"So that's what you were talking about, Tzeentch," I said without any hope, firing the last bullet.
The plague spawn didn't even flinch from the shot, and the fiery canister was instantly absorbed by the changing flesh. Nurgle was so strong that even metal couldn't withstand his plague. I tried not to breathe, but my eyes were already watering and my skin was starting to break out in horrible spots. And then I just collapsed from the mind-shattering pain.
There were claps, the roar of a chainsword could be heard through the haze of pain, and in a matter of moments, the daemons, disarmed by the arrival of the Second Legion, fell dead. The null field grew rapidly as the flagship of the Second Legion approached. This cruiser was quite small, but it was able to enter the atmosphere thanks to the xenos gravitic technology. The Primarch was brought straight to the heart of the capital of Herelian, rushing towards his brother and dispelling the encroaching darkness.
However, after the outburst, barely approaching the baths and drawing level with me, the primarch stopped and staggered. He was truly strong and had no reflection in the warp. No magic could harm him, but he was not protected from physical threats. Even suppressing one daemon prince on Alba cost him a lot of effort, and now much more dangerous entities turned their gaze on him, having already begun to play with his brother.
And without a shadow of a doubt, the Primarch gave the cruel order, after which I was shackled by his Legionaries, who brought with them a vast arsenal of all sorts of inventions accumulated during the Great Crusade. By burning my memory, the Primarch was digitizing memories and images. He had many theories about all this, and the worst of them were brought to reality as the darkness thickened around the Second Legion.
"I have only encountered such a thing once," the Primarch whispered in horror, studying the confused and extremely strange information.
And then his drones started exploding. Computing systems exploded, servitors shut down, and even the AI went into autonomous mode, forcibly disconnecting itself from system control and handing that job over to the cruiser's operators.
"Could it be that the Emperor…" one of the legionnaires, who had been fighting the mutation since the conquest of Terra, began to speak.
"No, it's not him," the primarch immediately cut him off and, using the cogitator on his elbow, activated the forced self-destruction of the faulty units.
- What then?
- I can only guess and nothing more, but Moiran is in terrible danger and there is a possibility that we will not be able to stop him. The fleet will be obliged to destroy everything if we do not get in touch in half an hour. The planet must turn into a red-hot fireball, the tectonic plates must be split and not a single living organism must remain here. Transmit!
- Eat!
The Primarch and the Second Legion left, and I was left lying on the floor. My mind was almost completely destroyed, I did not understand what was happening and did not react to it in any way. I was essentially turned into a vegetable and even my heart stopped beating, because my brain stopped performing the tasks assigned to it. Such injuries should have killed me, but for some reason nothing happened.
My soul remained attached to the body and looking at the world through the immaterium I tried to come to awareness. The lessons of the lodge helped me with this, but to be completely outside the body and see only emotions that have no connection to the material... this cannot be described, because people are mortal beings existing in a three-dimensional dimension. They do not have an organ for perceiving the true warp.
Trying to describe what was happening would be like telling a blind person about colors. Although even that would be wrong, because human language simply does not have the appropriate words and terms related to what I saw. Or rather, I did not see or even feel, but… I perceived with the help of the fibers of my soul, learning to analyze and understand. Most of all, it was like the moment of birth.
Not understanding anything and not being able to remember anything like that, I was in the dark and did not even have the ability to remember all this. I was nothing and everything, flowing along an endless stream and was like an elementary particle that did not care about anything and was led by Laws that did not understand it. This was somewhat reminiscent of rebirth, only it was delayed due to someone else's will.
It was the will of Tzeentch, who used another soul to observe what was happening. He did not allow me to go further, and through Mordred he watched closely every disturbance in the warp. Other souls were under his control, as were the remaining gods and other entities using the same methods. Souls became as if part of the ocean: weak and helpless drops within something vast and all-powerful.
But these oceans were different. Khorne's presence was natural and necessary, he could not help but be there, too much anger had gathered in this and other places. Whether he wanted to or not, he perceived and felt what was happening, though he had no interest in it. Nurgle looked on, but was busy with something more important to him. Slaanesh was a little lost in what was happening, which is why the ocean was constantly stormy, but sometimes it seemed that she was repeating Tzeentch's movements, hoping to understand him and play him, to calm her own pride.
And Tzeentch… he studied and watched every moment. With all his will, he pushed Kairos to whisper to him of the past and the changing future. He wanted to know everything, and this desire broke him apart, for such a goal was unattainable. It could only be sought, and because of this, every moment became for Tzeentch an agonizing race for his own tail.
But it was not only this that prevented Tzeentch from knowing everything. Suddenly, an alien will struck like a beam of light directly into his primary face, burning out his eyes. A scream of rage erupted in the warp, and the attention of every entity in the Immaterium turned to the figure their actions had created.
And the blinding force continued to move and change reality according to its will. Reflexively, my soul reached out to the source of this light, after which everything finally ended.
*
"Ten minutes left," said an Imperial Army officer, cutting through the deathly silence on the Fortuna's bridge.
