Xana-Vicidex System, surface of Xana II.
Arkhas Fal swung his final chainaxe blow, tearing apart the enemy.
The ground around him was a river of blood; every battle-brother's armor was adorned with gore.
Arkhas still hadn't found the xenos enslaving humans that Balsar Kurthuri had mentioned.
He shook the blood from his axe, stopped, and looked up at the sky.
Countless streaks of light, like meteors, pierced the forge world's gloomy clouds.
Arkhas was startled. Clearly, that was Astartes making rapid planetfall via drop pods.
"Shadow lord, they have come," Balsar said as he walked over. Unlike other battle-brothers from the barbaric tribes of Terra's Asiatic Dust-Storms region, his armor was not stained red with blood.
"Don't rejoice too soon. It might just be a detachment, like the companies from our Legion, just passing through by chance."
"But there are thousands of ships in the void," Balsar shook his head.
"Those xenos ships covered in flails and spikes might have pushed deeper into the Imperium after securing the Xana system," Arkhas turned to his Librarian.
"Don't rely on your foresight. Eight hours ago, you told me we'd find the xenos enslaving humans here."
"Shadow lord, my apologies. I believe the xenos possess powerful psychic abilities; they interfered with my foresight."
"I wish to hear good news. Where is Nerat Kirine?" Arkhas's gaze was cold as he stared at Balsar.
"Shadow lord, I regret to disappoint you again. We have lost contact with Nerat. I also have not foreseen his location."
"His last known location was Coordinate Point 513."
"However, Nerat has always been sharp. He retreats before the enemy can pin him down. I believe you know him best."
"Nerat is a cunning one; he's not so easy to kill," Arkhas said. Though all from the Dust-Storms, Nerat, hailing from the Zerik tribe, was quite different from them.
Arkhas shouted to his battle-brothers:
"Advance to Coordinate Point 513. Kill every enemy of the Imperium we encounter."
"Whether xenos or the humans they drive."
Arkhas soon acknowledged that Balsar's foresight was accurate, at least in part.
More and more drop pods fell like rain, wave after wave, across Xana's gloomy sky.
This continued for ten solar days before stopping.
Arkhas realized it wasn't just a detachment; he had received Legion reinforcements.
The Shadow lord accepted his Librarian's foresight. Reinforcements and enemies were fighting across the entire world.
Arkhas did not halt. There was still no word from Nerat.
He launched an attack on Coordinate Point 504. Breaking through the slaves blocking the way would bring him to Coordinate Point 513, where Nerat had disappeared.
Arkhas and his battle-brothers' armor had turned a dark crimson.
"Fire at will."
The Shadow lord gave the order over the comms. The thunderous roar of bolters echoed before the forge complex.
The shriek of rockets and the roar of plasma beams scorching the air tore through the horde of bodies. Flesh exploded, blood spraying like rain.
Arkhas waited for the first volley to end, then charged forward at the lead.
Chainaxes screamed, turning the area into a sea of blood.
Suddenly, a voice abruptly sounded in his mind.
"Shadow lord, something approaches."
"It's the xenos. They come from all directions."
"It's a trap..."
Arkhas pulled his chainaxe free early, flinging the mangled corpse aside.
He turned to look at the xenos. The tall xenos resembled an upright scorpion. It opened its maw and let out a shriek.
Arkhas felt his brain being hammered repeatedly. He let out a low growl, raised his chainaxe, and charged the xenos.
The xenos swung its massive claw-like arm, impaling an Astartes.
Over a dozen Astartes raised their weapons, firing a dense barrage at the xenos in anger.
In the dazzling light, the Astartes were astonished to find their bolts seemed to hit an invisible barrier, exploding before the xenos.
Balsar saw that the xenos did not stop; it was confident in its defense.
His eyes immediately gleamed with golden light. He gripped his force staff, the emerald gemstone at its tip radiating psychic energy.
A cloud of black flames, like shadows, enveloped the xenos.
Amid a series of piercing cracks, Balsar sent a thought-pulse to Arkhas.
"I have broken its defense. Now!"
Arkhas suddenly accelerated. The massive momentum sent the xenos flying backward with a deafening crash.
He stepped forward, planting a foot on the xenos's chest. The great axe swept diagonally from left to right in an instant.
The Shadow lord killed the enemy elite warrior, but Balsar showed no joy.
His golden eyes looked around. Countless figures were charging at them, not just the enslaved humans, but xenos as well.
Balsar sent a thought-pulse to his Shadow lord. "It's a trap. The xenos have been using slaves to wear us down. They also used Nerat as bait."
Arkhas's auto-sensor display informed him he had lost fifty-two battle-brothers in one minute, forty-two seconds standard time. In over a month of fighting, he had lost only twenty-seven brothers.
The Shadow lord immediately issued an order. "Follow me!"
His Honor Guard instantly formed a crescent formation around him, charging forward.
A storm of bolter fire tore a gap through the enslaved humans.
