With a thought from the "Marionettist," the gems on the Farseer puppet's silver spear blazed with blinding light.
She hurled the spear, its mysterious, melodic hum filling the air as it shot towards "Omegon."
Sid Rancor, the Lernaean Terminator captain, felt his blood burn, the surging power driving him to roar.
He swung his now-lightened power axe, bringing it down with a mighty blow.
Boom!
A blinding arc of lightning split the sky, deflecting the Singing Spear.
The Farseer puppet swept her right arm in an arc.
The silver light spun back into her hand.
William breathed a sigh of relief. The Alpha had suddenly grown stronger, but not to an insurmountable degree.
He was not a true Primarch.
'My Lord said that Alphas, by drinking a Primarch's blood and undergoing a unique psychic ritual with their Librarians, could assume a Primarch's form.'
'They could even increase their size, beyond a "Faceless's" capabilities.'
The "Marionettist" abandoned the idea of deploying his second puppet. A secret weapon should be saved for a more critical moment.
With a thought, the Farseer puppet raised her left arm.
"Xenos!" Rancor charged at her.
Bolts of lightning, thick as a man's torso, struck a Lernaean Terminator, electricity shrieking through his armor.
Blood sprayed from his respirator. His charred body collapsed.
Rancor moved like lightning, faster than a Shadow of Order in Mark IV power armor. In an instant, he was before the xenos.
He swung his power axe, bringing it down with brutal force.
Boom!
Energy field clashed with psychic force, the deafening shriek echoing through the lead-grey mountains.
"Omegon!"
Rancor, having driven back the xenos, turned at the sound.
Dozens of Alphas emerged from the steep mountainside, including a dozen Lernaean Terminators.
They struck from behind the Shadows of Order, their fierce fire driving them back.
The fresh troops charged the Lernaean Terminators, joining the line.
Rancor lunged at the Aeldari Farseer, his axe cleaving towards her slender left arm.
The Farseer puppet retracted her arm, gripping the Singing Spear in both hands.
The silver spear blazed, humming as it met the power axe.
Boom!
Rancor hurled the xenos back. He was about to pursue when his warriors cried out in alarm.
He turned. A dozen Lernaean Terminators had turned on their comrades, power axes blazing.
Alphas, too, were firing on their own, bolt rounds hammering the Cataphractii armor.
Bang, bang, bang!
In an instant, the tide had turned. He had lost fourteen Lernaean Terminators.
"You-" He began, but his thoughts grew sluggish. His body stiffened.
'It's that… feeling… again…'
'Aeldari?'
Rancor charged the xenos.
His axe was about to fall when his arm stalled.
The Farseer puppet seized the chance, the Singing Spear shrieking towards him.
"Xenos… die-" Rancor forced the words out. His eyes blazed. The axe crackled, falling.
Boom!
Both Rancor and the Farseer puppet were hurled back.
The "Marionettist," hidden in the bunker's shadow, watched "Omegon."
'Indeed, you are not a true Primarch.'
'I can control your "Spirit-Body Threads."'
'Though you are not a Primarch, you are worthy of being my third puppet.'
The "Marionettist" plucked at the "Spirit-Body Threads," using the Farseer puppet to battle "Omegon."
At the same time, he manipulated the black threads extending from "Omegon," slowly bringing him under his control.
As his control deepened, Rancor's movements grew stiffer, his thoughts more sluggish. Even his combat instincts seemed sealed.
Finally, after a slow, old-man's swing, Rancor stopped, frozen like a statue.
William stepped from the shadows. Rancor moved again, walking towards him.
He stopped before William and knelt.
With a thought, Rancor rose, charging at the nearest Lernaean Terminator.
The puppet, Sid Rancor, raised his power axe, striking his own man.
"Omegon-" Rancor's Honour Guard fell.
He moved on, cutting down his warriors.
Explosions echoed.
William looked at the thirty-six Cataphractii-pattern Terminators standing beside his "Marionettists," and gave the order over the Court channel.
"Collect the bodies. Recover the energy crystals our father gifted us."
As the Court members moved, William summoned a transport. He had the Farseer puppet crystallize and enter a "dormant" state, then, with his new puppet, boarded a Shadow-pattern Stormbird and flew towards the Shadow's Sovereignty.
In the Primarch's office, Nareth leaned back on his throne, listening to William's report.
"My Chapter encountered Alphas in the Heldar Mountains. So far, four hundred and one are dead."
It was the first time William had lost so many warriors in less than two days, and most of them were Court Barons.
"The Alphas' elite, clad in Cataphractii-pattern Terminator armor, armed with melta guns and power axes, are likely the Lernaean Terminators mentioned in Your briefing."
"You are correct." Nareth nodded.
"They are the Alpha Legion's most skilled front-line force."
"You should be proud of your achievement."
'Dorn, I'm helping you out too.'
He remembered that during the Heresy, the Lernaean Terminators had accompanied Alpharius in an infiltration of the Sol System, causing Dorn considerable trouble and killing many Imperial Fists.
'I'm repaying Dorn early, since I'll be taking quite a lot from him soon.'
His gaze fell on the Lernaean Terminator behind William, his power axe slung on his back.
"Your new puppet is a good one. He is Sid Rancor, Captain of the Lernaean Terminators."
"He fought alongside Alpharius before I recovered Omegon. He is a powerful warrior, among the best of the Alpha Legion, second only to the Primarchs."
'Hmm, I remember Rancor was later sent by Omegon to destroy the Tenebere facility, suspecting it was leaking information to the Legion's enemies.'
'Before the mission, he drank Omegon's blood, taking on his appearance and some of his memories, and destroyed the Tenebere facility in a successful suicide mission.
'I didn't expect him not to die at Tenebere, but to become William's puppet.'
William's eyes lit up as he turned to look at his puppet, Sid Rancor.
Though the Lernaean Terminators operated in secrecy, the Black Emperor's dossier contained records of them.
Rancor, as the leader of the front-line Lernaean Terminators, was undoubtedly a formidable warrior.
Given what he had witnessed in battle, it was likely no one in his Chapter, even him, could defeat Rancor in single combat without careful preparation.
'A "Marionettist" should remain behind the scenes, letting their puppets fight on the front lines.'
As William pondered, Nareth studied Rancor, thinking.
'To command the Lernaean Terminators and Rancor, it must be either Alpharius or Omegon.'
'They are certainly preparing something in the shadows.'
'I can't let the Gordian campaign bog me down, giving them time to deploy.'
With that, Nareth turned to Arsena and gave his orders.
....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
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