Shai waited and waited for good news, but with each passing minute the despair only grew stronger. He wanted to howl from his own helplessness, as well as from the understanding that was tearing his soul apart. Moiran was dead, his brother probably too. It was necessary to prepare the fleet for the final blow and rush in pursuit of the retreating Rangdans, who everyone had forgotten about.
But could Shai do such a thing? Was anyone in his legion capable of carrying out such an order?
- Follow the order. You are in charge. As soon as the captain of the last company regains consciousness, you will hand over control to him.
The officer nodded silently and did not argue. Everyone understood that this was complete madness and stupidity. However, no one dared to take away the right of loyal sons to die with their father. It was their choice and everyone made it themselves.
"It is true what they say, the bonds between a Primarch and a Legion are stronger than those of parents," the officer said grimly, starting to give orders about preparing to turn Hereliana into hell, if of course there was enough firepower: splitting the tectonic plates would not be easy, especially after wasting ammunition on other planets, on the other hand, the planetary shields were finally destroyed, maybe it would work.
In any case, even if the tectonic plates were not broken, the entire surface would be scorched, and all living things would be destroyed. This was understood by Shai, who with the last forces of the Legion, three thousand Space Marines, a thousand of whom were wounded, was already flying to the surface to help the Second Legion do what was necessary or die trying.
And from the very first moments the landing turned into hell. The Legion landed right on the baths, but the entire planet was already swarming with daemons that fought among themselves. For every meter passed, the Astartes gave their lives, rushing into their final battle. They sought a valiant death, so as not to live in eternal shame, which had already forever fallen on the Eleventh Legion.
The huge number of demons near the baths already spoke of the worst. The second legion failed and was destroyed by the enemy.
"You should have stayed on the ship to later revive Moiran's legacy," the warp-distorted daemon whispered, and Shai took his head off with a blow from his chainsword.
"But you were always selfish," said the demon, and Shay shot him in the head with a plasma pistol.
"And also a weakling," voices were heard everywhere as the Astartes forces melted away and became separated from each other.
"And a coward," added the demon, born from the floor itself and wrapping its tentacles around Shay's legs.
The landing was choking and the bolter shots were becoming less frequent. Slowly, Shai's knees were pulled to the ground by incredibly strong tentacles, causing his power armor to crack. Much more skilled warriors fell in battle with this vile enemy. Moiran's chosen ones were powerless and even the legion's terminators learned their own weakness. And what could Shai do, who was never considered the best marksman, swordsman, and could not cope with the terminator armor, writing it all off to his personal love of mobility and maneuverability.
Yet there was something about Shai that made him stronger than all the others. It was for this reason that Moiran had appointed him captain of the First Company. For even when lost in the darkness and consumed by confusion because of thousands of voices that spoke the absolute truth, Shai continued to follow his path. He could not be lured into the lodge, he never sought greater power, nor did he even share the philosophy of the order.
Shai was simple as a crowbar. And incredibly he resisted any attempts to make him into something else. Even when Tzeentch joined the chorus of voices and Shai's own mind fully understood the objectivity and inviolability of the arguments being made... without understanding why Shai refused to change. It was easier to break him than to change him.
With a clang and sparks, the servos gave in and with a crack, Shai's knees shattered the warp-distorted stone slab from which the chthonic tentacles grew. But at that very moment, a plasma pistol began to glow in Shai's left hand.
"I don't give a shit who or what you are. You're going to die," Shai growled, plunging the barrel into the darkness beneath him.
A bright flash illuminated the darkness and a monstrous blast wave began to spread chaotically, not obeying any laws of physics. One by one, the tentacles exploded and jets of plasma burst from the ground, one of them melted the brush of the left hand. At the same moment, the demon weakened and the right hand was freed, with which Shai snatched the melta bomb intended for Moiran.
"I knew it would come in handy much sooner," Shai said, closing his eyes, and everything disappeared in the fire.
These bombs destroyed the most armored vehicles and there was little protection from a directed blast. However, even if the jet was not aimed at you, it was still extremely dangerous to be nearby. The temperature could instantly kill a simple soldier and even the space marines were ordered to throw it away so as not to damage the power armor.
The explosion caused colossal destruction and the demon had no choice but to retreat, trying to disperse the explosion. The chthonic flesh was scattered into pieces, immediately beginning to disappear, and the shock wave was cut into pieces and even came out somewhere twenty meters underground. Shai himself was thrown back and remained a pile of molten meat lying under the black sky of Hereliana.
He failed to break through into the depths of the baths, and from his capsule he advanced barely fifty meters, trying to find a passage into the multi-level baths. His right arm was torn off along with his left leg, steam was coming from the melted armor, and the visor was out of order, as were all the systems of the power armor. The temperature inside the armor reached monstrous temperatures and even the black carapace could not help. The wounds were monstrous, even if there was a detachment of apothecaries with better equipment, it is not a fact that they would have time to help.
Shai was dying, painfully and agonizingly, and every second for him turned into an eternity. Too weak to win, too strong to die quickly. Fortunately, very soon the fleet would have to fire a salvo and erase everything that had happened from the world.