Arkhas charged the shield-protected xenos before the first bolt was fired. He had to open a path for his battle-brothers.
Balsar suppressed the throbbing in his temples, wielding his force staff with all his might to aid his Shadow lord.
Black flames enveloped the shimmering personal energy shield. Amid a series of cracks, they finally tore through the xenos's defences.
An otherworldly shriek pierced Balsar's ears. He wearily hung his force staff at his waist.
The Librarian knew he had reached his limit; he could use no more psychic power.
Balsar injected himself with a combat stimulant, filling his weary body with renewed energy. The throbbing in his temples vanished amid the excited surge within.
He drew his bolt pistol and chainsword, preparing to fight like an ordinary Astartes.
Balsar immediately proved useful. Seeing a battle-brother run out of ammunition, he fired a bolt to the right, forcing a xenos to dodge.
Arkhas noted that more and more battle-brothers were running low on ammo.
Their last resupply was a week ago at Forge-Temple Fifteen, but that area was now heavily besieged. Terrifying creatures that could tear apart Titans and vast hordes of human slave armies prevented them from approaching.
The forge complex had been completely abandoned. They could only find some parts inside to repair their melee weapons.
"Conserve ammunition. Prevent enemies from flanking us."
The Shadow lord decided to lead his Honor Guard to quickly break through the front. He opened the comms.
"Brothers, as firstborn sons of our tribes, even before ascension, we fought tribes far larger in Indonesia."
"After ascension, we conquered Central Asia, ending the rule of the Kalagann tyrant of Ursh."
He forcefully struck a rune. "Remember? Just after leaving Terra, we reclaimed Jupiter X from the xenos."
The battle-brothers struck their runes forcefully. They had carried them as mementos since that brutal war.
The Shadow lord swung his great axe, pointing forward.
The battle-brothers responded with a unified roar, following the Shadow lord in a charge. Chain weapons roared, power weapons gleaming with blue light.
Arkhas savagely crashed into a Rangdan overlord, allowing the claws to strike his armor as he delivered one ferocious chop after another with his chainaxe.
His brutal attacks shattered the overlord's proud defences. With a piercing shriek, the great axe cleaved deeply into the enemy's chest.
The Shadow lord kicked the enemy away, only then receiving feedback from his auto-sensors.
He had lost another one hundred forty-seven battle-brothers, including twenty-nine of his closest Honor Guard members.
Only two hundred eighteen still had ammunition.
The Shadow lord' gaze was icy. He didn't know how many more brothers would die on this march.
He roared, charging at an overlord who had just torn apart a Guard member with its dual claws.
Suddenly, Arkhas felt a golden light sweep past overhead.
That overlord was swept into the air by a force, then its body was twisted together unnaturally, breaking into several segments.
Arkhas stared in shock at the black-armored giant in the air. Only when the figure landed before him did he snap back to reality.
"Lord Nareth, Arkhas Fal, Legion Master of the 19th Legion, salutes you."
Nareth looked at Arkhas, whose armor was coated in dark red blood, a glint in his eyes.
'So it's you!'
'The most unfortunate Legion Master!'
After a Primarch's return, most previous Legion Masters became second-in-command.
Arkhas was, in Nareth's memory, the most sidelined one.
Not only was he not given a command, but shortly after Corvus Corax's return, he was sent to wander beyond Imperial space.
Arkhas later became the First Chapter Master of the Carcharodons.
'However, this is precisely my opportunity for "corrosion."'
Through continuous attempts, Nareth had learned that the firmer one's will and the higher one's loyalty, the harder they were to "corrode."
"Corroding" Arkhan Land, who saw the Emperor as the Omnissiah, took far more time and effort than corroding Lian Ramlies and others.
This held true even within the Kingdom of Disorder.
Hathor Maat, in the future, betrayed Magnus to avoid flesh-change and death, cooperating with the Tzeentch, could be corroded.
Slau Dha, as an Aeldari Autarch who had walked multiple paths, possessed resilient will.
Through the foresight of the Cabal, he viewed humanity as an inferior species that should be destroyed, making him impossible to "corrode."
Not all in the cult initially sought humanity's destruction. During the Terran era, they tried to guide humanity according to their will but failed.
Only Slau Dha believed from the start that humanity should be destroyed.
Thus, Nareth reached a conclusion: The target of "corrosion" must meet certain conditions to be successfully corroded.
Either they were inherently insufficiently loyal, or an opportunity could be found.
Arkhan was a typical example. Though he saw the Emperor as the Omnissiah, Nareth could show him the miracle of retrieving the Voidclaw.
Undoubtedly, the future founder of the Carcharodons was such a suitable target.
Corax had not yet returned, and the future Arkhas was also sidelined.
'Corax, since you look down on the Terran-born like Arkhas, I might as well help you manage your sons.'
The "Baron of Corruption" gazed at Arkhas Fal. "Stay by my side."
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
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