After arranging the ritual, Marlena went to her bath.
She dropped a few extracts of plant-based oils into the water, then slipped into the tub. Her long golden hair spread over the vines, and she sank into thought.
'After questioning Sánchez and Mikael, I've confirmed that none of the other Primarchs can grant such abilities to others.'
'Only Lord Nareth can. He is unique.'
'If he is a god incarnate, then everything makes sense.'
In her brown eyes appeared the memory of the black-armored giant descending from the sky, when the Fra'al nearly broke the Terani tribe.
At that time, the Black Emperor had not yet reunited with his sons in the identity of a Primarch. He had driven away the xenos and given hope to the despairing Sicilians.
Marlena's eyes gleamed. She rose, dried herself, donned a black robe, and walked to the altar.
Lighting the candles with her psychic spark and sealing the ritual space with a ceremonial knife, she knelt upon a slab of black onyx, hands clasped.
Her red lips softly recited in Dunnic:
"Black Emperor of the Shadows of Order,"
"Mysterious Sovereign of the Kingdom of Disorder,"
"Monarch of Light and Shadow, who governs the holds the rules."
"I beseech Thy gaze. I beseech Thy favor."
"O Balance, foundation of the Kingdom of Disorder, grant strength to my invocation."
"O Iron Laws of Monarchs, basis of the Kingdom of Disorder, grant strength to my invocation."
On the third repetition, the black mist finally engulfed her.
The golden-haired psyker curiously scanned the mysterious space, her gaze deep. But soon she gave up her search, the fog hid all. She could only confirm this place was unlike the Sea of Souls.
At last, she raised her eyes to Nareth on his throne.
"My Lord."
Nareth looked at the vines coiled around her pale arms.
"You have gained much from Catachan."
"As You see," she replied, "Catachan breeds countless mutant plants. I have selected a hundred species, cultivated them, and obtained their seeds."
As a Harvest Priestess, she could germinate seeds with her psychic gift. Seeds were lighter than hauling whole plants, allowing her to carry many more types. More types meant greater power in battle.
She continued:
"I have also used terraforming techniques extracted from the Aeldar Exarch during the Arbiter Lord's interrogation. I reshaped Catachan soil. The first test farmland is now stable. Three days ago, I began the second."
Nareth nodded.
"But the reshaping of Catachan must be limited. Preserve its nature."
He had no use for another agri-world. He wanted a recruitment world, forged by a jungle of death, turning anything it touch into hardenned warriors. His gifts of medicines and crops were meant to reduce mortality just enough for balance, not to soften the world entirely.
Marlena bowed her head.
"By your will."
She hesitated, lips parting soundlessly, then closed. Nareth noticed and said:
"Speak."
She gathered courage.
"My Lord, You are the Black Emperor, a god walking the mortal world."
"This stands in irreconcilable contradiction with the creed of the Imperium. What is Your plan?"
"I do not seek to pry into your design, only to prepare, to serve you better."
To her, Nareth was the incarnation of the Black Emperor. She had always been loyal to him, not the Emperor, not the Imperium. Her devotion was purer than the Terran-born Shadows of Order who swore to both Primarch and Imperium.
Nareth tapped the chair arm.
'The Emperor entrusted the Wheel of Fire to the Eleventh Legion. He still sees the Shadows of Order as a weapon, a blade.'
'They will surely be sent into the brutal wars of Rangdan, Droon, and others, against powerful xenos.'
'Sacrifices will come, but overall, my Legion and loyalists grow. Without the Imperium, progress would be slower. These wars also grant me resources for potion creation.'
He looked down at Marlena.
'Her attitude is useful. She's already considering the future. Perhaps she is the one to entrust with my new design.'
He responded:
"In the coming millennia, Nareth will remain a Primarch of the Imperium."
"Tell me, what of Catachan women as soldiers?"
Of course he knew that Catachan women would prove as deadly as their men in the Guard. He wanted her perspective.
"They are fine warriors," Marlena answered seriously. "Their raw qualities are no less than the soldiers of Vostroya or Symphony of the Sea, before augmentation, that is. Of course, I mean ordinary soldiers, not those you have blessed."
Nareth nodded slightly. He had made his decision.
"Before the Wheel of Firecampaign, I captured an Aeldar Autarch. From him I learned the secrets of their shrines, including the Path of the Howling Banshee."
The Mask of the Wail he had developed was not like the general War Masks that all Shadows could use. It was rooted in psyker aptitude.
Most psykers could master the psychic scream techniques, but he believed the Banshee Path might extend beyond.
Its origin lay in Morai-Heg, the Crone Goddess, and Kaelis Vara'lanthian, who birthed two daughters.
Jain Zar, the female Phoenix Lord, founded the shrine, which excluded most males.
From this, Nareth reasoned that non-psyker expansion might favor women. Even if humans were different from Eldar, there were shared psychological aspects in birth and womanhood.
And Marlena, as both psyker and the finest woman under him, was the perfect candidate.
'At the very least, she can master the Mask. And she can explore it without wasting my time.'
His current focus was elsewhere: extracting secrets from Slau Dha's mind, and combining the power of the Burning One with the Aeldar's Path of the Fire Dragons. His grasp of flame deepened, enough to wield the fire of the material world. He had not yet passed it to his sons, Arsena, or the "Pyromaniac".
While he thought, Marlena understood his intent.
"My Lord, I will obey. I will explore the secrets of the Banshees and train Catachan Banshees."
"Good. Open your mind."
He sent her, through mind-link, the Aeldar Paths of the Warrior and War Mask, the Banshee runes and mask, the secrets of the Howling Banshee, his own Mask of the Wail, and the first Thelema meditative discipline.
Such a flood of knowledge would have destroyed a normal brain. But Marlena's will was strong. Now, as a Sequence 7 beyonder, she endured.
The tide of data thundered in her mind. Her temples throbbed.
Thirty-three seconds later, it was done.
The black mist faded, and she stood once more in her underground altar on Catachan.
Wiping the sweat from her brow, she pierced the sanctified barrier with her ritual knife.
Her brown eyes glimmered as she began to unravel the secrets of the knowledge now etched into her mind.
At that same moment, the Throne of Shadow's Sovereignity and the Imperial fleet emerged from the Mandeville Point into the Sol System.
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
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