"It's good that the Emperor didn't have time to see everything personally," Shai thought, when he suddenly realized that the volley was delayed for some reason.
He wanted to look at the sky, but his eyes leaked out. However, at the last moment, Shai somehow saw a blinding light. The sun itself was shining in the sky, which a moment ago had been black because of the smog. Shai had never seen or would see anything more beautiful in his life.
Literally seconds later, thousands of landing pods landed on the ground and a wolf's roar was heard. Tens of thousands of space wolves rushed forward and the Wolf King himself led them. His heart was torn apart by incredible pain, he could not believe what had happened and his rage was shared by the entire Pack that fought side by side with the golden warriors and the Sisters of Silence.
The advance was unstoppable and the ring around the ruins of the capital was rapidly tightening. Leman Russ was merciless and one by one both the daemons and the possessed were destroyed, including the Space Marines. The owners of the collars were especially dangerous, leading hordes of abominations into battle and trying to stop the mortals.
And the more the demons resisted, the more furious Leman Russ's onslaught became. Such desperate resistance and being pelted with meat only meant that the enemy did not want to let anyone into the baths. And this in turn meant that there was a chance to interfere with the entities' plans.
"FREAKY, GERI!!!" — as if a storm pierced the loud cry of Leman Russ.
And his brothers rushed ahead of him, true beasts and faithful companions of the Wolf King, suckled by a she-wolf. The huge wolves separated and bit into the legs of the defiled Knight. So monstrous was their grip that even the servos of the mighty machine were powerless. Menacingly growling and tearing metal with their teeth, they drove in another prey.
Leman Russ accelerated to a monstrous speed and with a mighty throw transferred all his momentum into the Dionysian Spear, which was a gift from the Emperor himself. With this weapon, the Legion and the Primarch swore an oath of fealty. In this throw, there was both great fury directed at the enemy and the desire to get rid of the spear itself, which made the throw incredibly powerful.
And as soon as the Knight fell, Leman Russ immediately drew his sword and climbed on top of the fallen enemy to survey the battlefield and pick out a new target with his predatory gaze. To drive, to surround, to separate from others, to destroy - such was the tactics and strategy of the Space Wolves, but Leman Russ's gaze fell on the final target, on the capital itself, already isolated. There were no other enemies left, it was necessary to break through to the center, but there was already a battle there. And the Emperor himself was taking part in it.
"You didn't have time. Your father will do it himself," the Custodian's voice came over the vox, making Leman Russ feel incredibly offended. "And you shouldn't use his gift so recklessly."
"A gift?!" roared Leman Russ, turning his anger on the medallion he often wore, though not when meeting Moiran. "How could you, Moiran?! Why did you do this?!"
And in his rage, Leman Russ tore the medallion from his neck. For a moment he stood there, unable to believe what had happened. How could this happen to one of them? With difficulty, after five long minutes, Leman Russ simply dropped the medallion next to the fallen Knight, whose crystal was slowly turning to dust.
That day, two Legions disappeared from the history of the Imperium forever. The Emperor brought with him the forces of nine Legions, but the final assault was made up of only himself, the Custodians, and the Sisters of Silence. Everyone knew what had happened, and the Emperor's determination to do what he had to, despite his personal feelings, had a profound effect on Leman Russ, as did the fact that he had not managed to break through.
The total purge involved forces primarily from the Death Guard and Dark Angels. This raised questions from Leman Russ himself, who was eager to at least make up for his failure here. However, the Emperor said that only these two Legions could ideally carry out the task due to their experience, knowledge and technology.
The purge lasted seven days, Mortarion personally led his best warriors through the plague-ridden underground passages and personally supervised the pinpoint destruction of each cursed artefact. It was impossible to simply blow everything up, it was necessary to make sure of the destruction, because even the destruction of the planet could not guarantee that the artefact would not be stolen by some daemon at the last moment or protected by the forces of chaos. After all, even having fallen into the fiery depths, the artefact can be found thousands of years later by the enemies of Mankind.
These events hardened the Dark Angels, but they also affected Mortarion, and no one noticed because of his silence. He silently carried out every order of the Emperor and made no comment on what had happened. He, like the others, did not ask questions about what had happened, knowing the answer perfectly well. That day, Mortarion was finally convinced of who exactly his Father was.
As for the other Legions… for some it was expected, for others it was painful. Only Ferrus Manus denied it to the very end. He simply denied it and pretended that something had happened… something else, but the destruction of two Legions.
Sanguinius and Magnus' fears for their Legions grew, for the Emperor had been cruel, even brutal, before, but after the destruction of the Second Legion... they feared that the mutations of their Legions might be given over to the purifying fires as well. Malcador's power also grew, as did Mankind's fears for the Astartes.
All this will cause very controversial, but necessary decisions. However, the Emperor will not be able to change anything and, to the laughter of the false gods, the galaxy will be engulfed in flames.
My soul, after the suffering it has endured, will return to the domains of Tzeentch, which after what happened were engulfed in unpredictable and dangerous changes. After all, after everything that happened, Tzeentch... lost.
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