a barrage of explosive rounds from Lucius on Idris, it wasn't completely destroyed. The Iron Fathers, Samatika and Sabik Wayland, managed to repair it.
'Hmm… a Garuda could fly, scout, and operate without psychic support, unlike the spy-flies. Its tech abilities rivaled those of an Initiate Tech-Adept, able to perform remote operations, an incredibly useful mechanical familiar.'
'As the original model, these Necron eagles may hold even greater functions. Nobles and Ghosts couldn't decipher them, but my Techmarines might. And those beyonder with enhanced ability, even more so.'
He almost reached for his comm-bead, only to remember it had been reduced to ash by the Burning One's flames.
Spreading his wings again, he thought to himself:
'Risky as it was, nearly exposing the "Kingdom of Disorder," the results were worthwhile. I lost armor, but gained wings infused with much of the Burning One's essence.'
'A small lesson: before coming to Medusa, I only suspected Asirnoth was a Void Dragon shard; I never guessed there was also a shard of the Burning One here.'
As he reflected, he realized:
'The key failure was being drawn into the air, unable to use my beyonder abilities or mystical items. "Monster" John has only just touched fate's domain; he gave me no warning.'
Soon, he hovered above the ruins, looking down at heavy landing craft docked two kilometers away. Servitors and thralls, under Techmarine command, hauled relics out from the ruins.
The Shadows of Order tightened their grip on weapons when they saw the golden angel overhead, until they recognized their Primarch's face within that radiant form.
Shock turned to awe as Nareth descended. Many thought back to the fireball they had seen earlier.
Nareth gave Adams and Arsena a brief account, then ordered Techmarines to take a squad to excavate.
Two stellar hours later, Nareth flew to Manus's excavation site.
Peering down, he saw the Medusan vehicles bore no mounted machines. Landing, he joined the Emperor and Alpharius in following Manus into the ruins of a colossal manufactorum.
The Medusans had braced themselves at Santor's warning, yet seeing the golden angel descend still left them awestruck, their work halted until Gorgon's leaden voice barked:
"Continue working."
Nareth observed the Iron Fathers and thought:
'Ferrus has trained his Iron Fathers well. My Techmarines, until they advance to higher Sequences, can't yet match the Iron Hands, though they have their unique strengths.'
Then his gaze fell on a wall of data machinery. Within it, a throne wrapped in cables sat embedded in a broken alcove.
It reminded him of the Simulus Chambers.
'The Iron Hands must have developed their Simulus Chambers from this damaged machine.'
'Seated and linked directly through spinal nerve-ports, they connect to the data ocean, uploading and downloading vast amounts at will.'
'In this virtual thought-space, warriors simulate combat, brief missions with extreme efficiency, and transfer intelligence seamlessly.'
His mind filled in the missing image, a fully intact chamber.
'They even implant subconscious tactical protocols, uploaded into every Iron Hand warrior's mind, providing contingency plans for any scenario.'
'With their immense computing power, they can simulate nearly every battle outcome.'
'The Clan-Company of Raukaan uses these systems the most; all their briefings, messages, and even war councils happen purely through Simulus.'
While he pondered, Manus's voice rumbled like molten lead:
"I've lost. Your golden armor and wings prove you've found the Garuda's source. Together, they outweigh what I uncovered.
"You have won this contest."
His voice was as cold and firm as ever, though the Medusans felt bitterness and frustration. Still, they accepted that losing to another demigod was not shameful.
"No," Nareth's denial stunned them all.
Flapping his wings lightly, he declared, "Parts of my body don't count as discoveries.
What I found in the ruins was a Punisher-class reactor and an auto-charging void shield.
Their value equals the simulation device you uncovered."
Manus stared in surprise. Nareth hadn't examined the relic, yet already knew its function.
He continued: "This contest is a draw. We will share both sites and study them together."
To Nareth, his Techmarines could learn much from cooperation with the Iron Fathers, the future Iron Hands.
The Emperor's face lit with joy. Nareth and Manus had a far smoother bond than he and Russ ever did.
Laughing heartily, he said, "I am glad to see such brotherly cooperation!"
Ferrus's silver-coin eyes softened slightly. "Then I, too, am willing. Let us study both relics together. Your children will be welcome to work alongside the Medusans."
His gaze lingered on Nareth's golden armor. "Though you wear that gilded suit, I believe you still need one worthy of you. I will forge it myself."
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
[email protected]/DaoistJinzu